*MAJOR SPOILERS* Scrumptious Lore and Where to Find It

A guide that focuses on STORY and LORE, and where to find it., with in-game images and dialogue used as a point of reference to back up statements wherever possible.

A brief synopsis of the game

It is the 1980s, a plague originating from an mysterious source deep from within the heart of the Polish forest Darkwood is infecting its inhabitants. To protect the outside world, the government has contained the plague by isolating the inhabitants and sending in teams to investigate its source. You were on one such team, but things went wrong after an attack on your camp, and now you are alone. Now you must find your way home, or be consumed by the woods.

The history of the plague

One night in August 1975 [1], a bright object was seen falling from the sky over the heart of the forest Darkwood [2] by the inhabitants of a nearby village that was located in would be later referred to as Sector 3C [3]. The infection spread rapidly, symptoms appearing within the next three years [4, 5], the trees began to grow impossibly fast, animals and people began to develop symptoms of an incurable disease [6]. The Sector 3C village, being closest in the vicinity was the first to be effected, and attempts were made by the government to contain the disease, infected livestock [7] and houses burnt to the ground [8]. Roads that allowed access to the heart of Darkwood (Sector 0) were closed [9], these barriers were then consumed by the growing forest. At least a second row of road barriers were established by 1979 [10], but these in turn were consumed by the forest. The forest having encompassed much of the surrounding landscape (many hundreds of square kilometres), began taking on a honeycomb like structure (as seen from above), with thick walls of trees forming barriers, and slowly dividing up the forest into smaller cells [11]. Within these cells the inhabitants of the wood were trapped [5, 6]. In order to continue to monitoring the situation from ground level, the government built a series of tunnels (e.g. tunnel 21, 22 etc) beneath the ground to travel safely between the cells.
By 1983 [12], the village of Sector 3C had been on their own for a long time, their fields had flooded and they were all beginning to slowly starve to death [5, 12]. After years of not seeing anyone from the outside world, they noticed the expeditions of these outsiders [13, 14]. These secret groups were sent in by the government to continue their research on the source and nature of the infection [15]. The surviving villagers that tried to use the tunnels to escape were shot [16], likely to contain the infection or because of the risk posed to the outsiders by the increasing mental instability of the local inhabitants. As the infection progressed, the situation began increasingly more dangerous, the ever growing roots of the forest, increasingly replacing the earth in which they grew, began to cause small local earthquakes [17] and for many of the tunnels to collapse [18]. Attempts to study the forest had limited success, but knowledge was gathered on electrical activity within the root system, on the shape-shifting properties of the “fluid” and patterns of forest growth [19], but the absolute cause and means to control the infection remained out of reach. In 1987, the infection would at last came to an end when Darkwood, and much of the surrounding woodland, caught fire, and the mysterious infection ceased [20].

Sources:

• [1] Granny’s painting, “Light, 08.1975.” (Chapter 2; Sector 3C village; Granny’s home. The year 1975 for this painting also opens the chest in the Mushroom Granny’s own safe).
  
• [2] Fallen sign. (Chapter 2; Road Home).
  
• [3] Note (Chapter 2; Hideout 4; skeletal corpse lying between the buildings).
  
• [4] Granny’s paintings, “Flowers, 06.1978.” and “04.1979” (Chapter 2; Sector 3C village; Granny’s home).
  
• [5] Cripple remarks “First, the woods changed… The trees started sprouting up everywhere. We were cut off. Then the water flooded our fields. People went crazy out of hunger.” (Chapter 2; Sector 3C village; in his room)
  
• [6] Doctor will remark on this “...And then came the diseases I've never even heard of. I was the only doctor in the area. You cut us off from the outside world.” (Chapter 2; Sector 3C village; beside the shrine).
  
• [7] The Cripple: “…Then those wankers burned my house and me pigs...They said it was to fight the disease.” (Chapter 2; Sector 3C village)
  
• [8] Chapter 2 burnt cottages secret location and photographs of helicopters burning the village (Chapter 2; burnt cottages location. It is also possible the burnt houses seen in Chapter 1 may have been intentionally burnt in this way too. The gateway to Old Woods from the Dry Meadow features two statue-like replicas of two individuals in hazard suits and possibly carrying flame throwers.
  
• [9] Mushroom Granny’s remark on seeing the photograph of the “Road Home”. “I remember cares driving along this road. And then they closed it. They set up a fence and a gate, but both the fence and the gate got devoured by the trees eventually.”
  
• [10] Empty jar found in a crate on the road and barriers found in Old Woods. Jar says it expired by 1979, indicating that the barrier likely went up even before then. “...its "best before" date expired in 1979”
  
• [11] Wall of trees note (Chapter 2; Road Home via the Radio Tower; Camp)
  
• [12] Date on food inventory (August 1983) coupled with dialogue from the “villagers” outside of Mushroom Granny’s front door, indicating that the “thieves locking themselves in the basement” event co-occurred alongside a spotting of outsiders in the region (See section of replicas). This dialogue has to be pieced together as it is said out of order, here is the fixed version:
  
• Conversation 1: (Spotting of outsiders on the same night)

Villager 1 = In the night I saw them!
Villager 2 = With guns?
Villager 1 = That's what I said!
Villager 3 = You didn't see ♥♥♥♥, no one from the village goes there.
Villager 1 = They were not from the village.
Villager 2 = Since the relocation, no one from the outside was here.
Villager 3 = Where were they from?

• Conversation 2: (“Thief event”)

Villager 2 = What is happening?
Villager 1 = They locked themselves in the basement.
Villager 2 = To get food?
Villager 1 = Yes! F-kers, it's our common good!

• [13] Dialogue from “villagers” outside of Mushroom Granny’s front door (Conversation 2, above).
  
• [14] While not necessarily at the same time, the man in the “Snail’s House” also noted seeing such people in his diary “I've seen some strange men between the trees. They are not locals, they do not hide. They were dressed in strange clothes,”. (Chapter 2; house near the junkyard).
  
• [15] Numerous sources. Doctor continuously refers to the Protagonist as an outsider. The campsite past the radio tower is one of their camps. Notes on research, observations, specimens and equipment are also found at the camp. Etc.
  
• [16] Man in the tunnel with the soft cross in his head was trying to use the tunnels to escape (Chapter 1; tunnel 21)
  
• [17] Night-event. But also observe “Giant Hole” location in the Silent Forest, where the ground beneath can be seen to be made almost entirely of roots, and dig sites at the outsider camp.
  
• [18] Tunnel 21 already has partially collapsed (Chapter 1), the instability of which the Protagonist will remark on, and Tunnel 22 (Chapter 2; past the Radio-tower) had completely collapsed.
  
• [19] Notes found in the outsider camp (Chapter 2; Radio-tower exit to campsite). The Doctor theorises on the electrical properties of the trees the second time you meet him in Chapter 2 “Deep underground, there's a current of electricity. And it flows, underground! From tree to tree!”, a theory which is seemingly confirmed by the electrodes visibly planted in the roots at the dig sites at the camp past the Radio-tower.
  
• [20] True ending, “Burn them all”.

