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jaal-ama-daravv · 8 months ago

Note

I saw this and thought of you. Thoughts?

https://www.tumblr.com/chantrytears/767433095927463939?source=share

Link to Post - Courtesy of @chantrytears

Harding & Emmrich - Moving Too Fast Banter Dissection

Love you for thinking of me and tagging me in this because this banter is VITAL to Emmrich x Rook's dynamic.

The jist of the dialogue banter being discussed is as follows:

Emmrich gave Harding an item that didn't work, Emmrich states that he has been distracted. Harding: "What with you and Rook becoming..." Emmrich: "You noticed..?" Harding: "I'm sure you two getting together is... only Rook's kind of, younger...so" Emmrich: "It's not - What are you getting at harding?" Harding: "You two are sort of moving quickly.." Emmrich: "May we change topics?"

To initially answer this in relation to the OP post, I believe the 'moving quickly' is in relation to their infatuation and connection to eachother. This is particularly noticeable with a Mourn Watch Rook, however, it's still noticeable in another Rook. I note that with a MW Rook, Harding is privy to one of the very first conversations you can have with Emmrich in the Lighthouse. Where all three discuss Necromancy and the burial process, and Harding states that Rook sounds 'fancier' when discussing these topics (linked). This, for me, was Harding's first observation at the type of connection MW Rook and Emmrich share - a deep and unbridabled passion. Possibly leading to Hardings disposition on their eventual relationship.

Back to the moving quickly context, codex entries, letters, or bits of pieces of eachother's belongings in eachothers rooms would've been a lovely addition. However, I will work with what is provided. By the time this conversation from Harding is triggered, Emmrich and Rook have shown an interest in eachother and have opened up to one another. They share a bond, a great bond. And if you've read my dissections, you'll know that this bond reaches beyond the veil to other worlds.

Let us keep in mind that Emmrich has yearned for this type of love since he was a child. It manifested into craving affection, then enduring love, then marriage throughout his life. However, he never found it. So he gave up. He gave up and went in search of another purpose - Lichdom. Although this post focuses on the mortal path - Lichdom was always apart of Emmrich's plan. It is only that he has found either the love of his life with Rook or found the family he so desperately craved with the Veilguard - that he would be willing to let go of his dream of lichdom, for his other dream of untold love. Backed by a banter dialogue with Davrin, here.

Additionally, with that information - Emmrich is of course absoloutley infatuated and obsessed with Rook. Not only by who they are, but what they represent, to him. Love, enduring affection, companionship, potential marriage. Everything that Emmrich has dreamed of. Marriage was also a topic of discussion between Harding and Emmrich, find it here.

These two were most likely sneaking kisses, and holding hands in his library and the balcony throughout our travels during Veilguard. They are very much *heart eyes* at eachother, and that is obvious from the first quest of Emmrichs. I'm not surprised that the discourse of them moving too fast came up, because to others, they most likely were very affectionate, fast. And quite frankly, I'm a fan of it. I love two insane, soul bound, in love freaks who just go for it because they recognise eachothers souls. The two are made for eachother.

In saying that, let's think back to the argument scene, and his reaction, Rook's reaction. The reaction of two people, so scared to lose eachother, lose their future, their plans, their sought after love. After only just finding eachother. Emmrich is torn apart on the inside because what if he loses his dream? The two of them, are in love, almost immediately. Hence, moving fast.

Additinally, Emmrich does not want the conversation to continue. He's straight up, doesn't want someone's opinion. What would they know?

Don't worry - I have more, because there is more. This is actually a 3 part banter dialogue. [LINK HERE] Lets continue -

Harding: "Emmrich, about earlier...when I brought up you and Rook being together Emmrich: "Yes..?" Harding: "Look, you were in a crypt with all your dusty books and suddenly Rook bursts into your own life and.." Emmrich: "I keep my books pristine!" Harding: "I get it. Rook's, Rook. Wild and eager. Just whisking you away and now it's all candles and showers of ghost petals! It's great, but, you've also been kind of pre-occupied, ya know...mopey." Emmrich: "Mopey?!"

Emmrich has a tendency to be very short and aloof when he is defensive. Harding calls Emmrich mopey after Rook entering his life and they get close.

Now, part 3 -

Emmrich: "I am not, mopey, Harding." (annoyed) Harding: "Uh, yeah you are. You're so mopey you misalign the spirit ether- what's it, twice this week, and your skull thing is crooked! Emmrich: "My collar pin is perfectly straight." Emmrich: "Ohh (deep sigh), I do worry sometimes about what people might think about Rook and myself. Given our ages. Not to mention the spectre of acting like a besotted fool." Harding: "You're not...that bad. My Ma always says, it's fun to go at full gallop, but you still have to keep your eyes open, tree branches and stuff." Emmrich: "I will, thank you Lace."

Emmrich, is in love. A distracted, can't stop thinking about the love of my life, in love man. There is no other way to put it. He calls him self a besotted fool because he is a FOOL in love - at his age, he likely feels some shame around it. A 50 year old man, acting like a teenage boy in love. Hence, and as @chantrytears and I have stated, his cool, calm, confident exterior is a front. He doesn't want to come accross as a besotted fool, and because we play as Rook, we won't see it from our perspective until he starts to crack during the argument and afterwards.

His besotedness is evident in the banter dialogue throughout the game, (which is mainly with Harding where you find out about most of his 'endearment' past). He reveals he wanted to be married when he was younger, he gave up, 'until rook' with whom he now consider close family. The crooked skelton pin. Forgetting to align items correctly. Hell I know I've thought about fictional men and at times people where I forget to do thins, or do things wrong, because you're well, obsessed.

All in all. Yeah they may of moved fast, but not in our realities sense, in the emotional sense. and honestly? I love them for it. Still not a fan of any of Harding's dialogue here, but grateful we get to see Emmrich call himself a fool for being in love.

*drops mic*

#in love does not begin to describe these two #destined? no #eternally bound? maybe #they are inevitable #thank you for asking <3 #asks #maeve ingellvar #emmrich #emmrich volkarin #emmrich romance #emmrich dragon age #rook x emmrich #dragon age #dragon age the veilguard #datv #da4 #datv spoilers #veilguard spoilers

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its-haughty · 7 months ago

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Saw your post about Zagreus blood symbolism, I’d never thought much about it what symbolism is there about him being the god of blood?

Ok so shiny-thing, im already Not normal about zagreus from the game hades by supergiant games. Asking me this is essentially doing the same act as unlocking a caged tiger from an enclosure.

Under the cut will be lots of text - basically going over my tags in more detail in that one zag piece i made

So basically, the blood symbolism/Zag being the god of blood is used to convey the themes of family and I shall explain..

“It’s In The Blood being about Zagreus”

The whole song is pretty much about Zagreus from a story perspective. The entire song revolves around the idea of family, and a lot of it relates to not being in control- it’s a part of him whether he likes it or not. The lines “It’s always there, it’s in the air. Your dearest kin, below the skin.” makes me so insane because it’s how Zagreus can’t really escape the fact he’s attached to his Mother AND his Father. It’s In The Blood, quite literally.

Blood is used to represent that underlying connection of family that simply can’t be destroyed, it’s inescapable, it’s a core part of who he is and what keeps him alive.

I find it so incredibly interesting that Zagreus essentially has his Mother’s blood, and for that it makes him feel like an outcast- he doesn’t feel as though he belongs in the underworld due to that disconnect from his family. It ties in with how he bleeds “mortal” blood, it’s not ichor or anything of the sort like those closest to him (I’m assuming) considering how Alecto tends to call Zagreus “Redblood” and sometimes during the Hades fight, Hades will comment offhandedly that “You’re bleeding, boy.” + OTTTHHERR countless times Hades has mentioned Zagreus bleeding mortal coloured blood.

And so Zagreus having mortal blood is seen as something to almost be ashamed of/should be hidden away, that sense of disconnect and loss of Something- which it turns out to be the loss without Persephone in his life.

“The River Styx always takes him (which is a pool of blood)”

This is pretty much stockpiling onto the fact that Zagreus cannot escape his bloodline, as it will always take him when he dies. Again, blood is used to convey the message that “There is no escape”!!

“Zagreus being the god of blood (???)”

I put ??? because technicallyyy this is a theory made by achilles but this is practically canon… Not only does it just make sense of zag’s character but there has been plenty of times Zagreus has straight up been related to concepts of blood outside the actual game (like that one offical halloween art where zag is dressed as a vampire… like c’mon.)

ANWAY THAT IS NOT THE POINT

I always found it so so damn interesting that Zagreus is the God of Blood, and as Thanatos’ codex entry continues “God the blood; of life”

The living Need blood in order to survive, but bleed once they’ve died- Zagreus’ domain is pretty much a middle ground between the dead and the living, it’s the dividing lines that keep the living from dying. So Zagreus would be in the middle between Hades, the god of the dead and Persephone, the god of verdure. His title of being the god of blood represents his family connections yet again.

How fuckin cool is that man!!

I’m going to stop rambling about blood because it makes me sound like a maniac and honestly needed to cut out so much unrelated information about just Zagreus’ character that didn’t have anything to do with the blood symbolism- i just LOVE this guy’s whole deal and development and arc and everything so so so SO MUCH

I am sincerely sorry if this makes no sense. I’m really not good at conveying my ideas in a way that makes sense sometimes

#whether or not it was your intention of indulging me #thank you for this ask!!!!!!!#i like talking about my favourite thing!!!!!#even if im not good at it!!!!!#hades game #asks #if anyone wants to ask me things hades related #literally anything i love interacting with this fandom #then go right ahead!#i will answer back!#poorly!

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thisuserislilsilly · 7 months ago

Text

Codex entry: Neran Solticence, the Hollowgrace and the Painless Mutes

Summary: My own take on one of the redacted lost Primarchs and Legions

TW: none

Goblin tag squad: @cardinalcanis @finchly-tintinnabulation @artemisareia @echo-of-damnation @meervalv0 @jaghatai-khock

Name

•Neran Soltilence "Hollowgace"

Titles

•"The Blank Stare", "Hollowgace","The Soulless"

Legion

•Relentless advance. Frontline combat, "Painless Mutes"

Date of Reunion

•852.M30

"There are no words for the emptiness I saw in the eyes of the Emperor's son that stood in front of our leader; it was simply as if no living soul resided in that inexpressible face. The choir that was in front of me quieted down, no more prayers nor chants were sung, everything seemed to stop at that moment in total expectation of what would happen.

