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v-arbellanaris · 1 year

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on divine justinia (pt 2)

Justinia V will be remembered as one of the most progressive Divines in the history of the Chantry. Before her untimely death at the Temple of Sacred Ashes, she made strides to break down barriers for both mages and elves, as well as encouraging free thought among the Maker’s many children. For her views, she won as many enemies as she did supporters.

-- World of Thedas Vol 2.

PART TWO of a series, exploring Divine Justinia’s political stance. Was she really as progressive as people claimed?

Firstly, before we even dive into looking at Justinia as a character, we should define ‘progressive’. In the most base of definitions, it implies progress -- a gradual betterment. As a widely accepted definition, someone whose politics advocate for social reform.

PART ONE - LELIANA'S SONG. / PART TWO - DRAGON AGE II. / PART THREE - THE MASKED EMPIRE.

Dragon Age II

Important things to note that are of particular relevance to the political landscape in Orlais and also the interaction between Kirkwall, Orlais and the Chantry:

Divine Beatrix III, who we meet during the events of Dawn of the Seeker, dies in 9:34, the same year that Hawke becomes Champion of Kirkwall, prompting the election of Divine Justinia V.

Divine Beatrix III nominated Revered Mother Dorothea to become the next Divine before her death.

Dorothea’s suitability as Divine was hotly debated; because of her “worldly” background and demonstrating "forgiveness to sinners" (no specific examples I can think of other than Silas and Leliana from the previous post in this series) -- not because she was hailed as progressive or a reformist.

And, indeed, based off her appearance in Leliana’s Song, we can see that, so far, there’s nothing particularly reformist or progressive about her.

The Chantry (and, by extension, Orlais) already has a history of involving themselves in Kirkwall’s politics, oftentimes outright violating Kirkwall’s right to rule themselves: in this case, specifically referring to Meredith’s rise to power in Kirkwall:

Beatrix III, known as a friend to the Emperor Florian of Orlais , pressured templars in Kirkwall to overthrow Viscount Perrin Threnhold; but Knight-Commander Guylian refused to become involved in local politics. It’s implied that the Viscount attempted to expel all templars from Kirkwall and assassinate the Knight-Commander, which may have been a set-up, but it allowed Meredith to succeed Guylian and launch a successful counter-attack against the Viscount’s Keep.

The reason Beatrix did this was because the Viscount blocked passage through the Waking Sea, exacting large fees from Orlesian ships specifically who wanted to pass.

As a result of her actions in Kirkwall, Meredith was promoted to Knight-Commander by Elthina. Meredith then appointed Marlowe Dumar as the next Viscount (not the nobility of Kirkwall) following Divine Beatrix’s advice. (Specific source unclear to me, but quoted from the DA fandom wiki page.)

Kirkwall, as of 9:37, is under Chantry rule. Marlowe Dumar is killed by the Arishok in 9:34; Act 3 begins in 9:37, and Meredith is explicitly blocking potential elections for a new Viscount specifically in order to maintain control of the city. This is established in the opening of Act 3, irrespective of whether you side with the mages or the templars.

I specify Chantry rule and not templar rule because Meredith answers to no one in the entire city -- except Grand Cleric Elthina. As Knight-Commander, Meredith answers to the Grand Cleric, who holds authority over her, as the highest ranking member of the Chantry in the region. This is an undisputed fact; Elthina has legal authority over Meredith. An argument can be made that she might not have power over Meredith, that Meredith can choose to disobey her, but that’s just not true. In fact, the exact opposite is cemented in the very opening of Act 3, when Elthina is able to get Meredith to leave Hightown with nothing more than a few words. Meredith, even at this stage where she’s “insane”, still listens to Elthina. Elthina had three years to order Meredith to allow elections for a new Viscount. She did not, which is tacit approval. Templars ultimately answer to Elthina, as she is Meredith’s superior in the Chantry hierarchy.

Ergo, Kirkwall, as of 9:37, is under Chantry rule, not merely templar rule. And considering that the Chantry is an arm of Orlesian imperialism and colonisation...

Justinia’s primary involvement in DA2 is during Sebastian’s companion quest in Act 3, part of the Exiled Prince DLC, called Faith. The quest begins with Elthina requesting for Hawke’s help.

“The Divine is concerned about the situation here. She does not want to see the Free Marches become another Imperium. She has sent an agent to ... assess the danger. Meet with her, please. Tell her drastic measures won’t be required.” -- Elthina to Hawke.

It's clear from this excerpt that the Divine is considering an Exalted March on Kirkwall as a response to the mage rebels. This interpretation is the widely popular one and there’s definitely evidence throughout the quest and even after the quest to support the idea. This is the main interpretation of this quest that I’ll focus on for this current analysis.

The important takeaway here is that, one way or another, for one reason or another, Divine Justinia V is considering calling an Exalted March on Kirkwall; she sends an agent to Kirkwall to investigate whether a March would be necessary to resolve the situation there.

A lot of the discussion between Hawke, Sebastian and Elthina about the Divine’s possible motivations in investigating Kirkwall are actually only tangentially relevant, in my opinion, because it could be partially attributed to Elthina exaggerating the danger in order to make Hawke involve themselves. However, there are three lines of dialogue from Elthina that I think are particularly pertinent to Justinia. The first one (emphasis mine):

Hawke: What argument would convince her? Elthina: The Divine has heard my protests already. I must trust your own powers of persuasion now.

This confirms that Elthina and Justinia are actively in contact with each other. Divine Justinia V ascended in 9:34, 3 years before the start of Act 3, and well before the quest. Kirkwall has been under Chantry rule for the past three years. Justinia is in contact with the single most powerful member of the Chantry in the entire Free Marches.

To be clear, this means that Justinia could have ordered Elthina or Meredith to allow the nobility to elect the next Viscount -- she could have done so in this very conversation that Elthina alludes to. She didn’t. (We know she didn't because no one has ever brought it up. Not in DA2 and not in DAI.) Nor does she through Leliana when we meet her later. She could have sent a Seeker of Truth (like, say, Cassandra) to forcibly relieve Meredith who is actively interfering in the politics of an independent nation. (She sends a Seeker of Truth to investigate whether there's really that much blood magic in Kirkwall, but not for this?) She didn’t.

That, to me, reads as tacit approval of Elthina and Meredith's actions in Kirkwall. She has no issues at all with Meredith assuming control of the city for the templars. The Chantry has had vested interests in maintaining control in Kirkwall since Divine Beatrix’s time -- this is not new. There’s no real change here from Beatrix to Justinia and there’s certainly no protest -- not even a token protest -- or investigation into Meredith’s treatment of the mages. No independent investigation, following her ascension as Divine, into the situation in Kirkwall before now.

Because it wasn’t a problem before now. Before the mages started rebelling about it -- violently. .

The problem Leliana is being sent to investigate is not whether or not Meredith is abusing mages. It's not whether or not Meredith should continue to hold power in Kirkwall. It's about how dangerous this mage rebellion is becoming.

Leliana’s dialogue later, in my opinion, confirms this:

Leliana: The Divine has long suspected that Kirkwall’s problems were being spurred by an outside group. This attack proves she is right.

The group Leliana is referring to are the Resolutionists, who are closely affiliated with the mage underground -- both mage resistance groups based in the Free Marches and operating in Kirkwall.

It’s explicit here that the problem is not the Chantry’s violation of Kirkwall’s sovereignty, it’s not that the Chantry and the Order has held the entire city under martial law for the past three years, it’s not even the blatant abuses of the Circle mages at the hands of the Kirkwall templars. It’s not even the alarming amount of blood mages or Tranquil mages in Kirkwall.

It’s a mage rebellion. That’s Kirkwall’s problem.

The next dialogue (emphasis mine):

Sebastian: She is the voice of Andraste. She cannot turn the might of the Chantry against the innocent due to ... proximity. Elthina: Were no innocents harmed in the Exalted Marches? She will do her best, Sebastian, but she must act first to defend the faith.

This is an interesting insight to Elthina’s viewpoints of Justinia. We know they’ve been in contact. Elthina is the second highest ranking member of the Chantry -- Grand Clerics are second only to the Divine in Chantry hierarchy. I sincerely doubt this is the first time she’s ever contacted her own boss in three years.

Elthina posits herself as someone pushing for peace, especially at the end of this quest when Sebastian pushes her to leave Kirkwall (despite her not really ... doing much to resolve the situation and actively refusing to do anything at all by claiming she has no power to help the situation but that’s another post). Yet, she says that Justinia’s primary motivation above all else is defending the faith. Not defending the innocent or defending the templars but specifically defending the faith.

The subjugation of mages is a central tenet of the Orlesian Chantry. It is a belief so central to Orlesian Andrastianism that the mere suggestion of Andraste being a mage or mages being allowed to exist outside of the Circle, say in Tevinter, causes a religious schism.

Elthina suggests here that Justinia will take action to defend the faith against the mages. That a mage rebellion, in essence, is an attack on the very foundations of the Orlesian Chantry and Justinia will react accordingly.

And I think she’s right to assume that of Justinia.

Leliana: Divine Justinia takes the situation here very seriously. She believes it is the worst threat to Thedas since the Qunari invaded.

The worst threat to Thedas since the Qunari invaded. The Qun, one of the most pervasive religious forces in Thedas, to rival the Chantry. The Qunari, whose invasion of Kirkwall (provoked as it was by the Chantry in the first place), enough to get the templars to take action to defend the city.

Leliana: The whole world is watching Kirkwall. If it falls to magic, none of us are safe. Tell Elthina to leave. There is refuge for her in the Grand Cathedral in Orlais. She will not be safe here.

Here, Leliana makes it very, very clear. Justinia views a mage rebellion as a threat to the faith; she will defend it as such.

Crucially, Leliana’s dialogue also sheds some light on how Justinia views the Circles.

Leliana: There have always been factions that support freedom from the Chantry and the abolition of the Circle. We have ... tolerated them. But the Resolutionists have become violent. They are likely behind the unrest here.

Even if the abolition of the Circle was an extreme stance to take, some level of freedom from the Chantry beyond what the Circle already has would be a progressive stance. Yet, Leliana presents it here as a transgression. In fact, the very beliefs of the Aequitarians -- the largest Fraternity in the College of Enchanters; Orsino himself is part of the Aequitarians, as are Wynne and Irving, who are presented as "good" mages in DA:O -- inherently wish to improve the conditions of the Circle. They seek reform by trying to comply with the ideal of a “good mage”, ones who uses their magic ethically and responsibly to help others -- but they seek reform still. This is made obvious even as early as DA:O, in conversations with Wynne. But even that moderate, and popular, view seems to be deemed as transgressive. Something to tolerate. Something to entertain but certainly not something to act on, or take seriously.