Story ingame

In early September 1987, a group of outsiders were conducting routine expedition were conducting research at one of their camps close to Sector 0 [1] (deepest part of Darkwood, where the Being resides). Studies appeared to be ongoing, to the west of the camp they dug pits (dig sites) to access the tree roots and attach electrodes (?) [2], when the camp was attacked by savages and overwhelmed [3]. Three of the outsiders were dragged and tied to trees by the savages using rope, a lone boot found by itself nearby suggests a struggle.
At least one of the individuals tied to the tree was alive at the time, the Protagonist. It’s unclear how long he were trapped there, but during this time, the wood sensed the Protagonist and one its unusual properties came into play, the shape-shifting abilities of the fluid substance that flows between the trees [1]. Incapable of differentiating between different objects the woods began to duplicate the trapped Protagonist (see “Replica” section for further explanation), and this imperfect replica, with a hazard suit helmet grown as part of its body, the “Trader”.
Somehow, the Protagonist was able to break free from his biding, badly wounding himself in the process (as indicated by the bloodied rope and shreds of his hazard suit that were left behind, and the viewfinder of his haphard suit being smashed in). Badly wounded, from both his beating at the hands of the savages and likely his escape, for unknown reasons, the Protagonist discarded his hazard suit and swapped his clothes for those of scarecrow on the field beside the camp [4]. He then fled the Swamp, reaching as far as the Old Woods before collapsing from his wounds.

The Doctor found him and brought him back to his home, where he injected him with essence and interrogated him, before leaving. The Protagonist manages to escape, but now infected and under the influence of essence, he immediately begins to hallucinate, first imagining a radio becoming a man with dials for eyes, then imagining a dead man is taunting him, and finally witnessing a mob of black chompers* breaking into and storming the house.

(*this mob was actually local villagers come seeking revenge for the Doctor failing to be able to save them. This is suggested later by the presence of the Doctor’s burnt bag begin found in a village fire (beside the well) and the vengeful dialogue by the villager sitting by the fire and the Doctor relocating to the train carriage; furthermore if the Protagonist returns to the Doctor’s house later they will find that it was ransacked. During the Church dream, the Protagonist hallucinates a human as a black chomper [6].)

During the ransacking of the Doctor’s house, the Protagonist somehow managed to end up outside. Lying in the forest, weak and confused, the Trader finally caught up with him, helping him to his feet and escorting him to the first hideout of Chapter 1.

The Protagonist is now is unknowingly under the Being’s control [6]. He begins to backtrack the way he had came, believing this is the way home, not remembering that the “road home” is actually the last road to the heart of the woods where the Being lives [7]. Eventually, the Protagonist gets through the tunnel 21 and returns to the Swamp, and then eventually to Sector 0, to where the Being resides. Here, he begins to hallucinate once more, believing himself to at last have escaped woods and is home once more. Depending on the player's actions, the Protagonist there either falls victim to the Being and goes to sleep, eventually to die, OR he realises the horrific truth and breaks free of the mind control.
Breaking free of the hallucination, the Protagonist finds that he has crawled through an organic tunnel which has sealed itself behind him, and is now lying naked on the ground (in the dream, you cannot leave the front room until you have hung up your coat). He is trapped within a deep valley, completely made up of roots and dead trees, trapping him and offering no chance of escape. The Protagonist may then confront and question the Being, but it gives no answers. During his investigation of the surroundings, the Protagonist will then stumble upon another outsider, Maciek, a sleeping soldier carrying nothing but a flamethrower wrapped in prayer beads. Taking this flamethrower, the Protagonist will then proceed to burn down the Being, killing it and everyone trapped in the valley with it, including himself. The fire spreads, burning much of the surrounding forest over the next few days. At last the hallucinations, voices and whispers stop, and anyone surviving can now at long last walk free, as the first helicopters appear overhead.

Sources:

• [1] Note on bundles of roots. (Chapter 2; campsite past radio-tower).
  
• [2] Partially inferred because of the apparent use of electrodes, but also suggested by the Doctor in Chapter 2 (“Deep underground, there's a current of electricity. And it flows, underground! From tree to tree”). Equally these could have been measuring seismic activity.
  
• [3] Protagonist mentions an attack on his camp in his journal. The campsite beyond the Radio Tower in Chapter 2 also bears evidence of an abrupt and brutal attack; for example, there is a half-eaten sandwich on the table in the hideout, the jar of protective substance has been knocked over and destroyed; the corpses of both savages and soldiers can be found around the immediate area, two dead outsiders had been bound to a tree with rope by the savages (while the third escaped; the Protagonist).
  
• [4] The scarecrow (Chapter 2; campsite past radio-tower; on the field). This is the Protagonist’s hazard suit; if the player chooses to go on a genocide route then you will get the post-game ending: (Bliss) “The inhabitants of the woods believed these symbols protected them from a scarecrow lurking between the trees…”, (Burn them all) “and the vagabond from outside the woods, the monster in a scarecrow's disguise, who - due to reasons known only to himself - killed everyone who crossed him.” Bliss ending for the Doctor (if the Train sequence dream is failed), “The Doctor, fearing the revenge of the man dressed in a scarecrow costume, disappeared deep into the wilderness.”
  
• [5] The black chomper in the church dream, if killed then a dead man will appear in his place with the exact same injuries when the Protagonist visits the church outside of the dream [Chapter 1].
  
• [6] For example, addiction to mushrooms and essence, muteness, difficulty writing, hallucinations, heightened aggression, no need for food or sleep, unhindered by horrific injuries (or deformations?) to his face, dedicated belief that the “Road Home” is the actual road home (see [7]), and responding to the Being when it speaks to him via the radio in Hideout 4 (E.g. “Come back to us!” To which he responds: “Soon.”). And the images in the eerie clearings with the shiny stones and symbols, where if you stand still in the Dry Meadow’s one you will see visions of the key and door to tunnel 21, and then later in the Swamp in a similar clearing you will see vision of the radio tower; this is the Being attempting to guide the Protagonist back to it.
  
• [7] End credits for “Burn them all” ending. "…The fire consumed the last road leading to the heart of the woods."

The varying effects of the plague

The Plague is an illness caused by exposure to the airborne spores of the Being and appears capable of effecting all living organisms, limited not only to people and animals but plants as well (deformed broken trees can be found throughout the forest). There is potentially a supernatural aspect to it as well, but equally possible is that its unexplainable effects are linked to the alien biology of the Being.

The symptoms tend to generally manifest in two main forms, mental (e.g. savages, the Doctor, the Protagonist) and physical (e.g. the Musician, Chompers, the Pretty Lady). Some who are infected simply die, their bodies completely breaking down, decaying and filling with toxic gases (potentially spores) further spreading the disease.

Physical deterioration form of the plague leads to the transformation of humans into Chompers, and dogs into Huge Dogs. Primary symptoms in humans being:
• Asymmetrical and unnatural body growth, resulting in deformities [1].
• Hair loss [2].
• Painful headaches [3].
• Literal splitting headaches – a scar appearing on the sagittal plane of the skull that gradually increases in size and length until it reaches the hip, with internal growth of large teeth.
• Eventually the host will become immobilised (whether through pain or deformities [4]) and will go into a dormant state where they sleep until awoken, upon which time they undergo the full transformation.
• Heightened aggression (following transformation).
The transformation for dogs is less violent, with an increase in size and muscle mass, but sharing the similar symptoms of hair loss (?) and increased aggression. This form of the plague does not appear to as greatly impact on the host’s mind as the mental deterioration form of the plague does, at least not in the initial stages, for example of the Musician, and madmen, remain perfectly capable of clear speech, which is one of the first things to go for those suffering the other main form of the plague.

Mental deterioration form of the plague leads to the transformation of humans into savages, with the primary symptoms being:
• Auditory and visual hallucinations [5].
• Insomnia and loss of appetite [6].
• Loss of the ability to speak [7], but not necessarily vocalise.
• Heightened aggression [8].
• Obsession with travelling “home” [9].
• Loss of ability to write [10].
• Loss of a sense of self-preservation [11].
• Drive to consume mushrooms, as well wood and bark [12].
• Ritualistic behaviour (creation of ritual sites and tying humans to trees).

