Shadow Of The Erdtree - Blog Posts
okay so i’ve been playing the elden ring dlc and all i gotta say is
i would like to give him a kiss on the forehead please and thank you
a screenshot redraw of messmer i started months ago, hello elden ring fandom, i am finally posting this.
Okay hear me out, there's something about twins who are trans in opposite directions, because I 1000% feel this way about Malenia and Miquella from Elden Ring
Like. Their curses could be read a lot of different ways, symbolically, but here's my personal reading:
Malenia was born with a god of rot inside her, something that gives her physical strength and power but also distorts and corrupts her body in ways she can't control- she dedicates her life to learning how to move through the world in ways that minimize its influence, but it keeps coming back to haunt her bc she doesn't have the tools available to be rid of it, and the tool she does have (the gold needle) she is forced to abandon when war breaks out and the rot is required from her to survive her fight against Radahn
Miquella is cursed to appear eternally youthful and feminine, often being confused with / identified as St Trina, a distinctly female saint of sleep (this identity is abandoned alongside his "doubts" in the DLC, wherein he also abandons his physical body on the journey towards godhood). He goes to great lengths to escape this curse, nursing the Haligtree with his own blood so he could be reborn within its womb, not to mention all the other stuff that happens in the DLC
My favourite part of this is how DEVOTED they are to helping each other become who they want to be.
Miquella abandoned the Golden Order when it became clear they couldn't help his sister. He learned the secrets of unalloyed gold and built a golden needle she could stab into her flesh to stave off the worst of the rot, and it WORKED- she only abandoned it when forced to in order to survive (re: Radahn fight), an action that had lasting consequences to her body and her health
Malenia devoted her life to being Miquella's blade, to protecting her brother, defending his Haligtree and his best hope at escaping his curse and not being eternally youthful and feminine anymore. In becoming the Blade of Miquella, she learned how to move like flowing water so the rot would not stagnate within her. Her devotion to her brother helped her learn who she could want to be.
It's also implied that Miquella helped create Malenia's armour / sword / prostheses, allowing his sister to reshape her own body when it changed too much for her to handle; and when she needed to reshape it to be the swordswoman she was devoted to being
so YEAH. it's a messy complicated nuanced metaphor (which makes me love it even more) but if the Rot is Malenia's T and dysphoria, the unalloyed gold is T-blockers, and Miquella's curse being his body which he goes to great lengths to change (and eventually abandons), then. ✨Trans Twin Prodigies✨
But more importantly, Malenia has TITS; this implies the Golden Order is capable of producing estrogen, but NOT t-blockers or testosterone, and they aren't that big, so probably not progesterone- NO, CMON, LET ME COOK, JUST ONE MORE PARAGRAPH, JUST ONE, I SWEAR-*gunshot*
Head-canon. Artemis and Apollo are both trans, just in the opposite direction.
My girlfriend's tarnished gal
We were joking that with the sunflower boss fromsoft has really connected with their core audience - people who miss beating grass with a stick as a kid. And it got me thinking - is it even a universal childhood experience? Do americans have fond memories about fighting local flora?
Extra points if it's dangerous flora, like nettle, then it can fight back and the fight has more stakes
There's some delicious irony in the fact that the omen twins are probably the most accomplished and successful demigods in the family despite having all the odds stacked against them.
Morgott
is the ruling king of Leyndell
has one of the most powerful armies in the lands between, only really being beaten out by Miquella's haligtree forces and Messmer's crusade army
has successfully guarded the capital from both the redmanes and volcano manor invasions and chased Godrick and Godefroy from its walls
is a master of holy magic, being able to project himself across the lands, seal multiple pathways to dangerous artefacts (the giants forge and the 3 fingers) and cast a myriad of holy weapon spells which he all likely had to self teach.
