Vort Prophecies

[shire]

hey guys if u go and talk to the vortigaunt near the dam, right after u shoot down the helicopter he says some very interesting things... i recorded a demo on how to get there and what he says if ur interested in seeing it for yourself. ill try and get a list up of what he says in this thread... maybe itll help some of ur guys ideas out.

 

[JimmehH]

I've attached a list of everything the Vortigaunts ever say in the game. Might ruin the fun a bit, but I think it's useful.

 

[ranmafan]

The vort in the dam says the same things the vort that welds the gun onto your airboat says. Although... it was kinda funny to hear the vort at the dam say 'It is more than we can bear... but we will persevere' as his opening line while staring at the roast pit. (You know what's there when you see it.) :E

Hm... I don't remember vortigaunts helping you in any fights in the entire game... I wonder where I could get a hold of these mobile HEV chargers...? :cheese:

 

[shire]

alright guys i got the text from what the vortigaunt said and some are very interesting to say the least, especially these quotes:

#that sharp spur of hope has not dulled to this day. for once the lesser master lay defeated, we knew the greater must also fall in time.

#your bright face obscures your darker mask.

#far distant eyes look out through yours.

#something secret steers us both. we shall not name it.

#we have endured these chafing bonds for eons, yet a single moment of further servitude seems intolerable.

#how often have we slipped our yoke, only to find it choking us again.

#how many are there in you? whose hopes and dreams do you encompass?

#could you but see the eyes inside your own, the minds in your mind, you would see how much we share.

ive got a few idea's of what these could mean... any opinions?

 

[michael_obrien]

#that sharp spur of hope has not dulled to this day. for once the lesser master lay defeated, we knew the greater must also fall in time.

lesser - nihilanth
greater - combine

#something secret steers us both. we shall not name it.

Gee... that's a tough one.

#we have endured these chafing bonds for eons, yet a single moment of further servitude seems intolerable.

This depends on the definiton of eon. An eon can refer to an incredibly long time, but another definition is "a divine power or nature emanating from the Supreme Being and playing various roles in the operation of the universe".

However, because he mentions a single moment after that, I believe that we can assume that he is referring to time.

#how often have we slipped our yoke, only to find it choking us again.

This is another quote that indicates that the vortigaunts have been fighting the combine for a really long time. As has been mentioned before, time in the Xen universe does not map directly to time in ours, so in one year of our time they may have gone through a thousand.

#how many are there in you? whose hopes and dreams do you encompass?

I think this refers to how gordon is an "empty shell" for gamers to put their personalities into... He's asking how many people are playing as gordon, basically. It could also be lumped into the many other quotes referring to people being inside of gordon which I do not entirely understand.

 

[michael_obrien]

double post because I deserve it. Here's some interesting ones.

"There is no distance between us. No false veil of time or space may intervene. "

Time and space are false veils. Well, to the Gman definately, and also to the vortigaunts. Remember the portion talking about eons? If time is just a veil, then they must be talking religion.

"We see you still in Black Mesa. Clearly we see you in the Nihilanth's chamber. "

This could go along with the vort's confusion about time, but it could also mean that exactly as the events of HL2 are occuring, gordon is destroying the nihilanth in HL1 in the relative timescale. Note that this would mess with cause and effect: Gordon kills nihilanth right now, but this frees the vortigaunts ten years ago. I don't think that there is cause and effect for the vortigaunts...

"We are there still, in observance of your final stroke. "

Again, surely referring to nihilanth as you crowbarred his brains out.

"While our own lay scattered at your feet, you severed the vortal cord that bound the Nihilanth to life, and to us. "

vortal - as in VORTigaunt. Basically, you killed nihilanth and now he can't talk to us any more.

"We call you sib, although your mind and meaning are a mystery to us. "

something is a mystery to them? that's out of charachter. I dont know what this means.

"What seems to you a sacrifice is merely, to us, an oscillation. We do not fear the interval of darkness. "

Reincarnation. Death, interval of darkness, then rebirth.

