Everything we know about Fontaine, Genshin Impact’s upcoming fifth region

Genshin Impact’s upcoming version 3.8 update will be the last one Travelers will spend in Sumeru before the game moves on to its fifth nation, Fontaine, in version 4.

As any good Traveler will know, it is a must to know as much as possible about any new place you’re setting off on an adventure to. While HoYoverse has already given us our first look at Fontaine during the version 3.8 preview livestream and unveiled most of the cast of playable characters from the region in the 'Overture Teaser: The Final Feast', there’s still much about this new region that most players probably aren’t aware of.

So, let’s break down everything we know about Fontaine so far through the various tidbits of lore we encounter throughout the game.

The Nation of Justice

Fontaine is the fourth region of Teyvat that the Traveler must go through on their journey across the world’s seven nations. Located west of Liyue and northwest of Sumeru, Fontaine is the domain of the Hydro Archon Focalors and is also known as the ‘Nation of Justice’.

Justice is the guiding ideal of Fontaine, as Freedom is for Mondstadt or Eternity is for Inazuma. All societies are built upon the rule of law, but Fontaine takes this to the extreme. Every action of all the nation’s citizens, even its Archon, are subject to the law.

Liyue’s resident legal consultant, Yanfei, even says in one of her 'About Us' voice lines that Fontaine’s legal system is “notoriously complicated”.

Patrice, a Fontaine citizen we met during the ‘Vibro-Crystal Research’ event, said that even the tiniest of infractions are considered crimes in his home nation and can come with severe punishments. He even told an account of Fontaine researchers found to be “wasting public funds” and “misappropriating academic resources” can be punishable by bankruptcy at best.

With how strictly Fontaine upholds its laws, the Traveler will have to be careful not to overstep their boundaries during his travels there. We even suspect Paimon will get them in trouble one way or another.

Another notable aspect of Fontaine is that humans are not its only inhabitants, similar to how Inazuma is home to both humans and youkai.

In the preview shown by HoYoverse, we follow a member of the Melusine, a diminutive race of humanoids with animal-like features. Multiple members of the Melusine race can be seen throughout the preview working in different jobs across the city.

A hub of culture and technology

While Fontaine is most known for being the Nation of Justice, it also prides itself as a hub of culture and technology in Teyvat.

There is no better example of Fontaine’s cultural reach than ‘The Steambird’, a newspaper based in the region that has writers and readers from all over Teyvat.

We have already met two writers for The Steambird: Mona, who oversees its ‘All Things Astrological’ column, and Charlotte, a journalist the Traveler met while she was covering the Genius Invokation Grand Prix during version 3.7’s ‘Duel! The Summoner’s Summit’ event.

Aside from The Steambird, another cultural export from Fontaine is, surprisingly, rock n’ roll music. The Iridescence Tour, a music festival that was featured during this year’s ‘Lantern Rite’ event, also originated in Fontaine.

Magic shows, much like the ones in our own world, also seem to be deeply ingrained in Fontaine's culture. This is exemplified by Lyney being known as the Court Magician of the Court of Fontaine, as even the highest authority in the land has a magician in their employ.

Another known aspect of Fontaine’s culture is the fanciful manner of dress for most of its citizens.

Most of the playable Fontaine characters revealed in the Overture Teaser wear formal-looking attire regardless of the occasion, especially Navia who wears a black-and-gold and flowing Victorian-style dress.

The Fontaine preview also shows the female NPC's wearing Victorian-style dresses and big hats. Speaking of hats, there’s apparently a big hat culture in Fontaine, with every person from Fontaine we’ve encountered wearing one.

Oh, and how can we forget, even their dogs are fancifully dressed. Can’t think of much else that is more cultured than that.

Back to The Steambird, the existence of such a newspaper in Fontaine means that the nation has already developed the printing press, which also points towards the region’s technological advancement.

The Kamera, and the subsequent photography and film culture it gave rise to, was notably invented in Fontaine and quickly spread across Teyvat.

Fontaine’s technological advancements can largely be attributed to the Fontaine Research Institute, which trains, accommodates, and funds the nation’s researchers and engineers.

Fontaine’s technology is also advanced enough that it is sought after by other nations. Inazuma reached out to a team of experts from Fontaine, including Xavier, in developing the Mikage Furnace in Tatarasuna.

In the Fontaine preview, we can even see steam-powered boats and humanoid robots walking around the city.

However, Fontaine’s technological advancements seem to come at a price. Santon, an Animal Control Expert we can encounter in Sumeru, says that the air there is toxic, implying a level of industrialization that has become harmful to the environment.

