Legacy of Kain | Moebius - A Character Study
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- Опубліковано 29 бер 2020
- Moebius the Time Streamer, from the Legacy of Kain Soul Reaver series is a classic Chessmaster. As an ancient member of the Circle of Nine, he is intensely devious and conniving. Let's explore his character together.
This video contains spoilers for Legacy of Kain Blood Omen, Soul Reaver, Soul Reaver 2, Blood Omen 2 & Defiance which was made by Crystal Dynamics and Square Enix.
Huge thanks to these amazing artists. Credited as below. Please show them your support.
'The Time Streamer' by Virus-91
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'Dijkstra - Gwent Card' by akreon
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'BO-Concept-Art-Circle-of-Nine'
legacyofkain.fandom.com/wiki/...
'The guardian of pillars' by ShadowxSiegfried
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'Moebius the Time Streamer' by JLazarusEB
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'King Ottmar' by Lakdav
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'Legion of the Nemesis-LH' by legacyofkainclan
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'Nemesis' by Hedgenok
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'William the Just' by JLazarusEB
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'Soul Reaver 2 Moebius' by DA artmus
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'Moebius' Vampire Hunters (Legacy of Kain)' by JLazarusEB
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'Kain Official Defiance promotional art' created for the series by Eidos Interactive, now Square Enix.
'Moebius' by Hedgenok
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'Soul Reaver 2 Character Concept Art' created for the series by Eidos Interactive, now Square Enix.
'Kain' by Rayph
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'Kain' by tapuklok
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'Moebius' by Mafer
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'Magic ring tunnel || HD Motion graphics' by SUNARI VFX
• MAGIC RING TUNNEL || ...
'Raziel: Legacy of Kain - Soul Reaver' by MadeleineInk
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'My version of Vorador' by Dark-thief
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Music:
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 2 Soundtrack - Sarafan Stronghold (OST) composed by Kurt Harland & Jim Hedges
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 2 Soundtrack - Sarafan Stronghold Danger (OST) composed by Kurt Harland & Jim Hedges - Ігри
Having Moebius never actually travelling through time and yet being able to converse and manipulate Raziel and Kain despite meeting them out of chronological order is really scary.
I'll be honest, I never thought he stayed put, I imagined he travelled back and forth in a very limited capacity. Because if you could explore all of time and space, you can cause such potential ripples.
For example within Doctor who (A show all about time travel and is full sci-fi, the works.) the Doctor as a character has travelled through time more than anyone else. Theres this horrifying(?) Scene, where his friends had their baby kidnapped from them, He rallied anyone he could from all his years travelling (Whilst on screen they don't show that many people) He in the lore, gathered anyone who would be willing to take up arms against whatever. He directly causes the death of a few companions by doing this.
And one character we meet out of order RiverSong, Directly tells the Doctor 'The word for healer and wiseman throughout the universe. We got that word from you - you know, And if you carry on the way you are - What might that word come to mean? "
When I tried describing soul reaver 2 to someone, I said - You can summarise Soul Reaver 1 in a few sentences. but actually going through is the experience. More than the character/plot. Because you can see it from point A to point B.
Soul Reaver 2, I described as it has a plot. but this plot has a plot under the plot, that it secretly has been telling throughout the whole game. Which leads to a *REALLY* well done pay off, but it does lead to Blood Omen 2, that I added saying, I'd recommend going through once. Then rewatch the final chapter again on UA-cam.
by putting an emphasis on what is being SAID to Kain, That is why I think Blood Omen 2s story is actually okay. it's not great for I'd be reasonable, 50-70% of the time, but that other bit - it's really interesting. But you can also take it or leave it.
Then Defiance 'ties up' a bit of the loose ends. But in a way, has a somewhat 'twin peaks' ending. It's answered most of your questions. But not ending on a cliff hanger it ends a bit ambiguous. You kinda know how it ends, but it doesn't confirm it.
Then I said, Blood Omen, 'Technically' you don't need to play it. for the plot/story, only acknowledge its existence. BUT, you will be missing out on what is a really dark-lore RPG. that really earned its 18 rating (UK) its frustrating and annoying technically. But I have yet to play a game like it. That gave me that dark-grin on my face, from start to finish.
Moebius is the pillar of time. What in the world are you talking about? The only way he's able to manipulate Raziel is through the manipulation of time.
@@Shkorp93 I honestly wasn't sure how to reply but yeah, I was going to give an analogy of say boxing, one guy being quick but not that strong, whilst the other can hit harder but doesn't have the endurance. But I couldn't think of a good analogy that properly summarised it.
but 100% Mobius I think is a grandmaster, say at chess. Raziel and Kain are say intermediate, but the two together - gave a tactical advantage to them. 'but they didn't know it'
As how mobius had foreknowledge of most the moves that would be made, but couldn't predict what move Raziel would make.
it's like waiting for someone to make their move but you know they have like 2 'good' options, 1 great perfect that would lead them to victory. and mobius with acting and maintaining his stance towards raziel, Like ' Who slandered me so? Your malefactor Kain? the one who betrayed and destroyed you - Our common enemy. Consider the source before you judge me too harshly."
I honestly think, by all accounts, Raziel and Kain should be defeated, but it's getting that one killer move. By the analogy, Kain himself resurrecting Raziel and subsequently damning him to the abyss. Was that move. Having Raziel on the board, made the difference.
