Elden Ring - A gruesome possibility
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- Опубліковано 30 бер 2024
- There are many theories about the Two Fingers, and one takes a particularly dark turn involving the Giants. Is there any way to confirm this grisly speculation, or does it remain just a guess?
Song used: Snowpeak Ruins - The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess OST - Ігри
I ended up making this video because I got a couple messages about this post by SpitefulCrow1701 on the Elden Ring subreddit:
www.reddit.com/r/Eldenring/comments/1bp72dk/i_found_what_looks_like_the_two_fingers_attached/
I receive a lot more questions about this kind of stuff than I end up making videos about them, but this intersected with the theory of the Fingers coming from the Giants, which I hadn't really covered before, so it seemed like it'd be reasonable to do a video on it. Hopefully this will shed a bit more light on all that. Interpreting visual storytelling like this can be fairly tricky, as it's much harder to know when the devs meant for something to look a certain way or it just happened to end up like that incidentally.
How come UA-cam doesn't let me choose to get notified when you post a video?
3:40 It's interesting you say we might yet meet the fingers that chose the gloam-eyed queen. The head confessor of the Roundtable Hold was called "Crepus" (i.e. Crepusculum, meaning dusk) and the Two Fingers we meet there strongly encourage us to kill the demigods and to "show no mercy". I low-key think we've already met the ones who chose the Gloam Eyed Queen.
Do we have any written lore indicating the origin of the fingers? I thought they came down with the Greater Will as a sort of cosmic antenna to receive its insights. Elden Ring seems to do this a lot, having technological concepts presented in the styling of mythology or magic. The Scarlet Rot is basically nanite goo what with its ability to assimilate almost anything into more scarlet rot, the Erdtree is a massive data network that literally even suffered from network congestion before and had to establish the minor erdtrees to alleviate it, the Elden Ring/Great Runes are programming for reality, and Deathblight even seems like the result of an edge case catching the Erdtree in a loop wherein it can't print a new live Godwyn because there's no soul in the network (but it just keeps trying, and trying, and trying).
This wouldn't be the first time the Greater Will has made programmable organisms either. We know that the Erdtree happened because of its influence during the war with the giants, and the Erdtree prints a variety of automated systems--Avatars for defense, Jarfolk for reuptake from battlefields or anywhere else people die in an inconvenient location, and Ulcerated Tree Spirits have an uncanny resemblance to the Elden Beast and always have a golden seed at their core. Even the Oracle Envoys exclusively show up at major Erdtrees, and are decidedly inhuman, so they are probably also an automated system--perhaps sounding an alert from some form of prescience, or whenever things are critically bad (and it just so happens new gods/ages tend to coincide with the collapse of old ones). In fact, I can't think of a single physical thing the Greater Will has made that ISN'T organic, even the Sacred Relic sword is eerily made out of bones with very visible indents separating out bones and vertebrae. Making a custom organism that serves no other role than to receive and relay its word fits perfectly with it.
i know you dislike my theory about a connexion between darks ouls and elden ring, but... the dried fingers are anatomically correct... and they were used to facilitate invasions... so...
i can't stop think there is something about the tree supporting Lordran, the fingers, the reincarnation circle, the fire, huge humaoïds who aren't humans but gods, but are not really immortals, giants who have a secret relation with the curse, etc, etc...
sure, myasaki said there is no connexion, but... the door is open wide.
Umm, Zullo, I'm afraid of two fingers. 😢
We shouldn't rule out the theory that the Two Fingers are actually just one of those inflatable balloon guys you find outside a gas station.
Wacky waving inflatable arm flailing tube man!
Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm Flailing Tube Man
We have an inflatable godskin noble, so inflatable tubeman is not that far of a stretch.
The only sane post in this hell of headcanons
Ranni's quest was searching for a pocket knife to vandalize a convenience store.
It's been said before, but we hear about "The Two Fingers" in game and think "Oh okay, GRRM wrote this, so its probably like these royal twins, or an authority of some kind."
Nope. The Two Fingers are literally two giant hairy sentient fingers.
Yes, And I think this might be relevant to the discussion because The Design process of Miyazaki is one of "abstract coalition". He asks for Designs with vague directions just as we the players get vague lore bits and than he unifies them into a cohesive universe;
There is a chance that "The Fingers" in GRRM lore wasnt a actual pair of Fingers BUT Miyazaki DID made them fit into the Lore without changing any aspect of how the world works.
That is to say: If there are Multiple types of Fingers that could have been born from fallen creatures This would've been accurate even if they weren't actual fingers;
Only if you've never played a FROMsoft game before. :P
@@LieutenantAlakifromsoft fanboy not trying to be elitist for 1 second (impossible challenge)
@@LieutenantAlaki 🤓
@@leastbased Explain what's elitist about the comment
I'm in the personal boat that the fingers are some sort of alien lifeform that the Outer Gods send as envoys. Though the concept of the Golden Order lopping off the hands of giants to use them as cosmic radios would be interesting.
The first time I saw the two fingers in the Roundtable Hold with the fingers straight up to commune with the Greater Will I instantly thought of the movie 'From Beyond,' an adaptation of the Lovecraft short story of the same name, because it reminded me of the Resonator. In the movie the Resonator is used to make contact with another universe and is adorned on top with multiple huge tuning forks. With its fingers up the two fingers looks an awful lot like a gigantic tuning fork.
I definitely agree. Seems like the Two Fingers are creations of the Greater Will.
ER in general seems to have a lot of hierarchy in its mythology. The Outer Gods at the top, with the Greater Will in charge of the Lands Between, and the Two Fingers delegated control by the Greater Will, and the Two Fingers themselves then delegate control to Marika and other demigods, who rule the actual kingdom.
Exactly. The relation to the Outer Gods definitely needed mentioning in this video. Those Gods create the Fingers (some two, some three) in order to communicate, and the Finger Readers relay/interpret those communications, hopefully well enough…
This also has to be seen as a form of divination, where the idea of reading from hands may originate.
Plus, it holds up metaphorically; being the hands of the Outer Gods, including working in sounds to transmit messages, or using fingerprints to spread the message.
*lifeform that Greater Will sends as envoys. Greater Will is not an outer god.
yeah, i always assumed they were just called "fingers" out of convenience and resemblance, because like... what else are you even going to call something like that?
What if they're just the legs of a weird animal
What if they're just the wangs of a weird animal
The Twin Sausages
@@ariannasv22 if the two finger talisman is anything to go by they seem to have legs
The Double Digits
Sometimes I like to imagine that Miyazaki does things without any purpose and he delights in watching how we discuss in forums and videos about the possible origin of things that have no purpose and that are only there to confuse us. XD
He's certainly done it before!
He did say in an interview that he does have a "canon" story in his head but he likes for people to make their own conclusions.
