Genshin Impact: Tartaglia / Characters

Tartaglia, "Childe" / Ajax

Introduced: November 11, 2020 (v1.1, "A New Star Approaches")
Voiced by: Li Chunyin (Chinese), Ryōhei Kimura (Japanese), Nam Doh-hyeong (Korean), Griffin Burns (English)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tartaglia_8.png

Childe

^{Click here to see his Foul Legacy Transformation}

"A warrior must always be ready to face any challenge with his blade. The outcome of the battle is irrelevant — what matters is that you learn from the experience."

Rarity: 5★
Element: Hydro (Vision), Electro (Delusion; boss appearance only)
Weapon: Bow
Constellation: Monoceros Caeli, the Celestial Narwhal

Eleventh and youngest of the Harbingers. Tartaglia's youthful, friendly façade belies a bloodthirsty man who is not so much concerned with enforcing the Tsaritsa's will as much as satisfying his desire for a good fight, for which he has recently taken an interest in the Traveler. First met in Liyue's Archon Quest, he becomes a friend of the Traveler until they later find out about his true, wicked nature, and the plan he's been forming a part of...

Tartaglia whets his bloodlust with his ability to freely switch between ranged and melee combat at will, setting up his foes with his unique ability to mark them with Riptide using charged shots, which can trigger one or both special attacks: Riptide Flash, which gradually deals damage when hit with his charged shots, and/or Riptide Burst, which damages surrounding enemies and also marks them should his target fall. His Elemental Skill, Foul Legacy: Raging Tide, allows him to enter melee mode, where he swaps his bow for a pair of shortswords made of Hydro energy, giving him heightened power and agility at the cost of a lengthy cooldown time proportional to its duration, as well as augmenting his attacks against marked foes with the wide-ranging Riptide Slash. His Elemental Burst, Havoc: Obliteration, can trigger different, wide-ranging attacks depending on his stance: in ranged mode, he unleashes Flash of Havoc, firing an arrow made of Hydro energy that also marks foes with Riptide; in melee mode, Light of Obliteration, fusing his swords into a double-ended lance to swing around, triggering another wide-ranging attack, Riptide Blast, upon marked enemies.^note

