The Hornsent used to be the main inhabitants of the Land of Shadow, but they were mostly killed by Messmer and his soldiers during the Crusade.
Hornsent can be easily identified by the the horns protruding from their body, and many can be found across the land as Shadow Undead or as Stranded Souls, as a shadow of their former selves. Some of them can still be found wholly, such as the inquisitors or the Divine Beast Warriors. Some of them, like Grandam or Hornsent (NPC), can be talked to.
The Hornsent are also the prime inhabitants of Belurat, Tower Settlement and the tower of Enir-Ilim. They associated the spiral and tangled horns with the divine.[1]
Potentates
As part of their culture, the hornsent butchered undesirables and stuffed them into jars. They conducted a divine ritual to rebirth the jar contents as better people.[2][3][4][5]
Downfall
Queen Marika betrayed hornsent.[6][7]. Their tower and and its Divine Gate was sealed by shadow[8] and their lands hidden in the Realm of Shadow. The hornsent were later attacked by forces of the Erdtree led by Messmer, son of Marika. His flame burned their armies and settlements.[9][10] Those who survived bore a deep grudge or swore vengeance.[11][12]
Notes
In the Japanese text of the game, it is said that the people within the jars are put there to be reborn as "good people" / "righteous people" (善き人). It lacks the religious connotations of the word "saint" or "sainthood" used in the English version. This applies to the following texts:
"I swear—a living saint I'll surely be!" Stranded Souls -> 天に誓う。善き人になる
"Nigh-sainthood itself awaits you within." Stranded Souls -> そして、善き人になりなさい
"This is what becomes of the condemned, who get sliced up and stuffed into jars to become saints instead." Innard Meat -> 善き人になるために 切り刻まれ、大壺に詰め込まれた罪人どもの なれの果てである
"They offer their prayers to the innards of the greatjars, such that they might be reborn one day into sainthood." Greatjar -> その祈りは大壺の中身に捧げられる いつか、善き人として生まれ変わるように それは、人の手による輪廻である
↑A talisman fashioned from thin feathers that embody the aspects of various creatures. Said to have grown on the human body long ago. Hornsent view the Crucible as sacred for the refinement wrought through its evolutionary gifts. Most prominently, their tangled horns. (Fine Crucible Feather Talisman)
↑Grotesque mask constructed from countless solidified caterpillars. A ritual implement of the greater potentates of Bonny Village. Used to ward off thoughts of impurity, doubt, temptation, and other wickednesses one is vulnerable to while absorbed in divine ritual. (Caterpillar Mask)
↑A greatjar which fits comfortably over the head when upturned. Attire of the shamans who perform their worship at gaols. Increases the power of thrown pots of all sizes. They offer their prayers to the innards of the greatjars, such that they might be reborn one day into sainthood. This is the cycle of death and rebirth, taken into the hands of mortal men. (Greatjar)
↑For pity's sake, your place is in the jar. Nigh-sainthood itself awaits you within. For shamans like you, this is your lot. Life were you accorded for this alone. (Ghost, Bonny Village.)
↑"Though the jars are brought to life by human flesh and blood, they are all rather kindly folk. Perhaps they were made to be better than their innards." Companion Jar
↑"The Erdtree is my peoples' enemy—By Marika long betray'd, set aflame." — Hornsent
↑"Take vengeance upon Messmer and his lot. They who betrayed us, aye, they who burned us..." — Hornsent Grandam
↑"Kind Miquella seeks the tower sealed by shadow, and the Gate of Divinity found there."— Castle Cross Message
↑A thin, blood-stained dagger. No longer fit for use. [...] Hornsent employed this to honorably end the suffering of a compatriot. After claiming numerous lives, the dagger is now broken, but has acquired a spectral aura. (Blade of Mercy)
↑The Black Knights were the primary force of Messmer's army. Second to their first Knight-Commander was Huw, a man with agile command of both twinblade techniques and the powers of the Crucible, and whose spirit in these ashes dwells. Though a champion of the divine beast hunt, he followed his father, Andreas, into rebellion against Messmer, and like his father, he too was imprisoned in an underground tomb. Messmer mourned the loss of a brother-in-arms. (Black Knight Captain Huw)
↑Ragged black cloth overlaid with braided cord. Attire of a vengeance-seeking hornsent. The braided cord ties together the vow of the revenger with the victims' grudges. It must never come undone. Enhances both watchful spirits and the vengeful spirits summoned by horned bairns. (Braided Cord Robe)
↑An entreaty received from the hornsent grandam. Summon a guardian spirit above the caster's head. [...] "Take vengeance upon Messmer and his lot. They who betrayed us, aye, they who burned us... Let them face in thy wrath their just deserts." (Watchful Spirit)
