History Characters / GenshinImpactAkademiya

** The Akademiya shuns Kusanali in favor of obsessively clinging to the memory of Rukkhadevata, and bemoans how academic advancement under the former has slowed to a crawl [[NeverMyFault even though it's them that have been blowing her off for half a millennium]]. [[spoiler:They've gone so far as to cooperate with the Fatui in an attempt to make a new God of Wisdom to fill in the void Rukkhadevata left, the same one that they've prevented Kusanali from filling herself, unaware that Kusanali is both a creation and the reincarnation of Rukkhadevata, meaning that not only have they been indirectly abusing their own god for centuries, their academic sterility is a disaster entirely of their own making. That's also not mentioning the fact that Rukkhadevata created Kusanali in the hopes that the latter would one day find her lingering consciousness and permanently erase her from Irminsul to eliminate the taint of forbidden knowledge, which means that they've been unknowingly sabotaging her plan to save the world.]]

** Conversely, Alhaitham doesn't comment on the Akademiya's policies on information dissemination, however, his birthday letters always include a talent book of Admonition, Ingenuity and Praxis each as reading materials for Paimon, and he also took notice of Isak's increasing literacy in the Vedanagari script, which is likely the main Sumeru alphabet used by the Akademiya and the rainforest side of Sumeru[[note]]Vedanagari is localised from the Chinese term "学城体" ("Academia City script"), derived from the real life [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devanagari Devanagari script]] used in hundreds of Indian and Nepalese languages that it is styled after[[/note]].

* IngestingKnowledge: Knowledge Capsules enable users to gain instant knowledge by establishing a magic link into their brains.

** A lot of the scholars the player encounters tend to be this if they're not KnowNothingKnowItAll's.

** Siraj and his HiveMind equip a OneWayVisor, and he is able to view the memories of his peers through the multiple floating wireless digital screens on his platform.

* {{Omniglot}}: According to Alhaitham, one of the requirements to graduate from the Akademiya is to master at least twenty languages; however, it's unclear whether this applies to the Akademiya at large or is specific to his Haravatat Darshan, which specializes in semiotics and linguistics. Faruzan says this is no longer a requirement though.

* {{Omniglot}}: According to Alhaitham, one of the requirements to graduate from the Akademiya is to master at least twenty languages; however, it's unclear whether this applies to the Akademiya at large or is specific to his Haravatat Darshan, which specializes in semiotics and linguistics.

** Tighnari implies in his "More About Tighnari: III" voice line that him training the Forest Rangers is technically illegal, though he doesn't face any consequences because stopping him would increase the burden on their healthcare system.

[[Characters/GenshinImpactSnezhnaya Snezhnaya]] ([[Characters/GenshinImpactFatui Fatui]] | [[Characters/GenshinImpactHarbingers Harbingers]] | [[Characters/GenshinImpactTartaglia Tartaglia]])\\

* ItsAllAboutMe: Azar is an EntitledBastard who has allowed the power and privileges of his position at the top of Sumeru's administration to go to his head, and with every encounter it becomes increasingly clear that to him, all of Sumeru exists to glorify and empower the Grand Sage Azar, and anything that is not serving to that end can hang to dry until he finds a use for it. His hatred for Kusanali is solely because of his preposterous conviction that there's nothing she could possibly teach anyone, much less Azar himself, and even his "reverence" of Rukkhadevata is only because he thinks she could. [[spoiler:Thus, when Dottore pops in with a Gnosis and a suggestion for him to just create a new god he's more than happy to throw her aside too, her pesky moral teachings be damned. Oh, and [[ChronicBackstabbingDisord he was also making plans to control this new god too]], making it pretty clear that he thinks even the gods should be at his beck and call]]. So whenever Azar says that anything he does is for the sake of the scholars, the Akademiya, Sumeru at large, etc., expect him to actually mean himself.

* ContrastingSequelAntagonist: To [[spoiler: Kujou Takuyuki. Both are EvilOldFolks affiliated with the Fatui who enjoy a good deal of political power in their respective governments, with Takuyuki heading one of the Tri-Commissions while Azar is the Grand Sage, and both display disloyal behaviour towards their respective Archons, with Takuyuki manipulating the Raiden Shogun into starting the Vision Hunt and Sakoku Decrees for the sake of political power, while Azar actively has Nahida locked up and undermines any attempt at worship towards her. However, while Takuyuki displays a twisted form of UndyingLoyalty and faith in his Archon's abilities, believing that potential threats he brings to Inazuma, such as the Fatui, are inconsequential since she can destroy them with ease, Azar is entirely motivated by his lack of faith in Nahida for not living up to his standards as a God of Wisdom, even outright trying to replace her with a man-made one, and never affording her a chance to try living up to the title.]]

A graduate of the Spantamad Darshan, who later became the General Mahamatra, leader of the Matra.

Star alumna and graduate of the Spantamad Darshan, now working as the Librarian of the Knights of Favonius.

The serious, no-nonsense General Mahamatra, leader of the Matra, who graduated from the Spantamad Darshan.

* AchievementsInIgnorance: He had the goal to fabricate intelligent life capable of communicating with humans. He creates Karkata as his first prototype from Ruin Defenders parts. While Karkata is capable of understanding his commands, Abbatouy thinks that Karkata is far from complete, since it can't communicate with him properly. Unfortunately Abbatouy dies before realizing that Karkata developed feelings beyond its basic survival program.

* WalkingSpoiler: His death is the tragic reason behind Karkata's motivations to steal.

* AmbiguousSituation: Whether or not it's a "true" mechanical lifeform. Though Karkata certain acts as if it's alive sometimes, demonstrating emotions like happiness and sadness, the hallmark of a true artificial intelligence is the ability to make its own decisions, independent from any pre-programmed instructions. [[spoiler: On the one hand, its desire to repair its owner, to the point of forgoing the self-maintenance protocols that Tighnari and the Traveler know are built into it, suggests that it created its own priorities. On the other hand, Tighnari points out that they have no idea how many commands Karkata has been programmed with, and for all they know [[AIIsACrapshoot this could just be due to conflicting program.]] It's also worth pointing out that this behavior is technically ThreeLawsCompliant, as the first law regarding "preserving human life" supersedes the third law regarding "maintaining robot functionality". Ultimately, Tighnari decides to give it the benefit of the doubt, [[DeclarationOfProtection declaring it to be his duty to protect all lifeforms in the forest]].]]

** The Akademiya may be full of smart individuals but so few of them have the creative spark needed for research and scientific advancement. They blame the loss of Rukkhadevata and Kusanali's inability to fill the void she left behind as the reason but it later becomes clear that their lack of creativity is completely their own fault.

[-''"Even when we're not looking up at the stars, they're always there, watching over us."''-]

->''"Art... Dance... Aren't you ashamed of pursuing such frivolous and meaningless activities in this land of knowledge and reason? Our Archon created the utopia that is Sumeru City for all scholars who sought validity, verity, and truth... while people like you wish to defile it."''

* EvilCounterpart: To Jean and Ningguang, the leaders of Mondstadt and Liyue:
** Jean happens to be a caretaker of a child, but actually cares for Klee despite occasional strictness, whereas Azar openly shunned and imprisoned [[spoiler: Nahida]].
** Ningguang is also ambitious in her goals (in her case, gaining as much mora as possible), but isn't as ruthless and cares for the well-being of her people in Liyue to the point of [[spoiler:sacrificing the Jade Chamber to stop Osial]]. Meanwhile Azar was willing to harm his own people just to [[spoiler:make a new god]]. They both also have a right-hand that uses an Electro vision (Keqing and Cyno) whose opinion of them changes during the events of their Archon Quests.

[[Characters/GenshinImpactMondstadt Mondstadt]] ([[Characters/GenshinImpactFischl Fischl]] | [[Characters/GenshinImpactKnightsOfFavonius Knights of Favonius]])\\

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: [[spoiler:While four of the Six Sages were exiled for corruption by the end of Sumeru's Archon Quest, their predecessors over the last 500 years were already corrupt and negatively influenced the Akademiya for centuries, leading to other corrupt scholars still being present. Many of the Character Quests and Hangout Events for the majority of Sumeru characters show that multiple people are still doing terrible things to satisfy themselves and that the Akademiya still has a long way to go before corruption from within is completely gone.]]

