#Typical Orlesian.

[fadewalking]

I had to know.

Bingo Card // @elvisqueso

Solas is infinitely relieved that no bingo was achieved here & I died laughing so this is good (2 away tho)

[tragedia]

started rereading masked empire. someone hold me back.

[randomnonsensedragonage]

Chevalier No More

Avenie Caron & Jean-Marc Stroud - 1464 words

CW: Canon-typical violence

Summary: Avenie, a trainee at the Academie des Chevaliers, discovers the dark side of the path she's chosen. Then a mysterious Grey Warden offers her a new way forward.

A/N: Slowly working on uploading some of my Ao3 only fics to Tumblr as well. This one was originally published in 2019.

Read on Ao3

“No,” Avenie said. “I won’t allow this.”

Her hand rested on the hilt of her blade. Behind her lay the gates of Val Royeux’s Alienage, and ranged in front of her were several of her fellow trainees at the Academie. Her friends. Or so she’d thought.

“Come off it, Avenie.”

“Allow this? Is she serious?”

“It’s just a bit of fun.”

Avenie gritted her teeth. Chevalier training may have been a lie, but it hadn’t been useless. She was surveying the situation as she’d been taught, looking out for ways to defend herself and get the upper hand if they decided to fight their way past her. The street they were on was open, big enough for fighting, and though many of them were tense as though ready for battle, they seemed caught off guard, not as ready to attack as she was. But the fact remained that it was six against one, and most of them had had more training than her. She might be able to stop one or two of them, but the rest would either overpower her, or simply leave her to fight while they ran to the Alienage. She would have to talk them out of it.

“Attacking elves is not the purpose of our training,” she said, heart racing. “We-we must protect the weak, not prey on them.”

A few of her companions exchanged looks. There were titters. Eyes were rolled. Ariel, the tallest and most charismatic of the group, spoke.

“Avenie, it’s tradition,” he said, voice reasonable. “Practice. Elves today, Orlais’ foes tomorrow. Generations of Chevaliers have done the same.”

“The tradition is wrong,” she said. How could she make them see? She was a fighter, not a diplomat, and her voice shook even if her hands didn’t. She could only think of one more tactic.

“Julien, please.”

He was at the back, almost hidden in the shadows and head hung, but he looked up when she spoke. His black curls framing his face, eyes that same blue that always made her heart pound.

“You cannot agree with this. Please, make them see reason!”

He looked at her, blinked. Then, he looked at the ground. Her heart felt like it would tear into pieces.

Ariel drew his sword, the ring of steel echoing on the quiet street.

“This grows tiresome. Chevaliers, with me!”

Avenie drew her own blade, a noise echoed by the drawing of five others. They ran at her.

Avenie ducked, dodging out of the path of the sword that had been aimed at her chest. She came up and rammed into the nearest attacker’s chest, knocking him back. Someone tried to grab her from behind, and she spun, catching them in the chest with the flat of her sword, then lashing out at fighters to her right, to her left. She spotted Karine, one of the only other women in the group, attempting to get past her, but she leapt to the side and blocked her, at the same time kicking the man who tried to stab her in the side.

Bad idea. He grabbed her leg, pulling her to the ground. Her face hit the dirt, and she struggled to free herself as he dragged her across the dust. With a roar, she twisted, turning herself on to her back and jumping to her feet, knocking Ariel back at the same time. Righting herself, she wiped the blood from her nose, spat out the dirt, and held out her sword. But they were surrounding her, coming from all sides. Ariel’s grin was wolflike, and even Julien’s gaze was intense and cold. She stepped back. She would keep fighting them as long as she could. Even if they killed her, at least she would die defending others.

Then Karine cried out, doubling over in pain. Someone had slashed her in the back, and used the opening to break through the circle surrounding Avenie. A man ran to her side. All she could tell about him in the dark was that he was tall and solidly built, and he had a sword.

“With me,” he said. “We can take them together.”

Avenie nodded, not really having any other choice. He moved so he was at her back, facing those who were behind her. They separated.

Swords clashed in the night. Avenie was taking on Ariel and Julien, the strange man the three others. Karine was nowhere to be seen, must have stumbled off back to the Academie. Avenie hoped this meant she’d learned something.

As she knocked Julien’s blade aside, she glanced over her shoulder at the battle behind her. Though he was outnumbered, the strange man was fighting well, expertly dodging the three trainees’ thrusts and slashes. She saw him knock big Octave aside, slash a wound down his breastplate. The man stumbled and fell.

Before long, the battle was over. Several of her former friends lay on the ground, and the others had run back to the Academie. Avenie wiped her sword and re-sheathed it, noticing that Julien was not among the dead. She felt numb.

“Come on.” The man’s voice. He reached for her wrist, holding her steady. “We ought not to linger here.”

Too exhausted to do anything else, Avenie went with him.

The man’s name was Stroud. He was a serious looking fellow with dark hair and a handlebar mustache. Not the type you’d forget, but Avenie didn’t realize who he was until they were already speaking over drinks at the tavern.

“Jean-Marc Stroud?” she said. “The former Chevalier?” No wonder he had fought so well. “I thought you were exiled from the empire.”

Stroud took a sip of his drink, then shook his head.

“No, not exiled. I left by choice. But I do return from time to time.” His eyes twinkled. “You likely don’t remember, but I was among the Grey Wardens who visited your class at the Academie.”

Avenie did remember. Several weeks back, when they’d been learning how to fight Darkspawn, the Warden Commander had visited along with several others, who’d remained at the back of the hall. Stroud must have been among them.

Stroud set his stein down and wiped foam from his mustache. He was looking at her seriously.

“What are you going to do now?” he said. “You fought with your fellow trainees, and not, from the Academie’s point of view, over a point of honor. Things will be difficult for you after this.”

Avenie nodded. She ran a finger along the rim of her wine glass, but didn't lift it. Her stomach still felt too hollow for drink.

"Do you regret it?” Stroud said.

“No,” Avenie said immediately. “What they were trying to do was wrong. I’m just… disappointed.”

“Disappointed?”

“In the Chevaliers,” she said. She reached for her glass. Perhaps she needed the alcohol after all. “I thought… I thought Chevaliers fought for others, not just themselves. I thought they protected people.”

“Some do,” Stroud said. “Not all participate in the so-called tradition your friends were emulating. But protection is not a priority of the order.”

Avenie blinked away the blurriness that was starting to obscure her vision. “I… I don’t know what I’m going to do now. But I will not go back. I will not serve an order that places honor so highly above anything else.”

“So, you became a chevalier because you wanted to protect people?”

Avenie nodded.

“And because of that you stood up to your comrades in arms, your friends, even though you knew they might kill you?”

She nodded again.

“May I make a suggestion?” he said. “The Grey Wardens would welcome you as a recruit. Bravery and tenacity are things we admire. Not to mention the desire to protect. And we could use someone with your combat skills.”

Avenie took another sip of her drink, thinking.

“Is the training difficult?”

“Not nearly as difficult as training at the Academie. But it does require sacrifices. Your life won’t be the same after you join.”

“But I could do good.”

“Our purpose is to fight Darkspawn and stop Blights. So, yes, you would be doing good. You would also be able to move much more freely and widely.”

Avenie didn’t answer, so Stroud cleared his throat. “Well, perhaps you should take time to think about it. I’ll be—”

“I’ll do it,” Avenie said.

Stroud blinked. “Really? You’re sure?”

“Yes. I can’t be a chevalier anymore… but as a Grey Warden my skills wouldn’t go to waste. I’ll do it.”

Stroud smiled. He reached out and shook her hand. “Welcome, Avenie Caron,” he said. “The Wardens will be glad to have you. I’ll speak to the training master, and we can go to Commander Clarel in the morning.”

Avenie nodded. A Grey Warden. Somehow it felt right.

[goatanarchy]

Part two for the character line up.~ I had to dress up Duncan at some point of course. 🥰 Commander of the Grey - I wanted to give him something lighter as he is a rogue. So its a long tabard over padded armor jacket with some elements from his original armour. :3 His casual look is what I imagine he would wear under the armour, just your typical puffy shirt with long boots since I feel like it would be very orlesian. And also because its a perfect outfit everyone deserves to wear, lol.

And then an expensive jacket with black boots and gloves(he is a goth in my heart) for some formal outing.

[mllemaenad]

I mean ... sure. Why not?

Ugh. I don't know. Maybe I'm being unfair. I've got a lot of game ahead of me. It's just starting to feel like they're biting off more than they can chew, from a narrative perspective.

I really enjoyed the more grounded antagonists of the earlier games. Loghain's suspicion of Orlais and the Grey Wardens has some solid historical precedent behind it. This isn't apologia: he did some both terrible and stupid things, but up to a point you could understand why he had concerns in the first place. And there's an outcome where he can become a Grey Warden, and might (though I appreciate it is unlikely, given his age and the current timeline) still live to fight darkspawn to this day. Because however much he fucked up, having Ferelden overrun with Blight was not an acceptable outcome for him, any more than it was for anyone else.

Meredith may have been a more ... straightforwardly awful person, sure, but she was awful in a comprehensible way. She had a genuine tragedy in her childhood and she was able to use that to justify her own cruelty and ambition – both to others and to herself. It's not that she could ever reasonably be thought of as good, but rather that she always saw herself as in the right and justified in her actions. And, likewise, during the Qunari invasion she becomes your temporary ally, because she also does not want to see Kirkwall occupied by a foreign power.

Corypheus unfortunately came across as too ridiculous for me to really enjoy – which is a pity, because I was interested in what he had to say, as a solid primary source on ancient Tevinter and the First Blight. Inquisition leaned harder on its individual quests – the struggles of the mages and Templars, the tragedy of the Grey Wardens, the heartless stupidity of the Orlesian civil war.

Inquisition has been my least favourite, because it already had too much going on to do it all justice. It was packed with interesting ideas, but I didn't always like the corners they had to cut to squish it all into a single narrative. But, in fairness, it was still packed with interesting ideas.

Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe in a while I'll look back on this post and laugh, because it all came together really nicely. But at the moment I'm seeing Venatori! And Qunari! And darkspawn! Oh my! And they all serve the obviously Blighted gods.

I'm not saying you couldn't make this work. I'm saying ... I'm not confident they're going to right now.

I mean ... the First Blight was functionally what destroyed the old Tevinter empire. You'd think they'd have some feelings about darkspawn, and I don't know, maybe the conclusive evidence that they didn't create the Blight? And I get that the government of Par Vollen seems to have fallen (or is at least in disarray), but that sounds like a whole story in itself ... and well, the Qunari do not typically have gods, let alone Blighted mages as gods, so ...

Ah, well. Guess I'll see.

[nerdanel01]

Rook Questionaire - Agnes Gallatus

tagged by @eavangeek, thank you!

Under the cut due to length! Tagging @ass-deep-in-demons @nostalgiaclown @starfleetteddybear @racheloleo @the-grand-gemini @truebluedreamer @jusbeinkt @blindvogel @erikonil @hmserebusadjacent (no pressure!) in case you want to join + play :) (also anyone else who sees this should also feel free to join in and tag me if you fill it out :D)

Where in Thedas is your Rook from? Agnes grew up in the countryside, in the part of western Nevarra that has changed hands between Nevarra and Orlais a few times. I headcanon this to mean there are some people who live their who consider themselves “Orlesian” and have a more Orlesian culture, although this is exclusively the peasant/lower class. Agnes’ mother Madeline would have been one of those peasants. Her father is a Nevarran noble, but very minor nobility; she was raised on his estate, first as a servant, then later as one of the members of the household after her mother passed away. Because her father’s estate is so far west, she was sent to the Circle at Perendale when her magic manifested, rather than the fancier Circle in Cumberland. She also has a slight southern inflection to her pronounciation because of all this, which means everyone else in the Mourn Watch clocks her as a hayseed pretty much from day one.

What is your character’s alignment? She’d like to think she’s lawful good, but despite how hard she tries she’s really a messy, chaotic good.

Race and subclass? Human, Spellblade mage.

If your Rook was a companion, where would they be found? Minrathous, because Agnes is definitely still getting run out of Nevarra by the nobility after the War of the Banners one way or the other, even if she doesn't end up as "Rook" Rook. 😬

What emotion did they usually pick? Aggressive/stoic, but it’s a mask. She mellows out to the soft supportive/approving Rook when she’s talking to someone she likes (mostly just the companions.)

What companion are they platonically close with? Agnes is closest with Bellara, although Davrin is probably a close second.

Romantically close with? She’s been disgustingly obsessed with Emmrich since she was like, 19, if that counts as “close.”

Who are they suspicious of? ILLARIO FROM DAY ONE. FROM GO SHE DOESN’T TRUST THAT MAN. Also, every time Solas so much as breathes in her direction she thinks he’s planning something awful for her. She's not always wrong.

