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This makes me think of the epic of Gilgamesh. He had a beast like foe who he defeated and became his best friend.

I think we might learn why Godfrey and the Tarnished were banished in the DLC. This first cardinal sin (the burning) really reminds me of the original sin (it's a first cardinal sin, there is a snake and a sacred tree in a paradise). The banishment of the tarnished paralells the exile from the garden of eve (devestment of grace, banishment, and loss of immortality with the promise of the return of grace, immortality, and paradise). Perhaps the DLC will link these two by an event. Perhaps there is another similar exile story (the Assyrian exile) that this is mimicing.

Why is it called "The Land Between" though? Between what??? Is it because it's between Shadow and Light? If there's a Land of Shadow, is there also an Land of Light?

I dont understand where the ash comes from after defeating maliketh if the erdtree is spectral. I thought the burning erdtree is also a visual only phenomana

23:18 Another thing about the imagery of burnt trees is that they look exactly like the distant Erdtree pillars in the Elden Beast bossfight arena. Maybe those pillars aren’t a representation of various distant lands with their own Erdtree, but actually a representation of how many times The Lands Between’s Erdtree has been burned down. With all the talk about the cycle of Elden Lord I can’t help but wonder if this cycle has been going on for far longer than what current lore implies

Just for future reference: The IGN mirror of the video has MUCH better audio quality for the ER reveal trailer than the Sony one.

Hello, I has an archeological quandary I was hoping someone could help me with. I've been studying the statues of the Dynast and noticing some subtle differences. In the Mausoleum Compound there's a few statues where his legs are covered by his robes. Underground, you can a full view of his legs with a tree root winding down his leg. This is also visible at the spot right below Miquella's cocoon. However, in the arena itself you only see the Dynast from his midsection with the roots again coming down from his robes. To add further intrigue he has been removed from the cocoon arena at the beginning of the DLC trailer. Has anyone picked up on this? In addition, when compared to the saints, it first appears that the Dynast is being manifested from the tree in the "opposite direction." Is there an archeological analog for something like this? Also, has anyone else noticed that the Dynast has a strong familial resemblance to Godfrey, which may imply the Erdtree is really tied to his lineage as opposed to Marika's? Any insights would be greatly appreciated.

I did it! I'm finally all caught up. I found this channel about a week ago and been binge religiously watching 2 videos or more a day. Even while at the office. 😅 Man, what a journey this was! Your videos are fascinating and I'm so glad this was recommended by one of my coworkers.

I hope you're going to continue these for the other games one day! Dark Souls 3 and the rest? Great work, by the way

I feel a little confused by the ideas that people are not having children, they're born of the sap, but also there can be some sort of traceable lineage to say that an Omen Born is either the child of a commoner or of royalty... if we have the idea of parentage, they can't all just be formed from sap. Also, if it's about receiving a blessing, why wouldn't Marika's own children Mohg and Morgott (forgive misspellings, please) be Omens? How would she have let that happen? Especially since they seem to have been banished/punished for it; it doesn't sound like it was intentional (unless it's allllllll intentional for some grand scheme, but that doesn't explain my lineage questions).

These are very compelling theories, but I’d like to make it clear that I don’t think the Erdtree is burning in the trailer. If you look closely, that’s simply how the Erdtree looks, even in basegame. It has the orange-tint glows at the top that may be mistaken for fire. But no, those are just golden leafs. And the “fire” (if you suppose) isn’t spreading or moving. The trailer gives us a good few frames at the Erdtree in a Still shot, and nothing seems to be burning imo.

Does anyone else think the skulls on the burials look like horse skulls? They seem to have the teeth and teeth positioning of herbivores... they definitely don't look like canine skulls.

*Messmer the Impaler strolls in* "Hey guys, what are we talking about?"

Now i realise that Erdtree is just like works as artifical womb in an Anime, Ergo Proxy. Which the Wombs can not function without Proxy. And every citizens that borned from that womb always infertile, that ways natural born is very rare and only can observe in “imperfect creatures” such as Bob and demi Humans! What a coencidence. In that anime also the main antagonist, the Proxy 1 clones himself to make a second one.. Also it is possible that when the proxy dies, there will be no more new citizens. Which in the anime that leads to leaders make to bring different Proxy from somewhere else, “M”onad.. To continue to live.

Love your videos, but could I give some feedback? Could you to drink a glass of water before recording audio? It would greatly help

What I don't understand: When the Erdtree supposedly was burning during the battle of Leyndell shown in the story trailer and it was restored later, how could that possibly have happened when Morgott protected the Erdtree the whole time, meaning that no one could've mended the Elden RIng until our arrival?

