#simply because ameridan is there

[fenharel]

had the misfortune to read things in the solas tag again. 12 dead 27 injured

[v-arbellanaris]

I have no idea why but I absolutely hate how Ameridan' story was handled, they basically dumbed it down to him worshipping both the creators and andraste/chant of light, which kind of proved Cassandra's dumb (and incredibly disrespectful) point of an inquisitor having "room for another god". It's also so unfair how they made the evanuris to just be power hungry slavers and tyrants, my only hope is that if the creators were disproving then I hope it would be the same for the chant of light and maker (seeing asnit was solas who made the veil and not the creator) I really hate how centrist the game has gotten, like flat out, whenever I hear the words grey morality and nuance I can't help burn cringe, that's how much dragon age has ruined it for me.

It's also so incredibly funny how the devs are genuinely surprised that most of the players are pro mage, like of course we are?

i think it's particularly extremely aggravating, the way bioware writers write about a pantheon as if polytheistic religions are simply a thing of the past and dead and some kind of mystery/mythology. according to bioware, this kind of writing for polytheistic religions is fine because no real religion these days would everrrrrrr worship multiple gods /sarcasm. (note that the links are just some examples and not comprehensive in the least)

there's a lot of writing choices i quite simply disagree with in dai, and there's some that are just... i don't even disagree with them because that implies it's something to argue about. some of their writing choices are just wrong. after borrowing so heavily from ethnic groups to shape their fictional histories, the disrespect of writing their fictional oppressed minorities as being responsible for their own oppression because they were not "open" enough to include/absorb expy christianity into their religious beliefs and fought back against violent colonialism. the resulting clumsy collation between isr*el and the indigenous people of the americas wanting to reclaim their lands stolen from them by white colonisers makes my blood boil.

ameridan is just another piece of the puzzle that makes me seethe. we have a man who apparently ~existed before hostilities between the elves and the humans~ which is now the fault of drakon's son who invaded the dales after ameridan was long gone. that's already absolute bullshit because ameridan lived in the fucking dales. elves only started living in the dales AFTER ANDRASTE'S REBELLION. after the fall of arlathan, and hundreds of years of enslavement at the hands of tevinter humans???

additionally, the battle of red crossing happened in 2:9 glory, but tensions between the elves and humans had been building up since the second blight. drakon the first died in 1:45 but the elves apparently did "nothing" to help montsimmard when it was overrun by darkspawn in 1:25 divine - twenty years before his death, there was already simmering resentment. additionally, it was drakon the first that expanded the orlesian empire and the orlesian chantry - wotv2 notes his battles against the darkspawn did more to spread the chant of light (specifically, the orlesian chant of light which he, yknow, fucking made up) than any of his other attempts. by the time the exalted march on the dales happens, over three quarters of thedas is under orlesian rule. maferath himself handed the dales to the surviving elves from andraste's campaign in -165 ancient and the elves lived in the dales peacefully until the orlesian chantry was salivating at its borders. and the orlesian chantry has a history of wiping out "cults" - i.e. other sects of their own religion that differ from belief, no matter how minor, to their own. including, notably, the wholesale genocide of a non-violent sect centered around fertility rituals and, later, the dragon worshipping sect in haven off their own land. (and i'm willing to BET MONEY that they were originally alamarri themselves, considering that andraste was brought there to rest, and considering how cultural variance in religion usually occurs [i.e. through the blending/adoption of folk beliefs or the cultural/religious practices from Before]. so the andrastians slaughtered the cult AND THEN TOOK THEIR FUCKING LAND.)

the entire way andrastianism is treated in inquisition makes me violent. and unfortunately, it does not look like it's going to change - there's been multiple statements about how the maker's existence will continue to remain "a mystery" out of a reluctance to confirm or deny the existence of a One True God which, coupled with how they've shat on every other religion in the game - the tevinter chantry, the qun, the stone, the elven pantheon, every other sect worshipping the maker/andraste - gives me absolutely no hope that the writing team is going to get their heads out of their asses about it.

[crackinglamb]

Questions for fic writers: #7. Any worldbuilding you’re particularly proud of? (*bonk*)

From this list.

Just one? All right, lemme think...

Magic as music in the DA setting. (Did I just write out what the acronym Thedas means? Yes.)

Oh man, this got long. I know, I see your totally unshocked face from here. 😁 Also, spoilers for What a Wicked Game to Play.

Now, at least part of this is not worldbuilding I created, since it's broadly and heavily hinted at in-game. Several characters equate magic and music, calling it a symphony, talking about how it sings or hums or gets into the back of your mind like an earworm (ie the Calling and red lyrium, both Blight magic things). I mean, it's called the Chant of Light, and one doesn't recite it, they sing it for goodness sake! Alas, so long as the music plays, we dance. Thanks Flemythal. That's not at all ominous to consider regarding what might happen if the 'music' stops.

Anyway, moving on.

All I've done with it is take it to a natural (to me, as both a scientist and musician) conclusion. Music and math are intrinsically linked, after all. Eight notes in a scale, in several octaves, means innumerable combinations. Some are melodic because they have patterns, some are just noise. Imagine playing a segment of pi on a piano. It would have no rhythm, because none of the numbers are a repeating sequence.

But the idea led to this:

There is a scene in WG where Imogen, dreaming in the Fade while her body lies unconscious, maps the mathematical signature of the Veil. And she does it by converting the pattern of magic into soundwaves. Yes, I put trigonometry into a fanfic. Yes, I am unashamed and remorseless about this. To this day I'm proud of the fact that I got to use 'asymptotic' in a sentence.

She discovers some interesting and horrifying things in the course of this. As she is the one carrying the Anchor, she can feel its presence within her, especially while dreaming, because all things are possible in our imaginations. And the Fade is a real place to her, as an MGIT, so her perception of it makes it tangible and malleable even though she isn't a mage. (And there's a bonus worldbuilding thing I'm super proud of.) She discovers that at one time it was a seamless resonance, which makes epic magic performed by people like Inquisitor Ameridan even more impressive. Each Blight has weakened it, distorting the music until the math starts to turn irrational. She discovers that the tempo of the Anchor and the Veil no longer sync up because of all the 'holes' in the music (rifts, thinning, etc). As of right now, she hasn't fully figured out what this means for Solas's plans. But she will; that's why I made her this way.

And finally, she learns that regardless of what anyone, Solas included, does, the Veil will fall because the music of it will simply disintegrate at some point. The Veil is less of a physical barrier than it is a counterpoint of music that 'blocks' the Fade from being part of the waking world. This is a real concept, by the way. Using sound to create images: sonar and radar. Using different sounds to block those images: jamming. Resonance is fun.

For most beings on Thedas, magic comes from the Fade, and some of the 'signal' must still pass through the Veil or there would be no more magic left in the world at all. But if the Veil falls due to disintegration, the consequences are incredibly damning. Magic will be unleashed in unpredictable and cataclysmic ways. She likens this to waves on a beach. Each wave is unique, each leaves a different effect in the sand. Her hypothesis is that if Thedas is the 'sand' here, and the waves are the Fade, without the Veil the world will become uninhabitable due to the disruption of things like gravity and the atmosphere and the fabric of reality. The Veil needs to come down in a controlled manner to prevent this. The steady surge of a tide rather than storm breakers. And she does feel that it needs to come down; Thedas was not meant to be separated from its inherent magical nature forever. The Veil was a stop-gap solution for a specific problem, but now it's choking the world. (And oh yeah, it also failed to contain the problem ultimately, but that wasn't Solas's fault. *points to the Sidereal Magisters*)

Okay, that was a lot of words to say something rather simple: the entirety of WG was really just to set this up for Imogen. The next major arc for her is how it all fits together and what she's going to do about it. I'll be writing that as soon as I figure out what that is.

Thanks for the ask, you knew what you were getting into. *bonk* 😘

[lairofdragonagelore]

DLC: Jaws of Hakkon - Frostback Basin, Miscellaneous

Professor Bram Kenric of the University of Orlais sent word to the Inquisition that he had found clues regarding the final resting place of the last Inquisitor, Ameridan, who disappeared under mysterious circumstances in the early years of the Divine Age. He believes that this discovery would be beneficial to both academic research and the Inquisition itself, and asks that the Inquisitor join him in the Frostback Basin to help him in his investigation. 

The objective of the DLC seems to be learning a lot of lore about the last Inquisitor, a bit of the ancient Dalish of the time of the Second Blight, a lot of Avvar lore, and a strange, unique process of willingly possession of Avvar mages that changes the value of Avvar Knowledge in general.

I personally think that the most important role of this DLC is basically teaching us in a very explicit way that all the “official” History of Thedas may be a lie. It makes a parallel with any story we follow in DA series: the origin of the Qunari, the truth of the Maker, the creation of the Veil, the Truth about the Elven Gods, the Tevinter Magisters, the Golden city, etc. Every piece of History has been altered and twisted over time for political, cultural, or simply convenient reasons, and this is more than important to keep it in mind every time we appraise the value of a source.

