The Lore of Elden Ring is Blasphemous

The god of Mount Gelmir is a serpent, and it has been there for a long time. Long before the age of the Erdtree, In an era we know little about, there was an ancient immortal serpent deity on Mount Gelmir and a forgotten religion that venerated it. We learned this from the Serpent Gods curved sword, which was a tool used to offer up sacrifices, fashioned in the image of the ancient serpent deity. The serpent takes. The serpent is greed. It always has been, Ever since Dark Souls, where the serpent was a Symbol of Avarice. And so,

in the ancient age of Elden Ring, the serpent consumed its sacrifices and grew vast. But there were those who would not stand for it. They brandished the serpent hunter, a weapon that is both greatsword and spear, thought to have been used to hunt an immortal great serpent in the distant past, It manifests a blade of light when facing such a creature. So it is that we can speculate that the serpent deity was defeated, but the serpent never dies, and so it would return one day to feast upon a demigod who had ventured deep into Mount

Gelmir seeking power. This is a video about the blasphemy of Prater Rykard, the demigod child of Radagon and Rennala, who would one day be consumed by the immortal serpent. Here, at the Church of Vows in Liurnia, the House of the tree and the moon were joined. Radagon, champion of Gold, and Rennala, Queen of Caria, were wedded. This ended a war between Liurnia and Lyndell. Eventually Radagon would abandon Rennala, but not before siring three children with her. These children were Ranni, Radahn and Rykard. All three were born with Radagon's Red hair and Rennala's aptitude for magic,

and all three officially became demigod stepchildren. When Radagon divorced their mother and married the goddess Marika instead. In truth, however, Rennala's children were never demigod step children. They were demigod children. Full stop. That's because secretly, Radagon is Marika. Thus, Ranni, Radahn, and Rykard always were born of a god, even though they might not have known it. Their father remarrying with a god conferred some benefits, it seems. For one, Radagon's children would be honored enough to sit equally aside their step siblings in Leyndell. This is shown during Morgott's cut scene. The way these thrones are arranged.

It's almost as if there was once a council here of sorts. Now, of course, there is no council, and Morgott's spits out their names as he considers all of the demigods to be traitors to the positions of authority they once held. "General Radahn, Praetor Rykard, Lunar Princess Ranni." Rykard, having the title of Praetor in the days where he sat in this throne is an extremely interesting point of discussion. Praetor is a word that has its origins in the city of ancient Rome, where a Praetor was a sort of magistrate, someone who exercised authority from a

courthouse and its collection of judges. By some Roman accounts, Praetor's were not just involved with the law, but were also involved with commanding armies and conducting war. Though it might be a stretch to say that Rykard had that much authority instead, I think it's safer to assume that Rykard's Praetorship was busied with discovering the truth and administering justice by any means necessary. And I feel safe leveling this characterization at him because of Gideon. "Praetor Rykard is the lord of the Volcano Manor on Mount Gelmir. He is a ruthless justiciar who commands a company of inquisitors."

So Rykard wasn't just a Praetor and a justiciar, he was also lord of the Volcano Manor, a structure built into the very side of the volcano to the west of Altus Plateau. It was to here, I believe, that Leyndell outsourced much of their justice, and I think that theory will make more sense as we go. So let's investigate the manor and try to learn more about Rykard as he was before the shattering when we think he still served Leyndell. To arrive at the manor. One commonly first receives an invitation. "I hereby invite you to the

Volcano Manor. Take my hand and have audience with my mistress." Upon arrival, you're met with a well maintained grandeur not common to Elden Rings other castles. Clearly, first impressions are important here. You make your way in, head up to the banquet hall, and before long, you're invaded by the specter of one of Rykard's most loyal inquisitors. This is Inquisitor Ghiza, and his lore reveals just how ruthless Rykard's inquisitions were. His weapon of choice is an iron wheel lined with flesh flaying blades that cause severe pain and blood loss. It's a device of torture that kind

of evokes the torture wheels of antiquity, an intimidating tool that was likely very effective at getting Ghiza's victims to tell the truth. And if you're asking what truth? Well, I imagine Leyndell would have had a lot of truths that it would like to extract from its populace, for it sees many things as sins. For example, if you were Omen, you were to be hunted or sent to the Shining Grounds. If you were a prophet who saw the Erdtree burn in your visions, then you could be exiled with a wheel bolted to your neck. If you

were suspected of conspiring with the frenzied flame, you could get your entire clan entombed beneath the earth for eternity. So yeah, the Golden Order isn't exactly flexible. And sure, Muriel tells us that heresy can be conjoined with order. But historically, that was only true if your heresy was such a threat to the Erdtree that it couldn't be overcome any other way. Aside from Ghiza's signature wheel, a more common weapon of the inquisitors was the Inquisitors Girandole, which has numerous spikes that pierced the flesh, then singed the wounds with flame. Basically, it creates a wound, then

immediately cauterizes it so that the torture can continue for longer. The smell of burnt blood induces despair in the victim, and this candlestick, conceived by a thorough mind, was explicitly used on nobles behind the curtain at the Volcano Manor. Now, the word noble in Elden Ring doesn't really relate to any one faction. There are godsskin nobles, sanguine nobles, and many others besides. That said, the most common nobles are those from the capital who, according to the old aristocrat cowl, are undead wanderers who abandoned their birthplace after the shattering. Of all the nobles in Elden Ring

that the Inquisitor's Girandole would have been used on. I believe it was these citizens of Leyndell. So for the last few minutes I've made it pretty obvious that I believe Rykard was spiriting away nobles from Leyndell to torture at the Volcano Manor on behalf of Leyndell. I believe this happened during his tenure at Leyndell as Praetor, not after the shattering when he abandoned the capital. But is there actually any explicit evidence of Rykard controlling the Volcano Manor while he was still serving Leyndell before the shattering? Well, yes, but it's mostly circumstantial evidence. Here's a short

list. First, it's implied from Morgott's dialog. At least that Rykard was a Prater. While he had a throne in Leyndell. So there's that. Next, We know Rykard's inquisitors tortured nobles with a candlestick weapon that looks very much inspired by the fire of Mount Gelmir. So I think that's another piece of evidence that links the Volcano Manor with his Praetorship in Leyndell. Then there's Rykard's Gelmir Knights, who have a crest of red feathers that symbolize Rykard's pedigree as Lord Radagon's son. There's a veneration here of Radagon of the Golden Order, and the Knights were explicitly loyal

to Praetor Rykard before he became the blasphemous Lord Rykard. So I think this is another small piece of evidence that suggests the Volcano Manor at Mount Gelmir was kind of a vassal state to Leyndell. But admittedly, none of this is conclusive. However, we haven't yet discussed the official's attire. The official's attire is a piece of clothing we loot in an office of Leyndell. When worn, you realize it's a near-perfect match for the attire that Ghiza wears, and it also matches the attire of this nameless figure in a portrait that hangs over the banquet hall that

