#da:tlc

[exhausted-archivist]

The Reign of Divine Justinia V - 9:34-9:41 Dragon

Divine Justinia V ruled for just a little over 6 years. One of the shortest known reign for a divine in Chantry history.

I would like to note that due to the nature of BioWare and the awareness of their timeline, travel times, and storylines, not all the events in the same year have a clear order of which came first.

Here is the general timeline of what occurred since her coronation to her death:

9:34 Dragon

Ascends as Divine of the Orlesian Chantry, formerly known as Revered Mother Dorthea.

Rejects Ser Otto Alrik's request for the Tranquil Solution in Kirkwall.

9:35 Dragon

Justinia makes a pilgrimage to the Temple of Sacred Ashes, passing through Haven. She announces that Haven shall be restored and rededicated to the service of Andraste.

Asks Pharamond to look into the nature of Tranquility, to discover if there is a way to "restrict magic without neutralizing the mind." She does so without the knowledge of Lord Seeker Lambert.

9:37 Dragon

Sends Leliana to Kirkwall to gather information on the threats occurring in Kirkwall, believing it to be from outside groups.

Divine Justinia tells Elthina to leave Kirkwall as it is no longer safe. Elthina declines.

Objects to Lady Seeker Nicoline's appointment of Seeker Lambert, citing that she found him too conservative during her interview with him.

9:38 Dragon

Published the Abridged Edition of the Chant of Light on 12 Harvestmere 9:38. The focus was to bring back the beauty of the original dialects and languages of the canticles.*

9:40 Dragon

(These following events are in order of how they happened as they take place over the course of the novel Asunder. Except for the where Justinia sends Cassandra and Leliana to Kirkwall. That takes place after the events of Asunder.)

Justinia sends Leliana to the University of Orlais to speak with Empress Celene about the state of instability in the empire's politics. During this meeting, Leliana makes a deal with Celene on Justinia's behalf; Justinia deals with the instability of the mages and templars in the wake of Anders attack on Kirkwall, while Celene deals with the unrest with Halamshiral/Orlais elves.

As part of the deal with Celene, Justinia is delivering a speech at a ball Celene threw for her (Celene doesn't make an appearance as she is marching on the elves in Halamshiral). The speech she is about to deliver is in support of mages. Though she is interrupted as Jeannot, a Libertarian Senior Enchanter from the White Spire, attempts to assassinate her.

Justinia authorizes Wynne to go rescue Pharamond, a Tranquil mage who has become possessed during his experiments into tranquility at Adamant fortress. Wynne brings Rhys, Evangaline, Shale, and Rhy's friend. Unknowing to all but Rhys, Cole tags along.

Justinia authorizes Pharamond to be made tranquil again at the advice of Lord Seeker Lambert, despite the protest of Wynne and Rhys.

Justinia sends Leliana to the White Spire to aid the mages in their revolt while calling Lord Seeker Lambert to her side to distract him.

Cassandra, Leliana, and a group of Seekers still loyal to the Divine are sent to Kirkwall to recruit Hawke for the role of leader of the Inquisition; believing that they will have influence to reach a resolution between the mages and templars.

9:41 Dragon

Divine Justinia calls for the Conclave one year after the start of the Mage-Templar War.**

In the summer, Justinia travels to Serault to determine if Serault should have the Shame lifted and the Chantry reopened. Depending on the player, determines if it is or not.

Justinia dies in the explosion at the Conclave at Corypheus' hand. This starts the events of Inquisition, presumably taking place in late autumn since the Conclave happens a year after the events of Asunder and after Justinia's visit to Serault.

Notes:

*Originally, in Origins, it was said the Chant of Light was written only in Tevene. As of 2014/Inquisition era lore, the Chant is now a collection of canticles from various languages.

**There is conflict on when this happens as her journal entry says she called for it a year after the start of the Mage-Templar war, which starts in late autumn. But the Conclave is known about during her visit to Serault which takes place in the summer. Suggesting the journal entry is referring more towards when the Conclave was scheduled then when she announced it. To add to this, Lord Seeker Lucius agrees to the Conclave before he meets with Corypheus and submits to Envy, presumably in the early months of 9:41; however, this is speculation.

