#gwaren

[anneapocalypse]

The deeper I get into this fic, the more obsessed I become with Gwaren and the sadder I am that we never got to see it in a game and probably never will.

It's got everything! A lonely, rocky coastline on a sea where no one knows what's on the other side! A haunted forest! A very old dwarven-built castle! An even older dwarven outpost underground that's been lost to darkspawn! Abandoned salt mines! Winding cobblestone streets and brick-and-plaster buildings! Only accessible by sea or by a dangerous trail through the forest! It's one of the most important holdings in Ferelden yet it's not even a city, just a remote port town full of fishermen and lumberjacks. It was a critical location in the rebellion against the Orlesians. Just. The history! The atmosphere. Gwaren!!! I'm in love.

[couslande]

et tu, loghain?

[vigilskeep]

i’m trying to take more notice of heraldry in dao because they put some effort into it and i never even noticed that there’s so much gwaren heraldry up at ostagar

[gwah--ren]

GWAREN + AESTHETICS. 1/?

[lavellane]

honestly im so glad bioware nerfed the cousland origin by not making them as socially & politically powerful as they technically ought to be. bc i think if i had to confront the whole cousland/mac tir situation in canon as opposed to just my own unsalvageable deep fried thoughts i think i would contract some sort of brain eating bacterial infection and die :/

[qunaricatnip]

remembered once again that there was a significant number of the bannorn that wanted a cousland on the throne and all I can think about is an arranged marriage between f!cousland and loghain by maric to suppress any growing rebellion/discontentment

[vultures-and-scavengers]

24 hours until VG and I'm still making new Inquisitors. (Okay, this was to grab one of the trial achievements, but it's also an excuse for a new OC.) I wanted an Inquisitor I could plausibly RP as skipping all the codex entries and barrelling through the prologue in order to get the "Trial of the Fool" achievement, and so this is Ingrid: while she is a Trevelyan, technically, she was kidnapped for ransom when she was eight. Her kidnappers were killed by Avvar, who then took Ingrid in as her own.

She can read, but only at a very rudimentary level, and avoids it because she knows she struggles (hence the no codex entries). She also rejects Andrastianism completely, and she's eager to close the Breach so she can get away from the Inquisition and get back to her clan, so she does the bare minimum to speed towards closing the Breach (keeping exp low for the achievement).

[daisymeade]

Today's DA drabble will be another Sid-ppet and I'm looking forward to it. 😃

[cabeswaterdrowned]

hmm random but does anyone have any ideas or headcanons about what Adam and Jordan’s dynamic would be like?

[blind-alchemists]

is ... is Therinfal Redoubt in the Brecilian Forest.

because that would be kind of funny.

[anneapocalypse]

January Writing (+ a little Wednesday WIP)

Word Count: 6250

Thanks to getting sick this month, I did not get as much done this month as I'd hoped, but all things considered, I'm not unhappy with what I did get. I did some work on Harsh Light early in the month, wrote various FFXIV snippets throughout, and as February approaches, I have been writing a bit of Dragon Age again! This is the first week I've been back to my writing routine in earnest, but I'm feeling very energized and ready to do more.

I had been tossing around the idea of working on A Hero Sleeps in Gwaren in February (I may not end up with anything ready to post for Femslash February, but I can at least work on some femslash!) and as January comes to an end I've found myself excited to get back into that fic, and to work on an established project in general, so I think that's what's happening.

Here's a little snippet from this week!

Context: While Teyrn Tabris and Briala were in Denerim getting married, her human vassals have attempted a coup, and Castle Gwaren is currently under seige. With the help of an already-organized elven resistance, our heroines must find a way back to the castle to take command and put down the coup.

