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Toland is one of the peak Warlocks. Listens to Deathsong, doesn’t die fully. Gives you sword logic gun even though he’s mad at you. Schizo posts. He’s what every aspiring Warlock should be. I still have my old Shadow Price at current power.
@@therecklesswarlock6439 understandable but how does it feel that he got lore-crept by Elsie saying, “Light and Dark don’t matter, as long as we protect our friends!!”
The idea of Toland the Shattered becoming an actual antagonist is intriguing. The “Fine, I’ll do it myself.” idea really comes through when you consider that we’ve basically destroyed an entire pantheon of Gods, and did NOTHING with the spoils of those battles besides making a few guns.
Toland has to be thinking about the consequences of going from "helpful-ish orb of light" to "main antagonizer" with the Vanguard, knowing that the chances of him being turned into a gun (and not a sword) are actually pretty high. And maybe that's not all that bad for him...I imagine it can get boring in his Throne Closet.
We’ve yet to kill Xivu and Savathun to destroy the Hive pantheon, there’s also the Worm Gods that would need to die. But, their deaths seem certain, just far off. Still, Toland may be very upset when we do kill the last two Hive Gods. Leading to him being one of the first new Hive gods.
It’s funny how Ulan-Tan was kind of right. Albeit we didn’t have to give up light the wield darkness. These last few years have proven, he was onto something, and ahead of his time. Just like Eris, Osiris, Drifter, and other outcasts were.
I’ve been holding onto that ship since season of arrivals, was telling my fireteam back then “watch, this is going to be hitting the nail on the head as the story goes on
Probably so far our actions are kinda disproving what he thinks cause we killed oryx with bomb logic and we killed both rhulk and nezarec (debatable on thst) also with bomb logic and he even knows xivu was banished from her throne world needless to say if he had a body he’d be throwing a tantrum all cause we disproved all he knew all he thought
@@pugwash1this is my thought too. We didn’t squandor the power as much as we disproved it. Toland is just crazy with the big mad and that combo mixed with powers that break physics does not equal good outcomes lol.
@@christianyaerger1751 I believe it originated with Rhulk's subjugation of the worms. Since sword logic is slightly modified from Rhulk's conception of the final shape and he came to that ideology before the worms.
@@christianyaerger1751 It definitely predates the worms. I'm sure there was some lore from Ahsa about how it was the logic itself that corrupted the leviathans into the worms.
@@dudeguyrockfanHe could use them as a tool to form a pact with the Worm Gods. Why would the Worms go against the Sword Logic and make Toland: a weak, lightless human, an Ascendent Hive God? 1. They may become desperate after the events of Final Shape and us killing the last two Hive Gods. 2. They’ll need a new God to keep their spices and the dynasty going. 3. They probably glimpsed at the fear Eris stirred in them, and sees that same potential in Toland.
The Worm Gods may become desperate enough in the future to form a pact with a weak human like Toland. They may have seen the power Eris had, and see that same potential in Toland.
It only just dawned on me that Oryx was undone by the setting free of taken light, i.e. by the removal of “shape” that was imposed upon light. Savathun was undone with the truth by removal of deception she had been under. Xivu’s defeat by the refusal to wage war/pacifism was a bit more explicit as was Eris’s choice to reject revenge and the very sword logic itself. In all cases, these were clear evidence against the axioms they hoped to become. Axiom is a very specific word meaning a truth that is so self evident. Axioms by their nature are impossible to prove any further while being impossible to disprove. They are absolute truth and any refutation within their scope irrevocably disproves them therein. They may still yet be axioms but their scope must be redefined. Taking the throne is to redefine the axiom, rejecting it is to leave it disproven. Xivu must bring a more profound embodiment of war to continue existing while Toland needs to redefine the meaning of shape. Xivu seems doomed to failure but Tolands clearest path may see him fundamentally alter the ascendant plane if he can wrest dominion of it from those who still hold power there. It’s a perilous path he must traverse but there’s a great threat to us if he were to prove to himself fit to navigate it.
I'm certainly curious about how Toland might shape himself to more properly embody an Axiom the Hive might worship, as well as what he'd choose. An Ascendant Toland might somehow incorporate and subsume Bomb Logic into his Sword, if he chooses wisely enough. War seems like an abstract, yet defined enough concept that it's ripe for the claiming, if he finds the power to redefine it in his terms. Same with Victory, perhaps as the one that remains in the Ascendant realm, he proves Victory belongs to the last, and he is the Last, or something.
@@AvalanchesAreCool I find that articulating my thoughts quickly and fluidly reinforces itself and helps me stay sharp and articulate in everyday conversation. I generally don’t go back and edit much when commenting so the process of typing is the process is also a process of fully forming an idea that popped into my head. At most it’s 10 minutes spent refining my own ability to put words to thought in lieu of watching another video passively if I have bits of time to spare. In short it’s away of actively practicing my ability to communicate more complicated and abstract ideas than the majority of social interactions involve.
I want to let you know, Byf: I appreciate the acting you've been doing lately when reading lore tabs. It's neat, and you're pretty good at it. Keep going my guy.
toland can stay mad, that throne is worthless as the sword logic proves. we were stronger and make up the new rules to the game, oryx got turned into the gun. such is the the law of the sword.
@@zamarion101 You miss the point. Throne worlds are useless IF YOU DON'T USE THEM. Just like with any throne of a defeated king, you sit on it, you gain that authority over said domain unequivocally, including all the resources and secrets. That's why Toland is big mad. None of us took any part of it for our own other than what was necessary for a few armor sets and weapons (even if one of them is powered by Oryx's heart). Dude's like "Bruh, I could have been a kang if you at least let me have it after you were done! 😡" 😂
Toland was really on The Guardian then got mad when we didn't take the Throne(he still hasn't let it go). Now he's beefing with Eris now. Love and hate this guy, one of the biggest Guardian haters. Hope he comes to power and becomes a villain.