More than that, there are more Fraternities beyond just the Aequitarians and the Resolutionists who themselves are a splinter of the Libertarians. There are the Isolationists, who would abolish the Circle only to retreat further from people and keep mages separate. There are, of course, the Libertarians -- however, they don’t push for the abolishment of the Circle but rather it’s independence from the Chantry, to become a self-governing body.

Yet, Justinia merely tolerates the mages’ views of how they themselves should live their lives -- and there is an abrupt end to this tolerance, time and time again. Here, in Kirkwall. Again, in 9:38, after the events in Kirkwall, when the Chantry -- of whom Justinia is the leader of -- disbands the College and stops them from meeting at all. Mages can’t meet up even within their own Circles. And this is not done by the templars. This is done by the Chantry.

Is that really progressive? Meredith does the same in Kirkwall; she locks the mages in their cells, she inflicts harsher punishments on them such as Tranquility, and ultimately, she requests for Annulment from Justinia, expecting that Justinia will approve it. Based off the above discussions, was she wrong to assume this? I don’t think so. And there's plenty of reasons, considering the relatively recent Qunari invasion, to not grant the Right of Annulment, which have little to do with whether or not Justinia values the lives of the mages. She views a mage rebellion as bad as a Qunari invasion. The two are equivalent to her; both antagonistic forces to her goals, and the goals and beliefs of the Chantry at large.

One of the arguments I’ve seen many people use is to say that Justinia sent Leliana, who is pro-mage, to deal with the situation in Kirkwall, implying that Justinia is somewhat sympathetic to the mages, and that the Resolutionists reacted based off their own prejudices, thereby inciting any future Chantry-violence -- in a way, provoking the Chantry into reacting as they did. This is often accompanied with an ‘oh if only the Resolutionists weren’t so violent’-style commentary. It’s even lampshaded by Leliana herself: “I let word slip that an agent of the Divine was coming to investigate the mage troubles. It is how they chose to react which condemns them.“

However, talking to Elthina gets this notable dialogue:

Hawke: What can you tell me about this servant of the Divine? Elthina: I was not told her real name, only to call her Sister Nightingale. She is said to be the Divine’s left hand, sent to do the work that might blacken the Divine’s name.

Again, I delved into this already in the exploration of Dorothea in Leliana’s Song, but I thought it was important again to highlight here. Over a decade later, Justinia V is still using Leliana’s bard skills for her own gain, irrespective of her personal sympathy for Leliana. Importantly, in carrying out the Divine’s wishes and orders, Leliana can be made to act and behave counter to her own personal beliefs, something that is evidenced again later as well, when Justinia sends her to talk to Celene (which I’ve briefly discussed here). Leliana’s personal support of the mages is not indicative of Justinia also supporting the mages. If anything, sending Leliana is actually a threat more than anything; as “Sister Nightingale” is widely known as the one who does assassinations and spy work for the Divine. (On that note, I believe Aveline herself says something to the effect of how Leliana provoked them, but I can’t find any compilations on youtube that includes Aveline’s commentary.)

Conclusions so far:

Once again, Justinia's politics don't seem progressive but rather incredibly typical of Orlais and the Orlesian Chantry, and her political interests align with that of expanding the influence of the Chantry and Orlais. The templars holding Kirkwall against all legality is perfectly acceptable to her -- Meredith killing nobles to stop an election of a new Viscount is acceptable, Meredith authorising the hunt and subsequent persecution of non-mage persons under the excuse of "harbouring apostates" is acceptable, the templars killing and raping and beating and lobotomising the mages is acceptable, but what is not acceptable is when the mages fight back. That is something she considers an attack on the very foundations that the Chantry was built on -- and she will react accordingly. She sends Leliana, Sister Nightingale, the Left Hand of the Divine, well known for doing work like assassinations, to Kirkwall as a threat to the mages. She has only ever tolerated the College of Enchanters' existence. She has taken no actions to curb either Meredith or Elthina, despite having multiple opportunities and the authority to do so. She views a mage rebellion as much of a threat to Thedas as an invasion by a foreign power. What, about this, is progressive?

Sebastian: You were right. The Divine will be taking action against Kirkwall, though the sister didn’t say what.

#my da meta #dragon age #da2 #divine justinia v #leliana #hawke #elthina #justinia critical #anti chantry #on divine justinia meta series

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thornfield13713 · 1 year

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...the unmitigated fucking gall of this statement still boggles my mind.

Like- Meredith was the one who put Dumar in place in the first place! Specifically because he was pious, hard-working, and weak. She even drove the point home by presenting him with the bloodied and misshapen signet ring of his predecessor at his investiture! She has been the power in Kirkwall throughout his rule, so openly that the city guard in act 1 was even telling the desperate refugees flooding in from Ferelden as much, if any cared to ask them!

And now she’s using a situation she created as an excuse to take over the governance of a whole city, sending death squads - they are explicitly named as such - out into its streets to go after its citizens and crushing any attempt at secular rule.

I just- it still boggles my mind how anyone can defend what Meredith is doing here, let alone how the writers had Cullen defend her as ‘keeping people safe’ in the next game - not that it seems out of keeping for Cullen ‘mages cannot be treated like people’ Rutherford, but that it was framed as a reasonable view. The woman is a murderous tyrant, plotting a genocide, enabled by the inaction and the veneer of respectability provided by Elthina, the senior partner who enabled her first coup, the one that installed Marlowe Dumar as puppet and scapegoat in the Viscount’s seat. And yet, people still line up to defend her.

Fucking why?

#dragon age

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idolbound · 1 year

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POWER & PLAYING THE POLITICAL GAME IN KIRKWALL (vers. 2)

Meredith’s Ascension

Living in Kirkwall, with its divided population of Hightown nobles, templar and Chantry folk, Lowtown commoners and the poor of the undercity, there are powerful politics at play, creating tensions and forcing decisive action for those who seek to retain power and control of the city-state. For Meredith Stannard, her hunger for power began at a young age, when her familial nepotism named her as Knight-Captain in 9:14 Dragon, at age 22, inherited by her physically ill and failing father figure, Ser Wentworth Kell. It is said, though, before then she had all but taken the role in everything but its title, for several years. It took two years for Wentworth to pass before her role became official. Her cohort of templar knights did not believe her worthy of being given the rank, but her skills and ability to lead soon changed their minds when her newly implemented rules led to more effective monitoring of mages in the Gallows, believing that stricter laws and routines would help create safer spaces for mages as to not allow distress and unexpected surprises (which is implemented given what happened to Meredith’s sister, Amelia), and to make it easier to detect anything out of the ordinary. Eventually, her greatly charismatic nature helped her cohort believe in her as Knight-Captain, following her willingly when conflicts between the current residing Viscount and the Knight-Commander came to a head. In 9:21, Viscount Perrin Threnhold constricted trade into Kirkwall’s ports with the Orlesians, charging them extortionate fees to allow their ships through. Orlais retaliated with threat of invasion, and the Divine Beatrix III used the templars to pressure the Viscount. In response, Threnhold attempted to expel the templars from Kirkwall with hired mercenaries who stormed the Gallows, arresting Knight-Commander Guylian, and executing him soon thereafter. In response, Meredith led the templars - which, at that point in time, were the largest armed force within Kirkwall - to the Viscount’s Keep with the intention of arresting and deposing Threnhold. It was her charisma, her natural leadership, and her order that the Templars followed willingly. Threnhold was then arrested, tried, and jailed in his own prison by Grand Cleric Elthina, dying two years later from a successful assassination attempt using poison. It is this event that led to Meredith being named Knight-Commander by the Grand Cleric, at the comparatively young age of 29. Compared to the former greying and elderly Guylian, Meredith was young and charismatic, and already had established control of the Knights Templar. It was Meredith's own suggestion then to appoint Marlowe Dumar - a man known to have a “good heart” but a “weak will.” This choice was intentional. Newly knighted as Kirkwall’s top templar, Meredith asserted her control over the Viscount at his crowning, by sending him Threnhold’s blood-encrusted signet ring in an ivory carved box, inscribed with ‘His fate need not be yours’ as a constant reminder that she now had full control and could easily lead another revolt with her Templar forces, should the need arise. Of course, this decision was not made entirely on her own; it is, of course, a shared plot with the Grand Cleric to prevent the Viscount from following any decisions of his predecessor that should threaten the city-state. With this arrangement in mind, Meredith’s influence controlled Dumar’s decisions for a decade while the strength of the templars under her command grew tenfold. Aside from ruling the Templar Order and maintaining an iron fist over the mages living in the Gallows, Meredith also made a powerful move after the Arishok’s assault on the Viscount’s Keep, resulting in Dumar’s death. Even as Hawke defeated him, and she had to legally oblige naming them the Champion of Kirkwall, Meredith asserted her political power by not naming a succeeding Viscount to take Dumar’s place. Instead, she invoked martial law with her templar knights to maintain judicial control over the city rather than the city guard, and in all but name, took on the role of the de facto VISCOUNT of Kirkwall. This decision was 100% intentional, and even with her paranoia at an all time high after the Qunari attack, her choice not to elect a Viscount was her plan all along to maintain ALL power and control through each of the key institutions in the city-state (the Templar Order, the Gallows, and the Viscount’s Keep).

