31 réponses à ce sujet

[laoch101]

Slight spoiler.
Anyone else wonder why there is no discussion about the fact that the anchor has remained? I mean it seems like there should have been something. At least she should have said, we'll I guess this will remain.
It just was such a huge plot point that it deserves something.

[Excella Gionne]

The anchor was a power given by Solas's orb. The Anchor will remain on the Inquisitor/Herald until they die. 

[laoch101]

Right I get that but I feel like it should have been discussed better.
I don't remember anyone saying it's there till they die. Corypheus did say the inquisitor would die when he removed it but he also didn't care about the inquisitor.

[katerinafm]

A better question is, will the mark just stay dormant forever?

[Excella Gionne]

Right I get that but I feel like it should have been discussed better.
I don't remember anyone saying it's there till they die. Corypheus did say the inquisitor would die when he removed it but he also didn't care about the inquisitor.

The Divine said it can't be removed unless the Inquisitor dies.

[Hanako Ikezawa]

A better question is, will the mark just stay dormant forever?

Of course not. It opens whenever the Inquisitor needs to seal a Rift. It reacts to rifts from what I've noticed, only activating when one is close. 

[laoch101]

The Divine said it can't be removed unless the Inquisitor dies.

I forgot about that scene. Thanks for posting that.

[In Exile]

Right I get that but I feel like it should have been discussed better.
I don't remember anyone saying it's there till they die. Corypheus did say the inquisitor would die when he removed it but he also didn't care about the inquisitor.

 

It's implied by what Corypheus says that it's your death that would remove it, i.e., that it sticks with you until you die. The real question IMO is what happens with it now that the foci Solas would have used to create the anchor shattered. Does that mean the anchor is lost forever after the Inquisitor dies?

[In Exile]

Of course not. It opens whenever the Inquisitor needs to seal a Rift. It reacts to rifts from what I've noticed, only activating when one is close. 

The Inquisitor seems to (canonically) acquire a substantial degree of control over it by the time your fight with Corypheus rolls around, seeing as you strip the foci from his hands. 

[Sifr]

Of course not. It opens whenever the Inquisitor needs to seal a Rift. It reacts to rifts from what I've noticed, only activating when one is close. 

 

Although we've seen a few instances of the Inquisitor being able to manipulate the Rifts in other ways?

 

The initial Rift at the Breach, the one in the Fallow Mire near Sky Watcher, the Ritual Tower Rift in the Western Approach and the Palace Rift in Halamshiral are all partially closed and dormant, until the Inquisitor opens them and properly seals them? We also see during HTLA that the Rift in the Abyssal Reach that they fall into was dormant until the Inquisitor opened it whilst falling?

 

This suggests that the Inquisitor is slowly gaining more control over the Anchor and can use it to open Rifts, although it's only limited to ones that have already opened for most of the game. However, in the final fight with Corypheus, the Inquisitor appararently was able to open one from nothing to tear Corypheus inside out and throw whatever was left into the Fade?

 

This could have been because the Veil is ridiculously thin now at the Temple of Sacred Ashes, due to the trauma of having two Breaches in short succession knocking down the walls between reality, or possibly because it's the result of the Orb giving them full control over the Anchor?

 

Having more control or at least some degree of power-up after taking the Orb from Corypheus would fit, since they only got the Anchor because they accidentally stumbled into the room and disturbed Corypheus' ritual before it was completed? Having been essentially mid-download could be why they've had so little control over the Anchor and why it was initially killing them? And why they have such degree of skill after taking the Orb from him, as they've finally patched their Anchor with the latest update to actually work properly?

 

Or I'm just ridiculously overthinking the final battle?

 

[katerinafm]

Of course not. It opens whenever the Inquisitor needs to seal a Rift. It reacts to rifts from what I've noticed, only activating when one is close. 

 

Does this potentially mean that it can start expanding again, like how it was supposedly doing at the very beginning of the game where Cassandra was claiming it was killing the inquisitor?

[In Exile]

Does this potentially mean that it can start expanding again, like how it was supposedly doing at the very beginning of the game where Cassandra was claiming it was killing the inquisitor?

 

I don't think so. There's clearly some tie between the Anchor and the manner in which the breach was created that was making it go wild. Solas, obviously knowing exactly how it works given that it's his magic power originally, seems to think that all that stabilizing it requires is an attempt to close the breach. 

 

With the breached fully closed, I think the Anchor is fully stable. 

[Cee]

It's possible it may be addressed, maybe in DLC or the future, somehow.

 

"On rot13: “that means Solas will still need the Anchor, no ?”"

