Genshin Impact Version 7.0 "Everwinter Without Mercy": Every Date, Banner and Code From August 11 to September 22

Three livestream codes worth 300 Primogems expire on August 3, 2026, two days from now. Version 7.0 "Everwinter Without Mercy" itself lands on August 12 for EU, Asia and TW-HK-MO, and on August 11 for North America, where the maintenance window falls on the evening of the 11th.

The patch opens Snezhnaya, Teyvat's seventh nation and the last of the seven to become playable. It debuts Odette as a 5-star Cryo Sword unit, hands out Alyosha for free at the end of the Archon Quest, and adds the Stellar Glimmer reaction family. Version 6.8 does not exist: 6.7 runs to August 11 and 7.0 follows immediately.

Redeem These Codes Before August 3

All three came out of the July 31 Special Program and redeem through the in-game menu or the official redemption page. They are worth 300 Primogems together, which is just under two pulls.

A fourth code, Snezhnaya20260812, is separate. HoYoverse issued it ahead of the livestream to confirm the release date, and it carries 200 Primogems. No expiry was published with it, so redeem it now rather than assume it survives the patch.

The Full Version 7.0 Calendar

Maintenance takes five hours and runs at a different local time on each server group.

Everything dated after that point, from the pre-patch selector to the last farming event:

Maintenance times and every event start date sit at T2, sourced from Game8 and livestream recaps rather than from the press release. The August 12 release date and the patch contents are T1.

Banners: Phase 1 and Phase 2

Phase 1 runs August 12 to September 1 and pairs Odette's debut with an Arlecchino rerun. Alyosha is the featured 4-star on both banners. The Epitome Invocation carries Odette's signature sword plus Crimson Moon's Semblance, a 5-star polearm.

Phase 2 runs September 1 to September 22 and reruns Flins alongside Ineffa. Its weapon banner pairs Bloodsoaked Ruins with Fractured Halo. Both phase lineups are T2, from Game8 and allthings.how, and neither has a HoYoverse post behind it yet.

The signature sword's English name is unsettled. Game8 and allthings.how print "Whitelake Frostfeather", while GosuGamers and allthings.how's own banner page print "White Lake Winterfeather" for the same weapon. Treat the name as T3 until the in-game string lands on August 12.

Odette and Alyosha, From the Press Release

Odette is a 5-star Cryo Sword character, a Fatui operative under La Signora and Prima Ballerina of the Korolevskiy Troupe. Her kit converts Superconduct into Stellar-Conduct and Cryo Swirl into Stellar-Swirl, then amplifies Stellar Glimmer reaction damage for the whole party. That wording is HoYoverse's own, and it matters because the coverage disagrees: one Game8 summary table lists her as Electro, and allthings.how files her as a support with resistance shred.

Alyosha is a 4-star Electro Polearm user, a Snezhnayan hunter who fights with a hound named Tugarin. He grants a Stellar-Conduct damage bonus, traps enemies, and restores the on-field character's HP through his Elemental Burst. He is free on completing the Snezhnaya Archon Quest, which puts a Stellar-Conduct enabler in every account for zero pulls.

The Traveler gains Cryo by resonating with the Tsaritsa's Statue of the Seven. Cryo Traveler triggers Stellar Glimmer reactions, so free-to-play teams can run the new reaction family from day one without touching a banner.

Stellar Glimmer Is a Family, Not a Reaction

Stellar Glimmer is the umbrella name for a new reaction group. Stellar-Conduct fires on Cryo plus Electro and takes over the slot Superconduct occupied. Stellar-Swirl fires on Cryo plus Anemo. A third combination on Cryo plus Dendro has been reported but not named, which keeps it at T3.

Two artifact sets exist to pay the family off, both farmed in the Inverted Glacier domain. The four-piece Scarlet Proof is described as +16% CRIT Rate and +40% Stellar-Swirl reaction damage for 10 seconds after triggering Stellar-Swirl. The four-piece Heart of the Furnace is described as +12% ATK for 12 seconds on triggering or dealing Stellar Glimmer reaction damage, plus +50% Stellar Glimmer reaction damage for nearby party members.

Those percentages come from beta data and livestream readback, not from a live build. Rival pages print them as settled numbers. They are T3 and they can move before August 12.

Weapons Beyond the Banner

The Traveler receives the Exaiphanes Blade, a 5-star sword handed out as a quest reward rather than pulled. Five new 4-star weapons join the Battle Pass. Five more are craftable from Snezhnayan blueprints: Emberwell (Sword), Covenant of Frost and Snow (Bow), Blade of Atonement (Claymore), Echoes of the Heart (Catalyst) and Song of the Vigil (Polearm).

The craftable list comes from beta datamines and sits at T3. The Battle Pass count and the Exaiphanes Blade are T2, from Game8.

Snezhnaya: Map, Cold and Trains

Snezhnaya sits northwest of Nod-Krai, bordered by Nod-Krai, Fontaine and Mondstadt. Coverage describes it as larger than Sumeru's forest region. Six named areas have surfaced so far: Snezhnograd as the capital and Fatui headquarters, plus Morepesok, Glupov, Port Belovodye, Novokitezhgrad and Zapolyarny Palace.

The regional collectible is the Cryoculus. The environmental hazard is Sheer Cold, built on the Dragonspine model, and the counter is a gadget called the Eye of Graeae. The same gadget summons trains, which makes it the key to both survival and traversal.

