#you know Orlais is a thing right?

[felassan]

EA site update:

"The Dread Wolf Rises Dragon Age Day 2023 Happy DA Day to our friends across Thedas!"

"[Mark] Dragon Age has always been a franchise about characters. Characters to fall in love with or to learn to loath. Those characters need a place in which to live, to fight, and to love—a place that shapes them and the events they find themselves swept up in. Today we explore the place they call home that forms the stage for everything that you do: Thedas. Corinne and the Dragon Age: Dreadwolf team have created a game that celebrates the rich and varied past of the franchise while crafting new experiences and stories. It has been incredible to come back to BioWare and see all of the progress they’ve made, and I’m excited for some of that world to be shared with all of you today. [Corinne] Thank you, Mark! I fondly remember playing each entry in the Dragon Age franchise, being completely immersed and enamored in the world you all had built. It amazes me to be here now, working alongside you and the team, to bring new stories and characters (not to mention a few returning characters) to all of the fans of the franchise. Dragon Age: Dreadwolf is the product of hard work and love. We know how much this world means to all of you, how these experiences stay with you. We want to get it right, so we’ve taken our time. We're so excited to join in this celebration of all things Dragon Age and the incredible fandom that surrounds it. Within the dev team, we’ve been eagerly awaiting Dragon Age Day as the enthusiasm, stories, charity, and artwork you share motivates us to be our best and create new experiences for all of you. To celebrate DA Day, we’re sharing a look at a few of the in-game locations you’ll explore on this new adventure (and perhaps a little more for those who listen closely). The stage is set. The Dread Wolf is ready to make his move. Oh, and one last thing before I go… In summer 2024, we’ll be fully revealing Dragon Age: Dreadwolf to you! We honestly can’t wait. See you all in Thedas, — Corinne Busche, Game Director & Mark Darrah, Sr Production Advisor"

"You’ve visited the lands of Thedas thrice before in our games and many more times in comics, books, art, and short stories. This time, you’ll be venturing to places unseen and returning to places from long ago. To celebrate Dragon Age Day, we wanted to show you some of those sights. [link to new trailer] We stand on the precipice of change. This is a world brimming with stories and characters waiting to meet you. The fate of this world teeters on the edge of a knife. In past games, you only got to see a slice of the world. In Origins, it was Ferelden—a land ravaged by war and Dark Spawn. In II, it was Kirkwall and its locales—festering with corruption and a dark underworld. And in Inquisition, you ventured across much of Orlais—facing down political intrigue as often as combat."

"This time, however, much more of Thedas is yours to see. The desolate, beautiful badlands of the Anderfels with curtains of distant mountainous spires. The twisting canals and gleaming towers of Antiva, where Crows may lurk in any shadow. The turquoise seas of Rivain with its rushes of greenery and hardy sea-faring people. And of course, there’s more."

"We felt this was best for the tale we wanted to tell this time and we hope you enjoy it as much as we have! It’s allowed us to create many more locations than past games, including both some you’ve longed to go to…and some you’ve never heard of before!"

"To help capture the wonders of Thedas, we partnered with three wonderful artists from our exceptionally talented community and gave them an early look at what you’ve now seen. We’ve always been so fortunate to have such an incredibly skilled community of artists, and getting to work with these three was a true joy! We asked each of them to create a vista of one of the three regions in the video based on their interpretation of it in their own unique styles. Please enjoy their wonderful work, and be sure to send them some love when you check out their personal channels for more of their art!" [link to art]

"Turning our focus to your closest kitchen, if you’re looking for a fun gift this holiday season or want to try some Thedosian dishes yourself, we’ve got you covered with Dragon Age: The Official Cookbook: Tastes of Thedas from our partners, Insight Editions! This project was lovingly crafted by the author, Jessie Hasset, as well as members of our team who have an affinity for the kitchen and a love of cuisine."

"The cookbook features recipes suited to all skill levels, but we know that jumping in may be a daunting task for some. To help you out, we’ve partnered with MisoHungrie, a wonderful YouTuber who specializes in cooking, with a particular knack for video game and entertainment-related dishes. If you’re looking for a place to start on your culinary journey, check out his video and follow along. And be sure to let us know what you think of these Thedosian delights! In addition to this, there are two giveaways you should keep an eye out for! For the first, our friends over at Insight Editions are giving away five copies of the cookbook on their social channels, so be sure to check them out. And it doesn’t end there. For those of you who decide to try your hand at making a culinary delight from the book (including one of the ones we’ve released separately), be sure to follow our own Dragon Age social channels for the second giveaway. Keep an eye out for the opportunity to submit your creation for a chance to win a BioWare Gear Store package, including the brand-new Morrigan romance bundle! Details on that giveaway will be posted next week."

"As we mentioned earlier this year, we’ve partnered with Dark Horse to create a digital package of all their comics for Dragon Age and Mass Effect on Humble Bundle. Visit the Humble Bundle page to find out how our partners are working to support Child’s Play, an organization that seeks to make the lives of children in hospitals more comfortable through the enjoyment of games. There’s no better time than the holidays to bring a smile to someone’s face. BioWare is also supporting a few local charities this month that focus on helping the most vulnerable in our communities via food banks. This includes the Edmonton Food Bank, the Greater Vancouver Food Bank, Les Banques alimentaires au Québec, and the Central Texas Food Bank. All of them provide food to thousands of people each month and rely on kindhearted donations and volunteers. If you’re wanting to give back this holiday season, please consider supporting Child’s Play or donating to your local food banks. Many communities also accept non-monetary donations of canned, dried, and packaged goods, clothing, and other useful supplies. However you choose to support those in need, know that every bit helps and can make a big difference in someone’s life, whether they’re in your community or around the world."

"An insult that he took as a badge of pride. An insult to inspire hope in his friends and fear in his enemies. That is what Fen’Harel, the Dread Wolf, truly is. Not a man who sees himself as evil, but someone who believes he’s fighting for a good cause and is willing to get his hands dirty. This long-awaited chapter of Dragon Age is fast approaching—the time close at hand. We’ll see you next summer with answers to your questions, including ones you have yet to ask. With that will come our full reveal including new trailers, gameplay, and—of course—the long-awaited release date. The Dread Wolf will rise once more and we’ll have much more to share with you as we approach Summer 2024. Please keep an eye on our social channels for all the latest information on Dragon Age: Dreadwolf’s reveal and beyond. Know this, though: The Dread Wolf has not been idle these past years. His reach is far, and soon his plans will come to fruition—a cataclysmic rejoining of magic and realms hundreds of years in the making. Will you be able to stop him? We hope so. Always believing in you,             — The Dragon Age Team"

[source and full post]

[anneapocalypse]

The thing is, even if Lucanis did hate mages generally (which as @dreadfutures says here, is probably not why he's called the Mage Killer), surely we can understand that that means something completely different in the north than it would in the south, right?

It's going to be really interesting to see how the fandom engages with Tevinter tbh. Like, back in DA2, a lot of people thought Fenris was pretty unreasonable about mages. It's easy to feel that way. Even I feel it sometimes and I love Fenris. But then you take a step back, and you remember that his entire life experience is mages having absolute power over him and using that power to cause endless suffering. Those people are still chasing him until Act III, making it difficult for him to shift his paradigm and see the situation in the south for what it is. And some players, even knowing that context, still had trouble seeing Fenris for anything more than a bigot. They couldn't see his context anymore than he could see Anders' or Merrill's.

