#in defense of anders dragon age

[justcallmecappy]

One of the criticisms I've seen DA players have in response to Anders' actions at the Kirkwall Chantry is some degree of, 'his actions forced innocent mages into a war they had no choice whether or not they wanted to be involved in'.

What a lot of these players seem to miss is this: The mages were already involved. They have been involved since childhood, when their magic manifested.

If you are born a mage in Southern Thedas, you are marked. The Templars will find you, or your neighbors who were conditioned by the Chantry to fear magic will turn you in, and you are brought to the Circle where you are at risk of Tranquility, or Annulment, and subjected to a Harrowing. Your children born to you in the Circle will be taken from you to be raised in a Chantry orphanage (like Wynne's child was). You are not allowed to get married, or start a family, or own land. You are not allowed to leave your Circle ever, unless conscripted to fight in the army (like in the Fifth Blight) or fulfilling some whim or need of those in power (like Malcolm Hawke being made to entertain nobles at a party). You might be thrown into the dungeon and left to starve to death, like the mage child Cole (and other mage apprentices of the White Spire) did. You are at risk of physical and sexual abuse, like the mages of the Gallows were.

Innocent mages were already involved. They were already being killed, they were already fighting for their lives for centuries since the inception of Circles, long before Anders' actions.

Also, in the case of the Gallows specifically, Knight-Commander Meredith had already called for the Annulment as early as the beginning/mid of Act 3. The mages' lives were already in danger, even before the Chantry was destroyed.

Anders tried for six years to make people listen and show how magic is not meant to be feared and can be used for good -- by publishing a manifesto, by providing free magical healthcare in Darktown -- to bring people's attention to the plight of mages and change things for the better. It took the imminent threat of his people being slaughtered wholesale for him to resort to what is aptly titled 'The Last Straw'.

If players want to blame anyone for subjecting mages to a conflict they did not want, look no further than the Chantry and their system of exploitation and oppression over the mages. Put blame on the Chantry for forcing mages into lives they did not choose, and asserting methods of culling and control over them, simply for how they were born. It was the Chantry that gave them no choice whether or not they had a say in staying alive or dying.

And if DA players would still say that the mages could have tried for a more "peaceful route" to alleviate their circumstances (despite seeing how Anders' manifesto, his Darktown clinic, and years of trying to negotiate with Elthina failed and Meredith was calling for Annulment anyway): very rarely do the oppressed win change by pandering to the morals of their oppressors.

Innocent mages were already suffering and being murdered in droves, for centuries. Innocent mages were already involved in this struggle, whether they wanted to be or not. And Anders' actions at the Chantry was like a rallying cry: If we're going to die anyway, then I'd rather die trying to take them down than giving them what they want.

(Also, I have not yet gone into detail on what actually started the mage-templar war, which was the Seekers hiding the cure for Tranquility, and Lord Seeker Lambert's decision to dissolve the Nevarran accord and take the Templars hunting for the free mages across the countryside because he decided dead mages were better than free mages -- because that's a whole separate post.)

[dungeons-and-dragon-age]

Man i always forget just how much Liam's entire way of thinking and making decisions is centered around Bethany in Act 1

[the-cryptographer]

was talking about how the amount of explosive material needed for the chantry boom, even /after/ that material been refined from the raw ingredients, is probably a lot more than anders and company could gather from a single trip to the sewers/mines without even bringing a cart. (which is cooroborated by the concept art of anders's bomb setup, although I don't think that picture makes much logistic sense either). all of which makes me wonder if the quest we get in canon was more like a scouting mission for anders to see where he could get the materials or arrange the bomb setup rather than the actual dirty work.

"why did he bothering inviting hawke et al then, if he wasn't even using them for the bulk of the actual labour?"

well, that's the thing. I'm wondering how much hawke et al's involvment in helping anders gather bomb materials is entirely symbolic.

other parts of the same quest are definitely symbolic. asking hawke to distract elthina with questions about mages as he goes about his business in the chantry is symbolic. he knows elthina isn't going to budge at that point. he just needs to build up a situation where she was given this last chance to save herself from what he's about to do, so that he can justify what in his own mind feels unjustifiable (though I do not see it that way, and I don't think merrill or isabela do either for that matter)

and given anders manages to set up the bombs just fine even if you turn down the quest…

how much is hawke et al going to find drakestone and sela petrae symbolic? how much is it making them complicit in the bombing simply for the sake of it? how much is this putting hawke et al in a position where their actions mean 'you're either with me or against me (and nothing imbetween)'?

like he really wants someone on his side so badly. so much so, he's willing to interpret lukewarm statements from hawke about not hurting mages as a radical statement of support. willing to interpret what was probably a lukewarm statement from donnic about disliking meredith as a reason donnic is more meaningfully on his side than aveline's. it's not hard for me to imagine anders spinning hawke et all bumbling around as he gathers samples of shit and sulphur and charcoal into a whole emotional experience of support and solidarity.

