Solas's Secret Weapon Revealed - Red Lyrium Idol BREAKDOWN | Dragon Age: The Veilguard Plot Theories

[@obsidian_bone]

You're single handedly keeping the Dragon Age hype train going

[@JackdawYT]

Aw thank you so much for saying that, honestly just having fun tinfoiling with you all

[@thirdworldgamer8717]

real

[@lorisceleste1860]

This man here working harder than BioWare

[@lewiswashington9182]

Facts

[@sheldonmustdie2]

💯

[@sailorniburu411]

#truth

[@AntivanAmbassador]

I know it’s a joke, but I’m pretty sure the devs at BioWare have been working harder than most people at their jobs, especially given the job losses. It just seems sort of disrespectful how people treat the employees still at BioWare, honestly. It’s a long, tiring, thankless job. I guarantee that people are burned out and want to be able to push this game out and shift to other projects, it’s not laziness that’s caused the wait.

[@lorisceleste1860]

@@AntivanAmbassador I guarantee you I'm not talking about the workers at BioWare but at the heads, the bosses, the CEOs of EA. I'll never - ever - blame the workers, I'll always blame the employers. Having said this, where's DA:4 at, BioWare?

[@phyreblade]

I'm wondering if we actually misunderstood the nature of how Solas locked away the other gods. We persist in imagining the other elven gods are actually separated into some sort of imprisonment, I mean. But what if the "separation" was actually a mental one? That is, what if he simply made them forget who and what they were? That is what has kept them sundered and ruined all this time. That they simply do not KNOW what they are. But if the veil is destroyed, then all the gods remember and are thus "freed" to confront Solas, at last.

[@JackdawYT]

Ooo I love this! That kinda ties into the Sera being an elven god theory. When specifically Solas said that Sera was "Apart from herself," along with her tarot cards having a lot of symbolism to Andruil! I love that

[@phyreblade]

@@JackdawYT Exactly. I'm really hoping that Dreadwolf is going to better explain what they veil actually IS, anyway. What it does and how it actually effects Thedas. I'm just looking forward to better understanding the fundamental nature of the world we're looking to preserve, I guess.

[@mightyn8]

@@JackdawYT the Andruil connection is also strengthened imo with Sera just picking up archery on her own, like it was no big deal.

[@danmorris5498]

I'm really hoping we get something on DA day or the game awards

[@BelieveIt1051]

If it were just a mental separation, it would have applied to Solas himself as well, and also the evanuris would have started aging and died of old age.

[@Eeb828]

Keep the hype alive, Jack! I want the rest of this series so bad, I really hope it doesn’t collapse 😢

[@OfficiallyJewls]

In my opinion, there's two ways BioWare is gonna make the Veil fall; 1) I really think the Veil might fall right after we finish the prologue, similar to how Inquisition had it. I think BioWare knows by now that we want to experience our chosen backstory at least a little bit, similar to how we get to play them in DAO and DA2, before getting to the real story of the game. I know it would kind of be samey to the beginning of Inquisition, in a way, but I wouldn't be mad about it, to be honest. 2) About halfway through the game, we try to stop Solas from tearing the Veil down only to fail, kind of similar to how Inky fought Corypheus now that I think about it, but tearing it down reveils the true villain of the story: Flemythal. *Start the backstabbing here* Amazing video as always, Jack! Keep them coming!!

[@christoffstephens464]

For yours and all of our sake that has been waiting and hoping the best for this game i hope it pays off

[@karandullet380]

Man they need to release this game

[@Darkness_cs]

Jack a more plausible theory would be that the titan was actually Solas' friend and perhaps he actually offered to be sacrificed to finally stop the tyranny of the Evanuris thus giving his heart to Solas willingly

[@JackdawYT]

Love this!!!

[@anderporascu5026]

In this era where AAA gaming has been MTVed we have bright spots like you keep our spirits high.

[@supernova9930]

Really outstanding summary! I personally hope the veil comes down at the outset of DA4.

[@hughcurran6817]

Loving these videos. So excited for dreadwolf. I have been on a lore binge of it all the last 6 months. I love the writing and characters the fact every character is written with a core belief that effects all their decisions. For example look at carver at his core he is a envious character, anu decisions hawke make that makes him feel this way he dislikes. Ita all written so well. Especially when i figured the theme of orgins is valour. For Da2 its justice. Inquisition its wisdom. My personal theory is the theme of the game is hope. Your character will bring hope to those who have given up.

[@niofo7713]

oh no, don't break the red lyrium idol down, we had enough problems with it even while it still was in one piece!

[@Silent-Pride4-wt9iy]

It would be a trip if the game takes place after the veil has been brought down.