And as players who have played and loved three games set in the south of Thedas, we are the ones who are going to have to shift our perspectives now. The power structures in the north are different. The way they operate and maintain their power is different. Sure, the base principles still apply, but the devil's in the details. Someone "hating mages" simply does not have the same connotations in the context of the north. If a character in Tevinter says something like, I don't know, "Something must be done about those mages," it doesn't in any way mean the same thing as it would when spoken in Orlais under the southern Chantry. And maybe I'm just stating the obvious, but Idk, I felt like it warranted saying, not just for Lucanis but for all the new characters we're going to be meeting in the north.

[pellelavellan]

@quiisquiliae from here

"There is always a lesser evil." The inquisitor insisted.

He expected backlash for the choices made at the masquerade ball from a number of people: his advisers, the people of Orlais, shit even people who weren't Orlesian. He'd done what he had to, and as far as he was concerned had done nothing he wasn't told to do. He was told to make a decision, and he did. The circumstances were not perfect, but he saw an opportunity fall in front of him and he took it.

He wasn't happy about cozying up to people who would certainly sell him for a crust of bread, doing them favors, smiling and thanking them for backhanded compliments. He hated every second of it. But that was the game had to be played. It was necessary to play people, get them to think he was on uninformed of their political squabble or they'd keep their mouths shut. If he knew anything about the sorts of people that wandered that ballroom, it was that they loved to talk about themselves, and thought their opinions and ambitions were the most interesting thing to be heard. So he let them think whatever they wanted if it got them babbling.

Truth was he had done his research, and he had actually hoped he might meet Briala at the ball. There were questions that needed answers. Some she could tell him herself and some her body language and inflections would tell for her.

He needed to know if somewhere down there she still cared for the Empress, or the Empress for her. He got that answer, and he used that information accordingly.

"I know what you must think. I acted with an agenda to impose. I manipulated two women who have no business together into forgiving each other, one of which as I see it has no right to forgiveness. I put in a precarious situation to prove a point, and used their affections for each other against them. But do you not think it is better this way for them to see that two people, and one who they would otherwise overlook can work together? Do you not see that men who will do anything to seize power are better off removed before they become a deeper problem?" He sighed. Talon wasn't really the person to argue this with.

It wasn't like Talon was deeply involved in the political turmoil that was the Orlesian court, or that he could perchance offer a better solution. He had asked a question, he hadn't accused him or anything.

"Listen, I don't know if I did the right thing. That's kind of the shitty part about all of this isn't it?" He was very stressed, visibly so. Pacing around the war room babbling all his concerns to no one in particular. The feelings he had were somewhere between anger and fear. Angry that he was certain some would see his actions as a threat, or a ploy to force his ideals onto an entire country, and afraid of the consequences those notions would create. "I don't think anyone knows really. We all just do things and hope they don't come back to bite us in the ass. This certainly will, and I know, I fucking know it will!"

[vigilskeep]

i may be not all on the up and up with dwarf culture and all, but from my understanding, concubines/mistresses/etc are treated much differently with their standing in houses and politics and the like. since rica + her kid is still considered part of bhelen's house despite not being married (yet?).

so this leads me to, carrying this thought process over, a dwarf!warden is named a living paragon regardless of the choices made, and so their house/family is elevated to pretty much godhood. the obvious follow up is kieran would be part of this alongside morrigan i assume if the dwarf!warden had him with her, but could it go further?

if the dwarf!warden is a mistress to alistair, would he also not be considered part of their house and therefor dwarven nobility? and by extension, anora if she's on the throne too? and i guess further with eamon, teagan, etc...

could you not make a worldstate where the sitting divine of the orlais chantry is, by the laws of orzammar, could be considered the highest of nobility with them?

bhelen would love in-law visits

the buzzkill paragraph is that it’s a little more complicated for a dwarf warden, because the special warden privileges that let them hang out on the surface and still retain their caste don’t necessarily apply to any above-ground family members, even dwarven ones. if they’re not dwarven, i’m actually not clear if it’s possible at all for a non-dwarf to hold caste status, though it’s certainly a really interesting unexplored aspect of orzammar culture, which is so isolationist but so reliant on trade with surfacers! there might be further difficulties for specific instances; for example, producing children is explicitly the purpose of having concubines, and status as a concubine seems highly dependent on that—beraht implies that even if a child is born, the status only lasts as long as the child lives—so i’m unsure what formal provision if any would exist for same-sex couples

the fun paragraph is that all that being said, every hard rule can bend if someone is favoured enough, and the dwarf warden is a living paragon. whether or not surfacer lovers and perhaps their children are technically part of the new house, i would definitely expect them to be treated with suitable honours in orzammar. you’re right bhelen would be living the dream at those family dinners. what a world

if it did apply as you say, it’d be a hell of thing. given. you know. fereldan culture and chantry marriage law existing. the king of ferelden or the divine having a lover is not ideal, but it’s at least understandable. a non-human lover is pushing it. the king of ferelden or the divine being formally considered some kind of concubine by non-chantry law? come on now. it’s very fun it’s also hugely risky of pushing some people too far (for one, i would NOT push anora like this, frankly)

[ghcstpyre]

Can you write something with cullen brushing the readers hair? It's a cute concept to me 🫶🫶 thank u

thank you so much for the request! sorry it's taken me so long to get round to it - life has been kicking my ass :')

content: cullen x reader / inquisitor!reader / gn!reader / fluff

"You know, you're better at this than I thought you'd be."

Your shoulders were slumped, void of tension for what felt like the first time in a while as you let your body sink back into the chair at your dresser. A soft, brassy chuckle came from the man standing behind you and his careful hands paused their motions.

"It's difficult to not pick up on these sorts of things when you grow up with two sisters." Cullen replied, the corners of his mouth quirking upwards as his hands resumed their work.

Thanks to the Commander, the bristles of your hairbrush combed gently through your hair, making sure not to snag harshly on any knots. The hand that wasn't gripping the brush handle held onto your hair a few inches from the tips, his grip tightening and loosening when needed as he worked the bristles through the ends of your hair and gradually made his way upwards.

You were too relaxed to think of a witty remark and instead let a happy little sigh slip past your lips as the bristles got closer to your scalp. It wasn't often that you and Cullen got a quiet moment together like this - being the Inquisitor and Commander respectively left little room for any downtime, let alone any downtime together - so you were determined to savour every precious second of it.

Once Cullen was sure he'd gotten rid of any little knots, he began steadily dragging the bristles of the brush through your hair from root to tip, the fingers of his free hand following close behind, combing them through your freshly washed locks.

When you asked him to brush your hair after you'd finished bathing, Cullen had been worried about the evidence of battle he might find upon your pretty head; singed hair from the fire spell of a rebel Mage, a bruise from the pommel of a Templar sword, or a scratch from a wretched Shade demon. He was more than relieved however when he found nothing of the sort. Instead you were simply knackered down to the bone from your travels and fed up with the pettiness, fickleness and rudeness of the Orlesian nobility. He could see it in the dark circles around your eyes and the way you dragged your feet upon re-entering Skyhold.

You'd choose battling demons over playing The Game any day (much to Josephine's dismay).

A content hum left your mouth and your eyes slipped shut as Cullen continued to work wonders on your weary head. The quietness of your chambers in Skyhold was a welcome reprieve from the hustle and bustle of Orlais, as was the warm, welcoming embrace of the Commander. Your Commander.

"Mm...remind me to thank your sisters when I meet them."

