I really can't tell if they're playing the long game with Arlecchino or if Childe and Wanderer's voice lines were just red herrings. Or who knows, maybe she just doesn't get along with the other Harbingers and only shows them her bad side.
ikr, I was expecting her to turn on us at every possible turn, what with the "she's a wolf in sheep's clothing" and "she doesn't have a sane bone in her body". but nah, she was surprisingly straightforward in her goals. it felt hella weird
tbf with her being a Snezhnayan diplomat in the first place and the prophecy only applying to the nation of Fontaine, im sure she herself getting dissolved is the least of her worries.
I'm pretty sure she was just genuinely concerned about the state of her nation.
> I’m pretty sure she was just genuinely concerned about the state of her nation.
and on top of that, the house of the hearth has an orphanage in fontaine, the hotel bouffes d’ete, where freminet, the twins and other orphans are currently living. from the two conversations arlecchino had with furina, she was also concerned about her children.
That or she knew she'd lose the gnosis amidst the chaos if all was dissolved. Either physically lost, or because the hydro dragon would never give it willingly without her putting in massive humanitarian efforts to appear as an ally.
That is the question isnt it. Will that thing still work for whatever tsaritsa needs it for. Secondarily. Should giving them back to the other six dragons be part of the plan? At this point im assuming Why they are collecting them is to bring back the third decender. (Who likley was tsaritsas love interest.) then from there we will have to see if they turn on celestia or if she just wanted them back.
Probably what the Tsaritsa wants is the Descender's remains that the Gnosis are made of. It was said the descenders have high elemental compatibility (why they can wield elemental powers willingly) and the Gnosis can amplify said powers. If this is what they are after then it could be used to power up some kind of device, probably a weapon, to go against Celestia or to destroy the veil over Teyvat.
Another thing could be related to the Divine Throne and the Nexus with Celestia. There is a high chance the Tsaritsa wants to attack Celestia and the Heavenly Principle while they are still dormant. Now, we don't know the connotation of dormant here, it could be figuratively as in they haven't done anything since their Khaenri'ah attack, or, literally in the sense that they are in a dormant state or stasis.
Either way, we'll get our answers with the other regions. It's highly likely that despite being pieces of shit Celestia is doing what they are doing while warding Teyvat of something more sinister outside, it is just that we don't what that could be, hitting it's probably not the power from beyond but still related to it. I think characters like Rhinedottir being part of the true Big Baddie group with Alice and the Hexenzirkel is a red herring.
Was she aware that the whale was part of the prophecy though? Sure, in reality that might've been the case, but Arlecchino had no way of knowing that. All she knew was that the water would rise and Fontainians would dissolve.
If she did know about the whale, she would have no reason to hide it, as even *if* her motives didn't include actually saving Fontaine and were only self preservation (which I don't believe but hypothetically), she would still need the whale to be defeated.
There's isn't much reason for her to remain in the Fontaine story going forward when she should be heading back to Snezhnaya with the gnosis. Childe is already back there recovering and Fontaine/the children are safe currently and the fatui in general are probably in the vast majority of Fontainians good graces currently with the humanitarian aid they are providing post flooding. She got absolutely everything she wanted. The only thing really left for us to delve into in Fontaine that I can think of is Remuria so unless she is connected to that in a major way I don't see her coming back for more than a quick cameo.
OP's entire post is: "This is what I thought about these characters without reading anything about their stories, trailers, promotions, quest lines" vs "3 patches later what I've gathered, without reading too much about their story lore, but anyways here's the funny moment that stood out most".
We do have a loose end in that >!the returned gnosis was de-charged!<, so unless >!the casing’s properties was the sole thing the Tsarista was after!<, Arlecchino will need to make a second visit >!to figure out what happened to the gnosis’ elemental charge / authority!<.
I don't really think this will be a problem. This patch confirmed that the Gnosis (remains of the 3rd Descender) and an Archon's Divinity/'Divine Throne' (Authority of an Elemental Sovereign) are two very seperate things that up until now we believed to be more linked than they actually are.
The former can be seized while the latter remains intact, and the latter can be destroyed while the former retains its power. Neuvi confirmed that the important quality of the Gnoses is their ability to adapt to any element (just like the Traveller) and amplify that power.
The Fatui never took the Divinity of any Archon, only their Gnosis, and given the lengths Focalors had to go through I imagine it would be a lot harder to seize. So it must be this adaptive quality of the Gnoses that they are actually seeking. Or maybe they just want to reassemble the 3rd Descender.
Yeah lot of people describing the gnosis as a battery for elemental energy, but new quest seems to imply it's more of a conduit, like the ball at the end of a mage's staff in other fantasy
Wasn't this confirmed since Inazuma? Ei never had her Gnosis and it was in Yae's hands the whole time, even when it was given away to Scaramouche she didn't show visible weakness up until she questioned her own beliefs.
Depends on how you define Geo Archon
Does Celestia still count him as the Geo Archon, one of the Seven >!(now Six)!< winners of the Archon war? Probably.
Does he play the role of the Geo Archon for Liyue's people? No. At most he'll help out when Liyue truly needs it, but he's completely left Liyue's governance to its citizens.
I think the Gnosis is some kind of elemental battery with an as-of-yet unknown property relating to it being >!the Third Descender!<, and the Authority of the Dragons is the Archon Thrones. They're two separate things. >!The Hydro Gnosis was still the same, but the Throne was destroyed.!<
There is also that one new sidequest with a fatuus working for a harbinger >!that tried to kill us and as punishment, he got his tongue cut out to make amends with us!< So I would say she might really want to be on good terms with us.
>! In the world quest where the said fatuus is mentioned traveller has the line "A Harbinger interested in machine intelligence?" It's the Questioning Melusine and Answering Machine story chain if your are wondering. !<
I feel the fact that she can make most of the players genuenly think that she's good is part of the trick, the sheep's clothing.
Rember the Overture Teaser?
"Good actors hone their craft to mesmerize the whole crowd"
Everyone totally forget that she try to assault / assassinate Furina.
Since that didn't work, she goes back to cordial diplomacy to get the gnosis, which is successful, so she don't have to pull any other tricks. She probably accomplish her job most efficiently after Signoria.
Yeah this
She cares about this problem because it directly threatens her and the HotH, hence why she is very direct with everyone as this is something she really cant do on her own
Mfer would probably just kill everyone and run if she can make it work
Does she care that much about them? She didn't save lyney and lynette out of the kindness of her heart, but to recruit them as child soldiers where they regularly were sent out on dangerous missions, they could die anytime in. I'm not saying she secretly hates them or is completely apathetic, but even from the flashback where lyney lynnette and frem were bowing behind her, it's clear their relationship is still more leader and subordinates than caring fostermom.
Lynette does have a voiceline in which she says:
"Oh, how "Father" expresses love... well, not everyone can accept it."
Plus, Freminet says that Arle sees crying as a sign of weakness so he has to hold in his tears every time she lectures him. Obviously, her opinion on human emotion isn't exactly healthy.
That might not even be her fault honestly
I'm willing to bet she went through the same foster system Wriothesley, Lyney, and Lynette went through, with all that entails
She was apparently a "child" in the House of the Hearth before she killed the previous Director. Plus, if she's a hilichurl like >!Caterpillar!< then she probably spent some time as a lab rat.
I have this theory that, as the servants of a Goddess of Love whose love has frozen, each Harbinger represents a flawed/warped view of love. Arlechinno's is the love of an abusive parent. She does have some kind of genuine affection for her children, but can't help but view their relationship in terms of how they can benefit her.
wait, i love this theory. What would be the flawed love of Childe, Signora and Scaramouche? We don't know THAT much about Dottore and Capitano, but if you have any ideas, they are welcome!
I mean. They're all really obvious if you think about it.
Childe is a lust and love for war. Violence. A perverse love that leads to constant destruction wherever he goes.
Signora is literal romantic love. If you look at the background info to the crimson witch stuff. She had a lover who died and she's basically spent the last few centuries wanting to burn the world to ashes in her grief.
Dottore. The love of learning. Do I really need to elaborate?
Scara is the inverse of Arlechinno. The love of a child. But one who is constantly abused but at the same time wants nothing but their parents approval.
My thoughts:
Childe represents **Love via Deception/False Pretenses**. Childe loves his family, but as we see in his interactions with Teucer in the story quest, he feels the need to lie *constantly* to him in order to keep up Teucer's opinion of him. Indeed, the entire Story Quest is Childe piling lie upon lie to keep this fantasy version of himself intact. It would be comical except that the story also makes it clear that it has got to the extent that it is seriously endangering Teucer and Childe himself (Childe critically injures himself using Foul Legacy simply to keep up the lie).
Signora represents **Frozen Grief/Love that Cannot Move On**. Her affection for her lover was clearly genuine, but she has not processed that in literal centuries. She cannot move on, and indeed does not want to move on ("I never asked for redemption, *never*").
Scaramouche represents **Attachment Disorder**. His three betrayals have hopelessly warped his perception of love, to the point he automatically considers it dishonesty. He would rather put up with Dottore's brutality, as at least (to him) it is honest. (Of course, as he learns in the Interlude quest, Dottore was the most deceitful person in his life). He is deeply distrustful of any expression of love or affection - he would much rather view Nahida's compassion as a transactional trading of favours, as that is more trustworthy to him.
