Dark Souls Lore | Big Hat Logan Deep Dive

[@Hawkshaw]

Would you test the limits like Logan? Or play it safe?

[@Bug-Intercourser]

hell yea I'd push his limits, I need his autistic boyswag to thrive

[@Bug-Intercourser]

oh. like logan. yea sure

[@benval687]

SAFE!!!

[@timfw2496]

can i do a hybrid build lol

[@sandrastone7644]

I relate with big hat logan

[@hermitcard4494]

Logan ended up naked because in his madness from knowledge he realized he has higher invincibility frames being naked. A mad lad.

[@grfrjiglstan]

I love that Logan is literally a living legend, with characters of later games and even this game talking about him in the same breath as the very gods.

[@lucamckenn5932]

Such is the way of the ambitious breakers of molds and tradition.

[@mojo-jojogroovyaustinpowers]

Which characters in future games talk about him?

[@lucamckenn5932]

@@mojo-jojogroovyaustinpowers dark souls 2 and 3. 2 has crystal soul spear, literally name drops a big hat wizard. Same for 3 but pretty sure they say Logan proper.

[@mojo-jojogroovyaustinpowers]

@@lucamckenn5932 I know that but, he said characters.

[@Paag603]

​@@mojo-jojogroovyaustinpowersOrbeck of Vinheim mentions him when you give him Logans scroll

[@WeWillAlwaysHaveVALIS]

"His skin seems normal", meanwhile he's standing there like Papa Smurf's and Tarzan's love child.

[@hugofontes5708]

As in "not hollow jerky"

[@panamajerky]

yeah, the grand archives have an incredibly heavy blue filter for some reason. the crystal hollows are white/grey without the filter

[@djw_tekken8490]

Reference from another game for him : The blacksmith who forged these, claimed they were meant for a hero called Big Cat Logan, but sadly there is no record of anyone with this name

[@hugofontes5708]

@@panamajerky waaaaaat My god, but now I wonder if they are supposed to just look blue or actually be blue Yet, not mad Logan didn't really look blue

[@grfrjiglstan]

It's strange to think of, but the player killing Logan is what enabled him to speak his teachings far and wide. If Vinheim's assassins had gotten to him, they would've burned his heretical teachings. If he was left alone in the archives, his experiments surely would've taken his mind, if not his life, and all of his knowledge with it. Only through the player do his spells and discoveries escape from the archives themselves.

[@mmyr8ado.360]

That's why legends are as they are, but some say legends never die.

[@DiabolicalHater]

this implies that the canon Dark Souls build is a sorc build. My melee and/or faith builds didn't carry on Logan's legacy

[@hohhoch3617]

@@DiabolicalHater It implies no such thing. Time is convoluted in Lordran. The final boss of Dark Souls 3 is every single player, every single build to ever link the fire.

[@DiabolicalHater]

@@hohhoch3617 convolute deez nuts with your mouth dork, I didn't ask

[@silent_stalker3687]

@@DiabolicalHaternot really It only implies a hollow could use his spells. Remember you aren’t ‘the chosen undead’ that is a fabrication to get the undead to gather to the flame.

[@Dillville321]

I think Logan went crazy cuz he was looking into the mysteries of dark souls and didn't have a wiki

[@THExRISER]

Glad you're still carrying the Dark Souls lore mantle after most other creators all but abandoned it. Keep it up, a lot of us are still here for this kind of content.

[@AC-hj9tv]

It's "old hat" but still good

[@THExRISER]

@@AC-hj9tv Indeed.

[@drugsAreCrazy-yx6ft]

Idk but old but man dark souls ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤ I can say I broke 3 controlers to that game alone and still comes back and play it no cap

[@thepurpleshade486]

They say an introvert dies twice, first when you take them to a party and then when you take away their hat

[@Richie_Godsil]

🤣

[@masqueraid988]

Then I can't die a 2nd time because I don't like hats.

[@AC-hj9tv]

He like me fr

[@sylokthedefiled]

@@masqueraid988better not get taken to a party then

[@masqueraid988]

@sylokthedefiled no I can't die a second time! You can't take off my entire jacket!

