Elden Ring's Snake Iceberg | Elden Ring Lore

[@projectorochi]

the real challenge of Elden Ring is figuring out the lore

[@Melanias_Consort]

That's been every dark souls game. The lore is only hard to understand because it uses big words and little context. And you all jump to conclusions way too quickly. Otherwise it's fairly simple. Another crumbling world where the denizens committed unspeakable unholy crimes like grafting, enslaving, murdering, raping, and partaking in incest. The sword called "Serpent Gods Blade" is a huge hint. Rykard chose to become a part of the snake. I think the snakes were once the first. And it would explain the numerous cave systems. Giant snakes

[@Thunderous333]

​@@Melanias_Consortexplaining something in the most basic terms doesn't mean it's at all a basic subject. I could do the same with human history. Humans struggled and did terrible things to gain power and continue to do so. Wow so eye opening so simple woah. I hate yappers like you bro.

[@newt2120]

Vague* words, not just big words

[@Nolimitsbestfriend]

vage @@newt2120

[@ryansizemore5064]

this is our created reality lore. this is the deepest shit i've ever heard spun gold from the narrator taking the primordial truth we all try so hard to deny and showing us why we deny it. everyone should know this philosophy.

[@daguido742]

oh boy this aged like fne wine. its like you knew messmer the impaler was coming

[@christopherlyndsay8611]

Oh boy, now Messmer is gonna have a big part in this

[@PrincepsAve]

fuck dude messmer is gonna give brith the frampt and kathe and the cycle is gonna go all ouroboros on our asses

[@HopelessReminder]

@@PrincepsAve yeah kind of crazy that Messmer is the gloom-eyed queens brother and "winged serpents" are his symbol which makes me wonder if the volcano manor was once his before being secreted away to the shadow realm

[@jasona4445]

⁠​⁠@@HopelessReminder Hold the HELL ON, where did you see Messmer is the brother of the gloam eyed Queen?

[@HopelessReminder]

@@jasona4445 What? Oh Messmer's kindling stats he bore a vision of flame like his younger sister Referencing Melina In the frenzy flame ending after we unseal destined death and also have become the Lord of frenzy, we see Melina open her eyes which reveals she is the gloam eyed queen So therefore the gloam eyed queen was Messmer's little sister

[@AlexTheQuestionable_36]

@@HopelessReminderthat doesn’t make sense. Number 1. In dialogue with ranni she is mentioning empyreans past and present, and doesn’t mention Melina or the gloam eyed queen. Now she may have forgot or not known Melina being an empyrean, which she would need to be because the gloam eyed queen is, but not mentioning the gloam eyed queen would mean she is of a time of extreme past and isn’t remembered or of the time of any of the demigods because she was a big figure when she was around. If the war happened with the gloam eyed queen in the time of Melina being born, then the gloam eyed queen would’ve had to have been born after Godfrey and renallas children, and either of them would’ve joined or at least known of the war. So no one remembering or even mentioning means the gloam eyed queen came much before Melina was born. Also marika wouldn’t care about killing her children or such, because she forced messmer to war on the Hornsent just to lock him away in a torched empty land, keeping him in the land of shadow and leaving him behind once she used the hornsent he killed to become a god. So if marika would do that to someone who did everything for her, she would certainly have just killed Melina instead of putting a seal on her eye and just making her a spirit. Melina would also probably lead you on to want you to kill marika because she would probably be vengeful, and wouldn’t tell you things like burning the erd tree is bad and whatnot.

[@JayQuilson]

I'm here post-DLC and I have to give you major props on the spiral/helix symbolism. Amazing call.

[@reviewcomplete3701]

With all the serpent motifs in the dlc trailer this is perfect

[@Practicallypreposterous]

Dude you are going to need a part 2 after Shadow of the Erdtree drops

[@dominicriccio6410]

Best prediction 2024

[@TheStraightestWhitest]

At first you'd think this is batshit crazy, but by 20 minutes in it becomes an undeniable science. This might legitimately be the most impressive analysis on KZbin, from any subject. Incredible work. This deserves an award.

[@leonguglielmetti]

Just a shame it’s near unwatchable due to endless ads

[@aestheticleviathan7028]

@@leonguglielmettiL go use opera if its such a set back

[@sorcierenoire8651]

@@leonguglielmettiwhat ads? Im almost done with the video and I barely watched any ads. Might be a you problem.