Mohg
is the lord of a budding dynasty
had some of the most loyal followers out of all of the demigods, despite his Omen heritage, which he wore openly and proudly
had such loyal followers that even after the dynasty's collapse, a small handful were still willing to fight a god to the death to do right by him
is a master of blood magic
can also project illusions of himself
somehow learned of a way to access the sealed away land of shadow, an ability so exclusive to him that Miquella had to use him to gain access to it.
has gained the favour of a fucking outer god! a feat that no other basic demigod was capable of
all of which was also probably self taught due to growing up in isolation in the sewers.
These two absolutely amaze me. They had everything stacked against them and were still able to forge a place for themselves in the lands between.
Honestly when you think about it, it makes a lot of sense that the lands between and land of shadow don't connect perfectly when you try to overlay the maps, even though they were once part of the same landmass.
The two have been separated for many years by the time the game takes place, and have both developed independently through untold years of turmoil, war, natural disasters and weathering.
I'd be more surprised if they did connect properly after all of that.
My take on the promised consort.
I believe that Radahn held the stars in place when Ranni began fearing her fate. She never wanted to become a puppet to the two fingers, and Radahn knowing this attempted to hold off her destiny for as long as possible. Though he likely knew that it would be an inevitability. The only other two living empyreans were cursed afterall.
There was no way that Miquella or Malenia would be able to take Marika’s place, the two fingers weren’t even the slightest bit interested in either of them. Malenia was already claimed by the God of Rot and Miquella was perpetually in a state of adolescence. Ranni seems to be the only one who was ever actively bothered by her fingers and I believe this is because they had an intense desire for her to be the next god, assuming Miquella and Malenia as lost causes due to their curse.
I think this is when Miquella came to Radahn with a proposition. He will be seeking godhood. Even if the two fingers had no interest in him, even if the world thought him too small and frail to ascend, he was going to find a way, no matter the consequences. He was determined to become the next God and lead the world into an era of abundance and peace. To fix the mistakes of the past.
He only had one simple request.
“Promise me, you’ll be my consort.”
If Miquella were to ascend then Ranni would be free of her duty. She’d be able to live in peace knowing that she’d never have to be controlled by another's will. She wouldn’t have to become a god, she wouldn’t have to succeed queen Marika. And to top it all off, Radahn would get to play the role of his hero Godfrey. Ushering in a new era alongside a new god.
It was perfect.
That was, until the night of the black knives. The night the world was thrown into chaos. The night that the first demigods fell. And the night that he lost his sister.
Radahn likely wouldn’t have known about Ranni’s plot and would have thought her dead alongside the other victims of the night. Ranni was gone, and with her, so too was Radahns need for Miquella’s age.
I believe Radahn, fueled by grief, rage and the mad taint of his greatrune, denounced Miquella and struck out on his own as a warrior of the shattering. He didn’t need peace, he didn’t need Miquella. All he wanted was to fight. All he wanted now was endless war.
Maybe that would be enough to dull the pain of his loss? Not only the loss of his sibling and father, but also the loss of his purpose.
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Now picture Miquella. Making the final preparations to begin his ascension. Only there’s one problem. His consort has abandoned him at the very last moment. As it turns out, it seems Radahn never really cared for Miquella or his visions for a new age, he was only really in it for his own gain.
Imagine how devastated Miquella would be. Knowing that yet another one of his plans had fallen apart at the finish line. That the person he trusted to rule alongside him didn’t even hesitate to abandon him when it was no longer convenient for him.
His ascension to godhood would never happen. He would never be able to heal his sister. He would never be able to bring forth an age of compassion. He would never be able to right the wrongs of the past.
He had failed again.
Now imagine how furious this would make his people. How angry his followers and his sister would be to see Miquella rejected at such a pivotal moment. To see him mourning a consortship and an age that would never come to pass.
Is there really any wonder that they chose to march towards Caelid and deliver the promised consort by force?
The quiet tragedy of shadow of the erdtree is playing through the DLC, encountering cross after cross along your journey and slowly coming to the haunting realisation that Miquella, the person you’ve been tailing throughout the entirety of the DLC, the creator of the Haligtree and protector of its denizens, the most fearsome and kind demigod of them all… Is long dead.
