It’s no secret that sylvaris borrow a lot to celtic myths and legends, but most specifically to Arthurian mythology. I could (should) put more thought in this and provide a full-length essay on every parallel in game (now that I’ve noticed the pattern, you can be sure I’ll be looking for them and dig out and examine every little piece of lore to see how it fits into the arthurian legend!) but I’ll keep it simple and focus on Trahearne only.
Huge revelation to come :
Trahearne is King Arthur.
They bear a weapon that was never forged, Caladbolg, gifted by a magical being.
“But, Arthur’s sword is Excalibur, we all know that!”
In some versions of the myth there are two swords - the sword in the Lake, and the sword in the stone. Excalibur and Caliburn. In other versions of the myth, the two swords are one and the same.
Excalibur or Caliburn, it matters little, as both names derive from the same root. Caledfwlch in welsh. Calesvol in Middle Cornish. Caladbolg in Irish.
Arthur recieves his sword as a gift from the Lady of the Lake. Trahearne from the Pale Tree.
They are burdened with an impossible task.
For Arthur, unifying Britain and finding the Grail. For Trahearne, unifying the Pact and restoring Orr. One fails, the other succeeds. (Yay for Trahearne!)
They lay mortally wounded against a tree, surrounded by a few of their friends.
Arthur lays against a tree, mortally wounded by his son, Mordred. Trahearne lays entangled in vines, possessed and mortally wounded by his grandfather, Mordremoth.
Their dying breaths are for their swords.
Arthur asks his knight or Merlin (depending on the version) to toss it into the Lake whence it came. Trahearne requests his sword to kill him and free him from Mordremoth.
They are taken by the mist, to Avalon, where they rest until the world needs them and they awaken.
Arthur is taken to the Isle of Avalon (meaning the Isle of apple trees), to take his final rest, or recover till Britain needs him. Trahearne is still found in Caer Aval (meaning the Castle of apple trees) after the events of Heart of Thorns… waiting for the moment he may return, perhaps ?
These are the few parallels I gathered since yesterday, but I’m certain there will be more. Feel free to add to the list if you noticed some!
