#varric critical

[anneapocalypse]

Honestly something that really affected my view of Varric (and again, I say this with great love for the character) was playing my Terrible Hawke, Emilia, who ends the game an absolute anti-mage fanatic who believes that magic is a curse and it was a blessing that the Maker called Bethany back to His side before she could fall to demons. She is a Hawke who is mainly diplomatic, well-spoken, respected, and absolutely unhinged in her views on magic. She is the Viscount of Kirkwall, and by the time she comes to the Inquisition she's also taken Chantry vows and become an actual templar (after having practiced the discipline off the books for years). She singlehanded kept Kirkwall under Chantry control after Meredith's death. She slaughtered every mage to a one, even the ones who surrendered.

She's Varric's best friend. And he's just as starry-eyed about her in Inquisition as he is about any other Hawke. I love what a deeply unsettling side of Varric that is to see.

She's the best. She's a hero. She saved his city.

#varric critical #though again i love this about his character #varric at the end of the day is pro-kirkwall far more than he is either pro-mage or pro-templar. that's my read on him #blunders of thedas #dragon age stuff #emilia hawke #world state: noble hearts

[zundely]

Having more dragon age thoughts- this time about my dwarves, and partially about Varric.

So, hot take to lead with- Oghren is actually a much better and more insightful character to criticse dwarven cast system and culture then Varric. The best dwarven companion we ever got is obviously Sigrun but I feel like this one is pretty much self-explanatory, so I feel much more compelled to talk through our two lovely dwarven gentleman.

First thing I want to say is that, while I usually feel need to say that I do not hold anything against Varric as a character, his disdain for dwarven culture is something that bothers me a little. Especially since he is one of 3 dwarven companions we get across whole 3 games, and by far the most popular one. He is actually pretty similar to Sera at times in a way he views his own heretige but the games refuse to address it. Which is a shame because I think his view on the culture he was basically excommunicated from before he was even born should be a bigger deal then some quips about beards and getting antsy any time he steps near a thaig. Like Varric clearly has some very very complicated feelings about all things dwarven- something that no so subtly is a mirror of his very very complicated feelings on his brother who was much more of a 'real dwarf'. It feels like in an attempt to distance himself from what his brother represented Varric also felt a need to distance himself from anything too dwarven. But at the same time we see that it's something he never really let's go off- he is moved by his ancestor's fate in Legacy dlc questline, he keeps up with dwarven politics, he will get a bit miffed at mere mention of him not looking your standard dwarf.

However since dwarven culture doesn't come up half as much as elven one in later games we never really get to do anything with Varric's internalized issues. It's just sort of becomes a running joke that he is "not like other dwarves, that guy he HATES deep roads and he doesn't have a beard". And while that in itself is fine, not all characters have to focus on their relationship with their culture it becomes an issue when Varric is the only companion representative of said culture through 2 out of 3 games. It means the game has much less opportunities to present us with fun lore in an organic fashion because Varric is too busy making sure we know he hates it here. Like why I am more tempted to take Iron Bull to a dwarven ruins the Varric.

Oghren was ultimately a much better point of reference for dwarves because he is a product of this environment and he is surprisingly insightful and self-aware about it. And despite the multitude of ways in which Orzammar failed him he still cares about it. He still takes a lot of pride in his heretige even if all it really brought him is being rejected for becoming the thing it wanted him to be- a killing machine.

And now I am stuck on one hand wishing that there will be SOMETHING done with Varric's not feeling dwarfy enough- on the other however if Varric will be the only dwarven companion in DA:D I am going to scream. I am sorry all the Varric fans, he is either coming back in an advisor style role or I do not want to see him . It sometimes feels like the writers are not comfortable with writing dwarves and they use the 'least dwarfy dwarf' Varric as a get out of jail card and I just want something new.

