Investigate

Solas Conversations: Investigate

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Tell Me About Elves

PC: I’d be interested in hearing your opinions on elven culture.

Choice dependent dialogue:

Dalish PC [1]
Sera recruited [2]
Non-Dalish PC, Sera not recruited/asking again [3]

1 - Dalish PC Solas (pre-WEWH): I thought you would be more interested in sharing your opinions of elven culture. You are Dalish, are you not? Solas (post-WEWH): After discussing the events at Halamshiral, I suspected you might speak in defense of your fellows. You are Dalish, are you not?

Dialogue options:

General: Proudly. [4] -Solas disapproves
General: Why are you so angry? [5] -Solas slightly disapproves
General: I am a true elf. [6]

4 - General: Proudly. PC: Yes, I am. The Dalish are the best hope for preserving the culture of our people. Solas: Our people. You use that phrase so casually. It should mean more… but the Dalish have forgotten that. Among other things. PC: Oh, but you know the truth, right? Solas: While they pass on stories, mangling details, I walk the Fade. I have seen things they have not. [7]

5 - General: Why are you so angry? PC: What’s your problem with the Dalish? Allergic to halla? Solas: They are children acting out stories misheard and repeated wrongly a thousand times. PC: Oh, but you know the truth, right? Solas: While they pass on stories, mangling details, I walk the Fade. I have seen things they have not. [7]

6 - General: I am a true elf. PC: My people come from the elves who refused to surrender when humans broke their treaty and destroyed the Dales. Solas: Your Keeper was not wrong about that, at least. We must mark the occasion of the Dalish remembering something correctly. Perhaps we should plant a tree. PC: You insult my people. Solas: They insult themselves. Remember, I have walked the memories of the Fade. I have seen the history the Dalish imitate. [7]

7 - Dialogue options:

General: So help them. [8] -Solas slightly disapproves
General: So teach other elves. [9] -Solas slightly disapproves
General: We are trying. Accept that. [10] +Solas slightly approves

8 - General: So help them. PC: The Dalish are trying to restore elven history. If you know something new, share it. Solas: Would your clan listen to what I had learned in my studies, my travels? Or would they mock the flat-ear and his stories, and go back to their ruins? At least you are asking. That is something. I will answer as I can. [11]

9 - General: So teach other elves. PC: Fine, you think we’re terrible. What about the alienages full of elves who aren’t Dalish? Solas: Why? What would it benefit some poor man in a Fereldan alienage to learn that his ancestors strode the land like gods? It would only make him bitter, or inspire him to take a foolish risk and get himself killed. PC: You’ve decided his reaction for him. Solas: Perhaps I have. If you have questions and believe the answers will help, ask. [11]

10 - General: We are trying. Accept that. PC: Ir abelas, hahren. If the Dalish have done you a disservice, I would make that right. What course would you set for them that is better than what they know now? Solas: (Sighs.) You are right, of course. The fault is mine, for expecting what the Dalish could never truly accomplish. Ir abelas… da’len. If I can offer any understanding, you have but to ask. [11]

11 - Scene continues.

Solas: What do you wish to know? [16]

2 - Sera recruited Solas: Perhaps you could ask Sera. She has… opinions.

Dialogue options:

General: She’s worthy of respect. [12] -Solas slightly disapproves
General: You don’t seem to like her. [13]
General: I’m not asking Sera. [14] -Solas slightly disapproves

12 - General: She’s worthy of respect. PC: Sera is part of our team. You don’t need to be snide about her. Solas: Actually, on some level, I do. She takes it better than she would take my pity… or my envy. She has a purity of purpose that I lack. I have observed too much and done too little. [15]

13 - General: You don’t seem to like her. PC: You don’t much care for Sera, do you? Solas: I pity her, although I imagine she would detest that. Perhaps, in truth, I envy her. She has a purity of purpose that I lack. I have observed too much and done too little. [15]

14 - General: I’m not asking Sera. PC: If I wanted Sera’s opinions, I’d be talking to her. Solas: And learning some colorful new idioms, no doubt. [15]

15 - Scene continues.

Solas: What do you wish to know? [16]

3 - Non-Dalish PC, Sera not recruited Solas: What do you wish to know?

