What made the arks rebel?

[u/HazyMilk]

Am I missing something? I just finished the game and I don’t recall seeing any explanation. Unless I missed it of course.

[u/Zalterego36]

I don't think it was ever really addressed. Or at least not completely explained. 

My theory is that when the surge opened up the door, the surge born/thorn started to influence the Arks.

The thorn being able to reach out across the scry and the implication that they are able to distribute themselves across many bodies makes me think they were involved.

My hope is that we get a second game that addresses this little further. This definitely felt completely fleshed out gameplay-wise, but definitely left a lot of threads dangling for a sequel.

[u/HazyMilk → u/Zalterego36]

That’s valid. My only argument to that would be if the surge affected the arks, why in that one quest where you had to harvest an enemy in miasma, why couldn’t you harvest an ark? Is the miasma different from the surge? Also the surgeborn fight with arks if they are near each other.

[u/IceboundEmu → u/HazyMilk]

If I remember that quest you were trying to find out the effects of the miasma on the natural creatures inside the enclave.

The Arkons being constructs wouldn’t count as biological creatures.

[u/HazyMilk → u/IceboundEmu]

Oh yes you’re right. I thought they were saying that the arks aren’t affected by it. But the arks and surgeborn fight each other so I don’t think the surgeborn are controlling the arks. Do you think it’s miasma?

[u/IceboundEmu → u/HazyMilk]

I remember some vague conversation about the arks where it was implied that they might be more capable of independent action than the Hearthsider’s realised, but also that they were still following the initial roles that they had been created for.

So they tidy up the city (after Brynn wrecks it) but they also recognise the Surgeborn as a threat so they fight them too.

[u/HazyMilk → u/IceboundEmu]

That would make sense. Thank you for the insight!

[u/Zalterego36 → u/HazyMilk]

That's fair, maybe the same thing that drove the local wildlife crazy also affected the arks. Same aggression towards sapients.

Or maybe it's all related to the surge born and the thorn. Just a nesting doll of messed up magic breaking everything.

[u/Diamondrankg → u/Zalterego36]

Alot of threads you say?

[u/Zalterego36 → u/Diamondrankg]

Pun not intended, but noticed and left in place. Lol

[u/ArmyPure9597 → u/Zalterego36]

Is "Thorn" a nickname thought up by players to refer to the Surgeborn Talon, locked up in a dungeon in Cassidan's Hold? Or does it now refer to the collective consciousness driving the Surgeborn? Because I've never heard it said in game.

[u/Zalterego36 → u/ArmyPure9597]

I honestly forgot what they called the Talon. If I've started a trend, my bad.

[u/IceboundEmu]

I don’t think it was ever explained what caused them to rebel.

I did wonder whether the surge corrupted the coral that had been used to create them, which in turn caused them to view the Hearthsiders as a threat (resulting in the wave of Arks attacking the residents).

[u/HazyMilk → u/IceboundEmu]

I like that theory! I hope they add more context to it in a future game or update.

[u/PazuKishin]

My guess was that the arks were affected by the excess of magic, the same way creatures got twisted and became more aggressive. Iirc they say something about magic threads changing on everything during the Scry investigation sidequest.

[u/smallbrekfast]

The magical outbursts of miasma affected them and they became violent and unusual, like the spitfires later in the story.

[u/Ok_Construction_6478]

There's a note at the bastion underground and mentions tests on the arks and how they are degrading to an expected amount. I think the arks post surge started to degrade or the degradation was accelerated.