The connection between Elemer's pendants and images of St. Michael and St. George was pointed out to me by someone on Twitter, @magyar645. Doing a video about Elemer and his armor was something I'd had on the backlog for a while and their comment reminded me to take another look at it. There are only 5 instances of Elemer in the final game, but he appears on the load list for multiple legacy dungeons (Stormveil, Leyndell, Farum Azula, Raya Lucaria, and Volcano Manor) implying they may have considered giving him a bit more presence. His AI being named "Vulture Knight" kind of feels like it might suggest his appearance could've been triggered by death somehow in some iteration, but that's entirely a guess.
I wonder if "vulture" has something to do with his incarnation as the bell bearing hunter. Attacking the weak and helpless to take their "essence" (bell bearing), liks how a vulture will only come down to feed when a being is too weak and near death to fight back. Otherwise it will just follow its prey for a long time. What are the associations with vultures in Japan? Do they think the same things about them as Westerners?
You can see Elemer in the "Official Gameplay Reveal" trailer fighting player in Stormveil Castle at night. So it can somewhat explain Stormveil load list. Maybe he was considered more like Pursuer-character at first.
^Came to make this same comment but you beat me to it. Most likely reason he hunts us as well, since we have lots of good stuff for him to steal from our corpse.
Given his title of Vulture Knight in the coding, that makes him sound like more of a scavenger. Maybe that’s why there’s so many different symbols on his armor, it comes from various corpses he’s scavenged from.
My first assumption was that he's stolen all his stuff, which is why it seems mismatched and meaningless. In a way, he could be a mirror to an "evil" player character. Collecting armor from corpses and killing merchants after they're no longer useful, a common practice in the Dark Souls games.
That was my interpretation too. He murders shop-keepers in the night, and picks off their corpses like a vulture. Then he moved on to murdering and scavenging greater and greater people, like the average dark souls hero XD. @@Tukenfarben
Given that both eochaid weapons scale with Arcane, which is synonymous with dragon communion, it may be possible that communion thus came from eochaid if this imagery is to be taken into account
Maybe he's this game's incarnation of Creighton the Wanderer. Creighton was from faraway land, he wielded a dragonslayer axe (a replica, to be precise) and he was a serial killer... This dude is kinda dragonslayer (but not really, like Creighton himself) and he's a mysterious killer too.
Alternatively, the lack of head model could imply they *did* execute him via decapitation, only for him to get back up anyway and proceed to rock thier shit.
@@gothicbutterfly013and the description of the weapons can prove your theory to be true, since the copper on the armor and weapons allow the user to move it with will alone
Fitting that Elemer of the Briar doesn’t have a body anymore. He is but a vengeful spirit inhabiting that cursed suit of armor, hunting you and the merchants down as the Bell-Bearing Hunter.
Makes one wonder what the Marais hoped to accomplish by trying to put him to death. Unless, of course, that was Elemer's intention all along. I have a theory that the submerged peak in the whirlpool to the north of the Shaded Castle is what remains of Eochaid, and that House Marais were descendants or remnants of Eochaid. They became the Golden Order's executioners after Eochaid was likely destroyed or absorbed by them. If this is true, Elemer would likely perceive Marais as the highest order of traitors, and he let himself be captured by them to personally massacre them.
"However, Elemer somehow escaped his fate" What if he didn't , tho? Perhaps that's why he doesn't have a head in his helmet. Maybe he was executed, decapitated by that same sword, and now he's returned as a vengeful, headless spirit, to continue taking his revenge on the merchants.
That's an interesting idea, but it does leave the problem of why he still has a physical body hanging out in the Shaded Castle and why Maleigh Marais was outside the castle. And also how he got the sword. But I've always thought that his helmet was kinda janky. Like it just seems like it's not fit on his head very well. So maybe there is something going on.
The funny thing about Elemer is that his culture is known for being ascetic - they despise everything that is material. That could explain why he hunts down merchants and instructors. But it doesn't explain the intricacy of his armor. Is it even his? Or did he steal that too, same as his sword? Then again, why would an ascetic steal?
Perhaps he didn't leave Eochaid of his own will, and was ousted instead. After all, someone who values and pillages material goods (his sword, the bell bearings, and possibly his armor) would be an outcast in an ascetic culture.
@@nirsufa Its obviously an executioners sword, hence the wide blade and flat end, likely the sword they executed him with. I think perhaps they did chop his head off with it but his wicked spirit animated the armor and slew everyone with the sword they used to "kill" him. That would explain why he has no head mesh if indeed it was a stylistic choice rather than a shortcut.
His real weapon was very likely the Regalia of Eochaid, he was very likely kept a prisioner in Caellid before he was sent for his execution in Mt. Gelmir, what is odd is that he seems to posses some sort of magnetic or telecenitic Magic that has no ties whatsoever with the Stars or the Lords of Alabaster and Onyx, it's not truly a enchantment that is unique as it seems to be a interchangable sorcery/enchantment based on the fact that he was able to use It in the Marais Greatsword, perhaps Elemer is already a walking corpse that is being kept toghter by the very magic he uses on his Sword.
@@crepaldi4938 If i remember correctly I think Elemer and all Eochaidians (?) can harness the power of their pure will to do those crazy floating sword tricks. It's a power unique to them. Maybe his willpower is powering the armor as well. Maybe it's all that's left of him.
Elemer is such a cool yet confusing character. I wish we had more lore on him and Eochaid. I want to know what happened to it, why bell bearings are so important to him, how their magic functions. They dropped one of the coolest bosses and dipped.
I have a theory that that whirlpool with a bit of a mountain peak poking out, just north of the Shaded Castle, is where Eochaid is or was. It's stated to be "long-vanished" which could just mean it was destroyed or absorbed, but it could also have literally vanished under the ocean. Wouldn't be the first time a physical location was moved lower: look at the Nameless City which interesting resides below a massive hole in the surface of Leyndell.
@@MrEvan312 it also could be behind the clouds of the top left corner , i think that would make more sense , cause its stated that echoaid was a domain wich means it could be more than just one city, wich would make it bigger than the swirl , look at farum azula, the swirl is way bigger, but still the "island" isnt that big , so i like to believe , its outside of the lands between, i hope we get more lore in the dlc
there is something like that in every souls game, like the Heide Kingdom for example. Its one of my fav places in DS2 and the Heide Knights also wear the coolest armor in the game but we know almost nothing about them. They do it so people can create their own theories like we are doing here with Elemer
@@Morphologicallyy We actually know a good amount about Heide, but it needs to be put together with a lot of context clues, even one from dark souls 3. Basically, Heides is a kingdom of descendents of anor londo. We don't know how far they went or how long it's been, but they have statues identical to gwyns from ds1, except with an Eagle head, representing how their view of the gods changed. The tower of flame is a spiritual representation of the first flame, and the blue sentinels are descended from the blades of the dark moon - that one is actually stated outright in ds3. But since heides has long since fallen already by the time ds2 starts, we know little about its culture
i wonder if the armour is stolen from the castle, similar to the weapon they wield. the term vulture knight could mean he has a habit of taking armour from fallen enemies.
If Eochaid's people were ascetics, they may have been such that rather than buy or make their own equipment they instead stole it and furnished it with their battle arts.
His shield is almost certainly stolen, it's basically the same design as the Icon Shield, just with a different story painted onto it. The Icon Shield belonged to some kind of nobility before the shattering, it may have been property of the Church of Marika, according to the depiction on it.
I've always felt that Elemer's Armor was a combination of two different armors -- his original armor was the Celtic chainmail, and he placed the more gaudy / ceremonial engraved pieces over it once he took over the Shaded Castle. He didn't only pilfer the Sword, but also some ornate ceremonial armor.
The idea of that reddish rusty color being a conduit of one's will also brings to mund fascinating possibilities when examining Crucible knights and the Dung eater. Who also use that color
Given that apparently Elemer is in the load list for some legacy dungeons (as Zullie mentioned in her pinned comment) I think it's a bit of a shame that Elemer doesn't appear more often. Dude was thrashing me in the random places he shows up at, he definitely could've finally been a proper "Pursuer" type of guy done right if they let him invade in places with shardbearers and other important locations.
Maybe his Bell-Bearing Hunter title and Vulture Knight might refer to how he hunts the players who act as vultures and steal Bell Bearings from merchants and NPCs.
Since those from Eochaid have control over metal, perhaps Elmer not having a face model is on purpose - could the armour merely be a puppet? Selivus has remote controlled bodies without needed a proxy near by. Maybe this is why the execution didn't stick either, can't really kill a puppet.
It’s likely that Elemer continues to live is due to death being taken away from the land between but due to his body rotted away his spirit became trapped within his armor.🐱
@@Sewblon While it is unclear, what i get from it is not a full death. Your body dies but you soul eventually goes back to the erdtree. This partial death is part of the reason that Those who Live in Death are a thing, who die of spirit but not in body. You can interpret it as a person being eventually reborn after dying. You can interpet it as their spirits remaining alive wandering. But the point is that the so called "Destined Death" was removed, so the fated death beings are "Destined" to have never happens since it's sealed away, leading an incomplete death.
