In a single act, Marika destroyed both herself and the kingdom she had built, but why?
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TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Intro
04:05 A Comparison to Gwyn, The Lord of Sunlight
09:28 Idealistic Beginnings
12:00 Becoming a Tyrant
14:08 Losing Faith
17:05 Marika’s Secret Plan
24:45 Shattering the Elden Ring
26:20 Godhood is a Prison
30:25 Misery
32:35 Her Relationship with her Children
33:50 What is Radagon?
38:50 Her Origins
41:42 The Gate of Divinity
42:45 Conclusion
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21:25 I doubt this, we know she is one of the oldest daughters of Marika. Born before the Hornsent slaughter alongside Messmer, and we know that Marika hadn’t become disillusioned at that point.
29:25 You mention all of Marika's children as cursed. Mesmer, Melina, Mohg, Morgot, Malenia and Miquella. But what about Godwyn? Was he the only one that wasn't cursed?
We have a chicken or the egg situation with him. Is deathblight a product of Godwyn's death? Or was deathblight Godwyn's curse that got out of control because of his death?
There is so little information of Godwyn, and the DLC expanded nothing about. In fact it left me with more questions. He befriended the ancient dragons, cool. He had a lot of descendants, cool. He was murdered the night of the plot… why? what for? Miquella wanted to give him a true death, what happened? he couldn't do it? why did he stop?
Maybe, and I'm really hoping, the Land of the Dead will be the next DLC? It makes sense to put and end to whatever the hell Godwyn has become in order to make Ranni's ending the "good one"
Maybe it's because I've had Star Wars on the brain lately, but an extended universe detail I heard once comes to mind. As I understand it, one of Darth Plagueis' big accomplishments was altering the balance of the Force to favor the dark side, kind of a big deal. However, the Force responded by creating Anakin, a being with the power to set things right, which he eventually does.
I see parallels between that and how nearly all of Marika's demigod offspring seem to be "cursed" in some way that poses a threat to the Golden Order. Messmer and Melina, born with flames that could wreak havoc on everything she's built. Morgott and Mohg, born as holy beings of the Crucible order she stamped out. Malenia, plagued with a rot that kills or mutates anything it touches, and Miquella, cursed to always remain a child and never grow to his full potential. Her children as Radagon fare better, but two out of three choose to rebel against her. Seems like the only two that turned out like how she would have wanted are Godwyn and Radahn, and both of them got torn down by the other demigods. Whatever Marika did to become a god, it's as if the universe has responded by denying her any chance of having a successor that could continue her order.
It's clear that Marika and Miquella have DID. Marika's trauma that created Radagon is pretty clear.
Your videos rock, Fattbrett. I find myself wondering what other characters you might one day talk about. I'd love to hear your take on the Pale King from Hollow Knight in particular. That guy is ripe for interpretation.
Whatever you do, though, I'll be happy to watch!
One thing that always makes me confuse is: if marika just wanted to die, she could just idk, kill a finger or smt like that and maliketh would be forced to kill her. The shadows are a failsafe that will kill their counterparts if they go against the fingers… maybe maliketh was even more capable to resist the fingers than blaid… or maybe maliketh was the one who pierced marika with a destined death spear as punishment
A caged divinity is beyond saving.
if marika really did survive the jarring process and become more powerful as a result, and thus become revered for it, then it would make sense for the omens to call her a betrayer when she ascended, cause that’s a lot of bodies at the gate.
I disagree that marika had a part in the night of the black knives
I see a lot of similarities in the characters of Elden Ring and Warhammer 40k, Godwyn and Sanguinius, and with Marika/Radagon, I find them to be very similar to the twins Alpharius and Omegon.
Alpharius and Omegon are twins who were once a singular being before they were split and scattered across the galaxy. Physically, they're perfect copies of one another, but their personalities are very different, similar to Marika and Radagon. Even gets to the point in their story where one brother is actively working against his brother and his aims, just like how Marika wants to die and end the golden order and Radagon is very much against that, just look at the way he swats our bolt of Grannsax out of the way, he's tired of everyone's shite 😅
I hope that Berserk has a similar character development for Griffith, that would be so satisfying.
