Dragon Age Video: Who is The Dread Wolf?

More a case that Solas preceded the Dread Wolf in terms of how he was known. He was also denying that there was any sort of co-habitation by a spirit in a mortal body, like Flemeth/Mythal, Anders/Justice, or Wynne/Faith Spirit. Have you read Tevinter Nights? In one of the stories there, Rasaan maintains that Solas was a name he took as a "self-styled martyr", but it is not his true name. We have discussed this elsewhere. Whilst the Qunari do have a thing about names, the fact is that the ancient elves did also take names according to their role, as evidenced by Abelas. He said he changed his name on entering Mythal's service and changed it again on her death, to reflect his role as a mourner. Solas also tells him he hopes he finds a new name (purpose) on leaving the Temple. So, rather than thinking Rasaan's assertion just reflects Qun philosophy, it might be better to consider where the Qun acquired their ideas for giving and changing names according to their role in society. Since Rasaan is a high-ranking member of the priesthood, she must be familiar with their history and thus the Qun may actually be working to more than guesswork with Solas.

As for the Dread Wolf, he says he adopted this deliberately as a means of terrifying his enemies, after it was originally given by them as an insult. He also says how that it came to obscure his true self, because that is how people increasingly perceived him. This is probably why the Dread Wolf persona is so strong in the Fade, because it reflects how the majority of those living now remember him. It could be part of the reason he resents the Dalish, not just because they don't remember the history of his rebellion (although apparently there is a folktale that does remember a trickster warrior who fought against tyrants), but because their memory of him strengthens the Dread Wolf aspect of his psyche. I think this is why he said to Lavellan that he did not want her to see what he would become. In order to realise his plan, he is going to have to fully subsume himself to the Dread Wolf.

I am fully convinced that at some point we are going to have to confront the Dread Wolf in the Fade, in order to defeat it, thus either slaying or freeing Solas from it, according to the intent of the PC. It is also possible that knowing his true name, in other words what he was prior to entering Mythal's service, may assist in breaking its hold over him.

Yes exactly!

The reason I think it was created before Solas raised the veil is because the structure is damaged, and we know that the Shattered Library became "shattered" once the veil was raised. So either Solas painted on a partially destroyed wall for whatever reason, or he painted it on the complete wall before the veil destroyed it. Obviously I am leaning toward the latter, even though it's perplexing to me.

For fun, let's say he did paint that mural before the veil was raised. 3 golden discs before the veil was raised. 2 after Trespasser's events. What immediately comes to mind to me is Solas' orb breaking between then.

So maybe the final golden discs represent the last Foci, or at least, the last of the powerful Foci that has stored magical energy since probably the dawn of The Golden City and the beginning of Elvhenan? So, perhaps the Old Gods and The Evanuris are holding the veil together in the way they were sealed, but it is The Foci that is holding the actual world together and what Solas wanted to prevent the Evanuris from destroying (kind of ironic that Solas ended up destroying one on his own lol.)

It may not be Foci itself, it could even represent Titans, as we know they connect.

           Thinking about it a little deeper, it makes the most sense that the murals were painted before the Veil went up. Here's the evidence. First, the area is called Scholar's Retreat. That suggests both deep study and isolation from prying eyes. Those qualities would be needed by Fen'Harel as he prepared the construction of the Veil. Second, there are actually two copies of the same mural on adjoining walls. The level designer definitely wanted us to notice this mural so I think of it as a blueprint for the Veil. Third, you find Qunari notes on a table in thie room. The Qunari were researching how to strengthen the Veil. What better place to do so than in the study of its creator? 

