The White Claws stole Frederic's supplies, and all the White Claw camps have these creepy ass books. What you into, Fred?
In other news, Trevelyan went into the Fade without Solas but with Varric while leaving Hawke behind, and it's the boringest most depressing Fade journey yet. Don't ever do that. Just don't do it.
PREACH. I hate how the humanities are forsaken for the "utility" of other areas of study. Studying the humanities leads to increased pattern recognition, abstract reasoning, cultural sensitivity/ understanding , and empathy. They teach a person how to be objective when dealing with subjective things and.. they just make better people. People who can see beyond themselves because they've been taught to through literary, historical, and artistic analysis. It helps make people wiser, not just more intelligent. I rue the day we made education a worker assembly line.
But, it doesn't lead to job security. Take it from me, the medieval German literature major who's now an office worker slaving over spreadsheets and bills of lading. I can't tell you how many times I've almost been killed by bills of lading.
The White Claws stole Frederic's supplies, and all the White Claw camps have these creepy ass books. What you into, Fred?
In other news, Trevelyan went into the Fade without Solas but with Varric while leaving Hawke behind, and it's the boringest most depressing Fade journey yet. Don't ever do that. Just don't do it.
But, it doesn't lead to job security. Take it from me, the medieval German literature major who's now an office worker slaving over spreadsheets and bills of lading. I can't tell you how many times I've almost been killed by bills of lading.
First someone finds the Yellow Sign, now Addai's found the Necronomicon!
Sorry it took me so long to answer. I was in the middle of replying when my boyfriend came home and said we needed to get down to the auto shop asap and....long story short....my truck failed the smog check. Ugh.
Out of curiosity.. you awesome artists out there, do you prefer photoshop or manga studio?
I've got both on the pc but I have never tried manga studio yet ;P I keep telling myself I should but since I am more used to photoshop I never do.
I didn't know this thing about a 3d model tho.. interesting! I shall check that out!
I can draw manga/cartoon styles alright.. but then sometimes I get so depressed when it takes me days to do something and then I see what other people can do in the same amount of time.. xD I wish I was better at doing more realistic shading/colouring T_T
RoyalRel, share your secrets XD :3
Photoshop is great! That's what I used back in my High School days. Just keep in mind, as someone has already mentioned, that it is a multipurpose tool. It's mainly for photo editing, graphics design and is also used for drawing/painting. I was going to buy it but...it's a bit pricey (like $150 plus) and I just bought my wacom tablet. So, I got Manga Studio 5 for WAY cheaper (it was on sale for $25 when I got it) and it has the 3D modeling tool (PS does not) which, in my opinion, I'd pay just for that.
Only downside to MS is it has crappy brushes. I bought a set from Frenden and downloaded it into the software so that I had more options. http://frenden.myshopify.com/#_=_
I do about the same process as Royal does except I use the 3D modeling tool and pose my figures first so I can use that as a reference. I haven't really taken pictures of my steps (not that you asked me, anyway. Royal is a gazillion times more talented than I)
To get back on topic (kinda), I am right now drawing both Falon'Din AND Mythal and in my head I have all of these backstories to my art and wondering if I should write a fanfic about Fen'Harel and the other gods. Has that been done before, sans Lavellan?
PREACH. I hate how the humanities are forsaken for the "utility" of other areas of study. Studying the humanities leads to increased pattern recognition, abstract reasoning, cultural sensitivity/ understanding , and empathy. They teach a person how to be objective when dealing with subjective things and.. they just make better people. People who can see beyond themselves because they've been taught to through literary, historical, and artistic analysis. It helps make people wiser, not just more intelligent. I rue the day we made education a worker assembly line.
I looove the nuance of vulnera. Passion being a wound makes sense to me. It can feel that way. Moreover, passion can be a weakness, or hole in one's armor. A painful vulnerability. Thank you for sharing this!!
This. I actually studied Art History for the deep love of it - to my father's chagrin("CANT YOU JUST MINOR IN IT??") I was on spring break in Puerto Rico during my senior year and was talking to a woman at the pool and told her what I was studying. She actually laughed in my face and said "Oh God, what will you do with that?". I was so stunned by her complete rudeness that I didn't respond, but I should have said '******, I will be a functioning and wonderful member of society....unlike you...hag'.
