#Wanderer's codex

[dailymanuscript]

Folio 124 recto (Herr Walther von der Vogelweide), Codex Manesse

[martyrmarked]

love how you can go from finding a a super mundane codex entry where sb's complaining about their neighbor's druffalo to reading about the most fucked up shit in about 30 seconds of running

[book--brackets]

May I add the to the fantasy list

Farseer trilogy by Robin Hobb

Merovingen Nights by CJ Cherryh

Riftwar saga by Raymond E Feist

Green Rider series by Kristain Britain

Rider at the Gate by CJ Cherryh

Dresden Files by Jim Butcher

Codex Alera by Jim Butcher

Everworld By KA Applegate

The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan

The Wandering Inn by Pirateaba

Vows and Honor by Mercedes Lackey

Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McAffery

Wiz Series by Rick Cook

that's all I got for now without adding more series by the same authors (notably Cherryh and Lackey)

I love getting these mile long lists lmao it's the kind of thing I'd submit. I've added them all!

[shivunin]

Late to the party, but here I am for the Codex Prompts! ✨

What about, for Emma...

10. a letter to your OC from a companion they haven’t seen in a while

Maybe late, but I am delighted to have you, as always! There is cake and popcorn and we're going to rewatch the extended edition of Fellowship after this. You haven't missed a thing c:

(and if you still aren't feeling well there is fresh bread and soup and some nice hot tea. I hope you feel better soon!)

(Codex Prompts)

10. A letter to your OC from a companion they haven’t seen in a while (for Emmaera Lavellan)

A letter hand-delivered to the Dalish encampment outside Wycome. 

15 Bloomingtide, 9:44 Dragon

Inquisitor, 

I’ve shooed everyone out of the Viscount’s office for a few moments, so I’ve got to keep this brief. 

I said there was space for you here and now I’ve made sure of it. The manor in Hightown is well stocked with books recommended by Dorian, furnishings chosen by the Ambassador or Hawke, and a small garden that Merrill has agreed to take care of until you make your way here. Say the word and it will be fully staffed within a week. 

Now, I know what you’re thinking. 

I’m not saying that this thing with your clan isn’t going to work out. Of course not. 

What I’m saying is, you have options, so don’t do anything rash like…I don’t know, run off into the forests alone to hunt our old friend yourself. I know it’s been hard, but you’ve got another family here the moment you need it. I have it on good authority that the trip from Wycome to Kirkwall is under a few weeks when the weather is good, and now’s the time for it. 

You don’t have to make a decision right now, Lavellan. If it were me, I would want to know my options. That’s all. Don’t count us out yet. 

Anyway—I don’t have much more to report. Hawke made me the godfather after all, if you can believe it. I’d complain about having to share, but how could I with such fine company as a Prince and a Warden? He’s a cute kid, Inquisitor. You should come down here if you can, even if just to meet him. That invitation is hers, by the way, though I’d be glad to see you either way. 

Take care, Inquisitor. There are people who care about you here. 

Now, I can hear Bran breathing down the keyhole, so I’ll end things here. Let me know as soon as you’re thinking about visiting and I’ll show you the very best of the city. It’s a short list, but a good one. 

As always, I remain

Your friend,

Varric Tethras 

Titles and roles etc. etc. You remember all the ones that matter.

[mogwaei]

[Codex: Crossroads]

Solas ⚔ Maelgwn

What part of the timeline could this be? Magic is strange in the paths between the looking glasses. Timelines blur and branch and blend. To the unwitting wanderer, this could spell their undoing and be forever lost.

But perhaps...it is not so terrible a fate to find another wayward soul to be lost with, within.

[felassan]

New BioWare journal entry:

"Journal #8 Exploration Across Thedas A look into how Rook will discover the world Hello everyone, Today, we’re back to share more about the world of Dragon Age: The Veilguard (minor spoilers below). While the game is a crafted experience telling a rich narrative, there are many areas to explore. The Lighthouse, for example, is a central place for Rook to rest, spend time with Companions, and learn more about the world through conversation. The Crossroads allow the Veilguard to traverse Thedas in seconds, connecting the Lighthouse to more of the world than ever before.  Throughout the story, you will go through many diverse areas, from the beauty of the lush Arlathan Forests to the busy streets of Minrathous. Veterans of the series have heard whispers in the past about each of these places in Thedas, but now you will actually be able to explore and experience them in-game. Each area has its own unique feel and style. There are several areas for exploration; each inviting you to delve deeper into the narrative and uncover the many mysteries Thedas holds. Check out a few of them here: Arlathan Forest – Ancient magic and powerful artifacts re-awaken and reality thins across the woodlands that once held the heart of the Elvhen empire. The Veil Jumpers, masters of ancient elven magic, seek to stabilize the region and keep reality from crumbling. Hossberg Wetlands – Much of this once-peaceful marshland has been consumed by the Blight. Darkspawn roam the swamps with impunity, but the Grey Wardens mount a valiant defense of the last safe haven �� Lavendel. Minrathous – Capital of the Tevinter Imperium, the Venatori wield corruption as they try to turn the Empire’s heart to their own dark purposes. Yet the people resist, with the rebel Shadow Dragons leading the charge. Rivain – An ancient Grey Warden fortress sits among sparkling waters and lush greenery of the Rivain Coast; the Lords of Fortune call this paradise home. The servants of the gods have their own plans, however, and threaten to turn this sanctuary into a battlefield. Treviso – A merchant city known for the beauty of its canals – and the deadliness of its assassins – Treviso is under Antaam occupation, a state of affairs that sits poorly with the Antivan Crows.

