Abyss (Genshin Impact)

The Abyss alphabet is the official script of the Abyss Order, the antagonistic faction of Genshin Impact (HoYoverse, 2020-) that appears starting with the Mondstadt Archon Quest. Distinct from Teyvat (the Sacred script of the Seven, see our dedicated entry), it specifically marks the monuments of Khaenri’ah — a fallen civilisation whose survivors fled into the Abyss 500 years ago, becoming the Hilichurls, Abyss creatures, and other monsters encountered in-game.

It appears on the abyss domains (Lochfolk Pass, Lost Valley, Skyfrost Cliff), on the Hilichurl Shamans, on inscriptions of the corrupted Aranara, and in archive books about Khaenri’ah. With the introduction of Natlan (Genshin 5.x) and the prospect of Snezhnaya, the Abyss Order takes growing narrative importance.

How does the alphabet work?

The cipher uses a monoalphabetic substitution: every letter of the plaintext is replaced by a glyph drawn from a fixed correspondence table. It is one of the oldest cryptographic techniques on record — already described in antiquity (Caesar cipher, ~50 BC) — and the most directly readable family for a beginner.

The table holds 26 glyphs for the 26 Latin letters plus the period and comma — exactly what appears on the in-game inscriptions of Khaenri’ah. No digits in the exposed system.

Cryptographic strength: weak. Because every plaintext letter always maps to the same glyph, the cipher falls to a frequency analysis in a few dozen words (in both English and French, E remains the most common letter, an immediate entry point). Monoalphabetic substitutions are therefore used today for their decorative, playful or pedagogical value — not to protect real information.

Historical and modern usage

• Genshin Impact (2020-) — on abyss domains, Hilichurls, corrupted Aranara, books about Khaenri’ah.
• HoYoverse community — used in Khaenri’ah theories, Abyss cosplay, fan-con puzzles.
• Pair with Teyvat: both alphabets coexist in-game and serve to distinguish the Seven (Teyvat) from Khaenri’ah (Abyss).

Related variants

• Teyvat (Genshin Impact) — see our dedicated entry, sacred script of the Seven.
• Ancient Khaenri’ah — archaic variant still undecoded by the community.

What are the weaknesses?

• Monoalphabetic substitution — immediate frequency analysis.
• Documented alphabet — public table on Genshin Wiki and dCode.
• Restricted coverage: no digits, only period and comma as punctuation.

The 26 glyphs

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

T

U

V

W

X

Y

Z

The other characters

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