The Seven

The Seven Archons, typically shortened to The Seven, are the seven gods who preside over the seven regions of Teyvat, established after they or their predecessors emerged as the victors of the Archon War 2,000 years ago. Each Archon is associated with an element and an ideal, by which they formed their territories' environment and determined their method of governance over their regions.
Each Archon possesses a magic focus called a Gnosis, which allows them to resonate directly with Celestia. By comparison, Visions are "primitive" — though a Gnosis's capabilities and purpose, beyond acting as a symbol of an Archon's status, remain unknown. Each Archon is bound to a Divine Throne, which is composed of a portion of the Authority of one of the Seven Sovereigns, and which grants them authority over the corresponding element.
As of Archon Quest Chapter IV: Act V - Masquerade of the Guilty, only six Divine Thrones remain. The Hydro Archon's Divine Throne was destroyed, returning the Authority within to the Hydro Dragon Sovereign and breaking the established order of the Seven.
==History==
The Archon War began an indeterminate time in the past, and ended around 2,000 years ago. During this period of time, many gods and archons roamed the land, locked in a bitter struggle for supremacy. It appears that the battles associated with the Archon War are a multitude of local struggles that were grouped together by human history. For example, Barbatos became the first Anemo Archon among The Seven after the death of Decarabian 2,600 years ago, while Morax is implied to have already become Geo Archon by the time the last of the original Seven claimed their title and thus brought an end to the War.
The original Seven appeared to be relatively close, sharing a common duty of guiding humanity and often gathering in Liyue for drinks. However, over time, five of The Seven passed away, and some of the newer Archons no longer adhered to the duty of guiding humanity.
===The Cataclysm===
500 years ago, the destruction of Khaenri'ah led to forbidden knowledge pollution and the rampage of Rhinedottir's creations, which held the power of the Abyss and ravaged the world of Teyvat. Among those who were perished in the ensuing conflicts were Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, Raiden Makoto, and Egeria. They were subsequently replaced by Lesser Lord Kusanali, Raiden Ei, and Focalors, respectively. The Tsaritsa was also greatly affected by the cataclysm, resulting in a drastic change in her personality.
The Seven were summoned to Tunigi Hollow, where the worst outpouring of forbidden knowledge and monsters was occurring. During the battle, Egeria was killed and her body turned into the pool of water known as the Amrita. To preserve the water's purity and tether the god to the mortal realm, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata grew the Harvisptokhm — which serves as a seal over the dark hollow and prevents the corruption from spreading further — from the Amrita. The Oceanids, who served the former Hydro Archon but did not get along with Focalors, made their way to the Harvisptokhm in search of their master. Seeing that her current state was not what they had hoped for, they spread all over the continent and world itself.
During this time, the Traveler and their sibling descended on Teyvat and, seeing the chaos, attempted to leave this world, only to run afoul of the Unknown God. While the twins did not meet The Seven during this time, The Seven are aware of them and have been awaiting the Traveler's arrival.Map, Interactable: Statue of The Seven
Around 400 years ago, Ei completed her research into creating a lifelike puppet, the Shogun, to enforce her vision of Eternity over Inazuma while she retreated to the Plane of Euthymia. Ever since then, the Shogun has been ruling Inazuma in her stead. Though Ei failed to make her puppets compatible with the Gnosis and thus gave it to Yae Miko instead, the Shogun is capable of tremendous feats even without it.
==Powers and Abilities==
An Archon's source of power has been attributed to three sources: the first is through presiding over their respective region, the second is from their people's faith in them and the third being a fragment of the elemental Authority stolen by the Heavenly Principles from the Seven Sovereign. Barbatos, who refuses to govern Mondstadt directly and has left Mondstadt for extended periods of time in the past, claims to be the weakest of The Seven as a result; Lesser Lord Kusanali, who was imprisoned in the Sanctuary of Surasthana and shunned by the sages since she was born 500 years ago, explains that her fighting skills are inferior to the Traveler's because she does not hold her people's faith.
The Seven appear to be privy to information that mortals are generally unaware of or deem to be merely fictional. Venti, Zhongli and Mavuika are aware of the existences of other worlds, as well as the fact that the Traveler had the power to travel between different worlds.