[@andrewjazdzyk1215]

Idk I'm over 20 minutes in and so far it seems mostly like a lot of disparate ideas loosely put together, but maybe it comes together later

[@tsm688]

he says many t hings about snakes that are absolute bullshit however, like "snakes are rare creatures". no. no they are not. being good at hiding does not make them rare. a competent biologist can find them by the dozens or hundreds almost anywhere

[@johnskelington]

Where does my pet derpy cinnamon roll (royal python) who manages to miss their strike on a hanging dead rat fit on this iceberg?

[@panterka.f]

😂

[@tikkidaddy]

IDK but I can tell you where my 18 foot 200 pound female Burmese would fit!😂 Sweet girl could eat 25 pounds of pre dispatched frozen and thawed rats. Mainly because I hated feeding her large rabbits. She passed away, but we were approaching the baby goat stage and I wasn't looking forward to this either😂

[@Neptunequeen42]

I cannot believe that the bit about "we have never seen a true snake" perfectly predicted the ACTUAL LIMBLESS SNAKES on Messmer in the DLC trailer. I'm leaning more and more toward the idea that he's gonna be the absolute bottom of this iceberg.

[@yxxrem]

Messmer's snakes have wings on their body, and probably it's actually a two headed snake with head on both end of it's body

[@Neptunequeen42]

@@yxxrem That’s exactly what I thought too. It fits everything predicted here, right down to the snakes ascending to dragonhood as a symbol of power/transcendence. It would especially tie in if Messmer’s eyes are dragon eyes and not frenzied flame eyes, as people are currently debating.

[@xXOMGPwniesXx]

I think rykard was aware of the elden beast and was trying to get big enough it eat it because realistically he was already big enough to eat all of his family. Maybe he was trying to free his family not from greed for power but from passion

[@geordiejones5618]

I don't think Rykard has any memory of his past left much like his brother. Him and the snake became something else

[@chillax319]

@@geordiejones5618Yup. Rykard was losing more and more of himself with each devoured tarnished. At some point only the beast and the hunger would remain.

[@AWATIQ]

@@chillax319goddamn bro really cooked up with that quote

[@nothanks9503]

@@chillax319ironically the great rune if you will of my long friendship with a life long artist is that I need to be more of an animal about things so maybe that has some value

[@grimm3995]

​@@AWATIQfr he made a whole egg salad sandwich shit sounded like a gherman quote

[@leesnotbritish5386]

watching Elden ring lore community develop is like watching the birth of a religion, interpreting and reinterpreting a cryptic source.

[@whereismycup]

Wait a minute… you’re right (Elden ring religion coming soon?)

[@keirscott-schrueder5625]

In the cinematic, the dragons are shown with double rows of teeth, almost like a new dragon is emerging from the older form. Perhaps showing the kinship to snakes as they shed their old 'skin'.

[@bondead1702]

Many snakes also have double rows of teeth, almost like a second jaw inside the first one so there's that too.

[@Hawkshaw]

Hey everyone, We just wanted to make sure we said a few things about this video. We have done our best to examine the themes put into Elden Ring by the creators at From Software, and especially the director Hidetaka Miyazaki and the world creator George R R Martin. A lot of these themes are harsh ones, but that is to be expected from these creators. Their works are often bleak, violent, sexually explicit and above all maddeningly unfair. As we played Elden Ring we felt this game was no exception. Our aim is to examine what the creators have made and communicate what we find, not to adjust it. In addition, we have done our best with our research given our time constraints on videos that do not bring enormous views. It is wonderful to work on Lore but we cannot become experts in every subject we touch on as we wouldn’t manage to continue making videos at all. If we have made any mistakes please let us know, and we will learn and improve. Of course please make sure you double check before commenting, and if you see another comment that is ill informed please let them know. One example is the Medusa myth: in the Greek Version of the myth, the original and the culture from which the myth originated, Medusa and Poseidon had a romantic union, not a violent one. Consider that myths evolve, and there are many versions that reflect the sensibilities of their audiences. This is one example where some jumped into comments, often with strong emotions, and referenced the Roman (Ovid's) retelling of the myth, 700 years after the most famous Greek telling. We hope you bear all this in mind while watching this, and are respectful in the comments. What we can all agree on is that no one would choose to live in the Lands Between, and we are lucky to be in our world by comparison. Hawkshaw.

