#also true for vivienne from da

[uninformedartist]

NOT VIV COMPARING HELLUVA’S “ARTISTRY” TO JOHN WATERS IN HER LIKES

Anon you opened up the fames of fury in me lol, so da tweets 🤌:

╭( ๐_๐)╮ can I just break from the critical side of myself and just be a "hater" and call pure BULLSHIT on these tweets. I aint even going to go into full structured critical analysis on these tweets this post of mine will be long winded rambles. This user is just pulling all these nuanced and highly revered genres in art and film ha even highly renowned filmaker, artist, actor and writer John Waters, JOHN FLIPPING WATERS and saying Brandon Roger *is* his equivalent on the YT front, thats disrespectful thats John Waters have respect tsk. Also none of those genres is the 1st thought in my head when thinking about the hellaverse (gags) and that it draws from.

Cabaret surrealism

Goth comics

Camp genre movies (a lot of examples)

And of course Brandon Rogers *is* home grown John Waters

This John Waters (ಠ_ಠ)

These tweets are nonsense I'm sorry but damn it is. Big hoity-toity words used and using comparisons thats just nonsensical and again lets just throw in queer people. Like how this tweet says the hatedom is teenagers or young 20-somethings or YOUNG QUEER PEOPLE 🙃🙃🙃. Im 26 queer as hell and I dislike helluva boss and it should cater to my age range but besides that can we for the love of peat stop invalidating the opinions of young people like I'm serious fuck off if you think like that.

I have had conversations and interactions with teenagers, young people and young queer people that wow the things I learn from them, its simply amazing.

And just love how Viv liked a tweet of someone invalidating the opinions of young people just because they young and just "haters" on Helluva boss, young people are people too. They have the right to voice their opinions so stop invalidating it and stripping away their agency aswell because this person is dictating on young queer people on their say on what they want to see better in queer media, that is not your decision to make on their behalf, if they criticise Helluva boss and hate it thats their decision to have stop guilt tripping them on their dislike of helluva boss because Viv is some modern maverick in queer media, she aint.

Viv's queer works DOES NOT compete with the true mavericks in queer media through the ages. Viv's work is a shallow and poor at its attempts in showing queer stories, representation and its handling of sensitive and queer themes.

Vivienne's creations are problematic, it is can exist but I like many others across all walks of like, status and age is going to call her work out for the bull is pumping out.

In all just another bootlicking tweet sucking up to Viv on how revolutionary her works are, how youngsters are too immature to see its pioneering effors in modern queer media and how helluva boss is groundbreaking in the themes/genres it draws from and the artists it has involved is comparable to the greats

...

its all BULL TO THE SHIT.

[sxrensxngwrites]

The Inner Circle Crushing on Someone from a Different Background -- Part One

this request comes from anon, who asks: 'Head canons for the main dragon age squard (if you feel up to it of course!!!!) About them crushing on someone from a different background (example: cullen and someone rich)'

I ended up splitting this up because I got carried away... my bad. If you want any of these to be revisited or you want me to go into more detail, feel free to shoot me another ask! The same can be said you want DA characters from different games. I ended up omitting the portion of the post with Solas, Varric, and Vivienne for various reasons, but if anyone wants to see those: please send me an ask and i'll try my best to get to it.

Part One (Blackwall, Cassandra, Cole) Part Two (Cullen, Dorian, The Iron Bull) Part Three (Josephine, Leliana, Sera)

BLACKWALL:

Blackwall is a good example of “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks”. Or that’s what he thinks at least. Despite his efforts to join in on the group atmosphere in the Inner Circle of Inquisition, I think he sticks to what he knows best: being on his own. 

In the instance of meeting his opposite, I don’t think it’s necessarily someone from a different social or economic standing (although that could be true as well). In this case, Blackwall meets someone who is the embodiment of community. Someone who truly believes that being around like-minded individuals brings out the best in everyone–someone who believes in second chances and inclusion. Said someone would also be less militant than Blackwall, likely having grown up in a community or place that didn’t require them to be fighting at every chance.

When Blackwall begins to catch feelings, he thinks it’s a pipe dream. To him, it’s unreasonable that someone like him–a liar, stuck in self-imposed exile–would be deserving of someone so open minded and forgiving. He shoves every thought he has away, resorting to isolating himself more. He doesn’t want to ruin anything else.

His crush, being someone that believes in inclusion, would refuse to leave Blackwall out (even not knowing the circumstances of his isolation). They would pull him right back into the fray of the Inner Circle and whatever shenanigans they get into in between quests. Their insistence on including Blackwall makes him believe that he really might have a chance after all.

CASSANDRA:

Cassandra has an interesting relationship with her social status. She’s technically in line for the Nevarran throne, but she wanted nothing to do with the nobility. She gave up that claim and gave herself to the Seekers of Truth–but even there she couldn’t remain unremarkable. Cassandra is so good at most everything she does, so she finds standing at the right hand of Divine Justinia. 

Cassandra would likely find interest in someone who came from a different station than she did: humble beginnings and no titles. She finds it refreshing. There’s no nonsensical rituals that need to be done every time they speak, and the lack of formality makes her feel like she’s being treated like a real person. For her to even develop feelings in the first place, the object of her affection would need to be able to stand on their own–she likes someone who doesn’t hide behind orders, organizations, and titles.

When Cassandra meets anyone at all, she doesn’t dare bring up her family name. This is especially the case with someone who catches her interest–and especially if they have nothing to do with the nobility at all. Cassandra wants to be perceived for herself and her skills, rather than the family that has come before her. Not to mention, getting Cassandra to talk about her family history takes a considerable amount of trust.

It takes months of traveling together for Cassandra to begin to let her walls down. When she sees that this person she might have feelings for can be their own person, fights for what they believe in, and stands up against the unjust, she starts to let her own walls down. Sharing her past, her family and her titles is the next step for her–it’s probably the best sign of trust you could get from her. That trust is enough for her to see her crush in a serious light–that this is someone who understands her for who she is, rather than where she came from. 

COLE:

Cole’s origins are so different from the rest of the Inner Circle, having been the amalgamation of a spirit and a human boy. He doesn’t really remember the life that preceded him joining the Inquisition, and his days are shaped by the people that he’s helped rather than the things that happened. Everything about him is rough around the edges since he was never taught much of anything.

When Cole meets his crush, many of the Inner Circle think it’s a disaster waiting to happen–of course he decided to fall for someone with a very prestigious upbringing. They have a noble background and were always taught to be on their best behavior. Even around their friends, they’re formal and use proper titles. It takes a while for it to begin to wear off (only after Varric has insisted that it’s okay that they use first names).

Cole is immediately attracted to them. He doesn’t entirely understand the formalities, but the way that they speak to him on the same level as they do everyone else makes him feel special. That’s how it begins; He enjoys being treated with respect. They’ll even call him “Ser Cole” even though he doesn’t have a real title. And to them, Cole’s interest in everything is adorable. It’s so different from all the possible matches in the nobility. They often turn their noses up at everything, but Cole seems to find joy in even the smallest things.

The relationship begins smoothly. Most of the Inner Circle thinks it’s sweet, so there’s little objection. It’s likely the family of Cole’s love that objects. When they meet, Cole is immediately overwhelmed–all the unspoken rules that are going over his head, and the copious feelings he’s hearing all at once. The evening is a disaster, likely culminating in a family member saying something heinous to Cole. After that Cole begins to think that maybe he’s not worthy of loving someone like them, that it’d be easier to give it up just so he’d never have to do that again. Yet, his love finds meaning in the smaller things, and they’re willing to give up everything they grew up with if it means getting to stay with Cole.