[@efaristi9737]

It's weird that the Idol belong to Solas. If Red Lyrium started to exist only after the First Blight then It was certainly very different originally since the Ancient Elves disappeared long before the Original Darkspawns appeared. 6:14 I thought Solas rebellion was provoked by Mythal death ? 9:05 Can he ? I thought Solas imprisoned the Evanuris because killing them was the worst option ? I do hope the Veil will be destroyed at the beginning of the game, sure, there will be damages at first but i think making the world whole again could have surprising and beneficial effects on all the species, not just the elves. I hope we will learn more about the Forgottens Ones. I mean, if the elven legends portraying the Creators as benevolents were wrong then maybe the "evils" elven gods are not so evil. And how are we killing permanently the Evanuris ?

[@BelieveIt1051]

The way I read the wording, it seemed like Solas wasn't so much claiming that the idol was his, it was more like Solas was claiming the idol for himself after finding out about its existence. Kind of like how Bartrand did.

[@mistress_of_the_dark380]

Another great video! I also think there is a greater evil in the shadows 9:00

[@ChaosMayhemChaosMayhem]

Thank you for another video jackdaw, it will be interesting if the veil comes down before our hero arrives, maybe the plot of the game will be trying to seal the veil and defeat solas, or maybe there's a common ememy between rook and solas🤔

[@adamroot2973]

That nobles son sounds a lot like Dorian. He's a nobles son and a mortalitasi and can easily flee to tevinter

[@skelitonking117]

Ok but we need to know what exactly the taint is, like, If it's something that afflicted the titans, where did it come from? are they the source? but then why is the calling tied to it? AND if the Titans existed BEFORE the creation of the veil by solus, why do they have such an intrinsic ability to interact with it? We could say that's because their hearts were used to forge it, but what is it about their hearts that allowed for that? What IS lyrium really?

[@AfonsoVMSP]

Looking foward to see more dragon age on game awards, and your reaction 🎉

[@yrdens1570]

When it comes to the idol's symbolic meaning, and whether it represents the death of Mythal at the hands of the Evanuris or foreshadows her "death" at the end of Inquisition, I think it could easily be both! What if the idol represents the idea that history repeats itself all the time and will keep on repeating? There are many stories in the world of Thedas which repeat the same pattern: there is always a woman, and at the height of her power, she is always betrayed. Mythal, Flemeth, and Andraste are all the examples that come to my mind now, but there could be more.

[@Nykteli]

@JackdawYT Listening to this, I had a thought... I don't know if this has been said. So, Vallaslin ink has Lyrium in it, right? If that Lyrium comes from a particular titan. Say a slain Titan, whose heart is now an Orb in the hands of an Evanuris... Maybe, the Evanuris is then connected to all the slaves that wear the 'Blood Writing' written from that Orb/Heart's blood? A similar (though more sinister) connection to what happened when Valta 'connected' to the Titan in Decent, perhaps? Anyways, thanks for all you do, love watching your stuff!

[@NehnBellanaris]

Jack, I must point out to you that the female figure in the red lyrium idol can not be Mythal, just as our dear Caitie has said. (The one and only Ghil Dirthalen) She pointed out that the female actually has rounded ears, not pointed ears, like an Elf does. And considering WHEN the idol was carved, it would make more sense for the ears to be pointed then round, but they're not, making the figure human. There was a companion chat between Sera and Cole that I found to be quite interesting though. Sera: Have we been here? I mean right here, doing exactly this? It's weird. Cole: Yes. But not how you mean. In the soft, thin places, spirits push with memories that didn't happen, or did, or might. And as we all know, before Solas created the Veil, The Fade, and the Waking World were one and the same. And then there's also the mission in DA:I were, if you did the Dark Ritual in DA:O, you'll meet Flemeth in the Fade, and she'll tell you that Mythal is a part of her. So, what if someone 'saw', or 'felt' this in ancient times, thus being the reason why the idol was made? Let me know what you think.

[@lucashonorato_]

If the idol is depicting some sort of prohecy I wonder if the figure with the severed arm is supposed to be the inquisitor.

[@NehnBellanaris]

@@lucashonorato_ Maybe, but if you look at the other side of the idol, you'll see that it's actually missing both of its arms, not just one. (Unless you're saying that the Inquisitor is going to loose their other arm.)

[@JackdawYT]

One thing I know about tinfoiling and Dragon Age-never completely turn down a theory. Never know what could happen. Coulda told me back in DA2 after the ending that we'd see the Red Lyrium Idol as Solas's chewtoy with a hidden ritual blade that may hold the key to destroying the Veil, I'd have laughed in ya face. But now...

[@NehnBellanaris]

@@JackdawYT I'm pretty sure that's one thing that none of us could have seen.

[@Deren98]

Didn't Solas mention that the Evanuris are now corrupted? Freeing them without a plan seems risky even for him. What If we have to deal with them too?

