434 réponses à ce sujet

[TheKomandorShepard]

Aside from the fact that i pretty much completely disagree on every point you made for Merrill and Marethari and Audacity "which is a spirit of pride for the Dalish elves since they do not make a difference between  spirits and  demons which Solas already explained are just conversions/transformations of the same beings which doesn't make sense and isn't even properly argumented,on Wynne case she cannot be lied on pretty much anything by the warden and can't be fooled while Morrigan can,that's just show your bias for particular characters even when they demonstrated undeniable quality,in this case for Wynne being an amazing  detector when it comes to lies,yes i ask for why she was capable to do that,simply  becuase she detected the warden as a liar,she didn't go to look for proof on the top of the mountain.

 

Well doesn't matter if you disagree with truth it will stay truth , "spirit of pride" what translates on pride demon , nonetheless she is told almost by every character that comments on this that playing with demons and spirits is stupid and even proven to her fact she couldn't handle dealing with one didn't get through her thin head.

 

Once again you can't lie to Wynne because simply you either have no reason to lie or either simply lie won't/wouldn't work because she knew truth (so she didn't detect lie, she just knew the truth before you could even lie to her...) , well that show rather that you are biased because not only you ignore mentioned fact but also try compare lie told to morrigan where you were her only source of knowledge on Flemeth death and you could support it with some evidence and also have to be good liar to obvious lie and deception where Merril wasn't even reciver and had knowledge that warehouse wasn't on fire and only thing it would took to figure it out is basic use of logic.

[Reznore57]

 

Which is not accurate since she predicted that audacity  may wanted to possess her,but she was not willing to renounce to this project and the pursuing to restore the eluvians,she  took the risk to rebuild a new whole Eluvian and she succeeded and absorbed the knowledge for the benefit of all the elves..

 

With the new information gained from Inquisition, I question how dangerous the Spirit was to Merrill at all.

 

Someone a while back posted a list of events with the choice of how to handle the Mirror was in Merrils hands, as compared to when it was in Marethari's hands.

 

It really got across how well Merrill planned and was prepared for nearly every contingency (Including the possibility of her own possession, insisting that it would require her death as soon as possible), and how quickly Marethari mucked it up and immediately got possessed.

 

 

Marrill is naive, innocent, ignorant of customs outside of the dalish, and stubborn. But she is NOT stupid. Certainly not in matters involving magic and spirits,and no i don't think she is an idiot.

 

 

She is a bit stupid , she thought she would be the only target and the only one in danger , she doesn't understand the concept of collateral damage.

She messes with a demon and blood magic , and a tainted mirror, of course her clan is freaking out.Most people would .

The Keeper , who she told us is like a mother to her , is also very scared for her safety.

The Keeper begs her numerous times to stop it all , she'll even go against the wishes of the clan and take Merrill back ASAP.

 

So in all her wisdom , Merrill in a last effort go speak with the demon which is near her clan.

I'm sure no one is having vapors among the Dalish to see her again walk up the trail to mess with the demon.

Then Marethari go and sacrifice herself for Merrill , ...like any mother would sacrifice herself for her child.Even Merrill says it there is a risk she will get posessed and die.So Marethari and her would have agreed on that except Marethari wasn't going to accept teh risk.

 

The clan probably already on edge get the news Marethari is dead , Merrill is there , and she went to that cave everybody told her again and again to please don't freaking go in there to talk with that freaking demon.

So now obviously they want to skin her alive.

So after dealing with a demon , you now have the angry mob.Smooth plan , Merrill.

 

The last nail in the coffin is Merrill crying on herself , claiming she's so Misunderstood.Except everybody understood perfectly she was willing to die for the cause , deal with demons , use blood magic etc...and they simply disagreed.They didn't think the mirror was worth it.That's all , none of them wanted to risk dying for a mirror.

[In Exile]

 

Which is not accurate since she predicted that audacity  may wanted to possess her,but she was not willing to renounce to this project and the pursuing to restore the eluvians,she  took the risk to rebuild a new whole Eluvian and she succeeded and absorbed the knowledge for the benefit of all the elves..

