ELDEN RING LORE: The Mysteries of Miquella

[@CrunchyVideos]

Update: Berserk will be completed! Kouji Mori, along with Miura’s other apprentices, will be finishing the manga according to Miura’s drafts and conception. Praise the sun! twitter.com/berserk_project/status/1534023434174627840?s=21&t=Jhfri-6Awa4bjWWgnHCtKw

[@marinribaric9749]

I wish them luck and that they make him proud.

[@j4nk3n]

All day iv been looking into the friendship of miura and mori, and I think miura would have given his blessing, some won't accept anything less than the pen of miura himself but if anyone has even the tiniest chance of producing as close to miura as possible it's him, its his friends legacy and I doubt a single panel will go out without that In mind!

[@CrunchyVideos]

@@j4nk3n Agreed. Even if it’s not ‘true Berserk’ it will be interesting to get a taste of where Miura wanted to go, and I think Mori will do a wonderful job respecting Miura’s legacy.

[@j4nk3n]

@@CrunchyVideos I'm sure everyone involved will try their hardest, now all I need to do is have my annual berserk recap and I'm all set!

[@paulroche7588]

This is amazing news!!!! Looks like my Berserk Volumes are about to get some new roommates on the shelf

[@marinribaric9749]

In the video you mentioned how Malenia and Miquella were both flawed because they are both "half a person" having been shattered from Radagon and Marika and how there are the Aeonian Butterflies and Nascant Butterflies associated with the former two. Though I think they might be even less than "half a person" since there is a third type of butterfly: the Smoldering Butterflies. this suggests there is a third sibling from this union and because the smoldering butterflies' description and her dialogue it is implied that Melina is the third sibling. Furthermore, one could interpret her brown hair as a mix of Radagon's red hair and Marika's blonde.

[@damianford2637]

this is a good point because i think it was confirmed melina is marikas daughter, but she wasn't born a normal way.

[@ythandlename]

There are twins who are also born of one soul with two minds/bodies. I believe D's affliction of being twins who share the same soul is both ironic and intriguing that Radagon and Marika are two minds but one changing body so they're should've been reviled as accursed beings like the D twins except they were worshiped. There is a lot of twins and different identities being few of the main themes of the game. Bosses and NPCs, even the player can change identity or have a dual persona. Twins are frequently depicted in the game as bosses or lore. Two is a special number in this game serving as a sorta indication of 'equilibrium.' Two Fingers, twins or two identities. When twins are separate, they try to find each other or if one ends up dying, the other one suffers.

[@marinribaric9749]

@@ythandlename Interesting points you brought up. I appreciate the feedback. Tho to the point about the D twins being reviled while Marika and Radagon being worshiped, remember that Radagon's true connection to Marika was kept a secret to everyone but a select few. So the general public would be unaware. Then there are questions such as: Were they always conjoined? Have they always shared the same body? Were separate at any prior point in time?

[@ythandlename]

@@marinribaric9749 I think the story is less confusing to think Marika and Radagon are much like D's. They are separate personalities and different bodies at one point until they merged after Radagon separates from Rennala.

[@marinribaric9749]

@@ythandlename That is my personal belief for that segment of their history as well. However, what about before the war with the Carians? Did they always share a soul like the D brothers? There is a very large portion of history that doesn't mention Radagon. Was Marika just keeping him in storage or was he not born yet?

[@justinsheppard7445]

The great rune of the unborn is used to perfect the birth of demigods. The reason Morgott and Mohg were born cursed under Marika and Godfrey was because of the lack of the great rune, which Radagon had. Radahn, Ranni, and Rykard had no curses upon being born. Possibly the reason behind Miquella and Malenia’s curses are because of the Radagon leaving the great rune of the unborn with Renalla, and then the reason the tarnished suffers no I’ll effects of rebirth is because of their possession of the great rune.

[@CrunchyVideos]

Excellent clarification.

[@hatefulgaming1800]

Why was Godwynn born normal than?

[@justinsheppard7445]

@@hatefulgaming1800 I don’t think he was. It’s a huge reach but maybe his curse was his fate after he died? The game makes reference to other unnamed “soulless demigods” with the walking mausoleums and the knights that guard it. Yet none of them have the influence that Godwin has/had. Maybe Godwyn’s curse was to become the prince of death. It also doesn’t help that game game has so little info on him pre-death

[@hatefulgaming1800]

@@justinsheppard7445 I always assumed they died normally while only Godwynn’s soul died, but who knows with this game.

[@ultragamer4465]

@@justinsheppard7445 yeah those are the other demigods that died during the night of black knives. Theyre descendants of godfrey and Marika who didn't really make anything of themselves so Marika had them killed by her people, the numen (black knife assassins)

[@alexspain9103]

In the battle of Aeonia, "Malenia fought to a standstill." The items relating to the blue fairy and the blind swordsman relate stillness with stagnation and rot, and the waterfowl dance is described as warding away the Scarlet Rot, so I wonder if the fact that she was forced to a "standstill" is what allowed her to bloom.

[@CrunchyVideos]

This is a really good observation.

[@alexspain9103]

@@CrunchyVideos thanks

[@mauauauauaua14]

so Malenia's constant war campaign and victories are to prevent herself from blooming? as to be constantly in the flow

[@marinribaric9749]

I just had an idea of why Malenia would go down to Caelid and fight Radhan. The spirits and items in Fort Sol connect Miquella to Godwyn. A solar eclipse is part of Miquella's plan and is required to help Godwyn. Starcourge Radhan holds the heavenly and by extent fate in place. In order to get an eclipse you need the moon to move infront of the sun. So what if Malenia was sent to kill Radhan so this part of Miquella's plan can happen. Meanwhile, while Malenia was away, Mogh snuk in and snatched Miquella away. Also isn't the placememt of the teleporter to the Moghwyn Dynasty a bit peculiar? In the same general area as the teleporter to the Haligtree. Mogh might have used for a quick gataway.

[@GoonCaved]

Radahn is the STARscourge. It specifically says he holds back the stars and thus fate. The game makes a very clear difference between the moon and the stars hence the Carians and Raya Lucaria dynamic. The carians supposedly captivated the academy with its moon and the Conspectus’s of the academy studies the stars. This only pokes one hole in your idea though, which is the eclipse part. I really like the idea that Melania fought Radahn to release the stars and fate so that Miquella may be rebirthed and attain godhood

[@EA_Kar]

@@GoonCaved could be Radahn reined in the sun(=star) along with the rest of the stars, instead of having any power over the moons?

[@GoonCaved]

@@EA_Kar seemingly the sun is different to a star within this universe, as the day/night cycle is a thing. Which is another reason why Radahn hasn’t seized the moon, since it’s able to rotate around the planet (assuming it exists within a similar space to Earth, which is implied by the way the time is displayed on the map)

[@marinribaric9749]

@Furkan who even said that "the Elden ring = the sun"? The Haligtree isn't an exactly easy place to locate and gain access to. And maybe Miquella just didn't expect Mogh sneak in, bypass everything defending him.

[@marinribaric9749]

@@GoonCaved Radahn's moniker does not necessarily mean that he didn't hold the moon in place too. But what you mentioned about the Carians and Raya Lucaria and upon rereading the descriptions on items from Raya Lucaria, the Moon in of itself might be an Outer God. Therefore out of Radahn's league. Tho he might also have prevented the Moon from achieving an eclipse indirectly or at least that fated event by holding back the Stars, but that's a bit of a stretch.

