I never noticed the Iron Crown motif on the bosses until you mentioned it. The Prophet in his stockade and the knives in his back; the Necromancer's Collar (actually an obvious one, guess I never paid much attention to it); the wheels on the Brigands' cannon; the Hag's headdress made of an antlered skull; the Swine Lord literally wearing an iron crown; the Flesh's spine; the Siren's fin; the Drowned Crew's anchor; the Shambler...; the Collector also going the literal way; the Shrieker's quills; Vvulf has it drawn on his shield.
It's very subtle in alot of cases, something alot of people overlook but that's kinda of the point. In hindsight, it makes sense why the cultist are allowed to work alongside the other factions. They all serve the Heart. The Pelagics have totems that references to the Dungeon's Door, the Hag experimented on herself to gain insight into the Heart. And those that don't serve, suffer from it IE Prophet and Siren. Shambler has it on it's quills/tendrils above it's eyes.
@@MiskatonicMemorialist Another thing is that they also appear in most, if not all of the characters' comic backstories. Might be possible that the heart is responsible to their fates? The musketeer did see something in her backstory
Honestly, I noticed it only on the Vvulf's shield. Since it us also present at the family crest, I assumed it was part of our heraldical symbol. And Vvulf weared it as a signed that he served the Ancestor. But this observation is so much deeper! Nice job.
I personally suspect that the same barriers placed around the farmstead have been erected around the entire estate. Why leave things to chance, especially when the ancestor only needs to win once. It's not so fun when the antagonist is the one save-scumming now is it?
I love the subtle storytelling of two moves "Rend for the old gods" and "Rend for the new god". The cultists were drawn in by a return to the faith that existed before the religion of the flame, that is, before Christianity. What they got was no true return to the old ways, but a worship of the heart of the world. Unless the faith of the flame replaced worship of the heart? I don't think so, for when the cultists are shown more of the truth of what they worship, they now rend, not for the old gods, but for a new one, one their ancestors did not know.
I also formed a theory- the Heart does this every now and then, a cycle where humanity and all life on Earth prooves it's worth to be it's own. An endless test of strength, intelegence and self reliance- lest your maker, your mother and father, reclaim you for failing to proove your individuality. Therfore I see the cultists who are joyous in being devouered by the Being as more or less failures in it's eyes- it's reclaiming the people who wilingly want to go back to what is essentially primordial soup of being, failing to be themselves
In time, it will soon leave, for if mankind in time begins to slaughter it and all that follows, then will it leave? If it does, will it watch? Does it even love mankind or is it possibly like the light, which from the few context clues may love mankind but in a sick and twisted way, like it truly wants mankind to itself and only itself (wtf am i going on about? I feel like the ancestors)
@@masterzoroark6664 i would rather find it interesting if most of the gods and goddesses were all just wanting man to themselves besides like idk the darkness wanting mankind to be free from every other gods corrupting influence or whatever.. just my thoughts on the matter
One thing I feel should be noticed is the shape of the priest's true body. That is to say, it's similarity to the shambler... hm. Perhaps the shuffling horror is not a mutated shambler, but rather a juvenile one. Perhaps the shambler we know of is an elder who's abbarant flesh has finally settled and fully developed, and now wanders the estate.
I'm doubtful. The Heart seems to want to subsume all organic life within itself. Spawning creatures from it to grow different from it is pretty distant from what it would want to do.
A thought about your input on the ending: I was always under the impression that the opposite was true: You have to “kill” the Heart in order to suppress it from awakening, whereas giving in and feeding it/allowing it to gestate (Week/Death limit on Stygian/Bloodmoon) brings about the end of the world. At least, that’s the conclusion that I leave with, but in the end, the result is the same. The Heir must fail for the Protege to succeed.
I agree, we killed the Heart but it's not gone. It will return, the Thing will awaken once more, be it by a will of another or no and there will be someone who tries to stop it. The Ancestor is not special, The Heir is not special. It will happen again, perhaps in some distant past it happened as well. It's not a fight we can win. It's a fight against something far bigger than us, something we can delay but can not stop. It's a fight for continued survial of humanity and all thing living in this world. Should we fail, even once, it's over. Life as we know it will come to an end. The Thing, like a newborn, will hatch from the egg that is our world to enter the infinite vastness of space. Perhaps that's how things really are. The way it should have been. Yet we forge ahead. To fight against inevitable. Against Fate.
@@joshuawadsworth6417 I think that was made the other way around, considering it was made for a sequel. They made 5 confession bosses for the 5 points.
I remember first going through the dungeon and every time, I was shaking and quiet the whole time. It’s definitely the most overwhelming, Eldritch area in the game. And you are not the same being as you were before once you clear the missions.
The atmosphere and the brutal difficulty of the Darkest Dungeon stages synergize very well to make the place terrifying. But when you get used to it... it's beautiful...
It is not a loss of sanity but a true revelation. You become aware of things as they really are. But such a sudden enlightenment will stress the receiver out as they are not prepared for it. But either way the receiver becomes more advanced in thought. Maybe to the point their turn of mind no longer is recognisable to those they once called peers. Sanity, after all, is just the measure of how you stack up to the norms of the group you belong to. Your ability to recognize and act on what the social norms are.
Dude, thank you so much for your work explaining the lore of this amazing game. I hope this video is a "see you soon" and not a "farewell". Hope to see you again in Darkest Dungeon 2 = )
Little fun fact: The hand of glory is actually described in "real world" books on black magic. From what Ive read the original was said to paralyze anyone whos light it shines on. There was a little story in there about two thieves trying to use it to rob a house and being arrested as it obviously didnt work.
