I hope you guys enjoy this huge video! ❤ OTHER LORE VIDEOS: Why Is Sentient AI ILLEGAL? - Starfield Lore th-cam.com/video/fhzOj7C4PU0/w-d-xo.htmlsi=Rcl3VQP5qYvQUsUl What EXACTLY Are Chunks Made Of? - Starfield Lore th-cam.com/video/6tOvl8j6xLY/w-d-xo.html The REAL Identity of the Pilgrim and Why It DOESN'T Matter! - Starfield Lore th-cam.com/video/RPPd5CqpyBo/w-d-xo.html Aurora Is FAR WORSE Than You Think - Starfield Lore th-cam.com/video/2YxFqFHCKtM/w-d-xo.html The MYSTERY of the Terrormorphs - Starfield Lore th-cam.com/video/PslY75QD-24/w-d-xo.html The HORRIFYING Reality of Space Travel (ECS Constant) - Starfield Lore th-cam.com/video/9-TZm6emUig/w-d-xo.html Was the COLONY WAR Devastating or Negligible? - Starfield Lore th-cam.com/video/uvknRhhTJQI/w-d-xo.html
Love the content, but the high speed movement in the footage is enough to give me vertigo! It’s like being on a roller coaster at times. Having said that, your thorough examination of these subjects is greatly appreciated. Reminds me of Camel’s videos on Elder Scrolls lore. Keep it up!
I saw them like the Celtic tribes in antiquity. They would be under a tribe, but bands would wreck havoc through Gaul. The Roman's would tell them to stop, and the chieftains would shrug and say "they do what they want, I'm your ally, they're not."
With the amount of lore there is and what they found in the game files I honestly think they will be one coz it makes sense for this faction to actually have a whole colony in space somewhere
Absolutely fantastic video. Thank you for your work in deep diving into the lore and your commitment to making a great video. I think the Great Serpent is a Starborn that, like the Emissary, realized the futility of the last for power and the endless conflict of the Starborn. But where the Emissary took a practical approach of guarding who can enter the unity. The Great Serpent took a more philosophical approach to dissuade the lust for power in people believing that the unity is more than eternity, but the individuals' place in the multi verse is important for where they're are meant to be. I think this because of the universe where Andreja wipes out Constellation she claims that the artifacts are heretical. To me that means the religious leadership of Va'ruun are aware of their power and wish to end the cycle of the birth of Starborn which is why they sent her with backup to ensure they will not be found. This is my current head Canon anyways.
Intriguing video! Since grav drive technology and the artifacts (and, by extension, the armillary) are interconnected, the story I tell myself about Ji’nan Va'ruun is that he caught an accidental, out-of-focus glimpse of Unity, similar to the vision we get the first time our character touches an artifact. The imagery definitely has ouroboros vibes until things start coming into focus, which I think is intentional. So Ji’nan has this powerful experience, projects his own fears, beliefs, ideas, etc. on to whatever it is he thinks he has seen, and House Va'ruun takes root. I say “accidental” glimpse because of how I think the armillary works (see below if interested). In short, I think it’s possible to calibrate a grav drive to catch glimpses of other universes or even the Unity itself. Within the context of the story world, an improperly calibrated or malfunctioning grav drive makes the most sense as a starting point. In my imagination, followers of the Serpent’s Embrace have long since made a science out of how far they can tweak the drive settings in hopes of being blessed with “visions.” Hence, all the grav jumping and their absolute conviction in the rightness of their beliefs. The fact that the Pilgrim gives them part of the code leading to his homestead suggests (to me) that House Va'ruun is probably unaware of the larger picture of the Starborn, multiverse, Unity, and mysterious Creators (but I would love to be wrong about this). How the armillary works IMO: Aside from the obvious gravity distortions in and around the temples, the Unearthed and Entangled missions make it clear that the artifacts are made from a material that interacts with gravity, and the strength of that interaction is relative to the amount of energy that gets pumped into it. Combined with the calculations Victor Aiza got from his other self, this (obviously) led to the creation of the first grav drive. Further, (sadly) we also learned that these calculations had to be adjusted. Entangled expanded on this idea by adding the concept of harmonics to the mix (simulated by adjusting the frequencies in both universes to bring them into a point of alignment…of sorts). On the one hand, maybe we’re just finishing the calibration Rafael started - but I felt like this mission was supposed to help explain why Victor Aiza’s other self didn’t provide corrected calculations to begin with, despite already knowing the outcome. The unavoidable demise of the magnetosphere only makes sense (to me) if the calculations need to be ever-so-slightly different for each universe and it’s up to each universe to calculate that variable for themselves (the hard way, apparently - so sayeth the writers). With this in mind, I came to the conclusion that the artifacts, once assembled into the armillary, work by generating a specific “gravitational resonance” that delivers you to Unity (with a little juice from your grav drive), as if you were slipping through the empty space between atoms (because why not). But I also think this can be simulated, to some degree, using only the grav drive because it also manipulates gravity…add the right kind of electrical resonance and you might be going somewhere. Or at least that’s what I like to think 😄
Love your Starfield videos. Have been binge watching them. VaRun are definitely the most interesting faction by far. I’m praying Bethesda does an expansion on them since I don’t think shattered space will focus them
I tend to just assume house va'ruun is the eventual result of the pilgrim's first attempt at sharing his thoughts with people, who in his journals he says took all the wrong ideas, so he ultimately gave up to start what would become the sanctum universum; the reason there would be similar thoughts on gravjumping between the two would be because they both took their inspiration from things said and written by the same source, delivered and understood with varying levels of clarity.
