Was Malachai evil?

Yes, I like the lore in PoE.

Do you guys think Malachai was evil? That he caused the corruption associated with the Gems and later the Cataclysm on purpose?

In one hand, Victario mentions how his friend Lorenzi became something else after having a Gem implanted in his hand. However, we have several accounts of gemlings who kept their minds and were still capable of functioning properly, such as Lioneye and Chitus himself. Besides, Victario's writing may as well have been propaganda as part of the Purity's Rebellion. It's hard to say, then, that the Gems really had a corrupting effect before the Cataclysm - which makes me believe that Malachai wasn't implanting Gems in people just to watch as they were twisted into monsters.

About the Cataclysm itself, it's less clear, IMO. We know Malachai sided with Emperor Vol soon after the rebellion ended, supposedly with the goal to end all thaumaturgy, but the real result was the destruction of Wraeclast. One could believe that Malachai did it on purpose - rather than accept the loss of his art or be burned on Vol's fires, he chose to avenge the Eternal Empire and destroy everything the would be conquerors had achieved.

But, I'm not so sure of that. Lady Dialla's speech mentions "Malachai begged: for him, for the Empire. I chose me... selfish me. The Empire died, and I live. I live, and live, and live, and live". It hints that, at the very end, Malachai asked something of Dialla (begged, even), and she denied him, which was followed by the Cataclysm. One interpretation is that Malachai's device needed Dialla's sacrifice in order to work properly - and maybe that did mean ending thaumaturgy -, but her refusal was the actually cause of the Cataclysm. Of course, it's also possible that Malachai wanted everyone else to die anyway, but the fact he begged "for the Empire" is, IMO, a sign that he didn't want the Cataclysm to happen.

Was Malachai a saint, then? I don't think so - Siosa mentions how Icius Perandus was forced to work for Malachai, and we don't know how thamaturgy works, but if Malachai did one tenth of the experiments Piety executed, it would be hard to call him a "good" person.

But, based on what we know, it doesn't feel like he's massively evil. I expect Malachai to eventually appear in the game as we get to the north of Wraeclast, closer to the site of the Cataclysm itself and to the source of the Gems. But I wouldn't be surprised if he appears as an ally, and not as the Act boss.

Power corrupts.

Malachai could be a well intentioned extremist all along. Maybe ending thaumaturgy would come at a great cost.

Also, he could be like Griffith in Berserk; a fairly amoral person that goes totally evil after taking contact with eldritch abominations.

It's all a dream.

"This world is an illusion, Exile."

I personally believe that he saw the corruption and wrongness in what he was doing and reformed. Which is why he begged for Dialla's sacrifice. Maybe he set it in motion, with Dialla agreeing, and at the last moment she changed her mind?

Father of dreams

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Erasculio wrote:

I expect Malachai to eventually appear in the game as we get to the north of Wraeclast, closer to the site of the Cataclysm itself and to the source of the Gems. But I wouldn't be surprised if he appears as an ally, and not as the Act boss.

Everybody is evil don't bother lore. If they run out of idea Gruest and Nessa will be the evil masterminds.

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Hilbert wrote:

Everybody is evil don't bother lore. If they run out of idea Gruest and Nessa will be the evil masterminds.

nah, its clarissa, check her new model.
her scarf changed colour and her eyes seem a bit demonic.

What is she hiding under that scarf and sweet personality?

If only there was a lore discussion board so that posts about lore weren't filled with jackasses.

Not so much this thread, was just pent up aggression from prior threads.