Hive

"I don't have time to explain why I don't have time to explain."
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Hive
Overview
Homeworld:	Fundament (formerly)
Focal world(s):	Ascendant realm Earth Moon Dreadnaught Titan Mars Reef
Goals:	Serve the Hive pantheon by consuming all Light Live forever by being synonymous with death
At war with:	The Last City The Reef Fallen (allied with Hiraks, the Mindbender and Scorn) Cabal Vex
Distinctions:	Skeletal appearance No eyes/three glowing eyes Infected with parasitic worms
Average lifespan:	Indefinite
Notable group(s):	Blood of Oryx Hidden Swarm Savathûn's Hive Spawn of Crota The Silent Brood Grasp of Nokris
Notable individual(s):	Crota, Son of Oryx Omnigul, Will of Crota Oryx, the Taken King Savathûn, the Witch-Queen Dûl Incaru, the Eternal Return Phogoth, the Untamed Xivu Arath, God of War Nokris, Herald of Xol In Anânh, Brood Queen

"There are nightmares rising from the shadows, and they hunger for our dying hope."

— Grimoire description

The Hive are an extragalactic race of aliens encountered among the ruins of humanity's Golden Age. They are one of two races (the other being the Vex) that serve the Darkness directly. In Sol, they have a presence on the Moon, where they have built the Hellmouth and contest the area with Fallen, certain regions on Earth, around Saturn, where the massive Dreadnaught orbits, the icy regions of Mars and on Titan, where they infest the ruined arcologies.

Overview

The Hive are an "impossibly ancient" race born from a pact with the Worm Gods. Hive structures delve deep into wherever they lay claim to, unheeding of the damage done in the process, crafting linked caverns and gothicesque columns; these underground spaces resemble a dungeon recently pulled up after an extended period underwater. They are able to manipulate the physical world in ways humanity can only begin to imagine, and have witnessed the Darkness consume countless worlds in the past.

The Hive are not an enemy military so much as rising force. They base their entire existence around the extermination of other forms of life, especially those that follow the way of Light and the Traveler, and approach their task with religious fervor. To the Hive, killing and conquest are not merely acts of war, but of worship.

At the time of the first Destiny game they have burrowed deep into the Moon, staying there for centuries while growing stronger. The Guardian's Ghost states that he believed the Hive to be contained on the Moon for centuries, but the player first encounters them in Old Russia underneath the Skywatch, where the Fallen have attempted to seal them away. The Guardians eventually discover that this is just the beginning; the Hive have been building an army and intend to invade Earth en masse.

History

Fundament

"The Fundament is very large. We are the smallest things in it. If you don’t understand something, it will probably kill you. My teacher Taox says this is why we have such short lives. So we can breed and adapt quickly."

— Xi Ro

The Hive trace their origins to a gas giant named Fundament. Long ago, the proto-Hive crashed their homeworld into Fundament, ostensibly to hide from something unknown. The shards of this homeworld became a number of continents that floated upon a sea called the Fundament Ocean within a layer of the gas giant's atmosphere, and the proto-Hive eventually built a meager civilization upon them and forgot their old history. In addition to the proto-Hive, Fundament was home to hundreds of other intelligent species, and Fundament's fifty-two moons were inhabited by a space faring species called the Ammonites who were overseen by the Traveler.

Life was quick and harsh for the proto-Hive. Their natural lifespan rarely exceeded ten Fundament-years, though females who ate "mother jelly" became able to spawn and live longer. In terms of environmental hazards, Fundament was almost inhospitable. The Fundament Ocean was toxic, the skies were eternally stormy, the rain poisonous and sometimes corrosive, lightning had enough power to vaporize anyone it struck, "living clouds" called Stormjoys would prey on the populace, and the proto-Hive frequently warred with each other.

The progenitors of the contemporary Hive were Xi Ro, Sathona, and Aurash, the three daughters of the Osmium King who ruled the continent called the Osmium Court. When the Osmium King was ten years old, he fell to madness, fearing an event called the Syzygy wherein Fundament's fifty-two moons would align and create a massive tidal wave, the God-Wave, that would destroy Fundament's civilizations. Taox, a sterile mother who served as the teacher to the King's daughters, feared the King's daughters were too weak to succeed the King and invited a rival kingdom, the Helium Drinkers of the Helium Court, to invade the Osmium Court, kill the royal family, and allow Taox to rule the Osmium Court as their regent. The Helium Drinkers invaded and slew the Osmium King, but the three sisters, two years old at the time, escaped on a ship and vowed to take their revenge against the Helium King and Taox.

After a year of traveling the sea, the sisters salvaged an ancient, high-tech ship they called "the needle" from the Shvubi Maelstrom. Xi Ro wanted to sell it at the Kaharn Atoll, a gathering place of Fundament's many species, in order to raise enough money to hire a mercenary army, but Aurash wanted to take command of the ship. Sathona sided with Aurash, goaded on by a worm that their father had kept; the worm had washed up on the Osmium Court's shores and was seemingly dead, but Sathona could hear it speak. The sisters spent the next two years reactivating the ship, until Aurash decided to use it to fulfill its intended purpose: she wanted to dive to Fundament's core in the hopes of learning a secret that would prevent the Syzygy.

As they descended, the sisters encountered a vast creature called the Leviathan, a disciple of the Traveler. The Leviathan warned the sisters against proceeding further, telling them that they faced a choice between the Sky and the Deep, the Light and the Darkness, the way of life and the way of death. The sisters rejected the Leviathan, unable to accept that allowing their people to suffer was the better way, and instead decided to follow the worm Sathona had saved, which urged them to continue diving.

