Humans are the most numerous, yet also the most contentious of all the races of Thedas. Only four times have they ever united beneath a single banner, the last being centuries ago. The monotheistic faith of the Chant of Light plays a major role in human society. The majority of humanity in Thedas descended from numerous human tribes.
In Dragon Age: Origins, humans are able to play all three classes, warrior, rogue and mage, and a human Warden can select either the Human Noble or Mage origin.
Racial benefits of Humans: +1 strength, +1 dexterity, +1 magic, +1 cunning
Background
Some scholars believe that the first humans in Thedas came from the rainforests of Par Vollen many thousands of years ago, migrating south from the archipelago. The pyramids they built still stand to this day and are regarded by travelers to the region as true wonders.[1]
Humans in the lands of Tevinter had times past worshipped a draconic pantheon of Old Gods which it is considered that they now slumber beneath the earth. The magister rulers of the ancient Tevinter Imperium who regularly talked to the Old Gods, engaged a series of invasions in which they defeated the elven kingdom of Elvhenan and enslaved the race. Boosted by the sheer number of slaves, the Imperium conquered almost the entirety of Thedas in the next centuries.
Eventually, the Imperium was challenged from the south by a barbarian uprising, the armies led by Maferath and his wife, the prophet Andraste.
Andraste brought the teachings of a new god, the Maker, and her word spread quickly. The oppressed masses of the Imperium rose up in rebellion to support the invading barbarians and eventually most of the south fell to their might. Andraste was not stopped in her Exalted March until she was betrayed by her husband: jealous of her power, Maferath turned Andraste over to the Tevinter archon and she was burned at the stake. The Chant of Light would say that the Maker turned his back on humanity when she died. He would only return and make the world into a paradise when the Chant of Light was sung from all corners of the world, and so the Chantry began to spread. The clerics of the Chantry were oppressed until the legendary emperor Drakon of Orlais converted and took up their cause, spreading the Chantry throughout all the lands that he conquered in its name. In modern times, the Chantry has spread throughout the known world, its power unquestioned even as it begins to give way to internal strife.
Major human nations in Thedas
Human concept from Dragon Age: Inquisition
Notes
- According to dialogue between Oghren and Zevran Arainai, humans are 100 times more numerous than dwarves.[2] As the dwarves of Orzammar are 100,000 and their surface brethren match their numbers, this means that the total human population in Thedas is around 20,000,000.
- Even though it is not common, there are unions between humans and elves. Their offspring would be elf-blooded.
Children between humans and dwarves are extremely rare because of the low fertility rate of dwarves in addition to the small chances of producing offspring with other races. Half-dwarves are shorter than humans but taller than dwarves. Furthermore, it is more often that such mating would happen with surface dwarves as such union would be heavily stigmatized in Orzammar.[3] - All the races in Thedas are said to live approximately the same length of natural life.[4]
- Human society is largely inspired by Anglo-Saxon culture, circa 1200 A.D.[5]]
External links
References
- ↑ Dragon Age II: The Complete Official Guide, p. 248
- ↑ During a party banter in Dragon Age: Origins.
- ↑
David Gaider (2009). "Where are the half-races?" . BioWare Social Network. Retrieved on August 25, 2013.
- ↑ Mary Kirby (April 2013). "Which race in Dragon Age lives the longest?" . BioWare Social Network.
- ↑ Dragon Age Origins Dev Diary: Creating a Living World.