After playing for over 100 hours I got some of the lore. Most of it is pretty hard to find like the other souls games. But there was one piece of lore I was able to figure out all on my own. Malenia is the blade of Miquella.
I also believe she has something to do with the scarlet rot, given the fact that she's called the "Goddes of Rot" and she wants my flesh to be consumed by it. Thoughts?
Rykard: "I'm not a fan of the Big Tree." God-Eating Serpent: "I can help you take it on" Rykard: "How?" God-Eating Serpent: "Get in my mouth" Rykard: "Will that actually work?" God-Eating Serpent: "Only one way to find out" Rykard: "Why do they call you God-Eating Serpent again?" God-Eating Serpent: "No Reason"
The addition of the "Note: Togethaaaa" and then whenever together is said after, the dubbing in of rhykard saying togethaaaaa, is just, amazing. Love these videos. (17:52 and 18:00)
@@liqqa2746 This made me crack up when I heard it while watching the video. At first I thought I was hearing things, and then rewound the video and heard it again and cracked up.
These humors put up by Vaatividya out the blue always catch me off guard. One moment I'm concentrating on the lore add up the serious voice and tone, then random shits like this pop up it's really hilarious 😂
sad fact, Godwyn befriended the dragon Fortissax and the two became the best of friends, so much so that they became sworn brothers, Fortissax was the most broken by Godwyns Death, he was in so much pain to the point that he tried to revive his fallen brother, rejuvinating and piecing his soul back and for what seemed like thousands of years, ended up trying to take on Godwyns condition, which Failed and also turned him into a lich dragon. A truly saddening tale of the affects of grief
Just realized that Godwyn is the nameless king of elden ring, where in dark souls he was cast out for accepting dragons, but outlived most other gods. Meanwhile in elden ring he was praise's for accepting dragons, but killed before any other god
For a second there, I thought you were saying Godwyn and Nameless King we're the same character, and I was 2 seconds away from just ripping out all of my hair.
Big shoutout to George R.R.R.R.R Martin for giving us Radagon, Rennala, Radahn, Ranni, and Rykard. And big shoutout to Miyazaki for epic characters such as Morgott, Mohg, Merika, Melina, Melania, and Miquella. Truly an epic Elden Ring experience!!
After learning more about the demigods, I'm kind of sad we didn't get a Rykard or Mohg ending: I'd have loved to 'devour the very gods togethaa,' or eventually replace Mohg and meld our blood with Miquella to bring an Age of Blood.
Godwyn's story is so sad, especially when you take into consideration what happens to Fortissax, a powerful ancient dragon whom he fought, defeated, and then became best friends with. When Godwyn died, Fortissax tried all he could to try and save him, only to become corrupted by Death, forced to forever live a horrible nightmare.
if its any condolence, despite the fact that his efforts to reverse the curse of death that had overcome his battlefield buddy were in vain, fortissax was at least successful in forestalling godwyn's resurrection into the mending rune of the death curse, that is, until a certain would-be-lord tarnished came along
@@matthewmckee3282 Except Ranni this time or the various Dark Lords in pevious Souls games. Sure some would argue that's not a positive destiny but most players who favor those endings headcanon it into something they are happy with.
@@jshtng78 I'm pretty sure that Ranni a committed a cardinal sin of tampering with the Rune of Death resulting into Godwyn becoming the monstrosity he is despite Marika's attempts into making him into a legit Death-Prince. However, its only up to your choice whether or not you will trust her but I think everyone understands why Ranni did it or maybe they did it solely because most of the players are beta simps.
That's great! I have a lot of channels that I look forward to like that, so it's great to hear that in return. Respect to your channel as well, great vids
Although I feel that's a really good example of gameplay and lore working together: Malenia's a strong boss because she was a strong *person,* so it makes perfect sense that she has the reputation that she does.
I anticipate a lot of people asking why Godrick wasn't in this video - long story short, he justifiably could have been grafted onto it. But the video is long enough already, and if anyone was to be cut, it should be Godrick, who Enia calls "the runt of the litter, his divine blood sorely diluted". So in the end, this video really just focuses on the definition of a Demigod as being the "direct offspring of Queen Marika", as established at 00:00. What constitutes a "Demigod" could actually be an interesting and lengthy debate. Enia obfuscates the definition, there are supposedly other dead Demigods in the mausoleums, and even Godfrey is called a Demigod in the description of Godrick's Great Rune.
Come on he could have been mentioned in passing, he was one of the best non bullshit, one move killing u demi god boss. I don't like how people treat him because he was easy, he felt like a well balanced fromsoftware boss not this infinite stamina guys we got. I do get it since this is a lore video and lore wise he isn't too interesting
I know, the butterfly thing is cool because it means when Margit/Morgott says you're "emboldened by the flame of ambition", he means you're being manipulated by Melina!
The scarlet rot seems modelled after real world apple rust, which is a fungal infection of cedar and apple trees. Even the knotted growths in Caelid look like it, as does the ‘lotus’ like bloom of the scarlet aeonia. And just like how a tree can’t stop the fungal infection without outside help, the Erd Tree/Golden Order seems unable to stop its influence on Malenia, as Miquella found.
Although this theory does not serve much on its own, it definitely becomes much more relevant when taking into consideration the fact that a lot of the game's aesthetic and lore derives from trees - most importantly, the Golden Order literally being a *parasite* that took over the Crucible and taking over the tree that soon became known as the Erdtree. Great spot, I haven't heard of this hypothesis before.
@@ChrisSmith69420 I've always thought that the Scarlet Rot was similar in form to the zombie fungus from The Last Of Us. The parallels, it seems, are not coincidental.
@@Colesign The zombie fungus from The Last of Us, known in game as the Cordyceps Brain Infection, is itself based on a real-life parasitic fungus: Ophiocordyceps unilateralis (it even shares a genus name). If both the inspirations are from real-life fungus infections, it's unsurprising there's similarities.
Another weird detail; the scarlet rot is visually inspired from fungal growths. Fungus spores can survive the vacuum of space. Beneath the Lake of Rot, is a form of Astel, said to have crashed down in the Lands Between from outer space, long ago. 🤔
Mohg's character design actually does an immense amount of work in telling his story visually. Mohg, unlike his Brother, saw his accursed blood as a blessing rather than a curse. He fanatically worships the formless mother, as she blessed him due to his curse. This is visually communicated by Mohg's curse growing unchecked on his body. Rather than shave down horns in places where it'd be inconvenient to have them grow, Mohg has allowed his horns to grow to the point where one is sprouting from between his fingers and Another digs into his eye. He is blinded by fanatical belief in his blessing, literally.
I saw an interesting post a while ago that also pretty much said the same thing, but also mentioned that the horn piercing his eye might also be growing right into his brain, making him even more crazy
Sudden thought: cursed children have horns when they are born. It's entirely possible that mothers of such children may not survive the birthing process, or at least not as often. So the Omen may also have the association of death of the mothers.
Was wincing at the thought of giving birth to a baby covered in horns during the omen twin segment but didn’t put this together. Makes total sense though.
You can see George R.R. Martin's affect on the story. The other Fromsoft stories have royal families but in Elden Ring they're very dynamic and all have unique relationships with each other. All with their own ambitions.
It seems like Radhan's story is kinda based around stalemate. Not just with Malenia, but he had a torn alliance between his own family and what he admired. As Radagon's son, and someone that idolized Godrick, he would be aligned with the golden order. But as Rennala's son, and brother to Ranni (seemingly on good terms) he would be aligned to the Carian loyal line. He may have known that Ranni's fate would result in either the destruction of the Golden order or his family. So, instead, he chose to lock them in stalemate by holding back the stars, and ensuring the survival of both.
I think he fought Malenia because she was searching for Miquella. Radahn’s boos fight arena is above Mohgwyn palace. Radahn was likely defending his homeland,
@@0ptimuscrime Actually, Malenia died thinking Miquella was in the Haligtree. She didn't go to Caelid searching for Miquella. She did it for power. Great Runes. However, you're right in that Radahn was only defending his homeland. The battle took place in Aeonia after all, which is right outside of Sellia where he studied and grew up.
I must say I really like Morgott, he seems to be kind of a family person to me. I mean he is guarding the entry to Godrick and sure it could be because Godrick is weak, but they are family, so maybe he is there to defend his family. Morgott even calls Godrick "The Golden" rather than "The Grafted". Also in the throne room, someone is putting those chairs in the arena, a chair for each but the two Omens, perhaps he hopes the rest of his family will cease their ambitions and aim to be a peaceful familiy. I can just see him phoning up the rest to ask over for familiy meal: "Hey Mogh, you got time, right?" "Sorry, I am plotting" *click* "Hey Male..." "I am Malenia, Blade of" *click* "So, Rykard, still wants to eat the gods?" "TOGETHER!!!" *click* ... "Guess it is just me and a phantom image of my dad... again..."
I also find it interesting he is called the "Grace-Given" and that the symbols of the omen 'curse' are lacking when he dies. Perhaps the Greater Will, The Erdtree or something else with the power of giving grace actually cared about him in the end.
@@masternod Morgott did have faith in the Golden Order which in turn meant he had faith in the Greater Will and forsook his omen blood thereby creating his titular black curved greatsword. Still pretty interesting to theorize that some other outer god took pity on him and provided grace to him, resulting in his “Grace-given” title. 👍
*Morgott:* Hi, uh...this is Morgott. Listen, if you're not still sore about that whole siege thing, how about we order a Pizza? Pizza... it's like grafting right? You put some ingredients here, some over there, and the whole fjing is, like, greater than the sum of it's parts, right? *Godrick:* You're dead to me. (Click) *Morgott:* Ranni? You still there? Listen, I have a coupon for Firehouse Subs. Two-for-one kind of deal, I could add in your mother if she-- (Click) *Morgott:* Yo, Radahn, my man. If you're not too busy, we could try hitting that new Mongolian Grill tonight. They're hosting these new hot pot-- *Jerren:* I'm sorry, but who is this? *Morgott:* Who am...who are you? *Jerren:* Look, Radahn's not here right now. He's...uh...busy...busy with army things. (Distinct sounds of agonized screams and chewing in the background) *Morgott:* Okay, look. It's his brother. Well, half-brother, I guess. Look, if he comes around, can you give him the address? *Jerren:* Yeah, sure, I'll get right on it. I just need to-- (Loud bangs in the background, an explosion followed by audible cursing) (Click) *Morgott:* ... *Mohg:* Brother... *Morgott:* Mohg...I thought this was Miquella's number *Mohg:* Is it? I think you may have dialed mine by mistake *Morgott:* (sigh) Look, if he's with you, can you ask if he's available for a family dinner? I know you're usually up for these things. *Mohg:* Oh, yes, I will certainly tell him. *Morgott:* Thanks, Mohg. You're the best. Hey, speaking of Miquella, have you-- (Click)
@@davidhong1934 "...perhaps he hopes the rest of his family will cease their ambitions..." I can just picture them ordering pizzas and after they've all had their share, they realize that only one piece is left and Morgott already has the box open. Morgott: "Foul family members, in search of the last slice. Put these foolish ambitions to rest." [muffled DEVOUAAAA in the distance]
@@tyroneegure6155 that’s what I love about miyazaki he gives the characters all depth even the most fucked up characters aren’t mindless they have their own Philosophy for what they do
I think Melina has to be the sibling of Malenia and Miquella. All the other siblings come in threes. Her name starts with an M. All of them are afflicted (including Melina, if she’s afflicted with fire). In addition, her hair is pink, a combination of Radagon/Malenia’s red and Marika/Miquella’s white.
I think her true body is the one that appears in the frenzied flame ending, in which she has black hair. Knowing FromSoft there's about a dozen explanations for that probably though.
So from the sound of it, the Stars knew Ranni's destiny of overthrowing Marika, and therefore the Golden Order. So the star that crashes to the earth and reveals the Enternal City was meant to crash much sooner to assist her in this task. However, due to Radahn's faith in the Erdtree and the Golden Order, he must have conquered the stars to prevent that very thing from occurring. Damn, I fricking love this game's lore lol
And then there’s the more meta implications of that lore. The idea that Radahn is consumed by rot while he halts the natural progression and changing of order by locking fate in place, all for the love of what came before. I think it’s no coincidence that a being who is consumed by rot is the being who withholds fate. After all we now know what rot represents in these games. It’s the stagnation and ruin of what was once beautiful being held on to for too long.
@@planet_macee The description on the telescope says that the golden order stopped the progression of the fate of the stars.... which implies that they ordered Radahn to do it.
Another thing about Melina possibly being connected to Malenia and Miquella is that her armor set, the traveler's set, is found right outside Malenia's arena, next to the other bloom of scarlet rot (it's also the armor set that Millicent wears, just without the bloodstains).
It was pretty obvious and clear from the get go, that they are connected. They emphasized connected individuals through the specific naming throughout the whole game. Also Melina adresses Marika as her mother.
@@hotmessmasta Millicent is Malenia's daughter. Melina is (almost certainly) Marika's daughter. Thus, Melina is the aunt of Millicent, and in no conceivable way her sister.
@@extendedwarranty3335 If Melina is the sibling of Melania and Miquella, that would make her an empyrean like them. Given what we know about Melina’s title as the “Kindling maiden”, the fact her original body was burned away, her connection to the smouldering butterflies, her knowledge of the Frenzied Flame and the fact the tatoo under her left eye is meant to represent the 3 Fingers, The God that she contained within her was most likely the Frenzied Flame itself.
I really appreciate the little notes Vaati puts at the bottom of the screen sometimes; at 17:52, for instance, he adds a really insightful little tibdit that really adds depth to the explanation of Rykard's lore!!
In support of the “Fire Butterfly theory/Melina is a sibling.” One of the first things I noticed during my initial playthrough was the scarring on Melina’s body. Her hands in particular are covered in burn scars, as if she was set aflame from an early age. Maybe she became the kindling, because that’s what she always was. Love the lore Vaati! Stellar as always.
It makes sense, then, why she hates the Frenzied Flame so much. It's yet another outer god meddling with stuff, and assuming she was born afflicted like her siblings maybe she was vulnerable to its influence, but hates it like Malenia hates the Scarlet Rot.
@@drtrollaux I agree, one of the things I had also considered was the “missing” eye that both Melina and Ranni have. We know that both Radigon and Marina have “sore seals that burn with the effects of the Elden Ring. It would make sense then that Melina and Ranni would “remove” their respective eyes, basically stripping themselves of their Empyrean birthright. No concrete evidence, but just a hunch. Melina would’ve removed hers to become the Kindling to burn the Erdtree, and Ranni would’ve removed hers when she destroyed herself to spite the Greater Will. Would love some discourse on this!
Miquella also wanted to rid himself and his sister of their curses via the Haligtree. This is why Malenia was there, why there appears to be two trees sprouting from one base and one is “incomplete”, while the other is riddled with scarlet rot.
Yes also Mohg, Miquellas half brother stole him from the haligtree and attempted to wed him in order to become Consort to Miquella and establish a new age, since Miquella is an empyrean and thus can turn to a god, and is said to be the closest empyrean to god hood. although Mohg may have been mislead by his outer god guide the Formless Mother as Miquella posed a threat to all outer gods due to his unalloyed gold stopping all outer gods, so the Formless Mother may have lead Mohg to the kidnapping. But regardless when Mohg kidnapped Miquella from the wounded Malenia due to her wounds from Radahn, he stopped the Haligtrees growth, making it incomplete. Also due to Miquella's bewitching charm Mohg became truly smitten with him, and no longer wanted him just to establish his own order and truly "cares" for Miquella, in a fucked up way, I mean Mohg is Miquellas much older half brother, soooooooo incest pedo goatman is obviously fucking horrible.
Perhaps that's why Malenia keeps saying she's the Blade Of Miquella? To remind herself of her true purpose, and not letting her fall completely into the clutches of the outer god.
Remember that, when Radhan falls, and the stars move again, a star IMMEDIATELY strikes the Lands Between in Limgrave. The self defense part could be justified as that would mean he was preventing meteor storms from flattening the Lands Between
Lands between was still "ok" after killing Radahn. Gravity Magic and stars are not the ultimate magic that can destroy everything like you are implying.
When looking at how Radagon and Renalla’s offspring all began with the letter R and Marika’s began with M I realised that the parents of the demigods have the initials G (Godfrey), R (Renalla), R (Radagon), M (Marika) - George R. R. Martin.
It makes perfect sense that unalloyed gold is resistant to rot, as it parallels gold's inertness in real life. One of the reason why gold is so valued is its resistance to decay, which makes it ideal for protective plating to resist against the elements, making it very much in demand in sensitive electronics.
@@monroerobbins7551 and for long term investments. In our country, gold jewellery is not just decorative, it's also an investment. Families usually hoard jewelleries and exchange them in marriages as future investments thanks to their long lasting capabilities.
I think this metaphor also extends to the Golden Order, presumably called that because it was supposed to last eternally - but, just as Unalloyed Gold was unable to stop Malenia from becoming the Goddess of Rot, the Golden Order was eventually ended in the Shattering (although the player can reinstate it if they want). I feel like this is a common theme in Fromsoft games: anything that tries to last forever or become immortal is ultimately seen as unnatural and causes great evil and suffering and must eventually be brought to an end, like the Age of Darkness ending in DS3, or how the goal of Sekiro is to cut the ties of immortality. The Rot beating Unalloyed Gold is kind of symbolic of this; the Rot in its capacity as decay and rebirth beating something that is supposed to remain pure and eternal.
@@Stolanis wrong. Golden order cannot last precisely because it alloyed itself with outside force. Renalla, Ancient Dragon, Crucibles, Omen. Those aren't part of of golden order but they befriend the dragons, allow Godfrey knights as their servants, and even put an Omen in charge of Lyndell. From just Marika and maliketh, they alloyed aspect that is now considered as enemy or unwanted to their ranks. It's the alloyed gold if anything.
According to a veterinary student friend of ours, Malenia and Miquella's cursed illnesses are similar to exaggerations of deformities produced by inbreeding. A kind of Impism, in which the person remains physically juvenile for the rest of their lives but continues to grow mentally, and excessive tumors or scarlet rot from gaps and overlapping dna sequences/alleles. Could the curses be a punishment from the greater will for marika mating with herself?
I'm thinking that it's not punishment from the greater will but rather that their inbreeding left them vulnerable to the influences of outer gods like the scarlet rot. To me it wouldn't really make sense for the greater will to punish malenia by making her a vessel for a rival outer god.
