Deepnest

"This whole area swarms with deadly critters, biting, burning, scratching types. I'd thought to test my strength against them. Now that bravado has left me and all I feel is tired and sore."

- Cloth

Deepnest is an area hidden deep in the southwest corner of Hallownest, crawling with creatures of all shapes and sizes.

Description
What most identifies Deepnest is its gloomy surroundings. Thick layers of web covering sometimes large portions of the background and twisted maze-like tunnels and passages, several having the dim glow of a bioluminescent fungus as the only source of light. Most parts of Deepnest are dark or pitch black and can be illuminated with the Lumafly Lantern.

Deepnest generally finds itself in a very primal stage of development, lacking the general level of architecture seen in the rest of Hallownest. The more developed parts of Deepnest are located in its western portion. Some structures found in this area bear large outsider influence coming from the Weavers and the kingdom of Hallownest, these being the Weavers' Den, Weaver statues, the Failed Tramway, and the Stag Station. The only structures that do not fall in this category are the suspended web houses found in Distant Village and their interiors. Deepnest's eastern parts are essentially composed of dark passages and complex networks of tunnels dug by its inhabitants. A Hot Spring and a Tram leading to Ancient Basin and Kingdom's Edge are located in the southeast part.

Lore
Deepnest was occupied by two intelligent arachnid groups, the Spider Tribe, which used to be one of the most intelligent species in the land of Hallownest, and the Weavers, an outsider tribe that established their own history and culture in Deepnest. Both groups lived under the rule of their queen, Herrah the Beast, and an unknown sire, who was of honoured caste. They ruled from Distant Village where Herrah's Den was located. Deepnest was often in conflict with the Mantis Tribe and Mushroom Clan of the Fungal Wastes.

When the Pale King started establishing his kingdom, Distant Village and the creatures of Deepnest completely refused his rule. His efforts of expansion were met with furious resistance. A Tramway could not be established in Deepnest due to the beasts attacking the workers.

Deepnest's sire died at a certain point, leaving Herrah as the sole ruler of Deepnest. Since she was only of common descent, she struck a deal with the Pale King to have a child with him. In return, she would become a Dreamer to save Hallownest from the Infection. When the child, Hornet, was born, Herrah went to sleep a short time later, leaving Deepnest without a formal ruler. Deepnest was eventually overcome by the Infection, its brood Infected and the Weavers fleeing to their former home.

How to access
There are initially four ways of entering Deepnest, three from the Fungal Wastes and one from the Queen's Gardens. The eastern part of Deepnest can be accessed by either beating the Mantis Lords in the Mantis Village or reaching the bottom of the Fungal Core nearby.

To the east of the Moss Chapel, there is an entrance leading to the northeast of Deepnest located on the ground. It reveals itself once the Knight has passed it and tries to come back. Alternatively, at the bottom of the Queen's Gardens, a downward passage can be found next to the Bench room ending in the northwest of Deepnest.

Sub-area: Distant Village
A large web-filled cavern containing several structures suspended over a pool of water. The village itself is nearly abandoned. The largest building holds Beast's Den within. One of the smaller cocoon's corpses reference the Distant Villagers in their Dream Nail dialogue. Brumm can also be found here after Grimm is fought.

A Stag Station is located in the northeast part, although the Last Stag has no knowledge of this station's existence.

Sub-area: Beast's Den
The resting place of Herrah the Beast. When the Knight first enters the building, they are encouraged by a group of Distant Villagers to sit on the Bench, after which the Knight is trapped in webbing and taken to a labyrinth further inside.

Hornet appears next to her mother's bedside once Herrah has been defeated, provided that Hornet Sentinel was defeated at Kingdom's Edge prior to Herrah's death.

In the west part of Beast's Den, there is a shrine-like room with a being strung up. The purpose of this mysterious room is unknown. Using a Spell on this being causes a seal to appear.

Sub-area: Failed Tramway
An unfinished Tram station in the northeast part of Deepnest whose workers were attacked by Deepnest's beasts. Trams can still be seen in the background of the tunnels.

It contains a Bench and the Tram Pass, which unlocks the use of Trams throughout Hallownest. Cloth can be found near the Bench if she was not yet rescued in Ancient Basin.

Sub-area: Weavers' Den
The former den of the Weavers, this small platforming area is located behind a breakable wall in the west of Deepnest. It contains many corpses of Weavers, although when the exit is approached for the first time, a live Weaver is seen exiting the room. Hidden behind several breakable walls is a small room with a large Seal of Binding.

Trivia

 * This is the second opportunity that Zote the Mighty can be saved or abandoned. However, unlike in Greenpath, Zote cannot die here.
 * When the game was first released, a toll gate blocked access to Distant Village, requiring to open it and forcing the Lumafly Lantern to have been purchased from Sly. This toll gate was removed in the  Hidden Dreams update.
 * Early in development, Kingdom's Edge was part of Deepnest. Deepnest was split in two after the removal of the Forest of Bones area. The east part was moved to the southeast of the map and eventually became Kingdom's Edge. This can still be seen in Kingdom's Edge's file names, which start with "Deepnest_East".

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