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[X Equestris]

But there was no Arl of Amaranthine at that time.

The office exists no matter what. And Maric had likely made Rendon the Arl by the point this story takes place. He probably made him Arl a while ago. After all, Rendon had served the rebels with distinction, regardless of what his father did.

[Dai Grepher]

mang I even put a tl;dr in the last two sentences of the post, but to rephrase:

there are historical examples of really old people actually doing army stuff so saying that the Cousland family history is ridiculous because it features a really old person doing army stuff isn't a particularly strong criticism

and considering the MUCH LARGER issues with plausibility that the games and setting have, bringing up a really old person doing army stuff is a case of bizarre priorities in my opinion

 

Aimi, I read everything you posted and I respect the time you put into it. I will agree with you that old age does not necessarily disprove the new backstory. I will maintain however that old age would make William's success less likely. In other words, the new backstory would make William's less believable, though not impossible. Thank you for reading and replying.

[Dai Grepher]

The office exists no matter what. And Maric had likely made Rendon the Arl by the point this story takes place. He probably made him Arl a while ago.

 

http://dragonage.wik...iki/Howe_family

 

This states that King Maric only made Rendon arl after the war was won. But this is vague (it is the wiki after all, so I don't know if that's in the canon or not). It might actually be completely wrong.

 

http://dragonage.wik..._of_Amaranthine

 

That is a codex, but it only says that King Maric decorated Rendon for his service.

 

The new backstory states that Bryce claimed the title of teyrn after four months, and this was following the Battle of Denerim Harbor, and then proposed to Eleanor at Maric's official coronation ceremony.

 

So according to that it would have gone; battle, return to Highever, four months, Bryce becomes teyrn, coronation, Maric is officially named King, then Rendon is decorated by King Maric.

 

So this is all kind of vague. I will add this argument however...

 

If Rendon was made Arl of Amaranthine first, then why would any of the freeholders not have sworn to him already? They could not have sworn to Bryce if they were already sworn to Rendon. Also, if Bryce was not even teyrn yet, then how could any freeholders swear fealty to him? He wasn't even a bann.

 

Another thing, arls are just banns who are chosen as vassals by a teyrn. So it would have to be; Bryce becomes teyrn, then Rendon is given Amaranthine and named arl by Bryce.

 

I'm thinking whoever wrote Eleanor's new backstory didn't understand the system of nobility in Ferelden and didn't even bother to look.

[X Equestris]

I just came across the account of White River in WoT2, and it explains things about Howe a bit. Rendon wasn't liked at all. His father was a traitor, and some of the banns thought Byron's nine-year-old daughter should become Arlessa. So many held off swearing fealty as long as they could, and those along the border pledged themselves to Highever. To give you an idea of how poorly Rendon was respected, no one but Bryce and Eleanor attended his wedding

[andy6915]

I take back what I said earlier. You were right, a lot of the timeline dates in WoT don't add up. This topic showed me that.-

 

http://forum.bioware...hantry-chantry/

 

You initial motivation was because your head-canon was stepped on, but that doesn't diminish the fact that there are issues.

[Dai Grepher]

I just came across the account of White River in WoT2, and it explains things about Howe a bit. Rendon wasn't liked at all. His father was a traitor, and some of the banns thought Byron's nine-year-old daughter should become Arlessa. So many held off swearing fealty as long as they could, and those along the border pledged themselves to Highever. To give you an idea of how poorly Rendon was respected, no one but Bryce and Eleanor attended his wedding

 

Thanks for posting that. This plot makes even less sense. Rendon actually joined the rebellion before Byron did. Byron went along with Megrehn and really only doubted him because he turned his nose up at Byron's gift. Odd that they would want a 9-year-old girl over Rendon, who went against his own father and joined the cause when the going was tough. And according to Leonas, Rendon only changed after White River.

 

What does it say about White River? Does it describe any of the action?

[Dai Grepher]

I take back what I said earlier. You were right, a lot of the timeline dates in WoT don't add up. This topic showed me that.-

 

http://forum.bioware...hantry-chantry/

 

You initial motivation was because your head-canon was stepped on, but that doesn't diminish the fact that there are issues.

 

I appreciate that.

[Kantr]

Where are these human arcane warriors in DA:O?

[andy6915]

Where are these human arcane warriors in DA:O?

One in the Sacred Ashes temple as a cultist, another in an illegal proving match in Orzammar. And I think a third one somewhere, but can't recall exactly.

[Dai Grepher]

It's possible they received their knowledge from drinking dragon blood at some point.

[X Equestris]

Thanks for posting that. This plot makes even less sense. Rendon actually joined the rebellion before Byron did. Byron went along with Megrehn and really only doubted him because he turned his nose up at Byron's gift. Odd that they would want a 9-year-old girl over Rendon, who went against his own father and joined the cause when the going was tough. And according to Leonas, Rendon only changed after White River.
 
What does it say about White River? Does it describe any of the action?

