#solas was the real villain of DAI and not in the way you think

[monabee-draws]

Solas' real fatal flaw is that he is blind to his own bias and lack of information.

He is so buried in the worldview of the ancient elves and it is coloured heavily by his love for Mythal. Mythal's vallaslin originated from the past same as each of the others, which implies that she too had slaves (the practice of keeping them being something Solas abhors) but was 'benevolent and kind' to them and also 'wise enough' to lead them to a better path. The altercation at the Well is proof of Mythal's association with careful thought and information - the Well itself stores memories passed through generations. Many of her myths show her as a masterful judge of situations, able to see both sides of a conflict and determine a path with least bloodshed.

It is Mythal's wisdom (and the loss thereof leading to his own haste and the downfall of the elves) that likely influences Solas' attachment to knowledge, but it also blinds him to nuance. He respects wise leadership greatly, and faults those who act on false information (the wardens.) But what he fails to understand is that he doesn't actually understand or have all the answers about the world in its present state, at least not to the level where he can claim his wisdom leads him to the best possible path forward (if such a thing can actually exist.)

Solas knows one kind of world and exactly how it worked before the Veil destroyed it. The dwarves existed before the fall of Elvhenan, but that society's persistence through the Veil and subsequent destruction to some other catastrophe (the Blight) millenia later does not make him stop and recall that All Empires Eventually Fall. He does not take the time to understand qunari culture and existence. Nor to understand who the elves are now in the fullness of their circumstances, cultural shifts and new and layered practices. Because it is not Familiar it is not Correct. He does not understand how anyone can live Like That, and experience both sorrow and joy. Some of this is of course because of the large timeskip between his world ending and him waking up in the Thedosian present (this world feels like a dream) but instead of actually doing what makes people wise - that is, collecting both information AND experience on the ground, he assumes he already knows enough, knows BETTER, and that if everyone else did too, then of course they would choose his path/agree with him.

I think this is made most obvious in his scene with a romanced Lavellan where he tells of her the markings original meanings and in her shocked moment before she can process things offers to remove them. But Solas... its been 5000 years??? If not more?????? Symbols change! People in Thedas don't live forever anymore! Their lives are short, and the meanings assigned to things WILL change naturally over time. Language, for example, progress in Thedas: Dorian can no more read ancient Tevene than the elven inquisitors can read ancient elven. This is not an indictment of the knowledge held by those in the present, it is merely the nature of the progression of time.

It's unfortunate that the best analogue for Solas in the game is in fact Corypheus. As Dorian says, "the Imperium he remembers doesn't exist anymore" and it is the same for the rest of Thedas. The Veil may have accelerated the shift, but realistically, Arlathan took another 1000 years to fall to the humans. The elves might have lost power in some other way even if all he'd done was kill the Evanuris and freed everyone else. But, because he believes he has knowledge above all others, and that his knowledge is more complete than anyone else, he cannot possibly entertain the idea that he is wrong. His name being 'Pride' suits him well.

i can 100% understand loving solas for the complex character he is but i just cannot understand i CANNOT understand people seeing him go "hmmmm... dwarves are just severed limbs imitating life without a purpose... hmmm... qunari are savage barbarians... hmmmm... the modern elf might as well be stupid uneducated tranquils... and that's why i justify genociding them!!"

and be like

"omg you guys what if solas is right??? food for thought teehee."

think about what you are sayiinnngggggg.

[vaguely-concerned]

To the ‘themes I am picking up on in Veilguard’ list, let's go ahead and add what I have a sneaking suspicion will actually turn out to be The theme:

— the world has changed and can never be as it was again.

— I have been changed and can never be who I was again.

— in this simple unavoidable truth there is endless grief and endless hope.

And I… may be getting a bit emotional about it haha. Let me show my work a bit: 

if da:o is a game about people who are already dead or half ghosts in some form (through societal forces, psychologically, functionally, literally, in body, through the joining etc.) coming together anyway to save the world from being swallowed by total nihilism and despair (symbolized by the blight) through the power of love and friendship and also this sword/potential heroic sacrifice that I found, da2 is a game about people who have lost their homes and been set adrift finding and building new homes in each other (while completely failing to save the world. also through the power of love and friendship. as well as years of petty bickering <3 we must imagine kirkwall if not happy then worth having been because the love was there the love was there and that's the only sanctifying force we can ever have in this doomed world and city of ours), and da:i is a game about old stabilizing-but-unjust comfortable lies vs. disruptive but potentially liberating uncomfortable truths, and the power of friendship to help us distinguish the one from the other and navigate through them...

folks… I'm starting to think that veilguard might be a game specifically about moving towards recovery and acceptance after trauma — about how even in this flawed, severed, scarred state, what is here right now is worth loving and worth caring for. even in an imperfect and impermanent world and self, there is worth and joy. and of course the first real tragedy — and threat — of Solas is that he just cannot find it in himself to accept this and move on, to let go of what was, the regret won’t let him go or he won’t let go of it. which means that even though on the surface it’s Elgar’nan and Ghilan’nain (and the will to subjugate and violate they represent) who are the main villains, the real antagonistic force in this story beneath that is the Dread Wolf’s despair. A despair Rook must make an answer to by the end of the game, one way or another, compassionately or with righteous fury, triumphant or pyrrhic.

The world will change again and again and so will you — BUT the crucial element is that so will everyone else who exists along with you, you are fundamentally not alone in this existential truth. all we’ll ever have is each other and my god that is plenty, my god that is enough!!! Which is the second thing Solas just can’t accept, he keeps himself separate and completely alone out of an awful mix of fear and pride and feeling himself unworthy of anything else. Rook and the player want to save the world of Thedas because it’s where everyone we love lives, Solas wants to go back to the past because that’s the only neighbourhood where he can still visit those he loved — and the person he himself was, before. A very sympathetic and human instinct/trap to fall into when touched by trauma, I think, if only it wasn’t backed by godlike power, a fundamentally oppositional personality, and a catastrophic lack of therapy to make it literally everyone else’s problem too lol. It’s varric and solas’ banter about the man on the island and where meaning in a life comes from all over again, writ large and with detail work — and the added idea of ‘what if there are also other islands out there, though. With other people on them that you could find if you reach for each other’. Rook with the best of intentions has to make choices to which there are no perfect outcomes and live with what happens — and not cut themselves off from everyone else around them even when there is regret or shame. You get back up every day and you make a life with other people doing the same and you do your best, and that’s the only victory this world will give you. In the end, that is more than enough, that is essential. And I um. I love that. So much. It’s why some of the writing clumsiness on top can’t hurt me because this thematic spine is so solid and so beautiful to me. It’s DA2 all over again that way for me personally — I forgive this story for what it isn’t and couldn’t be, and I love it with my whole stupid open heart for what it actually is. Thank you for coming to my TED-talk and goodbye etc.      

(For my fellow TLT heads out there — you know what this story is reminding me of most of all, actually? It has some big Nona the Ninth vibes down there in the deep. It’s about… the horror and unspeakable beauty that can only be found in liminality, and the role of love in making that basic fact of existence bearable. And also even more unbearable at the same time. I'm so sorry.)

[simpforsolas]

As I continue to progress through the games on my replay leading up to Dragon Age: The Veilguard's release, the more I'm reflecting upon the heart of the series. As an RPG, the purpose has always been to create a dynamic game that responds to our choices, and part of that is to create a believable world that's real enough that there are multiple ways you can play the game. No ultimate "right" answer or "wrong" answer. Even if there are perspectives you disagree with, you can understand why characters may hold different opinions from you if you think about why they think the way they do.

With all these thoughts spinning around in my mind, I began my DAI replay and got a dialogue with Solas that I think gets right to the heart of the entire series:

Inquisitor: I've heard the stories [about Ostagar]. It'd be interesting to hear what it was really like. Solas: That's just it. In the fade I see reflections created by the spirits who react to the emotions of the warriors. One moment, I see heroic wardens lighting the fire and a power-mad villain sneering as he lets King Cailan fall. The next, I see and army overwhelmed and a veteran commander refusing to let more soldiers die in a lost cause. Inquisitor: And you can't tell which is real. Solas: It is the fade. They are all real.

This is it, people! This is what Dragon Age is all about! This is why we have characters who some people love and some people hate, why no one is perfect. This is why there's so much discourse about the game. Dragon Age is all about different people reacting to an imperfect world and understanding why they act the way they do. Especially in recent times, writers often fall into a trap of not wanting their characters to be problematic in any way that it can take the life out of them and leave them feeling stale. But Dragon Age does not do that. It fully commits to its characters, for better or for worse, allowing their pasts and perspectives to shape their imperfect world views and inform their behaviors. Ironically, Solas's exact words here about Loghain can be applied to him, and it's exactly why some people hate him while others love. Like Loghain, some see him as an egotistical murderer while others see him is a tragic figure whose empathy and idealism drive him to monstrous acts.