Meredith’s Methods & Political Players

From this historical event onward, Knight-Commander Meredith ruled the Gallows for seventeen years until the end of Act III, without assassination, injury, or political issues to dethrone her. In this time, Meredith sought whatever means necessary to maintain and control power of the city-state from her position. Some means were more traditional, keeping her templars on short leashes, and mages locked up and contained to the Gallows. Others, were less traditional and more... subtle and underlying. Cullen, for example, was someone who reminded her of herself - young and traumatized by mages and magic, but someone she could mould into following her beliefs and rulings, and eventually, ensure her legacy continues by making him her successor. She saw promise within him, despite his young age, and hoped to ensure that what she did in life would continue after her eventual retirement and death. This is why his betrayal later feels so personal - he betrays everything she instilled in him. A key player in this, is of course, Grand Cleric Elthina. Elthina is the one person that Meredith seems to bow to, respecting (albeit begrudgingly) her command when told to step down or back off. She is the key player and connection to the Divine and the Chantry, and arguably, is the only one who can leash Meredith - that is, until her death. And, with Meredith’s ascension to power as de facto Viscount, Elthina was either in support of her plan and the two would work together, or didn’t want to challenge control of the city in such a divisive time, believing Meredith to be competent enough to maintain it until finding a choice otherwise. Meredith and Elthina are, arguably, a duo from hell, who have been trying to vie for power and control of Kirkwall since the decision to elect Dumar together as their political figurehead puppet. Elthina knew that Meredith would be the one who could act on everything they set out to do, and accomplish it, which was why she had no problem naming Meredith as Knight-Commander at such a young age. Meredith is also jealous of Hawke when they are the ones to fight the Arishok, earning themselves the rightful title of Champion, when it should’ve been another accolade for herself. Hawke is a key contender for power and influence during their time in the city-state, presenting themselves also as the biggest potential thorn in her side, especially, should they side with the mages during the later rising conflicts - or, alternatively, becoming the Viscount (though, this comes through siding with the templars up until a certain point until they stand in opposition to Meredith). Either way, Hawke’s role is an unprecedented one, and why Meredith always expresses caution around them and their party. Other ��behind the scenes” actions Meredith takes include bribery and cutthroat threats, though she often has her templar knights take action more than she does herself, busy with the administrative side of running the Gallows. But, every action taken is done so under a guise in the name of justice and protection of innocent civilians. The most extreme method she sought out was of course, the red lyrium idol. This came as part of her desperation, where she saw conflicts arising after her decision to invoke martial law and neglect to pick a new Viscount to replace Dumar. She needed something more, and pure lyrium seemed an obvious choice to her, no matter its cost - even though, it is what killed her, in the end.

Summation

Meredith is a key political player in Kirkwall, and her insatiable appetite for power guides her every move within the Gallows and beyond, using her influence to maintain law and order at all costs. This desire to be in control stems from the trauma of losing her mage sister in her childhood, but it also develops as a symptom of her PTSD - hyper-vigilance - that lends itself to ensuring that everything is as it should be, which is why her paranoia is always running on high, fearing that every apostate could possibly be a blood mage. Yet, with all this power, she does not see herself as a tyrant - everything Meredith does, she does it for the benefit of Kirkwall, her birthplace and home. She sees herself as the hero that Kirkwall needs and deserves, acting as their holy and righteous savior, protecting innocents and keeping the Gallows ruled under her iron-fist. Even over the course of Act 3 where she starts to lose herself to the idol, she still sees herself as Kirkwall’s rightful Champion in everything but the title that she had to bestow upon Hawke. She sees herself as untouchable by anyone else - at least, until the paranoia takes over and sees Hawke as her IMMEDIATE threat to her power. One line in particular that comes from the final stage of Act 3, is “I will be rewarded for what I have done here, in this world and the next!” This line from Meredith seems to believe that her name will carry on in the future for ruling the Gallows, in this world and “the next.” Of course, at this point, she’s about completely lost her mind to the red lyrium idol, but perhaps it ponders a belief in reincarnation. We know that Andrastians “believe the souls of the dead pass through the Fade and out the other side to join the Maker. Those who turned away from the Maker are trapped in the Fade forever and lost there” so the claim of being in this world and rewarded for her deeds makes sense. However, as in for ‘the next’, could be referring to another life, reincarnated – or perhaps, she simply means the next generation. Regardless, I think it was just something interesting with how deluded she is about how she’ll be remembered, how for the crimes she just committed (by enacting the Right of Annulment on the Circle for an apostate’s act of terror) and believes she will be remembered and rewarded for time and all eternity.

#HEADCANON.#[ reposting this with the added Viscount thoughts that I had today LMAO ]#[ am I leaning into it a lot? yes.#do I care? NO.]#VISCOUNT STANNARD.#[ setting that in there so i can find this again ]

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queenofzan · 2 years

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like i know not everyone has read through every dragon age codex entry at least twice (i have them as ebooks, shut up, it’s not that weird) but

meredith was absolutely a tyrant before the red lyrium my friends!

from the Dragon Age Wiki:

By 9:20 Dragon the templars were the largest armed force in Kirkwall and could have challenged even the viscount for power. Knight-Commander Guylian would have preferred to stay neutral, but Divine Beatrix III pressured him to force Viscount Perrin Threnhold to re-open the Waking Sea passage to allow Orlesian ships through. As a result, in 9:21 the viscount attempted to oust the Templars from the city: he hired mercenaries to storm the Gallows and had the Knight-Commander hanged. In retaliation, Meredith and a group of her best templars marched on the Viscount's Keep determined to exact justice. The captain of the city guard quailed before the templars and to prove his own innocence, asserted that the viscount had acted unlawfully and had him arrested. Threnhold was thrown in his own dungeons, his lands and title stripped from him. Grand Cleric Elthina promoted her to leader of the Order, which she has governed with an iron fist. Viscount Marlowe Dumar was chosen at Meredith's strong suggestion. At his coronation, she gave him a carved ivory box containing Threnhold's bloody and broken signet ring with the words "His fate need not be yours" on the lid. Dumar has never openly or strongly defied the templars since.

She fucking overthrew the rightful* governor of Kirkwall for daring to think the Chantry was overstepping its power (it was) and installed a fucking puppet replacement who she then threatened. She was de facto leader of the Kirkwall Templars before she was Knight-Commander bc all the other templars liked her better than their actual Knight-Commander.

*inasmuch as hereditary rule and/or election by the nobles of the city can be considered legitimate. Perrin Threnhold was a dick but he was the Viscount and as far as I can tell from codex entries, inherited power legitimately.

#ass deep in demons #did meredith stannard effectively utilize girlpower when she overthrew the rightful ruler of kirkwall

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schmooplesboop · 2 years

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What happened to Viscount Perrin Threnhold was a travesty. I served in the Keep, and my blood boils when I hear people call him a tyrant. He was a good man who tried his best to free Kirkwall from the control of those who use power for their own purposes. It's always been that way here, hasn't it? Long ago it was the Imperium. Then it was the Qunari, then the Orlesians, now the templars... when have we ever ruled ourselves? He tried to kick those templar bastards out and give us real freedom, and what did it get him?

Now the Chantry has chosen Lord Marlowe Dumar as his replacement. After weeks and weeks of arguing, after telling the nobility that they would be choosing their viscount, after everyone saying it was time to use a new title-- why not "king"? Why keep using the name imposed by the Orlesians? And after all that, the Chantry chose him. I suppose I can see why-- everyone thinks he has the spine of a jellyfish, and it does seem that way.

Truly, he has the templars on one side, the nobility on the other, and everyone expects him to solve all their problems-- yet he has no power to actually accomplish it. He keeps the peace as best he can, and I think he does a good job even if no one else does. And he loves that sad little boy. I see the way young Saemus looks at his father, and I feel for him. Locked up in the Keep with no other children, watching his father be put down by every self-important windbag that walks into the great hall... it makes me miss the days of Perrin Threnhold, even if they were chaotic. We can only hope that one day Saemus gives the city the legacy it deserves.

--Excerpt from a letter by an unknown servant, found in the Gallows vaults 9:28 Dragon

#dragon age #dragon age 2 #viscount marlowe dumar #codex series #schmooples shot #mineda2

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ettesims · 7 years

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“I don’t know who would benefit from fighting with the Qunari. But it will cost all of us.”

#nonsims: other games #Dragon Age: II #Marlowe Dumar

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anneapocalypse · 2 years

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Dragon Age: Dawn of the Seeker

Crosspost. Originally posted on dreamwidth on 06/17/20.

Dawn of the Seeker is a 90-minute animated film made by BioWare and FUNimation and released in 2012 in both Japanese and English. Set in the year 9:22 Dragon in Orlais, it follows the early career of Cassandra Pentaghast as a Seeker of Truth.

This film is fun to watch and the animation is very pretty, but I honestly don't have a lot to say about it. The story is fairly predictable, with the main antagonists being set up early and paid off about as you'd expect, and the heroine's journey playing out in kind. There is also a touch of the old Obligatory Heterosexuality.

It's easy to see how the brash and angry young woman Cassandra was in her youth grew into the more measured but still passionate Cassandra we know in the games. The English voice actor for young Cassandra is excellent and fits her well.

Cassandra's Tragic Backstory is that her brother was murdered in front of her by blood mages when she was young, and she's harbored anger against mages ever since, though this is tempered by her partnership with Circle mage Regalyan in the film. "Mages hurt me or someone I love" is a pretty stock backstory for mage-hating characters in Dragon Age, so I don't know if it really adds a lot of depth to Cassandra per se, but it's backstory, and one I believe you can discuss with her in Inquisition if your approval is high enough.

The plot of the film centers around a plot by a blood mage cult to assassinate Divine Beatrix III in the most dramatic way possible: with dragons. More specifically, by kidnapping a young elven mage child with a gift for controlling wild beasts from the Circle, mind-controlling her with blood magic, and making her control several dragons to make them attack the Grand Cathedral during a big important gathering at which the Divine will be present. Also in league with the blood mages are the templar Knight-Commander Martel, and the Grand Cleric of Orlais who hopes to succeed Beatrix as Divine.

One thing that's really confusing, because it's never explained in the film, is what exactly the Knight-Commander's beef is with the Divine. He mentions wanting to see to it that "events like Kirkwall will not be tolerated," and as we're many years before the events of Dragon Age II, it's unclear what he's talking about if you don't already know. What he's actually referencing is the events leading up to Marlowe Dumar's installation as Viscount, in which the previous Viscount had attempted to oust the Templar Order from Kirkwall for political reasons. Apparently, Martel was not satisfied with the way Beatrix handled the situation. Beatrix therefore ends up in a position where basically everyone wants her dead: mages, templars, her own Grand Clerics.

Despite all this, I unfortunately didn't get a very strong sense of Beatrix from the film, or of what kind of Divine she was. I had hoped some of my questions about her might be answered, particularly how she came to appoint an apparent radical like Mother Dorothea to be her successor. Sadly, those questions remain unanswered!

Cassandra eventually foils the plot to assassinate the Divine, due in part to her skills hunting dragons learned from her family. In the process, she survives not one but two terrible falls, so we might say the Maker's favor is upon her! As a reward for her efforts, she becomes the Right Hand of the Divine at quite a young age. By Inquisition, then, she has been the Right Hand for nearly twenty years. I guess Justinia liked her enough to keep her on.

Not a groundbreaking installment, but a fun one and worth the watch if you love Cassandra.