In this post I gather some aspects that I did not know where to put in the other posts:

Kenric: The Scholar

The Icetroll

The Veil and the preservation of the Waking World

[This is part of the series “Playing DA like an archaeologist”]

[Index page of Dragon Age Lore ]

Kenric: The scholar

The DLC starts with a scholar looking for the last place of resting of the previous inquisitor, assuming it’s in the Frostback Basin. The gist of all this part and the whole DLC when it comes to Ameridan is that the Chantry knows little [or erased a lot] about this inquisitor because political reasons. Many of those mysteries are discovered by the end of the DLC, showing us how much the “official History” lies due to political or mass control reasons.

On the other hand, Kenric explicitly makes some comparisons with buckles and how History is told through the merging of cultures in a single place which has been inheriting the buildings of the previous ones: the resulting ruins is a combination of all the inhabitants through time. This is a nice call back to the player in basically all the series of DA; we have been seeing this since DAO, in the Ruins of Brecilian Forest where elven ruins were taken by Tevinters [or the other way around], or Kinlock Hold; a tower made by Avvar and dwarves which was taken by Tevinters first and then by Ferelden later to install the Circle of Magi of Ferelden, or Vigil’s Keep in Amaranthine which was made by Avvars and Dwarves and later taken by Ferelden. There are many examples along the series. So, basically, Kenric (and Collete) is there to teach us how to read the mess of the structures and buildings we see around.

When we discover Telana and the bits of information about what Ameridan was meant to do in this area, and under the orders of Drakkon, we speak with Kenric again, who gives us quite an interesting detail in terms of how researchers in Thedas work: beyond his personal information [you can check wiki for that] he tells us that the University of Orlais, with its flaws, has a broader open mind to the incorporation of elves in their researchers, and, as he says, to contact spirits in order to have firsthand reports of battles. 

This two aspects mean, implicitly, that most of the information we gather in codices that belong to well established books inside this world, lack of elven point of view [nothing new under the sun] and some of them may be complete and total lies considering that any researcher can say their work has been based on an interview with spirits. It’s so unreliable. However, honest researchers such as Kenric, who will base their research on true words givien by Spirits, may have quite a unique and high-quality information of an event. 

All over the basin we find typical Avvar statues: in particular those called The Keepers of Fear which are everywhere in these lands, used as columns with braziers to illuminate the area, as signs to guide the path to the nearby hold [Stone-bear hold], or merely as decoration in the land. We also find Eroded dragon skull and monoliths with ropes that we have seen in other parts of Ferelden.

It’s not unusual to find fragments of ruins. Some are a combination of Avvar/Ferelden art, like these monoliths with a rope on the top, others are columns that had fallen apart from Tevinter buildings. We know it’s Tevinter because the pattern in the lower part of the columns has been seen in ancient Tevinter structures like  Coracavus or  The Still Ruins. 

Tevinter walls that predate the First Blight can be found as well. They use the same style [angular, pointy structures plus the hexagonal designs] than the ones we found in Western Approach.

There are several Tevinter outposts [or ruins of them] in the open of this region. Close to them we find these diapason-like devices decorated with the typical Tevinter dragon gargoyles. This diapason-like device was seen clearly in the base game during the Fade, in the quest Broken Window .  Although we could not guess its function back then, in this DLC they seem to work like transporters of “arcane” energy trough long distances.

Close to the encampment where the Inquisition is placed in the beginning of the DLC, there is cave which has some remnants of Ameridan’s presence and his companions. Its inside displays building walls with Tevinter patterns on it.

Among other codices and notes referring to Ameridan and his companions, there is a codex in this cave which triggers Mouth of Echoes. It seems a reliable codex since it was written by a Tevinter who lived here at that time. It speaks about a Tevinter appreciation of the avvar: they consider them savages, they laughed at the avvar who screamed their questions into this cave, waiting for an answer in the last whisper [this suggests that Tevinter, for once, did not slaughter the avvar on spot in this region, but observed them and interacted with them to the point they knew how the avvar named  this cave and how it worked for them]. Now, when Tevinters felt the absence of Razikale and lost their minds, the narrator begins to implicitly wonder if the avvar were not right about this cave and tries to analyse it in terms of Tevinter arcane knowledge: they assume that, if this cave works, it’s because there is thin Veil around. It's here where this person suggests to insert foci in the walls of the shrine they will erect in the name of Razikale and cut the stone in sacred shapes [dragon like?]. This scroll seems to be around the time of the First Blight simply because the gods went silent.

We need to remember that foci are the Tevinter equivalent of elven orbs, which usually have the property of magnifying the powers of the user.

We also find in the Basin the mysterious Ferelden Wyvern close to the astrarium.

The icetroll

In the same fashion than the saga of Tyrdda Bright-Axe Path, we find here a similar song about the Tale of Hryngnar, Ice-Troll.

Things that Tale of Hryngnar, Ice-Troll implies:

Trolls are disconnected from the Fade like the dwarves

Avvar warriors tried to kill Hryngnar to have a legend-mark, but they ended up killed by his icy-powers.

Hryngnar, the Ice-troll had protected the Avvar’s homes against giants.

When the warriors of Tevinter came to build their fortress here, the ice-troll also attacked them, freezing their walls to easily break them. This way, the tale explains how and why the Tevinter left which is presented as a mystery all along the DLC.

There is not much to say here. I think we didn’t see trolls in DAI so far, so this creature may be a giant [which we have seen slaved by Venatori already]

Treating this tale as I do with Dalish’s, we can only say that it claims that the Tevinter presence disappeared because this creature attacked them in their fortress. I’m not sure that’s something we can confirm in the DLC with evidence. It’s more or less clear that Tevinter came here to contact Razikale when she went silent, but it’s not clear at all why they left, specially when there is evidence that they wanted to establish a new Minrathous here.

The last stanza of Hryngnar, the Ice-troll, is triggered at a statue we saw before in the Hissing Wastes. This statue is supposed to be a variation of the Keepers of Fear.

What’s funny is that the devs have been placing a joke to call out players in their syndrome of the conspiracy board guy. There is a codex that updates along several locations in the region, explaining about a bunch of lunatic topics. The codex is Mysteries of the Frostback Basin. It is very funny to read and see how the lack of evidence and sources makes all conclusions end up in hunches and ideas pulled from the author's ass. I laugh with his explanations "As proof, Professor Whalen Vankin maps Lines of Power Across the Basin in his book "Ode to the Ordo Templis Royalis." He does not SAY so in the book to a Casual Reader, but certain secret signs left by the Professor to befuddle his Enemies point to it very Clearly, if one reads the text eight times." lol, they speak to each theory-crafter of DA.

The author speaks of gigantic snake-kings, that we can, more or less, consider like titans, reptilian ones, that could be the ones we found in the Descent DLC called the Scaled Ones, and the moon men, which I don't know to what relate. Blighted creatures who had resistance? In any case, this codex is _too much_.

Later in game we will learn that these notes belong to the Avvar trader Helsdim, who lives in the Stone-Bear Hold and, if recruited by Inquisition, he will continue working on conspiracy theories that make no sense. 

In any case, this small detail about the conspiracy notes is useful because we can see once more that the presence of this drawing of many eyes means that whoever was there, was in a conspiracy board guy mode. He even used a glyph of magic.

The Veil and the preservation of the Waking World

An important lore concept we learn in this DLC is that the Veil being thin in some parts of the world is not always detrimental: we see patches of unknown flowers growing inside areas affected by the Fade. In the isle, we will be informed that the Veil delays the passage of time, which makes a lot of sense and is coherent with what we saw in the Western Approach: The Still Ruins, or Ameridan’s own magic, who kept the dragon and himself frost in time while casting something very Fade-like green.

When we visit the isle to see the fate of Ameridan's lover, we find her remains in a shack that still holds despite having passed 800 years. Around the body, there are many flowers.

Solas informs us that this rift is like the one we found in Still Ruins: and ancient rift that was not made by the current events in Inquisition.

When we open this rift, the spirit that has been keeping Telana’s memories speaks:

Telana was a dreamer Dalish

Drakkon asked Ameridan to slay the avvar dragon that was putting Orlais in danger.

Here,  we find a document that triggers the codex Ancient Document Protected in a Scroll Case which shows the deep relationship between Ameridan and the emperor of Orlais Drakkon. This confirms parts of our suspicions when exploring the Exalted Plains: Elves and Humans had a deeper relationship during the times before the Second Blight. 

Close to her remains, we find a book that triggers Unfallen Shack where we are informed that apparently time around the rifts passes slowly [or spirits of Preservation try to keep things in its original state], so ancient objects may look barely old if they were exposed to these rifts for centuries. This has an odd coincidence with Ameridan's powers: he stuck Hakkon and himself in time to keep it trapped. 