[@shadowblood95]

It's like he thought he was taking a dragons form. But he was actually suffering hypothermia. In the later stages, your decision-making is clouded. Here people often undress, causing them to freeze faster.

[@3vanguardofthephoenix335]

Serpents are cold blooded. Could it be perhaps he was closer to transformation than we were lead to believe?

[@hellbornKrieg]

something i think is missed alot is the correlation of stat requirement and scaling caps with quest progression. like crystal soul spear is "44" because after is when int starts strongly suffering from diminishing returns. after is when he starts to go mad, realizing the more he increases int the less he gets back. and after the hardship of getting to 50 and creating a crystal catalyst that pushes power, with sacrifice to usage. he decides to try and create seathes crystal breath. The white crystal breathe is meant to be disappointing, no curse, low damage, and patheticly small. here he finally hits the limit of human ability, and although he can still keep going. he now knows his limits and it is ultimately unimpressive. thus losing his purpose and going hollow. also it should be noted that all sorceries from vinheim, are low requirements 16 or below, because this is an ability that can be achieved thru nature life (also by the sorcerer class who is prob an above average student, that reaches lordan at 15 int), without the need to increasing int thru the bonfire by the power of the lords. only because logan is in lordran can he create the more powerful souls spears and such. as well as griggs who follows after.

[@shark_vii]

at last, Hawkshaw finally begins to peel back the layers of the mystery: *why* is he called *Big Hat* Logan?

[@noamias4897]

A 17 min video is not near enough to even begin theorizing on that mystery

[@DonutSwordsman]

He was clearly trying to become a dragon to achieve eternal life, just like the unnamed king. Logan's skin is freaking blue. You have to declothe to become a dragon when using the tablets. Ds3 goes so hard to show you people are becoming dragons to escape the cycle because time is being held stagnant by gwyns daughters spell

[@sleeper1855]

Vinheim is even referred to as "the Dragon School". Hiding their intentions in plain sight in the name.

[@onecrunch5308]

He was probably one step away from something like Oceiros.

[@bruschetta7711]

Afterall i think Logan was just stepping on the same path as Seath, but their goals were different, Logan wanted to gain ultimate knowledge, with no ill intents, Seath however only developed such knowledge to gain what was not given to it for free to him unlike the other Ancient Dragons, immortality So after betraying his "kind" (Seath was very apart from the other dragons afterall) he was still feeling gealous of the lack of immortality, hence why he sturdied studying so hard, building the Archives to study for himself and find a way to create immortality, now i don't know how exactely he managed to pull that off, but if i had to guess, the giant hole-shaped crystal forest makes me believe that crystals came down like a meteorite, which he then harvested, studied and found out they were the pefect catalysts for not just spells but immortality itself, much like Logan once he ended up on Seath research Both of their stories end there, one could say he wanted to become just like a true Dragon, but even Seath could not replicate that, yet i think Logan would have hated to look like a Dragon and be considered such because of his look and not because of how long and hard he studied to gain the same powers

[@SpoopySquid]

Goddamn scales...

[@AC-hj9tv]

​@@SpoopySquidtime to get nekkid

[@FirelixGaming]

It may sound dumb but i just had a really bad panic attack and this video truly was a life saver, an escape to the horrible place i was 15 minutes ago, so thanks a lot for still making Dark Souls lore video, my favorite game ever

[@pikalin2303]

I am very late, but please take care of yourself

[@core-nix1885]

12:20 Note the dodecahedron on the base and icosahedron towards the tip of the staff. Platonic solids corresponding to the formless classical elements of water and aether, respectively. Formless like the Dark.

[@sleeper1855]

Very interesting! I never knew that the platonic solids corresponded to ancient elements. Very cool!

[@core-nix1885]

​@@sleeper1855aether is the fifth (V) element, the *quintessence* of humanity Fire is associated with the tetrahedron, which is why explosive barrels in Brume Tower and Lothric Castle are often stacked in tetrahedral sets of 4.

