BioWare Friends Answer our Silliest Questions (2021 Dragon Age Day Edition)!

Happy Dragon Age Day 2021! 

Every year, I send over a bunch of "Silly Questions" to BioWare peeps, and every year, instead of ignoring me, a bunch of them have been kind enough to respond. This year, they responded in one giant Q&A, and it's so full of BioWare and Dragon Age goodness that you'll just have to read it yourself to fully appreciate its magnificence.

And thank you so much to BioWare, and to Patrick, Karin, Sheryl, Luke, Cameron, Ryan, Mary, Sylvia, John E., John D., and all for taking part!

Here goes...

You are transformed into an animal in Thedas. Which creature or animal NPC across the Dragon Age world (books or games) would you choose?

Patrick Weekes: "I would choose a dragon. I would actually end up a bogfisher."

Karin Weekes: "An Avvar war nug, which is obviously major life goals. (Thank you, Luke!)"

Sheryl Chee: "Baron Plucky, one of Leliana's ravens."

Which tavern would you prefer, the Hanged Man or the Herald’s Rest?

Patrick: "Herald's Rest, because of the singing."

Sheryl: "Hanged Man, because I'd be afraid to look under the tables."

Which Dragon Age character is your favorite and why? (Not one you wrote!)

Cameron: "Sister Petrice in Dragon Age 2. I admire her unapologetic bluntness, her absolute focus on her goals, her politicking and scheming--all without being sexualized or denigrated as a woman. We don't have nearly enough female characters like that in pop culture. I want a whole series about her; I would play it forever."

Which Fade spirit would you like to meet, and why?

Karin: "A spirit of Wisdom, because I need all the help I can get."

Which demon scares you the most and why?

Patrick: "Pride -- only not pride like a conqueror or a tyrant. The specific feeling of pride one gets in needing to show off how clever one is. A demon of Cleverness, maybe. That's the demon that would 100% get me. When your favorite Batman villain is the Riddler, you have to accept some things about yourself."

Who’s your favorite NPC across Dragon Age—the person with a small part but a big impact?

Luke Kristjanson: "Sutherland and his company from Inquisition. He and his little group were just a side thing for me and the Level Designer for Skyhold, a little piece of extra content, but we loved them so much. We were very protective of them, and building their arc was end-of-day fun. Sutherland’s a plucky guy assembling essentially a Level One D&D party to adventure and help where he can, and his table missions are full of little nods to classic adventure modules. I borrowed the name Sutherland from a college friend with the same infectious optimism. I had to include his company in Tevinter Nights, because I want their story to go on."

Which Dragon Age character is your strangest or most embarrassing crush?

Patrick: "Merrill. I have a type."

What’s your favorite musical?

Patrick: "OKAY, SO. For sheer musical bravado, it's Les Miz, but in terms of the one I watch and rewatch, it's Into the Woods, which I watched daily on VHS as a teenager. (Sondheim recently passed away, and someone described his style as "Beloved but not popular because he was often too clever for people to appreciate," and once again, my favorite Batman villain is the Riddler, sorry, it's me, the one who goes in hard for the nerds.)"

Karin: "I cannot narrow it down to even a short list, but the one I probably know the most songs and lyrics from by heart is The Sound of Music."

Casting Challenge: Muppets as Dragon Age characters. Go!

Patrick: "Cassandra is Miss Piggy, Leliana is Gonzo's chicken (Camilla?), Cullen is Fozzie, Sera is Janice, Dorian is an impeccably dressed Dr. Teeth, Cole is Gonzo, Vivienne is... oh, no, I'm running out of female Muppets. Anyway, the Iron Bull is Cookie Monster."

What’s your favorite line of dialogue in the Dragon Age world?

Karin: "We stand upon the precipice of change. The world fears the inevitable plummet into the abyss. Watch for that moment... and when it comes, do not hesitate to leap. It is only when you fall that you learn whether you can fly." - Flemeth

What’s your favorite Dragon Age romance moment?

Patrick: "As a player, I burst out laughing when the third dagger came out of SOMEWHERE in the love scene with Isabela."

Karin: "When Cassandra, Cullen, and Josephine walk in on The Iron Bull and the Inquisitor. The clipboard placement was exquisite".

Sheryl: When Alistair--SPOILERS--gets himself killed to save the Hero of Ferelden, even when she dumped him.

Which of your talents is the best or funniest?

Patrick: "I do a pretty good Kermit the Frog impersonation, and a not-bad-at-all Wookie!"

What’s the worst thing you ever did in Thedas?

Patrick: "As a designer, I believe I am on the record as regretting making 'You accidentally got your Dalish clan killed,' a series of war-table operations. As a player, it was when I accidentally got Leliana's approval too high in DA:O too quickly, and I bypassed the chance to opt into a romance, so in order to get her approval lower so that the dialogue hub with the romance option would appear, I had to start insulting her. We were soulmates, and then I had to start calling her a liar and a murderer so that she'd get angry enough that I could start dating again."

Cameron: "Selling Fenris back into slavery because I needed the gold for a better sword is bad, right?"

You can go out carousing for a night in Thedas. Who goes with you?

Patrick: "Sera, Dorian, Bull. Team YOLO all the way."

Karin: "Ladies' Night with Wynn, Flemeth, Isabela, Aveline, Harding, Shale, and Dorian."

Sylvia Feketekuty: "Definitely Leliana and Josephine! I feel there'd be some escapades, but they'd make sure I got home in one piece. I really liked developing their relatonship with Sheryl Chee, and it'd be fun to sample the cocktails of Thedas with them."

What’s your favorite beverage? Favorite cocktail, for those who partake?

Patrick: "Grande nonfat no-whip hot chocolate with four pumps of cinnamon dolce."

Cameron: "Scotch, neat, and the peatier, the better. I want to taste the sea and the bog and the smoke in my drink."

Sheryl: "Tea. I don't drink water. I drink tea. When I do drink water, it's warm or hot, to better approximate tea."

What Dragon Age question, conundrum, or puzzle is your favorite?

Luke: "Indirectly, the Quizquisition, the weirdo who haunts Skyhold and waylays you with trivia. It was the product of one tired day in the cafeteria, and a Faustian bargain with the Art Lead. In exchange for me adding the Quizquisition, he promised he would get us nuggalopes. So I created Lord Trifles Minutiae and his randomly rotating questions, and little did I know that 'nuggalope' would become 'war nug' and fully fledged mounts. Best deal I ever made."

Patrick: "I really like the choice about making Cole more Spirit or more Human, because it doesn't feel like there's one choice that's clearly good and one that's clearly evil. It's a choice I see people disagreeing about even when they agree on a lot of other things, and I like that a lot."

Sylvia: "The Quizquisition! (That was Luke Kristjanson's. Lord Trifles Minutiae is a fun weirdo.)"

What music was/is on your personal Dragon Age playlist?

Karin: "I can't edit to music with lyrics, so I listen to things like John Williams pieces; soundtracks like Pirates of the Carribean, Hunt for Red October, and Rob Roy; Celtic instrumental music; Grofe's Grand Canyon Suite; and sometimes choral pieces written in languages I can't understand, a la Rachmaninoff's All-Night Vigil."

What’s your favorite non-BioWare video game?

Luke: "Borderlands 2 is a real sweet spot that consumed hundreds of hours. OneShot hit me like a freight train. Just so perfect. But I suppose I have to say the Fallout series pulls me in more than most. There’s something about the melancholy of the setting that I love."

Sylvia: "I've said it before, but System Shock 2 made a huge impression on me and is still one of my favorites. I replay it every few years or so."

Which character would you most like to play chess, checkers, or Battleship with?

Ryan: "Solas, so just when he opens his mouth to say 'Checkmate,' I can pretend to sneeze and send all the pieces scattering."

Sheryl: "Sera. She'd lose interest before I would so I wouldn't feel bad about just wandering off."

You get to play D&D or the Dragon Age RPG with Dragon Age characters for a night. Who do you pick and how does the game go?

Mary Kirby: "We actually did this! Jennifer Hepler ran a Dragon Age tabletop game, and I played Sister Petrine, Chantry Scholar from the codex. I barely tolerated adventuring with Brother Genitivi, and our party wound up fighting our mage when he became an abomination."

What’s your canon judgment of Storvacker?

John Epler: "Always recruit. When you have the option to recruit a bear, you take it. Every time."

Sylvia: "Recruitment. It's time for that bear to see the world!"

Who or what inspired you to work in the games industry?