[@Sleeper_6875]

one interesting thing is that the albinaurics are connected to almost everyone: rykard experimented on them, gideon massacred them, miquella and malenia offered them a safe haven, rennala may have played a role in their creation through rebirth, the nox may have created them, the golden order looked down upon them as they had no grace, etc

[@khandimahn9687]

A correction: 14:38 Malenia did not 'vanish and flee.' From Cleanrot Knight Finlay Ashes: "Finlay was one of the few survivors of the Battle of Aeonia, who in an unimaginable act of heroism carried the slumbering demigod Malenia all the way back to the Haligtree. She managed the feat alone, fending off all manner of foes along the way."

[@geordiejones5618]

I love how every demigod has at least one incredibly loyal badass in their service.

[@luneth5646]

This sounds like a deed a loyal shadow would do. Are there some clues out there that Finlay might be the shadow of Malenia?

[@khandimahn9687]

@@luneth5646 The spirit summon looks like a regular Cleanrot Knight, no hint of a wolf-like snout. So I very much doubt they're a Shadow. But it would have made sense.

[@A_Black_Sheep94]

He certainly saved her from Radahn utterly eliminating her from existence, even after her desperate attempt with the Scarlet Rot she didn't slow him or stop him slightly.

[@tonylethanh]

@@A_Black_Sheep94 she*

[@toddpark8358]

Berserk is coming back baby! Not over any more. Same studio is continuing manga along with kentaro Miura's close friend, Kouji Mori - the only person he told Berserk's story to from start to finish. He will take over the series.

[@CrunchyVideos]

Just saw this as I was uploading! Super excited. More fuel for future Miyazaki enterprises haha

[@ethanielhalling9426]

Regarding the Twins missing shadows: it could be argued that tgey are EACHOTHER’S shadows. Miquella’s motivation for all his actions is to cure malenia’s rot. Malenia’s fundamental motivation is to protect miquella. Its like a delicate shadow dance.

[@BBoy4040]

1) Shadows are beasts 2) If we're saying that every Empyrean has a shadow, by that law they cannot be each other's shadows because someone's missing from either formula. So best case scenario because they're twins they may have a joint shadow. 3) Kinda weird for a shadow to have a great rune.

[@Agentlefox]

@@BBoy4040 I get what you're saying but it's also kinda weird that a shadow has the rune of Destined Death.

[@decidueyezealot8611]

The problem with this is shadows are also assasins for the fingers, and I doubt they would kill each other

[@BBoy4040]

@@Agentlefox Look, how Marika was allowed to get away with as much as she did without the GW knowing is probably Elden Ring's biggest mystery still.

[@arlaux1099]

@@BBoy4040 Just don’t talk about it 4head ez

[@ashencometmom5291]

about the DLC, as a little hopeful argument from someone who would like to see more out of characters like miquella and melina, DLC in past games was almost never _completely_ detached from the main story. ds1 elaborated on the abyss and the legend of artorias, ds2 let you talk to vendrick and showed some other fragments of manus, bloodborne elaborated on kos, ludwig, laurence and the doll, and ds3, while being the most loosely connected to the already vague narrative of the game, at least showed one of the two previously unseen founders of the sable church it's never the kind of lore fanservice that most fans seem to expect when they talk about a "miquella DLC," but i'd say it's very likely that the inevitable DLC will use a less-than-complete character as a narrative springboard to thrust the player into a new, tangentially related setting, and miquella would be a good pick for that role

[@CrunchyVideos]

Good points. I actually argued with my brother about this point; obviously the DLCs are never *completely* new stories, so that’s a bit of hyperbole. But I think Miyazaki likes to use the DLCs to tell stories that exist unto themselves. I don’t think he’s gonna wanna use the DLC to *fix* the base game.

[@michaelsperry2654]

Yeah, I'm of a similar mind. From's DLC's tend to act as something of a microcosm for the themes and mechanics of the base game distilled into a new(ish) location. That is to say that while I think there's a good chance Miquella will be in the DLC, he won't be the sole focus. He may just be a pretext for introducing us to a new location(perhaps the lands of the Numen).

[@hakimonn]

There is another reason why it's higly possible for Miquella to appear in the DLCs. Great Runes. In base game we never got Miquella's and even Ranni's Great Runes. And there are a bunch of cut content in base game revolving around Miquella, i'd say it's pretty much confirmed Miquella will appear in a DLC.

[@brennanneaton3062]

I agree with your overarching point but saying that DS 3’s DLC is the most “disconnected” from the plot is criminally wrong. it literally shows exactly how Gwyn tricked the pygmies, more of his children, what happened to humans after the rise of the gods, it shows the true fate of the world post Gwyn’s first sin, and you work with the painter to make a small word that is as it should be. It is the one thing that provides an ending that actually wraps everything up. DS 3’s and bloodborne DLC is actually the main reason I’m hoping for major reveals concerning key characters like Miquella, as opposed to DS 1s DLC exploring a relatively minor side character

[@ashencometmom5291]

@@brennanneaton3062 it's just disconnected from the standalone, self contained worldbuilding of dark souls 3. as an epilogue to the entire series, which is what it was really made to be anyway, it's phenomenal and informative, even if it's just to hammer the point home by showing a more blatant instance of gwyn being a dipshit tyrant who stirred the abyss specifically by trying to repress it. i didn't consider comparing it to elden ring in that way cuz elden ring isn't a series (yet) and couldn't have the type of metanarrative that really makes TRC great

[@vorake]

I think the reason the unnamed demigods don't have growths like Godwyn is because they died in both body and soul.

[@thefoxamongwolves9843]

Those crispy bodies don't look very alive. We know that the demigods can transform and such. Godrick's grafting and Rykard's snake vore thing. So maybe with no soul Godwyn's body just... started morphing, something it could always do but he never chose to.

[@aydincastro1924]

They don't grow deathblight root because they are always moving inside the walking mausoleums one of the ghosts described them as soulless which means they would behave the same as Godwyn. But Godwyn as can be seen and is specified in item descriptions was buried beneath the erdtree.

[@NickCombs]

@@aydincastro1924 Yep, the severing of the head might also be important since much of the power in the LB seems to arise from the mind. A great rune can make someone a god-like being, able to craft the world anew if it doesn't drive them mad first. And what is a great rune other than a crystallized idea? So without a brain to hijack, the deathblight might have much less use for entombed remains that are unable to absorb or transform runes.

[@shogomakishima7224]

Also btw when we looks at some of Fia's dialogue: "With this, Godwyn can take his rightful place as First of the Dead. And claim a second, illustrious life." "I will soon lay with Godwyn. And it will surely stir within me. the new life of the golden prince, and first Dead of the demigods, as the rune of Those Who Live in Death." She mentions there the mending rune of death will somehow lead to the second life of Godwyn and combining it with the similarities between the mending rune of death and the sign of the eclipse and the spirit dialogue about the eclypse I am quite confident that the "mending rune of death" is supposed to be the real eclipse that leads Godwyn (and possibly other soulless demigods) to be reborn. This does have a lot connections to the death birds.

[@darthacez]

With us giving the Unalloyed Gold Needle with Millicent’s dew to Malenia in her bloom, this restores her sense of self(her sanity) and giving us Miquella’s needle and Ancient Smith Dragon Stone is a form of gratitude from her.(Maybe she is hinting to us how clew can remove influence from the Outer Gods/Three Fingers)

[@thediabolicalraisin8953]

Wait, so you're saying that the flower IS Malenia herself?

[@darthacez]

@@thediabolicalraisin8953 Yep

[@BBoy4040]

@@thediabolicalraisin8953 Well yeah? The flower is supposed to bloom 3 times and after you beat her she goes into the last bloom to become the embodiment of rot so she's still very much alive after you beat her.