I have no doubts of what I saw, even if it is not true, even if the penalty for this words are death. I saw the Emperor frown at the sight of one of his children."

- Remembrancer Edyth Matthoa

Deeds done prior to Reunification

•Neran roamed the Tagaroid System for an unknown number of years in which the Primarch brought the end of the Shakrim dynasty of the Voscax Xenos race with their own technology. Whatever the case and reason for that campaign was, the reunion of the Emperor with his lost son was done in a quiet and empty planet

The bones of that Xenos race was found in the course of the travel towards meeting the lost Primarch; spread everywhere without rhyme or reason as far as the eye could see, Solticence approached his father surrounding a hole which was filled with those bodies.

Size

•Approximately 13'5ft tall.

The most accurate depictions of Neran compared him as to be slightly bigger than Lion and Russ although this didn't translate quite so well with his physique, various rembrancers noted the skinny and noticeable "weak" features of the Primarch who seemed to be in an advanced stage of starvation. He wasn't the best of fighters with neither a blade or a gun, but some unnatural features made Neran an enemy to not underestimate so easily.

Mutations

•White as snow color of skin, black eyes with red iris and inhuman pain threshold; often compared with the Primarch Vulkan from the Salamanders in terms of how much damage his body could endure there was one significant difference that made Neran even more unnatural than the others. While his brother could die and feel pain before being resurrected, Solticence couldn't feel 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 at all, even the pleasant sensations or smells couldn't be perceived by Neran.

It is said that the armor he wore at the time of his discovery was what stimulated his body to react and feel everything around him; when it was discarded by it's null defensive capabilities the common theory suggested that it too shattered the only form of sensation his body had. Leaving Soltilence completely deprived of that important human feature.

Psychic Abilities

•"None" known

Personality

•Neran was detached from those around him and mostly failed at making consistent progress in the relationships he formed with others around him.

Distant and seemingly disengaged with the people that would engage in a conversation with Neran. The Primarch failed constantly in political discussions or agreements with others heavily relying in his equerry to speak for him in many social activities or interactions with others outside of the Legion.

Despite of his disadvantages at the hour of expressing himself, those who got to knew him better could easily spot the intentions behind his words or infer the meaning of whatever phrase Neran was trying to articulate. In the battlefield this lack of emotion and failure to express any kind of emotion was actually beneficial for Soltilence; no injury nor psychological attempt at demoralize the Hollowgace seemed to affect the Primarch in any sort of way, the enemies of the Mutes would lose their confidence and would see their morale rapidly decrease as their enemy kept staring blankly as it marched towards them, any kind of damage was proved to be useless as Neran kept moving forward disregarding how much pain his body was under or what sort of damage the enemy fire had caused in him.

Likes

•Neran and his legion followed a strictly set of rules on their daily lives. No sound was allowed to be made neither in the ships that the legion fleet was composed of nor in the common gathering places of the Legion unless it was extremely necessary for a clear purpose that once fulfilled would resume the quietness that once reigned those places. The only moments where noises weren't prohibited was the personal chambers of the legionaries and the practice cages; only then and there the Marines bonded with each other and little personality traits would surface in their small talks and training.

This instances were held in high regard and venerated by the Mutes; legionaries would long for and count the days for their next visit to the training cages, missing one of this events was considered a tragic experience that would affect the Mute physically and too psychologically, desperate to have another chance of participating in training as soon as possible.

•Neran and his legion particularly disliked being in public places or in a large gathering of people. Too much noise would often drive the Mutes irritable or aggressive towards anyone who would get near them.

Due to the silence that took a hold of every place Neran and his sons inhabited, the human assets that accompanied the legion would often feel a certain unease whenever they were in the presence of the Legion never fully understanding their odd rituals and customs. Most of them would ask for transfer after a few months or years claiming that it was too quiet and odd for their liking. Those who stayed with the legion became just as solitary and weird as the Space Marines they shared time and space with.

Dislikes

Titles and ranks too were less likely to be displayed by Neran and his sons, presenting a very simple heriarchy amongst their ranks where age and experience was privileged rather than acts of valor or honor, thus the eldest would be the chief commanders of the legion while the newborns would always take the low positions and titles that the legion was structured upon. Once the Marine was old enough he would simply move up in the heriarchy leaving his empty previous position to the youngest. Those who were created before their reunion with his Primarch would become Neran personal guard and rarely took other positions.

Closest Brother(s)

•Amongst the relationship with his fellow brothers, Neran would only truly speak to in a repeated manner with Corvus Corax and Konrad Curze. The solitary personality of Soltilence seemed to be understood by and accepted by Corax, who would made adjustments to his language and general behavior in the presence of Neran, creating a sense of comfort for the two brothers to engage in friendly conversations or some little philosophical advices exchange between them.

Curze and Neran however had a love-hate relationship. Konrad mocked his brother or would remark the odd mannerisms of Soltilence but at the same time he would jump to defend his brother from incoming criticisms given by other members of the Imperium or amongst the other Primarchs. Neither of then admitted to one another how much relaxing it was to spend time with someone who perfectly understood the solitude of the other and the need of not being ridiculed by their different ways of expressing themselves.

Hated Brother(s)

•A completely different relationship was the one Neran had with Fulgrim and Roboute Guilliman. It was virtually impossible for both of this Primarchs to understand the reasons behind the behavior and actions of Neran and his legion.

While Fulgrim treated Soltilence as an insensible man incapable of understanding or creating art in even the poorest manifestations of it, the Phoenix didn't understand as well how could someone aspire to be as mediocre and uninteresting as possible; the quiet and inexpressible face of Neran drove Fulgrim mad every time the brothers met, it was said even that both of then intentionally left planets or rooms whenever they were informed of the presence of their brother in the vicinity.

Roboute on the other hand would disapprove of the way Neran commanded his legionaries in the Great Crusade. The Primarch would be visibly frustrated after reading the reports of the victories that Neran would claim as his own, hating the seemingly chaotic and deprived of planning methods in warfare that the Mutes showed in battle.

Armor

•"Entombed resolution" was the name that the Artiticer armor of Neran was known as, very heavy and specially designed to limit the movement speed and flexibility of the wearer, the Mutes Primarch while wearing this armor was seen more as a caged beast in his armor more than a conqueror or a proud warrior.

The process of suiting could take long hours before Neran was ready to march unto war; always showing some sort of discomfort or even "pain" for a couple of minutes after ending the suiting ceremonies. However once the Primarch joined his sons on the battlefield he was practically invincible, a towering wall of defense or a unstoppable soulless tool of the Imperium who only knew one simple directive "push forward and kill until there are no more enemies of Mankind"

Wargear

•Another feature of Neran that caused unease amongst those who fought alongside the Primarch was the fact he had a certain disdain for weapons as a whole; preferring to use his hands or feet after being prohibited from keeping the strange and foreign technological advanced weapons that were found in his possession on the moment of his discovery by the Emperor.

However after sustaining the pressure of his own legion to use anything, any sort of weapon at all to defend and attack without having to rely on the sacrifices of his sons to keep the Primarch alive, Neran grumbling and begrudgingly opted for the usage of a spear and a storm shield.

This two weapons composed all the arsenal Soltilence used throughout his life up until his redaction from the Imperial records and history of the Imperium as a whole. No glory or legend could be traced back to this weapons, rembrancers of the time that were a part of the Mutes expedition fleet didn't even had a nickname for it, they were simply known as the "Spear and shield of Neran Soltilence" and that is as far as a description this tools of war had.

Allegiance

•The Primarch of the Mutes seemed to have a neutral opinion of his father and the loyalty he displayed to the Imperium was the bare minimum required of him. It is to be believed that at the moment of his redaction from the Imperial records Neran became more and more rebellious from his Father although no signs of devotion to the Chaos Gods was ever found in his personal life nor in the actions of his sons.

Backstory

"The child looked around, nothing to his left nor to his right. He raised a hand to the vast space and it only saw the shadow his limb casted upon the earth. All alone, the boy was left in solitude and without any stimulus to do anything, his mind traveled amongst the stars until he found life. But it was far too late, the boy deprived of every feeling, was simply a blank living organisms without a soul, without a name, without his humanity"

- Remembrancer Edyth Matthoa

•The gestation capsule of Neran Soltilence landed on a empty world named Tagaroid 0HI. The planet possessed only the most basic forms of life that the universe could produce, barely having enough fauna to form a small food chain of small creatures feeding upon even smaller ones.

Neran spent his first five years of lifetime surviving in complete loneliness, only having the flora and small living creatures to feed upon and develop the basic capabilities of a human. Even so, the child had in his blood the genes of his "father" the Emperor of Mankind, which manifested itself upon the infant Neran as he was capable to "travel" in ways that have been long since censored to other planets.

Once the young Soltilence was old enough to have a better grasp of this "gift" of short space travel, Neran appeared in the blink of an eye in other planet of the Tagaroid System; this world had a Xeno race as the dominant species while the little human population that remained from the first colonizers that traveled there being hunted for sport, as the Voscax population saw Mankind as merely sub-developed animals.

It is at this point there is a confusion amongst remembrancers as to what exactly happened; some suggest the Voscax killed the last remaining humans on the planet right in front of Neran eyes, making the Primarch enter some kind of frenzy that led to his decision of purging the Xenos from the face of that world in an attempt to avenge the deaths of those who were similar in appearance to him. Others claim that Neran was discovered by a small group of humans who adopted the Primarch and venerated him as some sort of deity, a reflection of the Emperor that their ancestors probably knew and passed down the stories about Him unto his sons; this humans inspired Soltilence to start a revolution that ended with both races existence and left Neran as the only survivor of such bloody war.

No matter what the truth was, whatever caused the death of both humans and Xenos in Tagaroid 00-4 left the remains of both civilizations out in the open, with their bones and decaying bodies in the surface plunging the planet into the quiet and barren wasteland in which both Primarch and Emperor met on.

Once Father and son reunited at last, the ■■ legion was passed on to Neran; this first generation of Astartes looked slightly different from their "father" as their skin wasn't as pale as Neran was, but the Marines had the characteristic solitude and loner demeanour of Soltilence imprinted in them. The army and their general didn't exchange a word in their first encounter but both parties knew there was some sort of blood bond between them.

The ■■ legion counted amongst their accomplishments the liberation of the Sulivis Passage, discovery of the lost humanity settlement in Oxvin-68 and victory over the Xe'minar xenos race in Cirog-052.