I'm telling you, that "Shadow Tree" is one half of the Crucible. The two together, intertwined, are one; like how it affects life, mixing it all together. Like I commented on the trailer video, given that there are a lot of hybridised animals, and a seemingly grafted lion dancer; him talking about "one so bereft of light" being "permitted lordship", I think he's talking about Marika choosing Hoarah Loux as her Lord. All of the signs pointing to when Godfrey was prominent, before his golden lordship, can't be ignored. My strong opinion, is that this DLC is set in a living memory of the past, that of the forming of the Golden Order, after a civil war initiated by Messmer, possibly with ties to the giants. After the victor over that, Marika ordered her first Elden Lord, to wage war on them as well, and set her religious dogmas in place, to safeguard against such an event. This is my best guess as of now.

the priestesses are an all-women cult, with hoods, and are Marika's associates. and so are the black knife assassins. I don't have the energy now to look deeper into it but something tells me the black knife are what became of those priestesses.

The issue with this level of narrative interpretation of 2019 trailers is that we know for a fact that _multiple_ core elements of the lore at that time were fundamentally different, given the lore present in the 1.0 version of the game being radically different from the release version. You can recognize similarities and shared patterns, but the underlying shape of the core narrative elements like the sky burning are linked to things that fundamentally changed. For example: Rune Bears used to have their power from consuming dragon hearts, and Farum Azula used to be the exclusive realm of dragons known as the Storm Aerie that the knights of Stormvale were attempting to reach by practicing Dragon Communion and protecting themselves from the mortal curse on the winds by engraving their armor with thorns. The draconic lore was still all over 1.0 along with multiple named NPCs who were totally removed from the release version. Messemer fits into the structure that took shape as the game grew, but there's no clear indication anything earlier had been made explicitly with him in mind, and this is a VAST overreach in speculative conjecture with hardly any core basis in what the actual narrative development undertook. Even the Flower crucible with Miranda and thr nature of the Flowers to the reproduction cycle of the Erdtree were removed and likely played a core design role at one point that may or may not be reintroduced, but there's literally no way to tell until playing the DLC, because fictional narrative construction doesn't have a singularly immutable history to look back on.

Bro...........😂

Revisiting this video after the DLC trailer feels so nice.

This doesn't make sense because the capital doesn't get ashed on untill after you beat Maliketh and then farum azula falls on the capital... so this isn't the first farum azula fell....🤔

Can you reverse these playlists? It's better to watch them in order.

Your timeline doesn't quite add up with regards to the tree burning in the trailer. If Messmer is to be responsible for the Erdtree's burning at the beginning of the Shattering that left the city covered in ash then that act can't be the one that gained serpents there reputation as traitors. Godfrey was banished long before the Shattering, wasn't he? But serpents, as you yourself stated have been considered traitors since at least Godfrey's age.

Hearing the "the one who walks alongside flame shall one day meet the road of Destined Death" right after you talked about finding Melina's body in the Shadow Lands made me think that maybe she was sent to kill Messmer during the burning or something, but failed. Maybe the rune of death was given to Melina, she rebelled, and Maliketh was sent to crush the rebellion, but at the same time Messmer burnt the Erdtree, and so Maliketh took back the Rune and sent her to try and stop Messmer. Or maybe Melina is not the Gloam Eyed Queen but her child (see - only one purple eye), who was spared but was adopted/ used as a tool for Marika's purposes who died trying to stop Messmer.

the bridges are the same architecture as the castle in the dlc.

Excellent deductions as usual, but unfortunately Messmer commiting the first burning of the Erdtree in the timeline you suggested (to end the Age of Plenty) has a very major hole in it. Messmer and Melina, following our GRMM naming convention and their red hair - if we are going by consistency - is implied to be a scion of Marika and Radagon, which means they shouldn't have been alive by that time, since we know the first burning of the Erdtree occured before Radagon's time - the colosseum duelists were engaging in ritual combat in Godfrey's time, so the snake was already a traitor by then and we know this ritual combat ended with Radagon's ascension to Elden Lord. It's possible Messmer is a demigod of Rennala, which would explain his red hair, but that's also unlikely because of the naming convention. It's also a possiblity he is from a completely different brood altogether, of course - in this case it would likely be a union between Radagon (who as we know is basically Marika) and another female champion around the end of Godfrey's reign (with a M name, of course).

Great video i really loved it. Always belived that those statue where Gwynevere Or The Namless King But thid makes way more sense! I loved the part when you mentioned that some undead Belives that the chosens one will returns at the ends of times because it is exacly what happens in Dark Souls 3. Even Lord Gwynn in a way returns in the last moments of Souls of Cinder The fire calls he's most powerful follower to protect the flame! It would be really great see you do something on the catacombs or another Dark Souls locations Because they are gorgeus.