Fudgemuppet is my go to guy for skyrim lore but the man can't be dominate on all bathesda games lol. Although I don't doubt he will release his own thoughts on these same topics in due time
Great video, having seen the shattered space trailer i just gotta say DAMN bethesda really took their time crafting this religion and its lore. Im highkey very impressed
I can't find any clip of it, but if I remember correctly, if you side with the Crimson Fleet, Andreja will scold you. In response, you can point to the serpent's crusade. Her reaction is interesting in that she doesn't seem to outright condemn it, but just says that it was a long time ago and has nothing to do with what you've done. It could just be her attachment since Balmor does seem to think it was wrong, but maybe the crusade was premature. As to the embassy staff being recalled, I interpreted it to mean that the council had never intended for diplomacy to succeed, the Gravid's dinner was just the excuse hardliners needed to convince the others that diplomacy was impossible. 'We tried. But they don't desire relations, so we should just give up on that.' If the Gravid's motives were indicative of the council's, it was simply something to gather intelligence, dipping the toes into water to see what they could gain by it.
I imagine the artifacts as being made from impossibility, kinda like dividing by 0, they are nothing, yet constantly nothing, which draws energy from the dimension, we can’t “see” it but we can interact with it via its deformation of space in the shape of the actual artifact, kinda like how we can’t “see” black holes but rather their effects on real space
Subscribed after listening to your video about the Starborn Lore. Really good stuff and I'm enjoying this video as well. Hopefully we get a DLC where we are part of House Va'ruun or able to visit their world somehow.
For the sake of building out the dmt theory a little bit, we know from various real world experiences and even studies that the psychedelic traits of DMT can be reproduced without ingesting any substances at all, typically through a process of heavily pushing the humans bodies capabilities, or overwhelming a specific biological system like our breathing. Plenty of groups and entities have built ceremonial processes for this, many of which are far removed from any known materials that contain the active ingredients of ayahuasca and similar substances.
My theory is Starborn ships are powered by the universes that bore them, which is why each time you pass through the Unity, the ship gets more powerful. This could also explain why the ships disappear along with the pilot when destroyed, as the universe(s) that materialized it and power it are returned to the Unity, taking all matter from those universe(s) with it. Like a forced rewind. On the flip side, killing a Starborn does not destroy the ship, their matter seems to return to the Unity that made them, and they apparently can be re-manifested so long as the ship remains intact. Starborn also appear to be immortal in the sense they do not die of old age - as far as we know. Why I mention this, is because if this were the case, theoretically, a Starborn could keep consuming universes until finally, the last Unity is the gate to their starting universe. Upon crossing that threshold, every universe in the multiverse is consumed - reunited, if you will - with one another. It is the ouroboros, the Alpha-Omega, returning to the source (Matrix reference), the theme that all paths eventually lead to all of existence once more becoming one, the reassembly of God, and the cycle of infinity begins once more. If this is the case, this could be a motivation for Starborn to reach "the end," and it is quite possible the Starborn that achieves this actually becomes the Unity, or perhaps ascends to divinity status, existing outside of infinity, but now bears the responsibility of ensuring the rebirth of all existences, as should existence end, so would the Starborn whom achieved final unity, as they are forever linked, bound to the universe that bore them. So the "Great Serpent" could actually mean existence itself, specifically referring to Final Unity, when the head of the serpent devours its own head, and blinks out to a renewed state of existence, a total reset of all things across the multiverse. When the player finally decides to begin a new save game, if you will. Very meta, I know.
55:02 the free Star ranger quest line *might* bolster this theory as Hopetech created a fertilizer that uses plants to extract rare minerals from the soil, killing the plants in the process.
With the mod Faction Backgrounds, Faction Outpost Guards and Faction Ships by IDontLikeNexus for PC and Xbox. You can start out as a Va'ruun Zealot in your background and will be given a Va'ruun weapon and spacesuit. Then the player can buy a Va'ruun ship in new atlantis. The mod also gives the player an outpost beacon that will bring other Va'ruun npcs to your outpost that you can recruit. All Va'ruun will also no longer be hostile to the player unless the player fires apon them.
One thing I thought of after the video was if he got so scared by the hallucination/vision of the Great Serpent he was trying to figure out how to survive it if it came back :p
I dig your lore and you've covered some points none else has. I have some theories that make absolute sense, especially with the shattered dimensions I'm stoked to share soon.
"Only six people (including ourselves) know andreja is house va'ruun...." Well not in my game. She wears a full va'ruun space suit in any non-breathable space. So much for undercover work!
I feel like the great serpent may be something along the lines of Rokos Basilisk. The way members of house Va'run talk about the great serpent sounds eerily similar. It could also explain why sentient ai components are contraband.
@@caseyalbright2762 it's not important, you can come up with infinite mutually exclusive instances of the basilisk, just like you can come up with infinite potential deities with pascal's wager.
I personally think the Great Serpent is a Starborn. The Hunter, The Emisary, The Trader, The Great Serpent. I feel it’s Jinan Varuun much further along the plane (like The Hunter to Keeper Aquilas). However, I feel like instead of promoting the Unity, he has decided he wants to be revered as a god. Great video though! Loving the lore videos!
I wonder if the great serpent isn't a being, but a concept. Time, time is long as a serpent, and at the end of time the universe comes to an end. Not only that, but grav jumping is bending space, and bending space also bends time
Could it be a starborne is the cause of all this? We know the starborne don't all agree on who should get to unity. Perhaps a starborne knowing the properties of the venom tree used this to create visions and told the house VA runn colony ship where to land. The emissary wants to control who gets to unity Perhaps because of a starborne creating house va runn. This starborne would be treated as a God if they decided to return to house VA runn.
There is definitely a connection. Starborn know the future, and Varuun leaders saw "visions" or whatever. I wouldn't be surprised if Varuun are a tool of some starborn like Hunter
This was my exact thought. Also if we look at visual aids here, look at the hunters appearance and look at house Va'Ruun, a lot of stylization can be associated with the hunter. A starborn would appear as a god, who unbeknownst to the followers, can hop between universes. What if they're waiting for a starborn to return as their great serpent.
@drewgoin8849 my guess would be a starborne we have yet to meet. As we find out it was a starborne who was responsible for the destruction of earth by giving the location of an artifact and telling a scientist about the drive. Now was that destruction part on purpose or an accident...... hard to say. Another example of starborne using normal humans is the final temple. The starborne used ecliptic mercenaries to build a base right on top of the temple. As for the pilgrim I think they made sure to leave clues to the answer about unity but only for the best people to find. Much like the idea of the emissary trying to keep the wrong people from getting the artifacts but using cunning and perseverance as a reward rather then direct intervention.
