How does Pity work in Honkai: Star Rail?

What is pity?

Pity is an insurance mechanic: the more you pull without a 5★, the higher your 5★ chance climbs, until a point where it is guaranteed. You never pull forever with nothing.

Soft pity and hard pity

On the character banner the base 5★ rate is just 0.6%. But from around pull 74 (soft pity) it ramps sharply, and by pull 90 (hard pity) a 5★ is guaranteed. On average players hit a 5★ around pull 62–74.

50/50 and the guarantee

When a 5★ hits on the character banner, you have a 50% chance of the featured unit and 50% of a standard one. If you lose it, your NEXT 5★ is guaranteed featured. So at most 180 pulls guarantees the character you want.

HSR uses a pure 50/50 with no safety net. Light cones are kinder: 75% featured, hard pity 80.