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If you were to ask me, “What is your favorite
video game ever made?”

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I would have
to say Cory in the House for the Nintendo

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DS.

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But Hollow Knight would be a close second.

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Hollow Knight was released on February 24th,
2017 by Team Cherry, an indie game studio

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based in the mythical land of Adelaide, South
Australia.

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Over the past three years, Hollow Knight has
become an indie darling.

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The game has sold over three and a half million
copies, it was the opening game at AGDQ 2019.

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There’s a Hollow Knight book, a line of
plushies, T-shirts, nicotine patches, nuclear

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warheads, and even vinyl records for all you
goddamn hipsters.

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Team Cherry had one goal when making Hollow
Knight.

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They wanted to create a world that allowed
players to get completely lost in exploration.

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We can see this desire in Hollow Knight’s
design.

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The levels in Hollow Knight are massive, with
secrets and rewards hidden in every nook and

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cranny, be that powerful charms, special abilities
or uhh...

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The game’s navigation system requires the
player to work for their map, forcing them

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to make a stronger mental image of the world
in their head.

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Christopher Larkin’s score and Ari Gibson’s
artwork lend to this as well, creating an

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atmosphere that the player won’t want to
leave.

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But there’s one aspect of Hollow Knight
that keeps people like me coming back: the

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world building.

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When Super Metroid launched in 1994, it stood
out for its amazing sense of immersion.

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Now in 1994, I was busy not being alive, but
I’ve watched enough YouTube video essays

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to know that this game was a big deal.

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In case you didn’t know, Super Metroid is
basically the granddaddy of all Metroidvanias.

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That’s why they’re called “MetroidVANIAs”.

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Now in Super Metroid, there are moments that
give the player a sense of depth.

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Basically the feeling that this world exists
outside of Samus’ interactions with it.

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In the room right before that diabetic crocodile
thing, Samus can find the corpse of a random

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soldier.

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His inclusion here doesn’t change the gameplay
at all, but instead gives the player a sense

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of wonder about the world they are exploring.

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Who was this guy?

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Why was he here in the first place?

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Did he like jazz?

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Now finding dead bodies and other random garbage
is pretty cool, right?

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Well, Hollow Knight basically does the same
thing.

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About a dozen times.

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Through its world building, Hollow Knight
turns Hallownest into a living kingdom.

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You can sense the ancient history of the land
when you look at dilapidated structures or

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giant barred doors.

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Nothing feels like it was put into the game
randomly; there’s a reason for it all.

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Except those reasons aren’t the easiest
to uncover.

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Hollow Knight’s narrative is buried under
layers of NPC dialogue, item descriptions,

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lore tablets, and even additional content
like the Quirrel comic and Fangamer’s Wanderer’s

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Journal.

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These past three years have seen an insane
amount of research by the Hollow Knight community

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to make sense of Team Cherry’s sprawling
world.

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We’ve even made it to the point where people
are looking at the in-game signs to try and

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decipher Hallownest’s logographic language.

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In this video, I hope to give you a long and
detailed look into the world of Hollow Knight,

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exploring Hallownest’s history and uncertain
future.

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When I’m not busy making surprisingly accurate
Super Smash Brothers roster speculation videos,

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or insightful podcasts about beloved subjects
like the Donkey Kong Country television series,

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or whatever this was supposed to be, I’m
usually making videos about Hollow Knight.

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And while I am a seasoned Hollow Knight lore
expert, I cannot confirm that every musing

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or theory presented in this video is completely
correct.

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I highly recommend checking out the lore section
of the Hollow Knight Wiki if you want a more

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neutral explanation of Hollow Knight’s lore.

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But if you’re too lazy to read, then I suggest
you sit back, order some Domino’s pizza

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or just grab a block of cheese from the fridge,
and enjoy the mostly complete lore of Hollow

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Knight.

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It’s a simple fact of life that every human
worships a god, be that technology, ideologies,

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or in rare cases, God.

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As it turns out, the bugs in Hallownest pretty
much operate in the same way.

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From the mosskin born from the dream of a
giant slug, to the emo kids of the Ancient

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Civilization who literally worshipped the
darkness, there is no shortage of things to

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worship in the world of Hollow Knight.

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Our story begins with a creature very much
worthy of worship: a creature born from the

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carcass of a Wyrm.

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The carcass can still be found in the Kingdom’s
Edge and it’s our only good look at what

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Wyrms actually looked like.

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At the time Hollow Knight occurs, it is suggested
there are no Wyrms left in the world.

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They were incredibly long creatures that featured
little to no limbs.

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Another, more mysterious property of Wyrms
was that they had some kind of prescience

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or foresight.

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Basically, they could see the future to some
capacity.

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It isn’t clear how effective this ability
was.

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Considering how the entire race went extinct,
this foresight ability must have been pretty

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shit.

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Getting back to this particular Wyrm carcass,
it is explained that this Wyrm traveled across

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the distant mountains and wastelands beyond
Hallownest.

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Once it arrived in Hallownest, the Wyrm died.

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Except not really.

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Inside the maw of the carcass sits a pale,
broken egg, out of which hatched a new form

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of Wyrm, a being of meager shell.

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This form of the Wyrm is usually referred
to as the Pale King, and he’s the character

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basically responsible for everything that
happens in Hollow Knight.

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The Pale King is a higher being, a type of
creature that exists above all others.

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His body was said to shine with a radiant
vistage that harmed those who looked upon

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him.

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The ultimate goal of the Pale King seemed
to be in line with that of other Wyrms.

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A line from the cryptic Mister Mushroom reads:

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...Wyrms pull bugs into their thrall,
Till ages pass and kingdoms fall,

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In other words, it’s just in their nature.

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Dogs wag their tails, cats bury their shit,
and Wyrms bring massive amounts of bugs into

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their service in order to form long standing
kingdoms and civilizations.

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And here in a far corner of the world, the
Pale King emerged from the corpse of his former

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self and began to build his eternal kingdom,
Hallownest.

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There’s just one slight problem.

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There’s like… people already living there.

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The area that would eventually become Hallownest
was already filled with mantises, bees, moths,

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spiders, mushrooms, and bush cosplayers.

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Each of these groups were already operating
with their own cultures and societies, and

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each group had a different interaction with
the Pale King.

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One of the more receptive groups to the arrival
of the Pale King were the mushrooms of the

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Fungal Wastes.

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These creatures were able to communicate with
one another through one shared mind.

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The mushrooms viewed this shared mind as a
strength, and they were kinda smug dickheads

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about it.

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Ultimately, the mushrooms wearly accepted
the Pale King’s rule, viewing his foresight

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as a shield to the dangers of the future.

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Another group living in the Fungal Wastes
is the Mantis Tribe.

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The mantises have a rich cultural history
reaching back to long before the birth of

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Hallownest.

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The mantises are a proud tribe, believing
in the importance of proving one’s physical

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strength.

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The mantises are fiercely territorial but
will show respect to those who display great

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power.

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These Fight Club enthusiasts were lead by
four powerful Mantis Lords who I guess just

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kinda sat around waiting for outsiders to
challenge them.

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The Mantis Tribe had no interest in the Pale
King’s kingdom, but the two communities

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did come to a truce.

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In exchange for their independence from Hallownest,
the Mantis Tribe kept the beasts of Deepnest

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from invading Hallownest.

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Not sure why they didn’t just go out the
other exits from Deepnest, but whatever.

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I’m not an expert on border patrol.

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I don’t work at ICE anymore.

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Let’s move on to Deepnest.

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Now many of the different tribes of Hallownest
were kind enough to leave lore tablets behind

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detailing pretty much everything we need to
know about them.

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Unfortunately the bugs of Deepnest didn’t
do that.

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We know that the spiders of Deepnest had a
monarchy because why not.

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Those are always good, right?

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Also within Deepnest are a separate group
of spiders that immigrated to Deepnest at

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some point in the past.

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This group was known as the Weavers, and they
established their own culture and history

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within Deepnest.

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They used looms of silk to weave stories,
spells and shields.

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One thing we know for sure about Deepnest
is that they really didn’t want anything

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to do with Hallownest.

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The struggles of Deepnest-Hallownest relations
would become painfully clear as time goes

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on, but for right now, it seems like the two
remained fairly isolated from one another.

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Another section of pre-Hallownest includes
Greenpath.

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Now as far as we can tell, the Mushrooms,
Mantises and spiders of Deepnest didn’t

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worship any Higher Beings.

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There is this giant mushroom corpse in the
Fungal Core, but I don’t think this is a

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Higher Being.

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I mean, who the hell would want to worship
a fatass mushroom?

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Fatass slugs?

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Now that’s dope.

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The land we know as Greenpath was created
by the Higher Being known as Unn.

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Unn used her great mind to dream the vegetation
of Greenpath into the once barren caverns.

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Unn’s followers, the Mosskin, were also
born out of Unn’s dream, making her their

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creator.

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Greenpath at its heigth was actually much
larger than what we see ingame.

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At one point, Greenpath stretched into both
modern day Queen’s Gardens and possibly

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Fog Canyon.

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Greenpath’s citizens showed themselves to
be a fairly developed society.

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They built a temple at the Lake of Unn in
order to worship her, and they even had their

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own line of defense, with Moss Knights showing
proficiency in combat, using nails and shells

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as weapons.

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The Law of Unn continued to remain in effect
even after the Pale King arrived, but it seems

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like they allowed the King to establish a
road through their lands leading travelers

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to the Heart of Hallownest, hence the name
Greenpath.

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Yeah, Team Cherry really racked their brains
when naming this area, didn’t they?

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Next we have the Bees.

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And while there is no lore on how these bees
can turn into fucking drills, or how they

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can ignore all known laws of aviation, we
do know how they reacted to the Pale King.

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These bugs decided to seal their hive off
from the rest of the world, with only patrol

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bees being able to enter and exit the Hive.

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So yeah, the bees are pretty much pointless
in this story.

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And finally, we have the moth tribe.

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In game, the only moth settlement is the Resting
Grounds, but the tribe might have also inhabited

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the Crystal Peak at one point.

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Now as we all know, moths in real life are
just complete assholes.

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As for moths in Hollow Knight, well… it’s
a bit complicated.

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The moth race is described as being a rather
pacifist group, with few ever choosing to

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take up a weapon.

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During the Pale King’s reign, the moth race
delved amongst dreams and the dead, displaying

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the importance of remembering those who have
passed, as well as learning how to shape dreams

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themselves.

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Similar to the Mosskin, the Moth Tribe was
born from a Higher Being known as the Radiance.

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The Radiance is described as being a light
in which the Moth Tribe basked.

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So she was basically a giant lamp to them.

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Another important aspect about the Radiance
is her ties to dreams and a substance known

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as Essence.

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Essence are the remnants of wishes and dreams,
and are represented in game by these dream

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catcher particle effects.

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Essence can take the form of Whispering Roots
as well as Dream ghosts, both of which are

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memories taking root in the world.

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00:11:43,820 --> 00:11:48,280
The Radiance appears to be a creature made
of Essence, but she isn’t the only Higher

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Being to give off Essence.

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00:11:50,250 --> 00:11:55,490
Unn has green particles, the Pale King has
grey particles, and this sexy character named

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00:11:55,490 --> 00:11:58,540
Grimm gives off fiery red particles.

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00:11:58,540 --> 00:12:03,580
However, the Radiance appears to be the main
god when it comes to dreams, even if other

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gods also dabble in the Dream Realm.

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00:12:06,780 --> 00:12:10,630
Getting back to the Moth Tribe, it is their
interaction with the Pale King that we need

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00:12:10,630 --> 00:12:11,790
to discuss.

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Basically, the moths turned their backs on
the Radiance completely, in order to worship

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the new light that had appeared, the Pale
King’s light.

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00:12:19,840 --> 00:12:23,870
So yeah, moths are assholes in this game too.

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With her tribe forsaking her, the Radiance
became a forgotten memory, a remnant of the

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past, and a thing that’s definitely not
going to come up again later in the video.

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And so the Pale King’s new kingdom was established:
Hallownest.

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00:12:38,280 --> 00:12:41,300
But there is one aspect of Hallownest that
we need to discuss.

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Unfortunately, to better understand this,
we’re going to have to read some poetry.

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In wilds beyond they speak your name with
reverence and regret,

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00:12:50,980 --> 00:12:54,810
For none could tame our savage souls yet you
the challenge met,

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Under palest watch, you taught, we changed,
base instincts were redeemed,

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A world you gave to bug and beast as they
had never dreamed.

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00:13:03,150 --> 00:13:08,360
This is from a poem titled Elegy for Hallownest
written by Monomon the Teacher.

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00:13:08,360 --> 00:13:12,271
The poem appears at the beginning of every
playthrough and hints at what the Pale King

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00:13:12,271 --> 00:13:14,120
and his kingdom offered.

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00:13:14,120 --> 00:13:18,200
Much of the land outside of Hallownest appears
to be a wasteland, where bugs survive off

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00:13:18,200 --> 00:13:21,280
of instinct without the burden of mind.

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00:13:21,280 --> 00:13:25,370
Hallownest somehow taught these bugs and tamed
their savagery.

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00:13:25,370 --> 00:13:30,390
Basically the Pale King changed the instincts
of his subjects and granted them higher thought.

219
00:13:30,390 --> 00:13:36,000
To get a better picture of this, let’s look
at two different characters: Boon and Tuk.

220
00:13:36,000 --> 00:13:40,730
These adorable panda bug things give us a
clear display of Hallownest’s effect.

221
00:13:40,730 --> 00:13:45,850
While both appear to be the same species of
bug, Boon is dumb as a sack of rocks, struggling

222
00:13:45,850 --> 00:13:49,750
to string together words, while Tuk speaks
fairly clearly.

223
00:13:49,750 --> 00:13:54,290
The main difference between these two characters
is that while Boon lives outside of Hallownest,

224
00:13:54,290 --> 00:13:57,190
Tuk lives beneath the city’s capital.

225
00:13:57,190 --> 00:14:01,680
Basically, it appears as though Hallownest
is a literal holy ground that raises the intelligence

226
00:14:01,680 --> 00:14:03,800
of those who dwell within.

227
00:14:03,800 --> 00:14:08,060
The Pale King established a path, starting
from the kingdom’s entrance in King’s

228
00:14:08,060 --> 00:14:12,780
Pass, winding through Greenpath and the Fungal
Wastes, and finally ending at the massive

229
00:14:12,780 --> 00:14:15,060
capital at Hallownest’s Heart.

230
00:14:15,060 --> 00:14:20,030
We now know the capital city as the City of
Tears, but this was likely not its original

231
00:14:20,030 --> 00:14:21,030
name.

232
00:14:21,030 --> 00:14:25,070
The rain that falls down onto the city from
the Blue Lake above didn’t begin until after

233
00:14:25,070 --> 00:14:26,700
the kingdom collapsed.

234
00:14:26,700 --> 00:14:30,780
So unless the capital was originally named
by some edgy literature student, the name

235
00:14:30,780 --> 00:14:34,240
City of Tears wouldn’t have made much sense.

236
00:14:34,240 --> 00:14:38,350
The King’s motivation for all this appears
to have been his desire to be worshipped.

237
00:14:38,350 --> 00:14:42,800
The citizens of Hallownest believed that the
Pale King created the world and everything

238
00:14:42,800 --> 00:14:43,800
in it.

239
00:14:43,800 --> 00:14:47,440
Shrines to the King can be found scattered
throughout the kingdom, and King’s Idols

240
00:14:47,440 --> 00:14:51,470
were created and distributed to followers
of the King.

241
00:14:51,470 --> 00:14:55,660
Despite the worship, the Pale King often kept
himself hidden from his subjects, possibly

242
00:14:55,660 --> 00:14:56,990
to hide his blemishes.