I genuinely think that Elden Ring's story is only like 60% written, and instead of calling it a plot hole, the community just makes up theories to fill them in.
Or with a very simple explanation like, the Golden Order's outer god just spawned them for their Empyreans
@@jays.6843 I don't think so, but I do think that Fromsoft decided to leave quite a lot out
Shadow Of The Erdtree should help though
I always thought they were fungi, given their resemblance to Dead Man’s Fingers and how grace looks like floating spores
And the fact that Golden Order just wants Life to be buried underneath it's parasitised tree's roots to strengthen it.
The plant motif works
@@SeanCrosser fungi aren't plants 🤓
Fungal networks work as communication systems between trees, so the Elden Ring/Erdtree communicating through fungi would make a lot of sense. I think you're on to something. Mushrooms became a meme in game because of the funny places you'd find them, but Miyazaki was hinting at something greater all along.
Honestly i really like this. The greater will is just a space fungus that really likes gold for some reason. Im still on the Erdtree/greater will being a parasite of some kind train even though most people dont agree
@@d0d733 didn’t expect mushroom 😂
Calling them "fingers" just because they resemble fingers is EXACTLY the sort of thing From Software loves doing. To quote Illusory Wall, "...the games sometimes match how the playerbase would likely see something with how people within that universe would logically see it as well, even when both may be wrong." The examples he gives are the basilisks and their large false eyes, or how the "Archstones" from Demon's Souls actually more closely resemble the crystallized skull of some tapir creature. I think the way From Software has presented the Fingers fits in with that design theme really well, and the theory that they might be an eldritch entity that merely resembles fingers has a lot of weight for me. Great video either way!
I would believe that, if fingers didn't have such a big role in the world. Like Ennia being a "finger reader", just like the crones you see throughout the world asking to see your hands. And Corhyn translating the "twitches and rhythm" of goldmasks finger as he is pointing at the tree. So the significance of the act of finger reading does lead me to believe that they are actually fingers. But, I never know for sure.
@@bertvanbeterbed9702 I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the other way around; that, rather than the Two Fingers resembling fingers because of the prominence of Fingers in religion, that the prominence of fingers in the Golden Order and the practice of Finger Reading developed *because* the Greater Will’s envoy was interpreted as fingers.
The Greater Will literally created the concept of Fingers, anatomically and symbolically. They granted the 5th "Finger" to the beastmen. Before you have 5 fingers you don't have fingers at all, thats just a paw. To have Fingers you need a thumb to oppose them. The Beastmen were the first creatures to be granted opposable thumbs, and intelligence along with them. I think it's supposed to be assumed that the only reason humanoids in ER have 5 fingers is because of the Greater Will's influence.
Basically I'm saying that, if anything, human fingers are named after the Two Fingers, not the other way around. Two Fingers probably existed before humanity/tarnished/whatever
@@koletonnelson6310 I actually meant it like that as well, but my wording may have been a bit vague
There’s also the fact that the 3 fingers of the Three Fingers are the exact ones that are missing from the Two Fingers - so combining them makes a hand. That would suggest that they are in some way related to fingers/hands and don’t merely resemble them.
I have to say that, curiously, the tomb of the Giant-Killer Hero's Grave has banners with the symbol of the two fingers; and it is the only place in the game with those banners; Not even the round table hall has them.
oooh~ thanks for the note. that does seem significant
Had to check it out. It’s the Giant-Conquering Hero’s Grave. There are banners of the Two Fingers or maybe to represent those who serve the Two Fingers. Checked other hero’s graves (not all of em, just a glance at a few) and didn’t see the same banners. Not even in another grave with the light/shadow mechanism.
Made me check out some incantations too. To see if the same symbol is on the “Incantation of the Two Fingers servants…”
The incantation Shadow Bait has a lil quip at the end, that is now interesting due to the SOTE trailer
“It is said that those beguiled by the shadow see within it a hated foe”
Giant-Conquering Hero's Grave. Can confirm! I noticed the same thing not long ago. It definitely wasn't just Marika who saw the Giants as a threat, it was the Fingers (or their translators) too.
Though it also has a troll statue with its chest ripped out, something that Marika/Radagon did which points to it being taken over by them, meaning they refurnished it to add a statue which would likely mean they refurnished it to add banners of the two fingers. So it is possibly unrelated to the giants.
Something that I found recently is that some of the Banished knights of castle Sol use a two fingers healing incantation, so maybe there is a connection there?
Fingers and rings show up a lot in Elden Ring, often in widely varying contexts. I remember one prerelease interview where Miyazaki was asked why Elden Ring's equipment system used "talismans" as accessories, when the Dark Souls games had always used rings. He replied that rings meant something special in the world of Elden Ring.
I wonder if, at one point, the Elden Ring itself was meant to be a LITERAL ring, worn by either Marika or her consort. That would go a ways towards explaining the finger motif, and would also tie in with the whole "divine marriage" aspect. The ring you place on Ranni in her ending might be a remnant of that idea.
I've always wondered exactly what Marika was physically striking with her hammer when she shattered the Elden Ring as shown in the intro cutscene and promotional videos, especially given it's normally in her body. It makes me think of Gimli attempting to destroy the One Ring with his axe when it was sitting on that little altar in Rivendell.
I remember just after watching the reveal trailer, that like LOTR there would be lots of physical rings of power that could grant wielders strength and abilities. The Elden Ring would be the singular ultimate ring, like the One Ring. Godrick would be a central antagonist (lmao) that hoarded power rings and grafted more and more arms onto his body to wear them, boosting his power to unnatural levels. Didn’t turn out that way, tho.
@@spyguy318I love theories that are wrong because they're still so creative. What If scenarios are always fun!
@@spyguy318 Mate that's an incredible theory
@@spyguy318 Godrick certainly did boost his power to unnatural levels with grafting, problem is that his natural power level is pathetic
I don't know where they came from, but I know where they're going tonight
Bro
Ayo?
Finger, but hole
Thats it, i‘m kms
Shaking my head rn
One thing I’ve always noted is that the dead two fingers on the divine towers sorta look like they’re made of burnt wood that’s been petrified. The texture feels like roots or bark. Maybe that’s a clue to something
There’s a shield that says something about tree and beast, and it made me think that Demi gods are a cross between trees and humans, and Demi humans are crosses between humans and beasts.
rannis body on top of her tower also looks burnt to shit
@@madelinemitchell5102 Demi-human has been a fantasy trope in JRPGs since the beginning, always being monster/animal people
Certainly seems supportive
@@bigboy6019isn't that because she used a fragment of the death rune on her flesh, in order to carve the other half that was also on Godwyn.
And we know the death rune exudes strange black red flames. We see scorch marks everywhere after Iji gets jumped.
