read through alot of theories on this forum, and tried to immerse
myself in its mythology (One of the best and most mysterious I have
experienced in any video game) I wanted to post a theory/theories
myself. Most of the stuff here is not new, chances are that you have
read it elsewhere. I have simply tried to create a ``sum-up`` of my
favorite theories and ideas. I want to give a special thanks to
SirShrek, your posts are very interesting to read. Those of you who
have not read them should really do. There are others who deserve a
special thanks to, but I cannot remember all of the names.
(I
should perhaps have made my post more easy to read)
Theory
(this will contain spoilers)
It
all started with the ancient elves. Now, what if they were the ones
who actually created the Old Gods? Remember, the Dalish religion
today are just scraps of knowledge about their ancient culture. It
may in fact be entirely wrong or gravely misinterpreted. I will
explain why shortly.
What
do we know of immortality based on in-game knowledge. Well, the way
to immortal life seems to be through blood magic. Avernus extended
his lifespan by centuries, but he was not immortal. It is commonly
beleived that blood magic of the ancient world were much more potent
than today. Zathrian, the Dalish Keeper, is seemingly immortal.
Apparently he became so though a ``curse``, an old spell (blood
powered?). He bound the very essence of the Brecilian Forest to the
body of a great wolf, who in turn became known as Whitherfang.
Abominations and possesions are quite ``ordinary`` in Thedas, but
what is interesting is Whitherfangs blood. The humans exposed to it
became cursed, and turned into werewolfs. What if the entire ancient
elven civilazation used a method like this to become immortal, and
the darkspawn are a later consequence of that?
If
we assume that there are in fact 7 Old Gods, then here is a
possibility: 7 elven elders bound powerfull spirits of different
concepts to 7 High Dragons. The ancient elves are believed to have
worshipped ``The Creators`` who may have been powerfull spirits
representing different aspects of nature. I once read a theory where
the 7 Old Gods were compared to 7 elven gods (excluding the elf who
later became a god) by comparing their titles.
If
this was the case then 7 elven elders became immortal by binding
their gods to the most powerfull beings they knew, namely High
Dragons. But how did their entire civilization become immortal?
Lets
turn to The Golden City. There are many theories regarding what this
mysterious object could be, and here are a few I believe fits with
this theory:
The
Golden City is Arlathan, or the reflection of Arlathan. Perhaps the
city existed partly in the Fade and partly in the world (Arcane
Warrior Fade Shroud ability?). Arlathan is said to have been at the
center of the world, so maybe the accumulated consciousness of such a
powerful civilization imprinted a permanent replica of Arlathan at
the center of the Fade. SirShrek suggested in one of his posts that
Arlathan might have been located at the Silent Plains, as they are
the center of Thedas. He also pointed out that they are shaped like a
great depression, perhaps the result of the earth swallowing
Arlathan.
The
Eluvians may lead to The Golden City or Arlathan, a ``clean`` way to travel with
your body into the Fade, as Tamlen saw an underground city in the mirror. He also mentioned a great blackness (Whats
scary is that he claims the blackness SAW him?! More on this later)
Another
theory is that The Golden City was there even before the elves, and
that Arlathan was built to mimic the Fade city after they discovered
the means to enter it. Or perhaps there was always a strong source
(origin of magic) at the center of the Fade, and that The Golden city
came later with the elves?
Whatever
it may be, the elves managed to somehow bind the now created Old Gods
to the Golden City, which somehow in turn spread the ``curse`` to
every elf. This is where it started to get complicated.
The
Old Gods spirits (who may be masculine, as High Dragons are female)
may have been benevolent without the physical body, but this changed.
Perhaps they enjoyed a good hundred years being worshipped as Gods
and experiencing bodily pleasures. But point is: they were as much
dragon as spirit, and in time they could no longer control their own
nature. They may have become malevolent Gods, demanding impossible
requirments from the elves. Action had to be taken, but although the
powerful Elvenhan could have defeated the Old Gods, they did not want
to give up their immortality. Now, in Origins you could free a dragon
that was apparently ``Caged in stone``. What if the elves made a
contract with the dwarves? The Old Gods were to be sealed benath the
earth in a death like sleep, but since they were not truly dead, the
curse would remain. So the elves stayed immortal and the Old Gods
were imprisoned. Perhaps the story of Fen`harel is not one of a
trickster God, but a trickster race: the elves. The Old Gods bodily
form were imprisoned in the earth and the Old Gods Spirits were
trapped in the Fade/Golden City/Beyond. The elves would continue to
worship the Spirits, even though they could no longer be interacted
with.
