Talking Dragon Age: Fate of Elvhenan (Fan Theories)
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- Опубліковано 18 вер 2024
- Welcome back to Talking Dragon Age, the show where I talk about Dragon Age. Yes, the background is Skyrim. I couldn't find good enough place/way to record in Dragon Age. Spent a couple hours trying. Anyway, this episode didn't turn out like I expected, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. I think this episode was the longest it took to make because I was originally going to split it up into multiple ones. It took me a while to even write this in a way that sounded good and linear. Not sure why I'm writing all this...
When the world was young, the gods often walked the earth, and Falon'Din and Dirthamen were no exception. Both were delighted by the many wonders of our earth. They played with the animals, whispered to the trees, and bathed in the lakes and streams. Their days were filled with bliss, and they did not know sorrow.
And then one day, while passing through the forest, Falon'Din and Dirthamen came across an old and sickly deer resting beneath a tree. "Why do you sit so still, little sister?" asked Falon'Din.
"Play with us," said Dirthamen.
"Alas," spoke the deer, "I cannot. I am old, and although I wish to go to my rest, my legs can no longer carry me."
Taking pity on the deer, Falon'Din gathered her up into his arms and carried her to her rest beyond the Veil. Dirthamen tried to follow them, but the shifting grey paths beyond the Veil would not let him. Separated for the first time from Falon'Din, Dirthamen wandered aimlessly 'til he came across two ravens.
"You are lost, and soon you will fade," the raven named Fear said to Dirthamen.
"Your brother has abandoned you. He no longer loves you," said the other, named Deceit.
"I am not lost, and Falon'Din has not abandoned me," replied Dirthamen. He subdued the ravens and bade them carry him to Falon'Din. This they did, for they had been defeated and were now bound to Dirthamen's service.
When Dirthamen found Falon'Din, he found also the deer, who once again was light on her feet, for her spirit was released from her weakened body. Both Falon'Din and Dirthamen rejoiced to see this. Falon'Din vowed that he would remain to carry all the dead to their place Beyond, just as he did the deer. And Dirthamen stayed with him, for the twins cannot bear to be apart.
Skyrim Mods:
College of Winterhold Glory Days: www.nexusmods.c....
Sexy Winterhold College: www.nexusmods.c....
Thank you to FluffyNinjaLlama for the video footage!
- / fluffyni. .
Also Check out Girltriesgames for more Dragon Age Theories / girltrie. .
Thank you to DevilEve on Deviant Art for the Evanuris portrait! devileve.devian...
If you have any suggestions on ways to improve the show or theories I could cover, please leave comments or message me directly.
TAGS: Dragon Age, Inquisition, Dragon Age Inquisition, Bioware, Mass Effect, Fan Theory, Fan theories, Red Lyrium, Lyrium, Hawke, Inquisitor, Commander Shepard, Skyhold, Grey Wardens, Dwarves, Dwarf, Elves, Elf, Qunari, Qun, Kossith, Templar, Leliana, Morrigan, Trevelyan, Lavellan, Cadash, Adaar, Dragons, Arlathan, Elvhenan, Solas, Titans, Evanuris, Fen'Harel
When I first read this entry about Falon'Din and Dirthamen, I thought they are actually the same person. Someone with a split personality.
Kind of late but I actually agree with that.
I was thinking that too!
I really love this series. I find it interesting that Sera knows more about elvhen lore than she showed, and how she actually suggested that the elvhen gods weren't actually gods. I'm not sure if it means anything, but it is interesting.
I strongly recomend ghil dirthalen about "Sera is more" - the idea is that she is acctually that bow lady elf as her tarot card is almost like the valasslin of that god
I never really thought about the idea of Skyhold/Tarasyl'an Tel'as being once part of Arlathan, and while it's intriguing to think about, it does clash with one piece of information. A few people on Reddit opened up the Trespasser DLC files and found an unused line for Solas in his dialogue chain with the Inquisitor (if they were friends and choose to ask him questions). When the Inquisitor says "Thanks for the castle", it leads to a never-used line that says "Enjoy it. It was mine once" or something like that. I can't see Solas having once occupied a castle in Arlathan since he was essentially an enemy of the evanuris, and it's unlikely he occupied it afterwards since he "disappeared" right after creating the Veil. However, it would make sense in the way that this would mean the Fade as we know it in-game, separated as its own dimension, was formed AROUND Arlathan, with the city as its central point. Somewhere I recall hearing that "the only rule in the Fade is that all points are equidistant from the Black City". So if the Black City/Arlathan was the center of the Veil's formation, it would make sense for the Fade to be formed around it. It also would explain how, when fighting Corypheus and seeing chunks of the mountain ground float up, some are patterned with elven mosaics, like some city was set out in the mountains.
