Collei isn’t free forever, but she is right now. The first Dendro character in Genshin Impact is technically the Dendro Traveler. However, considering not everyone will have the gems to roll for Tighnari, Collei is a great substitute for enabling Dendro reactions.

Players already knew that Collei would be a free character before the Genshin Impact 3.0 update, just not how to get her. Now we do. Basically, she’s a free reward from the “Graven Innocence” limited-time event. You don’t even need to finish the quest to recruit her.

Here’s how you can get the trainee forest ranger for free.

How long do I have to get Collei for free?

Colle is only a free character until the end of the Graven Innocence event, which ends along with Genshin Impact 3.0. Plan to get her before September 27. After that, she’ll be just another character that you can get at random from the standard banner. She will join the Wanderlust Invocation banner with Tighnari, which doesn’t make chances of getting her that high.

What are the Graven Innocence quest prerequisites?

Anyone Adventure Rank 20 or above is good to go. Many players will have already reached that point this far in the story, considering Sumeru is the fourth nation after Inazuma. However, if you’re newer to the game, you can still trek over to Sumeru from Mondstadt at the beginning because it isn’t a closed nation like Inazuma is.

That’s all you need to start the Graven Innocence quest. Genshin Impact lists the “The Trail of the God of Wisdom” quest as a prerequisite for Graven Innocence, even though you can start the event without it. We advise playing through it for the best story experience, but if you’re short on time, just skip and go back to the Archon Quest later.

It should take about 4 hours to complete the Archon Quest to The Trail of the God of Wisdom point and get Collei from the Graven Innocence quest altogether.

How do you get Collei in the Graven Innocence quest?

Collei will join your party as you naturally progress through the Graven Innocence plotline. The quest starts in Port Amos at an unassuming craft shop called Acara Crafts. A couple of craftsmen working there beg the Traveler to seek the help of their consultant, an Aranara expert named Tanger. The Traveler then travels back to Vardhana Village to find him.

That’s where you meet Collei. Follow the quest markers as needed and go through the dialogue to start the portion of the quest where the both of you head back to the village to find Tanger. Collei should automatically pop up on your screen with an “Obtained New Character” banner. She should also be available in your character roster afterward.

At this point, you can continue with the Graven Innocence quest or leave to do something else. After all, there’s plenty to explore, farm, and complete in terms of stories and character building.

Genshin Impact is available for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, iOS, and Android.