Today I'm uncovering the sixth entry in my new lore series paving the road for the anticipated release of the next Dragon Age game. As, I’ve said before, through these videos, I’ll be delving into very particular honed-in lore and plot threads that are rather telling for the future narrative of Dragon Age.
Last episode I discussed a truly ever-present figure in Thedas who has nudged, if not shoved history for her own villainous misdeeds. Continuing from that, today I’m exploring another ancient threat that will destroy Thedas if not dealt with accordingly. The original adversary of the realm, and most certainly one of the last – the blight has, and will ensue disaster for the Dragon Age.
Before we look at the next Blights in store for Thedas, we need to explore the many mysteries surrounding the Blight, and how it’s ultimately one of the greatest threats against all living things.
"I laugh at a world full of stupid humans, who ignore the Blight's evil and abandon their vigilance to chase mortal goals. Remember, it is up YOU to destroy the blight. Pray not for someone else to do it. It will always nip at your heels." (Flemeth, DA: O).
The Chant of Light teaches that the Blight was sent by the Maker, as punishment to the seven Tevinter Magisters who conspired and plotted to usurp his heavens. In their pride, the seven Magisters, also known as the “Magister Sidereal”, physically entered the Fade, after hearing whispers from their ancient Old Gods who planned to bestow their godhood and knowledge onto each Magister.
However, when the mages breached the Golden City, the Old Gods were nowhere to be seen, instead the Sidereal found the Maker himself upon the throne of heaven. With their trespassing, the city was turned black, committing the Second Sin.
This sin corrupted the magisters who entered the Fade, returning them to the waking world as the first darkspawn.
However, Tevinter’s Imperial Chantry has a different angle on this tale, blaming the lies of the Old Gods, rather than the Magisters who breached the Fade for “power and glory beyond all reckoning"
“The authors are clearly different, with notable disagreements on the nature of spirits and the ultimate cause of the Second Sin. This stanza lays the blame for mankind's corruption squarely on the Old Gods rather than on a flaw inherent to human nature; therefore, historians believe a Tevinter author, perhaps even Archon Hessarian himself, wrote it.” (From The Chant of Light: Literary Analysis and History by Sister Tessaria).
Even further than that, according to Corypheus, one of the actual seven Magisters who led the Sidereal’s scheme to seize the Golden City. When he awoke in the Dragon Age, he claimed that the Golden City was already black and the throne of the gods was empty before they arrived.
Advertently disproving the texts of the Chant of Light, and the Maker’s interference with the creation of the Blight, and locking away the Old Gods.
In fact, Corypheus spoke on each of the Magisters discovering and claiming the Black City’s darkness for themselves, most certainly referring to the Blight.
“They spit on our deeds and claim we brought darkness into the world. We discovered the darkness. We claimed it as our own, let it permeate our being. If the others have not returned, they are lost. I am alone in my glory.” (Corypheus' Memories, DA:I).
While that may be the ravings of an ancient, evil-twisted creature, Corypheus’s testimony is certainly unique, and provides more reasoning into the Blight’s existence then the Chant of Light has. Alluding to the fact that perhaps something happened even before the time of man, that resulted in the blackening of the Golden City.
Indulging the idea that the Blight is an ancient mystery that predates the Tevinter calendar...
“The Empty Ones” were a short-lived Neverran cult who worshipped the Blight, believing that it came from a place called “the Void,” which is a “place of nothing”, also known as “the abyss.” The cult believed that “returning to the Void was something to be celebrated because it meant an end to all pain and all suffering.”
“The Empty Ones grew to believe that the blight was to be the tool by with the Maker would end all of creation. They preached that it came from the Void, a place of nothing, and that returning to the Void was something to be celebrated because it meant an end to all pain and all suffering.” (From Before Andrastianism: The Forgotten Faiths, by Sister Rondwyn of Tantervale).
While the Chantry views the Void as the antithesis of the Maker's creation. The Dalish elves believe that the Void is the home of the Forgotten Ones, the gods of disease, terror, spite and malevolence.