[[Characters/GenshinImpactLiyue Liyue]] ([[Characters/GenshinImpactAdepti Adepti]] | [[Characters/GenshinImpactQixing Qixing]] | [[Characters/GenshinImpactXiao Xiao]] | [[Characters/GenshinImpactZhongli Zhongli]])\\

* MeaningfulName: There are several Akademiya scholars that are named after prominent historical Middle Eastern scientists:

** The retired Kshahrewar professor Zaha Hadi that Kaveh seeks out in one of his hangout routes is named after British-Iraqi architect [[https://www.zaha-hadid.com/people/zaha-hadid/ Zaha Mohammad Hadid]].

* TheOmniscientCouncilOfVagueness: Despite being the head of the Matra, Cyno is listed as being affiliated with the Temple of Silence in his profile instead of the Akademiya. The organisation's purpose in the greater organisational structure of the Akademiya has yet to be elaborated on, but the little amount of information available in-game implies that it acts similar to a CensorshipBureau and prison, deciding which research topics are benign for study and dissemination[[note]]Based on a report found in the Valley of Dahri that stating that the Temple of Silence ordered all Khaenri'ahn machines to be sealed[[/note]] and holding scholars may be guilty of flouting the rules[[note]]Based on a InUniverse rumour that Faruzan's disappearance was due to her coming into contact with King Deshret's knowledge and being imprisoned within the Temple of Silence[[/note]].

* ReligiousAndMythologicalThemeNaming: The Darshans are named after six of the seven [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amesha_Spenta Amesha Spentas]], divine entities emanating from Ahura Mazda, the supreme god of UsefulNotes/{{Zoroastrianism}}, each of which represent elements of Zoroastrian cosmology. Specifically:

* MrsExposition: Kaveh and the Traveler seek her out to learn more things about his mother, and also to get a hint for the password to his mother's diary.

!!Shurayh
A student at Alkami's training center. He is a quest-exclusive NPC introduced in Kaveh's Hangout Event, Act I: "The Pendulum of Weal and Woe."

* ChildrenAreInnocent: Alkami took advantage of his ignorance to sell him the dream of becoming a wealthy architect while profiting from his family by charging exorbitant tuition fees to attend his classes.
* IdenticalStranger: DownplayedTrope; He takes Waiz's place at the end of the route and looks almost identical to him, save for his hair style and color. Their color palettes for their child model npc outfits are even the same.
* RememberTheNewGuy: A very abrupt example. He appears near the end of the route in place of Waiz and appears to be familiar with Tanisha, Waiz, and Kaveh despite not previously being shown interacting with them. Given that Kaveh's class had a total of 20 students, including Waiz, Uzayr, and Tanisha, it's possible that he was just one of Kaveh's students who wasn't initially shown onscreen, which is supported by the fact that he doubted Kaveh would "stick around" after Alkami's training center was closed down.
* TheyCallMeMrTibbs: Ends up on the receiving end of this exchange.
-->'''Kaveh:''' "Ahem. So, you're the only ones that showed up today, huh?"\\
'''Shurayh:''' "Huh? Kaveh's here!"\\
'''Kaveh:''' "Now, that's "Mr. Kaveh" to you."
!!Tanisha
A student at Alkami's training center. She is a quest-exclusive NPC introduced in Kaveh's Hangout Event, Act I: "The Pendulum of Weal and Woe."

* ChildrenAreInnocent: Alkami took advantage of her ignorance to sell her the dream of becoming a wealthy architect while profiting from her family by charging exorbitant tuition fees to attend his classes.
* {{Greed}}: Initially, her only motivation for wanting to become an architect was to become as wealthy as Alkami, with the intention of using her wealth to buy whatever she desired.
* HiddenDepths: While she was initially portrayed as greedy and dismissive of architecture as a profession other than making Mora, reading her mind with Nahida's Talent "On All Things Meditated" reveals that she was interested in what Kaveh taught in class and wanted to practice on her own time. She also willingly becomes his pupil at the end of the route even after learning that Alkami had lied about everything he'd told her, suggesting that her budding interest in architecture was genuine.
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: She is Kaveh's only important female student. This is reinforced when Waiz is replaced at the end of the route by Shurayh, another male student.

!!Uzayr
A student at Alkami’s training center and one of the 20 people assigned to Kaveh’s class. He is a quest-exclusive NPC introduced in Kaveh's Hangout Event, Act I: "The Pendulum of Weal and Woe."

* ChildrenAreInnocent: Alkami took advantage of his ignorance to sell him the dream of becoming a wealthy architect while profiting from him by coercing his family into paying his exorbitant tuition fees by taking out a massive loan that they will never be able to fully repay due to the absurdly and illegally high interest rates. Kaveh uses this information to expose Alkami's schemes to the matra and have his training center closed down.
* {{Greed}}: Initially, his only motivation for wanting to become an architect was to become as wealthy as Alkami.
* HiddenDepths: While he was initially portrayed as greedy and dismissive of architecture as a profession other than making Mora, he was able to appreciate the beauty of the buildings Kaveh drew in class, implying that he may have an eye for architecture and a developing understanding of it. Kaveh adds to this by stating that he recognizes his talent and believes he will be able to pass the Akademiya entrance exams after learning the fundamentals of architecture, which Tanisha says only the best of the best will be able to do.
* NiceGuy: He was outwardly the kindest and most respectful to Kaveh of the students shown in this route. He also takes Kaveh's revelation about the difficulties architects face rather well, and willingly becomes Kaveh's student at the end of the path despite knowing the truth.
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: Due to Alkami's extravagant spending, the matra can only return a portion of the tuition he collected from the families of Uzayr and other students. Kaveh believes that this loss will teach them a valuable lesson and prevent them from falling for the same tricks in the future.

!!Waiz
A student at Alkami's training center. He is a quest-exclusive NPC introduced in Kaveh's Hangout Event, Act I: "The Pendulum of Weal and Woe."

* ChildrenAreInnocent: Alkami took advantage of his ignorance to sell him the dream of becoming a wealthy architect while profiting from his family by charging exorbitant tuition fees to attend his classes.
* {{Greed}}: His only motivation for wanting to become an architect was to become as wealthy as Alkami and leave his miserable days behind. [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere He abandons pursuing a career in architecture after it is revealed to everyone that Alkami is a scammer who did not earn his Mora through his profession]].
* HiddenDepths: It's hinted that his motivation for training under Alkami to become a wealthy architect is to escape poverty.
* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: Looked up to Alkami as a role model because of the alleged riches he amassed as an architect, while dismissing the well-meaning Kaveh as arrogant and stubborn because of his celebrity status. Justified, given that he's just a child and Alkami is a [[BitchInSheepsClothing rather convincing]] con man who had gotten to him first.
* {{Jerkass}}: Unlike Tanisha and Uzayr, he showed the least amount of respect toward Kaveh and architecture as a profession, only wanting to make Mora off of it (this behavior is even reinforced with Nahida's "On All Things Meditated" talent, where he is the only one of the three who ''never displayed'' interest in architecture). An optional conversation between him, Uzayr, and Tanisha even shows him disparaging Kaveh, much to their dismay.
-->'''Uzayr:''' "Mr. Kaveh looked really angry..."\\
'''Waiz:''' "Who cares about him? Maybe he's just worried that we'll take all of his commissions once we finally graduate!"\\
'''Tanisha:''' "B—But that can't be it, right? Mr. Kaveh is super famous..."\\
'''Waiz:''' "Who knows? My dad told me that the more famous someone is, the more arrogant and stubborn they become. Approachable people like Mr. Alkami are the rare ones!"
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: Waiz does not return to the site to discuss the news with Uzayr and Tanisha after Alkami's training center is closed down for investigation as a result of Kaveh and the Traveler exposing his schemes to the Matra, suggesting that his disinterest (or lack of respect thereof) in architecture is genuine. Instead, a new boy named Shurayh takes his place. Kaveh even makes note of his absence but doesn't dwell on it.

