#and closest to arcane warrior

[stromblessed]

Mel 🔆, Viktor 🌌, and Jayce 🔥 symbolism

SUN 🔆

Mel's association with the sun is self-evident and still mostly shrouded in mystery, though her love scene with Jayce is notable, which is overlaid with starry imagery, where her silhouette and her freckled face are compared to the cosmos. The sun is also a star. It's just the star that's closest to Runeterra and has the most influence over the world.

Mel and the Hexcore are the POVs of the scene.

Hexcore and starry imagery is more strongly and consistently associated with someone else, though!

STARS 🌟 / THE COSMOS 🌌

Viktor's blue to purple pipeline is real

But seriously, the starry/swirly shapes point toward distant stars, the cosmos, a galaxy. There is no moon in Viktor's night scenes throughout the season, only stars.

Viktor's character regresses as the season goes on (blue to purple, ready to fall into Shimmer-like magenta as his corruption nears its peak).

His hubris opens him up to some kind of corruption by the Hexcore, or by whatever - or whoever - is using the Hexcore as a gateway, like what Jinx points out. Singed as his mentor plants and encourages the lie that Viktor believes, that he's better off alone and that the ends justify the means.

These perfectly ruinous circumstances lead to him getting Sky killed (Sky like sky blue, like Inspiration, lost as Viktor has lost sight of good in his pursuit of great).

In his running scene, Viktor runs not from left to right, filmspeak for progression - he runs from right to left, as though backstepping.

(And also for the Rocky Balboa reference called out in this brilliant post, but hey, I think it all works)

It's also worth laying the foundation that Viktor is a fantasy interpretation of Nikola Tesla, the Serbian-American inventor who was fascinated with electricity, radio signals, the cosmos, and [REDACTED for another post probably lol]

If you've fallen down the rabbit hole of League lore like I have, you might have picked up that peoples and warriors who are sun-worshipers are (at least anciently) tasked with hunting down and destroying Void beings, who are eldritch beings associated with the distant stars, or are Runeterrans constructed by the Void Watchers trapped between realms. The sun fights against interlopers from other dimensions or celestial bodies.

Mel and Viktor have the same ideas about risk and the nature of progress, and they are both technically foreigners living in Piltover and pursuing that progress - in two very different (but complementary) ways. They are most likely the two characters whose literal bodies are celestial, imbued with the Arcane. Their bodies are most likely augmented with magical metals.

Yet the arcane imagery that seems to accompany them respectively are diametrically opposed - Sun vs. Void, possibly. (Also, purple and yellow/gold are opposite or complement colors on the color wheel.)

Whether they wind up working together or whether they clash (as Viktor loses himself) or if it's a mix of both, I think Mel and Viktor are destined to collide in season 2.

So where does this leave Jayce?

FIRE 🔥

Fire for Jayce means more than one thing. The first thing that should come to mind is the fire of the forge. Creation and industry. The legacy and hard work of his family.

However, his FIRST imagery with fire occurs when Elora says "Speak of the devil" and Jayce is framed in flames at Mel's fundraising party.

He's similarly framed in the flames of a Molotov cocktail on the bridge between Piltover and the undercity with Viktor, after he's just called the people of the undercity dangerous.

What I think we're being shown here are Jayce's choices. He can use his talents and influence for good - creation and industry - or he can use them for destruction and oppression. A hammer can create.

A hammer can also be a weapon, a tool of destruction:

Fire can quickly burn and spread out of control.

Hey look, blue all the way to magenta in one scene!

And if you know his original League lore, the reason why his rivalry with [REDACTED] crosses the point of no return - fire and destruction. Yeah.

Jayce is interesting because his point position in the Mel-Viktor-Jayce trifecta makes it tempting to assign celestial imagery to him, too. However, adult Jayce is only present with Hexcore, star, and sun imagery when he is sharing a scene with Viktor or Mel respectively.

The show makes it a point that Mel and Viktor are the reasons he is the Man of Progress at all:

Note that Jayce in the center of his Man of Progress posters is backed by a gear (Viktor) and the sun (Mel). If Viktor had not intervened in episode 2, Jayce would be dead or disenfranchised. If Mel had not intervened in episode 3, then Jayce AND Viktor would have been kicked out of the Academy if not imprisoned or exiled, and Hextech with Jayce and Viktor at the helm would not exist.

(This is reaching, but I like to interpret that the circle + notches in the gear shape are like Viktor's star symbolism, but even if that's the big reach that I think it is, Viktor is a machinist, engineer, and techmaturgist with Artificer parents - the gear definitely represents him on a meta level)

The imagery that I believe is Jayce's and Jayce's alone is that of fire. He is terrestrial, using magic contained within tools the way he has always wanted to bring Hextech to every household, while Mel and Viktor are influenced by magic on a whole other level.

Sure would be a shame if Jayce found a reason to choose the path of destruction and be corrupted further, diverging from Mel and Viktor's core values

Sure would be a shame if Viktor's personal choices had consequences that radiated out further than season 1 and he gets put on a disastrous collision course with everything that Jayce and by extension Piltover hates and fears

Sure would be stressful for us if Arcane decided to be a Greek tragedy about it

Though possibly the most important piece of this picture is how Mel - gold like the sun, gold that doesn't tarnish or rust, gold that is an excellent conductor - has already faced the abyss and said NO to her own corruption:

It sure would be something for her to have to watch Jayce and Viktor go down a different path, huh

[persephone-s-moon]

Since I have Baldur's Gate 3 brainrot with only a reasonable few hundred hours of gameplay under my belt, here's what I think The Lost Boys classes would be for bg3

(I'm doing bg3 and not dnd bc options are more limited (nice for me) and I do value what little sanity I have left.)

David

Class: Rogue Subclass: Arcane Trickster Notes: I feel like this one's obvious, but for those unfamiliar, the rogue class is known for stealth and deception, as well as thievery due to their lockpicking abilities. In general, rogue characters tend to be very conniving and typically hold their cards close to their chests. The Arcane Trickster sublcass adds some ✨magic✨ to the mix with a handful of spells and cantrips. Theoretically, this Could include some illusion spells. Perhaps for tricking someone into thinking their rice has turned into maggots. (Alternatively, Warlock with the sublcass of The Fiend or Wizard with the subclass of Illusion would also be fitting for David.)

Paul

Class: Paladin Sublcass: Oathbreaker Previous Subclass: Oath of Vengeance Notes: HEAR ME OUT. I like the thought of him with religious trauma. Paladins are inherintly religious warriors (very "I'm here to talk to you about MY savior" although you can't pick a specific god in bg3) with three possible oaths in game: Oath of the Ancients, Oath of Devotion, and Oath of Vengeance. Essentially "vow to fight against darkness", "be a knight in shining armor", and "take justice into your own hands" with a handful of tenets unique to each oath. Realistically, the lost boys could easily break ALL of those oaths in a heartbeat, but I ultimately decided on Oath of Vengence on account of one of the tenets: "No Mercy for the Wicked." I believe friendship counts as mercy, and The Lost Boys are FAR from saints. Also, it'd be poetic for him to die carrying out his old oath after Marko dies :)

Marko

Class: Barbarian Sublcass: Wild Magic Multiclass: Druid Subclass: Circle of the Moon Notes: I bet yall weren't expecting a multiclass! Anyway, Barbarians are heavy hitters that rely on instinct and rage to fight. They're one of the more physically strong classes, especially in comparison to spell casters and Rogues (RIP David). When Wild Magic Barbarians use their rage, they set off a random magical effect. Anything from accidentally shrinking your team members to accidentally turning into a very useless cat is on the table, and that sort of chaos felt right for Marko. A Druid is an elemental spellcaster with the ability to turn into animals, referred to as their "Wild Shape". Circle of the Moon Druids are able to turn into a giant badger, a giant spider, a dire wolf, a normal cat, a polar bear, and eventually gain the ability to turn into an owlbear. (It's considered a monstrosity and not an animal, but in more recent dnd media, The Rule of Cool has changed some general rules.)

Dwayne

Class: Ranger Sublcass: Gloom Stalker Notes: Rangers are skilled scouts and trackers with a deep connection to nature. I almost gave this class to either Paul or Marko, HOWEVER the Gloom Stalker subclass made me think of Dwayne. Gloom Stalkers are ambush-happy attackers with an affinity for darkness and can easily hide themselve in the shadows (if desired. Gods know The Lost Boys are NOT quiet and that includes Dwayne). Honestly, it's the closest one can get to being an Assassin without classing as a Rogue. And all I can think about is Dwayne faking his death near the end of the movie (which is something you can 100% do in bg3).

[boinin]

WIP - Bachisagi + Kunigiri fantasy AU

Someone recently left a really nice comment on this fic of mine, though they were disappointed that it's not likely to get a sequel.

It probably won't anytime in the near future (like.... 1+ years), because there's so many other things I want to write in the meantime. But because in this case I happened to have started a sequel, I'm sharing what's there for that commenter. Dates to around November last year and only lightly edited.

