#Glynn Mahariel

[felassan]

Let's talk about the new short story, As We Fly!

The title is a nice reference to the phrase "As the crow flies", an idiom for the most direct route between two points. Or Crow, as the case may be. :) and our hero Crows do 'fly' in this short, on a cool zipline thing.

The accompanying art piece is a zoomed out version of the concept art piece that debuted here which is cool, as we can now see more of that scene! I love the architecture of the city and the drama of the whole scene :>

The big takeaway from this short is that the Antaam have now made good on the hints in Tevinter Nights, and have invaded Antiva. O: they have taken and are occupying Treviso, a coastal city in northern Antiva (which is an important city for the Crows, whom historically originate as a faction in the surrounding areas). so then, the Llomerryn Accords have been broken? Σ(°ロ°) that feels like a big plotbeat and major development to tell us in a short story on the website?? anyways, all nations but Tevinter signed that treaty. during the Qunari Wars, the Qunari invaded Thedas, and entrenched themselves in Antiva and Rivain for like a century. they first took Treviso in 6:35 Steel and now they're back again.

this means that this short must be set after the Crow stories in Tevinter Nights e.g. Eight Little Talons, as in Tevinter Nights we were told that:

the invasion passes Ventus (which fell in the comic Deception) and moves into Rivain

in Tevinter, the Antaam have crushed the Tevinter opposition in the east and that it was possible that everything east of Vyrantium would be under their control inside a year, and northern Antiva as well

it seemed to be a certainty that they were going to invade Antiva

a Dalish elf dispatched a messenger to warn the clans in/beyond Rivain of all this

the invading Qunari tried to make a deal with one of the Crows, saying that if he did such and such then the invasion of Antiva would be peaceful and they wouldn't be required to convert

the Talons met in a sort of Talon summit to discuss the threat and come up with a plan for Antiva's defense - to plot a course of action and discuss their country's security as, without an army, Antiva’s only line of defense is the Crows. Antiva was vulnerable, with more than half her Talons dead

[non-Solas Tevinter Nights happenings summary link]

I wonder if they arrived by land or by sea? in the first story in Tevinter Nights, when the escapees are fleeing to Arlathan Forest, it mentions their ships, and "before the Qunari land there" implies by sea. So which of the other coastal northern cities, or eastern cities, have also been taken? Brynnlaw? Ayesleigh? Afsaana? in this map red shows known taken cities (Qarinus is Ventus), purple highlights Kont-aar, which is the only Qunari settlement on the continent, pink is a guess at the Qunari forces moving into Rivain (Kont-aar as a staging ground?) and the black dotted line approximately blocks off everything east of Vyrantium, including northern Antiva.

I wonder what this could mean for the plotbeats of DA:D?? choosing a side in Tevinter vs Qunari in an arc focused on that, assisting the Crows fighting the invasion, or the war as more of a backdrop to other stuff like the mage/Templar war in the Hinterlands in DA:I? I really want to learn more about the possible schism in the Qun, and I hope the Hero of Ferelden never meets Stenishok on the battlefield :'(

(Could the invasion of eastern Tevinter be part of why Dragon Age: Absolution is set in Nessum, a city in the west? If you don't want battle with the Qunari to be the focus or backdrop of your storyline, you'd need to pick a city out of the path of the invasion.)

Solas is also probably benefitting indirectly from the chaos of the invasion of the north. in TN, an agent of Fen'Harel hired two thieves to try and make it look like a Tevinter altus struck at and blew up a peaceful Qunari settlement (Kont-aar). this would have caused chaos as the Ben-Hassrath wouldn't have been able to sit out the Qunari invasion of the south anymore and Rivain and even other countries/groups might have gotten drawn in. Gatt said that if this scenario occurred the Qunari would have settled for nothing less than the total destruction of Tevinter. (reminiscent of Corypheus causing chaos during DA:I in order to take advantage of the confusion and weakened nations) if things are more chaotic in general, it's easier to carry out your plan. and the Ben-Hassrath will now be busy trying to blunt the strike of the Antaam (per Gatt), leaving them less free to act against the true threat as they see it, Solas. that's another point in Solas' favor as the Ben-Hassrath have more knowledge on his movements than anyone else, and they oppose him as they believe he threatens their people.

Treviso also has history - it was captured and liberated several times during the Qunari Wars and the New Exalted Marches. parts of Antiva still bear the scars of when the Qunari invaded northern Antiva 200 years ago. I wonder if the magical horn/voice-projection devices ("echoed across tiled rooftops via magical projection, devices left by long-retreated empires") were left by prior Qunari invasions or another empire, perhaps the Tevinter Empire when it was at its height, when it spread across most of Thedas? that would make the magical aspect of those devices make more sense.

I loved Neri, Noa and their sibling relationship, it would be fun to meet them in DA:D. it's always nice to see older characters in the spotlight, being badass while they do it, grey hair, walking stick/cane and all. the older Crow motif reminded me of Lessef in An Old Crow's Old Tricks. ig Crows are so cool they basically don't retire. It'd be good to have an older (older than middle aged) combat companion in DA:D!

I'll say that if you're an assassin, telegraphing that you're an assassin on your clothes isn't very stealthy, but the Crows are sometimes dramatic and showy, "performers" after all. and who are they descended from? one of the monks from Treviso? with the zipline, traps, rooftops and black ink markings, this short felt quite 'Assassin's Creed gameplay' and reminded me of Shadowmarks from Skyrim's Thieves Guild. could some of this sort of thing be gameplay features in DA:D? Joplin was about spies, stealth and heisty stuff after all.

