#Certain lines would be aimed at the Evanuris

[feykrorovaan]

What could have been by Sting ft. Ray Chen gives off Solas vibes to me.

I could see certain lines being aimed at the Evanuris, the Dalish,and Lavellan respectfully.

Especially the lines

"I am the monster you created."

"I couldn't care what invention you made me, cause I, I was meant to be yours."

Here, have some angst and longing.

[redinkofshame]

Arranged Marriage

Hipster AU did not spark joy, so I used the Arranged Marriage joker for day 3 of the @augustwritingchallenge. This is probably the last one I’ll do, unless I also do an arranged marriage for Cedric/Cassandra. It’s also my favorite one :D

The evanuris have survived to the dragon age, Fen'Harel included amongst them. In order to make peace with the free clans of elves a marriage is arranged between the Trickster and one of their own. Like all of Solas' plans, it goes awry.

1882 words, mature for smexiness but no actual hanky panky. Read on AO3

Wedding Night

“You still intend to go through with this, then?” Mythal asked.

Fen’Harel sighed, eyeing her reflection from where he stood surrounded by attendants. They made last minute adjustments to his wedding vestiments, buffed his nails, applied cosmetics. “I gave my word, didn’t I?”

“Yes, but even you must admit you have a proclivity for… last minute ‘tricks’. We must make peace with the free clans—”

“Easiest done with a marriage, and I am the only one amongst us who is yet unmarried, yes, I know,” he said, biting his tongue. He knew better than the rest of them how important this was; they continued to underestimated the power of the free clans.

“It’s merely surprising that you haven’t proposed some other crazy solution to avoid being tamed. You’ve been the lone wolf, all alone all these ages…”

He shooed away his attendants and sunk into the nearest chair. His hair dresser immediately made her move, beginning the bothersome process of brushing, curling, and braiding. An annoyance. A necessity. Long hair; the status symbol of a spoiled man who, supposedly, knew nothing of hard work, nor manual labor. No more a threat than a bunch of unaligned clans who could scarcely produce mages.

That is, of course, until he used this marriage to forge an alliance with his spouse’s people. The final key to in his plot to take down the Evanuris once and for all.

“All good things must come to an end,” he said with feigned disinterest. “Remind me the name of who I’m to wed again? That man from the garden with the curly hair?”

Mythal gave him a scathingly admonishing look. “Really, Fen, the least you could do is remember your intended’s name.” She kept up the look for another moment but when he gave no response she simply sighed. “You’re thinking of the ambassador they sent to announce that your bride was chosen by vote of the free clans at Arlathven.”

“She is important to them, then? A powerful mage?” he asked hopefully.

Mythal snorted. “Hardly. They say she has some skill with the arcane, but she’s better known for her sewing— no, embroidery.” He grunted in disappointment and she continued, almost to herself. “She’s no particular beauty, either. I can’t image she’s the best they’ve got to offer. Frankly, I’m tempted to take offense at the offering, but we already granted them permission to choose for themselves…”

He waved his hand dismissively. “It hardly matters what she looks like, so long as they care for her enough to lay down their arms.”

“I suppose. Her name is Keria, by the way, of Lavellan’s clan. Do try to remember it during the ceremony.” He felt her eyes on him, but kept his head bowed as his hair was adorned with golden toggles. “You know that you will have to gift her with her vallaslin during the ceremony as well.”

“Of course.”

Mythal stepped closer and lowered her voice. “A true vallaslin, Fen’Harel.”

The girl working his hair froze. He didn’t have to look at her to know that she, as all his servants, his “slaves”, wore a convincing imitation of his vallaslin on her face. He’d marked each of them with enough magic to keep them safe from the others, but it held none of the controlling or manipulation that a true vallaslin held.

He saw to it that his people followed him voluntarily, not due to fear or power. Many of them were agents of his grand plan playing a role until it was time to strike at the heart of their oppressors.

None of which Mythal was supposed to know, of course.

He met her eyes. “I understand.”

