MiHoYo have released the 1.3 All That Glitters update for their gacha action-RPG, Genshin Impact.
As with all major updates, 1.3 is heralded by a new 5-star character. Xiao is a Yaksha adeptus that guards Liyue, and has served under the Geo Archon- Rex Lapis- since the early formation of modern day Teyvat thousands of years ago.
Xiao was first introduced during the Liyue story arc, and is now available as a playable character through the Invitation to Mundane Life limited time banner. The banner also includes increased pull rates for the 4-star characters Diona, Beidou, and Xinyan.
Xiao is a Anemo Polearm user that specializes in mobility and rapid attacks. His Elemental Skill, Lemniscatic Wing Cycling, causes Xiao to dash forward, dealing damage to any enemies in his path.
The skill can be used in mid-air and comes with two charges by default, which can aid in exploration. Xiao also reduces your party’s stamina consumption while climbing, and doesn’t suffer fall damage from plunging attacks, no matter the height.
Finally, his Elemental Burst, Bane of All Evil, allows him to draw upon the powers of his Yaksha mask, converting all of his damage to Anemo and greatly increasing his jump height at the expense of HP.
You can find a collection of trailers detailing Xiao’s skills and backstory below.
Xiao’s banner lasts until the 17th, at which time it will be replaced by a banner focusing on the 5-star character Keqing, and the 4-star characters Ningguang, Barbara, and Bennett.
Update 1.3 has a ton of other new content and activities as well. The main event is the Lantern Rite Festival; which is full of quests, activities, and daily login goals.
These reward players with valuable upgrade materials, Primogems, Fates, and even a single 4-star Liyue character of your choice. The Lantern Rite Tales are a series of story quests based around the yearly festival in Liyue of the same name, and form the basis for unlocking all of the events.
Some of these activities include the Theater Mechanicus, a tower defense-style challenge that rewards Peace Talismans that can be exchanged for materials in the limited time Xiao’s Market shop. Meanwhile, Five Flushes of Fortune is an event based around taking photos with the camera item that was added in the last big patch.
Besides the limited time Lantern Rite Festival events, 1.3 also adds new world quests, new story quests, and the Geovishap and Primo Geovishap monsters. There is also the Parametric Transformer gadget, that allows you to convert character and weapon ascension materials into different materials.
Finally, there will also be four new weapons, the promised changes to Zhongli and Geo characters, and many other quality of life enhancements. You can read more about the patch here, and find a lengthy overview of it below.
Genshin Impact is available on Windows PC (via the official website), PlayStation 4, Android, iOS, and coming soon to Nintendo Switch. In case you missed it, you can find our review here (we recommend it!)