[2.8] Capitano's True Identity!? - A Genshin Impact Theory 

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Ok this looks super interesting, my first assumption was that he is Varka, and that's why they don't show his face, specially knowing that Childe has similar voice lines for both

Here's my take on Capitano's identity; he's actually the *Bloodstained Knight*. We know that the Bloodstained Knight succumbed to the Abyss long ago, however, he instead became their champion after fighting for a long time. Pierro (who is descended from Khaenri'ah - assuming) might have met the Bloodstained Knight and reached some sort of deal. The description of the Bloodstained Knight pre-corruption is exactly how Capitano sounds like: dignified, chivalric, and an excellent warrior.

So far, theories about Capitano's identity are: - Blood stained Knight - Imunlaukr (owner of Snow-tombed starsilver) - Eberhart (A noble from Mond) - Menogias Imo I feel like Capitano is from Mond, and my money is currently on Imunlaukr

I think each region will have it's own "regional harbinger" and that this harbinger needs to be someway opposed to what the nation represent, either being directly opposed or being the twisted side of it, and due to that I think Capitano will be from Natlan and not for other regions, let's see all the foreign harbingers until now: La Signora was from Mondstadt and hated Venti, blaming his "freedom" on leaving his region to die in the hands of the Abyss Scaramouche is from Inazuma and question the "eternity" from that place, saying that an eternal kingdom is destined to fragility, and thus ruination (along with his personal connection to the God of Eternity which created him and put him on the basement, due to him being not 'stable' for the job and thus not being eternal) Dottore is pretty much confirmed to being from Sumeru, and he's the completely bad side of wisdom, a completely devotee of scientism that will do anything for the sake of results Pierro is from Khaenri'ah, the land of progress, and we can see by the Pale Flame set that he was worried and conservative on some things Khaenri'ah wanted to do. Later betrayed by this 'progress' in the form of being mocked and watching the destruction of his homeland Seeing that, I really think Capitano will be from Natlan due to his connections to the 'war' thematic: He have a very 'militaristic' personality, always going to the point and being very educated but still very robust, along with his high skill in combat and his attire, while he have this enigmatic helmet the top side of it is very reminiscent of a military cap. Seeing that, I don't doubt that Capitano represents the more "modern" wars while Natlan will represent more cultural and traditional daily conflicts, while Natlan people will be seen as warriors, Capitano is a soldier, and he's "faceless" due to a soldier not needing identity, only fighting for the cause. Him being from Liyue wouldn't give much space to explore the contradictions of the region, he being from Mondstadt would be a great twist but without much "narrative value" as his angst would problaby be the same as Signora As for Liyue Harbinger representation, we have Pantalone, while Genshin didn't confirm yet that he is from Liyue, he is always operating there and all of his thematics represent the bad side of Liyue 'contracts' and market, something Mihoyo still didn't explored in a more complex way, just with one or other NPC (and while some can argue that "Mihoyo will not slander the chinese-inspired region", I really believe that they are still going to focus on the bad side of it as all nations 'til now have a bad side of their ideal, one central thing of the Genshin narrative is the "different perspectives of one concept" after all).

I've seen a theory that Capitano is the Bloodstained Knight in the artifact set, mainly pointing at the dark clothing colour scheme and iron mask, plus him referring to Signora by her real last name and the Bloodstained knight having known Rostam(Signora's lover) in person. It honestly seems like the most likely theory compared to the Menogias theory since not much from the Capitano is Menogias theory holds up compared to the Capitano is the Knight theory.

If capitano is indeed menogias in some way (maybe in a ressurected form/a copy of him was made by dottore)it'd be quite a shock for most,but im still interested of what ashikai has in store^^

One of the theories of Capitano is that he was from Natlan. If Menogias could make clones of himself (like his based counterpart.) I would say this clone of Menogias was probably "born" and raised in natlan and soon later on became capitano after joining the fatui. But now that I think about it considering that theory of yakshas leaving behind a crystal heart after death and xiao and zhongli putting them in a underground shrine. It wouldn't make sense UNLESS during all of those years those crystal stone hearts got lost somehow due to the passage of time and Menogias heart ended up in Natlan. If we also take into the account of dottore reviving him he probably was revived in natlan as an experiment and lived in natlan for a long time before dottore founded him and asked pierro to recruit him into the harbingers.

