It could also be that though Miquella and Malenia were born Empyreans, their respective deformities eventually made them "unworthy" in the eyes of the Two Fingers.
Jesus. If the Fingers would reject even Demigods, then Miquella's efforts make even more sense, and look even better on him. Just like the lowly Albinauric, like all the Misbegottens, he's a reject. Just like them. Makes me tear up a lil bit, lol.
@@kite2036well malenia is infected by another gods power that wants to make her their vessel so that makes perfect sense seeing as the fingers are like the avatar of the outer god of the erd tree \ golden order The gods are probably in conflict hence rykards plan to devour them all If they teamed up they would rule absolutely but because they are all against eachother the story happens as it does
The shadows are 'shadowbound beasts', and it's clear that both Blaidd and Maliketh are wolf-like beast creatures, so I doubt this person is Miquella's 'shadow'. Also, I believe the guy's name is 'Raging Wolf Vargram', and he dressed as a wolf *as if* he were the Gloam Eyed Queen's shadow, to mirror the same level of dedication, but he wasn't a 'real' shadow.
Fr wolfs show up a FUCKTON in this game Even the armor from the trailer is called the raging wolf set , and how many old bosses and wolf and dog enemies are there ? So so so fkn many I'm surprised we didn't fight a white dire wolf in the snow area tbh 😂
While i believe she would be the miquellan knight, i doubt she would be the shadow of Miquellaa .As stated in the video, wolves are shadows of an emperyan. And I don't see any wolf iconography or even a reference, unlike Vargram. For now i would put it as "most likely not, but might be possible".
Completely fair! Miyazaki did say he didn't even want to mention certain boss names because they would be a spoiler. Though it is possible she could turn into a wolf as she goes mad (a la Vicar Amelia in Bloodborne).
@@garrulousgoldmaskThe way I see it, Malenia and Miquella didn’t ever get shadows, and Malenia and Miquella agreed on who was going to be who, miquella being the actual empyrean, while Malenia played as the shadow. Although, when malenia was put into a coma, she couldn’t serve as the shadow, so Miquella chose replacement shadows, which could possibly be this woman. It’d explain why he wasn’t with malenia, he probably couldn’t wait for her to wake up, so he just picked his other best soldiers, and left.
But shadows don't have an actual own will. They can still be ordered to kill their emperyan at any time. The golden order wouldn't have any control over you if you were the shadow.
@Romapolitan Which would make Miquella unique and stand out from the other demigods since the tarnished doesn't need to follow the golden order. You'll likely be able to choose to become his shadow or not
I'd be very interested to hear your thoughts on the theory that Empyreans are all missing an eye. Symbolism aside, there could be something more to it…
That is a great theory! I wonder if Marika had to sacrifice an eye to become the “vision’s vessel” of the Elden Ring. (That would also fit in with the common archetype of a prophet being blind but being able to “see” the future or the true nature of reality.) And the Soreseals/Scarseals are also called eyes, with one of them at Miquella's Haligtree. It's quite possible Miquella is missing an eye since we don't really get a clear view of his face (including in all the trailers for Shadow of the Erdtree).
All of the Empyreans left eyes have a mark over them, like Melina. That's their "brand" confirming them an Empyrean and why the game goes out of the way to NOT show any of the Empyrean's eyes. Many agree Melina is some form the of the Gloam Eye'd Queen, and it would make sense for her to have a "claw" for a brand that represents death. Melina is also "chimera" and people used to think women who had two eyes with two colors were witches. You can see Ranni's mark also, although it's hard to make out. It's some sort of astral galaxy thing. I am guessing that Miquella's is a "lily" or some sort of entwined circle. Messmer is NOT an Empyrean, but I think you find more about why that is in the DLC. I don't think the person covering their right eye with the sword is a "shadow" as they are not a wolf. The armor is very clear on that. If you have ever followed "Berserk" then you know what she is and have an idea of what will happen to all of Miquella's followers. I think that person will have a brand for another reason. Go read up on Berserk/Griffith if you get the chance.
I think missing the left eye represents divesting yourself if your flesh. This is a way that Empyreans are able to shed the influence of grace from themselves. I don’t think missing an eye is exclusive to empyreans though
That knight looks very androgynous too, just like Miquella himself. If they aren't him, or St. Trina, then being his Shadow is possible, although I think the Shadows created by the Two Fingers are all said to be Beasts or Beastmen of some sort. Vagram wielding the Godslayer Greatsword is potentially a very meaningful detail which I'm glad to see someone else mention! As he wanted to be a Shadow for an Empyrean, it makes sense to me that there's a particular one he wished to serve...but the Gloam-Eyed Queen has been long gone since before Vagram arrived in the Lands Between, so his wish could never be fulfilled, and he settled with using his chosen Empyrean's sword instead.
Definitely! The androgyny seems like a very deliberate choice (and just in time for Pride too!) The GSGS is one of my favorite weapons in terms of lore and gameplay so I'm always glad to invoke it! And I’ve been going with the theory that “Gloam-Eyed Queen” is a title, like “Elden Lord,” which would mean there are multiple GEQs throughout history. So even Vargram might not have been able to serve the GEQ the one that was defeated by Maliketh, he could have served her successor.
