#yes I'm in the Brecilian Forest right now what of it

[maintitle]

Solas, on the other side of the veil, realizing the horrors that have just been inflicted upon the world thanks to the interruption of his own ritual, reciting sadly:  "Like Dragons they fly, glory upon wings. Like dragons they savage, fearsome pretty things.'

Varric, on the ground behind him, dying: oh come on, chuckles, if you're gonna monologue about my stupidity while standing over my broken corpse don't refer to my mistakes with a poem written about humans, it's insulting.

[saturndigital]

Hi! Just found your Veil Falls AU, and like... My one of oldest loved titles and current one.... Count me intrigued and waiting for more. And like... Sorry, if it's too soon, but did you compose the timeline for the au already? I mean I saw that Ford (also really liked your work of making them dalish names!) missed events of dao-da2, but does it means that others didn't? Like where was their clan during Blight or did they even know there was one? Or did Stanley (I suppose he travelled all of Thedas) had troubles with Crows and stuff?

Really sorry for questions, but I really was into DA some years ago, and I'm really into GF now, and this AU is like the most delicious cake for my soul.

I am over the moon someone is so interested in this au that they have so many questions EEEKK never apologize I'm SO happy to answer!!

As of RIGHT NOW I have a very basic idea of the timeline:

Ford returning from the Fade happens before the events of the Inquisition, as to me Weirdmaggedon is the entirety of that game's plot (yes this means Bill had a part to play in it but that's story talk for later). So, the summer that the twins visit Stan happens between the events of DA2 ending and the Conclave's destruction (9:40 Dragon I believe would be the year?).

Yes, the others did experience it, though because many of the cast are so young or in Stan's case constantly all over the place, they weren't at the epicenters of those games' plots. Most of the cast experienced the consequences of the events and how that affected the world rather than being part of said events.

The clan did survive the blight and currently, their grandfather Shermie (still figuring out an elven name for him rn it's Shirem) is the Keeper of their clan. The clan resided in the Planasene Forest when Ford and Stan were young, but have since moved to the Brecilian Forest which is where they possibly were during the 5th blight. Dipper being Dipper he probably begged someone in the clan to tell him about the blight and darkspawn so they definitely do know.

This is where I am still workshopping ideas, as I am constantly going through the lore like "hmmm would this work? Maybe not hmmm" but there are a lot of things I have solidified, mainly character stuff.

Stanley I do not doubt got into heaps of trouble with possibly multiple groups, including Crows. He definitely has tales to tell that makes the twins go "Grunkle Stan WHAT??"

If you or anyone has ideas on either timeline or character stuff I am all ears! The fun thing to me about aus like this is that I don't know everything, but some do! And those people have cool ideas because of it! So if you've got smth in mind I am intently listening. I do already have certain character designs and backgrounds already figured out, but I will chew on anything tossed my way anyway LOL

Thank you for asking!!!

[fancytrinkets]

we were dreamers on the run

Chaper 6 - Into the Forest

Excerpt below. (I'm keeping myself balanced and focused right now by writing about my Dragon Age main characters—Surana, Hawke, and Trevelyan—dealing with the crisis in southern Thedas while Rook does all the Veilguard things in the north. These beautiful queers are keeping me grounded.)

This was not a piece of information he'd expected.

Anders had disappeared. The old Chantry had searched for him until the explosion at the Conclave. After that, when Galen Trevelyan alone had been rescued from the ruined Temple of Sacred Ashes, many people had accused him of being sent by Anders, which of course wasn't true. Galen had denied those claims, and denounced Anders in the process. And now he was part of a rescue mission. He wasn't sure how to feel about that. The best he could do was focus on each task ahead of him and hope that the feelings would sort themselves out in due time.

According to Surana, the journey would take a couple of hours on horseback. As agents of Divine Victoria, sent on official business to investigate the recent turmoil, they were well within their rights to claim a pair of horses from the chantry's stable.

Galen didn't ask questions until they'd ridden out from the city gate and veered south. They took a narrow dirt road that dipped towards the river at a wide and shallow crossing.

"Have you told Leliana?" he asked, because that seemed like the right sort of question if he wanted to understand the Anders situation in all its political implications.

Surana looked troubled and tense, as if she were trying to decide how much to disclose. After what seemed like a full minute of silence, she answered.

"Leliana knows. But she didn't always."

"You kept it from her?" he asked.

Surana made a noise at him, a throaty sound of disapproval.

"I didn't think about it that way," she said. "Anders was my responsibility. I brought him to the Grey Wardens. I owed him a debt. And it wasn't anyone else's business."

"Fair enough," Galen said, and left it at that.

He didn't want to argue. He was new to this situation. Without the full context, he'd have to rely on Surana's judgment. If she and Leliana had decided it was safe to keep Anders hidden in the Ferelden wilds, then who was he to draw different conclusions without the time and information he'd need to deliberate?

He stayed quiet and focused on the narrowing road. With the river basin behind them, the path rose through steeper grasslands, marked by outcroppings of massive rocks, worn smooth by the elements. It was beautiful country, a part of Ferelden he'd not yet explored. Ahead, in the near distance, a dark line of trees marked the boundary of the Brecilian forest. He could see no sign of Blight or darkspawn.

Surana spoke up again as the trees loomed larger.

"During the first year of the Inquisition, Leliana expanded her spy network, and that's how she found out about Anders."

"Was she—"

"Upset?" Surana interrupted him, correctly anticipating the question. "Yes. For a time."

"But she changed her mind?"

"She didn't," Surana said. "You did. At Valence."

"Valence?"

