The First Era, The Divine Age, started and ended with the Second Blight. An entire generation of people lived and died through it, not knowing what life without darkspawn was like. It had started in the Anderfels and spread across Thedas like fire. It ended in the year of 1:95 at Starkhaven as a mostly human force led by the Grey Wardens struck the final blow.
Divine Hortrensia I named the Second Era the Glory Age, predicting a grand rebirth of the world after the devastation of the Blight. Yet, the rebirth of Thedas would be the upheaval of the social and political norms and a life of hardships more dramatic than the Blight. In the years to come, Orlais and the Dales would come to war. Divine Renata I called for a Holy War, leading to the Exalted March of the Dales. Orlais claimed the land, and the elvish people either escaped to alienages or took to nomadic traditions. In Ferelden, Teryrn Caedmon declared himself king which incited a civil war. At his death, fighting for power over the region began. This period in Ferelden would be called the War of Crowns. Further North, Starkhaven's King Fyruss would try to take over all of the Free Marches under the Tevinter banner.
This was called the Time of Rebuilding, but it was hard to say would what was truly being forged in the ashes left by the darkspawn.
This all happened within the forty years after the end of the Second Blight. There were now inhabitants of Thedas growing into adulthood without the fear or knowledge of the Blight. Yet, that didn't stop the Grey Wardens from remaining vigilant. Old God Zazikel wouldn't be the last Archdemon, and they were sure of it. Still a branch of the Chantry, they were given stipends and notoriety in most towns. They'd not fallen out of favor, yet. So, they took to Thedas to deal with roving bands of darkspawn along with other moral adversaries the Chantry might have. They became hunters of the wicked and the profane.
Our story begins in 2:35, a newly formed squadron of Grey Wardens are sent from the Fortress Weisshaupt to deal with what is believed to be a new emergence of the Blight. There's a town in the Free Marches that went silent seemingly overnight. Those that investigated have not returned. No one dares to get close for fear that they'll be next. But those that remember the Second Blight and the darkspawn, swear they can hear them on the other side of the town's border. Your group has been tasked with eradicating this threat and saving anyone that might be alive within the confines of the town. You've been gifted a templar from the Starkhaven Circle to help. Yet, all the strange and scary aside, the land is in the midst of political upheaval. There may be enemies in more forms than just those of darkspawn.
Are you ready to embark upon a tale where our lovely protagonists' lives and stories are lost to time? Where their blood is spilled only for their name to be removed from the Warden logs? Where their death will be a convenience to the powers that be? If so, let us begin.
Divine Hortrensia I named the Second Era the Glory Age, predicting a grand rebirth of the world after the devastation of the Blight. Yet, the rebirth of Thedas would be the upheaval of the social and political norms and a life of hardships more dramatic than the Blight. In the years to come, Orlais and the Dales would come to war. Divine Renata I called for a Holy War, leading to the Exalted March of the Dales. Orlais claimed the land, and the elvish people either escaped to alienages or took to nomadic traditions. In Ferelden, Teryrn Caedmon declared himself king which incited a civil war. At his death, fighting for power over the region began. This period in Ferelden would be called the War of Crowns. Further North, Starkhaven's King Fyruss would try to take over all of the Free Marches under the Tevinter banner.
This was called the Time of Rebuilding, but it was hard to say would what was truly being forged in the ashes left by the darkspawn.
This all happened within the forty years after the end of the Second Blight. There were now inhabitants of Thedas growing into adulthood without the fear or knowledge of the Blight. Yet, that didn't stop the Grey Wardens from remaining vigilant. Old God Zazikel wouldn't be the last Archdemon, and they were sure of it. Still a branch of the Chantry, they were given stipends and notoriety in most towns. They'd not fallen out of favor, yet. So, they took to Thedas to deal with roving bands of darkspawn along with other moral adversaries the Chantry might have. They became hunters of the wicked and the profane.
Our story begins in 2:35, a newly formed squadron of Grey Wardens are sent from the Fortress Weisshaupt to deal with what is believed to be a new emergence of the Blight. There's a town in the Free Marches that went silent seemingly overnight. Those that investigated have not returned. No one dares to get close for fear that they'll be next. But those that remember the Second Blight and the darkspawn, swear they can hear them on the other side of the town's border. Your group has been tasked with eradicating this threat and saving anyone that might be alive within the confines of the town. You've been gifted a templar from the Starkhaven Circle to help. Yet, all the strange and scary aside, the land is in the midst of political upheaval. There may be enemies in more forms than just those of darkspawn.