[@flavertex658]

Think about this for a moment: the connection between the naming conventions used for Miquella and the other souls games. The name "Quela" or "Quella," altered with extra syllables, is both peculiar and mysterious, but is nevertheless ubiquitous in FromSoft's work. Consider the following: In Dark Souls 1, Quelaag is a daughter of the Witch of Izalith. She has red hair and is dedicated to the protection of her frail and ailing sister, the "Fair Lady." I here draw parallels to the red-haired defender of a frail sibling as analogical to Malenia, meaning that in this analogy the Fair Lady is analogical to Miquella. Consider the cocooning that goes on at the Haligtree that you've associated with Miquella, and the cocoons of the Fair Lady spread about Quelaag's domain. More Importantly: in Dark Souls 2, there is a god mentioned sparsely named "Quella," this being even closer to Miquella. The lore is too; consider the item description for the "Grand Spirit Tree Shield" from Dark Souls 2: "Shield of the blue spirit tree that and is said to possess divine powers. Appears in the allegory of Quella, God of Dream, and can deflect spells by parrying. Once there was a boy who was easily frightened, until the talking tree of dreamworld transformed itself into a shield to protect him." Miquella is associated with dreams (St. Trina) and trees (Haligtree) as well. My theory, then, is that the Miquella and Malenia are attempts to expand and combine the stories and concepts associated with the word "Quela/Quella" in Dark Souls 1 and 2. The name, then, is like a kind of bookkeeping mechanism to sort the aligned themes. The fact that the character in Elden Ring is named "Miquella" may even be a mere concession to the naming schemes of having things start with the letters G, R, and M, and that the correct understanding of the name is to identify it as Quella, the same as was mentioned in passing in the previous Dark Souls games.

[@CrunchyVideos]

Wow, amazing connection! I’m not familiar with DS2 lore so I can’t comment on that, but the Fair Lady connection is definitely there. Although doesn’t Quelaag have black hair? Regardless, might be interesting to dive into the original conception for Izalith that didn’t make it into DS1 to see where Miyazaki’s mind was at.

[@flavertex658]

@@CrunchyVideos After looking back at Dark Souls 1 I realize that you might be right on the black hair 😂 The fire backlighting Quelaag must have made me think she had dark red hair this whole time, I only now went back and got a good look at it haha.

[@Bhubnipz]

Bruh either you’re crazy or Im crazy

[@Chessheromusic]

Wow good catch. Grm are his initials but the names meaning are also important. Miquella meaning close to the word of god. Or the action or movement of god. There is enough evidence to suggest that Miquella is the focus of the story and the actual story is a hidden one. Meaning no one comes out one says it and it has to he inferred. Miquella created the halig tree to house his curse while he moved his soul to a unrenowned tarnished albinauric body which does not have a soul. Miquella may have not created the albinauric but he definitely perfected them as the most complete species is the ones guarding the halig tree. Merika cannot be at two places at one time. Meaning when radagon is around Merika is not. What is inferred that both Godwin and Miquella have this regis ability as well. There is a long explaination to how this all happened but the result is that we don't need doc to see what happened to miquella. BC he is the player character. This story is miquellas plan to become elden lord ridding himself of his curse housed in the halig tree and realizing That torrent recognizes Miquella from the beginning. Is Miquella torrents former master? I don't think so. It does not mean torrents choice means nothing

[@vremen555]

Hands down the most creative lore-hunter on KZbin, keep it up!

[@shogomakishima7224]

Rani was an Empyrean since childhood as she was given Blaidd when she was just a kid. I think same thing happened with Marika and Maliketh. Even if the fingers choose the empyrean in the end the do so based on something and this something seems to be an inborn feature... not accomplishments. As you have noted being an Empyrean is associated with the body and body is the result of birth.

[@visionofsolace8961]

Makes total sense, Ranni herself became something transcendental and unnatural by departing from her flesh, and by turning into a desimbodied goddess in a dolls body, she successfully became an avatar of herself, still containing some of her powers, also acquiring weird capabilities.

[@ultragamer4465]

Yeah it's probably related to being born directly of chosen vassals. Rennala chosen by the Full Moon while Radagon and Marika was chosen by the Greater Will

[@NickCombs]

I'm quite late to this video, so you might have learned of this theory already. But hey just in case. Godwyn the Golden might have had a golden sun as his icon. Thus the Sun Realm shield could indicate forces loyal to him before the night of black knives. Fitting that they are skeletons in Leyndell wielding the black flame of death. The shield might depict castle sol, which could in turn have been Godwyn's holding in those days. Since the sun is quite diminished in the sky and could be said to be pale, that lines up with the idea that Godwyn's undeath drained it of its gold color. It follows that a pale eclipse perfectly symbolizes a true death for Godwyn.

[@souplife1]

Yooo, I loved you on Ratotoskr's podcast, you brought so many interesting ideas and a whole different perspective that changed how I look at the game! Keep it up, can't wait to see more content!

[@atticratz6128]

The music from Ran in the beginning is fitting, love it! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts through the vid

[@CrunchyVideos]

Wow didn’t expect anyone to recognize that, good catch!

[@atticratz6128]

@@CrunchyVideos I often revisit soundtracks, and Ran has a very interesting one - it feels very otherworldly. Really enjoyed hearing your thoughts on Miquella by the way, thanks for taking the time to make a video!

[@darthacez]

I heavily believe there is going to be a DLC continuation of the story about Miquella/Malenia(when she wakes) and the cut Age of Abundance ending(possibly). This game is going to be supported for a long time due to its great success and it being possibly last Soulsborne game for a while.

[@CrunchyVideos]

Where did you hear about a cut Age of Abundance? There was a cut Age of Absolute but it turns out it was just an alternative name for Age of Perfect Order- I’ve not seen anything about Abundance.

[@johncra8982]

17:30 I thought for a moment you were about to suggest something about miquella and malenia's mirrored natures that I've been thinking for a while, but you went in a different direction due in part to a point on which I diverge from your theories on radagon and marika. I believe it is much likelier that radagon was split off from marika and created from a part of her being (I mentioned in the comments to your stream with ratatoskr that I believe it to be a process similar to eve's creation from a rib that was split off from adam that created radagon) and I believe that malenia and miquella are in some ways one child that was split into two beings. I'm still fleshing out my thoughts on this, but between the idea of one spirit inhabiting two bodies, the clones associated with malenia, the complimentary nature of the twins, the androgynous depictions of miquella and st. Trina, and the fact that miquella is both absent from the game and characterized as someone capable of great manipulation, I believe there's something worth exploring here 🤔 Hope you continue uploading more videos, your theories do a lot more to spark this kind of investigation than most 👍

[@Lilbird2fye]

The only comparison I can give to this is that radagon and marika are same but split with red and gold hair. Same as melania

[@jaffacake1881]

Excellent stuff - absolutely love the theory about Godwyn's soul, as far fetched as it sounds, and all the stuff with the unnamed demigods

[@SindyxLotus]

Just learned about The Blood Star, neat.

[@informationjunkie]

I have yet to finish the game but I've seen a few videos talking about Miquella. It seems one of Miquella's goals was to revive Godwyn (or put him out of his misery). Castle Sol and the eclipse they were waiting for seemed to be key to this, but Radahn is holding the heavens in place. Miquella sent Malenia to kill Radahn, or she volunteered, or, if it was necessary but Miquella was against it, she waited till her brother was cucooned inside the Haligtree to go anyway.

[@ZMSKfullpower]

Miquela trying his best to cure his sister Malenia. We as tarnish: " I got rot ? Great, maybe that pink pill that I found a few days ago on some random body will be usefull. "

[@ladyabaxa]

There's a big difference between being afflicted with the Scarlet Rot because it is in the environment around you and being the demi-god vessel OF the Scarlet Rot, a being the outer god of Rot is trying to use to expand its influence in your world.

