#old penitent

[the-east-art]

Third time trying to upload thisssss

[flame-shadow]

preacher, penitent, and puffball

[mooneatercanvas]

Would like to thank @the-east-art for the incredible ship that is Sherma and the Old Penitent

They’re incredibly cute together!

[old-penitent]

“the penitent is dead!”

“we know”

“who killed him?”

“we don’t know”

“i will find clues!”

...

*wHEeze*

OOC: This is non-canon to Old Penitent, but canon to me when I saw this. I did not expect the Heavy Is Dead joke...

[silkenbride]

I saw your tier list and would like to know what you find interesting/compelling about the following characters: Styx

both Maskmakers Greyroot Groal Jailed penitent NPC dude from the slab

Tierlist here.

These aren't going to be terribly detailed answers as I largely haven't ruminated on these guys too much (yet), so this is all more of what immediately strikes me when referring to these npcs. More specific questions are welcome! If you have more reasons for me to be compelled, let me know!

Styx is really interesting less for his personality and more for the fact that he is choosing that personality. That he has so many masks, no fixed identity but he does still hold true to this notion of "old laws" on strong and weak. I believe it's still him in Steel Soul taking the Silkeaters, just now using another mask because he can't be weak but neither is he capable of being strong. Maybe switching the mask made him molt into another form, uncertain, but I think it's still him trying to survive according to his beliefs. So, like, fanart of him being the submissive boy to Hornet is funny but not what personally compels. I want to trap him in a little jar and figure out his neuroses, how many masks has he donned, does he feel fulfilled, can he feel fulfilled, what will he do if someone like hornet refuses to accept him masked and only playing a part?

Silksong Mask Maker is hot, so point there for that. I would say I find both Mask Makers compelling less for their individual personalities (esp when they r masked) and more for their place in the world and lore. Masks are such a huge thing in these games and they have always confused and enchanted me in equal measure. The fact that the Wyrm is not the only one to give masks is so interesting, that the mask makes SS Mask Maker not "lucid", that his (and presumably HK's) task is "heavy" when not masked... They also have so much knowledge of the Greater Plot and Higher Beings which perhaps could be contributed to the fact that they are making masks for a whole kingdom and are seemingly the only ones doing it, but if that's not the cause or only part of it, then how? SS Mask Maker knows Horner as a Higher Being which is a trait only shared by Mr. Mushrooms and the Snail Shamans. They both have the same crazy eyes. Is Mask Maker a given role or one you're born into? Is there only ever one? I just have soooo many questions and I am so interested in them. And also the SS Mask Maker is hot. Did I mention that.

Greyroot is also compelling more for lore than for character. I am really fascinated that she's a Root like the White Lady, that you cannot hear her thoughts with the Needolin though you can dream nail the White Lady, and is her baby another her or her child? What's the result of the birthing from a Wyrm Child and the Monarch? She doesn't have enough personality to compel me to be Number One Greyroot Fan but I am intrigued.

Groal is amazing and idk what more I could say. How can one not be compelled by a bug and their people who have been forced to live in muck and misery and want to rise up against the ones who put them there, even to the point of harvesting a Shaman's Soul? Listen. If Groal were conventionally hotter I knowwwwwww people would be way more into them. The juice is there! There's so much you could do with Groal! What were they like before? What do their people think of them? What would the aftermath be for them and the Stilkin if they got revenge on the Citadel? Can you kiss Groal? I love Groal. Open your heart. See the potential in Groal.

Old Penitent is compelling in the same way that Sherma is - I like characters who have faith. How their relationship to it changes or doesn't, what it means to have their faith challenged, how long they can hold onto it, etc. The fact he is still faithful even with an age spent in solitary prison is very moving and interesting to me. His reaction to Hornet's playing and eventually joining her song is, like, ugh. I love it. I think fictional bugs having faith is so great for delving into. I want him to have more dialogue. Also Old Penitent is hot. Maybe I have a type.

[xel-the-revenant]

*Xel hears steps. Soft ones. Familiar ones.*

*The Old Penitent stumbles through the Slab, eyes downcast and empty, looking a decade older - not that it makes much difference.*

- @old-penitent

(The cavern where Xel dwells has changed.)

(There is a settlement of flies on the banks of the lake, and a large temple right at the edges. There are statues of Xel, carved with mediocre quality, and idols littered around. At the back of the temple is a raised basin of Void with offerings set beneath it. Xel dwells in this basin.)

(They perk up when seeing the Penitent, but try - and fail - not to look too excited.)

Guiltless One.

... You have returned.

