Easter eggs (Inquisition)

In Dragon Age: Inquisition, there are multiple instances where the developers have included in-jokes. This article contains detailed information regarding these Easter eggs.

Dragon Age: Origins

 * Out in the Western Approach there is a ladder that you can put a landmark near. When the landmark is claimed, further observation reveals that, scratched into the ladder is a message reading, "Can I get you a ladder to get off my back?" This is very similar to what a violent Warden sometimes says when selected or told to perform commands.
 * If you tell the soldier guarding the gate outside of Redcliffe that you are with the Inquisition, she will reply, "Sure, and I'm the Empress of Orlais." Also, during In Hushed Whispers, a mage named Linnea, found in the Redcliffe tavern, will say this if you tell her that the Inquisition is not with the Chantry. Similarly, when at Lake Calenhad Docks in Origins, the templar Carroll is guarding the ferry which leads to the Kinloch Hold. If you tell him that you are a Grey Warden, he will reply, "Sure, and I'm the Queen of Antiva."
 * When meeting with Bull's Chargers, talking to Stitches will have Iron Bull comment that he makes a fantastic healing potion that tastes terrible. Stitches will reply, "That's because it's a poultice, ser. You're not supposed to drink it." This is a nod to the Health Poultice from the first game, which uses the same drinking animation as any Herbalism product.
 * Sera can tell the Inquisitor that she has played a Small Painted Box as a child, which was given to the Friends of Red Jenny by the Hero of Fereldan during the Fifth Blight
 * As in Origins cheese wheels can be found scattered throughout various locations, some in quite unusual places. There is even a cheese shield known as Wedge of Destiny that can be found hidden in Crestwood.

Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening

 * During banter between Varric and Dorian about Varric's previous encounter with Corypheus, Varric mentions that he didn't "have tea and crumpets" with Corypheus, and describes Corypheus as saying, "Argh, I'm a darkspawn!" This is a possible call-back to Sigrun's line at the end of Last of the Legion, where, if you tell her you previously met the Architect, she will reply, "What's a meeting with a darkspawn like? 'Hello, I'm a darkspawn! Would you like some tea?'" A sarcastic Hawke will also comment on having tea and crumpets with the Dalish when you first meet them in Dragon Age 2

Dragon Age II

 * When asking Harding what's new, she might say that Varric stopped by and told her a story about copper marigolds. This is likely referring to when, in an attempt to court Donnic, Aveline Vallen has Hawke bring him copper marigolds.

Jade Empire

 * In some dialogue, Cole will make many references to other media, most of which are spoilers. One reference Cole makes is when he says, "He teaches them to fight with a secret flaw, part of a glorious strategy." This refers to Master Li and his plan in Jade Empire.

Knights of the Old Republic

 * Cole has dialogue in which he says, "He was their enemy the whole time, but she made him forget, so he could change." This is a reference to another BioWare game, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, when the player character, Darth Revan, had his memory erased by Bastila Shan so that Revan would aid the Jedi Order against Darth Malak, also because she believed Revan could be changed from his evil ways.
 * Two nobles at the Winter Palace can be heard discussing the rules to 'Towers of Hanoi' a famous board game which Bioware used in Knights of the Old Republic, Mass Effect on Noveria and also appeared briefly in the Mass Effect 3: Citadel DLC.

Mass Effect

 * During Promise of Destruction in the Castle of Caer Oswin, in the corridor where you meet Cassandra's apprentice, go to the eastern end of the hall, and there is A krogan head mounted on a wall.Krogan_head.jpg
 * In the Multiplayer Map: Orlesian Chateau there is a trophy room. Mounted above two animals on a wall is another krogan head.
 * In Halamshiral, Grand Duke Gaspard's trophy room has a krogan head in it as well.
 * While in the War Room, Cullen may make a comment about leaving to "calibrate" the trebuchets. Leliana will say, "Again?", and Josephine will complain that Cullen is always doing this. Similarly, in the Mass Effect series, Garrus Vakarian often talks about how he needs to make calibrations, which characters will occasionally comment on.
 * Party banter between Varric and Sera includes a conversation in which Varric talks about "reach and flexibility". This references some well-known dialogue which Commander Shepard can have with Garrus in Mass Effect 2.
 * Sometimes, after killing an enemy, Blackwall will say 'One less to worry about', which is the same line that Garrus and Miranda sometimes says in Mass Effect 2.
 * Chantry sisters can be overheard reciting, "Come, my child, and I shall embrace you. In my arms lies eternity." In the Mass Effect series, "Embrace eternity" is a recurring phrase used by Liara whenever she joins minds with Commander Shepard.