Sources:

Dragon Age 2 Dragon Age Inquisition World of Thedas Vol. 1 World of Thedas Vol. 2 Dragon Age Asunder Dragon Age: The Last Court Codex: The Conclave Divine Justina V Haven Ser Alrik's Letter

Wanna support this blog? You can check out my ko-fi.

[danielnelsen]

current thing: trying to map out the last court (as someone who never played it)

[cassiaorsellio]

jumping on the bandwagon. i selected these based on who i thought would cause the most discourse for different reasons while keeping it a little bit competitive. propaganda under the cut.

rosalind/anders — anders' rival romance. she doesn't want him to go through with it because she doesn't want to see him hanged. he keeps everything a secret because he doesn't want to get her involved. they're constantly arguing and fighting one minute and making out with tongue the next. it's like she's suffocating him with her desire to protect him after she's lost her family, but in doing so, denying justice's purpose and making things worse. yet he says she's the only reason he's even still sane. grief is a form of madness and sets them down paths the other can't follow. i would drown this city in blood to keep you safe. you're right, you are a monster. in the end, all i could do was put him down out of mercy.

eugénie/gaspard — holy age gap — probably even considered a bit scandalous for orlesians (41 years — even though it's for an express purpose.) extremely tempestuous marriage that was a major contributing factor to the exalted council because of eugénie being the inquisitor's niece. both could be considered tyrants by their people - with her people considering her marriage a concern that their more isolationist ways will be forced to conform with the rest of the empire. she does nothing to temper his expansionist ambitions. she lured him in using the thrill of the hunt, not opposed to garnering his attention if it meant she would get what she wanted. he is fully aware of what she's doing and allows it anyway for the sport of it all. his love is believed to be purely conditional, he may not hesitate to remind her if she steps too far out of line.

leonelle/nyrissa — doomed yuri!!! two cursed queens doomed to never be together. they haunt each other's dreams and manipulate one another constantly, have the audacity to air out their dirty laundry while the double agent is having a mental breakdown in the corner (#skylarkmoment), nyrissa wants to keep leonelle in her dream realm imprisoned and leonelle almost considers it. they've tried to kill each other so many times over the years and leonelle failed to lift her curse - and efusing to ally with her while still under the influence of said curse instead, so she killed her <3 nyrissa still haunts her from beyond the grave btw.

valerius/camellia — when curiosity leads to sanguinary delights and obsession leads to heresy. they feed off each other's secrets, and they murder people to fuel their desires. she tries to ghost him in the abyss. he considered sacrificing her for lichdom. she's tried to kill him multiple times. he would let her consume him if she so desired. they fight and argue and will make each other so much worse no matter what. she leaves him, and they're both too obsessed with each other to truly let go and would damn nations in the process. if you looked up "obsessive codependency," you'd see a picture of them

[violasarecool]

"The laws of courtesy are so inconvenient: do not set fire to this chevalier, do not encase that baroness in a block of ice... How are we supposed to get through the day?

Morrigan, The Last Court

so guess what i just discovered........... im laughing morrigan is my fav

(what i rly want to know tho, is when this takes place exactly. like, she “bears the gold seal of the empress” so presumably this is after 9:37, but)

[earlgraytay]

For years, I’ve been saying that there’s a very specific kind of Dragon Age game I wanted- I’ve alternately called it a “small” game, a “a “Harvest Moon Dragon Age game”, or a “world-centric game”. 

Basically- a game more like DA2, where you’re not the centre of the universe, but with some of the best elements of DAI, where you’re having to make difficult decisions about what’s right. Your character has some elements pre-determined, just like Hawke- because you’re just as much part of the world as the NPCs or the enemies or the trees, and there are some things about your past you can’t change, no matter how much you want to. 

In this kind of game, you’re definitely not at the centre of the universe - you’re at the periphery. You will never be one of the Great who Rattle the World with your footsteps- you’re not the Warden or the Inquisitor-  but in your little patch of land, you’re the one who decides what’s best for your people.  

