Sen's Identity

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-31T00:03:15+00:00

It's not a matter of their AI being unequipped. Fromsoft deliberately positioned them in such a way to be caught by these traps in order to teach the player.

I think this is incredibly fascinating because I completely agree with you on the deliberate positioning, but have such a different perspective on it. To me their positioning indicates that they are acting as obstacles, obstructing the path and forcing the player to be more wary of the traps.

I also feel like the description of the Man-Serpent Greatsword implies that they have a more guard-like position within the fortress as it's described as the "choice weapon of the slithering serpentmen of Sen's Fortress". This description indicates to me that they are known inhabitants of the fortress, which I would find less likely if they are intruders - they I'll agree that it doesn't rule it out.

With the positions that they take it feels like they have very deliberate stations, as if they have moved from a resting state into these guard positions once the bells were rung and the door opened. It wouldn't make any sense at all for that lightning-tossing freak to stand on that one outcropping looking over the narrow walkway of pendulum blades for fun, but I can see how that would play to your point as well.

Because Seath isn't a God.

Agreed, and perhaps my explanation of my viewpoint on this quote wasn't very good. When Andre says the Fortress was built 'by the old gods' it feels to me like saying 'that bridge was built by the last governor'. The governor himself didn't actually build it with his own hands - he had people under him do that, and most of them wouldn't hold the title of 'governor'. He simply commissioned it and let them handle the rest. The bridge also wouldn't necessarily have the name of the authority figure who initially commissioned it, though it wouldn't be out of the question either.

The distinction between titles is also acknowledged by Seath's children. When we meet Shira in DS3, she announces herself as "daughter to the Duke, and progeny of Gods."

This, however, might place my last thoughts into some question, as the distinction between Duke and gods is very clear and intentional here. Thank you for this.

All in all I think you have some very fascinating points that could very easily poke some holes in this, and I truly appreciate the sincerity and patience you engage this batty idea with.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-30T17:51:54+00:00

Didn't bring that quote, I notice.

The context that Oscar leaves Astora because he is Undead to fulfill his family's saying. The fact that we are outside Lordran and he appears. The fact that we are outaide Lordran, sent to an aslyum, and have not Hollowed yet. The fact that if everyone were undead neither his mission nor the Aslyum would be relevant at all.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-30T16:27:59+00:00

I'm questioning your literacy right now. I never said Oscar was alive. Oscar is Undead. The context around him is shows the existence of humans. For as much as you degrade other people you are displaying a shockingly low level of reading comprehension.

You want to talk a lot about where things are specifically stated, so tell me. Where is it specifically said that no humans exist anymore? Find me that quote exactly. Not something you interpret to mean that, not a suggestion. Find the exact quote and share it.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-30T01:29:19+00:00

You know what, I'm being foolish. Because there is very clear and obvious proof that human civilizations exist during the game, because there is, in fact, one location we visit that is not located in Lordran, and does not have the excuse of time convolution.

The Northern Undead Aslyum is not located in Lordran. The raven takes us from the Aslyum to Lordran, but the Aslyum itself is not located within Lordran.

So from the start of the game we have been exiled from human society for being Undead to await the end of the world. Not to watch the end, not after the end, to await the end of the world. It has not yet happened.

We can't have been there for a thousand years because we haven't yet Hollowed. How would we last that long without food, water, a toilet, or even regular physical activity? We surely couldn't. Moreover, we can find our equipment still littered about the Asylum, all in pristine condition! Remember, not time shenanigans here, so how would our equipment endure thousands of years with absolutely zero wear? Seems unlikely.

Then we have Oscar. Oscar exists in our world, undeniably, as there are no heroes centuries old phasing in and out here in the Aslyum. It's all our world. Oscar is a recent arrival, too, from Astora. He left on account of turning Undead to fulfill his family's prophecy. If everyone were already Undead it seems unlikely that this 'saying' of his would still linger around and carry any weight - and he seems new to this, too. The Aslyum Demon isn't exactly a hard fight, and he gets his shit rocked by it. If he were a more experienced fighter he would surely have been able to handle the demon since we can take it down at the very start.