The magic that makes fools of us

Winter was approaching when Meguru decided to bring the wedding up with his travel companions. He smiled warmly at them, watching them bicker and laugh over the burnt stew Rensuke had made over Yoichi’s well-tended campfire. They had only been travelling together a year, and yet with them Meguru felt as if he was home. It was a sensation he’d missed, in his time alone in the Yellow Forest.

They were his friends, all of them, though they didn’t share a long history together. Sometimes the others would descend into manic laughter over something. Rather than skim their surface thoughts, Meguru would prompt whoever was the most composed—Yoichi, usually—to fill him in.

Meguru and Hyouma were the most mischievous, the ones responsible for pranks. The memory of Yoichi’s scandalised face when he’d put worms in his porridge one morning made Meguru grin anew. Hyouma had an even temper most of the time, but he was outrageously competitive—and accomplished to boot. He and Yoichi frequently clashed over what the best action was for the party, and though Yoichi’s patient reasoning usually won out, Meguru appreciated Hyouma’s wit and good-humour.

He and Rensuke were the most different in temperament; the tall warrior was kind-hearted but somewhat stuck in his ways, his convictions as unmovable as his hefty bulk. Meguru understood that Rensuke valued tradition, the tried-and-tested way of doing things... but it still rankled him sometimes. It was men like Rensuke that had ran his mother out of the village, men too closed-minded to accept a different but not wrong way of life. But Meguru had yet to witness that kind of twisted hatred in Rensuke’s heart. The older boy treated him like a younger brother. He was the first to run to his friend’s side anytime they stumbled into danger, and Rensuke would put his sword and body on the line to protect any of them—even Meguru.

It was Yoichi though that Meguru was closest to—the boy with ocean eyes and a mind that never seemed to stop churning. It was that same drive to understand that made him so open to the arcane, evident from the moment he’d stepped into the perimeter of Meguru’s cottage.

In the year since Meguru had travelled to Blue Lough, cured Rensuke and Hyouma of dragonpox, aided Yoichi and his village in nursing the victims back to health, and proposed that the four of them leave the village as an adventuring party, Yoichi had grown capable under Meguru’s tutelage. He could now cast any variety of cantrips, party tricks and basic glamours that had gotten their party out of trouble several times. There, they had begun to diverge: when Meguru pointed Yoichi towards the wizarding institute at Violet City, it had been with a certain sense of loss. Part of him wished that they could grow together in magic, bound by the whispering nature spirits Meguru could conjure with a few soft words.

But among wizards, Yoichi blossomed.

[crediblebombthreat]

Elden Ring DLC Build -- Democracy!

Non-Fromsoft people encouraged to vote. I want to be able to blame as many people as possible.

Considerations for each option:

Dexterity: Lean hard into parries. Do four-digit criticals with the Miséricorde. Ruin people's evenings by being smarter than them in PvP. Probably has the most options of the new weapon types in the DLC (notably the goofiest ones). A lot of people will be playing DEX, so I'm not gonna get hipster points...but I can make up for it by not using katanas. Biggest downside is that

Strength: Dunk with overwhelming force. Scare the shit out of people on elevators. The DLC adds throwing weapons, and one of them is a great hammer that you swing around Super Mario 64 style to throw. Doesn't look like it'll have as many new toys, unfortunately. Might be wrong.

Faith/Intelligence: Notably undercooked archetype in the base game, looking to actually be fleshed out in the DLC. Makes use of most magic systems in the game, but excels at evil stuff (skeletons, evil, curses, etc) and -- paradoxically -- high-utility and holy damage miracles. Kinda' ass in PvP, but that won't mean too much until about a month in; most of the people who play this game panic when they're invaded. The closest I'll willingly go to a mage build, and it's on thin ice -- casting spells is boring, especially considering the new weapon archetypes they're going to drop.

DEX/STR: Allows me to dip my toes in both weapon archetypes and find out what I like the most for my 2nd playthrough. Will probably be great for light greatswords, a new archetype that makes your character move like a warrior princess. Not very exciting, but there's a chance it's the best build for the new martial arts weapon type. In which case it's super exciting!

Dragon Cleric: Ultimate glass cannon build that can nevertheless ruin people's evenings by one-shotting them. Has a suite of offensive options, ranging from "biting really hard" to "vaping in the enemy's face to give them tuberculosis." Has something for basically every situation. Kind of a one-trick pony, though -- it relies on a lot of buffs, and if you don't kill something in like two hits you are basically forced to scoop up your own balls and run.

Arcane Scum: Utilize various status effects to irritate people and boost my damage. Or go bleed and just win. I don't see them nerfing statuses in the DLC, but I really hope they do. It's not even fun using bleed to burst down people and bosses anymore. Can be combined with STR or DEX to make some interesting builds, but they're both scummy in their own ways. Bloody Helice is probably the only honorable weapon to use.

Faith: Faith alone is actually kind of boring, only a few steps up from 😪Mage😪. However, mixing it with DEX or STR is dope. DEX/FAI opens up a lot of lightning options, inluding the absolutely wonderful Bolt of Gransax. DEX/STR offers fire, and has an entire class of incantations designed around it. Faith is flexible, which is great since a lot of enemies have immunity to faith-based damage types (fire, holy, lightning, tax evasion, etc). There are always different options when you make a faith build...and this DLC will offer even more. Really, there are a few too many options, and unfortunately a lack of focus can make Elden Ring exhausting. Since I want to relax and enjoy the DLC, I'd need to pick a few solid weapons and stick with them. Ironically, this is kind of limiting.

[dreadfutures]

2, 3, and 11 from the fandom asks!

Thank you! This is for Dragon Age.

2. a headcanon you weren't sure about at first but have come to like!

Hmmm... There aren't that many that I didn't like/wasn't sure about that have grown on me. Not that I can think of, anyway. The closest thing I can think of is.... I dunno. Maybe that Andraste was an OGB or inherited it? But I was pretty down too lol

3. a character that fandom has helped you appreciate

Probably Vivienne is the most obvious choice. My first playthrough I entirely missed her, and my second playthrough I earned her deep scorn and didn't get to actually see her in her complexity; she keeps things very close to her chest when she doesn't like you. She's definitely one of my top 10 DA characters now, and her relationship to my Inquisitor is one of the most important that I write about most often. I really like her character for how being trapped in an establishment and knowing how to rise through it feels, and how threatening the unknown/change feels in the face of that stability.

11. if you're a writer or artist, what fic or piece of art are you proud of making?

For Dragon Age, one of the fics I'm most proud of is Chrysalid -- my atmospheric tale of how Cillian from the DAI Multiplayer learned the path of the Arcane Warrior.

[tastytofusoup]

I'm generally a person who thinks, 'I don't really have OCs', because I mostly don't go into depth with background and personalities and whatever. But I do have a fair amount of custom characters that I really like, and I do treat them as characters. I make characters, not just avatars for myself, for the most part - especially in mmos.

So I've never done this before, but here's a selection of my favourites:

Essay-length full description section below the cut ↓

ROW 1:

Archmage Tethris

Daddy. Tethris is my WoW Void Elf Arcane Mage. He's also the guy who made me realise, 'yeah, I'd be a Mage in any given fantasy world, wouldn't I'. He's become not only my default main in WoW, and the closest to 'avatar for myself' that I get in the game, but also my default go-to in many other games. Here is Elden Ring Tethris, for example:

Tethris is a very rare example who actually does have lore. He was a professor of the Arcane in Silvermoon, who developed an obsession with the Void, and specifically finding a way to reach the Telogrus Rift. It got to the point where he was locking himself in his study, or traveling, not even seeing his wife and three children. Being fairly well-known and previously well-respected, this was noticed and he started to be thought of fairly negatively as an eccentric.

He did eventually discover the Rift, and a way to access it - which he did! But there was no way back. The other drawback being that in the process, he teleported not only himself, but his entire tower, and connected section of the academy. Luckily for other people, there was a large festival happening that day, so no-one else was taken with him.

Unfortunately for Tethris though, that meant he was trapped alone on some rocks in the Void, until he could find a way back. At least he had his study. He was there for 50 years. During that time, the whole events of Warcraft 3, and Vanilla to Legion WoW occured. He would've found a way back eventually, but it was actually the other elves, now known as the Void Elf faction, with Alleria Windrunner, who enabled him to return to Azeroth. He was there already.

The people who knew him in Silvermoon, including his familly had assumed he'd either killed himself when the tower 'exploded', or he'd simply abandoned them because the Void was all he cared about. He still hasn't reconnected with his children.