Morgot and Mogh are cursed as well. I think it is safe to say that Marika herself is somewhow cursed as well. Only Godwyn seems like the normal one (i mean before...you know).
first 20 seconds shows us that Vaati is more than just a lore guy, he is a gamer, he is one of us, i was in a different tab when he said Malenia, Blade of Miquella, I repeated it out loud, and then he does it too for the same reasons. Its why everyone loves this guy, hes on the same wavelength as us. So genuine lol
I am damn sure we will be getting a "miquella's" dlc. He is such a mysterious and interesting character that it would be such a waste not to dive deeper into his character and his ambitions.
I agree completely. Not the first time From's teased an immensely powerful character who'd appear later in DLC. Miquella could well be Elden Ring's Artorias in that regard. Like Artorias, he's a legendary and influential figure that you managed to never fight in the main game.
@@solairesolalalalalemon1198 an outer god who cursed him with eternal youth hmm, that's an interesting curse, there are so many mysteries that a future dlc could cover...
What could also possibly support the theory that Melina is indeed, a daughter of Marika is one of her Marika's quotes - "In Marika's own words. Hear me, Demigods. My children beloved. Make of thyselves that which ye desire. Be it a Lord. Be it a God. But should ye fail to become aught at all, ye will be forsaken. Amounting only to sacrifices...". The sacrifice might actually refer to Melina here. If the theory is correct, the rest of her could-be-siblings are on and all famous and significant, while she's the unknown drowned in obscurity. Haven't this tidbit being brought up anywhere, so i thought it was worth mentioning.
Why do you think most demigods and omens name starts with either M, R or G? It's to literally indicate to whom they descent from. They all come Marika, Radagon, Godfrey or Renna (moonwitch sry if I got her name wrong ).
While Melina to me is highly likely to be marikas daughter or a shard of her given form I think the forsaken comment is about the mausoleums. They are soulless demigods and quoted as marikas unwanted children. It's highly likely they were demigods that fell during the shattering trying to gain power as they had guards so loyal they committed suicide to guard them eternally. Not likely a miscarried baby would hold such loyalty
There were quite a few things in this that I really did not think about, particularly Melina's connection to the butterflies, and Godwyn participating in the war against dragons. I really liked this one. Looking forward to future videos!
One can only phantom how mighty and powerful Godwyn was, he literally conquered and defeated the strongest and the mightiest of all dragons, but to add more to his allure, he befriended him instead .. talk about badass.. just the idea of Fromsoft making a DLC about him and making his legend a reality, thats quite something!
@@r4ymac329 Honestly, when I did not know this I was like, "okay he died, whatever." Now knowing he is a complete badass makes me like him a lot more. A DLC exploring more about him, death, and the dragons would be awesome!
I know, the butterfly thing is cool because it means when Margit/Morgott says you're "emboldened by the flame of ambition", he means you're being manipulated by Melina!
26:13 So, now that the DLC trailer is out, the Smoldering Butterfly is clearly referring to Messmer, right? So, he is a lost brother of both Melenia and Miquella.
He could be the unborn demigod mentioned in context with the mausoleums. Could be Marika was unable to give birth to him or chose not to after having miquella and Malenia. The first step of her rebellion against the Greater will
The painting at the end gives such vibes of a young Radagon’s adventures with Torrent. It would make sense as to why he belongs to Melina at the beginning, Radagon wanted to give the next destined Lord his steed to assist.
Miquella fed the tree with his blood which was basically a fountain of youth. It just never was a natural tree and couldn't survive without this outside influence
19:50 It's always struck me as sort of comical how in lore there's no cure, but mechanically there's two, three if you count having enough healing ability to wait it out.
I mean imagine how annoying it would be if all of these statuses worked exactly like they are described in lore. Imagine using Flame of Frenzy one too many times and having a playthrough marked by out of control madness buildup because the madness of the three fingers is supposed to be a permanent affliction to which clarifying boluses offer fleeting relief from. Imagine getting hit with ANY source of rot buildup and just being stuck with it like Milicent and Malenia's Cleanrot Knights.
@@rainestar6781 I understand that from a gameplay standpoint it would be a bad idea to make statuses as nasty as they fictionally are, but I still think it's funny how there's a whole quest to find a magical artifact that can do something which is otherwise impossible even for the gods, and then there's literally a miracle which requires barely above average faith to do the same thing to yourself.
@@stevenneiman1554 The unalloyed gold needle doesn't remove scarlet rot, it merely forestalls it. From its item description: "A ritual implement crafted to ward away the meddling of outer gods, it is thought capable of forestalling the incurable rotting sickness." And anyways, scarlet rot is supposed to take a very long time to rot these godly beings. How many years have Radahn and Malenia fought against it? Given the time span from starting the game to finishing it, it would make sense for the rot to have not started properly eating away at the tarnished imo. The scarlet rot that kills you in seconds could be seen as some extreme and immediate exposure that you can fight against with miracles etc. But more than anything like you say there is a divide between what makes sense mechanically and what makes sense lorewise. Though it would be freakin cool lorewise to be actually infested with slow scarlet rot.
@@theWebWizrd Ok, that's a fair point and does spoil my thought about how cool it would be if you could shiv Radahn with the needle, but it kinda makes it even more ridiculous that you have to go on a several-part quest to find a magic item which is a literal downgrade from a 12-Faith miracle. Personally, my take on why the ailment doesn't work like the lore is that something about Tarnished nature gives them a self-destructive kind of immunity. Sort of like how if you're vaccinated Covid will make you more miserable, but it'll be over in days with much less risk of long-term harm. Or possibly the Tarnished is just weaker than a demigod so it does kill them quickly but recovering through the failure of destined death doesn't keep the rot.
It made sense that when Margit said "smoldering with thy meagre flame", he might be referencing Melina as the flame that would eventually burn down the Erdtree. In Leyndell, Melina is no longer that "meagre flame" as she fights alongside you.
@@mrkrakengodego8830 you have the wrong quote, he says "smouldering with thy meagre flame" after his fight in Stormveil, and later in his outer-Leyndell encounter he says "smouldering with thy wretched flame of ambition."
I was really hoping for a age of blasphemy ending or age of the serpent, that and an age of blood would be incredible, I’m not an invader mainly but they deserve a cool ending.
@@Call_Upon_YAH Hey, did you know you’ve wasted a vast portion of your life blindly believing in a blatantly illogical and irrational crock if horseshit that isn’t gonna save you in the end? Don’t coax others into your sad life of lies just so you can feel like you have a purpose
Your best hope is for a scholar of the first sin-like version after all the additional content is released. Adding new endings, and maybe some changes to enemy displacements (I.E. late game mobs)
They should add an ending related to each of the outer gods. For instance. We already have an ending for the Dark Moon, the Frenzied Flame and multiple endings for the Greater Will. There should be an ending for the Formless Mother, perhaps even working with Mohg. And also an ending where you work alongside Rykard and attempt to devourer the Erdtree itself or something.
If the other demigod siblings are born in 3's, then it holds up that Melina would also be a child of Radagon and Marika to complete the trio of Miquella, Malenia and Melina.
I just realized, each of the demigods comes in sets of 3 (if the Melina theory is true) the Brains, the Brawn, and the Weird one Brains: Morgott, Ranni, and Miquella Brawn: Godwyn, Radahn, and Malenia Weird: Mohg, Rykard, and (possibly) Melina
Now, bear with me, but what if Melina is Marika's and one of the Fire Giant's offspring? We know that the Fire Giant was not killed, rather defeated. What if Melina, who's purpose is to serve as kindling for burning the Erdtree is a part of Marika's plan? We know Melina's dailogue when you try to become the Lord of Frenzied Flame ,"Do not deny the world of its life". And we know that part of Marika's plan is for the world to endure, to suffer, to advance, to learn?
Vaati, I just love how you sneak in those jokes. They punch a little harder because your not expecting it. You seem like your having fun and I really like that. :)
I really hope that the dlc expands on melina, she feel like the only character who we're still missing some crucial information about. Even with Miquela, we broadly know who and what he is, and what his relations to the other major characters are. Melina is this weird enigma, who knows a lot about seemingly everything, but noone else ever even mentions her
From all the lore videos of ER I've watched it seems Melina is the Gloam-Eyed Queen and the oldest of all of Marika's kids who died before the Golden Order was even founded and they were born. That explains why she's so mysterious and knows so much but hardly anyone else mentions her, she's been gone long before the modern era and only got brought back as a spirit recently as apart of Marika's grand plan to undo her own order and remove the influence of the Greater Will from the world.
@@IsaiahX7-13 i guess that kind of adds up, but i don't see how that makes sense in terms of Melinas moyivations. There's also the fact that she talks about her mother and Marika, as if they're 2 different people. It's very possible that she just doesn't want us to know that Marika is her mother, but since we don't really understand her motivations, that's still mostly speculation. If she is the Gloam-eyed queen, i hope the dlc confirms it in some way, if only just by having an item that connects Melina and the Godskin in some way
@@leonjakobsen272 That's just her using the same general vague or cryptic wording that lots of characters in the game love to use. The game files say she is Marika's daughter and she says her mom is in the Erdtree so its certainly her. I think the Flame of Frenzy Ending makes it pretty obvious she's the queen without saying it imo. As for Marika herself, there's no way to 100% know her actual reasoning or motivations. All we know is that she lost faith in her Order at some point, assisted Ranni in her quest to bring the Age of the Stars, brought back Melina's spirit with the purpose to be used as kindling to burn the Erdtree while helping the Tarnished, and made the Tarnished and set them on the path to leave the Lands Between, get stronger, and come back to slay the Elden Beast. There's like a bunch of NPC dialogue and item descriptions that all directly say or suggest this. That's why a lot of people say Ranni's ending is the best ending, not just cause they're simping, but because her ending seems to be the only one that aligns with Marika's plan and is the best for the world.
@@IsaiahX7-13 Marika's plan is madness, she gone out of control because her son godwyn died, that's even the reason why she shattered the elden ring, and also i dont think Ranni's ending is good either, age of the stars still rely on the stars which is an outside entity, the only ending that is best for the world is goldmask, his perfect order explained that the order is trash because of the meddling of outer gods, so he made a transcendent rune where the lands between will be govern fully by the humans and not some outside entities that manipulate humans, hence it was called "perfect"
@@allenbermejo3424 Everything Ranni said in that story trailer was vague and cryptic though. The game makes it clear that Marika had a grand plan with multiple players that led to her shattering the Ring outside of simply her grief for Godwyn. The game also suggests that Marika assisted Ranni in Godwyn's assassination anyway, so he definitely wasn't the main reason. The Age of Stars is good, as the Dark Moon is not an Outer God. The Moon was simply a "guide" for the Stars before in the past that carry the fate of the Carian royal family. Ranni literally sacrificed her own body to get rid of the Greater Will's influence, had the assistance of her brother Rykard in her plot who also wanted a world freed from Gods, and chose to leave the Lands Between in her ending for a reason. So, her being loyal to another Outer God would go against her whole character and wouldn't make sense. Everything she said makes it clear she wanted a world where the races of the Lands Between are freed from Gods entirely. The Golden Order is reformed into an Order of Moon and Stars that leaves the world with the Tarnished and Ranni: therefore, no one can be influenced or misled by them in any way. The Age of Order may not be "bad" but so long as the Golden Order, Elden Ring, and Erdtree exist people will always to some extent be influenced by Gods where as there is none of that in Ranni's. That's why hers is still better imo, and hers fulfills Marika's plan.
That Miquella and Malenia segment was beautiful Vaati, you really captured how much love the siblings had for one another and how far Miquella would go to save his Sister.
There's also the unknown Demigods held within the Walking Mausoleums that aren't really talked about all that much that fascinate me. I think all we know is that one was Miquella's companion and the other may have been an unwanted child of Marika, but it's still some fascinating stuff.
I really wish Melania and Miquella had their own ending in the game, burn the erdtree and plant a new superior haligtree as the other one was not able to be fully grown. A pivotal part of their ending could be maybe offering the unalloyed needle to Melania and revealing the location of her brother as Mogh kidnapped him
26:35 The most likely theory is that Melina is Ranni's other half, possibly the same way that Radagon is Marika's, or something similar. Or a partial rebirth, or created from part of her soul. Melina is the daughter of Marika, but don't forget Radagon is Marika. Consider that the previous two butterflies are associated with Empyreans. The third Empyrean was Ranni. Melina says that she is "burned and bodyless". Ranni's empyrean body was burned by the black flames of destined death and killed. Ranni's soul body matches Melina's model perfectly and the eye marks combine to create a five-taloned claw. When they fade away they also fade in the same style or blue glitters.
You make a good point, but remember that the Ranni we see is modelled after the north witch that taught Ranni, not her true self. I think that Melina is daughter only to Marika (and not Marika and Radagon, even of they are the same) and was created after Marika’s punishment inside the Erdtree. Moreover, Melina only mentions a mother and that she was born inside the Erdtree, where Marika is confined.
When Melina mentions that she is "bodiless," then is she also speaking as if she is literally Ranni in that moment? Melina herself has a body, albeit a burned one (perhaps due to the black flames you mentioned). Ranni is the one without an actual body, hence the puppet her soul houses. It wouldn't make sense (unless I'm missing something) why Melina would say she is bodiless unless she and Ranni are connected beings, right? Basically unsure how else to interpret Melina saying she is "bodiless" unless it's because she and Ranni share a consciousness in some way during the events of the game.
@@lucaortolani2059 "Ranni's _soul body_ matches Melina's model perfectly" Yes, the puppet is fashioned after the snow witch, but the ethereal soul form that is half merged with Ranni's puppet face, however, is not. Mainly because it's an ethereal soul form.
This is an interesting theory. I do like this alternative one slightly better: Melina is born after the Elden Ring is shattered, born to Maragon/Radika - hence the purpose her mother spoke to her of; hence her purpose being to burn the Erdtree. However, the one you propose does make sense, an I find either theory acceptable.
There is so much we dont know about Melina. Why does she have so much resemblance to Ranni? both of them are bodiless too. Is the purpose she speaks of to seek out judge & guide Marika's next elden lord? She's been burned before, & is visibly scarred. Did she attempt to guide Vyke to the elden throne, only for him to refuse to burn her and seek the frenzied flame? When she speaks to you at the lost grace's closest to it she almost sounds panicked and desperate, and she knows a great deal about the 3 fingers. Why does she have the move set of a black knife assassin, linking her again to Ranni? WHy do both Melina and Ranni know Torrent?? Why's Torrent seen as such a good judge of character?
For me the biggest mystery about Melina is her fighting style. It's almost identical to the black night asassins. And a clear connection between her and Rani through Torrent (what is it nature?!) make me believe that Melina played a key role in the murder of Godwyn. Can't wait for DLC.
Well, I really liked Vaati's theory on Melina, so, following the theory: 1.- They took after their shared father, Radagon 2.- Ranni killed her body to sever her fate from the 2 finger's. As for Melina, perhaps that was her curse? One cursed with eternal childhood, other with rot and she was "born like this, burned and bodyless" 3.- Well, this one she tells us herself: she doesn't know her purpose, only after reaching Leyndell she knows what she must be (kindling) 4.- I dont think shes necessarily related to Vike, there are many other Maidens, but you do make good points, she really does seem to know what will happen if a Tarnished embraces the 3 fingers 5.- I bet Ranni is Torrent's "last owner", when she lived. As for how It got to Melina's Hands... Maybe a gift? Idfk lol
@@Grigorii-j7z Lets not forget that all Black Knife Assassins are woman, so yeah :D But, have you seen what she does if she dies during the Morgott fight? Shes deffinitely more linked to the tree rather than against it i'd say
My theory is that Melina was born from whatever will existed with the rune of death used to kill Rannis body. This allowed it to take a likeness that we could assume would match Rannis true body, as it was still on body when we meet her.
@@thefulcrum4466 Melina clearly mentions she has a mother, and from her actions it seems more likely that her mother is Marika. Also, Melina's hair is clearly a shade between blonde (Marika and Miquella) and red (Radagon, Malenia).
These videos are all absolutely mind-blowing. I can't believe I've only just discovered your channel after months of obsessively watching Elden Ring videos! Thank you so much for making these!
In the lake of rot their is a dagger that gives some more info on the outer god of rot. Seemingly created from its tail the outer god took the form of a Scorpion before being ultimately sealed away by the blind swordsman
I like to think the Blue Dancer chop up the outer god into pieces and spread them around the lake of Rot. Then the Prawn people found the tail piece and start worshipping it
@@francescofrancescato1251 I mean, so does a certain other creature from the Cosmos, this one in gold. It would be more surprising for them to look different, than for them to look the same
I definitely appreciate how you refrain from overindulging in conjecture. And when you do guess things, they are clearly labeled as such. One minor nitpick: "All of these Demigods had fallen from grace by the time the shattering had occurred." Both Enia, when asked about Great Runes, and Melina, when resting at the Capital Outskirts, seems to express that the Demigods didn't fall from grace until the stalemate. Which is when grace was extended to us. The original intent was for one of them to become either God or Lord. I guess it depends on how you define grace.