"so you're saying this was all a manipulative attempt by anders to gain support - support he didn't even really need - under false pretences?"

yes...? but also... no?

i feel like the thing canon doesn't really quite capture, and the thing i don't want to belittle, is how real and visceral and human these needs are? like, yes, maybe anders doesn't /need/ someone there to help him scout bomb ingredient locations to get the bomb built anyhow but-

to want companionship and personal recognition and support and someone to hold your hand through an emotionally difficult task? those are certainly things that pretty much everyone needs to be happy, even if they can persist and survive without. and anders has been denied these things at a lot of avenues of his life, has been taught he cannot ask for these things plainly and expect to get them. so I think it's entirely understandable that he resorts to manipulative, underhanded, and aggressive methods to get those needs met in lieu of even knowing how to pursue them genuinely anymore.

like- fenris crossed several continents to get to a place and a people for whom his experience of slavery hadn't been entirely culturally normalised. where he wasn't constantly being gaslit about how, actually, what he went through was excusable.

whereas anders is really living in the middle of cultural apologism for the circle as an institution. and where the person he seems to consider his closest friend can't accept and respond to anders trying to give away his mother's pillow as the desperate cry for attention and validation and help that it is.

idk, it's difficult bc- I will definitely make fun of anders's dysfunctional methodology for trying to get the attention and help and support that he needs. because he really does behave in ways that are cruel and aggressive and manipulative and stupidly misaimed and wildly alienating, and turn away people who are actually sympathetic to chase after hawke and varric being their least genuine.

but I never want to make fun of anders actually needing attention and help and support. like, yeah, we all do. all the moreso when we're standing up against tyrants and abusive prison camp wardens.

[sneakyneighboururchin]

Everytime someone calls Anders blowing up the Chantry an act of terrorism I lose a year off my life. Please learn what words mean, I BEG of you.

[stop-breaking-my-heart-dragonage]

Me, when Sebastian joins my party for the first time: Okay, this time I'm not going to forget about you, Sebastian. I'm going to make an effort to use you a lot this playthrough so I can better understand you.

Also me, immediately forgetting about Sebastian while finishing Act 2 and making it halfway through Act 3 before I finally notice his Faith quest: ......................Oh. Right. My bad.

[crows-of-buckets]

Redesigning Aviae because her old design (that I made literally two months ago) is no longer calling to me...

I wanted to add themes reminiscent of Morrigan with the like. Fur/feather on the shoulders, the black sleeve. I also wanted to make her fit more akin to the canon grey warden mage armor because it's so cool to me. Anyways I'll probably draw this digitally sometime soon but!!! Yayyy

[darlingdesiredelicious]

((I could be remembering this so wrong since I played the game like 12 years ago but

I just imagine dragon age au sebastian as that guy in dragon age origins whose whole life was fucked up because a desire demon tricked him into believing she was his wife or w/e

Bonus points if the desire demon stole astarions identity perhaps))

[spainkitty]

The Fiona is Secretly Alistair's Mother Scenes Part 1

Lanil's Pieces Masterlist

I knew his father a... long time ago. I would just like to know if... if he's happy. For his father's sake.

"King Alistair..." Lavellan began slowly, not quite sure where her thought was going.

Cullen looked up from the board, but she turned the next words over in her head carefully instead of continuing. She frowned, then moved her castle. Cullen smirked at her, eyebrow rising, and she scowled at him. She moved the castle back and tried the knight. Cullen nodded in approval.

"So the king, he's... you said once, he's not like other royals? Or nobles? I can't... remember." She huffed and leaned back in her chair. "I know Cailin was the previous king, I know he died in Ostagar, but I can't remember Maric having two sons."

"Officially he didn't," Cullen told her.

He surveyed the board and moved a pawn. Lavellan scowled. Minute little plays like that were fucking annoying. She couldn't figure out what he was going to do next with a play like that. She braced her elbows on her knees and glared, ignoring his chuckle.

"King Alistair's birth was a very closely guarded secret. No one knew for most of his life, not until the Landsmeet where the Warden declared him king, and her his future Queen."

"Well, that's one way to take over the world. Good for her." She raised her fist in the air.

"It was Ferelden, not all of Thedas," he said, laughing. "I met them both, briefly." She glanced up at the strange shift in tone. He was looking over the garden, but it was obvious he wasn't seeing it. "They came to the Circle to conscript the mages against the Blight, and they... saved us. What was left of us." His voice lowered and he passed a hand over his eyes. "They saw me at my worst, but her. Cousland, at the time. I'll never forget her. It was like waking out of a dream, out of a nightmare. The others, they tried to get through. Leliana was there, Wynne, a healer and enchanter I'd known for more than a year, too, but her. The Warden. She got through. I believed in her, and I was furious that she wouldn't listen. She was the only one who could... who could do what I asked." He sighed, shoulders falling. "I'm so glad she was... so much wiser, stronger, so much kinder than anyone I'd ever met. If she loves a man like our King, he must be a good man. I have to remind myself of that sometimes whenever I meet him."

