Dark Souls: Who Was Solaire? (2024)

Solaire is one of Dark Souls' most iconic characters — he's the jolly Sun Bro who hands you the White Soapstone before continuing his own adventure to discover his own sun. While he's happy, friendly, and even helpful, there's an air of tragedy about him that spawned countless fan theories over the years. Some are thoroughly debunked, others are still up in the air after all these years.

For the longest time, fans thought he was Gwyn's lost son, stripped from the annals of history. But that turned out to be the Nameless King, a dragon-taming behemoth who we fight in Dark Souls 3. Still, there's a lot more to Solaire than meets the eye.

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We encounter him relatively early in Dark Souls, granted you take the 'right' path, as he's found just after the Taurus Demon fight. Head to the left instead of along the bridge to the right and you'll see him perched over a balcony, staring at the sky and ready to befriend travelers on their own journeys. "If only I could be so incandescent," you might recall him musing wistfully. But maybe he already was! Here's everything you need to know about Solaire and what may have become of him after the first Dark Souls.

Who Is Solaire?

As his name suggests, Solaire comes from Astora, a land of nobles and knights, many of whom flocked to Lordran to fulfil the prophecy of the gods by linking the First Flame. Solaire, like Oscar who rescues us at the start of Dark Souls, is one such knight. However, his shoddy armour and shield indicate he's not of noble blood but rather self-made.

Interestingly, Solaire became undead of his own will so that he could venture to Lordran in search of his own sun — he didn't succumb to the curse like so many others. But he never finds his own sun as Dark Souls is a bleak, barren game.

He wields the Sunlight Straight Sword which is, in essence, a standard longsword. It doesn't require faith, nor even boast lightning damage. It's a normal weapon that is "unlikely to live up to its grandiose name," as the description tells us. But he does use a Sunlight Talisman as part of his collective Sunlight gear, an obvious link to the Warriors of Sunlight covenant. He isn't the founder, just a member trying to help out weary adventurers like us.

The Warriors of Sunlight actually follow Gwyn's firstborn, the Nameless King, meaning that Solaire is, in many ways, going against the grain of many others who hail from Astora. He doesn't necessarily worship Gwyn or the traditional gods, but the scorned lost son. However, the Heirs of the Sun in Dark Souls 2 seem to follow Solaire given that many of its rewards are items of his from the first game, such as his sword.

Solaire's Death

Lost Izalith

Solaire has a few appearances throughout the first game. You first meet him after the Taurus Demon, and then again in Anor Londo. He even helps you fight the Gaping Dragon in the Depths. But once you have the Lordvessel and venture to Lost Izalith, you find him with a glowing, incandescent parasite latched onto his head. He's found his "sun."

It drives him hollow, causing him to turn on you and attack you on sight. In the following skirmish, you kill him. Solaire is corrupted by his search for the sun, and it leaves him hollow — it's a bitter end for his journey. But you can save him.

Solaire Links The First Flame (Theory)

If you're part of the Chaos Servant covenant, you can unlock a shortcut by sacrificing 30 humanity. Through this shortcut, you can kill the bug that latches onto Solaire's head before he ever encounters it, preventing him from being consumed by it and turning hollow. In doing so, he's saved, but he grows more and more depressed each time you see him.

Nonetheless, if you save him, he will fight with you to the bitter end and will be summonable for Gwyn, the final boss fight. There isn't a 'canon' Dark Souls ending as, no matter what you choose, the cycle continues until one day someone else is forced to make that same decision. We see as much in Dark Souls 2 and 3. But there is a theory about Solaire and the part he played.

The theory goes that the Chosen Undead decided not to link the First Flame, walking out of the Kiln to usher in the Age of Dark. But as they did that, Solaire sacrificed himself to the First Flame, continuing the Age of Fire.

This theory is fueled by Dark Souls 2's Sunlight Parma, an item you get for giving ten Sunlight Medals to the Heirs of the Sun covenant. It shows a figure resembling Solaire raising his sword into the air, creating a beckoning sun. Many believe this to be a metaphor for Solaire linking the First Flame.

The description only furthers that idea as it reads, "A small shield depicting a hero of yore." Solaire was a helpful knight who gifted adventurers with a soapstone, but if he dies at Izalith, he doesn't leave much of a legacy behind. And if he follows you to the First Flame, you're the champion and not him. What is his legacy then, outside of being a fan-favourite? He doesn't really have one — unless he linked the First Flame.

Next: Dark Souls: The First Flame, Explained