In Marika's eyes, I think the demi god's were never to be seen as the heir to radagon. This is because she could easily help Godwyn, on account of his character and birth, miquella and malenia, on account of being empyreans, or Radahn on account of being the mightiest of the demigods, she could have helped any of them in the shattering to become elden lord, but did not. That goes double if the theory that she plotted with Ranni to murder Godwyn is true. (There is significant and fairly compelling evidence for this, although ofc, is still largely conjecture). The golden order did only abandon the demi god's (at least we are told as much) after the shattering. The opening narrator says, "a war leading to abandonment by the greater will." Which seemingly suggests this. So, the demigods fell from Marika's grace long ago (or at least with godwyns death, she may have just not cared that much about her other kids). The demigods were still puppets of the golden order/greater will until the shattering ended in a stalemate at Aeonia. The other outer god's are still very much interested in utilising the demigods powers for themselves though. Malenia with the Scarlett rot, mogh with the formless mother, arguably Melina with the fell god, and I'd argue Rannis dark moon and Rennala's pale moon are personified to the point that they are almost certainly cosmic outer gods.
after watching/listening to a couple of these lore stories, I started to watch cut scenes again and actually have a different feel of accomplishment after defeating all those demi gods. Thanks dude and everyone involved, pretty neat :)
My favorite of them HAS TO BE Morgott Morgott is an EXTREMELY tragic character. The saddest part about Morgott is that he was legitimately blessed. Omen curse is no curse. It's a blessing of the Crucible which was later seen as a curse due to Golden Order. He may as well have been the most holy of all Demigods, but he was punished for it by being left for a time in the sewers and he hated HIMSELF for it. That is until he was released, most likely by the time Giants were still a threat since Godfrey knew him and he was banished after he beat the Giants and other enemies of Erd Tree. He also uses a Giant Crusher. A weapon that fell out of use after War with the Giants. A GREAT way to hide little story details, in Boss's moveset itself. And often it is a misconception that Morgott ALWAYS was in the sewers which given this detail is most likely not true. Especially with how articulate Mogh and Morgott are. In his remembrance (japanese version) it's said that he didn't need anyone else's love to love in return. He just loved. He loved others no matter what. And there most likely were people that did love him. One of them was Godfrey, but the other may have been his brother Godwyn... who was killed at the Night of the Black Knives. He tried to be a protector, he created Black Cavalry who we see in the trailer and may have been sent by him to hunt down the assassins, he created Sentry's Torches to protect his other siblings from Godwyn's fate, and yet... they all betrayed him and destroyed everything he loved and even then when he shows up in the throne room and calls his siblings traitors he still seems to have some actual care for them after all of that and he still felt great shame after staining their thrones meaning that he truly cared for them (outside of Rykard who may have taken more public role in killing Godwyn as part of his deal with Ranni which could have been start of his Blasphemy). Morgott was a good person that was betrayed by almost everyone around him. By his family that started destroying their life and breaking their world, by the Erdtree which wouldn't accept him due to his "curse" and by Golden Order which indoctrinated him into hating what he was blessed with. Morgott is probably one of the saddest characters in the game, if not THE saddest. A bitter person who has nothing, but hatred for himself and his family and the only thing he cares about is the thing that made his life miserable in the first place. And the only people that loved him are either dead (Godwyn who given that he befriended Dragons most likely cared little about curse on Morgott) or he never got to meet again after longing to see them again (Godfrey). And the part with Godfrey is even more sad when you realize that Godfrey we fight before him is most likely created BY Morgott. It's possible that Morgott created that apparition because he wanted the help of his father, he wanted his father to be there and become Elden Lord, evident by him placing his crown on the throne in the trailer. At the end when we fight him he is legitimately left with nothing, but the crumbling city and his duty which is built on lies of the Greater Will. Pray for Morgott The Omen King, The Grace-Given. The True King of Leyndell and only worthy successor of Godfrey. A true heir. The only Demigod left that is worthy of being called Golden. Morgott the Golden Omen. Morgott is probably my new favorite boss From has ever made and with Aldia and Vendrick he is my favorite character From has ever made and that may be partially because of Martin. His character GREATLY makes me think of mix of Tyrion and Stannis and that is the best kind of comparison one could want. Morgott stands above and beyond as an exceptional character in Elden Ring that deserves FAR more praise. The only problem I have with him is that he is too easy if you explore everything before him, but that is another great thing. I don't want his fight to end. I want more of his fight. That is something that is hard to achieve. Make me WANT to fight a boss more. Let's hope he may have an Endgame fight in DLC. As so far we have one in early game, mid game and now only endgame is left. Let's hope for one final showdown with the True King of Leyndell and to me the only worthy Demigod to be Elden Lord.
Indeed! Morgott has great respect for the Shardbearers, even though he considers them to be traitors - he even calls Godrick "Godrick the Golden" while everyone else calls him "Godrick the Grafted".
@@joaop7378 And he could just kill Godrick easily and take his rune so Tarnished have FAR harder time at reaching Leyndell... But he doesn't do that. He protects him. It may be because outside of Mogh Godrick is probably the only family he has left now.
I think i've seen you on multiple other videos talking about how good of a character Morgott is and i end up agreeing every single time. Goated character
Always loved Morgott and Mohg because they represent some very interesting responses to being shunned and hated. On one hand, Morgott clings to his family and institutions obsessively, and Mohg rejects them utterly, finding another parent basically.
I think it's worth mentioning what a "crucible" is. In metalworking, crucibles are the containers where metals are melted, usually with different types merging to create new alloys. It's literally an extreme melting pot, rendering down the strongest materials to blend them together and potentially make something even stronger. In figurative terms, a crucible is "a situation of severe trial, or in which different elements interact, leading to the creation of something new." This might explain why the Crucible in Elden Ring, and all creatures touched by it, have a haphazard mishmash of attributes: tails, wings, feathers, horns, scales, etc. It was as though someone just threw everything they could into a big pot, forced all of it into a trial by fire, and whatever survived those trials would unquestionably be the strongest. When Godfrey was Elden Lord, he tried to embrace those powerful traits, honoring them with his Crucible Knights who imitated tails, horns, and wings with their Aspect of the Crucible spells (and as a result, those Crucible Knights are FRIGGIN HORRORS on the battlefield). However, once Godfrey was sent packing, the Golden Order seemed to develop a more hostile perspective, deeming everything touched by the Crucible as "cursed" or "impure", which led to the persecution of all non-human races. However, considering that the Crucible seems to have been at the core of this world's creation, it would take a lot of time and work to create the "perfect" creatures the Golden Order sought... with genocide sometimes hinted at as a final solution to attain purity by any means.
If the Crucible is a big melting pot, then why do we say that the Erdtree was grafted onto an existing, older tree? I thought that the original tree was the Crucible, or that the original tree was something that distributed thr Crucible's power..
@@davidhong1934 I don't actually know what the Crucible's relationship with the "old tree" was (whether it was something created by the original tree, or actually just WAS the original tree), but it's clear that the Erdtree (or the entity that represents it) was an entirely different thing that was, as you said, "grafted on." Whatever the Erdtree is, it definitely doesn't like the old paradigm and seems to be actively trying to excise, eliminate, and/or supplant it.
@@Tenchigumi My original assumption was that the Crucible provides energy, but the energy doesn't become life until it's funneled through a medium. The original medium was a primordial tree, which, given the state of the Misbegotten and Omens, was probably less a tree and more a giant mess of branches and bramble. The Golden Order was not only a grafting, but also a way to force the order into what was a disorganized tangle.
1 of the things I love about the Souls game's. Is how you slowly piece together the lore as you progress. Connecting bits of information revealed to you by collecting weapons & armor, conversations with NPC's, & enemies/bosses you encounter. Where most game's start you off with a bunch of exposition. The souls games are the opposite. Tell you the bare minimum about the plot. Making you want to progress so you can paint the whole picture.
Near the Minor Erdtree Church just outside of Leyndell, you can find a single grave that seems to be tended by one of the erdtree guardians with an item, which turns out to be a smoldering butterfly. This really confused me when I found it but in light of the smoldering butterfly/Melina connection, could this be her grave, or somehow linked to her? Haven't heard this gravesite discussed anywhere else.
Alternatively, there was originally a cool sword there, but aome other Tarnished looted the grave before you could. That one guard is really embarrassed, so he keeps watch and hopes nobody will notice the empty grave.
@@killchoi091 Aeonian butterfly ~ Malenia, related to rot Nascent butterfly ~ Miquella, related to purity Smouldering butterfly ~ Melina, related to kindling
It's also worth noting that this grave is only a few feet away from the wall of the city. It's about as close as you can get. Definitely seems like it's important.
I have theory that Radahn might've conquered the stars to keep Ranni from betraying the Golden Order and leaving, might've done it out of love for his sister as well as duty to the Golden Order
It seems like all the children of Renalla and Radagon's have become much older and on their own unique path. I'm not sure either of their plans are in direct relation to one another Rykard rejected the Golden Order but got consumed by power. Still looks up to Radahn and conspires with Ranni as sibling love Ranni is influenced by the Dark Moon, in slight opposition to her mother and definitely to her father, disliking the idea of how a Godly being like the Elden Ring and Erdtree are in arms reach. She wants a new god and chase her own ideal destiny, which unfortunately requires Radahn to die, not for personal reasons though. She kills other Gods to remove the idea of the Elden Ring, hence the Godwyn incident Radahn is inspired by Godrey and Radagon in war and also inspired by Renalla as a scholar. Then found greater purpose using his Demi God power to halt a greater threat indicated by being taught star magic from someone that comes from the stars, a warning. These are adults unlike Malenia and Miquella whom goals are linked with one another, like kid siblings looking out for each other. Radahn doesn't seem strongly affiliated to any Order or God, studying the outer gods and space/stars then using his own god powers to deal with the potential problems. Meanwhile Ranni wants a new god but not in the way the Erdtree is
@@sultan788 that does make sense. I feel like you could argue Radahn's inspiration by Godfrey might've led him to share beliefs in line with his including serving the Golden Order but that I'm wholly sure of. But he and Ranni are direct siblings, they may not have had as close a relationship as Malenia and Miquella but still brother and sister. I don't think Radahn acted expressly to prevent Ranni from fulfilling her destiny, but I do believe it's entirely possible he knew what it'd cause in relation to his own sister, I mean he stopped the stars from moving which directly prevented Ranni from moving forward
@@harlburgerhelper4421 The Golden Order is an odd one, as in Morgott's scene we see all the seats empty as the family have all been disbanded, pursuing their own journey. Though, that's something Marika wants as according to Melina, Marika said "Here are these great runes. Make of yourself whatever you desire, a lord or god, whatever. But if you become nothing, you will be forsaken, amounting only to sacrifice". So i'd definitely say each of their intent in plans isn't directly attacking another, just unfortunate coincidence. Through Ranni's ending we learn she hates the idea of how such a divine being or God can be so close in physical reach. Look what it's caused. Multiple Gods in search of selfish, individual powers and ideals (herself included), multiple Elden Lords and anybody can be Elden Lord, rules broken and bended. The initial purpose of the "Elden Ring" has now been lost through time, it's imperfect now and has no reason to continue existing in her eyes, hence her command of the Black Knives to start the chain of death against Godwyn, the first of the fallen Demi-Gods. Now she wants a new God, this Dark Moon/Star God, something unreachable and too distant for everyone. But since Radahn conquered the stars, he's just unfortunately getting in her way, though i'm sure they still love each other. Radahn learned star powers from a star lord, to stop the stars. That seems really confusing on surface level, why would the star lord teach that to someone? To essentially say "my own people are terrible, do not let them come here. I'm not powerful enough to use this star power but I can teach it" which a Demi-God would be more than capable of using. We don't know much of Radahn, not a single dialogue from him. But we know he's honorable (waits for Malenia prosthetic attachment before attacking), highly respected across Land Between and regarded as the strongest Demi-God. He looks up to his father (red hair), Godfrey (armour) and his mother (magic), and uses that magic to also protect his dear horse. He even fought Malenia in the same location we fight Radahn, he was seemingly defensive. It seems his actions are protective. Since there's seemingly little mention of connections between Ranni and Radahn, it's unlikely he would know of Ranni's plans or her pursuit of space God specifically, he just knew what dangers are out there and decided to protect the lands. But since his inspirations are from both Moon and Golden Order, it's hard to say which he's fighting for, it's more suggested it's his own thing, just like how Maleina has her own army too of Cleanrot Knights, not affiliated with their parents or known God. Though i'm sure he knew Renalla didn't like Radahns plans either as her powers are linked to the moon and stars too, but again, he's more likely to be fighting for a greater cause that most characters are unaware of Edit: disbanded family meaning they all left the Greater Will (the Erdtree a.k.a current God), hence Morgott calling them all "traitors"
Not really , Messmer has his own Black Pyre Butterfly in DLC. And another item in DLC called Messmers Kindling alludes to the fact he has a sister also associated with fire- probably referring to Melina. So the smouldering butterfly represents Melina.
i thought his videos have gone downhill. The dark souls 3 ones were better researched as less cringe. The way he talks in the videos now is like the game is real life. which is fine but annoys me.
Something I noticed in Godfrey’s cutscene when morgotts body disappears it lets out grace particles that fly through the wind, I think morgott was actually able to return to the erdtree despite his omen origins
Morgott's body lets out grace particles that point to you. You as a tarnished are guided by grace represented by the glowing motes of light that point you to anything that blocks your way, every obstacle to your path to Elden Lord. When you see Godfrey he too is a tarnshied guided by grace. When you see the grace pointing to you it's not your grace pointing to another obstacle on the path to becoming Elden Lord, it's Godfrey's. You are the obstacle he has to overcome, the challlenge he has to face to become Elden Lord.
@@TheJamieellis We also get Mohg's remembrance, as well as other random remembrances (Astel, Placidusax...), so I don't think that we can use these as proof of anything.
Morgott also loses his horns and looks strikingly human when you beat him. I also believe he was able to return to the Erdtree after his death. He was the most loyal to it, even when he had no reason to be.
I love how every family member created its own faction. Godwyn in death lowkey inspires two factions, the Dragon Cult followers and your own followers should you choose the Fia ending. The Golden Order at its height feels like it was Rome under Constantine but now Leyndell is just a golden relic. Raya Lucaria despite being under disputed control represents probably the most powerful major faction in opposition to the royal capital. Volcano Manor and the Haligtree feel more like a bunch of lost refugees while the Academy retains both autonomy and focus, the latter of which is lacking with the survivors everywhere else other than Redmane Castle. Its a broken world with some loyal followers clinging onto the fractured might of desperate demigods.
And to Lordran before the Hollowing curse spread. And to Drangleic. And to Lothric. And to Yarhnam before the Beast Plague. And to Ashina before the collapse.
@@THExRISER I'd love a Sekiro prequel where you play as Isshin. Tomoe would also be a good option. Or maybe even Orangutan (the Sculptor). Basically I just want more Sekiro.
Everyone always says this for every From game. "I wanna see _____ before it got destroyed." Too bad, Souls games are all about the dystopian apocalypses and everyone slowly losing all hope and glory they used to have.
For people like me that forget every character within 5 minutes of meeting or killing them, this is super helpful. It's well done and entertaining too. Nice work.
Malenia and Miquella were almost certainly born before the shattering, but what if Melina wasn’t? What if Melina was born post-shattering inside the Erdtree? In addition because both known offspring of Marika and Radagon have a curse, perhaps Melina’s curse is her lack of physical form. Her lack of physical form could also explain how she got out of the Erdtree in the first place.
I personally think that Melina was born as a result of Merika trying to birth an empyrian under the instructions of the Golden Order, but that things kinda got screwed up and Radagon produced (gave birth to???) Ranni at the same time as a result (which was covered up by saying that she was a product of both Renalla and Radagon). This first clumsy attempt would have startled literally everyone quite heavily, and would lead to Merika summoning Radagon back to Leyndell so that Weird Stuff(TM) would stop happening. It's quite likely that Merika herself (as a vessel of some fragment of the combined meradagonika) is the cause of the various curses afflicting her offspring, as everyone she birthed (godwyn, omen twins, melina probably, empyrian twins) has something that goes Terribly Horribly Wrong(TM). This would explain why (1) Radagon left Renalla against his will shortly after Ranni was born, (2) why Ranni is an empyrian despite supposedly being of the same origins as her non-empyrian siblings, and (3) the exact timeline and reasoning as to why the family erdtree happened as it did
@@sock7896 I have a personal theory that Empyrians actually AREN’T just children of Radagon and Merika. I believe that an Empyrian is someone specifically chosen by an outer god, but not necessarily the Greater Will. Ranni is chosen by the Dark Moon, Melina is chosen by the Scarlet Rot, Miquella is chosen by the Formless Mother (and possibly the Greater Will as well, but he forsook that) which is why he was stolen by Mohg.
@@agirlnamedfish If I remember correctly the Gloam-Eyed Queen was also mentioned to be an Empyrean and had her own Fingers. Empyreans seem to be chosen by the Outer Gods more often than born of gods.
Elden Ring has incredible lore, and I can’t wait to unravel this story together! I just cannot wait to see what you think about the Eternal Cities and Astel
The stories of the demigods are my favorite!! The influence of real-world mythology and archetypes is present in each of them and makes them super compelling as characters. Godwyn, in particular, is not just influenced by the Norse god Baldr, but also gods like Osiris and Dumuzi; Fia, his consort, is very much like Isis, conceiving the god Horus from Osiris' dismembered corpse, or Innana descending into the underworld to retrieve her husband. It's a rare kind of thematic resonance, and I'm *always* happy to see it.
I love the Smoldering Butterfly theory and there's even more evidence you didn't mention. Melina describes herself as "burned and bodyless" which I suppose explains why she appears out of thin air like some kind of spirit. She also offers herself as kindling to burn the Erdtree. Melina says this was the purpose given to her by her mother, which makes sense considering Marika apparently wanted the Tarnished to become Elden Lord. On a more meta level, Smoldering Butterflies often appear around bonfires. If Smoldering Butterflies and Melina are connected, this could be a cheeky reference to Dark Souls since Melina is the Fire Keeper equivalent and her butterflies show up at bonfires.
You made me realise something: since Melina always appears out of nowhere like a spirit, it is very likely that Ranni is the one who summoned her. I mean Ranni is the one who gives us the spirit summoning bell and she even mentions that someone told her that we now have Torrent. So its not far fetched to assume that Ranni and Melina are having conversations, and they're plotting stuff together. Both of them want the Erdtree burned.
@@crust5909 her being “burned and bodiless” is also a hint that Melina and Ranni are two halves of the same person, Ranni being the Rennala half and Melina being the Radaghan/Marika half. Ranni’s original body, after all, is found burnt and they each have one eye missing (the left for Ranni and the right for Melina). I’m more and more convinced that this is true and is the way that Ranni was able to rid herself of being an Empyrean. Her body died and her soul was cleaved in two
@@crust5909 Ranni & Melina have a huge connection. From the whole Eye thing both share to their behind the backround interactions. To a character who previously owned Torrent aka "Torrents Former Master". But sadly we have nothing that would give us puzzle pieces besides context telling us Ranni & Melina worked or work together for a unknown period/reason.
@@schonmp Not sure about that. Aka the only detail i would argue is her Soul being cleaved in two. Because her whole plan to time her suicide with big Golden Boys assasination by the Black Blades where Big Gs Soul was destroyed while his Body survived & Rannis Body was destroyed but her Soul did survive aka her being a Spirit. Tho again Melina is the most mysterious character in the entire story with how little we know about her & her seemingly unoffical status as a godchild.