[@hatefulgaming1800]

@@ladyabaxa How would you know?

[@Brendonherring522]

I think your natural progression from this video is to do one on Godwyn. Your exploration of the themes of the spirit world and death in this game have been extremely interesting.

[@kunnykuni]

Great video ! About your comment on DLC : -Previous DLC always introduce some of the most hyped characters of the base game, such as Artorias, Friede (one of the 3 sisters of Londor), the Demon Prince (defeated by Lorian), Lawrence, Ludwig, and Kos. -DLC often introduce time travel or time shenanigans, which means we could see Godwyn alive and Miquella out of his cocoon -Finally Sekiro didn't get a DLC

[@nineleafclover1477]

I like how you provide a lot of examples of what things may or may not connect rather than the "here's how it is, here's what happened" approach of a lot of other lore videos. Feels a lot more exploratory and invites a lot more theory development. Speaking of which, Renala, her egg, and her relation with Radagon seems to come up a lot in videos not about them, and there were a lot more connections than I thought. You've touched on eyes before, and one thing I find interesting is Renala's behavior and eyes throughout the fight. Initially she's got clouded golden eyes, is soft spoken, and seems obsessed with the egg. Her first phase is her sitting in a cradle, protected (or entrapped?) in a golden order-esque shield. The lyrics sound like a lullaby to a child, but in game it seems the children are actually singing the a lullaby to Renala. When it ends, Ranni's spell kicks in and says no one will disturb her mother's "slumber". And then phase 2 kicks in, Renala regains conviction, and her eyes are crisp blue, and becomes a legitimate foe. The lore implications if Ranni was an immaculate conception/Renala was more a surrogate mother get pretty interesting, as well as what actually happened between Renala and Radagon.

[@BlazeStorm]

You just quickly stating the questions about Dark Souls 3 shows me how interested I still am in that world, even in comparison to Elden Ring. I hope you're gonna cover it someday

[@trandelifa1]

I think Melania confronted Redahn on behalf of Miquella, as he wants the eclipse to happen, which cannot because redahn was holding the stars back... or something 🤔

[@informationjunkie]

I agree

[@verybrownsalmon]

I found that interesting that academy of Raya Lucaria, where rune of rebirth is kept, is built above the lake of rot. And Scarlet Rot is kinda about rebirth. I was always curious about Lake of Rot. It is between Nokstella, Astel and Raya Lucaria. All three are magical/starry things. Makes Lake of Rot kinda not in the right place. Btw, love your content. I found it the most interesting among Elden Ring lore videos.

[@CrunchyVideos]

Yes the location of rot is very interesting. You have to traverse it to reach Moonlight Altar as well. Begs the question why the blind swordsman would have sealed Rot specifically in Nokstella- why was the outer god there?

[@wastelandwarrior3297]

@@CrunchyVideos like you I'm highly interested in this as well. If you expand on this theory I would definitely like to hear your thoughts

[@mikedelgrande5296]

This was a fantastic video! Well done 👍 Miyazaki once again subverted our expectations by actually making the DLC about Moquella and Marika. Can’t wait to see the content you make after playing the DLC!

[@UltraStarWarsFanatic]

With regard to the great rune of the unborn, Maliketh's boss room shows that the Elden Ring at one point had many more great runes than the one we're familiar with. The great rune of the unborn could be one of several great runes that was removed from it prior to any of this.

[@kiratuza1528]

Man you are the king of elden ring lore youtuber and you make high quality video

[@bchase999]

I love you Crunchy, thanks for the new video

[@Galamoth06]

I doubt you'll see this, but I have to say: you may be new at this, but you're already the best in the business as far as I'm concerned. So insightful. I was getting ready to give up on lorehunting, as I felt there was just no way to connect everything in the game. Too much missing information. While that's still partially true, you've given me a lot to think about in these last two videos. I had been wondering why certain areas have an abundance of spirit animals and even spirit trees. It makes a little more sense now, but why some areas are more affected than others I have no idea.

[@crothschild]

I think Miquilla was trying to become an outer god himself. It seems that the only way to fully counter the will of the Rot God is to be an outer God too.

[@illeagle9560]

Makes sense actually

[@duquette1792]

Wouldn't be very 'Outer' actually, now that I think of it, would he be the first god that is native to the lands between?

[@crothschild]

@@duquette1792 I mean he wants the same power and influence as an Outer God, with power enough to challenge their will. He didn't want to be a mere vessel of someone else's order, he tried to make his own. I think it would technically make him Outer if he succeeded, I doubt he would be 100% in this plane of existence, like how the Formless Mother is everywhere but nowhere.

[@arcanefire7511]

He almost created a needle that could negate all outer god influence in a person just by stabbing them, i doubt he'd have to go that far. I also doubt if an outer god can directly fight another properly.

[@illeagle9560]

@@arcanefire7511 he actually created one and almost finished the other. You give one to Sage Gowry to fix so you can give it to Millicent to keep away the rot. And the other is used for the frenzy flame

[@deztacular]

Enia does say that all the demigods are direct offspring of queen Marika

[@deztacular]

Also I wouldn't think too hard on the opening art, seems more so like interpretation of events rather than just a style choice

[@CrunchyVideos]

True, although I’m not sure everything she says can be trusted.

[@RadiantJo]

Talks about rebirth. Also mentions he will be talking about Griffith… Me: Oh noooooooooo.

[@daltonclegg2610]

I was hypothesising that st trina was miquella while he was in his cocoon, dreaming (on purpose or even maybe unconsciously) of his own rebirthed self and manifesting similarly in symptoms to that of other greater influences in the minds of those in the lands between; however Miquellas sleep was interrupted by mohg so it was only fleeting a time that this would have happened in the history of the lands between; Its only telling of the power they would have had if they were allowed to complete their metamorphoses if they inspired equipment like the swords and a low key cult following that is also somehow the best kept secret in the whole game universe xD

[@valyy151]

You and Hawkshaw are the 2 best youtube channels right now. Im so glad I listened to that podcast you were in. You are very talented for lore analysis I hope you keep it up bro. :)

[@CrunchyVideos]

Thank you!

[@DaHansWars]

Hey Crunchy, seen your podcast with Ratataskr and was really impressed by your theories. These two videos so far really cemented that suspicion was confirmed. Do you think you could do a deep dive on Stormveil Castle, especially how it seems to be tied to the Banished Knights and Banished Footmen, who do not appear to be part of Godricks army, but seem to be much closer to Godfrey in allegiance and iconography. Adding to that it seems that the Roundtable Hold is also very much tied to the Banished Knights, having their armour and weapons spread all around. This has me thinking that the Banished Knights and Footmen might be those Tarnished who were chased out alongside Godfrey. Yet that begs the question why they would be in the castle all around Godrick. Except of course that Godrick is surrounded by corpses and weaponry, suggesting that the Banished Army might have been trying to kill Godrick, together with that Dragon, which is on the Banished Knights helmet crest aswell and may be connected to them too. It is just as strange that not a single Godrick Soldier would be found inside the Stormveil Keep beyond Margit, making me think that Margit may be preventing Godricks men from getting into the castle to aid their Lord.

[@CrunchyVideos]

That’s super interesting, it hadn’t occurred to me that there aren’t any Godrick soldiers inside!

[@CrunchyVideos]

Btw just thought of this-- Meowmaritus said at one point that the Banished Knights are flagged as dragons in the code, meaning that dragonwound grease and similar things do extra damage to them.