I fell for the siblings' fakeout for a minute when reading and was legit like

since "They looked suddenly helpless, as though not just the Antaam but every one of their years had caught up to them." was a raw line. there is no surer enemy than Time right?

"Or out of time, like your city. And soon, the world. [...] And soon, stronger"?? what are the Antaam's "strange weapons"? explosives of some kind? gaatlok? in Trespasser, during Dragon's Breath Qunari were mining and processing lyrium to give to their Saarebas to strengthen them, to "save the South". are the Crow siblings simply unfamiliar personally with Qunari explosives, or is there something more going on here?

the "brutality", the "war lords", "controlled, not calm", commanding through fear - like it says in TN, there's no Ben-Hassrath present to judge or regulate the Antaam, and no workers and priests present to be a moderating influence. the Ben-Hassrath who investigated in TN were disappointed in the Antaam and believed that they were not acting in accordance with the Qun.

"And Kaathrata the Lash was left raised where Crows could peck at his eyes. // Come the morning, so would the birds." another metal line 👌

Ammazzacaffè, Treviso

"Did you hear—?"

"Did you see—?"

is it a bird? is it a plane? no it's a Crow caw caw

Trevisans as the denonym for Treviso is cute.

And lastly, who put out the contract, and who picked it up? Perhaps Lucanis and/or Illario?

[needlesslycryptic]

Glynn Mahariel for @jaalamadarav! 

[felassan]

After The Blight

A timeline of the Hero of Ferelden’s movements and notes about their activities after the end of the Fifth Blight

I just wanted to collect it together somewhere. Obviously it does not apply if the Hero performed the Ultimate Sacrifice, although sections of it will apply to Orlesian Warden-Commanders. This is a mixture of canon information, suppositions and headcanons (so it’s a mix of a reference post and personal notes about my own HoF). The latter two things are clearly marked as such. This post has been updated. (Tevinter Nights spoilers under cut)

9:30 Dragon - Fifth Blight begins.

9:31 - Fifth Blight ends, events of DAO end. The Fereldan reign or service to the crown of Queen, Prince-Consort and Chancellor HoFs begins. The HoF studies the Blight. There is an investigation effort into the darkspawns’ remaining secrets.

supposition: shortly after the coronation of Ferelden’s new monarch[s], the HoF answers the First Warden’s summons to Weisshaupt and travels there to report about the Blight. if the Dark Ritual was performed, they avoid mentioning it, despite the pertinent questions they are asked about why no Warden died killing the Archdemon. suspicions in the order abound 

supposition: if Avernus continued his research in some form, the HoF begins working with him around this time

personal headcanon: Dog never left HoF’s side after the Blight, because why would he? I know what it says about replenishing in the kennels, but that could easily be done during HoF’s many trips to Denerim

9:31, 4 months post Blight - Zevran has now begun his quest to dismantle the Crows, so romanced Zevran has most likely left HoF’s company by this point.

9:31, 6 months post Blight - Queen HoF marries Alistair in lavish ceremony. If Alistair was romanced, they then tour Ferelden. Prince-Consort HoF marries Anora in lavish ceremony.

note - The timings of the events in the expansion, DLCs and DA2 Act 1 are a bit squashed and inconsistent, which is why things in the upcoming segment get a bit janky

17th of Ferventis, 9:31, 6 months post Blight, post royal wedding - The Darkspawn Civil War/Amaranthine Conflict and the events of Awakening begin. The HoF had been promoted to Commander of the Grey, Ferelden’s Warden-Commander. They travel to Vigil’s Keep having been tasked by the order with rebuilding the Wardens’ presence in Ferelden and dealing with the remaining darkspawn plaguing the nation. Romanced Warden Alistair could not join them as he had been assigned to the Warden parties in charge of the Thaw Hunt (a hunt for remnant darkspawn pockets). Romanced Zevran could not join them as he was away hunting and being hunted by the Crows. Romanced Leliana could not join as she was summoned for an audience by the Grand Cleric.

supposition: HoF’s promotion was given to them during their time at Weisshaupt. it’s both a reward for their service during the Blight and a maneuver by the First Warden to capitalize on the HoF’s reputation and the post-Blight state of Ferelden (which was weakened and freshly appreciative of Wardens). the goal was to leverage the Wardens back into prominence and power in Ferelden

9:31, 12 months post Blight - This basically brings things into ~9:32. The Darkspawn Civil War/Amaranthine Conflict and events of Awakening end. If the Architect was spared, other Wardens in other nations are appalled, but the Wardens think the ensuing conflict between groups of darkspawn might make the Deep Roads safer. If the Architect was spared, HoF begins work of some kind with the intelligent darkspawn and has interactions with them in the coming years (in 9:37, Warden Nathaniel calls these darkspawn “The Warden’s allies” and mentions information these allies provided the Wardens with). Soon after what happened with the Architect, if Avernus continued his research in some form, HoF sends him information about the Architect.

personal headcanon: HoF names Nathaniel Howe their second-in-command. Nathaniel becomes Constable of the Grey, Warden-Constable of Ferelden

favored headcanon: HoF names romanced or befriended Warden Alistair their second-in-command. Alistair becomes Constable of the Grey, Warden-Constable of Ferelden

