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Dragon Ageis a gem among video game franchises, with one of its winning facets being the rich and complex lore that is the basis for its expansive world. The Elvhen are a mystifying race in the game, more so when it comes to deific figureslike the Evanuris. But there are other, less well-known figures within the Elvhen pantheon, one of them being the Forgotten Ones.
Although they are hardly spoken of nor mentioned in any of the Dragon Age games thus far, there are still some things we can glean from these mysterious aspects of Elvhen lore. So if you’re keen to learn more about the Forgotten Ones, then you’ve come to the right place.
Who Are The Forgotten Ones?
As mentioned before, there is not much we know about the Forgotten Ones andwhat is known about them is only provided through Dalish legends. According to those legends, the Forgotten Ones were said to have been many, but of all of them, the names of only three are known:Anaris, Geldauran, and Daern’thal.
Unlike the much-lauded Evanuris,the Forgotten Ones are the malicious opposites ofthe Elvhen gods, beings that represent terror, disease, death, and all the bad things that you’re able to think of. Based onFen’Harel’s (or Solas')codex entry in Inquisition, the Elvhen God of Rebellion was said to have been able to cosy up to both the Evanuris and the Forgotten Ones,to the point the latter saw him as ‘one of their own’.
Eventually, in the dying days of Arlathan, Fen’Harel used his power to form the Veil, imprisoning the Evanuris in the Fadewhile casting the Forgotten Ones into the abyss (also known as the Void).
Just as with the Evanuris, worship of the Forgotten Ones continued long after the fall of Arlathan. Due to the fact they appear to be the boogeymen of Elvhen lore,worship of the Forgotten Ones was deemed illegal during the era of the elven Dales, but the practice continued in secret even to the original timeline of Inquisition,with a cult noted to be residing in the Tirashan Forest in Orlais.
Those who are worshippers of the Forgotten Ones are marked by the crimson vallaslin they wear, and according to an encounter noted in Dragon Age: The Last Court,offer their enemies' lives as living sacrifices.
Anaris
There’s more information about Anaris than the other two Forgotten Ones, including a tale brought up by Felassan to Briala in the book, The Masked Empire.
According to Felassan’s tale,Fen’Harel had fallen foul of both Anaris and the Elvhen Goddess of the Hunt, Andruil. Andruil captured Fen’Harel for hunting halla without her permission and sentenced him to sleep with her for “a year and a day”.
This is when Anaris comes into the picture,demanding retribution for the crimes Fen’Harel committed against his kin. This implies that the situation must have soured between the Forgotten Ones and Fen’Harel even before the Veil was created,but there has been no confirmation as to what ‘crimes’ Anaris was referring to.
As usual, Fen’Harel used his silver tongue and penchant for trickery to deceive both parties, causing them to injure one another and allow the Wolf God to slip away unharmed.
In Dragon Age: Veilguard, Anaris appears for the first time as one of the game’s villains, attempting to create an army of demons from the elves of Arlathan Forest and is the final boss for one of the quests.
Geldauran
Less is known about Geldauran, but there is acodex entry in Inquisition that gives some light to this being’s character and motivations. Found in the Frostback Basin during the Jaws of Hakkon DLC is an ancient elvhen script that introduces Geldauran. It not onlyproclaims their hatred for the Evanuris but seemingly rejects their attempt to dominate them, stating that they ‘refuse those who would exert will upon me’.
The script continueswith Geldauran touting that the Evanuris' pride will be their downfall, which ends up being true. The last line seems to imply thatGeldauran is completely fine with being ‘forgotten’, as that’s how they would rise to the top and triumph.
There is no further mention of Geldauran,but there is next to zero information on Daern’thal.
What Is True And What Is Not?
As Solas has repeatedly mentioned throughout Inquisition and later proven in the Trespasser DLC,the Dalish legends are inaccurate. However, we can infer thatif Solas locked away the Forgotten Ones as well, then it meant they were as bad, if not worse, than the Evanuris.
As mentioned previously, Felassan told a legend about Anaris, Andruil, and Fen’Harel. In The Masked Empire,Felassan is noted to be different from bothCity and Dalish Elves, with a breadth of knowledge of magic that far surpasses any Dalish Keeper and would reminisce about Arlathan as if he were there. It turns out, at the end of the book,he was a long-time ally of Fen’Harel, who killed him for refusing to give up the passcode for the Eluvian network.
This suggests thatFelassan was an immortal Elvhenand might have been present or heard the story of Anaris and Fen’Harel from Solas himself. Although Felassan’s tale might have been either exaggerated or glossed over in some parts for his audience,we can believe his account more than the Dalish legends.
However, we can only hopethat future Dragon Age instalments will shed more light on the true nature of the Forgotten Onesand their connection to the Evanuris, as well as the reason why they were also locked away.