[@arabidllama]

What a fantastic video, both this and your other! Looking forward to whatever's next up. More thoughts: Re: Unalloyed Gold - I think the "impurity" in the Golden Order is that the Greater Will doesn't actually *want* to stop Malenia's rot. It benefits from the conflict she generates, as this conflict is what the Erdtree flourishes on. Miquella, upon researching the power of "gold" for himself, would realize that the Greater Will had the power to help all along and didn't. Thus, the hard break with the Erdtree and starting his own. I love your Battle of Aeonia theory - especially considering that Moghwyn palace is directly below the Radahn boss arena, and there's cut content for a meteor hole exactly there, pointing roughly at the weird path that the Consecrated Snowfield warps you to. Perhaps Malenia wanted Radahn to quit Starscourging, either in canon or in original-but-cut developer intent. Re: Greatrune of the Unborn - The slot represented by this "shape" in the Elden Ring seems to be one that represents "the rule of rebirth". This rule is not currently part of the Elden Ring at all, as rebirth is only available to us via Rennala herself.The one in the Amber Egg is being used by to birth-and-rebirth all the kids she would've had with Radagon, but they are all so frail and half-formed (a theme!) that they die immediately - in Rennala's phase 1, when she "rebirths" her sweetings, they turn to tombstones first. Malenia's great rune having the same shape means that it is an alternative "rule of rebirth" - in her case, it seems a continuation of life, through rot, into new life like butterflies and the bug things. Rot is not fatal, rot is a transformation. Miquella's great rune seems to also be rebirth - via metamorphosis, but it's unclear if we'll ever see it, or if perhaps it's already just part of Malenia's. I also just now noticed that Malenia's great rune looks like it has a golden needle piercing it, repelling the rot. I love this game. Good call on the DLC. I wonder if we won't meet a Fanatic of St. Trina, though, who we can help on his ultimately futile quest to find St. Trina herself, and then when he gives up and dies we can loot his clothes to find out about who made them!

[@Writh811]

This is a cool video with some great investigative and theory work. With regards to DLC, at first I agreed with you but then I thought about one of my more favorite DLC's: Artorias of the Abyss. The core Dark Souls game setup bits and pieces about the legend and we even fight his dog. All while learning why the area is called Dark Root Garden and what it use to be. I assumed St. Trina's sudden vanishing and not returning was a sign that Miquella was dead. If you remove caterpillar from its chrysalis rather than letting it emerge when its ready its body is gooey and it dies. Miquella didn't spin a new cocoon, that was the one he was in in the Haligtree. Mohg ripped it open and took Miquella (we can all agree he's very touchy with the lad) and likely had those who followed him take the cocoon. Then when they got home he stuffed in back in and crawled in with him. (I think they portrayed Miquella with the model they did so they wouldn't have to explain a defiled child corpse). Him being dead feels like the most Fromsoft way to end his story. Miquella put everything on the line for the shunned and in the end one of the shunned, his own brother kills him in a misguided venture for power. Mohgwyn will never come. The Haligtree will never rise. All because Mohg, the idiot, killed Miquella by ripping open the cocoon instead of just taking the cocoon like he was suppose too.

[@FlubbedPig]

Something worth noting, Gideon describes Rennala's golden egg and Miquella as seperate shardbearers. We could just say that he simply wasn't aware that it was Miquella's Rune inside the egg, but personally that makes me think that the Unborn thing inside the egg was in-fact a third child of Marika and Radagon, making it's rune share position with Malenia and (presumably) Miquella's.

[@paulroche7588]

Man great video….and now i have the biggest urge to dust off my Berserk volumes and do another read through, easily my favorite work of fiction ever

[@lukeisinthestudio]

amazing new video! also, re: the albinaurics! the haligtree is a haven for beings that were shunned by the rest of the world: the Haligtree in game is of course full of Misbegotten and the horn blowing guys with turban hats (who interestingly enough don't have legs and can't walk, bearing a suspicious resemblance to Albinaurics), as well as the knight Loretta, who is strongly hinted at being an Albinauric herself (she is only on horseback). The Haligtree was a essentially a promised land specifically for the Albinaurics. Albus and Latenna both mention it as such in their dialog from what I remember. I can't remember why Miquella cared for the shunned beings like that, but I love the connection you made about St Trina and how St Trina is a dreamed manifestation of Miquella. Maybe they appeared in the Albinauric's dreams as a way to beguile them? What a dense and complicated story we have here! Looking forward to the next deep dive.

[@CrunchyVideos]

Also interesting that the Haligtree welcomes 1st-gen Albinaurics but not 2nd, whereas Moghwyn welcomes 2nd gen but not first.

[@Brendonherring522]

@@CrunchyVideos interesting observation. Are there any other albinaurics in the haligtree area proper aside from Latenna however? Furthermore, while the 2nd gen albinaurics are definitely not in the haligtree area, they cover the northern side of the consecrated snowfields (where the 1st gen aside from latenna are relegated), and there is an albinauric that appears to guard the portal to moghwyn's palace. All of these groups use miquella's ring of light, implying that they are disciples of his. Furthermore, the 2nd gen albinaurics next to that portal that are laying down in mohg's domain are uncorrupted by blood, watched over by the red ones that are. It seems that a group of them may have gone after Mohg and the one was left behind at the portal as a sentry.

[@GoonCaved]

@@CrunchyVideos Id say that both are welcomed, as both are present in the consecrated snowfields and neither are present in the Haligtree proper.

[@matiasluukkanen7718]

As much as I like the idea of Loretta being an Albinauric, and searching place for her people, isn't her blood red? Except if crossbreeding between humans and Albinaurics can produce hybrids who still lose their legs but bleed red blood.

[@AssailantLF]

I have two things to say about this video: 1. Your videos are among, if not the, most insightful and interesting takes on ER lore that I've seen. I love the kinds of connections that you draw, the way you separate fact from interpretation from speculation, and how you have just the right amount of skepticism to come up with many interesting ideas and rule out the most unlikely ones. 2. Lovin the Thanos build featured throughout

[@TheBlaringBlue]

Whew! Finally got around to watching this. Great stuff again, think this one was even better than the Helphen video. I'm impressed by your ability to find links to items and themes - sometimes you threw so many at once it did my head in! hah. Let's see what I can add... Miquella's Needles: You posed a possibility that they are needles in the flesh because they need to interact with blood. I'm wondering how much the needles are actually just leftover from the cut content - Miquella has dialogue referencing his last drop of dew (read: blood) and he is of course watering the haligtree with his own blood. The needle connections to fate and mythology were amazing. really great perspective. You also mentioned the needle we find in Aeonia is unfinished - I interpreted this differently. I understood this needle as holding off the rot, stalling it's advance in the body just as it does for Millicent. In fact, this needle we give to Millicent IS Malenia's original needle. In the story trailer when Malenia stabs herself she's actually pushing the needle out of her body, once again allowing the rot to overtake her. The needle falls to the floor at ground zero of the scarlet rot blast, which is where we find it. Millicent then has this dialogue at the haligtree church "There is something I must return to Malenia. The will that was once her own. The dignity, the sense of self, that allowed her to resist the call of the scarlet rot. The pride she abandoned, to meet Radahn's measure." She's actually wanting to return a tangible object - the needle. The blood and gold connection - especially in the beast blood description which mentions rot and decay - was eye opening and something I had not picked up on. I don't know if there's enough in game here to really build on, but it's really interesting. Lastly - want to drop one really great Miquella theory I've seen. It's my personal headcannon because I just think it's so good. Here it is: Miquella's SPIRIT is in the Haligtree, while his BODY is in Mohgwyn Palace. Ranni has already proven to us that your spirit can live separately from your body. She's also shown us that those chosen to be Empyreans but who don't want to be Empyreans may want to consider abandoning their flesh. Miquella's watering and embedding in the Haligtree was clearly working at some point until his body was kidnapped. Go back and watch both Malenia's intro cutscene and her phase shift cutscene from this perspective - it almost seems as if there is an unseen force in the room waking up and urging on Malenia. The camera also seems to pan in a way that suggests the Miquella-shaped root is causing this wind. This theory would also explain why Mohg's rituals aren't working - him and the formless mother very clearly have real power - but they only have the shell, the husk of Miquella's body. Without his full essence, this rituals don't work. You've been a great addition to the lorehunting community, Crunchy! great work again and can't wait for the next one.

