The One Great and Original Sin of the Fell God | Elden Ring Lore

[@ScumMageInfa]

IMPORTANT EXTRA NOTES will be posted here! Even if you don't agree with everything (or anything lol) I say in this video, I am sure you will at least see something new or of interest in here! I found quite a few little gems on my journey! I hope the teaser at the end has you excited for the next long video, I am very excited for it personally :D PS. Sorry if my voice is jarring in certain parts, I had to re-record parts as the pop-filter I have is trash and I had already been speaking for hours and hours, so I was a bit raspy! EXTRA NOTES: - To bring FELLDEN JOHN and the Two Trees full circle, the exact same two-branch icon found in Leyndel (And somewhere else hehe) is also found above FELLDEN JOHN on the Bellfries! - I forgot to put it in the video and am kicking myself for it, but the statues of the priest on the stump, the shoot he is holding looks like the deathrite spear. - I did a contrast in the video but didnt actually SAY, but the rune in farum and the position of elphael is very similar- to the point it looks like elphael is resting in the arc (look at the land close to it on map)- where the "blessings" pool (souls) - The giants summoned by the Tibia Marina appear to have a smashed or missing RIGHT eye. The same as FELLDEN John. - I've seen a few people mention that they think there is more than 2 trees (2 great trees) and I agree- this video already was a bit "fringe" so I didn't want to scare people away too much, but it's my belief there were in fact 6 great trees (greattree/erdtree, elphael/haligtree, and 4 [possibly 5] others). I may make a video on my multiple great tree theory eventually now that this monster is done (and seeing as it had such a positive reception, lol) - another thing I neglected to mention are the two birds on the obelisks in the ancient ruins, akin to the twin bird depictions in farum azula, as well as the object resting on its zenith. - As further proof between Farum Azula and the Catacombs, in Roads End catacomb, we find the EXACT same vase found in Farum Azula on an Altar at the end of the catacomb I KNOW IT IS SPIRITED AWAY NOT HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE. I was thinking of when Howl turns into a birb, and derped out- Forgiveness, please!

[@alephnole7009]

I believe the Staff held by the statues is actually supposed to be a tree brace

[@darkeather2]

Just.. a tiny thing to point out/ask. If there was a great tree at the highest north, and a great tree and the furthest south, before Marika tried to establish a tree in the middle.. Would that finally explain why it is called "The Lands Between"? Because it would be describing a holy land situated between the two Great Trees of the One Great.

[@ravoniesravenshir3926]

In the beginning, there was The One Great Seed, which fractured and grew a Vine.... and then a Tree?

[@ravoniesravenshir3926]

You should tell us about the Scaduetree as well :3 And how it actually links with the 2 main trees.

[@alecktidwell3479]

I think you and Nameless Singer are really onto something with the two trees idea. Great video!

[@riojail]

The Worst part of discovering this kind of videos is to know, that you'll have to wait couple of months to see the continuation.

[@ScumMageInfa]

#itisknown I promise I will make it worth the wait.

[@BallsTrademarked]

Fuck I just checked and it only says 2w ago 😭

[@unsealednardo9965]

​@@BallsTrademarkedI just found this video.

[@-SEAS-OF-RED-]

You and Tarnished Archeologist are making me completely rethink the way I view this game's lore.

[@codydagg2259]

It’s always funny to see how these games really have a lot more going on than we initially think. Probably why the Fromsoft series is my favorite because of just how far down the rabbit hole truly goes. And then the gameplay is so good. Hard to get such a balance right but they do it so masterfully.

[@torgo_]

Regarding dead inner crust of the Erdtree (surrounded by the golden outer shell), I always assumed that this is just working how normal IRL trees work. Trees (and most plantlife) are actually dead inside apart from the outer layer. This is why girdling (or ring-barking) will kill a tree: removing a shallow ring of the outer layer will kill the entire tree. With very large and old trees, it's common to see them almost entirely hollowed out (where the interior has rotted away or eaten by insects) while being still completely healthy. In some sense, the living tree is really just the thin "skin", which happens to be sitting on a structure made from the corpses of itself from previous seasons.

[@OuroborosTheGM]

Holy shit, wow, didn't know that. Thanks.

[@ScumMageInfa]

Absolutely agree- And there are some amazing images of this at work- However, given the Stump in the eternal city showing absolutely no colour similar to the erdtree AND presenting giant vines crawling up its length, I can't reconcile the differences! Especially bc that would insinuate that the inner part of the tree (The brown part) is the 'newer' part, and the gold outer crust is the old part >_> It is a WEIRD tree, false, illusory- The cake is a lie.

[@stevbe1723]

@@ScumMageInfa I'm not super far into the video yet, but I personally wouldn't put too much stock into what the erdtree looks like from such high angles, as it was never meant to be seen from there, I don't think it's really supposed to give any sort of insight into the nature of the erdtree, it's just an artifact of the gamedev process. Can't wait to watch the rest of it though, I can tell a huge amount of thought and effort went into the video, so cheers

[@amberhernandez]

Trees are metal af

[@biggiecheese3678]

Personally what makes me think in favor of the existence of the great tree is the statue of the early erdtree (i can’t remember where it was right now) where one branch appears to be growing taller than the others sheltered by a figure. This statue with the many branches gives me the impression of where once a tree is cut down the stump sometimes will have new growth either artificially or naturally grow out of it and will grow circular around the stump looking like a crown. This plus the mention of a crucible before the erdtree makes me think the timeline went like this. First the great tree existed making the rootstock we see in the deep root depths. Second something causes the great tree to be felled (not necessarily something like a giant axe just something that killed the old tree). Third the crucible is formed of the raw power of life spilling out from the great trees stump. Fourthly and finally the crown starts to grow out of the stump of the great tree and one of the crown stalks wins out turning into the erdtree we all know.

[@tropezando]

Miyazaki said "I'm going to make the best cosmogony, metaphysics, and epistemology Rorschach test" and Elden Ring was born. Players apply our logic, ethics, and cultural knowledge gathered throughout our lives and arrive at vastly different answers. I get as much if not more enjoyment out of seeing everyone's answers to the questions ER proposes than playing the game itself. "Share them with me, your thoughts, your ambitions, the principles you would follow."

[@Wveth]

I agree, it's famtastic. I love Moyazaki as a writer but wanted to point out that it was George R. R. Martin who built the setting and timeline up to the Shattering, and then Miyazaki and the writing team went from there.

