Talk:Dragon Slayer Ornstein/@comment-82.71.47.161-20170713121745

What if Ornstein and Smough somehow became accursed with undeath? As much as that might be a stretch for (assumed) non-humans, if that was the case, it would tidily explain almost everything.

They would be the perfect guards for Gwindolyn and his illusion of Gwynevere, considering there's a bonfire right in front of the bed chamber (where ornstein is first seen walking away from, I'd add) since even if they're beaten, as long as Gwindolin isn't discovered they can be back in time to challenge the next intruder.

It would explain why Gwindolyn kept a sadist like Smough around, since being functionally immortal would make him valuable enough to keep.

We never get an explanation as to why Ornstein chose to leave and find the firstborn at the specific time he did, when the remaining royalty needed him in Anor Londo. Maybe he wasn't looking for the firstborn at all, rather he was travelling to /where/ the firstborn was, as I'd imagine fully travelling along the path of the dragon would be a tidy way of avoiding hollowing, which would be a damn good reason for any knight to suddenly abandon his duty.

It would explain why Ornstein and Smough were perfectly alright with killing each other, even when they both had a decent chance of getting back up, since they knew that they'd reanimate at the bonfire a little while later, and the boost in power would give them a better short term chance of victory.

It always seemed odd to me that Smough of all people became the last defending knight of Anor Londo. Against the insermountable odds he was facing (what with sulyvahn controlling some of the toughest enemies in the game) I'd have thought he'd of up and left the cathedral, instead of sacrificing himself for Gwindolyn, who probably didn't think too highly of him anyway. In fact, Smough (being a suspected cannibal) probably would have fit right in with sulyvahn and Aldrich, if he decided to side with them. If Smough was undead, he probably thought he could defeat Aldrich and Sulyvahn, letting his pride (that we know he had, since he believed he was deserving of becoming one of gwyn's knights) get the better of him, not realising that being consumed by Aldrich wouldn't allow him to return to the bonfire. That would explain why we can purchase his armour after killing Aldrich, his still-tortured remains were floating around in the room we once fought him in.

But as I said, it's never been proven whether the knights and followers of the gods can even suffer from the curse. It seems pretty obvious that Gwyn hollowed in the Kiln, but he seems to be a very rare exception. Thats if he's even hollowed at all, rather than plain old insane.