It's not unused, it's in the game !
If Solas really did pull the physical city into the Fade from the waking world then that would explain why he had to sleep for almost 1000 years. that feat alone must have taken a great deal from him.
Well, at the same time he was SEPARATING the physical world from the fade by CREATING the veil...the entire feat that he accomplished was him giving the laws of magic in DA a big "F-You! I don't give no shits!"
I've suspected that Arlathan was the Golden/Black City since Origins. For me what gave it away was what Tamlen sees in the Eluvian during Dalish elf origin story. He said something along the line of "A city, under ground. It's black and tainted. Something evil sees me.". For what we knew while Origins was the only game in the series was that Arlathan was sunk into the ground. So when Tamlen said he saw a city that was Black and tainted. It sounded like what the Ancient Magisters saw. Then when he said underground, I realized that from what I knew then that Arlathan was sunk into the ground. So to me, it sounded like a match. We've obviously have learned more since then but what we have learned supports the theory of Black City=Arlathan even more.
I'm with you there, I've been following the same line of logic (no hard evidence like you) that it's Arlathan. Thanks for putting those scattered pieces together for us =)
I honestly think that the Elven gods, the Tevinter gods etc are all the same. If you read all the codex's from the Astrarium's you see that many of the Tevinter legends stem from old elven legends. They have just been renamed As Dorian says " the imperium went to great lengths to expunge elven history. I do think that Andruil brought back the blight and if so.. this may be one of the many reasons that Fen'Harel chose to make the veil. It would also make sense as when he talks to "Blackwall" he wonders if killing of the old gods would stop the blight. It would also explain why Fen'Harel hates the wardens as the wardens goal is to kill the Archdemons whom we found in DAO contain the souls of the old gods. Allthough Fen'Harel did not agree with the way his 'brethren" behaved and deemed them corrupt he could not "kill" them but instead locked them away in the depths. It would make sense that the "sleeping" gods would try to break their prison as it is theorized that the Evanuris were dreamers. They could have influenced the magisters in Tevinter to break them from their prison but instead the magisters brought back the blight from the 'black city' that was contained when Fen'Harel made the veil.
It is also possible that there are only three old Gods alive; apart from Fen'Harel. There have been five blights. Four of the blights left both the Archdemon and the warden dead. The fifth, if you chose to make a deal with Morrigan, left the old god alive in her child. If that path was not taken then that would leave two old gods alive. It could also be that the old gods did not die. Instead the taint of the blight, when the archdemon was killed along with the warden, was removed from the "old god". This then could make it possible for that "god" to take a vessel. As when Flemeth encountered Mythal she took a part of Mythal into her. The "vessel" may or may not be aware they have "a god" in them. Hence why Sera is a very interesting character in this game. Solas' conversations with her elude to the fact that she may be more than what she herself thinks she is. Such as in these comments to her.
"Ar dirthan'as ir elgara, ma'sula e'var vhenan" I'm speaking the language of this place, which had great spirit. Do you know it? It's the heart of our old ways.. Or "We are not so far apart, you and I." and when talking to the inquisitor " Don't concern yourself, vhenan. She is… apart from herself"
Sera is the only character other then Abelas that Solas treats this way. He may "hate" her but it seems he views her as one of his people .
Anyways I could go on and on but yeah... :P
I agree with the theory that Arlathan is the Golden City. Well, I don't have any arguments, it's just sounds really believable. I'll dig more into this and try to find some more clues or leads.
Also: very good video! :D
I too think that the Golden City is in fact Arlathan, and as he said in the video i also believe its true that it was already blighted because of the Evanuris trying to use the Blight as a weapon (i think they became aware of the Blight because of Andruil and her trip into the void, bringing a "plague" back home) against others, as the tevinterians entered the city. Also i think its true that the old gods were not some special gods worshipped by tevinter, but in fact also pieces of the evanuris. We know that Corypheus sended a piece of his essence into a High Dragon, in order to "praise" the old gods. Thats what the Evanuris did. Why were tevinter worshipping them if they were in fact the evanuris? Because it is said that Falon'din for example loved to wage war for more follower (as every other elven god i believe), and so they appeared before the tevinterians just for the reason to gain more worshippers. So now we are at the point where Solas banishes the Evanuris into the golden city (arlathan). There is a codey entry about red lyrium where it says "We are awaken. We endure. We are waiting." (something like that) In fact, i think its true that the Evanuris were able to talk to the tevinter mages via dreams (because they enhanced real dragons with pieces of their essences, "trapped" now beneath the earth, in the mortal world) to seduce them, learn them about the ritual how they can enter the Golden City, in order to set free the Blight upon the mortal world to free them. So now we have 7 magisters entering the black city, seduced by the Evanuris, getting blighted, threw back underground the earth where the "mortal" essences of the evanuris are hiding (not by the maker but by the evanuris himself), but everyone of them "near" one of the hiding dragons all around thedas. Thats why the Architect and Corypheus are still alive and wandering on different positions around the deep roads. Same with the other 5 magisters i guess.
