Where was the Black City, and what was the bright sun like object?

You've seen it; the Black City just doesn't stand out as particularly notable.

I meant in Inquisition, this is the Inquisition section is it not? lol

As for what do I mean by the Sun-like object? I am talking about this. There is no actual "Sun" in The Fade, nor has this ever been shown in the Fade in all previous trips, including the books. 

therevanchist25

It could be the sun from Thedas or it's an "imitation" sun produced by the Fade (somewhat similar to how spirits try to mimic certain things in the waking world). I'm going to lean towards the idea that it's the real sun in Thedas because the veil is very weak in DAI so we can see certain things from both sides of the veil. Notice the "sky" in the screenshot you posted has some blue, which could be from the sky in Thedas. Also near the location depicted in that screenshot, there's a document you can read from someone who speculates where all the water comes from, suggesting that it may have poured in from the breach or a rift (possibly the one in Crestwood). Could be a similar explanation for sunlight which could've seeped through the cracks.

I think as the veil gets weakened - and if/when Solas successfully tears it down completely - the Fade will more and more resemble Thedas and vice versa, until there is almost no distinction.

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theblackadder13
Now that you pointed it out I think the one in DAO is shaped a bit like a dragon, but not sure if it's a real one. If it's a dragon then it must be really big for them to be able to raise buildings on its back. Might be almost as big as a titan.

I think the black city is the rock in the middle of the screenshot, right below the sun, with the big stone turret sticking up, no? 

I think it's one of the spires that we can see as soon as we land in the Fade. There's one that's higher than the others but it blends very easily against the sky and the left side of the breach. I might post screenshot later.

But later on as we go farther into the map it becomes almost impossible to see it because other things on the ground obstruct our view. Kinda like when we're far away from a mountain we can see the antennas, towers, and observatories. But when we're at the base of the mountain we can't really see what's at the top anymore. DAI is the closest the audience has been to the city.

I think another reason why the city is different than how it appeared in previous games is because of at least three reasons: the Fade reflects the world around it, the weakened veil is changing the nature of the Fade, and finally we're physically in the Fade thanks to the mark which means we might perceive things differently. Remember when our companions are fighting the Fear demon's minions, they appear as giant spiders to the inquisitor but our companions see something else. The same could be said for the city.

Mareno (Senior Enchanter of the Minrathous Circle of Magi) greatly disapproves

My guess would be that that's the Codex author from DA:O who described the Veil as a separation between two forms of thinking rather than a true barrier, and mentioned various analogies for the barrier interpretation that I think included a curtain and I know included a "wall of holy light" or some such thing. (Though if and how said author's favored interpretation can actually be true if Solas magically erected the Veil to cut his world in two is anyone's guess.)

The black city used to be the golden city, which was a city built in the fade, so I'm guessing it dates back to before the Veil. By who we don't know. The codex says it can still be seen from the fade in the distance, but it is impossible to reach, so we don't really know much about where or what it actually is. The elves believe their gods are imprisoned there, except for the Dread Wolf (Solas) who still roams the fade. Humans believe the Maker built and ruled the city until he was driven out by the Old Gods. The ancient Tevinter believed the Maker simply abandoned it, and the Old Gods took over.

So from this there are many theories. Like that the Old Gods and Elven Gods could be the same, or that the golden city might have once been an ancient Elven city. Knowing Bioware, it's possible the ancient Elves or Old Gods simply found and settled it, but didn't create it. It's implied whoever could manage to rule this place could become a God. That's exactly what Corypheus and the ancient Magisters had wanted to do. But it seems extremely difficult or impossible to reach, so either access to the city has been lost or cut off since ancient times, or it is possibly being guarded or protected somehow. It's is speculated some kind of ancient disaster might have happened there, like possibly related to the Blight. If so that might be the reason it was sealed off.

I love this part of the game especially with Solas, he is clearly having a nerdgasm