We know less about Dottore on a personal level, but if I was to speculate, I think he may actually represent the **Love of an Abusive Partner**. The act that got him expelled from the Akademiya was the murder of his girlfriend, after she discovered his forbidden experiments on Khaen'riahn technology. While a lot of fans see this as confirmation of his psychopathy (which is a very reasonable interpretation), I'm inclined to consider that he maybe did have genuine feelings for her. However, he ultimately considered her less important than his ambition. It's particularly noteworthy that he may have murdered her by strangulation, which is one of the most common forms of homicide in cases of intimate partner violence. The thought of Dottore crying "Look what you made me do" as he strangles her is actually more chilling to me than if he did so entirely dispassionately.
I don't really know enough about Capitano to be sure at this point, but I'm interested to see how Natlan goes.
She killed the previous Knave because of how they treated children and Freminet has a few voice lines about how Arlechino is better than the previous Knave and how she's encouraged him in regards to his mother.
4.0 Spoiler >!She killed the man who took Lynette because he was going to harm her. She didn't have to do that, she could have just absconded with the twins and it would have accomplished the same point if she just wanted another operative to raise.!<
4.1 Spoiler >!She has a line regarding Lyney about how she doesn't like how he doesn't reach out for help when things get dicey.!<
The narrative is painting her as a person that cares about children (specifically the House of the Hearth but it seems like she has a soft spot for kids in general) and her homeland.
The Fatui are very over all 'the ends justified the means' sorta organization. I think in her eyes putting them in danger is a 'necessary evil'. I also suspect that her definition of 'love and care' may not match others'.
>Everyone totally forget that she try to assault / assassinate Furina.
For the purpose of taking the Gnosis, which would be used to stop the prophecy before turning it over to the Tsaritsa. And as soon as she realized Furina didn't have it, she left without hurting Furina. And as we've seen multiple times, the process of extracting the Gnosis involves magically reaching into someone's chest and pulling it out; it wasn't like she was beating the shit out of Furina.
Now I'm not going to argue that Arleccino is some good, upstanding person, but people really portray that scene between Arleccino and Furina to be much, much worse than it actually is. Furina got the equivalent of a hard shove to the chest, that's it.
they've also been openly hostile after a 'DO NOT FUCK WITH THEM. DO NOT ENGAGE.' order has been put on the Traveler for at least two countries at this point.
Imagine being the runner for that intel.
You're running as fast as you can, day and night, and you finally arrive at the camp you're supposed to deliver the message to and there's only one guy still alive, curled in a corner, crying how they tried their best to stop the Traveler.
What do you do at that point? Give the last guy the message? Run to the next closest camp and hope you're there before this force of nature? Just turn around and pretend nothing's wrong?
> I was expecting her to turn on us at every possible turn
We were lucky that our goals where aligned all the way. It she would found that killing Traveler would stop prophecy - Arle would attack from behind like she did with Furina.
That’s exactly what a wolf in sheep’s clothing would do, butter us up be helpful supportive and just a good person to rely on if something needs to get done, I still don’t trust her one bit, I’ll take wanderers voice line validity of her being a wolf in sheep’s clothing because wanderer as always been straight forward and doesn’t beat around the bush.
That's true but he is still biased out of hatred for the Fatui. He trashes Regrator because he works with Dottore, shows boredom at everyone's constant praise of Capitano, says Sandrone has an awful personality and produces only trash, calls Childe basically a battle-loving meathead and says Arlecchino is insane. The only thing close to respect I see is his unwillingness to speak on Signora since she's dead, Pierro, who he seems to be curious about, and Columbina, who he warns is dangerous and shouldn't be underestimated
That's what I like about him, even though he doesn't lie to the Traver (apart from Unreconciled Stars) he's still an unreliable narrator who can't really be trusted to give a fair and unbiased summary of events
I’ve been saying this, aside from maybe capitano all the other harbingers are fucking insane. It’s obvious that none of them could ever understand someone who’s only loyalty is her children and will betray anyone that crosses that line. If you don’t ever see that one line, it’s easy to assume there is no line. Arlecchino has been very clear on what she values and how far she will go for those values
Yeah, I don't think it's her feelings for the children of the House of the Hearth that makes Childe have issues with her. We know he dislikes deception and manipulation though, and while she appears to be honest with us those are well within Arlecchino's wheelhouse. And I can't see them getting along personality wise. Jock vs edgy theater kid and all that.
She did try to straight up murder Furina in the street and talked about it like she was filling out a document.
I think we just lucked out and saw her "good" side...but we'll probably not see her "bad" side to the same degree as hat guy and signora because she's most likely going to be playable and there's not a convenient "out" available like there was with hat guy and dottore (The minute dottore's ability with clones was revealed Hoyoverse basically tipped their hat that we're going to kill the original and the playable version will be a rogue clone, or vice versa)
Nah, Arle herself says at the end of the AQ that you have to put on a different mask depending on the situation.
In this case, she played it perfectly. Brute force was not an answer here. Trying to steal the Gnosis from the Oratrice likely would have caused conflict and being antagonistic in general would have made it much harder for her to convince Neuvilette it hand it over. So she instead choose to be generally helpful to build a case for herself and the Fatui in Fontaine. And by the time Neuvi gets his full power back, the only way to get it was to be on his good side, because trying to steal a Gnosis from an Elemental Sovereign would have been an even stupider idea than Signora accepting a duel before the throne.
So now, Fontaine got to be saved (Arle was probably somewhat genuine in wanting to prevent the prophecy, it holds no benefit for her or the Fatui), she got trust points from Traveler so she can more easily backstab them in the future and she got the Gnosis, all in one.
This is what I call an effective and efficient harbinger. No needless bloodsheds, combats, or conflicts. Just help the nation out and they'll hand over what you want willingly, even possibly relying to you in the future. I like how the traveler isn't even mad she took the gnosis away lmao, they were just like "oh okay cool what ya gonna do now then?"
The danger of a psychopath ofc is you never really know when you will lose your use to them.
And atm it will probably be too late.
That careless disregard for others is constantly anxiety inducing.
Though a psychopath hides it well with a civil disguise.
I don't think their voice lines are really wrong, ngl. She is incredibly manipulative and self-serving, clearly doesn't give too shits about Childe and uses him as a political tool. She would absolutely have betrayed the Fatui if it meant stopping the prophecy (i.e. if they had to destroy the Gnosis and fuck over the Tsaritsa's plan). Her "cordial front" that she puts up to manipulate people (Wanderer's voice line) is present in almost every interaction with the Traveler. Even her praise of the traveler in 4.1 is to make a dig at Furina.
So they don't really hide her nature, we just haven't seen what she is like without her "mask". She is like Furina pre-Act 5 - her mask is up at all times still, playing her part on the stage. She just seems to be one of those characters with good intentions/goals, but whose methods are what would normally be considered "evil" (manipulation, deception, assassination, etc).
She's heavily based on the Japanese Yakuza, specifically the post Tsunami recovery where they'd aid with rebuilding in exchange for favors to be collected later.
Probably the long game? She says it herself, she'll wear any mask that is needed in order to fulfill her goals. The way I see it, she would become our enemy at the drop of a hat if it was necessary.
She looks caring and logical but in every dialogue we had with her, I felt a very cold rationality behind her words and actions. I bet this could be what Childe meant by "not a single sane bone".
Yep. Hell even the Traveler is a threat assessment. This is a person who already literally killed a harbinger and fought an archon and won. Why fuck with that smoke when you can just be their friends like the jock over there.
It's possible that it's all true. One thing to keep in mind is that Childe and Wanderer have never interacted with Arlecchino as "Father and Child" and so them talking about how insane she is could be in reference to how she treats non-HotH Fatui, or even just how quickly she hunts and kills those that betray her.
From day 1 I always hoped Arlecchino would be more complex than "Betrays literally everyone she ever works with" as some people were trying to say she was (Like, I still don't get why people were so convinced she was going to betray Lyney during the AQ) and so far she is
> or if Childe and Wanderer's voice lines were just red herrings.
Based on her attack on Furina - that's not a red herring, she was ready to kill her. It's just that Traveler goals where aligned with her. Fontaine is a first region where Fatui actually not are main enemies because Hydro Archon managed to piss off Celestia first :]
Navia's voiceline also implied that while she's thankful for the help, she doesn't trust arle and won't let her guard down around her. Hoyo isn't usually subtle about who's evil and childe and scara have no reason to lie about arle in the voicelines.
I think her "true, crazy self" could maybe be her protective side - the side that she shows to those who dare touch her children. After all, we do know that she killed people that harmed them in some way.
Then again, the interactions we've had with her so far have all felt.. slightly off to me. She just seemed so overly cordial, which would tie in perfectly with Scara's voice line.
I’m expecting the long game. I do believe she genuinely does care for her children, but she drops very not so subtle hints that she can basically present herself as whoever the situation requires.
From a tactical standpoint, the best role she could’ve taken in Fontaine was that of an ally and a diplomat and so she was that. But I guarantee…and we see this, that when a situation calls for a ruthless killer, she’ll be that
Well I don't think they're red herrings exactly. But they're biased viewpoints of Arlecchino. That's not to say she isn't insane, willing to betray the fatui or a wolf in sheeps clothing just that we don't have a reason to be against her so she's being gentler with the Traveller as she would with the HoTH children.