As a nice detail of how lore affects even at a small scale: there is some felandaris plants [they only grow where the Veil is thin] around this isle, since the rift has been open for several centuries.

From Telana’s skelleton we loot a bow with a description that seems reiterative again:

This bow seems to have its own pulse and is oddly warm to the touch.

Warm things with pulse. We have been seeing those in many places by now. According to Solas in The Lost Temple of Dirthamen, it is because the object has a part of the living thing inside. Another place where we feel this is in the Western Approach,  in the cave where we find the “thing in the dark” which has a statue of the  The Strange Idol which triggers the note: “This statue is oddly warm to the touch and shivers slightly, as though it might have a pulse.”  We can assume that this is caused by some spirit being bound to the statue, as it has been shown in DA2.

Does this mean that the Dalish knew a magic similar to the Dirhtamen disciples’ even in times when their history has been half erased? Certainly this is such an odd detail.

[notebooks-and-laptops]

Jaws of Hakkon is so incredibly impactful every single time. It aches. It aches in ways I struggle to capture with words. Jaws of Hackon has two overarching themes, themes that compliment and inform one another to create an achingly bittersweet dlc.

First is the last inquisitor. By exploring the frostback basin through the lens of a historical expedition into the last to hold your own title, the game forces us to come face to face with how the world at large might remember our inquisitor. Ameridan's life has been stripped clean and made digestible for the Chantry and ruling classes of Thedas. It is no longer remembered that he was a mage or an elf. His lover? Not remembered at all, even though she died of a broken heart waiting for him to return to her. His companions? We know nothing about but what he tells us, despite how deeply important they are to him and how he'd be 'lost without them'. The last inquisitor is a hero in his own right, but a hero that wasn't remembered even half way respectfully because of what the chantry/society found embarrassing or simply not useful for their propoganda. We are then forced to confront how our inquisitor will be remembered and if anything we've done throughout the game will truly affect meaningful change in the long run.

Second we have the Avaar. You are thrown into a society which is completely antithetical to the chantry and circle teachings and yet...they work. Spirit possession is a regular occurance and one that ends peacefully and willingly when a mage comes of age. Spirits are honoured and spoken to regularly by those trained to do so, listened to even. There's no fear of having too many mages either, being a mage is seen as truly a gift. And then! You have the fact that they respond peacefully to whatever race you are. Meanwhile, your companions are freaking the fuck out: take Bull, Sera, Viv in particularly and they are straight up not having a good time. To a lesser extent, neither are Dorian, Blackwall, Varric or Cassandra. The only companions who seem truly comfortable with the society in the frostback basin are Solas and Cole who both obviously have grown up outside the current reigning cultures in Thedas and so have no hang ups the Avaar are forcing them to confront.

And these two themes together mutually inform one another. You are left with a sense of what society could be without the reigning beliefs on mages/magic/spirits by hanging out with the Avaar but then by uncovering more about the last inquisitor you are shown both what society is and how hard it would be to ever change anything even if you - the most important person in Thedas currently - are leading by example as a mage or a non-human. All of that can be so easily erased after all, forgotten and made more convenient.

And I just love that. I love the whole dlc. I love it so goddamn much.

[asomniari]

I’ve had thoughts that have plagued me for a while. What happens to ancient elves who woke up in Thedas after the Veil came up? I read a meta thread that suggested time might not have existed as we know it until after the Veil came up, and another that discussed the immortality of the elves could have been a gene that was gone from the next generation of elves until all of them became mortal. But what would that do to the elves who were alive before the Veil came up? They didn’t even notice it until they started interacting with humans, and subsequently freaked out. I feel like the popular thought is the elves born before Solas locked away the Evanuris is they stayed immortal. But so far we’ve only seen elves from Arlathan who slept between the ages. Solas, Abelas, the Sentinels of Mythal’s temple, Felassan probably. 

What about the elves who survived Arlathan’s destruction and the loss of all the magic the elves had? Perhaps it was the constant magic that surrounded the elves was what sustained their immortality. We get no hints of aging from Felassan, Weekes never mentions anything special about his appearance. I’d love DA4 to go in depth about the ancient elves and their immortality.

The real question is: do the elves who lived before the Veil stay immortal simply because they were born before it, or do they slowly start to age outside of Dreaming and letting the Fade sustain them?

[serphena]

Hello! I love your art if Theo and Cassandra. I don't know if you have posted anything about it before so I'm sorry if this is repetitive but: does Theo believe in the elven gods? If so, how does that work out with Cassandra being super Andrastian? And how does she feel about it? Do you have a tag for them and their relationship? 🥺🥺🥺

for them both I know I tried to tag the content with ‘pentavellan’ sometimes but searching for cassandra pentaghast on my blog will do the trick and show you all the content for the ship as well :)

Yes he does, or at least tries to respect what he has learned so far after joining the clan. As a kid he wasn’t really raised with any religion present in his life, his mother tried to tell him the stories of both the elven gods and the history of Andraste that she remembered, but it wasn’t much. 

Getting to know the dalish and what they lived by, he found a sense of belonging and decided this is what he will believe in, because it made sense. He isn’t against andrastians, it’s simply not his religion to live by.

At first, they clashed a lot, and one of the reasons was the difference in their beliefs - or more importantly the feeling Theo got anytime they got close to discussing it, that he was being just pressured time and time again to start believing in the Maker.

After he heard Cassandra’s comment about making more space for another god in their pantheon, he snapped and called her out on it, stating he will not get back to the topic ever if talking with her’s gonna look like that and something that’s important to him will be constantly dismissed. He even asked her what if he got some figurines of elven symbols put in their chapel and after she reacted with extreme disapproval, he just looked her straight in the eyes, thanked her for the answer and left. 

Some time later they got back to the topic and she apologized. 

One of the big moments I liked that appeared in game and made them think about the whole topic more was finding the shrines for Telana and Ameridan.

Then after Trespasser he pretty much had a crisis of faith and tried to find balance in what he learned about the gods, what the dalish believe in and taught him for most of his life, so he still follows the traditions his people came up with, but doesn’t mention the gods names as much as before.

[pellelavellan-a]

Even More Post Trespasser Notes

I covered ages 27-30 after trespasser. Now onto 30+

Before getting into that information. More brief information of the worst things that occurred in those three years.

The Really Bad things (cw for death, violence, dark themes...may dark themes):

1. The first place he ran after leaving was Kirkwall where he hid in the alienage. He'd have taken refuge in the home Varric had left for him, but he wasn't comfortable being in such close proximity with the upper class in Kirkwall. Because this was the first place he hid officially he was not as successful at covering his tracks and hiding as he would have wished. He was tracked down by hitmen and attacked in his own home. The situation escalated and to protect himself he strangled the men with the Vhenadahl and caused a huge scene that outed him as the Inquisitor almost immediately.

2. While there are a number of people who want to him dead, there are just as money who find more gratification in humiliation, reminding him of his place, and showing him the future he was fighting for. By far the worst thing to ever happen in those three years was the slaughter that occurred in one of many alienages in Val Royeaux. He was again attacked by surprise but rather than an attempted murder he was simply detained and beaten before being dragged out and shown off the elves there. Whomever it was who had sent out the orders knew that the elves would react if provoked enough, and forcing Pelle to watch the consequences of his actions dealt out to others felt far more fitting a punishment than death. They continued to beat him publicly in front of the rest of the elves, and tell them that this was their Inquisitor. He was weak, useless, and was hiding from them because even he knew that he was full of shit and was afraid. The elves did not respond kindly to the accusations nor the abuse and little by little began to throw rocks at the men and attempted to defend Pelle. The issue caused enough of a stir that it alerted soldiers to the area, once they had arrived it became a full on fight. The elves with little to defend themselves turned to rocks, pitchforks, and whatever was lying around them to defend themselves. Noe of them survived. All the while Pelle was still detained by the men, held captive there to watch and only let go once the fighting had ended.

This was not the only time humans killed off entire alienages for trying to fight back. Pelle may not have been present for every instance but he was more than aware that it was happening. His people were fighting back, but because they had nothing to fight with they were losing.

Watching his people fight back, and try to reclaim their lives the way he had once urged them to years ago pained him like nothing he'd ever felt before. Knowing that some of them had chosen death over the life they had been living because for the first time someone was bold enough to tell them they had a choice. Slaves ran from their masters (some of them murdering them in the process), elves within alienages demanded to be left at peace and defended each other with a passion that was often immediately met with violence, others tried to flee to the Dalish. Whatever their journey was, many chose to take it regardless of the risks because someone had not only them they were better than this, stronger than this, and could be more--be better but that person was one of their own and had shown them himself. Not only him, but the Inquisitor before him--as Pelle was not at all shy about keeping it to himself that the humans had erased the identity of Inquisitor Ameridan to protect their own interests.