16 - Dialogue options:

Investigate: Tell me about ancient elves. [17]
Investigate: Tell me about the Dalish. [18] +Solas slightly approves
Investigate (Dalish PC): Tell me more of the Dalish [19]
Investigate: Tell me about city elves. [20] +Solas slightly approves
Investigate: Tell me about elven magic. [21]
General: Goodbye. [22]

17 - Investigate: Tell me about ancient elves. PC: I’d like to know more about the elves from before our time. Solas: The Dalish strive to remember Halamshiral, but Halamshiral was merely a fumbling attempt to recreate a forgotten land. PC: Arlathan. Solas: Elvhenan was the empire, and Arlathan its greatest city. A place of magic and beauty, lost to time.
Dialogue options:

Special: What else? [22] +Solas slightly approves
[Back to 16]

22 - Special: What else? PC: You’ve studied ancient elves. What else do you know of Arlathan? Solas: We hear stories of them living in trees and imagine wooden ramps or Dalish aravels. Imagine instead spires of crystal twining through the branches, palaces floating among the clouds. Imagine beings who lived forever, for whom magic was as natural as breathing. That is what was lost. [back to 16]

18 - Investigate: Tell me about the Dalish. PC: I’d like to know more about Dalish elves. Solas: It is a mistake to think of the Dalish as a single group. They have lived as separate clans for centuries now. As a consequence, each clan has learned, interpreted, and forgotten different parts of elven history. Some trade freely with humans or adopt city elves who flee the alienages. Others attack humans on sight. [back to 16]

19 - Investigate: Tell me more of the Dalish PC: Are all Dalish elves like my clan? Solas: No. Your clan was unique in having enough interest in human affairs to send you to spy upon the Divine’s meeting. As your clans have been separate for so long, they have all changed, adapting to the lands in which they live. Some are no more than bandits, others trade freely with humans, and some have disappeared entirely into the forests. [back to 16]

20 - Investigate: Tell me about city elves. PC: What can you tell me about elves living in human cities? Solas: The culture in alienages or among the slaves of Tevinter is like any of the impoverished and powerless. They cling to memories of a better past and practice a few rituals to distinguish themselves from humans. [back to 16]

21 - Investigate: Tell me about elven magic. PC (Dalish mage PC): Is the magic they teach in the Circle different from the magic I learned with my people? PC (human mage PC): I’ve heard tales that Dalish magic is different from the magic I learned in the Circle. PC (non-mage/Qunari mage PC): Is elven magic different from the magic used by humans?

Solas: No and yes. Magic is magic, just as water is water, but it can be used in different ways. Dalish magic is more practical, not needing Chantry approval, although they still frown on blood magic. Superstition. Much of it is more subtle, a legacy from when elves were immortal.

Dialogue options:

Special: Was immortality due to magic? [23] +Solas slightly approves
Special: About blood magic… [24] +Solas slightly approves
[Back to 16]

23 - Special: Was immortality due to magic? PC: The legends of elven immortality… did they use magic to increase their lifespan? Solas: No, it was simply part of being elven. The subtle beauty of their magic was the effect, not the cause, of their nature. Some spells took years to cast. Echoes would linger for centuries, harmonizing with new magic in an unending symphony. It must have been beautiful. [back to 16]

24 - Special: About blood magic… PC: You said that the censure against blood magic was a superstition… Solas: I did. It’s fortunate Cassandra is not within earshot. Most modern cultures forbid blood magic. Publicly, even Tevinter disapproves of it. But as I said, magic is magic. It matters only in how it is used.

Dialogue options:

General (non-necromancer mage PC): Blood magic seems interesting. [25]
General: Blood magic is evil. [26] -Solas disapproves
General: I don’t mind blood magic. [27]

25 - General: Blood magic seems interesting. PC: I’d be interested in learning more about blood magic. Solas: I would teach you, if I knew it. Unfortunately, using blood magic seems to make it more difficult to enter the Fade. You understand why I have never bothered to learn it. A shame, as it is extremely powerful. Provided it remains a tool, not a crutch… nor a passion. [back to 16]

26 - General: Blood magic is evil. PC: Every time I’ve seen blood magic used, it has been for some evil purpose. Solas: I once saw a woman stabbed in the stomach with a dagger. She died slowly, in agony. It was repulsive. If the Chantry outlawed daggers, would that stop people from using them? Of course not. Some would use daggers in secret, ashamed, and some would find rebellion titillating, a step down the path of depravity.