 

With the new information gained from Inquisition, I question how dangerous the Spirit was to Merrill at all.

 

Someone a while back posted a list of events with the choice of how to handle the Mirror was in Merrils hands, as compared to when it was in Marethari's hands.

 

It really got across how well Merrill planned and was prepared for nearly every contingency (Including the possibility of her own possession, insisting that it would require her death as soon as possible), and how quickly Marethari mucked it up and immediately got possessed.

 

 

Marrill is naive, innocent, ignorant of customs outside of the dalish, and stubborn. But she is NOT stupid. Certainly not in matters involving magic and spirits,and no i don't think she is an idiot.

 

 

As I keep saying it's not about being dangerous to Merrill. Let's use an another example. Let's say I am a brilliant scientist. I have a theory that I can design a cure for Ebola. To test it, I'll have to experiment with it. I take every possible precaution to avoid infecting myself, but no steps whatsoever to prevent or avoid it from escaping containment generally. Because of my lack of protocol, a lab assistant releases the strain, killing hundreds. I'm responsible. 

 

Every person who wants to absolve Merrill is seemingly obsessed with this idea that people are responsible for their own actions, but fundamental to responsibility is preventing foreseeable risks. Audacity having a Plan B - speaking to anyone else who isn't Merrill - isn't just foreseeable, it's self-evident. 

 

I don't think Merrill is wrong for trying to rebuild the Eluvian. I think she's an incompetent and irresponsible for being so careless about it.

 

There's just no possible explanation for this apart from reckless incompetence (or stupidity). Merrill wasn't prepared for any contingency, as is made obvious by the fact that she took 0 steps to prevent Audacity from trying to influence another mage. 

[Ghost Gal]

It's Mighty Whitey. Apparently humans can utilize elven technology and magic better than elves can.

 

(Gotta love how when Morrigan appropriates elven magic and technology, everyone just assumes she knows what she's doing and she's in control. Merrill did extensive research on the Eluvian before she even started putting it back together and proceeded with utmost caution, but everyone just assumes she doesn't know what she's doing and/or is messing with powers too great for her to understand. Never mind that it's her own people's technology...)

[Donquijote and 59 others]

She is a bit stupid , she thought she would be the only target and the only one in danger , she doesn't understand the concept of collateral damage.
She messes with a demon and blood magic , and a tainted mirror, of course her clan is freaking out.Most people would .
The Keeper , who she told us is like a mother to her , is also very scared for her safety.
The Keeper begs her numerous times to stop it all , she'll even go against the wishes of the clan and take Merrill back ASAP.

So in all her wisdom , Merrill in a last effort go speak with the demon which is near her clan.
I'm sure no one is having vapors among the Dalish to see her again walk up the trail to mess with the demon.
Then Marethari go and sacrifice herself for Merrill , ...like any mother would sacrifice herself for her child.

As I keep saying it's not about being dangerous to Merrill. Let's use an another example. Let's say I am a brilliant scientist. I have a theory that I can design a cure for Ebola. To test it, I'll have to experiment with it. I take every possible precaution to avoid infecting myself, but no steps whatsoever to prevent or avoid it from escaping containment generally. Because of my lack of protocol, a lab assistant releases the strain, killing hundreds. I'm responsible.

Every person who wants to absolve Merrill is seemingly obsessed with this idea that people are responsible for their own actions, but fundamental to responsibility is preventing foreseeable risks. Audacity having a Plan B - speaking to anyone else who isn't Merrill - isn't just foreseeable, it's self-evident.

I don't think Merrill is wrong for trying to rebuild the Eluvian. I think she's an incompetent and irresponsible for being so careless about it.

There's just no possible explanation for this apart from reckless incompetence (or stupidity). Merrill wasn't prepared for any contingency, as is made obvious by the fact that she took 0 steps to prevent Audacity from trying to influence another mage.

It's also highly unlikely that Audacity itself had a key or that it was trapped within the hub realm. This calls into question, as many of have already speculated, everything that Marethari said during the events of A New Path.