@@stasisasmr7724 You have not played the games, and have no idea what you are talking about. You have hit the nail on the head somewhat with "Having Raziel on the board, made the difference.", yet you have no clue as to this statement's significance. Please, play the games first. then make unsubstantiated claims.
1. Moebius is a just a servant, not a grandmaster at anything. All his knowledge comes from the Elder God-he is the Guardian of the pillar of time, but he never makes use of it-he wishes for the pillars' destruction, because the Elder God demands it.
2. Raziel and Kain defeated? By whom? What in the world are you talking about? The timeline we're discussing has Raziel still considering Kain his mortal enemy and malefactor.
I give up. You have no idea what you are talking about, you have not played the games nor followed the story. You spitball falsehoods for no reason. Please play the games and follow the story before you comment again.
@@Shkorp93 I have played the games, I used to be a huge fan of the games. The series has so many layers, at every point there's essentially a play by one side or the other.
One side, being the Hylden - Who wanted to return to Nosgoth after their banishment. Yes, they were not pleased with their banishment. Yes, they were genicidal towards the Vampires.
The other side, being Kain and Raziel, Who from soul reaver 2 had a somewhat 'mutual' understanding within their first encounter.
Raziel questioned why he let Kain walk free after he had valued him so little. Yet he was intrigued by his words.
The hidden third side. Mobius and the elder god. Hidden, because the elder god, was not at the fore-front of the side. Mobius was.
this 3 way manipulation / alteration of time and each side with their own goals and ambitions.
Mobius was using his foreknowledge to bring the vampires down which was the elder gods will, But it brought the pillars down with it. As mobius said in defiance, "the Hylden are merely an inconvenient consequence. They will be dealt with in time. It's a small price to pay for Kains death."
Mobius, Set Kain up, to travel back in time when in blood omen, he kind of had no other choice. He used the chance to murder King William before manipulation and paranoia turned the king into the nemesis. (I can't remember the exact dialogue for it)
With Kain altering the past made the new timeline, leaving Kain as the sole survivor of the vampires.
Whilst it was both Mobius and Mortanius who started the rebellion against the vampires, Mortanius and his transformation at the end of blood omen showed there was the grand strategy.
Both Mobius and 'Hash ak'gik / Hylden/Sarafan Lord, are both strategists. One lead the main siege against nosgoth in blood omen2, planning everything meticulously - creating a scenario that only benefitted him and the species.
Mobius un-wittingly? perhaps, Didn't realise fully what the Hylden were, Mortanius himself didn't know and realised him and mobius shouldn't have rebelled.
My theory is Mobius knows Raziel came from the distant future, where the hylden were extinct, and that perhaps (?) Kains empire actually finished the job.
Yes, that meant Mobius knew Kain would refuse the sacrifice, but he had made the back-up plans, and that plan was Raziel.
As long as Raziel didn't realise what impact he could have within the timeline, Being both himself and the wraith blade and especially if he wielded the soul reaver, All the efforts Mobius made - Could have been wiped out.
I am 100% confident in saying Mobius was a strategist, and he's definitely a manipulative individual. trying to re-write history to benefit his own beliefs, Beliefs that were imparted to him by the Elder God through communication.
Moebius, in my belief, uses his knowledge of events to create scenarios and traps for Raziel and Kain.
For instance - If Kain went back to kill the king, Kain would be the last of the vampires.
If Raziel didn't spare Kain, in Williams chapel, Raziel would be consumed by the soul reaver, and put back into the cycle and his damage is done.
If Kain survived, And somehow Raziel wasn't saved Kain would find out the hard way Raziel is gone. Janos would not be raised and ANY 'hope' Kain had of healing the world, fixing the balance for the pillars perhaps / one day seeing them restored and the land returned to its former self.
But seeing as Kain saved Raziel, he garenteed this scenario Kain would die.
Numerous times Moebius actually states he knows how he dies, therefor he is immune to Raziel / Kain So any threats they make he will survive.
Quoting you directly.
"2. Raziel and Kain defeated? By whom? What in the world are you talking about? The timeline we're discussing has Raziel still considering Kain his mortal enemy and malefactor.
I give up. You have no idea what you are talking about, you have not played the games nor followed the story. You spitball falsehoods for no reason. Please play the games and follow the story before you comment again."
The elder god. Wants Kain and the vampires gone. Raziel initially wants Kain dead - but in a way, sides with Kain, After Kain tells him to look into what the future has for him. And about his third side. Talking about someone who can change what history has written for the world.
2. I feel despite admitting, I USED TO BE, a fan. I am a fan of the story. I'm a fan of the intrigue and how you can realise 'just one more thing' - I am on the level. I do know the story, played all 5 official games. And I only gave the series up and stopped calling myself a 'fan' ?
After Nosgoth, Because it originally offended me enough that I couldn't not hear it with the rest of the series.
for instance 'As for saving Nosgoth - So far I see precious little reason to bother' - Raziel. I thought of the game, not what the source material was conveying. It put a damper on my enjoyment of the series.
I therefor took a step back, and said, No. I like the story, I like the games. but im no devoted fan that will spend the rest of my life trying to untangle the whole story - the whole 'tainted' ness.
Me saying I'm not a fan, anymore isn't me abandoning the series and ignoring it. it's me moving on from it.
Now I will be direct, Your presuming I haven't played the games, or that I have just seen snippets of the series. Which isn't true. please in future, Don't presume to force an opinion on another.