243
00:14:56,990 --> 00:15:02,210
I mean, if you look at the size of the real
Pale King to his statue in the Ancient Basin,

244
00:15:02,210 --> 00:15:04,700
the man is clearly overcompensating.

245
00:15:04,700 --> 00:15:08,770
The Pale King’s White Palace was also built
underneath the city, separating him from his

246
00:15:08,770 --> 00:15:10,960
subjects even moreso.

247
00:15:10,960 --> 00:15:15,270
At the same time, the certain powers became
shunned in Hallownest, though we don’t know

248
00:15:15,270 --> 00:15:19,120
for sure if the Pale King had anything to
do with this.

249
00:15:19,120 --> 00:15:22,980
Lifeblood is a blue liquidy substance that
leaves those who drink it feeling refreshed.

250
00:15:22,980 --> 00:15:27,610
However, the use of lifeblood was seen as
a taboo, and those who used it were demonized

251
00:15:27,610 --> 00:15:29,230
as heretics.

252
00:15:29,230 --> 00:15:31,940
The use of soul for combat was also shunned.

253
00:15:31,940 --> 00:15:37,600
Soul is a sort of lifeforce in Hollow Knight
that animates the bodies of living creatures.

254
00:15:37,600 --> 00:15:41,840
But some characters are able to control the
soul of others to conjure powerful spirits.

255
00:15:41,840 --> 00:15:46,840
But aside from a few exceptions, no citizens
of Hallownest ever used this power.

256
00:15:47,360 --> 00:15:50,160
However, the Pale King didn’t rule Hallownest
alone.

257
00:15:50,160 --> 00:15:54,650
There was another Higher Being in the mix,
a being known as the White Lady.

258
00:15:54,650 --> 00:15:59,380
The White Lady is this weird root-like being
that can be found in the modern day Queen’s

259
00:15:59,380 --> 00:16:00,380
Gardens.

260
00:16:00,380 --> 00:16:04,470
She is encased inside a strange cocoon, and
we know very little about her.

261
00:16:04,470 --> 00:16:08,650
With as much exposition we get for the Pale
King, there is next to nothing on the White

262
00:16:08,650 --> 00:16:09,650
Lady.

263
00:16:09,650 --> 00:16:14,560
But one thing we do know is she likes to breed...
like a lot.

264
00:16:14,560 --> 00:16:19,020
The White Lady would often retreat to the
Queen’s Gardens, an area of land once controlled

265
00:16:19,020 --> 00:16:20,790
by the Mosskin.

266
00:16:20,790 --> 00:16:25,480
How exactly she walked around and actually
went places is a lore question to deep for

267
00:16:25,480 --> 00:16:27,430
even my expertise.

268
00:16:27,430 --> 00:16:32,090
The White Lady is also known as a Pale being,
along with the Pale King.

269
00:16:32,090 --> 00:16:33,730
What exactly are Pale Beings?

270
00:16:33,730 --> 00:16:38,240
Well, we don’t really know for sure, but
they seem to stand out even amongst Higher

271
00:16:38,240 --> 00:16:40,550
Beings as being even more powerful.

272
00:16:40,550 --> 00:16:44,990
I know that’s a little confusing, so let’s
try using an example.

273
00:16:44,990 --> 00:16:52,280
I’d say that regular higher beings are like
a TP-Link Archer C7 AC1750 Wireless Dual Band

274
00:16:52,280 --> 00:16:59,820
Gigabit Router while Pale Beings are like
the Asus RT-AX88U AX6000 Dual-Band 8x Gigabit

275
00:16:59,820 --> 00:17:01,180
Wifi Router.

276
00:17:01,180 --> 00:17:05,490
Under the Pale King, Hallownest underwent
a bit of an industrial revolution.

277
00:17:05,490 --> 00:17:09,819
He ordered the construction of the stagways,
which were used to transport passengers and

278
00:17:09,819 --> 00:17:10,819
goods.

279
00:17:10,819 --> 00:17:15,189
The Forgotten Crossroads and the storerooms
above the City of Tears were used to store

280
00:17:15,189 --> 00:17:18,120
goods that traveled along these stagways.

281
00:17:18,120 --> 00:17:22,280
The King also ordered the construction of
the tramways because literally no one is safe

282
00:17:22,280 --> 00:17:24,079
from the threat of automation.

283
00:17:24,079 --> 00:17:27,929
A tram was built between the Forgotten Crossroads
and the Resting Grounds.

284
00:17:27,929 --> 00:17:33,809
A second tram was built from the Kingdom’s
Edge, across the Ancient Basin, over to Deepnest.

285
00:17:33,809 --> 00:17:38,610
And then a third tram was started in Deepnest
and attempted to go further into Deepnest.

286
00:17:38,610 --> 00:17:42,750
Not sure how useful that would have been to
the bugs of Hallownest, but whatever.

287
00:17:42,750 --> 00:17:45,700
The Pale King’s a smart guy, I’m not gonna
question him.

288
00:17:45,700 --> 00:17:50,399
But anyway, the Pale King’s super smart
plan to build a tram in Deepnest ended up

289
00:17:50,399 --> 00:17:53,000
getting a few of his tram workers killed.

290
00:17:53,000 --> 00:17:57,260
The bugs of Deepnest rejected the Pale King’s
attempt to build a tram in their territory,

291
00:17:57,260 --> 00:18:00,600
further cementing the poor relations shared
between the two groups.

292
00:18:00,600 --> 00:18:05,850
Aside from convenient fast travel, regular
pathways were also used to cart goods around

293
00:18:05,850 --> 00:18:07,220
the kingdom.

294
00:18:07,220 --> 00:18:11,649
From this was born probably one of the most
important groups in Hallownest and perhaps

295
00:18:11,649 --> 00:18:13,080
even all of fiction.

296
00:18:13,080 --> 00:18:19,299
An elusive guild of bugs simply known as menderbugs
took to maintaining the various signs scattered

297
00:18:19,299 --> 00:18:20,470
throughout Hallownest.

298
00:18:20,470 --> 00:18:25,789
From the journal entry of one Menderbug, we
can catch a glimpse into their ancient and

299
00:18:25,789 --> 00:18:27,630
unknowable minds.

300
00:18:27,630 --> 00:18:32,519
Dear Dear Diary,
Isn't life just the most beautiful thing.

301
00:18:32,519 --> 00:18:35,690
Fixing signs, mending posts, let them break
I say!

302
00:18:35,690 --> 00:18:38,230
I'm a better mender for all that repairing.

303
00:18:38,230 --> 00:18:44,499
I sometimes doubt there's a single bug in
all of Hallownest happier than me.

304
00:18:44,499 --> 00:18:49,340
Another example of the Pale King’s expanding
infrastructure is the Crystal Peak.

305
00:18:49,340 --> 00:18:54,139
This area is filled with crystals that grow
rapidly along walls, ceilings, and even the

306
00:18:54,139 --> 00:18:56,200
shells of certain bugs.

307
00:18:56,200 --> 00:19:00,169
These crystals were considered valuable to
the bugs of Hallownest, resulting in large

308
00:19:00,169 --> 00:19:02,110
scale mining efforts.

309
00:19:02,110 --> 00:19:06,190
We don’t actually see the crystals used
anywhere else in Hallownest, but they are

310
00:19:06,190 --> 00:19:08,320
said to be able to contain a sort of energy.

311
00:19:08,320 --> 00:19:12,460
The crystals are also said to sing if you
listen very carefully.

312
00:19:17,980 --> 00:19:20,519
♫ A strange angelic singing ♫

313
00:19:20,519 --> 00:19:25,260
In terms of military, Hallownest’s first
line of defense appeared to be a group simply

314
00:19:25,260 --> 00:19:28,220
known as the Five Great Knights.

315
00:19:28,220 --> 00:19:36,240
The members of this esteemed coalition were
Ogrim, Hegemol, Ze’mer, Dryya, and Isma.

316
00:19:36,240 --> 00:19:41,360
For being so important, most of the information
about these Knights has been lost to time.

317
00:19:41,360 --> 00:19:46,230
Ogrim is the Knight we know most about, since
he is one of the few Knights still alive during

318
00:19:46,230 --> 00:19:47,789
the events of the game.

319
00:19:47,789 --> 00:19:52,419
Ogrim expressed a great amount of loyalty
towards the King, and he maybe had something

320
00:19:52,419 --> 00:19:54,090
going on with Isma.

321
00:19:54,090 --> 00:19:55,600
But we really don’t know.

322
00:19:55,600 --> 00:19:59,220
Hegemol was known for his sense of humor and
his soft spoken voice.

323
00:19:59,220 --> 00:20:03,470
But at the same time, he was also dummy thicc.

324
00:20:03,470 --> 00:20:07,700
Mysterious Ze’mer arrived in Hallownest
from a serene land, bringing with her a collection

325
00:20:07,700 --> 00:20:09,590
of delicate flowers.

326
00:20:09,590 --> 00:20:15,090
At some point, she also got into a relationship
with a mantis, but not just any mantis, a

327
00:20:15,090 --> 00:20:17,129
daughter of one of the Mantis Lords.

328
00:20:17,129 --> 00:20:22,159
So yeah, it seems like some of these Great
Knights were slaying in more ways than one.

329
00:20:22,159 --> 00:20:27,499
All we really know about Dryya is that she
was fierce, caring and wise.

330
00:20:27,499 --> 00:20:30,980
As for Isma, she was described as being kind.

331
00:20:30,980 --> 00:20:35,480
She also appears to be some kind of weird
plant life form, but there’s no information

332
00:20:35,480 --> 00:20:38,480
on where she’s from or what her powers were.

333
00:20:38,480 --> 00:20:42,990
The Five Great Knights played an important
role in the Champion’s Call, the Knotted

334
00:20:42,990 --> 00:20:45,700
Grove, and the Battle of the Blackwyrm.

335
00:20:45,700 --> 00:20:50,020
We have no idea what these events were or
how they affected Hallownest, but they sound

336
00:20:50,020 --> 00:20:52,070
cool nonetheless.

337
00:20:52,070 --> 00:20:55,909
During Hallownest’s reign, there was another
strange area that seemed to exist separate

338
00:20:55,909 --> 00:20:57,279
from the Pale King’s rule.

339
00:20:57,279 --> 00:21:02,249
Carved out of the corpse of an ancient bug,
an arena called the Colosseum of Fools was

340
00:21:02,249 --> 00:21:06,909
constructed, and it was a destination for
warriors from outside Hallownest.

341
00:21:06,909 --> 00:21:12,260
The sole purpose for fighting in the Colosseum
appeared to be simply for glory, with a mysterous

342
00:21:12,260 --> 00:21:15,309
figure known as the Lord Fool overseeing the
combat.

343
00:21:15,309 --> 00:21:20,381
We don’t know when the Colosseum was constructed,
or if the Pale King was involved, but one

344
00:21:20,381 --> 00:21:25,869
of his servants, the Pale Lurker, became a
champion in the Colosseum, perhaps indicating

345
00:21:25,869 --> 00:21:27,730
the Pale King’s approval.

346
00:21:27,730 --> 00:21:32,600
Finally, there was the Royal Waterways, where
the fecal excrement of the kingdom was washed

347
00:21:32,600 --> 00:21:34,809
out into the Fungal Wastes.

348
00:21:34,809 --> 00:21:39,360
This area saw the rise of a species of parasite-like
creatures called the Flukes.

349
00:21:39,360 --> 00:21:45,090
The Flukes spawn from the Flukemarm, a giant
monster with cavities in which tinier flukes

350
00:21:45,090 --> 00:21:46,090
live.

351
00:21:46,090 --> 00:21:49,600
There really isn’t too much lore involved
with the Flukes, but I do need to point out

352
00:21:49,600 --> 00:21:52,759
that Flukemarm is canonicall a MILF.

353
00:21:52,759 --> 00:21:55,669
Like, that’s not even debatable.

354
00:21:55,669 --> 00:22:01,630
The sky is blue, 2 + 2 = 4, and we all want
to fuck this thing.

355
00:22:01,630 --> 00:22:04,399
And so this was the Kingdom of Hallownest
at its height.

356
00:22:04,399 --> 00:22:09,570
Hallownest was a vast kingdom connected by
a network of stagways and tram stations.

357
00:22:09,570 --> 00:22:13,840
The bugs of Hallownest mourned their dead
in the Resting Grounds, engaged in commerce

358
00:22:13,840 --> 00:22:19,309
using Geo, the de facto currency of the region,
and a thriving capital located in the middle

359
00:22:19,309 --> 00:22:20,840
of the kingdom.

360
00:22:20,840 --> 00:22:25,470
The Pale King had succeeded in crafting a
full blown society, but we all know there

361
00:22:25,470 --> 00:22:28,529
are pitfalls to living in a society.

362
00:22:28,529 --> 00:22:33,380
As the suspiciously knowledgeable Hunter points
out in his journal, the Pale King had created

363
00:22:33,380 --> 00:22:36,700
a population of weak and pathetic creatures.

364
00:22:36,700 --> 00:22:41,500
The bugs of Hallownest did not hunt for their
own food and had become complacent with their

365
00:22:41,500 --> 00:22:42,570
comfort.

366
00:22:42,570 --> 00:22:45,669
This is even more obvious with the east wing
of the capital.

367
00:22:45,669 --> 00:22:50,640
These greedy members of Hallownest’s high
society became complete cowards, obsessed

368
00:22:50,640 --> 00:22:53,619
with riches and plumb from excess wealth.

369
00:22:53,619 --> 00:22:58,119
The bugs living in Hallownest’s prime looked
quite different than the instinctive simpletons

370
00:22:58,119 --> 00:22:59,760
they once were.

371
00:22:59,760 --> 00:23:04,659
Their savagery had been replaced with intelligence
and through that intellect, they gave the

372
00:23:04,659 --> 00:23:07,830
Pale King the devotion and service he desired.

373
00:23:07,830 --> 00:23:11,890
And while there were a few snags along the
way, they were shining times for the King

374
00:23:11,890 --> 00:23:14,010
and his subjects.

375
00:23:14,010 --> 00:23:18,539
Resting at the threshold of Hallownest is
a strange lore tablet, proclaiming Hallownest

376
00:23:18,539 --> 00:23:21,590
to be the last and only civilization.

377
00:23:21,590 --> 00:23:24,200
It calls Hallownest an eternal kingdom.

378
00:23:24,200 --> 00:23:28,769
This appears to have been the Pale King’s
goal: for Hallownest to stand against a wasted

379
00:23:28,769 --> 00:23:32,019
world as a final beacon for civilization.

380
00:23:32,019 --> 00:23:34,749
And that was the Pale King’s ultimate folly.

381
00:23:34,749 --> 00:23:39,370
To think that he could succeed where so many
others had failed before.

382
00:23:39,370 --> 00:23:44,600
Long before the Pale Kings or the Berry Bensons
of the world, the land of Hallownest was controlled

383
00:23:44,600 --> 00:23:46,710
by an ancient caste.

384
00:23:46,710 --> 00:23:50,279
Hints of Hallownest’s history are littered
throughout the land, with the most notable

385
00:23:50,279 --> 00:23:54,029
examples being the soul totems and arcane
eggs.

386
00:23:54,029 --> 00:23:58,740
One sect of these ancient bugs didn’t worship
a god like the Pale King, or any lord, but

387
00:23:58,740 --> 00:24:03,110
instead a dark and mysterious substance known
as the Void.

388
00:24:03,110 --> 00:24:08,440
This Ancient Caste once also tried to lay
claim to the entire land of Hallownest, but

389
00:24:08,440 --> 00:24:09,619
they too failed.