[@dreyri2736]

We don't even know what Miyazaki wrote in this game because of GRRM. And if interviews are anything to go by then he's probably just winging it as usual. Not even Miyazaki knows what bloodborne is really about and has explicitly said that he intentionally leaves things up to the imagination, his own and the players. That's right, HIS OWN. There is no deep or hidden meaning to any of this. It's just a video game. I also fail to see any epistemology in Elden Ring lol. Nobody is talking about Gettier Cases or asking whether justified true belief constitutes knowledge.

[@panic.betrayer]

​@@dreyri2736 bad bait

[@dreyri2736]

@@panic.betrayer I'm sorry. Please explain what Elden Ringian epistemology is like to an ignorant clod like me

[@AnonymousInternetUserLaine]

I have nothing but respect for the amount of time it must have taken for you to comb through every piece of scattered imagery from the Lands Between and beyond, great work!

[@CJ86.H]

Agreed. Also imagine the amount of care that has gone into the creation of the imagery on the part of the dev team and myasaki

[@samueleborn9909]

Way more effort than I would ever put in lmao.

[@CreativeUsernameEh]

I wholeheartedly disagree. I think the DLC proved Fromsoft isn’t perfect: they cut things they advertised, they leave stuff unfinished and sell DLC for as much as a full game, they retcon and they know fans will eat it up anyway. To “comb through” the “lore” to come up with some ridiculous lore theories… fromsoft is probably very happy their fans are so naive. This is nonsense.

[@hee8410]

@@CreativeUsernameEh skill issue tbh

[@Darfail]

​@@CreativeUsernameEhno.

[@colton7928]

I just KNOW the mfs responsible for this story are sitting in their evil ass villain chairs, rubbing their hands together and laughing while watching people piece the lore together. Thanks for taking the time to make this!

[@jooot_6850]

Miyazaki and George RR knew they could be as disjointed and as obscure as they want and some poor sop would still come along and piece it together.

[@4blasphemy]

yes they are very evil and laughing hard that people are having fun with their work, as it was their secret plan this whole time

[@johneverimanne3986]

Being the "mark" typically isn't meant to be good, lol.

[@infoweeb4634]

Prob rubbing their big hairy bellies too lol

[@dreyri2736]

​@@jooot_6850 this. Miyazaki has explicitly mentioned that he leaves things up to the imagination.

[@ВиляКрит]

One-eyed man bringing divine knowledge and coming from a tree. That’s literally Odin

[@Runningwritingreading]

I'm very grateful you immediately address that some people think the Great Tree is a misunderstanding; I personally trust so little of Elden Ring's verbiage and with all the cut content, last minute dev changes, and mixing of GRRM vision and Micheal Zaki-isms - this game is FAR HARDER to find "the truth" in than Dark Souls. But educated, intelligent, and researched attempts like yours get us steps closer to the ELDEN TRUTH... that we need ER2 hahaha

[@RinzlerRules91]

I was with you till the last three lines.

[@justsomejerseydevilwithint4606]

7:45 Fun Fact that I feel is relevant here; the bark is the innermost living part of a tree; the trunk itself is dead wood, barely capable of water storage. The alive section of a tree is the bark, twigs, buds and leaves. So if under thebark, there is wood, that wood is dead, and if the bark on top is a different color, it could be a different tree that grew over the original, only a golden shell over different roots, which is very in line with the lore of the Golden Order.

[@matthewcahill4475]

That’s not just a cool Elden ring fact, that’s just a cool fact I had no idea of that, that changed my view of what trees are

[@justsomejerseydevilwithint4606]

@@matthewcahill4475 Trees are Bark Coral

[@ScumMageInfa]

Absolutely agree, given the Stump in the eternal city showing absolutely no colour similar to the erdtree AND presenting giant vines crawling up its length, I can't reconcile the differences! Especially bc that would insinuate that the inner part of the tree (The brown part) is the 'newer' part, and the gold outer crust is the old part >_> It is a WEIRD tree, false, illusory- The cake is a lie.

[@thevikingbear2343]

The erdtree is transparent, just like fake Godfrey protecting it. You can see from faraway locations how the mountains behind it are visible. This shows that the Erdtree is an illusion. Also Leyndell is full of ash and with the windows sealed shut proving the original tree was burned once already.

[@Visigoth_]

2:26 I really hope you talk about how the "grandmother" isn't a statue; but is instead some kind of "mummy"/ desiccated corpse (I always have to "debate that with people, they always want to argue that it's a statue," but I tell them "statues don't have real hair but the grandmother does!").

[@ScumMageInfa]

@@Visigoth_ I have a video about the grandmother on my channel, but a much larger one coming down the track. :P

[@Visigoth_]

@ScumMageInfa yeah, I just watched the one you're referring to earlier... glad you didn't refer to them as "statues" the way you talked about them came across as though "you get it" (they're something more like: flesh body bodhisattvas, full body sariras, or living buddhas 'Sokushinbutsu').

[@falgalhutkinsmarzcal3962]

Interesting note: some of the Banished Knights can actually perform Artorias's flip attack combo in vers 1.0, making them more dangerous. Another interesting observation from vers 1.0: Miquella is called the "Scion Empyrean". This is interesting because the Grafted Scions all have the faces of a CHILD, which might have meant that Miquella originally was involved in Grafting and, perhaps, the Grafted Scions were his attempt to "mature". This is further evidenced by the fact that the "Chrysalid memento" we find in vers 1.0 of Stormveil actually mentions "pupae", which is the plural form of "pupa", the stage between a larva and a mature insect when it is COCOONED. In the original story,I believe, the Haligtree was in opposition to the Erdtree. Miquella is gifted Loretta by Radagon to help guard Miquella's opposing Vision (per Loretta's armor set). This is supported by the fact that Vers 1.0 states that Radagon gave a warning that the Tarnished would return for the Elden Ring. See, Miquella was much more actively involved in the OG story as an Insect Queen. This explains his insect wings in the official art, his cocoons at the Haligtree, the insect wings of the Cleanrot Knights, and the Kindred of Rot born from his sister. This would also explain his Bewitching Branches (which are outright stated to be Miquella's in 1.0) and it explains his "allure"; like an insect pheromone compelling the drones to obey him. His other self, St Trina, is even a flower, and flowers attract insects.

[@dearcastiel4667]

And instead we got a femboy who's only lines are stuff an NPC tells us beforehand. Miquella got utterly wasted in this DLC, so much so that I basically stopped caring about the lore of this game since I finished the DLC, it's straight up badly written.

