Genshin Impact recently dropped the biggest lore teaser since the release of the game, answering many year-old questions. However, in classic Hoyoverse fashion, the teaser also raised a hundred more unanswered questions. One such question that has troubled fans is the connection between Venti and Istaroth in Genshin Impact.
Hoyoverse decided to cast the same voice actors in all languages for Venti and Istaroth. This has never happened before in the history of Genshin Impact, unless the developer wanted to foreshadow something. So, are Venti and Istaroth the same person in Genshin Impact? Here is our theory.
Who Is Istaroth in Genshin Impact?
Istaroth is the Ruler of Time, one of the Four Shades in Genshin Impact. She is known by many names, one of which is the ‘Thousand Winds of Time’ or the ‘Undying Wind.’
Istaroth has the power to bestow history to the people, making her one of the most important figures in Teyvat. In Genshin Impact’s lore, we’ve found mentions of Istaroth being worshipped in Mondstadt and Enkanomiya, before and concurrently with the rise of the Seven. But, worshipping Istaroth has more or so been forgotten completely in the current age of Teyvat.
During the ‘A Space and Time for You’ Archon quest, while tackling topics of Khaenri’ah’s revival, we also learned about Istaroth’s involvement during the cataclysm. It was Istaroth who made it possible for Direidyth to travel 500 years into the future and meet the Traveler. This was done so that Direidyth could distract the Traveler’s sibling from Khaenri’ah during the Cataclysm.
Why Istaroth planned to distract the sibling is yet unknown, but it could have been done for either nefarious or a noble reason. I would guess that Istaroth wanted to protect the Traveler from the Curse of Immortality that Ronova forced on the people of Khaenri’ah.
Who is Venti in Genshin Impact?
Venti is the Anemo Archon of Teyvat. He acts as a free-spirited bard in Mondstadt who uses his songs to share history. Being the Anemo Archon, he uses the wind with great skill in battle. Venti is also a sort of alias for his original name, Barbatos. People of Mondstadt know the Anemo Archon as Barbatos, so he uses the name Venti to not draw attention to himself.
Barbatos is one of the two original members of The Seven that first ascended during the Archon War. He was simply an elemental wisp among the Thousand Winds without any Divine Power. Due to the worship of the Gunnhildr Clan, Barbatos amassed power and ascended as the Anemo Archon.
Ever since then, the people of Mondstadt have been worshipping Venti and Istaroth at the same time. However, over time, people forgot about Istaroth and confused Venti to be the sole divine being for their worship.
Every Connection Between Venti and Istaroth in Genshin Impact
Venti and Istaroth have several things in common, and it cannot all be a coincidence. Here is every connection between Venti and Istaroth in Genshin Impact:
- Thousand Winds: Istaroth is known as the ‘Thousand Winds of Time’ while Venti has been mentioned to be a wisp among the ‘Thousand Winds.’ Other than that, Venti is worshipped in the Thousand Winds Temple of Mondstadt, which was likely used for worshipping Istaroth as well as Venti before Istaroth was forgotten.
- Bestower of History: Istaroth can bestow history, as revealed during the God’s Limits teaser. However, how do you bestow history exactly? Historically, that was done through songs, texts, poetry, or art. Now, Venti is a bard who uses his songs to teach about forgotten history.
- Venti’s release trailer: One of the shocking connections comes directly from Venti’s release trailer. It mentions that Venti is born from the ‘Branches of Time’ and is the ‘Witness to the Divine’.
- Same Voice Actors: The biggest connection is that both Venti and Istaroth share the same voice actors for all languages. This has not happened in any other Hoyoverse games without both the person being connected somehow.
Is Venti Actually Istaroth, The Ruler of Time?
Yes, there is a big chance that Venti is a part or avatar of Istaroth, the Ruler of Time. It is likely that Istaroth uses Venti to propagate history among people or help humans while evading the gaze of the Heavenly Principles. There is also a possibility that Venti is not controlled by Istaroth but has his own separate personality.
A part of Istaroth getting divine power and ascending as The Seven is not an unrealistic theory. Both the characters have too much in common for us to simply ignore it as a mere coincidence, and well, having the same voice actors has to be the final nail in the coffin.
So, do you think that Venti is Istaroth in Genshin Impact? Share your theory down in the comments section below.
