Investiagte

Dorian Conversations: Investigate

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Tell Me About Yourself

If asked before: [6]

PC: It occurs to me that I barely know anything about you.

Dorian: Beyond my being a mage from Tevinter, you mean?

PC: Beyond that, yes.

Dorian: And beyond my being so charming and well-dressed? Which is obvious to anyone.

Dialogue options:

General: If you say so. [1]
General: I hadn’t noticed. [2]
General: Don’t push your luck. [3] -Dorian slightly disapproves
Flirt: It’s obvious to me. [4] +Dorian slightly approves

1 - General: If you say so. PC: You certainly think highly of yourself. Dorian: It’s true. I could be more modest, but I’d be lying. [5]

2 - General: I hadn’t noticed. PC: Some more than others. Dorian: Some people have superior taste. [5]

3 - General: Don’t push your luck. PC: (Sighs.) Let’s move on, shall we? [5]

4 - Flirt: It’s obvious to me. PC: I’m well aware of your finer qualities, believe me. Dorian (male PC): Of course I believe you. The moment I saw you, I thought, “There’s a man who knows quality.” Dorian (Female PC): Of course you are. You’re a discerning and intelligent woman, after all. [5]

5 - Scene continues.

Dorian: Now… what was I talking about? Ah, yes. Me. I am the scion of House Pavus, a product of generations of careful breeding, and the repository of its hopes and dreams. Naturally, I despised it all: the lies, the scheming, the illusions of supremacy. That’s Tevinter in a nutshell, isn’t it? Needless to say, my family was not happy with my choices.

6 - Dialogue options:

Investigate: “Careful breeding”? [7]
Investigate: Your family is angry with you? [8]
Investigate: You don’t like Tevinter? [9]
Investigate: Why not go back? [10]
General: That’s enough for now. [11]

7 - Investigate: “Careful breeding”? PC: What did you mean by “generations of careful breeding”? Dorian: The great families of Tevinter don’t have children. They refine traits, weed out the undesirable, and promote the rest. My mother was chosen for my father because magic runs strongly in her blood. Never mind that they loathed each other. They wanted a son who could become Archon, to make House Pavus the envy of the Imperium. They got me: a cautionary tale that you should be careful what you wish for. [back to 6]

8 - Investigate: Your family is angry with you? PC: Why would your family be upset with your choices? Dorian: Because I rejected their idyllic plan. If they had their way, by now I’d be married to some unlucky girl from a powerful family. We’d live in luxurious despair, despising each other as I waited to take my father’s place in the Magisterium. I declined the honor, and thus it’s best I’m far from home. Less of an embarrassment that way, you see. [back to 6]

9 - Investigate: You don’t like Tevinter? PC: I’m getting the impression that you don’t care much for your homeland. Dorian: On the contrary, I care for my homeland a great deal. There’s so much potential. Sadly, we squander it. We refuse to acknowledge how far we’ve fallen because pretending is easier. We pretend the Qunari can be beaten. We pretend that we’re superior to everyone, even our own people. Not everyone feels that way. I don’t. Sadly, we’re the minority. [back to 6]

Dialogue options:

Special: But why do you care? [12]
[Back to 6]

12 - Special: But why do you care? PC: It just seems… so much of what you say about the Imperium is entirely negative. Dorian: It might sound that way. For all our faults, my people have many virtues. We are laden with history and culture–Tevinter is where Thedas truly began, remember. We treasure our past and preserve it. You can walk down a side street and find nothing built during the modern ages. And, despite appearances, we care. Deeply. About everything. We have no reserve, not in war and not in love. If I truly believed my homeland was beyond all hope, I wouldn’t miss it so much. [back to 6]

10 - Investigate: Why not go back? PC: Why remain with the Inquisition? Why not go back to Tevinter? Dorian: (Chuckles.) I’m not exactly welcome back home. Not that it matters. I’m quite accustomed to being a pariah. It adds to my charm. I can do more for Tevinter here. If the Venatori succeed, it’ll set my homeland back a thousand years. I’m sure some magisters would disagree… but that’s why we kill them. [back to 6]

11 - General: That’s enough for now. PC: I think I’ve heard enough. Dorian: That’s too bad. I never tire of talking about myself. Scene ends.