What's the truth? What is real? Ultimately, it doesn't matter. All that matters are the emotions and interactions people (players included) have with the world and characters. That's why the choices in games like Dragon Age matter so much. There shouldn't be a right answer or a wrong answer; all that matters is what feels right to the player. Because in Solas's words, all our different perspectives on things that happened? They're all real. And this is where so much discourse comes from. People try to take away the nuanced view of these characters and the world and insist that their perspective is the objective truth. Someone who loves Anders could be in danger of brushing past his many flaws while someone who hates him might be incapable of understanding the complexities that drove him to become the person he ended up. But in the end, all our different reactions to these characters are valid and real, both the positive and the negative. These characters are complex and three-dimensional, and to fully appreciate them it's imperative that we recognize that.

The Dragon Age world and its characters are so meticulously crafted that at its practically its own living thing at this point. As players interact with it, we all end up having our own experiences that influence our opinions of everything, from the characters, to what decisions are the best, to opinions on in-game power dynamics and politics.

[fenharel]

some of my thoughts after finishing veilguard a couple days ago before i start my second playthrough :)

ok i think its important to note first that the things i was most looking forward too was 1. solas, 2. solavellan, 3. lore. im self aware enough to know that this will have had some influence towards what i expected from the game and what i enjoyed/cared about or not 👍

good

solas: im honestly so happy. my man is finally happy and reunited with his wife!!!!!! my heart feels so full 😭 this game was a solas fans wet dream. absolutely loved everything we got. hunting down regrets and watching old memories. talking to him in the fade. the entire crossroads!!!!!! him shit talking elgar'nan. watching him go trickster mode and imprison rook. fighting the archdemon as the dread wolf!!!!!! i could go on forever. CHEFS KISS TO IT ALL<3333333333333 if anything i wish there would have been MORE im greedy what can i say

solavellan: screaming crying throwing up. i still cant believe it oh my fucking god

lore reveals: i found all the reveals about all our old theories so fun. i didnt like all of them (old gods are just dragons? c'mon.) but overall it felt so rewarding to have picked up on it all. or be totally surprised by something (mythal and solas the reason for the titans and the blight? wow.)

the executors, forgotten and forbidden ones: the next big bads of the next game huh!!!! loved what we got for the most part, the mysterious circle codexes where probably the most interesting in the game. anaris actually showing up shocked me. i wish bellaras brother didnt say "for plot reasons i must die" and actually told us something about him but oh well. im cautiously optimistic about the secret ending for now. what it implied could go either way for now...

main quest: not all of them, but a lot of them were awesome. dare i say some quests were up there with the best main quests in da??? weisshaupt was epic. or the blood of arlathan. every time we get to talk to solas (thehe<3). the final bits. the strong points were so strong that the low points got highlighted a bit too much imo

act 3: by far my favourite act. this was soooo good. the romance finally (?!) kicking it. suicide mission 2.0 stressed me tf out. the varric reveal? send me to the asylum. solas tricking rook? king behaviour i was cheering for him while crying about varric. the dread wolf transformation. the conversation between solas/mythal/lavellan at the end. i basically was in tears throughout half of the thing. couldnt read the credits at all. act 3 was amazing

minrathous vs treviso: i loved this especially with the angst of playing a shadow dragon who failed minrathous. and then the consequences and quest changes this causes throughout the game was really cool. i wish there were more bigger choices like this since it felt a bit flat choice wise besides of this one, but it was amazing.

villains: ghilan'nain and elgar'nan were great. they really felt like the tyrannical gods they were supposed to be. im so glad there was mostly no corypheus-esque cringe. (tho especially ghil had some video gamey lines but sdjkfhjksdf i still love her)

neutral

rook: i dont really care much about rook.. 🙈. mind you rook was certainly not the reason why i wanted to play this game so im sure a second playthrough will make me warm up to them more, now that my head is more free, but it just didnt insta click. rook didnt feel like a real person to me, almost nobody had any (to my taste) realistic reactions towards them. the stakes just were too high for them to get treated this way (nobody is pissed off that they freed the gods? everyone just believes them when they say gods are walking around? everyone just agrees to work with them? nobody cares how rook is doing? or who rook even is? idk.) i didnt like the introduction much either. the shepard treatment didnt work for me here, just believing that rook is fit for the job because varric says so wasn't enough for me. anyway i dont wanna bash on rook, i know i'll end up liking them later. the headcanons will be headcanoning<3

companions: i... don't have strong feelings about most of them? all of them got to me sooner or later, made me cry. but afterwards im still 🤷‍♀️ about most. i didnt feel like we get to know them as deeply as we get to know companions in the previous games. i really really missed sitting in the lighthouse for hours and talk to them, ask them about their profession or what they are about outside of cutscenes like in the previous ones. i think that would have helped me click with them faster. i didnt find all companion quests very strong either. the "high stakes" of the main story made some conflicts feel a bit like we can just fix that after the story lol. i did not like the mass effect 2 treatment of them much... (but me2 is overrated anyway sshh dont kill me<3) some companion quests i did find interesting lore wise (bellara, harding) even if i wish that some of them would have went a bit deeper there. anyway i know i'll probably end up loving them all after a couple of playthroughs, this almost always happens to me, dai is the best example.

combat: don't care. this isn't my type of combat, i don't play a lot of super actiony combo dodge dodge block combat games. still hate the limited abilities. at least it didn't feel too clunky on mouse and keyboard and it was "fun enough" to me so thats good

puzzles: i could put them into the bad category but at least they weren't too terrible so i don't want to be too harsh. but i don't enjoy doing them. i dont want to search for a crystal in a bush. i mean i did them all but at what cost. this felt like filler i thought they wanted to avoid by not adding fetch quests???

bad

pacing: this games hardest battle imo. the pacing of the game is... strange. act 1 is way too fast. it feels like we're running and have absolutely no time for anything. (makes sense! didnt work well though). act 2 then drags a bit with all the companion quests, and the mix really drags the progression of the romances as well to a ridiculous degree. at least with lucanis, idk how it is with the others. i love him and i can headcanon to fill in the blanks so i liked his romance, but it does make it seem like nothing is happening for 50 hours for everyone who doesnt like to headcanon around. anyway, the pacing/storytelling felt often not fitting. it was trying to be mass effect in a story that is too complex and the lore too rich to run through it. this felt like the main reason why we just never go very deep into the lore of the factions or new npcs, or learn or see certain things, the complex nature of the crows, or tevinter magisters and their slaves, we are just running all the damn time? we never get to explore certain things that would feel unnatural to come up in a conversation or in some other way because we are limited by the things the story "has time for". or what the devs had time for.

wishy washy writing: not everywhere but in some places and im not used to that in a da game so its a bit baffling. "the blight is different now so thats the reason for x trust me bro" ok....? "the first of my people do not die so easily" = mythal is shattered and lives on, makes sense. but the other evanuris are all dead, even the ones that were "dead" already? why? idk........ i shall stay delusional for now and hope i've missed something in my completionist run that i now in my next run will find somewhere lol.

limited worldstate: im not tooo hung about it but i certainly wish it was different. i had hoped they at least commit to it. but then adding little references that could have just been made personal by switching one line just made the reference a bit jarring sometimes instead of exciting. or making morrigan eat mythals memories for the regret quest....really? this could have been the well of sorrows choice, why could they not have just made the inquisitor show up in the crossroads if they were the one that drank from it. this whole choice thing + some other problems ended up feeling like something they didnt really want to do but ended up doing because the game was in development for so long they just had to finally fucking finish it. and it sucks for us.

the veil: why... is it still there? they left breadcrumps of clues throughout the entire series about all the positives it would do if it was gone, even add a damn prophecy, and then just dont do it.... ever perhaps? must the blight really be cursed for this? demons forever feared? listen im just glad solas is ok at the end of the day but he could still have had his redemption/healing/forgiving himself moment after destroying it imo.

i wish the inquisitor was more involved in everything :((( the moments we did get made me SO happy but. yeah.

no quicksave and the skip button that ruined my screenshots deserve their own bullet point what the hell

anyway enough yapping!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! overall i loved the game because the stuff i cared about the most was the best aspects of the game sdkjhsdjkf im not ashamed to admit that this is my new solas 2.0 game. ..... <3

[bogunicorn]

thoughts on what fandoms the da:i characters would be in

I will do this for you but ONLY if I amend it to "fandoms they would be annoying about" because it's funnier and otherwise I'm just assigning them shows they would be into and that's too subjective and less fun

One of them has to be a Homestuck and it's Sera, Sera is the Homestuck. Sera has a Trollsona that she doodles on everything, she would 100% absolutely try to dye herself gray using sharpies and vodka for a cosplay. She references it all the time and is annoying when you don't understand her jokes. She still tries to get people into it, but she considers Andrew Hussy a mortal enemy these days for Reasons.