[pileofblanks]

Finley's random Silksong observations #1:

(Starting this thing cause i wanna yap about some maybe more niche-er things, observations may range from full on theorising and aus to 'i thing vog is neat bc i like big women yeay :)' so be warned)

Let's start this off by talking about an npc i haven't really seen people discuss much, despite being quite curious... let's analyse and theorise about:

The Old Penitent

Basic info: You can find this guy in The Slab in one of the big cell rooms. He comes out of hiding only when you play the needolin, upon which he is suprised to hear music and asks if you are from the citadel and if there's more of you.

(This reminds me a bit of Loam's dialogue, where he thought his work is finaly over and you came to take him to the citadel. Upon realising that's not the case, he goes back to work but invites you to work as well... same with the penitent, who invites you to stay, sing and repent with him... maybe he also thought his sins were finaly forgiven by the citadel, just for that brief bit..? :(

Back to the point: hornet calls him a prisoner, upon which we learn he does not see the slab as a prison, but as a place of reverence, and a place to hide away from the shame of your sins, and speaks about the citadel as a graceful thing (pretty in line with the other penitents....mostly). He is taken aback when hornet suggests to free him, and stammers in his dialogue when saying that that's strange and he could never (....first theory sounds more likely...).

Then he proceeds to give out lore on why the flies are jailors - they too are penitents, repenting for a sacrelige long forgotten their caste once commited a long time ago... curious that he knows this.

Second meeting -

This does not narrow his sin down exactly, it could be a number of things.... buuuut....

I have a bit of a theory.

When you play the needolin again, and he joins in, he sings:

Really interesting stuff you are singing sir??

At first it doesn't look too out of place, very in line with his character, but "From wastes, from darkness... Voices... Pleading...Drawn down... Blessed call... Sisters...accord... Silence above...".

Darkness from below. Voices pleading, calling you to come down. Silence what's above. I think he's singing about The Void.

From both the games we know that there was an ancient caste of bugs that worshipped the void though much of how they work and what beliefs they held remains shrouded in mystery. We only really know that they embraced the call of the void (literally), desiring to be cleansed off of desires by it, leaving only a shade behind.

(Though we do know that they are not the only ones thinking positively of the void, as the snail shamans have an affinity to it, but idk the shamans are weirdos. Also i have not beaten steel soul yet and so i havent uhhh met the new npcs, which probably also talk more about it)

Either way, whatever they believed in, they sought to uhh yknow. Empower the void. Likely spreading it a bit.

And uhhhh. With Weavernest Absolom being in the abyss, yeah the Weavers very much must have learned that. It's pretty easy to imagine that with the citadel being built and it's laws being set, they would 100% see embracing the void as a huge sin, both for not wanting work, wanting to escape, and yknow. Worshipping something that isn't GMS and could cause some real damage if gotten out of hand, including yknow. Killing her. Yeah. Bad!

Grave enough sin to be taken away, to repent for a long long looooong time. Long enough to learn parts of history long forgotten, of the shame the flies carry... long enough to forget, and to abandon your old beliefs and accept new ones. (Especially if yknow, the ancients sound a bit like a death cult imo. Uh, wouldn't blame you if you felt a little glad that you dont have to embrace that anymore and happy to believe in something else, even if the new faith also sucks ass)

So yeah basically what im saying is that, our friend here might actually be a real survivor of the ancient times! Maybe even the only one out there! :0

Last piece of evidence for this i got: the song he sings. Now i admit, im a little tone deaf, hence why im throwing this here at the bottom but, to me his singing sound a ton like the Elegy of the Deep hornet can play on her needolin? I cant seem to put the audio here on mobile, so ill just link it:

You can hear his singing on his wiki here: https://hollowknight.wiki/w/Old_Penitent

And the Elegy of the Deep here: https://youtu.be/la0Yv9yXlrg?si=60u2dQUdtNoOk_5X

Feel free to compare it yourself :)

If it's the same song, then that. Yeah i feel like that confirms this. He automatically defaults to singing the elegy, a song only void worshippers like the shamans know of.

This peepaw in ancient and has commited war void crimes and has been here for all of eternity.

(Finally i'll leave you with the line 'Sisters... accord'. I dont qujte know what to make of it... the only things that come to mind is that he is talking about the weavers, who see themselves often as sisters in god gms, or that the ancient caste was compromised of women that also saw themselves as sisters. If latter was the case? This bug traaans. Damn the slab might be a shitass disgusting dangerous place but hey at the fucking least they provide that bug hrt let's go #diversity win)

[the-east-art]

Staying in a cell for who knows how long means that the journey to the First Shrine takes a while. They break at the hot spring.

Bonus