@@madelinemitchell5102 ooh that's interesting. To add to that, there is Miquella who made his own tree, Melania with her rot that grows on everything, Godwyn with deathroot, and Ranni's original body is in a similar state to the two fingers, as another commenter pointed out. I have a theory that maybe Ranni's fingers looked like the rest before she "died" and once she broke her connection to the erdtree/greater will that they became fleshy and real. Also, with the exception of Godwyn, these are all empyreans (but maybe he was before he got corrupted.)
I took them at face value. The manifestations of something reaching into the world to the furthest extent they could.
I wondered recently if the fingers are possibly related to Buddhist hand gestures. Two fingers pointing upwards, prana mudra, is related to energy. Three fingers, vitarka mudra, is used to depict Buddhist who are debating. Maybe the two fingers are focusing the energy from the Erdtree / greater will. Meanwhile, the three fingers symbolize the frenzy faction, which is challenging the two fingers and greater will.
The Three Fingers are seen as evil and profane because they're the only ones capable of showing the middle finger to the Greater Will.
The Tarnished Archeologist has a good video going over the likely inspiration for the two/three finger schism. There's a real life equivalent in history with the Russian Orthodox church (iirc) where the clergy held up three fingers during sermons while another sect believed that to be heretical and felt that holding up two fingers was the correct gesture, and naturally since this is human history we're talking about, a lot of people died over the difference in gestures. I'd recommend checking it out as I don't remember all of the details though. That said though, Elden Ring has a lot of real world inspirations that come from a bunch of different religions/mythologies, Roman mythology, Greek mythology, Viking mythology, Christianity and Buddhism are the main ones iirc, so what you said could be true as well.
@@Big_Money_Salvia👍
@@IamHomelander One finger?! To the gallows with you!
@@Big_Money_Salvia I think his explanation is more likely than it being a reference to the Nikon reforms and Old Believers, which all are a bit more obscure than a Buddhist sign. To my knowledge there hasn't been anything in Orthodox history used in a Fromsoft game or anywhere else in ER so this would be out of left field. It's possible but most people don't even know about the Old Believers, let alone the hand sign difference.
Plus the two finger sign is used by the smaller, ostracized sect while the three finger sign was accepted as standard by the rest of Orthodoxy. It wouldn't fit thematically.
Consider: the fingers are like a tv antenna for divinity. Each antenna connects orders and powers to each respective empyrean, and the Erdtree acts as a hub of sorts. Altering the Elden Ring is akin to changing the channel. When Marika broke the Elden Ring, the flow of grace got irrevocably altered, and what we see of reality in game is more or less a corrupted TV input on a cosmic scale. Outer gods can vie for control of the elden ring or alter its flow of information in much the same way a solar flare can interrupt or destroy telecommunications here in the real world.
Raise Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven
I like your theory the best
That's exactly what I think of the fingers after you burn the Erdtree. The Fingers are stretched out towards the sky. The Finger-Reader even says that the Fingers have become silent and are "awaiting an answer from the Greater Will". You're not far off when you said theyre like a tv antenna
Elden Beast is one of the fingers, I think two fingers are like it, they are just on side of good, while Elden Beast is evil one, or they are all evil
I've always thought the Fingers look like they could be some root end of the Erdtree- making the hair not hair but smaller roots coming off of them. A lot of them look almost made of wood instead of flesh, which is part of what drove me to this conclusion.
It honestly never even occurred to me before this video that they could be something other than roots of the tree.
Speaking of the Fingers, though, there is a shot of the trailer where the player uses some sort of sleep spell, and the tree in the back looks REALLY similar to the Two Fingers.
if youre talking about SOTE trailer it looks like more of a bewitching spell because it's pink rather than light purple. but yeah the tree looks exactly like a weird overgrown set of two fingers
Glad to see other ppl mentioning this. I brought this up in my friend group and they thought I was crazy lol
I watched that scene again, and yeah the tree looks like the two finger grew into a tree.
And the Two Fingers on top of the towers have woody struckture (at least it looks like that).
Maybe there is a connection to the twisted trees we see in the first picture to SOTE.
@HHTheHunter Not only do they look like trees, I found they sound just like wood if you hit them or even jump on them. Makes sense that they could be related to the erd tree in some way
So you're saying the Erdtree is one gigantic middle finger.
This is kind of similar to how Blaidd and Maliketh, who are seemingly artificial creations from The Greater Will, are comparable to the Beastmen of Farum Azula. I think it's possible they weren't necessarily _converted_ but that TGW uses existing life as a blueprint to edit and coopt for itself.
It makes me wonder if the Erdtrees are always supposed to be trees, or if the Erdtree is mimicking the Crucible like a brood parasite
It's the same tree.
@@theawickward2255 It very probably is, yeah. I can't remember the full details but I remember the Erdtree displacing the Crucible idea getting discredited.
I admit though, I'm fond of the brood parasite idea retroactively making the Cuckoo Knights a meta hint on how TGW actually works
@@darthvaderreviews6926 Erdtree is what the Crucible became when Marika removed the Rune of Death and some additional tidbits to reforge the Elden Ring to her liking, and thus creating the Golden Order.
The Crucible has been present even during the early days of Marika's rules, as for some reason Godfrey's soldiers are names Crucible Knights, implying the knowledge of the existence of Crucible was still present during the beginning days of Marika's Rules.
@@darthvaderreviews6926 You think a mercenary company in Liurnia that has no specific allegiance to the Golden Order ever mentioned is a good measure for how a vast, unknowable demiurge-thing operates?
Because that's the first time I've heard this. People usually associate them with Radagon, but you're the first person to treat that as if it were the same thing as the Greater Will itself being involved.
@@alyseleem2692No, I'm saying it would, if the "brood parasite thing" was correct, be a "meta hint". It would have no direct in-universe connection, but _out of universe_ it would be foreshadowing
One of the most cursed ER theories I ever read was that the Two Fingers are like the Primordial Serpents from Dark Souls - but instead of serpent heads attached to necks, the Two Fingers are attatched to impossibly long subterranean arms.
Them being an alien envoy of the Greater Will, only called Fingers due to that being what humans see as the closest thing to their form, is what I would suppose. The Fingers move and behave in ways that seem quite alien, and after you get past the resemblance to a hand, it's not exactly hard to see them as this alien lifeform. This being especially the case with Ranni's slain Fingers, bent and twisted in very grotesque ways.
The funny thing is that a lot of people assume that the DLC will be the answer to at least something, although given the experience of past DLC there will only be more obscure things on top of the already existing ones
Nah. Not at all. Each DLC becomes so pivotal to later lore discussions it's nearly impossible not to mention them at least once.