I think DD2 start with what has happened after defeating the Heart as shown in the open cutscene where like the ancestor said, defeating the heart won't change anything as the world still went into chaos despite the efforts. In the opening scene, the heir is frustrated as he/she doesn't know what can be done to save the world anymore until the man showed up with the "hope", which motivates the heir to find the origin and dealt with it like how he/she dealt with the heart. Side-notes: Many people suggesting that the burning scene is the hamlet but I doubt that's the case, since we literally start from the hamlet with the stagecoach in the cutscene (the finger pointing corpses proving we start at the hamlet, please search other theories related to this), which shown us that the hamlet is probably one of the last places haven't gone mad at the time of DD2. (Thanks to our effort in DD1) To support this, the Man-At-Arms, Plague Doctor, Highwayman, and Graverobber are our first starting crew, which basically breaks the loop theory, as the heir only has a crusader and a highwayman whenever the loop starts. (Why people believes loop theory in the first place is beyond me) Second and more importantly, the zombie literally said "you're bold once, be bold once more". That guy has seen some shit, I don't think he would use the word "bold" and give the "hope" to anyone (Defying/Killing the god is both Bold and worthy of the last hope) English not my native, sorry for bad English.
I find stories with a hook of "Your species is just a small piece of a bigger organism" intriguing. The idea of your entire species being all one in a way they themselves cannot see. This sort of stories make you ask a question- is sentience a fluke, a lie people believe in because of their lack of perspective, or is sentience intended and connection to what made you is merely a remnant, a memory of where you came from and a reminder of equality of everyone
To an outside perspective, humanity may appear on earth as an ant colony. We think individually we're acting in our own best interests but in the truth of it we toil to add to the whole. Even our drive for sex is us being manipulated by nature.
Loved how you gave a connection linking the two games together. My only question...would this make the heir and the university student the same person?
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I'm still debating how the Ancestor, the Heir, the Academic, and the Protégé all fit together. I think we'll learn that in chapters 4&5 of DD2
@@MiskatonicMemorialist Considering in one of his speeches about the Sluice, the Academic says the Swine were first reported near a coastal hamlet, I don't think he knows too much about it aside from rumors. Like you said, we'll probably find out in the final parts of DD2.
@@MiskatonicMemorialist beating the Seething Sigh has the Academic say that the arrival of the letter changed everything, and the letter shown has the Ancestor's wax seal, so I'm pretty sure you're the Heir in DD2
@@MiskatonicMemorialist There is also an academics study with a painting of the manor where he says that the protégé was talking about crazy "half imagined" stuff while painting it.
What I guess might be somewhat true is that the sequel takes failing of bloodmoon as a canon ending for the first game. Not as in Heir denied the call, or stuck endlessly in a time loop, but that they undertook the crusade of stopping the Heart from gestating, and failed, and actually died trying, along with those souls they took with them into the Heart of Darkness. The game states specifically, that you cannot retreat from the final quest itself, not even from enterance of it, which might indicate, that the road back is naught for those who ventured into the void. The state of the world in DD2, if it is the same world as in DD1, implies, that Heir failed and never returned. Gestating of the Heart was completed, and the world was brought to ruin that it is in the second game. This is also supported by the notion of the Ancestor on new recruits at the very start of the game or upgrading stage coach: "word is traveling. Ambition stirring the distant cities. We can use this". Thus, the crusade of Heir was a point of notion for many, and many souls, both brave and wicked, were united under the banner of someone who had the strengh and virtue to face the end, and try to oppose it. But when Heir met their doom, and Heart took over the Mannor and shortly after - the Estate, which was for sure to be abandoned by those who were lucky enough not to get slaughtered in it's wake, all hope had been abandoned, save for a few stragglers, who gathered on a crossroads to be called once more by another stalwart soul, ready, as foolish as it might be, to challenge the impending doom that took away world as they knew it, and save what had left of it, or themselves be consumed just like the first one to lead them in the war that cannot be won, but must be fought.
@@angelovassalo7655 no, DD 2 doesn't say anything about what happened to the Heir. And the Ancestor is mentioned only a couple of times. Of course, I would still talk about DD 2's lore but those will be spoilers.
The cultist enemies are probably my favorite faction; their design is so well done. Some of my favorite mods for the game bring in character classes that let you play with a modified version of the brawler and acolyte, and I really wish we could get, say, a an ex-cultist or something as a DD2 character
It's revelation. Dark revelation holds one down, weighing heavy on the head that wears it. But, in moments of virtue, your light shines back, and like a hooded lantern, use the crown's reflective surface to focus your will on the world before you.
One of the uplifing things about lovecraftian works is despite how hopeless everything is; one thing is constant; the stubbonness of humanity to spit in the face of the inevitable. To tell the other worldly horrors no we will not submit now matter how insignificant we are.
Optimistic nihilism is fine, but it's nothing like the stories actually written by Lovecraft... 😅 They're full of "woe is me" and "all hope is lost, and I'm writing this down to get rid of it, but I know it won't work" and "might as well commit suicide".
Ik the dunwich horror was one story of some professors Arkham, dealing with the BS on whats going on in that town and stop it. Well they ended up not well at the end of the day but they manged to better humanity. Now I am reminded the professors at Arkham university are the true heroes of the Lovecraft mythos.
It is most appreciated that you cover all of this and that you reveal the meaning of the oron crown and how its effects have spread. And the purpose and actions of the cultists and the ancestor. It would seem that much is left untold.We in the darkness know that even in the brightest light darkness will always be there. Till the stars aline once again I bid thee a good day.
ok, in your series you have answered a lot, but a question gnaws at the back of my mind, who built the darkest dungeon? expect for the last 2 stages that are the void and the belly of the thing, the first 2 stages are a strange and horrific subterrean world and is corrupted version, someone must built it, and can't be the cultist because they come after the ancestor opens the gate to that world, so, who done it? you will do a video about it? P.S. can't be civilization from where the prophet comes because he wants to prevent the thing's awakening, and probably the darkest dungeon's builders worshipped the thing.
I've thought about that too. And this will be a spoiler for DD2 We learn how the Iron Crown has existed throughout history as a symbol of power in various cultures. We see flashes of it on warriors throughout history even one who looked very prehistoric. My guess is that the ancient cultures, the ones who were spawned from the Thing, are the ones who constructed it around the creature. (I actually wonder if it's the Cultist we see in DD2) Initially as a form of worship. But somewhere along the line, something happened that sealed the door to the creature. That is something I hope we learn about in DD2 and something I would love to make a video on. Was it the deities we know as the Light and the Flame who sealed it? Did the Countess play a role? Did the Prophet? I can speculate but it remains unclear.
