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This article is missing some information.
Missing 3 codex entries (current list covers 32/35 total entries). 3 entries found in game files, unknown if in game or cut content: Codex entry: Letter from Cutter to the Lords of Fortune, Codex entry: Invitation to the Hall of Valor and Codex entry: Taash Talks: Dragon—Rialto Greentide. Including these page is at 35/35. Help the wiki by adding the missing information. Remove the {{missing info}} tag when it's done.
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River of Blight tarot card. (See new image)
This article lists all codex entries in the The Lords of Fortune section in Dragon Age: The Veilguard.
Taash's Daily Adaari Health List
- Main article: Codex entry: Taash's Daily Adaari Health List
Morning
Take spindleweed pills for stomach/fire gland
Eat within one hour to stop pills from hurting appetite
Include something tart/sour (not wine)
Make small flame while gargling mintwater
Take embrium pills if making flame is painful
Throughout Day
Snack periodically
Include blood lotus pills if not eating something green and leafy
Meat is better than bread
After Using Fire Breath
Embrium pills immediately to stop inflammation
Amrita vein tonic within one hour
No alcohol for at least one hour
Eat something green/leafy at next meal to keep blood from thinning
Before Bed
Drink tea to soothe stomach/fire gland
Have snack before bed (with embrium pills)
Get a good night's sleep
Taash Notes: Meeting Shadow Dragons to Talk Gender Stuff
Writing notes to work through gender crap. (Showing to Rook for help maybe.)
Maevaris pretty. Tarquin tough. Both trans!
(Both open about being trans and said I could share stuff if it helped me on "my journey.")
( I did not ask for "a journey.")
Trans means was other gender. Then changed?
—Wait. No. Was always new thing. Just now acknowledged.
—Not changing. Affirming.
Trans woman IS woman.
Not feeling right in body is dysphoria—WHOLE BIG THING.
—Could feel like want to be guy instead of girl. (no)
—Could feel like not connected to body. (not everyone does this?)
—Could feel uncomfortable with girls who act more feminine.
—No. I like girls. Girls smell good.
—But like hanging out with Lords more than girls.
—Ashamed of not doing what your gender "should do." (UGH)
—Getting euphoria is feeling right.
Non-binary means not man or woman. Can feel like either?
—Can look like guy/girl/neither.
—Some use she/he. Some swap. Some use they. But still single with name?
—"Flynn IS non-binary. They ARE coming this way."
—Confusing but sure.
Also gender-fluid.
—Feel different on different days.
—Can switch pronouns.
—Don't think that's me.
Agender/bigender/demigender/others
—Lot of different ones.
—Not me but okay.
Never too late. Valid even if no words when younger blah blah blah.
—Maevaris saw notes and is mad
—"Write this down, exactly. You're valid. People will say you're not enough this, or too much that. Do not let it diminish you. No two journeys are alike. That's wonderful. Embrace it. Did you... did you get all that?"
—Okay fine.
Letter from Shathann to Taash
- Main article: Codex entry: Letter from Shathann to Taash
I am pleased you are well in your new home. Is the food sufficient? If you are using your gift more often now, as I suspect you are, then you will need to eat more green vegetables to prevent the blood-sickness. This is especially important during your moon cycle. If you run out of tea or medicines, I would be happy to send more. Do not neglect the embrium pills before you sleep.
You forgot your extra dar-saam ropes at home. I have sent them to you. The ropes will fray eventually, especially when adorned with ornamentation like yours.
Trust your senses, hunt wisely, and be cautious using your fire in front of the Antaam. Remember: shokra toh ebra.
Dar-Saam
- Main article: Codex entry: Dar-Saam
These are the lessons tamassrans taught me when I was a child.
The dar-saam bind us to the Qun.
Do not be careless. The ropes should only hang loose enough to match the curve of a tama's smile.
Do not seek trouble. The ropes should not cause pain or restrict your movements.
Do not act in anger. The knots should not be too tight for you to undo by yourself.