In another video, someone mentioned that the essences of the "old gods" (evanuris) were keys for their Eluvians (as morrigan said every Eluvian needs a key), so freeing all 7 old gods will finally reopen the Eluvians (in which the Evanuris are banished, since Cole said something like they are trapped behind mirrors) and free the Evanuris. And how does it come to get a blight started? In one of the theory video it is stated that the whispers of the well of sorrows says: "Mythal speaks the calling". So everytime mythals speaks the calling, the darkspawn will wander around to free another Dragon, that way it is possible to free another Evanuris.
A masterplan. But i wonder how they will look like when they finally come back. Imagine sleeping for thousands of years in uthenera, while everything around you is already blighted (including your body). Or maybe they were really able to use the Blight as a weapon, untouched from the Blight. But i guess not. Maybe they will look exactly like Corypheus, but fully aware of their beeing, not as confused as Corypheus (like he was in DAII).
That was always the big one. But thats too simple. Too clean.
@@jonbear3300 Very well written.
We wont know exactly how the sunderring affected the Evanuris personally. But since they were locked in the fade they still have and had full access to their magical might.
They might not have been able to pierce the Veil Solas created.
But I doubt they are any less dangerous than before. Perhaps more dangerous depending on what they've been up to for the last few thousand years. Sleeping? Or is there more to it. Solas didnt awaken until a year before the events of Inquisition but he was drained from the Veils creation.
The Evanuris may have been awake for a thousand years or more. Elves are naturally immortal. And they werent locked off
I think the forgotten one are mentionned in Trespasser. We can find the fresco of the death of a titan with a veilfire rune ( let's assume Solas did it because it looks like his work and it sounds like him). He said:
"A new vision appears: elves collapsing caverns, sealing the Deep Roads with stone and magic.
Terror, heart-pounding, ice-cold, as the last of the spells is cast.
A voice whispers: What the Evanuris in their greed could unleash would end us all. Let this place be forgotten. Let no one wake its anger. The People must rise before their false gods destroy them all."
The dalish legends tell that the creators were trapped in the heavens and the forgotten ones in the abyss. Finding this codex entry in the deep roads is probably not a coincidence, and I believe the last of spells is the creation of the Veil.
So even if you don't pay attention to the word "forgotten", this rune describes how something was trapped in the Deep Roads when the Veil was created, sounds like the Forgotten ones to me.
Saddly I don't know much about Dwarves, because I'm tempted to say that the Forgotten ones are Titans, because we already knows that there was a war between the Evanuris and the Forgotten one, and a war between the Evanuris and the titans, so maybe it was the same war. And it would explain why there is mention of them on a painting representing the death of aTitan.
Or maybe they were just weapons, instruments in the war, idk, but I will keep thinking about this...
It's a good theory. I personally don't think the Forgottwn Ones are Titans, but I wouldn't rule out the possibility.
Finally someone who agrees that Arlathan=Golden/Black city, not just some reflection of it in fade.
It's also kinda strange (don't know where i read this,but please correct me if i am wrong) that demons doesn't go near it.
I mostly agree on allot of things in this video,plus you had allot of point in it.
I always thought that Andruil found red lyrium in Void and not Blight,but it makes more sense for it to be Blight.
Also,if Mythal made Andruil tranquil (there is like a circle on Andruil forehead on her mosaic) that could lead in devading "Gods" among themselves, taking side for who is right and who is wrong among them,leading into war,killing Mythal and finally Solas sealing them away? idk just my theory
Red lyrium is the one wich has Blight in it.
Perhaps her memories were stolen through a similar process as the fear demon stole the inquisitor's memories or using scrying crystals, like the ones found in the temple of Dumat?
Excellent ideas! I will investigate :D
James Starrett if u you played to the end of inquisition the base game i think the way she did it was the same way solus took her power and also the same way flemith takes over a new body
Holy crap, The Kingdom! You're right (I think, and I hope so). It makes so much sense! Arlathan is the Golden City (which is in the fade now). Pulled from (or near) Skyhold (it probably floated above it) by Solas, in order to save the world from the Evanuris. Why because they were becoming dangerous, and power-hungry, and full of hubris. SO much so, that they allowed the Blight to infect the land, incl. Arlathan), due to Andruil's outings over there. Andruil brought back SOMETHING from the Void, and started experimenting with it... which generated the first seeds of what became red Lyrium and eventually, the Blight.
