YMMV / Shadow of the Conqueror

• Alternative Character Interpretation: Has Daylen truly become a better person and earned the opportunity to fully redeem himself? Or is he a villain who crossed the Moral Event Horizon long ago and is still fundamentally the same person who committed those crimes, with no hope of ever doing enough good to make up for the immense evil he caused? The narrative leans towards the former, with Ahrek forgiving Daylen—saying that he's no longer Dayless and can find redemption—and even Lyrah admitting that she isn't sure anymore if he deserves to die. No definitive answer is given, however, and the question is debated both in-universe and in real life. Some argue that he's already changed and deserves a second chance (Terain and Ahrek), some argue that he's both an evil bastard and a hero chosen by the Light who should be recognized for both (Lyrah), some argue that he fully deserves death but is too valuable to waste (Darenlight), and some argue that he was and remains an irredeemable monster to be destroyed (Augusday and the other surviving aristocrats). The whole city of Highdawn becomes embroiled in a massive debate about this during and after Daylen's trial, with all four perspectives apparently well-represented among the people. By Shad's own admission, this was completely intentional and the entire point of Daylen's character.
• Anvilicious: Ahrek's conversation with Cueseg about how terrible it is that rape victims are considered to be Defiled Forever. Daylen saying a similar thing to Sharra is probably necessary, but Ahrek and Cueseg abandon all subtlety in favor of a "Lesson of the Day" Speech.
• Moral Event Horizon: For those who see Daylen as irredeemable, his journal epigraphs will retroactively put him beyond the event horizon. Not only do they describe him slaughtering millions of innocent people and ruling with an iron fist, but also lay out in graphic detail how he kidnapped, raped, tortured, degraded, and sometimes killed hundreds of girls as young as fourteen. One of his victims turns out to have been Lyrah. Worse still, as a central character, we experience her trauma directly, from her perspective. Even Daylen himself often reflects on the fact that it's simply not possible for him to ever make up for all the suffering and death he's responsible for, and so he must instead settle for paying forward using his newfound abilities.
• Strawman Has a Point: Daylen kills two women (one who tortured and nearly killed her husband, another who molested a child) while doling out his vigilante justice. Ahrek castigates him for this and is clearly meant to be in the right, but Daylen comes across as a lot more reasonable, arguing that the same crimes should have the same punishment regardless of someone's biological sex. Ahrek's argument boils down to "No, they're women!" It might be worth mentioning that the author is a Mormon.