Dialogue options:

General: That metaphor doesn’t work. [28]
General: The alternative is Tevinter. [29]
General: Fine. They’re still evil. [30]

28 - General: That metaphor doesn’t work. PC: You don’t need to sacrifice a slave’s life to make a dagger. Solas: I suppose it depends upon the dagger. How many men have you killed while fighting for the Inquisition? How many more will you kill out of necessity? And if blood magic could help you? Well, it matters little to me. I do not use it, but I do not think it evil. [back to 16] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 29 - General: The alternative is Tevinter. PC: So we should allow blood magic to be used freely? It works so well for the Imperium! Solas: Tevinter’s foundation stones are the bones of ancient elves with slave-blood for the mortar. It is an example of nothing more than gilded savagery. Pitiable, in a way. They always succeed through power, so they have never had the chance to learn another way. [back to 16] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 30 - General: Fine. They’re still evil. PC: It doesn’t matter how they arrived there. Most blood mages use their power for the wrong reasons. Solas: Yes, but not all. I once saw a blood mage healer who would shed her own blood to close a patient’s wounds. Although, admittedly, you are unlikely to find her here. [back to 16]

27 - General: I don’t mind blood magic. PC: To be honest, I don’t see it as different from any other magic. It’s a means to an end. Solas: Indeed. The problem is that, under the Chantry, blood magic is forbidden, so only criminals practice it. While in Tevinter, magisters compete with each other instead of keeping their volatile friends in check. They always succeed through power, so they have never had the chance to learn another way. [back to 16]

22 - General: Goodbye. PC: We’ll talk later. Solas: Goodbye.

Tell Me About the Fade

First time asking PC: What do you know about the Fade? Solas: A great deal, from my wanderings. There are few hard facts, but I can share what I have learned.

Solas: What would you like to know?

1 - Dialogue options:

Investigate: Tell me about the Breach. [2] +Solas slightly approves
Investigate: Tell me about the Veil. [3] +Solas slightly approves
Investigate: Tell me about demons. [4]
General: Goodbye. [5]

2 - Investigate: Tell me about the Breach. PC: I’d like to know more about the Breach. Solas: Simply put, it is a tear in the Veil between this world and the Fade, allowing spirits to enter the world physically. Small tears occur naturally when magic weakens the Veil or when spirits cluster at an area that has seen many deaths.

Solas (in Haven): But your mark allows you to exert some control over the Breach. That means it was created deliberately. [back to 1] Solas (In-Skyhold, pre-HLTA): But your Anchor, as Corypheus calls it, allows you some control over the Breach. That suggests it was deliberate. [back to 1] Solas (post-HLTA): But the Breach is artificial. The Anchor on your hand let you control it and even opened a small rift at Adamant. [back to 1]

3 - Investigate: Tell me about the Veil. PC: I’d like to know more about the Veil. Solas: Circle mages call it a barrier between this world and the Fade. But according to my studies in ancient elven lore, that is a vast oversimplification. Without it… Imagine if spirits entered freely, if the Fade was not a place one went but a state of nature like the wind.

Dialogue options:

General: That sounds strange. [6] -Solas slightly disapproves
General: That sounds marvelous. [7] +Solas slightly approves
General: That sounds dangerous. [8] -Solas disapproves

6 - General: That sounds strange. PC: I don’t know if I can imagine that. Solas: Try. Imagine if spirits were not a rarity but a part of our natural world like… a fast-flowing river. Yes, it can drown careless children, but it can also carry a merchant’s goods or grind a miller’s flour. That is what the world could be, if the Veil were not present. For better or worse. [back to 1] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 7 - General: That sounds marvelous. PC: It sounds like it would be wonderful. Solas: And dangerous, but… yes. A world where imagination defines reality, where spirits are as common as trees or grass. Instead, spirits are strange and fearful, and the Fade is a terrifying world touched only by mages and dreamers. I am glad that I am not alone in seeing the beauty of such a world, along with the obvious peril. [back to 1] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 8 - General: That sounds dangerous. PC: We’ve got enough trouble with demons already. Solas: But would they still be demons? Or would they be part of our natural environment like… a fast-flowing river? Yes, it can drown careless children, but it can also carry a merchant’s goods or grind a miller’s flour. That is what the world could be, if the Veil were not present. For better or worse. [back to 1]

4 - Investigate: Tell me about demons. PC: I’d like to know more about demons.