===Elemental Control===
Each Archon presides over their respective element and have used it to shape the landscape and climate of their respective territories. This ability seems to be held by any god and not only The Seven, but ever since the end of the Archon War, there have only been seven Archons at a time.
Unlike humans, who rely on resonance with a Vision to use the elements, the Archons seen so far were already affiliated with their elements before becoming Archons: Barbatos was originally a wind spirit who ascended to godhood, historical records regarding Morax address him as the "God of Geo" long before he became the Geo Archon, and Ei (and by proxy, Makoto) is an "incarnation of lightning." Incarnations of Irminsul, i.e. Rukkhadevata and Nahida, are appointed guardians and maintainers of the tree of Irminsul. Nahida was created using a branch of Irminsul, confirming the connection between Irminsul and Dendro. Focalors (and by extension, Furina) was an Oceanid who was transformed into a human by Egeria using the power of the Primordial Sea, though Furina has since been converted into a full human. An Oceanid legend says that Egeria herself was created by the Shade of Life to take the place of "the Primordial Sea's Heart" after the Hydro Dragon was "removed from that role."
While people on Teyvat commonly believe that the Archons grant Visions, they actually have no control over the distribution of Visions and are largely unaware of circumstances surrounding Visions. However, within her Plane of Euthymia, Ei could enact the "Vision Hunt Decree" effect to seal all characters' Elemental Skills and Elemental Bursts besides the Traveler's. Because the Plane of Euthymia is Ei's personal dimension, there is not enough information to determine how this effect works or whether Ei is capable of enacting this anywhere else.
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While gnoses are described as being emblematic of an Archon's status and give them a direct connection to Celestia, their exact purpose and abilities remain a mystery. They evidently grant Archons a large power boost and the "divine ability" to defend their nations, and Zhongli attributes the ability to mint Mora as something that "requires the use of the Geo Archon's power." The use of the gnoses' power is not exclusive to its respective Archon, as Nahida also utilized the power of the Electro Gnosis to aid in the healing of Irminsul.
===Divine Throne===
Each Divine Throne is composed of a portion of Authority stolen from the Seven Sovereigns by the Heavenly Principles, and it is the Throne that grants each Archon their authority over the corresponding element, though what exactly this entails remains yet unknown. A great amount of power is required to destroy the Throne, and its destruction, resulting in the death of the Archon bound to the Throne, appears to be the only way to return the Authority contained within to the Sovereign.
===Vessel Creation===
On multiple occasions, Archons have fashioned humanoid vessels using their powers as an Archon, perhaps through the use of their Gnoses. Venti's vessel was his first use of his newfound divine power after ascending to godhood as the Anemo Archon. Zhongli's body was likely created through this method as well, as he states that his "structure is not the same as that of normal people." After becoming the first Electro Archon, Makoto "reforged" Ei's body after Ei gave up her bodily form so Makoto could ascend to the "heavenly citadel."
Although gods are immortal, their physical vessels — including those made with the power of an Archon — have finite lifespans and can be "killed," while their consciousness can fade away. By the time of the main story, five of the original Seven have died and been replaced. While pondering how she would overcome her physical lifespan, Ei stumbled on a method of creating synthetic puppets indistinguishable from true life, which she used to create Scaramouche and the Shogun. After giving her Gnosis to Yae Miko for safekeeping, Ei discarded her physical form, the Shogun warning her that there was no return from giving up her body. Due to no longer having a physical body, Ei is only able to manifest herself outside of her Plane of Euthymia by using the body of the puppet as her own.
Vessels created through an Archon's power have another major weakness: they are incapable of being healed through ordinary means, including a Vision-bearer's healing abilities. Venti harnesses the power of the Symbol of Mondstadt's Hero twice to heal himself; first was to expunge the abyssal magic that poisoned him via Dvalin when the Traveler unintentionally interrupted them, and the second was to recover after having his Gnosis taken by Signora. The exact properties this tree holds is unclear, but it may have a connection to Celestia: according to legend, it grew from the spot where Vennessa ascended to Celestia.
In case of Pyro Archon, a mortal can ascend to godhood after winning the position through the Pilgrimage. As Pyro Archons are still mortals who age and die like regular humans, Natlan has had many Pyro Archons in the past. When a new Pyro Archon ascends to the Divine Throne, their "inner flame" will awaken, and the Sacred Flame grants them significant knowledge and memory of this land.