He’s not at the divine gates seeking godhood. Not really. The person known as Miquella is buried at the base of each and every cross in the land. Survived only by a few select ailing entities. St. Trina, slowly wilting at the bottom of the world, The Scadutree avatar who inherited his greatrune, and Miquella the Kind at the very peak of Enir-Ilim.
He not only abandoned his flesh, but went so far as to fracture his very soul. His doubts, his fear, his love. All abandoned in an attempt to fashion a perfect god. To right the wrongs of his mother and people and finally bring the world peace.
His flesh, his power, his birthright, his fate, his fear, his doubts, his love… after leaving all that behind, how much of what’s left is actually Miquella?
Miquella may have hurt many people in his quest for godhood, but he himself was never spared from that very same pain. He may have stripped Radahn and Mohg of their dignity and sense of self to fashion into the perfect consort, but he was just as willing to do the same to himself to fashion into the perfect god.
Probably the mildest head cannon I'll ever share on here, but I like to think that Miquella grew his hair out so long because it was literally the only way he could show his actual age with his appearance. He may have been cursed to never grow, but his hair would always be a clear signifier to his peers that he was much more than he appeared.
I just realised that this idea also tracks with their remembrance. The remembrance we receive from beating them isn’t “remembrance of the promised consort” or “remembrance of the kind” it's “remembrance of a god and a lord” it’s Radahn(Mohg) and Miquella together, as one.
It’s the only remembrance in the entire game that names multiple beings in its title, and to my knowledge, the only one that grants items related to different characters.
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This is sort of an unrelated thought but It’s also worth mentioning that in its description it refers to its owner as “Radahn, consort of Miquella” as if it were one being it was related to, despite it clearly being two. Which reminds me of how Godfrey is in some capacity, Serosh and Hoarah Loux together as one. Neither is ultimately more or less important in making up “Godfrey” as the other. Which could also further explain the striking similarities between Godfrey and Consort of Miquella.
Thinking about how Miquella and Radahn as a single boss are the perfect representation of all 3 demigod sibling groups.
Miquella - Marika & Radagon
Radahn - Rennala & Radagon
Mohg - Marika & Godfrey
Not only that but they also represent all 3 magic types.
Faith - Miquella’s holy magic
Intelligence - Radahn’s gravity magic
Arcane - Mohg’s bloodflame magic
The 3 of them converge into one being. Mohg’s body, Radahn’s soul and Miquella’s mind all working in perfect harmony. To become one.
Plot twist:
Radahn initially agreed to be Miquella's consort in order to spare Ranni of her fate of becoming a god, knowing that she wouldn't have to if another were to rise instead. However after she 'died' during the night of the black knives Radahn lost all incentive to uphold his end of the bargain, leading to the battle of Aionia
Recently I’ve been thinking about Radahn and how, despite his pretty major importance to the overall story of elden ring, we really don’t know that much about him. And judging from texts from the game, neither do most of the characters.
He’s the only demigod we meet who never speaks a word, item descriptions regarding him are rather vague with the exception of a few, his relations to his family are largely a mystery and it seems that even his own followers have very conflicting ideas of what he would have wanted.
We never get to hear what the terms to his vow with Miquella was like, we don’t even get to hear whether he agreed to it or not. All we have is Miquella’s account of the events.
Despite having grown up with him, Blaidd talks about Radahn like he’s some stranger he hardly knows of.
Jerren saw him as an honourable warrior.
Freyja saw him as someone who valued war over all else, no matter what side he fought on.
And Miquella saw him as a kind and compassionate figure and the most fitting choice as his king consort for the age of compassion.
This all makes me feel like he must have been an incredibly reserved person. That beneath all of that power, pride and lust for battle was someone who primarily liked to keep to himself. With the exception of the animals that he kept in his care.