[@skellymen2395]

Step aside, Color Theory. Snake Theory is the new order

[@adammack9744]

all hail snake theory

[@timfw2496]

We are robust hawk fear not :)

[@DinggisKhaaniMagtaal]

I would just add a word of caution in then to be careful about apparent enormous views. I’ve just gotten to 39:57 and the synthesis of your ideas so far ended up being something of a poetic waxing of human society, one that has a weirdly Hobbesian state of nature, which is definitely fitting for Elden Ring and likely Miyazaki’s worldview. I would just put a fair asterisk about choosing how those ideas are presented, because it can sound like your views in the way the transition goes, as it can be muddy for a viewer to remember whose perspective they are listening to at a given moment. I say this not because having a Hobbesian view of a “state of nature” as represented by the snake is particularly bad, but because we need to remember who we are picking from when we come from the real world. Our world right now, including Miyazaki as a Japanese man, has a very hard selection bias towards the “Western canon” and so it is certainly worth keeping that in mind when making statements about the wider world. I hope this makes sense, and while I’m not done with the video, I have seen enough to say fantastic work as always, and thank you Hawkshaw! Edit: it’s obviously also worth noting that the previous Chinese-dominated canon, as it has greatly interacted with Japanese ideologies and beliefs through history (obviously), which maybe you can somewhat misnomer-ly label as the “Eastern canon” also has a presence is Miyazaki’s work. The snakes reaching to become dragons is very reminiscent of the motif of the carp reaching the heavens and jumping the Dragon Gate can do the same (which is almost explicitly referenced in Sekiro). My point being, I suppose, is that it is good to remember that the views of the artists we look up to are, like everyone’s, skewed to one degree or another. Where are the millions of African stories in all of this for example? As somebody who knows almost nothing about African “myth” and folklore, I genuinely don’t know. But it is almost guaranteed that there is evidence out there that will confound any universal reading of humanity, because from what I have seen in just 25 years of life, there always is. Only from then you have to figure out what to do about it! But for me, I would just recommend anyone take a universal narrative of human “development,” something which I’m sure many people who like Jung also question deeply as a unilinear idea, with a loaded fist of salt.

[@timfw2496]

also your takes dont feel at all from a college campus, unlike all the "philosophers" who roam yt..

[@DinggisKhaaniMagtaal]

Haven’t finished the video yet, just got past the first “layer,” but it’s worth noting that snakes can also mean kindness, fertility (as you’ve mentioned), and healing, as well as connections to the underworld. I forget which tribe it is, but some Southwest tribes in the US find in some stories snakes to be maybe paradoxically kind creatures, as the rattler on rattlesnakes is an act of kindness, when a creature that is fearful yet powerful comes across a person, and I’m pretty sure women become snakes in some stories, but it’s been a while since I’ve talked or read about it to someone from a Southwest tribe. There’s also Coatlicue, the mother of Huitzilopochtli, his sister Coyolxauhqui, and their siblings. She is decapitated by her daughter and avenged by Huitzilopochtli, who dismembers Coyolxauhqui and makes her the moon (they found a giant stone disc depicting her dismembered body under the city center of Mexico City!). Interestingly enough Coatlicue also is depicted with a snake belt in a giant statue of her (one of the trippiest statues I’ve ever seen). She has connections to the underworld and the earth itself. Also funny not but Huitzilopochtli is born the moment of his mothers decapitation by his older siblings, and he comes out fully grown and armed for battle! Also, the dual “king role” in Aztec society was called Cihuacoatl based off one of the other fertility goddesses (“coatl” is the root for “snake” btw in Nahua, which is why the perceptive may remember this root showing up in the more famous “Quetzalcoatl” as well). This role was more administrative than the more “kingly” role of the tlatoani, and despite being taken up by men (such as the famous Tlacaelel) it was a feminized position, so the gender of the person as a social role was pretty liminal, from what I can tell and remember from college courses.

[@justwastingtimeonyt9952]

Thanks for info!