Lavellan huffed in amusement. "It sounds like you had a little crush."

"No." She drew up short at how vehement that was. Cullen's look was intense, earnest, and completely genuine. "She is my Queen, and a hero. She saved my life, and then she saved my soul."

Lavellan blinked. "Oh."

"I'm sorry. This was--"

He started to get to his feet, looking too pale and shaken. Lavellan reached without thinking, wrapped her hand around his wrist, and smiled as gently as she could. As if she was trying to soothe her high-strung Ferelden Forder. He stilled immediately, eyes on her hand, and then slowly up to her face.

"I'm about to kick your ass for real this time. You can't go yet."

He slipped back into his chair, smiling weakly. "I told you, I didn't let you win last time."

"And I told you, you're a shit liar."

The answering laugh was deep, unabashed, and her heart lightened to hear it. She'd done something right, and Cullen was smiling.

"But, um, Alistair. If it was a secret, it can't be now, obviously. So who's his mother? Where did he grow up?" she asked, getting back on the original topic. She moved a cleric recklessly.

Cullen frowned thoughtfully. "I don't know details. I wasn't in the headspace to notice much at the time. What I've picked up since is that he was raised in Redcliffe until he was sent to the Chantry to be a Templar, younger than I was when I went, actually. I don't know exactly when or why the Wardens conscripted him, but it wasn't long before Ostagar."

"You were... thirteen, right?" Lavellan asked.

"I was." He glanced up, surprised. "You remembered?"

"I don't talk just to hear myself," Lavellan retorted with an eye roll. "And it's easy to remember what you tell me. Maybe because you're easy to talk to. Or maybe I just like hearing you talk."

Flirting with Cullen, even as innocently and obviously as she did, was always worth it. Just to see how easily and quickly he turned red. She smirked as it crept up to his ears He cleared his throat and moved a piece on the board. Her reckless cleric was gone and he was two moves from a check.

"Fenedhis!" she cursed.

He laughed, leaning back in his chair and shoulders shaking. "So. The story goes his mother was a serving woman, and she died giving birth to him. King Maric sent him away in secret to his brother-in-law and closest advisor. Other than... well."

"Loghain, Hero of River Dane."

"Yes."

Lavellan scowled darkly, leg hopping in place, and finally moved a different castle. This time, Cullen didn't protest, both eyebrows rising in surprise.

Ha.

"You... sounded unsure," Lavellan said, interrupting Cullen's focus after a long minute. It looked as though he dragged himself back to the garden, staring at her a little too long, before the words sunk in.

"Did I? I suppose I am."

"Why? Surely kings and nobles taking advantage of pretty serving maids is a tale as old as time," Lavellan said, mouth curled in disgust. "Though, perhaps it was a love story."

"Either could be true, but King Maric... He wasn't that kind of king, or man," Cullen said, his expression mirroring hers. He saw her incredulous eyebrow and he quickly raised a hand. "I'm not saying that as a Ferelden boy who grew up on stories of our heroic King Maric, who kicked the Orlesians out and freed us all. No matter what, if a king, um," he broke off, ears red again, "tends to... take advantage of pretty serving maids," Lavellan couldn't help but laugh at his uncomfortable expression, "people find out. They may whisper about it, or joke about it, or shake their heads about it, but people know. But until King Alistair took the throne, the only thing people ever talked about was how much King Maric loved his late Queen. No other woman managed to get his attention for years afterwards."

"So if he did tip a maid a few times and got himself a bastard son,"

"Inquisitor!"

"it was probably a love thing. It would only make sense, it being such a secret." Other than her wide smirk, she completely ignored his outburst.

"It's your move, Inquisitor." Cullen sighed, then sighed again and pinched the bridge of his nose, looking so very tired.

She wanted to poke a little more. See what it would take to tip him over the edge. What would it look like, if he was already so flustered? She looked down at the board and blinked.

"Oh shit. I didn't see what you did."

"I'm not helping this time. You deserve this."

She burst into laughter.

To Part II

[chanafehs]

isabela's veilguard outfit is literally insane like a bikini that's it??? what world are we living in that her design from da2, a game that came out 12 years ago, is somehow less racist and misogynistic than her 2024 design??????

Am I surprised by this design choice? No. Am I disappointed? Absolutely.

If I’m not mistaken, Isabela is the first woman of color we have as a companion - specifically the first Black woman as a companion - and she is arguably the most sexualized character within the entire series. Like even going back and playing da2 it feels like everyone makes a comment about her sex life or literally slut shames her (Aveline and Anders I’m looking right at you) - even one of the voice actors called her a whore on Twitter. They don’t even seem committed to having her be Black either instead just racially ambiguous which sucks.