On Topic and semi-related: When I first saw the mural in Skyhold - as a mage Trevelyan - I was like 'Oh Solas...How did you know!!??'
ALSO, returning to this. I DIDN'T NEED A THEDASIAN CIRCUS OF RHINOS, BUFFALO, AND BEARS, OH MY! I get that it helps the world feel populated. I have also learned without a shadow of a doubt that in Thedas, bears are the sharks of the forest and mabari are the piranha of the Hinterlands.
Cool. I appreciate that the world has something to eat beyond nug, halla, and elfroot. But there were times I would have totally taken some creepy ass Sylvans like they had in the concept art book. And higher percentage of aggressive, terrifying mobs per map that were honestly threatening and story-relevant. Loved the giants, just wish there was more storytelling about them. Cause I feel kinda bad killing them with abandon. I haven't run into nearly enough Venatori and Red Templar mobs in my 100+ hour play through with Lavellan.
I'd feel bad about slaying giants if they WEREN'T TOTAL ****** ASSHOLES. Nah **** those bitches, they can taste my axe bevel.
I love the wildlife, though yea they can be a pain in the ass to deal with.... I didn't mind bears on normal, but on nightmare early on they're annoying as **** and get in the way in the hinterlands. Grab horse and "Move ******, get out the way, get out the way ******, get out the way!"
I basically think I broke my xbox controller playing DAI. The y button sticks which I'm not even going to get into but the left stick is internally broken from too much "searching" and now she likes to walk off cliffs.
I basically think I broke my xbox controller playing DAI. The y button sticks which I'm not even going to get into but the left stick is internally broken from too much "searching" and now she likes to walk off cliffs.
It's microsoft hardware. The **** probably has an expiration date on it, and it'll self destruct whether you play it or not, lol.
Those things always go bad for me unfortunately. I used to go through a fair bit of them. But then, that was when I played a lot of online multiplayer, which is rather hard on the controller.
It's microsoft hardware. The **** probably has an expiration date on it, and it'll self destruct whether you play it or not, lol.
Those things always go bad for me unfortunately. I used to go through a fair bit of them. But then, that was when I played a lot of online multiplayer, which is rather hard on the controller.
Adam says it's a sign I'm obsessed. He fails to realize he also plays video games.
What if Lavellan becomes an elven god and rules as the 'Queen of the Elven' in a new Arlathan type empire with Solas?
But then again, she'll be like "You touched my butt then left me? Bisch please..." *Puts her hand toward him to say 'talk to the hand'*
I 100% feel your pain. The same idea popped into my head after reading Empress (which is very NSFW and glorious), and now I can't shake it.
I...may have 50+ pages of disjointed Google doc drabbles based on more-or-less this idea, though Lavellan's not a god in mine, she's just Solas's queen. And my Lavellan's rather forgiving all things considered.
Ok, so a while ago I came in here and asked about the Solas romance and under good advice I went for it....I would just like to say thank you. I have just been rendered a blubbering ball of I don't know what. I mean literally! I knew it was coming but I did not expect it to hit me like that it was beautiful.
Just wanted to share, now must go cry some more....
Sable Rhapsody, Adynata, Addai et 8 autres aiment ceci
Quick question: I don't know any Elvish except "vhenan" because of reasons but in this conversation, what did Solas tell Sera?
Solas:Our people used to be here.
Sera: Pfft, you say that everywhere.
Solas: It is more true than you want to believe.
Sera: I bet, right? Who wants to think about stepping on dead elves?
Solas: Din elvhen emma him?
Sera: Oh, you felt that one.
It's something to the effect of "You will be the death of me." Or perhaps more akin to "I'm going to kill you" in intent. It's an exasperated curse, essentially.
Ok, so a while ago I came in here and asked about the Solas romance and under good advice I went for it....I would just like to say thank you. I have just been rendered a blubbering ball of I don't know what. I mean literally! I knew it was coming but I did not expect it to hit me like that it was beautiful.
Just wanted to share, now must go cry some more....