He has 2 daughters and a son. Eldessa the eldest is a Paladin, formerly a warrior with the Shattered Hand. Ithrien the son is the middle child. First an Eversong Ranger, then joined his sister in the Shattered Hand, then joined the Sunreavers during the events of Wrath, who he's been with since. He's the one who probably harbours the most resentment towards his father. The youngest is Vysira, and is also someone who is fairly shunned, or at least treated with distrust. She's the temperamental problem child. The main issue is that she was one of the Sunfury Arch Mages, who stayed loyal to Prince Kael'thas until the end. She only rejoined Silvermoon after his death, and those who did are treated as a distrusted lower class.

Tethris's 50 years of solitude, plus that amount of exposure to the Void have addled his mind somewhat, but his Archmage/Professor level of magical strengh, plus the arcane protections of his dwellings preserved his sanity and form for the most part. It did take him a few years though to reacclimatise to Azeroth, the vast changes to the world, and to remember his family. He now knows who his children are in the world, and has some leads on where to find them, but is hesitant. His wife however, sadly died when Arthas attacked Quel'Thalas.

Ella

Ella was my second, and favourite Fallout: New Vegas character. She's a 17 year-old girl, probably latin descent. Grew up as a rancher to the east of Nevada. Her parents were killed, and she learned to fend for herself, using what she knew from farming to become a traveling trader, then courier, only shortly before the events of New Vegas, because supplies for trade became an issue.

She's intelligent, savvy, headstrong, very stubborn, and very easily frustrated and angered. The start of the game fueled her with a lust for revenge, more than any sort of curiosity - that only came a bit later. She was also commonly frustrated with being treated with less respect than she deserved, because of her age.

When she reached Nipton, she found an undelivered set of (modded in) experimental Ranger armour in the first building. She tried it on, and it fit. It disguised her entirely, protected her heavily, and the helmet even included both night and thermal vision. This was the true turning point in her life. The armour gave her the confidence and technical advantages to immediately ambush the Legion forces in the town, and demolish them. She already knew she was a crack shot, but the ease that she took down those men who'd done that to a whole settlement, made her realise she could be a complete badass. So she became one.

The armour also largely fooled the NCR into thinking she was one of them, and she joined them for a while, before realising their own faults, and ultimately figuring out she had the power to take over Vegas herself, and the people would probaly be better off.

Rexi Nebrata

Rexi does not have lore. The essays are basically over. Rexi's just an omega cutie, and since I don't enjoy Final Fantasy XIV, I wish I could port her to other games. I'm so proud of her character customisation. I love her. Bae. White Mage btw.

ROW 2: (I guess this is the Green Alien Girl row. I didn't realise this was becoming a trend.)

Lizrima

Ah Lizrima. Doesn't she also look fucking great though. Boss-ass bitch. Lizrima was my first SWTOR character - my Sith Assassin. Very much a full Dark Side Sith, but is intelligent about it. I was open to picking the very rare light side choice if it made sense to her in a specific situation. Lana Beniko is her future wife, but I've never got further in SWTOR than part-way through Knights of the Fallen Empire. Her lightsaber is double-bladed, green with a black core - just like her. Oh yeah, and she's a former slave. Probably slaughtered her way to freedom one day, I forget if I thought more into it. Maybe that's why the Sith took notice. You can faintly see a scar under her eye, and there's a similar one on her chin, which is hidden by the uh, mask thing. Those are slave brands.

Nalya Va'a

Nalya is my Nautolan Jedi Guardian. Guardian is actually on my list of remaining Class stories to play through. She's only on Nar Shaddaa, so I haven't played her much at all. She's just a big cutie, and that's clearly enough for me.

Myntara Quil

I love her.

I love her so much. I did not know you could love an XCOM 2 character this much, but there she is. Also the nicest picture I've ever taken in XCOM 2.

I don't really need to say any more. Little green cutie who deals more damage than god, and has the movement distance of a high speed train. Tiny girl along for the ride becomes highest ranked XCOM member. Shotgun/Sword user with over 90 aim. 68 kills in 12 missions. Has Gaige from Borderlands 2's voice pack. Like, c'mon. I'm even really proud of her name, I think it's lovely, and really suits her. 💚

ROW 3: (the tiny WoW girl row)

Josie

Josie is a Goblin Assassination Rogue. Literally an assassin/bounty hunter, because I leveled her without quests. I mostly used the RareScanner addon to see where the Rare mobs are around the world, and traveled between them. Not only do they give a lot of XP, but a lot of them I didn't know about, and it took me to parts of the zones you wouldn't normally go to.

Named after a close friend, and is actually lore-friendly for a Goblin. I didn't expect a female Goblin Rogue to become my highest level Horde character, but she currently still is.

Tofie

Tofie's my gnome Priest. I actually used my level 100 boost on her that I got with Legion. She's who I used to run old dungeons and raids for a while for mounts - I unlocked my first rare mount on her, the Drake of the North Wind.

She's another orphan. I'm realising this is a trend. She was raised in Darnassus by the Night Elves and is the only Gnome Priestess of the Moon.

Bleeple

Isn't it fun that all 3 of these names are perfectly passable as Lore-friendly. Bleeple is....an orphan. She, however, was raised in Gadgetzan, mostly by Goblins. She is very much a Gobbo in Gnome form. She's a survival hunter, is bloodthirsty, and loves explosions a little too much. She was actually encouraged to go out into the world as a hunter to keep her away from the town, because she's too much of a liability. Too much of a liability...for Goblins. She's basically Gnome Gaige.

Her appearance is actually what peak performance looks like.

ROW 4:

Myrielle

Man I kind of miss Myrielle. It's a similar case to Ella, in that I can't access their saves. I have the saves, but they're completely reliant on a very specific set of numerous mods, and who knows what that mod selection was. So they're sadly stuck in my memories, and very few pictures.

Myrielle was the Skyrim character I played the most. She was a...

...stealth archer.

But she was cool alright. She also used Gandalf's sword, and an ebony sheld. She was actually primarily a thief, that's what she started as on a core level. So she's the one I played through the whole Thieves' Guild questline on, which was the most enjoyable part of the game. She became a Nightingale. I loved Karliah so much I installed the mod that lets you have Karliah as a companion after the questline's over, and had her with me for the rest of time. That reminds me, I need to add Karliah to my 'voices I could listen to all day' list *chef's kiss*.

Literally everything about Myrielle's base appearance is modded.

Neha Shepard

Neha's the Shep I made for the Legendary Edition. I Just Think She's Neat™. I named her after the Dice Maker from Disco Elysium, who's already on the 'voices I could listen to every day' list.

Maxon Fen

Maxon. Dat boy. I just think I've done a nice job with my SWTOR characters alright? Maxon's my Smuggler.

I'm glad I went back to SWTOR and gave it yet another chance, after vowing in video compilation form to never play it again (that's a good video though). The Smuggler story was legitimately a fun time. Jedi Consular was also decent, but less fun, no real complaints. They didn't drive me up the wall with nonsense and frustration, so that's really the bar for me when it comes to SWTOR. Unfortunately, it's the ones that I recorded that really annoyed me, and not the others.

Anyway Maxon's a lad I guess. A dude.

[lexadovah]

Hero of Ferelden Info Sheet

(Stolen from @dreadhorsegirl )

Basic Details

Name: Astrid Amell

Nicknames: Asta

Pronouns: She/Her

Sexual/Romantic Orientation: Bisexual

Age: 19 at start of events in DAO

Height: 5'5

Build: Slim

Race/Ethnicity: Human-Free Marcher

Skintone: Pale with some freckles on her nose

Hair: Strawberry blond

Eyes: Blue-grey

Game specifications

Class: Mage

Specialization: Primal and Entropy, later on Arcane Warrior

Origin: Circle Mage

Religious Beliefs: Agnostic, later on she becomes more interested in what the Old Gods could be (basically follows Morrigan’s line of thinking) and how this connects to the Fade etc

Major Game Decisions

Love Interest: Alistair

Broken Circle: Mages Supported

The Arl of Redcliffe: Isolde sacrificed for the blood magic ritual, Connor alive and not possessed

Nature of the Beast: Brokered Peace

The Battle of Denerim: Warden killed archdemon & alive and well—Alistair made an Old God Baby with Morrigan

Ruler of Ferelden: Anora

Character Attributes

Timid to Assertive scale:

Timid ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦ ● Assertive

Logical to Emotional scale:

Logical ◦ ● ◦ ◦ ◦ Emotional

Introvert to Extrovert scale:

Introvert ◦ ● ◦ ◦ ◦ Extrovert

Biggest Strength: Fearlessness, not afraid to face anyone head on. Has a very “I’ll do it myself” attitude

Biggest Weakness: Acts without thinking, can come across as careless

Relationship to Family: Doesn’t know who her father is, never met any of her siblings (she’s the youngest of five) and has vague memories of her mother but doesn’t really remember ever feeling safe or loved by her. She has vague memories of her cousins from her childhood and later reconnects with Bethany in the Wardens

Closest Relationships: Jowan and Neria were her best friends during her time in the Circle. She had a relationship with Anders and a mutual crush on Cullen. Alistair and Morrigan during DAO. She was also good friends with Leliana and Zevran by the end of DAO and had mutual respect with Sten.

