—————TIMELY SUMERU—————
☆hello! :3 I'm a new account dedicated to the lovely characters of the region #sumeru ! I'll post about them from time to time (^з^)-☆
☆ posts about sumeru and its characters!
☆ not a dori fan..
☆ occasional arts!
@merqtiooo like I'm always just so disheartened whenever I look at natlan cause like
the idea of 6 tribes having the same core fashion ideals so they look like they're from the same region but having completely distinct styles past a single motif is SO cool and would've greatly aided-
@merqtiooo I think sumeru set my standards too high by having a cultural divide in the forest and desert and fontaine set my standards too high by having a gender based fashion system so going from such cleverly tailored in game fashion world building to natlan was sooo disappointing
@merqtiooo kinichs design by itself though is pretty good I think
my issues with natlan designs are so diverse cause its a mix of rep, world building, lore, etc
guys😭😭this is the issue w natlan😭😭😭he has a nigerian/maori mixed name, hes based off of a latam god (camazotz) and he comes from a tribe based on Indonesia with his adoptive granny being aztec😭😭😭
@Raspabollos1 -is a stand in for Marie antoinette. theres also the fact that eula, who is inspired by Spain and does flamenco which is a Spanish dance, comes from a family that enslaved natlan. similar to the Spanish conquests😭
@merqtiooo EXACTLY😭like i get why they did it but I'm genshin it just looks so garish and kitsch i feel like making it 2d and look like mayan textiles could've conveyed the pixels in a way that still feels congruent to the world
@Raspabollos1 I think the issue is moreso how sumeru and fontaine are both mixes but the characters themselves are pretty faithful/well researched (to a degree, depends on the character). like emilie is edwardian English, furina is rococo French, nahidah is dharmic and zoroastrian, etv
@merqtiooo -similar motifs but not a style the way the forest and desert have a specific "style"😭
like citlali wears long textiles and patterned bright fabrics and ororon wears leather and metal
xilonen wears casual clubbing clothes and kachina fantasy miner outfits
like bro
@merqtiooo I like these two cause I think these two do the best at building a distinct tribal aesthetic instead of just looking "natlanese"
I think ifa and chasca do too with the whole cowboy aesthetics but for the other tribes it just feels like they vaguely had one or two-
@merqtiooo and the only thing that makes her feel outlandish are the legwarmers and sneakers but she uses the shape language and clothing ideals iansan does so she still feels grounded within teyvat ykwim
same with citlali too
@merqtiooo hoyo inventing an entire archetype of dark skin/white hair/electricity power thru 4 games🥹
for varesa I think (purely from design) she does the best job at conveying her personality and job and culture (though the zulu aspects could've been used WAY better)
@merqtiooo RIGHT???
and the fact that they did this in both sumeru and liyue 🥹
sumeru having the forest be asia and the desert Africa
liyue having the harbour be north and chenyu south