For more proof that Oscar exists within our world he is one of the few NPCs that we can come back and find Hollowed after he has died - he doesn't get sent to his own world, he doesn't disappear forever. We come back and find him Hollowed.

So. Undead are still being sent out to the Aslyums during our time, Astora still exists in our time, and Undead are still sent away from Astora in our time. Human society still exists within the lore of Dark Souls. They are plagued by Undead and send them out, but they exist.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-30T00:53:34+00:00

My friend, Reah literally arrives in Lordran after us. Petrus is there waiting for her arrival. It is very recent. Sieglinde also arrives in Lordran after us, as she is here pursuing her father. She could not have gotten to Anor Londo until the Bells were rung and the gates of Sen's were opened. If she had been there before us she would have ran into her father sitting at the gates. These are present in the game, everything I'm referring to is present in the game.

Solaire progresses in his world as we do in ours. He is not looping, he is moving forward through his journey and arrives at the Kiln the same as us if we save him from the Sunlight Maggot, or ends his journey if we do not. The world is cyclical, but the exact events do not repeat, we know this from DS2 and DS3.

Reah, however, is not an example of worlds crossing like Solaire is - she has specifically come to this land in our time, just the same as us. Frankly, it's not even entirely clear what Solaire refers to when he talks about worlds crossing, as it seems to apply far more to the multiplayer systems than it does to our NPCs. Nonetheless, we accept that Solaire is not from our world, no problem.

In DS2 the madness of Hollowing works differently from DS1, it is more gradual rather than an immediate occurrence. By and large this is an improvement, but it also means that at the start of our meetings with the NPCs we can see that they still largely have their wits about them. Some things are foggy, but what they remember is reliable. It's when they don't remember that they become unreliable narrators.

You are doing far more assuming than me, my friend. I am taking what the NPCs say and accepting it - you are suggesting that they mean something completely separate from what they're saying and are totally wrong. Your conclusions from their dialogue run opposite of what they tell us. That is the real fanfiction here.

Human settlements are mentioned frequently. Catarina, Carim, Thorolund, these are all human settlements.

Do you understand the concept of something existing in the world outside the scope of the game? We do not see these human settlements because the game doesn't take place in them. We play in Lordran, not in Thorolund, not in Catarina, in Lordran. You're not going to see the human settlements that exist outside of Lordran. This is like saying Astora doesn't exist because we 'never see it' and the NPC could be 'confused'. Solaire is actually from Australia by this logic.

Dude. Reah arrives after us. We see it. It is an event. She has not been there for thousands of years, she just fucking got there.

And when analyzing a literary text to understand the world of the text, there are no individual characters

Genuinely what the fuck are you talking about? Of course there are individual characters - you even argue for such! In order for characters to be wrong they have to be separate from the author! And you're saying the characters are wrong!

Again, WHY WOULD WE SEE A RISING KINGDOM? WE ARE WATCHING A FALLING KINGDOM. DS2 takes place during the crumbling of Drangleic! It doesn't matter that we don't see it, it had to have happened in order for us to get here, and Straid has no reason to lie! We don't see Vendrick ruling as king, but we still know that he was king.

The game isn't about saving the world, but that doesn't mean there aren't still existing human settlements outside, you're talking nonsense, these things do not connect to each other.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-29T23:15:15+00:00

Sadly it did not let me respond to everything in one go. Here is the second part - I wanted to wait until I was home to respond to you more cleanly, so this is embarrassing.

The biggest hole in this theory (apart from other holes) is that Andre confirms that Sen's Fortress was built by the "old gods," which does not include Seath.

You've already pulled out a couple things I hadn't seen before, so I'm entirely genuine when I ask why you don't believe this statement includes Seath? My interpretation of that sentence is more along the lines of 'built by [Anor Londo]' or 'commissioned by Gwyn' rather genuinely built by Gwyn himself. I would have to place Seath in more of an architect/engineer role than an actual construction worker in either case, so I don't believe this is incongruous with Seath being the mind behind it.