She held his gaze for a long moment, a silent threat, gauging his sincerity. At last, she nodded.

~~~~~

He remembered the name, of course, the ceremony lines, and the spell to apply a proper vallaslin to her pale face in front of everyone. Mythal’s assessment had been harsh — she was pretty enough. Her unruly black hair was short, of course, as was her place. He supposed she would grow it out, now. Her eyes were a shockingly bright blue, when he could get a good look at them, but she largely kept them averted. Her gown was a work of art. The cut of it was common enough, classic, but every inch of it was covered in painstaking embroidery. Her doing?

Not that her beauty mattered; he cared only whether or not she would become his willing ally in their fight, or if he’d have to use her new position as leverage. He’d expected her to fear him as the clans always did — with good reason. He was Mythal’s general, the attack dog she released whenever they stepped out of line or needed to be taught a lesson. At first he thought her unwillingness to meet his eyes was because she was afraid, or worse, because she loathed him. He would not hold it against her.

Surprisingly it was shy glances and flustered smiles he was met with. A blushing bride indeed.

The day was filled with much pomp and posturing, dancing and music and feasting and well-wishers and veiled insults and vague threats. Elgar’nan and the others were jumpy, so certain he was going to ruin this for them that they never considered it had been his idea to begin with. It was many hours before he and his new wife were able to retreat to his suite.

Or ‘their’ suite, he supposed, though he’d happily grant her separate chambers if she requested it. His rooms were plenty large enough for the two of them, but he didn’t relish the loss of this ability to move freely.

He left her for a moment upon entering to get familiar with the space as he stepped into the dressing chamber. He sighed in the relative privacy.

It was fortunate that Keria seemed to be a willing — perhaps eager — partner in this charade, but thus far she seemed too timid of a girl to bring honestly into his machinations. It would take some time to discern best how to proceed from here. In the mean time it was his wedding night…

He was certainly willing to bed her, but he would not press the issue. They needed to discuss rules and freedoms, what would be asked of her and what would not. What she could ask of him. He striped out of his vestiments and pulled on a pair of simple sleep pants. He did not bother with a shirt. He stepped back into the room.

“I think we should discuss our expectations…” He tailed off, not seeing her immediately. He found her in the dimly lit bedchamber, sitting on her heels at the end of the oversized bed, sheets pooling around her hips. She was naked except for the sash from her wedding gown tied loosely about her waist. When she saw him enter she raised to her knees, spread wide, and the blanket fell from her lap, exposing her fully. Her teasing smile beckoned him closer.

Well, then.

All thoughts of planning left him as his blood spiked, and he went to her. He stopped when he stood at the edge of the bed, inches from her, and pointedly looked her offering up and down. He reevaluated his own underestimation of her beauty.

“Lovely…” he murmured. His hand dropped and she arched her back in anticipation, her nipples tight, but it was the tail of the embroidered sash he took. “Did you make it yourself?”

To his surprise he laughed and shoved him playfully, illiciting a snort from him. “I did, in fact.” He ran his thumb over the intricate stitches and she shifted her weight nervously. “Do you, um, know a lot about embroidery?”  

“I don’t know much of the textile arts, I’m afraid,” he admitted, letting the silk slip through his fingers. “Perhaps you could teach me.”

She smiled coquettishly. “Oh, there’s a great deal I could teach you, Fen’Harel.” She sensually unknotted the sash.

He forced his eyes up to hers, determined to seem unaffected. “And here I thought I was wed to someone sweet and innocent.”

“Sweet? Sometimes. But innocent?” Keria flipped the sash up and over his head, where it settled like a scarf. “Certainly not.”

She tugged the ends of the sash and pulled him in for a kiss and he went easily, intrigued by this woman. He felt the brush of her lips but didn’t realize in time that she whispered an incantation, though his eyes flickered open just in time to see the hidden runes among the embroidered flowers light up, paralyzing him instantly. Her hand dashed beneath the covers and came up with a dagger that she plunged towards his chest.

The vallaslin on her face lit up as he activated it and staggered back, spell broken. She was frozen in place, mid-strike. His heart hammered in his chest in a way it hadn’t in decades, a mortal danger he rarely faced unwittingly.