Another hearty chuckle sounded from behind you and the wonderful tingling sensation of your hair being brushed finally stopped, causing you to whine weakly in protest. Cullen's free hand moved from your hair to rest on your left shoulder as he leaned over your right to place the hairbrush back down on your dresser. His head dipped down to level with yours as he leaned back from the dresser and pressed his lips to the soft skin of your cheek in a gentle kiss, his stubble feeling a little prickly against your face - not that you minded.

"I'm sure I can manage that." Cullen's voice was low and soft. His hazel eyes flicked down to your lips before he leaned in once again, his mouth finally finding yours after weeks of being apart.

[dragonagecompanions]

In Dragon Age Inquisition do you like the winter palace uniforms? Do you like everyone matching? What do you think the inquisitor and companions should wear? Please feel free to draw or add pictures of the outfits if you want.

*Asks are sent for fun, no pressure to answer within a certain amount of time or at all.

I hate the uniforms! Every companion should have been styled differently, and buckle up because under the break are my OPINIONS. All images came from Pinterest, I am trying my best not to use art.

Cassandra: There is no statement quite like a warrior in full armor, and Cassandra Allegra Portia Calogera Filomena Pentaghast was born to make that statement. Add a cape with the Inquisitions heraldry and you will leave no one in doubt that the divines right hand is still strong.

Varric: Kirkwall’s most famous author has a brand— don’t taint it! Dark leathers and earthy tones speak of the adventures of Lowtown with the champion, off set by metallic accessories to remind all that the Merchants Guild’s deshyr is more than he seems.

Blackwall: If he is still known as a warden then you bring him in the full brilliance of his rank, in the blue and silverite of Thedas’s last and truest heroes.

If his secret is out best not to bring him to Orlais.

Solas: The Inquisition’s resident rift mage should not be relegated to a terrible hat and no introduction. Let the egg shine for once in the sort of graceful robes that put all the elegance of that long frame to use. We never see Solas fancied up, and for once we deserve too— while maintaining the more neutral tones he seems to prefer.

Vivienne: Let the woman shine. Morrigsn is almost swallowed up in her velvet monstrosity, heavy handed ina dramatic sweep of stuffy brocade. But Madame de Fer has come for war, and her dress is equal elegance and armor.

Sera: With the right mix of humor and haute, even Skyhold’s Red Jenny can turn heads in Orlais. If nothing else she will be a distraction.

Dorian: You know he wept over the terrible military coat. Dress the Tevinter mage in the shadows and secrets of his homeland!

The Iron Bull: Dress him down. Go the full rope work, the full paint . Play up the quantity element, the edge of fear, the strength of muscle and mind. Drive Orlais wild, and he will learn any number of things.

Cole: Gove him a fun hat and cape. No one will remember him anyway, might as well dress him up a bit.

Mod Fereldone

[thekingofwinterblog]

How to fix Halamshiral as a Zone

Inquisition is a flawed game.

I don't think there's anyone who is going to argue otherwise.

The only question is wheter you place it higher or lower than DA2.

One of the things I think it does better than DA2, is that it managed to give every place a soul, an identity of it's own, and at least a distinct, if not always amazing storyline.

The emerald graves doesnt have a very interesting plot, but it has some spectacular side quests, and atmosphere, inculding a haunted mansion, which might be my favorite possession based quest in all of DA because it shows much better than others just how dangerous untrained mages actually are to those around them.

The storm coast tells a story of what was once an important dwarven port, and shows how it fell and was repurposed over time.

The Hinterlands shows the aftereffects of the templar mage war, as well as solas stupid plan to give cory his orb, and the mage rebellion and an actually decent time travel story.

I could go on, but the point is, I usually have at least aomething nice to say about every single region.

All except one.

Halamshiral.

Halamshiral was the single worst part of all of Dragon Age Inquisition for me, and every single time I boot up this game, it's always the last thing i do before the temple of sacred ashes, despite how bizarre the game flows as a result.

And the reason is because i hate everything about it.

I hate it's unique attempt at side quests, i hate the characters involved, i hate the Orlesians who inhabit it, and i hate how this section tries to copy what worked so amazingly well with Orzammar and Denerim during the landsmeet section, and fails every single shot it lines up.

The ONLY good thing i have to say about this, is that it's at the very least relatively short.

So here's today's question. How to fix Halamshiral?

Let's begin with the three main players.

Celene, Gasparde, and Briala.

The big problem with every single option, is that they all suck.

Celene and Gasparde are both fucking awful people without any redeeming qualities, they have no charisma, and there is no prospect of the Empire reforming itself under either of them, the way Orzammar would under Bhelen.

Meanwhile, Briala is much, much better, but the problem is that we know exactly what is going to happen here if you support her.

Maybe today elves will have it better, but tomorrow, when Gasparde is gone, or celene turns on elves again as she always does all the progress will be repealed, and reversed, along with a few purged alienages.

Its an old story that's been told before in Dragon age.

In short, there is no reason at all to care about this overall plot. None whatsoever.

There were so many reasons to care about both Orzammar and Denerim in the same situation, and every single character involved had so much more charisma than either of these would be monarchs.

So let's fix that.

Starting with Celene, take the idea of her wanting to reform the empire, and actually take it to the next level.

Celene is genuine in wanting to reform the empire, and has already taken grand, successful steps to make the entire thing much better for everyone, even elves, giving them and serfs more rights, outlawing the practice of chevaliers having a tradition of killing unarmed city elves to graduate.

But the catch is, while she is genuinely making progress, she is doing so within the confines of the great game.

Celene has nonintention of changing the great game, no plans of wanting to remove this thing that holds Orlais back more than any other, this center stone of their nobility and it's culture.

Meanwhile, Gasparde is a different kind of reformer, one that takes the ideas he had of him claiming to hate the game, and actually doing something with it.

He is far less progressive, has no love for elves, is far more warlike than Celene ever was... But unlike Celene, his ideas of reform isn't going to act within the grand game.

He's going to break it.

Unlike canon gasparde, this gasparde is hated by every single noble family in the entire empire. His only support, and it's a strong one, is the army. The parts of the army that supports Gasparde, and they are a huge part, are loyal to him personally to the hilt.

And he hates them back. He hates the game, he hates the way it cripples the empire, and he wants to change things. Like Celene he plans to break the serfs free of their chains, for the good of the nation and it's power and economy if not for any progressive reasons.

And he'a going to start with Halamshiral.

For this Gasparde isn't merely positioning men to stage a coup... He's planning to kill EVERY SINGLE NOBLE in Halamshiral. Evety man, every woman, every child there.

He's going to reform this empire by wiping out it's cancerous nobility in one fell swoop, and install himself as supreme dictator to see his reforms through, and wiping out the entire Orlesian nobility that might have opposed him, french revolution style.

And thus the Inquisitor has a dilemma.

Unlike Orzammar, where only one side was a reformer, both of these Orlesians are... But you have to choose one.

Do you choose Celene? The more progressive candidate, who wants a more peaceful Orlais going forward? But who is not willing to get ridd of the grand game to do so, thus making it a permanent risk that all her reforms will be undone...

Or will you support Gasparde, and by doing so be complicit in destroying the entire nobility of Orlais, many of whom are not guilty of the shit that Celene and Gasparde here both hate so much? Gasparde is far less likely to create a peaceful Orlais going forward... But he will have obliterated the Grand Game for good and all, a prize that might be worth this Red Wedding style bloodbath.

Meanwhile there is Briala, the elven spy who has enough influence to allow, or prevent Gasparde's plans from going through.