I was talking to my friend a while back and he mentioned how it's possible that Miquella/St. Trina got into sleep magic to help Malenia because her condition would have made it near impossible for her to sleep properly and I think it makes so much sense. She almost definitely suffers from chronic pain and I can't even begin to imagine how difficult sleep would have been for her (especially since the scarlet rot seems to have mental influence as well). I can totally see Miquella studying sleep aid spells/recourses to help their sister.
Looking back at all the depictions of Marika in the game and realising that she's missing the braid on her right side in every single one.
She never grew it back out. Never had herself depicted with both braids. Never even restyled her hair in a way that didn't exacerbate the missing half.
It was always there. It was always right there.
Thinking about how Miquella and Radahn as a single boss are the perfect representation of all 3 demigod sibling groups.
Miquella - Marika & Radagon
Radahn - Rennala & Radagon
Mohg - Marika & Godfrey
Not only that but they also represent all 3 magic types.
Faith - Miquella’s holy magic
Intelligence - Radahn’s gravity magic
Arcane - Mohg’s bloodflame magic
The 3 of them converge into one being. Mohg’s body, Radahn’s soul and Miquella’s mind all working in perfect harmony. To become one.
St. Trina's chosen
Thinking about how St. Trina only talks to the player tarnished despite Thiollier's undying loyalty to her.
Thinking about how before traveling with Melina, Torrent belonged to Miquella (and by extension, also Trina)
Thinking about how at some point Torrent was sent out in search of a new master
Thinking about how Ranni's doll body requires her to sleep
Thinking about how St. Trina can visit people in their dreams
Thinking about how “torrent’s former master” asked Ranni to deliver the spirit tuning bell to whoever he chose to serve next
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Did St. Trina put everything in motion? Was she the one who set Torrent out on his search for a new master? Was she the one who asked Ranni to give us the spirit tuning bell? Could it have been one final, desperate plea to find anyone capable of stopping her other half before it was too late for him? Does St. Trina only commune with us because she knows that we're the one who Torrent chose as his new master? Is that why this character, that we never meet before now seemingly has full faith in requesting our aid? because her trusted steed was the one to bring us to her? From the very moment Torrent found us washed up in the lands between, were we destined to find our way to Miquella's/St. Trina's path?
I don't think a game has ever made me feel as physically ill as elden ring did when I found out about how Miquella was using Mohg.
I always had a sneaking suspicion that Mohg's obsession with Miquella had something to do with his charming ability, but never really had much more than a hunch to go off of.
Finding out that that hunch was not only correct, but also how much deeper the rabbit hole went made me feel genuinely sick. He didn’t just charm Mohg, he somehow used him to gain access to the land of shadow, abandoned him and then stole his still warm corpse to desecrate into an entirely different form to house the soul of the consort he actually wanted.
Mohg doesn’t even get a footnote in his little “thank you” speech at the gate of divinity. To him, we were more impactful in his plans coming to fruition for inadvertently delivering Radahn’s soul to him than the person who got him into the land of shadow in the first place. The person who died to become the vessel of his king consort.
I don't know why this part of the game specifically had me feeling so disgusted, it's not really something I can explain. There's just something about this character that was put on such a high pedestal by the world around him, and who has received unconditional love throughout his entire life, weaponizing that very same love against someone that probably struggled with it for most of his life and used it to manipulate, take advantage of and isolate him.
And then when one of his knights comes looking for justice, for the freedom of his master, Miquella just charms him too, burying his memories of his devotion to his lord and stealing him for his own followers.
He stripped Mohg of absolutely everything and used him for his own gain until the very end and beyond. For me, Miquella’s age of compassion died the moment he decided doing that was acceptable.
y'know, it only just hit me recently but like... Marika would definitely have fucking hated modern Godrick right?
Forcing weaker and more vulnerable individuals into horrific experiments of fusing flesh is basically exactly the sort of thing she dealt with growing up under the Hornsent. The practice of grafting would have been a really sore spot for Marika, which is probably why it seems like it only came into practice during the shattering.