           That being said, there's some interesting similarities and differences between this mural, the one with the Red Lyrium 'Idol', and the one in the DA Day release. All three have a black-and-white dashed circle that seems to represent the Veil that seemingly contains a threatening object. Each also has seven spheres on the outside of that containment hinting that they are needed to maintain that circle. Notice, they are on the outside of the circle, not inside. Only the most recent has the seven symbols that are probably the symbols for the Evanuris. I don't think the Evanuris are trapped inside the Veil. I think they ARE the Veil. Notice that the painting at the center of the Shattered Library mural looks nothing like  any symbols of the Evanuris. To me, it looks kind of like the Nightmare Demon but I don't think it is that simple.  there's several other things about each mural but its late for me right now and I want to dig in a little deeper so my thoughts make more sense. (That'll be a first! )

        Thanks for your time.

This is an interesting theory because in the mural with the 3 discs, Solas is shown holding a disc aloft, which we usually take to be his orb. Using a number of foci to channel the magic needed to create and maintain the Veil would make sense. The odd part though is why were some already dimmed before the Veil? Of course, if the orbs belonged to his co-conspirators, perhaps that just indicated that four of them were already dead, or alternatively that their power was already being utilised.

This is also an interesting theory. I certainly think they are trapped outside of either the Black City or the Fade, in some alternate dimension, which could be the Veil itself. Whatever the case, he didn't deny that destroying the Veil would free them.

There is something odd about the Black City though. Back in DAO, the codex said even the strongest demons avoided it. Is this because they were forbidden from entering by the Evanuris and they fear the consequences of ignoring this prohibition, even though the Evanuris aren't around to enforce it? Now the cinematic seems to show the Veil trapped the Darkness/Blight within the city, although for several millennia it must still have appeared golden to those viewing it from their dreams but I have suggested previously that this is because it was what they expected to see. Clearly, the Evanuris are not trapped inside the city or Cory breaking in would have freed them, so why did the voice in his head, which he took to be Dumat, urge him to do this? Why does the song of the Old Gods attract darkspawn? Why did they stop speaking through the dreams of their priesthood after the Black City had been revealed?

I think Red lyrium is how the taint first appeared: the angry and mad blood of a Pillar of the Earth. The Ancient Elves tried to keep it trapped underground and they blamed Mythal and the gods for it being unleashed. That could mean that The Golden City was/is inside a Titan, which would make it look like it's floating over the clouds with some floating rocks in memories.  It could also be that everyone was banned to going back there ever (but Andruil did, a few times, until Mythal mindwiped her).

I think the "old gods" dragons were part of the magical lock to contains the Red Lyrium inside the city. After that, Solas either used them to trap the Enavuris or they are using them via the taint to escape their actual prison. The "weapon to win the war" used to lure them being the Red Lyrium makes sense to me too. "Yeah, guys you remember that super duper Red Lyrium we used to have, I know how to get some...oh, it's a trap!".

Also, I think that Mythal's revenge plan use the Taint/Blight. Remember in DAO when you get the grimoire from her body and give it to Morrigan, she start to wonder if Flemeth isn't responsible for the Blight. I doubt the dark ritual was only offered in one Blight too. And someone lured Bertrand to that Thaig on purpose (way too many hints in DA2 about it). And since I'm still convinced that Solas is behind her original murder despite what her followers claim in DAI (he's clearly the murderer of Flemythal in DAI),  I'm pretty sure her revenge plan is to screw over Solas (and everyone else in the process).

It would also explain why Solas referring to the Primeval Idol has his idol in the short story. Despite it being found in a dwarven Thaig, surrounded by crazy sign of Tevinter-like dragon worship, weak Veil and lots of demons hanging around. Also, it makes everyone who hold into it for a while totally utterly crazy...but Solas being total Hubris, doesn't think he can go loco like Andruil did. You know, he's so good at everything magic related compared to those bozo humans and not-my-elves Dalish. Anyway, Solas had that idol made before the city was closed off or he brought a little silver of it with him. As a souvenir you know. Like Varric did.

The Chantry teaches us that it is Hubris which brought the darkspawn into our world...

I changed the quote a bit, in the original it is "hubris of man", but it was always interesting that there was a Pride demon called Hubris or that pride (solas in elven) was involved in some way. I always took it to have double meaning.