There is no way to know for certain - so much of the lore is yet unknown and there are elements that may be developed to change things, particularly in the light of what happens in the Temple of Mythal, but the way this appears to me is that Marethari's words regarding paying the price for Merrill's blood magic (coincidentally, I think both Dorian and Solas would agree with Merrill's perspective on blood magic) is a reflection of Marethari succumbing to the Pride demon's temptation.

Marethari believes she can save Merrill. Marethari believes that only she can save Merrill. Marethari also believes she knows enough about the Eluvian that she need not have done any further research into it or to whether or not it could truly have been cleansed. It's why she kept the Sabrae Clan at Sundermount years beyond necessity, to the great concern of her charges.

Marethari fell victim to Pride. How much of her belief that Merrill was in danger was of her own imagination as compared to Audacity's urging is certainly questionable, but in my mind, this appears the most logical explanation given the additional information on Eluvians we gained from Inquisition.

@Reznore57 Marethari didn't sacrificed herself for Merril she got possessed for her own mistake.

@In Exile your argument about responsability to ensure the security of the potential victims that Merril's research could have generated is understandbIe but ultimatly feel a bit hypocrital if it is coming from you or any other DR runners because that's not different when we look at it to the DR situation in which you are toying with a being of whom you know nothing about(excatly what Merril did with Audacity) other than can bring a blight into the world and was the target of an ancient and powerful witch who in the end absorbed it in spite of the security of others.
So coming from DR runners i don't accept the argument.

[Han Shot First]

As I keep saying it's not about being dangerous to Merrill. Let's use an another example. Let's say I am a brilliant scientist. I have a theory that I can design a cure for Ebola. To test it, I'll have to experiment with it. I take every possible precaution to avoid infecting myself, but no steps whatsoever to prevent or avoid it from escaping containment generally. Because of my lack of protocol, a lab assistant releases the strain, killing hundreds. I'm responsible. 

 

Every person who wants to absolve Merrill is seemingly obsessed with this idea that people are responsible for their own actions, but fundamental to responsibility is preventing foreseeable risks. Audacity having a Plan B - speaking to anyone else who isn't Merrill - isn't just foreseeable, it's self-evident. 

 

I don't think Merrill is wrong for trying to rebuild the Eluvian. I think she's an incompetent and irresponsible for being so careless about it.

 

There's just no possible explanation for this apart from reckless incompetence (or stupidity). Merrill wasn't prepared for any contingency, as is made obvious by the fact that she took 0 steps to prevent Audacity from trying to influence another mage. 

 

Well said.

 

It is also no coincidence that the demon antagonist in all of this one whose realm is Pride. Pride was Merrill's sin and her downfall. She repeatedly refused to listen to good advice, because she thought she knew better than everyone else who warned her of the risks she failed to adequately anticipate.

 

She combined pride with a lack of competence...a deadly combo. Either a greater sense of humility or greater competence would have averted the fatal consequences of fiddling with that mirror.

[In Exile]

@In Exile your argument about responsability to ensure the security of the potential victims that Merril's research could have generated is understandbIe but ultimatly feel a bit hypocrital if it is coming from you or any other DR runners because that's not different when we look at it to the DR situation in which you are toying with a being of whom you know nothing about(excatly what Merril did with Audacity) other than can bring a blight into the world and was the target of an ancient and powerful witch who in the end absorbed it in spite of the security of others.
So coming from DR runners i don't accept the argument.

 

This is a weird argument to take, but I disagree fundamentally with your analogy. You are always toying with a being of whom you know absolutely nothing about when it comes to the AD. Killing it the Grey Warden way - which involves taking advance of a blood magic ritual of which you have absolutely no knowledge, didn't even know you are taking part in, and have no instruction regarding, is no different than killing it Morrigan's way - which involves taking advantage of a blood magic ritual of which you have absolutely no knowledge, but did no know you are taking part in. 

 

The fact that Riordan - who ultimately commits suicide in the dumbest way possible - tells you what GWs believe about the AD doesn't make it true, or even accurate, any more than what Morrigan tells you is accurate. 