@@MiskatonicMemorialist The existence of the countess could mean that even before the ancestor found out about the heart. It’s corruption was already spreading which also could’ve been hinted at in some of the hero’s backstories. Only then the ancestor an already corrupted individual who got just a drop of blood corrupting him just enough to somehow link him to the heart. Could it be also possible that the countess was deliberately sent to the court by the Heart to cause the chaos that it planned? Also what is the heart of darkness based off of?
Amazing video! Ive been hyping myself up for over a year to write a dnd campaign based on darkest dungeon with its own story line and everything and your lore videos are gonna be a huge help.
I could not smash that like button hard enough! Your presentation, as well as your theories, are astounding. Somehow the most brain blasting for me was the realization that the slashes on the Iron Crown are us and the four heroes. That is until that connection you made between the ending of Darkest Dungeon and the sequel. That one felt like hope, the very last of it, after all the darkness. Beautifully done as always, Memorialist. I'll see you. On the Road Trip of the Damned.
These videos are a GREAT help to me, I'm in planning stage of an modulated d&d DD campaign with players that never played DD, your way of doing all this is not only of help but a fantastic inspiration!
God, this video felt intense just *watching* it. Darkest Dungeon is such a brilliant game. Do you think you'll eventually do some work on Darkest Dungeon II's lore? The game isn't finished, but the enemy factions are fascinating.
I've watched a lot of your videos. I don't know if I caught them all... But some day I'll binge all this all over again. But this video, something clicked. After the end, a snatch of song came to me. "Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose/Nothing ain't worth nothing, but it's free." And, I couldn't shake that sentiment for some reason. This game pushes hopelessness. Having no supplies, no escape, no way out. Dwindling your heroes out of anything. But look at the heroes. A crusader with broken sword. A Highwayman, someone who could be a brigand, but wants to attach himself to something more. Artificer, who seeks knowledge and history. Break it down, each hero is here to claim something. Honor, wealth, knowledge. At stress, they come to realize that their extrinsic value isn't worth it. And that kind of realization comes in one of two ways. Either you have nothing left to live for, or you've got nothing left to lose. If you've nothing to live for, you become resentful. Abusive, apathetic, paranoid... But if you're free of losing anything of value... You can re evaluate and see that your intrinsic value is worth enough, and gain a second wind. Rallying those around you to take their burdens because you just shucked yours. Seeing this story through that lens? I... Things come into focus, but not quite. The Ancestor looked like he valued money, but it was only until he gained audience with the heart. Once the connection was immutable? He had no use for gold and jewel. In the epilogue, we the player spend so much time fighting and putting the heart to sword. But it's futile. Returned to the old road before we even set foot on manor grounds... Purpose stripped. Why try to stop it when it just means a chance to fail, and even then, it will only come back to a chance to fail again? Abandon it. Let it fail, it is... Inevitable. Either accept it.... Or use the time to find other means, and embrace its shadow to glean its form and motions.
The Dungeon’s areas are definitely the most unnerving thing in this whole game. The enemies didn’t creep me out, it was just the atmosphere. Every other place, you grow so used to seeing them, forests, caves. None of that compares to the manor and how fleshy and grotesque it is.
darkest dungeon was inspired by dark souls and bloodborne, now that elden ring has been released i think it could potentially clear up why the 'holy' attribute seems so extraterrestrial in these games, as well as how the ancestor's story arc started with meeting the countess
Very good work as always. I'm sad that it's probably gonna be quite a while until we see you again, but I am looking forward to it all the more. I am also very curious to explore the parts of DD2 that aren't ready yet. Can't wait.
I've just found out about your channel and boy am I glad I did. I've been downing your videos like liquor, plus they're really informative about very tiny details I never bothered to investigate on my own! Great work!
An excellent video, like all the others. I really like that you went out of your way to use more dynamic graphics instead of just scrolling across default room backgrounds. It gets me to actually watch instead of just listening in the background. I do find it a bit sad that you haven't mentioned the sightings of the Heart and cultists in the hero backstories, like the Flesh Cult in the Houndmaster's comic or the Eye that causes the Musketeer to miss.
I thought about mentioning those but I held off since the video was already going long, and I couldn't have found a way to work them into the script. Also I don't believe there is anything that says that the cultist we see in the HM's comic is the same group as the one in the manor or that they share a connection. They could, but they could also be a different cult looking to sacrifice for something else and the Iron Crown was added for flavor, since all the comics feature one. Also thank you for the kind words.
Thanks a lot for this video not polish man. The ending is beatiful and the best damn ending i could have possibly imagined. For now I will wait here for your return with the finalisation of DD2, and until then I bid you farewell. Unless you plan to stream DD2 anytime soon that is.
Okay first, AWESOME VIDEO! Gosh i was enthralled by it! There's so much work in it! The things you talk about are pretty interesting, with the Heart either way winning, the cultists, different interpretations. The one moment that i think i prefer is at the end: "To escape the apocalypse, we must start it." The setting of apocalypse in the sequel got me riled up for real! Anyway thanks a lot for this video, and i hope you keep making content as good as this on our favorite video games!
You would expect a eldritch priest to have more arcane powers, but the priests seem to only use there new physical form to attack which I guess the finger if I am correct does mark, so maybe slightly magical
i love this game and it does make senses that after figting the heart at least once, you leave to find answers because i thing in the lore the cusader is the only on who dies he sacrifices to the heart making the first loop happend no matter what, and maybe killing the brain the lungs etc. won't kill the heart but it will make it go to sleep.
This channel along with the videos are soooo underrated. I really liked all the videos so far especially this one and I can say it's obvious there is a lot of good work and mind that you've put on those videos and I really hope for the best on future for the channel and ofcourse you!!!! I can't wait for future content on DD2!!!!!!