My theory is the serpent is a starborne ai like skynet. Also the symbolism reminds me a lot about Roko's basilisk if any of yall are aware of what that is it explains why they are so zealous in their worship of the serpent
I like this idea. I think the starfield multiverse is a simulation and the creators and serpent represent opposite factions of the ones running it. And they are trying to manipulate us to fulfill their goals. One faction via the artifacts and temples and the other faction via the serpent. I don't think the creators are part of the multiverse, more like outside of it, and that both the serpent and the artifacts are implemented code to guide us a certain way. Like the reapers in ME used the mass portals to guide biologicals in a certain direction in their development. But even if they were part of the multiverse, I definetely think the serpent is also a creation by the same beings that created the artifacts. Maybe something that went rougue and we are meant to stop it, hence why we get the ability to travel the multiverse and the powers. Or maybe we are the ones that went rougue by becoming starborns and the serpent is an attempt to stop us.
I am pretty sure that the Pilgrim and Jinan are two versions of the same person. This would explain similarities between Jinan and Keeper Aquilus's philosophies.
I got a lot of Va'ruun spacesuits, and dont see them better than any other, the guns are cool, the best is when u kill the emmissary he has a bad ass varuun rifle... I farm and board all ships I find in moons and planets of serpentis, as this is the only left to board when ur in crimson fleet ... I always said this time I'll give Kryxx's legacy to Sysdef but always spoil the stealth missions, so Iwande wants to send me to jail and have to fight my way out of his ship .. also not only the handler knows Andreja, also Bal'mor knows her, cos in one of my NG+ Balmoor said something to Andreja in the embassy as they know each other
@hotlikesauce I thought of it because every starboard we meet has taken on some kind of title and I can only think of someone with the title of 'The Serpent' to be some kind of mad omnicidal asshole cult leader
Shit, I overlooked starborn connection besides obvious grav jumping communion. Given that their "official" symbol is Uroboros and apparent denial of starborn ascension from Jinan. Maybe Great Serpent - Starborn tries to lead ALL humans at once to Unity, like when universe dies. Kind of like Pilgrim but in more paternalistic/dogmatic way.
So I was looking through the starfield files, and I'm finding signs that Dazra is going to be, or was at one time, one of the major cities in the game. I'm going to be pissed if Bethesda just straight up yanked it out for DLC.
I like to think the great serpent is a form of the creators since when you enter the unity the being there says "for who creates things but creators" the fact that they say "creators" and not "the creator" makes me think there are multiple of them
Are you planning on doing a Va'ruun connection to Elder Scrolls? I'm eager to hear more possible connections. Great Serpent & Lorkhan, Venom trees & Hist trees, Va'ruun names translating from Ehlnofex. All that good stuff. Two-sided lore and the possibilities it implies
I have a theory about the great serpent. He's a creator, a member of the alien race that creates the artifacts we've never seen a creator in person, so perhaps they're serpentine in physiology and given what we've seen of they're technology so far I don't find it to unlikely that if someone mistook them using their technology for divine powers.
I suppose it’s possible that house va’runn is somewhat of an Easter egg of Roko’s Basilisk, where the Basilisk is an otherwise benevolent AI that made a simulation to torture people who did not contribute to its creation. By knowing about it before it actually exists and not helping it exist you get tortured for eternity but by helping it you enjoy its benefits. Though, Roko’s Basilisk is said to be a simplification of Pascal’s wager - which basically just says that everyone partakes in a life-defining gamble on the existence of God. More in depth, If God exists and you oppose him you’re dooming yourself to damnation, don’t know about him or question him and you live in purgatory, follow him and you benefit eternally. If God doesn’t exist (everyone loses but some lose less) and you followed him, you somewhat wasted your time varying into how much you invested in the idea. Following the teachings doesn’t expressly waste any time, but going to church, spending money, etc in the name of worshipping his glory is a waste of time in this scenario. If you didn’t acknowledge him or opposed him you didn’t waste any time. Though at the end you simply don’t benefit, there’s no consequences for you after you die which spirals into “does anything matter?” Anyway. House Va’runn worships the great serpent because if they don’t, when the snake destroys everything they’ll suffer. If they support the snake they benefit. I think it’s more inspired by Roko’s basilisk because both involve snakes on top of the philosophy. But Pascal’s wager applies equally. Though the wager with the least risk is to believe and follow the snake but not devote your entire life to it. Hedge the bet, diminish the wager.
What if the Venom Tree grew on an artifact and started the process of becoming Starborn, but it's a plant, so instead of becoming a super powered interdimensional person, it became a hive mind like creature. And maybe it causes these hallucinations because it is transferring the connection to artifacts through those hallucinations.
When talking to the captured Va'ruun zealot, you can ask her about her religion's obsession with violence and killing. She responds that it isn't about the kill, it's about having the commitment to do what is necessary to defend the promised and forward the goals of the Great Serpent.
I think that the the head of house Va'ruun is a starborn... so he knows what will happen in the universe cuz he already lived it. But i think he passed only once so he doesnt know that there are very different universes out there or something like that.
Thwh are definitely saving this for a very big dlc. They don't get newrly enough screen time as toi would expect for the third major faction in the game. Even if they are reclusive. What's just as elusive is.... When did they leave earth? Was it before or after the UC. We may or may not find out. I will eat my hat if Bethesda doesn't captilize on this. Its just odd for such a major player to... Not appear. Or very rarely. Did they leave on a ship similar to the ECS? They are alot more advanced in particle weapons too. Also have strange names. I just had a weird thought. When we first meet andreja she has stealth tech. What if they stealth teched the city. Lore speaking. (it seems really odd for them to remove it otherwise)
When I think of the zealots, I’m reminded of the pirates of the 1600s. Officially, Englands stance on them was that they were criminals, yet they happily accepted the wealth they stole from Spain and France.
