#iron bull critical

[dragonageconfessions]

CONFESSION:

I know it won't happen but I would love it if Krem was a returning companion in Dragon Age Dreadwolf.  They could easily have Krem mention that Bull was killed and the Chargers disbanded.  Krem mentions he needs a purpose as well having some unfinished business in Tevinter.  And he can be romanced. Krem deserves his chance to shine as a companion.

[chaifootsteps]

Regarding your ask about ships you hate, you mentioned Iron Bull/Dorian. Been a while since I've played DA:I so I don't remember much from it. Was there anything objectionable about the ship or is it more something that just wasn't your cup of tea?

Iron Bull/Dorian, like Stolitz, is one of those ships that will sucker you in with the fandom's interpretation of it. Iron Bull's actually pretty awful to Dorian, sexually harassing him at every turn and finally sleeping with him while Dorian, an alcoholic, is implied to be drunk. Even after they get together, Dorian never, ever seems happy about it and pleads with Bull not to bring up their sex life in public, which Bull ignores. Bull will sneer at the idea of love ("Love is all starlight and gentle blushes. Passion leaves your fingers sore from clawing the sheets," but if you know anything about Dorian, you know that he's heartbreakingly ravenous for a loving relationship based on more than just sex.

Unrelated to anything, Bull's also super transphobic but that's another topic for another time.

Most of the fandom justifications for this are pretty awful. A common one is that Dorian is closeted or just prejudiced against Qunari, but if Dorian's dating the Inquisitor -- even a Qunari Inquisitor -- his behavior is night and day. He's happy, other characters commenting on how much he's been smiling, and yes, joking openly about his sex life.

The fandom makes Bull out to be this respectful, careful Dom, but he picks your safeword for you and will continue to make passes at Dorian even if Dorian's dating the Inquisitor. Another big one that always gets missed (people don't usually pick it on the dialogue tree) is that if your Inquisitor romances Bull and asks if they can take a turn on top sometimes, he'll mock them and then refuse, not because it's not his thing, but because "this is what you need."

[mw567152]

i still hate Iron Bull

[simpforsolas]

So I've seen a some discussion of people both criticizing and defending the DATV companions for being nice to each other. And I think the arguments from both sides are being a little bit misconstrued, which is honestly understandable. I think that often when something bothers us in fiction, it's hard to put into words exactly what it is. So as we try our best to express ourselves, it may not end up getting to the point of what the issue actually is (this is also why it can be tough for writers to properly address criticism - the readers providing the criticism might not be accurately diagnosing the root of the problem, so their attempts to fix it are shallow and don't actually address the issue).

Now I obviously don't speak for everyone, but I do think that a good amount of the people saying they want the DATV crew to be meaner don't actually mean they literally just want people to be rude and insulting each other for no reason. I think it boils down to three things that the new crew was missing:

Inability to really feel how the companion's backstories form their unique worldview

Lack of conflict between companions

Limited relationship dynamics between Rook and the companions

Inability to feel how companion's backstories form their worldview

In previous Dragon Age games, the characters frequently discussed and argued topics of philosophy, faith, politics, and beliefs. They came from all different backgrounds. You had Morrigan, a hedge mage raised to believe in self-preservation, teaming up with an Andrastian circle mage and former templar. Their beliefs and worldviews are, at their core, at odds with each other. The game doesn't necessarily try to make you believe one way or another, it simply drops you into the world and allows you to interact with these character, see their interactions with each other, and draw your own conclusions. In Dragon Age Inquistion, you have Cole, a spirit of compassion, teaming up with Vivienne, who believes the circle teachings that spirits are demons and want to possess people, and Sera, who represents the perspective of the common people that are afraid of all things magical or fade-related. You have Solas, a staunch individualist who believes in freedom for all, Cassandra, a faithful Andrastian who follows her own inner compass even when at odds with the institution of the Chantry, and Iron Bull, a Ben-Hassrath agent who believes in the Qun not because he's a philosopher and has decided that's what works best, but because that's how he was raised and so far, the Qun has worked for him. So in previous Dragon Age titles, you have people whose worldviews and beliefs are fundamentally at odds with each other, and whose actions and dialogues are a direct result of those beliefs. Veilguard really downplayed the importance of religion in Thedas, which isn't necessarily a problem in and of itself. In DA2, the only companion with strong religious beliefs is Sebastian. However, you had Anders who believed strongly in mage liberation, Fenris, who believed strongly in the dangers of magic, and Isabela, whose lack of belief and lack of respect for religion/beliefs led to one of the game's biggest conflicts. Discussion of religion and philosophy was always a huge part of the Dragon Age games, so when they almost entirely removed that element and didn't replace it with other types of belief that could lead to meaningful differences of opinion, we were just left with nothing of substance to really talk about. This isn't saying that the companions don't have things they believe in, but it's just not the same as characters from previous games. In general, their backgrounds don't form a unique worldview that results in differences of opinions and interesting conflict. Which brings my to my next point:

Lack of conflict between companions

There's a huge spectrum between "everyone is friends and always gets along" and "everyone hates each other and is happy when their ally is sold into slavery." In fact, fans often get really into fictional relationships that have quite a bit of conflict. Speaking for myself, I love relationships where two people may fight or disagree, but they truly care for one another and would willingly put themselves in harm's way to protect one another. So I think when a lot of people say the companions get along too well, they don't necessarily mean that they want them to all hate each other (maybe some do). They mean that they just want there to be interesting interpersonal conflicts. (I personally would love for a companion pair to argue a lot, but when it comes down to it, they actually really care about each other) Why do we want this? Well first, conflict just makes things more interesting. But I think that it also ties into point 1. In this game, the companions simply don't seem passionate enough about what they believe to argue for it, or, if they are, there's not anyone who challenges their beliefs and forces them to defend their position. I would say that Emmrich is very passionate about his love for spirits and necromancy, two things which are seen as weird and dangerous by most people in Thedas. However, there's almost no chance for him to passionately argue for his worldview because no one challenges it. There is that one scene with Taash finding his passion for working with the dead creepy, but as soon as the issue comes up, it's resolved. Compare that to Solas, where a big part of his characterization is love for spirits and frustration with fear and ignorance leading people to discriminate against what they don't understand. Having to face opposition to his beliefs, both in the world and within the inquisitor's inner circle (and sometimes the inquisitor themself), gives the writers the opportunities to emphasize core parts of his characterization.