WHAT'S THERE TO FIND? While exploring the world, the Veilguard will come across many things to do and people to talk to. Of course, there will be loot to upgrade your equipment but there will also be puzzles and lore! There will be ancient statues, letters, and artifacts left behind to read and collect those Codex Entries. There are also new modes of transportation to find throughout the world, including fast travel.  There will be new ways for your Companions to interact with the world as well, with specific exploration abilities. For example, you may come across some ancient Elven artifacts for Bellara to Tinker with while you wander through Arlathan. Even when the Companions are back at the Lighthouse, Rook can use the Lyrium Dagger to take advantage of their Exploration Abilities. You may also spot Companions out and about, interacting with the world on their own. When heading to Treviso, we recommend finding Lucanis and enjoying a cup of coffee together.

THE LIGHTHOUSE The Lighthouse will serve as your new home during Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Each companion will have their own room, for them to decorate to their own taste. Their rooms will progress over the course of the story, and it will also be the main location for one-on-one chats with them. Rook will have a room of their own, as well! Lastly, you will find the Caretaker’s Workshop here, where items can be upgraded and enchanted.

THE CROSSROADS From the home base of the Lighthouse, you will be able to access The Crossroads, a meeting place of many Eluvians. This area will serve as the main connection from the Lighthouse to the rest of Thedas, as well as lead to a lot of side content. The Caretaker will act as a guide throughout this area, ferrying the party to different islands in the Fade. Additionally, there will be more puzzles to solve in this area and even some extra missions, but we’ll leave those shrouded in mystery to discover on your own. We recently held our in-person Preview Event with Content Creators and Press, so keep your eyes out for interviews and coverage in the coming weeks. While you’re waiting, don’t forget to check out our podcast Dragon Age: Vows & Vengeance. Chat soon!             — The Dragon Age Community Team"

[source]

[hawberries]

holy shit, could you share some of your ratios/artis because multiple top percents is nuts and I wanna see the stats

HAHA TY! Unfortunately you've activated my yap card, so I'm really sorry about how the rest of this post is going to go. I do want to admit that it actually isn't that impressive because there's ways to sort of "game" the Akasha leaderboard system, usually by sharing high CV pieces between your characters, overbuilding crit rate and ER or finding specific leaderboards that aren't as competitive, but it still is a fun sort of low-stakes, inconsequential PVP mode that I enjoy! This is my Akasha page. As you can see my Emilie and Kinich are not doing well.

One notable way I've "cheated" is the fact that my Chiori's ranking is on the Jade Cutter leaderboard, but that's not a real place, because my Chiori is on a Wolfs-Fang. I'm thinking of going for her sword next time she reruns, actually, so she may lose her ranking soon. The boards only look at your artifacts and then make their own assumptions, so board ranking is a VERY poor reflection of in-game performance. Another example is for any Childe mains who have him on Nymph's Dream: it's not actually that good of a set for him! The boards overestimate the uptime, but in actual gameplay, especially if you look at International speedruns, the uptime is bad and he often performs better with mixed sets. However, the difference is not likely to be felt in a practical scenario outside of speedruns and high-level play, so it's reasonable to keep him there for the valour, since he's still going to be good enough.

the reason my Mualani is so high even though I am not a Mualani main is because 1) she's so new that everyone is still working on her domain and using placeholder pieces and 2) I hit her with the yassify beam (gave her this absolutely stupid Hydro dmg goblet which is by far the best piece on my entire account). It just gets passed around between all my watery guys depending on whose personal damage I'm depending on the most at the time, but since Mualani is a hypercarry and Ayato and Yelan are more supportive, it makes the most sense to leave it on her. I expect her to drop a lot in the rankings once people have a chance to farm the Codex set more.