In addition, The Dalish elves actually have a name for the blight being: “banalhan” which translates to "The place of nothing or, rather, where the Blight comes from.” (WoT, V1).
Andruil; one of the members of the Elven Pantheon was said to stalk the Forgotten Ones in the Void, she suffered longer and longer periods of madness after returning. She put on armour made of the Void, and all forgot her true face. She made weapons of darkness, and plague ate her lands. She howled things meant to be forgotten, until Mythal turned into a great serpent and sapped Andruil's strength with her magic, stealing her knowledge of how to find the Void. Andruil couldn't get back to the abyss ever since, and peace returned.
"When Andruil began stalking the Forgotten Ones in the Void, she suffered longer and longer periods of madness after returning. She put on armor made of the Void, and all forgot her true face. She made weapons of darkness, and plague ate her lands. She howled things meant to be forgotten, until Mythal turned into a great serpent and sapped Andruil's strength with her magic, stealing her knowledge of how to find the Void. Andruil couldn't get back to the abyss ever since, and peace returned.” (Codex entry: Elven God Andruil).
So, did Andruil return to her people with the Blight? Bringing plague upon the lands until Mythal stole Andruil’s knowledge away from her, claiming it for herself?
Another codex entry points to an angry energy that began to crackle the runes, as the elves collapsed caverns, sealing away the Deep Roads, so no one could awake its anger. These events unfolding after Mythal slew the Titans.
“The vision grows dark. An aeon seems to pass. Then the runes crackle as if filled with angry energy. A new vision appears: elves collapsing caverns, sealing the Deep Roads with stone and magic. Terror, heart-pounding, ice-cold, as the last of the spells, is cast. A voice whispers:
What the Evanuris in their greed could unleash would end us all. Let this place be forgotten. Let no one wake its anger. The People must rise before their false gods destroy them all." (Codex entry: Veilfire Runes in the Deep Roads).
Was this codex describing the Blight attempting to wreak havoc on the ancient elves, since the death of the Titans? And in defence, the elves sealed away the Deep Roads to stop its anger?
To give even more context, the darkspawn come from the Deep Roads which have been related to the Void in some circumstances. For instance, The Anvil of the Void was discovered in the Deep Roads - a powerful tool that was used to turn living dwarves into golems of steel and stone with the use of lyrium. It certainly seems like The Void and The Deep Roads are very closely represented.
Regardless, the Blight’s origin is still an ancient lingering mystery – as I’ve explored, it’s some-kind of darkness with direct ties to the ancient elven times. It’s been discovered in the Black City, however, is said to come from the Void... which the Dwarves relate to the Deep Roads.
The Chant of Light (which we’ve just disproven) described that after the seven Magisters became the first horrifying darkspawn, they found Dumat, one of their Old Gods. And, in their tainted form, the Magisters corrupted the Old God with the Blight, twisting it into an Archdemon, unleashing the First Blight onto Thedas.
“Deep into the earth they fled,
Away from the Light.
In Darkness eternal they searched
For those who had goaded them on,
Until at last they found their prize,
Their god, their betrayer:
The sleeping dragon Dumat. Their taint
Twisted even the false-god, and the whisperer
Awoke at last, in pain and horror, and led
Them to wreak havoc upon all the nations of the world:
The first Blight.”
(Threnodies 8).
In essence, the Blight refers to a constant cycle of darkspawn searching for the sleeping Old Gods, when found, darkspawn corrupt and turn an Old God into an Archdemon - which therefore starts a Blight. Darkspawn are always drawn to the sleeping Old Gods, and search for them via a perpetual song.
“No one knows what it is that drives the darkspawn in their relentless search for the sleeping Old Gods. Perhaps it is instinct, as moths will fly into torch flames.” (Codex entry: Archdemon).
The Old Gods have been described as unknown-beings that take the shape of dragons, worshipped as such by the Tevinter Imperium, however, their true forms are still a mystery.
When tainted by darkspawn, Old Gods become Archdemons, which then lead the hordes of darkspawn against the people of Thedas via a hive-mind connection.