Here there should be another moral dilemma, quite different from the base game.

Do you convince her to aid Gasparde, in exchange for the Elves getting a duchy of their own in Halamshiral? Do you then back her up with Inquisition forces and support, forcing Him to publicly announce her as such, and trust his own, twisted version of honor to actually stick to it going forward(Something he ultimately does), or do you throw her to the Wolves the moment things get rough?

Or alternatively, do you convince her to side with Celene, and bury the hatchet? And if so, on what terms? And similarly, if she actually wants to get something out of this, you actually need to back her up... Something you may, or may not choose to do.

And voila, here you have an actual story of intrigue, massive, lasting political changes as a result of the Herald's actions, and morally grey on grey choices.

Everything that Denerim and Orzammar had in spades.

Now moving on from the plot to the actual place.

Halamshiral has no soul.

It's a french villa on a mountaintop. Whoop de freaking do.

It has no interesting murals, unique art only found there, interesting geography, or anything really to make it stand out.

Compare it to Denerim and Orzammar, and the way they fleshed out the entire city's levels of power and criminal underworlds, and you see the difference.

Denerim is a very realistic, squat, squalid medieval city, with it's buildings built on top of every single bit of available space.

Orzammar is a full on high fantasy dwarf city lit up by a lake of lava.

Halamshiral is a villa presented as a city.

How do you fix that?

There is an artist here on Tumblr who pretty much showcased what Halamshiral could have been, if they had taken the idea of the Dalish(who were the original owners) taking inspiration from native americans(amongst others), and use that to build a truly spectacular city, which has long ago been paved over, but the structure is still there.

Make it a city on the water, like the aztex capital of Tenochtitlan, a marvel of canals and stone.

Make it this Venezia like city, with canals everywhere you look, and the entire city running on water. A marvel of Dalish city building, where they took something as simple as a couple of islands in a lake, and built the most beautiful city in the world.

And rather than just limit you to the palace, instead let you actually explore this city.

Expand the entire event from one night, to a week.

Let the Herald explore the city, meet the players, interact with the nobles, become friends with a few like you could with Ferelden's bans, which in turn makes the possibility of sacrificing them for the greater good hit so much harder.

Let you choose what fancy stuff to wear to the balls and meetings, rather than have this stupid motto of forcing you to wear one, pre determined outfit like this game had for some reason.

Let you discover the places where what little Elven Architecture and art still remains can be found, and talk with the elves who still live here, the descendants after the first elves the Orlesians enslaved.

Make the plotting of Gasparde and the positioning of troops be gradual, not instantly discovered and twarted.

And at the end, if you choose to back Gasparde, you mirror that scene from Dragon Age 2, where the Templars sail across the bay, and you either step aside and witness the bloodbath you just allowed to happen, or you fight them and be recognized by the nobility(most of which are horrible, horrible people) as a hero who just saved the day.

Have the venatori plot be to kill both Gasparde and Celene, rather than their involvement mostly be about handing the player the the easy knife for the knot of which monarch to pick without having to get your hands dirty.

Also have the entire group be gathered for once. Every inner member of the Inquisition just like at Denerim.

Each of whom have their own thoughts on the events.

Who supports who? What is the right thing to do? What is better for the inquisition? Are you staining your honor beyond repair if you back Gasparde? Does the Inquisitor maybe have a breakdown after witnessing what they just allowed to happen and they walk through the gardens or rooms filled with corpses? Maybe have the scene at the end with the love interest be about a moment of them truly comforting their lover in the aftermath of it all, understanding(or not) that as boss, it's your job to have to make the tough decisions. And now you have to live with them.

Or if you wanna go the other way, this could be one of the breaking points like Origins had. If you support Gasparde, Blackwall choses to tell you to get bent, and that he will die as benefits a knight. Defending the week, and calling you out on how you are just as bad as he ever was, a child killer who's going to run away from responsibility, to pretend you are some better person than what you actually are. You're a murder. Just like he was. You are just as responsible for the blood that's flowing as he was with that carriage back in the day.

It would have been a far more impressive reveal moment for his crimes, that's for sure.

Cole probably would be the one who would be second most upset, but wheter he leaves or ultimately stays should probably be depended on your other choices and your relationship with him prior to this, probably have his personal quest be the determinating factor of what he chooses to do.

And i could go on, but point is, this would be a return to Origins choices actually mattering. There were choices that could make or break a characters bond with you. Shale would not budge regarding Caridin, Leliana and wynne would stand against you if you choose to defile the urn, Sevran would choose to betray you for his old friend if he didn't like you enough, and of course the age old choices at the end of act 3 in da2, where you have to pick between templars and Mages, as well as anders fate, and chances are regardless of what you do, at least 1 person ends up dead.

If anyone reading this has any suggestions for how to further improve this storyline, feel free to share, but regardless, i think we can all agree that this is a vast improvement of what we actually got.

[eastern-lights]

In defense of Arl Teagan in Trespasser

From what I've gathered, the fandom consensus seems to be that Teagan was severely mischaracterized in Trespasser, so much so that there are theories that his role in the story was originally supposed to be filled by a completely different character. But I would argue that not only are his actions in DAI completely in character, his role in Trespasser is actually genius from a narrative perspective.

Let me preface this by saying that I adore Teagan. He is easily in my top five Origins characters. We all loved the moment he strode up to Loghain, the biggest kid on the block, and made it clear that Ferelden would not yield. He was brave, badass, ready to stand up to those in power and we loved him for it.

Now what does he do in Trespasser? He walks up to the biggest kid on the block and makes it clear that Ferelden will not yield. The only difference is that this time, we are the biggest kid.

You might argue that we as the Inquisitor are not a threat to Ferelden, certainly not one on Loghain's level, and we are certainly not asking Ferelden to bow to us. But we have taken Haven. We have taken Caer Bronach. We showed up to the Hinterlands Crossroads and declared them under our protection. As noble as our intentions were, we ARE encroaching on Fereldan sovereignty and Fereldans do not take that lightly.

Even for Teagan personally it makes perfect sense that he would be sensitive to matters like this. The loss of Ferelden's independence to Orlais is the reason he never laid eyes on his homeland and his older sister until he was twenty. It's the reason he never knew his mother, who died fleeing the occupation. His father died fighting to free Ferelden.

Taken like this, his objections seem more than reasonable. So why do they still seem so off to us? Because we the player identify with Ferelden. We were its savior in Origins and its proud child in DA2. We love Ferelden and we are used to Ferelden loving us back.

We were taking Ferelden (and Teagan) for granted so much that we failed to realize that as the Inquisitor (again, despite our best intentions), we are not the Warden, defending our country and fighting injustice. We are Loghain, once a hero, but now well on our way to becoming everything we once hated because we do what we think is necessary.

For Teagan, the brave, kind, handsome, morally upstanding Teagan we know from Origins, to oppose us was supposed to be a wake up call. It was the signal that the Inquisitor was no longer the hero. If the closest thing Origins had to an unambiguously good person thinks we crossed the line, there must be something to it, right? Instead, we faulted the writers because we felt betrayed by how we were treated by the man and country we had done so much for in the previous games.

And yes, if the Inquisition sided with the mages, we gave him back his arling, but let's face it, Teagan wouldn't be much of an ambassador if he put personal gratitude above the good of his country.