Imagine if he ever becomes a raid boss and he's still just a little light but makes crazy ass shit happen and DPS phase is mainly killing the things he creates slowly draining his power till the tiny light pops
I absolutely loved your manic, frenzied readings of Toland's notes. It makes perfect sense that he'd speak like that and it was greatly entertaining :)
I can absolutely see, only after we have defeated The Witness and killed Xivu Arath & Savathûn, Toland finally take what he believes is his and ascend. Not as The Shattered, but rather Toland, The Taken Usurper
It would be a awesome cut scene after we defeated the witness and the credits and what not done it shows a ending scene where Toland appears over the the throne of oryx and he turns into a guardian with a sword sitting down laughing
Yeah, at that point he'd be the only one left to champion a long-since defeated dogma, and with enough time and planning, he'd be willing to become humanity's greatest enemy to retort our refusal of the Sword Logic.
what if toland partners with a worm god the way nokris did with xol we only know the whereabouts of xol akka & xita (incapacitated on mars/turned into whisper, murdered by auryx and turned into the dreadnought, used by rhulk as a massive battery respectively) we know that the other worm gods have devotees (in anânh worshiping ur, the ever-hunger for example) nevermind byf suggested this
@user-ku8yi5to4f Add insult to injury and make him into a weapon called Spear of the Shattered Sword. ExotiGlaive thats also a got a Anti-Taken Malfeasance effect. Have it shooting mini-Malf projectiles like a Shotgun, hold reload at full charge to slam it into the ground making a Damage Resistance Rift surrounded by Malfeasance spike like Spears. Right click's shield is just a small semicircle of the same effect in front of you (effectively just the normal Glaive Shield but with some Spear effects projecting from your feet), firing a shot while shirlding launches the spears in the same shotgun pattern but with drop like an arrow. Have it also improve other Glaives used by fireteam members, but debuff all Swords (Friend or Foe) within melee range. Make him be everything he loathes the most, a weapon that disproves his own arguments.
To Old Friends ending with "...wait. come back." almost entirely hints that it is Toland, and I love it. Toland is bitter and tired, tired of watching us "squander" such great power. I certainly think if he gets even a semblance of an opportunity, he'll take it
So... is the spark we see in Prophecy actually Toland, or a construct of the Nine? The idea of a prismatic Toland with the power of the Nine behind him is... Lets say "fascinating" for now.
I love the idea of Toland being a villain, whether that ends up being in an Episode or something bigger. Aside from Uldren and Lakshmi who were both heavily manipulated (by the same person for that matter), Toland would be the first true human villain outside the lore to my recollection. I think that would also be great for the Hive as a faction who have been led by relatively similar characters in terms of ranking and history.
I feel bad for Toland honestly. The dude was so sure the sword logic is the endgame, but we have proven him wrong every step. Killed Crota (though we did so by using sword logic in a way) Killed Oryx via bomb logic, its direct opposite, and then didn't claim the throne for ourselves. Savathune literally turns away from it and turns to the light. Now we are gonna clap the Witness's cheeks. The true Queen of a country of armies. Toland is like a flat earther ignoring the thousands of signs what he belives is BS, but just ignores it because he wants to be right more than he want to be correct.
I need you to know that my tired brain read this as "the spears that became queers" and as a bi dude I am CACKLING at that because it actually fits when it comes to Destiny lmao
Not just spears. Rifles, Shotguns, Bows, Glaives, Mauls, Hammers. Many weapons against a sword. Many against one. The one may hold absolute power but the many wield many powers. One will against multitudes. One who seeks power against many who share it. Mess with the Best, Die like the Rest
I wonder what Toland will have to say about Transcendance. We've been disproving his worldview since we defeated Oryx and everything onward, but combing the Light and Darkness to go beyond the logic and the game... very excited to see that. 25:24 also, is Toland talking about the portal on the Traveler in this sentence? It's interesting that he'd call the Pale Heart the afterlife, considering not just Cayde but other hints throughout the lore pointing to some afterlife existing inside the Traveler and being tied to the Light...
Toland is a guardian who has survived his final death so he would know more then us about what the travelers pale heart is. Perhaps he calls it so because he felt the pull to it apon death and knew it's where guardians who are lost end up
I’ve gone back and been listening to a lot of you older videos lately to refresh some lore and hearing your progression in voice acting when reading lore is just so awesome. You’ve grown so much as a voice actor and it’s so cool to see!
I like how both the Hive and the Vex have someone who was so obsessed with figuring them out that both got exiled. Toland and Osiris would have a lot to talk about.
Would love to hear what could be said for Clovis as well since he has been cooking something up since Seraph with the message “They know.” Clovis and Toland are some top tier egomaniacs, we need more of them.
Yo, Byf outdid himself with this one. This is the most that I've ever understood the Sword Logic, and now I finally understand the title of "The Shattered" bestowed upon Toland. This is peak lore-explanation. Thank you sir!!!
It honestly never occurred to me that Toland was an enemy... I always thought he was neutral to us (albeit as a textbook nihilist) but liked to give us advice purely to make things entertaining for him, "executions are much more fun when the martyr thinks they have a chance against the lion". This definitely changes my perspective of him quite a bit...
I feel like Toland would be a great Dungeon boss, his through line in said Dungeon could be realizing that the Guardians use of Light and Dark is what he should’ve strived for instead of believing in the Sword Logic but only realizing too late and then gets turned into a Light and Darkness gun or something as the Exotic
I was against the idea at first, but when Byf mentioned the Worms I was thinking; he doesn't need the Worms to rule the Hive. We've recently rescued a bunch of ahamkara eggs, and Whim wishes are wild and potent. Toland is a non-corporeal transcendent being who can appear and disappear wherever he wants at will, both in the Corporeal and Ascendant planes. At this point, I'm certain he's fed up enough with us to take matters into his own hands. I've come around on this. We've definitely not seen the last of Toland.