Finish your work. The knots should not come undone as you run and climb.
Listen and learn. With training, you can tie one limb with each slow breath.
Take the time that is needed. You will look silly if the dar-saam tangle in your horns.
Whether you tie the dar-saam well or poorly today, you will tie them again tomorrow.
—A yellowed note in Shathann's handwriting
Trap Plans
- Main article: Codex entry: Trap Plans
Idea: Spinning blades at head-height (1) by mirror
—Good: Blades good
—Bad: Maybe won't kill blighted gods
—Bad: Might kill us by accident
No.
Idea: Pressure plate near exit of mirror room. Poison dart? Flames?
—Good: Reliable
—Bad: Some of the stuff we're fighting floats (2)
—Bad: Pressure plates get sticky and require maintenance
No.
Idea: Door with wire attached to bucket on hook at ceiling. Bucket filled with those mushrooms Assan likes. They fall on target. Assan raises alarm and attacks/eats.
—Good: Teamwork
—Bad: Davrin might be mad
—Bad: Mushrooms stinky (3)
No.
1: For humans?
2: Ask Neve if floating stuff would still trigger pressure plate from magic pushing down
3: Why do they smell like worms?
Script for Shathann
- Main article: Codex entry: Script for Shathann
I've been talking to people from Tevinter and—
—Bad.
A trans woman talked to me about gender. She's a mage—
—Worse.
You know how we're not really in the Qun but also not really Rivaini? I'm that but for gender.
—Weak.
Hey. This might make you angry—
—She'll argue.
I've been talking to people (DO NOT SAY TEVINTER) about gender stuff. Do you know what being non-binary is? I've been thinking. Maybe if it's okay—
—Ugh. No. Maevaris said not to say it like a question or like I'm asking permission.
I identify as AM non-binary. It means I don't feel like—
—Weak. Uncertain.
I'm non-binary. It means I am not a man or a woman. I use "they" instead of "she" now.
—Short. Clear. Should work.
Things Shathann Said about the Crows
- Main article: Codex entry: Things Shathann Said about the Crows
Antivan Crows aren't allowed to kill people who are asleep. That's why Qunari children have to stay in bed once it's bedtime.
Antivan Crows use hollow blades that hold poison. They also hide underwater and breathe through a tube.
Antivan Crows do blood magic rituals with broken Qunari horns. That's why Qunari children have to properly dispose of their broken horns.
Antivan Crows are trained to glide on wind currents using their capes.
Antivan Crows sometimes leave poisoned needles in new clothes and boots. That's why Qunari families wear hand-me-down clothes.
Antivan Crows can dislocate all their joints and hide in pots.
Antivan Crows hide in fancy restaurants to sneak poison into the food. That's why Qunari families always eat their meals at home.
Flynn from the Wardens
- Main article: Codex entry: Flynn from the Wardens
Talked with Flynn at the Warden camp.
They're non-binary like me. Good to meet another They!
Were okay to talk about it. (Maevaris said not everyone would be.) Flynn said they didn't have a big struggle to find it. Just felt like they were a mind that had a body instead of a body that had a mind. Being a man or woman didn't fit with who they were.
Changed to "they" when they were a kid. Parents supportive? Physician guy too?? No big fight???
Didn't know Maevaris or Tarquin. Told Flynn about them. They could probably get Flynn discounts on magical stuff.
Flynn can help mix the medicines I need to help with fire-breathing. They asked if I felt the same as they did for mind/body stuff. Did breathing fire make me feel disconnected from my body?
Don't think fire-breathing is what did it. What they're talking about sounds kind of like Qun stuff—mind/soul/body. I just felt wrong as a woman.
Wait. Flynn wrote stuff down. Only they wrote "nonbinary" instead of "non-binary." Are we supposed to write it with the dash or not? They also wrote "themself" instead of "themselves." Which one is right?