#cassandra pentaghast #divine beatrix iii #dragon age meta #dawn of the seeker #dragon age #anne does dragon age #blunders of thedas

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dalishious · 3 years

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What is known about the pre-Meredith templar chief in Kirkwall?

His name was Guylian

Even though he was Knight-Commander, Meredith as Knight-Captain was regarded as the one really in charge

In 9:20, the Divine ordered Guylian to force Viscount Perrin into allowing Orlesian ships through Kirkwall’s passage

Guylian wrote back to the Divine, “It is not our place to interfere in political affairs. We are here to safeguard the city against magic, not against itself.” He did not want to do this, but did so anyway as a favour from the Divine for the Emperor

In response, a small war broke out between the Templar Order and Kirkwall, where Viscount Perrin attempted to expel the Templars from the city

Mercenaries hired by the Viscount stormed the Gallows, and Knight-Commander Guylian was arrested and executed in 9:21

Subsequently, Meredith and a group of her best templars stormed the Viscount’s Keep and with the support of Grand Cleric Elthina, arrested Perrin (where he suspiciously died of poisoning three days later), Elthina named her the new Knight-Commander, and Meredith selected Dumar as the new Viscount, presenting him with a bloody ring of the last and a warning that they need not share the same fate (so long as he obeyed her)

SOURCES:

Codex entry: History of Kirkwall: Chapter 4 (DA:2)

Codex entry: Viscount Marlowe Dumar (DA:2)

Codex entry: Knight-Commander Meredith (DA:2)

World of Thedas vol 2

#meredith stannard #kirkwall #da lore #Anonymous #ask

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queenofbaws · 3 years

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Bran interacting with the heir(s) to the Kirkwall throne (they're just as bad as their parents)

There were days, Andraste guide him, where he found himself missing - yes, actually missing - Seamus and all the trouble he managed to throw himself into headlong. It was a thing he wouldn’t have admitted under threat of death back in his younger years, but retrospect had a way of casting everything in a rosier light than it perhaps deserved, and while he could still remember the long days and nights he’d spent pacing the runners of the Viscount’s office until they were threadbare as Marlowe grimaced and groaned and griped about the messes his son continued to get himself into, it was only in a hazy, almost nostalgic sort of way.

At the root of things, he had to figure it came down to pedigree: Seamus Dumar had been a conflicted young man, true, but he’d come from serious, dignified Marcher stock...and the Tethras-Hawke children had come from, surprise, Tethras and Hawke.

His troubles with the Qunari aside, at least Seamus had known when and where to show deference; with them, he was coming to suspect there were no smarter mouths that side of the Waking Sea, inheriting the veritable powder keg combination of their parents’ sarcasm, wit, and frankly disconcerting abilities to persuade even the most miserly merchant out of their wares. Terrors they were - terrors! - troublesome little tyrants with easy laughs and fingers made for pilfering the good decorations, innocent expressions always ready in preparation for the rare event they were caught in the act (whatever destructive act that may be)...

And for all his shortcomings, at least Marlowe had shown the proper measure of exasperation with his son’s missteps; Varric and Hawke, Bran couldn’t help but notice, were simply proud.

six sentence sat(or)sunday!!!

#big-ass-magnet #six sentence weekend #queenie writes dragon age #;)c hehehehehe kirkwall becomes a Very Different Place post dai

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v-arbellanaris · 1 year

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Top 10 dragon age Silver Foxes, please, and thank you.

this is so evil because loghain doesn't have a single white hair even in his sixties but i hope you know i took this seriously. i also used the traditional definition of silver fox - older, greying/grey-haired men specifically, not inc women, bc so many grey haired men in dragon age were rancid so i wanted to make it more difficult for myself OGKFDGJDKFGJ. anyways!!!

seneschal varel

the arishok

teyrn bryce cousland

meeran of the red irons

ser emeric

first enchanter orsino

karl thekla

cyrion tabris

viscount marlowe dumar

horsemaster dennet

#asks #there were some truly horrible options for this btw. for e.g. do u know alrik has white hair. HORRIBLE.#i refused to cheat and put sten in this list just bc he has white hair. i figured he didn't meet the age thing maybe.#also SHUT UP ABOUT EMERIC OK I SAW HIM AT THE BROTHEL ONE TIME AND. ok. ok. shut up!!!!!!!!!!!! leave me alone #top 10 da lists

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dilfgmancoolatta · 3 years

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marlowe dumar, the viscount of kirkwall, is a nasty little thottie. and he just died from making it clap on instagram

#dragon age #dragon age 2 #da2

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idolbound · 1 year

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POWER & PLAYING THE POLITICAL GAME IN KIRKWALL

Meredith’s Ascension

For Meredith Stannard, her hunger for power began at a young age, when her familial nepotism granted her the title of Knight-Captain in 9:14 Dragon, in her early 20s inherited by her physically ill and failing father figure, Ser Wentworth Kell. It is said, though, before then she had all but taken the role in everything but its title, for several years. Her cohort of templar knights did not believe her worthy of being given the rank, but her skills and ability to lead soon changed their minds when her newly implemented rules led to more effective monitoring of mages in the Gallows, believing that stricter laws and routines would help create safer spaces for mages as to not allow distress and unexpected surprises (which is implemented given what happened to Meredith’s sister, Amelia), and to make it easier to detect anything out of the ordinary. Eventually, her greatly charismatic nature helped her cohort believe in her as Knight-Captain, following her willingly when conflicts between the current residing Viscount and the Knight-Commander came to a head.

In 9:20, Viscount Perrin Threnhold constricted trade into Kirkwall’s ports with the Orlesians, charging them extortionate fees to allow their ships through. Orlais retaliated with threat of invasion, and the Divine Beatrix III used the templars to pressure the Viscount. In response, Threnhold attempted to expel the templars from Kirkwall with hired mercenaries who stormed the Gallows, arresting Knight-Commander Guylian, and executing him soon thereafter.

In response, Meredith led the templars - which, at that point in time, were the largest armed force within Kirkwall - to the Viscount’s Keep with the intention of arresting and deposing Threnhold. It was her charisma, her natural leadership, and her order that the Templars followed willingly. Threnhold was then arrested, tried, and jailed in his own prison by Grand Cleric Elthina, dying two years later from a successful assassination attempt using poison.

It is this event that led to Meredith being named Knight-Commander by the Grand Cleric, in her early 30s. It was Meredith's suggestion then to appoint Marlowe Dumar - a man known to have a “good heart” but a “weak will.” This choice was intentional. Newly knighted as Kirkwall’s top templar, Meredith asserted her control over the Viscount at his crowning, by sending him Threnhold’s blood encrusted signet ring in an ivory carved box, inscribed with ‘His fate need not be yours’ as a constant reminder that she now had full control and could easily lead another revolt with her Templar forces, should the need arise.

Of course, this decision was not made entirely on her own; it is, of course, a shared plot with the Grand Cleric to prevent the Viscount from following any decisions of his predecessor that should threaten the city-state. With this arrangement in mind, Meredith’s influence controlled Dumar’s decisions for a decade while the strength of the templars under her command grew tenfold.

Meredith’s Methods & Political Players

From this event onward, Knight-Commander Meredith ruled the Gallows for seventeen years until the end of Act III, without assassination, injury, or political issues to dethrone her. In this time, Meredith sought whatever means necessary to maintain and control power of the city-state from her position. Some means were more traditional, keeping her templars on short leashes, and mages locked up and contained to the Gallows. Others, were less traditional and more... subtle and underlying.

Cullen, for example, was someone who reminded her of herself - young and traumatized by mages and magic, but someone she could mould into following her beliefs and rulings, and eventually, ensure her legacy continues by making him her successor. She saw promise within him, despite his young age, and hoped to ensure that what she did in life would continue after her eventual retirement and death. This is why his betrayal later feels so personal - he betrays everything she instilled in him.

A key player in this, is of course, Grand Cleric Elthina. Elthina is the one person that Meredith seems to bow to, respecting (albeit begrudgingly) her command when told to step down or back off. She is the key player and connection to the Divine and the Chantry, and arguably, is the only one who can leash Meredith - that is, until her death.

Meredith is also jealous of Hawke when they are the ones to fight the Arishok, earning themselves the rightful title of Champion, when it should’ve been another accolade for herself. Hawke is a key contender for power and influence during their time in the city-state, presenting themselves also as the biggest potential thorn in her side, especially, should they side with the mages during the later rising conflicts - or, alternatively, becoming the Viscount (though, this comes through siding with the templars up until a certain point until they stand in opposition to Meredith). Either way, Hawke’s role is an unprecedented one, and why Meredith always expresses caution around them and their party.

Other “behind the scenes” actions Meredith takes include bribery and cutthroat threats, though she often has her templar knights take action more than she does herself, busy with the administrative side of running the Gallows. But, every action taken is done so under a guise in the name of justice and protection of innocent civilians. The most extreme method she sought out was of course, the red lyrium idol. This came as part of her desperation, where she saw conflicts arising after her decision to invoke martial law and neglect to pick a new Viscount to replace Dumar. She needed something more, and pure lyrium seemed an obvious choice to her, no matter its cost - even though, it is what killed her, in the end.

Summation

Yet, with all this power, she does not see herself as a tyrant - everything Meredith does, she does it for the benefit of Kirkwall, her birthplace and home. She sees herself as the hero that Kirkwall needs and deserves, acting as their holy and righteous savior, protecting innocents and keeping the Gallows ruled under her iron-fist.

One line in particular that comes from the final stage of Act 3, is “I will be rewarded for what I have done here, in this world and the next!” This line from Meredith seems to believe that her name will carry on in the future for ruling the Gallows, in this world and “the next.” Of course, at this point, she’s about completely lost her mind to the red lyrium idol, but perhaps it ponders a belief in reincarnation. We know that Andrastians “believe the souls of the dead pass through the Fade and out the other side to join the Maker. Those who turned away from the Maker are trapped in the Fade forever and lost there” so the claim of being in this world and rewarded for her deeds makes sense.

However, as in for ‘the next’, could be referring to another life, reincarnated – or perhaps, she simply means the next generation. Regardless, I think it was just something interesting with how deluded she is about how she’ll be remembered, how for the crimes she just committed (by enacting the Right of Annulment on the Circle for an apostate’s act of terror) and believes she will be remembered and rewarded for time and all eternity.

