Shabriri is actually a thing | Elden Ring Archaeology Ep. 17

Elden Ring Lore. The Three Fingers and its Flame of Frenzy are some of the most mysterious forces in the Lands Between. Join us for Part I of our investigation into the Flame of Frenzy, as we uncover the real world inspirations of Shabriri and frenzied eyes, and explore the story of Hyetta, Vyke, and Shabriri Grapes.
#eldenring #eldenringlore #shabriri #tarnishedarchaeologist
Donate to Carter Center to End River Blindness For Good
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Gameplay footage/music credit: Elden Ring, Bandai Namco and FromSoftware.
Music:
- Song of Despair: recomposed by Alex Roe
Check out this awesome musician's channel:
/ @alex-roe
- All other music from Elden Ring OST
Video
Guide Dogs: Blindness induced Hallucinations: Living with Charles Bonnet Syndrome
• Living with Charles Bo...
Sightsavers: Did you know these five things about River Blindness?
• Did you know these 5 t...
Al Jazeera English: The Fly Catchers Fighting River Blindness
• The Fly Catchers fight...
The Infographics Show: Why Do Some People Remove Their Own Eyes?
• Why Do Some People Rem...
Self-enucleation references:
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22373...
www.buzzfeednews.com/article/...
River blindness references:
www.cnn.com/2013/02/02/health...
Donate to Carter Center to End River Blindness For good
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Contents of the Video
----------------------------------
0:00 Intro
0:45 Flame of Frenzy: The Real Shabriri
2:00 Chapter 1: Shabriri the Parasite
5:50 Chapter 2: What Do You See?
11:54 Chapter 3: A Cure For Madness
17:24: Conclusion

[@dzvw8840]

In one of Yura's cut dialogue, he says that "I'm running out of time. The worm-like writhing that has long plagued the back of my eyes is spreading ..to my brain ..and heart". This is presumably before he dies and Shabriri takes over his corpse. So you're very accurate in relating frenzy to be river blindness.

[@tarnishedarchaeologist]

Didn’t know that, but luckily the clues left in game still got us there! Thanks.

[@wallyslow]

is Hayetta the fingermaiden that Vyke didn't want to burn? this would be such a 'back-stab' , Vyke saves her , then himself and thus Hyetta sets you on the path of the frezy flame...

[@hydrophobia936]

​@@wallyslowno his finger maiden is the corpse you get the blood from in Varre's questline.

[@fedorkochemasov4533]

​@@hydrophobia936you mean the corpsevin the church of inhibition? Because there are multiple maidens for varre quest

[@johnokazaki7967]

@@wallyslow Hayetta is the girl from the bridge of sacrifice.

[@calebgriffin4214]

I’d also note that Oedipus used what is basically a needle to gouge out his own eyes, tying back in to the cure for frenzy

[@AC-hj9tv]

Whoa

[@jacquiecotillard9699]

Because he was manipulated by the gods and fate!

[@AC-hj9tv]

@@jacquiecotillard9699 dang

[@ProtoIndoEuropean88]

@@jacquiecotillard9699 Wrong. He did this to atone for his own sins.

[@jackreacher7495]

I've always loved how the spells of Fromsoft games are manifestations of emotions or struggles, in spell form. Frenzied Burst, being dropped near Vyke and only ever used by him, is a very telling piece of his struggle: "In times past, every single person who attempted to control the flame of frenzy succumbed to madness after a desperate internal struggle. This incantation is testament to a meager victory." Not just any meager victory, "a" meager victory - a singular battle that was won, and it had to have been Vyke's. Moreover, Vyke didn't completely succumb to madness; he removed the Frenzied Flame from himself by gouging out his eye. What's also interesting is both the picture and animation suggests that Frenzied Burst comes out of one eye - further emphasizing that perhaps this Incantation manifested as a result of Vyke's victory in resisting madness. I wonder if it happened when his Finger Maiden killed herself. Her position doesn't seem to entail violence, and the village we find them in suggests that the people within it WANTED Vyke to become the Lord of Frenzied Flame. But Melina's dialogue emphasizes how awful of a path this is, and Vyke did it to save her - ergo, by killing herself, it was likely the inciting incident that made Vyke realize how misguided he was. Then and there, he removes the Flame of Frenzy - the lingering traces of that spirit devoted to its initial reason for being, which is protecting his Finger Maiden. Fucking love this game, man.

[@swordierre9341]

I had always wondered about that line, but now in context it makes so much sense. Great catch.

[@neelratha6461]

I love this idea! It seems really probable. I never put together why one of two dead finger maidens in the game was at that specific church (Church of Inhibition!). If it's Vyke's maiden, he would have struggled to inhibit his flame after seeing that she was dead. It would also mean that the two maidens we see in game were yours at the chapel of anticipation and Vyke's, corresponding to the two most worthy Tarnished

[@adamblue2980]

@@neelratha6461 I really can't believe that now, finally a year after release, folks like TA are leading the charge in piecing together this vast, dense, interwoven lore that relies so heavily on context and interpretation. I love it, and now that we're getting the DLC, often the best part of their works. I'm so excited!

[@quint3ssent1a]

In DS1 Pursuers spell is said to be a manifestation of affection... that's why it PURSUES you.

[@Majinnightwalker]

This is why I love fromsoft games. you guys coming up with theory’s and pondering myself love you guys lol

[@Er404ChannelNotFound]

Regarding eyes I'm still convinced Marika and Radagon both lack eyes or lost them when they were "chosen". The Scarseal and Soreseal items very intently look like eyes which gives me the impression they had to sacrifice their literal eyes much the same way Odin does in Norse mythology.

