Elden Ring - A rotten family 

Identity, and specifically having multiple identities, is a recurring theme across many characters in Elden Ring. The possibility that Millicent could be some substantial part of Malenia, discarded in her desperation to defeat Radahn, feels like it naturally harmonizes with other similar concepts the game explores. Malenia sacrificed more than just Caelid's wellbeing to win against the Starscourge, she ceded important parts of herself over to the Scarlet Rot, so it's nice to think one of those parts may have found its way back to her.

One thing that makes me sad is that the cavernous area with the Putrid Tree Spirit and Millicent's sisters' fight, is directly above Malenia's arena, you can simply look down and see it. So Millicent travelled across an entire continent, fighting unspeakable horrors and encroaching scarlet rot, to perish a stone's throw away from her mother/sister/source.

Ah so Malenia was hiding in that tree to not pay child-support

using "superior bud" instead of "best friend" from now on

The Forbidden Aeonial Orange Juice...

Milicent and her sisters remind of that of monarch butterflies in a way where they naturally knew where to go until they were mature enough to leave their birthplace. That also probably explains why the butterflies in Malenia's second phase also look like monarchs.

Her birth almost reminds me of Aphrodite, born out of sea-foam via the death of another deity, plus being associated with flowers

Something else to keep in mind is that since the Rot is controlled by the God of Rot, the various 'children of Malenia' might've been created by the God of Rot with what little influence it has so it could create a more willing host, since Malenia's whole story revolves around protecting her brother and resisting the call of the Rot.

If I remember right: during the later part of her quest, Milicent explicitly mentions that Malenia had to abandon her pride when fighting Radahn and resort to the Scarlet Bloom. This event led to the formation of the Aeonian Swamp and the sisters. Just based off of Milicent's character arc, I'd say she represents Malenia's "dignity" that she had to discard. It's why Milicent in particular refuses to cede herself to the forces that be and she can choose to die as a person with control over her own destiny. She got to have what Malenia was denied by birth. It's ironic, that Milicent was considered superior to her sisters and groomed to be a successor of rot yet she resisted. Contradictory identities and all that.

Must say, you're getting alot better at creating unique shots for these videos. Always been fantastic but feels like it's getting better.

Caelid, once a beautiful land.... now is Australia

It is a shame that the whole "returning Malenia's pride" thing goes nowhere. Just makes Millicent's whole journey feel like it was for nothing, which adds a whole extra level of tragedy to the affair.

0:30 can we take a second to appreciate this shot please?

The way I see it, and an interpretation I personally like is the idea that Millicent is giving back the unalloyed gold needle. It's far more literal, but her journeying all the way to the Haligtree to essentially give back the last memento of Malenia's dearest Miquella, very much an important part of herself just seems right to me. Especially knowing that the gold needle's purpose is to halt the interference of outer gods, and though you end up using it for other purposes, that Millicent would serve as a vehicle for what would likely be Malenia's last hope, straight from her brother is certainly something.