9:31 - If Avernus continued his research in some form, Hawke finds a very important set of Warden letters and documents from the HoF intended for the First Warden, on a dead body on the Wounded Coast in the Free Marches. HoF dispatched the messenger from Ferelden via Amaranthine to go to Weisshaupt by way of Kirkwall, possibly with the aid of an agent in Kirkwall. The courier was most likely dispatched from Vigil’s Keep. Something had happened that the HoF is concerned about and wanted to inform the First Warden of ASAP. Enclosed was a message from Avernus to the HoF. This message indicates that the HoF has been working and corresponding with Avernus to aid his research, including sending him shipments of supplies. Avernus’ research has made progress but also revealed some alarming implications, and he urged the HoF to inform the FW at once. 

supposition: “supplies” includes live subjects, as in sentient beings (Ghilan’nain would be proud)

supposition: due to everything with Avernus if he continued his research, it’s around now that seeds begin to be sown in HoF’s mind of finding a way to escape the Calling 

personal headcanon: the agent in Kirkwall is Varric Tethras, or one of his people. after all, he is an information broker, spymaster and someone who knows everyone

~9:31 - The events of The Golems of Amgarrak take place. HoF investigates Amgarrak Thaig after being invited to Orzammar by Jerrik Dace, on a search mission to find a lost expedition. Most likely takes place after Awakening because Jerrik sent a letter requesting aid to Vigil’s Keep.

personal headcanon: the HoF has contact here with House Tethras, who canonically funded Jerrik’s search mission

9:32, nearly 1 year after the Archdemon’s death - The events of Witch Hunt take place. HoF searches for Morrigan through the Korcari Wilds, Cadash Thaig, Kinloch Hold and the Dragonbone Wastes. If HoF romanced Morrigan, they may vanish with her through the eluvian. In some universes Kieran has now been born. For some HoFs, they now meet their son for the first time.

supposition: it’s now that Morrigan tells some HoFs about the leads she found that point to the western lands as a place where a cure for the Calling might be found. if HoF didn’t leave through the mirror, some HoFs may now find that the “gift” Morrigan left them along with the stolen Dalish book is information about these leads. do note that some HoFs are implied to have come into the knowledge without Morrigan’s involvement

supposition: 9:32, post Witch Hunt - It’s now that HoFs who romanced Zevan travel to Antiva to reunite with him for a time, their expansion and DLC-business being concluded. they do what they can to help him in his Crow quest

9:32 on, for a time - HoFs who romanced Morrigan, fathered Kieran and left through the mirror help Morrigan raise Kieran for a while. This goes on for a long enough time that the roughly ~10 year old Kieran clearly remembers his father in 9:41.

supposition: much of this family life took place in hidden, secret places, some of which are in Thedas ‘proper’ itself and some of which are in the Crossroads and places reached via the Crossroads

supposition [?]: 9:32 on, til leaving / ‘mysteriously vanishing’ in ~9:40 - HoF most likely based out of Denerim Royal Palace and/or Vigil’s Keep, being largely occupied in this period with the duties involved in being Queen, Prince-Consort, Chancellor and/or Warden-Commander of Ferelden. The former would involve such things as advising, often being seen at court, helping to rebuild Ferelden in the wake of the Blight, and resisting the influence/incursions Orlais attempt around this time. The latter would involve such things as recruitment, training, establishing bases, sending annual reports to Weisshaupt, scouting, clearing remnant darkspawn activity, rebuilding Vigil’s Keep and/or Amaranthine, overseeing the arling etc. It’s also likely that Warden business would take them to other parts of Thedas at times. Romanced Zevran and romanced Leliana both assist when they can with rebuilding the Wardens, without officially joining. Depending on HoF’s actions during the Darkspawn Civil War/Amaranthine Conflict, potential events such as a riot of common folk at Vigil’s Keep can occur here. HoF continuing to actively serve in the Wardens during this time probably isn’t just supposition due to how they and Warden Alistair can refer to their duties in 9:41. Still, there’s lots of space and flexibility in this period for headcanon, for example to include things from the ‘rumors’ and such listed at the end of this post.

supposition: HoFs who romanced Zevan are involved on and off as they are able in this time period with his Crow quest, helping when they can. “on and off” refers to their involvement in his quest, not their relationship. canonically around this period Zevran is known for high profile kills of Guildmasters and having some of the others in his pocket. by 9:34 he has 2 out of 7 Guildmasters in his pocket and has killed at least one other along with Eoman, 2 Grandmasters, and 4 other members of House Arainai

personal headcanon: HoF establishes Soldier’s Peak as a secondary and proper functioning Warden base in Ferelden, and it comes to rival Vigil’s Keep

personal headcanon: HoF grows increasingly dissatisfied with the actions and attitudes of the Wardens (primarily the First Warden and other leadership in the Anderfels) during this period, and in the later years begins to consider making a play for power and seizing the First Warden’s seat

~9:33, 1 year after Darkspawn Civil War/Amaranthine Conflict ends - If HoF saved the city of Amaranthine, it is finished being rebuilt. Relevant because it is part of the arling goings-on, which is currently in HoF’s hands.

personal headcanon: 9:34 - HoF visits their clan near Kirkwall, having sent word ahead to Merrill. HoF is able to see Merrill and Marethari again prior to Marethari’s death in Act 3. this ties in handily with the timeframe when Warden Stroud/Alistair passes through Kirkwall on a mysterious important Warden mission. HoF, in the company of this Warden party (which includes Warden Carver), meets Hawke and is reunited with Anders/Justice and Isabela. HoF meets their contact Varric in person for the first time