[@Detriax]

Scion means a descendant of a notable family. Miquella is absolutely not related to the Grafted Scion cause the Grafted Scion is just a grafted noble child

[@Detriax]

I also want to add, the stuff that was cut from the game cannot be taken seriously in the lore since it was cut

[@falgalhutkinsmarzcal3962]

@@Detriax Like most of the lore, "Scion" is an English pun that means someone who is of a royal family AND a young shoot that is GRAFTED onto another tree.

[@falgalhutkinsmarzcal3962]

@@Detriax Vers 1.0 outright states things that should definitely be taken seriously. For starters, a map fragment in 1.0 actually predicts the dlc, talking about the land of Tenebrae, which means Darkness, aka, the Shadowlands. The jar descriptions in 1.0 also dovetail into the Jar Saints, stating that Jars were used in an effort to obtain eternal life, like Marika the ETERNAL. The Sinner's shield refers to a goddess entrapped in thorns in vers 1.0. Guess who that sinning goddess is? Marika.

[@jordanlutz8307]

The Lands Between Two Trees! Holy shit!

[@BRUXXUS]

Oh my god....

[@OnMyLunchBreak07]

Wait... bro nooooo

[@LoboPal]

Oh yeah! Also, Aphrodite is reflective of Marika. Aphrodite was originally the goddess of love and war Ishtar, until moving over to Greece and being split into Aphrodite and Ares, gold and red, and then making Ares the chief deity of Sparta.

[@ScumMageInfa]

All over it. I was inspired heavily by such mythologies in my youth, thanks to otep and, so many of their songs simply SERVE marika (listen to unveiled and ghost flowers) Isis, Ishtar Hecate, Kali Isis, Ishtar Hecate, Kali Isis, Ishtar Hecate, come to me... I'm sharpening my halo. Into forest horns. I'm sanctifying pages in the protocols of war ❤🥰

[@vinodchhabria8738]

​@@ScumMageInfaCommon Misconception to relate Ishtar, Hecate and other ONE of the Goddesses to Kali, they can't be related because at least in Hindu scriptures, Kali is top of the Feminine power and when it is time for Shiva to wrap up the age, Shiva calls on Kali to dance and bring it all down, She is literally the Ruler of Time itself, the other Goddesses are just at the most fertility Goddesses, wherein Kali gives birth to the Material Universe and takes it all away when the time comes, in one of her forms, Kushmanda, she resides inside the Sun and smiles, for the Sun to have any rays, if she stops smiling, Sun will be dull and all life will be gone. Very embodiment of Energy marriages with the very Embodiment of Matter Shiva, thus any movement of vibration in the Universe becomes possible and everything vibrates, if you are going by the physical depictions of Kali, to equate Her with Lilith or Hecate, then you kindly need to update your knowledge on what that depiction is meant to entail. Kali cannot be lumped together with those other deities.

[@mmyr8ado.360]

Bold of you to assume the Ancient Greeks didn't have their own god of war until Ishtar arrived.

[@garymcjerry]

@@vinodchhabria8738Jesus dude chill lol. If you go into detail they’re all pretty different, the whole point of equating or grouping is to showcase the similarities. Just because they’re clearly different in many regards does not mean a comparison is unfounded or unfair. They’re all deeper than just “god of fertility” or whatever, it’s just a way of simplifying and grouping for common purposes. It’s a convenience of language. It’s not that deep. Like just because someone writes “Jesus is the son of God” I’m not going into a 4 paragraph response about how he’s technically God himself and so on… I would just go “eh not really, but kinda, I get what you’re coming from though” and leave it at that.

[@petermajercsik4663]

Ares was NOT the chief diety of Sparta. It was Athena, Artemis, Apollo and Zeus, as those dieties had temples and sanctuaries, and those were the ones mentioned in the ancient greek sources, and Ares was never associated with Sparta before modern times.

[@cgzepp]

As an academic, I have to say, the research the community does makes us look like amateurs 😂

[@jamesesposito8917]

I mean they dont leave a stone unturned or a NPC clothed when theyre doing there dives ! lol!

[@Witty657]

If only they put effort in researching something real, instead of fiction like video games

[@MATCHLESS789]

You could argue its more real than most things in the real world, hyperreal. ​@Witty657

[@yurinoworry]

@@Witty657researching fiction is still valuable. have you ever heard of “books”? whole degrees out there for just reading, teaching about reading, etc.

[@EnbyOfTheBorealValley]

I love this theory, but there is one massive glaring hole in it. Farum Azula was very likely only slightly north of caelid, as if you overlap the lands between and land of shadow the jagged peak, home to the dragons with an area that looks suspiciously like placidusax's arena was carved out from under it (Bayle's arena), is very close to the bestial sanctum, a place with the exact same architecture and a bridge called the "Farum greatbridge".

[@BladeAlmighty90]

Well Farum Azuls,the beastmen and Placi were the greater will's original " Golden Order" Most likely long before even Marika ,Keep in mind the Greater Will does not care how it is done as long as there is a "Order" to the world .Personally I agree with Farum Azula was apart of caelid at one point but was separated when Placi put himself in that form of hibernation/stasis paused in time

[@ZarMationStudios18]

I’m still flabbergasted at how much effort From puts into modeling things we would never see without pulling modded freecam stunts like this

[@Witty657]

They don't. It's just there, it doesnt mean anything

[@pigzy9807]

​@@Witty657yeah I think that is the case with like 90% of the things in this video.

[@datzfatz2368]

@@Witty657 what makes you so sure about that? (not saying you arent right, just curious about your reasoning)

[@prophet_77]

THIS VIDEO IS FUCKING MINDBLOWING I shit u not, i had chills for like an hour throughout the video the stuff u say and show in combination of the shit that just pops into my mind at any moment just makes me so excited the first grandmother video was a treat, can't wait for the full on long version of it all Incredible job

[@ScumMageInfa]

Massive compliment, thankyou :D

[@tuckddd9]

Finger Mimic: Light-pink mushroom resembling a wizened finger. Material used for crafting items. Exceedingly rare to find. Used to by those who wish to become fingers to induce hallucinations. They call these mushrooms the stillborn of the Two Fingers. I think you’re on point man, can’t offer up enough praise for your work I can’t imagine the effort

[@FFNOJG]

The vines arent keeping it stable. They are infact a strangler fig. It is a type of fig tree that wraps itself around another tree. Killing it eventually, and when it finally rots apart creates a "columner tree" which is hollow on the inside where the original tree was before the strangler fig connected to itself enough to stand on its own.

[@Arctodon]

I thought the Erdtree we see in game is nothing but a hologram of it's former self, because the Erdtree died when Godwyn was buried at it's roots? Either way I agree with a lot that is being said here, I believe that there were at least two trees before the Erdtree.