One thing that annoyed me with Nosgoth, was all the new people it brought, which is great, breathing life into a dead and long forgotten in the backwater of time. 'They don't know the story' They wouldn't care.
It's fantastic lore, fantastically written story. But they won't see that.
I remember on twitch a Q&A with the developers, and we asked How are the Razielim in the game, When previously they weren't in soul reaver. They were extinct.
They ummmed and erred, and gave us the answer, Melchiah said 'You are the last to die' to Raziel, but never did it explicitly say they were dead by the time he was cast into the abyss.
One thing about the LOK community, is they are some of the most devoted and loyal fans that you might find in a series. but at the same time we are toxic to an extent.
Of course, we want more of the series, but we wanted more of OUR series, not a multiplayer battle game that was made for gameplay over story and lore.
That's why I stopped saying I was a fan. I want the next person to see what I saw and come to me and go - Holy crap this is a thing?
but the one thing I had never experienced within the community was anything other than, School professor or scholar where everyone had their own kind of interpretation but at the same time, Cohered into one unified set of beliefs,
you could have someone say I don't quite understand this? How can say the soul reaver be at Williams chapel broken, fixed, when does Kain pick it up. A friend of mine, Never realised Soul Reaver 2's final moments are in Blood Omens intro moments. (For the first FMV)
Until I mentioned it.
Same with blood omen 2's cryptic ending message from the sarafan lord. He talks to Kain differently throughout the whole final boss section. Realising, This is KAIN, THE Kain he thought was dead by Raziels hand, several thousand years later (for Kain)
That's why he said 'You won't live that long'
Presuming even if you have an immortal who lives to the end of time, then travels back in time and dies. At some point in that future 'they are dead' they had done everything they will ever do.
but I digress.
Please in future don't try presuming someone has or hasn't done something. I don't like to put my foot down and explain why I said what I said, within context re-explain what I have said and how it relates in the grand scale context.
I strongly believe what I have said fits the overall scale and context of the series. And with an analytical stance on it to be a fairly strong reasonable conclusion.
Please also don't tell people what they do or don't know and what to do. What I have said is no spur of the moment random comment. it's a comment with consideration of context for the series.
Watching Moebius despair when he realized, seconds before his soul was consumed by Raziel, who he actually worshipped and that, in the end, he was just as much of a puppet as everyone he manipulated, was one of the most satisfying moments in the entire series.
Raziel: "Do you see it now? The monster that you served? Is this what you imagined when you worshipped it?"
Moebius: "No..."
Raziel: "And in that knowledge, go - and feed it. I release you."
I was just about to say that, i love rewatching that scene just for that, it is poetic justice, gets shown the thing he thought was a god was a parasite all along and that he didn't care about Mobius for shit and ate him in the end.
I am curious as to what Mobius expected him to look like. What is a god supposed to look like?
@@gilgamesh310 Good point. I wonder if the Elder God is from the Demon Dimension?
@@dingodyno9016
@@pharaohsmagician8329we'll probably never know for sure but it is constantly implied that he was around since the beginning of time. He could just be a corrupted god. Maybe the last one because he ate all of the others lmao
I wish the legacy of kain universe got a book series. These games are on some Shakespearing level shit that deserves to be put to pages.
Lets not forget the "Eternal Prison" from Blood Omen 2. A place designed to remove threats from the timestream entirely. It was very clearly demonstrated that Mobius was its architect.
Moebius delayed Malek because he knew that Mortanius would fuse Malek's soul to his armor for failing to defend the circle, thus making Kain unable to defeat him without Moebius' advice. He was starting another long con game as he was concreting one
He also needed the then guardians of Balance and Mind to die so that Nopraptor & Ariel could be born.
Also, he was not immune to Nopraptor's corruption. The evidence is two fold: 1st. Like Kain, he could not perceive the Elder God's true appearance until after his soul was purified by the balance reaver in the spectral realm. 2nd. His pillar which was in pristine condition, was corrupted right along with all the others at the beginning of Blood Omen when ole' Nop' finds Ariel's corpse.
It's likely that the Elder God convinced Moebius that enduring the corruption would serve the greater good. Or that the Elder God convinced him that he would not be corrupted like all the others.
Even so it is very unlikely that Malek could have stopped Vorador, as he was one of the most powerful vampire sorcerers of that time.
@@mancamiatipoola if he acted in time and died fighting Vorador, Mortanius might not have punished him in such a cruel way.
The guardians' abilities failed them when Vorador attacked. Maybe they were vampires and Moebius used his staff to disable their powers so it would be easier for Vorador to kill them. That way the new Guardians would be human and their minds would be much more susceptible to the madness spread by Nupraptor when he finds Ariel dead. Moebius planned every detail out to the finest of details to make his plans come to fruition. Or shall we say, the Elder God told him exactly what to do and when to make everything move seamlessly.
I like to think that because Moebius is the timeguardian that Nupraptors madness doesn't just effect his present self but also his past so that Moebius was a corrupted guardian from the start
True, because he has the power to see into the future, it's likely the madness and corruption travelled backwards in time just to ensure that the pillars collapse would become a fixed point in time. Either that or he just takes pleasure in being so twisted and cunning. :)
Wow, it's seldom that an angle presents itself for this series that I haven't considered, and somehow this concept that the Circle's corruption hit Mobius throughout his entire timeline is a new one. Bravo.