~9:36, 5 years after Darkspawn Civil War/Amaranthine Conflict ends - If HoF saved the city of Amaranthine, Vigil’s Keep is finally finished being rebuilt.

supposition: ~9:37 (dependent on when Hawke did MoTA) - Not long after Hawke kills Corpheus, HoF begins digging for information about him much like the DAI Warden contact. HoF is investigating rumors they had heard and found about him, being concerned that he would be able to jump host bodies on death like an Archdemon. This happens in romanced Warden Alistair worlds in tandem with Alistair, and I don’t see why it would be exclusive to those. This can technically occur anytime between 31 and 37, but 37 makes the most sense for this to happen, as I can’t see HoF sitting on Corypheus knowledge for almost a decade before he rose

9:37 - Queen HoF is at home in the Royal Palace in Denerim when King Alistair meets Hawke in Act 3.

supposition: Prince-Consort HoFs, Chancellor HoFs, HoFs who remained King Alistair’s paramour, HoFs who were friends with King Alistair and potentially some others are also at court in Denerim at this time, either visiting or in a less temporary manner, depending

9:37 - Hawke meets Warden Nathaniel and possibly their Warden sibling in the Deep Roads. The First Warden had ordered an investigation along Hawke’s Deep Road expedition route, as Hawke went further into the Roads than anyone believed possible and the Wardens are interested in the primeval thaig. The Wardens obtained directions from Bartrand and were prepared to do extensive excavations around the thaig using explosives.

supposition: HoF had some involvement in the above, for example overseeing, organizing and decision-making on a level more local than the First Warden’s initial order

personal headcanon: Hawke’s Warden sibling has been under HoF’s command in recent years

personal headcanon: 9:38 - HoF accompanies Alistair during the events of The Silent Grove, Those Who Speak, and Until We Sleep. these events canonically take longer than 3 weeks, probably ~2 months. their travels take them to Antiva City, the Tellari Swamps, Ventus, Seheron and the Fade. HoF is reunited with Sten and Isabela, and meets Maevaris

~9:40, before Cassandra interrogates Varric - HoF departs on their long-ass quest to the west to find a cure for the Calling. Romanced Zevran accompanies them. Their journey takes them far out of the areas where Corypheus is operating, to lands untouched by Blight. Cassandra initially seeks HoF now, but cannot find them, most likely because they’ve left. Romanced Leliana couldn’t go because Justinia called on her for help. Romanced Warden Alistair stays behind to investigate the mounting concerns in the Wardens with corruption in the ranks, Corypheus, Wardens disappearing and the false Calling.

supposition [?]: Awakening Warden companions that we’ve not heard from again - so Velanna, Sigrun and Oghren - accompany HoF on their quest, explaining why they haven’t resurfaced

personal headcanon: in the months prior, HoF began to grow concerned about stirrings of strange behavior in Warden ranks, much like the DAI Warden contact

9:41 - A letter arrives to Weisshaupt from the new Warden-Commander of Vigil’s Keep. Around this time Clarel is noted to have stopped writing to Weisshaupt.

supposition: there is a new Warden-Commander because HoF has now departed on their quest. the new one could be temporary in the interim or a permanent replacement. the new one is possibly whoever HoF promoted to Constable of the Grey / Warden-Constable of Ferelden, as Wardens of this rank are second-in-commands who step in when the Warden-Commander is away. [headcanon note here: if HoF had elevated Alistair to the position, it’s possibly now occupied by someone else given Warden Alistair soon goes into hiding after becoming concerned]

9:41, mid-Inquisition - It proves difficult, but Morrigan, Alistair or Leliana facilitate Inquisition contact with the HoF and an exchange of letters between HoF and the Inquisitor. HoF signs their letter “Warden-Commander”.

supposition: given how they sign the letter, it doesn’t seem that they have officially stepped down from the role yet. alternatively, a Warden can continue to use the title after stepping down, or this is an inconsistency. I think it’s most likely the new Warden-Commander in the Weisshaupt letter above is acting-WC at this time point

~9:44, post-Trespasser - HoF has returned from their quest to find a cure. If they romanced Leliana, they rejoin her. If Leliana is Divine, HoF is often seen at her side. If not, their respective responsibilities often keep them apart, but whenever they can they spend time together at a villa on the Waking Sea.

supposition: HoF didn’t come back until now, as they are not mentioned in the base game epilogue. their quest really took years

supposition: All HoFs return now, because why would only Lelimancers make it back?

supposition: HoF found a cure, given the fairly light tone in the romanced Leliana epilogues. if so, they probably step down from being a Warden, as Fiona was not allowed to remain in the Wardens after being cured

supposition: If HoF romanced Morrigan or Alistair or married Anora, they instead rejoin their respective LI, or LI and child in the case of Morrigan sometimes. Leliana, Morrigan and Warden Alistair as LIs in DAI all express the same sentiment of what amounts to “this time, when we rejoin one another, we intend to stay together”. romanced Zevran here was already with them, having gone on the quest

supposition: At this time point HoF clearly still has some continuing responsibilities of some form. work with the Wardens in an advisory capacity? ongoing service to the Fereldan crown? there’s lots of space and flexibility now for headcanon, for example to include things from the ‘rumors’ and such listed at the end of this post

supposition: It appears Leliana tells romanced HoF of the troubles to come (’for both saw the troubles that were to come’). presumably this is a reference to the Dread Wolf and related threats. I assume she would tell this to any HoF that she was good friends with

personal headcanon: the cure for the Calling is distributed to Anders and Carver. whether it’s distributed to all Wardens or made common knowledge to all Wardens is debatable

personal headcanon: HoF ‘takes care of’ some of befriended Divine Leliana’s enemies. I especially favor this headcanon with romanced Leliana