Flynn says I should do what works for me. THAT DOES NOT HELP. I WANT TO DO IT RIGHT. Flynn said maybe me wanting to follow rules is because of Qun stuff. Then said sorry because I guess I glared at them. Flynn was trying to be nice. Healers are always like this.
Taarlok Itwari (Remembering the Fallen)
- Main article: Codex entry: Taarlok Itwari (Remembering the Fallen)
Herah ebra parshaara
Herah paakra meraad
Herah itwar'issala
Shaath taarlokra 'la
Herah sh'kala sataareth
Martaarala ra lok'sit
Ashkala ra, lokala neth
Hissera hissra eb'sit
Shaath zablokra toh ala
Issala meraad
Herah mara'shokala
Taarlokala ra
I don't know if I'm getting all the words right. This is what I remember.
When you have lived enough
When you go with the tide
When your body falls to dust
Please remember me
When I struggle to find my ground
Not having you is why
Though I search for you, I know
That hope is an illusion
Please speak to me through
The dust and the tide
When I struggle, blinded
I will remember you
Ancient Tablet: Questions My Mother Would Have Asked
My mother said language was what separated people from beasts. She had questions that she asked when translating things.
Who was this written for?
Me. Needed my fire to see it. But also supposed to be shared.
Priest thing? Everyone should learn but only if taking it seriously?
What did these people believe about themselves?
Liked fire???
Made adaari with dragon blood.
How did cultural conflicts affect this message?
Fighting Devouring Storm. Strong enough to make them come across sea.
No big insults. Not rallying speech. Afraid to talk about them?
How do my own perspectives bias my reading?
I fight dragons. DS sounds like something to fight.
But tablet said I was made to fight DS. So I should do what feels right???
She'd know what it meant.
Antaam vs. Qunari (with notes from Shathann), by Taash, age 14
Most people think the Antaam are like other Qunari. But that is not true now that they've broken away from the Qun. They are very different.
You could strengthen your thesis by adding, "in their attitudes toward the Qun and towards bas (foreigners)."
Normal Qunari think the Qun is like a map or guide. The Antaam think of it as orders.
Could use more details. Orders must be followed or broken, while a map is a constant source of guidance.
Normal Qunari want to convert bas. Antaam want to kill them.
I will add reading to your list regarding our people's war with Tevinter.
In conclusion: normal Qunari just want to live their lives. Antaam want to kill everyone.
We will work on adding specific examples next time.
Menu for The Hilt Bar & Grill & Bar
- Main article: Codex entry: Menu for The Hilt Bar & Grill & Bar
Smash-and-Grabs
8c - Bottomless Breaded Cheese Wands
1c - Add Orlesian sauce
12c - "Taste of Ferelden" Bread and Cheese
2s - Make it a full cheese-wheel
7c - Deep Roads Crispers (mild, medium, or paragon)
30c - Free Marches Mash-Up (N)
Big Hauls
20c - Sea Monster Kebab (N)
25c - Bronto Steak
1c - Add a side of Carta fries
10c - Greens with Antivan, Orlesian, or house dressing
2c - Add chicken
3c - Add beef
5c - Full Dalish
15c - Armada Special (N)
1c - Extra cheese
1c - Add greens
2c - More meat
3c - Add pineapple
Gold & Glory
2c - Ale
5c - Wine
1c - Per broken flagon
(N) Ask us to Make it Nevarran with no meat!
Code of the Hall
- Main article: Codex entry: Code of the Hall
Matches are only against spirits or people fighting of their own free will. No innocent animals. No prisoners.
Every fight is a lesson. Fight well and be better for it. No death matches. Everyone gets the chance to lose and learn.
Never bet against Isabela.
Keep the fight in the pit.
Special rules for trick fights are binding.
If you lose a fight, wipe off the dirt and try again.
Again, never bet against Isabela.
Rivaini Seers and Spirits
- Main article: Codex entry: Rivaini Seers and Spirits
You should ask someone else about Rivaini spirit stuff. We didn't do much with the seers. My mother was always scared. Qunari are afraid of demons possessing them. (It's silly. Seers don't get possessed. They open themselves up and share their bodies.)