(I want to make it clear I am speaking as a non Black person but if any Black Dragon Age fans would like to add their own thoughts to this post please do so!)

I really want to know the thought process the devs had about this design behind the scenes because throughout all the jokes about bikini armor and making the armor “practical”, we still got this?? How????

The only argument I can see taken place in defense of this is having some kind of under water themed mission (in her concept art for dav she’s underwater with some of our companions) but if that were the case: why is she wearing gold armor. It makes no sense. She would sink right to the bottom and don’t give me some excuse about using magic. Also, you don’t need a bikini to swim underwater.

I’m upset also because the creators keep trying to say that games can’t exist without some politics and having more options to be inclusive to marginalized identities is paramount (these are both good things) but they consistently fall short when it comes to Orientalism, Racism, and Anti-Blackness. It only sends the message that these games are geared for white audiences, not us. It’s 2024 how have we not retired the bellydancer adjacent armors.

[possessedopossum]

Antivan crows treatment [obviously spoilers]

I do NOT agree with the popular sentiment that the crows got sanitized in this game. I DO have questions about crow related writing choices but this is not the choice I have problems with.

Showing one concept, event, place or a person from multiple perspectives is one of the core features of dragon age series. We always had different and sometimes contradicting views on the same thing. For example, the Circle as Vivienne sees it and the Circle as Anders sees it are two very different Circles. It's not bad writing, it's how biases, personal experiences and opinions work. I would like to remind you that Solas says about spirits' perspectives on Ostagar – no matter how different the visions are, they are both real.

Zevran and Lucanis are different as night and day. Obviously a whore's son (no offense) and first talon's grandchild would have different experiences. So would crow Rook, who gets special princess treatment from Viago, also a talon. So would Viago, who is the antivan king's bastard. So would Teia, who considers the crows her family, since she never had one to begin with. They all either joined the crows willingly or were born into it. They weren't sold to the crows by brothel madam like Zevran was.

And at the end of the day, the crows are still assassins. Even being first talon's favorite grandchild won't save you from abuse and literal torture. You are still supposed to undergo the harsh training that will leave you without food and water for days and Maker knows what else. You still work with people who strive for power and would do anything to obtain it. House Arannai changed 6 talons throughout 20 years. Half of the talons were murdered in tevinter nights by the traitor who sold them out to qunari. Dellamorte family almost got wiped out. Some npc casually says Viago would be very sad if he had to kill crow Rook but that he would still do it anyway if necessary. The crows literally made Jacobus, a literal child, full fledged assassin in front of our eyes. What other proof of crows being shitty people need? A quest line where we personally torture children? Do you really want this to be so on the nose?

Yes, the crows are treated like the good guys by the narrative and there are pretty good reasons for that. 1) We can play as a crow and it SHOULD give us, the player, a bias 2) There are more important tasks at hand. We are fighting gods. We aren't fighting for the wellbeing of Antiva, we are fighting for the wellbeing of reality itself. With such high stakes crows shittyness is absolutely irrelevant 3) The crows are Antiva's one and only defense. No matter how shitty they are, without them, it will be worse 4) Glorification of organized crime is a thing that happens in real life and I thought we liked our games somewhat realistic.

I can go as far as sharing some personal info on the last part. I like the crows very much because I grew up in the area so riddled with crime an average person from rich white neighborhood would lose their mind. The best governor our fucked up city ever had was the local gangster. Crime was family business to him and that's why he cared for the city more than other governors – his children would have to live here after he dies. The dude killed people for money but the city was finally clean and pretty and much safer than it used to be. I don't have a problem with antivan crows being batman-ized because I've seen so happen irl. Is it sad that sometimes only mafia can keep a city from falling apart? Yes. But it is real and that's why it is beautiful. Veilguard feels very realistic to me and I don't get the bad writing claims. I guess our governor wasn't realistic enough, I'll tell him if I meet his ghost.

The problem I have with the crows is how the Ivenci/Butcher plot was handled. It felt like it was rushed and added at the last moment. I'm not against Ivenci as a villain, I am simply mourning the lost potential. The plot could have been much better if Rook started to suspect something is wrong on their own. Extra scenes with Butcher to flesh out the character more would have benefited the quest line. I'm glad that Veilguard added some positive qunari rep with Taash and Shathann but there could have been more. Bioware could have told us WHY the Butcher decided to desert. He seems to have more respect for qunari philosophy than other antaam leaders. Why couldn't he stay with his Arishok, then? There is a huge difference between bad writing and the lack of writing. Ivenci and Butcher aren't badly written, they simply lack screen time.