[quitefair]

alright time to gripe about inquisition again (what’s new)

dyou know i barely understood what the fuck was going on in orlais politically from just playing the game? i’m basic, i never read the masked empire, also by the time we hit like wewh i am absolutely not reading all the codex entries because im distracted with how pretty orlais looks VISUALLY and also mentally scarred from all the warden nonsense

but in doing research i found out a bunch of COMPLETELY WILD THINGS that the game does that they don’t??? talk about???

okay so here’s the deal:

Vivienne’s lover is this guy called Duke Bastien of Ghislain. A dude you have to help kinda save as part of Vivienne’s personal quest (I have even more gripes about how Vivienne’s character and arc was so poorly handled but that’s a post of its own)

So yeah this dude

Crusty old guy you kinda only see as some random B plot side quest with no relevance. But okay okay I went in and read up about him right? 

He’s the head of the College of Heralds. Yknow what they do? They literally handle any and all problems to do with titles and lineage related to them among the Orlesian nobility. They were called in when Emperor Florian died in 9:20 Dragon without an heir. They were the ones that chose Celene over Gaspard as the new ruler of Orlais.

They’re technically the reason the entire Civil War happens in the first place!!!! The Fuck!!!!!!! I may be stupid but I don’t think anybody stressed on this in the game???

Also wait, there’s more yeah!!!

This dude had a wife (who died or something idek the details sorry) and had two kids - Calienne and Laurent

Calienne, mind you, went on to fuckin MARRY??? GASPARD DE CHALONS??? Duke Gaspard was this DUDE’S SON IN LAW???? A dude that he (as part of the College of Heralds) chose to snub as they chose his cousin as the Empress instead of him????

This is fucking wild you guys.

Calienne supports Gaspards claim to the throne despite what her father did, plays a part in the assassination of Celene’s mother, and eventually was murdered by Celene’s father and cousin (another thing I had to read with my own eyes was that Duke Motherfucking Prosper of Mark of the Assassin infamy was Celene’s relative. Oh also that his son Cyril is also on the Council of Heralds and is also the Orlesian representative at the Exalted Council??? What the Motherfucking Shit???)

On the other hand, we have his other child Laurent.

On first pass I seriously got him confused with the dude that tries to get the Inquisition to pay taxes to him cause he owns the land around Haven?? THEYRE WEARING THE SAME OUTFIT???

But apparently they’re not the same guy. And the only time you interact with him in person is in Skyhold after Vivienne’s personal quest where he thanks you for helping his dad or something. You barely see the guy, and he’s apparently the heir to all his father’s lands and titles, including the seat at the Council of Heralds?? While his BROTHER IN LAW is MOTHERFUCKING GASPARD DE CHALONS????

And despite all of this, the only more you can learn about him is through this absolutely random war table mission where you help him out and they give the Inquisition some insignificant strip of land in Orlais??

Dude what the fuuuuuck.........

[cal-writes]

well dragon age gameplay trailer made me go through some old wips. this is from an au where hawke and varric never met in kirkwall and varric hated her

-

Only Hawke’s quick reaction saved him from landing face first in the snow. She grabbed a hold of his arm when the powdery snow slipped out from under his feet. He grunted as he regained his balance with her hand steadying him.

“Not used to Ferelden weather, are you?” She asked, voice hinting at humor. Since their last encounter Hawke was still cautious around him. Not that Varric could blame her.

“Lived my entire life in Kirkwall, barely left the city. So no, I’m not.” He grit out and focused on his footing.

In front of them the Inquisitor chatted with Alistair while Blackwall remained a clear distance behind them. Whatever for, Varric wasn’t sure. He had been of the impression that Blackwall would have enjoyed the company of another Warden. But sometimes people were more complicated than that.

“So, you being from Ferelden was the truth then.” He said.

“I came with other refugees, why would I lie about that?” She replied. Her tone was neutral but Varric wasn’t fooled. He was stepping on thin ice. Not literally, he hoped. It was hard to tell if under the snow was hard ground or vengeful rivers.

“Just curious what I got wrong, is all.” Varric shrugged. “Anywhere in particular?”

“I thought you were only interested in my Kirkwall years.” Hawke said, more defensive now.

Varric discovered that it was hard to be nonchalant when one was panting their way up a hill. “Just trying to see the whole picture. Past defines us and all that nonsense.”

Hawke sighed heavily. She wasn’t even out of breath. It came from being on the run, he figured.

“We lived all over. Never stayed anywhere longer than we did in Kirkwall though.” She told him.

“Sorry about that.” He said but this time she shrugged it off.

“I figured it wouldn’t last. It never does. Living as an apostate isn’t the best occupation for settling down.” She explained and for Varric it was hard to fathom. He had been so attached to all his things back home. The furniture in the Hanged Man, the Hanged Man itself, the people, knowing all the hidey holes in the city. Even his stupid brother he had been attached to. All things he couldn’t stuff into a pack and walk away with. Seeing how Hawke carried the one of her back, made him wonder what she thought important enough to carry with her.

“Must be hard.” He said. As hard as climbing up this mountain was for him, at the least. He couldn’t imagine doing this every day. The way Hawke did it with ease, either spoke from regularity or her long legs were more of an advantage then he thought.

“You want to know my tragic backstory? I thought you would try to pry it out of me a lot smoother.” She concealed a smile under a huff, breath curling in front of her lips.

“Worth a shot.” He grinned.

“Short story: Moved a lot, dad died before the Blight, sister killed by Darkspawn, mother killed by lunatic, brother killed by lunatic. Now I live the luxurious life of a fugitive.”

“Sounds very tragic to me. Great material.” He slipped again and this time he grabbed onto her arm before she could even react. Varric cursed and looked up the mountain. At least Skyfall was visible now but it was still going to be a long day. “You staying long?”

“No. Alistair and I are going to stop for supplies and rest for the night, then we’ll head on to Orlais.” She kept hold on his arm for a few more feet before she was satisfied with his progress enough that she led him go.

Right, the Western Approach. “At least it’ll be warmer there.”

“I don’t mind the cold. Must be all those years in Ferelden.”

“Must be.”

[dalishious]

I may have this all wrong, but is it just me or does there seem to be this trend in the (Dalish positive spaces of) fandom, where city elves' culture is seen as "less" of a culture than the Dalish's and less connected to the Dales (Not helped by the source material)? As an example, recently some people were talking about how an elf PC would feel about Orlais being so huge because they took over the Dales and the only ones anybody brought up were Mahariel and Lavellan, as if Tabris and Surana would somehow have less of a connection to the Dales, which idk feels a little odd, given how clearly inspired the city elves are from the Jewish and Romani peoples.

Obviously the Dalish do have more information about a lot of things! And I'm not denying that! But there's this lingering implication that happens when people talk about city/circle elves that, as an example, none of them could believe in the Elvhen gods without being Dalish because otherwise it would be cultural appropriation somehow despite it being just as much their culture as the Dalish's?

I could be reading into this incorrectly, (social cues and reading between the lines is not my forte) hence why I wanted to run it by someone else, but it sits with me very uncomfortably given their real life counterparts

A few thinks to unpack here...

While it's true that city elves and Dalish elves have developed individual aspects of culture based on their surroundings, they are still all of the same people. This opinion in-game is argued between different characters, but I firmly stand on the side of those who favour a unified elven identity. And if someone were to argue that because their cultures are different, well, the same could be said of individual Dalish clans--and yet no one argues that the Dalish are not grouped together because of that.

Subsequently, city elves have just as much a right to claim their ancestors of the Dales as the Dalish do.