The Pact

"We want to help you, Princes. We offer to each of you a bargain... a symbiosis."

— Yul, the Honest Worm

Deep within the Fundament Ocean, the sisters encountered the Worms, who drew their power from the Darkness itself: Yul, the Honest Worm, and Eir, Xol, Ur, and Akka, the Virtuous Worms. The Worm Gods claimed that they had lived and grown in Fundament's depths for millions of years, trapped by the Leviathan and the Traveler. They had called many species to Fundament, hoping one would be tenacious enough to find them. They offered Xi Ro, Sathona, and Aurash immortality if they would allow themselves to be hosts for the Worms' larvae, with the caveat that if the sisters ceased to obey their natures (Xi Ro's desire to test her strength, Sathona's cunning, Aurash's inquisitiveness), their Worms would consume them. Furthermore, the stronger the sisters became, the greater their Worms' appetites would be.

The sisters accepted the pact. Xi Ro took the knight morph and became Xivu Arath; Sathona took the mother morph and became Savathûn; and Aurash took the king morph and became Auryx, the King of the Hive. Over the following years, the siblings returned to their people and spread the Worms among them, creating the Hive and enabling them to liberate the Osmium Court, then drive Taox and the other species of Fundament to Kaharn Atoll, and finally to build spaceships and break free of Fundament.

Since then they have waged war upon the rest of the universe, having exterminated other races such as the Ammonites, the Ecumene, the Dakaua, the Harmony, the Qugu, and the Taishibethi.

Campaign of Destruction

"We need champions. Crusaders. Help us save the universe. Help us exterminate that which would destroy all hope. You are oathbound to this task, by the covenant of the worm."

— Worm Gods

As the newborn Hive forced an ultimatum on the remaining proto-Hive to accept the worms or perish, Auryx turned his attention to Fundament's moons, and the Ammonites there who had allied with the Traveler and gave asylum to Taox. Initially he was willing to negotiate with the Ammonites, but his sister Savathûn, under pressure from the Worms, killed Auryx as punishment. Rather than dying, Auryx's soul instead passed to the Ascendant realm, where his soul resided until he returned to the mortal realm. Rebuked, Auryx purged what sympathy and goodwill he had left, becoming a merciless tyrant. They overwhelmed the Ammonites and slew the Leviathan, who sought asylum, and forced Taox and the Traveler to flee.

He and his sisters warred with and killed one another on a regular basis afterward, as part of their worship of the Sword-Logic and their attempt to become the sharpest blades in the universe, heading to their throne worlds when defeated. Their war of revenge against Taox had transformed into a campaign of genocide, when they slew the Qugu and other interstellar civilizations to feed their worms. The lords of the Hive also established their Ascendant realms, with Auryx naming his the High War.

During the war with the Ecumene, Auryx came to realize that the Worm had deceived him and his sisters: their Worms appetites were growing past their ability to feed with death. Meeting with his sisters in his Ascendant realm, surrounded by their servants (some of which despised them for showing weakness) they despaired over their dilemma. When his sisters offered their power to help Auryx find a way to save them, Auryx killed them, then used that power to confront his patron god Akka, the Worm of Secrets. He killed Akka so that he may steal its ability to call upon the Deep and created the Tablets of Ruin, which gave him the power to Take. His transformation complete, Auryx was now Oryx, the Taken King. During the subsequent war with the Ecumene, Oryx revived Xivu Arath in an act of war, and revived Savathûn in an act of cunning. He then decreed the tithe system: each Hive would kill their enemies, take some to feed their own worm, and tithe the rest to their superior. Thralls would tithe to Acolytes, Acolytes would tithe to Knights or Wizards, the Knights and Wizards would tithe to the Ascendant Hive, those who commanded legions of warriors and earned the right to enter the Hive gods' Ascendant realms. All of this violence would eventually reach Oryx, Savathûn, and Xivu Arath, allowing their worms to feed on violence while continuing to invoke their inner natures.

Fearing that he was becoming a nihilist, Oryx eventually decided to sire his own spawn. The results of this was Crota, Son of Oryx, and the Deathsinger twins, Ir Anûk and Ir Halak. One day, the Deathsingers were refining their Deathsongs and came up with the idea of the Oversoul. Intrigued, Oryx commanded Crota to watch his sisters, so that he might learn something. But while Oryx was off studying the Deep, Crota was deceived by Savathûn into using his Cleaver to cut a portal in the High War, allowing the Vex to enter. For one hundred years the children of Oryx waged war with the Vex, which quickly deduced the Sword-Logic and worship of the Deep as key to attaining power in the High War. However, while the Hive were able to overpower the Vex, they were unable to push them out, as they lost too much of their power when entering the Vex conflux. The situation become so severe that the Worm Eir Itself demanded that Oryx return and end the war. Quickly returning to the High War, Oryx used his powers to take the Vex and clear his throne world. Angered at his son's imperfection, Oryx threw Crota into the Vex gate network, decreeing that he return "victorious or die forgotten". At first, Crota resented his father for his seeming abandonment, but after time came to understand his father and built temples to Oryx and the Deep, eventually becoming a vital link in Oryx's tithe of death and achieving godhood himself. However, Oryx recognized that the threat of the Vex invading his throne world could not happen again, so he moved the High War into a mighty Dreadnaught scrimshawed from the remains of Akka.

