With Version 6.0, HoYoverse has expanded its ‘Local Legends’ system as a reward for exploration, as well as player skill, in fighting overworld bosses anchored to particular zones. In the Nod-Krai region, they include Sigurd, the Crab Tsar and Raskolnikov under the “Valiant Chronicles” tag. Sigurd is typically regarded as one of those fights that tends to be the more challenging given its damage potential, dash attacks and multi-phase mechanics.
Boss designers would typically program these fights to have some ridiculous amount of resistance, or even immunity, to displacement, environmental abuse and drowning so that the intended challenge is preserved. Yet players appear to have found a way that circumnavigates that protection.
The Strategy Explained
A Reddit user, Mogoru_z4n, shared a video showing a fight with the Anemo Traveler. The fight takes place at the beach on Lempo Isle Sigurd’s spawn location in Nod-Krai. The user lines themselves up at an angle so that Sigurd’s dash attack takes him toward the deep section of water behind them.
Execution & Results
- As Sigurd starts the dash and approaches the edge of the water, the player activates the Traveler’s Elemental Burst. As a result, the vortex (a tornado-like gust) pull Sigurd backwards and onto the shore and into the water.
- The moment Sigurd’s model enters contact with the deep water, he just sinks and is classified as drowning, and thus immediately triggering a “death” animation.
- The game still acknowledges the defeat; the player gets the Achievement and standard loot, as if they defeated the boss normally.
- Interestingly, the normal second phase (with summons, teleports, and heal mechanic) does not take place because the boss never stays alive long enough to trigger it.
Why the Trick Works
Image via: kurooleaks
Since its release, Genshin Impact has had a small environmental rule that most enemies don’t swim. When pushed or dropped into deep water, the standard enemies typically drown almost immediately.
However, bosses are almost never subjected to this kind of mechanics; they spend the majority of the time mechanically protected from displacement or just do not drown.
In Sigurd’s case, he appears to have neither of those protections: he is mobile from the Traveler’s emergency burst, and after he sinks, he is treated like any other standard enemy with regard to drowning status. It is likely an unintentional discrepancy, whether by design or an emergent bug.
Conclusion
The drowning trick on Sigurd in Nod-Krai is a prime example of how game systems can twist or break in response to player creativity. This could prompt HoYoverse to change how bosses respond to environmental dangers and displacement mechanics. For players, it shows that clever plays can be better than just powerful plays. In many open-world games, clever plays usually are more rewarding, and usually more effective than just pure powerful plays.
