Bruh Imagine Being An Elvish Inquisitor Like-

Bruh imagine being an elvish inquisitor like-

You get sent from your home to spy on some religious get-together, you survive a nuclear blast then get accused of terrorism and it makes sense cuz your dalish and aren't andrastian but you didn't do it, then you close a literal hole in the sky, saving the world, and then become the leader of a religious semi-rebellion and literally become the chosen of some god you don't believe just so, down the line, you learn that your whole religion was based on slavery and your super cool religious tattoo is actually slave markings and your mage bestie? he's actually the bad god from your religion and is immortal cuz he sleeps a lot.

Wild.

It's me ya boi

Anyway can we talk about how many parallels there are towards death and the strong themes of cheating death present in the DA games?

DAO: Cousland cheats death the first time by escaping their castle or whatever. Don't remember the other back stories but I know they also evade consequences or death. THEN you evade death AGAIN when you become a Warden. Then once more at the betrayal, when you get saved by Morgan and Flemeth. Then if you complete the dark ritual you manage to slay and survive the Archdemon. THE PROBLEM WITH THIS IS the entire point of being a Warden is to die. To slay dark spawns until you get killed or go insane -in which case you die anyway- Your whole premise is to be an honorable sacrifice, to die and take as many dark spawn as you can with you so that no one else has to. By surviving over and over again you're not only forsaking your purpose but spiting the wardens that came before you. How dare YOU be the one to survive? How dare you cheat your death over and over and over again? What about you makes you so special? More important than the other wardens? How fucking dare you?

Da2: So first Hawke survives the hordes of dark spawn in Fereldan, they survive the ogre attack in place of their sibling, then the trip to Kirkwall and then the entry into Kirkwall. How many died during those events, how many different times did Hawke cheat death in those instances? Hundreds of times, definitely. One wrong move and Hawke would've been killed, but they weren't. How lucky. Then in the deep roads, Hawke can lose their OTHER sibling to the taint. Then they lose their mother. What was all that surviving for if they were just going to lose all of their family, be left in this world without the people Hawke had worked so hard to save and to care for? Champion of Kirkwall, what a heavy title to bear with all the deaths of people Hawke couldn't save. They cheat death once more at the end, against Meredith.

DAI: Inky is sent to the chantry, and it blows up. You should've died but you didn't, instead you're given a key to close the rift and a woman saves you. Then you are found, imprisoned for terrorism. You should've been executed, good thing you have that key. Good thing you were the one to try and save Justinia, right? Good thing it was you who survived and not the thousands of others. Then comes the reinstitution of the Inquisition, a portion of the chantry long since dead -for good reason- that rises up from the ashes with you. Then in that one mission you get sent forward in time, in which everyone dies for you to get you to fix the disastrous consequences of you NOT defeating Corypheus. There are more moments but fast forwarding to the dragon secret and defeating Corypheus. You should not have been able to get that secret, but you did, the same way that key imbedded in your hand/arm. By all means, you were always meant to be dead. There was nothing special about Inky, there was no reason they should have survived any of what happened to them but they did. And that can be viewed as either happy, bittersweet, or outright tragic. Then, at the very end, the one thing that made you special, the key, has to be CUT OFF because it is killing you. You should have died but good thing Solas is there to take your arm, to help you cheat death again -which is a great parallel to how he helped you in the very beginning-

I stand by the idea that Dragon Age is a tragedy. The MC, whether that's Warden, or Hawke, or Inky has to give up EVERYTHING, their families, their lives, everything, to be forced into positions of power and save the world. And whether their willing or not, it doesn't matter because they will be forced into that position. Forced to be Hero of Fereldan, Champion of Kirkwall, or Inquisitor. You will be robbed of everything and forged into what people need you to be. That's the consequence of cheating death and being at the right place at the right time. But it's a good thing youre special, huh?

And you know the thing about being a Main Character is that you will cheat death over and over and over again, and the only consequence is that someone is going to be there to take your place, someone is going to die for you, eventually. There's nothing you can do about it except watch your life be taken away from you and watch all the people you love and care for die.

I dont know if anyone caught this and I really hope people see this but I have come to a realization:

"Solas" in Dalish quite literally translates to pride, further more there are common phrases within the Dalish language that speak of pride ruining everything and blah blah blah here's my source.

What I find funny is that Fen'Harel/Solas shows up and is like "YEaH iTs ME, YOuRE LocaL ELVen ApOSTAte PrIDe" and if your playing a Dalish inky they don't question it or mention it, it's even funnier if your a Dalish Mage because then you're the First of your clan and you're supposed to know this shit. Like they're literally like "Suspicious amount of Fade knowledge, weird ass name, able to drag me into the Fade... Yeah isn't shady at all lemme continue to trust this guy."

