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[Ulv Elskeren]

Question, because there are over four thousand pages in this thread and going back through them is a little too daunting for me: If your Inquisitor drank from the Well and ended up being a servant to Mythal, does this mean that your Inquisitor is potentially now beholden to Solas, after his creepy post-game Flemeth-hoovering that was never fully explained?

 

I think most people are on board with the idea that Solas may have absorbed the last of Mythal's power, but her core OGS (with her memories, etc) is on its way to Morrigan.  

 

...who may very well inherit a degree of power over the Inquisitor, if you drank.      Reason #103 why I always have Morrigan drink: assuming she accepts Mythal's OGS, having her hold her own leash essentially nullifies the geas.

[drosophila]

 

Only that makes no sense in context of IQ's question. Why would Solas mention that some spells took years to cast (and what he said later), if it didn't tie to his answer on the matter? He's not really known to trail off the topic in the middle of a conversation.

Here is the way it makes sense to me: 

 

The IQ's original question was, "Is the magic I learned with my people different from the magic they teach in the circles?" So the first topic is --differences between Dalish and Circle magic--

 

He explains some similarities and differences, ending with the sentence, "Much of it is more subtle, a legacy from when elves were immortal." "It" here probably referring to blood magic as you said. 

 

We get two follow up questions, one about blood magic and one about immortality. So here the topic shifts to --Ancient elven magic, ancient elven immortality, and blood magic: Solas mentions them all in one breath. How are these related?--

 

When asking about immortality, the Iquisitor's reasoning could be, "Solas just mentioned blood magic being a legacy from when elves were immortal. Does he mean that elves used magic to create immortality?" So the Inquisitor asks the follow up question, "The legends of elven immortality: Did they use magic to increase their lifespan?"

 

Solas answers, "No, it was simply part of being elven." I take this to mean that "it" is elven immortality and it was simply part of being elven. The he says, "The subtle beauty of their magic was the effect, not the cause of their nature." I take this to mean, "You're getting it wrong, Lavellan, the subtle beauty of their magic was a consequence of immortality, not the cause." Then he further explains how exactly subtly beutiful magic can be a consequence of elven immortality: "Some spells took years to cast, echoes would linger for centuries, harmonizing with new magic in unending symphony. It must've been beautiful..." I take this to mean, "This magic was so beautiful, because the elves, being naturally immortal, had all this time on their hands to study, practice, and perfect all these spells. It was poetic and beutiful."

[Kaydreamer]

That's a theory that's been kicked around a bit here and I'm still on fence about how I feel about it.  It would explain a lot about how a slave system existed in a race that are immortal and all have magic.

 

I also headcanon that the vallaslin were once some kind of 'binding rune' for the elven slaves, allowing the control of people who would otherwise be to powerful to subjugate. Why else would Solas, who is heavily implied to have led some kind of slave rebellion, specifically possess a spell which is able to remove them? I doubt he'd learn such a thing for purely cosmetic reasons.

 

There's also the line he delivers to Lavellan after her removes her vallaslin. "Ar lasa mala revas." You are free. The way he says it, almost with reverence, feels as though is has some deeper meaning. I think he's cast that spell many times before in the ancient past, freeing hundreds from the 'chains' which bound them to obedience.

 

The only spanner in that theory is the fact that he's content to honour a Lavellan's choice to leave them on, which I doubt he'd do if it meant she might be enslaved when he succeeds in... whatever it is he's trying to achieve. But that could be handwaved away by assuming the designs have change enough since the fall of Arlathan that they won't work anymore regardless.

[Riftwalker]

I think most people are on board with the idea that Solas may have absorbed the last of Mythal's power, but her core OGS (with her memories, etc) is on its way to Morrigan.  

 

...who may very well inherit a degree of power over the Inquisitor, if you drank.      Reason #103 why I always have Morrigan drink: assuming she accepts Mythal's OGS, having her hold her own leash essentially nullifies the geas.

 

When you say "core OGS," are you talking about the essence part of her - similar to the piece she had you deliver to the altar in DA2 for her reappearing act? I suppose that might make sense. I had a hard time justifying why my elf Inquisitor would let Morrigan drink from the Well, though, and couldn't let Morrigan do it in the end, because hello, that's a giant pile of history right there and passing it off to a human, no matter how insistent they were about their scope of knowledge, just didn't sit right with me.

 

And then I got to the end of the game, saw what happened, and had a "What on earth did I just do" moment, compounded by the fact that there was a Solas romance involved.