Is there any connections between Ryujin and House Va'ruun worth covering? I'd heard there is possible Norse mythology references of a giant serpent (Jormungander) rising up from the sea and Neon is one big sea world with a company using a giant dragon as their brand image and whose clothes has similarities with va'ruun ambassador and has ties to spies and a focus on their image.
Ryujin's "mascot" is an East Asian dragon as the corporation name means "Dragon God" in Japanese (also an actual mythological being). I personally do not see any link between Jormungandr to the Great Serpent and the ideas associated with the type of dragons/Ryujin nor the activities Ryujin Industries carry out. I don't think House Va'ruun would be struggling for supplies/information as much if Ryujin was a front for them.
@@NefasQSryu= dragon and Jin = people. Not God. Nihonjin. Nihon = Japan Jin = people. Kami =God. Not interchangeable. Also dragon 🐉 is a snake God. As in the Asian Lunar calendar and in several ancient stories... they ARE directly related with the dragon is the snakes emperor or God. Usually Dragons are also tied to elements in other Asian cultures. For Japan they are protectors of the current realm and are benevolent in almost all the time even if they have character flaws.
Re: connections to The Elder Scrolls: The great serpent could be or Satakal (the 'worldskin' serpent of Yakudan/Redguard legend), the Unity allowing us to move between universes could be like how the Yakudans could move at "angles" to survive the destruction of their world from in moving to the next Kalpa (next iteration of nirn (or tamriel? it's unclear in TES lore whether the whole planet resets or if each continent represents a different kalpa)). Also it's interesting that the Yakudan's contient sunk into the ocean and they disappeared, leaving behind the Redguards, just like how house Va'Ruun disappeared, leaving behind their embassy and the zealots. Outside of the elder scrolls: The great serpent could be Ouroboros from antiquity (as mentioned in the video), or it could be Azathoth from the Lovecraft mythos (connection to Fallout?), the great serpent is said to 'shroud' the universe when he returns, just like how when Azathoth wakes, the 'dream of reality' is destroyed.
Mr. Va'Ruun either smoked too much funny-leaves, or was a raging failure in last universe, stumbled into Unity, and decided to start his own gang with a bullshit philosophy. ...could also be another Starborn like the Hunter? Nothing says there can only be one multi-unity, strong Starborn.
I know it's not the focus of the video, and maybe a weird hill to die on, but Enlightenment, or whatever the faith is named, is absolutely a religion. Lots of religions lack a god. Singh seems hesitant to use spiritual language, but the clergy in Akilla City is more open. My real world church is basically a mix of both the House of Enlightenment, in our atheist wing, and Sanctum Universal without the space stuff, in the more theist members.
With little we know about them they are still better written than FC. (I've finished Ranger's questline and I'm disappointed) Though they still can fuck them up...
I hope you guys enjoy this huge video! ❤
OTHER LORE VIDEOS:
Why Is Sentient AI ILLEGAL? - Starfield Lore
th-cam.com/video/fhzOj7C4PU0/w-d-xo.htmlsi=Rcl3VQP5qYvQUsUl
What EXACTLY Are Chunks Made Of? - Starfield Lore
th-cam.com/video/6tOvl8j6xLY/w-d-xo.html
The REAL Identity of the Pilgrim and Why It DOESN'T Matter! - Starfield Lore
th-cam.com/video/RPPd5CqpyBo/w-d-xo.html
Aurora Is FAR WORSE Than You Think - Starfield Lore
th-cam.com/video/2YxFqFHCKtM/w-d-xo.html
The MYSTERY of the Terrormorphs - Starfield Lore
th-cam.com/video/PslY75QD-24/w-d-xo.html
The HORRIFYING Reality of Space Travel (ECS Constant) - Starfield Lore
th-cam.com/video/9-TZm6emUig/w-d-xo.html
Was the COLONY WAR Devastating or Negligible? - Starfield Lore
th-cam.com/video/uvknRhhTJQI/w-d-xo.html
Love the content, but the high speed movement in the footage is enough to give me vertigo! It’s like being on a roller coaster at times.
Having said that, your thorough examination of these subjects is greatly appreciated. Reminds me of Camel’s videos on Elder Scrolls lore. Keep it up!
I hope you update this when shattered space releases at the end of September
the great serpent....so thats where Alduin went
Andreja's handler made me think that Zealots are just a military arm of the Va'ruun. Similar to how some countries use mercenaries.
Definitely agree, they're for sure more in league with the zealots than they let on
I saw them like the Celtic tribes in antiquity. They would be under a tribe, but bands would wreck havoc through Gaul. The Roman's would tell them to stop, and the chieftains would shrug and say "they do what they want, I'm your ally, they're not."
I wonder more if they’re like CIA cut out, like NED or something. Doing the work of the CIA but no official connection
Or how the US uses ISIS shady stuff like that
Space Hamas
Thanks for the video! I hope House Va'ruun gets a DLC later on, so we can have extended lore on this very interesting faction.
With the amount of lore there is and what they found in the game files I honestly think they will be one coz it makes sense for this faction to actually have a whole colony in space somewhere
I think it’s possibly the first one we will see. Too much left unanswered. The whole game could of been about our great serpent.
Shattered Space is the confirmed Va’ruun dlc
@@dachshund_gamingI can't wait
One thing to analyze are boost magazines and notes. Va'ruun texts are related to sneak and stay in shadows or undetected.
DLC has to include finding House Va’runn’s home planet
Looks like you called it lol
@@Pavey_Jonesholy shit he did
I mean, you can't name-drop Dazra and Va'ruun'Kai so many times without eventually creating it lol
I’m new but this is the starfield content I’m looking for on TH-cam! More lore please.
Plenty on the channel until the DLC!
Yeah, great channel!