 

Apart from choosing between trusting Morrigan and Riordan, you're choosing what risk you're taking - the risk that the OG is worth preserving, versus not. You might think that you want a perpetual cycle of ADs, based on what happens to the dwarves. 

 

It's also highly unlikely that Audacity itself had a key or that it was trapped within the hub realm. This calls into question, as many of have already speculated, everything that Marethari said during the events of A New Path.

There is no way to know for certain - so much of the lore is yet unknown and there are elements that may be developed to change things, particularly in the light of what happens in the Temple of Mythal, but the way this appears to me is that Marethari's words regarding paying the price for Merrill's blood magic (coincidentally, I think both Dorian and Solas would agree with Merrill's perspective on blood magic) is a reflection of Marethari succumbing to the Pride demon's temptation.

Marethari believes she can save Merrill. Marethari believes that only she can save Merrill. Marethari also believes she knows enough about the Eluvian that she need not have done any further research into it or to whether or not it could truly have been cleansed. It's why she kept the Sabrae Clan at Sundermount years beyond necessity, to the great concern of her charges.

Marethari fell victim to Pride. How much of her belief that Merrill was in danger was of her own imagination as compared to Audacity's urging is certainly questionable, but in my mind, this appears the most logical explanation given the additional information on Eluvians we gained from Inquisition.

Marethari absolutely got played by Audacity. That's my point. In fact, I think Marethari was always the target. Merrill's responsibility here extends to considering whether Audacity could play Marethari. This isn't an argument that helps Merrill. 

[Han Shot First]

It's Mighty Whitey. Apparently humans can utilize elven technology and magic better than elves can.

 

(Gotta love how when Morrigan appropriates elven magic and technology, everyone just assumes she knows what she's doing and she's in control. Merrill did extensive research on the Eluvian before she even started putting it back together and proceeded with utmost caution, but everyone just assumes she doesn't know what she's doing and/or is messing with powers too great for her to understand. Never mind that it's her own people's technology...)

 

Merrill didn't know what she was doing however, as demonstrated by the disastrous results of her poorly thought out plan.

[In Exile]

It's Mighty Whitey. Apparently humans can utilize elven technology and magic better than elves can.

 

(Gotta love how when Morrigan appropriates elven magic and technology, everyone just assumes she knows what she's doing and she's in control. Merrill did extensive research on the Eluvian before she even started putting it back together and proceeded with utmost caution, but everyone just assumes she doesn't know what she's doing and/or is messing with powers too great for her to understand. Never mind that it's her own people's technology...)

 

Morrigan is trained by Mythal, whose entire plan is for Morrigan to become its next host. It's the same reason why she can use the power of the Well of Mythal in a way that the Inquisitor cannot. She doesn't appropriate it. She's the closest thing to an heiress of it. 

 

Not to mention that it's not Merril's people's technology. As both Abelas and Solas point out, the modern elves are nothing like their predecessors. It's the technology of the ancient elvhen, who were all beings that no longer can even exist in Thedas with the Veil. If anything, Merrill (and the Dalish) are the ones appropriating the technology and legacy of a people that isn't their own.

[Donquijote and 59 others]

 Killing it the Grey Warden way - which involves taking advance of a blood magic ritual of which you have absolutely no knowledge, didn't even know you are taking part in, and have no instruction regarding, is no different than killing it Morrigan's way - which involves taking advantage of a blood magic ritual of which you have absolutely no knowledge, but did no know you are taking part in. 

 

The fact that Riordan - who ultimately commits suicide in the dumbest way possible - tells you what GWs believe about the AD doesn't make it true, or even accurate, any more than what Morrigan tells you is accurate. 

 

 

Causing it not to be an Archdemon is another option, if we assume it will work. And you do have to assume: if Morrigan has a proof-of-concept to show you, she somehow fails to do so. So, in addition to the point you concede where the Warden doesn't know what the long term consequences are, if you're not metagaming you kinda have to take it on faith that you know what the short term are and that's not so much different than what Merril did.