[@tpbenze5032]

Good insight! Thinking about this snakes also represent healing in the rod of Asclepius

[@ahhotep1833]

Also, re-birth, regeneration and reincarnation

[@DaydreamOrca]

In (my) Australian Aboriginal culture snakes were worshipped as creators or their representatives, carving the rivers and mountains with their bodies. In the dream time mythology they are cosmic beings. When the British arrived they were horrified to find the "pagan" worship. It makes me wonder about the conflict with golden order

[@hyperrealhandgrenade6578]

Colonialism is a major theme in ER especially with the ancestral followers being forced away from their own trees and pushed underground, even after their own Crucible gave birth to the Erdtree

[@the_furry_inside_your_walls639]

In Norse Mythology, there is a massive world serpent known as Jörmungandr that is seen as both an enemy of the gods and an important being that holds Midgard. Jörmungandr isn't even really evil. The gods just didn't like him because of his relation to Loke.

[@the_furry_inside_your_walls639]

​@hyperrealhandgrenade6578 There's also the genocide of the merchants and giants, and the ancient dragons and beast men being forced to bend the knee to the Golden Order's ways, or else they would have been killed off too. The Nox were also forced to hide underground as to not be killed off by the Golden Order.

[@hyperrealhandgrenade6578]

@@the_furry_inside_your_walls639 imo Elden Ring is *primarily* about imperialism and fascism, just like how Dark Souls was about capitalism. But as a fandom, we're still not ready for that conversation

[@A_Black_Sheep94]

Oh we didn't have that in my Australian aboriginal culture.

[@banditmain9941]

Came for a video about elden ring lore left with a new philosophical understanding about the human condition and the symbology of nature

[@sneekmuch]

1:05:39 I noticed the ancient dragons have 4 legs and can cast spells. But you’re asking a some good questions. There are Ancient Dragons, normal Dragons, eternal dragons, drakes, wyrms… great content dude. Always a joy to watch

[@charlesqbanks]

A lore discussion with a moral message at the end that explains the entire theme of all Souls games? Now this is content.

[@fenb13]

this is an amazing video - the way you flow seamlessly from the game to external references, stories, history, religion, and philosophy had me incredibly focused and engaged the whole way through. thanks for making it!

[@QuantumTelephone]

That nic cage quote as an intro goes so hard

[@johnbell792]

I watched all the parts as they came out. This is a goddamn masterpiece hawk

[@HokeyBugle]

I thought I was going crazy Thanks for confirming

[@logancade342]

The quality of this piece is insane. I screamed out loud 3 times because of superb editing decisions 😅😂

[@RandyK44]

Very cool to see you calling out the spiral as important before the DLC. The hornsent saw divinity in the spiral’s nature to ascend. This video really highlights how snakes are connected to the spiral progression. The ABYSSAL serpent is represented in game as a swirling black vortex. It’s just a spiral that goes down, which in this context makes snakes fundamentally opposed to divinity.

[@Laerei]

Excellent video about snake's role in different cultures throughout the ages in modern popculture. It's more of a history video than Elden Ring video, with Elden Ring being part of various modern popcultural works that use snakes extensively in their world building.

[@theelike4302]

Zoraya is the purest, most precious character in Elden Ring and the fact that there is no way to genuinely help her through her trauma is my biggest issue with Elden Ring. She deserves better.

[@rinzler1767]

The serpent girl? There is a way for her to have a "happy" ending

[@dandrummond9154]

Seluvis’s cloak’s clasp is a snake along with something’s else that I don’t remember. We are told Radagon designed the mask that had its mouth sewn shut with his rune’s pattern to remind them to not talk about what he’s doing. Rykard is his son. Radagon stopped the gladiatorial fights, and I assume placed them around. He’s also in a doll. Saying he has the ability to shed his skin is a valid statement. His signature attack is “goldbreaker” (it breaks gold) not “Golden breaker.” (A breaker made of gold). And he is hanging in the Erdtree for his crime of betraying the Erdtree. A particular snake is said to have been guilty of the same crime.

[@dandrummond9154]

D’s cloak has a faded sigil on it that is a Viper’s wide open mouth, he’s a fundamentalist like Radagon, and has signed up for killing dead people, a job that didn’t exist before Radagon’s time.

[@dandrummond9154]

Marika’s Order did not place her as the one true god. We know that texts say that being a dragon cultist did not conflict with the Golden Order and it was called the capitals dragon cult. Godwyn was a member. The magma wyrm statement came later when Marika was the one true god, ie Radagon.