It's important to note that vessels can be the Archons themselves and not different entities. This page specifically refers to a human body created by Archons to live among the people of Teyvat as vessel creation is not exclusive to the Archons, in fact most gods are capable of this feat.
==Members==
Nation 	Image	Personal Name 	Goetic Name 	Other Designations 	Divine Ideal 	Ascended(Years Ago) 	StatusWhile all living individuals in this table continue to bear their Divine Throne, due to ambiguities regarding whether one can be considered an Archon without carrying a Gnosis, this column only differentiates between Alive, Deceased, Erased, Life suspended, and Unknown. Erased is only used for those who are removed from Irminsul while Life suspended is only used for Pyro Archons who place their lives into Sacred Flame.
Mondstadt 	 	Venti 	Barbatos 	None 	Freedom 	2,600 	Alive
Liyue 	 	Zhongli 	Morax 	Rex Lapis 	Contracts 	2,000+Despite being over 6,000 years old, Morax was only considered the Geo Archon after claiming one of the seats among The Seven. When exactly that occurred is unknown, although Character Story 5 indicates he was not the last to ascend. 	Alive
Inazuma 	 	Ei 	BeelzebulAlthough Baal is used to collectively refer to both Makoto and Ei, Wishes indicates that the name Baal belongs to Makoto and did not belong to Ei. As such, where applicable, Baal is considered to only be Makoto's name.	Raiden Shogun 	EternityIn Radiant Sakura, Makoto confirms that her ideal is also eternity, that "Eternity extends time into infinity, dreams illuminate each moment within." Ei comments that Makoto's understanding of eternity is much more profound than her, leading to her "no longer pursuing an eternity defined by stasis." In , Yae Miko points out that Makoto "in each moment cherished the beauty of what was before her."	500Although Makoto and Ei won the Archon War together, Ei is not considered one of the original Seven. In addition, according to Treasured Tales of the Chouken Shinkageuchi, after the two won the Archon War, Ei sacrificed her body so Makoto could ascend and become the Electro Archon. Afterwards, Makoto recalled her spirit and recreated her body.	Alive
Inazuma 	 	Makoto 	Baal 	Raiden Shogun 	EternityIn Radiant Sakura, Makoto confirms that her ideal is also eternity, that "Eternity extends time into infinity, dreams illuminate each moment within." Ei comments that Makoto's understanding of eternity is much more profound than her, leading to her "no longer pursuing an eternity defined by stasis." In , Yae Miko points out that Makoto "in each moment cherished the beauty of what was before her."	2,000+ 	Deceased
Sumeru 	 	Nahida 	Buer 	Lesser Lord Kusanali 	Wisdom 	5002,000+As a consequence of the removal of Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's existence from Irminsul, Lesser Lord Kusanali is now believed to have always been the Dendro Archon. 	Alive
Sumeru 	 	Unknown 	Unknown 	Greater Lord Rukkhadevata 	Wisdom 	2,000+ 	DeceasedErased
FontaineThe Hydro Archon's Divine Throne was destroyed along with Focalors during Chapter IV. As a result, there will be no further Hydro Archons.	 	UnknownFurina is not considered an Archon, as she neither had access to the Hydro Archon's Divine Throne nor disappeared when the current Hydro Dragon's full elemental authority was returned.After separating out her divinity and memories, Focalors named the human she left behind "Furina." Although Focalors saw Furina as essentially a human version of Focalors as well as exactly the kind of human Focalors wished to be, it is not known where the name Furina came from, and Focalors herself is additionally never addressed as Furina after her identity is revealed. 	Focalors 	Regina of All Waters, Kindreds, Peoples, and Laws	JusticeIn Masquerade of the Guilty, Focalors states that Egeria's justice was "existence," and that Focalors's justice was the "continuation" of that existence. This implies that both gods are Gods of Justice. 	500 	Deceased
FontaineThe Hydro Archon's Divine Throne was destroyed along with Focalors during Chapter IV. As a result, there will be no further Hydro Archons.	 	Egeria 	Unknown 	Mistress of Many Waters 	JusticeIn Masquerade of the Guilty, Focalors states that Egeria's justice was "existence," and that Focalors's justice was the "continuation" of that existence. This implies that both gods are Gods of Justice. 	2,000+ 	Deceased