I dont feel like this has been mentioned enough. You have become really talented at voice acting. It really helps set the mood for all these videos. You're incredible at reading lore entries, and filling them with emotions. Really good storytelling on your part
I’ve always loved Byf as a narrator. He really brings the lore and world of Destiny to life, doing its writing justice. But his ravings as Toland? Was conveyed eloquently. Toland has always been a wordsmith, but his words’ elegance are often undercut by his mad ramblings of obsession. Toland wants, *needs* you to see the purity of the Sword as the Hive do.
I genuinely hope we see more if not a lot of Toland in Episode 3: Heresy. I think the name fits what could be going on with the vacancy of the Hive thrones. He's fed up with the mantle not being taken up. And he is definitely fanatical enough for him to finally say, "Fine, I'll do it myself."
The Darkness 3 grimoire text reminds me of Judge Holden in Blood Meridian, “Whatever in creation exists without my knowledge exists without my consent." He would have loved the hive.
byf out here campaigning for toland with the same fervour I have when I tell my clan mates I believe in an Unchained Nokris or a resurgent Clovis. everyone out here excited for what comes after, and personally I love the idea of a next big bad being human
We know, ever since Taken King, that Toland has been biding his time. I think, he, and eventually the Worm Gods, won’t be able to ignore Eris becoming a Hive God. If the Witness and all its forces are killed and routed out of Sol after Final Shape, this may force the Worm Gods to reevaluate their view on the Sword Logic. Making them desperate enough, to make a pact, even with a broken soul of a human that was once a Guardian. This would go against the sword logic, because Toland’s life and death, is evident that he was too weak. But, as I said, the Worm Gods would probably hide their desperation behind “bold experimentation”. With this, Toland could regain a new Hive/Human body, and be reborn as Toland: Hive God of Chaos. This would be fitting, as he was mad, and madness often coincides with chaos. We also know, much chaos will erupt when all of Sol tries to fill the power vacuum left by the Witness’ death. Given the right circumstances, Toland could even take all three of the Hive siblings Throneworlds. The lore has hinted Savathun will meet her end as well. But, from a writing standpoint, Bungie probably wants her to be the last of the trio to die, getting more stories out of her, because they know how popular she’s become.
Hear me out. Us going into the traveler could bring back oryx because he is the navigator. We would be doing what he is, thus potentially bringing him back just like he did to his sisters eons past.
That first lore card speaks of finality being the ability to rule so absolutely that nothing can ever rise but by your will. This is a very similar description of what the Witness is trying to achieve with the final shape.
I've been playing the game with the voices muted for years (besides new content), and I didn't know Toland ever said anything for dozens of missions in the Dreaming City and the Moon.
I like to interpret this 26:41 as a sadder “come back. please” type of moment. Where Toland is curious about Eris’ motives and is feeling a bit of remorse for his anger.
Could we potentially see a video on what we know about Ulan-Tan? With the return of the Whisper mission as well as the principles behind Transcendance, it feels like it would all fit together
Hey if to the thing that shows like the entire history of destiny in the top right corner at the start in a frame there is a picture or a symbol that I don’t recognize. It looks like kinetic like the kinetic symbol, but I don’t know but check it out.
The most interesting thing about all of this is Toland has watched those around him reach for a godhood that he has craved since he died, but even in the sea of screams he is merely a speck. The Osmium Throne lies empty and he does not have enough power in the Ascendant Plane to take it for himself. He hates us and even Eris for this. At best for all of Toland’s knowledge of the Hive the best he can do is tempt us in the hopes of becoming only a retainer.
I think Toland has the potential to work his way up from retainer to an actual God tier threat. Especially considering his outlook, understanding, and not to forget, his opinion of us. Would make for one hell of a story twist.
I think Toland has the capability of being a great antagonist going forward. If we're moving beyond the light vs dark saga into a saga where there is harmony between them, what better villain to have then one we know has the potential to wield both. Not only that, but he could be setting up dominos in the episodes and expansions to come under our noses, only to emerge in a few years as Toland the Transcended. I do find it interesting that Mara has commented recently about wielding the Taken. If she's successful, saves the awoken, and then throws that power away, she'd also be on Toland's list of squanders.
given the title of the Hive episode, "Heresy," it could be referring to Toland's opinion of us and Eris. He may consider us heretics of the sword logic and now his enemies.
Toland has always been one of my favorites character in Destiny. If done right Toland could make an Amazing antagonistic force in the story. Just imagine if we stuck a bargain for power with Xivu Arath or The Witness.
If you don't mind me putting this here Byf, the most chilling part about Toland's Queen analogy is that you could potentially translate it too the modern world. (Additional note that is grasping at straws: What if the Heresy episode is about Toland and not Xivu?)
Toland's argument is predicated on a fact that is rather dubious at this point. The queen who wrote their laws was destroyed by those laws and left adrift, the one that built her tower saw beyond the swords' illusion and aligned her goals with ours, the queen that raised an army now stands stripped and alone. Even still, taking the sword logic to it's conclusion, the Hive were on a march to their own guaranteed doom. Only the strongest may survive. Even their mightiest had masters: The worm gods, the Disciples, The Witness, the Deep. If the weak and unnecessary are to be carved away by the blade, eventually, it will come for their heads. Toland placed his lot in with those destined(heh) to be cast aside. By refuting the sword logic, we tear away from the cycle; in other words the guardians made their own fate.
Ghost Fragment 3 basically sets the stage for the Witness’s end goal-the Final Shape. It’s decribed right there, it’s so simple! How did we not see it! Lol
Toland needs some more focus to become a top tier villain but the answer for how to do that is kinda obvious. He wants the Taken, Mara is his obvious rival in that. How does a Taken King arrive in style? Kill Mara Sov. No, seriously; have this crazy mofo in all his deathly ascendant weirdness figure out a way to *actually* do it, and as a bonus you have the opportunity to strip away the narrative safety of throne worlds. I love Mara but even pre-final shape she's one of the biggest targets on the board and this dude is angry at her on an existential level
you have to imagine Toland is absolutely furious right now. "Only the most ruthless will remain" and then everyone that fits the bill is at their lowest point, meanwhile the gentle city ringed with spears is getting bigger and stronger and gaining more and more allies without ever betraying their ideals, completely in defiance of the so-called universal law he's obsessed with.