[midnight tea]

I think what he's telling us (in a roundabout way) is just that their magic was a side effect of their union with the fade. And that a close connection with the fade naturally meant immorality, because remember, there's no time in the fade. So it isn't magic that causes immortality, but as you say, their natural affinity to the fade that created their immortality and magical ability. That's my interpretation anyway. 

 

That doesn't really negate the magical relation of immortality with magic, considering that - as far as we know - Fade is the source of all magic in Thedas.

 

So saying that "they have special connection to the Fade" only pushes the question about immortality a bit farther, but not outside of it not being born out of magic and/or magical affinity elves possessed.

[midnight tea]

I also headcanon that the vallaslin were once some kind of 'binding rune' for the elven slaves, allowing the control of people who would otherwise be to powerful to subjugate. Why else would Solas, who is heavily implied to have led some kind of slave rebellion, specifically possess a spell which is able to remove them? I doubt he'd learn such a thing for purely cosmetic reasons.

 

There's also the line he delivers to Lavellan after her removes her vallaslin. "Ar lasa mala revas." You are free. The way he says it, almost with reverence, feels as though is has some deeper meaning. I think he's cast that spell many times before in the ancient past, freeing hundreds from the 'chains' which bound them to obedience.

 

The only spanner in that theory is the fact that he's content to honour a Lavellan's choice to leave them on, which I doubt he'd do if it meant she might be enslaved when he succeeds in... whatever it is he's trying to achieve. But that could be handwaved away by assuming the designs have change enough since the fall of Arlathan that they won't work anymore regardless.

 

Well, it might be that the magic of the vallaslin is weak to the point of being non-existent or had no sway over an elf - maybe because gods were imprisoned (or whatever else happened to them) or magical ways to bind people to someone else's will were only achievable at the peak of Elvenhan's power, when elves in power were able to spin elaborate magical spells or had powerful binding artifacts that are now lost to time.

[drosophila]

I also headcanon that the vallaslin were once some kind of 'binding rune' for the elven slaves, allowing the control of people who would otherwise be to powerful to subjugate. Why else would Solas, who is heavily implied to have led some kind of slave rebellion, specifically possess a spell which is able to remove them? I doubt he'd learn such a thing for purely cosmetic reasons.

 

There's also the line he delivers to Lavellan after her removes her vallaslin. "Ar lasa mala revas." You are free. The way he says it, almost with reverence, feels as though is has some deeper meaning. I think he's cast that spell many times before in the ancient past, freeing hundreds from the 'chains' which bound them to obedience.

 This is exactly my headcanon, although I admit there is little evidence to support it. (But with more evidence it could still be possible.) It is the way I like to imagine it, though, 

[midnight tea]

I also think that if ancient Arlathan vallaslin had been magical runes that kept slaves from escaping (though I find this hard to believe...) wouldn't there be some long, complicated, magical ritual involved?

 

Don't Templars just need a drop of mage's blood to be able to track them? Weren't phylacteries used to even remotely cast spells on their owners?

If so, we can only imagine how "blood writing" could control people through some kind of magical means, by creatures that understood magic far deeper than people in modern Thedas do.

[Kaydreamer]

That doesn't really negate the magical relation of immortality with magic, considering that - as far as we know - Fade is the source of all magic in Thedas.

 

So saying that "they have special connection to the Fade" only pushes the question about immortality a bit farther, but not outside of it not being born out of magic and/or magical affinity elves possessed.

 

I think we can all agree that elven immortality and elven magic are both the result of a previously innate connection to the fade. So the cause of both is the same.

 

What I think Solas is trying to say, though, is that elven magic is not the cause of elven immortality. Immortality was simply part of being elven. Rather, the nature of their magic was the result of their immortality. Because they were immortal, they had the ability to weave long, subtle magics which mortal humans, due to their limited lifespans, could never conceive of. That being why the magic taught in circles is, at a fundamental level, slightly different from the magic learned by a Dalish mage.

 

In short, magic and immortality both stem from the same source, but the elves never used magic to make themselves immortal.

[midnight tea]

What I think Solas is trying to say, though, is that elven magic is not the cause of elven immortality. Immortality was simply part of being elven. Rather, the nature of their magic was the result of their immortality. Because they were immortal, they had the ability to weave long, subtle magics which mortal humans, due to their limited lifespans, could never conceive of. That being why the magic taught in circles is, at a fundamental level, slightly different from the magic learned by a Dalish mage.

