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What an entire mood.

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The Story Behind Solas with Dragon Age Lead Writer Patrick Weekes - Dialogue Wheel (Part 1)

From 2017; just posted 12/20/2019

Interview with lead writer for Dragon Age Patrick Weekes years ago about how the enigmatic character Solas was created, here is what that magic elf could have up his sleeve for us in Dragon Age 4. Not my interview, just wrote transcript of questions and answers for reference. Part 1; Part 2 will be linked down below once I’ve finished.

Full video: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFx1nCdZFjw&t=1s

Time: 2:54

Solas, tell us about little old Solas. Talking about your other characters you created we always start at the beginning. Pen to paper - How did the idea of Solas first start? What was that first iteration?

So actually Dave and Mike both, you know, we - everyone knew who Solas was - everyone knew what the ending was going to be with him. And, you know, Dave and Mike said, “Well Dave is writing a ton of the crypt path, the main part of the game. Dave really wants to do Dorian, that’s very important to him, and are you comfortable writing this guy? Are you comfortable writing someone who is going to be, in some respects, deceiving the Inquisitor for the entirety of the game?” And, honestly, how do you turn that down?

Time: 4:02

So really it was that simple then - from there, in the way you described it, they already had some ideas and some concepts about what Solas needed to bring?

Oh, yeah. Originally, one of the most difficult parts of writing him - and, you know, I said Iron Bull was the one closest to how I originally planned him - Solas and Cole are probably tied for least like how I originally wrote them. And, really, it was getting past the secret. It was getting past Fen’Harel. 

Iron Bull: badass former spy, the opposite of Sten. 

Blackwall: awesome Grey Warden who is not actually a Grey Warden. 

Solas: He’s Fen’Harel… 

Okay, can he tell you he’s Fen’Harel? No. 

Okay, well what are we going to talk about? 

[Pretending to be Solas:] “Hey Inquisitor, I’m still not Fen’Harel, do you have any questions?”,  “I will not take any questions about whether I am Fen’Harel.” That was the big stumbling block of writing him. 

I remember the first draft… the first draft all we talked about was elves. It was elves all the time. Every conversation went “Elves, elves… Elves were awesome back in the old days.. Everything was great with the elves.” And then you’d go, “You really like elves huh?” “No, shut up - I’m not Fen’Harel.” And we all kind of looked at that and went, that’s not really much of a character hook. You cannot have a character hook built on something that you only reveal after the play has watched the credits. That is how we got to Fade expert. That is something where, if something had gone terribly wrong, if we were six months from shipped and we decided not to do anything with elves in the future, we could have taken the Dread Wolf out of the equation entirely and a mage named Solas who loves the Fade, is an apostate but without all of the fear and anger that you think of when you think of an apostate, but is just this guy who wants to travel through dreams and find mysteries and explore… that was a good enough character to stand by itself. That is what it took us a couple of drafts to get to.

Time: 7:04

You mentioned the first two phases of Solas - share with us a little more of that journey, when you finally go to this character that could stand on its own. If you don’t mind, a little more of that journey- was it just those first two and now everything’s cool?

First draft was “ ‘Elves, elves’ but ‘I don’t like elves’”. Second draft was about how much to tell. I think in the next draft it was significantly closer. Anyone who looked at that draft - and, you know, I apologize to anyone who looked at that draft - but, anyone who looked at that draft you would find places where “Oh okay that’s the Solas I know and love. There he is. He likes the Fade.” That’s something that’s actually interesting. But, he lied a lot more. And it actually really weakened his character. We played it so close with both Blackwall and Solas - both characters are the liars who don’t actually lie. They will tell you almost truths. With Blackwall - he never actually flat-out says “I am a Grey Warden.” If you ask him what it’s like being a Grey Warden he will say "Well  a warden embodies this and a warden embodies that… I’ve been blessed in my travels.” You know, he never actually quite says “I’m a Warden.” With Solas it’s the same way with the hand wave of ‘in the Fade’. I would start putting ‘in the Fade’ at the end of a lot of sentences.  “Yeah turns out that all of the stuff you thought was true in history was wrong… because I saw it…. in the Fade.” 

In revision 2, he lied a lot more. On the one hand it worked, on the other hand it made him less tragic, more of jerk when we got to the reveal. So that is how we got to what we made him into: this character who is intelligent, wise… Solas will think very carefully before he tells you anything and anything he tells you is exactly as much as he wants you to know. That actually led to one of the funny little game moments - one of the last things we do is add the places where characters will approve or disapprove. I think what I want Solas to approve us is you actually asking questions . He’s kind of unique in that regard -  What Solas approves us is people who are interested in finding out knowledge. Whether they are finding it out from him or they’re talking with other people, Solas wants people to explore, he wants people to find information, he wants people to learn. What he disapproves of, honestly, more than what you do, is in many ways how you do it. You can do the thing that he wants you to do, but if you do it in a knee-jerk way, Solas hates that. He wants to know that you are carefully considering your options and taking a measured approach. 