The only reason most city elves are Andrastian is because it's illegal for them to worship the Elven Pantheon, at least publicly. But this doesn't stop some elves from doing so! For example, the quest "Flowers for Senna" in DA:I has you place flowers on the grave of a deceased partner for a widowed elf who recites "may your ashes be gathered by Falon'Din," and says to Lavellan, "You are Dalish? My Senna and I, we kept to the old ways as we could, though I know we are as children to you." This is not cultural appropriation because you cannot appropriate your own culture, and I reiterate: city or Dalish, they are all elves and they all have the same ancestors.

[theluckywizard]

In Search of a Wayward Bronto

Summary: Desperate to find his brother, Garrett Hawke heads to a blight-ruined stretch of Orlais to search for the Wardens with Varric and Alistair. Amid their misadventures and unending banter, Garrett grapples with past failures and his growing love for Inquisitor Rose Trevelyan.

WC: 6585

Rating: Teen

No CWs

Excerpt below the cut 👇

“I think there’s sand under my eyelids,” complains Varric. “Sand in my shoes. Sand in my hair. Sand in creases I didn’t know I had. And now my Maker-damned eyelids.”

“Hawke, where’s your spyglass?” asks Alistair.

“Check the outside pocket,” says Garrett, taking a swig from his water skin and wiping his mouth on the back of his hand. He squints through the darkness, scanning for the ritual tower that’s supposed to be right bloody here. They’d sent Liska and Feyrith on to the Inquisition camp ahead of them to reduce their party size on these vast stretches of sand and salt.

Instead, Alistair pulls out that well-worn copy of The Fires of Satinalia Garrett kept, his eyebrow arched high, wrestling with a tenacious grin and losing.

“The Fires of Satinalia?” chuckles Alistair. Garrett plucks it from him and thumbs randomly through the pages, laughing in preparation for the roasting. Alistair snatches it back, dancing out of reach. “Hey Varric— look what Hawke’s had all this time. Contraband.”

Varric saunters over, catching the book Alistair tosses. “Maker, Hawke, really? I thought you were a few pegs above the target audience for this shit.”

“You seem more like a Lurid Lust Charade man, to be honest,” says Alistair. “Or maybe The Pleasure Château.”

“Bit quick on the draw with those titles, aren’t you?” asks Garrett, flashing a grin. He leans into it, desperate for something to lighten his mood. “If you must know. It’s sentimental.” He braces for another savage tide of comments.

“Sentimental? Of velvety candlelit nights with your hand in your drawers?”

“How scurrilous of you, my sweet prince,” rejoins Garrett. “Try ‘velvety candlelit nights making my lover snort brandy through her nose’.”

“Really didn’t need to know that,” says Varric. 

“Pish posh. You’re just envious of my good fortune! How long’s it been for you? Four years? Five?” Varric waves him off.

“Keep your sodding smut,” says Alistair, chucking the book at Garrett’s chest. “Just hang a sock on the tent before you cozy up with it.”

“Spoken like a true connoisseur.”

Alistair huffs an indignant laugh and taps his temple. “I certainly have no need of such things.”

“You never had a stack of poorly drawn tits hidden under your mattress? I find that highly doubtful,” says Garrett.

“The way the sisters would scour the dormitory?” he chuckles. “No.”

“Probably behind a loose brick in the base of a statue of Andraste that they’d all know about,” theorizes Varric.

“Well— it was Hessarian,” admits Alistair, finally fishing out the spyglass. “Impressive guess though.”

Varric smirks. “Adolescents are nothing if not predictable.”

“The prevailing rationale was that Andraste’s holy bosoms would draw suspicion,” says Alistair. “They were— remarkably shapely.”

Read the rest here!

DAFF Tag List:

@warpedlegacy | @rakshadow | @rosella-writes | @effelants | @bluewren

@breninarthur | @ar-lath-ma-cully | @dreadfutures | @plisuu | @hekaerges

@ir0n-angel | @inquisimer | @crackinglamb | @agentkatie | @oxygenforthewicked

@about2dance | @exalted-dawn-drabbles | @blarrghe | @delicatefade | @leggywillow

[crossdressingdeath]

Josephine: Celene has held the throne successfully for years. I see no profit in ousting her. [...] Sera: [shrugs] They're all lying, but Celene's nice to look at. Good thing we're here to save her neck. [...] Blackwall: Say what you want about Celene's ascension. She stole the throne? She seduced her way to it? Who cares? In the years since, she's proven she is the perfect mix of strength, cunning and grace that Orlais needs.

Alaris, listening to this: Am I losing my fucking mind?!

The slaughter of the alienage isn't a secret, is it? I mean, burning down the whole place can't have been subtle; people have to know, right? Leliana personally passed on the Divine's not-technically-order to shut the elves up, she must know at least, and she has no reason not to inform the others. Like... why are the companions looking their elven friend and leader in the eyes and telling him "yeah, Celene's great, just ignore how she murdered a shitload of your people to make her look slightly better in the eyes of the court"? Who thought this was a good idea? DAI's reliance on supplementary materials for important plot points that are barely mentioned in-game is at its absolute worst in this quest, but that doesn't mean the characters in-universe have any excuse for this total lack of any thought as to whether or not Alaris is at all down for helping the woman who burned down the alienage because the elves dared to get mad over the senseless killing of an innocent man and Gaspard called Celene weak.

[vigilskeep]

Do you think the victory of the HOF and crew will change Grey Warden strategic doctrine somewhat? The idea of 'oh shit we can nip it right in the bud if we go hard immediately' seems a lot more pleasant than letting half the continent burn down over the course of a few decades

it’s super hard to say. i mean, for one thing it’s impossible to know what thedas will look like by the time another blight comes around. for another, i think the reactions amongst the order to what the warden did, especially if the warden did the dark ritual, are going to be super mixed. fiona talks about how ostracized she was for “cheating death”. not to mention how the warden abandoned extremely fundamental and necessary rules of the order to get things done.

the wardens aren’t politically neutral because they just don’t feel like getting involved! there’s a reason! now, judging by awakening and the last flight, weisshaupt is cautiously taking advantage of that example, because it suits the first warden’s interests. but to me, that’s even scarier. the blackwall debacle with the inquisition using the treaties is bad enough; a grey warden holding lands and title and harbouring the apostate who would go on to destroy the kirkwall chantry is bad enough; a potential grey warden ruling king who gives sanctuary to mages is bad enough. if that boundary gets pushed any further, there’s reason to be really worried for the grey wardens. they can literally get exiled from orlais in inquisition, right? remember how the last time they were exiled from a country for getting politically involved, it meant there was a mere handful to deal with the blight, starting the entire conflict of dao? if the first warden pushes his luck in the anderfels and they lose weisshaupt, or lose their welcome elsewhere for fear of similar takeovers... if divine victoria can be anywhere from the HOF’s lover, associating them indelibly with her world-changing reforms, to someone who truly thought a grey warden conspiracy was involved with the start of the mage rebellion... if ferelden with its tight connections to the HOF and alistair comes into conflict with the rest of thedas (gaspard can literally canonically be on the throne of orlais)... they’re in a really dangerous position right now if anything goes south, and arguably, the warden and alistair kicked it off with what they were willing to do to stop the fifth blight before it properly started. and beyond the danger that in itself poses to the wardens, my point is there’s going to be many sections of the order whose very last thought is “yeah let’s do more of that”

during a theoretical sixth blight, i can definitely see some parts of the order desperate to match the hero of ferelden’s achievements. and i can also see risks like that getting a lot of people killed. in the opening of the last flight, the royal family of antiva refuse to abandon antiva city as the darkspawn approach, destroying the last hope of organising an evacuation and throwing away their citizens’ lives. the HOF had an exceptional chance and was exceptional enough to succeed in it. maybe that example will save the world from centuries of suffering a second time; maybe it will destroy the grey wardens at the very moment they’re next most needed; maybe by then any grey wardens left will be quicker to join the side of the darkspawn than associate themselves further with the HOF’s legacy. only time will tell!