My overall opinion of the game is very positive. Yeah, it could have been better. But it also could have been much worse. There could always been more time to plan, more tools to use, more choices to explore. But things never work out the way you want them to. I think given the circumstances and EA's desire to make live service games, bioware gave us their best shot. Regret is nothing but pride, vanity and a waste of time. The game itself says so. And I would rather enjoy the game as it is than waste my time thinking what it could have been.

[letzterpartygast]

Dragon Age - The Veilguard. A better story?

It's not that I think the whole game is bad. There are parts that I really like. Every encounter with Solas is one of them. And the whole ending of the game.

But step by step.

The Beginning

It's understandable that a beginning is sudden, that as a player you first have to find out who and where you are. But the fact that I'm standing alone in a pub and Varric joins me after my decision: To ask or to fight - is strange. 

A little foreplay would have been good. Even if it had only been a conversation with Varric (and Harding) at a pub table.

Even better: a little movie explaining why Rook had an interest in joining the hunt for Solas.

My version would be the following: Rook is a Dreamer - like Feynriel in DA II. (In that case, Rook couldn't be a dwarf) They don't know about it, don't even know what a Dreamer is. But Rook has always had strange dreams with a strong pull. Lately they have been about Solas. They have heard of Solas and finds him either fascinating, repulsive or both.

How Rook and Varric met is not important. They could be traveling together in the next sequence. Rook's dreams help to track down Solas.

At the ritual site, it would be appropriate to show groups of Solas allies and opponents fighting in the background or as a short movie.

The rest of the beginning could stay the same. Only Solas wouldn't need to use blood magic to face Rook in the dream. And Rook's reaction could be different depending on their ambitions:

Fascination: At last I can not only see you from afar, I can talk to you!

Hate: Damn it! I was hoping the dreams of you would have gone away after you disappeared into the rift.

Distrust: I can talk to you now? Okay - what do you want?

Companions and Factions

I was pleased to see Varric and Harding as "old acquaintances". I found Harding's companion quest fascinating. It's a shame that Kal-Sharok wasn't a fixed region for regular excursions.

Davrin and the Grey Wardens faction were also believable for me. In my opinion, the Weisshaupt quest was the best part of the game before the endgame.

I thought an answer to the question of why the griffins were thought to be extinct and a way to save them was great. Assan anyway!  I would have liked to see groups of Grey Wardens everywhere there was Blight.

Neve. I had hoped for much more from the "Shadow Dragons". When a group fights against the superiority of the Magisters in Tevinter and the slavery there, it should be recognizable. Nice to meet Dorian again. But – where was Fenris?

Lucanis. An interesting introductory story with the underground prison, the vial of blood (as a parallel to Anders) and the demon implanted with blood magic and violence. Also sexy and charming accent.

But no. 1: A demon of malice whose only action is to say what it smells like? If Spite were a descendant of Grenouille, he would at least develop a lust for murder towards the scent-separators.

But No. 2: The crows as some kind of Robin Hood gang? That's such a distortion! Although Lucanis says that he murders for money, you don't see that. Murder scenarios involving harmless citizens are missing, as are gruesome training camps for slave children like Zevran.

Professor Emmrich is sympathetically naive and Manfred is amusing. But necromancers in Dragon Age are no harmless, cranky graveyard society. At the very least, alongside a friendly group that concentrates on researching spirits, there could have been a defense against dangerous liches and summoners; with Hezenkoss as their leader, if you like.

Bellara. For my feeling, a cute girl with such a childish behaviour doesn't fit into the world of Dragon Age. And the introduction of the "Veil Jumpers" with the young woman desperately struggling with her artifact until the warrior accompanying her finally steps in and saves the day is as silly as it is patriarchal. Why "veil jumpers" at all? Has anyone ever jumped? Except over tree trunks, I mean. "Artifact researcher" or simply "Dalish" would have been more appropriate.

And then comes Taash...

Taash could have been such an interesting character. When I set out to find a famous dragon hunter, I expected anything but a petulant teenager who still lives with mom. Also, a companion quest that focuses on bird feeding, eating with mom and transsexuality is poor.

My ideas: A Qunari born as a woman who resists the Qun's stipulation that only men can become warriors and has left Par Vollen because of it. (It could also be that her mother left Par Vollen with her because she wanted to protect her daughter).

A transsexual in her prime, for whom sexuality has long since ceased to be a question, but rather an exclamation mark. When asked whether they are a man or a woman, they would answer "I am a dragon hunter" in a tone that would make any contradiction stick in the throat.

Possible companion quest/s:  1) Search for the last free-living dragons whose extinction is imminent

2) Hunting a gang of ruthless dragon hunters who only care about their own profit

3) Protection from Qun/Antaam, who were set on the hunt for Taash and their mother

All three storylines could - as before - end in the lair of the Dragon King.

The Romances

The romances were the most horrible I've ever experienced in a roleplaying game. And since I've always seen romance as the most beautiful thing in these games - the romance with Zevran was the reason why I fell in love with DA:O like no other game before it, and why I had played it what felt like 1000 times - that was the worst flaw in Veilguard for me personally.