It took him a moment to remember Sister Natalie, terrified, standing rigidly still with Leliana's knife at her throat. The smell of incense in the chantry was heavy. The setting sun hit the stained glass windows, lighting them up with a righteous flame. And Sister Natalie, the traitor, begged for her life.

In memory, an echo of his own words came back to him. 'Let her go, Leliana. She is no threat.' He had always reminded her to stop, take a breath, and look around for a gentler path. And so his words carried weight. Leliana set aside her knife.

"Valence changed her," Surana said. "Valence brought her back to me. She's been helping me protect Anders ever since. The old Chantry broke him, but the new one's been willing to try something different."

There were tears in her eyes and she wiped at them angrily, as if annoyed to show the depth of her emotion.

"We'll find him and we'll talk to him," Galen said. "For my part, I won't make it a fight."

The truth was, he didn't know what to expect. Hawke had called Anders an abomination, someone totally incapable of restraining the demon of vengeance within him. Clearly, Surana felt otherwise. And Galen was willing to wait and see. He had learned in the Frostback Basin that possessed mages were not always lost causes. He had learned from Cole—and from Solas—that spirits could sometimes be friends.

[criffyzou]

My dragon age next gen kids moodboard were only humans and dwarves, so I started a new elfy one, and decided to document my process.

Here is the resulting rambling.

First thing I usually do is find stand-ins for the parents, to have *something* to start from. They usually don't appear on the moodboard itself, but I love to do that step.

I'm pinning these two deviantartists as Cammen & Gheyna, teens from the DAO dalish camp that the warden help get together (them but older & as parents). This is to keep to my theme of "kids that exist or survive thanks to the heroes of Thedas".

It's then time to pick a name. It can be a lore thing, i.e. Ailis Theirin is named after a chantry sister from Maric and Loghain's fereldan rebellion days, who raised Cailan and, I choose to believe, Anora too, once Loghain started bringing her to work. It can also be completely unrelated: I wanted an old french name for Pernille de Chalons, but as a french person myself, all of it sounded cringey; in the end her name is from the karpe song Au Pair. It sounds orlesian enough but is not actually french.

I'm not good at elven names in Dragon Age, my Lavellan inquisitor is named Sheana because I was being a Dune nerd when I learned there was a Siona among the emerald knights (iykyk). The reward for the quest Cammen's Lament is The Tale of Iloren and its corresponding codex, a book cherished by Cammen's family for generations. I like Iloren; it's technically a male keeper in the tale, but the name feels gender neutral, and I want that kid to be a girl.

Cammen & Gheyna get married in 9:30, but they're so young their first child doesn't have to be born for a number of years. By my referent point 9:52, I want her to still be a teen, around the same age as her parents when we meet them in Origins ? I don't actually know how old Cammen and Gheyna are. I also want Lena (born in 9:37) to still be the baby of the band; let's go with 9:35.

Now, class ! I really want a dalish warrior, but there aren't many interesting warrior specializations. Champion hasn't been used yet, but feels too similar to Ariane from Witch Hunt. Spirit Warrior is my favorite of what's left.

Identity down, now to the moodboard specifics !

I like to follow the old lavellanpls template because it forces me to think about the character in details I would not have thought of.

Complexion is a square I use for faceclaims. Both Iloren's parents are white, like a lot of Dragon Age NPCs; I've not had a lot of wriggle room for non-white next gen kids outside of Zerlinda's son, whose dad is not shown, and Kieran, both Morrigan and Alistair being biracial even if Bioware doesn't show it. I don't really brainstorm for that one, I simply look at a lot of pictures until something clicks.

Wardrobe has a few armor options from my initial generic dalish pin rampage, that I may choose from when I have a better idea of the dominant color. My main issue is the lack of consistency in dalish heavy armor, and how hard it is to find a real life equivalent.

Hair can be Gheyna's red, Cammen's ash blond, or a mix of the two, but I have too many redheads already.

Now is the time I start to lie invent rather than extrapolate. I want this elven kid to be strongly attached to her dalish way of life, à la Velana, because we have enough self-loathing elves in canon. That could Home accounted for then, something representing the dalish camp, or the nearby Brecilian ruins.

Obviously I cannot resist the Animal square for a dalish from that clan, born after the werewolf conflict, to be a wolf despite how on the nose it is. I like when things are predictable.

Iloren has to be an extravert, if not because she was raised in a commune, then because we have more introverts in the current next gen lineup and I like balance. E, S and J feel right, let's try ESTJ. Yes this is relevant, as I use either the Season or Element squares as clues for the character's personality. Season I will probably put Brecilian forest in its winter dreariness, so let's focus on element: First one I can think of is ironbark, "surprisingly strong and very light". It is also somewhat blue in color; that is our first official color of the moodboard !

Accessory square I often put down as a weapon, as that seems the most logical option for a prized possession. It could also be something sentimental from games lore, like Tini Kondrat's toy horse, like the one the warden gave Oghren as a joke, that he may have repurposed as an actual toy for his child. My best example of a Spirit Warrior is actually Fenris, who uses two handed weapons; let's continue this trend. Ideally something resembling the Sulevin Blade from Inquisition, because it is the perfect weapon for Iloren, but not one she would have access to.

Last square unaccounted for is Texture, which is usually my "make the moodboard actually cohesive" free card, while keeping it relevant to the character, adding personality or background hints I could not fit into the rest. Something Spirit Warrior-y, as it's been missing so far, like maybe their weird brand of fade cloak.

Aaaand we're done ! A brand new complete character, spun whole cloth from a vague desire to have an elf in the lineup.