#more palistrom tree lore...

[acaciapines]

👀👀 tell us more, tell us more 👀👀

I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW THINGS…. (reply via @visdiefje)

THIS IS SO SWEET OF YOU BOTH BUT I NEED MORE DIRECTION DFKJGDFGDF i do not know what to yell about unprompted. what have i not talked about yet. have i talked about how witches and palistrom trees are symbiotic entities. im very proud of that particular lore :3 but also a lot of it is stuff unpacked across the series so maybe i shouldnt spill everything djgkdfg

but what i CAN say is that. palistrom trees are 100% sapient they simply exist on a time scale we mere mortals cannot comprehend. and they love their witches so so much you guys. they love those funky little guys SO MUCH.

[crimeronan]

I love political and tactical fantasy shenanigans so I'm very 👀 over that appearing in the princess luz au in some way. There's so much you can play around with, like the public opinion, who gets supplies for not just the castle but the civilians, or runs this or that, and how the different coven's are run (i read a v neat theory that the abomination coven has more opportunities because of Darius, for example), any new covenhead will have to untangle the mess and horrors of their predecessor, and bringing in new people to run a section or help support a coven that's surprise surprise being held together by string and luck because the previous head was incompetent or didn't care enough. Or both.

Like the plant coven's plantations that are mentioned once in Hunting Palismen that guard the remaining palistrom trees. That'll need to be dealt with so more witches can recieve palismen, and then they'll need someone to carve them(possible lead in to Hunter getting intrested in palisman carving? ovo CLAWTHORNE CLAN APPEARANCE MAYBE??). Not to mention the overhaul of the education system, of which TERRA is apparently in charge of, which explains a lot, actually. How many buildings on TBI aren't built to sustain the boiling rain and rely on magic or pure luck to stay standing because the construction coven either didn't bother to do their jobs or they simply couldn't because they didn't have the resources and time, so those who have the most money get priority?

Not to mention taking care of monsters! The empress coven can't be too different from the emperor's coven yet, so they're not very efficient(because they're a cult and that's how they function) and someone has to address that and Lilith is too used to the system to recognise the problems by herself. Maybe Luz makes it law that all coven's now must have a head coven and a vice head of sort, so all the power and decision making doesn't rest with only one person?

Sorry, I'm rambling, I just love this kind of stuff, I go a little insane over it. Adding on all the characters being very stupid or very crazy or both makes for a funny time.

YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH!! THIS IS ALL SO GOOOOD these thoughts are all so good. at first i didn't want to plot a big long story about what exactly luz does to solve some of these issues, bc watching and dreaming addressed everything so well... but the circumstances of this AU have changed enough that i'm getting invested anyway. like. how DO you dismantle an empire when you also have to pretend that that empire is normal and fine and that your fragile allyships with power-hungry coven heads are fine and that your so-called "divinity" isn't based on the bullshit lie of a genocidal colonizer. HOO BOY.

i love love love political worldbuilding fic that explores things like infrastructure and different political dynamics and schisms in fantasy worlds, that was ALSO one of my fave things when i would write homestuck ancestor fic. plotting out what a galactic war might look like and how resources were distributed and how empire weaponry could be commandeered and how propaganda on both sides would function.... MMM. my bread and butter

i think the thing i've put the Most thought into toh-wise is the abomination coven, simply because i am a darius girlie and think about darius All The Time. like i think that the abomination coven has opportunities because there's a lot of capitalist stuff going on, because darius has taken a very libertarian-seeming hands-off approach to running his coven. but you can't apply 1-to-1 real world politics to it because actually, darius """small government""" deamonne is letting people get away with having fake abomination coven sigils and repeatedly break the law and game the empire's systems... all under the guise of "i don't know anything about that. i'm just lazy"

i had Extensive palistrom tree lore (and tragedy) planned in the darius & prev gg fic i outlined, i don't know if i'll ever write it in full but MMM the palistrom trees and the bat queen are on my mind Constantly. also tucking these construction coven thoughts into my back pocket for later use because i hadn't thought much about the infrastructure of the isles' buildings but you're RIGHT. living in portland oregon there's CONSTANT vicious local debate about rebuilding our bridges and older buildings and coastal evacuation plans for when cascadia ruptures, bc most of that wasn't built with a 9.0 earthquake in mind. could definitely pull from. All Of That. LOL

[marztheincredible]

People on twitter are irritating and make me think the general populous lacks basic literacy skills…which is more than likely incorrect and instead those individuals without critical thinking skills just shout the loudest…

Anyway Question!