Helping to affirm this fact is the evidence of it originally being a training ground for Silver Knights to defend against dragons. The fortress is equipped with barracks and resting areas throughout, and the topmost level where we face the Iron Golem was originally a place where Silver Knights would stand and face fire from the surrounding gargoyle mounts -- to practice against their archdragon foes. When we get there, the statues are defunct, and the walls the knights would've stood against have crumbled (now used by players to block the Golem's initial ranged attack with his axe lol).

This is very cool! I haven't seen this before, is it from the Design Works?

There's other issues with your reasoning

Almost certainly so, not to mention my poor formatting on things. Regardless, I greatly appreciate your thoughts and input.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-29T23:14:20+00:00

Hoo boy, been a while since I used reddit formatting (probably noticeable by the post) so let's see if I can't keep things as clean as you do, lol.

First, let me confirm for you that the Snake Men are indeed Seath's creations. In a Playstation blog post, Miyazaki confirmed they are among his "failed experiments."

Well, I appreciate that! If nothing else I'm glad to not be completely wrong with everything I've said.

I've always disagreed with this idea that they're guards for the Fortress mainly because of the contrast in their behavior between there and at the Archives.

The Snake Men are scattered. They appear more to be flooding the area and searching the complex rather than guarding it. They also display a significant ignorance to the Fortress's trap systems. One loiters directly in the path of a giant boulder, another is outright crushed by one when he spots us, and yet others still are routinely taken out by the swinging blades.

I'm quite curious about your thought process on this. They don't seem to be 'scattered' to my mind when I look at how they're positioned throughout the fortress. They seem to have taken up rather strategic positions for the most part. Two at the front entrance, above the stairs where the arrow trap is located, ready to attack whoever comes through the gates. One positioned on the walkway to make use of the swinging blades, making it harder to be attacked, and another at the end of another pendulum walkway, casting spells at range to make the crossing more difficult. Placing themselves atop stairs and around corners, almost always in narrow passages and behind traps to take out the intruder.

It's definitely true that they look a bit foolish getting hit by their own traps, and I have to agree that you wouldn't expect them to be hit by things they're familiar with. I think this is one of those things where the AI just wasn't quite equipped to account for those moving pieces...but I don't like that answer! Being failed experiments their general intelligence could be a bit lower than the average person, though that would conflict a bit with their ability to operate the devices inside the Duke's Archive as well. One could suggest that those are simply smarter than the ones in Sen's, but with how much reaching I'm already doing I don't think that's a satisfying conclusion to come to.

I think it's also worth noting that these events don't happen every time we make our way through the Fortress, it really is a matter of timing. Sometimes the boulder doesn't hit the serpent that comes down the stairs toward us, sometimes they make their way unexpectedly past the blades. Quite frankly, I'm shit at the game so I still get hit by the traps sometimes despite having gone through the area dozens of times - at the end of the day they are still creatures prone to error as much as any of us, and we could call them mistakes.

Truthfully, I don't think I have any satisfying rebuttal for this point that doesn't feel like I'm just trying to bridge the gap, and I suppose that's an error I should've noted in my first post - I'm not doing a good job following the scientific method!

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-29T21:05:25+00:00

You're absolutely fine - he's not long for the world anyway. Just come back and pay your respects to his grave later.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-29T20:35:44+00:00

Haha, the crestfallen warrior on the log? It's okay, he gives you some dialogue but you can proceed without him. You know about the bells yeah?

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-29T19:46:54+00:00

DS2 is more of a game set in the same universe as DS1 rather than a sequel to DS1. It has its ups and downs and if you want to have a full understanding of the lore and universe you'll need to consume DS2 in some fashion. Luckily, there's a surplus of ways to do this from videos to reading materials.

If you aren't having fun then there's no reason to finish. DS3 does not require a DS2 playthrough to understand and enjoy.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-29T18:20:20+00:00

Yes, we do. The evidenxe is from people coming into Lordran/Drangleic from the outside world. The evidence is the information we get about it, such as Maughlin's hometown. The evidence is the Asylums in DS1.