#HEADCANON.#[ god this one took months to tidy up but yeah basically tldr kirkwall is like a chessboard full of politics and puppets ]#[ and meredith is looking to WIN ]

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felassan · 4 years

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Transcriptions of the info given in the “World Lore” area of the Keep:

(this is old stuff, not new, and is mostly posted for my reference. some bits weren’t worth including)

Seheron

Seheron is the largest island in Thedas, filled with jungle foliage and consistent fighting between the Tevinter Imperium and the Qunari. Both groups have laid claim to its borders, but Seheron currently sits under Qunari control. This has not brought calm, however. In DAI, Bull describes how the island still broils with conflict. Whether it be the rebellious Tal-Vashoth attacking their brethren, the Tevinter disrupting civil life, or the native Seheron stealth forces known as the Fog Warriors attacking either invading force, few who live on Seheron know peace.

Rivain

The Kingdom of Rivain was founded in -44. The First Qunari War began in earnest in 6:32 when Qunari ships arrive en masse in Seheron and northern Rivain.

Located to the northeast, Rivain occupies a peninsula and is surrounded by ocean that offers ample fish and coastal weather to its inhabitants. The culture is matriarchal, the people value material goods over currency, and belief in Andraste is less popular than both pantheism and the Qun. Rivain is the only nation in Thedas with a true Qunari settlement. To the south lies the island of Llomerryn, known as a home for bandits, raiders and merchants with goods that could never be sold in conventional shops.

Isabela is a notorious Rivaini raider and the captain of a pirate ship. She has a history with Zevran, as it turns out. She turns out to have been at least partially responsible for the presence of the stranded Qunari, and their subsequent attack. In the comics she joins King Alistair on his quest to find his father.

Duncan was a high-ranking Fereldan Grey Warden during the lead up to the Fifth Blight. While still a child, Duncan lost his parents and became a homeless urchin on the streets of Val Royeaux in Orlais. It was there he honed his skills as a rogue. Duncan recruited both Alistair and the HoF. Leading the Grey Wardens at Ostagar, Duncan fell victim to Loghain’s treachery, dying alongside his Grey Warden brothers and King Cailan.

The Anderfels

The Anderfels date back to -695. The Grey Wardens were founded at Weisshaupt in -305.

Located in the northwest corner of Thedas, this is a barren kingdom filled with desert, steppes and darkspawn. Highly religious, the nobility and the population here are among the most pious followers of the Chantry, with treason being seen as a lesser crime than backsliding into debauchery. The Grey Wardens are a powerful force here, holding as much power as the teryns or barons of other nations. The kingdom is also home to the strongest and most ancient of Warden strongholds, Weisshaupt Fortress, seat of the First Warden.

Anders is an apostate mage. Despite his gentle nature, he rages at the abuse of mages at the hands of the templars and Chantry. He allowed himself to be possessed by Justice, a spirit of the Fade who perfectly embodies his name. Emboldened to take action against those who would subdue his fellow mages, he blew up the Chantry, killing numerous clerics and innocent bystanders. This left Hawke to mete out mercy or a more permanent justice.

The Free Marches - Starkhaven

Largest and most opulent city in the Free Marches. The monarchy rule from estates crafted out of marble, enjoying the spacious streets and fine greenery surrounding their city. Before the events of DA2, the Circle of Magi tower here was razed, leading most of the city’s mages to seek shelter in the city of Kirkwall. The Inquisitor elects to help the acting monarch of Starkhaven either invade Kirkwall or help rebuild it.

The Free Marches - Kirkwall

Formed in -25, when Emerius, one of the last strongholds of the Imperium, falls in a slave rebellion and is renamed Kirkwall. The City Guard was founded in 7:60. In 9:21 Kirkwall leadership was ousted when Viscount Perrin Threnhold was overthrown by Knight-Commander Meredith Stannard. Marlowe Dumar was made the new viscount. In 9:30 the Hawke family fled the destruction of Lothering and travelled here, where they began indentured servitude in order to obtain enter the city. In 9:31 a Qunari dreadnought was shipwrecked nearby, stranding their Arishok and hundreds of soldiers in the city. They refused to leave until recovering the stolen Tome of Koslun. In 9:34 the Qunari were provoked into rising up in violence under the command of the Arishok. He beheaded Viscount Dumar in front of his nobles and seized control of the city. Hawke successfully drove the Qunari out in the First Battle of Kirkwall, and is named Champion by Meredith.

In the wake of the Qunari uprising, Kirkwall was left leaderless, and Meredith filled the void. She tightened control of the Kirkwall Circle. In 9:37 Anders destroyed the Chantry with the Grand Cleric still inside, inciting the Mage-Templar War that spreads throughout Thedas. The mages and templars battled in Kirkwall and Hawke led the push to stop them as they clashed. Meredith and the city’s First Enchanter Orsino are both killed. In 9:40, Seeker Cassandra Pentaghast, acting under the authority of the Divine, arrives in Kirkwall and interrogates Varric Tethras about Hawke.

Port city in the Free Marches. Built as a Tevinter mining town, it would become the center of the nation’s slave trade. While it has since been occupied by Orlesian forces, Kirkwall today stands as an independent city-state. This is a city of tension. The affluent citizens of Hightown live at odds with the Commoners of Lowtown. And the domineering templars maintain a stranglehold on the city’s mages. After a series of murders and assassinations in DA2, the tension exploded into a mage rebellion that engulfs Kirkwall, and eventually all of Thedas, in DAI.

Varric Tethras is a surface dwarf, rogue, charmer, fixer, storyteller, occasional con-artist, spymaster and information broker. He’s the type that knows everybody - though none are closer to him than his trusted crossbow Bianca. He joins Hawke in a war against either the mages or the templars - it doesn’t matter which, so long as he’s with Hawke. He joins the Inquisitor as a key party member. He leads the Inquisition to Hawke, and helps disrupt Corypheus’ supply of red lyrium. After the final conflict, he returns to Kirkwall to help with the reconstruction of the city while penning a new novel.

Arishok is not a personal name but a title for the leader of the Qunari military, one of the three pillars of their culture. While the title has been traded among several generals, one of the most famous is the Arishok who attempted a coup of Kirkwall. Stranded after a storm destroyed his ship, the Arishok took residence in Kirkwall, searching for a sacred Qunari relic. After seeing the debauchery there first hand, he decided he must cleanse it, ordering his soldiers to execute the Viscount. After a confrontation with Hawke, the Qunari left the city.

Marlowe Dumar was the Viscount of Kirkwall at the time of DA2. Juggling the templars’ impositions for continued dominance, the mages’ demands for more freedom, and the ever-growing Qunari threat, Marlowe could hardly be said to be in control of his city-state. After his son Seamus was executed by fanatics for converting to the Qun, he lost any will he had to lead Kirkwall. He met his end at the hands of the Arishok during the Qunari coup, his hread and crown bowled down his own throne room steps.

Meredith Stannard was Kirkwall’s fiery Knight-Commander of the Templar Order. She was supported by Grand Cleric Elthina, and enjoyed free rein as the commander of Kirkwall’s dominating military force. When Anders blew up the city-state’s Chantry, killing Elthina, Meredith invoked the Rite of Annulment, allowing the templars to wipe out all mages in Kirkwall to restore order. The mages resisted. Succumbing during the conflict to overexposure of the red lyrium implanted in her sword, Meredith went mad, leading Hawke to cease her rampage. Upon defeat, she crystallized into a statue of red lyrium, which is now featured in the Black Emporium as a curiosity of sorts.

Being First Enchanter of the Circle of Mages in Kirkwall makes Orsino the leader of the city’s mages. As such, he is frequently in direct conflict with the city’s templars, led by Meredith. As the mages began to rebel, the templars tightened their grip, and Orsino was led to consider drastic measures. When the tension exploded into all-out war, he forwent his conscience and turned to blood magic, transforming himself into an abomination that Hawke was forced to put down.

The Hawkes are a family beset by numerous tragedies. Malcolm Hawke and Leandra Amell eloped, fleeing Leandra’s family in Kirkwall who opposed their marriage, and raised three children. Malcolm perished before the events of the Fifth Blight, which drove the family from Ferelden back to Leandra’s home of Kirkwall. During their flight, one of the children was killed by darkspawn. Arriving in Kirkwall, Leandra found her brother Gamlen to have gambled away the family’s estate. It was left to the eldest child to regain that fortune and restore their name.

The Free Marches - Vimmark Mountains

In -191 intelligent darkspawn capable of advanced thought and speech were discovered. The Warden Sashamiri captured Corypheus, who was said to be the greatest of these darkspawn. By -181, the Wardens had spent years studying Corypheus in captivity. This had taught them little as his influence penetrated the minds of even the most powerful mages. The Wardens imprisoned him and sealed him away deep in the Vimmark Mountains, concealing his existence. In 9:37 (although history is vague on when exactly this occurred) Hawke entered the Warden prison and attempted to destroy Corypheus.

These mountains sit to the north of the Free Marches, situated along the shore of the Waking Sea. At their feet rest the cities of Kirkwall and Markham. The mountain wilderness is beset with all manner of beast and peril. Orlesian nobles make sport of hunting the poisonous wyverns indigenous to the area, and darkspawn linger in the desert. But the most dangerous of all is a criminal held in the Grey Warden prison: Corypheus, said to be one of the mages to journey to the Golden City in the Ancient Age, who returned as the first darkspawn.

Once held deep within the Grey Warden prison there lay an ancient evil: a Tevinter magister from an ancient era who sought the power of the old gods and returned as one of the first darkspawn. He title as Conductor of Silence long forgotten, he is now known only as Corypheus. Freed of his prison, he seeks to restore the power of the Tevinter Empire and bring Thedas’ inhabitants under the control of the one he believes to be the first true god - himself.

The Free Marches - Chateau Haine

The famed Chateau Haine was built in the western Vimmark mountains by Lord Norbert de La Haine in 4:90. He used it to stage numerous failed invasions of Marcher states. In 5:21, darkspawn all but devastated the Free Marches, and Chateau Haine became Fortress Haine, a makeshift Warden garrison. A refuge known as the Retreat was dug into the mountain. At the most dire point of the Fourth Blight, hundreds of fleeing Kirkwall and Cumberland residents called the Retreat home.

A converted fortress situated in the Free Marches, Chateau Haine - originally known as Fortress Haine - is a vacation destination for local Orlesian nobility. Seasonal wyvern hunts are held by its owner, Duke Prosper de Montfort, where guests can enjoy the chateau’s amenities, complete with a man-made cavern, underground lake and the Vaults - an underground treasury filled with Montfort’s extensive fortune. Hawke infiltrated Chateau Haine to recover a lost relic.