Caelid is kinda like Limgrave, in the sense that it has an additional part of the region that is distinct from the main body. Limgrave has the Weeping Peninsula. Caelid has the Dragonbarrow. But while the Weeping Peninsula is an extension that is similar in leveled enemies, but visually distinct from Limgrave, the Dragonbarrow is MILES apart, in terms of generaly enemy toughness, from the rest of Caelid. Caelid has a reccomendation of having a player character at level 60-70, meanwhile, the Dragonbarrow should be played at 90-110. That's the difference between mid game difficulty and early endgame.
Same. I'd forgotten that it's part of the Dragonbarrow region, but he's still stupidly difficult. I died more against him than I did to many bosses, including his actual boss form in the Shaded Castle. I didn't go after the Bell Bearing hunters until the end of the game after I completed it and opted not to go to NG+ (I know better than to go into a FromSoftware DLC in NG+), and I still had trouble against the Caelid hunter.
Probably the same reason that one Death Rite Bird in the snow area puts the Elden Beast to shame. No idea what that reason *is,* but I'm sure there is one.
His bloodstained armor, especially around his neck, his lack of a head model, and the bashed look of the helmet's visor could imply that he really was executed but somehow rose again and used his eochaid powers to snatch the executioner's sword and kill all them back
The shaded castle and Elemer were the biggest "get good or get out" moment of my first playthrough. I spent 2 hours learning this boss, and now I love his fight. Not a playthrough goes by where I don't grab the martyr effigy at shaded castle to help others with Elemer. He is one of very few bosses I respect.
Was looking for that kind of comment! I spent so much time on him. For me, it was maybe the hardest boss that I fought that isn't an important one, if you know what I mean... But I like that fight a lot too. It's demanding, but fair somehow.
The wide face, large eyes, and creepy smile of the snake-haired woman design reminds me quite a lot of some depictions of the gorgon on Athena's aegis Association with Medusa and the classical world in general seems fitting given the Regalia of Eochaid looks a bit like a gladius and appears to be made of bronze (the description says "copper colouration" so it could be any similarly coloured metal) You could also argue that his armour bears some resemblance to armour from the ancient world too, with the helmet possibly being derived from Roman cavalry masks, and the other pieces utilising pteruges (those little leather strips) and lion imagery
If I had to guess, Elmer was likely designed/modelled early in development as a sort of prototype, before a lot of the game's finer details were ironed out. Design-wise his armour has many elements common in the Lands Between: thorns, lions, monster-men, pre-renaissance styled artistry/imagery with a hint of older inspirations like Roman and Persian, and even an unusual helmet based off a real historical reference. Yet none of it ties into the usual themes, right down to his helmet not containing the usual "face" and the AI not having a related name. The decision to make him "foreign" was likely a way to work around all this. If they'd intended to make him foreign from the beginning, they would have given his armour visual themes all his own, similar to folks from the Land of Reeds, or Tanith.
Yeah, he seems to be an asset that they tossed around a lot trying to find a place for it - he may have started out as a Pursuer-style recurring miniboss with a "scavenger/robber" theme (hence the Vulture Knight codename, mismatched armor and Bell-Bearing Hunter encounters in the final game), but then he was also duplicated and implemented as Elemer with the snippets of Eochaid/Briar lore quickly fastened to him. Maybe they ran out of time or had to cut the "proper" Elemer boss and re-used Vulture Knight for it because his asset was already polished enough, but also so patchy and non-specific lore-wise it'd fit for both roles?
@@sofija1996 | Some day in the far future, I'd love to see a big game like Elden Ring that wasn't forced to compromise on any aspect of its vision due to time and money.
Another interesting factor when it comes to Elemer’s physical form: even after killing him in the shaded castle as Elemer of the Briars, he still invades you as the bell bearing Hunter at night in the locations.
@@Rakshael "Famitsu: So there have been many details just revealed, please let me ask more. You just mentioned Queen Marika's history, does this mean the DLC takes place in the past? Miyazaki: No, it takes place in the same time as the main title. The setting is not in the distant past or future." "Famitsu: In the background of the new art, there appears to be some kind of veil in the sky. Miyazaki: Yes, the shadow lands in which the DLC take place are sundered from the Lands Between where the main story takes place. It has been removed from and hidden from the outside world and this veil is a symbol of that."
Despite how annoying the hunters are to fight, Elemer is one of may favorite enemy designs in elden ring. He's just so perfectly menacing, mysterious and powerful
Agreed. Even with all the badass gods, demigods, and monsters you fight something about this big angry mf showing up to kick your ass and steal your shit is just cool. The telekinetic sword moves he does are some of my favorite in the Souls catalogue and I'm still salty the version they give you is so limited.
I definitely believe that "black mesh" is a development shortcut. From what I've learned about "game development", since I wanna make games too, this is a common thing done when placing a helmet over a character's face. It's also so they don't have to animate eyes blinking or mouths moving
The problem with this theory is that a *lot* of models also with hidden faces have face underneath, even if it's nearly impossible to see( see some of Zullies videos) and while this happens mostly with player character models, even this guy's player model version also has a faded face which is unusual
It should be noted too, his actual boss fight doesnt determine seeing the bell bearing hunter fights, meaning whether he is defeated or not as elemer doesnt stop the remaining encounters from happening. Additionally, each encounter he summons in like an invasion but shown even in your video, he stops being red like one, where even the shadow in ranni's quest and tannith's knight invade in red persistently Which further suggests he is either a spirit, even in the castle, or that whatever Eochaid's magic is, we dont have a full picture of its capabilities outside you can copperbend. Assuming his teleportation is anything at all related to Eochaid magic at all, or its another dev oversight, but considering how he is the only one that comes into color from an invasion-esque spawn, where the two mentioned non tarnished enemies also can appear so (considering there's basically no gravelording in this game) its hard to say if it is or isnt a dev oversight
Personally, my runes are on him being a vengeful spirit asshole, in all his locations. The lack of head model and bloodstains around the neck mean they *did* execute him, he just stood back up afterwards and rocked thier shit with the sword they used to do it.
Spoilers for the Black Swordsman Saga Part 2: It's actually pretty simple: he is hunting bell bearings. Bell bearings have a little bit of the merchant's spirit connected to it via their in game icon. We know from our Spirit Calling Bell, as well as other instances, that bells and music( like our Spectral Whistle) can summon spirits. Once you realize the founder of House Marais also used to own the Spirit Calling Bell it all makes sense why they would want Bell Bearings. Would make sense why Elemer has no head, he is already dead. The Headless follow their leaders into death after all.
Maybe he was actually executed and has no head, but then rose from death like a headless mausoleum knights. Reminds me of Robert Strong from George RR Martins ASOIAF. It's questioned whether he has a head or not.
I feel like he has to have some sort of connection to the land of shadow somehow. Think about it, he has lion imagery that could be the lion dancer thing in the trailer, he has thorns on him which represent his connection to going against the Erdtree. His weapon art uses arcane, and so does blood magic, potential connection there, not to mention when you fight him, he just pops out of nowhere from a red portal. you know what else is red? blood. maybe his weird telekinesis and portals and stuff are actually a form of blood magic? or are somehow corrupted versions of said magic? Not the biggest stretch when you remember those corrupted Albinaurics. And then there's the fact that he hunts merchants and instructors. sounds a little like something a bloody finger would do, don't you think? maybe all this blood stuff points to him working under Mohg or maybe even Miquela. Those women on his armour could be depicting St Trina. And then there's also the saints, which someone in the comments pointed out are dragon slayers, maybe elemer took part in dragon communion? The dragon communion seal looks kinda similar to his magic, maybe that's why his magic is red. Once again, both use arcane. Mesmer seems to have his own connections to dragon communion so maybe those two are related somehow.
He must have been very powerful to have infused the Marais Executioner Sword with Eochaid magic, seeing as the Regalia of Eochaid weapon is made with copper to assist with using that type of magic. The thorns likely signify guilt, continuing that symbolism from other cultures in the game. The armor's baltea (thin leather strips 1:04) and many other aspects (early christian symbolism and ornate metalwork) are of course evocative of greek/roman aesthetics, which we see much of in the DLC trailer... As others here have said, it is quite a lavish outfit (my character rocks the cuirass with Jerren's mask and traveler gloves)... maybe Elemer's greed and propensity for finery is what exiled him from that homeland which praised asceticism, or even led to his attempted execution (thorns - guilty of theft/robbery/murder?). God I love the Lands Between
If he hunts merchants, perhaps he is against the Frenzied Flame. Maybe in the past was allied with Godfrey. Or slew a knight who was as they invaded his lands.
@@quint3ssent1aWhy not? See, there's a little problem with the idea he just wants their stuff; Without the Twin Husks in the Roundtable Hold, nobody can access the goods on the Bell bearings. As such, he either somehow has access to them... Or he wants the merchants dead for another reason.