During the Hive's campaign against the Harmony and the Vex, Quria, Blade Transform presented Oryx with a simulation of his former self, Aurash. Oryx looked upon the simulation with amusement, while Aurash looked upon Oryx in horror, demanding to know what he had done to her sisters and her people. In the end, Oryx Took Quira, and presented the Vex to Savathûn as a gift after the Hive manner. When she asked him what proof they had that what they were doing was right, Oryx simply replied that the Hive's existence was proof enough in their convictions to live eternal by the Sword-Logic. Following the war with the Harmony, Savathûn decided that her fleets would enter the black hole that the Harmony lived around, claiming that they would become stronger for it, while Xivu Arath took her fleets away from Oryx's as she felt he constrained her too much. Oryx continued his crusade alone, and ruminated on the future.

The Wrath of Crota

"What we faced on the Moon now looks to take the Earth. And none will survive if they succeed. First Crota's sworn Blades will rise. Then every disciple who haunts these worlds in Crota's name will seek to overrun the Earth. If they raise Crota here, we could lose everything."

— Eris Morn.

Having pursued the Traveler into the Sol System at some point, Crota and his spawn colonized the Moon, where they laid in wait until they launched an invasion of Earth. The Guardians first encountered the Hive at the Battle of Burning Lake; not realizing the true threat the Hive posed, they launched a counterattack on the moon, which was later called the Great Disaster. The Sword-Logic proved to be too much for the Guardians, as countless heroes fell, rendering the entire battle a slaughter. In particular, the legendary Titan Wei Ning, was slain personally by Crota. The Vanguard and Consensus then declared the Moon off-limits, where only the most elite Guardians are allowed to venture to.

Out of revenge for the slain, the Warlock Eriana-3 led five other Guardians in an attempt to kill Crota, but the Hope-Eater managed to evade permanent death by escaping his Ascendant Realm with the Hive capturing his soul in order to be placed in a crystal in the real world. Only one of the Guardians, Eris Morn, survived to tell the tale and has endevoured to find a way to kill the Hive prince once and for all.

Crota's sect also plays a major role in his attempted revival which threatened the whole City of the possibility of a full-scale Hive invasion. Eris Morn called upon allies who listened to her warnings to aid her in dismantling Crota's army. The Guardians assassinated Crota's closest lieutenants, such as Omnigul, leaving the Hive army in disarray. To ensure Crota does not enter the material world to lead his army himself, Eris guided the Guardians to the Moon, where the chamber housing Crota's soul was located. The crystal tethering his soul in the Chamber of Night would be destroyed, banishing him from the physical world and thereby preventing the invasion. However, Crota himself was not truly destroyed until another team of six Guardians confronted him in the Oversoul Throne, entered from the deepest pit of the Hellmouth; where he was finally killed permanently. This would mark the Hive's first true defeat, the loss of one of their gods and their race's heir to the Osmium Throne.

The Taken War

"Their leaders belong to you. The rest await extermination."
"No. Gather them. I will take them all..."

— Ecthar and Oryx

The Awoken fleet engaging the Dreadnaught

The exact nature of Oryx was once unknown to the Guardians, but the name Oryx appeared often enough in Hive rituals that it could not be ignored. Shrines dedicated to Oryx, used by the Hive to communicate with Oryx across the universe, were known to exist throughout the Solar System. Osiris studied the Hive extensively and foretold that the Spawn of Crota would one day pave the way for Oryx's coming by "snuffing out the worlds of Light". Members of the Blood of Oryx Hive sect are thought to be the direct servants of Oryx himself, though it is speculated that he is the master of all other Hive sects as well.

After learning of the death of his son, Crota, Oryx personally traveled to the Solar System aboard his Dreadnaught, accompanied by a Hive fleet and his Taken army. Oryx's forces first attacked Cabal bases on Phobos and Mars. Cabal detachments were devastated within hours, with the Sand Eaters suffering a catastrophic 58% casualties, while the Blind Legion and the Dust Giants lost 35% and 39% of their numbers respectively. The Vanguard discovered Oryx's presence after sending a Guardian to Phobos to investigate a Cabal distress signal, by which time Taken covens began appearing on multiple worlds, ushering in the Taken War.

Oryx's physical form was killed when the Guardian breached his altar and attacked him, but like all Hive Gods, this was only a temporary setback. His soul retreated into his throne realm, located deep within the Dreadnaught. Meanwhile, his Taken, led by his Echoes, continued to harass the system. Once the blights had been removed, the Guardians turned their attention on Oryx and his champions. By overthrowing the Court of Oryx by killing his minions, they were able to invade Oryx's throne realm. After his closest allies—the Warpriest and Golgoroth, including his own daughters—were killed Oryx reappeared to fight the Guardian once more, this time as his true Ascendant form, a gigantic version of his physical body. Here he attempted to pull the Guardian Raid team into the Darkness multiple times and kill them, but they were able to use Oryx's own captured Light against him. By slaying his Light-Eater Ogres and Knights, and then detonating the Light they left behind to wound him, the Guardians slew Oryx for good.

However, Oryx's Ravenous Heart remained. Eris used his heart to construct a weapon, the Touch of Malice. According to the Books of Sorrow, Oryx intended this as his final means of maintaining his immortality.

SIVA Crisis

"This is worst-case scenario. The Splicers aren't in a territorial war with the Hive; they're experimenting on them."