I mean to be fair it wouldn't be cosmic horror if winning was an option. The protagonists in these stories never defeat the eldritch entity, they merely survive long enough for its gaze to drift away from them and for them to fade from its sphere of awareness. In the end survival or death were the only real options.
Your narrative skills are amazing and you have a gifted voice! I'm a fan of the franchiseof the darkest dungeon since it was out but I could begin to play it not so long ago, you really catch the game ambience and its essence! Great job and I will continue to watch your content with big attention =D
I found the end... Empowering, actually, if you can believe it. What we are is less important than what we do. We shouldn't have been able to stop it-- not even slow it. But we did. We staved off what the Ancestor in his hubris decries as inevitable. It gave us life, and in the ultimate gesture of a self divided from the so-called 'whole', we struck down our creator. We decided for ourselves what we'd do with what time we had. The Ancestor has made mistakes. Maybe he's wrong. Maybe our victory is lasting. It doesn't matter. The gesture we made... It was worth all the pain. Why did we build the Red Hook? Because we could. That means something. More, even, than you know.
The Heart: *Giving the choice, on wich Hero you want to sacrifice* Me: "Why am I having a deja vu all of a sudden?-" Pocketcat from Fear And Hunger: "So old sport, wich limb would you have me remove? Not to worry, my touch is gentle yet firm~"
Damn I really want the next part of this now. It was such a good video, loved every moment of it :D But then I found out this was 5 months ago and there is no new content Noooooooo >...
Great video! I admire the insight and determination with which you analyze the meager scraps of lore that the game throws at us. However, I would also like to give my perspective on the game ending. In my opinion, the Heart of Darkness concept of time reset is the result of an overly direct analysis of the ancestor's words. I believe that at the end of Ancestor's words it is not so much a summary of our victory, but a mockery. The ancestor mocks not only us, but our whole "family" - read - humanity. It makes us realize that our victory over the Heart does not ultimately matter. Yes, we managed to save the world, but for how long? Year? A decade? Century? Evil may wait because we cannot destroy it. We are not the light that illuminates the darkness, we have always been only an errant flesh, born of evil entity, which will force us to return to it when the time comes... The Hamlet scene at the end does not show time shifting back, no, this is the future. Each of our achievements will turn to dust, each building we restored will collapse over time into the same ruin it was when we found it, while the estate stands unshakable, dominating the area, waiting for the next victim. The heart will eventually wake up one day, possibly by another way, by another madman, but it will, and we can only delay the inevitable. And in my opinion, the action of the second game is about that, about another attempt to wake the Heart, and another attempt to stop it.
![[LIVE] : ONE ลุมพินี 88 | คู่เอก "ป้อมเพชร vs อัสลามจอน"](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/1ZqTVVbMgbo/mqdefault.jpg)
Hey i just realized at 3:36 the ancestor is just butt naked while he is receiving his vision
What, it's just a little GOOD GRIEF HE'S NAKED!
I never noticed the Iron Crown motif on the bosses until you mentioned it. The Prophet in his stockade and the knives in his back; the Necromancer's Collar (actually an obvious one, guess I never paid much attention to it); the wheels on the Brigands' cannon; the Hag's headdress made of an antlered skull; the Swine Lord literally wearing an iron crown; the Flesh's spine; the Siren's fin; the Drowned Crew's anchor; the Shambler...; the Collector also going the literal way; the Shrieker's quills; Vvulf has it drawn on his shield.
It's very subtle in alot of cases, something alot of people overlook but that's kinda of the point. In hindsight, it makes sense why the cultist are allowed to work alongside the other factions. They all serve the Heart. The Pelagics have totems that references to the Dungeon's Door, the Hag experimented on herself to gain insight into the Heart. And those that don't serve, suffer from it IE Prophet and Siren.
Shambler has it on it's quills/tendrils above it's eyes.
@@MiskatonicMemorialist I just said ellipses for the Shambler because wth is its anatomy
@@MiskatonicMemorialist Same here. And I love this game and have been searching the lore! Thanks so much👍
@@MiskatonicMemorialist Another thing is that they also appear in most, if not all of the characters' comic backstories. Might be possible that the heart is responsible to their fates? The musketeer did see something in her backstory
Honestly, I noticed it only on the Vvulf's shield. Since it us also present at the family crest, I assumed it was part of our heraldical symbol. And Vvulf weared it as a signed that he served the Ancestor. But this observation is so much deeper! Nice job.
Sometimes I wonder if the Ancestor's "brain-blasting realization" is an intentional pun refering to the way he sealed his pact with the Thing.
Are we sure that it's not just the Heart disguised as him?
@@auraguard0212Its never actually confirmed
I found it pretty funny too
"Spare the others, I am ready"
Man... Leper's line at the heart of darkness hits me like a truck. Best character
To me the fact that the cultists had the stress symbol in their helmets was kinda of a hint
They were a doomsday cult all along.
@@Firguy_the_Foot_Fetishist Jone's town 2.0
I personally suspect that the same barriers placed around the farmstead have been erected around the entire estate. Why leave things to chance, especially when the ancestor only needs to win once.
It's not so fun when the antagonist is the one save-scumming now is it?
I love the subtle storytelling of two moves "Rend for the old gods" and "Rend for the new god". The cultists were drawn in by a return to the faith that existed before the religion of the flame, that is, before Christianity. What they got was no true return to the old ways, but a worship of the heart of the world. Unless the faith of the flame replaced worship of the heart? I don't think so, for when the cultists are shown more of the truth of what they worship, they now rend, not for the old gods, but for a new one, one their ancestors did not know.
My favorite thing on this fight was the guy who beat the game with just the two starters never losing anyone nor bringing anyone into the game
Its like a big F U to the heart
@Markm8 mankinds indomitable spirit when some eldrich thing gets pissy as its beating said eldritch things: *SHUT THE F÷**#K** UP*
My favorite is the guy who one shot the heart with a Jester high as a kite in space cocaine
I also formed a theory- the Heart does this every now and then, a cycle where humanity and all life on Earth prooves it's worth to be it's own.
An endless test of strength, intelegence and self reliance- lest your maker, your mother and father, reclaim you for failing to proove your individuality.
