Spoilers and speculations about Pantalone and Dottore below as well as some newer leaks regarding 7.0+
First of all, a general disclaimer that this leak came from a brand new channel with no credibility whatsoever. That being said, I heard it's been reposted by a reliable leaker since then, so take that as you will. I haven't seen the repost myself. I want to discuss this though, because there's a few things I feel like people are glancing over.
I do think Pantalone will be 100% playable. It's been said we're getting two new characters in 7.0- both of whose names we already know, one female and one male. I think Pantalone fits that bill. The only thing is... having his element be dendro is perplexing to me. Especially with such a close resemblance to Baizhu physically? Having them have the same element would strike me as odd unless they really are related, and Baizhu hasn't exactly had major story time, nor does he appear in the next AQ. So why do that? Why take a character who looks almost like a copycat and make him the same element if they're not related?
That aside, dendro as an element just doesn't agree with his character, either. Dendro is usually given to those who choose wisdom, growth, or learning in some capacity. Cryo, on the other hand, is given to those who keep their motives close, are cold and distant, or are outliers/outcasts who may or may not be seeking a place to belong. I feel like it generally fits Pantalone better to be cryo, unless the new AQ completely upends his personality or reworks it. But you know who does fit the bill for dendro?
Dottore does. I mean, he also fits the description for cryo... and if I'm being honest, that's what I thought he was going to be at first. So in that case, I suppose Pantalone being dendro makes sense if Hoyo is going to make them a working team, which seems likely given their close relationship. But you could also flip their elements, and that seems to work almost as well, regarding their personalities.
I just have to wonder if we're actually going to get Pantalone, or if hoyo is about to pull one over on us and give us Dottore instead. One can only hope, right?
Either way, 6.8 was confirmed to be nonexistent. We're skipping a filler patch and going straight into Snezhnaya during 7.0, and there's going to be at least three new characters released at that time. If you're pulling for harbingers at all, here's my advice:
There was a lot of effort put into them and a lot of hype, but as of right now, their skills are being nerfed and they're going to lose relevance to meta quickly (likely within months, as Snezhnaya is coming earlier than we thought, and new stellar reactions will be cryo focused). Save your primogems from the AQ's, events, and exploration. 7.0 is gonna be here FAST. Sandrone will release first during 6.7, then it's speculated Vodyanitsa and Pantalone (possibly Dottore imo) will run directly after in 7.0.
There's been no mention of Alice yet as far as I can tell. And with the Tsaritsa confirmed as a playable Snezhnaya character as well, that leaves three or four empty slots for other playable characters, one or two of which will probably be a four star. There are very early leaks suggesting a four star cryo character, but I don't believe that's been confirmed yet.
I will keep updating you guys as I find out more! Dottore will be playable, trust! And so will Pantalone! Keep holding out, Dottonation!