But based on the information the grey warden had at the time, there was no reason to believe that darkspawn would not hunt this reborn old god, turn him into an archdemon and start another blight. And there was also the risk that Morrigan was wrong or lying, or that something goes wrong and whatnot. 

Riordan's attempt to kill the archdemon has nothing to do with his trustworthiness when it comes to what he said at Redcliffe.

You don't have to believe him about what is saying about the US in Redclieffe since you have proof of concept by Thedas history that is true,it isn't a matter of trust anymore when you have the historical proof(All the others Archdemons who never show up again and were killed in the same way..).

 

Morrigan is trained by Mythal, whose entire plan is for Morrigan to become its next host. It's the same reason why she can use the power of the Well of Mythal in a way that the Inquisitor cannot. She doesn't appropriate it. She's the closest thing to an heiress of it. 

 

As both Abelas and Solas point out, the modern elves are nothing like their predecessors. It's the technology of the ancient elvhen, who were all beings that no longer can even exist in Thedas with the Veil. If anything, Merrill (and the Dalish) are the ones appropriating the technology and legacy of a people that isn't their own.

For this i will make a little bit of references from other user(of whom i share the opinion) and also some from Gaider.

 

From S.W.

 I don't really buy that being a daughter of Flemeth gave her too much of an advantage. Flemeth concealed a lot from Morrigan and always pushed her into finding answers herself rather than providing them for Morrigan on a platter. Plus, that little hut of theirs was hardly crammed with books, after all. Morrigan was also relatively uninterested in eluvians during the events of Origins - her interest in eluvians came two years later, during Witch Hunt. Of course, Morrigan could have concealed this from us, as she did the Dark Ritual. I would like to know if a Dalish elf ever has a unique conversation on the topic actually - I haven't got that far with it myself. I personally think it's much more likely this is something she's discovered in research post-blight (and quite possibly from one of Flemeth's grimoires). She mentions the crossroads was as much a place to hide from enemies, and likely her interest in the eluvians spawned from a practical standpoint too, as she was no longer under the protection of Flemeth or the Warden after the blight.

 

From Gaider in regard of the whole inheritor thing if you like others used the designers notes.

http://forum.bioware...tood/?bioware=1

so that's not still canon.

 

-

 

-As for the Inquisitor who is unable to shapeshift into a dragon that's only because the Inquisitor isn't a shapeshifter.

 

The modern elves are the closest thing to the ancient immortal elves certainly more than humans,they only have the capacity to see the crossroads as it is,they only have the potential to reveal the lights of arlathan and their blood is old like the one of the ancient elves

(see what Urthemiel said) also Ariane is ht eonly one who can revela the ancient guardians.

 

 

She combined pride with a lack of competence...a deadly combo. Either a greater sense of humility or greater competence would have averted the fatal consequences of fiddling with that mirror.

Exactly no different with Morrigan when it comes to the well of sorrow or even the Dark ritual since ultimately she was played and used by FLemeth twice.

[Han Shot First]

 

Exactly no different with Morrigan when it comes to the well of sorrow or even the Dark ritual since ultimately she was played and used by FLemeth twice.

 

 

It is quite a bit different.

 

Flemeth/Mythal isn't a purely malevolent entity, unlike a Pride demon, and neither drinking from the Well of Sorrow or the Dark Ritual has yet resulted in anyone dying. In fact the latter saved lives. 

 

Merrill on the other hand gets manipulated by an entity that even the most novice of mages knows is never be trusted, as it is a manifestation of pure evil, and allowing the demon to play her like a fiddle results in people dying.

 

The only similarity between the two is that both characters are arrogant. Morrigan's arrogance however, has not yet had fatal consequences. 

[Bardox9]

Morrigan is arrogant, but with good reason. She was trained her entire life by the Witch of the Wilds after all. Flemeth would not have allowed Morrigan out of the wilds if she was not properly prepared to face the dangers outside. Merrill (the DA2 version) is a foolish child who is ignorant of the true dangers of magic as is evident by her willingness to place her trust in a demon. Further evidence being the quest in the fade of DA2. The Keeper sent her away because she was a danger to the clan.