[@coolio6855]

I love that Miyazaki was inspired by how weird the presidents of other companies are.

[@RandyK44]

Wow, the dragon stuff fits in perfectly with Bayle’s lore in the DLC. He is heavily involved in the idea that some dragons went down a different path and lost their divinity.

[@lostcarcosa7642]

Rykard has such middle child energy and I absolutely love him, he’s my favorite

[@mackdontpayforstrange3207]

The portion of this video with the Holi Joli Village theme is simply outstanding 👌🏽

[@Hawkshaw]

Thank you - means a lot!

[@pyrosnineActual]

I think with the DLC released, was that Marika got her powers by stealing the authority and power of the Snake God- which is why elements of the Snake show up in her children. It's why there's a cast off snake skin near the village she lived in and departed after sealing the lands in shadow. Being a god and able to dictate history, she obscured this theft of divinity with her Golden Order that allowed only one view of the world, and dictated that the world and everything in it was bound to and revolved around the Golden Order and her to hide that things like Grace, and cosmic power aren't unique and wholly reserved to beings like her.

[@elleofmusic]

I cannot believe you called it so hard like this. You should be winning some kind of award. Messmer's snake themes make a billion times more sense now!! AND you've only made me more convinced that he's got something to do with Destined Death, since you also see the relationship it has with the concept of Time. Fascinating.

[@OCMOOO]

1 hour college lecture: I sleep 1+ hour of philosophical discussion of SNEKS?!: REAL SHIT

[@eliasovesen1463]

Looks like someone finally solved Elden Ring lore

[@nmfoxx]

The sheer depth of the snake lore is getting wild

[@demmies6710]

"and this may not be totally insane" best quote in here while talking about skinning and burning men

[@Osponis]

Somehow you've gone so far into deepest lore, that you've come back out on the other end as straight up philosophers. Good show

[@claytronifon]

Elden Ring fans are the most normal gamers. Loved the video btw. I'm working on some paintings partially inspired by ER and I guess I'm going to include some snakes.

[@blueveil5270]

Small detail but at the divine tower of Caelid you find the Godskin Apostle at the bottom of a spiral stair (snake?)

[@phyokyaw7447]

Blue festive hood is reference to Nausicaa of the valley of the wind, perhaps?? The movie is one of Hayao Miyazaki’s works. There is even the Prince of Persia references( the blue dancer charm and the curved sword talisman).

[@Silly_Illidan]

Bernahl: i hold you no ill will... Also Bernahl: invades

[@jacktheomnithere2127]

1:04:34-1:04:38 in similar fashion to Slavic folklore, if you ask me. 1:04:54-1:05:07 the snake and the dragon are more connected than you think. tell me; ever wondered what "dragon" means? it's from the term "drakon"; Greek for "large serpent". if anything (to me, at least), the dragon, despite now having a very different shape to the snake's - and regardless of type - is a snake itself. look at the Sea Serpent: it fits the meaning of "dragon" to a tee. and while unrelated to the video, i want to further prove the connection. on Overly Sarchastic Productions's video "Trope Talk: Dragons" (which i recommend watching), she says dragons have 2 distinct traits at the 14:38 timestamp: *they're powerful, and snake-like.* to explain it, look at Maleficent when she transforms into a dragon. she knocked Prince Philip off his horse (Samson) and destroyed the bridge with her fiery breath; then she set the whole bramble forest ablaze in a single blast. such is her *power.* notice she has a forked tongue, and flicks it; and the speed of her strikes when she attempts to bite Philip. don't these remind you of a *snake?*

[@shawngriffith6901]

Dragons are a combination of 3 animals, the tail, neck and face of a snake, body of a lion, wings and talons of the hawk. Serosh is accounted for, as is the storm Hawk monarch, Mt.Gelmir got the snake parts. The crucible makes dragons make sense since life was blended but now isn't, the Dragons got divided up.

[@assasinsbear]

Watching this after the DLC, and with the theory in mind that perhaps Eiglay was Marika's first consort really is maiing me connect dots...

[@ChosenUndead7]

The amount of detail and environmental storytelling in this game is insane

[@Horstolord04]

*series, franchise?