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Not in regards to ACOTAR, but just in general (Unpopular opinion: Feyre is one hell of a Mary Sue).

Rhys when someone calls Feyre hot

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Aaaaand it’s done! I’m dead! My Wings & Ruin montage. I probably could have spent a couple more weeks / months tweaking it to within an inch of its life, but for the sake of my sanity I’m calling it done (it was hella fun, but I think I wracked up about a million hours.)

PRINTS! In  the usual places, for everyone asking. Society 6 and Limited signed copies on Etsy.

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The Suriel Returns

A year(ish) after ACOWAR:

Court of Dreams: *eating dinner*

The Suriel: *appears* I can’t take it any longer!

The Suriel: *points at Nesta and Cassian* You two are mates!

The Suriel: *points at Lucien* Helion is your real father!

The Suriel: *points at Azriel* And Mor prefers women and will never love you, so get over it!

The Suriel: K, good seeing you again Feyre, I’ll be back in a year or so when tensions get too high again. *floats through the door*

Rhys: *laughing uncontrollably*

Lucien: WHAT

Mor and Azriel: *refusing to look at each other*

Nesta and Cassian: Yeah, we’re not surprised.

Feyre: Isn’t he dead?

*awkward moment of silence*

Lucien: Wait a minute. Feyre, how much of that did you already know?

Feyre: Well, umm…

Rhys: Oh, we knew all of it.

Feyre: RHYS!

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Quotes that KILLED ME in ACOWAR

“I would have waited five hundred more years for you. A thousand years. And if this was all the time we were allowed to have … The wait was worth it.” Rhysand to Feyre Chapter 69

“I never got to repay your mother—for her kindness. Let me do it this way. Let me buy you time.” Cassian to Rhysand Chapter 72

“I will find you again in the next world—the next life. And we will have that time. I promise.” Cassian to Nesta Chapter 74

“Tell the High Lord” She said softly, “to leave out a cup for me.” Amren to Feyre Chapter 75

“They were saying things, but all I could hear was that last I love you, which had not been a declaration but a good-bye.” Feyre Chapter 77

“I heard you, even in death. It made me look back. Made me stay—a little longer.” Rhysand to Feyre Chapter 82

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Zevran: I am hardly the person to lecture on the worthier points of human nature, but surely this is a fine time to display the oft-lauded virtue known as mercy?

Zevran: I deserved to die, and you spared me. Why are you so quick to condemn these mages?

Warden: You’re a lot better-looking than most of the mages.

Zevran: Why, thank you. Flattery would normally distract me, but not today. Inconvenient, no?

Warden: You’re saying I made a mistake sparing you?

Zevran: (Nervous laughter) Perhaps. But you did it nevertheless, no?

Warden: Magic and knives are different.

Zevran: Magic can kill. Knives can kill. Even small children launched at great speed could kill.

Zevran: Why single out the wielders of one and not the others?

Warden: Mages can do more damage with one spell than you ever could.

Zevran: Mm. Touché.

Zevran: I’ve taken the lives of many throughout my career, but this is no measured act. There is no chase, no hunt, no dignity in this… there is only slaughter.

Warden: What about the people they might slaughter?

Zevran: Might, not will. Committing genocide just because something might happen is more than the mark of a weak mind. It is insanity.

Warden: Zevran, you’re a hypocrite.

Zevran: Perhaps I am at that, and a thief and a murderer as well. But I looked my victims in the face.

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“You’re not allowed to call it a date.”

Dragon Age dream dates

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“I love you”

“I can’t remember your name with this...”

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When Emilia Clarke wears a suit she looks like a rich CEO who would steal your wife and laugh at your inability to keep a woman.

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I was checking out at Walmart, and as I was reaching for my bags I said, “Happy Holidays!” And the cashier leaned in like she was sharing a secret and said “Merry Christmas.” So I smiled politely and said, “Blessed Yule!” And the look that spread across her face, you would have thought I’d literally stolen Christmas from her. If you’re going to make a point of wishing me a happy whatever-you-celebrate, I’m going to make a point of wishing you a happy whatever-I-celebrate, and if you think that’s wrong you should consider getting “hypocrite” tattooed across your forehead.

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Please leave me be, my fantasy is all I have.

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king size!

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“Those poor boys”

“She deserves to be punished too.”

“I’m not saying I support rape, but-”

“Sorry to say - she deserved it.”

“She put herself in harm’s way”

“But if she was fingered, then that’s not rape.”

“She ruined their lives.”

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