Welcome to the Solavellan Hellspiral. We have eggs, kittens, cookies and a blanket fort for all your depressed needs.
Dumping a bit of random theory before I get back to work catching up. I'm really sorry for the length! I can't seem to get the spoiler tags to work the way I need them to.
Warning: this interpretation depends heavily on triple threat theory and the implication that there are seven members of the elvish Panthon, not nine. If that's a no-go for you, feel free to skip!
The "Tevinter" Bas Relief Mosaics and the Limitations of Dwarven Perspective
To be blunt, getting the dwarven perspective would be a lot more useful if Gatsi were better at discerning pointy ears. Given the mosaics' apparent subject matter and the aforementioned obvious pointy ears, identifying their origin as Tevinter seems very unlikely. I theorize that they are instead elven, looted and in some cases outright appropriated by the Imperium in the aftermath of the Elvhenan civil war.
My basic premise is that the series as a group tells a complete story: specifically, the story of an ancient rebellion. There are, unfortunately, two plausible parallel historic interpretations, reflecting the fundamental tug-of-war identity crisis behind Dumat, whose history is tightly tied to these mosaics. I’ll present both for completeness’ sake: the tinfoil version (crazy but fairly firmly supported) and the saran wrap version (weaker in shape and likely a transparent attempt by BW to lead theory astray).
Tin Foil Theory:
Spoiler
The mosaics depict the failed rebellion of Falon’Din/Dirthamen. The series follows his trajectory from attempted rebellion through its suppression / counter-attack led by Mythal to his final disfigurement and connection to the cult of “The Thing in the Dark” eventually adopted by Tevinter as the Cult of Dumat. This will be an unpalatable perspective for many who take the strongly negative representation of events in the mosaics as historic truth- but as I’ll get to in a moment, that itself is a core fallacy that should be rejected.
Seran Wrap Theory:
Spoiler
The mosaics depict the successful rebellion that ended with the fall of Arlathan, making the central figure Elgar’nan. Again, while this parallel theory is plausible in its broadest strokes, it suffers from a number of fundamental weaknesses. The first and simplest being the creation of the mosaics themselves. They would necessarily have been crafted in the wake of the events they depict, which strongly suggests that the prevailing side in the rebellion depicted was Order. It’s hard to imagine the chaotic civil war that followed the fall of Arlathan being conducive to the creation of elaborate historic bas relief murals.
Spoiler
Second, the impulse to attribute the mosaics' decidedly negative portrayal of their subject as a representation of Elgar’nan is an easy trap to fall into, and should be resisted. Solas’ character is desperately sympathetic, and remains so regardless of whether these mosaics depict his or Elgar’nan’s fall. As Bioware constantly reminds us, there are two sides to every story: all lore and art we encounter in game is colored by the perspective and bias of the society in which it was made. The losers of conflicts rarely have the luxury of writing history books or recording their side of the story in art. Their perspective and objectives can only be read between the lines- inferred by accounting for the bias inherent in what the winners choose to present to the world and using that to extrapolate backwards. Again, I want to stress the idea that these mosaics are historical events as the winning side would have them remembered, not necessarily as they truly were.
Ok! That said, let’s dig in.
Freed Are Slaves
Gatsi's Codex:
Spoiler
Saranwrap Theory:
Spoiler
This is Elgar'nan and two female members of the Pantheon overlooking their horde of kossith slaves.
Tinfoil Theory:
Spoiler
Gatsi’s insight that this is edited art is critical: the inference being that changes were made to an original mural that seems to have represented all seven members of the Pantheon as a united force over the enslaved kossith. The second artist repurposed this image to tell a far different story: that of Dirthamen / Falon’Din, flanked by Ghilan’nain and Andruil, overseeing the slave rebellion they’d created. This is represented most tellingly by what the new carver has done with the stone where other Pantheon figures used to be. The kossith there has been edited to bear not a yoke, but a sword. This has been transformed into the rebellion’s army of freed slaves, or at least its metaphorical representation.
Spoiler
Also, as a first tiny piece of foundation toward our larger theory that this series connects Dirthamen directly to the cult of Dumat, it’s worth noting the general shape of the figures here in relation to the statuary here:
Spoiler
The connection is admittedly tenuous, but still a bit suggestive in the context of additional evidence we’ll examine later.
