Tagged by @woundedsoul12 twice and @the-font-bandit. Sending out a tag for @a-gay-bloodmage @queenofangrymoths and @wardensflight. Would love to see what ya'll are working on today!!
Me? Did I just post a Nathaniel Howe centric fic? Of course. Do I have another one lined up ready to go? Also yes. Am I working another new WIP starring the man?
Hyperfocus is a hell of a drug.
We're going back pre-relationship with this one. Nathaniel had to learn to be a Constable from someone... who better than an elven Orlesian man who definitely doesn't rub Nathaniel the wrong way.
...ooOoo...
“You’re quite the tour guide, Nathaniel,” Gustav said, impressed. “How are you so familiar with Vigil’s Keep?”
“I grew up here,” he said brusquely, trying to keep from delving into the entirety of the complex story behind his return to Vigil’s Keep.
Constable Fortin’s brow furrowed. “Surely it’s more than just that? You don’t have the look of a servant’s son, Nathaniel. Your ears are too round and your speech too confident. Were you nobly born?”
He didn’t like how perceptive the man was, nor how flippant he pretended to be to hide it. There were many reasons he didn’t like or trust Gustav Fortin, but poking into his past may have been the final straw.
“Is there a point to this, Constable Fortin?” Nathaniel asked, crossing his arms and looking down at the man.
The elven man’s grin didn’t falter, but he did turn around to appraise the blue cloudless sky above them.
“Why do you wish to be warden constable?” he asked. “Did you campaign your commander for your position?”
“Well, no,” Nathaniel sputtered, taken aback by his lack of response to intimidation. “Zukal asked me.”
Fortin turned to him, head cocked slightly, with an amused grin. “You refer to your commander by her first name?”
Nathaniel hadn’t caught the slip-up at first, and grit his teeth in annoyance at the man’s perceptiveness. “No, not typically,” he admitted, taking a deep calming breath.
“Are you sure you even want this job? You will be second in command in your country. You will be asked to lead in your commander’s stead, you are expected to relieve her burdens, not add to them. If this is a vanity project, or an attempt to reclaim your former—”
“I want nothing to do with my former life,” he said, cutting the man off. “I am aware of the difficulties that my commander faces, and I am prepared to take them on when she needs me to.”
“Are you prepared to anticipate those needs?” Fortin asked.
“I already do,” Nathaniel stated, garnering a raised set of brows in response. “That is, I am close with the commander.”
“Close?”
“Friends.”
“Friends?”
If the man's brows raised any higher, they would float off his blighted face, Nathaniel thought with annoyance. “Yes!” Nathaniel hoped this man was testing his patience to ensure he could handle the stressors of the job. That was the only thing that made sense with the bizarre elven man and his attitude.
“You need to be more than a friend to your commander if you plan to be her constable,” Fortin said, stepping away toward the training grounds.
this one doesn't have any real secrets, it's just interesting because of the surrounding area! it truly goes on as far as the eye can see because they kept copy pasting the hills. plus its built directly into the side of a mountain. it seems obvious but its hard to see past the walls and cool to really see it all laid out.
the windmills are cute lmao. very scenic place for rendon howe of all people to live in. but what i really want to direct your attention to is um, the lack of roads?? like if you want to reach this keep you have to walk over raw countryside. at least denerim pretends to have a road up to the main gate even if its a boring road lmao.
what makes it extra funny is that the map explicitly puts the vigil on the intersection of the arlings major road and river. and there is not a trace of EITHER to be seen in the game. maybe we just pretend they're off behind that hill where the terrain drops off into copy pasted mountains...
i'm sure the windmills were just easy filler props, but i'm actually very enamoured with them. i think it makes a lot of sense for the vigil to support itself by milling wheat into flour. the road and river (if they existed) would make it easy for farmers to come there to sell their wheat and then the vigil can sell the flour and use the ocean access to ship it further. also fits with the food riot part way through awakening if the vigil is gathering most of the arlings produced grain.
it's steady and very sensible. and i'm sure it was painfully mundane to howe, who wanted power and grandeur, and all that fed into his resentment.
Did the Warden protect Vigil's Keep or the city of Amaranthine?