Orlais

Orlais was formed in -3 when Kordillus Drakon united the tribes of the Heartlands and was crowned Emperor of the new nation. In the same year he formalized the Cult of the Maker, creating the Chantry. In 2:10 Divine Renata I called for the beginning of a holy war against the elves. This became known as the Exalted March of the Dales. In 9:04, Celene, the future Empress, was born. In 9:20 she took power and Empress Celene I ascended to the throne. Soon after this in the same year, Ferelden and Orlais officially made peace. In 9:34, Revered Mother Dorothea was elected and named Divine Justinia V. In 9:38, unrest brewed in Orlais as Grand Duke Gaspard de Chalons stirred dissent against the reigning Empress. In 9:40, following the conflict at the White Spire, Lord Seeker Lambert cancelled the Nevarran Accord, severing ties between the Seekers and the Chantry. At this time allegiances between Seekers and templars were split - some still supported the Divine. The Lord Seeker also declared the Cicles of Magi dissolved and the future of mages in Thedas became uncertain. He later went missing, presumed dead.

Orlais is a country in southwest Thedas. It currently stands as the most powerful human nation that nurtured the most powerful religion: the Chantry. Given its expansionist tendencies, Orlais’ relationship with the neighboring Tevinter and Ferelden kingdoms is tenuous at best. Orlais’ culture is known for its excess. But the opulent fashion, elaborate masks and cosmetics applied with abandon are more than vanities, playing an important part in the political games central to day-to-day life. And the architecture is equally resplendent: the Grand Cathedral, University of Orlais and the White Spire make the capital of Val Royeaux a particularly breathtaking sight.

After inheriting the Orlesian throne at 16, Empress Celene I led a cultural revival of arts and education in her country. Orlais has never known such prosperity - or peace - as it has under her rule. She is considered the most powerful woman in Thedas. A plot to assassinate Celene brings the Inquisition face-to-face with the Orlesian royal, leaving the Inquisitor to either protect her seat on the throne, or usher in a new ruler of Orlais with her death. In the War of the Lions, Celene’s cousin Gaspard challenged her right to the throne.

Grand Duke Gaspard de Chalons was in line for the throne of Orlais since birth until he was outmaneuvered by his cousin Celene. While she remains on the throne, he continues to vie for his rightful seat through a combination of manipulation and subterfuge, sparking the War of the Lions. The Inquisitor meets with Gaspard at the Orlesian royal ball held at Halamshiral Palace. There, Gaspard entreats the Inquisition to help him depose Celene so that he may take her place as ruler.

Andraste is a central figure of the Chantry, a prophet who was said to be the bride of the Maker, born in what is now Ferelden. She waged war on the kingdom of Tevinter, whom Andraste claimed had turned from the one true god to worship of the Old Gods. Betrayed by her husband, she was burned at the stake. However, her impact had already been made. She was extremely influential, both religiously and politically. Her teachings would lead to the creation of the Chantry, whose followers have led much of Thedas to believe in the Maker.

Maferath was the husband of the prophet Andraste, who together led armies against the Tevinter Imperium in the ancient era. He ultimately betrayed his wife, allowing the Imperium to capture and execute her. It is said he did this because he was jealous of Andraste’s betrothal to the Maker, though many believe he only wanted to rule the lands that Andraste had captured. His kingdom stretched over Orlais, Nevarra and Ferelden, but his rule would not last long. When Tevinter converted to Andrastianism, Maferath’s betrayal was revealed. His kingdom dissolved and he was killed by his own sons.

Mother Dorothea was a Revered Mother of the Chantry who became close with Leliana, inspiring Leliana to devote herself to the faith. Dorothea was later elected to become the new Divine, taking the name Justinia V. A progressive Divine, she saw fit to order Leliana and Cassandra - named Left and Right Hands of the Divine respectively - to reform the Inquisition, hoping to expand the freedoms of mages. While she was killed in the blast that opened the Breach, Justinia - or was it? - later returns in spectral form to help the Inquisitor escape the Fade.

Orlais - Val Royeaux

Andraste was executed in -170 after being betrayed by her husband at one of the city-state of Nevarra, one of their strongholds. She was brought to Minrathous and executed by the Imperium. The Grand Cathedral was built in 2:99. In 9:22, the Grand Cathedral was set upon by dragons during a ten-year gathering of Chantry faithful. A young Seeker named Cassandra Pentaghast foiled what was revealed to be a conspiracy to kill Divine Beatrix III. She was named Hand of the Divine. In 9:40 Empress Celene was called out of Val Royeaux after news of an elven rebellion in Halamshiral. The move is thought to have been orchestrated by Gaspard. Celene’s absence fueled rumors of her death or capture. In 9:40 a violent uprising at the White Spire - a Circle tower in Val Royeaux - left many senior mages dead. The uprising was apparently supported by the Divine through her agents, including the bard Leliana.

The capital of Orlais and home to the Chantry and the busiest port in Thedas. Not only is it the largest city in the Orlesian empire, it’s also by far its most cosmopolitan. The saying goes that “sooner or later, everyone passes through the Sun Gates”, many of whom are students coming from across Thedas coming to attend classes at the University of Orlais. The White Spire, Grand Cathedral and Imperial Palace also join Val Royeaux’s impressive cadre of architecture. The Inquisitor journeyed to Val Royeaux to ingratiate the Inquisition with the Chantry.

The White Spire is a massive Circle tower in Val Royeaux. It also serves as the seat of templar authority for the Chantry, some of whom have taken to calling the tower the “Sword of the Maker”, as its colossal facade - visible from anywhere within Val Royeaux - bears semblance to a blade thrust skyward. The bowels of the tower, a maze of dungeons known as “The Pit”, stretch deep down into the earth. The White Spire was the setting for the split between the Chantry and the templars, initiated by Lord Seeker Lambert.

The Grand Cathedral in Val Royeaux is the physical center of the Chantry and the home of the Divine, leader of the Andrastian faithful. The cathedral is walled off from the rest of the city, but its gates are open throughout the day, silently admitting hosts of pilgrims into the giant courtyard dominated by the golden statue of Emperor Drakon the Great, who built the temple to facilitate the beginnings of the Chantry. Its sprawling construction culminates in the Temple of the Divine, where the Divine and the Holy Brazier reside. The Grand Cathedral has endured many battles, and is considered one of the most magnificent structures in all Thedas.

Leliana is a woman of many faces - fitting for a spy and former assassin. In DAO she appeared as a devoted sister of the Chantry. But after helping to end the Fifth Blight, she returns to her life of subterfuge - this time as the Left Hand of the Divine in service to the Chantry. Leliana is only seen working behind the curtain in DA2. She later plays a major role as advisor and spymaster for the Inquisition. Using her intelligence and reconnaissance, she may help bring the rebel mages to the Inquisitor’s side.

As a Seeker, Cassandra Pentaghast serves to thwart any threat to the Chantry, pledging her utmost loyalty to the Divine alone. She had extensive training to become a stern warrior of the faith. She pursued Hawke - known to be a central figure in the growing conflict between the mages and the templars - leading her to interrogate Varric about Hawke’s whereabouts. Later the Breach opens after an unseen enemy murders Divine Justinia V. Cassandra becomes one of the first members of the Inquisition, knowing their pursuit to close the Breach will lead to the Divine’s murderer.

Divine Beatrix III was a former leader of the Chantry. She was the target of an assassination plot orchestrated by her expected successor, the Grand Cleric Callista. A young Cassandra thwarted the attempt, and Beatrix rewarded her with the title of right hand of the Divine. Beatrix lived to an old age, succumbing to senility before passing on the throne in 9:34, three years after the end of the Fifth Blight.

Orlais - Adamant Fortress

In 9:40 an apparent cure to Tranquility was discovered in Adamant Fortress.

Adamant is a fortress founded by the Grey Wardens on the edge of the Abyssal Rift in southwestern Orlais. Constructed by dwarves during the Second Blight to guard against darkspawn surfacing from the Rift, its metal ramparts and walls of dark jetstone are as intimidating as any weapon. The fortress was overrun by demons when the mage Pharamond conducted experiments with the Veil. Later it once again played host to the Grey Wardens, who the Inquisitor had to rout to reach one of Corypheus’ conspirators.

Orlais - The Dales

In -165 Maferath gave the Dales to the elves as a new homeland, for the service in their battle against the Imperium. The Long Walk began as a massive influx of elves settled the region. In 2:20 Dalish elven settlements were uprooted as the Dales fell.

The Dales is a vast, verdant region in southeast Orlais with a history steeped in both the joyous tears of refugees and battle-spilled blood. Thedas’ elves were given the Dales as a home and lived there for three centuries until they were chased out by the Chantry during the Exalted Marches. Today, the scars from that battle remain across the Exalted Plains, its dead are buried in the Emerald Graves, and the abandoned elven capital of Halamshiral serves as a seasonal destination for Orlesian nobility. However, the weather-worn elven stone relics remain in its forests, ever watching.

Orzammar

In -1170 the first Paragons were elected - the Orzammar Proving Grounds were then expanded to encompass Grand Provings, previously held in Kal-Sharok. The best warriors of these provings became the first of Orzammar’s Paragons. Stonehammer built a hall to house huge statues in their honor. In 9:30 there was conflict in Orzammar after the death of King Endrin Aeducan. He died of grief over the loss of his oldest and middle children, leaving only his youngest child, Bhelen, to inherit the throne. The conflict broke out over succession when Lord Pyral Harrowmont accused Bhelen of fratricide.

Buried deep beneath the Frostback Mountains lies the city of Orzammar: the dwarven capital and one of the last remaining great thaigs. Hewn from rock, its architecture is a sight to behold as the peoples’ quarters rise up towards the cavern roof, with royalty living near the very ceiling. The dwarves of Orzammar are separated by caste, with the nobility followed by warriors, who are followed by the smiths, then the artisans, with the casteless at the very bottom. To be born into a caste is to live it throughout your days, unless one should leave the city for the surface world - for those dwarves have abandoned the stone, and are the lowest of them all.

Bhelen Aeducan is a noble dwarf of Orzammar, once considered the least of King Endrin’s children. He proves to be much more devious than he initially appears. He stood to gain the throne, and it was up to the Warden to decide if he was fit to rule or if his position should be taken by the man King Endrin elected over his own son. If he was not elected, he revolted and was killed. If he was crowned, he dissolved the Assembly so that he could rule alone, but opened up trade to foreign kingdoms and improved the lives of casteless dwarves.

