Some lore of every tool: Cogwork Wheel and sawtooth circlet
It should be obvious why I'm breaking order again to put these two together
It is pretty obvious that it was Hornet who specifically requested a buzzsaw to Architect ("you have affinity for such radial blades?"), who then offers their own ideas to add to the design ("I can b-build upon the idea-knowledge. Make them retract. Make them force-store.")
Now, it is clear this is another case of Hornet being her father's daughter (and kind of a confirmation that the white palace buzzsaws did in fact exist at least to an extent) but maybe it isn't the only point of inspiraton
Although I gotta say, that attack reminds me more of the sawtooth circlet than the cogwheel; it would also be cool if this is actually foreshadowing for a DLC tool
Talking about Hornet's home Kingdom, the cogwork motor has an appeareance that is quite familiar to me
The resemblance might be superficial, but these City of Tears levers were the first thing I thought about after "omg buzzsaw"
It is curious that this "cog" wheel has 12 blades
It could be seen as a subtle reference to the 12 hour marks of an analog clock, which is ironic, as there are no clocks in Pharloom, not ones marking a day night cycle divided into hours, only a gargantuan, finely calibrated music box; even the change from "clockwork" to "cogwork" was likely not just to be unique and fancy, but to obfuscate what exactly goes on with time in Hollow knight: Team Cherry has made sure to avoid any mention or showing of celestial bodies both in the game and when overseeing the creation of the Wanderer's Journal (only exceptions being Radiance going all "DAWN SHALL BREAK" and a single mention of the Moon by the Herald, also known as Mr "I make meta references to other games" Mushroom)
Or maybe it is a reference to 12th Architect (...wait, is 12th Architect a reference to the 12 hours too?)
Not a single clock hand on this
Looking at it, this tool could be considered a miniature, unmanned, bladed monowheel
Now, I may not need to point this out, but this engine is a wind-up mechanism (you can see the key hole at the center), one powered by a mainspring, like every good clock cogwork does
You can even see some mainsprings in the Core
Here's a rough diagram of the key components (with an angled view of the compact loaded form with the winding key inserted, to the left of my signature)
When the tool expires, the blades break first then the engine breaks upon hitting the floor, but I think only the blades break in universe and new ones just get crafted to be added back to the retrieved motor
The wheel part of the name is very literal, the blades seem to not be flat but shaped like the shell of a worm or a centipede, with sharp keel and edges
Both Hallownest and Pharloom imitate the look of shells in their crafts, from pottery to machinery, even if said objects aren't directly made out of husks or fossils
The mechanism through which the motor makes the blade spin is rather simple as you can see, but it is a different story for the deployment of the blade itself
At first one might think it just works like the shutter of a camera, but that doesn't quite work with the way each section pops out in steps
The sawtooth circlet might be a good clue here, although I doubt this chain is held by thread
Realized this after having already drawn the diagram, but it seems like the lock plates visible before the tool hits the floor work by blocking the blades from coming out, meaning the whole thing is connected and spring-loaded, not just the engine; there's also the way doesn't just come out but also seem to lock in place right after
Trying to figure out this part is driving me crazy
the first tooth has to spring outwards and lock in place like a shutter then the rest of the teeth have to come out telescopically from it, following the rotation as when they complete the circuit the rotation actually starts, but they have to come out in the exact rotation order, not the last one coming out first like it would if they were being pulled into place like a chain; pneumatics could maybe work but I don't think this mechanism involves anything other than cog work and maybe pulling threads
I'm so close to grasping a working idea, like if I knew more about clockwork I would've already solved this
Maybe something involving a single step geneva drive?
This blade unfolding mechanism would be far simpler if the drive of the whole chain was the last link being pulled into place, or if it was just like a shutter
Yeah closest thing I got is a telescopic action guided by the rotation pulling the last link along, which was one of my first thoughts, but that would result in a slightly different animation
Honestly I might want to hear the thoughts of someone that actually has in-depth knowledge about gears and clockwork for this one, so I'd appreciate if the word spread
Would love to see someone come up with a working reproduction of this tool, at least in a digital simulation
I wonder if Hornet proposed the buzzsaw idea after seeing Architect held these
The way this is designed, it implies Hornet has hooks on her cloak's hem (or that she sews and breaks the hem every time she equips and unequips the tool, but I want to think Hornet is reasonable)
Such detail in the cloak would prove useful in the carrying of tools and materials ngl
...this just makes me wonder how exactly does the drifter's cloak work
like yes it is Mary Poppins, but are the spines along the lenght like an umbrella? or in the hem?
The spines are flexible, but so flexible that the cloak continues to function as if it has nothing inside? and through what mechanism do they stiffen? does Hornet pull on a thread to lock into the umbrella position?
Honestly this might just be suspension of disbelief
If you think about it, the principle behind this tool is exactly the same as one of the most iconic parts of Karmelita's moveset, she just uses bone instead of steel
Ironically this attack looks more like the cogwheel than the circlet, directly mirroring the situation with the Splinterbark