Upon the arrival of his Primarch, little was changed of the behavior and customs of the Legion, in fact it became more stricter under the direct command of their Father. Their participation in the Rangdan Xenocides cemented their reputation as a unrelenting force to fear, as no injury or foe would stop the advance of the Mutes to their objective, following their given orders until it was done.

Reason for Redaction

•The Rangdan Xenocides were just one of many signs the Mutes and Neran were created for no higher purpose other than to fight for the Imperium so others could achieve the dreams of the Emperor of Mankind for humanity. They were just the lesser evil the Emperor chose over the extinction of his people.

As all the attempts of making Neran have a personality of his own failed one after the other, the Emperor and the brothers of Soltilence didn't knew what to do with the primarch of the Mutes. The tensions between the brothers were raising up to a boiling point, at any moment the fragile bonds of brotherhood could break and have catastrophic consequences for Neran and his sons even if they were blind to the path of destruction their actions were causing and the mistrust their behavior caused in those around them.

The event that triggered the redaction of the ■■ legion and it's Primarch was the misunderstanding escalating to a fight that Leman Russ from the VIth had with his brother after a tough war against an Ork Waagh!. Russ voiced his discomfort for the collateral damages caused to the planet by Neran and his sons, screaming and shouting at the lack of response coming from his brother until the Wolf-King lost control and punched Neran in the face to get a reaction out of him.

The shouting competition that followed was brutal, with both brothers accusing each other with every bad decision or action made up to that point by either Primarch. When the conflict was presented to their Father, Neran refused to apologize with his brother and, redacted records suggests, the Primarch of the Mutes left with the following words, never returning upon the presence of his Father ever again:

"𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗈𝗇𝗅𝗒 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗌𝗈𝗇 𝖨'𝗆 𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗇𝖽𝗂𝗇𝖽 𝖻𝖾𝖿𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝗒𝗈𝗎, 𝗈𝗁 𝖤𝗆𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗈𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝖬𝖺𝗇𝗄𝗂𝗇𝖽, 𝗂𝗌 𝖻𝖾𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝗒𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝖼𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇. 𝖡𝖾𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝖨 𝗐𝖺𝗌 𝖼𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗍𝗈 𝖿𝗎𝗅𝖿𝗂𝗅𝗅 𝗆𝗒 𝗋𝗈𝗅𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗋𝗂𝗌𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝖬𝖺𝗇𝗄𝗂𝗇𝖽 𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋 𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗂𝗋 𝖾𝗇𝖾𝗆𝗂𝖾𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗍𝗁𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗍𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗇𝗍𝗅𝗒 𝖽𝖾𝖿𝗒 𝖧𝗎𝗆𝖺𝗇𝗂𝗍𝗒 𝗋𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍𝖿𝗎𝗅 𝗉𝗅𝖺𝖼𝖾 𝖺𝗆𝗈𝗇𝗀𝗌𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗋𝗌. 𝖨𝗇 𝖽𝗈𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗌o, 𝖨'𝗆 𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗇𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗁𝖾𝗋𝖾 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝗎𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝗆𝗒 𝖻𝗋𝗈𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 ��𝗆𝖻𝗋𝖺𝖼𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗐𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝖨 𝖺𝗆 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗐𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝗆𝗒 𝗌𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝗐𝖾𝗋𝖾 𝗂𝗇𝗌𝗍𝗋𝗎𝖼𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗈 𝖽𝗈.

𝖬𝗒 𝖺𝗇𝗌𝗐𝖾𝗋 𝗂𝗌 𝗡𝗢, 𝖿𝖺𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋. 𝖨 𝗋𝖾𝖿𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝗍𝗈 𝖺𝗉𝗈𝗅𝗈𝗀𝗂𝗓𝖾 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗆𝗒 𝗇𝖺𝗍𝗎𝗋𝖾 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗆𝗒 𝗆𝖾𝗍𝗁𝗈𝖽𝗌 𝗈𝖿 𝖾𝗑𝖾𝖼𝗎𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖬𝖺𝗇𝗄𝗂𝗇𝖽 𝗉𝗅𝖺𝗇𝗌. 𝖨 𝗋𝖾𝖿𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝗍𝗈 𝗁𝗂𝖽𝖾 𝗐𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝖨 𝖺𝗆 𝗈𝗋 𝗉𝗋𝖾𝗍𝖾𝗇𝖽 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝖨 𝖺𝗆 𝖺𝗇 𝖾𝗊𝗎𝖺𝗅 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝖺𝗅𝗅 𝗈𝖿...𝗈𝖿 𝗆𝗒 𝗌𝗈-𝖼𝖺𝗅𝗅𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗋𝗈𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋𝗌; 𝗇𝗈 𝗅𝗈𝗇𝗀𝖾𝗋 𝗐𝗂𝗅𝗅 𝖨 𝖻𝗈𝗐 𝗆𝗒 𝗁𝖾𝖺𝖽 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗌𝗎𝗉𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗌 𝗆𝗒 𝗅𝖺𝖼𝗄 𝗈𝖿 𝗌𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗂𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍. 𝖨'𝗏𝖾 𝖻𝖾𝖾𝗇 𝗁𝖺𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖺𝗅𝗅, 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖻𝖾𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝗐𝗁𝖺𝗍?!? 𝖡𝖾𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝖨 𝖽𝗂𝖽 𝗇𝗈𝗍 𝗂𝗇𝗁𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗍 𝗒𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝗏𝖺𝗅𝗈𝗋 𝗈𝗋 𝗅𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋𝗌𝗁𝗂𝗉 𝖿𝖺𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋, 𝖨 𝗂𝗇𝗁𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗱, 𝗜 𝗮𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗺𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝗿: 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝘂𝗹𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗴𝗼."

Before Leman Russ was given the order of purging his brother for the outrageous offense against the Emperor, Neran had already flee from the Imperium as a whole, his Legion disbanded and given the explicit order of remaining spread across the galaxy by their Primarch; awaiting the moment the ■■ would unite once more to put an end to the long slow death of the Imperium, either to save it once and for all or to give it a quick painless death. The legion was redacted from the Imperial records and the statues in honor of Neran were destroyed and the population was fed with the lie of his death and his legion.

In the silent and secluded planet that quietly saw Neran grow, the Primarch remains to this day. Watching the universe run it's course. Meditating and awaiting patiently, still reflecting upon the right action to do for the best interest of the Imperium. If it's best for Mankind to die and rest, or to keep fighting and some day achieve the greatness it once could aspire to achieve.

#fanfiction #warhammer fanfic #warhammer 40000 #warhammer headcanon #custom warhammer chapter #warhammer 40k #fanfic writing #oc space marines #wh40k oc #Neran Solticence #Painless Mutes #wh40k

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sanshofox · 1 year ago

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Ok, so after a lot of going through the lore again to remember all kinds of dragon age facts (because let’s be honest…it’s a huge and complex kinda lore with lots of details and also lots of riddles) and watching/reading lore theory stuff, I guess I kinda have my idea that is the course of events, what caused solas to create the veil. So please skip if you consider this as kind of a spoiler. I try to keep it as short as possible.

How red lyrium came to be is still unknown. If artificial or natural is a big secret, but we know that there is the abyss or void where it lingers and the forgotten gods are kept. It never came into touch with the outside world until the elvhen gods (old gods) started to meddle with it.

The elvhen gods were always described as smth pristine and sophisticated, but throughout the games you see and read stuff that predicts otherwise. Could it be that the red lyrium corrupted them over a long time and then made them hunger for more power (as described in inquisition and also a description that as an example fits i.e. for meredith and her red lyrium corruption)?

My guess that it all started with ghilannain becoming part of the pantheon through relations with andruil. She is too often mentioned in inquisition and content outside the video game series as to not be an important key part in what transpired. She is a scientist of sorts, creating all sorts of new stuff and when you read through codex entries, the book „tevinter nights“ or look at the murals in inquisition and other tidbits in DLCs it sounds more like she was a mad scientist without morals or ethics, creating various monsters and thirsting for more. Murals showing creatures and elvhen slaves in red colors being transported to what is assumed: ghilannain. What if she needed red lyrium for her experiments? There is a dwarf in the games that says that through red lyrium he created his best weapons. But did she start it or get corrupted first?

We know of a story within the games that andruil hunted for the forgotten ones in the void and came back crazier each time. Got an armor made from parts of the void (red lyrium of course) and brought plague to her lands. The other gods started to fear her, so mythal ambushed her and took her powers and knowledge where to find the void and peace came back. But did andruil enter the void just for the hunt? Or did she bring ghilannain some from one of her journeys as a gift? Doesn’t matter how but both were close to each other and it somehow transferred, driving ghilannain slowly insane.

Two other elvhen gods often mentioned outside of andruil and ghilannain are dirthamen and falondin. Dirthamen depicted with what seems to be ghilannain in some murals. Dirthamen also being the twin to falondin. So maybe a accidental chain reaction in corrupting them. Solas doesn’t speak kindly of neither of them. So we can assume that these four were involved in mythal‘s killing, as solas said „hungry for other elvhen gods‘ power“, due to red lyrium infection. But why did mythal get rid of andruil‘s power, but not ghilannain‘s then? It was mentioned that ghilannain lived far apart from other elvhen and deep underground. I guess that is how she and her corruption managed to go unnoticed for long. Killing mythal was described as smth like treachery and an order. So maybe one day ghilannain was under suspicion and she in her paranoia ordered mythal’s death (by presumably dirthamen?). Or these four corrupted elvhen gods conspired together.

Then we all know what happened: Solas acted out of revenge and created the veil. But what if solas caused the true red lyrium blight? Ancient texts and murals show elvhen and/or elvhen slaves fighting a war in times of the elvhen pantheon. If Solas alone fought with an army against the elvhen gods to be free of their tyranny he wouldn’t have a chance. So what if mythal once told him of the void and he up and used red lyrium as a weapon himself against them to have a chance(that for example could be for one why he created the red lyrium idol??)? Causing a wide field of corruption. Him realizing what is actually happening and then closing off the rest of thedas from this corrupted area by creating the veil. We have three different scenes in inquisition indicating this:

1. cole questioning solas wanting to do the right thing and not knowing and solas acknowledging this sadly like „I was young and stupid“

2. corypheus saying to the inquisitor that there was no golden city but instead only corruption and emptyness

3. solas apologizing to mythal/flemmeth saying smth of the sorts of „I slumbered for too long and now it can‘t be contained anymore“ As if he knew of the blight and wanted to wake up earlier to have more time to find a solution

My guess for it to get this far is, because of their powers it took longer for the elvhen „gods“ to be corrupted so they couldn’t and, ultimately when fully corrupted, wouldn’t realize what red lyrium entails. It was talked about more than once in dragon age lore that dragon blood cured someone from blight. But when we see corypheus‘s dragon or the archdemons it can still happen, but lower. Which also would explain why yavana protects and raises dragons (also her needing alistairs blood to raise them because maric‘s bloodline has dragon blood in it because of some historical figure. So alistair killing yavana may have fucked up the cure for the future.)