Tell Me About the Imperium

Dorian: Ah. Yes, everyone outside the Imperium always seems quite fascinated by it. Probably why they come up with so many ridiculous tales. Flying cows over Minrathous? Madness! All right, that one’s actually true, but the cows didn’t have wings. I digress. Anything in particular you wanted to know?

If asked before: Dorian: Popular topic. Anything specific?

1 - Dialogue options:

History: Corypheus was a magister. [2]
Investigate: Do mages truly rule there? [3]
Investigate: The Imperium has a Chantry? [4]
Investigate: Could Tevinter be an ally? [5]
Investigate: Is blood magic common? [6]
Investigate: What about slavery? [7]
General: That’s it. [8]

2 - History: Corypheus was a magister. PC: Corypheus is a figure out of Tevinter history. He was a magister. Dorian: Yes, but that was a different time. The Imperium’s power was at its peak then. The civil war had ended. The Magisterium was united, its armies scooping up bits of Thedas like candy. The magisters who entered the Black City… it was a demonstration of how exceptional Tevinter had become. PC: But who were they? Dorian: No one knows. There’s no record of a magister named “Corypheus.” All this happened fourteen hundred years ago, before the Blight nearly wiped us out. There are no records. Today, people half-believe it’s all just a story. That’s what I believed.

Dialogue options:

History: But it’s not a story. [9]
[Back to 1]

9 - History: But it’s not a story. PC: We have evidence the story is very much real. Dorian: But not who Corypheus is, if he even remembers. There used to be families who claimed some of those magisters as their own. That stopped when the Chantry appeared. Then it was shameful, and the families distanced themselves from the tale. All we know is that some men and women entered the Black City, looking for the Old Gods. What did they find? According to Corypheus, nothing, and only he could tell us more. [back to 1]

3 - Investigate: Do mages truly rule there? PC: It seems strange that an entire empire would be ruled by mages.

Dorian (mage PC): Strange? Why are you less qualified to rule than some tart with a fancy crown? Dorian (non-mage PC): I find it strange that your mages don’t rule anything at all.

Dorian: (Chuckles.) Actually, the fiction in the Imperium is that mages don’t rule. The Magisterium rules. That magisters are all mages is considered a… convenient technicality.

10 - Dialogue options:

Investigate: The Magisterium? [11]
Investigate: What about the Archon? [12]
Investigate: But mages do rule. [13]
General: I want to ask something else. [14]

11 - Investigate: The Magisterium? PC: What is the Magisterium, exactly? Dorian: The upper house of the Imperial Senate, and the only part worth having a seat on. Those seats are split among the Circles of Magi, the Chantry, and the major families–all mages now. It’s odd that outside the Imperium, you use “magister” like it applies to every Tevinter mage.

Dialogue options:

Special: What are you, then? [15]
[Back to 10]

15 - Special: What are you, then? PC: If you’re not a magister, then what are you called? No special title? Dorian: I’m an altus, which is almost as good as a magister, depending on who you ask. ㅤㅤ ㅤ Dialogue options:

Special: And an altus is… [16]
[Back to 10]

16 - Special: And an altus is… PC: I’ve never heard of an “altus.” Dorian: Upper class. Those families who trace descent from the Dreamers, the first prophets of the Old Gods. If you’re a mage and you’re not altus, then you’re laetan. Lower class. If you’re not a mage at all, you’re soporati. That’s “everyone else.” We do love our fancy words. [back to 10]

12 - Investigate: What about the Archon? PC: I thought the Archon ruled over the Imperium. Dorian: Well, yes… technically he can overrule laws passed by the Magisterium, but that never happens. Even so, he gets to appoint new magisters, which means all the families vie madly for his favor. Thus the Archon gets invited to all the parties. The truest path to Tevinter influence, let me tell you. [back to 10]

13 - Investigate: But mages do rule. PC: If it’s a fiction, that means mages do rule, then. Dorian: Yes and no. Let me put it this way: mages do rule, but not all mages are equal. If you’re not from the right family, chances are you don’t rule anything. Maybe you’re even a slave. The idea that anyone could be a mage, however, keeps the masses placated.

