Summary
- Dragon Age: The Veilguard introduces the mortalitasi faction, rooted in Nevarra's unique necromantic culture and the Grand Necropolis.
- The Mourn Watch, guardians of the Grand Necropolis, monitor disturbances like corpse possession and funeral rites in Dragon Age.
- The upcoming game will prominently feature the mortalitasi, a new and intriguing faction in the Dragon Age series.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard brings a slew of factions that are making their debut thanks to the game's focus on the North. One of the new factions is the Mourn Watch, which have their roots in the mortalitasi of Nevarra. Nevarra is a central kingdom in Thedas located just south of Tevinter, and is considered a rising power in Thedas. It's also home to the mortalitasi, a unique order of mages who specialize in necromancy. The mortalitasi, or death mages, are central to Nevarran culture, and the Grand Necropolis in Nevarra City is a monument to the importance its citizens place on the dead.
The mortalitasi had never been a prominent faction in Thedas before Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Cassandra's family, as royals, include prominent members of the Mourn Watch, and her uncle was the prelate of the mortalitasi. With Emmrich's presence as a companion, and the option for Rook to be a member of the Mourn Watch, there's a high chance that the mortalitasi and perhaps even the Grand Necropolis will feature in Dragon Age: The Veilguard.
The Lore of the Mortalitasi in Dragon Age
The mortalitasi are little understood outside Nevarra, as necromancy is widely considered taboo. Death in Nevarra is viewed differently to the rest of Thedas, and this extends to their view on necromancy. Nevarrans believe that when a person dies, their soul crosses the Fade and displaces a spirit. The mortalitasi invite the displaced spirit into the body of the recently deceased as an alternative home. Wealthy Nevarrans pay mortalitasi to mummify their bodies and store them in the Grand Necropolis.
Some spirits that possess the bodies of the deceased become concerned with the life the body that hosts them once led. These spirits become confused, and can even take on the identity of their host, unaware that they're spirits. Mortalitasi work to guide these spirits to resolve the problems that trouble them, so that they may return to their true nature and identity.
The Mortalitasi in Dragon Age: The Veilguard
The Mourn Watch, which is the faction that mage companion Emmrich belongs to and is a possible faction the player character, Rook, can join, are the guardians and caretakers of the Grand Necropolis. The Mourn Watch deals with anything that goes awry within its halls, such as corpse possession or disturbed funeral rites. As Rook can join any faction no matter the class in Dragon Age: The Veilguard, it's likely the Mourn Watch are comprised of both mages and non-mages.
The Mortalitasi Debut in the Dragon Age Games
Dragon Age: The Veilguard will be the first Dragon Age game in the series to prominently feature the mortalitasi. While Dorian specialized in necromancy in Dragon Age: Inquisition, he can't be considered a mortalitasi. The only mortalitasi NPC that has appeared in the games is the Necromancer specialization trainer in Dragon Age: Inquisition, who comes from Nevarra to train the Inquisitor. The mortalitasi had a far larger presence in Tevinter Nights, where the short story Down Among the Dead primarily takes place within the Grand Necropolis, and is told from the perspective of a mortalitasi.
Another unnamed mortalitasi is depicted in the story Dread Wolf Take You at the meeting of spies to collate information on Solas. She describes how the Dread Wolf threatened her to no longer bind spirits, and clearly didn't take his threat seriously as she had bound a wisp to her spoon to stir her tea. Solas kills her at the meeting, then frees the wisp.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 80 /100 Critics Rec: 71%
- Released
- October 31, 2024
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ // Blood, Nudity, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- BioWare
- Publisher(s)
- Electronic Arts
WHERE TO PLAY
Enter the world of Thedas, a vibrant land of rugged wilderness, treacherous labyrinths, and glittering cities – steeped in conflict and secret magics. Now, a pair of corrupt ancient gods have broken free from centuries of darkness and are hellbent on destroying the world.
Thedas needs someone they can count on. Rise as Rook, Dragon Age’s newest hero. Be who you want to be and play how you want to play as you fight to stop the gods from blighting the world. But you can’t do this alone – the odds are stacked against you. Lead a team of seven companions, each with their own rich story to discover and shape, and together you will become The Veilguard.
- Franchise
- Dragon Age
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X
- Genre(s)
- RPG