@@alyseleem2692 With the info we have, I don't think any answer will be satisfying, but I have two educated guesses: #1: Some people just want to watch the world burn. Not clear why Elemer would target bell bearings specifically, but it's a hobby I guess #2: Eochaid's arts might have something to do with spirit manipulation, and thus bell bearings _(which, akin to spirit ash, seemingly act as vessels to preserve souls and keep them useful)_ might be useful to him, maybe even necessary for his survival. However, pretty much the only evidence I can think of this would be the very obscure Helphen's Steeple/"red grace" theories and Eochaid arts also having a red colour
Winged woman, knight of vulture, swords that dance in the sky maybe their culture about hunting flying beasts or they worshipped it Is why he targeting merchants maybe he's searching for something a weapon or artifact that might have been stolen or sold from his homeland that's important to his culture or religion
I love that idea, I wonder if he's specifically looking for the Regalia. The Marais sword seems to be a weapon he took and modified, but the Regalia seems like it was an actual Eochaid artifact.
@MrEvan312 indeed I'm sure there are other stuff other than the sword because if the dude was really a killer or criminal he wouldn't just target merchants he would be on his way making massacres around the land
I like this, the fact that their regular weapon is designed to be able fly while being in control suggest they might really had hunting flying beast as their culture
New amazing video, thank Zullie! The AI name "Vulture Knight" of Elemer and his thorn element always make me recall Kirk, Knight of Thorns from DS, especially Kirk intrudes on you as well. I have been considering him supposed to be a vital NPC in Malenia and Rot Goddess storyline, like Kirk, because vultures eat rotten flesh. Elemer is really a most weird character. He is a boss but also a foreigner, very not involved in the "Gods and Stars" theme story while others do.
I like the fact that they gave him an executioner's sword with the missing point etc. I know I shouldn't be surprised by FromSoft's attention to detail but as a medieval history nerd with an interest in the death penalty in the old day, this brought a smile to my face.
Out of all the cosplay playthroughs I have done, Elemer or the Bell-Bearing Hunter is my favorite by far. The Marias Executioner Sword (and Regalia of Eochaid) have one of my favorite skills in the game and it was fun to delete bosses with. Hopefully we will get more lore/info about him in the DLC as he certainly is an interesting character.
The coolest character design out of all their games imo, the mask, the rusted iron briars, the black cape, his height, the big sword, his moveset, all perfect
one thing i love about this channel is how willing you are to be like "its entirely possible this doesn't mean anything actually" instead of framing all speculation as a puzzle you've solved
You know since the AI tags Elemer as "VultureKnight," I'm wondering if anyone's considered that Elemer's armor isn't an actual set, but rather a collection of pieces he's stolen off of past kills. It could very well be that the multiple different motifs, amulets, and depictions came from multiple sources that have all just been stiched together over time. Even the facemask of the head looks slightly out of shape, like it's been shoddily repaired and stamped back over the helm/coif before the briars were forged around it.
Elemer holds a special place for me in ER because he was the first boss outside Margit who really challenged me. Eventually, I'll get around to doing a cosplay run using his set, too.
Two things that stuck out to me is that one of the images on his armor looks like a Gorgon and the Shaded Castle and surroundings are packed with eerie human statues (and coincidentally is home to several basilisks, though they inflict death blight instead of petrification in Elden Ring), and that Eochaid is described as a " lesser, long-vanished domain" which makes me wonder if Eochaid itself is just lost to history, or if it's described as vanished because it's been literally displaced from the rest of the world like the DLC's Land of Shadow seems to be.
I was thinking that it’s in the whirlpool under the water in the ocean on the map just above the Shaded Castle. It looks like a big rock or piece of land fell into that whirlpool on the map.
I think the monster lady on Elemer’s gauntlets might be a depiction of a Jenny Haniver. Jenny Hanivers were mutilated, mummified rays & skates that were made to look like demons, angels, or dragons and sold to people passing through coastal areas in western Europe in the 16th century and on-at least according to Wikipedia, which also states that they were most often mistaken for basilisks by 16th century laypeople, apparently because they were, like gorgons, assumed to be able to turn people to stone when looked at… so it was thought that nobody could know what a living one looked like. This *might* have some thematic implications if it IS intended to represent a Jenny Haniver, especially when considered in juxtaposition with the gorgon-like figure on his shin-guards, since it sounds like Basilisks and Gorgons were both feared for the same reasons, just in different times and places. There could be a thematic connection to the talismans depicting dragon-slaying saints also, since Jenny Hanivers were also sometimes mistaken for and/or sold as the preserved corpses of small dragons. It’s possible his armor might be adorned with various fearsome mythological creatures-some representing beings that are perhaps considered deadly to just look at directly-solely with the purpose of striking fear into the hearts of his enemies, or the designers might be intentionally symbolically aligning the wearer with some more specific qualities of the monsters and heroes it depicts. Hard to say.
This very much sounds like a headless horseman deal. He might've been executed, but yet with his head removed he still didn't die, and went on to slaughter everyone.
I have not been this early since forever! Will edit when I finish. I love your vids, Zullie! You're one of the best lore tubers I know, even if all the lore you find is via cut content and subtle visual cues in the character models! ❤
I used to think Elemer's slightly crooked helmet was just displaced by the thorns. But with it looking empty, I have to wonder, if the thorns move the armor like a puppet. Since we don't know, how he escaped his execution, maybe he didn't? His head could've been chopped off and while nobody was looking, thorns sprouted, the headless body got up and yoinked the executioner's sword
I like to study a lot of Greek and Roman myths. A lot of his armor seems to resemble some creatures. The winged women and the snake haired woman could be Medusa and the Gorgons, who were hunted by Perseus. St. Michael and St. George were dragon slayers, both being figurative for the devil, and St. George was believed to be a Roman Soldier. The Lion could tie into the roman gladiator fights, or how they hunted Christians who were thrown in. It might be a stretch with just this evidence, but we see another item from Eochaid, the Regalia of Eochaid, a highly decorated gladius. A roman sword.
Are we getting a more in-depth look at the lion imagery in the game, in light of the DLC? A lot of the attention has been (understandably) focused on serpents/snakes, but there are things to touch upon regardion lions too. Between the lion-dance-like grotesque boss featured in the DLC, as well as the lions statues featured in that one scene of the trailer where the player casts a Spell Incantation, it seems like we might get more lions-related culture within the Lands of Shadow? In the base game, a lot of the Lions-imagery come from Serosh, associated to Godfrey, thus Radahn, but most importantly, Serosh is refered as the Lord of all Beasts, I believe from an Item description given by Gurranq/Maliketh, potentially indicating a time Serosh used to stand on a higher level than even beast Maliketh before he pledged allegiance to Godfrey. Seems like even Elemer featured some Lion imagery...
OH! Another crazy theory I just thought! All the other Bell Bearing Hunters that we fight, could be shadow-clones of Elemer! Another possible way why he's so frickin' hard to kill!
This douchebag beat me up pretty bad a few times, and he can't even be bothered to put his face mask on straight. I didn't feel bad about cheesing him by fighting from the tops of nearby buildings. Anyway, unlike the Land of Reeds which may be on the other side of the "planet" that is the Lands Between [it's not really a planet], Eochaid is described as having vanished. I think one of the points of this guy is to remind you whole parts of this world were wiped out in the formation of the Golden Order and the Shattering. And yes, he's a phantom, I think; he's red and materializes inside otherwise safe areas, and the hollow armor matches it. So he's, like, a phantom of a lost realm holding territory in this one.
Perhaps he didn't avoid his execution, but decapitation simply didn't stop him. This also would explain why his helmet is all crooked, he doesn't need the eye-holes to see. He could very well be a reference to the dullahan. The arm and leg textures are very interesting. One of them definitely looks like a Gorgon, but the other seems almost fish-like but with the face of a lion or perhaps devil. I'm also not sure if the things on its head are horns, snake heads or fish? It would be cool if we could find what they referenced when making this. If it's something specific it could reveal more, although it could be meaningless.
This probably has a very disappointing answer, but could you do a video removing the snow effect from the consecrated snowfield? I want to know if there’s actually anything out there worth exploring for or if it’s literally just a barren white texture with nothing interesting. I kind of assume it’s the latter, but I can’t seem to find an answer anywhere.
I love the idea of the lands between hosting all of these gods and monsters and shit but people are still visiting. Like a tourist comes through looking to buy a Hawaiian shirt sees the Death Blight and is like nah, 1 star review, Lands Between have really gone down hill.
Ok,I have a couple of theories on him. There's a chance that none if the armor he wears is actually his, especially with all the odd pendants that seem to not even be from the lands between, there's a chance this might be why he kills merchants for the Bells,not to summon them later but simply for new charms As for the mussing head texture,he was set to be executed, he's a tarnished so he died once,and he has no head model,I believe that the execution was (partially) successful,and that they managed to decapitate him,but as we see with other enemies, death was not the end for Elemer
Elemer's kind of a badass when you think about it. He walks and moves actively despite briars being driven into his skin, then when he was about to be executed, he took the sword he was going to be executed with and used it to fight back.
Elemer feels like a "corrupted" crucible knight. Heavy attacks with obviously less poise (to the crucible knights). His invasions seem to suggest bloody finger shenanigans and "seems" similar to the Dung Eater's appearance in Round Table Hold.
I believe he just his own man, not necessarily connected to mohg. He is ascetic anyway, they are reclusive and rarely interact socially, I also find it confusng as to why cleanrot knight is even there in the first place, we know maleigh marais idolize malenia but to what extend he work cleanrot knight to guard the place is a headscratcher.