~9:44, post-Trespasser, probably into 9:45 - ‘The Bard’ reports a sighting of an unspecified Warden-Commander in an auctionhouse in Llomerryn, talking to disguised Divine Victoria. This Warden-Commander’s identity is left unstated, and this story of the Bard’s, or this part of the story, seems like it was made up.

supposition: this was made up and never happened, given the context. I do love the allusion to the apparent contact and scheming between HoF and romanced or befriended Divine Leliana, though

----------

There are also lots of things that the HoF was rumored or can be suggested to do post-game in the DAO and expansion epilogues. If desired, these could easily be woven into headcanons and stories to help fill the periods where there are large timegaps. You could also headcanon in HoF appearing with romanced Zevran and romanced Leliana at various timepoints when they resurface in the narrative, for example.

continue to have unspecified adventures and travels

travel with Sten to Par Vollen

travel with Wynne and Shale

dwarves: return to Orzammar, potentially Paragon duties

Mahariel: return to their clan

Tabris: potentially Bann of the Alienage duties

Cousland: return to Highever, help Fergus rebuild

and so forth

[felassan]

The Hero’s Journey to the West

This post is a mix of meta, speculation/conjecture and headcanon.

I don’t think the Hero of Ferelden is ever coming back as a PC or NPC beyond mentions/rumors and Codex entries/letters, but their quest to find a cure for the Calling fascinates me. It always makes me think about the Chinese novel by Wu Cheng’en. 

We know that they came back from their trip. We don’t know if they succeeded or not, but since the romanced Leliana epilogues are fairly happy in tone, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to headcanon that they did - at least, in terms of ridding themselves of the Taint. I feel like whether they succeeded in finding a way to allow all Wardens to escape the Calling would be something up in the air, like, kept-back at the moment by the devs; because surely such a revelation would rocket through the Warden order and in a future title might be heard about or alluded to in-game, crop up in a Codex somewhere, color our future interactions with Warden characters on the Wardens’ end, or potentially influence future storybeats relating to the Wardens. (It would be a rather major thing.) In dialogue Morrigan says that if the HoF is successful, it will mean a long life for him/her/them, and perhaps even a long life for all Wardens.

On the ‘when’: Although the Hero was gone by the time Divine Justinia died (per romanced Leliana dialogue), they didn’t leave straightaway after the events of Awakening and Witch Hunt (Heroes who fathered Kieran had not yet met their son at the time of WH), since in DA2 Hawke meets King Alistair and Queen Warden was home at court, and in DAI romanced Morrigan says her partner helped raise Kieran for a time before events transpired to take him elsewhere (which is a reference to his journey).

On the ‘who’: In the ancient novel Journey to the West, the monk Tang Sanzang has powerful disciples who help and protect him on his journey: Sha Wujing, Zhu Bajie and Sun Wukong. In my head there’s a fun parallel here to DA’s four-man parties, and how the HoF is accompanied by - for example - Ariane, Finn and Dog during the episodic DLCs like Witch Hunt. This is purely headcanon, but I always liked to think that some of the Awakening companions that we never heard from again (so not Anders, Justice or Nate) and who in some epilogues mysteriously disappear, accompanied them on the quest for the cure; Velanna, Sigrun, possibly Oghren. (And Dog, of course - Dog in my head never left the Hero’s side after DAO, the notion presented in the games that he sometimes did is odd to me. Why would he, lol?) These characters could easily have a vested interest in wanting to rid themselves of the Taint. And obviously Zevran went with them, if romanced.

There’s plenty of material on which to base speculation about how a cure for the Calling might come about or be obtained, what the cure might involve. You have the case of Fiona, there’s Avernus’ research, there are instances where the Taint was drawn out of living things as with Isseya’s clutch of griffon eggs, the Architect doesn’t appear to be subject to the Call of the old gods and freed some darkspawn from it too, etc. I’m more interested atm in where the HoF went.

Leliana tells us the Warden went "far to the west, to lands that have never known the Blight”. Their search took them out of the area in which Corypheus was operating, and thus beyond the reach of the false Calling that affected other Wardens. During the timespan of base-game DAI, they were still in geographical regions which were reachable in such a way as to allow messages from Leliana’s agents to get to them after Leliana/Morrigan/etc gives the Inquisitor the means to contact them, and for letters from the Hero to be sent back in return. (That could be something essentially handwaved on the part of the devs in order to allow for the mechanic of hearing from the HoF in DAI, though.) Here I’m always reminded of the men of the Night’s Watch taking caged ravens with them in their expeditions beyond the Wall, so that the birds can carry messages back to the manned outposts. I look at the map of Thedas and wonder. Where might they have gone? Where was the western-most outpost of the Inquisition?