Ghiza invades. Yet again, we have a link now between the officials of Leyndell and the inquisitors of the manor. So who is this portrait and figure? Why is Ghiza wearing a similar set? And why is Ghiza attire found in Leyndell? The lore of the officials attire reads grubby blue robe worn by magisterial officials to carry out their grim tasks surveillance, executions, gruesome rituals. The darkest duties drive the wheels of mankind. To loot this item, we have to access a lift to the east of Leyndell. Here, right on the border of these forbidden lands, And halfway

up the elevator, there's a hidden path that leads towards a small office. And that's where we find the body of one who previously wore this attire. Ahead of them is this small room, one that's quite well furnished. And it's here, presumably, that this official would have furtively administered their dark duties, which again included surveillance, executions, and gruesome rituals. Given the location, these tasks would have been done in the service of Leyndell, you'd think. Incidentally, this is also where we loot the Blade of Calling the same dagger that Melina wields, which was given to one who

set out on a journey to fulfill her duty long ago. Perhaps the implication here is that this hidden office of Leyndell was involved with Melina's own grim storyline, but that's probably the topic for another video. The big deal here is that Inquisitor Ghiza also wears the officials attire, which links him an inquisitor of Rykard, to the magisterial officials. Just like this one, who drive the wheels of mankind behind the scenes in Leyndell with their surveillance, executions and rituals. Thus, as befits a Praetor, I think it's fair to assume that Rykard and his Inquisition really were

involved with the governance of Leyndell on a deeper level. But the shadow cast by these officials doesn't just cover Leyndell and the Volcano Manor. I think the origins of their attire and their order can actually be traced to the Shaded Castle and the Marais, who occupy a nearby township. The reason I speculate this is that Ghiza isn't just wearing the official chest piece. In fact, every other slot is filled with the blood soaked set instead. These are nothing more than a tightly wound bandages soaked through with blood, which hide the ghastly, festering body beneath. The

clear implication here is that Inquisitor Ghiza is very, very sick indeed. A reveal of his face by ZullieTheWitch shows his scars, and a mere stone's throw away, is the shaded castle, which explains it all. The coastlands of the shaded castle are the Marais family, who have this long, storied history. We learn about it from the Marais Mask, which lets us know that these Castellan's of the shaded castle have also served as executioners for generations. This mask is customarily worn by the head of House Marais, similar to the blood soaked wraps that Ghiza wears. I think

it's a convenient way to hide the festering skin beneath, as it's well known that the sons of House Marais are all sickly born. We learn this from the Marais robe, which is a tire that is almost identical to the official's attire. The only difference is that it has this black mantle across the shoulders, and the Marais robe combined with the mask also looks strikingly similar to this portrait in the Volcano Manor where Inquisitor Ghiza invaded you. There's just so much overlap here. But to summarize, House Marais are lords of the Shaded Castle, where they are

sickly born and have served as executioners. The attire of their lords is almost identical to the attire of the officials who served Leyndell, who were also involved in executions, as well as surveillance and gruesome rituals. Therefore, I think it's fair to assume that House Marais aided Leyndell in these dark capacities, and since one of Praetor Rykard's inquisitors also wears the Leyndell official set and is sick with blood soaked manchette's and a portrait nearby that looks like a Marais noble. I also think it's fair to assume that this Inquisitor and maybe others, were not only loyal

to Leyndell, but originally hailed from the Shaded Castle as well, and all of them would have been loyal to Rykard, who was a Praetor and a Justiciar, someone who would have been involved in magisterial and punitive duties on behalf of his queen mother and Lord Father in Landale. I love the picture that this all paints, and I love how geographically that story plays out. The shaded castle is a part of Altus Plateau, after all, so of course the Marais family would be assimilated by the local superpower and become a part of the Leyndell nobility as

the age of the Erdtree began. Indeed, the attire of the Marais and the officials also closely matched that of the Consorts Robe and the upper class robe, revealing the higher status of these folk. So we think these Leyndell officials were tasked with surveilling the rest of the noble populace. And I like to imagine that they invited many nobles, particularly ones they were investigating to the Volcano Manor to dine or die, perhaps with the same sort of letters that we receive. Upon arrival The nobles are received by the proprietress of the house, and they marvel at

the drawing room, a place that's designed to receive and entertain guests. There's a huge round table here, a gorgeous dining room upstairs, a living room to the side, and even smaller, more intimate rooms that guests can retire to. However, a couple of these rooms hide a secret, and it's that they have illusory walls that lead to a dungeon and a world of torture and pain. For the Volcano Manor is merely a facade, and these rooms likely exist for the express purpose of spiriting nobles away for interrogation. So we've established the Rykard's Inquisition was deeply involved

in surveillance, questioning and justice. And because of this, you'd think Rykard would have been exposed to the most cardinal sins of the populace. So I wonder, is it possible that these blasphemous ideas started to get through to him? Did Rykard spy an element of truth in their words? There is a portrait of the Erdtree burning, hanging in Volcano Manor. So I wonder, for example, if he started to believe in the visions that the prophets kept on having about the Erdtree on fire. If we imagine that Rykard was exposed to all of these blasphemies, perhaps it's

not so ironic to think that this Justitiar would eventually become the most blasphemous of them all. What's more, the current Elden Lord of Leyndell Radagon had abandoned Rykard's mother and left her a broken woman. I'm just speculating here, but perhaps this betrayal to marry Marika in Leyndell didn't sit right with Rennala's own children. Luckily for Rykard, another of his siblings was harboring resentment towards the Golden Order, and she planned to do something about it. According to Rogier, Ranni orchestrated The Night of the Black Knives, a plot that allegedly was the catalyst for the shattering of

the Elden Ring since it resulted in the death of a demigod. To orchestrate something is to plan or coordinate all of the elements. And Ranni wasn't acting alone. She had help. First and foremost, there was the assistance of the Black Knife Assassins, who used black knives infused with death to murder Godwyn the Golden. Then she might have had help in the forging of the Rune of Death into knives, which we speculate could have required Iji, a blacksmith. Then there's the matter of the theft of the Rune of Death itself, which Ranni herself takes credit for.

