I finally got it! I know what the warden is. This is a huge breakthrough in Minecraft lore. Well, what is it? It’s an axolotl
It’s a what? It’s an axolotl! I’m telling you in the minecraft launcher
there was a secret message that says that the axolotls are not what they seem. Okay but that doesn’t mean that they’re
wardens. But get this, if you invert the colors of
the warden you get an axolotl. Okay come on that's a bit of a stretch
BUT THE COLORS It’s not an axolotl
BUT THE COLORS. THE COLORS ARE PINK. DON'T FORGET THE COLORS Hello internet, welcome to Wifeory, the show
that keeps its viewers in the deep dark about everything. With the new insane Minecraft 1.19 update
and the developers outright confirming that there is intentional lore to be found it’s
no surprise that warden theories have been springing up left right and center. But what actually is this thing? So stick around as there is a lot, and I mean
a lot to cover, because today we’re going to answer once and for all, what is the warden,
the ancient city, and how do they fit into the entire story of Minecraft. It doesn’t take more than a glance to notice
that there is so much to unpack here. This update is full of information waiting
to be deciphered so where do we even start? Well let’s take a look at the cities themselves. The cities offer a ton of subtle and not so
subtle clues that help us piece together a picture of what went on here. The first thing to note is the material of
the floor. All the pathways in the ancient cities are
layered with wool. To the regular observer this may seem like
a random cushioning block, but it actually isn’t that simple. Wool is a very important block when it comes
to skulk because it can block noise vibrations. Typically skulk sensors can pick up sound
vibrations and transmit the signal to nearby skulk shrieker blocks, which can in turn alert
and summon the warden. However wool can block sound vibrations from
reaching the skulk shrieker, and quoting the minecraft wiki, skulk sensors are not able
to detect footsteps on wool. And this little detail is super important
to help us uncover the relationship between the warden and the ancient builders. Also if it wasn’t clear already I’m going
to assume that the ancient builders, the race of people before Steve, were the ones living
in these cities, not a race of wardens or something. And if you want to argue that the illagers
built this, well I’ll address that in a little bit, so bear with me. Another important detail comes in the form
of chest loot. There are tons of chests scattered all around
the ancient city and the items inside them are more revealing than you might expect. Specifically, snowballs. Again this seems completely random, but it’s
not. In the preview for the wild update back in
2020 we see the mojang team using snowballs to distract the warden. This is because the snowballs hitting the
walls also emit sound vibrations that the warden can pick up and get distracted by. So the fact that there are snowballs and books
of swift sneak in these chests coupled with the fact that the floors are made of wool
tells us something very important. The warden and the ancient builders were not
friends. This piece of information is invaluable. The snowballs and wool floors are tools to
stay away from the warden, to protect the inhabitants of these cities from it. Whatever the warden is, the ancient race of
builders were scared of it, or at least they knew not to mess with it, otherwise why would
they have all these tools to avoid it. But this begs the question, if they did fear
the warden, why did they stay? Nothing is forcing the builders to remain
in these cities. If the warden was such a big problem why didn’t
they just leave and build the cities somewhere else? This brings us to another very crucial point. The where. The where or location of the ancient cities
answers one of the most interesting and important questions about the lore. Is the sculk man made? And I’m here to tell you, it’s not. To figure this out we just have to consider
this simple observation. Every single ancient city is in a deep dark,
but not every deep dark has an ancient city. Take a look at this isolated patch of skulk
that’s over 500 blocks away from the nearest city. Or this absolutely massive pile of skulk over
250 blocks away. And on the other hand I dare you to try and
find an ancient city that isn’t in a deep dark. Every single one will at least be partially
covered in skulk. So what does this mean? It means that these cities were constructed
in the deep dark on purpose. The ancient builders who built the cities
wanted to live there, they wanted to be around the skulk for some reason. Now it could just be that the builders settled
there because no mobs can spawn in the deep dark and while that certainly might be part
of it I don’t think it’s the full truth. The builders knew what they were getting into,
they wanted to use the skulk to their advantage. And we know that this is definitely true for
other reasons as well. The loot chests in the ancient cities are
filled with skulk sensors, shriekers, catalysts and straight up skulk. It’s not like the skulk is a disease that
later corrupted the cities, it was an integrated part of the builder’s lifestyle. Look no further than the pillars in front
of the statue. These pillars don’t look like anything special
at first but take a peek inside and you find a waterlogged skulk sensor responsible for
turning on the lights. The builders were using the skulk to their
advantage. Same thing in the redstone lab under the statue
that has a piston door powered by skulk. Also, side note, I have no idea why these
things are waterlogged. The only use of a waterlogged skulk sensor
is to keep it silent, and so it’s probably just for aesthetics but you’ll have to ask
the ancient builders. That means that the skulk blocks are all natural
to an extent. A lot of you may argue that the skulk sensor
isn’t natural and I would like to agree but I just can’t. It appears in the redstone section of the
inventory, it gives off redstone particles and hell it's a redstone component, no way
it’s natural right? Well it spawns naturally. It can appear in completely isolated veins
