Former Territories of the Evanuris

I don't think they have territory per se. I think every one of them have a Seat in the main Capital and rule from there.
And the worshipper make a pilgrimage to the main Capital.

I see them like the Greek gods.

Seheron and Rivain are also plausible for Ghilan'nain given her association with the sea.

Further thoughts I have had on this in the past. Par Vollen has pyramids aligned with the constellation, Solium, that is the sun. Chantry scholars seem to think they were constructed by humans (and so might reflect early Maker worship), except the problem with that is what happened to this civilisation? Elgar'nan is also associated with the sun and the Fog Dancers on Seheron claim their ancestors learned at the feet of the elves, so it is possible that the structures on Par Vollen were constructed by followers of Elgar'nan.

Alternatively, if you think there is a connection between the Old Gods and the Evanuris, then consider where the arch-demon's have arisen and this might give some idea of their domains. Don't worry about gender at this stage since at least one Old God seems to have changed over the years. I've already suggested that Dumat = Dirthamen and he arose in the area now known as the Silent Plains.

Zazikel was originally known as the goddess of freedom but later changed to the god of chaos, the High Priest known as the Madman of Chaos. Zazikel originally emerged in the Anderfels. Could this Old God have been connected with either Andruil (who did go mad for a time) or Ghilan'nain, who created a fair bit of chaos with her monsters and discord by encouraging disobedience in the servant of another god. She also strikes me as a sort of mad professor type, so I think Zazikel could be linked to her.

Next came Toth, the Old God of fire. This would seem most likely Sylaise but there is an outside chance it could be Elgar'nan as the dwarves were said to fear Elgar'nan's fire, which is why they stayed underground. Anyway, the darkspawn immediately swarmed around Marnas Pell and Vyrantium, suggesting that is where the Old God was originally located underground, before also appearing further south in Orlais. Southern Tevinter would correspond with the old kingdom of Neromenian, of which Toth was a patron god, so I would adjust the borders of Toth's domain to stretch from Marnas Pell down into Orlais.    If Elgar''nan, that would bring it onto the border with Mythal and could possibly extend as far as the Exalted Plains, hence the statue I mentioned above.

Next came Andoral, originally the Old God of unity but later slaves, presumably after defeating the elves. Since this Old God emerged somewhere in northern Antiva, I would guess that might be quite close to Arlathan Forest and it would make sense that the Old God associated with that area was given credit for the victory. Andruil could have been associated with unity, having brokered a peace deal with Ghilan'nain that brought her into the pantheon, so I'm going with Andruil = Andoral, whose domain stretched from Arlathan Forest south-east into modern day Antiva.

I would make Urthemiel = June, since the High Priest of Urthemiel is the Architect of Beauty, so it would seem the Old God was not associated with physical beauty so much as creating beautiful things and June is known as a crafter of wonders. That would make June's domain roughly where Ferelden is now because that is where Urthemiel arose and was imprisoned underneath (confirmed by a codex in the Descent).

That just leaves two remaining Old God's who have not yet arisen. One is Razikale, who I have linked with Mythal. I think she had temples across the south as far as the Frostback Mountains, where the Shrine of Sacred Ashes was located (webcam's have shown an image of Mythal when we are fighting Corypheus there), whilst I've already referred to the link with Razikale above, so that was probably her personal domain, but she also had a major temple and presence in the north where Minrathous is now located, as part of the capital of Arlathan.

The other is Lusacan, who has been linked with Falon'Din. I think his domain was actually under the Silent Plains in the Deep Roads and it was his encroachment on Mythal's territory in the Deep Roads that caused her to move again him. It is interesting, though, that there is a statue in the Emerald Graves known as the Watchman and the High Priest of Lusacan was known as the Watchman of the Night, so could this have indicated some sort of boundary above ground between Falon'Din's domain and that of Mythal? There were also owl statues in the Emerald Graves. There was some debate among scholars whether the owl statues were associated with Andruil or Falon'Din but the constellation Tenebrium, associated with Lusacan, is said to show an owl and the codex there definitely made the link with Falon'Din. So, I think the southern limit of Falon'Din's domain could have been around that part of the Emerald Graves.

Considering the Eluvians, I don' think their territories had to be continuous landmasses like everyone is speculating.

Andruil could have controlled both the forest of Arlanthan and the Tirashan for example. They can be one Eluvian away from each others.

gervaise21 I don't think the Forgotten Ones are the Old Gods. I believe what Bioware has been hinting at is that they're exactly what their moniker is: the Old Gods. Likely the seven (or eight) most powerful Fade spirits who either were either primeval or brought into existence via apotheosis prior to the rise of the Evanuris. Through dreams, they were able to manipulate the Fade to a greater extent than all/most other beings.

This thread has given my many thoughts

Brace yourself, I'm about to go full tin foil.

The old gods are...

Great dragons - ancient dragons, distinct from high dragons in terms of size and intelligence, who ruled the skys before the veil and whose blood is the blood of the world. Yavana reveals their existence in the comics.
"The blood of dragons is the blood of the world."
"Your heart beats with the old blood, as well. Where do you think it comes from? It sings of a time when dragons ruled the skies. A time before the Veil, before the mysteries were forgotten. Can you hear it?"
She's the first character to say there was a time before the veil (that i can recall), which we now know to be true, so I'm inclined to take her seriously.
When Magister Aurelien Titus uses the great dragon blood in Maric he said "With it, I have tapped the power of gods." Mayhap the Old Gods?