Does your Rook get along with their chosen faction? For the most part, Agnes “got along” with the rest of the Mourn Watch in the way that oil and water “get along.” But there were a few rare exceptions where she made a friend… or an enemy. :)

Are they proficient in playing any instruments? Solas is trying to teach her the harpsichord. It isn’t going well!

Weapon of choice? Orb & dagger babeyyyyy. Let her get up close with her magic and stabby stab.

What is their orientation? Like, I know this, but I don’t know that Agnes does…. She’s not 100% hetero but she’s been obsessed with Emmrich for so long I don’t think she’s ever really had the chance to discover that she’s maybe a little bi.

What are their thoughts on killing? Is it a necessary evil or do they enjoy it? Don’t tell anyone, but she likes it. Not because of anything to do with the bloodshed itself—she’s not really bloodthirsty—but it gives her great satisfaction to know that she is strong enough (and capable enough) to protect the people, communities, and ideas she cares about. She enjoys killing because she’s good at it; because she thinks it can help keep the people she loves safe, and protect her, in some measure, from grief. (It won’t.)

What hobbies does your Rook have? Agnes draws, although she doesn’t really consider herself an ‘artist’ in the typical sense. Her drawings are meant to be renderings, not artistic depictions: true to scale diagrams of monuments and anomalies in the Necropolis that Emmrich has asked her to draw to illustrate his scholar’s logs. She maintains this ‘hobby’ after she leaves the Mourn Watch, but never really considers herself an artist so much as a person who looks at things carefully. I would say her drawing style is more architectural than expressive. She loves the opera, it’s her #1 fixation. Not really a hobby so much as a coping mechanism, but she’s also frequently found to be cleaning—either her Mourn Watch cell or Emmrich’s study.

What NPCs do they like? Which ones do they dislike? I mean, as indicated above, she dislikes Illario pretty much from ‘go.’ No one else is really able to get under her skin that way… although she doesn’t really love the dude selling conspiracy theory newspapers in Minrathous either, even if he is Neve’s contact.  As far as the ones she likes… I’m not sure that she and Viago have a warm relationship, exactly, but they have common interests and a mutual respect for each other. She likes Shathaan a lot, because in some ways her protectiveness over Taash reminds Agnes of her own mother. Of course, she has a complicated relationship with Myrna and Vorgoth because of the War of the Banners and her own damage about being part of the Mourn Watch in general, but those are also positive relationships.  She has a… complicated history with Johanna Hezenkoss, who advocated for her inclusion in the Mourn Watch. :)  In general though she tends to keep people at arms’ length, so she doesn’t have super strong opinions about most of the NPCs.

Do they have a favorite creature in Thedas? She’s not really a big animal lover, but Agnes has a massive weak spot for Assan.

Do they enjoy life as an adventurer? I’m not sure it’s that she likes her life as an adventurer so much as she really wasn’t so hot about her life in the Mourn Watch…. She does enjoy the things that life as an adventurer has brought her, though, specifically all her new friends in the Veilguard. It’s really the first time in her life she gets to feel that kind of camaraderie.

What would your Rook be doing if they weren’t recruited by Varric? Getting cauliflower ear and developing chronic pain while fighting for her dinner in Dock Town.

How do you think they’ll meet their end? Spoilers for when I am laid in earth, sorry! :)

Would they side with Solas or fight him? Their relationship is so volatile it really depends on the day. Ask her again tomorrow.

What is your Rook’s favorite ability? Omg that Voidblade though. Rush in and stabby stab stab and EVISCERATE

What languages is your character fluent in? Common, Tombscript (written)

What do they do after an absolute crisis? Sit in silence staring at a wall, not processing, not talking to anyone. Shoving it down as deep as she possibly can.

Does your character believe in the afterlife? Yes, but she doesn’t have any concrete ideas about what that looks like or feels like. But she has a high sense of conviction that there is something beyond death; that it is more like stepping through a door than a curtain coming down at the end of a play.

What specialization best represents your Rook? Spellblade. Get up in their business and fuck shit up.

What animal best represents your Rook? Mabari—capable of cuddling at your feet in front of a fire but also capable of chewing someone’s face off if pushed. But distinctly a domesticated animal; not a wolf.

What was their life like before the events of Veilguard? Immediately proceeding? Pretty grim—having left Nevarra and the Mourn Watch, she’s basically having a midlife crisis. Has left her boo behind. Has chopped off all her hair. Is feeding herself every day from the betting proceeds she earns in an illegal dueling ring. It’s not a good time! Agnes did not love Minratous, and most of the time she lived there she spent punishing herself for things that were probably out of her control.

Is your character the de facto leader of the party? Or do they consider someone else to be the leader? Oh no, she’s totally the leader. She hates it, but she owns up to it and what it means. It’s not the first time she’s had that burden, so when Varric asks her to take over in his place, she’s not half-assing it—she becomes boss.

If you could choose a different faction for your Rook, which one would they have joined and why? I mean, I wouldn’t… but there’s definitely a world where Agnes could have gotten involved with the Shadow Dragons in Minrathous if she hadn’t had the Depression so bad. She doesn’t really get over that until Varric recruits her.

What’s your favorite thing about your Rook? Hard to name one thing… in general, I really like that compared to my Inquisitor, Rook is a total mess. I like that she can be selfish, I like that she can be manipulative, but mostly I like that she’s just kind of… pathetic, on some level, most of the time, despite her higher-than-average capacity for physical violence. I do quite love that she saw an opera about someone killing themselves due to the pain of unrequited love, said “skill issue” and just started to repress her affection for Emmrich even harder. I think what I especially like is the way her psychic damage aligns in the most fucked-up perfect way with Emmrich’s… like I maybe thought before the game came out her being in love with him for 20 years without saying anything was a stretch, but in reality it is absolutely not. These two are so down bad for each other but both so unaccustomed to unrequited love that of course they don’t want to risk what warmth and affection already exists between them, of course they are just willing to take what they can get from each other and not risk rocking the boat because their partnership is the closest thing they’ve felt to family… which they are both suffering from a lack of. 

Bonus: some of the characters that inspired her :) not exhaustive

[lairofdragonagelore]

Dragon Age Iconic Patterns: The Sun

In this post I will try to extensively gather all the sun-based or sun-like imagery that we find in all the games of Dragon Age. From the most typical ones to those which may seem obscure or with a hidden allegory/design. I will qualify their resemblance with the Sun symbol as Strong, Weak or other.

This post contains the following symbols

Chantry Sunburst

Elvhenan Culture: Sun symbol among the Evanuris

Elvhenan Culture: Asterisk Symbol and Elvhenan Doors

Elvhenan Culture: Golden Ring

Elvhenan Culture: Crappy Sun

Elvhenan Culture: Elgar’nan and Sylaise

Elvhenan Culture: Murals

Tevinter Culture: Green Star

Tevinter Culture: different decorative elements

Dwarven Culture: Fairel and Dwarven art

Ferelden Culture: The Sun Face and the geometrical Sun

Grey Wardens and the Sun

Avvar and the Sun

Flemeth

Qunari, Par Vollen, and the Solium Constellation

DAO design

Free Marches Rural Areas

[This post belongs to the series “Analysis and speculation of Statues”]

[Strong] Chantry Sunburst

The most typical one that appears in DA series is the Sun or Sunburst with wavy rays, repeated so much along the games that we can identify it immediately. It’s the unequivocally symbol of the Chantry. We found it in many versions, and it represents the “dawn” with the idea of hope and “new beginnings”, but also the fire that “purified” Andraste in her pyre to let her ascend to the Maker’s side. In the posts of Andrastian Art [Andrastian Design: Stained Glasses], we also find that “balls of fire” [which can be interpreted as a Sun in another way] are shown to represent the Maker or the Faith in Him.

Andraste’s single spiked helm seems to be inspired in a single sun ray, at least this is what an illustration in the Chant of Light [book of World Of Thedas] seems to suggest.

In general, most of the representations of the Chantry Sun have 16 rays.

The same sun-like symbol appears in its Tevinter version when we see the Imperial Chantry; the only difference with the Orlesian one is that the Tevinter Sunburst has straight rays.

As a detail, in DAO, we had the typical representation of the wavy sunburst present in some strange devices of Tevinter origin, for example, the ones we found in [Brecilian ruins], while the main Church in Denerim, or in Haven, display spikes that, more than resembling a sun, look like thorns or even a thorny vine. This may be a consequence of an original plan in linking, design-wise, the chantry symbology with the thorny vines that represent the Blight or the Darkspawn [As we explained in the section “Non-mural symbol: Thorny vines” from Murals in DAI: Basics], or merely it was a limitation of the design of the game, as we know DAO suffers from.

We also know that tranquils should display this symbol on their foreheads, burnt with lyrium, but as we saw along DAO, none of them had it. Later we were informed that the devs had problems to add this mark on the npc, therefore, it was never shown until DA2. When it comes to this symbol, it is interesting to see that tranquils carry the metaphor of “a Sun burning their minds and emptying them”, which may or may not be related with Dwarves and their fear to the Sun and potential relatinship of Elgar'nar shoving a fire ball into their underground lands [More details of this concept in Deep Roads [DLC Trespasser]: Lower Walkways in particular with the codex  Torn Notebook in the Deep Roads,].

[Strong] Elvhenan Culture: Sun symbol among the Evanuris

Strangely close to the Chantry Sunburst symbol, we find the “half” sun symbol [tagged along the blog as Sun-head creature] in what we suspect was one of the ancient primordial dragon symbols that some Evanuris took over when they claimed Divinity [for more context, read Attempt to rebuild Ancient Elvhenan History]. It’s hard to say which Evanuris took control of this symbol, but we know there is a clearly sun-like symbol present in the Crossroads of the DLC [as a statue, check The Crossroads [DLC Trespasser]: Entrance] and in the Shattered Library [as an Eluvian, check  Shattered Library; Entrance and Courtyard]. With the release of the Vinyl, we also discovered and reinforced the hypothesis that this symbol belongs to or was co-opted by an Evanuris [read Speculations about the Vinyl Art for details] thanks to the image of an elf wearing a hat with that shape.

A consistent detail of this image is that it’s a half-sun with exactly 7 rays.

[Weak] Elvhenan Culture: Asterisk Symbol and Elvhenan Doors

If we extend this imagery, and check other symbols that may look similar to a sun, we find the ancient Elvhenan Doors [Elven Ancient Shard-based door], which top displays a pointy sun of 8 rays that may or may not be related to the Asterisk symbols [also related to the Titan’s core, which I talked about in the post of Murals  “The Death of a Titan”]. In the way the door gets illuminated when activated also makes us see a “circle” in it that can be loosely related to the “Golden Ring shape”. More details about this ring will be treated below.

This strange sun on the ancient door also makes us think in the Asterisk Symbol [made of 8 points], which lays at the centre of the yellow mosaic, which may be related to the core of a Titan [asterisk of 8 points too]. The link is immediate when we see that this asterisk is outlined by a shape that looks like a star or a Sun, inside a big ball with triangular-shape ends. This same symbol appears in the last Trailer of DA4, behind Solas, when he is presented like an Hermit, mysterious, apostate mage. Around this “sun” we can make out several concentric lines that may refer to a “Golden Ring”.

The Asterik symbol also appears in murals such as  “The Creation of the Veil” or “The Death of a Titan”, which allowed us to relate them with the core of a Titan and its immense power of "making real what you imagine"reinforcing the reality", but this symbol also appears in a corner of Solas’ tarot card.

The yellow mosaic also has some shapes at the four corners that may represent eluvians or something related to Mythal. In the mural of “the Temple of Mythal” from  “The actions of the Inquisitor”, we see that Solas draw a particular star of 8 points inside a door frame that resembles this “eluvian outline”, but it’s also the shape of the doors of the Temple of Mythal which represents Mythal herself in her dragon shape. All these symbols seem to reinforce the idea we explored in “The Death of a Titan”: Mythal seems to be related to the core power of a Titan represented by an asterisk that evolves into a golden ring and into a sun.

As I repeated several times in Speculations about the Vinyl Art, at times, we find some hints where stars or balls of fires [also understood as suns] are related to Mythal and Elgar’nan, making us suspect that, maybe, Mythal and Elgar’nan share a nature similar to Falon’Din and Dirthamen’s: apparently, the same creature with two different aspects from them. If this were the case, associating Mythal with the Sun would make sense, and it would also explain why, if Elgar’nan was so central in the Elvhenan culture, there are so few representations and statues of him, while Mythal overwhelms it.