On a final note for this section, it's just more interesting when different pairs of companions have unique relationships with each other. Solas and Cole's wholesome, mostly conflict-free friendship is made sweeter because you can compare it to Solas and Sera's relationship. It makes the relationships more meaningful when you can contrast it to how those same people click or don't click with other companions.

Limited relationship dynamics with Rook

The final issue I want to talk about is how all this ties into Rook. In previous games, you could learn a lot about a character's beliefs by seeing what they approved and didn't approve of. Anders approves of supporting mages, Fenris doesn't. Leliana approves of compassion for strangers, Morrigan doesn't because why should she help people who can't help themselves, and also it's a waste of time. Cole greatly approves of helping people, Solas slightly approves of you asking questions, Cassandra approves of expressing belief in the Maker, and so forth and so on. Then depending on the choices you make, your approval actually makes a difference in how these companions view you as their leader. But in Veilguard... well either the companions don't have strong feelings about things, or Rook isn't allowed to make decisions that oppose the beliefs they do have. Because of this, there's basically no conflict between Rook and the team. From my understanding, worst relationship you can get with the team is "distant boss whose employees don't invite them to their work parties," but that's not the same as Cassandra hating you so much she gets drunk or getting specific rival scenes like in DA2 where companions react entirely differently because Hawke consistently acted in opposition to their beliefs.

Final thoughts

So when people criticize the companions not getting along, I think it's less to do with the fact that people want them to hate each other, and more to do with the fact that we want companions who have a strong worldview shaped by their backstory, and for that worldview being challenged to lead to interesting conflict. Whether that challenge comes from other companions, the world, or Rook themself, I don't care - I just want interesting and meaningful conflict that is arises because the companions are strong characters who believe in something.

[enigmalea]

Having some Iron Bull feels at 1 am and like...

Blackwall doesn't encourage Bull to see going Tal-Vashoth as a new open door; Cassandra doesn't sympathize with Bull losing his place; Dorian and Bull don't talk about losing the only place you know because you don't fit; Cole doesn't ease Bull's pain by telling him his Tama is glad he got away; and Solas does not tell the Iron Bull that Tal Vashoth are not necessarily mindless by pointing out an Adaar Inquisitor is not mindless; he does not spend days (weeks?) playing chess with Bull to prove to him he was not losing his mind; Bull's friends did not spend all that time and care to show him that being Tal-Vashoth did not mean being a monster...

... only for Bioware to make the entire Antaam, mindless, evil, power hungry Tal-Vashoth.

Depending on how Taash's personal quest goes, the Lords might get some new recruits from the reasonable Antaam members, but this feels so hollow when they've been portrayed so horribly the entire game.

Like... I just have such a hard time imagining a large portion of the Antaam going Tal-Vashoth to begin with, and even if they did, I can't imagine that there wouldn't be some that would have defected from whatever "warlord" they were following relatively quickly. I wish we could have seen it.

Somewhere, in Southern Thedas, the Iron Bull is losing his shit about the Antaam... and Krem is desperately holding him back so he doesn't travel north to try to handle it.

[abyssal-ilk]

getting all of the banter dialogue for dorian and bull so they can be a couple in dai is so... ugh. there is some genuinely wonderful stuff to explore in their dynamic, with iron bull abandoning the qun and dorian leaving tevinter and what it means to have done that and finding themselves as people, but. christ. the fetishization and oversexualization of the qunari in da is fucking hair tearingly painful, and it is at its most obvious with iron bull and dorian. really hoping that something changes for the taash romance, but i am,, kind of doubtful.

[slayerdurge]

so like... the Qun being reveled to be pro-trans in DAI makes zero sense... considering both sten & the arishok are shown to believe strongly in gender roles... and that sten even goes as far as to say that a person can never be anything other than what they're born and that a fisherman who tries to become a merchant will never be a real merchant and will only ever be a fisherman pretending to be a merchant... like... ?????

I mean i get wanting iron bull to be pro-trans himself but wouldn't it make way more sense for that to be something he actually dislikes about the Qun... and then it would actually create tension in his storyline between his own viewpoints & agency and the messages he's learned from the qun and partially actually believes and has partially been forced to believe through literal indoctrination and abuse... and therefore whether he becomes tal-vashoth or not could actually be something that matters instead of just a meaningless pseudo-choice...

[agirlking]

The lack of Cole...

[aces-to-apples]

I will say it's very funny that Veilguard fairly well proves (in an Inquisibull run) what's been my main criticism of his character this whole time: a romanced The Iron Bull never self-actualizes, never unpacks the harm that the Qun does to its citizens by virtue of being an authoritarian oligarchy, and simply transfers his uncritical submission and deferral of agency from the Qun to the Inquisitor (and it isn't even a choice he himself makes, it's something he does because the Qun kicking him out). Not really going anywhere with this, just thinks it's interesting and kinda funny. They had the chance to go "And over the course of the last ten years, The Iron Bull has unpacked some of his trauma and culty convictions" and instead they went "no 💗 he didn't 💗"

[planckstorytime]

Your Journey Ends: A Parting Retrospective on Dragon Age (Part Seven)

VII. A Higher Power

Dragon Age: Inquisition’s core tension lies in the aperture between faith and falsehood – or alternatively, authenticity vs artificiality. Throughout the story, the newly formed Inquisition manipulates the populace’s faith for its own ends. Josephine and Leliana both allow rumors to grow about the so-called Herald of Andraste’s divine ordainment in order to garner support. With the religious establishment in shambles and the southern countries too tied up in their own conflicts (like the Mage-Templar War or the Orlesian Civil War) to respond to the threat of the Breach, people start looking for hope wherever they can find it. Early on, the player can discover a small cult that’s begun worshiping the Breach out in the Hinterlands. In sealing a nearby Fade rift, the Inquisition can absorb this cult into their own power structure. A similar feat in the Fallow Mire convinces an Avvar Sky Watcher that the Herald was sent by their own deity, the Lady of the Skies, and earns his loyalty. From the beginning, Inquisition emphasizes the persuasive effects of faith and how it’s used to magnify power. As it goes along, further questions arise from this. Do noble goals justify the manipulation of faith, or will people naturally see what they want to see anyway? Can a historically oppressive power be transformed into something revolutionary, as mage or elven Inquisitors might try to do with their Chantry-based Inquisition? Is this power, founded on dubious grounds, legitimate in representing the people’s best interest, or is it doomed to become corrupt and seed new injustices? The later sections of Inquisition interrogate these questions.