DS3 dlcs let us meet (and fight) londor's eldest sister, and accounting for her exile it tells us that londor believes "uprooting the cycle = good" rather than just "dark = good" like friede does. It also explains why irithyll is covered in frost (sulyvahn took frost sorcery out of the painting with him), and later on in the ringed city we get lore on how the bloodline of the furtive pygmy was hidden away and isolated at the end of the world. Probably dont even need to explain why DS1 and BB's dlcs are important to the base-games story, because theyre both like the entire backstory of each game. Each DS2 dlc shows us how the daughters of manus took over the kingdoms around drangleic too, most notable being the old iron king's (we also saw where Raime went to in this dlc). i have no clue how the whole idea started that Fromsoft dlcs dont explain anything from vanilla, but it hasnt been the case a single time
edit: damn sorry for the essay
The way I see it, in these games, answers only beget more questions.
@@ethanwashington6789 Don't be. You made a far more extensive argument; a bit of writing is always necessary. Whether or not that is at the OP's pleasure.
It's so strange, I tell you. To this day, I cannot imagine discussing the lore of any of these games without discussing content from the DLCs. I literally just..
Can't.
I'm watching people discussing Elden Ring lore with a straight face when they all should know that at least half of all the theories we've had until now are going to be disproven, overturned or made utterly unrecognisable with new information. Every DLC changes the landscape of lore discussions to an insane degree.
@@alyseleem2692i think the biggest point is that the DLCs generally give giant lore reveals but its not as consistently revealing what people fixate on or in a way they expect. We get details on the Sable church in AoA, yes, but in neither DLC do we actually SEE londor ourselves. DS2’s kings were largely their own independent lore with only tangential importance to Vendrick’s deal (at most you have the Old Iron King getting some extraneous detail). That *said* Artorias of the Abyss covered TONS of what the base game leaves implied, and i think people downplay how much the Old Hunters ends up elucidating the, like, almost entire lore of the original game (barring the pthumerians i guess). Like, the amount it does for the healing church ludwig kos the doll etc really isn’t given enough credit in the ‘the dlcs aren’t just giving you the lore answers’ department.
so uh. half agree i guess now that i write it out. its mainly that *how* the information is conveyed was only as simple as “oh you get to go to x and see it happening!” like, once, with Artorias. I mean the “obvious” DLC for Sekiro doesn’t even exist lmao!
I always thought it was partially a reference to the "benediction" hand sign, the one you always see used by holy figures like the pope to bless the faithful. It was also fairly common in artwork to depict the Hand of God (often a "disembodied" hand coming from the edge of the painting) as using the same sign.
I always assumed since the ones on top of the divine towers look like their fossilized and made of wood, that they were carved out of the erdtree/minor erdtree so this would make them direct servants of the greater will.
Whenever I think that the Fingers are manipulating us, or at least encouraging us to follow a certain path that may not have our best interests in mind...I remember that Ranni's were trying to climb up the wall away from her in fear.
Maybe I can manage a little sympathy for them, as misunderstood creatures, desperately trying to communicate something that we were never going to comprehend.
Yeah but ranni is hot and her ending is cool so who gives a damn that’s the ending I got first
@@zephyr2616bros playing a dating sim
@@zephyr2616 Ranni is a HORRIBLE person
I feel like the fingers are artificial/engineered lifeforms created by the Greater Will, maybe made to resemble the digits of the inhabitants of the Lands Between. Their appearances could reference the fact that rings are worn on fingers, and the Elden /Ring/ is a thing, though that may be more of a meta-reason for their designs rather than an in-universe explanation. I don't think they were taken from actual, previously-functional hands, due to their uncanny alien anatomies such as not having fingernails and growing unusual amounts of hair.
I think the real reason why they look the way they do is that they're meant to 'point' their subjects in the right directions, AKA steering their influencees in whichever way that the Greater Will desires. They also seem to act as communication antennae of sorts, as seen when the Roundtable Hold's fingers were pointing straight up to consult the Greater Will about why the Erdtree was blocked off.
As for the Three Fingers being a thing, perhaps they were originally a pair of Two Fingers corrupted by another Outer God, in this case the god of the Flame of Frenzy? Either that, or every Outer God has the capability to create digit-like liaisons of their wills from the same 'template'. Hard to say. If true, we might have seen Rot Fingers or Blood Fingers of some kind as well.
The two fingers and three fingers are part of the same “hand” though. The two fingers are the middle and ring finger, as evidenced by the palm indent in the middle. The three fingers are the thumb, index finger, and pinky
The Greater Will may be the name of the Giant Leader who loose their left hand and fingers to the Giant Conquering Hero???
@@boonius I saw the same thing and by their image seams that they are from a LEFT hand...
I love it when even after all this time I can still run into a fantasy story that has some creature or systems so alien from what I'm used to.
"Yeah we listen to these fingers."
"Fingers???"
"Yeah, they are these giant things that wiggle and by interpreting that we get the word of god."
"?????"
LOL I LEGIT thought it was a metaphor for a pair of sooth-sayers or somthing. When they were ACTUAL fingers, I was extremely confused, but IMMEDIATELY 110% invested in the mystery that had just been presented in front of me. I love it too man, it's so refreshing.
Not buying them being giants, Ranni, a demigod, went to great efforts in offing one of them, I think they’re just angels, as in, its original meaning as messengers, why they’re fingers, has to be symbolic of the Greater Will creating the world, and giving fingers to the beasts, who’s an allegory of humans grasping things or concepts with their hands (intellect)
My theory is that the fingers aren't actual fingers, but plantlife. The "hair" growing on them are parasitic plants similar to Spanish moss.
In real world botany, grafting is the act of implanting that parts of one plant onto the rootstock of another. I suspect that all life came from the original Erdtree, but the rootstock was cleared to only allow humanity's Erdtree to grow (which was made by grafting Marika's fingers).
Here's the thing about grafts: the fruit born from a grafted branch degrades with every generation, and starts taking on the traits of the original plant.
This can explain... well, a hell of a lot of things, but also might explain the need for an Empyrean to have their own fingers: it's their turn to clear the stock, and graft their fingers to grow a new Tree.
The Fingers are almost certainly a variety of plant, and the main proof - in my mind, at least - is the dead ones we find on top of the various Divine Towers. In addition to already looking like rotted wood covered in dead bark, if you walk on them they use exactly the same sound effect as walking on wood inside the Great Hollow in DS1.
We know From isn't shy about reusing assets, but this specific choice for creatures already associated with the Greater Will and the Erdtree certainly seems like the kind of thing that's more "tiny environmental storytelling detail" than "just because."
Your Finger theory needs more thumbs up!
Good theory, an interesting thing to note btw is that not all Tarnished Warriors are heroes from the wars Godfrey participated in, some like the player are warriors from beyond the fog who answered the call of Grace.
