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Description
Specifically for the FantasyLegends "Darkest Before Dawn Contest"
This is Dark Souls fanart. I thought it would be fitting because of the main themes of darkness and light, death and rebirth. Every flame must go out. But even a small Ember is enough to reignite the fires.
Dark Souls lore is clouded in mystery, but this is basically it: The world started off with nothing but giant grey trees and the world was ruled by immortal, "everlasting" dragons. There was no disparity, no light, no dark, just grey. Grey everywhere. One day, a flame sparked into existence, creating the First Flame. With the birth of the First Flame came disparity: Life and death, Light and Dark, warm and cold. Along with disparity came Souls, the spirits of every living thing. The first 4 "Lord Souls" (very powerful souls) were created in the Flame, and 4 beings found the souls and became the first Lords of Cinder. The Lords of Cinder, using their new-found powers, overthrew the Everlasting Dragon's rule and started the "Age of Fire", or the age of Gods. But, all flames must eventually die out. So when the Flame started to go out, civilizations started crumbling, and people's souls began to leave their bodies. Gwyn, The First Lord of Cinder, used the power of his Soul to refuel the flames, sacrificing his Soul and humanity in the process. Since Gwyn defied nature and the natural order of things (by preventing the flame from dying), he created a curse. Every mortal being was fated to become "Undead". The Undead were essentially immortal beings. Every time they died, they were resurrected at Bonfires, ritualistic Fires created from the corpses of the Undead, linked to the First Flame. But even after Gwyn's sacrifice, the Flames will eventually die again.
The Dark Souls game begins after all the events above have transpired, and the First Flame is going out once again; The world is shrouded in Darkness and the is falling back into a "Dormant" state. You are an Undead warrior, forever cursed to be resurrected after death, and fated to be the one to reignite the Flames with your Soul and the Souls of your fallen enemies. You cannot die: Every time you do, you are resurrected at a Bonfire, but some of your humanity and Soul is sacrificed in the process.
The Image I depicted is of the Undead Warrior, having just been resurrected at a Bonfire, staring at what remains of the Sun in this current iteration of the cycle of Darkness and Light. I like to think that the cycle has already been completed countless times, and this is just the end or beginning of a new one.
The painting I created relates to the theme of this contest on several levels:
1. The game is centered around a large cycle of Light and Dark. The Age of Fire and The Age of Darkness are in an eternal cycle: All Flames must eventually fade, and all Flames can be started by a small, single Ember (The player).
2. The Player is Undead, forever fated to be reborn at a Bonfire. And Bonfires flames made from a ritual which involves impaling a rituali sword into the corpse of an Undead; what remains of their souls are used to fuel the Bonfire. So you are literally reborn from the ashes of another person
3. The "Dawn From Darkness" is not because of the Sun. In fact it's the complete opposite. You, the Player character, is the one who will bring light back into the world. When you look at the painting, the Sun represents the imminent Darkness, and you represent the last hope for Light. The Bonfire represents birth, death, and rebirth again.
So yeah, that seemed like a lot to take in. But if you have played the Dark Souls games and know the lore behind Dark Souls, then you'll get a better understanding of how this image represents death and rebirth.
This is Dark Souls fanart. I thought it would be fitting because of the main themes of darkness and light, death and rebirth. Every flame must go out. But even a small Ember is enough to reignite the fires.
Dark Souls lore is clouded in mystery, but this is basically it: The world started off with nothing but giant grey trees and the world was ruled by immortal, "everlasting" dragons. There was no disparity, no light, no dark, just grey. Grey everywhere. One day, a flame sparked into existence, creating the First Flame. With the birth of the First Flame came disparity: Life and death, Light and Dark, warm and cold. Along with disparity came Souls, the spirits of every living thing. The first 4 "Lord Souls" (very powerful souls) were created in the Flame, and 4 beings found the souls and became the first Lords of Cinder. The Lords of Cinder, using their new-found powers, overthrew the Everlasting Dragon's rule and started the "Age of Fire", or the age of Gods. But, all flames must eventually die out. So when the Flame started to go out, civilizations started crumbling, and people's souls began to leave their bodies. Gwyn, The First Lord of Cinder, used the power of his Soul to refuel the flames, sacrificing his Soul and humanity in the process. Since Gwyn defied nature and the natural order of things (by preventing the flame from dying), he created a curse. Every mortal being was fated to become "Undead". The Undead were essentially immortal beings. Every time they died, they were resurrected at Bonfires, ritualistic Fires created from the corpses of the Undead, linked to the First Flame. But even after Gwyn's sacrifice, the Flames will eventually die again.
The Dark Souls game begins after all the events above have transpired, and the First Flame is going out once again; The world is shrouded in Darkness and the is falling back into a "Dormant" state. You are an Undead warrior, forever cursed to be resurrected after death, and fated to be the one to reignite the Flames with your Soul and the Souls of your fallen enemies. You cannot die: Every time you do, you are resurrected at a Bonfire, but some of your humanity and Soul is sacrificed in the process.
The Image I depicted is of the Undead Warrior, having just been resurrected at a Bonfire, staring at what remains of the Sun in this current iteration of the cycle of Darkness and Light. I like to think that the cycle has already been completed countless times, and this is just the end or beginning of a new one.
The painting I created relates to the theme of this contest on several levels:
1. The game is centered around a large cycle of Light and Dark. The Age of Fire and The Age of Darkness are in an eternal cycle: All Flames must eventually fade, and all Flames can be started by a small, single Ember (The player).
2. The Player is Undead, forever fated to be reborn at a Bonfire. And Bonfires flames made from a ritual which involves impaling a rituali sword into the corpse of an Undead; what remains of their souls are used to fuel the Bonfire. So you are literally reborn from the ashes of another person
3. The "Dawn From Darkness" is not because of the Sun. In fact it's the complete opposite. You, the Player character, is the one who will bring light back into the world. When you look at the painting, the Sun represents the imminent Darkness, and you represent the last hope for Light. The Bonfire represents birth, death, and rebirth again.
So yeah, that seemed like a lot to take in. But if you have played the Dark Souls games and know the lore behind Dark Souls, then you'll get a better understanding of how this image represents death and rebirth.
Image size
2700x2100px 6.49 MB
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Comments23
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Born of graves and left bellow
Painted ashes, painted snow
When the dark awakens
Fires of our last hope are getting low
Age of Dark and Age of Men
Turn to Ashes to ascend
Fate has chosen, and our fading light is
at
its
end
Painted ashes, painted snow
When the dark awakens
Fires of our last hope are getting low
Age of Dark and Age of Men
Turn to Ashes to ascend
Fate has chosen, and our fading light is
at
its
end