of skulk with no human interference. It can spawn as a result of the catalyst absorbing
souls. Even the skulk shrieker, which in my opinion
is the most man made out of the three, can spawn completely on its own in veins of skulk. None of these three blocks are man made, they
can all spawn completely by themselves. And calling these three unnatural just because
they’re redstone components isn’t too fair. In real life electric signals, our parallel
of redstone, occur in nature all the time. Through lightning, the spin of the earth’s
core, and even in our bodies through neurons. It doesn’t have to be man made to make redstone
power, it can be alive. This is showcased perfectly in the charge
that pulses through skulk when something dies on it. The soul energy or charge is literally providing
electric or redstone charge, similar to how neurons in the brain use electric signals
to communicate. But okay, if you’re still with me, we established
that the ancient builders constructed these cities among naturally spawning veins of skulk
in the deep dark biomes. But why did they do it? Why did they willingly set up camp next to
such a dangerous mob? Well, it’s because they needed it. But before I cover the warden, I want to address
one more point that I know you’re probably thinking about, the pillagers. Ever since the ancient city overhaul in snapshot
22w13a, something has caught the eye of every theorist out there: the traces of pillager-like
structures scattered throughout the cities. You’ve got ruins that resemble pillager
outposts, scaffolding and bridges made of dark oak, and even these little areas with
wool exactly mirroring the wool rooms in woodland mansions. I’ve seen many people look at this and conclude
that the illagers must have built the cities, that they were responsible for the creation
of the warden. But I don't think that’s the case at all. Look at the names of the structures that resemble
pillager design. These wool sites are literally called camps. And the pillager outposts don’t even have
a distinct name in the files. Notice how the outposts also don’t look
like an integrated part of the city. Not only is the material obviously different,
but it even seems like these structures were built around, or on the preexisting ruins. The dark oak scaffolding doesn’t actually
make up anything new. It’s just bridges used to connect the already
existing crumbling ruins, making them easier to traverse. The blue colored carpets are nowhere near
abundant and seem like the pillagers were following the preexisting example and adding
carpets where they explored. And look at how the only places you find the
structures and camps are on the outskirts of the town. Granted this could be a coincidence across
the few cities I've checked but it certainly adds to the argument if it’s true. It seems like the pillager society arrived
on the site of the already abandoned ancient city and explored it. Crossing the gaps with dark oak bridges and
erecting small structures wherever they saw fit. There’s two distinct civilizations here. One planning to live here for a long time
constructing saunas and ice boxes out of deepslates and another building campsites and outposts
out of dark oak. But without further adieu, the warden. The warden is undoubtedly the highlight of
this update and the final piece of the puzzle. Its otherworldly appearance is something never
before seen in minecraft and it’s the first time the devs have outright declared there
was lore in the game. Those things in its chest were confirmed to
be souls by developer Brandon Pierce, or kingbdogz ,who stated that they were extremely important
to the warden's disturbing and unsettling lore. But the warden wasn’t always called the
warden. In the early stages of its development this
beast used to be called the “hollowed”. And the skulk, the “hollow”. Taking a look at the warden’s early concept
art reveals many different ideas and a few continuities throughout all the iterations. Sometimes the warden resembles an axolotl,
other times a villager, a wither, a respawn anchor. But two things are always consistent. The first is the core. Across almost every design of the warden there
is a centerpiece in its chest. A core that has to have some significance. The second consistency is that the warden
always parallels the hollow, or the skulk. Referencing its early name, it is hollowed
by the hollow. If the skulk is trypophobia-looking, so is
the warden. If the skulk is otherworldly and green, so
is the warden. It follows the same color palette because
they’re made of the same stuff. Which by the way is skulk and bones. For anyone who thought this was endstone,
it’s not. All the yellow gray textures were confirmed
to be bones by kingbdogz. Even the way the warden walks confirms this. It walks hunched over and sways back and forth
in multiple directions. It seems like it’s a loose composition of
bones held together by the skulk and some quote unquote soul power in the center. It’s my belief that whenever the warden
is summoned the skulk pools together a bunch of bones and souls and constructs a new warden
out of the ground. The shrieker, as evidenced by its design containing
swirling souls, is a soul hub, or a reserve that provides the power for the warden construction. And this isn’t just speculation. The way that skulk spreads is through death. If any mob dies within an 8 block radius of
the sculk catalyst, its death energy will be converted to charge, which in turn spreads
the skulk growth and has a chance of generating a shrieker, or sensor. Shriekers are much less likely to generate
because they need a much stronger concentration of souls, they’re the ones storing it for
the warden construction. The warden is an amalgamation of souls swirling
angrily inside a vessel of bones and skulk. That’s why it isn't classified as a mob
or a boss. You don’t need to kill it to get the monster
hunter achievement and the devs encourage you not to kill it. They claim it's a force of nature that shouldn’t
be messed with. That’s why it doesn’t drop anything worthwhile,
because it shouldn’t be killed. But why? Why are the ancient race of builders actively
setting up in an area haunted by such a danger. Because it’s protecting them. What if the Warden was a guardian from something