What could the romances have looked like?

Flirting in the first part - brash or reserved, depending on the character.

Kisses after Weisshaupt and from then on always possible.

The decisive intimate scene BEFORE the "Point of No Return". It could have been tied to the end of the respective companion quest and the platinum brooch in the personal file.

+++Attention! Endgame spoiler! +++

Embedding such a scene at a point where the group has just lost a close companion is in absolutely poor taste. Consolation, hugs and tearful kisses would have been appropriate here.

Even in the moment before the last fight, there could have been another hug and a kiss.

+++ End of endgame spoiler +++

So - enough complaining and revealing my own ideas. But when I associate the game with such dreams, it only seems half as bad to me. That such or similar dreams will ever come true is unfortunately illusory. Unless Bioware says in 1-2 months: "Sorry, guys, that was a bad joke. That was all just the alpha version. The final version will be out in the summer."

------------------------

Thanks @a-driftamongopenstars for her friendly welcome here an tumblr and their help with my very first steps here! ❤️

[platoniccereal]

If you could undo any of the retcons in DA, what would you choose and why?

the inquisition.

i mean, this is a short answer, but as time goes by, i understand that this is an honest one. this is a tangent, but i guess dai is just an example of electronic arts' production hell if bioware planned the second game only as a bridge for the inquisition's main conflict, and then we get this regarding the mage uprising. like, it's reasonable to assume that since da2 was supposed to be a preamble, the dai's initial main focus was the mage rebellion? and then it's just one main quest in the beginning of the game, and that's it.

but this is not about retcons, it's just me being annoyed. it's just the dai is the most fruitful regarding the topic.

hawke suddenly hating on blood magic. they tried so hard to push it with leandra's death, and then just decided to take the matter in their own hands, ig.

whatever the fuck hawke and varric say about anders. this is not their point of view, at least not in every case, in da2??

whatever the fuck they did to dalish.

like, vallaslin? i guess it's cool if you get inspired by real-world peoples, and then decide to make vallaslin slave marks.

or make their gods powerful slavers Just Like The Nations that inflicted the genocide on them. nothing about andrastianism, tho.

dalish actually kick out the mages is the obvious one.

the point of view on the red crossing. same reason. i count it as a retcon because of the implications that elves actually did that (i.e. the exalted march) to themselves.

also iirc they changed relationships between dalish and city elves/ made it worse to shit on elves again. stop that wtf!! they won't, ofc.

i dunno if it's a retcon or just conscious disinformation, but the presentation of celene and briala in-game. no spoilers, but did they suddenly decide that celene actually didn't do anything she did in the masked empire?

whitewashing of alistair, fiona and briala. they don't look like that, you fuckers???

make these cullen endgame sliders canon again and work from here, cowards. i actually got them in my playthrough even tho they deleted them, afaik. (the ones where he snaps and kills three mages.)

actually, the whole cullen arc. i won't say anything new here, his story was supposed to end in dao, da2 at most.

and i think there are other sliders from dao they retconned and put aside, like with the circle that mages built near orzammar? do it, cowards! it would make such a good plot point in a normal version of dai where your focus is the mage rebellion.

the ending of dragon age absolution. i'm sorry, did anyone find it satisfying? did anyone go, like, hell yeah finally? or i knew that!

the wardens. of course they're suddenly all that stupid to fall for cory's lap dog's lies and shenanigans!

i dunno if the last one counts as a retcon, but it surely falls into the same line of crimes against the previous lore. suddenly bioware felt an urge to shit on every group da:o players held dear. because grey morality. but, you know, even without "i like diversity and opportunity to be a dick, i don't appreciate when the game tries to push an agenda in defense of the oppressors and you can't fucking escape it", sooner or later one should understand that trying to mix grey with every colour in the picture will lead only to it looking dirty and messy. ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯

thank you for your question! :)

[ronqueesha]

Dragon Age hype has me thinking of my beloved OCs that have been living in my head for years.

Kallian Tabris - city elf rogue

A spiteful, angry, hateful elf born with Intermittent Explosive Disorder. The rampant injustices elves suffer only make her worse, especially the unjust murder of her mother. Kallian begins the story hating humans so much it literally makes her feral.

The blight becomes a remedy for Kallian. The gentle positive influence of Leliana, Wynne and Alistair give Kallian a chance to show that her anger is a defense mechanism to protect a very loving heart. She is so angry because she doesn't want to lose the people she loves.

Kallian's story is a redemption arc. She truly becomes a hero, and gets to ride into the sunset with Leliana after a job well done.

Being a city elf means she is almost entirely uneducated. But Wynne teaches her to read and write during the blight. And post-canon, she teaches her father so they can send letters while Kallian is traveling. Later, Kallian teaches herself to speak Orlesian for Leliana.