Therfore I see the cultists who are joyous in being devouered by the Being as more or less failures in it's eyes- it's reclaiming the people who wilingly want to go back to what is essentially primordial soup of being, failing to be themselves
In time, it will soon leave, for if mankind in time begins to slaughter it and all that follows, then will it leave? If it does, will it watch? Does it even love mankind or is it possibly like the light, which from the few context clues may love mankind but in a sick and twisted way, like it truly wants mankind to itself and only itself (wtf am i going on about? I feel like the ancestors)
@@theenderdestruction2362 (Ain't wel all?)
well, there always might be that the Heart is also the Light- just interpreted by other minds
@@masterzoroark6664 i would rather find it interesting if most of the gods and goddesses were all just wanting man to themselves besides like idk the darkness wanting mankind to be free from every other gods corrupting influence or whatever.. just my thoughts on the matter
@@theenderdestruction2362 Would work too
@@masterzoroark6664 ... i just fucking did the basic plot of elden ring, dark souls and bloodborne as well kinda what the fuck
After that those line have more meaning.
"The old road will take you to hell... But in that gaping abyss... We will find our redempcion"
One thing I feel should be noticed is the shape of the priest's true body. That is to say, it's similarity to the shambler... hm. Perhaps the shuffling horror is not a mutated shambler, but rather a juvenile one. Perhaps the shambler we know of is an elder who's abbarant flesh has finally settled and fully developed, and now wanders the estate.
I'm doubtful. The Heart seems to want to subsume all organic life within itself. Spawning creatures from it to grow different from it is pretty distant from what it would want to do.
A thought about your input on the ending:
I was always under the impression that the opposite was true: You have to “kill” the Heart in order to suppress it from awakening, whereas giving in and feeding it/allowing it to gestate (Week/Death limit on Stygian/Bloodmoon) brings about the end of the world. At least, that’s the conclusion that I leave with, but in the end, the result is the same. The Heir must fail for the Protege to succeed.
I agree, we killed the Heart but it's not gone. It will return, the Thing will awaken once more, be it by a will of another or no and there will be someone who tries to stop it. The Ancestor is not special, The Heir is not special. It will happen again, perhaps in some distant past it happened as well.
It's not a fight we can win. It's a fight against something far bigger than us, something we can delay but can not stop. It's a fight for continued survial of humanity and all thing living in this world. Should we fail, even once, it's over. Life as we know it will come to an end. The Thing, like a newborn, will hatch from the egg that is our world to enter the infinite vastness of space. Perhaps that's how things really are. The way it should have been. Yet we forge ahead. To fight against inevitable. Against Fate.
Well if you beat the game in hard difficulties, you can then play a free play mode of there.
I never realized that the five marks on the Iron Crown represents the player and their party of heroes. Great video as always!
Thank you! That's just how I saw it as a meta representation, in DD2 we learn more about the origins of the symbol through out history and cultures.
They can also represent the 5 sins (or bosses) the player confesses in the 2nd game.
@@joshuawadsworth6417 I think that was made the other way around, considering it was made for a sequel.
They made 5 confession bosses for the 5 points.
I remember first going through the dungeon and every time, I was shaking and quiet the whole time. It’s definitely the most overwhelming, Eldritch area in the game. And you are not the same being as you were before once you clear the missions.
The atmosphere and the brutal difficulty of the Darkest Dungeon stages synergize very well to make the place terrifying. But when you get used to it... it's beautiful...
There he is, The Herald Of The End
The Local Man, who ruined everything
Also The Hand pun, I didn't expect that at all.
The Ancestor is a Florida man confirmed
It is not a loss of sanity but a true revelation. You become aware of things as they really are. But such a sudden enlightenment will stress the receiver out as they are not prepared for it. But either way the receiver becomes more advanced in thought. Maybe to the point their turn of mind no longer is recognisable to those they once called peers. Sanity, after all, is just the measure of how you stack up to the norms of the group you belong to. Your ability to recognize and act on what the social norms are.
I dunno, I wouldn't really trust the Heart. Doesn't seems to be any way to truly know if what it says is true or not.
Dude, thank you so much for your work explaining the lore of this amazing game. I hope this video is a "see you soon" and not a "farewell". Hope to see you again in Darkest Dungeon 2 = )
The story doesn't end here...
DD2's full release is only months away. We dont have to wait long.
Honestly this is the only TH-cam video I have ever gone back to watch a second time
Would also recommend The Ancestor movie. One of my finest.
Little fun fact: The hand of glory is actually described in "real world" books on black magic. From what Ive read the original was said to paralyze anyone whos light it shines on. There was a little story in there about two thieves trying to use it to rob a house and being arrested as it obviously didnt work.
Holy shit, finally after all this time I realise the connection between DD1 and 2. That's impressive
I think DD2 start with what has happened after defeating the Heart as shown in the open cutscene where like the ancestor said, defeating the heart won't change anything as the world still went into chaos despite the efforts. In the opening scene, the heir is frustrated as he/she doesn't know what can be done to save the world anymore until the man showed up with the "hope", which motivates the heir to find the origin and dealt with it like how he/she dealt with the heart.
Side-notes:
Many people suggesting that the burning scene is the hamlet but I doubt that's the case, since we literally start from the hamlet with the stagecoach in the cutscene (the finger pointing corpses proving we start at the hamlet, please search other theories related to this), which shown us that the hamlet is probably one of the last places haven't gone mad at the time of DD2. (Thanks to our effort in DD1)
To support this, the Man-At-Arms, Plague Doctor, Highwayman, and Graverobber are our first starting crew, which basically breaks the loop theory, as the heir only has a crusader and a highwayman whenever the loop starts. (Why people believes loop theory in the first place is beyond me)
Second and more importantly, the zombie literally said "you're bold once, be bold once more". That guy has seen some shit, I don't think he would use the word "bold" and give the "hope" to anyone (Defying/Killing the god is both Bold and worthy of the last hope)
English not my native, sorry for bad English.
Thanks for holding the line with us.
We Hold The Line!
