Theory on Who/What the Rotwalkers Were

[ifoz]

The Rotwalker set has always fascinated me, since it seems like it would be important to the lore, being themed around the Rot, and yet it lacks item descriptions and an overall explanation of who or what wore it in the first place.

 

I came up with this theory a while ago, but an only now posting it as I found a Rotwalker mask today and remembered that I had this theory in the back of my brain.
I am theorising that the Rotwalkers were a group of surface scavengers (probably after the time of the player characters/old world but before the nature reclaimed the world) who searched the world for supplies when it was a 'Rot soup' (The final entry of Letters describes the world as being pure, black sludge).

>The masks I theorize use Jonas tech or bioluminescence on the antenna to act as a head lamp. Their skull shapes may have been to help them blend in with the bodies that littered the world, avoiding the aggravation of drifters or other rot beasts.
>The coat looks like without all the dirt and wear, it was once a white linen greatcoat. You can see patches of white (the same white colour as normal linen) among the dirt. The hands are notably also covered by the sleeves, acting as a protective measure against coming into contact with the Rot.
>The leggings/pants look like they were once regular light brown pants, though they are now covered with mud. The patch one one of the legs almost looks like it has writing on it, though I can't tell if this is intentional or not.
>The boots resemble Malefactor boots, except dirty and covered with mud. This leads me to believe that the Rotwalkers were a future version of the scavenger group that the Malefactor was a part of. The use of masks and wrapped boots, as well as having the same overall goal seems to support this.
 

The rest of the set follows this same theme. Garb worn by those who had to brave a Rot-infested world, trying their best not to come into contact with it.
Does anyone have any additional ideas or theories about the Rotwalkers? I'd love to hear them!


Boot similarities.


The writing(?) on the pants.


The full set.


The back of the coat and pants. See the white linen patches on the coat and the parts of the pants where there is no mud.

[Rexie]

Kind of remind of the Stalkers from Metro's universe. The people who'd have to scavenge on the surface for useful supplies down the cities of the Metro.

[LadyWYT]

You're probably right in that they're most likely just scavengers--either the group that the Malefactors came from, or the human survivors that came after the calamity.

What I kinda hope they might be though--an antagonistic faction, or an otherwise creepy cult. The drifters and corrupted machines are disturbing, sure, but at the same time they're distinctly not human. Now these guys...imagine seeing a faint light out there in the dark, or deep in a cave, and going to investigate...only to run into one of these guys. Whoever it is--obviously human. How he got there? You have no idea. And you don't have time to think about it if he pulls out a weapon and starts swinging.

Now assuming the individual doesn't attack, that leaves a couple options: either he'll stay silent and stare at you creepily, or he'll be open to talking. In the case of the former--it's disturbing, because not only do you not have an answer to who/what he is, but now he's either going to follow you around when you try to leave, or turn up later where you least want. In the case of the latter and he is open to conversation...he's probably going to be speaking in nonsensical riddles, at best, and then you'll still have the same problem as before.

I'd also be wondering where they got the temporal goo-looking stuff for their outfit. Humanity's remnants don't really seem inclined to temporal technology; they'll use pieces of what they find, perhaps, given that the traders have resonators, but I'm not sure that the remnants are capable of actually creating new pieces of temporal tech.

[ifoz]

@LadyWYT I personally would like to see a Rotwalker faction as a neutral or even helpful one. I don't think they're evil, I see them as just kind of deserving of pity. Scavengers stuck in a time long gone. Imagine finding one scurrying around or hiding inside a ruin - it'd be like finding someone hiding out in a foxhole long after the threat of war is gone. You could try and bring them to a trader to reintegrate them into society, but after generations of living underground, the sun might be a little too much for them to bare. Perhaps they could act as rare underground merchants who randomly show up and leave at any time. Selling things like vintage beef, 'dirty bandages' (heal only 2 hp instead of 3 like clean bandages) some tattered clothing and the rare rusted sword or pickaxe.

If you attack any one of them, all future Rotwalkers will be hesitant to trade or outwrite aggressive until you can prove yourself to be trustworthy again by giving them some kind of rare trinket item like a gem or ruined weapon.

Edited June 24 by ifoz

[LadyWYT]

3 hours ago, ifoz said:

'dirty bandages' (heal only 2 hp instead of 3 like clean bandages)

Or it's a bandage that damages HP instead of healing it

And I agree, they'd make an interesting neutral faction as well. Plus I mean...if I can't give a drifter a temporal gear and make a friend, maybe I could with one of the Rotwalkers, heh heh. As for integrating them back into society...they might have mutated after so much time underground and be unable to really stand sunlight for long periods of time, but I could also see them possibly being unwilling to return to civilization. Maybe there's some sort of strange prophecy they follow, or perhaps they're just eccentric hermits that prefer to avoid most other people.

[ifoz]

7 hours ago, LadyWYT said:

As for integrating them back into society...they might have mutated after so much time underground and be unable to really stand sunlight for long periods of time, but I could also see them possibly being unwilling to return to civilization. Maybe there's some sort of strange prophecy they follow, or perhaps they're just eccentric hermits that prefer to avoid most other people.

They make me think of the Neathers from Sunless Sea. If they're exposed to sunlight for too long their bones set alight because they have been living underground for so many generations.