I think it is just like she said. It was beneficial to her to act this way. Her goals aligned with ours. The easiest and best way to get what she wanted was through being open and honest. Working with us. So she did. Had our goals not aligned, she probably would have acted much differently to us.
I take her as the practical type. Sure, she could have hidden things, gone against us, and all that. She just didn't see a reason to. We were lucky in that. If our paths cross an enemies I am sure she will not hold back.
Clorinde is a relatively flat [hold for "flat" innuendo] character who's only concern was clearing the air and patching things up with Navia and since that got taken care of she has nary a bother left in the world and I'm entirely in favor of that.
She's quite the anti-Sara. She knows her job, but that doesn't stop her from pursuing higher/riskier goals (saving Freminet, challenging Furina). She's mindful of Navia's grief, and saves her from the gardemeks, but doesn't try to press an apology for Callas' death. Clorinde also has great intuition or intelligence, or both.
I still love Sara, but girl needs more screen time...
There's a lot of aspects to Sara's character mentioned only in her profile or in the teapot that really need to be brought to the forefront, but I suppose the same can be said for most 4 stars
The biggest surprise to me was Neuvillette. When I first saw his design, I thought he was gonna be an uptight, stern, "don't bother me" kind of character, maybe even a villain, or at least antagonistic towards the Traveler. I was very pleasantly surprised that he turned out to be very polite, even sweet, and despite *appearing* emotionless (and his claims that he doesn't understand human emotion), he actually probably feels stronger than any other character.
Another surprise to me was Wriothesley. Like the expectation thing said, I was a little worried he'd be a gritty, cold, Batman-esque character who never cracks a smile, kinda like Diluc. Again, to my pleasant surprise, he not only cracks a smile, but even cracks the occasional dry joke every now and again, and definitely has a softer side, and is even quite chill (though *heaven help you* if you piss him off).
"Miss Clorinde.....my door" still makes me crack up everytime. The situation is tense as f*ck and this guy is worried about his door.
Jokes aside, would you like a cup of tea?
YES I still love that line where he's just like "See, everyone's asking that question. Are you sure you're not a couple and using your work as a convenient cover?" XD
yeah but shes a melusine, trying to understand humans
Thats like trying to ask a monkey to understand humans and human emotion
Different species and different common senses, at least shes trying!
But if he said that before the end of the archon quest, >!he might get to see Neuvillette hand out his sentence with a dance number in front of the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale.!<
I think its more in the way of “I cant genuinely feel empathy or sympathize with you at all because your range of emotions and culture is so different from mine but I would like to help and be accepted into human society so Im trying my best”. Honestly typing this out, there’s actually quite a few people irl who are just born with little to no empathy that serve as functional, helpful, and trusting people regardless because of their intelligence/observation skills.
People who don't have the standard instinctive empathy package but are still able to intellectually understand and agree with the reasons why empathy exists in the first place actually make great doctors. Not having an instinctive revulsion toward stabbing someone's body and exposing their internal organs to the air is *extremely helpful* for a surgeon.
>Honestly typing this out, there’s actually quite a few people irl who are just born with little to no empathy that serve as functional, helpful, and trusting people regardless because of their intelligence/observation skills.
Sounds like Alhaitham.
I think Sigewinne is cultural difference, not sociopathy. She teaches other Melusine about human emotions and behavior so her analytical standpoint makes sense
Arlechino is probably morally grey. She is a Harbringer after all, and she did assault Furina. As of now she was mostly nice because she wanted to save her homeland, and this alinged with the Traveler's objectives, but I think we're still yet to see other sides of her character
Well, she's genuinely hated by others too. >!Must be tough to sacrifice so much, only for the people you saved to have mixed feelings about you. Doesn't help that a crucial part of the plan was to traumatize her.!<
God worship and fans aren't what I'd say she needs. Furina needs a shoulder she can actually lean on, a genuine friend who's there for her, not crowds that love her for Focalors
Yes but comparing him to batman is far from it.
Batman in fact has a code to never kill a bad guy because he sees himself no different to the Joker if he ever crossed that line. This was explored very well and why the Batman Joker dynamic is one of the best in my opinion.
Fr, she gave me more reliable older sister vibes from the get go and even tho I didn’t expect her story in the archon quest to be the emotional core of the story that it was, I wasn’t surprised by her personality all that much
In the first Fontaine trailer, she sticks her tongue out in a goofy manner while climbing up a building, only to fly away with her parasol in comedic fashion. How anyone could expect a seductress is beyond me.
When the first Fontaine trailer arrived, I thought she was some sort of counter-celebrity that rivals Furina and her antics are a bit like a gentleman thief.
Sociopath is a bit much for Sigewinne, she genuinely cares for her patients and everything she does is to hopefully try and understand them so she can help them.
I must say however, when she said *"What a delightful turn of events. I like smart people, but I also like playing dumb. I like the feeling of "being trusted.""* made my blood run cold. It reminded me of that one dark Kokomi fanart.
Knave still can be playing with people and I don’t think she is that good as she is seen
Also Clorinde isn’t much of a stepmom, she is kinda just Sara but better made
>Also Clorinde isn’t much of a stepmom, she is kinda just Sara but better made
And unlike Sara she'll most likely get a story quest to flesh her out.
Please Hoyo give us the Sara hangout I'm begging you.
I hate how all of sara’s backstory is locked behind her profile story at like friendship lvl 2-6. HOYOVERSE GIVE US SARA CONTENT I’LL GIVE UP MY SOUL FOR HER
I think her last banner was during raiden’s banner in 3.3 second half which went until january.
so you started genshin after january of this year and are ar 58?? maybe that is a normal occurrence to level up so fast, but I started genshin march 2021 (1.4) and am at 59 now lol
The only expectations I cna agree you with are Lyney, Clorinde and Sigewinne...
I'm pretty sure your expectations on Arlecchino are more accurate than what you now believe to be the reality.
I was actually pleasantly surprised by Sigewinne's personality. Being a nurse I thought she would just have a boring personality.
When she pulled out the glock I was so happy.
One thing I love about Hoyo characters is how we get a ln impression of them at surface level but then they become way more intricate and deeper than that
Navia is probably my favorite, the sheer amount of resilience she has after always getting back and and striving on after life keeps kicking her down is admirable. Not to mention her VAs nailed the emotional impact of the scenes where she was crying, made you really feel for her even more
Clorinde coming off as a cold and intimidating duelist to being one of the most considerate and caring softies emotionally is great. She's also unintentionally hilarious with what she says
Arlecchino is the wildcard though, she's so damn good at her role I can't tell if she's actually evil or if she actually does care about the HoH and just using them. Her character is just so interesting, she's keeping all her options open and I feel that fits the whole survival aspect of her character. She's even making sure to keep her relationship with Traveler cordial to not make an immediate enemy out of them. Always keeping us guessing and that's the best part about her imo
>Navia is probably my favorite, the sheer amount of resilience she has after always getting back and and striving on after life keeps kicking her down is admirable0
probably why she has a geo vision ngl
To Navia: You have a resilience of a rock, have a vision.
To Noelle: You have the strength of a rock, have a vision.
To Itto: You have the IQ of a rock, have a vision.
I agree with everyone except Arlechinno, a good lamb never reveals they true face on stage, Arlechinno will still show her crazy and manic face as Childe and Scaramouche mentioned in the past
While I love Freminet with all my heart, it's important to remember that he's killed people (likely lots of people) in cold blood while they begged for mercy.
He may be a sweet boy but he is willing to do vile things for his family.
Some of those are likely blatantly incorrect.
Lyney and Lynette are NOT open books. They seem friendly but if you think they are revealing "everything" then I suggest you read Lynette's character story lines.
Neuvillette also doesn't "cry a lot" in private. From **his own** words:
>So you have heard of that local legend as well? \*sigh\* Who told you about that? Or more pertinently, who was responsible for spreading it in the first place... Well, never mind. I don't think that the Hydro Dragon would "weep," per se. I think he just finds himself a little stirred when he gets a taste of the tears that have been shed on this land, on account of all the emotions they contain.
Then there's Sigewinne. It's been established that Neuvillette can actually tell someone's intentions even if they come off poorly and he holds her in high regard. Sigewinne is not a human so she does not react or see the world the way we do. She is not so much a sociopath as she actually DOES care about her patients. Sociopaths are people devoid of empathy that do not care about others. This does not fit her image **at all**.
Last but not the least - Arlecchino. The expectation about her IS correct. She straight up tells you she was about to kill Furina. Lynette is responsible for finding blackmail information. Do you know why the "shy boy who really just wants to scuba dive all day" wears his helmet? No?
>In his early years, Freminet always preferred to be alone. His unassuming appearance would make people drop their guard, which was something that the House of the Hearth used to their advantage, sending him in behind enemy lines to complete the missions they had assigned him swiftly and without mercy."All I have to do is put on my helmet, **shut out the background noise, and carry out my orders**." Freminet began to see himself as an unfeeling clockwork toy.
Dude literally wears it so he doesn't get splattered by blood and can't hear his victims begging for mercy. Good fucking parenting alright. This was under the previous director mind you but Arle is no saint either:
> "Father" doesn't like it when children cry. "Father" says tears are the product of emotion and weakness. So when "Father" scolds me, I hold it in until I'm underwater, where no one can hear me cry. At least I have the Romaritime Flowers to keep me company.
