Former Elf Companions Joining Solas (or not) In DA4

Not really. They only both agree that blood magic in and of itself isn’t bad but how it is used. They disagree on pretty much everything else, for example Solas sees spirits as friends while Merrill sees them as as dangerous so you need to be cautious. Also he is literally the devil of her religion, and she on multiple occasions talks about how trusting the Dread Wolf is bad.

I wonder if there will be a major anti-Fen'Harel Elves faction.
Elves vs Thedas doesn't really sound good considering that even with a "god" on their side they're still outnumbered.
There could be Elves that either won't agree with Fen'Harel's methods or still remain loyal to the Evanuris, mayhaps offering alliance for dismantling alienages?, maybe something like we could do with Briala in Wicked Eyes and Wicked Hearts.

I look forward to the mental sparring. Its my favorite kind.

Well, he's got at least one agent in the recent DA comics series.

I remember Leliana saying something about Sentinel elves being active in the Tirashan during Trespasser.
To protect their temples or join Fen'Harel?

Which also reminds me of the worshippers of The Forgotten Ones being there too, would they join Fen'Harel or seek revenge for locking The Forgotten Ones?

1. Okay. Why would Merrill be one of the ones in the dark though? If nothing else, Varric would alert her to what is going on and poof, she's not joining. 
2. Merrill has nothing positive to say about Fen'Harel. As for being respected, people usually respect enemies that show skill. Doesn't mean they like them or will support them. 

No I'm not. I've said multiple times I think he will be operating from the shadows, using the Qun-Tevinter War as a distraction to hide his actions. And yeah, since she can be killed in DA2 I doubt she will show up in the next game. Maybe a small cameo role or something, but nothing big enough where she can't be replaced by another character to fill the role. 

Or, Merrill once learning from Varric could help the shadow Inquisition instead. Not as a companion or anything, but since we are talking about agents helping an organization. I could see a lot of characters from the past doing that. It's already been done really, since Varric in Knight Errant while not being part of the Inquisition anymore still is kept in the loop and helps them out. 

I know, I was just saying that while the Dalish see their deities as more morally grey, she does not say anything good about him and even has a conversation about why you shouldn't work with him.

Even if fate by that definition was a concept, the Evanuris are not the Aesir. They're not actually gods. They're very strong normal people who ruled long enough to be remembered as gods. Its like Egyptian pharaohs or Chinese and Roman god-emporers. The Evanuris don't have some kind of special place in the cosmos, at least not any more special than the rest of the ancient elves.

Solas is the "Trickster God" in reputation, but in reality he's a bald fade nerd who sometimes accidentally sets his coattails on fire. The rest is just effective application of strategy, drama, and magical talent.

All of this is very interesting plot possibilities that I really really hope happen in-game in DA4. The most obvious possibility would be Solas orchestrating a slave rebellion by proxy for hsi own chaos/distraction purposes. So now I'm gonna be suspicious of that if we get it. lol Also, I think it'd be neat if he branches out to non-elven agents using this method. We must be suspicious of *everyone*! O.O

And this all begs the question of how he'll be able to entirely control all his cells if his even direct tier of agents is acting with a lot of autonomy? I suppose the answer is: he can't. I'm very much expecting us to run across at least some cell that has done something Solas, if he'd known, wouldn't like. Like something ridiculously bad, like blood sacrificing an orphanage or something. And then we might end up seeing him enact those methods of removing cells that have grown too radical that he was counseling Sera on.

Not to sure about some of these statements. True the Dalish sometimes ascribe rather severe behaviour to their gods but usually it is only because the victim deserved it. Elgar'nan was rather hot tempered and vengeful until soothed by Mythal and that story has the sun, earth and the two elven gods working together to restore what the Sun originally destroyed, so ultimately it has a very positive spin on it.

In fact on the whole they do attribute positive traits to the Creators. Elgar'nan is invoked when Dalish are seeking revenege but is also seen as the god of fatherhood; Mythal is motherhood and protection; Falon'Din is the friend of the Dead, a benign guide in the Fade and god of good fortune; Dirthamen his devoted brother, who gave the elves knowledge and also taught them the value of loyalty and faith in the family; Andruil watched over the animals and taught the elves to respect them and the natural world; Sylaise taught the elves practical skills like how to use fire, healing herbs and magic, spinning and weaving; June taught them crafting of bows and other tools. Finally Ghilan'nain was raised to godhood from among Andruil's followers for her devotion to the animals. It is easy to see how survivors of the pro-Evanuris priesthood maintained a positive memory about their gods, whereas those in the Temple of Mythal have the truer version and of course Solas adds his own additions to some of them, particularly Falon'Din. However, from the Dalish perspective the Creators are the "good" gods.  Even the fact they call them collectively the Creators rather than the Evanuris (Leaders) points to this.

It is dualistic in outlook, because balancing out the largely benign Creators are the malign Forgotten Ones, the gods of terror, malevolence, spite, disease and decay. There is nothing grey in their view of these gods. They are evil and the elves which follows them have "torn out their hearts and forsaken all that it means to be Dalish in return for the keys to a twisted and terrible strength". There were meant to have been cults to them in the Dales and presumably their descendants are to be found in the Tirashan (unless these are ancient elves whose allegiance was to them).

In between the two sits Fen'Harel the god of both camps and of neither. So it is true that he is not exactly Satan as they do not regard him as wholly evil like the Forgotten Ones but simply not to be trusted as he is a trickster. However, he is also said to be the bringer of nightmares, presumably because they believe he does haunt the Fade with his presence (have the Keepers occasionally met him there?) Their view of Fen'Harel as more a neutral god who does not believe in black and white perceptions of good or evil but only his own schemes and will use anyone to advance them actually does fit very well with what we now know of him.

So the problem with any Dalish actually following the Dread Wolf is that their lore makes constant reference to the fact he cannot be trusted. Even if he says he is going to restore their gods to them, why should they believe him? If he says he is going to bring back the World of the Elves, would they not think there is going to be a catch to it? The downside being that only "true elves" will profit from his plans and the Dalish don't qualify.