Post by DragonEffect on Sept 2, 2019 18:23:29 GMT
In every artwork of DA Inquisition we see the Inquisitor associated with a dragon theme. They wear a dragon helmet in most artwork, all covers from the official game and the DLCs have a prominent dragon theme, the Herald earns the Armor of the Dragon early in Haven, but in only ONE instance of the game do we see any connection between dragons and the Inquisitor: when we drink from the Vir Abelasan (Well of Sorrows) and Flemeth/Mythal must help us earn the trust of a dragon to make it fight Corypheus' false Archdemon. And the quest where that happens is not even mandatory.
Dragons are associated in Thedosian lore with two "pagan" mythologies:
So the dragon theme belongs to TEVINTER and their mythology. And the Inquisitor's enemy IS a Tevinter magister, a personification of old Tevinter and the religion the Chantry declared heretical and used as a cautionary tale against mages, magic and the belief in pagan worship. The whole Andrastian faith is centered around it and having the Inquisitor be declared the Herald of ANDRASTE while donning dragon armor and claiming to speak for Andraste (in the case of a religious Inquisitor) MAKES NO SENSE. If anyone should have dragon-based theme, it's Corypheus himself. Or Mythal's Sentinels (remember the dragon statues in Mythal's Temple and dragon drawings on its walls).
If anything, dragons are the antithesis of Andraste. Her symbol is the SUN. In every Andrastian flag and drapery you have at your disposal to decorate Skyhold, it's clear the Chantry symbol - and Andraste's per association - is the SUN with wavy rays. Therefore, the Herald of Andraste should have an Andrastian theme, with a prominent Sun symbol and wear a diadem much like Andraste's.
(Of course, later in the game your Inquisitor could change such theme according to their OWN beliefs, in the case of a non-religious Inq., a Dalish elf, a Tal Vashoth or a dwarf)
But then you might ask: why would the Inquisitor wear Andrastian-themed outfit if the Inquisition was funded as an institution contrary to the Chantry's policy? The answer is simple. The Inquisition IS NOT a negation of the Chantry. It doesn't defy Andrastian faith. It merely defies the Chantry's inertia concerning the Breach and the threat it poses, and proposes to investigate its root cause and solve the problem while the Chantry is too busy restructuring itself and looking for a new Divine. Thus why Thedosians turn their faith to you, the Inquisitor, who has allegedly been delivered from the Fade by Andraste herself to close the Breach and save the world.
However, the Chantry sees the emergence of the Inquisition as a challenge, for it lost its monopoly over the Andrastian faith. Remember, only the Divine may speak for Andraste and the Maker. With the Inquisitor being acknowledged as that voice, what authority is left in the Chantry to steer the minds and hearts of the Thedosian people?
Hence why the Inquisitor should be the personification of Andraste's messenger, her Herald, and not wear armor inspired in creatures elevated to godhood by a heretical religion (old Tevinter mythology).
Maybe Bioware intended to explain why the dragon-based theme became associated with the Inquisition later in the game, but that was never done, especially since Morrigan may drink from the Well of Sorrows and she herself can become the dragon instead, much like her mother.
Dragons are associated in Thedosian lore with two "pagan" mythologies:
- Arlathan and the elven gods of old, who, if Mythal is any indication, discovered the secret of effective immortality by using dragons as vessels for a fragment of their soul and can, in some cases, shapeshift and assume the form of a dragon.
- The Tevinter Imperium and their worship of the Old Gods, dragons who have allegedly whispered secrets into the mages' ears and led seven of them to enter the Fade searching for the Golden City. Dragons that later became Archdemons and, along with the darkspawn, a Blight upon the world.
So the dragon theme belongs to TEVINTER and their mythology. And the Inquisitor's enemy IS a Tevinter magister, a personification of old Tevinter and the religion the Chantry declared heretical and used as a cautionary tale against mages, magic and the belief in pagan worship. The whole Andrastian faith is centered around it and having the Inquisitor be declared the Herald of ANDRASTE while donning dragon armor and claiming to speak for Andraste (in the case of a religious Inquisitor) MAKES NO SENSE. If anyone should have dragon-based theme, it's Corypheus himself. Or Mythal's Sentinels (remember the dragon statues in Mythal's Temple and dragon drawings on its walls).
If anything, dragons are the antithesis of Andraste. Her symbol is the SUN. In every Andrastian flag and drapery you have at your disposal to decorate Skyhold, it's clear the Chantry symbol - and Andraste's per association - is the SUN with wavy rays. Therefore, the Herald of Andraste should have an Andrastian theme, with a prominent Sun symbol and wear a diadem much like Andraste's.
(Of course, later in the game your Inquisitor could change such theme according to their OWN beliefs, in the case of a non-religious Inq., a Dalish elf, a Tal Vashoth or a dwarf)
But then you might ask: why would the Inquisitor wear Andrastian-themed outfit if the Inquisition was funded as an institution contrary to the Chantry's policy? The answer is simple. The Inquisition IS NOT a negation of the Chantry. It doesn't defy Andrastian faith. It merely defies the Chantry's inertia concerning the Breach and the threat it poses, and proposes to investigate its root cause and solve the problem while the Chantry is too busy restructuring itself and looking for a new Divine. Thus why Thedosians turn their faith to you, the Inquisitor, who has allegedly been delivered from the Fade by Andraste herself to close the Breach and save the world.
However, the Chantry sees the emergence of the Inquisition as a challenge, for it lost its monopoly over the Andrastian faith. Remember, only the Divine may speak for Andraste and the Maker. With the Inquisitor being acknowledged as that voice, what authority is left in the Chantry to steer the minds and hearts of the Thedosian people?
Hence why the Inquisitor should be the personification of Andraste's messenger, her Herald, and not wear armor inspired in creatures elevated to godhood by a heretical religion (old Tevinter mythology).
Maybe Bioware intended to explain why the dragon-based theme became associated with the Inquisition later in the game, but that was never done, especially since Morrigan may drink from the Well of Sorrows and she herself can become the dragon instead, much like her mother.