390
00:24:09,619 --> 00:24:14,610
In his quest to conquer all of Hallownest,
the Pale King had made an enemy, an enemy

391
00:24:14,610 --> 00:24:20,270
long forgotten, an enemy that was about to
be remembered.

392
00:24:20,270 --> 00:24:25,309
I mentioned earlier that the Moth Tribe entirely
forgot about the Radiance in order to worship

393
00:24:25,309 --> 00:24:26,899
the Pale King.

394
00:24:26,899 --> 00:24:29,169
But that isn’t quite true.

395
00:24:29,169 --> 00:24:34,269
Memories of her still lingered, and hushed
whispers of faith kept the Radiance alive.

396
00:24:34,269 --> 00:24:39,210
At the summit of the Crystal Peak, a location
known as Hallownest’s crown, a strange collection

397
00:24:39,210 --> 00:24:40,899
of glyphs can be found.

398
00:24:40,899 --> 00:24:46,260
Joining these glyphs is a statue of the Radiance,
presiding over the kingdom below.

399
00:24:46,260 --> 00:24:50,190
This old summit is the sole standing shrine
left for the Radiance.

400
00:24:50,190 --> 00:24:54,450
This was built in order to keep the memory
of the Radiance alive.

401
00:24:54,450 --> 00:24:58,730
The Radiance’s light began to appear in
the dreams of Hallownest’s citizens.

402
00:24:58,730 --> 00:25:04,210
This light manifested itself in an infection
that ravaged through the kingdom’s tunnels.

403
00:25:04,210 --> 00:25:09,309
Those infected would fall into a deep sleep
and awaken with broken minds.

404
00:25:09,309 --> 00:25:13,870
Some of the lesser bugs tried to resist the
Radiance’s light, which only resulted in

405
00:25:13,870 --> 00:25:16,789
them being consumed by it even moreso.

406
00:25:16,789 --> 00:25:22,789
Many infected bugs lost their wills and began
attacking bugs that weren’t infected.

407
00:25:22,789 --> 00:25:28,019
The infection also twisted the bodies of its
hosts, causing them to bloat, and occasionally

408
00:25:28,019 --> 00:25:31,240
develop orange cysts on their bodies.

409
00:25:31,240 --> 00:25:35,909
For many victims, they were reverted back
to their basic instincts, carrying out the

410
00:25:35,909 --> 00:25:40,309
duties they once fulfilled in life, but now
as mindless slaves.

411
00:25:40,309 --> 00:25:44,779
Those caught up in the infection were linked
into the Radiance’s hivemind, allowing her

412
00:25:44,779 --> 00:25:47,509
to control their bodies if needed.

413
00:25:47,509 --> 00:25:51,970
As the infection spread across Hallownest,
many groups looked to solutions to fight off

414
00:25:51,970 --> 00:25:53,730
the Radiance’s light.

415
00:25:53,730 --> 00:25:57,970
The gates to the City of Tears were closed
in an attempt to keep the infection from reaching

416
00:25:57,970 --> 00:25:59,429
the city.

417
00:25:59,429 --> 00:26:04,640
The stagways were also shut down at some point,
and many of the stags eventually died out.

418
00:26:04,640 --> 00:26:08,269
But some took more proactive efforts against
the infection.

419
00:26:08,269 --> 00:26:12,990
The scholars of the Soul Sanctum decided to
harness the power of soul in an attempt to

420
00:26:12,990 --> 00:26:14,960
fight the infection.

421
00:26:14,960 --> 00:26:19,669
This resulted in the deaths of hundreds of
bugs whose souls were sucked out and injected

422
00:26:19,669 --> 00:26:22,110
into the bodies of the scholars.

423
00:26:22,110 --> 00:26:26,299
Their goal was to achieve some kind of pure
focus which would somehow protect them from

424
00:26:26,299 --> 00:26:28,210
plagues of the mind.

425
00:26:28,210 --> 00:26:33,470
The scholars’ leader, the Soul Master, was
driven mad by the sheer power of soul and

426
00:26:33,470 --> 00:26:36,390
his entire sect failed to avoid infection.

427
00:26:36,390 --> 00:26:41,769
But hey, at least they took as many innocent
people down with them as they could.

428
00:26:41,769 --> 00:26:46,799
The Mantis Tribe, showing a stronger will
than the common bug, were able to stave off

429
00:26:46,799 --> 00:26:48,070
the infection.

430
00:26:48,070 --> 00:26:52,539
However, one of the four Mantis Lords turned
against his sisters.

431
00:26:52,539 --> 00:26:57,399
He and his followers took in the infection
willingly, as it gave them more strength and

432
00:26:57,399 --> 00:26:58,399
courage.

433
00:26:58,399 --> 00:27:02,250
At some point during all this, The Traitor
Lord and his followers were exiled from the

434
00:27:02,250 --> 00:27:05,559
Mantis Village, eventually taking up residence
in the Queen’s Gardens.

435
00:27:05,559 --> 00:27:09,500
The Traitor Lord’s daughter ended up dying
at some point.

436
00:27:09,500 --> 00:27:14,470
This is the same mantis that was in a relationship
with Ze’mer, one of the Five Great Knights.

437
00:27:14,470 --> 00:27:19,769
But the mantises rejected their union because
of Ze’mer’s outsideness.

438
00:27:19,769 --> 00:27:26,480
As a Gamer, this type of prejudice is all
too familiar, and honestly, it makes me sick.

439
00:27:26,480 --> 00:27:30,950
With the Five Great Knights completely useless
to fight against the infection, the Pale King

440
00:27:30,950 --> 00:27:36,389
devised his own scheme: a scheme involving
a strange substance known as Void.

441
00:27:36,389 --> 00:27:41,419
As I mentioned earlier, the Pale King’s
White Palace was built in an area called the

442
00:27:41,419 --> 00:27:46,169
Ancient Basin, but his castle wasn’t the
only noteworthy thing down there.

443
00:27:46,169 --> 00:27:51,749
At the bottom of the Ancient Basin was the
entrance to a pit known as the Abyss.

444
00:27:51,749 --> 00:27:54,899
Within the Abyss was a lake composed of Void.

445
00:27:54,899 --> 00:27:59,279
The Pale King realized that this Void could
be given form, as evidenced by an imprint

446
00:27:59,279 --> 00:28:04,859
of such deep within the Abyss, possibly left
there by the Ancient Civilization that predated

447
00:28:04,859 --> 00:28:06,100
Hallownest.

448
00:28:06,100 --> 00:28:11,320
The Pale King devised a workshop in his palace
where he placed Void in armor shells imbued

449
00:28:11,320 --> 00:28:16,149
with soul, creating servants known as Kingsmoulds
and Wingmoulds.

450
00:28:16,149 --> 00:28:20,480
These Void creatures were somehow imprinted
with the desire of the Pale King, so that

451
00:28:20,480 --> 00:28:21,570
they would serve him.

452
00:28:21,570 --> 00:28:25,659
It isn’t clear when the Pale King started
making these creatures.

453
00:28:25,659 --> 00:28:30,250
There is evidence to imply that even common
bugs were aware of Kingsmoulds, but the point

454
00:28:30,250 --> 00:28:35,059
is, the Pale King turned to the Void in order
to create another creature.

455
00:28:35,059 --> 00:28:38,820
One that he believed could contain the Radiance
and her infection.

456
00:28:38,820 --> 00:28:41,549
He tried to create a pure Vessel.

457
00:28:41,549 --> 00:28:46,640
The Radiance’s infection needs its host
to have a will and a mind in order to enslave

458
00:28:46,640 --> 00:28:47,640
it.

459
00:28:47,640 --> 00:28:51,909
A pure Vessel would be a creature made of
Void, designed to lack those features.

460
00:28:51,909 --> 00:28:56,080
The Pale King believed that by harnessing
the Void inside a pure Vessel, he would be

461
00:28:56,080 --> 00:28:59,649
able to stop the infection and keep Hallownest
lasting eternal.

462
00:28:59,649 --> 00:29:05,120
But his method for creating this so-called
pure Vessel was incredibly cruel.

463
00:29:05,120 --> 00:29:09,570
This is where the White Lady and her King
Kong sized libido come into play.

464
00:29:09,570 --> 00:29:13,830
These two Higher Beings engaged in a union
of some kind, resulting in the creation of

465
00:29:13,830 --> 00:29:17,200
several eggs that were dropped down into the
Abyss.

466
00:29:17,200 --> 00:29:23,580
There, the Void seeped into these eggs, corrupting
the offspring of the Pale King and White Lady.

467
00:29:23,580 --> 00:29:27,450
This act resulted in the creation of the Vessels.

468
00:29:27,450 --> 00:29:30,720
The Vessels are not technically considered
to be alive.

469
00:29:30,720 --> 00:29:34,490
They are shells created from the Pale King
and White Lady that have been filled by the

470
00:29:34,490 --> 00:29:35,929
Void.

471
00:29:35,929 --> 00:29:42,169
Within each Vessel is a shade, a completely
Void being hidden behind the face of the Vessel.

472
00:29:42,169 --> 00:29:43,269
Vessels are also non-gendered.

473
00:29:43,269 --> 00:29:46,429
I guess because they’re dead or something.

474
00:29:46,429 --> 00:29:49,659
I’m not sure if that’s how that works
but whatever.

475
00:29:49,659 --> 00:29:52,000
I’m not an expert on these kinds of things.

476
00:29:52,000 --> 00:29:53,619
I don’t work at ICE anymore

477
00:29:53,619 --> 00:29:59,429
Thousands of Vessels were created during this
process, but only one was chosen as the pure

478
00:29:59,429 --> 00:30:00,669
Vessel.

479
00:30:00,669 --> 00:30:05,580
This particular Vessel chosen by the Pale
King was deemed the Hollow Knight, and was

480
00:30:05,580 --> 00:30:07,320
taken away to the White Palace.

481
00:30:07,320 --> 00:30:11,179
But I want to take a bit of a closer look
at this part of the story.

482
00:30:11,179 --> 00:30:14,940
There are a number of questions and theories
surrounding this moment that I really want

483
00:30:14,940 --> 00:30:16,489
to dig into.

484
00:30:16,489 --> 00:30:20,090
The big question surrounding this moment is
why was the Hollow Knight chosen over any

485
00:30:20,090 --> 00:30:21,850
other vessel.

486
00:30:21,850 --> 00:30:25,960
One common theory is that the Pale King took
these Vessels back to the White Palace and

487
00:30:25,960 --> 00:30:30,220
evaluated them using his giant collection
of buzzsaws.

488
00:30:30,220 --> 00:30:33,489
This theory is probably the least likely explanation.

489
00:30:33,489 --> 00:30:38,399
It kinda exists just to explain the buzzsaws,
which is quite the mystery, I’ll admit,

490
00:30:38,399 --> 00:30:41,620
but doesn’t really mesh with the Vessels
very well.

491
00:30:41,620 --> 00:30:45,409
How does being good at Super Meat Boy prove
that you are a worthy Vessel?

492
00:30:45,409 --> 00:30:50,280
And while thinking about logistics in a game
about magic bugs is never a good idea, how

493
00:30:50,280 --> 00:30:55,210
exactly did the Pale King transfer these thousands
of Vessels to his Palace without characters

494
00:30:55,210 --> 00:30:57,879
like the Dung Defender finding out?

495
00:30:57,879 --> 00:31:01,749
So this means that the Pale King probably
made his decision without taking any of the

496
00:31:01,749 --> 00:31:03,870
Vessels out of the Abyss.

497
00:31:03,870 --> 00:31:06,590
So how did the Pale King make his evaluation?

498
00:31:06,590 --> 00:31:10,919
I think the best explanation comes from a
theory I originally heard from a user named

499
00:31:10,919 --> 00:31:12,419
GoldenFlowerFan.

500
00:31:12,419 --> 00:31:17,210
Basically, the Vessels were hatched down at
the bottom of the Abyss, and the first one

501
00:31:17,210 --> 00:31:20,149
to make it to the top was chosen by the Pale
King.

502
00:31:20,149 --> 00:31:25,049
In a memory of this event, we see Vessels
falling from above back down into the pit

503
00:31:25,049 --> 00:31:26,690
of the Abyss.

504
00:31:26,690 --> 00:31:30,900
Perhaps these Vessels weren’t being cast
down into the Abyss, but fell while trying

505
00:31:30,900 --> 00:31:32,799
to escape out of it.

506
00:31:32,799 --> 00:31:36,279
The lore tablet outside the Abyss appears
to support this theory.

507
00:31:36,279 --> 00:31:37,710
It reads:

508
00:31:37,710 --> 00:31:40,159
Our pure Vessel has ascended.

509
00:31:40,159 --> 00:31:43,200
Beyond lies only the refuse and regret of
its creation.

510
00:31:43,200 --> 00:31:45,940
We shall enter that place no longer.

511
00:31:45,940 --> 00:31:50,190
This tablet was likely written right after
the Hollow Knight was chosen, considering

512
00:31:50,190 --> 00:31:53,320
that is when the entrance to the Abyss was
sealed off.

513
00:31:53,320 --> 00:31:58,350
The tablet proclaims that the pure Vessel
has “ascended” or in other words, climbed

514
00:31:58,350 --> 00:32:00,049
out of the Abyss.

515
00:32:00,049 --> 00:32:04,830
And while cut content should never be considered
canon, I would just like to point out that

516
00:32:04,830 --> 00:32:10,340
an earlier version of this tablet found in
the game’s code was even more explicit about

517
00:32:10,340 --> 00:32:11,340
this.

518
00:32:11,340 --> 00:32:15,690
It read: “From below, our pure Vessel has
ascended.”

519
00:32:15,690 --> 00:32:19,609
But how does making it to the top of the Abyss
first prove that the Hollow Knight is somehow

520
00:32:19,609 --> 00:32:21,440
a perfectly hollow Vessel?

521
00:32:21,440 --> 00:32:25,850
Well, I think this whole concept might just
be a misconception.

522
00:32:25,850 --> 00:32:29,289
What if the Hollow Knight wasn’t any different
from the other Vessels?

523
00:32:29,289 --> 00:32:32,590
All Vessels were made in the exact same way
after all.

524
00:32:32,590 --> 00:32:36,779
The idea that the Hollow Knight was somehow
more hollow than the other Vessels comes from

525
00:32:36,779 --> 00:32:40,660
the fact that there were so many Vessels created
in the first place.

526
00:32:40,660 --> 00:32:44,350
If they only needed one, then why create so
goddamn many?

527
00:32:44,350 --> 00:32:47,499
I mean this is like Octomom on steroids.

528
00:32:47,499 --> 00:32:52,649
Well, these are bugs we’re talking about,
so it would make sense that multiple offspring

529
00:32:52,649 --> 00:32:54,960
would come from one egg.

530
00:32:54,960 --> 00:32:59,210
And it might have been a precaution to produce
multiple Vessels in hopes that at least one

531
00:32:59,210 --> 00:33:02,610
would be able to successfully escape the Abyss.

532
00:33:02,610 --> 00:33:06,529
Now another explanation could be that the
Pale King just yeeted other Vessels that made

533
00:33:06,529 --> 00:33:10,830
it to the top first after determining that
they weren’t hollow, which would better

534
00:33:10,830 --> 00:33:13,100
explain why so many were created.

535
00:33:13,100 --> 00:33:18,299
Ultimately, the exact details aren’t super
important, but I do find it interesting how

536
00:33:18,299 --> 00:33:23,130
many different interpretations can be pulled
from this part of the lore.

537
00:33:23,130 --> 00:33:27,419
After the Hollow Knight was chosen, the Pale
King sealed the doorway to the Abyss, leaving

538
00:33:27,419 --> 00:33:30,820
the discarded Vessels to rot away in darkness.