“Whatever the reason, when darkspawn find one of these ancient dragons, it is immediately afflicted by the taint. It awakens twisted and corrupted, and leads the darkspawn in a full-scale invasion of the land: a Blight.“ (Codex entry: Archdemon).
After more than a hundred years of the First Blight, which destroyed several dwarven kingdoms, the people of Thedas found a way to, at least, temporarily stop a Blight. The Grey Wardens were formed as a war effort against the Archdemons and waves of darkspawn. By drinking the blood of the darkspawn, and having the final blow against the archdemon - the creature would die, along with its opponent. Therefore, stopping the Blight, until a new Old God was awakened.
“The Grey Wardens assembled the armies of men and dwarves at the Battle of Silent Plains. It was then that Dumat finally fell and the First Blight ended.” (Codex entry: The First Blight: Chapter 4).
Since that victory, there have been five Blights in total, each occurring throughout the ages.
Dumat, the Dragon of Silence and the archdemon of the First Blight
Zazikel, the Dragon of Chaos and the archdemon of the Second Blight
Toth, the Dragon of Fire and the archdemon of the Third Blight
Andoral, the Dragon of Slaves and the archdemon of the Fourth Blight
Urthemiel, the Dragon of Beauty and the archdemon of the Fifth Blight
Currently in the Dragon Age, there’s estimated to be two more sleeping Old Gods, - Razikale, the Dragon of Mystery, and Lusacan, the Dragon of Night. However, Chantry rumours conject that there may be an unknown eighth Old God that was stricken from historical record.
“This speculation is fueled by older drawings showing Draconis as more serpentine in appearance, perhaps depicting a sea creature or an unknown eighth Old God that was stricken from historical record.” (From A Study of Thedosian Astronomy by Sister Oran Petrarchius).
While darkspawn are mindless goons to the call of the Old Gods, forcing the next Blight. To believe that the deaths of the Old Gods would definitively stop the Blights has been claimed ridiculous.
While speaking by omission, Solas shared plenty of his knowledge on the Blight, claiming that: “the fools who first unleashed the Blight upon this world thought they were unlocking ultimate power.” However, “the blight corrupts everything it touches. Those who believe themselves capable of using it safely are mad.”
“Indirectly, one assumes. Nothing in any lore connects (Solas’s) my people to the Old God dragons who became Archdemons. For all we know, killing the Old Gods could make things even worse.”
And finally, Solas, himself said: “the Blight is the real problem. (The Grey Wardens) have bought us some time, I will grant them that.”
Take his word as you will. Regardless, without the tainted Archdemons, the Blight is still a corruption that perverts every living thing it touches. As discovered by Bianca Davri, Red Lyrium carries the Blight.
“Far more disturbing is the fact that lyrium could be corrupted at all. Treat any red lyrium you encounter as if it were poison. Do not go near it, do not attempt to destroy it... and most importantly, do not attempt to use it.” (From a partially burned letter by an unknown writer, affixed with the Grey Warden seal).
Regular Lyrium being the blood of the Titans, Red Lyrium is a twisted corruption of the same being.
The growth of Red Lyrium throughout the land has merely begun, attempting to remove the mineral is likely a fruitless effort, as it will have already introduced itself into the food chain, which begets more corruption.
Blighted soil, infects insects, which then blights farmer crops, in-turn, blighting the people of Thedas.
Before Red Lyrium, the Blight was spread through the growth and reproduction of the darkspawn, and now with the tainted substance multiplying across the eco-system of the land, the Blight is an undeniable threat to every living thing in Thedas.
With that said, the Blight has many lingering plot threads for the future that need to be untangled.
Origin Of The Blight
I’ve touched on this topic greatly in many of my previous lore videos, however, I’m beginning to connect the dots with this one.
The Blight is said to come from the “place of nothing”, being “the Void”, which is the exact realm the Evanuris hunted the Forgotten Ones and became madder after every visit there.
The Dwarves relate “the Void” to the Deep Roads, the Darkspawn dwell within the Deep Roads, as well as the remaining sleeping Old Gods.
