Old Gods



Old Gods are beings that were worshipped by a significant number of Thedosians, specifically the mages of the Tevinter Imperium, thousands of years ago. The mages worshipped them in the form of dragons. Legend holds that it was the Old Gods who initially taught mages how to use magic. It is widely believed—if not generally accepted as self-evident—throughout Thedas that the archdemons are the sleeping Old Gods, tainted and corrupted by the darkspawn.

Early history and imprisonment
"We dreamed up false gods, great demons Who could cross the Veil into the waking world, Turned our devotion upon them, and forgot you."

The true nature of the Old Gods is unknown. The Old Gods are not creators and even the people of ancient Tevinter attributed the creation of the world to the Maker, although by a different name.

The Chantry teaches that when the Maker turned his back on spirits, some of them grew jealous of the living. Those powerful enough whispered to the living in dreams claiming that they were the true gods, the creators of the world and the living should bow down before them. Eventually, the living summoned them through the Veil. In the mortal realm these spirits took the form of dragons, winged Old Gods that ruled over the land. The living started to worship them instead of the Maker, an act recognized as the "Original Sin." In fury the Maker cursed the Old Gods, imprisoning them in underground tombs where they would slumber eternally.

Some accounts suggest that the Old Gods began whispering to humanity from the Golden City in -2800 Ancient, three hundred years after the arrival of humans in Thedas. They taught the dreamers of the Neromenian tribes magic, and these dreamers became the priests and kings of their people. Originally the Neromenian tribes worshiped fallen heroes reborn as dragons, and with dreamers as their leaders they began to instead worship the dreamers' gods, also as dragons.

Scholars assume that the Old Gods must have been real at one point, but most agree that they were actual dragons of a magnitude not known today, and impressive enough to frighten ancient peoples into worshiping them. Some even claim that these dragons slumber as a form of hibernation, not as a result of the Maker's wrath.

The Tome of Koslun, the sacred Qunari scripture explicitly says that "the Old Gods were like unto dragons, as the first human kings were like unto ordinary men".

Worship in Tevinter
"The demons who would be gods, Began to whisper to men from their tombs within the earth. And the men of Tevinter heard and raised altars To the pretender-gods once more"

Legend maintains that the minds of the Old Gods continued to roam the Fade like any other dreaming individuals' mind would, and they were able to contact Neromenian dreamers once more. Honorary Archon, Thalsian accredited his discovery of blood magic in -1595 Ancient to the Old God Dumat and established the first temples dedicated to the Old Gods to show his gratitude.

Four centuries later, in -1195 Ancient Darinius founded the Tevinter Imperium and established the magisterium from the priesthood of the Old Gods. In the days of the Tevinter Imperium, the Old Gods were a pantheon of deities widely revered by most citizens, with temples and priesthoods dedicated to their veneration, such as the acolytes of Dumat, who swore oaths of silence in homage to their lord. Dragons became equated everywhere with Imperial power. Holidays were popularly celebrated in tribute to the Old Gods, namely the Festival of Urthemiel, which spanned an entire week.

Downfall
"Then a voice whispered within their hearts, You are the Lords of the earth! Go forth to claim the empty throne Of Heaven and be gods."

In -395 Ancient the magisters physically entered the Golden City. The Chantry holds that they did so at the behest of the Old Gods in a failed attempt to usurp the Maker's throne, an act recognized as the "Second Sin". The city turned black and the magisters inadvertently caused the First Blight.

The event of the First Blight led to a crisis of faith across the Imperium, shaken at the devastation their own god relentlessly championed. Several temples were razed by betrayed believers, slaughtering priests to the Old Gods as retribution for their unheeded prayers. Today, cults devoted to the Old Gods are rumored to still exist in some places, but the religion has since been for the most part replaced with the monotheistic worship of the Maker.

Darkspawn
There is a particular relation between darkspawn and the slumbering Old Gods. The darkspawn taint is linked with the ancient dragons, all darkspawn constantly hearing the call of the Old Gods. It is presumed that as the fall of the magisters occurred—and they were transformed into the first darkspawn—the link between them and the Old Gods who had ordered them to sin against the Maker remained. Hearing their call, the darkspawn search for the Old Gods continuously. When they find one, they corrupt it and it becomes an archdemon, proceeding to command them into a horde and unleash a new Blight.

The Architect, a sentient darkspawn emissary, describes the call of the Old Gods as a "terribly beautiful sound". He goes on to consider darkspawn existence and their pursuit for the ancient dragons as a never-ending aspiration towards a perfection they can never have, as it is corrupted in the instant they touch it.

It is also revealed that at some time after their Joining, Grey Wardens also start hearing this call. This is the actual Calling and the moment when Grey Wardens know they must descend into the Deep Roads to find their death in battle. The alternative would be to become fully tainted, nothing more than ghouls, or to simply die from the taint.

A group of ancient Magisters of the Tevinter Imperium once heard the voices of the Old Gods, though in their case it seems that the Old Gods literally spoke to them rather than just issuing a call. Corypheus says that Dumat, whilst dreaming in the Fade, led the Magisters to the Golden City, thus creating upon their arrival both the Black City and the darkspawn from the corruption within themselves. After returning as darkspawn and beginning the First Blight, the Magisters—or, at least, Corypheus—felt the Old Gods betrayed them for the apparent nonexistence of the Golden City, and the "lie" of their promised rule over it.

The seven Old Gods
The Magisters worshipped the seven Old Gods. The first—and the leader of the others—was called Dumat, the Dragon of Silence.


 * 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
 * Razikale, the Dragon of Mystery
 * Lusacan, the Dragon of Night

Trivia

 * 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.
 * Completing an Astrarium in the Hinterlands, gives the Codex entry: Constellation: Draconis. It talks about a speculation that Draconis could have been an unknown eighth Old God.
 * According to the Ancient Warden Logbook found at the Shimmer Stone Mine in the Western Approach, the call of the Old Gods become physically audible when close to one of the prisons.