!!Historical
[[folder:Pir Kavikavus]]
!!Pir Kavikavus
A researcher from Kshahrewar. Hailed as a true genius and the pride of the Kshahrewar, he fell into an accident during his research into a Ruin Golem prior to the events of the game and has been presumed dead ever since. With his death, his research and the prestige of Kshahrewar were lost.

His namesake and accomplishments are also the basis of the "Pir Kavikavus Prize," which is awarded by the Akademiya to a scholar under 30 that has made outstanding research in a particular field.

* AccidentalSuicide: He is likely killed by the faulty mechanisms of the Ruin Golem.
* TheAce: He was hailed as a true genius by the Akademiya and earned the title of Herbad before age 30, which was a monumental accomplishment.
* AlwaysSomeoneBetter: Implied to be the reason the Akademiya no longer looks favorably onto the Kshahrewar. Hailed as a true genius and one of the Kshahrewar's greatest scholars, Pir's death and the loss of his research led to the Kshahrewar falling into a state of decay. With no more major academic breakthroughs and due to a rule that called for the strict control of machines and technology after his death, the Akademiya has since underfunded and depreciated the Kshahrewar, which is only being kept afloat these days by Dori.
* InterspeciesFriendship: He befriended an Aranara named Aralohita, who is curious about the Ruin Golems. After his death, Aralohita saved his research and keep it a secret and is likely [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse never seen again]].
* PosthumousCharacter: He was presumed dead some hundred years before the game's story began, but his death still looms over the Akademiya, being the reason why the Kshahrewar is underfunded and partially why there has been a restriction placed on machines and technology.
* ReligiousAndMythologicalThemeNaming: "Kavikavus" may be derived from Kay Kavus, a historical Persian king written about in the Shahnameh. He is shown for a knack to getting himself a trouble.
* TooDumbToLive: He was the last person to ever find a way to climb inside of a Ruin Golem, which he had done for systematic research. While the exact circumstances of his death are unknown, it's speculated that doing so killed him.

--------
!Matra
The disciplinary body of the Akademiya, dedicated to the regulation and control of knowledge, specifically going after scholars who tread the fine line of forbidden research, academic dishonesty, and the misuse of the Akademiya's resources for malicious intent.

[[folder:'''Cyno''']]
The serious, no-nonsense General Mahamatra, leader of the Matra, who graduated from the Spantamad Darshan.
->See his page [[Characters/GenshinImpactCyno here]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Taj ('''Unmarked spoilers for Cyno's Story Quest''')]]
!!Taj Radkani

Cyno's former partner and a famed Matra, who has recently retired to a desk job after years on the field.

* AchievementsInIgnorance: Taj was unaware that it was the same smuggling ring he infiltrated that tempted his son Murtada into conducting forbidden research on the Court of Desolation by preying on his struggles with expectations, eventually leading to his downfall and suicide, which the ring then took advantage to tempt Taj into joining them by preying on his grief and regret over imprisoning his own son. By destroying the Court, he indirectly avenged his son, as well as punished the ring for leading him astray.
* BrokenAce: Taj is famed among the Matra (and the Akademiya at large) for his steadfast devotion to the rule of law. However, in his later years he has been haunted by his decision to imprison his only son Murtada for dabbling in forbidden research of the Court of Desolation, who later committed suicide in despair.
* BrokenPedestal: {{Subverted|Trope}}. His fellow Matra are shocked when evidence suggested that Taj may have leaked the existence of the Court of Desolation, a temple said in legend to contain the power over life and death, to a massive smuggling ring, believing he may have been driven by guilt over his son Murtada committing suicide after he had him imprisoned for illegal research. However, Cyno eventually discovers that he faked joining the ring in order to sabotage it from within.
* BuriedAlive: His final fate is to be buried in the sands as the Court of Desolation collapsed around him.
* DeathSeeker: His choice to be buried alive in the Court of Desolation is just as much a matter of him wanting to be together with his son in the afterlife as much as a self-imposed punishment for violating his vows as well as an act of sabotage against a massive smuggling ring.
* FaceDeathWithDignity: After he forces Cyno, the Traveler, and Paimon to leave him be as the Court of Desolation collapses around him, Taj calmly sits down and reminisces about his son.
* FakeDefector: He feigned joining the Canned Knowledge smuggling ring in order to slowly destroy it from within.
* HeroicSacrifice: At the end of Cyno's first Story Quest, he stays behind to be buried alive in the collapse of the Court of Desolation to destroy a major supply route of a massive smuggling ring he infiltrated.
* OutlivingOnesOffspring: His only son, Murtada, committed suicide in prison.
* SecretTestOfCharacter: Towards the end of Cyno's first Story Quest, he challenges the latter to a duel to test the strength of his convictions, as well as to gauge whether the latter was smart enough to realize that Taj faked his defection to the smuggling ring.
* WalkingSpoiler: It's hard to talk about Taj without discussing his complicated relationship with his late son Murtada, or that he sacrificed his reputation and his life to take down a massive smuggling ring.
* WhatYouAreInTheDark: After Cyno defeats him in a duel, Taj confesses that the smuggling ring approached him at a time when he was mourning for Murtada. And while he briefly considered genuinely joining the ring, he ultimately chose to stay true to his vows and instead joined the ring to sabotage it.

!Akademiya Robots
[[folder:In General]]
* AbsurdlyDedicatedWorker: Both Tamimi and Karkata carried out their programming at the expense of their own bodies.
* ArtificialIntelligence: Both are Type 2. Though they do not have human-like sentience like the Wanderer, they still have the capacity to make their own decisions and learn.
* BenevolentAI: Both robots only inadvertently caused trouble due to following their directions for a good cause.
* RobotBuddy: Tamimi was [[spoiler:Faruzan's]], while Karkata's was Abattouy's [[spoiler:until Tighnari took it in.]]
* TragicRobot: Both their backstories involve [[spoiler:dead people]].
* TheUnintelligible: Both are unable to speak in any human tongue, instead communicating through electronic noises.

[[folder:Karkata]]
A mechanical robot with a crab-like mannerisms that the Traveler and Tighnari encounter in the Avidya Forest during the latter's story quest. It was created by Abattouy, a researcher from the Akademiya and Tighnari's junior.