She did go to the seer in our village once. I was young and sick with a fever that made my whole body shake. The seer had me lie down by the fire while she chanted magic stuff. Then her eyes changed. She smelled different. Older and calmer. She said a spirit of kindness wanted to help me. Then she put her hands on me and everything went fuzzy. My fever broke that night.
My mother still doesn't like magic. But she chips in whenever the village says our seer needs coin.
—Taash
Isabela and the Lords
- Main article: Codex entry: Isabela and the Lords
The Lords of Fortune aren't much for formal history. Many of our adventures might land us in trouble if we actually wrote down what we did. But I've been with the Lords since before we were the Lords.* Back then it was just a bunch of sea raiders and like all raiders, we wanted gold, we wanted glory, and we were ready to backstab each other to get at all of it. But then some of us learned that gold and glory's not worth much unless you've got friends to revel in it with you.
And that's how the Lords as you know it started. We share news about what's out there, we chase it together, everyone gets a cut, and then everyone gets drunk. We don't care who you used to be as long as you pull your weight.**
And I suppose that's a big part of why your mother showed up here, with a baby in her arms, looking for work.
*Someone made a drunk joke and the name stuck.
**You know, it's a bit like being a Grey Warden, except fun, and with a beach.
Isabela's Guide to Dungeoneering
- Main article: Codex entry: Isabela's Guide to Dungeoneering
Better to have fifty feet of rope you don't need than need fifty feet of rope you don't have.
Nobody leaves a perfectly good glowing gemstone at the far end of a hallway unless they're trying to distract you from spikes about to shoot from the wall.
Bring extra lockpicks.
Bring extra knives.
Don't take anything from a room with glowing letters in a language you can't read.
If a spirit appears between you and the treasure, talk first, run second, fight last.
Always look for spiderwebs. Spiderwebs mean no swinging blades in the room.
Don't wear armor you can't swim in.
Betray a partner, and you're wealthy once, but cursed forever.
Anything on a pedestal is either a trophy being displayed, a danger being guarded, or both. Don't grab it until you know which.
Ballad of the Lords of Fortune
- Main article: Codex entry: Ballad of the Lords of Fortune
I first met the Lord of Fortune on a ship bound for Rivain.
She said, what's it got you looking sad with eyes so full of pain?
And I said, my love is gone, it's a sad and tragic story.
She said, hang on lad, it's not so bad! You just need some gold and glory!
Lords of Fortune never want for drink or love or joy!
In holes and caves and treasure vaults, they find their priceless toys.
There's gold to fill your coffers, or glory at the worst.
You seem a gentle Chantry lad, so we'll hit the gold holes first!
Gold and glory with the Lords, gold and glory with the Lords,
Past traps and guards and dragons lie countless shining hoards!
Gold and glory with the Lords, gold and glory with the Lords,
We'll fight our way to fortune, with skill and spell and swords!
She took me to Orlais, we stole a jeweled mask.
She took me down to Orzammar, and we drank down every cask.
She left me in Rialto, we parted with a kiss.
I later found she'd got my purse, but it wasn't really missed.
Gold and glory with the Lords, gold and glory with the Lords,
Past traps and guards and dragons lie countless shining hoards!
Gold and glory with the Lords, gold and glory with the Lords,
I fight my way to fortune now, with skill and spell and swords!
Taash Talks: Dragon—Vinsomer
- Main article: Codex entry: Taash Talks: Dragon—Vinsomer
Appearance: Dark back and light underbelly. She's hard to see when underwater. Like those whales.
Diet: Squid or those big worms that burrow near the shore. Uses her lightning to stun prey. Jaws are more like a beak. Good to grip squishy stuff or crack shells. I think the lightning also helps her see down in the deep water. She does little crackles before she strikes.