[Weak] Elvhenan Culture: Golden Ring

During the last trailer of DA4, we see Solas turns into the Black Dread Wolf as a sun in the background becomes a moon [single golden circle] and later, it separates itself into concentric rings, that may or may not be related to the “Golden Ring” so deeply entangled with Elvhenan culture. Thanks to this imagery, we may relate the Sun to the Golden Ring [specially if we consider that the mural presented in Nation Art: Elvhen displays the yellow ring in a position that may be considered “the sun”, but also the "authority/power above"]

We need to remember that the Golden Ring’s presence is always associated with control, power, and occasionally to Mythal and Dirthamen. In the mural of the “zombie elves”, it’s above all of them, and due to this position, it could be interpreted like a “sun” or moon upon the controlled, zombified elves. But I’m not too convinced in this interpretation, since we already explored in posts such as: Nation Art: Elvhen, Exalted Plains: Ghilan’nain’s Grove and the Dead Hand, DLC: Jaws of Hakkon - Frostback Basin, Elvhen Tomb, Ancient Elven codices; Fen’Harel’s mountain ruins, The Crossroads [DLC Trespasser]: Elven Mountain Ruins; Vine-covered Tower, Murals in DAI: The Death of a Titan, and Speculations about the Vinyl Art that this ring was more related to control, power, or even forced change/shape in some cases. Due to its power or potential knowledge, it's also associated to Dirthamen Owl [which also could be Andruil's owl according some inconsistencies in the same Unreliable Dalish legends].

On the other hand, it’s never clear if this symbol may have morphed into a sun along the ages with the loss of memory that the Elves had throughout generations when they lost their immortality. However, I tend to consider that this Golden Ring may have changed into a Sun when it entered in contact with human groups, in the same way that I see the story of Fen'Harel gave enough context for humans to create the Maker myth based on him, potentially during the time of Halamshiral [for more details, read The Chantry and the Mythology of the Chant of Light]

This ring also appears in the last scene of DAI, when we defeat Corypheus, showing Mythal inside it, as bits of red lyrium sprout around it. This can be related to many speculations done in Speculations about the Vinyl Art, where we can conclude that another fragment/part of Mythal is still trapped in the Black City, corrupted, and contained by an immense power that may have been used before by the rest of the evanuris to control their own people.

The Golden Ring has also been seen enclosing Elven Tree Statues and Elven Orbs, implying its relationship with elvhenan power and/or Mythal’s [after all, we know that Mythal took the power from a Titan from which elvhen orbs were developed, and trees are also her symbol, according her vallaslin]. It's worth noting that the only working orb we saw in the game was Mythal’s, so far.

[Weak] Elvhenan Culture: Crappy Sun

There is also a strange symbol that I called “crappy sun” in the ancient tablet we find at the entrance and deep into the tomb of Forbidden Oasis: Solasan Temple [along this blog I’ve tagged it as “Stone in Razikale-Ceremony-style”]. It’s hard to say if it represents a sun or a breach. It may be related to a sun similar to the one of the Elven Ancient Shard-based door that, later, Tevinter co-opted to turn into the several versions of pointy suns we see in Tevinter Pre-blight ruins, [let’s remember they were not Andrastian yet, and still they had this symbology in their buildings and elements because it may have been related to ancient dragons, or taken from another elvhen symbology during the time of the Dreamers since there are some proofs, such as the Tevinter Mosaic [Invasion], that may show that Tevinter had a better relationship with elves back then].

Maybe the original symbol was related to Elgar’nan, as we see in his mosaic, where he shoves down the sun into the earth, and its rays are wavy and a bit “crappy”. If this relationship is correct, maybe what Elgar'nan shoved into the Earth to destroy the dwarves/Titans was not a sun but a breach? Again, a very unlikely hypothesis.

This “crappy sun” also has 8 rays.

[Strong] Elvhenan Culture: Elgar’nan and Sylaise

Elgar’nan’s mosaic was interpreted in the post Evanuris, and basically shows an elf shoving down a Sun of wavy rays into the Earth. It’s easy for us to relate this image to the unreliable Dalish legend of Elgar’nan [read Elgar'nan: God of Vengeance]. Elgar’nan is presented here as the son of the Sun itself, who tried to burn all life on the Land out of Jealousy, so Elgar’nan vowed vengeance against his Father’s cruelty, and his rage won against the fire of the Sun. Then, “Elgar'nan threw the sun down from the sky and buried him in a deep abyss created by the land's sorrow.”

This story can be followed later in the post Emprise du Lion: Pools of the Sun, where we find another unreliable Dalish legend claiming that this place has spring waters because it was here where Elgar’nan shoved the sun into the Earth. I also made a link to Sylaise considering the Elvhenan arenas we can see in this region, the presence of Sylaise’s Shrine, and her thirst for being always competing with someone. These details can make us suspect that this Sun could have been Sylaise [so deeply related to fire, the sun, and also as angry as Elgar’nan according the Song to Sylaise].

It’s very worth noting that these two legends, said by different clans, claim that Elgar’nan pushed the Sun into the Abyss. Another detail we have to assume is that "Abyss", "Beyond the Deep Roads" and "The Void" seem to be one thing related to the places where the Titan sleep [or even inside the Titan themselves] instead of a strange dimensional pocket we never saw before. This links the Elvhenan with the Dwarven in what we speculated in Murals in DAI: The Death of a Titan.

With this relationship, we see again the Sun as a weapon of destruction and control.

[Weak] Elvhenan Culture: Murals

Murals present a red sphere with rays that may imply a Sun .

In the mural “The Creation of the Veil” [1], we find a red sphere inside a black one, making us suspect it’s the big evil released by the Evanuris that Solas isolated with the creation of the Veil. Around it, there are seven “bubbles” with similar “rays” in grey and golden colours that may imply “gates” that would allow us the access to the central “sun” or red sphere.

In the mural “The Death of a Titan” [2] we talked extensively about the asterisk symbol, its representation of a Titan’s heart and all that power associated with it, as well as with Golden Rings. The codex in here speaks of a red sphere that contains fury, and maybe all of this can be related to a sun, or better said, the other way around: a Sun as a sphere of fire, related to fury, and buried below underground to contain its destruction. This also brings us some similarities with the unreliable Dalish legends about Elgar'nan.

In the mural  “Red Lyrium Idol” [3] we also commented how the image looks as if Solas were walking on a sphere of fire. It may be related to the red lyrium idol too. Here, we keep linking this idea of a “sphere of fire” as a potential Sun.

In the murals of “The actions of the Inquisitor” [4], we see several times that the red sphere associated with the big evil isolated behind the thick, impenetrable barrier of the Black City seems to be positioned in places that may allow a soft interpretation as a “sun”in the sky.

These symbols seem to gather more importance as we analysed the Vinyl Art, where we find the concept of the Eclipse [as an ominous symbol of Fen’Harel that covers and hides the Sun] and a lot of iconography of stars, which can be interpreted as “suns”.

[Weak] Tevinter Culture: Green Star

Pre-Blight Tevinter art has a “star” symbol that may be interpreted as a sun, specially if we consider that the inside of this green star displays the symbol of the elvhenan Golden Ring in red colour. However, it seems more likely to be a symbol representing the power that one can extract from the Breaches. The green colour helps in this interpretation and puts it a bit farther away from a sun interpretation than other symbols. However, it keeps linking the Golden Ring with the power of creating a Breach.

[Confusing] Tevinter Culture: different decorative elements

The rest of the symbols in Tevinter objects may have some relationship with the Sun. For example, we find doors, boxes, and columns decorated with an 8-pointed star [1] but we also find another one with 6 points in something that looks like a box [2]. The shape of an “hexagonal” sun of 8-pointy rays can be found as well in objects like the “scrying orb” [4].

Among the outfits, we find a 3-ray comb used by Tevinter women [3], which may be related to the sun-based symbol of an Old God [and potentially related to the corresponding Evanuris associated with it]. This symbol is a lot closer to the "Sun-head creature" we found among Elvhenan objects.

As a curious one, I will always point out the strange, hidden Sun figure that belongs to the Free Marches decoration that can be found at the entrance of the Inner Sanctum in Western Approach: The Still Ruins, Viridis Walk and Inner Sanctum.

I think it’s clear and safe to say that most of the sun-based symbols present in Tevinter culture [and previous to their conversion to Andrastian religion] may have been originated from the contact with the Elvhenan [during the Dreamer time where we can see less repulsion to Elvhen according the Tevinter Mosaics] or [most likely] with the dragons that may have been related to the Elvhenan, as I made the connection in the comic post The Missing.

[Weak] Dwarven Culture: Fairel and Dwarven art

The Dwarves, at least the ones in the Fairel’s ruins, may have some link with the Sun as well. In these ruins we find the same exact stone tablet we find in the Ancient Elvhenan tombs [1], which displays the “crappy sun” I commented above. Once again, it could be a sun but also a breach, so there is no much sense to keep focusing on it.

Another symbol to relate the Sun to the Dwarves may or may not be an old “Dwarven stone-paintings” we saw since DAO, which basically shows a dwarf working the stone [3]. Based on symmetry, we could assume that the triangles on the background are stalagmites, but if we stretch-out this interpretation, they could even be seen as a sun with its rays. It’s very unlikely, since it seems to be more a design resource to highlight the scene of the stone-painting, but for completion’s sake I think it’s worthy to keep it commented here.

However, this simple design allows us to interpret it in different ways: the spikes we see can be pieces of rock protruding from the ground and the Dwarf in it is mining them [as its original codex in DAO seems to imply], but also it could be understood as a quarter of a Sun peeking through the corner of the image as a Dwarf works tirelessly.

Later in DAI we are introduced to another piece of art of similar characteristics [2]. The building was never possible to be identified unequivocally, and in posts like “Architecture of Kirkwall : Gallows and Lowtown/Darktown” I related it to representations of Kirkwall or cities that may be similar to Kirkwall where the runecraft mastery of dwarves was used [and probably, it was a source of pride for these clans, who may have kept the achievement immortalised in a piece of art reproduced among the noble dwarven families]. This piece also shows a background very similar to the one in [3] that may be a representation of stalagmites or a sun, if it’s stretched-out enough.

Another strange symbol in the dwarven furniture is the one presented in some stone-seats: an elaborated metal image that shows thorny vines on or over a sun [4]. This symbol appears in many other parts of the game where there are dwarven rooms, but also in Arbor Wilds :Cradle of Sulevin where we can read the Vir Tanadhal, However, in this case, the symbol is not completely the same one than in the Hissing Wastes: Fairel tomb.

It’s hard to suspect if this is a mere reuse of assets, it has a lore-related meaning, or it’s just a reflection that the Dwarves and the Ancient Elvhen had a relationship quite ancient [as it shows the Elvhen tree and its dwarven, more geometrical style, that I’ve been pointing out since DAO in Orzammar]. We have to remember that the Ancient Elvhenan saw the dwarves as soulless creatures, workers of the “pillars of Earth” and worthless. However, I always claimed it was never clear if this was a reference to ancient Dwarves that were linked to the Titan deeply to the point that they became Sha-Brytol after the break of the link, or were related to more independent dwarves as the ones we see now, who have a sense of Stone, but can’t understand the Titan with the exception of some gifted ones [such as Valta].

Finally, the dwarves have an additional aspect related to the Sun in the very unreliable codex called Torn Notebook in the Deep Roads, Section 2. I wrote about this codex in a more integral way in Deep Roads [DLC Trespasser]: Lower Walkways. But basically an ex-Dalish elf [now a Qun converted] relates Elgar’nan’s fire [which another unreliable Dalish legend, Elgar'nan: God of Vengeance, claims he shoved the Sun into the Earth] to the fear to the Sun that Dwarves experience [Read the section Elgar’nan and Sylaise above]. This may have been a Dev’s choice to makes us aware that there exists a relationship between the Sun and the dwarves, even though there is no lore material that can make it clear enough.

[Strong] Ferelden Culture: The Sun Face and the geometrical Sun

In the Tryptich presented in Andrastian Design: Tapestry and Tryptich, we find three symbols on top of each part of the scene: the six-snakes that represent Tevinter, the golden city above all the image representing the Maker or the Chantry Religion, and over the section of Ferelden/Orlais chantry, a 8-pointed sun which rays look like triangles. Once again, the resemblance of this symbol with the elvhenan sun in the mural “Temple of Mythal” is remarkable [check the Temple of Mythal in “The actions of the Inquisitor”] or the sun shape in the elvhenan yellow mosaic or in the background of Solas in the Trailer of DA:D. This could come from different roots:

1- An Orlesian root, considering how much of the elvhenan influence it had during the time of the Halamshiral and the coexistence of humans and elves in the Dales for some years [to the point where inter-racial families were made, as it was hinted all over the Exalted Plains]. I spoeculated how the idea of the Maker may have been developed during this time in the post The Chantry and the Mythology of the Chant of Light

2- Another potential root is related to the Alamarri root, and therefore, linked to the Avvar: this sun may be a representation of the Lady of the Sky for the same reasons I will explain below in the Section Avvars and the Sun.