* AbsurdlyDedicatedWorker: Karkata had been stealing mechanical parts [[spoiler:as it was attempting to repair Abattouy]] while neglecting its own draining energy and increasingly damaged parts.
* AmbiguousSituation: Whether or not it's a "true" mechanical lifeform. Though Karkata certain acts as if it's alive sometimes, demonstrating emotions like happiness and sadness, the hallmark of a true artificial intelligence is the ability to make its own decisions, independent from any pre-programmed instructions. [[spoiler: On the one hand, its desire to repair its owner, to the point of forgoing the self-maintenance protocols that Tighnari and the Traveler know are built into it, suggests that it created its own priorities. On the other hand, Tighnari points out that they have no idea how many commands Karkata has been programmed with, and for all they know [[AIIsACrapshoot this could just be due to conflicting program.]] It's also worth pointing out that this behavior is technically ThreeLawsCompliant, as the first law regarding "preserving human life" supersedes the third law regarding "maintaining robot functionality". Ultimately, Tighnari decides to give it the benefit of the doubt, [[DeclarationOfProtection declaring it to be his duty to protect all lifeforms in the forest]].]]
* BenevolentAI: Though Karkata had been causing trouble by stealing mechanical parts from passing merchants when the Traveler and Tighnari catch him, he has never attacked anyone and even ends up performing some tasks that makes Tighnari's investigation into the source of the contamination of the forest easier. [[spoiler: It is also eventually revealed that Karkata was stealing mechanical parts to try and repair Abattouy, who had passed on.]]
* CuteMachines: Despite its large size, it is quite harmless, and Tighnari describes it as "a giant mechanical crab on the outside and a fluffy little hamster on the inside."
* FlawedPrototype: Abattouy considered him one because he couldn't speak and show emotion. While it isn't 'perfect' like he wanted, Karkata is actually far more intelligent and rational than he believed and showed genuine love for his creator. The implication is that if he had noticed that despite not being able to speak, then everything would have been fine because it was pretty much exactly what he wanted.
* GrewBeyondTheirProgramming: Played with, as it's ambiguous whether [[spoiler:Kartata truly did so in its desire to "repair" Abattouy or the commands his creator programmed into him clashed and caused it to act the way it did.]]
* PleaseWakeUp: Its theft of mechanical parts is based on its flawed desire to [[spoiler:try and 'fix' its deceased creator. It's just heartbreaking to see it place its gathered parts on Abattouy's body, and poking him around to see any reaction. And it breaks down crying after seeing that it's all for naught.]]
* RobotBuddy: Was first this to Abattouy [[spoiler: and then to Tighnari after he decides to keep him in the Pardis Dhyai as his research assistant.]]
* TokenGoodTeammate: Karkata looks like a Ruin Defender and fights like one on first encounter, but its behavior is completely different from the rest of the Ruin Machines and is open to co-operation with the Traveler and Tighnari. Even when it attacks the caravans for mechanical parts, it does so for pragmatic reasons rather than just for the sake of it. [[spoiler:This is justified because it was created by Abattouy and is not a remnant of Khaenri'ah]].
* TragicRobot: [[spoiler:Abattouy created Karkata in an attempt to continue with his research on creating true mechanical lifeforms after the study was banned by the Akademiya, and as such, it formed a bond with its master. After Abattouy passed away as a result of his reckless tampering with the Ley Lines, Karkata tried in vain to "repair" its master by stealing mechanical parts, unaware of the concept of death, to the point that it ignored its own self-maintenance programming to ensure its survival for the sake of bringing Abattouy back]].
* TheUnintelligible: [[spoiler: PlayedForDrama since his inability to speak or understand the common tongue means that neither of them are unable to understand each other, especially after he asked Karkata to shut off the Ley Line Extractor.]]
* UniformityException: It has the model of a Ruin Defender, except with white plates and gilded edges instead of the usual brown plates and light brown edges.

[[folder:Tamimi ('''Unmarked Spoilers for Faruzan's Hangout!''')]]
Faruzan's mechanical lifeform that takes the model of a Ruin Cruiser.

* {{Determinator}}: Spent nearly 100 years looking for Faruzan following her disappearance, continuing its search for her long after Faruzan was presumed dead and its creators had also passed on. After finally locating her and fulfilling its purpose, Faruzan gives it permission to rest and salvages its parts to fix Karkata, though she promises to repair it someday when she understands and is able to replicate machines used by ancient technology.
* RobotBuddy: It was one to Faruzan, as it was designed by her colleagues to deliver letters and documents to her while she was out researching in ruins. Her colleagues later reprogrammed it to be able to self-learn and fix itself after she failed to respond to their letters and went missing so that it could locate Faruzan in whatever ruin she had found herself stuck in and bring her home.
* UnintentionalFinalMessage: Tamimi carried several letters from Faruzan's now long-deceased friends and teachers who were looking for her at the time of writing them, in addition to the one from Faruzan's mother, who knew she didn't have much time left when she wrote her letter.
* WalkingSpoiler: It's hard to discuss anything about it without mentioning how it controlled the giant "Ruin Wanderer" that Faruzan and the Traveler encounter in one route of her Hangout quest, or that it was modified by Faruzan's now-deceased teacher and associates from the Akademiya to search for her in the years she went missing, all to bring her their last letters.

!Miscellaneous Personnel
[[folder:Alrani]]
!!Alrani

A rather unfortunate scholar from Sumeru Academia trying to write her term paper only for things to keep going wrong. She ends up crossing paths with the Traveler several times throughout their journey.

* ButtMonkey: All she wants is to write her term paper but every attempt is met with trouble. Write about life in Mondstadt? Dvalin is on his rampage. Write about life in Liyue? Sees the death of Morax and later gets captured by Treasure Hoarders. Rescued by the Traveler and writes about them (a Visionless element user) instead? Her paper gets harshly rejected. Take pictures of local Inazumans? Almost gets reported to the authorities. Goes to Watatsumi Island to gather research materials? Nearly gets arrested (again) and has to help make fertilizer as payment for causing trouble.
* CassandraTruth: Her academic paper on the Traveler is harshly rejected, despite the Traveler being a very real person who can control the elements without the need of a Vision.
* MsExposition: At the end of her second quest she fills the Traveler in on the Vision Hunt Decree ongoing in Inazuma.
* SkewedPriorities: She claims that even when she was being held hostage by the Treasure Hoarders she was still less stressed than when writing her paper.
* SmartPeopleWearGlasses: Wears black rectangular glasses as a sign of being a scholar.
* YankTheDogsChain: After her misadventures at Watatsumi Island, Alrani finally puts together a well-written and polished paper and submits it to the Akademiya... only to learn that someone submitted a paper on the exact same topic before she did because she was trapped in Inazuma by the Sakoku Decree, causing her paper to be rejected. This on top of the deadline having passed [[DespairEventHorizon crushes her utterly]], and out of despair she begs a bunch of Treasure Hoarders to lock her in a cage just so she can get away from it all.

%%[[folder:Anisa]]
%%!!Anisa Purbiruni
%%A Researcher from House of Purbiruni with a particular interest in oceanography. She is a friend of Kumi, a Watatsumi %%islander in Inazuma.
%%----
%%[[/folder]]

[[folder:Ilyas]]
!!Ilyas / [[spoiler:"Siraj No. 36"]]

An amnesiac scholar who tries to report to the Matra about his senior Siraj attempting to experiment on him.

* AssimilationBackfire: [[spoiler:After bringing Alhaitham to the Hive, Ilyas reveals himself to be TheMole and willingly returns to Siraj's HiveMind. However, his new experiences (Alhaitham showing him decency, and Ilyas questioning his assigned number) are subsequently uploaded to the HiveMind, which causes it to break down, just as Alhaitham planned.]]
* CoolBigBro: Ilyas is a doting brother to his kid sister and are in good standing with one another regardless of his actions in the Akademiya. Using Nahida's skill on him to read his mind reveals that the first thing he wants to use his paycheck on is to buy his sister a new dress.
* HiveDrone: [[spoiler:He was tasked to lure Alhaitham to the Hive, and returns as "Siraj No. 36" after he manages to do so.]]
* MemoryGambit: [[spoiler:As part of his and Siraj's plot to lure Alhaitham to their base, Ilyas wiped his own memories to convincingly serve as TheMole, as he knew that Alhaitham was so perceptive he would be able to see through him otherwise. In the end, though, it was all for nothing, as Alhaitham figured out that Ilyas was TheMole from the moment he saw him.]]
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: [[spoiler:Ilyas's friend Raju was being forced to have his work plagiarized by their instructor, Jani, doing most of the hard work and pulling numerous all-nighters for a measly 20,000 Mora and none of the credit. While Ilyas stayed quiet at his friend's request, Raju ultimately being DrivenToSuicide was his last straw, forcing Ilyas to blow the whistle on the whole affair, resulting in Jani's arrest. While he did get some commendation from his professors for fighting academic fraud, all he got from his peers involved in Jani's project was ostracism, being more upset at the setback to their graduation than the fact that someone died, which they treat as a minor inconvenience (and having the gall to blame Raju for not having enough patience). This in turn reduced his own prospects of graduation for sheer dearth of peers willing to admit him into mandatory group projects, with his professors unwilling to pull any strings. This, combined with what's implied to be disapproval towards his actions from even his own parents, is what ultimately allowed Siraj to manipulate him into joining his HiveMind as "Siraj Number 36."]]
* OneWayVisor: [[spoiler:Ilyas puts one on when Siraj orders him to return to the HiveMind as "Siraj No. 36".]]
* ReligiousAndMythologicalThemeNaming: The name "Ilyas" (إلياس) is the Arabic transliteration of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elijah Elijah]], a 9th-century-BC prophet in both ''Literature/TheBible'' and ''Literature/TheQuran''. Just as Elijah/Ilyas defended the worship of the God of Abraham/Ibrahim and denounced social evils even at the cost of being hunted down by the authorities, [[spoiler:this Ilyas defended the sanctity of academic integrity and decried Jani's plagiarism that led to the suicide of his friend Raju, even at the cost of being ostracized by his more compliant peers]].
* RepressedMemories: He could barely remember anything about himself at the start of Alhaitham's story quest, and as the story went on he starts to suffer severe headaches when events happen that trigger his memories, [[spoiler:especially after Alhaitham tells him about his role in reporting academic fraud, as well as the fact that he had long acceptanced his role as "Siraj No. 36" and his responsibility in luring Alhaitham to Siraj's Hive to be assassinated.]]
* ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight: "Peer pressure," to be precise. Ilyas is a man of strong principles and would brook no corruption, even among his peers. [[spoiler:This is the reason he blew the whistle on Jani's plagiarism that led to the suicide of his friend Raju, even if it meant being ostracized by his more compliant peers. While this brought him immense self-doubt, by the end of Alhaitham's Story Quest he felt vindicated in his choices and grew to admire the Scribe, even aspiring to be as unwavering as him.]]
* TrojanHorse: [[spoiler:Used as one by both Siraj ''and'' Alhaitham. Alhaitham was quick to realize that Siraj intentionally wiped Ilyas's memory and sent him out to report him to lure Alhaitham to the Hive to kill him. In response, Alhaitham went out of his way to help Ilyas and question Siraj's imposed pecking order by questioning the number he was given, both to override [[ThePowerOfHate Siraj's hate that empowered the system]] and encourage the independent thinking of the other scholars in the project, causing Siraj's HiveMind to malfunction, override, and shut down.]]
* WalkingSpoiler: Alhaitham's Story Quest introduces you to him while he's suffering from amnesia after being kidnapped. Naturally, there's quite a bit you learn about him as the Story Quest progresses.
* YouAreNumberSix: [[spoiler: He was "Siraj No. 36" in Siraj's HiveMind.]]
----