I'm very chuffed with my Navia's build because I recently crafted a new feather for her with the artifact transmuter. Feathers are not broadly recommended to craft, but Navia's feather was by far the most obvious weak link on my account – in the sense that not only was it so bad that it would be easy to get an upgrade (it had 4 low rolls of crit damage and NO other useful stats, not even lower-value ones like atk% or ER) but the rest Navia's pieces were good enough that I had no reason to still be actively farming her domain. Anyway, I got quite lucky with the crafted feather, though as you can see it's still easily the weakest of all her pieces. This is enough to tide me over until Nighttime Whispers is in the strongbox :D

I've worked really hard on my Xiao's build – I've strongboxed 364 Vermilion pieces to date – but Xiao, being an older character with dedicated mains, has a very competitive board, so I don't expect to ever get much higher than this. Isn't that feather disgusting, though? I farmed Marechaussee domain a lot but never got a build good enough to replace this one, especially considering I'm on Jade and therefore about to overcap on crit rate just by sneezing. He has 97% crit rate WITH A CDMG HAT, I want to point out! I am considering crafting a circlet for him as his current one is relatively weak, but that's a problem for future Phee to think about, since I'll want to rebalance his build anyway once I get Xianyun – he'll need less ER and less crit rate.

What level of nerd am I about combat stats in the video game Jenshin Intact? I do my own damage calculations to see which pieces are best! That's why Xiao is on an attack goblet instead of an Anemo DMG one 😔

Also… see how my Wanderer is top 2%? I still don't have an EM goblet on the Flower of Paradise Lost set. RNG is really so funny sometimes. Anyway, at the moment I've allotted myself 6 weeks of farming time to try and get Emilie at least a good 2pc 2pc, after which I'll probably go back to making my Kinich not suck!

[egoarc4de]

kendall roy and the deep end

bryce emley, a list of waters // richard shelton, letter to a lost friend // succession 3.08, chiantishire // kaveh akbar, despite my efforts even my prayers have turned into threats // mia bergeron, passage // radiohead, codex // marie howe, magdalene: the addict // paris texas, ain't no high // succession 2.04, safe room // stephen dunn, the man who never loses his balance // william mackinnon, landscape as self-portrait // carrie fountain, burn lake 2 // emma barnes, the lake // jungwon jay hur, the wanderer // se so neon, nan chun // succession 4.10, with open eyes // califone, funeral singers // stevie smith, not waving but drowning // succession 3.01, secession // the hotelier, among the wildflowers // robert bly, when i was twenty-six // bill viola, departing angel // nick flynn, text to be whispered by the bedside of a sleeping child // succession 1.10, nobody is ever missing

[cybershock24601]

There’s some codex entries about Nevarra and perfume and Spite even remarks about the Necropolis smelling like incense so I like to think Watcher Rook takes up perfumery as a hobby. With Spite’s preoccupation with smells I can see him wandering into Rook’s room when Lucanis is sleeping and demanding Rook make the most absurd scent combinations and Rook just goes why not and does it because Rook likes a challenge and is kinda curious what that would smell like themself. Most of the combinations end up smelling completely rancid which gets Spite throwing a tantrum but the few times it turns out well Spite gets unbearably smug. Lucanis wakes up the next day feeling more well rested then he has in months on Rook’s settee with a blanket over him because one of Rook’s conditions was that Spite let Lucanis’ body rest and he is incredibly confused about what he’s doing there and a little concerned about whatever Rook and Manfred are doing with all those vials because a spirit of curiosity would definitely want in on Rook and Spite’s midnight exterminations. Lucanis is incredibly embarrassed about the whole situation once Rook explains it despite all of Rook’s assurances that it’s fine and that he can rest in Rook’s room if he’s worried about Spite’s sleepwalking though Lucanis refuses to take them up on it. That doesn’t stop Spite from showing up randomly and demanding that Rook get mixing scents and Lucanis waking up wrapped in Rook’s blankets far more than he would like.

[dragonagefanevents]

Dragon Age Fan Event Listings

The beauty of fan events is that they are run by fans.

Including you.

▸What are the types of fan events? - #education

▸Start a new event! - #how tos (coming soon)

▸Ask Box - send us advice, or ask for it!

▸Blog Tag List

Below is a list of all Dragon Age fan-run events we can find. The links should bring you to the most recent iteration of the event. Where possible, the time period the event covers is listed next to the event.

Want to get an event listed? Check out the link and submit. Look here for multi-fandom events, or more events in general.

