#to the point that the devs have to acknowledge him in official art

[fisheito]

Fish Yakumo is canon. Magical girls event is shining on the horizon. Kuyorb. We are free

the complete confusion on my saggedskin dehydrated face as i rouse from my impromptu hibernation and everyon'es talking about orbs

[beautiesandheadcanons]

In our last episode, I mentioned I was diving into the world of Thedas, and since I appreciate character-rich, lore-rich games, I thought I could make my first Dragon Age post about one of my absolute favorite characters in the games: Dorian Pavus.

Dorian is a mage from the Tevinter Imperium, the oldest human nation in Thedas. While most of the rest of the Thedas puts their mages in Circles and allows them little freedom, Tevinter is ruled by a magocracy, though the freedom is not without a price. Because of the lack of oversight, blood magic and other nefarious magic is rampant to the point of feeding into stereotypes about Tevinter. Unlike the other mages in power, however, Dorian is a fierce opponent of blood magic and refuses to use it.

His opinion on blood magic is not the only reason he is considered a pariah in Tevinter. Dorian is also gay, and will romance a male Inquisitor, if the player pursues it (otherwise he will potentially start a romance with The Iron Bull if their party banter is allowed to hit a certain stage). As someone who is not cishet, I love seeing representation in my games, and I can closely identify with Dorian, who has worked hard to accept himself and be proud of who he is - Tevinter and a mage and gay - despite ostracism because of it. So of course I also had to cover him on the last Monday of Pride Month.

In Inquisition - as with other Dragon Age games - the player’s actions and dialogue choices will affect the disposition of the members of your party. As for Dorian, he likes witty/sarcastic dialogue choices, anything that supports mages, and he dislikes disparaging remarks about mages and aggressive responses over kind ones. Particular approval points are recruiting the mages over the templars in choosing to complete the quest In Hushed Whispers over Champions of the Just, allowing the Grey Wardens to join the Inquisition after securing Adamant Fortress during the quest Here Lies the Abyss, gaining the necessary court approval to have Florianne de Chalons arrested at the Winter Palace during the quest Wicked Eyes and Wicked Hearts, and allowing Morrigan to drink from the Well of Sorrows in the Temple of Mythal instead of having the Inquisitor drink during the quest What Pride Had Wrought (if Dorian is romanced, this will net major approval).

During the events of Inquisition, there are two possible ways to recruit Dorian into the party. The first is if one chooses to recruit the rebel mages, he will be initially met at the Chantry in Redcliffe, and afterwards he will offer his help in bringing down his former mentor Gereon Alexius, who has recruited the mages for the Tevinter supremacy cult known as the Venatori. Conversely, if the player recruits the templars, he will show up afterward at Haven to warn the Inquisition that the mages have been conscripted into the Venatori and are about to lead an attack on the Inquisition.

Once the Inquisition moves to Skyhold, Dorian will have a couple of personal quests. In one - One Less Venatori - he asks the Inquisitor to help him hunt down certain Venatori members in Thedas. The other involves a much more personal matter, in which his estranged father attempts to arrange a meeting with Dorian. The player can either go along with the deception and take Dorian to meet his father under false pretenses, or - the option I always personally go with - tell Dorian about his father’s intentions beforehand. Either way, he will get a chance to confront his father about attempting to use a blood magic ritual to change Dorian’s sexuality - something he’d always drilled into Dorian to oppose, that was “the last resort of the weak mind”. If the Inquisitor encourages Dorian to stay and talk, his father will acknowledge the harm he did and apologize, telling his son that he misses him and wants to reconcile.

If a male Inquisitor initiates a romance with Dorian, then after the personal quest with his father, another one will begin called The Magister’s Birthright, in which the player will be prompted to regain a special amulet that Dorian had to sell off in order to survive once he ran away from his father following the blood magic ritual attempt. If the player obtains the amulet without killing the dealer, then this will be the chance to enter an exclusive relationship with Dorian.

During the events of Trespasser - the DLC that occurs two years after the events of the main questline of Inquisition - Dorian will appear at the Exalted Council as an official ambassador of Tevinter, though he will sarcastically admit that the position is because the Magisterium dislikes him and so it was an easy way to foist him off on something they considered unimportant. Later on, however, one can witness a cutscene of a farewell toast for Dorian, who will then reveal that his father is dead - likely due to assassination - and he has inherited Magister Pavus’ seat in the Magisterium, so it seems the Magisterium will have to contend with Dorian after all. Dorian’s friend, Maevaris, is also pushing for reforms in Tevinter, reforms he supports, and he expresses his desire to be a part of positive change in the homeland that he loves so passionately, despite their glaring flaws. At this point, if the Inquisitor is good friends - or romancing - Dorian, he will give them a sending crystal so that they can communicate with one another over the long distance.

During the end game’s cutscenes, it’s revealed that even through the infighting in the Tevinter Imperium, Dorian was always known to be a staunch voice against corruption, along with his friend Maevaris, and that their mutually formed group - the Lucerni - continuously attempts to restore and redeem Tevinter. If Dorian gave the Inquisitor a sending crystal, it will be mentioned that he drew strength from their conversations and friendship, and if the Inquisitor romanced him, it will be noted that they were seen on occasion sneaking into the capitol to aid Dorian. If, however, the Inquisitor did not romance Dorian nor The Iron Bull and their party banter progressed to their romance, it will be mentioned that Dorian was kidnapped at one point by a leftover sect of Venatori, and that The Iron Bull’s mercenary company crossed over into Tevinter to rescue him in a dangerous operation.

While Dragon Age 4 is hinted to take place in the Tevinter Imperium, it’s not clear - though very much hoped for, in my case - that Dorian will at least make an appearance. He provides natural diversity, being both gay and a man of color, as established by the devs who stated that in the real world, his race would be Indian and he is voiced by Indo-Fijian Malaysian actor Ramon Tikaram. And even on top of that diversity, he is a wonderfully witty, enjoyable character to hang around, not to mention a powerful mage who is a force to contend with in battle. We’ll be waiting a while to see, regardless, but I know that when the game finally drops, I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled for my BFF.

(Concept art is from "Inquisition: The Art of Dragon Age" by Bioware")