A genius dwarf of exemplary smithing ability, Branka was named Paragon among her people - so valuable she surpasses the caste system, the first in four centuries - for her inventions. However, before the events of the Fifth Blight, Branka went in search of an ancient dwarven artifact and disappeared. The Warden discovered Branka attempting to recover the Anvil of the Void, used to turn dwarves into golemns. She had long since gone insane, sacrificing her followers to the traps that kept her from the anvil, and the Warden had to choose whether to assist or stop her.

The Deep Roads

In -380 the darkspawn multiplied and attacked en masse, concentrating first on the underground Deep Roads used by the dwarves. As the dwarven thaigs fell, the darkspawn used the Deep Roads to reach the edges of the Imperium. They surfaced and chaos ensued. In -248 Paragon Caridin vanished, taking the secret of golems’ construction with him. The secret stayed buried for ages. In 5:24 darkspawn continued to attack the Deep Roads, but nobody except the Wardens seemed to care that they infested the Roads all the way to Orzammar. In 9:14, underneath Ferelden, the intelligent darkspawn known as the Architect attempted to unearth and kill the remaining Old Gods and taint the entire surface world. His efforts were thwarted by King Maric and a band of Wardens. In 9:28 Paragon Branka ventured into the Deep Roads to begin the search for the Anvil of the Void. In 9:31 Hawke ventured into the Deep Roads with brothers Varric and Bartrand Tethras after being released from servitude and helping to fund the expedition. This Deep Roads Expedition at Kirkwall discovered an ancient thaig that pre-dated the First Blight. Inside is lyrium that glows red. An idol made of the strange lyrium was recovered.

The Deep Roads are a system of underground tunnels built long ago by the dwarves, connecting the once-populous thaigs beneath all corners of Thedas. Centuries of planning are demonstrated in their construction: the geometry of their walls, the Paragon statues that watch over travelers, and the flow of lava keeping the tunnels lit and warm. Following the First Blight, the Deep Roads were overrun with darkspawn. The city of Orzammar sealed off any entrances to the tunnels, leaving the darkspawn to conquer all thaigs save Kal-Sharok. Though brave travelers still use them, these roads that once belonged to the dwarves now belong to the darkspawn.

Paragon Caridin was a dwarf from an ancient era. After discovering how to craft golems using the Anvil of the Void, he was named Paragon among his people. However, he disappeared, along with the secrets of golem construction. He re-emerged a thousand years later, now a golem himself. It is revealed that casteless dwarves, prisoners and political enemies were being turned into golems against their will. When Caridin stood up to the king’s abuse of the Anvil, Caridin himself was turned into a golem. Caridin asked the Warden to destroy the Anvil before any more harm may come to the innocent.

The Architect is a darkspawn emissary. Contrary to normal darkspawn emissaries - who ensure loyalty among darkspawn ranks to the Archdemon during Blights - the Architect seeks to sever ties to the Archdemons, bestowing free will upon the darkspawn horde. His efforts resulted in a civil war among the awakened darkspawn, which the Hero of Ferelden had to quell. It is later revealed that, though unintentional, the Architect was responsible for corrupting one of the Old Gods, resulting in the Fifth Blight.

Bartrand Tethras is a noble dwarf of Orzammar who was relegated to the surface with his family. Addicted to amassing wealth, Bartrand would work every angle for money and power, even if it killed him. Hawke accompanied Bartrand and his brother Varric into the Deep Roads. Upon discovering a statue of red lyrium, Bartrand betrayed Varric and Hawke, leaving them to die. When Hawke later caught up to the deserter, Bartrand had gone mad with lyrium poisoning, leaving Varric to choose: commit his brother to a sanitarium, or put him out of his madness.

Amgarrak

In -4600 the elves are believed to have made first contact with the dwarves. In 9:31 Amgarrak was overrun by twisted creatures known as Harvesters after failed attempts to recreate Caridin’s golen research.

Amgarrak is an abandoned thaig located in the Deep Roads. Dedicated to rediscovering the mysteries of golem construction - an art that disappeared with its creator, Caridin - its rulers sought to increase their wealth by manufacturing and selling golems. However, Amgarrak fell silent, and the thaig today stands completely silent. The Warden ventured into the city, tracing the trail of an expedition that had hoped to discover the research into golemn production, and instead found an unspeakable horror, which they had to destroy in order to have any hope of escape.

General & Ferelden

Ferelden founded in 5:82.

Roughly in -8400, Arlathan was founded some three thousand years before the arrival of humans on the continent. The date of this is so far removed from recorded history that it is difficult to pinpoint in Chantry years. Records claim the first humans arrive in Thedas around -3900. This is disputed by scholars, who ask where humans came from and why they left. Around -2850 elves are said to have first noticed their quickening, ending their immortality and frightening them into withdrawal from human contact. This is thought by many to be mere legend. In -2800 the first human mages appeared, as at this time the Old Gods are said to have begun whispering to humanity from the Golden City. They taught the Dreamers of the Neromenian tribes magic. Power shifted, and those Dreamers became both kings and priests among their people. In -1815 the Alamarri living near Lake Calenhad broke away, becoming/forming the Avvar tribe. The two groups warred with each other for centuries. In -1700, the Neromenian tribes split to form four kingdoms: Tevinter, Neromenian, Barindur and Qarinus. In -1595 blood magic was first practised when Thalsian, also known as the First Priest of Dumat, became the first known human to wield it. He claimed to learn the art after personally communicating with Dumat, an Old God.

In -1195, Darinius united Tevinter and Qarinus, forming the mighty Tevinter Imperium. He declared himself the first Archon. In -981 tensions between Tevinter and the elves turned to open war. The Imperium besieged Arlathan. In -975, the years-long seige of Arlathan ended when Tevinter is said to have sunk the city into the ground using blood magic. The surviving elves were enslaved. In -395, in secret, a group of the most powerful Tevinter magisters opened a gate into the Golden City, entering it physically. They were cast violently back into the physical world twisted and corrupted as the first darkspawn. In -203 the prophet Andraste was born in Ferelden. The exactly year of her date is hotly contested by scholars. In -187 Andraste married Maferath, an Alamarri chieftain. In -186 she began preaching of a new creator, whom she called the Maker. The more she said, the more her following grew. Maferath used her teachings to unite the Alamarri clans under his authority. In -170 her loyal disciple Havard collected her ashes and carried them back to Ferelden. In -135 her ashes disappeared, revealed ages later to have been stored away at the Temple of Sacred Ashes in Haven. In -130 Andraste’s disciples created the Chant of Light, collecting her teachings into hymns.

In -100 the original Inquisition was founded, a loose association of Andrastian hard-liners who hunted heretics and mages in the name of the Maker. In -30 the city-state of Antiva expanded to become a nation. In -11 the Cult of the Maker continued to spread and gain popularity in the south. One of Andraste’s most fervent followers was the young king of Orlais, Kordillus Drakon. In 1:05 the Second Blight began in the Anderfels after the Old God Zazikel awoke. In 1:20 the Chantry and the Inquisition signed the Nevarran Accord. Senior members of the Inquisition formed the Seekers of Truth. As part of the Accord the Circle of Magi was created/formed. Mages were now formally allowed to practise magic under the close watch of the Chantry. With the creation of the Circle, the Templar Order was formed to police magic use. In 1:33 the Grey Wardens converted to the Chantry. In 1:95 the Second Blight ended when the last battle was fought at Starkhaven. In 2:20 Divine Renata I ordered the establishment of the first elven alienages. Many elves instead became nomads. In 3:00 Flemeth is said to have been born in the Fereldan village of Highever. In 3:10 the Old God Toth awoke, spurring the Third Blight. In 3:25 the Third Blight ended when Toth was destroyed after the armies of Orlais and Tevinter met in Hunter Fell to join the Grey Wardens for the last battle.

In 5:10 the Grey Wardens signed treaties with the various teryns in Ferelden. They were welcomed into Ferelden and entered the land in a permanent fashion. They built a fortress in Denerim as well as several small outposts to watch for signs of darkspawn. In 5:12 the Fourth Blight began with the awakening of the Old God Andoral. In 5:22 Garahel united armies to march against the darkspawn. He gathered Wardens from Orlais and the Anderfels, then marched to Starkhaven, where he organized an alliance between the leaders of the Free Marches. The united army then marched north under the griffon banner. Many griffons were killed during the Fourth Blight. By 5:25, their numbers decimated, they soon died out and became extinct. In 5:42 Calenhad Theirin was crowned King in Denerim, uniting the long-warring tribes of Ferelden under a single banner. By 6:15 dragons had been hunted to near-extinction thanks to methods pioneered by the Pentaghast family of Nevarra. The Pentaghasts became known across the continent as legendary dragon hunters.

In 6:30 the Qunari landed in massive numbers on Par Vollen and handily conquered it, unbeknownst to the rest of the continent. In 7:05, after losing the Fereldan throne to her cousin Arland, Sophia Dryden joined the Grey Wardens and rose to the rank of Warden-Commander in Ferelden. In 7:84 the Qunari War ended after a meeting between the Qunari and envoys from all Thedosian nations except Tevinter was called at Llomerryn. The Llomerryn Accords were signed, ushering in an uneasy peace. In 8:24 Fereldan King Vanedrin Theirin was killed by Orlesian invaders. Calenhad’s sword, Nemetos, was lost. In 8:25 young King Brandel, Vanedrin’s son, was unable to unite the kingdom beneath him, and Ferelden became plunged into a mire of blood and battle. In 8:96 Brandel’s daughter, the “Rebel Queen” Moira, was assassinated. Orlesian forces leveraged her death to tighten their grip on Ferelden. Her son Maric escaped. In 8:98, the Fereldan rebels, led by the young King Maric, took the isolated port town of Gwaren, their first major victory since the death of Queen Moira.

In 8:99 at the Battle of West Hill, the Fereldan army was devastated by Orlesian forces. Survivors retreated to Gwaren. Maric was presumed dead. Also this year dragons re-emerged first in Antiva, having been believed to have been hunted into extinction. They devastated rural Orlais and Nevarra. Repeated attempts to cull their numbers resulted in heavy casualties. Later, with the aid of the Legion of the Dead, King Maric emerged from the Deep Roads under Gwaren. At the Battle of River Dane, Fereldan rebels comanded by Loghain Mac Tir turned the tide against their Orlesian occupiers. Crown prince of Ferelden Cailan was born in 9:05 to Maric and Queen Rowan. In 9:10 King Maric allowed the Grey Wardens to return to Ferelden after two ages of exile for their failed coup attempt. In 9:25 Cailan married Anora. In 9:30 a senior Fereldan Warden named Duncan recruits Alistair and others to put down the impending Blight. Among his recruits was the future Hero of Ferelden. The Fifth Blight ended in 9:31 when a united Ferelden, led by the Hero, slays Urthemiel at the Battle of Denerim. Later the Architect freed an intelligent broodmother called the Mother from the call of the Old Gods. She went insane and attempted to undo his work. A new breed of talking darkspawn emerged. Some pledged allegiance to the Mother and some followed the Architect.