@@MajorJakas Thank you very much
And when you take into consideration that he had to have known Mortanius would kill Ariel and set all this off... Ooooohh, the twisted layers that get spun...
@@strictlyfantasy i have a theory what if mobus was corrupted by the hylden we are told and shown that the pillars were erected to seal the hylden off from nosgoth but what if the pillars decayed so far that the hylden could affect the material plain when raziel jumps 500 years into the future the pillars are completely shattered meaning the hylden are free in that timeline
One underappreciated thing with Soul Reaver 2 is it's facial animations.
Whoever animated the facial expressions of Mobius in Soul Reaver 2 must be the patron God of animators! 8:04 look at the devious face, my god!
And btw, I am so impressed by how much emotion the facial animation of Raziel conveys, I mean he's not even showing his mouth, all emotion is essentially emitted via his god damn eyebrows!?
@@fighter2013pl It proves that artistic ability is more important than technology.
@@taz0k2 About Raziels emotional expression, it's not only his eyes, the beautiful animation extends to his whole body. Just look at him when he's talking to Janos and says 'I don't like that word. It smells of martyrdom.'
What also helps is that it chooses stylistic graphics over photo-realistic ones. Goddammit I love these games.
This! I've never really figured out why I found Soul Reaver 2 to look more visually pleasing than Defiance, but you explained it perfectly.
Also 9:10 , notice how he smiles, hearing Voradors voice, that's the kind of detaIL, MANY GAMES LACK.
As someone who played Soul Reaver first, I can confirm that I was indeed taken in by his benevolent facade.
For all his schemes and deceit, his expression when he truly saw his "god", was priceless.
I thought that the scene with Raziel, Moebius and Malek also meant that Vorador didn't simply attack and kill the members of the circle for supporting the vampire purges but rather for the murder of Janos. After all, if its just the former, he could have done so much sooner, but killing Janos was the breaking point.
the script of this game & LOK series deserves a bunch of Oscars + Nobels + golden globes + standing ovations every time
Damn right, it does.
"You knew I would lead the Sarafan to Janos, you vile bastard! You've been orchestrating my every move!" - Raziel
Even with all of his plotting, his manipulation, his omniscience of times forward, backward, and what may be in either direction, he did not know the true face of the one he served until his soul was impaled by the wraith blade. Brilliant!
I always thought that the reason why Moebius allowed the other guardians to die while delaying Malek was to ensure the rest of the events that took place did in fact take place. ie: the birth of Kain, his unfulfilled destiny to become the balance guardian, his death and his future role as a vampire in ensuring the eradication of the vampire race.
That's why he ensured Mortanius lived: so Mortanius could give Kain the Heart of Darkness, thus ensuring Kain would be resurrected as a vampire. And when the time had come, Kain (supposedly born of wisdom) would sacrifice himself thus ensuring the death of all vampires, at which point a new balance guardian would be born and Moebius would have won....but Moebius didn't anticipate Kain refusing the sacrifice. And, when you think about it, that was the key moment in the whole saga, which ultimately brought Moebius undone. He didn't anticipate Kain doing what he did...
And I just figured that Moebius was simply trying to limit Raziel's influence on his carefully laid plans (since Raziel had the power to unravel all of his meticulously laid out plans).
It's partly true, Janos must die, the circle must die and Raziel must enter the reaver. But it's the manner Moebius manipulates this events what matter, both Kain and Moebius seek to manipulate the context of events to ensure the timeline changes to their favor. Moebius knows Malek's soul will be fused to his armor by Mortanius but at the same time he's also thinking about how a Young Kain 500 years from then will fail to kill Malek thus ensuring Ariel will lead him straight to him as "The Oracle of Nosgoth" and thus he can feed him information about the Nemesis and Willendorf. Since the timeline changed that also mean that in future timelines Moebius manipulated Kain in some unknown manner to go into the past to kill William the just to ensure the rest of the events fall in place.
honestly the more beleive reason for moebius allowing the slaughter of the circle was simpler than that:
he wanted ot consolidate his power, with the majority of the circle Dead at the hands of a vampire, moebius basically can take control of the Sarafan and motivate them ot push for a crusade against Vampires.
@@Teixas666 My thoughts exactly. Being the sole survivor of the slaughter of the Circle along with Mortanius and Malek fit Moebius' speech in favor of a vampire extermination crusade like a glove. Besides, it'd all lead to the events of Kain's rebirth as a vampire, and the whole manipulative plot he crafted to drive Kain and the rest of the corrupted Circle exactly where he wanted to.
Also... let's not forget that Moebius was already at the service of the Elder God by that time. So ultimately he was just doing the Elder's bidding, acting according to his plan of reality domination. As Kain said in SR2, that's the greatest of all ironies: the puppeteer is in fact someone else's puppet.
that's exactly it. He used Raziel as pawn. But he knew. He sent him to the future, not the past.
I don't velieve it was the case. Moebius, as the time streamer, probably knew Kain would refuse the sacrifce. After all, he knew and met the future Raziel way before meeting the young Kain, which mean he knew of the event following his death. I seriously don't get what was his plan.
Everyone had multiple tries and omniscience but the badass that is Mortanius did his part magnificently in a single go while battling possession of the Hylden lord. True MVP
I loved how angry raziel was in defiance just before devouring mobious
Found your channel today & watched the current character studies for Legacy of Kain. You've just earned a new subscriber.
Months later, I agree with this comment. Subbed. LoK is my absolute FAVORITE series. It's amazing work you've done with these character Studies. Great job!