[[folder:Rifaet]]
!!Rifaet
A scholar seen by many as a candidate for the position of Grand Conservator, putting him into competition with Vikram.

* TheGhost: Has yet to appear despite being mentioned by [=NPCs=].
* RedOniBlueOni: Just by reputation, he's seen as the blue to Vikram's red, with his projects consistently producing remarkable academic results.

[[folder:Setaria]]
!!Setaria
->'''Voiced by:''' Cat Protano (English)

Azar's secretary and one of the few desert-dwellers accepted into the Akademiya for her genius.

* TheCameo: She appears in the "Blueprint for the Future" ending of Kaveh's Hangout route to discuss and assist in planning out the construction of the Aaru Village library.
* {{Gaslighting}}: After she lets slip that [[spoiler:rumors about King Deshret's resurrection was a misinformation campaign orchestrated by the Sages to manipulate the radical Eremites]], the Traveler and Nahida concoct a plan to [[spoiler:force her to heed her conscience and turn on the Sages by manipulating her into believing that the rumors are ''real'', through the Traveler, with Nahida's aid, possessing several of her acquaintances in Sumeru City]].
* HeelFaceDoorSlam: Just when she is about to turn on the Akademiya for their [[spoiler:LotusEaterMachine experimentation, she gets put into confinement on orders from Dottore. Fortunately, she is set free at the end of the arc, and she chooses to leave the Akademiya and become a scholar in the desert.]]
%%* MeaningfulName: Her name likely derives from Sitara, which translates to "star," befitting her [[spoiler:(now former) association with the Rtawahist Darshan.
* MinionWithAnFInEvil: Despite serving directly under Azar and [[spoiler:being involved with the mass dream harvesting project as one of its designers]], it's clear that Setaria is guilt-ridden over her involvement and doesn't fully support his project, even being wary of [[spoiler:Dottore]]'s involvement. Combined with lingering feelings over leaving her homeland and potentially betraying her kindred for the Akademiya, this left her with uncertainty over which side she should choose, which the Traveler, Paimon, and Nahida take advantage of to [[spoiler:turn her against the sages]]. At the end of the Archon Quest, [[spoiler:she decides to leave the Akademiya and become a teacher to the desert people, and asks the Traveler to pass on her sincere apologies for what she said to Nilou.]]
* OneSteveLimit: Averted in a strange way. She shares her name with a group of characters mentioned to be the "dancers of Setaria" in ''The Tale of Shiruyeh and Shirin I''. It is unknown if she is named for this group or if having the same name is entirely coincidental.
* SatelliteCharacter: She (or at least [[spoiler:a copy of her within the Sabzeuz Samsara]]) is often seen by Azar's side throughout the second Act of the Sumeru Archon Quest. It isn't until the first half of the third that she (that is, [[spoiler:the actual Setaria]]) is seen on her own, conversing with some of her acquaintances.

[[folder:Shalmar and Banu]]
!!Shalmar and Banu
A duo consisting of a Spantamad researcher, Shalmar, known as the writer of "Fifty Things Every Traveling Scholar Should Know", and his biological daughter, Banu.

* BumblingDad: If Banu is anything to go by, Shalmar can be quite a clumsy airhead who can't even cook. He is however a skilled engineer which makes him closer to an AbsentMindedProfessor.
* CallingParentsByTheirName: Banu calls her father, Shalmar by name rather than "dad/pops/father" and talks with him casually. He's more akin to a friend than a parent.
* MenCantKeepHouse: According to Banu, Shalmar cannot sweep floors and refers to him as one of those terrible adults.
* PantheraAwesome: Apple is a Rishboland Tiger who serves as a family pet to them, and is a strong fighter to boot. She seems to be more loyal to Banu though.
* ParentsAsPeople: While Shalmar is Banu's biological father, the former views the latter as his co-worker rather than a daughter of his. Not that Banu minds though, and she even prefers it that way.
* StrangeSyntaxSpeaker: When the Traveler and Paimon first speak to Banu, she has a habit of saying the word "bracket" at the start of every sentence. She later drops it after the duo accept her quest and stops reciting it from a book Salma wrote.
* WiseBeyondTheirYears: Banu is far mature compared to the other kids of her age.