[@flugga182]

thank you so much for your efforts in explaining lore like this. I never managed to appreciate miquella as most video's out there about him are a bit on the fanboy side. I understand miquella is one of the most beloved characters. you somehow manage to put enough distance between your bias if you have any, and the actual lore.

[@Neptunequeen42]

I'm so glad to hear someone else mention the idea that the demigods in the walking mausoleums are the collateral from the night of black knives. It just makes too much sense. If you think about how the mausoleums are so painstakingly designed to never let these corpses touch the ground, I think they're a reaction to the first attempt to give godwyn erdtree burial which led to the horrifying spread of deathroot. Given that the shattering happened immediately after godwyn died, it's also possible morgott was the one who set this whole thing up since he'd be in charge of things by then. 'Unwanted children', to me, reads like the ghost assumes marika no longer wants them because they're tainted by the rune of death, and maybe they're not even 'properly' dead just like godwyn. therefore they're still technically alive, but discarded into this quarantine. It sort of parallels someone in a vegetative state on life support whose family abandons them because they're seen as a burden. That's the kind of 'unwanted' I always interpreted that as.

[@stirrcrazy2704]

Up until this I was under the impression that Radagon was always Marika, and was just an alter-ego she used to exert further control over the world. Sort of like a Zelda/Shiek scenario. When Godfrey wasn’t able to fully complete his duties as Elden Lord, Marika just went “ok I guess I’ll do it myself”. I definitely missed some of the readings lmao

[@quickdrawmcgrawww]

All the cuckoo symbolism and the brood parasitism those birds exhibit point strongly to Ranni being the child of Marika/Radagon. There’s even a big golden egg that Radagon leaves in Rennala’s nest. To me this also explains the connection between Ranni and Melina, given Marika’s predilection for producing twins.

[@quickdrawmcgrawww]

Oh, this also explains Melina being the gloam eyed queen, as she would also be an empyrean, she’s connected to the black flame as its power needs to be unsealed by defeating Maliketh and releasing the rune of death, so she can burn the erdtree. This is why she sends you to Farum Azula. And this part is more speculative, but there is a lot of ash present in the capital before You Burn the tree. I believe this is from when Vyke attempted to burn the tree with only the frenzied flame but without the tube of death unsealed.

[@CrunchyVideos]

Wow I never even thought about the cuckoo. This makes a lot of sense.

[@marinribaric9749]

Interesting connection. So if Melina is the Dusk/Gloam Eyed Queen means she created the Godskin Apostols and their obsession of killing gods/demigods and skinning people...

[@quickdrawmcgrawww]

Honestly, I didn’t make the connection until you started talking about Ranni and Melina’s connection to the twinbird shield on the podcast. One twin is fire, the other is ice. The ghost flame is cold flame. I think that’s why Iji winds up burned in ghost flame, maybe a mercy from Ranni since he wouldn’t want to be absorbed by the erdtree.

[@matiasluukkanen7718]

I would like to know then what is the meaning of Three Sister Towers. One is named after Ranni. One is named after Renna. Third is oddly enough renamed after Seluvis, who I think we all agree is not Carian princess. So who are these three sisters? I think they might be Ranni, Renna and third could be Melina? But I have still no idea who Renna is. Is she fused with Ranni? What is she, considering she is not counted among Demigods yet Ranni uses her name as an alias? Is there two additional Carian princesses running around?

[@mikoajkozakiewicz9901]

18:05 Great rune of the unborn could reference miquella as in "he's yet to be born", when he wakes up from his slumber his rebirth will be complete.

[@nirokal]

The use of Demon's souls music was a great way to get me captivated! That music just hits different, thanks so much! I also really find Miquella to be the most interesting character in Elden RIng so it's a perfect combination :)

[@VenomSapphire]

Considering “Radagon is Marika” as directly stated in game, then Ranni, Rykard, and Radahn are all offspring of Marika (as Radagon) The logistics of this is definitely confusing but I believe it fills many holes in the story such as how Ranni could be born an Empyrean

[@matthewball9851]

Yes, Ranni, Rykard, and Radahn all 'become' Markia's children if they were two seperate being that fused into one, or they always were Marika's children if Radagon was always an aspect of Marika.

[@PSNMirru]

@@matthewball9851 how would they all be considered Demigods if Marika and Radagon were not always the same person. At that time the only God (not counting the Outer Gods) was Marika thanks to the Elden Beast. For Ranni, Rykard and Radahn to be Demigods their god genes had to have come from Marika

[@nutzy99ify]

Idk guy, Marika took Radahgan into herself so I believe they were separate beings but they needed to fuse to try to escape the Guidance of grace. But yeah when a person fuses with another I suppose ranni radahan, and rykard would become her kin

[@Zombina638]

Ranni is rennlas

[@A_Black_Sheep94]

An child born of a Mortal and a God is still an empyrean as it is a single God in the conception. There's nothing to suggest an empyrean can't be born to a mortal and God as opposed to the same God banging itself.

[@jtillman8251]

I think the eclipse thing is about draining the gold from the sun. Perhaps the sun is the true source of unalloyed gold.

[@marinribaric9749]

You mentioned that being an Empyrean is tied to one's body and that it can be escaped by doing what Ranni did during the Night of Black Knives, but when Ranni departs after you deliver to her the Fingerslayer Blade Iji mentions that: "Lady Ranni has departed on her journey. Along the dark path of the Empyrean,..." and as well when you meet him and ask about blaidd he says: "When Lady Ranni renounced her flesh, and chose the dark path of the Empyrean, Blaidd and I swore allegiance as vassals, but none of us will ever forget our earliest days together." Implying that she is still an Empyrean, though not tied to the Greater Will through her pair of Two Fingers.

[@CrunchyVideos]

Really good point. Not really sure what to make of that; I feel like you wouldn’t say “I was once an Empyrean” if you still are, but I don’t know.

[@marinribaric9749]

@@CrunchyVideos Ranni might be refering to no longer being the Greater Will's Empyrean. Also whenever Iji mentions Ranni being an Empyrean post Night of Black Knives he phrases her being on the "dark path" of the Empyrean, not directly that she is an Empyrean.

[@marinribaric9749]

Wait. Is he in this quote refering to her currently as an Empyrean or merely using her as an general example of the relationship between an Empyrean and their Shadow? "I presume you've spoken with Blaidd? Very well. There is something you should know. The Two Fingers gave Blaidd to Lady Ranni, as a faithful follower. Her very shadow, incapable of treachery. But if Lady Ranni, as an Empyrean, reists being an instrument of the Two Fingers, the shadow will go mad, transforming from a follower into a horrid curse. But such is his destiny. In such matters, Blaidd's own thoughts hold no weight. It pains me so, but he must be neutralised. For Lady Ranni's sake."

[@GoonCaved]

Ranni, as she mentions, once was an empyrean until she renounced her flesh, perhaps the ‘dark path’ of an empyrean is simply referring to the act of slaying the two fingers that are given to empyreans (is that right? can’t remember the wording around how it works when an empyrean has their own two fingers) But yeah my point is that the dark path of an empyrean, to me, refers to the killing of your two fingers. Said dark path might be why the Nox were banished underground since the fingerslayer blade being in their possession implies that it was used.