Maybe he WAS beheaded. Hence no head. Didn’t feel like dying after being executed and just stood back up and killed the executioner and took his sword. A real badass
It gave me a idea. Maybe he similar to a tarnished and he get resourected too! Its posible he would become a Elden Lord too and create a new order. Remembering back to older lore vids for the fingers/god dont realy care what type of order a person bring. Thats why dung eater can create a rune and "fix" the elden ring. Maybe he qualificed too to create one we just killed him before it can happen.
@Bap-lt4msMay be, lots of humanoid enemies on ER are headless, Nox swordtress or Black knife assasin for example, nothing under their hat/veil, it just empty
Maybe he did get executed by the sword qhich explains why he has no head but maybe that wasnt enough to kill him and thats why he managed to escape and steal the sword because who would think a already executed corpse is gonna come back and kill you
Elemer, Istvan, Margit are Hungarian names. Not sure what to make of this. Maybe GRMM was scouring lists of foreign names for inspiration. (Marika is an odd one, it is a Hungarina nickname of Mária (Mary) but apparently appears independently in other languages in this form.)
He thwarted his own execution by manipulating the executioner’s sword though the air into his own grasp. He uses it to this day. Vaati touches on this.
An important thing to note is that the ability he grants to the sword is based on Arcane, given the comparison to the other sword with similar abilities, an inherent magical power within the body and often in the blood, rather than something learned. I suspect that the reason for Elemer's oddities is that he was successfully beheaded, but his innate Arcane power kept him alive. We've seen Those Who Live In Death, headless enemies who guard mausoleums, and more, so it is related to what we've seen before.
Eochaid is inspired by Ireland so that makes me think of few possible interpretations. A very common motif in Celtic stories is characters being able to walk around after decapitation and beheading games, the most famous example of a beheading game being found in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Unlike many of the cultures they interacted with, who saw beheading as a punishment for traitors, the ancient Celts believed decapitation to be the honorable way out for a mighty warrior. In medieval times the beheading game was often used as a challange to one's manhood and bravery, and was often a test one had to overcome to be granted knighthood. Based on the sword it looks like Elemer was sentenced to be decapitated, telling us that House Marais (and maybe other parts of the lands between) viewed decapitation as a disonorable death, while to someone from Eochaid, like Elemer, it likely held a different significance. It makes me wonder if he was actually decapitated, but having successfully won a decapitation game, he could have reattached his head and become a spectral being. The most famous headless being from Irish mythology is of course the Dullahan, who is a spectral headless horseman and omen of death. The way the Bell Bearing Hunter appears at night reminds me a little bit of a Dullahan. This is all a big stretch as nothing seems to indicate that the execution ever took place, but I can't help but feel like there's something ironic about trying to execute Elemer by decapitating him, knowing about decapitation games in Irish folklore, and of course he is using the executioner's blade himself now.
But Elemer wasn't beheaded, if he was he would've been referred to as 'executed'. Since it says he stole the executioner sword "at the site of his LOOMING execution", that most likely means his execution didn't come yet. It is more likely that FromSoftware didn't bother giving him a head because there was no reason to, and the mask being displaced was because of the iron briars along his body.
Hopefully Eochaid and Elemer lore gets more fleshed out in the expansion. Even the Shaded Castle itself has very little other than what is disclosed in this video. For example, why are there perfumers here? Why was the Shaded Castle cursed (wraiths and revenants imply this)? Did the royals dig to deep and unearth something cursed?
I love the Shaded Castle so much because of its mystery, a story clearly was told there and life once dwelled there, but when we find it, it appears abandoned, forgotten and full of hostile wildlife, spirits & poison springs in it and all around it. We even stumble upon Patches there too.
It's actually quite noteworthy that Elemer's armor is empty, as I suspect he is piloting it from afar. The evidence for this is in the Eochaid weapon set, who's descriptions state that the copper inlays allow a wielder of sufficient will to control them with only his mind. In fact, the ancestral executioner sword to be used against Elemer was one such Eochaid weapon, and it is described that Elemer tore the weapon from his executioner's hands and slew him. The range at which Elemer can control the sword in comparison to when the sword is in the player's hands suggest he had a mastery of the technique beyond most others, perhaps mastery enough to control an entire suit of armor from great distances as he hunts merchants across the lands between. Edit: after reviewing the description, it seems after stealing the sword Elemer "furnished it with skills from his home." This is quite vague and could mean he either wielded it as an Eochaid would, or physically modified the sword, but I like my idea of the Marais not knowing what their ancestral blade was capable of in the hands of an Eochaid native.
While this theory can work, I just wanna clarify something: Eochaidians can control anything they want with their wills, it is not the "copper" that allows that to do so, if it was, then Elemer wouldn't be able to pick the player up in his grab attack. Copper, In my opinion, is just a good conductor of willpower, kind of like how it is for electricity.
I remember reading something about comparing Eochiad and Forossa from Dark Souls 2. Both are kingdoms that fell, with Forossa being overrun with bandits. If so, you could guess that we might have a Vengarl situation where the physical body and the head/spirit of Elemer are somehow disconnected.
Vulture certainly could play into him being a "bird of prey" that hunts down merchants and steals their items. Maybe the ornate designs of his armor aren't even from where he was born, but just trophies from his past conquests.
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The connection between Elemer's pendants and images of St. Michael and St. George was pointed out to me by someone on Twitter, @magyar645. Doing a video about Elemer and his armor was something I'd had on the backlog for a while and their comment reminded me to take another look at it.
There are only 5 instances of Elemer in the final game, but he appears on the load list for multiple legacy dungeons (Stormveil, Leyndell, Farum Azula, Raya Lucaria, and Volcano Manor) implying they may have considered giving him a bit more presence. His AI being named "Vulture Knight" kind of feels like it might suggest his appearance could've been triggered by death somehow in some iteration, but that's entirely a guess.
Vulture is a carrion bird, perhaps related to his preying on vulnerable isolated merchants?
I wonder if "vulture" has something to do with his incarnation as the bell bearing hunter. Attacking the weak and helpless to take their "essence" (bell bearing), liks how a vulture will only come down to feed when a being is too weak and near death to fight back. Otherwise it will just follow its prey for a long time.
What are the associations with vultures in Japan? Do they think the same things about them as Westerners?
It makes me think if they had plans to make him more of a recurring invader, similar to Anastasia and Thorn Knight Kirk or Dark Souls 2's Pursuer
You can see Elemer in the "Official Gameplay Reveal" trailer fighting player in Stormveil Castle at night. So it can somewhat explain Stormveil load list. Maybe he was considered more like Pursuer-character at first.
^Came to make this same comment but you beat me to it. Most likely reason he hunts us as well, since we have lots of good stuff for him to steal from our corpse.
I don't care who the Golden Order sends, I am NOT paying taxes!
Tax evasion is a crime, Vergil!
Based Tax-evader of the briar
epsonea482 reference
What if we send barefoot femboy - Miyazaki probably
General Oliver will not be pleased.
"He's definitely making a statement, but it's hard to say what that statement is." A true artist
I know bloody fingers who use subtext, and they're all cowards!
@@beerus101 love to see a fellow darkplace fan in the wild 💪
@@beerus101 "I wouldn't say i buy this, lets just say i'm window shopping, and right now theres a half price sale on weird."
Given his title of Vulture Knight in the coding, that makes him sound like more of a scavenger. Maybe that’s why there’s so many different symbols on his armor, it comes from various corpses he’s scavenged from.
He is a "collector"
My first assumption was that he's stolen all his stuff, which is why it seems mismatched and meaningless. In a way, he could be a mirror to an "evil" player character. Collecting armor from corpses and killing merchants after they're no longer useful, a common practice in the Dark Souls games.
This ties him even closer to Patches I would think
I mean you kill him for bell bearings in multiple places ingame
That was my interpretation too. He murders shop-keepers in the night, and picks off their corpses like a vulture. Then he moved on to murdering and scavenging greater and greater people, like the average dark souls hero XD. @@Tukenfarben
Interesting, so he's wearing symbols of two saints who were dragonslayers, with one being knight and other one being archangel.
Given that both eochaid weapons scale with Arcane, which is synonymous with dragon communion, it may be possible that communion thus came from eochaid if this imagery is to be taken into account
Maybe he's this game's incarnation of Creighton the Wanderer. Creighton was from faraway land, he wielded a dragonslayer axe (a replica, to be precise) and he was a serial killer... This dude is kinda dragonslayer (but not really, like Creighton himself) and he's a mysterious killer too.
Highly chance he looted that armor
He as well wearing symbols of weird chtonic gorgona-like women. Our boy Elmer embraces both christianity and pagan lol.
@@franciscoreza8295as well as pendants.
Imagine being in the middle of an execution and realizing “ah shit, there’s not even a guy in here”
"boss what do I do"
Alternatively, the lack of head model could imply they *did* execute him via decapitation, only for him to get back up anyway and proceed to rock thier shit.
@@gothicbutterfly013
That's what I was thinking
@@gothicbutterfly013and the description of the weapons can prove your theory to be true, since the copper on the armor and weapons allow the user to move it with will alone
Fitting that Elemer of the Briar doesn’t have a body anymore. He is but a vengeful spirit inhabiting that cursed suit of armor, hunting you and the merchants down as the Bell-Bearing Hunter.
I like this interpreration.