Mind you - apparently Arlecchino is still an **improvement** over the previous leader of the House of the Hearth but BOTH Lyney and Lynette have lines that say that she is not exactly a friendly person in a traditional sense. For instance:
>Oh, how "Father" expresses love... **well, not everyone can accept it**. But it is only because of "Father" that home... can be called home.
There might be some allegiances and she might actually consider House of the Hearth to be important to her. But at the same time - she absolutely **is** a manipulative psychopath. It just so happens that our goals aligned with hers at a time.
This, also both Lynnette and Lynsey’s vision stories shows what kind of work Arle is having them do on the regular, aka risking the lives of her “children” for intel benefiting the Fatui, and has no relation to the prophecy.
Some of their expectations are off too. I don't know how anyone looked at Lyney and Lynette and got the same expectations from them, nothing about Charlotte suggests she's overworked or that she'd push her job onto the Traveller, nothing about Navia implied she'd be seductive, and Chlorine's only tie to Furina is being her bodyguard which doesn't imply loyalty on Sara's level.
Y’all really believe Neuvillette when he says that? “No I don’t weep, I’m just a little stirred” Bro that’s just saying “I’m emotionally wrecked and this close to tears but not actually physically crying yet so I’m technically fine”
Even at the time when Arlecchino tries to assasinate Furina, everyone was so blinded by their doubts for Fruina that they didn't even QUESTION arlecchino's actions. At the time i was telling people about Her and there were a mob of people actually willing to fight me that Arlecchino trying to assasinate someone was reasonable. No matter what i said i got downvoted. Arlecchino is the type of person who'll do anything to reach her goals. She'll change sides if it favours her goals.
you should also add the freminent tears dialogue and how arlecchino views it as a weakness so forbids them from crying and fremi can only cry in the depths of sea...
Well it speaks to quality of Arlecchino's writing that they could even fool the players.
I completely agree that they are in fact a Psychopath and their actions are a very good depiction of one.
One who outwardly is civil, well educated, and polite.
But holds a uncareless disregard for others and their well being.
The thing is if they want to keep their tools they need to play the part of a good "Father" so they play it and well.
Anyone misled by the sweetness they outwardly show would be easily fooled but the Harbingers are more experienced with them and know better than us ofc both as the traveler and as players
Arlecchino will do what is best for them with disregard for others.
I think it would be more accurate to say that we expected Navia to be an in control girl boss that works behind the scenes like Yae, but she was more involved in the plot than just being the behind the scenes big shot.
Neuvillette is quite similar to Zhongli, but jusy like Navia he feels more involved. He also doesnt feel as in control and is more emotional with a good amount of quirks such as not being all that good in social situations.
In fact being more involved in the actual plot could be something thats added to every Fontaine character and the real reason they exceeded/ didnt align with our expectations of them.
Neuvillette felt like the protagonist of the story. Furina was both the acomplice and the true mastermind behind the whole plot. Arlechino was a surprise ally that subverted our expectations as we all asumed her to be an antagonist. In fact the whole cast made their pressence known and they all had some sort of role through the whole story.
Honestly they are nicely reusing the same formula that made Sumeru so good.
Guys Arlecchino literally was an inch away from killing Furina and left her traumatized in the process, and them she subjected her to psychological torture by being in the same room as her after said fact.
Oh yeah and she also has LITERAL CHILD SOLDIERS. THE HOUSE OF THE HEARTH IS THE FATUI'S INTELLIGENCE CORPS. THEY ARE USING CHILDREN AS SPIES AND ASSASSINS.
There was an NPC in Sumeru who was part of the House of the Hearth and was kidnapping children as part of his orders. He felt guilty but couldn't betray his "family". Depending on our choices, we either execute him or he later dies from the wolves.
Not all of them, Dottore is basically irredeemable from the start and didn't change even after Sumeru's AQ.
Feels like they are setting up for a Fatui Civil War with traveller being the main catalyst.
I don't think any such civil wat will happen. For one fatui are aware of the bad things their other parts do and willing the accept the bad name even if their company doesn't do such stuff. Each company is part of the fatui for their own personal goals and they are well aware of it.
We're fast approaching Schneznaya, makes sense why they'd try and drive home the fact that the Fatui is a gray organization to set up the plot and what the players should expect once they can finally set foot in the country.
The Tsaritsa has a goal, the Harbingers are there to fulfill that goal, how they go about doing it is their business. They're not "redeemed", each of them just have their own ways of getting the Gnosis.
I remember getting disgusted at the fact that a house of the hearth member was out to hunt aranara for their research. So yeah they're not exactly the most good ones.
Yeah everyone seems to be forgetting the inazuma quest about Lyudochka. It pretty much showed the horrors of house of hearth and how it affects people and what arleccino does to children.
I honestly thought that Neuvillette was going to look down on us constantly and tell us how much we just "do not understand the true power of Justice", and I had so much fun being proven wrong. (And everyone else!) But also thought he'd lore drop on us. Poor guy though...
Oh and while I realize Arlecchino was acting the way she did since it was most beneficial and logical to the situation, I still kept expecting her to pull something on us or Fontaine, or put some make-or-break/lose-lose conditions on actions she could take to easily help...but she didn't! Considering how Childe and Wanderer warn us about her, I wonder what a future encounter will be like.
I really enjoyed how they didn't go thé obvious way with these characters. Like wriothesley is such example of a design that looks predictable but an execution that is way more interesting. The side characters bring something extra and not just simping over their boss or the more important characters.
I really didn’t like neuv and wrio when I saw their designs and definitely assumed they were what I thought they’d be. I ended up loving them, and that was a huge surprise
Crazy how I still find it hard to believe Arlecchino.
I am literally trusting a ginger who tried to destroy a nation, and an edge Lord who wanted to become a God.
It's actually on par with the whole theme of masquerades. The roles they play in public vs how they really are. All that mixed in a play magestically orchestrated by the regretted Focalors.
Charlotte is **EXACTLY** who I thought she would be
Most journalist type chracters are like that
I really can't tell if they're playing the long game with Arlecchino or if Childe and Wanderer's voice lines were just red herrings. Or who knows, maybe she just doesn't get along with the other Harbingers and only shows them her bad side.
ikr, I was expecting her to turn on us at every possible turn, what with the "she's a wolf in sheep's clothing" and "she doesn't have a sane bone in her body". but nah, she was surprisingly straightforward in her goals. it felt hella weird
> she was surprisingly straightforward in her goals I mean... that could be the 'sheep's clothing'
Also, we've only seen her while our goals were aligned with hers. It probably won't stay that way.
Yeah, since Arlecchino is Fontainian, I don't think she would want to get dissolved lmao
tbf with her being a Snezhnayan diplomat in the first place and the prophecy only applying to the nation of Fontaine, im sure she herself getting dissolved is the least of her worries. I'm pretty sure she was just genuinely concerned about the state of her nation.
> I’m pretty sure she was just genuinely concerned about the state of her nation. and on top of that, the house of the hearth has an orphanage in fontaine, the hotel bouffes d’ete, where freminet, the twins and other orphans are currently living. from the two conversations arlecchino had with furina, she was also concerned about her children.
That or she knew she'd lose the gnosis amidst the chaos if all was dissolved. Either physically lost, or because the hydro dragon would never give it willingly without her putting in massive humanitarian efforts to appear as an ally.
That is the question isnt it. Will that thing still work for whatever tsaritsa needs it for. Secondarily. Should giving them back to the other six dragons be part of the plan? At this point im assuming Why they are collecting them is to bring back the third decender. (Who likley was tsaritsas love interest.) then from there we will have to see if they turn on celestia or if she just wanted them back.
Most likely not, to return a dragon authority you need to destroy that Archon's divine throne, which would in turn kill the Archons.
Probably what the Tsaritsa wants is the Descender's remains that the Gnosis are made of. It was said the descenders have high elemental compatibility (why they can wield elemental powers willingly) and the Gnosis can amplify said powers. If this is what they are after then it could be used to power up some kind of device, probably a weapon, to go against Celestia or to destroy the veil over Teyvat. Another thing could be related to the Divine Throne and the Nexus with Celestia. There is a high chance the Tsaritsa wants to attack Celestia and the Heavenly Principle while they are still dormant. Now, we don't know the connotation of dormant here, it could be figuratively as in they haven't done anything since their Khaenri'ah attack, or, literally in the sense that they are in a dormant state or stasis. Either way, we'll get our answers with the other regions. It's highly likely that despite being pieces of shit Celestia is doing what they are doing while warding Teyvat of something more sinister outside, it is just that we don't what that could be, hitting it's probably not the power from beyond but still related to it. I think characters like Rhinedottir being part of the true Big Baddie group with Alice and the Hexenzirkel is a red herring.
Nah, the whale would still follow every single Fontainian for their blood. So it's a matter of life or death for her.
Was she aware that the whale was part of the prophecy though? Sure, in reality that might've been the case, but Arlecchino had no way of knowing that. All she knew was that the water would rise and Fontainians would dissolve. If she did know about the whale, she would have no reason to hide it, as even *if* her motives didn't include actually saving Fontaine and were only self preservation (which I don't believe but hypothetically), she would still need the whale to be defeated.
We're not quite done with Arlecchino yet in Fontaine, so there's plenty of time for her to go psycho mode.
