Important Note
This was originally written prior to the release of The Midnight King patch, and as such some of the assumptions became outdated and inaccurate. I’ve kept it as is however, as it would end up serving as a foundation for some of my future analyses of Secrets of the Obscure.
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Making some connections and assumptions about the noble houses of Nayos
(and some history headcanons)
Deimos’s Timeline
So Deimos gives us a kind of baseline for how far back things mentioned as “ancient history” happens. Also, we know Deimos was the “young glaive” of House Nephus based on his plaque in the Amnytas museum, and at some point this same title was given to Cerus.
GW2 Wiki: Deimos
The young glaive of House Nephus. Deimos was trapped in Tyria during a failed incursion, using the guilt-ridden body of Saul D’Alessio as a host. Little did he know, the Bastion of the Penitent was originally built by Isgarren and later captured by the living mursaat to be used as a penitentiary. Deimos went along with the scheme, feasting on Saul’s tormented soul until a group of explorers broke into the prison and cut down the Kryptis lord before he could escape.
Saul founded the White Mantle roughly 300 years before the events of Bastion of the Penitent, and since Deimos had to be possessing him by the time he was imprisoned by Mursaat, then it’s been over 300 years since Deimos left Nayos. Presumably Peitha and Cerus are of similar age to him, though I think of Deimos as the oldest of the three, or at least older than Cerus.
Cerus also has some kind of issue about Eparch seeing him as capable as Deimos.
GW2 Wiki: Treachery
Cerus: Febe was… Oh, he was the best of us. The tip of his left horn brushed the ceiling.
Isgarren: Wayfinder. Closer to me.
Cerus: He was an idol to… Oh, how would your kind say it?
Cerus: Autonomy?
Cerus: Deimos silenced his dream. Just over there. Eparch watched with a smile. That’s what happens when you fight back.
Cerus: Even though my brother is…gone, his dream is mine.
Cerus: Eparch will see that Deimos and I are truly the same. I am just as capable.
Cerus: I’ve brought him the head of Isgarren!
Peitha: And what are you doing, Brother?
Peitha: Eparch will never look to you as he did Deimos.
Which means it had to be over 300 years ago that Deimos killed Febe in the Temple of Febe.
Kanaxai’s assassination of Lady Mosyn
And thus it has to be much, much earlier than 300 years ago that Kanaxai executed Lady Mosyn during a public gathering of Kryptis, because Peitha was recognizably a “young one” at the time of this execution.
Mosyn’s execution appears to have been the end of a sort of golden age for Kryptis society when they would create their own art rather than copy from other world. Based on how “debate” and “protest” were also part of what Mosyn led her house and the Kryptis in, I assume this era could be a kind of Kryptis equivalent to the Age of Enlightenment as it occurred IRL.
Febe’s mentorship
Febe appears to have continued Mosyn’s work after her death, and this stretch of time was long enough for Peitha to grow into an adult. She sought out Febe at some point during this and he mentored her, likely leading to her radical thinking against Eparch that leads to the rebellion in the present time.
Up until Eparch had Deimos execute Febe too. In front of Cerus, who speaks very highly of Febe. To crush his spirits? “That’s what happens when you fight back”? If not for Febe’s execution, could Cerus have gone the same path as Peitha?
Incidentally, Kanaxai, and House Aurkus by extension, appear to have been Eparch’s inquisitors or secret police. Aurkus himself was also the one who ordered Mosyn’s execution.
Also, perhaps Deimos was the Glaive at the time, that Kanaxai mentions?
And I guess Kanaxai assassinating Mosyn and being an inquisitor is a reference to his class in GW1.
General Nephus’s insurrection…
GW2 Wiki: Field Report (Heitor's Territory)
Field Report 5 (Personal Copy)—On Nephus
I’ve heard the name Nephus bandied about a bit by Ramses and Peitha, but I’m never able to get the full context. As best as I can figure, he’s a kind of Kryptis folk hero and is believed to live despite having some disagreements with Eparch. Ramses and Peitha both seem to respect him.
It seems unrealistic to me that an uncompromising ruler like Eparch would leave anyone alive who challenged him in any way; perhaps this is a form of Kryptis optimism or religion.
—Researcher Selly
So, first, Grand General Nephus. A “folk hero” that the average villager looks up to. Said to be a “brilliant strategist” and a “peerless warrior” whose very name commands loyalty, and, if executed, would immediately become a martyr. He’s essentially…the Commander but for Kryptis.
GW2 Wiki: The War Council
Peitha: What we need is someone that they respect, someone they will follow, even against Eparch.
Ramses: You mean General Nephus.
We also know he was going to rebel, but Eparch stopped him before he could even start by publicly killing everyone who would have supported him. This, of course, is why he’s so reluctant at first in the Forced Hand chapter, and only joins Peitha when Labris’s arrival gives him no other choice.