Keep protected
Amaranthine protected
Keep and Amaranthine protected
Undecided / see results
Voting ended onJul 4, 2024
Awakening Polls
Dragon Age Origins Polls
See quest and choice descriptions from Dragon Age Wiki/Keep below
Keep protected
If the Warden chooses to abandon the city to save Vigil's Keep, Amaranthine is burned to the ground. The city's destruction does not endear the Wardens to Ferelden, and although much of the citizenry wants to forget the terrible event, a small segment pledges to exact revenge on the Grey Wardens. Eventually, a mob appears at Vigil's Keep, and although many are shown mercy and survive the bloody clash, public opinion of the Wardens remain sour until the Wardens finally lead an effort to rebuild Amaranthine.
Different epilogues based on the Warden's background:
If the Warden is a Mage and chooses to abandon the city, they will spread rumors that the Warden is a maleficar and an abomination, controlled by spirits of the Fade set to destroy humanity.
If the Warden is an elf and chooses to abandon the city, rumors say that the burning of Amaranthine was an act of revenge, part of a larger plot to destroy all human settlements.
If the Warden is Orlesian (Awakening only) and chooses to abandon the city to save Vigil's Keep, rumors persist that the Warden was sent as part of a plot of Orlais to retake---or even destroy, Ferelden, fanning more anti-Warden sentiment.
If the Warden is a Human Noble and chooses to abandon the city to save Vigil's Keep, there are whispers that the burning of Amaranthine was a move for the Warden to gain more influence at court.
If the Warden chooses to abandon Amaranthine and save Vigil's Keep, annals of the Grey Wardens hail the Warden Commander's victory at the Keep as a crucial one. Eventually, many of the Order's more clever recruits often spend days studying the account of the successful defense in order to better understand the Warden's tactics.
Peace allows the Wardens to replenish their numbers, and in time the keep bears an army with Wardens as its core, and new heroes would emerge from their ranks to challenge threats to Amaranthine and Ferelden.
2. Amaranthine protected
If the Warden-Commander does none or few upgrades on Vigil's Keep and chooses to save City of Amaranthine:
The Keep will fall. The costs to repair the Vigil are too great so the Wardens move their base of operations to the palace in city. In time, wilderness claims the Vigil. Old soldiers would visit the site, remembering the great siege but in time even they cease to come.
If the Warden-Commander made some but not all upgrades on Vigil's Keep and chooses to save the City of Amaranthine:
The battle will be long but doomed from the outset. Barely any soldiers survive the battle but the darkspawn army has also paid an enormous cost for its victory. A state and plaque is erected on the ruins of the Vigil's Keep to commemorate its defenders as their sacrifice saved all of Amaranthine.
With the Vigil destroyed the Wardens take residence to the palace in the city. This is for the Warden-Commander a politically trying time since the loss of the Wardens' military force gave an opportunity to some conniving minor nobles to shirk their allegiance.
If the Warden chooses to save Amaranthine, the citizens are overjoyed. This helps bring in large donations from other nations to Ferelden resulting in Amaranthine being rebuilt in a year and Vigil's Keep in five.
3. Keep and Amaranthine protected
The Warden found a way to save both the Keep and Amaranthine.
If the Warden chooses to save Amaranthine, and if all the upgrades are made to the Keep:
It will hold against the Darkspawn army for days in a row before the attacking horde broke upon her walls. Although greatly outnumbered, the soldiers' silverite armor allow them to kill a dozen darkspawn each before falling. The keep developed an almost mythic reputation, the few survivors immortalized in song and legend. When the magnitude of the losses came to light, sympathy drove generous donations from all over Ferelden into the region's coffers. Vigil's Keep was restored to its former glory in five years.
happy friday!! how about some Amell & Anders with 'You can barely keep your eyes open.. When was the last time you slept?’?
happy friday!! how about some Amell & Anders with 'You can barely keep your eyes open.. When was the last time you slept?’?
Thank you for the prompt!! Here's my HoF Solona Amell and a new Warden Anders. <3 for @dadrunkwriting
*
Anders’ bunk was empty.
It was the third time Solona had found him missing when she’d stopped by the dormitory to check on him. The first two times, he’d turned up the next morning, looking haggard and wan but rebuffing any questions about his well-being with his trademark, flippant humor.