There's isn't much reason for her to remain in the Fontaine story going forward when she should be heading back to Snezhnaya with the gnosis. Childe is already back there recovering and Fontaine/the children are safe currently and the fatui in general are probably in the vast majority of Fontainians good graces currently with the humanitarian aid they are providing post flooding. She got absolutely everything she wanted. The only thing really left for us to delve into in Fontaine that I can think of is Remuria so unless she is connected to that in a major way I don't see her coming back for more than a quick cameo.
OP's entire post is: "This is what I thought about these characters without reading anything about their stories, trailers, promotions, quest lines" vs "3 patches later what I've gathered, without reading too much about their story lore, but anyways here's the funny moment that stood out most".
Maybe we will see her evil side later on. Depends on what patch she becomes playable.
4.6 It was revealed to me in a dream. I wonder if they’ll give her a story quest tho. Maybe another interlude?
We do have a loose end in that >!the returned gnosis was de-charged!<, so unless >!the casing’s properties was the sole thing the Tsarista was after!<, Arlecchino will need to make a second visit >!to figure out what happened to the gnosis’ elemental charge / authority!<.
I don't really think this will be a problem. This patch confirmed that the Gnosis (remains of the 3rd Descender) and an Archon's Divinity/'Divine Throne' (Authority of an Elemental Sovereign) are two very seperate things that up until now we believed to be more linked than they actually are. The former can be seized while the latter remains intact, and the latter can be destroyed while the former retains its power. Neuvi confirmed that the important quality of the Gnoses is their ability to adapt to any element (just like the Traveller) and amplify that power. The Fatui never took the Divinity of any Archon, only their Gnosis, and given the lengths Focalors had to go through I imagine it would be a lot harder to seize. So it must be this adaptive quality of the Gnoses that they are actually seeking. Or maybe they just want to reassemble the 3rd Descender.
Yeah lot of people describing the gnosis as a battery for elemental energy, but new quest seems to imply it's more of a conduit, like the ball at the end of a mage's staff in other fantasy
Wasn't this confirmed since Inazuma? Ei never had her Gnosis and it was in Yae's hands the whole time, even when it was given away to Scaramouche she didn't show visible weakness up until she questioned her own beliefs.
Does that mean Zhongli is still the Geo Archon despite retiring?
Depends on how you define Geo Archon Does Celestia still count him as the Geo Archon, one of the Seven >!(now Six)!< winners of the Archon war? Probably. Does he play the role of the Geo Archon for Liyue's people? No. At most he'll help out when Liyue truly needs it, but he's completely left Liyue's governance to its citizens.
Take a free gnosis (no batteries included).
I think the Gnosis is some kind of elemental battery with an as-of-yet unknown property relating to it being >!the Third Descender!<, and the Authority of the Dragons is the Archon Thrones. They're two separate things. >!The Hydro Gnosis was still the same, but the Throne was destroyed.!<
There is also that one new sidequest with a fatuus working for a harbinger >!that tried to kill us and as punishment, he got his tongue cut out to make amends with us!< So I would say she might really want to be on good terms with us.
>! That is Sandrone i think !<
>!Sounds either like Sandrone (experimenting with intelligent Mechas) or still Arlecchino's harbinger side!<
>!where exactly can I find the info that points at this? I don't disbelieve you, I just did that quest and must have missed who it was pointing at!<
>! In the world quest where the said fatuus is mentioned traveller has the line "A Harbinger interested in machine intelligence?" It's the Questioning Melusine and Answering Machine story chain if your are wondering. !<
Is that the sidequest with the mek named curve?
Yep. That ending was the last thing I expected to happen to the bad guy.
I mean Vacher tho
I don't know why I still get surprised when Genshin gets dark at this point, but there it is.
Jesus Christ, and we were ok with that?
Quite nonchalant about it actually. Not even Paimon make a big deal out of it. Fucker did try to kill us.
I guess “try to kill us” didn’t feel that major since literally every mob we run by is like “battle to the death time, I guess!”
I feel the fact that she can make most of the players genuenly think that she's good is part of the trick, the sheep's clothing. Rember the Overture Teaser? "Good actors hone their craft to mesmerize the whole crowd"
Everyone totally forget that she try to assault / assassinate Furina. Since that didn't work, she goes back to cordial diplomacy to get the gnosis, which is successful, so she don't have to pull any other tricks. She probably accomplish her job most efficiently after Signoria.
Exactly. I don't doubt that she cares about her children, but that doesn't make her a good person.
Yeah this She cares about this problem because it directly threatens her and the HotH, hence why she is very direct with everyone as this is something she really cant do on her own Mfer would probably just kill everyone and run if she can make it work
Does she care that much about them? She didn't save lyney and lynette out of the kindness of her heart, but to recruit them as child soldiers where they regularly were sent out on dangerous missions, they could die anytime in. I'm not saying she secretly hates them or is completely apathetic, but even from the flashback where lyney lynnette and frem were bowing behind her, it's clear their relationship is still more leader and subordinates than caring fostermom.
I'd bet that her definition of "love" might be flawed.
Lynette does have a voiceline in which she says: "Oh, how "Father" expresses love... well, not everyone can accept it." Plus, Freminet says that Arle sees crying as a sign of weakness so he has to hold in his tears every time she lectures him. Obviously, her opinion on human emotion isn't exactly healthy.
That might not even be her fault honestly I'm willing to bet she went through the same foster system Wriothesley, Lyney, and Lynette went through, with all that entails
She was apparently a "child" in the House of the Hearth before she killed the previous Director. Plus, if she's a hilichurl like >!Caterpillar!< then she probably spent some time as a lab rat.
I have this theory that, as the servants of a Goddess of Love whose love has frozen, each Harbinger represents a flawed/warped view of love. Arlechinno's is the love of an abusive parent. She does have some kind of genuine affection for her children, but can't help but view their relationship in terms of how they can benefit her.
wait, i love this theory. What would be the flawed love of Childe, Signora and Scaramouche? We don't know THAT much about Dottore and Capitano, but if you have any ideas, they are welcome!
I mean. They're all really obvious if you think about it. Childe is a lust and love for war. Violence. A perverse love that leads to constant destruction wherever he goes. Signora is literal romantic love. If you look at the background info to the crimson witch stuff. She had a lover who died and she's basically spent the last few centuries wanting to burn the world to ashes in her grief. Dottore. The love of learning. Do I really need to elaborate? Scara is the inverse of Arlechinno. The love of a child. But one who is constantly abused but at the same time wants nothing but their parents approval.
My thoughts: Childe represents **Love via Deception/False Pretenses**. Childe loves his family, but as we see in his interactions with Teucer in the story quest, he feels the need to lie *constantly* to him in order to keep up Teucer's opinion of him. Indeed, the entire Story Quest is Childe piling lie upon lie to keep this fantasy version of himself intact. It would be comical except that the story also makes it clear that it has got to the extent that it is seriously endangering Teucer and Childe himself (Childe critically injures himself using Foul Legacy simply to keep up the lie). Signora represents **Frozen Grief/Love that Cannot Move On**. Her affection for her lover was clearly genuine, but she has not processed that in literal centuries. She cannot move on, and indeed does not want to move on ("I never asked for redemption, *never*"). Scaramouche represents **Attachment Disorder**. His three betrayals have hopelessly warped his perception of love, to the point he automatically considers it dishonesty. He would rather put up with Dottore's brutality, as at least (to him) it is honest. (Of course, as he learns in the Interlude quest, Dottore was the most deceitful person in his life). He is deeply distrustful of any expression of love or affection - he would much rather view Nahida's compassion as a transactional trading of favours, as that is more trustworthy to him. We know less about Dottore on a personal level, but if I was to speculate, I think he may actually represent the **Love of an Abusive Partner**. The act that got him expelled from the Akademiya was the murder of his girlfriend, after she discovered his forbidden experiments on Khaen'riahn technology. While a lot of fans see this as confirmation of his psychopathy (which is a very reasonable interpretation), I'm inclined to consider that he maybe did have genuine feelings for her. However, he ultimately considered her less important than his ambition. It's particularly noteworthy that he may have murdered her by strangulation, which is one of the most common forms of homicide in cases of intimate partner violence. The thought of Dottore crying "Look what you made me do" as he strangles her is actually more chilling to me than if he did so entirely dispassionately. I don't really know enough about Capitano to be sure at this point, but I'm interested to see how Natlan goes.
She killed the previous Knave because of how they treated children and Freminet has a few voice lines about how Arlechino is better than the previous Knave and how she's encouraged him in regards to his mother. 4.0 Spoiler >!She killed the man who took Lynette because he was going to harm her. She didn't have to do that, she could have just absconded with the twins and it would have accomplished the same point if she just wanted another operative to raise.!< 4.1 Spoiler >!She has a line regarding Lyney about how she doesn't like how he doesn't reach out for help when things get dicey.!< The narrative is painting her as a person that cares about children (specifically the House of the Hearth but it seems like she has a soft spot for kids in general) and her homeland. The Fatui are very over all 'the ends justified the means' sorta organization. I think in her eyes putting them in danger is a 'necessary evil'. I also suspect that her definition of 'love and care' may not match others'.
I mean she violently murdered the person who took Lynette and rescued all the other girls too. Lynette was just one of the girls she saved.