Natlan 	 	Mavuika 	Haborym 	Kiongozi 	War 	<100Mavuika sacrificed her life in the Sacred Flame 500 years ago to be resurrected just before the Traveler arrives in Natlan. Furthermore, Kachina states that Mavuika "achieved an overwhelming victory" in a pilgrimage where she became Archon, despite not knowing that she was Archon 500 years prior. 	Alive
Natlan 	 	Mavuika 	Haborym 	Kiongozi 	War 	~500Mavuika ascended during the cataclysm but placed her life in the Sacred Flame to be resurrected in the present day. 	Life suspended
Natlan 	 	Xumucul 	Haborym 	Kiongozi 	War 	1,000+ 	Deceased
Natlan 	 	Cochanina 	Haborym 	Kiongozi 	War 	1,000+ 	Deceased
Natlan 	 	Ndenge 	Haborym 	Kiongozi 	War 	1,000+ 	Deceased
Natlan 	 	MurataThe name "Murata" is used by the English localization of the Manga Prologue: Songs of the Wind. However, the English localization deviates from the original Chinese text by using "Murata" as a personal name. In the original text, the Lady of Fire is left unnamed while "Murata" is only used in the demonym . Linguistic convention indicates "Murata" is more likely to be a location or nation name than a personal name. For convenience of description and ease of searching, "Murata" will remain the name of this Archon until more accurate information is revealed.	Haborym 	Kiongozi 	War 	1,000+Murata was Pyro Archon before Barbatos departed from Mondstadt. 	DeceasedAs the Pyro Archon position is inherited by mortals through winning the Pilgrimage, they remain subject to mortality. While some Pyro Archons lived longer than ordinary humans, it can still safely be assumed that all currently known previous Pyro Archons are deceased if they predate present day by more than a few centuries.
Natlan 	 	Unnamed Scarlet-Eyed Youth 	Haborym 	Kiongozi 	War 	~2,000The scarlet-eyed youth ascended when some of Xbalanque's human companions were still alive. 	Deceased
Natlan 	 	Xbalanque 	Haborym 	Kiongozi 	War 	~2,000All the original Archons are stated in Zhongli's Character Story 5 as having often gathered together in Liyue. As Xbalanque was a mortal human, his ascension must have taken place close to the end of the Archon War.He briefly returns to Natlan after Abyssal force is wiped out from Night Kingdom before returning back to the Kingdom 	Life suspended DeceasedHe entombed his life with the Primal Fire shortly after the foundation of Eternal Empire of Ochkanatlan before returning to the Night Kingdom in present day.
Snezhnaya 	 	Unknown 	Unknown 	Tsaritsa 	UnknownIn Teyvat Chapter Storyline Preview: Travail, Dainsleif suggests the Tsaritsa's ideal was originally Love. However, he refers to it in past tense, while Zhongli avoids speaking about it during Downtown, leaving it unconfirmed. 	500+The Tsaritsa was likely the Cryo Archon 500 years ago based on Venti's description of her in Ending Note. 	Alive
Snezhnaya 	 	Unknown 	Unknown 	Unknown 	Unknown 	2,000+ 	Deceased
;Notes
==Representatives==
Some members of The Seven have worked through proxies who were not Archons but appeared to be so to the people of Teyvat. These include the following characters:
Nation 	Representative	Archon 	Start(Years Ago)Due to the passage of time in-universe from the beginning of Genshin Impact, all exact figures are rounded to the nearest century.	End(Years Ago)
Inazuma 	Ei 	Makoto 	2,000+Makoto and Ei ruled together and appeared to be a single Electro Archon to the people of Inazuma, with Ei serving as Makoto's kagemusha. 	500While the people of Inazuma are unaware of this change, Ei became an Archon herself after Makoto's death during the cataclysm, thus ending her period of service as a non-Archon.
Inazuma 	The Shogun 	Ei 	400 	In serviceAlthough the Shogun and Ei began to co-rule Inazuma after the events of Radiant Sakura, only a select few are privy to the Shogun's existence as a separate entity from Ei.
Fontaine	Furina 	Focalors	500 	Masquerade of the GuiltyAfter Furina's identity was exposed along with Focalors's execution, Furina abdicated the position of Hydro Archon to live as an ordinary Fontainian.
;Notes
==Trivia== 
* When casting Elemental Skills and Bursts, the ends of an Archon's hair glow brightly with their element's color.