Because distractions from stupid people are nice.

It’s been stated previously that Palisman are connected to the Titan, due to them literally being grown out of its flesh and formed due to the natural magic of the Titan. (side question would the Titan be a He or an It if referring to the corpse…because it’s a landscape…but also the corpse of a once sentient…err partially sentient corpse…going to stop digging the hole here and wait for an answer)

And it has been established that the Titan still has SOME influence within the working of Titan’s Blessing. That Luz learning magic and glyphs the Titan sharing it with her. Not overtly or directly mind you but still. But Palisman seem much more important in Titan’s blessing and wild witch society than just being a pal for life. Like for instance the whole bit with the Necromancer having to beat the Palisman of a buried Witch in order to prove themselves capable and responsible enough to use the corpse. Assuming they went through all the proper rites with Necromancy and all. Which makes me think that Palisman are intrinsically linked to their witch’s magic, on a fundamental level, if they are able to puppet their witch and their magic from beyond the grave. (Although admit-ably we do not know precisely how the whole defending the grave situation works and if it’s a puppet situation or a the Palisman calling their owner back to life for a few moments as the two work together and test the Necromancer and I’m rambling.)

And even in canon we see bits that haven’t been explained yet but seem curious to me. Eda’s anime power moves when she fought Lilith over the bridge come to mind. Her magic “aura” was shaped like Owlbert her Palisman. Which is Interesting. What does that mean? Is is a reflection of how much of Eda’s identity is The Owl Lady or of how powerful her bond is with Owlbert, the only companion she has had constantly for years? WHO KNOWS! But this question is running away from me!

The question started out as Were Palisman instrumental in communing with the Titan? Or further a bond between Witch and Titan. But now I guess it’s more a question of Palisman??? Witches and Palisman and symbiotic relationships between plants (they are made of wood fight me on their categorization) and animals?

Anyway hi how you doing love to hear your thoughts

Palisman my beloveds!!!!

Like you said in Titan’s Blessing and here in some asks we’ve hit on some lore for these companions. So let’s recap and answer your questions as best we can yeah?

The Titan did have much more influence during The Savage Ages because he was Remembered. The connections Witches and Demons had with him were sacred and that connection deepens with Palisman. As Belos’ influence over took the Isles, The Old Ways we’re warped and dissipated, and in turn many traditions that sought and fueled the symbiotic relationship with the Titan dissipated as well. The Titan is being Forgotten and thus his Influence is too.

Palistrom Groves for some are considered holy grounds and were revered, as these were places where many would say they could hear the Titan speak to them as they found their tree to carve from. To have such areas where any Witch could feel that connection and hear the being they live on is a dangerous foil for the Emperor, who claims only HE can hear the Titan’s Will.

“Then the Palistrom wood became much too scarce. The Druids had all but disappeared and the self-proclaimed guardians of the Titan’s body were nowhere to be seen to guard the groves. Witches clad in white with vulture masks swept through every grove and chopped down each tree. From the ancient to the sapling, barely any Palistrom Tree was spared.” —TB Chapter 13: Into the Woods

When Palisman are carved by a Witch’s own hand the bond is formed. Literally and figuratively a part of their soul is intertwined with the Palistrom Wood to give their companion life and in turn connect with the Titan, just has he did when gifting his Children with magic all those years ago. A beginning to an end, the cycle begins anew.

“The Owl Lady carved Owlbert, as her hands worked, her magic weaved and her soul became Owlbert’s soul. She is his and He is hers. ” —The Bat Queen

For Witches who aren’t as skilled with their hands they turn to a Druid called a Spiritmender. The Witch still has the task of finding a Palistrom Tree that calls to them, but it’s the Spiritmender who carves their Palisman. It is a longer process, as the Druid takes the magic of Plant, Oracle, and Healing (in Coven terms) to carve and weave the Witch’s soul into Palistrom wood. Dell Clawthorne held this honored title. He isn’t called The Steady Shepard for nothing, he’s carved many Palisman in his youth and passed on the knowledge, just as his parents did, to his daughters.

“Hundreds of years ago Witches of old would pass through her woods, seeking a Palisman, if one did not have the skill to carve one, or the luck of finding a Druid with the honored title of a Spiritmender to make one for them.”—TB Chapter 13: Into the Woods

A Palisman can decide if they wish to find a new bond after their Witch dies. They can either be passed on from parent to child or Mentor to Apprentice. They can return to a Grove and be cared for until another Witch or Demon makes a connection with them.

