Concepts
Overview
In a new, blighted world, the embers of a once proud kingdom set the stage. The timeline of the game is hard to pinpoint, and it perhaps flows between times without being overt. There are ancient dragons, giant humanoids, and a building that is architecturally reminiscent of Anor Londo.
"As they say of pilgrimage, the fire fades, and Lords have no thrones." Players are invited to "embrace the darkness".
Ashes of Ariandel (DLC 1)
Our story begins when the Ashen One arrives at the Cleansing Chapel in the Cathedral of the Deep, where he (or she) encounters Slave knight Gael. Gael is praying for fire for Ariandel, and when he sees you, he notes that you have the same scent as another woman, and he concludes that you are Ash. The other woman, as we’ll later find out, refers to Sister Friede. Gael begs us to show his lady flame. Once we confirm that we are Ash, Gael will take us into the Painted World of Ariandel through a rotted scrap of the painting.
At the very first bonfire, we’ll find a Corvian sitting at the corner. He tells us to make our bed and find a good place to rest. While this isn’t really indicative of anything at this point, it is the first hint of the flame versus rot conflict that exists in the Painted World. Venturing further into the Painted World, the Ashen One soon comes across Ariandel Chapel, where Sir Vilhelm stands guard outside. Vilhelm makes a peculiar remark, and is confused as to how you got here, considering that “no bell tolls.” As we know from all of Dark Souls III’s promotional trailers, the beginning movie, and vanilla NPC dialogue, the Ashen Ones rise from their graves when the bell tolls. This is how our journey started, and how we embarked on our initial journey to bring the Lords of Cinder back to their thrones.
However, no bell has tolled in the Painted World, so there’s no reason for us to be here. Nevertheless, Vilhelm tells you to head inside the Chapel and speak with Sister Friede. Friede tells us to leave, and states that there is nothing for the Ashen One here. Our duty lies in the outside world, and we should just forget about the Painted World.
Of course we’re not going to do that, so the Ashen One ventures deeper into the Painted World instead. Here, we find many feeble Corvians on the verge of death. We also find much stronger, much more threatening Corvian knights that choose to slay their brethren. While exploring the Settlement, the Ashen One soon comes across a Corvian NPC who tells us that the inhabitants of this world had long decided to burn this world away with flame, so that a new one may rise. However, Sister Friede, who is revealed to be the first Ash to come to this world, had arrived and convinced Father Ariandel not to do so. Instead of burning the world away, she convinces the Father to let the world steep in rot, and some of the Corvians (the knights that we encounter, essentially) began to follow her rule and turned on their own kind. The NPC also tells us of a prophecy involving two Ashes, one of which will help to restore this world. In this case, we are the second Ash destined to show the lady flame.
Once past the Corvian Settlement, we encounter Sir Vilhelm again, and he decides to slay the Ashen One since we’ve refused to leave. After killing him, he drops a Contraption Key that leads to the attic of the building we’re in, and we find a young painter girl. This is the lady that Gael asked us to find and show flame to. She is the one who will paint a new world to replace this one.
The Ashen One continues through the Snowy Mountain Pass, and along the way, we find a very large bell that lies abandoned on the ground. This must have been the bell that tolls to wake the Unkindled Ones up. But since it’s broken, it couldn’t possibly toll. Perhaps it was Sister Friede and Sir Vilhelm who destroyed the bell so that there’d be no way for a second Ash to arrive in the Painted World.
Soon after, we’ll find a crypt infested with blood-sucking bugs. This is likely a form of symbolism to show just how steeped in rot the world is now. After activating a contraption in the crypt, we get to watch a cutscene where a statue (which looks very similar to the one in the Painted World of Ariamis) moves to reveal a secret area next to where Sister Friede is sitting. In the new area, we find Father Ariandel who speaks of flickering flames. The Father is seen hunched over what looks like a Lordvessel, covering his eyes because he’s afraid of seeing fire. He tells us to bring him his flail, and we later learn that the Father flails himself because his blood is the only thing that will keep the flames at bay. Sister Friede enters the area and tells Father Ariandel not to worry, and that she’ll snuff out these ashes for good.
What she’s basically saying here is that she’s going to kill us.
After striking down Sister Friede, Father Ariandel sees her dead body lying on the ground and cries out in pain. The fire starts to spill over, and because Friede herself is an Ashen One, she is quickly revived by the flames. After killing the both of them, Friede is revived once more as Blackflame Elfriede.
“When the Ashes are two, a flame alighteth. Thou’rt Ash, and fire befits thee, of course…”
After defeating Elfriede, we can speak to the painter girl once more. She has a few interesting lines of dialogue where she talks about how she will soon paint a new world – one that will make a goodly home for someone someday. She also has another line that should prove very interesting to Dark Souls fans:
“Those who aren’t ken to fire cannot paint a world. Those absorbed by fire, must not paint a world. Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten, Mother…”
The Ringed City (DLC 2)
At the close of the Age of Fire, as the world ends and all lands converge upon themselves, a lone adventurer descends into the madness of the earth and uncovers the secrets of the past. The ringed city is said to be at world's end; past this heap of rubbish, as far as one can go.
Information Links
Theories
Parallel Realities
The world, and more specifically the Untended Graves and Firelink Shrine, all exists in parallel realities. That is why you get NPCs that have died multiple times showing up. That's how, as phantoms, you can invade someone else's world. Past, present, and future - do they really matter? Linking the fires could just be a way of pulling all the worlds back together as they have been getting colder and darker as they spread apart and the void between them grows. This is why the Kiln of The First Flame looked like a mess of worlds colliding.
Sources
Dialogue
Ludleth of Courland
"Five thrones will take five Lords, as kindling for the linking of the fire.
The fast-fading flame must be linked, to preserve this world.
A re-enactment of the first linking of the fire."
Predictions
Preserved for posterity only.
Regarding the lumbering giant in the trailer, Miyazaki called this creature the Lord of Cinder. That should ring a bell to anyone who played Dark Souls, since the final boss of that game, Gwyn, was the Lord of Cinder. There is a small possibility that Gwyn will be resurrected. Or, it could instead, be the player character who took his place. Or, it could simply refer to anyone who sacrificed to the First Flame in the past.
This game breaks "the cycle". If the previous two games are thought of as polar opposites, though clearly connected, how will this game tie in? It may explore the consequences of both: rejecting change, and being hopeful and progressive. Or it may just pick up where Scholar of the First Sin left off.
It is possible that the player character is no longer the "chosen undead" of the previous games. The player does not turn Hollow, and the Humanity item from before has been replaced by Ember.
Farron's Undead Legion is a group that has invaded Firelink Shrine attempting to overthrow the Lords of Cinder. A known deserter, Hawkwood, is Unkindled. The emblem on the legion's banner resembles the Darksign, the symbol of the Undead curse. They seek to end the age of fire for good.
The fluid, black masses that emerge from certain enemies might be Humanity run wild. It is reminiscent of Manus from Dark Souls. This game could take place in the Age of Dark, so as the fire fades maybe Humanity can no longer be contained by human vessels.