Are you ready to embark upon a tale where our lovely protagonists' lives and stories are lost to time? Where their blood is spilled only for their name to be removed from the Warden logs? Where their death will be a convenience to the powers that be? If so, let us begin.
DISCLAIMER: Most of this text was taken from either the Dragon Age wiki or "The World of Thedas: Volume I" in an attempt to paraphrase what state the world is in now. Timelines may have been moved up or down to help the narrative flow of the game, but everything is factual to the world and belongs to the creators.
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ - Warriors, Rogues, and Mages
Humans are the most powerful and common of all races in Thedas. But wasn't always this way. While human history has a tendency to ignore or outright refute this, scholars believe there was a time when there wasn't a single human anywhere on the continent. While humans are the dominant race in Thedas, they are also the most fractured. The race's tribal roots led to the evolution of distinct groups with their own languages, customs, and beliefs. These distinctions have been at the heart of numerous conflicts between human nations and religious movements. Scholars wrestle to explain humanity's ability to maintain power over most of Thedas, given the infighting.
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ - Warriors, Rogues, and Mages
The elves are a common race in Thedas, distinguished physically by their large eyes, willowy frames, and pointy ears. Their long history is colored by ages of human oppression, and so are a mere shadow of their ancestors. The proper name for elves is elvhen, meaning "the people." It is said that they were once immortal beings who lived by their own rules and beliefs. When the humans arrived, they lost their immortality and so they blamed humans for their "quickening." After the fall of their kingdom, and then their subsequent relocation and exile from the Dales, they have split apart. Some became wanderers known as the Dalish while other elves have bitterly resigned to their fate living among humankind in alienages.
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ - Warriors and Rogues
The dwarves are a race of stocky, robust builders who live in underground communities called thaigs. Their once strong numbers have been diminished by ages of war with the darkspawn. Most thaigs are now empty, and the vast network of tunnels known as the Deep Roads that connected the thaigs are mostly sealed and overrun with the darkspawn, even in the absence of a Blight. The dwarves now primarily inhabit Orzammar while others live in exile on the surface. Living underground, the dwarves have superior vision in the dark. The caves they live in are laced with lyrium which has given them a natural immunity to magic. On the downside, they are also not able to wield it. Surface dwarves lose this immunity the longer they are away from the lyrium but are still unable to perform magic. Within Orzammar, they live in a rigid caste system where the casteless are marked with facial tattoos. Surface dwarves, fortunately, are able to live their life as they please.
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ - Warriors and Rogues
A race relatively new to Thedas that most people call Qunari. This race is large and powerful, and they tower over humans by a foot or more on average. Most have horns growing from their heads. However, the label "Qunari" refers to a follower of the religious text known as the Qun, regardless of his or her race--hence the capitalization of the name in many writings. The horned race's ancient name is "kossith." This term is not widely used or even widely known outside scholarly circles.
DISCLAIMER: Most of this text was taken from either the "Dragon Age: Roleplaying Game Core Rulebook" or "The World of Thedas: Volume I" in an attempt to paraphrase the variety of the peoples that live in Thedas. Everything is factual to the world and belongs to the creators.
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ - Constitution, Dexterity, & Strength
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ - Communication, Cunning, Magic, Perception, & Willpower
Warriors permeate the world, but they aren't all the same. They can be ex-soldiers, caravan guards, mercenaries, members of the militia, or former blacksmiths turned adventurers. They can fight for honor, revenge, justice, money, or a better tomorrow. Some have received formal training and others fight by instinct, but all can handle themselves in a fight. They're always in the thick of combat, and it is often up to them to engage the hardest-hitting enemies so the other members of their group can focus on their own abilities. They are nigh undefeatable by those without any combat training.
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ - Communication, Dexterity, & Perception
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ - Constitution, Cunning, Magic, Strength, & Willpower
Rogues can be a thief, a scoundrel, a conman, a scout, an expert, or a spy. They have to get by on their quickness and cleverness. Whether engaging in witty repartee or slipping a dagger between an enemy's ribs, a rogue must be artful to win the day. They are the eyes and ears of the group. They are excellent at both and close and ranged combat, and can backstab friend or foe with ease. They're not as hardy as their warrior contemporaries, but they make up for it by being fast and deadly.