#varric critical #i think #dragon age #rambles #I am honestly a tad terryfied to post it in case people will take it as an attack on their fav #And it's not... mostly at least #I just miss the edge dwarves had in Origns #da2 #Like a lot of post DA2 Varric I like the potential but the way he is actually writen feels underwhelming #dragon age dwarves

[merrilldidnothingwrong]

So, with that Varric post circling, I’m gonna share some of my own thoughts on him. Yes, he will use people in his stories. But how those people are treated in his stories is based entirely on what he thinks of them and how much he likes them. He likes Hawke, he considers them a friend. So he’s going to give Hawke a good showing in his tales. He likes mocking and taunting Aveline, so he’s going to use her and her guards as part of his books. He knows that she’ll snarl about it, but won’t actually do anything to him for it. It’s why he’s more hesitant with Vivienne: he knows that if he pisses her off, she will do something about it.

And it’s why he treats Anders and Solas so badly, and outright attempts to write Sebastian out of the story entirely.

Varric likes adventures. He likes them because they mean wealth and great stories and funf fights and daring escapades. But he doesn’t like things changing. He wants to always be able to go back to his room at the Hanged Man, sit down with a drink, and spin a tale from his latest adventure. He doesn’t want that life to change, and he doesn’t want to examine things getting bad. He wants to be able to observe exciting events, but he doesn’t want to be involved in them.

Sebastian as a character never leaves the question of morality alone. He’s always poking at it, always pushing it. Sometimes Sebastian’s morals are wrong, sometimes they’re right. But he’s always pushing it. And that push angers Varric because he doesn’t want to admit that things are fucked, because if he did, he would have to hold himself to his standards of being a Good Person and do something about it. And he doesn’t want to.

It’s why he starts out liking Anders, but slowly grows to dislike him more and more: Anders pushes harder and harder for mage rights. Varric’s view of the mage rebellion is more negative than the qunari invasion both because it requires him to acknowledge his biases and address his morals, and because it uproots him from the life he’s happy in.

Varric wants to be able to boil everything down into stories. Specifically, stories that are straightforward, where heroes are heroic and villains are evil, but where none of it truly has any greater meaning. He wants to ignore systemic problems because those mean things changing, they mean that he can’t just sit down for drinks with a templar and a guard over some cards. - Mod Alistair

#dragon age #da2 #varric critical

[kaltacore]

you know what. i think varric's centrism could have served as a way to create a character whose beliefs are heavily influenced by player's choices (and in inquisition it is actually the case at some point, his opinion about recruiting/conscripting the mages/templars depends on who hawke has supported in da2) and it actually could have been an interesting theme, but it has never been explored properly. his centrism has never backfired. his attitude has always been portrayed as "he is everyone's friend" thing, not "he can tolerate injustice and hate crimes to a certain level" thing and it makes me so, so mad, because centrism is not about being on good terms with everyone, it's about turning a blind eye and being a coward

#guys i LOVE varric i swear to god but this really sucks #and every time i think about it or replay da2 it gets worse #and i want to mention that he's only part of the problem #that's bioware and their attempts to make morally grey conflicts by promoting centristic views for you #thought about it because i found out that in disco elysium if your character is a centrist other characters will still consider you a bigot #as they actually should #dragon age #bioware critical #varric critical

[v-arbellanaris]

irt the sera discussion from yesterday I would like to add that she's also dismissive of city elven culture—it just doesn't come up as much bc inquisition does its very best to ignore city elves' existence. the most memorable example for me is a quote from her WOT entry—"stupid tree. didn't go, didn't stay" or something like that. You're definitely right, her whole deal is just internalized racism, it's not strictly prejudice against the dalish like some people claim lol. (I believe anneapocalypse has a meta on this exact subject actually) very frustrating that there's barely a hint of growing out of it though—if it were some other flaw, maybe id be fine with it (I do love when characters get worse.), but given that it's a white writer writing internalized racism. well. but that's a subject that's been meta'd to death by better writers than I.

yeah, i love @anneapocalypse's sera meta, it was very compelling to think about!!! and idk! unfortunately, i DO know people irl who are like this (and don't seem to be getting any better about it). again, on its own, i think there's a lot of value to sera's story, even if it's not my story - the problem comes when we look at specific details in sera's writing and how her writing fits into the overall portrayal of elves - and dalish cultures, as well as city elves which as you've pointed out are almost entirely erased in dai which is truly horrific when you are directly dealing with the aftermath of the slaughter of thousands of elves in WEWH.