539
00:33:30,820 --> 00:33:34,379
These actions were not taken lightly by the
Pale King or the White Lady.

540
00:33:34,379 --> 00:33:39,259
Both participants expressed shame in what
they did, but saw no other option to save

541
00:33:39,259 --> 00:33:40,590
the kingdom.

542
00:33:40,590 --> 00:33:43,909
But the Vessels weren’t the only poor saps
sealed away in the Abyss.

543
00:33:43,909 --> 00:33:49,309
There’s also a lighthouse that was built
on top of a naturally formed spire, it’s

544
00:33:49,309 --> 00:33:52,869
light shining down on an ocean of Abyss below.

545
00:33:52,869 --> 00:33:56,840
Inside was one of the Pale King’s Royal
Retainers, who was left in charge of keeping

546
00:33:56,840 --> 00:33:58,799
the lighthouse turned on.

547
00:33:58,799 --> 00:34:02,909
So this brave soul was willingly sealed in
a dark and dangerous tomb for the rest of

548
00:34:02,909 --> 00:34:06,210
his life just so he could not pull a lever.

549
00:34:06,210 --> 00:34:09,629
Well, at least he was living with purpose.

550
00:34:09,629 --> 00:34:13,929
With the Abyss sealed and the Hollow Knight
chosen, the Pale King’s plan was beginning

551
00:34:13,929 --> 00:34:15,200
to come together.

552
00:34:15,200 --> 00:34:19,700
The Hollow Knight was raised and trained to
prime form, causing it to grow to several

553
00:34:19,700 --> 00:34:21,409
times its original size.

554
00:34:21,409 --> 00:34:24,859
We don’t know exactly why this happened.

555
00:34:24,859 --> 00:34:28,210
But I guess the Hollow Knight is a grower
and not a shower.

556
00:34:28,210 --> 00:34:33,599
We know that the Hollow Knight was trained
to use a nail, but why was this even necessary?

557
00:34:33,599 --> 00:34:37,940
One possible explanation is that the Hollow
Knight needed to protect itself in case an

558
00:34:37,940 --> 00:34:41,929
intruder tried to kill it, you know, like
the player.

559
00:34:41,929 --> 00:34:46,050
Or perhaps this was important in the process
of containing the Radiance.

560
00:34:46,050 --> 00:34:49,960
Unfortunately the details of that are never
fully explained.

561
00:34:49,960 --> 00:34:54,579
The Hollow Knight might have somehow focused
the Radiance inside itself, but Team Cherry

562
00:34:54,579 --> 00:34:57,600
gives us no explanation of how that might
have worked.

563
00:34:57,600 --> 00:35:00,210
But that still wasn’t enough for the Pale
King.

564
00:35:00,210 --> 00:35:04,329
Additional seals were needed in order to protect
the Hollow Knight’s physical body while

565
00:35:04,329 --> 00:35:06,599
the Radiance was trapped inside of it.

566
00:35:06,599 --> 00:35:11,060
To achieve this, the Pale King sought the
help of three particular bugs who would later

567
00:35:11,060 --> 00:35:18,289
be known as the Dreamers; Lurien the Watcher,
Monomon the Teacher, and Herrah the Beast.

568
00:35:18,289 --> 00:35:21,600
Lurien is definitely the most mysterious of
the three dreamers.

569
00:35:21,600 --> 00:35:24,809
He lived in the Watcher’s Spire in the City
of Tears.

570
00:35:24,809 --> 00:35:28,309
From there, Lurien watched over the city with
his telescope.

571
00:35:28,309 --> 00:35:33,119
Lurien was also a pretty big fan of the king,
so it probably took little convincing for

572
00:35:33,119 --> 00:35:34,920
him to lie down for him.

573
00:35:34,920 --> 00:35:40,230
Lurien might also be tied to another strange
incident that occurred in the City of Tears.

574
00:35:40,230 --> 00:35:44,740
Hidden on some of Lurien’s lore tablets
are images of jars, the same jars that can

575
00:35:44,740 --> 00:35:47,789
be found stockpiled in the Tower of Love.

576
00:35:47,789 --> 00:35:51,940
This building sits on the outskirts of the
city, and is the setting of one of the most

577
00:35:51,940 --> 00:35:55,260
bizzare bosses in the game: The Collector.

578
00:35:55,260 --> 00:36:00,780
The Collector is a Void construct that appears
to be made from the same mold used to create

579
00:36:00,780 --> 00:36:02,480
the kingsmoulds.

580
00:36:02,480 --> 00:36:03,900
But the Collector is unique because....

581
00:36:03,900 --> 00:36:05,540
Well uhh...

582
00:36:05,540 --> 00:36:07,170
Good grief!

583
00:36:07,170 --> 00:36:08,819
He’s naked!

584
00:36:08,819 --> 00:36:14,250
The Collector stayed in the Tower of Love
with a noble bug who likely owned the establishment.

585
00:36:14,250 --> 00:36:18,760
In the tower, a number of bugs can be found
captured in jars, implying that these two

586
00:36:18,760 --> 00:36:21,270
were tasked with collecting these creatures.

587
00:36:21,270 --> 00:36:26,640
However, the Collector somehow became obsessed
with grubs, creating a map to keep track of

588
00:36:26,640 --> 00:36:32,150
grubs it captured in jars, as well as keeping
a strange shrine displaying a grub in the

589
00:36:32,150 --> 00:36:35,390
style of the Vitruvian Man.

590
00:36:35,390 --> 00:36:39,780
Eventually the bug staying with the Collector
decided to lock it inside the Tower of Love,

591
00:36:39,780 --> 00:36:46,140
and fled to the Queen’s Gardens where it
died, likely due to overexposure to the Void.

592
00:36:46,140 --> 00:36:50,079
Despite being locked up in the Tower, the
Collector is still spotted by the Hunter at

593
00:36:50,079 --> 00:36:55,619
some point, which either means this only happened
recently, or the Hunter has been farting around

594
00:36:55,619 --> 00:36:58,640
in Hallownest for a long ass time.

595
00:36:58,640 --> 00:37:01,410
We have no idea what these creatures were
trying to do.

596
00:37:01,410 --> 00:37:06,031
It’s implied that the Collector was trying
to preserve the creatures of Hallownest, perhaps

597
00:37:06,031 --> 00:37:08,339
trying to protect them from the spread of
the infection.

598
00:37:08,339 --> 00:37:12,680
But we don’t know where the Collector’s
obsession with grubs originated.

599
00:37:12,680 --> 00:37:16,839
And while Lurien does seem connected to all
of this, we don’t know how involved he was

600
00:37:16,839 --> 00:37:21,000
with this operation or what it’s end goal
exactly was.

601
00:37:21,000 --> 00:37:25,770
Monomon the Teacher lived in the Teacher's
Archives, a library built atop a lake of acid

602
00:37:25,770 --> 00:37:27,650
in the Fog Canyon.

603
00:37:27,650 --> 00:37:32,619
The lower half of her body consists of tentacles,
making her a popular subject for the thriving

604
00:37:32,619 --> 00:37:35,470
Hollow Knight R34 community.

605
00:37:35,470 --> 00:37:41,880
The Archives, and Fog Canyon as a whole, are
also filled with these strange Metroid knockoffs.

606
00:37:41,880 --> 00:37:44,910
These creatures are likely related to Monomon
in some way.

607
00:37:44,910 --> 00:37:51,119
They could be her live offspring, her test
tube babies, or possibly even her shit.

608
00:37:51,119 --> 00:37:57,440
Monomon used futuristic cathode ray tube things
to store information about Hallownest.

609
00:37:57,440 --> 00:38:01,750
Several terminals in the Teacher’s Archive
go into detail about the Pale King’s plan

610
00:38:01,750 --> 00:38:06,590
to defeat the Radiance, indicating that Monomon
had intimate knowledge of what she was taking

611
00:38:06,590 --> 00:38:07,590
part in.

612
00:38:07,590 --> 00:38:13,190
Finally, the Pale King sought the help of
Herrah the Beast, the Queen of Deepnest.

613
00:38:13,190 --> 00:38:19,650
Now as I mentioned earlier, relations between
Hallownest and Deepnest were kinda… not

614
00:38:19,650 --> 00:38:20,760
great.

615
00:38:20,760 --> 00:38:25,020
Unlike the other two Dreamers, Herrah needed
to be convinced in order to help the Pale

616
00:38:25,020 --> 00:38:26,020
King.

617
00:38:26,020 --> 00:38:30,730
Herrah would eventually agree to become a
Dreamer in exchange for a child.

618
00:38:30,730 --> 00:38:35,640
The Pale King agreed, and the two engaged
in a dalliance, which is a fancy way of saying

619
00:38:35,640 --> 00:38:37,970
they totally boned.

620
00:38:37,970 --> 00:38:39,930
The White Lady was okay with this arrangement.

621
00:38:39,930 --> 00:38:43,609
In fact, she might have been watching from
the closet.

622
00:38:43,609 --> 00:38:48,290
The motive behind Herrah’s request is never
elaborated on, but it appears as though the

623
00:38:48,290 --> 00:38:50,829
King of Deepnest was dead at this point.

624
00:38:50,829 --> 00:38:56,250
Herrah was a common bug, so perhaps she desired
the Pale King’s pale seed so that her child

625
00:38:56,250 --> 00:38:58,450
could be of high birth.

626
00:38:58,450 --> 00:39:02,890
The bargain between Herrah and the Pale King
resulted in the birth of Hornet.

627
00:39:02,890 --> 00:39:07,890
She became known as the Gendered Child, because
unlike the Pale King’s other children, Hornet

628
00:39:07,890 --> 00:39:09,710
was not hollowed out in the Abyss.

629
00:39:09,710 --> 00:39:14,770
Herrah and Hornet spent little time together,
as Herrah had to make good on her end of the

630
00:39:14,770 --> 00:39:15,860
bargain.

631
00:39:15,860 --> 00:39:18,470
And so the three Dreamers were put to rest.

632
00:39:18,470 --> 00:39:23,250
Through their actions, a seal was placed over
the Black Egg, prohibiting entrance into the

633
00:39:23,250 --> 00:39:24,250
chamber.

634
00:39:24,250 --> 00:39:26,830
These Dreamers also had their own protection.

635
00:39:26,830 --> 00:39:31,340
At the base of Lurien’s spire, the Watcher
Knights guarded access to their master’s

636
00:39:31,340 --> 00:39:32,340
body.

637
00:39:32,340 --> 00:39:36,630
Monomon’s body was protected by a giant
jellyfish named Uumuu.

638
00:39:36,630 --> 00:39:41,510
On top of this, Monomon entrusted her servant
Quirrel with a mask which would be required

639
00:39:41,510 --> 00:39:45,210
to break an additional seal she had placed
over herself.

640
00:39:45,210 --> 00:39:48,319
So she basically is double wrapping herself.

641
00:39:48,319 --> 00:39:52,309
As for Herrah, we’re not really sure what
protected her, since it is never actually

642
00:39:52,309 --> 00:39:54,180
seen in game.

643
00:39:54,180 --> 00:39:58,859
We don’t know where this creature is hiding,
but whoever it is, they really suck at their

644
00:39:58,859 --> 00:39:59,859
job.

645
00:39:59,859 --> 00:40:04,840
Now there appears to be one more element to
the Pale King’s plan, involving the Weavers.

646
00:40:04,840 --> 00:40:10,280
Hidden away in the Weaver’s Den is an incomplete
Seal of Binding woven from silk.

647
00:40:10,280 --> 00:40:14,200
This design prominently features the Hollow
Knight’s head, and can be found in the White

648
00:40:14,200 --> 00:40:18,690
Palace as well as blocking the exit during
the Hollow Knight fight.

649
00:40:18,690 --> 00:40:22,950
Silk spools created by the Weavers can be
found in the stag station in Deepnest, as

650
00:40:22,950 --> 00:40:25,980
well as the stag station next to the White
Palace.

651
00:40:25,980 --> 00:40:28,920
These spools can also be found in the Pale
King’s workshop.

652
00:40:28,920 --> 00:40:33,180
We know that the Weavers were closely tied
to Herrah and Hornet, so their actions might

653
00:40:33,180 --> 00:40:36,600
have been a part of the deal between the Pale
King and Herrah.

654
00:40:36,600 --> 00:40:41,030
Once the Hollow Knight was ready, the Radiance
was somehow channeled into the Vessel, which

655
00:40:41,030 --> 00:40:46,390
was then placed inside of a giant black egg
located in the Forgotten Crossroads.

656
00:40:46,390 --> 00:40:51,450
This egg was built to sustain the Hollow Knight,
and itself appears to be fashioned from Void.

657
00:40:51,450 --> 00:40:54,960
The Hollow Knight was chained up, and the
entrance to the Black Egg was locked behind

658
00:40:54,960 --> 00:40:58,400
a powerful seal created by the three Dreamers.

659
00:40:58,400 --> 00:41:04,569
Initially, this convoluted plan actually worked,
and the infection was successfully contained.

660
00:41:04,569 --> 00:41:09,520
Memorials to the Hollow Knight and the Dreamers
were erected in the City of Tears and the

661
00:41:09,520 --> 00:41:11,160
Resting Grounds.

662
00:41:11,160 --> 00:41:15,299
But this is the part of the story where things
get a little bit hazy.

663
00:41:15,299 --> 00:41:19,790
By the time these statues were constructed,
citizens had taken to writing on parchment

664
00:41:19,790 --> 00:41:24,190
woven from spider’s silk, which was all
destroyed when water started pouring down

665
00:41:24,190 --> 00:41:25,799
onto the city.

666
00:41:25,799 --> 00:41:29,810
We don’t know how long the Hollow Knight
was able to completely contain the infection.

667
00:41:29,810 --> 00:41:33,630
Bugs from Dirtmouth used to go to the Temple
of the Black Egg to pray, saying they felt

668
00:41:33,630 --> 00:41:35,109
at peace within the walls.

669
00:41:35,109 --> 00:41:39,550
But after a while, they stopped going, perhaps
indicating that the infection was beginning

670
00:41:39,550 --> 00:41:41,030
to leak out again.

671
00:41:41,030 --> 00:41:45,750
The infectious air continued to seep through
Hallownest for years, eventually even reaching

672
00:41:45,750 --> 00:41:48,460
the deepest parts of the kingdom.

673
00:41:48,460 --> 00:41:53,619
As it turns out, the Pale King’s pure Vessel
wasn’t quite so pure after all.

674
00:41:53,619 --> 00:41:57,160
The Hollow Knight had been tarnished by an
idea instilled.

675
00:41:57,160 --> 00:42:01,670
While the game never explicitly tells us what
that idea was, it does hint strongly at what

676
00:42:01,670 --> 00:42:02,880
it might be.

677
00:42:02,880 --> 00:42:06,990
Hidden away in the White Palace is a memory
showing the Hollow Knight and the Pale King

678
00:42:06,990 --> 00:42:08,780
sharing a moment.

679
00:42:08,780 --> 00:42:13,329
The Hollow Knight might have developed a parental
bond to the Pale King, and who could blame

680
00:42:13,329 --> 00:42:14,329
it?

681
00:42:14,329 --> 00:42:15,920
The Pale King is a pretty great dad, after
all.

682
00:42:15,920 --> 00:42:20,270
You know, if you ignore the infanticide and
everything.

683
00:42:20,270 --> 00:42:22,029
Remember those smug mushroom dickheads?

684
00:42:22,029 --> 00:42:26,660
Well it turns out their trust in the Pale
King was a complete mistake.

685
00:42:26,660 --> 00:42:29,460
That shared mind isn’t looking too good
now is it?