Core Desire: To have a family and a place to call home

Core Fear: Losing Alistair

Character Arc Theme: finding her place in the world. She’s “too big” for the Circle, she never knew her real family, (besides the Hawkes). She just wants to find her purpose and live happily with her found family

Backstory

Revka had left Kirkwall far behind when she gave birth to Astrid. On a small farm outside of Highever, Revka kept the tiny Astrid strapped to her chest while she tended the gardens and fed the chickens. But when she saw the Templars coming up the road, she disappeared.

The mother and child did not remain in any one place for long after that; she worked where she could to make enough coin to get by, be that collecting herbs for the nights stew in a tavern, or mucking out the stables at a crossroads inn. She never gave her real name, and never let the child spend too much time alone in the company of others.

One stormy night, when Astrid was just five years old, Revka appeared on her cousin Leandra’s doorstep. Tired from running, she hoped to find sanctuary with her estranged family, and remained for a few weeks. Her paranoia kept her at odds with her cousin, and Malcolm Hawke observed that Astrid was already showing signs of magic at an early age—the same as his daughter Bethany. The two young girls were of an age together and became fast friends in that time, the difference being that Bethany was taught to control her magic whereas Astrid was told to ignore it and pretend she wasn’t a mage.

After a heated argument between Malcolm and Revka—in which Malcolm had offered to teach Astrid how to control her powers and Revka forbade him to even look at her child—she disappeared again, Astrid in tow. A few days after this incident, the Templars finally caught up; to Astrid, alone, sitting on the side of the road bundled in nothing but the clothes on her back and a dirty old cloak wrapped about her tiny shoulders. No one ever saw or heard from Revka again.

Her time in the Circle was mostly uneventful. Astrid struggled to make friends and was behind in terms of knowing her numbers and letters. She was adamant that her mother would come back for her, which the other mage children teased her about, as no one’s mother was coming for them.

She eventually made friends with Jowan, a year older than her, who helped her catch up with her reading and writing. She was bunk mates with Neria Surana, who was the closest thing to a sister she had ever known. And despite her early struggles, she had remembered her cousin Malcolm’s words about taking control of your magic and not letting it rule you—she studied hard and gained a firm grasp on her powers, exceeding many other kids her age.

She became defiant as a teenager, asking questions about why they couldn’t be free and finding the rules of the Circle oppressive. She didn’t want to remain in this cage forever and longed for a life outside the Circle walls. Her instructors believed she could be an Enchanter one day, but that just Wasn’t Good Enough. Regardless she started buckling down and studying hard in the hopes of passing her Harrowing and opening opportunities to leave the tower for Circle related business.

It was during this time she felt a rift between herself and her two friends. Neria had become distant, choosing the company of other elf mages, and Jowan was often nowhere to be found. When she did speak with them, they found her constant studying annoying, claiming she was “giving in” to the system.

Astrid was excelling at most schools of magic, but was struggling with healing spells and was soon set up to be tutored by Anders (who was given the tutoring job as a punishment for his latest escapades and a hope to keep him busy). During long hours studying together and her loneliness she started a friends-with-benefits affair with Anders that carried on until he escaped a fifth and final time—but not before she had grasped healing magic enough to take her Harrowing…

[teecupangel]

Imma rant a bit about the Altaïr Armor in Destiny because I'm seeing some comments asking why they picked Warlock when Hunter has a hood and gadgets like throwing knives and smokes.

Anyway, here's the Altaïr Armor (with his toxic bff the Apple of Eden):

Cool, right? They look like they really tried to capture Altaïr's Master Assassin robes using red and white with dark gray color scheme, the asymmetric gloves/bracers showing he only has one hidden blade. throwing knives strapped to his belt...

But there are comments saying that it's not accurate because there's no hood. That they didn't get the Assassin aesthetic right.

But here's the thing.

I don't think Ubisoft and Bungie was going for the Assassin aesthetic, not really.

They were going for a semi-accurate Destiny-version of Altaïr.

(oh god, i'm actually going to defend ubisoft... fuck)

Here are 2 descriptions of the Warlock Class:

Highlights:

... long studied the Traveler, mastering some of its arcane energy

Discovering truth has always driven you into the unknown

Warrior-scholars

If we replace the Traveler with Isu or Apple of Eden, we would actually get an accurate description of Altaïr. He is known as the one who was closest to mastering the Apple (Desmond would have probably mastered it more than him because he has "Bleeding Effect" and "Isu Chosen One" cheat codes on) and his robes are supposed to mimic a traveling scholar so he could blend in. Not only that but he is a true scholar with a passion for knowledge.

He even studied philosophy and quoted Empedocles to Maria in AC Bloodline.

His Codex is a testament to his 'warrior-scholar' title, having both writings of his studies of the Apple and manuscripts that Leonardo Da Vinci would later use to create Ezio dual hidden blades, a hidden gun and poison as well as show Ezio how to perform other assassination techniques. His library was said to have been filled with countless pieces of knowledge, searched by both the Assassin Brotherhood and the Templar Order. He's known as the father of the Modern Brotherhood.

And because I love this line so much, here's a quote of how eloquent Altaïr could be if he's trying to impress someone (Maria)

(This man is a nerd and a jock. I call him an overachiever for a reason.)

This means that, yes, while the Hunter class does have a hood and would have been an easy way for Bungie to create an Assassin robe-inspired armor, I think they made the right call making the Warlock the Altaïr armor.

My opinion is, if Altaïr was in Destiny and given a choice, he would have picked the Warlock class as well.

Not to mention...

"Keep relics related to the Darkness to prevent others from being..." sounds like the Brotherhood's unofficial tenet of "is it a POE? hide it. preferably underground."

(sidenote) If you want to build a Warlock Altaïr in Destiny, my suggestion would be the Sunsinger subclass because:

The sun theme will be funny and ironic considering his descendant died to save the world from a solar flare

It has an AOE damage over time grenade that mimics the Apple of Eden's ability to slowly kill humans

The overall gold color scheme can be compared to the Apple of Eden

Use Radiance only for yourself for pre to mid-AC1 Altaïr, use it for your allies for a late-AC1 to AC: Revelations Altaïr (aka: you can play as "arrogant self-centered Altaïr" or as a "still a bit arrogant but trying to be a team player Altaïr")

Phoenix imagery = bird motif

TL;DR: Ubisoft and Bungie weren't going for an Assassin motif for the Altaïr armor in Destiny. They were trying to recreate Altaïr as a character.

===============

You know who should have had the Hunter armor? OUR BEST BOY! Ratonhnhaké:ton!

(I also think Ezio would have been a good match for the Warlock but, come on, Altaïr deserves some love. Ezio has already been in Fall Guys, Brawlhalla and freaking FORTNITE. CONNOR DESERVES MORE LOVE TOO!)

Ref

2 Destiny wikis:

Destiny Wiki

Warlock

AC wiki:

Assassin's Creed Wiki

[my-dumb-obsessions]

OC Introduction - Cariane Amell

A little OC profile for @thedasincolor's Meet Cute Monday!

Name: Cariane Amell Jahani (after 9:35, Cariane Jahani-Howe)

Featured in: Under Your Command (series, AO3)

Pronouns: She/Her

Origin/Class: Mage

Specialization: Blood Mage, Arcane Warrior, Battlemage

Weapon: Staff of the Lost, Spellweaver

Role: Warden-Commander of Ferelden

Age: (Awakening) 21

Are they inspired by any real world culture? Carie is mixed/biracial. Her mother, Revka Amell was a (white) Marcher and her father, Cyrus Jahani is (black) Rivaini. She identifies far more strongly as Rivaini, which in my personal HC Rivain has elements of Afro-Caribbean, West African, and MENA depending on the region.

What characters are they closest to? Anders, who was her big brother in the Circle; Zevran & Sten, her besties in Origins (ooh, did she surprise Sten when she greeted him in Qunlat!); Nathaniel Howe, her eventual husband.

Do they have any rivals? She and Wynne do not see eye-to-eye.

Did they romance anyone? In-game, she romanced Alistair. In her story, he broke up with her at the Landsmeet and married Anora. She and Nathaniel end up falling in love during the events of Awakening.

What is your favorite headcanon about them? Vigil's Keep is a not-so-secret haven for mages and apostates. Mage Wardens make up 40% of their ranks (12 of 30) a year after Awakening. As Warden-Commander, she mandates that any former Templar who survives the Joining is required to quit lyrium. Yeah, the Chantry hates her.

Are they friendly? She is guarded and professional until you get to know her. But she is incredibly loyal to her friends and anyone she cares for. Once you're in with her, you're family.

What is the happiest ending you can think of for your character? All the ambient magic present due to the Breach allowed her and Nate to (accidentally) get pregnant in 9:41. She resigns as Commander and they move to Rivain to be near her remaining family (her father and older sister, who survived Dairsmuid). Having a child they want to be there for inspires her and Nate to find a cure for the darkspawn taint, which they do with Avernus's help.