[@ScumMageInfa]

I think the spread of deathroot via the Greattree network ended the Erdtree's age of plenty and the Erdtree as it was known, for sure. Hence the roots USED to be connected to the erdtree :D Same on AT LEAST two trees, I had to restrain myself from going fully fringe about my... multiple tree theory :')

[@blubsblobs]

I think that mt. Gelmir and jagged peak could be ancient giant trees. Wood can fossilise and turn to stone. Jagged peak looks at least more like a broken off tree stump but the stone structure of mt. Gelmir looks more like wood because wood is made of countless small "tunnels" or strains , like the stone structure arouns mt. Gelmir. Dont know if you mentioned it in the video , havn't had the time to warch the whole video yet. Btw love your videos, amazing job​ @@ScumMageInfa

[@ScumMageInfa]

@@blubsblobs My video was already breaching too fringe, I didn't want to scare people with my 'multiple trees' theory. I've identified about 6 great trees (So I think, not incl scadutree) and those are two of them :P 2 are elphael (haligtree now) and the great tree (Erdtree now) See if you can guess the other 2 hehe (There is potentially another one as well but im 50/50 so dont include it yet)

[@drawgam2946]

@@ScumMageInfa I think we might see Godwyn in some form if Elden Ring 2 happens. Because the trees seem to be a constant in the lands between and hes connected with them. He was a demigod afterall and has time on his side and followers.

[@ezachleewright2309]

​@@blubsblobsJagged Peak looks nothing like a tree, fossilized or not.

[@genesischaparro8954]

You did so much justice to the Haligtree and Elphael; seriously, the DLC completely forgot this was supposed to be Miquella's turf, and so surely hid many secrets!

[@primevalcelestialcarcass3998]

49:58 Important to note that this wasn't a bespoke asset made for PoE that was crammed into Elden Ring, rather it's probably from an asset pack of some kind. Also, the face on it is very blatantly a depiction of the "green man," a European architectural motif representing life & rebirth.

[@skeletus]

Great theory and explanation of it. Takes an absurd amount of irl lore to wrap ones head around. Great job. Truly an underrated gem.

[@kenterbee3191]

Keep in mind that the physical tree of the Erdtree is dead in game, therefore any physical remains would appear dead, barren, and separated from the spirit “glowing” tree. You can see a portion of the husk of the physical tree by the entrance to the radagon fight before you burn the tree a second time. The “grafts” may be roots that rebirthed their fragmented forms into minor erdtrees. You find similar in pine forests that have been burned, perhaps confirming that the erdtree may be coniferous, being of a species that has conifer traits but differing leaves and stems. There are several examples of trees with pinecones and broad leaves which may be helpful examples.

[@kenterbee3191]

Juniper is one such type that occasionally has different leaf and stem types to other conifers.

[@_Sevren_]

It’s a type of birch tree

[@ScumMageInfa]

After reviewing a ridiculous amount of trees and comparing leaves, seeds, fruit etc I came up with the conclusion that it simply had to be two trees- Or a singular tree that is an amalgamation of all of them (Which imo also makes sense since in evolution there is a single point of origin). I couldn't pin it to just one! I AM NO arborist ahahahah but I do what I am able with the limitless internet :P Love comments like these that give more insight into the concepts outside of my range.

[@kchurchjr]

Im going to have to rewatch this a few times to get it all. I'd love a co-op With Tarnished Archeologist on this. Damn man, this is GREAT

[@DWN-024ShadowMan]

I feel the same. It was too much info. My stupid brain can store so much at a time 😂

[@rxblessed]

The last Souls lore video that had me this jaw-dropped was way back when Hawkshaw analyzed the Plot Against the Gods and Havel. Now I have to wait for the next part 😔 This’ll be one of those videos I keep going back to because it’s so comprehensive. Keep it up!!!

[@beniron5807]

Ima just starting the video but before I do. It’s worth considering and stating that Marika (Numan) are basically tree people. Like trees, they can graft other trees/plants to their body. As a small time garden person, u saw this connection asap. But the DLC having shaman corpses having trees grow around them kinda sealed the idea in my head. The Numan were potentially brought by the greater Will. Or at least where they go, it follows. Since they seem to be perfect vessels for its bull

[@BladeAlmighty90]

I think it created them as by all intent and purposes Placi and The beastmen in Farum Azula are the earliest depictions of a group worshipping the greater will,plus there is a depiction of the Elden Ring with WAY more Runes connected

[@BladeAlmighty90]

So it's my belief that the Greater Will created them as the 2nd experiment

[@DeshyTheWise]

Making someone who doesn't know anything about souls listen to just the audio might make them believe it's an actual documentary on archeology

[@shapeless6755]

Now I kinda wanna know about the 6 trees. Seriously this is incredible work puttting so many loose ends together.

[@ScumMageInfa]

lmao did you see this on another comment? :'D I need to keep my mouth shut LOL I will eventually make a video about the topic, my brain wont let me avoid it forever hahaha

[@saintbreaker480]

I listen to like 40 hours of Elden Ring lore a week at work. When I first came across your videos I thought you were crazy. Lol After about 2 videos I thought you were onto something. Now I think you're a fucking genius. Also going through ALL that iconography?? Omg what a feat. Congratulations. I think you may be the GOAT of Elden Ring lore. HIGHLY anticipating your Grandmother video.

[@ScumMageInfa]

😂😂😂 Such a reassuring comment ♡ I too thought I was crazy, and then I noticed ranni sitting like the grandmother and I was no longer crazy- simply obsessed. 😂

[@loldog7737]

Im the exact same,ive watched a million elden ring videos ,but you bring up so much lore and so many more lore connections than ive seen anyone els talk about ,the the lore goat for sure😎

[@mexstalin7623]

I loved your video on Miquella! You're the first to actually understand the DLC, and it was driving me crazy that no one else on the internet seemed to get Miquella's character because of their automatic bias against having a 'good' character in a Dark Souls game. I understood Miquella’s intentions because I read Vinland Saga, and Miquella reminded me of Prince Canute in Chapter 37, where he has a discussion with a monk about the nature of love. In that conversation, Canute realizes that the love of his adoptive father wasn’t true love-it was a form of discrimination against all other people. Canute then asks the monk what true love is, and the monk points to a corpse, saying it is a perfect, complete man: someone who doesn’t steal, lie, or kill, and who gives of his flesh freely without complaint. Sorry for the long comment-I just wanted to show my appreciation for your Miquella video, and I’m looking forward to seeing more!