As an aside to your observation at 1:13, when you zoom out to the macro scale of the nature of life/death/rebirth in the Lands Between, there's a lot of recurring themes of plants and trees absorbing the dead and reincarnating them into new life from their branches. The Erdtree is the most obvious and prominent example, but the Haligtree was also apparently supposed to do this as well, what with Miquella (and many of his followers) wilfully entering cocoons in an effort to metamorphose into new, more perfect beings under its boughs, to rid themselves of their faults (Miquella's eternal youth and the Albinauric's slow disintegration/"fading" starting from the legs-up). Then there's the nature of deathblight and its propensity to form as roots and bulbs, which have direct ties to Those Who Live In Death and, indeed, appear to allow the dead to rise again in its presence, so long as there's someone nearby to spur them (the Mariners/Fia). On a related note, that seems to be the reason for Fia's desire to resurrect Godwyn, so that he might be their king and allow _all_ those dead to rise again and become Those Who Live In Death under his leadership. Where the Erdtree absorbs the dead and reincarnates them and the Haligtree seems to encourage metamorphosis from one form of life into another, Deathblight seems to allow those that die to live again in undeath. There's also the nature of the Ancestral Followers and their kin and how, when they die, their bodies undergo a kind of transformation into a spiritual form, seen most prominently with the Ancestral Spirits. Item descriptions from them use terms like "buds" when referring to body parts that they otherwise wouldn't normally have, like horns or teeth, and the Ancestral Spirit corpses around Siofra all have plants growing on them, which seems to imply a kind of gradual transition from life into something beyond life as more "buds" grow (either during life or shortly after death). Upon being consumed by plant matter, their spirits are released as they relinquish their physical forms for spiritual ones and they "live" as ghosts thereafter (kinda like Torrent seems to do, actually; the similarities between him and the Ancestral Spirits doesn't seem like a coincidence). If your theory about the Aeonia being similar is true, then it seems like the nature of Rot is to die and then be resurrected in a manner that seems to bare similarities to both Erdtree reincarnation and Haligtree metamorphosis, but in a way that may strip those born from the Rot of their previous nature in some capacity. If Malenia's invocation of the Rot during her fight with Radahn indeed stripped her of some ineffable aspects of herself - born again as her "sisters"/"daughters" in Millicent and co. - then it would suggest the nature of life/death/rebirth in the Rot is more like the scattering of seeds (or perhaps more appropriately, like spores), where the death of one can lead to the rebirth of many. As Malenia rots away, shedding aspects of herself, she "births" many new lives from her scattered essence, all their own people, with their own natures, as Millicent and her sisters are. I imagine if one's "essence" is more godly in nature, the offshoots/seeds of one's being form into creatures that more closely-resemble their originator, as Malenia and her "sisters"/"daughters" do, while lesser beings are reborn in more grotesque or inhuman forms, like the Kindred of Rot (whom may be born from the remains of normal humans, like those that died en masse during the Shattering in Caelid). Of course, this is all just speculation on my part. I could easily be barking up the wrong tree with this line of thought. Just thought it was interesting to consider.

I get the intent for the pose at 1:58 but picturing the full scene with Millicent floating in the air upside down is killing me

Your lore, extraordinary...

The unused lines may imply that Millicent was Malenia in an early draft. Perhaps she had amnesia after her battle with Radahn and we help her become whole again with the prosthetic arm and regaining her memories. Its also interesting that following her questline is the only way to undo the frenzied flame ending.

My favourite thing about Elden Rings NPC quests are that they truly expand the Worldbuilding of the game’s setting, with many NPC quests being a direct tangent to many of the Main characters of the game. I.e - how Nepheli’s personality and morals may parallel the clan/family of the Loux’s, with the quest showing extra depth to Godfrey’s character and morals. Or how Diallos’ story and his relationship with his Brother, Juno, also mirrors Rykards story and his relationship with Radahn - which is funny considering how intrinsically linked Diallos’ story is to the Volcano Manor, you get to learn about Rykards insecurity through Diallos’ quest. Ranni’s quest not only gives depth to her and her mothers relationship with the stars, but also includes MAJOR and subtle details regarding Maliketh and how shadows functionally work within the context of the Golden Order - as Blaidd’s character gives a lot of information on what exactly Maliketh may be growing insane over. This next example isn’t as obvious as the others, but I like to draw parallels to Radagon and Gideon - as Radagon seeks to accomplish Knowledge, as an end goal, whereas Gideon seeks to constantly gain knowledges, for there is no end to it. You can come up with a lot of fun characteristics of Radagon by extrapolating details of Gideon’s character - although, as I’ve said, this particular comparison isn’t as obvious as the others… Among many other examples, that would take too long for me to talk about, my favourite - most explicit - example of this is Millicent, and her sisters. While we do not know the personalities of the sisters, we do know Millicent. She is stated to be the Pride of Malenia, the pride of which she’d abandoned to serve Miquella. Millicent gives immense personality to Malenia’s actual boss battle, as it is inferred that Millicent is part of Malenia’s actual being - therefore, you are technically talking to Malenia throughout your journey. Millicent is my favourite quest in any Videogame purely because of how much I identify with Malenia’s character, and Millicent’s quest… I personally know someone with a missing limb, and I’ve cried many a time when going through Millicent’s quest because of how much her resolve and willpower resembles the person I know. No matter how damaged they are, they always make sure to not upset you… they hide their emotions in the face of trauma just to please you. Heartbreaking to know how selfless these people are. Since Millicent is basically a part of Malenia, it gives you good indication of how well mannered and polite Malenia was before being forced into War, and it reallyyy hits home with my relationship with this person I know

There’s so many cut things that could’ve been so interesting. As much of a spectacle as Malenia’s fight is and all the lore and buildup towards it, you still never feel like you have a real reason to fight her, it just happens, everyone has the same running joke that they could literally just tell her where Miquella is and everything would be fine. Radahn was perfect in that sense. Could the lines about having ‘taken everything from her’ have anything to do with Mohg and Miquella? Was there a cut quest where you were involved in the kidnapping? Who knows.