Event Masterlist - #compendium

Bangs

25k Big Bang (July - November)

10k Big Bang (March - April)

Dragon Age Reverse Bang

Exchanges

Arlathan Exchange (April - June)

DA Polyshipping (August - November)

Handers Exchange (March - May)

Templartations Exchange (March - May)

Black Emporium Rare Pair Exchange (June - September)

Platonic Ideal Gen Fic Exchange (December - February)

Smutquisition (January - March)

Theme Weeks/Months

Krem Week 2024 (July 22 - 28)

City Elf Week (August 5 - August 11)

Zevwarden Week (2024 dates TBD)

Tranquil Week (August 25 - 31)

Sera Appreciation Week (Oct 13 - 19)

Kink Memes

Dragon Age Kink Meme (Dreamwidth) | DAO | DA2 | DAI

Zines

Dragon Age Flower Zine (Creation Period)

Wanderers Zine (Creation Period)

Dragon Age OC Zine (Mod Apps Open)

Alistair Zine (Creation Period)

Special Events

Dragon Age Drunk Writing Circle

Dragon Age Annual (2025 Production Period)

Dragon Age Create-A-Thon (Begins Sept 15 2024)

Reddit Weekly Dragon Age Writing Prompts

Unofficial Dragon Age Day (Dec 4)

Solavellan Day (April 11)

Past Events

Retired Bangs

DragonAgeBB (last: 2015; formerly on LJ and elsewhere)

Retired Exchanges

Demands of the Qun (Qunari)

A Paragon of Their Kind (DA Dwarves)

Solas Lovers

Hightown Funk (Varric/Hawke)

Retired Theme Weeks/Months

Autumn of Anders (Anders Appreciation Event)

Dalish Week

30 Days of Dorian (Dorian Appreciation Event)

Dragon Age Fan Week (2013)

Cullen Appreciation Week (2019)

Cullen Week (2021)

14 Days of DA Lovers

Fenris Appreciation Month (2017)

Rylen Appreciation Week (2018)

Sera Appreciation Week (2019)

Sub!Solas Week (2016)

Past Zines

Adoribull Fairytales

Age of Romance Zine (Incomplete)

ApprovesGreatly (Incomplete)

Andoralis Zine

Arcana: A Dragon Age Zine

Arlathvhen Zine (Incomplete)

Beyond the Veil Zine (Zine)

Bring Down the Sky Bioware Fanzine

Dragon Age 2 10th Anniversary Zine (Zine)

Dragon Age Codex Zine & Myths and Legends Zine

Fortitudo Dorian Artbook

Good for Each Other (Adoribull Zine)

In Peace, Vigilance Zine

Insufficient Skill Fanzine

Legend Mark Zine

Lotus and Root OC Zine

Love Across Thedas Zine (Zine)

Na Via Lerno Victoria (Fenris Zine)

Patron of the Arts Zine

Rebel Hearts Handers Zine (Zine)

Road to the Imperium Zine

Solasmancy Zine

Sunlight (Anders Zine)

The Coming Storm Zine (Ukrainian Zine)

The Dragon Age Zine (Russian Zine)

The Keeper's Codex Fairy Tale Zine

The Unsung Dragon Age Zine

The Zevran Zine (incomplete)

Thedosian Archives (incomplete)

to be happy (FenHawke Zine)

Wicked Eyes: A Dragon Age Finery Zine

Year of the Mabari (Incomplete)

Other Past Events

Dragon Age Calendar 2018

Dragon Age Calendar 2021

For Fans by Fans - Fan Forge

[otherworldseekers]

FFXV Glamtober Day 20: Another Time/Another Place part 1

Eurydice was a hungry young girl A runaway from everywhere she'd ever been She was no stranger to the world No stranger to the wind

Orpheus was a poor boy,​ But he had a gift to give.​ He could make you see how the world could be: In spite of the way that it is

Once upon a time there was a railroad line Don't ask where, brother, don't ask when It was the road to Hell, it was hard times It was a world of gods…and men!

Welcome to Hadestown AU!

This AU is set on another shard, one that still exists. But it happened long ago, not long after the Sundering. The conditions on this shard are dire. The world becomes steadily more stagnant and less fruitful and the people are suffering. Orpheus has a talent for manipulating aether and an enquiring and scientific mind. He's working on a theory that will bring the world back into balance. Eurydice is a survivor, a wanderer, a loner. One day she arrives at the small waystation where Orpheus lives and works. On the road to Hades.

(Gear pieces below)

Severia: Body: Hooded Fireglass Leather Vest Legs: Arachne Culottes of Casting (jet black) Feet: Rebel Boots Neck: Wayfarer's Necklace Wrist: Gomptherium Wristband

Nero: Body: Millfiend's Apron (snow white) Legs: Southern Seas Trousers (soot black) Feet: Wake Doctor's Shoes Neck: Redbill Scarf Weapon: Neo Kingdom Codex

[3gremlins]

eugh please sit with me and appreciate the absolute horror of leg tree, like what the actual hell bioware XD T.T arlathan forest spoilers/thoughts/rambling about inherent natural magic on thedas behind cut

i'm a little sad how the "these people were turned into static sylphs by the forest" is brought up once and never mentioned AGAIN. like there's that one dude who's been eaten by a mushroom and turned into a wooden sylph and your party's just like "ew, oh well another day in arlathan"...like as far as i can tell it's not a blight thing, just a this forest is really weird and magical thing but it's not really ever brought up again??