open/close all folders

A-G

Above Good and Evil: Tartaglia states that things like "good" and "evil" mean very little to him, and that he has no real care for duty or allegiance, either. For him, the most important thing in the world is the rush of battle.
The Ace: Despite his youth, characters consider him an absolute menace on the battlefield due to his skills, and as a Harbinger he naturally commands a great deal of respect within the Fatui.
Actually Pretty Funny: Tartaglia laughs his heart out when he hears that the Traveler, Paimon, and Zhongli fell for Qiqi's whole "Cocogoat" request. Even after that scene is over, he admits that it's been a long time since he last laughed like that.
Affably Evil: While he works for the Fatui and their interests, he is a pleasant person otherwise. He sees no problem whatsoever with hanging out with and in multiple ways helping the Traveler and Zhongli while performing his orders to find the Geo Gnosis. Similarly, in his first boss fight where he believes the Traveler has stolen the Gnosis, he notes he is not going to kill them. Afterwards, he genuinely considers himself and the Traveler to be friends. Though it also becomes clear he has a very Blood Knight view of true friendship, and he continues following through on his orders and summons a fallen god to threaten Liyue in an attempt to draw Morax out, despite his distaste for it.
Ambiguous Situation: During the Fontaine Archon Quest, he was issued a "guilty" verdict by the Oratrice (and thus Focalors) despite having nothing to do with the serial disappearances of Fontaine women. Neuvillette posits two possibilities: either he is being punished for awakening the All-Devouring Narwhal as a youth, or Focalors wanted him to fight the Narwhal to buy Fontainians time to avert the prophecy.
Animal Motifs: Whales and narwhals. The narwhal, as his constellation, refers to one, and in the battle against him he can create a huge whale made of Hydro to attack you. Furthermore, he primarily dresses in white, grey, and black, much like a real narwhal. He also awakened the All-Devouring Narwhal by accident when he was fourteen and bears some connection to it.
Anti-Villain: Type I (Noble). Yes, he is a Blood Knight and one of the Harbingers, but he's also very friendly towards the Traveler and Zhongli, and displays a love for his family. It's even implied by Teucer that if he had a chance, he'd pull a Heel–Face Turn and join the Traveler instead.
Arc Number: 11. He's the 11th of the Harbingers, he was released on November 11 (which can be abbreviated as 11/11), and his rerun banner was the eleventh character wish banner overall.
The Artifact: He's still classified as a Liyue character on the official website even though he's long since skipped town and has traveled to Inazuma and Fontaine in the meantime.
Asshole Victim: When he is declared guilty of the serial disappearances in Fontaine, it is a complete miscarriage of justice and everyone knows it. Still, no one is too worked up about the matter beyond Neuvillette promising to investigate the case more thoroughly because, as Paimon puts it, Childe has committed enough bad deeds in his time that he really does belong in prison.
Astonishingly Appropriate Appearance: Inverted. Childe is a ginger-haired man who dresses in grey and red, more befitting for someone with a Pyro Vision.
Awesome, but Temporary: His biggest Necessary Drawback is that he can't stay in his melee stance for too long, or he will be stuck with his bow that deals relatively low damage for as long as 45 seconds.
The Baby of the Bunch: He's the youngest and newest of the Harbingers but is also one of the most dangerous.
Badass Cape:
- In his Foul Legacy Transformation, he gains a cape made out of Electro particles which looks like the mantle of a starry sky.
- His default outfit includes a half-cape that looks like a mix between this and Scarf of Asskicking.
Badass in Distress: During the Fontaine Archon Quest, Tartaglia finds himself in increasing amounts of trouble. Shortly after meeting the Traveler, his Hydro Vision stops working and leaves him without access to his elemental powers. While he takes this strange turn of events in stride, he's soon falsely accused of being the culprit in the serial disappearance cases. The Traveler aids him by finding the real culprit, proving his innocence in this particular crime. However, the Oratrice still issues a guilty verdict and Tartaglia has to be subdued by Neuvillette before he can fight his way out of the court, though the Iudex promises to look into the situation. Even when he does find a way to escape the Fortress of Meropide, he immediately goes missing, with the Traveler unable to pinpoint his whereabouts despite using his Vision, which he bequeathed to them previously, to access his memories. Eventually, the Traveler discovers that he ended up in the Primordial Sea with the All-Devouring Narwhal.
Battle Theme Music: During Childe's Boss Battle, Never-Ending Performance plays during the stages where he fights with Hydro and Electro, then switches to Wrath of Monoceros Caeli for Foul Legacy. The latter track has particularly seen variations used whenever Childe activates Foul Legacy in later scenes.
Beneath the Mask: Under his mask of a cheerful, confident guy, he is a thinly veiled Wolf in Sheep's Clothing that has a keen sense of bloodlust, working with the Fatui for the thrill of fighting strong opponents.
Benevolent Boss: He's noted to be cordial and fair with his subordinates, and even during a mock battle with recruits, he makes sure to not go too far. This is in contrast with Scaramouche and La Signora, who will respectively abuse his underlings verbally and kill hers at the drop of a hat just to show her power.
Bifurcated Weapon: In his melee stance, Tartaglia summons a pair of blades made of Hydro, which he can combine into a double-ended spear for Light of Obliteration.
Big Brother Instinct: Fiercely protective of his younger siblings, to the point that he used his Foul Legacy Transformation even while still injured, just so he could keep Teucer both safe and happy at once.
Big Damn Heroes:
- In Chapter I, he saves the Traveler and Paimon from the Millelith following Rex Lapis's apparent death. This helps him gain their trust for his plans, even if not by much.
- In Chapter IV, just before the All-Devouring Narwhal swallows a crowd in the Opera Epiclese, he pushes it back to the rift it came from, buying Focalors time to restore Neuvillette's powers so he (alongside the Traveler) can subdue it for good.
Bilingual Bonus: In the Japanese trailer for "Letter to Snezhnaya", he says "Dear Sister" in Russian.
Blood Knight:
- At his core, he just wants to fight, grow stronger, and then fight even greater fights. It is telling he only starts to truly consider you a friend and comrade after you have a no-holds-barred duel with him. And that his later weekly boss fights have him commenting on how happy he is to have a chance to cut loose with you again.
- His Character Story tells that, upon returning to civilization after falling into the Abyss, he became a dangerous, ill-tempered troublemaker who stirred up strife wherever he went. His father had to send him to the Fatui to tame him, but he managed to beat multiple well-trained troopers despite his youth. Pulcinella saw his immense potential, and eventually, he worked up the ranks until he became a Harbinger himself.
  "Good and evil, right and wrong, duty and destiny... are these things really so important? Are they really more appealing than the euphoria of battle and close combat?"
Blue-and-Orange Morality: Tartaglia is a Blood Knight to such an insane degree that his desire to seek out challenging battles can override any sense of duty he might have. He at one point admits that he considers himself Above Good and Evil, and that seeking out strong opponents to grow stronger himself is what he mainly lives for. He later states directly that he doesn't care about morality, allegiance or duty, all of that takes a back seat to battle.
Bow and Sword in Accord: His main weapons are bows, though his Skill has him summon a pair of short Hydro swords. This gives him alternative melee moves with Hydro effects, allowing him to fight in close combat, unlike other archers.
Bows and Errors: Justified. When he said he's terrible at the bow, he means it. His stance is very stiff and hunched over, he doesn't pull on the bowstring all the way, and he doesn't even hold the bow properly. Not to mention him ending his combo by outright throwing an arrow. Compared to the other archers, his form is extremely sloppy, making it a wonder he could even strike his targets at all.
Bread, Eggs, Milk, Squick: He explains his goal is to get stronger, and he will do whatever it takes to achieve that, using Visions, Delusions or even heretical teachings from the Abyss.
Bring It: One of his Skill quotes has him say "Bring it on!" when the skill is activated from a standstill. Ironically, he says this when switching from his stronger melee stance to his weaker ranged stance, instead of the other way around.
Broke Your Arm Punching Out Cthulhu: Tartaglia spent over a month in the Primordial Sea battling the All-Devouring Narwhal, delaying its arrival in Teyvat. When it finally broke through, he manages to force it back through the rift with Neuvillette's help, but is so drained he loses consciousness and is later sent back to Snezhnaya to recover from his injuries.
The Brute: Tartaglia is valued by the other Harbingers moreso for his raw power than his tactical prowess. He was sent to Liyue to cause as much chaos as possible and make him summon Osial so La Signora can convince Zhongli to surrender his Gnosis as part of their contract, and was never intended to succeed with his own plan.
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: His overly-cheerful attitude towards battle and philosophy on it comes across as strange to just about everyone he meets, his dislike of scheming makes him something of an outlier among the Fatui, and he even slacks off on a mission just so he can see what the Traveler will do. That said, he's crazy powerful to the point that Paimon outright calls him the strongest on the team (a team which includes the Traveler) during the "Labyrinth Warriors" event.
The Bus Came Back: After being absent from the main quest for Inazuma and Sumeru Archon Quests, he returned with a prominent role for that of Fontaine.
Butt-Monkey: Downplayed. Things frequently tend to go wrong for Childe, most notably in Fontaine where he gets wrongfully convicted of a crime, sent to jail, injured while fighting the All-Devouring Narwhal, and literally thrown through a portal by Skirk upon reuniting with her.
Cast From Hitpoints: His Foul Legacy Transformation puts a tremendous strain on his body. The fight in the Golden House ends when he just cannot sustain it any longer and using it again in the Dottore's Ruin Guard laboratory while still recovering, even just for barely a minute, takes so much out of him that he would be helpless to stop the Traveler if they wanted to kill him at that point.
Child Soldier: According to his character story, he has been on the battlefield since he was fourteen, and the text implies that he was already an expert in weapons, so he may have trained since he was younger.
Cloudcuckoolander's Minder: Acts as this to an extent to Zhongli, especially when the topic is about money.