A
popular theory is that Flemeth is Razikale, the dragon of mystery.
Although it could answer some questions I believe this one to be a little
cheap (but what do I know?). Flemeth seems to be something more, even more mysterious than
Old Gods. Is she an Alien-God. Last survivor of an interdimensional
race? With the whole Lovecraftian theme of Dragon Age I would not be
surprised. Perhaps she is Fen`harel, who gave the elves knowledge of
the arcane arts and helped them with the Old Gods. Is she a being
beyond comprehension, like Cthulhu?
Also:
the modern Dalish may have missinterpreted what they call Vallasin.
Perhaps when the ancient elves came of age, they were infused with
lyrium, producing the markings like the ones Fenris have. This could
over time also make lyrium a natural part of elven blood.
And
now for the Tevinter Imperium:
According
to history, humans arrived at Par Vollen from elsewhere. But what if
this is not true? Perhaps the elves created humans? Why? Well, this
is a dark fantasy, and I for one always thought the story of Arlathan
sounded a little bit too much like a utopia fairy tail. Perhaps the
elves were not perfect, perhaps they were monsters? Or curious about
the mechanisms of life? I will explain.
SirShrek
mentioned something I found to be very intersting. Here is an extract:
Elves
get human traits when they come in contact with humans. Humans get
Darkspawn traits when they come in contact with Darkspawn. This is
too important a fact to ignore. It means that somone/thing in the
Black city produces evolutionary beings from previous models that
have the power of retro-transforming older models....!!
So,
regardless of whether the evles created the Golden City or if they
found it, perhaps they unlocked the mystery of how to create life or
at least manipulate it?
If
the elves build their civilization on blood magic, a slave race would
prove useful for experiments indeed. Or they may simply have created
humans from themsleves by accident and left them out in the nature to
fend for themselves.
But
the humans did not die out. They created their own societies. They
could have been oblivious too their origin or not, I am not sure.
Anyway, some of them would later start living with the elves. Perhaps
some elves felt bad? According to the dalish, the elves began losing
their immortality when they interracted with humans. What if elves
and humans had children with each other even during the time of
Arlathan? The children may have been elves the first generations or
so, being born with the ``curse`` through their elven parent. But in
time, the human gene would become dominant (because they are the
latest creation?).
The
humans were banished from elven territory, and became angry and
jealous as a result.
The
Fall of Arlathan:
Although
the Old Gods were incapable of escaping their physical prison, they
were still able to dream. The trapped spirits wandred the Fade,
dreaming of revenge and freedom. They found their ``saviour`` in the
Tevinter Imperium, presenting themselves as Dragon Gods. It is ironic
that the Tevinter and Elvenhan would fight to promote their pantheon
when they actually worshipped the same Gods. The elves worshipped the
spirit form, and Tevinter the physical dragon form.
The
magisters would eventually locate the underground prisons, but the
secrets to freeing the dragons lied within Arlathan and The Golden
City. The Old Gods offered a ``deal``: The Magisters would destroy
the elven civilization and free them in the process, and in return the Old Gods would provide them with the secrets of mmortality. As a
sign of the covenant the magisters drank the blood of the Old Gods,
creating a permanent telepathic link to their masters.
(In
Origins you have the chance to drink the blood of a High Dragon. This
gives you access to what may be that dragon`s hive mind. The codex
``Dragon Cults`` also suggests that after consuming it you get an
increased desire to kill. Now, what race is known for their extreme
brutality and bloodthirst? More on that later.
All
of this is if we of course assume that a High Dragon is sentient.
(special thanks to lorvincent and Kijin for your interesting posts.)
The
Tevinter Empire attacked Elvenhan, and the elves fled instead of
fighting, fearing further ``contamination``. But Arlathan was a huge
city able to produce everything the elves needed by itself. After
years of siege, the Old Gods grew more impatient, and in an act of
(desperation?) Tevinter made the ground swallow Arlathan, sinking the
city into the earth and probably killing most of the elves inside.
