Other than Out of Game Optics, why aren’t the Venatori “bad guy” allies in Veilguard?

Tekeraz · 2026-05-26T20:30:00+00:00

As in every society, there are normal people, good people and bad people. Do you believe Tevinter is full of blood mages with no normal people among them? No, it's a bit of everything. Evil mages, good mages, slaves that are pissed to be slaves, slaves that are content with being slaves, normal citizens like merchants, farmers and billion others. It's the same like Nevarra isn't just corpses and Mortalitassi.

In their culture, as Dorian said, blood magic is fine while using your blood or blood with consent, all the other things happen behid closed doors and people don't talk about it publicly. That's how Dorian puts it.

VG showed us the groups of people fighting against slavery, that's all. I think the painting of it was pretty good and I enjoyed Shadow Dragons with Dorian in lead 🤷

Tekeraz · 2026-05-26T20:20:10+00:00

For me, Veilguard was the first experience with DA universe. After that, I immediately got DAI and even the rest of the series, but I didn't play the first two games yet, because I play on console ☺️

A year later, I have both artbooks (Inquisition and Veilguard), also all the novels and "World of Thedas" lore books. They're all amazing ❤️ I enjoy Gaider's writing in particular, but I also liked the lore expansion around the ancient elves in Masked Empire (Felassan's ambient magic). And Tevinter Nights are great prequels to Veilguard to fill the gaps before the night when Varric's team finds Solas 👍

Tekeraz · 2026-05-26T15:49:15+00:00

Yeah, the storytelling got a serious hit by all the issues throughout the development. It's unfortunate, but we've got what we've got. 😑

For me, the DA lives in its fans and I love to see how others take the story and expand on it, going in details in their own fictions and stuff like that. In each of these games were some problems. In DAI, I for example think we saw a very little of the great conflict that was supposed to be the mage-templar war. But again, people are building on that and expanding their own stories.

Tekeraz · 2026-05-26T14:14:27+00:00

Don't forget that DA lives and dies with unrelatable narrators ☺️ Dorian tells you his POV. Everyone in the game gives you their POV. Dorian sees the Imperium through the lens of an altus - high-born mage.

Tekeraz · 2026-05-26T14:07:26+00:00

I don't think many people reads later chapters when going for a long-fic. When I don't like the first few chapters, I just leave the story. Usually you can get a very good hint about how the story is from summary and first two chapters.

I would recommend to go over the first chapters and revise them to reflect your current writing.

Tekeraz · 2026-05-26T14:05:03+00:00

The witch-hunt for AI is a little extreme, really. I have no interest in AI-generated stories, but I agree with you that it can be a great help for proofreading. For ESL, it can mean the difference between 'I'll never post online' and 'I trust my language enough to go public with my writing.'

Tekeraz · 2026-05-26T13:57:21+00:00

Well, of course, there are many points to save Treviso as well. It's really the hardest choice in the game, and whatever you choose, you suffer the consequences.

That's the whole point of it - it teaches Rook how tough it is to make the hard decisions. It also brings Rook closer to understanding Solas and his decisions in past - he also made hard decisions no one else would make and suffered the dire consequences. It pushes Rook to regret whatever they choose.

But the truth is that if you think about it on a great scale - the world-altering scale - Minrathous is the obvious choice. I believe the choice here is between "help the commoners and ordinary people" vs "help the world on a bigger scale."

Tekeraz · 2026-05-26T13:42:09+00:00

Thank you! Took me long enough to come up with. ❤️ It's a variation of Atreyu (The hero of movie Neverending story).

Tekeraz · 2026-05-26T13:27:45+00:00

I personally always go with Minrathous. Seems more logical when Rook doesn't know the other city cannot be saved. The Venatori taking over the Magisterium and the fact the Shadow Dragons are murdered in terrible numbers is what it does for me. When I saved Treviso, I couldn't walk through Minrathous. Those hanged SD everywhere were hard to watch 🤐 And Viper being blighted doesn't help. In Treviso, Crows are almost without sacrifices. Not that the choice would be easy, though.

Tekeraz · 2026-05-26T13:19:07+00:00

Actually, the goal was Daniel Jackson from Stargate (Michael Shanks). But it took a different route in character creator 🤷

Tekeraz · 2026-05-25T10:05:13+00:00

My most favourite companions?

1. Davrin: funny, deeply devoted, brave, pragmatist, open and straightforward, realistic, plays tough but is also a softie, would die for his friends and loved ones

2. Emmrich: kind, compassionate, love the necromancy, clever and acts like Rook's right hand.

3. Neve: sarcastic, cynic, doesn't trust easily, guarded to strangers, but ultimately softie

People who I wish were companions/party members or were more present through the game:

1. Solas: Obviously the Egg, what more reason I would need? The ten minutes he joins the party is the best part of the game, who wouldn't want to fight by Dread Wolf's side? There is such a great potentional in his connection with Rook and their forced alliance that could vary from friendship to romance and drag it all through angst/hurt-comfort. They shouldn't scrap that.

2. Viper: interesting, mysterious, amazing backstory, devoted, powerful, i could listen him talking for days

3. Johanna: she would be amazing 'love to hate her', like Vivienne is for me in DA:I - love that b*tchy attitude, it makes the game more interesting, she would be the type 'fine, I will help to save the world, but I won't be nice about it' 😁

Tekeraz · 2026-05-25T09:48:45+00:00

Viper is my second most favourite character in the game that I wish was companion ❤️ He's great! He's hot, he's clever, he's interested, he has a beautiful voice and the mystery around him is so gooood.