[@schnoz2372]

True and the seals each have runes that suggest these two were in every way opposites of each other, on top of being possibly the plucked eyes of the gods.

[@nightscout9979]

Radagon is depicted with his eyes in paintings within the Roundtable Hold though. He's also wearing the Elden Lord crown in these paintings, so they don't date from his time in Liurnia.

[@jeambeam3173]

Couldn't that just be punishment for what they did

[@eldenringpvpenthusiast1710]

I believe those are their actual eyes, I just get confused when I think about 4 eyes coming from the same person. Maby they had one of each eye. Since you cant equipt both maby the 2 of the same seals represent the same eye but further cursed or burdened by faith?

[@Er404ChannelNotFound]

@@eldenringpvpenthusiast1710 The implication of their bedchamber conversation I feel is they were once separate as Radagon was not a God by that point and as it was after he was chosen that his eyes had to be taken out, carved by the rune symbol. Also the reason why the effectiveness of the scarseal and soreseal are imbalanced like that I feel is because each eye was taken out at a different point during ascension to Godhood..

[@skiddytrippy7189]

I think another really important factor in Vyke's "cure" of his madness is that to truly get the full embrace of the three finger you must enter the chamber without anything on you, but Vyke did not buy it all the way through, having been tricked into this path not out of the firm belief that life is only pain but exactly because he thinks his maiden should have a better life, to continue living, thus when he met the three fingers in the chamber he wore his armor instead of being naked the prints were left on his armor and not seared into his fleshed completely, which would allow him to just gouge his eye out instead of having to use the combined power of miquella's needle, malenia;s bloom, and Farum Azula's eternal storm to exorcise it.

[@lifehacks2985]

Cheers !

[@matthewa.seibert1809]

In fact, the only part of Vyke's body the Three Fingers would have been able to touch would have been his left eye through the eye slit in his helmet. Everything else was covered by his armor. (I'm assuming left, because that's the side of his helmet that's melted from the Fingers' touch.)

[@leohirtsche8341]

Vyke did not have a three-finger-maiden who told him to go in wearing nothing. Adittionally the three fingers are still there, when we met them, but gone after touching us. So them still being there does mean he did not ... consum .. them, when he was touched. His inherence of the flame is defintly different from ours.

[@jojipoji2322]

omfg

[@MrYadaization]

an interesting detail is that the burns on his armour would indicate he was grabbed from behind, unlike the player

[@WanderedIn]

For those asking how Vyke could cure himself, he did not inherit the flame entirely - he did not go unclothed to the Three Fingers. His fingerprint armor is melted and burnt, while the Tarnished of No Renown must approach the Three Fingers unclothed.

[@rebeccasheng620]

Why could he enter the chamber with clothes on though?

[@Jaycation1]

@@rebeccasheng620 He's shy.

[@gorrammudder1600]

​@@Jaycation1 He has a Vicro dong...I.... I'll just see myself out.

[@Gam3r979]

@@rebeccasheng620 Perhaps it is because Vyke first inherited the flame partially that the three fingers now lock the door to anyone not ready to fully inherit its vision

[@nouhorni3229]

We might need to make a distinction between the god of frenzied flame and the fingers. The god now makes sure the fingers can't mess up again, because frankly they should have known.

[@Karanagi]

Shabriri's Woe also mentioned the gouging of eyes, though in Shabriri's case it seems to have been done to him by someone else for the crime of slander, after which the flame of frenzy came to dwell in the empty sockets. This also overlaps with Briars of Punishment, stating the guilty had their eyes gouged out by thorns. Living in eternal darkness, they discovered the blood star. I'm not entirely sure how to unify these two descriptions, but it's clear the theme of eyes is a very important one in Elden Ring.

[@warcoder]

There's some weird connection between the formless mother (the blood star, I'm sure) and the three fingers. It all might be just a coincidence, here are some "connections" I found: - The number Three: The three fingers, Mohg's trident which it is also the sigil of the blood flame incantations. Usually, numbers have some symbolism and I think it's quite curious that these two outer gods share the same number. - It is said that Mohg discovered the formless mother deep underground and the deepest part of the sewers is where the three fingers are located. What if what he found down there is actually the frenzied flame? Maybe it works different with the cursed blood of the omens. - Sewer Mohg is protecting the entrance to the three fingers. According to one of Zullie's videos, that version of Mohg was planned to be there even before the Lord of Blood fight and he even has his own version of the soundtrack. - Gideon calls Mohg a lunatic when we tell him about the lord of blood location. - There's your observation about the parallels between the guilty who found the blood star in their blindness and Shabriri's punishment for commiting slander. Maybe these connections lack meaning in the current game, but I have a hunch that they could've been related at some point in the development.

[@SaHaRaSquad]

@@warcoder I think it could be explained by the sewers being a pretty dark place, causing a different form of (temporary) blindness which could cause hallucinations/visions just like with Hyetta and the frenzy flame. As the formless mother does not have a visible body that might be the way to discover her as well. Mohgwyn Palace is underground too, sharing the fake night sky with Nokron. Perhaps the common theme of twin characters extends to the Outer Gods, after all there seems to be a distinction between Rennala's full moon (aka a moon reflecting sunlight) and Ranni's dark moon. And Mohg's magic spells are not just blood related but literally have "bloodflame" in the name.