Source: http://ar-lath-ma-vh...-still-need-the

[In Exile]

It's possible it may be addressed, maybe in DLC or the future, somehow.

 

"On rot13: “that means Solas will still need the Anchor, no ?”"

Source: http://ar-lath-ma-vh...-still-need-the

 

It's never made clear that Solas actually wanted to use the Anchor. It seems that he needed his foci (the orb) for whatever he had planned, but harvesting Flemeth's power might have achieved that same end. 

[Hellion Rex]

It's never made clear that Solas actually wanted to use the Anchor. It seems that he needed his foci (the orb) for whatever he had planned, but harvesting Flemeth's power might have achieved that same end. 

Fair point. Maybe stealing Mythal's power really was Plan B. Either way, Flemeth seems to have foreseen all of this coming to pass.

[Cee]

It's never made clear that Solas actually wanted to use the Anchor. It seems that he needed his foci (the orb) for whatever he had planned, but harvesting Flemeth's power might have achieved that same end. 

 

It might, but the Anchor might also have different properties that he needs. Nobody but the team has any idea right now. It's all speculation. But with the implication that the orb and Anchor worked together as a whole, it's one possibility.

 

Whatever will happen is, IMO, likely to be addressed at least slightly when they give us significant story DLC as promised.

[Heimdall]

It's never made clear that Solas actually wanted to use the Anchor. It seems that he needed his foci (the orb) for whatever he had planned, but harvesting Flemeth's power might have achieved that same end. 

I always got the impression that the Anchor was purely of Corypheus' making and that it was of no interest to Solas except for repairing the damage to the veil.

 

I was confused when I came onto the forum and people were talking about him wanting the anchor back.  It was clear to me that he wanted the orb, the thing he'd given to Corypheus, for whatever power he was having trouble unlocking.  Taking Mythal's power was clearly his unsavory backup plan.

[Hellion Rex]

I always got the impression that the Anchor was purely of Corypheus' making and that it was of no interest to Solas except for repairing the damage to the veil.

 

I don't really agree. The Anchor I think is bestowed upon whoever managed to open the orb fully. The Anchor indeed probably was the least of what Solas was interested in, but I do believe the Anchor was a part of the natural magic instilled within the foci. The orb gave its wielder an Anchor with which they could part the Veil.

[Heimdall]

I don't really agree. The Anchor I think is bestowed upon whoever managed to open the orb fully. The Anchor indeed probably was the least of what Solas was interested in, but I do believe the Anchor was a part of the natural magic instilled within the foci. The orb gave its wielder an Anchor with which they could part the Veil.

Corypheus says; "What you flail at rifts, I crafted to assault the very heavens."

[Sifr]

Corypheus says; "What you flail at rifts, I crafted to assault the very heavens."

 

Except that in that same conversation he makes it clear he's got a God-complex and a colossal ego, so he's not exactly a reliable narrator?

 

He's not going to say, "What you flail at rifts, is the result of Ancient Elven magic from an Foci I was given by that bald Elf over there", is he?

[Heimdall]

Except that in that same conversation he makes it clear he's got a God-complex and a colossal ego, so he's not exactly a reliable narrator?

 

He's not going to say, "What you flail at rifts, is the result of Ancient Elven magic from an Foci I was given by that bald Elf over there", is he?

Maybe he is, but frankly there's no indication that the orb is anything but a glorified magic battery pack and no contradictory information indicates that he's lying.

[TEWR]

Although we've seen a few instances of the Inquisitor being able to manipulate the Rifts in other ways?

 

The initial Rift at the Breach, the one in the Fallow Mire near Sky Watcher, the Ritual Tower Rift in the Western Approach and the Palace Rift in Halamshiral are all partially closed and dormant, until the Inquisitor opens them and properly seals them? We also see during HTLA that the Rift in the Abyssal Reach that they fall into was dormant until the Inquisitor opened it whilst falling?

 

This suggests that the Inquisitor is slowly gaining more control over the Anchor and can use it to open Rifts, although it's only limited to ones that have already opened for most of the game. However, in the final fight with Corypheus, the Inquisitor appararently was able to open one from nothing to tear Corypheus inside out and throw whatever was left into the Fade?

 

This could have been because the Veil is ridiculously thin now at the Temple of Sacred Ashes, due to the trauma of having two Breaches in short succession knocking down the walls between reality, or possibly because it's the result of the Orb giving them full control over the Anchor?

 

Having more control or at least some degree of power-up after taking the Orb from Corypheus would fit, since they only got the Anchor because they accidentally stumbled into the room and disturbed Corypheus' ritual before it was completed? Having been essentially mid-download could be why they've had so little control over the Anchor and why it was initially killing them? And why they have such degree of skill after taking the Orb from him, as they've finally patched their Anchor with the latest update to actually work properly?