But one thing I feel that it's easy to miss is that Rykard might have helped with her plot as well. The Blasphemous Claw is an item we receive from one of Rykard's Recusants, and it reads A slab of rock engraved with traces of the Rune of Death can deflect the power of the black blade. On the night of the dire plot. Ranni rewarded Praetor Rykard with these traces. Should the coming trespass one day transpire, they would serve as a last resort to foil, allowing Rykard to challenge the Black Blade, the black beast of destined death.

So it is that we learn Ranni rewarded her brother at the end of her plot to murder Godwyn the Golden. The word reward seems to imply that Rykard had some part in all of this, right? And that maybe he did something worthy of recompense. So what do we think that Rykard could have conceivably done to help with the night of the Black Knives? One of my favorite theories comes from Lokey, who brought up Rykard's magisterial duties in Leyndell. Since Ranni's forces would have needed to break into the city to murder Godwyn the Golden, and perhaps

even to steal a fragment of the Rune of Death in the first place, it makes sense that Praetor Rykard would have been a good ally to have in this moment, since he likely had authority over law and order here. So perhaps Rykard arranged for security to be lax on the Night of Black Knives. Or perhaps he gave Ranni's crew Intel about the city's defenses. And if you subscribe to the idea that Rykard's Praetorship involved control of the Army, like some of the old Roman praetor's had, then, that definitely would have helped as well. Of course,

how Rykard earned his reward is very open to speculation, but we definitely know that he was deemed worthy of this reward, and that gives us a lot to work with. For example, it also tells us that Ranni knew about Rykard's blasphemous intentions before the shattering. Hell, Maybe merely harboring blasphemous thoughts was worthy of a reward in Ranni's eyes, and what she gave was a valuable reward the blasphemous claw. It wards off Maliketh's Black Blade of destined death, which posed the single greatest threat to the demigods, especially to one as blasphemous as Rykard. One thing I

kind of love about Rykard is that, as blasphemous as he was even in his later years, he still keeps a portrait of his brother Radahn hanging in the Volcano Manor. Radahn, by all accounts, was a bit of a Golden Order fanboy with armor that symbolized Godfrey, the first Elden Lord and the red hair of Radagon, which he was keen to show off. You'd think, then, that this would be a painting worthy of being taken down. Hell, there's literally a painting of a burning Erdtree in the same building, and yet the portrait remains. Perhaps there was

a kinship between these, The children of Rennala, that superseded the differences. What I'm trying to say is that I think Rykard really loves his "family." Sorry... In general, though, kinship between the demigods generally went out the door when the shattering occurred, as Marika's remaining kin claimed the great Runes of the shattered Elden Ring. "In Marika's own words. Hear me, demigods, my children beloved, make of thy selves that which ye desire. Be it a Lord, be it a God. But should he fail to become aught at all, he will be forsaken, amounting only to sacrifices" with

words such as these, And with the power split to all the demigods with the great runes. It's clear that Marika was laying the groundwork for a greater descent and a more pronounced shattering war. Of course, many did go to war for their demigods unique ambition. Godrick the Golden tried and failed to take back the capital, and he was repelled by Morgott, the new grace given Lord of Leyndell. And many troops would have died in this battle. Radahn's Redmane knights also clashed with Malenia's Cleanrot Knights, which caused the scarlet bloom in Caelid and when the war

efforts were spent, many demigods retreated back to their domains to lick their wounds, Essentially. Rykard, for his part, clearly doubled down on Mount Gelmir as his domain. During this time, and between all of the demigod ambitions on display during the shattering, I think Rykard's would have stood out for one unique reason, and it's that he didn't want to wrest control of the Golden Order. No, he wanted to rise against the Erdtree and tear it all down Instead. "the Erdtree blessed the tarnished with grace, but it was all too meager in the face of the enormity

of their task. The tarnished were forced to scavenge, squabbling for crumbs like the shard bearers vying for power in the wake of the shattering. Our Lord, indignant, has refused to scurry about, fighting over what miserly scraps they allow us. If the Erdtree, and indeed the very gods would debase us so then we are willing to raise the banner of resistance, even if it means heresy. We at the Volcano Manor under Lord Rykard, have sworn no rest until it is done" before release. Miyazaki has gone on record stating. As for Rykard, in a way I feel

that his blasphemy represents one of the strongest wills in Elden Ring. To put it in grandiose terms. I find his determination and commitment almost enviable. So even Miyazaki sounds pretty sold on Rykard. I imagine his troops were as well. Indeed, both descriptions within the Gelmir Knight sets mention their loyalty to Rykard and his lofty ambitions. These descriptions, as well as dialog from Bernahl and The Ex-Gelmir Knight, all mention Rykard's dignity and worth. But of course, it would all go to hell in the end. "A fine mess, but how else could it end when daddy ambition

is head over heels courting lady blasphemy." So this is Rykard at his height. Now let's talk about the fall. At some point, Rykard delved deeper into the mountain, and what he found would change him forever. For Mount Gelmir contains truly ancient things, artifacts and religion, and a creature that history barely talks about. The most important description comes from the serpent gods curved sword, a weapon that was formally used to offer up sacrifices. It was a tool of a forgotten religion once practiced on Mount Gelmir, and considering the sword's design, is a serpent's jaw that consumes

the vitality of enemies. We can guess who the sacrifices were Being made to. This culture of sacrifice helps us to explain another ancient discovery Rykard made within Mount Gelmir. Hexes. Typically, in FromSoftware games, a hex is a type of death magic which often manifests as a skull flying towards enemies. In Elden Ring, this tracks as well the death hexes of the Death Birds, for example, summon a horde of vengeful spirits, as does Rykard's Rancor. To be even more specific, though, hexes in Elden Ring all seem to involve sacrifice in some way. The staff of the