Sacrifice
Gatsi's Codex:
Spoiler
Saranwrap theory:
Spoiler
This panel portrays Elgar'nan using the kossith for the purpose he had them created: massive and undoubtedly evil blood magic rituals.
Tinfoil theory:
Spoiler
This is the most difficult panel to present convincingly in terms of the series being a portrayal of Falon’Din/Dirthamen’s rebellion. It’s obvious political propaganda and an attempt at character assassination regardless of which theory you prefer. The panel depicts the use of blood magic, pure and simple, and hints at outright sacrifice. In theory (creation of races link to follow) the kossith were created as an advance in terms of mortal beings with increasingly strong Will. This would have had two effects: it granted them blood that would have been a relatively potent source of power, and also made individuals of that race much more difficult to externally control or subdue. Which objective was the original impetus for their creation depends on who we believe to have motivated their creation, but let’s ignore that debate for now.
For our purposes, even assuming that the panel is an attempt to vilify the rebellion and by extension Dirthamen / Falon’Din, we’re forced to infer at least some degree of morally dubious action in the furthering of its objectives. It was almost certainly not the lurid, graphic propaganda on display here- but still, it suggests the use of freed-slave blood magic should be accepted as extremely likely. Not simply by its leaders (as evidenced by the races of the group surrounding the central sacrificial figure) but by common members of the rebellion, both elvhen and kossith.
This is granted additional, though tenuous, support in the following in-game conversation and party banter.
Spoiler
Knowing what we do about his perspective on his own actions as Falon’Din during this era, there’s an undertone of (self-) recrimination in these conversations that seems to support the likely use of blood magic in the context of the failed rebellion. Its more extreme forms of practice would have been used in desperation- a means to an end that might have arguably justified its use had it succeeded, but ended instead in failure.
The Archdemon
Gatsi's Codex:
Spoiler
Saranwrap theory:
Spoiler
This is a hard panel to explain in the saran wrap context, revealing one of its many weaknesses as a counter-explanation. A representation of Mythal deciding to "turn" on Elgar'nan? It's plausible. But if so, who are the other figures she ignores? Two members of the Pantheon that represented a greater harm to the People but went unpunished?
Tinfoil Theory:
Spoiler
This panel serves as an explanation for those that follow. As evidenced in the first panel, three primary Pantheon leaders are implied to have been involved in the failed rebellion: Andruil, Ghilan’nain, and Dirthamen/Falon’Din. The dragon represents both judgment by the forces of Order. The first two attacking figures, whose involvement it suggests may have been more direct and effective, are ignored by the dragon. Elgar’nan/Mythal cannot punish either Ghilan’nain or Andruil, as the only punative options are death (which would be negated by the OGS powers of Falon’Din) or imprisonment in the Void (directly dependent on Ghilan’nain’s collaborative OGS prison forms). Dirthamen alone can be made an example, and thus the dragon turns the full brunt of its fury on him.
Invasion
Gatsi's Codex:
Spoiler
Saranwrap theory:
Spoiler
This is the beginning of the attack on Arlathan, in which Mythal and Fen'Harel (represented, I suppose, by Dirthamen?) take on the Golden City as a symbol of Elgar'nan's Order. The weak fit again calls this theory's plausiblity into question.
Tinfoil theory:
Spoiler
The forces of Order, led by Mythal, prepare to attack Falon’Din / Dirthamen. Mythal’s representation as the central figure seems clear, as it’s underscored by the distinctive “four-horned” depiction we’ve come to associate with her in both human and dragon form. The identity of the others is less certain, though we can assume by process of elimination that the female figure at the far left is likely Sylaise. The figure to her right is particularly interesting, as Mythal seems to be gesturing at him in an almost conciliatory manner, possibly holding back the full extent of his rage. Given that perspective, this is most likely Elgar’nan, and if so, the symbols we see associated with him here have important echoes that spread and intersect with Solas (Dirthamen/Falon’Din) in myriad ways throughout the DA universe. First, the symbol on the back of his head.