Solona understood defense mechanisms, and the way she saw it, they were not a shell to be pried at. They were necessary, and kept a person from flying apart at the seams. From giving in to the demons--not the ones that haunted the Fade, but the ones within.
She checked on all new recruits. The ritual didn’t assuage her guilt for putting people through the Joining, but attending to responsibilities—the lives and well-being of her Wardens—lent her a modicum of peace.
Finding Anders gone a third time eroded that tenuous peace and replaced it with worry.
She went to look for him. She hadn’t, the first two times, wanting to give him his space to heal from the whiplash of escaping one death sentence only to find himself with another.
This was the first time he’d taken his bag and his staff, however. She expected not to find him at all, but she did.
He was in the courtyard. He’d slumped down beside the stable door, back against it, staff and bag beside him. His knees were hugged tightly against his chest, head resting on them. The wind fluttered his blonde hair, come loose from its tie.
It was chilly out, the stars blanketed by low-hanging clouds. It felt moments away from snowing. It was too cold to be outside in the sleeveless robe Anders wore, and Solona instantly resolved to order more clothing for him than just the warden’s standard issue tabard and basic leathers.
The ground—mud churned earlier in the day—was frozen now, and crunched under Solona’s feet as she approached him. He looked up, and even in the darkness, she could see the circles under his eyes.
It was unnerving not to see his usual, deflecting smile.
She sat down beside him and scooted close, silently lending her own warmth since she’d not brought a cloak. Anders stiffened at first, then slumped against her.
They sat in silence.
Finally, Anders spoke. “You know, I have no idea how to ride a horse?” He said it like it was a comical deficiency, a thing even a child should know.
“Considering it’s a way to go more quickly from one place to the other, it’s not a skill we would emerge from the Circle with,” Solona said bitterly. She paused for a moment, then added, “I can teach you.”
Anders’ fingers played with the strap of his bag. Solona could see the outer pockets stuffed full with things he must have pilfered from the keep—lyrium potions, balms, a suture kit, a bottle of wine. He’d clearly meant to leave.
When he didn’t respond at first, Solona looked at him. His head had fallen to his knees again and his eyes were half-closed.
“You can barely keep your eyes open,” she murmured. “When was the last time you slept?” This was one of the reasons she checked on new Wardens at night—the debilitating nightmares.
Anders jolted up, blinking and rubbing his eyes. “Three seconds ago?” He laughed reedily.
Solona nodded. “It gets better,” she said. “It never goes away, but…I’d take the archdemon and darkspawn over the Circle.” She’d meant it to sound like one of his silly quips, but it came out ringing of dark truth.
“I’m going to have to agree with you on that one,” Anders said anyway.
Solona offered Anders her hand. He took it without hesitation and all but clung to her, compressing the bones in her hand almost painfully. It felt good to hold to something that closely.
“Come inside,” she said gently. “You can share my quarters tonight. There is a very comfortable couch.”
Anders sniffed. “You aren’t angry?”
Solona glanced at the bag on the ground and the staff beside him. “Come inside and get some rest,” she repeated. “If tomorrow you still want to go, we will pack better supplies and I will show you how to ride a horse.”
Anders looked at her, the emotions on his face unreadable. “Why would you help me?”
Solona squeezed his hand again. “Because I am you.”
Anders let her pull him up from the frozen ground and he went back into the keep with her. The next day, he unpacked his bag.
Finally, I’ve reached the last part of this project! “Avvar History Reconstruction” is my attempt to piece together what’s known about the Avvar history, starting from their journey south-east (still as one with the Alamarri) through the birth of their tribe, the toll of Tevene occupation, the wars with neighbouring nations, all the way into the Dragon Age.
It took 10 000 words, 29 pages, and 13 maps to cover over 3000 years of history, and it just barely scratches the surface. There are many blank spots that might never be filled, as the series seems to be moving away from the Frostback Mountains. But that just means it’s a free space for headcanons.
<<Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6>>
Part 7: Current state
The Avvar people still reside in the remote parts of the Frostback Mountains. Their population numbers are unknown but they are able to endure in the harsh environment with relative success.