In their hubris they thought it would be just another tool to serve them. From all we know red lyrium was smth unknown in that time.

#dragon age #dragon age theories #dragon age spoilers

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askweisswolf · 6 months ago

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7. Something written by a character from a previous game about Rook

For the codex prompts!

Thank you so much, this was fun! I ended up writing a codex entry for my second Rook Nessa, though I've also included one I showed you before for Margalit Aldwir. General spoilers for Shades of the Blight and A Cage For Gods.

Regarding Warden Thorne

Laurel, It’s been some time since I’ve had to think back on my days as Blackwall, but you asked for my help on this matter and I like to think that for all my flaws I’ve never let you down. I can only speak to my own memory alongside what I heard from other Wardens who spoke to me after Adamant, but perhaps it’ll still give you a clear enough picture of the woman you’ll soon be meeting. Warden Nessa Thorne has a reputation for getting the job done and being no nonsense while she’s doing it. Once she’s made up her mind, good luck getting her to change it, because she’s apparently as stubborn as they come. She’s from Orzammar supposedly, though I suspect you’d know more about how to deal with that sort than I do, but it’s something to keep in mind because I’m sure it’ll shape how she views you. She’s quite close to Evka and Antoine, if you want to try asking Harding about that. I’ve been warned that she’s not particularly receptive to being talked around, but I think you’ll find a way to win her over as you have a habit of doing. Maker knows if you could hold the lot of us together, you’ll find a way to make her see you’re on her side. I’m sure this is silly of me to say, but please be careful going into Minrathous. I’ve gotten accustomed to having friends in the last ten years, and I’d hate to lose one now. Give my love to Josephine and the children, and if you have need of my sword arm, all you have to do is ask. It may be a bit stiffer than it was in years past, but it’ll still serve you well. Your friend, Thom

This one's not connected but I'm still very proud of it, so hey. I did clean it up a bit to better fit with the format of the first one.

A Letter from Scout Harding to Inquisitor Lavellan

Sharon, I lost her. You have my report on Tearstone Island. I won’t repeat it here. I’m sure you’ve read through it as many times as I have, trying to figure out where it all went wrong, what you could have done if you’d just been– I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m not angry at you. I just keep thinking about it. I can’t stop. Even when I sleep now I can’t stop, because I can dream now. I can have nightmares now. I thought my nightmares from the shade were bad, but this is just… torture. I keep seeing the same thing in my head, over and over again, as clear as if I was still right there. You know the worst part? I wish I was having nightmares. At least if I was having nightmares, maybe somehow Margalit would sense that in the Fade and she’d be able to– In my dreams I’m always back on Tearstone Island. In my dreams I always see Ghilan’nain fall, and I see the Fade overlap with our world. And in my dreams when Margalit grabs the dagger to stop it, I’m always fast enough. I’m able to pull her out of the way, or I can use the Stone to shield her, or I get between her and the tear so I end up in the Fade instead. Even when I end up in the Fade I’m happy, because at least I saved her. At least I protected her. Then I wake up, and she’s still gone. What was even the point of these fucking powers and reconnecting to the Titans if I couldn’t– We’ll get her back. I have to believe we’ll get her back. It can’t end like this. I’m sorry. Again. I’m really not angry with you, I just–I miss her. I know how obvious that must sound, and I know I’m not the only one, but. It’s not the same, with the others. Maybe that’s why I’m sending you this.You get it in a way they don’t, if that makes sense. I’ll see if maybe Emmrich needs my help. I’m not much good with the Fade, but he’s doing all of it alone now with Bellara still missing. Maybe I can keep him company, at least. It’s not like I’m sleeping much right now anyway. I’ll let you know as soon as we have any progress. Yours, Lace

#dragon age #dragon age the veilguard #rook x harding #Rook Thorne #Rook Aldwir #OC: Margalit Aldwir #OC: Nessa Thorne #my writing #the-rebel-archivist

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rookamell · 8 days ago

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Something Worthwhile

Oneshot written for @rookappreciationweek day 7 and my Rook, Cora Amell. I was playing Inquisition and one particular codex entry got me thinking about finally writing the scene where Cora gets her nickname. Loosely based on the 'Duty' prompt.