No mortal blade could hurt him, but she would know that. Still shaken, he wrenched the dagger from her hand, careful not to nick either of them as she grunted, struggling to break free. He appraised the weapon, recognizing it easily even without the ravens in the hilt. It indeed would have been able to kill him, and was undoubtedly coated in enough poison to finish the job even if her aim ad been off. Smart.

“Dirthamen sent you, then?”

She still fought her bindings. He released her just enough that she could answer his question. “Yes.”

He tilted his head. She’d answered too quickly. He could see her tells, now that he knew what she really was. “A lie. Interesting. I’m only supposed to believe it was him.”

“You’re supposed to be dead,” snarled his darling wife.

“Ah, a fair point. Me, murdered on my wedding night, and Dirthamen to blame. To what end?” She answered by spitting at him and he paced as he thought it over, able to see how it would have played out — Mythal would exact justice before Elgar’nan could stop her, and Dirthamen’s twin would retaliate. The rest of the evanuris would choose sides. War, distrust, ample opportunity for more little assassinations.

A simple enough plan. One that damn near worked.

He lifted the dagger and it hovered in the air between them. With a twist of his hand he rendered the shining, poisonous thing inert, watching as it turned dull and clattered uselessly to the floor.

Keria looked like she was ready to tear him apart with her teeth instead. “It doesn’t matter what you do with me,” she growled. “Others will succeed where I have failed. You cannot stop us all! Your days are numbered, Dread Wolf — you and every other evil, murderous, slaving evanuris!”

Wordlessly he walked to a wardrobe, feeling her eyes following him as she waited for him to strike her down. How much of her shaking was from anger, he wondered, and how much from fear?

He pulled out a dressing robe and turned back to his bride, every inch of her radiating defiance despite the hold he still had on her.

He tossed her the robe. “Get dressed, vhenan. We need to talk.”

[thedinanshiral]

My personal DA4 wishlist + thoughts

I’ve been teasing this post for a couple of weeks over at Twitter, i’m the worst! But anyway, since game journalism has decided to confirm, once again, that the next Dragon Age game will be set in Tevinter like that’s breaking news, now’s as good a time as ever to write all this down.

Locations: Tevinter, clearly. It’s been pretty much a given since the end of Trespasser in 2015, with that scene where the Inquisitor stabs a map on a table directly on Tevinter as they promise to go after Solas to stop him. But also concept art and several stories from Tevinter Nights heavily imply Antiva, Nevarra, the Anderfells, and maybe Rivain. For those of you who don’t know your Thedosian Geography 101, that’s basically Northern Thedas. And it makes sense, since so far for three games straight we’ve been first stuck in Ferelden, then the coast of the Free Marches, and later the rest of Southern Thedas. We’ve never been North, only heard of it. So in DA4 i’m sure we will finally be able to visit.

Characters: If we’re going to Tevinter, we must meet Dorian again, maybe meet Maevaris Tilani as well (previously only seen in comics), judging from the latest comics series, i’m hoping for Fenris too. And going by the latest teaser trailer, we might see Varric again. As for characters that so far we have no news of, i’d like to see Cole, the Iron Bull, and if by any chance BioWare feels like blessing us with a Hawke/Fenris reunion i might just die happy.  I’d also very much like to see the Inquisitor, but more on that later.

Companions: considering concept art and the latest teaser trailer, plus Tevinter Nights stories and new characters, we have an interesting repertoire of new potential companions. A Tevinter mage, an ancient elf (like a temple guardian) or a dalish elf (like Strife), a Nevarran mortalitasi or spirit, Antivan Crows, Lords of Fortune (new faction, kind of like treasure hunters), Qunari lady, maybe an alchemist or shapeshifter, Grey Wardens (possibly a dwarf), a liberated or escaped slave, a Siccari (Tevinter spies/assassins)..even past agents of the Inquisition could return. 

Plot: We know Solas wants to take down the Veil. We know there’s two archdemons left, and Grey Wardens are regaining some spotlight in concept art lately. We might have to fight on multiple fronts simultaneously and be strategic about it. Solas might even unleash a double Blight just to keep us distracted while he focus on his own goal, who knows. But many other things are happenig in the margins and all over the place. The Qunari Antaam is having a crisis with some of its members supposedly going rogue, the order they’re so proud of is breaking up, and the whole of Northern Thedas is facing an imminent threat of invasion. Tevinter is still dealing with remnants of the Venatori and might soon be dealing with a slaves rebellion and/or a political and social reform (Magisters Dorian and Maeveris have been working wirh the Lucerni, a group aiming to restore and redeem Tevinter). The Antivan Crows -the de facto