this is largely interpretive bc it has to be lmao. we get very little concrete info
I find it unclear whether the evanuris understood that they were using titan blood to build their bodies. I'm not sure if they just found a "resource" that they could utilize or if they knew exactly what they were doing
in the former view, it sets them interestingly alongside modern dwarves, who also unknowingly use titan blood as a resource
if the latter, then they knew what horrible action they were taking, but it's still unclear who knew. did elgar'nan, the first to take form, recognize what the material was? or was it everyone who followed?
obviously there came a time in which they understood, it's just unclear when that comprehension dawned... and the length of time in which the evanuris were taking form is equally unclear
but it's interesting to consider the different angles, although it doesn't change the impact on the titans
they are living beings who possess sentience, and they would not want to be mined/harvested to create bodies for spirits
the scale and cause of their initial reaction is also unclear. did the earth tremble bc they were shocked by the assault? or was it a warning? a threat? or was it more than shaking - did a titan rise? or fall?
we don't know how much lyrium is consumed to create a body. nor do we know the final number of evanuris, or the initial number of titans. did one evanuris taking form hurt a single titan, or did it kill them?
enough titans survived the formation of the evanuris to rise and fight against them
judging by watcher!mythal talking about them, they were viewed as monstrous threats. there may be truth to the "threats" part of that, but obviously the titans had damn good cause to fight against the evanuris
i'm not going to say solas was any kind of perfect, but i think it's safe to say that he's always been very moralistic, yet was willing to create the lyrium dagger with mythal. even he saw the titans as enough of a threat against the elvhen to stop them - and i do specify the elvhen here, not the evanuris
little aside here to say that i've never been able to really accept the idea that the elvhen are the literal, biological children of the evanuris. to each their own, it's an interesting view well supported by the info we get! it just breaks my brain a little lmao
so my read is that the elvhen were a people who elgar'nan decided to lead/guide, and eventually to rule. but frankly, in either view, the elvhen are essentially innocent of the violence against the titans, yet would be the ones paying the price in open warfare
of course, both solas and mythal knew it was awful. but i also find it hard to ignore how the evanuris and the elvhen would view this. the titans are the size of mountains: rising, they would be physically massive forces bearing down. i think that interpreting them as monsters is understandable. it's not good, but it's easy to see how they could get there
it is also, afaik, unclear what role dwarves themselves played in the combat, or even in relation to the titans. a lot of ancient dwarven lore is unknown. were they individuals? or were they more like aspects of isatunoll? a piece of the congruent whole?
and then u get into matters of the blight and darkspawn and how they are constantly assaulting dwarven settlements. one could argue that it's just location, but one could also view it as an attempt for this disembodied aspect of the titans to either punish the dwarves for "failing" them or - and perhaps more likely given the infectious nature of the blight - to reconnect with their descendants in a twisted version of isatunoll
the latter view is also significantly supported by the song that grey wardens begin to hear
i don't like the reductionistic views: "elves were right," "dwarves were right," "evanuris were right," "titans were right," because it ignores the inherent underlying complexity and the uncertainty we as the audience experience
was there malice in the evanuris taking form? was there disregard to the titans?
were the titans at fault for reacting to beings repeatedly taking their blood to build themselves bodies?
were the evanuris and the elvhen at fault for trying to stay alive under assault by beings the size of mountains?
were mythal and solas at fault for finding a way to end the war that was horrible, but would lead to far less death - of the evanuris and the elvhen, of course, but also of the dwarves and potentially even the humans, if they were present?
trying to apply a "well actually" take on all of this ignores the inherent complexity of the situation
"well actually yeah solas and mythal were and are evil and if u don't think so you're an elven apologist" -> this ignores the fate of the elvhen (innocents) and the dwarves (also innocents); this ignores the natural desire to stay alive; this ignores the scale of damage after each battle between a group of the strongest mages on thedas and beings the size of mountains
"well actually yeah the titans overreacted and are monsters who needed to be killed" -> this ignores the senseless brutality of the spirits taking the blood of the titans to use as building blocks for their own unnecessary bodies; not just once, but many times, many spirits robbing them of life to build an extension of their own; this ignores the fact that the spirits were not facing death, but accessing a new form of living, and that a failure to do so would not have put them at any risk
"well actually the evanuris are all monsters who knew exactly what they were doing" -> this ignores the uncertainty of that claim, but it also ignores the fact that both mythal and solas took form in order to quell elgar'nan. how they stole from the titans' - knowingly or not - not because they desperately wanted a physical body, but to try and control the one who had already taken a body