 

Well, that's the thing - immortality WAS part of being elven. It isn't anymore. It was an ability they lost for some reason and all things point to it being some kind of magical cause.

[Sah291]

That doesn't really negate the magical relation of immortality with magic, considering that - as far as we know - Fade is the source of all magic in Thedas.
 
So saying that "they have special connection to the Fade" only pushes the question about immortality a bit farther, but not outside of it not being born out of magic and/or magical affinity elves possessed.

Yes but I think the point is just "you can't magic your way to immorality" with spells. The ancient elven magic was subtle and beautiful because it was "effortless" in that way. Like how Cole describes rift magic being like dropping a stone in a pool of water and causing ripples. Spells took years to cast. Not like that flashy circle magic stuff I guess.

[midnight tea]

Yes but I think the point is just "you can't magic your way to immorality" with spells.

 

... A point I've made at the beginning of this discussion

[Jewlie Ghoulie]

Thank you to those who answered my earlier question.

For me, I wouldn't mind having closure with Solas and for my Inquisitors to learn who he truly his. That is the most I would really wish for if he was included for a dlc in the future. This would bother me to have the Inquisitors forever remain clueless


However on the romance level , I would not be bothered if there was no reconciliation or closure to the relationship with Lavellan. I don't feel it necessary for me personally. The romance was beautiful and ended fittingly. I understood why it ended when he was revealed, and I never enjoyed a romance as much as I have Solas (Exception being Isabela). It's perfect (for me) the way it was. However, I would not be opposed to more content and if he is in a future dlc I hope it works out where everyone enjoys and gets options they'd like.

[Ulv Elskeren]

Well, that's the thing - immortality WAS part of being elven. It isn't anymore. It was an ability they lost for some reason and all things point to it being some kind of magical cause.

 

Though drawing a causal line between the two is shaky at best, it's at least a little suspicious that elves began to experience mortality in the same general time frame that humanity gained access to magic.  

 

...but then, I have crazy theories about the Sun and Elgar'nan and the world that came before and how that might tie into magic that are probably best left unposted.      ^{_{4 months without DLC makes Ulv something something...}}

[midnight tea]

Though drawing a causal line between the two is shaky at best, it's at least a little suspicious that elves began to experience mortality in the same general time frame that humanity gained access to magic.  

 

Well, as far as we know. Elves might have been gradually losing immortality for a while before that happened, for a number of reasons, one of them possibly being a collapse of entire society after a gruesome civil war, or death of Mythal (and other gods?).

 

It is intriguing though to think that humans may indeed be (unwitting?) conduits of mortality - or 'silence', if we go that far. Magic is oftentimes described to be a song or a music, and the opposite of that is silence - and who was the head of Tevinter pantheon? Why, God Of Silence!

...Who wants to bet me that we're going to hear (ironically ;D) about Dumat in the future??

 

I also find it interesting how Templars and their power are described. Yesterday I pushed my warrior PT and got to a point where I can choose a specialization - and the Templar mentor mentions that people who begin ingesting the lyrium feel something living inside them and that something helps them negate magic... Only that 'it' also grows more hungry with time, craving for lyrium (which is the source of magic). Cole mentions something similar, though I'm going to have to fire the game and listen his templar dialogue to remember what exactly it was.

[Ulv Elskeren]

... A point I've made at the beginning of this discussion

 

I think what she's getting at is that point counters the possibility of blood magic being tied to Elvhen immortality.   As Solas points out, there's no real difference between the two.  "Magic is magic", regardless of source.  It follows that if you can't "magic your way to immortality" , you can't blood magic your way there either.

[Kaydreamer]

Well, that's the thing - immortality WAS part of being elven. It isn't anymore. It was an ability they lost for some reason and all things point to it being some kind of magical cause.

 

Not necessarily - we know that the elves lost both their immortality and their magic around the fall of Arlathan. The fall came at around the same time the elven gods were sealed away. We also know that a few hundred years after this, the Tevinter magisters assaulted the golden city to find it already blighted and empty, resulting in their corruption. Finally, Solas implies in party banter with Dorian that physically visiting the fade was not impossible for elves in ancient times, which makes me think that the blight did not exist at all during the time of Arlathan, (since the physical fade looks to be horrifyingly blighted now,) and that the veil was somehow different in nature back then. The game is littered with hints that all these threads are somehow interwoven; we just haven't been shown the whole picture yet.