West of Ferelden takes you into Orlais, where the effects of Corypheus’ operations were felt. The Hero might naturally have taken the Imperial Highway and passed through settlements like Halamshiral, Lydes, Verchiel, Montsimmard and Val Firmin en-route. Such a route makes logical sense both in terms of convenient travels and the fact that in a war table mission, Leliana’s agents report “scattered references of [the Hero] passing through the area” (said area is not specified, but it makes sense that the Hero would have at times passed through inhabited places, since at times they were sighted). It should be noted however that when this war table mission is undertaken, the card ends up ‘played’ on the western shores of Lake Calenhad. Still, unless you took ship through the Waking Sea, most likely any journey west from Ferelden would have passed through or near that part of the country anyways, due to the sheer size of the lake, the highway following its banks and the fact that Gherlen’s Pass is the only safe route through which to cross the Frostback Mountains, at least in terms of year-round travel.

Anyway, in the western reaches of Orlais is the Western Approach. The Approach was the site of a major battle during the Second Blight - its desolate sands and barren badlands are definitely not lands which “have never known Blight”. And we know from a war table mission that the mines and tunnels of the Gamordan Peaks are infested with darkspawn, that the large darkspawn host that appeared at Val Gamord came from the mountains. Here is where it gets interesting. Were the environs of the Sulfur Lakes, Malcellin Geysers and the Sea of Ash always this way, as in this is the naturally-occurring geological/geothermal profile of the area (volcanic), or are they so wretched because like the nearby Western Approach, the land was corrupted beyond recovery during a Blight? I imagine that the Hero would have largely avoided these areas and the Approach due to this (inhospitable travelling terrain + Blight-touched/probably Blight-touched), and instead at this point struck out more north-westerly for a time.

Doing so would bring someone through or around the Nahashin Marshes. Above we can see the location of Serault in relation to the Approach and the Marshes. There is a crossing point in the Nahashin Marshes used by a merchant in The Last Court, who travelled from Val Chevin through Montfort and Ghislain, before going across the Marshes to get to Serault. Given this and the fact that they’d likely be steering away from the Approach, I can see the Hero following the Highway all the way to Ghislain and then crossing the Marshes on their way to Serault, obviously without going to Val Chevin, which would amount to backtracking.

What then of Serault, the mysterious marquisate located in the far west of Orlais? It’s Orlais’ western-most holding, and per a Codex entry as far west as one can still call civilized. I certainly headcanon that the Hero passed through here before forging further into wilds and lands unknown - here Serault Town has a Tolkienesque “The Last Homely House” feel to it, perched on the edge of it all:

This is the edge of the world. Beyond Serault Town is the Last River, and beyond the river, villages, charcoal-burners, the wilderness.

Per war table missions, Inquisition agents also travel to Serault during the time-frame of base-game DAI - here we have what is likely to be one of or the last place[s] where the Hero could have picked up messages from the Inquisition before ‘jumping off’ into the unknown. Laysh is another possibility, route-dependent (see below).

Serault is a strange place, where “unlikely” things happen. Perchance, was there useful knowledge to be found here? Morrigan herself dwelt here for a time, researching at the Glassworks and working to repair an eluvian. It’s implied she does this regardless of whether the Marquis allows her to or not. Notably, it is Morrigan “who found the lead[s] the Hero now follows in the western lands”. This was probably the “gift” Morrigan gives the Hero in Witch Hunt. She leaves them the stolen Dalish book Ariane was seeking to get back, and "something [else that the Hero] will find of great interest”. (She doesn’t give the something-else gift if he goes with her, but if he goes with her she’d just tell him in-person about what she’d found, so it stacks regardless). That said, when it’s a romanced Warden Alistair worldstate it sounds like he and the Hero found the lead on their own. I enjoy the leads being Morrigan’s gift though as an idea, and as a way of filling in what the heck the gift was.

Courtier’s children in Serault play at “Wardens and Darkspawn”, implying that Serault has either once been touched by Blight or else that tales of Blight and darkspawn and Warden heroics have reached the settlement. “Roads under the earth” (how very Deep Road-esque) are implied to stretch from Seraultine lands to an emergence somewhere in the Vimmark Mountains, there’s a bereskarn in the nearby woods and at one point the Marquis imagines the “tang of Blights” when a bitter wind blows from the north. I therefore find it unlikely that Seraultine surrounds have never been touched by Blight. Suspect the Hero ventured farther still, through the Applewoods - both the tamer Greenwood and the sinister Deepwoods, into the depths of the Tirashan. I’m obsessed with the Tirashan and its enigmatic denizens. What things they must know... mysterious, forgotten things. Are these elves ancient elves? To whom are they calling? These elves seem to guard their lands very fiercely, so it’s not a crazy idea that if the Hero entered the Tirashan they encountered some. Would an elven Hero have had a smoother initial interaction with them? It’s also not a crazy idea that the Tirashan elves might have knowledge that would have proven useful in the Hero’s quest, given the hints that they call to powers we possibly haven’t yet encountered. Their red vallaslin and apparent propensity for sacrificing people make me think of blood magic, and blood magic has practical uses in combatting Taint (Isseya’s spell on the griffon eggs, Avernus the blood mage, the Dark Ritual which was blood magic-based and ultimately caused the removal of Taint from Urthemiel’s soul, etc).

Say the Hero journeyed farther still. Over/through or under the southern Hunterhorn mountains to the forest or continuing forest on the other side (see the map of Thedas with expanded edges given to us in TN), which is inhabited by who knows what. Here the “Beyond Thedas” sections in WoT are of interest:

For many ages, the world that lies beyond Thedas has been largely unknown to us. Rumors and legends exist, tales of hardy sea captains crossing the ocean in search of treasure or ill-fated forays into the wilds, but they have always been buried under hearsay. Any serious attempts at exploration have been foiled by either the devastation of the Blights or the discouragement of waters plagued by both pirates and Qunari dreadnoughts.