686
00:42:29,460 --> 00:42:32,880
In the Fungal Core, the corpse of a giant
mushroom lies dormant.

687
00:42:32,880 --> 00:42:35,810
Its final thoughts were “Pale Wyrm…

688
00:42:35,810 --> 00:42:38,609
What good to foresee a demise unavoidable?”

689
00:42:38,609 --> 00:42:42,770
This could imply that the Pale King always
knew that his kingdom was doomed, all he could

690
00:42:42,770 --> 00:42:45,440
do was delay the inevitable.

691
00:42:45,440 --> 00:42:50,579
This is likely the moment when Hallownest
as it once was entirely collapsed.

692
00:42:50,579 --> 00:42:54,779
The Hollow Knight had not completely stopped
the infection, and while it may have taken

693
00:42:54,779 --> 00:42:57,480
a while, Hallownest was eventually brought
low.

694
00:42:57,480 --> 00:43:02,430
It’s at this point that characters and areas
begin to resemble as we know them ingame.

695
00:43:02,430 --> 00:43:07,430
When it became clear that the Hollow Knight
was not able to contain the Radiance, the

696
00:43:07,430 --> 00:43:10,160
Pale King resorted to his final plan.

697
00:43:10,160 --> 00:43:15,940
He fucked off, hiding himself, his White Palace
and his Pale Court in the Dream World.

698
00:43:15,940 --> 00:43:20,521
At this point, all of the furniture in the
palace was covered under white sheets, similar

699
00:43:20,521 --> 00:43:25,069
to how people in the real world cover their
furniture while away on long trips.

700
00:43:25,069 --> 00:43:29,970
The palace was also completely covered with
thorns and buzzsaws, similar to how people

701
00:43:29,970 --> 00:43:34,140
in the real world cover their houses with
thorns and buzzsaws.

702
00:43:34,140 --> 00:43:38,049
The Pale King would eventually pass away while
sitting on his throne in the White Palace.

703
00:43:38,049 --> 00:43:43,190
There’s no confirmation on what killed him,
but there are a few things to consider.

704
00:43:43,190 --> 00:43:47,720
The throne room is incredibly dark compared
to the rest of the Palace, and the particle

705
00:43:47,720 --> 00:43:52,839
effects and ambience track in this room are
identical to that of the Abyss.

706
00:43:52,839 --> 00:43:55,900
All of the Kingsmoulds surrounding the Pale
King are dead.

707
00:43:55,900 --> 00:44:00,940
The Ancient Basin itself also has become stained
with the presence of Void, as it can be seen

708
00:44:00,940 --> 00:44:05,529
as high as the run down elevator shaft leading
back to the city.

709
00:44:05,529 --> 00:44:09,390
Remember that bug that was sealed away in
the Abyss to make sure the lighthouse wasn’t

710
00:44:09,390 --> 00:44:10,839
turned off.

711
00:44:10,839 --> 00:44:13,190
Well, the lighthouse was turned off.

712
00:44:13,190 --> 00:44:17,640
I guess that whole living with purpose thing
is a crock of shit after all.

713
00:44:17,640 --> 00:44:21,640
It seems as though the sea of void itself
actually convinced this bug to betray his

714
00:44:21,640 --> 00:44:24,590
king and turn off the lighthouse.

715
00:44:24,590 --> 00:44:26,619
Now I know what you’re thinking.

716
00:44:26,619 --> 00:44:29,059
Exactly how conscious is the Void?

717
00:44:29,059 --> 00:44:31,460
Is the Void able to think for itself?

718
00:44:31,460 --> 00:44:33,440
Can it form strategies?

719
00:44:33,440 --> 00:44:34,700
Does it host a podcast?

720
00:44:34,700 --> 00:44:40,570
Well according to this chozo statue ripoff,
the Void is powerful, but not unified.

721
00:44:40,570 --> 00:44:45,890
So while it can thrash around at things that
come near it or call out in unison to turn

722
00:44:45,890 --> 00:44:49,819
off a light, it’s not a single conscious
being.

723
00:44:49,819 --> 00:44:54,010
Getting back to the Pale King, one could argue
that the Void might have played a role in

724
00:44:54,010 --> 00:44:58,049
his ultimate demise, and I’ve argued that
viewpoint in the past.

725
00:44:58,049 --> 00:45:01,730
But we have to remember that there isn’t
enough evidence to know for sure.

726
00:45:01,730 --> 00:45:06,100
As an expert lawyer and a good friend of mine,
Johnnie Cochran, once said:

727
00:45:06,100 --> 00:45:10,390
Any evidence that the Void was involved in
the Pale King’s death is circumstantial.

728
00:45:10,390 --> 00:45:12,960
My name is Johnny Cockran.

729
00:45:12,960 --> 00:45:17,550
Just above the White Palace, the bugs in the
City of Tears weren’t fairing much better.

730
00:45:17,550 --> 00:45:20,990
Even if we ignore the fact that the infection
was still around, there were other issues

731
00:45:20,990 --> 00:45:23,520
that helped lead to the city’s downfall.

732
00:45:23,520 --> 00:45:29,390
Due to the gates being sealed, some bugs resorted
to cannibalism in order to avoid starvation.

733
00:45:29,390 --> 00:45:34,220
And there’s also that metric fuck ton of
corpses lining the walls of the Soul Sanctum.

734
00:45:34,220 --> 00:45:39,060
When all was said and done, the only citizen
left standing is Eternal Emilita, who just

735
00:45:39,060 --> 00:45:43,400
laughs her ass off about it like she’s a
fucking Dark Souls character.

736
00:45:43,400 --> 00:45:47,359
The White Lady ends up in a cocoon deep within
the Queen’s Gardens.

737
00:45:47,359 --> 00:45:51,930
She decided to place bindings on herself in
order to keep her from spreading her seed.

738
00:45:51,930 --> 00:45:56,130
She claims that this is because of the shame
she feels in helping the Pale King create

739
00:45:56,130 --> 00:46:00,510
the Vessels, but honestly, it’s probably
just her kink.

740
00:46:00,510 --> 00:46:04,650
The White Lady also diminished her power,
possibly as a way to keep herself hidden from

741
00:46:04,650 --> 00:46:07,029
unwanted visitors.

742
00:46:07,029 --> 00:46:12,550
Outside her cocoon, Dryya stood guard, protecting
her Queen from the violent traitor mantises.

743
00:46:12,550 --> 00:46:16,970
Dryya is eventually killed off by these bugs,
which is actually pretty pathetic if you think

744
00:46:16,970 --> 00:46:17,970
about it.

745
00:46:17,970 --> 00:46:25,490
I mean we’re talking like the Netgear WPN824N
N150 Wireless Router pathetic.

746
00:46:25,490 --> 00:46:31,020
Speaking of “Great Knights” dying pathetically,
let’s move on to Hegemol.

747
00:46:31,020 --> 00:46:35,800
Hegemol held the City Crest, a key used to
open one of the gates to the City of Tears.

748
00:46:35,800 --> 00:46:39,240
At some point, Hegemol’s armored shell was
stolen by a maggot.

749
00:46:39,240 --> 00:46:43,680
Now maggots were generally looked down upon
and forced to do menial labor.

750
00:46:43,680 --> 00:46:48,220
They were incredibly weak and basically deserved
all of the discrimination they got.

751
00:46:48,220 --> 00:46:53,829
But this one maggot decided to turn the tide,
so he stole Hegemol’s shell so that he could

752
00:46:53,829 --> 00:46:56,589
defend his downtrodden brothers.

753
00:46:56,589 --> 00:47:01,440
His actions weren’t motivated by the infection,
but instead was the result of how hierarchical

754
00:47:01,440 --> 00:47:06,490
caste system will always lead to revolution
from the working class and that true freedom

755
00:47:06,490 --> 00:47:10,059
can only be achieved blah blah blah capitalism
is bad.

756
00:47:10,059 --> 00:47:11,650
Subscribe to my Patreon.

757
00:47:11,650 --> 00:47:16,930
Ogrim moved to the Royal Waterways and started
living in shit, changing his name to Dung

758
00:47:16,930 --> 00:47:18,079
Defender.

759
00:47:18,079 --> 00:47:22,640
Now I love wallowing in shit as much as the
next guy, but you’d have to really love

760
00:47:22,640 --> 00:47:25,421
shit to put up with living with the flukes.

761
00:47:25,421 --> 00:47:29,450
The Dung Defender kept an unwavering sense
of duty and loyalty to the King and love for

762
00:47:29,450 --> 00:47:33,930
his fellow Knights, so much so that he made
shit statues out of them.

763
00:47:33,930 --> 00:47:34,930
How nice.

764
00:47:34,930 --> 00:47:39,119
Ogrim acted as the defender of the pipeways,
as well as Isma’s Grove.

765
00:47:39,119 --> 00:47:43,970
A section of the Royal Waterways became filled
with acid, and in the middle of it all rests

766
00:47:43,970 --> 00:47:47,410
Isma’s corpse, which has been overcome by
plant life.

767
00:47:47,410 --> 00:47:52,109
Isma is likely the one responsible for this
acid blight, but we have no idea what happened

768
00:47:52,109 --> 00:47:53,109
to her.

769
00:47:53,109 --> 00:47:56,460
Hornet’s whereabouts during this time are
fairly mysterious.

770
00:47:56,460 --> 00:48:00,830
We know that she departed Deepnest, and didn’t
return until the events of the game.

771
00:48:00,830 --> 00:48:05,420
At some point, she took to guarding Hallownest
from intruding warriors as well as the Cast-Off

772
00:48:05,420 --> 00:48:07,950
Shell in the Kingdom’s Edge.

773
00:48:07,950 --> 00:48:12,450
Despite the kingdom’s woes at large, fortunately
this fate did not befall one of the fandom’s

774
00:48:12,450 --> 00:48:14,010
favorite characters.

775
00:48:14,010 --> 00:48:18,289
The menderbugs continued to fix the broken
signs and wayposts of Hallownest.

776
00:48:18,289 --> 00:48:23,700
From a diary entry, we can see that one Menderbug
in particular had found himself on the precipice

777
00:48:23,700 --> 00:48:26,940
of a long and loving relationship:

778
00:48:26,940 --> 00:48:30,730
Hello Again Diary,
Not long now until the next Menderbash!

779
00:48:30,730 --> 00:48:35,490
For a stealthy types, we're a riotous bunch
when we get together.

780
00:48:35,490 --> 00:48:38,000
And Mender Berri kept flashing me that smile!

781
00:48:38,000 --> 00:48:41,549
It might be time to muster my courage and
act on it.

782
00:48:41,549 --> 00:48:48,500
I love my home and my life, but sharing it
with another, why that'd be the Berri on top!

783
00:48:48,500 --> 00:48:51,750
Greenpath also underwent some changes during
this time.

784
00:48:51,750 --> 00:48:55,400
The Mosskin were waiting for Unn’s call
which would bring them back into the dream

785
00:48:55,400 --> 00:48:57,390
they were originally born from.

786
00:48:57,390 --> 00:49:00,040
But for some reason, Unn strength deteriorated.

787
00:49:00,040 --> 00:49:02,260
We don’t know why this happened exactly.

788
00:49:02,260 --> 00:49:04,900
Was it due to the White Lady claiming part
of her kingdom?

789
00:49:04,900 --> 00:49:07,539
Was it somehow due to the infection?

790
00:49:07,539 --> 00:49:12,690
Some Mosskin believe that Unn went into hiding,
but it appears as though Unn is, in fact,

791
00:49:12,690 --> 00:49:18,039
calling to her children, but many of the Mosskin
are unable to hear her call.

792
00:49:18,039 --> 00:49:22,750
Instead many Mosskin seem to have taken the
Radiance’s infection into their leaves,

793
00:49:22,750 --> 00:49:28,390
which might explain why Greenpath became overgrown
with vegetation, despite Unn’s deteriorating

794
00:49:28,390 --> 00:49:29,390
powers.

795
00:49:29,390 --> 00:49:34,359
Mossy Vagabonds even openly chose to forsake
Unn and worship the Radiance.

796
00:49:34,359 --> 00:49:39,050
Another tribe to be screwed over by the Radiance
is the Hive, which fell to the infection after

797
00:49:39,050 --> 00:49:42,079
the death of their leader, Hive Queen Vespa.

798
00:49:42,079 --> 00:49:45,320
But it appears as though this had little effect
on their civilization.

799
00:49:45,320 --> 00:49:50,410
The Radiance’s hivemind was already familiar
to the bees, since the Hive probably operated

800
00:49:50,410 --> 00:49:52,019
under something similar already.

801
00:49:52,019 --> 00:49:56,890
So in other words, the Hive probably made
out the best in this whole situation.

802
00:49:56,890 --> 00:49:59,730
Let’s turn our attention back to the moths.

803
00:49:59,730 --> 00:50:02,420
After all, it’s their god that keeps killing
everybody.

804
00:50:02,420 --> 00:50:06,630
Well, the moth tribe didn’t fare too well
actually, as pretty much the entire tribe

805
00:50:06,630 --> 00:50:07,630
died out.

806
00:50:07,630 --> 00:50:10,220
The only known survivor is the Seer.

807
00:50:10,220 --> 00:50:14,549
Despite the loss of her tribe, the Seer continued
to tend to the graves in the Resting Grounds,

808
00:50:14,549 --> 00:50:19,510
while also awaiting the arrival of the Wielder,
a mysterious being that her tribe has dreamt

809
00:50:19,510 --> 00:50:21,190
of for a while.

810
00:50:21,190 --> 00:50:26,319
In the Kingdom’s Edge, the land became covered
in ash molting off of the Wyrm’s decomposing

811
00:50:26,319 --> 00:50:27,319
corpse.

812
00:50:27,319 --> 00:50:29,790
The Colosseum of Fools continued to thrive.

813
00:50:29,790 --> 00:50:35,369
The Lord Fool passed away at some point, but
nobody really seems to notice or even care.

814
00:50:35,369 --> 00:50:39,549
The Fools inside the Colosseum were infected,
but still seem to have maintained control

815
00:50:39,549 --> 00:50:41,150
over themselves.

816
00:50:41,150 --> 00:50:45,270
It seems possible that these bugs took in
the infection willingly, similar to the Traitor

817
00:50:45,270 --> 00:50:47,299
Lord and his followers.

818
00:50:47,299 --> 00:50:51,390
This would have given them an edge in combat,
similar to using steroids but without the

819
00:50:51,390 --> 00:50:53,470
whole shrinking testicles thing.

820
00:50:53,470 --> 00:50:58,170
However, even the Traitor Lord and his followers
went mad, so what makes these Fools any more

821
00:50:58,170 --> 00:50:59,170
special?

822
00:50:59,170 --> 00:51:03,640
As for the Pale King’s champion, the Pale
Lurker, well, she just went the normal kind

823
00:51:03,640 --> 00:51:04,650
of insane.

824
00:51:04,650 --> 00:51:08,970
There appears to have been another unforeseen
event with the Pale King’s plan.

825
00:51:08,970 --> 00:51:13,060
When the Hollow Knight was originally chosen,
the door to the Abyss was sealed, trapping

826
00:51:13,060 --> 00:51:15,020
the discarded Vessels within.

827
00:51:15,020 --> 00:51:18,210
But apparently, some Vessels didn’t get
the memo.

828
00:51:18,210 --> 00:51:20,839
Vessel corpses can be found littered throughout
the kingdom.

829
00:51:20,839 --> 00:51:25,430
There’s one in the Ancient Basin, one in
Greenpath, and several trapped in Nosk’s

830
00:51:25,430 --> 00:51:27,299
liar in Deepnest.

831
00:51:27,299 --> 00:51:31,760
Another Vessel that escaped from the Abyss
is the player character: the Knight.