[@marinribaric9749]

@@GoonCaved I agree with the connection between the banishment of the Nox and creating a weapon made specifically for slaying an instance of Two Fingers, but think that it's only part of the reason. They also wanted to usher in an Age of Stars with a Night Lord, which is Ranni's ending and furthermore, Nokstella contains the Moon of Nokstella which states: "This talisman represents the lost black moon. The moon of Nokstella was the guide of countless stars." They wanted to end the Age of the Erdtree. This is what I assume is the reason they were banished underground. Though Iji might just be referring to Ranni slaying her Two Fingers, but I'm still stopped by the whole phrase "dark path of the Empyrean", not "her dark path". Tho you might very well be right with "dark path" referring to just slaying the instance of Two Fingers. Then again, a lot of things related to Ranni have the "dark" prefix (Ranni's Dark Moon, Dark Moonlight Greatsword) and related to the Moon. I think "dark path of the Empyrean" here referes to not just slaying the Fingers but also the whole path that leads to her enacting the Age of Stars.

[@Zarocaz]

Watching this after the DLC announcement, April 2024. Interesting to know your thoughts now that the DLC does indeed involve Miquella! Great breakdown of the character.

[@obamabiden]

you know you've reached the deeproot depths level of deep lore when the explanation of a theme or in game thing ends with "what all this means, i am not really sure"

[@LeifMaelstrom]

Love your guidelines.

[@wpb5876]

Fantastic video. Just subscribed and looking forward to more content (and going back and watching older videos!) Just had a thought after listening to your section on Miquella and the Great Rune of the Unborn. Might it be a possibility that Radagon deliberately gifted Miquella's rune specifically to Queen Rennala to take care of, knowing that it is Miquella's rune, and Queen Rennala's love for children and her character to nurture things. - Radagon has a strong affinity to Miquella (from the various item descriptions) and also his relationship with Queen Rennala through their marriage. He would know full-well she would be someone naïve, or someone to trust, to keep Miquella's rune safe. This also fits with the theme of the "Cuckoo Knights" and their direct connection to the real life "Cuckoo birds" - who deliberately lay their eggs in another birds nest so that they are taken care of until they hatch - after which they take over the hosts nest. This type of manipulation coming from Radagon is not too surprising because he married with Queen Rennala for purely diplomatic purposes and left after his purpose was fore filled. Also, his strong connection to Golden Order fundamentalism is why he might hope to keep the rune safe by allowing Queen Rennala to look after it without she actually realizing what it is. The tragedy for Radagon though, is that Miquella later renounced Golden Order fundamentalism and took a different path to create the Haligtree. Having said that, it wouldn't mean that his rune would change and is still kept safe by Queen Rennala. Lastly, since the Rune of the Unborn has the power to change the nature of the character (aka respec) and gift a new life - this fits with Miquella's profile and why the Albinaurics and the Misbegotten flood to Miquella and the Haligtree, believing he has that power to change them. The tragedy being that when they arrive Miquella has been abducted and his Great Rune of the Unborn is with Queen Rennala. I doubt Mogh knows this either, and believes he has abducted Miquella - midst his cocoon phase - but he is 'runeless'. I'm probably late to the lore, and clutching at straws. I haven't checked the timeline fits either but was fun to think about! Thanks for the inspiration

[@johncra8982]

Finished the video and lore stuff aside, I want to say on a technical level, this was one of the best lore videos I've ever watched for a fromsoft game, the audio levels, the visuals, the addition of chapters, and especially the way you organized your thoughts, flowing naturally from one to the next with a very clear and logical script, all great. Almost everytime I watch a lore video, I'm frustrated by something other than the lore ideas themselves, the music is too overpowering, the script is too scatterbrained, the points aren't well-organized, and so on. But with your video, even though I didn't agree with every single theory or flow with every single idea, I absolutely loved it as a video. Great work.

[@CrunchyVideos]

Thank you! That means a lot- good to know the long hours editing aren’t for nothing 😁

[@Odiousjimmy]

Great job on this video best elden ring lore video I've seen tbh. Well put together and a fuck ton of context.

[@Shadow1774]

Ah I missed the premiere, gotta wait for the Live to end to watch from the beginning!

[@hidazip]

3:30 If translated literally, it would say something like this : "Miquella and Malenia are the children OF THE SAME AND ONLY GOD, therefore, they are God-People, but they are weak. One was eternally young, and one had rot." 正確な意図はわかりませんが、英語訳は若干意味合いが異なっている気がします。 It doesn't say that you have to be born from the 唯一人の神（the one and only god）to be an 神人（God-people Imperian）. It doesn't say that they where born from a "single person(god)".

[@ianrussell5813]

Honestly your content so far has been peak Elden Ring deep-dives and I think you've got a great thing going here!

[@pseudofossil7338]

Happy to see you make more of these! Really enjoyed your other video as a guest with Ratatoskr.

[@jbr1255]

Great vid! I dont have any advice or suggestions, but I thoroughly enjoyed your presentation and your chat with Ratatoskr on the Yggdrasil Podcast 🤙

[@aliekexie8467]

I do love how DeS ost is the most used ones in these lore, theory vids

[@Lila_S.]

This is a great video, Crunchy. I particularly liked the bit about the eclipse, as I am a fan of Berserk as well. And watching this actually made me think: Perhaps the plan about the eclipse didn't exactly change- it just couldn't happen and the reason for that is Radahn. The way I understood was that he held the stars in some type of stasis and that may affected other celestial bodies movement/alignment, specifically the sun and the moon. Hey, it may be why Malenia fought Radahn, maybe? Rani couldn't progress with her plan due to this, so maybe it affected the plan for Godwyn to regain his soul as well.

[@CrunchyVideos]

I like this idea. The eclipsed sun is referred to as a star in one of the shields, so it would make sense that it could have been affected by the Starscourge.

[@alexthebasilisk]

Wow, what an incredible video. Keep up the great work!

[@yourchildhooddog]

friendship with Vaati is OVER, my best friend is CRUNCHY now

[@OneDayIMay91Bil]

I love this soooo much I miss this meme , Pakistani blokes are funny AF

[@SirSaladAss]

Too be fair, Vaati never goes too in-depth with his Lore explaining. He never has. But he's the biggest lore channel so he's become the posterchild for the community. The real in-depth lore probing is done by the small creators, and especially with Elden Ring I've been having tons of fun discovering new lore channels!

[@eetfuk3571]

@@SirSaladAss V-Limit is my favourite. absolutely fantastic lore videos and I keep learning from him.

[@ZaakTheAbyssal]

@@SirSaladAss HonoredMadman is one of the greatest gifts this game has given us

[@kanyekubrick5391]

These hoes ain’t loyal

[@brickchang1336]

Oh god, I enjoy this video

[@TonkarzOfSolSystem]

4:31 There's an item description that says Rykard and Ranni became step-demigods when Radagon married Marika.

[@SurrealSnoopy]

Now that is a right and proper theory big man 17:22

[@Radiotomb]

I love the idea that Malenia knew Mogh had kidnapped Miquella, and that Malenia brought her army to Kaelid with the goal of going underground to save her brother.

[@Radiotomb]

Radahn would not be friendly to Malenia, since she's loyal to her brother, who rejected the Golden Order. Since Radahn is a huge fanboy of Godfrey and the Golden Order, he would look at Malenia as an enemy, and would not want her moving through his lands.

