What’s up guys, I’m Dave Klein, and welcome
to my Dark Souls 3 Lore series.
Today, we’re going to talk about a royal
family who perpetuated the linking the flame,
and the prince who refused to do his duty…
It’s time to discuss: Lothric and the Royal
Family.
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The land of Lothric was ruled by King Oceiros
and his Queen.
“The Queen of Lothric, married to the former
King Oceiros, was initially revered as a goddess
of fertility and bounty.”
Meanwhile, the King himself was of the Royal
Lothric bloodline, as he eventually “went
mad trying to harness his royal blood for
a greater purpose.”
Now, it’s worth noting that they weren’t
actually the founders of the kingdom of Lothric.
In fact, I believe it’s likely Prince Lothric
was named after a former Lothric ruler, and
the land itself.
We can surmise this from the Hunter’s Ring,
which tells us that “For generations, rulers
of Lothric have relied especially upon the
Black Hunters to punish enemies in ways that
the king’s Three Pillars cannot.”
The Kingdom of Lothric had a system the rulers
had established their kingdom around.
This being, their Three Pillars of rule.
The King of Lothric would have Knights, Scholars,
and a Priestess who were all a part of his
royal Three Pillars.
The Knights “have long been considered one
of the Three Pillars of the king’s rule,
and were thus allowed to rear dragons.”
Meanwhile, the “Scholar is the master of
the Grand Archives”, and the “High Priestess
also served as the prince’s wet nurse.”
Finally, while not technically part of Three
Pillars, as they weren’t meant to be public-facing,
the King had his hunters, or Black Hands.
“The hunters serve Lothric on the fringes
and shadows.
For generations, rulers of Lothric have relied
especially upon the Black Hand hunters to
punish enemies in ways the king’s Three
Pillars cannot.”
These hunters were assassins and perhaps would
employ the use of torture if necessary.
The Black Hands “wielded paired weapons”,
and were chosen for skill as opposed to royalty.
Kamui, one such Blackhand, “brought his
blade, Onikiri, with him to the Undead Settlement,
where he forged Ubadachi, and was finally
prepared to join the ranks of the Royal hunters.”
And, continuing the idea that we know Oceiros
didn’t found the kingdom of Lothric, “Black
Hand was a title established to honor hunters
who served successive generations of kings.
To date, no more than three such individuals
have borne this distinction.”
What this essentially tells us if that in
order to be named a Black Hand, you would
have to have been an assassin in multiple
king’s services.
We also know that a Black Hand is the same
as an assassin, as their armor set is the
same, minus the Black Hand set including an
additional cape and hat.
(spotted by r/One0Eyed0King)
And, we know of at least two of these: Kamui
and Gotthard.
Kamui “looked after the prince.”
And it would seem he did so until his very
end, as we find him guarding the bridge to
where Prince Lothric resides.
Meanwhile, Gotthard “rose quickly through
the knighthood, which was no surprise to those
who have witnessed his swordsmanship.”
However, unlike Kamui, something spurned him
to “flee the castle.”
It’s not clear what this was, but it could,
perhaps, be the circling Pilgrim Butterflies
who eventually find their way to Lothric.
It’s unclear who the third black hand was,
but, there are a couple possibilities.
Some have speculated that it could Leonhard,
as he “was born into royalty, which is believed
to be the reason for his skill in both sorcery
and swordsmanship.”
And because his “dingy garb is in fact embroidered
with gold thread, betraying its purpose as
military wear designed for a noble.”
He also clearly has no qualms with assassination,
as he joins Rosaria’s Covenant, and serves
her in assassinating others.
That said, the Black Hands were KNOWN for
“wielding paired weapons”, and while he’ll
duel-wield a shotel and a catalyst, these
aren’t paired weapons, lessening the likelihood
of it being him.
Not only this, but we find the Hunter’s
Ring off of a corpse in Lothric Castle, right
above the entrance to the Royal Archive’s
prison cage.
So, it could be as simple as: The corpse wearing
the Hunter’s Ring is the third and final
Black Hand.
While there were multiple generations of royals
in the Lothric line, the story of Dark Souls
3 takes place during the rule of Oceiros.
He and the Queen of Lothric had 3 known children,
Lothric, Lorian, and Ocelotte.
Lorian, the eldest son, became a great warrior.
“He was a knight who single-handedly slayed
the demon prince, but the victory eternally
scorched his sword with flame.”
Lothric, the 2nd, was a “prince, destined
to be a Lord of Cinder, [and] cherished by
the royal family, despite being born into
illness, a frail and shriveled child.”
Lothric and Lorian are known as the “twin
princes”, and as such, I believe Lorian,
the eldest, was destined to become a knight
and the eventual heir to the throne.
Meanwhile, Lothric, the younger twin, would
take on the prestigious duty of Linking the
Flame and honoring the Lothric bloodline.
Finally, their youngest born was Ocelotte,
a child we know very little about.
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“The Lothric bloodline was obsessed with
creating a worthy heir, and when this proved
impossible, resorted to unspeakable means.