Solas (human mage PC): Your Circle says that demons hate the natural world and seek to bring their chaos and destruction to the living. Solas (Dalish PC): Your Dalish say that demons hate the natural world and seek to bring their chaos and destruction to the living. Solas (dwarf/Qunari/human non-mage PC): The Chantry says that demons hate the natural world and seek to bring their chaos and destruction to the living.

Solas: But such simplistic labels misconstrue their motivations and, in so doing, do all a great disservice. Spirits wish to join the living, and a demon is that wish gone wrong.

Dialogue options:

General: I don’t believe that. [9] -Solas slightly disapproves
General: Can we change that? [10] +Solas slightly approves
General: I don’t care. [11] -Solas disapproves

9 - General: I don’t believe that. PC: I doubt those things pouring out of the Breach wanted to join the living. Eat, maybe. ㅤㅤ ㅤ sided templars PC: And what about the demon I fought at the Seeker fortress? Solas (pre-HLTA): Of course demons are destructive. This world is illicit and unnatural for them. They fight to gain entrance, and when the rules of this world do not mirror theirs, they lash out. Tragic, but not evil. Solas (post-HLTA): The one being commanded by Corypheus? If a man set fire to your house, do you lay the blame on the torch he carried? [back to 1] ㅤㅤ ㅤ sided mages, pre-HLTA Solas: Of course demons are destructive. This world is illicit and unnatural for them. They fight to gain entrance, and when the rules of this world do not mirror theirs, they lash out. Tragic, but not evil. [back to 1] ㅤㅤ ㅤ sided mages, post-HLTA PC: And what about the army of demons the Wardens were leading? Solas: As you say, they were being led, commanded, controlled. If a man set fire to your house, do you lay the blame on the torch he carried? [back to 1] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 10 - General: Can we change that? PC: Is there a way to coexist? To live with them, if not in peace, at least without such active confrontation? Solas: Not in the world we know today. The Veil creates a barrier that makes true understanding most unlikely. But the question is a good one, and it matters that you thought to ask. [back to 1] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 11 - General: I don’t care. PC: It doesn’t matter why they attack us. Solas: Of course it does. The dog that bites you because it is rabid is not the dog that bites you because it is starving. You may kill either, but one is just a few scraps of meat away from being your faithful servant. [back to 1]

5 - General: Goodbye. PC: We’ll talk later. Solas: Goodbye.

Tell Me About Yourself

PC: I’d like to know more about you, Solas.

Low approval Solas (conscripted mages): And let slip where I might hide when this is over so your soldiers can drag me back to the Circle in chains? No. Solas (allied templars): And let slip where I might hide when this is over so your templars can hunt down the apostate elf? No. Solas (pre-IHW/CotJ/allied mages/conscripted templars): There is little to tell. What I learned in my studies may help you. My childhood in a village to the north will not.

Solas: The fate of this world depends on you, Inquisitor, and to that end, I offer my aid. But my life is my own. Scene ends.

asked before Solas: All right. What can I tell you? [4]

first time asking, neutral approval or higher Solas: Why?

Dialogue options:

General: I respect you. [1]
General: Do I need a reason? [2] -Solas slightly disapproves
General: I must know I can trust you. [3]

1 - General: I respect you. PC: You’re an apostate, yet you risked your freedom to help the Inquisition. Solas: Not the wisest course of action when framed that way. PC: I appreciate the work you’re doing, Solas. I just wanted to know more about you. Solas: I am sorry. With so much fear in the air… what would you know of me? [4]

2 - General: Do I need a reason? PC: Why not? Solas: Privacy? Caution? Concern about the direction of this Inquisition once our work is done? PC: Then don’t tell me. I wasn’t asking as part of the Inquisition. Solas: I am sorry. With so much fear in the air… what would you know of me? [4]

3 - General: I must know I can trust you. PC: You’re an elven mage. Not from the Circle, not Dalish. You’re an unknown element.

mage PC PC: If I’m to trust a self-taught apostate with my life, I need to know more about him. Solas: I don’t see myself as self-taught… but then, since I have not told you, you’d have no way of knowing that. All right. What can I tell you? [4]

non-mage PC PC: I wouldn’t trust my life to a blade before I’d tested its balance. Solas: Nor would I. All right. What can I tell you? [4]

4 - Dialogue options:

Investigate: Why study the Fade? [5] Investigate: Where have you studied? [6] Investigate: Do you work with anyone? [7] General: Goodbye. [8]

5 - Investigate: Why study the Fade? PC: What made you start studying the Fade? Solas: I grew up in a village to the north. There was little to interest a young man, especially one gifted with magic. But as I slept, spirits of the Fade showed me glimpses of wonders I had never imagined. I treasured my dreams. Being awake, out of the Fade, became troublesome.

