Summary
One ofBioWare’s methods of promotingDragon Age: The Veilguardis through a podcast, Dragon Age: Vows & Vengeance. The podcast has released four episodes so far, and the general premise is the main character Nadia encounters one or more of The Veilguard’s companions every week, ‘Avengers Assemble’ Dragon Age-style.
The podcast is written by Will Melton and Jeremy Novick, two freelance writers, with oversight from BioWare’s Mary DeMarle and John Epler. There aremixed opinions about the podcastwithin the fandom, some of the storytelling is mind-numbingly predictable, and the character work is questionable at times, but the writing also sets scenes quite well, transporting your mind directly to Thedas.
Dragon Age, not Drake Age
However, some discerning lore buffs have spotted a couple of lore inconsistencies. Juniperandjawbones made a post onRedditpointing out one such issue, calling it a “retcon.” It concerns Taash, The Veilguard’s resident dragon-hunting Qunari. Taash points out a dragon’s lair to one of the other characters Drayden, and calls the dragon a ‘she’. When Drayden asks how Taash knows the dragon is female, Taash highlights “the ridges and colouration of her spine.” For context, in the episode, a dragon flies in and attacks a community of Qunari.
The thing is, in Dragon Age lore, dragons that fly are exclusively female. Male dragons never grow wings and are generally referred to as drakes. As a seasoned dragon hunter, Taash and Drayden (as a scholar) would most likely know that flight alone marks a dragon as a female. This has resulted in some humorous comments that suggest Taash doesn’t know much about dragons, despite her profession. While that could be true, it seems unlikely.
While the original poster suggests this is a retcon, the more likely answer is that it’s a lore inconsistency that slipped through the cracks. In an earlier episode, Lace Harding prays to and then thanks the Stone, common expressions among Dwarves from Orzammar who venerate the Stone as a living entity and guiding force. However, Harding is a surface Dwarf from Ferelden, with only a tenuous connection to Orzammar that goes several generations back.
As surface Dwarves aren’t even allowed to return to Orzammar, it’s very unlikely that Harding would adopt these mannerisms. If religious at all, Harding is probably an Andrastian like her fellow Fereldans. It’s another aspect of Vows & Vengeance that, while technically possible, would be out of character.
In the past, there have been similar lore-related complaints made about Last Flight, a 2014 novel that has some inconsistencies, like a character holding the title of Champion of Kirkwall when Hawke is supposedly the first person to hold that title.
When it comes to lore, nothing gets past the Dragon Age community.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
WHERE TO PLAY
Dragon Age: The Veilguard is the long-awaited fourth game in the fantasy RPG series from BioWare formerly known as Dragon Age: Dreadwolf. A direct sequel to Inquisition, it focuses on red lyrium and Solas, the aforementioned Dread Wolf.