I find stories with a hook of "Your species is just a small piece of a bigger organism" intriguing.
The idea of your entire species being all one in a way they themselves cannot see.
This sort of stories make you ask a question- is sentience a fluke, a lie people believe in because of their lack of perspective, or is sentience intended and connection to what made you is merely a remnant, a memory of where you came from and a reminder of equality of everyone
To an outside perspective, humanity may appear on earth as an ant colony. We think individually we're acting in our own best interests but in the truth of it we toil to add to the whole. Even our drive for sex is us being manipulated by nature.
Loved how you gave a connection linking the two games together. My only question...would this make the heir and the university student the same person?
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I'm still debating how the Ancestor, the Heir, the Academic, and the Protégé all fit together. I think we'll learn that in chapters 4&5 of DD2
@@MiskatonicMemorialist Considering in one of his speeches about the Sluice, the Academic says the Swine were first reported near a coastal hamlet, I don't think he knows too much about it aside from rumors. Like you said, we'll probably find out in the final parts of DD2.
@@MiskatonicMemorialist beating the Seething Sigh has the Academic say that the arrival of the letter changed everything, and the letter shown has the Ancestor's wax seal, so I'm pretty sure you're the Heir in DD2
@@MiskatonicMemorialist There is also an academics study with a painting of the manor where he says that the protégé was talking about crazy "half imagined" stuff while painting it.
POST CANCELLED IT WAS A DIFFERENT LETTER
What I guess might be somewhat true is that the sequel takes failing of bloodmoon as a canon ending for the first game. Not as in Heir denied the call, or stuck endlessly in a time loop, but that they undertook the crusade of stopping the Heart from gestating, and failed, and actually died trying, along with those souls they took with them into the Heart of Darkness. The game states specifically, that you cannot retreat from the final quest itself, not even from enterance of it, which might indicate, that the road back is naught for those who ventured into the void. The state of the world in DD2, if it is the same world as in DD1, implies, that Heir failed and never returned. Gestating of the Heart was completed, and the world was brought to ruin that it is in the second game. This is also supported by the notion of the Ancestor on new recruits at the very start of the game or upgrading stage coach: "word is traveling. Ambition stirring the distant cities. We can use this". Thus, the crusade of Heir was a point of notion for many, and many souls, both brave and wicked, were united under the banner of someone who had the strengh and virtue to face the end, and try to oppose it. But when Heir met their doom, and Heart took over the Mannor and shortly after - the Estate, which was for sure to be abandoned by those who were lucky enough not to get slaughtered in it's wake, all hope had been abandoned, save for a few stragglers, who gathered on a crossroads to be called once more by another stalwart soul, ready, as foolish as it might be, to challenge the impending doom that took away world as they knew it, and save what had left of it, or themselves be consumed just like the first one to lead them in the war that cannot be won, but must be fought.
No the heir survives, and was sucessful, it says so on DD2
@@angelovassalo7655 no, DD 2 doesn't say anything about what happened to the Heir. And the Ancestor is mentioned only a couple of times.
Of course, I would still talk about DD 2's lore but those will be spoilers.
i love how this game is still getting attention years later, thanks for carrying the Flame!
I like how, in the moment that the earth shatters, you can see a vague resemblance of the iron crown.
Broo, instant subscribe, perfect, mind boggling video, I don't know what to say
The cultist enemies are probably my favorite faction; their design is so well done. Some of my favorite mods for the game bring in character classes that let you play with a modified version of the brawler and acolyte, and I really wish we could get, say, a an ex-cultist or something as a DD2 character
We get Occultist I suppose....
Petition to put a Miskatonic Memoralist reference in DD2.
I would lose my mind lol xD
@Miskatonic Memorialist you would feel like you got hit by a tempelers revelation in real life,
i always assumed the "iron crown" means ilumination in some twisted way
In some ways, I guess it does lol
In it's own way. For what is becoming Virtuous than a radiant halo, a counterpoint to the Iron Crown?
This man.... This man understands.
It's revelation. Dark revelation holds one down, weighing heavy on the head that wears it. But, in moments of virtue, your light shines back, and like a hooded lantern, use the crown's reflective surface to focus your will on the world before you.
That's such a great work
One of the uplifing things about lovecraftian works is despite how hopeless everything is; one thing is constant; the stubbonness of humanity to spit in the face of the inevitable. To tell the other worldly horrors no we will not submit now matter how insignificant we are.
Optimistic nihilism is fine, but it's nothing like the stories actually written by Lovecraft... 😅
They're full of "woe is me" and "all hope is lost, and I'm writing this down to get rid of it, but I know it won't work" and "might as well commit suicide".
Ik the dunwich horror was one story of some professors Arkham, dealing with the BS on whats going on in that town and stop it. Well they ended up not well at the end of the day but they manged to better humanity. Now I am reminded the professors at Arkham university are the true heroes of the Lovecraft mythos.
I personally belive killing the heart does stop the apocalypse but the ancestor is really salty about it
I mean, you still did literally end up killing every boss in the game so you did certainly make the hamlet not have to worry about the brigand anymore
You're still the go-to channel for DD lore, well done
Amazingly explained and I really like the interpretation of what you believe would happen in d2.
I like how you asked "so why invite us here?" Only, in a way, for the ancestor to answer your question.
It is most appreciated that you cover all of this and that you reveal the meaning of the oron crown and how its effects have spread. And the purpose and actions of the cultists and the ancestor. It would seem that much is left untold.We in the darkness know that even in the brightest light darkness will always be there. Till the stars aline once again I bid thee a good day.
Also now that I’ve finished tis sad to see a end to this series but I think I speak for everyone when I say your return will be great ^^
I'll be back....
th-cam.com/video/CnQm2_cAZvo/w-d-xo.html
Bittersweet to see this amazing series come to close. Thank you so much for all the amazing insight into a game I have come to love so much.
ok, in your series you have answered a lot, but a question gnaws at the back of my mind, who built the darkest dungeon? expect for the last 2 stages that are the void and the belly of the thing, the first 2 stages are a strange and horrific subterrean world and is corrupted version, someone must built it, and can't be the cultist because they come after the ancestor opens the gate to that world, so, who done it? you will do a video about it?
