Dorian Pavus Thread "He's More Handsome Than A Cockroach"

I know nothing's been confirmed whatsoever, yet I just can't wait to get to Tevinter in DA4(I'd be surprised if we're NOT going to Tevinter)! Think of all the possibilities! The lore! The magic! Okay I'm getting overly excited now
But of course, I'd like to see how the DA writers handle Dorian's character development. Seeing all of you guys' different interpretations on how Dorian views his relationship with the Inquisitor really gets me worried. It's become such a delicate matter, and not to mention he's probably a magister by now.

As a matter of fact I haven't finished Traspasser yet. I'd stopped all gaming activities but am now resuming them

Okay, apologies in advance if anyone thinks this is unnecessary speculation based off world states that us Dorian fans would never entertain but I'm curious how you think the writers would deal with the negative scenarios associated with Dorian if he is brought back as our contact from the previous game AND the Inquisitor also plays a major part.

Scenario 1: The Inquisitor did not recruit Dorian in DAI. Actually this might be the easiest one to explain since in the epilogue to Trespasser states they are looking for people that Solas doesn't know and he would barely know Dorian if he wasn't recruited. Does anyone know, did Dorian appear in Trespasser in this scenario? If he did, was it just as the Ambassador to Tevinter or was he useable as a party member? Which brings me on to:

Scenario 2: Dorian was recruited to the Inquisition but left before Corypheus was defeated because the Inquisitor punched him in retaliation for Dorian's disapproving remarks, including stating that the Inquisitor/Inquisition was like a cancerous growth across Thedas. Definitely no love lost there. Now I know from You Tube that in this case Dorian does turn up in Trespasser as the Ambassador to Tevinter but only know about the alternative letter to the Inquisitor announcing his return and the Inquisitor encountering him in the grounds sitting down where he says "I wager you never expected to see me again", followed by a mocking chuckle/laugh. Once again, is this all the interaction between the two of them or does Dorian become a potential party member? If so, is it explained why, when the Inquisitor is trying to keep events secret from everyone but their inner circle that they would be willing to include Dorian in the loop and equally why Dorian would be willing to help after his previous experience, bearing in mind that at the beginning there is simply a dead Qunari and blood leading to an eluvian. I suppose he might be interested seeing as it is a Qunari and want to know if it had any significance for Tevinter but that is the best I can come up with.

So in Scenario 2 we have a situation where Dorian is known to Solas but resigned from the Inquisition early and despises the Inquisitor. Seeing as it is possible for him not to even be invited through the eluvians and no one witnesses the exchange with Solas at the end, which if the Inquisitor is also hostile to Solas can be a very brief encounter, would Dorian even give credence to their story, sufficient that he would regard saving the world overrode his objections to the Inquisitor on a personal level? In this scenario it would appear from You Tube that Dorian doesn't even know that Tevinter was not responsible for the destruction of Arlathan (because there is a dialogue sequence to that effect), so there is even more reason why he might be a bit sceptical about the whole business of Solas creating the Veil and thus bringing about the destruction of elven civilisation, particularly considering that no one was aware of the fact that the Veil was an artificial construct that had not always existed and no codices on the Veil had ever suggested as much. For all he knows, the Inquisitor might be playing up the encounter with Solas because of the threat of the Exalted Council to their powerbase. Then again, there was the orb and Solas was very upset about losing it, although in this scenario you only have the Viddasala's word that Solas was responsible for giving it to Corypheus. (I'd still like to know how she knows that considering he didn't do it himself and it had no obvious connection with Fen'Harel. Nor for that matter did Solas.)

Anyway how do you think they would explain Dorian working with the Inquisitor in this case if he does turn out to be the contact in Tevinter between the new PC and the old one? Do you think it would just be a case of saving the world takes precedence over everything else, even though that wasn't sufficient to keep Dorian working with the Inquisition in DAI until the world had in fact been saved?

Alternatively, am I assuming just too much importance attached to the likelihood of Dorian returning in any significant capacity in the next game?

I'm sure it's possible to play a decent Inquisitor who just doesn't like Dorian (for whatever reason). So, there's no guarantee a Dorian who leaves left because the Inquisitor is evil incarnate. S/he just might not be nice to Dorian.

I know it's not possible for me, though.

Even if Dorian hates the Inquisitor and leaves, I can see him putting aside his feelings and help the Inquisition if it meant stabilizing Tevinter and preventing whatever it is Solas is planning.

For example, Leliana was searching for the Warden (and Hawke) as potential candidates to become the Inquisitor despite having low approval and killing her at the temple.

That said, I don't think he'll be a companion. It seems like they're setting up Calpernia to return and perhaps she'll be the next tevinter mage companion? She did survive, she had her own short story and was even in the Magekiller comics

I was planning a romance with Iron Bull this go around, but ended up with Dorian because I was flirting with them both. When Iron Bull's romance path stalled, I had to go and break up with Dorian, and it actually made me feel really bad. :sob:

Thanks, Catilina. If you look at that artist's Dorian tag on Tumblr, you will find a couple of comics they drew where Anders shows up to save the Inquisitor. Thought you'd appreciate that.