Same here!
Same here. Why hasn't Netflix turned this into an animated or even live action series.
Good question. I wonder who they could get to replace the Elder God & Vorador, though...
@@Ghaleonh41 agreed. Such a commanding voice.
THANK YOU. I hope we get
Janos Audron, Vorador, William, Elder God, Ariel and the Clans soon...
I really would like to see some character study about Ariel’s personality. I know that she’s deeper than a weeping spirit flying around the pillars (it’s just what I remember from her 😅)
The fact that people still make videos about this game series makes me smile!
be nice if we got an animated series on Netflix or something each season covering each game + the final game that never came along but only if written by Amy Hennig
You wouldn’t need Amy, the story is already there, they just need to make sure that they don’t change it.
If it was on Netflix, Kain would be gay and the whole show would focus on Ariel. No more Netflix "adaptations" of beloved video game franchises. No.
@@Sage521quite honestly I like to think kain is above that mortal pleasure completely. He doesn't think about sex at all. Only power, blood, and eventually changing history and defying fate..
moebius is a masterfully written character along with the elder god raziel and kain
This is brilliant! Moebius is legitimately one of my favorite LoK characters which means he is one of my favorite videogame characters, period. Along with the writing for this character, who easily could've been a throwaway or forgotten about after Blood Omen, his voice acting by the mega talented Richard Doyle cements his legacy as one of the most compelling characters in the series. It's no wonder why Soul Reaver 2 is my favorite game in the series when a character as compelling and fun to watch as Moebius is so well represented.
Please, keep representing this series with amazing content!
Thank you. Yeah I love how the writers made him so much more compelling and prominent in Soul Reaver 2.
@@strictlyfantasy yeah hes a very complex character I appreciate you man keep up the lovely work
The most, most, MOST satifying scene in the entire series, and even in any game series, was in defiance, when Moebius is boasting to the elder god about his victory over Kain, how all his schemes had paid off and he won, only for Kain, who moments before stood looking down on him from above grinning, glides down, reveals himself, and the look of horror on Moebius' face was priceless, him not having foreseen any of this, him believing Kain was dead, and his own staff having no effect on him, even trying to use his usual manipulation on Kain to no effect, and killed by him.
He then awakes as a spirit, begging to elder god to raise him from the dead, not seeing Raziel behind him (my grin when that scene happened!) and Raziel not just stabbing his soul, but through the Reaver, revealing to Moebius the real visage of the god he worshipped, the horror in his voice seeing it, and raziel consuming his soul, ending him.
The level of karma in that scene, it resonates today, I don't think I've found a game series with a more karmic ending for a villain, when all his manipulations failed, and fate changed against him, how showed such fear and terror. Perfect!
Oh man, that first Moebius quote has to be one of my favorites from the franchise (and of course, from SR2). But seriously, I don't know how many times I became upset and frustrated by Moebius during my playthroughs of SR2 and Defiance - his feigned ignorance and claims of being innocent in everything just emphasized he had his hands in every cookie jar. Nonetheless, he was a brilliant character throughout the series, and I thank you so, so much for doing a video on him. As I mentioned in your Raziel video, I do hope you expand this series and continue to discuss other LoK characters; there's so many to choose from, and you can always elaborate on those for future videos, too :) Can't wait for more. All the best! :D
"All great movements require a few martyrs."
Thank you for adding that. I have a fascination with history, and this is one of the recurring truths about it any time there is a revolution, whether those martyrs are in the form of human lives, or a certain way of living that is lost, or something else entirely. If anyone realizes how true this recurring theme throughout history really is, it would be Moebius.
Though whenever I try to explain this to anyone in a historical debate, they're always like "dude, wtf are you talking about?" -_-
Then what are they doing on those debates ? They clearly don't know anything about history if they don't understand the importance of the martyrs in the revolutions.
Martyrs are possibly the most motivating forces in the movement of history, good and bad. Martyrs can both motivate huge movements for greater good, or delude people into a false sense of morality when they're simply reiterating the long history of pointless warfare. This is why you never, EVER want to create a martyr of someone whose death would motivate genocide, much like the death of William The Just.
God, I could listen to the dialogue from these games all day.
Love this video. Given how Moebius had such a huge role throughout SR2 and Defiance, this has always this longing in me wanting to see the other Blood Omen human guardians play roles also in SR2 and Defiance... Yes, Ariel got her closure by becoming part of the Spirit Revear, we saw Mortanius and got a chance to better understand his quest of redemption through reviving Kain as a vampire, and finally it is heavily implied/speculated that Azimuth was responsible for Turel's time displacement.
I think if Eidos got more time and budget, they could've done much more with other characters and exploring more of Nosgoth.
An incredible character, written perfectly. This gameseries was epic, when the plot was revealed it send a shiver down my spine. I loved it, never has a game emulated this again for me, bioshock came close though..i really really want a bloodomen 1 remake, just with way better graphics and perhaps better combat..leave the rest intact cause it was perfect.
subscribed. the only channel i can find this level of appreciation for these games in 2020!