Behavior: She's hunting more than she needs. She's also not attacking Antaam unless they get close to her lair. Then she kills them fast. I think she has dragonlings. Must be trying to keep them fed and not look for fights. Only reason a dragon stays that quiet is to protect her kids.
Taash Talks: Dragon—Fangscorcher
- Main article: Codex entry: Taash Talks: Dragon—Fangscorcher
Appearance: Gold patterns on back like a hunting cat. Tan belly. Colors make her good for ambushing targets from the sky. Also shows off fire to look scary.
Diet: Anything she can bring down. Small but aggressive for dragon. Will go after people during encounters. Uses flames to herd targets into open so she can kill them. Burns all her food before eating. Maybe so she doesn't get sick?
Behavior: Fangscorchers are mean. The Antaam lured this one to attack the village. Bastards. She was smart enough to set traps and hold grudges. Not smart enough to control herself. Shokra toh ebra. Lose control of yourself and you turn into a monster that someone has to take down.
Taash Talks: Dragon—Kaltenzahn
- Main article: Codex entry: Taash Talks: Dragon—Kaltenzahn
Appearance: Blue with red stripes. Not trying to blend in. Bright colors warn rival dragons not to mess with her. Heavy neck plates and no horns. Big spikes on the tail. She doesn't do dominance fights with horns. She fights mean.
Diet: Hunts other dragons—especially fire breathers. Uses her freezing breath to slow or stun them. Trusts her neck plates to protect her long enough for the kill. Also grazes on felandaris. Maybe stuff her body uses to make the cold hurts her stomach.
Behavior: No hoard. Doesn't fight fair. Kills her own kind. No wonder the Dragon King liked her. Good that there's one less of her in the world.
Information on the Dragon King
- Main article: Codex entry: Information on the Dragon King
Did some digging on this Dragon King. After the Antaam split from the Qun, the generals(1) and admirals(2) broke away and became independent warlords. The Dragon King's(3)(4) soldiers aren't interested in trading. They've attacked villages. They're killing people without even trying to convert them. Whoever this Dragon King is, he's brutal. We've got reports of victims burned in what looks like an Antaam ritual.(5)
I'll let you know if I find anything else. Stay sharp. Remember, treat every door like a trap.
Gold and glory,
Isabela.
Scribbled notes from Taash in the margin:
(1): Kithshok
(2): Kathaban
(3): Still stupid name
(4): THEY WOULD HAVE QUEENS!!!
(5): Not a thing
Letter from Taash to Local Rivaini Guards about Karash
I have explained this before. Karash isn't Antaam. He was with the Antaam. Antaam dreadnoughts are crewed by soldier-caste and non-soldier-caste. He did CHARTS. You can't be scared of someone who did charts.
I know. Rivaini sailors fight and do charts. But the Qunari has all this caste crap.
He's a weather guy who got stuck on the dreadnought when the Antaam assholes broke away from the Qun. He's as scared of them as you are. He doesn't want to fight. He just wants to talk about humidity and air pressure and crap. He's also nervous around bas—all of you.
Shathann and I will take care of him. We might get him back to Par Vollen WHEN HE'S READY.
I am done talking about this.
Warning Against Desertion
- Main article: Codex entry: Warning Against Desertion
Papers from an Antaam commander on Tearstone Island, translated by Taash:
Antaam:
I am shamed! Some of you cower from the new sky. You talk of deserting to go plunder Rivain.(1) Is the weakness of the South seeping into your limbs? Do you forsake glory, prefer the soft pickings of the bas to the thrill of a warrior's song?(2) Ghilan'nain offers power. The transformation of those strong enough to withstand her gifts(3) has made them mightier than our greatest enemies!
I will hunt down deserters and give them to Ghilan'nain myself.(4)
Scribbled notes from Taash in the margin:
(1) Jerks.
(2) He stole that from a poem.
(3) The transformation is messed up.
(4) WHY WOULD ANYONE DO THIS?
