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Many parts makeDragon’s Dogma 2into the beautiful cohesive game that it is, though chief among those many pieces are the paws. Enigmatic followers of the Arisen, they act out their duty without question, helping in through any means they can.
Yet what actually are Pawns? They serve the Arisen, yet what do they do when they are not serving alongside one? How do they come into existence? Despite their immense helpfulness, their actual origins are exceedingly unclear, even to the Pawns themselves. So let’s find out what they truly are.
Pawns And Their Traversal Of The Rift
Dragon’s Dogma 2 takes place acrossthe countries of Vermund and Battahl, nations primarily of Humans and Beastren respectively.For your own Arisen, this is the fullest extent of the world that they see.For your Pawns, this is not so strictly true.
At various points across the world, you will find Riftstones. Major cities have their own Riftstones, while forgotten ones can be found in other locations with more limited effects.These Riftstones exist solely for the Pawns to traverse, allowing them to step into the ethereal void and walk out into other worlds.
Also of note, these Riftstones can only be interacted with by Pawns and the Arisen, meaning the average person likely has no idea the Rift even exists.
This is no great mystery either. Pawns are aware of this universe-hopping power of theirs, bringing back awareness of quests they’ve seen while in other worlds or the deeds of fellow Arisen. In this sense,every Pawn you see is that of an Arisen, be they from your own world or another. No Pawn exists without an Arisen, even if that Arisen does not exist in your own world.
Pawns As A Successor Of The Arisen
As you progress through the game, you may find yourself growing attached to your own Pawn. They came into existence to serve you, shaped by you at their point of creation and through your journey. They live and breathe through your benevolence. In many ways,Pawns are even an extension of their Arisen.
In a literal gameplay sense,Pawns learn from you. As you perform actions such as climbing enemies, throwing objects, using certain abilities, and so on, your Pawn will attempt to emulate them in a way that fits their inclination. When you fight certain monsters or find treasures, they can help other Arisen with them too. They are not stationary figures in this world.
The same applies to the story, as well. In the original Dragon’s Dogma, you can meet a young woman called Selene and over time learn that she was actually a Pawn, though shebecame Human after the death of her own Arisen due to the closeness of their bond.In fact, this same process occurs at the end of the game as well, with your Arisen dying and your Pawn falling to Gransys with your appearance, presumably now human.
Whether the process of a Pawn becoming Human, known as Bestowal Of Spirit, is consensual or automatic is unclear.
In Dragon’s Dogma 2, another interpretation of this is seen.In the True ending of the game,your Pawn is seen as gaining a will of their own.Rather than following your guidance directly, they act of their own volition. They claim this lesser will was imparted on them due to the strength of your own will as Arisen, granting them independence.
Are Pawns Human?
A rather unsettling question that has to be asked in regards to Pawns is the more philosophical one of what actually are they. Yes, they can take the appearance of a Human or a Beastren in physical form, butdo they have the same soul and will that drive the average individual of this world?
‘Human’ in this sense refers to the idea of a Pawn’s individual sentience rather than their strict race.
You see,Pawns do not die. As long as their Arisen’s chest lacks their heart, the Pawn shall draw breath alongside them. May they fall in battle, be consumed by the Brine, slain in other worlds, none of them shall end them. Touch a Riftstone and they shall return to you.
The driving power of the Arisen, who is also rendered functionally immortal through their stolen heart, is their immense strength of will, something Pawns lack. Yet will is what drives all individuals in the world, the Arisen is only a standout due to their particular strength, rather than actual presence.But Pawns lack a will in their entirety.
The Pathfinder, in the ending sequence of the game, tells thatPawns were created from oblivion. They came from nothingness with the sole purpose of serving the Arisen. They do not have wants or desires beyond the urge implanted in them at creation - serve the Arisen, come what may.
So no,Pawns are not actually human.
Where Do Pawns Come From?
This leads then into a larger question - where do Pawns come from? We know they came from ‘oblivion’, vague an idea as that is. Presumably, this refers to the Rift, that void that exists between worlds. This is where the Seneschal,or the Pathfinder, oversees the world from. We must assume then that this area is a font of boundless energy from which the Pawns are created.
The Seneschal was the being in the original Dragon’s Dogma who oversaw the cycle of the Arisen and Dragon on behalf of some greater god. The Pathfinder seems to fit this same purpose.
Pawns exist to serve the Arisen, yet the Arisen are also a consequence of the cycle overseen by the Pathfinder. In a sense then,the Pathfinder is the progenitor of all Pawns. We must question then if the Arisen is truly shaping how their Pawn looks when they meet them, or are they created by the Pathfinder at the moment the Arisen is selected?
What is clear from this is that Pawns are not from the world of Dragon’s Dogma 2, or of any world altogether.They are beings created in the space between worldsand added into the reality of those worlds to preserve the cycle within them. In part, this also explains their lack of a will.
