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[Kittn]

Edit:  I'm not trying to be depressive, I swear.  It was a slow day at work and I was just kind of mulling over "Why would Solas have left?" in my head, because there's more to it than duty, I think, and...

 

I REALLY hope that it's just because he wants to keep her and his friends safe.  And not something like "Well, but I'm totally a real person and you aren't, so... this can't happen."

 

It's gotten buried by now, but I had another theory about why he left. It is based entirely upon the timing of his departure and his very out of character comment in that Cole banter. It's still something that my brain gnaws at. If you want to see it in the original post: Link

 

But I'll go ahead and repost it, behind a spoiler tag since it's really long.

 

Spoiler

He said he had no choice. When Cole taps into his noggin and asks why he walked away from her, Solas only said, "I had no choice."

 

It strikes me as very odd. Especially with the timing of his departure. Mid-kiss he stops and the fleeting expression on his face is something like a sad puppy being denied the only thing he wanted in the world. Most seem to believe this was a moment of epiphany and that makes a lot of sense, I am ok with that, even if I think whatever epiphany that could have been feels like typical fantasy soap.

 

Don't get me wrong. That stuff is like crack to me. His epiphany, if that is what it was, was likely related one of the following, no? "I am immortal, she is mortal. I can't deal with her dying on me. If only she were my people.. in another world I could love her without fear " or "She'll know who I am once I have that orb. She will hate me for it. I will be the legendary villain from her Dalish children stories. Better she hate me already and get it over with."  I'll happily toy with the thought of endgame/DLC/DA4 Chesha chasing him down to prove how wrong he is. (O pretty please,  give us this option, powers that be.)

 

But what if it wasn't an epiphany that twisted his face in sorrow? What if it was a sudden complusion. "I can't do this." Or more like something in his mind telling him with great conviction, "You can't do this."

 

He tells Cole, "I had no choice." Based on all we know, when has he ever failed to understand choice and consequence? That just seems like an uncharacteristic answer from someone so wise. My mind can't leave it alone. Am I crazy?

 

Don't answer that.

 

What if, like Mythal-bound Lavellan, he is also bound. The way he passionately argues at any inquisitor who drinks from the well speaks of possible experience to me.  Fen'harel, but bound by the will of another. Likely also to Mythal. Just because he is peer to these powerful, ancient beings, doesn't make him immune to their handiwork. Could all of this be traced back to a loyal dog dancing on his master's leash? He thinks locking the ancients away was his own idea and it probably did resonate with his feelings of ancient elven society, but what if it was actually a compulsion from the murdered and (at that time) vengeful spirit of Mythal. He tells Mythal-bound Lavellan that she will mistake Mythal's will for her own, and do things at her bidding without even knowing it. Is it because he's been dealing with the same thing for who knows how long, and has learned to recognize it?

 

Free to follow his own heart, until he isn't. If this is the case, he knows his predicament. "It would be kinder in the end." 

 

It may also explain why Cole says Lavellan changes everything. But also can't. She changes Fen'harel's mind about modern elves. She changed his heart and the world outside the Fade is not lonely anymore. She changed even the Fade for him, when they met in a dream. But she can't break the geas. She can't change what he is/will be compelled to do.

 

I asked for help debunking this. It was pointed out that why would whoever was controlling him allow the relationship to continue to this point, and then stop it. I've thought about this since then and have come up with an answer. Because it's a geas and not total mind control, Solas is able to do as he wishes until he is compelled to do otherwise. Maybe that is the moment he remembered the tug of that leash, so close to this final battle, and knew what it would mean. I am thinking that it might have meant even the sacrifice of the Inquisitor, and perhaps by pushing her away then, he was giving her the best chance to fight him in the end if it came to that. Coryphelush said that the only way to remove the power of the mark was his/her death, no?

 

Anyways. Whatever the truth is, I'm sure a great deal of it is selfishness on his part. He admits it to be so, a number of times, but hearts will do what they will. Just you try to deny them. Even a demi-god would struggle with that.

[Tielis]

It's gotten buried by now, but I had another theory about why he left. It is based entirely upon the timing of his departure and his very out of character comment in that Cole banter. It's still something that my brain gnaws at. If you want to see it in the original post: Link

 

But I'll go ahead and repost it, behind a spoiler tag since it's really long.