Also if anyone is interested I have more on her backstory here

~~~

Cora stood, her wrists and back aching. She could feel the wood of the stocks digging into her skin. A few more hours of this and she’d be chafed raw.

Not that it mattered. Nothing did, really.

For once in her life, she was glad of the cold as she stood there. The templar hadn’t taken her cloak or jacket, and if she had been made to stand there with the full might of the sun beating down on her, it would have been torture.

As it was, she was simply numb, staring at the ground. It was quite nice, actually, to not have to worry. If she was lucky, they’d kill her. If she was unlucky, they’d throw her out into the Frostbacks to starve or be taken by those Red Templars.

Honestly, she’d prefer it if they just killed her.

She glanced to the side, just barely managing to turn her head enough to see the templar stationed there. It was a woman, Orlesian. Pinched expression and blonde hair. She wondered if she’d been at the White Spire.

Not that it mattered. All that mattered was that she was keeping Cora’s magic carefully Silenced, while also keeping away some of the Inquisition soldiers who were trying to get close enough to take some sort of petty revenge for whatever wrong they thought she had done their fellow guard.

Cora wanted to tell her she needn’t bother. Even if she did manage to get free somehow, she didn’t have anywhere to go.

It was past midday, what little bit of warmth the sun did manage to provide this high up in the mountains vanishing along with it behind the distant peaks, when a pair of brown boots appeared in Cora’s vision.

Practical, comfortable, stylish and durable. Looked like they were made of drakeskin. Whoever wore them stepped lightly, ready for anything. A fighter, then.

Or a dancer.

“Would you give us a moment, ser Bryony?” the newcomer intoned in a light, not quite native, Orlesian accent. Her voice was soft and lilting, as if she was laughing as she spoke.

Cora would remember that voice anywhere.

“Sister Nightingale,” the templar said, “I have very strict orders from Commander Cullen not to let her out of my sight- “

“Well, then it is a good thing I have a note from him here in my hand telling you to let me speak with her.”

Cora could feel the dissatisfaction radiating from the templar, but a direct command from her superior was something she couldn’t exactly ignore.

After a moment, in which Cora could hear the sound of parchment being unfolded and refolded, keys jangled, and the lock keeping the two pieces of wood together clanked open.

“She’s dangerous, Sister,” the templar said, as Cora straightened, biting back a groan at the ache in her back. As she had feared, there were red marks around her wrists, and she was sure the skin around her neck was no better.

“Oh, I am sure we shall be alright,” Leliana said, smiling pleasantly. Her red hair and piercing blue eyes were exactly as Cora remembered. Her disarming grin, too.

“Walk with me,” she said to Cora, before turning towards a stairway leading up to the battlements. Cora followed, not sparing the templar another glance. She knew it would rankle, just slightly.

Leliana said nothing until the two of them reached the top of the battlements, where the icy wind turned bitingly cold. It was almost worth the discomfort, however, to look out over the surrounding mountains and valleys, the snow-capped peaks of the Frostbacks seeming to stretch on into eternity, the very tips turned to beacons of flame by the setting sun.

The last time Cora had seen Leliana had been Andoral’s Reach. She had assumed the woman who had become the Divine’s Left Hand had had better things to do than talk to the girl she’d rescued from a horde of undead years before. She had assumed she’d forgotten, or not recognised her.

After Haven, after her mother’s talks with both Leliana and Josephine, there was no way she didn’t know who Cora was.

“Your mother left for Lydes yesterday morning,” Leliana said, leaning casually on the crenel of the battlement, confirming Cora’s suspicions.

Cora kept her face carefully blank at the statement. Her mother had, at Cailan’s request, allowed her little brother to tell Cora goodbye. ‘Little’ being a bit of a stretch, since he was taller than her now.

Amelie de Lydes had not looked at or spoken to her before their party had ridden out of the gates.

“I think the new Duchess of Lydes would take offense at your insinuation that she has a mage for a daughter,” Cora said, keeping her voice neutral. She had the strangest feeling that this was all some sort of test.

Leliana looked back at her with a small grin on her face.

“I have no doubt she would,” she said, pleasantly. “And some of our other allies in Orlais would be similarly insulted that the Inquisition would back a new Duchess with such a daughter.”

She turned around properly, and fixed Cora with a piercing blue-eyed stare.

“Especially one accused of trying to kill an Inquisition soldier, only weeks after the Inquisition had given aid to the mages.”

Cora said nothing, and kept her face devoid of emotion.

“I was of the opinion that the offending mage should be sent out into the Frostbacks,” Leliana continued after a moment.

“If they wanted freedom so badly, why not give it to them?”

Again, she paused, but by now it was more pride than anything else that prevented Cora from saying something.

“Unless the offending mage did not want freedom,” Leliana continued. “In which case it might be a mistake to send them out into the world unguarded. Who else might they try to kill?”

“I wasn’t trying to kill him,” Cora blurted, before she could stop herself.

“No?” Leliana narrowed her eyes. “I would think that would be the goal of firing lightning at someone, no?”

Cora forced herself to meet that baby-blue gaze. If she’d wanted to kill the man, he’d be dead. Surely Leliana knew that? It was easy to kill someone with a bolt of lightning. Keeping them alive was the thing that took skill.

“So if your goal was not to kill him,” Leliana continued. “You were perhaps trying to distract him?”

Carefully blank. No twitches. She could feel her toes wriggling in her boots, a tension in the air, walking on the same knife edge as during a fight.

“There are other punishments than banishment, you know. Worse ones,” Leliana said, and her voice had lost its softness. It was hard now. Razor sharp.

“Whipping,” she said, and Cora almost grinned. She’d had worse.

Sister Nightingale’s eyes narrowed.

“More time in the stocks, latrine duty, death, tranquility- ah.”

Cora’s eyes had widened on the last. Of course they had.

“You hide your emotions well,” Sister Nightingale said. “But not well enough, yet. Tell me why you did what you did.”

Cora blinked, weighing her options.

“I cannot help you if I do not know,” and it was Leliana again, looking at her with bright blue eyes, her voice quiet.

“You- ?”

“Want to help you, yes,” she finished, then grinned, almost sadly.

“I owe it to your uncle, if for no other reason.”

Cora let her shoulders slump. Whatever test that had been, or game Leliana had been playing, it was done now. No use pretending anymore.

“I wasn’t trying to kill him,” she said again, resigned. “There were two others trying to escape. I knew if they got caught it would mean their deaths, either from the templars or the Inquisition, so I knocked out the guard instead and made the templars come running.”

She scowled down at the courtyard where the templar was still standing.

“It wouldn’t have worked if any if them had more than half a brain in her heads.”

“Why?” Leliana asked, seeming genuinely curious. “Why would it be better if you were caught instead of them?”

I thought it might take some of the guilt away. Or at the very least you’d kill me.

It hadn’t taken any of the guilt away, however. The lump was still there, in her chest, constricting her throat. Blocking the tears.

The whole world is going to hear how proud I am of you.

Now it seemed she wasn’t going to be killed for it either.

She didn’t say anything. The words wouldn’t come.

She met Leliana’s eyes with a shrug, hoping that somehow the other woman would see she’d say more if she could.

For a long moment, Leliana held her stare.

“I was sorry to hear of your father,” she said, softly.

It was all Cora could do to clench her jaw. Her fists. She felt the world tilt beneath her feet, just like every time she thought about-

“I was also sorry that you could not join your mother in Orlais.”

“She is not my mother,” Cora snapped. Anger at her mother was easier to face than the grief and despair that came with thoughts of her father. The guilt. She latched on to the anger like a lifeline.

Leliana did not react to her outburst. Instead, she leaned back against the parapet, and drew a knife from her boot.

Cora’s knife.

She’d had it since the White Spire rebelled. A simple one she’d taken off a templar corpse in lieu of a spirit blade, which had all been locked away on a different floor of the tower.

“Ser Bryony took this off of you,” she said, holding it up. “You fight with a knife? Not very traditional for a mage.”

Cora shrugged.

“Easier than a sword,” she said.

“No staff?”

“Too obvious,” Cora said. “And templars know how to fight a mage with a staff.”

She nodded toward the knife.

“That always gives me a moment’s surprise.”

Leliana put the knife away again, then walked forward and took Cora’s hands in her gloved ones, the red marks from the stocks still visible on her wrists.

“Your hands don’t hurt from the magic?”

“Sometimes,” Cora said, uncomfortable. “If I wear the right gloves it’s not so bad.”

Leliana turned her hands over, then looked up and held Cora’s gaze. Measuring. Weighing. She felt a bit like a mabari.

“What if I could give you a purpose?” Leliana suddenly asked, quietly.

Cora blinked, then frowned.

“A purpose?”

Leliana was frowning as well, but she nodded all the same.

“You have sharp eyes,” she said. “A knack for survival, you hide your thoughts well, think on your toes, and even more importantly, you are a powerful mage who does not use a staff, who speaks Orlesian like a native, if your mother is to be believed.”

She closed her eyes, a long breath leaving her nose.

“Maker forgive me,” her eyes opened again, intent as they met Cora’s.

“I could use you.”

Cora found herself letting out a disbelieving puff of breath.

“I’m- “ she found herself grinning.

“I’m a mage, not a spy,” she said, shaking her head. She tried to pull her hands out of Leliana’s, but the older woman simply tightened her grip.

“Why not both? Justinia wanted reform,” she muttered, almost to herself. “Why not use the tools we are given? Who says a mage cannot be just as useful as the rest of us?”

Her eyes met Cora’s.

“Work for me,” she said. “I’ll instruct you. You’ll be given freedoms the other mages do not have, and you won’t be kept on a leash in Skyhold. You could make a difference.”

Cora opened her mouth to tell her she sounded insane. No one would ever accept a mage as an Inquisition agent, much less let her walk around freely to do her job.

“You could avenge your father,” Leliana said, before she could do just that.

“Help us strike at Corypheus and the Venatori.”

The whole world is going to hear how proud I am of you.

It was as though her head nodded of its own accord.

“Alright,” she found herself saying, quietly.

“I’ll do it.”

Leliana released her hands, and took a step back, a grim smile on her face.

“I already have a Scout and a Rector.”

She looked Cora over once, a finger beneath her chin tilting her face toward the light.

“But I could still use a Rook,” she said, nodding to herself. “Report to me in the morning, to begin your duties. I hope you prove to be a quick study. Lives will depend on it.”

Without another word, she turned toward the main castle of Skyhold.

“Leliana,” Cora called after her, before she could stop herself.

The Left Hand of the Divine turned back to her with a raised eyebrow.

“Thank you,” Rook tried for a grin, and it came easier, for the first time since Haven. Perhaps… perhaps she could still do something worthwhile. Perhaps she could help.

“I owe you my life twice over now.”

Leliana did not grin back, if anything, she flinched.

“I know,” she said.

“Report to the rookery at dawn. Be ready. It will not be easy.”

#my writing #cora amell #dragon age #rookappreciationweek #she's 17 here btw i sort of forget that every now and then #imagine you're leliana and you spend ten+ years doing the divine's dirty work #and it eats you up from the inside and then she dies and leaves you alone with your guilt #and then you start repeating the cycle over again with your best friends niece #who has the exact same eyes he has #you can't bring yourself to punish her but maker's breath maybe this is worse #ok anyway #i'm done now #rookweek25

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thedragonagebigbang · 11 months ago

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Bang Creator Interview: Tumblr: @teamdilf | AO3: Missjlh

The Collaboration period has begun! In these quiet months before works are due, we want to foster a sense of excitement, camaraderie, and celebration among our participants. To that end, all participants were given the option of a formal interview by our mod, Dema, or an informal “ask-game” survey. We hope you enjoy getting to know our phenomenal creators as much as we have!

Q&A with Missjlh

Who was your first DA protagonist?

Iris Lavellan! I’d been relatively new to roleplaying games when I first picked up Dragon Age: Inquisition, and the ones I’d played previously focused more on exploration than character development. I was so pleasantly surprised by the opportunities to interact with the companions, and the world at large, and how often I was able to do the roleplaying part of the game.

With only the knowledge of the Dragon Age universe that I got from the little blurb about Dalish elves in the character creator, I’d decided that Iris would probably only romance another elf. I also roleplayed her as a more antagonistic character to those around her than any other character I’d roleplayed in a video game or DND before then (tough because I mostly played the goodie two-shoes sorts!). It was an interesting challenge to play a sort of character I’d never played before, and sometimes make decisions that were in-character for her, but not the sort that are conducive to making friends with certain members of the inner circle.