I've played since vanilla D1, but I didn't really dive into and immerse myself in the lore until the Beyond Light year (say what will you will about how the seasonal structure has grown stale, but at the time, the shift to injecting more of the lore and story into the game itself, and putting lore tabs on armor and weapons, and doling out lore pages each week, really whet my appetite for all of the lore, I then spent months going back and reading all the prior lore). So, when Toland showed up in the Dreaming City in Forsaken, I didn't think much of it or know the significance. For Byf and the rest of you that were loreheads back then, was Toland's appearance an amazing, jump out of your chair kind of moment? He didn't appear in the game anywhere before that, outside the lore, did he? So was it a massive, exciting reveal? That'd be really cool if so.
Honestly this would be pretty cool. If Toland finds a way to take the Hive power Vacuum after Xivu Arath is killed. D3 would be a crazy time for a Guardian Civil War to happen. With Elsie's dark future being the base and instead of Eris being the one corrupted it'd be Toland. And guardians that were just following The status quo with the Witness threat. Once that's done i think some Guardians that are new light or some older ones getting ambitous or Arrogant would be a interestin story thread to follow.
Have you done a vid like this for Yor? Since he’s not technically taking the forever nap, I can see him making a return as at least a multi-season villain or co-conspirator for a bigger player. Would be dope for one of the next major enemy factions be an anti-guardian guardian gang: Toland, Yor, Big Exo Bray, a new random Warlord or two, Drifter’s evil twin brother Duster 😂
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by all means get that bag
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Is it worth playing Destiny 2 now? (I quit after witch queen)
STOP CHANGING THE THUMBNAIL
"WHY ARE YOU LEAVING!?"
Bro, my god roll didn't drop.
🤣 nice.
Toland is one of the peak Warlocks. Listens to Deathsong, doesn’t die fully.
Gives you sword logic gun even though he’s mad at you. Schizo posts.
He’s what every aspiring Warlock should be. I still have my old Shadow Price at current power.
eh, im more of a ulan-tan kind of guy.
@@therecklesswarlock6439 understandable but how does it feel that he got lore-crept by Elsie saying, “Light and Dark don’t matter, as long as we protect our friends!!”
Funny enough I became a warlock because the description was master ultimate power. Also I really like the taken(wish it was a dark necromancy class).
Wish I could still get shadow price. I missed out on
@@therecklesswarlock6439pujari is where it's at
Toland seeing yet another immensly powerful paracausal being turn down godly power
Bros fuming
Tol's mad 😂
Man is LIVID
Mans gonna have a mental break down when we kill the witnesse
Toland the angy
The idea of Toland the Shattered becoming an actual antagonist is intriguing. The “Fine, I’ll do it myself.” idea really comes through when you consider that we’ve basically destroyed an entire pantheon of Gods, and did NOTHING with the spoils of those battles besides making a few guns.
But that's the best part! He's just pissed that he gave up his body and only got a gas station bathroom in a large state out of it.
Toland has to be thinking about the consequences of going from "helpful-ish orb of light" to "main antagonizer" with the Vanguard, knowing that the chances of him being turned into a gun (and not a sword) are actually pretty high. And maybe that's not all that bad for him...I imagine it can get boring in his Throne Closet.
@@justinchamberlin4195 Turning him into a gun for loot? Nah, we turn him into a gun because he'd want to be a sword
We’ve yet to kill Xivu and Savathun to destroy the Hive pantheon, there’s also the Worm Gods that would need to die. But, their deaths seem certain, just far off. Still, Toland may be very upset when we do kill the last two Hive Gods. Leading to him being one of the first new Hive gods.
Turn him into a legendary scout that’s objectively worse than ToM
Can we appreciate Byf reading in Tolands voice like an actual madman? I was enveloped and in awe of his acting! Love your vids man!
he's definitely gotten plenty of practice voice acting over the years and it really shows.
"To have Light, we must have Dark. This is the symmetry of the Universe." - Controversial warlock Ulan- Tan. From the ship Symmetry Flight
It’s funny how Ulan-Tan was kind of right. Albeit we didn’t have to give up light the wield darkness. These last few years have proven, he was onto something, and ahead of his time. Just like Eris, Osiris, Drifter, and other outcasts were.
I’ve been holding onto that ship since season of arrivals, was telling my fireteam back then “watch, this is going to be hitting the nail on the head as the story goes on
Wasn't there a lost sector on Io named for him, or am I getting something mixed up?
@@henram36 Yes, there is. It’s called, “The Grove of Ulan Tan”. It’s said he’d used to meditate there.
@@garrettviewegh9028 Yes, very cool! Thank-you for that!
Toland: Let me know if there's a vacancy
Us: There's a vacancy
Toland: ...wait... no
Its more like "We actually decided to close down the entire department, but thank you for the application"
Does the existence of Strand destroy Toland's hypothesis? Hearing Toland mentioned again has me wondering that.
Probably so far our actions are kinda disproving what he thinks cause we killed oryx with bomb logic and we killed both rhulk and nezarec (debatable on thst) also with bomb logic and he even knows xivu was banished from her throne world needless to say if he had a body he’d be throwing a tantrum all cause we disproved all he knew all he thought
@@pugwash1this is my thought too. We didn’t squandor the power as much as we disproved it. Toland is just crazy with the big mad and that combo mixed with powers that break physics does not equal good outcomes lol.
The Sword Logic originated with either the Worms or the Witness. Either way we've disproven it several times over.