 

Morrigan is a far superior mage.... and sexier too.... I'm biased though as Morrigan is my beau.  

[Xilizhra]

It is quite a bit different.

 

Flemeth/Mythal isn't a purely malevolent entity, unlike a Pride demon, and neither drinking from the Well of Sorrow or the Dark Ritual has yet resulted in anyone dying. In fact the latter saved lives. 

 

Merrill on the other hand gets manipulated by an entity that even the most novice of mages knows is never be trusted, as it is a manifestation of pure evil, and allowing the demon to play her like a fiddle results in people dying.

 

The only similarity between the two is that both characters are arrogant. Morrigan's arrogance however, has not yet had fatal consequences. 

Manipulated how? She doesn't go near the thing for seven years. Audacity's little favor was part of the plan to manipulate Marethari; Merrill was ultimately insignificant.

 

 

Morrigan is trained by Mythal, whose entire plan is for Morrigan to become its next host. It's the same reason why she can use the power of the Well of Mythal in a way that the Inquisitor cannot. She doesn't appropriate it. She's the closest thing to an heiress of it. 

 

Not to mention that it's not Merril's people's technology. As both Abelas and Solas point out, the modern elves are nothing like their predecessors. It's the technology of the ancient elvhen, who were all beings that no longer can even exist in Thedas with the Veil. If anything, Merrill (and the Dalish) are the ones appropriating the technology and legacy of a people that isn't their own.

Of course it's Merrill's people's technology. They may be crippled and diseased, but elves are still elves, and no amount of Fade screwery will change that. The line of heritage is unbroken.

[Rekkampum]

In response to the OP, one is the daughter of an Elvhen Goddess, the other isn't. Morrigan has the privilege of access to knowledge Merrill is simply incapable of acquiring conventionally. I don't think she's a failure though.

[Ryzaki]

Yeah it's simply a matter of Morrigan having a far more potent source to learn from than Merrill ever could. It's not really a fair comparison.

[Gothfather]

Bioware hates elves so they write elves as incompetent, selfish and arrogant. That is all. At this point, in the next game, I expect all elves in Thedas to wear diapers or else they'll poop themselves because they can't do anything right.

 

It's getting old. Especially since we all know from real life that humans are the ones who are incompetent, selfish and arrogant. But I guess that's a little too close to home for Bioware.

 

wah wah wah Bioware doesn't ascribe to "Elven Exceptionalism" wah wah wah.

 

Sorry your favourite race turned out to be just a culpable for the ills of the world as every other group in Thedas. Bioware's even handedness in making NO innocence is obvious derived from hatred of an imaginary species.

 

Seriously? I really HATE elf fans just as much as I hate templar fans and mage fans. You people are fraking crazed. 'My preferred imaginary group are all white hates and innocent it is those other imaginary people that are evil. Bioware sucks because it is obvious hate that motivated them to write in content that proves my preferred group isn't 100% perfect.' Just STFU

 

Gamers are the WORSE consumers in the world.

[Han Shot First]

Manipulated how? She doesn't go near the thing for seven years. Audacity's little favor was part of the plan to manipulate Marethari; Merrill was ultimately insignificant.

 

Even if Marethari was the original target for possession, Audacity used Merrill as it's unwitting catspaw. She gets manipulated by the demon to achieve the demon's own ends, with fatal results. Remove Merrill from the equation and the demon has no means of effecting it's plans. Merrill was the key to the plot, and a complete and total fool in falling for it. Worse, she's an arrogant fool who refused to heed multiple warnings that playing with that demon was also playing with fire.

[diaspora2k5]

The problem with Morrigan is we don't know what the hell she was doing so making a comparison is going to be impossible.

[ThePhoenixKing]

The problem with Morrigan is we don't know what the hell she was doing so making a comparison is going to be impossible.

 

Agreed. It would have been nice to see exactly how Morrigan went about restoring the Eluvian, or what specifically gave her the technical edge over Merrill. Of course, that would have given the game less time to spend on Corypheus being a lousy villain or Sera whinging about how magic is strange and strange things are bad, so alas, it was not to be.