They are not recognized as sovereign state by any of the neighbouring nations, and the situation is unlikely to change in the years to come. The Avvar don’t have a central government, each hold is led by a different thane, and they don’t seem inclined to significantly alter their way of living and imitate Ferelden by uniting the tribes into a new nation. Occasionally, they form alliances with nearby holds, but there has been no large-scale movement since the rise of warlord Balak during the Steel Age. Gurd Harofsen, the leader of the Jaws of Hakkon, may have had a potential to follow in Balak’s footsteps, but his warmongering tendencies were thwarted before he could threaten the Lowlands. Even if Gurd did succeed, I find it highly improbable that attacking the Lowlanders with Hakkon Wintersbreath on the leash would benefit the Avvar as a whole, much less that it could grant them sovereignty. It’d certainly result in a great chaos - comparable to a Blight, from what we’re told in the Jaws of Hakkon DLC - that would lead to resistance forming in the neighbouring nations. Ferelden, still weakened from the real Blight, would suffer heavy losses, but the chance that the Jaws of Hakkon could vanquish the Lowlands is extremely infinitesimal. All in all, I see no signs in canon sources of the Avvar becoming a sovereign nation in the near future, either through peaceable unification or through conquest.
It appears that the Avvar tribes are concentrated in the southern part of the Frostback Mountains. The northern and central regions were probably depopulated as a result of the Tevinter occupation and the conflicts between Orlais and Ferelden, forcing the Avvar further up and south into the Frostbacks. The eastern frontiers may overlap with the lands inhabited by the Chasind people. The Avvar tribes who live near the Korcari Wilds possibly share some characteristics with the Chasind.
Figure 13. Avvar settlements
Red - extinct hold
Purple - possible location of a hold
Blue - known hold
Let’s review the Avvar settlements one by one.
Stone Bear Hold is the only Avvar hold whose current location and status are fully known, as we can visit it in the Jaws of Hakkon DLC and observe the Avvar lifestyle from up close. It’s situated in the far south of the Frostback Mountains. According to Arvid Rolfsen, a few generations ago, when he was very young, the hold was located further north, but it moved into the Frostback Basin due to unspecified reasons and remained in the same place for a couple of decades.[1] The Avvar holds are said to be temporary, but it’s unknown what’s the average time between relocations. It might range from several generations to a few seasons, depending on the situation in the hold and the access to food sources, though I believe that it’s usually on the longer end. The Stone-Bear Hold inhabitants appear to obtain their nourishment in large part from hunting and foraging, but it’s also evidenced that they regularly engage in animal husbandry, and possibly in growing crops.
The Journal of Gurd Harofsen contains the following description of Stone-Bear Hold:
“The tales tell of this area, but the Stone-Bears, a hold of fishermen and chicken farmers, have lived here for generations and seen no sign.”[2]
Codex entry: On Avvar Cuisine can be obtained by interacting with a swine head inside a merchant’s shop in Stone-Bear Hold, and there’s also a number of pig carcasses and sausages placed around the room, suggesting that the inhabitants of the hold raise pigs for meat consumption. The food items found in the hold also include cheese, indicating that the Stone-Bear folks keep dairy animals, and this is confirmed in conversations with Svarah Sun-Hair, as she references goats multiple times.
Svarah: “Pens are for goats and chickens, not hold-kin.” [...] “We have no need of your lowlands, not when our goats are fat and our fish are plenty.”
(Fun fact: Avvar swear words commonly reference domesticated animals, examples: “goat-lovers” used by both Svarah and Hask; “goat-kissing” and “chicken-craps” used by Svarah.)
The evidence of arable farming among the Avvar is less apparent in-game. Some of the food items found in Stone-Bear Hold resemble bread, pies, and potatoes, suggesting that they do grow crops in larger quantities, but I do not recall any confirmation of that in dialogues or codex entries. The farming practices are, however, referenced in the official tabletop guide, though this source has debatable canonicity, so… take this with a grain of salt.
“In late spring and through the summer, the air becomes warm and humid. The farmers among the Avvars take swift advantage of the brief planting season by moving down from their stone-walled holds and into the foothills to grow crops, which they tend in nomadic fashion as they herd their flocks of goats and keep wary of lowlanders.”[3]
All in all, I would say that the Avvar people do not relocate often, certainly not as often as the fully nomadic Dalish. Stone-Bear Hold shows signs of permanence, or at least semi-permanence. Perhaps in the past, the Avvar had practiced a nomadic lifestyle of typical hunter-gatherers, but they’re transitioning into another mode of living.