Given the only public execution we know of was that of Mosyn, it’s possible she was one of those killed because of Nephus, but I feel that takes away from her and the work she was doing. She was a public figure, a hero to the Kryptis, in her own right, and executed for her own “blasphemies” rather than for supporting Nephus.
Maybe Nephus’s would-be insurrection was actually a much longer time ago? It would explain the way he is spoken of like a legendary figure, hidden and lost to all but a select few. Hundreds of years before Mosyn, Nephus saw and realized the beginnings of Eparch’s tyranny, and meant to put a stop to it by reaching out to other nobles and generals who shared his sentiments, only to be faced with “mercy” as the only survivor of his rebellion. By the time of Mosyn’s protests, Nephus was a beloved figure of Kryptis history, but locked away by both the King and his own despair.
Or perhaps closer instead? If it was closer in time to the current story, it could have been after Mosyn’s death, as “the king’s claws tightened on our throats” after the end of their golden age, as dreams started to dry up in Nayos, and the average Kryptis started looking for a new hero to believe in and they turned to Nephus, who sought out others of the same mind as him and looked to finish what began with Mosyn?
Either could work.
…and what it meant for House Nephus
So what, then, is “House Nephus”? And how does it connect Peitha to Nephus?
We know from the other noble houses mentioned so far - House Aurkus and House Mosyn - that they take their names from their founders, so of course, it stands to reason that Nephus is the founder of this one. Each house also seems to have a role or predilection for one within Kryptis society - House Mosyn were artists and intellectuals, House Aurkus were inquisitors willing to do dirty work. House Nephus, perhaps, is a house of warriors and tacticians?
GW2 Wiki: Forced Hand
Peitha: I do not come to offer honeyed words. The truth is all he will hear and all I will offer.
Avatar of Gluttony: Move no further. And tell us, “great lady”: What truth is that?
Peitha: That you all with join us in battle now or join us in death.
Incarnation of Judgement: If joining us in death is what you seek, step forward.
Peitha: Hold, sister. We share the same house, as I hope we will share enemies on the battlefield.
Forced Hand gives us the only real interactions between Peitha and others of House Nephus. Peitha isn’t welcome, because by this point she’s known to be leading a rebellion and the last thing anyone of House Nephus wants is to let their General get involved in another one of those, on top of perhaps believing Peitha is here to kill him.
GW2 Wiki: Forced Hand
General Nephus: Hope is worth little in these times, Peitha. Of House Nephus.
Incarnation of Judgement: General!
Avatar of Gluttony: General Nephus! You’re in danger—
General Nephus: It is the “great lady” who is in danger. I’m surprised you show your horns here.
General Nephus: Speak quickly, before Labris takes them as her trophy. I will not have yet another needless death on my conscience.
Peitha: Your concern is appreciated, General, as always. But I cannot leave until you hear my proposal.
The next part of the above conversation implies Nephus and Peitha have some very slight familiarity with each other.
GW2 Wiki: Eventide's March
Player Character: General. Glad to have you on our side.
General Nephus: Peitha—Her Majesty—forced the issue. I tried to maintain neutrality, to not provoke Eparch. But it was time. Past time.
Player Character: She tends to get her way.
General Nephus: So I’m quickly learning. I’m pleased to have you as an arrow in our quiver. Your reputation precedes you.
But it does seem like Nephus hasn’t actually seen Peitha in a very, very long time.
GW2 Wiki: Treachery
Peitha: As I’ve never had the chance… I am Peitha, of House Nephus—though “houses” and titles given by Eparch are less than reputable.
Peitha: But in my world, it carries weight. We’ll need that.
Eparch: Ah. There you are.
Eparch: I thought I felt something…different. It’s fascinating, what you smell like. What you feel like.
Eparch: I’d hoped that Cerus was a smarter warrior than his brother, but… I’ve been wrong before, I’ll admit that.
Eparch: You, though. Not only do you remind me of the seer, but… Your fear tastes like his.
Eparch: (laughs)
Eparch: Peitha has impressed me. But. She’ll still fall short. They all do.
Eparch: Be wise, “Wayfinder”.
So maybe…Peitha and her brothers were actually placed into House Nephus by Eparch, not by Nephus’s choosing or theirs, perhaps back when they were very young? Why House Nephus, though? Maybe because with Nephus hidden away, command of the house and the three siblings then falls entirely to Eparch and Labris?
So perhaps Peitha and the siblings are in House Nephus as a means to control them?
Bonus headcanons: Eparch’s Nayos
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(and House Mosyn’s place in it)
GW2 Wiki: Hell Breaks Loose
Mabon: The Kryptis are demons.
Mabon: They…evolved, learned. Their influence and power grew under the…guidance of their leader. Eparch.