Crises of faith summoned by questions of authenticity permeate the personal stories of most of the cast. Cassandra Pentaghast is a “Seeker of Truth” for the Chantry, and she lives up to her title. One of the most pious characters, her faith is challenged repeatedly – first by the corruption of the Templar Order, then through her interactions with the benevolent “demon” Cole, then her discovery of the Seekers’ methods to reverse the Rite of Tranquility, and then the dilemma of how to properly reform the Chantry to make it more tolerant and welcoming to disenfranchised people. By her own admission, she wants to rectify past grievances, not avenge them. She holds firm in her belief in the Chant of Light and the Maker, but must make accommodations to account for all the truths that she uncovers. Her faith is even challenged by an apparition of Divine Justinia, which the game calls into question as to whether or not it’s truly the Divine’s soul or a spirit basing itself on her persona (and whether or not this simulacrum makes a substantive difference). In her steadfast commitment to justice and her struggle to confront her doubts, Cassandra mirrors many of the ordeals the protagonist undergoes, and she emerges as one of my favorite characters in the series.

The crisis of authenticity often connects to an obfuscation of identity – either through unconscious confusion or willful deceit. Preeminent among the confused is Cole, a spirit emulating the form of and identity of a dead young man. The Cole that the player interacts with is originally a spirit of Compassion who came to comfort a prisoner as he starved to death, then unintentionally assumed a physical form based upon this man. He even absorbs some of his memories. Recalling the apparition of Divine Justinia, the game leaves it open to interpretation whether or not the new entity is an extension of the old, an illusory mimic from the spirit world, or, in Cole’s special case, a whole new person entirely. While his persona is based on the original Cole, it’s an idealized one – one where he was never born a mage and thus never would’ve suffered imprisonment and starvation. Nevertheless, his roots still intermingle with those of the original, and his anger boils over upon discovering the templar who killed “him.” Does this rage truly belong to Cole, or is his true place in the world that of a healing spirit, as dictated by his original nature? Varric and Solas represent these two respective sides of the argument, with both of them interacting with Cole as surrogate father figures throughout the game. This argument over the essence of existence brilliantly embodies both characters’ philosophies and sheds light on their interior struggles and fixations. Inquisition gives both interpretations of Cole equal weight, since they are, in essence, both true. While the game concerns itself with the dichotomy of truth and falsehood, it also keenly acknowledges that reality is often paradoxical. Cole foregrounds that deconstruction.

He’s far from the only one who doesn’t understand his true nature, though. Sera is a self-styled rebel without a cause who delights in nothing more than subverting the rich and powerful. You might think she’d therefore champion progressive causes and want to liberate Thedas’s oppressed minorities, but you’d be wrong. Sera draws a distinction between “normal��� people and mages, elves, etc. She views all forms of magic with suspicion and disgust, and considers elves (other than herself) self-righteous blowhards with victim complexes. Sera’s bigotry stems from her (s)elf-loathing. Early childhood experiences with her human foster mother conditioned her to be ashamed of her elven lineage. She also demonstrates latent magical abilities, as well as some unexplained sense of precognition. Beyond her magic potential, a convincing fan theory suggests she might be a descendant or reincarnation of the elven goddess Andruil – ironic, considering Sera despises the culture and considers the pantheon to be no more than a pack of demons. In any case, she remains uninterested in replacing broken systems with something new and just, instead focusing on humbling whoever is in power. Sera’s revolutionary attitude isn’t backed up by any ideology – she’s fighting for a perpetual status quo, and that includes a nobility for her to target. She’s willing to disenfranchise other people like herself because she denies those parts of herself. Rhetorically, this serves to drive a sympathetic player further toward Solas’s side in their disputes, priming his eventual betrayal to sting all the more. Sera’s psychology fascinates me, but I think she’s one of the weaker characters simply because we don’t see a true conclusion to her story – neither an explanation to the mysteries about her abilities, nor a resolution to her immature avoidance complex. Her absence from The Veilguard’s remains one of that game’s biggest missed opportunities.

A more fulfilled character arc can be found in the Iron Bull. Known among his Ben-Hassrath cohorts as “Hissrad” (“liar”), Bull works as a spy for the Qun under the front of leading a mercenary company. The player is always meant to question how much of Bull’s boisterous bravado is genuine, and how much is a calculated part of his act. Where does the fun-loving mercenary end and the government spy begin? He’s slid into a role, but it’s a role that fits him, and one where he’s happy. From this situation arises Bull’s identity crisis: he thinks that he’s the king of subterfuge, but in actuality, he might already be a Tal-Vashoth (Qun deserter) deep down, still wearing the mask of a loyal agent. Bull judges Tal-Vashoth as savages with uncontrollable impulses and rage, and thus relies on the Qun’s teachings for security. But he finds that comfort and security among his boys in the Bull’s Chargers, especially Krem. Krem, a transgender man, prompts Bull to explain the concept of “aqun-athlok” to justify the apparent inconsistency between Bull’s acceptance of a trans identities and the rigid gender roles of the Qun, as defined in Origins. According to Bull, because Krem fights as a soldier, which is a man’s job, that makes him a man. I personally believe this works better not as hard canon for standard qunari treatment of transgender people (though The Veilguard would codify it as so regardless), and instead prefer to view it as Bull trying to reconcile his two identities. I don’t believe the Qun’s regressive gender politics need to be rehabilitated (they are, after all, a totalitarian government), and I think this reading emphasizes Bull’s love and respect for Krem, as well as his gravitation away from his role as a Ben-Hassrath tool. Bull’s own story can be interpreted through the lens of a queer reading. Should the player choose to save Bull’s Chargers, thereby betraying the qunari alliance and branding Bull a Tal-Vashoth, the Inquisitor can insist that his name is no longer “Hissrad” and affirms that he is “the Iron Bull.” On this path, Bull rejects the identity his society assigned him during his youth and strikes out on a new path – with a name of his choosing. In doing so, he comes to terms with the fact that he’s been Tal-Vashoth for a while now: the authentic Bull was always the mercenary captain, not the spy pretending to be one. The alternative path, where Bull remains loyal to the Qun, sees him betray the Inquisitor and die during the events of the “Trespasser” expansion. Resolving his identity crisis is literally a mortal ultimatum.

Leliana returns in Inquisition, and she teeters on the edge between two selves, as she did in Origins. Will she be the pious, compassionate soul that Divine Justinia wanted her to be, or will she fall to her darker nature as the calculating spymaster who revels in espionage and assassination? Again, the player can influence how she ends up (and if she inherits the office of Divine) based on a number of decisions throughout the game. Inquisition even sees fit to address her mysterious survival in World States where she should be dead, implying that we might not be dealing with the original Leliana, but an imposter lyrium golem, somewhat akin to Cole. The full truth eludes us, but like so many other characters, she doesn’t seem to know her true self either.