guilty talks about this. It's a heretical staff fashioned from a smoldering, withered sapling with a little creature impaled on the end. The creature is a sacrifice that has had its blood turned into red glintstone, and the staff says that this process of sacrifice is similar to hex magic. This sacrificial process might also explain why hexes manifest as rancorous spirits. If you were being sacrificed, I imagine that would put you in a pretty vengeful mood after death. But with the age of the Erdtree usurping so many prior cultures of death, it seems hexes haven't been seen

in the world of Elden Ring for quite some time. For instance, do you recall fighting necromancer Garris? He's this sage who fights you in this cave at the base of Mount Gelmir. Garris is described as a heretical sage, and his heresy is clearly that he's researching death rituals that run counter to those of the Erdtree. One of Garris's achievements is the Rancor Call sorcery. Once thought lost, this ancient death hex was rediscovered by the necromancer Garris. Incidentally, his little snail buddies in this fight are actually snakes who are merely wearing skulls as their shell. They're

similar to the Spirit Caller snails, who are also snakes that are able to summon spirits. I don't think it's a coincidence that all of these snail snakes are so death themed. I think the Great Serpent and its kin were a big part of the sacrificial culture that existed in Mount Gelmir long ago, and I don't think it's a coincidence either, that Garris rediscovered an ancient death hex so close to Mount Gelmir, especially since Rykard himself would go on to rediscover ancient hexes at Mount Gelmir as well. As a child of Rennala, Rykard clearly had a

knack for sorceries, and he developed many from the magma of Mount Gelmir. The magma shot sorcery reads. After discovering the ancient hexes of Gelmir, Rykard, son of Queen Rennala, brought them back into practical use as new forms of sorcery. In this sense, magma sorceries are kind of a type of hex magic. The volcano is the Great Serpent's home. Magma is its aspect. So maybe lava sorceries being a type of hex magic, has something to do with all of the sacrifices that had been made to the serpent God here. So we've established that magma is an

aspect of the serpent, and so were hexes. But there's a third aspect. Poison. Man-Serpents inflict it, as does the coil shield, the serpent bone blade, and the serpent bow and arrows. Plus, of course, the god devouring serpent itself spits a great deal of poison at you during its bossfight. Considering this, I wonder if Mount Gelmir is somehow the source of the poison that has pooled at the shaded castle. Now, you could argue that this poison here is different, and that this is more of a poison that's born of stagnant, unmoving water. But I don't think

that's the case. I think there's a couple of things that suggest this poisoned water comes from Mount Gelmir, perhaps even from the great serpent itself. To start, there's actually a link between the Marais and the serpent that I don't think many people know about. The cut description of the Serpent Arrow reads arrow carved to resemble a slender serpent. Its fangs are daubed with a fast acting venom. These arrows were used by the people of the shaded castle, making them all the more hated by their enemies. The Serpent Bow then elaborates, stating that it was used

by heretical assassins, and then the release version of the Serpent Bow specifies that these assassins were known as the formless serpents, with a bow that supernaturally infuses any arrow with poison. So yeah, there was once a lot of overlap between the Marais and the serpent. I looked up this description to see if anyone else had commented on this connection, and I stumbled upon some comments by Reddit user NahMcGrath who had made some excellent observations about how serpent worship might have influenced the culture of the Marais family. I'll leave a link to their ideas in the

description, but basically they argue that the Marais might have been a part of the sacrificial execution rituals that we know took place at Mount Gilmer in the ancient past. Since the Marais culture in the current age also involves execution as a family tradition, a tradition that was eventually put to use on behalf of Leyndell and to add some more support of my own to this theory. The sacrificial blade, once used for offerings to the serpent, is a weapon that's meant to be wielded by humans. So it would make sense that humans, maybe the Marais clan

might have once been in charge of such sacrificial executions. Again, all of this is cut content, but I think it might give us a valuable insight into what the devs were thinking when they designed the Marais family. Anyway, to bring things back around to my original point. I think all of this is at the very least, decent proof that the poison in this environment evokes the great serpent, and I think it's decent proof that this poison probably flows from Mount Gilmer, which is the great serpents home. This brings us to Seethewater cave brimming with poison,

with a name that implies poisoned water is seething and flowing underground. It's located here, on the northeastern side of Mount Gilmer, and the most curious thing about this cave, I think, is that it's located directly below a minor Erdtree. And this minor Erdtree is dead. So I'd like to propose a bit of a theory. I think this tree might be dead, at least partly because of the poison at its roots. I think the Volcano Manor wanted this tree dead. And I think that this desecration of an Erdtree was the catalyst for the terrible war that

would come to this region. So let me expand on that a little bit. First, what are the minor Erdtrees? Well, it seems they only came to exist after the shattering. This is explained by the Golden Seed description, which reads: When the Elden Ring was shattered, these seeds flew from the Erdtree, scattering across the various lands as if life itself knew its end had come. The seed talismans go on to say that the Erdtree was once perfect and eternal, and thus it was believed that Erdtree seeds could not exist. But exist They did, eventually growing into

minor Erdtrees that spread the ailing tree's influence farther across the Lands Between and at the feet of minor Erdtrees, basins were set up in order to collect their crystallized tears, which physick chemists would then use to brew powerful concoctions, and these minor Erdtrees. These offspring of the oak tree were defended by the Erdtree avatars and the Erdtree guardians. The avatars seemed born of the Erdtree itself, and wield a ceremonial staff that depicts the Erdtree in its historic radiance. They were determined to protect the withering Erdtrees offspring in the wake of the Elden Rings shattering. the

Guardians to a clearly part tree. Although their tree like aspect seems like it has blossomed over time. Instead, these were probably humans originally, and their weapon says that they are known as experts in the art of combat. At some point, though, they made what is now an ancient pact with the Erdtree, whereupon their deaths would lead not to destruction but instead to renewed eternal lives as guardians. The description asserts that it is said that the blood red flowers blooming on their backs mark the senescence or deterioration of that ancient pact, and I think that's a

sly reference to how the Erdtree isn't really eternal, and thus neither was their ancient pact. Incidentally, these guardians are perhaps proof that the Erdtree is capable of rebirth, something the community has long speculated about based on some murals found in game. And I say that they're proof of rebirth since their weapon description makes it clear that they had to die before they could be renewed as eternal minor Erdtree guardians. But of all the minor Erdtrees to be renewed to guard, I wouldn't have wanted to guard the one at Mount Gelmir. This one was growing right

next to a faction that was becoming increasingly defined by their resistance to the Erdtree. And while fear of repercussion might have protected this minor Erdtree for a time, eventually its time ran out and the Erdtree was desecrated and killed. Now, it might be a stretch to say that this minor Erdtree was poisoned, intentionally or even unintentionally, by the poison at its roots in seethewater Cave. But there are Leyndell knights and scouts who have ventured into Seethewater Cave. And while they could just be sheltering here, I like to think they're here to investigate how the minor