@@garrulousgoldmask It would be cool if the "Gloam-Eyed Queen" turned out to be a title rather than only one particular person, if that's true then Vagram could definitely have met one of them! I think that she may well have a few parallels with Rennala, the one mentioned could also be the last in her line of Queens. Hopefully the DLC will give us more details about her/them.
It's a really fascinating (and fun) weapon! The spiral pattern also reminds me of the Sacred Relic Sword that Radagon got turned into and I explored some of the theories behind the sword in my GEQ video.
So Miquella being the recipient of the vision would have been first in line to become the next vessel of the elden ring...The loretta's description about the recipient really stood out for me when I first read it but I didn't know how to interpret it. I should have paid more attention to the old hag.
All the good theories are the short ones. The hour long vids leave me more confused than when I started. This is brilliant and you’re cooking in the comments. I NEED MORE!!!
I also thought the sword may be hers But i assume when Miquella turned his back on the golden order that Malenia killed their Shadows as a security measure
I wonder if the three wolves were receive as spirit summons were miquella's shadow before he divested himself of flesh? Could even be the shadows of Miquella, Malenia and another (massive Melina if she isn't also Miquella?)
While old text gives hints at what developers were thinking in the past, it is still, by definition, not Canon. So, is it possible that the Royal Knight Armor description was changed because Miyazaki decided against Radagon supporting Miquella's plan to replace the Haligtree? Or, rather that that had never been the case and Radagon never knew the fullness of Miquella's goals but Miyazaki was worried players might conclude he was in on the plan?
Oh for sure! I'm actually doing an entire video on all of the lore that was cut from 1.00 and that is one of the points I stress. It's definitely not canon any more. But what makes it more complicated is that there are also cases where FromSoft made the game's lore a bit more mysterious and less obvious. So when it comes to a pretty drastic rewrite like Loretta's set, the million-rune question is asking if this done because the underlying lore was completely changed? Or did FromSoft think it provided too much information? Like a lot of the lore, it's left up to interpretation and you outlined some great reasons for why Radagon might be opposed. Personally, I still think there are good reasons to think that Miquella, at least at one point, had been seen as Marika's heir, since you can find Marika's Soreseal at the Haligtree as well as the spell Triple Ring of Light, was a gift from Miquella to Radagon.
@@TheGate777 Basically, throughout the entire game Miquella has been "guiding" us. We are following in his footsteps, and he is awaiting his "promised lord". He also supplied us with Torrent and the spirit caller bell to help with our travels. Plus, they always show the main character in trailers wearing the Wolf armor. Kinda sus.
A question for you Goldmask, the raging wolf was a person, not a creation of the two fingers like blaidd, if a person choose to become a shadow willingly, it will gain this kill switch or you think it will remain a unsupervised shadow ?
Great question (and an even better username)! I'm assuming the kill switch functionality is part and parcel of becoming an Empyrean’s Shadow, since it's about maintaining control. That said, Vargram may have become the Shadow for the Gloam-Eyed Queen and it's unclear if she was chosen by her own Two Fingers like Ranni, Miquella, and Malenia.
@@garrulousgoldmask if im not mistaken, there an item description that states that the gloamed eye queen was chosen by her own two fingers, altho we can’t find them, you can find the information in the Black Flame Ritual incantation. Thanks for the answer!!!
@@TheAuspiciousGoldmask Yep, it's from the Black Flame Ritual spell: “The Gloam-Eyed Queen led the apostles. It is said that she was an Empyrean chosen by the Fingers.” It's hearsay that the GEQ was an Empyrean and she's the only one whose status as an Empyrean is called into question.
@@garrulousgoldmask The thing i ponder is about her origins, is she a demigod or a numen like Marika that gained the right of being the vassal of the Elden Ring (i doubt that ordinary humans can be chosen as candidate to be the vassal of the Elden Ring, under normal circunstancies). As for her status as empyrean being in question, in my point of view, i don’t see the problem, the gloamed eye queen had the potential of bringing an order, an order of death, where there is no exception on death, not even the gods, i see the gloamed eye queen being oposed to marika, bc their vision of order are like opposites, while Marika have the vision of an order that is abundant in life, where death is not the end, actually, death don’t even exist in her order, the Gloamed eye queen order would be with abundance of death, where death is the last stop, there is no reincarnation or process of being reborn again, just death, pure and immaculate. I don’t think the GEQ has any bad blood on the behalf of the Greater Will. The Greater will has chosen more questionable ppl to be and empyrean, like Malenia that harbored the god of rot inside of her, i believe of she ended up as the next vassal of the Elden Ring she would bring an Order of rot, like Gowry mentions to us, after seeing ratatoskr and Smoughtown videos on the greater will, its clear to me that the greater will don’t care what KIND of order its stablished, only that order is stablished.