Savages appear to seek the companionship of other savages while isolating themselves from non-savages (not true in the case of the Three). They also appear to be under the direct influence of the Being, due to their ritualistic behaviour such as the careful creation of ritual sites consisting of circles and lines drawn in often repetitive patterns [13], as well as tying people to trees and leaving them to be absorbed by the trees [14]. One of their more curious rituals is the creation of “replication sites”, these sites are similar to ritual sites but are specifically designed to help facilitate the Being’s ability to create new creatures through its shape-shifting substance. These sites will feature at least one human being, in addition to a number of other organisms, such as lizards, mushrooms, crows, centipedes or even other corpses. (See replica section for further explanation).

As stated previously, infection is caused by airborne spores. Outsiders wear hazard suits when outside of their hideouts and use oxygen tanks [15]. With notes from their research showing that the concentration of these spores are elevated at night (see Old Journal), to such a high concentration (750/m3 [16, 17]) that exposure by non-acclimatised individuals is fatal - these levels fall to >50/m3 during the day (exact unit of spores per unit volume not specified). The link between the Plague and essence is less clear, but it appears to the temporarily intensely amplify the auditory and visual hallucinations caused by infection. Essence could be a liquid form of the spores. All Outsiders working in the forest are required to wear hazmat suits in order to prevent infection, their bodies still wearing these hazmat suits can be found in multiple places in Chapter 2 (helicopter wreckage, and the campsite near the road home), additionally an unworn hazmat suit can be seen in the locked container outside the Dry Meadow hideout, and are referenced in a note left by previous expedition [15].


[1] The Musician (from Chapter 1 through to Chapter 2), Hanuska’s child.
[2] The Musician, all chompers, and madmen (with visible head scars).
[3] Madman, with splitting head (Chapter 1; Old Woods; Doctor’s house, “patient ward”).
[4] Musician (Chapter 2). Madmen always appear to be sitting.
[5] The Doctor hearing the voice of his daughter, the Protagonist hearing footsteps in the empty house, the Protagonist seeing himself in the bed in Hideout 1, many of the infected villagers in the Silent Forest.
[6] The Protagonist (journal). The Doctor (Chapter 2; the 2nd time you meet him).
[7] Doctor’s transformation in Chapter 2 is marked a steady decrease in his ability to communicate and an increase in ritualistic behaviour. See also Journal note #2 from the Radio Tower (Chapter 2), “…they can barely talk”.
[8] The Protagonist (was like a mild-mannered individual originally, if the Trader’s behaviour is anything to go by), general behaviour of the savages, the Doctor fighting the urge to strangle the Protagonist (3rd meeting, Chapter 2).
[9] The Protagonist’s, the Doctor’s and the Cripple’s reaction to the “Photo of a Road”.
[10] The Protagonist’s first entry in his journal; and to some extent, the Doctor’s notes (Chapter 2; if the Train dream sequence is failed).
[11] The Doctor in Chapter 2, showing signs of self-scarification, and consuming mud and bark.
[12] The Protagonist (Chapter 1; oven), the Doctor consuming bark (Chapter 2; 3rd encounter), numerous trees and wooden shrines showing signs of having been chewed on.
[13] “A Note With a Photo of Signs” (Chapter 2; hideout 4).
[14] Direct evidence for this is seen at the outsider camp, where three outsiders were tied to trees, and nearby a dead savage can be found carrying rope (Chapter 2).
[15] Oxygen canisters at hideout 4 and note on the corpse indicating he was running low on oxygen (Chapter 2); hazard suits present in the outsider camp (Chapter 2), mention of Maciek’s hazard suit in Note of Desertion (Chapter 1; hideout 3).
[16] “Rotting book with clumped together pages” (Chapter 2; old shed).
[17] Journal entry, “Nights.”: "I need to get back to my hideout before nightfall. Wandering here at night is too risky. The forest exhibits increased activity after dark. Only the protective gas in my hideout can provide me with relative safety."

Replicas and the substance

The lifeblood of the Being, the white substance runs throughout the forest through the immense network of roots. Normally not visible at the surface (though it can be observed on the cracked surface of the "Road Home"), this substance can be observed and commented on by the Protagonist in underground tunnel and if the Protagonist breaks off a branch from the Talking Tree. It is again mentioned in Outsider notes as having "shape shifting" properties [1] which it loses once disconnected from the root network (“stream”). This substance functions both as a method of growth and repair for the Being, and is capable of taking the shape of anything it comes into contact with, most notably trees ([2] only 15% of the woods at the time of the game is thought to still consist of real trees), and grows at a remarkable speed, such that trees that have been cut down can regrow almost instantly. The white substance can duplicate both organic and inorganic matter, sometimes merging the two, by using dead or immobilised matter that are in close proximity as a template (the original often being overgrown with rootlets). It is unclear if on some occasions this may be intentional, shrines (assembled by the Savages) can be observed in the Swamp, where humans and other animals have deliberately been placed in close proximity for the roots to bind.
The new organisms, the “replicas” are often noted to be imperfect imitations of the original, with solid inanimate objects often appearing to have pitted/bubbled surfaces as well as being softer and more bendy than would be expected. Quite often, replicas are paler in appearance [3], retain the mind and memories of their original counterpart [4], and are unaffected by the call of the Being (notable exception of the Snail). Replicas are not always mobile, and may be incomplete, forming snapshots of particular times, this seems to occur when the fluid does not have sufficient time to form a template from the host [5]. Once the white substance has a template, it will begin to replicate, sometimes creating only one copy, sometimes it creates multiple (the Snail, the man in the tunnel, the frozen savages on the Road Home) which can be found in close proximity to one another.

The Wolfman is a replica of a huntsman who lived in the Old Woods, merged with a trophy of either a wolf or dog. Evidence for this comes in the form of the wedding ring upon his hand (commented to be a poor imitation by the Protagonist), and the man found encased in rootlets in the Hunter’s Lodge found wearing the same ring. The other evidence is that he is clearly a fusion of two creatures; a man and a canid. The plague distorts and deforms what is already there, it does not cause them to become more like another creature. The Wolfman also clearly shares memories with that of the hunter, such as a love of collecting trophies and firearms, and his link to the Chicken Lady’s family.

The Trader is a replica of the Protagonist, formed during the time he was tied up to the tree in his hazard suit before the prologue. The hazard suit helmet part of his body as the substance did not differentiate between a living and inorganic tissue. Evidence for the Trader being a replica of the Protagonist is strong, from his familiar appearance, similar height, and the possession of the key to tunnel 21 and his journal (“weird book”), which are both imperfect replicas when looked compared side by side with the Protagonist’s own items. The Doctor also remarks in the prologue, on first finding the Protagonist, that he is carrying on him only a key and a journal. Like the Mushroom Granny he is observed to smell strongly of mushrooms and have paper white skin.

The Mushroom Granny’s counterpart’s entire house can still be still found within the village. This replication event can be inferred to have occurred on the night the father of the Three attempted to raid the basement, as can be determined from the conversations the replica villagers [6] outside. The Mushroom Granny’s own reactions also indicate that she believes she is living at this time, as when presented with a picture of the Three as children she remarks that all they have left is their father, as well as not recognising Marcinek (who would have been much younger at the time), and when shown a picture of Elephant mother she will say that she would have gone looking for her but her legs prevent her from leaving the house – whereas in the Village the cripple will remark that the original Granny did indeed leave the village. Like the Trader she is remarked to have paper-white skin, and if eaten by the Protagonist she is found to have no bones. The post-game transcript, where she survives, state she is not human [7].

The Snail(s) are a replica of a man who lived within the cottage (which the Snail repeatedly refers to as his house), whose corpse can be found entwined in roots within, and whose diary states he had taken to eating snails shortly before his death by starvation. A strange replica key can be found on him, growing out of the palm of his hand.

