wardennthorne

[wardennthorne]

I think a huge factor in people not being able to understand this game is that the game as a whole relies on understanding Solas’ character as written, and people are refusing to understand it

Solas is, and has been since his first appearance, an egotistical, hubristic, racist, manipulative, abusive and condescending asshole who regularly commits atrocities and pretends that being sad about them is enough penance. He is a terrible person who insists he’s actually the hero of the story. He is a liar and a manipulator, and he lies to himself as well. He uses other people like chess pieces and sacrifices them for his cause without much of a thought, and without them even knowing they are being used.

This is who he is. This is who he was always written to be. And veilguard is almost entirely about deconstructing that. Every member of the veilguard is a foil to solas. They are all who he pretends he is, and his false hero fantasy falls apart when you put them next to him.

Every single companion storyline is about that character successfully doing something that Solas is incapable of, but would be capable of if he wasn’t such a terrible person. And they all face a dark reflection of themselves and come out the other side mostly unscathed by that, aware that this dark reflection is not them because they are not actually like that.

Solas faces many of the same challenges the companions do, and fails each and every one of them, because, unlike them, he is not actually a hero. He is not a good person. He does not learn to accept that just because something is broken doesn’t mean there aren’t parts of it worth saving. He does not learn to accept the harsh truths and move forward. He does not accept that he is responsible for his own actions, even if someone else orders them. He fails every time.

Solas faces not one but two dark reflections of himself, Elgar’nan and Ghilan’nain, the prideful god who always thinks he’s right no matter the consequences, and the servant and lover of another god whose atrocities are not justified by having been pushed by their lover and mistress, but does not come out the other side unscathed because it turns out he IS actually like them. His reflections are accurate, they’re real parts of himself that he pretends don’t exist, not just twisted versions of their fears like they are for the companions. At the end of the game he even admits that yes, he is very similar to Elgar’nan.

Pretty much the entirety of veilguard is a very careful and deliberate deconstruction of Solas’ character and self image. We go through, in elaborate detail, all of his crimes, all of his mistakes, all of the reasons why he is wrong, why his actions are unjustifiable, why his regret doesn’t absolve him of responsibility, how he thinks it does anyway.

We completely tear down every single aspect of the image he has constructed for himself. We destroy every single excuse with clear examples showing that that was not how things had to go. Every justification. Every insistence it’s okay because he’s sorry. Every time he insists he knows best and we should leave him to it. Every single illusion that he is a good person is shattered. By the end of it there is absolutely nothing left, and his repeated attempts to keep up the facade come off as pathetic and ridiculous. In all his banters with companions he tries to use his usual tricks, pretty excuses, belittling comments, fake niceties and every time he’s completely shut down.

He tries to imply Davrin has a biased view of him from stories about the dread wolf, Davrin responds with evidence the truth is even worse. He tries to apologise to Harding, she comes back with a list of all the terrible things he’s done that an apology can’t cover. He tries to appeal to spite, spite points out he hurt Rook so why should he trust him. He comes up with excuses for killing Varric and Neve points out that there’s no pretty excuse for using blood magic on Rook in such a cruel way afterwards. The illusion is shattered. That’s what the entire game has been building up to. And it makes his last attempt at betrayal seem embarrassing, because we now see through the facade and know that he was too obsessed with himself to even consider we’d see it coming.

But the thing is a lot of people refuse to see this. This is where his characters been heading since the beginning. This is who he’s always been. But a lot of people ignore any and every negative thing about him, and then complain the game doesn’t make sense. Of course it doesn’t make sense. You’ve ignored every single theme, plot point, and piece of characterisation to make up a version of Solas in your head and that’s not the Solas the game is about. It makes complete sense when you see Solas as he truly is, as he was written to be. It’s such a good bit of writing when you actually let yourself experience it as it is and allow yourself to be open to the idea that the guy who is trying to commit his second genocide might be a bad person.

[wardennthorne]

I thought I had something

But it quickly fell apart...

[wardennthorne]

i am what you made me

— (ellana lavellan)

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closing out 2024 with some trespasser :) a redraw of a 2022 piece. my poor ellana, so twisted and fractured by rage and hate...

happy early new year!

[wardennthorne]

eat an entire can of sweetened condensed milk. you deserve it.

[wardennthorne]

i liked it when they said "it's like we're some kind of veil guard" and then they guarded the veil

[wardennthorne]

just cast the fire spell. dip shit

[wardennthorne]

What will they call you, when this is all over?

[wardennthorne]

ive been thinking about the whole tear the veil down thing again

not sure if ive missed something but, what happens to everyone but the elves? cause like. is the assumption that the elves die to become their spirit selves again? or do the ancient elves come back? or. is it just the environment that changes? cause even saying that, the humans, dwarves and qunari never were spirits so do they just like. have to live with everything? or just die from all the demons coming through.

im just not sure if theres a lot im missing or what

[wardennthorne]

did some paintovers of my Rook :) the tattoos + scars + vitaar I like for him are.... really busy 😅 so i wanted to kind of combine them so he has mostly just scars + vitaar. Also seeing what longer hair/rattail looks like lol

Non paintover screenshots below.... still might change his design tbh, whatever will feel best to draw in the end.

prettyboy ass rook.... wish there were more hair options for the qunari, and horn-to-scalp options because i always loved the jagged split flesh look 😞

[wardennthorne]

Anyway returning to my roots. Sketching on scrap cardboard.

[wardennthorne]

”Rook gives everyone gifts but doesn’t receive any” SURE HE DOES(in my head)

[wardennthorne]

Edith Hawke, inspired by this piece of concept art

[wardennthorne]

The "Butcher" Daathrata is such a fascinating character and it's such a shame he literally had one cutscene of screentime. There is so much to unpack with this guy. Like the fact that he is extremely calm compared to the Dragon King and is not portrayed as just some deranged muscle head. He is clearly very intelligent and charismatic when most of what we were told of Antaam is that all they care about is strength and raw power. And how he actually just loves Treviso but all he knows is to conquer because it has literally been drilled into him from childhood? That is such good material for a villain.

[wardennthorne]

he has transfixed me

[wardennthorne]

do you think Taash was ever told that rooks name wasn't actually Rook.

[wardennthorne]

i feel like im crazy i never took the in game info about viper as him BEING divine? idk i just assumed that he was in line to become the next black divine. but idk idk i personally think it makes more sense for him to NOT be divine cause like. be for real how would he be able to do anything he does if he was.

[wardennthorne]

So do we agree that Rook absolutely gives Davrin hand kisses? You know, after all the fights and whittling, when they’re alone. Or when they casually approach him in between tasks. Maybe right before going off on a mission, regardless whether he is joining them this time or not. A quick and casual touch like it’s the easiest thing in the world. And it is.