Mabon: Centuries ago, Eparch wanted to join our ranks but Isgarren denied him entry. He found Eparch to be…ignorant. Hungry.
Mabon: Demons tend to be solitary creatures, but Eparch saw potential. Wells of power that they’d yet to tap into.
Mabon: He dubbed himself their king and built a society in his own image. One of fear and anger. Nayos, the Realm of Dreams.
Mabon: They’ve spent centuries watching us—and others. Learning all they can. Now, they’ve chosen to act.
Ok, pure headcanon time. As we go deeper into Nayos, we meet more and more friendly Kryptis, or Kryptis so scared of both Eparch and the Astral Ward they just run away and hide no matter what. The villages though, seem to have this strong sense of community, and there are elderly Kryptis taking care of younger ones and being protective of their homes.
Something notable to me is that though the Astral Ward are there to assist Peitha’s rebellion and do participate in fighting, a good amount of events in Nyedra and their interactions with the Kryptis are more about helping them bring aid to the average Kryptis. And as these events happen, the Kryptis come to welcome them despite initial misgivings.
And take note: in Forced Hand, when the fighting starts, several Kryptis flee into the safety of their homes. There are also villagers who will run and hide when events like the meta start.
GW2 Wiki: Researcher Lanni
>What have you learned of the native creatures here?
Everything here has been in an arms race for millennia. Claws and fangs got longer and sharper, and carapaces became thicker and spiked in response. Competition for Nayos’s scarce resources is fierce.
>Sounds like everything is dangerous, then.
Very much so. But keep in mind that most of them are just animals without the spark of sentience. It’s not their fault they are the way they are. They adapted to their environment, same as we did.
>What can you tell me about the local plant life?
Some of it is edible, if that’s what you mean. I’d be careful if you’re tempted to sample things, however. But what’s more fascinating is how they’ve developed in the absence of the sun.
>What do you mean?
Well, plants in Tyria need a light source to grow. But in Nayos, they seem to have adapted to use the latent magic in the land instead. Perhaps that’s how these trees reached such an impressive size.
So maybe before Eparch’s militant unification of Nayos under his banner, Kryptis society was composed of disparate villages. “Solitary” in the sense of competing for the “scarce resources” of Nayos. Each village did what it could to survive.
GW2 Wiki: Shattered Kryptis Carapace
Visions of the Disquiet
As you pick up the piece of carapace, a flood of sensations fills your mind.
Purple flames rising. Scraping of sinew and bone. A banner of flesh on the horizon.
You have no idea what the Astral Ward will be able to make of this, but hopefully they can learn something from it.
Until Eparch decided he was to be king, and marched on each village and made them bow to him.
GW2 Wiki: Agathine
>Do you remember the time before Eparch was king?
Ah, I was young then and can recall little. But I remember the speeches, the crowds, and the promises of a new world. And I remember the executions.
>The executions?
They would march out a traitor—someone who had stolen from our kingdom or plotted against our people. They would eviscerate them, and the crowd would roar with approval. And then there’d be another.
>Only they weren’t really traitors.
Some of them were, of course. But most were merely inconvenient to the nascent king. By the time we saw the spider’s fangs bared above us…there was no one left who was strong enough to stop him.
And those who didn’t fall in line under Eparch’s banner? Killed as traitors.
GW2 Wiki: Eventide's March
General Nephus: Labris is in a difficult position—she didn’t expect to have to defend herself at Eventide’s March.
General Nephus: I nearly suffered defeat here once myself during the Fourth Disquiet. It’s not a particularly defensible position.
Interestingly, Nephus tells us there were at least four “disquiets.” With the Vision of the Disquiet above implying these were major military conflicts, maybe this means there were actually attempts by other groups of Kryptis to fight back against the establishment of the kingdom? Particularly since Nephus implies it was an attack on them instead.
Also a character headcanon - I like to think Nephus earned his title of Grand General during Eparch’s takeover of Nayos and perhaps some of his guilt comes from helping to put Eparch on the very throne that would oppress the Kryptis he sought to protect.
All this is to say: I think Eparch’s version of Nayos is entirely at odds with the Kryptis’s actual nature - which is more community oriented than their world and their king affords them.
Enter House Mosyn.
Once the kingdom was established, Eparch doled out titles and noble houses to significant Kryptis. Despite what would happen later, one of these was Lady Mosyn, who cultivated a house built on creativity and culture and creating things rather than copying what they saw in dreams.
With the kingdom established into peace, this presumably meant villages now shared resources and soldiers now protected them, rather than needing to compete with each other to survive. In such an environment, Mosyn and the Kryptis who followed her had the chance to flourish and create culture now that survival was not a primary concern.
And of course, that is why Mosyn’s assassination marked the beginning of Eparch’s current tyranny.