I love all the shots you somehow got for these, especially 2:44 and 3:10. You put a lot of care and artistry into these

A lot of the visuals on this one were nothing short of magnificent. The posing and framing were amazing.

IIRC, Gowry worships / is aligned with the outer god of the rot (and sees Malenia as its herald or vessel). I don't think he wants to "corrupt" them so much as see their power become the dominant force, much like we can choose to champion Ranni's cause.

I really like the idea of the sisters being parts of Malenia's fragmented psyche and after finishing the quest we "put her back together" so it would have been really nice to hear that voice line

This and Ranni's quest are two the best quest lines Fromsoftware ever designed, it was really satisfying to complete them without using any guides, very engrossing and they do guide you through the quests using the dialog and the environment a lot. And my guess for the removed dialog is that maybe at some point in development Malenia was literally Millicent and we are the ones who actually rescue amnesiac Malenia and help her return to the Halieg tree only to realize she was Malenia all along hence why she addresses us as a friend (and she thinks we are there to kidnap Miquella or something), but maybe the devs thought it's too obvious (that's actually what I thought when I first met Millicent, I just thought it's Malenia but amnesiac).

I always felt like Milicient was just supposed to be Malenia that we help to get back to the Haligtree after her fight against Radhan, which in my opinion would have been better and the boss more impactful, its a shame because it feels the same for Godfrey that we were supposed to meet from time to time during the game. Thats the most frustrating parts of this game, the missing opportunities.

I'm so sorry Millicent, but that prosthesis talisman got me acting unwise.

I've always found it strange that Millicent is not an NPC summon for Malenia, given how closely the two are linked, similar to Siegward and Yhorm in DS3, or even Jerren and Radahn in Elden Ring. Millicent even ends her quest in the Haligtree, inches from Malenia's bossroom. My guess is that the reason for this is the mechanics of the Malenia fight, she heals on hit, so having an NPC there would just mean infinite healing for the boss.

At this point I feel like Elden Ring might be the first game where the amount of cut content is greater than the amount of content left in the final game

If I recall it right according to cut content there was a blade and runes or abundance and decay, Malenia could represent some sort of virility/abundance since she is life, corrupted or not. Like a tree that produces inedible, rotten fruit and still grows against odds, spreading its vile seeds. Its reasonable to believe Miquella can't have an offspring or creation in any way, he is pure, but embodies decay, like a healthy,strong tree that never blossoms or bears fruit. Maybe if they would be grafted into eachother they would break free of their curses

Fresh Zullie vid = better day

I hope Millicent and Melania return in the dlc since it’s centred around death and Miquella they could return as NPCs maybe?

I truly believed for a good chunk of Millicent's quest that she was Malenia and we had to do her quest in order to get/unlock the boss fight. I realized with how big Malenia was marketed that maybe that wasn't possible, but once you pick up the prosthetic arm, I was hyped beyond belief and slid right back into believing that somehow it would be like a Sif situation where she remembers who she is and what she has to do and now she has to fight us etc etc. I loved Millicent and was admittedly disappointed that her quest didn't play out like the spectacle I had been imagining for hours upon hours at that point, but it's nice to see there could have been more to it at one point. She was one of my absolute favorite NPCs in the game