[@ScumMageInfa]

Thankyou so much for your generous contribution and support ♡ I absolutely love the comparison with vinland saga and will be possibly stealing (crediting you ofc) for that in my next miquella video 😂 Yes, I'll be doing another- for the oogabooga's that can't handle a 1 hour long video hehehe a brutal 5-10 minute stream of undeniable miquella propaganda! Thanks again Mex!

[@mexstalin7623]

No credit needed, lol. I hardly ever comment outside of political stuff anyway-just wanted to point out that Elden Ring draws from way more manga than just Berserk. Hunter x Hunter is another big influence, in my opinion, especially in how it shows our own selfish ambition, making us reject a better way of life. In Elden Ring or HxH terms, it’s like turning down a savior figure, whether that’s Miquella the Kind or Meruem, the Ant King-the “light that illuminates all.” Both stories dig into the whole drive of human ambition. Us, as Tarnished, feel a lot like Netero from HxH, the head of the Hunter Association. Netero’s driven by this obsession with human dominance-just like our ambition to become Elden Lord-that ends up leading us to reject Meruem’s offer to share the world and actually make things better. Same with Miquella-by defeating him, we reject his offer to guide us on a thousand-year journey of compassion. Miquella and Meruem can be seen as Jesus figures or even as Lucifer Morningstar if we want to keep it morally grey. There's a lot more to compare, especially around Netero, the Tarnished, ambition, and the whole good vs. evil thing, but then it gets deep into the nature of ambition, science, and progress, so I’ll stop myself here. Sorry for the long comment again 😅

[@ScumMageInfa]

OHHHH my god I LOVE that comparison I am a HxH fanatic so that really gave me a tickle lmao Netero's nuke is the constant nerfs and gank squads 😂💀

[@Konspiracie]

Just finished the video, and it was fantastic. The (F)Elden John connection hit me like a truck. I cannot wait for the new video.

[@shroomian2739]

22:25 on the note of Aphrodite, I also thought of the Sumerian goddess Ishtar who gained life by eating a flower from a tree of knowledge. Perhaps those she’ll like figures also represent such flowers, depicting the tree of knowledge rather than life? Great video btw, I love this style of lore content. Your channel deserves so much more attention ❤

[@ScumMageInfa]

Oh yes, I have a smorgasbord of goddesses and their respective mythologies for the following video- But I shall say no more! 🤐

[@CrowandTalbot]

Elden Odin. An old man who seeks knowledge, sacrificed an eye for that knowledge, and lives at the base of world tree. Which if this video is the basis, suggests the backstory to be basically the wars between the Aesir and Vanir and then Ragnarok. Though I believe the Elden Ring series of events are mixed up like: age of the Aesir, Ragnarok, Age of the Vanir, Godwin is killed, the Tarnished is called on to fix the stagnation, Miquella brings a new age of unalloyed gold and "peace". Which also makes me highly suspect that Godwin must have been the brother Miquella made his pact with originally, if they're both inspired by the story of Baldr being killed by treachery and reborn after the end of the world.

[@4eyezwhitedragon]

The erdtree growing from the great tree ties very well to the root resin since it's literally the "roots" resin

[@SenorAlejandro]

Yes! You have been answering questions I keep trying to answer myself. Can't wait for the next ones.

[@xcarmi5075]

Single best lore channel on KZbin. I thought I had already made all the connections I could but here you are putting literally everything together. The trees are truly Great.

[@OuroborosTheGM]

Congratulations to this herculean achievement. Linking Farum Azula to Elphael and the multiple-trees theory is astounding and groundbreaking. My suggestion is: Could the name of Elphael's and Farum Azula's tree be Helphen?

[@LarsIsReal]

11:23 wow, I just noticed that Radagon's seal/rune looks like a trellis, which is also used in the vegetable garden to stabilize or cultivate tomato plants, for example

[@Platypatrol]

Such incredible work. Insane level of depth. End of the video had me awestruck. Amazing stuff

[@abdullahal-shameri3225]

1:05 that's what she said

[@dylanporpoise2566]

😂😂 very nice

[@faman00]

The mountain upon which Raya Lucaria rests is shaped like, and could be thought of as, a very ancient petrified tree stump for an enormous tree, it's even hollow in the middle. Underneath is a cavity where there should be roots that reach down into the rivers. The roof of the cavity is plugged with glintstone crystals. Then again, it could also be thought of as an ancient volcano with a magma chamber underneath. Maybe they're related, volcanos and trees.

[@ScumMageInfa]

Completely agree- IMO there are 6 great trees, that all present almost exactly the same on the map :P but I felt this video was already going to have quite a few hard to swallow pills, so I refrained hahaha

[@faman00]

​@@ScumMageInfa I love the idea about souls-in-magma. If you go east of Ordina to the Minor Erdtree, you can see that the tree is consuming gravestones (unique with a runic script), that also self-assemble into piles that seem to be turning into the rock of the mountain itself. They look like they are made of concrete, which in Roman times included volcanic ash as a key ingredient. No fingerprint rau burrows to be found in the grave stones here, though. Maybe the twist is that the ash is the ash produced by the death rite, which can/does contain spirits (spirit ashes, for example). The spirit ashes we find are specifically set aside and revered, but most go back into the cement mixer. If the gravestones are building the mountain, they are building it Minecraft-like, block by block, from the bottom up. So the high peaks of the MotG are an enormous mound of bodies, rising very high to reach the heavens, an idea found in every culture that succeeded it.

[@velcalo]

@@ScumMageInfa You had a comment earlier about that we might try and guess the others, but I unfortunately can't find it so here are my guesses: Gelmir is one spiral tree or two trees, Jagged Peak, Raya Lucaria, the place where Belurat is now, along with Elphael and the Erdtree. Gelmir possibly being two trees is the potential seventh. My evidence for Gelmir and Jagged peak is they looked like petrified trees, same with Raya Lucaria and Belurat. Also, the cliff in front of Belurat has those odd tree roots growing out of it, which might be old, dead twigs that attempted to regrow after the tree was felled.

[@DirkMcThermot]

Ok, I admit I was pretty skeptical about a lot of the connections you're identifying in this video. But then the reveal about the trees bearing two different types of fruit on the flasks at 1:15:20 was WILD.

[@edwartvonfectonia4362]

What a good and well written video analysis. So many new things i have not yet seen from other channels. Cannot wait for part two, the part which makes it whole, like a full moon whole, which will then produce something new by the hole inside.