[@Vaga-Bard]

@@sleeper1855careful with your next step. The discovery of Platonic solids and their astrological correlation pushed me off a cliff into a nearly 2 decade quest that lead to majority of the secrets of reality being unraveled. Now I constantly live in a state of pretending I don’t know. Only allowing minimal info to slip out when necessary. The truth is a heavy burden that erases any excuse. But it’s so simple that you’ll say “duh” when you realize it.

[@diddymelone2265]

oh yes! I am so happy you are still making DS Lore videos, because it is easily my favourite game Lore-wise. there is so much to discover, its insane, I love it.

[@noamias4897]

Despite the smaller in game world Dark Souls 1’s lore is both widest and deepest imo

[@NoksUndKutten]

HAWKSHAW BACK ON DARK SOULS 1 AGAIN HELL YEAH LETS GO

[@TheKoistar]

Having started with DS3, and understanding how the Path of the Dragon works in that game, it made perfect sense to me that Logan's intentions with being naked were to become a dragon. If I didn't have that background knowledge, Logan's nakedness would've been much more confounding.

[@riftvallance2087]

I don't know if it was what they were going for but it came off as pretty funny at the time

[@Etticos.]

I love that you’re going back to some Dark Souls characters. I’d love to see some videos on DS2 characters in the future (specifically characters like Raime and Velstadt, Ivory King, The Daughters of Manus, Agdayne, Emerald Harold, or Licia) or a video about the reincarnation of the Lords Souls in DS2.

[@AkioJunichiro]

Logan mumbling : "... You can't ... the death ... you're undead anyways"

[@MossOwnsYouYT]

I just finished my first Playthrough as a sorcerer and Logan was a huge savior for me. I didn't realize the end of his quest and just stabbed him after I bought the last spell for dragon breath

[@alexterieur8813]

Are Intelligence build efficient in Dark Souls 1?

[@Timebomb_19]

@@alexterieur8813Yes, the damage output you do with certain spells can outpace strength builds.

[@SkillfulCurve]

​@@alexterieur8813dark bead

[@MossOwnsYouYT]

@alexterieur8813 I had some help through the playthrough from a friend but the only really tough parts were a certain part of New Londo and then the wheel skeletons in the Catacombs. Casting speed was my enemy there, but using the Lightning Spear as a backup weapon helped get passed these few tight spots. The DLC spells would have also been a bit more useful if I put a few points into strength but the Spear spells just melt anyone who gives you a problem and a full second. So yeah, efficient enough. Glass Cannon in late game though.

[@aceclover758]

People complained Dark Souls didn’t have an “easy” mode Intelligence builds are basically easy mode

[@Jinars.]

Glad to see DS1 is still getting love

[@ryanpanagiotopoulos4819]

Rickert is someone know ive always wanted to know more about, hes so mysterious

[@aceclover758]

Theory is he is one of the black dragon school assassins given the lord on his outfit He was sent by the school to keep an eye on Logan

[@perdurabo56]

@@aceclover758*lore

[@midnight-fox7456]

10:55 Can we talk about how good Logan's VA was in portraying his mind going to shit?

[@hugofontes5708]

Everybody in Lordran going age of fire this, curse of the undead that, yadda yadda bell of awakening Meanwhile, 5D chess Logan is already looking for insight to transcend humanity, old blood be damned

[@colorgreen8728]

It’s interesting how to me big hat Logan was a concept in the sense that he is merely a vessel for learning and magic, and I’m sure everyone else thinks the same in the souls universe, but in reality he’s very down to earth and far different than his antisocial appearance. I had just forgot how nice he really was because of how long ago I’d done his quest

[@TerenceChiII]

YO MY MAN USES GOTHIC OST AT 16:05 !! Your taste in videogames is obviously quite refined.