John D.: "I'm extremely lucky to say it was BioWare. And then somehow I had the good fortune to end up working for them. Playing KOTOR and Mass Effect 1 really opened my eyes to narrative possibilities in games. They had a huge influence on me and I vowed somehow I'd get a job in the games industry. I only dared to dream I'd get a job working for BioWare. But one day a writing position opened up, I applied, and a few months later I was writing for Mass Effect 2 DLC. It's been an amazing ride since."

Luke: "Tabletop. D&D, Champions, Paranoia, Dragon Magazine. As a kid, I didn't have friends who played, but I kept finding weird box-sets in used bookstores that had rules for making your own stories. I had dozens of sourcebooks from as many systems before ever playing in university. When the opportunity to apply at BioWare presented, I didn't know jack about making video games, but I knew roleplaying. I wrote a 40-page module using Champions as a base. Tabletop is what got my foot in the door."

What was your proudest contribution to Dragon Age?

John E.: "That's a toss-up between the Varric hug in Inquisition, or getting it so elves and dwarves could romance The Iron Bull. Both were significant technical challenges. In the case of the Varric hug, I think it was an important roleplaying moment for players to get the chance to comfort Varric, who'd been with them all throughout. In the case of Iron Bull, it was an opportunity to let more players take the romance and give dwarves and elves more romance options."

Cameron: "Daring Patrick Weekes to write an entire ability tree's descriptions in iambic pentameter (Double Daggers in DA:I). That they rhymed the ability upgrades with the base descriptions was just icing on the poetic cake."

What would your Fade “Greatest Fear” gravestone have written on it?

Patrick: Only Made Things Worse

Karin: Squandered Her Opportunities to do Good Things

Cameron: Who?

Ryan: Got Eaten

Sheryl: Couldn't Handle the Responsibility

Last but not least: What was your most inspiring moment in 2021, if you feel like sharing it?

Patrick: "Seeing our fan community come together to help others in need with Dragon Age Day and the support for Gamers for Groceries fundraisers. It is incredibly humbling to see people come together and do something to help others, and it made me most optimistic in a year filled with reasons not to be."

Meaningful Banters: All the Times Solas Gives Himself Away

BLACKWALL: Skyhold. How did you find it?
SOLAS: I looked.

There are many dialogues with Solas that are slyly funny post-revelation, and the one above is one of my favorites. Talk about understatement.

But let's get to it... it could be argued that Solas really, really, subliminally, wants us to know he's the Dread Wolf.

I argue this because of the many times throughout the story of Dragon Age: Inquisition in which he very nearly gives himself away.

Solas almost trips up in several dialogues in his romance—early on in Haven (talking about the Veil), on the balcony (romanced Lavellan), and in the first big conversation directly after the Winter Palace and "Wicked Eyes and Wicked Hearts." And then nearly so again when he dumps us. It's why I really love the big Solas conversation in "Trespasser" because you can actually tell that despite the difficulty of the revelations, part of him's seriously just delighted and relieved to finally be able to be honest with Lavellan.

It's fascinating to look at the many moments in which Solas slipped up, precisely because mistakes are so unlike him. Yet despite his precision and control, he gives us plenty of hints about his true identity as we play through the game, especially if romancing him (and if we're paying attention).

Here's a list of some of the banters and conversations where I feel like Solas is pretty close to waving giant landing-lights and going "I AM THE DREAD WOLF." Or at least giving away far more information about his true self than he realizes. And those moments when the mask slips are some of my favorites for his character in Dragon Age: Inquisition.

Let's take a look...

Canine Clues

Of course, one of the biggest clues hidden in plain sight is one that most fans know fairly early on—that Solas, the Dread Wolf himself—wears a wolf's jawbone as a necklace.

One of the things I like about this detail is that it is as paradoxical and complex as Solas himself, if you think about it. He's identified as a wolf, and to some extent seems to have welcomed and used that comparison—and yet he wears the jawbone of the animal he portrays around his neck. To me, this implies a certain capacity for coldness and ruthlessness, as well as a quiet, dark and razor-sharp wit.

The best part is that Solas does genuinely seem to admire wolves. When asked about the creatures, Solas says: "I know that they are intelligent, practical creatures that small-minded fools think of as terrible beasts." Which is, of course, doubly funny because he is literally describing himself and the myth around his own persona as created by the Dalish. It's not exactly complimentary to them, perhaps, but it's not inapt, either.

But then we get to the real moments—the dialogues where Solas seems almost determined to trip himself up with his own words and deeds, not just with a subtle inside joke built into his fashion choices (or lack thereof)...

Life Before the Veil

For instance, Solas actually reveals huge insights into his emotions and goals in this early dialogue at Haven:

INQUISITOR: I'm not sure I can imagine it.
SOLAS: Try! Imagine if spirits were not a rarity, but a part of our natural world, like... a fast-flowing river. Yes, it can drown careless children, but it can also carry a merchant's goods or grind a miller's flour. 
Solas gets very heated here, almost shouting.
SOLAS: That is what the world could be, if the Veil were not present! 
He pauses, then speaks more quietly...
SOLAS: For better... (he pauses) or worse.

In this early scene at Haven, first off, listen to the sounds of thunder and lightning from the nearby Breach as Solas speaks these lines! I'd swear they actually intensify. It's certainly very appropriate if they are amplified when he speaks them (although I admit this may be my own wishful thinking).

But it's the words that are astounding upon retrospection: Solas is literally describing the world he lost, the world he misses, and the world he singlehandedly changed. A world he himself has witnessed firsthand. He's also telling us, in one of the first conversations we have with him, what he is working toward creating—that very world. A world without the Veil.

When you revisit this scene, while it might appear that Solas is just giving us another one of his insights into the Fade—look at the emotion involved. It's one of the only times he genuinely loses composure (outside of the romance or his personal loyalty quest, at least)—as I note within the scene, he is emotional, very nearly shouting the words.

It's so obvious in hindsight, how nearly he comes here to revealing himself, even in such a tantalizingly early moment in the story.

Conversational Clues with Cassandra

However, Solas still manages to maintain his rigid isolation at this point—an isolation he doesn't really relax until after the discovery of Skyhold. Which is smart, since he can't exactly reveal what he knows or how he knows it until the Inquisition basically catches up with him a bit—although he does actually let slip quite a bit in a fairly early banter with Cass. When she asks him what he believes, he answers with complete honesty:

CASSANDRA: Solas, if you do not mind me asking, what do you believe in?
SOLAS: Cause and effect. Wisdom as its own reward, and the inherent right of all free-willed people to exist.
CASSANDRA: That is not what I meant.
SOLAS: I know. I believe the elven gods existed, as did the old gods of Tevinter. But I do not think any of them were gods, unless you expand the definition of the word to the point of absurdity. I appreciate the idea of your Maker, a god that does not need to prove his power. I wish more such gods felt the same.
CASSANDRA: You have seen much sadness in your journeys, Solas. Following the Maker might offer some hope.
SOLAS: I have people, Seeker. The greatest triumphs and tragedies this world has known can all be traced to people.

Years before the events of "Trespasser," he is telling anyone who will listen the actual truth about the Evanuris... if they were paying attention.

Your Mind, Your... Spirit?

If high approval, when Solas talks to you on the balcony, he'll slip up a few times in very telling ways. He'll stumble slightly when asking if the Mark has affected "your mind, your... spirit" because this matters deeply to him—Solas is all about the spiritual.

Then we talk to Solas, and if we're romancing him or high-approval, Solas will show a glimpse of vulnerability and real uncertainty.

SOLAS: Inquisitor, I was… do you have a moment?
They go to talk on the Inquisitor's balcony.
SOLAS: What were you like before the Anchor? Has it affected you? Changed you in any way? Your mind, your morals, your… spirit?
INQUISITOR (among many options): I don’t believe so.
SOLAS: Ah.
INQUISITOR: Why do you ask?
SOLAS: You show a wisdom I have not seen since… since my deepest journeys into the ancient memories of the Fade. You are not what I expected.

Notice the marked hesitation I note here, on "since." My take: That he actually almost possibly said something like, "Since the ancient days of my people!" or "Since my time in Arlathan!"

Or something like that.

INQUISITOR (among several options): What have I done that’s so surprising?
SOLAS: You have shown subtlety in your actions, a wisdom that goes against everything I expected. If the Dalish could raise someone with a spirit like yours… have I misjudged them?
INQUISITOR (among several options): I don’t hold the Dalish up as perfect, but we have something worth honoring. A memory of the ancient ways.