rulers of Antiva - may be dealing with a succession crisis, as their First Talon, a powerful feared and respected but old lady, might not be around for much longer and seems her chosen heir has died before his time. Meanwhile in the Anderfells nobody’s heard anything from the Grey Wardens’ HQ at Weisshaupt since the end of Inquisition, and as told in the novel Last Flight, the sudden reappearance of griffons may have had something to do with that radio silence. So you see, get ready for another +100 hours long game because BW has plenty of stuff to keep us busy with. But in short, DA4 seems will be about primarily searching, finding, and dealing with Solas. Regardless of what you decided at the Exalted Council in Trespasser, the Inquisition or what’s left of it is most likely the group orchestrating that mission. As it was so clearly stated then, they need new people Solas doesn’t know so he can’t foresee their actions, so it’s possible the DA4 protagonist is a new agent or a third party hired to do what the Inner circle can’t due to their familiarity with Solas in the past. But at the same time -and this is assuming we get to find Solas in this game - i definitely think the Inquisitor could easily show up again. No, losing an arm doens’t mean they’ve retired forever, prosthetics do exist in Thedas, a world where you can combine dwarven craftmanship with enchantments, seriously, i don’t ever want to hear “but they lost an arm” ever again as an excuse to write them out. And no, marrying Cullen or joining the Red Jennys is no impediment to join the “Stop Solas” Squad; the end of Trespasser means something, mainly that this is personal. Be it they loved them as lovers, as friends or ended up hating his guts for using and betraying them, the Inquisitor’s relationship with Solas makes this very personal, and so having any other character do that face off would cheapen all of it, all that bittersweet angsty development and expectations of either revenge or closure. That moment should happen between those two. It adds a ton of motivation due to their past historyas well, something a new protagonist would lack entirely.  My personal best hope is for a sort of dual protagonist thing, say we play new protagonist for most of the game but a selected missions or scenes where we play as the Inquisitor once again and take over for key and heart-wrenching dialogue options. My second best hope is for the Inquisitor to show up as playable for the moment we catch up with Solas. My third and final best hope is for the inquisitor to be a sort of advisor but more like new protagonist’s boss/employer to whom they report back to and get new missions from. The Inquisitor can be stuck in meetings for the most part of it, i just want to know they’re there, behind a door, super busy but there. A cameo like Hawke’s in Inquisition is the bare miminum i can take, anyhting less than that like a mention in a sidequest description or a footnote in a codex entry would be a total  injustice. 

Romances: I’m open for pretty much anything, as any good BW fan would be. But i’d like romances to feel more alive in the sense that they don’t abruptly get stuck once you exhaust all related quests and dialogue options. As much as my Adaar liked that spank from the Iron Bull, that it was the only thing they could share after their romance was locked was a bit..meh. I liked Dorian’s tho, because his gave one the option to talk a bit, go for a walk, gossip, and sure, it all happened off-screen, and there were limited possibilities, but it was nice and made their relationship feel a bit more real, like they had more to it than kissing and stuff. It happens in most games, once you secure a romanceable companion suddenly you run out of things to do and share with them, and you get stuck with the same 3 lines of dialogue over and over again. There should be a way of solving that.

Side quests: i’m ok with fetch quests initially as it is a good way of forcing the player to go out and explore huge maps, but i’d also like the fetching to have some meaning other than checking things off a list. I want to explore many ruins, and -can’t believe i’m actually saying this- i want a Fade quest. Wait! I know what you’re thinking but don’t kill me just yet, here’s my idea: what if we could visit the Fade at certain locations to witness memories or meet with spirits and recollect information on Solas, his past, his present? Both to understand him better (keep in mind we’ll most likely get a new protagonist who isn’t familiar with him like we are as players) and try to locate him or predict his next move. It would be i think i great way of having visions of Arlathan in its golden age, maybe seeing some of the other Evanuris, how they interacted with each other and with the elves in their service, what really happened ...i just want that sweet, sweet lore, i need it.