So Milicent has become one of my favorite characters in the game because of just my own random explorations. I like many others, wanted to do the Ranni ending, So I had been doing that questline, however, I rarely looked up guides online because I felt that soured the experience. I only did so when I was stuck. Because of this, I eventually wandered into the 3 fingers, and after reading player messages on the ground telling me to disrobe, I did just to see what was on the other side. It wasn't until hours later that I eventually learned it would lock me into the frenzied ending. So I did look up Millicent's quest once I realized there was one way out of having this locked in, so it was one of the few times I felt a need to follow a guide more directly, so I felt a little on rails however, It let me do a lot of backtracking and required me to fully explore what elden ring had to offer. This meant I had to not just do millicent's quest, but I had to do the haligtree, I had to fight Malenia, it meant I had to fight Placidusax, , after finishing Millicent's quest, it made me want to go kill mogh for what he did more than just to kill another boss. It made everything feel like I *had* to do this to get what I considered the ideal ending for my first playthrough. After seeing how gowry and millicent's sisters wanted to kill her after fostering her just to use her to bloom, having her die on her own accord rather than be used it cemented a feeling in me. I saw how Melina wanted life to continue somehow, not all eradicated and reduced to nothing, I understood the frenzy as I saw it was a mercy killing of a world, but I couldn't let that happen, I needed something new to be there. I couldn't let all this effort from my play time and the characters go to waste. For some reason, Melina never confronted me about holding onto the frenzied flame, as I found out that she would threaten to leave if you did, but I never had that conversation, maybe a bug, maybe I missed dialogue, but It felt appropriate because I put the effort into reversing it. It made the game for me to be frank. I had some friends give up on the millicent questline but they weren't frenzied and didn't feel the need to see it through, so it's hard to get that feeling across. It felt impactful to me at the least looking back the cumulative effort was suffering, it was difficult, but it was memorable and it makes me feel like I did the best I could as a character in that world.

This story bears some similarity to the various queens from ds2, who are parts of manus which split apart and were scattered by his defeat at the hands of the chosen undead in ds1.

decay exists as an extant form of life.

The cut lines are because in an older draft of the story, Millicent was just an amnesiac Malenia.

Another banger from Zullie, no surprise there.

The effort you go through to pose models for the stills you show is greatly appreciated. Each one has great composition and they really add to the text.

While the insights and information in this video are at your usual gold standard, I feel like the visual accompaniment has really stepped up this time! So many beautiful compositions!

Reminds me of Sif recognising your scent if you saved her in the past. Sometimes I wonder what transpired behind the scene that they ultimately decided against putting the alternate Malenia lines in.

I never thought I'd come to enjoy videos being presented in text rather than speech quite as much as I do yours. You have a way of telling stories which is really compelling and at the same time educational about the game.

The animation in Malenia's 2nd phase where the Water Fowl Dance generates "clones" or "copies" of her, seems like it may also play in with Millicent and her sisters. Rot is all about rebirth, so it somehow makes sense that almost dying, (the same way the Erdtree released seedlings when it "died"), Malenia's Rot propigates and buds of Scarlet Aeonia birth new little goddesses.

Who goes down to a festering swamp to find babes? Gowry is weird

great video. Millicent is one of my fav npcs in elden ring, and her story of taking hold of her personal autonomy even at the cost of her life really struck a cord (and is why despite how much a pain in the ass the sisters can be, i will suffer the gank fight for milli). I find her connection with Malenia very interesting and this is a unique take on the whole deal i really appreciate

Millicent: "Dearest Companion" Rusty: "Hey, Buddy"

I wonder at the possibility that Millicent's original story was that she *was* Malenia, and you help her get home only to find Miquella is missing

Your cinematography keeps getting better and better, I love it

"If you happen to be present for the girl's fight with her sisters, I ask that you side with the sisters and kill Millicent. It must be done by your hand; no other. Millicent trusts you, rather deeply in fact. Sever that trust. Nurtured by betrayal, her bud will flower most vividly. When Malenia ascends to godhood, Millicent too shall be reborn. As a scarlet valkyrie." - Gowry

This was sick, thanks for creating the unique scenes for this video, they are really cool

The visuals in this one are truly stunning. Amazing work as always Zullie!

What if Millicent TURNED into Malenia at the end of her questline, in some previous version? That would have been awesome.

In my first playthrough I though Millicent was actually Malenia who lost her memories after her stand off with Radahn. The quest of retracing her memory ultimately lead to the Final Battle in the Haligtree where she finally returned to her former self But then I found Finlay's Ash, and the whole Millicent quest itself turned out very differently 😅

I love how short and to the point your videos are. You're so smart

The editing and juxtaposition is top notch here.

