Items on the Table (may have spoilers)

This screenshot will be the most picked over in the history of CSI BSN at this point I swear.

I think Bellara just farted, silent but deadly. Taash just noticed and looks annoyed, that enhanced Qunari sense of smell. And Davrin was chilling, quietly sharpening his blade, thought he’d sensed darkspawn for a second, a foul scent of death and corruption assaulting his nostrils. He’s alarmed. “It’s a Blight!” - he realizes. Emmrich is indifferent, no stranger to the smell of dead things. Neve and Lucanis haven’t felt it yet, they only smell their tea and coffee, respectively, but that’s about to change - ignorance is bliss. But Harding, she knows and is smiling mischievously.

I see nothing of interest on the table, honestly. Dunno… 🧐

First thoughts for the strange map was it was an underground map like a sewer system or the deeproads.

But since it's in front of Emmrich perhaps it's a lower level of the Necropolis?

What is that in Bellara's hair? It looks like a dragon head.

Is that a hopefully you are right or a hopefully that it stays just as speculation?

Are they really crow heads though?   They make me think more of cobra heads, like Neve's leg.  A nod to the Viper perhaps?

I thought about snakes at first but they look a lot like the crow hoods Zevran and others wear in the artwork. Plus we don’t know if Lucanis has any connection with the Viper. Isn’t that the head of the shadow dragons? Neve is their representative and Lucanis is the Crows rep.

I didn’t notice Bellara’s hair ornament but looking at it I agree it’s probably a dragon. Which makes sense since she seems to be interested in ancient technology and the ancient evanuris seem like the dragon form (or at least Mythal). Crackpot theory: the triangle motif she has going on relates to the executors and she is one of their agents. I could be mistaken but I think the chalk marks the executors were making were triangles? I went and re-read TN and the executor wasn’t described as having triangle patterns on his clothes so I’m probably wrong. But I thought about how in the mark of the assassin, Talis had a big ole’ Qun symbol on the chest plate (which I only noticed years later when someone pointed it out). So maybe it’s a sneaky clue?

We don't know who his mysterious sponsor was in Tevinter Nights. He would seem to have done more than one job for them and always targeting Venatori, or at least other corrupt mages. He was getting assistance from some sort of underground network and it seems likely they were part of the Shadow Dragon network, since he told Illario they would help get the slaves to safety. Of course, he may not know the identity of his sponsor, working through an intermediary, or that he is indirectly working for the Shadow Dragons but I think there is a link there. However, Crow masks would make more sense than snake heads unless he knows he is working for the Viper.

On the face of it. However, unless we discover the whole fake death thing was cooked up by Caterina, he would seem to have cut ties with the Crows and is working independently of them now. Nevertheless, he would be able to give us much inside information on them as an organisation and if we need to make contact with them for strategic reasons, it may be he will be forced to confront his past and his tyranical grandmother in order to further the cause. We shall see.

I've seen it in another image and there it did remind me of the symbol of the Veil Jumpers, a halla head. So, that would make sense. It still doesn't fill me with confidence though. Obviously, if she is a genuine Dalish then they don't know about the history of Ghilan'nain we found in the Temple of Mythal but I am still puzzled why they would make her associated with the Veil Jumpers.

The other possibility is Andruil as Strife and his "clan" seemed to have a devotion to her. At least he knew that apparently Arlathan Forest was the domain of Andruil. The fact that the Dalish have such a positive image of her and Ghil would make sense considering most of the elven slaves in ancient Tevinter came from the city in Arlathan Forest. They have retrieved at least one ancient artifact associated with Ghil in the location. Both ancient writings and the Dalish seem to agree that they were allies, so that makes sense. If Strife's clan are genuine Dalish then I wonder how long they have been focusing on this area. He joined them close to Starkhaven, after which they traveled north but I don't think his story in Tevinter Nights made it clear how long ago that was. Was it before or after their strange book started re-writing itself? (see Ruins of Reality). How and when did they acquire that? Why did the Keeper give it to Strife to read, or how come a mere city elf could read something a Dalish Keeper couldn't? How did he/they have a map of Arlathan? Was that also an ancient artifact or had they been there long enough to map it out before the strange anomalies started occurring? I wonder how they are going to react now Ghil is free?

Not such a crackpot theory as plenty of people have been making the same connection ever since the illustration to the Ruins of Reality. I wouldn't read too much into the agent that was in Dread Wolf Take You because that was a really creepy dude, likely an actual Executor from Across the Sea, as opposed to those they may have recruited from the local population. Those mentioned in codices in DAI seemed to be just normal looking humans and elves. So, the Veil Jumpers could genuinely be just trying to recover artifacts and deal with the strange magic in Arlathan Forest without realising who they are aligned with. The fact that they are not just Dalish but a collection of interest parties, including humans, does hint to me that the Executors could be behind it. So, the question then would be who is in the know? Strife is the one I would be most suspicious of in that case. I never bought the idea he was just a simple City Elf on the run from the authorities in Starkhaven for general insubordination. I always felt he was likely an agent of some sort and even before the illustration in Ruins of Reality I had wondered about the Executors. On the other hand, Bellara could be an entirely innocent Dalish elf who got involved with them without knowing who she was really serving. The thing that makes me suspicious is not just her fixation with triangles but her strange vallaslin. That seems more than just a regional variation to me and has some deeper meaning.

Also, just noticed the plinth that the table is resting on has a triangle motif.  That's weird because the Lighthouse is meant to be the refuge of Solas and the Executors are opposed to him. 

Hmm how many knights were there in Arthurian Legend? 

A lot, and like Gervaise mentioned, it could vary depending on the version, anywhere from 12 to over 100 knights. In Le Morte d’Arthur, one seat was always reserved for the Judas, the betrayer, and the siege perilous, for the one that succeeds in the quest for the Holy Grail.

Hmm this is fun idea though. Emmerich could be Hector, Bellara as Tristram, Taash as Gawain, Davrin as Lancelot, maybe…?

Would there be a Guinevere and an Arthur, in this scenario? If Kieran wasn’t quantum, I would have suggested him as the Galahad.

Assan as the Holy Grail is adorable and I love it, ha. Sold.

If we went with your second interpretation, what about the Inquisitor as the one betrayed? And Rook is the Galahad/Percival of the story. Perhaps they could also function as the betrayer, if that is the twist this time around.

There could be a whole load of new possibilities. It is after all Dragon Age, not Blight Age. Perhaps the dragons will once again rule the skies. We were discussing on the Crazy Thread about an expedition into the Donnarks to establish new colonies. Alternatively, perhaps a sea voyage to discover new lands. Then there is always the politics in the established setting. Perhaps the dwarves will have a revival with the threat of the darkspawn out of the way. What will happen with Tevinter? Of course, a lot will depend on how they do resolve the Solas story, which they have promised to do this game.

Yeah you are probably right its just kind of...one of the many mind boggling implications that could result from this game. Just no more Blight. Sure its not the Blight Age but the Blight has pretty much been the one sword of damocles/ ticking time bomb which was just hanging over this setting from the outset. So its just hard to imagine what Thedas would be like without the Blight. 

But then are right there might be a lot of different other conflicts to explore in other continents and areas.