[@simonwahlen7150]

While the formless mother and the frenzied flame could both have 3 as a holy number that could just mean that both are in oposition to the greater wills holy number of 2. I think the motives of the formless mother and the frenzied flame seems to contradict. The mother seems to welcome and spread curses and act as a refuge for outcast people seeking a place to belong while the flame seems to act on despair and hatred against the world and seek to destroy it. It could mean that both symbolise 2 different responses to be deemed heretical and buried (literally and figuratively) by the golden order either you create a community of outcasts and seek hope even if none is available or you give in to despair and try to burn it all down.

[@Primalintent]

Eyes are how we perceive light and the "holy" energy of the Solar/Tree cult of the Greater Will is a golden light. The Full Moon is a weaker rival to the Greater Will and is also an entity that creates a silver-blue light. Bringing them into conflict. When you gouge one's eyes as a punishment, they lose the ability to see the light of the GW, they cannot see its Grace. Their eyes will not tint gold, ever. The Formless Mother and Blood Star are darker entities, the FM being invisible and the BS being the weakest form of light, red light. And Ranni's Dark Moon will render humanity mournful and lonely because they cannot see, they have no guidance, and will have to strive to make the world their own without godly intervention. The Flame of Frenzy, on the other hand, is a volatile burning light which seems to be drowned out by the great light of the Greater Will. When one sees the Flame it burns the eye until that is all they can see. So blindness is connected to a lack of the influence of the Greater Will because the Grace of Gold and other expressions of its power are visual because of its connection to Light. To vision.

[@jackweaver1846]

On the note of consumable Grace representing eyes: the skulls that can be broken open to receive golden runes have glowing eyes. The skulls without glowing eyes do not drop runes when broken. It seems that the eyes themselves are what we are picking up…

[@maximedaunis8292]

Madman's knowledge

[@frazfrazfrazfraz]

It's possible, but you also have to consider alluring skulls in Dark Souls which had "glowing eyes" as well. It seems that souls (and presumably runes) are often attracted to the skull, where the brain is/was. It could just be the eye sockets glowing from the light inside the skull, not us picking up the eyes themsleves.

[@DigitalEWhore]

​@@frazfrazfrazfrazthe description of the alluring skull in ds3 says "A skull resplendent in the scent of souls. Prepared by evangelists of the Cathedral of the Deep. Throw to shatter, spreading souls which attract enemies. Not effective for all foes." It actually directly mentions that the skulls contain souls

[@frazfrazfrazfraz]

@@DigitalEWhore yeah I know, that's what I was referring to. I guess I just implied too much I think ds1 or ds2 even mentions outright that souls are attracted to the seat of the brain, that's what I was thinking of when I wrote this

[@Burblekut]

​@frazfrazfrazfraz yeah would make sense given how runes are souls that came from the erdtree

[@wakashirimi9762]

Hands down the most insightful Elden ring content on the internet

[@justin8865]

Facts

[@jojipoji2322]

Face

[@slh8505]

Is that a bloodborne reference?

[@wakashirimi9762]

@@slh8505 it is if you want it to be lol

[@terriblepie4291]

the holy trio of vaati, quelaag and this channel!

[@lysandermakhno5778]

I’m of the opinion that Vyke never truly accepted the flame, due to how his armor is burnt. We see our tarnished walking unclothed into the embrace of the fingers. Vyke, on the other hand, not only did not remove his armor, but was grasped from behind. Only fingerprints show on his front of his chest and side of his helm, as though the fingers clawed at him as he walked away.

[@RealCutieMutie]

My head cannon now is that: Vyke follow the frenzy path to save his maiden, as he stares at the door of the three fingers he realized it was a mistake but as he gave it his back to leave the three fingers lunge at him, burning and marking him by force. As a punishment for trying to leave, the frenzy flame made Vyke kill his maiden but in doing so Vyke managed to break free from the influence, even if for just a second, and in that second he rip out the eye touched by the madness becoming free from the influence of the frenzy god. Vyke then flee to the north, eventually locking himself in a evergaol, perhaps in fear of losing himself again or in guilty of what he did. Meanwhile in the church of inhibition, his maiden still sit in place, but the eye that once belonged to Vyke sprout into a vengeful spirit that attack anyone that come close, either for self preservation or maybe to protect his maiden still.

[@velvetisis]

It's also interesting to note that sometimes basic enemies have 4 times the amount of runes when killed--denoted by glowing golden eyes.

[@min24434]

Yeah, I was happy to see Albiniraurics with glowing eyes in Mohg's area. So when basic enemies' eyes are glowing it means they can see the guidance of grace?

[@velvetisis]

@min24434 Maybe, it's hard to say :/ I doubt there's any adjustments to their AI to reflect it, but I'd say it's certainly a fair assumption for head canon at least.

[@aldousboal4920]

I thought the glowing eyes represented Frenzied Flame

[@velvetisis]

@@aldousboal4920 There's two types of glowing eyes in enemies. There's a fiery yellow burning for enemies under the thrall of the frenzied flame, but there's also a less intense glow that means the enemies will drop extra runes. If you're out and about and find a single, glowing-eyed enemy in an area that's not full of frenzied enemies normally, it'll be the latter.

[@Agent_Funk]

A detail I noticed last time I played was in the lead up to the three fingers when we see all the merchants the few walking around make a clicking sound. This is a skill some blind people develop as a form of echo location, being able to tell the distance and even type of object in front of them. I think they tried gouging out their eyes but it didn't work out so well.

