Genshin Impact 7.1 Update: New Characters, Story & Patch Notes

Genshin Impact’s 7.1 update, “A Rekviem for the Underworld,” went live on September 23, 2026, bringing two new 5-star characters, two Archon Quest chapters, and a fresh weekly boss to Snezhnaya. If you’ve been wondering what the genshin impact 7.1 update actually changed and whether it’s worth logging back in for, here’s the rundown without the fluff.

News date: September 23, 2026 (patch release), with a hotfix following on September 26.

What happened

HoYoverse pushed Version 7.1 after roughly five hours of maintenance starting at 6:00 a.m. PHT on September 23. The headline additions are two new playable characters: Vesna, a 5-star Anemo sword user built around enabling Stellar Swirl reactions, and Vodyanitsa, a 5-star Hydro catalyst healer-support. Both get their own signature weapon banners, and the Phase I banners run through October 13.

Story-wise, the update permanently unlocks Chapter VII Acts III and IV (“White Night, Like a Dream Upon Waking” and “A Rekviem for the Underworld”), which require Adventure Rank 18 to access. Finish Act IV before November 3 and you’ll trigger a time-limited Epilogue, so that’s a date worth circling if you care about the main story.

There’s also a new weekly boss, the Guardian Blade of Drifting Snow, stationed at Fellfrost Peak in Snezhnaya. It drops the ascension materials Vesna needs, which is the usual HoYoverse move of tying a new boss to a new character’s kit.

On the rewards side, players got 600 Primogems in compensation: 300 for the extended maintenance and another 300 tied to a post-launch issue (an Ice Coffin break-efficiency bug that got patched in a hotfix a few days later). Stack that with the anniversary celebration rewards — 1,600 Primogems and 10 Intertwined Fates through login bonuses — plus two limited character selectors available through November 3, and free-to-play accounts have a decent pile of pulls to work with this patch.

Why it matters

Genshin’s been running on a pretty predictable 6-week patch cycle for years now, but 7.1 is a bigger content drop than a lot of recent “.1” patches. Two new 5-stars in one version, plus two story chapters instead of the usual one, plus an anniversary overlapping the launch window — that’s a lot stacked into three weeks. If you’ve been sitting out a patch or two, this is a reasonable one to come back for, mostly because of the free Primogems and the character selectors rather than the story beats themselves.

I’d also flag the bug compensation as worth noting. HoYoverse has gotten more consistent about paying out Primogems when something breaks post-launch instead of quietly patching it and moving on, which is a decent trend for players even if the bug itself (an Ice Coffin interaction) was pretty minor for most people’s teams.

What’s next

Phase I banners (Vesna, Vodyanitsa) run until October 13, 2026, when Phase II is expected to bring Skirk and Escoffier back around based on the current banner rotation reporting. The character selectors and the Act IV Epilogue window both close November 3, so if you’re farming toward either, that’s your deadline. No official word yet on 7.2’s release date beyond the standard ~6-week cadence HoYoverse has stuck to.

FAQ

Is Genshin Impact 7.1 out on mobile right now?
Yes. The update rolled out simultaneously across PC, PS5, iOS, and Android on September 23, 2026, following the maintenance window.

Do I need to pull on the new banners to keep up with the story?
No. Vesna and Vodyanitsa are strong additions to specific team comps (Anemo swirl and Hydro healing), but the new Archon Quest chapters don’t require owning either character to play through.

What do you think — is this update worth coming back for? Let us know in the comments if you’ve grabbed Vesna or Vodyanitsa yet.

Source(s): Genshin 7.1 Maintenance Time (TimeSaver.gg), Genshin 7.1 Patch Notes (GPDS Game Shop), Genshin Impact Update Tracker (Pocket Tactics)

Looking for more RPG picks while you wait on the next patch? Check out our Ares: The Iron Vanguard review, and if Genshin’s graphics are pushing your phone to its limits, see our best phones for mobile gaming in 2026 guide.