I eagerly anticipate what evidence you have for this. If this ends up becoming true, then let it be known that you were the first to call it. On a slightly different note, I personally predict that we will run into Capitano at Natlan.

Wait if Menogias can create clones like that guy from Journey to The West, couldn’t it have been one of his clones that died? Just a thought

Why no one considers that Capitano might be Imunlaukr himself? Yes, he lived long time ago, but there are a lots of nearly immortal creatures in Genshin. He has grudge against Celestia and he is an outstanding warrior with a lots of expirience, which might be enough for him to be ranked number 2

It's interesting you mention Capitano's potential constellation having connections to crucifixion given that Xiao is shown in a crucifixion like pose in his Character Demo. Story wise... it also makes a lot of sense thematically for at least one Yaksha to be a Harbinger. The Harbingers seem to exist as foils to a lot of prominent characters (Kazuha to Scar being a good example) and it honestly feels like having to fight his former friend who went down a dark path he avoided would be a good way to finish Xiao's story. So I really hope this turns out to be the case cause it'd be amazing.

I would love this to be true I really want a Yaksha to be alive it makes me so sad knowing they were like a family and he was one of my favourites

Imunlaukr seems like a good option even though the timeline is a little weird since he’d be like 2,600 years old, but Imunlaukr was known as a strong warrior and has plenty of reason to hate Celestia. There’s also the fact that the fate of the Imunlaukr clan has so far not been adressed at all and the whole situation with Dragonspine and the clan seems to be left intentionally mysterious. Then again he could just be a new character. Whoever he is, I hope we don’t see his face, and that he really is a living suit of armour. That would be way cooler than just another pretty face.

I REALLY want this one to be right. It’s so fun!!! And like plausible in such a crazy way! Also, I agree: I would love to see Xiao and Zhongli facing him!

I like the idea, but I think another character from Journey to the west would map just as well. In the story Wu Kong has to defeat a character who is his equal and represents his past self known as the Six-eared Macaque. A creature who idealized Sun Wu Kong as the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, but disliked him as he had become towards the end of his life. What if Capitano was a Yaksha who idealized Menogius a sought to be his equal, but was eventually defeated by him during the Archon War. He then became dormant in his Crystal Heart form and was picked up by the Harbingers and turned into his current form. He would then have reason to dislike Celestia and the Archons, esp. Morax, and he could attempt to steal the Crystal Hearts of Menogius and the other Yaksha to have more beings like himself created.

its interesting but i think this theory is the same as “dain is pierro” only because back then we did not have much information on pierro. Capitano feels like a new character

It’s an interesting theory considering we’ll probably get more chapters for Zhongli and Xiao in following years but hmmm. I don’t know… I’d be more willing to believe one of the harbingers is a manifestation for one of the slain gods since they already tried to explore corruption of a fallen god (this is just another stretch and actually might be applied on adepti too, right? It should be even easier to revive an adeptus than god. But does their heart leaves behind the same corruption? Or they used his heart with energy of a fallen god? Just so much more questions…) But with such theories I’d say “keep that one in mind and see what time will open to our knowledge) Anyway, I’ll be only happy for more stories for Xiao.

Hot Take: I feel like Genshin deliberately just drop lore breadcrumbs for lore theorycrafters like Ashikai to gobble up and turn their theory into canon lore.

The different voice actors might even be because Capitano has a full helmet on, an helmet that may be magical or technological. Made exactly to not let people recognize him

Really fun theory! Also your editing style is adorable, seeing Yanfei explaining who Sun Wukong is was something I didn’t expect to see.

Been refreshing every night since 3.0 dropped to see if Ashikai can explain what just happened

Really hoping we see more opposition and resistance towards the Archons soon enough. They're far from being benevolent gods and goddesses that a lot of people think they are, especially Zhongli. I'm really hoping the lore writers handle the Fatui better than just being "Evil badguys doing evil" because that just leaves all the wrong-doings of the Archons and Celestia unaccounted for.