This trend applies to the main villain as well. While I think Corypheus fails to be imposing after his admittedly impressive premiere in siege of Haven (mostly because he suffers defeat after defeat for the rest of the game), he’s effective in another way: as a fool, unwittingly playing the role of the fake devil to the Inquisitor’s fake messiah. Like Solas (the man who sets him up for failure), he’s hopelessly stuck in the past, yearning for bygone days and stuck on a vision of how the world “should be.” His delusions of grandeur are a means of coping with that, hoping to restore the glory of the Tevinter Imperium to what it was back in his era. In reality, he’s no contender for godhood, but a huge theatre kid. He dramatically sacrifices Divine Justinia in a blood magic ritual seemingly for symbolic reasons – establishing himself above the Maker in terms of divinity. Furthermore, he constructs an artificial Archdemon to represent his dominance over his old masters.2

“The Old Gods are no more. The Maker never was.”

Yet as he falls before the might of the Inquisitor, Corypheus cries out for Dumat and the Old Gods to save him. Corypheus – or rather, Sethius Amladaris – was a fraud all along, never boasting the authority of the divine. He merely convinces himself that he is something more through his arrogance and inability to accept change.

Other characters embody duplicitous identities more consciously. Vivienne de Fer deftly navigates the theatrical politics of the Orlesian imperial court, never fully revealing her intentions or betraying her feelings. Like the rest of the nobility, she wears a mask – if not over her face, then over her heart. Is her love for Duke Bastien genuine, or is he part of another power play for her? Fearing irrelevance, Vivienne is determined to climb the social ladder. She wields a Machiavellian shrewdness that eschews sentiment in favor of practicality and control.

Duplicity can also be invoked as a product of guilt. The Grey Warden we know as “Blackwall” is actually Thom Rainier, a wanted war criminal living with the burden of his past misdeeds. Rainier took the opportunity to assume a new identity after the real Warden Blackwall died in a darkspawn attack. He thought it best not to deprive the world of a good man, and sought to make amends by continuing that man’s legacy. Like Cole, he’s taken up the mantle of a dead man. For “Blackwall”, the most terrifying thing is… Thom Rainier. He’s not just afraid of having his stolen valor discovered, but afraid of being that person. He assumes that Rainier is tarnished, broken, unforgivable. Living as Blackwall is the only opportunity he has to lead a virtuous life, to be a person Rainier could never become. Yet it’s all based on a lie, and that eats at him throughout the game, especially as the phony Warden charade gets harder to maintain. If discovered and forgiven, he opts to retain the Blackwall name as an honorary title for a time, before accepting his capacity for change and reclaiming his old name in “Trespasser.” Truth and authenticity are essential for living with himself.

There are a few more instances of fake or fraudulent characters, such as the Envy Demon that masquerades as Lord Seeker Lucius and attempts to steal the Herald’s identity. However, none of their lies compare in magnitude or complexity to that of Solas, a.k.a. Fen’Harel, a.k.a. the Dread Wolf, a.k.a. my favorite character in the franchise.

While first presenting himself as a humble apostate mage with a passion for dreaming and philosophizing, Solas is actually a millenia-old quasi-deity responsible for everything that goes wrong in Inquisition. His dialogue wonderfully foreshadows his true nature without ever making it too obvious for first-time players, and the twist reveal of his true identity is genuinely shocking. In addition to obfuscating his past from the party, his personal dilemma likewise involves a crisis of what’s “real.” At first, he doesn’t view the people of this era as real, thinking, autonomous entities. Having come from a world where magic flowed freely, where people’s minds and imaginations were connected more closely with the ethereal Fade, he likens modernity to “walking through a world of Tranquil.” He cannot reconcile the difference between how the world once was with how it is now. Knowing that he catalyzed this change thousands of years ago by creating the Veil to quarter off the Fade fills him with guilt, regret, and a desire to correct his mistake. He wistfully yearns for a forgotten past, the restoration of which would require sacrificing the world that exists now. He simply cannot live in the present, because nobody feels or understands things the way he does.

Despite his personal deception, Solas overly concerns himself with validating authenticity (even though he recognizes it’s often subjective, especially with matters of the Fade) and opposing falsehood, specifically as it pertains to elven history and legend. This is best illustrated in the scene where he tells a romanced Inquisitor that the vallaslin tattoos that Dalish elves wear actually originate as slave markings. Solas proves unable to fully separate these markings’ original meaning from their new, reclaimed meaning. For all of his introspection, he’s shown to be rigid and restrictive in his worldview, such as his reluctance to acknowledge Cole as a person, rather than a spirit.3 Like Sera, this ancient god of rebellion is paradoxically conservative (ironic, considering their mutual animosity). Though he may support mage liberation and oppose slavery, he claims no kinship with the modern elves, due to the aforementioned cultural differences. He also considers dwarves as pitiful fragments of what they once were, and qunari as mindless savages. He tends to view the bygone days of the pre-Veil world as an ideal to which Thedas should return. And above all, he’s scared that nobody will see things his way, or understand how he feels. He fears, more than anything, dying alone.

Revealing that the elven gods were in actuality just powerful tyrants rather than benevolent primordial creators, Solas expresses remorse at how much he altered the world to seal them away. As such, he admonishes the Inquisitor against hasty decision-making, abusing power, or making choices they’d be unable to live with – like him. His ambition to merge the world with the Fade and restore people to how they were in his memories is unknowingly validated by the protagonist during the quest “In Hushed Whispers.” In this quest, the protagonist and Dorian wind up in a dismal alternate future, where Corypheus rules and the Breach threatens to consume the world. To rectify this, they aim to return to their time and prevent this from ever transpiring. A future iteration of Leliana, however, insists that this world is as real as theirs. Erasing it from existence is no different from destroying it – yet the Inquisitor and Dorian follow through with their plan for the sake of their own time. Future Leliana acquiesces, since little hope remains for her world anyway. So as the Inquisitor pleads with Solas in the finale of “Trespasser” not to delete the world that everyone lives in, we are invited to sympathize with Solas’s reasoning that, from his perspective, none of this is “real”, and comes at the expense of an idealized potential future. It’s a clever narrative trick that I appreciate.4