The Talking Tree is a replica of the starving village, and from its dialogue it can be gaged to be a conglomerate consisting of both individuals who managed to lock themselves in the basement (including a cow) and those who were locked out. Its connection to the substance being made particularly clear when the Protagonist accidentally breaks an arm of one of the conglomerate, only for it to reform before his eyes.

The man in the tunnel with the soft bullet and weird cross is a replica of a man whose original body (complete with regular bullet and cross) can be found closer to the entrance to the Swamp. He is noted to be attached to the floor and has an inhuman voice that doesn’t sound quite right. He is also lying in a stream of the substance, and his bones are soft (compared to eggshell), and instead of blood he bleeds substance.

Other examples of replicas.
• Centipedes, Swampers, Human Spiders, and Banshees.
• Tunnelling man.
• Numerous occasions in the Swamps you can see replicas that are in the process of forming, they appear as white, clouded and partial forms, often surrounded by mushrooms.
• The savages and villagers upon the “Road Home”; and man in the Village Sector 3C.

Apart from replicating organisms, another property of the substance is that it seemingly has electrical properties [8], and as an actively controlled part of the Being it can be used to control radiowaves, as is suggested by the radio tower’s interior being completely overgrown with roots, and the numerous occasions where the Being is seen to communicate through this means [9].

[1] “Note on a bundle of roots.”
[2] “Note on the wall of trees.”
[3] Mushroom Granny, Trader, Snail, man in the tunnel.
[4] Mushroom Granny, Wolfman, Trader, Snail.
[5] Hideout 1 replica in Old Woods; Mushroom Granny’s house; people on the “Road Home”; people outside the entrance to Old Woods from Dry Meadows; etc.
[6] Conversation: (“Thief event”)
Villager 2 = What is happening?
Villager 1 = They locked themselves in the basement.
[7] “The old lady who owned the place finally remembered her previous incarnation… For a short moment she even felt like a human being…” (Bliss ending; boy left with MG).
[8] Electrodes planted in the roots in the dig site at the outsider camp (Chapter 2), and the doctor mentions electricity in the trees (Chapter 2).
[9] First night in hideout 4; if Talking Tree is burnt; the Snail’s house; the Protagonist and Doctor hearing voices in the static.

Dreams

There is a lot of room for interpretation and speculation regarding the “dreams”, which are seemingly/mainly brought on the consumption of essence. A “dreamer” may “sleep-walk” during these hallucinations. Speculatively, “dreams” may function as a gateway to the “mind network” of the Being (implied, by the association of the Being in most dreams), allowing the protagonist to see things of the past that he couldn’t have possibly known on his own.

The Prologue as seen by the Protagonist: after being injected with essence by the Doctor, the Protagonist walks around the abandoned house, seeing a man with dials for eyes turn into a radio, a talking corpse, and finally the house being attacked by monsters (in reality, villagers).

The Forest: the Protagonist is walking through the forest, pursuing a voice and trail of shiny stones. This is the Being, calling you to return to it. At one point you will interact with a lamp which will become a sleeping, glowing child surrounded by slumbering bodies. This is highly implied to be the Being, as it mirrors the valley the Being slumbers in the true ending. A trail of shiny stones then leads you to sleep in a bed afterwards, completing the cycle. Shiny stones are fragments of the meteor that brought the Being to Earth (Acid Wizard - July 2023 Reddit AMA)

The Church: Outside the church is a smiling corpse who will inform the Protagonist that he has “no voice or will, but not to worry as he is in good hands”. A subtle clue to the protagonist already being under the control of the Being. There is line of people queuing down the aisle for the basement, with others rest on the benches. These are locals, some with young children, waiting in line for some unknown evaluation by the Doctor (implied by the children’s drawings in the Strange Box). The basement of the church was meant to be a sanctuary for the locals, with beds, electricity and other supplies provided. But whatever its purpose (perhaps for isolation, or perhaps as a makeshift hospital) those who descended and never came up again. On opening the door to the small sideroom, you will trigger a both real-life and in-dream event. A black chomper will appear and attack, repeating about how everything he does is for his two girls. In reality, this is a local man who lived in the Dry Meadows (see Minor Characters section). His two daughters were amongst those chosen to go into the basement, and now all he has left of them is a box of their drawings. Now he finds you, a stranger, taking away that box and so he attacks you. Depending on your actions there are now two possible outcomes, you either escape him or kill him. If he survives, he will call you a thief on your return, if you kill him his body will be lying there on your return.

The Grave: Taking a walk in the woods the Protagonist finds an open grave which a smiling corpse lies beside. Similar to the Forest dream, he will be encouraged to lie down. The corpse is likely a twisted reflection of the protagonist themselves rather than the Being, as it talks to him like an old friend, as it does in the Church dream.

The Apartment: A glimpse of the protagonist’s home life. He awakens in his old apartment, it is early in the morning. Suddenly the lights go out and a knock will be heard at the door. It is the current Protagonist. If you refuse to look at him, you can head southwards down the corridor until you encounter a door on your left, as you continue to walk you will begin to see more and more shiny stones, eventually you will come upon a TV that will exclaim: “Teddy Bear! You should not be here.” After which point the dream will end. This is a very ambiguous dream and could be interpreted in many ways, but the the TV in this situation is likely the Being, the large collection of shiny stones and it directly speaking to the player in the way it does indicates so. While still in the apartment, if you turn on the TV (early enough for the entire thing to play), another bear is also mentioned. Two characters on a children’s show, one named “Floppy Bear” (the Protagonist/humanity?) exclaims to the other how there are stars falling from the sky (perhaps alluding to the arrival of the Being). The second character (The Being?) tells him it is just snow, but Floppy Bear disagrees with this.

Dev’s Apartment: Nothing lore related here, but there are some cool concept art drawings.

The Train Wreck: You awaken as the Doctor at the start of the plague and witness the deterioration of the Pretty Lady after she becomes infected with the plague, at her side are her sister and brother praying and pleading for her recovery. The Doctor cannot cure her, and is cursed at by the brother. And as the Doctor walks away his other patients begin to call him out for his failure to stop the plague.

The Basement: This covers the events following when the 3C Village group of thieves first broke into the basement, barricaded themselves in and ateall of the supplies. When you first awaken in the dream, you will see the see the 3C Village basement as it originally was, full of crates of food and a sleeping cow. Time passes, someone bashes against the door begging to be let in (this is the villagers that have been locked out, trying to break down the barricade made by the thieves; scratch marks can be seen on the other side if inspected from the surface. Attempting to dismantle the barricade in the dream as the Protagonist will result in you being confronted by an irate thief demanding you stop for your own safety and to get back to digging). Slowly the crates will begin to be emptied and the cow dies. The thieves begin to dig a tunnel to get out without having to face the villagers they left above. Following this tunnel, you will soon begin to come across the corpses of the thieves, having died while they were still digging. At this point you will awaken, and find that same tunnel, now collapsed and full of roots.

Final Dream Sequence: Essentially the protagonist follows a trail of shiny stones and the call of the Being until he reaches a room that causes him to relive the first dream of all. He must escape the black chompers and travel onwards until he reaches a Huge Mouth in front of a praying figure. The Mouth will beckon him and he will pass through. The Mouth, praying figure, shiny stones and voice are all the hallmark of the Being, talking to the protagonist. There are also hints about the protagonist’s own past here, you will come across a lone tree with a piece of bloodied rope with bits of hazard suit still stuck to it. Tying in with what you will later see at the campsite if you survive the dream, that the protagonist themselves first escaped being tied up to a tree shortly before the game started.