from that perspective, coupled with how minimal sera's growth is (especially if you're a lavellan that didn't romance her but had to deal with her internalised racism with no way to call it out as the PC without resorting to ableist insults) (and i use minimal here not to discount that her growth exists but how tiny it is compared to what we have to face in-game in terms of her internalised racism, and how most of her growth is shoved into codex entries or into trespasser and even then it's a couple of throwaway lines, at best)... it starts to feel a lot less like a well-intentioned portrayal of internalised racism, with some hits and misses, with the intention of resolution and self-love being the outcome.

and again, what IS IT with bioware and having their white characters dealing with fantasy racism??? like, i'm sorry, but sera is literally white. there's a black woman IN GAME and no one even ACKNOWLEDGES that racism/colourism towards her exists except for one tiny banter with cole for a SPLIT SECOND... and vivienne, a black woman growing up in a heavily andrastian-influenced circle of magi with chantry values... literally has no character arc... even though she's a black woman supporting incarceration of her own people... but the white elf's got an entire arc about internalised racism???????????????? what is the narrative reasoning behind this???

AND ANOTHER THING! the issues with sera are also an issue present with a lot of the other characters in dai - you discuss slavery once with dorian, where he gets defensive of it, and even as a lavellan romancing him, it never gets brought up again until bloody tevinter nights, which isn't even in-game material. you can't argue with cassandra to disseminate the cure for tranquility or get to change her mind on ANYTHING; you can't argue with cullen about mages; you can't argue with vivienne about the circles (not with actual logical arguments with any kind of nuance, which is a limitation OF THE GAME when they can give vivienne lines of nuance for her arguments for why the circle should exist); you can't argue with varric's centricism, etc, etc. even if you do get to confront them, it's one or two lines that are then mysteriously never touched on again in game. in da:o and da2, they didn't do this well either, but at least they had leliana come up to an elven warden after they correct her to apologise - there's clearly an acknowledgement of where she went wrong, and an intention to be better, etc, which is SUCH a fascinating writing direction. you don't have that in... any of the other games. none of the characters are allowed to be wrong, unless they're pushing for justice or equality or freedom in which case they will do something evil (like slavery or mass murder) to make you doubt the validity of their argument. instead they're representations of a specific stance and you're expected to just accept what they say as fact - which is incredibly ironic for a game that hides most of it's deep lore via conflicting codex entries for a sense of realism when it comes to reporting real life events.

it's incredibly exhausting.

#asks #bioware critical #sera critical #dai critical #dao critical #da2 critical #dorian critical #vivienne critical #cullen critical #cassandra critical #varric critical #fuckin hell we're going all out on this one. this is touching a LOT of different things and meandered off the main topic slightly but #[shakes bioware writing] HIRE MORE PEOPLE OF COLOUR. HIRE SENSITIVITY READERS. HIRE LITERALLY ANYONE OTHER THAN THE SAME 3 WHITE CENTRISTS.

[zaeedsflipflops]

i actually think da2 varric "maybe both sides are wrong" "i have no principles" tethras is an interesting character in a vacuum except that his aggressive centrism goes largely unexamined by the narrative

#i like a shitty dude character who is so self involved anyone outside his Approved besties is an afterthought #thats a solid character #but like. not if the writers think he's right lmao #dai varric on the other hand doesnt even have his da2 sleaze anymore and is just fully the writers mouthpiece so. not interesting #varric critical

[crossdressingdeath]

I hope later varric realizes how much of his foot he ate when he told quiz it's hard to see them as a person, and the only reason he can't apologize and explain himself to quiz is bc they're too busy 🤧