This is essentially the same as Dark Souls 3, you're not a chosen special person, you're a rando who is just answering a really weird phone call to do a weird job for a reason you'll never really grasp.
R.I.P. to the Armored Core: Verdict Day online servers.
May we meet again in our mechanized memories, day after day.
I have never heard of it but the fact that you're going out of your way to talk about it in a completely unrelated video makes me much sad for it regardless, I would know as MH4U is about to shutdown, too... what a shame, it had such a cool name, too!
@@tomatogenesisArmored Core is made by fromsoft, so is sorta related being a sister series of elden ring
@@shakkoryu I know of Armored Core, but I had never heard of Verdict Day
@@tomatogenesis it's an improved/sequel of V, like Armored Core 4 and Armored Core For Answer
The fingers standing stock-still and upright made me read them as being antenna, like the rabbit ears on old televisions. That they literally transmit and receive messages from the Outer Gods.
So I also kind of interpretted them as just, bespoke horrible creations that didn't belong to anything to start with. They have two fingers because that's all they need. Similar, the three fingers have three because their purpose is to grasp, not to communicate. So it needs the thumb.
Plant/Mushroom theory is a popular theory that I rather like. One theory posits that the Erdtree is actually a mushroom growing around a pre-existing tree. In fact there are fungus that cling to cave ceilings and tree tops that drop parasitic spores (the elden beast) that infect other plants/creatures. The stars, are just bio-luminescent cave plants/fungus that drop spores (meteors) onto the worlds below. We even see examples of invasive plants taking over ecosystems like in Caelid, the deathroot, and even the golden leaf trees in Altus Plateau might even be an invasive tree species that has taken over as the result of the Golden Order.
The two fingers also being a type of mushroom makes sense, as mushrooms share a link with each other and can explain how the two fingers communicate with each other and the Greater Will. They are a fungal hive mind, with each two finger just being a smaller part of a greater entity. When people talk about the two fingers, they seem to refer to only a single entity, like how other hiveminds are spoken of as one being like the Geth in mass effect. This can even explain the Greater Will, as a collective intelligence made up of all the entities that are a part of it, with the Erdtree being a giant mushroom that literally consumes dead people to absorb their knowledge and experience adding it to the "Greater Will".
Rather than magical forces creating plants and fungus, its plants/fungus creating magical forces.
I like to think of the universe in ER as a giant cave or snow globe, the stars are just bio-luminescent lifeforms that cling to the "ceiling" of this cave and drop spores, or descend themselves to infect the plants/creatures that live on the cave floor bellow them. It could be that there is more than one globe with the lands between being the middle point between each one thus the "Lands Between". Or the globe is double sided like a ball, with the lands between existing in the middle or between each side.
This idea might gain new legs in the dlc. If the Erdtree is a mushroom then it could be the tree we see in the Shadow Lands dlc is actually just another stalk if the same tree (mushroom) as mushrooms can grow multiple stalks from a single source.
There are even examples of the Erdtree as having multiple trunks or stalks. The erdtree surcoat seems to depict a tree with three trunks,. Reliefs seen the Haligtree seem to depict two angelic children around what appears to be a tree with four trunks.
Other depictions of the Erdtree also seem to show little distinction between the top or bottom of the erdtree. The Tree sentinel armor's cape has a tree on the back, but it could be turned upside down and would still look almost the same. The erdtree having a twin or twins also adds to the twin theory. Twins or doubles are prevalent in the lands between. Two fingers, Marika/Radagon, Miquella/Melania, the D brothers, twin maiden husks, twin sorcerers, Mohg/Morgot, potentially Godwyn/Messmer. Alos the idea of conjoined aspects or conjoining two things is also popular, speaking with Muriel reveals this, then there is Godfrey/Serosh, Grafting, Sword of Night/Flame, Golden Order/Dragon incantations etc.
So the idea that the erdtree has a twin or another half fits nicely in.
I think that theory DEFINITELY hit on some really, really good concepts- I just don't think they were implemented so literally, and without liberties taken (IE Magic).
I think cosmology is definitely the in-world explanation for the meteors and what not, but I definitely think this hit on the inspiration for how Martin, and Miazaki designed the world. Especially because of the in game use of the bio-luminescent fungus in the Eternal Cities, From & Co.'s surprising knowledge of tree and fungal biology, and that it also fits very nicely with the real-world theory of "Panspermia" or planet-seeding. So it seems like they definitely know about those things, and used it as inspiration.
YKW also, considering the world design is heavily inspired by ancient Christian history, I could totally see the Lands Between's universe as a finite globe- ala the Earth-centric views of those early Christians. I wonder if any new clues could be found in game relating to telescopes, or Copernicus and his revolution *or rather* The LACK and/or persecution of any Copernicus-like characters or ideas.
As for the big shiny tree- I think the Erdtree is pretty safely, a tree, as there is a lack of any mycellium around, I doubt it's a giant fruiting body or fungus- but there is clearly magic in the game, so there isn't really a need for it to connect the hive mind. However what does interest me, is the multitude of OTHER phantom Erdtrees in the Elden Beast's boss room. It could be that these are also magical antennae that connect the hivemind throughout ER's universe. Also, Tarnished Archaeologist makes a pretty good case for the trees being illusory. I mean, we see big shiny tree, but the base is wooden, and so are the minor Erdtrees. TA also makes a rock-solid for the tree having already been burnt down before we arrive in the Lands Between.
I also LOVE the idea of entering into the hivemind through absorption in the roots, it being the ultimate goal of the Greater Will (because we don't really get much about WHY it's doing, what it's doing) and the Greater Will being called so, *because* it is a hivemind.
A very interesting theory, although it's the Scarlet Rot that's associated with fungus more than the Greater Will.
Did u get these ideas from that Ziostorm video? That was really interesting but I don’t go as far he does with everything being based around mushrooms.
But what was really compelling was the idea that the Erdtree is just a corrupted Great Tree. The game makes a distinction between the two trees and the visual evidence is compelling, like how the gold of the Erdtree wraps around and suffocates the existing tree. You can see branches of the Erdtree and separate branches from the pre-existing tree. It’s also interesting that the Erdtree is golden yet all the roots throughout the lands between are simple wooden structures, not luminous like the Erdtree, which supports the idea that the Erdtree is this parasite that has taken control of the Great Tree’s extensive root system to tap into the power of the Lands Between.
It’s kind of crazy how much we still don’t know about the Erdtree and how the Greater Will acts on the lands between vs the Outer God of Rot vs the Stars vs the Formless Mother etc. I hope we get a lot of answers in the DLC
@@jordanbrown3816
I did watch Ziostorms video. He does go deep, but I thought it was interesting so I tried to connect the dots so to speak.
I really liked Dark Souls lore, but the world of ER seems like its more flushed out. DS still has probably the best character lore, but ER has such a unique feeling world, that any theory about its setting sounds interesting and plausible.