Solas is a Song of Ice and Fire bitch. Not the show. The books. "But wait, Boggers!" you might say (if you know me well enough to call me "Boggers"), "What about LOTR? Why isn't Solas into LOTR?" And to that I say, he's definitely read it and is a nerd about it, but this is about fandom, and fandom to someone like a Reddit-addicted bitch like Solas is about theory crafting, debates, and politics, and ASoIaF being complex but unfinished really lends itself to the kind of deep internet toxicity that I think Solas would crave. Also he likes wolves.

Cole is a Supernatural Superfan. He has all the cheesy "join the hunt" merch because for a while it was his chief special interest and all he wanted was SPN stuff. He's kind of obsessed with Baby, specifically. His favorite episode was Baby and he has an AO3 account full of fic written from the car's perspective. He didn't cry in the finale until he saw the Impala under the canvas and he's been lowkey upset at Sam for doing that ever since.

Dorian is an old school Baldur's Gate fan. Like, BG1 and 2. He's played other RPGs of that era, those are just his favorites. What makes him an annoying fan is that he thinks complicated = good and looooooves to complain about how "simple" and "boring" current-era RPGs are. If you can't softblock yourself from all progress by making one mistake two hours into your playthrough, it's too easy. He's active in fandom spaces and is largely helpful, like he writes tips and guides and will answer newbie questions, but the price for his help is dealing with him being smug.

Leliana is a FromSoft fangirl and a Soulslike aficionado. Nightingale says git gud. She'll happily team up with you in co-op to get you through stuff if you ask, but she also explains mechanics and such like you should have known them already and thinks you're just not trying hard enough to listen, even though her advice is almost incomprehensible.

Cullen is an MCU fanboy. He fully believes they're the peak of cinema. He compares literally everything to an MCU movie, as he has seen all of them, multiple times, and thinks you're "thinking about it too much" if you criticize them in more than the most banal of ways. Usually it's fine, like, being excited for stuff is fine and enjoying mainstream things are fine, but you can only have so many "Thanos was a great villain" conversations with this dude before you go insane. Despite seeming incapable of critiquing the MCU, his criticisms of the DCEU are spot-on, sharp, and demonstrative of actually very impressive media analysis skills, but also coming from a starting point of "DC Bad, Marvel Good", so it's like, we could've had it aaaaaaaaall.

Cassandra is in the Bridgerton fandom. She read the original books and liked them, so she was one of the first people watching the show. Most of her fandom stuff happens on Facebook with other book fans. Watching the show with her is fun until the exact second she says "well, in the BOOKS" and then rattles off a list of the most inconsequential changes, distracting you from a pivotal moment in the show and forcing you to rewind. She is very pressed about the seasons going out of order from the books.

Varric is a Critical Role evangelist. He was there when it started, he's listened to everything. He's listened to other real play podcasts and shows, but CR is his favorite. That's not annoying in and of itself, what's annoying is that he will not stop trying to get you to watch it. If you even breathe in the direction of a DnD-related topic he tries to give you "advice on where to start" with CR. His friends put up with it because he's their Forever DM and they love him, but he sure does do a lot more obnoxious sound effects now than he used to and they're planning an intervention about it.

Josephine is a Disney Adult. She seems normal and then bam, you get blindsided by something insane, like that she owns every single Disney character Funko Pop, or that she's gone to DisneyWorld for vacation every year for the last decade, or you go over to her house for dinner and find Hidden Mickeys in her bathroom, or she's really intense about pin collecting and limited edition mouse ear headbands. You wonder when she has the time and energy to collect all this. And there's more of it every time you see her. But the thing is that she's pretty quiet about it as long as you don't poke the bear. You know that she's seen every one of the new remakes in theaters, but you don't dare ask her opinion about them. Her favorite princess is Cinderella and she tells you "the original dress was silver" with exactly the same amount of excited did-you-know energy every time.

I hate to break this to you all, but Iron Bull is a Zack Snyder and Christopher Nolan fanboy. Yep. Yes he is. His toxic trait is that he shuts his brain off and just enjoys the gritty action sequences. He liked Batman v Superman. He bought the Snyder Cut. He thinks Nolan's Batman is the absolute best that franchise has ever been and ever could be. I'm sorry, it's heartbreaking but it's true. I know, I'm sad, too, we can hold each other.

Vivienne has been in the Anne Rice fandom under the same pseudonym for ever. She was one of the original fans and was much more active in fandom when she was much younger, but she made her fannish activities more and more private as she became more established in her career. You would honestly never know it meeting her IRL; at most, people come over for dinner parties and might notice that she owns every single Anne Rice book, but they're part of her overall book collection and don't really stand out. Secretly, though, she's been keeping up with the Anne Rice fandom under a pseudonym this whole time and goes to the more modern in-person events using her fake name. She might kill you if you ever connected her fandom activities to her real life in any way. She's also just, like, she's really bad at letting people be wrong about these books. Really, really, really bad. There are epic-length threads on old forums that are just her and one other similarly deranged person fighting about obscure Vampire Chronicles lore.

And finally, Blackwall is a Game of Thrones girlie. The show, not the books. He's one of those "I don't like fantasy but I like Game of Thrones" guys, and he thinks GoT is mold-breaking and special and better and grittier and more realistic than other fantasy and that's why he likes it. His most irritating fan trait is that he thought season 8 was good and that the ending was good and he likes to get into heated debates with other fans about it. However, he does not know what Reddit is, he only talks with other GoT-watchers in Facebook, which is why he and Solas haven't had the fight to end all friendships yet. Yet.

BONUS! Krem is into Star Wars and Scout Harding is a die-hard Trekkie, and they go to big cons and cosplay together. They're not annoying at all, I just wanted to mention it because I feel like that's in-character for them.

**also if you like this and think "i'm gonna give this fine person a follow because they're so funny about dragon age", i made a new DA sideblog at @skyholdstarbucks where i'd post anything similar to this in the future

[kaija-rayne-author]

Ugh I can’t not theorize. I’ve been at it non stop. Once a story catches my interest my brain just going into hyper speed trying to figure out how the writers (if they do a good job) will bring all of their themes, hints, etc to fruition. All I’m missing is a cork board, pins, and miles of red string.

What’s super exciting this time is I’m actually dealing with a property where the writers are….good? I’m so used to being disappointed when fan theories (often my own) turn out to be much better than the canon, but I don’t see that happening here. Weekes is clearly a masterful writer and knows how to build up to a satisfying twist.

Because you just know another twist is coming. Solas, despite everything, is just too soft hearted to make a convincing final boss. It couldn’t be more obvious that being The Dreadwolf and putting aside his own conscience takes every ounce of energy he has. Eventually he’ll have his breaking point and that’s when we’ll find out who our true villain is.

It’s Mythal. I’ll eat my damn hat if it isn’t. She’s either not the person Solas remembers, or maybe she never was. In either case, there’s been plenty of clues both in DAI and in subsequent materials (specifically Tevinter Knights) to imply that there’s something else going on here.

We keep seeing imagery of the Dreadwolf as a mutant abomination that is part wolf and part dragon. It’s easy to point to the end credit scene of DAI and say “well yeah he fused with Mythal who is a dragon” and sure it looked that way…but is that actually what happened?

We saw Flemeth part with some form of magical energy before Solas arrived. We also know that she’d taken the soul of Uthemiel from Kieran. Uthemiel happens to be a dragon, or was until he was tainted and became an Archdemon.

Archdemons can control Darkspawn. And taking a Darkspawn army past the Veil to enact vengeance upon the Evanuris sees like something Flemeth would do. But that doesn’t seem like something Solas would want. His agenda has always been to fix his past mistakes and tear down the Veil for the greater good. He doesn’t seem that fond of Darkspawn, in fact he was pretty pissed at the Wardens for screwing around with them.

Where I’m going with this, is I think it’s entirely possible Solas is being used. He may have unwittingly fused himself with an Archdemon, assuming it was the essence of Mythal. The real plan, now that plan A failed, might be turning him into an Archdemon so Flemeth/Mythal can use him to start another blight and wield the darkspawn. Corypheus managed to mind control an Archdemon, so clearly it can be done.

And if that’s the case, then ooooooh boy.

Poor Solas.

OMG. I missed this one and I'm so glad I finally found it!

What a fascinating idea. Holy shitballs.

Okay, so I just restarted DAO, I'll be on the lookout through these playthroughs (I'm doing DA2 next, then probably DAI again, because I'm an utter sucker for lore) for hints about all that!

I thought the whole point of the dark ritual w/Morrigan was to purify Urthemiel's 'soul' through being born as an innocent child. But what if that didn't work?

But then, wouldn't Kieran have shown signs of taint? Hmmm. Maybe not, given it's just the soul?