— Ghost

Following a year after the Taken War and the death of their god-King, the Hive on Earth still appear to be organized but hunkered down in their nests, and have recently gone into conflict with the SIVA-augmented Fallen Devil Splicers in the Plaguelands. Soon enough, the ambitions of the Splicers, led by Kovik, Splicer Priest, extend to experiment on not only themselves but the Hive as well, whether to control them as a slave army or to weaponize their mysterious biology. Furious, the Hive begin an all-out war with the Splicers. Through the efforts of the Guardians (not out of pity), the Fallen's efforts to control or weaponize the Hive were thwarted and Kovik was killed.

The Red War

The Hive remain active by the events of Dominus Ghaul's invasion. They have somehow managed to infest Saturn's moon Titan, engaging Guardian and Fallen forces on the moon. The Hive found on Titan were noted to have undergone a physical change in regards to their eyes by the time of the war. After the Red Legion succeeded in attacking the Last City and sealed away the Traveler's Light, the Lightless Guardians of the Vanguard led by Commander Zavala took what remained of the Vanguard fleet to Titan to set up a base to plan their counterattack. Unfortunately, Zavala was unaware of the Hive's infestation of Titan and when a force of Lightless Guardians attempted to drive the Hive out, they were defeated. To make matters worse, the Fallen House of Dusk followed the Vanguard. Upon their arrival, the Fallen began to pillage the Golden Age facilities while also engaging the Hive and the Lightless Vanguard. Despite this, a Guardian was able to regain their light and traveled to Titan to aid Zavala, clearing out enough of the Hive and reactivate the facilities for the Vanguard to set up a base. After Zavala moved to The Farm on Earth, the Vanguards forces on Titan were under the command of Sloane. Under her supervision, the Guardians began to make progress in driving the Hive away from their base while also powering the facilities.

Throughout the Red War, even after the Guardians reclaimed the Last City, the Hive broods on Titan have made numerous attempts to sink the New Pacific Arcology where the Guardians and Fallen battle. All their attempts were thwarted by the Guardians and some of their field leaders were slayed. However, like with the resurgent Taken on Io and on Earth, the Guardians question the nature of the new Hive broods, as they have noted the differences between the new brood and those they have faced in the past, wondering what Hive god is leading them. Evidence and entities point the new Hive Brood's allegiance to Savathûn, the Witch-Queen.

Rise of Xol

After the chaos of the Red War and the reawakening of the Traveler, a new, massive Hive army, the Grasp of Nokris, that has lain dormant within the frozen tundra of Hellas Basin on Mars, emerges to bring about the destruction of the Warmind core of Rasputin. Leading this army is the Worm God Xol and its herald, Nokris, the mysterious disowned son of Oryx.

Hoping to avert this disaster and learn more about her past, Ana Bray summons the Guardians to lead the defense of the ancient Warmind and face the Hive head-on. The Guardians face off against Xol's horde but encounter Nokris and the Worm God itself who aim to rule the planet. Despite killing the herald of Xol, the Worm God itself proves too powerful for the Guardian to defeat alone. Against his better judgement and with Ana Bray's guidance, Zavala allows the Guardian to forge a powerful Warmind weapon, the Valkyrie. Reaching the Worm God just outside the ancient Warmind's core, the Warrior of Light battles with the Will of the Thousands for the fate of Rasputin and Mars. Despite its immense power, Xol was killed by the Guardian using the Valkyrie, robbing the Hive of one of their most powerful entities.

The leaderless Grasp of Nokris remained an active threat on Mars that Guardians continue to face while also dealing with remnants of the Red Legion but find that its members are sending messages beyond the system, aimed towards Savathûn, pleading her to arrive and assume control.

The Mindbender

After the fall of Nokris and Xol, the Hive enter into a strange situation during the Guardians personal war with the Fallen Scorn within the Reef. One of the Scorn Barons, Hiraks, the Mindbender, who somehow survived the Hellmouth as a Dreg, developed a morbid fascination with the Hive and its powers, and somehow managed to take control of a large Hive brood within the Tangled Shore that were stranded after the Battle of Saturn at the onset of the Taken War. Hiraks was even able to create his own Ascendant Realm from the deaths of his enemies, Cayde-6 in particular. The Mindbender also made experiments upon the Hive with Ether, creating a host of Ether Worms. However, the Mindbenders rise to power within the Hive was put down when the Guardian sought out Hiraks and the Scorn Barons for the murder of the Hunter Vanguard. Battling through a downed Hive Warship, the Guardian breached into Hirak's "Ascendant Plane" and battled with the Mindbender and his mind-controlled Hive. Despite his power and Hive minions, Hiraks was killed which caused his Ascendant Realm to destabilize and collapse. This left the Hive without a powerful leader within the Reef.

Later on, after the Scorn's failure and the death of their Barons, doing a favor for the Fallen mob boss, The Spider, the Guardians return to the disabled Hive warship to clear out the Hive, whose numbers have increased since Hirak's fall. Battling into the ship and deep into a Hive nest, the Guardians encounter Knights with ether infused Worms which they use to break through Hive defenses. Deeper within the nest, the Guardians encounter the progenitor of the nest, In Anânh, Brood Queen, who was also the consort to Hiraks. Battling with the queen deeper and deeper into the nest, the Guardians succeeds in killing the brood queen, despite her dark powers. Without the Brood Queen, the Hive's numbers will continue to decrease and are now without another leader.

