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NOMINATIONS ARE OPEN!

Nominations for the Black Emporium are live until July 1st! Reach out and tell someone (namely: us) about your favorite rare-pairs (namely: any pairing under 300 complete fics on Ao3 -- unless it's Rook, in which case it's 600, but you should really just go read the Rook guidelines). This year, you have FORTY nominations to use. Pairings can be twosomes / threesomes / moresomes / etc. We believe in sharing the love.

How do you, in fact, become a true Fereldan buckaroo by nominating a rare pair or 40?

Go to the Dragon Age Rare Pair Tag Set and click Nominate (you have to be signed into Ao3 for the button to appear). For inspiration or to check if someone had the same idea as you, we have a Searchable Nominations Spreadsheet that we manually update.

For more information on this stage of the exchange and how best to format your nominations, please see below the cut:

Full Participation Walkthrough Guide || FAQ

Important things to remember: 

Pairings/groups must be nominated in order to be requested during the next phase of the exchange, Sign-Ups.

Nominations require a set format — keep reading for more details

All nominations should be under Dragon Age - All Media Types (for the first 20 nominations) and Dragon Age (Video Games) (for the second 20 nominations).

Pairings/groups cannot have more than 300 completed works on AO3. (Except Rook, whose limit is 600 completed works; see here for more info.)

We allow original characters in this exchange as well as canon characters. 

Nominating a pairing/group is not “binding”; you do not need to request or offer the pairing later.

Nomination Formatting: 

All nominations should be nominated under the "Dragon Age - All Media Types" and "Dragon Age (Video Games)" fandoms. Please only use the second option if you are nominating more than 20 relationships; this is because Ao3 does not let you nominate more than 20 in a single fandom.

Nominations do not need to auto-complete to be accepted; if Ao3 does not complete your ideal nomination, just type it in manually. 

For romantic/sexual relationships, please nominate the characters you wish to nominate with a “/” between each character. For familial, platonic, or otherwise non-sexual requests, please use a “&.” e.g., “Meredith Stannard & Orsino” would not have any sexual or romantic undertones. “Meredith Stannard/Orsino” would be considered sexual and/or romantic, even if the fanwork itself didn’t include any sexual acts.

Nominations should be spelled correctly. e.g., “Merrill”, not “Meril”

Nominations should ideally be in alphabetical order, by last name. If a character does not have a last name, use the first name instead. e.g., “Zevran Arainai/The Iron Bull/Solas”

If a character has multiple names or aliases, go by their “main” name. e.g., “Blackwall”, not “Thomas ‘Thom’ Rainier”

For Dragon Age player-characters (such as the Warden, Hawke, and Inquisitor, etc.), we treat different surnames and gender as different characters. Female Surana will be evaluated differently from Female Brosca, Male Surana, etc.

Nominating Dragon Age “Player Characters”

For the purposes of this challenge, the Dragon Age protagonists will be considered different characters based on their gender and surname. The three gender options we utilize for this exchange are: Male, Female, and Nonbinary (written as NB to save space).

When nominating player characters that are not Rook, please format as such:

Male [Warden Surname / Hawke / Inquisitor Surname] (e.g., Male Trevelyan)

Female [Warden Surname / Hawke / Inquisitor Surname] (e.g., Female Hawke)

NB [Warden Surname / Hawke / Inquisitor Surname] (e.g., NB Brosca)

When nominating Rook, you must specify gender, lineage, and faction, in that order. Do not include "Rook" as part of the nomination; it's not needed. You must also put Rook FIRST in their ship, regardless of alphabetical order. For ships of 3+ people, make sure you alphabetize the other characters involved!

So, for example: "Male Qunari Ingellvar/Male Cousland" will be accepted as a nomination; "Rook/Warden" will not.

You can nominate pairings where one version of the pairing is over the limit as long as the version you nominate qualifies. For example, you can request "Male Lavellan/Solas" or "NB Lavellan/Solas," even if "Female Lavellan/Solas" is over the limit. This also applies to the ineligible Rook ships; "NB Dwarf Laidir/Lucanis Dellamorte" is acceptable but "Female Human de Riva/Lucanis Dellamorte" is ineligible.

