#i like taash and i like the broad strokes of their arc

[sun-marie]

Y'know, with all the (mostly good) writing and focus on gender in Taash's arc, I think what Neve's arc is doing in relation to gender is the most powerful thing this game does with gender (or resonates with me the most at least, a cis woman myself)

Other people have mentioned it before, but by all accounts Neve is fulfilling a "male" role in this story. She's the noir detective not the femme fatale, she's a terminal cynic, she eats bad food, she lives alone in a small apartment, and in one route of her arc she is a hardened protector of her city. All of these elements, while not necessarily restricted by gender, are absolutely associated and attributed to male characters.

But Neve also refuses to give up her femininity. She asks Taash if they "like" being a woman (implying Neve does) she wears lowcut-shirts and dresses, she ties her hair up when she goes out. Just because Neve doesn't fit what society typically thinks a woman is, she still is a woman. I can so easily see the writers going down the route that she's "not like other girls" and having her fully reject any and all femininity, and I'm so glad they didn't. It's more subtle then something like Taash's arc, sure, but I really appreciate a lot.

[fenharel-is-so-swell]

I’m very sleepy so there are probably mistakes and redundancies galore below buuuuut read on for a rant about how weirdly Trick Weekes treats Qunari characters/culture.

I said this in a comment elsewhere buuuut I just realized that Trick Weekes does something VERY odd with the Qunari they write. As a black woman it does not sit right with me.

The Qunari, racially, are the group most evocative of people of color in western society Irl. They are treated as savages, visually very different (scary by Thedas’ standards), often hypersexualized, and generally perceived as hyper aggressive.

With that in mind I’d like to dig into Taash and Iron Bull a bit.

Iron Bull and Taash have narratively similar character arcs — raised under the teachings of the Qun, enter an identity crisis, do they conform or deconstruct?

Iron Bull is a Ben Hasserath that is surprisingly cooperative and ‘worldly’, compared to all other Qunari we’ve interacted with in games past. He’s got a lovely little band of misfits, is well spoken, and generally open minded/kind. As we get to know him we come to discover that all his charming qualities are exactly what make him ill suited for Qunari society—everything GOOD about him is other. UNLESS you enter a romance with him, in which case the ‘fun’ hold overs from a sex-as-a-biological-imperative society are BDSM. So, compared to the other available romances he’s quite lewd. His character development stalls a bit if you romance him UNTIL you get to the Bulls Chargers portion of his mission where it is either—sacrifice everyone and remain with the culture and world you truly do care about, or do the ‘right thing’ and cast off everything you know to save your found family. The narrative treats the latter as the ‘right choice’ in Trespasser when a non-Tal Vashoth Bull turns on the inquisitor regardless of relationship. Affirming to the player that all those who follow the Qun are mindless dogmatic murderers without real empathy or attachments. (Obviously there is more along the way with guilt and loss of identity, but I’m painting the broad strokes)

In a vacuum, this feels…fine. It could just be a story about a guy in a culture. A tale of deconstruction. It feels uncomfortable considering the cultural allegories that are easy to make with the Qun—it feels non western religiously. An amalgamation of maligned cultures BUT it’s easy to feel like maybe we’re reading too deeply.

Then enters Taash and the Qunari we see in Veilguard.

I have not seen what happens with Taash and their choice to “be more Rivaini or more Qunari” (I’m a biracial black woman and that makes my skin fucking crawl) but the implication is damning when looking at it next to Iron Bull’s story. (I’m also still playing VG so take this with a grain of salt. Taash has also been the most overtly sexual character the earliest in the game, I haven’t gotten more than a hint from any other character (save for Davrin, but it was a subtle flirt) but Taash? They’ve sniffed my neck, growled, and asked if I wanted to fuck them. So, once again, hypersexualizing the Qunari companion.

The Qunari in Veilguard are beyond flattened and instead split into two groups—the civilized, understanding, assimilated Qunari & the near mindless, violent, occupying, murdering defected Antaam.

The Qunari NPCs I’ve over heard in game have all been quick to yell “I’m just Antivan!” Or “I’m not Antaam” or the below grossssssssss dialogue (paraphrased from a convo I head at the LOF base)

“So, you’re Qunari”

“No, I don’t follow the Qun.”

“But you have the horns”

“I was born in X city. Qunari means ‘people under the Qun’ and I wasn’t raised with that”

“Oh then, if you’re not Qunari what do I call you?”

“How about X name”

…IM SORRY WHAT?!?!?! This gives entirely “I don’t see color” and is INSANE to put in a game in 2024. We are familiar with Tal Vashoth, we’ve been able to play as Tal Vashoth Qunari (racially) characters in two games. Hell, we have a similar allegory for it in real life with Jewish folks!! There is a distinct difference between being ethnically Jewish (I.e ashkenazi, etc pls correct my terminology) and religiously Jewish but erasing either is fucking gross????

Just like yeah, I’m [my name] but I’m also visibly fucking black and pretending I’m not does nothing but provide more room for the marginalization I experience to go completely unchecked because “I’m just [name]”

The handling is especially upsetting because I was REALLY hoping we’d get a slice of normal life in this game in a perfectly average Qunari settlement/encampment or something so we could see some of this culture outside of their violent defectors and “one of the good ones” Tal Vashoth.