[greypetrel]

WIP Wednesday

Thank you @daggerbean for the tag! And welcome back, consider yourself tagged back if you have something else! <3 Another slow week, a last-minute project took me away... Next I'll have something more, hopefully.

Some Cullavellan, it's been a while. Cullen tried again at challenging her to a drinking game. She was raised Dalish with home-brewed spirits and can't be beaten, just brought to sing.

Whale AU shenanigans, the original one: bed-ridden raccoons are a delight to have around when you're writing the essay of your life, absolutely. (traditional from my sketchbook!)

Some writing under the cut, I'm slow these days but I'm working on some silly thing.

Tagging: @salsedinepicta @ndostairlyrium @dungeons-and-dragon-age @melisusthewee @dreadfutures @pinayelf @whimsyswastry @sapphireangelbunny @flotttemotte @underneathestars

It was all going well, and she was chatting with Josephine and her sister Yvette about Antiva and vernissages, when the weird dish appeared.

A waiter stopped by the trio, perfectly still with a silver tray balanced on his gloved hand. He cleared his throat, once and twice, and when Aisling finally turned and asked him with a smile what she could do for him, the waiter lowered the tray with grace.

And presented her with a small china bowl, richly decorated in blue hunting scenes with gold details… Full of salad.

Aisling took the bowl with one end, the offered tiny fork with the other and thanked the waiter. She didn’t miss how both Montilyet sisters gasped, ad viewing the content of the bowl. Josephine with worry, Yvette with excitement.

Aisling looked at them and found the same emotions on their faces.

She had no idea about why such a gesture could elicit such a reaction from them. Looking down at the content of the bowl, it was just filled with arugula leaves, so freshly green they must have been just picked, and neatly washed before being served.

It was a little weird that there seemed to be no other ingredient to the dish, and no dressing whatsoever, but it also was true that Aisling wasn’t the best judge over how Orlais preferred to serve its rocket salad.

It was definitely weird how the whole of the west side of the upper corridor in the ballroom had stopped to look at her. Which explained why Josephine wasn’t telling anything about how she should behave right now, with a bowl of arugula in her hand.

She looked around, felt the expectation radiating in waves and directing at her.

Months ago, she would have been spooked by all the eyes on her.

Months ago, she hadn’t been the Inquisitor for months.

Without any clue about what the Game expected her to do with some salad, she just shrugged and did what it felt a good logical solution.

She dipped the tiny fork in the leaves, picked up a dainty little morsel -little and graceful, just as Josie had taught her- and brought it to her lips, taking a mouthful.

Other people gasped, Aisling just chewed. Spitting now was not an option, she could see it too.

Beside, she quite liked arugula, the bitterness mildened by the spiciness.

It wasn’t the best, unseasoned and alone, and this one came clearly from a greenhouse, for in the wild it would have been too soon, but it was fresh enough and tasty.

And under the scrutiny of half the ballroom, not knowing why exactly everyone had stopped to look at her and now apparently also called their friends and their grandmothers, she ate it all to the last leaf.

“Well, that was refreshing.” She smiled at the crowd when she was finished. “Can I know who sent it? I would really like to thank them for the lovely treat.”

It was, apparently, a good thing to say: some ladies started to giggle, and she could glimpse both the Dowager and Madame De Fer smiling under their masks, brief flashes before they turned away.

Something good must have happened, but she still didn’t understand the start from the end.

[wendynerdwrites]

Pretty cringe on Bioware's part

Okay, so I do not work for Bioware, don't have connections, and what I'm writing is based only on some background and experience in social media and online marketing. I HAVE NO INSIDER KNOWLEDGE AND CLAIM NONE.

But... It VERY MUCH LOOKS TO ME that this new name change is a plot to try and circumvent SEO on the new Dragon Age release being about how delayed the game is and all the layoffs and the severance lawsuits and shit.

And yeah, maybe this'll seem obvious to some of you, but I kind of just want to word vomit: (and this is a further musing on a TWITTER thread I made earlier. Sorry I just have to get this manic-episode cynicism out)

Why else at the supposed 11th hour would you change the game title to one that is just, so bad for so many reasons?

(It should be obvious that I'm editorializing here, but I like to cover my ass more these days)

So yeah, reasons why I think this name change is so bad and nonsensical it could only be made for desperate reasons:

Okay, so because I like to overthink stupid shit like video game name changes and have become quite Dragon Age fixated over the years, I was going over this bullshit too much.

Like, I tried to explain things to myself because sometimes I want a break from feeling cynical even with shit like this.

So I read this and mulled it over:

"BioWare general manager Gary McKay explains that while Solas is “still very much a part of the story of Dragon Age: The Veilguard,” the team wanted a title that reflected a “really deep and compelling group of companions.” --- Kat Bailey for Gameinfomer.com

Okay, fine, well, the last game is called "Dragon Age: Inquisition" and not "Dragon Age: Corypheus" or "Dragon Age: Elder One." And you know, stuff like "Leliana's Song" focuses on, you know, Leliana."

But you what, me? That doesn't hold up.

For one thing, Leliana's Song is a DLC. No one is going to mistake a main series Dragon Age release as being not about an ensemble cast of characters and just being about Solas because of a naming convention in the DLC. Especially given how common that can be in RPG's anyway.

First thing you often learn about Dragon Age as a series is that it's story focused RPG with strong cast of supporting characters and a lot of lore. Granted, that may not be the case for EVERYONE depending on when they or how they got acquainted for the series; but that's how it's commonly characterized.

In one game, Solas was given far more significance plot and character wise than Corypheus had in two.

Corypheus has good points. He's got a backstory that is couched comfortably by the lore and significant to the story. He's got motivation - he's pissed about there not being Gods and Tevinter falling, so he's trying to become a God now to restore the world he wants. He's got one of the most FUCKING BALLER VILLAIN REVEALS:

He also works very well thematically. He's a good symbol of corruption and the results of hubris and tyranny when Thedas is being torn apart by it's various authorities and their abuses of power. Civil War in Orlais. Templars have broken from the Chantry, the mages from the Templars, and they're all at war. From the first game we know that this is what is left of the peace and safety won by your Warden and their people. And we know a few reasons why. In Dragon Age II, we know how that happened and SO MANY MORE reasons why. THERE'S CORRUPTION IN THE WARDENS AND WTF IS EVEN HAPPENING IN WEISSHAUPT??? OR THE DEEP ROADS??? We add in an Orlesian Civil War and also, boom! Whoops! THE GUY WHO CAUSED ALL THOSE BLIGHTS WE'VE DIED IN IS BACK AND HE WANTS TO RIP THE SKY APART! OOH LOOK HE JUST DID!

He's the anthropomorphic personification of all of that.

But, uh, even with fabulous voice acting, Corypheus is not much of a character in his own right. He is more of a device for both plot and theme than, like, a person. As far as more humanizing antagonists, we get that from Samson, Calpernia, and Alexius than Corypheus.