Wait if Miq and her Blade are Twins then that would mean only 1 Shadow was Born. There are Knights who behave like Beasts in Game. Maybe Radagon/Marika or Rennala used the Rune of the Unborn to turn Beastmen into regular Humans. I also believe that Godfrey was once a Rune Bear and he was on the Carian Side
Awesome. I'm putting a lot of subtle but important coincidental patterns together that might shed light on what's going on, from eyes to lies, numbers, sides and truths.. I don't even know if what I'm finding is sheer delusion of coincidence or egregiously lucky observation on intimate game design Its overly intricate, convoluted and far from easily conveyed BUT I hope I can put it together and share it with the community ESPECIALLY with the incredible content creators who have inspired and enlightened me throughout the journey , of which you're one of. I love your insight, thanks for your work
Thank you so much! That sounds like quite the endeavor-I’d love to see it when it’s ready! And yeah, wondering if something is intricate game design/subtle environmental storytelling or just apophenia/pareidolia is absolutely an occupational hazard for FromSoft lore hunting 😅
"Ill-starred sword". "Destined to become a curse." I think you are right because the stars dictate destiny, and an "ill-starred sword" would be a sword that was fated to turn against the one to whom the sword-bearer served. Thus, it would be destined by the stars to turn against Miquella when he turned against the Two Fingers.
This would explain why at Malenia’s Isolated Divine Tower, only her Great Rune can be recovered. Miquella still had his and took it with him to Realm of Shadow, only to BREAK the Rune when the time was right.
You missed something when going over the description on the Armor. If "King Consort Radagon" is able to gift Carian Knights to Miquella, what is that supposed to mean for the timeline? Does him leaving Rennala behind for Marika doesn't mean that he would also lose any and all say over Carians? I speculate this also hints to the fact that Miquella was present while Radagon was with Rennala but then Miquella and Malenia are children of Radagon and Marika. I feel like they changed this description for many reasons with this being one.
why every time when we have a crush on a character in elden ring like melina or this new knight turn out to be miquella? like bro leave our wives alone fuck
I assumed that Marika and Ranni got shadows because rrhwy were the chosen ones to become God's. Miquella and Malenia were candidates but weren't chosen and thus no shadow bound beast
Can’t really agree with this one since we only see shadows take the form of wolf like beasts. I think Miquella and Malenia’s shadows are dead, they would have little need for them especially since Malenia seems to handle most of the dirty work anyways and they would just be a liability considering they will go insane and turn on them. It’s likely their shadows already did turn on them but obviously stood no chance
Miyazaki said the title Shadow of the Erdtree had a hidden meaning. I think the hidden meaning is the Shadow of the Erdtree is a person!! We’ll find out who that “shadow” is soon enough
The one touching the “grace” with the gold coming out the ground. Androgynous covering one eye. Knows how to compel affection. I can’t wait til the dlc drops so I can stop with all the speculation 😂
It seems to me Malenia is playing the Shadow of Miquella, as the Blade of Miquella. Malenia the character reminds me alot of Wolf from Sekiro, and its interesting because the Game is called Sekiro, "Shadows Die Twice". Malenia like Wolf in Sekiro is Severed, and Malenia like Wolf is inflicted with Rot. Interestingly enough Wolf in Sekiro, spreads Dragon "Rot" to people, making them sick and soon to die, every time you die, someone gets afflicted with Dragonrot. Malenias moves, like Wolf in Sekiro is of course with the Katana but also Kicks. Also to mention every Empyrean has their own Two Fingers however in this case it seems Malenia willingly wanted to play the Part of the Shadow of Miquella, besides every Shadow bound "Wolf like" Beast in Elden Ring is the very Shadow of the Empyrean, but also their "Brother". Like Ranni with Blaidd, Marika with Maliketh. Here i would understand why Malenia is the Metaphorical Shadow of Miquella, She is Decay, while Miquella is Abundance. Sadly i must say i do not believe this is Miquellas Long Lost Shadow, but simply like every NPC in the DLC, a Follower maybe. Oh yeah right and a Shadow apparently cant be killed, like Blaidd Quotes: "You're... you're strong of arm. But ask yourself... What harm can be done... to a shadow?". Like Malenia, she does not die, she will ever bloom once more to Life thanks to Rot.
Malenia is actually Tomoe but Sekiro didn’t have a dlc so they decided to just use some of Tomoe move set and bring it to Elden ring. That’s why the fight feels like it should be in a Sekiro game.
@@itsm9818 Actually, Zullie the Witch had a great video looking into that! While Malenia definitely feels like a Sekiro boss (especially when she was modded into the game!) she's not really a reskinned Tomoe since she doesn't use lightning and her combat style is very different from Genichiro’s.
@@itsm9818 she's not tomoe, kekw, tomoe was never suposed to exist inside the game, just in the lore. but is true that malenia is sekiro themed, the same way that the demon of hatred felt like a bloodbourne boss in sekiro, seem like its a little tradition including a boss that could have been on the previous game.
Miquella and Melania are never stated to be chosen by the two fingers... only Ranni. Melania's remembrance says they both received Empyrean status due to thier parentage.
Marika and the gloam eyed queen were siblings/twins and this is where radagon was used to seduce the gloam eyed queen and born was mesmer the son of radagon/marika and her twin the gloam eyed queen. Just throwing things at the wall and seeing if it sticks😂
Since the DLC is going into Marika's backstory, I do hope we get more lore about Radagon! Knowing what he was doing before the Liurnian Wars could solve the major question about whether he and Marika were always one person or not.