Post Trespasser 30+:

Once he reached his early 30s, Pelle had finally gotten exceptionally well at covering his tracks and for the most part disappearing without a trace. However, after years of watching the consequences of his actions unfold around him, he was overwhelmed with guilt over the way he had fallen back into the shadows when his people needed someone to look to, to guide them ever. He thought he was protecting them, but he was not, he was running from the grief and weight of the responsibility. It didn't matter how far he ran, where he hid, that grief followed him. It was the only demon he couldn't outrun.

In time he realized the truth: he could wish that it was not his hands that the blood of hundreds of elves fell upon, but that changed nothing. He could claim he was hiding because he could not be responsible for the choices that he inspired others to make, but he was. Things were happening with or without him. He could choose to continue hiding, or he choose to be the person that inspired them all those years ago and help them. Lastly, by hiding from the monster he created, he was in a way only proving himself right that the biggest thing stopping them all was fear.

So he chose to stop hiding who he was from his people, they deserved to know who he was. They deserved a face to the name, someone to look up to, someone to blame, someone to fight for them, someone to guide them.

He taught those he could. Urged them to stop trying to be good at what they were not and to be exceptional at what they were good at. For centuries if there was anything elves were good at it was being invisible to the world around them. After spending years as Inquisitor he had learned that most of the time you hardly had to lift a finger to get rid of someone. If you spilled enough of their secrets to the right people the humans would literally kill each other for you. If they came at humans with stones and pitchforks they would die. Unlike humans they did not have soldiers, religious authority, and circles to protect their interests...they didn't need them. At the end of the day his people were better than most humans, always had been.

Though he knew some might argue that point after what they saw during the Exalted Council, he simply did not believe that everything Solas had to say were true. Solas was one person, and someone who was insane enough to think he could undo the things he had done with destruction. Besides he wouldn't have wanted to reclaim it if there was nothing good to reclaim. While he disagreed entirely with destruction, he did believe that with enough time and hard work, things could be reclaimed. He wished he'd bee able to convince Solas of that--for all the fucked up things Solas had done he wouldn't deny his help would have made a difference.

Though his permanent home was in the alienage in Halamshiral, he ventured about Thedas to find and to guide other elves to fight back in more subtle ways that were far less likely to get them killed. It did place him in significant danger to stop concealing himself and to wander about like this, but he was no longer afraid of those who wanted to harm him. When he was Inquisitor, the castle walls and the soldiers protecting him had blindsided him from what was really happening and while the guaranteed security would be missed he was one of the people and in a way he glad to suffer with them instead of be like human kings who hurled misfortune upon their people while remaining safe and protected.

Though many of the elves who met him face to face treated him with an enormous sense of reverence he was not their king. He did not rule them nor command them, and this he'd made very clear. He was no chosen one to lead all of them into something greater. He had only inspired them, they could look to themselves for the rest. He may have been a guide to them, but he was not a king in the slightest, he was their Keeper.

[galadrieljones]

Same anon as last night--if you're done with this old fic of yours that's obviously fine and ignore me! but another q: in the various post-trespasser AUs ft Abelas and Ameridan, where is Solas? Does he know? What's he doing? Does he keep tabs on Sene? Does he regret his choices? Is he successfully finding a way to tear down the veil? Is he doing it for Mythal?

Hello, anon! I'm so sorry I missed this.

I haven't planned out these fics in-depth, but part of that is because I don't know where Solas is. They're based on a "canon" universe, so in all honesty, I'm sort of waiting for DA4! I don't know exactly what Solas is *doing* at this time; however, the following things are safe to say about his closeness to Sene:

Solas does keep tabs on Sene after DAI. He is extremely jealous of Abelas, even though he knows he has no right to be, and he would bring this up during their confrontation at the end of Trespasser. He would see Sene's relationship with Abelas as fulfilling all the things he has ever wanted for himself and for her: physical and emotional closeness, and an escape from the expectations of power and back to the freedoms of the natural world. After Sene breaks up with Abelas, I picture Solas approaching Abelas, as a friend, but Abelas wanting nothing to do with him. This harms Solas deeply, as in my universe, they were very close friends when they lived with Mythal.

Solas is taken by surprised when Ameridan returns. He is not sure how it worked, and he could not predict it or explain it. This threatens him a little bit, but more than anything, he is intrigued. Ameridan working with Sene causes him to question a great deal, as he is convinced that Ameridan must have a very strong, ancient magic to be able to resurrect the way that he did. Solas thinks of him as a kind of modern day evanuris and he's not sure how to deal with that. Of course, Ameridan has no ambitions beyond fulfilling his personal needs and desires. He has no want to influence the world, but I think that this would change when he learns who Solas is. He might have stories about Fen'Harel from Telana, who was a Dreamer, and might have met Solas in the Fade. Ameridan might meet Solas's mother at some point and admire her deeply. He and Sene would want to be separate from the struggles and strains of war, but inevitably, they would get sucked in.

Ameridan has major hang-ups about self-sacrifice as it ofc cost him so much. He would not want Sene to ruin her life or her youth simply trying to stop Solas. He would try to convince her to leave the problem for someone else to solve. Maybe he's wrong or right, but ultimately he just wants her NOT to blame herself so much when it comes to Solas and his plans. Sene has never been power-hungry or ambitious. Being with Ameridan allows her a quiet life, and even to move back to her farm, which Ameridan, who is basically "old order" Dalish, would love a great deal (and ofc Sene's clan would love him).

Thanks, anon for giving me the chance to think and write about these characters again!!

[lillotte17]

So, I’m probably late to this party, but I’m up to Jaws of Hakkon now, and listening to Ameridan’s memories and he says Telana’s full name is ‘Telanadas’. And that it translates to ‘Nothing is inevitable’ in Elvhen. Tel = not + Nadas = inevitable

Which reminded me that ‘Nothing is inevitable’  is the most common translation for Solas’ response to the Fear demon in the Fade. But he says, “Banal nadas”. So, he must be saying something different.

A long while back, I made a comment about translations, and how you can’t always just plug stuff in. Specifically focusing on the usage of ‘banal’ when Lavellan replies to Solas in Trespasser. The direct translation is ‘nothing’, but you should also consider all the synonyms for the word ‘nothing’ when you see it in a sentence. Just like ‘din’, doesn’t just mean ‘death’, it also means ‘end’. The Din’an Hanin is ‘the place where glory ends’. 

So, I posited that ‘Ma banal ghilana!’ Translates more closely to “you gave me empty guidance!” or “the things you told me were worthless!” or, in the vernacular, “You’re full of shit!” (depending on just how mad you figure your Lavellan is, lol)

Rolling with that assumption, and learning that it probably isn’t ‘nothing is inevitable’, I’d say Solas is probably trying to be a bit more defiant. He sounds unnerved by what the Fear demon says, but not surprised. And when the other companions are challenged, most of them tell it to fuck off. 

So, for consideration: Though the translations vary, the Fear demon is obviously digging into Solas about how he fucked up with the Veil, and none of his other plans are going to work and everything’s ruined forever because he’s an awful traitor and Solas replies, “Banal nadas”- “Your inevitabilities ring hollow” or “Your speculations on destiny are worthless” or, again in the vernacular, “Your opinions about my ‘fate’ are shit.”

I like the idea of him being a bit sassy. Or at least trying to be. 

Another variant could simply be, “There’s no such thing as destiny”. With the ‘banal’ being in reference to ‘nadas’ itself. Solas refuting the idea that he’s fated to destroy the world by simply denying that fate exists. Very similar to the original translation, but has more feeling of trying to convince himself of something that he’s not quite sure of. “Nothing is inevitable” almost sounds hopeful, “There is no such thing as fate/inevitabilities” sounds like he really wants it to be true, but he almost doubts that it is.

(oh I made myself sad :( )

[pikapeppa]

Fenris/f!Hawke and the Inquisition: The Breath of Winter

Chapter 53 of Lovers In A Dangerous Time (i.e. Fenris the Inquisitor) is up on AO3! In which the crew fight a dragon. A really, really big fucking dragon. 

Fun fact: In the two-odd years that I’ve been writing Dragon Age fic, I’ve managed to avoid writing a dragon fight until now. I HATE WRITING FIGHT/BATTLE SCENES UGH. I hope it’s okay!

Only an excerpt here (the chapter is ~8800 words); read the whole thing on AO3. 

********************

As soon as they stepped out of the Tevinter fortress, Cole appeared beside them. “She’s at the lake,” he said. “She’s turning the water into winter, icy with rage, reaching and ravaging, kill or be killed.” He blinked at Fenris with his big blue eyes. “She’s very angry, and so is he.”