Main Characters (A)

The Protagonist:
Despite being the main character of the story, very little is actually known about the protagonist, not even his name. He was a soldier (as the “Torn Page From a Journal” and outsider camp reveal), and he had already been on five separate expeditions into Darkwood prior to the one that led to the events of the game. He was seemingly eager to return to Darkwood, bored of home life (see “Torn Page From a Journal”) who enjoyed watching sports, was embittered by the news and would sometimes watch children’s TV to distract himself (“Apartment Dream” and “Plastusiowy Pamiętnik”). He lived in a small flat in a large rundown apartment block, which he shared with his significant other (girlfriend or wife) and his dog Szurek. He seemed to have been a friendly and good-natured man, who was on good terms with most people in his apartment block (this is also suggested by the kind demeanour of the Trader; his replica). In-game, he displays heightened aggression and violence, typical of the effects of the plague, with which he has become infected with in the absence of his hazard suit. He appears callous, uncaring, and impatient with others and even himself, often insulting or speaking cruelly of the locals in his journal, full of desperation to just get to the “Road Home”. On his last expedition into the woods his group were assigned to an urgent mission much deeper in the woods than he had ever been before. It is unknown what the purpose of the expedition was, but it appeared to involve the collection of samples and the measuring the electrical (or seismic) output of the root network in the region. It is also possible he might have been part of the 7 strong team sent to retrieve Maciek (Maciek likely went missing 7 months prior to the start of the game, based on the “Gentleman’s” magazine being the February issue). Whatever the purpose of the expedition, his camp was attacked and overcome by savages. He and two others were bound to trees to die, but he managed to escape, discarding his torn hazard suit for the clothes of a scarecrow, and fleeing, eventually he collapsed due to his injuries. After escaping the Doctor, the protagonist, now infected, begins to follow the call of the Being, backtracking the way he had fled.

The Trader:
A replica of the protagonist made by the white substance (likely while he was bound to the tree, as the Trader is literally merged with his hazard suit helmet but which the Protagonist removed after he escaped). The Trader is compassionate and rational individual, likely displaying the protagonist’s true personality prior to infection. He obviously cares deeply for the protagonist’s wellbeing, helping him when he can, greeting him warmly – gestures which the protagonist does not react to. He also shows relief on seeing the protagonist having survived the first night, and increasing concern as he moves deeper into the woods, even following him through to the Swamp. His main desire appears to be to keep the protagonist alive; it is likely he recognises what has happened and what he is. The circumstances surrounding his death in the Swamp are mysterious, but it happened during the night after the Protagonist arrived. His assailants were likely either the Three (purely circumstantial) or the Protagonist himself (the Three have no reason to call the Trader a “liar”, nor do they appear to be violent). Oddly, the Protagonist does not appear to recognise his corpse when interacted with.

The Wolfman:
The Wolfman is a replica of a Hunter and one of his trophies. A sadistic and vengeful individual, the Wolf desires only two things, to see the villagers suffer and the Pretty Lady. It is not clear if he is fully aware that he is a replica, only that he knows his appearance disturbs others and has caused the Village to shun him. He has a deep enmity with the Chicken Lady, whom he believes is all that is stopping him from reaching the Pretty Lady. The Pretty Lady has been inferred to be the wife of the Hunter, both of whom wore silver weddings rings; but interestingly, the ring of the Pretty Lady’s is actually found in a pile of blankets on which the Chicken Lady herself was sleeping on, making it a possibility the Chicken Lady herself might have been the Hunter’s wife, and the Wolf’s deep hatred of the Chicken Lady and desire for the Pretty Lady might even stem out of the Hunter’s desire for an extramarital affair prior to the Hunter’s death. It is ambiguous whether the Wolf is truly part wolf, as trophies of both dogs and wolves are found within the Hunter’s Lodge. There is also a possible link to Burek (see the “children's drawings” in the “Strange Box”) and the photo of a wolf-like creature standing over a man found in the lodge. The Wolf, while sadistic, filled with rage, self-pity, and vengefulness, has a playful side to him and will play the wolf videogame if interacted with correctly (=if the Protagonist indicates it’s meant as a joke). He is generous to those who help him, and appears to hold a genuine sense of comradery with the Protagonist if he chooses to side with him, potentially offering him multiple gifts (a pistol, a hunting rifle and a hot bar upgrade) and is eager to help him reach the Doctor’s. He is extremely vengeful if betrayed, pursuing the player through to the Swamp even if though it doesn’t serve his own interests, and challenges him to an intentionally unfair fight, just to punish him. He seems to have an animosity towards the Doctor, yet at the same time must have interacted with him on at least neutral grounds, as he knows that the Doctor took the key off the Protagonist when he first met him (and it’s supposed use). He also appears to hate Piotrek, for unknown reasons, but as Piotrek mentions he once owned a small plastic chick, it's possible he is somehow associated with the Chicken Lady.

The Musician:
A polite, downtrodden, and well-meaning child who lived with his parents in the Old Woods. His mother was a violinist, and with whom he shared a strong bond, following in her footsteps to be a musician and taking delight in the idea that he might one day help her work in the fields (Musician dialogue, Chapter 2). It is unknown what his father did, but it is known he used to beat the Musician (ending transcript if the Musician returned to his parents: “…He tried to cover himself using the violin, but to no avail. This time the father did not use the belt, but his new rows of teeth.”) but the Musician still loved him. At some point, the small family began to succumb to the physical deterioration from of the plague, his parents became immobilised and began to lose the ability to speak. Believing his parents were angry with him as they would “no longer hear how sad he was”, the Musician ran away from home. Possibly prior to this (see the “children’s drawings” in the “Strange Box”), the Musician hoped to be admitted into the Church Basement but was likely denied entry. The Musician had been to the Doctor at some point, who had taken pity on him and provided him a small wooden mask knowing that it was the only thing he could do. The Village themselves shun the Musician for his deformities. Around three months before the start of the game, the Musician attended a Kupala night held in the village, and witnessed the Chicken Lady accompanying her deformed sister, the Pretty Lady When it came time for the Pretty Lady to throw her wreathe (most likely it was thrown for her, due to the need to keep her restrained) it landed in the river. Perhaps seeing his own mutations reflected in those of the Pretty Lady, the Musician fished her wreathe out of the water, and declared himself to be her future husband.

Main Characters (B)

Piotrek:
A clever, eccentric young man who lives alone in a rusted old workshop, obsessed with space travel. He appears to be quite naïve and childish in his ideas and suffers insomnia. His relation to the other inhabitants is unclear, he mentions his father but not who he was. Curiously his workshop is said to smell strongly of rosin, a substance often used to treat string instruments like violins. He is also says at one point he owned a plastic chick (which he melted into a moon), thereby also possibly associating himself with the Chicken Lady (who is known to have given these out to close family, like her brother). Additionally, a toy rocket ship can be found in the Doctor’s house. If he was related to the Chicken Lady in some form, it might explain why the Wolfman hates him. Piotrek himself doesn’t appear to be enemies with anyone, his only wish is to go to space. It is possible this obsession might be brought on by the Being, as if his ship is completed it will be found crashed now much closer to the heart of the woods; differently to the others though, he never mentions wanting to go home, merely wanting to reach the stars.