@@christianyaerger1751 I believe it originated with Rhulk's subjugation of the worms. Since sword logic is slightly modified from Rhulk's conception of the final shape and he came to that ideology before the worms.
@@christianyaerger1751 It definitely predates the worms. I'm sure there was some lore from Ahsa about how it was the logic itself that corrupted the leviathans into the worms.
I think Toland is definitely fanatic enough to pull a "Fine, I'll do it myself."
I can see Toland finding some new light and using the new light as a puppet and end up betraying him just to "do it himself"
I don’t know if Toland is patient enough for that 💀
@@dudeguyrockfanHe could use them as a tool to form a pact with the Worm Gods. Why would the Worms go against the Sword Logic and make Toland: a weak, lightless human, an Ascendent Hive God? 1. They may become desperate after the events of Final Shape and us killing the last two Hive Gods. 2. They’ll need a new God to keep their spices and the dynasty going. 3. They probably glimpsed at the fear Eris stirred in them, and sees that same potential in Toland.
The Worm Gods may become desperate enough in the future to form a pact with a weak human like Toland. They may have seen the power Eris had, and see that same potential in Toland.
It only just dawned on me that Oryx was undone by the setting free of taken light, i.e. by the removal of “shape” that was imposed upon light. Savathun was undone with the truth by removal of deception she had been under. Xivu’s defeat by the refusal to wage war/pacifism was a bit more explicit as was Eris’s choice to reject revenge and the very sword logic itself. In all cases, these were clear evidence against the axioms they hoped to become.
Axiom is a very specific word meaning a truth that is so self evident. Axioms by their nature are impossible to prove any further while being impossible to disprove. They are absolute truth and any refutation within their scope irrevocably disproves them therein. They may still yet be axioms but their scope must be redefined. Taking the throne is to redefine the axiom, rejecting it is to leave it disproven. Xivu must bring a more profound embodiment of war to continue existing while Toland needs to redefine the meaning of shape. Xivu seems doomed to failure but Tolands clearest path may see him fundamentally alter the ascendant plane if he can wrest dominion of it from those who still hold power there. It’s a perilous path he must traverse but there’s a great threat to us if he were to prove to himself fit to navigate it.
I'm certainly curious about how Toland might shape himself to more properly embody an Axiom the Hive might worship, as well as what he'd choose. An Ascendant Toland might somehow incorporate and subsume Bomb Logic into his Sword, if he chooses wisely enough. War seems like an abstract, yet defined enough concept that it's ripe for the claiming, if he finds the power to redefine it in his terms. Same with Victory, perhaps as the one that remains in the Ascendant realm, he proves Victory belongs to the last, and he is the Last, or something.
So much text!! How do people have this much time?!
@@AvalanchesAreCool I find that articulating my thoughts quickly and fluidly reinforces itself and helps me stay sharp and articulate in everyday conversation. I generally don’t go back and edit much when commenting so the process of typing is the process is also a process of fully forming an idea that popped into my head. At most it’s 10 minutes spent refining my own ability to put words to thought in lieu of watching another video passively if I have bits of time to spare. In short it’s away of actively practicing my ability to communicate more complicated and abstract ideas than the majority of social interactions involve.
I want to let you know, Byf:
I appreciate the acting you've been doing lately when reading lore tabs. It's neat, and you're pretty good at it. Keep going my guy.
The grratest threar we know?
Yeah maybe when he gets a Hypothesis streak that doesn't look like Kelgorath's Combat record.
OOOOOHHH!! 😂🔥💯👌🏾
Know what’s funny if a hive ghost resurrected Crota and he’s wondering why he feels empty cause we stole a part of his soul
Toland "Wait....where are you going, take Oryx's throne!"
Guardians "Nah I'm cool bro"
Toland *mad*
"Toland will remember that..."
Toland yells you udder worthless fools all 6 of you take the throne become a god !!!!! Lol
toland can stay mad, that throne is worthless as the sword logic proves. we were stronger and make up the new rules to the game, oryx got turned into the gun. such is the the law of the sword.
Throne?! Nah imma do my own thing. *Makes Oryx into a gun*
@@zamarion101 You miss the point. Throne worlds are useless IF YOU DON'T USE THEM. Just like with any throne of a defeated king, you sit on it, you gain that authority over said domain unequivocally, including all the resources and secrets. That's why Toland is big mad. None of us took any part of it for our own other than what was necessary for a few armor sets and weapons (even if one of them is powered by Oryx's heart). Dude's like "Bruh, I could have been a kang if you at least let me have it after you were done! 😡" 😂
I love that all of our interactions with Toland have basically been him d***riding the Sword Logic and us going "...Bet"
I am curious to see what his reaction to us wielding prismatic would be. Since it’s the fusion of Light and Dark.
Such cringeworthy censorship.
Why even use that word in that case?
Toland was really on The Guardian then got mad when we didn't take the Throne(he still hasn't let it go). Now he's beefing with Eris now.
Love and hate this guy, one of the biggest Guardian haters. Hope he comes to power and becomes a villain.
And maybe take both power of hive and taken and maybe get a powerful and terrifying form that makes the witness look like a child to it
@@MichaelThomas-q3mToo big a role for too meager a character
@@DioStandProud yeah you right that big for a minor character
Why. . . . .he won't make a decent gun.
Imagine if he ever becomes a raid boss and he's still just a little light but makes crazy ass shit happen and DPS phase is mainly killing the things he creates slowly draining his power till the tiny light pops
I absolutely loved your manic, frenzied readings of Toland's notes. It makes perfect sense that he'd speak like that and it was greatly entertaining :)
Cant wait for bungie to turn Toland into a gun if he becomes the leader of the hive
Hmm... maybe a warhammer called the Shatterer.
Or is that too on the nose?
Toland isn't even worthy to become a shader for us, dude sucks.
Isnt he a swell guy
Bro he made you Bad Juju and this is how you pay him back?
