UHM EXCUSE ME but did any of you know that the elven woman from that Gaatlok barrel scene in Trespasser who turns out to be one of Solas’ agents is present in that very last cutscene at the Winter Palace when the Inquisitor declares the future of the Inquisition, standing all by herself behind a pillar in the back corner of the room eavesdropping without anyone noticing….. or was I supposed to discover this with the flycam just now???
I don't care if you're neuron divergent and also 3 days old I need you to go to fucking War
Rook: Gee, I wonder what Solas felt about these things we see in his regrets, such mystery, big mystery, lets put all of our minds together and see what we can come up with! Solas in every painting:
Rook: I've got nothing.
(I know it's about POV, I know it's A Choice, I still find it funny.)
Here’s that copy/pasted list of Felassan and Solas talking about the same subjects, and having the same weirdly specific opinions:
Keep reading
So basically one of Solas' murals
is the Crestwood scene, but with reversed roles. Solas is the rejected one, Mythal is the one who walks away, leaving him alone in what I presume was a glade at night, judging from the environmental sounds and hushed tones we can hear.
And, to be honest, I don't know how I feel about it - it feels like it cheapens the Crestwood scene, repeating an abusive pattern, stripping away the romance and softness of that scene. It's, once again, something Solas already went through with Mythal, not something he shares with Lavellan only. It's Weekes saying yet again that Solas saw Mythal in Lavellan, and that's why he fell in love with her. Not because she was Lavellan, but because she reminded him of Mythal and gave him hope that all elves could return to that "level" of wisdom.
What we learn in this game also ruins the kiss scene on the balcony, where Solas say "You have showed wisdom I have not seen since... since my deepest journeys into the ancient memories of the Fade."
Most of us believed he meant "Wisdom I have not seen since my ancient days in Elvhenan", but it's basically confirmed at this point that he meant "Wisdom I have not seen since Mythal".
A month ago, someone here mentioned how Weekes had said there was a specific reason why Solas had falled for Lavellan. I never found the interview where they said so, but I saw many believed it had something to do with reincarnation, lost soulmates finding each other again etc., but once again, it's clear what Weekes meant, and it's bad, cheap writing.
They could have written a god finally learning the error of his ways thanks to his love for a mortal - a love completely different from that of who was basically an abuser, a parent-like figure forcing him to take form and serve -, but instead they went for the easy route: a god still loving another god, feeling love for a mortal who reminds him of her, and changing his mind only because his god finally gives him permission to be free.
The mortal who supposedly "changes everything" serves no purpose - she actually tells him "There is no fate but the love we share" after he's been "freed" from his service, which in this context, in this situation, sounds more like a punishment, another yoke, some sort of "I finally got you, you can't run from me anymore".
I don't know what happened to Weekes' writing - either they were forced to make these decisions due to various constraints, or they completely changed their style/ideas during development, because this is not the Solas, this is not the Solavellan romance, we got in DA:I.
Kicking the hornet's nest (possibly) by saying I don't really like Manfred's portrayal as a cute gimmicky spirit that is a "research assistant" but all he does is hiss and pour tea and play rock paper scissors. Not when we had Cole and a real agonizing decision of whether to remain a spirit of compassion or become a human. Not when Cole was a fully actualized character and had a REAL storyline and real banter and was trying to figure out himself and his purpose. But most of all, he wanted to help.
Its a huge step backwards in the portrayal of spirits in this game. I mean I have said lots about the status quo and the Veil but this game is just so intellectually incurious tbh. There's no thinking involved or agonizing decision to make where I remember looking up guides on past DA decisions and scum reloading since I wasn't happy with the first decision I made lol.
Would a spirit of curiosity not potentially be the most annoying spirit? I feel like they would be asking 10923482 questions constantly and would've added to a lot of world building and lore instead of comic relief or being sacrificed to another character's storyline.
Warning: Some dav criticism ahead
Why is Tevinter so shallow? It isn't just about the lack of slavery (that, whatever else it is, however it was handled before, has been a pillar of Tevinter identity and inevitably leaves a hole in the narrative by being pratically missing). Why does the magisterium, the caste system, the Antaam invasion outside of Minrathous and the Black Divine play no role at all in its storyline?
Why the atrocities of the Crows (buying children, for example?) never come up during their faction quests?
Why do we hear nothing about the political side of the mortalitasi, how they control Nevarra from the shadows?
Why do we never even hear about Kont-aar even though we are in Rivain? Why there is no counterpoint to the (metaphorically, by qunari standards, mindless and souless) Antaam? Why is the qun completely missing from the game and the qunari reduced to cannon fodder the player has to cut down?
Why are the questions about magic that permeate every previous game absent here, especially when veilguard being set in the north could have given us such a unique viewpoint?
And, more importantly:
Why am I supposed to believe that no dalish elves would worship the gods they have already been worshipping their whole lives? That they wouldn't follow out of naivety, out of misplaced hope for a better future, out of fear, seeking to placate them?
Why am I supposed to believe that the gods would not even try to seek the dalish, when we are told by the previous games about the dalish hunters of legend, about how they are a mighty force to be reckoned with when united? Why do they only show up at the Blood of Arlathan quest, to play damsel in distress?
Why am I supposed to believe that no elves from the alienages would want to join the gods, because of every reason mentioned above, or out of spite or disdain for an uncaring world?
And yes, I know everyone learned the gods were evil off-screen. Why was it off-screen?
Also, where are the agents of Fen'Harel? Where are the people that vanished by the end of Trespasser?
Obviously, you can't expand on all of this in a single game, but why is all of it absent?
Why is bioware so afraid to engage with the world they created?
i dont remember the post i saw or who made it so this doesnt count as a vague but 'actually it's good bioware retconned the agents of fen'harel because it would've been Bad Representation to have an antagonistic faction made up of the in-universe oppressed minority' well no it was straight up cowardice and the refusal to grapple with the reasons why marginalized peoples might come to believe their best recourse for a world that wants them dead top to bottom is fundamentally changing the nature of the world in a way that, yes, may read as apocalyptic to those currently in power, but the alternative is for the forgotten to continue slowly bleeding out to sustain their comfort
Not that bioware could have landed that but don't pretend it's More Nuanced not to even try. and it's literally just narratively stupid as hell
Me, Watching Solas' regrets: 15/10 🥰🥹😢😭 *trying to process theories being made canon and him being the saddest boy alive for a reason*
The Companions: *having the most reddit fuckass takes and the worst comedic timing* Solas is just mean and cares about no one but himself
Me: 🤫☹️😒😡Can ya'll shutup for a moment? I need a mod to remove these conversations in particular
Goddess of Self-Righteousness and God of Sunken Cost Fallacy.
“it sounds like you’re justifying their actions-“ i am. they’re a fictional character. i’m okay with anything they do all the time. hope this helps.