I was wondering what anyone else would make of this conversation between Alexius and Ser Ruth in the dungeon at Skyhold:

Alexius: My crime was an attempt to restore power to a country sheltering the rest of you. Will the Wardens fight the Qunari when Tevinter crumbles? Will Orlais send Chevaliers against the battlefleets? You southerners have no idea.

This surprised me because the impression you are given in Hushed Whispers is that Alexius' main reason for assisting the Venatori was to find a cure for Felix and that he never really bought into the rest of their restoration of Tevinter plans. When I used to pass sentence on him, usually assisting the Inquisition but occasionally to serve the mages, he seems like a broken man now Felix is gone. Yet this conversation seems to suggest that he was totally behind the efforts of the Venatori and is unrepentant of his actions. Now I realise that this is also similar to Calpernia. Her motivations were to restore Tevinter to its former glory and make it a "beacon of hope against the savage qunari" (and free the slaves as well) and Dorian approves if you let her go. So leaving aside Corypheus' aspirations to godhood, the two leading figures in the Venatori seemed to have exactly the same aims and justification for joining up.

And really, if you take Corypheus out of the equation, there is nothing really wrong with what they are trying to achieve. Which has me a bit confused now. If Alexius approached Dorian with this argument, why would Dorian have refused to help, considering he approved of Calpernia's speech and you letting her depart in peace? His letter in WoT2 talks of Alexius losing his integrity. He says something similar about Alexius in Skyhold. Presumably it was because it involved conquering the south but if it hadn't would he have joined up?

Actually, in game explanation of their last conversation was face to face and at the stage before Alexius got recruited by the Venatori. Dorian says in game he was just angry with Alexius for refusing to listen to reason (over Felix).

This is referred to on p.233 of WoT2 where it states they had a "heated argument" over Alexius fixating over Felix and using time magic to try and go back and change past events. Not only did Dorian think it not possible in practice but even if it were he sees the problems associated with it as it would "rip apart the fabric of time if successful". The events follow on after that in the book how Dorian describes them. He went drinking in his old haunts in the slums, eventually started to regret his parting words and went back to attempt a reconciliation, only to find Alexius gone. So far the game and the book agree with each other over what happened.

However, the book then introduces an extra stage to proceedings after the kidnapping, imprisonment and fall out with his father. Dorian spends two years dossing about Tevinter before somehow Alexius is able to make contact with him and this is when he suggested that Dorian join him in the Venatori. This bit is alluded to in game where Alexius says to Dorian, when we are in Redcliffe Castle, that he gave him the opportunity to join him. Then the book goes on to say that Alexius had given his support to a cult of Tevinter supremacy "in exchange for their aid in healing his son". This is consistent with what we are told in game during Hushed Whispers.  It is odd though if they had this second meeting and Alexius didn't tell Dorian why he was helping them if the main reason was assisting Felix.   In game Dorian only discovers this when we do.

What I found odd is the words they put into Alexius' mouth in the cells. It would suggest he didn't realise they were for Tevinter supremacy, even if other people were aware, because he was still defending his action and seemed to regard it as justified, or alternatively he did realise that restoring power to Tevinter did equate to Tevinter supremacy and still wasn't regretting his actions. What it contradicts is the idea that he only did it to save Felix.

Since we are going to Tevinter next game I was trying to get an idea of how we might find attitudes when we get there. It says in the epilogue to Trespasser that Dorian is fighting corruption in government. I suppose I was wondering what form that corruption is meant to take. In Calpernia's short story she objects to the fact that Altus Magisters are ignoring their civic duties whilst living it up at the State's expense, while Tevinter slowly degenerates and weakens. That is a laudable view but of course not the same as advocating Tevinter supremacy. Dorian can see the same thing happening as she did. Corruption in government is weakening Tevinter.

Mind you, I wonder how you restore Tevinter in power without them becoming a threat to everyone else. Tevinter is a shadow of its former self and yet they can still hold their own against the Qunari. That is actually quite impressive considering, as Dorian points out, they are doing it entirely without the aid of anyone else. So I suppose the challenge is to eradicate the corruption and strengthen Tevinter again, without it leading to world domination once more.

gervaise21

It could merely be too people whining in their cells calling the other one the worse villain more deserving of their cell fate. I don't know what Ruth said first, as you only quoted Alex, but if she was implying he was trash for allying with Cory/being Tevinter/being a mage (I dunno) then he was just trying to cast his own actions in a better light to win the argument.

I wasn't aware of the conversations until I came across them by accident. I usually do the same as you, though I have to admit I was hoping for a bit more than we got from Alexius when he did his research for the Inquisition. I can't remember exactly what it was but certainly when the game first came out (they may have changed it since) it was some paltry regular item you could get anywhere. I was hoping for at least something significant we could use, like a unique item or something.

Often it seems to me that doing something you wouldn't normally do actually results in more interesting outcomes. Take Solas, for example. You can have way more interesting and revealing dialogue with him in the main game if you pissed him off rather than befriending him, particularly if you accept the role of Inquisitor through faith in the Chantry version of the Maker, which I can never bring myself to do.   Had to data mine the internet to find the conversations.

Still here are Alexius' conversations with the other prisoners (spoilers for size):

I'm just here to drop off some cute fanart.


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