@@ringomandingo1015 yeah man that carried me through haunted forest season of arrivals
I could see Toland totally being like “ … you used the sword logic and did not rule the hive… you fools! I will surpass Eris Morn by a thousand fold!”
I can absolutely see, only after we have defeated The Witness and killed Xivu Arath & Savathûn, Toland finally take what he believes is his and ascend. Not as The Shattered, but rather Toland, The Taken Usurper
It would be a awesome cut scene after we defeated the witness and the credits and what not done it shows a ending scene where Toland appears over the the throne of oryx and he turns into a guardian with a sword sitting down laughing
Yeah, at that point he'd be the only one left to champion a long-since defeated dogma, and with enough time and planning, he'd be willing to become humanity's greatest enemy to retort our refusal of the Sword Logic.
what if toland partners with a worm god the way nokris did with xol
we only know the whereabouts of xol akka & xita (incapacitated on mars/turned into whisper, murdered by auryx and turned into the dreadnought, used by rhulk as a massive battery respectively)
we know that the other worm gods have devotees (in anânh worshiping ur, the ever-hunger for example)
nevermind byf suggested this
Just imagine Kelgorath taking Xivu's throne with Toland as his adviser
toland possessing kelgorath and using him like a mech suit
@@DEVILONBOTHSHOULDERS
Good, Twice the pride, double the fall.
Toland the Shattered seeing people constantly rejecting absolute Hive Power: *“Fine…I’ll do it myself.”*
Oh, and video starts at 2:40
Goat
Time to become My next weapon toland what do You want to be pulse rifle or handcannon
@user-ku8yi5to4f Add insult to injury and make him into a weapon called Spear of the Shattered Sword.
ExotiGlaive thats also a got a Anti-Taken Malfeasance effect.
Have it shooting mini-Malf projectiles like a Shotgun, hold reload at full charge to slam it into the ground making a Damage Resistance Rift surrounded by Malfeasance spike like Spears.
Right click's shield is just a small semicircle of the same effect in front of you (effectively just the normal Glaive Shield but with some Spear effects projecting from your feet), firing a shot while shirlding launches the spears in the same shotgun pattern but with drop like an arrow.
Have it also improve other Glaives used by fireteam members, but debuff all Swords (Friend or Foe) within melee range.
Make him be everything he loathes the most, a weapon that disproves his own arguments.
You know... the prospect of having Toland as a villain in a hypothetical Destiny 3 would be pretty cool.
To Old Friends ending with "...wait. come back." almost entirely hints that it is Toland, and I love it. Toland is bitter and tired, tired of watching us "squander" such great power. I certainly think if he gets even a semblance of an opportunity, he'll take it
Man... your lore-reads, the voices you give the narration... epic. I love your videos.
So... is the spark we see in Prophecy actually Toland, or a construct of the Nine?
The idea of a prismatic Toland with the power of the Nine behind him is...
Lets say "fascinating" for now.
construct of the nine
I love the idea of Toland being a villain, whether that ends up being in an Episode or something bigger. Aside from Uldren and Lakshmi who were both heavily manipulated (by the same person for that matter), Toland would be the first true human villain outside the lore to my recollection. I think that would also be great for the Hive as a faction who have been led by relatively similar characters in terms of ranking and history.
genuinely appreciate the effort byf puts into reading the lore; it’s actually really good
Byf's narration is at its best here. This is wildly good.
Toland be like, “You literally threw, Eris!”
Byf I just want to give kudos to your delivery of the readings Toland’s Journal. You did more than just read it, you brought it to life. 😊
I love the mental images of Toland rising as a threat
I feel bad for Toland honestly. The dude was so sure the sword logic is the endgame, but we have proven him wrong every step.
Killed Crota (though we did so by using sword logic in a way)
Killed Oryx via bomb logic, its direct opposite, and then didn't claim the throne for ourselves.
Savathune literally turns away from it and turns to the light.
Now we are gonna clap the Witness's cheeks. The true Queen of a country of armies.
Toland is like a flat earther ignoring the thousands of signs what he belives is BS, but just ignores it because he wants to be right more than he want to be correct.
All we've ever used was the sword logic to avoid coexisting with threats
@jordanrainey9700 we made allies of the elinski and the cabal
You feel bad for delusional people?
What if Poland the shattered was Yolanda the freaky and instead of whining he touched guardians
What in the restraining order...
none of those words are in the books of sorrow…
He could but would that be a sigma move 🤔
What in the Kentucky fried fuck??
What did I just read.....
Toland assisting Kelgorath to take the (a) throne would be amazing
I don't think we are the queens ringed in Spears, I think we are the spears that became queens
I need you to know that my tired brain read this as "the spears that became queers" and as a bi dude I am CACKLING at that because it actually fits when it comes to Destiny lmao
Using sword logic, haha... wait.
*Hear me out!*
Toland giving a brutal lesson on game theory.
“So it’s all a game theory?”
“Always has been”
-Toland (probably)
Always fun to hear your lore reading. You bring such excitement to storytelling and speculation.
"But i do not think those Spears will hold against the Queen of the City of Armies."
We are those spears. We will hold.
Not just spears. Rifles, Shotguns, Bows, Glaives, Mauls, Hammers.
Many weapons against a sword.
Many against one.
The one may hold absolute power but the many wield many powers.
One will against multitudes.
One who seeks power against many who share it.
Mess with the Best, Die like the Rest
@@spartanlord91too long popped golden guy while reading
I wonder what Toland will have to say about Transcendance. We've been disproving his worldview since we defeated Oryx and everything onward, but combing the Light and Darkness to go beyond the logic and the game... very excited to see that.
25:24 also, is Toland talking about the portal on the Traveler in this sentence? It's interesting that he'd call the Pale Heart the afterlife, considering not just Cayde but other hints throughout the lore pointing to some afterlife existing inside the Traveler and being tied to the Light...