Dialogue options:

Special: That sounds dangerous. [9]
[Back to 4]

9 - Special: That sounds dangerous. PC: Did spirits try to tempt you? Solas: No more than a brightly colored fruit is deliberately tempting you to eat it. I learned how to defend myself from more aggressive spirits and how to interact safely with the rest. I learned how to control my dreams with full consciousness. There was so much I wanted to explore.

Dialogue options:

Special: Clearly, you woke up. [10]
[Back to 4]

10 - Special: Clearly, you woke up. PC: I gather you didn’t spend your entire life dreaming. Solas: No, eventually I was unable to find new areas in the Fade. PC: Why? Solas: Two reasons. First, the Fade reflects the world around it. Unless I traveled, I would never find anything new. Second, the Fade reflects and is limited by our imaginations. To find interesting areas, one must be interesting.

11 - Dialogue options:

Investigate: Is that why you’re here? [12] +Solas slightly approves
General: I hope that works. [13]
General: Weird, but good for you. [14] -Solas slightly disapproves
General: That’s unnatural. [15] -Solas disapproves

12 - Investigate: Is that why you’re here? PC: Is this why you joined the Inquisition? Solas: I joined the Inquisition because we were all in terrible danger. ㅤㅤ ㅤ Solas (at Haven): If our enemies destroyed the world, I would have nowhere to lay my head while dreaming of the Fade. [back to 11] ㅤㅤ ㅤ Solas (in Skyhold): If Corypheus destroyed the world, I would have nowhere to lay my head while dreaming of the Fade. ㅤㅤ ㅤ high approval PC: Ah. Solas: Inquisitor… that is why I joined, not why I stayed. [back to 11] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 13 - General: I hope that works. PC: I wish you luck. Solas: Thank you. In truth, I have enjoyed experiencing more of life to find more of the Fade. PC: How so? [16] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 14 - General: Weird, but good for you. PC: Well, it’s not the worst reason I’ve heard to go out and enjoy life. Solas: I am glad to hear it. In truth, I have enjoyed experiencing more of life to find more of the Fade. PC: How so? [16] ㅤㅤ ㅤ 15 - General: That’s unnatural. PC: The only reason you live your life is to be able to see more of the Fade? Solas: Yes. PC: That’s no way to live. [16]

16 - Scene continues.

Solas (warrior PC): You strengthen your body to deliver and withstand punishment. The muscles are an enjoyable side benefit. Solas (rogue PC): You train to flick a dagger or an arrow to its target. The grace with which you move is a pleasing side benefit. Solas (mage PC): You train your will to control magic and withstand possession. Your indomitable focus is an enjoyable side benefit.

Solas: You have chosen a path whose steps you do not dislike because it leads to a destination you enjoy. As have I.

Dialogue options:

Flirt: You like my side benefits? [17]
[Back to 4]

17 - Flirt: You like my side benefits?

warrior PC PC: You find the muscles enjoyable? Solas: I meant that you enjoyed having them, presumably. PC: Ah. Solas: But… yes, since you asked. PC: Hmm. [back to 4]

rogue PC PC: So you’re suggesting I’m graceful? Solas: No, I am declaring it. It was not a subject for debate. PC: Hmm. [back to 4]

mage PC PC: Indomitable focus? Solas: Presumably. I have yet to see it dominated. I imagine that the sight would be… fascinating. PC: Hmm. [back to 4]

6 - Investigate: Where have you studied? PC: You said you’d traveled to many different places. Solas: This world, or its memory, is reflected in the Fade. Dream in ancient ruins, and you may see a city lost to history. Some of my fondest memories were found in crumbling cities long picked dry by treasure seekers. The best are the battlefields. Spirits press so tightly on the Veil that you can slip across with but a thought.