Plants vs. Zombies

 * South of Crestwood, on Linden Farm, a row of giant flowers can be found against a wall, each in their own column. In several of the columns, corpses can be found on the ground.
 * Next to this is a book with a codex entry titled "Plants vs. Corpses", an obvious nod to the game. The battle is called the Battle of Pauper's Cap (a play on the developer and publisher's name, "PopCap"). Aside from the combat between plants and the undead, the combat tactics are like that in the game. The person recounting the story, Daveth the Mad, stated that he wanted bacon for lunch, and refused to take a pot off of his head. In Plants vs. Zombies, the man whose garden is also the battlefield is called Crazy Dave; he wears a pot on his head, and he likes bacon. The Codex references several additional PopCap games: Bejeweled and Bookworm ("While the demon saw the perfect host in this bejeweled bookworm, Helianthus was not without defenses of her own.") and PvZ: Garden Warfare ("The resulting garden warfare saw corpses armored with buckets and doors as makeshift helmets and shields battling possessed fruits and vegetables who spat seeds, constructed makeshift fortifications, and even chomped entire corpses whole.")

Silent Hill 2

 * Cole may say the phrase "He hunts the killer, but he's the one who killed her. He can't remember." when you talk to him. This is a reference to Silent Hill 2's protagonist James Sunderland, who killed his wife Mary Shepherd-Sunderland, lost that part of his memory and went looking for her killer, all the time not knowing it was he himself who killed her.

Baldur's Gate

 * Sometimes you can hear Blackwall saying "Done and done" after a fight. It`s the same line one of the voices the main of the main character says when given a command by the player.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

 * A giant fighting a dragon can be seen in the Storm Coast. This is a reference to a possible random encounter in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim in which a dragon and a giant fight each other.

Confessions of an English Opium-Eater

 * The codex Confessions of a Lyrium Addict refers to the title of Thomas De Quincey's famous work Confessions of an English Opium-Eater.

Fight Club

 * Cole might say, "There is no other man. He becomes the other man to do the things he can't." In Fight Club, by Chuck Palahniuk, the unnamed main character has a split personality named Tyler Durden who was his outlet to do all the things he himself could never do. It is revealed at the end of the novel that the narrator was Durden all along.

The Importance of Being Earnest

 * The above dialogue of Cole's might also be a reference to Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest. The satirical play's title character, Jack, has pretended to have an irresponsible black-sheep brother named Ernest. However, Ernest is merely Jack’s excuse to disappear for days at a time and do as he likes.

The King in Yellow

 * In the Codex entry A Compendium of Orlesian Theater, the play The Setting of the Light is a reference to the short story collection The King in Yellow by Robert W. Chambers, which features a fictional play also called The King in Yellow as a recurring element. The Setting of the Light takes place in the city of Demhe which becomes one of Thedas's two moons, and an excerpt mentions the characters Callista and Camallia. The play The King in Yellow takes place in the similarly otherworldly city of Carcosa, and an excerpt mentions the characters Cassilda and Camilla. In the story "The Repairer of Reputations" within the collection, a passage describing the play's plot also refers to "the cloudy depths of Demhe". Both plays are said to cause madness and despair.

Moby Dick

 * The quest name Call Me Imshael, is a reference to a quotation from literary classic Moby-Dick, by Herman Meville. In the very first sentence of chapter one, the narrator introduces himself, saying the famous line "Call me Ishmael."

Ring of Fire

 * Krem tells about a job where him and the Bull's Chargers defended a village against fifty bandits and the only thing the villagers could pay with was rice. In the Ring of Fire from the Young Samurai series the main character Jack also has to defend a village against fifty bandits with the villagers paying him with rice.

Citizen Kane

 * Cole might say, "It wasn't from a flower. He rode it in the snow." In Citizen Kane, Kane rides a sled named "Rosebud" in the snow. Obviously the sled, Rosebud, is not a flower.

The Empire Strikes Back

 * Cole might say, "He didn't kill his father. He was his father." In The Empire Strikes Back, Darth Vader asks Luke if Obi-Wan ever told him what happened to his father. Luke replies, "He told me enough! He told me you killed him!" In response, Vader says, "No, I am your father."

Highlander

 * During banter between Blackwall and Sera, Sera asks if all Grey Wardens have beards, to which Blackwall replies that he stole all the beards and their power, and that "There can be only one." This is a reference to the film, where when one of the immortals kills another, they absorb their power, until only one of them remains, leading to the iconic line, "There can be only one."

The Sixth Sense

 * Cole might say, "He was dead the whole time, he didn't know." This is the ending plot twist of the film The Sixth Sense. In addition, the movie centers around this man mentoring a young child named Cole, who has the ability to see ghosts.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

 * The quest Bring Me the Heart of Snow White is a reference to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, when the Evil Queen demands that the huntsman bring her Snow White's heart.
 * There is an option to give Vivienne another, normal wyvern's heart. This is likely referencing when the huntsman does not kill Snow White, and instead kills a boar, takes its heart, and brings it to the Queen, claiming that it is Snow White's.

Soylent Green

 * Cole might say, "They don't know, but it's made of people." At the end of the movie, Soylent Green, when Detective Thorn is speaking to Hatcher about how the truth must be revealed, Hatcher asks what the truth Thorn is referring to is. Thorn responds, "It's people. Soylent Green is made out of people.".