 

The loss of elven magic and the loss of elven immortality could both be attributed to whatever the hell it was that Solas actually did when he rebelled; perhaps it was changing the nature of the veil to trap the gods (resulting in the loss of the elves innate connection to the fade,) or perhaps messing with the abyss to seal the Forgotten Ones. (I can't be alone in thinking that if the blight came from anywhere, something called 'the abyss' seems pretty damn suspicious.) The loss of both these things at the same time doesn't mean that their magic caused immortality. Rather, it implies that whatever broke the world and caused the blight broke it substantially worse than anyone previously realised.

 

(I must also mention, while I don't know enough about Dumat and the other Tevinter gods to speculate on them, I do like the idea of mortality and 'silence' idea being tied to humanity via Dumat. We need to know more about the Old Gods though. Are they corrupted echoes of the elven pantheon caused when Solas banished them from the world, or something entirely different?)

[midnight tea]

I think what she's getting at is that point counters the possibility of blood magic being tied to Elvhen immortality.   As Solas points out, there's no difference between the two.  "Magic is magic", regardless of source.  It follows that if you can't "magic your way to immorality" , you can't blood magic your way there either.

 

Well no, he doesn't specifically says that there's no differences whatsoever - in fact, he points out that magic can be used in different ways. Therefore the source of magic itself is all the same, but the results of using magic or the way it's used may be wildly different, based either on understanding of magic or complexity of the (magical) endeavor. 

 

It might be like.. you know... most things we know of are built out or atoms or quarks, but things built from those can differ wildly between one another.

 

Solas also mentions in the Fade that he failed to close the Breach because "no ordinary magic could affect it". Hence there are indeed many types of magic, some types likely more powerful than another. Abelas also mentions in ToM that Inquisitor carries the mark of (specific) magic that feels familiar to him. So the differences are there, some petty stark.

 

I'd also like to point out that some powerful types of magic have different colors in game. The raw/pure type of magic - like the one Anchor and Orb emanates - has the color green. "Divine" elvhen magic has a blue color, while the color of the Blight appears to be red.

[S.W.]

About the romance: Don't know why but lately I've been feeling all "romanced out". More time has passed since I completed the romance than I actually spent playing the thing. Any initial anger or sadness have since faded. When I think of Lavellan now, I spend much more time imagining who she is, inventing backstory, thinking what the choices mean to her, and wondering what new adventures await, rather than thinking of fade kisses and her broken heart. I headcanon that soon after the breakup she moves on and focuses on all the work she has to do for the Inquisition. She still takes Solas everywhere and heeds his advice, and believes they can even be friends some day. All of this means that if we don't get much in the way of romantic interaction, I'll probably be fine with it, and figure that things are just done between these two, sad as it is. If we do get romantic content, I'll be pleasantly surprised. 

 

About Solas in general: I'm still fascinated with him as a character, I feel incredibly sad for everything that's happened to him, and I want some answers. Actually, many answers. I don't want to have to wait till the next game to get at least some of them, and I want at least a glimpse of what he is planning to do next. Is he going to be the next villain or more like somebody who pulls all the strings behind the scenes, the way Flemeth was? I want to know at least this much. If the DLC provides no answers at all, I'll be incredibly frustrated. Then I'll write some fan fiction or at least make up a story in my head of how it all ends and move on to the next thing.

 

I totally get you on this. I've exhausted Solavellan, I think - my interest will pick up again when the DLC launches, but I'm actually looking forward to DA4 more right now. It doesn't help that I really don't like DA:I's gameplay, so I don't feel that compelled to replay it.

 

Usually, when I'm really taken by a work of fiction which has a vast, detailed world behind it, I end up becoming less interested in the snippets we get from the work itself, and end up developing ridiculously extensive headcanons instead.

[midnight tea]

Not necessarily - we know that the elves lost both their immortality and their magic around the fall of Arlathan. The fall came at around the same time the elven gods were sealed away. 

 

That we actually don't know - we have no idea how much time has passed between the sealing of elvhen gods and the fall of Arlathan.

 

 

 

Finally, Solas implies in party banter with Dorian that physically visiting the fade was not impossible for elves in ancient times

 

... Actually, he says the exact opposite   He responds to Dorian marveling that the Fade was visited the second time in history, by responding to it "In human history", which itself leaves a heavy implication that elves visiting the Fade physically was the thing that happened. In fact, we have a pretty large amount of broken eluvians in the Fade itself as well as constructs as Crossroads that suggest elves could cross and shape the Fade relatively easily.