@@itsm9818 Passive agressive response much? How can she be a Shadow if she's not a Wolf person? Even Vagram only WANTED to be a Shadow, he wasn't really one. : p
My speculation thoughts A shadow is a wolf!!!so blaith and maliketh are shadows. Marika was given maliketh as a way to limit her because she wanted to overthrow the gloom eyed queen and she use him to defeat her, exactly how this was done we don’t know the details yet. Miquella & malenia, They were not pure! They were tainted with rot and youth! Ranni was the only true empyrean but she rejected her fate so they sent blaith to limit ranni but we interfere
Its not the rot or eternal youth that prevent them from getting shadows. I think they were not selected by the 2 fingers. Another one of Merika's attepts to circumvent the greater will.
Loved the video, my theory on this character is that. Based on miquella being a man and this knight being a woman, the knightess is the promised lord miquella is awaiting in the land of shadow, and she leads the search party
@@johnathonsnape-mclean3457 But this would imply the shadows were a "control mechanism" implemented since Marika. But by whom and to whose convenience? The Elden Beast/2 Fingers? Also, the GEQ was selected by her "fingers", but it doesn't explicitly say "2 fingers". Maybe a "5 fingers"? Celestial hand?
@@redheadsilver8041 totally agree on the fingers 🤣 frenzy flame has three! What were hers? I would say the convenience of the present god if that makes sense? Frenzy, golden order so on
You're wearing armor? So why does Miquella trust you with torrent ? Why does torrent recognize you ? Why does Miquella give you the spirit calling bell? Instead of Miquella trusting a random tarnished Wouldn't it make more sense for the player character to be miquellas shadow ? And the only one we ever heard calling Miquella the kind Is Miquella himself You're already mistaking him to be a woman What proof is there of this ???
It's also possible she could be an offshoot of Marika (kinda like Malenia and Millicent, though I'm working on a separate theory involving Melina). And since Bonfire VN has the sliders, you can already get a headstart on the cosplay!
Good question! The Bloodhound Set tells us that they choose a master and stay loyal for life, but we also know from Darriwil that they can turn traitor. (Why he betrayed Ranni is left unclear tho I appreciate the manga’s explanation.) So I could definitely see them as potential prototypes for the Shadows the Two Fingers created.
The children of Merika and Radagon were not selected by the 2 fingers. They skipped that process and get Empyrean status based off their lineage alone.
...all confirmed shadows appointed by the fingers are wolves, though? Why didn't you mention that in this video? It's an obvious obstacle to even considering this person might be a shadow, so you should at the very least state it and offer a reason why that limitation wouldn't prevent your theory in this case
Nah, dont see any of the connections youve made..... Way off and probably need to reread or replay... You missed such basic details its actually frightening. (Side note, imagine how religion gets reinterpreted by people of the age....)
![Marika's Ascension was NOT legitimate; AND IT EXPLAINS EVERYTHING [Elden Ring Lore]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Uo7Froo5xS8/mqdefault.jpg)
![Marika's Ascension was NOT legitimate; AND IT EXPLAINS EVERYTHING [Elden Ring Lore]](/img/tr.png)
“I am malenia, blaidd of miquella”
No, it’s Saber
Hope the sword is called Excalibur and has the Beam skill
Lol exactly what I thought too.
It's Bedivere.
I mean the dlc is about fate
EXCALIBAAAA
It could also be that though Miquella and Malenia were born Empyreans, their respective deformities eventually made them "unworthy" in the eyes of the Two Fingers.
Jesus. If the Fingers would reject even Demigods, then Miquella's efforts make even more sense, and look even better on him.
Just like the lowly Albinauric, like all the Misbegottens, he's a reject. Just like them. Makes me tear up a lil bit, lol.
@@kite2036well malenia is infected by another gods power that wants to make her their vessel so that makes perfect sense seeing as the fingers are like the avatar of the outer god of the erd tree \ golden order
The gods are probably in conflict hence rykards plan to devour them all
If they teamed up they would rule absolutely but because they are all against eachother the story happens as it does
The shadows are 'shadowbound beasts', and it's clear that both Blaidd and Maliketh are wolf-like beast creatures, so I doubt this person is Miquella's 'shadow'. Also, I believe the guy's name is 'Raging Wolf Vargram', and he dressed as a wolf *as if* he were the Gloam Eyed Queen's shadow, to mirror the same level of dedication, but he wasn't a 'real' shadow.
Fr wolfs show up a FUCKTON in this game
Even the armor from the trailer is called the raging wolf set , and how many old bosses and wolf and dog enemies are there ? So so so fkn many
I'm surprised we didn't fight a white dire wolf in the snow area tbh 😂
While i believe she would be the miquellan knight, i doubt she would be the shadow of Miquellaa .As stated in the video, wolves are shadows of an emperyan. And I don't see any wolf iconography or even a reference, unlike Vargram. For now i would put it as "most likely not, but might be possible".
Completely fair! Miyazaki did say he didn't even want to mention certain boss names because they would be a spoiler. Though it is possible she could turn into a wolf as she goes mad (a la Vicar Amelia in Bloodborne).