[@PETHRIS]

I have to stop everything I'm doing, there's new Hawkshaw DS1 lore in 2023

[@bully2681]

Your DS lore videos are the best, so happy you are back on them. I have watched the others quite a few times. Please bring more

[@DragonsValkyrie]

Logan was a character I always wanted to know more about I wish he had more of a questline he is build up to be such a legendary figure its a shame we didn't get more about Logan

[@perdurabo56]

Yeah but sometimes less is more

[@DragonsValkyrie]

@@perdurabo56 Too true giving less lets Logan keep all his mystery

[@Xx_SuperPenis_xX]

I wish there could be like a dark souls anime one day or something where miziyaki can like pour all the content he wants in it

[@falafelranger9393]

Finally. Now we will know why he is called 'big hat' logan

[@anarquirains2829]

omfg i was literally just wondering why he was called big hat logan amazing timing

[@Onion38]

Wait, why do they call him big hat logan?

[@xryeau_1760]

He uses his hat the same way a modern introvert uses headphones to ignore people

[@TheScrootch]

The big hat part of his name refers to his massive pe-

[@wyattsyverson8603]

His government name is Logan. Not sure about the hat part it honestly doesn’t make sense tbh

[@xVibra]

It's short for big hater and his overall dislike for everything.

[@ShaimingLong]

He was born as "Big Logan" so everyone assumed he was fat. To avoid association with a cat, he got a nice big hat. People soon forgot they thought him fat, so thankfully that was that.

[@tha_juice3262]

A refreshing trip back to our roots! Praise the lore! 🙏🏼

[@kutsmacksolucas]

Logan being naked in his last encounter seems to me an attempt to imitate Seath. He was "scaleless", and even his big hat ofuscated his vision, like the Albino dragon. He probably tried to mimic Seath's way of thinking or approach to research in order to understand it like the mad dragon, got a crystal staff and learned to mimic the crystal breath trough magic.

[@MercedesSLSJpak]

Logan would be too tier DS dad for how polite and supportive he is if you’re too much of a mouthbreather to learn magic

[@00110000]

I don't think anyone could get to where Logan was and NOT keep pushing forward to madness. He dedicated his life to knowledge, and so was completely powerless when presented with an endless supply. He never stood a chance of turning away, his big hat blocking out the world.

[@Aiya_Black]

Please, never stop making videos. Your interpretations of the lore feel the most complete and are extremely intriguing. It's baffling how From could even come up with so many hidden meanings and details in the story and characters. And that's just dark souls 1...

[@bitzovhadez7214]

I know right? Must've taken Miyazaki years, decades even, to come up with all that lore. Story feels like a the product of a lifetime's work.

[@TheBusinessScrub]

Logan's "Hello There" is powerful enough to give Obi-Wan's a run for his money.

[@starfallentertainment9131]

I like to think the very hat that Kogan was famous for was preventing him from ascending

[@apophisstr6719]

Not gonna lie, I don't think any characters from the later games had quite reached the same depth as DKS1's characters, especially their dialogues.

[@AngstUrnacht]

Agreed. I think they got worse with each game, although ds3 had some interesting NPCs. Not Elden Ring though; every npc felt lifeless to me. Even Alexander; just a worse Siegward.

[@xryeau_1760]

​@@AngstUrnachtAlexander went through more character progression between Radahn and Fire Giant than Siegward throughout his entire journey

[@xryeau_1760]

Bloodborne had a pretty good roster, DS3 was very meh overall, and Elden Ring is a mixed bag imo

[@WeWillAlwaysHaveVALIS]

​@@AngstUrnachtmoided and mould opinion

[@ladyfox6705]

Overall I agree - Dark Souls is a very special game. However, there are characters in the other games that I feel had a lot of depth - Lucatiel, Greirat, Lady Maria & Gehrman, Alexander (off the top of my head at 6am lol XD)

[@noahboone524]

But why do they call him Big Hat Logan?

[@checkouijuliet]

I think he may want to get into seath's mindset by shedding his clothes in a way. Seath does not have any protective layer cause he's missing scales, so Logan does the same.

[@grove919]

Love these character breakdowns. This might be my favorite one, beating the one you did on Lautrec!

[@jaaphzmns]

+100 for the Gothic II OST in the background

[@VelkasConsort93]

Just dropping by to say I appreciate you still doing creative writing for a beloved game to my heart, CHEERS!