Dialogue options:

Special: Which battlefields? [18] +Solas slightly approves
[Back to 4]

18 - Special: Which battlefields? PC: Anyplace in particular? Solas: I dreamt at Ostagar. I witnessed the brutality of the darkspawn and the valor of the Fereldan warriors. I saw Alistair and the Hero of Ferelden light the signal fire… and Loghain’s infamous betrayal of Cailan’s forces.

Dialogue options:

Special: Tell me what happened! [19]
[Back to 4]

19 - Special: Tell me what happened! PC: I’ve heard the stories. It would be interesting to hear what it was really like. Solas: That’s just it. In the Fade, I see reflections created by spirits who react to the emotions of the warriors. One moment, I see heroic Wardens lighting the fire and a power-mad villain sneering as he lets King Cailan fall. The next, I see an army overwhelmed and a veteran commander refusing to let more soldiers die in a lost cause. PC: And you can’t tell which is real?

pre-HLTA Solas: It is the Fade. They are all real. [back to 4]

during HLTA, Alistair/Loghain is Warden contact Solas: Perhaps Alistair could tell you more, yet even that is just another perspective. Solas: Perhaps Loghain could tell you more, yet even that is just another perspective. [back to 4]

post-HLTA Alistair/Loghain was Warden contact Solas: A pity you did not ask Alistair earlier, yet even that would have been but another perspective. Solas: A pity you did not ask Loghain earlier, yet even that would have been but another perspective. [back to 4]

7 - Investigate: Do you work with anyone? PC: Have you always travelled and studied alone? Solas: Not at all. I have built many lasting friendships. Spirits of wisdom, possessed of ancient knowledge, happy to share what they had seen. Spirits of purpose helped me search. Even wisps, curious and playful, would point out treasures I might have missed.

20 - Dialogue options:

Investigate: Wisdom and Purpose? [21] +Solas slightly approves
General: That’s amazing. [22] +Solas slightly approves
General: Can they be your friends? [23]
General: Spirits are not your friends. [24] -Solas disapproves

21 - Investigate: Wisdom and Purpose? PC: I don’t know of any spirits by those names. Solas: They rarely seek this world. When they do, their natures do not often survive exposure to the people they encounter. Wisdom and purpose are too easily twisted to pride and desire.

Dialogue options:

Special: Those are demon names. [25]
[Back to 20]

25 - Special: Those are demon names. PC: You’re saying that you became friends with pride and desire demons? Solas: They were not demons for me. PC: Meaning? Solas: The Fade reflects the minds of the living. If you expect a spirit of wisdom to be a pride demon, it will adapt. And if your mind is free of corrupting influences? If you understand the nature of the spirit? They can be fast friends. [back to 20]

22 - General: That’s amazing. PC: I’m impressed that you could become friends with spirits. Solas: Anyone who can dream has the potential. Few ever try. My friends comforted me in grief and shared my joy. Yet because they exist without form as we understand it, the Chantry declares that spirits are not truly people. [26]

23 - General: Can they be your friends? PC: You trust these spirits not to possess you the first time you accidentally make a wish? Solas: Do you trust your friends not to turn on you? PC: Well, yes, but they’re people. Solas: Ah, of course. PC: You know what I mean. Solas: Are people only people because they are flesh and blood? [26]

24 - General: Spirits are not your friends. PC: When I asked if you were with anyone, I meant other people. Solas: Ah. “People,” as opposed to spirits. We are flesh and blood, so we are real. [26]

26 - Scene continues.

Solas: Is Cassandra defined by her cheekbones and not her faith? Varric by his chest hair and not his wit?

Dialogue options:

General: Yes. Spirits are people. [27] +Solas approves
General: You need a body to be real. [28] -Solas slightly disapproves
General: Spirits lack free will. [29] -Solas slightly disapproves
General: I’m not arguing this. [30] -Solas disapproves
Flirt: I enjoy getting to know you. [31] +Solas slightly approves

27 - General: Yes. Spirits are people. PC: I hadn’t thought about it that way, but I see your point. Solas: I… thank you. Few are willing to entertain such a notion. [back to 4]

28 - General: You need a body to be real. PC: They’re not defined by their bodies, but they do have bodies. You need one to be a person. Solas: A demon possessing a corpse has a body. PC: A living body. Solas: A demon possesses a living mage to become an abomination. PC: They didn’t make that body. They just took it over. Solas: Technically your mother created your body, with some help from your father, one assumes. PC: You’ve thought about this. Solas: On occasion, yes. [back to 4]