When we return to this scene, it's one of a few that is, for me, vital to understanding Solas. He is, for one of the very few times in our presence, actually questioning himself. In retrospect, it's not out of the question to imagine him going, "If I was wrong about the Dalish, am I wrong about my plans? About what I plan to do? Have I blinded myself to other options?"

Also, YES, SOLAS. Yes, you have.

Location and Subtext (Beyond the Balcony)

I think the location of the talk here is incredibly important, by the way—it's one of the few times Solas actually seeks out the Inquisitor and goes to her, speaking to her on her turf, so to speak. They're literally in her bedroom. Now, if it's a high-friendship Inky, that fact just helps to shift barriers and show a certain intimacy and ease. But for the romance... let's face it. There's subtext there.

And again, it's interesting and very telling that he ends his observation on the subject of "spirit"—the thing that is nearest and dearest to him, most important and closest to his heart. He doesn't say, "If the Dalish could raise someone like you, have I misjudged them?" It's stranger and lovelier than that. He's saying, "If they could raise someone with your spirit, have I misjudged them?" 

I've written about this elsewhere, but I think this entire conversation is incredibly revealing, and as a component of his romance, it's obviously a vital moment, and one that also spotlights that fiery swift nature of Solas's that he keeps so well hidden most of the time. Two kisses, and he says "I love you." But it doesn't feel rushed to me, because of the way the entire romance (and this conversation) is structured. He is saying, very clearly, in the conversation preceding, "I see who you are, the spirit within you, and oh, by the way... I love you."

And of course this comes just after a passionate physical moment in which he almost turns away, yet cannot bring himself to do so. It's a little scene, but one in which the spiritual and the sensual blend together, and for just a few moments, Solas allows himself to be entirely unguarded.

In other instances, he is unguarded in other ways, as when the Fear Demon confronts him in the Fade after Adamant.

The Ancient Rebel

Solas also gives himself away, I feel, in two other key instances, in conversations with Sera, and also with Dorian. In both cases, we get a vivid if brief glimpse of the rebel general from millennia back.

First, there's a fascinating series of banters with Sera in which the quiet, humble mage apostate unexpectedly demonstrates a sophisticated knowledge of spycraft, propaganda, and politics:

SOLAS: ...It is an opportunity. You have already divided your group's membership. That is wise. No one cell can betray all your secrets. The next step is to establish a rhythm. When your enemies pursue, you vanish. When they become complacent, you harass them. When they are weak, you strike in earnest.

SERA: Where d'you get all this, then?

SOLAS: Do you wish to be unnerved by another tale of my explorations of the Fade? Or do you wish to learn something?

SERA: I don't know. Neither?

SOLAS: Once you have the aristocracy weakened, Sera, you will have to redirect your lieutenants.

SERA: Oh, this again. All right, what am I doing?

SOLAS: Some of your forces, valuable until now, have no interests beyond creating disruption. Chaos for its own sake. They must be repositioned where they can do no harm, or removed if necessary. You replace them with organizers willing to build a new system and carry out the ugly work that must be done.

SERA: What? Why? What ugly work?

SOLAS: That is up to you. Do you wish to disrupt the nobility, secure a title? Or change the political structure entirely?

SERA: None of it! I don't want any of that!

SOLAS: I do not understand you, Sera. You have no end goal for your organization.

SERA: Nobles get rattled, and people get payback. I play in the middle.

SOLAS: Why not go all the way? You see injustice, and you have organized a group to fight it. Don't you want to replace it with something better?

SERA: What, just lop off the top? What's that do, except make a new top to frig it all up?

SOLAS: I...forgive me. You are right. You are fine as you are.

Sera is, of course, very very happy to let the subject drop. Solas brings it up again later on, when Dorian expresses guilt over what his ancestors did to the elves.

DORIAN: Solas, for what it's worth, I'm sorry... The elven city of Arlathan sounds like a magical place, and for my ancestors to have destroyed it...

SOLAS: Dorian... hush.

He continues, gently but firmly.

SOLAS: Empires rise and fall. Arlathan was no more "innocent" than your own Tevinter in its time. Your nostalgia for the ancient elves, however romanticized, is pointless. If you wish to make amends for past transgressions, free the slaves of all races who live in Tevinter today.

DORIAN: I... don't know that I can do that.

SOLAS: Then how sorry are you?

What I love about this moment is that Solas's dialogue here to me contains a hint of affection and something almost paternal. He is also, of course, dead serious here: it's his entire secret and fierce revolutionary heart on plain display. And best of all? Dorian eventually does actually do something pretty close to this... when he returns to Tevinter.

In the conversation above, at least to some degree, it can be argued that the Dread Wolf subtly recruited one more follower.

Here Lies the Abyss (in the Fade)

When taunting Solas in the Inquisitor's physical return to the Fade, the Fear Demon says: "Dirth ma, harellan. Ma banal enasalin. Mar solas ena mar din."

Which translates literally to:

Dirth: Tell/talk
ma: me
harellan: Trickster, rebel, traitor
Ma: my/you (here it's you)
banal: nothing
enasalin: victory
mar: your
solas: pride
ena: begins/appears/emerges
mar: your
din: death

Note: I've seen some who interpret it instead as "your pride appears dead." But I think given the syntax and phrasing here that it is more ominous than that. So my interpretation of the Fear Demon's taunt is this:

"Talk to me, Rebel/Trickster/Traitor. Your victory was nothing. Your pride begins your death."

I could also make a case for "Tell me, Rebel, of your empty victory. Your pride will lead you to your death."

I could further make a case for "Tell me, Trickster, of your empty victory. Your death emerges from your pride."

To me, this interpretation also works better with Solas's response.

Solas responds: "Banal nadas." ("Nothing is inevitable/certain.")

I always headcanon that with an elven Inquisitor, after this trip she'd certainly be giving Solas a few sharp, puzzled looks about just what exactly that conversation was all about.

A Subtle Glimpse of Fen'Harel: Solas at the Winter Palace

Let's talk about Halamshiral! Solas is incredibly interesting here because he's so different. I expected him to be all Sad and Regretful and Oh, So Mournful about the fate of the elves and the blatant racism we see there, but instead he's cheerful and relaxed, slightly tipsy, and there's a wicked glint in his eye.

SOLAS: I do adore the heady blend of power, intrigue, danger, and sex that permeates these events.

INQUISITOR: You seem more comfortable with a grand Orlesian ball than I’d have expected.

I think it's Solas at his most royal—the Solas most like the young noble/rebel/god he was. I actually find him so interesting and even intimidating there (ahem, in a hot way). I'd just kind of expected him to be all "sigh sigh brood brood look at all the downtrodden elven servants look how far we've fallen" stuff and instead he's just so detached and amused, like, "Oh, look at all these silly little mortals and their intrigues. More wine, please!"

I think Solas allows himself this respite because it's a break for him in a weird way—the Orlesians are classist, privileged assholes, and herer probably remind him very much of the arrogant Evanuris he knew. And I think it's a rare instance where he is utterly uninvested in the outcome. He cares everywhere else, but not in the palace.

And of course let's not forget that Solas's goals are different here. It is very likely that while we are running our little Inky arse all over Halamshiral, desperately gaining approval, solving mysteries, resolving issues, eavesdropping, and attempting to forge political alliances, at some quiet moment in the evening, I believe Solas slips away from his darkened corner, finds what he needs to access (and override) Briala's hidden control over the eluvian network, and then leaves, with no one the wiser.

And then I believe he returns to his shadowy corner with a smile and a call for more wine.

Curiosity is Rewarded... Except Once (Post-Wicked Eyes and Wicked Hearts)

This is one of my favorite moments in terms of what Solas reveals about himself because, even afterward at Skyhold, it's like he's trying to settle back into his "I'm just a humble elven apostate!" role and failing. Which is why I think he disapproves when we ask him about it—it's the only time in the game he disapproves if we ask him a question, but he's all too aware, I think, that he's revealed too much:

SOLAS: There are spirits hovering by the Veil to observe the thrones of powerful nations. The machinations, betrayals… After our time in Halamshiral, I understand why. I had forgotten how I missed court intrigue.

INQUISITOR (among options): You miss court intrigue? When were you at court?

SOLAS (visibly flustered): Oh. Well, never… directly, of course. An elven apostate is rarely invited to speak with empresses and kings. But, from the Fade, I have watched dynasties form and empires crumble. It is sometimes savage, sometimes noble. And always fascinating.