Cool Big Bro: He brings back various miscellaneous items like defeated Ruin Guards for his younger siblings to use as toys, and once caught an enormous aquatic creature for them to eat. And from what is seen in his story, it's not an act either: he's genuinely happy to see Teucer in Liyue before doing a Double Take and asking him how he even got there from Snezhnaya, goes to a great deal of trouble just to keep Teucer happy (and in the dark about the shady nature of his work), and unleashes his Foul Legacy Transformation when on the verge of being overwhelmed by Ruin Guards even though he's still recovering from the last time he used it, just so he'd have time to clean them up and place them in innocuous-seeming positions around the room without Teucer having to see him destroying "Mr Cyclops".
Cooldown Manipulation: Tartaglia's sixth Constellation upgrade, Havoc: Annihilation, resets the cooldown time of his Skill once he returns to ranged mode after unleashing the melee form of his Burst.
Cool Mask: He has a menacing-looking red mask that he normally wears to the side of his head. When he activates his Delusion power, he wears the mask properly, and in his Foul Legacy Transformation, his mask grows to cover his whole face and is topped with a single shining circle at the center.
Comically Missing the Point: In the web series, in an effort to get Tartaglia to understand why people are getting angry, Lumine asks him to imagine if someone agreed to fight him and then stood him up. He responded with confusion, saying that he won't be lying down before a fight.
Cordon Bleugh Chef: His special version of Calla Lily Seafood Soup, "A Prize Catch," is described as 'looks like a trapped beast floundering in an ocean of blood, its death throes an inaudible scream.' But he explains it's just something he fished, plus some products from his homeland. Whatever they are.
Cryptic Conversation: He admits that he still doesn't know much about his time in the Abyss, and he was never able to get a straight answer from Skirk about her reasons for teaching him. When he asked, she merely said it was because he had awakened "it" (i.e., the All-Devouring Narwhal) which she never explained to him. Much later, Skirk reveals to the Traveler that she doesn't like talking to weaklings until they prove themselves, which the Traveler did by defeating the Narwhal without Abyssal powers.
Cultured Badass: In between his work as a Harbinger and search for stronger opponents, he attends public performances and sometimes gets on stage himself.
Curb Stomp Cushion: When he uses his Foul Legacy Transformation in the Opera Epiclese, Neuvillette stomps him in one blow. But Neuvillette finds himself scratched on the cheek in the aftermath, implying that Tartaglia managed to score a hit before he was knocked unconscious.
Cute and Psycho: He presents as a friendly, open man who is easy on the eyes, but this hides an Ax-Crazy Blood Knight side to him that comes out whenever he is about to do battle.
Cutscene Power to the Max:
- Regardless of how well the player does against his Foul Legacy Transformation, the Traveler just barely held him off in the cutscene following. Much later, he also thrashes three Ruin Guards on his own with this power in a very short time frame that's difficult (if not impossible) to replicate in-game.
- In the cutscenes, he demonstrates that he can transform into a trail of water which he uses to escape after freeing Osial.
Dangerous Forbidden Technique: His Foul Legacy Transformation, which uses a Delusion in tandem with his Vision (alongside a power that is "not from this world"), takes quite a toll on his body. He is reluctant to use it again for days after his battle with you, and when he must activate it to finish off a large group of ruin guards, he cannot fight at all, only managing to limp away when you take pity on him instead of taking the opportunity to kill him.
Dark and Troubled Past: When he was fourteen, Ajax accidentally fell into the Abyss and was trapped there for three months surrounded by otherworldly beasts and monsters who could have easily killed him. Under the tutelage of Skirk, he learned to fight tooth and nail and even use the Abyss's power for his own purposes to survive, and grew a violent streak as a result.
Deadly Lunge: In his boss battle's second phase, one of his attacks is him rushing towards your character multiple times with his electrified polearm.
Death from Above: The ranged form of his Burst fires a water arrow heavenward, which then falls and deals high damage in an area, as well as marks enemies with Riptide. In his boss fight, he can do a series of the same move, and later, he can cover the entire arena with his arrows' blasts.
De-power: While dealing with a group of thugs in Fontaine, Childe's Vision abruptly stops working, leaving him without access to his Hydro powers. However, he's more concerned with the fact that Visions shouldn't be able to malfunction at all than he is over the actual loss of his power, as he still has his Delusion to fall back on if things take a turn for the worse.
Determinator:
- In the "Labyrinth Warriors" event domain, he constantly fought numerous monsters without end, yet only comments that he enjoys it and there's not so much as a scratch on him. He later explains he can survive it all due to his time in the Abyss, and states his goal is to always get stronger, through his determination and will power always improving forever, while those who want an end will find it.
- In Fontaine, he escapes the Fortress of Meropide to battle the All-Devouring Narwhal in the Primordial Sea for forty-five days without his Vision. Though he is badly injured and collapses from exhaustion almost immediately after returning to the surface, it's still impressive he managed to hold out that long.
Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?: Subverted; According to Fontainians, Neuvillette is not human, and he demonstrates immense power by knocking Tartaglia out with a single blow amidst the latter's Foul Legacy transformation. Nevertheless, the Harbinger managed to draw blood out of the Iudex. This scene serves as the first major hint of Neuvillette's true identity as the current Hydro Sovereign, one of the ancient rulers of Teyvat.
Difficult, but Awesome: With his Stance System and Riptide debuff, Tartaglia is among the most technically demanding characters in the game. His primary form of damage-dealing comes from changing to his melee stance, whose power boost and constant Hydro application are offset with a cooldown time that grows in proportion to the duration of the stance (to a maximum of 45 seconds unless he manually switches back to ranged mode). This can be a severe problem since he will be stuck with his (admittedly) mediocre archery longer than he'd want, limited to charged shots until his Skill is ready again. In addition, he has two variants of his Burst, with the ranged form applying Riptide to all enemies in range and the melee form dealing strong burst damage (with additional strikes on marked foes), forcing the player to choose which one to use. Once you master these, however, Tartaglia will be capable of easily drowning his enemies in a storm of arrows and blades.
Does This Remind You of Anything?:
- Before your weekly boss battles with him, he will say the following quote, which is dripping with Accidental Innuendo:
  "This opportunity is quite hard to come by. Well then. Amuse me. Surrender is a valid option. I promise I'll be gentle."
- The Chinese and Japanese versions are even more explicit.
  "This opportunity is pretty hard to come by, so please let me indulge. Surrender is still an option, I will treat you extremely gently as the defeated enemy general under my control."
Double Weapon: Certain moves in his melee stances has him combine his swords into a polearm with blades in each end. In his Foul Legacy Transformation, he wields a more ornate version of said weapon.
Do Well, But Not Perfect: Ultimately the reason he was kept in the dark about the deal between Morax and the Tsaritsa. According to the terms, the latter needed Tartaglia to fail, but the former still needed a credible threat with which he could judge Liyue's readiness to govern themselves without him. Not being informed about the deal meant that Tartaglia would put all his effort into trying to take the Geo Gnosis, and he's understandably pissed when he learns that he was never intended to succeed.
Dreaming of Times Gone By: Downplayed. Tartaglia gives the Traveler his Vision after it begins malfunctioning, resulting in the Traveler having dreams of Childe's recent memories in Meropide and giving them clues as to what he's been up to.
Dub Name Change: "Childe" is derived from "Gongzì" in Chinese and "Koushi" in Japanese, both of which refer to a child of a rich family. The French subtitles are a strange case, as they only refer to him as "Tartaglia" and never so much as mention his other name.
Dub Personality Change:
- The largest departures from his canon Chinese characterization are in the Japanese and Korean dubs, the former in which he is the most light-hearted and playful of all his depictions while in the latter, he goes the exact opposite direction and is by far the most serious. To compare, let us take how he reacts to Zhongli tricking him. In the former, he simply laughs it off and looks forward to fighting Zhongli one day, while in the latter he is very displeased. In English, he is at the very least mildly annoyed, while in Chinese he is a bit more upset but not as much as in Korean.
- Downplayed, but his first greeting in English to the Traveler (if Lumine) is a cocky and borderline flirty "Hey girlie, hold still," while his equivalent in other languages merely says "Miss, careful, don't move."
Dub Pronunciation Change: The English dub pronounces his title with the "g" sound ("tar-tog-lya"), but in the original Italian it's supposed to be silent ("tar-tah-lya"). The other languages get the pronunciation right.
Dull Eyes of Unhappiness: His eyes lack a shine to them◊, in contrast to the other characters, to illustrate his general disinterest with most things other than fighting and Zen Survivor Training from Hell backstory. One of the few times that they actually do get a shine in them is when he's talking about his siblings.
Elemental Eye Colors: His eyes are a deep blue, as befitting his Hydro vision.
Enemy Mine: A meta example; by successfully pulling Tartaglia in his banner, the player is recruiting a villain to fight for them.
Even Evil Has Loved Ones: He loves his family and goes to extreme lengths not only to protect but also to avoid becoming a Broken Pedestal to his youngest brother Teucer. Indeed, he places his family above his own life, as shown by the fact that he was willing to use his Cast from Hit Points move while in danger of dying from it just to keep his youngest brother from seeing his true nature.
Even Evil Has Standards: As much of a morally dubious Blood Knight as he is, Tartaglia has a lot of virtues that showcase he really isn't a bad guy.
- He takes loyalty very seriously, as seen with his (somewhat one-sided) friendship with the Traveler, as well as the Tsaritsa.
- He never approves of being cruel for its own sake, expressing regret at summoning Osial because he doesn't like putting innocents in danger.