Sarah Hawke - sarcastic mage

Sarah is too smart. Way too smart. And a magical prodigy. In fact, Sarah is such a talented mage that she hides her status by almost never using her magic. She'd rather deal with situations through quick wit and baffling people with bullshit. Her friendship with fellow wordsmith Varric is the stuff of legends.

Kirkwall never even knows she's a mage until she is forced to use her magic to survive the Arishok fight.

The constant losses and tragedies Sarah suffers in Kirkwall wear her down, until it becomes very difficult to maintain her witty sarcastic persona. Her romance with Anders starts as a mutual partnership of hopes and dreams, both of them wishing for a better future.

As Anders deteriorates, he starts blatantly using and manipulating Sarah. When he fully snaps, she has no choice but to kill him. As the knife slides into his back, something permanently dies inside Sarah. The funny charming mage is gone. Sarah chooses to end her life in the fade years later, defending her friends and the Inquisitor.

Keeran Trevelyan - warrior

Maximum manwhore. Keeran comes from a wealthy, spoiled background. But one where he got very little attention from his family. So he has spent his life acting out just to get noticed. Lavishly spending coin and bedding as many people as possible to fill the void in his heart.

The only reason Keeran wields big weapons is to show off and look good to people who might be watching.

He spends his early days with the Inquisition living in terror. He thinks all of these religious extremists would certainly execute him if they learned the Herald of Andraste was a decidedly unholy hedonist who has no idea where his powers come from.

His anxiety gets worse when he starts to fall for Dorian, of all the people to be in love with when politics is suddenly a major factor in your life.

But over time Keeran matures into a competent yet caring leader. He had no idea that Solas stuck by his side for nefarious reasons, he just thought the two of them were good friends.

The Inquisitor at the end of the story is completely unrecognizable from the selfish and ditzy manchild who started the journey.

[dragonagekeeper]

Merrill Polls / DA2 Companion Polls / DA2 Act 3 Polls

Dragon Age 2 Polls

See quest and choice descriptions from Dragon Age Wiki/Keep below

Merrill pleads for Anders to be spared after he destroys the Kirkwall Chantry, and for him to assist the party and make up for his act.

Merrill did not stay with Hawke

Merrill did not join forces with Hawke.

Merrill initially refuses to help a pro-Templar Hawke if she was not spoken to after an unpleasant encounter with her clan, and if Anders considers Hawke a full rival. He must also be talked with after fulfilling all his requests so that he can be potentially persuaded to turn against the mages; his actual fate is irrelevant.

Later, Hawke meets Merrill in the Gallows courtyard. If Hawke does not want Merrill at their side, she walks away to protect the Circle mages from the Rite of Annulment and is eventually killed in combat after her last words with Hawke.

2. Merrill stayed with Hawke

After being expelled from her clan and moving to Kirkwall, Merrill lent her considerable magical skills to Hawke's cause.

She willingly joins Hawke in defense of the mages. She can also stick with Hawke despite siding with the Templars, if completely loyal.

Later, Hawke meets Merrill in the Gallows courtyard. If the Champion asks Merrill to rejoin them at this point, she can be convinced; Hawke is the only person she is very close with, a bond stronger than any she has with the Circle mages.

If Merrill stands triumphant with Hawke after the battle in the Gallows, she leaves the Champion along with the others, for personal reasons, as stated by Varric.

[koiyan-hades-kid-with-a-system]

🌕🥀Oc introduction🥀🌕

Name: Koiyan Anastasia Ryoko Xing

Age: 16 (lost count of the reincarnations tbh)

Height: 5'0 foot

Pronouns: She/They/Star/Starshine/Moon/Moonshine/Crystal/Shard/Comet/Asteroid/Shooting Star/Nebula/Nova/Starlight/Gem/Gold/Jewel

Godly Blood: Child of Hades, Legacy of Poseidon, Legacy of Ông Tử Vi, Legacy of Dionysus

Fatal flaw: Grudges

Species: Eastern Star Crow Dragon and part vampire

Minor goddess of: Poison, wishes, certain ocean animals, rice wine, rice, sake, plushies, dimensions, universes, spite, vampires, and crisises

Position in Camp: Head counselor of the Hades Cabin, Runs The Blood Bank (we say that bc the money is made out of blood) It has a new installment of a boba stand called Half-Blood Boba and Tea!

Powers: Money production (Can create drachmas out of their blood), Necromancy, Geokinesis, Umbrakineisis/Sciakinesis, Shadow travel, Death prediction, Bone manipulation

Blessed/Cursed by: Uranus, Hera, Apollo, Ares, Nyx, Zagreus, Malora, and Dionysus.