Absolutely fantastic video. Thank you for your work in deep diving into the lore and your commitment to making a great video. I think the Great Serpent is a Starborn that, like the Emissary, realized the futility of the last for power and the endless conflict of the Starborn. But where the Emissary took a practical approach of guarding who can enter the unity. The Great Serpent took a more philosophical approach to dissuade the lust for power in people believing that the unity is more than eternity, but the individuals' place in the multi verse is important for where they're are meant to be. I think this because of the universe where Andreja wipes out Constellation she claims that the artifacts are heretical. To me that means the religious leadership of Va'ruun are aware of their power and wish to end the cycle of the birth of Starborn which is why they sent her with backup to ensure they will not be found. This is my current head Canon anyways.
I honestly think you deserve way more views bc u love the deep dive on everything
It’s good shit like this that makes me wish we could join House Va’ruun as a faction.
Literally this! I seriously hope the new DLC at least gives us the option to join officially join them.
My character is a Great Serpent worshipper and he’s also married to Andreja which I hope gives him a bit of an edge in with them.
@@stevemccann4166 same here
Didn't know much about house var’uun but this gave me a lot of knowledge about them thanks Nefa just earned yourself a subscriber
Intriguing video! Since grav drive technology and the artifacts (and, by extension, the armillary) are interconnected, the story I tell myself about Ji’nan Va'ruun is that he caught an accidental, out-of-focus glimpse of Unity, similar to the vision we get the first time our character touches an artifact. The imagery definitely has ouroboros vibes until things start coming into focus, which I think is intentional. So Ji’nan has this powerful experience, projects his own fears, beliefs, ideas, etc. on to whatever it is he thinks he has seen, and House Va'ruun takes root.
I say “accidental” glimpse because of how I think the armillary works (see below if interested). In short, I think it’s possible to calibrate a grav drive to catch glimpses of other universes or even the Unity itself. Within the context of the story world, an improperly calibrated or malfunctioning grav drive makes the most sense as a starting point. In my imagination, followers of the Serpent’s Embrace have long since made a science out of how far they can tweak the drive settings in hopes of being blessed with “visions.” Hence, all the grav jumping and their absolute conviction in the rightness of their beliefs.
The fact that the Pilgrim gives them part of the code leading to his homestead suggests (to me) that House Va'ruun is probably unaware of the larger picture of the Starborn, multiverse, Unity, and mysterious Creators (but I would love to be wrong about this).
How the armillary works IMO:
Aside from the obvious gravity distortions in and around the temples, the Unearthed and Entangled missions make it clear that the artifacts are made from a material that interacts with gravity, and the strength of that interaction is relative to the amount of energy that gets pumped into it. Combined with the calculations Victor Aiza got from his other self, this (obviously) led to the creation of the first grav drive. Further, (sadly) we also learned that these calculations had to be adjusted.
Entangled expanded on this idea by adding the concept of harmonics to the mix (simulated by adjusting the frequencies in both universes to bring them into a point of alignment…of sorts). On the one hand, maybe we’re just finishing the calibration Rafael started - but I felt like this mission was supposed to help explain why Victor Aiza’s other self didn’t provide corrected calculations to begin with, despite already knowing the outcome. The unavoidable demise of the magnetosphere only makes sense (to me) if the calculations need to be ever-so-slightly different for each universe and it’s up to each universe to calculate that variable for themselves (the hard way, apparently - so sayeth the writers).
With this in mind, I came to the conclusion that the artifacts, once assembled into the armillary, work by generating a specific “gravitational resonance” that delivers you to Unity (with a little juice from your grav drive), as if you were slipping through the empty space between atoms (because why not). But I also think this can be simulated, to some degree, using only the grav drive because it also manipulates gravity…add the right kind of electrical resonance and you might be going somewhere. Or at least that’s what I like to think 😄
Love your Starfield videos. Have been binge watching them. VaRun are definitely the most interesting faction by far. I’m praying Bethesda does an expansion on them since I don’t think shattered space will focus them
Well you were wrong about Shattered Space haha
I tend to just assume house va'ruun is the eventual result of the pilgrim's first attempt at sharing his thoughts with people, who in his journals he says took all the wrong ideas, so he ultimately gave up to start what would become the sanctum universum; the reason there would be similar thoughts on gravjumping between the two would be because they both took their inspiration from things said and written by the same source, delivered and understood with varying levels of clarity.
I was 100 percent certain, I’d be going to fudgemuppet for Starfield lore. It would appear nefas has become Starfield’s “lore guy” well done nefas.
Fudgemuppet is my go to guy for skyrim lore but the man can't be dominate on all bathesda games lol. Although I don't doubt he will release his own thoughts on these same topics in due time
This game is so underrated.
Great video, having seen the shattered space trailer i just gotta say DAMN bethesda really took their time crafting this religion and its lore. Im highkey very impressed
I can't find any clip of it, but if I remember correctly, if you side with the Crimson Fleet, Andreja will scold you. In response, you can point to the serpent's crusade. Her reaction is interesting in that she doesn't seem to outright condemn it, but just says that it was a long time ago and has nothing to do with what you've done. It could just be her attachment since Balmor does seem to think it was wrong, but maybe the crusade was premature.
As to the embassy staff being recalled, I interpreted it to mean that the council had never intended for diplomacy to succeed, the Gravid's dinner was just the excuse hardliners needed to convince the others that diplomacy was impossible. 'We tried. But they don't desire relations, so we should just give up on that.' If the Gravid's motives were indicative of the council's, it was simply something to gather intelligence, dipping the toes into water to see what they could gain by it.
I imagine the artifacts as being made from impossibility, kinda like dividing by 0, they are nothing, yet constantly nothing, which draws energy from the dimension, we can’t “see” it but we can interact with it via its deformation of space in the shape of the actual artifact, kinda like how we can’t “see” black holes but rather their effects on real space
Stoned thought I like it.
I'm loving these lore videos
Quite unfortunate that there's not much in comparison to TES series. Though understandably tes lore wasn't built in one go
Subscribed after listening to your video about the Starborn Lore. Really good stuff and I'm enjoying this video as well. Hopefully we get a DLC where we are part of House Va'ruun or able to visit their world somehow.