Taash Talks: Puzzles
- Main article: Codex entry: Taash Talks: Puzzles
I hate puzzles. But a lot of spirits in Rivain love them.
The seers say that the spirits want to encourage Rivain to uphold traditions. Paying respects to old cultural stuff.
My mother once said it's because spirits don't understand the world. They're trying to figure out the rules so everything makes sense.
I think it's all vashedan. Putting a treasure chest behind a puzzle that makes you do some old cultural thing doesn't make the world make sense.
Why can't they just put all the treasure chests behind waterfalls like they're supposed to?
Added by Emmrich:
But isn't it fascinating to see how our cultural practices inform the spirits, who in turn reinforce those practices with us?
Taash Talks: Dragon - Kataranda
- Main article: Codex entry: Taash Talks: Dragon - Kataranda
Appearance: Blue and purple back. Orange underbelly. Similar to Gamordan Stormrider coloration but bigger than any Gamordan I've heard of.
Diet: Big water prey. She hunts most often during storms. Her lightning can tear a ship in half or kill a school of fish. Better senses in water than on land. Like the Vinsomer that way. Different from Vinsomer in that she will go after ships. And even fleets.
Behavior: Kataranda is a legend. She's devastated both Rivaini and Qunari ships. A big reason sailors hide when the weather gets stormy. The Rivaini Armada calls her: "Kataranda the Stormrider." But that's stupid. Kataranda is Qunlat for "deathstorm." You can't call a dragon: "Deathstorm the Stormrider.
Wait. That actually looks great now that I've written it out.
Dragon's Breath and the Antaam Schism
- Main article: Codex entry: Dragon's Breath and the Antaam Schism
The official story of the Qunari attack upon the South holds that the "Dragon's Breath" plan to attack the south was a rogue action against official Qunari orders. This is true, but it is not the whole truth.
The Salasari, Triumvirate of the Qun, represents the Qunari people: the Arishok commands the Antaam, the military branch that represents the body; the Ariqun leads the scholars and priests, representing the soul; and the Arigena guides the craftspeople, representing the mind. After the Breach wreaked chaos across the South, the Triumvirate suggested caution and sent a Qunari representative to observe and report on the Inquisition. But some in the Antaam and the Ben-Hassrath believed their leaders lacked the will to end the threat. Dragon's Breath was indeed unsanctioned, but it was not unpopular. Qunari who had fought the blood mages of Tevinter had learned to fear all magic. They wanted a fast solution.
When Dragon's Breath failed, the surviving Ben-Hassrath spies surrendered. In contrast, the Antaam insisted that Dragon's Breath had failed because it did not go far enough. The bas, they declared, did not merit education under the Qun. They must be conquered or destroyed. When their Arishok, who had fought darkspawn in Ferelden during the Fifth Blight, argued against this demand, his own kithshoks declared him corrupt. They ambushed the Arishok at the war council, leaving him badly injured.
And then the bloodthirsty Antaam went to war, a body now bereft of mind and soul.
—Excerpt from Marloqun: The Loss of Reason by Seer Rowan of Dairsmud
The Chantry vs. the Qun
- Main article: Codex entry: The Chantry vs. the Qun
An excerpt from Toh Vashoth: A Guide for Qunari Leaving the Qun, written by Seer Rowan, with notes from Shathann. Translated from Qunlat.
As you learn of the world outside the Qun, you will hear people speak of the Maker and the Chantry. In some ways, these are like the Qun under which you grew up.
The Chantry is not like the whole of the Qun. It is instead like our priests and scholars. Outside the Qun, the military is controlled by a ruler like the king of Rivain, while building and farming are controlled by merchants.
S: If this strikes you as inefficient, you understand it correctly. Imagine an athlok worker and an asala priest arguing over how to build a library with no Triumvirate to settle their disputes fairly.
The Chant of Light teaches that the world was created by the Maker, a divine figure who then left the world to dwell in the Fade. "By the Maker!" means that something surprising has happened, while "Maker willing" is hoping for good fortune.