The Doctor:
A well-meaning man now turned an alcoholic desperate to escape the woods. He lived in the woods with his wife and daughter before the plague, working to keep the local village healthy, and sometimes driving to the Sector 3C village to help them too. When the plague began to appear, his daughter and wife were likely evacuated, but the Doctor stayed behind. Eventually the Sector 3C village (by ~1982; the Doctor says he had last visited around 5 years before in Chapter 2) the woods became so overgrown that he could no longer reach Sector 3C. None of his remedies would stop the physical and mental deterioration of his patients. And at one point, he attempted to build a sanctuary for the locals by isolating certain individuals below the ground (on what grounds they were chosen is unknown; but perhaps ones who were not yet showing symptoms), this in turn failed. Operating out of his own house, the Doctor had to take to tying down his more violent patients to prevent them from harming him or others. The child of one of these patients (the Doctor’s neighbour; a savage who has since broken free from his restraints) can still be found in the trailer outside, in the process of becoming a chomper. The Doctor’s house is surrounded by graves of dead patients. He is a scientific individual who uses deductive reasoning, documenting everything he can, with a camera and notes; his dialogue with the Protagonist if they are on good terms reveals a lot about the nature of the plague. His knowledge of the outsiders is limited, he doesn’t know about the purpose of the “oven gas” for example. But the Doctor is aware of the outsider presence in the woods, he knows they can come and go as freely as they please, while he is stuck surrounded by the dead, dying and sick, unable to leave and unable to help anyone, and for this reason he loathes the Protagonist when he first meets him. Sadly, for the Doctor, it is very possible there was an attempted rescue mission to retrieve him (half a torn photograph of him can be found on one corpse inside the helicopter wreck in Chapter 2). Despite the villagers attempting to lynch him in the Prologue, the Doctor will still attempt to help them escape by leaving signs to indicate the entrance to the Underground tunnels (following a failed “Train dream sequence”).

The Chicken Lady:
A bossy, feisty, well-meaning old lady who lives in the Village in the Silent Forest, in a house with a large flock of chickens and tending to her ill sister. She is at least 60 years old given that her brother Janek fought in the Second World War (see dog tags). She cares deeply for both of her siblings and is distraught at the idea of losing either of them. Prior to the start of the game, she had attempted to dissuade her brother from going to seek out the Doctor (why her brother wanted to visit the Doctor is unknown), a visit from which he never returned. Due to the cannibalistic drive that the plague has instilled in her sister, she cannot untie her, and as a result is very frustrated when she catches the Musician trying to free her. Despite the irritation she shows towards the boy, in the Bliss Ending (if the Chicken Lady lives and the Pretty Lady dies), she will adopt the Musician and care for him as family.

The Cripple:
A talkative old ex-World War 2 veteran, who lost both legs from the knees downwards. He had a home and a pig farm in Sector 3C until the late 1970s (~1978) at which point the plague had spread and his pigs and house were burnt in an attempt to contain the infection. He had a daughter or wife named Zocha, who succumbed to the plague and died. He loved his village dearly and the presence of the Talking Tree, a reminder of those long dead, is a torture to him. He is the last surviving inhabitant of his village, kept there only by his inability to walk, but he survives by catching fish in the flooded streets. He, unlike most, is aware that the call of the Being is trick, and that the Road Home is not that at all (“The road to madness is what it is.”), as he is already home where he is, even so, he is unable to resist the Being’s call if the path is cleared.

The Snail:
A replica of a man who once lived in a cottage by the junkyard. The man had presumably been living alone for some time (as his diary shows that he believes the ruins to be empty). He had lived in what was once a “pretty, wooded clearing” before the flood arrived. He appeared to be quite a clever and innovative individual, compiling a map of where objects of value were stored in the junkyard, completing crosswords at a rapid rate (perhaps out of boredom) as well as attempting to record the sound of Being using tapes he had found to try to figure out what it was and where it was coming from. He theorised the voice had to be coming from the nearby radio tower even though it had been knocked down for some years previously. He had seen (and been seen) by outsiders on at least one of his outings. It’s uncertain when he died, but a good guess would be between 1983-1986 (1-4 years prior to the start of the game; after the flooding had started). Towards the end he was starving, and had taken to eating snails and grass (according to his diary), and eventually he died and was encased in roots. He would eventually be reincarnated multiple times by the forest, as a mix of his last meal and himself, a snail and a man. The largest and most complete of these is the Snail himself, formed atop the roof of the house which then collapsed under his weight when he first tried to move. He appears to be both blunt and cowardly (hiding from the Protagonist when approached but not hesitating to insult his appearance or choices if the Protagonist indicates he is not headed for the Road Home). Unlike other Replicas, he is not immune to the Being’s call. The reason for this is unclear, but is perhaps a reflection of the replication process itself: this desire was inherited from its human predecessor who was already obsessed with finding the source of the voice in the radio transmissions.

Major Characters (C)

The Mushroom Granny:
A replica of an old woman who once lived in the Sector 3C village. The Granny was a kindly old lady who loved her daughter and 7 grandchildren all dearly, she had severely arthritic knees and had to increasingly spend more time in a rocking chair. She was a prolific smoker and a talented painter, and her favourite subject was flowers. When her daughter left with 4 of the youngest grandchildren with her, she was saddened but stayed where she was due to her knees. But it was too much for her when the Three were banished and their father presumably killed, and despite the fact that she could barely walk, she made her way out into the Swamp in search of her missing daughter, and was never seen again. The Mushroom Granny is this same old woman, but from the night of when the thieves first broke into the basement (as indicated by the statuesque replica villagers conversing outside her house), her entire house and part of the surrounding village was also replicated in this way. As a result, the Mushroom Granny has no memory of the Three being banished or their father being harmed, but acknowledges her daughter has left and laments that her legs are too bad to follow her. She does not recognise Marcinek, as the boy would have been around four years younger when she knew him.

The Three and the Thief:
The 3 eldest sons of the Elephants. When the floods first appeared and starvation began to set in, and their mother left with her 4 youngest children, the Three began to become very sickly and ill, leaving them with only their father to take care of them. Around 1983, at this time, the eldest boy would have been around 15 years old (as he appears alone in a photograph with his mother and grandmother marked 1970; and looked to be ~2 years old at the time), and his two brothers would have been even younger. Increasingly desperate to save his sons, the Thief organised a small group of other villagers who were also unsatisfied with how much food they were getting, and together they planned to break into the basement and raid it for food. For unknown reasons however, the Thief found himself locked out of the basement by the other thieves, and he was set upon by the angry villagers. In revenge, the villagers then turned on the three sickly boys who were still at home, and threw them out of the village. How the Three survived from here is unknown, and there are a number of mysteries surrounding them. There is a corpse near the metal door in tunnel 21 in Chapter 1 who is carrying a torch, a rotten mushroom and a rusty cow bell. And up near the radio tower, three graves have been dug, and around them are sacks, one of which contains a cow bell and a mushroom. Cow bells are associated are with the Three, the eldest of whom wears one around his neck, and the noise can always be heard when they are nearby. There is not enough evidence though to suggest what the connections between these might be. The Three took to wandering with the savages, seemingly without consequence, though more often they walked alone. They found their mother, but she didn’t recognise them, and they left the next day (she will say this to the Protagonist). With the village now empty, they visit it regularly to see the Talking Tree, whether because it represents their lost village or there is a copy of their father in there somewhere, is unknown, but they value the Tree more than their lives.

The Talking Tree:
A horrific amalgamate of the villagers from the night the thieves broke into the basement. Some are the thieves barricaded in the basement, some are the villagers that were were locked outside. One of them is a cow that was locked in the basement. Connected directly to the stream of white substance, it can regenerate any part of itself almost instantaneously (as demonstrated when the Protagonist breaks off a "branch"). One of the villagers at least is self-aware and can interact with the Protagonist, this is presumably the same individual who thanks the Protagonist for sparing them if they aren’t burnt down.

The Bike Man:
An alcoholic middle-aged man, very competent at cycling large bags of goods through the woods, but if there was alcohol in those bags then don't expect there to be any left afterwards.