For the sake of building out the dmt theory a little bit, we know from various real world experiences and even studies that the psychedelic traits of DMT can be reproduced without ingesting any substances at all, typically through a process of heavily pushing the humans bodies capabilities, or overwhelming a specific biological system like our breathing. Plenty of groups and entities have built ceremonial processes for this, many of which are far removed from any known materials that contain the active ingredients of ayahuasca and similar substances.
Impressive research. Kudos.
Loved the lore video, I farm the House Va'ruun armor set for my stealth character. TYVM
A lot of the House Va’ruun religious practices remind me of the Argonian Hist religion. The tree and it’s magical sap are just two examples.
My theory is Starborn ships are powered by the universes that bore them, which is why each time you pass through the Unity, the ship gets more powerful. This could also explain why the ships disappear along with the pilot when destroyed, as the universe(s) that materialized it and power it are returned to the Unity, taking all matter from those universe(s) with it. Like a forced rewind. On the flip side, killing a Starborn does not destroy the ship, their matter seems to return to the Unity that made them, and they apparently can be re-manifested so long as the ship remains intact.
Starborn also appear to be immortal in the sense they do not die of old age - as far as we know.
Why I mention this, is because if this were the case, theoretically, a Starborn could keep consuming universes until finally, the last Unity is the gate to their starting universe. Upon crossing that threshold, every universe in the multiverse is consumed - reunited, if you will - with one another. It is the ouroboros, the Alpha-Omega, returning to the source (Matrix reference), the theme that all paths eventually lead to all of existence once more becoming one, the reassembly of God, and the cycle of infinity begins once more.
If this is the case, this could be a motivation for Starborn to reach "the end," and it is quite possible the Starborn that achieves this actually becomes the Unity, or perhaps ascends to divinity status, existing outside of infinity, but now bears the responsibility of ensuring the rebirth of all existences, as should existence end, so would the Starborn whom achieved final unity, as they are forever linked, bound to the universe that bore them.
So the "Great Serpent" could actually mean existence itself, specifically referring to Final Unity, when the head of the serpent devours its own head, and blinks out to a renewed state of existence, a total reset of all things across the multiverse. When the player finally decides to begin a new save game, if you will. Very meta, I know.
55:02 the free Star ranger quest line *might* bolster this theory as Hopetech created a fertilizer that uses plants to extract rare minerals from the soil, killing the plants in the process.
With the mod Faction Backgrounds, Faction Outpost Guards and Faction Ships by IDontLikeNexus for PC and Xbox.
You can start out as a Va'ruun Zealot in your background and will be given a Va'ruun weapon and spacesuit.
Then the player can buy a Va'ruun ship in new atlantis.
The mod also gives the player an outpost beacon that will bring other Va'ruun npcs to your outpost that you can recruit.
All Va'ruun will also no longer be hostile to the player unless the player fires apon them.
The problem with Andreja and the idea of House Va'ruun secret agents is that they all speak with the exact same accent. Andreja included.
Incredible work man, thanks for putting this together
I think the scientist was either planning to do something weird while inside a living space snake or (more likely) was scared of something.
One thing I thought of after the video was if he got so scared by the hallucination/vision of the Great Serpent he was trying to figure out how to survive it if it came back :p
I dig your lore and you've covered some points none else has. I have some theories that make absolute sense, especially with the shattered dimensions I'm stoked to share soon.
You should make one lore video of the big mercenary company .. the Ecliptic .. all factions have some rare business with them, even starborns ...
Oh shit a legend of galactic heroes reference?!
the same folks pushing the TES connection are the same ones who believe that TES takes place on earth long after the fallout games
Glad I found your channel. Great job. Love all the Starfield lore.
Fun fact: Mir'za is voiced by Claudia Christian aka Susan Ivonava from Babylon 5
Sarah doing a HoV accent!!
That struck me as very strange.
This video is so damn good! You did amazing research and it shows!
Well done research with the Starfield lore, you got yourself a new follower! I also love your voice.
The Ouroboros, the snake eating itself representing Death and rebirth, or time infinity. Such as the Unity
This is the best lore video on SF. Subscribed.
"Only six people (including ourselves) know andreja is house va'ruun...."
Well not in my game. She wears a full va'ruun space suit in any non-breathable space. So much for undercover work!
I feel like the great serpent may be something along the lines of Rokos Basilisk. The way members of house Va'run talk about the great serpent sounds eerily similar. It could also explain why sentient ai components are contraband.
We really should start building Rokos basilisk right now sooner rather then later... in real life it's very important....😯😰☠️
@@caseyalbright2762 it's not important, you can come up with infinite mutually exclusive instances of the basilisk, just like you can come up with infinite potential deities with pascal's wager.
@@caseyalbright2762 Hail the Basilisk!
@@drewgoin8849 this guy gets it.
@MagicGonads remember that whenever that basilisk claims it's revenge on you for not helping create it. ☠️🤣
SUPERB. There’s so much here. TYVM. 👏
Honestly I wouldn't put it past Chunks to have a branch on Varun-kai
I personally think the Great Serpent is a Starborn. The Hunter, The Emisary, The Trader, The Great Serpent. I feel it’s Jinan Varuun much further along the plane (like The Hunter to Keeper Aquilas). However, I feel like instead of promoting the Unity, he has decided he wants to be revered as a god. Great video though! Loving the lore videos!
I wonder if the great serpent isn't a being, but a concept. Time, time is long as a serpent, and at the end of time the universe comes to an end. Not only that, but grav jumping is bending space, and bending space also bends time
Jeez that took some work ! Enjoyed the insight , awesome
Subbed, love the lore video and also gotta support a fellow Legend of the Galactic Heroes enjoyer. 😤👌
Great video keep on posting them please!!
Could it be a starborne is the cause of all this? We know the starborne don't all agree on who should get to unity. Perhaps a starborne knowing the properties of the venom tree used this to create visions and told the house VA runn colony ship where to land. The emissary wants to control who gets to unity Perhaps because of a starborne creating house va runn. This starborne would be treated as a God if they decided to return to house VA runn.
