Cameos in the next Dragon Age

That'd be interesting, for sure.

Asides from the obvious candidate — Solas — I hope to see Calpernia again.

Let's say both, for the sake of discussion.

I get the feeling that those four would not get along well, for a variety of reasons. Well maybe Zevran and Sera would, since they're both free spirited rogues.

I should really get to know more about Calpernia. (I always sided with the mages.)

Krem and Iron Bull can be dead.

I agree that Dorian and Solas will almost certainly be in it, probably as adviser and villain respectively, which is all to the good.

I'd also like to see:

Major (can't die)

- Scout Harding; 

• As a companion who connects us the the inquisition and Solas plotline

- Calpernia; 

• Ex slave who believed in the wrong person and was betrayed by them
• Counterpoint to Dorian 'extremist change vs moderate change'

- Maevaris; 

• One of the founders/leaders of the Lucerni

Minor (can die)

- Fenris; 

• There really isn't a living version of Fenris who I can't see running around Tevinter freeing slave and killing slavers. That's worth an entertaining side quest I think.
  

- Shale; 

• She went to Tevinter to try and become a dwarf again, either meeting redwarfed Shale or helping Shale to redwarf

- Velanna;  

• Through awakening she can decide that they can't recover the past so the Dalish should make new stories, I'd like to see her as the leader of a clan that doesn't join Solas (with an alternate leader for that clan if she's dead, like wrex had).
• A new clan with new traditions made up of city elves, escaped slaves, dalish survivors of the various clan slaughters, abandoned/exiled dalish etc.

Characters I expect to have a major role in the next game: Solas (duh), Dorian, Scout Harding, Maevaris, Calpernia. None of them can be dead, and it would make sense for all of them to have a big part in the narrative.

Cameos I'm hoping for: Fenris, Merrill, Shale, Feynriel, the Stenishok. Most of them can be dead, but that doesn't mean they couldn't show up in an optional side quest, like Zevran and Nathaniel in DA2.

Jerrik Dace gets mentioned in DAI. He can be contacted in a War Table operation as part of the Hard in Hightown 3 questline.

The dwarves at the Winter Palace mention House Dace working to prevent anyone from accessing Amgarrak.

I think, they will not bring back a character, that could have died in the other DA games, after the criticism, they've got for bringing back Leliana and Anders. So I think, Sten and Iron Bull wont return, maybe Tallis, if they need a Qunari perspective in the story or some new Qunari character.
Apart from that I agree with a lot of people here, that I think, Dorian and Scout Harding are a given. Also Solas as antagonist or one of the antagonists). Maevaris would be possible too. I'm not sure about Calpernia. She doesn't even exist in most of my playthroughs.
Fenris would be possible too - and would be a valuable ally in Tevinter. Since Feynriel could be a tranquil, I don't think, that we will see much of him, maybe a cameo for those world stats, where he did leave for Tevinter in the end.
Apart from that, I don't think, that many characters from the old game return, mayb, if the new game is somehow tied to the inquisition. In that case, one of the former members, Cass, Leliana, Cullen or Josie could make an appearance, but I doubt, that their role would be big.
Sadly, Bitchywitch... ehh... Morrigan will probably return ( :smh:)
And also sadly, my favorite dwarf probably wont return.

If Morrigan returns, and this time we CAN kill her, bring it ON! If not, I will wait for the game to go on sale, as it will poison my PT for sure, and I want some sort of a compensation for the trauma.

I hope you're right Leliana is unavoidable, I'm scared they'll drop her after her possible death in DA:O was addressed. Biower pls retcon

Other than that, I'd love it if Aveline, Fenris, Sten, Sera and Cassandra showed up. Damn, it was hard to narrow that to 5. 

I think Bioware have said they will not be bringing back characters who can potentially be dead again, at least not in a major role. So that rules out pretty much all of our previous companions (with certain exceptions - see below) They could possibly have a cameo as Nathaniel did in DA2, with a substitute plotline if the person did not survive.

I don't think we will see anyone who was made Divine, although we may well hear about them. It was strongly hinted that Leliana was grooming her successors in the epilogue to Trespasser and if not dead or divine and romanced then it said she had retired to a costal retreat with her Warden lover, so there are only a few scenarios where she has not otherwise been accounted for.

I'd love to see Scout Harding again and would happily have her as a companion. I'd certainly prefer her to Charter who has been getting too much exposure in the comics. Both were said to be successors to Leliana.

I'll be very surprised if Dorian isn't our link character to the previous game. No matter what the Inquisitor chose to do with him or what opinion they had of each other, he cannot be killed and ends up back in Tevinter as a Magister. I imagine him in an advisor role, briefing the new PC (and players) about Tevinter politics and probably giving quests. I'm hoping a sub-plot will involve finding his father's killers.

There is a possibility that Calpernia will return as we never see her dead and her fate in WoT2 is also ambiguous. I'd like to see her again but won't be heartbroken if we don't.

I would love to see Fenris again leading a revolt of Tevinter slaves and keeping them out of the clutches of the Qun (and Solas) or simply killing slavers. However, he could potentially be dead so likely only a cameo appearance as detailed above.

Not bothered about Sten but it is likely we will see him now he is Arishok.

Shale could potentially still be deactivated but as she appears in Asunder, I'm thinking they could explain that away by saying that someone else used the control rod with the correct password. So she could well appear up in Tevinter.

I don't think Sera would have any reason to be up north and am not bothered about seeing her. Ditto Bull and the Chargers even if they are not dead. Unfortunately Tallis would have a reason to be up north in Tevinter, so we may well see her again. I'm praying it is not as a possible companion. We could also see Gatt for the same reason.

We cannot possibly not encounter Solas again at some point, since he is now the principle antagonist seeing as he is planning to destroy our world. However, he may well be in the background much of the time. I also imagine that Morrigan will also pop up again eventually because of the whole heir to Flemeth/Mythal thing and presumably she will be working against Solas because she's a survivor and I'm pretty sure his plan will remove her as well. There was certainly no love lost between them in DAI.

To be honest, with the exception of Dorian and Scout Harding, I'd be happy to keep the number of cameos to a minimum and have a whole new set of companions to work with and NPCs to interact with, which I'm thinking was probably the intent in suggesting we will be going up north to Tevinter and well away from anywhere we have been previously.

I don't see the point in bringing back characters if there is no reason for them to be brought back regardless of if they are dead(which basically you can 't know with BioWare because they may retcon even in-screen deaths)or not.

Their world seem to be dramatically small when I'm looking at how many characters they've recycled with new protagonists.

Among all the characters mentioned other than Solas I don't see anyone to be necessary for a cameo,in fact the story doesn't need any of them.

Not interested in a bunch of cameos, or returning characters. I think Solas for obvious reasons. Maybe Dorian? Other than I want to see new companions. New characters.