Now this theory of mine is supported by very little and open-to-interpretation evidence, and is by no means supported by anything other than my own thoughts. I do like to believe however, that the Elves of Arlathan did not use Blood magic (it just seems so out of character for them, having encountered and played them in the game) as we know it in modern-day Thedas. Worth of note: “Guess” is the predominant word here.
Hypothesis: The Elves knew of two types of magic, and I’ll call them in this hypothesis “Fade magic” (which is magic granted through the Fade and is known by all save Dwarves, who cannot touch the Fade) and “Old magic” (which is one of the magics worked by the Elves of Arlathan), the former being perhaps the flashier, though ultimately the less powerful. Based on how the Elves can bend ironbark to their will and shape it (is this exclusive to ironbark only, or can they bend more types of wood?) and the magic of the Keepers being considered “different” from the Circle mages, and is more nature oriented. It should be noted however that it would seem that both types of magic stem from the Fade, but of this I cannot be sure and if my conclusion is more correct, then they are not really different but simply on different levels.
My guess is then that the ancient Elves knew how to will something other than the Fade energy to affect reality: this something is the fifth element, which permeates all things: the very energy and essence of the world itself. Originally I was thinking it was perhaps some lifeforce, seeing as they’ve only shown exampled of them bending things with, or once had life inside (roots, ironbark, trees etc) but assuming they have a power of rocks and the like, it could be theorised that the Elves knew how to alter the very essence the world. This fifth element is what I would call “Akasha”, from Sanskrit that means aether (not the vampire queen who sat on her arse for
the better part of five thousand years); the basis of all things.
Examples that, in my opinion, support this:
1. Shaping ironbark: it seems this is perhaps the meanest of their skills in the old days but greatest today, the Dalish craftsmen seem to possess a unique way to shape it rather than carving it or fiddling with knives (Elf mage apprentice Eadric in the Mage origin mentions Elves being more magically talented: perhaps some latent magical talent resides in all the master craftsmen?)
2. Keeper magic: the power over natural things. I’ve never heard of any human or Circle mages performing this, and it certainly doesn’t seem likely that the Tevinter would have imparted magical secrets to their slaves, so it
comes perhaps from some racial skill.
3. The Curse of Zatharian: arguably blood magic, though what the Lady of the Forest said intrigued me most of all: "This is an old forest, mortal, and I am its spirit, its heart. I was not summoned from across the Fade, but pulled from the rocks, the trees and the very soil. I was then bound into the body of the wolf who became Witherfang: not possessing a host like a sylvan or one of the undead, but bound into a single being. But such a process could not have been accomplished without Zathrian's blood...a great deal of his blood. The curse and his life...are intertwined.” No magic I know of in Thedas can do this: hell, I doubt even the thickest volumes in the Circle Towers know anything of the natural spirits of the world, other than those of the Fade. However, I do believe that Zatharian, unknowingly, used this Old magic to pull the spirit and give her a body, but used Blood magic to enforce the spell and seal the deal, and in the process tying his own life to the curse.
Now we arrive at Blood magic: the Forbidden School and founding pillar of the Tevinter Imperium. Historians in Thedas argue that blood magic was either taught by the Old God of Silence, Dumat, or by the Elves of Arlathan and it is the latter which seems more likely to me. My guess is that the Elves of Arlathan saw these humans wielding Fade magic and decided to teach them this other magic, and perhaps this exchange of knowledge is what prompted the construction of the Elven Ruins we see in the Dalish origin story and in the Brecilian Forest: places that combine human and Elven architecture. But the Humans could not fully master it: perhaps they were physically incapable. However, they did master Blood magic which uses blood, the very essence of life (the fleshy type anyway), a lesser and perhaps more primitive form of the Old magic. Still Blood magic was potent and downright devastating, both in its output and the risks for the practitioner, and the Tevinter used it against the Elves who were probably the only ones who could stand up against it, and sunk Arlathan, enslaved her people and went into the hall of their heritage with a mallet and started thumping away.
As conclusion, perhaps a better way to describe this Old magic would be Advanced Blood magic: while the humans and the rest have only mastered it to the point of living, fleshy things, the Elves went further and managed to influence this something on a much deeper level (you know, this part sounds better than all the crap above): touching the base energy in material things.
A penny for your thoughts.
Modifié par Kaldelar, 03 novembre 2011 - 05:02 .
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But yes! You make an excellent point there! I believe Merrill says that all Elves once had the gift of magic, and from that (in part) I theorised that those who excell at crafting might have some latent streak of magic (not enough to become a Keeper though). But yes, your point is good indeed... hm.
. Then again, Dragon Age's elves are way better than those grotesque elves in the Harry Potter films. My ideal elves are beautiful, semi-divine beings from another universe that have a union of both nature and other-worldly technology.