Radahn is epitome of the older brother messing with the younger sibling with the slight difference that Radahn isn't eating the younger siblings sweets. He is fucking with every possible plan Ranni has had in store for eons
@@jpcaras Is that canon? I know Radahn looks older because of the beard but we haven't even seen Ranni's real body to say she is the youngest, eldest or middle child. Also Radahn could've shaved
My personal theory surrounding Melina is that she’s not… an individual. She’s more of a tool. It isn’t too far-fetched to think that, since Marika sent away those who would become Tarnished to save them from the calamity that would befall the Lands Between, she wouldn’t know what becoming Elden Lord would require. So, she created Melina with the express purpose of being kindling, the sacrifice that would burn the Erdtree. She is meant to assist the Tarnished that has the best chance of becoming Elden Lord, and she chose us because all the others have lost the guidance of grace and Gideon sits there doing nothing but being a genocidal, self-assured smart ass. It would explain why she is so nonchalant about being burned to death, and why she hates you if you seek the Frenzied Flame. You have devoid her of her purpose, and with the world burned to ash and no more Tarnished to assist, what is she meant to do?
I do believe that the Golden Order halted the movement of the stars long before Radahn was ever born, partly because of the wording of the lore in the astrologer item descriptions. It’s implied that the halting of the stars is both a result and a cause of the waning of the sorcerers’/astrologers’ power, in tandem with the growth of the Erdtree’s power. The stars, as we know, have an order of their own, which is why Marika went to war against Liurnia in the first place - the Greater Will could not tolerate competing Orders. Since Radagon/Marika couldn’t defeat them in battle, however, they married into the lineage instead. It’s unclear how exactly this may have proceeded, but ultimately Rennala’s acceptance of Radagon allowed the Golden Order to supplant that of the stars, and halt their movement. It’s interesting to use this as a way to examine Rennala and Radagon’s relationship as well. The sorcerers of Rays Lucaria turned on Rennala when she was left broken by his departure, and the game implies that they saw her brokenness as an obvious weakness, and she was not the champion they thought her to be. But the implications of what happened to the stars (the source of her power) after her acceptance of Radagon also seem to imply that this marriage was, at least symbolically, a concession of defeat tantamount to a win in battle. It seems Radagon “conquered” her one way or another, but that the people of Liurnia only realized it after the era of the Erdtree’s abundance was over, and the source of their own power was still locked away. To that effect then, Radahn’s conquering of the stars would amount to him declaring for the Erdtree and the Golden Order on his father’s and his idol’s behalf, as the Golden Order would, after the shattering, no longer have the power and influence to keep the stars in check. So Radahn took on that mantle for it, and accomplished what his father, effectively, could not.
I like the idea of Melina being Radagon and Marika’s child. It makes sense given her reddish hair, her name similarity to Melanie and Miquella, plus the fact that the previous Demi God children were all born in sets of 3. Godwyn, Morgott, and Mohg. Then Ranni, Radahn, and Rykard. And now Melanie, Miquella, and Melina. It all just weirdly fits.
GOD'S STANDARD FOR HEAVEN IS PERFECTION AND ONLY JESUS (THE SON OF GOD/GOD IN THE FLESH) LIVED THAT PERFECT LIFE! HE LAID DOWN HIS LIFE & TOOK THE WRATH OF THE FATHER ON THE CROSS FOR YOUR SINS! GOD IS JUST SO HE MUST PUNISH SIN & HE IS HOLY SO NO SIN CAN ENTER HIS KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. IF YOU ARE IN CHRIST ON JUDGEMENT DAY GOD WILL SEE YOU AS HIS PERFECT SON (SINLESS SINCE YOUR SINS ARE COVERED BY JESUS' OFFERING). YOU CAN ALSO CHOOSE TO REJECT JESUS' GIFT/SACRIFICE & PAY FOR YOUR OWN SIN WITH DEATH (HELL) BUT THAT SEEMS PRETTY FOOLISH! GOD SEES & HEARS EVERYTHING YOU HAVE SAID & DONE. YOU WONT WIN AN ARGUMENT WITH HIM & YOU CANT DEFEND ANY OF YOUR SINS TO HIM. YOU'RE NOT A GOOD PERSON, I'M NOT A GOOD PERSON... ONLY GOD IS GOOD! WE'RE ALL GUILTY WITHOUT ACCEPTING JESUS' SACRIFICE FOR OUR SINS! MUHAMMAD DIDN'T DIE FOR YOUR SINS, BUDDHA DIDN'T DIE FOR YOUR SINS, NO PASTOR/NO PRIEST/NO SAINT/NO ANCESTOR DIED FOR YOUR SINS, MARY DIDN'T, THE POPE DIDN'T EITHER, NO IDOLS OR FALSE gods DIED FOR YOUR SINS, NO MUSICIAN OR CELEBRITY DIED FOR YOUR SINS, NO INFLUENCER OR UA-cam STAR DIED FOR YOUR SINS, NO SCIENTIST OR POLITICIAN DIED FOR YOUR SINS, NO ATHLETE OR ACTOR DIED FOR YOUR SINS! STOP IDOLIZING & WORSHIPING THESE PEOPLE! JESUS CHRIST ALONE DIED FOR YOUR SINS & WAS RESURRECTED FROM THE GRAVE! HE IS ALIVE & COMING BACK VERY VERY SOON WITH JUDGEMENT (THESE ARE END TIMES)! PREPARE YOURSELVES, TURN FROM SIN & RUN TO JESUS! HE KNOWS YOUR PAIN & TROUBLES, HE WANTS TO HEAL & RESTORE YOU! TALK TO HIM LIKE A BEST FRIEND! ASK HIM TO REVEAL HIMSELF TO YOU & HELP YOU TO BELIEVE IF YOU DOUBT! DON'T WAIT TO CRY OUT! NO ONE IS PROMISED TOMORROW! HE LONGS FOR YOU TO INVITE HIM IN, HE LOVES YOU MORE THAN ANY PERSON EVER COULD, HE CREATED YOU! Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."-John 14:6 "But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven."-Matthew 10:33 “For the wages of sin is death (hell), but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”-Romans 6:23
I truly appreciate the depth of tone in Elden Ring, you can have both a mythical demi-god who conquered the stars to a standstill and a ridiculous, emaciated horse supporting a hulking brute... _Togethaaa!_
Pretty sure that Melina is a sibling to Miquella & Malenia. It also makes sense then that Miquella gifted the incantation "Triple Rings of Light" to their Father, each Ring representing a sibling.
Although it wasn't brought up, I think it's fun to mention that the Starscourge Greatsword(s) deal 30% more damage against Astel & the Fallingstar Beasts
I can’t wait to see if there will be more demigods / Great Runes introduced to the DLC. It seems like there could be way more and there is much potential.
I find it hard to believe they could release any full DLCs that don't each contain at least one more great rune. I expect there'll be an ending in the last DLC too that requires getting all the great runes, to give a proper story justification for dicking around so much after beating the Elden Beast! I can't imagine they can do much more DLC targeted at the early/mid-game as otherwise people will just be overlevelled afterwards.
I don’t see any world with a morgott ending as he was fully loyal to the erdtree and golden order despite the hate they held for him, he was my favorite character by far though.
This is masterfully made, like most of ur episodes are. im amazed an i hope u know how good u are. u might not FEEL unique but ur ability to make these vid are. ty
Note: Togetha Yes, that was insightful! In addition, during my week fighting Malenia, I was also able to notice that she is, indeed, the Blade of Miquella.
Seeing Miquella I can only think of the Fey: Eternal Young, Bewitching, represented as a blond child (Elden Ring takes a lot of Norse Mythos, the “Light Elves” are represented this way, and they have a lot in common with the Fey of British folklore). Even the concept of “Unalloyed Gold” makes me think of Cold Iron (don’t know if this is real folklore, but cold iron was unalloyed iron) and Iron being an element who drives away a lot of supernatural beings around the world
Elden Ring takes a lot of inspiration from Celtic mythology as well, such as British/Scottish/Irish Folklore. There's a lot of characters who have names of English, Welsh, and Irish origin, amongst other names from other origins.
I like the butterfly theory and I kind of want to expound upon it. We know that all of the children of Radagon & Marika are *wrong* I.E. they were all born afflicted by an outer god. We know Melenia's affliction is from an outer goddess of rot and we can infer that Miquella's affliction is from another outer god, likely one we will learn more about in future DLC. So, if by Vaati's reasoning, Melina is another daughter of the Radagon & Marika, then it stands to reason that she is also afflicted by an outer god, and I think we know which one. Look at the tattoo on her eye. It's the Three Fingers. We also can see burns on the hands of her character model. And if Vaati is right and the smouldering butterflies correspond to Melina I believe the outer god that cursed Melina is the Frenzied Flame, the one fixated on burning the Erd Tree and ending the Golden Order and Cycle of Rebirth. Even the only time she opens her tattooed eye is when player completes the Lord of Frenzied Flame ending, but just like Melenia and Miquella, Melina rejects her outer god, vowing to kill the player character should they try and serve it, favoring instead the continuation of the Golden Order.
In dragon lord Phalanx’s remembrance it mentions a god that the dragons used to worship, and the ancient dragon smithing stone says that it lightly twist time, maybe that’s Miqullela’s outer god
One of my personal favorite theories is that Melina is a reflection of Ranni, the same way Marika and Radagon are one and the same. The way Ranni seems to have a ghost on one side and Melina fits neatly into that space, it mirrors the appearance of Radagon, who looks like half of him is the Elden ring, and half is his champion body. There’s also the way Ranni appears (as the witch Renna) after we meet Melina, and says that she is familiar with Torrent’s former master (likely referring to Melina). Melina and Ranni also represent the two laws, the same way Marika and Radagon do. Marika might have planned for the shattering, but Ranni was the catalyst, representing the law of causality. Melina, on the other hand, searches for a way to mend the damage of Ranni (albeit in a destructive way). She is representing the law of regression, but not by returning to the Erdtree, but by returning to a primordial crucible, restoring the land to what it was before the Erdtree came. It’s kind of out there, and somewhat circumstantial, but it’s a fun theory I think. And if she is an aspect or an other half of Ranni, this also doesn’t mean she wasn’t a sibling of the twins. There are plenty of interpretations there. Also, I have no concrete evidence for this, but I feel as though the twins were children of Radagon and Marika (their separate selves before the shattering) whereas Melina was solely a child of queen Marika, unified in one form after the shattering. That’s why she’s burnt and bodiless, why she never mentions a father, why she was born in the Erdtree.
I love the Melina theory presented at the end. It really does make sense given there are 3 butterflies and the other 2 are clearly related to Malenia and Miquella. Also the humor in your more recent videos has been top notch. I really think you have the perfect amount of laughs in these videos.
The remembrance of Malenia says "Miquella and Malenia are both the children of a single god. As such they are both Empyreans, but suffered afflictions from birth. One was cursed with eternal childhood, and the other harbored rot within." I would assume that if Melina is indeed another child of Marika and Radagon, then she too would be afflicted by some curse, which might explain why she calls herself "burned and bodiless", and why she seems to be seeking her mother in the Erdtree, which, seemingly, could only be Marika.
I disagree. I am still steadfast in the opinion that Melina is the Gloam Eyed Queen. Furthermore she bares a striking resemblance to Ranni who was born of Marika (Radagon) and Renalla
Well, as this video points out, Ranni's blue doll body that she inhabits is modeled after the Snow Witch who tutored her. So it would be more accurate, of anything, so say that Melina greatly resembles the Snow Witch.
When I met Margit/Morgott again in the capital I thought he was extremely similar to Genichiro. They both are a bossfight that teachese you how to play the game and that you meet again in your travel to show the game how much you have grown. I really hope that the Genichiro-type character will become a staple in Fromsoftware games.
Elden Ring also uses Sekiro's story structure where you arrive at the "end" area of the game two thirds through the game (Ashina Castle/ Leyndell Capital), beat a boss (Morgott / Genichiro) then leave to new areas before returning at the end of the game.
After playing for over 100 hours I got some of the lore. Most of it is pretty hard to find like the other souls games. But there was one piece of lore I was able to figure out all on my own. Malenia is the blade of Miquella.
I also believe she has something to do with the scarlet rot, given the fact that she's called the "Goddes of Rot" and she wants my flesh to be consumed by it. Thoughts?
No way...
Man, I'm only 58 hours in and I found out she has never known defeat.
Upon defeat she feels that she finally met her match....
Hm. Im not sold. You got any proof?
Rykard coming in with, "TOGETHAAA!" at the beginning of the Malenia section really made my day hahaha
Yeah, truly masterful editing, that.
I am in tears for this very reason right now 🤣🤣
Laughed out loud hard here. It was unexpected. I was still smiling from the 'note' second earlier.
"No, Rykard, please." 😂
He was mad that his section was so short.
Rykard: "I'm not a fan of the Big Tree."
God-Eating Serpent: "I can help you take it on"
Rykard: "How?"
God-Eating Serpent: "Get in my mouth"
Rykard: "Will that actually work?"
God-Eating Serpent: "Only one way to find out"
Rykard: "Why do they call you God-Eating Serpent again?"
God-Eating Serpent: "No Reason"
Rykard, scholar and judge: "Your logic is impeccable, open up"
@@zenebean 😂 most underated comment here
@@zenebean OK I believe you
Lol
🤣. Best comment on here!!
The addition of the "Note: Togethaaaa" and then whenever together is said after, the dubbing in of rhykard saying togethaaaaa, is just, amazing. Love these videos. (17:52 and 18:00)
At 18:14, when he says together again, you can faintly hear Rhykard in the background again lmao
TOGETHAA
TOGETHAAAAA
@@liqqa2746 This made me crack up when I heard it while watching the video. At first I thought I was hearing things, and then rewound the video and heard it again and cracked up.
These humors put up by Vaatividya out the blue always catch me off guard. One moment I'm concentrating on the lore add up the serious voice and tone, then random shits like this pop up it's really hilarious 😂
sad fact, Godwyn befriended the dragon Fortissax and the two became the best of friends, so much so that they became sworn brothers, Fortissax was the most broken by Godwyns Death, he was in so much pain to the point that he tried to revive his fallen brother, rejuvinating and piecing his soul back and for what seemed like thousands of years, ended up trying to take on Godwyns condition, which Failed and also turned him into a lich dragon. A truly saddening tale of the affects of grief
F
F
F
F
F
Just realized that Godwyn is the nameless king of elden ring, where in dark souls he was cast out for accepting dragons, but outlived most other gods. Meanwhile in elden ring he was praise's for accepting dragons, but killed before any other god
Whenever I see the name Nameless King, I always get flashback from when I fought the boss
The first of the golden order demigods to die. There were gods from prior ages with elden lords and gods.
For a second there, I thought you were saying Godwyn and Nameless King we're the same character, and I was 2 seconds away from just ripping out all of my hair.
@@davidreljac1707 godwyn is velka confirmed
@@davidreljac1707 hey you never know
Godwyn: "Violence is not the answer!"
Horah Loux: "He's right. Violence is the question. The answer is YES!"
Replace Godwyn with Sirosh
this made my day xD
Horah loux just became lelouch vi britania's dad
Tarnished: wait what
Horah proceeds to pile drive you into the ground from 10 feet up
@@undergnomes6248 more like a good 25 lol
Big shoutout to George R.R.R.R.R Martin for giving us Radagon, Rennala, Radahn, Ranni, and Rykard. And big shoutout to Miyazaki for epic characters such as Morgott, Mohg, Merika, Melina, Melania, and Miquella. Truly an epic Elden Ring experience!!
You forgot godwyn and godrick from G
@@53darkknight53godwyn, godrick, godfrey
All the characters start with g, m ,or r for George r r martin
@zedchillman2685 well that's egomaniacal holy shit
@@BMazeing he didn't name the characters himself..........
After learning more about the demigods, I'm kind of sad we didn't get a Rykard or Mohg ending: I'd have loved to 'devour the very gods togethaa,' or eventually replace Mohg and meld our blood with Miquella to bring an Age of Blood.
Maybe in DLC
@@VisualTraining bro it’s a bot saying that💀💀💀
@@anidiot8900 lol I know
There were cut quests and endings. There may have been more endings with those two as well
I would've liked to bring the age of gold.
Godwyn's story is so sad, especially when you take into consideration what happens to Fortissax, a powerful ancient dragon whom he fought, defeated, and then became best friends with. When Godwyn died, Fortissax tried all he could to try and save him, only to become corrupted by Death, forced to forever live a horrible nightmare.
if its any condolence, despite the fact that his efforts to reverse the curse of death that had overcome his battlefield buddy were in vain, fortissax was at least successful in forestalling godwyn's resurrection into the mending rune of the death curse, that is, until a certain would-be-lord tarnished came along
Hohohoho!
A dragon is a dragon even in a dream!
But alas, not too fast.
The nightmare swirls and churns unending!
Nobody gets out of souls lore alive fufilled or happily ever after haha
@@matthewmckee3282 Except Ranni this time or the various Dark Lords in pevious Souls games. Sure some would argue that's not a positive destiny but most players who favor those endings headcanon it into something they are happy with.
@@jshtng78
I'm pretty sure that Ranni a committed a cardinal sin of tampering with the Rune of Death resulting into Godwyn becoming the monstrosity he is despite Marika's attempts into making him into a legit Death-Prince.
However, its only up to your choice whether or not you will trust her but I think everyone understands why Ranni did it or maybe they did it solely because most of the players are beta simps.
I look forward to these videos like I look forward to a new release of my favorite TV series. Well done Vaat!
Same!
That's great! I have a lot of channels that I look forward to like that, so it's great to hear that in return. Respect to your channel as well, great vids
@@VaatiVidya thank you so much man!👊👍
on god
Same, I regularly check Vaati’s channel just in case my notifications aren’t working. Just can’t afford to miss these!
I really like how you noted Malenia's strength and willpower. I feel she's often reduced to "op boss" when her person is really facinating.
Although I feel that's a really good example of gameplay and lore working together: Malenia's a strong boss because she was a strong *person,* so it makes perfect sense that she has the reputation that she does.
@@Stolanis But it doesn't mean that they had to design an attack impossible to dodge lmao.
@@La_Horcait’s not impossible just get good
Also, I've heard a rumor, that she is the blade of Miquella.
@@jacobb3784 It might not be impossible, but it is still bullshit.
I anticipate a lot of people asking why Godrick wasn't in this video - long story short, he justifiably could have been grafted onto it. But the video is long enough already, and if anyone was to be cut, it should be Godrick, who Enia calls "the runt of the litter, his divine blood sorely diluted". So in the end, this video really just focuses on the definition of a Demigod as being the "direct offspring of Queen Marika", as established at 00:00.
What constitutes a "Demigod" could actually be an interesting and lengthy debate. Enia obfuscates the definition, there are supposedly other dead Demigods in the mausoleums, and even Godfrey is called a Demigod in the description of Godrick's Great Rune.
Very fitting to the lore to cut him out tbh 😅😭
Obviously the correct answer is that the video is about demigods, while Godrick is a god.