“Great,” Varric said. “An angry spirit in an angry dragon. Always a winning combination.”

Fenris frowned at Cole. “Where on the lake?”

“Near the fishing camp,” he said. “I helped the fishermen escape. They’re safe.”

“Good,” Fenris said. “Let’s move.” He looked around at his companions. “What is the fastest way to get there?”

Blackwall frowned thoughtfully. “Back through Stone-Bear Hold, I believe.”

“It might actually be through the swamp,” Bull said.

“No,” Dorian said loudly. “No more of that damned swamp.”

“He’s right,” Fenris said. “We’re avoiding the swamp – too many wild beasts. We can’t afford to fight anything else along the way.”

Hawke laughed. “I suspect that’s not what Dorian’s complaint was about.”

Her tone was cheerful and light, and she was twisting her rings around her finger. Fenris squeezed her arm reassuringly. “Through Stone-Bear Hold, then,” he said. “Let’s go.”

They took off at a brisk jog, taking care to pace themselves and to preserve some stamina for the battle to come. For some time, the only sounds were their panting breaths and their pounding footsteps as they hurried to the Avvar settlement at a brisk but measured pace. But the silence was heavy and grim, and Fenris didn’t know how to break it.

Eventually, inevitably, Hawke spoke up. “So,” she said brightly. “Shall we sing a song to pass the time?”

Varric snorted. “Depends on what song you had in mind.”

Sera looked at Hawke in alarm. “Anything except for–”

Hawke interrupted her. “How about the Sera song?” she suggested.

Sera made a retching noise. “Ugh, no!”

Hawke grinned at her, then launched gustily into song. “Sera was never an agreeable girl: her tongue tells tales of rebellion. But she was soooo fast and quick with her bow, no one quite knew where she came from…”

Blackwall chuckled, then joined in with Hawke’s singing, and to Fenris’s mild surprise, Dorian joined in as well. Varric and Bull laughed, and Sera loudly groaned. “I hate this creepy song!” she complained. “Why’s that minstrel thingy got to pick on me...”  

Fenris shot Hawke a grateful glance, and she winked at him as she continued to sing. 

It wasn’t long before they were entering Stone-Bear Hold. The settlement was bustling after the battle, with families reuniting and healers hurrying back and forth to tend the wounded, but the Avvar who noticed Fenris and his companions called out to them in hearty tones.

“Oi, Inquisition! Lady guide your blades and bows!”

“Give Hakkon a good death, Fenris!”

Hawke laughed and called back to them, which Fenris was thankful for; he could barely think about anything at this moment but the pressing need to kill the Avvar dragon so he could be done with at least one horrible task.

Svarah was outside of her cave speaking with some of her people, and she waved Fenris over as he and his companions approached. “My boys told me you need mages,” she said. 

“Yes, if you can spare them,” Fenris said. “I apologize for yet another–”

She cut him off with an impatient wave. “They’re already down by the lake, as are my warriors with arrows and fire.”

Fenris raised his eyebrows. “They weren’t afraid to face the dragon?”

“They’re facing a god,” Svarah replied. “Honoured is what they are.” 

“I see,” Fenris said blankly. “Then you have our thanks.”

She nodded briskly. “We will ready a celebration for your return.”

“Oh,” Fenris said in surprise. “No, there’s no need–”

“A party?” Hawke chirped. “Oh, that’s fantastic! Isn’t that fantastic?” She elbowed Fenris and beamed at Svarah. “Sera and Dorian and I will dance for you! That’ll be sure to rouse everyone’s constitutions.” She wiggled her eyebrows salaciously.

Svarah gave her a rare smirk. “A wild one, you are. Fly true, Hawke. Lady keep you all.”

They resumed their route to the fishing camp at a faster pace, and true to form, Hawke resumed her usual routine of pre-battle banter to buoy everyone’s mood. “Anyone want to put bets on who will land the killing blow on our lovely friend Hakkon?”

“I will,” Blackwall said. 

Hawke patted his arm as they jogged along the cliffside path. “I knew I could count on you.”

Bull grinned at him. “You enjoy losing your coin, don’t you?”

Blackwall scoffed. “That’s a bit unkind.”

“S’true though,” Sera said. “You never get the pot!”

Blackwall shrugged affably. “I don’t mind, I enjoy a good gamble. And you should hope I win this time, Bull, seeing as my bet is on you.”

Hawke fanned herself playfully. “Ooh, such flattery.”

“It’s not flattery,” Bull said. “It’s an intelligent move. Which is why I will also bet on myself.”

Dorian tsked. “Of course you will.”

Bull patted Dorian’s bum. “Aren’t you betting on me, kadan?”

Dorian smacked his hand. “No,” he said. “I’m betting on Fenris.”

“Why me?” Fenris asked.

“Because you’ve landed the most killing blows thus far,” Dorian said. “That’s the intelligent move.” He made an apologetic little moue at Bull. “Sorry, amatus, I’m simply following the numbers.”

Blackwall frowned. “Wait, that’s not right.”

“Yes it is,” Dorian said. “Fenris has landed the kill on the most dragons.”

“I swear that’s not right,” Blackwall insisted. “It was Bull, wasn’t it?”

“You’ve both got it wrong,” Varric said. “It’s a tie.” 

“A tie between Fenris and Bull?” Dorian said. 

“Nope,” Varric replied. “Between Fenris and Cassandra.”

Sera cackled and clapped her hands, and Blackwall’s eyes widened. “How did I forget that?”

“Because you weren’t there every time,” Varric said. He jerked his head at Bull. “And neither was Tiny here.”

“That is true,” Bull said. “Otherwise I would have gotten the highest count.”

Fenris smirked at him. “Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

Bull elbowed Fenris playfully as the others chuckled, and Hawke tapped Varric’s shoulder. “What was the actual tally of killing blows for dragons, then?”

“Fenris and Cassandra had three each,” Varric said. “Bull landed two–”

Bull chuckled. “Those were good.”

Varric smirked at him. “Blackwall had one…”

“I am proud of that,” Blackwall put in.

“And the last one was Solas,” Varric finished.

“What!” Sera squawked. “He never!”

Hawke clapped her hands. “Oh Maker, he did! That’s right! He punched it in the face with the Fade!” She laughed. “Oh, Solas. All that subtlety and careful magic, and then boom, he punches a dragon in the face with a fist made out of the Veil.”

Sera wrinkled her nose. “Can’t be true. Too funny.”

“It is true,” Dorian said. “I couldn’t believe it either.” He sighed musically. “Ah, Solas, our enigmatic elven friend. How are you going to be depicting him in your book, Varric?”

“You’ll find out when you read it,” Varric said patiently.

Dorian pouted. “You aren’t any fun. Well, I think he’d want to be remembered as the most intelligent man in Thedas. Unfortunately for him, that title is already taken.”

Varric smirked up at him. “Aw, Sparkler, you flatter me.”

Dorian laughed heartily. “Oh, Varric, what a fine jest. No no, I meant myself, of course.”

Sera snorted, then poked Varric.“Two things: Bald head. Boring.”

“Being boring is how you get forgotten, Buttercup,” Varric said.

“Yeh, I know,” Sera said pointedly. “I wish I could.”

“Bare-faced but free,” Cole said. “Frolicking, fighting, fierce. He wants to give wisdom, not orders.”

Dorian shot him a funny look. “I don’t think Solas is really the frolicking sort, Cole.”

Then Hawke spoke up. “I think he’d want to be remembered for his knowledge. For trying to teach us what he knew.”

Varric gave her a sardonic look. “You’re the only one he tried to teach, Hawke.”

Hawke batted her eyelashes. “It’s hardly my fault that I’m so charming I can win over a spirit of wisdom.”

“A spirit of pride, my dear Hawke,” Dorian said.

Hawke waved her hand dismissively. “Ah, same thing.”

Bull scratched his chin. “I think he’d want to be remembered as–”

“Can we speak of something else?” Fenris interrupted.

The others fell silent, and Fenris immediately regretted his outburst. He shouldn’t have said anything, he knew, but he didn’t want to be reminded of Solas right now, not when they were about to walk into a major battle.  

It wasn’t even really the talk of Solas that was irritating him per se. Rather, it was the reminder of yet another worry that was waiting for him when he returned to Skyhold. In the nearly two years since Corypheus’s death, Leliana’s entire network of spies had failed to turn up anything of note regarding Solas’s sudden disappearance. In Fenris’s opinion, the complete and utter lack of information was the most damning evidence of all that Solas’s final words hinted at something ominous to come. 

Something ominous that Fenris might have been able to prevent, if only he’d pushed Solas a little harder about his strange and anachronistic ways.