 

Or I'm just ridiculously overthinking the final battle?

 

 

No, you're not overthinking it. Or if you are, then so am I, as I've thought similar thoughts too lol. With the addition of JoH, it's more clear then ever however, as you gain a brand new ability for the Anchor that allows you to create a shield of raw magical energy.

 

One small correction though: In HLTA the Inquisitor didn't open up an already-existing-but-dormant Rift. The Inquisitor created a new one as they were falling. If they had fallen through the one Clarel had created, we would've popped up right in the Nightmare's face, before all ten thousand of his eyes. So the Inquisitor is able to open up new rifts, at least from HLTA on out.

 

Though this is why I honestly feel the decision at the end of HLTA is completely arbitrary and pointless. We've demonstrated control over the Anchor before, so why we have to sacrifice anyone is beyond me other then "DRAMA" and "It's sad someone had to (probably) die". 

 

It wasn't even done that well, tbh. There are other ways drama could've been done that weren't so contrived. Especially if you roll a Stroud world. I like Stroud, I really do, but I can't begrudge anyone who felt like it was an easy decision because they had no connection to the man. Bioware didn't even really work towards making a strong connection.

 

 

Except that in that same conversation he makes it clear he's got a God-complex and a colossal ego, so he's not exactly a reliable narrator?

 

He's not going to say, "What you flail at rifts, is the result of Ancient Elven magic from an Foci I was given by that bald Elf over there", is he?

 

 

To be fair, judging by Solas' lack of understanding on how to deal with the Anchor at first (if it was genuine and not part of his long con) on us and our general lack of knowledge on just what the Orb could do, it is entirely possible the Anchor was crafted by Corypheus. Essentially the orb was a foundation for it, and Corypheus tinkered around with it to get what he wanted.

 

So he could've created something that had its origins through ancient Elven magic/magical items, y'know?

[Korva]

I too wonder if the Anchor isn't in fact Corypheus' creation. The orb belongs to "Solas", who's a Fade-lover extraordinaire and has apparently long dreamed of entering it physically. Surely he would have given himself the Anchor long ago, before he became too weak to use his orb properly, if he had known it was possible?

 

Honestly, there are so many unanswered questions around the orb and the Anchor. They're basically typical Bioware red herrings: thrown in there as this Big And Important Thing ... and then utterly ignored except in a few shallow just-so scenes when the writers finally remember they exist and should maybe, possibly, do something with them. The company has a long history of doing this, of (very briefly) establishing and then ignoring main story aspects in favor of all sorts of unrelated waffling. Inquisition's story would have benefitted a lot from being given more time and depth, and the Anchor is definitely one of the aspects that need more attention. I found it highly unsatisfying that instead of exploring the Anchor, its effects and abillities in at least in a few conversations and scenes, the Inquisitor just does something with it out of nowhere, with no build-up or follow-up when a cutscene demands it.

 

Sure, it was "cool" to see my character knock Erimond arse over feet when he tried to incapacitate her through the Anchor ... but the fact that the Inquisitor can be incapacitated like that is such a huge weakness that I'd expect it to have come up at some point after Haven, in a "How can we prevent this from happening again? As it is, I'm a huge liability in any situation where Corpyheus is around" kind of way. Likewise with snatching the focus from Corypheus. Getting that thing away from him would logically be a factor in any battle plan, not just something we do by the seat of our pants. Instead, it was as if the Inquisition had NO plan for fighting him at all. Sure, let's just wing the battle against an obscenely powerful darkspawn magister would-be god who may or may not still be able to drop our leader to her knees in abject agony and blow up a mountain with that toy of his. We're the heroes, we're guaranteed to win, no need for strategy and tactics.

[laoch101]

I will say one great thing about the anchor is the discussion and theories that come from having it. I've read some really great fan fiction about it. And I definitely think when they give us an dlc about Solas we'll learn more about it.
I wonder if the anchor becomes more important now that the orb is gone. I wonder if Solas finds out he needs it more. And if he's a god why can't he get into the Fade himself?

[Korva]

"God" is a very vague term. In the context of the elven pantheon and the Old God dragons, it probably means little more than "old and powerful but basically still a mortal creature at the core". That mortal/physical existence is why Solas is restricted to walking the Fade in dreams -- hopping into it for real would kill him just like it would kill anyone else who doesn't have the Anchor's protection (or whatever method Corpyheus and company used back in their day, though that didn't end so well for them anyway).