Which leads us, at last, to the Inquisitor themselves. Our protagonist, the so-called “Herald of Andraste”, personifies both ends of the authentic-artificial spectrum as both subject and object. They are, at once, a hapless bystander who fumbles into their “chosen one” status and a calculating commander of a religious paramilitary organization. They might not even subscribe to the Andrastian faith on which the Inquisition is founded. Though they use the myth surrounding them to establish their initial base, the Inquisitor’s power comes not from the Andrastian Maker, but from touching Solas’s magical orb. Nevertheless, the Inquisition becomes a force to be reckoned with on a theocratic level, with even the Chantry looking to its members to find a replacement for their own Divine. Regardless of whether or not the “Herald” believes in their own divinity, they take advantage of faith and convert it into power, and then use that power to resolve the crises of the Breach and Corypheus. Until it comes crashing down, of course. Female elven Inquisitors can earn an extra twist of the knife if they happened to romance Solas. In this case, they really do replicate Andraste’s story, but not in the way that anyone wanted – a powerful woman, brought low by the scheming of others, pleading with her god-lover not to condemn the world to death. Playing the role of heir to her oppressing culture’s prophetess for power, only to be forced to relive that woman’s traumas – it all makes for deliciously cruel irony.

But their story extends beyond this. They’re making history. But the crisis of authenticity infects history itself, with power expanded and co-opted through both faith and force. Religious and cultural meaning frequently derives from misrepresentation, conscious or otherwise. We witness this in the aforementioned vallaslin scene, where the misunderstood history of the tattoos imbues them with new, reclaimed cultural value, separate from their initial gruesome intent. This case positions faith in opposition to authenticity – or rather, faith transforms the artificial into the authentic. Other such examples of religious appropriation litter the open world segments. It’s a shame that Inquisition’s exploration often feels bloated and lacking direction, because skipping it will cause players to miss out on things like the astrariums, which reveal how Tevinter built its religion on the bones of the elven pantheon (which contains its own fabric of half-truths and lies).

Historical revisionism stares down the protagonist when they discover the previous Inquisitor, Ameridan, during the “Jaws of Hakkon” expansion. Contrary to Chantry records, Ameridan is revealed to be both an elf and a mage. After fighting to bring order to the world and establish the Andrastian faith’s power, the church nonetheless erased his identity and oppressed people like him – first by locking up mages, then by displacing the elves from the Dales. Coming face to face with Ameridan is an important component of the Inquisitor’s journey, as it prompts them to reflect on what their own legacy will be – and if they’ll be the one to control it.

All of this comes to a head in “Trespasser”, which is, in my opinion, the pinnacle of the Dragon Age franchise. Everything escalates perfectly as the material and thematic conflicts of the game reach a boiling point. As outside forces work to dismantle the Inquisition, citing the player’s unlawful occupation of forts throughout Fereldan and Orlais, internal sabotage and abuse likewise becomes apparent. If the organization isn’t already corrupt, it soon will be. The Inquisition might survive as yet another arm of the Chantry, but considering all we’ve seen about how power and history are co-opted and abused, is that a worthwhile compromise? This is compounded by the other revelations made in the expansion. Will the Inquisitor be a tyrant (or an enabler of one) remembered fondly, like the elven gods, or a liberator treated like a devil, like the Dread Wolf? Power, it seems, is ultimately unstable, illustrated beautifully – albeit unsubtly – by the Inquisitor’s magical Anchor melting down. As it grows exponentially more powerful, it comes closer to consuming and killing them. This makes for a thrilling finale, fulfilling the climactic power fantasy as the player destroys enemies en masse, all the while carrying meaningful dramatic weight. Ultimately, the only way to survive is to dissolve power, to relinquish the Anchor and abandon this version of the Inquisition before it morphs into something monstrous.

The finale is meant to leave us beset by uncertainty, skeptical of the righteousness of our actions. Was there meaning in the madness? Before discussing Inquisition’s answer to that, I would like to share how the game influenced my own search for meaning.

2. The Veilguard would later establish that his contrivance is how all Archdemons are made, including the Old God pantheon. Thus, the idea of it being “false” is complicated, since all Archdemons are canoncially conduits for the Evanuris’ immortality, just as Corypheus’s was for him. However, I maintain that his mimicry of the Old Gods’ form was still meaningful and suggestive of his alleged supremacy over them. Additionally, his false Archdemon’s artificiality as a being separate from the true pantheon classifies it as another example of Inquisition’s focus on illusory or deceitful identities. ↩︎

3. This could also be due to the fact that Solas, himself, was a spirit at one point, and regrets taking on a physical form. He wants to spare Cole that agony. In either case, he’s clinging to an inherent, essentialist worldview to rationalize his insecurities. ↩︎

4. Once again, The Veilguard complicates this interpretation. The fourth game states that Solas’s ritual to combine the two worlds would unleash an army of demons that would kill “thousands”, not unlike the Breach in Inquisition. However, I don’t think this is what was implied in “Trespasser.” In fact, I think Solas’s references to “raw chaos” and “recreating” his time implies something akin to overwriting the existing universe to replace it with his desired one. Concept art for “Joplin” also implies this. ↩︎

Full article: https://planckstorytime.wordpress.com/2025/03/29/your-journey-ends-a-parting-retrospective-on-dragon-age/

[soloragoldsun]

Just gotta stop in and talk about The Iron Bull for a sec. Again.

This time, I’d like to focus on how his whole storyline is basically that of someone either being freed from or doubling down on a cult-like religion. Because that’s what the Qun is. Anything that puts certain people on leashes and has “re-educators” that are meant to “fix” people who start thinking differently is a freaking cult!

Bull is shown to be on the fence when it comes to a lot of things. While he insists on being true Qunari and a follower of the Qun, he also shows discomfort when the Qunari offers the alliance with the Inquisition. He flat out says that he’s grown used to them being “over there.” He even acknowledges that the Qun isn’t the right way for everyone.

If you let the Chargers die, he says that the Qun demanded the sacrifice, but you can see cracks in his armor and how much he hates making that decision both during the battle and after Gatt and the Inquisitor secure the alliance at Skyhold. As a result, he doubles down on his devotion to the Qun. The Iron Bull becomes just a role he plays. He becomes Hissrad. How else can he deal with the guilt of leading the people who had become his family to their deaths? He has to believe that it was necessary, and to do that, he has to believe in the Qun unquestioningly.

If Cole is in the party during his betrayal in Trespasser, he comments on how Bull didn’t feel anything when he betrays the party. I’d bet anything that between the end of Inquisition and the beginning of Trespasser, he submitted willingly to the re-educators, masking his emotions and eliminating what was left of The Iron Bull.