I believe there's more to this story. Thanks to Jack the Mimic for cluing me in on Miquella's needle. You see, it's very similar in appearance to a bewitching branch, and this would suggest that it not only staves off rot, but also manipulates the will of one using it. To further support this claim, Miquella is thought to be St. Trina, who appears to comfort people in dreams. Upon inserting the needle, Millicent immediately falls asleep and remarks on waking that her nightmares have gone. This leads straight into her describing a vague sense of destiny that she must follow. So her journey is likely the latent will of Miquella, to come to and protect him at the Haligtree.

It feels like that old suspicion that the Malenia and Miquella's plot lines were supposed to be way longer. Maybe that's what will arrive in the DLC, who knows?

Beautifully put together, Millicent's story was so moving to me, its nice to see people do her character justice

Love this video. I absolutely love Millicent as a character, she and her story are so cool. Thank you!

That’s the best/most believable explanation, theory or not, for the cut Malenia dialogue I’ve seen 😮

I wonder what the relation between millicent and gowry actually was. I like to think that gowry is some aspect of the outer god of rot, which is why he begs you to kill millicent so that she can ascend as a scarlet valkyrie. But millicent never mentions him at all during her questline, which makes me think she might not have even known him-he might have found her in the swamp, discarded her, and then simply waited for someone else to come along and do his dirty work.

Your videos are amazing. I love the music. Every video is just so calming. Like I’m in some Elden ring lore museum in 1997

Quick shout out to the way you set the scenes in the video, posing models to help illustrate the story. Adds so much to the video and is extremely cool to see.

Milicent and her sisters give me Drakengard 3 Intoners vibe :o

The Tarnished Archaeologist covers this theory in great detail. His Erdtree birthing ritual video is also really good.

I really loved your use of the models, they were really cool and added a lot to the video

through out my blind play through i thought Millicent would be revealed as Malenia who lost her memory after nuking Radahn

Common Zullie W

Malenia's children must have come from heaven, because Millicent is an angel. Gowry knew what was up, she really is a babe.

This makes me so happy to see. I've been theorizing for a while now that Millicent is simply an aspect of Malenia...it felt so fitting given Millicent's dialogue regarding Malenia, and I always felt that Millicent returning to Malenia was symbolic for bringing Malenia's strength of will back to her.

The use of models for storytelling along with the video was well done. Seeing malenias shade version in front of millicent was potent

"Gowry found them there as babes" 💀

I love the demons Souls Ost which you are using. Great Video as always!

You ever think about how similar Millicent and Melina are as characters? I mean, besides wearing the same style of dress and their names. Both are amnesiacs in search of their destiny/purpose, which leads them to the great trees housing their "mothers..." Also, another fun observation: the astrolabe near the Church of the Plague overlooking Radahn's arena is pointing precisely in the direction of the Valkyrie's Prosthesis all the way in the Shaded Castle. Talk about fate written in the stars.

Zullie i just wanted to say thank you for all your dedication to the Souls Franchise and Datamining iIreally enjoyed your videos and still enjoy them from time to time. Keep on the good work in my mind youre on of the RU-vidrs we have but dont deserve. Bless your body and soul and stay both sound and healthy. English is not my first language but i hope i could have declared the things as i feel them. I have respect for your work and thank you for sharing it in this awesome formate.

Always love your stuff Zullie, but this is SO good. Bravo, bravo

Millicent and sisters of rot reminds me a lot about Zero and her sisters in Drakengard 3

"If I am to flower into something other than myself, I would rather rot into nothingness as I am." - Millicent

1:16 "While this seems odd" We're talking about gods and demi-gods, odd is the normal to them.

The sweet tarnished and dear companion probably means there were plans for an Age Of Rot ending as Malenia's Lord. This would have made more sense than that weird blessing of despair ending.

It makes me wonder if the mini aeonia outside of Malenia’s arena was originally going to be Millicent’s after completing her questline but was simply left in to give us the traveler set

Of course your deep dives into the Fromsoft code, models and cut content are fantastic, but I love the way you present these lore videos.