[[folder:Sharif]]
!!Sharif
->'''Voiced By:''' Kojima Hideki (Japanese)
A researcher of the Akademiya and father of Inayah.
----
* AbusiveParents: He treated Inayah very badly. No matter how hard Inayah tried to please him, he would always berate her. It's even established that his attempt to shut down the theater is partly because she joined it. While they begin to reconcile at the end of Nilou's Story Quest, Nilou confides in Paimon and the Traveler that it's probably better for them to take it slow and stay apart for awhile, as too much has happened for them to just let bygones be bygones, though she hopes that they do make up for real one day.
* CharacterDevelopment: Being challenged to disown Inayah for good to prove he had no room for sentiment in his heart made him realize he couldn't do it, which finally broke through his stubbornness and caused him back down. Later, the Traveler finds him waiting to see one of Zubayr Theater's performances. Though he admits he still doesn't understand the arts, since he volunteered to be [[TheScapegoat scapegoated for Akademiya's highly public loss of face]], he's decided to use his new free time to better understand where Nilou and Inayah are coming from. He also offers a handmade gift to Inayah as a way of apology, which calls back to the time he dashed aside a handmade gift she made for him when he was at his worst.
* EducationPapa: He heavily pressured Inayah to become his academic successor, not accepting anything from her except the absolute best even when it was clear she was suffocating under his expectations. Once, in stereotypical Education Mama fashion, when Inayah told him she had the third-highest score on an exam in the hopes of getting even a tiny bit of approval from him just once, he instead berated her for not getting first, which caused her to cry for a long time.
* FunHatingVillain: Much like the Grand Sage Azar, he views the theater as a waste of time and that people should exclusively focus on studying. [[CharacterDevelopment He grows out of this]] after being defeated by Nilou and Inayah, impressed by their resolve to the point that he's now actually curious about the arts, or at least about the kind of environment that instilled such strength in the two.
* GracefulLoser: When Nilou and Inayah challenge him to put his money where his mouth is, to disown Inayah for good and prove that there's no room in Sumeru for sentimentality, he finds he cannot and ultimately concedes the debate, which puts Zubayr Theater's defense officially on the record and prevents Akademiya from shutting it down for the moment. He later visits the Grand Bazaar to watch a performance, and when asked admits that while he still doesn't understand the arts, Nilou's passionate defense impressed him.
* {{Jerkass}}: Demanded the theater to shut down all of a sudden with intent to punish those working there further, and is made clear to have been a terrible father to his own daughter to the point that she rebelled. He is willing to bend the rules to get what he wants as well even when boasting about following them, further showing his hypocrisy. He doesn't care about personal relationships at all, either, seeing them as transactional and transient.
* KnowWhenToFoldEm: When Inayah joins in on the debate, he is unable to argue when the rest of the audience sides with them, prompting him to walk away.
* PetTheDog: As awful as he was acting, believe it or not, he could have done ''way'' worse. During the debate, he reveals that Akademiya has the power to unilaterally revoke Zubayr Theater's performing license, and probably a number of other technically legal ways to do damage without them being able to contest. In hindsight, that he chose to debate the point at all is showing mercy, [[GracefulLoser to say nothing of standing down once convinced that he's beaten]], which protects Zubayr Theater from further reprisals and causes Akademiya a highly public loss of face.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Soraya]]
!!Soraya
An Akademiyan Researcher who studies the history of Liyue and focusing on The Legacy of Guizhong in Guili Assembly.
----
* MeaningfulName: Soraya (Persian: ثریا Sorayyâ) is a name of Persian origin, meaning "good queen" or "Pleiades." The name is derived from the Arabic name for the [[StellarName Pleiades star cluster, ثريّة Thurayya.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Ufairah]]
!!Ufairah [[spoiler:Hindi]]
One of the researchers hired by the Eremite faction Thutmose to investigate the legends and the secrets of The Scarlet King. She was Jebrael's wife and Jeht's mother.
----
* PosthumousCharacter: She was killed by Samail before the main events of the game.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Vikram]]
!!Vikram
A charismatic and persuasive individual whose research focuses on King Deshret's Legacy, seen as a candidate for the title of the next Grand Conservator alongside Rifaet.
----
* TheGhost: Hasn't appeared onscreen despite being mentioned.
* RedOniBlueOni: In terms of reputation, he's the red to his alleged rival Rifaet's blue, his exceptional charisma having secured funding from the notoriously stingy Akademiya higher-ups.
[[/folder]]

[[Characters/GenshinImpactFontaine Fontaine]] ([[Characters/GenshinImpactCourtOfFontaine Court of Fontaine]] | [[Characters/GenshinImpactFurina Furina]] | [[Characters/GenshinImpactNeuvillette Neuvillette]] | [[Characters/GenshinImpactWriothesley Wriothesley]])\\

[[Characters/GenshinImpactFontaine Fontaine]] ([[Characters/GenshinImpactCourtOfFontaine Court of Fontaine]] | [[Characters/GenshinImpactFurina Furina]] | [[Characters/GenshinImpactNeuvillette Neuvillette]])\\

* SymbolicMotifClothing: In addition to the preponderance of the color turquoise, Faruzan's outfit features flower-like designs which also appear on her Constellation.

A professor of the Haravatat Darshan who, contrary to her faculty, is a specialist in mechanics. Despite her youthful appearance, she insists on being at least a hundred years old, having survived being trapped for a century inside a ruin of King Deshret's civilization. Her prideful, haughty fa%ccedil;ade belies her lingering anguish over having outlived her loved ones, as well as her struggles to fit into modern Sumeru.\\

!!!'''Voiced by:''' Yan Mengmeng (Chinese), Creator/YuiHorie (Japanese), Kim You-rim (Korean), Chandni Parekh (English)

->''"Hm? What did you say? I'm old now, so every other phrase escapes my ears. Try calling me "Madam Faruzan" and see if I can pick that up."''\\\

A professor of the Haravatat Darshan who, contrary to her faculty, is a specialist in mechanics. Despite her youthful appearance, she insists on being at least a hundred years old, having survived being trapped for a century inside a ruin of King Deshret's civilization.

* AccidentalTruth: On one branch of her Hangout, Faruzan claims that she found an "automatic irrigation system" in the rainforest and would be working with Tighnari to implement exactly such a system. Though she made up the excuse on the spot, the Traveler can encounter such a mechanism in the Apam Woods, the Varuna Contraption, which regulates and maintains Dharma Forest's climate. The reason it's so obscure despite its importance is likely because it's managed by the Aranara, whom the Akademiya largely don't even believe exist.
* AdventureArchaeologist: Faruzan's specialty lies in analyzing the various ruins' puzzles and mechanisms by deciphering clues in the local environment such as stone carvings and other records. This is why she rose to prominence; during her time, large portions of Sumeru's ruins remained unexplored, and the Kshahrewar's understanding of mechanics was not fully mature, which made her role as a specialist invaluable. In the present however her work is considered obsolete; with the exception of certain enigmas like King Deshret's Mausoleum, most of those ruins have been mapped out, and much of her expertise has already disseminated into the Kshahrewar's general teachings in the century she's been gone. Additionally, her Hangout explains that, despite the Kshahrewars' efforts to persuade her to join their Darshan, her teachings have been considered niche even there. 

* AndIMustScream: She spent a hundred years in a ruin of King Deshret's civilization, trying to unravel the codes and traps in order to discover a way out, fully cognizant for some time, alone, unable to age, and devoid of the need to sleep or eat. Faruzan was forced to decipher the codes in her head after she ran out of material to write on, which eventually caused her mind to go numb. By the time she escaped and was discovered, she was in a stupor and unable to form coherent sentences until after going through a lengthy recovery period.

* AttackDrone: ''The Wind's Secret Ways'' summons the Dazzling Polyhedron, an icosahedron made of Anemo energy, that travels along a triangular path for twelve seconds. Every two seconds, it moves into another "vertex," where it unleashes ''Whirlwind Pulse'', a wide-ranging attack that simultaneously reduces enemies' Anemo Resistance and increases the Anemo Damage Bonus of allies caught within its blast radius (with a total of seven bursts). Faruzan's second Constellation upgrade, ''Overzealous Intellect'', increases its duration to eighteen seconds (and hence ten bursts).
* BerserkButton: Kshahrewar students looking for her assistance are often instructed to never act surprised upon seeing her youthful appearance, let alone ask why she is shunned in Haravatat or suggest joining their Darshan. Breaking any of these unofficial rules tends to bring down a fiery scolding for which Faruzan is infamous for.
* BreakingOldTrends: Faruzan is the first 4★ character to possess a unique charged attack[[note]]Kujou Sara's doesn't count, as it is more geared towards buffing her allies instead of outright damage[[/note]] where her Elemental Skill allows her next charged shot to damage surrounding enemies, followed up by sucking them in. Before her, unique charged shots were typically reserved for 5★ archers.

* CommonalityConnection: Teams up with Kaveh in the first round of the Interdarshan Championship due to both working with machines in their field of research. It’s also revealed that Kaveh previously consulted Faruzan on how to make his mechanical Swiftfly’s small and nimble for his interior design project.

* CorrallingVacuum: ''Wind Realm of Nasamjnin'' turns Faruzan's next fully-charged shot into a Hurricane Arrow which, upon contact, triggers ''Pressurized Collapse'' which sucks in enemies. Faruzan's first-ascension passive, ''Impetuous Flow'', also allows it to inflict Perfidious Wind's Bale on enemies struck, while her sixth Constellation upgrade, ''The Wondrous Path of Truth'', allows allies endowed with the Prayerful Wind's Benefit to trigger it (with at least 3-second intervals), in addition to a 40% boost to Critical Damage of Anemo-enhanced attacks.
* CrossPoppingVeins: When Wanderer damages Faruzan's robot and steals the Diadem during the Interdarshan Championship finals, she glares at him angrily with a cartoonish anger vein punctuating how pissed off she is.

