#hroptatyr

[veryunoriginal]

Why, hello Mr. Hroptatyr, "The Wise". I didn't know you appeared in Tears of Themis as a romanceable option.

[millionwaters]

I can't get over how Hroptatyr's chess piece is wearing that golden circlet, the artifact category associated with Phanes ... Sinner my ass, he has already replaced the heavenly principles 😭🤚

[millionwaters]

When I tell you I almost pissed myself when Qiqi drew the Hroptatyr lunar arcanum, I did NOT expect anyone to actually pull that one

[millionwaters]

"[...] nothing in the world is more distasteful to a man than to take the path that leads to himself." - Hermann Hesse, Demian, 1919

The Dottore and Hroptatyr collaboration brainrot engine is faring well as you can see. Another little sketch of them under the cut~

He may live on as "Odin's messenger raven" but a true professor would never let his students suffer, right?~ TIME FOR THERAPY, ZANDIK!

[parasitesoup]

Just made some bullshit yay

[veryunoriginal]

Crack theory of the day (I think I've said it before): Phanes is dead/gone and Hroptatyr took their place.

Possible blasphemy of reason→ "life/death/time abides no reason" (the three shades that are still there) →"Sustainer of the Heavenly Principles" missing

[millionwaters]

Theory: Hroptatyr, Dottore & Pantalone are collaborating

Spoiler warnings for archon quests up to Luna VII (6.6) and Lohen's story quest!

This is my second attempt at posting this, as my first try was blocked by tumblr for having too many reference links (great). Main catalyst for this theory was the fact that I am unable to stop thinking about these characters and a fascinating Hroptatyr-analysis on reddit I will link in the comments. Also shoutout to @/lonethetraveler who had an inspiring idea about the connection between Pantalone and Nibelung and @/elysianheresy for hyping me up, hehehe.

TLDR: apart from this trio having oddly similar world views and goals (especially H & D), Hroptatyr's abyssal power most likely stems from Nibelung's remains which are the main component of the elixir of immortality.

Hroptatyr is one of Odin's many names, meaning sage. The god is known for having an insatiable hunger for knowledge – so much so that he uses two messenger ravens, Huginn and Muninn, to observe the world and collect any information so they can carry it back to him. Huginn is often seen as the main raven, the one who embodies "thought". His companion embodies "memory". Together, they are able to prepare Odin not just for what is transpiring in the present, but help him predict how the fate of the world might play out and how to handle it, as events tend to repeat themselves (-> our beloved samsara cycles). 

Now, clearly, our number one target for corvid motifs is none other than Zandik himself. I am not going into why he is the perfect fit for that role since I assume it has been analysed sufficiently by others. For Feofan, unless he is indeed related to Avrelian/Reed Miller, as many suspected pre-6.6, I have yet to find more raven motifs on him tbh. I will refrain from speculation right now; he will play a different role. Either way, the concept of gathering information via an expansive network while also breaking the concept of time via segments ... yeah, these two would fit the idea.

Why would Hroptatyr be involved? It is unclear how flexible he is in time and space, so perhaps having an actual present-time collaborator, or two, would play into his hands. As the sinner against reason, he has some beef with Phanes, just like Nibelung did in the past. It is highly likely that the stuff King Irmin had the Twin retrieve from "deep deep down" was the same substance later on consumed by the sinners. And rather than regular Sea of Stars juice it was, in fact, Nibelung's remains. 

We learned in Lohen's story quest that Ursa, once an angel, then a dragon, was also stored underground, and her flesh was able to keep an old human alive for longer than fate had predicted for him. And now imagine what would happen to you if that was not just some dragon but the literal founder of the world, the first dragon ever. I believe the elixir of immortality contains remnants of Nibelung's flesh, provided by Hroptatyr's power. I still stand by my theory that it probably also contains parts of Dottore's soul, but that might be necessary for another reason than keeping Pantalone alive. It might be the connection the elixir requires in order to be bound to the source (Hroptatyr, as the one who initiated the deal and holds the dragon's power, and Dottore so that he can be retrieved after his lovely time in purgatory). 

Why does the elixir not work on Dottore but it does on Pantalone? As Lone's post (the user I mentioned above, not Feofan) pointed out, Pantalone displays some striking resemblance to corrupted!Nibelung's design. The black scales, the wings, the purple. The thing is, I don't think Pantalone is a dragon himself. How about a ... type of angel? Not a classic angel like Nicole either, but perhaps something in between? A fallen angel? Nibelung's arc angel's legacy??? Hmm ... There must be a reason his body is able to digest Nibelung's remains without getting corrupted, while they didn't work on Dottore at all. Also, it is still a mystery to me how an angel turned into a dragon, since, as far as I know, angels were created by Phanes and dragons by Nibelung. This trio might actually be (unintentionally) working on bridging the gap between the two rulers of Teyvat.

By the way, interesting detail: I believe the scene in their animated short where they speak of the perfect partnership offering itself and shaking hands was less about just their partnership with one another, but actually theirs with Hroptatyr. A swarm of ravens flew across the screen too ... *Ved voice* It's funny, isn't it?

I don't know what exactly Hroptatyr might be planning with his two birbs, but I do think this collaboration will be important in the future, and part of why and how Zandik will return and Feofan will live. Dottore's story (and frankly Lohen's as well) feel like a gentle introduction into Genshin's morally grey potential, a soft-launch for characters like Hroptatyr. What do you think?~~

[birdylostingarden]