Powers from the blessings: Dying in the most stupidest way or gruesome way. Manipulating feathers in and out of headspace form, Making weapons out of my blood, Laser sun beams, Summoning meteor showers (not ever using this), Blood manipulation, Grow trees in peoples lungs (I will never use this), Turning fruit into Starlight Fruit, And turning fruit into animals.

Starlight fruit is an enhanced version of fruit that can give random buffs or abilities to whoever consumes it. It is always shaped like stars. Think of it as random wish granting stars you can eat

Gods/Titans she hates/dislikes: Zeus, Helios, Uranus, Dionysus, Hermes (HE GOT ME SICK ON MOLY) and Sun Wukong in a silly hehe haha way still love him/p

Weapons: Celestial bronze bident (Can turn into a hair stick), Bladed fan engraved with constellations and roses as the stars, Space sword (Gifts from Astraios, the god of stars and wind), Giant ass battle-axe three heads taller than themself (Found at an abandoned battlefield), Celestial bronze claws, Roserade Dawnbreaker (a talking sword that attached itself to me for some reason-). Skull crossbow, skull knives, daggers, Magic grimore that Hecate gave her

Personality: Feral, defensive, grouch, moody, all in all just self-destructive but hides it under a mask of sass and upbeat nature when in reality she's just cursing you out in Viet. She is possessive af comes with the dragon liniage on her moms side so she can and will attack you if you tresspass on her property. Biting is a love language. Especially for her. expect Zagreus to have bites on his arms or a Koiyan hanging on his arm just by her bite alone.

We have occasional depressive episodes

Clashing Complexes she has: God Complex, Inferiority complex, Superiority Complex

Powers from DID: when people front or co-front some of their physical characteristics transfer onto the body. When fully fronting their eyes change to the color of who is fronting and the characteristics. Ex. Miguel. Her eyes are red and she's taller with tanner skin and more brunette hair. Claws are included when Miguel fronts. Can turn into her headspace form. Alters can split from the host and manifest in a physical form. Animals like to follow her out of headspace so be weary of them.

Fun facts: I have a mild pollen allergy that makes me have colds :(. Oldest of the hades kids :). I got to chose my last name after 8 reincarnations.

My art and writing blog: @astarwritingtheirpuppetsfate

The alters list: @wildwoodshotelsystem-tm

My alters that participate in PJO rp!:

@zagreus-god-of-blood-rebirths my brother 😐

@thanatos-greek-grim-reaper brother in law😐

@asaki-daughter-of-emo-gods my niece🖤🖤🖤🖤

@jinkas-heart-filled-meadows my REAL wifey 💖💖💖💖💖💖💖

@estrellita-the-north-star baby girllllllll✨✨✨✨✨✨

@anderes-ares-biker-himbo-son best boy 🫶🫶🫶/p

@little-starshark-with-wings baby princess of ithica 👑🌕⭐️

@malora-of-apples-and-ecstasy She possesses me :D

@flower-of-my-eye the moly dealer

Actual ocs i hope-:

@natures-porcelain-puppet SCARAMOUCHE DUUUUUPE- (love them tho-)💚💚💚

@yue-the-moons-child YUEEEE (my girlfriend turned into the moon, that's rough buddy) 🌙 🌙 🌙 🌙

@camp-sky-heaven-on-earth Camp Sky, where i reside to get away from the drama☀️🌕🪷☁️☁️☁️☁️

@apurelyricwanderinginthelight Toula dear, being an mc will bring things i am sorry in advance

When Im on other blogs that I tagged/own up here, I talk like this

Oc Pintrest

Kois Kreatures

🥀🌕OOC introdution🌕🥀

Name: Koiyan/Government name that I will not disclose

Age:16

Pronouns: She/They/Star/Starshine/Moon/Moonshine/Crystal/Shard/Comet/Asteroid/Shooting Star/Nebula/Nova/Starlight/Gem/Gold/Jewel

Likes: PJO, Ride The Cyclone, Drawing, Writing, Theatre and Musical theatre.

Yes we do have DID, Dissociative identity disorder, it is also on the other blog.

I don't want to too political on here so please don't ask me to share your go fund me on here this is my blog where i have fun not be too serious i just dont want to be too political

tags!

#attention the did bitch is speaking ‼️‼️‼️ -is for regular posts in character

#flames of the past -is past character lore

#incorrect quotes-obviously for the incorrect quotes i do

#koiyans kracking- "As life goes on, her sense of self cracks like her brain all those lives ago" actual rping not just posts

[crows-of-buckets]

For some reason whenever I brainstorm for my eventual solasmance Lavellan I always imagine her leaving on bad terms with him and swearing to stop him no matter what it takes. However. Just had the idea of Lavellan solas and Varric being in a weird love triangle. during inquisiton only Solas and Lavellan would happen, then They break up and Lavellan is with Varric within a year. Queen of moving on or whatever. Cole gets dropped right in the middle of whatever the fuck they've got going on. Rest of the inquisiton is immensely intrigued by them