The 2020 video game Genshin Impact takes place in the world of Teyvat, a planet which is divided up into seven nations, each of which has its own unique subareas and takes inspiration from real-world cultures and other elements. Each nation is ruled by a god, or Archon, and is associated with a certain ideal.
List + Teyvat's major regions Region Element Archon Vessel Ideal Governing Body Mondstadt Anemo Barbatos Venti Freedom Knights of Favonius Liyue Geo Morax Zhongli Contracts Liyue Qixing Inazuma Electro Beelzebul Raiden Ei Eternity Inazuma Shogunate Sumeru Dendro Buer Nahida Wisdom Sumeru Akademiya Fontaine Hydro Focalors (formerly) Furina de Fontaine (formerly) Justice Palais Mermonia Neuvillette (Hydro Dragon) Natlan Pyro Haborym Mavuika War Speaker's Chamber Nod-Krai Columbina Hyposelenia Voynich Guild (de facto) Snezhnaya Cryo Vassaga Anastasya Feodorovna Snezhnaya Love Snezhnograd Veche Khaenri'ah
Major nations
Mondstadt
Mondstadt is the first region players encounter after starting Genshin Impact. It is based on German cultural designs. Its element is wind (Anemo), and has freedom as its ideal. It is guarded by the Anemo Archon, Venti (Barbatos). Mondstadt's terrain is mostly flat, and consists of plains and forests.
The central city of Mondstadt (which has the same name), located to the north, serves as the region's largest city and main hub. To the northeast lies Cape Oath, a historical site, while the Thousand Winds Temple, a ruined shrine to the Anemo Archon, lies to the east. Galesong Hill, located south of the city, includes the areas of Wolvendom (a forest), Dawn Winery (one of the most renowned in Teyvat) and Springvale. To the southeast lies the Windwail Highland area, and the Brightcrown Mountains, which consist of a canyon and the lair of a dragon, are towards the northwest. Players gain access to the latter area by progressing through the main story.
The southernmost region, Dragonspine, is known for its extreme cold temperatures. Players exposed to its Sheer Cold effect for a long enough time will continually lose health if they do not find heat sources. In a behind-the-scenes video, the production team revealed that Dragonspine was inspired by the Matterhorn in the Alps. They noted that the overall saturation of the snow-covered region is lowered, creating a cooler light source. The story of Dragonspine is presented from the perspectives of an ancient kingdom, modern non-player characters, and the player. The team also shared that the creation of Dragonspine’s snow was inspired by the gradient seen in clouds.
The inspiration behind Mondstadt is unconfirmed and has been cause for speculation. Terry Bass of The AXO pointed out that Mondstadt’s design draws on German and Swiss cultural influences, in particular Bern, Switzerland. He suggested that Mondstadt's cathedral was modeled after Regensburg Cathedral in Germany.
Liyue
Liyue is located in the eastern part of Teyvat and is the oldest established nation on the planet. Liyue reflects many elements of traditional Chinese culture in its customs and traditions, as can be seen in the Oriental-inspired names across the nation, which are preserved in English via pinyin. The buildings of Liyue are also inspired by China. Its ideal is contracts, and its archon is Zhongli.
The game development team stated that Liyue was created with a Chinese fantasy theme. From white-box testing to art design, scene creation, it took a year to complete. Liyue officially opened on March 19, 2020, and its area is 1.5 times that of the initial region, Mondstadt. In the game, Liyue is located in the eastern part of the continent of Teyvat, bordered by Mondstadt to the northeast and facing Mt. Tianheng to the west. Liyue features diverse terrain, with sandstone formations being a prominent feature, symbolizing the Geo Archon's leadership. The area includes shallow beaches, plains crisscrossed by rivers, towering mountains, and stone forests. Plants in the mid-altitude areas are dominated by poplar trees, with locust and pine trees at higher altitudes, while bamboo, plum, and ginkgo trees grow in the plains and riverbanks. Animals include cranes and lizards that inhabit the cliffs.
As Liyue is themed around the Geo element, warm colors dominate the scenery. Players enter Liyue from Mondstadt through a stone gate designed based on karst arches based on those in southwest China, resembling a thin strip of sky in the early stages, later completing the final design by referencing ancient Chinese plank roads. After passing through, they arrive at the alluvial river of Bishui Plain, known as Dihua Marsh, modeled after the landscape of Guilin and Yangshuo, characterized by continuous stone peaks, dense water networks, and floating vibrant flowers. The iconic building, Wangshu Inn, is inspired by the Lingnan Diaojiaolou architecture, with its temperament resembling the inn in the movie Dragon Inn. The scene in Dihua Marsh reproduces the characteristics of Guilin's multiple waters and continuous mountains, depicting the details to reflect the life of the people of Liyue. The northern Qingce Village showcases a tranquil village with numerous terraces and is inspired by the Longji Mountain and Rice Terraces. The tributaries of Bishui River wind down from Dihua Marsh, eventually merging into "Luhua Pool", inspired by the iconic calc-sinter terraces of Huanglong Nature Reserve in Sichuan. The Huanglong Scenic Area is the only well-preserved plateau wetland in mainland China, and the production team believed that Huanglong possessed a sense of "dreaminess" and "mystery" beyond reality. Therefore, they chose Huanglong as a reference for Liyue's "ecosystem". The prototype of Liyue's Luhua Pool is located in Huanglong's Five-Color Pond. The water in Luhua Pool uses a different material from other water surfaces in the game, giving it attractive colors under various lighting conditions. Additionally, setting high points around Luhua Pool is aimed at allowing players to "more easily experience its perfect side."
