Guoba

Guoba (Chinese: 锅巴 Guōba) is Xiangling's friend and companion, who assists her in battle with Guoba Attack.

Guoba was originally a god known as Marchosius, the God of the Stove and Patron God of the Soil. He was among the gods who resided at the Guili Assembly, alongside Morax and Guizhong. After the nation's destruction during the Archon War, he was among the survivors who went on to establish Liyue Harbor. However, following a series of calamities, he used up his power to vitalize the land, greatly reducing his physical size and intelligence.

Profile[]

The god Marchosius was one of the gods who helped the Guili Assembly flourish thousands of years ago.^[1] Around 3700 years ago, in the midst of the Archon War, the Guili Assembly was destroyed by a battle that resulted in a massive flood.^[2] Marchosius and the adepti accompanied Morax and their people to what is now Liyue Harbor.

Centuries later, Marchosius would sacrifice his power to save Liyue from calamities and plagues. Leaving Morax and Madame Ping with his recipes and secrets of the flame, he retired to the mountains and fell into a deep slumber with both his physical body and intellect greatly reduced. He slept for several centuries, and over time the people of Liyue merged the legends of the God of the Stove into that of Morax's.^[3]

One day, Xiangling stumbled upon a mysterious shrine while searching for Violetgrass. The girl, tired from her journey, fell asleep after snacking on a piece of Chili-Mince Cornbread Bun; she left the rest of the cornbread on the offering table, intending to eat it later. By the time she woke up, she found a strange creature instead — and he had eaten her cornbread. Undeterred, Xiangling gave him some more food, and he thereafter began following her around. She named him Guoba (scorched rice), after her favorite childhood snack.^[4] Unbeknownst to her, she had found one of Liyue's ancient gods.

Appearance[]

Guoba takes the form of a bipedal, orange panda-like creature. A symbol resembling a combination of a Geo and Pyro symbol can be seen on his back.

Powers and Abilities[]

Guoba has the power to create fire, which is apparently a manifestation of his inability to handle spicy foods despite his fondness for them.^[5] Guoba is capable of controlling the strength and heat of his flames, and has either been trained by Xiangling or instinctively knows when to adjust his flames while cooking.^[6] His control over flame is high enough that he can use his flames to scorch off pig bristles without burning the meat.^[7]

He apparently has the power to create chili peppers: He spawns with one (and eats it) at the start of Guoba Attack, while Xiangling talks about frying up "one of Guoba's chili peppers" in one of her voice-over lines.^[8]

Quests and Events[]

Events

• Moonlight Merriment
  • Part I: One for the Foodies, Two for the Show
  • Part II: Three to Get Ready, and Here We Go
• Fleeting Colors in Flight
  • The Blazing Stars Ring in Fortune
  • The Stars Inscribe the Year's Wishes (cutscene)
• The Exquisite Night Chimes
  • Epilogue: Between Facades and Familiar Faces
• Arataki Blazing Armor Beetle Battle Boot Camp
  • Arataki Blazing Armor Beetle Battle Boot Camp!
  • Provisionally Perpetual Beetle Battle!

Web Events

• A Wanmin Welcome
• An Unforgettable Journey
• The Great Banquet of the Adepti
• Festive Celebration of Flowing Hues
• A Journey Through Pages
• Canvas of Starlight Memories
• Gratifying Gathering

Story[]

History[]

Marchosius was one of the many gods of Liyue; he helped establish the Guili Assembly alongside Morax and Guizhong, making him over 3700 years old. He held a deep love for humanity, splitting his body into minions that would enter people's homes to light up stoves, help them cook, and bring warmth to everyone. When the Archon War broke out, even the combined might of several gods and the adepti was not enough to save the Guili Assembly from a battle that ravaged the plains. In the aftermath of the battle came a great flood that devastated the Guili Plains and rendered it uninhabitable. Marchosius accompanied Morax and the adepti as they relocated what remained of their people south of Mt. Tianheng — a journey which, while not long in and of itself, was greatly setback by a powerful storm. During this time, Marchosius developed the recipe for Chili-Mince Cornbread Buns, which he spread among the people.^{[Note 1]}

After Liyue Harbor was established, Marchosius lived among the people like he previously had. However, Liyue Harbor too was beset by disaster and plagues, this time caused by the lingering hatred of ancient gods defeated over the course of the Archon War.^{[Note 2]} Marchosius placed all of his power into the land itself to keep it vitalized, greatly diminishing the size of both his physical form as well as his mental faculties. With the last of his abilities, he imparted his recipes and secrets of the flame to Morax and Madame Ping before retreating to a mountain shrine and falling asleep.^[1]