Solas gives approval every single time you ask a question... except here, and it's one of my favorite scenes. It's the only time we get disapproval for it. And why? Because he realizes he's revealed more about himself than he wished. And it's because he's said too much!

INQUISITOR: When were you at court?

SOLAS (mentally): Oh shit oh shit oh shit oh shit. Um. Oh dammit. Say something. Kiss her. Grab her. Tell her that her hair looks really nice today. Which it does. Oh shit, I forgot. Right. Say something about courts and how I never ever was in one although I totally had my own throne at one point... 

For me, it's kind of fabulous. It's not like he doesn't deserve the comeuppance here... just a little.

The Temple of Mythal

It's a widely discussed element among the Dragon Age fandom that Morrigan, bless her heart, is intensely irritating in the scenes and revelations involving the Temple of Mythal, if she's witnessing the discoveries with a Dalish Inquisitor (and, of course, Solas). 

It's never bothered me that much because of the game mechanics involved in fine-tuning a lot of these dialogues, and also because it makes sense to me that Morrigan would simply assume that the Inquisitor, being Dalish, would have less actual lore knowledge than someone who had sought out that lore (even if Morrigan was not always evidently all that respectful or ethical when coming by that knowledge).

Besides, Solas is so much fun here. I just sort of picture my Inquisitor giving him the occasional eyeroll behind Morrigan's back, and Solas quietly following along, biting his tongue, smiling inwardly, and only occasionally allowing himself a sharp, effective criticism, as in the following instance:

MORRIGAN: Why would this be here?

INQUISITOR: Something wrong?

MORRIGAN: It depicts the Dread Wolf, Fen’Harel. In elven tales, he tricks their gods into sealing themselves away in the Beyond for all time. Setting Fen’Harel in Mythal’s greatest sanctum is as blasphemous as painting Andraste naked in the Chantry.

INQUISITOR: My clan set statues of the Dread Wolf outside our camp. They’re meant to frighten harmful spirits.

MORRIGAN: Perhaps. I thought the ancient elves were above quaint superstitions.

SOLAS: For all your ‘knowledge,’ Lady Morrigan, you cannot resist giving legend the weight of history. The wise do not mistake one for the other.

And here:

INQUISITOR: You said this Mythal was worshipped as a goddess.

MORRIGAN: So one assumes. What is a god but a being of immense power? The dread Old Gods were nothing more than dragons, after all. They rise as Archdemons, and they die. Perhaps Mythal was a powerful elf, a ruler among her kind. History often plays storyteller with facts.

SOLAS: You admit lack of knowledge, and yet dismiss her so readily?

MORRIGAN: I do not dismiss her. I question her supposed divinity. One need not be a god to have value. Truthfully, I am uncertain Mythal was even a single entity. The accounts are… varied.

INQUISITOR: There are varied accounts of Mythal?

MORRIGAN: In most stories, Mythal rights wrongs while exercising motherly kindness. ‘Let fly your voice to Mythal, deliverer of justice, protector of sun and earth alike.’ Others paint her as dark, vengeful. Pray to Mythal, and she would smite your enemies, leaving them in agony.

SOLAS: More Dalish tales, I assume?

INQUISITOR: If you know more about this, Solas, speak.

SOLAS: The oldest accounts say Mythal was both of these, and neither. She was the Mother, protective and fierce. That is all I will say. This is not a place to stir up old stories.

And here:

INQUISITOR: My clan’s hunters asked for his blessing when we fought bandits. Our Keeper taught them the prayers.

SOLAS: I do not believe they sing songs about Falon’Din’s vanity.

Optional Responses:

INQUISITOR: Do you know any legends?

SOLAS: It is said Falon’Din’s appetite for adulation was so great, he began wars to amass more worshippers. The blood of those who wouldn’t bow low filled lakes as wide as oceans. Mythal rallied the gods, once the shadow of Falon’Din’s hunger stretched across her own people. It was almost too late. Falon’Din only surrendered when his brethren bloodied him in his own temple.

INQUISITOR: Did ancient elves believe all their gods so terrifying?

SOLAS: Yes. I believe they did.

Another interesting alternate close is:

INQUISITOR: I’m surprised that they let such a monster live.

SOLAS: One does not lightly kill a god, Inquisitor. Even in legend.

It's fantastic. So many layers!

Onward... as Solas subtly provides more hints on the ancients:

INQUISITOR: What’s this?

MORRIGAN: I believe we are in the presence of the elven goddess Andruil, Lady of the Hunt.

SOLAS: Or a goddess of sacrifice, according to some.

And here: 

INQUISITOR: This place looks untouched.

BLACKWALL: I’ve seen Orlesian palaces with less gold. What did the ancient elves do here?

SOLAS: Perhaps it was meant to kindle a sense of awe in visitors.

BLACKWALL: Well, it’s working.

Frilly Cakes

One item to note here—many fans feel that the banter between Solas and Blackwall in which Solas discusses the ancient days of Val Royeaux is another subtle moment of Solas revealing "real" knowledge as if he learned it in the Fade. However, since the memory he describes involves humans, this means it occurred Post-Veil and was in fact something he witnessed from the Fade:

BLACKWALL: Val Royeaux, huh? I remember the first time I visited it, some thirty years ago. The market was not half as large, without the garish statues. And far fewer stands selling those ridiculous frilly little cakes.

SOLAS: The Val Royeaux market was once nothing but tents of oiled leather and mud. Filled with ragged humans selling strings of beads made of bone.

BLACKWALL: You saw this in the Fade?

SOLAS: Yes. I left that memory quickly. The smell...

BLACKWALL: Must have been ages ago.

SOLAS: Oh yes. It's much better now. I enjoy the frilly cakes.

Again, Solas isn't LYING here. He did see it from the Fade. But I believe he saw it WHILE IT HAPPENED. Not, like, thousands of years later, as he implies here.

Also, exchanges like this make Solas's DAI anti-human racism more understandable (if not condonable)—as with Javik the Prothean in Mass Effect 3, he remembers days when human beings were in their most primitive days, to the extent that they appeared sad, stinky, primitive, and childlike to him. He's still catching up.

Abelas and the Significance of Names

The final scene with Abelas is also filled with subtle hints.

ABELAS: Each time we awaken, it slips further from our grasp.

SOLAS: There are other places, friend. Other duties. Your people yet linger.

ABELAS: Elvhen such as you?

SOLAS: Yes. (with emphasis) Such as I.

Moments later, after the drinking from the Well:

INQUISITOR: Are you leaving the temple?

ABELAS: Our duty ends. Why remain?

SOLAS: There is a place for you, Lethallin… if you seek it.

ABELAS: Perhaps there are places the shemlen have not touched. It may be that only uthenera awaits us. The blissful sleep of eternity, never to awaken. If fate is kind.

INQUISITOR: You could come with us. Fight Corypheus. He killed your people.

ABELAS: We killed ourselves, long ago.

SOLAS (gently, and with genuine pity): Malas amelin ne halam, Abelas. 

For me, this translates roughly to:

Malas: Now
amelin: (your) name
ne: not
halam: destination/ending
Abelas: Abelas/Sorrow

Or, more loosely translated: "Your name is no longer your destiny, Abelas.”

Abelas nods at Solas and leaves.

SOLAS: His name. Abelas means sorrow. I said… I hoped he finds a new name.

Interesting side note here: I believe that there's a fair amount of evidence in the game that the ancient elves may have—in some cases, at least—renamed themselves multiple times as they evolved through life, after particularly memorable life events. 

So Abelas, I believe, witnessed or survived Mythal's murder, and dedicated himself to guarding her temple, renaming himself "Abelas," or "Sorrow." I believe Solas, meanwhile, reacted in righteous fury and vengeance, imprisoning the Evanuris, raising the Veil... and then renaming himself "Solas," or "Pride" for what he had dared to accomplish, as both a condemnation of himself as well as a subtle boast.

What will he name himself after he tears down the Veil?

Drinking from the Well

Solas's reactions are complex as the Inquisitor ponders whether to drink from the Well. When he is approached about drinking from it, he will reply shortly, "No. Do not ask me again."

But if the Inquisitor drinks, he's very upset, and utterly loses composure:

SOLAS: I begged you not to drink from the Well! Why could you not have listened?

INQUISITOR: Solas…

SOLAS: You gave yourself into the service of an ancient elven god!

INQUISITOR: What does that mean, exactly?

SOLAS: You are Mythal’s creature now. Everything you do, whether you know it or not, will be for her. You have given up a part of yourself.