Godrick is lucky he started experimenting with grafting after Marika was imprisoned because if she was still around she probably would have come crashing through his roof with her hammer and make Radagon's grab attack look soft.
people are currently freaking out over the elden ring lore book and what it has to say about promised consort Radahn, and I'd just like to point out that despite being an official piece of merchandise, they aren't exactly accurate to the source material.
Like, the very same set of lore books says that Malenia narrowly won the battle of Aionia (despite the game making it abundantly clear that no one won that fight), that Godfrey's banishment and war march happened after the shattering began (which is literally impossible) and that Romina "created the scarlet rot" (do I even have to say anything?).
desperate to do a Mohg deep dive after all the DLC content on him. There's just... so much.
Ansbach's entire demeanour seems completely backwards compared to modern Mohgwyn loyalists we know of. He holds Mohg is such incredibly high regard, and is probably one of, if not the most respectful warrior in a fromsoft game. Were the other pureblood knights like this? What happened to them? Why is Ansbach the only one left?
What could Mohg have been like to install such loyalty and respect in one of his followers, to the point where they'd face a newly born god just to do right in his name?
What caused Ansbach to decide to challenge Miquella in the first place? What tipped him off that Mohg was being used? How long were they interacting before this happened?
Was the Mohgwyn Dynasty always a vicious murder cult? was their once more to the group before Mohg's charming? If there wasn't, why didn't Miquella use his bewitchment of Mohg to stop it? Did he indorse Mohg's actions? Did he incite them.
I know promised consort Radahn is quite a controversial reveal but I honestly think it works really well. Miquella and Radahn were inherently tied together from the very beginning of the game's story, with Malenia and Radahn’s fight to the death. The game put so much emphasis on this battle over every other fight in the shattering that looking back now, knowing what we do, it’s kinda weird that not a lot of people really suspected that there was anything deeper behind the most influential battle in the shattering.
No one really stopped to ask why Melania, sister and blade of kindly and benevolent Miquella would be leading a war march across the entirety of the lands between to challenge Radahn. Why she was so desperate to defeat him that she was willing to release the scarlet rot and possibly destroy herself to take him down. Why the cleanrots and the redmanes hate each other to such a degree that even in death, they still continue to fight. Why Miquella was reaching upwards to the Aionian battle ground when we encountered his body.
I think there was always history between these 3 characters in the game. Not enough on its own to come to the conclusion that Radahn was Miquella’s desired consort, but certainly enough to get you wondering just what was up with them that caused the events to transpire the way they did.
"Miquella being alone in Caelid post battle of Aionia doesn't make any sense timeline wise"
Have people forgotten that half of this family can astral project?
Y'know, I've been thinking about the vow between Miquella and Radahn a lot recently, and I feel like I've come up with a possible explanation for why Radahn seemingly agreed at first but later backed out of the deal.
If Radahn truly did agree to become Miquella's consort, what are the chances that it was made under the pretense that he'd be the next elden lord in the golden order? Continuing the legacy and age of both his personal hero and father, alongside Miquella as the new god of the age, but things remaining overall the same.
Once Miquella became disillusioned with Marika's age and decided to do his own thing, and create his own age, Radahn probably lost interest in becoming his consort because he wouldn't be the lord of the age he loved anymore, infact he would be a major factor in it ending. Something that he historically does not stand for.
This probably lead to a disagreement between the two that lead to Malenia invading Selia. Miquella feeling betrayed because Radahn was now refusing to uphold his promise, and Radahn feeling betrayed because Miquella turned his back on the golden order he loved and was now trying to bring it to an end.
I'm genuinely shocked that so many people were blindsided by the reveal that Miquella was a bit fucked up to the point that some even think that it's a recon. Because honestly there were always signs that something was a bit off with him.
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First of all, and most obvious is that he took part in the shattering. Having Malenia go on a war path across the entirety of the lands between in his name. Even without the context of why this was done, it's still a pretty dubious thing to do.