Erdtree died. Though I should be clear, this is largely my own headcanon. You can speculate on a few ways this minor Erdtree might have died for example, maybe Rykard used the traces of the Rune of death to bring down this Erdtree, since it's the unleashing of the Rune of death that burns the actual Erdtree later in our timeline. So why not use a minor piece of Destined Death to burn a minor Erdtree? Whatever the case, this minor Erdtree is dead. And all around it we find the aftermath of a horrific battle. So, considering fire and

burning an Erdtree would be a cardinal sin, I feel pretty convinced that the death of this minor Erdtree might have been the catalyst for this, what Gideon calls the most appalling battle in the history of the shattering. Now, Leyndell is all about defense, right? And there's evidence that it has successfully weathered many assaults upon its walls. It is said that the soldiers of Leyndell fight their battles defensively, and their purpose is to protect that which deserves protection. And thus the shield always comes before the sword. The one exception to that, it seems, was the assault

on Volcano Manor. Here, Leyndell actually launched an offensive. There are numbered sites of Grace at Gelmir called First Mount Gelmir campsite located here, And then there's ninth Mount Gelmir campsite located here. And the fact that there were so many campsites, clearly, I think, suggests a sort of slow progression in their campaign to assault Mount Gelmir. But the battle itself clearly took place here, leading up to the minor Erdtree, where there are mountains of the dead and the bodies of crucified giants and other folk. It's a pretty grim scene. The only note of brevity comes from

the jar cannon and experimental firearm brought to the assault on Volcano Manor, where it was discovered that no one knew how to use it. While that's kind of funny, the aftermath isn't. The dead a piled and rotting and have been for quite a while. Bodies are even seen on both sides of a broken bridge here, and assuming they didn't just throw half the bodies off this broken bridge for some reason, I feel like another logical conclusion to draw is that the war occurred so long ago, and the bodies have been here for so long that

a land upheaval broke the bridge into and separated it with the bodies still upon it. We do learn from the Gelmir map that the land in this area has experienced such an upheaval, but please let me know if I'm missing something here. So basically, all of the living that fought on Rykard's side are dead and gone. But what about those who fought on his side but were never alive? These are the marionette soldiers, and they're commonly employed by sorcerers. So these soldiers likely belonged to Rykard, considering his heritage as Rennala's son and they're the only

ones that really fit on here now, Since they're puppets, they're uncaring of their master's blasphemy or the state of the battlefield. A nearby sword gravestone comments on the battle, the assault on Volcano Manor, the squalid, the sick, the blasphemous, a wretched, unending war with no glory. The fact that the assault on Volcano Manor involved the squalid and the sick makes me think again of the serpent's poison. Human defenders of the manor in the current age do attack with poison pots, so it's not ridiculous to think that some sort of chemical warfare might have been used

against the house of the Erdtree in this wretched, unending war. Speaking of which, the nearby Grace references the nearby road of iniquity. Iniquity is a word that means immoral or grossly unfair behavior, and I think we experience the aftermath of that iniquity firsthand when we encounter this troll warrior. It's hard to say for sure which side this troll fought on, but I lean towards it, fighting on Rykard's side since it's flanked by marionette soldiers. Whatever the case, though, this troll warrior has seen some shit and now it has eyes that burn with the flames of

frenzy frenzy. As you might know from our age of despair video is contagious, but it also commonly visits those who have simply experienced some sort of horror or despair. So it is with the troll here, and with many of the Leyndell knights as well, who you find despairing around Mount Gelmir, a bunch of Leyndell knights can even be found cannibalizing their comrades, adding to the horror of this stage. So it's no wonder, then, that the land itself has even become afflicted. And eyes of Yelough, which grow in lands afflicted by frenzy, have started to flourish

in this place, a spirit once allied with Rykard muses on the squalor of this battlefield. I think this dialog helps to sell the idea that morale was fading during the war, even amongst Rykard's faithful. But things would only get worse as Rykard was about to feed himself to the great serpent. And perhaps I should clarify, at the time of the war, I don't think Rykard had yet fed himself to the serpent. This is mostly because of Tanith. Tanith wears the Consort's robe, which reads: Long ago, when Rykard first set eyes on Tanith, she was working

as a dancer in a foreign land. Soon he made her his consort. The description then goes on to state she was the only human to remain by his side when he became the serpent of blasphemy. So since Rykard supposedly had no more humans at his side when he became the serpent, the war must have taken place before this transition, since he obviously still had humans at his side when he was fighting in the war. That said, you definitely could still argue that Rykard had already fed himself to the serpent by the time of this war.

That's because of these tattered flags that fly over the battlefield. The symbol shows a depiction of Rykard and the Great Serpent, not to mention Ghiza, His Inquisitor had a weapon decorated with serpent symbolism. So yeah, as it stands, I probably lean towards Rykard, not having fed himself to the serpent yet. I think maybe he was just enraptured with it. Or maybe this serpent symbolism on the banner, and in Ghiza's weapon just showed up later in the timeline, closer to when we explore. But it's hard to say for sure. And if you guys know the answer

to this, feel free to let me know in the comments. Whatever the case, I do think this assault from Leyndell was the beginning of the end, and I think the final straw was when Rykard doubled down and fed himself to the serpent. Great Rune and all. It was in this moment that Tanith was truly charmed by him. We know that Rykard delved into Mount Gelmir and came out with new Death Hex sorceries, but he must have uncovered a lot more within legends of an ancient culture of sacrifice and a serpent god that could not die.