Dialogue options:

Special: Is that true? [17]
[Back to 10]

17 - Special: Is that true? PC: Can anyone be a mage? Dorian: Technically. The potential runs mostly in bloodlines, but it’s been known to happen. More importantly, commoners believe it can. Tevinter legend is chock-full of mage heroes from humble origins. So they hold out hope. “Someday, my son or my son’s son will be a mage. Someday.” Poor sods don’t realize that means he’ll be a quaestor at the ass end of the Hundred Pillars. At best. ㅤㅤ ㅤ Dialogue options:

Special: Is that bad? [18]
[Back to 10]

18 - Special: Is that bad? PC: Being a quaestor isn’t a good thing? Dorian: I imagine the average non-mage likes to think so. Counting numbers and shuffling papers all day is better than many occupations, after all. If you’re a second-class citizen among a pack of piranha, however, your outlook changes. [back to 10]

14 - General: I want to ask something else. PC: Let me ask you something else. Dorian: Of course. [Back to 1]

4 - PC: There’s an Imperial Chantry, isn’t there? With its own Divine? Dorian: You people aren’t supposed to talk about the Black Divine, are you? If you mention him outside the Imperium, people make that face. Like you’re urinating in public. But, yes, we do have the Chantry. Or a version of it. Night and day, comparing it to yours.

19 - Dialogue options:

Investigate: Is it really that different? [20]
Investigate: The Black Divine? [21]
Investigate: Are you religious? [22]
General: I want to ask something else. [23]

20 - Investigate: Is it really that different? PC: Is the Imperial Chantry so different from ours? Dorian: Not in theory. The main difference is in the whole “magic is meant to serve man, not rule over him” business. Back home, ruling the unwashed masses is serving them. For the good of the Imperium. Perhaps it started with good intentions, but these days it’s academic. The Circles are in command.

Dialogue options:

Special: You have Circles? [24]
[Back to 20]

24 - Special: You have Circles? PC: There are Circles of Magi in the Imperium? Dorian: We don’t have dismal little mage prisons, if that’s what you mean. They’re academies. Prestigious ones. We have templars as well, but they don’t cancel spells—or whatever your templars do. They’re soldiers. ㅤㅤ ㅤ PC (mage PC): They don’t use lyrium? Dorian: Ha! As if there’d be any left for them. ㅤㅤ ㅤ Dorian: They watch for abuse of magic, yes, but only those who are weak or who fall out of favor get dealt with. Mostly they enforce the Magisterium’s edicts. The Chantry smiles and nods from the sidelines. [back to 20]

21 - Investigate: The Black Divine? PC: Do you really call him the “Black Divine”? Dorian: We don’t call him that, oh, no. In the Imperium, he’s the true Divine. The woman sitting on the Sunburst Throne is some backwater pretender. It all stems from a disagreement over Andraste. Marvelous, isn’t it?

25 - Dialogue options:

Special: A disagreement? [26]
Special: Your Divine is male? [27]
[Back to 20]

26 - Special: A disagreement? PC: Why would they disagree over Andraste? Dorian: It’s not my field of expertise, but the Imperium believes Andraste was a mortal woman. A mage. Down south they say, “No, she’s the Bride of the Maker! Ascended to His side, divine provenance, blah, blah, blah.” We feel better believing Andraste was one of us. Makes executing her less damning, you see. So we elected a man as Divine, the South declared war, and we’ve been feuding cousins ever since. [back to 25] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 27 - Special: Your Divine is male? PC: So… the Imperial Divine is always a man? Dorian: All the better to distinguish him from “that other one,” yes. Don’t think there aren’t a number of female magisters who bristle at that. Why can’t they be Divine, after all? Same reason you never see a man on the Sunburst Throne. Because that’s how it’s always been done. Excellent reasoning. [back to 25]

22 - Investigate: Are you religious? PC: Do you consider yourself Andrastian? Dorian: Ah. The big question. It might surprise you that I do consider myself Andrastian. I simply do not believe in the Chantry. It is a relic, whether back home or here in the South. Something from a bygone age desperately clinging to relevance. It’s not an opinion that makes me popular.

