Kaeya is one of the starting characters in Genshin Impact. The player can acquire him as a playable character as soon as they arrive in Mondstadt and complete the starting quests. That said, Kaeya has an interesting background, as his hometown isn’t the City of Freedom.
Despite not being a favorite in the Genshin Impact meta, Kaeya’s origins hint that he’s much stronger than his playstyle reveals. After all, he hails from the Kingdom of Khaenri'ah.
Kaeya’s Mysterious Past in Genshin Impact
As a child, Kaeya of Genshin Impact was adopted by the Ragnvindr family, an affluent clan in Mondstadt. They were most known as the owners of the Dawn Winery, which produced high-quality wine. Thus, Crepus Ragnvindr became his father, making him and Diluc siblings. They welcomed him with open arms and raised him as if he were their own.
As Kaeya and Diluc grew up, the people of Mondstadt started pinpointing them as two of the most “eye-catching gentlemen” in the city. Despite this, none knew of Kaeya’s true origins, and he refused to speak of it. This was the case even as he and his brother joined the Knights of the Favonius in Genshin Impact. The organization’s Grand Master once demanded more information on Kaeya’s past, but the glib knight simply skirted around the topic, providing answers that revealed nothing.
All Kaeya said was that he and his biological father were traveling and happened across Dawn Winery. His father then left to get some grape juice for the road but never came back. After some time, Crepus Ragnvindr found Kaeya in Genshin Impact and adopted him into his family, and the rest was history.
Crepus’ Demise and Sibling Conflict
Though Kaeya refused to disclose the details of his past, he was still accepted into the Knights of Favonius and went about his duties. He grew very close to his brother, Diluc of Genshin Impact, and the two were seen almost as twins. Both could surmise what the other was thinking or planning without uttering a word. However, their relationship would soon crumble when their father lost his life to an attack on his convoy.
Diluc was assigned to escort this convoy, but on the way, it was attacked by a great beast. Diluc and the accompanying knights tried to fend off the monster but to no avail. Meanwhile, Kaeya had caught word of the incident and rushed to help. Unfortunately, by the time he arrived, it was too late. Crepus, a man who had never acquired a Vision, had used a Genshin Impact Delusion to push the beast back. However, the device backfired, taking his life.
Both Diluc and Kaeya of Genshin Impact were surprised by what their father had done, but Kaeya seemed almost amused by the notion. Upon seeing his father dead, he merely smirked and thought, “This world is truly... fascinating.” This was when the siblings parted ways. Diluc left the Knights of Favonius, while Kaeya was eventually promoted to Cavalry Captain.
A Knight with Questionable Methods
As the current Cavalry Captain, Kaeya gained the trust of Acting Grand Master Jean. Though she would sometimes question that trust, given Kaeya’s unorthodox methods. For one, Kaeya was very fond of alcohol — Death After Noon being his favorite drink. When Kaeya wasn’t in the headquarters of the Knights of Favonius, he was likely in some tavern, gossiping with whomever he deemed interesting enough. This included city folk, hunters, and even common bandits. The Cavalry Captain was a well-versed smooth talker, so it was easy for him to draw out all forms of secrets in Genshin Impact from his unknowing drinking companions.
In fact, one of the younger knights found that the more Death After Noon there was in stock, the more incidents there were in and around the city. Whether this was because the drink was popular among vagrants is unknown. However, it surely couldn’t be a coincidence that these incidents seem to increase when Kaeya’s more likely to be at the tavern.
Even worse, however, was how Kaeya valued attaining his goals as a knight, regardless of what that entailed. In one instance, Kaeya and a group of knights were hunting down a bandit leader in an ancient ruin. So, to force the leader to face Kaeya directly, the Cavalry Captain cut him off by activating a dormant Ruin Guard in Genshin Impact, putting his own men at risk of grave injury. Though Jean disapproved of this course of action, Kaeya found it quite amusing, admitting to himself that he enjoyed putting people in difficult positions — enemies and allies alike.
The Truth Behind Kaeya of Genshin Impact
Kaeya’s controversial methods and reclusive personality all stem from why he was left in Genshin Impact’s Mondstadt in the first place, though even the full story of that has yet to be revealed. In truth, Kaeya’s biological father didn’t just forget him in Dawn Winery. On the contrary, he left the young Kaeya there on purpose, with his parting words being: “This is your chance. You are our last hope.”
Kaeya’s father had brought him there from the distant land of Khaenri'ah. The Kingdom of Khaenri’ah is a yet unreleased region in Genshin Impact. It is popularly known as the land without a god as it is not ruled by any of the Seven. This is also where the Traveler found themselves when they first woke up in Teyvat.
Kaeya was an agent of the mysterious, godless kingdom. However, his mission in Mondstadt is unclear. The only person who knows this information is Diluc as Kaeya had come clean on the night of their father’s death. The revelation had angered Diluc, and the two crossed swords, which spurred Kaeya to gain his Vision in Genshin Impact. After the fight, the brothers separated, their relationship shaky at best. Since then, Kaeya resolved himself to never reveal the truth of his origins to anyone else.
Genshin Impact is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, and mobile devices. A Switch version is in development.