 

Spoiler

He said he had no choice. When Cole taps into his noggin and asks why he walked away from her, Solas's only said, "I had no choice."

 

It strikes me as very odd. Especially with the timing of his departure. Mid-kiss he stops and the fleeting expression on his face is something like a sad puppy being denied the only thing he wanted in the world. Most seem to believe this was a moment of epiphany and that makes a lot of sense, I am ok with that, even if I think whatever epiphany that could have been feels like typical fantasy soap.

 

Don't get me wrong. That stuff is like crack to me. His epiphany, if that is what it was, was likely related one of the following, no? "I am immortal, she is mortal. I can't deal with her dying on me. If only she were my people.. in another world I could love her without fear " or "She'll know who I am once I have that orb. She will hate me for it. I will be the legendary villain from her Dalish children stories. Better she hate me already and get it over with."  I'll happily toy with the thought of endgame/DLC/DA4 Chesha chasing him down to prove how wrong he is. (O pretty please,  give us this option, powers that be.)

 

But what if it wasn't an epiphany that twisted his face in sorrow? What if it was a sudden complusion. "I can't do this." Or more like something in his mind telling him with great conviction, "You can't do this."

 

He tells Cole, "I had no choice." Based on all we know, when has he ever failed to understand choice and consequence? That just seems like an uncharacteristic answer from someone so wise. My mind can't leave it alone. Am I crazy?

 

Don't answer that.

 

What if, like Mythal-bound Lavellan, he is also bound. The way he passionately argues at any inquisitor who drinks from the well speaks of possible experience to me.  Fen'harel, but bound by the will of another. Likely also to Mythal. Just because he is peer to these powerful, ancient beings, doesn't make him immune to their handiwork. Could all of this be traced back to a loyal dog dancing on his master's leash? He thinks locking the ancients away was his own idea and it probably did resonate with his feelings of ancient elven society, but what if it was actually a compulsion from the murdered and (at that time) vengeful spirit of Mythal. He tells Mythal-bound Lavellan that she will mistake Mythal's will for her own, and do things at her bidding without even knowing it. Is it because he's been dealing with the same thing for who knows how long, and has learned to recognize it?

 

Free to follow his own heart, until he isn't. If this is the case, he knows his predicament. "It would be kinder in the end." 

 

It may also explain why Cole says Lavellan changes everything. But also can't. She changes Fen'harel's mind about modern elves. She changed his heart and the world outside the Fade is not lonely anymore. She changed even the Fade for him, when they met in a dream. But she can't break the geas. She can't change what he is/will be compelled to do.

 

I asked for help debunking this. It was pointed out that why would whoever was controlling him allow the relationship to continue to this point, and then stop it. I've thought about this since then and have come up with an answer. Because it's a geas and not total mind control, Solas is able to do as he wishes until he is compelled to do otherwise. Maybe that is the moment he remembered the tug of that leash, so close to this final battle, and knew what it would mean. I am thinking that it might have meant even the sacrifice of the Inquisitor, and perhaps by pushing her away then, he was giving her the best chance to fight him in the end if it came to that. Coryphelush said that the only way to remove the power of the mark was his/her death, no?

 

Anyways. Whatever the truth is, I'm sure a great deal of it is selfishness on his part. He admits it to be so, a number of times, but hearts will do what they will. Just you try to deny them. Even a demi-god would struggle with that.

 

Playing in Haven again, I can't get over how odd he looks when he says, "I will stay."  He looks off into the distance like he's hearing somebody commanding him.  Is the spirit of Fen'harel commanding him, or is it someone/something else?

[Eivuwan]

Maybe he wanted to make a good first impression? Honestly I think the weight of the situation started weighing down on him as events progressed. Kind of like when you have a huge weighty exam to do in a week. You'll be cheerful at first since the exam is a few days away, but as it draws closer you become progressively more not cheerful. Defeating Cory and getting the Orb were his version of an approaching exam, maybe?

 

That could be it, but he seems to be the only one who went from cheerful to unhappy regardless of what you do in the game. He could be purposefully trying to make a good impression and slowly revealed his normal self over time. Or maybe he became more and more conflicted about his plans as he got to know the inquisitor and the inquisition. Maybe I'm reading too much into it.

[zambixi]

Is it just me or was Solas the most happy and cheerful when you first meet him in the prologue? He seems to have become more solemn for the rest of the game.