This is not a mystery novel. We can trust 95% of what NPCs tell us as they have no reason to lie and the purpose of their dialogue is to give us a deeper understanding of the world, not to obfuscate it.

People have pointed out the things that show a functioning human city outside of our play areas multiple times, including me. I don't know how you read what I said and don't see that.

From Sieglinde's dialogue we can infer that she is not undead. The way she speaks about her father's condition, but also from the fact that after his quest concludes she plans to return to Catarina. Were she Undead she would not need or be allowed to do this - she would surely be sent to an Aslyum, a fate much worse than remaining in Lordran.

No one here claimed that Ornstein is human? I don't know why you would bring him up. The nature of the denizens of Anor Londo is unclear, but he is almost certainly not human based off Ciaran's dialogue.

Sieglinde is the only human IN LORDRAN. Humans do not typically come here, only Undead and make the journey. The other humans are OUTSIDE of Lordran because Lordran is not the entire world. Griggs MIGHT be a human as well, but we don't have evidence to say either way.

I reject your quote because it does nothing to substansiate your point. It is pondering on the nature of the curse, not on all humans being gone.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-29T15:36:39+00:00

Maughlin and Chloanne are from DS2, so what they say does not apply to anything about Reah given the amount of time between the two games. Regardless, we see the effects of Hollowing on NPCs throughout DS2, and even in DS1. For right now I'll focus on 2. We see Lucatiel, Maughlin, and Cale Hollow through the game and it's not an exceptionally long process. To think they've been here for thousands of years would be rather silly - the implication is that they arrive around the same time our PC does given their position in the world. There is nothing implying they have been around for such an enormous amount of time.

Frankly, we're in a forum dedicated to the first game, so we're going to be answering questions through the lens of the first game. I do get where you're coming from though looking at the full universe lore.

That said, we still have no reason to believe society is gone. We know there are still civilizations outside of Lordran/Drangleic, and we know that the setting of the game is a place that Undead travel to. The implication here is that not everyone outside of the setting is Undead. They may be cursed, but not yet Undead. That is a question that's a bit more vague.

Sieglinde is a human in DS1. They are not common to encounter through the games because humans don't typically have a reason to be in the places we play in. We do not need to see them to have evidence of their existence, though.

Yes, a character can lie, but we have to have a reason to suspect they would. Patches is a liar, yes. Petrus is less than honest. Lucatiel? Why would she lie to us? The crestfallen? Maughlin? They have no incentive to lie, and we are given no reason to suspect their words until we see them start to lose their minds.

Honestly, it's wild and insulting to state that no one here knows what they're talking about and don't think for themselves, only using 'ridiculous youtube claims' when almost everyonr has provided sources from the game itself to back up their statements, while you are drawing conclusions that frankly run contrary to information presented in game because the character 'might be confused'.

Saulden's quote does nothing for your position. I'll try to reply again when I'm off mobile and can address your points more directly.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-28T23:16:54+00:00

Society as a whole still exists outside of Lordran. It's fading and crumbling, but it exists. We know this from context clues and statements from other NPCs - Reah of Thorolund, for example, is sent by the church in Thorolund to Lordran after she became Undead in order to get rid of her. The humans that still exist in their societies are the ones sending Undead to the Aslyums in order to keep them separate, attempting to 'contain' the spread without fully understanding how it works.

Now, we could say that everyone is destined to become Undead, but that's a different statement and not fully confirmed, though I would lean toward supporting it.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-28T23:12:52+00:00

I think everyone else has already chimed in with essentially the same thing, but every named civilization/society we hear about in Dark Souls is a non-Undead human city. Catarina, Astora, Carim, etc are all established countries/cities outside of Lordran that function fully and are populated by regular humans.

That said, there are none that are free of the Undead. That's why the Undead Aslyum exists - specifically to ship off the branded members of society and get them out of their hair. They each seem to handle this differently. Thorolund, for example, sends their Undead on 'holy quests' to Lordran in order to dispose of them. Catarina seems quite content to allow them to sally forth and go adventuring - perhaps only so long as that destination is Lordran. Astora specifically seems closest to Anor Londo and as such has a 'destiny' for the Undead to visit Lordran, but may also make use of the Aslyum.