even worse. Something up above on the surface that terrorized
the builders enough to go hide down below. What if the Warden, was made to protect the
builders, from the wither. Several more details scattered throughout
the city make this argument way more convincing. The first is this infamous statue in the center
of certain structures. This statue actually has its own file name
and it’s called small_portal_statue. A lot of people saw this and immediately jumped
to the idea that it was a replica of the city center statue meaning it’s all a portal
to a new dimension. But I don’t actually think that’s the
case. You know what else both of these statues resemble? The Warden. The resemblance maybe isn’t striking at
first but if you take a look at the old concept art for both the warden and ancient city it’s
pretty obvious that these two structures are not portals, but statues of the warden’s
head. And if you want further proof the statue was
even renamed to small_statue. They took out the word portal. Now maybe this video will age terribly when
a new dimension gets announced but hopefully that’s not the case. And these statues aren’t the only place
that we find tributes to the warden. The triangular shapes in the center of the
barracks and the small posts dotted around the cities resemble shrines. They’re covered in candles which further
add to this ritual and spiritual feel. The ancient builders are worshiping the warden. But the final piece of information that sealed
the deal for me is the mechanism of the skulk shrieker. The shrieker activates when a skulk sensor
passes on a vibration to it. But the catch is that that vibration has to
come from a player. A skulk shrieker won’t summon the warden,
unless a player activates a sensor. At first I thought this meant that the shriekers
were anti-player, and that some other race created it as a defense against the builders. But instead of thinking about it like an anti-player,
how about thinking along the lines of player activated. The builders don’t want an accidental mob
noise or chest opening to trip their sensors and summon the warden for no reason. No, they want to make sure that when they
need to summon the warden for protection, they can do it intentionally through the shriekers. So, what am I getting at? The ancient builders tormented by their accidental
creation of the wither were forced to flee underground and escape. Some civilizations ran off and constructed
strongholds, looking to escape to the end dimension, but others went deeper. They mined to the deepest depths of the world,
where they knew to find skulk patches. The weird, alien-like growth only generated
at the lowest y levels possible. They set up camp near the skulk, knowing of
its properties in containing souls and harnessing death. They constructed cities around it. Strongholds made out of the toughest material
around them. They stored food in ice boxes and built saunas
and barracks, knowing they’ll have to be here for a long time. They constructed a redstone laboratory, testing
the powers of the skulk and using it in their builds. As lamps, and as doorways. But finally, inevitably, a wither broke through
from the surface. The builders panicked, running around in fear
when suddenly one activated a shrieker. And out of the ground came a warden. An amalgamation of the souls and bones of
the builders who had died in the city, attacking anything that made a sound. A force of nature strong enough to take out
even the wither. The builders rejoiced, careful not to anger
the warden but thankful for its defense. Many more withers roamed the surface but for
now the builders had won a battle. But then the rituals began. They had to keep the warden happy right, they
can’t risk angering it. By force, or by choice, builders were sacrificed
to the skulk. They were killed by their comrades near the
skulk catalyst to spread the growth. The soul infused skulk slowly consumed the
entire city, fueled by the sacrifices in hopes to keep the warden happy and strong. The other builders erected shrines and monuments
in honor of the wardens and their sacrificed allies. They laced their pathways and castles with
a carpet to avoid purposelessly summoning the beast. The angry souls of the sacrificed builders
coursed through the skulk growth. And when the alarm was tripped, the shrieker
sent out a signal: And all the vengeful souls of the builders and their bones were pooled
together in the creation of something inhuman. It’s tortured spirits attacked anything
that makes noise, and in this case it’s just what the builders needed. The sacrifices continued. Each time a new set of builders was offered
up as tribute to the warden. Compensation for protection, hoping to fuel
its strength and please it. But slowly the population ran dry. With each wither attack came more and more
damage to the city and less builders to sacrifice. Eventually the final builder was sacrificed
to the warden, hoping to please it one last time as its soul joins the angry swirling
mass in the shrieker. The final builder walks the city, alone. Maybe in regret that he’s had to sacrifice
all his allies to make it to this point. The final warden to be summoned is the product
of a whole population offered as sacrifice. A collection of souls that seeks revenge,
whether it be on the wither, or their allies who sent them to die. And as the shrieker gets activated one more
time, the city finds peace at last. And maybe the skulk is man made, maybe they
engineered it to function the way that it does. It certainly explains the human priming and
the fact that it can be redstone activated. But the core of the lore still stands regardless. By definition the warden is a mob that looks
over and supervises a certain area, which is exactly what the warden is doing to the
ancient city. And the idea of a civilization slowly sacrificing
their members, custom of the sea style, in tribute to skulk overlords, which their vengeful
souls then combine to form the warden sounds pretty disturbing to me. But with that said, thank you so much for
watching, please consider subscribing. It really helps out a ton, and as always,
peace out, have a good one. I’ll see you next time.
