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Honkai: Star Railis one of the flagship games fromChinese developer miHoYo, probably best known for the gaming juggernaut that is Genshin Impact. While Genshin Impact is great, Honkai: Star Rail is arguably some of their best work. Turn-based gameplay, engaging characters, and rich lore all come together to make for a singular free-to-play experience.
As good as the lore is, there is admittedly a lot of it. It can be tough to keep track of multiple characters and storylines spanning different planets, ships and space stations. We’re here to make your sci-fi lorekeeping that little bit easier though, with a comprehensive look at one of the most interesting characters in the game; The Watchmaker.
Past this point you’re going to encounterspoilers for the main quest of Honkai: Star Railalong with information about several characters. ensure to keep reading only if you’re up to date with the game or happy to get spoilers.
Who Is The Watchmaker?
The Watchmaker is a story NPC in Honkai: Star Rail, whose impact is explored on the planet Penacony as part of the main story.Also known as the Father of Penaconyhe is a central figure in the legends of the world.
Hehelped transform Penacony from a Stellaron damaged prison world into the “Planet of Festivities,“a place of celebration and wonder. Despite being talked about for generations, many came to believe him just a myth.
Who Was He Really?
The real name of The Watchmaker was Mikhail Char Legwork, and he wasn’t born on Penacony at all. He originates from the planet Lushaka, an oceanic world. Adopted by legendary sailors, Mikhail and Char, he took their names.
Fascinated with mechanics and clockwork, he became an apprentice clockmaker, all while dreaming of being a legendary seafarer. At some point, the Astral Express visited Lushaka andMikhail gladly joined the spacefaring Namless crew.
Mikhail presumably had many adventurers as a Nameless aboard the Astral Express, serving as the mechanic, buthis story focuses on when he opted to leave the train and disembark on Penaconyalong with Tiernan and Razalina.
Penacony was damaged by Stellaron corrosion, spatial damage which disrupts the landscape and spawns dangerous monsters. The three former Nameless sought tohelp the planet and its peoplerecover.
Although Penacony is referred to as a planet, it is actually a huge artificial space stationoriginally created to serve as an intergalactic prison.
Through his genius,Penacony became known as a land of wondrous invention and celebration. Joking teapots, twirling racecars and moving mansions were just some of the marvels Mikhail created during his time there.
Generations have passed since his lifetime, andthe events of the story of the gameexplore his legacy rather than his life directly. A mysterious invitation is sent out with a hidden message to various factions, inviting them to find his legacy.
The English voice for The Watchmaker is provided by Cory Yee. Fans of other Hoyoverse games may recognize him asthe voice for Gorou and Draff in Genshin Impact.
Can You Play As The Watchmaker?
The simple answer is no,Mikhail cannot be recruited from any current bannerin the game. As a story NPC who passed away several generations prior to the events of the game, miHoYo would have to change their approach to character availability for this to happen.
The slightly more complicated answer is that yes, you can include The Watchmaker in your party.In a manner of speaking, the character Misha is The Watchmaker, and he can be recruited alongside awhole host of other characters.
Misha isn’t technically a regular person, instead he is what is known as a Memetic Entity. To avoid getting too philosophical, think of him likean idea that has taken on a human form.
Misha isformed from a fragment of The Watchmaker’s memories, specifically as an innocent version of his childhood dreams. In a sense he’s his own unique person, but in a way Misha is also Mikhail reincarnated.
Misha is cleverly named, as it is also a Russian name like Mikhail is. Not only that, butMisha is the diminutive form of Mikhail, precisely the sort of thing you might give a young Mikhail as a nickname.
A wide eyed young bellhop at The Reverie Hotel on Penacony, Mikhail wants nothing more than to become an adventurer. If you include him in your party,you’re helping that dream come to life,something you’ll definitely want to do after seeing his story play out.
