The Veilguard's faction leaders. While the information on its own is enough to fuel more discussion, the implications are far-reaching depending on one key story moment.
[Warning: This article contains spoilers for Dragon Age: The Veilguard.]
The codex has always been a core part of the Dragon Age series, adding context and extra information about the vast fantasy world of Thedas. Hidden within the codex entries in Dragon Age: The Veilguard are companion discussions and relationships, vital knowledge about enemies, and background details about key characters. Diving deep into the codex can often reveal a treasure trove of information that helps Thedas feel like a living breathing world, beyond what is seen in cut scenes and missions.
The Viper Is The Black Divine
Cut Content Confirms Ashur’s True Identity
There’s nothing quite like hunting for evidence to a theory, only to find confirmation. That’s exactly what happened to X amirdrassil when they wanted to find proof that the Viper is the head of the Imperial Chantry. While there are codex entries that hint at the possibility of Ashur’s true identity, hidden in cut dialogue is explicit proof that the Viper is the Black Divine. The dialogue seems to be a discussion about Ashur leaving his mark on a Chantry with an unknown character saying: “There's something funny about the Black Divine tagging a Chantry.”
Who Or What Is The Black Divine
The Chantry In Thedas Is Split Into Two Opposing Factions
Religion has always played a key part in Dragon Age, with the beliefs of the Chantry dictating much of Ferelden culture and attitudes, as seen with the treatment of elves and mages in Dragon Age: Origins. While Dragon Age 2 continued to expand the lore, the politics of the Chantry were explored wonderfully in Dragon Age: Inquisition. Within the world of Thedas, the Chantry is split into two factions with the main Chantry holding power in Orlais with a female Divine, and the Tevinter Imperium having their own version in Minrathous with a male Divine.
There is a codex entry named "Different Flavors of Andraste" that can be found in The Veilguard’s Dwarven People section where Harding explains the differences between the two Divines to Taash. In it, Harding breaks the differences down into simple areas for Taash, such as leaders, the seat of power, and the two Chantries views of magic. The entry serves to outline that the Imperial Chantry is in many ways the opposite of the main Andrastian faith.
Examples of this are that in the Imperial Chantry, the Black Divine is voted on and candidates are drawn from within the ranks of the Magisterium. Because of this, the Black Divine operates simultaneously as the head of the church and the Grand Enchanter of Tevinter, making them an incredibly powerful figure within the Imperium. Understanding this helps shed some light on why the Venatori’s efforts to discover the Viper’s true identity were so crucial to them.
All Evidence That The Viper Is The Black Divine
Codex Entries & Notes Offer Vital Hints
There are hints dropped throughout Dragon Age: The Veilguard that point to the Viper, or Ashur, being someone high-ranking within Tevinter. A codex entry named “Neve's Case Notes: Maevaris Tilani” details Neve's thoughts about the Shadow Dragon's leadership prior to ing. In her notes, Neve speaks about Dorian and Maevaris but also mentions a highborn Tevinter family, the Vesperians, and their youngest son, who recently succeeded the previous Black Divine and became the new Imperial Divine.
Who Are The Venatori In Dragon Age: The Veilguard?
The Venatori play a relatively minor role in Dragon Age: The Veilguard, but understanding their machinations is central to the game’s plot.
With the Vesperians having links to the Lucerni and Shadow Dragons, it's little wonder that the Venatori also began to look into the family. A note that can be found during the quest "The Tempered Soul, Everlasting" from Magister Bataris also mentions the Vesperians and directly links them to the Viper. It seems from this note that the Venatori suspect that Ashur is the new Black Divine, Aequitas II, but that they seek hard evidence to disgrace the family. This note will not appear in the codex and is only available to view during the quest.
The Viper will only be captured by Venatori if he is blighted during the dragon attack if Rook chooses to save Treviso instead of Minrathous.
During the same quest the Viper is being held by Venatori, the enemies can be heard making comments that killing him at the Temple of Andraste would "suit him". This seems to indicate that although they do not have enough proof to take to the Magisterium, the Venatori are confident in the Viper's true identity. The final piece of proof in-game comes from ambient dialogue between Ashur and Tarquin, where the templar asks for assistance with Knight-Commander Lenos, noting that Lenos answers to the Chantry.
One Choice Could Spell Disaster For Tevinter’s Chantry
An Early Game Decision Means A Very Different Path For The Viper
The real identity of the Shadow Dragon’s leader would be interesting enough on its own. However, one early choice in The Veilguard means that disaster could be on the horizon for the Imperial Chantry and Tevinter. If Rook chooses to aid Treviso during the dragon attacks, leaving Minrathous and the Shadow Dragons to fend for themselves, then the Viper will become blighted. Arriving after the attacks have ended, Rook can learn from Tarquin and Ashur, that the latter attempted to defend a safehouse from Darkspawn, becoming infected with the Blight in the process.
This would have been fun to explore in more detail should the Viper’s identity have been revealed in game. Cut content suggests that it would have been known to at least some characters, with Tarquin and Neve being the most obvious candidates. Having a quest surrounding a Blighted Viper attempting to protect his family or their position would have been an interesting look at Tevinter politics.
Another codex entry from Neve is a note from the Viper inviting Neve to the Shadow Dragons. In it, she analyzes his handwriting, picking up on his expensive schooling, hinting that she would have looked into his identity.
In this timeline of events, the Black Divine, head of the Imperial Chantry and Grand Enchanter of the Tevinter College of Magi, is dying from the Blight. The Viper can even die on screen during the final battle for Minrathous if proper preparations have not been made. Undoubtedly, that would create issues long after this would cause serious ripples throughout Tevinter and beyond the events of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, and it would have been nice to have had these explored a little more in-game.
Source: amirdrassil/X (Twitter)
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ // Blood, Nudity, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- BioWare
- Engine
- Frostbite
- Franchise
- Dragon Age
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X