[@cosmosofinfinity]

Oh my god... I have to listen for that myself, that is just too mindblowing of a detail

[@spiderwebb222]

Or it could even be that the madness takes over their vision entirely, rendering them effectively blind. It makes sense that the only ones to survive in the catacombs with that massive drop would be the ones who learned how to echo-locate.

[@Dart572]

I wonder if it's more accurate to sat that Vyke's eye invades us, rather than Vyke himself? We get his Frenzy-touched spear, and we get his eye, upon defeating him by the church. Maybe that is where he ripped out his eye and discarded it, only for it to manifest a phantom of him, still crazed by the Frenzied Flame. I also think it's possible Melina is the only who put him in the Evergaol, and possibly the one who ripped out his eye, remember she is "burnt and bodiless" and also her reaction to the Frenzied Flame ending suggests she may try to hunt any would-be lords of the Frenzied Flame.

[@Poleit317]

She's burned because she probably is the Gloam Eyed Queen

[@Dart572]

@@Poleit317 I know that's a popular theory, but it's not one I am sold on. It honestly reminds me of how so many people thought that Gwyn's Firstborn HAD TO be a character that was in DS1. I personally think Melina is a former Black Knife Assassin, and her original role was to assassinate any emerging prospective Lords of Chaos. There's also reference to her being a "Kindling Maiden" or the person who game her her weapon being this Kindling Maiden. Lots of mystery around Melina, lots of different angles to look at.

[@leohirtsche8341]

I really like that idea. Imagining vyke ripping his eye out and wandering off "cured" but devastated is very touching. I always wondered if or how phantoms work with the lore. Most confusing imo is the dungeater who clearly is loked in the sewers and is also in tne roundtable hold as phantom. Your idea gives that a new touch. Especially with Edgar. If the Revenger edgar phantom is just the shabiri grape, that manifessts the phantom, then all the raw meat around him may be rest of his body, very fittin the discription of the raw meet dumpling-

[@Shmethan]

​@@leohirtsche8341 what always confuses me about phantoms is how killing the phantom effects the real person. Specifically with ensha, it seems like he literally dies just from being beaten once as a phantom, unless you're supposed to assume Gideon fires his ass for it. But dying as a phantom doesn't seem to do anything to the dung eater in particular, and Anastasia invades like four times and drops a different thing each time lol. Omg and the Millicent invader?!? I feel like that one falls more in line with your 'phantoms can be a metaphorical representation of part of someone's identity/an item' cuz the phantom has her arm somehow?!?!? And it doesn't invade after you give the real Millicent the needle so idk how the chronology of that works lol. Imo the things that should be giving the most lore about how phantoms work are the recusants and bloody finger factions but they sorta just skip over that mechanic haha

[@creditianistani6474]

in dark souls series you invade people with an eye item 🤔🤔

[@SmoughTown]

YOOOO Another TA video?! I'm ready to learn. Thanks again TA, you really are a vanguard in Elden Ring Lore

[@ATroubledMaker]

With TA, you, crunchy, and The Last Protagonist getting into this game has been exponentially rewarding for me, especially as an older female working in data research. Its been a delight and one day I would love to share my thoughts with any of you. Keep up the good work!

[@FloppeyPyro]

AGREED. Some of the best insights we get are from you two, so thanks to you as well. Can't wait to see how our understanding evolves further

[@SmoughTown]

@@ATroubledMaker Thank you so much! Really looking forward to you sharing your thoughts, so much to discuss!

[@SmoughTown]

@@FloppeyPyro My pleasure and thank you so much!

[@kalzero3319]

Smough my dude, this community has become infinitely more interesting thanks to dogged old schoolers like you and the insighful eye lined skull of the newcomer Tarnished Archeologist. As a lore enthusiast who has scoured the interwebs for understanding of these Fromsoft worlds, you all have my deepest gratitude.

[@Moss_and_Such]

Mad respect for the lady who tore out her eyes to save the world. Even though she was sloshed and out of her mind, she nonetheless did that for us. GGs

[@UltraStarWarsFanatic]

Brilliant video. I never considered the possibility that Vyke repented, but now that you mention it, there's really nobody who could have locked him away in the Mountaintops of the Giants other than himself. It does seem strange that Vyke was so "simply" able to overcome his affliction however. Sleep is treated as anathema to frenzy (especially in cut content), so I wonder if Vyke at some point came into contact with something related to St. Trina, but alas there's no evidence of any such thing.

[@WanderedIn]

He also didn’t fully inherit the flame - he wore his armor to meet the Fingers, and so his flesh was not seared as deeply as the Tarnished of No Renown.

[@MadAtreides1]

Honestly it could have been Ranni. We know she and Iji can inprinson people in evergaols. If that's true, maybe Vyke was also the prior owner of Torrent: Ranni mentioned she knew he and, should you attack her after a certain point in her quest, she mentions how she was failed by someone before you. Who knows.

[@UltraStarWarsFanatic]

@@MadAtreides1 There are no traces of Ranni north of Leyndell, the previous owner of Torrent looks to be Miquella given the DLC poster, there is no overlap between Ranni and Vyke's stories, and Ranni has no dialogue that matches what you described.

[@UltraStarWarsFanatic]

@@WanderedIn That's a good point about the armor. Wonder what the meaning of that is...

[@thibaultbouygues5907]

I just had a weird theory thanks to your last videos : What if the "visions" of the burning of the erdtree that led to people being banished were actually no visions? Maybe the tree was actually burning but most people couldn't see it because of their faith and the "ghost/golden tree" was hiding it ? And seeing the burning meant your faith wasn't strong enough ? That would explain the ashes in Leindel and why no one speaks of a previous burning...

