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Eide serves as the pseudo main antagonist for Night in the Woods and is a member of The Cult.
Background[]
Little is known of Eide's personality or motives, but it can be derived from Mae's final encounter with him that his main goal is to sacrifice Mae to the Black Goat. Eide is the only member that the player can distinguish from the others because he wears a unique outfit, with a miner's helmet. Eide seems to have a strong connection to the Black Goat, which may explain his unnatural abilities.
Appearance[]
Eide is presumed to be a cat and is never shown outside his dark silhouette. Despite this, we know that he wears the cultist coat (described as a utility coat by Angus) and a unique helmet with what appears to have a lantern built-in.
His facial features are also shown, albeit briefly. Eide has three curly tufts on each side of his cheeks, as well as curly hair, and one cut on each of his ears.
Story[]
Throughout the game, Mae and her friends constantly encounter Eide. Towards the end of Harfest, Mae witnesses Eide subduing/killing a teenager before slinging the body over his shoulder and running off. Mae catches up to Eide, but he seemingly passes through a solid fence and is able to make a clean getaway. He is the mysterious figure following Mae and Bea through the graveyard, the one Angus tries to talk to on the hill at Possum Jump, and is implied to be chasing Mae and Gregg through the Historical Society, visible through one of the windows.
Eide is also the one Gregg shoots with a crossbow during a confrontation with Mae, where he is first shown to speak, and after which, retreats, howling like a wolf. Eide is later seen in the mine with the other cult members and seems extremely resentful about being shot. After the cult allows the band to leave, he appears in the elevator and attempts to drag Mae back down. Eide's arm is severed when Gregg/Bea and Angus release the elevator. Eide is presumably crushed by it.
Supernatural abilities[]
Eide demonstrates an ability to either teleport or to pass through walls, as he does on at least two occasions. First is when he appears on the other side of the fence during the Harvest festival, a fence that Eide would not have been able to climb quickly enough while carrying someone, and the second is when he appears suddenly in the mine elevator even though the elevator does not move.
Though the other cultists stated that the band wasn't going to be harmed by the cult, it can be assumed that he somehow bypassed his comrades to get to Mae without being seen or stopped by the other cultists.
The first occurrence of Eide's apparent powers most likely caused Mae to believe him to be a ghost. This is the leading factor in why no one believes her, as these apparent supernatural abilities are too extreme to be considered true.
Theories of Identity[]
Some believe Eide is actually Ed Skudder, one of the original people who discovered the Black Goat who could've granted him immortality along with other powers. One of the cultists even states that Ed could supposedly "walk through walls", something that Eide also seems capable of. The fact that Eide seems to be able to teleport and phase through walls lends credence to this theory.
To add even more credence to this theory, it has been confirmed that ghosts DO indeed exist in Night in the Woods, with the existence of Mae's Grandfather's ghost being added in the Weird Autumn update. Another hint towards this being the case, is that Eide seems to be animated like most ghost-like apparitions to be; squiggly lines, and a faintly see-through design.
However this theory has it's issues. Considering how the cult treats Ed Skudder as an almost jesus-like figure, and how Eide doesn't seem to be of high stature within the cult's hierarchy; he is talked down to, his want to hurt the band is shot down almost immediately, and how the cult seem to hold the band with higher respect than with Eide, all lends to Eide not being Ed. Whether Eide is indeed Ed Skudder, or if he has the 'shimmer', is yet to be confirmed.
Another possibility is that Eide is a heavily brainwashed Casey Hartley, who could've been indoctrinated into the Cult instead of being sacrificed. This could explain Eide grabbing Mae as a last-ditch attempt to get her to stay and not abandon him again. Eide is also a cat just like Casey and bares a very similar appearance to Casey's head. It also is notable the cult never actually directly states that they sacrificed Casey, but rather that "no one ever cared for him". It's possible that Casey found acceptance in the Cult as Eide, becoming one of their more overzealous and active members so that he could prove his worth to them. If this were to be the case however this would make his demise very ironic, as while Mae, Bea, Gregg, and Angus accuse the cult of throwing Casey down into the pit to be sacrificed, they end up doing similar to him when kicking him down the elevator shaft, also putting an end to the cult.
There is also a theory that Eide is the direct descendant of Ed Skudder, as he could have inherited his supernatural powers from him. The miner's helmet Eide wears also attests to this theory, as Skudder was a miner, and Eide might have worn it to feel a greater connection such an important ancestor. It also explains why he seems more entitled than other members of the cult, violating their secrecy to stalk Mae and let himself be seen multiple times when the cult is so strict on staying secret they would execute Lurv for leaving out an arm, and also being entitled enough to directly oppose the cult leaders in their decisions such as being generous to Mae's group. His heritage could be a reason for him wanting special treatment from the other cultists, and a reason why he makes himself look and act distinct from them.
Other suspects for Eide's true identity include Scamz.
Trivia[]
- Eide appears partially transparent at several points in the game, most noticeable when he's in the mine.
- Eide's coat moves in the coal mine as if there was a wind, despite the fact that none of the other cultist's coats do.
- For unknown reasons, Eide is noticeably missing from Lurv's punishment.
- Despite the popular belief of Eide having one notch in their right ear, similar to Mae's, he actually has two, one notch on each ear.
- They are referred to as 'HeadMiner' in the game text files.
- It should be noted that Eide seems to be animated in a way most ghost-like characters are; squiggly lines, and faintly see-through. Whether Eide is actually a ghost is up for speculation.
- Despite being a cat, Eide howls while running from the gang, after being shot by Gregg's crossbow.
Gallery[]