There's also the fact that him and Malenia were the aggressors in the battle of Aionia. The fight happened just outside of Selia. Right outside of Radahn's home. She rocked up to the town he was protecting looking for a fight. A fight that, may I remind you, devastated Selia and other surrounding locations.
Miquella had done a copious amount of research into Malenia's affliction in search of a cure, I refuse to believe that he didn't have at least some sort of idea as to what could happen if she was pushed far enough. And he still allowed her to enter a battle to the death with radahn that ended up not only ruining both of them, but the entirety of Caelid too. All while he watched on from the sidelines.
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Moving on to a much shorter point, his power to compel affection. A power similar to the bewitching branches, an item that he may have also directly developed, which allows one to override the will of another person to such an extent that they'll turn on their allies and fight by your side.
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This point's something that I brought up in the past, and something that borderlines on headcanon but I think it's worth mentioning.
So, you know castle Sol. The castle in which Miquella attempted a ritual to revive Godwyn. The castle in which half of the key to his haligtree is guarded. The castle that watches directly over said haligtree. The castle in which Miquella definitely has very close ties to.
That castle Sol.
Did you ever notice that it contains a pretty sizeable albernuric torture chamber? One fitted with tools and contraptions that'd make Rykard proud, including the black dumpling.
Now there's no way to prove that Miquella had anything to do with this. He's been absent from castle Sol for decades. I just think it's notable that a castle so synonymous with him has a torture chamber full of the very people he's vowed to fight for.
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Now that's not quite everything. There's also a few more points, like how he's dubbed as the most fearsome empyrean and even some stuff with St. Trina like her cult that developed sleep inducing weaponry to forcibly spread her teachings (though there's no proof she endorsed this), but I think I've made my point. Miquella's always been kind of off. There was just enough ambiguity surrounding him to give his actions the benefit of the doubt. But those actions were still there.
I can't stop thinking about St. Trina in the fissure.
How Miquella likely threw her in from the top. How he sealed her behind a magic gate so nobody could ever find her. How he bewitched and clouded the memories of someone who was a devout follower of her. How the purple liquid seeping from her face almost looks like blood leaking from a wound, possibly the one she obtained from the fall. How she embodies Miquella's love. How she'll likely never get to be with the people she loves ever again.
How even after all of that, after being abandoned and left to rot in the deepest possible pit she could be thrown into, after being completely and utterly betrayed by her other half, her one and only concern is for Miquella's safety and happiness. For him to be freed from the gilded cage of godhood.
Shadow of the Erdtree spoilers
It just occurred to me that if Miquella wanted Mohg to stop his murder cult shenanigans then it was fully in his power to make that happen, as we see with his influence over Leda. So that just begs the question of why he wouldn't stop him.
It definitely wasn't a boundary thing as Miquella's been shown time and time again to not care less about how the opposite party feels when it comes to bewitchment.
I also doubt it was solely to get Mohg killed for his corpse either, because Mohg already had a massive target on his back just by proxy being a shardbearer. There was no need for him to continue the blood cult thing so violently for someone to come after him.
So why would Miquella allow Mohg to continue ravaging the lands between? He's one of the most powerful figure heads in the game and definitely has some of, if not the most followers aswell. Varre, Nerijus, all of the sanguine nobles, Anastasia and Eleanora all travel the lands between causing Chaos and Miquella does nothing. It's almost like he wants this to happen.
It gets me thinking about Eleanora and Yura... How despite being a proud knight she renounced everything for seemingly no reason, to become a bloodthirsty killer. How she devoted herself to Mohg despite holding the very item capable of countering him, as if she actively opposed him at some point. How she seemed almost bewitched by bloodlust. How the festering finger the killers have seemingly has a hold on them, to the point where Yura believes slicing it off would be enough to free her. As if her actions are no longer her own, and haven't been for a long, long time.
...
Maybe Miquella didn't want Mohg to stop.
Maybe he helped him continue for as long as possible.
The stronger the body, the stronger his consort would be when he returns.