29 - General: Spirits lack free will. PC: Spirits are bound by their nature. You said it yourself. They’re shaped by contact with real people. Solas: Just as Leliana was shaped by contact with Divine Justinia, as those who serve the Inquisition are shaped by you. If I change your mind in this conversation, does that mean you’re no more real than a spirit? PC: You’ve thought about this. Solas: On occasion, yes. [back to 4]

30 - General: I’m not arguing this. PC: I’m certain you have some rhetorical trick ready to counter anything I say. Solas: It’s likely. I’ve had a lot of time to discuss the question with people. Or “spirits,” if you prefer. [back to 4]

31 - Flirt: I enjoy getting to know you. PC: You have an interesting way of looking at the world, Solas. Solas: I try… and that isn’t quite an answer. PC: I look forward to helping you make new friends. Solas: That should be… well. Herald: That isn’t quite an answer, either. [back to 4]

8 - General: Goodbye. PC: We’ll talk later. Solas: Goodbye.

Tell Me About Your Journeys

Positive approval, skyhold only

PC: I’d like to hear more about what you saw in your exploration of the Fade.

Solas: I would be happy to share it with you.

1 - Dialogue options:

General: Tell me about spirits. [2] +Solas slightly approves
General: Tell me about old ruins. [3] +Solas slightly approves
General: Tell me about old memories. [4] +Solas slightly approves
General: Goodbye.

2 - General: Tell me about spirits. PC: Tell me about a spirit you encountered.

Solas: I met a friendly spirit who observed the dreams of village girls as love first blossomed in their adolescence. With subtlety, she steered them all to village boys with gentle hearts who would return their love with gentle kindness. The Matchmaker, so I called her. That small village never knew its luck. [back to 1] ㅤㅤ ㅤ
Solas: The Alamarri crossed the Frostback Mountains to escape a beast they called the shadow goddess in their stories. I met the spirit that they fled. She walks the Fade along the southern tundra, weeping, lonely, and forgotten. Great Ferelden formed because a lonely spirit drove her prey away. [back to 1] ㅤㅤ ㅤ
Solas: I found an ancient spirit who had once been undisputed king of almost every land I had discovered. Like pride or rage, it was the Fade’s reflection of a feeling. When I asked which one it was, the spirit faltered. “They’ve forgotten,” said the spirit. “There remains no word for what I was.” [back to 1]

3 - General: Tell me about old ruins. PC: Tell me about the old ruins you explored.

Solas: I found the ruin of Barindur, a lost Tevinter city buried deep beneath a dead and barren wasteland. Volcanic ash had sealed it tight. In one dark moment, every living creature in the city seared and smothered. They were statues in the ashes, like a mold made to recall the lost. [back to 1] ㅤㅤ ㅤ
Solas: I found an ancient dwarven thaig no longer sheltered by the stone. An earthquake had exposed it all to daylight. A thousand dwarven corpses lay, the victims of a darkspawn horde, their last stand marked by one great ring of armor. In the middle, one small body, clutching tightly to a small stuffed toy. [back to 1] ㅤㅤ ㅤ
Solas: I found in the Korcari Wilds a humble cottage far removed from any of the simple Chasind tribesmen. The trees and weeds had not reclaimed the home nor did the Chasind dare to come and steal the trinkets still remaining. It was empty, long abandoned, but the world feared that she might return. [back to 1]

4 - General: Tell me about old memories. PC: Tell me about the old memories you found in the Fade.

Solas: I saw a savage human horde go marching toward the battlefront. They sang a soldier’s hymn to keep formation. The primal music shook the ground. These savage unwashed warriors carried harmonies no Chantry choir has mastered. Though their cause was all but hopeless, they sang songs that made the spirits weep. [back to 1] ㅤㅤ ㅤ
Solas: I saw a dwarf emerge into the light of day and shield his eyes against the sun, the first time he had seen it. The tears were streaming from his eyes. I thought them from the blazing light until I saw the rock he held so tightly. Then he laid the rock down gently, and he left it as he walked away. [back to 1] ㅤㅤ ㅤ
Solas: I saw a young Qunari working in a simple kitchen, baking bread as she was ordered every morning. In every loaf she broke the rules. She’d take a pinch of sugar and would fold it to the center, like a secret. And this act of small rebellion brought a shining smile across her face. [back to 1]

General: Goodbye. PC: We’ll talk later. Solas: Goodbye.