@@garrulousgoldmaskThe way I see it, Malenia and Miquella didn’t ever get shadows, and Malenia and Miquella agreed on who was going to be who, miquella being the actual empyrean, while Malenia played as the shadow. Although, when malenia was put into a coma, she couldn’t serve as the shadow, so Miquella chose replacement shadows, which could possibly be this woman. It’d explain why he wasn’t with malenia, he probably couldn’t wait for her to wake up, so he just picked his other best soldiers, and left.
I think we’re supposed to become Miquella’s shadow, since we wear the Raging Wolf set in the trailer.
That's just From's default tarnished outfit
But shadows don't have an actual own will. They can still be ordered to kill their emperyan at any time.
The golden order wouldn't have any control over you if you were the shadow.
@Romapolitan Which would make Miquella unique and stand out from the other demigods since the tarnished doesn't need to follow the golden order. You'll likely be able to choose to become his shadow or not
miquella and malenia were cursed, so no shadow for them.
I'd be very interested to hear your thoughts on the theory that Empyreans are all missing an eye.
Symbolism aside, there could be something more to it…
That is a great theory! I wonder if Marika had to sacrifice an eye to become the “vision’s vessel” of the Elden Ring. (That would also fit in with the common archetype of a prophet being blind but being able to “see” the future or the true nature of reality.) And the Soreseals/Scarseals are also called eyes, with one of them at Miquella's Haligtree.
It's quite possible Miquella is missing an eye since we don't really get a clear view of his face (including in all the trailers for Shadow of the Erdtree).
All of the Empyreans left eyes have a mark over them, like Melina. That's their "brand" confirming them an Empyrean and why the game goes out of the way to NOT show any of the Empyrean's eyes. Many agree Melina is some form the of the Gloam Eye'd Queen, and it would make sense for her to have a "claw" for a brand that represents death. Melina is also "chimera" and people used to think women who had two eyes with two colors were witches. You can see Ranni's mark also, although it's hard to make out. It's some sort of astral galaxy thing. I am guessing that Miquella's is a "lily" or some sort of entwined circle. Messmer is NOT an Empyrean, but I think you find more about why that is in the DLC. I don't think the person covering their right eye with the sword is a "shadow" as they are not a wolf. The armor is very clear on that. If you have ever followed "Berserk" then you know what she is and have an idea of what will happen to all of Miquella's followers. I think that person will have a brand for another reason. Go read up on Berserk/Griffith if you get the chance.
If Malenia could read this comment she would be very upset.
I think missing the left eye represents divesting yourself if your flesh. This is a way that Empyreans are able to shed the influence of grace from themselves. I don’t think missing an eye is exclusive to empyreans though
The Stars shall align, soon the path to the Shadowlands will open
I was soooo ready to start as the Bloody Wolf class…then found out I had to walk thru Mordor to get the armor…
All I know is I want that faith sword our new waifu is holding
That knight looks very androgynous too, just like Miquella himself. If they aren't him, or St. Trina, then being his Shadow is possible, although I think the Shadows created by the Two Fingers are all said to be Beasts or Beastmen of some sort.
Vagram wielding the Godslayer Greatsword is potentially a very meaningful detail which I'm glad to see someone else mention! As he wanted to be a Shadow for an Empyrean, it makes sense to me that there's a particular one he wished to serve...but the Gloam-Eyed Queen has been long gone since before Vagram arrived in the Lands Between, so his wish could never be fulfilled, and he settled with using his chosen Empyrean's sword instead.
Definitely! The androgyny seems like a very deliberate choice (and just in time for Pride too!)
The GSGS is one of my favorite weapons in terms of lore and gameplay so I'm always glad to invoke it! And I’ve been going with the theory that “Gloam-Eyed Queen” is a title, like “Elden Lord,” which would mean there are multiple GEQs throughout history. So even Vargram might not have been able to serve the GEQ the one that was defeated by Maliketh, he could have served her successor.
@@garrulousgoldmask It would be cool if the "Gloam-Eyed Queen" turned out to be a title rather than only one particular person, if that's true then Vagram could definitely have met one of them!
I think that she may well have a few parallels with Rennala, the one mentioned could also be the last in her line of Queens. Hopefully the DLC will give us more details about her/them.
Maybe that's because they were created during the time before the golden age. Maybe the newer shadows for miquella/malenia can be human?
@@FartsHaveATaste Sure, that's an interesting idea, but then why would Marika's Shadow be a Beast? Maliketh is probably the oldest of them all.
@Solibrae Because she's the oldest of them all. Beasts are of the crucible they left behind in the shadow lands. Hence being their "shadows" 😵
Very interesting about the Godslayer Sword. Will have to investigate that more.
It's a really fascinating (and fun) weapon! The spiral pattern also reminds me of the Sacred Relic Sword that Radagon got turned into and I explored some of the theories behind the sword in my GEQ video.
Now with the dlc we know for sure: she is no shadow just a simp
Now we know that her name is Needle Knight Leda
So Miquella being the recipient of the vision would have been first in line to become the next vessel of the elden ring...The loretta's description about the recipient really stood out for me when I first read it but I didn't know how to interpret it. I should have paid more attention to the old hag.
All the good theories are the short ones. The hour long vids leave me more confused than when I started. This is brilliant and you’re cooking in the comments. I NEED MORE!!!