Zhuhua Pool, located next to Mt. Tianheng, is inspired by the famous Tianmen Mountain in Zhangjiajie National Forest Park. Mt. Tianheng features an area known as Jueyun Karst, shrouded in clouds and mist year-round, with plank roads and suspension bridges between the peaks. This place is the retreat of the immortals who guard Liyue. Zhangjiajie was chosen as the model because its fantastical landscape seems "a bit out of this world." In the game, Jueyun Karst is the retreat of Liyue's immortals, and Zhangjiajie's towering mountains and misty atmosphere fit this setting perfectly in the developers' opinion. Additionally, the sandstone peak forest of Zhangjiajie aligns with Liyue's theme of the Geo element.
A new expansion area of Liyue, "The Chasm", was released with the 2.6 version update on March 30, 2022. The Chasm features a complex terrain with many unique ecological and geological environments and borders Sumeru to the east. It is divided into an upper and a lower region, and completing tasks will unlock the underground mine area, where players can use the item "Lumenstone Adjuvant" to explore this region. Another new area, "Chenyu Vale", was released with the 4.4 version update on January 31, 2024. It is located in the northwest region bordering Fontaine. The area "Qiaoying Village" is known for producing tea, and its architectural design takes inspiration in the Huizhou architecture in Huangshan, Anhui Province.
Polygon cited reviews stating that Liyue's design is completely different from Mondstadt, featuring more unique architecture, better background music, and more tightly integrated lore and stories. While blending East Asian cultural elements, it retains gameplay, expressiveness, and aesthetics suitable for players worldwide. Kotaku editor Sisi Jiang felt that Liyue is an idealized portrayal of Chinese social relationships, where merchants and customers show care for each other through mutual benefit, and money can build interdependent relationships, unlike the current society where shopping habits are often disconnected from community. Liyue serves as a type of "destination image" and inspires the appreciation of Chinese culture, encouraging travel from international players. Russian journalist Valiyev Samir believes there is a "Liyue Effect", as Liyue is a driver of tourism and a "meticulously crafted virtual homepage to Chinese civilization".
Inazuma
Inazuma is the third nation to be released in the game. It is based on Japan's Edo period and the culture of the era, drawing from traditional Japanese cultural elements like shoguns, samurai and ninjas. Inazuma's element is Electro and is ruled over by the Raiden Shogun. Its central ideal is "eternity". It is the only island archipelago in the game, and is distant from the mainland. The Japanese word "inazuma" () means "lightning" in English. The development team stated in an interview that there are two key points in Inazuma's scene design: the first is to integrate the element of Electro into how players explore the area as well as into the terrain and regional ecosystem; the second is to set a clear theme for each island. Each island was designed to have its own characteristics in terms of plot, setting, and gameplay.
Inazuma is the only maritime archipelago nation among the seven nations of Teyvat. It is located in the southeastern region of the map and consists of six islands. The local environment is deeply influenced by Electro. The southern part of Narukami Island (the biggest and most populous island, to the east) houses the nation's capital, Inazuma City, while the island's northern mountaintops hold the Grand Narukami Shrine. Within the shrine stands the Sacred Sakura tree, a symbol of the Raiden Shogun's protection over Inazuma. Its roots spread throughout the land, and all Thunder Sakura trees across the region are considered its offshoots. The design of the Sacred Sakura tree inside the shrine is derived in part from the belief in himorogi (). In addition, the castle structure of some buildings shares similarities with the design of tenshu. Concepts used in Inazuma can also be found in similar prototypes in real-life Japanese history; examples of this include the Sakoku Decree and the Kanjou Commission, both of which were derived from Japanese isolationism. Some story backgrounds also refer to bake-danuki and other forms of yokai. The lead scene artist shared during the preview livestream that Inazuma's rocky terrain was modeled after the stratified layers of Byōbugaura, with alternating horizontal stripes and interlaced lines to express the influence of the thunder element on the terrain of Inazuma.
To the west, Yashiori Island is a heavily battle-scarred island which now contains the remnants of Inazuma's largest smelting facility and which suffers from frequent thunderstorms and torrential rainfall. To the west of Yashiori Island is Watatsumi Island, which features a design reminiscent of the Dragon Palace, a structure from Japanese folklore, purportedly located in the Ryukyu Islands. It is one of the key sites in the game's Inazuma story arc, as it is where the main resistance against the Raiden Shogun is based.
The southernmost island is Tsurumi Island, which is the southernmost region in all of Teyvat. It is perpetually shrouded in thick fog. At the center of Seirai Island, which is located south of Narukami Island, lies an unending thunderstorm.