Ok, but why was the demigod Soldier of Godrick cut from the video then? That one is just baffling.
Come on he could have been mentioned in passing, he was one of the best non bullshit, one move killing u demi god boss. I don't like how people treat him because he was easy, he felt like a well balanced fromsoftware boss not this infinite stamina guys we got. I do get it since this is a lore video and lore wise he isn't too interesting
Do more of story playthrough of Elden ring vaati san, really loved the weeping peninsula episode
Butterfly theory is really interesting.
Great content as always ! 👍👍
I’d pay money to see u do a play through of ering but parrying with one of those curved swords 🗡
ONGBAL should be in one of these lore videos, cause Malenia is googling how to beat him.
The god
I know, the butterfly thing is cool because it means when Margit/Morgott says you're "emboldened by the flame of ambition", he means you're being manipulated by Melina!
Ongbal u chad
The scarlet rot seems modelled after real world apple rust, which is a fungal infection of cedar and apple trees. Even the knotted growths in Caelid look like it, as does the ‘lotus’ like bloom of the scarlet aeonia. And just like how a tree can’t stop the fungal infection without outside help, the Erd Tree/Golden Order seems unable to stop its influence on Malenia, as Miquella found.
Although this theory does not serve much on its own, it definitely becomes much more relevant when taking into consideration the fact that a lot of the game's aesthetic and lore derives from trees - most importantly, the Golden Order literally being a *parasite* that took over the Crucible and taking over the tree that soon became known as the Erdtree. Great spot, I haven't heard of this hypothesis before.
@@ChrisSmith69420 I've always thought that the Scarlet Rot was similar in form to the zombie fungus from The Last Of Us. The parallels, it seems, are not coincidental.
@@Colesign The zombie fungus from The Last of Us, known in game as the Cordyceps Brain Infection, is itself based on a real-life parasitic fungus: Ophiocordyceps unilateralis (it even shares a genus name). If both the inspirations are from real-life fungus infections, it's unsurprising there's similarities.
Another weird detail; the scarlet rot is visually inspired from fungal growths. Fungus spores can survive the vacuum of space. Beneath the Lake of Rot, is a form of Astel, said to have crashed down in the Lands Between from outer space, long ago.
🤔
did you also notice that the omen horns look similar to a rust?
Amazing content, you add so much depth to the game for those of us who can't piece the story together ourselves.
piece the story TOGETHAAA
How to give donation like this? UA-cam premium?
@@erlkonigschubert no there's like a thanks button somewhere next to the "like" button.
Mohg's character design actually does an immense amount of work in telling his story visually.
Mohg, unlike his Brother, saw his accursed blood as a blessing rather than a curse. He fanatically worships the formless mother, as she blessed him due to his curse.
This is visually communicated by Mohg's curse growing unchecked on his body. Rather than shave down horns in places where it'd be inconvenient to have them grow, Mohg has allowed his horns to grow to the point where one is sprouting from between his fingers and Another digs into his eye. He is blinded by fanatical belief in his blessing, literally.
That's such an interesting detail!!
Amazing point!
He's literally putting more 'points' in faith...
I'll see myself out....
I saw an interesting post a while ago that also pretty much said the same thing, but also mentioned that the horn piercing his eye might also be growing right into his brain, making him even more crazy
@@SL709-h1t “more crazy” huh, I kinda liked Mohg and thought he had some good points.
I just love how these pieces of software created a whole community to play, create and discuss theories; it's just a nice thing to do... TOGETHAAAA
Vague storytelling is best storytelling 😤
TOGETHAAAAAAA
That's because we're all FAMILYYYYYYYYYyyyyyy 🐍
@@isranios agreed.
TOGETHA WE SHALL DEVOUR EVERY (ELDEN RING) VODS
Sudden thought: cursed children have horns when they are born. It's entirely possible that mothers of such children may not survive the birthing process, or at least not as often. So the Omen may also have the association of death of the mothers.
Damn I didn't think about that. It would explain a lot.
I see it now.
by god it mustve hurt
Poor Marika...
Was wincing at the thought of giving birth to a baby covered in horns during the omen twin segment but didn’t put this together. Makes total sense though.
You can see George R.R. Martin's affect on the story. The other Fromsoft stories have royal families but in Elden Ring they're very dynamic and all have unique relationships with each other. All with their own ambitions.
Do they have relationships with their siblings tho?
And a lot of incest
@@davidkrch5382miquella and mohg
effect*
@@roseolivas08welp.
It seems like Radhan's story is kinda based around stalemate. Not just with Malenia, but he had a torn alliance between his own family and what he admired. As Radagon's son, and someone that idolized Godrick, he would be aligned with the golden order. But as Rennala's son, and brother to Ranni (seemingly on good terms) he would be aligned to the Carian loyal line. He may have known that Ranni's fate would result in either the destruction of the Golden order or his family. So, instead, he chose to lock them in stalemate by holding back the stars, and ensuring the survival of both.
That's a sad way to look at it.
I think he fought Malenia because she was searching for Miquella. Radahn’s boos fight arena is above Mohgwyn palace. Radahn was likely defending his homeland,
@@0ptimuscrime Actually, Malenia died thinking Miquella was in the Haligtree. She didn't go to Caelid searching for Miquella. She did it for power. Great Runes. However, you're right in that Radahn was only defending his homeland. The battle took place in Aeonia after all, which is right outside of Sellia where he studied and grew up.
He idolized Godfrey, not Godrick.
@@ssss6572 one of the guys with the God names, whatever.
I must say I really like Morgott, he seems to be kind of a family person to me. I mean he is guarding the entry to Godrick and sure it could be because Godrick is weak, but they are family, so maybe he is there to defend his family. Morgott even calls Godrick "The Golden" rather than "The Grafted". Also in the throne room, someone is putting those chairs in the arena, a chair for each but the two Omens, perhaps he hopes the rest of his family will cease their ambitions and aim to be a peaceful familiy.
I can just see him phoning up the rest to ask over for familiy meal:
"Hey Mogh, you got time, right?" "Sorry, I am plotting" *click*
"Hey Male..." "I am Malenia, Blade of" *click*
"So, Rykard, still wants to eat the gods?" "TOGETHER!!!" *click*
...
"Guess it is just me and a phantom image of my dad... again..."
I also find it interesting he is called the "Grace-Given" and that the symbols of the omen 'curse' are lacking when he dies. Perhaps the Greater Will, The Erdtree or something else with the power of giving grace actually cared about him in the end.
i always thought the same, i hate killing him because i feel bad for him
@@masternod Morgott did have faith in the Golden Order which in turn meant he had faith in the Greater Will and forsook his omen blood thereby creating his titular black curved greatsword. Still pretty interesting to theorize that some other outer god took pity on him and provided grace to him, resulting in his “Grace-given” title. 👍
*Morgott:* Hi, uh...this is Morgott. Listen, if you're not still sore about that whole siege thing, how about we order a Pizza? Pizza... it's like grafting right? You put some ingredients here, some over there, and the whole fjing is, like, greater than the sum of it's parts, right?
*Godrick:* You're dead to me.
(Click)
*Morgott:* Ranni? You still there? Listen, I have a coupon for Firehouse Subs. Two-for-one kind of deal, I could add in your mother if she--
(Click)
*Morgott:* Yo, Radahn, my man. If you're not too busy, we could try hitting that new Mongolian Grill tonight. They're hosting these new hot pot--
*Jerren:* I'm sorry, but who is this?
*Morgott:* Who am...who are you?
*Jerren:* Look, Radahn's not here right now. He's...uh...busy...busy with army things.
(Distinct sounds of agonized screams and chewing in the background)
*Morgott:* Okay, look. It's his brother. Well, half-brother, I guess. Look, if he comes around, can you give him the address?
*Jerren:* Yeah, sure, I'll get right on it. I just need to--
(Loud bangs in the background, an explosion followed by audible cursing)
(Click)
*Morgott:* ...
*Mohg:* Brother...
*Morgott:* Mohg...I thought this was Miquella's number
*Mohg:* Is it? I think you may have dialed mine by mistake
*Morgott:* (sigh) Look, if he's with you, can you ask if he's available for a family dinner? I know you're usually up for these things.
*Mohg:* Oh, yes, I will certainly tell him.
*Morgott:* Thanks, Mohg. You're the best. Hey, speaking of Miquella, have you--
(Click)
@@davidhong1934 "...perhaps he hopes the rest of his family will cease their ambitions..."
I can just picture them ordering pizzas and after they've all had their share, they realize that only one piece is left and Morgott already has the box open.
Morgott: "Foul family members, in search of the last slice. Put these foolish ambitions to rest."
[muffled DEVOUAAAA in the distance]
Radahn is truly a legend. Plagued with rot and still had the focus to keep the stars away.
Fr man. He deserved the honourable death that he got in the end
And not eat his horse! Legend!
and he has a soft side for his scrawny bff
He didn't mind rotting to death but people talking shit about his horse where he drew the line
@@tyroneegure6155 that’s what I love about miyazaki he gives the characters all depth even the most fucked up characters aren’t mindless they have their own Philosophy for what they do
After the DLC, it’s clear now that the Omen are so hated by the Golden Order because Marika hated the hornsent for what they did to her people.
I think Melina has to be the sibling of Malenia and Miquella. All the other siblings come in threes. Her name starts with an M. All of them are afflicted (including Melina, if she’s afflicted with fire). In addition, her hair is pink, a combination of Radagon/Malenia’s red and Marika/Miquella’s white.
It's not "Malenia". It's "Malenia, Blade of Miquella".
It's not "Malenia, Blade of Miquela". It's "I am Malenia, Blade of Miquela. And i have never know defeat".
I think her true body is the one that appears in the frenzied flame ending, in which she has black hair. Knowing FromSoft there's about a dozen explanations for that probably though.
I never thought of it that way since Malenia and Miquella are always just referred to as twins
Melina might well be a fragment of Ranni. We see her second eye open in the Frenzied Flame ending, and it's the same colour as Ranni's.
So from the sound of it, the Stars knew Ranni's destiny of overthrowing Marika, and therefore the Golden Order. So the star that crashes to the earth and reveals the Enternal City was meant to crash much sooner to assist her in this task.
However, due to Radahn's faith in the Erdtree and the Golden Order, he must have conquered the stars to prevent that very thing from occurring.
Damn, I fricking love this game's lore lol
Is it also possible that he did it to protect the sellians from the starbeasts and beings like astel?
And then there’s the more meta implications of that lore.
The idea that Radahn is consumed by rot while he halts the natural progression and changing of order by locking fate in place, all for the love of what came before. I think it’s no coincidence that a being who is consumed by rot is the being who withholds fate. After all we now know what rot represents in these games. It’s the stagnation and ruin of what was once beautiful being held on to for too long.
notice how in the initial trailer the elden ring also claimed to have "conquered the stars"
@@planet_macee The description on the telescope says that the golden order stopped the progression of the fate of the stars.... which implies that they ordered Radahn to do it.
@@Ω3103ζ not conquered. Commanded.
Another thing about Melina possibly being connected to Malenia and Miquella is that her armor set, the traveler's set, is found right outside Malenia's arena, next to the other bloom of scarlet rot (it's also the armor set that Millicent wears, just without the bloodstains).
It was pretty obvious and clear from the get go, that they are connected. They emphasized connected individuals through the specific naming throughout the whole game.
Also Melina adresses Marika as her mother.
I wonder if Millicent and Melina are a different set of twins or if they’re just siblings
@@hotmessmasta Millicent is Malenia's daughter. Melina is (almost certainly) Marika's daughter. Thus, Melina is the aunt of Millicent, and in no conceivable way her sister.
Melina's hair seems to be both a red and blonde representing radagon and marika respectively
@@extendedwarranty3335 If Melina is the sibling of Melania and Miquella, that would make her an empyrean like them.
Given what we know about Melina’s title as the “Kindling maiden”, the fact her original body was burned away, her connection to the smouldering butterflies, her knowledge of the Frenzied Flame and the fact the tatoo under her left eye is meant to represent the 3 Fingers, The God that she contained within her was most likely the Frenzied Flame itself.
I really appreciate the little notes Vaati puts at the bottom of the screen sometimes; at 17:52, for instance, he adds a really insightful little tibdit that really adds depth to the explanation of Rykard's lore!!
In support of the “Fire Butterfly theory/Melina is a sibling.” One of the first things I noticed during my initial playthrough was the scarring on Melina’s body. Her hands in particular are covered in burn scars, as if she was set aflame from an early age. Maybe she became the kindling, because that’s what she always was. Love the lore Vaati! Stellar as always.
Glad someone mentioned this
She mentions she is formless and her body is burnt too
It makes sense, then, why she hates the Frenzied Flame so much. It's yet another outer god meddling with stuff, and assuming she was born afflicted like her siblings maybe she was vulnerable to its influence, but hates it like Malenia hates the Scarlet Rot.
@@drtrollaux I agree, one of the things I had also considered was the “missing” eye that both Melina and Ranni have. We know that both Radigon and Marina have “sore seals that burn with the effects of the Elden Ring. It would make sense then that Melina and Ranni would “remove” their respective eyes, basically stripping themselves of their Empyrean birthright. No concrete evidence, but just a hunch. Melina would’ve removed hers to become the Kindling to burn the Erdtree, and Ranni would’ve removed hers when she destroyed herself to spite the Greater Will. Would love some discourse on this!
I also support it because it brings Marika's children up to a consistent set of 3 with each father.
Miquella also wanted to rid himself and his sister of their curses via the Haligtree. This is why Malenia was there, why there appears to be two trees sprouting from one base and one is “incomplete”, while the other is riddled with scarlet rot.
Yes also Mohg, Miquellas half brother stole him from the haligtree and attempted to wed him in order to become Consort to Miquella and establish a new age, since Miquella is an empyrean and thus can turn to a god, and is said to be the closest empyrean to god hood. although Mohg may have been mislead by his outer god guide the Formless Mother as Miquella posed a threat to all outer gods due to his unalloyed gold stopping all outer gods, so the Formless Mother may have lead Mohg to the kidnapping. But regardless when Mohg kidnapped Miquella from the wounded Malenia due to her wounds from Radahn, he stopped the Haligtrees growth, making it incomplete. Also due to Miquella's bewitching charm Mohg became truly smitten with him, and no longer wanted him just to establish his own order and truly "cares" for Miquella, in a fucked up way, I mean Mohg is Miquellas much older half brother, soooooooo incest pedo goatman is obviously fucking horrible.
so Mogh basically ruined Miquella's plan to help his sister by kidnapping him out ?
@@dyppityjoop5912 Family, right? smh
Perhaps that's why Malenia keeps saying she's the Blade Of Miquella? To remind herself of her true purpose, and not letting her fall completely into the clutches of the outer god.
She prolly left to fight radahn for his rune, as it protects against the rot, in an effort to help cure her rot.
Remember that, when Radhan falls, and the stars move again, a star IMMEDIATELY strikes the Lands Between in Limgrave. The self defense part could be justified as that would mean he was preventing meteor storms from flattening the Lands Between
What an absolute chad Radhan was... Casually halting stars in the sky just to protect the world... No big deal.
Lands between was still "ok" after killing Radahn. Gravity Magic and stars are not the ultimate magic that can destroy everything like you are implying.
@@coyzor Yeah but they do call down giant aliens that can level entire cities, so probably best not to let them rain down willy nilly.
@@pdragon619 Demi gods and even Tarnished can take care of them. now thats canon not a theory
@@coyzor But gravity was always the ultimate boss in FromSoftware games 😂
When looking at how Radagon and Renalla’s offspring all began with the letter R and Marika’s began with M I realised that the parents of the demigods have the initials G (Godfrey), R (Renalla), R (Radagon), M (Marika) - George R. R. Martin.
Technically Rennala’s offspring start with the “Ra” sound as in Radagon and not “Re” sound
@@lolosh99 yeah but the point is the initial letter and not the sound
Game Theory trying to make (some) of his theories make sense be like:
Vravo bince
And what about Godwyn? Where does he fit in?
It makes perfect sense that unalloyed gold is resistant to rot, as it parallels gold's inertness in real life. One of the reason why gold is so valued is its resistance to decay, which makes it ideal for protective plating to resist against the elements, making it very much in demand in sensitive electronics.
And wedding bands! It’s unreactive to water, and the oils of the human skin, so it’s good for bands and jewelry.
@@monroerobbins7551 and for long term investments. In our country, gold jewellery is not just decorative, it's also an investment. Families usually hoard jewelleries and exchange them in marriages as future investments thanks to their long lasting capabilities.
I think this metaphor also extends to the Golden Order, presumably called that because it was supposed to last eternally - but, just as Unalloyed Gold was unable to stop Malenia from becoming the Goddess of Rot, the Golden Order was eventually ended in the Shattering (although the player can reinstate it if they want).
I feel like this is a common theme in Fromsoft games: anything that tries to last forever or become immortal is ultimately seen as unnatural and causes great evil and suffering and must eventually be brought to an end, like the Age of Darkness ending in DS3, or how the goal of Sekiro is to cut the ties of immortality. The Rot beating Unalloyed Gold is kind of symbolic of this; the Rot in its capacity as decay and rebirth beating something that is supposed to remain pure and eternal.
@@Stolanis wrong.
Golden order cannot last precisely because it alloyed itself with outside force.
Renalla, Ancient Dragon, Crucibles, Omen.
Those aren't part of of golden order but they befriend the dragons, allow Godfrey knights as their servants, and even put an Omen in charge of Lyndell.
From just Marika and maliketh, they alloyed aspect that is now considered as enemy or unwanted to their ranks.
It's the alloyed gold if anything.
Gold sucks as armor or weaponry. That explains why her hand keeps falling off!
According to a veterinary student friend of ours, Malenia and Miquella's cursed illnesses are similar to exaggerations of deformities produced by inbreeding. A kind of Impism, in which the person remains physically juvenile for the rest of their lives but continues to grow mentally, and excessive tumors or scarlet rot from gaps and overlapping dna sequences/alleles. Could the curses be a punishment from the greater will for marika mating with herself?
Underrated comment
I'm thinking that it's not punishment from the greater will but rather that their inbreeding left them vulnerable to the influences of outer gods like the scarlet rot. To me it wouldn't really make sense for the greater will to punish malenia by making her a vessel for a rival outer god.
imo both are represent of Duality of Broken, Fractured World.
Abundance and Decays.
@@glockenspiel604 maybe he just wanted to nerf them but other outer gods yoinked them
Morgot and Mogh are cursed as well. I think it is safe to say that Marika herself is somewhow cursed as well. Only Godwyn seems like the normal one (i mean before...you know).