A Thousand Voices

Despite these occurrences, the Hive's Witch-Queen, Savathûn, continues to operate in the shadows but appears to have assumed near-complete control over the Taken. With the Taken under her direction, she has plans for the Awoken Dreaming City which was partially transported to the Ascendant Realm after Oryx attacked the Reef. Within the City, the Ahamkara, Riven of a Thousand Voices, was also Taken and becomes one of Savathûn's most useful allies. Though Riven orchestrated the Scorn's rampage across the Reef, including the murder of Cayde-6, her plan was to open the gateway to the Dreaming City with Uldren Sov as her puppet. Appearing as his sister, Mara Sov, Riven slowly corrupted the Awoken prince's mind, bending him to her will until he would gather what was needed to open the Gateway to the City; a combination of Light and Darkness.

The rogue prince managed to open the way but instead of his sister appearing as he believed it was her in directing his actions, only a grotesque Taken creature of Riven's, the Voice of Riven, appeared in her place. However, once again due to the Guardian's actions, the Hive Witch-Queen would suffer losses and setbacks. The Guardians were able to destroy the Voice and avenge the Hunter Vanguard but Riven remained a threat to the Reef and the whole Solar System. Nonetheless, finally gaining the Vanguard's support, aided by their Awoken allies and freeing the Techeuns from Taken corruption, the Guardians managed to clear out most of the Taken within the Dreaming City and even silence Riven once and for all.

Unfortunately for the Guardians and the Awoken, Riven's death was planned and it would grant Savathûn a tremendous advantage. In the last moments before her death and her heart being purified of Taken corruption by the Techeuns, Riven granted one last wish: to curse the Dreaming City with Taken energies.

In addition and making things more complicated, entities - both Hive and Taken - under the command of Xivu Arath, have appeared in the Dreaming City. These entities pillaged the Dreaming City for relics bearing dangerous knowledge but for what purpose is unknown. The Guardian, however, thwarted this plan by stealing the relics back and killing a Taken Chimera, Xaras, Greed of Xivu Arath. This suggests an appearance of the Hive's God of War in the future.

War of the Throne Worlds

Likely to keep her advantage and to expand her power, Savathûn tasked her daughter, Dûl Incaru, the Eternal Return, to further the Taken curse within the Dreaming City and more importantly, invade the Distributary to reach new heights of power. Using Eleusinia, Mara Sov's Throne World, as a staging ground and leading a horde of Hive and Taken, Dûl Incaru was close to completing the curse and fulfilling her mission but the Awoken Queen called upon her allies in the Guardians to fight back against the Taken curse. Fighting to the center of Eleusinia, the Guardians defeat the Hive and Taken before battling with the Witch-Queen's daughter. Despite her dark Taken powers, Dûl Incaru was defeated by the Guardians, weakening the Taken corruption within the Dreaming City.

Sociology

Biology

The Hive are a eusocial species, similar to Earth colonial insects. Several castes or "morphs" of Hive exist, each representing different stages of growth.

Female proto-Hive consumed a substance called "mother jelly", similar to Earth bees, in order to reproduce, between the age of four and five Fundament years. Hive Wizards are the only fertile females, and are capable of either self-fertilization or being with a mate.

Hive originate as eggs or cocoons laid by a special caste of Wizard known as a Brood Queen. Upon hatching, newborn Hive swallow a Worm larva whole, becoming symbiotic with the Worm inside them. These newborn Hive grow into Thrall, and Thrall that survive into maturity become Acolytes. Acolytes who have proven themselves can become Knights, who in turn may become Princes leading their own broods.

A Hive Thrall.

Hive are capable of sequential hermaphroditism; Oryx, born the female Aurash, became the male Auryx after assuming the unique "king morph", while Knights are capable of either sex as evidenced by Xivu Arath remaining female despite being a Knight. Ogres, meanwhile, appear to be not a stage of growth in the Hive life cycle, but a mutation brought upon Thrall by Wizard rituals.

Grown members of the Hive are pale, sinewy and vaguely humanoid, with varying levels of musculature and armor. Acolytes and Knights have three eyes, whereas Thrall and some Wizards appear to be eyeless (though many have glowing facial patterns that resemble eyes). The ancient armor many of them wear has fused with their skin, becoming part of it. When they are killed, they ignite in a shower of dust and embers. The Light is both a food source to the Hive and a cause of pain.

Culture

"Crota's spawn will snuff out the worlds of Light, and Oryx's coming shall be unfettered."

— Osiris

Hive runes.

The Hive have a complex religious system based around profane rituals and the worship of a pantheon of dark gods. These Hive Gods exist in the Ascendant realm, described as a "higher plane of misery" associated with the Darkness (known to the Hive as the Deep) locked outside of physical reality, not unlike the Vex realms locked out of time. Dwelling within are "cyst universes" known as throne worlds of their own creation. Each of worlds house their respective god's Oversoul, which may protects them from permanent death should their corporeal bodies be destroyed.

The Hive Prince Crota is introduced as one of the youngest Hive deities. Known as the God-Knight and the Hope-Eater, he and his broods proceed the coming of Oryx when they invade worlds touched by the Traveler and its Light. Oryx is Crota's father and the central figure of their religion as well as the God-King of the Hive; through his shrines he maintains contact with his force spread across the universe. Other deities include Oryx's own sisters Savathûn and Xivu Arath, and the greater Worm Gods Eir, Ur, Xol, and Yul. Like Crota and Oryx, they have disciples named after them. A fifth god, named Akka, is recorded in the Books of Sorrow and it is from his remains that the Dreadnaught is built. Apart from a glyph-based writing system, the Hive hold a special holiday called Eversion Day, which celebrates the creation of the Taken King's Dreadnaught by turning things inside-out in the same way Oryx merged his throne world with his ship.