* Though the only two remaining Archons of the original Seven are Barbatos and Morax, Beelzebul — the current Electro Archon — was also a veteran of the Archon War, with her sister Baal taking the original Electro seat. It is not yet known if any of the other current Archons were active during the Archon War.
** During the , Greater Lord Rukkhadevata is erased from Irminsul, becoming forgotten by all of Teyvat except for the Traveler. In the new history that results from this action, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's existence is replaced by that of Lesser Lord Kusanali; it is now believed that she has been the Dendro Archon since the end of the Archon War — therefore being one of the original Seven — and became imprisoned by the sages of Sumeru after losing her memories during the cataclysm.
* Currently, there is a running gag in which the Archons encountered have no Mora:
** Barbatos, as Venti, has those listening to him buy him drinks instead of giving him Mora. He also pilfers from the Dawn Winery to eat and as soon as he has something that is spendable, he thinks of spending it on drinks. His occupation as a bard is also not lucrative in the first place.
** Morax did not pay attention to price tags prior to beginning life as Zhongli, because he could make Mora as needed with his Gnosis. As a result, Zhongli easily spends (or agrees to spend) large amounts of Mora, generally having others pay for his expenses. He also did not think of setting aside some Mora for personal use before relinquishing his Gnosis.
** Beelzebul has no need for Mora, as she simply asks the Tri-Commission to bring the items to her.
** Buer has not mentioned any struggles with Mora in her dialogue, but she struggles to place a hypothetical price tag on the Sanctuary of Surasthana despite ruminating over it for a long time, implying that she struggles to comprehend values that would equate to large amounts of Mora. This is likely due to her 500-year imprisonment in the Sanctuary of Surasthana, where she received information and items for free via the Akasha and sages, respectively.
** Although Furina is not an Archon, she partially continues the running gag, as she is considered unemployed following the .
*** While Neuvillette has made arrangements to ensure Furina will not have material issues, she decides to live alone in a small apartment, where she struggles with cooking and ends up only eating macaroni with different sauces.
*** Furina herself does have a substantial amount of Mora, as she saved the Mora she earned over the last few centuries in a "private reserve." She now uses this Mora as an ordinary Fontainian, though she tends to overspend. This may be a direct callback to Zhongli's failure to set aside some "private funds" for himself and how particularly disastrous it can be when he habitually agrees to transactions involving large amounts of Mora.
===Etymology=== 
* The term "" is a Greek word that refers to "A person who claims the right to rule, or to exercise power or sovereign authority over other human beings." Genshin Impact uses its usage,Bilibili: Chinese translation of the PASH May 2021 article (original Japanese text included) in which the are seven supernatural beings who each rule over one of the . They are subservient to the , the creator of the material universe who is beneath the , the true God. By reaching , an understanding of divine knowledge, one can transcend the confines of the material world and escape the dominion of the archons.
** A miHoYo developer interview on the May 2021 edition of the Japanese entertainment magazine PASH states that Gnosticism was selected as the primary mythological basis for Genshin Impact, particularly in regards to how Gnosticism deals with the relationship between man and world, and how the archons influence the world.
* Several Archons have their Goetic names directly derived from one of the 72 demons found in the Ars Goetia, one of the books in . Gods who predate The Seven have varying levels of similarity to a demon name in the Ars Goetia (see ).
** is one of the Dukes of Hell.
** is a Great Earl and a President of Hell.
** is the first king of Hell.
*** Although , Ei's alternate name, is not used in the Ars Goetia, it is associated with Baal. Ei herself has continued to rule under the name "Baal."
** is a Great President of Hell.
** is another name for Aym, a Great Duke of Hell.
** Unlike the other named Archons, Focalors is not a direct lift; instead, it is a derivation of , a Great Duke of Hell.
==Gallery==
Version 2.1 Wallpaper 2.png|Venti, Ei, and Zhongli with Aether, Lumine, and Paimon.
Version 3.1 Wallpaper 2.png|Ei, Nahida, Venti, and Zhongli.
Version 4.1 Wallpaper 3.png|Furina, Nahida, Ei, Zhongli, and Venti.
Version 5.0 Wallpaper 3.png|Ei, Furina, Venti, Nahida, Zhongli and Mavuika.
==Other Languages==
==Change History==
==References==
==Navigation==
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