- He has no love for many of his fellow Harbingers, particularly La Signora and especially Arlecchino: the former, as he implicitly opposed her habit of executing her recruits just to show off her power, but especially after learning that she made a fool of him by ordering him to unseal Osial in an attempt to draw Morax out and steal his Geo Gnosis, even as she merely negotiated it with Morax/Zhongli; the latter, which he claims to have a Chronic Backstabbing Disorder and suspects to not afraid to betray Tsaritsa were she to gain something from it. While he was actually misinformed about this by Pulcinella, with Arlecchino not addressing the rumours due to the advantage it gives her, she does admit in her voiceline about her that she would fight the Tsaritsa should it come to it.
- He is against picking a fight in the middle of a funeral, which is notable when you remember that the funeral is for the aforementioned La Signora. On that note, he wasn't happy either for Arlecchino trying to start an argument with the other Harbingers during the service.
- When he is declared guilty by the Oratrice for a crime he was unaware of, he is disgusted by how the Court of Fontaine is run, and gives the Chief Justice a piece of his mind before activating his Delusion.
Evil Costume Switch: His outfit while using his Delusion and his Foul Legacy Transformation has a darker color palette than his largely gray and white standard attire.
Evil Counterpart: To Thoma. Both are visually similar young men who meet the Traveler right after they arrive in a new region and serve as a friendly guide providing aid through their connection to a larger organization. However, Tartaglia's friendliness was a mask to hide his bloodthirsty side (although he does become a more genuine friend to the Traveler later on) and works with the Fatui to undermine Liyue, whereas Thoma is a genuinely friendly man who works with the Yashiro Commission for the betterment of Inazuma. Both men also share a Fire/Water Juxtaposition, with Tartaglia being the Water to Thoma's Fire.
Exposed to the Elements: Averted. During the "A Winter Night's Lazzo" trailer, unlike some of his fellow Harbingers, Tartaglia is dressed appropriately for the bone-chilling cold of Snezhnaya under his cloak, with a thick scarf and heavy clothes.
False Friend: Downplayed for both his friendship with the Traveler and Zhongli. While he was using both to further goals of the Fatui, he makes it clear that he has no personal issues with either of them and still considers the Traveler a friend after everything. In Zhongli’s case, he sees him as a Worthy Opponent at the end and both characters' dialogues about each other say that they either still spend time together or plan to further down the line.
Fashionable Asymmetry: His shirt is slightly open on his right side, his Scarf of Asskicking hangs off his left shoulder, he wears a single pauldron on his left shoulder, and he wears one earring on his left ear.
Fiery Redhead: He has orange hair and is brash and spirited, particularly during a good fight.
Flipping the Bird: PG version. After his Big Damn Heroes moment against the All Devouring Narwhal, he turns to see Neuvillette, i.e. the guy who gave him a Curb-Stomp Battle the last time they met. With the last of his strength, Tartaglia proceeds to give the Chief Justice a thumbs down before falling back into the rift, channeling the spirit of this trope.
Foreshadowing: The monstrous transformation he undergoes when drawing on the power of the Abyss is a big hint as to the circumstances of the Abyss Order.
Forgiveness: While never outright stated, it does run in the background of his relationship with the Traveler. The Traveler can initially chose dialogue options expressing hostility after Tartaglia sics Osial on Liyue to lure out Rex Lapis out, and even without them is justifiably wary. However, his Story Quest sees them gradually warming up to him, searching for him after he uses Foul Legacy to protect Teucer, and telling him to "go in peace." During the "Labyrinth Warriors" event, the Traveler is worried for him when he got trapped in the Mystic Onmyou Chamber. Finally, when talking to him in the Serenitea Pot, the Traveler expresses excitement at going on a trip with him. This is particularly noticeable in contrast with the Traveler's almost murderous attitude towards the other Fatui Harbingers, Signora and Scaramouche.
Friend to All Children: It's shown in several events that he's great with kids, probably due to his big brother nature.
- Xinyan quickly latches onto him as a "big brother" in the "Labyrinth Warriors" event.
- In the "Stone Harbor" event, one of his random encounters is with a little girl who wants to know if fairy tales are real; if the Traveler allows him to handle it, his words to her leave her glowing with joy.
- In the "Outside the Canvas, Inside the Lens" event, he rescued a child from a camp of monsters they were about to walk into, which caused him to strike up a friendship with the similarly good-with-kids Yoimiya and her group.
- Despite his dislike of Arlecchino, he implies during their talk in her Character Quest that he's on good terms with her children, even threatening her not to betray them like he believes she did her siblings and "mother."
Friendly Enemy:
- Despite being a part of a villainous organization, his bloodlust, and the fact that he was using the Traveler all along to further the goals of the Fatui, Tartaglia doesn't appear to have anything against the Traveler personally and still considers them a friend after they defeat him, to the point Teucer can identify them solely from a letter he wrote back to them that described the Traveler solely in friendly terms. He admits it might be one-sided on his end, but dialogue options allow them to return the sentiment; after several friendly encounters, it seems that the Traveler and Paimon have warmed up to him as well. In Fontaine, the Traveler openly calls him a "friend" and Tartaglia shows absolute trust in the Traveler when asking them to hold on to his Vision for safekeeping. As his Friendship level is raised, he will offer information about the other Harbingers.
- Also with Zhongli, in that their voice lines imply that they still spend time together despite everything.
From Nobody to Nightmare: He was originally a normal, shy boy who simply wanted to go on an adventure until he fell into the Abyss and spent three months fighting for his life. He emerged a very different person, having developed a sheer bloodlust. His father sent him to the Fatui in hopes of taming this new side of him, which only had the opposite effect to the point that he quickly rose up its ranks and became a Harbinger.
Gameplay and Story Integration:
- While in gameplay he's a bow user and his melee stance is limited to dual short swords and a double-bladed spear, Childe is a Multi-Melee Master who only wields a bow, his self-admitted worst weapon, to improve with it. His utility passive emphasizes this by granting an additional level to the normal attack talent of everyone in the party.
- Destroying Tartaglia's Vision after he gives it to the Traveler is impossible, which follows in-game lore that Visions cannot be destroyed.
Gameplay and Story Segregation:
- You can pull him from the gacha and bring him along on your travels even before completing Chapter I Act III, where he is explicitly still your enemy acting on the orders of the Fatui to find Morax's Gnosis, to the point where you must have a Boss Fight with him over it. You can also bring the playable Tartaglia into the Tartaglia Boss Fight, making there be two Tartaglias with no explanation.
- Fatui enemies in the overworld will attack him on sight just like any other party member, and you need their insignias to ascend him, encouraging you to beat them up with him. If you somehow manage to aggro enemies from a different faction, the Fatui will ignore them in favor of attacking you.
- In the Fontaine Archon Quests, he temporarily gives his Vision to the Traveler for safe keeping after it was malfunctioning in his fight against a few thugs. Despite this, he, as a playable character, can still use his Hydro powers without issues, and his playable model still has the Vision on him despite having given it away in the story.
- At the end of Chapter IV Act II, Childe got knocked out and sent to be detained in the Fortress of Meropide, and after the events of the Fontaine Archon quests, he was sent back home to Snezhnaya to recover from the injuries sustained from fighting the All-Devouring Narwhal in his Foul Legacy transformation for over a month. Despite this, it does not affect his playability status, remaining playable regardless. His Story Quest can still be played and he can still show up in The Cat's Tail to play TCG without taking his status in the plot into consideration.
Genius Bruiser: Lest one mistake him for just a bloodthirsty brute, remember that Tartaglia did carry out a plot to steal the Geo Gnosis that would have succeeded had his own side not set him up to fail. He also makes very accurate inferences about Shiki Taishou and correctly analyzes the situation outside the Mystic Onmyou Chamber, based on a few sentences from the Traveler and Xinyan, in the "Labyrinth Warriors" event.
Giggling Villain: During his boss battle, he laughs cheerfully as he tosses attack after attack at you, matching his personality. This is especially prominent in the Japanese dub, resulting in compilations being made of his giggles.
Given Name Reveal: His third character story reveals his real name to be Ajax.
Glass Cannon:
- Out of all the weekly bosses, Tartaglia has the lowest overall HP, and can easily be taken down in all three of his phases. The reverse also applies, as he hits extremely hard and fast all while heavily staggering your characters and can easily kill your party in a few hits if you can't dodge his attacks.
- Downplayed as a playable character; he is still a powerful hard-hitting Hydro DPS fighter, but his bare HP and Defense stats are on par with those of melee characters than that of an archer.
Go-Karting with Bowser:
- Being a Fatuus won't stop him from joining you on your travels if you pull him. He even has a line where he muses that his fellow Harbingers must know of his 'dealings' with you and that he would love to see the looks on their faces.
- Taken almost to the extreme with you being able to invite him over to your Serenitea Pot (aka your house). If you do, he brings up a bunch of other ideas for casual events (fishing, drinking, and sparring) for the pair of you to do.
- As of version 3.7, Tartaglia becomes a new addition to the pool of character cards in Genius Invocation TCG, which also means he can come over to The Cat's Tail to participate in friendly card games.
Gone Horribly Wrong: After three months stranded in the Abyss as a fourteen-year-old, Ajax emerged a battle-hungry troublemaker. Not knowing what to do, his father sent him to the Fatui, hoping they could discipline him. Instead, this merely allowed him to express his violent urges on the battlefield, embracing his bloodlust such that he quickly rose up its ranks until he became one of the eleven highest-ranking officers of the Fatui, answering to no one but the Cryo Archon herself.
Guide Dang It!: His boss fight has a unique hidden mechanic where he counterattacks when hit with Hydro in the first phase, Electro in the second, or both in the third. This is difficult to notice when fighting him since the counterattacks are no different from his normal attacks, so you will not notice it unless you fight him multiple times with teams of different elements. Simply avoiding those trigger elements makes the fight significantly quicker and easier.