The Hive have great hatred for the Light, and to them, the eternal struggle between light and dark is not only a war, it is a crusade; all Light must be devoured so Darkness can reclaim the universe. They have even attempted to attack the Traveler directly, through a ritual in which they drained its light through a fragment that they captured in the Chamber of Night.

Sword-Logic

Main article: The Sword Logic

"Ah, Oryx, how do we explain it to them? The world is not built on the laws they love [...] but in the cold hard self-verifying truth of that one ultimate arbiter, the only judge, the power that is its own metric and its own source—existence, at any cost. Strip away the lies and truces and delaying tactics they call ‘civilization’ and this is what remains, this beautiful shape."

— The Darkness

The Hive religion is not based on any sort of conventional morality; in fact, they see morality and the "false hope of comfort" as an abomination of the living. Instead, a metaphysical principle known as the "Sword-Logic" forms the basis of the Hive's belief system. According to the Sword-Logic, it is the ultimate goal of intelligent beings to challenge one another for the right to continue existing, and a being may acquire paracausal power by defeating another being. All such power must necessarily be taken by force, not received as a gift. This is why the Hive's swords are so deadly to Guardians; they create a bridge in which the wielder saps the power of the victim.

This also extends to sacrifice, as Hive become ascendant by consuming the souls of lesser Hive. The Hive's lust for power is a direct reflection of their Worm Gods' insatiable hunger for Light, and that the Hive must always be powerful, or else they themselves will be consumed. Even if they wanted to, the Hive can't stop killing or else they will perish. The Sword-Logic determines the right to rule, as anyone who can depose the current King is rightfully the new King of the Hive. Anyone who cannot defend themselves, whether it be a person, or a civilization, does not deserve to live and is fit to be obliterated. This is how the Hive intend to "liberate" the universe from its false hope, and the existence of the Hive themselves is proof enough in their belief.

The Ascendant Realm is ruled in totality by the Sword-Logic; when Crota accidentally allowed the Vex into his father's realm, they learned the Sword-Logic from him and adapted it to their own functions, learning to worship and bootstrap themselves into divinity, striving to become the most powerful beings in the universe. At the time however, they were unable to fully comprehend the role that the worms and the acausal Darkness played. While the Sword-Logic helped the Guardians in defeating Crota when they stole his sword and used it against him, they broke the Sword-Logic when they recovered and uncorrupted the Light found in the Dreadnaught's cellar, and used it against Oryx, then refusing to take up the mantle as the new Taken King.

Resurrection in general is seen as heretical by the Hive who follow the Sword Logic. To the Hive, death is the principle of the Sword Logic, to take and grow stronger after defeating an opponent. If an enemy was resurrected, then their death was pointless and the Sword Logic would be violated. As such, Nokris, who learned the secrets of resurrection from Xol, was branded a heretic, exiled from his kind and condemned to obscurity as his father removed nearly all traces of his name. It should be noted, however, that not all forms of resurrection are heretical: when Ascendant Hive are killed in the "normal" universe, they are banished to their Throne World and can return after a time. Additionally, Oryx is recorded in the Books of Sorrow as having resurrected both of his sisters during the early history of the Hive, after both had undergone true deaths within a Throne World. Furthermore, a Hive ritual on Titan was observed in which a Knight was repeatedly killed and apparently resurrected. It may therefore be the case that resurrection is forbidden only to non-Ascendant Hive, or that special exceptions to the rule apply in the aforementioned cases. In addition, Oryx revived his sisters through specific acts relating to their inner natures, rather through the use of forbidden sorcery like Nokris.

Pantheon

Gods like Oryx and Crota are capable of being killed in physical reality without truly dying. So long as their souls are preserved in the Ascendant Realm, they can reemerge in the physical realm at a later time. If they are killed in their respective throne world, however, their death will be permanent, though 2 other methods of permanently killing Hive gods exist. However, under certain circumstances, Hive gods can be reborn even if killed in the Ascendant plane.

In descending order of importance, the Gods of the Hive are:

The Formless One, the power behind the Hive Gods

• The Worm Gods, who give the Hive their immortality in exchange for a tithe of Light

• Akka, the Worm of Secrets
• Eir, the Keeper of Order
• Ur, the Ever-Hunger
• Yul, the Honest Worm

• Oryx, the Taken King, God-King of the Hive
  • Crota, Son of Oryx, crown prince to the Osmium Throne
• Savathûn, the Witch-Queen
  • Dûl Incaru, the Eternal Return, daughter of Savathûn
• Xivu Arath, God of War

• Xol, Will of the Thousands

• Nokris, Herald of Xol, High Priest of the Worm God Xol, abandoned son of Oryx

Technology

Hive technology is esoteric and often bio-mechanical, constructed or grown from organic materials like bone or chitin. Through signs and incantations, the Hive are able to channel the Darkness, and through this magic, they are able to contend with the conventional technology of other species on equal or greater footing.