Option 1:

INQUISITOR: I have not become Mythal’s slave.

SOLAS: Not yet, but if you remove the layer of nostalgia from stories of the elven gods, you might see the danger. They were arrogant and fickle. They warred amongst themselves. They had feuds, vendettas.

Option 2:

INQUISITOR: You don’t even believe in the ancient elven gods!

SOLAS: I don’t believe they were gods, no, but I believe that they existed! Something existed to start the legends! If not gods, then mages, or spirits, or something we’ve never seen.

And shortly after:

INQUISITOR: I trust my friends.

SOLAS: I know that mistake well enough to carve the angles of her face from memory.

INQUISITOR: Why is this so important to you?

SOLAS: You have not been what I expected, Inquisitor. You have… impressed me. You must not let false modesty allow you to pass your power to someone else. There are few regrets sharper than watching fools squander what you sacrificed to achieve.

Whose face? Mythal's, of course. It has to be.

The Last Date

I'm not going to go into a full analysis here, since that was my separate post on Solas's romance here, but his behavior there once again includes a few clues that Solas feels compelled to speak more fully than he knows he should.

SOLAS: Then what I must tell you… the truth… 

There's a big pause here. As I already mentioned, it's an important pause, and writer Patrick Weekes has revealed that this is no accident, and that in fact Solas was going to reveal his true identity and situation here to the woman he loves.

And then... he stops. He just can't do it.

SOLAS: ... Your face. The vallaslin. In my journeys in the Fade, I have seen things. I have discovered what those marks mean.

INQUISITOR: They honour the elven gods.

SOLAS: No. They are slave markings, or at least, they were in the time of ancient Arlathan.

INQUISITOR: My clan’s Keeper said they honored the gods. These are their symbols.

SOLAS: Yes. That’s right. A noble would mark his slaves to honor the god he worshipped. After Arlathan fell, the Dalish forgot.

Aaaaaand then, of course, we move on to more kissage in the swamp, in those last few moments before Solas breaks the Inquisitor's heart into little fractured pebbles and then she limps home after killing a few wyverns, never realizing that she almost had her entire worldview obliterated through the realization that her cute former elven boyfriend was totally a god and ten thousand-plus years old, and oh by the way, intends to radically alter the world as she knows it.

Onward.

What Cole Knew...

But let's move on to after the breakup, to one of the most important banter conversations of the entire game—one we only get if we romance Solas. 

In a later scene, if we bring Cole in our party, the following conversation occurs, after Cole quotes Solas's words about her beauty, and that she is confused and hurting:

SOLAS: You cannot heal this, Cole. Please, let it go.

INQUISITOR: Perhaps Cole can get a better answer from you than I did.

COLE: He hurts, an old pain from before, when everything sang the same. You're real, and it means everyone could be real. It changes everything, but it can't. They sleep, masked in a mirror, hiding, hurting, and to wake them... 

Cole gasps.

COLE: Where did it go?

SOLAS: I apologize, Cole. That is not a pain you can heal.

My writer friend Eryn believes this sentence would have ended with: "And to wake them... the Veil must be lifted."

I always waffled on "to wake them" (where he breaks off), because it also seems to me he could also be about to say that awakening them... would be a dangerous thing. Although the other take is more fun—I always thought he wanted to keep them sleeping/hidden and that he was referring to the Evanuris he had trapped.

Meanwhile, and this is so, so important and I think frequently overlooked: Solas just MINDWIPED Cole. In front of everyone.

Of course, Solas does this later on, too, after the events of Dragon Age: Inquisition, if we try to go talk to Cole after Solas's departure, and it's absolutely heartbreaking.

But again: He just did this here. Not alone, in the shadows of Cole's corner. But right in front of our other companions. It's incredibly risky. So why would he do this? 

I believe it's because Cole was about to reveal secrets Solas could not allow to be unearthed, both about himself and about those followers of his still in uthenera. Cole always knew the truth about Solas, and did not judge him for it, and loved him anyway. Solas knew this and respected it, allowing some of Cole's conversations with him to mystify the others.

But not this one. It's too terribly close, too dangerous. So Solas actually uses his powers to stop Cole from speaking further. It is an incredibly fascinating, scary, and upsetting moment if you think about it, or it is for me. And very sad. It's the beginning of the end, where we can see Solas bringing those walls back up... even with Cole, whom he loves so very much.

The Truth Unspoken 

Ultimately, from all of these near-missteps, I think Solas is presented as desperately wanting to tell the Inquisitor the truth about himself and what his true plans are. And yet, if he is truly acting on behalf of a dead and enslaved people as he believes himself to be, he has an obligation that goes beyond the people of the Inquisition, no matter how much he has begun to care for them. So all we're left with are these little moments in which Solas tantalizingly (in hindsight) nearly betrays himself, as his spirit speaks aloud as if begging for exposure... or absolution. Or forgiveness. 

It's certainly why I think he is so interesting in "Trespasser" (yes, that's a future post)—he is so open, so visibly emotional and changed, and I think part of that is simply his huge relief. No more hiding. No more lies. He can be honest about the lies now. Which means he can also be honest about the love.

But here and now, in the fight against Cory, he can't speak. Not quite. And not yet. So he'll continue to wear his guilt, wordlessly, in an ongoing regret that he will carry forward, and which we know from Tevinter Nights ("Callback") will so consume him that a demon will form from its ashes in the frescoes. It is a regret that brings loneliness with it, the ironic solitude that defines Solas and that I believe he also loathes so much that it is why he obliterates the Qunari forces in order to rescue the Inquisitor in "Trespasser," and why he speaks so openly and gently to Charter in Tevinter Nights ("Dread Wolf Take You"). 

Either way, it is a regret that he will carry long enough to, once again, carve the angles of her face from memory alone—and perhaps even long enough to carve the angles of another face he loved, once upon a time. One he betrayed with his lies and and his silence as he already tasted, in bitterness and loneliness, the future ashes of a dark and ruined world.

The Last, Worst Date (or, My Boyfriend Left Me in a Swamp and All I Got was This Stupid Wyvern T-Shirt)

 

SOLAS: I was trying to determine some way to show you what you mean to me. So I am going to get a few smoochies, grab your highly toned elven posterior, and then cruelly dump you without a word of actual explanation, leaving you in a swamp full of hungry wyverns.

And so here we are, my fellow Solasmancer. That tragic, crucial point in Solas's romance when we've reached the last, worst date—when Solas realizes the cruelty of what he's doing and that there is only one solution: the cruelest cut of all.

I always knew it was gonna be a doozy, because the scene is so emotional and complex. But hey, since my heart right now looks and feels like a stomped orange, it's the perfect time to dive right into the lowest pit of Solavellan Hell, and get this party started!

NOTE: In the images here, I'm using those from my very first Solasmance, and as a little bit of trivia, I made her a redhead because I wanted to headcanon that Iron Bull (my previous romance, in my very first DAI playthrough) would see her and yearn after her from afar. I figured it was only fair after what Bull put me through in that first playthrough. So what you see is my poor little redheaded Lavellan, who was very sweet but had very little sense of humor, and here, she's about to get her heart absolutely obliterated by Solas. 

Tissues? Check. Cynicism? Check. Capacity for emotional upheaval? 100%.

I'm ready. Let's do this.

Where We Are Now

So in Part 4 of my analysis of Solas's romance, I took a look at the balcony scene and declaration of love (I know the URL says Part 3, but it's truly Part 4, apologies). Then later, I discussed his state of mind after the Arbor Wilds... and how he seemed especially shaken on the brink of achieving everything he wanted. 

But still, right now everything's beautiful as far as Solas and the romanced Inquisitor. They share a moment in the Rotunda after Mythal's Temple, after Solas asks her that pivotal question of what she would do with the power of the Well, and which leads right into the date...

SOLAS: Forgive my melancholy. Corypheus has cost us much. The Temple of Mythal did not deserve such a fate. The orb he carries, and its stolen power… that, at least, we may still recover. With luck, some of the past may yet survive. 

A romanced Lavellan has a few potential options in her response here, so let's take a look at them:

First off, she can simply reaffirm that whatever happens, she and Solas will be together (I know. Ouch.):

LAVELLAN: Whatever comes, I will have you by my side.

ME: Oh, sweetie...

Option number two here is one of the most hotly debated among "Solavellan" fans, or Solas romancers, because of the implication that they may already be sleeping together:

LAVELLAN: You’re being grim and fatalistic in hope of getting me into bed, aren’t you?