I'm still not convinced that Flemythal parted with any kind of energy in that scene. BUT if she did... well, she's pulled the whole 'soul piece recovery schtick' before. So if it was energy or a soul, it could've been hers. Leaving just Urthemiel. Which would very possibly warp Solas into a dragon/wolf thing. And Mythal is very used to Solas going along with what she wants. So it feels like something she wouldn't think twice about. She uses Morrigan too, and Kieran, so it’s definitely something she's used to doing.

I have a strong feeling Solas is indeed being used. And has been since he was 'born' from the fade. There's a lot of hints to his resignation, nay, even belief that it's right that Mythal used him. (This is... common, in abuse survivors, FWIW.)

But I believe it's canon that his forehead scar came from when he burnt off Mythal's Vallaslin? I have to see if I can find that again. I can't remember where I read it.

I think Mythal will be rather unpleasantly surprised in the spine Solas has developed since her 'murder'. He doesn't seem at all likely to me to be all 'hey! My enslaver is back! Let me just get my slave brands again'. Now, if he were still truly alone, he might just cave into it because man, does Solas have some pretty massive Mythal issues. Not sure if he regards her as his mom or something else or a mix of things, urk.

BUT he's not actually truly alone anymore is he? No matter how hard he tries to be. A Romanced Lavellan can tell him "Var lath vir suledin" which translates sorta, into "Our - love - way/path - endure/strength to withstand loss."

So he knows he's not alone. That inky will absolutely go to the mat for him. He has actual friends, too. He said Bull has him, if you don't betray Bull w/the Chargers. Solas doesn't strike me as someone to say that lightly.

So, he also knows he has friends, too.

I think, if Mythal actually is the big bad (kinda hoping for this tbh) she's gonna have a rather rude awakening when it comes to Solas. Who, from all I can tell, has always willingly served her whims. Because she was 'the best of them' doesn't mean she was actually good.

I talked about how he's heavily neurodivergent coded before, and we're generally loyal to a fault, which Solas very much shows.

But we do also often, eventually, reach a 'no more' point. After which, we'll absolutely close all those doors we'd previously left open.

If Solas acts the way I suspect he might, he'd then use everything he knows about Mythal and the Evanuris to help the game protag (I still wish I could just carry my inky over) defeat the buggers.

But what would it take for him to finally reach that point with Mythal? Mommy issues are soooo hard to deal with in therapy because it's so damned easy to backslide.

Hurting Inky? Doing something that will destroy the fade (like marching a darkspawn army into it)? Making him betray all of his followers who truly believe in him and his goals of freeing enslaved elves?

Solas deeply believes that slavery is wrong. In a way that makes me think he was actually enslaved at one point. Obviously to Mythal.

Oh, fuck me. What an amazing story they could tell about the whole 'but there were good slave owners' bullshit nonsense some people like to spout.

Of course, I still really wish Bioware would tell a story with a disabled protag. Which the end of Inquisition really would set up nicely. But given their shit disability rep, I know not to hold my breath over that.

[yarpharp]

Not quite getting why my fellow nerds are comparing Astarion to Solas, in all honesty. I just... Don't see it.

Astarion's a traumatized foppish bastard. He's very flirty and ridiculous and wants you to think that because he's terrified of a Real Emotion due to 200+ years of abuse. Which makes him develop defense mechanisms! He's also a chaotic neutral to chaotic evil fellow who has an unpredictable moral compass that is generally self-serving unless you convince him to try to be a little less murderous. He would rather not have sex until he really understands what HE WANTS. He's also far more vampiric than elven-coded, because he's mostly been forcibly made to forget a huge portion of his past. All his sense of superiority and arrogance is a mask to hide the very abused, very terrified elf at his core.

Solas is an arrogant but extremely well-spoken asshole. Yes, both Astarion and Solas are very verbose, but not in the same way. Solas is verbose because he's an old as fuck elf that knows a lot about his own culture because HE WAS THERE. He's verbose and archaic because... Well, he is archaic. He's an ancient elf. Solas is also hiding behind a mask, but not for a real defense. Sure, he's a mage. But it's far more because it wouldn't benefit him to be openly himself. Being Fen'Harel will not get him anywhere; playing at being some bumpkin introverted elf makes him far more approachable and far less threatening.

But I won't deny that if given the chance, Astarion could become a Vampire Ascendant (demigod vampire) and happily commit mass murder. Solas wants to also commit mass murder in the name of trying to bring back the olden Elvhen Days that have long since past, and it's probably absolutely futile.

But otherwise? To me, they are quite different characters that only vaguely have parallels between them on paper. They have different motivations and different influences, and... I'm sorry, but Astarion is Compelling in that you find yourself emphasizing with his Pain (and his healing/self-destruction depending on your choices with his personal questions), and Solas is Compelling in the way you love Tragic Heroes Turned Villains by the end of the story.

So yeah. I am baffled.

[bikorarey]

7, 10 & 21 for the choose violence thingie 👀 whatever fandom you want!

7.) what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

I'll do a second one of these. Varric Tethras. Surprise! Bioware gives you a designated best friend who is a yes man and the woder fandom loves him cuz they love having their ass kissed! Oh man you would think Varric was the maker the way people worship him. But he's a prick to Sebastian AND Blackwall for a bit because they are Noble and good men and only likes Blackwall when he finds out he murdered a family. On top of that he's another of Bioware's "I hate my ethnic/oppressed group" and he's annoying about it. This fucker when you go into a cave that you can see the back of from about 90 meters away from it "you know, not every dwarf loves caves..." oh sorry Varric didn't know we were walking into Kal shirok here in the hinterlands when the sun is out.

But all you ever see is "Varric is the best I would romance him so much cuz no one will ever compare to him. My Hawke and Inquisitor would fight over him cuz he's just so hot and better than every other LI" god it makes me roll my eyes at how people fawn over yes men characters with no backbone and who's main trait is "will agree with you". Sebastians a better archer, Sigrun is a better dwarf, and I'm hoping someone else can get a spotlight in DA:D cuz I'm tired of Varric.

He's fine in combat in DAI and I do like his banter with Vivienne!

10.)worst part of fanon?

Ignoring the facts about a character to recharacterize them. Like Garrus and the "He's Turian Batman!" No he isnt. He was a trigger happy ex cop who wanted to just kill people and call it justice. Also projecting our real world issues onto fictional characters or plot elements. Like when people started saying Mage Lives Matter in the DA fandom because of Black Lives Matter IRL. That shit sucked.

21.) Part of canon you think is overhyped?

Solas has two things. His "I was wrong about you " convo for Adaar and Solas saying he's going to destroy the world.

Everyone says Solas is racist to Qunari/Tal Vashoth butnhe doesn't say anything The Iron Bull or Sten say about them. Bull and Sten say that the Qun keeps their davage nature in check, so why is Solas saying that after being AWAKE for 1 year that from what he heard Qunari are savage creatures? Theur own doctrine says it so why wouldn't he believe them until he meets a wise and noble Adaar that even THE IRON BULL will say is what Tal Vashoth should be if they don't want the Qun?

Also Solas as the main villain. Trespasser PLAINLY stated that Solas had a protagonist arc and his antagonists were the Evanuris, he eve says undoing the veil would release the Evanuris once more but he'll have to deal with them. Solas undoing the veil will most likely not do what he thinks because the world isn't dependent on Magic like it was when he sealed the fade. He won't be the main villain, the Evanuris will be. If anything, Solas could end up as a companion to the next Protagonist as we help him defeat the other Evanuris!

[thebonerpit]

I need to talk about Dragon Age Absolution because yeah I’m late to the party but I finally watched it...

First of all, I can’t get over the utter ridiculousness of Hawke failing to kill not one but TWO villains. Like. what the FUCK lmfao. This poor man/woman. And poor Varric too, holy shit. But I am a bit confused because Varric was viscount of Kirkwall at the end of DAI right? Was this already happening and he somehow just didn’t notice?? (There was also some weird timeline fuckery with Hira saying her family was killed by Venatori when she was a small child but now she’s at least 20 and the Venatori didn’t even exist until DAI. DA4 cannot be 15+ years later, that would be bananas.)

I was kind of spoiled for the Meredith reveal but I didn’t know she was fully aware and talking and controlling red lyrium templars?!?!?! I thought she was just gonna be the red crystal and that artifact was going to wake her up but I guess she’s already awake, so maybe it’s to give her a body again? IDK IDK.

Unfortunately I didn’t love Miriam. She’s just the type of character I don’t generally like... kinda 2edgy4u y’know? I mean she’s basically a female Fenris but the difference is we had a whole-ass game to get to know him and see his personality emerge and see him work through his trauma but this entire series was over SO fast that I never felt like I knew her at all. I knew Hira was going to betray them because there was absolutely no fucking way Fairbanks was the real traitor and if you played Inquisition you probably knew that too. It sucks he died but at least he wasn’t a bastard. Oh and speaking of Hira I just find it so funny that she was like “yeah I asked the Inquisition to go WAR with Tevinter and they said NO can you believe?!” and I’m like YES I can believe, what the fuck? Are you kidding me?? You think the Inquisition - who are already being scrutinized and accused of being power hungry and are dealing with mountains of other things - are going to start a war with one of the most powerful nations in Thedas? I have to laugh.