H-W

Hated by All:
- By the end of the Liyue Archon Quest, Tartaglia role in the Osial crisis has made him a pariah, to the point that the Snezhnayan diplomatic corps would have gladly left him to the Qixing's mercy as a peace offering but for his lofty position as Harbinger.
- Downplayed in Fontaine. He's not outright hated, but it's shown that very few people actually like him. When he disappears after being sent to the Fortress of Meropide, not even his fellow Fatui bother to look for him and instead use the incident as an excuse to put diplomatic pressure on Fontaine, with Arlecchino telling the Traveler outright that she doesn't even care as to what became of him.
Hearing Voices: It's revealed that Childe behaved himself very well in Meropide before suddenly expressing an urge to escape at any cost, saying that something was calling him. He allegedly became obsessed with following the call, endangering his life to flee the prison and disappearing afterwards. The Traveler can hear the call in Childe's memories, with it resembling a whale song.
Heel–Face Turn:
- According to Teucer, there's a part of Tartaglia that wants to leave the Fatui. He genuinely likes the Traveler, doesn't get along with the rest of the Harbingers, and just wants to go wherever he'll get into the most fights, all of which gives him plenty motivation to do so. However, he has too much respect for the Tsaritsa to just turn his back on her on a whim.
- During he "Labyrinth Warriors" event, he shirks off his mission to deal with Scaramouche apparently going rogue with the Electro Gnosis in tow, instead opting to continue observing the Traveler, as well as find more excuses to fight some more.
Hidden Depths:
- For all his bloodlust, Tartaglia is genuinely devoted to his family, to the point where he willingly bore the strain of his Foul Legacy Transformation once again even while still recovering from his last usage just so Teucer would not have to watch him destroy his beloved "Mr. Cyclops." When the Traveler finds him in the aftermath, Tartaglia, clearly exhausted and in massive pain, muses about how easily one can break childhood dreams, and asserts that he needs to protect them at any cost.
- One of his hobbies? Fishing, as in sitting still for long periods of time and waiting for a catch. It's not the sort of activity one would expect a Blood Knight like him to enjoy, but he considers it a good form of meditation. He also states that he believes the patience and decisiveness required for fishing to be quite similar to what is required for combat.
- Both the "Stone Harbor" event and his Story dialogue reveal that he frequently attends public performances, and sometimes even gets on the stage himself. It's also implied the type of these performances are dancing of some sort, as Paimon mentions he's skilled at that.
- Despite being easily strung along by La Signora and Zhongli, Tartaglia is actually good at deduction, quickly figuring out the state of things outside the Mystic Onmyou Chamber are putting pressure on the Traveler, which has them on edge.
Hold the Line: Unintentionally so, when he somehow gets into a brawl with The All-Devouring Narwhal. Even Neuvillette is thankful for him holding it off from appearing sooner.
Horrible Judge of Character: Possibly. He describes Arlecchino as deeply treacherous and unstable, which jars greatly with how Arlecchino comes across once the Traveler finally interacts with her in person. Meaning either Tartaglia's opinion of her is a case of this, or he's seeing through a Mask of Sanity that has otherwise taken in everyone else.
House Husband: Well, house brother in this case, but the story says that he is good at cooking and cleaning, due to having three younger siblings.
Human Weapon: Reconstructed. Tartaglia sees nothing wrong with being used as a weapon, and when Shiki Taishou believes he is a discarded weapon, the Harbinger tells about how he fell through the Abyss and used it to become stronger. He calls himself a weapon and says his goal isn't victory, but improvement, and that he will forever fight and continue to strengthen himself as one while those who wish for an end will find one.
I Am Not Left-Handed: His Skill allows him to switch from his bow to dual swords, which he is more proficient in. And in his boss fight, he reveals that he has more powers at his disposal than just a Hydro Vision, thanks to his Delusion and apparent knowledge of Abyss sorcery.
I Have Many Names: Has three, with the third one revealed when his friendship with the player raises high enough. "Tartaglia" is his title as a Harbinger; "Childe" is an alias he used throughout the Liyue Archon Quest; and "Ajax" is his birth name.
Ironic Name: Tartaglia means "stutterer" in Italian, and he has quite the way with words. However, his name is a reference to a stock character from Commedia dell'Arte who does stutter, but whose role and personality in the story would change from play to play depending on what the writers needed, like how the game's Tartaglia can swap from bow to melee to fill different niches, and also wore a mask.
Irony: His first major role in the story is trying to awaken a sea monster in order to flood a city, with the plan ultimately failing and everyone hating him. His second major appearance involves him battling a sea monster he accidentally awakened to stop it from flooding a city, which is later flooded but he is viewed positively for buying everyone time.
Just Following Orders: How he justifies his actions during the Liyue Archon Quest. While he doesn't particularly want to risk Liyue's destruction by freeing Osial, he does it anyway to follow the Tsaritsa's command of recovering the Gnosis. After the fact, he defends himself from the Traveler's animosity by saying he was but a pawn in that sequence of events and the real blame lies with the people who had been directing him.
Karma Houdini Warranty: Tartaglia's actions during the Liyue Archon Quest finally catch up to him in Fontaine when he gets falsely convicted for the serial disappearances case and subsequently sent to the Fortress of Meropide. Paimon admits that he probably had it coming, and with all the crimes he's committed across Teyvat, he was bound to end up in prison eventually.
Klingon Promotion: A voiceline from Zhongli implies that Tartaglia has advanced through the Fatui by killing his rivals, and when his position is threatened after the events of the Liyue Archon Quest, he will be violently dealing with those who are aiming for his seat among the Harbingers.
Late-Arrival Spoiler: It is possible to pull Tartaglia before reaching the Liyue Archon Quest and thus have his nature as a Harbinger spoiled by his character profile.
Leaning on the Fourth Wall: Refers to himself as a "side character" during his trial in the Fontaine Archon Quest.
Leg Focus: The cutscene leading up to his boss fight's third phase has the camera pan up his legs and rear after Tartaglia resorts to his Foul Legacy transformation.
Leitmotif: He receives one in his debut trailer, A Letter to Snezhnaya, titled "Letter from Ajax".
A Lighter Shade of Black: He's willing to do some horrible things because of his addiction to battle, but it also makes him a more straightforward antagonist; since he's constantly on the search for a good fight, his thinking often centers around getting an epic showdown or two, especially when he has a Worthy Opponent in his sights. Picking on the weak is normally beneath him, and he's genuinely apologetic when he had to when he unsealed Osial, threatening to destroy Liyue Harbor in an attempt to draw Morax out of hiding. Contrast with the cruelty of La Signora and Scaramouche, where the their plots in Inazuma destroyed the lives and livelihoods of many, unleashed disasters that rendered two whole islands nearly uninhabitable, and plunged the country into a bloody civil war that they took further advantage of by supplying the Resistance with life-stealing Delusions. And then there's the terrifying sociopathy of Dottore, who pandered to the Akademiya's desperation over the passing of Rukkhadevata, the previous Dendro Archon, and their disdain for her less-academically-inclined successor Kusanali, to encourage them into turning Scaramouche into their new God of Wisdom, even as he sees all this as little more than an experiment to observe, to say nothing of how he drove Scaramouche insane centuries ago by murdering his loved ones and then lying to him that they betrayed him.
Lightning Bruiser: In his Foul Legacy Transformation, he is both strong and fast enough to take out multiple Ruin Guards over the course of ten seconds, and his fight with the All-Devouring Narwhal has him launching extremely quick and powerful attacks, even outright warping and running across its back while slashing the entire way.
Locked Out of the Loop: Suffice to say, his fellow Harbingers don't seem to be forthcoming with important details about his missions.
- In Liyue, he is completely unaware of Zhongli and Signora's backroom deals, where the former will have to give up his Gnosis. He is annoyed about being an Unwitting Pawn for their plan when the dust settles.
- In Inazuma, he was dispatched to hunt down Scaramouche and retrieve the stolen Electro Gnosis. Both were already in Fatui custody in Sumeru, being experimented on by Dottore as part of his project to create a manmade god. Whether Dottore was acting alone or with the knowledge of Pierro and the Tsarista is unknown, but either way Tartaglia's mission to Inazuma was a wild-goose chase that ended as soon as Dottore declared his experiment a failure.
- In Fontaine, he is stunned when he is deemed guilty in the case of the serial disappearances, having no idea how he could be convicted of crimes he had nothing to do with. Unbeknownst to him, Focalors controls the Oratrice and either convicted him because his connection to the All-Devouring Narwhal technically made him liable for its stirring and/or she wanted him in a position to battle the creature and buy time for Fontaine.
Made of Iron: In Part 1 of Arlecchino's story quest, he makes an appearance even though at this point he should've been on his way back to Snezhnaya to recover after the events of the Fontaine Archon Quest.. According to Childe, he woke up, realized he was heading back to Snezhnaya, made contact with Arlecchino, then downed several of Heloir's potions to rejuvenate himself. He's still coughing and sore around the ribs, but given that he was unconscious for several days/weeks after the events of the Archon Quest, he probably shouldn't even be standing in front of them.
Making a Splash: Has a Hydro vision. Unlike other characters, it is not the only trick up his sleeve (at least in-story).
Mana Drain: His second Constellation upgrade, Foul Legacy: Understream, restores 4 Energy for Tartaglia whenever enemies afflicted with Riptide are defeated.
Manipulative Bastard: He spends the Liyue Archon Quest deceiving the Traveler into aiding him and using them to earn the trust and connections he, as a Harbinger, never could. In addition to dropping hints that the Qixing might be behind Rex Lapis's death, he also has the Traveler followed and eavesdropped on to learn where the Qixing had hidden the Exuvia.
Marked to Die:
- As a playable character, Tartaglia's fighting style revolves around inflicting Riptide marks, either through charged shots, defeating the first marked foe, or the ranged form of his Burst, which last ten seconds and trigger different attacks that deal wide-ranging Hydro damage: Riptide Flash with fully-charged shots, which periodically deals damage (with at least 0.7-second intervals); Riptide Burst should the marked enemy fall, which triggers an explosion that also marks surrounding foes; Riptide Slash when attacked by Tartaglia in melee mode (with at least 1.5-second intervals); or Riptide Blast through the melee form of his Burst, which clears the mark in exchange for heightened damage. Both his ascension passives also prioritize in enhancing Riptide—that for his first, Never Ending, extends its duration to eighteen seconds, while that for his fourth, Sword of Torrents, allows him to inflict Riptide whenever his normal or charged attacks in melee mode score critical hits.