Suffice it to say, the path to linking the
fire is a cursed one indeed.”
Oceiros and the Queen seemed to be no different,
but why?
And how did this notion of linking the fire
become so important?
Well, this would lead us to the very foundation
of the kingdom of Lothric.
Looking at the sorcery Soulstream, it was
a “sorcery imparted by the first of the
Scholars, when Lothric and the Grand Archives
were but young.”
And… who were these first scholars who helped
found Lothric?
Well… there’s one set of statues in the
Royal archives that could answer that question
for us…
“Chosen Undead.
Your fate is… to succeed the Great Lord
Gwyn.
So that you may link the Fire, cast away the
Dark, and undo the curse of the Undead.”
Lining the Royal Archives, one of the first
fixtures in the kingdom of Lothric, are statues
of the Primordial Serpents from Dark Souls
1.
I believe Frampt had audience with the founders
of Lothric, and was amongst the first scholars
of the ever-important 3 Pillars that served
as the foundation of the kingdom.
Kingseeker Frampt pushed the Linking the Fire,
which would be indicative of the Lothric bloodline’s
“obsession with creating a worthy heir”.
Not only this, but Firelink Shrine is connected
to Lothric Castle, and clearly an important
part of it.
A Lordvessel can be found in the High Wall
of Lothric Castle, Lothric Castle itself,
the Untended Graves, and of course, in Firelink
Shrine.
They seem to be the family who are the keepers
and protectors of the flame.
In fact, it seems the tradition we find throughout
Firelink Shrine of Firekeeepers and Unkindled
were based from the Royal Family of Lothric.
Beyond the multitude of Lordvessels we find
throughout Lothric, we can also take a look
at the Shrine Handmaid who resides in Firelink
Shrine.
“In Lothric, the High Priestess has long
been considered one of the Three Pillars in
the king’s rule.”
While we know Emma is the High Priestess of
Lothric Castle, she looks similar to the Shrine
Handmaid who we find in Firelink Shrine, but
with less torn up clothes, and sits in the
same chair.
While these are voiced by two different voice
actresses, due to their similarities, I believe
it’s likely the Shrine Handmaid was a former
High Priestess of Lothric Castle, while Emma
is simply the current High Priestess.
The Shrine Handmaid not only sells the “Priestess
Ring”, but drops it if you kill her, indicating,
to me, at some point she was the high priestess.
The Unkindled, too, seem to be a part of the
cyclical nature the royal family has been
watching over.
When given an Ashen Estus Ring*, “Once a
treasure brought before Lothric’s Queen,
she had it enshrined in the Cemetery of Untended
Graves, so that one day an Unkindled might
profit from its use.”
“There is a grave in Lothric that sees no
visitors, a dark place where rootless warriors
rest.
The Queen of Lothric alone cared to wish the
poor souls good fortune.”
And, while the nature of these cycles seemed
to go on for centuries… what happened?
Well, the link may lie within Gertrude and
a certain scholar of Lothric…
Gertrude was a “holy maiden to the Queen.
The Heavenly Daughter is said to be the Queen’s
child.”
It’s unclear if she was also the King’s
child, or perhaps, the Queen’s illegitimate
child, but I’m leaning towards the latter.
She has a direct connection to Gwynevere,
the holy daughter of Gwyn, as both miracles,
and specifically the miracle Bountiful Light
are linked to her – which was originally
a miracle linked to Gwynevere.
“Special miracle granted to the maidens
of Gwynevere, Princess of the Sun.
The miracles of Gwynevere, the princess cherished
by all, grant their blessing to a great many
warriors.”
“Gertrude was visited by an angel, who revealed
[the miracle divine pillars of light] to her.
Despite losing both her sight and voice, she
was determined to record the tale.
Ordinary men cannot decipher her fragmentary
scrawl, nor comprehend how it became the foundation
of the Angelic faith of Lothric.”
Gertrude managed to spread the gospel of her
faith throughout Lothric, which seemed counter
to the beliefs of the Lothric elite.
And if she was, indeed an illegitimate child
of the Queen’s, this would be even worse.
The worship became so widespread, that there
became Winged Knights who were “named for
their appearance, [and] swore themselves to
the angels.
Worship of the divine messengers was viewed
as heresy in Lothric and unrecognized by any
of the Three Pillars of rule.
This is believed to by why Gertrude, the Heavenly
Daughter, was imprisoned in the lofty cell
of the Grand Archives.”
We find a corpse in the Grand Archives, which
is implied to be Gertrude’s.
The cell is guarded by three Winged Knights,
and the body itself contains the miracle Divine
Pillars of Light.
Along the cell, we find white feathers spread
out near the corpse, akin to a fallen angel.
Which directly connects to Prince Lothric’s
chamber, which we find covered in the very
same feathers.
So – what exactly happened?
We know Gertrude and Lothric are linked by
these feathers, and “The Lothric bloodline
was obsessed with creating a worthy heir,
and when this proved impossible, resorted
to unspeakable means.”