Now the next question is: What IS the VOID, and why were the Forgotten Ones sent there? And were these Forgotten Ones responsible for tempting Andruil to go there? It may have been their Master Revenge Plan all along (to basically infect the physical world & the Fade and ruin it slowly through the centuries (They're immortal, s they can wait). Does this align with what you were saying?
Marco Neves Some of it does. I REALLY like what you said about the Blight being the long-term plan of The Forgotten Ones. That's actually actually fantastic idea!
Also, I just recently uploaded a video for the Void :)
I watched it. Very good stuff. If I think of anything else, I'll let you know. I was looking for good DA Lore UA-camrs, and you're one of the best. Know of any others?
Great video. However I don’t think that Ghilan’nain was specifically mentioned in Jaws of Hakkon because she’s important to the story, but because like Andraste she was a mortal raised to godhood. Which is why she appears with Andraste in that shrine left by the Inquisitor.
If Arlathan had the blight then Solas might have torn it out and threw it into the Fade thinking he could defeat the Blight that way: take away the source and the disease dies. But he underestimated how virulent the Blight is and didn't know about the Old Gods becoming Archdemons after infection until he woke up, hence his comment "the Blight isn't something you smugly outsmart." He tried to outsmart it but it kept infecting living creatures while he slept after he tried to beat it.
This was absolutely amazing! I can't believe that I didn't make that connection to Skyhold, ahh!!! I can't wait to see more of your videos and I have subscribed!! :DD
Thank you so much :D That means a lot to me
Maybe the Forgotten Ones were in fact dwarves? Geldauran's claim kind of reminds me of dwarven reverence of paragons.
Also, re: Forbidden Ones, I think they were a rebel sect of elves who cast aside their physical forms to effectively become the first demons.
we ignoring the fact that the background is from skyrim?
Saetiel Medrano Yes we are.
I looked for a while in Dragon Age to find a good background, but couldn't find one. Then I found that in Skyrim and thought it made a nice stage
The Kingdom understandable have a nice day. 🤗
It was driving me nuts! I was like, um, why is there a screen shot from the College of Winterhold on a video of Dragon age? Lol.
4:12 I assume Sera is calling the Inquisitor "Arse" at the end there, but the idea she's calling a Dalish deity that, is hilarious to me.
whats great about this theory and the world of dragon age is that, it is reflective to actual history.
In context that history is continuously muddied. The perspective of historical moments is almost always told from the perspective of the victors (Think about this in context to Tevinter, the Chantry and the Dalish). Its only when people can recognise that very fact and critically analyse time and add context, is the truth ever revealed. That is one of the many things that i admired and was drawn in the lore of dragon age because you can always find new common truths laced within the fabric of the story when you look at it from various perspectives. Such as the perspectives of the Chantry, the Dalish/ Elvhen, the Qunari, The Dwarfs and of course Spirits such as Cole.
What seems to be a common theme between all of these races, is constant, yet subtle repetition. From the stories of Arlathan > Golden/Black City, Mythal > Andraste, Forgotten Ones > Titans. etc.
What is unfortunate (and will be curious to see the reaction when all is revealed in the next dragon age game), is that no one besides the inquisitor, Solas and Mythal has connected the dots before. And even if the inquisitor did or was able to reveal all of this information, would he/she do it? Because from what Solas has planned it seems only a matter of time until it will be necessary if his plans are to be successful. Otherwise i don't think realistically, current Thedas will be able to handle the existence of the fade... more or less leading themselves to 'organically' wipe themselves out from the sheer chaos.
Regardless, this was a very informative video and has supported multiple theories of what i have thought i was alone about about, for a very long time. Thankyou and keep it up! :D
I think they have room for at least two more games, though - we haven't been to par volen, and there are bound to be mysteries there, such as where the qunari came from and who originally inhabited the place.
There is a mural of Dirthamen in his temple. Just the one, where he is standing with his back to the viewer and looking over his shoulder at them. He also appears to be naked though I have no idea why.
Are you sure that's him, though? I think I've seen that elsewhere and I just assumed it's "Generic elf."
I don't think it's generic as there's a similar styled mural of Falon'Din with his staff.
I'm loving everything about this series! Please keep these coming. :)
Okay, I realize that this is a little bit thin but Geldauran's claim almost sounds like a curse or a promise. "Their pride will consume them..." what if the Dalish legends are true and Solas locked away the Forgotten ones in the name of the Evanuris and then realized shortly after that the Evanuris were just as bad and started his rebellion and raised the Veil?
If Geldauran's Claim is legit then I think we can say with some certainty that it was written before the Veil was created since he seems to be referring to the Evanuris as alive and well.