The geographically diverse nation of Ferelden in southeast Thedas is known for its verdant fields in the Hinterlands, primeval Brecilian Forest and intimidating Frostback Mountains. Considered relatively primitive by other nations, having only begun to civilize in the last few centuries, Ferelden has often been beset by invaders seeking to conquer the kingdom. But having stood up even to the Fifth Blight, Ferelden has proven itself a nation not easily conquered. In DAI, its monarchy saw fit to grant rebel mages asylum within its borders. However, the templars pursued the mages, bringing war to the Hinterlands.

While he appeared as an ash wraith in DAO, protecting the urn of Andraste’s ashes, in life Havard was a warrior and friend to her husband. Havard is known as one of the first of Andraste’s disciples. Following Maferath’s betrayal of Andraste, Havard disowned the man he once called friend. He recovered Andraste’s ashes following her execution at the stake, and returned them to her Alamarri homeland.

Flemeth: Sorcerer. Dragon. Abomination. Immortal. There are many words to describe Flemeth, known as the storied Witch of the Wilds, mother of Morrigan. Most are tales told to scare children, but there may be motes of truth in each. Flemeth makes several appearances, always on the fringes, working towards some unknown goal. Morrigan describes her as one to be feared, whose true power is unknown. Is she a human? Demon? Or perhaps something more?

Sophia Dryden was the commander of the Grey Warden forces at Soldier’s Peak during the Storm Age. After instigating a rebellion, the kingdom of Ferelden wiped out the wardens at the fortress, and the Dryden name became synonymous with treason. 200 years after the rebellion was quelled, the Hero of Ferelden journeyed to Soldier’s Peak to find ghosts of the deceased reenacting their final battle. Sophia lived, possessed by a demon summoned during the skirmish, and it was up to the Warden whether she continued on as a puppet or if the demon was to be permanently exorcized.

King Maric was the hero king who reclaimed Ferelden from the Orlesian forces early in the Dragon Age. He was the father of Cailan and Alistair, and the close friend of Loghain, his trusted military advisor. His rule ended when he disappeared at sea in 9:25, 5 years before the Fifth Blight. Despite persisting rumors that Maric was still arrive, his son Cailan inherited the throne. Alistair later put those rumors to bed.

Friend to Maric, father to Queen Anora, and a high-ranking general, Loghain Mac Tir was a revered war hero who helped free Ferelden from Orlesian occupation. However, he disgraced himself at the Battle of Ostagar by ordering his troops to retreat, resulting in the death of his daughter’s husband King Cailan. The Warden chose whether to execute Loghain or allow him to join the Wardens. If allowed to live, he will make appearances in subsequent games in the series.

Before she was Queen, Rowan Guerrin fought alongside Maric Theirin and Loghain Mac Tir in the war to reclaim Ferelden from Orlesian occupation. Betrothed to Maric, she became Queen when Maric took the throne. Maric and Rowan had one child together, Cailan, who inherited the throne after Maric went missing at sea. Rowan died of an illness when Cailan was still very young. Rowan was known for her relationship with both Maric and Loghain, and for her battle prowess.

Cailan Theirin was the half-brother of Alistair and king of Ferelden. He was husband to Anora, General Loghain Mac Tir’s daughter. An honorable (if naive) king, Cailan saw the Fifth Blight as a chance to bring glory to his reign, and led Ferelden’s army to fight the darkspawn at the Battle of Ostagar. When Loghain treacherously ordered the reinforcements under his command to retreat without entering the battle, Cailan - alongside almost all of Ferelden’s Grey Wardens - was killed.

Anora Mac Tir/Theirin: Wife of King Cailan Theirin and also the daughter of Teryn Loghain Mac Tir, a general whose treachery at the battle of Ostagar led to the death of her husband. Stalwart and shrewd, she takes her husband’s place as ruler of Ferelden, a role she is more than capable of filling. Accused of treason, captured by her father’s lieutenant and then rescued by the Warden, Anora helps the Hero depose her father. She may then be reinstated as ruler and make appearances in subsequent games.

Alistair Theirin is a young Grey Warden. Swift with both his tongue and his sword, he proved to be a key member of the Hero’s party, especially after discovering he is the bastard son of King Maric, putting him in line for the throne. He can either choose to pursue or abandon his nobility. He later goes in search of his father.

Ferelden - Ostagar

In 9:30 the Battle of Ostagar ended in devastation when it was lost when Loghain quit the field, leaving the assembled Wardens trapped behind darkspawn lines. The Wardens, with the exception of Alistair and the future Hero, were slaughtered.

Ostagar is a fortress on the southern edge of Ferelden, bordering on the Korcari Wilds. It represents the farthest point of encroachment by the Tevinter Imperium into the barbarian lands of the southeast, and was once one of the most important defensive holdings south of the Waking Sea. It was abandoned four centuries ago and has since fallen into disrepair. It served as the final battleground of King Cailan, the Grey Warden Duncan and a number of Fereldan soldiers who fall to the darkspawn horde in an attempt to halt the Fifth Blight, forever known as the Battle of Ostagar.

Ferelden - Korcari Wilds

The Fifth Blight began here in 9:30 after the Architect attempted to make a disciple of the Old God Urthemiel.

The Korcari Wilds are a dangerous, uncharted region in southern Ferelden, a wasteland that spawned the Fifth Blight in 9:30. The perpetual mist that surrounds the wilds is rumored to be a curse, and upon entering its twisted woods, few would argue this to be untrue. Dangerous beasts and Dalish elves call the wilds home, but none are considered more menacing than Flemeth, a Witch of the Wilds. She and her long line of daughters were said to have lived in the Wilds for decades before the Fifth Blight.

Morrigan is a powerful witch from the Korcari Wilds. She works towards her enigmatic goals from behind the scenes. She fears her mother Flemeth, the fabled Witch of the Wilds, whom she believes intends to steal Morrigan’s body to remain forever young. Thus Morrigan seeks out power to escape her mother’s influence. She served as a primary member of the Hero’s party and then pursues the eluvians - elven mirrors that can transport people beyond the Fade - and vanishes, but not before hinting that great change is coming to the world. She later returns having found a place of power within the Orlesian court.

Ferelden - Denerim

Sacked by the Orlesian Empire in 8:44. The Empire then claimed victory and drove King Brandel into hiding. In 9:08 Queen Rowan died. In 9:10 Alistair, a future hero of the Fifth Blight, was born in Ferelden. In 9:25 King Maric was presumed dead at sea and his son Cailan was crowned King.

Capital of Ferelden. Known across Thedas as the birthplace of Andraste. The reality of the city is far less pious: brothels line the dirty streets while the population is often left to take the law into their own hands - if they weren’t the ones already committing the crime, that is. A person’s standing can be gathered by how close they live to Fort Drakon, the building around which the city was built. The interior, where the streets are cobblestone, is home to the elite, while the outer edges are occupied by the lower classes.

Ferelden - Fort Drakon

In 9:00 Maric succeeded at driving the Orlesian occupying force out. He killed the usurper King Meghren in a duel atop Fort Drakon.

A fort with a spire that appears to caress the clouds, Fort Drakon is the tallest and oldest structure within Ferelden’s capital, Denerim. Built as a Tevinter outpost, the collapse of the Imperium let the fortress fall into Fereldan hands. Denerim formed around the building and it now serves as the city’s centerpiece. The final battle between the Hero and the Archdemon in the Fifth Blight took place atop Fort Drakon’s spire. The rooftop also served as the battleground between King Maric and the usurper King Meghren, as they duelled for control of Ferelden.

Ferelden - Soldier’s Peak

In 7:05, Arland was a tyrant. Banns approached Sophia, asking her to intercede. She agreed and attempted a coup against her cousin. Arland banned Wardens from Ferelden and killed Sophia at Soldier’s Peak.

Build decades after the Second Blight as an HQ for Warden forces. Prior to its construction, Wardens had lived in the castles of nobility with spare quarters. The erection of the fortress provided a dedicated environment for Wardens to live and train. However, following a Warden rebellion in which their forces were wiped out, Soldier’s Peak has since fallen into disuse. The Hero journeyed to the fortress and found it to be filled with demons and ghosts of Wardens long dead, repeatedly living out their final battle.

Ferelden - Dragonbone Wastes

In 9:31 the Mother was slain here by the Hero, now the nation’s Warden-Commander. In 9:32 rumors arose of someone resembling Morrigan, a hero of the Fifth Blight, alive in the Wastes. The Hero investigated.

The Dragonbone Wastes of southern Thedas are littered with the bones of long-dead dragons. Drakes and dragonlings stalk the remains, and even high dragons can be encountered, should one be so unfortunate. Centuries ago, the Tevinter Imperium believed the bones of dragons to hold magical properties and built numerous structures - now abandoned - to gather the remains. Following the events of the Fifth Blight, a darkspawn broodmother roosted in the Wastes, birthing an army of grotesque children. She was routed by the Hero.

Kal’Hirol

In -255 Paragon Caridin created the first golem in an effort to fight the darkspawn scourge. The dwarves of Orzammar reclaimed Kal’Hirol thaig in 9:31.

Kal’Hirol was one of the great thaigs of the dwarven kingdom. Monumental strides in dwarven smithing - such as improving golems and researching how to store and handle lyrium - brought immense wealth to the city, though it would later fall to the darkspawn. The Hero journeyed here to destroy a nest of broodmothers and learned about a noble sacrifice made be some of its populace during the darkspawn invasion. Kal’Hirol is eventually cleared of darkspawn and reclaimed by the dwarves in 9:31.

#dragon age #bioware #video games #alistair theirin #cassandra pentaghast #fav warden #my lady paladin #morrigan #queen of my heart #all stuff contained on the wiki and previously told to us in the games books etc #but I just wanted to have all the stuff from that section of the Keep in one place #especially since clicking around the various mini-menus in the map icons gets kind of annoying #ref stuff #cut for length ofc

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