PART ONE | PART TWO | PART THREE

[felassan]

A few more snippets of interest and insight from Mark Darrah, from an older Mark Darrah on Games YouTube video where he was livestreaming playing Dragon Age: Origins some months ago -

Chat said "I am fine with any and all cameos, but I am not holding my breath for Sera and Vivienne to have anything more than a passing mention." Mark said, "I don't think they'll worry, if they want to put Vivienne and Sera in DA:D they'll do it. I don't think either of them have any quantum endings do they? Oh that's true, Vivienne can be Divine."

"The Darkspawn Chronicles DLC is canon-ish but definitely yeah, the team reserves the right to ignore it and has."

"I don't know why they've steered away from the tree ents [sylvans]. They could come back. They're nobody's favorite, so they just kinda fall down the priority list. If there was a good reason for them they could easily come back. You could have made a sylvan off the Behemoth rig from DA:I, but that would be weird and not really match the sylvans from DA:O. I think the way you would do it actually would probably be to build something off the giant rig, but again it would be different, so you'd really wanna make a custom rig."

[source]

He also talked more generally about DA:O and the franchise and things in general. These bits are collected under a cut due to length -

"Is it just me or are the conversation trees in Awakening much longer than they are in DA:O?"

"Yeah, Oghren is pretty problematic"

"The junk mechanic in DAII in inventory was a nice quality of life feature. Well, it's not 'junk', it's more mark-to-sell"

"Games take a lot longer to make now because the number of assets and the fidelity of them is so much higher. In the late 90s you literally couldn't do that much, it had to fit on a CD or a few CDs. Now you've got blu-rays which have fifty times as much space"

"I think classes are a good thing in general just from a usability perspective, and also if you're gonna have a party-based game you need class roles otherwise you just end up with a big mushy miss. But obviously it can take things off the table that you might want to do." Chat commented "Do you think having a set type of role limits how they can evolve?" Mark replied, "It does limit them to some degree, that's sort've somewhat the problem. You could always violate those limitations if you want. You can make the hand-to-hand mage specialization"

"You can definitely see that DAII and Awakening are like, very close to each other on different sides of the line"

"It is weird that you suddenly have stamina potions in Awakening"

Chat said "I personally disliked that only rogues can open chests. It's alright from the RP perspective, but was limiting the gameplay imho." Mark replied, "It's annoying, I mean, that I don't, the out of combat stuff was even moreso in DA:I. But I think tying the out of combat stuff to the in-combat stuff puts you in a position of weird choices based upon how you want to play and I don't know that that's great. 'You basically have to bring one of everything' was the point, was the idea in DA:I, but I don't know that it was a good one"

"Awakening is a really plot-heavy expansion, with an insane amount of side quest material"

"The problem in DAII isn't that, it's not asset reuse, it's actually level reuse. That's I think what pushes it over the edge. And calling them different levels. Also that cave is too identifiable, it's got very specific bits of architecture"

"The problem with the DA:O darkspawn is that they don't really fit together, especially the ogre, they kinda look like a totally different evolutionary path. DAII is definitely trying to get them into a consistent art style"

Chat said "Should DA have beast peoples like cat people, dog people, lizard people? Qunari is bull people right?" Mark replied, "Qunari are more like dragon people. No, I don't think DA has cat people and dog people. There's snake people referenced in lore. Yeah, it is implied that qunari are descended from dragons. Yeah, they have horns, that's their main thing for why they look like dragons, is they have horns like DA dragons"

"I'll probably watch Dragon Age: Absolution"

"The problem with the Fade in DA:O I thin is you can end up easily in this weird inception level of quests because you're doing Redcliffe, which leads you to the Mage Tower, which leads you to the Fade, so you're like so detached from your goal that it really undercuts it. It's not supposed to be filler but it definitely feels like it. You finish it and then you had to finish it again. It's weird pacing"

Chat asked "Is there a reason why we never went to Gwaren in DA:O?" Mark replied "We had enough areas to visit in DA:O already. And you don't really have a reason to go there. Loghain isn't there, and there's nothing that can help you there"

"I'm pretty sure that, one of the reasons this exists [recruiting Velanna in the Wending Wood segmet] is because sylvans weren't used very much, it's a good thing to use the creature model for in your expansion pack"

"Varric is carrying a lot more weight in DA:I than in DAII"

"Stun-locking the player character is not good game design typically. Crowd control used by the player character is fine, but when it's used on the PC, you know, standing around is not very fun"

[source]

(pls note that in places there is a bit of paraphrasing of the info, the best source is always the primary source with full quotes in their original context)

[simtleman]

By the time everyone arrived to the grand dining room, Edna was already sitting there, all dolled up in a stunning two-pieced white silk gown and waiting for them.

— What an odd thing... your mother likes to make an entrance—Vivienne whispered to Cooper's ear.

— Shh... mother darling! Don't you look radiant!

— Save it, Cooper. Please, take a seat and join me for dinner.

They all obeyed without hesitation. Everything was beautifully set, with white and blue toile de jouy china, gold silverwear and a big Louis XVI chandelier right in the middle, chairing the table.

Edna Claythorpe waited for everyone to take their seats, stared at them for a minute and calmly said:

— Thank you all for coming all this way to join me.

— Did we have a choice? You were pretty clear in the letter you sent us. This dinner was not to be missed— Vivienne replied, without even looking up from her plate. She was brave enough to dare Edna, but not while looking at her in the eyes.

— I see you still got your white trash charm intact, Vivienne.

— Ladies, please— Cooper interrumpted— Could we have a pleasant evening, for a change?

— She's right, though. It was crucial for each one of you to be here tonight... as I've got some news to deliver— she sentenced. Edna made a dramatic pause, and then continued saying— I've taken some decissions regarding you all.

— Including me, Mrs. Claythorpe?— Reverend Da Gioia asked timidly.

— Oh, yes. Including you, Reverend.

— Well, don't keep us waiting mother. What decissions are those?

— First of all, I've decided to put Deadgrass Isle on the market.

— You're selling the manor? Why?— Cooper asked, in shock.

— Why wouldn't I? I had it built to my vision and desires and so I shall decide what happens to it.

— I was raised in between these walls too, mother. Don't you think I should also have a say in the matter? And what will happen with Tackett and his daughter? Are you gonna throw them out like dogs?

— Look at my son, worrying about the help. In all the years he lived here he treated them with the coldest of shoulders, and suddenly he wonders about their wellbeing. In regards to the manor, not only are you not going to have a say in the matter, Cooper... you're not going to see a dime of whatever amount comes from it, either.

— Wait, what?— Vivienne asked.

— Yes, I am terribly sorry dear Vivienne, but you're gonna have to find some other family to provide for your goldigging expectations.

Vivienne put her hands on her forehead and shook her head.

— Mother...

— I'm also cutting you off, completely. From now on, you're on your own.

— Mrs. Claythorpe— Reverend Da Gioia interrumpted— Don't you think you might...?

— Oh, and that takes me to my next big announcement— Edna said, without letting Lorenzo finish— Or should I say yours, Reverend? You will be packing your bags, leaving Brindleton Bay and moving to Copperdale. Next week.

— I beg you pardon? Now why would I do that?

— Because if you don't, I will make sure everyone in this town knows about your disgusting little habits myself... and you won't be able to exercise in any catholic church. Not here, not anywhere.

— I don't even know what you're talking about, Edna. For God's sake, why on earth...?

— She knows— Cooper said in a whisper.

— What?

— She knows, Lorenzo— Cooper repeated, staring at the wall right in front of him— It's over.

Suddenly, Reverend Da Gioia understood. There was no need for them to continue with that charade. He swallowed and struggled to find the courage to say something back.

