Case Study: Feynriel - Regarding Elf-blooded & Elven traits
While roaming within the streets of Kirkwall as Hawke & Co. encounter more shenanigans they didn't ask for. Or maybe they did. Something has, in particular, has piqued my interest.
Or perhaps should I say someone.
Feynriel - an elf-blooded apostate, who Hawke would later be informed by Keeper Marethari during [Night Terror] that he is a "Somniari," or "Dreamer," an exceptional skill that makes him able to enter and change the Fade at will, even killing people within it. A rare talent, if developed at all, that was thought was thought to have been extinct for two ages ( as far as Southern Thedas is concerned), since dreamers attract demons and most prove too frail of mind to survive a demonic possession.
What is quint about this young man wasn't the fact that he turns out to be a Dreamer; while his body physique is unmistakably human. If we take a closer at his facial features and compare to his parents, he much resembles his elven mother Arianni
than his human father Vincento
Such as the spacing between the eyes and its shape, and the tip of his ears appears to be a little sharper (although one might argue it is due to the angle of the picture)
Which is a rather peculiar phenomenon considering that elf-blooded (often refer to offspring sired by a human and elven parent) would appear physically human and are in fact considered purely human. The reason why we don’t usually encounter individuals that have elvhen traits unless they are full elven was that the elven genome has been described as "adaptive" and elven reproduction in this regard has "much more to do with magic" than science or simple breeding.
Even his wiki page has sited that the developers have more or less acknowledged his more elven features, although Weekes has dismissed it as a “mistake” in Feynriel’s model.
What I propose is the notion that it is more to do with the environment. Let me explain:
Elves generally don’t mingle with other races much already due both cultural and practical reasons (as offsprings between human & elf is a [elf-blooded] human, general social discrimination and hostility).
Regarding Dwarves, they aren’t very fertile race to begin with due to the fact that darkspawn has taken over and tainted majority of the Deep Roads, not to mention the notion of mating with other races (humans & elves) was in fact so rare it is considered an oddity than a group of its own; In addition, Orzammar is very restrictive on who they allow into their territory, thus being contact with one, let alone forming an intimate relationship (or at all) is very rare. A “half-dwarf” would mainly be a result of a union between a surface dwarf and human.
As we learn throughout the lore, the very essence of elves are deeply connected to the Fade. In fact, it is heavily implied that elves were once spirits themselves but later take on flesh, mortal form.
And the existent of the Veil has muffled (not mute) that connection.
Typically, cities and settlements avoid locations where the Veil is thin for practical reasons such as spirit and demons unless the place is of political and/or religious significance. Not unlike the people in real life have superstitions and/or avoid such places that are said to be haunted or supernatural essence in general. Normal civilians usually stay away from regions and buildings that harbours the Circle of Magi as well. Even where were signs of any civilization in such place where Veil is thin are usually of the wilder folks such as the Avvars and the Chasind in which they are lived in the region for generations and more intimate information we know about them are often the tip of the iceberg. Majority of Dalish clans generally refrain from human contacts.
Now, Kirkwall is where things get interesting.
You see, while most people might have just assumed that it is only the Gallows where weird [magic] shit happens (“expected” in most Circles ).
If one did take the time to search, gather and read all 12 parts of [Codex entry: The Enigma of Kirkwall], one would realize the “City of Chains” and it’s surrounding region (including Sundermount) is one special place of fuck-up.
The investigation notes conducted by “The Band of Three” has revealed that the underbelly of Kirkwall aka Dark Town is not simply sprawling mess of a labyrinth. The layout plan of the city shows there were patterns in the intersections, back alleys, and boulevards. Some magisters believed in the power of symbols or shapes. In the oldest parts of the city, one can make out the outlines of glyphs in the very streets.
Later notes shows, the records of slaves entering Kirkwall, the numbers did not add up. "For every thousand slaves that came to Kirkwall, a hundred disappeared", that's one out of ten slaves. A disproportionately high number and quite alarming.
"The mages of Kirkwall have a more troubled history than those in other Circles. A greater percentage of them do not survive the Harrowing, and a greater percentage turn to blood magic—almost double that of Starkhaven or Ostwick." (Why the Chantry decided it was actually a good idea to set up a Circle here in the first place boggles the mind. But that’s topic is for another time)
"It is well known that the Veil is thin in Kirkwall, small wonder given the suffering in the city. But we've discovered the magisters were deliberately thinning it even further.” Basically, with the information above, we can come to the conclusion that those ‘missing’ slaves were being sacrificed to whatever blood magic ritual the Ancient Magisters were preparing.
(This is some level of *FMA horror right there; City state-scaled instead of the whole nation. Not that it was any better)
Whether the citizens & inhabitants acknowledge or unaware of the haunting history that their resident used to be the heart of the slave trade in the height of the Ancient Tevinter Imperium, we do not know. Perhaps they choose to be ignorant of such history for better sleep at night.
You might be wondering why I brought up all these grim past and what is it has anything to do with being elf-blooded and elven traits.
The point is, Kirkwall is a rare case that contains all the ‘required’ elements - a city with a fair amount of residents - including an Elven Alienage. But also where the Veil is extremely thin, dangerously so. However, it also means the connection to the Fade is stronger as well - strong enough for the ‘recessive’ -like (word loosely used) gene of the elven blood to surface and affect one’s appearance.
Therefore the word “adaptive” is being used because it is affected by the level of connection to the Fade in the region.
Conclusion: I have come up with 2 theories + 1 potential variable.
Theory I.) “Inborn” - The elven-gene is affected by where the child was conceived and where was the mother during her time of pregnancy. The energy from the Fade is absorbed by the child and nurtured at its most vulnerable stage - the fetus, in the purest form.
Theory II.) “Postnatal” - where the mother was during her pregnancy might be irrelevant. What is more important was the environment the child themselves was in. Just as the local diet and culture practice would affect the physique of a person, so does the energy of the Fade would influence the essence of the said elf-blooded individual, nurturing them as they grow up.
Variable) The parents of the child - the elf-blooded child who has an elven mother has a slightly higher chance of having their [physical] elven traits surface than compare to elf-blooded child who has mother of other races (Humans, Dwarves, Qunari(?)) due to the fact that the child is [usually] more closely connected (emotional & physically nurtured) by the mother as the result of the pregnancy.
Let me know what do you think?
Drop us an ask or discuss away in the notes and/or reblog!
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*FMA - Full Metal Alchemist [Brotherhood];