Could the Titans be the Forgotten Ones? What we know is that the Evanruis were at war with the Titans afterward history only remembered the elven gods but next to nothing on the Titans meaning their "Forgotten". That one Titan in Descent wakes because of the Breach.. Why? It seems like its waiting for something but what? " I Forgotten will claim power of my own". Was Andruil hunting the Titans..and thats what Mythal took from her "How to kill a Titan"
Another thing thats bothering me is how do the Grey Wardens have "maps" to the Old God prisons are. Were they built by dwarf or maybe elves? All I can think of is that story in the Temple of Mythal the one where Ghilan'nain and Dirthamen get someone to take the form of a god (maybe a dragon?) and Elgan'nan will jugde them. Was this a future Old God? He then had the dwarfs make prisons underground?
more crazy theories
All New Faded for Her.....
Nice speculation the more you read/lusten to lore theories the more you get the idea that all the races are connected.
+I was there the whole time listen*
Wow, awesome theory. Certainly makes sense by what information is given to us. I honestly reeled back at the idea Arlathan is physically in the fade, nor did I make the connections between Arlathan and Skyhold.
This series is amazing, I can't wait for more!
You should listen to fall of Arlathan by girltriesgames
Definitely will watch, but more importantly.. your icon is a piece of true art.
The icon for my channel or the video thumbnail?
& Girltriesgames games also has some great stuff to say. I also recommend her channel
The Kingdom I love your videos always! And I think she meant my profile picture, lol.
I just watched the video, and honestly.. it blew me away. Thanks for suggesting the video, I love both of your ideas, and they don't seem to conflict at all. I can't wait till DA4 reveals more lore. And ohh right, i was referring to the video thumbnail (and the beginning is pretty badass). :)
Really enjoyed the video. I hope you will make one in the future regarding the blight.
I believe the elven gods in a search for a weapon to strike against the titans were lured to the blight and that's how they almost destroyed the world. And it makes sense the old gods are famous for using promises of power to unleashing the blight.
Really enjoyed that! Hope to see more.
One theory I have is that the Forgotten Ones may in fact be either the Old Gods, or the Evanuris' "public enemy" propaganda list. In the case of the latter, the Old Gods may have become ranked among this list.
Also, regarding Foci. Gods are known to have symbolic weapons, so would it not be unlikely to believe that the Foci are their divine weapons/symbols of their power? For example, Solas had the Orb of Destruction, Andruil would use a bow? In a less complex and basic sense, you could say that Mages have staffs and other magical relics/conduits. Put simply, Foci would be master crafted Conduits tailored by the Evanuris for their individual usage, a Focus to concentrate their power.
And as to the Black City and the Evanuris weaponizing the Blight, isn't it curious that the Blight now targets the Old Gods and Solas seems really panicked about them all dying?
3 things:
1. Regarding Falon'din and Dirthamen, I believe they were allies during the time of Arlathan. Falon'din and Dirthamen were political allies and fought together in their conquests. This brings me to my next point.
2. The story of Falon'din and Dirthamen ends with Falon'din declaring he will help all things cross over to the fade. Dirthamen declares he will help him, as he couldn't bear to be apart from his brother. I believe, if we are to interpret crossing over as dying, that this story is an explanation for why Falon'din went on conquests. His pledge to help all things cross over is just an explanation those under his rule, who treated him like a god, made to explain and justify the horrors of war. Dirthamen helping Falon'din with his pledge is an analogy for him joining Falon'din in his conquests.
When it comes to Elvhen lore, the dalish tales are never entirely reliable. They were made to try and salvage their culture, and to explain things in their world. So the lines about crossing over into the veil were likely constructed to fit the current world. Solas' explanation of how the world was without the veil reveals that the Fade was apart of Thedas. In the Falon'din tale, "crossing over into the fade" probably didn't happen, as without the veil there was nothing to cross over. Instead of Falon'din carrying the deer's soul through a fade portal, it's much more likely that he just killed it and the deer's soul was released. Imagine the soul's of dead people walking through Thedas along with spirits and living things like elves. Everything living together. All of this changed with the creation of the veil.
3. Dirthamen's temple only having statues of Falon'din could be an extension of the idea that one was not referenced without the other. What I mean is this: Falon'din was called by ancient elves "Dirthamen's reflection" and Dirthamen was called "Falon'din's shadow". So what if that extended into their temples? Dirthamen's temples only having statues of Falon'din and vice versa. Perhaps it was a show of alliance?