[lairofdragonagelore]

Analysis and speculation of Statues: Razikale Ceremony and Dumat’s Warrior tablets

Making a small room for speculation, I want to try to analyse what or who are depicted in them, why they share similarities with an elvhen stone? why these appear in Tevinter related buildings but also in Elvhenan ones?

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

Where do they appear?

Razikale tablet called by me as Razikale Ceremony appears in all these places:

First time we see it is during the Old Chantry Trail Signs, where we can read a note telling us it's a ceremony made by Razikale's worshippers. Sadly the note has no author so we can’t truly appraise the reliability of this information.

In Coracavus; Front Corridor and South Entrance, close to where the Colossus is, we find an arranged set of lids that looks like an altar to worship the two images. The armoured man is central, while the other two lids flanks it.

In Coracavus, inside the Records Room, we find an object of decoration made with these lids in the middle of the chamber.  There are also some coffins with this lid in the corners of the same room.

In the Still Ruins,  Viridis Walk and Inner Sanctum, where we can see both tablets as decorations along the garden.

In a northern rampart of the Exalted Plains, the closest one to the Citadelle du Corveau, we can find both lids at the sides of the entrance of a small Tevinter tower, in the same part where a dead pit is located that allowed the rising of an Arcane horror.

In the deepest part of Din'an Hanin, Elandrin’s Tomb we find two coffins with this lid, placed symmetrically along the chamber of Elandrin's Tomb. Each coffin is in front of three Dragon Mythal statues.

Inside Suledin keep, as decorations of a section of the fortress: we find these lids fused into the stone wall. It's like a welcome-chamber before heading into the deepest part of the fortress Suledin. Here, both figures, Razikale’s priest and Dumat’s warrior, appear one beside the other or facing each other.

In the Hissing Wastes at the Venatori main camp. As lids for coffins, they are found inside of what looked like an ancient temple long ago forgotten. Lids are spread on the ground around Tevinter Artefacts too.

At the Swamp Kulsdotten, also in the shape of coffin lids, decorating parts of the path, or in corners of the Swamp where we can see piles of old and new bodies. It's implied that human sacrifices have been performed in this place.

Inside Razikale’s Reach, where we find coffins of both designs beside the generators of energy that will allow us to weak the ice that blocks the Frozen Gate.

Inside the Frozen Gate in the Frostback Basin. They are presented as lids of several coffins. There are some skeletons inside these coffins.

Dumat’s warrior tablet, called by me as Horned warrior holding a sword appears in most of the places where the previous one appears, but there are some exclusive places where only this one exists

In Coracavus;  Front Corridor and South Entrance, close to where the Colossus is, we find an arranged set of lids that looks like an altar to worship the two images. The armoured man is central, while the other two lids flanks it.  At the South entrance, we can also see the image of this warrior in the main altar, with benches in front of it as if it was placed in a high place of worship.

In Coracavus, at the corners of the Records Room, we find some coffins with this lid.

Inside the cells of Coracavus;  Guard’s Hall and  Holding Cells, where we find some coffins in front of a sacrificial altar.

Inside the Still Ruins, Hall of Silence, we find this figure in the middle of it, being central of the chamber called "Hall of Silence" [reason why I've been suspecting this is a personification or a representation of Dumat or a warrior in his name.]

In the Still Ruins,  Viridis Walk and Inner Sanctum, where we can see both tablets as decorations along the garden.

In a northern rampart of the Exalted Plains, the closest one to the Citadelle du Corveau, we can find both lids at the sides of the entrance of a small Tevinter tower, in the same part where a dead pit is located that allowed the rising of an Arcane horror.

Inside Suledin keep, as decorations of a section of the fortress: we find these lids fused into the stone wall. It's like a welcome-chamber before heading into the deepest part of the fortress Suledin. Here, both figures, Razikale’s priest and Dumat’s warrior, appear one beside the other or facing each other.

In the Hissing Wastes at the Venatori main camp. As a form of lids for coffins, they are found inside of what looked like an ancient temple long ago forgotten. They also appears at the sides of the entrance of this place.

In Flemeth’s Fade, we find the lid in front of a device contaminated with Red Lyrium. The lid is fused with a stone. At its back, there is a smaller lid with the same figure.

At the Swamp Kulsdotten, also in the shape of coffin lids, decorating parts of the path, or in corners of the Swamp where we can see piles of old and new bodies. It's implied that human sacrifices have been performed.

Inside Razikale’s Reach, where we find coffins of both designs beside the generators of energy that will allow us to enter the Frozen Gate.

Design

Razikale Ceremony

This is the tablet with more details. According to the note we are given, it represents a ceremony to Razikale. The reliability of this information is a bit questioned by me, specially because we are not informed about the author of this bit of information and because parts of these designs may end up being linked with elvhen. 

In general, the idea we get of the whole composition is that we have a hierarchy system: warriors are below a group of high priest of this god, who are also below a main priest. This pries is a woman with some link to a symbol of a sun, and gives a strange skull as an offering. 

If we go bit by bit: 

The skull, if we take into consideration the mosaics of DAI, quickly brings to our mind the idea of qunari sacrifice [the part of the face in the skull looks like it belonged to a humanoid and not to a dragon]. However, we see that there are some additions on the upper part: a pair of antlers. They look like a pair of bug  antlers or a pair of small vines. It gives a soft vibes of  The Horror of Hormak. The object floating in between them is not clear: it may look like a heart, a rhomboid, a diamond-gem, or a head of a spear.

Behind this female priest we see a Sun, or at least a semi-circular figure with pointy extensions that may look like sun rays, but at the same time, it would look like as spear heads. this design reminds me a lot the DAO Chantry version, where its sun was designed as if it were thorns or a device of torture: 

However, it’s not the same and, as it belonged to DAO, I don’t think we can trust it. DAO design doesn’t hold well in general with DAI’s. What I can say with some degree of certainty is that I didn’t see such design of a spiky sun in any other part of DAI. 

Since the name of the main priest of Razikale is called Augur of Mystery, there is a chance that this woman, so central and on top of everyone, may represent her. I personally don’t like much these titles because their source is the Canticle of Light, in particular, Silence, which was written by Archon Hessairan almost 200 years after the event it describes. I am not too confident to assume that these titles may be all accurate. It’s also true that they hold for Corypheus and Architect, so that’s why I keep it in here and I don’t remove it completely. It seems quite curious that Tevinter, so brutal against the Alamarri, Avvar and Chasind, would use a word so iconic of the Avvar culture: augur are  the main mage of a hold. This also brings me so much mistrust. 

The priest, this potential Augur, is wearing a mixture of robe and armour but I can’t identify it similar to anything in game so far. Clearly it doesn’t look like similar to the usual leather armours that the Augurs wear.

Below her, we see 12 figures that look like mages. 

They have a dragon-head staff in their hands, that seems to be scepters of Razikale, which description seems to confirm this image

The ancient priesthood of Razikale, Old God of Mystery, once carried staves like this one as badges of office.

This detail adds some confirmation to the idea that this tablet represents priests of Razikale. They are wearing hats that look like a shorter version of the Divine's hat. They also wear capes.

If we see the coffin version, we realise that these figures are not 12 in total but 16, since 4 of them appear at the sides of the border of the lid.

The last figures in this hierarchy are three soldiers with shields and swords. I could not relate the shield with any symbol we saw in the game. These soldiers are going to be key in linking other figures but they are impossible to be guessed.

Armoured Warrior [of Dumat?]

The other figure on the lid is more prominent than the Razikale ceremony.  It uses two thirds of the lid. The same space that the skull, the priest ,and the worshippers used in the other lid, here is totally dominated by the single warrior. He seems to be higher than the general warriors as well if we consider this configuration as a way to understand hierarchy. 

His helmet has a plume sprouting upwards, and two small twisted horns. The face of the helm shows a long shape, a bit dragony if we will. The armour and sword have no details that could be worth checking.

His body rests on a platform similar to the one where we saw the 12 priests in the Razikale Ceremony's case. Bellow this written platform, we can see the three typical soldiers.

There is a variation of this lid, presented in the middle of decorations such as Coracavus;  Front Corridor and South Entrance or in the  Hall of Silence in the Still Ruin, or in the Fade in front of a Tevinter device infected with red lyrium. This variation only shows the figure from top to half his thighs. The rest of the statue is usually stone written in a language hard to see in detail.

Both tablets/lids usually appear in places of worship or in places where sacrifices must be performed. They appear exclusively in Tevinter-related buildings with the exception of Sulevin. It’s not clear if in this case it was an addition incorporated by Tevinter after the fall of the elvhen empire or was part of the original construction. At first I was more inclined for the co-opt explanation, but at the end of this post it will be clear why I end up suspecting these tablet were always part of the elvhen architecture.

