Rise of Dendro: Genshin Impact’s nation of Sumeru goes live

After more than a year since its last in-game region was introduced, “Genshin Impact” finally launched the “plant nation” of Sumeru.

Players of the hit role-playing game began entering the highly-anticipated region when it went live on all HoYoverse servers at 11 a.m. Wednesday.

The fourth nation to be made playable out of the seven nations currently foreseen, Sumeru is home to the plant or “Dendro” element and the Dendro god or “Archon,” named as the Lesser Lord Kusanali.

Preceding it are the nations which players first visited in an effort to find the lost sibling of the “Traveler”:  Monstadt, a city-state that worships the Archon of wind; Liyue, a mountainous region inhabited by its retired god Morax, the oldest Archon; and Inazuma, an archipelago under the close watch of the Raiden Shogun, the Electro Archon.

Last of 7 elements

Sumeru’s launch also coincides with the gameplay debut of the Dendro element, which is the very last of the seven elements to become playable in the Genshin Impact combat system.

The addition of Dendro triggers a whole new set of elemental reactions.

For instance, afflicting opponents with Dendro and Hydro will produce the “Bloom” elemental reaction which drops bomb-like seeds that explode and deal damage.

Meanwhile, when creatures are affected by both Dendro and Electro, the “Catalyze” elemental reaction will occur, which paves the way for either “Aggravate” or “Spread” sub-reactions that cause them to take additional damage.

Many other brand new elemental reactions and sub-reactions can be triggered, which will take a while for some players to get used to.

So far, so good

Following the main storyline, players may enter a tunnel in Liyue’s Chasm area and trek westward into Sumeru proper, witnessing rocky surroundings give way to lush vegetation.

Players hope to find more answers about the Traveler’s sibling in the new region, which is also called the “Nation of Wisdom.”

While the Traveler has already uncovered a lot of secrets about Genshin Impact’s world of Tevyat, like the origin of Hilichurls and the maker of ruin guards, there is still much more to learn, such as the true nature of Archons in relation to the seemingly higher beings of Celestia.

Being the fourth out of the seven known nations, Sumeru may well pass through Genshin Impact’s halfway point. The Traveler could only pray that the “Nation of Wisdom” would be true to its name. – RC, GMA News