Legacy[]

Marchosius would eventually reawaken when Xiangling, who was seeking Violetgrass, sought refuge in his cave from the rain outside and encountered his mysterious shrine. She left her remaining cornbread bun on the shrine before going to sleep. He would be awoken by the smell of the bun and ate it, which Xiangling noticed when she woke up. While Marchosius had forgotten most of his memories and could no longer speak, he was still capable of remembering what was familiar to him, which was the aroma of the bun. Xiangling took Marchosius with her and called him Guoba.^[4]

There are few historical records on the Stove God, and the existing ones are confusing. Some — such as Musheng and Sheng — believe that the Stove God was another title for Morax, while others believe the Stove God was a separate deity.

Keqing's grandfather described the Stove God Festival as the practice of paying tribute to the Stove God, and that the Stove God Festival was one of many festivals unified into the modern Moonchase Festival.

According to Chongyun, there was a text mentioning that the Stove God appeared in the Guili Assembly. According to Xingqiu, there is a text "Demystifying the Legends of Liyue" on the Stove God. Based on a text received from Smiley Yanxiao at Wangshu Inn:^[9]

60 miles to the northwest is the Guili Assembly. Many were settled there, where they hunted in groups, farmed the land, and made their living from what the soil yielded. When the Stove God descended, one god became many, all of which were the height of children. As does a star when it descends into the world, so the Stove God went out among the common folk and taught them to create fire. With fire, the people at last learned to make hot food, and they dined on rice congee and cooked meat thereafter.

At some time prior to the start of Moonlight Merriment, a mysterious stone was found and brought to the Liyue Qixing.^[9] The stone eventually cracked open, and Madame Ping revealed that the statue was actually a depiction of Marchosius during his glory days.^[1]

Character Mentions[]

Character Stories

Character	Stories
Xiangling	Character Story 4
Xianyun	Character Story 1

Character Voice-Overs

Character	Voice-Overs
Hu Tao	About Xiangling  Media:VO_Hu Tao About Xiangling.ogg Media:VO ZH_Hu Tao About Xiangling.ogg Media:VO JA_Hu Tao About Xiangling.ogg Media:VO KO_Hu Tao About Xiangling.ogg Xiangling's a riot! Only a little "boo" and she jumps, she's so easy to scare! Being in the industry that I am, I just love these kinds of people the most. Gotta keep it in check though, in case Guoba ends up toasting me instead.
Xiangling	More About Xiangling: III  Media:VO_Xiangling More About Xiangling - 03.ogg Media:VO ZH_Xiangling More About Xiangling - 03.ogg Media:VO JA_Xiangling More About Xiangling - 03.ogg Media:VO KO_Xiangling More About Xiangling - 03.ogg My heart's desire? To start my very own cooking tradition, of course! Li-style and Yue-style cooking are good, but they have a limited palate. The missing ingredient? Chili pepper! Come, let me fry up one of Guoba's chili peppers for you...

Mails

Sender	Mails
Xiangling	Guoba Misses You Too! (Birthday Mail)

Trivia[]

• The symbol on Guoba's back is Geo at the bottom with Pyro on top, symbolizing a stove and his former identity as the God of the Stove.
  • It also resembles the insignia of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor seen on the front of Hu Tao's hat.^[10]
• In Chinese folklore, the Kitchen God (also known as the Stove God) is the household deity of the hearth. Every family is said to be protected by a Kitchen God that reports to the Jade Emperor in Heaven on the family's activities and deeds just before the next Chinese New Year, who then either punishes or rewards them accordingly. It is a custom for families to offer sweet foods to the Kitchen God on his ascent to Heaven as a "bribe", in the hopes that he would speak well of them to the Jade Emperor.
• Guoba is mentioned in the descriptions of the following 2 Furnishings:
  • Fragrant Cedar Vegetable Rack
  • God of the Stove Statue

Etymology[]

• The name Guoba (Chinese: 锅巴 Guōba) refers to the real-life dish also known as scorched rice. Jueyun Guoba is an in-game dish based on the same thing.
• Following the theme of gods in Genshin Impact being named after demons in the Ars Goetia, Marchosius is likely named after the demon Marchosias, a Great Marquis of Hell. Marchosias is depicted in the Lesser Key of Solomon as a wolf with gryphon's wings and a serpent's tail, spewing fire from his mouth.

Notes[]

Other Languages[]

Change History[]

References[]