Like raising a pig for the slaughter.
Elden ring DLC ending spoilers.
I’ve seen a lot of contention surrounding the main twist regarding Miquella and Radahn in the DLC, primarily the lack of build up to it in the base game, and while I understand where these people are coming from, it's something I can personally forgive.
While it would have been nice to have some sort of hint to who Miquella’s chosen consort would be, or even that he had someone in mind at all in the base game, they did go to great lengths to rectify this in the DLC, and adequately hint at Miquella’s plans and who his consort will be.
Radahn does not in any way come out of nowhere by the end of the DLC. He only comes out of Nowhere if you’re not engaging in the questlines and talking with the characters, which still isn’t perfect mind you, especially with how easily they seem to be breaking at the moment, but this also isn’t a flaw exclusive to the DLC. The base game is just as, if not more guilty of this with its Marika/Radagon twist.
I also think it's a fine twist because it gives context to past events that we could only speculate on before. Mainly, why Radahn and Malenia fought. Despite being such a massive part of the games story, we previously had absolutely no idea why it took place. But now we do. We finally have context behind one of the most important historical battles in the lands between's history.
Elden ring DLC ending spoilers
It's really interesting how Ranni and Miquella’s goals for godhood are basically polar opposites.
Ranni wants to create a better world through absolute freedom while Miquella wants to create a better wolrd through absolute control.
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Ranni believes in and strives for absolute freedom. Both for herself and for all other residents of the world. She doesn’t want to use her power of godhood to rule over the lands between as queen, but instead decides to watch on from a distance and let the people of the world decide for themselves how to live. For better or for worse.
You can also see this in the way she treats her followers. She never forces anyone to do anything. She's borderline remorseful of just how loyal Blaidd and Ijji are towards her, and says in her own words that they are "willing to give to much for her."
It also extends to how she interacts with the tarnished. She holds unimaginable power over them. Able to kill them instantly with a mere glance if she so chooses. But she very rarely does. No matter what you do in her questline, the only time she'll get truly furious enough with them to the point of using that power is if the Tarnished attempts to use Seluvis' tonic on her.
You can ignore her orders in the second half of the questline, betray and attack her right at the end and even straight up not summon her at the end of the game, and the only time she'll ever actively be a threat to you is if you attempt to take away her bodily autonomy.
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Miquella however has no qualms with controlling others to benefit himself, and to force them to do his bidding.
Whether you're friend or foe, you're never truly safe from his powers.
He uses his powers to force his followers to get along and follow in his footsteps. Even ones that are unshakingly loyal to him aren’t spared from having their rougher edges smoothed off by his ability.
He uses his powers to make connections and further his goals. Stealing Mohg’s heart and taking advantage of him to enter the lands of shadow and then later, after he's taken all he can, goes on to desecrate his corpse.
He also likely uses his powers on Radahn, as I wholeheartedly believe that he did not accept Miquella’s proposal to become his consort.
The dude's a golden order loyalist that thrives on the battle ground. I don't see him suddenly siding with Miquella to make the world a "gentler place." Especially since him and Malenia got into such a violent battle during the shattering. And how there's no record anywhere in the game about the connection between Miquella and Radahn.
Because it's entirely one sided.
And the worst part of it all is that he'll convince you that it was your thoughts and feelings all along.
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Ranni's age is an age of doubt and fear because there's truly no knowing how people will chose to move forward with their strings severed. You've just got to put your trust in the good of people and hope that they can manage make the world a better place now that they're free of the god's petty power squabbles.
Miquella's age would be akin to a gilded cage. Peaceful and gentle, but the furthest thing from free that the lands between has ever been. You can't even trust that your own thoughts, feelings and devotion are genuine, because no matter your stance or standing, Miquella the god is all too willing to twist your mind if it will in any way benefit him. And if he for some reason can't? Well, he's got one of the most terrifying and powerful demigods in existence under his control.
If you don't agree with him or like him, Yes you do! Remember? You always have silly! And you always will...