Just like Bishamon from Darkstalkers
Makes one wonder what the Marais hoped to accomplish by trying to put him to death. Unless, of course, that was Elemer's intention all along.
I have a theory that the submerged peak in the whirlpool to the north of the Shaded Castle is what remains of Eochaid, and that House Marais were descendants or remnants of Eochaid. They became the Golden Order's executioners after Eochaid was likely destroyed or absorbed by them. If this is true, Elemer would likely perceive Marais as the highest order of traitors, and he let himself be captured by them to personally massacre them.
@@MrEvan312 Stealing this headcanon for myself, that's some good shit
maybe just missing his head, as that sword is entirely for execution by decapitation
"However, Elemer somehow escaped his fate"
What if he didn't , tho? Perhaps that's why he doesn't have a head in his helmet. Maybe he was executed, decapitated by that same sword, and now he's returned as a vengeful, headless spirit, to continue taking his revenge on the merchants.
I heard you died
"I got better"
I feel like this is the best answer. If you kill him at the Shaded Castle he can still invade you elsewhere. Seems like spirit-shenanigans.
could tie in the undead from the shield, if they are actually undead
Or it could be his headless body walking around in that armor. Who's to say?
That's an interesting idea, but it does leave the problem of why he still has a physical body hanging out in the Shaded Castle and why Maleigh Marais was outside the castle. And also how he got the sword.
But I've always thought that his helmet was kinda janky. Like it just seems like it's not fit on his head very well. So maybe there is something going on.
Funnily enough, I didn't notice the undead imagery on that shield as it was, at that time, knocking my teeth out
Funny how that happens 😁
Though you now know intimately the taste of blessed mahagony I take it?
Shoved a bit TOO close to make out the details
The funny thing about Elemer is that his culture is known for being ascetic - they despise everything that is material. That could explain why he hunts down merchants and instructors. But it doesn't explain the intricacy of his armor. Is it even his? Or did he steal that too, same as his sword? Then again, why would an ascetic steal?
Perhaps he didn't leave Eochaid of his own will, and was ousted instead. After all, someone who values and pillages material goods (his sword, the bell bearings, and possibly his armor) would be an outcast in an ascetic culture.
As for his sword, it is stated that he stole it during his execution
@@nirsufa Its obviously an executioners sword, hence the wide blade and flat end, likely the sword they executed him with. I think perhaps they did chop his head off with it but his wicked spirit animated the armor and slew everyone with the sword they used to "kill" him. That would explain why he has no head mesh if indeed it was a stylistic choice rather than a shortcut.
His real weapon was very likely the Regalia of Eochaid, he was very likely kept a prisioner in Caellid before he was sent for his execution in Mt. Gelmir, what is odd is that he seems to posses some sort of magnetic or telecenitic Magic that has no ties whatsoever with the Stars or the Lords of Alabaster and Onyx, it's not truly a enchantment that is unique as it seems to be a interchangable sorcery/enchantment based on the fact that he was able to use It in the Marais Greatsword, perhaps Elemer is already a walking corpse that is being kept toghter by the very magic he uses on his Sword.
@@crepaldi4938 If i remember correctly I think Elemer and all Eochaidians (?) can harness the power of their pure will to do those crazy floating sword tricks. It's a power unique to them. Maybe his willpower is powering the armor as well. Maybe it's all that's left of him.
- No head / very dark head
- Likes to invade you
- Annoying af
Ah, it's been a long while, The Forlorn of Dark Souls 2
Elemer is such a cool yet confusing character. I wish we had more lore on him and Eochaid. I want to know what happened to it, why bell bearings are so important to him, how their magic functions. They dropped one of the coolest bosses and dipped.
likely complicit in the genocide on the wandering traders
I have a theory that that whirlpool with a bit of a mountain peak poking out, just north of the Shaded Castle, is where Eochaid is or was. It's stated to be "long-vanished" which could just mean it was destroyed or absorbed, but it could also have literally vanished under the ocean. Wouldn't be the first time a physical location was moved lower: look at the Nameless City which interesting resides below a massive hole in the surface of Leyndell.
@@MrEvan312 it also could be behind the clouds of the top left corner , i think that would make more sense , cause its stated that echoaid was a domain wich means it could be more than just one city, wich would make it bigger than the swirl , look at farum azula, the swirl is way bigger, but still the "island" isnt that big , so i like to believe , its outside of the lands between, i hope we get more lore in the dlc
there is something like that in every souls game, like the Heide Kingdom for example. Its one of my fav places in DS2 and the Heide Knights also wear the coolest armor in the game but we know almost nothing about them. They do it so people can create their own theories like we are doing here with Elemer
@@Morphologicallyy We actually know a good amount about Heide, but it needs to be put together with a lot of context clues, even one from dark souls 3. Basically, Heides is a kingdom of descendents of anor londo. We don't know how far they went or how long it's been, but they have statues identical to gwyns from ds1, except with an Eagle head, representing how their view of the gods changed. The tower of flame is a spiritual representation of the first flame, and the blue sentinels are descended from the blades of the dark moon - that one is actually stated outright in ds3. But since heides has long since fallen already by the time ds2 starts, we know little about its culture
i wonder if the armour is stolen from the castle, similar to the weapon they wield. the term vulture knight could mean he has a habit of taking armour from fallen enemies.
If Eochaid's people were ascetics, they may have been such that rather than buy or make their own equipment they instead stole it and furnished it with their battle arts.
His shield is almost certainly stolen, it's basically the same design as the Icon Shield, just with a different story painted onto it. The Icon Shield belonged to some kind of nobility before the shattering, it may have been property of the Church of Marika, according to the depiction on it.
I've always felt that Elemer's Armor was a combination of two different armors -- his original armor was the Celtic chainmail, and he placed the more gaudy / ceremonial engraved pieces over it once he took over the Shaded Castle. He didn't only pilfer the Sword, but also some ornate ceremonial armor.
The idea of that reddish rusty color being a conduit of one's will also brings to mund fascinating possibilities when examining Crucible knights and the Dung eater. Who also use that color
especially considering the Ordovis' sword's ash of war
Local man literally too angry to die.
Foreign* man, to be precise
Given that apparently Elemer is in the load list for some legacy dungeons (as Zullie mentioned in her pinned comment) I think it's a bit of a shame that Elemer doesn't appear more often. Dude was thrashing me in the random places he shows up at, he definitely could've finally been a proper "Pursuer" type of guy done right if they let him invade in places with shardbearers and other important locations.
Maybe his Bell-Bearing Hunter title and Vulture Knight might refer to how he hunts the players who act as vultures and steal Bell Bearings from merchants and NPCs.
Ahh so I bet he was suppose to show up where that random onyx lord does in raya lucaria.
Since those from Eochaid have control over metal, perhaps Elmer not having a face model is on purpose - could the armour merely be a puppet? Selivus has remote controlled bodies without needed a proxy near by. Maybe this is why the execution didn't stick either, can't really kill a puppet.
Puppeteer bossfights sound cool, if done right.
We know fromsoft modelling is so in line with lore and stuff. If you hit him and he bleed then there is a body inside, just not in datas.
@@franciscoreza8295 I think the fan theory of him having been beheaded but becoming a spirit akin to a dullahan is the most fitting.
Eochaidians (?) willpower, or rather the ability of telekinesis, extends to everything, not just metals
It’s likely that Elemer continues to live is due to death being taken away from the land between but due to his body rotted away his spirit became trapped within his armor.🐱
that is quite a liberal usage of the word 'likely'
If death has been taken away from the Lands Between then how do the bosses that you kill stay dead?
@@SewblonThat is what remembrances are, they are hewn into the erdtree. Think of like death was replaced by the erdtree absorbing those who "die".
@@Le_CankerBut how is that different from death?
@@Sewblon While it is unclear, what i get from it is not a full death. Your body dies but you soul eventually goes back to the erdtree. This partial death is part of the reason that Those who Live in Death are a thing, who die of spirit but not in body.
You can interpret it as a person being eventually reborn after dying. You can interpet it as their spirits remaining alive wandering. But the point is that the so called "Destined Death" was removed, so the fated death beings are "Destined" to have never happens since it's sealed away, leading an incomplete death.
It confuses me why the one near the coast In north Caelid is like the hardest fight in the game haha
It makes sense that it's difficult, the fight is in an optional mid-late game area.
Caelid is kinda like Limgrave, in the sense that it has an additional part of the region that is distinct from the main body.
Limgrave has the Weeping Peninsula. Caelid has the Dragonbarrow.
But while the Weeping Peninsula is an extension that is similar in leveled enemies, but visually distinct from Limgrave, the Dragonbarrow is MILES apart, in terms of generaly enemy toughness, from the rest of Caelid.
Caelid has a reccomendation of having a player character at level 60-70, meanwhile, the Dragonbarrow should be played at 90-110.
That's the difference between mid game difficulty and early endgame.
dragonbarrow scaling is fucked
Same. I'd forgotten that it's part of the Dragonbarrow region, but he's still stupidly difficult. I died more against him than I did to many bosses, including his actual boss form in the Shaded Castle. I didn't go after the Bell Bearing hunters until the end of the game after I completed it and opted not to go to NG+ (I know better than to go into a FromSoftware DLC in NG+), and I still had trouble against the Caelid hunter.