Just a horrible tree centipede, NBD. there's also a mention of how the forest will just reclaim bodies/magical weirdness at the end of one of the optional puzzles and i'm like HOLD THE PHONE CAN WE CIRCLE BACK TO THIS? but they never really do, even in the veil jumper/bellara questlines. also kinda sad that there aren't any more sylph spirit enemies around this game. Having the trees also attack you randomly is the good shit in fantasy games (it was a neat element in dao for sure). And then some of them were coherent/sentient like the old oak tree which just raises more questions really. They do a lot of kinda weird horror stuff with the environmental design but I wish it had more follow up in the music/pacing? Like dragon age in a fromsoft direction where i'm legit AFRAID to wander the woods would have been kinda neat (they already make you do fromsoft dodging) and there's def hints of that direction all over the game. Wish they'd pushed in that direction a little harder i guess (i don't think i'd want it all the way b/c a full fromsoft experience is not what i want in a dragon age game, but just a little bit more of the fear would be interesting). Tbh even a dragon's dogma night/day cycle would have been cool (where it's significantly more dangerous to go out at night/more enemies appear)

there also seems to be an element of that one scene from independence day with it, like "oh everything's waking up!" presumably b/c of evanuris presence but maybe in response to and less because of? But it seems to get forgotten as soon as you leave the forest areas, I wish there was a little more to it i suppose.

i sort of wish we got a bit more with someone (maybe bellara) being more excited about artifacts waking up and caring less about the overall damage (or even needing an arc to realize of the harm). like the brent spiner character in independence day who's more neutral aligned than anything.

like i get that they wanted the heroes to be heroes but for the LORE NERDS i needed one character to just be hyperfixated on dalish artifacts/the magic forest regardless of the cost. were the sylphs tied to the magic of the forest? does the forest have its own magic that just resonates with the evanuris magic? is the brecilian forest just more special than arlathan? it seems like if one thedan forest is magical they all should be somewhat magical in their own way. (i 100% acknowledge that the scope of this game just couldn't cover everything but i def wish there was a little more time for the non-evanuris related magic, the titans def predate it and i kinda think the world was also naturally magic in its own way before- the evanuris are def presented as a bit of a colonialist power so that would track. It's also just more interesting if all the magic in the world isn't tied to elven/spirit stuff. Like it for sure feels fairly narrowly focused on solas/evanuris stuff which is fine I just wish there were a few more ambient scrolls/codex entries with implied other weirdness. Like I don't want everything explained just breadcrumbs left. maybe they'll get into it in a future game or other media eventually)

[marshmellowrio]

Semblance of Control | Chapter 2

A/N: I've had the busiest couple of weeks, I apologise for the long wait.

Colette takes place along the edges of the growing crowd of cadets and riders. She scans the courtyard, mentally noting down all the exits and entrances into the multiple buildings. There are some good hiding spaces as well, covered by shadows and away from keen eyes. She really should’ve taken a better look at the map of the Basgiath War College to know which building is used for what purpose. There’s a four-story building leaning against the side of the mountain, she does remember that the flight field is up on that mountain. In the middle of the two main buildings is a massive rotunda, Colette wanders closer to it, passing the other main building closest to the cliffs.

A couple of hours go by, in which Colette sees Liam again, she goes to stand with him, not really knowing anyone else. And being alone in a place like this might be even worse than having allies along with enemies.

“So, how did you cross the parapet so fast?” Colette asks as she arrives next to him.

Liam laughs softly, “Nice to see you again too.”

Colette raises her eyebrows with a small smile, prompting him to answer.

The young man sighs, holding up his arm with the relic as if that might be a sufficient answer to her question. Colette draws in a small breath, her own hands coming up as if to touch his arm. She looks up quickly, “May I?” He nods with a small frown, not used to this reaction when people recognize his relic. Colette traces the soft swirls with her fingertips.

“I trained, hard, to make it across.” Liam fills the silence.

“It’s… different.” Colette whispers to herself, so softly Liam doesn’t hear over the chatter of the other cadets. “Is it the same for each one of you?” She lifts her head to meet his eyes as he answers.

“As far as I know.” The young woman removes her fingers from his arm and drops her hands to her sides.

“I’m sorry,” she breathes out with a small smile. Liam frowns again but doesn’t get a chance to say something as everyone around them turns to face the dais.