And naturally, because Palistrom Wood is powerful in its own right having a Palisman gives you a boost to your magic. Two working as one.

[i-am-a-scholar-of-magic]

The Bat Queen Facts & Theories - My Thoughts

Introduced as early as episode seven, the Bat Queen immediately caught my attention as a well-designed character for “The Owl House.” With her angular features, long dark hair, fangs, bat-like limbs, reputed vast riches, and an accent that sounds vaguely Easern European, she struck me as an unorthodox but very clever homage to classical vampire tropes and cliches. 

And yet, the series would come to reveal that she is so much more. 

Over the course of the series, the Bat Queen would reveal herself to be not a demon, but an ancient palisman. She was carved for a giant’s staff, then broken and discarded. By her own admission, this occurred thousands of years ago, so long that she cannot remember the details of her owner, and since she has taken in and protected other discarded palismen of the Boiling Isles. 

In season two, on the advice of Eda, the Bat Queen agrees to promote the adoption of her protected palismen to help them find new, loving partners. She reveals extensive understanding of her own kind in guiding witchlings through bonding with their best fit. She even shows personal growth from her hidebound protection of Owlbert, forging a cordial relationship with both Eda and Principal Bump and showing faith in Flapjack flying off alone with her blessing to join his chosen partner in Hunter. 

A final revelation comes later in the season from Eda and Lilith’s father Dell, who reveals that since his injuries that prevent him from carving palismen, he has been working directly with the Bat Queen to restore the overharvested palistrom forests so that carving of new palismen can continue into the future. *This companionship with Dell may, in fact, be the reason the Bat Queen trusted Eda enough to care for her children. 

Even with the lore surrounding the Bat Queen, there is much mystery remaining. Who was the giant that she was carved for? How was she able to reproduce? How did she become so wealthy? What great palistrom tree could she have been carved from?!

One theory that has popped up is the idea that the Bat Queen was the palisman for the Titan who comprises the Boiling Isles. I, for one, do not agree. Palismen tend to have a rough consistent size, barring Gwendolyn’s Hawksley who is much larger. Using Owlbert and Eda in the mugshot in “Once Upon a Swap” as a reference, Owlbert’s inert form appears to be about 10 inches high, compared to Eda’s height of 6.5 feet, or 78 inches. 

That’s a ratio of 1 to 7.8 in height, palismen to owner. 

Now, judging by the Bat Queen’s first appearance crawling through the door of the Owl House, her crouched stance still hides the entirety of the Owl House’s front door. Given that standard American houses have front doors of 80 inches, or 6.6 feet, the Bat Queen could be comfortably estimated at 7 feet tall, at least. That’s 84 inches! A comparison between her height and Luz’s adds further support to this estimate. 

So, running with the 1:7.8 ratio and an estimated 84 inch height for the Bat Queen, that would make her giant of an owner 655.2 inches tall, or 54.6 feet! That’s 5 ½ stories! But as impressive as that is, the Titan is certainly taller than 55 feet. A more plausible explanation is that giants are a form of biped demon, as one seems to attend Hexside as seen early in “Escape of the Palisman.” 

Where her children came from, it is possible that she carved them. Or, given how the first bat baby regurgitated its siblings, that she regurgitated them as well, perhaps after chewing palistrom wood. 

Eda offers a clue as to a possible source of her wealth in her debut episode, citing “offerings” to powerful entities. Granted, she was referring to herself and the bat baby was not such an offering, but it is possible that an being as old and respected as the Bat Queen - who as a palisman may need no food or water to live, and thus has no real expenses - could accumulate great wealth with recurring offerings.

Finally, as to her size, we do not know how long the Titan has been dead or how long society has lived on it after arising from its muck. King’s book implies “eons” - an extremely long span of 500 million years, so it was likely poetic - but it is likely that in the early stages of society on the Isles, much larger palistrom trees grew, perhaps similar to the giant redwoods in California. Such a tree would have a trunk capable of creating the Bat Queen. 

Whether or not these mysteries are meant to be unraveled, the Bat Queen remains a striking and fascinating character. 

Thanks for reading! More to come …!

[acaciapines]

every day im like “once i get through arc one of the owl house daemon au editing is going to be so easy.” and then i remember the countless small things that add up and up and up. yall i need to make the bat queen relevant.