Okay so you know how the legends say that Fen'Harel sealed the Gods away in the heavens (so maybe the fade? some of the Eluvians lead there "They sleep, masked in a mirror") and the Forgotten Ones in the Void (if the elves, so connected to the fade, are "children of the sky" to the dwarves, and to the elves a dwarf is a "child of the stone" ... what if the void is below the deep roads?) What if the Forgotten ones were sealed in the deep, asleep like the gods, and in the dreaming they sought ways to escape. Maybe they contacted the new powerful empire. Maybe they made thralls of powerful mages and manipulated them to break them out, but it all went wrong and now they corrupt everything. Archdemons anyone? Why ELSE would Mythal take such an interest? Her brethren killed her, and they still live, however asleep. Who else could kill them once and for all than their old enemies, the forgotten ones? What if Dumat is just another name for Geldauran?
VERY interesting...I've been pondering the story of the Dwarves for a few weeks. Been trying to finish a Dwarf playthrough of Inquisition before saying for making a video, though. That is certainly something to consider :D
So if this is true, the titans are in the void of the earth - the caverns we saw during Descent. Hrm
Arlathan was in the north.
- In the dragon age wiki, on elvhenan's page, there is a quote from imshael (source: masked empire) where he says that elvhenam covered most of thedas, from arlathan to ferelden and orlais (in the case what would be ferelden today and orlais). Ferelden and Orlais stand south as well as the skyhold. Soon the city of arlathan was either in the center of thedas, or in the north, after all he claims that the elvhenam covered arlathan until ferelden and orlais, so arlathan could not be in the same place as ferelden and orlais (south). The most logical thing is that it was in the north ...
1- There is a region to the north that is called arlathan forest. More likely, Arlathan was close to a forest bearing his name.
2- Imshael says that elvhenan covered most of thedas. I believe that `` most '' matches more with NORTH --- SOUTH than CENTER --- SOUTH.
About the black city being arlathan ..... my opinions \ theories about this are as follows:
1 - If Arlathan were a city that lay on the ground, it would make no sense at all to uproot an entire city to take the gods to fade. Solas NEVER said they took Arlathan out of the place. He always referred to Arlathan as a lost land. He said he banned the evanuris, nothing more, nothing less.
2- There is a theory (I do not know if it is popular or not) that I do not remember where I read (it may even have been on this spectacular channel) that Arlathan actually floated above the sea. That would make a lot of sense. Considering the ego and personality of the evanuris it makes sense that they put their main city floating above all. At that time the fade and the physical world were one. Several buildings were supported by magic. When the veu was created these constructions were lost or were partially destroyed since the veu cut off the connection with the fade (and it was this connection that supported these constructions). In that case, yes, Arlathan could be partially dragged into the fade (which I believe was the sky at that time) thus forming the black city.
3 - In the codex of the constellation of belenas it is said that the korth god had a throne at the top of the hill, and in that place (which appears to be a kingdom or a castle since in the codex he said that he had a hall and everything) he could see all the points of the earth and the sky. There was a confusion there and korth asked the Lady of the Skies to raise belenas from the earth. It is very probable that this was such a golden city.
4- Solas states that in Arlathan there were palaces floating in the clouds. The city could be one of those palaces that was dragged into the fade. The palace of the evanuris.
i know the article is old but i believe that Falon'Din and Dirthamen are indeed one and the same person with a split personality
Wow, I'm new to your channel and just wanted to say that this is very well thought out! Subscribed!
Great video, love your theory.
''The golden city was blighted before corypheus went there''
Kinda a ''mistake'', if it was already blighted the magisters would already refer to it as a black city, not a golden city. And since the city it's the only thing that never changes, somehow sometime it was golden, or corypheus was lying, or corypheus was tricking the inquisitor. Or maybe the magisters were getting tricked by demons( or something else) to believe that it was a golden city, it is logical if you ally that with the theory that demons taught blood magic to them.
Also, we know some magister dont remember what happened, aka the architect, maybe whom retrieved corypheus' memory shaped it to make corypheus believe that it was already black.
Taquese1999 Though, everyone may have only assumed it was golden because of its place in the world. Even when we see it in game, it's not exactly clear that it's pure black. Or, people wanting to believe it was golden is what made it appear golden, since that's how the Fade works. Not to say Corypheus couldn't be lying or couldn't be mistaken, mind you. I'm just saying that his word is the best we have to go on, and it's not inconceivable that they were mistaken from the beginning
Very good points! Oh man, with the lore we've got so far, the devs could do brilliant things with it, or just ruin it hahah
Maybe the forgotten ones aren't real people, but the forgotten truths of the 'gods' that were discarded over the years by the elves who worshiped the Evanuris. That quote just sounded exactly like Solas' situation: a rebellion against rulers claiming to be gods. After the fall, there must have been people surviving who didn't follow the Evanuris, maybe the 'forgotten ones' are the personification of the truths they told, rejected by the majority and eventually forgotten, personified as evil gods opposed to the Evanuris.