Technical stuff: ok, graphics will be amazing for sure, but i also would really really like: better, more varied and longer hairstyles, PLEASE. Body sliders, it’s damn time we get them. Mounts that actually make a difference! Let staves blades make damage in combat, I’M BEGGING HERE. Combined classes, MAGICAL ROGUES! A homebase we can fix up/build on/redecorate as fully as possible (Skyhold was great and i love it to pieces but why were those walls NEVER repaired????) . More casual outfit options, idk i love to dress up my characters, maybe some transmog? A day/night cycle and please i would love to see Thedas’ second moon, also weather variations depending on the region. Yes, i’m ambitious.

Gameplay: i’d like more AI options for companions, but not quite like in DAO, that was too much and i rarely used it. I’m curious how they’ll do combat this time but i know for sure i don’t want the kind of combat that has me going almost frame by frame pausing at every second, it’s annoying for me. I want large areas like in DAI but with a bit more stuff to see and do although one of my favourite maps is the Hissing Wastes so i won’t complain if we get a literal desert but i’d also like it to have secrets hidden around, make me work to find and solve them, i love exploring, i jump and click on EVERYTHING like i’m still a kid playing Monkey Island. A companion in concept art seems to be holding what looks like some form of rifle, so i’m curious how they’d incorporate that in the game. I know Tevinter has the magics and dwarves have the skill, a firearm is totally within the possibilities in-game without breaking any lore; also super curious what sort of skill trees Crows or Lords of Fortune could have, are they rogues, or warriors, or both??

So far, that’s what i got in my head.Well, most of it anyways, i may have missed something but this post has to end somewhere lol

What’s in your head? Feel free to share! Have you been thinking on how you’ll create your next protagonist? All i can think of is magical rogues and that  glowing bow was all the hype i needed.

[cornfedcryptid-archive]

WIP Wednesday

I got tagged by @ranawaytothedas...and for once I actually have something to share. Shocking, I know! lol

Imma gonna tag @bakedsweetroll, @dngrs-untld-hrshps-unnmbrd, @lesbianeliksni, and @ironbullsmissingeye, @elveny, and @roseategales.

It’s two things I’ve been working on off an on the past few weeks (neither of which have been edited/there’s bits that still need added). Both of which require me deep diving into lore...the problem is there’s very little on Mithrax! Why do you do this to me Bungo!?

Begin Again-a time travel AU I have with Raven and Solas

“Can you do it?”

“If it was all of you, yes. But what you’re asking is something entirely different. You’re asking me to rip you from your body and send it back to the you in the past. There’s no guarantee that it will work.” Dorian paced the length of Josephine’s old office in Haven. But it had been years since the ambassador had sat in the chair. Neither could remember the last time they had seen any of the others from the Inquisition.

The years following the Exalted Council had not been kind to Raven or Dorian. Years of thwarting Solas at every turn took everything they and what few allies still survived had. They all knew the end was drawing near and if they didn’t act fast, southern Thedas would fall.

Dorian stopped his pacing and turned to Raven. He studied his oldest and closest friend for several moments. She looked more rundown and haggard than when they had last seen each other four months prior. New scars, not from Raven’s blade, peppered her body telling more than their conversations did. The topic of her missing eye was avoided on pain of death. They were losing and Dorian knew Raven would go to even more drastic measures if needed, some of which would be worse than what Solas had done.

But not even Solas could have foreseen what would happen with the Veil fell. Her memories of Redcliffe paled in comparison to the atrocities that now spread across the land. The Evanuris were free and roamed the lands like a plague. Whatever plan Solas had had failed. It had been weeks since she had seen him on the edges of her dreams, and she feared the worst.

“There’s a small moment, when you’re harvesting a person when you feel their soul almost literally in your hands. All you would need to do is cast your spell right at that moment. We know where my body and Solas were at that time. It’s the only chance we have Dorian.”

2. Zero Hour-Just the start of something I’ve been wanting to do with Mithrax and a certain someone that hasn’t been seen in a while. *wink* *wonk*

“Something was pinging my scanners the last time I was on Titan, and I found this. Do you have any idea what it is?” Arete tossed a vaguely familiar device to Z-9, who caught it with his free hand.

“It’s a fallen transponder.” The exo studied the device, memories of this technology slowly coming back to the surface. “There’s an encrypted message on here.”

“Can you solve it?”

“I can. By why does it matter?”