— Is she talking about what I think she's talking, Cooper?— Vivienne asked aggressively, breaking the silence that had taken over the table.

— We'll talk about it later, Vivienne. It's complicated.

Vivienne rolled her eyes and banged on the table.

— So, is it true? Are you screwing a goddamn Reverend?

— Vivienne, if you could please...— Reverend Da Gioia said, trying to calm the waters.

— Shut the fuck up, this is unbelievable! I knew it, I simply knew it! Believe me when I say if your mother doesn't report you to the authorities, I will do it myself!

— Now hush hush, darling Vivienne— Edna interrumpted, with a tone close to sarcasm— You can stop the act, too. You never cared about my son, neither his loyalty or fidelity. All you cared about was his money, and now you know he's not worth a dime. That's what you're really upset about, isn't it?

— I, I, I...— Vivienne mumbled.

— Truth is— Edna continued— you're all nothing but vultures, with your dark ambitions, lies and secret agendas. And now that it's all over and I've discovered each and every one of you, I'm just gonna sit back, relax and enjoy watching all this madness unravel.

As everyone started to talk over each other trying to justify themselves in a joint turmoil, Edna kept quiet and smiled. Little did she know, she had just dug her own grave. Within a few hours, Edna Claythorpe would be dead.

PREVIOUS POST

[corseque]

It is wild that DA4 is going to be the first DA game for lots of people and their first impression of Solas will be this badass hot god. Meanwhile, we will always remember him as the unassuming hobo that stealthily stole our hearts. Some stories are about discovering the people inside the monster, others about finding out that your lover has claws. Do you think that Lavellan knowing him first as Solas, rather than the wolf, is core to their romance? From a writing perspective?

Yeah, I do! Their love story is a fairy tale. Their love story is about a mortal falling in love with an immortal god who is in disguise, and loving him just for himself, despite thinking he is powerless and poor and “nondescript.” And this is why I get a little feral when people talk shit about how Solas looks, like... that’s a key part of the love story, lads! congrats for being too shallow to pass the test of noticing the value of the god disguised as the bald homeless man, this simple test found in a hundred fairy tales. All of the conversations between Solas and Dorian and Vivienne about appearances and fashion and using how you look to invoke a certain response, all of those manipulations really worked on you. You learned nothing from Beauty and the Beast. Deceived by appearances. Beauty is found without, I guess.

What also makes me laugh about this is that Solas’ sense of pride in himself and his own worth is absolutely, utterly divorced from his appearance. He is dressed in rags and delights in it. He doesn’t give a shit. Literally nothing could make him think differently about himself. Your opinion means nothing. His opinion of himself is a conversation that he is holding only with himself.

At the same time, I don’t think there is a difference between Solas and the Old Wolf. That capability within himself is an inseparable part of who he is. I remember him being my favorite in part because there was this incongruous ruthlessness that came out of this kind gentle wise wizard sometimes that surprised and delighted me. Long before the ending of the game, I knew he had claws. I just didn’t know how long they were, or that the wolf was quite so large.

As to how he’ll be portrayed to a new audience, sorry if this doesn’t address your exact question, I’m kind of rambling with too many thoughts.

But this is something I’ve been thinking a lot about since Tevinter Nights dropped with new info about the tone they’re going to use to portray him in DA4. With the shockingly light (but at the same time, dark) tone of his appearance in Tevinter Nights, it seems like the #1 goal of this character is to keep him humanized the way you knew him in Inquisition. I think they understand that his humanity is what’s the true draw of the emotional reaction to his character. They are constantly (and I feel, kind of desperately, against the great tide of the fandom) working now simply to remind the audience that he’s a person and not a great monster. There’s a story 100% dedicated to exploring what Solas’ true internality and regrets were in Inquisition. There’s a story that had Solas dress up in a mask and ringlet curls and use a “oui oui” French accent as an elaborate disguise, and Solas gets called out for doing it and he gets all sheepish about it. He still a person. “He’s always someone who can be like that,” as Weekes says. He’s dark but light, unintentionally funny but tragic, all sorts of diametrically opposed opposites contained in one single person.

I’ll probably get disagreement about this (and I do think that in certain key plot scenes he was being sneaky), but especially from listening to the interviews, I don’t think it was the canon writing intent that Solas The Apostate Mage was a fabricated lie of a personality, or something Solas lives above and pretends to lower himself to be. I think Solas in Inquisition is pretty much his true self, who he would exist as without any of the bullshit going on. “Solas” is really his name, that’s what he called himself long before he was called anything else. And because his story is so un-guessable, he barely concedes to the need to lie in Inquisition. He doesn’t really need to give a grand or constant performance, and he doesn’t pretend to agree with you at any point if he doesn’t agree with you. “The most interesting thing about the trickster god is that he’s actually not that great a liar” as Weekes says about him. He does wear masks, especially his “polite mask,” but Solas even admits that Lavellan sees the real truth under it. So the real truth was and is there to be seen.

In Tevinter Nights, when he’s actually trying his best to hide and wearing a mask, Charter calls him out and he removes it, showing his true (mildly embarrassed) face. So this is telling us - he’s not a character who can’t be known. And he’s still the character we know he is.

It’s a difficult balancing act, to have a god of deception and to get people to genuinely care about them. So Solas as a character lives in genuineness and dips his toe in fabrication, because the writers know that genuineness will resonate with an audience. When he talks, he genuinely deeply cares about what he’s talking about. When he’s passionate, those are his true passions. Those are genuinely the opinions that he has.

All of this is to say (and sorry that I was rambling here to try to get my thoughts in order) that in DA4, I think even the new players may see his humanity. Weekes talks in interviews about how important it is for them to remember his humanity, even while writing Low Approval Solas. So I’m sure there will be moments where the new audience will want to play the previous game just to know more about him. Especially after Tevinter Nights, I don’t think Weekes will be able to resist trying to give that experience to everyone, not just the people who played the other game. 

[blind-alchemists]

Meta-Analysis of the Rift Mage Specialization

I said in February I was going to do it, and it only took me seven months to follow through!

Anyway. Analyzing game-play elements for narratives purposes has become somewhat of a hobby of mine ever since I really got into GameLit. Then, I started "fangs" and felt that my fight scenes were boring, so I build ability trees reminiscent of DA:I's for my OCs. You know, as you do. During that process, though, the lack of banter acknowledging several choices struck me as odd. Especially regarding specializations. Especially when it comes to Solas'.

We’ll be taking a look at (in order)

1. Description

2. Codex Entry

3. Skills

a. in comparison to DA: II’s Primal & Force Mage

4. Specialization Dialogue with Solas

5. Conclusion

Disclaimer: I talk a lot (this post might have about 2.5k). And, I promise you, you'll be tired of seeing 'the Fade this' and 'the Veil that' at the end of it.

Description

“These mages draw upon the force of the Fade, either pulling matter from the Fade to attack or twisting the Veil itself into a weapon to stagger or crush their enemies.”

[source – DA wiki; bolding mine]

So, lore-wise, mages do ‘draw upon the Fade’. Sure. But do they ‘pull matter from the Fade’? Absolutely not.

Physical things and the Fade rarely mix well. Plus – this is mainly my theory – the way magic is utilized (the 'drawing upon the Fade part') requires it to pass through the Veil. Magic being a form of energy, and thus not physical, does not constitute to ‘pulling matter from the Fade’.

That's the first thing other mages (read: Dorian, Vivienne, possible the Inquisitor) should (or could) have referenced in banter/dialogue.