But why did Rykard feed himself to such a creature? Well, for one, it's certainly possible that losses from the assault from Leyndell factored into things with his troops pushed to the brink. The serpent might have represented a new, promising path forward, but that's just speculation. in terms of concrete proof We have the remembrance of the blasphemous, which makes it very clear that Rykard took the form of a giant serpent that he might devour, grow and live eternally. Rykard is then quoted as saying, I understand the road of blasphemy is long and perilous. One cannot walk

it unprepared to sin. In the concept art for this scene, the so-called giant serpent consuming Rykard is actually pretty small, looking nowhere near as vast as the Great serpent that we fight in-game. But if this actually is the Great Serpent, well, it might make some sense that it would be this small in this scene. The serpent Hunter seems to suggest the Great Serpent was actually defeated in the past, so maybe it was eventually reborn as a smaller creature, or diminished in size. And it's only now, after consuming Rykard, that it's able to begin growing back

to its former glory. The details in this scene are amazing. If you look closely, you realize that Rykard literally served himself up on a golden platter to the snake. Off to the side There are even a couple of what look like small eggs on a silver platter, and only one of them has hatched. So did the great serpent hatch from this egg. What about the other eggs? I don't really know what to make of this, but again, this scene is concept art. Essentially, so maybe I shouldn't be taking it too literally. We also learn from

the Devourer's scepter that in his final moments, Rykard briefly saw a vision of the future the shape of a serpent devouring the world, a vision of the future. This reminds me a lot of a description from Dark Souls three, that a lot of you might remember where another God devouring being called Aldrich also saw a vision of the future, except where Rykard foresaw a serpent devouring the world. Aldrich foresaw the coming age of the deep sea. The question is, can we trust either of these visions as legitimate visions of the future? Or are they more

like visions of what may or may not come to pass? It's hard to say, but given enough time in these universes, I suppose it's impossible to rule out that these things would never happen. Also, both of these visions are worded ambiguously enough that even if Rykard or Aldrich were to die, the visions could still come to pass. And in Rykard's case, after all, "A Serpent never dies" To Rykard's knights, this blasphemy with the serpent was one step too far. "someone please kill him. That a random serpent. Praetor Rykard. Your tarnished. He is a put the

demigods to the sword. Then please kill the great serpent. Praetor Rykard's ambitions, Though blasphemous, marked him a worthy soverign that they were reduced to gluttonous depravity. Once he gave himself to the serpent, whatever that thing is, it is no longer Praetor Rykard. Someone must kill him to spare him and his ambitions from further dishonor" This is the armor of the Gelmir knights. It bears an emblem that none where any longer standing, as it does for a lord that fell from loft ambition into gluttonous depravity. Indeed, there are no living Gelmir knights left in game, and

as the Lord lost his dignity, so to did these knights lose their master. This is the serpent Hunter, a weapon that serves as both great sword and spear, thought to have been used to hunt an immortal great serpent in the distant past. It manifests a long blade of light when facing such a creature. When their master's heroic aspirations degenerated into me agreed, his men searched for a weapon with which they might halt their lord. The fact this weapon exists obviously suggests the Great Serpent had enemies that wanted to kill it in the past. I guess

sacrificing everything around you might do that. Curiously, the weapon uses a type of white light power that I don't think manifests anywhere else in Elden Ring, and I wish we knew more about whatever enemy of the Great Serpent created this weapon long ago. Regardless, this was the perfect weapon for the Gelmir knights to find, so they heroically tried to use it against Rykard and failed. "I left the serpent slaying spear in the Lords chamber. Worthy tarnished, brandish the spear and run him through. the great serpent... That unspeakable monstrosity." In a way, these knights were still

loyal to Rykard, or the memory of him. At least they wanted to kill Rykard to spare him and his ambitions from dishonor. But Rykard was simply remaining loyal to his ideals If you think about it, even if he had to abandon his dignity to go down this path, the serpent takes bolstering itself with the strength of others. And to Rykard, this was just an extension of his current practice, as taking by force became the rule when he had turned to heresy long ago. He believed that the gods were no different, and there might be more

truth to that than we know. Look at the Erdtree assimilating the dead to feed itself, for example. Or look at Godrick using an ancient ritual of grafting to bolster his own strength. All things can be conjoined. Indeed. But while Rykard kept his will and remained loyal to his ideals, his forces signed up to usurp the order. Not really to become worse than it. And so Rykard lost the favor with the majority of his forces. But speaking of his forces, the marionettes actually weren't the only automatons who fought on incapable of death or despair. Rykard also

had the Iron Virgins, also known as abductor virgins. These undying iron monstrosities have a lot going on with their designs. For one, they each cradle a baby, which is some fascinating symbolism that I hope might be explained in the DLC, but it's what's on the inside that counts here. And I'm not talking about the strips of meat on the inside which keep their victims nice and cozy. I'm talking about the snakes. If you look closely inside these creatures, you'll realize that the snakes are actually wrapped around a sort of central mechanism. Thus, I think these

abductors are likely piloted by snakes. The insides and the snakes even take extra damage when hit, which is a bit more evidence for the snakes being the most important part of the machine. The fact that snakes appear here seems to suggest that these machines were created after the shattering, and after Rykard took on the serpent as his aspect. So that's why I only mention these at this latter point in the video, as I'm trying to present things in order with the timeline, and I think these entities showed up later in that timeline. Clearly, Rykard was

still keeping up his habit of abducting people, and now it was the snakes who fulfilled that role spiriting their victims away. Not unlike the snakes of Dark Souls and Sekiro. Interestingly, the texture of these snakes is quite metallic, almost as if they're inorganic animated creatures. And when it comes to snakes, having a metallic appearance, there actually is quite a lot of precedence for that phenomenon. In Elden Ring, the coil shield, for example, is a bronze snake that becomes animated to the point where it's able to bite and still inflict poison upon enemies. The Grave Keepers

too, wear armbands that are embellished with bronze snakes, and there are some grave keepers whose bronze snakes briefly actually come to life in a grab attack. So yeah, there's definitely something going on with bronze snakes in particular. Incidentally, these grave keepers have lore that explains that the snake has become a hated symbol in the Lands Between. The grave keepers were actually once gladiators who were driven from the Colosseum, and their cloak reads: The snake is viewed as a traitor to the Erdtree, and the audience delighted in seeing these bronze effigies, beaten and battered in gladiatorial

combat. Now, at first, you'd think that the snake is viewed as a traitor to the Earth tree, thanks to Rykard. However, I'm not too sure if that works with the timeline of Elden Ring. Rykard was only consumed by the serpent after the shattering and the arenas where the gladiators would have fought were used primarily in the age of Lord Godfrey, and the practice was said to have died out by the age of King Consort Radagon. So if audiences were delighting in seeing the symbol of a snake being beaten and battered, you'd think that would have