There is definitely a connection. Starborn know the future, and Varuun leaders saw "visions" or whatever. I wouldn't be surprised if Varuun are a tool of some starborn like Hunter
This was my exact thought. Also if we look at visual aids here, look at the hunters appearance and look at house Va'Ruun, a lot of stylization can be associated with the hunter. A starborn would appear as a god, who unbeknownst to the followers, can hop between universes. What if they're waiting for a starborn to return as their great serpent.
Do you mean like the Pilgrim or just some unknown Starborn?
@drewgoin8849 my guess would be a starborne we have yet to meet. As we find out it was a starborne who was responsible for the destruction of earth by giving the location of an artifact and telling a scientist about the drive. Now was that destruction part on purpose or an accident...... hard to say. Another example of starborne using normal humans is the final temple. The starborne used ecliptic mercenaries to build a base right on top of the temple. As for the pilgrim I think they made sure to leave clues to the answer about unity but only for the best people to find. Much like the idea of the emissary trying to keep the wrong people from getting the artifacts but using cunning and perseverance as a reward rather then direct intervention.
@@manbearpig342Sebastian Banks maybe.
My theory is the serpent is a starborne ai like skynet. Also the symbolism reminds me a lot about Roko's basilisk if any of yall are aware of what that is it explains why they are so zealous in their worship of the serpent
I like this idea. I think the starfield multiverse is a simulation and the creators and serpent represent opposite factions of the ones running it. And they are trying to manipulate us to fulfill their goals. One faction via the artifacts and temples and the other faction via the serpent. I don't think the creators are part of the multiverse, more like outside of it, and that both the serpent and the artifacts are implemented code to guide us a certain way. Like the reapers in ME used the mass portals to guide biologicals in a certain direction in their development. But even if they were part of the multiverse, I definetely think the serpent is also a creation by the same beings that created the artifacts. Maybe something that went rougue and we are meant to stop it, hence why we get the ability to travel the multiverse and the powers. Or maybe we are the ones that went rougue by becoming starborns and the serpent is an attempt to stop us.
I still feel like the origin story of House Va'ruun is eerily similar to that of the Tenno from Warframe
Sap from the Venom Tree is like ayahuasca in our world.
I am pretty sure that the Pilgrim and Jinan are two versions of the same person. This would explain similarities between Jinan and Keeper Aquilus's philosophies.
I got a lot of Va'ruun spacesuits, and dont see them better than any other, the guns are cool, the best is when u kill the emmissary he has a bad ass varuun rifle... I farm and board all ships I find in moons and planets of serpentis, as this is the only left to board when ur in crimson fleet ... I always said this time I'll give Kryxx's legacy to Sysdef but always spoil the stealth missions, so Iwande wants to send me to jail and have to fight my way out of his ship .. also not only the handler knows Andreja, also Bal'mor knows her, cos in one of my NG+ Balmoor said something to Andreja in the embassy as they know each other
Great video, ruined by utube injecting 16x different advertisements.
well done! keep em comin...SUBBED!
A thought I had, What if the Starborn were created to combat the Great Serpent?
House Va'ruun is the most interesting thing in Starfield.
the *only* interesting
i love this longer style content 🙏🏻😩
The more i see of this video and the available data. Im starting to think Andreja's second name is Va'rrun
I'm thinking that 'The Serpent' is a Starborn but one who has some kind of radical ideas regarding the universes he travels through
I like that take! I was thinking it was like some big ass neo-generational ship named The Great Serpent lol 🤷♂️
@hotlikesauce I thought of it because every starboard we meet has taken on some kind of title and I can only think of someone with the title of 'The Serpent' to be some kind of mad omnicidal asshole cult leader
Well made video very interesting
Shit, I overlooked starborn connection besides obvious grav jumping communion.
Given that their "official" symbol is Uroboros and apparent denial of starborn ascension from Jinan. Maybe Great Serpent - Starborn tries to lead ALL humans at once to Unity, like when universe dies. Kind of like Pilgrim but in more paternalistic/dogmatic way.
So I was looking through the starfield files, and I'm finding signs that Dazra is going to be, or was at one time, one of the major cities in the game. I'm going to be pissed if Bethesda just straight up yanked it out for DLC.
Yep mentioned in the video.
Most games do that now, have some of the DLC content already in the game, ready to be activated by the DLC.
Andreja is bae 😍
Yuppp. Show her the great serpant😂😂😂😂.
Want to point out that their spacesuit looks eerily like The Hunters outfit. Almost like they based it off his
I like to think the great serpent is a form of the creators since when you enter the unity the being there says "for who creates things but creators" the fact that they say "creators" and not "the creator" makes me think there are multiple of them
Are you planning on doing a Va'ruun connection to Elder Scrolls? I'm eager to hear more possible connections. Great Serpent & Lorkhan, Venom trees & Hist trees, Va'ruun names translating from Ehlnofex. All that good stuff. Two-sided lore and the possibilities it implies
The Elder Scrolls connection to Starfield imo has less to do with Va’ruun specifically but yes will make a video on the TES connection.
Skyrim is fun, starfail is just...kinda pretty. There is zero connection
I have a theory about the great serpent. He's a creator, a member of the alien race that creates the artifacts we've never seen a creator in person, so perhaps they're serpentine in physiology and given what we've seen of they're technology so far I don't find it to unlikely that if someone mistook them using their technology for divine powers.
Great stuff
I suppose it’s possible that house va’runn is somewhat of an Easter egg of Roko’s Basilisk, where the Basilisk is an otherwise benevolent AI that made a simulation to torture people who did not contribute to its creation. By knowing about it before it actually exists and not helping it exist you get tortured for eternity but by helping it you enjoy its benefits.