I too hope we get more to go on in the DLC, but I suspect every answer will just raise another question.
Okay, but this makes a lot of sense. The idea that the dead limbs are being filled with the presence of Outer Gods in order to spread their will sounds a hell of a lot like the thought process humans eventually turn to for Grafting
The Two Fingers are not fingers, the Elden Ring is not a ring... I don't know what to believe now.
Damn you, Miyazaki, don't do us like that!
well, Marika *is* the Gloam Eyed Queen - the game gives tons of heavy handed hints about that, especially with Maliketh (his death dialogue, remembrance description, etc.)
I always assumed they were a fungal growth, given how the seeds and rune echoes seem to resemble spores and explains how Grace can propagate across the lands. The Fingers seem to reach up and outward to "spread" their spores (Golden Order) to humanity. The weird holes they have on their model doesn't seem to make sense if you think of them as a mammalian creature or appendage.
Couple quick thoughts:
The lack of fingernails and the ashen colour of the Two Fingers - I had personally attributed this to the Two Fingers being ancient and dying - many of them being dead already, and the ones we find being withered and rotting. Whether the hair was once red, and the fingers once had nails, isn't clear, but I think it's fair to speculate that they may have previously appeared that way.
Regarding the Two Fingers having a palm divot as pointing away from them being cut from a Giant's hand, I think there's a possible explanation for this as well - it's tempting to look at the two fingers as a pinky and ring finger. If this were the case they don't really align, and the possible idea that the Three Fingers might be cut from the same hand also makes no sense because of the shape and orientation of the Three Fingers. But what if the Two Fingers were cut from the middle and index fingers, or index and ring fingers, sewn together? That would account for the palm divot and also account for the more bizarre appearance of the Three Fingers.
The way I saw it was that the two fingers are the middle and ring fingers while the three fingers are the thumb, index, and pinky. It’s interesting in that they both have different fingers suggesting one was deliberately meant to be a counter to the other. Though I don’t really know how that’s going to be relevant in the lore going forward.
I have always assumed that the fingers aren’t actually fingers and it’s just a title given to them by the golden order as a means of making sense of whatever they actually are.
Like they are somewhat above human understanding since they come from a cosmic god. I feel like it tracks.
I always assumed they were just metaphor for the hands controlling the fate of the game - our hands, the players who literally make the world operate and lead to its conclusion.
i think the biggest detraction from the fingers being a cutting from the giants is that they seem to display their own “sentience” that isn’t bound to the greater will either. like, if they were removed from the giants it’d most likely require some sort of controlling force on them but whatever that *is* surely wasn’t aware of the Erdtree’s ensealment at the very least, given their reaction to it being to just kinda stop their front-facing managing-the-tarnished work altogether. in their limited capacity they behave like independent entities in favor of the Golden Order for their own reasons rather than further enslavees. If only we could talk directly to them as we did with Frampt.
Im not convinced one way or another at this point. On one hand, weird eldritch space entities that vaguely resemble fingers being called such is very on brand for Miyazaki.
On the other hand, despite a lot of clear reworks that happened in the story, the visual language of Elden Ring is shockingly clear with a lot of its origins, and I think that it would be odd if the fingers were created by eldenbeast or the Greater Will, considering the eldin Beast are main rep of what a Greater Will made being looks like is all star stuff; where as the finger are clearly flesh. We also know that fingers and lopping off fingers are a big part of Eldin Rings' power system (I'll be honest. I dont totally get that part of the lore on like a diagetic level). Importantly, as far as I know, we still don't know the origins of grafting, perhaps they started with a sort of flesh sculpting technique which were used to create the fingers, and then later the shadows (maybe). If the fingers are giant in origin, that would be particularly appropriate with the theory that the Ancient Giants built the divine towers, and then the golden order reappropriated it for use in benidection (and morbidly ironic considering the fingers would have once also been those of giants).
As a final note, the one thing that (I could remember at least) could go against the idea that we only see the Elden Beast created by the greater will, which is the dragons, who I believe are said to have been made in the image of their creator (I think) however this could actually prove as a pro in the created fingers argument, because 1. Assuming that some for of fleshcrafting technique was known by at least the Elden Beast (or someone else at this time), then they could have been shaped from naturally occurring life (which maybe predates Eldin Beast, but at the very least I think was not controlled by the EB) this could potentially be backed up from Placidusax's pose at the beginning of his boss fight which seems to replicate the fingers, which could indicate that either the technique of the fingers was known by the lord or dragons/multi-headed dragons were created to act as the first finger.
Space Fingers
I think it's critical to think of the Finger creatures as LOOKING like fingers, instead of literally being as such.
I can't believe I find your videos *after* watching a long play of one of my favorite games. Lol Twilight Princess, it was such a juicy coincidence (and quite a treat!) hearing like snowpeak and what not ost from your vids! ❤
i thought One Great = "five fingers" = granted beasts 5 fingers to represent intelligence which is referenced a LOT in the game like the five finger motif and detail seems really important in relation to the beasts especially = 5 fingered hand of the one great split into two (order) & three (chaos) fingers
3 fingers = evil because they can show the middle finger to the Greater Will.
frankly the idea that the fingers originated from _anything_ in the lands between is one that seems fundamentally absurd to me. considering their complete allegiance to the greater will ( except the three fingers ... which is a distinct entity that has complete allegiance to a different outer god ) and design that is alien even amongst elden ring's weirder freakshows, it seems pretty clear they're something to will planted to serve whatever unknowable purpose it has for the lands between. hell, i think the fact that the fingers' fingers are internally referenced as _arms_ might hint at the proper anatomy of these things, because they're given the extremely literal name of "two fingers" and they _barely_ look the part. you look at the fingercreepers, they are immediately readable as fucked-up hand monsters. you waltz into enia's chamber after beating godrick and look at the fleshy thing standing there, and what? would you even be able to perceive that thing as two fingers if you haven't been listening too closely to the repeated use of that in dialogue as a proper noun? hell, it wouldn't surprise me if there were plenty of people who _did_ retain the two fingers thing yet walked up to them and had no idea what they were looking at until enia spelled it out for them
combine all that with their main purpose of translating the words of some incomprehensible greater entity into an incomprehensible sign language that only a few ancient women, who have dedicated themselves entirely to the fingers, can decipher into something with any meaning to the denizens between, and everything about them just _screams_ that their presence in the lands between is wholly unnatural. beyond that, even - they can't even be compared to the abominations that defy the nature of the lands between, because they have no connection to that nature whatsoever
On the bit about the crones that do nothing but attend the fingers, they'll read *your* fingers too if you let them. The fingers are awfully alien but the finger readers aren't just interpreting alien language. Or maybe they've lost their minds and are imagining your fingers have anything to say.