When he mentioned “Malenia - Blade of Miquela” many times in a row, we all felt that.
Hahahahah how the fuck are you already here man. Please go take a breath of fresh air im worried about you
After about 50 deaths, I just kept responding, "I know... I get it..."
Yup
You will witness true HORROR
No.
Not enough.
Not NEARLY enough.
first 20 seconds shows us that Vaati is more than just a lore guy, he is a gamer, he is one of us, i was in a different tab when he said Malenia, Blade of Miquella, I repeated it out loud, and then he does it too for the same reasons. Its why everyone loves this guy, hes on the same wavelength as us. So genuine lol
this just in, guy who spends a lot of time talking about lore of games is gamer.
@@RenatoRegalado you'd be surprised when things like game journalists exist
i was just telling my bro this. she was a worldwide problem. the entire community was in shambles.
I am damn sure we will be getting a "miquella's" dlc. He is such a mysterious and interesting character that it would be such a waste not to dive deeper into his character and his ambitions.
I agree completely. Not the first time From's teased an immensely powerful character who'd appear later in DLC. Miquella could well be Elden Ring's Artorias in that regard. Like Artorias, he's a legendary and influential figure that you managed to never fight in the main game.
Can't wait to put those foolish ambitions to rest.
The church of sol reveals a darker side of Miquella. I really want to know what Miquella is hiding…who was his outer god peer pressure?
I would love Miquella DLC but I think we're getting Gloam Queen DLC
@@solairesolalalalalemon1198 an outer god who cursed him with eternal youth hmm, that's an interesting curse, there are so many mysteries that a future dlc could cover...
What could also possibly support the theory that Melina is indeed, a daughter of Marika is one of her Marika's quotes - "In Marika's own words. Hear me, Demigods. My children beloved. Make of thyselves that which ye desire. Be it a Lord. Be it a God. But should ye fail to become aught at all, ye will be forsaken. Amounting only to sacrifices...". The sacrifice might actually refer to Melina here. If the theory is correct, the rest of her could-be-siblings are on and all famous and significant, while she's the unknown drowned in obscurity. Haven't this tidbit being brought up anywhere, so i thought it was worth mentioning.
Such a good point, thanks for sharing this
Why do you think most demigods and omens name starts with either M, R or G?
It's to literally indicate to whom they descent from. They all come Marika, Radagon, Godfrey or Renna (moonwitch sry if I got her name wrong ).
While Melina to me is highly likely to be marikas daughter or a shard of her given form I think the forsaken comment is about the mausoleums. They are soulless demigods and quoted as marikas unwanted children. It's highly likely they were demigods that fell during the shattering trying to gain power as they had guards so loyal they committed suicide to guard them eternally. Not likely a miscarried baby would hold such loyalty
@@corybaxter7406 M-R-G or G-R-M, George-RR-Martin
@@doktordaxter Coincidence...? I THINK NOT!
There were quite a few things in this that I really did not think about, particularly Melina's connection to the butterflies, and Godwyn participating in the war against dragons. I really liked this one. Looking forward to future videos!
One can only phantom how mighty and powerful Godwyn was, he literally conquered and defeated the strongest and the mightiest of all dragons, but to add more to his allure, he befriended him instead .. talk about badass.. just the idea of Fromsoft making a DLC about him and making his legend a reality, thats quite something!
@@r4ymac329 Honestly, when I did not know this I was like, "okay he died, whatever." Now knowing he is a complete badass makes me like him a lot more. A DLC exploring more about him, death, and the dragons would be awesome!
@@koenkohrt1531 DLC exploring Godwyn, yeah that kind of DLC I want (literally exploring, as walking in his insides).
I know, the butterfly thing is cool because it means when Margit/Morgott says you're "emboldened by the flame of ambition", he means you're being manipulated by Melina!
@@monsieurdorgat6864 Very interesting.
26:13 So, now that the DLC trailer is out, the Smoldering Butterfly is clearly referring to Messmer, right? So, he is a lost brother of both Melenia and Miquella.
That‘s what I thought as well!
He could be the unborn demigod mentioned in context with the mausoleums. Could be Marika was unable to give birth to him or chose not to after having miquella and Malenia. The first step of her rebellion against the Greater will
I can respect the mighty Gransax. He has a really cool spear and he taught Lyndel some humility.
Lyndel:WE ARE UNSTOPPABLE!
grandax:...are you sure about that
Gigachad Gransax
@@assistoteles69 i think you mean Gigachad Gransexy
@@xxcringe_lordxx1159 my bad you’re right
The painting at the end gives such vibes of a young Radagon’s adventures with Torrent. It would make sense as to why he belongs to Melina at the beginning, Radagon wanted to give the next destined Lord his steed to assist.
You know, now that I think about it Miquella was the unalloyed gold needle for the Haligtree. Once he was removed Time/Rot did its work on the tree.
Miquella fed the tree with his blood which was basically a fountain of youth. It just never was a natural tree and couldn't survive without this outside influence
19:50 It's always struck me as sort of comical how in lore there's no cure, but mechanically there's two, three if you count having enough healing ability to wait it out.
I mean imagine how annoying it would be if all of these statuses worked exactly like they are described in lore. Imagine using Flame of Frenzy one too many times and having a playthrough marked by out of control madness buildup because the madness of the three fingers is supposed to be a permanent affliction to which clarifying boluses offer fleeting relief from. Imagine getting hit with ANY source of rot buildup and just being stuck with it like Milicent and Malenia's Cleanrot Knights.
@@rainestar6781 I understand that from a gameplay standpoint it would be a bad idea to make statuses as nasty as they fictionally are, but I still think it's funny how there's a whole quest to find a magical artifact that can do something which is otherwise impossible even for the gods, and then there's literally a miracle which requires barely above average faith to do the same thing to yourself.
@@stevenneiman1554 I mean, it’s not the same. A simple spell can’t stop an ending.
@@stevenneiman1554 The unalloyed gold needle doesn't remove scarlet rot, it merely forestalls it. From its item description:
"A ritual implement crafted to ward away the meddling of outer gods, it is thought capable of forestalling the incurable rotting sickness."
And anyways, scarlet rot is supposed to take a very long time to rot these godly beings. How many years have Radahn and Malenia fought against it? Given the time span from starting the game to finishing it, it would make sense for the rot to have not started properly eating away at the tarnished imo. The scarlet rot that kills you in seconds could be seen as some extreme and immediate exposure that you can fight against with miracles etc.
But more than anything like you say there is a divide between what makes sense mechanically and what makes sense lorewise. Though it would be freakin cool lorewise to be actually infested with slow scarlet rot.
@@theWebWizrd Ok, that's a fair point and does spoil my thought about how cool it would be if you could shiv Radahn with the needle, but it kinda makes it even more ridiculous that you have to go on a several-part quest to find a magic item which is a literal downgrade from a 12-Faith miracle. Personally, my take on why the ailment doesn't work like the lore is that something about Tarnished nature gives them a self-destructive kind of immunity. Sort of like how if you're vaccinated Covid will make you more miserable, but it'll be over in days with much less risk of long-term harm. Or possibly the Tarnished is just weaker than a demigod so it does kill them quickly but recovering through the failure of destined death doesn't keep the rot.
It made sense that when Margit said "smoldering with thy meagre flame", he might be referencing Melina as the flame that would eventually burn down the Erdtree. In Leyndell, Melina is no longer that "meagre flame" as she fights alongside you.
I think this needs more exposure
You cut the quote
He says "meagre flame of ambition" referencing the grace of gold from the tarnished
@@mrkrakengodego8830 you have the wrong quote, he says "smouldering with thy meagre flame" after his fight in Stormveil, and later in his outer-Leyndell encounter he says "smouldering with thy wretched flame of ambition."
Oh I have a flame alright
*Destroys Morgott with Burn, O Flame*
@@cryptcarts oh yeah i forgot
I was really hoping for a age of blasphemy ending or age of the serpent, that and an age of blood would be incredible, I’m not an invader mainly but they deserve a cool ending.
@@Call_Upon_YAH Hey, did you know you’ve wasted a vast portion of your life blindly believing in a blatantly illogical and irrational crock if horseshit that isn’t gonna save you in the end? Don’t coax others into your sad life of lies just so you can feel like you have a purpose
@@Call_Upon_YAH seems pretty basic compared to the elden ring lore idk man, world building seems lacking
@@Call_Upon_YAH to be honest plenty of faiths follow the trinity, even many real world inspirations come from it or direct Christianity.
Your best hope is for a scholar of the first sin-like version after all the additional content is released. Adding new endings, and maybe some changes to enemy displacements (I.E. late game mobs)
They should add an ending related to each of the outer gods.
For instance. We already have an ending for the Dark Moon, the Frenzied Flame and multiple endings for the Greater Will.
There should be an ending for the Formless Mother, perhaps even working with Mohg. And also an ending where you work alongside Rykard and attempt to devourer the Erdtree itself or something.
If the other demigod siblings are born in 3's, then it holds up that Melina would also be a child of Radagon and Marika to complete the trio of Miquella, Malenia and Melina.
I just realized, each of the demigods comes in sets of 3 (if the Melina theory is true) the Brains, the Brawn, and the Weird one
Brains: Morgott, Ranni, and Miquella
Brawn: Godwyn, Radahn, and Malenia
Weird: Mohg, Rykard, and (possibly) Melina
Or golden liniage carian royal and 1 god
the brains, the brawn, and the absolute balls that it takes to burn the erdtree, become snakefood, etc
Now, bear with me, but what if Melina is Marika's and one of the Fire Giant's offspring? We know that the Fire Giant was not killed, rather defeated. What if Melina, who's purpose is to serve as kindling for burning the Erdtree is a part of Marika's plan? We know Melina's dailogue when you try to become the Lord of Frenzied Flame ,"Do not deny the world of its life". And we know that part of Marika's plan is for the world to endure, to suffer, to advance, to learn?
@@slimey143 Brains, Brawn and Balls
@@jewrajkachehal marika got that GRC, giant red co-
Vaati, I just love how you sneak in those jokes. They punch a little harder because your not expecting it. You seem like your having fun and I really like that. :)
I really hope that the dlc expands on melina, she feel like the only character who we're still missing some crucial information about. Even with Miquela, we broadly know who and what he is, and what his relations to the other major characters are. Melina is this weird enigma, who knows a lot about seemingly everything, but noone else ever even mentions her
From all the lore videos of ER I've watched it seems Melina is the Gloam-Eyed Queen and the oldest of all of Marika's kids who died before the Golden Order was even founded and they were born. That explains why she's so mysterious and knows so much but hardly anyone else mentions her, she's been gone long before the modern era and only got brought back as a spirit recently as apart of Marika's grand plan to undo her own order and remove the influence of the Greater Will from the world.
@@IsaiahX7-13 i guess that kind of adds up, but i don't see how that makes sense in terms of Melinas moyivations. There's also the fact that she talks about her mother and Marika, as if they're 2 different people. It's very possible that she just doesn't want us to know that Marika is her mother, but since we don't really understand her motivations, that's still mostly speculation.
If she is the Gloam-eyed queen, i hope the dlc confirms it in some way, if only just by having an item that connects Melina and the Godskin in some way
@@leonjakobsen272 That's just her using the same general vague or cryptic wording that lots of characters in the game love to use. The game files say she is Marika's daughter and she says her mom is in the Erdtree so its certainly her. I think the Flame of Frenzy Ending makes it pretty obvious she's the queen without saying it imo.
As for Marika herself, there's no way to 100% know her actual reasoning or motivations. All we know is that she lost faith in her Order at some point, assisted Ranni in her quest to bring the Age of the Stars, brought back Melina's spirit with the purpose to be used as kindling to burn the Erdtree while helping the Tarnished, and made the Tarnished and set them on the path to leave the Lands Between, get stronger, and come back to slay the Elden Beast. There's like a bunch of NPC dialogue and item descriptions that all directly say or suggest this.
That's why a lot of people say Ranni's ending is the best ending, not just cause they're simping, but because her ending seems to be the only one that aligns with Marika's plan and is the best for the world.
@@IsaiahX7-13 Marika's plan is madness, she gone out of control because her son godwyn died, that's even the reason why she shattered the elden ring, and also i dont think Ranni's ending is good either, age of the stars still rely on the stars which is an outside entity, the only ending that is best for the world is goldmask, his perfect order explained that the order is trash because of the meddling of outer gods, so he made a transcendent rune where the lands between will be govern fully by the humans and not some outside entities that manipulate humans, hence it was called "perfect"
@@allenbermejo3424 Everything Ranni said in that story trailer was vague and cryptic though. The game makes it clear that Marika had a grand plan with multiple players that led to her shattering the Ring outside of simply her grief for Godwyn. The game also suggests that Marika assisted Ranni in Godwyn's assassination anyway, so he definitely wasn't the main reason.
The Age of Stars is good, as the Dark Moon is not an Outer God. The Moon was simply a "guide" for the Stars before in the past that carry the fate of the Carian royal family. Ranni literally sacrificed her own body to get rid of the Greater Will's influence, had the assistance of her brother Rykard in her plot who also wanted a world freed from Gods, and chose to leave the Lands Between in her ending for a reason. So, her being loyal to another Outer God would go against her whole character and wouldn't make sense.
Everything she said makes it clear she wanted a world where the races of the Lands Between are freed from Gods entirely. The Golden Order is reformed into an Order of Moon and Stars that leaves the world with the Tarnished and Ranni: therefore, no one can be influenced or misled by them in any way. The Age of Order may not be "bad" but so long as the Golden Order, Elden Ring, and Erdtree exist people will always to some extent be influenced by Gods where as there is none of that in Ranni's. That's why hers is still better imo, and hers fulfills Marika's plan.
That Miquella and Malenia segment was beautiful Vaati, you really captured how much love the siblings had for one another and how far Miquella would go to save his Sister.
There's also the unknown Demigods held within the Walking Mausoleums that aren't really talked about all that much that fascinate me. I think all we know is that one was Miquella's companion and the other may have been an unwanted child of Marika, but it's still some fascinating stuff.
I mean they could all be part of the golden lineage
well I guess now we know who is the unwanted child
I really wish Melania and Miquella had their own ending in the game, burn the erdtree and plant a new superior haligtree as the other one was not able to be fully grown. A pivotal part of their ending could be maybe offering the unalloyed needle to Melania and revealing the location of her brother as Mogh kidnapped him
Nah she gonna Life steal you before you could even say a word
26:35 The most likely theory is that Melina is Ranni's other half, possibly the same way that Radagon is Marika's, or something similar. Or a partial rebirth, or created from part of her soul. Melina is the daughter of Marika, but don't forget Radagon is Marika.
Consider that the previous two butterflies are associated with Empyreans. The third Empyrean was Ranni.
Melina says that she is "burned and bodyless". Ranni's empyrean body was burned by the black flames of destined death and killed.
Ranni's soul body matches Melina's model perfectly and the eye marks combine to create a five-taloned claw. When they fade away they also fade in the same style or blue glitters.
You make a good point, but remember that the Ranni we see is modelled after the north witch that taught Ranni, not her true self. I think that Melina is daughter only to Marika (and not Marika and Radagon, even of they are the same) and was created after Marika’s punishment inside the Erdtree. Moreover, Melina only mentions a mother and that she was born inside the Erdtree, where Marika is confined.
@@lucaortolani2059 Ranni's doll body being modeled after her mentor doesn't contradict anything I said.
When Melina mentions that she is "bodiless," then is she also speaking as if she is literally Ranni in that moment? Melina herself has a body, albeit a burned one (perhaps due to the black flames you mentioned). Ranni is the one without an actual body, hence the puppet her soul houses. It wouldn't make sense (unless I'm missing something) why Melina would say she is bodiless unless she and Ranni are connected beings, right? Basically unsure how else to interpret Melina saying she is "bodiless" unless it's because she and Ranni share a consciousness in some way during the events of the game.
@@lucaortolani2059 "Ranni's _soul body_ matches Melina's model perfectly"
Yes, the puppet is fashioned after the snow witch, but the ethereal soul form that is half merged with Ranni's puppet face, however, is not. Mainly because it's an ethereal soul form.
This is an interesting theory.
I do like this alternative one slightly better:
Melina is born after the Elden Ring is shattered, born to Maragon/Radika - hence the purpose her mother spoke to her of; hence her purpose being to burn the Erdtree.
However, the one you propose does make sense, an I find either theory acceptable.
There is so much we dont know about Melina. Why does she have so much resemblance to Ranni? both of them are bodiless too. Is the purpose she speaks of to seek out judge & guide Marika's next elden lord? She's been burned before, & is visibly scarred. Did she attempt to guide Vyke to the elden throne, only for him to refuse to burn her and seek the frenzied flame? When she speaks to you at the lost grace's closest to it she almost sounds panicked and desperate, and she knows a great deal about the 3 fingers. Why does she have the move set of a black knife assassin, linking her again to Ranni? WHy do both Melina and Ranni know Torrent?? Why's Torrent seen as such a good judge of character?
For me the biggest mystery about Melina is her fighting style. It's almost identical to the black night asassins. And a clear connection between her and Rani through Torrent (what is it nature?!) make me believe that Melina played a key role in the murder of Godwyn.
Can't wait for DLC.
Well, I really liked Vaati's theory on Melina, so, following the theory:
1.- They took after their shared father, Radagon
2.- Ranni killed her body to sever her fate from the 2 finger's. As for Melina, perhaps that was her curse? One cursed with eternal childhood, other with rot and she was "born like this, burned and bodyless"
3.- Well, this one she tells us herself: she doesn't know her purpose, only after reaching Leyndell she knows what she must be (kindling)
4.- I dont think shes necessarily related to Vike, there are many other Maidens, but you do make good points, she really does seem to know what will happen if a Tarnished embraces the 3 fingers
5.- I bet Ranni is Torrent's "last owner", when she lived. As for how It got to Melina's Hands... Maybe a gift? Idfk lol
@@Grigorii-j7z Lets not forget that all Black Knife Assassins are woman, so yeah :D
But, have you seen what she does if she dies during the Morgott fight? Shes deffinitely more linked to the tree rather than against it i'd say
My theory is that Melina was born from whatever will existed with the rune of death used to kill Rannis body. This allowed it to take a likeness that we could assume would match Rannis true body, as it was still on body when we meet her.
@@thefulcrum4466 Melina clearly mentions she has a mother, and from her actions it seems more likely that her mother is Marika. Also, Melina's hair is clearly a shade between blonde (Marika and Miquella) and red (Radagon, Malenia).