The railway network is the region's headline traversal system and appears in the press release rather than in a datamine. Everything else in this section, including the area names and the Cryoculus, is T2.

The Shadow Realm and the Shooter Mode

Version 7.0 adds a third-person shooter mode inside the Shadow Realm, with firearms that take attachments plus grenades. It is exclusive to Snezhnaya and gated behind the Eye of Graeae. This is the single largest departure from Genshin's combat template since the game launched, and it comes straight from the press release.

The trailer describes the Shadow Realm as "a place where no wind blows, no light shines, and no elemental energy flows, even time itself doesn't exist here." The Great Expeditionist Challenge on August 28 includes a shooting mode among its four activities, so the mechanic gets an event of its own two weeks after launch.

Story: Chapter VI, Not VII

The Snezhnaya Archon Quest is Chapter VI, following Prologue, Liyue, Inazuma, Sumeru, Fontaine and Natlan. It ships in two acts: Act I "Everwinter Without Mercy" and Act II "Wraith's Nocturne". Several outlets have this as Chapter VII, which double-counts the Prologue.

"Death seeks out every forsaken night beneath the bitter cold, leaving only the sorrowful weeping of souls behind. They weep for all they cherished in this world, and for the beautiful dream they must leave behind." Version 7.0 trailer opening narration

Ronova, the Shade of Death, arrives as Snezhnaya's weekly boss. Two world bosses join her: the Immortal Construct and the Chimeric Winged Lion. The livestream also name-dropped Project Stuzha, and community reading connects the arc to Rhinedottir and to the Tsaritsa's plan against Ronova, all of which stays at T3 until the quest is playable.

Events Through September

Mutual Aid in Bloom: Into the Frostlands opens with the patch on August 12. The Great Expeditionist Challenge follows on August 28 with four modes covering shooting, combat, puzzles and train simulation, and it hands out a free Diona. Trial of the Bastion, a 3D tower defence mode, starts September 7.

Overflowing Abundance runs from September 14 for roughly a week and doubles Talent and Weapon ascension domain drops. Envisaged Echoes returns with Xiao and Childe, and Stygian Onslaught returns with weapon skins. The fifth cycle of To Temper Thyself and Journey Far starts two days before the patch, on August 10, and adds nine more free 5-star characters to the Constellation selector.

Background

Genshin Impact launched on September 28, 2020 and runs on PC, iOS, Android, PS4 and PS5. Its banners use 90-pull hard pity with a 50/50 on limited rate-ups and a guarantee after a loss, which puts the 500 Primogems currently sitting in codes at roughly three pulls.

Snezhnaya has been the endpoint of the Traveler's route since the Prologue, as the home of the Tsaritsa and the Fatui Harbingers. Version 7.0 closes the seven-nation tour that started in Mondstadt.

Three Things That Will Tell Where 7.0 Lands

The signature sword resolves on August 12. If the in-game string reads "Whitelake Frostfeather", Game8 and allthings.how were right; if it reads "White Lake Winterfeather", half the internet has to rewrite its build guides.

The artifact numbers resolve the same day. Scarlet Proof at +40% Stellar-Swirl damage and Heart of the Furnace at +50% party-wide Stellar Glimmer damage are beta figures, and a cut to either changes whether Odette teams are built around swirl or around conduct.

Phase 2 resolves on September 1. Flins and Ineffa are currently T2 with no official post behind them, and a substitution there would be the first sign the schedule moved. We will update this piece as each of the three settles.

FAQ

When does Genshin Impact Version 7.0 release? August 12, 2026 on EU, Asia and TW-HK-MO servers. North America gets it on August 11, because the five-hour maintenance runs from 6:00 to 11:00 PM UTC-5 that evening.

Which Version 7.0 codes are still live, and when do they expire? Everwinter, OntoSnezhnaya and Odette0812 give 100 Primogems each plus Mystic Enhancement Ore, Hero's Wit and Mora. All three expire August 3, 2026.

Was there a Version 6.8? No. Version 6.7 runs to August 11, 2026 and 7.0 follows directly, on a six-week gap.

Who is on the 7.0 banners? Phase 1, August 12 to September 1: Odette debut and an Arlecchino rerun, with Alyosha as the featured 4-star. Phase 2, September 1 to September 22: Flins and Ineffa reruns.

Is Alyosha free? Yes. He is granted on completing the Snezhnaya Archon Quest, and he is also a featured 4-star on the Phase 1 banners.

What are Stellar Glimmer reactions? A new reaction family. Stellar-Conduct triggers on Cryo plus Electro and replaces Superconduct's role, and Stellar-Swirl triggers on Cryo plus Anemo. A Cryo plus Dendro reaction has been reported but not named.

Which Archon Quest chapter is Snezhnaya? Chapter VI, Act I "Everwinter Without Mercy" and Act II "Wraith's Nocturne". Chapter numbering runs Liyue I, Inazuma II, Sumeru III, Fontaine IV, Natlan V, Snezhnaya VI, with the Prologue unnumbered.

How do you survive the cold in Snezhnaya? Sheer Cold works like Dragonspine's, and the Eye of Graeae gadget counters it. The same gadget summons trains and gates the Shadow Realm shooter mode.

What is the new weekly boss? Ronova, the Shade of Death. The Immortal Construct and the Chimeric Winged Lion arrive as world bosses.