832
00:51:31,760 --> 00:51:35,349
The exact details on how the Vessels escaped
the Abyss is unclear.

833
00:51:35,349 --> 00:51:39,650
There are indications that they might have
slipped into Deepnest through some old passageway,

834
00:51:39,650 --> 00:51:44,790
given Void influence in part of the area,
and all the corpses found in Nosk’s lair.

835
00:51:44,790 --> 00:51:49,289
At some point, all entrances to Hallownest
were closed off, with the old well in Dirtmouth

836
00:51:49,289 --> 00:51:51,609
being the only way to sneak back in.

837
00:51:51,609 --> 00:51:57,490
Despite this, several people have wormed their
way into the kingdom with few ever returning.

838
00:51:57,490 --> 00:52:01,809
Characters like Relic Seeker Lemm seemed content
to just pillage artifacts from the ruined

839
00:52:01,809 --> 00:52:05,290
kingdom, but other bugs seemed interested
in something greater.

840
00:52:05,290 --> 00:52:09,059
In the Howling Cliffs rests the corpse of
a member of the Grimm Troupe.

841
00:52:09,059 --> 00:52:12,780
The task of this bug appears to have been
to seek out Hallownest, so that the Troupe

842
00:52:12,780 --> 00:52:15,440
might be summoned to the kingdom in the future.

843
00:52:15,440 --> 00:52:19,559
The Grimm Troupe are basically a group of
bugs that serve a Higher Being known as the

844
00:52:19,559 --> 00:52:20,820
Nightmare Heart.

845
00:52:20,820 --> 00:52:25,079
The troupe keeps the Heart alive by feeding
on the nightmares of fallen kingdoms.

846
00:52:25,079 --> 00:52:30,450
This process also involves sacrificing the
Troupe Master his own child because... uh…

847
00:52:30,450 --> 00:52:34,980
hey, look at this cool ass boss battle.

848
00:52:34,980 --> 00:52:38,970
Another important group that travelled to
Hallownest are the Godseekers.

849
00:52:38,970 --> 00:52:43,700
After being abandoned by their old Gods: the
Gods of Thunder and the Gods of Rain, these

850
00:52:43,700 --> 00:52:47,620
bugs left their home in the Land of Storms
seeking out a new god to worship.

851
00:52:47,620 --> 00:52:52,520
The Godseekers look to gods to save them from
their own silent mind.

852
00:52:52,520 --> 00:52:57,700
While travelling through the wastelands, the
Godseekers constructed devices called Godtuners,

853
00:52:57,700 --> 00:53:00,059
which helped them seek out new gods.

854
00:53:00,059 --> 00:53:04,300
Through this device they were able to detect
the lingering power of the Pale King and find

855
00:53:04,300 --> 00:53:06,180
their way to Hallownest.

856
00:53:06,180 --> 00:53:09,670
When they arrived, however, the Godseeker
was forced into hibernation.

857
00:53:09,670 --> 00:53:15,240
It was encased in a strange sarcophagus-like
cocoon which was itself chained up with a

858
00:53:15,240 --> 00:53:16,240
lock.

859
00:53:16,240 --> 00:53:20,150
It’s not clear how this forced hibernation
worked, seeing as the cocoon appears to have

860
00:53:20,150 --> 00:53:22,809
been made by the Godseeker herself.

861
00:53:22,809 --> 00:53:28,109
As for who put the cocoon in chains, I think
the most likely candidate is the Dung Defender,

862
00:53:28,109 --> 00:53:32,369
considering how the Godseekers cocoon is found
in the Junk Pit in the Waterways, an area

863
00:53:32,369 --> 00:53:35,890
the Dung Defender has tasked himself with
protecting.

864
00:53:35,890 --> 00:53:39,200
This was the general picture of Hallownest
after the Hollow Knight was sealed inside

865
00:53:39,200 --> 00:53:40,980
the Temple of the Black Egg.

866
00:53:40,980 --> 00:53:45,059
The kingdom was stuck in a kind of stasis,
with the Pale King’s civilization destroyed

867
00:53:45,059 --> 00:53:48,369
and the Radiance unable to break free from
her chains.

868
00:53:48,369 --> 00:53:52,890
The Pale King was rebelling against nature,
trying to keep his work standing indefinitely.

869
00:53:52,890 --> 00:53:56,529
The stasis over of Hallownest held for an
age.

870
00:53:56,529 --> 00:53:58,160
How long is that exactly?

871
00:53:58,160 --> 00:53:59,900
Well, we have no idea.

872
00:53:59,900 --> 00:54:03,279
As I’m sure you’ve noticed, there really
isn’t a timeline for anything that happens

873
00:54:03,279 --> 00:54:04,809
in this game.

874
00:54:04,809 --> 00:54:08,539
We also have no idea how long any of these
bugs can actually live.

875
00:54:08,539 --> 00:54:12,910
Elderbug wasn’t around to see the stagways
open, but we know several other characters

876
00:54:12,910 --> 00:54:18,300
were, implying that Elderbug is probably one
of the youngest characters in the whole game.

877
00:54:18,300 --> 00:54:21,490
But this stasis over Hallownest wasn’t going
to last forever.

878
00:54:21,490 --> 00:54:25,610
At some point, the Radiance erupted out of
the Hollow Knight, cracking its shell and

879
00:54:25,610 --> 00:54:28,180
releasing a loud and powerful roar.

880
00:54:28,180 --> 00:54:32,109
The amount of infection leaking out of the
Hollow Knight became even greater.

881
00:54:32,109 --> 00:54:36,390
The many corpses that lined the roads and
cities of the kingdom sprang to life with

882
00:54:36,390 --> 00:54:38,809
the amplified power of the infection.

883
00:54:38,809 --> 00:54:43,369
This strengthened infection prompted the departure
of the Weavers back to their old home.

884
00:54:43,369 --> 00:54:47,680
Now this old home might actually be Pharloom,
the kingdom in which Hollow Knight Silksong

885
00:54:47,680 --> 00:54:49,049
takes place.

886
00:54:49,049 --> 00:54:52,731
But the amount of knowledge we have about
Silksong right now is pitiful, so I’m not

887
00:54:52,731 --> 00:54:55,039
saying that’s confirmed or anything.

888
00:54:55,039 --> 00:54:58,780
This is also around the time the Quirrel arrives
back in Hallownest.

889
00:54:58,780 --> 00:55:03,190
His memory of Monomon appears to have been
clouded due to his time outside of Hallownest.

890
00:55:03,190 --> 00:55:07,390
These events are depicted in the Quirrel prequel
comic, which also shows an image of the Hollow

891
00:55:07,390 --> 00:55:09,349
Knight with a pre-cracked shell.

892
00:55:09,349 --> 00:55:13,589
This could mean that Quirrel’s arrival happens
at roughly the same time the Hollow Knight’s

893
00:55:13,589 --> 00:55:14,819
shell cracks.

894
00:55:14,819 --> 00:55:18,349
At around the same time as Quirrel arrives
in Hallownest, we also see the arrival of

895
00:55:18,349 --> 00:55:22,170
the player character, who is commonly referred
to as the Knight.

896
00:55:22,170 --> 00:55:26,390
The Knight was one of the lucky Vessels that
was able to make its way out of the Abyss.

897
00:55:26,390 --> 00:55:30,960
Somehow, the Knight ended up venturing beyond
Hallownest and into the wilds beyond.

898
00:55:30,960 --> 00:55:34,400
It’s implied that the Knight was called
to Hallownest by either the sealed Hollow

899
00:55:34,400 --> 00:55:36,750
Knight or the Radiance within.

900
00:55:36,750 --> 00:55:41,339
Regardless, once the Knight shows up and yeets
itself off this cliff, the actual game of

901
00:55:41,339 --> 00:55:44,099
Hollow Knight finally begins.

902
00:55:44,099 --> 00:55:48,800
Now, there’s a lot of details we could get
into.

903
00:55:48,800 --> 00:55:52,839
Hallownest is full of NPCs and bosses, each
with their own stories to tell.

904
00:55:52,839 --> 00:55:56,809
But to be honest, I don’t think we need
to go through all of them, since their stories

905
00:55:56,809 --> 00:55:58,930
are relatively straightforward.

906
00:55:58,930 --> 00:56:01,640
For example, let’s look at the Brooding
Mawlek.

907
00:56:01,640 --> 00:56:04,400
So why is the Brooding Mawlek brooding?

908
00:56:04,400 --> 00:56:06,980
Because all its friends are dead.

909
00:56:06,980 --> 00:56:09,210
And there you go, that’s the lore for the
Brooding Mawlek.

910
00:56:09,210 --> 00:56:12,609
Also, it’s the only character in the game
with a visible asshole.

911
00:56:12,609 --> 00:56:15,240
Now did you really need me to explain that
to you?

912
00:56:15,240 --> 00:56:16,240
Probably not.

913
00:56:16,240 --> 00:56:19,779
So instead, I’m just going to talk about
the interactions relating to Hollow Knight’s

914
00:56:19,779 --> 00:56:21,250
main story.

915
00:56:21,250 --> 00:56:25,140
The Knight is eventually noticed by Hornet,
who lures it deep into Greenpath.

916
00:56:25,140 --> 00:56:29,059
There, Hornet attempts to kill the Knight,
claiming that she knows what it would try

917
00:56:29,059 --> 00:56:30,240
to do.

918
00:56:30,240 --> 00:56:33,859
At this point, Hornet views the Knight as
being too weak.

919
00:56:33,859 --> 00:56:37,950
After the fight, Hornet can be found in the
City of Tears, next to the statue of the Hollow

920
00:56:37,950 --> 00:56:38,950
Knight.

921
00:56:38,950 --> 00:56:43,289
Hornet mentions that the Knight has gained
a resilience due to the time it spent in the

922
00:56:43,289 --> 00:56:44,950
void beyond Hallownest.

923
00:56:44,950 --> 00:56:49,310
This could be referring to the fact that some
of those who leave Hallownest lose their memories,

924
00:56:49,310 --> 00:56:53,160
meaning the Knight would have no memories
of its own tragic conception.

925
00:56:53,160 --> 00:56:57,079
Hornet tells the Knight that if it seeks to
continue the stasis that keeps Hallownest

926
00:56:57,079 --> 00:57:01,910
standing, it must seek the “Grave in Ash”,
which is referring to the Kingdom’s Edge.

927
00:57:01,910 --> 00:57:06,190
At this moment, Hornet sees the Knight as
a possible replacement for the Hollow Knight.

928
00:57:06,190 --> 00:57:10,250
Basically, the Knight could break the seals
that keep the Hollow Knight locked away, defeat

929
00:57:10,250 --> 00:57:13,539
the Hollow Knight and contain the infection
itself.

930
00:57:13,539 --> 00:57:17,619
It’s at this point that I should mention
that Hollow Knight actually has five different

931
00:57:17,619 --> 00:57:19,980
endings because of course it would.

932
00:57:19,980 --> 00:57:24,090
I’m going to be explaining each of these
endings in this video, as they each give us

933
00:57:24,090 --> 00:57:27,400
a different glimpse into the mechanics of
Hollow Knight’s world.

934
00:57:27,400 --> 00:57:31,839
Now, to get the easiest ending to Hollow Knight,
Hornet’s instructions to go to the Kingdom’s

935
00:57:31,839 --> 00:57:34,289
Edge can be ignored completely.

936
00:57:34,289 --> 00:57:39,000
If the Knight stumbles upon the Resting Grounds,
the three Dreamers will appear and cast the

937
00:57:39,000 --> 00:57:40,680
Knight into the Dream Realm.

938
00:57:40,680 --> 00:57:45,589
There, Seer will come to the Knight’s rescue
and grant it the Dream Nail, a special blade

939
00:57:45,589 --> 00:57:49,480
that can tear the veil between the real world
and the dream world.

940
00:57:49,480 --> 00:57:53,559
With the Dream Nail, the Knight can venture
to the resting places of the three Dreamers,

941
00:57:53,559 --> 00:57:58,289
curbstomp their asses, and unlock the entrance
to the Black Egg.

942
00:57:58,289 --> 00:58:02,810
Inside the egg, the Knight finds the Hollow
Knight chained up, silently watching over

943
00:58:02,810 --> 00:58:03,810
it.

944
00:58:03,810 --> 00:58:07,980
Once the chains are broken, the Hollow Knight
screams with that familiar Radiance roar.

945
00:58:07,980 --> 00:58:09,940
And pursues the Knight.

946
00:58:09,940 --> 00:58:14,880
As the fight progresses, the Hollow Knight
starts trying to kill itself, Quirrel-style.

947
00:58:14,880 --> 00:58:19,420
But then the Radiance starts using the Hollow
Knight’s body to perform her own attacks.

948
00:58:19,420 --> 00:58:23,549
Once defeated, the Hollow Knight begins to
spew infection all over the place.

949
00:58:23,549 --> 00:58:26,890
The Knight can then Focus the infection into
itself.

950
00:58:26,890 --> 00:58:30,569
This results in the first ending of the game,
called Hollow Knight.

951
00:58:30,569 --> 00:58:35,690
In this ending, the Knight usurps the Hollow
Knight, prolonging the stasis over Hallownest.

952
00:58:35,690 --> 00:58:40,650
New chains and bindings appear out of… fuck
if I know, and contain the Knight, and a new

953
00:58:40,650 --> 00:58:43,819
seal is placed over the entrance to the Black
Egg.

954
00:58:43,819 --> 00:58:47,019
Now there is one giant question looming over
this ending.

955
00:58:47,019 --> 00:58:49,480
Can the Knight actually contain the infection
indefinitely?

956
00:58:49,480 --> 00:58:53,430
Or will the Radiance still manage to break
free one day?

957
00:58:53,430 --> 00:58:57,170
Before we answer this question, let’s look
at some of the other events that can transpire

958
00:58:57,170 --> 00:58:58,670
while playing the game.

959
00:58:58,670 --> 00:59:02,180
If the player chooses to go to Kingdom’s
Edge, Hornet will challenge the Knight one

960
00:59:02,180 --> 00:59:05,730
last time as a final test of strength.

961
00:59:05,730 --> 00:59:10,310
After her defeat, Hornet allows the Knight
to access the Cast-Off Shell where the Pale

962
00:59:10,310 --> 00:59:12,440
King was originally hatched.

963
00:59:12,440 --> 00:59:17,250
By interacting with the egg, the Knight’s
shell is marked with the King’s Brand, technically

964
00:59:17,250 --> 00:59:20,780
making the Knight the new ruler of Hallownest.

965
00:59:20,780 --> 00:59:24,400
With the King’s Brand, the Knight can now
open the entrance to the Abyss and discover

966
00:59:24,400 --> 00:59:26,099
the place of its birth.

967
00:59:26,099 --> 00:59:30,710
When leaving the Abyss, the Knight can encounter
Hornet again, where for the first time, Hornet

968
00:59:30,710 --> 00:59:34,650
suggests that there are actually two outcomes
the Knight can enact.

969
00:59:34,650 --> 00:59:39,190
She tells the Knight that it can either prolong
Hallownest’s stasis or face the heart of

970
00:59:39,190 --> 00:59:41,099
the kingdom’s infection.

971
00:59:41,099 --> 00:59:44,010
Within the Knight, Hornet sees a chance for
change.

972
00:59:44,010 --> 00:59:47,730
Instead of just replacing the Hollow Knight,
Hornet believes that it may be possible to

973
00:59:47,730 --> 00:59:52,799
get rid of the infection completely by using
the Void inside of the Knight.

974
00:59:52,799 --> 00:59:56,750
After visiting the Abyss and obtaining the
Shade Cloak, the Knight is capable of reaching

975
00:59:56,750 --> 01:00:00,200
the White Lady hidden away in the Queen’s
Gardens.