And the Titans stir beyond the Deep Roads, forming Thedas’s foundations. Lyrium is Titan blood, and Red Lyrium carries the Blight. So, does the Blight come from a Blighted Titan, deep within the Deep Roads that the ancient elves tried to seal away, and did for a time.
Did the Evanuris yearn for the powers of the Blight, as Solas said: “the fools who first unleashed the Blight upon this world thought they were unlocking ultimate power.”
Without realising its full potential, did the ancient elves release the Blight after Mythal “killed” the Titans. They became obsessed with mining the bodies of Titans for Lyrium, using its power. Did they begin to mine Red Lyrium, and also use its power, becoming insane with power, and mentally unstable?
And, in an act of revenge, did the not-so-dead Titans lash out against the Evanuris using the Blight – a corrupted hive-mind of a Titan, that was formed after its death. Tainting every living thing that was close to it, attempting to re-establish the connection with their children, the dwarves?
Is this “angry energy cracking through runes”, and the call of the darkspawn both intrinsically linked because the Blight comes from a desperate, downed Titan that searches for its severed connection. Does it wreak havoc on Thedas because it yearns for that connection back, and will do anything to establish it?
Or is it something entirely different, not yet fully discovered in the lore? While this theory may shed light on elements of the Blight’s origin and purpose, it doesn’t explain how the Blight ended up in the Black City, unless we conclude that Arlathan was the Golden City, which was then corrupted with the Blight – turning it into the Black City.
Perhaps the Veil’s creation stopped the Blight from entering the waking world? Thus, explaining how it was brought back to the realm of the waking world when the Magisters became tainted after finding the darkness within the Black City.
Obviously complete speculation on my part, but you can see how the stars are aligning, and while I don’t think I’m completely right, I feel close to the truth, however, I’m sure this mystery will not go unsolved. We must find out the source of the Blight, and stop it from spreading further.
Current Grey Warden Whereabouts
The Grey Wardens have become a burned-out, irrational faction as of late, attempting to stop the next Blights from happening. However, there are many rumblings, and inner conflicts within the Warden’s command.
Currently, the Grey Wardens of Fortress Weishaupt - the original headquarters, where the faction was formed in the Anderfels - have severed communications with the Wardens of the south, for reasons unknown.
“Rumors abound that they severed ties with their leaders at Weisshaupt, and that a bitter war now rages between them. What becomes of Hawke/Loghain/Stroud/Alistair is unknown – save that all news out of Weisshaupt soon ends. Does the sudden silence indicate a battle within... or something far worse?” (Morrigan, Epilogue).
Recently, Griffon eggs were found in the Anderfels, by a new Warden recruit, perhaps they’ve decided to keep this secret among the rest of the Wardens, to ensure the birds can survive and endure.
"I don't trust them to place the griffons' well-being over power or politics." (The Last Flight).
Or are all the Wardens of Weishaupt dead? The Anderfels are a blighted land with hordes of darkspawn roaming the wastes. A sudden silence is rather ominous, perhaps the darkspawn finally decided to invade.
While, they’ve proven to be quite redundant, the Grey Wardens know the locations of the prisons of each of the Old Gods; however, they are deep underground and cannot easily be accessed by the Wardens without cutting through thousands of darkspawn.
But it’s worth noting that the Wardens know the location of Razikale and Lusacan, the next Old Gods to become blighted.
Ghilan’nain's Creations
The Horror of Hormak in Tevinter Nights introduced an abandoned thaig dedicated to Ghilan’nain, the elven goddess, and mother of the halla. Inside the thaig were twisted darkspawn who drank from a pool of thick gray fluid, mutilating themselves with monstrous features, like emissaries with bat wings.
The hordes of darkspawn also forced their victims to drink from the pool, turning Grey Wardens into diabolical creatures, like centipede hybrids.
