11 réponses à ce sujet

[TheKat]

Now, I'm prepared to admit I may be just not getting it, but what is the point of the quest? I've completed it and read the diary, but... what is going on? It just seems like a pointless waste. Is 'mother' a demon? Is the diary writer slowly going insane? Why did they have to move? 'Mother' appears to be dead in the first entry, but she's back again, and it seems to switch between the perspective of a male and female. It just seems like a quest that was meant to have a couple of parts and was never completed, or something added just to give a points boost.

 

[berelinde]

The Emerald Graves has a lot of displaced families because of the civil war. People are moving away from the fighting, and trying to escape the Freemen, who seem to be helping themselves to whatever isn't nailed down. I got the impression that the girl was going insane because of the stress of trying to provide for her family when she was a child herself, but the demon posing as her mother is also a possibility.

[Magdalena11]

I got the impression that the journal was written by a young mother, mourning the loss of her mother, and then becoming mind controlled by a shade of her, because of the way the journal "forgets" she's dead, referring to her as present, and loses track of her child and starts thinking it was a dog.  The Dales are full of those poignant notes.  The one I think is the best is the one on the Exalted Plains where you pick up the blood-soaked teddy bear loot item.  If I haven't done the Abyss yet, I hold on to it until I've done the child's fear, then I can sell it.  It's silly, but it makes me feel better about those sad notes.  I don't think there's any hidden significance, just fleshing out the emotional state of the region.

[TheKat]

Thanks to both of you, it kind of makes more sense now.

[Krypplingz]

Here is one more theory if that's okay. 

 

Long rambly version inside spoilers, short and sweet version below. 

Spoiler

Betta, Liesel and Yves are fleeing Orlais because of the Civil War. I think Liesel is Bettas lady in waiting, but she could be her sister, servant, aunt or friend. Yves is Liesel's baby boy. The trio flee Orlais and while running they find an abandoned house in the forest with a demon inside it. (I think the house Chateau d'Onterre and the demon is the friend from that quest.).

 

The demon makes contact with Betta, pretending to be her mother.

I'm guessing that the demon messes with Betta's mind like the Desire Demon did with the Templar in the Circle of Ferelden. Making Betta see what the demon wants her to see and do things the demon wanted her to do. So Betta might think she's helping someone bathe while she is in fact drowning them. I think the demon might be a desire demon, fueling on Betta's desire for the simpler times when she was a kid, while mother was alive and there wasn't a war going on. Which is why the journal entries become more childlike after they find the house. 

Anyways.The demon convinces Betta to trap Liesel and Yves on the second floor. [Liesel and Yves have been gone a long time.-snip- Mother made a bed for them upstairs].
Then the demon makes Betta kill Yves, fooling Betta that she's helping Yves sleep. [Young ones need their sleep.]. Liesel either witnesses Betta kill him or finds Yves body, freaks out and tries to escape the house or hide herself. So the demon starts a demented game of hide and seek [Mother and I played a hiding game in the house. I found Liesel! She didn't like it when I found her. She was screaming about "Yves"].
The hide and seek ends with either Betta or the demon killing Liesel. [Mother told Liesel to be quiet; she was ruining the game].

Now Liesel and Yves are dead, leaving the demon and Betta alone in the house. Since the demon has no one else to torment, it turns it's eyes to Betta, playing on her guilty feelings. [Mother says I bore her. -snip- She got sicker because of me.] Eventually the demon tells Betta to go and gather Crystal Grace by the waterfall, either knowing that she'll fall or it convinces her to jump. Or just flat out pushes her to her death.

 

Betta is fleeing the Civil War in Orlais with Liesel and Yves. Liesel is either Betta's servant or sister and Yves is Liesel's baby boy. The trio finds and abandoned house in the woods and decides to stay there for a while to rest for a day or two. 

There is a demon in the house and it takes control of Betta, pretending to be her mother. The demon makes Betta kill Liesel and Yves, then sends Betta to her death via waterfall. 

[Magdalena11]

 

Here is one more theory if that's okay. 