I really can't get over how that line comes from Varric, of all people. Varric whose main role in the story is knowing the previous Important Hero of the age and who talks a lot about how being a hero has taken enough from his best friend. But then, I guess you could say that part of Varric's character is that no matter how much he cares for people a part of him is always looking at them as fodder for his stories, and him seeing Quiz as an icon instead of a person could be part of that? There is sort of a weird feel to him making Hawke and Quiz the protagonists of his heroic tales about the events of DA2 and DAI respectively, especially if you play one or both of them as being an unwilling hero and miserable in their role. Like, "Is he keeping quiet about that because it's personal and the world doesn't deserve to know about it, or because it gets in the way of a good story if the hero openly, explicitly does not want to be there?" is a question that can definitely be asked about Varric and it's something that neither of his appearances thus far have really gotten into. He loves his friends, but his most famous book comes from treating his best friend's life as plot fodder, and there's no evidence that he ever... y'know, asked? Hawke and Quiz before he turned what depending on player choices may have been the worst periods of their lives into bestsellers? (Do they get a cut of the royalties at least?) And some things Varric comes out with are like... as an example, Varric pushing a romanced Bull for details about what Quiz is like in the bedroom is kind of fun especially with how Bull shuts him down immediately, but it's also... y'know, incredibly invasive. There's a lot to get into with a character whose most notable actions mostly involve turning our heroes' lives into books whether they like it or not and I wish Varric's DAI quest was about that instead of his shitty sort of girlfriend.

But yeah, it's really awful that in his friendship cutscene of all places Varric says that he struggles to see Quiz as a person. I mean, DAI is very much a story about Quiz's personhood being stripped from them! They're the Herald of Andraste, they're the Inquisitor, they're a religious figurehead, they're the hero to all the good little Andrastians, they are not allowed to just exist as a person. Especially if you're playing a non-human or a mage, but even non-mage Trevelyan has a huge number of expectations placed on them. Like... in DAO you have to save Ferelden, in DA2 you have to save Kirkwall (again, and again, and again, and- you get the idea), but it's really only in DAI where you are expected to be a specific person, even if you absolutely physically can't be because you are not a human non-mage noble! So Quiz is already in a situation where everything they are as a person is being denied in favour of this image the world has of the perfect Andrastian Inquisitor, and their inner circle are basically the only people who ever treat them as a person in their own right instead of just "the Herald of Andraste" (and even then only sometimes; for every time a member of the inner circle shows concern for Quiz's wellbeing, one of them comes out with something like "you're not allowed to believe Mythal is real because you're the Herald of Andraste"). And now one of said inner circle, one of the people Quiz is closest to in the whole of the Inquisition, is looking them in the eye and telling them he struggles to see them as a person. It's a horrible, horrible thing to think about someone who you claim to care about! It's an even more horrible thing to say! Varric looks someone he supposedly sees as a dear friend in the eye and tells them he forgets that they're a person and absolutely nothing comes of that! Like, that should've had a pretty serious impact on their relationship????? But nope, nothing, Quiz doesn't even respond to it. Like... I get that it's different situations, but it really does remind me of Solas's refusal to recognize the current people of Thedas as people. Except with Solas his failure to recognize others as people is a central part of his character and him being pushed to realize he was wrong via Quiz's friendship/love and being terrified of the fact that if Quiz is real that means everyone is real and bringing down the Veil will cause another apocalypse on top of the one he's trying to undo is one of the most fascinating things about him; with Varric it's just Quiz specifically he doesn't see as "a real person", and it's a throwaway line that the story does nothing with. If nothing else I would've liked to see more done with that parallel.

And yeah, I really would've liked a sequence where Varric realizes just how far he shoved his foot down his throat by telling Quiz, someone whose story revolves heavily on being treated like they're not a person (even if it's in the quote-unquote "positive" way of "You're more than just a person") that despite being one of their closest friends in the organization he also struggles to see them as anything more than just the "Herald of Andraste" and... actually apologizes for it. But it doesn't happen! Very sad.

#dragon age inquisition #varric critical #now THERE'S a tag i never thought i'd use... #asks #anon

[persephoneggsy]

well, made a tier list: dragon age companion edition

naturally, this is all in good fun, i don’t think less of people who like characters that i don’t because i’m a normal person, etc. etc.