- As a boss, Tartaglia's easy-to-avoid attacks apply Riptide on hit and he only uses strong and difficult-to-avoid attacks when the player is marked by Riptide. To remove the Riptide, the player needs to walk to the border of the arena, which temporarily inflicts Pyro.
Massive Numbered Siblings: He has three younger siblings and at least three^note older siblings, which makes for a total of at least seven siblings including him.
Mechanically Unusual Fighter: Tartaglia is the first character whose utility passive is directly combat-related (i.e., Master of Weaponry, which adds one talent level to the party's Normal Attacks), and as of v4.2, the only one restricted to that (at least Kokomi has a second utility passive that is non-combat-related).
Mirror Character:
- To Scaramouche/The Wanderer, the other male Harbinger turned playable character.
  - Despite being a Blood Knight, Tartaglia is genuinely friendly towards the Traveler and speaks highly of them on several occasions. Scaramouche, on the other hand, is very vitriolic, even after his Hazy-Feel Turn.
  - Tartaglia has the decency to at least feel bad about innocents getting hurt in his plan to lure out Morax, while Scaramouche displays a Lack of Empathy for humanity in general.
  - Tartaglia is a Benevolent Boss to his subordinates, whereas Scaramouche is the opposite.
  - Tartaglia has Undying Loyalty to the Tsaritsa, while Scaramouche is a Wild Card with no real allegiance to anyone other than himself (even having joined the Fatui out of amusement).
  - Tartaglia has a family back home who he loves dearly, while Scaramouche became for seemingly abandoning him.
  - After Act III of the Interlude Chapter, Tartaglia is still a Harbinger, while Scaramouche not only deserted them, but erased all traces of his existence in the Fatui.
- Lyney and Tartaglia are both charming male archers who became affiliated with the Fatui through their fathers, are very protective of their family, and act extremely friendly towards the Traveler. However:
  - Their Visions have a Fire/Water Juxtaposition.
  - Tartaglia is a Harbinger whose family are civilians while Lyney, his sibling and his adoptive family are all undercover agents.
  - Tartaglia is straightforwardly honest about his Fatui affiliations and prefers fighting head-on while Lyney hid his Fatui ties from the Traveler and is more experienced in subterfuge and espionage.
  - Tartaglia summoned a god with Hydro powers to flood Liyue during the Liyue Archon Quests while Lyney came into conflict with the Hydro Archon and is trying to save the people of Fontaine from dissolving into water during the Fontaine Archon Quests.
Miscarriage of Justice: He ends up on the receiving end of one early in the Fontaine Archon Quest. Though Neuvillette found him innocent in the serial disappearance cases, the Oratrice still issues a "Guilty" verdict. By the end of that Quest, the Iudex posits two possibilities: either he was deemed liable for awakening the All-Devouring Narwhal, or Focalors wanted him to fight the Narwhal to buy Fontainians time to avert the prophecy.
Morality Pet: His family, particularly his little brother Teucer. Tartaglia does his best to keep Teucer out of learning the shadier nature of his work by passing himself up as a toy salesman. When Teucer visits him during his Story Quest, Childe often must moderate his behavior so Teucer does not see him do anything unsavory.
Multi-Melee Master: His melee stance shows he is very proficient with knives and polearms.
My Species Doth Protest Too Much: According to his entry in the Collected Miscellany, he is the only Harbinger to relish a head-on fight. According to his character story, this tendency leads the other Harbingers to put him in missions far away from Snezhnaya to avoid fallout.
Mythical Motifs: Two of them, associated with Classical Mythology:
- His real name is Ajax, named after Ajax the Great, who also had a brother named Teucer.
- His elemental powers are Water and Electricity, both of which are associated with Poseidon, who was the god of storms. One of his attacks as a boss involves a giant whale made of water coming out.
Necessary Drawback: Tartaglia's Elemental Talents have some of the highest damage multipliers in the game, and Riptide allows him to wipe out hordes of enemies singhlehandedly. However, he's saddled with a massive cooldown as drawback to ensure he won't be a game-breaker. It's telling that unlike other characters, none of his Constellation upgrades directly affect his damage output, but plenty that affect said cooldown.
Never My Fault:
- During his Story Quest, if the Traveler expresses anger towards him over the events of the Liyue Archon Quest, Tartaglia brushes them off, saying that he was just a pawn in those events. This ignores that, while he was kept in the dark about Zhongli and Signora's deal, he had already put into process his plan to manipulate the Traveler and unleash Osial without objection. In particular, he had been planning to free Osial long before any deception occurred, as he had already been producing copies of the Sigil of Permission even before Rex Lapis' supposed death.
- In a separate case of Dub Personality Change, the line is more understandable in Chinese, where he says that both the Traveler and himself were pawns in the greater scheme of things, and as he would rather leave the actual battle to the ones actually playing the game, he hoped it wouldn't affect them being friendly still.
Nice, Mean, and In-Between: The In-Between of the three bosses-turned-playable characters. He's not vitriolic and contemptuous of others like Scaramouche/Wanderer, but he's far too much of a Blood Knight to be as nice as Ei.
Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Getting the Traveler to set the Qixing and the adepti against one another means that all the needed players are already on the scene when Osial breaks free, which gives Liyue the best shot possible at defeating the ancient god and passing its Archon's final test.
Noble Demon: Despite his bizarre morality, Tartaglia has several streaks of integrity that make him stand out from the rest of the Fatui. He never breaks his word, doesn't like endangering innocents or the weak, strongly believes in protecting the innocence of children, and makes it clear to the Traveler that he respects them too much to attack them while their guard is down. This trait is also carried in his boss battle, he won't start attacking unless the player starts moving.
Not in This for Your Revolution: He does not care much for the Tsaritsa's plans, and mostly respects her for her strength and the fact she gives him ample chances to fight (though he does admit he admires her as a person, describing her as a gentle soul who had to harden herself). In a bit of Gameplay and Story Integration, his lines make it clear the Traveler could get him to betray the Fatui with the promise of more duels together and the fights the Traveler gets into over their journey through Teyvat.
"I'm not someone who cares for allegiance and affiliation. Good and evil, right and wrong, duty and destiny... are these things really so important? Are they really more appealing than the euphoria of battle and close combat?"
Not Me This Time: It doesn't take long for a Fatui Harbinger to draw suspicion in Fontaine, though for once it isn't a Fatui plot. Tartaglia is accused of being involved in the serial disappearances, and ultimately put on trial for the crime. He's proven innocent when the Traveler catches the real culprit, and Neuvillette even rules in his favor. Unfortunately, the Oratrice issues a "Guilty" verdict in spite of his proven innocence and he ends up being sent to the Fortress of Meropide.
Odd Friendship:
- With Zhongli. Promotional material treats them as a pair, and they are very friendly toward each other despite their differing personalities. Tartaglia tends to keep Zhongli's spendthrift tendencies in check if he is not outright supplying him with Mora, while Zhongli is aware of but otherwise tolerant of Tartaglia's bloodlust, despite knowing that Tartaglia kills those who oppose him. It's implied that even after The Reveal that Zhongli is Rex Lapis and had been manipulating Tartaglia the whole time, they are still on friendly terms and occasionally go out for drinks.
- During the "Labyrinth Warriors" event, he develops one with Xinyan.
- Apparently he's still hanging around Inazuma as of v3.4, as the player can find him playing a game with Yoimiya and her friends, though he doesn't realize that it's one.
Oh, Crap!:
- His happiness at seeing his younger brother Teucer again in Liyue very quickly changes to the horror that he came there from Snezhnaya, especially when ending up separated from him in Dottore's Ruin Guard laboratory.
- He also gives a wide-eyed, shocked expression when the Oratrice finds him guilty, despite having caught the real culprit beforehand.
One-Man Army: He spends days in the Domain in the "Labyrinth Warriors" event all by himself, fighting hordes of enemies, and not only survives but thrives. When Xinyan exclaims he looks like he's been in a war, he just laughs and says he lost track of how many battles he's had.
One-Winged Angel: Has the "Foul Legacy Transformation," which incorporates the powers of both his Vision and his Delusion, allowing him to use both his Hydro and Electro powers in tandem. He does not have the constitution to use it for too long though.
Pay Evil unto Evil: In one of Zhongli's voice lines, he indicates Tartaglia's position within the Fatui is somewhat shaky and he deals with anyone trying to challenge for it rather violently. Given the general morality of members of the Fatui, Zhongli is more than happy to simply leave him to it.
Pet the Dog:
- Despite his faults, he genuinely seems to care about his siblings Anthon, Teucer and Tonia.
- He does his best to cheer up Shiki Taishou when he has a crisis upon realizing he may have been discarded by his master. Childe even reveals his Dark and Troubled Past to him (something, it should be noted, he never speaks of), explaining they aren't so different as weapons.
Playing Nice for Now: While his voiceline about her has him express his dislike and distrust, Arlecchino's Story Quest shows that he's capable of being cordial and even friendly towards the Knave. When the two are encountered, Childe reveals to have gone to her for help in tracking down Skirk, expresses some friendly familiarity with Lyney and her other children, and the two even trash talk their fellow Harbingers behind their backs as if they were ordinary co-workers. The worse he does is threaten her not to betray her children, but he otherwise doesn't contest her implication that Pulcinella fed him a biased account of her ascension to Harbinger.
Power Floats: During his Foul Legacy mode, he floats above the ground. On the third phase of his boss battle, he even slowly descends from the destroyed ceiling to the arena.
Power Incontinence: Shortly after running into the Traveler in Fontaine, his Hydro Vision malfunctions during a street brawl, which he attributes to the unexplained foul mood he’s been in as of late. To avoid any further issues, he ends up asking the Traveler to hold on to his Vision for him.
Power Makes Your Voice Deep: His Foul Legacy Transformation heavily distorts his voice.
Power Stereotype Flip: Tartaglia owns a Hydro Vision, but he is a Blood Knight obsessed with fighting, who has to be specifically ordered not to employ violence as his first course of action, having little interest for subtler approaches and plotting.