[@strike4177]

Been out of ER lore for months now, just wasn't feeling an itch for it. This video has fixed that. Very well done, I missed this game and am excited to dive back in

[@Komega01]

the shadow tree has to be a leftover scar of what the great tree used to be. a spiral tree shooting out of a giant sunflower

[@draketinjum428]

41:36 Damn I wasn't prepared for that😂😂😂

[@you1027]

You brought up a great point about the Erdtree having been fed a tremendous bounty of sacrificial souls throughout the land via the ritual combat and the Jars. Also yes the Golden Order came by later after the Erdtree era - because it was after that physical burning that Radagon appeared on the scene and founded Golden Order Fundamentalism, wherein "the Erdtree became an object of faith." By then it had been fed enough souls to develop a spiritual presence that persisted past the loss of its physical form (a nature seen also in Ranni and Miquella). It's likely that this glowing golden ghostly tree is visible only to those who can see Grace. I posit: the Erdtree's spectral composition is, in fact, those innumerable sacrificed souls trapped and contorted into this form, shaped so by the faith of those presiding over those many mass sacrificial rituals. Similar to how we can see the Hornsent 'Gates of Divinity' being made of innumerable calcified people, and the Eternal Cities - who tried to create their own Lord of Night - also feature similar tons of desiccated human bodies around their respective images of would-be divinity. While the tamer take would be it's just a figurative way of portraying how tons of people get sacrificed for all manner of beliefs, FS always leans into the metaphysical manner of their material, so I think it's more on-the-nose transhumanism at play here. Harvest mortal souls, and forge deific avatars out of their very essence, in the shape of the believers' ideals. This is a fairly popular idea in Japanese media.

[@payaisola4917]

I took a bit of a break watching eldenlore, just to come back qnd having my mind blown over and over. Such a great vid. Looking forward for many to come. After looking at elden Johns scriptures in his hands, my first association were the things in marikas bedchamber looking similar, but i might be just mumbling nonsense.

[@madeline6951]

There's a saying in my language that goes like "you flow with thoughts within a tree", meaning that your thoughts branch to so many topics and so many details that it's hard to keep track of. I think this is the perfect description of this video, lol.

[@ScumMageInfa]

ADHD incarnate

[@madeline6951]

@@ScumMageInfa lmao same

[@platinumhearteva]

this video gave me anxiety from how vast the lore just got.

[@mattwatson3407]

Wow. This was such a fun video to watch. I really enjoyed it and can't wait for a follow up. I think there are a few points that you need to address to make your point clearer and stronger. A lot of this is just cases of re-used assets, which is common in all video games. Without addressing this possibility, adding meaning to it comes across as wishful thinking. It does make for a great story, but it makes your findings seem weak. And I really think you're on to something and want you to take it to the next level. To really strengthen your argument, you should include more cases where different things are shown. If the same motif shows up everywhere, it would suggest it's just being used everywhere. However, if you could really tie the locations together, and then show unrelated locations that don't use the assets it would make a strong case for the motif being connected and not just incidental. Your strongest cases for the motifs being connected are the assets that are slightly different. Like the columns, or the lion brassieres. This shows that the assets are clearly different, but still share a motif. The differences from other locations are probably more important than the similarities. Showing how the locations with connecting themes share a motif, but the locations without common themes have clearly different motifs. Additionally, you assume that people watching this are familiar with Elden Ring lore, which isn't a bad assumption to make. However, adding context for the connecting locations, like Farum Azula and Elphael, would really make it clearer how the locations are connected and why they may share a common motif.

[@Writh811]

To me the Lion Motif that you identified as a hybrid of a Lion, tree, and dragon; the imagery evokes the Lion Dancers. Given the storm powers of the Lion Dance, it explains the array of Niall's powers and even Commander O'Neil's powers. Both of these warriors have an icon on their chest that is like a bramble of thorns the resembles the tops of the jars in the Shadow Lands. They, along with the banished knights also have horns that resemble Omen horns on their shoulders. The Lion Dance demonstrates to us the power of storm is wind, frost, and lightning: powers we see across both commanders and we see wind among with the Banished Knights.

[@ScumMageInfa]

I completely agree- as their armour is also indicitive of the Rauh Ruins with those thorns in other ways too- But the Rauh Ruins won't enter the equation until the next Long Form video :P In regards to the lion though I think the divine beast IS a lion imitating a dragon (Given the Chinese guardian lions having heavy dragon themes)- Thus the lightning, storms, etc also shown by the normal knights with dragons atop their heads and breathing flames. And to this culture trees were very important.

[@TSpoon823]

Now the vow is fulfilled! So excited to get into this one.

[@JulioCesar-ci3bq]

I think another thing that really drives home the fire giant argument is the long braided beard and bald head carrying a big piece of stone from the elden john statues, I mean, just read the description, that is, word by word, the fire giant. There is also probably something with the 8 baby figures in the Elphael iconography and the 8 dots in the fire giants big stomach eye, but I don't know. Anyway, such an amazing video, great work man.

[@protoaltus]

It goes to show the love that goes into making these, both by the developers and those who pick up on it. Thats a special kind of care, not seen often. Kudos, for going through such a massive ordeal. Heres to many more adventures.

[@adawg3032]

41:35 I was speechless too man lmfao. This video was absolutely amazing dude I think you figured Elden ring out for real

[@harleyturpin2580]

Stayed up late after work just to watch this with my buddy. I was on the edge of my seat the entire video, thank you for your absurdly extensive work! So glad I waited and I'm so excited for the next one!

[@ScumMageInfa]

This gave me a huge smile knowing mates are sitting down to chill and watch my videos :') I love it.

[@-SEAS-OF-RED-]

I know it's odd to comment twice, but the parallels are unmistakable. Elden John, the Fell God, he is Votann, the one eyed and All Knowing King of the old gods of the North, and just like Votann he faced a violent end and had his Order replaced by that of a single God, a single, Eternal God who offered salvation to all, Marika.