Yet another thing that history may eventually vilify me for, he thought. Either that, or history would forget about him completely, just like it had done to Ameridan and Telana. All that sacrifice, that pain and heartache to save a nation that barely remembered they’d existed…

Not that Fenris cared about the recognition. He was already far more famous and recognizable than he’d ever wanted to be. It was the futility of his role that was rubbing him so raw. Everyone had always spoken of Fenris as being the natural choice for this role, the person who had fallen into the leadership position because it was meant for him, with the mark on his hand and his survival of the Conclave. Cassandra had always insisted that Fenris was exactly who they’d needed right when they’d needed him the most. And perhaps he had been needed when this had first started – when the Inquisition was new and struggling to find its footing after the attack on Haven. 

But Fenris wasn’t needed in that capacity anymore. The world no longer needed a symbol of hope in a time of terror, and Fenris was no longer the sole voice of authority in a world devoid of leaders. Cassandra was there to lead the Chantry, and the Empress of Orlais was cautiously cordial now with King Alistair and Queen Anora. The Free Marches were relatively stable, Sebastian having backed down from his untimely march on Kirkwall thanks to Leliana’s quick thinking as well as Fenris’s friendship. It had been months since they’d gotten a report of any Fade rifts that needed closing. In fact, the only thing that remained unchanged since all of this had begun was the anchor that was still buried in Fenris’s hand. 

The reasons that the Inquisitor had once been needed were no longer valid. Yet here Fenris was, still fulfilling a role whose value seemed to have run its course.  

Take moments of happiness where you find them, Ameridan had said. The world will take the rest. The problem was this: Fenris didn’t want just the moments. He didn’t want to lie back and allow the world and its endless demands to swallow him whole. All this time, ever since Corypheus had died, he’d ceded to Leliana and Josephine’s statements that he was needed more than ever. He’d ceded to the inevitability of his role as the Inquisitor, never questioning that his decisions and his judgment were necessary to foster the rebuilding of the world. It had never really occurred to him to question his place in all of this. He had fantasized about leaving the Inquisition, certainly – about taking Hawke’s hand and leaving all of this behind without a second glance. But he had never truly considered it in any real way.

Now, having seen how things had ended with Ameridan, Fenris was really thinking about it, and what it would mean if he… if he stepped down from the Inquisition.

Read the rest on AO3. 

[v-arbellanaris]

So we all agree, Andraste was a mage. But! If she was also possessed by a spirit?! The Anders parallels alone make me froth at the mouth. Something something 'if you saw your prophet now you would call her an abomination'. Their storylines are so similar and then dai and subsequent materials had the gall to act as if Anders was wrong

i DO believe that if andraste had been a mage (and i do tend to think she was tbh), she would have been possessed simply because we're shown in jaws of hakkon the exact relationship between their gods and spirits. like canonically, the avvar worship their gods, who are spirits. augurs get themselves possessed and unpossessed easily. i 100% buy that if andraste was a mage, then the maker is a spirit that she worshipped. (i'd also be kind of terrified at the implications. the nightmare fed on fear - fears of the blight, specifically. and it's that powerful...)

but yes. i really kind of dislike the wider implications of having made ameridan a dalish mage (esp with the way his beliefs are represented) but the one thing i DID love is how ameridan is explicitly the kind of person cassandra and cullen want to put into the circle. ameridan himself would never have been allowed to exist outside of the circle in the modern day. and i fully believe - with his religion, with his very casual power that could lock away a spirit as powerful as hakkon for hundreds of years, with his influence - if ameridan had been in the circle, they would have tried to kill him during the harrowing or made him tranquil. this... idk? is hypocrisy the right word here? whatever it is, it was so obvious that the chantry - whose first divine was a general from drakon's army, hand-picked by drakon to lead his chantry - buried his identity after the signing of the nevarran accord instead of using his existence as a mage to argue that the mages chose the circles for themselves.

now ive got a brainworm like if andraste really did crawl out of the fade in dai... can you imagine...

[skyheld]

it probably comes as a surprise because generally ameridan comes across as both very gentle and sophisticated

and he is

but he has a... very different way of reasoning on some things than most modern peoples of thedas.   a very divine age way of reasoning.

to him,  smearing goat’s blood on someone’s holding as a way to say “ you killed a child of mine and i know this,  and i hold you accountable,  but i will not retribute,  so now you know i’m aware of what you’ve done but that there will be no continuation of this feud from my side “ is perfectly reasonable,  even though it’s not something the dalish or ciriane did.   it’s a custom,  it involves blood because blood is powerful,  it involves your hall or home or hold because those are sacred places,  and those things make it more powerful and reliable than any spoken word.  could the thane have just said  “ hey killing my son wasn’t what i hoped for but i get it,  don’t worry,  i don’t want vengeance ” ?   yes,  but it wouldn’t have held the same weight at all.

there’s a codex entry in the emerald graves:

The Twisted Tree

The tree on the hill made me deeply uneasy. I chose not to camp there, even though the view was something to behold. Later on, at a tavern in Ville Montevelan, I heard the tale. Before the Dales were conquered, elves would capture humans who trespassed, and string their heads from the branches of that twisted tree. -From A Journey through the Dales by Lord Horace Medford, "Adventurer"

it could be read as something said by humans to make the dalish seem uncivilized and dangerous,  which is how it seems to humans  ( and elves )  now,  but my headcanon is that this happened,  and it was simply a part of the war with orlais.   using scare tactics is nothing unusual  ---  the modern Inquisition does it a lot in various war table missions  ---  and this was just that:  showing the enemy the corpses of their former comrades to tell them 1) we’re serious about protecting this border 2) we’re good at protecting this border 3) it would be better for you to desert the army and go home to your farm than keep fighting here.   again,  in a manner that is much more effective than by saying those same things,  even if in the dragon age most people find it barbaric.

all that’s to say,  the inquisitor will walk past a bandit camp and ameridan will be like,  look,  we get attacked all the time,  or enemies don’t really fear us,  have you considered doing what these people do and put some heads on spikes around it?  

just, y’know,  as a general warning

i think it would really help your image

[masterskywalkers]

Dragon Age!!!!!!

My opinions are likely unpopular with areas of fandom but did we expect any different? Of course not!

The first character I first fell in love with:

Very easily it was Alistair.

I just loved his entire character and felt he was a breath of fresh air in terms of how male characters were presented. I loved how he was written, and just how good he was. Despite what he’d been through he didn’t brood and he wasn’t played off as the comic relief, but rather was a healthy blend of what a character should be. He was allowed to be emotional and hurt but also to smile and laugh and (potentially) fall in love. I really appreciated that at the time and still do to this day, which is why Alistair remains special too me.

The character I never expected to love as much as I do now:

There’s a few, most notably Anora and Fenris.

Anora is a character that grew on me a lot more as I got older, and I really appreciate her character more now than I did when I first played the game. She’s unfairly disliked by a majority of the fandom, but I’ll speak more on that later.

Fenris was simply a case of needing a second playthrough to really resonate with his character properly - and that’s solely just because of how I was playing at the time. The second time I'd built more for him headcanon wise and spent more time with him in the party, and I really just came to like the character more because of that. Now he's sort of a necessity for my party lineup if I play Dragon Age 2.

The character everyone else loves that I don’t:

Iron Bull. I’ve never made it a secret that I dislike Bull, but I rarely talk about why. It's honestly for a lot of reasons - many which I won’t go into too much detail with unless people ask for it. But basically I don’t like how he’s written in certain instances to the point that I’m really uncomfortable with some of the dialogue choices used for his romance options. I also strongly dislike how his relationship with Dorian is pushed to be almost canon by the writers (not negating the fact that I find the romance itself problematic at best).

I also don’t really like Corypheus (within Inquisition at least) but that’s because I feel he was a weak villain overall as well as being a filler one. But I've made me opinion on how Inquisition's story was delivered very clear before now, so we won’t open that box unless someone asks.

The character I love that everyone else hates:

Anora, for one. She’s not perfect, don’t get me wrong. But she’s not evil, and she’s a damn sight better suited for the throne than Alistair is. I feel like her ambition targets her for a lot of hate, but there’s nothing wrong with a female character being ambitious. Especially given the situation the game puts her in.

Sebastian. A lot of people don’t like him, but I’ve always been really interested in his character. I’ve even thought about doing a playthrough with a romanced Hawke for him. He’s just so different compared to the rest of the party, and I don’t know if it’s because he’s a DLC character or because of his heavy religious background that so many people are put off by him.

I’d also like to add Vivienne, who suffers again from the ambitious female character problem this fandom has. She’s a powerful lady who makes no secret of what she wishes or desires, and that along with her honest attitude towards members of the party makes her a target for hate. But I love her, and she has a caring side underneath her layers, and I wish more people saw what her character was and how strong she is.

The character I used to love but don’t any longer:

I can't really think of anyone, honestly. I could say Anders a little bit because I think both him and Justice were written better in Awakening than what they were in 2, but that's me being picky. He's still a character I really like.