Weaponry

• Acolyte Grenade
• Boomer
• Cleaver
  • Sword of Crota
  • Willbreaker
• Hive Shield
• Shredder
• Soulfire Rifle
• Splinter

Vehicles

• Dreadnaught
• Hive warship
• Karve scoutships
• Tombship
  • Chosen Tombship
• Seeder Ship
• War moon

Structures

• Shadowrift
• Shrieker
  • Ascendant Shrieker
  • Chosen Shrieker
• Hive Trap
• Oversoul
• Vestige

Sects

• Blood of Oryx—servants of Oryx, located on the Dreadnaught
• Cult of the Worm—an obscure sect that took hold in the Prison of Elders
• Hidden Swarm—main force, located on Earth
• Savathûn's Hive—an unnamed sect located on Titan and connected to Savathûn. Their relationship to the other Sol sects is unknown.
• Spawn of Crota—servants of Crota, located on the Moon and Earth
• The Silent Brood—wardens of the Dreadnaught's dungeons and overseers of Alak-Hul, the Darkblade
• Venom of Oryx—a almost completely unknown sect found only during the quest mission The First Firewall, they may be a task force sent by Oryx to gain control of or destroy Rasputin
• Grasp of Nokris—servants of Nokris and Xol, located on Mars

Named Individuals and Mini-bosses

Leadership

• Crota, Son of Oryx (Deceased)
• Nokris, Herald of Xol (Deceased)
• Oryx, the Taken King (Incapacitated)
• Savathûn
• Dûl Incaru, the Eternal Return (Deceased)
• Xivu Arath

Major Characters

• Alak-Hul, the Darkblade
• Alzok Däl
• Balwûr
• Bok Litur, Hunger of Xol
• Dûl Incaru, the Eternal Return
• Ecthar, Sword of Oryx
• Eyes of Crota
• Fugitive Knight
• Hand of Crota
• Heart of Crota
• Golgoroth
• Gornuk Däl
• Gulrot, Unclean
• In Anânh, Brood Queen
• The Infantine
• Ir Anûk, Deathsinger
• Ir Halak, Deathsinger
• Ir Yût, the Deathsinger
• Kranox, the Graven
• Krughor
• Lokaar
• Malgor, the Forsaken
• Mengoor
• Might of Crota
• Omnigul, Will of Crota
• Phogoth, the Untamed
• Sardok, Eye of Oryx
• Sardon, Fist of Crota
• Savathûn's Song
• Swarm Princes
  • Banuk, Ur Prince
  • Dakoor, Yul Prince
  • Garok, Xol Prince
  • Merok, Eir Prince
• Telthor, Unborn
• Thalnok, Fanatic of Crota
• Thogar, the Forsaken
• Urrox, Flame Prince
• Urzok, the Hated
• Vorlog
• Warpriest
• Wretched Knight
• Xyor, the Unwed
• Zyrok Däl

Minor Characters

• Alak-Tor, Fatesmith of Incaru
• Al-Gul, Eater of Light
• Azyrax, Exalted Conjurer
• Ba-Kuur, Fatesmith of Incaru
• Blade of the Monarch
• Blahgrish
• Celebrant of Oryx
• Cragur, Plague of the Well
• Dakoor, Spurned by Yul
• Damkath, the Mask
• Devoted of Nokris
• Dultur Xolborne
• Ekdala Xolborne
• Ergoth, Infinite Proxy
• Exhara, Ambassador of Savathûn
• Eye in the Dark
• Garmurg
• Garok, Spurned by Xol
• Gaurog, Fatesmith of Incaru
• Golgoth, Ichor of Xol
• Golmuut
• Golthor, the Subtle
• Gotra, Eir Spawn
• Gravetide Summoner
• Hadak, the Devoted
• Hagrist, Blade's Edge
• Hasaak, Venom of Xivu Arath
• Hiraks's Familiar
• Ilheru Xolborne
• It Yun, Cult of Megor
• Kamus Vanquisher Aethdaakel
• Kamus Vanquisher Guuldur
• Kamus Vanquisher Vakeldu
• Kandorak
• Karugul
• Kathok, Roar of Xol
• Keresh, Champion of Xol
• Korgath
• Kudazad, Binder of Savathûn
• Kvada ur-Nokru
• Merog, Spawn of Xivu
• Merok, Spurned by Eir
• Mormu, Xol Spawn
• Naktal, Fury of Savathûn
• Naksud, the Famine
• Nalcthor, the Crystaline
• Nengalish
• Nur Abath, Crest of Xol
• Osmium Traitor
• Posthûm of the Deep
• Prince of Yul
• Protector of the Will
• Räkta, the Mournful
• Ruithe, Sworn to Xivu Arath
• Segrex, the Tainted
• Šimmumah ur-Nokru
• Siphon Witch
• Servile Ogre
• Shrieker, Bound to Sedia
• Son of In Anânh
• Sugroth, Shield of Xivu Arath
• Sulhava, Vassal to Xol
• Supplicant of Xol
• The Sullied Ogre
• Takul-Dar, the Unbreakable
• Thaan'Hul
• Thaltos, the Deathless
• Thanatologist Ir'Handi
• Thanatologist Merga
• Thûl, the Monstrous
• Tulkor, Ferocity of Xivu Arath
• Ubara, Hive Prince
• Ukdor, the Flayed
• Ul-Heru, Envoy of Savathûn
• Ultorg, Breath of Xol
• Ultra Knight
• Umra, Xol Spawn
• Uroc Tor
• Urrot, Hammer of Nokris
• Vanbaluk, Trusted of Savathûn
• Vengulhur Xolborne
• Verok
• Vurok, Eir Spawn
• Warden's Knight
  • Adleg, Warden of Oryx
  • Heolstor, Warden of Oryx
  • Thracu, Warden of Oryx
• Yathbor
• Yächaar, Bound to Sedia
• Yer'ot the Forgotten
• Yulog of the Deep

