ELDEN RING Lore | The Architecture of Castle Morne

I use my education as an architect to discuss the architecture of Elden Ring. In this video I talk about Castle Morne and how the Romanesque architecture, like the fallen leaves, tells a story.

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[lowhangingvegetable]

Yeah this stuff is great. Between you and Tarnished Archeologist there won't be much environmental storytelling left unnoticed.

[brandonjensen]

I love it when creators mix their real jobs with their passions, giving us insights that most people wouldn't have gotten. I'd love a full fledged series of Architecture in not only Elden Ring, but any and all of the Fromsoft games

[ibrahimrafii]

This was great! I would love to see more of it. One thing though. According to the Tarnished Archeologist, the tree carving you showed depicts the great tree and the wider tree carvings in places like Leyndell depict the Erdtree.

[awayman]

Love this!

7:07 Check out Tarnished Archeologists videos for an explanation about those tree carvings. They are distinct and NOT of the erd tree, but likely of the great tree that preceded it.

[maxreef]

I think that since elden ring is so heavy on exploration, analyzing the architecture is just as important as the item descriptions in terms of piecing together a story

[PureConsoleGamers]

One thing to note is that an 'Ancient God" is buried here within the boss arena. This is evident by the large headstone found there that has the hole in it. This is evidenced by the Fingerprint Stone Shield, as its lore description states... "Part of the tomb of an ancient god, the Readerless Fingers relayed their message through these imprints, said to be the very seeds from which frenzy first sprouted." If you look carefully at the hole in the tombstone, you can see remnants of fingerprint patterns around the borders of the hole itself.

[sidewaysfcs]

Those carvings are the Great Tree in fact, this is further supported by the presence of "Storm Hawk" motifs around the castle walls.

When Godfrey (Hoarah Loux at this time) defeated the Storm Lord (and Serrosh) he took over their former castles, just like Stormveil, Morne features many of the same motiffs, except Stormveil saw extensive redecoration and renovation with the addition of all the gold-tinted masonry and embelishments.

Since Hoarah Loux would have done these conquests before the age of the Erdtree, it makes sense for these castles to feature Great Tree and Crucible decorations of the era, Stormveil does in fact feature some Crucible statues showing the "man picking golden sprout from several sprouts" statue which is common to the Crucible style.

You can also find many similar details in the Roundtable Hold (both the physical version and the one we always teleport to).

[elleofmusic]

This is so interesting! I'm no architect, but I definitely got the impression that this castle was all about defense. The huge wall and ravine bottlenecking any land approach, the lack of any normal settlement inside that wall, and then the castle built up on the rocks like that, with only an elevator... It's the kind of thing you build when you're fully expecting a nigh unstoppable army to come for you, and it really speaks to Godfrey's power that he managed to take the castle anyway.

I'd love to see more of your observations about the architecture around the Lands Between! The black stone structures in particular. In the Ruin-Strewn Precipice and the connected Magma Wyrm cave in particular, they seem to be serving as a kind of aqueduct system, while in other places they look like they're bracing cliffs to prevent collapse or erosion.

[TheCronesEye]

This is great! TIL that The Lore Hunter is also The Tarnished Architect! I’m so glad you’re doing this. 🥳👍

P.S. Those narrow windows you mention near the end of the video look more like arrow slits than proper windows. Perhaps they were added later (similar to the hoardings, but more permanent)? Anyway, *please* do more of these! Thanks again.

[lorddervishquinterosara]

Isn't it weird that someone managed to invade Erdtree lands, build a castle using materials brought by the sea and do so fast enough before the Erdtree forces came to kick his ass out of the Weeping Peninsula?

I think the Champion usurped the castle and then dared Huroah Loux, who was on his march out of the Lands Between for banishment, to come and kill him, which he did.

[Red-nllk]

Considering just how important the level design is in the series it's weird to not really see much discussion on it. I'd love to see this become a series. I'd love to see Nokstella examined.

[nightscout]

Based on the Hand Ballista weapon noting that it's great for "reckless acts such as storming a castle or facing an entire army alone, " and its location in a chest instead of on a dead body, I think the weapon may indicate that the Hero of Castle Morne single-handedly sieged the castle.The hero's weapons were kept after his defeat, and he was probably from Altus, since his tombstone matches those of the golden skeletons near Leyndell.

[jamesbrincefield]

I work in logistics/supply chain management but also have a background in engineering. I’ve always thought it would be neat to deconstruct certain games from that perspective but felt like it would only be appealing to like five people tops. It’ll probably just continue to be a pipe dream but it’s inspiring to know that someone else succeeded in using the knowledge gained from their professional background to talk about video games.

[eel-to-eel]

I am so glad that you pointed out that Norman architecture equates with Romanesque... I actually didn' make that connection, and it really helps to contextualize the Romanesque architectural features we can see in lower Leyndell/Sellia/Ordina! Great video!! I agree with your proposed conclusions:)

[QS]

I love the architectural detail in Fromsoft's games, please do more video like this, may be for Dark Souls and Bloodborne too

[kae]

I love this stuff~ I might recognize the physical differences in-game, but I don't have the experience to know what real-world stuff is being referenced, so these breakdowns are lovely.
I definitely liked the idea of the renovation for the odd gothic windows, too. It fits the story, Castle Morne changed hands and that story is told in the stones. Easier [slightly] to adjust a few windows for new owner's tastes than to alter the whole building.

[DeathxStrike]

A correction: the first castle the player meets is Stormveil Castle, where the first Main story boss Is encountered. It is also the first complex map area a player will face with many lifts not operational needing to find routes along the roof tops or under ground to enable them. Many players will follow the grace and find that the enemies on that route will be difficult and may need to turn and do other things. Castle Morne will likely be the second finding the southern part of the map to be an easier area.

[A.H.-ubvg]

1:58 Correction: The Norman conquest was in 1066, not 1088. By 1088, William the Conqueror had already died...

[yetanotherbassdude]

Absolutely loved this one! The architecture is such an important part of Elden Ring that it definitely deserves more attention, and it's awesome to get the perspective of a professional with enough knowledge to really dig into what's in the game. Maybe you could take a look at Raya Lucaria next? The architecture there to me is so clearly drawing from Oxford and Cambridge Universities, and this fits so well with the idea of this haughty, erudite place of magical learning and the often veiled power and influence it exerted on the Lands Between.

Also, as a Brit I feel I have to make a small correction that William the Conqueror invaded England at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, not 1088. King William apparently died in 1087, so I'm not sure where you got that date from?

[TheMemoman]

This is your best video so far. You get to shine basking in your expertise.
Loved every second of it. The historical context intro was stellar.