#tallis wasn't in the template i used but she's in 'feed to an archdemon' in case anyone is curious #dragon age #in all seriousness i understand why people like the characters in the bottom two rows #they just do nothing for me or actively piss me off in game #so just to be safe #loghain critical #varric critical #anders critical #aveline critical #isabela critical #solas critical

[dragonageconfessions]

CONFESSION:

I'm bewildered by the lacks of criticism towards Varric, considering that he had, quite literally, monetized his best friend's suffering. From incorporating such horrifying events as Leandra's murder into a bestseller, to the general manner in which he just keeps "showing" Hawke off, despite their eventual, self-deprecating protests, it's all very messed up. And as lovely and likable as Varric can be, the publication of his book has truly reached the heights of tone-deaf lack of consideration.

#Dragon Age Confessions #Dragon Age 2 #Varric Critical #CONFESSION

[queen-scribbles]

.

#dragon age streamer i'm watching: genuine question does anyone not like varric? #feel like you should automatically be suspicious of anyone who doesn't #me: :))))))))))))))) #course she doesn't like carver and a)repeatedly forgot she even had sebastian while playing da 2 and b) has called him 'boring' #at least five times in her inquisition run SO #that clearly explains our difference in opinion xD #varric critical #juuuuust to be safe

[queenaeducan]

varric’s motivations for wanting cole to become more human are as rooted in his own experiences and biases as solas’s motivations for wanting cole to become more like a spirit and i wish that was more recognised by the fandom.

varric talks disparagingly about spirits throughout da2 and da:i, he is andrastian and their beliefs deny spirits their personhood. if you choose to make cole more of a spirit he says “he could’ve been a person” and walks off. even though anyone who has made that choice knows cole is still a person, just not in the way varric wanted him to be.

#i do also wish varric's flaws were more recognised in general but that's nothing new #tas talks #varric critical

[transfenris-truther]

Character bingo: Varric

You've uncovered my secret shame: I'm kinda "Meh" on Varric as a character.

He's a writer self insert in a way that I really don't like, especially in Dragon Age Inquisition where the writers seem to be insisting that Varric's centrist bullshit is the correct solution to every problem. Honestly, if Varric we're JUST in 2, my opinion would be way different.

In two, Varric is a liar and a storyteller who you're never really certain you can trust as a narrator. He's funny and cunning and very clearly ride or die for his friends. He doesn't let his beliefs color every conversation because he's trying to keep the peace, but it's clear from how he reacts to Hawke's choices that he DOES have opinions and they're just as valid- not more or less- than any other character.

In Inquisition, his personality had a complete overhaul. He's got diet Cassandra politics. He's not as funny or charming. And the Bianca stuff felt... Off. Like a solution to a puzzle that nobody was asking to be solved.

I'm torn, because I want to like him. I love how ride or die he is for Hawke. We're starved for Dwarf Characters in general. But at the same time, the way the writers use him as a mouthpeice is chafing, I don't find his arc as interesting when he's not the narrator. And I think Dragon Age as a franchise would be better if they let the poor guy rest.

#Ask game #Varric #This isn't really character criticism as much as it is writer criticism #But a lot of people don't want to hear anybody bad mouth their boy #So #Varric critical #(kinda)

[sunflowerdales]

I think the reason I didn't like Varric until DAI is because in DAI, while he still maintained his general annoyingly centrist values, he was forced to actually care and actually stand for something a bit more

Plus he couldn't hide behind this "cool larger than life" persona he'd conjured behind Hawke, and imo came across as kinder and more empathetic

That's not to say he doesn't have his moments of being rude for no reason in DAI or that he was never kind or empathetic in DA2, it's just that there was a shift in what was more prevalent I guess

I just never really vibed with people/characters that act friendly on the surface but are very backhanded and pretentious in this sort of way because it feels very 1) fake af and 2) like the way they seek the Main Friend's Approval TM is to be snide about other friends with them under the guise of "friendly banter"

The main characters that I can think of that he does this with are Sebastian, Carver and Anders

Thankfully in Carver's case, Carver enjoys the back and forth insults at each other because it's like a game to them

But Sebastian and Anders from what I remember both genuinely cared about Varric (my main thoughts of reference are that one comic with Sebastian and Varric that I don't remember the name of, and the fact that Anders gives Varric something very precious and special to him which I think was the only thing he had left from his mother), whereas Varric always seemed to keep them at arms length and quick to call them names

I mean not only that but I was annoyed when I first played that he was forced into the role of "best friend" when i didnt even know the guy but alas

#varric critical #i guess #but again i do like varric but yeah he took a bit longer for me to warm up to

[vakarians-babe]

I know it’s popular to call Varric a spineless centrist mouthpiece with no center of morals bc he doesn’t like Anders and he does like Solas or whatever but…it actually makes a lot of sense? It’s a composed point of view that is neither spineless nor uncentered.