The Hero surely would have researched such scattered references to the ill-fated forays, and sifted through hearsay, as 'homework’ before setting off on their trip. Going deep into the wild western wood is tantalizing in a frontier kind of way, but we can’t ignore the following entry in WoT, which I think was included in this manner for a reason.

Say instead the Hero travelled through the Hunterhorns and the Anderfels, maybe with a detour to nearby Weisshaupt to report in, confer with the First Warden and check the archives in its extensive library in case anything in there could prove useful in their quest, much like the recruit Valya did during her own investigation. The Anderfels are super Blight-blasted, so they would not have stopped there. In terms of travels in this area, I think it’s likely they would have joined a caravan being led by the Green Men order through the Wandering Hills to the distant port of Laysh.

The Voshai are yet another mysterious, unknown culture, and have materials and items that are completely unknown in Thedas proper among their wares. They come from a far-flung place and seem to Know Things. The status of dwarves in their society and their interest in lyrium is interesting, given the link both dwarves and lyrium have to underground places and the Blight. Can the reports of the recent return of the Voshai vessels to Thedas be a coincidence? I don’t think so, in the context of things discussed in this post. What powers and potentials are to be found among the wares of the Voshai that these Tevinter merchants were so keen to mount several expeditions into the wild unknown in search of them, even after several voyages never returned? I think the Hero probably took ship at Laysh (either they managed to secure passage on a docked Voshai ship, or there was an expedition vessel the Hero chartered), and went across the Volca Sea to the lands of the Voshai. Here they could have found a cure, and then a Voshai ship to then take them back to the known Thedosian continent.

A final few notes: You have to wonder, the lands which are untouched by Blight, why is that? Is it environmental - natural barriers or environmental conditions inhospitable to darkspawn? Is it magical protection? Are there limits to the darkspawn/Blight’s realm of influence, and if so, why, and how do these limits work? Does the fabled cataclysm in the lands of the Voshai have anything to do with a Blight (you could definitely describe a Blight as a cataclysm, for one thing)? And why on the new map with expanded edges from TN, along all the borders/expanded space, despite the fact that in WoT the “Beyond Thedas” stuff discusses all directions - why on the TN map is there only one place at the edges with an arrow pointing off into the unknown realms? Granted, it’s not the west Tirashan nor is it the north-westerly Volca Sea, but it is notable and worth mentioning. What lies south-west in the Sundered Sea, and why is it marked like this?

[felassan]

Do you think that your OCs would get along with Felassan?

Hi Nonnie! Thanks for the cool question.

The Warden would probably respect him, if not quite as an elder at this point in time. But if they had met before the events of the Fifth Blight, they might have ended up with a dynamic not unlike the one between Felassan and Briala. I see some similarities between Briala and the Warden.

I don’t think he’d like the Champion. That fact is a reflection of my Champion’s personality and so forth, not of Felassan or Hawke in a general sense.

He actually wouldn’t be that out of place on a mysterious passing visit to the Marquis’ court in Serault, I think, given how intriguing and odd a place it is. His general overall vibe and countenance would have quite suited being an advisor/associate or unique event / Market Day card or something in that game, now that I think about it. The remarkable and strange lone elf, Blown in on the Wind? He’s not dead that’s where he’s hiding, in the Tirashan -  ( ˃̣̣̥ω˂̣̣̥ )

The Inquisitor wouldn’t really trust him initially, and would think his circumstances suspect. Their personalities are pretty different. Maybe something could grow there, given time, in some AU where he lived and decided to try and help the modern elves and they ended up joining forces or something (also wherein Cassandra doesn’t exist). I once wrote a fable where they meet and he helps out, and 'something’ is like, suuuper vaguely implied in like.. 1 single line lol. It’s really stylized and she’s semi out-of-character in it as a consequence, but in parts it does explore a possible dynamic between them. (There’s also a 0% chance that they wouldn’t smoke together at least once.)

[felassan]

listen, Heroes of Ferelden who survived the events of DAO came back from their Inquisiton-era quest to find a cure for the Calling in the West. If they romanced Leliana, Trespasser epilogue slides can read thus:

[Divine] Leliana continued her open affair with the Hero of Ferelden. [They were] often seen at the Divine's side 

[non-Divine] Leliana continued her romantic affair with the Hero of Ferelden, even though their respective responsibilities often kept them apart. Whenever she could spare the time, Leliana would join her love at a villa on the Waking Sea - the house from Leliana's childhood. Those days were deeply cherished, for both saw the troubles that were to come.

there’s no reason at all why the Hero returning from their quest would only occur if they romanced Leliana or be dependent on that. the Hero canonically came back.

[felassan]

instances when elves can gain noble titles / similar

Mahariel, Tabris or Surana becoming Chancellor of Ferelden

Mahariel, Tabris or Surana becoming Teryn of Gwaren

Tabris, Shianni, Soris, Cyrion or the unnamed other elf becoming Bann of the Denerim Alienage

Mahariel, Tabris, Surana or Andras becoming Arl of Amaranthine

Sera was at one point supposed to inherit the estate, land and holdings, at least, of Lady Taraline Emmald. that was the Lady’s intention anyway

Briala becoming Marquise of the Dales

Keeper Deshanna’s and the unnamed City Elf’s seats on the elf-led City Council of Wycome (the new council replaced a Duke)

Lavellan becoming a Comte of Kirkwall

Not all of the DAO boons are retconned, some are just not mentioned again, which is important to note. I can also see Viscount Varric making Merrill a Lady or Comtesse of the Kirkwall Alienage in order to give the elves there some clout. Wouldn’t it be neat if he also made Fenris a Comte and gave him the legal ownership to the holdings of Danarius’ mansion? This post also doesn’t cover the status that would be gained in instances where noble human PCs romance and marry or could conceivably go on to marry elves (e.g. Trevelyan married to Sera, Hawkes in relationships with Merrill or Fenris) or where elf PCs romance and could conceivably go on to marry noble characters (e.g. Lavellans in relationships with Josephine).