occurred in Godfrey's age then, which was long before Rykard. Therefore, the snake must have already had an ill reputation in the Lands Between. This is where Messmer comes in, so the DLC is not yet out as of the making of this video, but the recent trailer seems to suggest that Messmer and his serpentine aspect has existed from very early on in the timeline, and since Messmer as a character has clearly done something worthy of being sealed away in the land of Shadow. I wonder what could he have done? Did he assault the Erdtree perhaps? Did

this event have anything to do with the great serpent or even the serpent slaying greatsword, Maybe? Could it have something to do with the Giant's forge, which has snakes on its design and a fire that can burn down the Erdtree? Or could Messmer have once attempted to burn down the Erdtree with his own flames? So many questions, and I think we should all go into the DLC looking for answers to questions like these. At any rate, the Abductor Virgins certainly aren't doing the snake's reputation any favors in this modern age. Their iconic weapon is this

the same wheel as Inquisitor Ghiza's signature weapon, which was adopted for use by the Iron Virgins. Therefore, I wouldn't be surprised if Ghiza invented them. Our only other source of information on the abductors comes from patches "You're making your way to the Erdtree, No? Well, I heard something that might help. A special means of reaching your destination. Have you ever seen an iron virgin? The clunky contraptions are whirlwinds of sickles and spiked wheels. But long ago, they were endowed with a spell of transposition, and get this. A surviving virgin sits at the bottom of the

big water wheel in the Academy of Raya Lucaria. Its transpositional powers fully intact. So right. If you get caught in it on purpose, it'll chuck you out straight at the base of the Erdtree or so I'm told." This explains why this abductor in particular is still capable of transporting you while the others can't. Their abduction powers are a spell. It might have even been Rykard who cast it. You'd think a Son of Rennala would be capable of casting an enchantment that could last all this time. This one intact abduction spell takes victims to a subterranean

inquisition chamber, where they could be interrogated. Rykard's abductions clearly adapted to include these war machines. Obviously, after making an enemy of Leyndell, he couldn't just invite nobles to the Volcano Manor for interrogation anymore. The world has become hostile to him now and for a time after the shattering, I imagine these machines were probably a very important way of getting Intel about the state of the world from widely across the Lands Between. And these machines are found widely across the Lands Between. They're endlessly fighting and endlessly attempting to abduct, even though they're teleporting and enchantments are

long faded away. There's a couple of interesting machines. One in Gilmer is missing a head and has a more wild attack pattern. It's become a part of a demi human ambush here. Maybe they beheaded it so that they could better use it to their advantage. That same sort of thing seems to have happened to this one in the Altus Plateau as well, which is stuck at the bottom of a cave. Here The vulgar militia have weaponized it, and it's clearly defeated many intruders within this death pit. And incidentally, that's also what's happened to the one

in Raya Lucaria. It can't get out of this hole, and apparently that's the best way to deal with these machines. When you explore the subterranean interrogation chamber that this abductor takes you to, you realize that no torturers are left here. The need for that seems to have long faded, along with the teleportation spells on the abductors. Somewhat ironically, these days, it seems that the Albinaurics, now driven to insanity, have become the only remaining line of defense in this place. Some even still wear the black dumpling, which is a mask forced on a victim's head to

lend torture an extra degree of cruelty. It magnifies one's fears and makes them acutely aware of all forms of pain. I'm not sure why Rykard was so keen to torture Albinaurics, but everyone hates Albinaurics in the Lands Between. It seems so, I guess Rykard was no different. Indeed, torture with the black dumpling wasn't done to get Intel to quote the item. When the black dumpling goes on, the torturer no longer seeks answers, only to inflict suffering without hope of relief. And so we arrive at the state of the Volcano Manor. As it stands, when our

character explores it long after the shattering, it's now a place crawling with grotesque creatures and chief among them are the man serpents. As the name implies, the man serpents were born of man and serpent. But what human would copulate with another species? At first glance, you might think that they might have been born of a union between Tanith and Rykard. Rykard had become one with the snake At this late point in our timeline, and Tanith was utterly devoted to him, to the point where Rykard actually offered Tanith a tonic of forgetfulness to wipe her memories

of him. But she refused, saying, my Lord, there could be no greater distress than to forget you. So Rykard clearly cared enough about her well-being, to the point where he wanted her to forget what he had become, and Tanith was so charmed by him that she refused. However, despite this dedication to each other, Tanith would not become the mother of the man serpents. Maybe that was another trauma that Rykard did not want to subject her to. "I will never be a good mother. My heart is too frail. Our Lord must have known this all along.

My meekness is all too clear." Let's learn more about Tanith. We've learned from the Consort's robe that Rykard met Tanith when she was working as a dancer in a foreign land. We learn more about her talents from her Dancers Castanets, which are these small instruments that some dancers clapped together in their hands as they perform. Tanith's reveal that her passionate dance comprises no seductiveness, but merely a dignified beauty and I think they're making a point of Tanith lack of seductiveness for a reason. After her meeting with Rykard, she became his consort. Yes, but I don't

think that Rykard wanted to have children with her. "Lady Tanith is my mother. I am told I was born by the grace of a glorious king. that my mother cherishes this form I inhabit" The origins of the man's serpents are explored more deeply when we meet Rya, who is a scout for the Volcano Manor, who quickly reveals herself as Zorayas, a man serpent who is starting to question her birthright. In the end, Zorayas comes to the conclusion that she was not born by the grace of a great king. Rather, she was born in some repellent

birthing ritual and what's more, the Lady Tanith isn't her true mother. "Funny, isn't it? I am certain of it. I was born inside this. It's a part of my birth mother" The truth of Zorayas birth is revealed by the serpent's amnion, which reads. Amnion from the mother's womb, which cradled the poor, unwanted offspring of a repellent birthing ritual. It will never dry out, remaining damp indefinitely. Truth is, Zorayas birth mother is almost certainly this terrible woman named Daedicar. We can surmise this because of the talisman that Zorayas leaves behind at the end of the questline.

