Fontaine comes to Genshin Impact

Sept. 17 (ZFJ) — Put on your top hats and button your shirts, because Teyvat’s new nation and realm of Hydro, Fontaine, has finally released! HoYoverse—the creators of Genshin Impact—has pulled back the curtain on a land brimming with court trials, performances, and magic shows.

Inside the walls of Fontaine’s city are multiple levels of homes, shops, and restaurants to explore. ZFJ/Zoe Wu

Inside the walls of Fontaine’s city are multiple levels of homes, shops, and restaurants to explore. ZFJ/Zoe Wu

The Epiclese Theatre, where one can sit down and enjoy performances and court trials alike. ZFJ/Zoe Wu

The Fountain of Lucine, a wishing well for Fontaine’s citizens, located just before the Epiclese Theatre. ZFJ/Zoe Wu

As the nation led by the Hydro Archon, Focalors, Fontaine holds the duality of two worlds: a land territory, containing steampunk-esque cities not unlike Pilltover from Arcane, and an underwater territory, consisting of mysterious ruins and many aquatic creatures.

The currently released map of Fontaine, soon to expand with the 4.1 update, arriving on the 27th of September (Wednesday). ZFJ/Zoe Wu

Currently, Fontaine comes in three regions: Beryl and Belleau are the closest to Sumeru’s desert, with aquatic trains (known as Aquabusses) traveling through them to the third region, the Court of Fontaine.

The Court of Fontaine is, at first glance, the most alluring: it houses the… well… Court of Fontaine, the capital city of this nation. East of the city is Erinnyes, housing Fontaine’s elaborate court (or theater): the Opera Epiclese, which accommodates the Fountain of Lucine. Players will be able to exchange Hydro Sigils for rewards here, similar to the Sacred Sakura Tree in Inazuma or the Tree of Dreams in Sumeru. The Merusea Village, hometown of the fantastical Melusines, who use their extraordinary eyesight in their work as detectives, hides beneath the majestic mountains and valleys that lie away from Fontaine’s bustling city life.

Splattered across the city and wildlife are various flora, such as the rainbow rose (which is, oddly enough, more akin to a pink lily), marcotte, pluie lotus and bulle fruit—which is essentially the orange of Teyvat.

Also explorable is Fontaine’s trademark: varied bodies of water that make up a whole other world.

Players will find Fontaine’s underwater realm filled with plenty of sealife: bright plants of all sorts, glowing conches surrounding hermit (“armored”) crabs of different types, hunter’s rays, blubberbeasts, and more. But this is just the surface. Diving deeper into Fontaine’s waters will reveal pockets of air and ancient ruins.

Underwater ruins, explorable in the quest “Aqueous Tidemarks.” ZFJ/Zoe Wu

This is all fine and dandy, but there is even more to Fontaine’s dimensions. In fact, you might as well mash them together to explain Fontaine’s third region: floating water cubes.

Currently out-of-bounds in the game, these water cubes will become explorable in the 4.1 update. ZFJ/Zoe Wu

The water cubes are essentially a combination of both above land and underwater realms, complete with islands and sea life. There’s another similarity to draw between them all: the ever-present enemies.

Fontaine offers many new enemies, both in natural life (the sea animals bite) and in a new steampunk style, with the introduction of Clockwork Meka: technologically driven creatures brought to life by Arkhe, one of Fontaine’s two unique energy systems.

There are two other Clockwork Meka designs: Coppelia and Coppelius. They waltz together as the Icewind Suite, a boss near the Fountain of Lucine. Gifted by the Fontaine Research Institute (yet to be released as an explorable area), they dance a deadly battle of cryo and anemo in two modes the player may choose from: Dirge of Coppelia and Nemesis of Coppelius.

The other boss currently released in Fontaine is found underground, in a fiery cave. Named the “Emperor of Fire and Iron,” it is an ancient ruler of the Fontemer Aberrant, Fontaine’s underwater creatures (namely underwater enemies, though practically all sealife—save for the Stamina Restoring Fish™—are fightable).

However, HoYoverse seems to have a pattern of secrets when it comes to Fontaine: there is, in fact, a third boss. Vivianne of The Lake is a powerful Lake Spirit—and more of an easter egg—as they not only have a staggering amount of HP but also deal insane amounts of damage. Not even a fully buffed Zhongli’s shield may stand its ground in a fight with Vivianne!

Vivianne, manifesting her anger… don’t mind Mona’s skill effects (no Monas were hurt during the taking of this picture). ZFJ/Zoe Wu

NEW CHARACTERS

To balance the plethora of enemies housed in Fontaine, HoYoverse has also introduced us to many allies.

LYNEY AND LYNETTE

In the ongoing 4.0 update are new characters Lyney and Lynette, who are five and four-star characters respectively. Lyney wields a Pyro Vision and a bow, while Lynette wields an Anemo Vision and a sword. The duo are magicians, with Lynette being Lyney’s assistant and younger sister! They are currently available in the first half of the update.

Lyney, as seen in the in-game Character Archive. ZFJ/Zoe Wu

Lynette, as seen in the in-game Character Archive. ZFJ/Zoe Wu

FREMINET

Though many may not expect it at first, talent and skill prove to run in the family as Freminet is Lyney and Lynette’s younger brother. While the older siblings take to magic, Freminet takes to the sea as an exceptional diver, helmet and Cryo Vision under his belt. Also joining him is his clockwork penguin, Pers!

Freminet (and Pers), as seen in the in-game Character Archive. ZFJ/Zoe Wu

Freminet is a four-star claymore user with a Cryo Vision and has just made his debut in the second phase of the 4.0 update!

