IDV — MY ANALYSIS OF ANN’S LORE & DEDUCTIONS (W/ THEORIES)
CW: death, throw up, murder, illness/plague, abuse/harassment, religion (Christianity), (implied to be forced) conversion, brief self harm mention (only one quote)
written by @hullabalooshoneybee
When she was a little girl, Ann was diagnosed with an illness. Whether she was born with it or developed it is unknown, but the disease caused her eyes to change color to a piercing yellow— like a cat. Coincidentally, a plague had struck her region at the same time she was diagnosed (or at least developing the physical symptoms of her illness).
It was stated by the Identity V devs that the contagion and her illness were not the same. In addition to this, the symptoms from the plague listed in the first deduction ( “... vomiting, spasms, high fever, etc.” ) also prove they are not the same illness since Ann was never mentioned to of demonstrated these symptoms. Regardless, those who knew of Ann’s illness had assumed the diseases were one and the same; blaming her and accusing her of being the one to bear the regional pestilence.
Bear in mind that Ann’s backstory is based around the Black Death and the Salem Witch Trials, meaning majority of the logic behind the diseases were roped back to the Christian God. Because of this, Ann’s neighbors had accused her of being the “eye of evil” or the devil’s eye, saying the epidemic was not a punishment from God as the Bubonic Plague had been, but a curse brought about from (a ‘possessed’) Ann herself.
However, young Ann and her family were shown to be of a separate faith; when her mother fell ill in the second deduction, Ann’s father had prayed to a cat-shaped idol on a shrine. Shrines are regarded as holy due to their associations with divinity, a sacred person or relic, which implies that Ann’s family had worshipped a deity other than the Christian God (considering the Christian God has no known affiliations to cats.) Since those of other faiths were notoriously shamed and harassed by Christians, this could also be a supporting role as to why Ann was blamed for the pandemic.
In the second deduction, Ann is detailed to be crying at a woman’s bedside— likely her mother. This implies that her mother had either fallen ill or died, but it was likely only the illness at the time since Ann’s father was praying rather than mourning or dismissing of the body. However, come third deduction, it is revealed that Ann’s parents had eventually passed away on different occasions (the mourning clothes were worn several times— this could also imply that others in Ann’s family fell ill and died too).
So, what became of Ann? Well, in the fourth deduction, it shows that Ann had inherited her parent’s land and houses (yes, plural; the deductions heavily imply that her parents were wealthy) through her parents’s wills. But the community wasn’t happy, which led to a copious amount of unwanted attention, often in the form of death threats. Not only were they convinced Ann was a creation of the devil and a bearer of plague, but now they held deep jealousy for her inheriting such wealth— such wealth they felt she didn’t deserve.
In the fifth deduction, a priest details in a letter that he was praying for Ann’s family, which had likely also fallen ill from the epidemic. In the letter, he claims that as long as Ann is alive, her curse will continue to infect others.
I theorize that the priest’s letter could’ve been to someone well known in the area, for the following deduction is an example of the harassment Ann faced; a rock with a poorly written message on it, blaming her for the plague and the death of the author’s mother.
Another reason the priest’s letter could of gone to someone higher up or with more influence (or if it became public) has to do with Ann’s death— The town wanted Ann dead since she was a little girl, but the priest’s letter was written closer to Ann’s adulthood (and was likely an influence on her diagnosis in deduction seven, more on this later). If this letter— which essentially claimed Ann’s death would free them— fell into the wrong hands, it could easily be used as motivation for Ann’s murder.
Back to the lore; Not long after the events of deduction six, Ann was given a quite religiously influenced diagnosis. The description of extreme stress and hallucinations lead me to theorize it being a severe case of anxiety or paranoia, but that is heavily up to debate (especially since I am not a licensed professional). Ann was told that her only treatment was to convert; turn to God and pray for salvation, which is why her diagnosis may have to do with the Priest’s letter from the fifth deduction.
So Ann abandoned her faith of the cat-shaped idol and became a nun, pursuing God’s cure ( “An infinite approach to the sun...” ) despite the hatred she gained from it ( “... is equivalent to infinitely hurting yourself” ).
But.. Why did Ann become a nun? Why did she change her faith now, of all times? In the original lore given to us by the Identity V twitter, it explains how Ann had eventually believed the town’s rumors of Ann being a seed of evil. So, since she was convinced she was a horrible person, she was likely desperate for a reason to change and fix herself— especially if it would get her abusers off her case. She likely believed God was her only solution, converting out of desperation for salvation.
During her time as a nun, her eyes had never (returned/became) normal, and the harassment she received had never stopped. She struggled to find the solace she yearned for, which inevitably led to her demise. On the night of a new moon, which symbolizes new beginnings (more on this later), she had made her way to the sanctuary of her Church. Unfortunately, she never made it to the Church since she had been impaled through the heart by a wooden cross— which is likely the cross she bears as a weapon at the Manor.
As she bled out, a cat-shaped shadow had approached her claiming, "I can make your wish come true, once you've sacrificed your last bit of faith” . The figure, theorized to be her family’s original deity/honored spirit, was likely telling her to give up on Christianity and revert back to her original faith. By doing so, Ann would get her wish; her cure.
And so she did. Ann turned her back to the “sun”, and was given her cure; revenge. Ann was risen from the dead, and brought about a new pandemic— a lethal one that targeted not only her region, but only the specific people who harassed and/or murdered her.
The reason her death being on a new moon is so important is due to it’s symbolism, which further enriches Ann’s lore. A new moon represents not only new beginnings, but reflecting on the past. This pairs well with the timing of Ann’s demise since it implies her revival was a new start, much like the moon’s implication. Not only that, but Ann was forced to reflect on her time as a Christian and the treatment she was given, which led to her ultimate choice of revival— and revenge.
There are several theories on Ann’s lore, one of the most notorious being who the cat-figure really is. The most popular theory is that it’s her family’s deity/honored spirit, but other theories suggest the cat is either the devil, or an illusion from the manor. I personally am unsure on what to believe, but all the same I find it interesting how the cat could represent a diverse range of roots.
A theory of mine, however, has to do with the cat and how Ann got to the manor. We know why survivors come to the manor, but what about hunters? Like Dead by Daylight, it seems to be implied that some of them just.. End up there. Appear and exist. But with Ann, I theorize a different case. The cat spirit could of made other deals with Ann, one of them perhaps being that Ann would forever be able to, “...punish those who want to approach the truth” if she agreed to come to the manor and play the Baron’s games.
Ann is one of the most intricately woven characters of Identity V lore, and the fact her background is not officially tied to any other characters makes it all the more difficult to decipher her history. All the same, I hope my analysis helps provide clarity as well as clears up confusion with Ann’s upbringing. All of my sources come directly from Identity V, be it their YouTube, Twitter, or in-game text such as Ann’s deductions.
( If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me! I’d love to discuss theories and whatnot with you all <3 )