 

 

 

(...) the veil was somehow different in nature back then.

 

I agree that the Veil might have had a different nature - probably one that was more fluid. Though how and when its nature changed is anyone's guess.

 

As for Fade being blighted - well, the Fade reflects the world of the living, so the fact that it looks blighted might be the result of the world still carrying the scars of it. Still, the Fade itself might have changed over time, and not for anything better.

 

After all, after Solas and Cole enter the Fade in Adamant, Cole is bewildered and tells Solas that the Fade is not how it should be (I assume however it's partially because he's found himself in the realm governed by Nightmare, which wasn't the part of the Fade he was familiar with to begin with) and Solas response to it was: "It's alright... We'll make it right". Hmmmmmmm.... 

 

 

The loss of elven magic and the loss of elven immortality could both be attributed to whatever the hell it was that Solas actually did when he rebelled; perhaps it was changing the nature of the veil to trap the gods (resulting in the loss of the elves innate connection to the fade,) or perhaps messing with the abyss to seal the Forgotten Ones. (I can't be alone in thinking that if the blight came from anywhere, something called 'the abyss' seems pretty danm suspicious.) 

 

True, though that leaves open the question as to how Fen'Harel could freely travel between both realms - apparently without fear, or maybe even negative effect on him. It might be that the Blight might be some powerful magic gone wrong, maybe twisted due to some sort of cataclysmic event I'm not really sure Solas can be blamed for.

 

 

The loss of both these things at the same time doesn't mean that their magic caused immortality. Rather, it implies that whatever broke the world and caused the blight broke it substantially worse than anyone previously realised.

 

Yet, broke it to a point where both magic and immortality of elves were gone, meaning that both were linked in some way.

[Caddius]

Only that makes no sense in context of IQ's question. Why would Solas mention that some spells took years to cast (and what he said later), if it didn't tie to his answer on the matter? He's not really known to trail off the topic in the middle of a conversation.

 

For me, it pretty heavily implies that magic of elves was so advanced, that it sort of created kind of a positive feedback loop - harmonizing with new spells cast years later, letting the elves weave arcane masterpieces ("songs"/"music") and perhaps tap into powers only they were able to sense or use.

They've obviously had a mindset, knowledge or magical sensitivity (or all of those things) that allowed them to do that, HENCE their nature caused their magic to be subtly beautiful and not the other way around. Magic didn't cause their immortality per se, but it was the understanding or natural affinity to magic that eventually resulted in elves being able to create wonders and live forever.

 

Hence: no magic + no specific understanding of magic = no immortality.

While that's possible, I still feel like Solas's answer was more along the lines of, "Immortality allowed us to create and use spells that took years to cast, to create unbelievably intricate spells. However, our spells were not the cause of immortality; their power and complexity were the result of our immortality."

*shrug*

As for blood magic, there's definitely a lot of hinting that something is going on with elf blood. Turns out that most of the slaves sacrificed to break into the Fade were specifically elven because it added more power, there's the one creepy-ass elf blood mage in Act III of DA2 that goes on about how it's the legacy of their people, and then there's Kieran's comments about 'your blood is very old'.

[midnight tea]

 

 

(I must also mention, while I don't know enough about Dumat and the other Tevinter gods to speculate on them, I do like the idea of mortality and 'silence' idea being tied to humanity via Dumat. We need to know more about the Old Gods though. Are they corrupted echoes of the elven pantheon caused when Solas banished them from the world, or something entirely different?)

 

No idea at this point. It's all very vague and mushy, just like the entire speculation. I think however that the whole formation of Tevinter Imperium and subsequent worship of Old Gods with God Of Silence at the very top is all very suspicious and might sit at the heart of things in way more ways that we may think.

 

... But then, there's the thing mentioned in war table operation to locate the weapon of Tyrdda's Bright-Axe:

 

"Nevertheless, these confirm what we have heard in stories, that Tyrdda pulled her tribe away from would-be warlord and chose a hard life in the mountains for uncertain reasons. It is fortunate that she did, for had the Avvar remained, the ancient Alamarri might have pushed north and attracted the attention of the Neromenian tribes that would one day form the Tevinter Imperium. Had that happened, it is unlikely the Alamarri would have survived to become Ferelden as we know it."

 

What's more, if you read the "Saga of Tyrdda's Bright-Axe" (http://dragonage.wik...e,_Avvar-Mother) it appears that the whole 'pulling the tribe away' was a thing orchestrated by Tyrdda's leaf-eared lover (obviously, an elf), although the significance of the whole move remains a frikking mystery.