"We are a tapestry woven of vortessence. It is the same for you if only you would see it. "
"We shall share the vortessence. "

Heh, vortessence. That sounds silly.

 

[rimwalker]

#how many are there in you? whose hopes and dreams do you encompass?

I think this refers to how gordon is an "empty shell" for gamers to put their personalities into... He's asking how many people are playing as gordon, basically. It could also be lumped into the many other quotes referring to people being inside of gordon which I do not entirely understand.

Good point. I also think it might have something to do with the Vortigaunts having a "hive mind" and being telepathic with one another. (Info from both the game itself and from the Prima guide.) The concept of everything being linked together seems central to their psychology ("all in one and one in all" says the Vort).

Humans by comparison must seem odd to them for not being able to feel the "hopes and dreams" of all the other humans the way a Vort can feel other Vorts. Notice how they admire Eli for being nearly able to see the "All in One."

Perhaps the Vort was chiding Gordon for being a small-minded human... or trying to get Gordon to see they may have more in common than Gordon is aware of.

 

[michael_obrien]

This reminds me of interpreting poetry.

Gman = Emily Dickenson? Maybe?

 

[LoneDeranger]

#your bright face obscures your darker mask.
#far distant eyes look out through yours.
#something secret steers us both. we shall not name it.

Could these be referring to the G-Man? We saw one Vort communicating with the G-Man on the TV screen.

 

[Brian Damage]

"Freeman must excuse us. It is rude of us to commune by flux shifting in front of those whose vortal inputs are impaired."

= They consider it rude to speak via telepathy in front of beings who are unable to do the same.

"Yes, we will vocalize in your auditory language as a matter of courtesy."

= Therefore they speak English. They're very polite and considerate beings, I think.

"Unless we wish to say unflattering things about you."

= But not stupid.

"The Eli Vance almost perceives the All-in-One."

= They believe that Eli almost understands the way all living beings are linked.

"The Eli Vance was our first collaborator."

= I smell an official "First Contact" expansion here. Possibly set just after HL.

"We are pleased that the Eli Vance thinks so highly of the Freeman."

= They really do respect Eli, don't they? Is it just the respect of a bunch of highly intelligent beings for another, or did he help them somehow, like Gordon did?

"We have lost all dear to us."

= Stranded on Earth, with no way to get back to Xen. They also seem to dislike Earth's environment.

"All in one and one in all."

= A clever variation on "All for one and one for all". Possibly a Vortigaunt joke (They do seem to have a sense of humour). Deals with the way they believe all creatures to be connected, essentially one being?

"This body is yours to command."

= (I think these have been pulled from the script, as I'm pretty sure you never hear this one in the game) "This body" makes me think once again about the way the Vorts seem to beleive that all beings are one. One body is only one part of the whole being. Though they think individually, the Vortigaunts regard themselves (and possibly all other creatures) as being one, spiritually.

"We never dreamed to meet you in corporeal form."

= Either they thought he was dead, and passed on into wherever spirits go, or they thought that they would only ever see him in the dream/spirit world/memories, and never actually meet him in person.

"Its energy empowers us."

= Said, using cheats, when a Vort kills an enemy, I think. Seems to indicate that they remove the energy from those they kill. Just like in "Point of View"...

"Give over your essence."

= Said when attacking? Ditto...

"We serve the same mystery."

= Either referring to the G-Man, or to the fact that they fight for freedom, and yet cannot define it (That crops up in a lot of places).

"So the neuroprints are true."

= Neuroprints = some kind of telepathic messaging system? Sounds more like feelings than exact thoughts being sent...

"Node and nexus, feed upon this life!"

= Another attack speech. Node and Nexus sound like something to do with the Vortessence... possibly Nodes are people, and the Nexus is the sum of all beings?

"Your mind is opaque."

= They can't read someone's mind, probably Gordon's, either because his thoughts are unclear (mine would be too, in such a situation), or because he's shielding his thoughts...