Rezaren had the personality of a piece of wet bread and I was zero percent interested in his whiny shenanigans. Although I do appreciate how he thought that keeping the reanimated corpse of his dead slave around to chat to every now and then was NORMAL. Horrific. I actually really liked Tassia though! Because for almost the entirety of DA we’ve sort of been told that Tevinter templars are weak as kittens and are basically pointless, but Tassia was a certified boss swinging that hammer around. It was weird that we never saw her use any templar abilities though (unless I missed it?) so maybe that is sort of frowned upon in Tevinter.

The real winners here are OBVIOUSLY Lacklon and Roland omg babessssss. Roland was by far my fave character. Optimistic and heroic with just the right amount of sass so he wasn’t boring. Qwydion was... ugh ok I am on the fence with her. There were a lot of parts where I really did like her but imho they just made her a BIT too silly. Like running away screaming from the demons... girl... you’re a badass mage, what the hell was that?!

Anyway overall I give it a solid 7/10. I think I was just so excited to see something new in the DA world again /sobs, so I can overlook some of the faults. I am both terrified and excited for DA4 because I thought we would be mostly dealing with Solas and his bullshit but now we have Meredith + red templars invading Tevinter which is already struggling to repel constant Qunari invasions?? Things are not looking good for Tevinter tbh and if that means something bad happens to Dorian I will RIOT.

[onewomancitadel]

On my earlier point about DA (no spoilers), I have this extremely evil characteristic which is that I judge all media to essentially the same rubric of writing quality, despite the fact how prioritised it is varies widely medium to medium. It is laughably unfair to expect video games, for instance, to clear that sort of bar, but I guess in that case it's why Solavellan - more specifically how the relationship is recontextualised through Trespasser, and through the experience of play, especially as a romance not everybody has ever even played - so thoroughly surprised me. In that case, I think where video games get a leg up is 1. tapping into that fairytale magic so easily, and 2. the player interactivity. I'm not about to give you a lecture about ludonarrative dissonance, don't worry. I'm not silly.

Maybe point 1. is because one of my earliest memories is my dad playing Yoshi's Island, ha.

I think this is a similar problem with watching films - I'm much less cultured than I'd like to be, especially compared to film buffs - where the angle I tend to be hardest on is, again, the writing, and it's generally make or break for me. Even when all other elements manage to transcend that problem, I'm just not emotionally invested if the foundations are not there. This is also why I spent so long invested in a show made with Halo: the style and delivery matters so much less to me than the writing, and RVB used to be very funny. I'm using the most ridiculous example of this, of course; RVB, tonally, is already a very silly show, so it's not like the machinima nature of it is incongruent in any way (if anything the melodrama of S9-10 is too much for me).

Point 2. above is also why Solas is such a compelling character to me because - like the spirit/demon theory - he's a radically different character based on how you interact with him. I think his worst critics have something valuable to say as much as his most compassionate audience and I don't think you'd get nearly the same effect if everybody loved him. He's the most reviled figure of Dalish myth; you'd actually like to inspire a little revilement.

Something I mentioned offhandedly and didn't really elaborate upon as well is that to me basic writing competency is essentially the equivalent of a well-honed artisan making their craft, an upholsterer or a potter or whathaveyou, where it takes years of experiences to get it over the line on the first go. Either the thing is or isn't upholstered properly (it's hard to do) or the pot is or isn't fired (less a good example because kilns are cantankerous). The first example that came to mind, actually, is that it's kind of like a pass at Oxford undergrad: the pass itself is the mark of excellence.

This is why I don't like the people who say mean things about all the "bad" fanfic on AO3 or indeed even I need to stay my own hand in criticising the majority of what gets published (though you'd really hope the publishing industry would be more meritocratic, as an aside). It is extremely difficult to clear that line of competency; I am very in favour of democratic expression of art; so much of what you write and work at is in the hopes of one day clearing that mark. Very few people take writing seriously as a craft which needs to be developed as finely and instinctively as an artisan would.

Real artistic, transcendental excellence is kind of another question altogether, and that's where - in my view - it gets much more subjective, and I think the cultural canon really decides it post hoc, much later after the fact. It's a very personal question for my own tastes as well, because I think what reads as excellence to me is often informed by radical individuality, who is willing to go out there and take risks, that is, write stories where the villain and the hero have a lot of sex.

[theyhaveacavetroll]

What was the first Dragon Age game you played? Origin

Which Dragon Age game is your favorite so far? I still prefer Origin I think but I did love DA2.

Do you usually play as a warrior, mage, or rogue? Which class are you planning to try first this time around? Which subclass? I usually play as a mage or a rogue. I honestly never plan my DA characters going in for the first time, just fuck around and find out.

What does your worldstate look like going into DAV? ...do you. Do you want a five page essay? This is a broad question, OP. I guess to explain. No, there is no time, let me sum up. My Warden romanced Zevran, Alistair and Anora are joint rulers in Ferelden, the mages are free and Leliana is Divine, I left Loghain in the Fade, Kieran is very much a thing, Hawke romanced Anders in DA2, Feynriel went to Tevinter, I believe I left Orlais being jointly ruled by a triumvirate, the Inquisition is still around, and I've tried not to let things go to pot generally?

Do you typically use a preset character and name or spend hours in the character creator coming up with a custom one? Hours and hours spent in character creator.

Do you have your Rook(s) planned out to any degree? If so, would you share some details or ideas you have? Nope. They'll be whoever they are when I finally press Accept.

Which character from the previous games or other media are you most hoping will make an appearance in DAV? I'm hoping that Zevran will make an appearance and I'm almost afraid of what they'll do if they have Anders turn up but I still want to see him. I really want to see Dorian and Morrigan and most of all, OP, most of all I want to see my Warden turn up because I miss that stabby ball of chaos.

What faction are you most excited to learn more about? The Mourn Watch. We haven't even heard about them before and I want to know all.

Which romance, if any, do you plan to pursue first? So help me gods they'd better let me sexualize that old man. I'll leave you to decide which one I mean.

Which location are you most excited/hoping to explore in-game? I've been wanting to get into Tevinter for like two games now so I'm glad we're finally there.

What's one thing you'd really like to see in this next game? Honestly? I'm hoping that we actually do get to knock some sense into Solas instead of having to kill him. I'm done with villains where the only choice is death. Fuck that.

What's one thing you're hoping we DON'T see in this next game? DLC that's the secret real end of the game or so integral to the game that it should have been part of the base release.

What's one thing you've seen confirmed so far that you're a fan of? Varric's new look is great.

What's one thing you've seen confirmed so far that you're NOT a fan of? I don't like the dystopian PA announcements in Minrathous.

Do you have any unpopular opinions about DAV so far? I have no idea what's popular or not but my unpopular opinion is probably that I'm not buying it on release day because I'm waiting to see if it's a buggy clusterfuck or not. I'm not EA's damn beta tester and if they want me to act in that capacity, they can pay me.

What's one crack theory you subscribe to (yours or someone else's)? I don't think I have any as far as I know. I don't actually have any friends in the fandom, I mostly keep to myself.

Are you interested in all the lore and speculation or do you focus more on the games and stories themselves? I focus on the games mostly. I'm fine with lore but speculation I mostly just don't engage with.

Which aspect of fandom are you most looking forward to? (e.g. reading/writing fic, the bounty of gorgeous art, getting to know new people, etc.) I'm looking forward to the inevitable rush of fics and edits.

Are you planning to replay any of the previous games, watch Dragon Age: Absolution, or read any of the books/comics/short stories, or are there other games you want to play in the meantime? I'm currently working my way through my second go of Baldur's Gate 3.

Post a picture or gif that conveys your current level of excitement for Dragon Age: The Veilguard!

Dragon Age: The Veilguard HYPE Q&A

What was the first Dragon Age game you played?

Which Dragon Age game is your favorite so far?

Do you usually play as a warrior, mage, or rogue? Which class are you planning to try first this time around? Which subclass?

What does your worldstate look like going into DAV?

Do you typically use a preset character and name or spend hours in the character creator coming up with a custom one?

Do you have your Rook(s) planned out to any degree? If so, would you share some details or ideas you have?

Which character from the previous games or other media are you most hoping will make an appearance in DAV?

What faction are you most excited to learn more about?

Which romance, if any, do you plan to pursue first?

Which location are you most excited/hoping to explore in-game?

What's one thing you'd really like to see in this next game?

What's one thing you're hoping we DON'T see in this next game?

What's one thing you've seen confirmed so far that you're a fan of?

What's one thing you've seen confirmed so far that you're NOT a fan of?

Do you have any unpopular opinions about DAV so far?