The rest of the sentence ('twisting the Veil into a weapon') is also highly interesting, since there is little known about the Veil. Nobody knows how it works. And, thus, nobody should be capable enough to manipulate it consistently enough to use it as a weapon. But considering it's Solas who gets this specialization - well. He knows the Veil well enough, don't you think? (Which is why I think Rift Mage should have been Solas' personal, individual specialization like Fenris' Lyrium Ghost, but I just really like personalized skill trees in general.)

However, having answered that question, connecting magic so closely to the very thing can be described as a “magical vibration that repels the Fade”, I'm curious about how it would work. Since, you know, mages are inevitably tied to the Fade. Wouldn't the Veil repel a try to manipulate it by a mage? Is using mana the same thing as drawing energy from the Fade? If so, it would be straight-up impossible to actually use such a method for any ordinary mage (read: not Solas). If mana can be used without the Fade, it would be possible, but is such a thing feasible? Can you switch between spells and Veil quickly enough without horrific consequences such as possibly tearing yourself apart?

Very interesting topic. Would love to go into it more, but at that point, I'd become subjective, so let's end it here.

To summarize: Rift mages do things (physically pulling things from the Fade plus using the Veil) normal mages don't do. There is also a chance, logically speaking, that no one else but Solas (or mage!Inquisitor) can accomplish such a feat without dying a horrific death.

Codex Entry

From "Power Bleeds: Harness the Flow." Your Trainer's words make one passage stand out:

There are no tomes dedicated to this manipulation. There has been no time for academics, only the practical—and not in a manner that mitigates risk. Power in a raw form has found an outlet, both visible and in ways that only we of arcane proclivity can sense. The risk is great.

An account:

From this page forward, these are the notes of Thelric. They began as the work of my mentor Julion, and I will continue in the research she began, as she cannot, because she is dead. The rift we were examining did not react well to her last investigation. We believed ourselves prepared for demonic manifestation. We were not prepared for how the energies we expected would be encountered. Well-versed in the forces that magic can produce, my senior was surprised by an alteration, a deviance. That which previously had to be coaxed is now a flood that must be staunched. The same amount in different intensity, quick to expose fault in the way it is accessed. She drew too much, expecting resistance. There was none, and her form suffered the brunt. Tread carefully in studies of new matters, for I cannot unsee the end of her.

Scattered symbols and sketches follow.

[source – DA wiki; bolding mine]

Apparently DA:I has a thing for hiding the true horror in Codex Entries and off-hand comments.

Here, we learn one key fact: The school of Rift Magic is relatively new ('no tomes dedicated to this manipulation'). I think it's safe to assume the possibility - and thus research concerning it - emerged around the time the Breach appeared. So it's new, people have no idea what they're doing, but it somehow works. A little like the whole time magic thing, funnily. (That brings me back to a lot of questions I have about the Veil: Just how powerful is it? Just how deeply is it intervened with Thedas?)

Reading further, the entry seems to (only) stress how dangerous Rift Magic is. Who would have thought! No, really, it's a fair point to empaphize. I'm not certain the Trainer and his previous teacher (or anyone else but Solas) know what kind of role the Veil plays in this, and so of course experiments are going to get ugly. The Veil holds a much greater importance than the people of Thedas realize.

And, in a very similar vein: The people of Thedas don't know much about directly interacting with the Fade through, say, a rift, which poses another risk. The wiki entry establishes two things in particular that are relevant here: Using spells (in the Fade itself) has unpredictable results, and one can draw unprecedented power from it while sleeping.

The codex entry cited above proves that. A rift is a direct connection to the Fade, and thus unpredictable ('She drew too much, expecting resistance. There was none') and that power is too much to handle ('her form suffered the brunt').

My theory is that, while a certain flunction is natural to the Fade, the Veil also plays a role here. Which I'm not sure. But it has one.

Personally, I wouldn't be sure the risks of a horrific death outweigh the benefits of power, but let's look more in depth at that!

Skills

Which brings me to the abilities themselves.

The first two you can choose from are Veilstrike and Stonefist. (Which I think should have had their names changed but, oh, well.)

Veilstrike: “You recreate your own fist from the essence of the Fade and smash nearby foes to the ground.” (Upgrades being Punched Down and Wounded Veil, but they don’t have anything interesting for this analysis. Note the names, though.)

Curious here is the 'recreate [...] from the essence of the Fade' part here. On first glance, it sounds like a rather ordinary spell, right? But it's not. That's just the 'hiding in plain sight for the first playthrough' aspect of Solas' character.

Mages do shape their spells with energy from the Fade (as far as my assumptions go). Maybe they can also recreate something. I'll give them that much. But the essence of the Fade - the inherit, unchanging nature of it - can't be manipulated by them. I think that's specifically a trait only Dreamers can have. (More evidence for my 'Rift Mage should have been Solas' personalized, individual specialization' hc!)

There is an argument to be made if this already constitutes for 'pulling matter from the Fade', but this isn't even the funkiest part yet.

Stonefist: “You summon a boulder from the Fade and smash it into your target, sending them flying.” (Upgrades being Shatterstone and Unblockable Force.)

'Summon a boulder from the Fade', you know, as in, bring physical matter from the Fade to the other side of the Veil. A thing that is pretty much unheard of. Remembers what happens to spirits when they pass violently through the Veil? There is an entire game dealing with that. (I mean, stones won't hopefully turn into demons, but my point is that bringing things through, usually, is not a wise idea.

Another thing someone could have commented on.

Passives: Restorative Veil, Encircling Veil, Smothering Veil, Twisting Veil.

Unfortunately, neither of these descriptions give me much, but they all have the ‘Veil’ component in their name, so that’s interesting.

Upon closer inspection, the Veil can function in a variety of ways: speeding up mana recovery, further weakening enemies, boosting your own damage. (Veilstrike being an example of a means of attack.)

Now, my question here would be: Do over mages notice changes in the Veil? Do they feel it shift and bend? If not, well, that's one thing. if they do, even subconsciously, I'd want banter. (I want a lot of banter, though. Just generally speaking.)

Pull of the Abyss: “You create a tiny rift that pulls enemies toward a central point.” (Upgrades being Shaken Veil and Devouring Veil.)

I can live with never hearing anything about everything else. Sure. But this one? This damned skill? You're telling me I read that the first time I played the game, nodded, and that was it?

'You can create a tiny rift-' I'm sorry, do you what now? After a good a couple of hours of learning just how bad rifts are?

And the upgrade names. Shaken Veil, Devouring Veil - is there anything this thing can't do, except for becoming more and more horrifying and giving me bad vibes ofr whatever DA4 will do with it?

Firestorm: “You summon flaming meteors, raining fire down upon enemies all over the area for the next several seconds. This ability consumes and is powered by focus.”

This one is ... honestly, I don't like it being here. It's an AOE skill, which does fit in with the rest, but it's fire and it seems rather randomly assigned compared to other focus abilities with a more personal note (Haste, Rampagne, Cloak of Shadows, Mark of the Rift).

Doesn't give a lot here to analyze, except that raining down flaming meteors is the level of (global) destruction I can see happening in the future if Solas isn't stopped. So. That's fun.

(It's the ultimate skill in the Fire/Ice tree in DA:II, or at least the ability there has the same name.)

DA: II Comparison

Nearing the end, I'll take a brief look at the Force Mage specialization from DA:II and the Primal base skill tree for mages. Both have some interesting similarities.

First, Primal.

Stonefist: “The mage hurls a stone projectile that strikes with massive force.”

It's only the name and the effect, honestly, but it is curious to see it in a skill tree that focuses exclusively on the elements earth and lightning. (Because Pride demons also use electricity ... yeah, yeah. I'm reading too much into this.)

Petrify: “The mage entombs an enemy in stone, leaving the foe temporarily unable to move. However, the target becomes more resistant to damage for the duration of the spell.”