[@Sohelanthropus]

Not the first game that does this buddy, Bloodborne has way more of such thing

[@ChosenUndead7]

@@Sohelanthropus Bro I played every Soulsborne multiple times, I know

[@cheknauss9867]

So is the amount of time and effort Hawkshaw puts into these videos. I was hoping he'd do a bit on demon's souls, especially since I'll probably never get to play it

[@SufficientSpells]

​@@SohelanthropusYou're not the first to point this out, pal. I've made TONS of blatantly obvious and unnecessary statements.

[@erdngtn9942]

I think we are just upon the precipice of understanding Miyazaki and these questions. It’s definitely something intertwined like snakes. The feminine and masculine, good and evil etc. like snakes. In medicine doing bad like cutting to heal for the good. Etc

[@mindofme_]

Oh I'm so ecited to see this back! I wanted to show someone last night and was worried I imagined it. I love this essay and your approach to fromsoft lore. Thank you for the reupload! Does thia have all 4 parts in it?

[@matt-dr4fk]

I can't believe i put off watching this for so long. I shoukd know by now your analyses are always worth my time.

[@ivanmakhalin1635]

Curiously, it is said that one of the first Russian Great Princes, a viking named Oleg, was bit by a snake coming from the skull of his long dead favourite steed. And thus Oleg died, fulfilling a prophecy that he will be killed by his own steed.

[@BabygirlMiles]

I go back to this video over and over. It's so good and I LOVE SNAKES

[@Haepax]

When I saw Messmer take out his eye... and directly alluded to the 'Abyssal Serpent, Shorn of Light' Chills ❄🐍

[@kadbenson7540]

Wow, just wow. This was a transcendent piece of work, truly your insights opened up not only this wonderful game but also to things deeper and more esoteric. This was a literal masterpiece.

[@therealBigMoth]

Thanks hawk just made the day way better I love these dives

[@robertmathews7971]

Haven't finished the video, so not sure if this comes up. I like the "leaders as goats, and secret snakes" fear. Made me think of how the Devil is often depicted in human, snake, and goat forms. Hadn't thought of that before.

[@Manakuuchiha]

Immediate thumbs up for the most thorough content warning I've seen on youtube. Usually people just end at the warning. None of it applies to me but it prepared me for the discussion in the video!

[@Azrael666Azazel]

Just wanted to point out that there are two primary versions of the myth Medusa. In the Greek version Poseidon seduced here and it was consensual. Ovid, Roman poet, however writes that Medusa was violated by Neptune in Minerva’s temple but was still cursed as punishment.

[@juliabarrow-hemmings6624]

When he talks about this in the video, text explaining the difference between the original Greek myth and Ovid's version appears on screen.

[@Azrael666Azazel]

@@juliabarrow-hemmings6624 oh I wasn’t aware. I listened to this while I was working and didn’t pay attention to the screen

[@ReturnoftheLightning]

Ovidius was obsessed with “adult fantasies” themes, got divorced two times before reaching 30, and even got exiled, unfortunately we do not have lots of material regarding Roman Mythology left, which is why historians put lots of emphasis in the Metamorphose, but this guy’s work shouldn’t be taken seriously truthfully, it goes against the familial principles of both Minerva (kinda Athena) and Jupiter, and the actions of Neptune seems more like self insertion

[@Mason_____]

Imagine having a channel that has never made a non-banger. You’re gods hawkshaw. Us true hollows thought you’d never be back, but here you are crafting +10 Boners for us. Never change

[@RoninYeti]

Came for the Rang, stayed for the existential crises. Loved this thesis, good job!

[@caseyvines9417]

One of the most beautiful and intriguing KZbin videos ever. Miyazaki could be the world's greatest mind for somehow wrapping the meaning and "answer" to life, the universe, and everything into a damn video game.

[@Gamer_G33k]

Correction: The snake of Eden was, infact, just a snake. It wasnt the devil, nor Satan. It was just a snake with legs that could talk. And for the sin it commited, all snakes were punished.

[@elijahford3696]

Can confirm that nowhere in Genesis was the snake made known to be the devil. Just a funky little guy playing a prank.

[@FreestateofOkondor]

The best snake related video on KZbin!

[@gintu]

49:09 - Ico OST - Castle in the Mist Good video. Thank you for listing the soundtrack in the description!