There is a Dragon Age game that exists that does every single one of these things, and it’s made by Failbetter Games. AKA- my favourite game studio of all time. 

My thoughts on it - other than ‘you, go play it, now’-  below the cut.

Things I love: 

- The system where your three primary goals are diametrically opposed, and you have to balance all of them. Freedom raises your ability to talk to your subjects and learn useful things from them, but it’s also likely to lower your Dignity and give you Rumours of Revolution. Dignity is likely to lower your Prosperity and your Freedom, but it’s essential for dealing with the Empress and your courtiers. Prosperity is - well, it’s your nation’s $$, you need it to keep going, but trying to maximise it at the cost of your Freedom or Dignity is going to cost you. 

- MORRIGAN. WITH A FALLEN-LONDON-ESQUE NAME. I want to find out more about what she’s doing and her dialogue is perfectly in character and aaaaaa every DA game needs more Morrigan. Every single one. I don’t care what she’s doing I just want more of my scornful sorceress daughter.

- The writing style fits so well with Dragon Age’s world. It’s just the right mix of sarcastic, heartfelt, and High Fantasy Poetic. :’) 

- You really get to feel what a minor noble in Orlais has to deal with- you get to see how terrifying maleficarum are to the common folk, how utterly pointless the Great Game is and why you have to play anyway, how you have to deal with your useless mask-y courtiers and your tyrannical awful vassals and the Chantry and... GOD it’s so good. 

Things I’m ambivalent to: 

- I really, REALLY wish you had more actions. Which means they’re doing their job of getting you to buy F2P Content (TM) - but alas. 

- Some of the references- especially the ones to Hawke- feel a little fanservicey. I’m perfectly okay with this, but as I understand it some people might not be. 

- Still really early in the game, but it feels like it’s shorter/has less depth than FL. Again, this is completely understandable- it’s a short story to FL’s ridiculous sprawling 700-page Gothic novel - but “I wish there was more” isn’t the worst problem a game could have.

TL;DR: It’s a really damn good game. If you like Dragon Age, go play it. Right now. It’s free unless you want to buy Dawn, so it’s the best time investment you’ll make for a while. 

[kendallroynsfw]

achieving the "most satisfactory ending" in tlc is literally the proudest moment of my life but like thank fuck that's over with bc that thing caused me SO MUCH STRESS

[threestories]

The Forgotten Ones

Your soldiers clash with elven archers at the forest's edge. The elves are cold-eyed, with tattoos of brilliant crimson. They extract a red price from your warriors before fleeing into the deeps. For a time, the border is untroubled.

"I've fought the Dalish before," mutters a scarred sergeant. "I've heard them call on their gods in battle. Elgar'nan for vengeance. Fen'Harel when they think all is lost. But these ones called out to no gods I've heard of before. They weren't calling out for aid; they were offering us up. Like pigs on a platter.'

I AM SO CURIOUS ABOUT THIS.

[skybound2]

silentstephi replied to your post “I will not buy Dawn I will not buy Dawn  I will not buy Dawn I...”

I'm saving the purchasing of DAwn for my second play through...

Ohhhh, that's a good plan. I think I can hold out for that!

*twitches*

[prideandpiracy]

Agh someone kidnapped my lover in The Last Court!

[One Way Or Another by Blondie starts playing]

[exhausted-archivist]

EDIT 1/21/2023: Corrected the timeline of 9:40 as I found that it is established that Cassandra and Leliana are in Kirkwall post the onset of the Mage-Templar war. Also added additional formatting sections and a title.

The Reign of Divine Justinia V - 9:34-9:41 Dragon

Divine Justinia V ruled for just a little over 6 years. One of the shortest known reign for a divine in Chantry history.

I would like to note that due to the nature of BioWare and the awareness of their timeline, travel times, and storylines, not all the events in the same year have a clear order of which came first.

Here is the general timeline of what occurred since her coronation to her death:

9:34 Dragon

Ascends as Divine of the Orlesian Chantry, formerly known as Revered Mother Dorthea.

Rejects Ser Otto Alrik's request for the Tranquil Solution in Kirkwall.