This has nothing to do with Rift Mage, but in light of Trespasser, I'll just leave it here for your consideration. Petrifying people is neither new nor exclusive to Evanruis.

Now, onto Force Mage.

Fist of the Maker: “The mage slams enemies into the ground with incredible power, against which armor is no protection.”

The effect sounds like Stonefist (Primal) and Veilstrike.

Pull of the Abyss: “The mage conjures a maelstrom of energy that draws enemies to its center while slowing them to a crawl.”

This one is similar to the Rift Mage skill with the same name, so it might have served as an inspiration (or base).

Overall, though: nothing much to say here. Maybe I could talk more about Rift Mage being focused on crowd control, but that is probably for game-play balance. I could connect that to Solas' character and analyze every little thing to death. I'm not doing it, though.

Specialization Dialogue

Solas: You have begun practicing new magical forms. Interesting. You seem to be drawing upon the raw substance of the Fade, likely using your mark as a catalyst. I use similar techniques, although it took me years to learn that. Why did you choose such an esoteric area of study?

Inquisitor: (if chosen) I hoped that studying such magic would me help better understand the Fade.

Solas: While our fight affords little time for formal study, the wise can better themselves even in the midst of battle. Perhaps especially then. I hope your new studies serve you well.

[source]

Let’s go through this slowly.

‘You seem to be drawing upon the raw substance of the Fade-’ Alright, we’ve talked about that. Makes sense he’d comment on it. ‘likely using your mark as a catalyst’ Sorry? The Inquisitor is doing what? I’m not saying it’s not possible, I’m just saying it might not be an overly smart idea to use the Anchor in that way. Because it’s attached to the Inquisitor’s arm. And because the Inquisitor knows what happens if it snaps out of control. So, purposefully doing something that might cause you agonizing pain? Mh. Yeah. No, thanks.

Also. The 'drawing upon the raw substance of the Fade' part makes me think that the Anchor does give the Inquisitor Dreamer-like abilities. Forcefully, and possibly difficult to control, and the Inquisitor might not be aware of it, but. That would be an interesting aspect to explore.

‘I use similar techniques, although it took me years to learn that’. Well. Yeah. Mostly a sound response, except I’m not really sure it's true. Why does he say years? Because he didn’t go right to sleep after creating the Veil, or because he studied such methods theoretically beforehand? I doubt he refers to the time Inquisition spans, because it’s not that long, cannocially, (isn't it like ... a year? I forget what the devs said), but … I don’t know. It doesn't sit right with me. Solas never truly outright lies, so there is probably some merit in it.

‘Why did you choose such an esoteric area of study?’ That’s … an interesting way to ask. Sure, there is a very small group who has this specialized knowledge, but it feels a little like deflection.

The rest of the conversation doesn’t give much for me to analyze.

Conclusion

TL;DR: There should have been banter. Or Rift Mage should have been a personalized, individual specialization.

Pull of the Abyss is the funkiest skill in the entire game, from a meta-perspective, because tearing a hole into the Veil is the opposite of what the Inquisitor is trying to do.

There are also many more questions than answer to take away from this regarding the Veil and the Fade and how Solas manages not to blow his cover, but I believe there are theories about at least the two former points out there.

I thank you very much for bearing with me for this long!

[keita52]

A Primer/Refresher on Me

Hello! I haven’t been using Tumblr much recently, and I know I picked up some new followers since starting to post Critical Role drabbles. So here’s a little bit of information on me and my primary fandom stuff.

RL Info: She/her/hers, mid-30s, Librarian/Archivist, living in the Mid-Atlantic USA, married, and mom to a beautiful, amazing little girl (born mid-2019).

Fandoms I Write In: Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Person of Interest, Critical Role.

The Critical Role Thing You Might Know Me From: Parallels, where I thought about, er, parallels between C1 and C2 characters that weren’t just comparisons between the same player’s characters. Note that I wrote this relatively early in C2 - aka in the Molly era, where a lot of secrets had yet to be revealed. 

Long-Term Writing Projects: I have a bunch of WIPs, but the ones that I’m most likely to continue are my two Mass Effect Giant Crossovers of Doom.

No More Gallifreys: Mass Effect x Doctor Who (2005). Main characters: Female Shepard and the 11th Doctor. Eleven joins the Normandy mid-ME2; clashes with Shepard at first, makes friends with Mordin and Tali, and learns a surprising truth about himself and his connection to the ME universe.

In retrospect, large-scale crossover was not a great choice for my first foray into fanfic, and I got discouraged for a while - but there was a moment recently where I genuinely wanted to continue, so I ended the 2.5 year gap by resolving one cliffhanger and introducing a far less dramatic one.

Exodus Into Fire: Mass Effect x Battlestar Galactica (2003). Main character: Kara “Starbuck” Thrace; secondary important characters: Female Shepard, William Adama, Sharon “Athena” Agathon, Galen Tyrol, and likely others as the story goes along. The Earth that Starbuck guides Galactica to mid-S4 turns out to be Shepard’s Earth at the beginning of ME3. With Earth not the safe haven they'd hoped for, a multi-species conflict raging around them, and the enemy Cylons still a threat, the Colonial Fleet and their Cylon allies struggle to make a place for themselves in this new universe.

At one point, I’d intended to complete No More Gallifreys before starting this one. Hah. There’s an alternate universe where I had the Mass Effect romance be Male Shepard/Tali instead of Shakarian. Female Shepard was a main character at the start, but Starbuck is now the linchpin. I learned from my previous mistakes and chucked ME canon out the airlock sooner, or kept it offscreen if it wasn’t changed by the presence of BSG characters. I’m determined to fit a crossover romance in there somewhere, besides Starbuck hooking up with Septimus Oraka at Afterlife (why? Because she could).

Fandom Exchanges: After creating an excessive amount of spreadsheets for them, @acequeenking asked me to help moderate the two Bioware Rare Pair exchanges that she started - Spectre Requisitions (Mass Effect) and Black Emporium (Dragon Age). Running these two exchanges has turned me into a serious multi-shipper, and I have fun with both of them every year. 

Doing those two also inspired me to create the Exchange of Interest for Person of Interest. This one’s for any and all POI relationships. I love this show so much - the lore is amazing and incredibly detailed, and it has some seriously badass characters that are easily some of my favorites ever. I’m grateful to @livenudebigfoot for co-running with me and look forward to Year 4 in Spring 2021!

Stand-Alone Works: Because of the aforementioned exchange participation, I’ve written a LOT of stand-alone ‘shippy stories in the past few years. Here’s a highlighted one from each canon.

What kind of woman doesn’t have an axe? (ME) - Female Shepard/Aria, with FemShep being basically an expy of Rosa from Brooklyn 99. Set during the Omega DLC for ME3.

Acceptance (DA) - Male Inquisitor/Vivienne, soulmate AU which is really more of a character study of Vivienne (who gets way too much hate).

Straight into the late night (POI) - Carter/Zoe/Shaw; as my recipient put it, Three Women Fix Things Then Make-Out.

So What’s Next?: Another round of Spectre Requisitions starting shortly after the new year; and hopefully more progress soon on my Giant Crossovers (I say that every time. Sometimes it’s true.)

[dafheannaig13-blog]

Vivienne Appreciation Week: Remembering Bastien

I once read a bit about how women of colour are rarely allowed to be portrayed as soft in the media, and are instead expected to be strong and hard and suffer in silence. Which is shite.  And I’ve also seen that some in the DA fandom think of our dear Madame de Fer as being cold, because of the strength she shows. Which is also shite.

