Among the numerous problems with Dark Souls II post-launch, the degrading integrity of its world was the most jarring. Already the game had an almost devil-may-care attitude with regards to item placement, with numerous hanging threads or plot holes further muddling the unambitious narrative. FromSoftware had clearly pinned their hopes on rectifying at least the […]
Preface When I first started working on this topic, I didn’t expect it to be as enamored with the subject as I ended up being. Alken and Venn are two kingdoms that have a very simple dynamic fleshed out to an absurd degree, comparable to probably only to Drangleic itself. While their duality mostly plays […]
Preface As the first castle map to lie at the core of a Souls setting, Boletaria could have easily been made just a generic medieval European-style kingdom. Instead, it became a deconstruction of that romantic image, setting the brutal tone for game Director Hidetaka Miyazaki’s first fantasy title. In fact, in terms of pure attention […]
Trot up to Cardinal Tower at the heart of the fortress in the Forest of Fallen Giants, and we come upon a striking statue enshrined within. The figure appears to be a holy woman — her dress and pose resembling depictions of the Virgin Mary — and exudes warmth, seeming inviting and motherly. Who is […]
Birth of a Religion When we first explore the Lothric capital, we come across a peculiar sight: lines of armor suits — Lothric Knights — each missing their heads. And patrolling around them right in the barracks plaza is the beheader: a hefty warrior wielding a weapon of absurd weight, soaked in blood. More of […]
Much like the Darkwraiths before them, the Brotherhood of Blood are a covenant dedicated to invasions, using the Cracked Red Eye Orbs they have collected to safely slaughter others as dark spirits. Unlike the Darkwraiths, however, they do it as “blood warriors” (血の戦士) in service to their God of Blood, Nahr Alma. As depicted in […]
Millwood is the name of a legendary forest, home to its own human population. The fact then that this woodland was “discovered” long after that community had left implies it to be located in a relatively remote part of the world, its people having no interaction with “civilized” society outside of tradition and hearsay. We […]
Although described as short in stature in their helm’s Japanese description, the Gyrm’s size is exaggerated at best. The ones we encounter all stand roughly equal to us, either slightly shorter or even a little taller. Even accounting for their enormously thick armor, they are more bulky than physically modest. Indeed, these proportions make them […]
Among the children of Dark, Nashandra, originally Dunashandra, (デュナシャンドラ) is the most uncomplicated. As the apostle of “craving”, (渇望) she embodies everything that makes these spawns of Dark what they are. She forever thirsts for one thing: power. According to Vendrick, the monster’s diminutive size as a fragment of Manus’ Abyss was the very reason […]
Rhyme for Reason The Monumentals were originally part of their own human culture, though what they called themselves during that time goes unmentioned. Because of that, I will simply refer to them by how they are currently identified. According to the last Monumental’s Japanese dialogue, their civilization had “controlled” the world prior to the First […]