She romanced Solas, and I was captivated by him, the vibe of their relationship in general and the tragedy of it. It really hooked me and got me invested in the universe at large. I do wish I’d read the codex entries a bit more thoroughly in-game because the after-credits stinger where Solas’ true identity left me scratching my head a bit until I looked it up, but once I read the implications, I was even more hooked on their doomed love story because the notion of Iris spending a year walking with an ancient god by her side, teasing/bantering with him, and falling in love with him only made the story even better in my books.

When did you start writing fanfic?

I was 13 and wrote my very first fanfic in a notebook that I still have hidden away somewhere in my home! My first published fanfic came when I was 15. My first foray into writing fanfiction as an adult came in late 2019, but I didn’t start writing in earnest until the early days of the pandemic in 2020. The world was a scary place and I’d found myself doom scrolling, so I started writing to keep myself off social media, and then I never stopped!

How do you come up with titles?

This is where I tell on myself and admit that my method for coming up with titles is chaotic a good 90% of the time: five minutes before I hit ‘publish’, with my fic/first chapter ready to go in AO3, I sit there and ponder what the title of my fic should be. To be clear, I write a lot of long fics - 75k plus works and I always draft them nearly in-full before I start publishing. I have a plethora of time to decide on a title!

Do I? LOL no. Sometimes, a flash of inspiration comes to me (always late at night; usually when my partner is coming to bed and wakes me up when the bedroom door opens) and I come up with a title in advance. Those are precious baby unicorns in my list of AO3 works.

#fandom big bang #dragon age #dragon age fanfic #2024 interviews #writer interviews #long post

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captainderyn · 6 months ago

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!!! Don't mind if I do!! 💕 a kiss somewhere other than the lips & ship of your choice? :3

I may have um...accidentally used this as an ingredient in Angst Soup for an idea I've had kicking around *sweats* hope that's okay.

Baraneth/Alistair -- Set during Trespasser (9:44 Dragon). Spoiler(ish) for a codex entry regarding Denerim.

💕 a kiss somewhere other than the lips

Leaving years of crisis behind would have been too easy.

The Breach in the sky closing, the Inquisition stepping back from both Ferelden and Orlais borders, the calming of the mage-templar conflict; all were things that made it seem as though Baraneth and Alistair could finally step back for a moment and breath.

Through years of work they had finally stabilized the Bannorn enough to partially step away, enough trust and rapport built that Arl Teagan could make the journey to speak on Ferelden’s behalf at the Exalted Council in Halamshiral instead of one of them making the journey.

That was before the barrels of gaatlok were found packed in the cellars of Denerim’s castle, primed to go off at any time.

That was before Baraneth and their almost two year old daughter spent a fretful night in one of their staff’s homes on the outskirts of Denerim under heavy guard, while Alistair rode about like a madman, evacuating the castle and all surrounding residences.

By dawn a raven, dated just over a week prior, arrived with news of a qunari plot, being handled by the Inquisition. Within the hour, Alistair sent a return raven with two scrolls--one for Leliana and one for addressed to an agent of theirs with an offer for the Inquisitor alternative to what Teagan was pushing for.

Midmorning came and went, and with it a packed carriage in front of the lady in waiting’s residence that Baraneth and Eleanor had overnighted in.

Baraneth hurried from the doorway as quickly as her heavily pregnant self would allow her to maneuver. Her lady in waiting, Mara, followed close behind with Eleanor, wrapped tightly in a blanket against the chill in the air.

“Alistair!” Baraneth threw her arms around him, and it took all of his remaining energy to not not collapse into her touch. His heart hadn’t left his throat since the previous evening, when dinner had been interrupted by their staff finding the gaatlok, “You didn’t return last night, I was worried sick.”

He pressed a long kiss to her forehead, hands resting on either side of her neck so he could run his thumbs along her jaw.

“Everything was, and is, quite a mess. Someone had to keep the people and Bannorn from stampeding." He tried to joke, but his own voice fell flat. Maybe once he could have spun this sort of situation into a web of humor, but it became harder and harder with each new trouble that appeared.

Baraneth let out a tired sigh, “I’m surprised people even react anymore. What’s to be done? Mara already said she'd be willing to keep Eleanor here for a while.”

He was silent for a moment, caressing her jaw as he moved to rest his chin atop Baraneth’s head. He fixed his eyes on Eleanor, hardly more than a thick head of dark hair as she burrowed into her blanket, still asleep. Mornings had never been her favorite time, not even in the months most people claimed their infants had woken them at dawn. Two years in and some things didn’t change. His heart twisted.

At a slight nod from him, Mara disappeared back inside with Eleanor, letting the door click softly behind her.

“Alistair?” Baraneth’s hands splayed across his chest as she pushed back from him, brows knitting. “What are you thinking?”

He brushed Baraneth’s hair back from her forehead from where she’d pressed against his shoulder, running his hand down the length of her braid and flicking it over her shoulder. Stalling. The horses behind him snorted, jangling their harness.

“I think while this is being handled is a good time to take Fergus up on his offer to stay with him and Elysande in Highever.” he nodded back towards the carriage. “I got it all packed and ready to go in the overnight hours.”

Her eyes flicked to the carriage, then back to him.

“Yes…” she began slowly, hands beginning to twist in the fabric of his jacket. “We had spoken about spending time in Highever, hadn’t we?”

Alistair let his hands settle on Baraneth’s hips, settling just below the swell of her belly. She brought one hand down to rest upon it, in the spot their daughter had taken to kicking with all the intensity of a training Antivan Crow. Her eyes searched his, her lower lip beginning to tremble.

“We’re all going.” she said, very deliberately. “All of us.”

“I will meet you there.” Alistair soothed. “As soon as I get things stabilized here.”

A few tears slid down Baraneth’s cheeks and she ripped one hand up to flick them away.

“We’re staying.” She insisted, chest heaving as she sucked in a breath. “We’re all staying together.”

The last thing he wanted was to be separate from her, after the two years she’d been gone searching for the Cure he had done everything in his power to keep them that way. But he would not lose his wife, his daughter, their baby, to a scheme they didn’t know the depths of.

“It’s a ten day carriage ride, by the time you get there I’ll already be on my way.” he tried to keep his own voice from betraying how badly he wished to hop in the carriage with her. “Bara, I need to keep you all safe.”

Her tears fell harder, the hand twisted in his jacket pressing where they both knew a scar rested at the junction of his chest and shoulder from the last time fanatics had thought about stripping Ferelden of its rulers.

“The baby is due any time now.” Baraneth gasped out the words. “I need you there.”

“Elysande will be there if anything goes wrong. I'll only be a few days behind you, I promise." Alistair brushed her tears away, meeting her agonized look. "It's going to be alright, Bara."

She stared at him, pressing her lips together.

"Please." He murmured. "I need to know you are safe."

She squeezed her eyes closed, but nodded.

"You come home to us as fast as you can." She opened her eyes, which still brimmed. But her tears halted, for the moment. "Promise me. Alistair."

He held her tight to his chest, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

"As fast as a horse can carry me, I promise."

#captainderyn answers #dragon age #alistair x cousland #king alistair #oc: Baraneth #otp: A Warden's Rose #Man someone should really give them a break *staring at myself in the mirror*#thank you for the ask!

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cinerins · 16 days ago

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Watched my friend play Doom: The Dark Ages, which in turn made me want to replay all of 2016 (always a treat) but as soon as I touched Eternal, I immediately remembered why I never think about the modern Doom canon beyond 2016...

Maybe it's just personal taste, but even with all the wild new worldbuilding and general air of "What the hell happened?" (intrigued) Doom 2016 still felt like it had a consistent, relatively grounded direction and prominently anti-capitalist theme connecting it to the original era without getting too crazy in the power fantasy.

This might just largely be due to the way they cannibalized Doom 3's convoluted story into an action-packed abridged version, but still...

I don't hate the concept (and they did give it a vaguely "poetic" although shallow end in the TAG DLCs) but I can't say I was ever a fan of the whole "divine origin" direction Eternal took for the characters. To me, 2016 presented this idea of becoming something greater in spite of the circumstances, instead of being born special.

Samuel Hayden in his initial appearance was obsessed with being better, being more—his Codex entry quotes him explaining his new giant body with "You never know when we may need a hero." which actually perfectly explains his apparent obsession with the mythical "Slayer" and his betrayal at the end of the game. To me, it gave the impression that he was a classic rich man with a literal god complex, who wanted to make himself into the hero the Slayer was forced to become. Back before Eternal, it actually left me excited for a sequel where we essentially tear this False Savior Hayden would presumably present himself as from his self-made throne.

VEGA started off as inhuman and extraordinary as an AI, but was ultimately a tool made to serve, no matter his apparent potential. So when they added that brief little choice of Doomguy backing him up on a chip before his destruction, I was looking forward to what they might do with him in the future... and the conclusion that this AI was actually God who betrayed True God and became even more of a perfect and detached entity than before was, uh, not exactly what I had hoped for. One would think with the overall themes presented in 2016, the goal would have been for something so detached yet shackled, to become grounded and free. But Oh Well.

And then there's the Doom Slayer. Last time you checked, this was just some unfortunate space marine who would defy all odds and become the physical embodiment of the indomitable human spirit. He would go on to fight demons in hell forever, so others wouldn't have to and because he had nothing left to lose. Suddenly waking up chained to a rock with bizarre new implications that somewhere along the way he became a sort of legendary warrior beast thanks to interdimensional space templars sure was wild, but it worked because he couldn't care less. The UAC was up to some demon summoning bullshit again and there was some self-important CEO harping on about how the death and suffering of millions was "necessary" and so Doomguy was pissed.

The bits and pieces of this "lost past" as a legend among the Night Sentinels wasn't as important at the time, but it did leave me curious and open-minded to what exactly it would entail and how exactly that random marine ended up as the Great Slayer, sealed in a sarcophagus. However, a point of contrast I had hoped to see emphasized between him and Hayden would've been that he didn't care about any of that and even if he was hailed as some kind of demigod, he was still just an absurdly determined and justifiably angry human guy. He was fighting demons and walked through hell not because he wanted to be a hero or for some huge legacy, but because someone had to.

While Eternal (and eventually The Dark Ages) would go on to expand on some of that mysterious "legacy," it really wasn't the direction I had hoped for and just left me with more questions and somewhat disappointing answers...

That said, it's doing things to my brain and... No... Don't go there... I shan't write a Doom 2016+ Canon Divergence AU Fic...! Not now!! ...aaaaAAAAAARRFGHHG!!!!!!!!! (opens document)

#doom #doom 2016 #doomguy #doom slayer #samuel hayden #doom vega #yes i know lamenting about the ridiculous over the top plot & lore of the ridiculous over the top game franchise is pretty pointless #but i can't help caring about themes and missed potential #truth be told i just think the characters deserved better. sigh.#i prefer the idea of hayden being an annoying corrupt rich guy who wants to become something otherworldly and superior #instead of being some kind of annoying reincarnated archangel (?) or however that works. does anyone even know.#ctrl+s

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flowersforthemachines · 5 months ago

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Asking #2 for OC questions!!

How long was the process before the character reached its final version? (or a version that would be clearly recognizable as the character?)

Tell me everything about our girl

thank you for the ask!! question from HERE

Omg, our girl... Honestly still can't believe anybody cares enough about Ghilasara to ask something. Like she can be *interesting* to other people. Insane.

This is going to be kind of long, but in my defence: you asked!

It took a really long while for me to figure her out. Like she wan't originally even intended to be a fleshed-out character - I just picked the options in the CC that (I presumed) would provide the most involvement with the plot: elf for the relevance regarding elven gods, grey warden for the relevance regarding... blighted elven gods, and mage because mages are typically the only class that gets special dialogue options. I thought I'd run through the game once with a very loose idea of a Rook, see what it has to offer and then make another Rook who could meaningfully fir the narrative at large with the help of hindsight.