[@benlavis3006]

You guys got it out of the park every time, massive treat whenever you drop a video 👍👍

[@whitegorilla1368]

16:06 when that gothic OST hits

[@_Stalc_]

It seems like oceiros got further ahead than logan did, but found the same gap in progress when he was going mad with ocelot. While logan was gradually becoming dragon like with the complexion of his skin changing the way oceiros skin became the same tint mirroring seathe, it still inevitably directed towards those that followed the path of the dragon. The primordial crystal was a ancient dragon artifact and has the same transformative properties dragon slabs have if near humans that can discern it. Oceiros also is the ashen ones access to archdragon peak when they get the path of the dragon gesture, and some of the dragonoids strewn throughout the area are more developed with longer tails resembling what oceiros had become if they weren't fossilized. People speculated oceiros used ocelot as a way to gain power (albeit insignificant) the way some souls bosses do if they slay their counterpart (smough/ornstein, namelessking/king of the storm)but lost his wit to complete that process despite loosing a potential heir to replace lothric.

[@undeadunluck]

This is my favorite dark souls channel. Bro comes with the receipts

[@Richie_Godsil]

On my first playthrough of DS1 back in the day, after rescuing Logan from the Archives and chatting with him, I was gearing up to go fight Seath again. He ends the conversation with "and the secret to Seath's immortality..." I audibly went, "What's that, mate?!" He saved me from getting sent back to curse prison and I'm always keen on rescuing him, even if I'm not running a magic build. I'm sad he loses his mind in the pursuit of knowledge but he hollows pursuing what he loves, I guess: No happy endings in Dark Souls 🫣

[@SassyTheSasquatch96]

Just what i needed. I play a giant dad build in pvp on elden ring pc and this keeps me going against all the bs meta.

[@enduresurvive3958]

The Dark souls lore is Hawkshaws best work what a great detective. Hope he does one on Dark Sun Gwyndolin with links to Dark souls 3 as prince lothric has same voice actor and I would like more info and how and why Aldrich ate him.

[@nawafxgames746]

I have a very fitting saying to this story “ when something goes over it limits it goes against its user” it usually much smaller but what i got

[@Joe_Himself]

You know what they say about dudes with big hats 😳

[@WeWillAlwaysHaveVALIS]

Big ears.

[@Jormungandr633]

Like Odin who cast away his eye for knowledge and with it his wisdom and perception

[@jarosawerdanowski4295]

Respect for using Gothic music

[@Jormungandr633]

He made one key mistake. The library was not full of wisdom no. There was no wisdom to be seen from there. Only blind intellect. And that is not wise

[@onesinglepringle9279]

Succinct and insightful, these are the comments worth combing through Dark Souls comment sections for. Like finding a Large Soul of a Seasoned Warrior…

[@alexsheperd2060]

I always thought that Logan mumbled “I can’t remember their death….the undead” like he was suddenly snapped to the thought that he doesn’t remember if his student/friend is even alive at that point and just keeps trying to convince himself that he does know but he ends up convincing himself of the wrong memory and fully commits to trying to become a dragon. But in the end he’s just a imitation of a scaleless dragon

[@Pygmy_Warrior]

Sometimes it feels I have gone mad from too many wiki's. Your work is appreciated.

[@renatoramos8834]

Experiment number 69: Getting naked doesn't do shit for my magic but let's me roll faster.

[@stormssc]

I really appreciate those videos for not having any sponsor plugs.

[@StarManMatt1]

He does have a big hat, I suppose.

[@thedeadlygames9163]

Fuck yes, early to the video from my favourite lore boi on KZbin!

[@DAKODAKBLACK]

You are the only reason I can fall asleep

[@gamerFreak0623]

I can't sleep cuz I binge these videos

[@hardcorex12345]

gothic soundtrack hit me at 16;20

[@ladyfox6705]

Lovely to be watching this at 5.30am with my big mug of tea 🙂 I definitely am in line with Big-Hat Logan when it comes to other people (good ol' Miyazaki-San!) Dark Souls is such a special game ❤

[@escapemenot5860]

Always happy to see some older DS lore

[@Bingus9900]

Fantastic video. I love that these games spur people to just deep dive into them. Theres always so much beneath the surface in FromSoft games

[@gummo9799]

Your dark souls 1 content is always the best IMO love it

[@dragosvizireanu5154]

I love the fact that you used the music from Gothic 2, maybe you could make a few videos about Gothic lore?

