1.03 version was released
some soft locks fixed
some loot system fixes
some boss changes and rebalance
some lore and background added
The premiss is that The Eye (a.k.a Crawling Chaos) is a central figure in Thief lore.
At the edge of new Eon the group of Precursors called the Guild of Enlightenment performed a ritual which goal was to bend the space and time and look into the future events.
During the ritual they created the first Glyph – called the Origin Glyph or Glyph Of Enlightenment.
This action cause great disturbance in cosmological order, a shift in The Balance that lure something to our dimension.
Accidently they summoned a Dark Element and prison it in the piece of rock (combination of onyx, quartz, and bloodstone).
At first Precursors didn’t understand the true nature of the Element.
They call it N'Lahotep (The Eye) and build a huge temple for it in they capitol Karath-din …
The Temple of N'Lahotep
The Eye had a knowledge and power far beyond anything that Precursors knew.
Listening to it advice they made a huge technological progress.
However at some point (while Va-Toran was in power) The Eye stop talking to the guild and spend more time with the emperor.
The emperor has been possessed by The Eye.
It convince him to build a secret mine in the place of the great colosseum … nobody knows what they were looking for in there
(possibly the Glyph Of Transmutation)
but the drilling triggered earthquakes and volcano processes which lead to the destruction of Karath-din.
The Temple of N'Lahotep and the Eye survive almost untouched.
First artifact in mod is The Gilded Skull of Va-Toran — The Skull of the Last Emperor
Symbol of dominion through avarice, and the first mind consumed
After the cataclysm it has become clear that The Eye is element of destruction … and chaos.
The prophesy was written at the time saying that
“The Dark Element shall remain chained whilst Balance endured.”
… the prophesy actually imprisoned The Eye in this realm (Prime Material Plane).
The Guild of Enlightenment become the Keepers … and they main task was to keep the balance so the Dark Element could never be free.
The Eye was sealed and kept under guard by Keepers.
The Ancient Keepers influence the City creation on ruins of Karath-din.
The Eye waited to set it self free.
Finally it was able to corrupt one of the guarding Keepers that had access to it (Gamall, Daegar, Somersault, and Vandolyn).
It introduce her to forbidden knowledge – like Glyph of Transmutation – using her hunger for knowledge.
This Keeper was Gamall.
She stolen The Eye from Keepers sanctuary …. but for some reason the Eye left her (it was able to move it self), was stolen, lost or abandon. It is also possible thee Eye used Gamall to summon The Trickster at his first approach.
The Trickster was actually recorded in history (via the Keepers and Kurshok) to have walked the earth.
The Kurshok described him as being kind-hearted, allowing them to construct cities and ships of immense size despite his hatred of those who cut down trees and change the form of raw materials.
Suddenly he becoming a bloodthirsty and fanatic … clearly he was possessed by the Eye.
Fifty years before the events of Thief: The Dark Project, the Trickster used The Eye (or the Eye used Trickster) in order to start the Cataclysm within Old Quarter, which caused hordes of the undead to pour into the City from a prestigious Hammerite Cathedral.
However the Keepers managed to contain the Eye by using ancient Elemental Wards on the cathedral, the wards were controlled by four talismans.
Later on the City Watch kept the undead at bay and the City Council raised a wall around the haunted section of the city to stop the spreading of undead.
Trickster wanted badly to get the Eye back … it seems that it was far more powerful than he was … to merge the Maw of Chaos with the Prime Material Plane (in which The City exists) in order to cause the world to go into a chaotic state where technology and civilization would be non-existent.
In other words to create the state of imbalance (first Dark Age) … that’s what the Eye wanted to set itself free.
That’s when Garrets appear.
The Eye wait for him in the Hammerite Cathedral like it knew he will come.
It is unclear if the Eye real plan was to open the Maw of Chaos or it just wanted to be combine with Garretts eye (the One True Keeper) … which would help it in his further plan … or to kill the Trickster (the Eye could easily warned Trickster that Garrett attempt to sabotage the ritual … but it didn’t ) … probably to recover
The Horn of Wild Dominion - dominion through nature
Garrett returns the Eye to the Hammerites … accidently (or not) to the father Karras.
In return Karras made for Garrett a mechanical eye.
Apparently Karras keep the Eye for himself.
The Eye lead Karras to the Karath-din – and provide him with ancient technology and artefacts. Give him a new goal.
From saintly Hammerite priest he change in to a fanatic sociopath.
He lead the schism and build the Mechanists Order to become the Hand of the Builder… and destroy all organic life.
In other words … to create imbalance (second Dark Age) … so the Eye may finally free itself.
The idea of The Builder's Paradise fail (thanks to Garrett) and the Eye end up in Wieldstrom Museum.
Karras die but he left his mask imprinted with all his knowledge on how to control metal.
The Mask of Iron Command - dominion through metal and machine
Again its not clear if the Eye plan assumed Karras death to collect his abilities … or not.
In Deadly Shadows The Eye awaits at Garrett to get it from the Wieldstrom Museum and to use it against the Gamall (the events the Eye started long ago) … to stop the Keepers imbalance (third Dark Age) … in other words to activate the Final Glyph
The Final Glyph was suppose to be initiated by the will of the Eye (as the most important – placed directly over the point where the Glyph Of Enlightenment was first opened.
The Codex of Silent Pages (merged The Compendium of Reproach) - dominion over knowledge — and through knowledge, over destiny itself.
The Final Glyph erased all Glyph magic, and caused the prophecies and books to unwrite themselves (including the prophesy that bound the Eye in this realm). The activating of the Final Glyph was suppose to annihilate the Sentients (including the Eye… maybe that was Ancient Keepers plan all along?).
And it work … the peace of rock that kept the Dark Element was destroyed … but the living tissue that was attach to it (the Garretts eye) survive and carry the Dark Element within. (maybe that was the Eye plan all along?)
The effects upon the Keepers were devastating.
The Keeper Compound was revealed to all and sundry, whom immediately began looting the place.
Though the Keepers themselves were not destroyed but the Order was undone without any means to continue.
Garrett, in the last cutscene, calls himself a Keeper, therefore confirming the existence of at least one.
In other words … the only thing that still keeping the Dark Element … was Garrett … the last and the One true keeper …