976
01:00:00,200 --> 01:00:04,440
The White Lady tells the Knight that she has
been awaiting a Vessel to accept a gift, that

977
01:00:04,440 --> 01:00:09,020
gift being one half of a charm called the
Kingsoul, which she claims will give the Knight

978
01:00:09,020 --> 01:00:10,210
more power.

979
01:00:10,210 --> 01:00:13,740
The White Lady goes on to explain that she
can feel the weakening of the Hollow Knight

980
01:00:13,740 --> 01:00:15,069
within her roots.

981
01:00:15,069 --> 01:00:19,349
She tells the Knight that it is free of the
blemishes that made the Hollow Knight a flawed

982
01:00:19,349 --> 01:00:20,349
vessel.

983
01:00:20,349 --> 01:00:25,079
From this dialogue, it is implied that the
Knight truly is a pure Vessel, capable of

984
01:00:25,079 --> 01:00:27,359
containing the Radiance successfully.

985
01:00:27,359 --> 01:00:32,160
But it’s not quite that simple, so we’re
going to have to dive a bit deeper into this.

986
01:00:32,160 --> 01:00:34,730
Basically we need to answer a simple question.

987
01:00:34,730 --> 01:00:38,230
What exactly does it mean to be a Hollow Knight?

988
01:00:38,230 --> 01:00:41,640
Despite the White Lady’s words, we have
a number of instances where characters and

989
01:00:41,640 --> 01:00:47,309
item descriptions mention that the Knight
has a will, and maybe even a mind.

990
01:00:47,309 --> 01:00:51,529
But from the Pale King’s dialogue when describing
the Hollow Knight, it is stated that a pure

991
01:00:51,529 --> 01:00:53,710
Vessel has no mind or will.

992
01:00:53,710 --> 01:00:56,030
So is the White Lady wrong?

993
01:00:56,030 --> 01:00:57,890
Or maybe even lying?

994
01:00:57,890 --> 01:01:02,529
Her eyes have been clouded by time, and she
can be tricked into thinking that Ogrim is

995
01:01:02,529 --> 01:01:05,589
in the room when the Knight is wearing the
Defender’s Crest charm.

996
01:01:05,589 --> 01:01:09,810
She also thinks that Dryya is still alive
which…

997
01:01:09,810 --> 01:01:12,380
uhh….

998
01:01:12,380 --> 01:01:14,910
So maybe the White Lady is just senile?

999
01:01:14,910 --> 01:01:18,529
My problem with that theory is that the White
Lady states that the Vessels stand out to

1000
01:01:18,529 --> 01:01:23,700
her clearly in a misted world, due to them
being her spawn.

1001
01:01:23,700 --> 01:01:28,010
She also questions whether or not the Knight
sought her aid, which would imply that the

1002
01:01:28,010 --> 01:01:31,000
Knight must have some kind of will.

1003
01:01:31,000 --> 01:01:34,589
So for whatever reason, the White Lady thinks
the Knight is still capable of containing

1004
01:01:34,589 --> 01:01:38,460
the Radiance, even if it’s still able to
make decisions.

1005
01:01:38,460 --> 01:01:42,289
After all, the Hollow Knight was considered
pure, but they still taught it how to wield

1006
01:01:42,289 --> 01:01:43,329
a fucking sword.

1007
01:01:43,329 --> 01:01:48,960
I mean, if the Knight were truly and completely
hollow in a literal sense, it probably shouldn’t

1008
01:01:48,960 --> 01:01:54,269
even be able to walk, or draw a map, or open
a goddamn bank account.

1009
01:01:54,269 --> 01:01:59,640
In short, this whole concept of being “hollow”
is so abstract and hard to define, I don’t

1010
01:01:59,640 --> 01:02:04,440
really feel comfortable giving a solid answer
on whether or not the Knight is or isn’t

1011
01:02:04,440 --> 01:02:05,440
truly hollow.

1012
01:02:05,440 --> 01:02:09,619
And I think the game leaves room open for
other interpretations.

1013
01:02:09,619 --> 01:02:14,150
Of course, the White Lady’s gift is useless
without the other half of the Kingsoul.

1014
01:02:14,150 --> 01:02:18,470
In order to reach it, however, the Knight
must travel to the White Palace, locked inside

1015
01:02:18,470 --> 01:02:20,390
the body of a Kingsmould.

1016
01:02:20,390 --> 01:02:24,450
In order to bypass the seal, the Knight must
use a fully awakened Dream Nail.

1017
01:02:24,450 --> 01:02:30,100
It can do this by bringing 1800 Essence to
the Seer, allowing her to sharpen the weapon’s

1018
01:02:30,100 --> 01:02:31,100
blade.

1019
01:02:31,100 --> 01:02:34,740
If the Knight does this, the Seer remarks
that the Knight truly is the Wielder that

1020
01:02:34,740 --> 01:02:36,619
her tribe has been dreaming of.

1021
01:02:36,619 --> 01:02:40,970
There’s no explicit reason why the Moth
Tribe was dreaming about this supposed Wielder

1022
01:02:40,970 --> 01:02:45,119
so much, but it seems like they believed the
Wielder would wash away the crimes the Moth

1023
01:02:45,119 --> 01:02:48,240
Tribe committed by turning their backs on
the Radiance.

1024
01:02:48,240 --> 01:02:52,079
The Seer seems to know that the Knight might
kill the Radiance, and she seems accepting

1025
01:02:52,079 --> 01:02:56,900
of it, ready for her and her tribe to disappear
and be forgotten forever.

1026
01:02:56,900 --> 01:03:01,180
With the Awoken Dream Nail in hand, the Knight
can travel to the Pale King’s refuge and

1027
01:03:01,180 --> 01:03:03,380
locate the other half of the Kingsoul charm.

1028
01:03:03,380 --> 01:03:08,940
When equipped, the Kingsoul provides a never
ending supply of soul, making it almost useful

1029
01:03:08,940 --> 01:03:13,329
if it weren’t for the insanely high cost
of the charm, and the painfully slow rate

1030
01:03:13,329 --> 01:03:17,970
at which it increases, and the fact that the
charm will get replaced about 5 minutes after

1031
01:03:17,970 --> 01:03:19,130
you get it.

1032
01:03:19,130 --> 01:03:23,670
The Kingsoul charm itself symbolizes the union
between two Higher Beings.

1033
01:03:23,670 --> 01:03:28,119
To me, this implies that the Kingsoul is a
representation of a Vessel, which also was

1034
01:03:28,119 --> 01:03:31,640
created by the union of two Higher Beings.

1035
01:03:31,640 --> 01:03:35,299
With the Kingsoul in their inventory, the
Knight now gains access to an area in the

1036
01:03:35,299 --> 01:03:37,289
Abyss called the Birthplace.

1037
01:03:37,289 --> 01:03:41,829
In this massive pile of Vessel shells the
Knight can find a giant egg.

1038
01:03:41,829 --> 01:03:45,829
Dream Nailing the egg allows the Knight to
access its own memory when it was cast down

1039
01:03:45,829 --> 01:03:47,430
into the Abyss.

1040
01:03:47,430 --> 01:03:51,999
From viewing that memory, the Kingsoul charm
is replaced with the Void Heart charm.

1041
01:03:51,999 --> 01:03:55,819
The recollection of this event allows the
Knight to come to terms with the Void inside

1042
01:03:55,819 --> 01:03:56,890
itself.

1043
01:03:56,890 --> 01:04:00,869
Once the Knight has the Void Heart, the shades
in the Abyss no longer attack it, and that

1044
01:04:00,869 --> 01:04:05,549
strange creature that gives the Knight the
Shade Cloak calls it the Lord of Shades.

1045
01:04:05,549 --> 01:04:10,829
In other words, the Knight has now bound the
once fragmented Void under its own will, allowing

1046
01:04:10,829 --> 01:04:14,060
it to control the Void in a powerful new way.

1047
01:04:14,060 --> 01:04:18,140
With the union of the Void, the Pale King
and the White Lady, the Knight has gained

1048
01:04:18,140 --> 01:04:19,880
a strength before unseen.

1049
01:04:19,880 --> 01:04:24,230
It is with this charm that two additional
endings become unlocked.

1050
01:04:24,230 --> 01:04:27,790
Hornet will now be standing outside of the
Black Egg, offering to help the Knight should

1051
01:04:27,790 --> 01:04:29,380
the opportunity arrive.

1052
01:04:29,380 --> 01:04:33,480
Midway through the fight with the Hollow Knight,
Hornet rushes into battle, subduing the Hollow

1053
01:04:33,480 --> 01:04:34,770
Knight and piercing its shell.

1054
01:04:34,770 --> 01:04:38,849
It’s at this point that the Knight is given
the perfect opportunity to enter into the

1055
01:04:38,849 --> 01:04:43,299
mind of its sibling, fighting the source of
the infection head on, and finally put an

1056
01:04:43,299 --> 01:04:44,420
end to the Radiance’s tyranny.

1057
01:04:44,420 --> 01:04:49,069
Or it can just stand there and let Hornet
get knocked unconscious.

1058
01:04:49,069 --> 01:04:54,569
If the Knight finishes off the Hollow Knight
as usual, the Sealed Siblings ending occurs.

1059
01:04:54,569 --> 01:04:58,920
Basically it’s the same as the Hollow Knight
ending, but now Hornet is in the room too,

1060
01:04:58,920 --> 01:05:01,390
and her face appears on the door to the Black
Egg.

1061
01:05:01,390 --> 01:05:04,849
It’s not clear what exactly this means for
Hallownest.

1062
01:05:04,849 --> 01:05:09,580
This might imply that Hornet is now a Dreamer,
but she’s inside the temple, meaning that

1063
01:05:09,580 --> 01:05:14,319
no one can actually get in there to kill her
should the Knight ever start leaking infection.

1064
01:05:14,319 --> 01:05:17,910
At the same time, Hornet mentions that the
bindings of the Black Egg would drain her,

1065
01:05:17,910 --> 01:05:21,410
so she’s probably just going to die anyway,
right?

1066
01:05:21,410 --> 01:05:26,240
Generally, people consider this one of the
worst endings, but it’s worth pointing out

1067
01:05:26,240 --> 01:05:30,309
that Team Cherry doesn’t support any one
ending as being the “true” ending.

1068
01:05:30,309 --> 01:05:32,910
Each ending is canonical in its own right.

1069
01:05:32,910 --> 01:05:36,099
And honestly, this ending isn’t the worst.

1070
01:05:36,099 --> 01:05:39,890
At least the Knight and Hornet will get to
spend some quality time together.

1071
01:05:39,890 --> 01:05:43,730
If the Knight does Dream Nail the Hollow Knight,
it will get taken to an arena where it can

1072
01:05:43,730 --> 01:05:45,619
finally fight the Radiance head on.

1073
01:05:45,619 --> 01:05:49,430
But the Knight isn’t alone, as the other
shades from the Abyss will appear in order

1074
01:05:49,430 --> 01:05:51,190
to help corner the Radiance.

1075
01:05:51,190 --> 01:05:54,650
Eventually, the Radiance gets trapped in the
tendrils of the Void.

1076
01:05:54,650 --> 01:05:58,720
The Knight bitch slaps her a couple times
and then the Radiance is consumed into the

1077
01:05:58,720 --> 01:05:59,800
darkness.

1078
01:05:59,800 --> 01:06:04,650
The Black Egg then appears to turn to shadows
and the void seeps down into the ground.

1079
01:06:04,650 --> 01:06:08,240
Hornet awakens to find the Knight’s broken
shell lying on the floor.

1080
01:06:08,240 --> 01:06:13,190
We get one final shot of the shades in the
Abyss going to rest, and the game is over.

1081
01:06:13,190 --> 01:06:15,720
This ending is called the Dream No More ending.

1082
01:06:15,720 --> 01:06:21,510
The Radiance is gone and Hallownest is finally
free from her infection.

1083
01:06:21,510 --> 01:06:26,259
Now I think it’s fair to ask a few questions
about how the Dream No More ending comes about.

1084
01:06:26,259 --> 01:06:30,300
When the Hollow Knight was initially chosen
to become the pure Vessel, the Abyss was sealed

1085
01:06:30,300 --> 01:06:33,509
up and the rest of the Vessels were left to
rot away.

1086
01:06:33,509 --> 01:06:36,480
But somehow, Vessels ended up outside of the
Abyss.

1087
01:06:36,480 --> 01:06:40,510
And then one of those Vessels was used to
replace the Hollow Knight.

1088
01:06:40,510 --> 01:06:44,349
Exactly how much of this operation was planned
if at all?

1089
01:06:44,349 --> 01:06:49,180
The White Lady was waiting for a Vessel, did
she have any communication with Hornet?

1090
01:06:49,180 --> 01:06:52,829
Hornet was guarding the King’s Brand, the
only way for a Vessel to enter the Abyss.

1091
01:06:52,829 --> 01:06:57,410
How did she know it was necessary to guard
the King’s Brand from weaker Vessels.

1092
01:06:57,410 --> 01:07:02,160
Hell, if the Vessels did escape the Abyss
by themselves, wouldn’t it be pointless

1093
01:07:02,160 --> 01:07:06,609
to guard the King’s Brand, since the Vessels
could just creep back into the Abyss the same

1094
01:07:06,609 --> 01:07:07,609
way?

1095
01:07:07,609 --> 01:07:11,059
I’m not going to provide any good answers
to these questions.

1096
01:07:11,059 --> 01:07:13,680
Because god forbid I answer anything in this
entire video.

1097
01:07:13,680 --> 01:07:18,819
But I do want to point out that no plans to
actually produce the Dream No More ending

1098
01:07:18,819 --> 01:07:24,410
are explicitly stated ingame, so we can only
speculate as to whether or not the White Lady

1099
01:07:24,410 --> 01:07:29,349
or Hornet or maybe even the Pale King knew
that they could defeat the Radiance by creating

1100
01:07:29,349 --> 01:07:32,039
a Lord of Shades like the Knight.

1101
01:07:32,039 --> 01:07:35,800
Regardless, the next two endings were definitely
not planned.

1102
01:07:35,800 --> 01:07:41,119
In fact, the last two endings that were added
in the Godmaster update almost feel out of

1103
01:07:41,119 --> 01:07:42,119
place.

1104
01:07:42,119 --> 01:07:45,789
The Godseekers basically hijack everything
to the point where you don’t even have to

1105
01:07:45,789 --> 01:07:48,550
enter the Temple of the Black Egg to beat
the game.

1106
01:07:48,550 --> 01:07:52,029
That’s like beating Mario Bros. without
ever seeing Bowser.

1107
01:07:52,029 --> 01:07:56,670
But on the other hand, the Godmaster endings
basically reinforce that Hallownest does not

1108
01:07:56,670 --> 01:08:01,499
exist in a vacuum, which can help the world
of Hollow Knight feel more real.

1109
01:08:01,499 --> 01:08:05,460
Because what else is reality but just a bunch
of random chaotic stuff happening all the

1110
01:08:05,460 --> 01:08:06,460
time?

1111
01:08:06,460 --> 01:08:10,420
If the Knight finds the Godseeker in the Junk
Pit, it will be able to enter her mind and

1112
01:08:10,420 --> 01:08:12,759
refight all of the bosses in the game.

1113
01:08:12,759 --> 01:08:15,010
This is part of the Godseekers’ ritual.

1114
01:08:15,010 --> 01:08:19,299
They basically attune to the resonance of
gods through ritual combat.