This also hints at the possible conflicts we may encounter in Fontaine. We are briefly shown a location that appears to be a sewer where the squalor caused by industrialization is very evident, though some people still seem to live there.

We expect some kind of class conflict to be a focal point in the Fontaine storyline, with members of the nation’s upper class living lavishly in the upper parts of the city while the lower classes languish in poverty below. Perhaps the Melusine may also play a part in this conflict, as they appear subservient to the humans of Fontaine as those we have seen all seem to be laborers.

Focalors and the Court of Fontaine

We’ve talked about Fontaine’s demographics, culture, and technology at length, but we need to circle back to the reason why the Traveler will go there in the first place: Focalors.

The Traveler must journey through the seven nations of Teyvat and speak with each of the Archons to uncover the mystery behind the Abyss Twin, the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles, and Celestia. Focalors will be no exception.

In the ‘Teyvat Chapter Storyline Preview: Travail’, Dainsleif says that “The God of Justice lives for the spectacle of the courtroom, seeking to judge all other gods. But even she knows not to make an enemy of the divine.”

The ‘divine’ being referred to here is likely the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles. With Focalors’ fear of Celestia, who knows how they will react to the Traveler’s inquiries?

But if there’s one thing we can assume, it’s that the Traveler is likely to get into some legal hijinks with the Court of Fontaine, the ruling body of the nation (better call Yanfei).

While the Hydro Archon reigns supreme over their domain, the Court of Fontaine is headed Chief Justice Neuvillette, who we first hear of in Nahida's drip marketing from last year and was revealed in the Overture Teaser.

Neuvillette doesn’t seem to be too fond of Focalors, as he praised Nahida’s care for Sumeru’s citizens despite being the youngest of the Archons while implying Focalors was “prone to hysterics”. In the Overture Teaser, Neuvillette even reminds the Archon herself to "refrain from levity in the court".

With that said, we can assume that this is just the Hydro Archon reveling in the spectacle of the courtroom.

But Neuvillette isn’t the only one who bristles under Focalors’ rule. The current Hydro Archon isn’t actually one of the original Seven, with only Venti and Zhongli remaining from the first group of beings to ascend to Archonhood.

The original Hydro Archon was known to have sent the Lochfolk across Teyvat to act as both diplomats and spies. We know these Lochfolk better as the Oceanids, with the world boss Rhodeia of Loch being a member of that race.

Following the death of the first Hydro Archon, the Oceanids refused to acknowledge Focalors as their new Archon. Instead, they further scattered across Teyvat with the intent of continuing their late master’s wishes.

While that happened quite a long time before the game’s current events, the animosities apparently still remain. When initiating a battle with Rhodeia, she asks the Traveler if they are “an assassin from our homeland”. Upon being defeated, she also laments that the Oceanids only sought “but a small haven of tranquil waters... is that so much to ask for…”

In the version 3.8 'Secret Summer Paradise' event, the Traveler even encounters a group of Oceanids with the ability to take on human forms in the Veluriyam Mirage.

From all that, we can expect the Traveler to get caught up in a web of intrigue in Fontaine. Judging from the Overture Teaser, the Fatui Harbinger Arlecchino will surely be the one pulling a lot of the strings.

Let’s hope the Traveler have what it takes (like a good lawyer) to navigate it.

Fontaine’s real-life inspirations

Each of Genshin Impact’s seven nations all take inspiration from various real-world cultures and civilizations. For example, Liyue is inspired by China while Inazuma takes after Japan during the reign of the Tokugawa Shogunate.

It’s quite easy to guess that Fontaine is largely inspired by Renaissance-era France, but probably with a steampunk twist. After all, Fontaine is the French word for ‘fountain’, which is fitting for the domain of the Hydro Archon.

With that said, we do see hints of Victorian England in what bits and pieces of Fontaine have been shown, especially in the region’s technological advancement. After all, the Industrial Revolution did start in Great Britain in the real world.

Well, that’s about all we know about Fontaine so far. If, like us, you’re also itching to know more about the game’s upcoming nation, then we can only suggest patience as we wait for HoYoverse to reveal more about the Traveler’s next stop on his journey across Teyvat.

Genshin Impact is currently in version 3.8, which features a new summer event as well as reruns for Eula, Klee, the Wanderer, and Kokomi.

The highly-anticipated release of Fontaine in Genshin Impact version 4.0 will be in mid-August. The first batch of playable characters from the region include the sibling trio of Lyney, Lynette, and Freminet.

But more than just adding a new region, version 4.0 will also add a new dimension to Genshin Impact's gameplay by introducing underwater exploration and combat!

Yan Ku is a full-time dog parent, part-time (gacha) gamer, and part-time writer.

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