The Legacy Of Kain series is my favorite video game franchise of all time. The storytelling is that good. I like to imagine the series did not die and hopefully it won't someday. In my mind, I saw three sequels after defiance and three sequels to blood omen 2. I saw new characters to help Kain in his quest in restoring Nosgoth, I saw new creatures that were neither Vampire or Hylden but from Nosgoth's prehistoric past. I saw new lands outside of Nosgoth's main continent. I saw what the Elder God really is, I saw Raziel's return to save all the souls of Nosgoth, and Kain's last act in restoring the pillar of balance. I saw Nosgoth restored and the pillars being destroyed by Kain himself revealing the Pillars were a prison for the planet's spectral essence that controlled the natural flow of life on the planet.
Thank you for shining my light on the series nobody ever talks about it and it doesn't get the love it needs please make more also you have earned my subscription
One amazing factor we don't talk about in the cutscene with Raziel and Mobius in the Sarafan Stronghold at the beginning of SR2 is the fact that their voices echo perfectly as though they were speaking in a large castle antechamber. What beautiful attention to detail.
Fantastic work we must all try our best to keep legacy of Kain series alive it played a huge role in my development as a person
So I believe that Moebius allowed his fellow Guardians to die at the hands of Vorador because their replacements would be the Guardians that Kane needed to kill in the future. He says that "I and two others survived," and we know that he, Malak, and Mortanius survive. Which I believe to further show that Nupraptor and Ariel hadn't been born yet which is essential to his plans.
In my opinion Moebius is the greatest fool in the whole story. He very well might see and present himself as a chessmaster, but in reality he has blinded himself believing in this grandios self importance, repeating the very same mistakes the Vampires did, he hates so much, by serving the elder god. He get's himself killed twice by Kain (and his soul consumed by Raziel), not really accomplishing anything for himself. Of course he tricks Kain and Raziel for a time, but there is no triumph in that.
There is not a single moment more satisfying, as the one when he has to see elder god for the first time, realizing what a good little pawn he was the whole time.
It would be interesting to see the elder and Moebius meet Raziel and Kain in chronological order. It's so weird to think how friendly they are during their first appearances in the series, when from their perspective, they technically already met them in the past as enemies.
Great video. LoK games were some of my favourite as a kid, I was so immersed into the universe and it's lore, which I think to this day are very much underrated and under appreciated. I wish we got a new game with modern graphics and mechanics and new lore/characters
*Welcome, time-spanned soul.*
You do it again, this is amazing. Thank you for bringing this gem back into relevance. Waiting for the next. I was a subscriber since Kain. Waiting for the rest. You could be the one that breathes new life into this series. I will spread your gospel here in Japan. If you see an uptick from Japan, that'll be me.
I always thought Nuprator was wasted. As the Guardian of the Mind, he could have been a bigger manipulator than Mobius himself, for as the Guardian of the Mind, he could potentially have known every thought and intent of everyone, even Mobius, allowing him the opportunity to make counter-plans. I think it would have been interesting if he had the ability to disembody his own consciousness and take over new bodies, resulting in multiple boss-fights throughout the series with the Mentalist, and with Kain having to find a means to destroy his consciousness rather than just the host bodies.
Very interesting point of view!
But on the other hand maybe the death of his love caused him so much agony that even as an master of mind could not control his emotions! 🤔🤔
So his stategics and manipulation are affected in a negative way
the man was literally rendered insane by the loss of his love and the nature of his powers amping his emotions to the extremes, plus the suspicions of who had done it(as the only person who could have done Ariel in like that would be another guardian).
him being the guardian of mind made it even worse as this madness got to spread ot the rest of the circle.
technically he WAS the most important member of the circle. That's why he was targeted specifically by the Hylden to compromise him and in turn all the other guardians. Since just killing him first wouldn't be that useful, since a new one would just be born eventually, but driving him insane and letting that insanity spread to the other guardians would collapse the whole system. Were he lucid, he'd have probably even been a bit more of a challenge.
@@ZanathKariashi Aye, IF nupraptor was in a right state of mind and the hylden went for someone else he would probably realize something was up due to his abilites. Targetting him prevents the circle from figuring out who was compromised until its too late.
Dude you keep my child hood alive there are things I missed cause I was just a kid
I would love to see how a conversation would be between Moebius and Xardas from Gothic
So many years of theories and videos and you still are able to bring something new to the table. Testament both to game writing and your videomaking, cheers!
I'm loving your LoK videos!! I hope you continue making them! Thanks for these. This is my favourite game series.
I didn't see Moebius' as having overt motivations for allowing the circle to be martyred, rather he delights in being the catalyst of people's downfall. And it's all the sweeter when those poor doomed fools walk to the fates convinced Moebius was wise sage and a true friend and ally. But if you need a more substantial motive, with the Circle broken, the Inquisitor's slain and Malek disgraced, Moebius assumed total leadership over the Sarafan in their darkest hour, doubtless painting himself a reluctant leader. The perfect credentials for assuming lordship over the latter day Vampire Hunters.
He did though, making Malek fail the circle would lead him to him getting his soul fused to his armor and thus lead Kain being unable to defeat Malek without Moebius' advice. A young Kain ponders how much of his quest was designed by Moebius thinking only that his manipulation goes as far back as Willendorf but in reality, everything was calculated by Moebius from the beginning.
"I'm the Time Streamer!..."
"Hey guys, welcome back to Moebius plays..."
I'm loving your character analysis videos for Legacy of Kain
Looking something up on an old legacy of kain bit. Found you. I’m hooked subscribed thank you very much for keeping this alive!
another amazing LoK video! Thank You very much for your though provoking analysis. 🙏👏
Personal theory is that nupraptor's madness hit mobius different. As time guardian and time-streamer Mobius was infected at the moment he was bound to the pillar. Yet that germ of madness had hundreds of years rather than a single moment to infect, so Mobius's madness is a more subtle affair, a psychopathy rather than something more overt.