Another odd place where one of these tablets appear is in the Elandrin's tomb, but I think it's understandable to suppose that, since it's a ruin of Ancient Dalish, who gathered a lot of statues that not necessarily were elvhen, these ancient Dalish may have added these elements later.

As a note, I tried to make a comparison of this warrior tablet with the elvhen painting of the Armoured figure [Nation Art: Elvhen], but I did not find relevant similarities that were not forced or too obvious due to the nature of comparing two dudes with armour.

So far to this point, considering the repetition of these tablets, with a really small amount of exceptions, it seems safe to assume that these figures were mostly original to Tevinter and exclusively related to gods [we assume Old Gods because it’s Tevinter]. However, I found out with surprise that, in fact, they may be originally related to Elvhen, being co-opted later by Tevinter, as usual.

Why do I say this? Because the inscription of Solasan.

Where do we find this tablet?

Only in three places:

Beside the entrance of Solasan Temple in the  Forbidden Oasis, and inside of it.

In several burials around Hissing Wastes, related to Fairel tomb

And in Trespasser, every time we have to solve a puzzle related to a Sitting Fen'Harel statue: the puzzle of the Veilfire in the Forgotten Sanctuary, the puzzle of the Veilfire in the Scholar’s retreat, and in the Unknown Ruin, in the Deep Roads, where we find the mural of the Titan. In all cases, this tablet appears giving us instructions to solve the puzzle.

The link of this stone to Elvhenan seems reliable since it appeared in the Crossroad [a place of Elvhen creation, not the Fade, so it should not “reflect” the reality of the Waking World]. However, the only place where it seems to have been used as an asset is in the Fairel's burials in the Hissing Wastes. But even if that were the case, it seems to be a lot of misuse since these stones appears in each column where we read the story of Fairiel, and in another opportunity, the stone itself is described as a tablet where we can see Fairel and his two sons, which is clearly not the case [Hissing Wastes: Fairel tomb].

Putting aside that strange misuse of this object as an asset, I think we can immediately relate this tablet with the Razikale Ceremony and Horned warrior holding a sword thanks to the soldiers: they are the same exact soldiers depicted in the previous tablets. Instead of being three below the priesthood of Razikale or below the armoured warrior, here, we find six of them in the upper part of the tablet. This is a tablet where these soldiers are the main hierarchy.

Other details worth mentioning:

It has a series of overlapped triangles at the left side of the tablet.

There is a swirl that looks like those we saw in Dragon Mythal statue or in Howling Fen'Harel statue.

I think the letters are similar [but not the same] to the ones we found on those circular stones inside the courtyard of Mythal's Temple, but different to the letters found in the tablets of Razikale Ceremony and Dumat’s Warrior. But I can’t say it with much trust since the images get pixeled when I zoom in. If this were the case, it would mean a co-opt: Tevinter taking elvhen objects and re-adapting them to Tevinter taste.

There is a fragment of a “rudimentary glyph”, depicting two circles, and some triangles. These glyphs seem to have some distant similarity with the diagrams we see in the murals with the black hallas stained with red. 

In the upper right side of the tablet, there is a symbol that seems to be a "crappy" sun with eight spikes, design we find in elvhen [Elvhen doors, asterisk Symbol in floor mosaics, crappy sun pattern] and Tevinter design [mostly in their architecture with eight spikes. In objects seems to be six]. It could also mean a seed with thorns too. It’s a very curious symbol for me since each group in Thedas seems to have a lot of religious symbology with the Sun itself.

In conclusion

Who are they? The Razikale Ceremony tablet seems to depict Razikale priesthood, showing a woman as a High Priest. She seems to offer a Qunari sacrifice. The only information that has given us this lead is a note without author in a hidden cave in Western Approach, a bit confirmed by the description of the Scepter of Razikale. The reliability of this information is unknown.

The armoured man’s tablet is hard to guess. The only lead we have is The Hall of Silence in The Still Ruin, name that may suggest a relationship with Dumat who is the Old God of Silence. In Still Ruins, in the small altar we find in the corridor as well in the garden, this warrior shows a central position in these settings, implying importance. If he is not a humanoid representation of a God, he may be an important figure of ancient Tevinter. The reliability of this information is very weak since it's only based on settings and configurations inside Tevinter buildings.

The set of soldiers are completely unknown to me. They link the three tablets, but I can't say anything else about them. the symbols they wear can’t be found in any other object, so we don't have leads for them.

[uranium235s]

sorry for being some insane kind of freak but i love your dragon age art unbelivably much (where are all the beautiful transgender people bioware i know they exist) and your lore seems really cool have you written it down somewhere? sorry if you havent i just really think your stuff is cool asf thanks

I LOVE INSANE FREAKS I AM ONE MYSELF PLLYTYRUGGYH thank you for asking I can definitely explain my ocs and their lore and will do so gleefully in fact, don't have it written down anywhere but my brain so this is my chance

probably needlessly long-winded lore below the cut

SOMNIAR

Somniar is an elven mage! he was born in the Mahariel clan, but when he was very young and began to show signs of magic, he was left behind in the Denerim Alienage because the clan had too many mages. He was briefly taken in by the Surana family, but a few years later the alienage gave him to the circle where he then grew up in its walls.

Surprisingly I have thought about his relationship with Jowan despite the fact that he's a bit one-off 💀 I think Somniar grew really attached to him and was basically his shadow for the first several years that he arrived there. when he realized he was trans, Jowan gave him all his hand-me-downs so he could wear the male robes because that was almost assuredly something he could not petition the templars for.

When Jowan escaped the circle, Somniar was blasé about being kicked out and conscripted. he found it better than the alternative (tranquility) and therefore went along with it just fine. He had deeply conflicting feelings about actually being a warden, having been raised by the circle to believe that he was uniquely prone to corruption, he worried that becoming tainted was something that would make him unclean or more susceptible to the thralls of evil magic. He didn't really cope with this fear until him and Alistair became truly isolated in their wardenhood after the massacre at Ostagar and he realized he had to be this way regardless, so there was little point in being emo about it.

At Ostagar, he reconnected with another new warden recruit from his birth clan named Sylric who belongs to an IRL friend of mine! Sylric is the one who gives Somniar his vallaslin and helps him reconnect with the Dalish :)

basic overview of his game choices:

• Romanced Alistair

• Travelling party is Leliana, Zevran, and Alistair

• Specializations are arcane warrior and spirit healer :)

1. Saved the circle and rejected the rite of annulment

2. Killed the demon, saved Connor, kept isolde alive, and vied for Jowan to not be executed

3. brokered peace between the Dalish and the werewolves, cured the curse

4. killed Branka, elected Bhelen

5. did not defile the ashes. obviously

6. Kept Alistair in the Wardens, elected Anora as queen, allowed Alistair to execute Loghain

7. asked Alistair very nicely to do the dark ritual

8. SURVIVED!!!!

His post canon is defined by being warden commander at Alistair's side until the events before DAI drove them in differing directions, physically, though as they intended to return to each other. However, in the events of DAI is left in the Fade, so that obviously can't really happen.

After the loss of his husband, Somniar takes a brief trek back to Ferelden with intent of invoking some kind of revenge on the inquisition but is stopped by Advisement of Leliana (who saw this coming)

After this, Somniar goes out on his lonesome and camps at various locations over, sleeping and exploring the Fade, and remains in this constant asleep state until he has a vivid and extremely depressing fade dream (which I have written about :) ) that brings him out of it. Afterwards, he heads to Antiva to travel with his closest friends, Zevran and Sylric <3

HAWKE

Honestly my hawke isn't very complex?? lore wise I think what the game presents is accurate, but im of the opinion that as he got older he became the black sheep of the family, exacerbated by Bethany dying. copes by humor and escapism but is constantly brought back down by The Neverending Agony

my Hawke's complexities are based on his relationships with the others and less on the events that besiege him though, I'd feel bad writing out an entire list of relationship Diagnostics so I will say that:

His most close-knit and authentic relationships are with Aveline, Varric, and Fenris, most complicated (but loving still) are Anders & Carver, and the rest of the companions being his close friends that don't really get to see his most personal side. Except Sebastian who is genuinely this man's arch nemesis.

Overview of my game choices:

• Romanced Anders

• Travelling party is Anders, Varric, and Fenris

• Specializations are Blood mage and spirit healer

• Purple personality mainly, w/ secondary blue :)

1. Carver became a grey warden

2. Duelled the Arishok to save Isabela

3. Helped anders compile the ingredients with pretty much no questions asked 💀

4. Sided with the mages. obviously.

Bonus, Legacy - 5. Sided with Larius to kill Corypheus

6. (DAI) Survived the fade

Post-Fade, Hawke meets up with Carver and Anders to ensure their safety before travelling back to Kirkwall. He is all too happy to tease Varric about being Viscount but gladly helped in furthering the rebuilding effort while thinly obscuring Anders continued existence

FIRUZ

my sweet Dalish mage. Firuz absolutely loved life with his Clan. He was extremely close and familiar with his Keeper above even his own parents, and was basically the clan babysitter. Because of his incredible patience and chaos management, the clan elected him to be the one to watch over the Divine Conclave, much to his dismay.