S: The Maker is not a spirit or a demon. Suggesting this might be the case makes Chantry priests very unhappy.
Andraste was a warrior and scholar who received visions of the Chant of Light, much like Koslun understanding the principles of the Qun. She spread the Chant across the South.
The core principles of the Chantry are to be kind to one another, to spread word of the Chant of Light much like the Qun was meant to be spread, and to not let mages rule over others. This is interpreted differently in different countries. In the South, mages were kept in captivity, restricted almost like our saarebas. In Rivain, mages simply must renounce any claim to rule as a noble. In Tevinter, Chantry priests say that the Chant of Light only restricts mages from ruling for evil, and mages are free to rule. This has led to a split between the Chantry there and in other places.
S: It is reassuring to see that the Qun is not the only way of life broken by institutional corruption.
Destruction of Rivain's Art
- Main article: Codex entry: Destruction of Rivain's Art
When the seers learned that the Antaam in Rivain were destroying ancient shrines and ruins of earlier settlements, we sent a delegation to the Antaam to ask why (with the Lords of Fortune offering their services as protection). The Antaam who met with us was a massive gold-horned kithshok (formerly a general, now effectively a warlord) who now styled himself Isskatari, or Master Killer.
"We know you wish to conquer, but why must you destroy these things?" we asked him.
He grunted in disgust and replied, "I served in Kont-aar for years. I watched as your people laughed at us and acted like you were better. As you tried to tempt us away with your wrong ways."
"The things you are destroying are sacred to us," we told him. "They cannot be replaced."
"Paintings and statues are not sacred," he told us, and shattered an ancient funeral vase with a blow from his axe. "Words in a book are not sacred. A sword is sacred for what it can cut. When it breaks, it is trash. A warrior is sacred for who he can kill. When he dies, he is dust."
His words shook us, as did the hatred behind them. This was a man who thought that laughter must have a loser and a winner, who had lived with resentment of those outside the Qun for years and now had no leaders to hold him back from destroying anything that offended him. He had rejected the teachings of the Qun and replaced those beliefs with brutal practicality bereft of curiosity or compassion.
The Lords of Fortune have since worked to save ancient treasures when they can be found and taken safely. As for the Antaam, it seems those in Rivain will kill and destroy until they are stopped.
—Excerpt from Marloqun: The Loss of Reason by Seer Rowan of Dairsmuid
The Antaam Invasion
- Main article: Codex entry: The Antaam Invasion
When the Antaam invaded the South, the people there were completely unprepared. Antiva and northern Rivain were overrun quickly, with the invaders pushing down through the Green Dales to the Minanter River, leaving only the southernmost of the Free Marches spared. From there, the Antaam pushed west, overpowering Tevinter magic with gaatlok cannons and brute strength until the defenders finally held at Vyrantium. Nevarra was spared, likely due to the Antaam fears of necromancy and unwillingness to attack until Tevinter was conquered, but almost half of northern Thedas fell to Antaam rule in just a few years.
To those asking why the Antaam waited centuries to attack in force if they were this powerful, I would remind them that the Qun teaches that outsiders are to be converted and educated. Under Qunari control, the Antaam have been fighting only Tevinter, and even then, they followed rules governing how and when to attack. Gaatlok cannons were not to be used on civilian targets, for example. When the Antaam broke from the Qun, they threw off the restraints that had held them back.
It is also important to note that the Antaam fought alone. With little in the way of supply lines or experts in food production—the craftspeople and strategic experts who would normally support them had not broken from the Qun when the Antaam did—the invaders needed to attack to keep eating. When they encountered resistance that would have forced a siege, the Antaam invasion stalled. The kithshoks who wished only to conquer now had to learn to rule the lands they would claim.
