Dragon Age is one of my favorite game franchises. In 2012, I found a game called Dragon Age 2 that looked like the kind of game that I typically went for, so I bought it and tried it out. I didn’t expect it to be this good, though.
It was one of the first games I ever played that had decisions that really impacted the story, and I found choosing my own story like that awesome. I also felt that the world in which the game was set was much more interesting than what you see in this Dragon Age installment.
Later on, I played Dragon Age Inquisition in 2015, and then I understood how detailed, complex, and rich the world of Dragon Age was.
In this post, I want to explore the world of Dragon Age and describe what I found cool about it.
Thedas
History
Dragon Age is set in a continent called Thedas. In ancient times, Thedas was ruled by elves until the fall of their kingdom of Elvhenan. Later on, the Tevinter Imperium in the north expanded and ruled all of Thedas, enslaving the people they ruled.
The Imperium’s rule continued until a woman named Andraste claimed that she was a prophet and that the maker was speaking to her in her dreams. This caused many people to follow her and rebel against the Tevinter Imperium.
Andraste was betrayed by her husband, however. Her husband, Maferath, conspired with the Tevinter Archon Hessarian, resulting in Tevinter ambushing Andraste, kidnapping her, and eventually burning her at the stake.
While Andraste was burning, Archon Hessarian decided to end her suffering by stabbing her in the heart with a sword. Ten years after the death of Andraste, Archon Hessarian claimed that when he stabbed Andraste, he heard the voice of the maker and that he had converted to Andrastianism. This event started the growth of the Andrastian religion in Tevinter.
The Chantry
In the games, the Andrastian religion is the dominant religion in all of Thedas. The Chantry, the Andrastian church, holds power over kings, similar to how medieval Popes held power over the kings of Europe. The main difference is that their Pope-like position is only held by women they call Divine.
The Chantry also proved to be a racist institution. The Orlesian Chantry, for example, removed from their history the vital role the elf Shartan played in Andraste’s revolution. They also carried out an “Exalted March” against the elves, which resulted in some elven tribes disappearing completely, and those that remained ended up in refugee camps or scattered in the wilds.
Magic
Magic in Dragon Age is derived from the Fade, the world that people go to when they dream and in which spirits and demons dwell. Some people are born with the ability to access and use that power. However, using this power attracts demons, which puts the mage in constant danger of demonic possession.
The Chantry dealt with this high risk of mages being possessed in a somewhat paranoid way. They created mage towers called Circles of Magi. Circles of Magi forcefully take young mages from their homes and put them in these towers, where they will spend the rest of their lives learning to control their abilities and protect themselves against demonic influence.
Circles of Magi are guarded by the Templar Order, a military order whose purpose is to guard the Circles and hunt possessed and blood mages.
Blight
No one really knows where darkspawn came from. These murderous monsters were first seen when they started attacking the dwarven deep roads. Their hordes were led by an Archdemon, a dragon god worshipped in ancient Tevinter, who had now changed and been corrupted.
These darkspawn hordes destroyed a large part of the Dwarven underground kingdom, then reached the surface and started wreaking havoc in all of Thedas, in an event that is now known as the First Blight.
The First Blight lasted nearly two centuries and was put to an end only when the Grey Wardens killed the Archdemon. The aftermath of the Blight, however, was catastrophic for the populations of the countries it reached, and also for plant and animal life, for when the darkspawn reached an area, they corrupted its animals and plants, making the animals rabid and carnivorous and the plants dry and dead.
The Chantry claims that the Blight started when seven Tevinter magisters tore the Veil and physically entered the Fade. These magisters were trying to enter the Golden City, the seat of the maker, at the behest of their Old Gods. When they entered the Golden City, however, the city turned black because of their greed and corruption, and they turned into the first darkspawn.
When the magisters returned, they started corrupting the people around them and turning them into darkspawn as well. When they finally reached the Old God Dumat, who was slumbering deep underground, they corrupted him, too, and thus started the First Blight.
The game Dragon Age: Origins begins with King Cailan Theirin preparing his armies and calling the banners of his teyrns to face the Fifth Blight, and you, as the main character, are faced with the responsibility of playing the historical role of Grey Wardens of being the only people capable of slaying an Archdemon.
Fereldan
Fereldan is a kingdom in southeastern Thedas, where the game Dragon Age: Origins takes place.