"We cannot read the Freeman's optical buds."

= They cannot tell what he's thinking from looking at him (his eyes).

"This is more than anyone can bear, but we will persevere."

= They're tough little buggers.

"Our finest poet describes it thus: Gallum galla gilla ma."

= Humor. Remember the sounds they made in HL?

"We will put aside Black Mesa... for now."

= Wasn't used I think, but it suggests that they're going to want to discuss things with Gordon later. Not necessarily any violence imposed, but there may be some sort of alien trial.

"You must remember us from Black Mesa."

= I believe this also wasn't used, but it's kinda self explanitory. Yes, Gordon remembers them. Mostly as visions of green lightning and blurs of clawed hands, but hey, they were under the control of another at the time...

"Return to the all in one."

= Another combat one, I think. Basically implies that they believe that all creatures are outcroppings of a deeper, wider being, and that they return to that being at the point of death. There's a name for a similar belief among humans, but I can't remember what it is.

"Return to the void."

= With other speech, implies that the "interspace" that Gordon passed through on his trips to Xen is also the place where all spirits live, or at least the greater whole that they belong to.

"We have survived worse across the ages."

= I'd hate to think what. I really feel sorry for them...

"The tether is cut."

= Similar to the comment about Nihilanth, the connections holding a soul to its body, and indeed, its individuality and the mortal plane, are severed upon the point of death.

"Excuse our gauche vicissitudes."

= Conversational, but I get the feeling they memorised a dictionary, or something...

"It is all one in the plenitude."

= Another conversational, but basically means "Everything's one (the same?) [in the end/when considered as a whole]", I reckon...

"Comes a man? It is! The Freeman!"

= Reminiscent of Nihilanths "Comes another..."

"We remember the Freeman. We are coterminous."

= I forget what "Coterminous" means, but I think the general gist of this is "We are one", or possibly, "We have the same meaning (in life)".

"There is no distance between us. No false veil of time or space may intervene."

= They are one with the Freeman, or possibly all beings, and believe that the physical universe is at least partially illusory.

"We see you still in Black Mesa. Clearly we see you in the Nihilanth's chamber."

= Their racial memory, held simultaneously across all vortigaunts by their hivemind (as a side-function of both their telepathy and their beliefs, they appear to share a background conciousness), is very clear on past events.

"We bear witness to the bright eternity of the Nihilanth's demise. You leap, you fall, we see you flash beyond the barriers."

= Descriptive of Gordon's final battle. The Nihilanth blew up, and Gordon was teleported back into interspace for a short time.

"For a brief time you joined with us. You are one. Between the worlds."

= Interspace is where their hivemind resides, and is the place between universes/dimensions/worlds.

"Communion of the vortessence. And that other: a deeper mystery. No deeper than the void itself."

= I personally interpret this as meaning that the Vortessence is the stuff spirits are made of, or the name of the sum of all living things, and that the G-Man lives in/originates from interspace, the place between worlds, further strengthening the theory, for me, that he's some kind of spook or god.

"We cannot forget those whose cords you cut. Forgiveness is not ours to bestow."

= It is not their place to forgive on the behalf of those Vortigaunts who were killed by Gordon at Black Mesa. Possible material for Half-Life 3, and recalling the stuff about "putting Black Mesa aside... for now", perhaps they wish Gordon to somehow seek forgiveness from the dead somehow...?

"Unity of purpose, the shattering of common shackles, a single road we tread."

= "Our common goal is freedom for all."

"Your song we sing and shall sing for eternity. No matter the consequences of this struggle."

= To be remembered, it is enough that Gordon joins the fight. I'd hate to think what they sound like when singing...

"You have brought us grief and jubilation beyond measure."

= Gordon freed them, albeit unintentionally. He also killed mutlitudes of them in the process.

"We are there still, in observance of your final stroke."

= As a human would say, "I remember it like it was yesterday". Maybe, if their hivemind is not bound by time, or percieves it differently, they can still recall the vision from the eyes of those Vorts present at the Nihilanth's demise...