So she basically ended up in a jar in the end after having all that power and said nah fk it. Lol don’t blame her
This sounds like possession more than a personality change
Maybe Radagon and Merika were childhood friends and both stuck into the jar together so they became one this way?
I have a feeling that Radagon was actually a criminal and was a separate being from Marika at one point. The Living Jars were a punishment for criminals in Hornsent culture in hopes that they would be reborn as a saint. Marika's flesh is known to meld harmoniously with others because she is a Numen, a Shaman. I feel like Radagon was Marika's rigid more violent self and, potentially, there may have been times where she was actively controlled by this now side of herself.
Get me wrong here, but does this mean that WE are fcken blindless assholes who follow some light murder Innocent Children, kill not one but two gods, just to become God and make another Order, that potentially dies like the other´s? pls tell me if i misunderstood
There was always going to be a civil war. Miquella, Malenia, and Ranni were designated the next Empyreans by the Fingers. Designated as Marika's replacement. Also, Radagon and Malenia were almost certainly not always the same person. They fused at some point with Shaman shenanigans.
Everything is good in this video, except the part related to the Night of the Black Knives.
Marika really remind me of Queen Cersei Lannister, seeing that George RR Martin partially worked in this project really not surprise me, Cersei wanted to be born male, so she always "loved" her twin Jaime, because he was everything that she couldn't, even that her love was purely narcissistic, and by her quest for power and her relationship with Jaime only brought death and misery to everyone that surround her, beginning with her own friend Melara Hetherspoon only because she was infatuated with Jaime, Cersei throw her into a well.
Marika really told her kids “life’s a garden man, dig it!”
Women ☕️
"She wanted to die" – I thought that too for a second, but it's also a possibility that she wanted to allow Godwyn a proper death instead of the half-death.
It would make more sense given that's exactly how she "repurposed" Melina, one of her daughters.
I could listen to you talk about Elden ring all day. Please never feel like your videos are going on too long haha.
Brilliant 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
There is more information about Marika's tribe in the DLC where her tribe was in slave status to the Hornsent before she revolted against them. Finally order her son to wage war to eradicate them.
My dude, you don't know how much I missed you
Don't you dare ever disappear like this again 😭
Man, what a amazing lore essay. Amazing work !
I'd like to propose the theory that Radagon is actually a completely separate entity that was fused with Marika in a jar. Both maintained their consciousness, Marika being the Shaman but Radagon being a criminal or outcast.
Why they began to fight is because Marika became a God to make a better world, which she failed miserably to do. While Radagon went along with it because it was his second chance at life. When Marika wanted to die and be done, Radagon fought because he liked his new life and position as a "benevolent" God. Maybe it's not just the flesh that gets fused, but consciousness and spirit. But in Marika's case, her and Radagon maintained their independence.
We don't know for sure if Marika was involved with Ranni's plan, but should we assume she was (black knife assassins being 'rumored' to be Numen and such), then it would make perfect sense for Godwyn's death to be an expected outcome.
Think about it – Godwyn the Golden is like the most pretentious name you could have had in this setting. Post-mortem glorification is in-line with the setting, but on the off-chance that he actually earned it, it would mean he was revered by his contemporaries… and also happened to not have any serious genetic defects, unlike every single one of Marika's offsprings. A poster-child of the Golden Order, if you will.
With that in mind, even in spite of shattering, he would have the chance to rally the Golden Order and keep it from falling apart, regardless if he lead it directly or merely as a symbol. With him gone, however, the subsequent chaos was pretty much guaranteed.
Besides, in order for her plan to work, Ranni could pick virtually any other immortal. Why this one specifically? Or maybe the choice was not hers at all?
Great video
You ever think that Godwyn was moving against Marika and was the son forsaken for not wanting to go for wishes?