[Han Shot First]

It is a safe bet that Morrigan didn't use a demon to restore the Eluvian. Morrigan refuses to bargain with a demon in DA:O, and is even scornful of it's attempt to make a pact. She doesn't have the same empty-headed, "Oh, it's just a spirit" philosophy that Merrill has.

[Xilizhra]

Even if Marethari was the original target for possession, Audacity used Merrill as it's unwitting catspaw. She gets manipulated by the demon to achieve the demon's own ends, with fatal results. Remove Merrill from the equation and the demon has no means of effecting it's plans. Merrill was the key to the plot, and a complete and total fool in falling for it. Worse, she's an arrogant fool who refused to heed multiple warnings that playing with that demon was also playing with fire.

No, she wasn't.

 

Audacity didn't use Merrill for anything except as a way to spook Marethari at the very beginning, and the idea that Merrill should have been able to foresee Marethari becoming so twisted is kind of ludicrous, given Merrill's nigh-filial love for her.

[Han Shot First]

No, she wasn't.

 

Audacity didn't use Merrill for anything except as a way to spook Marethari at the very beginning, and the idea that Merrill should have been able to foresee Marethari becoming so twisted is kind of ludicrous, given Merrill's nigh-filial love for her.

 

You're allowing fandom of a character to blind you to her flaws. How does Audacity possess Marehari without Merrill tinkering with the mirror?

 

Whether Merrill or Marethari was the end goal for Audacity, it needed someone to colloborate with it in order to free itself. That person was Merrill. Merrill was the demon's catspaw to possessing Marethari, whether or not Marethari had always been the end goal.

[Xilizhra]

You're allowing fandom of a character to blind you to her flaws. How does Audacity possess Marehari without Merrill tinkering with the mirror?

 

Whether Merrill or Marethari was the end goal for Audacity, it needed someone to colloborate with it in order to free itself. That person was Merrill. Merrill was the demon's catspaw to possessing Marethari, whether or not Marethari had always been the end goal.

All right, there is a spot where Merrill erred. But A. it had nothing to do with the Eluvian directly, and B. she's the least culpable member of her clan in it.

 

Merrill's concern was for dangers stemming from her own work, to herself and her surroundings, and in that area, she was completely safe. What she forgot about was the fact that Audacity was still present on Sundermount and still able to be in contact with Marethari and the rest of the clan; the idea that the demon could be corrupting them instead apparently didn't enter her mind. But it's not an error that I blame her for very much, because no one else saw it coming either.

[ShadowLordXII]

wah wah wah Bioware doesn't ascribe to "Elven Exceptionalism" wah wah wah.

 

Sorry your favourite race turned out to be just a culpable for the ills of the world as every other group in Thedas. Bioware's even handedness in making NO innocence is obvious derived from hatred of an imaginary species.

 

Seriously? I really HATE elf fans just as much as I hate templar fans and mage fans. You people are fraking crazed. 'My preferred imaginary group are all white hates and innocent it is those other imaginary people that are evil. Bioware sucks because it is obvious hate that motivated them to write in content that proves my preferred group isn't 100% perfect.' Just STFU

 

Gamers are the WORSE consumers in the world.

 

No, allow me to try and clarify in response to your pigeonholing.

 

I am not speaking for more extreme or rabid fans either. However, it is clear that there are aspects of how Inquisition treats elves and the dalish that comes off as unnatural compared to previous games. It essentially comes off as heavy-handed "back-tracking" rather than being even-handed expansion.

 

Just as one example: The Dalish 3 mage rule is a lazy retcon. It serves as a retcon for the fact that it contradicts with the essence of dalish culture and how they have overall treated their mages with a great deal of respect, trust, honor and humanity. It also makes no sense to throw out extra mages to die when the dalish hold mages as valuable since they believe that all elves had magic once. This is also something that was NEVER brought up in previous games or even previous books for that matter.