 

Well that was before attempt to close the tear #1 right? Then you try it out (after vanquishing a Pride demon -- irony), it doesn't work and he realizes "s*** this isn't going to be a quick-fix I really messed things up." He has to start planning and guarding himself since he knows he's going to be around a lot longer than he anticipated. I think beginning-Solas (i.e. Chuckles) is more in line with old/Trickster Solas, and what we see afterwards is a more guarded version since he has a purpose and his identity to protect.

[Sifr]

Is it just me or was Solas the most happy and cheerful when you first meet him in the prologue? He seems to have become more solemn for the rest of the game.

 

As he said in the Fade, he honestly didn't expect you to survive, nor have the degree of control over the Mark as you demonstrated in closing the Rifts?

 

While he could be lying, I don't think he is and that his cheerful mood in the prologue is because he's found someone who has and can continue to screw up Corypheus' plans entirely, fixing the major screwup he caused by giving him the Orb.

[madrar]

Was doing some thinking today on the Solas/Lavellan relationship. Specifically about how eager he was to start it (that Fade kiss!), and about what the dialogue between he and Cole might mean.

[snip snip]

Aaaagh, comfort me please Solas thread, tell me something positive, tell me I can't be right, think of any theory you please but tell me I can't possibly be right...

I hate spitballing theories when they're completely raw and untested in my head, but there's a related concept that's been bothering me for a bit as well. Like you, I initially assumed Lavellan becoming "real" to Solas was metaphorical- a tipping point in terms of his respect for her as a worthy (ugh, for lack of a better term) inheritor of the ancient legacy of his People.

That's not an entirely satisfying explanation though, so let's play devils advocate with this crackpot alternative:

It's been suggested that Solas, and other original pre-veil entities like him, are distinct from post-veil races and spirits by being fully present in both reality and the Fade. Essentially, they are more "real", more complete, than beings who are restricted to either side.

Consider Cole now, and his limited but uncanny access to the world beyond the game world. Not in-game reality, not the Fade. Our world. Again, his scope seems limited, but the movie references make it hard to deny, and Solas shares this ability. There is a second veil in Dragon Age, one formed by your computer screen, and the game seems to grant entities like Cole and Solas some measure of awareness of this True Beyond, (where Thedas' real creator gods do indeed exist in the form of Bioware writers) as well as a limited ability to access knowledge beyond it.

Now think about the player in this context. Think about you, and how you fit into the world of Thedas. You are, in essence, a guiding spirit from the Beyond, inhabiting the mortal shell of Lavellan. She has her own backstory, her own life in the context of the game world in which she lives, but after the initial scene you are the spirit that guides every action, every moral choice she makes.

And what sparked that catalyst, in game? The events at the temple of Sacred Ashes and the placement of the anchor.

In this context, Solas' interactions with the Inquisitor become... layered. Again, in a limited way- but it's not as much of a stretch as it feels like it ought to be if it all weren't in some way intended. In questioning what effect the anchor has had on the Inquisitor, he's (perhaps unwittingly) serving as a conduit to the voice of the actual Makers.

"Has it changed you? Your mind, your morals, your... spirit?"

Everything you've experienced: the characters you've met, the choices you've had to weigh. On the side of the True Veil, our side, where real change is possible- has being anchored to this world affected you? Has it reinforced your sense of compassion? Your commitment to justice, to helping the helpless? Has it challenged or confirmed your views on gender and sexuality?

I'm probably reading far too deeply into this, but if the nudges are intended, then two things:

1. It would be a pretty amusing mirror of spirits "earning his wings" and being granted access to the Maker if the first player to take a very particular, predetermined path in game resulted in an invitation to meet the writing team . =w= heh.

2. Tell the tiny part of you that is Solas that he succeeded, Weekes. It worked. I moved from SanFran to Atlanta last year, and the initial culture shock of dealing with the Deep South pretty much shut me down entirely on the volunteering front. There was just too much wrong here. It was too big to be fixable, too bone-deep to make the attempt feel like anything but utter futility. The ideological concessions that had to be made to have a chance at turning the state purple made even the prospect of success a hollow victory.

DA:I kicked me in the pants with its "Nice work saving Thedas, too bad it's just a Fade dream" subtext. This is the side of the veil where things can actually change. Time to get up, dust myself off, and keep trying.