This has to be your weakest theory as of yet. Empyreans don't need to be women, Miquella is not. And your allusion to him being a female because 'St. Trina', 'Womb shape throne', 'Female riding position' can alll be debunked. The whole St. Trina alter ego just seems like Marika/Radagon. If Miquella can do it as Empyrean male and Marika as Empyrean female, so can others too, making gender irrelevant. The womb shape throne doesn't prove Miquella being female, literally all people are born from a womb. It represents giving birth to a new form or God. Miquella is wearing a robe, if you ride a horse regularly wearing that then it's going to be very awkward and difficult. Again, it doesn't prove that Miquella is a female Your timeline is wrong too. Marika married Radagon before before Godwyn is assassinated. There are statues and item descriptions showing how close Godwyn is to his half siblings Miquella and Melania.

Will people shut up about A.I.??? Maybe your “artists” should do a better job. Instead of protesting maybe they could be practicing more

Armored core players when they realize who burned the world, twice.

Cannot wait for more info :D

The Erdtree is clearly not on fire in the trailer. I do believe it burned, but you're seeing what you want to there.

The idea that the Numen were the ones to teach the people of the Lands Between to "cultivate sacred trees" doesn't make much sense given that the ancient dragons and beastmen had a civilization based around the Elden Ring, and their iconography suggests the existence of an Erdtree analog.

I've heard theories that the root twisting around the burned Erdtree in the Land of Shadow is part of Godwyn's deathroot, but I'm more partial to the theory that it's an aspect of the crucible, and Messmer burned the Erdtree for that perceived impurity. I also think that, like the Night of the Black Knives, the Erdtree's first burning was an event that Marika publicly distanced herself from while being deeply involved behind the scenes.

Gloam-Eyed Queen boss fight confirmed

Would you mind putting together a summary of your previous work into a single video that puts all the pieces together? I love your content but am having a hard time piecing it all together into one unified theory. Maybe there isn't enough info out there yet to do so.

Hijacking the comments section in hopes TA team will see this one. In previous videos you claimed the tree and grace are no more than illusion, otherwise no point in asking such a question as "can you see it" (hopefully I've managed to clarify which claim you mean. Well I've just found a piece of lore to support this further: The Lands Between Rune item description. I quote: "Grace said to have welled once in the eyes of the inhabitants of the Lands Between the lingering residue of gold." To me, it makes it very clear it is no longer the case. Other, normal, runes described differently, in ways that makes it unclear. But the Lands Between one, is quite different.

@The Tarnished Archeologist. What’s up with all the carvings on the rock formations near the minor erdtree in the consecrated snowfields? It’s such and odd patterning.

So much of this is way off based on established details in the base game

Hey tarnished archaeologist, I don't know if you'll read this but I want to ask have you heard the theory that Melina is St. Trina/Miquella, What are your thoughts on this theory?

It does seem like a propper burning of the tree is desired, but Mesmer's burning happened at a time when it wasn't supposed to. The serpent is generally a sign of trickery and deception, a negative symbol. Where as the cyclical burning of the Erdtree, as well as the Elden Lords are part of a positive restructuring of the world. Do we know though, when Radagon becomes Elden Lord? Before or after he mends the ring? Could it be that the pervious burning was not a blessed one, but one steeped in deception? Godfrey's eyes had stopped glowing, and his warriors and him become tarnished. Which should probably spark a propper burning and rebuilding. But, something happens, where Merika becomes Radagon. Thus the shattering that should have happened, doesn't happen, leaving the world in stasis. Thus Marika is born to burn the tree fully, to end the era. Mesmer strikes me as an alternative "bad ending" type burning. His fire doesn't seem pure. Thus he doesn't seem like he's part of the way of things.

Tarnished Archaeologist drinking game: take a shot every time he says "inextricably"

Something Ive never seen people talk about is the name “lands between” Between what?

excellent video!!!! do you think you might ever direct any archaeological efforts toward demon's souls?

Does anyone else get the feeling that the body in the cocoon isnt miquela? The hand looks like messmer's... If i remember correctly miquella has the power to manipulate people. I have a feeling what we know is wrong.

Duuude that's why she forbids the Frenzied Flame, because it destroys the erdtree. But, wouldn't that ending indicate her body isn't burned? Or at least, maybe she would have a new "body" in the Land of Shadow or elsewhere?

one thing, we don’t use gloves for old texts anymore. It’s actually more likely to be damaged with gloves than without as long as you wash your hands of any excess oil before handling. why? because gloves make you lose dexterity and your sense of touch making you more likely to damage the page by tearing it, gloves also tend to lift dirt off the page, causing loss of pigments or transferring it to another page/book. clean dry hands only folks, unless of course the book has metal fittings or poisonous bindings.

the bit of lore im most interested in is the Golden Centipede and the how its is a true holder of death and i feel like when you look at Melina's arm/hand scars they look like the were burns on-top of a Scarification of a Centipede's/head as like depicted on the image of back Godwyn the Golden during the Night of Knives