[@Shmethan]

I like that idea! There's not too many other mentions if prophetic visions in game so maybe they were only deemed visions by those 'blinded' by grace.

[@ratking413]

I mean, since it's prophets that see the flame, I think it's supposed to mean that they see the future burning of the Erdtree caused by the player. Think about it: prophet prophesizes the burning of the Erdtree by the Flame of Ruin, tells people about it, people go "that can't happen, we defeated the fire giants and sealed away the Flame!" and then the prophet gets cast out for heresy.

[@Quasarii]

hmmm?🤨 when you think about it the dlc trailer shows a tree that looks burned. at least to me

[@Prometheus438YT]

This is so exiciting, the flame of frenzy is one of the things I really dont feel like I have a great grip on, but I am so damn enticed by it. Hyetta's dialogue at the end of her questline was such a bombshell... The Gnostic implication of the Monad (The One Great), and a faulty creator demiurge (Greater Will)... The physical universe as per the Greater Will is one of suffering and curses, and the supreme divinity of the upper world is eagerly awaiting to destroy the lower world, freeing humanity from the physical corruption and having them return to their celestial forms.

[@WanderedIn]

Well… I’d recommend including a certain Buddhist idea here as well. Existence is, inherently, something which causes certain forms of suffering. The Flame of Frenzy seeks to cure all suffering by wiping out all existence.

[@dlwf11111]

Genuinely think this is what they are going for, which makes the whole of it very tragic… just like our world

[@dlwf11111]

Perhaps it’s that philosophical relatability that always makes the narratives hit so hard

[@ahbooza]

I see it as one chooses life despite the suffering (two fingers), the other chooses death because of the suffering (three fingers). Both statements can be correct, and the arguments can continue until the world ends. The current dogma is the former, and ol’ Shabriri wants to change that.

[@lorddervish212quinterosara6]

If you want to learn more about the Frienzied flame, I recommend Ratatoskr's two videos about the topic and Hawkshaw's video about color in Elden Ring

[@Ell_Pacino]

I still get chills every time I hear The Song of Despair. Very aptly named, and perhaps the most horrific vision FromSoft has conjured of all their grim worlds and terrifying monsters

[@Galamoth06]

I love the detail in the Frenzied Flame ending that even the scorched walls of the capital bear the distinct smoldering fingerprints of the Three Fingers. I can picture the landscape just crawling with giant, eerie, burning hand-things, even if the lore doesn't really support that idea. I suppose the mini-Flame of Frenzy in the village of madness resembling the Eye of Sauron was meant to reinforce the connection between eyes and frenzy.

[@will2fite34]

going off of the idea of Vyke repenting, you Acquire Frenzied Burst from the same area as him and he himself uses the spell while he is Festering Fingerprint Vyke. Its item description states that it is a "testament to a meager victory" in attempting to control the flame. A meager victory is still a victory of some kind, and I believe the spell may even have its origin in his successful internal struggle to cast off the flame. His "victory" comes from avoiding becoming the lord of frenzy, but it is meager because it was only a matter of self control rather than mastering the flame itself.

[@thomasgiles2876]

I'm gonna pour myself a glass of Shabriri Vineyards Pinot and I'm going to savor this video

[@blacksunserpent]

Runes. Gouged eyes of frenzied. Grapes. Gouged eyes of people that have seen "blood star". Gideon Ofnir. And most important, never-blinking eyes of death everywhere in the lands between. So many blind/blinded characters. I'm sure there's even more that I missed. So, our eyes are yet to open? Or that time, a yet to close? Adding: Gold glows from eyes. Fell God one eye. Gloam-eyed queen. Melina closed eye. Rannis one eye closed. Gurranq beast eye. Giant eyes in the skulls of Astells or grown Star beasts. From coments: "Dynast" statue with one damaged, Morgoth and Mogh severed eyes, St. Trina (Miquella?) third eye.

[@leohirtsche8341]

Even the statue of the "Dynast" shows that he has lost one eye.

[@AmryL]

Even Blaidd seems to have something off about his left eye. He is always squinting with it.

[@miirshroom]

The Prisoner's mask also has the left eye forcibly covered. And from context of starting equipment, was studying Carian sorcery - the combination sorcery that places the moon equal to the stars. Perhaps significant and a clue to the crime they committed, if the left eye is also the one where the frenzy flame starts to spread from.

[@cross-eyedhollow]

And St Trina's odd central, singular eye! (Depicted on St Trina's Torch)

[@schnoz2372]

Morgott and mohg also each have one eye each, with omen horns having destroyed their other eye. And the tarnished player can see grace and the erdtree whereas those tarnished without grace cannot see either and cannot access the roundtable hold possibly

[@cloroxusthestainlessone4324]

Well, that started off horrifying

[@nohvis4435]

Melina also mentions: "This tiny golden aura is the grace of the Erdtree. This light once shone in the eyes of your Tarnished brethren. But now it is all that guides you. Or so I hear. The rays of grace, that guide you through your burden." I guess your eyes reflect the path you are walking on.

[@notspacekeeper]

There's a little bit of Tolkien influence going on here as well. Not to my recollection in LoTR, but in his other writings, the elves are not ever described as people who have pointy ears (that's a later invention). The one distinctive feature the elves from across the sea have, besides generally being taller than people, is their bright eyes (described as "burning" or "blazing"). Even those elves who have descended into fury and vengeance because of the oath, still have the light of another world in their eyes.