[@efaristi9737]

If by corrupted, you mean corrupted by greed then yes. Otherwise, i don't think so. And i think we will have to deal with them.

[@Squall598]

@@efaristi9737 Not necessarily. The Evanuris existed before the blight itself did, the blight was created by Tevinter magisters that broke into "heaven" and discovered it was empty. So from this we can theorise that the Evanuris were never corrupted originally. After Inquisition we glean information that the Veil is a prison of sorts created by Solas to hold the Evanuris, almost certainly in the Black City that the Tevinter mages managed to enter. We also know that the Veil acts as a magically twisted mirror of sorts. From this we can theorise that the Blight itself almost certainly originated from the Evanuris. Almost like the Veil mirrored their corruption which resulted in the blight. However, I wouldn't put too much stock in the Veilguard containing accurate depictions and follow on from the original lore. None of the original writers and developers of the first three games were involved with Veilguard. Secondly the game itself went through 8 years of development, I believe it went through more than a single set of developers as well, naturally this will lead to the lore becoming obfuscated from what it originally was meant to be.

[@BelieveIt1051]

I think Solas might use the idol to control the corrupted magic emanating from the red lyrium. It might be part of his plan to destroy the Veil. But the Hero of Ferelden returning with the cure might set Solas' plan back if the cure is used to negate the corruption of the red lyrium. Or maybe Solas is counting on the Hero returning with the cure so he can use it on the Red Lyrium Idol and restore it to its original power before the Magisters corrupted it.

[@efaristi9737]

Did the Hero found a cure ? So far, the Taint is uncurable.

[@BelieveIt1051]

@@efaristi9737 The Trespasser epilogue (which admittedly can't be trusted as accurate), implies in a romanced Leliana worldstate that the Hero returns from the cure quest. I don't see that return happening unless it's successful. Also, Morrigan has pointed out that Avernus was able to extend his life by centuries and put off the Calling. I think she may have also referenced Fiona, who was cured somehow.

[@efaristi9737]

@@BelieveIt1051 Why not ? what's the point to run after chimeras ? Peoples can abandon quests when they realize they are vains, you know ? True, and Merril was able to purify the Eluvian with blood magic. Aside from Fiona who cure herself somehow, All the cure seems to imply blood magic. Fiona is really peculiar, she was first infected with a artifact that accelerated the corruption of the taint and then, when it was removed, she simply... cured herself entirely, not just returning in her normal taint level. And then, when she try to perform the joining again, it didn't work. She might be very well the cure.

[@Subtuthul]

At the end of inquisition the inquisitor pushes Coryephus into the fade. Is it possible he survived.

[@mewmewsasfirebell]

Just what I needed.😂 thanks Jack

[@JackdawYT]

haha anytime!

[@Rosef1re]

I had a thought, not sure if it totally makes sense. What if Solas if afraid of the idol because it's the only thing that could stop him? What if it could be used to smite him? And that's why he's trying to get it first?

[@blueblue4083]

What if Solas made the idol specifically as a contingency plan?

[@AgX_28]

I just want to kick Solas head, I will be happy if we all be able to do that ❤

[@BelieveIt1051]

That codex doesn't state that the dwarves worshiped the idol. It just states that there are thaigs that dwarves forgot about even long before the first blight. No mention of the idol at all. The Calling is not tied to the taint per se. The Calling originates from the untainted old gods slumbering within the earth. Mythal's connection to The Calling only indicates a connection to the old gods, not the darkspawn taint. It's a leap to assume she has a connection with the taint simply because the taint allows an infected lifeform to hear the call of the old gods. How do we know the Red Lyrium Idol began as tainted lyrium? Maybe it was untainted when it was first forged and then became tainted later. There's a lot of assumptive theories being mixed together here. We also don't know if lyrium is the blood of the titans, and in fact it likely isn't, since lyrium has been discovered to grow from nothing in places where the Veil is thin. So it is more likely that Valta's statement about lyrium being the blood of a titan only means that titans arise from lyrium when enough of it has collected together in an intricate way so that it gives rise to a consciousness. A titan's heart could be a focus orb. Corypheus did seem to be powering it up using Justinia's soul in one of the Inquisitor's flashbacks. And Cory even says, "Keep the sacrifice still". I don't see how any of this suggests that the titans created Thedas. It seems like the Earth would have to come first. The idea that the weapon Fen'Harel spoke of being the Ritual Blade seems a little contrived to me. I think BioWare would really have to be connecting story plots that had no connection to each other previously. In order for the weapon to be the Red Lyrium Idol, the idol would have to be tainted long before the Magisters invaded the Golden City and released the taint. BioWare would have to rewrite most of the series' own history.