On the other hand, if you order the retreat, he doesn’t hesitate to blow that horn. He smiles when he sees his men are safe. When you correct Gatt and say that his name is Iron Bull and not Hissrad, Bull approves. If you say that there’s still something to do to salvage the alliance, he disapproves. Once he’s Tal-Vashoth, he commits almost immediately and acts as if a weight has been lifted.

He smiles while sparring with Krem. He tells you that, whatever he regrets, he’s where he wants to be. Most of his inner conflict comes with the realization that much of what he believed was wrong, that being Tal-Vashoth doesn’t make one a monster. So, what does that make him, someone who has killed many Tal-Vashoth over the years?

No matter what playthrough I do, I will always save the Chargers, both because I love them, and because it’s the best thing for The Iron Bull. One choice allows him to move forward and become his own person. The other forces him to regress into what he once was as a way to avoid his guilt.

[lofi-fairy-tails]

Jumbo

“You’ve got some big ears on you, girl.”

Sera jumped away from the door, only to see Varric leaning against the wall, his whale-sized arms crossed on his chest.

“Like the ‘jumbos’ Bull mentioned. You know, huge, grey-skinned animals with ears the size of blankets? Or so he describes them.”

“Not your business, ain’t it?” Sera cries out and quickly slams her hand on her mouth to keep it quiet.

Varric seems unfazed. “Who are you spying on anyway?”

Her loud giggle fills the hallway. “Inky and Solas are at it again. ‘Elven mating rituals.’ Or so Bull calls them.”

[solasfenheral]

idk. imho I think the writing in lucanis’s romance lacks a lot of clarity on what it wants to be for this character relationship and as a result feels incredibly disjointed.

[cussundria-nerd-kneal]

I'm re-playing through dai now as well, and I pretty much concur on everything above.

Its so much fun to see that the Solas is still very consistent, and still feels in character he's just run ragged, and at his wit's end by the time dav rolls around (serves him right). But the more nastier side of him does make an apperance in dai, which is honestly fun to see pop up. If you're an ass to him, The Dread Wold all but jumps out at him, and he does that with Vivienne, who is just as nasty as he is in her snark (what a woman, I feel so bad for disliking her for so long). I still think he treated Dorian unfairly in the beginning, simply because he was a product of his upbringing; he always had the capacity to change his world view. All it would've taken was a few conversations, like the ones he had with Iron Bull, and then Dorian would have come to understand why slavery in any capacity is BAD.

But, ANOTHER thing that I'm enjoying... is the lore/foreshadowing that keeps popping up. I both get excited because "OH MY GOD, I KNOW WHAT THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT--" and get psychic damage, becauss *I know what the characters don't know.* When Varric was talking about the Red Lyrium and "You hear singing, and shit starts to float" I had to put my controller down and stare at my ceiling for a bit.

Its sad that there was so much corporate meddling with these games... I really wonder what both dai and dav could have been if the OG dragon age team had the peace to create their vision. I REALLY wonder how even more incredible these games could have been if Bioware/EA stayed out of major plot decisions, and just let their writers cook up this incredibly thorough world. What they managed to squeeze out as is is pretty dang cool though.

Replaying Inquisition and actually impressed how much consistency there is with Solas DAI and Solas DATV. Lots of delightful things to revisit overall in the game.

I love how some of the companions just go at each other. Oh, we all think Solas is the ego, arrogant companion? Most of them are! I am eating the way Dorian and Blackwall go at each other. "Your kind, you people", so much mistrust in the beginning with most of the companions.

Noticing early on in the Hinterlands when you finally gain enough approval to meet with the Chantry, Solas is impatient. Hey, Seeker, shouldn't we go meet with the Chantry now? Hey guys, uh, surely we have caught their attention, let's go! He is so anxious to deal with his mess and fast. Solas my man, we gotta go kill some rams first. Chill.

Playing an Inky that is trying to play a balance of compassion and self-interest with each companion. Trying to create an inconsistency with approval/non-approvals. Fascinating the various responses.

Love seeing the Dread Wolf come out in Solas in moments in DAI. All New Faded for Her, his snarkiness with companions in the beginning, his response to the nightmare demon. But you also see the rebel leader. The moments he talks about war. On the way to Skyhold if the Inquisitior is an elf, talking about needing to be seen as allies, the way he talks with Sera about the Red Jennis. But I never noticed before how he is consistently giving approval when you help out refugees or those in need. And just how he is with Cole in general. Overall you just get a great picture of Solas with both games. I feel like Inquisition gives us a look at Solas before he is consumed by isolation, violence, war and regret - what he was like in his very early years of existence and ideals and DATV is the after affects.

Which, his voice in both games fits that as well. His older voice in DATV sounds tired, worn out - so controlled, I love it. Young Solas voice in DAI is filled with passion, emotion, even in his anger, or his excitement. Really great contrast.

Humble apostate? In clothing only maybe. Everyone's posture is shitty in Inquisition. All of them strutting around with hunched over shoulders. Talking to Solas in the Rotunda, travelling with him, his posture is ram rod straight like a broom is up his ass. Comparing it to DATV it's a very similar design. We see it again in Trespasser.

Paying especially close attention to Solas and Blackwall - their stories and cut scenes. Their lines - so much parallels. Blackwall's omissions are just as juicy as Solas'. I wonder how differently players might feel about Blackwall if he never returned after finding out he was Rainier and what he did.

The intro to Skyhold, the passage through the mountains, the music, it will forever remain one of my fave sequences. It's the combination of Solas guiding the Inquisitor, his narration - his planning to ensure this person can be in a position to fix his mess.

Cassandra. Cassandra is as bad ass now as she was when I first played DAI. What a phenomenal character. I love every scene with her.

Absolutely enjoying Vivienne this playthrough too. She is so intelligent, well versed in the ways of the world.

Will soon dive into Jaws of Hakkon - it's been a long time since I played that DLC so excited for some lore refresh and surroundings.

[rosedpetal]

Let's Try Something New

Summary: Outraged by the horrible smut you were reading, Robert shows you how BDSM really is.

Pairing: Robert Chase x Wife!Reader

Word count: 1.6k

Warnings: smut, light bdsm (sorry if it's inaccurate, I'm just a vanilla girl)

Masterlist

You loved him with all your heart.

Not only that, he was a dream come true. Tall, handsome, blonde, broad and with a heart of gold. If Robert was a dog, he'd be a damn golden retriever. With his innocent blue eyes and easy smiles and suffocating affection.

To his friends and colleagues, your husband was the personification of a boy-next-door type, now turned a man with a license to practice medicine. Everything that was probably expected from him when he was young.