His vallaslin are of June, the elven God of craft, which fits him well :) despite his magic, Firuz always has a higher affinity for mending and crafting things the old fashioned way. while in Skyhold (less so in haven) he spends his free time crafting armor for his travelling companions and aiding in weapon crafting, which he is admittedly a little bit less good with. He absolutely adores Dalish leather and wood weaving but finds less time to commit to it while leading the inquisition :(

Game choices:

• Romanced Dorian

• Travelling party is Dorian, Cassandra, and Varric

• Specialization is rift mage :)

• War table missions mostly used Josephine and Lelianna

1. Allied with the mages

2. Left Alistair in the Fade :(

3. Kept the Wardens in Ferelden to rebuild

4. Brought Celene and Briala back together and had them rule Orlais as a duo (mostly)

5. Drank from the Well Of Sorrows (hence why his hair turned white 💀)

6. (Trespasser) vowed to stop Solas by any means necessary

7. (Trespasser) Disbands the inquisition

After the events of the main game, Firuz mostly spends his time hunting dragons and taking care of the remaining rifts around the south. He spends a lot of time recuperating from an absolute horror show of a hero's journey, and returning to passions he lost along the way. Firuz starts the game as quite overwhelmed and jumpy about his situation and by the end has mostly entered a state of numb depression. At no point does he take well to being the leader or the hope of the people.

In the few weeks before Trespasser where Dorian has returned to Tevinter "temporarily", Firuz takes as an opportunity to finally return to his Clan, at least for a brief visit. These few days really heal something in him, and give him a deceptively good feeling about the future, which is almost immediately destroyed by the events of Trespasser.

After losing his arm and his partner, he spends a lot of time running Jenny business with Sera, and travelling to visit his friends who have thus scattered to the wind. In particular, he makes good on Varric's offer to come visit in Kirkwall and spends many weeks there overseeing the rebuilding effort and spending time with Varric, Hawke and company. Alongside this, he stays with his Clan long term. Occasionally, he sneaks to Tevinter if permitted, but never for more than a few days. I'm so excited for what horrors DA:D will inflict upon his short-lived peace

SORRY FOR SO MANY WORDS I CANT HELP MYSELF

[thatyellowfinch]

Literally only have like two friends in the fandom so I'm gonna share these here

I made my two main playthrough protags in Hero Forge. More about them under the cut.

Valek Tabris: Rogue (assassin/duelist/shadow). Romanced Morrigan, best friends with Alistair and Zevran, killed Loghain himself but made Anora queen cause he knew Alistair didn't want it.

Greer Hawke: Mage (spirit healer/force mage) and a purple Hawke. Romances Fenris, left Carver in Kirkwall so he became a templar. Killed Anders bit obviously sided with the mages.

Amarantha Lavellan: Mage (knight enchanter. Modded to have a battle axe weapon). Romanced Cullen. Went to the templars but forced them to join rather than have them as true allies. Best friends with Dorian, Cole, and Bull. Major elven history buff. Disbanded the Inquisition and vowed to stop Solas any means necessary.

Alara Surana: Mage (blood mage/arcane warrior/shapeshifter). Romanced Zevran. Tried and failed to save Jowan resulting in him being sent back to the circle. Sick of the world resulting to eye for an eye revenge she spares Loghain and makes him a warden, putting Alistair and Anora on the thrown. Headcanon that she's not just searching for a cure for the Calling but also Tranquility.

Gwyneth Hawke: Rogue (assassin/shadow). Romanced Merrill. Left Bethany in Kirkwall so she became a circle mage. Extremely supportive of mage rights. Considers herself responsible for the safety of all those around her. Killed Anders but obviously sided with the mages.

Rana Lavellan: Rogue (assassin). Romanced Solas. Went to the mages, forming a true alliance with them. Finds elven history fascinating but ultimately pointless in everyday life, cares more for her people's future than their past. The ultimate mom friend. Closest to Dorian, Cole, Bull, Varric, and Blackwall. Disbanded the Inquisition and vowed to save Solas from himself (but I headcanon that if it does come down to it and she realizes she can't save him she will stop him whatever means necessary).

[crow-of-ferelden]

Glasya Surana

[glah-see-yah]

age: 23

height: 5'3"

class: mage

specialization: arcane warrior & spirit healer

romance: Alistair

race: elf (half dalish, half city elf)

Glasya was brought to the Circle of Magi at a young enough age to forget her mother's face, but not her name. Born in the Denerim alienage, her early childhood was largely mundane until she showed signs of magical prowess. Ultimately, her mother, who had grown increasingly ill in a short time, had her taken to the Circle to avoid an already rocky relationship with the only Dalish tribe she knew.

At the Circle, Glasya became known for her intensity and ambition. She was a serious apprentice, spending all her time studying and trying to learn as much as she could. Her sight was set on the title of First Enchanter. This ambition, and a talent for elemental magic, caught the attention of First Enchanter Irving who kept a close eye on the young girl for most of her studies. Over time, Irving grew fond of Glasya, championing her talents to anyone he could while subtly dropping books he thought she'd enjoy near where she spent her time in the library. Glasya would later call the First Enchanter the closest thing she had to a father figure and expressed great gratitude for his support of her endeavors.

Jowan was a mage she was reluctantly associated with. She disliked his work ethic and honestly found him annoying but couldn't help herself when he would beg and plead for help with various tasks. Other than he, Glasya had few friends in the Circle. Most found her ambition to be somewhat frightening, some spread rumors that she'd never genuinely smiled, none were shocked when her Harrowing went as well as it did. For her, the next logical step was to continue her path towards First Enchanter.

At least until the Blight threw a wrench in everything she had planned. Becoming a Grey Warden was terrifying for Glasya but she swallowed that fear and went into her Joining stone-faced. When she met Alistair, she regarded him as one would an eager puppy. He found her cold but saw glimpses of something potentially softer, usually in her interactions with the mabari (as she had decided there was nothing fearful about them). The betrayal at Ostagar brought them closer and they swore to stay by each other's side to stop the Blight and rebuild the Grey Wardens.

Morrigan was another story. From the beginning, Glasya was intrigued by the witch that proudly denounced her Circle home. The two grew close, bonding over shared stories and magic knowledge. It took some warming up to on both sides but both eventually came around. In fact, it's said that the first time Glasya truly laughed with the party was around the fire with Alistair and Morrigan. Neither was clear as to just what garnered such a joyful reaction from their otherwise stoic leader, but both were grateful for the sound. Alistair swears it was in the moment he decided he would do anything to hear that sound again.

Leiliana would complete their found family, though the others would leave their own lasting impact on Glasya's life. The two would sit by the fire for hours as Leiliana told stories and Glasya tried her hardest to avoid drifting off. Leiliana was her trusted confidante when she found herself too embarrassed to tell Morrigan things but she mostly regarded her for the interesting life she'd led up until that point. Having lived primarily in the Circle, Glasya adored her tales of Orlais and life as a bard. The two swore to one day visit Orlais together and enjoy all of the comforts of high society.

The group suffered through thick and thin together but none found themselves closer than Glasya and Alistair. At first, she didn't realize that she was only truly at ease in his company. Perhaps it was the consistency of his presence when so much else was awry, or perhaps is was his upbeat charm and ability to make light of every situation they were in. Either way, she inevitably realized she was falling in love with him. It took some nudging from Morrigan and Leiliana but eventually the pair talked over their feelings and quickly became inseparable. While Glasya found no real necessity in it, Alistair swore they would be married when the archdemon had been defeated.

And defeat the archdemon they did. Ultimately, Glasya supported Anora's claim to the throne and allowed Alistair the satisfaction of killing Loghain (though she was prepared to do so herself). She requested the Circle be freed as a boon but otherwise set her sights back on the rebuilding of the Grey Wardens. After all, the Grey Wardens were her everything now and her ambition wouldn't let her rest until she'd served them in every way she could.

General Trivia:

She earned the nickname "Tiny Terror" among the warden recruits (though they'd never dream of saying it to her face) for her stature next to Alistair and her continued intensity in all aspects of life

Her mabari's name is Draugr and she loves that dog more than anything. She tells Alistair this often.

Occasionally, because her mage status was often scrubbed from public records, people will regard Alistair as the Hero of Ferelden. He would laugh and say, "oh no, it's my wife you're looking for," after which Glasya would march out from behind him.

[herald-divine-hell]

For information on each school, I shall provide a brief description.

The Healing Church: Founded under the First Vicar of the Healing Church, Lawrence, an old student of Brygenwerth, under Master Willem, the Healing Church would later become the main ruling vessel of Yharnam, thanks to their mystical healing blood, rumored to heal almost any disease.