"While our own lay scattered at your feet, you severed the vortal cord that bound the Nihilanth to life, and to us."

= The Nihilant's control of them, possibly technological, via those collars, relied on him being alive. When he wasn't, they were free.

"That sharp spur of hope has not dulled to this day. For once the lesser master lay defeated, we knew the greater must also fall in time."

= Pretty much agree, they were under the control of the Nihilanth, who was basically a Xenian Breen equivalent.

"With you beside us, a talisman of victory, the day of freedom draws nigh."

= Gordon helps to raise morale.

"Your bright face obscures your darker mask."

= Though Gordon kills, he does not do so without reason, as he fights for a noble cause. Someone who did not know his purpose might only see him as a technologically-advanced killer, but to those who know his reasons and motivations, he is a shining beacon of hope.

"We call you sib, although your mind and meaning are a mystery to us."

= "We call you a brother, but we don't understand you." Possibly refers to either humanity in general, or Freeman in particular.

"Far distant eyes look out through yours."

= Gordon is the instrument of a power far removed from both humans and Vortigaunts in both space and\or time, or possibly a power of a nature alien to both species. Alternatively, Gordon's account of the events will be used far in the future. The latter is a bit of a stretch, I think.

"Something secret steers us both. We shall not name it."

= Possible reference to either the G-Man, or could even be a jokey developer reference to the way that game players have played both Freeman and Vortigaunts (the latter being played in the PS2 version of Half Life, or in the PC HL mod "Point of View").

"We have endured these chafing bonds for eons, yet a single moment of further servitude seems intolerable!"

= Pretty obvious. It's like that feeling you get after working outside on a hot day; you want a drink to relieve your thirst, and the knowledge that you could have one in a few minutes (the end of the thirst is in sight) makes the knowledge that you can't have it right now almost unbearable.

"How often have we slipped our yoke, only to find it choking us again."

= They've tried to escape frequently, but only to find their freedom temporary, at best.

"Let this war end in either total victory or our extinction. No further compromise shall we allow."

= They've had enough. Absolute freedom or the death of the species.

"We take our stand beside you, here, upon this miserable rock."

= They've allied with Freeman and the humans, but don't much like the planet Earth, or at least what it's become.

"The way ahead is dark for the moment."

= The future is unclear. Perhaps, usually, they can sense it?

"What seems to you a sacrifice is merely, to us, an oscillation. We do not fear the interval of darkness."

= Death is not a permanent state, in their beliefs. Life-Death-Life-Death... an oscillation.

"We are a tapestry woven of vortessence. It is the same for you if only you would see it."

= All living beings essences/spirits are made of the background soul stuff, "Vortessence", which may be the same as the "energy" the strat guide claims that they wield. Which makes me wonder what "Vortigaunt" means, in vortigese.

"How many are there in you? Whose hopes and dreams do you encompass?"

= I personally think that this means "What and who do you represent?", referring to all the citizens who have placed their confidence in Gordon to lead them to freedom.

"Could you but see the eyes inside your own, the minds in your mind, you would see how much we share."

= This could mean that Gordon is a sort of avatar of the struggle for freedom, to them. They believe that Gordon has become a living symbol of the fight, a personification of the hopes and dreams mentioned priorly.

"We are you, Freeman. And you are us."

= Again referring to their belief that all beings are one where it counts.

"The Combine will pay in kind for their depravity."

= I like the sound of the Combine less and less. Not that I did to start with...

"We are mindful of the words of our greatest philosopher: companum gannennen vorgenot!"

= It would be interesting if we all got together and tried to translate vortigese... although that last bit actually sounds somewhat like latin...

"You humans, always in the qualidity."

= No freakin' clue. Couldn't find a definition of the damn word, even though I found at least five useages of it with Google...

"We shall share the vortessence."

= Implies to me that they consider companionship to be a linking of being...