As my buddy Terramantis pointed out in his
10 Things about Dark Souls 3 video, as Gertrude
was clearly linked to Gwynevere and her bloodline,
it’s very possible the royal family did
unspeakable things to her in order to create
a worthy heir.
This could have backfired on them, and instead
cursed their children.
“Young Lothric was meant to be a champion,
but some things will remain distant dreams
forever.”
Now, that is a fair bit of speculation, but
what I’m leaning towards at the moment.
As they were having trouble creating a worthy
heir, their next hope laid with Ocelotte.
Oceiros turned towards the dragons, and “Oceiros
went mad trying to harness his royal blood
for a greater purpose, leading him to the
heretics of the Grand Archives, where he discovered
the twisted worship of Seath the paledrake.”
Here he slowly went insane, similar to Big
Hat Logan before him.
“The late king Oceiros [became] obsessed
by dragons, to the extent that he would later
be known as the Consumed King.”
“Ah, you ignorant slaves.
Finally taken notice, have you?
Of the power of my beloved Ocelotte, child
of dragons.
Well, I will not give him up, for he is all
that I have.”
Oceiros cradles in his arm an imaginary baby,
having completely lost himself.
Meanwhile, “After giving birth to Ocelotte,
[the Queen of Lothric]’s youngest, she quietly
disappeared.”
As for Lothric and Lorian…
“The first of the Scholars doubted the linking
of the fire, and was alleged to be a private
mentor to the Royal Prince.”
One of the first scholars, and one of the
royal pillars, seemed to convince Lothric
against linking the fire.
And who was this first scholar?
It could be that Kaathe, the other primordial
serpent from Dark Souls 1, also helped found
Lothric with Frampt.
“I seek to right the wrongs of the past
to discover our true lord.”
Although, I believe he has a much stronger
influence over the land of Londor.
This could be referring to Dark Souls 2’s
Scholar of the First Sin, Aldia, as there
is another statue along the Grand Archives,
which might resemble Aldia.
I think the most likely explanation on the
first scholar, comes from reddit users Hoototo
and YharnamsFinest1.
This scholar could be Pontiff Sulyvahn.
His clothing resembles the scholars of the
Grand Archives.
Meanwhile, the sorcery, Soulstream, which
describes “The first of the Scholars doubted
the linking of the fire”, is found behind
a hidden wall in the Scholars’ Grand Archives,
and guarded by none-other than one of the
Pontiff’s outrider knights.
Not only this, but both Vordt, of the Boreal
Valley, and the Dancer of the Boreal Valley,
outrider knights controlled by the pontiff’s
eyes, block the Unkindled’s passage to both
the Undead Settlement and Lothric Castle itself.
The Dancer of the Boreal Valley being “a
distant daughter of the formal royal family”
whose soul can transposed into “Soothing
Sunlight”, a “Miracle of Gwynevere”,
a possibly connecting her to Gertrude.
Regardless of who it was, Lothric was convinced
not to link the flame.
“Welcome, Unkindled One, purloiner of Cinders.
Mind you, the mantle of Lord interests me
none.
The fire linking curse, the legacy of lords,
let it all fade into nothing.
You’ve done quite enough, now have your
rest.”
As for Lorian, the eldest, I believe, as twins,
he and Lothric had a strong connection for
one another, and may have loved one another.
“Lorian, raised as a knight, is said to
have been left mute and crippled by his younger
brother’s curse.
It is also said that Lorian, in fact, wished
it so.”
When defeating Lothric, you receive the Soul
of the Twin Princes, as opposed to Lothric’s
soul, which describes “the two princes rejected
their duty to become Lords of Cinder, and
settled far, far away to watch the fire fade
from a distance.
A curse makes their souls nearly inseperable.”
You can also combine their two swords to create
the Twin Princes’ Greatsword, a “sword
forged from the reunion of the inseperable
swords born from the souls of Lothric and
Lorian, twin princes.”
And, in the end, cursed and convinced the
cycle of fire is all for naught, the two princes
chose to break their family’s tradition,
and watch the fire fade.
The kingdom below tearing apart, as the dark
set in, and pus of man started to spread.
“With the fire fading, and the spreading
pus of man tainting the castle, the Grand
Archives closed its doors for good.”
Thus, creating the start of Dark Souls 3,
and the entire reason an Unkindled would be
required to rise, and force their cinders
into place.
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Alright guys, that wraps up this lore video.
I hope you guys enjoyed, and definitely let
me know your thoughts in the comments below!
Recently I had the opportunity to provide
VO for an amazing Bloodborne animation by
Linus Almroth, and be in a Hunger Games PvP
video by Terramantis, both of which I’d
recommend checking out.
As always, you can catch up on Dark Souls
3 lore by watching my Dark Souls 1 lore series,
or check out my previous Dark Souls 3 lore
videos.
Or, ya know, check out my comedy super shows.
‘Cause why not?
And I’ll see you guys next time, peace.
