There’s no worse feeling than pulling your dream limited 5-star character, rushing to the ascension menu, and realizing you have zero character EXP materials to get them to a playable level. If you’ve ever been stuck staring at a level 1 unit with no way to power them up, you’re probably looking for the most efficient ways to stock up on resources. This guide breaks down exactly how to get level up books in Honkai: Star Rail, with a mix of stamina-focused farming routes and free no-cost sources you might be sleeping on.
How to Get Level Up Books in Honkai: Star Rail With Stamina Farming
Stamina farming is the fastest way to build up a large stock of level up books if you need materials right away for a new character. The primary source for these books is Crimson Calyx stages labeled “Character EXP”, which drop three tiers of materials depending on your equilibrium level and the stage difficulty you run. Higher difficulty stages drop far more high-tier books per 10 stamina spent, so you should always run the highest level stage you can clear consistently for the best value.
If you're focusing on how to get level up books in Honkai: Star Rail as fast as possible, double drop events are your best friend. These events run for 3-4 days every patch, and give you twice the number of rewards for the same stamina cost. Save your reserved stamina and fuel items for these events, and you can get enough books to level 3-4 characters to max level in just a couple of runs. Many new players burn all their fuel as soon as they get it, but waiting for double drops gives you 100% extra value for no extra work.
Free, No-Stamina Sources of Level Up Books You Might Be Missing
You don’t have to spend all your stamina on Calyx runs to build up a solid stock of level up books. There are dozens of free sources scattered across the game that give you materials for doing content you’re probably already running anyway. I’ve personally gotten over half of my level up book stock from these free sources over the last few patches, without spending a single point of stamina on dedicated farming runs.
- Daily training rewards: You get a handful of mid and low-tier level up books every day just by hitting 500 training points, no extra work needed beyond your regular dailies.
- Simulated Universe rewards: Both regular runs and the weekly point-based chests give stacks of high-tier level up books, especially if you clear higher world difficulties.
- Forgotten Hall and Pure Fiction clears: Every star you earn on new floor clears gives you a bundle of level up books, and the monthly reset also gives recurring rewards you can claim for repeat runs.
- Event shops and limited time events: Almost every in-game event has level up books as free rewards, even if you only complete the first 2-3 stages of an event, you can walk away with enough to level a character from 1 to 60.
- Chest rewards across all maps: Every common, exquisite, and luxurious chest you open in open world maps (including new areas like Penacony) has a chance to drop level up books, with luxurious chests often giving 2-3 high-tier copies.
The Nameless Honor pass is another underrated free source, even if you never pay for the premium tier. The free track gives you dozens of high-tier level up books every patch cycle, enough to level one full 5-star character from 1 to 80 without any extra effort. If you’re still figuring out how to get level up books in Honkai: Star Rail without spending all your playtime farming, these free routes are the perfect place to start.
Tips to Optimize Your Level Up Book Stock for No Waste
Even if you have a huge stock of level up books, wasting them on unnecessary upgrades can leave you high and dry when you pull a new character you actually want to use. The first rule is to calculate exactly how many books you need before you start farming, so you don’t waste stamina on extra materials you’ll never use. For reference, a 5-star character from 1 to 80 needs around 24 high-tier, 30 mid-tier, and 15 low-tier books, so you can plan your farming runs accordingly.
Avoid leveling every character you pull to max level right away, especially if you’re a new player with limited resource stock. I made this mistake early on, leveling every random 4-star I pulled to 50 just to test them out, and ended up with zero books left when I pulled my first limited 5-star. I had to wait 3 full days of farming to even get the character to a playable level, which killed all the excitement of pulling them. Prioritize your main team first, then supports you use regularly for endgame content, and save the rest of your books for new limited releases you actually want to build. If you’re prone to over-farming, you can keep a small note of how many books you have left, so you never have to panic about how to get level up books in Honkai: Star Rail when a new character drops.
You can also convert lower tier books to higher tier ones in the synthesis menu if you have a bunch of low-level materials lying around. 5 low-tier books convert to 1 mid-tier book, and 5 mid-tier books convert to 1 high-tier book, so there’s no reason to hoard low-tier materials if you don’t have any low-level characters to level.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Farming Level Up Books
There are a few common mistakes that make farming level up books way more time-consuming and resource-heavy than it needs to be. The first is wasting stamina on low difficulty Calyx stages when you’re at a higher equilibrium level. For example, if you’re at equilibrium level 5, running the level 60 Character EXP Calyx gives you 3x more high-tier books per stamina than the level 30 stage, even if the level 30 stage takes 10 seconds less to clear. The extra drop value is well worth the extra 30 seconds of fight time.
Another big mistake is forgetting to claim event rewards before an event ends. A lot of players run event stages to get the limited 5-star or light cone, but never go back to the event shop to redeem their leftover points for level up books. That’s literally leaving free resources on the table, and most event shops have enough level up books to level 2 characters to 70 if you redeem all your points.
Don’t use level up books on trial characters either, even if you want to test them out in open world. Any levels you give to trial characters don’t carry over if you pull them later, so that’s a total waste of materials. If you want to test a character’s kit, use the trial mode in the character showcase or Simulated Universe instead, which lets you play with a max level version of the character for free. If you avoid these simple mistakes, you’ll cut down the time you spend figuring out how to get level up books in Honkai: Star Rail by half, and have more time to play the content you actually enjoy.
At the end of the day, figuring out how to get level up books in Honkai: Star Rail doesn’t have to be a grind that eats up all your stamina every week. By mixing stamina farming during double drop events, collecting all your free no-stamina rewards, and avoiding common wasteful mistakes, you’ll have a full stock of books ready every time you pull a new character you want to build. I’ve used these exact methods for the last 3 patches, and I haven’t run out of level up books even when I built 4 new characters in one patch cycle. Play around with the routes that work best for your schedule, and you’ll never be stuck staring at a level 1 character with no way to level them up again.
