#the sound design was GREAT wwowoow

[purplecritter]

Dragon Age: Vows and Vengeance (Ep. 1)

Official episode transcript here

My notes while I was listening under the cut... Spoilers ahead!

“People have been saying the ground be feeling like it’s gonna give”... cool cool so now it’s just a question of if it’s Ghil and Dark Spawn or if it’s Titans underground 👀

What’s this about looking a Qunari in the eyes being disrespectful?? Olen what are you saying

🎶OH GREY WARDEN WHAT HAVE YOU DONE THE OATH YOU HAVE TAKEN IS ALL BUT BROKEN🎶

^ Makes me hopeful to hear snippets of previous parts of the soundtrack in The Veilguard! Lost Elf Theme / Dark Solas Theme my beloveds...

“Every Templar, guard, warden, bounty hunter this side of Thedas is looking for the now notorious Nadia Carcosa” they got the Wardens too????

Ohh Andraste’s Grace flowers are poetic… In general or for Nadia and Elio specifically? Nevermind--what is poetic to me is that there was a ring in DAII named Andraste' Grace which boosted defense and health regen... And Elio says the ring he proposed with had been "embued with a protective spell" :3

Nadia doesn’t know her birthday… Abandoned or a former slave? <- Yep liberati

Wow what a conversation… Ogh if he died after they had an argument about marriage without closure I can excuse the poisoning of Olen lmao

Nadia referring to her and Elio as a “break from reality” :(  

Arcanis Hall, the Archives = part of the Magisterium

IT’S SO GOOD TO HEAR NEVE AGAIN :D

“Many lives depend on [stopping Nadia]”. How close is Vows&Vengeance to the start of The Veilguard and compared to The Missing? Because Neve seems to already be at least a little acquainted with Solas' plans here. She seemed to know the consequences of having/using the Eye, saying it will “destroy” Neve&Elio, and she was also sure that it was Solas who tipped the Templars on Nadia (and Elio by proxy).

Silver coins mentioned yippee (I love when the economy is not just gold. I miss my shitty 7 copper items okay)

“holds every object, scrap of writing, relic, antiquity that’s even remotely interesting to the Empire” this description of the Archives makes me understand why Dorian was bitching about the size and contents of our Skyhold library. Sorry king Ferelden really was a nerf for you

So Templars in Tevinter are glorified guards for the Mages rather than over them. But they at least have authority to arrest people part of the Magisterium

Neve warning Elio not to draw magic from the Fade means she casts spells avoiding it? Ma'am👀 <- nevermind she probably knew about the Andante thing

Silent Plains huh? THE TOWN CALLED ‘SOLAS’ IS RIGHT ABOVE THERE!! Mr Dreadwolf is sooo cheeky I know he was giggling when he passed by that location

The Eye of Kethisca. Ancient artifact. (according to Solas so take with a grain of salt) Drawing (magic) power from the Fade triggers an explosion of energy, specifically Elio using magic near it created a bond that amplified its powers. Crafted centuries ago by a powerful dreamer An’dante using a rare gem mined from caves in the Silent Plains, where the Veil is thin because of the unspeakable sacrifice of many.

Solas says there’s “nothing to fear about this relic” I'M NOT TRUSTING THOSE WORDS OUT OF YOUR MOUTH IN PARTICULAR

“Ar dirthan’as ir elgara / Ma’sula e’var vhenan” ⇒ saying this somehow deactivated the Eye ^ It’s also what Solas says to Sera in an attempt to make her feel the rhythm of the language 🧐

“Heruamin litirien. / Alai uethri maeria. / Halurocon yalei nam bahna. / Dolin nareba maome… / Ame amin. / Halai lothi amin. / Aloamin Heruamin. / Heruamin oh lonai. / Imwe anine beriole…” ⇒ chanted by Solas and Elio in the caves while holding the Eye. When Elio lets go the caves & Veil collapse

Solas: “I do not play games.” The Iron Bull, who played mind-chess with him 10 years ago: “So that's a fucking lie.”

Elio: “I was told the Eye would end the world, not mend it.” Solas: “Some people confuse a reckoning as an ending.” Elio: “So you seek reform?” Solas: “I seek regeneration.” ^ noting this down since it smells like foreshadowing

I wonder who The Dreadwolf's intermediary with Olen is!

We're going back to the Hinterlands everyone 💀

Interesting that "Carcosa" is Nadia's surname, from a meta perspective at least since it's been used a lot for ominous place-names

Speaking of names, "Andante" is a real surname but it's also a tempo in music which is cool to me since it subtly references the lyrium described to be singing + him being stuck in the Fade where lyrium flows more liberally