Varric is an imperfect character (shocking) but the reasons he talks about disliking Anders and yet liking Solas are consistent. He doesn’t like Anders bc Anders is rude to the majority of the DA2 party, because Anders runs ahead with revolutionary tactics without consulting constituents of those groups, and—now this is crucial—because by the time Inquisition rolls around, Anders has ALREADY caused intense strife and destruction in the city Varric calls home, the city where Varric becomes viscount. Kirkwall is a place Varric loves deeply. Of course he would be resentful?

Solas, in many ways, represents a redo of Varric’s relationship with Anders. He isn’t all that likable for Varric initially. He’s rude and he doesn’t consult constituents of his actions. Just like Anders! Except Varric enjoys their verbal sparring. He sees some evidence of Solas’s doubt. And there is room still to change Solas’s mind. There’s time. And maybe as Varric grows older and time passes, he sees a chance to change the things he couldn’t change before.

That’s…not inconsistent writing. That’s a tragic cycle.

#varric tethras #anders critical #varric is burdened by gameplay and the fact that da2 requires your Hawke to have a friend #but he’s still consistent idk what to tell you

[v-arbellanaris]

7 & 8

from this ask game - tentatively accepting.

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

i think there's actually a few answers for this one, but i'm gonna start with v/arric lmao. honestly, i was initially neutral/favourable towards him but there's v few people who i trust now w correct v/arric takes. i think most people fsr Need v/arric to be the morally correct friend, instead of the centrist friend w the moral backbone of an overcooked noodle, supporting their morally correct h/awke, which just leads to the most deranged and aggravating takes on him i've ever seen. at this point, i'm sick of him not just In The Media but On My Dashboard.

8. common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about

hmmm... well, i've developed some More Thoughts on s/amson since the last time i rambled abt him, that seem to be contrary, i think, to how fandom as a whole thinks abt him. now, i kinda find it odd when people talk abt s/amson like he's juxtaposed to c/ullen in terms of Goodness (morality). he's not. s/amson is not a good templar - there are only TWO good templars in the entirety of dra/gon age, and they are ali/stair and keran. they are both good templars (morality) because they fucking leave willingly. s/amson was kicked out, sure, but he'll just as easily go back if he gets the opportunity to do so. s/amson is not juxtaposed to c/ullen in terms of Goodness (morality); he's the flipside to c/ullen's Blind Obedience, to c/ullen's Motivations (to join the order, to join the in/quisition). posing s/amson as good, even in k/irkwall, is rly kind of funny to me now, and i think people are wrong about it. keran did more by actively refusing to take part in atrocities against mages than s/amson ever did by smuggling mages out to actual slavers.

#asks #yes i'm allowed to. well. i haven't changed my mind exactly but! my opinions are allowed to grow and develop #we are all constantly changing and evolving etc etc #thanks for the ask! #fandom critical #varric critical

[soloragoldsun]

Dreadwolf had better give us a dwarf romance. I mean, I’d prefer Varric, but if not him, they’d better give us something. And no pulling a Harding on us, okay? I want an actual on-screen, not just implied romance available to multiple races that has kisses and sex and all the goods!

I’ve heard the junk about how having a dwarf romance somehow “fetishizes” short people or whatever, but that’s bullshit. Like, what is the message here? That people who resemble dwarves can’t be portrayed in a good healthy romance? Meanwhile, we can have an eight foot Qunari woman banging Blackwall with no problem. We can romance characters AS dwarves. So why can’t we get a proper dwarf LI?

I’m waiting, Bioware.

#dragon age #dreadwolf #dwarf #romance #varric tethras #bioware critical