Dialogue options:

General: I agree with you. [28] Divine: +1 Leliana, -1 Vivienne
General: The Chantry has its place. [29]
General: Others might object, yes. [30]

28 - General: I agree with you. PC: I share your opinion, actually. Dorian: That’s not surprising, considering what the Inquisition represents. [31] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 29 - General: The Chantry has its place. PC: I disagree. I don’t think the Chantry is irrelevant. Dorian: Not to most, no. Perhaps just to me. [31] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 30 - General: Others might object, yes. PC: I’m not surprised. It’s not an opinion you should share. Dorian: You did ask, if you’ll recall. [31]

31 - Scene continues.

Dorian: I’ll say this: I may not believe in the Chantry, but I believe in you.

PC: In me?

Dorian: That the Maker sent you, whether through Andraste or fate. Cassandra is not wrong.

Dorian (sided mages): You saw in that future: without you, Corypheus prevails. You are our bulwark against evil. Dorian (sided templars): You are what we needed most at the moment we needed it. That’s what they will say in ages to come.

Dialogue options:

General: I’m surprised you think that. [32]
General: I don’t know. [33] +Dorian slightly approves
General: I agree. [34] +Dorian slightly approves
General: You are a fool. [35] -Dorian disapproves

32 - General: I’m surprised you think that. PC: You don’t seem like the religious sort, to be honest. Dorian: If you define “religious” as sitting in a chantry and listening to a blithering hen tell you how to live, then no. If you define it as believing in the possibility that something larger than yourself exists, then yes. By all means. [36] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 33 - General: I don’t know. PC: I’m not sure about that, myself. Dorian: Doubt is good. I like doubt. It will keep you sane. Me, I’ve seen too much to believe I know everything. [36] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 34 - General: I agree. PC: That’s true. I feel the same. Dorian: My. Someone’s full of themselves, aren’t they? PC: I was just agreeing with you. Dorian: Don’t agree on my account. A little doubt wouldn’t harm the Herald of Andraste. Me, I’ve seen too much to believe I know everything. [36] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 35 - General: You are a fool. PC: That’s what you think? That’s ridiculous. Dorian: Oh? I’m glad you’re so certain. Me, I’ve seen too much to believe I know everything. [36]

36 - Scene continues.

Dorian: The world is bigger than I, even bigger than you. It laughs at all the things we think we know. The Maker doesn’t need me to believe, but I do. The thought of no one at all watching out for us is too frightening. [back to 19]

23 - General: I want to ask something else. PC: Let me ask you something else. Dorian: So many questions. [Back to 1]

5 - Investigate: Could Tevinter be an ally? PC: I’m wondering if the Imperium would be a useful ally. Dorian: I’d think you’d be more concerned whether or not they’d support the Venatori. They won’t, of course. At least not officially. They’ll disavow all knowledge of “dangerous cultists.” Secretly many magisters will rejoice at the idea. And if the South falls to chaos in the meantime? All the better.

Dialogue options:

Special: Is that smart of them? [37]
[Back to 1]

37 - Special: Is that smart of them? PC: It would be in the Imperium’s best interest to help. Surely it could use allies. Dorian: I think the Imperium gave up on the idea of allies a long time ago. We’ve been fighting the Qunari for, what? Two hundred years, off and on? It’s a point of pride that we go it alone. They’ll sneer at the South behind their silk handkerchiefs and say you’ve had it easy for far too long. Let’s not forget that the Inquisition seems to be an arm of the Orlesian Chantry. Anathema, so far as they’re concerned. ㅤㅤ ㅤ Dialogue options:

Special: But we’re not! [38]
[Back to 1]

38 - Special: But we’re not! PC: We’re not part of the Chantry. The Chantry opposed the Inquisition’s formation. Dorian: You think that matters? Don’t be silly. The Herald of Andraste? Your very title smacks of the southern Chantry. You may as well be a heathen. I think they’re far more frightened what you’ll do if you succeed. [back to 1]

6 - Investigate: Is blood magic common? PC: Just how often is blood magic used there? Dorian: Oh, not at all. PC: Not at all… Dorian: That’s what any magister would tell you. They’d be convincingly offended by the notion, too. Of course, what people call blood magic here and what we consider blood magic are two different things.