I'm still stuck on Zhongli's 2nd story quest. At the end, when the traveler asks about their sibling, Zhongli says he can't tell us anything because of his contract. That's always bothered me because we never got a resolution to it. Since your last video about the Harbringers, I've been thinking that Zhongli could have made a contract with 3 people in this case. 1. the traveler's sibling: As we learn in the travail trailer, the sibling has already been through the world of Teyvat (most likely in the 500 years since the traveler was sleeping). It's possible the sibling met Zhongli and made a contract with them about not revealing anything to us. 2. the Tsaritsa: I was thinking that maybe Zhongli made a deal with the Tsaritsa to revive Menogias/or keep him protected from Celestia. This theory doesn't have much backing, but I feel like Zhongli and the Tsaritsa have some kind of history. 3. Menogias: Maybe after his resurrection or succumbing to his madness, Menogias fulfilled his namesake (anger). Maybe he didn't want his fellow Yaksha to see him like that and he left on a 'journey to the west' (because Snezhaya is west of Liyue) to find himself again. And he asked Zhongli not to tell anyone. This theory is kinda backed up by the fact that the fight between Menogias and the blue yaksha, we see Menogias dealing a killing strike AND receiving one too. We have no confirmation of the clear winner in this case. Along the way to the west, Menogias could have been picked up by Pierro and given a place that dulls/controls in anger alongside the Harbringers.

a confrontation between Menogias, Xiao y Zhongli.. cool? it would break our hearts 😭😭 I see the suffering coming

7:20 i swear Sun Wukong is also a reference to this idea of the mind monkey, like one of his titles calls him something along those lines. I cant remember it off the top of my head but im fairly sure its when the Buddha is telling him hes one of 4 Celestial Primates who have very specific titles in the Six Eared Macaque story

I was really not attracted by capitano’s design compared to the other harbingers like pulcinella or damselette but you just made him 10 times more interesting to me ! Great video thanks for spending so much time on those high quality videos it really pays off

even after a year, this is still one of my favorite theory of yours

This theory also fits the the pattern of the harbingers being old, like really old (except childe which is why he is lowest in rank).

iirc theres a little quest where we put two glowing yellow orb-stones into the empty face helmets of the 2 yaksha statues. it weirdly resembles putting menogius' memory orb into the empty capit-armor

I love hearing Yanfei’s crackhead theories I also really want more weapon types in Genshin, like Axes

The sun wukong theory is definitely interesting and I'm expecting Mihoyo to eventually introduce a character like him!

Highly recommend OSP (Overly Sarcastic Productions), just had a tiny "YOOOOOW" moment because my other favorite lore/analysis channel is mentioned here in my fav Genshin theorist haha. Lovely video as always!

For tho who want to know more about Son WuKon actually the part covered here is only the first part (chap1~7), it has 100 chap he IS the actual protag, even tho the pro tag seems to be his master, this main theme in this story is about growth the most important part of the story starts from the journey going to the west this is where WuKon starts to learn and grow (mentally) by helping his master, this is what the Buddha wants, they went through 9*9=81 difficulties finally got to the west (India) and got the Buddhist scriptures. The impact of this novel is mostly because of it has a lot of philosophy, for me it's a pity that most movie only want cool action not the part of the growth and philosophy

this is your most out there theory yet!! super excited to hear what this entails (if something in the sumeru chapters make this obvious, sorry in advance cz i haven't played it yet).

I feel very strongly about this theory. Them having different voice actors could also be a diversion since it would make it pretty obvious if their voices were the same and they clearly have a big reveal moment in mind. Also because Menogias isn't a prominent character and we don't constantly hear his voice, it's easy for them to brush it off or change it later to be the same as Capitano. But like you said, him dying and coming back could also be enough reason for his voice to be changed.

I can get behind this theory, especially when you consider that what little you see of Capitano's clothing under the Fatui cloak has a lot of visual similarities to Zhongli's suit. Most notably in that square figure eight thing

I have this weird thought too that Capitano might be from Liyue, just for the fact that the VA they used in CN for him sounds like an evil elder from a xianxia novel/series.