[@TheChrisYamez]

Messemer the Impaler has entered the chat…

[@franlovelsimic8421]

Another incredible offering. Words cannot express the awe I have for Elden Ring's countless symbols and your interpretation of them merely reaffirms the greatness that is this game.

[@thehotwindblowing]

Awesome vid Hawkshaw. Curious: In the connection between snakes and dragons, does this offer insight to the Erdtree-dragon war? What motivates the dragons to attack Leyndell? Does it have to do with Leyndell's suppression of snakes and snake-likeness? Also, the connection between the Crucible and dragons/snakes? You mention snakes with wings in Volcano Manor, but what intrigued me was that you completely left out the Misbegotten, who oftentimes have tails and wings, said to be a consequence of their "contact with the Crucible." And the fact that Mohg grows wings in his Phase 2. Also the fact that all the Aspect of the Crucible incantations basically describe a dragon (wings, horns, fire breath!!!)... Nvm it just turns out everything is connected, as is the usual for Elden Ring lore. lol

[@dissraps]

no

[@brettrichardson7924]

my gut instinct is the crucible and its spiral form needed a religion similar in concept enough that the power of divinity was still there in its true form as a spiral, a tree that spirals up, snakes that spiral up, its all the same. i assumed its one of those situations where the spiral really is the greater wills representation, just a massive column that spells out "I" as in the great I alone. idk just pure guessing on gnostic/elden ring shared mythology. The dlc really left me in a state of questioning Rannis ending as we really don't seem to have shifted anything except whos in control.

[@batialite5080]

I'm sitting here listening to this beautiful poetic prose on snakes and symbolism...meanwhile my pet snake is struggling to figure out which end of his pre-killed, frozen-thawed mouse is the head! Love the video!

[@aspectparadox6654]

We need an updated version of this for the new DLC

[@hythan9198]

"Alongside Time exists Fate, the bearer of cruelty" -Nyx, Persona 3. Your conclusion on the god of time made me think of this. Time like a stream, flowing waters to combat stagnation. Fate like the route the river takes, the rocks and sand that constrain it's flow. Good and bad, Life and Death, balance.

[@trapadvisor]

Goddamn your background music picks are impeccable. Always the perfect song, from the perfect game.

[@quexxlp2451]

bro this is true philosophy and not Elden Ring lore anymore XDD best documentary ive seen this year. love the music and atmosphere your thoughts are creating ^.^

[@keirscott-schrueder5625]

I like how you add your own interjection of philosophical analysis, rather than just discussing what parts of the lore really mean purely in the context of the story.

[@GreeneTV]

21:31 that's awesome to know! Elder dragons Narwa and Ibushi from monster hunter are based on them and they CONSTANTLY spiral with or without the other

[@devontedrummond3649]

The only thing I want to point out is that Medusa didn’t seduce Poseidon, Poseiden raped her in Athena’s temple. Her only sin was being beautiful and being the object of his lost. And Athena punished Medusa for for it, its all kinds of F’d up.

[@dissraps]

Basically an onlyfans thot, punish the slores

[@tahlialysse]

There's more than one source we have of the myth, and while the sources all have Poseidon raping her, they do not agree that her transformation was punishment (though the punishment interpretation is often the one people hear). The other version is that the transformation was a blessing to protect her and was an empowering act. But yeah, no matter how you slice it, Poseidon is the one at fault in the situation.

[@Gamer_G33k]

​@@tahlialysseYeah, but then she's killed, and effectively forced to give birth to her rapists child.

[@thelimit69]

Not originally. That version is by a Roman writer who came later.

[@tahlialysse]

