Moth Tribe

"They forsook the light that spawned them. Turned their backs to it... Forgot it even."

- Seer

The lands of Hallownest are filled by several groups of strange sentient creatures. They occupy various territories around the vast kingdom and developed their own societies and cultures aside from the Pale King's rule.

Table of Contents

Bees • Flukes • Fools • Mantis Tribe • Mosskin Tribe • Moth Tribe • Mushroom Clan • Snail Shamans • Soul Sanctum's Scholars • Spider Tribe • The Grimm Troupe • Godseekers

The moths are an ancient tribe of bugs learned in the manipulation of dreams. They possess the Dream Nail, an artifact which can peer into the mind of others, extract Soul from living creatures and allow its wielder's consciousness to enter their dreams. With this knowledge, the moths also crafted Charms such as the Dream Wielder to reinforce the Dream Nail's abilities, and the Dreamshield to protect its bearer. Like the Snail Shamans, they can sense when their thoughts are intruded upon.

The moths were birthed from the light of the Radiance, a higher being brighter than Essence living outside the physical realm. While they used to worship her, they turned their backs to her when the Pale King arrived in Hallownest. Through their newfound devotion to the Pale King, they eventually forgot the Radiance, which sealed her away. This crime led to the wrath of this powerful being, who would force the Kingdom's bugs to remember her and be the cause of the Infection.

Under the king's rule, the Moth tribe were caretakers of the Resting Grounds, tending to graves in this place of remembrance for the Kingdom's departed ones. They eventually closed off the Spirits' Glade, where Essence took the shape and memories of departed bugs and forbade its entry. There, the Moths would also record otherworldly words inside the Shrine of Believers, a lingering dream watched over by a lone moth spirit. An abandoned place of worship to the Radiance still exists in Hallownest's Crown at the top of the Crystal Peak, far above the Resting Grounds.

The moths are usually a passive species, with two exceptions. Thistlewind wielded a weapon to explore the caverns of Hallownest. The warrior Markoth did the same but died alone far in the Kingdom's Edge, never to be found before the Knight's journey. Of the tribe, however, only the Seer remains. She keeps the traditions and duties of her brethren in the Resting Grounds, awaiting the Wielder once dreamed of by the moths.

The Seer rescues the Knight when their consciousness is dragged into a forgotten dream by the Dreamers. Believing them to be the Wielder, she guides them to use the Dream Nail to collect Essence and awake Hallownest's memories, in penitence of the tribe's crimes. When the Knight hones the Dream Nail to its limit, the Seer finally confesses to them the Moths' abandon of the Radiance. With this last memory finally shared, she remembers the Radiance and disappears into Essence, bringing an end to the Moth tribe.

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