- "Magnificent... Thou hast filled the Lordvessel. Indeed, a worthy successor, thou shalt be. My patience was not for nil... I beg of thee. Succeed Lord Gwyn, and inheriteth the world's Fire. We have only thee."
- — Gwynevere
Gwynevere, Princess of Sunlight, also known as Gwynevere, Queen of Sunlight, is a character in Dark Souls and mentioned character in Dark Souls III.
She is voiced by Clare Corbett, who also voiced the Undead Female Merchant and Crossbreed Priscilla.
Appearance
Gwynevere appears in the form of a gigantic, fair lady with red hair and a kind face. A light shines brightly behind Gwynevere's figure. She is dressed in white cloth and rests on a cushion underneath her arm.
Location
Gwynevere is located in Anor Londo, in a room above the hall where Ornstein and Smough battle the Chosen Undead, behind the door with the bonfire in front of it.
Plot
Upon meeting with Gwynevere for the first time, she grants the player the Lordvessel, which enables the ability to warp between most bonfires. Gwynevere can also initiate players into the Princess's Guard covenant.
Killing Gwynevere, which requires a single hit with any attack, will reveal that she is an illusion created by Gwyndolin. Gwyndolin then removes the rest of his enchantment, causing the sun to permanently set in Anor Londo. In addition, any player that darkens Anor Londo will become more susceptible to Blade of the Darkmoon invasions when human. All deaths within Anor Londo will return the player to a specific bonfire in that stage, regardless of the last bonfire used. In addition, all regular enemies will vanish, except Painting Guardians, a few Silver Knights and two new hostile characters.
Lore
Dark Souls
The healing sunlight miracle of Gwynevere.
Gwynevere is the first daughter of Gwyn, Lord of Sunlight and one of the deities who resided in Anor Londo during the Age of Fire[1]. She was worshiped by the humans as the "goddess of sunlight" and a symbol of "blessing and good harvest", while she was also cherished by all the other gods[2]. As a goddess of sunlight, her miracles of Bountiful Sunlight and Soothing Sunlight were able to convey the sun's rays to heal and she granted her blessing to many warriors[3]. She also taught her miracles to her maidens and created holy water with healing properties thanks to her light[4]. Gwynevere was venerated in a cathedral alongside the main one in Anor Londo and the structure was also used to contain the Painted World of Ariamis, protected by the Painting Guardians[5][6].
After her father Gwyn linked the First Flame[7], his throne passed to his firstborn son who, however, chose to "ally" with the dragons, the ancient enemies of the gods, and was therefore dethroned, exiled and his name eradicated from history[8], she abandoned Anor Londo together with nearly all of the other deities and moved to an unknown location[9] At some point she married Flame God Flann[10] and became the mother of several children of noble lineage[11].
The illusion of Gwynevere inside Anor Londo.
After her escape the only deity left to protect Anor Londo was her younger brother Dark Sun Gwyndolin[12]. However, he was more than aware of his fragile, repulsive appearance and was therefore psychologically unfit to become the next ruler, still playing the feminine role imposed on him by his father Gwyn[13]. For this reason, Gwyndolin created an illusion of Gwynevere to help him maintain some semblance of divinity and control over the ancient capital[14]. Over time this illusion of the goddess would become a key component in the system that sough a worthy champion to link the First Flame again and took on the role of guiding and manipulating potential Chosen Undead, as Kingseeker Frampt would invite them to reach Anor Londo and visit her[15]. The false goddess would welcome the Undead after they defeated Dragon Slayer Ornstein and Executioner Smough, the cathedral guards, and proved that they was strong enough to fulfill their destiny[16]. Gwynevere's illusion would reward them with her divine presence and the Lordvessel needed to reach the Kiln of the First Flame, inducing them with her words to succeed Gwyn and link the fading Flame[17]. The illusion of the goddess would even be used to accept Undead into its covenant of the Princess's Guard, in order to constitute a line of defense against the deception of which they were unaware in exchange for the possibility of using the miracles of the goddess[18].