Customized or individualized Wardens/Hawkes/Inquisitors are not valid nominations. For example, “Mary Trevelyan/Vivienne” would be ineligible; the requester would need to use “Female Trevelyan/Vivienne,” “Male Trevelyan/Vivienne” or “Nonbinary Trevelyan/Vivienne.”

In your prompts in your sign-up, you can request preferred details (such as specific OCs, a first name, looks, personality traits, class, background, etc.), and creators may choose to incorporate those elements into their gift for you. However, creators are not required to incorporate those preferred details, and works will not be checked for that by moderators.

Nominating Characters from Other Canons (i.e. Crossovers)

We allow crossovers from other series so long as they are interacting with at least one canonical character. However, when nominating a character from another specific series, please put the name of the fandom the character is from in parenthesis after the name, for example: “The Iron Bull & James Vega (Mass Effect)”

For crossovers that are from different media within the Dragon Age fandom, no specification is needed, e.g., “Merrill/Solas.” 

Nominating Other Original Characters

Original Characters who are not Wardens/Hawkes/Inquisitors are also allowed to be nominated, provided they follow the following guidelines:

The OC is listed in such a way as to give someone freedom in how to write them. 

OCs should be generalized or archetypal. e.g., “my OC Gerald D’Vivir” is too individualized and customized, but “Male Orlesian Noble” is eligible

A good rule of thumb here is whether the character idea can be summed up in 3 or less words; if you can, it is probably a good option. If you cannot, it probably is too complex for this kind of exchange. e.g., "Tal-Vashoth Mercenary" or "Original Templar Character" is eligible; but "Older Blonde Warrior Dwarven Warden Widower” is not

If the gender of an OC is considered important to your request, please include it. If you are fine with any gender option, gender does not need to be added, and the creator of the work can choose their choice of gender options for the character. e.g., "Orlesian Noble" or "Female Orlesian Noble”

The OC is not listed in such a way that would, essentially, reflect the spirit of a canon character that is otherwise not permitted in a relationship. 

As an example, while it is possible to have an Original Female Elf Inquisitor who is not Lavellan, it is so close to canon based on that description that it would essentially function as the same character.

Lastly...

What are you waiting for? GET YE TO THE NOMINATING!

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THE BLACK EMPORIUM EXCHANGE RETURNS FOR 2025!

Black Emporium is a rare pair exchange that encompasses everything Dragon Age – provided they have less than 300* completed works on Ao3. Whether you’ve been a fan since the beginning or got in to it via Veilguard– whether you write snappy dialogue or draw detailed scenery – we want YOU to participate!

*Except for Rook; see our post about how we're handling that!

2025 Schedule

All deadlines are as of 9 AM US Pacific / 12 PM US Eastern / 4 PM UTC+0.

Nominations: June 24 - July 1

Signups: July 1 - July 12

Assignments Go Out: When mods are done matching (probably sometime on July 13th)

Works Due: August 24

Works Revealed: August 31

Authors Revealed: September 7

Links

AO3:

AO3 Nominations Tagset

2025 Subcollection

Parent Collection (all past years)

Resources:

Participation Walkthrough Guide

FAQ

Fun Spreadsheets & Other Useful Tools:

Searchable Nominations Spreadsheet

Request Database

Treatless List

Official Links:

Tumblr: @black-emporium-exchange

Dreamwidth Mirror: black-emporium

Discord invite

Questions? Email us at blackemporiumexchange@gmail.com!