 

Long rambly version inside spoilers, short and sweet version below. 

Spoiler

Betta, Liesel and Yves are fleeing Orlais because of the Civil War. I think Liesel is Bettas lady in waiting, but she could be her sister, servant, aunt or friend. Yves is Liesel's baby boy. The trio flee Orlais and while running they find an abandoned house in the forest with a demon inside it. (I think the house Chateau d'Onterre and the demon is the friend from that quest.).

 

The demon makes contact with Betta, pretending to be her mother.

I'm guessing that the demon messes with Betta's mind like the Desire Demon did with the Templar in the Circle of Ferelden. Making Betta see what the demon wants her to see and do things the demon wanted her to do. So Betta might think she's helping someone bathe while she is in fact drowning them. I think the demon might be a desire demon, fueling on Betta's desire for the simpler times when she was a kid, while mother was alive and there wasn't a war going on. Which is why the journal entries become more childlike after they find the house. 

Anyways.The demon convinces Betta to trap Liesel and Yves on the second floor. [Liesel and Yves have been gone a long time.-snip- Mother made a bed for them upstairs].
Then the demon makes Betta kill Yves, fooling Betta that she's helping Yves sleep. [Young ones need their sleep.]. Liesel either witnesses Betta kill him or finds Yves body, freaks out and tries to escape the house or hide herself. So the demon starts a demented game of hide and seek [Mother and I played a hiding game in the house. I found Liesel! She didn't like it when I found her. She was screaming about "Yves"].
The hide and seek ends with either Betta or the demon killing Liesel. [Mother told Liesel to be quiet; she was ruining the game].

Now Liesel and Yves are dead, leaving the demon and Betta alone in the house. Since the demon has no one else to torment, it turns it's eyes to Betta, playing on her guilty feelings. [Mother says I bore her. -snip- She got sicker because of me.] Eventually the demon tells Betta to go and gather Crystal Grace by the waterfall, either knowing that she'll fall or it convinces her to jump. Or just flat out pushes her to her death.

 

Betta is fleeing the Civil War in Orlais with Liesel and Yves. Liesel is either Betta's servant or sister and Yves is Liesel's baby boy. The trio finds and abandoned house in the woods and decides to stay there for a while to rest for a day or two. 

There is a demon in the house and it takes control of Betta, pretending to be her mother. The demon makes Betta kill Liesel and Yves, then sends Betta to her death via waterfall. 

 

That's some nice detective work.  I think you're right, and the journal quotes prove it pretty completely.  I had wondered why the journal was found right next to Chateau Onterre, and your explanation makes perfect sense.  They didn't live there, but they would be looking for shelter, and why not pick somplace posh?  I confess, I adore that little area of the map and save it as a treat for after something frustrating.  Motherly Encouragement is such a disturbing quest, and solving the riddle is soothing.  Thanks.

[Dieb]

 

Here is one more theory if that's okay. 

 

Long rambly version inside spoilers, short and sweet version below. 

Spoiler

Betta, Liesel and Yves are fleeing Orlais because of the Civil War. I think Liesel is Bettas lady in waiting, but she could be her sister, servant, aunt or friend. Yves is Liesel's baby boy. The trio flee Orlais and while running they find an abandoned house in the forest with a demon inside it. (I think the house Chateau d'Onterre and the demon is the friend from that quest.).

 

The demon makes contact with Betta, pretending to be her mother.

I'm guessing that the demon messes with Betta's mind like the Desire Demon did with the Templar in the Circle of Ferelden. Making Betta see what the demon wants her to see and do things the demon wanted her to do. So Betta might think she's helping someone bathe while she is in fact drowning them. I think the demon might be a desire demon, fueling on Betta's desire for the simpler times when she was a kid, while mother was alive and there wasn't a war going on. Which is why the journal entries become more childlike after they find the house. 