* DeconstructedCharacterArchetype: Of the FishOutOfTemporalWater. Faruzan was trapped in ruins where she could not age for over a century, enough time that when she finally managed to escape, the Akademiya has long since presumed her dead, and when she tries to return to her previous work, she finds it's long since become obsolete and she's become better known for advancements in mechanical engineering that were basically an afterthought to what she primarily studied. The fellow members of her Darshan now consider her just as much a relic of the past as the ruins she studies. She's thoroughly stuck in the past and refuses to change with the times, leaving her destitute.
* {{Determinator}}:

* FrozenInTime: She was stuck in time for a hundred years in a ruin from King Deshret's civilization.

* HotTeacher: For an [[ReallySevenHundredYearsOld "old lady"]], she sure looks good. Unfortunately, she's more concerned with attracting students than admirers, which has made the "teacher" half difficult since everyone in Haravatat thinks her studies are obsolete.

* ImmortalImmaturity: [[DownplayedTrope Not immortal]], although she still acts quite immature at times despite being over 100 years old and insisting on her seniority over others.

* MagikarpPower: Faruzan is a somewhat decent support for Anemo Vision holders at the bare minimum, but with a full Constellation she turns into a ''ludicrously'' powerful support that elevates her fellow Anemo Vision holder to new heights of damage.
* MeaningfulName: The name "Faruzan" appears to be based on the Persian names "Farzan" (فرزان) and "Foruzan" (فُروزان), which translate to "wise" and "shiny" respectively. Her name also sounds like "Firouzeh" (فیروزه) which means "turquoise", the main colour of her design. This name is befitting of her character, as she is stated to be quite intelligent despite her teachings being shunned by modern-day Haravatat students, and also wears many shiny accessories.

** She is especially doting on Collei; she's openly concerned about the young forest ranger's health and how Tighnari treats her, even sneaking treats for her when she visits the young forest ranger. In one of her Hangout routes, she even creates a course to educate Collei on how to read.

* ObsoleteMentor: Faruzan's specialty is "the analysis of the structure of and solutions to various ruin devices via the study of stone carvings and other ancient texts". However, since she spent 100 years trapped in a said ruin, her academic school Haravatat (language) no longer cares about just things. A rival school at the Akademiya, Ksharerwar (technology), finds her knowledge more interesting but she doesn't want to switch. Thus, while she wants to mentor current students, her obsolescence prevents her from gaining many students.
* OlderThanTheyLook: While she looks like a teenager, her writings have contributed to learning materials in textbooks that are nearly a century old, making her the oldest in modern-day Sumeru. This trope is also a major BerserkButton for her should anyone bring it up. The Japanese dub highlights Faruzan's longevity by having her refer to herself with the self-honorific ''washi'', which is commonly used by older characters.

* SmartPeopleBuildRobots: She's an expert machinist and builds anemo-infused mechanisms, one of which she deploys in the event cutscene of "Parade of Providence."

* StepfordSmiler: Her Character Story 5 touches on that she was in denial about outliving her former classmates and ended up in an unfamiliar version of Sumeru due to being displaced in time. Even after being forced to accept her situation, she masks her sadness behind her sassy personality and refuses to allow herself to be stuck in time again.

* UnconventionalElectives101: Faruzan's specialisation in "the analysis of the structure of and solutions to various ruin devices via the study of stone carvings and other ancient texts" is presently considered a niche topic in modern day Sumeru, which is why she has trouble recruiting students for her classes or securing funding for her research. That, along with her notorious temperament.
* UpgradeArtifact: A variant--her third and fifth Constellation upgrades, ''Spirit-Orchard Stroll'' and ''Wonderland of Rumination'', increase the talent levels of, respectively, ''Wind Realm of Nasamjnin'' and ''The Wind's Secret Ways'' by three.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Faruzan's Character Stories reveal that she did have friends who she left behind while she was imprisoned in King Deshret's ruin for over 100 years, though what happened to them and how they reacted to her disappearance was unclear. Her Hangout event sheds light on what happened: [[spoiler:her mother, friends, and instructors all worked together to find her, a quest that lasted 20 years until they were all too old to continue. They ultimately decided to send Tamimi, a mechanical lifeform invented by Faruzan and modified by her companions, to explore the ruins in search of her, carrying notes written to her to read when she was eventually located]].

%% Preload data does not count as official info. Do not add it until the new version is fully out.

%% A 5-star character's "Associated Weapon" is determined by the 5-star Weapon that is the weapon they equip as a Trial Character in their Story Quest and Test Run, and the one that currently has a rate up on Epitome Invocation while said 5-star character's banner is currently active.

!!!'''Voiced by:''' Hou Xiaofei (Chinese), Creator/MiyuTomita (Japanese), Kang Sae-bom (Korean), Ashely Biski (English)

->''"Even when we're not looking up at the stars, they're always there, watching over us."''\\\

A student of the Rtawahist Darshan who specializes in theoretical astrology and draws star charts tirelessly in order to write her thesis even at the cost of being often sleep-deprived. Born to a family of Sumpter Beast ranchers north of Sumeru City, her intellect has caught the attention of the Akademiya, only to find its culture exhausting; nevertheless, she pushes on, even to the detriment of her wellbeing, to make her family proud.

* TheAce: Layla is an intelligent, popular, attractive, well-respected student who gets top marks at the most prestigious institute of learning in Teyvat and can ''literally'' write academic reports in her sleep. PlayedForLaughs insofar that she's not even aware of her more improbable feats such as her hundred-thousand-word essay or scaling the Wall of Samiel, due to sleeping through most of them. In the "Fabulous Fungi Frenzy" limited-time event, she proves skilled at fungi training as well, making it to the semifinals where she meets the ForegoneConclusion of having to go up against ''you''.

* AllTheOtherReindeer: One branch of Layla's Hangout Event tree reveals that her lack of social skills and unintentional social avoidance, combined with her untidy look and tendency to complain about schoolwork, has rubbed several peers the wrong way, who feel that the way she presents herself isn't representative of her ability. The confusion is made worse by her classmates being unaware that the "Star's Blessing" is assisting her in finishing her work.

* BabyOfTheBunch: Among the playable characters associated with the Akademiya, Layla is not only implied to be the youngest as the only current student, but is also mentally the least sure of herself as "Daylight" Layla, as demonstrated in the "Parade of Providence" limited-time event, when she continuously receives advice from the other Interdarshan Championship contestants on dealing with her anxiety as well as the weight of expectations.

* BarrierWarrior: ''Nights of Formal Focus'' summons the Curtain of Slumber, a Cryo-elemental shield that generates a Night Stars that transform into homing Shooting Stars once four are collected. Layla's first-ascension passive, ''Like Nascent Light'', bestows stacks of Deep Sleep, which gradually increases the active character's Shield Strength by 6% for each Night Star generated (to a maximum of 24%) which will linger on until the Curtain disappears; her first Constellation upgrade, ''Fortress of Fantasy'', increases its Shield Absorption by 20%, as well as grants her the ability to generate the Curtain for multiplayer allies, with damage absorption worth 35% of hers (though sharing its twelve-second-long duration and 250% efficiency against Cryo-elemental attacks).
* BigDamnHeroes: One routes in Layla's Hangout Event tree revealed that [[spoiler:she saved a family from being robbed by Treasure Hoarders by running off to get help, which scared the thieves off, although for a while she didn't realize that she helped them because they were gone by the time she returned]].

** Her Hangout Event tree reveals that she has had terrible luck since enrolling in the Akademiya, first losing the good-luck charm her mother gave her, which caused her to develop her sleep disorder, then nearly dying while fleeing some Rishboland Tigers, and finally accruing debt due to accidentally damaging some of Akademiya's equipment. Dori also swindled her of her scholarship funds, forcing her to live on cheap vegetables for an entire year.

* BugBuzz: A ''major'' pet peeve of hers. Layla hates bugs because they're always buzzing around her room at night and making it difficult for her to sleep or concentrate on her work. Sadly, since the eastern half of Sumeru is basically one giant rainforest, winter isn't coming to drive the population away anytime soon.