The Elephants:
A survivalist, paranoid, controlling, and extremely religious mother and her 4 young children. Shortly after the fields first became flooded and starvation began to set in, the Elephant mother left the Sector 3C village and took her 4 youngest children with her. They moved into a house in the swamp, which they then reinforced with wall of junk and barbed wire. At some point, the eldest of the 4 came upon a shed once used by the outsiders and brought back journal on their studies of the woods (which the mother interpreted as evil scripture); for unknown reasons he then died, and his body was left in the shed, which the mother locked. The 3 younger children live under the control of their mother, one of which those (Marcinek) would later run away, seeking out his grandmother (how he knew where to look is unknown). Despite her harsh and controlling behaviour, the Elephant Mother clearly loves her children. She is aware that the infection is airborne, perhaps from observing Outsiders, however her empty oxygen tanks offer little protection, and she succumbs to the call of the Being in the bliss ending if Marcinek is not returned to her.

Minor Characters

The Hunter:
A man who owned the Hunter’s Lodge in Old Woods, was presumably married to the Pretty Lady (or the Chicken Lady). He was not present when the Pretty Lady first fell sick (at least not according to the Doctor’s memories of the event) and may have already been dead by this point. The cause of his death is unknown, but he is found stripped naked in his lodge, it is possible that the Wolf might have taken his clothing, and if that is the case then the bullet wound on Wolf’s jacket suggests that the Hunter was shot by someone.

Janek:
The Chicken and Pretty Lady’s brother, was a soldier in World War 2 (has dog tags). He lived alone in a house in the village, and appeared to be on good terms with the Musician’s family, the Musician in particular he shared a paternalistic bond and would often play with him. He is shown to seemingly be short-tempered, angry at the Doctor’s inability to cure his sister (Train Wreck dream), and shortly before the game (for unknown reasons) went to the Doctor’s house to confront him about something (something he wasn’t “brainy” enough to understand, according to Chicken Lady), presumably he became violent and the Doctor was only just able to shove him into a backroom before locking him in there. It’s unknown why he attacks the protagonist in the prologue (or if he even did attack, since the Protagonist was hallucinating), perhaps he initially mistakes him for the Doctor. Janek is said to have seemingly had an unusual interest with the village well, which is connected to an underground network of tunnels that breaches his house, and it’s possible he may have known about Hanuska’s child being down there. In some way might have been trying to care for it – or keep it out of his house, seeing as the door to this room is barricaded with furniture.

Pretty Lady:
Sister of Chicken Lady and Janek. Not much is known about her. She may have once been married to the Hunter who owned the Hunter’s lodge in Old Woods. Her mental and physical deterioration due to the plague was rapid, she became violent and developed cannibalistic desires, however retains the ability to talk clearly. As a result, for her own safety and those around her, she had her arms and legs chained. Despite the infection, she still cares for her sister and is self-conscious of her appearance (asking the protagonist to cover her back up again if he removes her blanket).

Jasiek:
A villager from Sector 3C, owned a second basement that had become flooded. A corpse sitting in a chair with an empty pistol looking towards a Glare, in the basement, is presumably him.

The Man in the Tunnel:
Presumably a villager from Sector 3C, who attempted to pass through tunnel 21 to find an alternative way around the tree. He was shot in the head by the outsiders, and his corpse has been replicated multiple times by the substance down in the tunnel.

The Tunneler:
A replica creature, the melding of an old man with an earthworm, capable of digging immense tunnels, with which it is obsessed and possessive.

Hanuska:
A woman who gave birth to a plague-ridden infant. The villagers were so horrified that they took the child away and burnt her house, her husband dying in the fire. Holding a deep resentment towards the villagers, Hanuska later exacted her revenge by cutting the power cables used for stunning the Sow, making it impossible for the villagers to feed her.

The Mayor:
Tired, frustrated and despairing individual, who is having to hold back meat rations from the Village due to the sow no longer producing piglets.

The Pig Farmer:
An insane individual obsessed with the Sow, it was his duty to force feed her, and Hanuska’ cutting the cables resulted in the Sow killing him.

Maciek:
An outsider with a known history of difficult behaviour. For three nights he had began to ramble incomprehensibly about someone named Marek (presumably his brother or son), having somehow become infected by the plague. He had taken to carrying a shiny stone. During the early morning, he fled from his assigned group and ran off into the woods without his hazard suit. Seven men were sent to search for him, but did not succeed in retrieving him. Maciek made his way to the Being, and became a sleeper.

The Man with two daughters and Burek:
A man who lived in the Burnt Houses in the Dry Meadow, with his two young daughters and their dog Burek. One day, Burek consumed mushrooms, the effects of the essnce causing the dog to become aggressive and attack the father. Burek was then presumably killed, the circumstances of which are unclear (if the photo of the wolf-like animal standing over a man in the Hunter’s Lodge is Burek, then there is a chance he was shot by the Hunter), and buried in their garden, near the doghouse which the father then took apart. For unknown reasons, their house was burnt down (perhaps by the outsiders in an attempt to control the plague, as they have done with other houses in the Swamp), and the father decided to take his two daughters to the Church Basement with the intention of keeping them safe. The two girls were admitted but presumably he did not go with them as in the children’s drawing they are depicted as being alone surrounded by corpses once the Church Basement plan began to fail. The father began to mentally deteriorate, hearing the laughter of his two girls behind the trees in the woods. He returned to the church but found his two daughters transformed (either into dormant chompers or infected corpses), he took a box of their drawings back up above ground (or perhaps brough the box from the houses when he returned to the Church). He made the Church ruins his home, lamenting the fate of his two daughters.

The Being

Few things can be said definitively regarding the Being, and it is shrouded in mystery and speculation. The Being arrived in August 1975, most likely during the night, as a bright shining object that fell from the sky over the heart of the Darkwood, in Poland. Its arrival was depicted in a painting by the Mushroom Granny’s predecessor, and is further suggested by the locals seemingly beginning to be cut off around this same time (for example the youth magazine in Burnt House is from 1975, as is the Note from the Wolf has in Chapter 2; and the locker code for the Mushroom Granny’s stash). Furthermore, Acid Wizard commented in an AMA on Reddit in July 2023 that the shiny stones were “remnants from the Being’s arrival”, indicating they are fragments of a meteor, indicating the Being has extraterrestrial origins.

The Being made its home in a valley in the heart of the Darkwood, which it quickly overgrew and began to spread its roots, literally, through the flow of “substance”, which these roots then served to transport further afield. “Substance” is described as a clear or white fluid which the Being uses to grow, similar to the mycelium of a fungus. The Being does not appear to have direct control over the substance as it seemingly acts more autonomously like cells in a body – this is suggested by the paradox of the Being’s call beckoning for all inhabitants to approach it, while directly opposed by its own growth preventing many inhabitants from reaching it. For example, the presence of the Talking Tree blocking the main route to the Being, seems counterproductive. The Talking Tree is said to have grown extremely rapidly "even by the local standards" like a growth, like a tumour and blocked any further flow of survivors from reaching the Being. We know that the substance is said to flow in a specific direction (protagonist’s own remarks when going down the first tunnel 21 "White goo slowly seeps from the giant root. It flows down the hallway, as if guided by some unseen force"), and we know that the honeycomb form that “woods” take on is near uniform (“Note about Walls of Trees”), this perhaps is better explained as a pattern of growth rather than something the Being is consciously controlling. The fluid has shape-shifting properties (“Note about the Bundle of Roots”), and can shape shift to imitate new forms after it has been in contact with them, and as long as the replicated object (e.g., a tree) remains in contact with this root network it can regrow rapidly, this makes it nearly impossible to break down any part of the Being’s network for long, and why it’s essentially impossible for the inhabitants of the woods to cut their way out.

The Being may be female, as almost everyone [except Maciek, the outsider with the flamethrower, who is mentioned to be mumbling a male name in his sleep] who hears its call refers to the voice as “she” and “her”, generally under the illusion it is either a female relative or loved one (examples include the Doctor [his daughter], the Musician [his mother], man from the Burnt Houses [his daughters], the Snail, a villager in the Village [their mother]). The Being may also be a child or young infant, as indicated by the Shiny Stone dream, and the infant-like face visible on the Being.

