Richtofen's Victory

[caljitsu]

For those that have played through Tag der Toten's main quest, the notion that Richtofen has in some way won may seem outright incorrect - after all, we see his death, a surprise bullet to his already rotting corpse. I was very much of this way of thinking, however recently I've went back for a second look over the map, BO4 and the story as a whole, and realised certain inconsistencies with this as well as evidence that points towards this alternative view (furthermore, I will be ignoring the wishes made upon the Agarthan device, as if they have come true, those characters are - for all intents and purposes - now normal people).

 

In Tag der Toten, we learn of the Elemental shard, and how it binds together the entire Aether through the fusion of four souls. Seemingly, it's severing is why Primis and Ultimis - two halves, share the same soul. However, Eddie is presented to us as an "innocent Richtofen", from dimension 2210, and therefore is a wholly separate soul. Now throughout Black Ops 3 and 4, one consistent point is hammered into us. Teddy is a Liar, or moreso, all Richtofen's are the same, equally egotistical, equally calculating, just always having it manifest in slightly different ways.

 

We know that Richtofen was a meticulous planner. Even moreso now. Here's a bit of context: Originally, we presumed that Samantha entering the MPD was a deliberate mistake on his part, however, if we pick the ending of Classified to look back at the cycle, we can see that events actually play out far more in Richtofen's favour to allow Samantha to first win, forcing him to leave his body, then allow Maxis to do the same, allowing him to gain a sort of temporary immortality, allowing his resurrection when the time is right. I do not believe this is mere coincidence and, in fact, is evidence of this calculating nature. The Shadowman was constantly advising him, and once he has taken his place within the MPD, he is able to see every dimension at every point in time - simultaneously. In Alpha Omega, he confesses that he had gained all he wanted from the Aether and, throughout BO4, we learn that it is an entirely corrupting influence. Essentially, Richtofen places himself within the Aether for the exact amount of time necessary in order to gain the required knowledge (likely whether or not the cycle has been broken this time around) and then proceeds from there (This further explains the non-canon nature of his endgame for Buried, as all it essentially does is shortcut to him being able to re-manifest within the material world). It can be taken therefore that the Maxis route was not necessarily intended, as it is far from the most efficient route, but what we learn about in the radios of Classified has been planned for.

 

Now throughout Black Ops 4, we are constantly presented with the idea of "The Way Through", which was a concept that Richtofen has written extensively about in his journal (see my thread on the journal for the heavy implications of that). We often see it scrawled in game as what initially looked like the Tower of Babel, from the Book of Genesis, and whilst the metaphor is still accurate, we actually see The Way Through in game, specifically with the ending of Tag der Toten, with Samantha and Eddie moving through it (this is corroborated by the same "tower" chalk within Tag, but featuring two figures standing at its head). The Way Through is - to Richtofen, his "back up plan". If all else fails - and what that means I'll get to shortly - it ensures his victory. 

 

In terms of said failure: as previously discussed, Egotism is inherent in all versions of Richtofen, and that most of all manifests in self-preservation (exemplified in Primis Richtofen's selfishness in the act of perpetuating the cycle). Therefore, just as the outcome of buried was not necessarily desirable but still considered, his own death was prevented at all costs... But should that happen, his victory would still be assured.

 

This victory is twofold. Firstly, he outright states in Buried that he wishes to break the cycle, and as we learn in Black Ops 4, this means the complete separation of the Aether from the physical realm. Secondly, it's no surprise to anyone that he would want to rule this "perfect world".

 

This is where Eddie comes into play. The very last line we hear him say (all the way back in Origins) is "And I didn't even get my turn". Interesting, no? Furthermore, from the timeline, we get this unexplained entry

 

Primis Richtofen traveled to Dimension 2210 where he secured the soul of an innocent Richtofen and delivered it to the House where Monty gave him a physical form, named Eddie. From within the Summoning Key, the Shadowman stated "I'll be seeing you...".

 

We never witness any interaction between Eddie and The Shadowman, however this seems equally foreboding, especially when one considers that the Apothicons are far from destroyed, just simply sealed away - in much the same way that they were in the past and subsequently broke free thanks to the meddling of Humans using the Element in their lust for power (sound familiar?).

 

Finally, for me as a musical person, this serves as the nail in the coffin: The theme of Tag der Toten is Richtofen's Theme. Don't believe me? Listen for yourself:

 

 

What do you think? Does this undermine the ending or give it a far more interesting context, and possibly some insight into the future? Feedback, as ever, is greatly appreciated.

[RadZakpak]

This is actually a very interesting take and makes Eddie a more interesting character, despite saying and doing nothing since the Origins end cutscene. I think this very well could have been Richtofen's true end game. It makes me curious if this would ever play into the future of Zombies, but I am doubtful. Craig Houston seemed pretty sure we were done with these characters.

 

It's also interesting to note that the timeline, Maxis, and Monty claim that at some point Monty took the children away, the children being just Sam and Eddie at the time, and removed the corruption that they had previously. Strangely, though, Sam in BO4 had some pretty wild abilities from her time in the Aether. So I see two possibilities: 1. Monty lied, or did not fully de-corrupt them, or 2. Maxis using the teleporter to send them to Primis/Ultimis' location reversed Monty's actions. But in either case, Eddie may very well have the same abilities Samantha does, and he chooses to feign innocence until he passes through or until it suits him. Meaning there is possibly a super-powered version of Richtofen with Aether in his blood running around this new, fertile universe. Just what Richtofen would want.

[Mattzs]

The cycle is just part of one larger cycle!

In all seriousness, interesting post. It makes me wonder if the next installment of zombies will be about Eddie’s assent to power.

Would this mean the Richtofen ending in Buried is a prequel of sorts? Our Richtofen saw how his victory would play out and thus allowed Maxis to win.  Yet, all Richtofen had to do in his victory was not possess Stu. Maybe he was always fated to lose? And this new Eddie is the only way he can truly win.

It adds more clarity to why he took this Eddie’s soul instead of shared the Primis/Ultimis one.