Probably the same reason that one Death Rite Bird in the snow area puts the Elden Beast to shame. No idea what that reason *is,* but I'm sure there is one.
His bloodstained armor, especially around his neck, his lack of a head model, and the bashed look of the helmet's visor could imply that he really was executed but somehow rose again and used his eochaid powers to snatch the executioner's sword and kill all them back
The shaded castle and Elemer were the biggest "get good or get out" moment of my first playthrough. I spent 2 hours learning this boss, and now I love his fight. Not a playthrough goes by where I don't grab the martyr effigy at shaded castle to help others with Elemer.
He is one of very few bosses I respect.
Was looking for that kind of comment! I spent so much time on him. For me, it was maybe the hardest boss that I fought that isn't an important one, if you know what I mean...
But I like that fight a lot too. It's demanding, but fair somehow.
I've been summoned a lot for him. It's always a good time, even when the host gets instagibbed as soon as we walk in.
I had so much fun blasting Psycho Killer and fighting Elemer with other players a bunch.
The wide face, large eyes, and creepy smile of the snake-haired woman design reminds me quite a lot of some depictions of the gorgon on Athena's aegis
Association with Medusa and the classical world in general seems fitting given the Regalia of Eochaid looks a bit like a gladius and appears to be made of bronze (the description says "copper colouration" so it could be any similarly coloured metal)
You could also argue that his armour bears some resemblance to armour from the ancient world too, with the helmet possibly being derived from Roman cavalry masks, and the other pieces utilising pteruges (those little leather strips) and lion imagery
If I had to guess, Elmer was likely designed/modelled early in development as a sort of prototype, before a lot of the game's finer details were ironed out.
Design-wise his armour has many elements common in the Lands Between: thorns, lions, monster-men, pre-renaissance styled artistry/imagery with a hint of older inspirations like Roman and Persian, and even an unusual helmet based off a real historical reference. Yet none of it ties into the usual themes, right down to his helmet not containing the usual "face" and the AI not having a related name.
The decision to make him "foreign" was likely a way to work around all this. If they'd intended to make him foreign from the beginning, they would have given his armour visual themes all his own, similar to folks from the Land of Reeds, or Tanith.
Yeah, he seems to be an asset that they tossed around a lot trying to find a place for it - he may have started out as a Pursuer-style recurring miniboss with a "scavenger/robber" theme (hence the Vulture Knight codename, mismatched armor and Bell-Bearing Hunter encounters in the final game), but then he was also duplicated and implemented as Elemer with the snippets of Eochaid/Briar lore quickly fastened to him. Maybe they ran out of time or had to cut the "proper" Elemer boss and re-used Vulture Knight for it because his asset was already polished enough, but also so patchy and non-specific lore-wise it'd fit for both roles?
@@sofija1996 | Some day in the far future, I'd love to see a big game like Elden Ring that wasn't forced to compromise on any aspect of its vision due to time and money.
He was beheaded and his headless spirit lived on hunting and gathering spoils of his actions.
Another interesting factor when it comes to Elemer’s physical form: even after killing him in the shaded castle as Elemer of the Briars, he still invades you as the bell bearing Hunter at night in the locations.
It's interesting that they use the word "vanished" for what happened to Eochaid given the new DLC takes place in an area that's been hidden by Marika.
take a few minutes to read up on Miquella and why the DLC is set in the past again maboi, Marika's got nothing to do with it
@@Rakshael
"Famitsu: So there have been many details just revealed, please let me ask more. You just mentioned Queen Marika's history, does this mean the DLC takes place in the past?
Miyazaki: No, it takes place in the same time as the main title. The setting is not in the distant past or future."
"Famitsu: In the background of the new art, there appears to be some kind of veil in the sky.
Miyazaki: Yes, the shadow lands in which the DLC take place are sundered from the Lands Between where the main story takes place. It has been removed from and hidden from the outside world and this veil is a symbol of that."
@@Graysett welp. haven't kept up with the DLC news. Kool
oooh... HYPE AMPLIFIED
Despite how annoying the hunters are to fight, Elemer is one of may favorite enemy designs in elden ring. He's just so perfectly menacing, mysterious and powerful
He legit more menacing than mohg or malenia in my opinion, the fact that we know nothing about the guy ads more to it
Agreed. Even with all the badass gods, demigods, and monsters you fight something about this big angry mf showing up to kick your ass and steal your shit is just cool. The telekinetic sword moves he does are some of my favorite in the Souls catalogue and I'm still salty the version they give you is so limited.
I definitely believe that "black mesh" is a development shortcut. From what I've learned about "game development", since I wanna make games too, this is a common thing done when placing a helmet over a character's face. It's also so they don't have to animate eyes blinking or mouths moving
The problem with this theory is that a *lot* of models also with hidden faces have face underneath, even if it's nearly impossible to see( see some of Zullies videos) and while this happens mostly with player character models, even this guy's player model version also has a faded face which is unusual
"It's also so they don't have to animate eyes blinking or mouths moving" haha not a problem Fromsoft has had before.
@@greenpinapple820 Haha true. They be like mannequins when talking XD
It should be noted too, his actual boss fight doesnt determine seeing the bell bearing hunter fights, meaning whether he is defeated or not as elemer doesnt stop the remaining encounters from happening. Additionally, each encounter he summons in like an invasion but shown even in your video, he stops being red like one, where even the shadow in ranni's quest and tannith's knight invade in red persistently
Which further suggests he is either a spirit, even in the castle, or that whatever Eochaid's magic is, we dont have a full picture of its capabilities outside you can copperbend. Assuming his teleportation is anything at all related to Eochaid magic at all, or its another dev oversight, but considering how he is the only one that comes into color from an invasion-esque spawn, where the two mentioned non tarnished enemies also can appear so (considering there's basically no gravelording in this game) its hard to say if it is or isnt a dev oversight
Personally, my runes are on him being a vengeful spirit asshole, in all his locations. The lack of head model and bloodstains around the neck mean they *did* execute him, he just stood back up afterwards and rocked thier shit with the sword they used to do it.
Spoilers for the Black Swordsman Saga Part 2: It's actually pretty simple: he is hunting bell bearings. Bell bearings have a little bit of the merchant's spirit connected to it via their in game icon. We know from our Spirit Calling Bell, as well as other instances, that bells and music( like our Spectral Whistle) can summon spirits. Once you realize the founder of House Marais also used to own the Spirit Calling Bell it all makes sense why they would want Bell Bearings. Would make sense why Elemer has no head, he is already dead. The Headless follow their leaders into death after all.
What??
Wait, where did you get the information that the founder of House Marais also used to own the Spirit Calling Bell?
We're gonna need more context than that chief
Why is this all new info??
gonna need the sauce, boss
This genuinely feels like an AI generated comment
Maybe he was actually executed and has no head, but then rose from death like a headless mausoleum knights. Reminds me of Robert Strong from George RR Martins ASOIAF. It's questioned whether he has a head or not.
I feel like he has to have some sort of connection to the land of shadow somehow. Think about it, he has lion imagery that could be the lion dancer thing in the trailer, he has thorns on him which represent his connection to going against the Erdtree. His weapon art uses arcane, and so does blood magic, potential connection there, not to mention when you fight him, he just pops out of nowhere from a red portal. you know what else is red? blood. maybe his weird telekinesis and portals and stuff are actually a form of blood magic? or are somehow corrupted versions of said magic? Not the biggest stretch when you remember those corrupted Albinaurics. And then there's the fact that he hunts merchants and instructors. sounds a little like something a bloody finger would do, don't you think? maybe all this blood stuff points to him working under Mohg or maybe even Miquela. Those women on his armour could be depicting St Trina. And then there's also the saints, which someone in the comments pointed out are dragon slayers, maybe elemer took part in dragon communion? The dragon communion seal looks kinda similar to his magic, maybe that's why his magic is red. Once again, both use arcane. Mesmer seems to have his own connections to dragon communion so maybe those two are related somehow.
He must have been very powerful to have infused the Marais Executioner Sword with Eochaid magic, seeing as the Regalia of Eochaid weapon is made with copper to assist with using that type of magic. The thorns likely signify guilt, continuing that symbolism from other cultures in the game. The armor's baltea (thin leather strips 1:04) and many other aspects (early christian symbolism and ornate metalwork) are of course evocative of greek/roman aesthetics, which we see much of in the DLC trailer... As others here have said, it is quite a lavish outfit (my character rocks the cuirass with Jerren's mask and traveler gloves)... maybe Elemer's greed and propensity for finery is what exiled him from that homeland which praised asceticism, or even led to his attempted execution (thorns - guilty of theft/robbery/murder?). God I love the Lands Between
If he hunts merchants, perhaps he is against the Frenzied Flame. Maybe in the past was allied with Godfrey. Or slew a knight who was as they invaded his lands.
Feels like he hunts merchants just because he wants to steal their shit, not because of their perceived connection to a frenzied flame.
@@quint3ssent1aWhy not?
See, there's a little problem with the idea he just wants their stuff;
Without the Twin Husks in the Roundtable Hold, nobody can access the goods on the Bell bearings. As such, he either somehow has access to them...
Or he wants the merchants dead for another reason.