We can find similar icon in the book World of Thedas, where they show a unique Ferelden Tryptich [3], which top displays this symbol with a sun that even may have a shape of a Golden Ring within it. In either case, we know that this symbol later was part of the Ferelden Chantry, which sun is very pointy, as DAO showed it [see the first section in this post: Chantry Sunburst].

In DAI, we find in some small towns of Ferelden, a unique strange Sun with a crying face [1]. On it we see a bird and a squirrel. It’s hard to know exactly what this is, [check the post Nation Art: Ferelden], but maybe it can be understood as a representation of Andraste made by Ferelden culture mixed with some local animals and fables created as a mixture of cultures, similar to the tale that related Wyverns to Andraste [check the wyvern section in Dragon Age Iconic Patterns: The single spike].

There is also a fish drawn in the DLC of Hakkon on a fisherman shack [2], which displays a pattern that can be related to the “crappy sun” designs on its skin. Not sure what to make about it. The closest is that the Avvar represented this symbol as a way to reflect what they may have seen in the Isle of the Lady, where a big ancient breach have been there, open, since the time of Telana [read about this in “The Veil and the preservation of the Waking World” from the post Frostback Basin [DLC]: Miscellaneous ].

[Strong] Grey Wardens and the Sun

The typical symbol of the Grey Wardens involves a chalice that represents the Joining ritual. It always displays a Sun, and not any sun: it’s one with a strong resemblance to the Sunburst of the Chantry. Let’s remember that the Grey Wardens was and is an independent Order that doesn’t respond to the Chantry, and even more so: it was created before the existence of the Chantry, and before Andraste was born. So any quick explanation that this sun is present in this object due to some potential influence from the Chantry seem unlikely.

However, as I showed in Western Approach: The Still Ruins, Main Chamber and Hall of Silence, there are griffons with this same chalice that belonged to pre-Blight Tevinter, maybe remotely associated with Dumat in some ways [since they appear in a hall called “Hall of Silence”, and Dumat=Silence]. We know that the Joining, as a ritual of blood magic, came from the knowledge of Arlathan elves and Tevinter Mages during the desperate times of the First Blight when nothing seemed to stop the darkspawn and even slaying Dumat did not work the first time. Therefore, this Sun may have some relationship with the elvhenan, the Old Gods, or just the blood magic that allowed the creation of the Joining.

[Curious] Avvar and the Sun

The Avvar have a symbol that I always found very Sun-like due to its design and cultural concept: The Lady of the Sky. It’s not only the concept; the lady of the sky can be any important object in the sky; moons or suns. Since Thedas has two moons, it seems more plausible to think of her as unique as the Sun itself.

In the painting that represents her (found on a wall in the Frostback Mountains) we see a design of an owl which shape looks like a Sun. Even her sculpture in Skyhold displays small spikes around her neck which give her a low-key “sun-like” design, specially if we relate this shape with the “sun” shape we saw in the Ancient Elvhenan Yellow Mosaic or with the star we saw in the “Temple of Mythal” mural [in “The actions of the Inquisitor”] or with the Sun that appears behind Solas in the trailer.

Curiously, her banner displays her eyes in a shape that looks similar to the Golden Ring shape, but in black colour. That the Avvar have an art that may have resemblance with Elvhenan's is not strange for me if we remember that  Tyrdda Bright-Axe Path’s story narrates that her lover was an elf that, as it is hinted, may have been the Lady of the Sky herself. This means that the Avvar always were a culture under the influence of the Elvhenan and the Dwarves [due to the marriages they arranged with the children of the Stone].

[Weak] Flemeth

Flemeth also had a unique concept art that shows all of her nature in one drawing: her dragon shape, Mythal, as the central part of it over a human figure that may be a petitioner; a bit aside and as if she were in a inner ring of a brown sphere, The Witch of the Wild: Flemeth, with a very particular staff inside a yellow circle that may be interpreted as a Sun. And very hidden in the corner, in the core of this sphere, now black, we see her as an "old, old woman" with a big eye drawn on her apron, at the edge of a cliff [potentially representing the fragment of Mythal that lives inside her]. This kind of eye is very similar to the ones that we see in the concept art armours of Mythal’s temple guardians. I assume it has to do with her omnipresence due to the manipulation of dreams [we know that she presented herself in dreams to an elf and marked him with the Vallaslin of Mythal after awakening, check the video]

Mythal also has bland hints related to Elgar’nan symbology, which is related to the sun, fire, and balls of fire with anger [check all this in the posts Speculations about the Vinyl Art and “The Death of a Titan”]. Flemeth ends up being related to all this since she carries a fragment of Mythal in her.

[Strong] Qunari, Par Vollen, and the Solium Constellation

The Qunari have little link with the Sun, but not the land they conquered. In the book World of Thedas we are informed about the existence of the Fex, a race we never saw nor had much information beyond the fact that they exist. May they be related to the Sun or a Sun-base proto religion? We don't know.

In the Codex Constellation: Solium, we learn that this constellation [which looks like a Sun/Star, image above, pretty similar to the Chantry Sunburst I may add] may have been a representation of the Sun or the Moon [or both] for the Neomerian [Ancient Tevinters], however, it could also represent Elgar’nan, since unreliable Dalish legends claim him to be the “eldest of the Sun”.

Another Codex, called  The Pyramids of Par Vollen, tells us that the Jungles of this continent have ancient ruins that doesn’t seem to be tombs but places of scientific purposes. The shape of these ruins fits perfectly with the constellation of Solium, making them, in some way or another, related to the Sun. These pyramids are a great mystery in the DA lore, especially for their total lack of information beyond this codex. We know their walls show images of “intricate sea creatures, shipwrights, musicians, archers, and kings. Odd figures are depicted, tall, horned, always in a position of authority and respect.” It seems that there was no resistance when the Qunari came to conquer this place, so we can suspect that this previous civilization embraced the Qun without much resistance, in part, because the Qunari have horns, and that caused respect and authority. Or the civilisation had been gone long ago when they came. Or it was a civilisation that was developed by or under the authority of the Kossith, the ancient Qunari who had no Qun.

The brief description of these ruins also makes me link it, potentially, with the underground ruins we find in  The Horror of Hormak .

[Confusing] DAO design

This section tries to relate the Sun shape with designs that may make the connection a bit stretched or not truly reasonable, therefore, DAO leads this part, lol.

We find that many places along the game, specially the ones related to puzzles [Honnleath and Enchanter Wilhelm’s basement] or to Tevinter experiments [Ruins of Brecilian Forest] display a platform on the ground with a symbol similar to the Sunburst of the Chantry. I’m not sure why they are there, specially in the Brecilian Forest, since we know this was a fortress probably developed by Tevinter [ which potentially may have co-opted, as usual, an ancient Elvhenan building and claimed it as its own] just to be taken by Dalish and humans later. This Fortress is a mess in terms of design and statues that it displays, so it’s hard, if not impossible, to truly take it seriously. To me it all feels more like a reuse of graphical resources, but just for the sake of completion, I add the present section.

More of these sun-like platforms can be found in the Tower of the Circle of Magi [which could potentially make sense since the tower was made by Avvar and Dwarves, and it may be a representation of the Lady of the Sky, as we saw in the Avvar section of this post] but also in the Temple of Andraste or in Denerim at the Fort Drakon which makes less sense [unless it is taken as a symbol from the Chantry itself]. Again, these inconsistencies make me suspect the reuse of assets in a game that could not afford to have 5 different platforms designs.

[Confusing] Free Marches Rural Areas

Another place where I found a sun-like symbol was in a very disturbing image of the book World of Thedas associated with a cautionary tale told to Free Marches kids. In it, we see that people/children are punished if they go outside a bubble of darkness with small “sun-like” symbols floating around. Each of these kids have a symbol on their belly or head. Curiously, one of these symbols is a small spiral that I’ve brought the attention upon long ago in the post Hinterlands: Statues, paintings, and structures found in the open where we found the alamarri statue I called Eroded dragon skull which has a “G symbol” on its back, which, at the same time, seems similar to the one present in a reiterative way all over the elvhen artefacts and in some dwarven rug designs.

I don't know how to interpret this image, mostly like the big black bubble that contains these klids seems to protect or shield them from the dangers outside. The kids that "behave badly" are dropped outside of it and are consumed by the dragon fire/jaws of the dangers outside. So in a very stretched way, we can interpret this image that the bubble filled with Suns protects people, or at least, it's the right path to follow not to be eaten by those monsters outside.

Conclusions

To put an end to this post, I would like to bring a short conclusion that we may have reached together along it. The Sun in Thedas is an ancient symbol that mostly every culture took to exploit and use in their own representation of gods/power.

This fact alone is not strange, since in anthropology we can see that severals cultures on Earth have developed religious rites or created Gods out of the Sun itself. The Sun is a symbol related to warmth, light, food, life, and security, so it seems reasonable for DA Lore to take it as the main symbol of Thedas civilisations.

The Sun in current Thedas is immediately associated with the Chantry and Andraste: it is a symbol of hope, of dawn, that provide the idea of new beginnings; it’s also the idea of the Maker itself and the Faith people have in him. It's also the fire that purifies in order to grant ascension [Andraste's case].

When it comes to Elvhenan, the Sun is immediately related to Elgar’nan, who was considered, according to the underaliable Dalish legends, the son of the Sun itself, who in order to save the Land shoved the sun into the ground, potentially causing a great damage to Dwarves and Titans.

There is also a symbol of a half-sun in an Eluvian, a statue, and in a hat worn by an elf, that may suggest that an original god, represented by the sun [potentially an ancient Dragon] was worshipped by the Evanuris. Lately, that symbol may have been co-opted by one of the Evanuris when they took divinity and the identity of the ancient gods they worshiped.

Elvhenan also seem to take the symbol of the asterisk as an oversimplification of the Sun, which across the murals, is also related to the heart of Titans, to power, and to the Golden Ring, which is also associated with control. So, for Elvhenan, we may suggest that the Sun represents immense power, if not, Divinity itself, that may end up being related to the core of Titans. The asterisk is also associated to the orb, a big power object.

Since Elvhenan were the first civilisation we know that started in Thedas [besides the Titans and their children], their symbols of power [asterisk, orb, golden ring] may have evolved along time to reach human groups which developed, later, all the sun symbols that ended up in the Chantry’s.

Thanks to Tevinter, we also can suspect that the Sun may have been a representation of an Old God, since they have a lot of sun-related images in their decoration and objects that belong to ancient times in which they were not Andrastian yet [in fact, so ancient times that Andraste herself was not born yet]. This may mean that the Sun symbol cloud have been taken from the Elvhenan or from the Ancient Dragons. Through Tevinter style, we also realise that the Elvhenan Golden Ring may have been used to create Breaches, which again shows and seems consistent with the idea of relating it to power and control. The symbol of Sun in Tevinter culture may be related originally with Elvhenan or with Ancient Dragons that Tevinter used to worship.

Dwarves have little representation of the sun for obvious reasons, but due to the unreliable legend of Elgar’nan and the war with the Titans, we may establish a relationship in which the dwarves endured the Sun [or the Elvhenan power] at some point in their story.

Thanks to the Grey Warden we can relate a sun with the idea of ancient Blood magic or ancient Dragon blood knowledge, since the Joining is represented by a chalice with a Sun on it.

The Avvar also have a low-key representation of the Sun in their Lady of the Sky, which may be just consequence of their deep relationship with the Elvhenan culture.

Par Vollen may have more answers about the Sun and ancient times, but the lore of DA world is very scarce on this region of the map of Thedas, so we can only speculate.

[sapphim]

All variations of that scene where Hawke's companions try to rescue them from the dungeon in Mark of the Assassin (someone please help them they're trying so hard). There is, of course, a danaduchy video compilation, but! I wanted something searchable so here it is.

also, while I'm here: look at my mod boy

Anders + Aveline

Anders: How many blighted rooms does this place have? Aveline: We've passed that sconce three times already. Anders: This is ridiculous! How could you get us lost inside the castle? Aveline: Right, it's my fault. Shall I go ask one of the guards for directions?

Anders + Bethany (Act 1)

Anders: Don't panic, but I think we've been through here before. Bethany: How can you tell? Every part of this dungeon looks exactly the same! Anders: You too? I thought it was just me. Bethany: Some rescue this is! My brother is probably being tortured right now, and we're lost in the middle of the hallway! Bethany: Some rescuers we are! The duke could be torturing my sister right now, and we're lost in the blighted hallway!

Anders + Bethany (Act 2-3)

Anders: Don't panic, but I think we've been through here before. Bethany: You're the one tearing your hair out. Anders: Typical Warden disregard. Do you even care anymore? Bethany: Yes, you should talk about what caring looks like. Keep moving. Anders: Does the Kirkwall Circle teach you to be smug? In addition to obedient, I mean. Bethany: When appropriate. Come on, let's just find them.