[@TheHi-NoteFunClub-BeatsByMike]

I don't think it's odd at all. Beyond editing a single reply, whether it's separate comments or self replies, etc... such information dense analysis discussing equally information dense source material requires multiple viewings/reads/periods of listening/etc... to absorb not only the surface info, but to organize more refined and informed ideas to add to the overall interpretations associated with the subject. I'm not sure if you're an avid reader (I happen to be) but I tend to read books at least 2 or 3 times (sometimes more) - and Every. Single. Time. I find passages that I essentially just looked through without absorbing during previous readings, and my understanding of the communications the work is trying to convey, at the very least, update upon subsequent readings, but ultimately become more clear and impactful... Again, with each subsequent reading I devote my brain to. I personally believe the growing tendency of more and more people believing in the "TLDR" lifestyle doesn't just lead to inaccurate and quasi-relevant resultant ideas - those incomplete (if not off kilter) thoughts are recipes that cook up dangerous behaviors should any given "mob" take up the chant, and build an escalating frenzy that leads to, essentially, irrational/unreasonable belief and action. From a human's sensory perspective, there is no escaping the fact that time just doesn't stop moving and ALWAYS pushes forward - and since no one human can know ALL the info/details, the passage of time HAS to lead to additional thoughts/ideas/comment replies/etc... And with all that said: "concise" isn't a singularly sized constant. Avoidance of additional participation and contribution simply because acting that way isn't popular or not in the favor of a flawed and arbitrary rule that works against the inherent purpose of an activity, sacrifices the refinement and precision of reasonable outcomes. More information usually requires more words to express - it's a pretty straightforward and obvious axiom. Never lend power to shame or doubt by silencing an expression that just might help us humans progress our experience as/while time keeps relentlessly ticking on. P.S. apologies for my lack of relevant lore discussion in my reply here, but reading "I know it's odd to comment twice" stuck out to me - to the degree/in the sense that, personally, I don't understand how "odd" could be the descriptor arrived at in relation to "multiple KZbin comments on the same video" at all. As long as one doesn't directly harm, or otherwise intentionally escalate something to the point of harm (without some clear purpose/in response to an external source that is clearly causing harm with malicious intent and needs to be forcefully challanged)... You do you: participate as well as you can muster, and as frequently as necessary to ensure you've done your best to be understood... If not also beneficially contribute to the matter at hand. Have a great day, and keep fighting the good fight, child of light. 🙂

[@GillfigGarstang]

There is also Balor, king of the Fomorians from Irish Myth, described as a giant with a ‘poisonous fiery eye’ in the centre of his forehead which when uncovered would set the land ablaze. The Fomorians were the original occupants of Ireland, described as ranging in appearance from ugly asymmetrical giants or animal-headed monsters to ‘darkly beautiful’, who warred with and were eventually conquered by the beautiful ethereal Tuatha Dé Danann who settled Ireland from a mysterious parallel otherworld (Land of Shadow?) and possessed godlike powers over the natural world. The parallels just keep coming too; the Fomorians and Tuatha Dé Danann are said to have intermarried, and sure enough we are told Radagon gets his red hair from his fire-giant heritage. The Tuatha Dé Danann also travelled to Ireland in dark clouds/ships which they landed on top of a mountain, casting a shadow over the sun for days and which they immediately burnt to dissuade them from turning back. And what do we see repeatedly associated with passage to and from the Land of Shadow? Boats: boats stranded on top of mountains, boats travelling on dry land and phasing between the two planes; there are even perpetually burning tibia mariner boats in the Shadow Keep.

[@gabe3708]

Been looking forward to this video!! Thank you for the work u put into this

[@newhumanspecies___1527]

58:26 I also always thought that the whole Haligtree area looked like a hand. Loosely, it reminded me of the beasts who gained intelligence suddenly. Somewhere there is a connection to Miquela, cause there is a theme of transcendence. I then argue that Elpheal was built shortly after Farum was finished.

[@core-nix1885]

40:25 Not to subtract from your great work, but the bottom layer is repurposed from Lothric in DS3, it represents "the cross" which is a Fromsoft signature (ex is the Latin word for From). In Dark Souls, it also symbolises Maya (falsehood/presence/fire), in contradistinction to the "ring" symbolising Atma (truth/absence/dark). 41:50 is also from DS3; The Cathedral of the Deep and The Ringed City. It think it somewhat resembles a butterfly, symbolising impermanence (c.f. Malenia).

[@core-nix1885]

54:40 Sword is an anagram of Words, just as Malika (Queen) is an anagram of Kalima (Word). (See also "Mikala")

[@Adonis-or6jg]

Dude this is great and very informative to many fans of the Elden Ring lore. I literally watched the ENTIRE video and every second of it! That was the most that something has ever had my attention, not even all of my classes in collage could do that lol. I look forward to part 2.

[@moose5406]

I am now a faithful disciple of Felden John.

[@arthurking3638]

Your work is absolutely impressive. I bet Miyazaki curses you for transforming his secrets into facts with such talent. Hats off to your achievement!

[@Detriax]

Eeeyyy Nameless Singer got a shoutout! Ive helped her out with getting models and stuff. She always does great work, nice to see more people taking notice

[@ScumMageInfa]

She deserves every morsel of credit she gets.

[@Detriax]

@@ScumMageInfa she works hard, yeah. It’s insane the connections she sees

[@AutekMor]

Only a short way through but I'm thoroughly enjoying your take. Well done! Also that dead minor erdtree being linked directly to Godwyn is a good catch. From the Twiggy cracked tear we could infer that those who 'Live within death' are essentially those who died but retain the grace they 'should' have given up back to the system. This allows them to animate and have a semblance of life.

[@BRUXXUS]

I'm so glad this autoplayed after another video. Well, sorta, because I should have been asleep nearly 2 hours ago. This brought up so many details and connections that are blowing my mind. This round of "nouveau lore theorists ", as I call them are finding and putting out some insanely cool and in depth work! I know as humans, we love finding connections, and I can never help wonder if most this is coincidence because I find it so insane that a studio could work at such a tight level of mutual understanding as to create a world with this depth of history and geology within the development time of this game. LOL. Truly spectacular work by Fromsoft and the community. :)

[@Prometheusfotya]

This is probably one of the best Elden Ring lore videos I've seen thus far. I can't wait for the next video.

[@Comaduster]

Absolute GOAT’d takes on Elden Ring lore, dude. And most aligned with my own. Just the right amount of unhinged and grounded in pretty hard evidence. I feel for my wife/lore therapist as I’m constantly jumping up pointing “SEE SEE SEE!!!” When we watch - but other than my own rambling, you have the archeological, circumstantial, and symbology evidence to back things up. You are laying some pretty incredible groundwork here, and I applaud how damned thorough and compelling it all is. I love how after we orbited WAY out into tree land in this video, you brought it back beautifully at the end to the ultimate question with a statement (which I’m aligned with). It’s Marika - THE ETERNAL - always has been. The three sisters, 3 generations, all Marika, all Grandmothers of each other - outside of time - self perpetuating themself eternally through the spiral of the cruicable.