The first hitch was that the wagon would be inspected upon entering the town. There was no way around this. Bribery was not an option; if the guards were humans in the service of the banns, there was a strong chance they would simply pocket the gold and turn the elves in anyway. The resistance had a handful of people on the inside—elven knights sworn to the nobles' service, hired by necessity, Talith had explained, as the population of Gwaren had shifted more and more toward elves. They were trusted, reluctantly, to wield the sword for their liege, but they would not be trusted to guard the gates during a coup against the elven ruler. Unless there were an unexpected change of guard rotation, perhaps due to sudden illness. Talith had visibly perked up, to Briala's amusement, at the mention of poisons. "What will you be using? Not deathroot, I assume." "Nay, too bitter, easily detected," Alys had replied, briskly taking down phials and jars from a high cabinet she had unlocked with a large steel key. "I prefer a strain of deep mushroom for such applications… a moderate solution, we don't want them dead immediately, just taken ill, which is going to arouse suspicion as it is, so our agents will be administering the poison at the last possible minute, and your timing will be narrow, as it's likely to be discovered quickly. Our scheduled guards will sit down to lunch, fall ill within the hour, and our people will step in to replace them, just long enough to get your wagon inside. As soon as the commander discovers them, their cover will be burned, so Farron's got someone to extract them… hopefully." She had removed several strips of dried mushroom gingerly with a pair of tongs, crushing them to a powder with her mortar and pestle, then looked up to regard Talith and Briala gravely. "That spends two of our agents, and there's a chance they may not make it out. So, with all due respect, my ladies, do make this one count." Talith had swallowed. "Thank you, Alys. This means everything to me." "To us as well, my lady. It's our future hangs in the balance here, and we'll do what we can to restore you as our rightful ruler. There will be casualties, and I know you won't spend those lives lightly." Her eyes had dropped to the floor. "Still, I know nearly every elf in the resistance by name… I'd be remiss if I didn't say it. I pray the Maker give you swift and decisive victory… for us, as well as for you."

[clavicuss-vile]

just a couple heraldries i whipped together on coat of arms maker,,,,

the noble family of Mac Tir, sigil only created after Celia insisted Loghain stop living in a tent and actually fix his keep. A red rose on a backing of green for the "land" of their name, and black for Gwaren.

Followed by the Royal Family of Mac Tir, the same rose and green backing combined with the yellow mabari of Ferelden.

[vigilskeep]

they also put the dragon’s peak bannorn heraldry in here despite the fact that nobody in the world has ever cared about the dragon’s peak bannorn. the symbol is inexplicably similar to the islamic star and crescent. i don’t remotely have a point to make abt that at all i’m really just baffled

[gwah--ren]

thinking about how woodcarving and leatherwork become a staple of gwaren like serault and glass. are you following me here. leather armor from gwaren featuring intricate stitching designs and carving into the pauldrons... the ships crafted in gwaren being more works of art than regular sailing vessels... gwaren becoming a sort of hub of culture and art but not in the pretentious way val royeaux has... are you seeing my vision...

[mxanigel]

Like a fire in my blood

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply Fandom: Dragon Age Relationship: Female Hawke/Loghain Mac Tir Characters: Female Hawke, Loghain Mac Tir, Carver Hawke, Bethany Hawke, Nathaniel Howe Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, POV Hawke (Dragon Age), Blue Hawke (Dragon Age), though she becomes less blue post-DA2, First Kiss, Implied/Referenced Grief, Romance, Age Difference

Like a fire in my blood [AO3 login required to read]

Summary: Warrior Gloria 'Ria' Hawke never asked for a lot of things thrown at her in this life. She doesn't like most of them. But meeting Loghain Mac Tir is one of the few for which she's grateful. And for the kinship with him that eventually becomes something more.

Written for a Discord server exchange (organized by the one and only @mxkelsifer) in response to @judithmactir's fantastic prompt. I'm now 110% on board the Hawke/Loghain ship and am already feral for Ria Hawke. I'm so thankful I got the opportunity to explore this relationship! <3

(I like Ria so much that I've started a new DA2 playthrough for her~)

[redlyriumidol]

I understand why they do this but it's so boring (and often weird) for the player characters always to speak in received pronunciation. I know this is impossible in every way but let my character be a scouser