Banal nadas indeed, you crazy Canadians. ^w^

[SamanthaJ]

That could be it, but he seems to be the only one who went from cheerful to unhappy regardless of what you do in the game. He could be purposefully trying to make a good impression and slowly revealed his normal self over time. Or maybe he became more and more conflicted about his plans as he got to know the inquisitor and the inquisition. Maybe I'm reading too much into it.

No, I think you could be right about his plans being more complicated after getting to know everyone. As for others going from cheerful to unhappy, their weight probably isn't as large as Solas's. He had a hand in causing the Breach when he gave his orb to Coryphemus and one of his goals is to get it back. Varric also becomes progressively unhappy, though. At least he gets better.

[RynJ]

Well that was before attempt to close the tear #1 right? Then you try it out (after vanquishing a Pride demon -- irony), it doesn't work and he realizes "s*** this isn't going to be a quick-fix I really messed things up." He has to start planning and guarding himself since he knows he's going to be around a lot longer than he anticipated. I think beginning-Solas (i.e. Chuckles) is more in line with old/Trickster Solas, and what we see afterwards is a more guarded version since he has a purpose and his identity to protect.

 

Based on the evolution of his face when you fail to close the rift the first time, this is what I assumed too. Plus, considering all the death and destruction you see on your journey is basically his fault, it probably started to really weigh on him over the course of the game. Add a layer from his romance that he knows is doomed and you get one unhappy wolf by the end of the game.

[Eivuwan]

Based on the evolution of his face when you fail to close the rift the first time, this is what I assumed too. Plus, considering all the death and destruction you see on your journey is basically his fault, it probably started to really weigh on him over the course of the game. Add a layer from his romance that he knows is doomed and you get one unhappy wolf by the end of the game.

 

Yeah, serious Solas is hot, but I also wish we got to see more of the "Chuckles" Solas. I don't even know why Varric calls him Chuckles when he rarely chuckles.

[herkles]

Not sure if this is posted, but here is the romance image for solas that will be on the keep

[SamanthaJ]

Yeah, serious Solas is hot, but I also wish we got to see more of the "Chuckles" Solas. I don't even know why Varric calls him Chuckles when he rarely chuckles.

He might be calling Solas "Chuckles" in the same way that someone would call a really tall and wide person "Tiny".

[Aviena]

Yeah, serious Solas is hot, but I also wish we got to see more of the "Chuckles" Solas. I don't even know why Varric calls him Chuckles when he rarely chuckles.

 

Irony?

[zambixi]

I think its a loaded word for a simple meaning. Solas is an ancient god who has a pretty concrete idea of who "the people" are and his love for Lavellan takes someone out of that group and she becomes "real." Meaning, she has thoughts, motivations, individuality that contrasts with his previous ideas. She is now outside of just the group. This is trouble for him when he thinks about what he must do. He isn't thinking individually, he is thinking long term about the group. Sure, some people might be hurt, annoyed and find some of it generally unpleasant but it is for the greater good. Then crap, he falls in love and starts thinking that he might hurt this person with what he doing and could influence him to change his plans. So at this point he is torn between his heart and his plans for the greater good and ultimately decides the group whether rightly or wrongly.

 

I really can't wait to figure out what his plans are....

 

Team Optimism here! I don't really like the idea of Solas thinking anyone other than the People are not "real" in the sense that they are expendable. I'm not saying he's not occasionally a racist jerk, but that there's a difference between racism and writing whole groups of people off as non-factors. He cares when you help people. He encourages you to be fair. He hates organizations that lord over others. The idea of him sacrificing a large group of people for a small group seems OOC, even if he views that group as "better".

 

I don't know what sort of mental gymnastics he had to do to draw the conclusion, but I do think he believes that his plan will help everyone, not just The People.

[Eivuwan]

He might be calling Solas "Chuckles" in the same way that someone would call a really tall and wide person "Tiny".

 

Oh I c lol. I didn't think of that because Solas does laugh and enjoy certain types of humor sometimes. So he's not THAT serious.

[Sable Rhapsody]

Irony?

 

Irony, and darker character evolution on Varric's part.  Pretty much the only nickname that he gives that doesn't have some bite to it is "Kid" for Cole.  Everyone else, the nicknames are more sardonic than the playful nicknames from DA2.

[Aviena]

He might be calling Solas "Chuckles" in the same way that someone would call a really tall and wide person "Tiny".