[@BigBadWolframio]

Those who saw the trees of Valinor (Telperion and Laurelin), such as Galadriel, still have their lights in their eyes, right? It kind of sounds like Grace. Light elves (those who saw the light of te trees) would ve those with Grace. Dark elves (those who never saw the light), the Tarnished. Interesting parallel.

[@LeiCal69]

The amount of care and thoughts fromsoft put into their stories is astounding, the kind of reference and details that most player will never notice, yet here we are, still dissecting the game a year after it's release.

[@saf01guy]

Every time you upload, I'm like, "there's no way he's gonna blow my mind again," and then you do. I would like to thank you for being the best Elden Ring content creator out there and always making my day!

[@UltravioletNomad]

Understanding the frenzy flame adds context to Ranni's explanation of her motivations. Initially it seems like the frenzy flame just allows the tranished to be the kindling in place of the maiden, but the trarnished doesnt burn away. Understanding that the "madness" of the frenzy flame is just a chance in perception of the world changes the situation. The frenzy flame serves as a substitute because its letting you see a world where the tree is already burning. And this is proved possible as Ranni's core conflict is the removing the forces of runes from the world, as she believes its created a world where perception changes the very fabric of the world. It also might finally give better credance to the concept that the Erdtree is a parasite of sorts. Except in this context, you might assume its infected the people as opposed to the literal tree itself.

[@fiddlenn]

MAY CHAOS TAKE THE COMMENTS SECTION

[@slappybigalow8971]

If you line up all the rune items and scroll through them, it looks like an MRI scan.

[@ThatCleadisGuy]

What if the real Shabriri were the friends we met along the way?

[@bobjim245]

One of them literally was 😂 rip yura

[@olivewooled1297]

Then I would have to kill/imprison all my friends.

[@metropolitan_aesthetic]

From which we gouge their eyes to get more runes

[@fezzes304]

More like the friends we melted along the way

[@john-paul3271]

Stupid. 😃

[@LimakPan]

The ephemeral nature of the tree suggests that you sacrifice your maiden to kill your faith and beliefs, and not to burn a literal tree. I like that notion, as it would suggest the Farum Azula to be some sort of introspection, an inner battle of ours. I just like that idea more than a random teleport to some apocalyptic nowhere.

[@Luaeria]

My heart is exploding!! New dlc announcement, your reaction and a new video from you all in a glorious flurry!!

[@flapjack3853]

Tbh the runes look more like embryo or cells undergoing mitosis than eyes. If you have every rune in your inventory looking at them in order makes this more noticeable

[@MiquellaTheUnannoyed]

TA, I feel like you have the strongest grasp on the lore of any ER content creator I’ve seen. Feels like you need a Masters in History, Archaeology and Botany to understand the full lore picture

[@TheUnfantasticMrT]

Miyazaki has a tendency to imply that whatever ending you choose, it won't matter, The cycle goes on I was wondering how that fits into Elden Ring Whatever you choose(well except for ranni's ending maybe?) it won't matter You just change how you see the world You can never fully comprehend the world around you so you can't change the nature of reality, just how you choose to perceive it His games are so poetic and exquisitely designed that they make me wanna cry The sheer amount of details and philosophies put into them is just mind boggling

[@NoisieBastrdd]

yay! more documentary from the lands between! this man makes it feel like a real place, its unbelievable

[@dylanfritts8]

Unironically the best lore vid, and one of my favorite channels on the whole of KZbin. I never comment on vids, but you deserve this one. Thanks for your excellent work TA

[@havi2000]

The archivist of lore hath dropped a new video. praise be

[@berylman]

Wow! Your videos are so incredibly well done. The transition from the disease of river blindness to Shabriri was revelatory. Pure genius amigo

[@tarnishedarchaeologist]

Thanks!

[@alastairhenry9889]

As a psychologist, loved the Freud shade

[@rabbidbunnyz]

So excited for you to get into the philosophical origins of this ending! My favorite alongside the Age of Stars

[@FeartheOldGods]

This was actually pretty awesome to learn about. Well done 👏

[@tarnishedarchaeologist]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@j_orpz]

Love your videos, this is so fascinating how almost all of the layers are inspired by real-world events, history and phenomena!

[@ight001]

Almost every episode blows my mind with the level of research you do, keep up the good work

[@chandusaha4864]

your videos are awesome, you are the best elden ring lore channel out here. as for Vyke being the only other person who was in the possession of 2 great runes, may not be correct, because Bernahl's beast champion armor states that - "Beasts are drawn to champions, and to lords. And this armor befits a champion worthy of becoming a lord. And that is what Bernahl was. Until his maiden threw herself into the fire." this may imply he was closer to reaching farum azula ( the path of destined death ), until his finger maiden died by throwing herself in the flame of ruin, and nothing ever happened. this led to him becoming a recusant forsaking the grace of gold

[@Buzz_Killington]

The glowing gold eyes in enemies that drop more runes makes more sense now. It's not only a good visual indication in game for an enemy that drops more runes but makes sense lore wise as well.

[@hankskorpio5857]

This channel is exactly what ive been looking for on youtube. I love history and science vids and I love Fromsoft lore. I just simply could not be more pleased. Thanks man 👍

[@jaxdakid5598]

you constantly blow me away man. such great videos. thank you so much.

[@Bunnybry]

This is honestly one of the best lore channels. I hope you know you blow my mind with every new video and I learn a bunch. Thank you!

