The Tide

The Tide was one of the gods-from-stone killed and cast down to Nowhere in the Lithomachy. It is described as a “coral palace-crown” swimming through Mansus-haze, which absorbs its Names, some as food and others to be expelled, polished like jewels. It seems to have filled a similar role to the Red Grail, the Hour which killed it, presiding over pleasure and luxury. Aspects of the Tide are unknown, but believed to be some sort of proto-Grail, due to their association with the sea and pleasure.[1][2][3][4]

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Events

The Lithomachy: The Tide was killed and sent to Nowhere by the Red Grail, who drained and devoured them.[5]

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Servants

• The Carapace Cross: The Carapace Cross are the predecessors to humanity, who worshiped the gods-from-stone such as the Tide. They are believed to be extinct, though in truth, “the Carapace-cross did not perish but passed within”.[6][7]

Relationships

• The Horned Axe: The last surviving god-from-stone, who eventually made a treaty with the newer Hours that involved the Thunderskin’s sacrifice as restitution for the deaths for her siblings.
• The Red Grail: The Hour which killed the Tide and took their place in the Mansus, and which also negotiated peace with the Horned Axe for this act and the deaths of the other gods-from-stone.[2][5]

Other Notes

• The Tide appears in one of the memories for the Palest Painting of the Ghoul legacy, the Colours Tidal, which can be found from the chewy remains of a priest of the Sisterhood of the Knot.[8]

Real World References

• One interpretation of the death of the gods-from-stone connects them to the rise of human civilization and a transition to a “higher” state of being. The Tide in this case could represent a transition from the pleasures and beauty of the natural world to those created by mankind, and their ability to focus on decadence and desire as civilization advanced.

Theories and Questions

• The Tide may be the entity called “Wave” in the Priest legacy, who preaches about the aspect of Heart, and “those who were cast down, wave or wound or snow”. However, it also might simply be a reference to the Hours that have not yet been revealed, who from leaked information can similarly be tied to those symbols. A similar reference exists about incantations used to defend against Worms as well as “the Wave and the Wound,” though these Protections apparently haven’t been performed for at least a thousand years. Again, this may just be a reference to leaked Hours and not the dead ones, but there’s no way to be certain currently.[9][10]
• While the Tide’s gender is never explicitly stated, an argument for the Tide being female could be that the gods-from-stone are all called “sisters and brothers” of the Horned Axe,[11] and the Seven-Coils, Wheel, and Egg Unhatching are all mentioned at least once as male, implying that the Flint and the Tide are the female sisters.

In-Game Sources

1. The Colours Tidal 2. Read 'In Memory of Gods' 3. Read 'The World Does Not Weep' 4. Luxurious Memory 5. Read 'A Second Glory' 6. Read 'The Songs of the Carapace Cross' 7. On the Smoky Satisfaction..., Enigma compilation 8. One More Treasure, Leathery Remnant 9. 'The hearts of the false shall be taken from them when they cease; but the hearts of the true cease not.' 10. Read 'Commandments For the Preservation of All That Exists' 11. Read 'The Morphy Codex'

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