I think we can rule that out because of the church invasion. It's clearly bell bearings he hunts, not the nomads specifically
@@darthvaderreviews6926 Good point! Even good Miriel is not safe!
But that leaves the question; why?
@@alyseleem2692 With the info we have, I don't think any answer will be satisfying, but I have two educated guesses:
#1: Some people just want to watch the world burn. Not clear why Elemer would target bell bearings specifically, but it's a hobby I guess
#2: Eochaid's arts might have something to do with spirit manipulation, and thus bell bearings _(which, akin to spirit ash, seemingly act as vessels to preserve souls and keep them useful)_ might be useful to him, maybe even necessary for his survival. However, pretty much the only evidence I can think of this would be the very obscure Helphen's Steeple/"red grace" theories and Eochaid arts also having a red colour
Winged woman, knight of vulture, swords that dance in the sky maybe their culture about hunting flying beasts or they worshipped it
Is why he targeting merchants maybe he's searching for something a weapon or artifact that might have been stolen or sold from his homeland that's important to his culture or religion
I love that idea, I wonder if he's specifically looking for the Regalia. The Marais sword seems to be a weapon he took and modified, but the Regalia seems like it was an actual Eochaid artifact.
@MrEvan312 indeed I'm sure there are other stuff other than the sword because if the dude was really a killer or criminal he wouldn't just target merchants he would be on his way making massacres around the land
@@AliDD-p2ethe problem with this is that he works alone, can't attract to much attention or it could be a problem for him.
I like this, the fact that their regular weapon is designed to be able fly while being in control suggest they might really had hunting flying beast as their culture
Vultures are scavengers. Vulture night could be a nod to how he scavenges for bell bearing around the lands between
New amazing video, thank Zullie!
The AI name "Vulture Knight" of Elemer and his thorn element always make me recall Kirk, Knight of Thorns from DS, especially Kirk intrudes on you as well. I have been considering him supposed to be a vital NPC in Malenia and Rot Goddess storyline, like Kirk, because vultures eat rotten flesh.
Elemer is really a most weird character. He is a boss but also a foreigner, very not involved in the "Gods and Stars" theme story while others do.
He's literally just kirk from dark souls. His armor even damages enemies if you roll on them
He doesn't care, he just want his random collections and stuffs
since the Marais and Eochaid swords do magic damage, you could refer to this "vulture" knight as a "Carrion Knight". get it?
I hope we get to learn more about Eochaid in the Dlc.
I like the fact that they gave him an executioner's sword with the missing point etc. I know I shouldn't be surprised by FromSoft's attention to detail but as a medieval history nerd with an interest in the death penalty in the old day, this brought a smile to my face.
I love his armor. I finished my first playthrought with his armor and the Blasphemous Blade, cosplaying as the Penitent One from Blasphemous.
Oh, thats cool.
What helm did you use? Just the full set?
@@childofcascadiaJust the full set, it's similar enough with the somewhat pointy helmet and the briars everywhere
👎
Out of all the cosplay playthroughs I have done, Elemer or the Bell-Bearing Hunter is my favorite by far. The Marias Executioner Sword (and Regalia of Eochaid) have one of my favorite skills in the game and it was fun to delete bosses with. Hopefully we will get more lore/info about him in the DLC as he certainly is an interesting character.
I've always loved the crooked facepiece on the helmet, it gives the armor a twisted and eerie vibe
The coolest character design out of all their games imo, the mask, the rusted iron briars, the black cape, his height, the big sword, his moveset, all perfect
one thing i love about this channel is how willing you are to be like "its entirely possible this doesn't mean anything actually" instead of framing all speculation as a puzzle you've solved
it's just a theory. a ga
You know since the AI tags Elemer as "VultureKnight," I'm wondering if anyone's considered that Elemer's armor isn't an actual set, but rather a collection of pieces he's stolen off of past kills. It could very well be that the multiple different motifs, amulets, and depictions came from multiple sources that have all just been stiched together over time. Even the facemask of the head looks slightly out of shape, like it's been shoddily repaired and stamped back over the helm/coif before the briars were forged around it.
Elemer holds a special place for me in ER because he was the first boss outside Margit who really challenged me. Eventually, I'll get around to doing a cosplay run using his set, too.
I love these vids
Two things that stuck out to me is that one of the images on his armor looks like a Gorgon and the Shaded Castle and surroundings are packed with eerie human statues (and coincidentally is home to several basilisks, though they inflict death blight instead of petrification in Elden Ring), and that Eochaid is described as a " lesser, long-vanished domain" which makes me wonder if Eochaid itself is just lost to history, or if it's described as vanished because it's been literally displaced from the rest of the world like the DLC's Land of Shadow seems to be.
I was thinking that it’s in the whirlpool under the water in the ocean on the map just above the Shaded Castle.
It looks like a big rock or piece of land fell into that whirlpool on the map.
I think the monster lady on Elemer’s gauntlets might be a depiction of a Jenny Haniver. Jenny Hanivers were mutilated, mummified rays & skates that were made to look like demons, angels, or dragons and sold to people passing through coastal areas in western Europe in the 16th century and on-at least according to Wikipedia, which also states that they were most often mistaken for basilisks by 16th century laypeople, apparently because they were, like gorgons, assumed to be able to turn people to stone when looked at… so it was thought that nobody could know what a living one looked like. This *might* have some thematic implications if it IS intended to represent a Jenny Haniver, especially when considered in juxtaposition with the gorgon-like figure on his shin-guards, since it sounds like Basilisks and Gorgons were both feared for the same reasons, just in different times and places. There could be a thematic connection to the talismans depicting dragon-slaying saints also, since Jenny Hanivers were also sometimes mistaken for and/or sold as the preserved corpses of small dragons. It’s possible his armor might be adorned with various fearsome mythological creatures-some representing beings that are perhaps considered deadly to just look at directly-solely with the purpose of striking fear into the hearts of his enemies, or the designers might be intentionally symbolically aligning the wearer with some more specific qualities of the monsters and heroes it depicts. Hard to say.
Way TL DEFINITELY DR
This very much sounds like a headless horseman deal. He might've been executed, but yet with his head removed he still didn't die, and went on to slaughter everyone.
I have not been this early since forever! Will edit when I finish.
I love your vids, Zullie! You're one of the best lore tubers I know, even if all the lore you find is via cut content and subtle visual cues in the character models! ❤
I used to think Elemer's slightly crooked helmet was just displaced by the thorns. But with it looking empty, I have to wonder, if the thorns move the armor like a puppet.
Since we don't know, how he escaped his execution, maybe he didn't?
His head could've been chopped off and while nobody was looking, thorns sprouted, the headless body got up and yoinked the executioner's sword
Is there NSFW of ur character the zullie one?
Yes
Bro what
Perv. Go away.
°~°
Zullie the Witch is a canon character from Dark Souls. It shouldn't be too hard to find.
The... dark souls 2 character?
I like to study a lot of Greek and Roman myths. A lot of his armor seems to resemble some creatures. The winged women and the snake haired woman could be Medusa and the Gorgons, who were hunted by Perseus. St. Michael and St. George were dragon slayers, both being figurative for the devil, and St. George was believed to be a Roman Soldier. The Lion could tie into the roman gladiator fights, or how they hunted Christians who were thrown in. It might be a stretch with just this evidence, but we see another item from Eochaid, the Regalia of Eochaid, a highly decorated gladius. A roman sword.
Are we getting a more in-depth look at the lion imagery in the game, in light of the DLC? A lot of the attention has been (understandably) focused on serpents/snakes, but there are things to touch upon regardion lions too. Between the lion-dance-like grotesque boss featured in the DLC, as well as the lions statues featured in that one scene of the trailer where the player casts a Spell Incantation, it seems like we might get more lions-related culture within the Lands of Shadow? In the base game, a lot of the Lions-imagery come from Serosh, associated to Godfrey, thus Radahn, but most importantly, Serosh is refered as the Lord of all Beasts, I believe from an Item description given by Gurranq/Maliketh, potentially indicating a time Serosh used to stand on a higher level than even beast Maliketh before he pledged allegiance to Godfrey.
Seems like even Elemer featured some Lion imagery...
OH! Another crazy theory I just thought! All the other Bell Bearing Hunters that we fight, could be shadow-clones of Elemer! Another possible way why he's so frickin' hard to kill!
This douchebag beat me up pretty bad a few times, and he can't even be bothered to put his face mask on straight. I didn't feel bad about cheesing him by fighting from the tops of nearby buildings. Anyway, unlike the Land of Reeds which may be on the other side of the "planet" that is the Lands Between [it's not really a planet], Eochaid is described as having vanished. I think one of the points of this guy is to remind you whole parts of this world were wiped out in the formation of the Golden Order and the Shattering. And yes, he's a phantom, I think; he's red and materializes inside otherwise safe areas, and the hollow armor matches it. So he's, like, a phantom of a lost realm holding territory in this one.
Perhaps he didn't avoid his execution, but decapitation simply didn't stop him.
This also would explain why his helmet is all crooked, he doesn't need the eye-holes to see.
He could very well be a reference to the dullahan.
The arm and leg textures are very interesting. One of them definitely looks like a Gorgon, but the other seems almost fish-like but with the face of a lion or perhaps devil. I'm also not sure if the things on its head are horns, snake heads or fish?