I remember the first time I played Elden Ring at launch, It was too early for there to be any guides or spoilers, and I thought Millicent was in fact Malenia herself, the prosthetic arm being in a castle with ties to Malenia, her physical similarity, fighting with a similar weapon, her relationship with the rot. Once I reached Eaphel I thought she would recover the memories of her true self, I was filled with anticipation...

this channel never misses

"If I am to flower into something other than myself, I would rather rot away into nothingness as I am."

Amazing!!! this story is incredible

Just wanted to say how amazing you are, love your videos! :)

There are huge un-blossomed flower buds all over Aeonia, the greatest cluster of which seems to be the one tended by the servants of rot along Caelid Highway (you can find this sort of pest "base" at Caelid Waypoint Ruins, southwest of the Astray from Caelid Highway North site of grace). Teams of pests patrol the highway with their dogs, as if trying to protect their quarry. Everything from the wall south of Caelem Ruins to the Caelid Highway South site of grace seem to be dominated and guarded by the pests, and the same area--the western bank from the swamp to the ocean--is the area with the highest concentration of developing buds. I believe this, generally, is where the daughters come from. Though there are plenty of buds on the Heart of Aeonia itself, where the needle is eventually retrieved, these are guarded by the Commander and dozens of Cleanrot Knights, meaning the largest unguarded cluster is Caelid Waypoint Ruins. It stands to reason the kindred can't tend this area as Gowry clearly needs outside help retrieving the needle (in the form of the Tarnished). The south coast is patrolled by a Night's Cavalry and Sellian Marionettes/Avionettes, which would also explain why the Kindred don't farm there too. It could also be that the smaller swamp at the Caelid Waypoint Ruins is more fertile and they have enough buds to tend without bothering with engaging the Sellians. I think the daughters are growing within the scarlet buds and are retrieved by the kindred of rot when dropped from them as they bloom--much like in the theory that Melina was retrieved after dropping from the Erdtree in one of the receptacles at Erdtree Sanctuary, which is the process I believe is depicted in the relief you show in this video. I'm currently riding around Caelid with this message unfinished looking for other clusters of these buds, and proximity to pests, but I'm not finding much that seems like it's in a safe place for them to farm. If anyone else finds some locations like this it'd be interesting to learn of them, but it seems that the Aeonia flowers along Caelid Highway are essentially a Valkyrie Plantation and this is where the daughters are coming from.

"Just eat the freaking boluses!" -my tarnished probably

I love the idea of Millicent being an offshoot of Malenia, in keeping with the arboreal theme. The reverse of a grafting; a cutting, snipped off the main plant and replanted to live independently. Or maybe a spore.

I always thought Millicent and the others were born from the blood Malenia lost in her battle against Radahn, similar to the little erdtrees that sprout from our tarnished's death spot. IMO goes to show nobody is human or at least aren't born the normal way. Excelent video btw, hopefully the dlc and updates will continue Millies quest

I never have nor probably will play elden ring, but the lore vids are addicting and I can’t stop watching.

I like how music from Demon's Souls fits the mood of Elden Ring and videos on this channel.

I had wondered who was interested in Malenia’s rotussy enough to sire children. Millecent and her sisters being supernaturally formed from the primordial rot ooze, Millicent being an Empyrean, or a cast off part of Malenia’s body are really intriguing theories. This was a good forensic episode.

First they debut in the Elden Ring manga, and now you make a vid for the Aeonia Sisters? February must be their month. Great vid and timing!

These are some beatiful shots, Zulie

Millicent is the best, most tragic From Soft character since Lucatiel IMO. I love this content!

It seems super plausible to me that the story of Millicent and Malenia was partially inspired by Yoko Taro's work on Drakengard 3. Taro and Miyazaki seem to be on good terms with one another, and there's some striking similarities to note - in Drakengard 3, the protagonist Zero is host to an evil flower that takes root in her eye and threatens to bloom and destroy the world. The main plot consists of her hunting down her 'sisters', who are actually offshoots of herself created by the Flower the first time she attempted to kill it. The imagery of the Flower when it blooms at the end of the game is also very reminiscent of Malenia's Scarlet Aeonia - and Malenia has five daughters, just as Zero has five sisters.

I think it's like how some plants sprout clones of themselves directly from their roots.

It seemed to me that millicent was always meant to be malenia who had lost her memories after unleashing the scarlet aeonia, but it didn't quite make it into the final version of the game so she became something like a clone