If the forgotten ones had been involved in the war that Solas spoke of then why were the forgotten ones talking about false gods when back then the Evanuris had not even become generals in an army let alone risen to be considered gods? So I definitely think they came after the war and after the Evanuris were considered gods.
there better b an option in DA4 to side with Solas
Don't the Avvar believe Lake Calenhad was created when Koth the Mountain Father hid his mountain palace away somewhere no one could reach. With the Frostbacks and Skyhold so nearby it could make for a good place for Arlathan's location.
Solas guided us to Skyhold. As in "the place that holds the sky".
Then there's Solasan Temple with the glowing keys. Holding demons and magic resist affects tied to the Anchor.
Solas = Pride in Elvan.
Chantry verse-
what Pride had Wrought.
Pride demons are the closed to humans in personality.
Pride is twisted Wisdom.
Solas is Pride, perverted Wisdom.
It sounds to me like Dirthamen the god of secrets mastered lies and deceit.
The deer may be a halla and represents ghilanin.
This kind of all hit me at once so bare with me here.
"One sees the hunter. One flees from it. One hunts them in turn. One outsmarts them all."
The hawk and the halla in this story are ghilinan and falon din. One hunts it in turn is Mythal. Andruil is the hunter. Solas says he outsmarted them all.
All of the characters are present except andruil unless she is who injured the deer. which would be a halla in my theory.
This also dovetails with her origin story about Gil being wounded by a hunter.
I think all these little stories are describing the wars between the elven leaders. Think of the animal symbols as a countries flag.
So maybe this describes what Solas was talking about falon din conquering other people and Mythal stopping him. Andruil going crazy and hunting forgotten ones. Ghilanin maybe?
Dirthamen mastering lies and deceit may be he could be the architect behind killing Mythal. Perhaps Ghilanin was that deer and Dirthamen (represented by a bear) learning to master lies and deceit has something to do with why a bear and a halla are seen hugging madly with glee all over Thedas.
I feel like I should apologize to everyone about this mixup.
I got hungry one day and ordered an "Elvenham" which is the name of my favorite sandwich.
I saw a sign for "Elvenan" and the rest is history.
Really rare, btw. Wouldn't recommend. 2.3 out of 5 stars.
I think your theory is about as close as anyone will get before its all actually revealed.
Little bit of support. If Skyhold was built where Arlathan sat then that would imply it is sitting directly on top of a Titan. Pretty easy access to the lyrium they needed. It would also be a great representation of victory. Placing the crown jewel of the Evanuris on top of the defeated Titan.
Fuck the Elves. Haha
So basically the ancient - that is pre veil- Artlathan is actually an elven Netheril Empire. I wonder who would be actually Karsus here, Solas or the Evanuris?
But, if the Black City is indeed Arlathan (which I agree with), why didn't Corypheus find the Elvhenan when he entered?
And more interestingly, when Alexius sends the Inquisitor into the future, we see that Corypheus did indeed manage to reclaim the 'power' from the Black City. What is that power?
"Those are excellent questions! We'll have to find out, won't we?" :) I have some ideas on that. I'm working on a video about the Blight, so I'll get into some of that then.
+Methanos I don't think that in that future he so much claimed the power of a god as he did succeed tearing down the veil. This horrible worldstate we see is the result not of his godlike power, but of the fade flooding violently back into the world.
Huh. I suppose I always assumed that the Forbidden ones were archdemons, or original corrupted spirits. But I never really thought about it. The elven 'gods' must have made war on all kinds of beings, dammit.
You make me wonder if the Black City actually *is* the Void... it WOULD be a "void", if you're right, a void in the Fade.
Interesting.
this is pretty cool
Love your vids
New theory after viewing ua-cam.com/video/jq3HT3PYEX8/v-deo.html:
Each of the "gods" is reflected in the void and are aspects of an overarching dichotomy: The failure or success of the trickster, the mage, the warrior, etc.
They're all the same as their twin, but dependent on their alignment with the actual consequences of their actions. The gods, in this context, are just archetypes reflected in the panes of good and evil. Durtheman(?) is a good aspect, Valedin(?) is an evil aspect. They're actually the same person cast over the centuries as villain or hero.
sweet nerding
I really like your theories and agree with most of the arguments you gave us.
(also nice voice >з>#)
I'm pretty sure the Blight refers to the event of an Archdemon awakening and the Darkspawn invading the surface while the Taint the force that is the actual corruption. So the Magisters brought back the Taint from the Black city which caused the Blight. So the Taint is what is from the void. Not the Blight.
Andrew Vincent I'm pretty sure Blight is interchangeable, at least after Origins. Off the top of my head, Bianca says red lyrium "has the Blight." Solas/Vivienne also say Corypheus "draws from the Blight."