He was raised as a Catholic, for fucks sake, even taking the lengths of beginning his studies at seminary school when he was sixteen. Everything in him screamed safe.

You thought it was ironic.

Robert wasn't one to criticize your choice of entertainment, and he secretly knew you've read a lot of smutty books and fanfics on Tumblr. Apparently it was a popular thing amongst women. He's heard nurses talking (and they talked too damn much).

It happened while you were showering, washing your hair throughly, blissful unaware of the fact that Robert saw your book unattended in the coffee table and his curiosity took the best of him. A little peek wouldn't hurt, right?

He flicked through the pages, snorting at how inaccurate and unrealistically these scenes were written. Not only he knew the anatomy and biology like a pro (he was a doctor!) but he used to practice the very same stuff that was so poorly written in your pretentious little book.

It was all so-wrong.

He was so immersed in the horrors he was reading that he didn't notice you walking to the kitchen with a towel in your head and wearing your pajamas, ready to cook dinner. You thought it was weird, usually, he'd acknowledge you first thing. When you turned to look at him, you finally realized, in absolute horror, that he was reading the book you bought on Amazon days ago.

"Rob!" You let out a sound that resembled a squeal. "What are you doing?"

He looked up at you, trying to fight his smirk.

"Is this the kind of educational literature you buy with my hard earned money?"

Your face flushed with embarassment.

"Hey! I bought this with my money! And that's besides the point, I told you before to not snoop on my stuff."

"Because you're embarrassed of it?

"I-" You stopped yourself, feeling your cheeks redden even more.

"I'm not mad that you're reading erotica. But babe, this is so poorly written. I'm actually disappointed." He put the book back on the coffee table, crossing his arms and looking at you. "It's all a load of bull-"

"Because it's kinky? Because it's BDSM?" You knew you were being defensive, but you couldn't help it.

"No. Because this stuff is not BDSM. This author has no idea what they're talking about and is trying to use the practice of BDSM to write their rapey scenes."

You tilted your head to the side. "Are you an expert on BDSM now?" Your eyes widened as you saw your very innocent husband's expression change to slight amused. Oh my-

"I've practiced it, years ago."

You couldn't believe it.

And he kept on rambling: "Well, first of all, BDSM is not something used to subdue women. Or to force kinky practices or shit like that. I mean, where's the fucking safe word here?"

"I'm sorry, when did your BDSM practice happen? Between leaving seminary and going to med school or..?" You couldn't help the question.

He scoffed at your little jab.

"Just let me know if you wanna see for yourself what the real thing is."

That had you speechless.

He was groping you aggressively, your little movie night turned into a heavy making out session the minute the credits started rolling in the screen. You whined, your breathing mixed, your cotton clothed core rubbing shamelessly against the tent in his sweatpants.

With an arm wrapped around your waist, he quickly rolled you, your back pressing on the couch as he towered over you.

He kissed down your neck, lips trailing butterfly kisses on your feverish skin.

"I wanna try."

He froze. "Try what?"

You rolled your eyes. "You know what. BDSM. Now."

He sighed, pulling back and sitting on the couch. "Babe, it doesn't work this way."

"Come again?"

"Honey, we have to talk about this first. Do you know what BDSM stands for? What are your limits? We have to establish a safe word, or if we'll use the color system..."

You sit up, trying not to sound frustrated. "Okay, Mr. expert in BDSM. Just tell me you think I'm too vanilla to handle it."

Robert rolled his eyes. "There's nothing wrong with being vanilla."

"I can be kinky!"

"Do you want this to prove a point or are you really interested?"

"I'm interested. I wanna know if my smutty books are really that shitty."

He snorted at that, brushing a strand of hair off your face. "You're okay with being tied up?"

"Yes."

"And blindfolded?"

"Yes."

"Can you choose a safeword for me?"

"Cookie?"

"Oh, I'd love one."

"Robert!"

"Sorry, baby... Okay, let's take this to the bedroom, okay?"

He followed you inside your shared bedroom, rummaging through a drawer on his nightstand and grabbing a medium box.

You probably looked funny, sitting in bed, half naked and politely waiting for Robert to get whatever he had planned for you. He grabbed a pair of handcuffs and in a very serious tone, said:

"Lay down and put your wrists above your head."

You obeyed, feeling the cold metal close around your wrists, safely tied around the headboard. You couldn't help but let out a nervous chuckle.

"Don't go Gerald's Game on me, please."

Robert's eyes lit up a little. You were so cute. He wanted to ruin you.

"Take your mind off everything else, and close your eyes for me, beautiful."

Unconsciously, you rubbed your thighs together. That voice and that accent? Should be illegal. The way he called you beautiful as he put a blindfold on you? Completely evil.

Robert hummed to himself as he dimmed the lights of the room and turned up the thermostat. He walked back to you, sitting down next to you, slowly trailing his fingertips on your body. You actually shivered, despite the room temperature.

He kissed down your body. Your neck, collarbones, your bare chest, your navel... Just as he was about to reach your panties, he kissed the way up again, wrapping an arm around you and lifting your torso slightly to kiss you.

It was surprisingly gentle, but still breathtaking, nonetheless. His lips slowly moved against yours, his tongue slowly making its way between your lips, and you let out a little whimper while he kissed you. He pulled back, his warm breath on you as his thumb brushed your swollen lips.

Then, the dance of kissing your body returned. This time, he gently bit on your nipple, giving your breast a small squeeze, lowering his mouth and licking your clothed core. It was embarrassing how soaked through you were, your panties ruined as he hooked his finger on the elastic and pushed the fabric to the side, his tongue finally making contact with your poor pussy.

"Open your mouth for me." He demanded in a rough tone and as soon as you obeyed, he stick two fingers inside your mouth. You moisted them with your saliva, and he retreated them, only to gently push them inside of you moments later.

Your chest was heaving as he kissed and sucked on your clit, rolling his tongue, curling his fingers inside you, the wet sounds music to his ears.

"Ow!" You gasped in surprise when he slapped your clit.

"Color?"

"Green..."

"Are you sure?"

"I was just surprised, okay? Green."

He chuckled as he could hear the pout in your voice, giving you another open finger slap on your swollen clit, his other hand scissoring you, making you arch your back.

Just as you were about to orgasm, he stopped.

"Wha-Why would you do that?" You asked, in an indignant tone.

"You didn't ask for permission, princess."

"Can I please, come?"