@@thelimit69 so, while Ovid did come later than ancient Greece, that does not mean that the elements used in his retelling "came later." You have to understand that there is no cannon to Greek mythology. Many versions of each story were told simultaneously in different places, which each also were changed over time in each of those places. There is more than one version we have from ancient Greece beyond just Ovid's version which supposedly references another source that has been lost to time. The main differences with Ovid's version are that the rape is considered bad (while Greek sources *do* include it being a rape, rarely do Greek sources treat any rape from a god as if it was a bad thing...ancient Greece was incredibly misogynistic). You also have a version where the sex itself is not positioned as consentual, but Poseidon is the one who forces it to happen *in the temple* which acts as his transgression. If you take the aggregate of versions, the beats seem to be: "Poseidon is responsible for a transgression; either he cannot be punished for this or the Medusa transformation isn't a punishment; and then Medusa is transformed." It's a rather neat subject to look into what we do know about it, and what we can infer about the myth, etc. But it's not as simple as "X is the ancient Greece version and Y is the Ovid version." That just shows a poor understanding of how ancient myths worked (ie how there is/was no single cannon). Plurality is typically the name of the game for ancient stories. Heck, even in the traditions for which we basically only have a SINGLE primary source for something (like Norse mythology), we get enough secondary references or other ways to cross-reference additional versions of many myths still!

[@deadmemes1824]

this vid is about to blow up because of the dlc

[@kirasavesmusic]

This was honestly so freaking good I could listen to ten more hours of this

[@JimMcC36912]

“What do we feel when a snake crosses our path?” Umm, good? Happy? “Fear!” Oh okay I guess lol

[@AuthorOfNewborne]

How the fuck did this game become a coarse history lesson more complex than your average Mythology

[@metuogalendus577]

1:07:38 - 1:09:17 A conscious monologue on why you shouldn't take candy from that baby. Amazing video, from lore to general spirituality the concept itself produces A++

[@NedimTheCreep]

I got here for elden ring lore. Now I think about the meaning of life itself

[@jaxdakid5598]

you’re an amazing story teller. thank you for all your hard work.

[@ythandlename]

No matter how many times I visit back to your channel, you always spew some deep insight into the lore that I may as well grown a third eye through the sheer enlightenment of these videos.

[@Spytefull]

This is one of the best videos I've watched this year. When everything started to click into place, I got chills. I'm gunna send this to literally everyone I know.

[@ramoraid]

This theme is bound to show up in the DLC the more i look into the lore of Miquella and Godwyn the more I see duality and the spiral that comes with both of their ascensions to godhood. Godwyn was turned into a god of death and Miquella a god of life now they are pushed into conflict. Godwyn has infected the land with his deathroot and Miquella has also begun to do the same, his Lily's and those as ST. Trina have begun to appear all over the land.

[@gtkingly8127]

is this all the parts combined in one? awesome

[@annaclarallb]

Aged like wine and the DLC isn’t even here yet ✨

[@derpysman2001]

I learned a lot of things from this video, one of those things is that the snails have command grabs

[@Not.A.Heretic]

i can't believe i never noticed the prevalence of snakes in these games

[@NutOnYoutube]

theres a full snakes skin in the dlc hidden pretty well.

[@mattg6106]

3:57 As a snake owner and enthusiast who's Hognose goes on hunger strikes fairly consistently, I feel like the devs might not have a lot of firsthand experience.

[@mattg6106]

Jokes aside there is actually a lot of misinformation/misunderstandings about snakes in this video but I appreciate the take on the lore.

[@lloydfrazier3682]

The spiral is also symbolism for portals

[@OnSchoolyard]

The gloam-eyed queen was a snake…the snake in the trailer…Marika stole from its eye…it’s a scaleless snake.

[@NivraNabru]

lets catch up on rykard lore before DLC comes ToGeTHHHhhAAAaaaAAA!!!

[@netherworldofmind7402]

Let's say that the Dlc gives a strong confirmation to the relation between divinity, light and time

[@larkohiya]

Would have sworn i already saw this video days ago?

[@gavinmcphie6936]

He previously uploaded it in parts. He's since delisted those and combined them into this supercut.

[@ZonicCeasor]

Old GBA fire emblem music merits a sub, but this amazing deep dive also does. Well done!!

[@lilstamp08]

You’ve reinvigorated my taste for lore here. I’m more and more convinced the Greater Will is a bad guy.

[@KnivstikkerOla]

I almost can't believe this analysis came out before the DLC trailer. I never thought the snake important to elden ring before that, and here it was months earlier.

[@nunyabeeswax275]

Time for part 2 after SoTE

[@Skylander404]

Exceptional video. The ideas of this game transcend that of simpler media and reach out to the very foundation of what makes us human. Thank you for revealing it in such an eloquent way.

[@Hawkshaw]

Glad you enjoyed it Skylander!

[@thekingbelow]

Here from the DLC trailer to mention the snake motifs