Toland is a guardian who has survived his final death so he would know more then us about what the travelers pale heart is. Perhaps he calls it so because he felt the pull to it apon death and knew it's where guardians who are lost end up
I’ve gone back and been listening to a lot of you older videos lately to refresh some lore and hearing your progression in voice acting when reading lore is just so awesome. You’ve grown so much as a voice actor and it’s so cool to see!
I like how both the Hive and the Vex have someone who was so obsessed with figuring them out that both got exiled. Toland and Osiris would have a lot to talk about.
Is it just me or does Byf's voice acting keep getting better and better? Coz I'm getting chills with how awesome he is.
Would love to hear what could be said for Clovis as well since he has been cooking something up since Seraph with the message “They know.”
Clovis and Toland are some top tier egomaniacs, we need more of them.
Yo, Byf outdid himself with this one. This is the most that I've ever understood the Sword Logic, and now I finally understand the title of "The Shattered" bestowed upon Toland. This is peak lore-explanation. Thank you sir!!!
It honestly never occurred to me that Toland was an enemy... I always thought he was neutral to us (albeit as a textbook nihilist) but liked to give us advice purely to make things entertaining for him, "executions are much more fun when the martyr thinks they have a chance against the lion". This definitely changes my perspective of him quite a bit...
I feel like Toland would be a great Dungeon boss, his through line in said Dungeon could be realizing that the Guardians use of Light and Dark is what he should’ve strived for instead of believing in the Sword Logic but only realizing too late and then gets turned into a Light and Darkness gun or something as the Exotic
Toland: Hive God of Chaos. Chaos, often coincides with madness. Tye power vacuum after the Witness’ death is bound to cause much chaos and madness.
I was against the idea at first, but when Byf mentioned the Worms I was thinking; he doesn't need the Worms to rule the Hive. We've recently rescued a bunch of ahamkara eggs, and Whim wishes are wild and potent. Toland is a non-corporeal transcendent being who can appear and disappear wherever he wants at will, both in the Corporeal and Ascendant planes. At this point, I'm certain he's fed up enough with us to take matters into his own hands. I've come around on this. We've definitely not seen the last of Toland.
There are patrol quests on the moon that ask you to find toland, he disses you then leaves, and its complete .... now i understand lol 😂
Guardians get together to make a diss track against Toland? I’m down for it.
If there is a destiny 3…… I nominate byf to be considered our in game lore master speaker.
With my first exotic being Bad Juju I have been following Toland for a long time
I dont feel like this has been mentioned enough. You have become really talented at voice acting. It really helps set the mood for all these videos. You're incredible at reading lore entries, and filling them with emotions. Really good storytelling on your part
Warlocks gone mad are some of the most interesting story themes imo
"Come, opener of vacancies."
I’ve always loved Byf as a narrator. He really brings the lore and world of Destiny to life, doing its writing justice. But his ravings as Toland? Was conveyed eloquently. Toland has always been a wordsmith, but his words’ elegance are often undercut by his mad ramblings of obsession. Toland wants, *needs* you to see the purity of the Sword as the Hive do.
Wow just in time for the drive home!!
Drive safe!
Toland: Good job, now take the throne that you deserve.
Gaurdian: *Opens chest* Nuh uh
Toland: THE FUCK YOU MEAN "NUH UH"?!
*Goes into full monkey rage as we marvel at our loot*
I REALLY love how you captured Toland's hysteria in your readings.
Byf does a superb voice acting job for Toland. So immersive
I wonder what form Toland would take if he managed to make a new body would it be his old self, a Hive form, or a twisted Taken version
Toland the first Guardian to go into a raid wanting to whipe
I genuinely cannot see glowing ball trolland being an actual meaningful antagonist.
Maybe it's just my job driving me insane but i understood most of that.
I genuinely hope we see more if not a lot of Toland in Episode 3: Heresy. I think the name fits what could be going on with the vacancy of the Hive thrones. He's fed up with the mantle not being taken up. And he is definitely fanatical enough for him to finally say, "Fine, I'll do it myself."
The Darkness 3 grimoire text reminds me of Judge Holden in Blood Meridian, “Whatever in creation exists without my knowledge exists without my consent."
He would have loved the hive.
byf out here campaigning for toland with the same fervour I have when I tell my clan mates I believe in an Unchained Nokris or a resurgent Clovis. everyone out here excited for what comes after, and personally I love the idea of a next big bad being human
Toland nokris team up would be cool
We know, ever since Taken King, that Toland has been biding his time. I think, he, and eventually the Worm Gods, won’t be able to ignore Eris becoming a Hive God. If the Witness and all its forces are killed and routed out of Sol after Final Shape, this may force the Worm Gods to reevaluate their view on the Sword Logic. Making them desperate enough, to make a pact, even with a broken soul of a human that was once a Guardian. This would go against the sword logic, because Toland’s life and death, is evident that he was too weak. But, as I said, the Worm Gods would probably hide their desperation behind “bold experimentation”. With this, Toland could regain a new Hive/Human body, and be reborn as Toland: Hive God of Chaos. This would be fitting, as he was mad, and madness often coincides with chaos. We also know, much chaos will erupt when all of Sol tries to fill the power vacuum left by the Witness’ death. Given the right circumstances, Toland could even take all three of the Hive siblings Throneworlds. The lore has hinted Savathun will meet her end as well. But, from a writing standpoint, Bungie probably wants her to be the last of the trio to die, getting more stories out of her, because they know how popular she’s become.
Hear me out. Us going into the traveler could bring back oryx because he is the navigator. We would be doing what he is, thus potentially bringing him back just like he did to his sisters eons past.
That first lore card speaks of finality being the ability to rule so absolutely that nothing can ever rise but by your will. This is a very similar description of what the Witness is trying to achieve with the final shape.
I've been playing the game with the voices muted for years (besides new content), and I didn't know Toland ever said anything for dozens of missions in the Dreaming City and the Moon.