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ - Cunning, Magic, & Willpower
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ - Communication, Constitution, Dexterity, Perception, & Strength
Mages have been gifted (or cursed, depending on your point of view) with the ability to absorb mana, the life force of living beings, and use it to cast magical spells. This sets them apart from normal people. In some times and places, mages have been honored for their power and wisdom. In others they have been feared and hunted, especially once the dangers of demonic possession were understood. They commonly are from the Circle of Magi, sometimes are renegade apostates, or from a culture that reveres them. They are capable of amazing feats but must be wary of demonic attacks when using powerful magic. The very gift that allows mages to use magic at all makes them vulnerable to possession.
DISCLAIMER: Most of this text was taken from the "Dragon Age: Roleplaying Game Core Rulebook" book and not from the actual games. Sorry if you're missing a beloved Specialization, some of them didn't make sense for the timeframe or the style of RP.
During the Glory Age, the Grey Wardens were not much diminished. Their fall would happen during the Fourth Blight. While the Grey Wardens were still an arm of the Chantry, they refused to participate in the Exalted March against the Dales. Instead, they tended to the Blighted Lands of Anderfels, and the errant darkspawn and other abominations across Thedas.
The fortress of Weisshaupt that was built onto the edge of the jagged butte called Broken Tooth still stands strong and houses a couple of hundred Grey Wardens. The First Warden was the brother-in-arms to Corin of Tevinter, the Grey Warden that slew the Archdemon. A Tevinter Soporati himself, Anodatus Kriehl, is quite skilled at handling the political machinations that require the Wardens to stay current and funded. Under him is the High Constable, Iriah Shaewyn, a Dalish Ranger and friend of the griffons. There's also the Chamberlain of the Grey, an ex-Shaper of Orzammar Mirav Helsheld. And while there are a handful of Warden Commanders, the one overseeing our Wardens is a Free Marcher and Tourney winner, Soren Granheimen.
You're either a Warden yourself, this having been between your first to third mission. Or you're a Warden Recruit, not having taken part in the Joining as of yet, but still either a volunteer or conscripted. One amongst you is a Senior Warden, that has been tasked to lead without much knowledge about it. The odd thing about these orders you have received is that you've been pulled apart from your usual traveling companions. Recruits are no longer with their Senior Wardens, and Acolytes are no longer being watched over by the templar volunteers. Instead, you've been thrown in with a hodgepodge of other Wardens on this journey, and a templar from the Starkhaven Chantry you've never met.
You've been traveling together for a week or so now when you come across the Free Marches town of Saltgraves. A small farming town in the Northern Reaches close to the Tevinter border. There are a few smoldering campfires outside the parameter of the town, but the gray overhang of trees and the dismal weather hide any living presence. You swear, the true Wardens among you, you sense the presence of darkspawn. But you feel as if something else dwells here as well.
The fortress of Weisshaupt that was built onto the edge of the jagged butte called Broken Tooth still stands strong and houses a couple of hundred Grey Wardens. The First Warden was the brother-in-arms to Corin of Tevinter, the Grey Warden that slew the Archdemon. A Tevinter Soporati himself, Anodatus Kriehl, is quite skilled at handling the political machinations that require the Wardens to stay current and funded. Under him is the High Constable, Iriah Shaewyn, a Dalish Ranger and friend of the griffons. There's also the Chamberlain of the Grey, an ex-Shaper of Orzammar Mirav Helsheld. And while there are a handful of Warden Commanders, the one overseeing our Wardens is a Free Marcher and Tourney winner, Soren Granheimen.
You're either a Warden yourself, this having been between your first to third mission. Or you're a Warden Recruit, not having taken part in the Joining as of yet, but still either a volunteer or conscripted. One amongst you is a Senior Warden, that has been tasked to lead without much knowledge about it. The odd thing about these orders you have received is that you've been pulled apart from your usual traveling companions. Recruits are no longer with their Senior Wardens, and Acolytes are no longer being watched over by the templar volunteers. Instead, you've been thrown in with a hodgepodge of other Wardens on this journey, and a templar from the Starkhaven Chantry you've never met.
You've been traveling together for a week or so now when you come across the Free Marches town of Saltgraves. A small farming town in the Northern Reaches close to the Tevinter border. There are a few smoldering campfires outside the parameter of the town, but the gray overhang of trees and the dismal weather hide any living presence. You swear, the true Wardens among you, you sense the presence of darkspawn. But you feel as if something else dwells here as well.
The Character Sheet listed below is fairly self-explanatory minus the section about your character's class and abilities. Here I'll write out what to do in the sections, but feel free to ask me any questions you have.
1x Like