These videos are all absolutely mind-blowing. I can't believe I've only just discovered your channel after months of obsessively watching Elden Ring videos! Thank you so much for making these!
I've discovered them a couple of days ago. They are indeed exceptional. I love the Lord of Frenzied Flame the most.
Love how you meme on Rykard's voice XD
*"TOGETHAA"*
TOGETHAAAA WE WILL MEME ABOUT RYKAAARDGGHHH
In the lake of rot their is a dagger that gives some more info on the outer god of rot. Seemingly created from its tail the outer god took the form of a Scorpion before being ultimately sealed away by the blind swordsman
the strange thing is that Astel reminds me a scorpion.
Of course they are two different entities, but i don't think that it is a casuality.
I like to think the Blue Dancer chop up the outer god into pieces and spread them around the lake of Rot. Then the Prawn people found the tail piece and start worshipping it
@@francescofrancescato1251 I mean, so does a certain other creature from the Cosmos, this one in gold. It would be more surprising for them to look different, than for them to look the same
@@EvlNinjadude who are you referring at?
@@francescofrancescato1251 elden beast
I definitely appreciate how you refrain from overindulging in conjecture. And when you do guess things, they are clearly labeled as such.
One minor nitpick:
"All of these Demigods had fallen from grace by the time the shattering had occurred."
Both Enia, when asked about Great Runes, and Melina, when resting at the Capital Outskirts, seems to express that the Demigods didn't fall from grace until the stalemate. Which is when grace was extended to us.
The original intent was for one of them to become either God or Lord.
I guess it depends on how you define grace.
In Marika's eyes, I think the demi god's were never to be seen as the heir to radagon. This is because she could easily help Godwyn, on account of his character and birth, miquella and malenia, on account of being empyreans, or Radahn on account of being the mightiest of the demigods, she could have helped any of them in the shattering to become elden lord, but did not.
That goes double if the theory that she plotted with Ranni to murder Godwyn is true. (There is significant and fairly compelling evidence for this, although ofc, is still largely conjecture).
The golden order did only abandon the demi god's (at least we are told as much) after the shattering. The opening narrator says, "a war leading to abandonment by the greater will." Which seemingly suggests this.
So, the demigods fell from Marika's grace long ago (or at least with godwyns death, she may have just not cared that much about her other kids).
The demigods were still puppets of the golden order/greater will until the shattering ended in a stalemate at Aeonia.
The other outer god's are still very much interested in utilising the demigods powers for themselves though. Malenia with the Scarlett rot, mogh with the formless mother, arguably Melina with the fell god, and I'd argue Rannis dark moon and Rennala's pale moon are personified to the point that they are almost certainly cosmic outer gods.
@@renanfranco4594 He used to be graceless, but his love towards the erdtree earned him the title of the Grace given.
after watching/listening to a couple of these lore stories, I started to watch cut scenes again and actually have a different feel of accomplishment after defeating all those demi gods. Thanks dude and everyone involved, pretty neat :)
My favorite of them HAS TO BE Morgott
Morgott is an EXTREMELY tragic character. The saddest part about Morgott is that he was legitimately blessed. Omen curse is no curse. It's a blessing of the Crucible which was later seen as a curse due to Golden Order. He may as well have been the most holy of all Demigods, but he was punished for it by being left for a time in the sewers and he hated HIMSELF for it. That is until he was released, most likely by the time Giants were still a threat since Godfrey knew him and he was banished after he beat the Giants and other enemies of Erd Tree. He also uses a Giant Crusher. A weapon that fell out of use after War with the Giants. A GREAT way to hide little story details, in Boss's moveset itself. And often it is a misconception that Morgott ALWAYS was in the sewers which given this detail is most likely not true. Especially with how articulate Mogh and Morgott are.
In his remembrance (japanese version) it's said that he didn't need anyone else's love to love in return. He just loved. He loved others no matter what. And there most likely were people that did love him. One of them was Godfrey, but the other may have been his brother Godwyn... who was killed at the Night of the Black Knives. He tried to be a protector, he created Black Cavalry who we see in the trailer and may have been sent by him to hunt down the assassins, he created Sentry's Torches to protect his other siblings from Godwyn's fate, and yet... they all betrayed him and destroyed everything he loved and even then when he shows up in the throne room and calls his siblings traitors he still seems to have some actual care for them after all of that and he still felt great shame after staining their thrones meaning that he truly cared for them (outside of Rykard who may have taken more public role in killing Godwyn as part of his deal with Ranni which could have been start of his Blasphemy).
Morgott was a good person that was betrayed by almost everyone around him. By his family that started destroying their life and breaking their world, by the Erdtree which wouldn't accept him due to his "curse" and by Golden Order which indoctrinated him into hating what he was blessed with.
Morgott is probably one of the saddest characters in the game, if not THE saddest. A bitter person who has nothing, but hatred for himself and his family and the only thing he cares about is the thing that made his life miserable in the first place. And the only people that loved him are either dead (Godwyn who given that he befriended Dragons most likely cared little about curse on Morgott) or he never got to meet again after longing to see them again (Godfrey).
And the part with Godfrey is even more sad when you realize that Godfrey we fight before him is most likely created BY Morgott. It's possible that Morgott created that apparition because he wanted the help of his father, he wanted his father to be there and become Elden Lord, evident by him placing his crown on the throne in the trailer.
At the end when we fight him he is legitimately left with nothing, but the crumbling city and his duty which is built on lies of the Greater Will.
Pray for Morgott The Omen King, The Grace-Given. The True King of Leyndell and only worthy successor of Godfrey. A true heir. The only Demigod left that is worthy of being called Golden. Morgott the Golden Omen.
Morgott is probably my new favorite boss From has ever made and with Aldia and Vendrick he is my favorite character From has ever made and that may be partially because of Martin. His character GREATLY makes me think of mix of Tyrion and Stannis and that is the best kind of comparison one could want. Morgott stands above and beyond as an exceptional character in Elden Ring that deserves FAR more praise. The only problem I have with him is that he is too easy if you explore everything before him, but that is another great thing. I don't want his fight to end. I want more of his fight. That is something that is hard to achieve. Make me WANT to fight a boss more. Let's hope he may have an Endgame fight in DLC. As so far we have one in early game, mid game and now only endgame is left. Let's hope for one final showdown with the True King of Leyndell and to me the only worthy Demigod to be Elden Lord.
Indeed! Morgott has great respect for the Shardbearers, even though he considers them to be traitors - he even calls Godrick "Godrick the Golden" while everyone else calls him "Godrick the Grafted".
This comment made more sense than the video
@@joaop7378 And he could just kill Godrick easily and take his rune so Tarnished have FAR harder time at reaching Leyndell... But he doesn't do that. He protects him. It may be because outside of Mogh Godrick is probably the only family he has left now.
I think i've seen you on multiple other videos talking about how good of a character Morgott is and i end up agreeing every single time.
Goated character
great insight! 10/10 comment
Always loved Morgott and Mohg because they represent some very interesting responses to being shunned and hated. On one hand, Morgott clings to his family and institutions obsessively, and Mohg rejects them utterly, finding another parent basically.
I think it's worth mentioning what a "crucible" is. In metalworking, crucibles are the containers where metals are melted, usually with different types merging to create new alloys. It's literally an extreme melting pot, rendering down the strongest materials to blend them together and potentially make something even stronger.
In figurative terms, a crucible is "a situation of severe trial, or in which different elements interact, leading to the creation of something new."
This might explain why the Crucible in Elden Ring, and all creatures touched by it, have a haphazard mishmash of attributes: tails, wings, feathers, horns, scales, etc. It was as though someone just threw everything they could into a big pot, forced all of it into a trial by fire, and whatever survived those trials would unquestionably be the strongest.
When Godfrey was Elden Lord, he tried to embrace those powerful traits, honoring them with his Crucible Knights who imitated tails, horns, and wings with their Aspect of the Crucible spells (and as a result, those Crucible Knights are FRIGGIN HORRORS on the battlefield). However, once Godfrey was sent packing, the Golden Order seemed to develop a more hostile perspective, deeming everything touched by the Crucible as "cursed" or "impure", which led to the persecution of all non-human races. However, considering that the Crucible seems to have been at the core of this world's creation, it would take a lot of time and work to create the "perfect" creatures the Golden Order sought... with genocide sometimes hinted at as a final solution to attain purity by any means.
If the Crucible is a big melting pot, then why do we say that the Erdtree was grafted onto an existing, older tree? I thought that the original tree was the Crucible, or that the original tree was something that distributed thr Crucible's power..
@@davidhong1934 I don't actually know what the Crucible's relationship with the "old tree" was (whether it was something created by the original tree, or actually just WAS the original tree), but it's clear that the Erdtree (or the entity that represents it) was an entirely different thing that was, as you said, "grafted on." Whatever the Erdtree is, it definitely doesn't like the old paradigm and seems to be actively trying to excise, eliminate, and/or supplant it.
@@Tenchigumi
My original assumption was that the Crucible provides energy, but the energy doesn't become life until it's funneled through a medium. The original medium was a primordial tree, which, given the state of the Misbegotten and Omens, was probably less a tree and more a giant mess of branches and bramble. The Golden Order was not only a grafting, but also a way to force the order into what was a disorganized tangle.
1 of the things I love about the Souls game's. Is how you slowly piece together the lore as you progress. Connecting bits of information revealed to you by collecting weapons & armor, conversations with NPC's, & enemies/bosses you encounter. Where most game's start you off with a bunch of exposition. The souls games are the opposite. Tell you the bare minimum about the plot. Making you want to progress so you can paint the whole picture.
Near the Minor Erdtree Church just outside of Leyndell, you can find a single grave that seems to be tended by one of the erdtree guardians with an item, which turns out to be a smoldering butterfly. This really confused me when I found it but in light of the smoldering butterfly/Melina connection, could this be her grave, or somehow linked to her? Haven't heard this gravesite discussed anywhere else.
Alternatively, there was originally a cool sword there, but aome other Tarnished looted the grave before you could. That one guard is really embarrassed, so he keeps watch and hopes nobody will notice the empty grave.
Wait how is the smoldering buttrfly connected to melina, blade of torrent?
@@killchoi091
Aeonian butterfly ~ Malenia, related to rot
Nascent butterfly ~ Miquella, related to purity
Smouldering butterfly ~ Melina, related to kindling
It's also worth noting that this grave is only a few feet away from the wall of the city. It's about as close as you can get. Definitely seems like it's important.
Rykard's "Toghethaaa" coming back during the video is slowly killing my sense of humor
And I love it
I have theory that Radahn might've conquered the stars to keep Ranni from betraying the Golden Order and leaving, might've done it out of love for his sister as well as duty to the Golden Order
that is interesting, considering you literally cannot complete Ranni's questline without killing Radahn
Hol' up, that actually makes sense.
It seems like all the children of Renalla and Radagon's have become much older and on their own unique path. I'm not sure either of their plans are in direct relation to one another
Rykard rejected the Golden Order but got consumed by power. Still looks up to Radahn and conspires with Ranni as sibling love
Ranni is influenced by the Dark Moon, in slight opposition to her mother and definitely to her father, disliking the idea of how a Godly being like the Elden Ring and Erdtree are in arms reach. She wants a new god and chase her own ideal destiny, which unfortunately requires Radahn to die, not for personal reasons though. She kills other Gods to remove the idea of the Elden Ring, hence the Godwyn incident
Radahn is inspired by Godrey and Radagon in war and also inspired by Renalla as a scholar. Then found greater purpose using his Demi God power to halt a greater threat indicated by being taught star magic from someone that comes from the stars, a warning.
These are adults unlike Malenia and Miquella whom goals are linked with one another, like kid siblings looking out for each other.
Radahn doesn't seem strongly affiliated to any Order or God, studying the outer gods and space/stars then using his own god powers to deal with the potential problems.
Meanwhile Ranni wants a new god but not in the way the Erdtree is
@@sultan788 that does make sense. I feel like you could argue Radahn's inspiration by Godfrey might've led him to share beliefs in line with his including serving the Golden Order but that I'm wholly sure of. But he and Ranni are direct siblings, they may not have had as close a relationship as Malenia and Miquella but still brother and sister. I don't think Radahn acted expressly to prevent Ranni from fulfilling her destiny, but I do believe it's entirely possible he knew what it'd cause in relation to his own sister, I mean he stopped the stars from moving which directly prevented Ranni from moving forward
@@harlburgerhelper4421 The Golden Order is an odd one, as in Morgott's scene we see all the seats empty as the family have all been disbanded, pursuing their own journey.
Though, that's something Marika wants as according to Melina, Marika said "Here are these great runes. Make of yourself whatever you desire, a lord or god, whatever. But if you become nothing, you will be forsaken, amounting only to sacrifice". So i'd definitely say each of their intent in plans isn't directly attacking another, just unfortunate coincidence.
Through Ranni's ending we learn she hates the idea of how such a divine being or God can be so close in physical reach. Look what it's caused. Multiple Gods in search of selfish, individual powers and ideals (herself included), multiple Elden Lords and anybody can be Elden Lord, rules broken and bended. The initial purpose of the "Elden Ring" has now been lost through time, it's imperfect now and has no reason to continue existing in her eyes, hence her command of the Black Knives to start the chain of death against Godwyn, the first of the fallen Demi-Gods. Now she wants a new God, this Dark Moon/Star God, something unreachable and too distant for everyone. But since Radahn conquered the stars, he's just unfortunately getting in her way, though i'm sure they still love each other.
Radahn learned star powers from a star lord, to stop the stars. That seems really confusing on surface level, why would the star lord teach that to someone? To essentially say "my own people are terrible, do not let them come here. I'm not powerful enough to use this star power but I can teach it" which a Demi-God would be more than capable of using. We don't know much of Radahn, not a single dialogue from him. But we know he's honorable (waits for Malenia prosthetic attachment before attacking), highly respected across Land Between and regarded as the strongest Demi-God. He looks up to his father (red hair), Godfrey (armour) and his mother (magic), and uses that magic to also protect his dear horse. He even fought Malenia in the same location we fight Radahn, he was seemingly defensive. It seems his actions are protective.
Since there's seemingly little mention of connections between Ranni and Radahn, it's unlikely he would know of Ranni's plans or her pursuit of space God specifically, he just knew what dangers are out there and decided to protect the lands. But since his inspirations are from both Moon and Golden Order, it's hard to say which he's fighting for, it's more suggested it's his own thing, just like how Maleina has her own army too of Cleanrot Knights, not affiliated with their parents or known God. Though i'm sure he knew Renalla didn't like Radahns plans either as her powers are linked to the moon and stars too, but again, he's more likely to be fighting for a greater cause that most characters are unaware of
Edit: disbanded family meaning they all left the Greater Will (the Erdtree a.k.a current God), hence Morgott calling them all "traitors"
insane how the smoldering butterfly now probably directly reflects on messmer
Not really , Messmer has his own Black Pyre Butterfly in DLC. And another item in DLC called Messmers Kindling alludes to the fact he has a sister also associated with fire- probably referring to Melina. So the smouldering butterfly represents Melina.
Vaati's videos are some of the only videos where 30 minutes feels like 5. It's just so immersive and nice to listen to.
i thought his videos have gone downhill. The dark souls 3 ones were better researched as less cringe. The way he talks in the videos now is like the game is real life. which is fine but annoys me.
Something I noticed in Godfrey’s cutscene when morgotts body disappears it lets out grace particles that fly through the wind, I think morgott was actually able to return to the erdtree despite his omen origins
Morgott's body lets out grace particles that point to you. You as a tarnished are guided by grace represented by the glowing motes of light that point you to anything that blocks your way, every obstacle to your path to Elden Lord.
When you see Godfrey he too is a tarnshied guided by grace. When you see the grace pointing to you it's not your grace pointing to another obstacle on the path to becoming Elden Lord, it's Godfrey's. You are the obstacle he has to overcome, the challlenge he has to face to become Elden Lord.
@@TheJamieellis We also get Mohg's remembrance, as well as other random remembrances (Astel, Placidusax...), so I don't think that we can use these as proof of anything.
Godfrey's grace turns to you as you are his "bossfight" so to speak.
Morgott also loses his horns and looks strikingly human when you beat him. I also believe he was able to return to the Erdtree after his death. He was the most loyal to it, even when he had no reason to be.
He's not called the Grace-Given for nothing
I love how every family member created its own faction. Godwyn in death lowkey inspires two factions, the Dragon Cult followers and your own followers should you choose the Fia ending. The Golden Order at its height feels like it was Rome under Constantine but now Leyndell is just a golden relic. Raya Lucaria despite being under disputed control represents probably the most powerful major faction in opposition to the royal capital. Volcano Manor and the Haligtree feel more like a bunch of lost refugees while the Academy retains both autonomy and focus, the latter of which is lacking with the survivors everywhere else other than Redmane Castle. Its a broken world with some loyal followers clinging onto the fractured might of desperate demigods.
Lovely video, very relaxing. Also the little "togethah" edits after the Rykard part were killing me. Very well put together and well worth a sub.
I really would like it to Rykard to have an ending of his own. I genuinely wanted to devour the gods together with him :(
Same here, man. TOGETHAAAAAAAA!
TOGETHAAA
TOOOOGETTTTHHAAAAA
TOGETHAAAAAAAAAA
TOGETHAAAAAAAAAAAA!
This game's history makes me want to go back in time during the Golden Order's prime, mainly just to see everyone's lives before everything fell apart
Imagine a dlc focused around the shattering. Maybe as some kind of dream from Miquella. Would be great
And to Lordran before the Hollowing curse spread.
And to Drangleic.
And to Lothric.
And to Yarhnam before the Beast Plague.
And to Ashina before the collapse.
@@THExRISER I'd love a Sekiro prequel where you play as Isshin. Tomoe would also be a good option. Or maybe even Orangutan (the Sculptor).
Basically I just want more Sekiro.
Everyone always says this for every From game. "I wanna see _____ before it got destroyed." Too bad, Souls games are all about the dystopian apocalypses and everyone slowly losing all hope and glory they used to have.
Me watching melania wind up for that attack as radahn comes flying down at her: 😮😲😱
“I don’t know if you’ve heard it yet, but malenia is actually the blade of Miquella” 😂😂 keep up the great work vaati thank you for the great video!
For people like me that forget every character within 5 minutes of meeting or killing them, this is super helpful. It's well done and entertaining too. Nice work.
Miquella is my favorite demigod by far, he’s everywhere in the lore and I’m hoping he’s one of the focuses of the DLC
But he's mine, and mine alone.