[felassan]

by the time of DA4, it’ll be 9:45 at leaaast. if griffons age anything like horses do, the thirteen hatchlings Valya found in 9:41/9:42ish should be ridable or otherwise reaching a stage where they can begun to be trained ("trained"? introduced to? who even knows) to be ridden.

[felassan]

I have Andruil as being very important to my Lavellan so I cannot wait to see the potential consequences there! There’s so much info packed in such little material from the game

The possibilities are exciting. and this is true. take the tree as an example. what does it represent? callback to the similarly prominent tree in the DWR teaser yes, and obviously the potential symbolic meanings of the tree were discussed to death then, but:

Mythal? (branching vallaslin)

Andruil? (Vir Tanadahl, elven Fervanis/Fervenial)

Neromenian Fervanis/Fervenial?

the Dalish? (Vir Tanadahl)

a vhenadahl? (and so meaning alienage communities, potential elven uprising?)

Arlathan itself (vhenadahls are symbolic of this to CEs)

The Dalish kingdom? (Vallasdahlen, Emerald Knights and other heroes)

bana’vhenadahl - the ruined tree of the People? (and so meaning the People in general and an unpleasant fate, either their historical one or one coming)

Solas (foliage on one of his tarot cards)

several of these things at the same time

it also makes me think of sylvans but I don’t think that’s part of it. back to Andruil, you then have the story Felassan tells of Fen’Harel and the Tree, her curiously highlighted prominence in the first story in TN, and how Strife calls Arlathan forest “her” forest. gosh the red lyrium infesting the tree has me unreasonably freakin. 🌲 👀 this is 250% way overthinking it but it’s fun and harmless x)

(I similarly wonder in regards to my Warden!)

[msg refs this post]

[felassan]

what if the Hero of Ferelden left a skype crystal with their LI or best friend when they set off on their journey into the west to find a cure..  (˚ ˃̣̣̥⌓˂̣̣̥ )

[felassan]

since my worldstate is "Thedosian elven heroes with names beginning with G" (a trend started by Garahel during the Fourth Blight), and since BW took "Yarrow" away from me by using it in Anthem (l0l), you can find me looking at lists of Latin/Greco-Roman names and words that begin with G in case race selection returns and the elf PC's origins are City Elf/an elf from Tevinter

[felassan]

Where do you find out Shianni's fate after the elven boon? I must've missed it. I was real sad when they retconned the boons since it felt like a big character choice for the warden ;_; Although I suppose that if bioware gives no shits about their worldbuilding then we shouldn't be obliged to give shits either.

DAO epilogue slide:

Resistance from humans saw a rise in violence in the city, however, which culminated in Shianni’s murder by a human bigot several years later. The resulting riot in the Alienage forced a crack-down from the throne, a clear signal that the tension with the elves had not been resolved.

In some cases the HoF still made the choice, but the attempted implemented measure didn’t work out in-world. That blows for sure (I’m still sad about how the Dalish boon turns out, it’s my fav and my HoF is a Mahariel who originally made that choice til I changed it after as a result of what transpires ;;), but what choice the HoF makes at the time at least still speaks to their personality and values as a character. Some of the eventualities not working out are also I guess unfortunately not that surprising given the in-universe prejudices present in the world and grimdark/crapsack world tendencies Thedas has thematically (whether that’s cool/aight or not in the frame of this topic is another subject), especially in the case of DAO.

I don’t know that it’s a case of BW giving no shits about the worldbuilding, especially in the case of the boon and things in the DAO epilogue slides. They’ve said that they pretty much regret having included the slides like that now, especially ones which cast so far into the future, as they were mostly written to neatly tie things off for all the dangling threads in a nice bundle in case there wouldn’t be another game, because they weren’t sure whether there would be a sequel or not. It was kinda like writing themselves into a corner with significantly diverging outcomes when the next few games as it turned out were to be set in the south. This lack of planning for the future came back to bite them I guess. but I guess they weren’t sure if it would become a franchise. The epilogue slides were also put together very quickly. At the time the game was also a spiritual successor to Baldur’s Gate, so the slides were kind of like a traditional convention.

[msg refs this post]

[felassan]

elven reavers elven reavers elven reavers elven rEAV-

[felassan]

I see your Kingsguard and raise you.. King’s Bard

[felassan]

Some info on where we've reached in the current timeline [x]

As of 9:45 Dragon, Gryff Lavellan is 34, Logan Hawke is 39 and Glynn Mahariel is 37 🤯

[felassan]

getting rdy to flex my “I reject ur reality and substitute my own” character-insertion goggles once again in BioWare’s general direction again lol.. like how there’s no way in heck the events of The Silent Grove/Those Who Speak/Until We Sleep went down without my Alistair-romancing Warden also being present,   there’s no way in heck the events of Blue Wraith would unfold without my Hawke bein there too