SO for Vivienne Appreciation Week, I wanted to honour a different sort of strength combined with the softness so often denied characters such as Vivienne, by drawing her reminiscing about her true love, Duke Bastien. I loved how fondly she spoke of him, and how tender she was when he lay dying. And when he was gone I just wanted to give her a hug ;A;  I imagine she must miss him terribly, but Vivienne is too strong to give up so easily. No matter what happens to her, she rises from the ashes like a phoenix--so I drew one on her head-dress. Even if she remembers his death with tears in her eyes, I imagine she always pairs it with a fond smile for all of their happy times together ❤ 

[bunabi]

The Star Wars stuff also reminds me of the DA Fandom stuff. Especially post Inquisition with the Anders is a Mage of color stuff who is oppressed by people like Vivienne,The Punching Solas is abusive stuff(You punch him right after he says your behavior proves his racist ideas about your people), Almost everything people said in connect to Cullen. Fandom is all the same, people becoming disconnected to reality and saying the wildest things.

I was discussing this with @strawberrynoir​ and its so true

It follows community to community to community and fandom is a mess

Finding friends to share my interests with has been great, but this other nonsense I can most definitely do without

Flinging racist remarks to a real person to defend an imaginary one is the natural outcome of an environment where ‘defending the fort’ is the most important thing

Becoming a monster over sum pixels, over sum online clique thats insular as hell and one callout post away from ripping at the seams, over sum actor who is human and has flaws like all humans do, like just say no thank you

[anchanted-one]

A few days ago, I saw a post by someone who had been harassed for expressing pleasure that Isabella and some other characters looked like South Indians and Sri Lankans.

For reference, these are some pics of South Indians that I pulled off Pinterest.

As you can see, South Indians can be a lot darker of skin than those of the North. They are descendents of an ethnic group called Dravidians, who are said to have been the original inhabitants of Indian going as far back as the Indus Valley Civilization. Because of their darker skin and a stupid fascination with fair complexion (probably another thing to thank colonialism for) they face severe discrimination today. (I will say it simply coz it needs saying: we Indians are racist bastards)

Looking at the movies made by the more world famous Bombay based filmmakers, one might get the impression that our darker skinned peoples don't even exist. And if they do they are servants, beggars, lower class vagrants, and worst of all, violent criminals.

Which is why it's understandable if someone of Dravidian origin sees Isabella and feels grateful to see someone like themselves in a game, and as (such a popular) romanceable too.

Apparently there were a segment of DA fans who were deeply offended by this. They yelled and groaned, apparently, that the likes of David Gaider (who is a problematic man to say the least) had come out and said that Rivaini are all black, and that the OP was "taking this away" from the black people.

But dark skin isn't limited to African peoples, and saying that it is is a big disservice to the other groups.

If we look purely at the character models, one would never be able to tell that Duncan and Isabella are African-like people. Sure they have dark skin, but their facial structures are Middle Eastern or South Asian. Which is why it's understandable for some of us to see them as (in this case) Dravidian-like people.

This is especially true with DA2 Isabella because for DA2, the team has clearly had the time and motivation to make all companions look unique and interesting, but Isabella only ambiguously looks the part of African.

Compare her (and Duncan) to Vivienne, whose beautiful lips and nose leaves no one in any doubt whatsoever.

Also: not all of us can follow every scrap of literature, every single developer interview.

It is Bioware's fault if someone sees Rivaini black people as black peoples of more than just African descent. Not people like the OP in question.

Representation matters. But it's not just Africans who are often left out: and anyone looking at a post where someone is celebrating their ethnicity apparently shown in a word they love, and resorting to harassment and gatekeeping and name-calling is a dick move. I'm sure to the OP it was like hearing "No way, you stupid bitch! Your representation doesn't matter, only ours!"

Note: in case anyone is wondering, I'm the lighter skinned, more privileged class of Indian. But I was sent to a public school and had many darker friends.

[bigfan-fanfic]

30 Day DA Challenge - Day 15: Choices

Skipping day 13 and day 14

Aster Amell and Morgan Walker

Aster and Morgan were both in the same party during Origins, along with Delphi, Athalan, and Katie. Morgan actually acted as the “Warden” in the playthrough, with the others going along with his decisions, such as denying Cullen’s request to kill the mages or making Alistair King. Aster took point at the Circle, being a former inhabitant, and it was jarring to see his home like that and all his old friends dead or abominations or scared out of their minds, even the Templars.

Morgan was the one to decide to make Alistair King of Ferelden, despite Alistair himself not wanting it and knowing it would mean Aster and Alistair might not be able to continue their relationship. It was difficult for him, but after deciding that he had to kill Loghain, it was the only option to keep Alistair safe. Morgan performed the Dark Ritual with his love, Morrigan, and slayed the Archdemon.

Tash Adaar

In major terms, Tash chose to ally with the mages, but insisted on there being no infighting with Templars. At the Winter Palace, Tash orchestrated a public alliance between Briala, Gaspard, and Celene after utterly destroying Florianne at the Game. He let them know that while he could use their own actions against them and basically become Emperor of Orlais right then and there, he would instead urge them to work together with him to save the world, and make all of them very powerful. He left Warden Stroud in the Fade, and at the Temple of Mythal he completed the rituals, allied with the Sentinels, and took the power of the Well.

He made Cole more human, helped Vivienne with the potion, fully pardoned Blackwall, told Dorian of the letter but did not urge him to reconcile with his father, berated Sera for the Friend’s death after Verchiel, told Cassandra to leave the Seekers behind, saved the Chargers, non-violently solved Josephine’s problem, got Cullen to quit lyrium, and softened Leliana, supporting her as Divine.

He recruited Storvacker after becoming Inquisitor First-Thaw (a title he loves) and told the world of Ameridan’s true nature. He also found the Titan in the Deep Roads. By the time of the Exalted Council, he expressed the intention to step down peacefully on his own terms, but after Solas revealed himself and removed the Mark, the traumatized Tash expressed a wish to save Solas from himself before appointing Ser Thom Rainier as Inquisitor of a marginally smaller group answerable to Divine Victoria, before retiring.

[vivienneappreciation]

(I’m a big silly and posted it on my blog instead of submitting it so now it shall exist on two planes at once pls forgive me)

Vivienne Appreciation Week: Remembering Bastien

I once read a bit about how women of colour are rarely allowed to be portrayed as soft in the media, and are instead expected to be strong and hard and suffer in silence. Which is shite.  And I’ve also seen that some in the DA fandom think of our dear Madame de Fer as being cold, because of the strength she shows. Which is also shite.

SO for Vivienne Appreciation Week, I wanted to honour a different sort of strength combined with the softness so often denied characters such as Vivienne, by drawing her reminiscing about her true love, Duke Bastien. I loved how fondly she spoke of him, and how tender she was when he lay dying. And when he was gone I just wanted to give her a hug ;A;  I imagine she must miss him terribly, but Vivienne is too strong to give up so easily. No matter what happens to her, she rises from the ashes like a phoenix–so I drew one on her head-dress. Even if she remembers his death with tears in her eyes, I imagine she always pairs it with a fond smile for all of their happy times together ❤ 

[river-of-asgard]

On Vivienne

So, Vivienne is one of those really divisive characters in the DA fandom, much like Anders. As someone who generally dislikes her, I'm going to try to analyze her as objectively as I can, because over the years, I've found myself starting to understand her somewhat. Bear in mind that I've never been above neutral-warm with her as far as approval goes, so I am almost certainly missing something, but remember: "a person who is nice to you, but is not nice to the waiter, is not a nice person", and Vivienne is definitely not nice to the waiter. So here we go.