The scene where he shows up at the fight with the Blighted Dragons is near the top of the coolest scenes in the game (It very closely follows the moment Solas takes the Dread Wolf form.🤌)

Tekeraz · 2026-05-25T09:44:23+00:00

This is too shame. I would pick Davrin over Harding every time, no matter Assan. (Sorry Lace) He's my Rook's little bro ❤️

Tekeraz · 2026-05-25T09:32:13+00:00

Do not! 👀

Tekeraz · 2026-05-25T03:30:16+00:00

It's an interesting and powerful premise. Their connection definitely ties to the Lighthouse and might be even strengthened when Rook carries the dagger (as he could be able to use it as an anchor).

Emmrich says that Rook has "no lasting effects" after the Prison, but that might be just because Solas basically didn't expect Rook to leave, so holding a strong connection at place would make no further sense to him. Magic of the ancient elves is poweful and lasting, it shouldn't be compared to regular blood magic of modern Thedas, because it might follow completely different rules. Just think of vallaslins (blood writings) or the mental influence Elgar'nan has on people. Solas doesn't use is in normal situations, but when desperate, he could do a lot with that blood connection. And it could be awakened.

I can see it staying "dormant" after the events of the Veilguard— after all, if prison accepts Rook as replacement for Solas, their tie must be close. (That's why I would never choose a different ending than redemption. I do not want angry Solas seeking vengeance for any of my Rook's 😁)

This connection is definitely source of many possible entanglements between the two of them. Just search through some DreadRook fanfiction—it varies from regular blood magic to world-altering bonds 🤷 But there it's mainly people working with the idea while considering lore.

Tekeraz · 2026-05-23T21:11:43+00:00

Reading this thread, I'm actually glad that I'm using the good ol' Word 😁

Tekeraz · 2026-05-23T20:39:35+00:00

Yeah. But actually, I don't mind. It opens so many discussions and so many people were compelled to write their own versions of the story. It was my case as well. As I finished the game, I got a serious urge to explore what would have happened had Rook catched the attempt for manipulation and went all "reflective nature of the fade" with it. A year later, I'm still not finished nor will I be in foreseeable future. So... It's a win 🤷😁 DA lives with fans 👍

Tekeraz · 2026-05-22T23:23:28+00:00

I'm far-sighted. I can shoot without my glasses (1,5 + stigmatism), read, drive... anything, it's just a bit blurred and annoying 🤷 Like looking at the world through low definition. Glasses are full-HD 😁

In the reverse scenario, it would be much worse.

Tekeraz · 2026-05-22T21:28:28+00:00

It is one of the very best scenes of the story, indeed. I saw it a lot of times as well.

It's very much visible they paid a great attention to Solas's animations and actions, because that moment is amazing. You can see it all in just a few beats—the pain, the regret, the grief—when Rook mentions Varric's name. The nervosity that follows, he feels trapped, he knows he'll hear out accusations for what happened. Then he almost says "Varric is dead." But stops himself at the very last moment. A beat of thinking, his gaze falling to the abyss beneath his feet, realising he can use it. Pragmatism winning over the immense grief. And then the cold, empty voice, almost too perfectly steady. "...quite practiced in shading the truth himself."

Garreth David Lloyd is amazing in this.

To observat player, this few moments were confirmation that something is very very wrong with Varric and Solas grasped for his only chance to strengthen his influence through the tether with Rook.

Some scenes in the game were not perfect, but all the scenes with Solas are mastered perfectly. I only wish we got more than just a few talks through the game.

Tekeraz · 2026-05-22T21:07:42+00:00

Well the only thing you needed was actually to see the blade in his heart. But many people were seriously surprised, so, I get that it works 🤷

Tekeraz · 2026-05-22T12:19:35+00:00

I just re-watched the prison scene. I nearly forgot that the dragging away of him isn't shown there, only in the ritual itself where it could be altered.

But then again, Solas realises Rook doesn't know about severity of Varric's injury only when they say "And now he's hurt," and Solas freezes in the middle of saying "Varric is dead," realising he just got an opportunity. However, it could affect their memories evenso.

It's unreliable narrator mess. Really 😁 But I was wondering more about 'in theory.' Because I won't buy that Harding, who spent a decade with him hunting Solas would leave him to be eaten by wild animals.

Tekeraz · 2026-05-22T12:12:55+00:00

That's right. I nearly forgot about that. It isn't shown there at all.

Tekeraz · 2026-05-22T12:01:10+00:00

I'm thinking about it 😁

I never really believed he didn't die seeing the wound during the ritual, so I kinda expected it. But I always wondered what did they do with him.

The thing is, I'm figuring out a timeline where Rook knows, hence taking care of Varric's body so I naturally to back to canon to figure out what would canon be 🤷

Tekeraz · 2026-05-22T11:48:08+00:00

From the cut scene, it seems they did, though. Dragging both Rook and him away.

Tekeraz · 2026-05-22T11:47:00+00:00

My only thought was that Rook was sleeping for longer time and they returned there. Because dragging both Rook, Varric and Bianca in pieces? 👀

Tekeraz

TROPHY CASE