"You have to learn how to address me, too." Robert hummed, getting off the bed and taking off his pants, stroking himself. "Can you do that for me, honey? How do you call me when you're at my mercy like a whore?"

God, you knew you were gonna lose your goddamn mind.

"Hmmm, Sir?"

"That'll do for now." He says, towering over you, spreading your legs, making your stomach tighten with anticipation.

He aligned his tip in your wet entrance, his breath becoming irregular. Slowly, he rolled his hips, hands on your waist as he fucked you. The bed creaked slightly under your bodies, and he hiked your leg up, kissing your calf, never stopping.

"You always feel so good." He admits in a gruff tone, holding your leg against his chest as you desperately tried not to scream. "I can never get enough of you, baby girl."

"Sir, I need to come, please, please, can I come?" You cried out, already feeling it.

He'd let it slide this time. You were a beginner, after all.

"Yes, baby. Come for me. Show me what I do to you."

You clamped violently around him, squelching, wet walls milking his length, and he picked up his pace, the sound of your moans, your orgasm, all too much. His whole body tensed up as he spilled inside you, groaning, gently pulling out moments later.

He released your sore wrists from the handcuffs, taking the blindfolds off your eyes.

"That wasn't so bad." You jested, throat dry.

"Yeah, just you wait when I introduce you to the flogger."

The blush on your cheeks was rewarding as he pulled you in his arms again.

[barufisher]

okay i've played a bit more and i have a lot of thoughts about Taash and the way gender is being handled overall in this game...

first i will say the positives which is that i do really appreciate the attempt at incorporating trans characters both in the world as companions and allowing us to make those options in the cc. and as someone who also writes dark fantasy stories with trans characters i do understand how difficult it can be to incorporate these identities into a world that doesn't necessarily have the same language as we do; but overall the way they've approached this feels very... i've seen some people call it unpolished but i actually feel the opposite. it's almost clinical (therapy-speak in general has been a main criticism of this game) and it's way too polished, in my opinion, which is what makes it so jarring to see.

there has been a trans character established in game previously, there is already a precedent for these identities to exist in this world, and they have never used this language before. the way Iron Bull talked about Krem felt far more realistic and integrated into the world of Thedas comparatively. was it perfect? no, of course not, but i chafe at the idea that it needs to be perfect, anyways. this is another problem the game has; past characters have had their flaws completely ironed out (Isabela is now a paragon of friendship and returns cultural artifacts instead of looting them, Dorian has multiple codex entries wallowing about how he used to defend slavery, the Crows have suddenly become a big found family-- on and on and on) and while i have my criticisms of some of these flaws (Dorian's pro-slavery rant in inqusition still makes my eyes roll) i dislike the way they're handling these changes and just expecting us to ignore all of the lore and worldbuilding from previous games. and all of this "political correctness" only for the game to still be so racist.

which brings me back to Taash.... Taash is very strange character, lacking agency around both their gender and their culture. they are simply a mouthpiece for the writer. while yes, it should always be made undeniable that your character is trans or gay or xyz, Taash really does only exist to be nonbinary. and to be clear, a nonbinary character like them could be very interesting, if their writing wasnt so... white. we know that the Qun has different ideas about gender than Rivain (and elsewhere) and this could have been a very interesting exploration of that; however, it is obvious that the Qun (and Taash's mother) are meant to be depicted negatively, and ultimately it ends with the player (not Taash) choosing between their two cultures. their gender is clearly far more important to the writer and the only facet of their identity they seemed willing to explore, which makes me question why even make this character qunari to begin with...

Neve and Rook are also the two that spur Taash into exploring their gender. this, on the surface, is not a problem for me. i'm playing as a trans Rook and while the dialogue was again very overpolished and clunky i found it kind of endearing. but the way Neve is used as this "foil" for Taash really rubbed me the wrong way. this assumption that Neve has no complicated feelings about her gender or being a woman (which i highly doubt considering the world she lives in & how misogynistic it is) and the implication from Taash that she only dresses the way she does for her mother/other people (which Neve doesn't even get to challenge) is extremely narrow-minded. Taash is the Only character that acknowledges gender; so far, even when flirting with other characters, it's only been Taash that i've been allowed to specify with that my rook is trans, despite Taash already knowing that from our previous conversation (i hope that this changes once i lock in with a specific character so feel free to correct me if it does).

but no one else really seems to have an opinion except that Neve drags Taash around to meet Maevaris, and we get the very goofy note that's just a list of modern gender identities and their definitions. i do partly sympathize with the writers here; again i've had to find a way to incorporate lgbt identities in my own writing and it can be difficult depending on your audience. i understand wanting to be very clear and concise. but this is... just goofy. and this desperation to be so correct around gender while simultaneously writing such an offensively racist narrative is really frustrating.

there's also an inconsistency that comes from this with Taash's character-- they are portrayed as this rough but awkward character that is bossed around by their mother, they are bashful with flirting early on and are almost child-like in comparison to the other characters. and then suddenly you get a scene with them where they very directly ask if you want to have sex and suddenly pin you against the wall. this scene was so jarring to me i referred to it as a jumpscare because WHERE has this character been this entire time? i want to see more of this, more of this character who takes what they want and knows exactly who they are (which they even say multiple times when you first meet them... but then need Neve and Rook to hold their hand about it?)

i do really like Taash, i like the idea of them, of this very self-assured and almost cocky character who is also a little silly, this person who is so sure of who they are but has to deal with their mother undermining them while also navigating a culture they feel disconnected from, and i also like that the player can help them through it... but the execution is awful, shallow, and racist. the idea that someone can only choose One culture is so offensive and also a laughable conclusion when compared to their coming out as nonbinary. the writer clearly understands that people don't exist within these little boxes when it comes to gender, but can't wrap their head around it when it comes to someone's culture-- which is also a very important part of a person's identity and often contributes directly to their gender and how they feel about it. all of these different characters have different experiences, come from different places, Davrin and Bellara are Dalish and even have differing opinions on what that means for themselves, but the game doesn't touch on any of it. all we get is a lecture from the writer that is completely removed from the world it's presented in.

i wish i could understand what it was this character was meant to convey. i stand by saying that it doesn't need to be perfect; i know there are people that had problems with Krem in inquisition, but at least Krem was his own person. Taash doesn't even get that here... i harp a lot about character agency when i give writing advice on my other blog but it really is so so so important for marginalized characters-- both gay, trans, and especially characters of color-- to have their own agency around their identities that is completely separate from the player & player choice, that allows them to exist as their own person within the world you've created, and i think Taash's character and story is an unfortunate example of exactly what not to do.