I hope she's the final boss, kinda like how Gael helped you and became the final boss
What if Malenia's shadow is Finlay? Think it would be reasonable.
I also thought the sword may be hers
But i assume when Miquella turned his back on the golden order that Malenia killed their Shadows as a security measure
I wonder if the three wolves were receive as spirit summons were miquella's shadow before he divested himself of flesh? Could even be the shadows of Miquella, Malenia and another (massive Melina if she isn't also Miquella?)
While old text gives hints at what developers were thinking in the past, it is still, by definition, not Canon. So, is it possible that the Royal Knight Armor description was changed because Miyazaki decided against Radagon supporting Miquella's plan to replace the Haligtree? Or, rather that that had never been the case and Radagon never knew the fullness of Miquella's goals but Miyazaki was worried players might conclude he was in on the plan?
Oh for sure! I'm actually doing an entire video on all of the lore that was cut from 1.00 and that is one of the points I stress. It's definitely not canon any more. But what makes it more complicated is that there are also cases where FromSoft made the game's lore a bit more mysterious and less obvious. So when it comes to a pretty drastic rewrite like Loretta's set, the million-rune question is asking if this done because the underlying lore was completely changed? Or did FromSoft think it provided too much information? Like a lot of the lore, it's left up to interpretation and you outlined some great reasons for why Radagon might be opposed. Personally, I still think there are good reasons to think that Miquella, at least at one point, had been seen as Marika's heir, since you can find Marika's Soreseal at the Haligtree as well as the spell Triple Ring of Light, was a gift from Miquella to Radagon.
What if... the one theory from a while back is true.. and WE are Miquella's shadow... 💀
??
@@TheGate777 Basically, throughout the entire game Miquella has been "guiding" us. We are following in his footsteps, and he is awaiting his "promised lord". He also supplied us with Torrent and the spirit caller bell to help with our travels. Plus, they always show the main character in trailers wearing the Wolf armor. Kinda sus.
A question for you Goldmask, the raging wolf was a person, not a creation of the two fingers like blaidd, if a person choose to become a shadow willingly, it will gain this kill switch or you think it will remain a unsupervised shadow ?
yeah I guess the tragedy is he thinks it's a noble affair but he could never truly be one not knowing their purpose.
Great question (and an even better username)! I'm assuming the kill switch functionality is part and parcel of becoming an Empyrean’s Shadow, since it's about maintaining control. That said, Vargram may have become the Shadow for the Gloam-Eyed Queen and it's unclear if she was chosen by her own Two Fingers like Ranni, Miquella, and Malenia.
@@garrulousgoldmask if im not mistaken, there an item description that states that the gloamed eye queen was chosen by her own two fingers, altho we can’t find them, you can find the information in the Black Flame Ritual incantation. Thanks for the answer!!!
@@TheAuspiciousGoldmask Yep, it's from the Black Flame Ritual spell: “The Gloam-Eyed Queen led the apostles. It is said that she was an Empyrean chosen by the Fingers.” It's hearsay that the GEQ was an Empyrean and she's the only one whose status as an Empyrean is called into question.
@@garrulousgoldmask The thing i ponder is about her origins, is she a demigod or a numen like Marika that gained the right of being the vassal of the Elden Ring (i doubt that ordinary humans can be chosen as candidate to be the vassal of the Elden Ring, under normal circunstancies).
As for her status as empyrean being in question, in my point of view, i don’t see the problem, the gloamed eye queen had the potential of bringing an order, an order of death, where there is no exception on death, not even the gods, i see the gloamed eye queen being oposed to marika, bc their vision of order are like opposites, while Marika have the vision of an order that is abundant in life, where death is not the end, actually, death don’t even exist in her order, the Gloamed eye queen order would be with abundance of death, where death is the last stop, there is no reincarnation or process of being reborn again, just death, pure and immaculate. I don’t think the GEQ has any bad blood on the behalf of the Greater Will.
The Greater will has chosen more questionable ppl to be and empyrean, like Malenia that harbored the god of rot inside of her, i believe of she ended up as the next vassal of the Elden Ring she would bring an Order of rot, like Gowry mentions to us, after seeing ratatoskr and Smoughtown videos on the greater will, its clear to me that the greater will don’t care what KIND of order its stablished, only that order is stablished.
for 6k subs the quality of videos on this channel is insane!
Thank you so much!
Wait if Miq and her Blade are Twins then that would mean only 1 Shadow was Born. There are Knights who behave like Beasts in Game. Maybe Radagon/Marika or Rennala used the Rune of the Unborn to turn Beastmen into regular Humans. I also believe that Godfrey was once a Rune Bear and he was on the Carian Side
Awesome.
I'm putting a lot of subtle but important coincidental patterns together that might shed light on what's going on, from eyes to lies, numbers, sides and truths.. I don't even know if what I'm finding is sheer delusion of coincidence or egregiously lucky observation on intimate game design
Its overly intricate, convoluted and far from easily conveyed BUT I hope I can put it together and share it with the community ESPECIALLY with the incredible content creators who have inspired and enlightened me throughout the journey , of which you're one of. I love your insight, thanks for your work
Thank you so much! That sounds like quite the endeavor-I’d love to see it when it’s ready!
