#I could blab for so fucking long about the archons

[featherfur]

I don’t really talk about Genshin on this blog, but there’s just something magical (and by that I mean obnoxious) about seeing posts about how the archons are secretly evil and did all these bad things and that Genshin just treats it like it’s nothing. And then you read the lore and it’s literally

-Wind spirit just wanted to comfort a human and was forced into power so giant wolf didn’t murder humans

-local dragon/qilin’s best friend and partner was murdered and his people were being slaughtered so he fought to protect everyone including other gods

-electric sisters fought some gods, one gave up her body and then got revived (there’s not really much on them and the bits about Oroboshi are conflicting, I’ll fully admit. Maybe Ei did just have fun slaughtering, but I don’t think Makoto would have let her do that but maybe I missed a piece of lore. There’s a lot)

-literally didn’t even participate in the war just sat down w her three friends and one died and she still didn’t fight the other guy, just chilled out??? Even when he was being a bitch?? And helped him??

-Took over after a random king absolutely fucked up everything just started a country to clean up the mess the other guy made?

And literally none of it is hidden??? Beyond just how time and history works which is acknowledged in like 20 separate quests?? (Well okay, Istaroth is hidden but that’s less because he’s hiding it and more of because the whole Nobles destroying history thing, and no one really cares about Barbatos’ history)

No one says it was a good thing?? No one says it was okay that Celestia forced them into it? They actively avoid Celestia and communicating with them? Venti is even shown to look terrified when they’re brought up.

The only reason some history is ‘hidden’ is because it’s so old literally only the old as balls Rex Lapis remembers it all and he wasn’t everywhere and he’s not writing history books but he is still telling people.

Like, I think it’s kind of telling that at every turn all of the gods have done nothing but sought out peace and protection for who they loved and they’re not hiding anything or avoiding the truth. Hell two of the new archons weren’t even involved in the Archon war and didn’t have a choice in the matter.

Did they kill people? Some of them yeah! But one of the fandom’s favorites is literally a serial killer who attempted genocide because his ice god told him to go have fun, unlike Yknow the others who were in the middle of a war that was either pick a leader you’ll work with, kill everyone else so you can have power, or the literal heavens will send civilization destroying nails to slaughter every person you love.

Not to mention for every person who brings up the cataclysm I want to scream because so far NONE OF THE ARCHONS HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH IT!! Do you really think the archons who gave fucking everything for humans would just go willingly? Do you think they care if they’re worshipped? Do you think Venti who adores his children who think he’s dead cares if he’s worshipped? Do you think Zhongli who speaks so lovingly of how people from all over come to stay a while in his home would judge a Khaenri’ah’n for not bowing to him??

They wanted nothing to do with Celestia, they did what they had to do to protect their people and so far only two of them were actually killing people! Genshin isn’t coming out of nowhere with these more humanizing aspects, y’all just don’t pay attention and you want something that doesn’t exist.

How is that not more compelling than the idea that they’re all bloodthirsty killers who did all kinds of violence for the sake of violence and happened to be given magic powers?