And then I tragically got attached. By the time I finished my first run with her in the middle of November, I already knew I wanted to write something about her, even if I didn't really know what. In December, I wrote a tiny oneshot to nail down her dynamic with Lucanis (there was actually a time where I thought that maybe he wasn't the best partner for her, and she would be better off with Davrin. Maybe she would've been better off with him, actually, but it is what it is).

Then, I really got on working with her - I made a timeline covering her life from brith to joining the Veilguard (minus the 09:44-09:46. one day I will find out what she was doing at the time, but that day is not today), thought more about what kind of life she could lead in the Montsimmard and Ansburg circles (spoilers: not a very good one), what it meant for her to be a city elf, a mage, a warden, and wrote a bunch of pseudo-codex entries with tidbits about her life - how she got her face scars/lost her eye, what happened to her during the mage rebellion, some post-canon letters to/from her/Bellara/Lucanis, and so on. Which I haven't posted anywhere and should really find the excuse to pull myself together to do so.

The Ghilasara featured in the mercy-killing fic was inspired by the combination of the many discussions on how Lucanis was a poor fit for the position of the First Talon, and me once seeing the words "Rookanis" and "Divorce" mentioned under the tags of one post and then going wild with the concept. (kinda insane to think that one post altered the course of my thinking and writing so dramatically. I'd thank the user that made it but I feel like that'd be super weird)

Then it was just a lot Thinking. I didn't intend to be cruel when writing the fic - but I did want to make up a complicated dynamic between two flawed characters that had a history I could sprinkle around the work to show how much has passed between them. Which meant that she had to develop more flaws, which is where the guilt and self-flagelation (over Davrin's death and everything else she's done in her entire life), anxiety (over openly confronting some of her feelings and trying to avoid asking questions for fear of hearing answers she wouldn't like), and a sort of selfishness (of trying to have things on *her* terms at all times, even if the terms aren't always self-serving) came from.

Something like that!

#well that wasn't just kinda that was *embarassingly* long.#you see the downside of asking me questions is that I can start talking for prolonged amounts of time. sorry about that #oc: ghilasara thorne #flowers.txt

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3gremlins · 1 year ago

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i'm certainly not a deep dive lore master or anything (i super appreciate the people who are tho. like that's one of my favorite ways to consume lore, have other people tell me about it <3 ), but i haven't seen anyone else mention about Ghilan'nain and the halla. here's my maybe crackpot theory :) (or maybe not, idk i sort of assumed everyone thought this too but i haven't seen it mentioned in evanuris discussions that i've come across at all) (ill try to cite what sources i remember off the top of my head but i haven't done a full replay in awhile)

since the reveals about Ghilan'nain making monsters out of people (in tevinter nights mostly, i'm not up on the comics), I've always kind of assumed the halla WERE also once people. Like twisted into the beautiful deer and the way the dalish care for them is wrapped up in that, like they vaguely remember that the halla were once their loved ones (the way the dalish worship only partially remembered bits of who the evanuris were). We also learned from Trespasser that the Evanuris were fairly cruel and enslaved their people (and also presumably USED the elves for a variety of unsavory things) .

Also we do get the new versions of the halla in the horrors of hormak story like Ghil was iterating on a previous idea (as all artists do, like okay sure the pretty deer were nice, but what if i added more INSECT? XD)

The way the dalish refer to the halla has always been a little off to me, even for a sacred animal. They're more integrated into the clan- they're not a separate entity to be worshipped or revered. Afaik they don't ever eat or kill halla on purpose* (which does fit with some sacred animals in certain cultures for sure, but it feels more personal with the dalish somehow? most cultures where there's a sacred animal you don't eat, it's because it's special to a particular god).

from inquisition: "The first thing you must understand about the halla is that they are not our servants. They are not our pets. They are our brothers and sisters"

While they are heavily associated with Ghil, they're not really part of her worship, they're kind of separate from it (as far as we've seen). You have halla keepers/herders in dao but they're not really shown in the other 2 games- mostly the whole clan seems to care for them communally).

I believe merrill mentions (in da2 i think?) that without the halla, the dalish are nothing like the clan can't survive without them, they're so integral to their culture. Obviously this is partially how they move around and they're particularly suited to pulling the caravans through deep forests etc, but maybe there's something more to it.

They've also littered lots of bread crumbs of bits of dalish culture that the dalish have pieced together that we now know to be incorrect (or at least not the whole story)- the fenharel statues, the vallaslin, the evanuris themselves, the veil etc.

These are all half-remembered things- they remember that they were important/related to certain gods, but not why or how (as solas mentions in ambient dialogue "the dalish remember fragments of fragments")

there's also the codex entry on ghilan'nain in dai with the story andruil turning her into the first halla and leading Andruil back to the hunter who hurt her (tho she'd previously cursed him so it def feels like there's more to that story than the parable lets on)

"And since that day, the halla have guided the People, and have never led us astray, for they listen to the voice of Ghilan'nain"

i've seen a couple people point to this story as evidence that maybe andruil made the halla instead, tho we know that Ghil was making monsters for Andruil specifically to hunt so I think it could go either way? Maybe it's both.

The evanuris also feel a bit greek god inspired, and Andruil ofc has parallels in Artemis directly. Who was also always turning people into deer and things, so that could support an Andruil making people into halla theory instead. It could even be slightly less nefarious than Ghil making monsters, perhaps Andruil would turn favored subjects into halla as a warped "reward". ( <- i have no evidence for this outside of that one story but it is an interesting thought). Or maybe also to hunt them, could see that being a thing.

This would still explain why the Halla are so attuned to the dalish particularly (and vise versa) and also give some more of that good crunchy HORROR reveals to their interpretations of the past.

Either way, I think there's SOMETHING going on with the halla and I hope we get some more dalish culture reveals with the Veilguard a bit ( even if it's just in supplemental material that comes out with it or like a codex entry).

*halla leather *is* used as a crafting material in dai but this might be separate (gameplay vs lore). in dao, if Elora's halla has to be put down, she only gives you its antlers (which would probably have been shed naturally anyway since they're fairly deer-like). If you attack/accidentally kill the golden one in front of the exalted plains dalish in DAI, i believe they did attack you on sight (but that might also have been a bug, i remember that quest being tricky- like if the wolves or rando bandits attacked & killed the halla, inky still got the blame) ** I'd also love to see Merrill again like all of the events in DAI/DATV would be her jam like I just want to hear her thoughts/have her geek out a bit even when the world is ending (i have limited hope we will tho, since she was written by mary kirby T.T tho she also wrote varric and we still have him around so idk maybe)

#dragon age #back on my bullshit #dragon age lore musings #ghilan'nain #andruil #the halla #the halla are my second favorite dragon age creature after griffons and i just want more of their lore #them being people was my immediate thought after reading tevinter nights and i kinda assumed that was common?#but it doesn't seem to be #or maybe im not following the right people please rec those lore people if you know them #q #text post #the evanuris #long post #dragon age ramblings

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redlyriumidol · 1 year ago

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Something that I think would be fun in dreadwolf:

Kind of a naval/pirate-y thing. Perhaps we travel between locations via ship and ISABELA is the captain/naval advisor/involved somehow. In DAI you find a codex entry written by her about the raiders, of particular interest is Ianto, who is mentioned recurringly:

The one you should really watch out for is Ianto. They call him the "Talon," the "Terror of Llomerryn," but most often, "That Crooked Bastard What Might Kill You in Your Sleep." Slavery, murder, torture... nothing is too much for Ianto. He'd traffic in souls, if he discovered a way to extract them from people. In fact, I'm sure he has some Tevinter cronies working on that right this second. I'm sure there's coin to be made in stolen souls somewhere. The Imperium, probably.

So there's some potential involvement with Tevinter, which suggests this plotline could appear at some point in da4. He's been mentioned since DA2 which makes me think his reign of terror is a plot point they want to pick up at some point.

You find this entry when talking to Varric about the DA2 companions, but Isabela's the only one that prompts a codex entry. Of all the DA2 companions I think the most likely to appear is Isabela, because it seems like she's been set up for an appearance since dai- she's an admiral so she's now in a position of power.

In Tevinter Nights we see the involvement of the Lords of Fortune (a Rivaini faction), the Antivan Crows, and obviously the Qunari who have at this point invaded Tevinter, as we know they have unparalleled naval power. All of those elements are implied to be involved in the next game, as well as obviously Tevinter- Minrathous, where we'll be spending a lot of time, is also a port city.

I think it's possible there will be some sort of naval element to da4 and if so I think it would be amazing for Isabela to be a sort of "advisor", or the admiral of your fleet, perhaps with a "war table" mechanic similar to the one in ac4 where you send your fleet off to do things. I doubt we'd get to control ships like in black flag, I just think it's a likely method of moving around the wider map (rather than trudging across the country)

Mostly I just want Isabela to appear :(

#anders is unlikely to appear imo #dragon age: dreadwolf #da:d theories #da4 theories #i hate that you can't write dragon age dreadwolf without it looking like dad #isabela #raiders of the waking sea #dragon age #normally I'd say it's likely for zev to appear but they don't like him very much so who knows lol #dragon age talks

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riddleredcoats · 9 months ago

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I'm sorry but this is genuinely so disingenuous.

First, yeah, don't send dead-threats to people, that goes without saying. Don't be a fucking ass.

That said, and to the point; saying that things don't matter is wildly inaccurate. Sure, it might not affect the story in any way, but it does matter.

Like, we saw Connor in DAI - the little boy we saved and we got to save him again by stopping Alexious or we got to doom him by not siding with Alexius. He matters, seeing again made me feel - which is what these games are supposed to do. His presence didn't affect the plot or the story, but it mattered to me to see him there. Those little cameos actually DO a lot of heavy lifting, and Epler's little comments about things mattering is almost laughably out of touch.

Morrigan. Morrigan's attitude is wildly different depending on whether or not she has Kieran. She's noticeably softer if she has him. Kieran's only importance is not the soul of the Archedemon (which he may or may not have), but his affect on Morrigan. His existence - or lack thereof - is important, especially if Morrigan returning is going to have any sort of weight as the Morrigan we've each come to know. Is Morrigan not going to know her own story? Is Morrigan just going to be a husk, there to serve the plot where the life she has lived doesn't matter?

In DAI we didn't go to Orzammar, but the decision we made in DAO about the throne was still felt in WEWH as I overheard that Bhelen supported Celene. It didn't change anything, but it matters if they want to have a geopolitical story for the geopolitical choices to matter.

Are you telling me that who is Divine - when we go to Antiva and the Anderfels, especially since they are very religious - doesn't matter? When the options are so different? Are you telling me that who rules Orlais, canonically the most powerful nation in Thedas, doesn't matter? Even if we don't get to see any of them, we can get updates and see how they feel about the situation via codex entry - exactly the standard they set since DA2.

No one is asking for elaborate cameos, endless world states that require three hundred variations of a cutscene. Most of what people were expecting were codex entries, a vague line from vendor about how Divine Victoria is a mage (something Tevinter would actually care about, despite what Epler says), a comment about how Celene is burying her head in the sand about what happens in the North while Gaspard is perhaps reinforcing the borders.

THAT matters.

It makes the world feel yours, otherwise I'm just playing in a vacuum - in an otherwise blank slate of a World State that just has 'my' Inquisitor.

And even then, lmao. What is the Inquisitor's character going to be like? How the hell are they going to be meaningfully different from Joe's Around The Corner with only 3 choices? By how we feel about Solas? With the lack of nuance? I friended him but want him dead, is that an option? Is every companion going to be friended by default unless you romance them? What if I don't give a fuck?