Spoiler
This has an obvious echo in the symbol of the Inquisition, with the key change being a sword piercing it- perhaps representing the Inquisition as an intentionally oppositional force.
The second symbol is also interesting, given that it seems (at least superficially) to be something very like an inversion of the symbol the Qunari adopted to represent their nation. Nothing solid can be built of this yet- just pointing out potential connections to be discarded or built on later.
The figure to Mythal’s immediate right is also difficult to place, particularly since degradation of the relief itself makes it difficult to discern with clarity whether the figure is facing the city or the assembled group. The trident staff is potentially a unique identifier, however, and should be noted to prime future association. The final figure is similarly uncertain, though his staff is interestingly suggestive (and carefully cut off so as to remain ambiguous - thanks a lot, art guy!) of either concentric circles that might indicate the Sun or the jagged crescent that the darkspawn of DAO repeat in their pseudo-religious structures. Either interpretation would potentially force us to re-evaluate the larger context, making this Elgar’nan and the symbolically marked figure in the foreground Falon’Din, watching helplessly from the fade as the forces of Order converged to punish Dirthamen.
The Fall
Gatsi's Codex:
Spoiler
Saranwrap theory:
Spoiler
Depicts the fall of Arlathan. Elgar'nan burns as the Golden City is charred black.
Tinfoil theory:
Spoiler
The final relief depicts the punishment itself. As Gatsi intimates, the idea of light striking the tower and the central figure is likely intentional, perhaps intended to suggest the nature of the weapon used: weaponized light, a beam weapon similar in basic nature to the one we encounter in game at the Citadelle du Corbeau. Given its similar special treatment, the tower seems to have been of particular importance as well- but without further evidence we can only hazard a guess that there may be a potential connection to the tower depicted in Dirthamen’s temple below.
Spoiler
This final panel allows us to both track and understand the evolution of elvhen Dirthamen to human Dumat, so bear with me while I lay out the foundation. The first key is establishing the distinctive nature of the figure being presented. Though the ambiguity of the background serves to obscure this fact, on close examination the main figure seems to have four total arms.
Spoiler
This is a feature we see repeated in several of Ghilan’nain’s creations that have no (known) modern descendants, and functions as a hint of her alliance.
Spoiler
This is also, critically, reflected in two examples of figures of worship: Dumat, and the Thing in the Dark. As I will explain shortly, there is strong evidence that they are one and the same.
Spoiler
As covered in the wiki, an established punishment for treason in ancient Elvhanan was being cast into the Void, with evidence of the traitor’s existence among the People being almost fully erased from history and society. For a former member of the Pantheon, this imprisonment would have had additional repercussions- his lands and people would have been forfeit, his temples abandoned or destroyed.
Erasure would be a far more difficult task for the Pantheon to perform on one of its own members, however. Though direct worshippers could be killed, societies that favor one god above others but acknowledge the existence of a larger group cannot be easily convinced to forget the existence of individual members of their Pantheon. At the time of the failed rebellion, no member of the Pantheon held sway over a populace that did not include worshippers of other members- and in Ferelden at least, it seems attempts to stamp out worship simply drove it underground.
We see this most obviously (and literally) in our exploration of the Temple of Dirthamen in DAI. Above ground, the ruins that remain show evidence of being largely reappropriated by other members of the Pantheon. The mosaics are of Falon’Din and Ghilan’nain, the statuary of Mythal (with the later addition of Fen’Harel upon restoration to the Pantheon). Below ground, however, we find evidence of persistent worship that seems to center around a new figure. The statuary incarnations of this figure are crude inuksuit, likely dating to the fall of Arlathan and indicative of the social chaos caused by the breakdown of Elvhen society, and were likely representative of the only power that might have remained able (in a very limited fashion) to interact with the mortal world after the fall: Falon’Din / Dirthamen.
Spoiler
And though the connection is far more tenous, the mosaic image also calls into question the bearded skull icon that seems to trace back to the earliest human settlements in Ferelden. This may be evidence that the cult spread to human tribes before being adopted in its final “Dumat” form.
Spoiler
The cult seems to persist through the ages as an undercurrent in elvish society, coming again to relative prominence as the elves build Halamshiral. At this point, their craftsmen have both time and social resources to create statuary of the being their ancestors would have once encountered in dreams before he was judged and sealed in the void as the Dread Wolf.