Anders + Carver

Anders: I told you we shouldn't have turned left back there! Carver: Excuse me if I don't share my dear brother's sense of direction! Carver: Maker forgive me for not having my sister's sense of direction! Anders: Oh, for Andraste's sake! Leave Hawke out of this! Carver: Perhaps we'll find our way by considering the plight of mages in modern—shut your bloody face!

Anders + Fenris

Anders: That's it. I'm taking the lead. Fenris: You think I'm going trust you to find Hawke? Anders: Could you stop with the, "All mages are evil," diatribe for one minute? Fenris: They may not all be evil, but one of them in particular is extremely annoying.

Anders + Isabela

Anders: All right, we should have tried your suggestion. Isabela: Which? Challenging the guards to a game of riddles and making, "Where is Hawke?" one of the questions? Anders: I meant the, "Follow one wall, and you'll navigate the maze," idea. Isabela: Well, we can try it next time. Either that, or, "Let's get a sledgehammer and break down the walls." I thought that had merit.

Anders + Merrill

Anders: What is wrong with Orlesians? Why build a prison with this many identical cells? Merrill: Maybe we should ask for directions. Anders: Of course, we'll say, "We're staging a daring prison break. Could you tell us where our friend is and then tie yourself up? Thanks!" Merrill: It's not possible to tie yourself up, is it? You'd never get the knots right.

Anders + Sebastian

Sebastian: Andraste, Lady of Sorrows, lead us from the darkness into the Maker's Light… Anders: Would you stop that? Andraste is not going to find Hawke for us! Sebastian: Have some faith, Anders. Anders: I have complete faith in your ability to make a bad situation worse!

Anders + Varric

Varric: Blondie, I hate to say this, but I'm pretty sure we've been here before. Anders: Blast it! But we went left this time! We shouldn't have come full-circle again! Varric: I wish I hadn't given that ball of twine to Daisy. Anders: You can't tell anyone about this! I mean it, Varric! Not a word!

Aveline + Bethany (Act 1)

Aveline: This can't be right. Bethany: We could sneak back to the kitchens and ask the servants where they are! If… we knew how to get there. Aveline: I'm not getting turned around again. Straight ahead. Bethany: Right. Because that's been working so well thus far.

Aveline + Bethany (Acts 2-3)

Aveline: This can't be right. Bethany: We could double back, I suppose. I expect we've got time. Aveline: Knowing your [sister/brother]? Probably. Bethany: Still, better make it look good. Wouldn't want her to feel neglected. Bethany: Still, we'd better hurry. Poor Brother might think we don't miss him.

Aveline + Carver (Act 1)

Carver: You never listen to me! Aveline: Say something worthwhile and I'll start! Carver: Right, shut up and follow orders. Left, right, that's what makes a good guardling. Aveline: Ugh. You're still such a tit.

Aveline + Carver (Acts 2-3)

Carver: The place is a maze. Another pass and then double back? Aveline: Sounds good. we'll do that. Carver: Really? Aveline: There a reason I should doubt you, [Warden/templar]?

Aveline + Fenris

Aveline: Did we turn left last time, or right? Fenris: What does it matter? Lost is lost. Aveline: I'm trying to change that, you sour…. Aveline: How does Hawke put up with this?

Aveline + Isabela

Isabela: If you'd let me handle that last guard, we'd have found Hawke by now! Aveline: Right. You'd be bent over a desk, and we'd be no closer than we are now. Isabela: Well, I'd be closer to something. Aveline: Shut up, whore.

Aveline + Merrill

Merrill: Aveline? Remember how you told me to tell you if I noticed anything peculiar? Merrill: Well, we've passed the same cracked floor tile nine times now. Aveline: We've been walking in circles and you only tell me now? Merrill: I wasn't sure. Maybe there are a lot of tiles broken in exactly the same way!

Aveline + Sebastian

Aveline: Ugh! We're back where we started! Sebastian: Blessed Andraste, guide us. Protect our friends in this dark hour. Aveline: While you're at it, ask the sky for reinforcements. And pie. Sebastian: You know, that kind of prayer has never worked for me.

Aveline + Varric

Aveline: We've been going in circles for over an hour. Varric: I'm so used to Hawke leading the way, I think my sense of direction has withered. Varric: So… wait here for [him/her] to rescue us? Aveline: When you tell this part? Leave it out.

Bethany + Fenris (Act 1)

Bethany: What am I going to tell Mother? "Sorry, I got lost and left your heir in an Orlesian's dungeon?" Bethany: She will never forgive me. My [brother/sister] will never forgive me! Carver and Father will come back from the grave just to haunt me! Fenris: What she'll say should be the least of your worries. We may die in here, and she'll never get the news. Bethany: You are not helping.

Bethany + Fenris (Acts 2-3)

Bethany: Bloody runaround twisted shite of a maze. Fenris: You've learned a few new words. Bethany: Wardens get called a few. Fenris: Undeservedly, I'm sure. Bethany: Not every book in the Circle is high literature. Fenris: Obviously.

Bethany + Isabela (Act 1)

Bethany: What are we going to do? Isabela: All right, just stay calm! What do we usually do when we're lost? Bethany: We ask my brother. Bethany: We'd ask my sister where to go. Isabela: Oh. Right. Well, we're screwed.

Bethany + Isabela (Acts 2-3)

Bethany: So, know where we're going? Isabela: Not a damned clue. Bethany: (Laughs.) Me neither! Isabela: Right. We pass the kitchen, I'm grabbing a bottle.

Bethany + Merrill (Act 1)

Bethany: Are we out of twine? Merrill: Yes. I was going to drop breadcrumbs, but we don't have any bread. Bethany: I can't believe we're this lost! Merrill: Don't worry! If we keep going, eventually we'll get somewhere! Probably an airing cupboard. I seem to wind up in those a lot.

Bethany + Merrill (Acts 2-3)

Bethany: Lost your spool of twine? Merrill: Yes. I was going to drop breadcrumbs, but we don't have any bread. Bethany: We'll find them, if they're still here to be found. Merrill: Don't worry! If we keep going, eventually we'll get somewhere! Probably an airing cupboard. I seem to wind up in those a lot.

Bethany + Sebastian

Bethany: No, the layout is wrong. We're back where we started. Bethany: [Warden] I swear, what I wouldn't give for a straightforward Deep Road and— Bethany: [Circle] It's backwards from every book on Orlais I've seen. It's just not— Sebastian: [the stupid little smirk and the head tilt and then running off full tilt without saying a word why did he do so much lmaoo] Bethany: [Sebmance active] Sister, you lucky bitch. Bethany: [else] Oh, Maker.

Bethany + Varric (Act 1)

Bethany: Aren't dwarves supposed to have some sort of "stone sense?" Varric: What good is that? Most of the chateau is stone. Knowing where the floor's at isn't going to help us. Bethany: Can't you… I don't know… always find your way around in… caves or something? Varric: Sunshine, all the caves we go to look exactly the same to me.

Bethany + Varric (Acts 2-3)

Bethany: Keep up, Varric. I'm sure we're almost there. Varric: You've certainly quickened your stride in the last few years. Bethany: [Warden] I found out there's a lot more to run from. Varric: And towards, I hope. Speaking of which, to the rescue! Bethany: [Circle] Too much to learn, or, you know, rescue. Varric: There's my Sunshine. Let's go!

Carver + Fenris (Act 1)

Carver: Shitting… piss-eared Orlesians and their… blighted dungeons! Fenris: "Piss-eared?" Did you get that from Meeran? Carver: We're lost and all you can do is criticize me? Fenris: It passes the time.

Carver + Fenris (Acts 2-3)

Carver: Orlesians. Can't build a hallway without turning it into a maze. Fenris: Keep going. I'm sure your training will kick in any moment. Carver: Still don't like me? I've tried to change. Fenris: You have. Now you're dangerous. Let's move.

Carver + Isabela (Act 1)

Carver: You just leave this to me. I can handle everything. Isabela: How could I possibly interfere? Carver, the magnificent hero to the rescue! Carver: Do you have to do that? Really? Isabela: No, this is strictly optional.

Carver + Isabela (Acts 2-3)

Carver: You just leave this to me. I can handle everything. Isabela: I'm starting to think you could. Carver: What was that? A compliment? I'm a little frightened. Isabela: I know! Let's get these people rescued before it happens again.

Carver + Merrill (Act 1)

Carver: I don't understand it! This should be the right way. Merrill: If we have to be lost somewhere, at least it's a nice hallway! Very well built, not at all likely to collapse. Carver: Don't worry. It's got to be… left. Is it left? I mean, of course it's left. Merrill: Also, I'm pretty sure spiders won't attack us! Not even the little ones.

Carver + Merrill (Acts 2-3, no Merrillmance)

Carver: Okay, we're lost together. Both of us, not that we're "together" together. Merrill: If we have to be lost somewhere, at least it's a nice hallway! Very well built, not at all likely to collapse. Carver: Right, well, back to rescuing… wait. You're doing that on purpose! Merrill: (Giggles.)

Carver + Merrill (Acts 2-3, Merrillmance active)

Carver: A shame we didn't have time like this back in Kirkwall. Back then. Merrill: If we have to be lost somewhere, at least it's a nice hallway! Very well built, not at all likely to collapse. Carver: Right, well, let's get to it. My [sister/brother] will be missing you. Merrill: I'm glad you think so.

Carver + Sebastian

Carver: And we are back to front yet again. Sebastian: Blessed Andraste, guide us. Protect our friends in this dark hour. Carver: Right. Prayer. Useful, useful. Or we could do something. Sebastian: Guide us by the wisdom of your light… in silence.

Carver + Varric (Act 1)

Carver: Go ahead. I know you're thinking it, dwarf. Varric: What? What did I do now? Carver: "Your brother wouldn't have gotten lost. He'd have rescued everyone by now." Carver: "Your sister wouldn't have gotten lost! She'd have us all back at the tavern by now!" Varric: Actually, I was thinking, "All these hallways look alike." But sure, knock yourself out, Junior.

Carver + Varric (Acts 2-3)

Carver: So, we're lost. Varric: Just like old times. Carver: Maker, I hope not. I was an ass. Varric: (Laughs.) Fair comment, Junior. All right, let's get this done.

Fenris + Isabela

Fenris: So… we're lost? Isabela: Definitely. Fenris: Now what do we do? Isabela: I could try to guess the color of your underclothes again.

Fenris + Merrill

Fenris: I don't want to hear another word out of you. Merrill: But I was just— Fenris: Not. One. Word. Merrill: Is it all right if I hum? Or maybe whistle?

Fenris + Sebastian

Fenris: Maybe you should start praying that we'll find them. Sebastian: I have been for the last half an hour. I could do so out loud, if you'd prefer. Sebastian: Blessed Andraste, Bride of the Maker, deliver us from this warren of evil. Fenris: In that case, maybe you should stop.

Fenris + Varric

Fenris: And… here we are again. For the fourth time. Varric: Fifth, I think. Fenris: What do we do now? Varric: Play Diamondback and wait for Hawke to find us?

Isabela + Merrill

Merrill: Isabela? Um… I think we've been here before. We've passed that same cracked tile six times now. Isabela: Andraste's granny-panties! I knew things were going too smoothly! Merrill: Does Andraste really wear granny-panties? How do you know all these things? Isabela: (Sighs.) Come on, Kitten. Let's see if we can find the entrance and start again.

Isabela + Sebastian

Isabela: Eenie, meenie, miney, moe… Sebastian: I'm not sure that's the best way to find them. Isabela: We already tried "pray for Andraste to guide us" and "wander like drunken vagrants." We're running out of options. Isabela: Unless you want to find a chicken for an augury, we're going with counting games.

Isabela + Varric

Isabela: I give up! We've been through every inch of this place twice, and there's no sign of them! Varric: Or we've been through the same twenty feet of this place about a dozen times. It's hard to tell, Rivaini. Isabela: We should have gone treasure-hunting in Wildervale instead. Varric: You're still upset that you couldn't swipe a drink from the party, aren't you?

Merrill + Sebastian

Merrill: I… think we've been through here before. Sebastian: Now that you mention it, we have seen that chipped cornice a few times, haven't we? Merrill: All right, don't panic! Every other time I've gotten very lost, Hawke has found me. Sebastian: Merrill? I don't think he can rescue us until we rescue him first. Sebastian: Uh, Merrill? I don't think she can rescue us before we rescue her.

Merrill + Varric

Varric: Daisy? You don't happen to have that ball of twine, do you? Merrill: I knew I forgot something when we left Kirkwall! Varric: Don't beat yourself up over it. We'll just… wait here until I think of something. Merrill: I'm sure that won't take very long. You're always thinking of things!

Sebastian + Varric

Sebastian: When you tell people about this part of our adventure, what are you going to say? Varric: That depends entirely on the audience, Choir Boy. Sebastian: You change the story to suit the listener? Varric: Of course. All the bullshit in the world won't convince Hawke we rescued him if he finds us first. Varric: No bullshit—however well-told—will persuade Hawke that we rescued her if she finds us first. That's common sense.

