Hidden Trespasser mosaics
So I was researching some lore for a theory surrounding the environmental artwork in DAI, and happened toĀ stumble upon this twitter post regarding unused mosaics for Trespasser.Ā
Coincidentally, Iāve been so deep in statues and elven god symbolism the past few days that I thought Iād chime in with some of my own thoughts.
From left to right in these artworks, I think weāre looking at four different gods involved in Solasā slave rebellion.
FenāHarel, Dirthamen/FalonāDin, Andruil, Mythal
If this hidden game file is anything to go by, it seems to confirm one theory Iāve had for a while- that Solas had helpĀ from some of the evanuris with his slave rebellion.
Because when you think about it, itās kinda hard to believe he could have started a slave rebellion at all with his high profile and attachment to Mythal, especially when slaves seems to have been a big economy in ancient Elvhenan.
The gods in these mosaics
From left to right in the image
(Note:Ā I actually posted some hi-res shots of the masks from DAO yesterday if youāre interested in seeing unedited screenshots, but Iāll break down my guesses here anyway.)Ā Ā
1. FenāHarel is obviously the wolf.
2. Dirthamenās mask is easiest to spot because it matches the shape of his statues in DAO. Note that Dirthamen and FalonāDin have very similar statues and masks.
FalonāDin is the statue with the spear (recognised by Tamlen asĀ āfriend of the deadā) while I believe Dirthamen is the statue with four arms (this also strongly implies the envy demon in DAI is his corrupted raven, Deceit)
I believe FalonāDin and Dirthamen are two aspects of the same being, but how that actually works remains to be seen. Some people have suggested FalonāDin walks the fade while Dirthamen walks the physical realm and perhaps that explains their togetherness and separateness.Ā
Regardless, it does seem like both FalonāDin and Dirthamen were involved in Solasā uprising due to the fact that both their mosaics are found inside the elven sanctuary before we see Solasā mural removing vallaslin.
3. Andruilās mask seems to fit most similarly to the third mosaic.
The overall curved shape mirrors Andruilās bow in her mosaic, and the dotted indentation at the top totally looks like an arrow shaft. The eye placement in both the mosaic and the mask hints to me that this is very likely Andruil.
The big question- why would Andruil be helping Solas?
Perhaps because Mythal turned her to their side after she āsapped Andruilās strength, and stole her knowledge of how to find the Void.ā
Or, perhaps Andruil isnāt as āevilā as people think she is.
Sure, she may have brought on the blight (although even this is conjecture, personally I feel like this could very well could be misdirection) and may have huntedĀ āmortal men and beastsā,Ā but whoās to say these beasts and men didnāt deserve what they got? Whoās to say she wasnāt corrupted by the void before she became theĀ āgoddess of sacrificeā?
One day Andruil grew tired of hunting mortal men and beasts. She began stalking The Forgotten Ones, wicked things that thrive in the abyss.
This implies to me she could have simply been hunting beings that had given her cause to hunt them. Remember, she was the only god that responded to Ghilanānainās cries for help, and at this time Ghilanānain was one of the People, implying she wasnāt totally evil.
Andruil also has strong links to FalonāDin, because she and FalonāDin share the same symbol of the owl. What if Mythal meted out judgement, FalonāDin brought her judgement to them in the form of the owl (thus fulfilling the role of Andruilās messenger as well as āfriend of the deadā), and Andruil hunted them in turn to render Mythalās judgement?
āAlways keep an eye out for the noble owl. You never know: Andruil might have a message for you.ā
It is interesting to see that the owl statue is always carrying what looks like a mirror or even dimension to another world (another prison perhaps?), possibly intended as a way to reflect the viewerās own self and actions back on to them.Ā
Anyway, to me there are a number of possibilities why Andruil would work with Solas and co. Perhaps she wasnāt as corrupted as they thought. Perhaps Mythal made her forget so much so she agreed to help them. Or perhaps Andruil was the mole in the rebellion - the person who began the events that led to Mythalās death.
4. I think the last god represents Mythal, due to the fact the shape is similar to the bronze statues found in the crossroads and deep roads.
There are in fact two versions of this statue - the sun, in the crossroads, and the moon in the deep roads.Ā (brightened and contrast boosted for clarity)
The moon statue is strongly implied to represent Mythal, because a note is found near this statue:
These statues are old. Better shape than anything Iāve seen on the surface. Many of them are for Mythal, though. And Fen'Harel. Not in a spot of honor, but guarding, attending.