This figure, grotesque and misshapen, is Dirthamen/Falon'Din. Burned horribly by the fire we witnessed in the final bas relief panel, the tendons of his hands and feet are tightly curled by third degree burn contracture, his flesh striated and scarred, the features of his face melted to the point of being rendered almost unrecognizable as humanoid. Tellingly, however, the “Thing in the Dark” retains the features that allow us to definitively tie him to both Dirthamen and Dumat: a distinctive number of arms, as well as the spiral iconography commonly associated with the fade.
First of all, I love thiissss! Lots of jigsaw pieces put together!
Second of all, I am super sorry, I feel like I need to get something off my chest to move forward ;-; I have been resisting Solas as Dirthamen/Falon'Din. Everything else - the triad, the nature of magic and spirits, the characters of the pantheon - all good.
But I really did feel the wolf, and Fen'Harel were "the rebellion", not a single person. Fen'Harel as Dirthamen/Falon'Din just did not mesh in my head.
However, you are convincing madrar. For simplicity's sake (and for lack of me coming up with explanations for so much phenomena) let's run with this! The theory (at the moment) neatly fits all the characters.
> If Falon'Din was a separated spirit from Dirthamen, what was the nature of him as "pure spirit"?
> The possibility of Solas still not having been united with his "fade-shadow" is... disturbing! I wonder if his "alter" self, from beyond the veil, is the one who has been working against him all this time! Although according to ordinary tranquility, would he be able to enter into a romantic relationship, feel anything at all, without it?
> Rift Magic. Why is this significant as being unique to Solas until recently? What ability does it give him regarding the connection between him and his maybe-not-there "fade-shadow"?
>IfFalon'Din = Dumat (and possibly Dirthamen, depending on whether Dirthamen is not physically sleeping somewhere... or died, and Solas is born with Falon'Din's fade-shadow attached?):
Old Gods =Elven Pantheon (My interpretation. FIGHT ME )
Dumat (Dragon of Silence) =Falon'Din (Dirthamen)
Toth (Dragon of Fire) =Sylaise
Lusacan (Dragon of Night) =Elgar'nan
Urthemiel (Dragon of Beauty) =Ghilan'nain
Zazikel (Dragon of Freedom/Chaos) = Andruil
Razikale (Dragon of Mystery) = ?
Andoral (Dragon of Slaves) = June
Mythal has a long history of influencing heroes (physically and through the fade aka "Lady of the Skies"). Can we assume that she is not one of the potential archdemons, due to her activity?
> Mythal's reference to the "fragment" of her inside the amulet at Sundermount (if the fade-shadow is itself a whole)
> Sera as Andruil. Is Sera, as speculated, simply one of a bloodline of Andruil - a possible "host"? Or is Andruil Sera's "fade-shadow"? Or was Andruil thrown into "the Abyss" as punishment, and calls to Sera from far away?
So many questions, and I'll probably think of more. I am so sorry! ;-;
Solas: My people built a life here. It must have been something to see.
There he goes, talking about his people again.
I think it is clear his people are not modern elves, humans, qunari...etc.
But besides Abelas and company...Felassan...are there more ancient elves somewhere we don't know about? A city or in some ruin no one would bother to look (like Mythal's Temple?)
Adam says it's a sign I'm obsessed. He fails to realize he also plays video games.
Pff, everyone's obsessed with something Not sure why people decided that being obsessed with games is so bad when other people are obsessed with drinking, porn, drugs. And even without the extremes, it's not much different than people who are obsessed with movies, soap operas, football and sports in general, etc. It's a hobby. At least this hobby helps your thinking process.
There's even studies showing games help women with math and perception of dimensions or some such shiz.
drake2511, HurricaneGinger et nikki-tikki aiment ceci
Take it from me, the medieval German literature major who's now an office worker slaving over spreadsheets and bills of lading. I can't tell you how many times I've almost been killed by bills of lading.
Retour en haut
If I saw all this art while waiting for a commission, I'd still be breathing heavily, lol 
Amazing and excited.