I really love this theory and hope it turns out to be true. Even though it’s generic, I love me some good sun wukong representive in media, especially when it’s in my favorite game

For anyone interested in watching Journey to the West to learn more about Sun Wukong: I highly recommend the 1986 TV series "Journey to the West", it's probably one of the most faithful adaptations and a classic in China. There's also the 1998/2000 animated series, "Journey to the West: Legends of the Monkey King", which is also quite popular (and much shorter than the TV series).

At the very least, if a Yaksha was reawakened, the Harbingers would be the most likely group to pull it off. We know now that they studied Scaramouche's tech and gained the ability to produce sentient androids (the Katheryne line).

I know that this video is over a year old, but as someone only just getting into genshin and a HUGE lover of Journey to the West and the story of Sun Wukong, this was so fun for me to watch

Love the theory about him being the harbinger, I thought about it myself when I first saw the harbingers revealed. Tbh, I also thing he frighteningly resembles Zhongli, it might even be possible that Menogias is actually Zhongli's blood-related son.

well if it proves they're the same person that would be interesting, I actually liked the geo yaksha and wanted to know more. i still think the yaksha represent the four beasts(cardinal points) with emperor as zhongli(I mean hydro one looked like an azure dragon). also there's possibility that the yaksha statues could be of adepti. they might be related I think?to me they are adepti statues , and they have some symbols on them that males me thinks so. you made some really good points , I am inclined to believe that it could be a possibility that capitano could be menogias. I didn't even realize his mask was of a monkey 😳 to add, I wouldn't wanna see a fight between those 3, mostly because I feel the outcome would be sad no matter who wins 🥲 though the yaksha were like family with eachother and zl so idk if menogias would go for the kill with either.

The idea that Menogias died but then decide to just say “No :)”, and came back to life cracks me the fuck up and I need it to be true

I always assumed that Capitano’s helmet was based on a Russian cavalry helmet with how it dips down and had a crest on the it’s front. That an I thought Menogias was a catalyst user because he’s seen a few times with that floating rock pillar

I love your videos!! I rewatch them all the time (they have become a comfort thing for me, haha). This was an excellent watch! I especially love the editing of this video! Keep up the amazing work!!

AMAZING video once again! You’re doing amazing Ashkai, don’t work yourself too hard trying to get content out , you need rest too!! ❤️ I’m excited to see your take on the new artifact lore 😍 but please take your time and don’t stress yourself out! ❤️

YAYYYYY i have been waiting for this theory every since you mentioned it especially since the yaksha vid

I absolutely love this theory. With everything we already know about Genshin lore and from the manga it is so very possible. IF its true I would love to see Xiao meet Capitano because I want to know what his reaction would be if/when he realizes Capitano is Menogias.

i love your editing and video style so much

I didn't even notice we can see Capitano's hair. That's the biggest mindblow for me. Thought he was wearing a full helmet. I've also wondered why he's the only one of the Harbingers whose face stayed hidden.

0:43 ayyy, I'm using opera to watch this right now. Can confirm this is the most comfortable and convenient browser I've ever had.

10:37 nah this is my new theory, can't wait for it to definitely totally 100% come true... yep truly one of the theories of all time

your editing and videos keep getting better and better

Holy crap. I just finished the whole Genshin Impact Theories playlist! Had it playing in the background while I worked -- for some reason it made my brain work faster and clearer, and I'm now the most productive I've ever been. Thanks, Ashikai! Your lore not only enriches our game lives, but our real lives (no sarcasm here, seriously). Looking forward to more esp. with 3.1 coming up soon!

omg this theory holds up WAY more than i expected

Heard of this theory in your reaction to the harbinger trailer, love to see a full theory video on it!

I don't care how crack this theory is. I loved this and it's one of my favourite ones you have put out!!

I really like the editing of this video :D

9:47 that was just another proof for me, that you voice your videos sooo well! It's insane how much emotion and depth you're able to bring into your voice-over in a """"simple"""" theory video.