After exhausting all of Solas’s stories Solas: I think I have shared everything of note. I should spend some time encountering more stories.

Tell Me About Corypheus

PC: I need to know more about Corypheus.

if asked before Solas: Ask. I will give what council I can. [5]

first time asking Solas: We spoke of this on our travels to Skyhold. What more can I tell you? Cassandra and Varric seem more familiar with our adversary.

Dialogue options:

General: I respect you. [1]
General: I’ll ask them, too. [2] -Solas slightly disapproves
General: I’m asking you. [3] +Solas slightly approves

1 - General: I respect you. PC: You’ve given me good counsel before. I could use some now. Solas: My apologies, Inquisitor. My poor manners shame me. [4]

2 - General: I’ll ask them, too. PC: Oh, I’ll take advice from just about anyone right now. Solas: I’m flattered. [4]

3 - General: I’m asking you. PC: You’re a mage, you studied the Breach, and you seem to have some idea how a bastard like this might think. Solas: I’m flattered. [4]

4 - Scene continues.

Solas: I claim no secret wisdom, but I will guess as best I can. [5]

5 - Dialogue options:

Investigate: Tell me about his orb. [6]
Investigate: What will he do next? [7]
Investigate: What is his power base? [8]
General: Goodbye. [9]

6 - Investigate: Tell me about his orb. PC: I would like to know more about the orb he carries. Solas: As I said, that must be the means by which he created the Breach. I suspect the blast that destroyed the Conclave was more accident than anything… The result of unlocking power that had sought release for ages.

Solas (pre-WPHW): What I cannot understand is how he managed to survive such an explosion. Solas (post-WPHW): I had wondered how Corypheus survived the blast, until we saw his abilities at the temple of Mythal.

Dialogue options:

Special: The orb is elven? [10]
[Back to 5]

10 - Special: The orb is elven? PC: You said that you believed the orb is elven? Solas: I never would have believed a Tevinter mage could unlock such a powerful relic. It clearly enhances his abilities, giving him access to power he should never have known. PC: Like the power to control the Archdemon? Solas: Indirectly, one assumes. Nothing in any lore connects my people to the Old God dragons who became Archdemons. [back to 5]

7 - Investigate: What will he do next? PC: What do you think Corypheus will do next?

post-IYHSB Solas: You shamed him when you destroyed Haven. It spoiled his glorious victory. It would be worse to acknowledge that you had done so. He must continue on his course or show weakness. He will return to his plans to throw Orlais into chaos and then conquer it for Tevinter.

post-HLTA Solas: You’ve taken his army. He lacks the conventional forces to take Orlais. He must see Orlais destroyed utterly by whatever means possible, not merely thrown into chaos.

post-WEWH Solas: Although you have ended the battle in Orlais, it will take the country some time to recover. Corypheus faces a decision: accelerate his plan to gain power, or abandon his dream of conquering Orlais—for now. He will never abandon his dream.

post-WEWH and HLTA Solas: He has lost his army, and he has lost Orlais. That eliminates military or political means to rebuild Tevinter. He will need to demonstrate that no one in this world can stand against his magic. It will not be subtle.

post-WPHW Solas: You have waylaid all his other plans. Now, as a petulant child, he will destroy the game board rather than admit defeat. Be ready for anything. He still believes himself a god, and gods do not fall gracefully.

Dialogue options:

Special: You’re certain? [11]
[Back to 5]

11 - Special: You’re certain? PC: You’re sure that’s what he’ll do? Solas: As certain as is possible, assuming I can plausibly predict a man who seeks to rise to godhood. PC: And can you? Solas: The key is understanding this: no real god need prove himself. Anyone who tries is mad or lying. His deception will undo him, as it has done countless fools before. [back to 5]

8 - Investigate: What is his power base? PC: What can you tell me about the source of Corypheus’s power? Solas: According to the lore, the ancient magisters of Tevinter received guidance from the Old Gods. Corypheus commands a false Archdemon—a corrupted Old God. This suggests he no longer sees himself as their minion. Some of his unique power comes from the corruption of the Blight. The rest may come from the orb he carries. [back to 5]

9 - General: Goodbye. PC: We’ll talk later. Solas: Goodbye.