This was not a part of the plan, so the Old Gods demanded that the
magisters opened a gate to The Golden City, hoping the secrets to
their release would be inside. But there was no way to reach it.
Further
specualtion on the Golden/Black City:
Why
can you never reach it even though it is supposedly located in the
Fade. Heres a few:
-The
elves had a really good protection spell on it. (a little cheap if
you ask me)
-The
city represents a perfection we can never have, and therefore lies
out of reach.
-The
city is not located in the Fade but in another demension beyond it.
-Being
half physical, the only way to enter it was through Arlathan.
Anyway,
the magisters could not reach it with their spirits. But what about
bodies?
They
used a great amount of lyrium and slaves to tear the veil and enter
it physically. Whatever happened once they got there, they returned
as the first darkspawn.
The
creation of darkspawn:
I
always found the ``CURSED BY THE MAKER!`` to be a dull explenation.
The Chantry may be partly right about things. The original sin plot
removes some of the mystery surrounding Dragon Age. Or perhaps I will
be left to wander the fade as a lost spirit due to my heaten ways.
But.....darkspawn.
While I believe the cycle of Blights are indeed a result of tainting
the Golden City, I believe the invasion was mereley the catalyst. The
magisters had previously consumed the blood of the Old Gods. They
were also known for their use of lyrium, becoming disfigured as a
result (read it in a codex somewhere). Remember I said that the
spirits of the Old Gods were bound to the Golden City? That also
means that the curse which produced immortality was also bound there.
Perhaps the magisters did not taint the city immediately. Instead,
they explored it. Discovering the old secrets of the elves they tried
to produce immortality by bonding with the trapped spirits. The
magisters over-usage of lyrium perhaps combined with the accumulated
sorrow and hatred from the dying elven civilazation, not to speak of
the ignorant magisters may have mutated the ``curse`` and made it
into the taint. The event made the Golden City black and the
magisters were cast back into Thedas, appearing in the sunken
Arlathan which to this very day remains as the source of the darkspawn.
The Olds Gods spirits were released as well, returning tainted to
their old bodies. The Old Gods lost their telepathic connection to
the magisters, they could no longer whisper to them. They let out a
call, hoping the magisters would answer. But although they could not
hear the newley born darkspawn, the darkspawn could hear the call of
the Old Gods. (the Old Gods are not yet tainted, and technically not
part of the hive mind. Their spirits are however, being mad versions
of the concepts they once represented. Due to the lyrium in the darkspawn, the
call sounded like a beautiful song. Due to the dragon blood the
darkspawn are extremely violent.
When
a High Dragon awakens, it goes on a rampage, destroying and killing
people and cattle alike. When the Old Gods get tainted this is
exactly what they do. They can no longer resist their nature as a
dragon and now the taint has turned this rampage into a world-wide
threat.
The
magisters got their immortality (darkspawn) and the Old Gods their
freedom (Archdemons) but at what price.
Another
theory one of my friends gave me, is that the invasion of the Golden
City gave birth to a Dark-God. You Dawn of War fans out there should
understand what I mean. Remember how Slaanesh was born?
Since
the Fade is technically a representation of the mind, the collective
consciousness of the elves manifested as an entity that now resides
(trapped?) in The Black City (which is a representation of their
fallen Arlathan. Eleni Zinovia talks about a prison that is broken
and how the shadow will consume us all. The spirit within the gem
also speaks of a terrible darkness. (But those ruins could be from
before the invasion of The Golden City, so I dont know. Thats why it
is called a theory.)
I
know there are holes in this borderline fanfic. Where do the
Forgotten and Forbidden ones fit into all of this. What is this about
dwarves eating gods in the primeveal thaig?
Once
again, thank you all for your theories. They really made my mind
spin.
Before
I end this: It seems to be universally accepted that the island in
the Fade surrounded by smaller ones is The Black City. It fits with
where you get the codex entry and all but I am a little confused. In
Awakening, that island is extremely close, and looks like a huge grey
rock. Official concept art of the Fade shows a twisted structure with
the same shape as that island, and its black and covered in
buildings, so I assumed it was meant to be the Black City? Was the
depiction of the city in awakening an accident? Is that island even
The Black City as seen by travelers in the fade?
Modifié par Kogama, 08 juin 2011 - 10:20 .
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