Dark Souls II
At some point Gwynevere and her followers reached Drangleic and began creating holy water blessed with her light and healing powers again, artifacts that remain in the region even centuries after the collapse of Vendrick's kingdom[19].
In Lindelt, a "sacred land" known for its clerics and miracles[20], her miracles of Bountiful Sunlight and Soothing Sunlight were preserved by the Lindelt Monastery, after they were passed down through the ages and became their property[21]. In addition, the ruling house of Osteria is in possession of a ring depicting the sun and with the same healing powers as the rings of Gwynevere[22], and it is said that as long as House Osteria remains in possession of the ring the peace and security of its people would be assured[23]. Despite this, the goddess seems to have abandoned the region since time immemorial, as her name has been forgotten and the Magic Academy of Melfia even goes so far as to deny that she ever existed[24].
Dark Souls III
A statue of Gwynevere inside Irithyll.
At some point in time, after her younger brother Dark Sun Gwyndolin assumed the title of "king of the gods"[25] and built Irithyll of the Boreal Valley on the ruins of Anor Londo to gather the descendants of the gods[26], she returned to her ancient home[27]. Here the goddess was venerated with multiple statues displayed throughout the city[28] and became the mother of several children with royal blood such as Rosaria, Mother of Rebirth[29] and the Dancer of the Boreal Valley[30]. The goddess would return to her location in the old cathedral of Anor Londo[31], protected by the remaining Silver Knights who had once protected her illusion and whose shields she would once again bless[32][33]. Eventually she also left Irithyll, leaving her Sun Princess Ring behind[34].
At some point, Gwynevere reached Lothric and became the queen of the kingdom[35], marrying into the bloodline of its monarchs[36]. The goddess resumed her role as a divinity, producing holy water with healing properties and being worshiped by humans as a symbol of "blessing and good harvest"[37]. Her "angelic daughter" Gertrude also became her holy maiden and her healing miracles were taught to her personal knights[38]. During the long tradition of supporting the linking of the Flame by the kingdom of Lothric, the goddess alone cared for the Cemetery of Ash, the resting place for the Unkindled, beings who had failed to link the flame and whose graves saw no visitors[39].
The holy water produced by Gwynevere in Lothric.
She eventually became the wife of King Oceiros, the last monarch of Lothric, and supported the kingdom's desire to produce an heir worthy of linking the First Flame[40], giving birth first to Elder Prince Lorian, raised to become a knight[41] and then Lothric, Younger Prince, expected to become a "champion" and sacrifice himself to the Flame[42]. However, when Prince Lothric and his brother refused to link the fading Flame and they chose to wait out the end of the Age of Fire[43], King Oceiros went mad in his attempt to produce an heir worthy of their sacrificial destiny. The king found the heretical faith of the paledrake Seath among the scholars of the Grand Archives and became convinced that a crossbreed heir would have the strength to link the Flame[44]. Oceiros eventually became a deformed humanoid dragon[45] and with him the queen had her youngest child, Ocelotte[46]. After producing the potential champion, Gwynevere quietly disappeared from the kingdom of Lothric[47]. Realizing that the Flame would soon go out and it would be necessary to bring back even the Unkindled to search for a new champion, the queen enshrined her ring in the Cemetery of Untended Graves, so that one day an Unkindled might profit from its use[48].
In the last days of Lothric, the citizens of the kingdom even forgot the miracles of the goddess of sunlight, ending up circulating childish but sincere stories to try to recall her image and her blessings[49].
Artifacts
- Ring of the Sun Princess
- Ring of Restoration
- Sun Princess Ring
- Ashen Estus Ring
- Divine Blessing
- Divine Blessing (Dark Souls II)
- Divine Blessing (Dark Souls III)
- Hidden Blessing
- Soothing Sunlight
- Soothing Sunlight (Dark Souls II)
- Soothing Sunlight (Dark Souls III)
- Bountiful Sunlight
- Bountiful Sunlight (Dark Souls II)
- Bountiful Sunlight (Dark Souls III)
- Bountiful Light
- Projected Heal
Character information
Health and souls
| Health | Souls | ||
| NG | NG+ | NG | NG+ |
| 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Defenses
| Physical Defenses | Elemental Defenses | Resistances | |||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 135 | 135 | 135 | 135 | 110 | 96 | 101 | S | S | S |
These stats are sourced from FuturePress's Official Dark Souls Strategy Guide.