 

(it doesn't help that I remember a few months ago some devs RTing a tweet of a user who urged everyone to read the whole saga, obviously for CLUES - though I have no idea if that was legit thing or just trolling :/)

 

This, as well as few more things make me think that there might be something very special about Ferelden and Alamarri - in fact, Andraste herself was Alamarri and so was, originally, Flemeth. Was there something special about them, that countered the effect of people swayed by whispers and promises of Old Gods in Tevinter???

 

In fact, anyone finds it suspicious that one of the most sacred animals for Alamarri in the past was the wolf, who was described to be a guide and protector of mankind? (http://dragonage.wikia.com/wiki/Wolf)

 

Or that the wooden dog/wolf Fereldan sculptures look suspiciously like howling Fen'Harel statues?

[Kaydreamer]

... Actually, he says the exact opposite   He responds to Dorian marveling that the Fade was visited the second time in history, by responding to it "In human history", which itself leaves a heavy implication that elves visiting the Fade physically was the thing that happened. In fact, we have a pretty large amount of broken eluvians in the Fade itself as well as constructs as Crossroads that suggest elves could cross and shape the Fade relatively easily.

 

That's what I said.  "...implies in party banter with Dorian that physically visiting the fade was not impossible for elves in ancient times."

 

Sorry, I should probably use bolded or itallic words more often when debating headcanon, it helps avoid misreads. I used to all the time, but I worry that bolded words make me seem forceful and 'shouty' when in reality I just adore a good debate. Especially about headcanon stuff! Debating it helps clarity ones own ideas as well as pick up new ones.

 

 

 

I agree that the Veil might have had a different nature - probably one that was more fluid. Though how and when its nature changed is anyone's guess.

 

 

More fluid is exactly how I think of it too. The 'stiffening' of the veil could be what is blocking its magic from Thedas, where in ancient times much more of that magic flowed through.

 

 

Yet, broke it to a point where both magic and immortality of elves were gone, meaning that both were linked in some way.

 

That link could be the fade itself. The elven connection to the timelessness of the fade gave them immortality, and the magic of the fade gave them magic. Meaning elven magic doesn't cause immortality, but both magic and immortality are both caused by the fade.

 

So there is a link stemming from the origin of both, but there's less of a link between them, if you catch my meaning. I think we're just... thinking of that link in different ways.

[Caddius]

Well, as far as we know. Elves might have been gradually losing immortality for a while before that happened, for a number of reasons, one of them possibly being a collapse of entire society after a gruesome civil war, or death of Mythal (and other gods?).

 

It is intriguing though to think that humans may indeed be (unwitting?) conduits of mortality - or 'silence', if we go that far. Magic is oftentimes described to be a song or a music, and the opposite of that is silence - and who was the head of Tevinter pantheon? Why, God Of Silence!

...Who wants to bet me that we're going to hear (ironically ;D) about Dumat in the future??

 

I also find it interesting how Templars and their power are described. Yesterday I pushed my warrior PT and got to a point where I can choose a specialization - and the Templar mentor mentions that people who begin ingesting the lyrium feel something living inside them and that something helps them negate magic... Only that 'it' also grows more hungry with time, craving for lyrium (which is the source of magic). Cole mentions something similar, though I'm going to have to fire the game and listen his templar dialogue to remember what exactly it was.

I dig the Dumat the Silent angle. It's a curious title for the most powerful of the gods. Especially since his two most famous actions included whispering magical secrets to the Archons of old, and the Song of the Old Gods that drew the darkspawn to him.

Like, false advertising, Papa Dumat. Seriously. 

While I don't remember the exact dialogue either, Cole seems to imply that the lyrium acts like a bridge to something else. Something more grounded than the Fade. 'Heavy with forgotten songs'. Varric and dwarf Inquisitors are described as feeling similarly. When they connect to the other, magic becomes incompatible. I imagine that the truth behind the lack of dwarf mages has to do with whatever this other was or is.  Red Templars are described as being twisted by the song that wants the door opened.

Some of your earlier posts reminded me of what Sanderson would probably do if handed the Dragon Age setting. (Namely, the Lord Ruler's method of immortality was a positive feedback loop, and quite cool.) I'm not sure if that's what Gaider intends to have Weekes do, though.

For me, ideally, Dragon Age 4 would take place in Tevinter, with the occasional foray into the Arlathan, and focus almost entirely on all of these ancient mysteries.