What's one crack theory you subscribe to (yours or someone else's)?

Are you interested in all the lore and speculation or do you focus more on the games and stories themselves?

Which aspect of fandom are you most looking forward to? (e.g. reading/writing fic, the bounty of gorgeous art, getting to know new people, etc.)

Are you planning to replay any of the previous games, watch Dragon Age: Absolution, or read any of the books/comics/short stories, or are there other games you want to play in the meantime?

Post a picture or gif that conveys your current level of excitement for Dragon Age: The Veilguard!

[foxx-queen]

so i was trying to work out why flemeth / mythal being the big bad doesn't sit right with me , beyond being a fan of her character, and i think i've finally worked it out? it's because solas is the villain

whether you like him or not, solas is the villain of the next game / responsible for the villain of dai, and everything he's done supports that. turning it into a 'oh he has actually been manipulated the entire time' doesn't suddenly absolve him of anything he's done. aside from almost causing the last apocalypse, and intending to cause the next one that he'll just have control over while everyone dies, even his attitude is very similar to every other villain we've encountered so far.

solas thinks that his way is the only way. loghain and meredith were the same. solas believes that the world as it is now and every other race in it, including elves, are beneath him, and doesn't even really consider them to be people. this is very similar to corypheus' attitude, even down to wanting to restore a lost kingdom to its former glory. if he does actually succeed in tearing down the veil and destroying the current world that'll leave him pretty much in complete power (presuming that he has plans to kill the elven gods / old gods trapped in the veil / beneath the earth) with only spirits for company, who he considers the only 'real' people. he'll basically obtain what corypheus wanted. maybe one of the most telling moments about his character is from a conversation with vivienne. when vivienne asks him what his solution would be for the dangers of magic without a circle, she asks him what he would do if mages became possessed, or used their power to harm, and solas says, 'i would kill them'. vivienne's follow up comment, 'so you alone would pass judgement, repay murder with murder, or do we open this up to mobs and vigilantes? if you're going to dispense judgment upon violent mages yourself, you'll need eternal life and omniscience'. solas sees himself just as that, all knowing and all wise and the only person who is right, even though we know he's not.

solas' attitude never changes – even if you romance him / become friends with him, he still sees you as an outlier of your people, regardless of whether you're human/elf/dwarf/qunari, and if you try and point out that he might've been wrong about people in general, he refuses to even consider the fact. he's prideful and often arrogant – he complains that the dalish are ignorant and that they wouldn't listen to him when he tried to tell them the 'truth', and puts no effort into understanding why the dalish might've struggled to believe a random elf showing up to say that they were wrong with no proof to back up his claims, or why they might've been offended, which is understandable given how he can be openly mocking towards a dalish inquisitor. he literally kills mythal, who was apparently his friend, for her power, because he thinks he's the only one who can save 'the people' even though those people are long dead. he might apologise to the inquisitor, but none of it has any weight to it considering everything he's done and what he plans to do, and it's obvious that he doesn't actually feel any regret, because at the end of the day he doesn't believe that the people who have died because of him are people.

there's a lot of speculation about whether solas can be redeemed, and i think the idea that he's being manipulated might be part of that. i personally don't think he will be – he's been set up as the villain with an entire game establishing that, and he would have to go through massive character development for that to happen, which seems unlikely considering the da4 protagonist won't even be his friend, but rather someone very much set to stop him. any chance of that character development / change of heart was in dai, and nothing happened. as he is now, it would be incredibly out of character for him to suddenly change his mind, because he's shown that he doesn't do that. he's incapable of considering another view point, or that he's in the wrong. he has far too much pride for that. i honestly think he'll end up being killed, and that as he's dying he'll see a glimpse of the world that will come afterwards (maybe one that restores things without destroying the current world, ie the compromise / balance he won't even consider), and that at that point there'll be an option to say that this is what he could've experienced, or to just say he was wrong.

[whump-a-la-mode]

Villainsicle | Part 12

At long last... comfort. Villain deserves it and I am so sorry to them and to every reader of this story.

Sorry that this took so long. I got sick (not COVID) and work kicked my ass, but at long last, it is here!

Counselor tries to help Villain take a bath, but ends up forcing them to confront a buried fear. Comfort ensues.

Taglist:

@whatwhumpcomments

@sola-whumping

@professional-idiocy

@trappedgoose-in-a-writblr-room

@literally-just-kirby​

@teachunks

@daydreamed-snippets-2nd-blog

@sunflower1000

@lightdrinker-blog

CW//Superhero whump, villain whumpee, non-sexual nudity, non-sexual stripping, bathing, restraints, flashbacks

Villain struggled.

Well, perhaps it was less of a struggle. Struggling had a purpose, a clear drive and direction. Villain’s erratic movements had neither-- they could be perhaps described more succinctly as twitching. Erratic twitching, their hands balling and unballing to fists, their muscles tightening for reason unknown. Not all at once, but periodically.

It wasn’t a nightmare, Counselor was certain of that. Nightmares were fast, coming on all at once in a wave of panic. There was no panic in Villain’s movements, just stress. Muscles and nerves wound as taut as they could be.

They considered waking them. Trying to comfort them. But there would be little point in that. Not when they would simply be waking up to a cold hospital room, experiencing just as much stress in wakefulness as they had in sleep.

So, Counselor waited. They prepared, all while watching Villain, ensuring that they stayed steady. That they were okay.

In the end, getting the bath ready took almost an hour. Inherently, it didn’t have to. By all logic, they could have simply turned on the water and awoken Villain. They would have been cleaned all the same. But that wasn’t what this was about, not entirely.

So, they prepared. The base had only one bathtub in it, and, more than luckily, it was far better than they ever could have asked for. It had originally been acquired for use by Engineer-- Leader’s spouse-- who, as a wheelchair user, found getting into a tub far more convenient than configuring a shower chair.

Of course, Engineer never went for the bare minimum. If there was something they could tinker with, they wouldn’t hesitate for a moment. Thus, the tub now possessed as many handles and supports as could possibly fit, not to mention the filtration system designed to keep the water temperature consistent practically indefinitely. It was the latter that allowed Counselor as much time as they needed.

In the end, once the tub was filled with sufficiently warm water, the bathroom had become littered with towels, rags, and as many combs as were in storage. Not to mention enough soap to clean a warehouse.

It was only when all that was gathered, when the water temperature was perfect, when everything was ready, that Counselor awoke Villain.

They opened the door to their hospital room, doing so as slowly and carefully as they could manage. They walked across the tile to their patient’s bedside in the same manner, taking care not to disturb them.

Villain’s hands clenched into fists as they fought against the fabric restraints holding them down. It wasn’t a conscious movement, but it was nerve wracking nonetheless.

They reached forward, flinching back for a moment as Villain twitched again, before placing their hand on their shoulder. Gently, they shook their shoulder, speaking:

“Hey, hey. Hey, can you get up for me?”

After a moment, Villain’s eyelids fluttered, before finally opening. Their eyes stared out, unfocused, before coming together to gaze up at Counselor. The latter put on the kindest smile they could manage.

“Good morning.” They chirped. Villain blinked a few more times, their eyelids seeming awfully heavy. Counselor felt bad about waking them, but they hadn’t exactly been having a restful sleep.

Again, the patient blinked. At last, their eyes focused.

The bedframe was struck with such force that Counselor could practically feel it, just from proximity. They leapt back, only to hear the sound again as Villain yanked once more at their wrist restraint. A thousand images flashed back in their mind-- images of buildings collapsing, of server rooms exploding into shrapnel and smoke. Images of what Villain used to represent in their mind. Aggression and destruction.

Their heart skipped a beat, before its beating increased considerably in speed.

Villain was a villain. At least, they were at some point.

Counselor took a moment, fighting to steady their breathing, before returning to the bedside. Though loath to admit it, the restraints on Villain’s wrists made them feel far better.

“Hey, hey, Villain.” They did their best to return their smile to their face. Villain had stopped struggling, but their fists remained balled. “It’s okay. Hey, you’re okay.”

A pair of nervous eyes turned to them. At least, they thought that expression to be nervousness.

“Are you okay?” They spoke, slightly louder this time-- perhaps Villain simply couldn’t hear.

In an instant, Villain shrunk back onto the bed, their gaze darting away.

“I’m sorry for waking you up. Are you feeling okay?”

After a brief pause, Villain nodded, though they didn’t seem all too convinced. Counselor supposed that that was all they were going to get.

“Okay. Medic is busy today, so I’m going to be taking care of you today. I ran a bath for you. Do you want to take a bath?”

They almost opened their mouth, before going back, firmly pressing their lips together.

“It’s okay. You can talk. Do you want to talk a bath?”

“Okay.”

It wasn’t a very committal response, but they needed a bath. The dirt and tears streaked on their face were certainly only the beginning of it-- the rest simply covered by their hospital gown.

“Do you think you can walk?”

“Yes.”