Dialogue
| Click to see dialogue | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Gallery
Videos
.png){kind=link}
.png){kind=link}
References
- ↑ Ring of the Sun Princess description.
- ↑ Divine Blessing and Soothing Sunlight description.
- ↑ Soothing Sunlight and Bountiful Sunlight and Divine Blessing description.
- ↑ Soothing Sunlight#Availability and Bountiful Sunlight#Availability and Divine Blessing description.
- ↑ https://darksouls.fandom.com/wiki/File:Gwynevere_Statue_Anor_Londo.png
- ↑ Painting Guardian#Location
- ↑ Kingseeker Frampt and Opening dialogue.
- ↑ Soul of the Nameless King and Lightning Storm and Golden Crown and Ring of the Sun's Firstborn description.
- ↑ Ring of the Sun Princess description.
- ↑ Ring of the Sun Princess description.
- ↑ Sun Princess Ring
- ↑ Darkmoon Seance Ring description.
- ↑ Dark Sun Gwyndolin dialogue and Reversal Ring description.
- ↑ Darkmoon Blade Covenant Ring description.
- ↑ Kingseeker Frampt and Gwynevere, Princess of Sunlight dialogue.
- ↑ Gwynevere, Princess of Sunlight dialogue and Lordvessel description.
- ↑ Gwynevere, Princess of Sunlight dialogue.
- ↑ Princess's Guard and Ring of the Sun Princess description.
- ↑ Divine Blessing (Dark Souls II)#Availability
- ↑ Archdrake Staff description.
- ↑ Bountiful Sunlight (Dark Souls II) and Soothing Sunlight (Dark Souls II) description.
- ↑ Ring of Restoration#Effect and Sun Princess Ring#Effect
- ↑ Ring of Restoration appearance and description
- ↑ Divine Blessing (Dark Souls II) description.
- ↑ Soul of Pontiff Sulyvahn description.
- ↑ Dancer's Crown description and Greirat of the Undead Settlement dialogue
- ↑ Sun Princess Ring#Availability
- ↑ https://darksouls.fandom.com/wiki/File:Irithyll_Gwynevere_Statue.png
- ↑ Bountiful Sunlight (Dark Souls III)#Availability and Soul of Rosaria#Availability
- ↑ Dancer's Crown description and Soothing Sunlight (Dark Souls III)#Availability
- ↑ Sun Princess Ring#Availability
- ↑ Silver Knight Shield (Dark Souls III) description.
- ↑ Silver Knight (Dark Souls III)#Locations
- ↑ Sun Princess Ring#Availability
- ↑ Projected Heal description.
- ↑ Divine Blessing (Dark Souls III) and Cinders of a Lord description.
- ↑ Divine Blessing (Dark Souls III) description.
- ↑ Divine Pillars of Light and Bountiful Light description.
- ↑ Hidden Blessing description.
- ↑ Divine Blessing (Dark Souls III) and Cinders of a Lord description.
- ↑ Lorian's Armor description.
- ↑ Lothric's Holy Sword and Cinders of a Lord description.
- ↑ Soul of the Twin Princes description.
- ↑ Soul of Consumed Oceiros description and Oceiros, the Consumed King dialogue.
- ↑ Oceiros, the Consumed King appearance.
- ↑ Divine Blessing (Dark Souls III) description and Oceiros, the Consumed King dialogue
- ↑ Divine Blessing (Dark Souls III) and Projected Heal description.
- ↑ Ashen Estus Ring description and Opening (Dark Souls III) dialogue.
- ↑ Projected Heal description.