Dialogue options:

Special: What do you call it? [39]
[Back to 1]

39 - Special: What do you call it? PC: What’s considered actual blood magic in Tevinter? Dorian: Blood magic isn’t inherently dangerous. Using your own blood or that of a willing participant? What’s the harm? The problem is that what’s permitted only gets you so much power. And what if you need more? You always need more. That’s where we get into sacrifices and demon-summoning. None of that is done–not officially. Behind closed doors, it’s a different story. Real blood magic can give you an edge, a leg up against your opponents. It’s safe to assume that any mage of rank does it. The rest are quietly shut out of power, to put it bluntly. ㅤㅤ ㅤ Dialogue options:

Special: No templar intervention? [40]
[Back to 1]

40 - Special: No templar intervention? PC: You’d think the templars would object. Dorian: I imagine they did, long ago. Once their investigations might have been sincere. Then their balls were cut off. Too inconvenient. Nowadays, only the friendless are accused… and most of them probably innocent. ㅤㅤ ㅤ Dialogue options:

Special: No one disagrees? [41]
[Back to 1]

41 - Special: No one disagrees? PC: There must be some mages who oppose this. Dorian: Of course. I do, and I’m not entirely alone. Occasionally there’ll be a magister who makes noise, and then the reform talk begins. All very patriotic. Meanwhile, that magister will be quietly shunned. Chances are—surprise!—it’s learned he was a maleficar all along. Most learn to keep quiet. Me? I enjoy the allure of pariah-hood. [back to 1]

7 - Investigate: What about slavery? PC: Anyone who talks about the Imperium mentions slavery. It’s the center of the slave trade. Dorian: Ah. That is true. PC: And? Did you have slaves? Dorian: Not personally, but my family does and treats them well. Honestly, I never thought much about it until I came south. Back home, it’s… how it is? Slaves are everywhere. You don’t question it. I’m not even certain many slaves do.

Dialogue options:

General: You’re saying they like it? [42]
General: It’s not like that here. [43]
General: That’s a terrible attitude. [44] -Dorian slightly disapproves

42 - General: You’re saying they like it? PC: You think slaves like it that way? Don’t be ridiculous. Dorian: I didn’t say they like it. It’s all most of them know. [45] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 43 - General: It’s not like that here. PC: Well, we don’t have slaves in the South. [45] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 44 - General: That’s a terrible attitude. PC: That’s it? You don’t question it? [45]

45 - Scene continues.

Dorian: In the South you have alienages, slums both human and elven. The desperate have no way out. Back home, a poor man can sell himself. As a slave, he could have a position of respect, comfort, and could even support a family. Some slaves are treated poorly, it’s true, but do you honestly think inescapable poverty is better?

Dialogue options:

General: At least they have a choice. [46] -Dorian slightly disapproves
General: I suppose not. [47] +Dorian slightly approves
General: “Treated poorly”? [48]

46 - General: At least they have a choice. PC: At least they’re free. They don’t have slavery forced on them. Dorian: You think people choose to be poor and oppressed? I doubt it. [49] ㅤㅤ ㅤㅤㅤ ㅤ
47 - General: I suppose not. PC: I suppose not, no. [49] ㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤ ㅤ 48 - General: “Treated poorly”? PC: Is that what you call it? “Treated poorly”? [49]

49 - Scene continues.

Dorian: Abuse heaped upon those without power isn’t limited to Tevinter, my friend. I don’t know what it’s like to be a slave, true. I never thought about it until I saw how different it was here. But I suspect you don’t know, either, nor should you believe that every tale of Tevinter excess is the norm. [back to 1]

8 - General: That’s it. PC: That’s all I wanted to know. Dorian: Fair enough.

Why Were You In Redcliffe?

Available if the PC sided with the templars.

PC: I’m curious why you were in Redcliffe in the first place.

Dorian: Looking up an old mentor of mine, a magister by the name of Alexius. Good fellow. Always thought highly of him. Then one day he asks me to join the Venatori. I don’t know what he was thinking. He knew I wanted to change Tevinter, not regress it into prehistoric madness! The Venatori killed Alexius once he stopped being useful.

Dialogue options:

Special: Why did he join them? PC: Seems odd he would get involved with the Venatori at all.