Counselor hated just how much they hesitated as they reached for the restraints. Still, nervous or not, they were doing this. They undid the straps, letting them dangle from the bedframe. They placed an arm around Villain’s back, expecting to having to help them up, but they turned out to need minimal aid to do so. They did, on the other hand, need some help to get to their feet.

They could help but furrow their brow. When they’d arrived, Villain had been sick, sure, but at least had some strength. How had they gotten worse?

“Okay, the bath is just a few doors down. You can lean on me if you need.”

They just nodded. The two moved to the door, yet when Counselor reached for the handle, Villain froze. Even as the door opened, they refused to take another step, or so much as budge.

Counselor frowned, holding the frightened person closer to themself, practically whispering:

“It’s okay. Medic is all the way on the other side of the building. They’re asleep.”

That seemed to do the trick. Villain moved forward. The bath was only a few doors outside of the medical wing, and as they entered the room, the sheer warmth in the air was palpable. Counselor closed the door behind them, before helping Villain over to a wall and releasing their hold on them. They didn’t seem to need to lean on the wall at the moment, but they figured that it couldn’t hurt.

“I have some clean clothes for you when we’re done. Um, I don’t have to look, if you don’t want.”

“It’s fine.” Villain muttered-- the first real complete thought they had spoken so far.

“Okay. Take your time.”

They nodded. At some point, they had changed from their normal clothes to a hospital gown of sorts. It wasn’t exactly a complicated garment, but taking it off took a moment-- on account of Villain’s nervous, shaking hands. Still, they managed, hanging the gown over a towel rack.

“The bath is all ready, then. Whenever you’re ready.”

Villain nodded again, seeming intent on doing little more than agreeing. They approached the side of the bathtub, stared at the water, and broke.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 

The washing room was cold.

That was what Villain had always thought of the room as, anyways. The washing room. A structure with concrete walls and a metal floor that dipped every few feet to allow for a drain to be embedded in it. Whatever else it was used for, they didn’t know.

But, to them, it was the washing room.

They kept their head low, staring down at their wrists pressed firmly against the floor, just ahead of their folded knees. At some point, days or perhaps decades ago, their wrists would be secured to the flooring for their baths. Now, they knew better. They knew it was easier not to struggle.

By all accounts, they should have gotten used to it. Regardless of Trainer’s other... behaviors, they were dedicated to keeping their Assets well taken care of. That meant a bath, every day of every week of every month of every year of every millennia.

Their head swam.

They wished they could get used to it. To the cold metal floor, and the chill in the air. But they couldn’t.

For a split second, they heard a valve unlatch and water flow through a hose. Next thing they knew, the ice struck them, biting at every inch of exposed skin, tearing and breaking.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

With an almost robotic suddenness, Villain’s arms jerked upwards, wrapping around their torso. A horrible shiver ran up their spine, spreading to the rest of them as well. Their teeth clenched together, their jaw quivering, their eyes gazing somewhere else, somewhere that wasn’t in the room.

“Villain? Hey, hey. It’s okay. You’re okay, you can take as much time as you need, you-”

None of the words reached them. They had left the bathroom as soon as they had looked into the water.

Again, they shivered.

For a moment, Counselor looked at them, mind spinning but running on empty. In this state, touching them probably wouldn’t do much good. They looked so cold...

Counselor’s gaze moved to the bathtub.

From one of their piles of rags, they clutched a piece of fabric, saturating it with the warm water filling the tub. As gently as they could manage, they draped the warm thing over the back of Villain’s neck, letting water droplets dribble down their exposed back.

Villain blinked, their eyes once again fixating on something real.

“Are you alright?”

They nodded.

“Are you sure?”

Another nod.

“The water is warm. It’s okay. I promise. Do you want to get in?”

“Yes.”

“Do you need any help?”

Villain shook their head as the rest of their body experienced one last shiver. They stepped into the water first, one foot after the other. The nonslip pad firmly secured to the bottom of the tub ensured that they had no issues sitting down. For a second, they seemed almost instinctively to kneel, before they moved to a sort of sitting position instead. They held their knees to their chest, as if trying to conserve warmth.

That hardness, that tension in their muscles, only seemed to stay for a moment. Then, like dye dissolving in water, it seemed to slowly dissipate. Not gone, but lessened.

It was working.

“I’m just going to try to get some dirt off of you, okay? If you ever want me to stop, just say so. Is that okay?”

“Yeah.”

Their voice, too, seemed to have relaxed, just ever so slightly, as if their vocal cords themselves had been tense beforehand.

Counselor began.

Had this been a regular bath, simple soap and water would have easily sufficed. This, however, was not a normal bath.

Sweat and tears and general filth had managed to accumulate over their skin, carving dark marks throughout. Blooming from their chest, as well, a half-healed scar was surrounded by dried blood that had been there for far too long.

With a small pitcher, they took water from the tub, pouring it over Villain’s body and rubbing with a washcloth. Their movements were gentle, as much as they could make them, and it seemed that wherever their washcloth moved, tension would dissolve like snow under sunlight.

It was in that manner that they cleaned the dirt, the tears and the sweat, the blood and the muck. The bathwater threatened at points to turn brown, but such attempts were quickly thwarted by the filter that continued to run with its subtle background flicking sound.

After several minutes of this (or, probably, more like half an hour), Counselor felt that enough tension had dissipated that, just maybe, Villain would be able to talk back. And they certainly had a lot to talk about. Without stopping their cleaning, they spoke, their voice blending in with the subtle movement of the water:

“How are you feeling, Villain?”

“The water is warm.” It was almost slurred.

““Does it feel nice?”

“Yeah.”

Counselor took a new washcloth, wetted it, and moved it to Villain’s cheek, carving a patch of cleanliness through a lifetime of dirt. They leaned into the touch.

“Were you scared, earlier?”

“I... I think so.”

“Do you want to talk about why you were scared.”

“I- Um, I don’t... I don’t like baths.”

“Do you know why that is?”

Some of that tension returned, in their neck.

“I don’t know.”

“That’s okay.” Counselor smiled. “Do you like this bath?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m glad.”

Villain hummed something, but if it was meant to be words, the message didn’t get across.

“Villain?”

“Mhm?”

“How have you been feeling, recently?”

“Um... I’ve been feeling fine.”

“You don’t have to be formal with me.” Taking care to avoid their eye, Counselor drew the washcloth between the bridge of Villain’s nose and the corner of their eyelid. They couldn’t help but feel that the marks, here, were mostly from tears. “You can tell me how you’re really feeling. I want to help.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“I’ve been feeling... sick.”

“Yeah. I think that’s why they moved you to the medical wing.”

“I don’t want to be there.”

“I know.” Counselor gave a sympathetic frown. “The sooner you get better, though, the sooner you can get out of there.” They put down their washcloth, picking the pitcher up once more. With one hand, they pushed the Villain’s bangs back, protecting their face at the same time. With the other, they poured a steady stream of water onto their hair. “What has the sickness been like? Is it like a cold?”

“No. It’s not a cold.”

“What is it like?”

“Like... Like I’m tired. And cold.”

“All the time?”

“Yeah.”

“When did you start feeling like that?”

Villain looked to Counselor, for the first time making direct, sustained eye contact. Counselor took a handful of shampoo, beginning to lather it into their hair. Again, they leaned into the touch as if it was their lifeline.

“Counselor?”

“Yeah?”

“Medic is making me sick.”

They finished their lathering, pouring another pitcher of water of their hair, washing the soap out into the tub below.

“Medic is making you sick?”

“Mhm.”

“How... How are they making you sick?”

“The food. They’re putting something in the food.”

Counselor felt like freezing, but knew that doing so would send Villain back to hiding in their proverbial corner. With their hair clean, they moved to rubbing soap over the rest of the skin, which had now been marginally cleaned off.

“Villain.” They frowned, again. “Do you have any special dietary requirements? Or do you need any medications?”

“No.”

Counselor pursed their lips into a thin line as they rubbed a thin film of white soap onto Villain’s shoulder blades.

“Medic told me that you needed special food. That it was the kind of thing that needed a doctor’s care.”

Villain nodded, a single hand balling into a fist.

“They’re making me sick.”

They finished rubbing the soap along their back, and briefly washed their hands on a cloth before picking the pitcher back up to finish rinsing.

“I believe you.”

“Y- You do?”

Warm water ran down their front.

“I do. And when we’re done here, we’re going to get you some real food. Then I’m going to give Medic a piece of my fucking mind.”

[emmg]

I’ll chime in to add that Solas tickles my "I can fix him" pickle. Like times a million. At first, his flaws seem manageable, even endearing in that brooding, socially-awkward way. He’s a reclusive hermit who clearly has issues with, well, everyone, especially the Dalish (and probably anyone who gets too close). But hey, no problem—I can help him appreciate this world and bring him out of that shell. Sure, he's a bit emotionally distant, but nothing a little patience and some deep talks can't fix, right?