[@betheve9890]

i cant imagine how insane their reference boards were making this game, from ancient babylonian artifacts to referencing methods of grafting trees and DNA.... how do you even plan that all out???? that kind of insane execution is what makes elden ring one of the best games ever made

[@infj-tguy6275]

8:16 It's possible the gold is a kind of parasite that is living off of the old tree, which is potentially why it's not solid gold

[@samuel-jam]

I love your narration voice man. Buttery

[@Mephil]

The scadu tree is the predecessor and marija stole it and brought it to the lands between. The dead trees may be failed attempts to make the erd tree. Looking for an original tree in the lands between is a fallacy because the power never originated in the lands between.

[@nebky]

Here's a fun one - take a look at the in-game clock. 3 great trees, two next to one another of obviously different types and on the other side directly opposite between the two (in their shadow) is a dead tree.

[@F4R4D4Y]

I agree 👍 it's two separate trees. Perhaps rememberance of two different lineages.

[@astel_xviii]

i sincerely hope the amount of effort you put into this video pays off and you get the views you deserve

[@johneverimanne3986]

Two cities, one ruling over the lesser folk city, is a Trope in most Fromsoft games. Think you just found it in ER, guy.

[@420PraiseIt]

How do you explain Hyetta's words though? About the one great splintering due to the greater will? Splendid work otherwise, even though I can see most are so reaching even the ancient giants embedded in the lands between couldn't reach. Thank you a ton. Would love to see your written thoughtmap though

[@MrGlath]

Many people are saying this is one of the greatest lore videos of all time! Somehow this was too short? Thank you so much for putting this video together much respect. That was awesome

[@ScumMageInfa]

That is an immense compliment, not sure I can even accept it! Hahaha, thankyou :) It felt short because not gonna lie- it is. I left out almost exactly half of everything- the iconography, the characters I want to explore, and the story itself as it was around 4 hours long in the initial stage. I want to make the next instillation my 'ultimate' video so I have made sure to save the best till last!

[@ihaztehSNIPAH]

I love your lil edits / notes.

[@randywilliams6248]

I mean, with all of the minor Erdtrees all over the place, is crazy to think that indeed yes.... there have been many a great trees? One becomes dominant and when it dies, the next takes over for dominance. With each new tree, an ideology/age takes place. I think what came to the Lands Between is basically a being in order to have dominance, it lets life flourish until it loses the control it desires, so a new idea/age is given birth to to continue this cycle on and on. The greater will like an angler fish uses Gold to basically baits these beings blinding them because who doesn't like gold or gold variants? They're memorized by it. It blinds them from what is actually going on, it wants them to bring death upon eachother because it feeds on death. It gives power to a specific few basically created a false god (for belief purposes) and then a supportive enforcer to ensure the death continues to feed.

[@namelessnightingale8991]

1:39:28 Didn't Zullie the Witch also say in the video you're pulling that from how the two and three fingers don't add up to make a whole hand, as the three fingers are the thumb, index, and middle finger of a left hand, while the two fingers are the index and middle finger of a right hand?

[@plasmiusphantom]

As a history nerd working in a crystal shop, I did indeed know about the pinecone rant 🤣 so good

[@JordanMullen-sx6em]

This is such a galaxy brain project and I love it, everything had been intensely unraveled to the point where elden ring story actually made complete sense

[@eldenringpvpenthusiast1710]

Amazing work yo, seriously I think one of if not the greatest lore video made yet

[@StarlitMoss]

"Feet only" omg did I read that right? 😂 Really though this is brilliant. As someone who has studied a lot of folklore I really love you going into associations.

[@ScumMageInfa]

😂😭🐾

[@plasmiusphantom]

The vine pattern and lamp posts on the Divine tower bridges can easily be additions added by Leyndell. They aren't intrusive to the actual towers. The central spiraling vine/flower thing (not the clover) being on all the oldest place IS pretty crazy. IMO, the one on the Towers looks even older and better than the ones found in Farum, Elpha, and Uld. I'd think that the towers themselves came first, and the others came as soon as they could after whatever put the slag on the Towers.

[@oye6124]

imagine being an artist over at fromsoft watching lore videos to see if they got it right and seeing a picture they used as reference in the video

[@eprimchad2576]

This is such a well researched video, its actually crazy, so many little details are placed over every inch of this game. The one thing i disagree with (i think) is referring to this tree network as the one great. Im not as researched as you but i recall the game talking about the one great, which seems to have been everything that existed all at once? My interpretation was that it was some kind of big bang like creation event where everything that existed was just one great thing, that created or split into the greater will, the frenzied flame, and all of matter i suppose. So the interpretation of the tree network being the one great falls apart in my eyes because didnt the greater will start order and the tree system? How would the greater will create something that it had already been created from? Maybe im totally off base but if you happened to see this and explain more that would be awesome. Great vid im subbed.

[@NihilisticRealism]

Been talking with Nameless Singer a bit lately about the true nature of gowry and the implications of the 3 aeonian seeds being planted in the haligtree, plus the connection of that with the relief on the erdtree itself, depicting the symbol of rot in the center of a tree. You heard it hear first Scum Mage! Miquella has been up to far more than you know-

[@sharpfang]

Gawd, I was one of first proponents, if not the first, of the Erdtree being grafted on the erdtree, matching up the map of deeproot with map of Lyendell. Thank You! for giving the idea proper analysis! Now if only someone gave this much attention to Gloam-eyed Queen being the name Marika took up in the period between betraying the hornsent and being forced into becoming the vessel, Marika the Eternal.

[@nuker6724]

I always interpreted that the deal with the Old Lord's talisman was, that though it only features 4 of Placidusax' heads, the fifth head was supposed to be the one wearing the talisman, thus ending up with 5 heads

[@NihilisticRealism]

the erdtree door/relief has a tree with the rot symbol in the center, and, there are 3 (potentially) aeonian seeds IN the Haligtree in one unfortunate (for millicent, and melania) timeline. ONE of these caused all of caelid to happen THIS is why it is hollow Oh, and the rotten avatat staff IS the haligtree symbol.. but is says in its description that it 'depicts the early erdtree'

[@Serhiishtlv]

When you are going through the intro for 20min you know you’re in for a treat🤓

[@WeyounSix]

I think the Golden Erdtree is a projection of the Great Tree much like how Golden Godfrey the piss ghost is a projection of Godfrey Real, but not real.

[@SOSLR]

I always thought that they were a helix tree in the beginning but Malenia's rot influence cut her from the greater will, thus rotting her tree. And since Miquella had cocooned himself in his it continued to grow. I do agree with the offshoot thing though, maybe him taking what was left of her tree and making it his own as a support.

[@Arylith]

EVEN THE FRICKING TREES?! Fantastic watch, thank you!

[@EptaPsyches]

54:42 you can hear him trying not to laugh at "full of vigor"