CHARLOTTE

True to The ZFJ’s own drive for the truth is Charlotte. While she doesn’t work for our newspaper, she does work for Teyvat’s most renowned one: The Steambird. Camera and notebook at the ready, Charlotte is always eager to find exclusive stories.

Charlotte is expected to be a four-star, and is confirmed to have a Cryo Vision.

NEUVILLETTE

As the Iudex, or chief justice of Fontaine’s court system, Neuvillette is bound to be powerful. He wields a Hydro Vision and catalyst user with skills not so dissimilar to the Hydro Traveller’s abilities—albeit with only two normal attack animations (excluding charged attacks).

Neuvillette was recently announced to be a playable character, arriving in the first half of Update 4.1 as a five-star. Oddly enough, he doesn’t seem to possess a vision…

WRIOTHESLEY

Though we’ve yet to see him in game, Wriothesley has already been announced as a playable character, set to make his debut in Update 4.1 alongside Neuvillette, albeit in the second half. As the lord (or administrator) of the Fortress of Meropide, Wriothesley shoulders great responsibility as he manages Fontaine’s great prison. This prison is heavily implied to be underwater by a HoYoLAB article: “Just like that place of exiled convicts he’s [Wriothesley’s] in charge of, standing there silently at the bottom of the sea.”

Wriothesley is a five-star Cryo user, wielding the catalyst—or rather, similarly to Heizou, his own fists, albeit armed with metal gloves and a boxing-oriented fighting style reminiscent of Vi and Vander from Arcane.

NAVIA

Navia, otherwise known by the moniker “Yellow Rose,” is the head of the Spina di Rosula, a private investigative organization in Fontaine. Working on what the Gardes—Fontaine’s official police—do not, she carries a Geo Vision on hand, as well as a claymore. She has not been announced for any banners yet, but will most likely become a playable character.

CLORINDE

Like sun and moon, Navia and Clorinde are complete opposites: as Navia heads an independent organization, Clorinde works as the bodyguard for Fontaine’s Archon. This is not her only profession. She is also a Champion Duelist, fighting the criminally accused in a duel of honor.

Clorinde wields Electro with a sword in hand, and is expected to be a five-star. However, the blade isn’t her only weapon, as she has also been seen firing a pistol charged with Electro.

FURINA As a nation of justice, Fontaine simply couldn’t be complete without its Ace Attorney-like court trials. What makes Fontaine’s legal proceedings all the more reminiscent of Ace Attorney’s wacky adversarial courtroom shenanigans is the eccentric overseer and participant of Fontaine’s trials, Focalors—better known as Furina—herself. As the nation’s archon, she is a definitive Hydro wielder, though little is known about which weapon she will use alongside it, her flamboyant, decidedly teenage attitude may be a worthy substitute.

ARLECCHINO

Like every other nation, Fontaine also houses a Fatui Harbinger. “The Knave,” better known as Arlecchino, has yet to reveal herself past Genshin teasers and trailers, though she does not seem to have ill intentions. While Arlecchino was seen wearing a Pyro Vision in Fontaine’s Trailer Overture Teaser: The Final Feast, there is no confirmation on what weapon she will use.

NEW GAME MECHANICS

Underwater features make Fontaine stand out. Players can finally jump in and explore the underwater world. With some changes to camera movement when moving underwater, as well as new animations for movement, HoYoverse has introduced diving. Players can move in all directions, traversing the underwater world however they want.

However, as mentioned before, the underwater world is not devoid of enemies; but how will characters be able to fight underwater?

The answer does not lie in the modification of characters’ abilities. In fact, it lies entirely elsewhere: enter the underwater combat system.

Mingling with the underwater creatures are their blue-tinted twins, “Fontemer Aberrants.” Players can mimic their attacks and defenses—then use them in combat. Different species of Aberrants have different attacks, and their skills are not only useful in combat but also puzzle solving!

Separate from these new underwater mechanics, though still included in the aquatic realm, is another Fontaine-exclusive feature: Arkhe. It’s one of Fontaine’s energies, aside from Indemnitium (energy derived from the people’s belief in justice), and is divided into two pieces. Like yin and yang, these parts are known as Pneuma and Ousia.

In combat, combining the two energies results in additional damage (like piercing), and for opponents charged with one energy, clashing with the other results in an “overloaded” effect where the opponent is incapacitated.

Arkhe can be found all over: in open-world puzzles, opponents, playable characters, and perhaps some domain puzzles. For Vision wielders from Fontaine, their Arkhe alignment is signaled by one of Fontaine’s two Vision designs.

An Ousia-aligned Vision. ZFJ/Zoe Wu

A Pneuma-aligned Vision. ZFJ/Zoe Wu

NEW LORE

HoYoverse presents all these new open-world features and characters in the start of Chapter Four’s Archon Quests. Update 4.0 brings the Traveler from Sumeru to Fontaine with the first two Archon Quest acts, “Prelude of Blancheur and Noirceur” and “As Light Rain Falls Without Reason” in their respective order.

After entering Fontaine’s unique world and meeting its enigmatic Archon, Travelers can join Lyney (and Lynette) on their story quest, delving into a magical story full of twists and eye-opening tricks.

Taking a few steps back, Fontaine has already provided a myriad of things to explore, and more to look forward to.

References

• Genshin Impact - Version 4.0 Special Program｜Genshin Impact - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E73BKNtOXI
• Genshin Impact - Overture Teaser: The Final Feast | Genshin Impact - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SbgmM3mSps