[exhausted-archivist]

Informal Thoughts on Universal Pantry Staples in Thedas

Yes, I'm thinking about food again. So, part of what I’m working on for the Thedosian food project I have is figuring out universal pantry staples for Thedas. I am largely working from canon, but I am also working from a watsonian perspective on what isn’t named canon. Which can be really hard because I have to look at BioWare and not try to explain why a tropical environment would not have an abundance of cherries, or how certain foods don't ship well even in modern terms and thus, no, Ferelden likely shouldn't have access to tomatoes. But hey, I'm working on the suspension of disbelief and trying to figure out how it could work in a world with magic, but where magic is feared and typically reserved for luxuries.

I also didn't include things that would spoil easy, such as: cherries, grapes, lemons, oranges, plums, tomatoes, ect. Essentially anything with a high water content that would spoil easy. But are also super common around Thedas. Mostly because when I think pantry, I think long term storage. I also tried to keep out dairy products and eggs. But there is a way to keep butter for prolonged periods of time, so it got in by a slim technicality.

A quick note: when entering the suggested or speculated portion of these listings, this is not accounting for all economic levels because to do so would mean next to nothing was universal.

Additionally, when it comes to spices, we know that the Avvar value "lowland" spices heavily and use them for special occasions. However, because they aren't staples I was hesitant to include them in these list but opted to do so for no other reason than an idea that if they can get to the Avvar, they are likely commonly available else where. So spices are marked with a *

The canonically stated staples

These are actually pretty sparse. They aren't typically directly called out, but these few are, and so they have their own little section. Outside of that, well it is mostly suggestion.

Barley (At times mentioned to be specifically Fereldan)

Elfroot

Grease

Lentils

Onions

Wheat

Some canonically suggested universal pantry staples due to their common appearance in recipes, use in abundance, use in hard times/as rations, and seen prolifically in-game:

Allspice*

Almonds

Apples

Basil (dried or fresh)

Bay Leaves*

Black Pepper* (Coarse and finely ground)

Butter (typically goat, but cows as well)

Cabbage

Carrots

Cheese

Chocolate

Cinnamon* (ground, whole stick, ect)

Cloves*

Cumin* (crushed, ground, grated, ect)

Dill Seeds*

Dried Beans

Dried Berries (currants, cranberries, raisins, ect.)

Dried Meat

Dried Peas

Fennel Seed*

Flour (typically wheat)

Garlic

Ginger

Ham

Honey

Jam

Leeks

Mace

Mint

Mustard Seed*

Nutmeg*

Oil (not specified)

Oregano (dried or fresh)

Parsley/Mild green herb

Pickled Vegetables

Potatoes

Salt (historically Orlesians in the highlands salted a dragon worth of meat on an annual basis)

Salted Meat

Squashes (Pumpkin and others)

Sugar (typically from sugar cane)

Thyme

Turnips

Vanilla

Vinegar

Wine (Most common seems to be red wine)

If you think I missed anything or have any recommendations or thoughts of your own, please do share! I would love to hear any thoughts on what you think would likely be staples in the pantries of Thedas. If you need to know what is available, you can check out this post I have listing all the flora currently mentioned in Thedas.

[spookyvalentine]

what's some fun facts about lascaux? so curious about their backstory 👀 how did they end up switching from chevalier to warden?

OMFGGGG thank you for asking about Lascaux I am IN love with them and think about them a regular amount, I am making normal squawking shrieking sounds—

This is gonna be long I’m so sorry, they’ve been cooking in my brain for three straight weeks, hold on to your butt because we’ve got some serious infodumping ahead I know you asked for some fun facts but uhhhhh 😅

LASCAUX THROUGH THE YEARS

Lascaux was born in Orlais to a minor noble family, the de Montignac’s. Their parents were Marcel and Niah. In typical Orlesian fashion, Marcel and Niah had an elf lover (Tassil, the estate’s horsemaster) but once she became pregnant, the de Montignac’s sent Tassil away because they were uncertain who was the father and they didn’t want to deal with Orlesian court gossip. And when Lascaux was born they were clearly half-elf. Because they were such a beautiful, healthy baby, Marcel decides to keep and name Lascaux as his heir—but not til after Niah carves off the tips of their ears to be human-passing and bypass any bastard allegations.

Niah passes away when Lascaux is still a toddler and Marcel remarries another Orlesian noble named Aurigna soon after—and they have two children, Chauvet (only a couple years younger than Lascaux) and Ardèche (about twelve years younger than Chauvet)

At nine, Lascaux is taken to the Free Marches (Ostwick) to meet the de Montignac business partners, the Thornes, who are renowned as horse breeders. There Lascaux gets to be present for the birth of their constant companion, their best friend—a horse, a red dun they name Magdalena. And also the first glimpses of their future wife, Amicia 🥰

Lascaux is sent to L’Academie des Chevaliers at thirteen where they truly outshone the rest with not only their talents with a shield and sheer charisma, but importantly, on horseback. Jousting, in particular. Instead of being assigned military posts, Lascaux competes in tournaments

After L’Academie, they become the youngest champion of the Grand Tourney. There they reconnect with Amicia, fall so, so deeply in love, get married and move to the Thorne estate in Ostwick to be closer to the jousting circuits and to help tend to the horses and de Montignac business interests. And right before winning their second Grand Tourney, Lascaux and Amicia have a son named Adi

Their life in these years were… perfect. Easy. Their days were full of sunshine and blue skies—and between tournaments, raising their sweet baby son with their fierce, beautiful wife. A talented musician, they would write songs for Amicia and sing to Adi and the horses. Lascaux is beloved in Orlais and the Free Marches, earning the title of the golden knight of Orlais (since their armor and family mask is gold, as well as the color of their horse, but also for their kind and courteous sportsmanship on and off the field)

And then, at thirty-two years old, tragedy strikes. Right after the high of winning the joust at the Grand Tourney for the third time in a row—because of Lascaux’s half-brother, Chauvet. He was also sent to L’Academie, where Chauvet found himself being smothered under the weight of Lascaux’s popularity. He resented living under their shadow, resented how much his parents and little brother adored them, resented that they stole Amicia from him (false, he never stood a chance with Amicia but coveted her nonetheless). And when Marcel passes away he leaves everything to Lascaux. This, coupled with their third Champion title, is just too much for Chauvet

He murders Amicia, Adi and their unborn child

Lascaux challenges Chauvet to a formal duel, a very big deal for chevaliers. During the fight, Chauvet embeds a hand axe in Lascaux’s mask, and they remove it to reveal their face before a crowd of spectators for the very first time—then uses that axe to slay him. There’s a crack running down the center of their mask that Lascaux will never repair

After burying their wife and children, Lascaux is… utterly devastated. How on earth can they possibly continue? They drag Chauvet’s corpse back to Orlais so he can be buried, at least for Aurigna and Ardèche to have some closure, but the idea of staying in Orlais is intolerable.

And then Lascaux meets Blackwall (the OG) and decides to join the Wardens because if anything, they have found a way to die, without turning the blade on themself.

Upon joining the Wardens, they take Amicia’s last name for two reasons—to keep her memory alive, and for some hope of a shred of anonymity. For the nobles in Orlais their story is just irresistibly romantic, and Lascaux is embarrassed by the ballads written about them

I have WAY more lore for Lascaux since they’re my rook connected closely to the other three games, but I’m afraid this is getting much too long and the ask was about the switch from chevalier to Warden, so… another day 😈

To finish off here’s Lascaux at the start of Veilguard, a Warden of twenty-three years who is trying to resist the Calling (my hc is their eyes are starting to cloud over and glint at night like an animal’s)

[avrorean]

LEGAL NAME: [REDACTED] / Nanna Amell NICKNAME(S)/ALIASES: Nan (typically reserved for those she knew in the Tower). Warden-Commander of Ferelden. Arlessa of Amaranthine. The Dark Wolf. DATE OF BIRTH: 19 Bloomingtide , 9:12 Dragon (May 19th) GENDER: Cis woman PLACE OF BIRTH: Nevarra City. CURRENTLY LIVING: Amaranthine prior to datv, but (SPOILER) with Ferelden Mostly Gone™, where she lives is undetermined. SPOKEN LANGUAGES: King's Tongue/Common(fluent), Orlesian(fluent), Tevene (reading only, passable in writing), Antivan (passable enough to get by), Ancient Elvhen (fluent ; restricted to the dialect of Mythal's domain) ; Modern Elven (passable) EDUCATION: Circle of Magi HAIR COLOR: Black. EYE COLOR: Deep Violet, gold flecked. HEIGHT: 5'

Family Information

BIRTH SIBLINGS:

Hamza Amell. Working with the Shadow Dragons in Tevinter. Currently living in Marnus Pell with his wife and daughter.

Shams & Shafaq Amell. Remained in Nevarra, apprenticed to the Mortalitasi.

Reem Amell. Brought to Rivain when her father was able to flee. Apprenticed to her grandmother to become a Seer.

PARENTS:

Mahasti Amell. Possessed ; currently wandering the Silent Plains.

Oson Amell. Taking care of Reem in Rivain with his extended family.

CHILDREN: None.

PETS: Rune the Mabari is not a pet, he is a national hero and you will treat him with-

Relationship Information

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Pansexual ; inclined to polyamory. STATUS: Timeline and verse dependent. In most cases, she's been single since the incident at The Landsmeet. In select verses surrounding personal canon(or when it's funniest), she's been in a zev/leli polycule.

tagged by: @hoboblaidd & @theharellan

tagging: @valorcorrupt @banalras @7thtalon @wittyrogue @rookedy @hinterlnds @enregards annnnnd anyone who hasn't done it yet can say its from me!

[anneapocalypse]

DAI Companion Styles: Sera

Dragon Age Companion Styles series

The fashion in the Dragon Age universe (in keeping with the overall aesthetics of the games) has undergone an interesting kind of evolution over the course of the three games, various side media, and fourteen real-world years this franchise has been around. And disjointed as some of it may be, it’s something that interests me, both in terms of its real-world influences and in terms of the in-universe implications for worldbuilding and characters. It’s an element for which I would love to see even more discussion and analysis, I thought it would be fun to dive into it by taking a look at the different base outfits companions wear in Inquisition, and talking about how they fit with the characters and the world they inhabit. I don't know how many of these I will end up doing, but I'd like to do some and I think it will be fun.

Disclaimer: I am not a fashion expert, dress historian, or professional designer! I'm just a gamer who likes to sew and has a casual interest in historical fashion, and a great interest in fantasy worldbuilding and the implications thereof, and that's where I'm coming from on these posts. I'd also love to hear thoughts from fans who have a more in-depth background in historical dress, textiles, etc. Also I'm going to be talking about clothing and not armor because I know a lot less about armor.

I’m going to start with Sera, of course, because it's me. ;)

So I've mentioned before that I really like the concept of Sera's outfit. The upper silhouette in particular seems directly drawn from the Fereldan commoner fashions of Dragon Age: Origins, the styles of Sera's youth in Denerim. For example, here's Kaitlyn in Origins, wearing some typical commoner clothing:

Note the plaid, the bare shoulders, the underarm straps (which have always looked incredibly uncomfortable to me)! We see several variations on this style in Origins, including leather vests and even some floral fabrics, but the off-the-shoulder look is nearly ubiquitous on commoner women:

Noble-born women in Origins seem to forego the cold shoulders, but we still see similar shapes in the upper silhouette, including those dang shoulder straps that go under the arms:

The commoner styles of Ferelden in 9:30 Dragon even reappear a decade later in Inquisition! Which doesn’t surprise me much, as trends move a lot more slowly for rural commoners than for wealthy aristocrats.

We even have the weird leather neckerchief thing, a staple of the early 9:30s in Ferelden (and convenient way to hide the neck seams on those character models)! Like the collars in Origins, Sera's does not tie at the back, and a close-up view of hers reveals side seams and presumably a closure of some sort.

So let’s talk about the breeches!

I'm going to call these "breeches" both because it's a word Sera uses and it's what I think they most closely resemble, especially given that they end below the knee but do not extend to the ankle. (Trousers or pants would be full-length.) First of all, it's notable that Sera is wearing breeches because it's a break with the Fereldan silhouettes we saw above, which are pretty universally long straight skirts hitting about mid-calf.

The waist of Sera's breeches is covered by her tunic, but I would guess that they might close with lacing (which can be seen on some of the Inquisitor’s Skyhold outfits) or a buttoned fall (a front panel with buttons on each side, which I think I've seen in some Orlesian noble concept art).