Before it became an independent nation, Fereldan was inhabited by several Alamarri tribes which warred with each other.
Andraste was born in Fereldan, in the city of Denerim. Her father, Elderath, was a chieftain of one of these Alamarri tribes, and her husband, Maferath, was also a chieftain. During her war against Tevinter, the Alamarri tribes, under the command of Maferath, expelled the Tevinter Imperium from Fereldan in what they called “The Exalted March.”
After the war with Tevinter, however, the tribes returned to their quarrels, and this remained the case until Calenhad Theirin united the Alamarri tribes and became the first king of Fereldan.
Orlais
The Orlesian Empire is the largest human nation in Thedas. It is located in the south of Thedas, neighboring Fereldan from the west. Its capital, Val Royeaux, is also the seat of the Divine. It is a nation with a powerful military and holds religious significance in Thedas, making it one of the most influential powers in Thedas.
After Andraste and Maferath ended the Tevinter presence in Orlais, Maferath’s son Isorath took control of Orlais and united their tribes. His wife Jeshavis, however, who helped unite the Ciriane tribes, didn’t like the Alamarri ruling Orlais and thus assassinated her husband and succeeded him.
Eight generations later, Kordillus Drakon, born of a Tevinter noble and a daughter of a Ciriane chieftain, united the Orlesian city-states and declared himself emperor of Orlais.
The Orlesian Empire invaded many lands throughout the ages and expanded its territory. The Orlesians even invaded Fereldan twice, with the second invasion put to an end by the rebellion of King Maric and his friend and advisor Loghain Mac Tir.
In Dragon Age: Inquisition, Empress Celene Valmont I is sitting on the Orlesian throne, and the player gets to choose between being her ally or choosing to side with her cousin, Grand Duke Gaspard de Chalons, who is trying to usurp her throne.
In the game, we also see the streets of the capital, Val Royeaux, and experience an Orlesian banquet. These banquets are usually full of political intrigue, scheming, and assassinations.
Tevinter Imperium
Tevinter is the oldest human nation in Thedas. When the humans first arrived, they settled on the coast of the Nocen Sea. The elves progressively withdrew from that area after the humans arrived, so human territory grew unchecked across Thedas. Later, this territory was split into four human kingdoms.
Darinius, the first Tevinter Archon, reunited these kingdoms, and the empire was established. The empire continued to grow and established trade networks with the dwarves, but its relationship with the elves wasn’t as good.
As a result of the continued expansion of the Tevinter Imperium, tensions with the elves started to grow, which led to a war breaking out between Tevinter and Elvhenan. The elves lost the war, and Arlathan, one of their great cities, was sacked. This started the enslavement of the elves by humans, which continued for thousands of years.
In the games, the Tevinter Imperium is merely a shadow of what it once was, although it is still one of the most powerful nations in Thedas. However, we never get to see it, even though it heavily influences political events in the south of Thedas.
Dragon Age: Dreadwolf will be set in Tevinter, so hopefully, we will see the Imperium from the inside for a change.
Qunari
The Qunari are a humanoid race generally larger in stature than any other race. They have horns and are metallic-skinned. Iron Bull, a character in Dragon Age: Inquisition, even suspects they might have some relation to dragons.
The Qunari mainly inhabit the Islands of Par Vollen and Seheron, living under a unique governing law called the Qun. The Qun is a stringent governing system that assigns people living under it a specific role from a very young age. Going against the Qun turns you into Tal-Vashoth, a term Qunari call those of their race who turn against the Qun, which literally means “true grey ones.”
Qunari also take in people of different races who decide to follow the Qun, these people are called Viddathari. Most Viddathari are former Tevinter slaves recruited by the Qunari, who are often in conflict with the Tevinter Imperium.
The Qunari influence is felt in the games, especially in the expansion “Trespasser” and Dragon Age 2. But we never see Par Vollen or Seheron in any of the games.
Thoughts
I think Dragon Age is one of the best game franchises out there. Its world is extremely rich and has massive potential for future projects. The fact that entire regions, like Antiva, Nevarra, and Seheron, haven’t yet been touched means that there is plenty of room for Bioware to explore in future games and shows.
Moreover, Dragon Age is one of the best game franchises that excels at incorporating decision-making into the story and making the story change dramatically depending on your choices. It is a phenomenal franchise that I couldn’t recommend enough, even if you are not heavily into RPGs because it’s pretty easy to get into.
