More proof needed for insane fan theory (super spoilers)

[charms]

Given how the gods came to be, the nature of the third-to-last area in the game(forgot the name), and how Iovara appears in that area, I've gotten the idea that Iovara is part of, or 'is' Woedica in some sense.

 

Being burned alive and then tossed into the pit wasn't the end of her punishment. As one of the cruelest fates imaginable, the Engwithans sealed her, along with her heretical followers, into the spirit of a goddess, the goddess of justice no less, to see how long she(they) could deny her(their) own divinity. Of course, this had to be the weakest god, so she couldn't try anything like undoing the gods or willing herself out of existence. The rationale for crippling Woedica and the story of Iovara's downfall molded together and twisted over time, as myths do, eventually becoming the canonical version of the Woedica myth seen in the modern lore books.

 

One of the big holes in this theory is that, assuming the other gods are telling the truth about Woedica's goals(notice that, at the end, Skaen spoke for her, and it's never really clarified whether Thaos' plot is his patron's or his own), Iovara and Woedica have completely opposite beliefs. The details of how gods really work is still kind of sketchy, but it's possible that the Iovara part could have found a way to keep the faith while the rest of the goddess eventually gave up and calcified around her assigned role in the pantheon. Also, I don't know whether the flashback sequences take place before the gods were made, or after. The theory only makes sense in the first place.

 

Help support this idea, or strike it down if you prefer.

[Peanuckle]

I don't see how you could come to such a conclusion, really. She, and a lot of other souls, were locked down there forever, barred from the Wheel and doomed to experience eternity in that pit. They even mentioned in-game how you could pray for forgiveness and be lifted up, but that was a sham as Woedica would just trap your soul on the island with the knowledge that you sold your ideals for nothing.

 

Pretty sure the flashback sequences take place after the gods were made. Having actual beings back up your statements would make proselytizing a lot easier, and writing the books about the gods before they existed invites the possibility of getting something wrong.

[Julien - Knight-errant]

I just replayed the game and I really don't think it's that crazy. The symbolic similarities are too numerous to dismiss (most notably, when examining Woedica's Statue on Burial Isle, it is pointed out how eerily familiar Woedica's face appears to the Watcher). The big flaw in this theory is that Woedica and Iovara seem to uphold completely opposed ideals. But, we know that Woedica was exiled and thus weakened, and that it is possible for souls (perhaps even a god's) to split in two (or more) souls. By the time the "Pillars" series reaches its conclusion, I'm pretty sure we'll learn the truth about Woedica and the gods. But, for now, I wouldn't dismiss the idea that Iovara and Woedica share a strong connection, if not the same soul.