 

I think Varric calls Bull "Tiny", doesn't he? 

[RynJ]

Yeah, serious Solas is hot, but I also wish we got to see more of the "Chuckles" Solas. I don't even know why Varric calls him Chuckles when he rarely chuckles.

 

I think that's the point. It's a sarcastic nickname. 

 

Too bad he doesn't chuckle more, he has such a nice laugh!

[Lady Lionheart]

Spoiler

I think the lyrics relate a bit with Solavellan, although that could be the sleep deprivation talking.  https://www.youtube....h?v=WTxG81thoDw I feel like some kind of bad fart that just keeps wafting back to share songs.  

[Brass_Buckles]

So I just realized that Andruil's Abyss armor that made her go insane sounded an awfully lot like someone else's armor, in DA:I.  Samson's red lyrium armor.  Could Corypheus have somehow known about Andruil's armor, learned about it somewhere, and reproduced it?  Would he have already known about red lyrium?

 

And here's the catch, too... if that's so, then we already know red lyrium is blighted lyrium.  So it means that whatever the Abyss is, it is also likely the source of red lyrium and the Blight.

 

Solas having apparently spent some quality time with Andruil (whether he wanted or not), probably has a lot more knowledge of the Blight than he shared.  And I think he should have shared that knowledge, because it is probably the most important knowledge anyone in Thedas could have.

[zambixi]

Spoiler

I hate spitballing theories when they're completely raw and untested in my head, but there's a related concept that's been bothering me for a bit as well. Like you, I initially assumed Lavellan becoming "real" to Solas was metaphorical- a tipping point in terms of his respect for her as a worthy (ugh, for lack of a better term) inheritor of ancient legacy of his People.

That's not an entirely satisfying explanation though, so let's play devils advocate with this crackpot alternative:

It's been suggested that Solas, and other original pre-veil entities like him, are distinct from post-veil races and spirits by being fully present in both reality and the Fade. Essentially, they are more "real", more complete, than beings who are restricted to either side.

Consider Cole now, and his limited but uncanny access to the world beyond the game world. Not in-game reality, not the Fade. Our world. Again, his scope seems limited, but the movie references make it hard to deny, and Solas shares this ability. There is a second veil in Dragon Age, one formed by your computer screen, and the game seems to grant entities like Cole and Solas some measure of awareness of this True Beyond, (where Thedas' real creator gods do indeed exist in the form of Bioware writers) as well as a limited ability to access knowledge beyond it.

Now think about the player in this context. Think about you, and how you fit into the world of Thedas. You are, in essence, a guiding spirit from the Beyond, inhabiting the mortal shell of Lavellan. She has her own backstory, her own life in the context of the game world in which she lives, but after the initial scene you are the spirit that guides every action, every moral choice she makes.

And what sparked that catalyst, in game? The events at the temple of Sacred Ashes and the placement of the anchor.

In this context, Solas' interactions with the Inquisitor become... layered. Again, in a limited way, but it's not as much of a stretch as it feels like it ought to be if it all weren't -in some way- intended. In questioning what effect the anchor has had on the Inquisitor, he's (perhaps unwittingly) serving as a conduit to the voice of the actual Makers.

"Has it changed you? Your mind, your morals, your... spirit?"

Everything you've experienced: the characters you've met, the choices you've had to weigh. On the side of the True Veil, our side, where real change is possible- has being anchored to this world effected you? Has it reinforced your sense of compassion? Your commitment to justice, to helping the helpless? Has it challenged or confirmed your views on gender and sexuality?

I'm probably reading far too deeply into this, but if the nudges are intended, then two things:

1. It would be a pretty amusing mirror of spirits "earning his wings" and being granted access to the Maker if the first player to take a very particular, predetermined path in game resulted in an invitation to meet the writing team . =w= heh.

2. Tell the tiny part of you that is Solas that he succeeded, Weekes. It worked. I moved from SanFran to Atlanta last year, and the initial culture shock of dealing with the Deep South pretty much shut me down entirely on the volunteering front. There was just too much wrong here. It was too big to be fixable, too bone-deep to make the attempt feel like anything but utter futility. The ideological concessions that had to be made to have a chance at turning the state purple made even the prospect of success a hollow victory.

DA:I kicked me in the pants with its "Nice work saving Thedas, too bad it's just a Fade dream" subtext. This is the side of the veil where things can actually change. Time to get up, dust myself off, and keep trying.