Now let’s take a look at the holds we haven’t visited.
Red-Lion Hold is the hold that gave birth to the new iteration of the Jaws of Hakkon. It was destroyed during the Blight and its inhabitants had to flee. Gurd Harofsen described in his journal that “The darkspawn struck Red-Lion Hold. I heard the news in a tavern in Redcliffe.”[4] so I assume that Red-Lion Hold was located south of Lake Calenhad and was attacked by the darkspawn horde before Redcliffe, though its exact location is a mystery. Therefore, its placement on the map is just one of my ideas. When the news of Red-Lion’s destruction reached Gurd, he left the mercenary group he was part of and returned to his homeland. He gathered the survivors and set a new course for them, and they became the Jaws of Hakkon reborn. The newly formed faction was unlike the other Avvar tribes. As Gurd declared in his journal “We will build no home, for homes can die.”[5] And indeed, they were continuously on the move, searching for Hakkon to bring him back and set him on the Lowlanders, until they reached the Frostback Basin. This wandering behaviour is seen as odd among the people of Stone-Bear Hold, further suggesting that the typical Avvar settlement is somewhat permanent. As I discussed previously, I doubt the Jaws of Hakkon’s plan would in any way improve the situation of the Avvar people.
Stone-Bear Hold also has contact with other Avvar holds, as evidenced in conversations with Svarah:
“Other holds share oaths with the Jaws of Hakkon. They are sworn to defend or avenge them.”
as well as the ambient dialogue heard after defeating the Jaws of Hakkon:
Avvar man: We should have a feast and invite the other friend-sworn holds.
Avvar woman: It feels like ages since we saw them. Should the lowlanders come?”
However, these holds are never identified by name, and it’s difficult to say how distant they are from Stone-Bear Hold.
Edvarr Hold is the hold from which chieftain Movran the Under and his son Hand of Korth originate. Its name is only referenced in ambient dialogue during the fight with Hand of Korth, when some other members of the hold, who followed the Hand into the Fallow Mire, may exclaim “For Edvarr Hold!”. However, it could also be how Hand of Korth decided to rename the Hargrave Keep after claiming it, and if that’s the case, the other hold led by chieftain Movran is unnamed in-game, as he himself doesn’t identify which hold he’s governing while speaking to the Inquisitor. Personally, I’m assuming that “Edvarr Hold” does refer to the hold led by Movran, and I’m using it as such. Edvarr Hold is probably located somewhere in the south-eastern part of the Frostbacks, in or near the Fallow Mire region, which is bordering with the Korcari Wilds. Movran has sent his son, Hand of Korth, to get rid of the Venatori in the area. Amund, the Sky Watcher who handles funerals among his tribe members, can also be found in the Fallow Mire, further leading me to believe that Hand of Korth did not go too far from his original hold. Depending on the player's choices, the settlement might actually become abandoned, as Movran takes his tribesmen to Skyhold, and he can be exiled together with them to Tevinter. If this option is chosen, Movran and his people relocate to Tevinter, possibly for the rest of their lives, which is rather intriguing, and I wonder what will become of them in the future.
“We have received word that "Movran the Under" has made good on your judgment of armed exile in Tevinter. He and his clan immediately staked a claim to a large section of land along the Imperial Highway, at the edge of the Silent Plains.”[6]
Fennec-Tooth Hold is a settlement mentioned in the codex entry “On Avvar cuisine”. It had been visited by an Orlesian noble, so I would place it on the western slope of the Frostback Mountains. Its current status is unknown, though I like to think that it’s still inhabited. If it survived the wars between Orlais and Ferelden, it might yet thrive.
Wyvern Hold, Kinloch Hold and Vigil’s Keep were inhabited by the Avvar in the Ancient Age, prior to Tevinter occupation of the south (see Part 3 and Part 4 for more information). Judging by the information available, they were never reclaimed by the Avvar, even after the Imperium ceded its territories.