Mentioned Characters

• Moluk, Wormwaker
• Nycor, Reborn

Command Structure

• Thrall—berserker pawns that rush into battles in groups and tear their targets apart with a pair of claws.
  • Ascendant Thrall
  • Blind Thrall—immune to all attacks
  • Chosen Thrall
  • Cursed Thrall
    • Dredge Exploder—Major
    • Hallowed Thrall
    • Unhallowed Cursed Thrall
  • Servant of the Hand—only found in Old Russia
  • Unhallowed Thrall

• Acolyte—commonly encountered foot soldiers that utilize cover and distance to defeat their enemies and armed with either a Shredder (common) or Boomer (very rare).
  • Acolyte of Balwûr
  • Adherent
    • Unhallowed Adherent
  • Anointed Acolyte
  • Ascendant Acolyte
  • Adept
  • Eyes of Crota
  • Chosen Acolyte
  • Hallowed Acolyte
    • Unhallowed Acolyte
    • Dread Unhallowed Acolyte
  • Kamus Acolyte
  • Namuŝ Acolyte

• Wizard—the source of all Hive birth and can support them with dark magic. Equipped with a Solar shield.
  • Abyssal Sorcerer
  • Ascendant Wizard
  • Brood Mother
  • Conjurer
    • Null Conjurer
  • Deathsinger
  • Hallowed Wizard
    • Unhallowed Wizard
    • Dread Unhallowed Wizard
  • Kamus Wizard
  • Namuŝ Wizard
  • Soaring Keen
  • Hollow Wizard
  • Necromantis
  • Profane Wizard
  • Revenant Wizard
  • Rite Wizard
  • Ritual Hierarch
  • Ritual Wizard
  • Siphon Witch
  • Watcher of Crota
    • Waker of Crota

• Knight—elite forward heavy infantry of the Hive. Most commonly armed with a Boomer, but can also be seen with either a Cleaver or Shredder.
  • Abyssal Champion
  • Anointed Knight (Arc-shield)
  • Ascendant Knight
  • Blade of Crota
  • Blade of the Pit
  • Breaker Knight
  • Brood Enforcer
  • Brood Host
  • Choking Blade
  • Chosen Knight
  • Fissure Knight
  • Fugitive Knight
  • Gatekeeper (Knight)
  • Hallowed Knight
    • Unhallowed Knight
    • Dread Unhallowed Knight
  • Kamus Knight
  • Kamus Vanquisher
  • Namuŝ Knight
  • Namuŝ Vanquisher
  • Šuluh Knight
  • Šuluh-teth Knight
  • Ugal Gar Knight
  • Light-Eater Knight—King's Fall Hard mode
  • Severing Knight
  • Swordbearer
  • Vanquisher
    • Unhallowed Vanquisher
    • Dread Unhallowed Vanquisher

• Ogre—mutated Thrall turned into mobile siege engines of the Hive; have devastating ranged and melee attacks.
  • Anointed Ogre
  • Ascendant Ogre
  • Hallowed Ogre
    • Unhallowed Ogre
    • Dread Unhallowed Ogre
  • Hungering Ogre
  • Infernal Ogre
  • Marked Ogre
  • Revenant Ogre
  • Shambling Torrent
  • Utterance Ogre
  • Voracious Ogre

Trivia

• Prior to their name being officially announced at the 2013 GDC, they were referred to as "evil space zombies".
• The Hive and the Taken are the first races to work together within the Destiny series.
• The official Destiny guide mentioned an additional Hive sect, The Scarlet Brood, but this sect never appeared in the game.
• A number of additional named Hive enemies were datamined from Bungie's files as possible bosses for the original The Dark Below Raid, which was believed to have taken place on a Hive warship at the time. These enemies do not appear in the game.
  • Gnath, the Diviner—RaidHiveship0Major0
  • Cryth, the Siphon—RaidHiveship0Major1
  • Noctu, the Lightslayer—RaidHiveship0Major2
  • The Wall—RaidHiveship0Major3
  • Voldor, the Willkeeper—RaidHiveship0Major4
  • Divined Vision—RaidHiveship0Major5
  • Storgor, the Shatterer—RaidHiveship0Ultra0
  • The Veil—RaidHiveship0Ultra12
• The below are individuals who were also datamined from The Dark Below but appear in-game; Omnigul was renamed as "Will of Crota".
  • Omnigul, the Adjunct—StrikeCosmo1Major0
  • Dredge Exploder—RaidHiveship0Major6
  • The Oversoul—RaidHiveship0Ultra2
• The Hive are the second faction of undead beings seen in the Destiny series, the first being Guardians, and the third being Scorn.

Gallery

• 

  Concept art for Thrall

• 

  Closeup of an old Hive face.

• 

  Concept art of Hive Thrall and Acolyte.

• 

  Hive Thrall.

• 

  A Thrall in the dark

• 

  A high-poly render of a Thrall

• HiveKnight.jpg

  Screenshot of a Hive Acolyte.

• 

  The Omnigul variant model of the Wizard.

• 

  The bottom half of the Witch model

• 

  Hive Ogre.

• 

  A Hive Ogre, Phogoth, the Untamed.

• 

  The Shrine of Oryx.

• 

  Hive Tombships.

Browse more images on this article's gallery page.

List of appearances

• Destiny (First appearance)
  • The Dark Below
  • The Taken King
  • Rise of Iron
• Destiny 2
  • Curse of Osiris
• Cabal Booklet (Mentioned only)
  • Warmind
  • Forsaken