If dragons are the blood of the world and once ruled the skys.. that gives me vibes of them being one of, if not the, oldest beings in world of Thedas.

If the Dragons = blood of the world
And Titans = pillars of the earth
Then perhaps the fade/spirits equal, well.. the spirit of the world.

Theory: Great dragons were part of the triumvirate of powers that created the world/Thedas, making them essentially gods, specifically The Old Gods whose dragon form the Evanuris would copy when they made the transition from generals to godkings (In order to make their claims of godhood appear more legitimate) and who would later contact humans.


The Maker is...

Elgar'nans' daddy! Stay with me.

The Chantry symbol is a sun.

In Elgar'nans' mythology as remembered by the dalish, he is the first child of the sun and the earth, he fights and defeats the sun in that story.

Solas states that the Evanuris were generals, then leaders, then gods. This implies the existence of previous leader/s. A king, a president, or ministers, either a normal leader or another "god". Regardless they were replaced by the Evanuris, whether peacefully or in a form of coup.

I would suggest that the story of Elgar'nan defeating the sun is a mythologized story of that transition of power. Of elgar'nan defeating the previous leader and replacing them. That they are represented by the sun in that story suggests that they were already associated with it symbolically.

I would suggest that this Sun-King is the being now known as the Maker. And probably isn't actually Elgar'nans' daddy, unless he's responsible for making him (perhaps by turning him from a spirit to an elf), which is a little daddy-ish.

Given the status and exclusivity assigned to the form of the dragon by the Evanuris, it wouldn't surprise me if the Maker/SunKing also shapeshifted into a dragon... Or even actually was a dragon. The lost Old God Draconis perhaps, who was forgotten, as Chantry doctrine states the maker was forgotten by Thedas. If he were a more ancient great dragon than the rest of the old gods then that would also line up with the chants assertion he came before them. If the old gods and their non-great dragon subjects were who the elves were at war with, the maker/Draconis their leader and the evanuris his generals then their defeat and imprisonment beneath the ground would be the work of the maker as the chant sais, and the defeat of great dragons who are percieved to be gods an inciting incident in the Evanuris' own rise to godhood.


The Forgotten Ones are...

The other generals who fought alongside the Evanuris but did not rise to power as leaders and gods, and refused to serve the Evanuris when they did. Their role in the dragon war forgotten.


The Forbidden ones are...

Just powerful and complicated spirits, who used to be a part of the Evanuris' empire but abandoned it and physical form when it went to war. Whether the war with the dragons, the Titans, or the respective civil wars with the forgotten ones and Falon'din.


I don't expect to be right (for one thing they've said they'll never reveal whether the maker exist) but it was fun to ride the theory train 😛

Absafraginlootly partially beat me to it lol Posted while I was typing. With Elgar'nan's backstory, I'm unsure as to whether 'The Sun' is one being or not. Would be interesting if it was.

Also realized that as far as Old God and Evanuris links go, Andoral may also fit with Sylaise in an ironic way: the domestic activities her followers took part in were actually involuntary labor, hence the 'God of Slaves'.

The Olds Gods must have *some* connection to the Evanuris. Fundamentally, though, I think they're different. I remember running into a theory which posited the Old Gods are akin to seals which are keeping the Black City and the Evanuris anchored in the Fade.

That is connected with the image in that first teaser trailer that shows 7 discs around the edge of the circle with 5 of them blacked out and 2 still golden. I could understand if he had the assistance of 7 powerful spirits to maintain his prison but not why they were in the form of dragons. They could have placed themselves in the Deep Roads for safety whilst they entered uthenera but I don't understand why they would then start communicating with human mages and encourage them to break into the Black City. So, at the very least, I think the Old Gods were trapped there against their will. However, it is possible that was a side-effect of creating the Veil that had not been anticipated.

Nevertheless, that theory would explain why he was so against disturbing the last two Old Gods. Not sure how it explains Flemeth's interest in saving them though. Another piece of information that may be relevant is also found in the comic series and that is provided by Arishok Sten, which he claims comes from the Tome of Koslun, so the priesthood of the Qun probably know more. He says the Old Gods were like unto dragons as the first human kings were like unto ordinary men. He also recounted the history of Calenhad, where he obtains his power from drinking the blood of a great dragon, although I never understood how Koslun or the Qunari knew about this unless when Calenhad went in search of his old friend, Aldanon, over the sea, he ended up wherever the Qunari originated from and told his story there. In any case, Sten seems to draw a distinction between the Old Gods and Great Dragons, even if they are connected in some way. The Kossith/Qunari connection is the reason I'm hoping that Rasaan may end up as a companion so we can quiz her on this.

This is all very interesting. I never considered that the Evanuris could specifically be in charge of parts of Thedas, like a domain where they reigned, but it makes sense.

I would however state that Fen'Harel IS one of the Evanuris. He is BOTH Evanuris and Forgotten One, which is how he tricked them both. Solas even called the Evanuris "my people."