My guess is that Sera's breeches are newer than her tunic, because of the slim cut; they more closely resemble the Orlesian men's fashions of the present in Inquisition than the sort of looser trousers we see in Ferelden circa 9:31 Dragon. Going by the plaid alone I would have called them Fereldan, but based on the cut I have to call these breeches Orlesian, and possibly a more recent acquisition for Sera. While plaideweave does not appear to be currently on trend in Inquisition, Val Royeaux is a center of high fashion and constantly-changing trends among the upper classes and I don't have trouble believing that plaideweave might have been fashionable sometime in the years Sera has lived there.

A detail I love about these breeches is that they are cut on the bias! Synthetic elastic fabrics and machine-knits don't exist in the non-industrialized south of Thedas so far as we know, but woven fabrics have a bit of stretch and give when cut diagonally across the weave, and this would be appropriate for a pair of snug-fitting woven breeches, for someone of means. (They would have been expensive, because diagonally into a bolt of cloth means you need more fabric to start with.) We also see plenty of wrinkles and bunches in Sera's breeches, especially where her knees bend, demonstrating that this isn't a perfectly smooth, skintight fabric like a pair of synthetic leggings.

Notably, Sera's breeches have been patched—and patched skillfully, using the same fabric and with perfect pattern-matching. I think the patching had to have been done by a previous owner; Sera might have the skill (she does mention sewing in her journal), but she likely wouldn't have had access to a matching fabric or the patience or desire to pattern-match. This suggests to me that these breeches were owned by someone of lesser means; a noble would not wear visibly-patched clothing however skillfully done, but based on the bright colors I think this garment could have belonged to a noble at one point, before being cast aside. The servants we see in the Winter Palace wear neutral, muted colors in order to draw little attention, so I don't think this is part of a servant's uniform, but it could have been worn by a servant on their off time or by a member of their family. My guess is that these breeches were a once-fashionable garment, discarded by their high-class owner and taken by someone in their employ (maybe even their own tailor, who might still have access to scraps of the original fabric) to be repaired and reused by themselves or a friend or family member. I judge the large, visible stitching on both the patches and the side seams to have been added later, likely by Sera herself when the original stitching began to give out, further extending the life of this garment.

So, the breeches are great. We love the breeches.

I do have some issues with the tunic, but let's start with what's good about it.

I've already mentioned how it's consistent with Fereldan fashions a decade out of date. Based on the style and the fabric, I would say this garment was originally owned by someone in Ferelden of decent but not extravagant means, and Sera either stole it outright or swiped it from a rubbish heap. The wear on the tunic is consistent with its age: it's much more visibly tattered and falling apart than the breeches. However its construction also appears high-quality to me. If we look at the large tatters, we aren't seeing Sera's skin through them, and at the cuff where Sera has rolled up one sleeve we see the same contrasting fabric as the shoulder straps and trim. This tunic has a lining, and this also explains how it's still holding together on Sera's body with so much damage to its outer layer. The asymmetry at the bottom is jagged in a way that suggests part of it was torn off, rather than the garment being intentionally constructed that way.

My big problem with the tunic is its tightness and drape. This is a woven fabric (Highever Weave), and we can see the directionality of the weave very clearly because of the tatters; this garment was not cut on the bias. Even with the spiral-laced closure (love that they used spiral lacing instead of cross-lacing, by the way, just because it's a form of historical lacing that's often overlooked in media), this garment simply would not hang on Sera's figure the way it does in the game. (To be fair, neither would some of the Origins tunics. I have no idea what those are doing.) The form-fitting cut overall just doesn't make sense for a woven fabric, and it doesn't drape like one either—something that I'm sure has frustrated many a cosplayer trying to make this tunic with a comparable material. Without some stretch in the fabric, it's not happening. Even a moderately looser cut would make a lot more sense—compare with how Varric's tunic of the same weave hangs on him. Bottom line, Sera's tunic fits and drapes like a modern machine-knit, and if I wanted to make a cosplay that actually creates the same silhouette, that's what I'd use. Though personally I'd probably discard the silhouette and try to make something with a woven fabric that simply fits more realistically, and if I were to redesign Sera's base look, this is the one change I'd make.

The shape of the tunic is what really gives away the contemporary influence on Sera's outfit design. Leggings and skinny jeans came into fashion in a big way in the mid-2000s, often paired with a longer drapey top, and they hung on through the mid-2010s when Dragon Age: Inquisition was released, and were an obvious influence on the design of all the female companions as well as the female Inquisitor armor styles. Cold-shoulder tops were also a popular trend in the early 2010s. (I guess Dragon Age: Origins was on the cutting edge there.) Asymmetry and shredded clothing were also 2010s trends.

I also want to take a moment to look at Sera's shoes! Her base outfit includes what appears to be some kind of black slip-on shoe. These shoes are interesting to me because I think that like the breeches, they might be men's shoes. There's a similarity to the shoes in this concept art:

I think this is pretty neat because while the real-world influences on Sera's look can be clearly tied to trends in women's fashion, in-universe her clothing is probably two-thirds menswear. I think that's pretty cool and maybe something to consider with regard to Sera's personal gender presentation as a lesbian in the context of the society she lives in.

I suspect Sera's shoes to be a bit older and out of fashion, since they bear a distinctly rounded toe and the Orlesian high fashion of the moment favors a pointed toe. Like the rest of her clothing, I would guess the shoes to be salvaged or stolen.

So overall, despite a few quibbles, I think Sera's base style is pretty great and very appropriate to her character. Her look is proudly lower-class in a highly-stratified society, visibly Fereldan while living in the Orlesian capital, and gender-non-conforming amidst a highly-gendered aristocratic culture.

It's pretty cool! I like it a lot.

[cassiaorsellio]

🌇🧡 & 😶 for Arthur?

thank you!

hc + 🧡 for a friendship-themed headcanon

He and Josephine still try to meet up every so often after the Inquisition is disbanded. She returns to Antiva to take over her family business and estate, and he effectively does the same for House Trevelyan. The Montilyets canonically have gone to Aunt Lucille's parties in the past (their summer balls, she mentions), and so Josephine always comes to visit him in Ostwick during the summer. He also makes the trip to Antiva City once or twice a year to visit her. Both of them are impossible to switch off work entirely, but he cherishes the time they do spend together, and he always regrets that they never got the chance to spend much time together outside of working during the years spent with the Inquisition.

hc + 🌇 for a headcanon about morning- or evening rituals

Even after the Inquisition has disbanded and he's retired to Ostwick, Arthur still takes the time to go for his early morning rides. He's enjoyed doing them whenever he could afford to (as a noble-born mage whose family definitely had 💵 the 💵sway 💵 to 💵 make 💵sure 💵he 💵 got 💵 to 💵 visit 💵 home 💵 from 💵 time 💵 to 💵 time 💵) but it only became a morning routine once he became Inquisitor in order to help him clear his head, think, and have some alone time with no one to bother him. It's one of the few things in this world that keeps him feeling sane, sometimes.

hc + 😶 for a headcanon about a secret they know of / keep

The secret that would absolutely cause the most mess that he knows about is that one of his great-nieces isn't a legitimate child. So, whatever, right? Typical noble stuff. Well... his niece, Eugénie, married into the Orlesian throne, the Emperor in fact (a man Arthur absolutely despises and was fully against her marrying.) So that means one of the princesses of Orlais isn't the Emperor's child. Arthur has an idea who the father is, but he's keeping plausible deniability. He's done his best to avoid getting involved with Orlesian politics since his retirement and boy would this affect things. Sort your own mess out, Eugénie.

thematic headcanons

[immortalmuses]

just talking to @mournwvtch and @kismetwilled about Antoine and going absolutely feral for this Orlesian Softboy.

the way he sees every single day as a gift given to him by Evka. Because he should have died, had resigned himself to dying of the blight, but Evka gave him new life and purpose and the opportunity to give more of himself, both to Thedas and to her.

the fact that he's definitely gotten distracted during a battle because Evka is just so stunning and awe inspiring and he simply must ask for her hand in marriage right this minute (eventhough it might very well get his head lopped off by a darkspawn's axe)

the very real likelihood that if Evka hadn't been the Grey Warden that discovered him dying of blight sickness, he probably never would have been considered for The Joining, because he doesn't fit the typical profile of a Warden, but that just somehow made him a more worthy addition to the cause.

[vigilskeep]

I agree with your points about homophobia in Thedas being an consistent thing (though I've personally always gotten the vibe that similarly to a lot of the sexism in the setting it was writer biases coming in as opposed to like, a truly thought out part of the setting) but I was wondering if you had any thoughts on where situations like Teagan Rowan and Eamon's two dads fit in here? It's always struck me as so weird that homophobia is def an established thing but also these two were so accepted that Eamon naming his son after his commoner father seemingly wasn't even scandalous at all. I mean it's nice obv I'm just confused by it from a Ferelden politics lore perspective? Feels like I'm missing something. Sry if this question is rambly/not worded well I am very tired

so here’s the codex entry that discusses the politics of homosexuality in thedas most directly!

What I find most interesting is that, despite the lack of open discussion on matters of human sexuality, there is commonality to be found on the subject in all Andrastian lands. Typically, one's sexual habits are considered natural and separate from matters of procreation, and only among the nobility, where procreation involves issues of inheritance and the union of powerful families, is it considered of vital importance. Yet, even there, a noble who has done their duty to the family might be allowed to pursue their own sexual interests without raising eyebrows.

The view on indulging lusts with a member of the same gender varies from land to land. In Orlais, it is considered a quirk of character and nothing more. In Ferelden, it is a matter of scandal if done indiscreetly but otherwise nothing noteworthy. In Tevinter, it is considered selfish and deviant behavior among nobles, but actively encouraged with favored slaves. Nowhere is it forbidden, and sex of any kind is only considered worthy of judgment when taken to awful excess or performed in the public eye.

so you can get more of an idea of how varied it is and what it looks like in a few different nations in particular! i don’t know what the legalities are about marriage though. it’s for sure legal in orlais. so i imagine, in finally a win for the orlesian chantry in general, they do have gay marriage? broadly the homophobia seems more of a social thing than having much in the way of legal ramifications

as for the guerrin situation, it’s important to note that the guerrin siblings had three parents. arl rendorn guerrin had a wife, marina, with whom he presumably biologically had rowan, eamon, and teagan. eamon’s son connor who we see possessed in dao is named after rendorn’s lover connor. so first of all, eamon teagan and rowan’s two dads were never legally married. you could consider that a logical compromise alongside the codex lines “Yet, even there, a noble who has done their duty to the family might be allowed to pursue their own sexual interests without raising eyebrows.” and “In Ferelden, it is a matter of scandal if done indiscreetly but otherwise nothing noteworthy.”

the real issue is that the codex in which the mistake was made that led to connor senior’s existence refers to connor sr, textually, in a work of chantry scholarship, as eamon’s father. which feels like a really strong move if you accept that this would be scandalous if public. in-world, there’s a lot of reasons this could be. firstly, the aforementioned codex is written by sister dorcas guerrin, who is, herself, a lesser cousin of the family and may have had some personal understanding of the relationships involved. secondly, rendorn and connor sr were war heroes who died at the battle of west hill fighting to free ferelden, and may receive some political and social leeway in that regard. thirdly, and most adventurously, maybe connor sr was eamon’s biological father and rendorn was the one biologically uninvolved, and rendorn took some legal means to legitimise him. which. is far-fetched but i enjoy because it makes eamon’s obsession with the theirin bloodline absolutely unhinged behaviour.

that does lead us to the fact that of course, as a late addition made to redress a codex mistake, this all kind of falls apart when you look at rowan and eamon’s canonical approaches to love triangles/squares and accusations of bastard children respectively, but man, if you take all this as canon, what an insane relationship the guerrin throuple must have had for their kids to turn out Like That about it

again, it varies, especially in private. the couslands for example are extremely casual about it; if a male warden arranges a one night stand with a man during the origin, he can mention it to his brother fergus (in front of fergus’ extremely pious wife and their young son!) who will simply laugh about it and make an older brotherly protective joke about, like, fighting the guy for him if he does him wrong, which i assume is the exact same line a female warden gets if they do the same. you don’t even mention to fergus that it’s a man—there’s an alternate version if you went with a woman—he just knows one way or the other, implying he already knows this about you and is very relaxed about it

[profoundfics]

Tertiary Opinions I/V

Unorthodox Introductions - V: Injurious Activities

Rating: Mature - Canon Typical Violence and Sex

Pairing: Rook Ingellvar x Emmrich Volkarin (Neve Gallus x Lucanis Dellamort | Lace Harding x Taash)

(A03 Chapter Index) | (Tumblr Chapter Index)

-- --

The Rivaini climate was far hotter than Emmrich had been expecting and he fully understood Rook’s grouse on the subject over breakfast. Before him were a number of flora specimens to appraise but after the unexpected encounter with the Antaam, Emmrich had little energy for anything other than taking the well earned break while they waited for their newest recruit. Rook had taken off her breastplate, a thin sheen of sweat glossing her face, leant over a boulder, stretching her back.