“It was in the area where I met that captain who gave me the methane reactor. I had locked the door behind me and there were hive all over the place. It wouldn’t have been easy to regain access to that room. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that I found it.”

“You and your hunches,” Z chuckled. He turned his attention back to the transponder, his own curiosity fueling his actions more than her request.

“When have I ever been wrong?”

“I know. I’m just giving you shit. Someone has to keep you humble, don’t want your notoriety going to your head.”

“If anyone has let my notoriety go to their head it’s you,” she snorted.

“Not everyone has the pleasure of being in the Pussycat Dolls. We’ve saved the Last City and galaxy how many times?” A ding from the device drew both of their attention to the screen. “It seems your hunch was right again. There’s definitely something important on here but it’s requiring six access nodes…whoever left this must have wanted you or someone to find it.”

“Why?”

“The clues point to areas we’ve patrolled that have known fallen activity.”

“I don’t understand the need for a scavenger hunt that sends us all over the galaxy.”

 Three days later, Z and Ari found themselves at the ruins of the old tower. None had been back to the tower since the Red War. Repairs to the guardians’ home was nowhere near to being underway, the main focus of the city’s construction crews was the city itself. Guardians had to make do with hammocks and cots wherever they could stow them. Others, like Ari and Z, preferred to sleep in their ships or were off world too often that the makeshift sleeping arrangements didn’t bother them.

“I don’t like this at all,” Z grumbled. “This whole thing just screams of a setup.”

“That may be the case. But if the information we found on there is right, we can’t let SIVA tech fall into fallen hands. I am not in the mood to fight another Aksis.”

“I’d rather not deal with another zamboni of death. One is one too many!” Z loaded a clip into his sniper and followed behind Ari at a distance. Once through the door he took aim at the dreg that was squatting in their line of sight. Before he could pull the trigger, a captain materialized and killed it.

“Wait! Don’t shoot him!” Ari stepped towards the captain, but before she could take a step he had transmatted out of the area.

“What the fuck? I am seven kinds of confused right now.”

“You still think this is a set up?”

“Yes, but not the kind that I was originally thinking.” The transponder in Z’s pocket started to beep. He pulled it out, the screen illuminating his face.

“Looks like we only have about twenty minutes to get wherever we’re supposed to get.”

“Is it telling you where we need to go?”

“Yeah, hold on. Hey Ham, you know where this is?”

Ham materialized over Z’s shoulder and looked down at the transponder. “I believe I know the location. It is outside the Vanguard’s secret vault. The quickest routes have been blocked by layers of rubble.”

“Can we just fly there?” Z asked.

“That would be ill advised. If they are truly after the vault, we can’t simple fly in. We’d alert whomever is breaking in and they would destroy our ketch before we got close enough to transmat in.”

“Is there a route to get there that’s open?” Arete asked.

“The most recent scans I’ve received from the underground network plot a path. There will most likely be fallen along the way.”

“Is it too much to ask that the bad guys don’t do bad guy stuff for just one evening?” Z shouldered his sniper and took off at a jog behind Arete.

“Now Z, I thought you like the notoriety from doing things like this? You’ve been with me for every raid.”

“True. But a man’s gotta have a day off. I’ve been spending all my time whipping Glow Worm into shape.”

“He still letting you call him that?” she chuckled.

“I told him the day he can best me is the day I’ll stop calling him that.”

[thedinanshiral]

Temple Guardians

The sole basis to state some of the new concept art for DA4 shows Executors is one single triangle with a couple of wavy lines across it. And i’m tired of it, because that one interpretation is being treated as fact lately and it leaves so much out, so this is my humble and very tired contribution. 

First we had this piece of concept art in the behind-the-scenes video

and from the moment i saw it i got strong ancient elvhen/temple guardian vibes. Very strong vibes.The background looks like ruins, the magic is new, they have a uniform. ~*-.´Temple Guardians´.-*~

Then we got this illustration to the short story Ruins of Reality, showing the elf Strife from Tevinter Nights on a different adventure, and this is when people began to lose it for me.

OMG a triangle with wavy lines, OMG the Executors symbols, OMG definitely Executors, OMG. Yeah, at first glance, maybe, but..

People missed the other triangles, the other cracks that don’t resemble the Executors’ symbol at all.

People missed the other triangles in the first concept art having a certain texture that again, doesn’t resemble the Executors’ symbol at all. People also failed to consider that such a mysterious and secretive faction wouldn’t be wearing their symbol on their back for easy identification...