This is a great video and you have really good points! I am also glad that you gave counter-points against your own claims lol, it makes you more believable and I'm glad I watched til the end

I wait on Ashikai's theory video more than my own college lectures lol. Thankyou for making my day more excitinggg :'D

Coming back to this theory after a year because Menogias has been getting suspicious amount of attention these past two lantern rites compared to the other Yaksha. Especially this lantern rite, which is the one before Natlan... Which is where capitano is... Yes I'm coping

I was waiting for this the longest 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫thanks a lottttt. This makes a lot of sense and is sooo interesting

I love this theory. ^_^ You always come up with such amazing ideas. ^_^

Question/Theory for the future: I wonder if Ako Domeki is Klee's Father. His love of exploring is shared with Alice. Also him being stranded on The Archipelago could be either how he met Alice or how Alice found out about the islands, which might be why she loves them so much. Also Ako was a ship captain and an Oni, which could explain Klee's impressive strength, why she loves the water and fish blasting (similar to canon ball being shot perhaps). Now I know, if her father is an oni, then she should more likely than not have horns, BUT idk lol im reaching right now, BUT she wears a hat lol

Nice theory as always ashikai and I look forward to your next theory videos

Spoilers for the new 5* weapon: Bloodstained knight has wandered even into Sumeru (so in time maybe he could even reach Scheznaya) and if I understood correctly he was killing abyss beasts (and maybe those corrupted by abyss too, idk how to interpret when he talks about VV). So maybe he isn't fighting for Abyss, even though he is using its power. Though, Capitano does seem more sane, so idk.

Editing looks so good

I love the whole Yaksha spirit possessing a suit of armor, I'd also had that in my opinion the armor might be there to protect Capitano from his karmic debt which can still be there somehow.

You're trying to raise that 10% up huh? I think it's really wonderful. I really love this channel and your theories :) I've been going through them for some time now

kinda unrelated, but the “no natlan rep” bit reminded me - it’s not just the harbingers; as of yet, to my knowledge we have never met anyone from natlan at all. not even npcs, and we’ve met plenty of npcs from everywhere else. i’m super curious why this might be the case

About yaksha spears: Staff of Homa and Calamity spear both in their description referenced to the last two yakshas: Homa to pyro yaksha, and Calamity to the hydro yaksha. So far we don't have this many polearms in the game, so of course we don't know for sure, but it's agreeable that all Yakshas used spears. Now that you flashed us with the Bloodstain Mask and we're in 3.0 - that mask looks like the knight/king from Kae'hnria, since he has something to do with one eye being... weird. Similar to the drops from the knights in Chasm when the little masks have one eyes red. Matter of voice actors is sticky though. We have Makoto, Ei and Raiden all having the same voice. Now we have Rukkadevata and Kusanali having the same voice too (additionally implying the reincarnation, but also that the first dendro archon was also always in child's form, cause truthfully why would sages reshape the statues after Kusanali if they hate her? smol archon statue is true first archon). Capitano being made by Dottore from yaksha essence is very likely. After all Dottore was at one point studying at Akademiya too.

That was pure joy to listen to! Thank you

Your content is just a pleasure to look forward to.

The editing on this video is top notch! Cracked theories forever

I just downloaded operagx! also thanks for another fun lore video ashikai

For the VA rebuttal, it already a toss up at this point. Case in point: AlHaitham's VA. While yes he has the same Va as Su from Honkai, JP took a swerve by surprisingly not casting Takehiro Sakurai (Assuming that he is the supposed be the Su expy of course)

after reading so many stories about him cant help but giggle when u told us his story 😁😁😁(good job 😀) also would love to see him use his staff and bonk enemies as his normal and summon a cloud as his burst 😵

Sounds interesting and quite plausible! Also u have such a pleasant voice to listen to WideOz

loevly video ! I think all the same that capitano in view of his relationship with the signora, would not seem to come from liyue. So that cannot make him menogia. I can't imagine Capitano having hobbies such as "designing beautiful clothes" because yes, Menogias actually liked this kind of thing

4:25, ah yes, natural progression from magic monkey to enlightened magic monkey to demon slaying magic monkey to MATERIAL GWORLL

Well damn! I hope your theory is right! Would be cool to have a character that can create clones of itself and revive themselves 13 times. Capitano is probably Geo right?