It depends on the nature of the god. However, even if the Old Gods were only spirits drawn into a mortal vessel, like Hakkon, killing the dragon merely allowed it to return to the Fade. This does also seem what happened with Mythal. Odd though that the other gods didn't anticipate this. Solas implied he didn't try killing the other Evanuris because he knew it wouldn't be permanent, so why get all hung up on her murder? Surely, he would have done better to seek her out in the Fade? So, I think Solas was fibbing and the real reason he didn't go for a direct attack is because they were too powerful (and would be expecting him to do this). Thus, he opted for collective entrapment instead.

It is possible that death via Grey Warden does something to their memory, so the Old God returns to the Fade but doesn't remember their former identity and that is why the Wardens assumed it destroyed them. However, Flemeth also says that OG in Kieran was "snatched from the jaws of darkness", so either that means they would have died permanently or instead of travelling to the Fade, the taint meant the soul would have gone to the Void (or wherever the blight magic has its origins). Now either she wanted to save them from this fate, as she does seem to oppose the spread of the Blight, or she wanted to prevent this bit of soul joining up with the rest (assuming the dragon was a split soul vessel like Corypheus') and the rest of the god is in the Void.

Jeez, not asking for much are you? The central black and red structure on the Shattered Library still intrigues me so I had a quick in-game look at some of the murals in Skyhold. One thing I noticed is that the Black City appears in both the one depicting the creation of the Breach and in the panel depicting the area of the Fade you visit during Here Lies the Abyss. So why wasn't it present in the mural in the Shattered Library? Or why wasn't the Golden City present if it was there? The only answer I can come up with is that the City wasn't there at that time. There was something dark and malevolent though in that mural which brings up the second thing I noticed in those murals. Eyes. Eyes all around the Black City in the first panel. Eyes around the Black City in the HLTA section as well. I also seem to remember eyes appear all over the 'office' that the Envy Demon imitating Lucius in Champions of the Just. My own theory, backed by this and some other things I'll follow with, is that the Evanuris while exploiting the titan(s) they killed, unleashed the 'Big Kahouna' of all Nightmares. Beyond the depiction of the eyes associated with the Fade in Inquisition, there's more. In the Nightmare's Realm in HLTA, we get all sorts of information about Corys past, many stories about Darkspawn, that creepy poem etched in Red Lyrium, and loads of those Claws of Dumat altars everywhere. All those items link to the rot that seems to be at the heart of Thedas since the First Blight. Solas notes as we are going through the Nightmare's Realm that powerful demons can create their own fiefdoms in the Fade. I believe Niall back in Origins said something similar. That could explain why powerful demons might avoid the Black City, an area that is now home to the worst of their kind. Then there's the Elvish that the Nightmare taunts Solas with in the Fade. Assuming the Wiki is correct: "I know you, trickster. That was no victory. Your pride will be your death." The phrase 'that was no victory' is a piece I didn't realize was part of this puzzle until recently. It seems to refer to something personal Solas did in the past, like maybe sealing of the Nightmare (or maybe an even greater one) from the rest of the world by the Veil? The Nightmare imitated the Calling to the Wardens of southern Thedas. Why not the silence, then whispers of the Old Gods to lure a group of desperate magisters into a trap that could let its tool of destruction escape the cage: the Red Lyrium Idol. Perhaps even the Nightmare was what had been whispering to them the whole time.

Of course, all, some, or none of this could be correct, but lets just say I'm not buying any lottery tickets. Maybe when i figure out how to fit the Bulbous one into this theory...

Since we don't really have a DAD spoilery-speculation thread and this one basically turned into that.

After watching Absolution, I think I got a good idea why Varric is being used as the "introduction" character again. Well beside him being the less quantum option available. When they showed the tapestry 2 years ago with a big Dreadwolf head and 4 other characters, we all thoughts it was showing the previous two games bad guys with DAD new antagonists, but...(Absolution spoilers)

Just so you know, it doesn't explained how