Banal nadas indeed, you crazy Canadians. ^w^

 

I always love reading your theories. I'm never sure how much of it is reading-too-deeply and how much of it is uncanny insight, but it's always enjoyable to catch a glimpse of your perspective!

 

Re: #2, keep up the good fight my friend, no matter what your cause is. Volunteering or trying to create change can be brutal but if no one tries you know it won't happen

 

Spoiler

Not sure if this is posted, but here is the romance image for solas that will be on the keep

 

Ugh even this makes him look sexy. Look at those little brow furrows. Look at his scrunched up nose. Solas you're too cute STAHP.

 

Spoiler

True enough.  I think his point was basically that he didn't like the idea of them being worshiped.  Which is... interesting, considering how he reacts to the Maker and Andraste initially, until he concedes to Cassandra that maybe there is a Maker--whom he still won't worship.  I can't help thinking this is a holdover from believing himself a god; perhaps on some level he still believes it.

 

Effectively, I think his dialogue is meant to make us, the players, think later on:  Okay, we know that the elven pantheon actually exist (or they did at some point), but were they really gods?

 

The answer to that question is left up to the individual players, just as the question of whether there is a Maker and what the Maker's nature might be (cruel or kind, did he turn his back on his creation or does he still watch as Leliana once believed?).

 

Hm.  So, is Solas/Fen'harel a god, or something else?  What makes a being divine?  Power?  Personality?  Some combination of the two?  Something else entirely, that is possibly indefinable?  There are certainly many pantheons of imperfect gods in real-world history.

 

For Uth'shiral's purposes, I think basically, yes, Solas is effectively a deity.   His kindness toward others, his gentle guidance, his knowledge, his ability in the Fade... he doesn't need the orb to have great influence.  He wouldn't even need immortality.  He felt the world changed with her--but he did the same for her.  And yet, he is a person, an individual whom she deeply cares for, regardless of whatever loftier purpose or essence of being he might have.  I hope they can reconnect.

 

For my other Lavellan, Numinera... perhaps not so much.  She's even more fiercely Dalish than Uth'shiral, and yet I think seeing the Dread Wolf being so... human... would make her see him as less a walking miracle.  He might prefer this, he might not.  It wouldn't matter to her.

 

For me personally... I think that the answer is ambiguous.  I mean I obviously don't believe in him in reality, but I'm talking in terms of what the devs were doing with the elven pantheon.  Is he godly?  Yeah, kind of.  Is he a god?  Well, maybe... I don't know.  He seems pretty... human, to me.  Well, elven... you know what I mean.

 

I think his reluctance to believe in the Maker not because he thinks of himself as divine, but because he has seen what others consider divine and is thus reluctant to believe in the judgement of others. People say Falon'Din is a god, but Solas knows Falon'Din and knows that he is not godly in the True sense and thus believes that people are incapable of determining what is and is not Truth or Divine. That he concedes that the Maker could be real at all is evidence of how much he respects Cassandra by the end.

 

Anyway...I hope they leave the Elven pantheon ambiguous, as I find it really fascinating. I don't know that Solas has shown enough power for Arlaise Lavellan to consider him a God. From what he's said, if he reveals himself to be Fen'Harel it's pretty likely she will change her thoughts about the creators to match her perception of Solas rather than vice versa. Things become a little less clear with Mythal though. It's hard not to meta-game because we've known Flemeth for so long, but it's not nearly as difficult for me to see Flemythal as a god. She's mysterious, she seems to have powers that go beyond that of normal people, and she seems to have Big Plans. Solas could grow into that role but right now he's too...grounded. Even what he does in the stories...Andruil makes a freakin' spear out of light and the most Fen'Harel does is shoot an arrow that takes a really long time to fall.

[kalasaurus]

I think that's the point. It's a sarcastic nickname. 

 

Too bad he doesn't chuckle more, he has such a nice laugh!

 

Solas even admits to being grim and fatalistic XD

 

At least he has a sense of humor about it, though.  Heh.

[Sable Rhapsody]

Team Optimism here! I don't really like the idea of Solas thinking anyone other than the People are not "real" in the sense that they are expendable. I'm not saying he's not occasionally a racist jerk, but that there's a difference between racism and writing whole groups of people off as non-factors. He cares when you help people. He encourages you to be fair. He hates organizations that lord over others. The idea of him sacrificing a large group of people for a small group seems OOC, even if he views that group as "better".