Promoted to Playable: Started as a non-playable Liyue main story character before becoming summonable as a unit in the Wish system. For obvious reasons, his playable version is nowhere near as powerful as his boss fight.
Psychic Link: As a result of awakening the All-Devouring Narwhal, Tartaglia bears some sort of connection to it. He's apparently able to feel the creature's rage when it nears Fontaine and can hear its calls in his head in Meropide.
Psychopathic Manchild: Very downplayed. Tartaglia has a cheerful, childlike personality that is actually genuine, but is also a Blood Knight who is obsessed with battle.
Punch-Clock Villain: The Liyue Archon Quest gradually reveals that Tartaglia is with the Fatui merely to satisfy his urge to battle, which evolved from having been originally sent there by his father in an attempt to discipline him after he developed a bloodthirsty streak after three months in the Abyss as a youth. Similarly, he considers quitting the Fatui and joining the Traveler in their journey not so much out of any moral objection as much as excitement over the prospect of getting into more fights.
Redemption Demotion: He's far more powerful as a boss than as a playable character, and he doesn't use the same amount of skills or transformations he's shown to be capable of, though this is justified to a degree as if he had the same abilities as a playable unit as he does like a boss, he would be far too game-breaking as a unit. The In-Universe explanation is that his Foul Legacy Transformation hurts him to use for long. Just using the form for ten seconds while not at his peak during his story quest left him drained and defenseless to the point that the Traveler can point out that they can kill him right there and then.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: The combative, headstrong Red to Zhongli's calm and collected Blue.
Religious and Mythological Theme Naming: His real name, Ajax, comes from the famed hero and warrior Ajax the Greater from The Iliad. His little brother, Teucer, also takes his name after Ajax's half-brother. Similarly, Ajax the Greater is known for wielding spears, and one of Tartaglia's strongest moves involves attacking with a Hydro-enchanted double-ended spear.
Sealed Evil in a Duel: In Fontaine, Tartaglia tracks down the All-Devouring Narwhal and battles it in the Primordial Sea for seemingly weeks. By the time it re-emerges, Tartaglia is able to force the whale back through the rift, but is so exhausted he loses consciousness almost immediately. Neuvillette, however, is thankful to the Harbinger for buying Fontainians time.
Sequential Boss: He has three phases when you fight him in the Golden House; he sticks to his Hydro Vision in the first, then switches to his Electro Delusion in the second, and then turns into his Foul Legacy transformation in the third. Each transition also fully restores his health.
Serious Business: Believes the arts of war and cooking are not that different, and challenges you to... try the meal he'll make for you.
Shaping Your Attacks:
- His Elemental Skill has him switch to a pair of shortswords made of Hydro.
- One of his attacks as a boss creates a narwhal made of Hydro to divebomb the Traveler.
Shell-Shocked Veteran: Not in regards to however many battles he's been in—those are all good fun to him—but to his Training from Hell in the Abyss. He has Dull Eyes of Unhappiness because of it and his character story goes so far as to say it's something he never talks about.
Shock and Awe: His fight in the Golden House reveals that in addition to his Hydro Vision he also has an Electro Delusion, which he switches to in the second stage of his Boss Fight.
Shown Their Work: As mentioned in the v2.0 Special Program, Tartaglia's melee stance incorporates elements of swordplay with the shashka, a single-bladed, single-handed, guardless backsword associated with the Cossack peoples of southern Russia and Ukraine designed for pure offense with little in the way of defense, used for dealing powerful, hard-to-dodge blows and changing the tide of the battle in a couple of swift, sudden strikes, all of which aligns with Tartaglia's melee stance being at its most efficient when used sparingly.
Situational Damage Attack: His fourth Constellation upgrade, Abyssal Mayhem: Hydrospout, allows his melee stance to either inflict Riptide Slash on enemies marked with Riptide or Riptide Flash otherwise (with at least four-second intervals).
Skewed Priorities:
- In the closing scenes of Liyue's Archon Quest, he is more angry about Signora and Zhongli's deal in that he was kept Locked Out of the Loop rather than being upset he nearly wiped out a city full of people while engaging in a Snipe Hunt.
- Tartaglia puts more importance in preserving Teucer's innocence more than keeping themselves out of dangerous situations. Not only does he allow his brother into a Ruin Guard research facility, but he uses his Foul Legacy Transformation so that he can defeat a bunch of Ruin Guards before Teucer sees him, even though he was still recovering from the last time he used it, which puts his life completely at the Traveler's mercy.
- While in Fontaine, he is accused of a very serious crime and genuinely considers going along with the charges because he wants to duel Clorinde. Duel her again, that is, as he'd already faced her in a friendly sparring match and was disappointed she wasn't fighting to kill. Even Furina, who fully plays into the idea of Fontaine's criminal trials as performances, finds his lack of seriousness about the situation appalling.
Sliding Scale of Gameplay and Story Integration:
- Tartaglia's younger brother Teucer will tell the Traveler that had were his brother had his way, he would have quit his job and join the Traveler on their journey, explaining what exactly happened if you recruited the playable version of him. He will also still express a Blood Knight desire to duel with you, explaining his weekly Boss Fight which can be unlocked after Chapter I. This does not explain why he is on your team if you pulled him before completing said chapter, though.
- Tartaglia doesn't seem to be lying when he claims that the bow is his worst weapon. Aside from his ranged stance's lower damage output compared to his melee stance, a side-by-side comparison of him and other archers' normal attack combo shows that, where the others demonstrate graceful, practiced movements and precise footwork, his are stiff and clumsy to the point of comedy, and he ends his by outright throwing an arrow. Even Kujou Sara, who has the most straightforward archery style, at least has better control.
- Using Foul Legacy puts a strain on his body. Gameplay-wise, this translates to the cooldown time of his Skill increasing in proportion to the duration of his melee stance.
- Being a Blood Knight, Tartaglia would love a good fight even with his fellow Fatui. Perhaps unsurprisingly, among his ascension materials are Fatui Insignias. And he's also one of the few characters whose utility passive is directly combat-related (increase your whole party's Normal Attack level).
Snipe Hunt: His mission to track down Scaramouche and reclaim the Electro Gnosis was pointless from the start, since Dottore had custody of both and was using them for a grand experiment in Sumeru. Whether or not he was deliberately sent on a wild goose chase is unclear, but either way it ended up being a waste of time. For his part, Tartaglia didn't mind it because at least he was able to do some sightseeing, went adventuring with the Traveler, made new friends, and collected gifts for his siblings.
Something We Forgot: Exaggerated. The Traveler is sent to the Fortress of Meropide to investigate his disappearance from the prison. However, they quickly become involved with the House of the Hearth trio and their goal of learning the Fortress's secrets. The Traveler then resolves all conflicts therein except for the matter of Tartaglia's whereabouts, with everyone appearing to have forgotten the original objective, while The Stinger reveals the Harbinger is in a void with a monstrous whale.
Spirited Competitor: He doesn't care about whether he wins or loses a battle—what really matters to him is the self-improvement and breaking of his own limitations. He's thrilled to discover the Traveler is a Worthy Opponent for that reason and takes his defeat in the Golden House with good cheer.
Stance System: His Skill allows him to switch from ranged to melee mode, where for thirty seconds he enjoys enhanced damage potency and a Hydro effect that cannot be overridden with infusions, in addition to the ability to trigger the wide-ranging Riptide Slash upon enemies marked with Riptide, albeit at the expense of a lengthy cooldown time proportional to its duration (at a rate of 1.5 seconds of cooldown per one second of the stance, to a maximum of 45 seconds unless he manually switches back to ranged mode). His Burst also has different wide-ranging attacks depending on his stance, either applying Riptide in its ranged mode or triggering auxiliary Hydro blasts around marked foes in its melee form. His first Constellation upgrade, Foul Legacy: Tide Withholder, reduces its cooldown time by 20% (hence reducing the maximum cooldown time to 36 seconds), while his sixth, Havoc: Annihilation, resets the Skill's cooldown time once he returns to ranged mode after using the melee form of his Burst.
The Stinger: At the end of the fourth act of the Fontaine Archon Quest, after vanishing following his escape from the Fortress of Meropide, Tartaglia regains consciousness underwater, and beholds the presence of a giant whale swimming above him, the All-Devouring Narwhal.
Teacher's Unfavorite Student: In the denouement to the Fontaine Archon Quest, Skirk reveals to the Traveler that "she did not have anything to say to the weak," hence her reluctance to divulge anything to Tartaglia; by contrast, she is much more forthcoming to the Traveler out of respect for their ability to defeat the All-Devouring Narwhal without Abyssal powers.
Teeth-Clenched Teamwork:
- He does not like Signora. He mocks her for running from a fight with such a worthy opponent as the Traveler, and is so furious at being a pawn in her backroom deals with Zhongli that he refuses to share a boat with her even though he knows there's considerably less he can hope to do in Liyue with his ruined reputation.
- He doesn't seem to get along well with the other Harbingers, having only bad things to say about the majority of them, disparaging their motives or finding them just plain creepy. The feeling seems mutual, such as Tartaglia wondering why Sandrone always looks like she wants to kill him.
Teleport Spam: In his boss fight, he Flash Steps around the arena a lot. He spammed it again to great effect in his fight against the All-Devouring Narwhal.
Tempting Fate: When considering how to respond to the charges against him, Tartaglia notes that Fontaine allows for a Trial by Combat. He admits to being tempted by the opportunity, and considers accepting the charges just to have an no-holds barred fight against Clorinde. He ends up falsely convicted, and is defeated by the Chief Justice before he can make his escape.
This Is Gonna Suck: Near the end of his Story Quest, both he and the Traveler took out several Ruin Guards in under a minute, before more show up. He gives an awkward smile before activating his Foul Legacy Transformation to take them out, despite knowing it's going to take a massive toll on his body.
Token Evil Teammate: As of v4.2, Tartaglia is one of the few Fatui-aligned playable characters (not counting Scaramouche/Wanderer who has deserted the Fatui when becoming playable), others being Lyney, Lynette, and Freminet of House of the Hearth.