Then, surprise! The guy’s secretly a god. And at that point, the "I can fix him" mindset goes into overdrive. Now it’s not just about helping him navigate social situations or encouraging him to make friends; we’re talking about reshaping his entire worldview on a cosmic scale.

What makes it even more interesting is the power imbalance. It’s subtle at first—you’re just dealing with this mysterious apostate who looks like he lives out of a backpack. But once you know who he really is, it shifts the dynamic in a way that’s almost too intriguing to resist. You’re drawn into this strange psychological tug-of-war, where you're constantly thinking, "I can make him see things differently. I can make him choose this world."

And I freaking love that you’re the only one he, at first, sees as real. Like that’s so deliciously toxic. Villain origin story fodder right there, if you want to go the fanfiction route and have him say fuck this world, fuck yalls mothers, I’m tearing down the Veil, sayonara, but I’m taking my vhenan with me whether she likes it or not. Peace.

The whole unbalanced power dynamic is kind of the spice in this soup for me. It’s not like you can tell from day one—he’s out here in his "apostate hobo" cosplay. But then, bam! God-status unlocked.

as someone who only got into dragon age this year cause i got inquisition for free on epic games, i'm just curious why solavellan is so popular.

i mean i've only done one playthrough of inquisition and solas was probably one of my least favorite companions so i wonder why so many seem to love him. maybe it's something specific about his romance plot that's enchanted people or maybe it's like the tragedy of loving some guy who turns out to be like an ancient elven god who wants to "restore the world to how it once was" and has to basically kill everyone in order to do so (could 100% be misremembering something)

(also i don't mean this as an attack on solavellan shippers, just throwing questions out into the void)

[virlath]

Analysing Solas' new mural

One of the first things I noticed about Solas’ new mural is that it echoes a mural he did in DAI. 

A mural that seemingly depicts how to gain access to the Black City....🤔

The composition alone looks like his DAI mural flipped upside down. (this is found in the Shattered Library in Trespasser)

The Black City is now at the bottom, breached by the dread wolf himself. The spheres above the eluvians now corresponds to two elven figures that are flipped upside down, with their hands crossed as if they are in uthenera. 

Cole: He hurts, an old pain from before, when everything sang the same. Cole: You're real, and it means everyone could be real. It changes everything, but it can't. Cole: They sleep, masked in a mirror, hiding, hurting, and to wake them... (Gasps.) Where did it go? Solas: I apologize, Cole. That is not a pain you can heal.

🤔 🤔 🤔 🤔 🤔 🤔 🤔 

If anything this is further evidence to me that Solas’ plan actually does include breaching the Black City himself once the veil is destroyed. 

Why / what is he planning with the black city?

I think Solas wants to restore the world of his time because removing the veil is the only way he can access the black city to destroy it. I’m guessing the main motivation for his current actions is personal responsibility.

He saved the physical world by creating the veil and quarantining the blight, but the blight managed to spread from the fade to Thedas anyway despite his best efforts.

Theoretically, if no physical being ever managed to cross into the fade, Thedas wouldn’t have to contend with the blight. Entering the fade physically was thought impossible...and yet...

The old gods managed to persuade Corypheus to break into the city to claim ‘godhood’, and as a result they brought the blight to the world. There were mortal beings after all, and we know now that red lyrium only affects organic matter. It was also Solas’ act of giving the orb to the Venatori that caused the breach in the first place, enabling the growth of red lyrium in the physical world. 

Solas simply underestimated the tenacity and will of mere mortals, because he didn’t have a true understanding of them before DAI.

So after all this, I can understand why Solas is so resolute in his dinan’shiral. I just wonder what his plans are for dealing with the evanuris. From the concept art it seems like they have plans to escape.

As to what he intends to do within the Black City, I am guessing he wants to destroy the city by means of a “sun”, or titan heart, the thing at the center of many of his murals that emanates light. His orb was likely one such thing he could have used to enter the city, as shown in his mural with the orb/eluvian, but with that gone he likely has to resort to a more brute force approach.

"Pulling back the curtain. Let the light in. Let it burn."

The two elven figures

The elements in the new artwork I am most interested in are the two elven figures on either side of the artwork.

These two figures look super important when accessing the Black City, because they seem to be imprisoned within their own eluvian and not within the Black City itself, almost as if they are gatekeepers. It also makes me wonder if the monster Tamlen saw behind the blighted eluvian in DAO was in fact one of the imprisoned evanuris.

There also definitely seems to be something evil about them. The left figure in particular is depicted in another concept art captioned with ‘...the evil gods...’ in the new concept art book.

But their actual end goals and alignment remains to be seen. Are they really just evil villains hellbent on power and control, or did they actually have a good reason for wanting to disable Mythal and her source of power? 

Personally I would love to hear an opposing viewpoint to Solas and Mythal because I don’t want to believe they are all straight cut-and-dry evil. 

Light vs darkness

At the center of the black city seems to be a “sun”, symbolised by a circle with sunrays. This element is echoed in the newest trailer, behind the logos.

It is an interesting detail because not only does it echo the chantry logo and chant of light, the theme of light vs. darkness looks like it will culminate in DA4.

It is said Elgar’nan threw down his father, the sun, into the abyss. Lusacan, the dragon of night, has yet to rise. And Drakon’s prophecy foretells the return of the Maker where light overcomes darkness.

And those who slept, the ancient ones, awoke, For their dreams had been devoured By a demon that prowled the Fade As a wolf hunts a herd of deer. Taking first the weakest and frailest of hopes, And when there was nothing left, Destroying the bright and bold By subtlety and ambush and cruel arts.

I feel like this describes a lot of Solas’ own modus operandi and it’s kinda creepy how this aligns with the evanuris’ propaganda on him in Trespasser.

Beware the forms of Fen'Harel! The Dread Wolf comes in humble guises, a wanderer who knows much of the People and their spirits. He will offer advice that seems fair, but turns slowly to poison.

This is why I wonder a lot about the treachery of the wolf, and how it could be so accurate in describing the events of the Inquisition. Like, has he pulled his Solas act on the evanuris in the past???? And in what manner?

Drakon’s prophecy also describes the return of the ‘Maker’. I seriously doubt Bioware will go anywhere near defining who or what the Maker actually is, but revealing the light trapped within the Black City seems to be important in overcoming the darkness.

In dread I looked up once more And saw the darkness warp and crumble, For it was thin as samite, A fragile shroud over the Light Which turned it to ash.

Remember in DAI, the creepy chantry lady following us around in the Hissing Wastes?

In the absence of light, shadows thrive.

I’ve long thought Arlathan was built around the heart of a titan. Perhaps by using Arlathan as a quarantine zone for the blight, Solas inadvertently allowed red lyrium to thrive by sundering the titan into two, trapping light in darkness. 

By releasing the light and restoring equilibrium of both light and darkness within the titan, perhaps the titan (and its children, the dwarves) will be free to repair some of the damage the blight did to the world. 

The Stone has a will that surrounds and directs; she guides even when we are willfully blind to her influence. But she is not pure. The Stone bears a corruption as old as balance.

Anyway these are just some thoughts I’ve had about the artwork now I’ve had a proper chance to look at it. I have a lot more things I could write about but I’ll save all that drabble for separate posts.

I mean, I just have so many questions. Who are those elven figures? Is Minrathous built on top of Arlathan? Is the archon up to something dodgy? What are those wavy lines? Are the executors associated with Ghilan’nain? Ahh I have so many ideas. 😂

[yarpharp]

Lukewarm take: Solas says everyone to him is “not real” and shit, but in reality the ancient elf is Horribly Rusty™ at social interactions that aren’t coded with him as some higher-level mage/commander of a rebellion/elvhen god... so he’s just an ass to everyone and they generally just Cannot Connect With the Know-It-All Elf Hobo Mage.

If you listen to all the banter between Solas and the other companions, he only really gets along with Cole. Why? Because the only entities he’s been hanging out with for the last few centuries in Uther-Sleepy-Time has been spirits. Everyone else interacts with him in a professional manner, and any time they try to attempt anything more, the man gets absolutely prickly. He takes everything far too seriously. He barely warms up to anyone until about three quarters of the way into the game, and even then it’s in a semi-formal manner.

And sure, this sort of behavior could also just be attributed to his Elvish Supremacy shit, but I think he’s also his own worst villain. He sucks at interacting with others or relating to others. Between his questionable social skills (that aren’t related to Lying With Style or Recruiting Elves To His Doomsday Cult) and his unaddressed grief over the loss of the Elvhen Empire, Solas is just a wreck. A wreck who failed to connect with the present day and let go of the past, so he built himself a doomsday cult so he can smash the Fade back into existence (and apparently rebuild the Elvhen Empire)

idk I keep getting saltier the more I think about Dragon Age: Inquisition. Solas is cool, but he also drives me absolutely apeshit.