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[Gervaise]

I'm trying to fathom out the timeline for Thedas.   I assume the one given on the Wiki is taken from WoT.    Now I realise that it is implied that this is just something drawn up by Thedas historians and so may not be completely accurate but nevertheless it is all I have to go on.  

 

So in -1905 TE humans are first said to arrive in Thedas.    Let's assume that the earliest traces of human habitation date to this time.  There is only one tribe known by name, the Neromenians. 

 

Then in -1655 TE the elves first start experiencing the quickening and start to withdraw from contact with humans.     If this is accurate and the elves only started aging at this time, it means that some time between the arrival of the humans and this date was when Solas erected the Veil.    It also means that elves and humans were definitely co-existing before the Veil was erected.    From what the Dalish recount it would seem that the elves did not regard the humans as anything more than another creature among many, probably just a more intelligent one, and the likelihood they were used as slaves.   Presumably the more important servants of the evanuris went into uthenara at this time (hence the memory of withdrawal) but the other lower class slave elves were left to fend for themselves.    Or did those who didn't go into uthenara simply die out?

 

Next entry says that in -1650 TE the first Dreamers started hearing the whispers of the old gods from the Fade.   This means that only a short time after the raising of the Veil there were human mages strong enough in magic to be Dreamers.   This seems odd.   Why has the raising of the Veil impacted so badly on the magic of the elves and not the humans?    Anyway it would seem that the old gods contacting human dreamers coincides with the withdrawal of the senior elves to uthenera.    Is this why the voices in the Fade started conversing with humans because the elves were no longer responding to them?   These dreamers become the priests and leaders of their people, presumably worshipping old gods whom they have never met.    How then did they know they were dragons?  Also it is stated elsewhere that the humans first learnt how to use lyrium to enhance their powers from elven captives rather than the old gods.    This is usually connected with the later blood magic use of the pre- to early Imperium but it seems to fit more with this time.

 

In -400 TE Thalsian becomes the first blood mage, having been taught it by the old god Dumat from the Fade.   So why did it take 1250 years for Dumat go get around to teaching Thalsian blood magic?     Or did the earlier dreamers know it but somehow forgot over the years?

 

Finally in 220 TE the Imperium uses blood magic to sink Arlathan into the ground.    Clearly this is only a remnant of the old elven empire that has been accidentally uncovered by the expansion of the Imperium.   So were the elves who fought them guardians of the ancient site or simply elves that had been living there since their withdrawal?      Why was the mass enslavement of elves dated to this time?     Were the descendants of the slave elves only found in such concentrated pockets that it was easy to round them up?    In the close on 2000 years since the time of the quickening you'd have thought elves would have been more numerous and widespread so did the old human barbarian tribes kill them off?    There is also the reference in DA2 to a major battle being fought on Sundermount, which was the last stand of the elves.   Yet this would have been some years after the fall of Arlathan as the Imperium had not yet taken all of northern Thedas.    So who were the elves on Sundermount?

 

I'm trying to make sense of the timeline and also why Abelas feels he has no kinship with later elves, even though they must be descended from survivors of the fall of their empire.     If nothing else, all modern elves have magic in their blood, since the "old god" Kieran can sense it.      Why did Solas feel like he was walking among tranquil when only a few years later we had human dreamers?

 

Thoughts on the above would be appreciated.

[thats1evildude]

Humans have never been connected to the Fade in the way that elves were. Whereas the creation of the Veil had disastrous results for their race, it worked out just fine for the humans.

The elves were capable of magical feats that make the magical endeavours of modern Thedas seem piddly by comparison. When Solas says the people of Thedas seem like Tranquil, he means in the metaphorical sense.

On the subject of blood magic, it's not clear if it came from the Old Gods or the Forbidden Ones.

[Evamitchelle]

I'm trying to fathom out the timeline for Thedas.   I assume the one given on the Wiki is taken from WoT.    Now I realise that it is implied that this is just something drawn up by Thedas historians and so may not be completely accurate but nevertheless it is all I have to go on.  
 
So in -1905 TE humans are first said to arrive in Thedas. Let's assume that the earliest traces of human habitation date to this time.  There is only one tribe known by name, the Neromenians. 
 