The both of them follow their lead, just as the man who stands in the middle starts speaking. ��Three hundred and one of you have survived the parapet to become cadets today,” he gestures to the cadets in front of him. “Good job. Sixty-seven did not.”

There are ten of them up on the dais, Colette recognizes the handsome rider with the relic from the turret on the other side of the parapet, the one she couldn’t seem to place.

Now that she’s not under the pressure of fear and adrenaline, she takes a moment to admire his hardened features. His dark hair and eyebrows complimenting his even darker eyes.

“As the Codex says, now you begin the true crucible!” The man drones on, interrupting her line of thought. “You will be tested by your superiors, hunted by your peers, and guided by your instincts. If you survive to Treshing, and if you are chosen, you will be riders. Then we’ll see how many of you make it to graduation.”

Colette focuses her attention on the rider again, remembering that lethal grace with which he carries himself. She’s seen it before, on another man when she was younger, Fen Riorson. Then it clicks, his features resembling his father’s. Xaden Riorson. Just a boy when they last saw each other, grown into the body of a warrior.

Remind me to stay away from him.

“Your instructors will teach you, it’s up to you how well you learn.” He points a finger at the cadets before him. “Discipline falls to your units, and your wingleader is the last word. If I have to get involved… you don’t want me involved. With that said, I’ll leave you to your wingleaders. My best advice? Don’t die.” He walks off the dais with another, leaving eight riders up on the dais.

One of them, a brunette with wide shoulders covered in silver spiks, steps forward. “I’m Nyra, the senior wingleader of the quadrant and the head of the First Wing. Section leaders and squad leaders, take your positions now.”

About 50 riders push through the crowd to the front, they take up formation in front of the dais.

“First Squad! Claw section! First Wing!” Nyra calls out. A man closer to the dais raises his hand. “Cadets, when your name is called, take up formation behind your squad leader,” Nyra instructs.

One by one cadets are called up to the front, into their squads, each containing about fifteen people each.

Soon Nyra calls forth the leader for Second Squad, Flame Section, Second Wing. A broad male lifts his hand and Colette is one of the firsts to become part of the squad. She steps out, giving a small smile to Liam as she makes her way to the front.

As Nyra calls out more squad members, Colette tries to make note of their names but it all goes too quickly to remember. The only one she recognizes is Violet Sorrengail, daughter of General Sorrengail. The small woman stands one row in front of her, a little to the left. There’s a dark-skinned woman with small braids standing right in front of her Colette.

The sunrise this morning promised a beautiful day, now the sun cashes in that promise beating down on the riders and cadets gathered in the courtyard. Colette closes her eyes, tilting her head to the sky, taking in all the warmth she can get.

All of them turn to the dais, when everyone is sorted in their respective squads. Colette finds the wingleaders up on the dais engaged in some heated discussion.

“What do you think they’re talking about?” The woman in front of her asks Violet Sorrengail.

Do they already know each other?

“Quiet.” Our squad leader snaps in a hushed voice.

Colette raises her eyebrows, okay… try not to get on his bad side, message received.

“Dain Aetos, you and your squad will switch with Aura Beinhaven’s,” Nyra orders. She’s looking in our direction when I see our squad leader nod.

He says, “ Follow me.” As he starts moving through formation, leading us to the recently vacated area in Fourth Wing where Aura Beinhaven’s squad just stood.

Colette catalogues her squad leader’s name as Dain Aetos. Squad leader Aetos. She’s confused about the switch in formation until her gaze finds Violet’s form. She follows her eyes to the dais, seeing her fixated on Wingleader Riorson, now her own wingleader for Fourth Wing. And Cadet Sorrengail’s, she realises. A Riorson versus a Sorrengail, she should’ve known.

I really don’t want to get in the middle of this again.

Violet’s frail form grabs her attention, that girl needs someone to help her though, looking like that she will never win from Riorson.

Colette makes a resolution for herself to help Violet to the best of her ability, to become someone who can protect herself from people like Xaden Riorson. People with murder in their eyes. She’s a firm believer that children, who can’t stand up for themselves, shouldn’t be punished for their parents’ actions. It’s not fair to them.

Nyra looks at Riorson as she finishes assignments, and he nods, stepping forward.

“You’re all cadets now.” Riorson’s voice carries out over the courtyard, stronger than the others. “Take a look at your squad. These are the only people guaranteed by Codex not to kill you. But just because they can’t end your life doesn’t mean others won’t. You want a dragon? Earn one.” His voice pulls Colette in as most of the cadets cheer, she just stares at him, owning his place on the dais.