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the character of oghren that lives in my head whose character arc actually centers around his insecurities as a warrior, one of the most celebrated berserkers in orzammar, who lost his entire house in just one single day and spent the next two years alone and miserable while the rest of orzammar just happily forgot about his wife and his family and their entire legacy in favor of the more easily digestible tragedy that they all died in the deep roads. the oghren that canonically admired branka to such a degree that all he could do was boast about her brilliance and wistfully reminisces how she used to meticulously collect samples of every piece of metal that she'd found in order to study their composition and knew her so well that he could tell the warden exactly where she was going and what to look out for and how to get past her traps when not even harrowmont and bhelen and all their knowledge and experience could even come close. the one who canonically regrets letting her leave and believes, somehow, that he could've changed her or talked some sense into her, and the fact that he just watched her walk away into the darkness and did nothing was his greatest failure as her husband. the character whose insecurities as a husband and a warrior bleed into every facet of his life and affect every decision that he's ever made or ever will make. the oghren that literally, explicitly only drinks so much because he doesn't know how else to numb himself to his own thoughts and memories. the oghren who canonically found true happiness and love again after branka's death, with felsi, and ran away anyway because the inevitability of another failure in the back of his mind was just too much for him to bear. the oghren that had a good station with the king's army. that was respected and liked and admired by the army. and that respect only served to reinforce how unworthy and unqualified he actually felt. he's still casteless. his house is still dead. the woman he married and pledged to be with forever is still a corpse in the deep roads and he's still the man that killed her. and every accomplishment he achieves after that feels like a mockery of her.

this is all very explicitly canon but bioware also really wanted to make him a family guy joke in spite of it and i am sitting in the bathroom floor of my workplace and for the love of god please help me

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The many faces of Dorian Pavus (when you throw his skin on everybody)

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i think it's time for a new tiny spite collection.

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or whatever andrastian confessions look like. uhh.

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Andaran atish’an, and welcome to Dragon Age: Heroes and Heretics!

We are an 18+ literate roleplaying server hosted on Discord and set in the world of Dragon Age. DA:HAH is set during the timelines of DAO, DA2, and DAI, but we allow freedom for stories to be told anywhere throughout Thedas up until Trespasser. Do note that this server does not offer roleplay in Veilguard's timeline and considers it mostly non-canon to the roleplay, though you're welcome to alter your DATV OCs to work in the other three games! As of 6/14/25, we are freshly opened, with many major canons free and awaiting your applications.

Please note that this is an explicitly POC-friendly, anti-racist, and queer-inclusive server run by mature adults for mature adults. We have a 0 tolerance policy for fandom bullshit. We’re trying to cultivate a kind, welcoming, and drama-free space with a neutral stance on discourse surrounding Mage/Templar shit, controversial companions, etc (even if us on the mod team have our own opinions). Basically, we have no rules against respectful disagreement and criticism, but we won’t tolerate acting like a cunt. Roleplay servers are more interesting when people have the freedom to enjoy writing Templars, Chantry/Circle loyalists, Qun-abiding Qunari, etc without fear of being morally judged OOC.

That said, we feel it’s necessary to make our IRL politics clear in order to remain a safe space for marginalized fans. This server is run by staunchly Pro-Palestine leftists. Fascists and reactionaries will be removed promptly.

Does this sound like a server for you? Shoot us a DM for the link to our rules website (I’m chronically organized and wanted it all in one place to reduce clutter, which means you can view it before joining and decide if it’s a good fit then!) If you’re rockin with our vibes, we’ll link you to the discord!

A list of open canons and open player origins is underneath the cut! We are very OC-centric and allow for unlimited OCs as well! Please bring all your darlings!

Our currently open companions/advisors are: Morrigan, Leliana, Sten, Wynne, Oghren, Velanna, Sigrun, Nathaniel Howe, Varric Tethras, Merrill, Aveline Vallen, Isabela, Sebastian Vael, Cassandra Pentaghast, Blackwall, Vivienne de Fer, Cole, Dorian Pavus, Cullen Rutherford, and Josephine Montilyet. All minor canons are free to play as well!

While the protagonists of each game are under staff control to ensure worldstate consistency, player origins from DAO/A and DAI are also free to play as non-protagonists! We even allow players to port in Rook origins, so long as you’re willing to alter things and adapt them to the earlier games - if you’re interested, our website actually has a page declaring precisely what we consider noncanon from Veilguard and which origins would need alterations beyond shifting them to an earlier game.