9:35 Dragon

Justinia makes a pilgrimage to the Temple of Sacred Ashes, passing through Haven. She announces that Haven shall be restored and rededicated to the service of Andraste.

Asks Pharamond to look into the nature of Tranquility, to discover if there is a way to "restrict magic without neutralizing the mind." She does so without the knowledge of Lord Seeker Lambert.

9:37 Dragon

Sends Leliana to Kirkwall to gather information on the threats occurring in Kirkwall, believing it to be from outside groups.

Divine Justinia tells Elthina to leave Kirkwall as it is no longer safe. Elthina declines.

Objects to Lady Seeker Nicoline's appointment of Seeker Lambert, citing that she found him too conservative during her interview with him.

9:38 Dragon

Published the Abridged Edition of the Chant of Light on 12 Harvestmere 9:38. The focus was to bring back the beauty of the original dialects and languages of the canticles.*

9:40 Dragon

(These following events are in order of how they happened as they take place over the course of the novel Asunder. Except for the where Justinia sends Cassandra and Leliana to Kirkwall. That takes place after the events of Asunder.)

Justinia sends Leliana to the University of Orlais to speak with Empress Celene about the state of instability in the empire's politics. During this meeting, Leliana makes a deal with Celene on Justinia's behalf; Justinia deals with the instability of the mages and templars in the wake of Anders attack on Kirkwall, while Celene deals with the unrest with Halamshiral/Orlais elves.

As part of the deal with Celene, Justinia is delivering a speech at a ball Celene threw for her (Celene doesn't make an appearance as she is marching on the elves in Halamshiral). The speech she is about to deliver is in support of mages. Though she is interrupted as Jeannot, a Libertarian Senior Enchanter from the White Spire, attempts to assassinate her.

Justinia authorizes Wynne to go rescue Pharamond, a Tranquil mage who has become possessed during his experiments into tranquility at Adamant fortress. Wynne brings Rhys, Evangaline, Shale, and Rhy's friend. Unknowing to all but Rhys, Cole tags along.

Justinia authorizes Pharamond to be made tranquil again at the advice of Lord Seeker Lambert, despite the protest of Wynne and Rhys.

Justinia sends Leliana to the White Spire to aid the mages in their revolt while calling Lord Seeker Lambert to her side to distract him.

Cassandra, Leliana, and a group of Seekers still loyal to the Divine are sent to Kirkwall to recruit Hawke for the role of leader of the Inquisition; believing that they will have influence to reach a resolution between the mages and templars.

9:41 Dragon

Divine Justinia calls for the Conclave one year after the start of the Mage-Templar War.**

In the summer, Justinia travels to Serault to determine if Serault should have the Shame lifted and the Chantry reopened. Depending on the player, determines if it is or not.

Justinia dies in the explosion at the Conclave at Corypheus' hand. This starts the events of Inquisition, presumably taking place in late autumn since the Conclave happens a year after the events of Asunder and after Justinia's visit to Serault.

Notes:

*Originally, in Origins, it was said the Chant of Light was written only in Tevene. As of 2014/Inquisition era lore, the Chant is now a collection of canticles from various languages.

**There is conflict on when this happens as her journal entry says she called for it a year after the start of the Mage-Templar war, which starts in late autumn. But the Conclave is known about during her visit to Serault which takes place in the summer. Suggesting the journal entry is referring more towards when the Conclave was scheduled then when she announced it. To add to this, Lord Seeker Lucius agrees to the Conclave before he meets with Corypheus and submits to Envy, presumably in the early months of 9:41; however, this is speculation.

Sources:

Dragon Age 2 Dragon Age Inquisition World of Thedas Vol. 1 World of Thedas Vol. 2 Dragon Age Asunder Dragon Age: The Last Court Codex: The Conclave Divine Justina V Haven Ser Alrik's Letter

Wanna support this blog? You can check out my ko-fi.

[skybound2]

I will not buy Dawn

I will not buy Dawn 

I will not buy Dawn

I WILL NOT BUY DAWN

[cosmicsolipsism]

ffffffffffffffffffff this Last Court game is going to keep me busy for a long fucking while