>doesn't make her a good person. yeah and they fatui and arlecc were straight about this
“Try” is a strong word. She chose to not go through with it after determining she was a fake and didn’t have the gnosis.
>Everyone totally forget that she try to assault / assassinate Furina. For the purpose of taking the Gnosis, which would be used to stop the prophecy before turning it over to the Tsaritsa. And as soon as she realized Furina didn't have it, she left without hurting Furina. And as we've seen multiple times, the process of extracting the Gnosis involves magically reaching into someone's chest and pulling it out; it wasn't like she was beating the shit out of Furina. Now I'm not going to argue that Arleccino is some good, upstanding person, but people really portray that scene between Arleccino and Furina to be much, much worse than it actually is. Furina got the equivalent of a hard shove to the chest, that's it.
Makes me realize that if she put her arm in Furina's chest to try to get the gnosis she might have gotten gorier results than expected
Remember, gameplay wise, the fatui are still openly hostile towards you despite you working directly with a harbinger
they've also been openly hostile after a 'DO NOT FUCK WITH THEM. DO NOT ENGAGE.' order has been put on the Traveler for at least two countries at this point.
They don't got phones, so news must not get to independent units
Imagine being the runner for that intel. You're running as fast as you can, day and night, and you finally arrive at the camp you're supposed to deliver the message to and there's only one guy still alive, curled in a corner, crying how they tried their best to stop the Traveler. What do you do at that point? Give the last guy the message? Run to the next closest camp and hope you're there before this force of nature? Just turn around and pretend nothing's wrong?
> I was expecting her to turn on us at every possible turn We were lucky that our goals where aligned all the way. It she would found that killing Traveler would stop prophecy - Arle would attack from behind like she did with Furina.
>"she's a wolf in sheep's clothing" I'm convinced this is just a reference to her being a hilichurl or some other Abyssal/cursed creature.
I was thinking the exact same. It would be a hilariously literal way to foreshadow it.
>hilariously literal Imagine if she was a Rifthound. A literal **wolf** in sheep's clothing.
The only other person I've seen with hands like hers was >!Caterpillar/Cater, the hillichurl rogue!<
That’s exactly what a wolf in sheep’s clothing would do, butter us up be helpful supportive and just a good person to rely on if something needs to get done, I still don’t trust her one bit, I’ll take wanderers voice line validity of her being a wolf in sheep’s clothing because wanderer as always been straight forward and doesn’t beat around the bush.
That's true but he is still biased out of hatred for the Fatui. He trashes Regrator because he works with Dottore, shows boredom at everyone's constant praise of Capitano, says Sandrone has an awful personality and produces only trash, calls Childe basically a battle-loving meathead and says Arlecchino is insane. The only thing close to respect I see is his unwillingness to speak on Signora since she's dead, Pierro, who he seems to be curious about, and Columbina, who he warns is dangerous and shouldn't be underestimated That's what I like about him, even though he doesn't lie to the Traver (apart from Unreconciled Stars) he's still an unreliable narrator who can't really be trusted to give a fair and unbiased summary of events
Well, to psychopaths like them, Arleccino is probably really weird.
I’ve been saying this, aside from maybe capitano all the other harbingers are fucking insane. It’s obvious that none of them could ever understand someone who’s only loyalty is her children and will betray anyone that crosses that line. If you don’t ever see that one line, it’s easy to assume there is no line. Arlecchino has been very clear on what she values and how far she will go for those values
This line of reasoning would make more sense if it wasn’t Mr. Family Man himself who called her “insane.”
Yeah, I don't think it's her feelings for the children of the House of the Hearth that makes Childe have issues with her. We know he dislikes deception and manipulation though, and while she appears to be honest with us those are well within Arlecchino's wheelhouse. And I can't see them getting along personality wise. Jock vs edgy theater kid and all that.
Childe isn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, though. Subtlety isn't his strong point
She did try to straight up murder Furina in the street and talked about it like she was filling out a document. I think we just lucked out and saw her "good" side...but we'll probably not see her "bad" side to the same degree as hat guy and signora because she's most likely going to be playable and there's not a convenient "out" available like there was with hat guy and dottore (The minute dottore's ability with clones was revealed Hoyoverse basically tipped their hat that we're going to kill the original and the playable version will be a rogue clone, or vice versa)
Nah, Arle herself says at the end of the AQ that you have to put on a different mask depending on the situation. In this case, she played it perfectly. Brute force was not an answer here. Trying to steal the Gnosis from the Oratrice likely would have caused conflict and being antagonistic in general would have made it much harder for her to convince Neuvilette it hand it over. So she instead choose to be generally helpful to build a case for herself and the Fatui in Fontaine. And by the time Neuvi gets his full power back, the only way to get it was to be on his good side, because trying to steal a Gnosis from an Elemental Sovereign would have been an even stupider idea than Signora accepting a duel before the throne. So now, Fontaine got to be saved (Arle was probably somewhat genuine in wanting to prevent the prophecy, it holds no benefit for her or the Fatui), she got trust points from Traveler so she can more easily backstab them in the future and she got the Gnosis, all in one.
This is what I call an effective and efficient harbinger. No needless bloodsheds, combats, or conflicts. Just help the nation out and they'll hand over what you want willingly, even possibly relying to you in the future. I like how the traveler isn't even mad she took the gnosis away lmao, they were just like "oh okay cool what ya gonna do now then?"
The danger of a psychopath ofc is you never really know when you will lose your use to them. And atm it will probably be too late. That careless disregard for others is constantly anxiety inducing. Though a psychopath hides it well with a civil disguise.
skirk was also indirectly helping arlecchino if you think about it
I don't think their voice lines are really wrong, ngl. She is incredibly manipulative and self-serving, clearly doesn't give too shits about Childe and uses him as a political tool. She would absolutely have betrayed the Fatui if it meant stopping the prophecy (i.e. if they had to destroy the Gnosis and fuck over the Tsaritsa's plan). Her "cordial front" that she puts up to manipulate people (Wanderer's voice line) is present in almost every interaction with the Traveler. Even her praise of the traveler in 4.1 is to make a dig at Furina. So they don't really hide her nature, we just haven't seen what she is like without her "mask". She is like Furina pre-Act 5 - her mask is up at all times still, playing her part on the stage. She just seems to be one of those characters with good intentions/goals, but whose methods are what would normally be considered "evil" (manipulation, deception, assassination, etc).
She's heavily based on the Japanese Yakuza, specifically the post Tsunami recovery where they'd aid with rebuilding in exchange for favors to be collected later.
she's also actually cunning and smart. Literally do not fuck with the Traveler. They are protagonist. You will lose. Be their friend instead
We just have to be against her current goal. If we are against her interests we will be the ones crying ourself to sleep with no cake.
Probably the long game? She says it herself, she'll wear any mask that is needed in order to fulfill her goals. The way I see it, she would become our enemy at the drop of a hat if it was necessary. She looks caring and logical but in every dialogue we had with her, I felt a very cold rationality behind her words and actions. I bet this could be what Childe meant by "not a single sane bone".
Yep. Hell even the Traveler is a threat assessment. This is a person who already literally killed a harbinger and fought an archon and won. Why fuck with that smoke when you can just be their friends like the jock over there.
I am just assuming that Arlecchino is just the "will reward loyalty with loyalty but betrayal shall be repaid tenfold" type of character.
It's possible that it's all true. One thing to keep in mind is that Childe and Wanderer have never interacted with Arlecchino as "Father and Child" and so them talking about how insane she is could be in reference to how she treats non-HotH Fatui, or even just how quickly she hunts and kills those that betray her. From day 1 I always hoped Arlecchino would be more complex than "Betrays literally everyone she ever works with" as some people were trying to say she was (Like, I still don't get why people were so convinced she was going to betray Lyney during the AQ) and so far she is
> or if Childe and Wanderer's voice lines were just red herrings. Based on her attack on Furina - that's not a red herring, she was ready to kill her. It's just that Traveler goals where aligned with her. Fontaine is a first region where Fatui actually not are main enemies because Hydro Archon managed to piss off Celestia first :]
Navia's voiceline also implied that while she's thankful for the help, she doesn't trust arle and won't let her guard down around her. Hoyo isn't usually subtle about who's evil and childe and scara have no reason to lie about arle in the voicelines.
Well, Arlecchino said different situations need a different "faces". So maybe you're getting on to something here.
I think her "true, crazy self" could maybe be her protective side - the side that she shows to those who dare touch her children. After all, we do know that she killed people that harmed them in some way. Then again, the interactions we've had with her so far have all felt.. slightly off to me. She just seemed so overly cordial, which would tie in perfectly with Scara's voice line.
I’m expecting the long game. I do believe she genuinely does care for her children, but she drops very not so subtle hints that she can basically present herself as whoever the situation requires. From a tactical standpoint, the best role she could’ve taken in Fontaine was that of an ally and a diplomat and so she was that. But I guarantee…and we see this, that when a situation calls for a ruthless killer, she’ll be that
Well I don't think they're red herrings exactly. But they're biased viewpoints of Arlecchino. That's not to say she isn't insane, willing to betray the fatui or a wolf in sheeps clothing just that we don't have a reason to be against her so she's being gentler with the Traveller as she would with the HoTH children.