One of the best video I saw about my favorite game. Thanks
I love your videos man, it’s such an underrated game.
Really great writing mate. Suitable for LOK.
Glad to see other people making Kain content
+1, great work and a fantastic playlist to listen through.
Just found your channel as well. God I miss these games.
He’s one of my favorite villains
"Master manipulator" is almost everything Moebius embodies, and it is fascinating to see play out. There is another side to him, however, that I wish we had a better chance to see. The story is unclear if he is the first Human called to the Pillars or if he was simply one of the first. I like to imagine he was the first; the Elder God reached out to him first, and he would do that as soon as possible I think.
For as good of a manipulator he is, he truly isn't anything compared to the Elder God. So I am imagining Moebius being taken by the winged Ancients for indoctrination, and then he starts hearing the Elder God calling out to him. In his youth, by defying the Ancient vampires, he was a radical revolutionary who adapted an ideology of human supremacy which was probably partially fed to him by the Elder God. It would have been interesting if we had a chance to see him as he had been when he was young. In my opinion, anyway.
LOK is such a great series! My first play thru with SR 2, I noted Vorador in the murals above but I couldn't place the purple or blue demon next to some of the venerated Sarafan. It was only after I had completed the game that I realized that blue/purple demon was meant represent Raziel. This was excellent foreshadowing and clever writing.
I know we, as players, are usually supposed to like Raziel, or Kain, and I do, but I think Moebius is still my favorite character from the games I've played. I like D&D, and read a number of fantasy series, and Wizards are usually my favorite character type. Moebius is just so evil, conniving, and plans within plans, like the chess master you described him as, which I'm a big fan of. He's just so fun. You WANT him to get beat, to even die, but you also really want to see how convoluted his plans really are, what his true motivation was, and how much he'll achieve, before everything inevitably does come undone, and it's awesome how he eventually gets his.
Before playing defiance, I used to think Moebius' desire for Kain's eradication was down self-preservation and nothing else.
I think it’s interesting that the mural showing vampires changing guardians depicts Morbius, Mortanius, and it looks like Azimuth - the three the Hylden needed and betrayed the Circle even when there were human guardians
Love all these videos
Raziel’s failure is the failure of the player. As he craves vengeance, which strings him along to every part of Moebius’ plan, so do we. We don’t question it because we crave the violence. It makes us equally culpable for the damage caused.
I don't care for fictional versus battles but it would be cool to see Moebius and David Xanatos from Gargolyes try to outwit each other.
Amy was great at framing, only giving knowledge that is relevant to move the plot without revealing the nature of the knowledge itself.
i like how evreyone thinks they know the future, moebius puts all his trust and even his life into the time stream, the wheel elder god thinks simply that things Will go his way no matter what in the end, kain thinks he Knows the future but keeps tryna fuck it up and change the stream to the unknown, an raziels my favorite because hes the only one who doesn't know what's happening and doesn't try to pridict the future, even tho hes the only one that has the world actually revolving around him
As always... it's one of core things you learn about manipulators, govern'mind, demons or parasites...even "gods" ...you don't need them while they need you, so who is really important, and how you can excersise your power?
That last statement has been playing in my head this past week. There's some civil unrest in my country atm, and it has been echoing in my mind. Finding this video today is so uncanny. It's as if it's been preordained.
I like your approach to exploring fantasy lore. I would love to see you do such series on Planescape Torment!
Always good to see a fellow Tormeteer. "Updated my journal'
Thank you for your work!
When I played the first soul reaver, I could barely understand english. Now that I understand more, it's great to revisit these games. (Although the archaic english expressions are still somewhat problematic) However, I doubt I would ever play Blood Omen.
Your videos immensely help me understand the lore behind these great games
Excellent video dude! ☺
Luv the background music.
Moebius using everybody else only to be being used by The Elder God was ironic.
I think Nupraptor's madness only amplified Moebius' already corrupt mind.
The reason why Moebius didn't let Malek defend the circle is because that would change his carefully planned timeline too much.
At least that's what I think
I subbed. I want more Legacy of Kain. Looking forward to Dumar!!
Also 17 people are still under Moebius charade
The brilliance of Moebius' character is that, despite all his lies, scheming, manipulations, and long cons, at the end of the day, he himself is being played in the longest con of all by the true master manipulator of the series, the Elder God. The real question, however, is who truly possesses omniscience? Is it Moebius, due to his role in the Circle of Nine, or is it a gift from his master? Or is his master's supposed omniscience due to the power of his servant?
Awesome video dude
6 :48my first entry to the series was Soul Reaver and I can 100% attest to this statement, it is a mark of fantastic, masterful writing, the same is also true for the Yakuza series, depending on where you start your perspective on certain characters shifts entirely.
I believe there are several reasons as to why Moebius allowed his fellow six guardians to fall -
1. By allowing six important members of society to die, this allows Moebius to continue his campaign against vampires and would later help solidify the extermination of vampires along with Kain's assassination of William.
2. New guardians means minds that are not as easily educated nor as experienced. The original guardians that were being slain may have been more combative or questioning of Moebius and his motives, so clearing the slate of those who could have gotten in his way would work in his favor.