[@RashFever26]

@@Radiotomb I believe this too. It's very apparent to me when you also notice that the Heart of Aeonia lies right on top of Miquella's cocoon, like 15 meters away horizontally. Radahn also wanted to protect the Eternal Cities along with Sellia, and Malenia taking the elevator to Siofra-Nokron would mean risking control over the cities. It never made sense to me why Malenia would be so hellbent on defeating Radahn, it's not for great runes since she left Godrick alive. One reason may be defeating him as he was becoming too powerful, but nuking a whole continent and going comatose just because of that? Instead, I believe Radahn was blocking the elevator to Siofra-Nokron (and thus Miquella), only accessible through the canyon from the swamp of Aeonia (which during the battle between Radahn and Malenia was still a desert). Also we presumably know both from the intro (if we take it as a chronological storytelling) and the "bloody conspiracy" mentioned in a sword monument, that Miquella was stolen before Malenia's battle with Radahn.

[@arabidllama]

I think the "born from a single god / empyreans" line is trying to express two ideas at once, and ends up confusing. My read of it takes a little work, but I think makes more sense in the end: 1) There may be more ways to become an Empyrean, but those who have a parent who is a god are automatically Empyrean as a matter of course and 2) Being born of only one , Miq n' Mal ended up fundamentally incomplete. Not sure if Ranni is an empyrean due to her dad, or due to her being chosen, for instance. I think there's a lot to read into fertility and legacy with Marika in particular. It's my pet theory that the "spear of longinus" she has is meant to be going through her ovary. Her children have proven to be inconvenient to the Greater Will, so it/Radagon put a stop to any more of the Miquella/Malenia line.

[@CrunchyVideos]

I think I agree with everything you said. Very interesting theory about the spear.

[@ShirakiAkarin]

Great video! St. Trina being just a dream is really interisting!

[@cigman777]

I always took the line “Marika’s unwanted children” as them saying that because they were soulless, they lived in death and thus were a blight on the Golden Order

[@jacobh2629]

Very interesting and well put together video. Good audio quality as well.

[@wolandisdead]

Excellent video. I find your ability to connect themes in the game with alchemical concepts really fascinating. It would be great to see a video devoted to the overlap between alchemical concepts and elden ring themes. Keep up the great work!

[@nwilliamcowan1016]

I almost think Miquella is a manifestation of the Crucible fighting back. Staving off other gods is the goal. Trying to remake things with all included. A mixture of all including outcasts. The only things you don’t seen are omens and dragons.

[@Jasx_501]

I really like your casual approach to piecing things together, with the odd "but I'm not sure about this" thrown in making everything feel like clever guestimation. It's a really nice way of approaching these videos that contrasts with some of the "for sure" videos. I also like how you're referencing the influences Miyazaki used and how theyight help explain certain inspirations, but aren't leaning too heavily on them. Also, nice use of the SotC music towards the end.

[@Kaptime]

18:35 Can't believe I didn't notice earlier but the rememberance of Malenia has her wings and Katana form the shape of her rune in the negative space on the artwork.

[@keroppiix]

4:16 I don’t know if this was mentioned as a solution anywhere but I was just assuming that the whole “radagon is marika” thing might have retroactively applied to Ranni, thus making her offspring of Radagon and therefore also the offspring of Marika Last edit: Sol also means Sun so that might have something to do with godwyn’s being trapped in the sun

[@phoenixclown1301]

love your videos already, incredibly detailed. i appreciate that youre not necessarily trying to definitively answer questions and rather the focus is on presenting related information and possible theories. you give us the watchers the information we need to start developing our own ideas on top of putting your own perspective out there. and i think a really important aspect a lot of lore compilers miss out on is using thematic connections between ingame lore with the real-world lore/established stories that may have inspired it to flesh things out. nicely edited and quality narration. keep it up, i would love to see more

[@Sleeper_6875]

the theory of them being broken off pieces of marika and radagon is GENIUS it makes complete sense and I dont really see any flaws with it

[@k1xnt]

whoa THIS is the sort of deeeeep lore dive I've been looking for. The amount of thought put into these connections.. I'm 20 minutes in and I've had my mind blown about 5 times. Subbed

[@sakrefunholy]

I feel like the reason why Godwyns death is different from the other demigods mentioned dying. Is because he only died in spirit but not in body. while the other probably died true deaths.

[@legitopotamus5394]

Crunchy the content creator! Let's fucking GOOOOOOOOO!

[@captainzork6109]

Thank you. Your search for connections, such as that water is symbolic for something very fundamental (perhaps the fact it's existence is a necessary condition for life), gave me some inspiration for a completely unrelated project I'm working on. On a more related note, perhaps water is a video you could do on. The albinauric "blood"line seems to have to do with water, and learning techniques such as the waterfowl dance seems to have to do with giving Melina strength and increased vigor - something the golden order (the "sun") could never do

[@sukamii]

glad I could at least catch part of the premier, especially the berk part lmao

[@Desacreder]

Can't wait to hear your thoughts on the DLC

[@SenHai]

Nice to see you making content now. Looking forward to more.

[@robboss9044]

Great Video! Looking forward to more content like this!

[@jwiqo2brbskqpfr4428]

The lore of this game is so rich and so mamu questions are left unanswered on purpose.

[@111funnyvideo]

Rennala is really interesting and probably tied to Miquella, but I don't know how. Her mind appears broken, which means we don't have a sense of her character at all pre-divorce. (I think this also implies that she has never made contact with Miquella, which makes her rune's similarity to Melania's rune all the more fascinating.) A couple of points to add on to your excellent analysis: -I don't know what to make of it, but this video made me realize that the arena we fight her in is similar but opposite to the arena we fight the Elden Beast in. We see the sunset/rise vs the moonset/rise across a shallow sea. (This I think speaks more to Ranni's influence than Rennala's, but I don't know.) Up until now I had sort of assumed that boss fight transported us to Ranni's dark moon, which would explain why Rennala's moon is so close. The extreme similarity to the Elden Beast fight makes me doubt myself, as well as the fact that we see Ranni's moon in her ending, while we presumably are still inside the Erdtree. Don't know what that's about. -Regardless, Rennala appears to be a fan of the moon, which seems to be a completely different outer god than the Greater Will! (I don't know what noun to use besides "fan"--"adherent" is perhaps a bit strong.) I'm far from the first person to point this out, but this makes her connection to the Greater Will.... tenuous at best, even if she is married to its champion. -From the Rennala's Full Moon item description: "Queen Rennala encountered this enchanting moon when she was young, and later, it would bewitch the academy." *Bewitch* is a very interesting word to use, as the only other time I can think of it being used is the Bewitching Branch, which has Miquella written all over it. (Curious if the Japanese translation would bear these similarities out.) -"Rennala as Albinauric" would answer an item description that has bothered me: "When Rennala, head of both the Academy of Raya Lucaria and the Carian royal family, lost her husband Radagon, her heart went along with him. And then, those at the academy realized. That Rennala was no champion, after all." It makes some sense why the academy might disown Rennala after she loses their political connection to the Erdtree, but she would presumably still be as powerful as she was pre-divorce (certainly they wouldn't "realize" anything as Radagon's leave seems to have had little to do with Rennala herself). Maybe they discovered she's an Albinauric? Though how that came to be is anyone's guess. Also, as a side note, everyone else seems to be able to make out what's happening in the Mohg/Miquella painting and I simply can't. I see his hair and ear, but the rest of the body just doesn't make sense to my eyes. If anyone reading this can help me out I'd appreciate it.

[@CrunchyVideos]

In the intro picture Miquella is turned inwards towards Mohg which is a bit confusing. Mohg is grasping his lower legs. Great thoughts by the way, I had a similar sense of things.

[@vremen555]

YES I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS

[@pawnshop_ghost]

Here bc of Ratatoskr podcast and man I love all of your both videos so far. Very much looking forward to more!