* ColorMotif: While she is never seen in the standard uniform of the Akademiya, her default outfit incorporates the deep blue color of her Darshan.

* DelicateAndSickly: The "Fabulous Fungus Frenzy" event revealed that rather than being an overworked student like many of her fellow peers, Layla's a {{Sleepyhead}} because of a condition that causes her to become tired much more easily than the average person. Even the minimal labor that is expected of a scholar like putting away books exhausts her. Sure enough, the Traveler ultimately had to help her capture all the Fungi she needs to compete in the tournament. Just catching ''one'' Fungi (out of four) left her totally beat.
* {{Determinator}}:

* FanGirl: Adoration for Mona Megistus is common in the Rtawahist Darshan, but in her voice lines the Traveler points out that there seems to be something more to that of Layla.

* GatheringSteam: Whenever the Curtain of Slumber is active, it will generate Night Stars, either one every 1.5 seconds or two whenever the active character uses their Elemental Skill (within 0.3-second intervals), as well as, if the Celestial Dreamsphere is also active, whenever Starlight Slugs hit enemies (within 0.5-second intervals). Once there are four, they are turned into Shooting Stars that strike at enemies one by one.

* HomingProjectile: Shooting Stars and Starlight Slugs home in on enemies. Her fourth-ascension passive, ''Sweet Slumber Undisturbed'', further increases the damage potency of the former based on 1.5% of her Max HP, while her sixth Constellation upgrade, ''Radiant Soulfire'', increase the damage potency of both by 40%, in addition to a 20% reduction to the interval time between generating Night Stars necessary to fire off the former (i.e., from 1.5 seconds to 1.2).
* HumbleHeroine: Upon first meeting her in the "Fabulous Fungi Frenzy" limited-time event, Layla introduces herself to the Traveler and Paimon as a mere student of the Rtawahist Darshan with no special titles, despite her reputation amongst her peer for her intellect. This is the first indication of her insecurity regarding her competence.
* AnIcePerson: Her Vision is Cryo, and she's the second Cryo user who can generate an ice shield.

* LockedOutOfTheLoop: Her "Star Blessing" personality goes out of her way to remove all evidence to what she really is from Layla, or even any concrete information about the fact that she sleepwalks - preferring Layla not know that it happens. When the Traveller finds out, she makes him promise to keep the information from her. "Star Blessing" has sympathetic reasons for doing this - as [[GoMadFromTheRevelation she thinks the knowledge would break Layla]] - but as it turns out it's actually not taking. Layla is aware she sleepwalks and of the rumors she does amazing things while doing it, she knows ''something'' is trying to keep her from finding out about it, and she's already figuring out that that something is herself. In her Hangout, she even reveals in one path that she's even aware of the clear similarities between herself and "Wisdom Seelie," expressing and almost certainty that it's probably her, as well as her "Blessing from the Stars" - so instead of being safely out the loop as "Star Blessing" intended it just worries her more she can't find any solid proof.

* MinoredInAsskicking: A notable [[AvertedTrope aversion]]. Whereas almost every other character appears to be a trained combatant even if their occupation wouldn't ordinarily require combat training,[[note]]While some, such as Diluc and Yanfei (a businessman and a freelance lawyer) have a background in self-defense such as having once served in the military/police and trained in martial arts respectively, others, such as Yoimiya (herself a fireworks specialist) and Xinyan (a traveling rockstar) are trained in the use of weaponry despite not necessarily needing to know how for their job and occupation[[/note]] Layla's normal and charged attacks, which both leave her winded at the end and has her use both hands to swing a one-handed sword, suggests that she's not a trained fighter. Her Hangout Event tree addresses this by explaining that her lack of sleep makes her feel weaker when fighting, which would also explain the lack of coordination during her attacks.
* MirrorCharacter: To Mona. Both are brilliant, but [[PerpetualPoverty extremely poor]] astrologers who must survive off of scant food and lament how poor they are. The difference is Mona is haughty and self-confident, while Layla is a ShrinkingViolet.

* NonUniformUniform: Currently, Layla is the only playable character in the cast that actively attends the Akademiya as a student, as Lisa, Alhaitham, Tighnari, Kaveh, and Cyno are all graduates, and Faruzan is a professor under her Darshan; however, she is the only member of her Darshan, as well as the only important student in the Akademiya, that wears an outfit that doesn't resemble the standard uniform worn by other students, though there are a few design elements in common that put it as being "close enough," such as the blue-and-gold ColorMotif.

** ''Nights of Formal Focus'' has Layla create a Cryo-elemental shield to sleep in, only waking when the shield ends or if the player gives any input. Said shield, the Curtain of Slumber, periodically generates Night Stars and fires them at enemies as Shooting Stars once four are gathered. In keeping with how competent she is when asleep, Layla can literally defeat enemies in her sleep.
** One of Layla's woes is the overwhelming amount of papers she has to write. With her utility passive having a chance to double the output when creating talent books, poor Layla gets even less slack.

* StarvingStudent: She was forced to live on cheap vegetables for a year after squandering her scholarship funds and saved up money on super-effective sleep gummies. Her Paimon's Painting emote also suggests that she has little mora to live off of.

* SupportPartyMember: Layla's fighting style revolves around empowering the active character with a shield, while both of her Elemental Talents create a continuous stream of Cryo application for Melt, Freeze, or Superconduct reactions.

* TokenGoodTeammate: Especially contrasting Rhatawaist, whose Darshan's leader is the head of the Akademiya and ArcVillain [[BigBadEnsemble Ensemble]] alongside Il Dottore and Scaramouche. Compared to the villainous son of a gun that is Azar, Layla is a [[NiceGirl sweetheart]] and a heroine; her third Character Story explains that, unlike the conservatives in the Akademiya, she respects and admires the arts and the trades of people who work on the streets for a living.

* UpgradeArtifact: A variant--her third and fifth Constellation upgrades, ''Secrets of the Night'' and ''Stream of Consciousness'', increase the talent levels of, respectively, ''Nights of Formal Focus'' and ''Dream of the Star-Stream Shaker'' by three.

* GenderBlenderName: "Faruzan" appears to be based on the Persian ''masculine'' given name "Farzan". While it's possible the "u" was added to feminize the name, the actual feminine equivalent of "Farzan" would be "Farzaneh" (فرزانه) or "Farzana".

* MeaningfulName: The name "Faruzan" appears to be based on the Persian name "Farzan" (فرزان), which translates to "wise". This name is befitting of her character, as she is stated to be quite intelligent despite her teachings being shunned by modern-day Haravatat students.

!!!'''Voiced by:''' Hou Xiaofei (Chinese), Creator/MiyuTomita (Japanese), Kang Sae-bom (Korean), Ashely Biski (English)\\

!!!'''Voiced by:''' Yan Mengmeng (Chinese), Creator/YuiHorie (Japanese), Kim You-rim (Korean), Chandni Parekh (English)\\

A professor of the Haravatat Darshan who, contrary to her faculty, is a specialist in mechanics. Despite her youthful appearance, she insists on being at least a hundred years old, having survived being trapped for a century inside a ruin of King Deshret's civilization.\\

--> ''"Those geezers at Haravatat love to decline my funding requests with the excuse that my research's become too niche and impractical. By that logic, since we're still the Darshan with the lowest enrollment numbers, we might as well close our doors altogether."''

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. Faruzan can be quite sassy, though as long as you call her "Madam", this doesn't get in the way of kindness. She can be a caring teacher and is kind to her "juniors", as she plans to take Kaveh to a meal after learning of his financial difficulties, and she is openly concerned about Collei's health and how Tighnari treats her. In her Hangout, she even creates a course to educate Collei on how to read.

* MaamShock: {{Inverted}} – Faruzan reacts favorably to being called "madam" and demands her students to do so.
-->'''Faruzan:''' First! That curiosity of yours is best served in your studies. And secondly! You shall remember to call me "Madam"!

[[Characters/GenshinImpactFontaine Fontaine]] ([[Characters/GenshinImpactCourtOfFontaine Court of Fontaine]] | [[Characters/GenshinImpactFurina Furina]])\\

[[folder: Zandik]]