Question is, why would the sun also represent Mythal when Elgarānan is known as the Eldest of the sun?Ā
Well, not only does the sun statue look very much the yin to the yang of the moon statue in the deep roads, the sun could refer to Mythal being both the sun and moon to the dwarves.Ā
These statues are notably different to other elven statues weāve seen- notable for the fact they have a large base of rock, and they are carved in smooth bronze.Ā As these bronze statues are only found in this particular section of the deep roads where she controlled a lyrium wellspring, perhaps the dwarves carved these as a representation of her.
In the third note you find in the deep roads, a poem reads:
I am empty, filled with nothing(?),
Mythal gives you dreams.
It fills you, within you(?),
Making our leaders proud.
My little stones,
Never yours the sun.
Forever, forever.
It sure seems to me like Mythal was protecting these dwarves from something. Either that, or she was using these dwarves as slaves or minions in her operation and for some reason, they revered her enough to carve their own representations of her.
Morrigan says this of Mythal at the Temple of Mythal:
Let fly your voice to Mythal, deliverer of justice, protector of sun and earth alike.ā
Similarly, Solas further says:
She was the mother, Ā protective and fierce.Ā
Regardless, I think thereās more evidence indicating Mythal was working with Solas over Elgarānan. You do need Mythalās passphrase after all to enter the elven sanctuary safely.
And if you want to take this one step further, check out the crownĀ āAndrasteā is wearing in DAO. Look familiar??? Maybe reminscent of the moon statue we see in the deep roads?
I donāt want to say Mythal was Andraste butā¦there are many signs that are hard to ignore.
I realise a lot of the godsā motives Iāve come up with above are based on conjecture and tbh, the writing for DA4 could go so many ways simply because of the fact that there are so many wide open threads that could be expanded upon.
These unused mosaics does indicate to me at least that the writers have a plan for how Solasā rebellion actually functioned however, and that to me is exciting in itself.
One thing we can assume with high certainty is that Solas started the slave rebellion before Mythalās death, because you need her passphrase to enter his sanctuary. Furthermore, even without these unused mosaics there are in-game mosaics of Dirthamen and FalonāDin in the sanctuary before we see the vallaslin mural.
This strongly implies to me that at the very least, even without this hidden game file, that Dirthamen, FalonāDin and MythalĀ aided and abettedĀ Solasā slave rebellion.
Further adding to this theory are the the rather compelling links to Dirthamen throughout DAI. For example, the gilded FenāHarel statues in Dirthamenās templeās inner sanctum, Dirthamenās bleeding statue in the Fade, Dirthamen, FalonāDin, Mythal and FenāHarel imagery in the Knightās Tomb, as well as Dirthamenās statue at Calenhadās foothold (where itās implied he had a thing with Ghilanānain). Not to mention- dual raven standards found underneath FenāHarelās sanctuary, as well as archer statues next to the eluvian as you exit (who I believe represent Dirthamen & FalonāDin).
Something clearly happened that led to Mythalās death, and Iām leaning towards the fact that there was a leak somewhere within Solasā trusted circle. Dirthamen seems to have been betrayed by someone close to him before the veil was created, because his statue in the fade is stabbed in the back and his eyes are weeping waterfalls of blood.Ā
As Solas saysĀ āā¦an enemy can attack, but only an ally can betray you. Betrayal is always worse.āĀ
And, when you tell him you trust your friends? He respondsĀ āI know that mistake well enough to carve the angles of her face from memoryāĀ
It is assumed he is talking about Mythalās own betrayal when he says this, but he could also be referring to the person/people who betrayed him and his trust. Personally, I think FalonāDin and Ghilanānain could be key players in Mythalās death at this point. We donāt know enough about the other gods to also make assumptions on their motives unfortunately.Ā
All in all, it seems to me like every one of the false gods were out to get one another, and Solas never even saw Mythalās death coming because he was too arrogant/preoccupied with his rebellion.
If Solas really was Mythalās oldest friend and guardian, his pride would have been absolutely crushed when she was betrayed and killed.Ā The veil was likely a knee-jerk reaction due to his pride andĀ āhot-headednessā more than anything- if he could be outplayed and have his own power and role as āguardianā outright questioned, then of course he would retaliate and raise the stakes even higher. Itās his MO- he has a means to an endsĀ āyou didnāt invent warā mentality, disregarding the collateral damage as long as he comes out on top.
This does make me wonder what intentions he has for the false gods once theyāre freed though. Obviously Mythal wants her vengeance. But what of Solas? These false gods were his kin after all and the only ones who can truly relate to him on a level no mortal can understand. After all these years of stewing and realising his knee-jerk reaction cost him the entire elven empire, it makes sense he would want to restore what he effectively destroyed when his pride was hurt.Ā
To me it does seem like he truly hates the evanurisā¦but could he still be in leagues with some of them? Something I may not put past him, considering I donāt think he worked alone during his rebellion.Ā
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