 

I don't know what sort of mental gymnastics he had to do to draw the conclusion, but I do think he believes that his plan will help everyone, not just The People.

 

Solas is a dangerous, secretive, prejudiced, and occasionally blindingly selfish man.  He's also kind, compassionate, gentle, and dedicated to knowledge and truth.  And he cares so much, to the point of causing himself pain.  I think it's very unlikely that he'll either be a good guy or a bad guy when we eventually run into him again.  Just because he thinks his plan will help everyone doesn't mean it actually will.  We talked a while ago about how he's a bit of an aristocrat; for someone who takes an interest in the "little people," he only has a vague idea of what it's like to be a mundane in Thedas.  

 

When he talks about Lavellan being "real," I think he might mean it in a more philosophical sense.  After all, he is capable of developing a deep respect for a non-Lavellan Inquisitor who connects with him, and his dislike of Sera doesn't come from her quickened lifespan or lack of magic, but rather her attitude.  Longer lifespans would lead to a very different way of looking at the world; maybe he laments what he perceives as a lack of wisdom or perspective from the modern elves and shorter-lived races.  

[Brass_Buckles]

I always love reading your theories. I'm never sure how much of it is reading-too-deeply and how much of it is uncanny insight, but it's always enjoyable to catch a glimpse of your perspective!

 

Re: #2, keep up the good fight my friend, no matter what your cause is. Volunteering or trying to create change can be brutal but if no one tries you know it won't happen

 

 

Ugh even this makes him look sexy. Look at those little brow furrows. Look at his scrunched up nose. Solas you're too cute STAHP.

 

 

I think his reluctance to believe in the Maker not because he thinks of himself as divine, but because he has seen what others consider divine and is thus reluctant to believe in the judgement of others. People say Falon'Din is a god, but Solas knows Falon'Din and knows that he is not godly in the True sense and thus believes that people are incapable of determining what is and is not Truth or Divine. That he concedes that the Maker could be real at all is evidence of how much he respects Cassandra by the end.

 

Anyway...I hope they leave the Elven pantheon ambiguous, as I find it really fascinating. I don't know that Solas has shown enough power for Arlaise Lavellan to consider him a God. From what he's said, if he reveals himself to be Fen'Harel it's pretty likely she will change her thoughts about the creators to match her perception of Solas rather than vice versa. Things become a little less clear with Mythal though. It's hard not to meta-game because we've known Flemeth for so long, but it's not nearly as difficult for me to see Flemythal as a god. She's mysterious, she seems to have powers that go beyond that of normal people, and she seems to have Big Plans. Solas could grow into that role but right now he's too...grounded. Even what he does in the stories...Andruil makes a freakin' spear out of light and the most Fen'Harel does is shoot an arrow that takes a really long time to fall.

 

Remember what Solas says about godly power though...  A true god doesn't feel the need to prove his power.  Solas isn't a showoff.  At the moment, he's not very powerful, but I think Uth'shiral, once she works past the whole "... Creators no, how can you be Fen'harel what have I done have I betrayed my clan" etc. thing, will likely see him in a different light.  And the rest of the elven pantheon as well, as you said.  That doesn't mean she'll see him as less of a person, but perhaps with more comprehension of why he is as he is.  And yes, maybe a bit of reverence.   Which will probably annoy Solas.

[Eivuwan]

So one question is what exactly does the mark and the orb do other than what we saw in the game. Why does Solas think it would change Lavellan's spirit? There's nothing in the lore as far as I know about magic being able to change people's spirit unless it's an abomination type of situation. Maybe it's possible that the mark also has the ability to draw upon the power of the spirits in the fade? That explains why even non-mage characters can use it. But then maybe constant use of fade spirits' energy ends up changing your own spirit to be more like the elven gods whose character is more like something in-between spirit and elf than either by itself.

[Era'harel]

For everyone who is feeling down from the more pessimistic theories, remember the last thing Solas said to you. "What we had was real."

Exactly, also the first part!  "No matter what comes, I want you to know that what we had was real."

I interpreted that statement as his way of wanting her to know that she wasn't deceived by him -- especially since that is what he's known for; deception.  She's going to find out (hopefully in a DLC!) & he seems to know it...  **wishful willing**