With almost eleven more of these thaig remaining, what other horrors linger within them? Will we see even more mutilated darkspawn, like Broodmothers with halla horns and dragon wings? Now that would be a sight to bear witness... “The mountain he’d brought down, the one that buried that nightmare under thousands of tons of rock, was not the only one to which the aravels brought their prey. There had been, before the images repeated, eleven others.” (Tevinter Nights).
Mythal’s Connection
Mythal took Andruil’s knowledge of the Void, Mythal speaks the calling, and Mythal seeks to collect the remaining Old God souls, but for what?
I personally believe the Old God souls are each a fragment of Mythal, explaining why she encourages the end of the Blight, using the dark ritual because she would like to collect the souls for herself, to become whole once again. Whether that’s true or not, Mythal has many ties to the Blight that require further explanation.
Currently, two blights remain, meaning Flemeth has two Old God souls still to collect. Will she force the next Blights in order to capture the remaining souls?
7 Magisters
The seven Magisters who breached the very heavens are more than just chantry tales you tell your kids at night, they actual exist, and have endured throughout the ages. Two of them have revealed themselves to Thedas – the Architect and Corypheus.
While the Architect attempted to stop the future Blights by using the blood of Grey Wardens to "awaken" darkspawn, in a grand scheme to sever their connection to any remaining Archdemons.
Corypheus unlocked the secrets of effective immortality, and used Blight magic. He murdered the Divine with blood magic, and sought a scheme to reclaim the throne of the gods for himself. Fortunately, his pride was defeated, and he was sent to the Fade for his crimes.
Corypheus is essentially immortal because of the Blight, he has the ability to body-jump from one blighted creature to the other, therefore, he will live on, wherever the heck he is... unless the source of the Blight is eradicated for good, assuming there is a source, and it can be stopped.
If two of the Magisters survived, surely the other five will have endured, somewhere in Thedas. And if they share any of the powers of the previous two, they could be very formidable foes.
“That he was found by a darkspawn, of all things. A talking darkspawn, polite as you please, who fed him and gave him water and evidently chatted with him about surfacers.” (Codex entry: A Different Darkspawn?).
Old Gods True Identity
While the Old Gods take the shape of dragons, they are certainly not draconic beasts. Especially considering actual dragons are highly resistant to the Blight. So, the Old Gods can seemingly shapeshift into whatever they desire.
To spit ball, the Blight is viewed as sin, a punishment for entering the Maker’s realm.
In ancient elven times, certain forms like dragons were reserved for the gods, and their chosen. However, the elven god Dirthamen had a sinner who took the form of the gods, and was sentenced with high treason. The correlation of sin is very interesting, but even more than that, the fact that Dirthamen’s sinner took the shape of the elven gods, and the Old Gods take whatever shape they want. Could the two relate?
"His crime is high treason. He took on a form reserved for the gods and their chosen, and dared to fly in the shape of the divine. The sinner belongs to Dirthamen; he claims he took wings at the urging of Ghilan'nain, and begs protection from Mythal. She does not show him favor, and will let Elgar'nan judge him." (Codex entry: Ancient Elven Writing).
Regardless, the Old God’s true form is still a mystery, will we ever see an Old God before it’s too late, uncovering their actual shape? Does their true form even matter? Is it something already recognisable in the lore?
Next Blights
Why Blights happen is debated. The prevailing belief is that Archdemons are trying to regain power after their home in the Fade was corrupted by the ancient nation's magisters. However, with so much of the Blight connecting to the time before man, I feel it’s rather shallow to believe that the Blight happens just because of that.
Do Archdemons follow the call of a vengeful Titan? Or was the Blight created in the Void, unleashed by power hungry fools? What is the purpose of the Blight and how can one stop it from happening?
The Blight is the true enemy of Dragon Age, even Solas himself said that, we should not undermine its growth. It will surely have a catastrophic effect in the next Dragon Age. For all we know, Solas himself may have a plan to stop the Blight, realising its evil.
In any event, two Old Gods remain untainted, yet to be turned into Archdemons. Let me know your thoughts down below on the future Blights, and everything in-between, follow me on Twitter and Instagram, like me on Facebook, but until the next one I’ve been Jackdaw, and I should go.
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