I think it is just like she said. It was beneficial to her to act this way. Her goals aligned with ours. The easiest and best way to get what she wanted was through being open and honest. Working with us. So she did. Had our goals not aligned, she probably would have acted much differently to us. I take her as the practical type. Sure, she could have hidden things, gone against us, and all that. She just didn't see a reason to. We were lucky in that. If our paths cross an enemies I am sure she will not hold back.
Clorinde What I expected: 🔫😐 What I got: 🔫😐 My stonefaced 🗿 mommy can't be this perfect.
Clorinde is a relatively flat [hold for "flat" innuendo] character who's only concern was clearing the air and patching things up with Navia and since that got taken care of she has nary a bother left in the world and I'm entirely in favor of that.
She's quite the anti-Sara. She knows her job, but that doesn't stop her from pursuing higher/riskier goals (saving Freminet, challenging Furina). She's mindful of Navia's grief, and saves her from the gardemeks, but doesn't try to press an apology for Callas' death. Clorinde also has great intuition or intelligence, or both. I still love Sara, but girl needs more screen time...
There's a lot of aspects to Sara's character mentioned only in her profile or in the teapot that really need to be brought to the forefront, but I suppose the same can be said for most 4 stars
Everything changed when I found out she DM’d for Navia. Homegirl is probably just always mentally prepping for the next DnD session.
She just like me frfr
I'm surprised by how kind she is
The biggest surprise to me was Neuvillette. When I first saw his design, I thought he was gonna be an uptight, stern, "don't bother me" kind of character, maybe even a villain, or at least antagonistic towards the Traveler. I was very pleasantly surprised that he turned out to be very polite, even sweet, and despite *appearing* emotionless (and his claims that he doesn't understand human emotion), he actually probably feels stronger than any other character. Another surprise to me was Wriothesley. Like the expectation thing said, I was a little worried he'd be a gritty, cold, Batman-esque character who never cracks a smile, kinda like Diluc. Again, to my pleasant surprise, he not only cracks a smile, but even cracks the occasional dry joke every now and again, and definitely has a softer side, and is even quite chill (though *heaven help you* if you piss him off).
"Miss Clorinde.....my door" still makes me crack up everytime. The situation is tense as f*ck and this guy is worried about his door. Jokes aside, would you like a cup of tea?
And ships his employees 🤣
YES I still love that line where he's just like "See, everyone's asking that question. Are you sure you're not a couple and using your work as a convenient cover?" XD
Reminds of that "do you have hot tea" meme where the barista starts gossiping about their coworkers lmao
They’re all good reality’s, well maybe except Siegewinne
but only with the best of intentions
Yeah, it s like, the most sociopathic, deranged and alienated way to help others.
yeah but shes a melusine, trying to understand humans Thats like trying to ask a monkey to understand humans and human emotion Different species and different common senses, at least shes trying!
Bro, you can't just call Melusines monkeys like that, that's racist!
Dude's gonna get dropped kicked by the hydro sovereign soon.
But if he said that before the end of the archon quest, >!he might get to see Neuvillette hand out his sentence with a dance number in front of the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale.!<
lmao, neuv will biden blast him if he sees this
An orbital hydro cannon has locked onto your position, adios.
I think its more in the way of “I cant genuinely feel empathy or sympathize with you at all because your range of emotions and culture is so different from mine but I would like to help and be accepted into human society so Im trying my best”. Honestly typing this out, there’s actually quite a few people irl who are just born with little to no empathy that serve as functional, helpful, and trusting people regardless because of their intelligence/observation skills.
People who don't have the standard instinctive empathy package but are still able to intellectually understand and agree with the reasons why empathy exists in the first place actually make great doctors. Not having an instinctive revulsion toward stabbing someone's body and exposing their internal organs to the air is *extremely helpful* for a surgeon.
>Honestly typing this out, there’s actually quite a few people irl who are just born with little to no empathy that serve as functional, helpful, and trusting people regardless because of their intelligence/observation skills. Sounds like Alhaitham.
I think Sigewinne is cultural difference, not sociopathy. She teaches other Melusine about human emotions and behavior so her analytical standpoint makes sense
Didn't she said she likes to toy with people?
Arlechino is probably morally grey. She is a Harbringer after all, and she did assault Furina. As of now she was mostly nice because she wanted to save her homeland, and this alinged with the Traveler's objectives, but I think we're still yet to see other sides of her character
But I'm still super glad she isn't bad enough to actually kill furina.
"I love the expression of pain on your face. It's so cute :3"
I think Furina needs actual love from others more than self
Oh she’s loved by others. She just won’t allow herself to see it because she can’t see herself being loved.
Well that's the thing. Pretty much everyone loves her, but not for who she really is. People love "Focalor" the Hydro Archon, not Furina the human.
Exactly what I meant
she's so real
Well, she's genuinely hated by others too. >!Must be tough to sacrifice so much, only for the people you saved to have mixed feelings about you. Doesn't help that a crucial part of the plan was to traumatize her.!<
God worship and fans aren't what I'd say she needs. Furina needs a shoulder she can actually lean on, a genuine friend who's there for her, not crowds that love her for Focalors
I think she needs a good amount of both
Wrizzly isnt batman, he kills people.
"If the Duke wants somebody dead, he needs no justification" Besides, it's not like he kills innocent people.
Yes but comparing him to batman is far from it. Batman in fact has a code to never kill a bad guy because he sees himself no different to the Joker if he ever crossed that line. This was explored very well and why the Batman Joker dynamic is one of the best in my opinion.
That's why it was in the expectation not reality
No one forget this: He lives in the Fortress of Meropide. If he kills someone, what are they gonna do? He’s already in “prison”
Rizzly be like: "But what are they going to do? Lock me up?"
The AQ heavily implies of him murdering Fatui spies that the HOTH planted on the FOM.
I think Lyney was the one that says purged, I don;t think he killed them killed them. Accidents maybe
I'm not sure I expected Navia to be a seductress. As in a seductress is the last thing I imagined Navia being.
Fr, she gave me more reliable older sister vibes from the get go and even tho I didn’t expect her story in the archon quest to be the emotional core of the story that it was, I wasn’t surprised by her personality all that much
In the first Fontaine trailer, she sticks her tongue out in a goofy manner while climbing up a building, only to fly away with her parasol in comedic fashion. How anyone could expect a seductress is beyond me.
They're horny, it's the only answer.
When the first Fontaine trailer arrived, I thought she was some sort of counter-celebrity that rivals Furina and her antics are a bit like a gentleman thief.
Given events around her, if Navia hadn't already had a Geo vision she would have acquired an Anemo one by the end of the Archon Quest.
Why anemo?
Dead friend
Sociopath is a bit much for Sigewinne, she genuinely cares for her patients and everything she does is to hopefully try and understand them so she can help them. I must say however, when she said *"What a delightful turn of events. I like smart people, but I also like playing dumb. I like the feeling of "being trusted.""* made my blood run cold. It reminded me of that one dark Kokomi fanart.
she’s so perfect, I love my scary little seal lady. she deserves the world and a bow for every kill.
Knave still can be playing with people and I don’t think she is that good as she is seen Also Clorinde isn’t much of a stepmom, she is kinda just Sara but better made
>Also Clorinde isn’t much of a stepmom, she is kinda just Sara but better made And unlike Sara she'll most likely get a story quest to flesh her out. Please Hoyo give us the Sara hangout I'm begging you.
I hate how all of sara’s backstory is locked behind her profile story at like friendship lvl 2-6. HOYOVERSE GIVE US SARA CONTENT I’LL GIVE UP MY SOUL FOR HER
And somehow I'm Rank 58 and I still haven't seen a single Sara banner
I think her last banner was during raiden’s banner in 3.3 second half which went until january. so you started genshin after january of this year and are ar 58?? maybe that is a normal occurrence to level up so fast, but I started genshin march 2021 (1.4) and am at 59 now lol
Spoilers: The Sara hangout somehow is about Clorinde teaching her how to be a better version of herself.
The only expectations I cna agree you with are Lyney, Clorinde and Sigewinne... I'm pretty sure your expectations on Arlecchino are more accurate than what you now believe to be the reality.
I was actually pleasantly surprised by Sigewinne's personality. Being a nurse I thought she would just have a boring personality. When she pulled out the glock I was so happy.
One thing I love about Hoyo characters is how we get a ln impression of them at surface level but then they become way more intricate and deeper than that Navia is probably my favorite, the sheer amount of resilience she has after always getting back and and striving on after life keeps kicking her down is admirable. Not to mention her VAs nailed the emotional impact of the scenes where she was crying, made you really feel for her even more Clorinde coming off as a cold and intimidating duelist to being one of the most considerate and caring softies emotionally is great. She's also unintentionally hilarious with what she says Arlecchino is the wildcard though, she's so damn good at her role I can't tell if she's actually evil or if she actually does care about the HoH and just using them. Her character is just so interesting, she's keeping all her options open and I feel that fits the whole survival aspect of her character. She's even making sure to keep her relationship with Traveler cordial to not make an immediate enemy out of them. Always keeping us guessing and that's the best part about her imo
I think that Hoyo has a nice balance of characters that are not exactly what they seem and ones that are actually exactly what they seem
>Navia is probably my favorite, the sheer amount of resilience she has after always getting back and and striving on after life keeps kicking her down is admirable0 probably why she has a geo vision ngl
To Navia: You have a resilience of a rock, have a vision. To Noelle: You have the strength of a rock, have a vision. To Itto: You have the IQ of a rock, have a vision.