A fun, somewhat finger-related thing I noticed back then was how Placidusax' Rememberance item icon has kind of a resemblance of two fingers as well. Which is even more interesting as Placidusax has some of its heads missing.
The Two-Fingers are communicating with their god/the Greater Will and Placidusax is said to have lost contact to its god? Maybe it tries to mimic the Two-Finger's communication method by ripping off some of its heads?
Just some thoughts I had when I saw this.
I'm pretty sure they are dead man's finger mushrooms. There are so many botanical references in Elden Ring and this would fit perfectly, as they are saprobic and live from dead organic matter like decaying wood or in the case of elden ring the decaying corpses from erdtree burials.
The moment I saw dead giants and dead giant lords underground I assumed this had to be the source.
they even have rings on like rykards hands
Can't wait for the DLC it's going to be amazing for sure!
I just want to say that I adore how you title your videos - it conveys the same vibe that the music you always choose does and I think it's great.
Cool how I saw this post a day or so ago and now you’re covering it, awesome.
just gotta say i love the zelda music you add to these videos, and these details you find make me appreciate these games so much more!
Try Finger….
Giant Hole!
Are ya winning son? haha.. try finger but hole....
So here's a theory. Theyre possessed giants hands. We have examples of possession in the game like shabiri, maybe the giants fingers are mutilated and then possessed due to some ritual prayer. They don't seem to be mobile so I would imagine the 2 fingers might require a lot of attention from worshippers, so the process for possession might require that same level.
i always love your use of old zelda music, its very cozy
They are mushrooms living in symbiotic relationship with Erdtree/trees. Based on Dead Man's Finger Mushrooms.
Due to their status as mushroom lifeform, they can serve as links between plants and animals.
Trees directly interpret light, method of communication with the Greater Will.
Fingers/mushrooms interpret trees.
Finger-readers interpret fingers.
This also frames Rot-Servants in different light, with their reverence towards mushroom growths that their lords sought to emulate.
Remaining mystery is that if finger-script of light has either sanskrit or elvish elements in them, or they are just nonsense scribbles.
you're blowin my mind with this i didn't know such mushrooms existed! this is crazy!
I think this is it, there's no need to think of crazy theories like the one in the video.
Never really thought about the photosynthesis aspect of trees, interesting
The Mushroom Theory is really compelling!
As for the size of the fingers, that may have some relation to how much power they have. Ranni's set are the largest we see, possibly because she's an Empyrean. Other Fingers, like the ones that belong to other runebearers, or the ones guiding the group of tarnished as a whole, are medium-sized. The smallest (and most malformed) ones we see are the three fingers. I assume this is because the group that placed their faith in them has all but gone extinct. When they transfer what little power they have left into us, they fizzle out of existence. But thats just a theory... A FINGER THEORY!
Also, i do wonder why when the runebearers' fingers die (presumably because we kill their target of guidance) they dont disappear like the three fingers... 🤔
i think its because they didnt fade into obsecurity like the three fingers did
The Two Fingers atop the Divine Towers seem to have been deceased for a long time, hence why they have partially crumbled to dust and also look like they've become wood. As such, the demi-gods themselves may have killed these Two Fingers. If so, then something may be misleading Ranni into thinking she has to give up some independence to wield the Fingerslayer Blade against her Fingers.
I am so glad when your content comes up on my scroll, much love and hope you're doing well.❤
Oh god the two fingers over Miquella’s egg just made me think of them watching him sleep
I always thought the fingers were made of wood? They have that texture in the rune towers
Them being giant's fingers would make sense from the logic of just how closely connected the fire giants are to their god. Making them the perfect catalyst for communicating with outer gods. The changes in the palm size, finger nails, and wood texture could all be some sort of grafting or trickery with the power of the crucible.
Checked to see if my fingers we longer than my palm as I never thought about that.
YES I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS VIDEO THANK YOU
That close up of the Two Fingers really reminds me of reconstructions of ancient fungus-trees - Prototaxites. They filled the niche of trees before trees (and before plants iirc) even existed. In an Elden Ring context, this may relate to the Erdtree in some symbolic way?
Weirdly enough it also reminds me of Cordyceps and bone-eating zombie worms (an incredible name for a very disappointing animal lmao) although I couldn't tell you why. Maybe it's the way they move? Either way, a surprising amount of fungus and worm vibes for something that is supposed to resemble parts of a hand, at least theoretically. My hats off to FromSoft; they did an amazing job making a mangled disembodied "hand" even more disturbing on further inspection and consideration.
"Or finger Creepers, whevever they come from" -my nightmares, they come from my nightmares
My current thoughts:
Radagon, descended from the Giants (red hair) is also somehow Marika of the Golden Order (golden hair).
The body of the Fire Giant seems to have some wooden attributes, as if he is similar to or turning into wood.
The giants have a deep connection to the Fel God, perhaps their bodies are capable hosting other outer gods.
It is possible that the Fingers are from the severed hands of Giants, and used as vessels by the the Greater Will. I dont think it is too much of a stretch for the hands to change/mishappen over time, as happens so often in Fromsoft games.
The fingercreepers may also be from the giants hands, twisted by the magicians. A specific group of magicians (Raya Lucaria predecessors?) learned/studied magic with the giants. And that finger weapon mentions that there is still residual heat within it.
The fingercreepers may also be analohous to Ranni's ending, seemingly devoid of outer god influence.
Two Fingers - the Greater Will
Three Fingers - Frenzied Flame
Fingercreepers - Alchemical creations independent of the outer gods.
This also unifies some parts of the 3 primary endings, and provides symmetry.
Thank you. Been wondering about the fingers for a long time. Glad to see its not just me who are puzzled
Imagine a big pair of googly eyes on the tips of their fingers.
Love how the Fingers looking over Miquella's egg just looks like a candid vacation photo.
I love your amazing work.
Banger. Love your videos
I like the theory that they're fungi-type alien lifeforms serving as envoys and the "fingers" are just antennae.
There's just one problem though: why do the 3 fingers leave extremely distinct finger prints?
Anybody remember this theory a few youtubers made about how the fingers resemble a fungal growth called corpse finger mushrooms or something and then go on to postulate that the Erd Tree is a fungal growth that mimics a tree? It's really interesting considering the Greater Will and other gods in the game are somewhat Lovecraftian in nature so spreading spores around to take control would fit right in.
I love the content, music and everything ❤😊
Looking at Japans Mythology:
"Raijin is portrayed with three fingers which are said to represent the past, present and future."
Maybe there is something with two fingers?!