“And I bet you feel pretty badass right now, don’t you first-years?” Again cheers sound, but Colette watches the other riders, faces locked tight, grim even. They don’t feel badass.

“You feel invincible after the parapet, don’t you?” Riorson’s voice only grows louder and Colette feels herself growing cold.

What game are you playing?

“You think you’re untouchable! You’re on the way to becoming the elite! The few! The chosen!” Every sentenced gets countered by louder cheers. Suddenly the cheers morph, into the beating of wings, rushing air following.

A riot of dragons comes into view and Colette sucks in a few sharp gasps, fighting to stay in her spot and not take a step back as they fly straight for the cadets – at speed. They pitch vertically, right behind the dais, on the outer wall. Colette notices how the wingleaders hadn’t even turned to watch, instead they watched the cadets in the courtyard.

A gust of wind has Colette facing the dragons again, forcing out a breath at their size and the pure power they embody.

A few screams scatter along the courtyard. Steam blasts Colette’s face along with the faces of those around her. Coming from the navy-blue dragon directly in front of them. Beautiful – deadly, but oh so beautiful.

Boulders crash onto the courtyard, crumbling from the wall underneath the eight dragons’ talons.

A cadet from the wing next to hers breaks formation and runs for the stone keep. Colette remembers the words carved into that arch from when she read it during her little sweep of the courtyard. A dragon without it’s rider is a tragedy. A rider without their dragon is dead.

Colette knows that a rider would not survive once their dragon died, cold hard truth, that’s what it is. A sudden contrast with the heat that scorched the fleeing cadet. Colette turns back to the front before she can see what damage it does.

Two more cadets scream and are executed without mercy. Colette locks her eyes on her wingleader, seems she was right about him not sounding genuine before.

“Anyone else feel like changing their mind?” He shouts, his gaze scanning the remaining cadets in formation. “No? Excellent. Roughly half of you will be dead by this time next summer.” Everyone keeps silent, Colette hears some muffled sobs. “A third of you again the year after that, and the same your last year. No one cares who your mommy or daddy is here. Even King Tauri’s second son died during his Treshing. So tell me again: Do you feel invincible now that you’ve made it into the Riders Quadrant? Untouchable? Elite?”

No one cheers.

Heat rushes directly at the cadets and Colette closes her eyes, letting the steam warm her body. She certainly wouldn’t mind if her own future dragon did that regularly, she’s always freezing. “Because you’re not untouchable or special to them.” Riorson points toward the navy dragon behind him and leans forward slightly, his eyes sweeping the crowd. He pauses briefly when his eyes meet Colette’s then he moves on. “To them you’re just the prey.”

Taglist: @siobhanbooks @bada-lee-ily

A/N: Let me know if you want to be tagged!

Chapter 3 click here.

[drunkenskunk]

So, I'm laying in bed, waiting for the painkillers to kick in, with an ice pack strapped to my knee, and I'm letting my mind wander. And I'm thinking about Warhammer 40k, because of course I am, this is what I do when I'm bored and in pain.

While laying here, I got to thinking: when were the first "official" conflicts between humanity and the all the other Xenos factions? So I'm just delirious enough to be like "let's figure this shit out."

And I'm already needing to start off with a mulligan, because the Orks, the Eldar, and the daemons of Chaos have always been ubiquitous in the Warhammer galaxy ever since humanity first walked upright, so trying to pin down "first contact conflict" is a mugs game. It would all be pre-Dark Age of Technology. Who the fuck knows for sure.

So who else is there: in terms of "major" Xenos factions (that is: armies with a codex), we got the Tyranids, the Tau, the Necrons, and the Leagues of Votann. Which is less than I hoped, but about what I expected for James "SPESS MEHREEN" Workshep.

So: the Tyranids. The First Tyrannic War was in 745.M41. However: if we really want to be specific and pedantic (and I do), then the first time the Imperium ran into the Tyranids was "sometime" around 500.M41 when genestealers were first encountered on the moons of Ymgarl. Then again, I'm not actually sure we should count that, considering that the Imperium wouldn't even make that connection themselves until much later.

Next: the Tau. Technically first "contact" was in 789.M35, when an AdMech explorator ship, Land's Vision, found the planet that would eventually be named Tau, and recorded a primitive species that had mastered simple tools and fire. But because that planet became inaccessible due to a warp storm, and the records got lost in the chaos of the Age of Apostasy, we (again) probably shouldn't count that. First real conflict was the Damocles Crusade, between 742.M41 and 745.M41... and it only ended because the Tyranids showed up.

Moving on: the Necrons. Technically, they've been "around" even longer than the Eldar. But they've mostly all been fucking asleep in their tomb worlds, except for a select few who woke up early (looking at you Trazyn). So, really, if we're ignoring shit like Szarekh the Silent King returning from his self imposed exile in response to the Tyranids showing up (are we noticing a pattern here?), first "official" conflict with the Imperium was the Sanctuary 101 massacre in 897.M41.