Its description reads disturbing likeness of a woman whose skin was flayed. She smiles with a serene tenderness, increased the damage taken. It is said that this woman, named Daedicar indulged in every form of adultery and wicked pleasure imaginable, giving birth to a myriad of grotesque children. According to our translator Lokey, the Japanese word for grotesque used here is actually the same one the game uses to describe the deformed man serpents in English. The clear implication being that this woman consented to what the serpent's amnion calls a repellent birthing ritual with a serpent giving birth to

the man Serpents. The serpent she consorted with was almost certainly rykard himself. I suggest this because in the 1.0 version of the Daedicar talisman, Daedicar was actually a soft featured man who was one of Captain Rykard's paramours. It seems this description was eventually changed so the Daedicar's character could support the lore of them giving birth to the man serpents. Therefore, they needed to be a woman. However, I imagine the part where Daedicar was one of Rykard's lovers could conceivably still be intact. Therefore, I think it's likely that Rykard is the father of the man serpents.

Not to mention the man serpent spirit ashes more explicitly state that long ago, the elder serpent that dwelled on Mount Gelmir devoured a demigod. And then the birth of the man serpents followed. Also, the similar naming convention that Rya and Rykard share is another piece of evidence. And finally, the serpent amnion Rya was born from says it cradled the poor, unwanted offspring. I'm told the Japanese word for unwanted could perhaps more accurately be stating that Rya is a noble's bastard child, which she kind of is if Rykard is her father, since Tanith is not her

birth mother. So it is that the man serpents actually might not have been completely unwanted at all. An older version of the serpents amnion, states that there are some man serpents with particularly intelligent offspring, and while this is cut content, it's obviously still true not just because of Rya, but because of this guy. This bloat headed man serpent is presented as if they're royalty, with a lavish cloak, jeweled chest, and large throne of their own. They stand here surrounded by human remains, and they're in a position of dominance over the surviving human nobles, who are

at the foot of the steps as well. These nobles are tormented by what is likely the serpents poison. Clearly, man is no longer valued in this place, and the man serpents now rule in their stead. Indeed, the man serpents are actually closest to the way gate that takes you to Rykard, suggesting that they might speak on his behalf somewhat. Speaking of which, it makes sense that a Carian, a former one, at least like Rykard, would have a way gate in their domain. But I'm getting off topic. The bloat head serpent itself casts some very advanced

Glintstone magics, and the Gelmir Glintstone staff they wield Talks about how the man serpents draw from faith in addition to intelligence to enhance the potency of their sorcery. Their faith, I assume, would likely be directed at the serpent God, which once had a religion of its own, after all, and the man serpents intelligence that they use to cast spells would make sense as well, considering the Carian influence and maybe even heritage that they have Thanks to Rykard, the staff itself even makes a lot of sense for a man serpent to wield, as it has red

Glintstone at the tip. As the catalyst and red glintstone is specifically formed from the blood of sacrifices, and the serpents once had a culture of sacrifice as well. In addition to this man serpents mastery of sorcery, the man serpents in general seem to have learned how to fashion weapons and shields, like the copper round shield, for example, which has been tempered in lava. And then there's also the magma blade, which was fashioned from actual lava and is considered impossible for a human to have made. Clearly, these serpents have an affinity with magma, and according to

the sorcery Gelmir's Fury, The arrogance of attempting to harness the fury of the volcano belongs to men and serpents alone. Speaking of serpents also, there are a few magma wyrms in Mount Gelmir, and they're at home here in the lava of the volcano. Magma wyrms are explicitly former heroes who aspired to become dragons, but turned into wyrms instead. And their lore actually doesn't relate too much to Mount Gelmir. However, I think their lore could still be a nod towards serpents being lesser dragons again. Serpents being lesser dragons is a FromSoftware staple at this point. Within

the Volcano Manor, we also see serpents statues, many with wings, which could be a reference to their once heavenly draconic origins. But hopefully Messmer and his draconic eye and his wings and snakes elaborate on this point in the DLC. Since I feel like there's some ancient history, we're missing. Speaking of ancient history, one of the biggest mysteries in all of Mount Gelmir is this place, the Temple of Eiglay. This place is where we loot the serpent's amnion, that product of a birthing ritual that Raya recognizes and was born from. This item is overshadowed, though, by

this the flayed skin and head of a serpent, which I would assume might be Eiglay who the temple is named after, though that's just speculation. Another piece of speculation is that this large serpent's skin is flayed in the first place, though I think that might be explained by the presence of the godskin noble who defends it. To sum up the godskins lore briefly, the godskin nobles once served a character called the Gloam-eyed Queen, who was clearly a character who was a proponent of bringing death to the gods. And what's interesting about the Gloam-eyed Queen is

that there's some dialog from Melina that suggests that the Gloam-eyed queen doesn't just care about death, but births as well. And so what if the serpents amnion, this product of new birth, might actually be what's being defended by the godskin here? Or maybe the godskin wants to bring death to the serpent god. Maybe this godskin, like so many other godskins in game, is allied with blasphemous forces in order to strike back at Queen Marika. Or maybe the godskins have ties to the snake since their necks can do this extendedy thing. Maybe they were involved with

the man serpent birthing ritual. Maybe we just have no idea, because you can speculate in a ton of different directions when it comes to this place. So I'm going to stop myself here until we have the DLC, just in case that brings some new information to light. I'm also going to hold off on discussing the Recusant's of Volcano Manor in this video, as we'd love to cover them in a more cinematic Prepare to cry episode. And I don't really like treading the same ground twice on my channel if I can avoid it. And if you're

interested in supporting my videos and seeing that Prepare to Cry video early, as well as many other videos, check out my Patreon. We have some new Patreon merch. We've got these New Seekers t-shirts, as well as some new artwork that you can get if you subscribe to the Patreon exclusively. So check that out if you want to support, but also get something in return. I probably don't talk about that enough. For now though. I'll end this video on the truth of the Volcano Manor in the current age, which is this. It's to here, The tarnished

are invited so that they might join the ranks of the Recusants and prove themselves as a champion. They fight against their fellow tarnished, who are commonly seen as followers of grace and therefore are the enemy. And a recusant's final reward is a meeting with Lord Rykard, who wishes now to consume the greatest champions left in the world, so that they might all become one with him and his blasphemy. "Very well. You... Join the Serpent King, as family. Together we will devour the very Gods!" "Oh, you... allow me some time. Our Lords carcass is vast and

not easily consumed. Dear Rykard, please find purchase within me. I wish to be your serpent, your family. One day. Let us devour the gods together." One day we'll do a proper prepare to cry episode on these characters. But for now, thank you to everyone who helped in the filming and preparation of this video. And I'll see you next time.