They changed the name from Dreadwolf because Solas wasn't the focus and yet, it seems, he's the only fucking thing that matters from previous games because even the goddamned romance choice we have is fucking lacklustre unless it's his that has more context.

Divine Cassandra is a possible romance. How will they address that if they don't know who the Divine is? Blackwall can be dead, how are they gonna address him then? Bull can be dead, we could have killed him during Trespasser. Are they just not going to be mentioned? Why bring the Inquisitor back at all then? Oh, of course, to have closure for Solas, how silly of me.

Positivity is all nice and good, but saying this doesn't matter... If you care about the story of DA, you know damn well that this fucking matters.

I can't believe I'm writing this

To open up with: IT IS ABSOLUTELY OKAY AND VALID TO BE DISAPPOINTED BY THE LACK OF WORLDSTATE CUSTOMIZATION IN DRAGON AGE THE VEILGUARD. I have my own disappointments about it!

Ok? We have that covered? We good?

Cool, moving on.

To people who are genuinely, hatefully angry, saying we will now be 'forced into Bioware's worldstate' (when this year alone they've stated there is no 'canon' worldstate more than once), or saying that none of our prior dragon age choices matter, I need you to take a step back and walk with me for a second, okay?

For starters: John Epler stated that one of the reasons they narrowed the choices is because they DO NOT want to invalidate the worldstates of their longtime players. However they also don't want to alienate newer players who don't have the history and lore of the past choices. It's a narrow line to walk.

Secondly, I want you to really look at the choices made by your Hero, Champion, and Inquisitor. Which of those choices genuinely affected NORTHERN Thedas, not Southern Thedas, to the point it would linger for years afterwards? Which of those choices weren't things that specifically affected or altered the sociopolitical Southern Thedas climate and landscape in lasting ways?

The Well? Kieran?

That only leaves that if your Inquisitor drank, they now have knowledge from ages long past... that Rook doesn't need. Rook has a direct line into Solas' history and a possible Veiljumper background, unlocking those very secrets on their own.

It's entirely likely and probable that the Well's fears and threats were a red herring. Think about it. We as a gandom have spent TEN YEARS worrying about the Well, about Solas, about Mythal.

Come June 2024, we're slapped in the face by the big bads of Ghilan'nain and Elgar'nan.

Morrigan likely isn't going to be close and friendly with Rook- so there's likely not much reason for her to tell us about her child or husband if she has them.

The rulers of Southern Thedas aren't going to affect us. We aren't tackling the current world ending crisis from the position of a leader of armies like the Warden and Inquisitor, but as leader of a small task force. The Southern Divine doesn't much affect us either- nor do Southern mage politics or templar politics.

Because Rook is an entirely new perspective.

Because Rook is in an ENTIRELY different sociopolitical climate/landscape.

I DO think there should've been ways implemented to specify your Inquisitor's bonds and personality. I'm HOPING maybe there still are that we haven't seen. But otherwise?

My Warden is free. I can say she's cured her Calling and is wandering the world with Zevran.

My Champion can retire into total obscurity with his husband or be quietly helping said husband destroy the slave trade. Either way.

Your history and choices in Thedas still matter. Your heroes still matter.

They just aren't Rook's focus.

Take a breath please. And stop sending death threats to the devs bc what the **fuck.**

EDIT:

further context from the devs on Bluesky

#im going to play the game because goddamn it I waited 10 years for this and im still excited to play it #but saying it doesn't matter is fucking wild #lmao #da4 spoilers #veilguard spoilers #dragon age veil guard

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devitalization · 6 months ago

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↻ᴹᵉˢˢᵃᵍᵉ ˡᵒᵃᵈᵉᵈ ꒰ seven daemons.txt now available ꒱

sadly, i couldn't get a recording of this to work… but i had forgotten with the definitive edition of gamedec, there was a dlc named 'seven daemons' where you play as ken zhou. i decided that, before starting my new playthrough of the main game (to go hunting for goodies and lore)… i wanted to try this out.

so i did! i've made notes as i played, and taken screenshots where i could. obligatory warning for spoilers below the cut, as i make a deep dive into what happens alongside my interpretations of the plot / ken's character.

immediately off the bat, i love that the game starts with ken playing a racing game (sky racing) and being so immersed in it that he curses when receiving a call that, tragically, costs him the victory. that said, i also love the dialog you can choose for the phone call:

꒰ hi, my name is shivani thana; i'm the [chief innovation officer] of the peh corporation. i'm calling because i'm in need of assistance. you're ken zhou, aren't you? the e-sport star turned gamedec?

[ask if she's a fan] yeah, you're a fan?

i don't really understand e-sport, and i wouldn't be calling if you were still a professional player. ꒱

ouch! poor ken. he takes it like a champ, though. and understandably so when you read his codex entry about himself:

anyway, the first game we appear in is seven: the days long gone… fitting given the dlc name. the codex describes it as a

꒰ postapocalyptic rpg mixing magic with technology. ꒱

and is a pre-information era game that even ken hadn't heard of despite his career(s). things are pretty standard until you find shivani's avatar almost lifeless. she's got no data, and a technician comes in to chastise you… until they recognize you.

i unfortunately didn't have the skill, but i'll include the option because it's funny to me:

꒰ ken zhou? the ken zhou? what are you doing here? [he gasped] are you having an affair with shivani?! i won't tell a soul!

[sleeves; say that it's a love affair] ꒱

but even if you don't say that option, the technician still makes a few playful nudges until ken replays the recording of his call with shivani. which is interesting as it stands because it could mean a few things:

gamedecs record their calls for legal reasons; harder to bury evidence and raise wrongful suits if there's proof of the communication

all calls made using certain devices are recorded for a variety of reasons; easier to make targeted/personalized algorithms through data collection, potential content moderation on the large scale… there's a lot of interesting corporate possibilities there that really could emphasize the cybernetic dystopia.

which also ties in to the whole idea of daemons in this universe.

they're a lot different than what i've seen them defined as.

in traditional computing, daemons are simply programs that run as background processes (and, as a fun fact, usually end with the letter d for classification; d for daemon).

in the cyberpunk 2077 universe, of which i'm also a massive nerd for, daemons are a unique type of quickhack that allows netrunners (or anybody with the right cyberdeck) to effectively upload malware onto other people's decks.

in gamedec's virtualium, daemons are ai assistants that mold themselves based on the data of their user. things like virtualium habits, personality, the usage of your seat and suit… they mold themselves to your tastes and needs to become the perfect virtual assistant; a new right hand, so to speak.

and this somber tone is reflected through ken's perception of the virtualium, particularly where shivani's office is concerned:

then again when we convince the technician to leave us alone as we investigate:

beyond that, the first major choice of the dlc is whether or not ken allows ryan, one of the peh corporation employees, to install one to him. seeing as the only experience we know so far is that having a daemon has created a backdoor of sorts to 'shut down' shivani, the obvious answer would be to refuse…

but for the lore, we allowed ryan to install the software, meaning that peh corporation now has full access to our helmet.

almost immediately, we see the consequence of this: a crossbow bolt strikes ryan mid-sentence and he starts bleeding and itching, stating that he has to log out and that these 'pranks' target the programmers who work on the daemons. we don't get much time to process it, though, as our daemon springs to life and begins walking us through the installation process which.. immediately provides us some funny characterization for ken.

i opted for winning, as ken seems very reminiscent of/nostalgic for his career as an esport champion. since i have scalpel now, i was able to see what the daemon did with our data; not much was learned beyond the fact it was able to observe what we were doing.

going around the environment gives us a few interesting convos, including one with a watcher named alex. they're trying to persuade peh corporation to publicize their ai-training data, as, quote:

꒰ corporations always try to evade releasing data, open data act or not. peh's argument here is that it's a trade secret. i don't care about trade secrets [em] i care about public interest. algorithms influence the very way we experience the world. ꒱

what i find nice is that you can sympathize with alex, with ken stating,

꒰ come on. they've surely considered the consequences. it's their software [em] they don't want a lawsuit. ꒱

… and then you're propositioned to allow alex insight on the daemons as peh corporation has attempted to stunt their investigation. of course, we agreed, and summon our daemon to learn how to subtly scan them and record the data.

one of the more interesting interactions is attempting to scan an ai by the name of artanak, because it doesn't work. he catches you, but he isn't really upset by that. in fact, he provides some relatively interesting insight on the development of ai in the gamedec universe:

꒰ last time we also coexisted; ais helping humans with their tasks. until it turned out that we were able of making independent decisions. sometimes our decisions influenced humans and obviously it ended with war and destruction. i'm surprised no one here remembers it, really. and other ais seem even more secretive than in my time. ꒱

in investigating the area, we find evidence pointing toward the person who'd shot ryan, and thus attempt entering the creative team's space. likewise, helping out others in the area reveals that some daemons have had glitches regarding company crediting, leading you to believe something is wrong in the coding department. unfortunately, either gate doesn't let us through and we'd have to earn an authorization token. the way you earn the token is honestly kind of fun; a group of employees playing "the josh"… aka just standing around telling bad jokes. you have to out-joke them in order to win your place.

some of my favorite ones that ken can tell include:

꒰ you know, i'll have to go to the bar after this… but you set it so low, i'll have to dig. ꒱

꒰ you're a dictator. with the emphasis on the dick. ꒱

winning the josh gets ken the title "silver-tongued punslayer" which is just. so funny to me. he seemed genuinely proud of his dad jokes! and i love that for him.

the coding area is technical and there's not a lot there either in terms of new development. fascinating convos about the migration of npcs in this game's rework into a virtualium, though! and as you snoop around, other employee daemons confront you and lead you to your secondary deduction of what is wrong with shivani's daemon. with what we saw re: the crossbow bolt and footprints, it feels clear the daemon itself is not the problem (as much as it would be in a practical sense; this level of ai augmentation seems highly unethical at best and outright dangerous at worst) but that someone meddled with it.

of course, ken puts it more succinctly:

so we head to the creative division and i am. immediately stricken with love because there is a person with a funky robot mask and modulated voice. shoutout to dungeongeek for being that guy(tm).

anyway, the investigation continues and you find the armor of the would-be assassin, along with a note, and more footprints. as an aside, here's another funny bit of dialog:

then i'll be so for real… i spaced out a little, got up to do something, forgot i was playing, then came back very confused. but that's not the game's fault, that's just my brain being my brain!

investigating the creative division involved a fun side-plot about rewritting a questline for the game's revamp, and then you meet the alleged attacker. they talk a lot about their distrust toward shivani and the daemon program as a whole, and how there will be no apologies for the attack against ryan. you also end up getting an interesting code that cracks through the daemon software, and find yourself back in shivani's office…

and into an argument between ryan and a peh corp representative who seems all too eager to remove ken from the premises. after persuading them to let us intervene, we connect to shivani and find an amusing little like… minesweeper meets frogger type bridge puzzle. beyond that is shivani's avatar and a data node. you find out she'd been personally modifying things and creating, effectively, a carbon copy of herself against the company's safety protocols.

and that's effectively it! in my case, ken… saved the daemonn and ended up killing the original shivani, as her conscience had been so far gone it was impossible to discern the two.

i would assume there are more peh corporation sympathetic endings, given there is an npc that allows you to betray alex/interrupt their investigation, as well as the fact there was a pretty extensive branch of deductions to make for what seems like a straightforward case.

the premise was really interesting, and i like how this does play into ken's characterization throughout the main plot of gamedec. he's very headstrong and very focused on doing the right thing within his role, even if he takes a more laissez-faire approach to the conversational side of it. to have witnessed how one corporation could so easily take advantage of people, only to find out that it's potentially happening again, though on a much larger scale...

it really adds weight to his interactions with the player and to his death.

#post.txt #post.png #gamedec #ken zhou #seven daemons dlc

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