P.S. can't be civilization from where the prophet comes because he wants to prevent the thing's awakening, and probably the darkest dungeon's builders worshipped the thing.
I've thought about that too. And this will be a spoiler for DD2
We learn how the Iron Crown has existed throughout history as a symbol of power in various cultures. We see flashes of it on warriors throughout history even one who looked very prehistoric. My guess is that the ancient cultures, the ones who were spawned from the Thing, are the ones who constructed it around the creature. (I actually wonder if it's the Cultist we see in DD2)
Initially as a form of worship. But somewhere along the line, something happened that sealed the door to the creature. That is something I hope we learn about in DD2 and something I would love to make a video on. Was it the deities we know as the Light and the Flame who sealed it? Did the Countess play a role? Did the Prophet? I can speculate but it remains unclear.
@@MiskatonicMemorialist The existence of the countess could mean that even before the ancestor found out about the heart. It’s corruption was already spreading which also could’ve been hinted at in some of the hero’s backstories. Only then the ancestor an already corrupted individual who got just a drop of blood corrupting him just enough to somehow link him to the heart.
Could it be also possible that the countess was deliberately sent to the court by the Heart to cause the chaos that it planned?
Also what is the heart of darkness based off of?
This was beautifully done and I loved every minute of it well done.
I will be waiting for the next story whatever it be but thank you so much for your effort and hope you are doing well
Thank you. I will be back for DD2 but life and other projects have to get done first.
Amazing video! Ive been hyping myself up for over a year to write a dnd campaign based on darkest dungeon with its own story line and everything and your lore videos are gonna be a huge help.
Beautiful piece of work. I simply loved it.
I could not smash that like button hard enough! Your presentation, as well as your theories, are astounding. Somehow the most brain blasting for me was the realization that the slashes on the Iron Crown are us and the four heroes. That is until that connection you made between the ending of Darkest Dungeon and the sequel. That one felt like hope, the very last of it, after all the darkness. Beautifully done as always, Memorialist. I'll see you. On the Road Trip of the Damned.
These videos are a GREAT help to me, I'm in planning stage of an modulated d&d DD campaign with players that never played DD, your way of doing all this is not only of help but a fantastic inspiration!
Great work. I'l be waiting for your return
God, this video felt intense just *watching* it. Darkest Dungeon is such a brilliant game.
Do you think you'll eventually do some work on Darkest Dungeon II's lore? The game isn't finished, but the enemy factions are fascinating.
I will at some point but when we get to the 1.0 launch, and the Steam release.
I've watched a lot of your videos. I don't know if I caught them all... But some day I'll binge all this all over again.
But this video, something clicked. After the end, a snatch of song came to me. "Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose/Nothing ain't worth nothing, but it's free." And, I couldn't shake that sentiment for some reason.
This game pushes hopelessness. Having no supplies, no escape, no way out. Dwindling your heroes out of anything. But look at the heroes. A crusader with broken sword. A Highwayman, someone who could be a brigand, but wants to attach himself to something more. Artificer, who seeks knowledge and history. Break it down, each hero is here to claim something. Honor, wealth, knowledge.
At stress, they come to realize that their extrinsic value isn't worth it. And that kind of realization comes in one of two ways. Either you have nothing left to live for, or you've got nothing left to lose. If you've nothing to live for, you become resentful. Abusive, apathetic, paranoid...
But if you're free of losing anything of value... You can re evaluate and see that your intrinsic value is worth enough, and gain a second wind. Rallying those around you to take their burdens because you just shucked yours.
Seeing this story through that lens? I... Things come into focus, but not quite. The Ancestor looked like he valued money, but it was only until he gained audience with the heart. Once the connection was immutable? He had no use for gold and jewel.
In the epilogue, we the player spend so much time fighting and putting the heart to sword. But it's futile. Returned to the old road before we even set foot on manor grounds...
Purpose stripped. Why try to stop it when it just means a chance to fail, and even then, it will only come back to a chance to fail again? Abandon it. Let it fail, it is... Inevitable. Either accept it.... Or use the time to find other means, and embrace its shadow to glean its form and motions.
The Dungeon’s areas are definitely the most unnerving thing in this whole game. The enemies didn’t creep me out, it was just the atmosphere.
Every other place, you grow so used to seeing them, forests, caves. None of that compares to the manor and how fleshy and grotesque it is.
darkest dungeon was inspired by dark souls and bloodborne, now that elden ring has been released i think it could potentially clear up why the 'holy' attribute seems so extraterrestrial in these games, as well as how the ancestor's story arc started with meeting the countess
Seven minutes into the video and i'm already stopping to comment about how well done it is.
Keep up the good work. This is very, very good.
I always get excited seeing these, thank ya very much
Into the Darkness! Bear the Light!
Very good work as always. I'm sad that it's probably gonna be quite a while until we see you again, but I am looking forward to it all the more. I am also very curious to explore the parts of DD2 that aren't ready yet. Can't wait.
This is such a banger video that i've come back a year later to rewatch it.
Always welcome 🙏
We are chained here forever, you and i; at the cosmic edge that is the TH-cam comment section....
I loved your first vid didn't expect a second banger awesome narration.
Flesh Hounds are very cute. I want one as a pet.
I've just found out about your channel and boy am I glad I did. I've been downing your videos like liquor, plus they're really informative about very tiny details I never bothered to investigate on my own! Great work!
An excellent video, like all the others. I really like that you went out of your way to use more dynamic graphics instead of just scrolling across default room backgrounds. It gets me to actually watch instead of just listening in the background.
I do find it a bit sad that you haven't mentioned the sightings of the Heart and cultists in the hero backstories, like the Flesh Cult in the Houndmaster's comic or the Eye that causes the Musketeer to miss.
I thought about mentioning those but I held off since the video was already going long, and I couldn't have found a way to work them into the script.