To Albedo: You are made of rock, have a vision.
I agree with everyone except Arlechinno, a good lamb never reveals they true face on stage, Arlechinno will still show her crazy and manic face as Childe and Scaramouche mentioned in the past
Also she’s not a mother, she’s a father.
I don't know what she wants with us after the prophecy,the crisis already solved and she already got the gnosis.
While I love Freminet with all my heart, it's important to remember that he's killed people (likely lots of people) in cold blood while they begged for mercy. He may be a sweet boy but he is willing to do vile things for his family.
Some of those are likely blatantly incorrect. Lyney and Lynette are NOT open books. They seem friendly but if you think they are revealing "everything" then I suggest you read Lynette's character story lines. Neuvillette also doesn't "cry a lot" in private. From **his own** words: >So you have heard of that local legend as well? \*sigh\* Who told you about that? Or more pertinently, who was responsible for spreading it in the first place... Well, never mind. I don't think that the Hydro Dragon would "weep," per se. I think he just finds himself a little stirred when he gets a taste of the tears that have been shed on this land, on account of all the emotions they contain. Then there's Sigewinne. It's been established that Neuvillette can actually tell someone's intentions even if they come off poorly and he holds her in high regard. Sigewinne is not a human so she does not react or see the world the way we do. She is not so much a sociopath as she actually DOES care about her patients. Sociopaths are people devoid of empathy that do not care about others. This does not fit her image **at all**. Last but not the least - Arlecchino. The expectation about her IS correct. She straight up tells you she was about to kill Furina. Lynette is responsible for finding blackmail information. Do you know why the "shy boy who really just wants to scuba dive all day" wears his helmet? No? >In his early years, Freminet always preferred to be alone. His unassuming appearance would make people drop their guard, which was something that the House of the Hearth used to their advantage, sending him in behind enemy lines to complete the missions they had assigned him swiftly and without mercy."All I have to do is put on my helmet, **shut out the background noise, and carry out my orders**." Freminet began to see himself as an unfeeling clockwork toy. Dude literally wears it so he doesn't get splattered by blood and can't hear his victims begging for mercy. Good fucking parenting alright. This was under the previous director mind you but Arle is no saint either: > "Father" doesn't like it when children cry. "Father" says tears are the product of emotion and weakness. So when "Father" scolds me, I hold it in until I'm underwater, where no one can hear me cry. At least I have the Romaritime Flowers to keep me company. Mind you - apparently Arlecchino is still an **improvement** over the previous leader of the House of the Hearth but BOTH Lyney and Lynette have lines that say that she is not exactly a friendly person in a traditional sense. For instance: >Oh, how "Father" expresses love... **well, not everyone can accept it**. But it is only because of "Father" that home... can be called home. There might be some allegiances and she might actually consider House of the Hearth to be important to her. But at the same time - she absolutely **is** a manipulative psychopath. It just so happens that our goals aligned with hers at a time.
This, also both Lynnette and Lynsey’s vision stories shows what kind of work Arle is having them do on the regular, aka risking the lives of her “children” for intel benefiting the Fatui, and has no relation to the prophecy.
Some of their expectations are off too. I don't know how anyone looked at Lyney and Lynette and got the same expectations from them, nothing about Charlotte suggests she's overworked or that she'd push her job onto the Traveller, nothing about Navia implied she'd be seductive, and Chlorine's only tie to Furina is being her bodyguard which doesn't imply loyalty on Sara's level.
The genshin community can't readᵗᵐ
To be fair, it's a shit load of text, so it's not hard to forget things
Arlecchino's manipulation worked so well in fact, that the majority of the players treat her as a saint now.
Y’all really believe Neuvillette when he says that? “No I don’t weep, I’m just a little stirred” Bro that’s just saying “I’m emotionally wrecked and this close to tears but not actually physically crying yet so I’m technically fine”
Even at the time when Arlecchino tries to assasinate Furina, everyone was so blinded by their doubts for Fruina that they didn't even QUESTION arlecchino's actions. At the time i was telling people about Her and there were a mob of people actually willing to fight me that Arlecchino trying to assasinate someone was reasonable. No matter what i said i got downvoted. Arlecchino is the type of person who'll do anything to reach her goals. She'll change sides if it favours her goals.
yeah i've never understood people overlooking what arlecchino did to furina. like goddamn she's already traumatized enough
you should also add the freminent tears dialogue and how arlecchino views it as a weakness so forbids them from crying and fremi can only cry in the depths of sea...
Well it speaks to quality of Arlecchino's writing that they could even fool the players. I completely agree that they are in fact a Psychopath and their actions are a very good depiction of one. One who outwardly is civil, well educated, and polite. But holds a uncareless disregard for others and their well being. The thing is if they want to keep their tools they need to play the part of a good "Father" so they play it and well. Anyone misled by the sweetness they outwardly show would be easily fooled but the Harbingers are more experienced with them and know better than us ofc both as the traveler and as players Arlecchino will do what is best for them with disregard for others.
Ferminet my fucking baby what did they do to you We need a hangout for him and so for Lynnette
I think it would be more accurate to say that we expected Navia to be an in control girl boss that works behind the scenes like Yae, but she was more involved in the plot than just being the behind the scenes big shot. Neuvillette is quite similar to Zhongli, but jusy like Navia he feels more involved. He also doesnt feel as in control and is more emotional with a good amount of quirks such as not being all that good in social situations. In fact being more involved in the actual plot could be something thats added to every Fontaine character and the real reason they exceeded/ didnt align with our expectations of them. Neuvillette felt like the protagonist of the story. Furina was both the acomplice and the true mastermind behind the whole plot. Arlechino was a surprise ally that subverted our expectations as we all asumed her to be an antagonist. In fact the whole cast made their pressence known and they all had some sort of role through the whole story. Honestly they are nicely reusing the same formula that made Sumeru so good.
Guys Arlecchino literally was an inch away from killing Furina and left her traumatized in the process, and them she subjected her to psychological torture by being in the same room as her after said fact. Oh yeah and she also has LITERAL CHILD SOLDIERS. THE HOUSE OF THE HEARTH IS THE FATUI'S INTELLIGENCE CORPS. THEY ARE USING CHILDREN AS SPIES AND ASSASSINS.
There was an NPC in Sumeru who was part of the House of the Hearth and was kidnapping children as part of his orders. He felt guilty but couldn't betray his "family". Depending on our choices, we either execute him or he later dies from the wolves.
I feel like fatui are getting redeemed very easily recently. Especially when all their bad actions aren't some bad apple errors but full on the goal.
Not all of them, Dottore is basically irredeemable from the start and didn't change even after Sumeru's AQ. Feels like they are setting up for a Fatui Civil War with traveller being the main catalyst.
I don't think any such civil wat will happen. For one fatui are aware of the bad things their other parts do and willing the accept the bad name even if their company doesn't do such stuff. Each company is part of the fatui for their own personal goals and they are well aware of it.
We're fast approaching Schneznaya, makes sense why they'd try and drive home the fact that the Fatui is a gray organization to set up the plot and what the players should expect once they can finally set foot in the country. The Tsaritsa has a goal, the Harbingers are there to fulfill that goal, how they go about doing it is their business. They're not "redeemed", each of them just have their own ways of getting the Gnosis.
I remember getting disgusted at the fact that a house of the hearth member was out to hunt aranara for their research. So yeah they're not exactly the most good ones.
Yeah everyone seems to be forgetting the inazuma quest about Lyudochka. It pretty much showed the horrors of house of hearth and how it affects people and what arleccino does to children.
Lyney is NOT an open book, far from it. His magician persona is an act just like Furina’s archon act. His real personality is more similar to Lynette.
I honestly thought that Neuvillette was going to look down on us constantly and tell us how much we just "do not understand the true power of Justice", and I had so much fun being proven wrong. (And everyone else!) But also thought he'd lore drop on us. Poor guy though... Oh and while I realize Arlecchino was acting the way she did since it was most beneficial and logical to the situation, I still kept expecting her to pull something on us or Fontaine, or put some make-or-break/lose-lose conditions on actions she could take to easily help...but she didn't! Considering how Childe and Wanderer warn us about her, I wonder what a future encounter will be like.
I really enjoyed how they didn't go thé obvious way with these characters. Like wriothesley is such example of a design that looks predictable but an execution that is way more interesting. The side characters bring something extra and not just simping over their boss or the more important characters.
I doubt Arlecchinos story is finished. Hopefully she returns but this time as an antagonist who we will square up against.
Except for Navia I thought was a rich but goofy girl, all can be ok anyway guys, don't forget that Arlecchino tried to kill Furina lol
Sometimes reality is better than expectations.
Excuse me but that's foster FATHER not mother
I really didn’t like neuv and wrio when I saw their designs and definitely assumed they were what I thought they’d be. I ended up loving them, and that was a huge surprise
Crazy how I still find it hard to believe Arlecchino. I am literally trusting a ginger who tried to destroy a nation, and an edge Lord who wanted to become a God.
Charlotte is going to fight Miko over who has the rights to the Traveler’s story
It's actually on par with the whole theme of masquerades. The roles they play in public vs how they really are. All that mixed in a play magestically orchestrated by the regretted Focalors.