Harding was the only one who looked remotely comfortable.

He supposed that the Inquisition’s former lead scout was experienced in dealing with harsh climates on either end of the scale. Not that the glorious weather beating down on them could be called harsh. Just hot. Hotter than Nevarra.

‘Had you ever left Nevarra before you joined us, Professor?’ Harding asked, handing him a waterskin.

He took it gratefully, ignoring the use of his academic title. He’d decided the better way to encourage the team’s acceptance was to allow them all to call him what they felt comfortable with.

‘I’ve rarely left the Necropolis,’ he explained, ‘but I have been to Orlais. That was decades ago, however, and not far over the border. Not enough to notice the difference in any case.’

‘I wouldn’t let an Orlesian hear you say that,’ Harding chuckled.

‘I’ve not been to Orlais,’ Rook mused, turning her head to look at them. ‘Why haven’t we been to Orlais, Harding?’

‘Because Solas had already left by the time we bumped into you,’ said Harding, taking back the waterskien. ‘Besides, Empress Celene was pretty pissed with us on the way out, so best not to go back and poke that dragon.’

‘I know you keep saying you don’t, but you really do know everyone,’ said Rook. ‘The Empress of Orlais,’ she started, holding a finger up, ‘the King and Queen of Ferelden, Magister Pavus, the White Divine, the Inquisitor, Lady Morrigan.’

‘Bar for Ellana, Cassandra and Dorian, I don’t know them, know them,’ countered Harding, ‘and besides I’ve never actually met the Empress, that was all Varric.’

‘Figures,’ said Rook, before she turned her attention to Emmrich. ‘See, she likes to play it down, but Harding had mingled with the high and mighty of Southern Thedas. Closest I’ve got was an arranged betrothal to the fourth son, of the fourth son of the forty-third irgend etwas Baron Van Markham,’ Rook lamented. ‘As a senior necromancer, Emmrich, you must have met some of the great and good of Nevarra? Or at least embalmed them.’

‘Rook,’ he admonished, but his thoughts snagged on the small tidbit of information she had just revealed. Harding’s lack of response was also telling.

‘Ignore her,’ laughed Harding. ‘She likes to tease her friends.’

‘Bit rich coming from Miss ‘anything-you-talk-about-beginning-with-N-makes-you-sound-fancy’,’ Rook bickered back.

Harding shook her head, but there was little doubt as to the fondness the pair felt for each other. Rook had turned her face back to the sun, and drawn one leg up so her knee was close to her chest, holding it in place as she stretched the muscles there.

‘You know, I can’t tell if she actually expects you to answer that or not,’ Harding mused after a moment. ‘Is it normal for members of the Mourn Watch to be interested in who each other embalms? What is embalming?’

Emmrich felt a surge of sympathy for the dwarf. Her eyes were so curious but their last conversation around the practices of the Mourn Watch and the dead had not gone well. Rook was now holding her other leg to her chest, while turning her head away from them both, but he could easily imagine her biting down on her lip as she suppressed laughter.

‘Some Watchers like to gossip about the new inhabitants of the Necropolis,’ Emmrich eventually replied, mustering all the dignity his position afforded him. ‘But it isn’t encouraged. As for embalmment, it is one of the many practices we use to care for our dead.’

Harding gave a nervous chuckle, holding up her hand to indicate she didn’t want to know more but Emmrich’s attention was back on Rook. She was facing the sun again. Tension had clustered around her lips and eyes, her skin paler than it had been moments earlier. Sweat had beaded above her brow.

‘I thought you said you hadn’t been hit,’ Emmrich said, his tone more accusing than he intended, moving towards Rook to examine her more closely.

Rook opened her eyes, and gingerly pushed herself off the boulder. His words had prompted Harding to look concerned then began digging through her pack.

‘I wasn’t,’ she said, pressing her hand to her ribs, wincing slightly. ‘I twisted badly getting out of Taash’s way. She was charging in my direction, and for a moment, I thought she was Antaam. When I realised, well,’ she shrugged, wincing even more, bending over slightly. ‘I didn’t think she’d want a face full of my shield.’

‘Hardly the best way to make a good impression on our new associate,’ Emmrich agreed as Harding fished out a healing potion.

‘Last one of this batch,’ she said, offering it to Rook.

The Reaper took it gratefully, unstoppering it and gulping it down, holding back a grimace at the flavour. A bit of colour returned to her cheeks and she smiled at Harding as she handed back the empty flask. Emmrich watched her for a moment, realisation dawning; Rook could have healed herself on the battlefield. Alongside their renowned understanding of hexspells and wardweaves, Reapers could draw on the life forces of their enemies, weakening them while converting that power into a personal source of healing. She hadn’t done it. He remembered her telling him that the others forgot she was a Necromancer. He felt a strange, softness curl around him for their leader. That she would rather allow her team to see her as normal, or at least non threatening, than use magic to heal herself was quite remarkable, if foolish. She quirked her lips up in a gentle expression as if she understood the direction of his thoughts.

Heavy footsteps heralded the return of Taash, a bag carelessly slung over her shoulder. Rook schooled her expression to one of welcome.

‘Ready?’ She asked, bending down to pick up her chest piece and shield, wincing even more as she moved.

Emmrich beat her to it, picking up the heavy breast plate and leather strap attached to her shield. ‘Allow me.’

Her eyebrows flicked as he shouldered her shield. ‘Be my guest.’

--//-*-\\--

It had been years since Emmrich had last pulled Hubers Fundamentals of Healing from a bookcase. It was considered first year reading due to its broad look at anatomy, how to mix basic healing potions and simple spells for rejuvenation. He’d not had a need of it for years because he had not found himself facing a living patient since his twenties. However, he couldn’t just stitch the damage together in the same way he would a cadaver. Living tissue needed a different sort of care.

He would need to establish which of the muscles Rook had damaged although based on where she had been pressing her hand and the slight change in her gait, Emmrich would have diagnosed it as the latissimus dorsi being strained. At worst, the serratus posterior. Either way, Harding’s potion would hardly be enough to stave off the pain for long. Nor was it capable of the accelerated healing needed to get Rook back on her feet.

Beside him, Manfred ground the herbs Emmrich had instructed him to work with while the reagent simmered under a low flame. Glancing in the mortar, Manfred was close to finished so he put the book aside and pulled a small bottle from one of the many drawers under the desk. He held it to the light, a slightly viscous liquid curled towards the stopper. He wrapped his hand around it to warm the bottle then after a moment unscrewed it to extract a couple of drops to add to the reagent. With his gloved hand, he picked up the bottle at its neck and swirled it until it took on a pink hue with a swirl of smoke.

‘The herbs, Manfred,’ he instructed as he placed a funnel in the bottle neck.

He tipped the mixture in, swirling it again, channeling some magic with a twist of his fingers until the mixture glowed a silvery grey akin to Rook’s eyes. Emmrich placed it back on the stand to heat it back through while dismissing Manfred. His assistant had found his own fascination with the Lighthouse, and so long as he stuck to the main building, Emmrich allowed him to explore when he had no need of him.

When the mixture reached a bubble Emmrich began to tidy away, placing his books back and using cleansing spells to clean his equipment. A faint pop alerted him to the potion being ready. With additional care, he decanted the contents through a straining cloth, carefully mixing more healing evocation as the liquid dripped through into the new container.

While it was a potion best drunk warm, he paused for a moment to scrub his fingers and nails clean so it could cool enough to be drinkable.

He’d never visited Rook’s rooms before but he hadn’t failed to notice the corridor was next to his own. The rest of the Lighthouse was quiet. While Taash had taken the room beside the other side of the staircase, Harding had taken it upon herself to introduce the Qunari to the rest of the team in the kitchen. Not that Emmrich particularly cared if anyone saw him go to Rook’s rooms; she certainly visited him often enough.

She was expecting him, having suggested she rest while he produced this potion so he took the liberty of knocking then pushing the door open without waiting for a reply stepping into a cool, low lit room. She was led across her couch on her stomach, head cushioned by her folded arms with a breathing pattern that suggested she could be close to sleep. He stepped in and closed the door, eyes wandering over her domain, becoming captivated by the aquarium.

Occupying what should have been the outside wall, it seemed to stretch on, impossible but for the fact they were in the Fade. The Lighthouse was truly a marvel.

‘Pretty amazing, isn’t it,’ said Rook, alerting him to the fact that he had managed to cross the room without thought. ‘I don’t know how it works - if it’s projected or like Harding’s planets, and sort of semi there.’

Emmrich turned, her eyes looked silvery in the swirlingblue light of her room.

‘I made you that tonic,’ he said, holding it up because he needed to remember why he was there. ‘If I could examine your back as well? A healing spell should help it along nicely.’

Rook blinked, still for a moment then nodded her head. He placed her tonic on the table close to her head then knelt beside her.

‘I’ll have to lift your shirt,’ he said, hand hovering over the hem.

She responded with a small wiggle, freeing an arm to lift her shirt, revealing her back all the way up to the midpoint. Unlike her hands, and her face, Rook’s back was marred with a raised lightning flower scar. Dark skin rose in ridges from a point of origin hidden by her trousers and continued under the hem of her raised shirt in the direction of her right shoulder. Emmrich’s fingers flexed involuntarily. Then he placed his bare hand down close to her spine where there was evidence of bruising. He pressed down with his thumb to feel the lines of muscle below her skin. Rook blew out a soft, painen whimper. He flattened his hand across the injury, attempting to ignore the way his fingers fit between each of her ribs. Trying to ignore how warm her skin was. How soft, despite the ridges of scaring. He focused on channeling a silent healing spell through himself into her. Calling on Spirits of Faith and Compassion to lend him, and by extension, her, their aid. The magic spread from his fingers in a warm blue glow. Tension drained from Rook’s body and the next soft breath contained a note of relief. A soft smile lifted on her face.

‘You should still take the tonic,’ he told her, lifting his hand away and sliding her shirt back into place, trying to move at a normal pace caught between wanting to linger in the moment and escaping it. ‘How did you get that scarring?’

Rook rolled over, turning enough to reach the tonic and knocked it back. ‘Pride demon,’ she said, ‘when we were trying to get to Solas’ ritual.’

She returned to her stomach as he got to his feet. Still fighting the urge to gaze at her, Emmrich turned his attention to the aquarium, grateful at having somewhere else to look. But he could still feel her gaze on him as if some inexplicable thread of the Fade connected them; the residual energy of the healing spell.

‘You want to study it, don’t you?’ She asked, yawning as she spoke. ‘Be my guest.’

He turned to answer her, but her eyes were closed, breathing even and he wondered if he had dreamt her words. Emmrich watched her for a moment, the trust she had just extended to him swirling a warm rush in his chest. He wondered what it would be to explore the expanse of her back; tracing the scars with his fingertips; following delicate ridges of her spine with his lips and mapping the valleys between her ribs where his fingers had effortlessly rested moments before. Would she sigh in contentment under his ministrations? Or something else entirely. Something needy?

He was too old for such things. Now anyway. And he had a path forged that could not afford to include an unexpected dalliance. Particularly if that dalliance still had potential ties to a former intended. Rook had not elaborated on the outcome of her betrothal, although the lack of a ring indicated it had not resulted in marriage. Not yet, at least.

And still, he could not keep his eyes off her.

Emmrich closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose with a steadying breath, reminding himself of how close he was to the end of his life’s work. His grand finale in touching distance. When he opened them again, his eyes landed on a patchwork blanket that he couldn’t entirely be certain was there before. After shaking it out, he draped it over her, his last sight of her snuggling into folds of fabric with another soft smile on her lips.

--

Author Notes:

Translations -

irgend etwas - Something or other (also, anything)

From the earliest stirrings of canon about Nevarra, the indication was that this was a Germanic coded culture, and as I was writing the segment where I added this, I felt it would work quiet well if Rook actually did drop into Nevarran, in the same way Lucanis drops into Antivan. Luckily, English is a Germanic Language as well, and the flow of the sentence ended up being better for using German in this context.

-- --

A note on Reaper's being able to heal themselves - in-game, at lvl 20 you get 'Spirit Storm', the Reaper ultimate ability that applies 'Siphon' to enemies, which converts their damage into healing. Rook not using the spell at this point in the fic is a little nod to the fact that I'm rarely at lvl 20 when I hit this point in the game, but it's also playing to the theme wherein Rook has admitted that the rest of the team seem to forget she's a Necromancer, and in this chapter, it becomes ragingly apparent to Emmrich that she has not been using her most powerful magics in front of the team because it would scare them. Within the DA universe, Necromancy is a strange one, because it's one-part spirit mage, one-part blood mage and one-part death mage, and shake until combined. From my PoV, 'Spirit Storm' and anything else that using siphoning effects is the proper terrifying Necromancy that Thedosians should be afraid of, not Emmrich raising corpses and channeling the spirits.