And yeah, wondering if something is intricate game design/subtle environmental storytelling or just apophenia/pareidolia is absolutely an occupational hazard for FromSoft lore hunting 😅
"Heresy is but a contrivance. All things can be conjoined."
"Ill-starred sword". "Destined to become a curse." I think you are right because the stars dictate destiny, and an "ill-starred sword" would be a sword that was fated to turn against the one to whom the sword-bearer served. Thus, it would be destined by the stars to turn against Miquella when he turned against the Two Fingers.
This would explain why at Malenia’s Isolated Divine Tower, only her Great Rune can be recovered. Miquella still had his and took it with him to Realm of Shadow, only to BREAK the Rune when the time was right.
@@Ron322 true, because Mohg and Morgott share the same tower for their runes, being twins.
You missed something when going over the description on the Armor. If "King Consort Radagon" is able to gift Carian Knights to Miquella, what is that supposed to mean for the timeline? Does him leaving Rennala behind for Marika doesn't mean that he would also lose any and all say over Carians? I speculate this also hints to the fact that Miquella was present while Radagon was with Rennala but then Miquella and Malenia are children of Radagon and Marika. I feel like they changed this description for many reasons with this being one.
“New favorite waifu” is the souls fan base really this down bad
"cursed with eternal youth"
/throwsupinmouthabit
ye, lol
Welcome home Ashen One. Would you like dinner, a bath...
@@baka_monogatari3389perhaps a massage
maybe she's secretly a wolf but keeps a human form due to some sort of spell? maybe a new type of miquella's needle?
She is Kasca, the shadow in our heart 😢
You mean Casca?
That NPC doesn't give out a furry vibe, theory discarded
why every time when we have a crush on a character in elden ring like melina or this new knight turn out to be miquella? like bro leave our wives alone fuck
I assumed that Marika and Ranni got shadows because rrhwy were the chosen ones to become God's. Miquella and Malenia were candidates but weren't chosen and thus no shadow bound beast
Every empyrean has a shadow, which is why is why one of the bigger mysteries in the game are where malenia and miquella's are
@@Sunny-jk3pq oh gotcha, my mistake
Welp I’m guessing this NPC is miquella’s shadow and in the end they will go mad and we will have to kill them 😔
30 seconds in: 'i'm not convinced...'
Name drops TimDiggity: 'oh yes canon confirmed.'
Can’t really agree with this one since we only see shadows take the form of wolf like beasts. I think Miquella and Malenia’s shadows are dead, they would have little need for them especially since Malenia seems to handle most of the dirty work anyways and they would just be a liability considering they will go insane and turn on them. It’s likely their shadows already did turn on them but obviously stood no chance
That new site of grace symbol is an eclipse right?
Ooh, could be!
Miyazaki said the title Shadow of the Erdtree had a hidden meaning. I think the hidden meaning is the Shadow of the Erdtree is a person!! We’ll find out who that “shadow” is soon enough
I've always assumed that Melania was Miquella's shadow.
Great video!
Baber
Baber
Baber
hi
Why does nobody ask the question of why is Ranni an empyrean
I think this is one of the demi gods that was slain along with Godwyn,
So, miquella was the one who summoned us and was her golden grace what guided us all along ?
That is miquella
The one touching the “grace” with the gold coming out the ground. Androgynous covering one eye. Knows how to compel affection. I can’t wait til the dlc drops so I can stop with all the speculation 😂
It seems to me Malenia is playing the Shadow of Miquella, as the Blade of Miquella. Malenia the character reminds me alot of Wolf from Sekiro, and its interesting because the Game is called Sekiro, "Shadows Die Twice". Malenia like Wolf in Sekiro is Severed, and Malenia like Wolf is inflicted with Rot. Interestingly enough Wolf in Sekiro, spreads Dragon "Rot" to people, making them sick and soon to die, every time you die, someone gets afflicted with Dragonrot. Malenias moves, like Wolf in Sekiro is of course with the Katana but also Kicks. Also to mention every Empyrean has their own Two Fingers however in this case it seems Malenia willingly wanted to play the Part of the Shadow of Miquella, besides every Shadow bound "Wolf like" Beast in Elden Ring is the very Shadow of the Empyrean, but also their "Brother". Like Ranni with Blaidd, Marika with Maliketh. Here i would understand why Malenia is the Metaphorical Shadow of Miquella, She is Decay, while Miquella is Abundance. Sadly i must say i do not believe this is Miquellas Long Lost Shadow, but simply like every NPC in the DLC, a Follower maybe. Oh yeah right and a Shadow apparently cant be killed, like Blaidd Quotes: "You're... you're strong of arm. But ask yourself... What harm can be done... to a shadow?". Like Malenia, she does not die, she will ever bloom once more to Life thanks to Rot.
Malenia is actually Tomoe but Sekiro didn’t have a dlc so they decided to just use some of Tomoe move set and bring it to Elden ring. That’s why the fight feels like it should be in a Sekiro game.
@@itsm9818 Actually, Zullie the Witch had a great video looking into that! While Malenia definitely feels like a Sekiro boss (especially when she was modded into the game!) she's not really a reskinned Tomoe since she doesn't use lightning and her combat style is very different from Genichiro’s.
