Genshin Impact Version 1.2 "The Chalk Prince And The Dragon" Arrives December 23

Genshin Impact's story continues later this month, on December 23, when miHoYo releases Version 1.2 -- titled "The Chalk Prince and the Dragon". The company revealed the new update today with a story trailer and then provided even more details during a special "Program" not long after that. (And just in case you're wondering, yes, Zach Aguilar -- the voice of the male Traveler -- and Gorina Boettger -- Paimon -- did actually host the stream.)

The update takes players to Dragonspine, the mountain that contains the remains of the dragon Durin, who was destroyed by Dvalin. The mountain is covered in deep snow and filled with all kinds of new frosty monsters -- like yeti-looking Hilichurls. New new area, broken into eight smaller zones, comes with a new mechanic titled "Subzero Climate." This mechanic inflicts a Sheer Cold status on players just for being in the area, that accumulates, causing players to lose HP once it reaches a specific limit. It's made worse by certain actions, like falling in water, and some gadgets won't work properly in the area. There are workarounds. They mostly involve players finding ways to stay warm, which means players will have to really plan how they travel through Dragonspine.

It'll be worth it, however, because players will find all sorts of goodies frozen into the landscape -- although, it'll take more than just beating on the ice to retrieve them.

Exploration of the new zone is tied into the update's titular event, which is the first of several events included in 1.2. This event takes place in four phases and offers players all kinds of useful rewards. It's also part of the story content for one of the new playable characters being added -- Albedo, Chief Alchemist of the Knights of Favonious. This sword-wielding Geo Vision user will take players on a grand quest involving a cursed sword. Completing this storyline not only gives players insight into Albedo, but also rewards them with that same sword, which is a 4-star weapon. It's one of four new 4-star weapons that can be obtained by braving the cold of Dragonspine Mountain.

Speaking of new characters, a familiar face is being added as a new playable character, Ganyu the Gryo archer. Ganyu brings a new mechanic to archery in the game -- or rather tweaks an existing one. While all archers can power up their shots by holding for a while, Ganyu allows players to determine the amount of power in a shot based on how long they hold before firing.

Interestingly, both Albedo and Ganyu have flower-themed elemental abilities. Don't worry, they're deadly flowers. Both characters will bring their own story quests to the game, with Albedo's kicking off with the launch of 1.2 (It's necessary because you can't do the main event until you do the character quest) and Ganyu's coming at a later date.

As for events, there are three others included in 1.2, a Hypostatic Symphony Event, a Lost Riches event, and the Marvelous Merchandise event. The Hypostatic Symphony event offers players a chance to take on Hypostasis in the game in a very different way, and for more rewards. Lost Riches is a treasure hunt. The twist is that players will be aided by a Seelie companion -- and can even get a Seelie companion to keep with them as an event reward. The final event sees the return of Liben of the Marvelous Merchandise.

Finally, the update will bring several Quality of Life changes to the game, such as the addition of friend nicknames and chat, tweaks to the photo-taking system (including a new gadget), adding domain rewards directly to player inventories, ascension improvements, and more.

During the stream, there were a few giveaways. There were three of them in total, and they were limited, so there's no guarantee these keys will work now. But just in case you'd like to try, log into your account on the Genshin Impact site, click redeem and enter the following codes for a chance at the listed rewards. Character case is important.

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• 100 Primogems
• 10 Mystic Enhancement Ore

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• 100 Primogems
• 5 Heroe's Wit

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• 100 Primogems
• 50,000 Mora