[@SithMirth]

Man. These essays are so good and insightful. I've been thinking about starting the game fresh since hearing of the DLC. But these essays always make me want to return to the game.

[@Mrweedro]

This is one of the most comprehensive and well thought out videos I’ve ever seen on KZbin. Good shit man. Rly enjoyed this watch.

[@FunkyDeleriousPriest]

One of my favorite topics in this game. Thank you Tarnished Archaeologist.

[@grymmjack]

Awesome. Your videos are very well done and make a lot of sense. Great voicing, pacing, etc. ❤

[@ipoopmuffins]

awesome. the flame of frenzy stuff is the most interesting to me, glad to see you making vids on it.

[@SeanSmith-gm3ov]

I get super excited every time i see you dropped a video!

[@JaredClaunch]

I find myself so excited every time you upload

[@alliesotherness9456]

You sir are a master of your craft. Thank you yet again

[@linkypete]

Fastest click in the west

[@tripgiannini1892]

Travel east, ye tarnished, and test thy click in new lands.

[@AiTenchi]

@@tripgiannini1892 Pray thee tell me what is the fastest of such routes? For thy comment doth attract mine interest and I shall seek its purpose

[@rodolphofreire8311]

Man, this is pure gold, what a content ! This fits hard with the ziostorm theory of funghi, amazing !!

[@thoridannn]

Ive been watching through all your videos and your content is top notch. The combination of lore and real world anthropology/archaeology is intriguing. I’m surprised you don’t have a much higher following so far with how interesting your videos are.

[@younggod5230]

HOOOOOLY SHIT! The eye-rune connection is so brilliant. Only, what always bothered me is: people seem to miss that this is exactly what happens with souls in Dark Souls as well. Who is the character that has lived the longest? Arguably the most powerful being with the most powerful soul? It's Gael. Look at Gaels soul icon. A bunch of white stuff, like the regular soul icons, but oh, what is that in the middle? The accumulation of souls in undead happens with the primary goal of recreating the humanity that was lost. Literally. The most powerful being, with the most powerful soul, and all of the white souls are just there to form a barrier for the shape of humanity.

[@bobjim245]

Dude this video is honestly top tier, hope it blows up appropriately man!

[@johntree4378]

I couldn't tell from the video footage, but if Vyke has the mark of the Three Fingers on his armor in the Evergaol, then yes that's post-Frenzied Flame Vyke.

[@MutantHeadcrab]

I am reminded of the old saying, "the eyes are the window to the soul."

[@mlmii1933]

Minor quibble, the Tarnished of No Renown never loses the "Guidance of Grace" ... even when working with Ranni, a traitor to the Greater Will or the Three Fingers, who wants to save the world from all pain by burning it. So what exactly is Grace? It can't be tied to either the Greater Will or the Erd Tree itself as the Tarnished should lose it if following two out of three endings.

[@13mrservon]

Well damn. I came here for another fun lore, good time video and instead I got an incredible educational Elden Ring experience. Beautifully executed, Mr Tarnished. Well done, sir. Well done 👏 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏💪

[@xfinalchapterx]

this channel continously blows my mind with how deep and well thought out this whole story really is. you doing a great job sir and i am all here for it.

[@hawkwood9257]

I LIVE FOR YOUR LORE VIDEOS, THANK YOU!

[@strawberrypimp1386]

GOT DAMM I love these I feel like you do a great job of making these educational instead of just about video game lore

[@chandusaha4864]

You are by far the best elden ring lore channel out there, please never stop making such fantastic videos. Also , can you please shed some light on the giant petrified skulls found in caelid , forbidden lands and the really big petrified skeleton near giant's grave post.

[@tarnishedarchaeologist]

We’re working on that story currently, actually. Hopefully have a video out in a few weeks.

[@YeetmoSwaggins]

Oh you're cooking bro. Keep em coming this is awesome man.

[@harlequinfan]

I absolutely adored the frenzied questline, can't wait for part two.

[@jaredcollins85]

I decided to save Melina by inheriting the frenzied flame then using Miquella's needle to expel it. She still won't talk to me anymore, but it is often that our greatest sacrifices go unnoticed.

[@finallyanime]

I think this is one of my favourite videos on Elden ring hands down. Like damn…

[@Senmetsu]

Hell yes I've been waiting for this one!

[@Intentionallyfrogged]

great video as always tarnished archeologist!!

[@Landricities]

This has quite honestly just provided me more reason to believe in an extensive theory I have about the recent DLC photo and some other NPCs. What you've pointed out regarding Vyke repenting was so good and the detail I didn't know I needed to hear haha. Great work as always man!

[@min24434]

What's your theory? Lay it out then.

[@Lee-km7qq]

The one theory the DLC poster gave me is that, Radagon and Marika never actually shared a body, but they simply exist in two different planes at the same time. While Marika is out, Radagon is in Miquella's world. That would explain how he and Miquella had such a close relationship even though Miquella was asleep.

[@Landricities]

@@Lee-km7qq my only issue with your proposition is that Miquella, as far as I'm aware, isn't asleep during the periods in which he and Radagon develop Golden Order incantations, and I don't recall any mention wherein Miquella definitively interacted with Radagon after he entered his slumber. I personally think it's more likely that Radagon is a Golden Order or Two Fingers take on Mimic Tear. It would explain his Sudden Appearance, which I'm pretty sure is at least after the defeat of the Fire Giants, something about them was involved in his conception at the very least, which may have something to do with the Amber Egg which if you zoom into using game commands you can see locks of hair the same color as Radagon's, though they can also be Ranni's original hair color as evidence by what remains on her original body's scalp.