As far as White River, it mentions that in the wake of Queen Moira's death, there was debate between her generals about what to do next. Arl Rendorn Guerrin kept his men in the Hinterlands while they looked for Maric, but Bann Angus Eremon, commander of the Army of the North, was concerned about the Orlesian advance on the Hinterlands. So he took his army and fortified the White River valley. For two days the Fereldans held the valley against the chevaliers, but during an attack on the second night they began to fall apart. It was at this time Rendon was wounded. Bann Eremon died trying to sound the retreat, and since there was only one way out of the valley, the Orlesians rode them down as they fled. As we knew, only fifty Fereldans (out of a thousand) escaped.

The survivors stopped at a freehold in the Hinterlands, where they only survived because Leonas Bryland convinced the pursuers that the rebels had fled into the Frostbacks. Howe spent most of the rest of the war recovering from his wounds in South Reach, where he met Leonas' sister. Elaine followed him when he returned to Amaranthine, and when she hadn't left after a year, Howe proposed marriage. Leonas tried to talk both of them out of it, but his sister, and Howe said he needed her for her dowry and connections.

I think this is part of why he wasn't liked. His manner became abrasive after White River, which did nothing to endear him to the freeholders or banns. In contrast, Byron, even though he had remained loyal to Meghren for quite a while, was well liked by the people of Amaranthine. And alongside that legacy, there is a trend among lower nobility, both in real life and in universe, to support children as heirs because they can be more easily manipulated. Howe's marriage to a half-Orlesian probably didn't help him with the freeholders and banns, either.

[Kantr]

Then later in life he goes and murders the only two people to show up at his wedding

[Jedi Master of Orion]

I get the sense the main text is written differently than the first volume. There's no handy key at the start of the book telling you what is impartial and what is not, and the tone of the author seems less detached an encyclopedic. It's appears written much further in universe, with certain biases and opinions of the author occasionally shining through.

 

For instance, it sometimes refers to the Maker and Andraste as "our Maker" and "Our Lady." It also appears to advance a certain thesis when it comes to certain topics. In that way it reminds me a lot of when different scholars who do research into biblical history they can often come away with very different conclusions.

 

For example, on the topic of Maferath, the first volume simply stated that according different versions Maferath might have been motivated by jealousy or by practical concern they could not win the war.

 

In this volume, there's a paragraph talking about the importance of "we" [historians] needing to be apologists for the harsh truth that make them unwelcome in halls of worship. And it talks about the differences between how the faithful remember Andraste's Exalted March and how history remembers it. Basically, it seems to imply that Mafterath did the right thing. It also paints Andraste as the ultimate idealist that was sort of blind to practical concerns. Funnily enough, there's a brief line in The Masked Empire where Celene considers the works on Andraste's life that suggests the opposite: that Andraste was actually a lot more pragmatic than the Chantry might like to remember her.

 

I suppose it's hard to tell sometimes given that our characters have dramatic adventures that are true in the games but, I remember feeling like the section on the first Archon Darinius sounded like it was repeating a possibly embellished Tevinter legend rather than a historical account because it's filled with things that would make a good story. Such as the future Archon being smuggled away as a baby left in a basket while his treacherous uncle murdered his mother, then the subsequent hero's journey rising through the ranks of the Priesthood of Dumat, ignorant of his royal heritage, to avenging his mother and becoming ruler of the neromenian kingdoms. Also forging relations with the dwarves by personally taking part in the proving and singlehandedly defeating many champions before impressing the Dwarven King himself by fighting him for several hours. 

 

I don't know if this is a theme of the book, or a coincidence or the actual direction Bioware wants to take now, but I kind of get the sense elves are almost specifically forgotten or left out.

 

The section on Archon Thalasian destroying Arlathan seems to retcon thousands of years of history between elves and humans because it says the Imperium was unaware of the existence of elves before they destroyed Aralthan. It also contradicts what Abelas said on the subject, which is not surprising since the page on Abelas immediately dismisses him as a deluded leader of an elven sect that somehow convinced himself that he was immortal. And it suggests this is surely the case based on the fact that "he talked about Mythal as if she were a living god and not a story." 

 

The section on the source criticism of the Chant of Light also suggests that Shartan might not actually have existed at all, and may have just been an ideal from the various elven slave rebellions. Even though we know from the game that the Temple of Sacred Ashes has an actual memory of him (or I assume that's what those ghostly visions were.)

 

Part of the section on Kordillus Drakon bafflingly almost seems to forget the Dales existed at all, because it says he conquered well into modern day Ferelden and helped stamp out remnants of the Cult of the Old Gods and various Alamarri beliefs there. But how could he have done this if an elven Kingdom was in between the Orlesian Heartland and the Ferelden Valley? Did he he his armies to conquer completely around it?

[Mike3207]

One in the Sacred Ashes temple as a cultist, another in an illegal proving match in Orzammar. And I think a third one somewhere, but can't recall exactly.

I'm pretty sure the one in the Proving Match is elven.

[andy6915]

I'm pretty sure the one in the Proving Match is elven.

So... What?

[Mike3207]

The previous comment referred to human arcane warriors-and I thought you referred to both of them being human.