@@itsm9818 she's not tomoe, kekw, tomoe was never suposed to exist inside the game, just in the lore.
but is true that malenia is sekiro themed, the same way that the demon of hatred felt like a bloodbourne boss in sekiro, seem like its a little tradition including a boss that could have been on the previous game.
Miquella and Melania are never stated to be chosen by the two fingers... only Ranni. Melania's remembrance says they both received Empyrean status due to thier parentage.
Marika and the gloam eyed queen were siblings/twins and this is where radagon was used to seduce the gloam eyed queen and born was mesmer the son of radagon/marika and her twin the gloam eyed queen. Just throwing things at the wall and seeing if it sticks😂
I wonder where Radagon was before he appeared out of nowhere as Champion in Merika's Army?
Honestly, I’m kinda amazed how Gloam-Eyed Queen love triangles became pretty mainstream for Elden Ring lore theory crafting 😂
Since the DLC is going into Marika's backstory, I do hope we get more lore about Radagon! Knowing what he was doing before the Liurnian Wars could solve the major question about whether he and Marika were always one person or not.
We a need a “shield of miqualla “
Might be us!
Don't know if I agree, but thanks for the vid. Found high res versions of this and the omen pictures on the BandaiNamcoSEA profile.
FINNALY, this comment took three tries (and this one took two).
But she's not a wolf.
Ok?
@@itsm9818 Passive agressive response much? How can she be a Shadow if she's not a Wolf person? Even Vagram only WANTED to be a Shadow, he wasn't really one. : p
My speculation thoughts
A shadow is a wolf!!!so blaith and maliketh are shadows. Marika was given maliketh as a way to limit her because she wanted to overthrow the gloom eyed queen and she use him to defeat her, exactly how this was done we don’t know the details yet. Miquella & malenia, They were not pure! They were tainted with rot and youth! Ranni was the only true empyrean but she rejected her fate so they sent blaith to limit ranni but we interfere
Its not the rot or eternal youth that prevent them from getting shadows. I think they were not selected by the 2 fingers. Another one of Merika's attepts to circumvent the greater will.
Loved the video, my theory on this character is that. Based on miquella being a man and this knight being a woman, the knightess is the promised lord miquella is awaiting in the land of shadow, and she leads the search party
Who was the GEQ's shadow?
Who’s to say she needed a shadow to limit her? Maybe she didn’t need/wasn’t given one cause it was at the time of the crucible?!?! 😮
@@johnathonsnape-mclean3457 But this would imply the shadows were a "control mechanism" implemented since Marika. But by whom and to whose convenience? The Elden Beast/2 Fingers?
Also, the GEQ was selected by her "fingers", but it doesn't explicitly say "2 fingers". Maybe a "5 fingers"? Celestial hand?
@@redheadsilver8041 totally agree on the fingers 🤣 frenzy flame has three! What were hers? I would say the convenience of the present god if that makes sense? Frenzy, golden order so on
You're wearing armor?
So why does Miquella trust you with torrent ?
Why does torrent recognize you ?
Why does Miquella give you the spirit calling bell?
Instead of Miquella trusting a random tarnished
Wouldn't it make more sense for the player character to be miquellas shadow ?
And the only one we ever heard calling Miquella the kind
Is Miquella himself
You're already mistaking him to be a woman
What proof is there of this ???
Who was the gloam eyed queens shadow?
Looks like a Young Marika to me, possibly before she become a goddess or when she was young. Anyways, can't wait to do a cosplay of her.
She looks sooo fun to cosplay 😭 gl with it!
It's also possible she could be an offshoot of Marika (kinda like Malenia and Millicent, though I'm working on a separate theory involving Melina). And since Bonfire VN has the sliders, you can already get a headstart on the cosplay!
shadows are prolly all beast
Apparently they are also some type of wolf
@@ericwalker6477 the question is are bloodhounds related to the shadow beasts
@@headecas good question. Maliketh seems to be more lion like which is feline so who knows lol
Good question! The Bloodhound Set tells us that they choose a master and stay loyal for life, but we also know from Darriwil that they can turn traitor. (Why he betrayed Ranni is left unclear tho I appreciate the manga’s explanation.) So I could definitely see them as potential prototypes for the Shadows the Two Fingers created.
If that’s miq then why did they have to make him so pretty?
The children of Merika and Radagon were not selected by the 2 fingers. They skipped that process and get Empyrean status based off their lineage alone.
I think miquellas shadow is torrent
Most disappointing character in all of Elden Ring
I agree
Miquella and Malenia are not Empyreans.they're fucking demigods.
...all confirmed shadows appointed by the fingers are wolves, though? Why didn't you mention that in this video? It's an obvious obstacle to even considering this person might be a shadow, so you should at the very least state it and offer a reason why that limitation wouldn't prevent your theory in this case
No
Learn to sound balance. You sound 2 miles away from your mic
Not really you just have to clean your ears or clean your dirty phone
I got headphones on; sounds fine
Nah, dont see any of the connections youve made.....
Way off and probably need to reread or replay...
You missed such basic details its actually frightening.
(Side note, imagine how religion gets reinterpreted by people of the age....)