Furthermore, Solas' fear is dying alone and the Dalish sayings are quite literally "Dirth ma, harellan. Ma banal enasalin. Mar solas ena mar din." Which roughly means: "Your pride is responsible for everything that has gone wrong; you will die alone." And there's another one thats: "Dirth ma banal. Mar solas ena mar din" which means "You have learned nothing. Your pride be your downfall." The wiki also says that these are common Dalish phrases so...

This likely means that Solas is probably super self aware and we, the fandom, can take this a bajillion ways. One way is that past Fen'Harel was often told that he was prideful and that it would lead to his misfortune and so in DAI he brands himself by his shortcoming to stick it in the faces of his fellow mages but fast forward to DAD, pride will be Solas' downfall and the DAD protagonist will leave him to die alone and pondering what would of happened if he wasn't so arrogant because he wouldn't have lost his friends, his lover (if romanced), or his future.

Okay, idea. Well, question.

Humans are known for repetitive behavior. Throughout history we see themes that persist to modern day. But my question has to do with objects that look like they glow, like.

A light hits something and it looks like it glows and we think "Oh this is a quest object" or "This guys gonna send me on a quest to get exactly 342 radishes" and shi like that but, like, what did people think in the olden days?

Were they walking around thinking "Yeah thats how lighteth w'rks" or were they like "Ah yes, this guys gonna sendeth me on a quest to collecteth exactly 342 radishes! ha! what excit'ment!" and they chortle along their way.

How did video game logic work without video games?

Self care is looking like a wet rat after 4 hours in the bath listening to nothing but whatever Spotify Shuffle decides for you because work sucks and life sucks and you're trying your best but your best isn't good enough so after 4 hours you get a call from your concerned friend cuz you're not mentally stable.

Except its a face time call so now you are facing your friend with your hair dripping wet, your eyes red -not from crying but because, like a child, you tried opening your eyes under water despite having put soap, bath salts, and a bath bomb in your bath- and shaking because its been four hours and your bath is cold now.

Your friend asks if you are okay because you haven't answered any of their texts and, as said previously, you aren't very mentally stable. You smile and say yes, you voice all weird and garbled because you got water in your phone's microphone, so you opt for giving them a thumbs up only to realize your hand is all wrinkly and pruny like a 114 year old great grandma.

And after your friend is content witnessing your evolution into an ancient being with fragile bones and saggy skin that shouldn't really have any business being here in this mortal plane, you spend another thirty minutes in your cold bath, listening to music you have never heard before.

THAT is self care.

How to make your readers Feel emotions for Dummies

(Characters crying edition!)

So... You can't write characters crying? (Or you just want to read this for some reason) Well, neither do I so let's get right into it! I should be packing for a trip but oh well who cares? Not me!

Yeah. Your character is crying and you want to know...

How to not make it cringe af

How to make the Readers relate to it

How to make the readers not only relate to it, but feel DEPRESSED

Step 1 - Do NOT over describe it I've tried to write this so many times and failed that I've realized it's just like good horror. If anything, don't describe the tears, describe their impact, describe the horror of why they're happening, what they're doing to your character. (Example at the end)

Step 2 - Make it at a time when we've had time to connect to the character Put it in the middle of the 1st or only book at the earliest. Other than that, put it later. The more time you spend with the characters, the more their breaking down will emotionally scar you. And that's what we want

Step 3 - Describe other actions for the character Deep breaths, falling to their knees, screaming, choking, cradling the body of a loved one, sad dialogue, other concerned characters, ect. Actions speak louder than words and that is sooooo true in writing. This one of those rare cases where show don't tell is a must.

Ex. (I'm using A and B for the character names cause I'm lazy)

The world seemed to slow as everything came crashing down around her as his body hit the ground, a soft thud the only sound she heard as the grass slowly turned from the light lively emerald of life, to the deep crimson red of death. He was gone. She ran over to him, his quickly fading labored breaths and her crunching footsteps the only sound as the sun shone into her eyes, blinding her. She dropped to her knees beside him, the tears already beginning to fall as she began to choke on her own words, unable to speak as she grabbed his hand. It felt warm in her palm as she clutched his hand close to her chest as the world came crashing back. The burning light of the sun in her eyes, the heat of it and the adrenaline on her skin, her brother's cooling hand, his raspy breaths, her sobbing gasps, the clash of metal against metal, the falling bodies, the raining blood. Then the screams. "A! A! What are you doing?! We're in the middle of a fight! Don't you remember what I taught you?" B nearly screamed at her, causing A to cry out in a mix of anguish and agony, panic finally reaching her as the impact of what had just happened finally hit her.

(Side note: If you liked the example, it will be part of my Fantasy Book series Coming out soon! More in my profile if you're at all interested)

That wasn't as sad as it could of been because you didn't know the characters, but it's definitely better than just an extended description of crying.

Anyway, thank you lovelies and I hope this helps you even a little bit! Love you, continue being awesome!