Miquella is literally me because, i too, am a sleepy femboy that wants to water great trees with my own blood.
@@Ω3103ζ femboy?
@@Ω3103ζ but do you have a half-brother simping for you?
Godwyn needs some love too. Not fair what happened to him.
Malenia and Miquella were almost certainly born before the shattering, but what if Melina wasn’t? What if Melina was born post-shattering inside the Erdtree? In addition because both known offspring of Marika and Radagon have a curse, perhaps Melina’s curse is her lack of physical form. Her lack of physical form could also explain how she got out of the Erdtree in the first place.
I personally think that Melina was born as a result of Merika trying to birth an empyrian under the instructions of the Golden Order, but that things kinda got screwed up and Radagon produced (gave birth to???) Ranni at the same time as a result (which was covered up by saying that she was a product of both Renalla and Radagon). This first clumsy attempt would have startled literally everyone quite heavily, and would lead to Merika summoning Radagon back to Leyndell so that Weird Stuff(TM) would stop happening. It's quite likely that Merika herself (as a vessel of some fragment of the combined meradagonika) is the cause of the various curses afflicting her offspring, as everyone she birthed (godwyn, omen twins, melina probably, empyrian twins) has something that goes Terribly Horribly Wrong(TM).
This would explain why (1) Radagon left Renalla against his will shortly after Ranni was born, (2) why Ranni is an empyrian despite supposedly being of the same origins as her non-empyrian siblings, and (3) the exact timeline and reasoning as to why the family erdtree happened as it did
@@sock7896 I have a personal theory that Empyrians actually AREN’T just children of Radagon and Merika. I believe that an Empyrian is someone specifically chosen by an outer god, but not necessarily the Greater Will. Ranni is chosen by the Dark Moon, Melina is chosen by the Scarlet Rot, Miquella is chosen by the Formless Mother (and possibly the Greater Will as well, but he forsook that) which is why he was stolen by Mohg.
@@agirlnamedfish If I remember correctly the Gloam-Eyed Queen was also mentioned to be an Empyrean and had her own Fingers. Empyreans seem to be chosen by the Outer Gods more often than born of gods.
I think melina says that she's been living for a long time and not to feel sorry for her or something
When Marika shattered the Elden Ring, she was imprisoned inside the Erdtree. How could she give birth when she is being held captive?
Elden Ring has incredible lore, and I can’t wait to unravel this story together! I just cannot wait to see what you think about the Eternal Cities and Astel
Lets unravel this story TOGETHAA!!
*Now we shall devour the lore togethaaah!*
Hoping he will cover Caelid at some point, maybe I haven't found the right item descriptions but I am really curious about what's going on there
@@Luffa187 Hmmmmm, Very well… Join the Lore King, as family!
The whole part about Miquella and Malenia just made me love this game even more. The way you wrote/worded that- amazing man.
The stories of the demigods are my favorite!! The influence of real-world mythology and archetypes is present in each of them and makes them super compelling as characters. Godwyn, in particular, is not just influenced by the Norse god Baldr, but also gods like Osiris and Dumuzi; Fia, his consort, is very much like Isis, conceiving the god Horus from Osiris' dismembered corpse, or Innana descending into the underworld to retrieve her husband. It's a rare kind of thematic resonance, and I'm *always* happy to see it.
oh i love norse mythology so much
I love the Smoldering Butterfly theory and there's even more evidence you didn't mention.
Melina describes herself as "burned and bodyless" which I suppose explains why she appears out of thin air like some kind of spirit. She also offers herself as kindling to burn the Erdtree. Melina says this was the purpose given to her by her mother, which makes sense considering Marika apparently wanted the Tarnished to become Elden Lord.
On a more meta level, Smoldering Butterflies often appear around bonfires. If Smoldering Butterflies and Melina are connected, this could be a cheeky reference to Dark Souls since Melina is the Fire Keeper equivalent and her butterflies show up at bonfires.
You made me realise something: since Melina always appears out of nowhere like a spirit, it is very likely that Ranni is the one who summoned her. I mean Ranni is the one who gives us the spirit summoning bell and she even mentions that someone told her that we now have Torrent. So its not far fetched to assume that Ranni and Melina are having conversations, and they're plotting stuff together. Both of them want the Erdtree burned.
@@crust5909 her being “burned and bodiless” is also a hint that Melina and Ranni are two halves of the same person, Ranni being the Rennala half and Melina being the Radaghan/Marika half. Ranni’s original body, after all, is found burnt and they each have one eye missing (the left for Ranni and the right for Melina). I’m more and more convinced that this is true and is the way that Ranni was able to rid herself of being an Empyrean. Her body died and her soul was cleaved in two
@@schonmp Also, Torrent was likely Ranni's when she was alive.
@@crust5909 Ranni & Melina have a huge connection. From the whole Eye thing both share to their behind the backround interactions. To a character who previously owned Torrent aka "Torrents Former Master".
But sadly we have nothing that would give us puzzle pieces besides context telling us Ranni & Melina worked or work together for a unknown period/reason.
@@schonmp Not sure about that. Aka the only detail i would argue is her Soul being cleaved in two. Because her whole plan to time her suicide with big Golden Boys assasination by the Black Blades where Big Gs Soul was destroyed while his Body survived & Rannis Body was destroyed but her Soul did survive aka her being a Spirit.
Tho again Melina is the most mysterious character in the entire story with how little we know about her & her seemingly unoffical status as a godchild.
Radahn is epitome of the older brother messing with the younger sibling with the slight difference that Radahn isn't eating the younger siblings sweets. He is fucking with every possible plan Ranni has had in store for eons
And even after his brain stopped working he was still messing with her plans
He was messing with it even after he has gone insane that's dedication.
Except he's the youngest
@@jpcaras bilogically he's the oldest
@@jpcaras Is that canon? I know Radahn looks older because of the beard but we haven't even seen Ranni's real body to say she is the youngest, eldest or middle child. Also Radahn could've shaved
My personal theory surrounding Melina is that she’s not… an individual. She’s more of a tool.
It isn’t too far-fetched to think that, since Marika sent away those who would become Tarnished to save them from the calamity that would befall the Lands Between, she wouldn’t know what becoming Elden Lord would require. So, she created Melina with the express purpose of being kindling, the sacrifice that would burn the Erdtree. She is meant to assist the Tarnished that has the best chance of becoming Elden Lord, and she chose us because all the others have lost the guidance of grace and Gideon sits there doing nothing but being a genocidal, self-assured smart ass.
It would explain why she is so nonchalant about being burned to death, and why she hates you if you seek the Frenzied Flame. You have devoid her of her purpose, and with the world burned to ash and no more Tarnished to assist, what is she meant to do?
I do believe that the Golden Order halted the movement of the stars long before Radahn was ever born, partly because of the wording of the lore in the astrologer item descriptions. It’s implied that the halting of the stars is both a result and a cause of the waning of the sorcerers’/astrologers’ power, in tandem with the growth of the Erdtree’s power. The stars, as we know, have an order of their own, which is why Marika went to war against Liurnia in the first place - the Greater Will could not tolerate competing Orders. Since Radagon/Marika couldn’t defeat them in battle, however, they married into the lineage instead. It’s unclear how exactly this may have proceeded, but ultimately Rennala’s acceptance of Radagon allowed the Golden Order to supplant that of the stars, and halt their movement.
It’s interesting to use this as a way to examine Rennala and Radagon’s relationship as well. The sorcerers of Rays Lucaria turned on Rennala when she was left broken by his departure, and the game implies that they saw her brokenness as an obvious weakness, and she was not the champion they thought her to be. But the implications of what happened to the stars (the source of her power) after her acceptance of Radagon also seem to imply that this marriage was, at least symbolically, a concession of defeat tantamount to a win in battle. It seems Radagon “conquered” her one way or another, but that the people of Liurnia only realized it after the era of the Erdtree’s abundance was over, and the source of their own power was still locked away.
To that effect then, Radahn’s conquering of the stars would amount to him declaring for the Erdtree and the Golden Order on his father’s and his idol’s behalf, as the Golden Order would, after the shattering, no longer have the power and influence to keep the stars in check. So Radahn took on that mantle for it, and accomplished what his father, effectively, could not.
I like the idea of Melina being Radagon and Marika’s child. It makes sense given her reddish hair, her name similarity to Melanie and Miquella, plus the fact that the previous Demi God children were all born in sets of 3. Godwyn, Morgott, and Mohg. Then Ranni, Radahn, and Rykard. And now Melanie, Miquella, and Melina. It all just weirdly fits.
Melanie? You mean malenia?
Its not an idea buddy. Malenia and Miquella are confirmed to be the kids of them.
@@mihal1570 the idea was for Melina. I know the names are confusing but she's our maiden, the one that gives us torrent.
@@bambulbee123 ah , got it , that actually is a good theory tbh. Would explain some stuff about Frenzy ending
GOD'S STANDARD FOR HEAVEN IS PERFECTION AND ONLY JESUS (THE SON OF GOD/GOD IN THE FLESH) LIVED THAT PERFECT LIFE! HE LAID DOWN HIS LIFE & TOOK THE WRATH OF THE FATHER ON THE CROSS FOR YOUR SINS! GOD IS JUST SO HE MUST PUNISH SIN & HE IS HOLY SO NO SIN CAN ENTER HIS KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. IF YOU ARE IN CHRIST ON JUDGEMENT DAY GOD WILL SEE YOU AS HIS PERFECT SON (SINLESS SINCE YOUR SINS ARE COVERED BY JESUS' OFFERING). YOU CAN ALSO CHOOSE TO REJECT JESUS' GIFT/SACRIFICE & PAY FOR YOUR OWN SIN WITH DEATH (HELL) BUT THAT SEEMS PRETTY FOOLISH! GOD SEES & HEARS EVERYTHING YOU HAVE SAID & DONE. YOU WONT WIN AN ARGUMENT WITH HIM & YOU CANT DEFEND ANY OF YOUR SINS TO HIM. YOU'RE NOT A GOOD PERSON, I'M NOT A GOOD PERSON... ONLY GOD IS GOOD! WE'RE ALL GUILTY WITHOUT ACCEPTING JESUS' SACRIFICE FOR OUR SINS!
MUHAMMAD DIDN'T DIE FOR YOUR SINS, BUDDHA DIDN'T DIE FOR YOUR SINS, NO PASTOR/NO PRIEST/NO SAINT/NO ANCESTOR DIED FOR YOUR SINS, MARY DIDN'T, THE POPE DIDN'T EITHER, NO IDOLS OR FALSE gods DIED FOR YOUR SINS, NO MUSICIAN OR CELEBRITY DIED FOR YOUR SINS, NO INFLUENCER OR UA-cam STAR DIED FOR YOUR SINS, NO SCIENTIST OR POLITICIAN DIED FOR YOUR SINS, NO ATHLETE OR ACTOR DIED FOR YOUR SINS! STOP IDOLIZING & WORSHIPING THESE PEOPLE!
JESUS CHRIST ALONE DIED FOR YOUR SINS & WAS RESURRECTED FROM THE GRAVE! HE IS ALIVE & COMING BACK VERY VERY SOON WITH JUDGEMENT (THESE ARE END TIMES)! PREPARE YOURSELVES, TURN FROM SIN & RUN TO JESUS! HE KNOWS YOUR PAIN & TROUBLES, HE WANTS TO HEAL & RESTORE YOU! TALK TO HIM LIKE A BEST FRIEND! ASK HIM TO REVEAL HIMSELF TO YOU & HELP YOU TO BELIEVE IF YOU DOUBT! DON'T WAIT TO CRY OUT! NO ONE IS PROMISED TOMORROW! HE LONGS FOR YOU TO INVITE HIM IN, HE LOVES YOU MORE THAN ANY PERSON EVER COULD, HE CREATED YOU!
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."-John 14:6
"But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven."-Matthew 10:33
“For the wages of sin is death (hell), but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”-Romans 6:23
I truly appreciate the depth of tone in Elden Ring, you can have both a mythical demi-god who conquered the stars to a standstill and a ridiculous, emaciated horse supporting a hulking brute... _Togethaaa!_
Pretty sure that Melina is a sibling to Miquella & Malenia. It also makes sense then that Miquella gifted the incantation "Triple Rings of Light" to their Father, each Ring representing a sibling.
Although it wasn't brought up, I think it's fun to mention that the Starscourge Greatsword(s) deal 30% more damage against Astel & the Fallingstar Beasts
I can’t wait to see if there will be more demigods / Great Runes introduced to the DLC. It seems like there could be way more and there is much potential.
I find it hard to believe they could release any full DLCs that don't each contain at least one more great rune. I expect there'll be an ending in the last DLC too that requires getting all the great runes, to give a proper story justification for dicking around so much after beating the Elden Beast! I can't imagine they can do much more DLC targeted at the early/mid-game as otherwise people will just be overlevelled afterwards.
Miquella alone is such a tease malenia says hes the mightiest and we dont even interact with him so he's gotta wake up.
I hope someday we'll get a "Prepare to cry" series on all the demigods, especially on Morgott (though actually I already cry over his lore)
I don’t see any world with a morgott ending as he was fully loyal to the erdtree and golden order despite the hate they held for him, he was my favorite character by far though.
He heard you
This is masterfully made, like most of ur episodes are. im amazed an i hope u know how good u are. u might not FEEL unique but ur ability to make these vid are. ty
Note: Togetha
Yes, that was insightful!
In addition, during my week fighting Malenia, I was also able to notice that she is, indeed, the Blade of Miquella.
Legit laughed my ass off at that.
Seeing Miquella I can only think of the Fey: Eternal Young, Bewitching, represented as a blond child (Elden Ring takes a lot of Norse Mythos, the “Light Elves” are represented this way, and they have a lot in common with the Fey of British folklore). Even the concept of “Unalloyed Gold” makes me think of Cold Iron (don’t know if this is real folklore, but cold iron was unalloyed iron) and Iron being an element who drives away a lot of supernatural beings around the world
Elden Ring takes a lot of inspiration from Celtic mythology as well, such as British/Scottish/Irish Folklore. There's a lot of characters who have names of English, Welsh, and Irish origin, amongst other names from other origins.
I like the butterfly theory and I kind of want to expound upon it.
We know that all of the children of Radagon & Marika are *wrong* I.E. they were all born afflicted by an outer god. We know Melenia's affliction is from an outer goddess of rot and we can infer that Miquella's affliction is from another outer god, likely one we will learn more about in future DLC. So, if by Vaati's reasoning, Melina is another daughter of the Radagon & Marika, then it stands to reason that she is also afflicted by an outer god, and I think we know which one.
Look at the tattoo on her eye. It's the Three Fingers. We also can see burns on the hands of her character model. And if Vaati is right and the smouldering butterflies correspond to Melina I believe the outer god that cursed Melina is the Frenzied Flame, the one fixated on burning the Erd Tree and ending the Golden Order and Cycle of Rebirth. Even the only time she opens her tattooed eye is when player completes the Lord of Frenzied Flame ending, but just like Melenia and Miquella, Melina rejects her outer god, vowing to kill the player character should they try and serve it, favoring instead the continuation of the Golden Order.
Damn that's a pretty interesting and plausible theory. Wonder if there's anything in the cut content pertaining to this.
Intriguing
In dragon lord Phalanx’s remembrance it mentions a god that the dragons used to worship, and the ancient dragon smithing stone says that it lightly twist time, maybe that’s Miqullela’s outer god
Woah make sense to me 😳
One of my personal favorite theories is that Melina is a reflection of Ranni, the same way Marika and Radagon are one and the same. The way Ranni seems to have a ghost on one side and Melina fits neatly into that space, it mirrors the appearance of Radagon, who looks like half of him is the Elden ring, and half is his champion body.
There’s also the way Ranni appears (as the witch Renna) after we meet Melina, and says that she is familiar with Torrent’s former master (likely referring to Melina).
Melina and Ranni also represent the two laws, the same way Marika and Radagon do. Marika might have planned for the shattering, but Ranni was the catalyst, representing the law of causality. Melina, on the other hand, searches for a way to mend the damage of Ranni (albeit in a destructive way). She is representing the law of regression, but not by returning to the Erdtree, but by returning to a primordial crucible, restoring the land to what it was before the Erdtree came.
It’s kind of out there, and somewhat circumstantial, but it’s a fun theory I think. And if she is an aspect or an other half of Ranni, this also doesn’t mean she wasn’t a sibling of the twins. There are plenty of interpretations there.
Also, I have no concrete evidence for this, but I feel as though the twins were children of Radagon and Marika (their separate selves before the shattering) whereas Melina was solely a child of queen Marika, unified in one form after the shattering. That’s why she’s burnt and bodiless, why she never mentions a father, why she was born in the Erdtree.
I love the Melina theory presented at the end. It really does make sense given there are 3 butterflies and the other 2 are clearly related to Malenia and Miquella.
Also the humor in your more recent videos has been top notch. I really think you have the perfect amount of laughs in these videos.
The remembrance of Malenia says "Miquella and Malenia are both the children of a single god. As such they are both Empyreans, but suffered afflictions from birth. One was cursed with eternal childhood, and the other harbored rot within." I would assume that if Melina is indeed another child of Marika and Radagon, then she too would be afflicted by some curse, which might explain why she calls herself "burned and bodiless", and why she seems to be seeking her mother in the Erdtree, which, seemingly, could only be Marika.
Also she has burns all over her body
I disagree. I am still steadfast in the opinion that Melina is the Gloam Eyed Queen. Furthermore she bares a striking resemblance to Ranni who was born of Marika (Radagon) and Renalla
Well, as this video points out, Ranni's blue doll body that she inhabits is modeled after the Snow Witch who tutored her. So it would be more accurate, of anything, so say that Melina greatly resembles the Snow Witch.
When I met Margit/Morgott again in the capital I thought he was extremely similar to Genichiro. They both are a bossfight that teachese you how to play the game and that you meet again in your travel to show the game how much you have grown. I really hope that the Genichiro-type character will become a staple in Fromsoftware games.
DS3 also had Iudex/Champio Gundyr as that concept!
@@canxtanwe Yes, that's true, but i didn't see him as a character. Gundyr was a Genichiro early access
Dont know what i was mean to learn iv allways instantly killed him
I agree. Your three fights with him make him feel like a sort of rival to you, as he ambushes you all along the critical path.
Elden Ring also uses Sekiro's story structure where you arrive at the "end" area of the game two thirds through the game (Ashina Castle/ Leyndell Capital), beat a boss (Morgott / Genichiro) then leave to new areas before returning at the end of the game.
That faint "twogethaa!" at 18:14 just about killed me.