3. Of the three surviving members, Malek the Knight has the slaughter put on his shoulders as his fault due to not being there in time when he was needed (which as seen in SR2 this was due to Moebius). Since Moebius and Mortanius were in collaboration at the time, it would make since to get rid of the last remaining circle member and make him into a wraith of protection and vengeance so as to keep the plans of Moebius going without a hitch (pretty sure Malek had questions that Moebius did not want to answer, and blamed Moebius for keeping him during the slaughter).
4. Much like Kain, Moebius needed the new balance and mind guardians to be born (Ariel and Nupraptor) so that plans could continue. It can be assumed that he had a hand in the two meeting and becoming lovers, and thus causing the events of LoK1 to happen once Ariel is slain.
Great video I appreciate the content
6:13 "Think of the children, Raziel!"
The fact that squeenix has finally sold the rights has given us hope. And i truly hope that if they either remake this series or do the actual deserved sequel. They will have to do it justice. And I'm hoping this is gonna happen
It is interesting to think that Moebius, at one point, was fighting for a justifiable reason, to rebel against the fate that the now vampiric ancients held in store for him. However, whatever shred of good that may have been within was clearly overtaken, either by the allure of the Elder God's guidance, or becoming drunk on the powers he held as the timestreamer. Though I would still say he very much deserved being shown what his so-called god was really like, then being devoured and releashed to the wheel of fate.
Another superb video bro. Hope they make another game so you can make more vids.
You just broke down my favorite series. #thankyou
I actually agree with you, I think the Balance Guardian at the time found out what Mobius was up to, then she was going her 5 fellow guardians until Vordor killed all of them. I also think they're magic failed because his staff not only disabled Raziel's Wraithblade but the other 6 guardians' magic.
These are great. Every new Game developer should have to study these games before they make their own. Excellent characters and writing glad people are still interested.
My brothers and I all cheered when we saw him finally get what was coming to him at the end of Defiance.
Please continue these. And u should do some what if and/or fan fic.
The best part is that Wraith Raziel killed all his brothers in their human condition in the final part of the game, before killing himself. I never played the Blood Omen games; never saw them for sale in my country, and back when the first one came out, I was... six years old, or something. But I could still read Mobius like a book. Snakes need no backbone. Now, you just need a Character Study on Vorador and Janos Audrin. I still don't know how the vampires were created, exactly, since Janos was the first one, and his own heart was used to create Kain. "I was always considered heartless". That is my favorite Defiance quote, by far. Raziel is the Soul of the Soul Reaver, but he cannot embody that roll until he - and wraith - is purified. When he uses Mobius' corpse to return to the material realm, Kain strikes him thinking he's Mobius, but turns out it's Raziel. You can see the genuine fear in Kain, as well as the sudden realization that Raziel was always his sword, proverbially and literally. Only when completely free and purified, would the Soul Reaver be able to harm the Elder God.
Snakes are ALL backbone.
I don't think Raziel had true free will until Kain pulled the sword. Moebius was disappointment that Raziel speared Kain but still thought that everything was going to happen as he had foreseen. However, the obstruction caused by Kain exercising his free will with the sword caused a huge obstruction in the flow of time making both Moebius and the elder god panic as everything that transpired in Defiance is the result of this decision. They had trouble keeping the rules of fate at their plans after Kain did that. Kain's manipulations weren't pathetic, it was a masterful move on the chessboard of time.
I think the reason Mobius had delayed Malek is similar what he did with turning William the Just into the nemesis. He needed another Vampire assassin to convince the humans to really step up the annihilation of the vampire menace. Killing one martyr is bad enough but when it involved some of circle members it would really show the danger of vampire race for the entire world to see.
my headcanon:
1. he is the first completely moratal time guardian
2. being omniscient he was affected by nupraptor's curse long before nupraptor even existed
thus he was mad/ corrupted from the very beginning
Moebius helped orchestrate the deaths of the circle members at the hands of Vorador to further demonize the vampire, better ensuring his capture and execution. He was already the "enemy", so this would have been the straw that broke the camel's back. Everyone would have been out for Vorador's blood after this.
I think Moebius saw time as a singularity; the concepts of past, present, and future as we understand them wouldn't apply to his character; to him, all of time had already occurred even as it unraveled in the present and carried into the future. This would explain how a Moebius from the past would possess knowledge from a Moebius that didn't yet exist.
As a thought experiment to assist with this, draw 3 simple dots. Label them "past", "present", and "future", then connect them with a single line. This is likely how the time streamer viewed time, turning it over in his mind as easily as one might turn over a model ship in a bottle to examine it from all angles.
9:40 It could be as simple as his master wanting the pillars to be corrupted and, eventually, destroyed. Moebius may have even seen the effects of Nuprator's actions in the distant future and knew the current circle had to die in order for the next generation to be born and corrupted, breaking down the pillars by corrupting them. If he's always playing the long con, he probably already anticipated the events with Kain and Raziel (to a degree) and was preparing for breaking down the circle.
Moebius has too much foresight to really understand. If Raziel didn't have true free will, I doubt the bastard ever would have died.
It's Morbin time
I would love to see one about Mortanius. I always found very confusing the part where he orders Ariel’s death to drive Nupraptor into insanity and also all of the members of the pillar’s society. It inevitably ender with his death.
I feel the Elder god kept him from going mad. Nothing focuses a mad man like zealotry.
I love this series so much!!!!!!
You know. Its plausible that the madness in the future infected him in the past too due to his disconnected view of time