Let's start with the easiest point, one succinctly summed up by Sera when you ask her about Viv: "She's a bitch." And she is. But she's also been playing The Game for years by the time we meet her, and let's be fair--the way Orlais works, and their nobility in particular, you don't get ahead by being nice. You have to look out for yourself first. Even your allies and underlings are disposable when you play The Game, and you have to operate under the assumption that that's how everyone else is going to treat you, too, no matter how close you are to them. So yeah, she's a bitch--women who are looking out for numero uno are usually called that. She knows it. And she's decided to be unashamed about it.

Second, her feelings about the rebel mages. I'm a mage sympathizer every time. I have trouble supporting the Templars because they're a willing part of a system designed to subjugate and marginalize a group of people who did nothing wrong except be born with magic. But even though there were enough mages who hated the Circles to vote for rebellion, it wasn't a vast majority. There are still plenty of mages (some of whom we meet in Inquisition) who like the Circles, the education and safety they provide. Vivienne is one of those mages, and to only provide the viewpoint of "the Circle is a prison and the Templars are evil" is reductive and erases the mages who wanted that safety and stability. We could argue that those mages have simply internalized the fear of magic taught by the Chantry to the point that they don't realize they're being oppressed (which I do, often), but that's a subject for another post. Vivienne liked the Circle, what it taught her, and what it represented as an ideal. That's not a bad thing. But she does have extreme privilege that she refuses to acknowledge. Her feeling is essentially, "Well, *I* didn't have bad experiences in the Circle, therefore, those rebels are just overreacting and ungrateful." That's really no different from white people saying "Well, *I've* never been terrified that I'll be shot dead in a routine traffic stop, so black people are just overreacting." She refuses to try to recognize or empathize with how her fellow mages felt or were treated in the Circles, and that is a problem.

Furthermore (2b), Vivienne hasn't been *in* a Circle for years by the time Inquisition starts--she had met Duke Bastien and became his mistress long before, and had been playing the Orlesian political field, and let's be frank, here--probably the main reason she was permitted to leave Montsimmard's Circle to be in Val Royeaux with her lover is because if there's a place where a person in general, let alone a mage, is going to be watched more closely than in a Circle, surrounded by Templars, it's in Empress Celene's court, surrounded by backstabbing nobility. She thinks she found a path to freedom, when all she found was a slightly larger and prettier cage. And politics are not for everyone--though she never directly says that any mage could go the way she did and find a life they earned outside of the Circle the way she did, she does seem to believe that the path to a life outside of full-time existence in the Circle is as easy as 1, 2, 3, for those who just want to work for it, when we have canon examples that that is simply not true. Even Wynne, a talented healer, and loyal Circle mage, has to ask permission to leave the Lake Calenhad Circle to aid against the Blight--and that permission is still granted somewhat grudgingly by Greagoir. A healer. Who is very loyal to the Circle. Who would be better served outside of the Circle, helping people twofold--both to physically heal them, and to show them that not all mages are to be feared, that they're people just like anyone else. But the Circles and the Chantry refuses to let mages leave, even after they've passed their Harrowing, even if they were supervised by Templars outside of the Circle, without a Good Reason. So this comes again to Vivienne's lack of empathy for her fellows.

All that being said, Vivienne knows the strength that comes from knowing one's own value and refusing to let the bastards grind you down. She knows the satisfaction of working hard for a goal and achieving it. If you do become her friend, she values you, even if you're also a step to greater political power and influence for her. And yeah, she might have the kind of stuck-up drag-queen personality which I always find abhorrent in real life, but there is a lot to learn from her.

[ma1eficar]

i’m gonna write a little bit about my da characters since they’ll pop up from time to time on this blog

Nihil Lavellan | Age 27 at the start of Inquisition | bisexual | Dalish | Dual-wield Assassin

Nihil is my “canon” inquisitor. He has an air of confidence about him and seems laid-back. He’s quite a flirt, though he’s much less experienced in relationships than he likes to let on. He has a taste for mischief and a rather inappropriate sense of humor. 

He is charming and charismatic when he wants to be, but has no taste for the game or diplomacy and is a bit of a hot head. He tends to speak his mind despite the consequences. 

He is proud of being elven and Dalish, and has no tolerance for those who mistreat elves (be they Dalish or City elves.) He also aims to be an ally to mages. He does not shy away from employing more violent means to accomplish his goals. 

LI: Dorian or Iron Bull (can’t decide)

Best friend in the Inquistion: Sera

Does not get along well with: Cassandra or Cullen

Ayris Lavellan | Age 24 at the start of Inquisition | pansexual | Dalish | Rift Mage

Ayris and Nihil are actually siblings. In the timeline where Nihil is inquisitor, Ayris stays with Clan Lavellan (and vice-versa.) Though she does try her best to be friendly, she can’t quite shake her shyness at first. She often feels overwhelmed by the different culture she’s found herself in, but she also has a deep sense of curiosity and is enjoying learning new things.

She is deeply compassionate, even idealistic, and prefers to avoid violence when possible, though as Inquisition progresses she comes to accept that diplomacy isn’t always possible. She becomes a bit more cynical as time goes on, and learns to stand up for herself more.

Like her brother, she is deeply critical of the Chantry, the Templars, and nobility, but she is more willing to try and find diplomatic solutions. But when those fail, she learns to do what needs to be done.

LI: Solas 

Best friend(s) in the Inquisition: Cole and Sera

Does not get along with: She gets along okay with all of them, but never warms up to Cullen

Kata Adaar | Age 28 at the start of Inquisition | pansexual | Tal-Vashoth | Knight-Enchanter

Kata is a former Saarebas who left the Qun after being sent to Seheron to fight. he met another former Saarebas who took her on as a sort of apprentice and helped her adjust to her new life. Her mentor was part of a mercenary band, who also adopted Kata as their own.

Kata is proud and confident, and prefers to hide any insecurities even when it’s to the detriment of her mental health. She has a warm, but confident, demeanor, and a laid-back sense of humor. She knows how to inspire confidence and has proven herself a natural leader. Privately, she still deals with trauma and often questions her role as inquisitor. She is self-conscious about the scars around her mouth. 

She gets along with most people easily as long as there’s mutual respect and prefers diplomatic solutions, which is good, because she’s not the kind of enemy anyone wants. When she does have to resort to violence, she is swift, efficient, and fierce.

She is pro-mage, and while she doesn’t support abolishing Circles entirely, she favors the idea of mages being in charge of Circles and providing options to mages who don’t want to be part of the circle. 

LI: Sera

Best friend in the Inquisition: Vivienne

Doesn’t get along with: Iron Bull at first, but they become friends after Demands of the Qun

Asher Hawke | Age 28 at the start of DA2 | Gay | Force/elemental mage

Asher Hawke is just tired and gay. He is a true purple Hawke, using humor as a coping mechanism even when it’s not entirely appropriate. He is more introverted than people expect him to be, preferring to keep to himself and his close friends.

He actually hates being made a noble and taking the title of Champion, but accepts it because he hopes he can use the power and wealth to help Fereldan refugees in Kirkwall.  He doesn’t shy away from criminal activities, especially if it’s to undermine the templars and nobles. 

He whole-heartedly supports the rebel mages, and though he wishes Anders had done things differently, Asher still defends and considers him a friend. Hawke’s support of the rebel mages did cause somewhat of a rift between him and his husband Fenris, but after the events of Here Lies the Abyss, they reunite and are working things out.

LI: Fenris

Closest friends: Fairly close to most of his companions, but especially Varric, Isabella, and Anders

Doesn't get along with: Aveline

Lyssa Cousland | Age 24 at the start of Origins | Bisexual | Reaver/beserker 

Lyssa was a bit of a wild child growing up, and her parents allowed her to train as a warrior to give her an outlet for her seemingly endless energy. She’s boisterous and upbeat, and though losing her family and going through the Blight sobers her considerably, she maintains a more positive outlook.