[@Landricities]

@@min24434 it's quite extensive and I don't have sufficient time to lay out every single bit of support or conjecture I have but I'll make due- I think the DLC photo is of a Spirit World, perhaps one that loosely parallels The Lands Between much like the hunter's nightmare wherein Miquella possibly transcended to, likely through their St. Trina powers; I would assume as a means of discarding his Empyrean flesh/Helping Godwyn/helping Malenia. Part of why I think it's a spirit realm is because of the field (think the spirit world in Gladiator/Moon Knight/AC: Origins etc. and the spectral graves, as well as the presence of Torrent: perhaps it's his real body and where we call him from. The thing that really clicked in my head from watching this video is Eleonora.I always found it strange that she is one of those NPCs who invades us but we do not find her original body....unlike what TA has demonstrated regarding Vyke. Vyke drops his own eye(a hint at his past actions) and imprisons himself in an EG which seems to displace him from further FF/Outer God reach. I'm wondering if such a case is similar for Eleonora, as she drops the Purifying Crystal Tear...it seems she made her own efforts to rid herself OR perhaps was aided in the creation of that tear by someone in the same location she resides in. I'm not quite sure, it's possible she gathered sacred tears which "were distributed in all lands" until they manifested into the crystal tear with her desired purpose. Lastly, on the note of this being the land of Reed's/spirit realm that LOOSELY parallels the Lands Between, that would explain why the presence of blood seems to be stronger in select areas, after all where else might this blood be spilling out from? This would also explain why Eleonora only invades us there, why Yura would go there, and why he speaks out to her before she even invades, as if he's confident she can hear his dying words. There's more support to this that I can offer but this is a KZbin comment haha. If you want, I'm down to exchange your preferred Social (Discord perhaps?) and provide additional supporting ideas there. I just want to add, there are instances in the game that I think hint at the Land of Reeds being connected with spirits as well though such hints are sparse from what I can recall. I hope this was at least somewhat interesting, cheers!

[@rozu7772]

​@@Landricities Zullie debunked the hair in the Egg theory. The hair belongs to baby/fetus versions of the children Renalla spawns that were supposed to be in the Egg (the hair is actually black as well, the lighting of the Egg makes them look red). The developers had to remove the babies from inside the Egg for whatever reason but missed that bit of hair.

[@TkKronic]

Going off your runes being like eyes... makes sense why the ones who are worth more runes have really bright glowing eyes runes or souls must come from the eyes ur a genius man nice job

[@TeddyPicker191]

I can’t get enough of this channel. Probably my favorite yt creator right now

[@brothermatatoe]

Beautifully done brother. Your vids are super addictive!

[@SAUCE2001]

I never really extrapolated on the implications of how not everyone sees the guidance and grace as you do in the video. Considering that not everyone sees the massive erdtree at the center of the capital, really puts a different perspective to things. I've never been a religious person, yet in fantasy and such, I can get behind these deities and gods and such, because they are front and center. They are RIGHT in front of you, so it'd actually be more absurd (within those worlds) for someone to just deny their existence. But with how you explained, not everyone being able to see the erdtree like we do, it's actually a really cool depiction of faith. For my 100 or so hours that I played Elden Ring, I never questioned the existence of the erdtree, for visually, it was right there. All really cool stuff, and the real world applications of what inspired them in the creation of the frenzied flame is really quite crazy. Really cool stuff!

[@XeLL1989]

Damn that was suprisingly stimulating. Awesome research🔥

[@tarnishedarchaeologist]

Thanks!

[@MelonWyvern]

Another excellent video! Great work ^^

[@icetide9411]

The biggest shame is that if you use yourself as kindling but then remove the flame of frenzy with Miquella's Needle, Melana doesn't have anything to say to you, she never reappears. I would've loved if we got some little piece of dialogue for that

[@kevinduran6596]

love the idea behind the channel, very clever.

[@joshseveck5040]

Early Archaeologist video!!! It’s gonna be a good day 😊

[@user-vn9pt5bi5g]

i love the video its teh best elden ring lore channel, cacnt wait to see the next video

[@Belial11th]

Very well put together, kudos

[@DIABETOR]

This guy’s videos are just getting better and better

[@vigneshmoorthie922]

I eagerly await all your videos.

[@jacobstringer5170]

Amazing content Tarnished, wish I wouldve came across these videos earlier

[@PineappleBro99]

Now this, this is what I needed today

[@ronniebattle6756]

You went so deeeeeep on this. Thanks alot.

[@TehspaceLulz]

If removing the eyes cures frenzy, then wouldn't that imply plenty of the people involved with Hyetta's path cured themselves?

[@theawickward2255]

Probably not; the description of Frenzied Burst says that nobody previously was able to resist the flame of frenzy for long. Vyke probably just broke the rules from sheer stubbornness and having nothing else to do in his Evergaol.

[@federicoforgione]

A gnoseological bomb as Always, any other words would be useless to describe the utter beauty of your research

[@zoiwill123]

You got my sub with this video, it is amazing!

[@tarnishedarchaeologist]

Welcome aboard!

[@NumberD2000]

TA you're a fucking legend. This is some Sherlock Holmes level diving you do and im HERE for it.

[@nickelbutt]

Best FromSoftware lore hunter since RedGrave. Keep it up TA!