It would be cool if we could find what they referenced when making this. If it's something specific it could reveal more, although it could be meaningless.
This probably has a very disappointing answer, but could you do a video removing the snow effect from the consecrated snowfield? I want to know if there’s actually anything out there worth exploring for or if it’s literally just a barren white texture with nothing interesting. I kind of assume it’s the latter, but I can’t seem to find an answer anywhere.
I love the idea of the lands between hosting all of these gods and monsters and shit but people are still visiting. Like a tourist comes through looking to buy a Hawaiian shirt sees the Death Blight and is like nah, 1 star review, Lands Between have really gone down hill.
His mask always reminded me of that poorly restored Jesus fresco (Ecce Homo).
Ok,I have a couple of theories on him.
There's a chance that none if the armor he wears is actually his, especially with all the odd pendants that seem to not even be from the lands between, there's a chance this might be why he kills merchants for the Bells,not to summon them later but simply for new charms
As for the mussing head texture,he was set to be executed, he's a tarnished so he died once,and he has no head model,I believe that the execution was (partially) successful,and that they managed to decapitate him,but as we see with other enemies, death was not the end for Elemer
Elemer's kind of a badass when you think about it. He walks and moves actively despite briars being driven into his skin, then when he was about to be executed, he took the sword he was going to be executed with and used it to fight back.
Elemer feels like a "corrupted" crucible knight. Heavy attacks with obviously less poise (to the crucible knights). His invasions seem to suggest bloody finger shenanigans and "seems" similar to the Dung Eater's appearance in Round Table Hold.
I believe he just his own man, not necessarily connected to mohg. He is ascetic anyway, they are reclusive and rarely interact socially, I also find it confusng as to why cleanrot knight is even there in the first place, we know maleigh marais idolize malenia but to what extend he work cleanrot knight to guard the place is a headscratcher.
Can you find any files about additional triggers for the sunset timing in the day/night cycle? I know the moseleums settle down but that's it.
Actually the symbols almost look similar to different symbols used by the ancient scythians which doesn't really explain much but is pretty cool
2:30 Perhaps he didn't escape his execution until after the sword had already fallen. Wouldn't be the first headless warrior in a Souls game.
Maybe he WAS beheaded. Hence no head. Didn’t feel like dying after being executed and just stood back up and killed the executioner and took his sword. A real badass
It feels like one of those legends they tell us while visiting old castles. Most strongholds I've been to had a story like this.
Definitely fits in with the themes of life after death in Elden Ring...
iirc, part of the Elemer lore is that they take pride in being uneducated. maybe bro was just too stupid to know that he was supposed to be dead
It gave me a idea. Maybe he similar to a tarnished and he get resourected too!
Its posible he would become a Elden Lord too and create a new order.
Remembering back to older lore vids for the fingers/god dont realy care what type of order a person bring. Thats why dung eater can create a rune and "fix" the elden ring.
Maybe he qualificed too to create one we just killed him before it can happen.
@Bap-lt4msMay be, lots of humanoid enemies on ER are headless, Nox swordtress or Black knife assasin for example, nothing under their hat/veil, it just empty
Maybe he did get executed by the sword qhich explains why he has no head but maybe that wasnt enough to kill him and thats why he managed to escape and steal the sword because who would think a already executed corpse is gonna come back and kill you
Elemer, Istvan, Margit are Hungarian names. Not sure what to make of this. Maybe GRMM was scouring lists of foreign names for inspiration. (Marika is an odd one, it is a Hungarina nickname of Mária (Mary) but apparently appears independently in other languages in this form.)
This guy has been my hardest fight in my play through so far, I have reached the capital but am still nowhere close to beating this guy
Who knows? Maybe the Marais family succeeded in beheading him and that's why he doesn't have an actual model for his head.
Maybe he was in fact beheaded but returned from the dead with some help of Godrick? There are thorns on him that could be interprated both ways.
maybe they did successfully take his head but mere decapitation wasn't enough to keep him down
Seems like his equipment is a collection of stolen items. Even his name as the vulture knight implies a sort of scavenger existence.
He thwarted his own execution by manipulating the executioner’s sword though the air into his own grasp. He uses it to this day. Vaati touches on this.
I mean, he preys upon the dead, taking their bells. Vulture knight makes sense to me.
EleMER- MessMER
Both have thorns
He came from another land 🧐
An important thing to note is that the ability he grants to the sword is based on Arcane, given the comparison to the other sword with similar abilities, an inherent magical power within the body and often in the blood, rather than something learned. I suspect that the reason for Elemer's oddities is that he was successfully beheaded, but his innate Arcane power kept him alive. We've seen Those Who Live In Death, headless enemies who guard mausoleums, and more, so it is related to what we've seen before.
3:00 I think it's intentional. The mask is lopsided, as if it doesn't fit onto his non-existent face.
Eochaid is inspired by Ireland so that makes me think of few possible interpretations.
A very common motif in Celtic stories is characters being able to walk around after decapitation and beheading games, the most famous example of a beheading game being found in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Unlike many of the cultures they interacted with, who saw beheading as a punishment for traitors, the ancient Celts believed decapitation to be the honorable way out for a mighty warrior. In medieval times the beheading game was often used as a challange to one's manhood and bravery, and was often a test one had to overcome to be granted knighthood.
Based on the sword it looks like Elemer was sentenced to be decapitated, telling us that House Marais (and maybe other parts of the lands between) viewed decapitation as a disonorable death, while to someone from Eochaid, like Elemer, it likely held a different significance. It makes me wonder if he was actually decapitated, but having successfully won a decapitation game, he could have reattached his head and become a spectral being. The most famous headless being from Irish mythology is of course the Dullahan, who is a spectral headless horseman and omen of death. The way the Bell Bearing Hunter appears at night reminds me a little bit of a Dullahan.
This is all a big stretch as nothing seems to indicate that the execution ever took place, but I can't help but feel like there's something ironic about trying to execute Elemer by decapitating him, knowing about decapitation games in Irish folklore, and of course he is using the executioner's blade himself now.
But Elemer wasn't beheaded, if he was he would've been referred to as 'executed'. Since it says he stole the executioner sword "at the site of his LOOMING execution", that most likely means his execution didn't come yet. It is more likely that FromSoftware didn't bother giving him a head because there was no reason to, and the mask being displaced was because of the iron briars along his body.
Hopefully Eochaid and Elemer lore gets more fleshed out in the expansion. Even the Shaded Castle itself has very little other than what is disclosed in this video. For example, why are there perfumers here? Why was the Shaded Castle cursed (wraiths and revenants imply this)? Did the royals dig to deep and unearth something cursed?
I love the Shaded Castle so much because of its mystery, a story clearly was told there and life once dwelled there, but when we find it, it appears abandoned, forgotten and full of hostile wildlife, spirits & poison springs in it and all around it.
We even stumble upon Patches there too.
It's actually quite noteworthy that Elemer's armor is empty, as I suspect he is piloting it from afar. The evidence for this is in the Eochaid weapon set, who's descriptions state that the copper inlays allow a wielder of sufficient will to control them with only his mind. In fact, the ancestral executioner sword to be used against Elemer was one such Eochaid weapon, and it is described that Elemer tore the weapon from his executioner's hands and slew him. The range at which Elemer can control the sword in comparison to when the sword is in the player's hands suggest he had a mastery of the technique beyond most others, perhaps mastery enough to control an entire suit of armor from great distances as he hunts merchants across the lands between.
Edit: after reviewing the description, it seems after stealing the sword Elemer "furnished it with skills from his home." This is quite vague and could mean he either wielded it as an Eochaid would, or physically modified the sword, but I like my idea of the Marais not knowing what their ancestral blade was capable of in the hands of an Eochaid native.
While this theory can work, I just wanna clarify something: Eochaidians can control anything they want with their wills, it is not the "copper" that allows that to do so, if it was, then Elemer wouldn't be able to pick the player up in his grab attack. Copper, In my opinion, is just a good conductor of willpower, kind of like how it is for electricity.
Somehow never ran into this guy before shaded castle
I remember reading something about comparing Eochiad and Forossa from Dark Souls 2. Both are kingdoms that fell, with Forossa being overrun with bandits. If so, you could guess that we might have a Vengarl situation where the physical body and the head/spirit of Elemer are somehow disconnected.
I wonder if Elemer and the Marais family is related to Messmer
Oh my god... He's a yt speedrunner...
2:00 the one on the left reminds me of the priestesses for dark souls 2's sunken king dlc
Vulture certainly could play into him being a "bird of prey" that hunts down merchants and steals their items. Maybe the ornate designs of his armor aren't even from where he was born, but just trophies from his past conquests.
could eochaid be one of the dlc area?
As far as his lore stands: he’s straight up just a murder hobo
the jason Voorhees of elden ring love it dudes a beast love yoru content!
Maybe he's like a Dullahan.
Gael, Slave Knight of Pokey Plants
I always thought it'd be cool if he also showed up when the beast eye quivered.
My theory is that he is Elemer of the Briar, the Bell Bearing Hunter.
What's the same of this tune Im into this type of music very eerie and hopeless feeling 😅
Same tho!
elemera shield reminds me a lot of rakshasa