Yhorm the Giant

Lore

Yhorm is a Lord of Cinder, and the only giant among them. He can be found in the Profaned Capital, within Irithyll of the Boreal Valley.

Yhorm was asked to lead the nation his ancestors conquered by the people that were conquered. He had a strong sense of duty and was a very forthright being. When he lost the person most important to him that he wanted to protect, he abandoned the use of his shield. When he wanted humans who doubted him to trust him, he gave them a weapon that was his greatest weakness, the Storm Ruler.

Yhorm likely chose to link the flame because of his sense of duty and loyalty to the people he ruled. That's why he abandoned his duty upon resurrection; when he linked the flame, everything went wrong. He believed he had made a terrible mistake.
The bonfires were intrinsically linked to humanity by Gwyn, and humanity is the fuel that keeps the fire going. But, bad things happen when you use the wrong fuel, like that of a Giant. The Witch of Izalith attempted to recreate the first flame and instead gave birth to the Bed of Chaos, turning the city of Izalith into hell and bringing demons into the world. Gwyn attempted to link the fire himself, but all it accomplished was to consume his power and turn him into a living husk.

So what happened when Yhorm, a giant, attempted to link the fire? In the room where Yhorm has retired to, you can see scorched human corpses piled up everywhere. The Profaned Capital was consumed by fire after Yhorm the Giant became a Lord of Cinder. The fire, born of the sky, is said to have incinerated naught but human flesh. Though inadvertently, Yhorm regretfully destroyed his country and killed his people. He was betrayed by the fire, and he blames himself.

Theories

The Profaned Flame Existed Before Yhorm Linked the Fire

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At first, it seems that Yhorm created the Profaned Flame by linking the fire, and it consumed the Profaned Capital along with nearly every human in it. But, what if the city's destruction was just the aftermath of his action, and the Flame was Profaned before he found it?

Two different items - Yhorm's Cinders of a Lord and the Profaned Flame pyromancy - contradict each other in terms of the origin of the Profaned flame. The Cinders state that "Lonely Yhorm became a Lord of Cinder to put the Profaned Flame to rest," implying that the flame existed before Yhorm linked the fire, while the Flame states that, "The Profaned Capital was consumed by fire after Yhorm the Giant became a Lord of Cinder. The fire, born of the sky, is said to have incinerated naught but human flesh." Between these two descriptions, it is unclear which occurred first - the Profaned Flame or Yhorm's linking of the fire.

The most likely explanation, however, is that there is a mistranslation or oversight in the Profaned Flame's description, as another item, Eleonora, says, "A strange weapon found among malformed inhabitants of the Profaned Capital. The Profaned Flame was triggered by the curse of these women, relatives of a certain oracle." This implies that the Flame has nothing to do with Yhorm's linking of the fire at all.

Yhorm's ancestor is Wolnir, and the Profaned Capital is Carthus

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Yhorm's soul states, "Yhorm is the descendant of an ancient conqueror, but was asked by the very people once subjugated to lead them." Though some may believe that this refers to the Giant Lord from Dark Souls 2, it is apparent that the lore of 2 has little to no consequence in 3, outside of some references in item descriptions. It seems much more likely, therefore, that Yhorm's ancestor is someone else.

Though the inhabitants of the Catacombs seem to be human skeletons, Wolnir is massive. This could be the influence of the Abyss deforming him, but it may also be that he was a giant in life. This would help explain how he was able to easily crush the other lords of Carthus and become its conqueror. Additionally, if we assume that the Profaned Capital is a part of Carthus, it makes perfect sense that the people "once subjugated" would be the descendants of the humans that were conquered by Wolnir, as it was the people of the Capital that asked Yhorm for his leadership.

If Yhorm was the descendant of a ruthless tyrant like Wolnir, it would also explain why he is described as "Lonely Yhorm" in his Cinders of a Lord item. The people of the Capital likely shunned him due to his race and bloodline. It's probably during this time Siegward of Catarina befriended the lonely giant.

There are other connections between the Catacombs and the Capital. Both are underground and close to each other geographically, and both are consistently linked by mentions of pyromancy. The Grave Warden Pyromancy Tome and the Carthus Pyromancy Tome both show that pyromancy had a strong tradition in Carthus, and each dark pyromancy references Wolnir specifically. The Profaned Capital, similarly, is marked by the devastation of the Profaned Flame, which also exists in-game as a pyromancy. Lastly, every area in Lothric is linked to a Lord of Cinder in some way, but there is no Lord associated with the Catacombs. This would be explained, however, if the Catacombs and the Capital were linked, as they would both be the lands of Yhorm.

Sources

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Soul of Yhorm the Giant
One of the twisted souls, steeped in strength.
Use to acquire numerous souls, or transpose to extract its true strength.
Yhorm is the descendant of an ancient conqueror, but was asked by the very people once subjugated to lead them, serving as both a weighty blade and a stone-hard shield.

Cinders of a Lord (Yhorm)
Lonely Yhorm became a Lord of Cinder to put the Profaned Flame to rest, knowing full well that those who spoke of him as lord were quite insincere.

Yhorm's Great Machete
Great machete wielded long ago by Yhorm the Giant.
Yhorm once lumbered on the frontlines with a greatshield. But one day, in place of his shield, a left-hand notch was added to his machete, enabling the smashing technique that would become the legacy of his later years.

Yhorm's Greatshield
Greatshield used long ago by Yhorm the Giant.
Increases the user's poise.
As a lord, Yhorm risked everything and fought unflinchingly as a one-man vanguard. Following the loss of the one he wished to protect, he forsook his shield.

Storm Ruler
Greatsword with a broken blade, also known as the Giantslayer for the residual strength of storm that brings giants to their knees.
Yhorm the Giant once held two of these, but gave one to the humans that doubted him, and left the other to a dear friend before facing his fate as a Lord of Cinder.
Skill: Storm King: Assume stance to imbue sword with storm. Most effective when facing giants.

Profaned Greatsword
Long ago, when Sulyvahn was yet a young sorcerer, he discovered the Profaned Capital and an unfading flame below a distant tundra of Irithyll, and a burning ambition took root within him.

Profaned Flame (Pyromancy)
The Profaned Capital was consumed by fire after Yhorm the Giant became a Lord of Cinder.
The fire, born of the sky, is said to have incinerated naught but human flesh.

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PREV: Vordt of the Boreal Valley

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