I like to interpret this 26:41 as a sadder “come back. please” type of moment. Where Toland is curious about Eris’ motives and is feeling a bit of remorse for his anger.
"Spit of sand in the middle of the sea of screams" - pure poetry
Could we potentially see a video on what we know about Ulan-Tan? With the return of the Whisper mission as well as the principles behind Transcendance, it feels like it would all fit together
I think I can honestly say that if there was ever a Destiny show of some sort Byf is going to have to play Toland. 💯 Percent.
I love it when Byf talks about Toland the Shatted
Hey if to the thing that shows like the entire history of destiny in the top right corner at the start in a frame there is a picture or a symbol that I don’t recognize. It looks like kinetic like the kinetic symbol, but I don’t know but check it out.
The most interesting thing about all of this is Toland has watched those around him reach for a godhood that he has craved since he died, but even in the sea of screams he is merely a speck. The Osmium Throne lies empty and he does not have enough power in the Ascendant Plane to take it for himself. He hates us and even Eris for this. At best for all of Toland’s knowledge of the Hive the best he can do is tempt us in the hopes of becoming only a retainer.
That darkness 3 reading almost reminded me of Sir Wallen's videos. Man I miss his videos
I think the idea of him taking the witness’s place after we defeat it is very intriguing
I think Toland has the potential to work his way up from retainer to an actual God tier threat. Especially considering his outlook, understanding, and not to forget, his opinion of us.
Would make for one hell of a story twist.
I find it so funny that Broland is just so insanely sick of us not taking power that he's like FUCK IT IM GONNA LOSE MY SHIT
I like how Regicide kicks in at 20:46.
I think Toland has the capability of being a great antagonist going forward. If we're moving beyond the light vs dark saga into a saga where there is harmony between them, what better villain to have then one we know has the potential to wield both. Not only that, but he could be setting up dominos in the episodes and expansions to come under our noses, only to emerge in a few years as Toland the Transcended.
I do find it interesting that Mara has commented recently about wielding the Taken. If she's successful, saves the awoken, and then throws that power away, she'd also be on Toland's list of squanders.
given the title of the Hive episode, "Heresy," it could be referring to Toland's opinion of us and Eris. He may consider us heretics of the sword logic and now his enemies.
Toland has always been one of my favorites character in Destiny. If done right Toland could make an Amazing antagonistic force in the story. Just imagine if we stuck a bargain for power with Xivu Arath or The Witness.
I always forget how poetic these lore passages can be.
Never been this early. Love your content, Byf!
If you don't mind me putting this here Byf, the most chilling part about Toland's Queen analogy is that you could potentially translate it too the modern world.
(Additional note that is grasping at straws: What if the Heresy episode is about Toland and not Xivu?)
Very supportive for the Hive's "Sword Logic".
Toland's argument is predicated on a fact that is rather dubious at this point. The queen who wrote their laws was destroyed by those laws and left adrift, the one that built her tower saw beyond the swords' illusion and aligned her goals with ours, the queen that raised an army now stands stripped and alone.
Even still, taking the sword logic to it's conclusion, the Hive were on a march to their own guaranteed doom. Only the strongest may survive. Even their mightiest had masters: The worm gods, the Disciples, The Witness, the Deep. If the weak and unnecessary are to be carved away by the blade, eventually, it will come for their heads. Toland placed his lot in with those destined(heh) to be cast aside. By refuting the sword logic, we tear away from the cycle; in other words the guardians made their own fate.
I don't know how Byf turns 3 paragraphs of lore into a 33 minute video
Ghost Fragment 3 basically sets the stage for the Witness’s end goal-the Final Shape. It’s decribed right there, it’s so simple! How did we not see it! Lol
Toland needs some more focus to become a top tier villain but the answer for how to do that is kinda obvious. He wants the Taken, Mara is his obvious rival in that. How does a Taken King arrive in style? Kill Mara Sov. No, seriously; have this crazy mofo in all his deathly ascendant weirdness figure out a way to *actually* do it, and as a bonus you have the opportunity to strip away the narrative safety of throne worlds. I love Mara but even pre-final shape she's one of the biggest targets on the board and this dude is angry at her on an existential level
you have to imagine Toland is absolutely furious right now. "Only the most ruthless will remain" and then everyone that fits the bill is at their lowest point, meanwhile the gentle city ringed with spears is getting bigger and stronger and gaining more and more allies without ever betraying their ideals, completely in defiance of the so-called universal law he's obsessed with.
I've played since vanilla D1, but I didn't really dive into and immerse myself in the lore until the Beyond Light year (say what will you will about how the seasonal structure has grown stale, but at the time, the shift to injecting more of the lore and story into the game itself, and putting lore tabs on armor and weapons, and doling out lore pages each week, really whet my appetite for all of the lore, I then spent months going back and reading all the prior lore). So, when Toland showed up in the Dreaming City in Forsaken, I didn't think much of it or know the significance.
For Byf and the rest of you that were loreheads back then, was Toland's appearance an amazing, jump out of your chair kind of moment? He didn't appear in the game anywhere before that, outside the lore, did he? So was it a massive, exciting reveal? That'd be really cool if so.
Honestly this would be pretty cool. If Toland finds a way to take the Hive power Vacuum after Xivu Arath is killed. D3 would be a crazy time for a Guardian Civil War to happen. With Elsie's dark future being the base and instead of Eris being the one corrupted it'd be Toland. And guardians that were just following The status quo with the Witness threat. Once that's done i think some Guardians that are new light or some older ones getting ambitous or Arrogant would be a interestin story thread to follow.
1 MILLION!!!! BYF HAS BECOME LEGEND!
Have you done a vid like this for Yor? Since he’s not technically taking the forever nap, I can see him making a return as at least a multi-season villain or co-conspirator for a bigger player. Would be dope for one of the next major enemy factions be an anti-guardian guardian gang: Toland, Yor, Big Exo Bray, a new random Warlord or two, Drifter’s evil twin brother Duster 😂