Dorian: That’s what I thought. I’d hoped to persuade him to leave Redcliffe. I suppose he had his reasons. People will do odd things when they’re strung over a barrel. Either that, or I didn’t really know Alexius at all.

Tell Me About Alexius

High approval. If PC sided with templars, available after asking why Dorian was in Redcliffe.

PC: You said Alexius was a mentor of yours?

Dorian: He was my patron, sponsoring me to the higher levels of the Circle of Magi. In return, my successes were his. I had a lot of successes, naturally. Alexius was most pleased. He and I used to talk over brandy about the corruption, how we could one day make real change in the Imperium. And then he… gave up. He stopped trying.

Dialogue options:

Special: Why? PC: Why did he give up? Dorian: On a journey to Hossberg, a darkspawn raid killed his wife and sickened his son. I remember hearing the news. He hadn’t been there, you see. Alexius was convinced he could have protected them, and the guilt tore him up. I helped him with his research for a while, and then we… drifted apart.

Dialogue options:

General: I’m sorry. [1] +Dorian slightly approves
General: You mean you argued. [2]
General: You both gave up. [3]

1 - General: I’m sorry. PC: That must have been difficult. Dorian: Back then, I was furious. [4]

2 - General: You mean you argued. PC: You mean you fought with him. [4]

3 - General: You both gave up. PC: Sounds like he wasn’t the only one who gave up. [4]

4 - Scene continues.

Dorian: I told him to snap out of it, move on. I thought I had all the answers. Later, I regretted my hasty words, but we didn’t speak again until he approached me for the Venatori. Too much pride, I suppose. Plus, I was busy drinking. One must have priorities.

Dialogue options:

General: Did you miss him? [5]
General: I think you felt guilty. [6]
General: But you followed him. [7]

5 - General: Did you miss him? PC: Was it hard being away from him? Dorian: It was hard not having a patron, yes. I’m not exactly built to fit in.

6 - General: I think you felt guilty. PC: I don’t think that’s it. You felt guilty because you couldn’t help him. Dorian: Clever you. I had a choice, you see: wallow in self-pity or get away while I could.

7 - General: But you followed him. PC: You still went after him. Dorian: It’s true. What was I thinking? It’s so cold down here.

8 - Scene continues.

Dorian (if Alexius is alive): At any rate, he’s fallen so low, I doubt he’ll ever get up. Sad, really. Dorian (if Alexius is dead): At any rate, he’s dead now. More’s the pity.

Have You Seen Alexius?

PC: Have you gone to see Alexius yet? He’s in the cells.

Dorian: Not yet, no. I saw him before they locked him up. He looked… despondent. Broken. Not the man I remember, nor the one I want to.

Dorian ( in Haven): I suppose the Inquisition will judge him eventually. I wonder if there’s any chance they’ll show him mercy. Dorian (at Skyhold): I realize it’s your job to judge him. All I ask is, if you do… show him mercy.

Dorian: He hardly deserves it, but for Felix’s sake, I can’t help hoping there’s something left of the man I once knew.

—

Alexius’s Fate:

Execution Dorian: So Alexius is dead. All the good her once stood for, his integrity, his beliefs… he betrayed them all. (Sighs.) I won’t say he didn’t deserve death. I just wish there had been another way. -Dorian disapproves

Forced to research magic arcana for the Inquisition Dorian: I’m told you have Alexius researching magic for you? Research is always what made him happiest. Perhaps I’ll go talk to him, eventually. One word of advice: if he suggest altering time as a way to solve all your problems, give it a pass. +Dorian approves

Made Tranquil Dorian: You made Alexius Tranquil. I wish you’d just killed him. He was a decent man once. He deserved to keep his dignity. I hope I don’t run into him. That… would be more than I could handle. -Dorian greatly disapproves

Forced to work for the Mages Dorian: I ran into Fiona. Seems you have Alexius serving the mages? There’s some justice in that, after what he did to them. Maybe one day he’ll realize it. +Dorian slightly approves

Imprisonment Dorian: Don’t tell me you sent Alexius back into the prisons. Seems a waste to rot away in a cell like that. He was a good man, once. Maybe it will give him time to think. But with Felix gone… I doubt it.