SOLAS: I am grim and fatalistic. Getting you into bed is just an enjoyable side benefit.

I've already given my case for why I feel this is a simple, flirtatious misdirect, and that they do not have sex. His denial in "Trespasser" is so emphatic I just feel there's no way they were ever together in that way, and I feel like that point of view is further backed up by the fact that there are no kisses on demand, and no love scene. 

But I know it can definitely be seen from both sides, and Weekes has also emphasized that it was written to encompass either point of view.

The third option in this conversation is a fairly strong echo of the romanced Inquisitor's last bedroom scene with Bull, where they may struggle with the idea that they may not survive:

LAVELLAN: You’re talking like you’re going to die. Stop. We’re going to get through this.

SOLAS: I hope you’re right.

No matter how the conversation has gone thus far, it ends with a plea from Solas for the two of them to escape for awhile:

SOLAS: Come with me, vhenan.

And then they're in an ancient elven shrine in Crestwood, where they wander through a breathtaking ancient series of paths and wide tunnels, culminating in two enormous hart statues of stone within. 

We may have glimpsed this area earlier, if we did the "Wyrm Hole" quest given by Judith, which then led us to a wide pond overseen by the hart statues, and bordered by lush green swamplands. 

There are three wyverns at this location, and sometimes if glitching in response to mods during the Crestwood date with Solas, those wyverns may actually pop in and out of the dialogue cutscenes (and it's pretty funny).

Of course, it's even sadder and funnier if we picture the fact that—after the events here—Solas simply leaves Lavellan alone at the swamp. Surrounded by wyverns.

But before we jump into the delicious heartbreak and kissage ahead, let's take a look at this interesting choice of location for their date, shall we?

The Harts of the Ancient Shrine

Why this place, this shrine? What does it mean to Solas?

While many have casually referred to the statues here as halla, they are harts, which have great meaning to the elves, and especially for the Dalish. For instance, if we play an elven Inquisitor and we do the Red Hart mount quest available on the War Table, we're gifted the hart and given this note written in flowing script from "a distant clan of Dalish," as follows:

We find our kin in strange places. Though we know not if you will carry tradition with you, we would see you carry pride in some form. For the wounded sky is all of ours, whether belief is shared or not. Let all see this, and convey yourself as we should be.

Emmasalin var suledin evanura.

If I break this down from a variety of Codices or notes, "emma" usually means "mine" but here I'm thinking it's plural and means "our." "Salin" seems to mean "again." "Suledin" means "endure," and "evanura" here may mean "honor." (If we get the sword Evanura in the Emerald Graves, it is noted as a "blade of honor" forged for Mathalin, the first of the Emerald Knights.)

So, considering that elven is a cipher, our elven note for a Dalish Inky could be something like:

Our - again - far - endure - honor.

So perhaps the sentiment could be, "With this gift, even from afar, our honor endures." Also, it's interesting, isn't it, that the note references the desire for the elven Inquisitor to "carry pride?"

Meanwhile, if the Inky is not an elf, they get a different note:

Perhaps you are not as we and do not share what we believe, but this threat is common to us all, for the wounded sky belongs to everyone. If nothing else, we would have you sure of foot in your journey toward victory.

 

Mas enasalin lasa revas evanura

This one may be a bit easier. "Enasalin" is "victory," "lasa revas" is "is/are free" and if "evanura" is again "honor," maybe this sentiment is "[may] - victory - be free - with honor" or, perhaps, "With this gift, we wish you freedom and honor in victory." Or, "with this gift, may victory be free with honor," perhaps? 

What do you think? Please suggest your own interpretations, as mine are very stilted here and I'm sure I'm missing all sorts of wonderful potential messages.

And of course, this could be totally wrong.

More Ancient Details and Guesswork

If we look back to previous visits, there are familiar statues to both Fen'Harel and to Falon'Din outside the Crestwood shrine.

There's a mural inside the encircling walls here that also appears at the Temple of Mythal, with the addition at Mythal's temple of a dragon image flying above.

So what's the mural? Are these elven slaves or armies? They're riding harts—are they fighting each other? The Evanuris? The Forgotten Ones? Are they, perhaps, creatures of Ghilly's?

This very same dragon also appears behind the waterfall here...

We've seen this more complete image—with the dragon—in the Temple of Mythal. We also see it again, later on, in "Trespasser." And we also find this dragon image repeatedly across Thedas (and even at Skyhold).

Which also reminds me of the Codex about the "sinner" who was egged on by Dirthamen and Ghilan'nain to commit the crime of high treason by taking on "a form reserved for the gods and their chosen," who "dared to fly in the shape of the divine." And of course, as we know, it's a rare instance in which Mythal was not merciful and fully unleashed her wrath.

Given what we now know about Ghilan'nain being pretty monstrous, this will undoubtedly come up again so I'm noting it here in case it's directly relevant.

While the harts are not halla, this does seem to be a shrine to Ghilan'nain, and the Venatori codex nearby does note that this is an "elven ruin."

So why does Solas bring her here? My guess is, despite all of my intricate guesswork above, that it's a relatively simple thing: It is an ancient place holy to the elves. The Veil is thin. So Solas likes this place because it feels like he is momentarily back in his own time. Perhaps it even makes him feel, for a little while, like he is young and hopeful again.

The Truth (The First Sudden Swerve)

The date begins as we go to the cutscene. Solas and Lavellan walk into this ancient holy place, and Solas is visibly happy—he comments on the atmosphere as they walk, hands linked. "The Veil is thin here. Can you feel it on your skin, tingling?"

It's not entirely clear, by the way, that the Inquisitor does feel what he feels. She doesn't respond, merely looks down and away, then back to him, openly inviting. Then he touches her face tenderly, and speaks:

SOLAS: I was trying to determine some way to show you what you mean to me. 

ME: Oh, awesome! What's it going to be? A poem? A piece of jewelry? Maybe a pony? Or... maybe... finally... SEX? Although I admit that a cave floor near a bunch of wild wyverns wouldn't be my preferred location, but beggars can't be choosers, so let's do this!
SOLAS: Hold your halla. It's not that. Because I gave it a lot of thought and I really felt that...

ME: Uh-huh...?
SOLAS: ...breaking your heart was the gift that would keep on giving.
ME: Oh.
SOLAS: We're talking absolute devastation. Pulverizing your heart into little tiny smithereens.
ME: Got it.
SOLAS: What do you think?
ME: Oof.

I may have made part of the above dialogue up. Yes, I'm fine.

So what Solas actually simply says is, "I was trying to determine some way to show you what you mean to me." And it's lovely and heartfelt. It is also where things get very interesting, fast.

The Inquisitor has a variety of potential responses, with Solas's replies varying from thoughtful, to flirtatious: 

Option 1 ("I already know"):

LAVELLAN: That’s not necessary, Solas. You’re my…

SOLAS: That is the question, is it not?

Option 2 ("Interesting!"):

LAVELLAN: I’m listening, and I can offer a few suggestions.

SOLAS: I shall bear that in mind. 

Option 3 ("You don't have to do that."):

LAVELLAN: I know what we mean to each other.

SOLAS: Even so.

And then Solas says, "For now, the best gift I can offer is... the truth."

He is presented as being open, loving, and wholly sincere. It's a big moment.

SOLAS: You are unique. In all Thedas, I never expected to find someone who could draw my attention from the Fade. You have become important to me, more important than I could have imagined.

And boom. This is where we have to commit and lock in the romance. Where we either tell Solas, "You know, I don't think this is going to work," in which case he is complimentary and courteous. Or we jump in happily with, "I feel the same way."

I mean, what could possibly go wrong?

It's diabolical, isn't it? For the unsuspecting and innocent Lavellan, for the player traveling this path for the first time, especially so. We have no idea what's just seconds away when we happily click "I feel the same way."

So we click. And he goes on, and there's still the smile there for "Then what I must tell you... the truth..."

And then he blinks—and changes direction. It's really notable, I think, that he stops smiling after "what I must tell you." It's right there, as he stumbles toward that phrase "the truth" again, that things get difficult.

He's brought her here, to this ancient place, to show her who he truly is. To tell her an impossible thing in a holy shrine to their lost people.

But he can't do it.

And he realizes this when? When looking at her face. Her beautiful face. And I think this is where it starts to go wrong, where reality starts to intrude for him. The dream begins to end and he's waking up whether he wishes to or not.

SOLAS: Your face. The vallaslin. In my journeys in the Fade, I have seen things. I have discovered what those marks mean.