Corypheus wants to restore Tevinter to the Empire he wishes to be God of. He's pissed at there being no Gods. So now he wants to rule over everything (while also destroying it.) "THIS CORRUPT WORLD NEEDS TO BE MADE ANEW BLAH BLAH BLAH I'M AN RPG BIG BAD"

And that's fine with me. Never had a problem with Corypheus turning into Darkspawn Skeletor.

Corypheus is a dick who wants to be God. But he works as a device to save the world from and lead to lore revelations and shit.

I don't know if Corypheus ever had anyone he cared about. I don't know what he like(d?) to eat. He has no goals that don't serve glorifying himself and being a tyrant. I don't know if he hates Thedas as anything other than standing in the way of the Tevinter he can be god-emperor of. I don't know what he really thinks of anything in the world of Thedas other than "inferior, kill it." He doesn't have complex motivations or thoughts on the world we're playing in. We don't know if any of his thoughts or perceptions have changed over the course of the thousands of years he's lived. If there's anything he enjoys. We don't know what kind of personalities he's drawn to. What he actually enjoyed about the world he came from.

We get all of that shit and more from Solas. Even if you don't like him, don't play with him much, he has a distinct personality. And his significance to the lore of the world actually reveals a lot more than Corypheus's. Solas CREATED THE FUCKING VEIL. ALSO THE ELVEN LEGENDS ARE ALL FUCKED UP. FLEMETH IS ACTUALLY HIS ANCIENT DIVINE PLATONIC DOMMY MOMMY FROM BACK IN THE DAY WHEN THEY WERE BOTH LITERAL GODS! DID WE MENTION HE CREATED THE VEIL?! BECAUSE THE DALISH ARE FUCKING WRONG ABOUT EVERYTHING! AND TEVINTER DIDN'T DESTROY ARLATHAN! AND WE'RE ALSO GOING TO LEARN SOME SHIT ABOUT THE FORGOTTEN ONES! ALSO DID WE MENTION HOW THE VEIL CAME TO BE????

All this through this Elven God of Bad Decisions:

Also, yes, Solas has got major thematic importance but I feel like that's a whole other rant and this is getting too long.

Point is: Solas is, flat out, more significant to the world all of these characters inhabit than Corypy-tits. The literal fabric of their plain of existence is woven by him. The entire way magic has worked and been handled, (something that is extremely significant character-wise for at least a third of this game's cast) is because of him and his history. There was a century between the fourth and fifth Blights. And, you know, the veil he created played a part in their origins.

Even putting aside that legacy characters like Varric, Cullen, and Leliana all have personal history. Solas is why Circles exist/ed. Those Magisters who started the Blight did so by fucking with his creation. He is why elves age and live as a diaspora.

And that's just what we know him to be responsible for. What about those hints about the Forgotten Ones? Exactly how did his rebellion work? What is his plan for the other Evanuris and will it work? [(No.)] What will that reveal about what the others are/were capable of? And what exactly happened between them and the Titans?

Look, I'd go on, but I don't want to go on too much longer like the Solas girlie I totally am. Point is: Solas's backstory alone has had significant ramifications for everyone in Thedas. And the ways he's affected their lives varies between races, generations, magical ability, etc. And that's through creation of the Veil alone.

And we know a shit ton about who Solas is as a person.

You don't need to be a Solas pro, Solas-anti, neutral, or Solas-mancer for this to be true.

So yeah, I would say he's "very much a part of the story." But also, in a way that informs and contributes to the characterization of the ensemble cast.

Inquisition's antagonist was no Fen'Harel. And you're not going to subtract from your ensemble, but rather enhance them (if you care at all about writing them well) by having a focus on him.

Now, I totally think the idea that the final big antagonist will be the Evanuris or someone else lurking behind the veil has merit. But Solas will ultimately be that catalyst.

"Okay, but maybe Bioware doesn't see it that way. Maybe they saw some social media complaints about too much Solas focus and did a hasty rebrand."

Well, for one, that complaint has been around for years now. And it's valid. The problem isn't a lot of Solas, it's that we got so little else. The promotion is bad, not the character or their role in the story. But if that's really it, why now? Why are they only changing the name now?

Now, okay, but Inquisition was still called Inquisition.... This game is about the Veil Guard. It's called Veil Guard.

Cool, but once again, then why hold onto Dreadwolf for so long? Why focus so much on Solas? Why haven't we gotten any glimpses of companions?

And, um, if this is really what you want, shouldn't the title be... better?

Inquisition is a good, solid, and communicative title. While the Inquisition of Thedas is not exactly the Spanish One, there is enough association there to give a general idea. Origins had a group of dumbass misfit fugitives drawn together to save the world. II was similar except they were mercs who get drawn into shit against their will and unwittingly. Inquisition: okay, so this time they'll probably be more of an official, religious-quasi military organization. It'll probably be controversial.

You can be a complete noob to Dragon Age and figure that out.

Veil Guard sounds like something last minute they got from Game of Thrones at the last minute. Okay, the Kingsguard are cool. They guard the king. We're stopping the veil from being torn down, so Veil Guard.

Here's the thing: none of the main ASOIAF series is called The Kingsguard, and you don't need to know anything about A Song of Ice and Fire to get it. Everyone knows what the fuck a king is and why he should be guarded. So even if there is a book called "The King's Guard" we'll get it. It's a book about fuckers guarding a king.

This game is about fuckers guarding... a veil....? The veil?

If you're up on your Dragon Age lore and are really into it, yes, you know what that means. If you're a noob or a casual who hasn't given much thought to Dragon Age in, say, a decade, uhh...:

Noobs: "The game is about fuckers guarding... a veil...? The veil???? Is it some sort of artifact, like it has Jesus's face on it? Or if they mean veil between worlds like some Lovecraft shit, is the new Dragon Age a horror game? Are people trying to travel to different worlds and we're trying to stop them? "

Casuals: "Or wait, is this about that dream world thing? That demon place that spits out demons? Didn't we just get done fixing that in the last game??? Wow, real original. Bioware Magic! "

It also just sounds uncool. Inquisition is an imposing title. Dreadwolf is an imposing title. The Veil Guard sounds like a sartorial maintenance product.

You want people to focus on your ensemble cast? SHOW IT! Because as long as all the promo keeps giving us new Solas anyways, it's just weak sauce.

Nah, this has panic move all over it.

Now, I'm trying to spin this optimistically in that I think this means we may actually get the game within this decade. Because I refuse to believe a) "Veil Guard" is the best they got out of a proper round of workshopping and b) That if this was truly about trying to avoid focussing on Solas too much, they'd announce this without a bunch of promo for the rest of the cast to accompanying it.

Bioware: "We wanted people to know the story is just all about solas, but more about our ensemble cast! We wanted this enough to change the name this late in the game!"

Everyone: "ALRIGHT! SHOW US THIS ENSEMBLE!!!"

Bioware:

Nah bitch, that's not what this is about. Bioware needs this to be a hit, and they need a hit soon. But they don't want their long-awaited blockbuster release to be mired in bad press. They don't want the general audience googling their new massive title only to find articles and reddit threads about layoffs, labor disputes, Mary Kirby's departure, the massive delays, the contract non-renewals happening in the midst of severance lawsuits.

BioWare wants to get their title out finally and they want to bury all the bad shit that's been plaguing this project. All the stories about the labor disputes, layoffs, firings, and lawsuits have mentioned the "Dreadwolf" team.

And quite frankly, it's just shitty. It looks bad. It's desperate.