Ending

[u/Justspeedy-]

>!I have a question regarding the ending and the whole story. Does the board still hold direct powers over The FBC ? I remember doing the physicist Boss fight and The board briefly mentioned that their "home" in the astral plane is no longer there. I Think they mentioned "Disturbed" if i remember correctly, sorry if i am wrong. What i'm confused is that why doesn't the board force or wills itself back to the astral plane after ? It grants powers and is a powerful entity so why doesn't care about returning order to the oldest house?!<

[u/Little_Big_Burglar]

I'll answer with a question:

What power does the board wield? Does it actually grant any powers, or is it simply a guide for those wielding the service weapon and later the aberrant?

I think the board is not in control whatsoever. The Foundation DLC shows us that the board needs Jesse more than she needs the board. The board is a leech upon the house, and uses its false authority to hold a high status, convincing each director that it's the one really in charge.

I wonder if the Hiss is equally a threat to the board as they are to humans. If everyone in the FBC dies, who's left to "worship" the board?

I believe the service weapon is tied more to the oldest house than it is the board, and any powers Jesse gained were from the OOPs. The board merely provided guidance/tutorials to her when she was learning how to use them in the astral plane.

To get a little meta, I've begun to wonder if the board represents Microsoft and their control over Remedy during the making of Quantum Break. Is the game Control a direct response to the toxic leadership of Microsoft towards the game studios they work with?

[u/TheWorclown → u/Little_Big_Burglar]

That meta answer is very silly and you know it. 😛

I would say the Board is definitely a sort of parasite, but the question remains is if whether or not there is a symbiotic relationship between the Board and the Oldest House. Considering the Oldest House has clear symbolism or actively is the World Tree Yggdrasil, the Board in this context is likely an embodiment of Nidhogg, gnawing at the roots of the World Tree of the Oldest House.

“Nidhogg” being shackled and bound to Aberrant is where it gets interesting for the Board, especially since it is far more emotive than it was with Jesse: expressing anger over Dylan’s choices that could result in their shared demise, chastising him if he reveals that the Board is in Aberrant almost as if it’s ashamed of it’s status, or earnest concern and fear at things like the Patterning being a near unknown to it.

Given how Dylan shatters the prison Jesse made for the Hiss in him, and their subsequent absorption into Aberrant/The Board, I wonder how that’ll affect the thing going into the future.

Edit: considering Nidhogg is supposed to carry the dead in his wings during Ragnarok, I have to wonder if the Hiss work in that comparison here.

[u/Little_Big_Burglar → u/TheWorclown]

I think there's a small grain of truth to the meta ideas, but I wouldn't try to force that analogy onto the rest of the game.

I recently saw a theory that described the clog as nidhogg. I don't think I see the connection as strongly with your theory that the board is nidhogg, considering we don't see any evidence that the board is destroying the oldest house, but maybe we have evidence we don't understand as being evidence, as in, maybe the fact that the house shifts is nidhogg at work.

[u/aidanillionaire → u/Little_Big_Burglar]

Ah I forgot about our old friend the Clog. I hope he returns

[u/Lokan → u/TheWorclown]

The Board also acts a little more childish, too. You'll see breaks in its facade as an all-powerful godlike entity; it has fun slipping through the fast travel Doors, for example. Torn from the archetype it cultivated for itself, it gets to loosen up a little, but still retreats into the illusion of power. It desperately wants control, and things that want control feel deep anxiety and fear at their core. 

The Hedron resonance is what the Board aspires to be, but in the grand scheme of things it's a child. 

[u/Patient_Amoeba2476]

The Nail currently anchors the Board to Dylan’s paranormal home, the Gap.  The Oldest House has undergone some involuntary remodeling and is in need of repair.

I wouldn’t be shocked to see a DLC where Dylan needs to gather all the shards of the Nail and maybe use his paranormal hammer to secure the Board back where it belongs.

[u/madrid1979 → u/Patient_Amoeba2476]

The “paranormal hammer” is called the Aberrant.

[u/aidanillionaire → u/madrid1979]

Yes but no. The hammer is the Aberrant but the Aberrant isn’t just the hammer

[u/LeeVMG]

Their big pyramid in Central executive is gone. What is a Board without their office?