Then in -1655 TE the elves first start experiencing the quickening and start to withdraw from contact with humans. If this is accurate and the elves only started aging at this time, it means that some time between the arrival of the humans and this date was when Solas erected the Veil. It also means that elves and humans were definitely co-existing before the Veil was erected. From what the Dalish recount it would seem that the elves did not regard the humans as anything more than another creature among many, probably just a more intelligent one, and the likelihood they were used as slaves.   Presumably the more important servants of the evanuris went into uthenara at this time (hence the memory of withdrawal) but the other lower class slave elves were left to fend for themselves. Or did those who didn't go into uthenara simply die out?

The Ancient Elves had already made contact by the dwarves a few thousand years before the humans showed up, so they understood the concept of there being other sentient races. No one ever mentions elves using humans (or dwarves) as slaves though. What's the point in keeping slaves who will die of old age when there's a ready supply of immortal ones ? I imagine they just left them alone.
 

Next entry says that in -1650 TE the first Dreamers started hearing the whispers of the old gods from the Fade.   This means that only a short time after the raising of the Veil there were human mages strong enough in magic to be Dreamers.   This seems odd.   Why has the raising of the Veil impacted so badly on the magic of the elves and not the humans?    Anyway it would seem that the old gods contacting human dreamers coincides with the withdrawal of the senior elves to uthenera.    Is this why the voices in the Fade started conversing with humans because the elves were no longer responding to them?   These dreamers become the priests and leaders of their people, presumably worshipping old gods whom they have never met.    How then did they know they were dragons?  Also it is stated elsewhere that the humans first learnt how to use lyrium to enhance their powers from elven captives rather than the old gods.    This is usually connected with the later blood magic use of the pre- to early Imperium but it seems to fit more with this time.

Slight correction, it's actually -1605 TE, which is 50 years after the creation of the Veil (supposedly) instead of 5. Still pretty close, and definitely suspicious. As to why the creation of the Veil might have affected human and elven magic differently, well, they're different races. If the elves are more spirit-like than humans, it stands to reason that they'd be more affected by the separation. Also bear in mind that we can't really say whether the humans' magic was affected by the creation of the Veil. Dreamers are incredibly powerful and rare by current Thedosian standards, but might have been common place back then.
 

In -400 TE Thalsian becomes the first blood mage, having been taught it by the old god Dumat from the Fade.   So why did it take 1250 years for Dumat go get around to teaching Thalsian blood magic?     Or did the earlier dreamers know it but somehow forgot over the years?

It's said in WoT that Thalsian is "the first known person to wield blood magic. He claims to learn the art after personally communicating with Dumat, an Old God". Doesn't sound like a definite source. In DA2 it's also said in some codex entries (Band of Three ones IIRC) that it's the Forbidden Ones who taught blood magic.
 

Finally in 220 TE the Imperium uses blood magic to sink Arlathan into the ground.    Clearly this is only a remnant of the old elven empire that has been accidentally uncovered by the expansion of the Imperium.   So were the elves who fought them guardians of the ancient site or simply elves that had been living there since their withdrawal?      Why was the mass enslavement of elves dated to this time?     Were the descendants of the slave elves only found in such concentrated pockets that it was easy to round them up?    In the close on 2000 years since the time of the quickening you'd have thought elves would have been more numerous and widespread so did the old human barbarian tribes kill them off?    There is also the reference in DA2 to a major battle being fought on Sundermount, which was the last stand of the elves.   Yet this would have been some years after the fall of Arlathan as the Imperium had not yet taken all of northern Thedas.    So who were the elves on Sundermount?

There's also mentions of elves fighting Tevinter Magisters in the Brecilian forest. Maybe Elvhenan had already started to shrink before the humans came, because of the wars between the Evanuris. And if they'd go anywhere, it'd be Arlathan, which was the center of the Empire. And it's not specifically stated that the Imperium enslaved all the elves when Arlathan fell. As they expanded, maybe they found more elves, who would be isolated from each other and not much resistance, until they were eventually all slaves under the Imperium.
 

I'm trying to make sense of the timeline and also why Abelas feels he has no kinship with later elves, even though they must be descended from survivors of the fall of their empire.     If nothing else, all modern elves have magic in their blood, since the "old god" Kieran can sense it.      Why did Solas feel like he was walking among tranquil when only a few years later we had human dreamers?
 
Thoughts on the above would be appreciated.

Abelas was apparently around when the Veil was created, almost 4000 years ago. Since then he's been pretty much shut-in in the temple of Mythal. By now he has pretty much nothing in common with the modern elves.