Skyhold too may have been inhabited by the Avvar at some point in history. The fortress had been claimed by many different groups of people, including the Chasind[7] and the Alamarri.[8] The name “Skyhold” might derive from the Avvar, seeing as it fits the naming convention of the Avvar settlements.
One of the notes mentions the hints of Avvar imagery in Skyhold.
“Avvar totemic representation of mabari, which followed into early Fereldan imagery. Ancient; we can't know if they were carved here or brought later. Interesting note: the kaddis pattern is subtly different than is typical, with unmistakable Tevinter elements. A strange addition if the occupants were Fereldan. Rivets in the pillar are often marks of generations of occupants, but eight seems high given how often Skyhold changed hands. Unless these are breeding generations of mabari. An interesting question would be: "eight starting from what?"[9]
These totems could represent the first generations of the mabari that deserted their previous owners and instead joined with the “barbarians” living in the lands occupied by Tevinter Imperium. The mabari breed was originally created by Tevene mages to help subdue the local population.[10] The Alamarri (and subsequently Fereldans) become known for their connection to the mabari, but the war dogs also accompany some Avvar people, such as Kell ap Morgan, a former Avvar jarl.
However, even if some Avvar had lived in Skyhold, it was many, many years before. Prior to the Inquisition relocating there, the fortress had been completely abandoned, probably for the last few centuries.
Speaking of Kell ap Morgan, he used to be a leader of an Avvar clan. His home is briefly described in the novel “The Calling” by David Gaider, though only in the form of a Fade dream. It’s implied that Kell’s clan suffered a great loss, something that affected his wife and child and caused Kell to abandon the Frostback Mountains and join the Wardens down the line. It’s possible that his entire hold has perished, though the reason has not been revealed in the novel, nor in any other media, as far as I know. The name of the settlement is also a mystery.
Another briefly referenced Avvar clan pops up in the story of Marethari Talas. When Marethari was a young mage, the First to the Keeper, her clan set camp in the Frostback Mountains, though it’s unclear where exactly. Likely, it was the eastern side, bordering Ferelden. In the winter of 8:82 Blessed, after a good hunting season, the clan was attacked by Avvar warriors for an unknown reason. The name of their hold is also unknown. The Keeper was gravely wounded in the attack, and many members of the Dalish clan were killed, including Marethari’s husband. Marethari took leadership of the survivors and ordered them to go into the Ferelden lowlands, while she went the other way, into an alpine forest, to seek out the Witch of the Wilds. She returned three days later, and the next day, the previous Keeper of the Sabrae clan died.
“And the Avvar tribe fell prey to what some survivors said were trees come to life, the wrath of the Mountain-Father himself.”[11]
The tabletop campaign also includes an Avvar settlement called Redhold, but as I mentioned, its position in the canon is debatable, so I’ll only point out that it exists in the RPG guidebook.
Summing up, there’s only one Avvar settlement that we can really examine from up close, with possibly two more persisting into the current times. As such, a lot of guesswork and headcanoning is involved when discussing this part of the Dragon Age setting. Each Avvar tribe is also a bit different from one another, but they still share core values, such as the worship of spirits. I encourage everyone interested in Avvar lore to explore it and draw their own conclusions, but what matters in the end is to have fun. I certainly enjoyed working on these theories, and I hope you enjoyed reading them if you reached this far.
Lady keep you!
~
Sources:
[1] Dialogue with Arvid Rolfsen: “Stone-Bear Hold’s been here a few generations. I was born further north, but we left before I could remember. “
[2],[4],[5] Codex entry: Journal of Gurd Harofsen
[3] Blood in Ferelden, p. 52
[6] Judgement: Movran’s Arrived!
[7] Codex entry: The Women of All War
[8]Codex entry: On Skyhold references a journal written in Old Fereldan dialect back in the Divine Age, prior to the unification of Ferelden
[9] Cataloguing Skyhold: Mabari Avvar Pillars
[10] According to Fenris
[11] Dragon Age: The World of Thedas, vol. 2, p. 165
The warden commander in me is shaking rn. I made every attempt to get him comfortable!!
Anders, I saved your life!! I gave you a chance at life beyond the circle!! I gave you a cat!! I helped you destroy your phylactery!! I helped you meet Nathaniel!! Smh. The height of insolence. 😔