The character I’d want to be like:

Probably Inquisition!era Leliana. I always liked her role and how secretive a spy master she really was.

The character I’d slap:

Anders, because of the whole 'blowing up the chantry' deal. But also Solas for being the bad egg.

A pairing that I love:

Buckle in fellow followers, because it's a ride!

Of course my main OTP's include Alistair/Female!Warden, Hawke/Fenris and Hawke/Anders, and Dorian/Male!Inquisitor. But I'm also fond of seeing ...

Morrigan/Male!Warden - I really want to play a world state where Kieran is Male!Warden's son. The idea of that relationship just seems so different and fun from my usual games.

Zevran/Mahariel!Warden - my very first character in Dragon Age (although not my canon) was a female Mahariel who ended up romancing Zevran after Alistair became King and dumped her, so it has a special place in my heart. Another pairing that deserves its own investigating one day.

Sebastian/Female!Hawke - for reasons specified above.

Josephine/Female!Inquisitor - now don't get me wrong! I love this ship with a male Inquisitor too, but I've always wanted to make a female qunari and romance Josephine with her.

Cassandra/Male!Inquisitor, Cullen/Inquisitor, Sera/Dagna, Lavellan!Inquisitor/Abelas, Ameridan/Telana. I'm also rather fond of Nathaniel/Cousland, although that always makes me miss Awakening.

A pairing that I despise:

Iron Bull/Dorian is the big one, as well as Iron Bull/Inquisitor.

Blackwall/Inquisitor too, because Blackwall is not an overly memorable character to me honestly? I also don't particularly feel comfortable with him lying about his identity to someone he loves - and yeah, I know, Solas does the same but at least Solas isn't borrowing another persons persona.

Also? Not a big fan of Alistair/Anora. It's a marriage of convenience, and I don't see any happiness in it - and one thing all my boys have is the desire for me to want to give them some kind of happy ending with their love interests.

Send in a fandom!

[call-2-arms]

GENERAL INFORMATION.

Full Name - Finn (Fintan) Ghilain

Class - Warrior

Race - Dalish elf

Age - 34

Date of Birth - Solace 14th, 9:08

Place of Birth - The Dales, Orlais

Zodiac - Cancer

Gender - Male

Nationality - Orlesian / Dalish

Religion - Elven

Orientation - Demisexual Demiromantic

Relationship Status - single

PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES.

height - 1.85 metres (6'1)

weight - 87 kilos

hair colour - silver / dark brown (poliosis)

eye colour - grey

Accent - Irish ( light accent ) 

voice claim - Gabriel Byrne

tattoos - vallaslin

piercings - N/A

distinguishing marks - scar on lip and cheek

outfit/clothing style - Dalish

BACKGROUND INFORMATION.

hometown - The Dales, Orlais

current residence - Skyhold / Orlais

past residences - Nomadic

spoken languages - Common, Orlesian, Elvhen

occupation - N/A

FAMILIAL INFORMATION.

mother - Alive and well

father - Alive and well

siblings - N/A

children - N/A

PERSONALITY.

positive traits - Kindhearted, calm

negative traits - Detached, survivor

moral alignment - neutral good

mbti - ENFJ - the protagonist

BIOGRAPHY.

Born to Clan Ghilain within the Dales or Orlais, Finn’s parents were sent to aid that of Clan Durgen when he was 6 years old, a clan that lived in the mountains, opposite of the Frostbacks. With Dalish numbers declining, it was important that he play his part, however, clan Durgen was a cold, distant clan with a negative opinion of humans--often slaying those who came too close to their territory. 

Within Clan Durgen, his mother took up the role of a halla carer, and his father a hunter. His father intended for him to be an archer, but Finn liked the swords of Orlesian guards that he saw sometimes by the roads in their travels, using sticks to practice his techniques until he was old enough to use a real one. He managed to get his hands on his first sword at age eleven, when he plucked it from a dead soldier.

Growing up, Finn was seen as quiet and distant. Not simply because of being new to the clan, but because he did not have the same passion and hatred of humans that his fellow clan-mates had. If anything, he wished for peace between the people. This did not bode well with Clan Durgen, and particularly his father, who sided with the clan, and became a zealot, believing than no human was innocent, and all deserved to die. 

When of age, Finn joined the hunting parties and when taking his first kill, he was granted the right of vallaslin, which he chose after his mother: keeper of the Halla, and guide, as well as his own snow white hair. 

When Finn was old enough, he was arranged to be bonded to one of the women within the clan. He accepted, despite his lack of interest in her, but understood that for his dying people, it was important to reproduce. However, the ceremony was called off when he requested to leave Clan Durgen to travel on his own. Finn did not feel as if he were a part of the clan, and because of his interest in humans, and his compassion, he was seen as a danger, thus exiled himself to keep his family and to-be bonded safe. His father was furious, happy to exile him and abandon him as a son. His mother, however, encouraged his travels, and wished him a safe journey. 

Finn travelled Orlais, jumping from clan to clan and interacting with humans as much as possible on the road, enjoying their company (when granted it). Finn became somewhat of a human sympathiser, and grew to be reasonable and level headed as a man.

When he heard of the Conclave and the Inquisition, he saw this as an opportunity to meet more people, more humans, to learn of others in Thedas and offer his services as a warrior.

Finn is a firm believer in what Inquisitor Ameridan stood for, but he also keeps his Dalish heritage close to his heart. He wishes for a peaceful world where elves and humans can roam alike without bloodshed. 

Finn has Poliosis, which is genetic from his father’s side. Due to this, his hair has turned silver in the majority, with a dark patch on the side that he generally shaves off. 

PERSONALITY.

Finn is a kindhearted and compassionate man who is very spiritual in nature, however, be may seem aloof at times, and distant as he has Schizoid personality disorder--something that made him feel an outcast in his clan, and indifferent to many of their views.  Finn is also a survivor, so he is not above doing what needs to be done to stay alive, however, he is not afraid of death. He believes that everyone has a time, and he will willingly accept his time when it feels right.

MUSINGS / SCREENSHOTS / HEADCANONS / AESTHETIC MY ART / OTHERS ART

[eluvianarts]

My Solavellan Isn’t Hell - Here’s Why

It would first be important for me to note that I was late to the Dragon Age party, & started with Inquisition in 2017. Since then I have, of course, picked up & played all three titles multiple times, but my first playthrough with Inquisition introduced me to the world of Thedas, thus my understanding of terms like “the Fade”, “Grey Wardens”, & “the Rite of Tranquility” were shaped by this game first. It may also be noteworthy to mention that I always play my OCs as my own self - I design them to look like I do, react like I do, make decisions that I would make, etc. (So if I say “I” instead of “Lavellan”, this is the reason).

The first time I first heard the term “Solavellan Hell” I thought it was such a negative sounding reference to such a powerful romance. “Hell?”, I thought, though I had indeed finished the game & all DLCs. “Hell produces pain, suffering, & anguish. None of which I experienced in a concentrated enough amount to be considered hell.” But scrolling through tags I quickly understood where my experience differed from others, & I intended for quite some time to share my thoughts. Let me explain...

[This is the part where I warn the reader that spoilers are bound to follow under the cut]

[[Short version - Just read the last two paragraphs.]]

My inquisitor, Visériel Lavellan, was immediately enamored with Solas from the start. (I literally flung my arms in the air & said to my husband “I don’t even care that he’s bald!”). The way he described his journeys in the fade, (remember, I had no prior experience of the fade from the other games). To Visériel, the fade was a wonder just as Solas described; “It is the fade. They are all real.” ... Also that iambic pentameter. But I digress...

Visériel had eyes for no one else, & her flirting was saved only for Solas. When she stole a kiss in the fade, & it was returned with such passion, she knew they were bound to be a powerful couple, feeding off each other’s strengths, building up each other’s weaknesses, all while maintaining an air of dignity. This bond is important because she believes they are on equal grounds even if one or the other has strengths or weaknesses the other does not, (this feeling doesn’t change after Trespasser either - see below for reasons why Visériel feels she is meant for more).

She was not the big, brave, leader that the Inquisition seemed to position her as, but she took the role seriously, (albeit casually with her friends,) judged with mercy & forgiveness, made responsible tactical moves, (including going the long way about saving the Montilyet name in Orlais), & stood as it’s face even when she denied knowing whether or not the Maker had sent her, (she sees that knowledge has been tainted over the years, & believes that all peoples may be partially correct & partially incorrect). This is important because as more known “truths” concerning the Maker, the Divine, the Dalish gods, & the history of the Chantry are uncovered & found to be inaccurate, or flat out lies, she is not shocked, nor her faith rattled. (However, Sera greatly irritated Visériel because of her disrespectful attitude toward others’ beliefs).