"Our life is worthless unless spent on freedom."

= Freedom is the main goal for their species.


That's my best interpretations of them...

 

[Asknoone]

Good interpretations Brian

 

[Brian Damage]

Thanks, Samon. You got any?

 

[AJ Rimmer]

Yeah, I agree with most of your theories, I don't think the "We see you still in Black Mesa, clearly we see you in the Nihilanth's chamber" sentence indicates different time zones (*very* different time zones) but more of what Brian said, they remember him, they can see into the past and they will never forget your final battle against Nihilianth.
Also, Brian, you have waaaaaaay too much time on your hands...

 

[Brian Damage]

Pffft. Only took me about 15 minutes, I reckon.

 

[michael_obrien]

coterminous means that they exist in the same span of time or location... sort've. The vortigaunt is saying that it's people have existed in the same general time and locations as freeman, so far as I can tell. Not something he really needed to be informed of.

"Communion of the vortessence. And that other: a deeper mystery. No deeper than the void itself."

= I personally interpret this as meaning that the Vortessence is the stuff spirits are made of, or the name of the sum of all living things, and that the G-Man lives in/originates from interspace, the place between worlds, further strengthening the theory, for me, that he's some kind of spook or god.

I'm not sure if you can get all that from this quote. The communion part is referring to sharing thoughts/feelings/memories/whatevertheyhave through the vortigaunt's telepathic substance or space or concept, the vortessence. However, unless they talk more clearly about "the void" and "deeper mystery" in other statements, I dont know how you made the leap with the other part.

"You humans, always in the qualidity."

= No freakin' clue. Couldn't find a definition of the damn word, even though I found at least five useages of it with Google...

Me too =/ It may be a made up word in the vortigaunt vocabulary like vortessence, conveying something which they can't express with human vocabulary. The usages you found may be typos of the word sqalidity.

 

[shire]

awesome guys... im glad these spawned some curiousity within the community... but i heard that what i posted u can actually hear from all vorticaunts... is this true?

 

[Brian Damage]

coterminous means that they exist in the same span of time or location... sort've. The vortigaunt is saying that it's people have existed in the same general time and locations as freeman, so far as I can tell. Not something he really needed to be informed of.

Ah, that was it, thank you.

I'm not sure if you can get all that from this quote. The communion part is referring to sharing thoughts/feelings/memories/whatevertheyhave through the vortigaunt's telepathic substance or space or concept, the vortessence. However, unless they talk more clearly about "the void" and "deeper mystery" in other statements, I dont know how you made the leap with the other part.

Because it seems to lead on from the quote directly before it, referring to Freeman passing into interspace. All these quotes are spoken in a certain sequence, and the juxtaposition (I think that's the word) of these two sound like one leads on to the other:

First Freeman is shifted to interspace, then the next quote says that this is how they were "one with" Freeman, and that this is also where the G-Man, the "Deeper mystery" was present. Remember the blackness at the ends of HL and HL2, where the G-Man takes you? I reckon it's interspace, the same place you flash into when you teleport between worlds.

Me too =/ It may be a made up word in the vortigaunt vocabulary like vortessence, conveying something which they can't express with human vocabulary. The usages you found may be typos of the word sqalidity.

I don't think it's made up. One of them was used to refer to wheat shipments, and another one was on a shakespeare site.

 

[Sulkdodds]

Wheat shipments and the word 'squalidity' shouldn't be together, ever. So you're probably right. Nice job on those interpretations, I sat for half an hour just listening to one vort speak and I came to pretty much the same conclusions.

 

[DesertChicken]

#how many are there in you? whose hopes and dreams do you encompass?

I think this refers to how gordon is an "empty shell" for gamers to put their personalities into... He's asking how many people are playing as gordon, basically. It could also be lumped into the many other quotes referring to people being inside of gordon which I do not entirely understand.

Actially, I think the Vort is refering to the members of the resistance. How they all look up to Freeman to save the day. How much weight is on Freeman's shoulders.