1115
01:08:19,299 --> 01:08:24,730
This allows them to ascend their minds higher,
and eventually, through the use of Godly focus,

1116
01:08:24,730 --> 01:08:29,359
achieve communication with the god sleeping
at Hallownest’s heart, the Radiance.

1117
01:08:29,359 --> 01:08:30,730
Now I know what you’re thinking.

1118
01:08:30,730 --> 01:08:34,179
That’s a pretty convoluted little religious
practice they have going on here.

1119
01:08:34,179 --> 01:08:37,759
What’s next, are they going to start measuring
the Knight’s theon levels?

1120
01:08:37,759 --> 01:08:42,569
It’s pretty complicated, but the point is,
these Godseekers have some serious capabilities

1121
01:08:42,569 --> 01:08:46,480
to fuck things up in Hallownest, as we’re
about to see.

1122
01:08:46,480 --> 01:08:50,310
As the Knight makes it further and further
through the four pantheons, the Godseekers

1123
01:08:50,310 --> 01:08:54,650
get closer and closer to making contact with
the Radiance, locked away inside the Hollow

1124
01:08:54,650 --> 01:08:55,650
Knight.

1125
01:08:55,650 --> 01:08:59,940
At the end of the fourth Pantheon, the Radiance
makes herself aware in this strange reunion

1126
01:08:59,940 --> 01:09:01,390
cutscene between the Vessels.

1127
01:09:01,390 --> 01:09:04,520
But she isn’t the only one to make an appearance.

1128
01:09:04,520 --> 01:09:09,260
The Void itself appears to go on the attack,
rising up to meet the Radiance’s call.

1129
01:09:09,260 --> 01:09:14,720
It’s at this point that the final challenge,
the Pantheon of Hallownest, becomes available.

1130
01:09:14,720 --> 01:09:18,810
The Godseeker finally acknowledges the Knight
as being more than just a simple cringer,

1131
01:09:18,810 --> 01:09:22,009
and they begin to watch the Knight more intently.

1132
01:09:22,009 --> 01:09:26,359
After defeating like a bazillion bosses in
the final pantheon, the Knight finally comes

1133
01:09:26,359 --> 01:09:32,080
face to face with the Absolute Radiance, a
stronger, more enhanced version of the game’s

1134
01:09:32,080 --> 01:09:33,319
final boss.

1135
01:09:33,319 --> 01:09:35,509
Finally, the stage is set.

1136
01:09:35,509 --> 01:09:41,270
After roughly forty minutes of intense agony
and tedious boss battles, the Knight has finally

1137
01:09:41,270 --> 01:09:45,790
reached the ultimate enemy responsible for
the destruction of Hallownest.

1138
01:09:45,790 --> 01:09:48,500
Truly this will be a battle for the ages.

1139
01:09:48,500 --> 01:09:52,040
But first let’s check in on our old pal,
Menderbug.

1140
01:09:52,040 --> 01:09:54,830
As it turns out he’s still alive when the
Knight arrives in Hallownest.

1141
01:09:54,830 --> 01:09:58,110
And he’s still fulfilling his duty after
all this time.

1142
01:09:58,110 --> 01:10:01,010
Let’s take one last look at his diary.

1143
01:10:01,010 --> 01:10:05,120
My Lovely Diary,
Someone's gone and broke my favourite sign!

1144
01:10:05,120 --> 01:10:08,420
Right there at the top of the crossroads.

1145
01:10:08,420 --> 01:10:09,420
Keeps happening too!

1146
01:10:09,420 --> 01:10:12,480
But you know, I just can't get mad about it.

1147
01:10:12,480 --> 01:10:14,909
I should be thanking them really!

1148
01:10:14,909 --> 01:10:19,139
More chances to fix that beautiful, complex
sign.

1149
01:10:19,139 --> 01:10:25,290
And I've stocked up on spare parts, so I've
no fear it'll ever stay broken for long.

1150
01:10:25,290 --> 01:10:29,890
Unfortunately, the only way to ever read the
Menderbug’s diary is to kill him in cold

1151
01:10:29,890 --> 01:10:30,890
blood.

1152
01:10:30,890 --> 01:10:35,100
I’m not sure why Team Cherry thought this
was necessary, but the general consensus on

1153
01:10:35,100 --> 01:10:39,320
Reddit is that they are bloodthirsty warmongers
so it checks out.

1154
01:10:39,320 --> 01:10:43,440
But at least Menderbug’s last moments will
be spent fixing one of his favorite signs

1155
01:10:43,440 --> 01:10:45,080
in the Forgotten Crossroads.

1156
01:10:45,080 --> 01:10:49,179
It’s comforting to think that his final
seconds of consciousness were spent in total

1157
01:10:49,179 --> 01:10:54,300
bliss before we sent him hurtling into the
infinite chasm of oblivion.

1158
01:10:54,300 --> 01:10:55,800
Well anyway...

1159
01:10:55,800 --> 01:10:59,989
This alternate fight between the Knight and
the Radiance plays out differently than in

1160
01:10:59,989 --> 01:11:01,610
the vanilla endings.

1161
01:11:01,610 --> 01:11:05,800
This time around, the Knight is not accompanied
by any shades.

1162
01:11:05,800 --> 01:11:11,840
Instead, after defeating the Radiance, the
Knight seems to transform into this monstrosity.

1163
01:11:11,840 --> 01:11:18,860
Now this creature has several names, the God
of Gods, the Lord Shade, the Devourer, the

1164
01:11:18,860 --> 01:11:20,190
Void Entity.

1165
01:11:20,190 --> 01:11:23,840
But I don’t really like any of those, so
I will just call it Bill.

1166
01:11:23,840 --> 01:11:27,650
Bill proceeds to completely annihilate the
Radiance in spectacular fashion.

1167
01:11:27,650 --> 01:11:31,150
We are then treated to the “Embrace the
Void” ending.

1168
01:11:31,150 --> 01:11:35,490
Bill comes back down from the sky, dropping
into the rest of Godhome.

1169
01:11:35,490 --> 01:11:39,060
The Godseeker starts to get pulled into Bill
by Void tendrils.

1170
01:11:39,060 --> 01:11:42,480
We then cut to the Godseeker in the Junk Pit.

1171
01:11:42,480 --> 01:11:46,340
Void starts leaking out of her eyes, and it
appears as though Bill is making an escape

1172
01:11:46,340 --> 01:11:48,130
back into the real world.

1173
01:11:48,130 --> 01:11:50,270
Which is probably a bad thing?

1174
01:11:50,270 --> 01:11:54,949
Finally, we see Hornet standing outside of
the Black Egg as the infection begins to disappear

1175
01:11:54,949 --> 01:11:56,780
from the nearby vines.

1176
01:11:56,780 --> 01:12:00,860
Hornet hears footsteps coming from inside
the Black Egg, as the Hollow Knight reveals

1177
01:12:00,860 --> 01:12:04,239
itself to her and the two prepare for combat.

1178
01:12:04,239 --> 01:12:08,230
So from this cutscene, we can see that the
Radiance’s death in Godhome actually did

1179
01:12:08,230 --> 01:12:12,770
kill her for real, meaning that the infection
over Hallownest is now gone.

1180
01:12:12,770 --> 01:12:17,010
This means the seals inside of the Black Egg
probably wore off, allowing the Hollow Knight

1181
01:12:17,010 --> 01:12:18,300
to escape its prison.

1182
01:12:18,300 --> 01:12:23,510
In other words, the Embrace the Void ending
is a goddamn cliffhanger, and we have no idea

1183
01:12:23,510 --> 01:12:26,219
how Team Cherry plans to follow this up.

1184
01:12:26,219 --> 01:12:30,290
The Hollow Knight is running loose in Hallownest,
and the Knight has transformed into a raging

1185
01:12:30,290 --> 01:12:35,150
Void monster that might try to destroy the
entire kingdom, or at least what’s left

1186
01:12:35,150 --> 01:12:36,150
of it.

1187
01:12:36,150 --> 01:12:39,679
What’s even more strange about this ending
is that the announced sequel, Hollow Knight:

1188
01:12:39,679 --> 01:12:42,860
Silksong doesn’t seem to be related to this
ending at all.

1189
01:12:42,860 --> 01:12:45,030
But that’s a whole different shitshow.

1190
01:12:45,030 --> 01:12:49,550
Obviously, the biggest mystery surrounding
this ending is the appearance of Bill.

1191
01:12:49,550 --> 01:12:54,770
Did this creature exist in the Void already,
or was it somehow willed into existence by

1192
01:12:54,770 --> 01:12:56,340
the power of the Godseekers?

1193
01:12:56,340 --> 01:12:58,610
Did the Knight turn into this thing?

1194
01:12:58,610 --> 01:13:01,450
Or did it just become a part of it?

1195
01:13:01,450 --> 01:13:05,400
Examining a statue of this creature, and the
other forms of the Knight grant the player

1196
01:13:05,400 --> 01:13:09,929
a Hunter’s Journal entry for an ancient
artifact called the Void Idol, which might

1197
01:13:09,929 --> 01:13:13,020
imply this creature might have been worshipped
by the Ancient Civilization.

1198
01:13:13,020 --> 01:13:16,690
But again, that’s pure speculation.

1199
01:13:16,690 --> 01:13:20,030
We don’t know what this worship of the Void
exactly looked like.

1200
01:13:20,030 --> 01:13:23,940
Maybe the Void they worshipped took the form
of something more sinister.

1201
01:13:23,940 --> 01:13:26,420
There is one thing we know about this monster
though.

1202
01:13:26,420 --> 01:13:28,989
It’s weak to flowers.

1203
01:13:28,989 --> 01:13:31,380
Yes, these things.

1204
01:13:31,380 --> 01:13:35,900
As it turns out, those Delicate Flowers that
Ze’mer has stockpiled up her ass are actually

1205
01:13:35,900 --> 01:13:37,270
useful for something.

1206
01:13:37,270 --> 01:13:41,949
They contain a strange power that even deters
the White Lady from touching one.

1207
01:13:41,949 --> 01:13:46,389
The Godseeker, however, is dumb enough to
accept a flower from the Knight.

1208
01:13:46,389 --> 01:13:51,250
If the player does this, instead of Void being
released out into the world, this flower pulls

1209
01:13:51,250 --> 01:13:56,250
a no-u and the Godseeker and the Void disappear
into thin air.

1210
01:13:56,250 --> 01:14:00,830
The flower itself is described as giving off
a pale light, which appears to connect it

1211
01:14:00,830 --> 01:14:02,820
to the Pale Beings.

1212
01:14:02,820 --> 01:14:07,600
Like I said before, Pale Beings appear to
be some form of top tier Gods.

1213
01:14:07,600 --> 01:14:12,580
As of right now, we are only aware of two:
the Pale King and the White Lady.

1214
01:14:12,580 --> 01:14:16,969
But the fact that Ze’mer brought these pale
flowers from a faraway land implies that there

1215
01:14:16,969 --> 01:14:18,730
are definitely more of them out there.

1216
01:14:18,730 --> 01:14:23,469
Another small hint of the existence of Pale
Beings are the Pale Ore items that can be

1217
01:14:23,469 --> 01:14:25,590
found all over Hallownest.

1218
01:14:25,590 --> 01:14:29,260
Did these come from the Pale King, or possibly
some other Pale Being?

1219
01:14:29,260 --> 01:14:30,321
And what exactly are they?

1220
01:14:30,321 --> 01:14:32,530
Are they poop?

1221
01:14:32,530 --> 01:14:36,480
In general, the Godmaster endings appear to
be doing a lot of setup for future Hollow

1222
01:14:36,480 --> 01:14:37,490
Knight content.

1223
01:14:37,490 --> 01:14:41,489
Like I said before, Hollow Knight: Silksong
doesn’t seem connected to these events on

1224
01:14:41,489 --> 01:14:45,949
the surface, so we are in a bit of a bind
when trying to discuss what these endings

1225
01:14:45,949 --> 01:14:49,480
actually mean for the greater narrative Team
Cherry is building.

1226
01:14:49,480 --> 01:14:54,890
There’s definitely a lot more to consider
about what the pale beings are and what properties

1227
01:14:54,890 --> 01:14:55,960
they possess.

1228
01:14:55,960 --> 01:14:59,970
And we also have plenty of questions surrounding
the Void, and how bugs have interacted with

1229
01:14:59,970 --> 01:15:01,139
it in the past.

1230
01:15:01,139 --> 01:15:05,750
It almost feels like we are looking through
a keyhole trying to grasp onto the totality

1231
01:15:05,750 --> 01:15:07,820
of Team Cherry’s creation.

1232
01:15:07,820 --> 01:15:11,120
How powerful are creatures like Bill and the
Wyrms?

1233
01:15:11,120 --> 01:15:14,429
Where did things like the Void even come from
to begin with?

1234
01:15:14,429 --> 01:15:17,350
How much bigger is the world beyond Hallownest?

1235
01:15:17,350 --> 01:15:19,810
Is Bardoon into butt stuff?

1236
01:15:19,810 --> 01:15:22,590
But of course that’s the appeal of a game
like Hollow Knight.

1237
01:15:22,590 --> 01:15:27,270
Having all of the answers to every question
would just ruin the mystery of the world.

1238
01:15:27,270 --> 01:15:30,900
Plus if we didn’t have questions like this
to waste our time on, then what else would

1239
01:15:30,900 --> 01:15:33,360
we do with our lives?

1240
01:15:33,360 --> 01:15:35,120
Go outside?

1241
01:15:35,120 --> 01:15:36,540
Ugg…

1242
01:15:36,540 --> 01:15:38,980
And so this video comes to an end.

1243
01:15:38,980 --> 01:15:43,790
Now I know the average attention span of a
YouTube viewer is 9 minutes, so let me leave

1244
01:15:43,790 --> 01:15:45,680
you with a few takeaways:

1245
01:15:45,680 --> 01:15:46,620
1.

1246
01:15:46,620 --> 01:15:48,520
Hollow Knight is a game about bugs.

1247
01:15:48,520 --> 01:15:52,099
I know that may come as a shock, but it’s
true.

1248
01:15:52,099 --> 01:15:55,380
Watch the video again, and this time pay attention.

1249
01:15:55,380 --> 01:15:58,380
You’ll notice right away, I promise.

1250
01:15:58,380 --> 01:15:59,380
2.

1251
01:15:59,380 --> 01:16:02,650
Murdering your own babies might not be such
a good idea after all.

1252
01:16:02,650 --> 01:16:07,210
I mean, this is obviously just my interpretation
of the game’s lore.

1253
01:16:07,210 --> 01:16:11,421
Other people might have different views on
the subject of murdering babies, and every

1254
01:16:11,421 --> 01:16:16,000
opinion is valid so I don’t want to step
on anyone’s toes or anything.

1255
01:16:16,000 --> 01:16:16,960
3.

1256
01:16:16,960 --> 01:16:19,540
Menderbug is fucking dead.

1257
01:16:19,540 --> 01:16:20,840
4.

1258
01:16:20,840 --> 01:16:22,580
Nothing is certain.

1259
01:16:22,590 --> 01:16:25,650
This video probably has a few flaws in it.

1260
01:16:25,650 --> 01:16:30,300
Trying to construct a cohesive narrative with
the information found in Hollow Knight isn’t

1261
01:16:30,300 --> 01:16:31,310
exactly straightforward.

1262
01:16:31,310 --> 01:16:36,820
I’m sure my views will change in the future,
and I encourage you to explore the lore yourself.

1263
01:16:36,820 --> 01:16:38,110
5.

1264
01:16:38,110 --> 01:16:43,780
And this last point is fairly obvious but
I should mention it anyway; Cory in the House

1265
01:16:43,780 --> 01:16:44,940
is the best anime

1266
01:16:44,940 --> 01:17:08,020
(weeb shit)