Later on the balcony, when Solas mentions that she is not what he expected, asking if he had misjudged the Dalish, she replies with, “The Dalish didn’t make me like this. The decisions were mine”, because though she loves her family, she is her own person. Visériel had always thought of herself as not-quite-an-outsider, but not-quite-an-insider. Besides her wariness to believe another’s theory without any sort of analysis, she always felt she was meant for something higher. Becoming Inquisitor had partially given her what she felt she was missing, but it also sometimes felt wrong for her to be the face of those who had previously looked so far down their noses at her. This is important because when more is revealed about how the Elvhen used to be, she sees it as how she was always meant to be, especially in Trespasser when she travels the Eluvians, she is amazed at how wonderful it all is & the knowledge to be gained! (Also, Abelas, don’t you point your finger at me “You are not my people!”. Rude!) This is also important because when she discovers that Solas is Fen’Harel, she doesn’t bat an eye, because it only makes sense that she, having always felt she was meant for more, would fall for someone who was in fact “more”.

When Cole panics about his possible possession, & begs Solas to bind him, Visériel listens to the kid & reasons with him. Though she sees Varric’s side of the argument that Cole is also “strangely like a person”, she cannot ignore the fact that he is also like a spirit, & she would rather see him safe than sorry, & give him the protection he needs. She also generally leads with compassion & peace, so when confronting the Templar who killed Cole, she encourages him to forgive the man. One of the biggest reasons Cole is one of her best friends is because of his desire to help others, & she encourages him to look for many resolves to a situation, & not to take lives. This is important because she believes spirits can learn & that coexisting is possible & desirable.

When learning of Inquisitor Ameridan & his tragic romance with Telana, Visériel couldn’t help but wonder why Telana seemingly gave up on him. She spent the rest of her life searching for him in the fade when Visériel & her companions only had to find the metal spikes that Telana knew about & free him. Even if she knew it would release the dragon, she then should’ve spent her years learning how to kill it, or to release the spell’s hold on Ameridan, not simply dreaming & waiting for nothing to happen! This is important because when Solas leaves her, she is determined to do something useful, not just wait around for him to return on his own.

Discoveries at the Temple of Mythal, differing from what the Dalish currently believe, didn’t shock Visériel, but instead excited her! She loved finding the truth! Especially when it answered questions that she had been debating. Wanting to keep the peace, & to gain favor with the ancient elves, Visériel made the deal with Abelas even after his uppity behavior, (”You are not my people” Rude!). Honestly, Visériel wanted to destroy the well rather than let anyone have it, which seems contrary to her usual quest for the truth, but everyone was uncomfortable with the well, & if Solas was so adamant about himself not drinking from it, she surely wouldn’t risk it, so Morrigan drinks. When he asks what she will do with the power after the war she replies, “I’ll try to help this world move forward”, & when he responds angrily asking what she would do if it ends up worsening things, she says, “I’ll take a breath, see where things went wrong, and then try again”. This is important because Visériel keeps her head high, & is a beacon of hope even when the world is, (quite literally), falling apart. She prides herself on taking a breath, & moving forward. 

During the Crestwood vallaslin scene, Visériel chooses to remove the markings since she trusts Solas’ word & knowledge. She would rather move forward without the vallaslin, now knowing the truth behind what they stand for, rather than keep them as some form of sentiment. No matter if she originally got them for another reason, the truth is more important, & “my people vowed never to submit to slavery”, though she does express remorse that the Dalish were wrong once again. Her emotional responses are often either hope, agreement, or sadness. 

On the breakup part, I thought the dialogue choice, “I don’t want to lose you” would be more hopeful than a sad cry of “Solas!”. Then given that the dialogue choices were either a hopeful, “I believe in us”, or a sad, “I love you”, she really just wanted those three words said out loud, so I chose the sad dialogue, but a cross between the two choices would’ve been more accurate.

And this is where Visériel���s unshakable faith & fierce tenacity come in. Solas won’t explain to her about the breakup right away, but promises “everything will be made clear” after the defeat of Corypheus. So she is patient, waiting to get her answer, because she trusts him to keep his word. But of course, we know that he doesn’t follow through. When his orb breaks he is lost again, unsure of how to next move forward, & so he runs, to rethink, to replan, & Lavellan is left confused & troubled. Visériel believed something very important must’ve altered his course especially after his somber words of “it was not supposed to happen this way” & “what we had was real”, especially since they had been a force of power together. At Leliana’s gentle words that, “Perhaps he had no choice? He might return at any moment”, Visériel gave a shy smile, hopeful again.

She then used her resources to search for Solas, & as they years passed she grew less certain that he was even alive. Her time as Inquisitor was less appealing without him around, but she continued to try to better the lives of everyone she met. When the Exalted Council had to meet she was embittered at the resounding lack of thanks she was getting for all her hard work. But seeing her friends again brought back good memories, & when Cassandra lets slip that she thinks Lavellan is going to propose, she responds with, “I might get married. I’ve thought about it.”, because even after all these years she hasn’t lost hope that perhaps he may return.

Discovering new knowledge through the Eluvians excited her once more, made her feel part of something real again, but as her arm begins greatly paining her, she cries that she doesn’t want to die, followed by “not knowing the world still needed me”, but what she kept to herself was, “not knowing if Solas is still alive”. Venturing further through the Eluvians she pieces together that Solas is the Dread Wolf, & even more, she realizes he’s the one who’s been fighting the Qunari, which quickens her pace further, now knowing that he is alive & more powerful than she had ever imagined. (I should also mention that I 100% games, so I search every nook & cranny for every shred of information, dialogue, & quest). She wants to find him as soon as possible, to ask him about everything, only hoping that he’ll still look at her like he did on the balcony. Nothing else matters anymore - she is dying, Solas is alive, & the Inquisition is no longer of any use.

“We have to save him!”

Hearing his voice again, & seeing him look at her with even more care & kindness than he had before, all Visériel wanted to do was wrap her arms around him, so thankful that she hadn’t given up on him, nor he on her. (I wish the dialogue option for “You’re the Dread Wolf” wasn’t so accusatory sounding).

“What is the old Dalish curse? ‘May the Dread Wolf take you’?”, he says, afraid she now sees him as all the others do, with disdain, distrust, & disgust.

“Our legends about you are wrong. I saw the truth as we traveled the crossroads.”, she exclaims, filled with the revelation that what once seemed questionable to her now made so much more sense! 

“If you had just told me... Ma ghilana, vhenan!” 

 Visériel, having always believed she could analyze & interpret quite well, tosses aside what others may think of her, fully understanding that the world had been a marvel & could see it’s former glory again if the veil returned magic as it once was, & though it would take a long time for them to first stop mindlessly fighting one another, she believed men & spirits can coexist, as seen with her relationship with Colr. Ready to follow Solas as he had once followed her, & add her strengths to his, she believed that the world would be better in the end if his plan succeeded. 

He tells her everything, letting her gain all the knowledge & all the explanation that she was due.

“Let me help you, Solas!”

“I cannot do that to you, vhenan.”

“But you would do it to yourself? I cannot bear to think of you alone.”

But when time runs out, & her mark flares up again, Solas chooses to save her, but leave her again, hoping it would in fact save her life.

“Solas, var lath vir suledin!”, she confidently declares.

“I wish it could, vhenan. My love...” he whispers, resigned to go against her wishes. “I will never forget you.”. Then he disappears through the Eluvian.

The end of Trespasser is the second time he leaves her, but what has now taken place changes everything to her! The first time he left without a word, without explanation. She had no idea how he felt, why he left, what he was doing, or if she would ever see him again. Now she knows exactly how he feels, the reason he’s left, what he is up to, & she is fully determined to see him again! Last time she took deep breaths to keep her hope intact, searching for any sign of him, but now her hope is in full force, because she knows that he loves her, & she loves him, & she’s going to show him once again that they are stronger together than apart. Visériel disbands the Inquisition, not to sift out the agents of Fen’Harel (as the screen indicates), but because clearly the Inquisition is no longer needed, & she would rather have a handful of reliable friends at her side than an army of possible turncoats, especially when she knows she will be greatly opposed when she announces to her companions that she intends to help Solas against his enemies.

All in all, what I’ve taken away from why I didn’t consider my experience to be Solavellan “Hell”, is that I was always so skeptical of the information given to me, (be it about beliefs, persons, or history), hopeful in what could be, & persistent in going after the truth, & what I wanted. I have heard that Solas takes from Lavellan her beliefs in her gods, (which to my Lavellan only confirmed what she guessed at previously), her connection to her clan via the vallaslin, (if you remove it, which my Lavellan did, because she believes the truth is more important than some heritage marking), & her physical arm, (how can this one be bad? Either remove her arm to save her life or let her die? How about take my arm!). Needless to say, I’m very excited for the next installation of Dragon Age, even if it doesn’t bear the fruit that I hope for. Here’s to possibilities! *and to all Solasmancers*