It is funny because I downloaded opera the first time when you sponsored it on the channel on my laptop, now months later I download it again on my phone, thanks for the good sponsors, I really like the browser. And a good video too as always

Awesome video as always! When you mentioned Pierro recruiting Fatui around the 500 year mark of Menogias' death, I couldn't help but think about how Pierro is known to have been a sage from khaenri'ah (or at least implied in the artifacts) which not only means he could have located Menogias' body (IF somehow his body was preserved rather than the crystal heart which is more likely) underground or in a sealed/hidden place with ease but also Pierro probably knows how to use Khemia and perhaps to a significant degree,,,,,we know that Khemia can re-animate the dead as is the case with Durin.... There is probably a lot of misinformed bits here as I am not as educated in Genshin's more nuanced facts but it was interesting to speculate this! I really like Menogias design and I lost it when Capitano was revealed so it'd be so ironic if two characters who are my type end up being the same person hahaha ;;

A really good theory! I do think that he’s the yaksha because his helmet appears to be hollow, and if there was a face in there it would be a challenge to make a 3d model for him. Although he does have hair…unless it’s just there to look cool. I actually have an interesting idea for a video, just something to keep in mind. The ties between the harbingers. Like, which harbingers are close to one another? Who’s not? Who’re the outcasts? Stuff like that. And I’d also like to point out if they prefer to be loyal to the Cryo Archon or Pierro. Since we’re on the topic of Capitano, I believe he mostly answers to Pierro, perhaps has some ties to Dottore, and doesn’t really respect Childe because he’s the newest harbinger. On the other hand, Childe prefers to answer to the Cryo Archon, has ties to the rooster (because of his employment and family), possibly ties to the knave (maybe his younger siblings spend time with some of the orphans), not too friendly with Columbina or Sandrone, but generally respects them all. Just a random idea I had

Fatui Harbingers are ranked by strength but i also believe when they joined.If that's the case than were the Harbingers just holding onto the stones of the Geo Yaksha(Forgot his name)and just kept him until dottore got invited or something

I must say, after completing the Sumeru Archon Act 1 & 2 quests, your accuracy with everything you've theorized to date is downright scary. I Love it.

It could also be that during the second 500 years the yaksha was thought dead he was actually under dottore's "care" who brainwashed him in said period using his "karma suffering" against him

Omg I love this theory, it's so crazy it's so amazing!!! haha It'd be so cool indeed to see a confrontation of Xiao and Zhongli agaisnt Menogias as Capitano!! It'd be really really really cool is this theory turns out to be true later on! Oh, btw, I absolutely loved the editing of this video! (all videos edits are really great but this one especially was awesome)

For some stupid reason i mismatched capitano and piero. So when mika was speaking about how Varka meet capitano i was imagining varka meting piero

Yesterday I watched the vid where you said this, it’d be so cool

Each time I watch one of your videos I discover a lot I didn't know. So many books

If hes wukong then I'm whaling if hes playable. Literally my favorite character I always choose in most games hes represented in. Whether in Warframe or LoL or whatnot. I'm convinced xD

ohhh that was a cool way to start the video good job

Was never expecting to hear my favorite monkey in a genshin theory ! this is great thank you !

I like this theory. We already know the creators take a lot of inspiration from stuff like that so it’s quite believable

8:00 Menogius is clearly standing there holding a catalyst. 8:11 "...a precident for Menogius to use a spear..." That said, Yelan is also trained in Catalyst use and uses a Bow, Childe is trained primarily in swordplay and also uses a Bow, and Ei developed an entire school of swordsmanship and uses as spear, so shown use of one weapon type does not preclude use of other types. To be fair, I'm a crossover theorist mostly. The use of the name "Capitano" isn't unique in Hoyo titles, but a consciousness mapping theory is going to be pushing tin foil levels of cracked and I'm going to admit that right now. This theory still has more legs than mine.

Every video I see of her I’m starting to love Ashikai even more so with content.