Though, Roko’s Basilisk is said to be a simplification of Pascal’s wager - which basically just says that everyone partakes in a life-defining gamble on the existence of God. More in depth, If God exists and you oppose him you’re dooming yourself to damnation, don’t know about him or question him and you live in purgatory, follow him and you benefit eternally. If God doesn’t exist (everyone loses but some lose less) and you followed him, you somewhat wasted your time varying into how much you invested in the idea. Following the teachings doesn’t expressly waste any time, but going to church, spending money, etc in the name of worshipping his glory is a waste of time in this scenario. If you didn’t acknowledge him or opposed him you didn’t waste any time. Though at the end you simply don’t benefit, there’s no consequences for you after you die which spirals into “does anything matter?”
Anyway. House Va’runn worships the great serpent because if they don’t, when the snake destroys everything they’ll suffer. If they support the snake they benefit. I think it’s more inspired by Roko’s basilisk because both involve snakes on top of the philosophy. But Pascal’s wager applies equally. Though the wager with the least risk is to believe and follow the snake but not devote your entire life to it. Hedge the bet, diminish the wager.
What if the Venom Tree grew on an artifact and started the process of becoming Starborn, but it's a plant, so instead of becoming a super powered interdimensional person, it became a hive mind like creature. And maybe it causes these hallucinations because it is transferring the connection to artifacts through those hallucinations.
When talking to the captured Va'ruun zealot, you can ask her about her religion's obsession with violence and killing. She responds that it isn't about the kill, it's about having the commitment to do what is necessary to defend the promised and forward the goals of the Great Serpent.
I think that the the head of house Va'ruun is a starborn... so he knows what will happen in the universe cuz he already lived it. But i think he passed only once so he doesnt know that there are very different universes out there or something like that.
More... More..... I demand more...vids please 🙏
22min02sec: violentus 🤣 Thanks for your video. 🙂
Thanks!
House Va ruun reminds me of the Children of Atom from Fallout 4.
4. The Great Serpent could be a powerful iteration of the cynical Hunter.
Thwh are definitely saving this for a very big dlc. They don't get newrly enough screen time as toi would expect for the third major faction in the game. Even if they are reclusive. What's just as elusive is.... When did they leave earth? Was it before or after the UC. We may or may not find out. I will eat my hat if Bethesda doesn't captilize on this. Its just odd for such a major player to... Not appear. Or very rarely. Did they leave on a ship similar to the ECS? They are alot more advanced in particle weapons too. Also have strange names.
I just had a weird thought. When we first meet andreja she has stealth tech. What if they stealth teched the city. Lore speaking. (it seems really odd for them to remove it otherwise)
im curious did you do this with the trait serpents embrace?
ive always suspected that the great serpent is connected too Ragnorok from the nordic faith.....which is a world eating snake
When I think of the zealots, I’m reminded of the pirates of the 1600s. Officially, Englands stance on them was that they were criminals, yet they happily accepted the wealth they stole from Spain and France.
whats the name of house Va'ruuns music! I want the option to join it!
Is there any connections between Ryujin and House Va'ruun worth covering? I'd heard there is possible Norse mythology references of a giant serpent (Jormungander) rising up from the sea and Neon is one big sea world with a company using a giant dragon as their brand image and whose clothes has similarities with va'ruun ambassador and has ties to spies and a focus on their image.
Ryujin's "mascot" is an East Asian dragon as the corporation name means "Dragon God" in Japanese (also an actual mythological being). I personally do not see any link between Jormungandr to the Great Serpent and the ideas associated with the type of dragons/Ryujin nor the activities Ryujin Industries carry out. I don't think House Va'ruun would be struggling for supplies/information as much if Ryujin was a front for them.
@@NefasQSryu= dragon and Jin = people. Not God.
Nihonjin. Nihon = Japan Jin = people.
Kami =God.
Not interchangeable.
Also dragon 🐉 is a snake God. As in the Asian Lunar calendar and in several ancient stories... they ARE directly related with the dragon is the snakes emperor or God. Usually Dragons are also tied to elements in other Asian cultures. For Japan they are protectors of the current realm and are benevolent in almost all the time even if they have character flaws.
Re: connections to The Elder Scrolls:
The great serpent could be or Satakal (the 'worldskin' serpent of Yakudan/Redguard legend), the Unity allowing us to move between universes could be like how the Yakudans could move at "angles" to survive the destruction of their world from in moving to the next Kalpa (next iteration of nirn (or tamriel? it's unclear in TES lore whether the whole planet resets or if each continent represents a different kalpa)). Also it's interesting that the Yakudan's contient sunk into the ocean and they disappeared, leaving behind the Redguards, just like how house Va'Ruun disappeared, leaving behind their embassy and the zealots.
Outside of the elder scrolls:
The great serpent could be Ouroboros from antiquity (as mentioned in the video), or it could be Azathoth from the Lovecraft mythos (connection to Fallout?), the great serpent is said to 'shroud' the universe when he returns, just like how when Azathoth wakes, the 'dream of reality' is destroyed.
Is it known for certain that Aquilis was "the Pilgrim"?
They remind me of Deep Space Nine, Bajoran society.
I have a strong suspicion we will be seeing Va'ruun'kai in a future expansion.
No problem with killing? The Andreja from my multiverse kept telling me that violence and revenge wasn't the way...😶
Haven't progress the story much but i sure know they have the best type of weapons😂😂😂
Love the video but damn I’m getting ads every minute and a half 😭
Mr. Va'Ruun either smoked too much funny-leaves, or was a raging failure in last universe, stumbled into Unity, and decided to start his own gang with a bullshit philosophy.
...could also be another Starborn like the Hunter? Nothing says there can only be one multi-unity, strong Starborn.
I do hope that that we as a player in a RP that the star bone
Become emperor
I know it's not the focus of the video, and maybe a weird hill to die on, but Enlightenment, or whatever the faith is named, is absolutely a religion. Lots of religions lack a god. Singh seems hesitant to use spiritual language, but the clergy in Akilla City is more open. My real world church is basically a mix of both the House of Enlightenment, in our atheist wing, and Sanctum Universal without the space stuff, in the more theist members.
Easier to watch vids than play. Vids almost look fun. Playing its just a chore
With little we know about them they are still better written than FC. (I've finished Ranger's questline and I'm disappointed) Though they still can fuck them up...