Token Good Teammate: That said, compared to his fellow Harbingers like Signora, Scaramouche, or Dottore, all of whom care nothing about others and place no importance on other people's lives, Tartaglia is genuinely Affably Evil, has some redeeming traits like his love for his family, is vaguely suggested by Teucer to want to pull a Heel–Face Turn, and has the decency to feel slightly bad about the innocent lives that will be caught in his plan to summon Osial. This doesn't stop him from lying or manipulating others or endangering innocent lives as part of his job, of course, but it puts him above his fellow Harbingers.
Too Spicy for Yog-Sothoth: Despite being a Blood Knight whose abilities make him a borderline Humanoid Abomination, he finds Columbina unsettling enough that he refuses to fight her.
Touched by Vorlons: His time spent in the Abyss as a teenager changed him, and tainted him with power that is outside the world's established order. The All-Devouring Narwhal is a creature from beyond the stars, feeding on the Primordial Sea and somehow connected with Tartaglia as a result of their encounter in his youth.
Training from Hell: As a fourteen-year-old, Ajax got lost in a snow-covered forest before falling into a hole implied to lead to an Abyssal Domain. There he met a mysterious swordswoman named Skirk, who taught him how to fight and survive, as well as harness the Abyss' power. To him, it lasted for three months, but for his family who found him, it only happened for three days. This experience is something he would never tell anyone and said to "mark the end of his youth."
Ultimate Job Security: In the aftermath of the Osial crisis, the Snezhnayan diplomatic corps were ready to throw Tartaglia to the wolves, and would have gladly done so but for his position as a Harbinger granting him diplomatic immunity for the time being.
The Unfettered: In his eyes, if it helps him to grow stronger and allows him to fight stronger enemies, it's good, no matter what it is or where it comes from.
(About the Vision) "If it makes me stronger, I'll take it. Vision? Great. Delusion? Don't mind if I do. Heretical teachings from the Abyss? Sign me up."
Unfortunate Names: While his English alias, "Childe", is an archaic word that refers to a young noble (and thus an accurate translation of the Chinese), the fact that it's pronounced exactly like "child" makes it rather difficult to take him seriously. When you meet him for the first time, Paimon even lampshades the implications of it.
Paimon: Childe? What, so we're supposed to dote on you?
Unusually Uninteresting Sight: From v3.7 onwards, if he appears in The Cat's Tail to play TCG, none of the people inside seem to be freaked out over the presence of a dreaded Fatui Harbinger in public.
Unwitting Pawn: For both Zhongli and Signora, who made a contract behind his back. Zhongli not only got Tartaglia to pay for Rex Lapis's expensive funeral but fooled him into thinking he was dead, and his Gnosis was ripe for the taking. Signora on her end manipulated him into only aiding her plot to obtain the Gnosis from Zhongli through a contract.
Upgrade Artifact: A variant—his third and fifth Constellation upgrades, Abyssal Mayhem: Vortex of Turmoil and Havoc: Formless Blade, add three levels to, respectively, his Skill and Burst.
Used to Be a Sweet Kid: He's described as having grown up a normal, even shy, boy. Then he fell into the Abyss, and whatever he experienced down there made him emerge as a Blood Knight.
Vague Age: Played with. He is one of the few characters that has his official description give him an age range, but it does not specify his exact age^note. Appearance-wise, he looks like a young adult, and his talk about drinking (alcohol) in the "An Organization Known as Wangsheng" story confirms that he must be old enolugh to drink.
Villainous Breakdown: During his duel with the Traveler in the Golden House, Tartaglia loses his cool when he tries to extract the Geo Gnosis from what was supposedly Rex Lapis's corpse and finds it absent. He accuses the Traveler of having filced it beforehand despite their insistence otherwise and goes One-Winged Angel to make them pay, though he calms down after being defeated and rationalizes that they have not, as well as intuiting that Morax may have faked his death.
Villains Out Shopping: A particularly literal example happens during the "Outside the Canvas, Inside the Lens: Greenery Chapter" event, where he's found in Chinju Forest hanging out with Yoimiya after finishing some "business," as he calls it. During their last conversation he's actively wondering whether he has the Mora to cover everything Yoimiya suggests as souvenirs for his younger siblings.
Wake-Up Call Boss: Being a boss just after a player ranks up into a new World Level, Tartaglia is problematic for unprepared players as he is a boss who likes to teleport behind and unleash devastating combos to anyone who is not privy to his attack patterns. His second phase is especially tricky to manage, as his Electro Delusion's specialty is a flurry of dashes and slashes, at a point in the game where all enemies have a slow and predictable attack pattern, Tartaglia forces players to be quick with spotting his tells while running around the arena avoiding his combos.
Warrior Poet: While a battle-loving Blood Knight through and through, Tartaglia can be surprisingly eloquent at times, both in philosophy and imagery.
"A warrior must always be ready to face any challenge with his blade. The outcome of the battle is irrelevant—what matters is what you learn from the experience."
"The skeletal-white snowscape devours life without leaving any trace. It is the invisible enemy we fight against each day."
Weapon Specialization:
- In his Character Demo, Tartaglia wields Rust (4★), whose Ascension substat is Attack (9–41.3%), and whose "Rapid Firing" passive proides a 40–80% boost to its wielder's normal attacks in exchange for a 10% penalty to their charged shots. While the nature of bow units' auto attacks makes using normal strikes impractical due to the arrows' tendency to miss agile targets, Tartaglia's melee stance completely circumvents this limitation through his ability to freely switch between ranged and melee mode.
- Prior to v2.2, the weapon he wields as a Trial character in his Story Quest and ran concurrent with his first two Wish banners is Skyward Harp (5★), whose Ascension stat is Critical Rate (4.8–22.1%), and whose "Echoing Ballad" passive grants its wielder a 20–40% boost to Critical Damage and has a 60–100% chance to inflict a wide-ranging Physical blast with a 125% damage multiplier (within at least 4–2 seconds), complementing his rapid damage playstyle.
- From his third Wish banner onwards since v2.2, he has since ran concurrent with that for the Polar Star (5★), whose Ascension substat is Critical Rate (7.2–33.1%), and whose "Daylight's Augury" passive provides a 12–24% damage boost to its wielder's Elemental Talents, as well as allows them to gather up to four stacks of Ashen Nightstar for twelve seconds whenever their normal attacks or Talents hit enemies, which provide a 10–20/20–40/30–60/48–96% Attack boost. Apart from the bow aesthetically complementing his frigid homeland of Snezhnaya and his Hydro Vision, it greatly synergizes with Tartaglia's fast-paced moveset by letting him damage enemies by activating his Skill, then go into town with a flurry of attacks and Burst, all of which are enhanced by the stacks.
We Can Rule Together: Brings up that the pair of you would be absolutely unstoppable if you decided to join him in world domination in one of his Serenitea Pot conversations, then asks if you're up for it.
Wild Card: Tartaglia doesn't really care about allegiances or things like "good" and "evil," even stating that morality itself is second to battle in his mind. Despite fulfilling his orders in Liyue, he shirks his mission to retrieve the Electro Gnosis after Scaramouche apparently went rogue, telling the Traveler he's holding out to see what they will do. However, he explains his goal is only to seek out battle, and that having plans unrelated to the Fatui isn’t unique to him, as the other Harbingers certainly have their own agendas.
Willfully Weak: He claims that he uses a bow because he is the worst at it, and he wants to practice with it. He never uses his Electro Delusion as a playable character, either.
Wolf in Sheep's Clothing: He seems friendly and open at first glance, but he has a bloodthirsty side. According to his official description, under his cheerful and confident appearance lies a deadly swordsman. You can see the "other side" of himself in his pre-release character trailers and eventually within the game itself.
The Worf Effect: Even being one of the dreaded Fatui Harbingers does not save him from this trope, although being the weakest of them does not help matters.
- Against the Traveler. In Chapter I, they defeat him in direct combat, which is the first instance of them defeating a Harbinger. In Chapter IV, his teacher Skirk, who he described as The Quiet One, reveals to the Traveler that she refuses to talk to the weak and is only willing to talk to them because they managed to defeat the Narwhal without using Abyssal powers.
- A slightly downplayed example happens midway through the Fontaine Archon Quest. When he used his Foul Legacy transformation to fight his way out of the court after being the Oratice hands him a guilty verdict, Neuvillette restores order by knocking him out with a single, effortless strike. However, he was not confronted head-on in this case, as he was attacked not only mid-transformation, defying the Transformation Is a Free Action trope, but also when his back was turned, giving him only a second to react before the blow landed. He also managed to scratch Neuvillette's face, drawing blood from him, which Neuvillette acknowledges briefly.
Worf Had the Flu: His Foul Legacy Transformation puts a severe strain on his body, allowing the Traveler to prevail against him just by stalling long enough for him to grow too exhausted to sustain it. He also needs to rest for a good while after using it. During his Story Quest, he collapses against a wall after barely a minute using it. Despite this, Paimon asserts that Tartaglia is still stronger than the Traveler, even after they defeated La Signora, suggesting that this stamina issue is the only reason he lost the first time.
World's Strongest Man: His goal is to become this, and he will do absolutely anything to gain more power to achieve it. His quotes about "conquering the world" similarly refer to defeating the strongest the world has to offer, rather than ruling over Teyvat.
"I was born to fight, and as long as I draw breath, there will be no end to my purpose. My limits vanish behind the horizon with every step that I take.
Worthy Opponent: Joined the Harbingers partly to find a good fight. He does find one in the Traveler, and even after the fight in the Golden House expresses eagerness to go at it again sometime."
Would Hit a Girl: He won't hesitate to hit either Traveler (Aether or Lumine).
Wrong Context Magic: A power that is "not of this world" fuels his Foul Legacy Transformation, specifically the "land of endless darkness" (the Abyss) that he once treaded in back when he was younger.

Characters / Genshin Impact: Tartaglia

Tartaglia, "Childe" / Ajax

Introduced: November 11, 2020 (v1.1, "A New Star Approaches")
Voiced by: Li Chunyin (Chinese), Ryōhei Kimura (Japanese), Nam Doh-hyeong (Korean), Griffin Burns (English)

Previous

Index

Next

Characters / Genshin Impact: Tartaglia

Edit Locked

Tartaglia, "Childe" / Ajax

Introduced: November 11, 2020 (v1.1, "A New Star Approaches")Voiced by: Li Chunyin (Chinese), Ryōhei Kimura (Japanese), Nam Doh-hyeong (Korean), Griffin Burns (English)

Previous

Index

Next

Introduced: November 11, 2020 (v1.1, "A New Star Approaches")
Voiced by: Li Chunyin (Chinese), Ryōhei Kimura (Japanese), Nam Doh-hyeong (Korean), Griffin Burns (English)