The Being is seemingly incapable of direct speech and must either communicate through radio signals (over which it is implied to have gained direct control of the radio tower, as its interior and systems are all overgrown with tiny rootlets) or through essence- or infection-induced “dreams/hallucinations”. Its words are simple and repetitive, most are demands to “come to it”. The only exceptions are:
-In the Apartment Dream where it says: “Teddy bear, you should not be here,”
-When the Talking Tree is burnt down: “Why? Why did you do it?”
-When messing with the radio in the false basement: “Sleep,”
-And lastly though intriguingly in the Snail’s house: “Are you her?”.
(pure speculation) could this “her” that the Being refers to be a mother if it is an infant? This association could be purely coincidental and is by no means definite. Banshees are strongly associated with mothers, and furthermore in the “returning home dream sequence” the protagonist will encounter an unseen mother who has a banshee embryo as her baby.

Heavily associated with light, the Being is near incomprehensible to humans, and merely being close to it is proves to overwhelming. It is unknown why it wants people to come to it or how it benefits from them sleeping at its roots as these sleepers do not appear to get consumed by the Being, and merely wizen until they die. But once they are in the valley they are trapped, even if they break free from its psychic control, the tunnels out of the valley are kept sealed by the Being so that people may come in but they may never leave.
(speculation) Is it perhaps searching for someone in particular? Or is this a twisted way of it seeking companionship? Or does it somehow feed off people's dreams and hopes? Or something stranger still?

Additional and unexplained phenomena

Shiny Stones
Lumps of rock containing many glowing shiny fragments. These shiny reflective fragments make the stones glow when exposed to light, and are perhaps metal in nature. With the Being likely being extra-terrestrial in nature, it can be speculated that the shiny stones might actually be fragments of meteor that hailed its arrival (this has now been confirmed by the devs in an Reddit AMA July 2023), as meteors are often largely composed of metals (such as iron and nickel). Those infected with the plague are drawn to value them (e.g., the letter regarding Maciek's desertion and his “lucky stone”).

Glare
Appears as a source of bright red light, particularly prevalent closer to the Being in the Swamp. They are capable of warping between different spots but may also be stationary, and can appear both day and night. The Glare only causes harm when looked at directly from a midrange distance, or in any circumstance if standing at close range. The light is accompanied by a deafening ringing noise that gets louder if damage is taken. Jasiek, a man in the Sector 3C Villager appears to have died to one (or perhaps shot himself while sitting directly in front of one). If standing at fairly close range, but not taking damage, mysteriously birdsong can be heard. Their origin is unknown, and their only association with the Being is their unnatural nature and the association with blinding light.

Black substance
A black “shell” which causes anything coated with it to be untouchable and therefore armoured. Volatile and burns off rapidly with all light sources except sunlight. It's source is unknown and it's link to Being unclear.

Poisonous Gas
A cloud of this may sometimes appear at night in the hideout (not Floor Gore), it cannot move once it has appeared and cannot be dispersed. Link to Being unclear.
(speculation) It is possibly linked to the Being as a form of spore dispersal, as the gas only appears at night when the Being is most active, and we know the infection is dispersed in the air hence why all outsiders where hazard suits when travelling through the woods.

Snout
A huge pig-snout like growth in the centre of a large lake in the Swamp region. It causes the entire lake to be shrouded in darkness and be surrounded by a perpetual electrical storm. Susceptible to physical damage, death causes it shrivel up and the darkness and storm to end. A lot of black substance is present around the lake. Link to Being unclear, but it can be assumed to be a clear substance induced growth of some sort, and pigs are known to have existed in the area (the Cripple says he used to farm them).

Monoculus
A living growth fixed within the ground, harmless. It resembles a cluster of eyes that continuously look around at its surroundings. When looked at directly at medium to close range, the eyes will shut to protect themselves, and another part of the monoculus a short distant away will uncurl to reveal a bright red light. The light closely resembles a glare but has no harmful effects on the Protagonist, and will burn away black substance. Human spiders appear to be a replica of a pile of corpses and a monoculus, as the eyes can still be seen on the back, and they retain the same characteristic behaviour of being effected when being directly looked at. Link to Being unclear.

Poltergeist event
Unexplainably during the night, an event may occur where all the furniture begins to move, as if drawn in by a strange gravitational force. The reason for this is unknown, but is likely linked to the Being. The earthquakes are caused by the roots of the Being extending and growing, and the a Poltergeist event might be caused by something similar.

“Living Trees”
A gloopy vine that that extends as tentacles from where it is wrapped around the base of a tree, it will attach to any nearby organism and begin to poison them. Link to Being unknown.

Worms/Big Bugs
Perhaps some mutation of bugs, similar to that of chompers (humans) and huge dogs (dogs), but of insects. Produce toxic mess. Transformation oddly enough parallels that of the Musician in Chapter 2, with the bug becoming immobilised and then producing toxic slime.

[KrystalCroft]

Love this amazing piece of work. Live long and in peace, my friend. <3

[[EXDr] Frank]

HOLY SHIT. More well-written and coherent lore than 98% of video games, film and novels. I am so impressed by this game, it is a masterful blend of horror, thriller, mystery and sci-fi.

Once again a couple guys in Eastern Europe make a better game than 300-person AAA studios in the USA...

It would have been an excellent novel or film.

I beat the game twice so I thought I had kinda figured most things out, but man, a lot of this stuff never occurred to me and yet it all fits together well to form a coherent story in a world that feels real.

I still almost wish I had have played it one more time before giving into temptation and reading exactly this summary of exactly what was happening... I kinda wish the game would have explained a bit more about what exactly what happened after you win, AT LEAST after you get the true "burn them all" ending.

Beautiful collection of lore for the game.

[blueyandicy]

I also assume the said something Janek wasn't able to understand was the Doctor's inability to cure the Pretty Lady, as the Chicken Lady seemingly isn't hostile to the doctor unless shown the Bloody Shawl.

[blueyandicy]

It's interesting that the Being's recreations are immune to his call. This is fascinating because the ONLY character in the game that knows the true nature of The Road Home happens to be the Trader. He says "All roads lead deeper to the woods," (which he was completely right about). Now that I think about it, that explains the protagonist killing him. The protagonist saw him leading him "away," from The Road Home and saw it as a threat, not realizing that the Trader was trying to save him all along. Poor guy....

[**Lady In Red**]

Damn, this was a lot of work. But much appreciated 👏

[Kuzma]

I know that in the Darkwood everything, everyone and everywhere is a copy, but i can't resist. If you ask like this
[quote=MindfulMinx] Where else have we seen a pig associated with electrical shocks? [/quote]
then i must say: (standard electrical equipment in every house) Power socket looks like a pig's snout.
And i agree with your theory, it has a good point.

[Minx]

I believe I've cracked the deal with The Snout: It's a giant pig, obviously, that seems to be causing an electrical storm around itself. Where else have we seen a pig associated with electrical shocks?

I think The Snout is the replica of The Sow, having combined the electrical torture of the animal with the pig itself to create a being that can cause electricity around itself.

[Sm0ke]

What an amazingly helpful document! This clears up so many things and allows me to appreciate this amazing story. But also leaves room for interpretation as any good horror should. Excellent work! I'm never going in the woods again !

[greem]

Thank you for clarifying so many of the things I couldn't link. what an amazing story. thank you.

[Daraz]

Also I think with the grave scene, maybe its suppose to be the Protaganist's deep guilt for abandoning his comrades back in the camp you can find if you don't burn the talking tree.