[@robertopetralito3268]

Oooh new video, I love it. A question, do you pick the music on your videos from a list or choose it yourself? Asking 'cause hearing Gothic's 2 music in the first minutes take me on a nostalgia trip and I'm curious if you played it too

[@Hawkshaw]

I haven't finished Gothic 2 yet, but I hand pick the soundtrack!

[@robertopetralito3268]

@@Hawkshaw neat! Give it a try if you can, I think you'll love the atmosphere

[@galahad7024]

HAWKSHAW UPLOAD LETS GOOOOO

[@Reliken]

Great choice with the Firewatch music! An underrated OST.

[@mangoman1866]

There's something about the voice actors in DS1, and their suspicious laughter

[@anibalgonzalez7990]

I love this character!

[@nemesisundead83]

He's so iconic to me I don't even know his name for me its only Big Hat

[@thedukeofchutney468]

It's always a good day when Hackshaw posts! As a side note have you ever thought of doing a video of parallels and references to other fromsoft games within each other?

[@HoiPolloiNtertains]

Love your videos about the lore! Keep it up. Always eager for your next video.

[@JK-zd4qu]

At the end he speaks like Ozzy. Highest level of knowledge!

[@kazenriq]

Bro your videos are GOLD for Souls-head like us. TYVM. Praise the Sun.

[@scoobertdoobert6543]

YOOOOO HAWKSHAWS BACK TO LORDRAN!!!!!

[@3lithepunk]

See you upload a new video is a depression killer, thank you

[@paoloscavalcacinghie428]

00:14 Oh, he got deeper indeed! Mainly into Gwynevere "lore"!

[@TheHogfatherInvades]

The hat of all time!

[@Oakshield2]

So cool that you haven't abandoned DS.

[@zakiak6774]

i think that logan striped his robbe off is not simply an attempt to be like seath but trrying to copy him in everything evenw in being scaleless

[@CountPatchy]

I'm so stoked to see this. Elden ring is a fine enough game but Dark Souls lore is just more interesting to me.

[@brutusmagnuson315]

It’s weird Miyazaki would comment that. Logan seems to like people; he just seems to avoid anything unnecessary that could distract him from his research

[@mitchelllayton3264]

Im always game for a lore video keep it up lads

[@MagaldiMateus]

9/10 boys that chose magic do it for the Big Hat opportunities.

[@SHODAN-TriOptimum]

Babe wake up. The best dark souls lore channel is uploading again

[@DangStank]

Perhaps he simply had to embody a scaleless dragon to invent the white dragon breath. And therefor had to shed his own “scales”

[@AH-vm8yo]

Damn logan is cheeked up.

[@aidengracey1267]

Like to think he was driven mad with obsession for knowledge, ironically the thing he had above his peers. It was when he got to the Dukes archives and faced with so much information to work through beyond his intellect or comprehension, he started to question all he knew. Instead of natural progression the indulgence of a different view took over. From being a master of his craft too second of timeless knowledge, his humble nature eroded chasing something of higher power till consumed.

[@albertolocoo3936]

love the gothic music so much

[@mrtoxicwasteland]

I've waited so long. Always a pog moment seeing hawkshaw uploaded

[@core-nix1885]

13:30 TRUTH [O] is a metaphor for Nothingness. As opposed to FALSEHOOD [X]; a metaphor for Existence. "Prove you must, that the truth becomes you." "They were strong but they saw not the truth." (Kaathe) "Men are props on the stage of life, and no matter how tender, how exquisite... A LIE WILL REMAIN A LIE!" (Aldia)

[@Okkusen]

These avatar, tsungi horn ....is fitting quite well into dark souls😁

[@Issengan]

i hope that one day, i can escape from a mere level three lore studier into the level ten lore master like you and vaati...

[@eclipsesdawn]

Apart from your beautiful voice talking about Ol' Big Hat Logan, I must praise your choice of music, with Firewatch being a game i would think Logan would play to free his mind😅