And finally: the Leagues of Votann. And, again: they've been "around" for who knows how long. It's heavily implied that their generation ships left Earth for the galactic core before even the Dark Age of Technology. But they mostly kept to themselves and didn't venture outside the holds in the galactic core until Cadia exploded and the Cicatrix Maledictum cut the galaxy in half, forcing them to leave. Finally, an "alien" faction being introduced to the setting that has nothing to do with the fucking Tyranids.

And, y'know... looking at all that? That really does kinda put in perspective why everything seems to have gone to shit in 40k, doesn't it?

Between the end of the Horus Heresy in 014.M31 and the start of the Damocles Crusade in 742.M41, the only things the Imperium of Man had to really worry about were Orks, Eldar, daemons, and renegades/traitors. Like, none of that is great (and a lot of it is self inflicted), but that kind of setup seems manageable. The Eldar never show up in huge numbers, and daemons require incredibly specific circumstances to even manifest outside The Warp. Hell, even the Orks for most of that time are basically just a nuisance, since a warboss on the scale of Urlakk Urg wouldn't be seen till Ghazgkull. Really, the most dangerous thing the Imperium had to worry about during that stretch of time was regular humans rebelling (rightfully so) in the face of the Imperium being a nightmarishly oppressive theocratic fascist state.

That's 10,000 years or so that you could almost call relatively stable, where the vast majority of issues were problems that it inflicted on itself. Business as usual.

AND THEN

In the span of just over 250 years, there's several wars with the Tau, the Tyranids show up over and over again, the Necrons start waking up, and... then the Leagues of Votann are also here now lol

Something, something, decades where nothing happens, and weeks where decades happen, etc.

[bethrnoora]

hold on did i never share Codex here. wow shame on me.

well, this is my demiprince of Hermaeus Mora, Codex Mora - a shapeshifting, body-hopping entity from Apocrypha formed spontaneously of a torn-out page of The Tormenting Eye. when they're not stewarding their father(?)'s Infinite Archive, they're wandering Nirn in the form of a mortal plotting their eventual usurpation of Apocrypha, indulging in all manner of hedonistic activities and invoking eldritch madness in the people dumb enough to turn to them for forbidden knowledge.

[birdylion]

I set foot into the Hissing Wastes in DAI for the first time. I wondered why it's "always" night there, didn't find anything in the codex, and then figured that you always travel by night because the sun burns too hot by day.

And then I wondered about this giant moon. Sure, it's a storytelling device that allows there to be a lot of light even though it's night. But in-universe?

I'm not sure - I recall that at Halamshiral, which also took place at night, there wasn't such a giant moon, but I remember there being a moon not too dissimilar to ours. So there have to be two moons, which - looking up the fandom wiki entry, there are. Okay.

For the purpose of this, let's assume the world of Thedas is spherical and follows the celestial mechanics we know today. The giant moon isn't full, so it has phases.

(The only way I can think of how that not being the case could be astronomically possible would be if it revolves so slowly around the world that it takes months or years for a full turn. It would have phases, but they'd be months or years long. And I have no idea if that's even mathematically possible without the moon crashing into the planet, or how to set the distance/closeness for it to become possible. So let's discard this.)

Fun fact: I googled 'celestial mechanics calculator' for this and of course wolfram alpha has my back for calculating the orbital period of two celestial bodies given their masses and their distance. I have no idea how to estimate the size of this moon, much less the mass it would need to have, and neither do I have the mass of the planet. The only "measurement" I have is an estimation of the moon's apparent size on the sky; in order to get the real size of it's surface I need the distance. So distance is a value that figured in both equations. I'm going to play around with the equations for that to see if I can find a range of values that makes sense.

Back to topic: the giant moon probably has noticeable phases - that would make sense in that the quest at Halamshiral was during a time when it was new moon, which means, phew, continuity restored.

But also, a giant moon like this between the planet and the sun ... look, the reason we don't get solar eclipses every month is that our moon and sun have the exact same apparent size and the moon's orbit is tilted in a way that means even on a new moon, it's not likely to pass directly in front of the sun. But a moon this size would be much more likely to cover the sun, regardless of where exactly it passes over the sky. Also it could cover the sun for much, much longer. Minutes, even hours.

So solar ecplises should be far more common than on our earth, perhaps as often as several times a year, and they should be much longer.

On the other hand, lunar "eclipses" ... would just be a tiny dark dot (the shadow of the planet) wandering over the vast bright disk of the moon lol

Please please please tell me if there's any lore for that which isn't in the fandom wiki.