I've yet to see anyone note a possibility I picked up on while playing through the game: Maybe they're a part of the Erdtree, coming from its roots? If you look at the deceased/dormant fingers atop the divine towers - and to some extent, the ones in the Hold - the exposed bits of flesh under the "skin(?)" very much looks like wood, possibly petrified. If this is the case, maybe it could explain the discrepancies in appearance between some of them, like Ranni's fingers. Though ones like the Three Fingers are still a bit of a mystery
The way they smack together reminds me of those parasitic worms that infect grubs and caterpillars.
The one that fills their eyes and then pulses to attract birds to eat the worm and then spread more of the parasite.
Also the three fingers can finger snap and the two fingers cannot.
I always knew freeform Jazz was pure madness.
I think the fingers being distinct lifeforms is further supported by the fact that they can't be harmed except by the Fingerslayer Blade, a "fetish born of a corpse" found in Nokron. I'm not sure what corpse the description references, or why it is "proof of high treason commited by the Eternal City", but perhaps the blade's being the antithesis of whatever the fingers are could give insight into their nature?
I always thought it might be something like Norce mythology with the Giant Aurgelmir dying and being made into the Norce gods and world etc.
Maybe Eldenrings something similar with the world being made with the giants body and gods being made with the fingers of the giant.
I've always thought that the Fingers are some sort of alien species, kind of like Lovecraft's Elder Things. The part where they try to contact the Greater Will gave off real ''trying to reach the mothership" vibes. That they resemble fingers may entirely be a coincidence.
I assumed they had more to do with the absolutely gargantuan skeletons we see sticking out of the mountainsides in various area, Caelid especially.
The Two Fingers are described as "emissaries of the greater will." Given the lovecraftian nature of the outer gods, it could very well be these skeletons are of the emissaries and the fingers are now the only remaining pieces of them. In much the same way Cthulhu isnt an outer god himself, but merely an emissary of something much more ancient and horrible.
it seems to me like a greater power/god needs a “hand” on earth to actually influence things, and it would make sense that the hand comes to resemble the god somehow- that said, the Two Fingers that we speak to in-game remind me of trees, with how woody/rocky they look.
The fingers make me think of antennas
If you examine the fingers on top of the divine towers, their inner tissue does seem to be made of wood, which naturally connects them to the erdtree and, by extention, the greater will.
Dragonlord Placidusax was a former Elden Lord and had several necks which somewhat resemble the fingers. Maybe they were used as a template by the greater will? Or maybe Placidusax was originally a set of fingers that just grew very, very big and powerful, maybe through merging with a dragon's heart somhow? It seems both humans and, potentially, bears can transform into some kind of dragonkin as well so why not?
I personally prefer the theory mentioned here, that the fingers just belonged to those giant corpses strewn around Caelid and tMotG, and were then chopped off and literally grafted right onto the Erdtree (hence their wooden forms). But I'm a sucker for the concept of grafting and it's many applications, so I'm probably way too partial to be making an objectively accurate guess.
Wow, awesome video, even more than usual! 😊
Odd that the video doesn't remark that the dead Fingers we find throughout the game consistently appear to have turned into wood in death.
In the DLC trailer, look at the tree in the background of the sleep butterfly AoE scene. It looks like the two fingers sprouted into a tree
The elden beast's head and neck also has the shape of a finger. So it is probably some kinda alien form that appears as an avatar of the greater will.
Well since the finger slayer blade comes from nokron, they could originate from there. Notably, Mesmer’s hands have long disproportionate fingers as well.
And here we are not even yet talking about the Three Fingers and their association with the Frenzied Flame...
Zullie left out a lot from this video and focused mainly on the giants hand theory which to me is a dead end but it's ok to acknowledge the theory and see if it holds weight. The two fingers don't look anything like giants hands in the way that finger creepers do. The two fingers don't have knuckles or fingernails and are most likely not actual fingers but resemble human fingers. He made this video about the two fingers but left out the most important piece of evidence, the Two Fingers Heirloom Talisman which shows a fully intact 4 Fingered creature
no comment, E.R lore isn't my fave just wanted to thank you for always going out of your way to do things for the community :)
TA made a really good video talking about these. Like how one of the churches is called the Divine Hand (or something close) and how the Two Fingers are covered in tattered cloth, similar to how people wear gloves to handle really old religious texts so that the dirt and oil from their hands doesn't degrade the material.
Didn't need to see the underside of a fingercreeper
it would be terrifying if they're all just fragmented limbs of a greater being
My crazy theory, and sorry if it had been bought up before, is that Marina and all of her children (Messmer as an exception here) figured something out about the two fingers and the greater will as a whole, and all of them rebelled against it in a grand plot, and she either asked Ranni or Ranni bought up the proposal that this was something strangely foreign and unnatural to the world, seeing as Ranni was an emperion outside marikas marriages to either champion or split being, born of the greater wills plans. Messmer is so against anything that seems unholy that he alone rebelled and as such he is truely blasphemous in that he would bring about something truely unholy due to his beliefs (as opposed to the others that who saw what it was), and radahn, being the strongest imperion, thought he could single-handedly stop it through strength alone, so malenia had to go to war with him to let the rest of the plans go forward, even if it meant betraying someone they all loved. Morgott is so clueless to the true nature that he decided to defend the erd tree to the end, or knew only the strongest could stand a chance at changing the fate it bought. And morgott was so removed from it he sought solace in the first outer god who took him in, either a glimpse of a true outer god bought by suffering or one who was the true face of the erdtree hidden in the formless mass of what it was hiding. I could go on, but I really think the dlc will bring a massive collaboration between most of the Demi gods and Messmer is the one who truely saw the outer will for what is is and still wanted is, morgott only saw the ideas, Godwin saw the beauty of what it could have been but ultimately wasn’t, and the rest collaborated to stop it hence why the tarnished (born under godrick and his rule/ grace etc) could truely bring about
I always liked the idea that the two fingers when added with the three fingers of the frenzied flame add together to make a complete hand
with a track record of enslaving defeated foes, i always though the fingers were no different. Former enemies of the Greater Will becoming vassals after being defeated long before Marika ascended to godhood.
Timewise i say that because i think GEQ was empyrean alongside Marika, in the last selection, and she was chosen by the Two Fingers, so they must have been Greater Will vassals by then.
Honestly, I assumed that the Two Fingers were sent by the Greater Will directly, as some kind of biotech radio so it could issue orders directly.
When you mentioned that they could simply vaguely resemble fingers this made me think of a organic tuning fork The two fingers recieve the vibrational messages from the greater wills. This could also explain why their covered in hair too since long whispy hairs like that in nature tend to be used for detection. As for the three fingers I got no idea. Maybe the insanity outer god just made them as a mockery of the two fingers without really thinking about their recieving significance?
Well, with 3 fingers, one can grasp things, and the Frenzied Flame is associated with fingerprints. Maybe that has something to do with it too.
Always an awesome day when zullie uploads!!