Anyways.The demon convinces Betta to trap Liesel and Yves on the second floor. [Liesel and Yves have been gone a long time.-snip- Mother made a bed for them upstairs].
Then the demon makes Betta kill Yves, fooling Betta that she's helping Yves sleep. [Young ones need their sleep.]. Liesel either witnesses Betta kill him or finds Yves body, freaks out and tries to escape the house or hide herself. So the demon starts a demented game of hide and seek [Mother and I played a hiding game in the house. I found Liesel! She didn't like it when I found her. She was screaming about "Yves"].
The hide and seek ends with either Betta or the demon killing Liesel. [Mother told Liesel to be quiet; she was ruining the game].

Now Liesel and Yves are dead, leaving the demon and Betta alone in the house. Since the demon has no one else to torment, it turns it's eyes to Betta, playing on her guilty feelings. [Mother says I bore her. -snip- She got sicker because of me.] Eventually the demon tells Betta to go and gather Crystal Grace by the waterfall, either knowing that she'll fall or it convinces her to jump. Or just flat out pushes her to her death.

 

Betta is fleeing the Civil War in Orlais with Liesel and Yves. Liesel is either Betta's servant or sister and Yves is Liesel's baby boy. The trio finds and abandoned house in the woods and decides to stay there for a while to rest for a day or two. 

There is a demon in the house and it takes control of Betta, pretending to be her mother. The demon makes Betta kill Liesel and Yves, then sends Betta to her death via waterfall. 

 

 

That is exactly how I interpreted it, but not nearly as thorough. Very nice write up.

 

...that sure was disturbing. It's a shame there isn't more opportunities where demons get to demonstrate the actual horror they are able to inflict. For example, the orphanage quest in DAO was all well done and terror-inducing, until the demon turned out to be a Rage Demon; which effectively looks like a red Disney's Flubber ®.

[Gilli]

 

I never really got what happened to her. Cole commented on how she really loved her mother when you find the body, but the entries are just... disturbing.

 

 

I just completed that! I was actually holding my breath with anticipation at what horror I would find that tortured and ruined that Orphanage and it was a simple Rage Demon, one of my fav of the Demon designs because I find it cute. So anti-climatic.

 

 

Oh same, Rage Demons are so cute and slow, they should've used an Arcane Horror, at least they are a little bit creepy.

[Gothfather]

I always thought that these quest was the "other" side of the coin to Solas' position that demons as just misunderstood spirits, and if you expect them to be x they become X. DA doesn't create simplistic issues. As much as people try to boil down the mage issue to mages are just victims of religious persecution, there is just far too much evidence that they are far from innocent, pure as the snow, persecuted minority.  Neither are they cursed, godless, power hungry danger, that must be destroyed that many peasants view them as.

 

This quest illustrates that demons are dangerous and in no way "just" misunderstood. There is a reason the chantry has its view on demons and this is an example of it. Neither is entirely right and neither is entirely wrong. And we see this theme all the time, the mage issue is one but so too is the issue with the Dalish. That story is far more complex than the big meanie humans stole the elvish lands.

 

It is a shame that so many flame wars about the lore of DA boil down to people picking a side and simplifying the complexities so that their side is 'right' and the rest is propaganda or the fault of the other side. You see this about mages and the dalish all the time. Now we are seeing this complexity move into demons. This is the perfect counter to solas' companion quest to save his friend.  Krypplingz's summary pretty much nailed it from my perspective as that is how i interpreted the entries.

[Gilli]

I love when they sink into the ground and burn out! It was so damn cute! Lol

 

Hmmm... Arcane Horror might have been good, but after playing as one in the Fade, it was so cool to look at! I can't think of any creature in DA that is creepy enough for that quest. Despair demons, though I hate fighting them, are kind of cute too. I think the only time I felt unsettled with anything was in Awakening when Adria opened her mouth unnaturally wide in the crypt when I was helping Nathaniel try and save her, and she had already become a ghoul.

 

Yeah xD

 

True. Omg yes, a ghoul would've been perfect for this. They're creepy and still a little bit human. 

 

Which monster I really hate to look at, are Broodmothers. I can't even say which Brodmother I find uglier, the one from Origins or The Mother from Awakening.