Awsome vídeo, don't give up on making them and if you do pls let us know so i can add you and discuss these theories even more! :) I am serious!
doesn't solas at one point say that the ancient elves built cities and things that were partly in the fade, and supported by it, so arlathan was probably halfway into the fade before the veil anyway, so sending it all the way would have been much easier than if you wanted to do that to, say, denerim.
There are a few things:
1. I do not see any mistake in the DA wikia. The word foci was correctly used. In a codex about the orb of distruction you can find the following sentence ("Solas explains to the Herald that the Orb is an artifact of elven origin, one of several foci the ancient elves used to harness magical power."), there is also a codex entry: mouth of echoes and it mentions a foci too ("We will build a shrine to the Dragon of Mystery-implant foci into the walls"). The wikia correctly states that "orbs called "foci" were used to channel the power".It says nothing about "gods having orbs called foci". Perhaps I did not understand what mistake you found, but I do not see any.
2. 1:25 I made a theory on my channel about Evanuris' connection to the Spirits (I recommend watching it), without going into details about what my theory is about, I will write that it is possible that Dirhamen is a name of a normal elf and Falon'Din is a name of given to his spirit form. The way like Solas became Fen'Harel when a spirit was bound to a body. Also, assuming Mythal really did "create" a spirit bound Solas, it explains why the twins are considered her "children" - because she created them. Also, it is important to point out that the Veil did not exist at that time and it has been mentioned because this codex has been written by a DALISH keeper. The reason why there was no statue of Dirthamen is because it is a spirit (Falon'Din) that made the elf Dirthamen a quasi god. Not the other way around.
3. 5:10 There is an explanation to why Mythal stole Andruil's knowledge. Andruil was tied to a spirit too and spirits are able to clean themselves out of their memories. Also, anybody already guessed why Solas could walk freely in the abyss, among the Forgotten Ones :) ?
4. 6:50 Geldauran is talking about the subject and the actor meaning the spirit and the body. Like Solas and his spirit self. Or Elgar'Nan ( elven translation : spirit of vengance / vengance's spirit).
Ok, I would write more but I dont wanna make an essay ... Write what you think.
About he foci...The mistake is saying that the orbs were CALLED foci. The codex entries don't say that that was their name, but just what they were. Focuses for magical energy. Foci.
And the spirit connection is definitely possible, and something I had pondered myself. I found more counter-arguments than I did evidence, but I'll watch your video in case you found some stuff I didn't :) Thank you for your comment
+The Kingdom Oh ok. So you mean that it is not sure whether foci were orbs or whether they had other shapes too, right? But is not the orb the only shape of foci we know? Because I do not remind any source saying that Vir'Abelasan was a foci.
There is one thing that I find interesting. When I heard Solas saying that "such thing [such orbs] were "foci" i thought in english it means "a shrine" too (did not know it was plural form of focus). Such translation also suits the fact that spirits draw power from worshippers, belief. devotion to their cause, etc and foci as "shrines" made a perfect sense to me. Especially becasue in the codex "mouth of echoes" foci were a part of the shrine that the Avvar wanted to build for the Old God - Razikale. I think that Biofan is going to have an interview with Patric Weekes soon and that would be a perfect question for an interview. Will try to message him :v
Well... " @GreenBrownBlue1 sorry, interview has already been conducted and is currently being edited :/ " ...
+green.brown.blue Oh, that's too bad. Maybe one of us could Tweet him or something?
The Kingdom You mean Patrick Weekes? You can try. I can reinforce your tweet by adding "Oh yes, I want to know that too" or sth ^^ ! What's ur tweeter? Will follow you.
Great series, I really enjoy them!
Thank you! Comments like that really mean a lot to me :D
My personal opinion is that Dirthamen and Falondin were lovers or at least "significant others" and the ravens were a form of jealousy (demons?) Dirthamen felt toward the "deer" Falondin "saved". But I believe your theory about Arlathan makes sense.
On another note, is there any theory concerning the mural of the the Bear figure holding and maybe killing the elf figure with Halla horns you see in the loft of Skyhold and other places? I notice the bear has seven stars on its snout and is breathing a mist that looks like what happened when Solas "took" Mythal at the end of Inqusition. Does this mean the elves stole from or shared parts of their souls or power with each other? Did the Evanuris symbolized by the bear steal the power of Gillihainnon and the other Evanuris?
makes sense
Probably entirely wrong, but whay if arlathan is the black city before being transported to the fade
Nvm you mentioned it I commented too early lol
Remember when dragon age was about fighting the darkspawn
Solas literally word for word in tresspasser told you that they all had foci, dudemar
I assure you he did not use the word foci
Isn't it pretty much confirmed that the forbidden ones and forgotten ones are the same?
How do you figure?