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[Fallstar]

Wall of text coming up, the important bits end when I start talking about Sandal.

Alright, so we know that Dwarves can't use magic, and that they can't enter the fade. Does an inability to use magic of the normal sort prevent them from using blood magic however? A codex entry states that "Mana is, then, a measurement of one's ability to draw power from the Fade, and it is this power that is expended in magic." Since the Dwarves are incapable of the same connection to the fade that human or elven mages have, they can't be mages, as they cannot have any mana.

All the blood mages we know are also traditional mana using mages. The codex entry for blood magic however states that "The name, of course, refers to the fact that magic of this type uses life, specifically in the form of blood, instead of mana." So blood mages wouldn't actually need to have any mana - any connection to the fade.

So blood mages wouldn't need to be normal mages. But a blood mage would still need to learn blood magic right. How could a dwarf, who cannot enter the fade, find a demon and learn blood magic from it? The answer to that is that the Primeval Thaig is exceptionally old; far older than the first blight. The old god Dumat who "taught the first magister, Archon Thalsian, the powers of blood magic" hadn't been turned into an archdemon yet. He could still "whisper into the minds of men" as he did to the Archon. Could he not then, have whispered also to the dwarves in the Primeval Thaig(s)?

Dwarven wardens still hear the song of the Archdemons; that calling evidently does not require a connection to the fade. Bear in mind that the Primeval Thaig is described as being deeper than any of the 'contemporay' Dwarven thaigs; the Dwarves of that thaig would be closer to the old gods, close enough that they could hear Dumat calling and learn blood magic from him, as Archon Thalsian did.

So that's why I think the dwarves of the primeval thaig were blood mages. Here's what I think them being blood mages helps explain.

The architecture in the Primeval Thaig is described as being vastly different to normal dwarven thaigs. There are no statues of the Paragons, there are temples and idols to unknown gods. It makes the dwarves of the primeval thaig seem fairly devout. Gods is used in the plural here, so it does not look like they were worshipping the Maker. Which other society created vast temples and idols to their gods? The old Tevinter Imperium. The price of the blood magic the Archons learned was that they would worship the Old Gods; perhaps the price the Dwarves had to pay was the same.

Onto the red lyrium. I have two ideas on what happened with the red lyrium; the naturally occuring lyrium veins were changed into the red lyrium over time due to prolonged exposure to blood magic. Alternatively, the dwarves used the lyrium veins in the Primeval Thaigs as part of the temples and idols they built. If you go and look at the Thaig, the lyrium isn't like that in origins where it's just a lump on the ground. It's almost like veins running through the stone. And we know the dwarves used lyrium to make idols out of. Instead of being changed over time, it is possible this lyrium was corrupted instantaneously; at the exact moment the original magisters corrupted Dumat into an Archdemon. Dumat was changed into an Archdemon; idols made in his image and temples devoted to him were likewise corrupted, giving birth to the red lyrium we see in game.

This explains why those who hold the lyrium idol we find in the thaig for prolonged periods of time go mad; they are affected by the taint. Likewise, it explains the song that Bartrand hears; he is hearing the same song the darkspawn hear, the Old Gods calling to him through the idol. And finally it explains how Meredith is able to draw power from the idol when it is fashioned into a sword; she is calling on the power of Dumat like Corypheus does in Legacy, and indeed like we do if we complete the ritual at the altar. It might not be an idol of Dumat, it could be any of the archdemons, but Dumat seems most likely as we are told he was the most powerful of the Old Gods and we have seen that he still has some influence over the world.

It could also explain where the Dwarven idea of returning to the stone when they die comes from. Those who draw too much on the power of the idol - or on any such idol the ancient dwarves made - are turned to stone, like Meredith is at the end of DA2. Whilst the Primeval Thaigs may have been forgotten about by the majority of modern Dwarves, there is at least one report of them which was sealed away by a Dwarven king. So it is possible that the idea of turning to stone upon death got through to the normal thaigs before contact with the Primeval Thaig was lost.
Finally, I want to say something about Sandal . First, he is seemingly capable of magic, freezing an ogre for example (his other exploits can be explained away through his use of enchantments.) Sandal might have discovered how to use blood magic. Although I think that's kind of a stretch, it's a possibility. 

If you click Sandal enough in Hawke's mansion, he comes out with some form of prophecy. "One day the magic will come back. All of it. Everyone will be just like they were. The shadows will part, and the skies will open wide. When he rises, everyone will see." So someone is going to rise, and when this being rises, they will bring back magic. Since the humans and elves are still capable of magic, it seems unlikely this prophecy is referring to them - the elves could have a part in it.

So, what being do we know that is going to rise fairly soon, and who is powerful enough to make the magic come back. The OGB, the child with the soul of the old god Urthemiel. Now I know the OGB is a controversial issue, that's why I'm just tagging this on the end. But if the OGB exists, depending on how much it knows of its former existence as Urthemiel, it is possible that once it is on the surface it will teach the dwarves how to use blood magic again. The elves could also be included in this, as the elves of Arlathan used the "Old ways" Merril speaks of - blood magic. And since all of the elves of Arlathan were capable of using magic, the prophecy about all of the magic returning could be a reference to them as well.

Cookies if you read the whole thing! 

Realised I forgot something; the enigma of kirkwall codex entries state that the veil in Kirkwall is very thin, thanks to the activities of the Tevinter magisters who used so much blood magic. However, the codex entry states that "It is well known that the veil is thin in Kirkwall" and that "the magisters were deliberately thinning it even further". So the veil was already weakened for some reason - perhaps due to the activities of dwarven blood mages in the past.

Modifié par DuskWarden, 24 juin 2012 - 04:37 .

[REAPERS_r_CTHULHU]

I already commented on your blog by the way, but yes, you have some very interesting points that I would love to see play out in a future game. And if I remember correctly, dwarves could have been taught blood magic by the Tevinter Imperium. Remember that out of all the races, dwarves were the only other they respected and did trade with. Probably because the dwarves of old, used blood magic willingly.