—Excerpt from Marloqun: The Loss of Reason by Seer Rowan of Dairsmuid
The Siege of Vyrantium
- Main article: Codex entry: The Siege of Vyrantium
The attack on Vyrantium marked a pivotal turn in the overall Antaam invasion. As one of the largest cities in the Tevinter Imperium, Vyrantium was a key shipping and trading port and a cultural center second only to Minrathous. Capturing it would let the Antaam cut off Minrathous from the rest of the empire and, with the help of a naval blockade, starve the city into submission.
Reports state that the Antaam were initially greeted with celebration by slaves harvesting crops outside the city. They knew that the magisters feared the Qunari and saw in the Antaam a chance for liberation from oppression, as the Qunari at Kirkwall had done for the elves. But the Antaam warlord leading the attack, a kithshok called Staffbreaker, punished soldiers who tried to treat with the slaves. He ordered that all bas be cut down, to shake the resolve of Vyrantiumls defenders.
Had Staffbreaker welcomed the slaves, he might have guaranteed supplies for his army and gained converts from those who had suffered under Tevinter's cruelty. Instead, he accomplished what was once thought impossible: making the magisters of Tevinter seem the lesser of two evils. From slave to magister, every hand supported Vyrantium, and battles between gaatlok cannons and mage staves left everything east of the city a charred wasteland.
As of this writing in 9:52 Dragon, Vyrantium remains besieged, under bombardment from both land and city, but the Antaam have pushed no farther.
—Excerpt from Marloqun: The Loss of Reason by Seer Rowan of Dairsmud
Warlords of the Antaam
- Main article: Codex entry: Warlords of the Antaam
It is easy to think that the Antaam broke from the Qunari as one, but the reality is that of a vase shattering into countless shards, each broken in its own way, reflecting the warlord who now leads each kith. Some, like the Butcher in Treviso, use their new freedom to indulge in cultures long forbidden to them. Others, like Ataashok (Dragon King) or Isskatari (Master Killer) in Rivain, reject foreign cultures and either lean on the trappings of the Antaam or invent a heritage to inspire the loyalty of their soldiers.
What seems consistent among the Antaam warlords is cruelty, from Baqounasaar (Flaming Wind), whose ships terrorize the northern coast, to Kashtaar (Jewel-Taker), whose kith have become a bandit army in the mountains outside Marothius. I believe the reason to be twofold: first, these kithshoks feared that their army might turn upon them as they turned upon the Arishok, so they drive their soldiers through fear; and second, there are very few kind and thoughtful Antaam.
This is an observation, not an insult.
The Qun has two words for healer. One is rethari, a healer-priest, whose name literally means "one who helps." The other is maridim, an Antaam battlefield healer, whose name comes from "mar-itwa'adim," or "do not let them fall." Those under the Qun have jobs selected for them by their teachers, so any young Qunari too thoughtful or too sensitive for the harsh life of the Antaam would have been made rethari instead of maridim. The Qunari, in their wisdom, decided that all children who were naturally prepared to follow orders and hurt others should be placed in the Antaam, and this is the result.
(There are a few Antaam—not kithshoks but individual soldiers—who did not break from the Qun. Their help is the only reason the betrayed Arishok survived. They and the former Arishok have renounced their Antaam status and now serve under the defense branch of the Ben-Hassrath, as the Qunari, their body in rebellion, try to survive with mind and soul alone.)
—Excerpt from Marloqun: The Loss of Reason by Seer Rowan of Dairsmud
Taash's Horn
- Main article: Codex entry: Taash's Horn
Snapped it in my first job with the Lords—a Gamordan Stormrider. We hit her during a typhoon as she attacked a little fishing village. I used my axes to climb off the wet ground onto her back—that's the best way to deal with lightning dragons when they start making the puddles fry you. Saved the villagers but lost the horn when she slammed me against the cliff face.
Better my horn than my skull.
Veil Quartz. Really strong and the right weight so my balance isn't thrown off. I took a giant crystal of it as my share from the Stormrider. Armorer in the Lords shaves bits off as my horn grows back in.
No. I don't know what harmonic resonances are.
No. It has never "shot lightning."