The Vilebloods of Cainhurst: An ancient nobility in the lands of Yharnam, the Vilebloods of Cainhurst are all sworn to the immortal Queen of Cainhurst, Annalise. When one of their members stole some of the old blood from Brygenwerth, the Healing Church and their associates would deem theirs impure and a threat to blood ministration. They would later declare an almost eternal war against Cainhurst and their eternal queen.

The League: Founded under Valtr, the Beast Eater, the League is sworn to cleanse the lands of Yharnam clean of beasts, at any cost.

Byrgenwerth College: The progenitor of almost all major factions in regards to the study of the Great Ones. Under the tutelage of Master Willem, the College of Byrgenwerth and its students would find remnant ruins of the Pthumerian Labryinth and with it a holy medium, that would become the staple of the study of the Great Ones and to transcend to their plane of existence - Old Blood. Differing philosophical understanding lead to the departure of Laurance, Gehrman, and Micolash from the College, all founders by their own right of major factions in the Bloodborne universe. The college would later be responsible for the likely assault and slaughter of the Fishing Hamlet and its residents, all in the search for the rumored presence of a washed up Great One.

The School of Mensis: Founded, likely, under the scholar known as Micolash, a possible old student of Mister Willem. The School of Mensis aided in the research of the Healing Church, at least initially. The closest descended kin of Brygenwerth, the School desired to replicate the success of Mister Willem, by turning an individual into a Great One, just as Mister Willem had done with the Vacuous Spider Rom. Or, at least, what they assumed was a Great One. The school harbored, and likely help torture, the infant Great One known as Mergo, the child of Queen Yharnam of the Pthumerians, whose wails drew in the focus of the Great Ones.

The Old Hunters: Founded under Gehrman, the First Hunter, the Old Hunters and the Old Hunter Workshop was originally the military arm of the Healing Church, during its infancy. Hidden in secrecy, the Old Hunters were charged with seeking out and slaughtering any monster born from the Scourge - the overuse of the Old Blood that infected those who took it. With his famed apprentice Maria, whom Gehrman had a peculiar "affection" for, Gehrman and his hunters would later be replaced by the Powder Keg Hunters, and later the Holy Hunters of the Healing Church, led by Holy Blade Ludwig. With the departure of Gehrman, after he is sealed away by the Moon Presence for almost seemingly eternity, and the death of Lady Maria, the Old Hunters and their workshop would be sealed away by the Choir, the new heads of the Healing Church after Laurance.

The Holy Hunters: The new arm after the abolitionment of the Old Hunters founded the First Hunter Gehrman, the Holy Hunters would be lead by the famed hunter known as Ludwig, the Holy Blade, a descendant of famed chivalric warriors. Unlike the Old Hunters, the Holy Hunters would readily charge and lead the Yharnmanites with participation of the Hunts, which became violent, bloody affairs. They remain even after Ludwig is taken by the Nightmare, growing more terrible and beastly with the low whispers of the arcane Holy Moonlight Greatsword.

The Research Hall of the Astral Clocktower: Famously led by the valiant Lady Maria of Cainhurst, the Research Hall were the initial researching hub for the Healing Church during its infancy, as at the time the Healing Church believed the Great Ones were linked with the ocean, where the first known Great One had been found. After the massacre at the Fishing Hamlet, in which Gehrman and Maria terribly assaulted the Fishing Hamlet, to desiccate the inside of their braisn for eyes, Maria would take charge of the Research Hall, where individuals were experimented on and studied, all in the hopes to find glimpses of internal eyes and the old secrets of the Great Ones. Yet the experiments failed, and though Maria truly did love and care for her charges, she grew distant, heavy from the guilt about Kos, the Orphan, and the Fishing Hamlet, and with that distance the charges would slowly grow mad, designating themselves as failures.

[husband-steve-cortez]

Yeah, it says creation magic takes more finesse than the other schools, and while I don't think Alim is at all lacking in finesse I will put that forth as the reason he's not as good at it.

Not that like. Dragon Age really pushes you to specialize that much, you can dip your toes into everything and get what spells you want, I just thought it would be a neat oc thing to give my warden things he's better or worse at because I see other people do that lol.

Some even go for elemental specialization, and I lean towards Alim having the greatest mastery over cold and fire, but really elemental devastation, "the arts of war", are what he was already most skilled at (one of the reasons Irving thought he'd be suited for the wardens) and he really hones these skills during the blight.

Looking at the creation spell list...I think gameplay wise I like glyph of paralysis, but while I like the concept of glyphs I'm not married to Alim being able to draw them. (In my mind, for no particular reason, I think of glyphs as probably being the closest to primal magic so they're a little easier for him, and I've thought of Wynne helping him master it). Grease would have its uses...

I'll give Alim basic healing of wounds but he's not very good at it and an especially bad wound he could only like, just keep it from being non-fatal before it needs to be bandaged. (I suddenly really like for angst purposes that he's good at draining health to heal himself using blood and entropy magic but he's not good at generating healing for others).

Good at spirit, can do basic magic dispelling, telekinesis and death trees. (I think Alim took to offensive arts to fight off demons in particular; he's better at telekinesis and crafting powerfully dense forcefields than creating proper barriers/spellshields).

And...I like him with all the entropy spells tbh. For balance I may skip out on the hexes, useful as they are, and I'd say Alim is not paralyzing or putting anyone to sleep in an aoe way (well, not without blood magic, but blood wound is different than mass paralysis or sleep and is effective on fewer targets), but weakness, paralysis, disorient and horror are some subtle magics I think he knows on the sly and utilizes to pass some of the more egregious intimidation checks, and I think he can put a single person to sleep (though it's easier with blood magic, and in my mind completely different in principle though the effect is similar).

Drain Life through Death Cloud just because Death Cloud is too badass, though I also think of him as learning some of those after leaving the circle.

And of course Arcane Warrior, Blood Magic, and Shapeshifting. I barely count battlemage as a whole separate specialization, especially since draining aura is basically given to blood mages in da2. Keeper spells are so neat and it's so hard to not give them to Alim but it feels right not to give him everything.

[pinayelf]

Can I just say that I love your OCs very very much? Immy and Amihan (who i guess I know more about than any others) are so wonderful! Could you spare some headcanons for one of/both of them? 😍😍

omg thank you sm 🥺❤️

even tho amihan and immy are very different personality-wise I think they both are very similar in what they want and what they need

they're both neurodivergent (adhd) women who feel DEEPLY and WHOLLY. they both unconditional love and they're both very capable of giving it. they also want someone who's physically protective lol. they can take care of themselves but that's something they find attractive in a partner (all of immy's LIs were and are warriors lmao 💀)

the difference is immy was raised in an environment where her feelings were validated and where she was shown unconditional love by the people closest to her and she had a community. it was safe for immy to be more or less ~soft.

amihan did not - for all those years in the Circle she had one singular friend, finn aldebrandt, and it wasn't until the broken circle where finn tells her that he loves her (platonic) because the environment they grew up in discouraged openness and vulnerability. after all anyone could be transferred, made tranquil or whatever else.

I think if amihan was raised in a healthier environment though, she'd still be grouchy sometimes and a fuddy duddy lol, but not to the extent in canon where her years or repression made her emotionally volatile

for respective headcanons:

immy

her magic manifested when she was six. it was a cold night and she went and snuggled up to her papae and he realized she was using warming magic

while immy grew up in a healthy environment, she did feel like the only thing she had to contribute to her clan was arcane knowledge. she's not particularly brave or ~strong. so she put all her worth into being first to keeper and when she was put into the situation of being the herald/inquisitor it was HARD

immy loves animals! she has a cat named andruil and a nug named pudgy during DAI

immy has a photographic memory

immy is 100% that person who loses motivation if she isn't immediately good at a new thing she tries lol

immy is overwhelmed easily - especially by crowds. josie started doing judgments without crowds cause immy hated being in front of people like that

immy feels emotions deeply. she always ends up crying after a battle, even if they won. it's her way of catharsis

immy is tone deaf lmao

amihan

amihan's magic manifested when she was 4 alongside her twin sister violetta. her mother, revka was deeply andrastian and she called the templars on both of them

amihan and Violetta were separated. amihan ended up in Kinloch and Violetta ended up in ostwick

revka told their father and the family that both girls died on the way to the Circles so no one would try to keep contact with them

amihan's main element is lightning - it matches the intensity of her emotions. she can also redirect lightning (like in AtLA/LoK)

amihan doesn't do blood magic unless she's in a stable headspace - she knows how she can be, and she doesn't want to risk it

amihan takes to painting and sketching. she discovered it when she traveled with zevran after the Blight

amihan is terrified of dogs, alistair got the mabari. she instead gets a cat named cheese during awakening

amihan loves sunshine, she rarely ever got to feel it in the Circle and it became her favorite thing in the outside world