And missed the fact these outfits don’t resemble the only description we’ve had so far of what an Executor looks like (or not, because the one present in Dread Wolf Take You has their face covered as well, with a mesh).

I think the first and the latest concept art pieces represent one type of character, while the short story illustration represents Strife, particularly. And none here can be said to be an Executor based solely on their fashion sense. 

There’s one recurring character and it’s the archer.

The outfit between the first two is clearly the same, and the animated version from the teaser trailer, while difficult to see clearly, not only has the same bow but also the mask and some details of the armor can be seen and matched to the concept art as well. 

So my take is this: Shield and Bow guys are most likely ancient elvhen, and temple guardians much like the ones from the Temple of Mythal. Remember Solas told Abelas that his people still lingers, implying there could be others like him elsewhere, and since the action is moving north and in particular Arlathan forest, we’re bound to encounter more ancient elvhen ruins. Possibly another ancient elvhen temple. A temple that, like Mythal’s in the Arbor Wilds, could still have its guards defending it. This archer stands in ruins, barefoot like elves do, with a uniform that has an aesthetic that reminds of ancient elvhen lines, and has a bow comprised of multiple triangular parts suspended in place by what appears to be magic, that shoot arrows of light, most likely also magic. 

Notice the bow parts have details that almost  resemble some form of circuitry, with light/power going through it, which could be lyrium. Now, who used to mine lyrium to get more powerful to play war games? Well, arguably anyone in Thedas, but the Evanuris started it. I can imagine they designed and produced all sorts of weapons and artifacts for war that could use lyrium to amplify their powers. Either this character is a mage themselves and that bow is how they channel their magic, or this bow is an example of ancient elvhen design, infused with lyrium in a way that allows magic use for non mages. 

It’s a technology that could have had a variety of applications..

..as we see this other guy rising up multiple triangular plaques as a shield. My first thought was all these triangular shapes could normally be part of their armor, detachable to take other forms, like this shield or that bow. 

Strife, on the other hand, is a modern elf who joins a Dalish clan nearby Arlathan forest. Chances are the outfit he wears in that illustration comes from Clan Morlyn, and it’s possible they preserved or tried to replicate whatever they could from their ancestors; this would explain the suspended triangles, or why they look cracked as if from age or wear. His hood also has visible and kinda messy stitches, and the cloak is one piece -unlike the others outfit which is made of four separate sections- which gives me more the impression he’s wearing a replica. 

As for what temple these guys could be guarding, i have two ideas: Andruil’s or June’s. Andruil’s basically because of the emphasis on the archer figure, and because Arlathan forest is full of creatures and she was Goddess of the Hunt. I can imagine Andruil enjoying herself hunting all over the place. June’s because these new weapons/equipment would be right up his alley as God of the Craft and he is specifically credited for having taught the People how to make bows. 

Talking about the Executors, there is a chance they could be a different faction of ancient elves, maybe a group who survived the fall of Arlathan and exiled themselves “across the sea”, but if that were the case then the total disregard with which Solas petrified the one Executor to have made an appearane so far i’d say they were the troublesome elvhen who were on the “wrong side”, the Evanuris side. Their very name “Executors” indicates they carry out someone else’s orders. For all we know so far, the Executors could be Evanuris loyalists, but which Evanuris? Lots of big ifs here. And still, i don’t consider the characters depicted in these concept art to be Executors, they seem pretty grounded, they’re given similar backgrounds and stance each time: in the first concept art they’re defending against something in some ruins, in the teaser trailer the archer is going after a red lyrium darkspawn that stands right next to the big tree that as we’ve seen before is the same tree that stands by a number of urns and graves, in this latest concept art the archer is aiming their arrow and ready to shoot. These figures are adopting a defensive stance each time. 

So there you go: Temple guardians. Or some other faction that serves a similar purpose but i like how Temple guardians sounds. I could be entirely wrong, any and all of us could be, but if i’m to consider any of this says “Executors!” i’m gonna need way more than two wavy lines on one of three triangles.