The "Misery" chapter of the video is so damn good for one reason: it brings to attention the one part of Elden Ring that was always chalked up to "because it's a video game". Back then in the base game, anyone who was hooked by the plot at some point must have thought "why are we still blessed and guided by grace after burning the Erdtree?". And now your interpretation gives an answer! Because grace is not the Greater Will; Metyr proves that's impossible. It is not the Elden Beast; the fact we fight it proves it's impossible. True grace cannot exist because the God who bestows it left before we even pressed new game. True order never existed because order as we know it is just what various people say it is. The only versions we know of order and grace are tainted with interpretation. Radagon's fundamentalism, Goldmask's idealism, you get the gist. We now NOTHING of what the Greater Will is, only what people expect it to be. But we know that it's there. However distant or uncaring, it is there. All the times we thought it was the Greater Will's grace guiding us. How we gaslighted ourselves into thinking that for the sake of being an enjoyable video game we could keep our save system even after committing a lore- wise cardinal sin; it wasn't just a necessary suspension of disbelief, it was deepest lore. It was grace, yes, but Marika's grace without order
Couldn’t she have just forced Maliketh to kill her since he harbors the rune death
I will complement my last comment.
Adding to your point about identity in Elden Ring, I believe that, in the lore, the identity issue between Marika and Radagon wasn't just inspired by Rebis or a necessity to be different or better. Considering the innate abilities of shamans, I believe that Marika and Radagon were jar buds, and Marika ascended as a god because she rose from the jar as a "saint," the only successful experience of the jar. Enchanting and betraying the hornesents for revenge, she ascended as a god, modeling the very Elden Ring. But soon metyr and the Elden Beast was abandoned by the Greater Will, caused the Age of Gold to fade along with Marika's convictions, until she decided to free herself from the cage, perhaps in an attempt to create a better world, shattering the Elden Ring and bringing the Tarnished back to the Lands Between.
Marika is an amazing character. I love how her convictions, decisions, and mistakes are built throughout the story.
A throne will more often then not destroy the person who sits upon it
I think Marika's whole story is just a tragedy. She survives violence and abuse by the Hornsent, takes revenge upon them becoming a god capable of changing the world. From there, we see that abuse color her choices as she commits genocides to protect that which she cares about, and then she realizes she's been trapped and turned into a tool of the Greater Will. After examining the golden order's secrets, she realizes whats happening and decides to prevent as much suffering as possible, which requires most of her children die. I think she knew the shattering would end in stalemate, I think she willingly helped Ranni steal from Maliketh, knowing Godwyn would die. She did it to free the world from the tyranny she only saw far too late, and the prison world her mistakes created.
A Consideration on Mohg and Morgott, her children by Godfrey-
They are not cursed; they are blessed by something she hates. Recall that the Hornsent, who are responsible for much of her suffering, idolized the Crucible- a force of vibrant life, and evolution. They viewed Horns as a sign of divinity, a blessing- and indeed, Omen are supernaturally strong and enduring, at the least.
Is it not possible then that neither Mohg nor Morgotts stares were truly curses, save that Marika, in her trauma, saw them as such?
It could well be argued their nature as Omens was an endorsement of her and Godfrey's right to rule and Divinity, by some.
Great vid as always. Glad you’re back!
Divinity is a Prison
I should probably get a divorce…
Please keep making elden ring / fromsoftware analysis videos 🙏🙏❤❤
awesome video 10/10
This might be my favorite Elden Ring analysos video I've seen 🤔… and I've seen a lot lol
I was pretty disappointed by elden rings story when I played thru it. all the advertising said "choose your own path!" all the characters said "choose your own path!". then you beat morgott and all the characters start saying "well of COURSE you want to burn the erd tree, who wouldnt!"
me. I wouldnt. I didnt want to. I was told constantly there would be able to choose my own path, but I wasnt. I felt lied to, it ruined the rest of the game for me honestly. (and when I talked to people online about it the overwhelming response was "why did you think you would have a choice?" which made it worse). it always felt wrong
this video put it into words for me. there was never a choice, everything the tarnished did was manipulated by marika. knowing that theres a story reason I felt lied to and cheated (because the character was lied to and cheated) helps. I am still upset, but I feel better about it
the other reason I was disappointed by the game was cause I spent the entire time wishing it was sekiro 2 rather than dark souls 4. but thats unrelated to the story issues
i can fix her i swear
Idk how merika is the villain here when all the deatruction and horror we witness is directly caused by ranni and her kinslaying