LAVELLAN: They honor the elven gods.

SOLAS: No. They are slave markings, or at least, they were... in the time of ancient Arlathan.

Potential responses here:

That doesn't matter.

That can't be right.

We were wrong?

That's a lie!

For me, the most interesting part of this is Solas's explanation, which is (as always) not entirely forthcoming:

SOLAS: A noble would mark his slaves to honor the god he worshipped. After Arlathan fell, the Dalish forgot.

Isn't the truth actually even more devastating and complex? That the nobles he's talking about were originally the Evanuris themselves? For me, this adds a whole additional layer of grotesqueness to what Solas is explaining, because there was no "honoring of gods," in that case—at least, at first—the vallaslin were simply practical symbols of ownership. Like a bar code on a can of peas.

Ugh.

Echoes of Past Revelations

The Inquisitor and Solas talk a bit more here, with the tone from Lavellan either sad, accepting, outraged or defiant at the revelation, but again, what's interesting to me is that while Solas tries to assuage her sadness or upset, and while he may even compliment the Dalish for simply spawning her, his anger at the Dalish is still very much present.

And again, it's complicated. Remember, Solas went to the Dalish as the very first thing he did upon awakening. It's the first thing he reveals to us when we meet him, way back after the Conclave. He went to them, his people, to tell them the truth—to tell them the truth he is telling Lavellan right this minute.

And they turned him away. They threw him out.

That's what he cannot accept. While I truly think Solas's humility is genuine in that he doesn't see himself as a god, he is nevertheless still a prideful and occasionally arrogant man, and (to be fair) he knows this about himself. He may not be divine, but he is ancient and knowledgeable, possessing the secrets of millennia... and they threw him and his knowledge out like trash.

No wonder he hates the Dalish. He loves them too much to be neutral.

Now he's told this truth again, to the woman he loves, but it's not the truth he meant to reveal. 

The Vallaslin

Here's where we're faced with our next big choice... to keep or to remove the vallaslin? Lavellan, as before, can answer with an assured yes or no, or with uncertainty. Regardless, he is apologetic and gentle, noting in most cases that he didn't mean to cause pain, and that he feels selfish for doing so. Then she makes the choice. 

What to do? There are powerful arguments on both sides here. Many who choose to keep the vallaslin point out that it doesn't matter what these markings meant thousands of years ago—it's what they mean now that's important. And they're not wrong about that.

If she chooses to keep it, Lavellan tries to explain it to him, but he truly doesn't seem to need it:

LAVELLAN: I know you told me because you wanted to help, but the vallaslin is part of who I am. I hope you can see past— 

SOLAS: Stop. You are perfect exactly as you are.

I like that those Inquisitors who choose to keep the vallaslin are treated with the same love and respect by Solas as those who do not. He reiterates that he finds her beautiful either way, and accepts that she is at peace with keeping this cultural part of her heritage.

However, for me, it's always an easy choice to remove them. Solas's revelation always makes me want to wipe them away as fast as possible. Luckily, he's got a spell for that, and he offers it immediately.

If she accepts his offer, Solas looks visibly pleased. He has his equanimity back, and he's happy and loving here—this is something he can tangibly do something about. He guides her over to a place beside the lake where they can sit together (and—speaking from the shallow end here, it has to be said—looks smoking hot while doing so).

Now, I'm going to be shouting out to the Dragon Age Inquisition artists for their genius again in just a few moments (as well as to directors Mike Laidlaw and Pierre Michel-Estival), but there's so much beautiful stuff already happening in this scene visually that I want to point out as notable already, and it's visible just from the screen capture I've included above. Look how tactile everything is. You can almost feel the rough texture of Solas's tunic, and see the silkier texture of the edging around the neck. Look at the delicate coloration of Solas's face here—the freckles, the slight blush to lips, cheek, and ear. You can actually see the slight glisten of moisture or sweat on his face in the light from the lake.

When they sit together, the lake is a soft, limpid pool behind them, with the falls distant but still visible (and gently adding to the ambiance of sound as well).

What I love about all of this detail is that it's immersive and overall, it's deliberately sensual. It's creating an atmosphere that lulls us into the romance as surely as Solas's smile or Trevor Morris's light and rippling romantic score.

Once Solas and Lavellan are seated together, he removes the vallaslin, in another visually stunning moment that is among my favorites in the  entire game. I love the spark of illumination on Solas's eye here, the way his hands frame her face as he removes the marks. As is usual with Solas, the magic we see is blue-ish in hue.

Then the spell ends, and the deed is done. 

Solas speaks as he looks at her then, once the light fades: "Ar lasa mala revas. You are free." They are the same words he spoke thousands of years ago, the words he spoke to the slaves he freed when he removed these same markings from them at his secret fortresses.

I think it's possible that writer Patrick Weekes included this dialogue not just as Solas's traditional close to the spell, as something he's used to saying there, but as a possible indicator that—for this brief few seconds—Solas is back there in his mind, back in the past where he was truly alive and happy. Where, one has to imagine, his choices felt easy in comparison.

But Solas can't actually free the Inquisitor. Or himself.

Still, for a few seconds, it's enough. They stand together, the Inquisitor silent and (in my own headcanon, at least) coming to terms with the moment, and with this incredible change to her reality in that she has either not removed the vallaslin but must adjust to its true meaning, or that she has removed the vallaslin, and things have changed forever in a different way. 

A Permanent Shift

If Lavellan chose removal, I think this is a huge deal. Her face is no longer marked to designate her god or culture.

If you are a headcanoning fool (like me), if you are an overthinker who enjoys immersing yourself in this game, then this moment after vallaslin removal is truly so pivotal because she is no longer visibly Dalish. 

If any of you play the Dragon Age tabletop RPG, one of my favorite things about it is the fact that, man oh man, you REALLY understand when playing that game what it is like to walk through Thedas as (in my character's case of the past two years) an apostate and a Dalish elf. As a mage, you carry a five or six foot staff that has zero reason for existing except for the casting of magic (no matter how your mage might protest that it is, er, a bow, a walking stick, or a fishing pole). Oh, to be Felassan, with his magical staff that changes to an easy-to-hide twig!

Beyond this, even beyond class, and even if you aren't a mage, you are Dalish to the world. Your face is tattooed, and depending on which god was honored, marked heavily and indelibly on forehead, cheeks, chin, and even neckline. Everywhere you go, you are recognized as Dalish, and potentially trusted or distrusted as a direct result. In the RPG, this means that even a simple walk through a town or city carries risk, if you pass a templar, for instance, or an unfriendly guard. I've been shocked at how stressful it is to play a Dalish apostate, and have often envied my companions simply for their abilities to walk into a place, or to talk to townspeople, without instant danger or prejudice. It's really beautifully done.

It's also an accurate representation of Lavellan's world state.

Now, in Solas's romance, her visible Dalishness has been removed for all time. Lavellan can go forth into the world wearing a hat or headband covering her ears and no one will even know she is elven at all. Or she can return to her clan (if they survived) only to be met with distrust and anger at what she has removed. She is more disconnected in some ways than ever before, and (I think) is consequently tied more closely to her found family in the Inquisition. This is why I am so glad that Josie, at least, recognizes the loss of her vallaslin and comments on it (and it's a perfectly acted moment by voice actor Allegra Clark there, as Josie is shocked at the change, but instantly attempts courtesy and apology, assuming wrongly that the vallaslin was always removable).

Even before the terrible break that is about to occur, everything has changed.

A Moment in a Dream

But let's get back to the date, where Lavellan is enjoying her last few seconds of relationship happiness.

Solas is euphoric and loving, and whether he does the spell or not, he tells her how beautiful she is. The strings of Trevor Morris's score surge, and we're right up close with the two of them as they kiss passionately again, and (oh, Solas) of course he goes right in for another ass-grab, and who can blame him, as those interminable steps at Skyhold's entrance (and up to her quarters) have certainly done their job in creating a truly enviable elven posterior.

After a lovely shot of the two of them before the lake and its waterfalls, there's a cut in to an intensely close point of view, and this is where I think the direction and animation of the scene is diabolical genius.

They kiss more, and it's SO close and intense. Deliberately so. Again, we can see the texture of their hair and skin in almost photorealistic detail. The slight glisten of sweat or mist. We can, if we care to, count every single visible freckle on this side of Solas's face. We can see the scar above his right eyebrow better than ever before, and even the fact that his eyebrows are, yep, slightly auburn.