[@efaristi9737]

But only tainted creatures can hear the Calling so it does suggest it is connected to the Taint. No others creatures can hear the Old Gods song. I also think the Idol was untainted originally since the First blight started only after the elven empire was long gone, red lyrium was certainly not a thing. Dunno, Lyrium is more abundant around a Titan than anywhere else. There is indeed a risk of retcon.

[@BelieveIt1051]

@@efaristi9737 As far as we know it is typically tainted creatures that hear the Calling, but if Mythal knows how to speak it then she may be able to hear it too without having a connection to the taint. Flemeth's knowledge of the Dark Ritual implies she knows more about the old gods than the games reveal to us. I agree that the idol was tainted after, but there are some theorists who think that just because the Primeval Thaig was older than the Magister's assault on the Golden City that automatically means the thaig was tainted before the Magisters were. It's easily possible that the thaig was once normal and then corrupted later by the Magisters, including the idol. Well yeah, there's more lyrium around a titan because that is what creates a titan. I'm just pointing out that there is lyrium elsewhere in low quantities, which indicates that lyrium does not originate from titans.

[@maxiumg4542]

@@BelieveIt1051 This. I almost completely agree. Although the Idol could still have once been a ritual blade. This is the only thing in the video I agree with. Once upon a time he could been the Blade of Mercy. It's like with Mythal. She was asked for mercy or punishment. I believe the external resemblance this to the Hessarian blade is not accidental.

[@efaristi9737]

@@BelieveIt1051 Are we sure she know ? We never heard the song ourselves, how do we know for sure that the song she sing is the same as the one the Old Gods sing ? Not sure the Dark Ritual prove much, she could have simply found a way to preserve the souls of beings corrupted by the blight. It's even likely, the thaig is deep in the Deep Roads and was possibly abandonned since it doesn't have a name, even if not, it must have still be one of the first targets of the hordes of Darkspawns. I don't think that prove much, to me, that just mean the Lyrium spread everywhere from the Titan.

[@BelieveIt1051]

@@efaristi9737 Well we don't know that Mythal speaks the Calling to a certainty. That line itself comes from the backward spoken words during the scene where the Inquisitor drinks from the Well of Sorrows. So was BioWare actually giving out factual information in that backwards speak, or were those just placeholder lines meant to be reversed just to make it seems like the whispers could not be understood? The Dark Ritual acts as a beacon for an old god's soul. The old gods sing the Calling. Therefore it's logical to conclude that FleMythal has some knowledge or connection with the old gods. How can lyrium spread everywhere from a titan when the titans are far underground? I'm talking about lyrium that is found close to the surface in isolated pockets, not connected to any kind of lyrium network. These are naturally-forming lyrium veins.

[@НикитаМилейко]

Maybe the Evanuris killed Mythal and made her the broodmother - the first in existence? The red lyrium idol could represent Mythal being corrupted by the Blight.

[@efaristi9737]

Doubtful, the First Blight has begun looooonng after the fall of the elven empire.

[@_MD_.]

Solas need to destroy the veil, for his people, and enable to kill who created the blight.

[@thirdcoastfirebird]

I say we got a minute tops. To short of time? I don't know.

[@Ser-Lusacan]

How do the titans interact with the fade being that they have lyrium blood and lyrium exist in the fade and the real world And what will the destruction of the veil do to the remaining old gods

[@efaristi9737]

I think the Titans might be the Fade incarnated physically, 1 coin, two faces, you see ? the Fade isn't a alternate dimension, it is actually a part of Thedas split away from it.

[@Ser-Lusacan]

@@efaristi9737 I like that theory

[@efaristi9737]

@@Ser-Lusacan thanks ^^ Titans are called "Pillar of the Earth" and said to shape the earth so that does make think of them like a primordial thing of reality.

[@gamerzoo]

what do think about the elves dragons dogma 2 ?

[@sailorniburu411]

This video is epic. 🔥

[@sailorniburu411]

Actually makes me want to start writing fic again. So many dots are connecting!

[@JackdawYT]

Aww thank you so so much Emily! Genuinely means so much coming from you!

[@xhosagibran370]

The way I clicked on this video so fast and checked the official website for any new information has me ashamed.

[@JackdawYT]

Me too, don't know what to do with the channel if it doesn't pay off 🤣

[@hawk1079]

I guess this game is going to come out until playstation 7 😂😂

[@MerrillDragonAge]

bro you excited for the 6th? 🤡🥶🥶🥶🤡

[@sheldonmustdie2]

I’m not saying this is something but I just went on mark darrah KZbin channel and I see he has notifications 📢 for the game awards I’m not saying BioWare is going to show up at the game awards but since he did do some consulting for them this year maybe this is him hinting at something or maybe it’s just me maybe he always watches the game awards fingers crossed 🤞🏿 let’s hope for the best

[@sheldonmustdie2]

please do a live stream on Monday for dragon age day thank you