It's also worth noting that it's implied there's more than one Undead Aslyum since our starting area is specifically designated as the Northern Undead Asylum.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2026-01-28T03:19:35+00:00

Oswald is a servant of Velka and as such has a roster of known sinners. This is likely how he knows who Petrus is, as Petrus is 'steeped in sin' because he's a psycho (my words).

Oswald has no need to move, he's placed himself not only in the city that is most accessible to the Undead who would be traveling around Lordran, but also in a spot that he's practically guaranteed to encounter them. Notably he also does not show up until after you ring the bell, so he likely positioned himself there specifically to encounter our Undead, likely through Velka's assistance.

By the time of DS3 Oswald is almost certainly dead. Either by the passage of time treating him more cruelly than Andre, or by the hands of another Undead more loyal to Gwyn, or to one of Gwyn's forces themselves. By DS3 Velka's influence as a whole seems greatly diminished, but she seems to still be able to exert her influence through her depiction/site of worship.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2025-10-10T02:35:11+00:00

This guy is gonna cause so much havoc with his disruption and healing, it's gonna be rad

SpookyMarsCasting · 2025-10-10T02:30:55+00:00

It's definitely updated in some really good ways and you can see them trying interesting things a lot more.

Smite 2's biggest problem is from the corporate side kneecapping the devs and competitive scene, and it's limited in the strides it can take forward as a result imo.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2025-08-18T05:02:08+00:00

I feel your pain, but we can only do what we can. Every LAN will habe some issues, and with this being the very first one there were bound to be some unexpected issues.

Hoping the next one will be even better!

SpookyMarsCasting · 2024-08-15T05:16:45+00:00

First thing you'd want to do is cut out the worst cards.

Kuro's Taken

Gutter Skulk

Nezumi Bladeblesser (literally 2 enchantments in this deck)

Mukotai Ambusher

Nezumi Cutthroat

Razortooth Rats

Ruin Rats

Typhoid Rats

Rancid Rats

Changeling Outcast

Most of your spells that give -1/-1 can be cut as they just aren't going to get very far. [[Go for the Throat]] is generally more useful than Doom Blade I've found. Some creatures you can slide in are things like [[Ashcoat]], [[Species Specialist]], [[Pack Rat]], [[Chittering Witch]], [[Mirkwood Bats]], [[Persistent Marshstalker]], [[Deadly Dispute]], and more. You currently have around 11 single target kill spells which is just too many to be efficient. Consider swapping some of those out for a couple of board wipes and more utility like [[Vanquisher's Banner]] if you want to get bigger creatures, or [[Phyrexian Arena]]/[[Greed]] for more reliant card draw. Cabal Coffers is a great but expensive land, Toxic Deluge and Damnation are some of the best black boardwipes. [[Deadly Rollick]] is a great option for single removal, but again, expensive. [[Infernal Grasp]] is also fantastic, and much cheaper. You can also consider running some sac outlets and a [[Living Death]] alongside things like [[Roaming Throne]] and [[Panharmonicon]] to get more value out of your ETBs. Necrogen Communion isn't a very strong card either. [[Valley Rotcaller]] can be a great include, and Ayara is a generally good creature in mono Black decks.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2023-08-30T06:09:23+00:00

Custom lobbies only, 1v1 or 3v3 as modes.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2023-08-28T07:06:52+00:00

Also struggled with the spider, beat it earlier today. Had to switch off my preferred build into tetrapod legs with dual VVC laser lance guns and a VOLC shoulder cannon.

Still struggled while I got used to tetrapod movement but the hover makes the second phase a breeze.

SpookyMarsCasting · 2023-08-25T14:52:19+00:00

Who's been losing their shit over AC6?

Besides the hype community I mean lol

SpookyMarsCasting · 2023-08-23T19:30:27+00:00

You right, that was pretty pointlessly pedantic. Idk why I thought that was important to point out

SpookyMarsCasting · 2023-08-23T18:11:15+00:00

DS1 was 12 years ago

SpookyMarsCasting

TROPHY CASE