She’s very much the epitome of “chaotic good” and likes to help people, but completely disregards laws and social norms while she does it. Her methods can be harsh. 

After the Blight, she chooses to rule Fereldan along with Alistair. 

LI: Alistair

Closest friends: Morrigan and Zevran

Doesn’t get along with: Sten or Wynne

Lexien Maeris | Age 24 at the time of Inquisition | Gay | Circle Elf | Blood Mage

Lexien is a Dragon Age roleplay character. If I had to pick my “main” Dragon Age character, it would be him or Nihil. I played him as a Warden once, but it wasn’t “cannon” because he would have been 14 and living in Kirkwall during the Blight. 

Lexien was raised from a young age in the Kirkwall Circle. At first he was a shy but gentle child, but as he grew up, he experienced abuses in the Circle that hardened him. He developed serious anxiety and anger issues. Every year he was there, his hatred of the Templars and the Chantry grew.

He learned blood magic from a spirit he met during his Harrowing, one that continued to visit in his dreams. He was already a talented mage thanks to his love of reading and studying, but blood magic awakened even more potential in him. He was planning to use blood magic to escape or die trying, but before he could, the Chantry explosion sparked the rebellion.

He immediately joined the mages fighting templars in Kirkwall, and left a trail of blood and ashes behind him. He fought with the rebels for a long time, but he split off from them when the Tevinter Magister entered the picture, saying he hadn’t escaped from imprisonment just to submit to slavery.

Lexien is prickly, antisocial, and deeply mistrustful of strangers. On the other hand, he is deeply lonely, still grieves the friends he lost to the war and the rite of Tranquility, and deep down just wants a place to belong. He violently opposes any attempts to re-establish Circles, and remains wary of any sort of authority figures. He has a slight phobia of being touched, and would only enjoy physical contact with a deeply trusted friend.

[thesilentrevolutionoftruth]

And still, ever more, only hate, profit-craving, strife, disharmony, bondage, vice, addiction, revenge and the like rule among the individual humans, among the peoples and even the entirety of humanity, because only few honestly concern themselves with love, peace, freedom, harmony and a valuable living-together for good interpersonal relationships and a creationally correct manner of living as well as for a good and deliberate evolution of the consciousness.

 Out of that, it also results that for the majority of humankind, true love and friendship are only empty and worthless words, and yet only isolated humans are lovingly concerned about the wellbeing of their neighbor.

 Billy:

 Es herrschen unter den einzelnen Menschen, unter den Völkern und gar der ganzen Menschheit nur noch Hass, Gewinnsucht, Unfrieden, Disharmonie, Unfreiheit, Laster, Sucht, Rache und dergleichen mehr vor, denn nur wenige kümmern sich ehrlich um Liebe, Frieden, Freiheit, Harmonie und um ein wertvolles Zusammenleben, um gute zwischenmenschliche Beziehungen und um eine schöpfungsgerechte Lebensweise sowie um eine gute und bewusste Evolution des Bewusstseins.

 Daraus ergibt sich auch, dass für das Gros der Menschheit wahre Liebe und Freundschaft nur noch leere und wertlose Worte sind und nur noch vereinzelt Menschen in Liebe für das Wohl des Nächsten bedacht sind.

 Introduction

This contact report was copied from FIGU Special Bulletin 32.

• Page number(s): Unknown

• Date/time of contact: 18th November 2006

• Translator(s): Dyson Devine and Vivienne Legg

• Date of original translation: Unknown

• Corrections and improvements made: N/A

• Contact person: Ptaah

 Synopsis

Billy and Ptaah discuss Charles Darwin, the Dalai Lama, climate change and its root cause: overpopulation.

This is a small excerpt of the entire contact.

 Contact Report 437 Translation

 An Important Message for the Reader of this Document / Eine wichtige Nachricht an den Leser dieser Schrift [1] We (Dyson Devine and Vivienne Legg of www.gaiaguys.net [2]) have been given permission by Billy Meier (www.figu.org [3]) to make these unofficial, preliminary translations of FIGU material. Please be advised that our translations may contain errors.

Please read this explanatory word about our translations.

 Charles Darwin

 **Lehre der Propheten**Lehre der Wahrheit, Lehre des Geistes, Lehre des Lebens**von** Henoch, Elia, Jesaja, Jeremia, Jmmanuel,Muhammad und Billy (BEAM)**

 http://billybooks.org/

 Nokodemion Presentation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DM_H9y36Btw

 WWW.FIGU.ORG

http://theyfly.com/new-translation-talmud-jmmanuel

http://www.figu.org/ch/files/downloads/buecher/figu-kelch_der_wahrheit_goblet-of-the-truth_v_20150307.pdf

http://www.futureofmankind.info/Billy_Meier/The_Pleiadian/Plejaren_Contact_Reports

https://creationaltruth.org/Library/FIGU-Books/Arahat-Athersata

https://www.theyfly.com/articles-billy-eduard-albert-meier

 Spreading of the Correct Peace Symbol

https://creationaltruth.org/Portals/0/Images/Library/FIGU%20Stickers/Verbreitet%20das%20richtige%20Friedenssymbol-1.pdf

 Ban-Srut Beam - Last Prophet - Line of Nokodemion

[a-shakespearean-in-paris]

Unpopular opinion about each of the companions and advisors from DA Inquisition. Hope it's not too much :)

hmmmm. I can’t think of many unpopular opinions I have for all the companions and advisors, but I’ll try my best. Also, some of these might not be so much as unpopular, but polarizing. 

Cullen: Obvs I have a lot of thoughts about Cullen, and if we’re being honest I think my view of him is different from a lot of other Cullenites. maybe that’s because i write him with a circle mage and the dynamic would be different, or maybe it’s just because i’ve come to the realization I wanted to do things in my slowburn…but for this, I’ll go a little broader and say he was the best choice for the Inquisition’s military advisor. When he was recruited the Inquisition was supposed to reel in the worst excesses of the mage/ templar war, and sticking in a former templar in the Inquisition was a very smart move on Cass’s part. 

Josephine: I don’t like her personal quest. the first time I did it it took forever because I didn’t send Leliana’s assassins. I would like to do it her way,  but because it takes too long….sorry Josie. Assassins get sent.

Leliana: I don’t like it when she tells Cullen in the war room just to stand there and “look pretty.” he’s clearly uncomfortable with being used as “bait,” as he puts it.

Bull: I love him, he’s always on my team, but overall his romance feels a bit like a fling to me.

Dorian: I don’t mind the Cullrian ship, but I bro-tp Cullen and Dorian more.

Sera: It doesn’t sit well with me how she treats a Dalish elf quiz if they’re in a romance.

Solas: If it wasn’t for Solavellan here on tumblr I honestly don’ think I would like Solas that much. except for the breakup scene and what happens in tresspasser, I find his romance…(I’m sorry) kinda lacking. 

Vivienne: I love her, but she can be narrow minded. this is just my opinion of her, but she assumes that because she found out how to climb up the circle ladder, everyone else can too and had a good circle experience. Not true.

Cassandra: I don’t like making her Divine. I don’t think it’s what she really wants, and it feels “right” for my canon to have her try to rebuild the Seekers.

Blackwall: I really do not like the “you have no future with me, we shouldn’t do this,” stuff in his romance and it’s why I can never go through with it. also, cullen exists. 

Varric: Love him in Dragon age 2. I take him everywhere. In inquisition…not so much.

Cole: Always make him more human!