It's notable that the focus here is on Solas's face during the kiss, not hers—his eyes closed, visibly lost in the moment. It's inviting us into the subtle perspective of the kissee, of Lavellan as the recipient.

They kiss for about seven seconds total, if you count the seconds, which obviously I do, since I did it before back on the balcony, so why stop now? Besides, I once counted the scars on Bull's back, so I'm obviously willing to do the hard work here for my art. It's a tough job, but someone's got to do it.

But yeah. That's all she gets. Six or seven seconds, and he draws away, and he looks absolutely lost, utterly in love, it's all wonderful, and then... 

BOOM.

We're still in so close here, when his face changes. The animation is terrific—his expression becomes subtly sorrowful, and he raises his eyebrows slightly as he draws away.

SOLAS: ...And I am sorry. I distracted you from your duty. It will never happen again.

The upset on Lavellan's face is also beautifully done, as we, the players, review our potential emotional responses from poor Lavellan here that include:

Sad: I don't want to lose you.

Angry: Are you kidding me?

Stoic: If you must.

I have played Solas's romance several times. I have been pleading and I have been angry, but never in between. Let's just say that I have never, ever, ever chosen "If you must" for actual story or character reasons. I love that this choice exists, but I can't quite imagine picking it.

The Complete Dialogue Trees

Below, I'll outline every single dialogue option that's available to us in terms of Lavellan's potential reactions to Solas's unexpected pronouncement. I'm doing so for a few reasons—first and foremost, to establish the fact that yes, there's nothing we can say here that will fix this. We can be accepting, devastated, or angry, and it doesn't matter. He leaves. He will always leave.

Beyond that, this reaction also has lasting consequences within the game story, as how Lavellan responds here emotionally is also how she will later respond when facing Solas again years later, in "Trespasser." If she's sorrowful and gentle here, that's how she will appear to him then. Or if she wants to throw fireballs at his pants? She's going to appear angry and hurt when she sees him again on that distant day (and I am here for it).

Sad ("I don't want to lose you"):

It's not surprising that the "sad" reaction offers the most complex and detailed dialogue trees...

LAVELLAN: I don't want to lose you.

SOLAS: Please, vhenan.

Next tier:

I love you.

Don't do this to me.

I believe in us.

"I love you."

LAVELLAN: Solas... don't leave me. Not now. I love you.

SOLAS: You have a rare and marvelous spirit. In another world—

LAVELLAN: Why not this one?

SOLAS: I can't.

"Don't do this to me."

LAVELLAN: Tell me you don't care.

SOLAS: I can't do that.

LAVELLAN: Tell me I was some casual dalliance so I can call you a coldhearted son of a bitch and move on!

SOLAS: (silence)

"I believe in us."

LAVELLAN: I'm not giving up on you, Solas.

SOLAS: You truly should.

LAVELLAN: Whatever you need, we can find together.

SOLAS: No, we can't. You'll see.

SOLAS: I'm sorry.

He walks off, leaving her behind as we fade to black. Except in the case of "Don't do this to me," where SHE walks off and leaves him! And I love it so much.

Angry ("Are you kidding me?"): 

LAVELLAN: Wait. What? You bring me here, take the vallaslin from my face, and now you just end it?

Stoic ("If you must.")

LAVELLAN: All right. If that's your decision, so be it.

SOLAS: I'm sorry. I never wanted to hurt you.

Next tier to both of the above:

You did: Everyone makes mistakes.

Great job: Well, we don't always get what we want, do we?

Your loss, asshole: Banal'abelas, banal'vhenan! (This translates from elven as: "Nothing-sorry, nothing-heart," which I'd essentially put as "You're not sorry, and you have no heart.")

SOLAS: I will see you back at Skyhold.

He walks off, leaving her behind as we fade to black.

 

As I mention, in most versions above, Solas leaves her behind in the swamp, with, as noted, the exception being "Don't do this to me," where SHE leaves him. And it is glorious.

Anyway, in my own personal headcanon, in all those endings where he leaves her in the swamp, a raging and tearful Lavellan then fights the three wyverns, traveling back at Skyhold thanks to, presumably, some eluvian or other fast-travel assistance from maybe Dorian or Morrigan. Either way, she arrives several hours later absolutely covered in blood, mud, slime, and wyvern dung. She then goes to the Herald's Rest and gets absolutely schnockered on maraas-lok.

But that's just me.

Regardless, it's all so well animated and depicted. The entire scene is a master class in voice acting, with a passionately emotional female Inky's responses in the American voice as acted by Sumalee Montano, or a softer, more anguished female Inky as acted in the English-accented Inquisitor by Alix Wilton Regan. And of course, the scene acutely demonstrates all of the sadness and conflict that actor Gareth David-Lloyd is able to put into his beautiful Welsh voice, as well.

Clues and Comfort from Patrick Weekes

I was not the only one to be unexpectedly devastated by my poor Inky's Solas dumpage, so I'll always appreciate that writer Patrick Weekes has been so accessible to Solasmancers who were similarly destroyed. Patrick has been sympathetic and kind to so many who were hurt or unhappy with Solas's actions (even when some people were rude to them—people, please be nice to Patrick, dammit!). And Patrick has also repeatedly emphasized that Solas indeed does truly love us. I mean, our Inquisitor. Aw, who am I kidding? It feels personal, doesn't it?

We're not mad because Solas dumped her. We're mad because Solas dumped us. Individually and collectively. And now we Solasmancers are now like this gigantic Blanketfort polycule cheering each other on, each of us going, "Solas will come back to you! I know it! He really does love you, hang in there!" And it's adorable. 

Meanwhile, in their interview with Nerd Appropriate years back, Patrick revealed some of Solas's thoughts in this  actual moment, as follows, and it's a gift for any of those Solasmancers who need comforting or reassurance that our fictional boyfriend did, in fact, care deeply:

WEEKES: If you want to see the utter sadness of Solas, it’s the playthrough where you romance him. You really get to see that he does care about you. It’s obvious, I hope, that his feelings for you are not fake. He cares about you deeply. He is always one step from telling you the truth about himself.

Like, for instance, what came across so fantastically is that he’s about to tell you the truth, pulls out at the last second, tells you about the vallaslin instead, and then again he goes in on the kiss and is so ready to just lose himself and forget about the past... 

And then he has to push back. He knows that he has to break it off right there, or else he’s going to have betrayed himself. It is so sad, and it has broken the hearts of many players, and it broke my heart when I wrote him.

Come on, be honest. It's a little satisfying to hear that it broke Patrick's heart too, isn't it?

Or is that just me?

The Path of Sorrows

And there we are. And there she is, alone, and hurting. And she's still alone, arms wrapped around herself, staring off that balcony where he first kissed her in the real world, at the end of Inquisition. It's tragic enough to make a person go off and create the world's saddest playlist... and then listen to it on endless repeat.

It's a tribute to the writing, direction, and rendering that this final scene of Solas's doomed Crestwood date is so painful, and that it comes across with so much genuine emotion and heartbreak.

I do think it's apparent that Solas loves Lavellan, and that she is not the only one whose heart is breaking here. However, dramatically speaking, for me, the difference in their ages is never more important than right here, because to me, that experience protects him even as its lack emphasizes her vulnerability and capacity for pain. Solas has lived for millennia, at this point; he has been able to better protect his heart, to add a little armor. She, on the other hand, is a young woman who has overcome trauma, imprisonment, open racism and prejudice, and even the potential loss of her entire family—and she has met every one of those challenges with courage and willing sacrifice. She has allowed herself to trust this man... and his response was to destroy her heart. 

She doesn't know why he's done that at this point; she doesn't get that it's precisely because he loves that courage of hers, and because he cannot face the expression she will wear when she discovers who he truly is, and what he truly intends.

I also think that, for Solas, his romance with Lavellan has been a respite, a healing thing that reconnected him to this world and showed him how much beauty still remained. Unfortunately on the other hand, I  feel that for the romanced Inquisitor, what happens here creates instead a deep and abiding wound, a betrayal that will hurt for years to come. It is that much more ironic, therefore, that Solas's endearment for Lavellan, used even in many cases when he is ending their relationship, evokes home and heart itself—especially when his words shatter it to pieces.

When it came to Solas's romance, we whose Inkies fell for our quiet mage were always doomed. "Atish'all vir abelasan," Lavellan was told not so long ago, or "Enter the path of the Well of Sorrows." 

Poor thing. She thought that sorrowful path was a metaphor. 

Solas knew differently. He's always known it was real.