Our open origins are: Tabris, Mahariel, Surana, Brosca, Aeducan, Amell (though 2/4 of Amell’s siblings from other Circles are in play), Caron, Kader, Lavellan, Cadash, Trevelyan, Thorne, Mercar, Laidir, Ingellvar, and de Riva. House Cousland is open to cousins / connections as well.

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not to be insensitive but some of the salem witch trials were so funny bitches like “i saw her at the devils sacrament!!!” girl... what were YOU doing at the devils sacrament 👀

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Spite can be a incredible motivator

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"can you explain this gap in your resume" i lay in dark and dreaming sleep while countless wars and ages passed; i woke still weak a year before i joined you

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my beloved princess awhhhhhhh

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"...You've been a good friend, in the short time that I've known you. But now I must go. The Dragon waits."

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i thought my laptop was on its last leg because it was running at six billion degrees and using 100% disk space at all times and then i turned off shadows and some other windows effects and it was immediately cured. i just did the same to my roommate's computer and its performance issues were also immediately cured. okay. i guess.

so i guess if you have creaky freezy windows 10/11 try searching "advanced system settings", go to performance settings, and uncheck "show shadows under windows" and anything else you don't want. hope that helps someone else.

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And I do think they should’ve brought Sandal back in Veilguard, because if he made the trick lyrium dagger, handed it over, and said “Enchantment!” I wouldn’t even bat an eye or consider it a deus ex machina moment. Like yeah of course he could make a perfect copy, and it would be so similar that it could trick Solas. It’s Sandal.

The plot hole would be that his copy would absolutely be capable of rending the Veil.

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We know that Facebook is brainscorching your parents and tiktok is brainscorching your cousins, but some of you refuse to admit that you got your brain scorched here. However unlike those sites there isn't an algorithm here you just make bad choices.

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I love Sabriel by Garth Nix, I love the fun necromancy, I love the old kingdom having different moon phases and seasons than the other side of the wall, I love the creepy undead, I love the decaying vibe of the old kingdom, I love music notes being part of the magic system

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Originally Varric wasn't supposed to voice all 2D cinematic scenes. They were voiced by the characters these scenes were about. But most likely because of the plot twist, this idea was abandoned. In the game, this only happens after the Prison of Regrets, starting with Elgar'nan in Minrathous. Although some of these lines remained in the text or audio.

After D'Meta's Crossing

Ghillan'nain: Much has changed. Elgar'nan: Our empire. Our legacy. Vanished, like breath in air. Elgar'nan: What they call the blight raised us once. It can restore what was lost. Ghillan'nain: The blight is faint. Locked away from this world by the Dread Wolf. Elgar'nan: We are the Firstborn. Nothing is beyond our reach. Elgar'nan: We shall work wonders again.

After meeting the First Warden in Minrathous.

Elgar'nan: The Dread Wolf's Veil stands fast, bestowing only an echo of the blight's past power. Ghillan'nain: We must pierce it. Elgar'nan: But the Dread Wolf's dagger is beyond our reach. Ghillan'nain: Its re-creation is not. Ghillan'nain: Crystalline. Fatal. We can forge a new instrument to rupture the Veil. Elgar'nan: And unleash the full blight.

After the Something Wrong quest. Luckily, the audio wasn't removed here and in the following dialogue.

Ghillan'nain: The darkspawn and the blight bend to our will. Ghillan'nain: Shaped. Nurtured. Improved. Elgar'nan: Under our command, they will be a relentless tide, preparing the world for our ascension. Ghillan'nain: The mortals will resist. Elgar'nan: Then they will fall.

After the Blood of Arlathan quest.

Elgar'nan: The elves were promised to my dragon. Elgar'nan: Noble blood, offered unto a noble beast, to quell the hunger of long repose. Elgar'nan: But this is merely a test of resolve. Mine. And yours. Elgar'nan: I accept the gift of your lives, and thank you for your generosity.