Also I don't believe there is anything that says that the cultist we see in the HM's comic is the same group as the one in the manor or that they share a connection. They could, but they could also be a different cult looking to sacrifice for something else and the Iron Crown was added for flavor, since all the comics feature one.
Also thank you for the kind words.
Thank you for your lore videos, still waiting for steam release of DD2
Thanks a lot for this video not polish man. The ending is beatiful and the best damn ending i could have possibly imagined. For now I will wait here for your return with the finalisation of DD2, and until then I bid you farewell. Unless you plan to stream DD2 anytime soon that is.
Okay first, AWESOME VIDEO! Gosh i was enthralled by it! There's so much work in it!
The things you talk about are pretty interesting, with the Heart either way winning, the cultists, different interpretations. The one moment that i think i prefer is at the end: "To escape the apocalypse, we must start it." The setting of apocalypse in the sequel got me riled up for real! Anyway thanks a lot for this video, and i hope you keep making content as good as this on our favorite video games!
You would expect a eldritch priest to have more arcane powers, but the priests seem to only use there new physical form to attack which I guess the finger if I am correct does mark, so maybe slightly magical
i love this game and it does make senses that after figting the heart at least once, you leave to find answers because i thing in the lore the cusader is the only on who dies he sacrifices to the heart making the first loop happend no matter what, and maybe killing the brain the lungs etc. won't kill the heart but it will make it go to sleep.
Cant wait for a dd2 wilbur video, id love to hear what you think lead to the pig flesh dudes moving out to the world
This channel along with the videos are soooo underrated. I really liked all the videos so far especially this one and I can say it's obvious there is a lot of good work and mind that you've put on those videos and I really hope for the best on future for the channel and ofcourse you!!!! I can't wait for future content on DD2!!!!!!
Go you absolute paragon! May we meet again on the road to our redemption, someday...
See you soon, you did amazing work as always!
Sweet a new video and I fought it the day of ^^ great work man
You have a great narrative voice. Please make more lore videos on different games!
Its the little things that make this go from a masochist wet dream to beautiful masochist wet dream
Enjoyed the watch to a great extend, thank you very much! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
GOD DAMN, wonderful explanation and tie in to the second game, what does Redhook need adds for with you around
I mean to be fair it wouldn't be cosmic horror if winning was an option.
The protagonists in these stories never defeat the eldritch entity, they merely survive long enough for its gaze to drift away from them and for them to fade from its sphere of awareness. In the end survival or death were the only real options.
awesome essay, I can`t imagine the amount of work you put in it, keep it up!
You got yourself a new subscriber, i really love your dd lore video, I hope you will make more of it, especialy for dd2
Your narrative skills are amazing and you have a gifted voice!
I'm a fan of the franchiseof the darkest dungeon since it was out but I could begin to play it not so long ago, you really catch the game ambience and its essence!
Great job and I will continue to watch your content with big attention =D
I'm just a bit sad that you didn't made a video about the Hamlet, but it's you who are in charge of this channel.
I found the end...
Empowering, actually, if you can believe it.
What we are is less important than what we do. We shouldn't have been able to stop it-- not even slow it. But we did. We staved off what the Ancestor in his hubris decries as inevitable.
It gave us life, and in the ultimate gesture of a self divided from the so-called 'whole', we struck down our creator.
We decided for ourselves what we'd do with what time we had. The Ancestor has made mistakes. Maybe he's wrong. Maybe our victory is lasting. It doesn't matter. The gesture we made... It was worth all the pain.
Why did we build the Red Hook?
Because we could.
That means something. More, even, than you know.
Well done, well done! This was a great video!
I love this game, even though it's sadistic and cruel to the player. This os probably the cruelst RNG I've had in games.
And suddenly, you're lost in the abyss forever.
You didn't ask for this. You didn't choose this. Yet there you are...
I would love to watch you do a lore focused playthrough of the game
I love your videos of DD. Do more DD2 PLZ!!!!!
The Heart: *Giving the choice, on wich Hero you want to sacrifice*
Me: "Why am I having a deja vu all of a sudden?-"
Pocketcat from Fear And Hunger: "So old sport, wich limb would you have me remove? Not to worry, my touch is gentle yet firm~"
Hope to see you do the “Heroines” of the Muscarine mod’s.
But for now…Until we meet again.
In the darkest dungeon.
Simply Amazing ❤
Loved the video. Really well done. Please check the meaning of supplicate: it means to beg a god for something.
your ending reminds me of Lefacy of Kain
Damn I really want the next part of this now. It was such a good video, loved every moment of it :D But then I found out this was 5 months ago and there is no new content Noooooooo >...
hey miskatonic try making a fear and hunger 1&2 lore series
32:14
AAAAAAAAAHH
Omg thats transition
Took a bit to figure how I wanted it to look. Really glad how it turned out.
@@MiskatonicMemorialist you make my days better :)
That Houndmaster line makes me so sad
I feel like an appropriate name for this cult would be "The Cult of the World"
Great video! I admire the insight and determination with which you analyze the meager scraps of lore that the game throws at us.
However, I would also like to give my perspective on the game ending. In my opinion, the Heart of Darkness concept of time reset is the result of an overly direct analysis of the ancestor's words. I believe that at the end of Ancestor's words it is not so much a summary of our victory, but a mockery. The ancestor mocks not only us, but our whole "family" - read - humanity. It makes us realize that our victory over the Heart does not ultimately matter. Yes, we managed to save the world, but for how long? Year? A decade? Century? Evil may wait because we cannot destroy it. We are not the light that illuminates the darkness, we have always been only an errant flesh, born of evil entity, which will force us to return to it when the time comes...
The Hamlet scene at the end does not show time shifting back, no, this is the future. Each of our achievements will turn to dust, each building we restored will collapse over time into the same ruin it was when we found it, while the estate stands unshakable, dominating the area, waiting for the next victim.
The heart will eventually wake up one day, possibly by another way, by another madman, but it will, and we can only delay the inevitable. And in my opinion, the action of the second game is about that, about another attempt to wake the Heart, and another attempt to stop it.
I'm in
Local Man Ruins Everything.
amazing video