Monty Python's Flying Circus

 * After capturing Griffon's Keep, on the top floor behind the stairs is a formation of soldiers. The commander asks, "What are the chief weapons of the inquisition?" to which a soldier replies, "Surprise, Ser!", The commander then asks, "What else?" to which another soldier replies, "Fear!" This is a reference to the famous Monty Python sketch, The Spanish Inquisition.

Seven Samurai

 * When asked to tell an interesting story about Bull's Chargers, Cremisius Aclassi may mention the time that he, Iron Bull, and five other Chargers defended a village from fifty bandits. Afterwards, the villagers paid the Chargers for their services with bags of rice. This references the plot of the film Seven Samurai.

Lord of The Rings: Fellowship Of The Ring

 * When approaching a broken bridge in the Northern Exalted Plains, after unlocking the operation to rebuild it, Varric will say "Before anybody suggests, no, nobodies throwing me across.", a nod to Gimli's line, "Nobody tosses a dwarf!" in Moria.
 * The quest They Shall Not Pass is a nod to Gandalf the Grey's famous line, "You Shall Not Pass!".

Scooby-Doo

 * The mission report for "Hard in Hightown: A Worthy Dwarf" says Worthy the Dwarf's statement upon being arrested was "I would have gotten away with it, if it weren't for those meddling Inquisitors!" This is a reference to Scooby-Doo villains' famous line: "I would have gotten away with it, if it wasn't for you meddling kids!"

Miscellaneous

 * At Skyhold, you can manage to fall through the floor and appear in a cavernous room under the Skyhold houses with creepy music playing. In it is what appears to be a pie in a top hat. This was shown in a video on YouTube, in which BioWare designers Jason Hill and Graham Kelly eventually commented on the video. Kelly dubbed it "The Lord of the Pies", though both he and Hill admitted that they didn't expect anyone to find it.
 * In Skyhold's treasure vault, on the pile of gold there's a top hat similar to the one mentioned above. It may also be a reference to Scrooge McDuck and his signature dive into money.
 * In the Western Approach, an unobtainable floating sparkling golden chalice can be seen through a crack in the canyon wall north of the Astrarium at Echoback Fort. This is possibly a reference to the Holy Grail of Arthurian Lore.
 * In the Emerald Graves, just north of Gracevine Camp, a gap in the rock face can be followed to a small cave with a large number of Bear heads nailed to a wall all together.
 * The mission A Spirit in the Lake, which tasks the player with placing a blood lotus in a basket at Lake Luthias near the Upper Lake camp in the Hinterlands, is in reference to Arthurian legend "Excalibur", and how King Arthur acquired the famous sword.
 * In a cave in Emprise Du Lion a strange, glowing pyramid can be found. On the "ceiling" of the cave several bodies are dangling down, partially consumed. The PS3, however, does not include the people.
 * A man spawning at random locations at Skyhold will offer "the Quizquistion." He will ask the Inquisitor questions about the Dragon Age lore. He spawns randomly throughout Skyhold and, as a reward for finding him and answering his questions correctly three times, he will gift the Inquisitor with a big spoon-shaped two-handed maul.
 * In the Emerald Graves there is a Logging Stand positioned next to a Fade Rift. If you read the note sitting on a bench at this logging stand you will be treated to a Dragon Age variant of "There once was a Man from Nantucket."
 * The quest Where the Druffalo Roam is likely a reference to the song "Home on the Range", in which the first line is, "Oh, give me a home where the buffalo roam".
 * Cole may say this to Sera in one of their banters: "Before the door is opened, they could let the cat out and it would always be alive." This may be a reference to Schrödinger's cat.
 * The description for the shield Schaefer's Rampart is an obvious reference to the San Antonio Spurs power forward Tim Duncan, who is known as the "Big Fundamental" and whose personal motto is the nursery rhyme "Good, Better, Best. Never let it rest / Until your Good is Better, and your Better is your Best." He is an avid video-game player.
 * In the Emerald Graves, just south west of the Dragon nest there is a crevasse filled with bones, on a outcropping above there is a disproportionately large human skeleton with an equally large wooden hammer and sack surrounded by normal human skulls. The sack contains a variety of crafting materials.
 * Behind a house in Crestwood, a skeleton is found resting against the wall accompanied by a very large wheel of cheese and a pile of spread out playing cards.
 * In the Flooded Caves in Crestwood, there is a large skeleton head with a large wheel of cheese resting on top with a wedge removed. Perhaps a developer is a Green Bay Packers fan?
 * In the Western Approach at the top of a ruined tower near the Giant's Staircase, there is a skeleton surrounded by cheese wheels and wine. Statuettes of humans can be seen on the cheese, "farming" it. There is also one figurine posing like the well known mascot Captain Morgan on one of the wine bottles.