 

It's clear that this rule was thrown in just to put the Dalish down a peg so that they don't seem vastly better in terms of mage treatment than the Chantry. But it's too little and too late after two games of showing how and the Circle system was bound to fail with a civil war as its result. For instance, The Chantry also authorized hunting mages outside of the Circle and assume that they're all dangerous regardless of whether they practice demonology/blood magic or not. Regardless of whether they use their magic for good or evil. As opposed to the Dalish who are willing to take-in outsider elves from the Circle and the Alienages with open arms and some clans are capable of having reasonably amiable relations with human settlements.

 

So even if this rule isn't a retcon (it is, but still), it would still fail in its apparent attempt to put the Dalish on the same level as the Chantry. Because the Dalish would STILL be far better in its treatment of mages than the Chantry.

 

Abelas' account doesn't absolve Tevinter of destroying Arlathan or enslaving its people for hundreds of years while destroying their culture and dignity, but the game acts like its all the fault of the elves.

 

The Red Crossing incident doesn't absolve Orlais of their part in the escalation of hostilities and stripping the elves of their autonomy and kingdom, but you wouldn't know that from how the game treats the situation.

 

Oh and note how the game is quiet about the Alienages and the crap that they have to go through? Probably because that would blow a hole in the writer's attempts to say that "elves aren't better than humans" narrative that they're apparently championing. No wonder we couldn't have a City elf Inquisitor, they'd likely let Orlais burn considering how notoriously bad that the country treats the elves there.

 

Overall, my point is that there's a way to portray the new information that the game brought up and Inquisition went about it in the wrong way. Hence, it comes off as annoying heavy-handed brow-beating rather than naturally introducing a new dynamic to the elves of Thedas. No one was ever saying that the elves of Dragon Age were perfect, yet the writers are going out their way to bash an already downtrodden target for sake of an agenda.

 

That's what "elven fans" are against. Bioware is better than that.

_______

 

As for the OP at hand. I'd say that the reason that Morrigan seems more competent is because she had a great start while Merrill had to work from scratch. Morrigan is clearly the stronger mage, but that doesn't mean that Merrill's worthless by comparison.

 

Morrigan had an edge in that he was taught by her mother who was possessed by Mythal herself. She also had access to wider forms of magic which allowed her to build on her knowledge step by step. 

 

In that context, I'd argue that Merrill did a great job with what she was working with. She just didn't account for Marethari's actions. Merrill knew what she was getting into and made precautions to protect herself, among them was also teaming up with Hawke and company. It's a testament in itself that despite using blood magic and dabbling in demon arts, Merrill never allowed those things to control her. She used them as tools for a greater goal, she recognized those tools as being dangerous and yet, she never let those tools control her in the end.

 

And as Inquisition shows, Merrill's efforts do pay off. Her eluvian is shown in the Crossroads if it's not destroyed in DA2.

 

That's amazing. Merrill created a working eluvian from scratch. She found a shard of an ancient magic mirror, restructured it into a full mirror and got it to work WITHOUT the demon's help.

 

"claps"

 

For all of her knowledge and power, my lady Morrigan has yet to top that.

[Patchwork]

Morrigan's human mother carrying the remnant spirit of an elf doesn't give Morrigan a greater right to elven artifacts and magic over an actual elf. If she wasn't so selfish and arrogant she would teach the techniques that according to her make her the better recipient of the Wells' power. 

 

I like Morrigan because she is flawed but brilliant in all the ways someone with her upbringing would be. Admittedly we haven't seen a lot of Alistair since DOA but what we have makes me think that the writers for Leliana and Morrigan put more thought into what they would be like after ten years than his did. Which is sad because I love DOA Alistair but I'm also grateful that Leliana and Morrigan were allowed to change and grow to reflect that time didn't stand still, life went on. 

 

...that ramble came out of nowhere back on topic; I don't think Morrigan is better than Merrill, she simply benefited from an intact eluvian, two of her mother's grimoires and a unique education in magic. However I do think Merrill has more knowledge of eluvians, specifically how to craft one, because she had to build hers from a tainted shard.  

 

So if I wanted to talk eluvians I'd go to Merrill but if I wanted to know more about some other ancient magic it would be Morrigan.