Prologue

This is a plot summary for the original game, Dragon Age: Origins by the game designer BioWare. You can also check out the Wiki, though getting the details from the Wiki is a bit tough.

For the sake of this summary, I will only describe the human origin in detail. In game you can choose to be an elf, a dwarf, or a mage with a variety of options, but the human origin is the central one to this story. I will explain the other backgrounds very briefly in case those characters show up later.

Thedas is a world with many countries and peoples. Magic and dragons exist, but technology does not. Dwarves generally live underground in Orzammar, the final remaining dwarven city. Qunari, which are very large humanoids, are a war-like society that live in the north of Thedas. Humans and elves are spread over much of the continent, divided into several countries which are vaguely based on certain countries of Earth – for example, Orlais is much like medieval France, while Antiva seems much like Italy with possibly some Spanish thrown in. The story takes place in Ferelden, a medium-sized country populated mainly by humans and elves, modeled slightly after 16th Century England.

Approximately thirty years ago, Ferelden freed itself from Orlesian occupation which had lasted centuries in a bloody revolution. The revolution was led by King Maric, and his general, Loghain MacTir. After centuries of servitude to the Orlesians, many Fereldans still hate and fear Orlais, despite the thirty years of peace. Relations are strained, at best, and Orlesians within Ferelden's borders are generally despised. Ferelden is now ruled by Maric's son, King Cailan, after Maric's death. Cailan is married to Anora, Loghain's daughter. Next to the King in the hierarchy of nobility are the Teyrns, Bryce Cousland in Highever and Loghain MacTir in Gwaren. The next tier are the Arls, some of whom are vassals of the Teyrns, followed by the Banns, who report to an Arl. Humans are full citizens in Ferelden, whereas elves are seen as second-class or servants. They are forbidden to bear arms, and generally forced to live in Alienages – little more than slums – within the major cities. Some elves, known as the Dalish, live in clans in the wilderness, preferring avoidance of all humans. Slavery is outlawed in Ferelden, but many elves live lives of unrecognized slavery to their human employers.

Mages are the special case. In most of the countries, with the exception of the Tevinter Imperium, mages are treated as though they are cursed. Because of their magical abilities, mages who are weak of will can be victimized by demons and become abominations – no longer human, extremely powerful, dangerous, psychotic creatures. They can also use blood magic, if they learn it, a powerful school of magic that allows them to use blood to channel dangerous spells. Blood magic has been banned everywhere except in Tevinter. Because of these risks, and because of the long history of abuse of power in the Tevinter Imperium, mages are feared. They are rounded up as children, when they first show signs of magical ability, and raised inside the Circle of Magi for whichever country they live in. They are guarded by templars, who have some resistance to magic, whose jobs are to slay any mages who become abominations. To many mages, the Circles are little more than prisons. There are many stories of abuse at the hands of templars. The Qunari even collar their mages, treating them as little more than animals, less than slaves.

Mages outside the Circles are considered apostates. Apostates are hunted, throughout much of Thedas, for fear of what they could become. The exception to this is the Tevinter Imperium. Many centuries past, the Imperium covered much of Thedas. Run by powerful mages, built upon the backs of thousands of slaves, the Imperium ruled for generations. They worshipped the 'Old Gods', powerful creatures which looked much like dragons, until the slaves and those abused by the powerful rebelled, led by a woman called Andraste. Felt to be the human bride of the Maker, a deity who was felt to have abandoned Thedas to wickedness, Andraste led a revolution that crippled Tevinter. She was betrayed in the end by her human husband, who was jealous of her relationship with the Maker, and burned at the stake. Despite this, with Tevinter in flames, a religion was born that worshipped the Maker and Andraste as his prophet. One of the founding tenets of the Chantry (church) was that magic was meant to serve man, never to rule over him. And as such, the templars were formed as the weapon of the Chantry. However, in Tevinter, mages continue to rule, and the templar order is felt to be a colossal joke.

Over a thousand years ago, mages from the Tevinter Imperium tried to take over the Golden City (sort of like heaven, the seat of the Maker). They corrupted it with their sin and were cast out, tainted themselves, to become the first darkspawn. The darkspawn, more monster than man, could hear the songs of the Old Gods, and became compelled to find the Old Gods where they were buried deep beneath the surface. When an Old God was found, it would become tainted by the creatures which found it, and rise as an Archdemon. The Archdemon could control the darkspawn, which were otherwise largely mindless killing machines, and it would lead wave upon wave of monsters to the surface to wage war. When this happened, it was known as a Blight. The creatures tainted the very ground that they touched, leaving it barren.

The first blight rampaged for years as the combined armies of Thedas attempted to quell it. It wasn't until the Order known as the Grey Wardens arose and killed the Archdemon that the blight could be ended, and it left a wasteland behind. Sworn to defend against the next Blight, the Grey Wardens were hailed as heroes. When the second, third, and fourth blights arose, the Grey Wardens were there to end it. The fourth blight was four hundred years ago. The Grey Wardens have become legends, largely forgotten to gather dust, and all but died out in Ferelden after a disastrous foray into Fereldan politics. Only in the past twenty years were Wardens allowed back in.

The story starts with Aedan Cousland, the youngest child of the Teyrn of Highever, Bryce Cousland, and his wife Eleanor.

Aedan enters the main hall of Highever Castle, to find his father chatting with Arl Rendon Howe, one of his father's vassals. They are discussing an upcoming battle, to which they are both sending men at the behest of King Cailan. A horde of darkspawn have surfaced in the very south of Ferelden, and King Cailan plans to meet them in battle at Ostagar, a Tevinter ruin, deep in the swamps known as the Korcari Wilds. Arl Howe's men have been delayed, so Bryce plans to send his own men on ahead, and march the following day once Howe's men arrive. Duncan, the Commander of the Ferelden Grey Wardens, is a guest at the castle and is introduced. He explains that he is looking for recruits for the Grey Wardens, and is considering one of the knights. Bryce informs Aedan that he will be staying behind to run the castle while his father and older brother, Fergus, march to Ostagar.

Bryce requests Aedan to find his older brother, and Aedan leaves the hall. After a detour to get his dog, Prince, a warhound, out of the pantry where he was fighting giant rats, Aedan heads towards his brother's quarters. He meets his mother, Eleanor, and some of her guests on the way, before continuing to find Fergus talking with Orianna, his wife, and Oren, his son. Soon joined by Bryce and Eleanor, the family say their good-byes, Fergus marches out with most of Highever's soldiers and knights, and Aedan goes to bed.

Aedan wakes to Prince barking and the sound of battle. He dons his armour and arms himself before opening his bedroom door to find soldiers attempting to kill him. His mother shows up, and they realise that they are being attacked by the soldiers of Arl Howe who had supposedly been delayed. They find Orianna and Oren slaughtered in cold blood. Eleanor and Aedan fight their way through the castle to the main hall where the few remaining loyal soldiers are attempting to hold the gates. Unable to find Bryce, they leave the soldiers to die and head to the larder where there is a secret escape passage. There they find a mortally wounded Bryce and Duncan. Duncan agrees to help Aedan escape in return for conscripting him to become a Grey Warden, and Eleanor stays behind to defend the passage for as long as possible. Aedan does not want to leave, but he grants his parents their last wish, that he survive and carry news of Arl Howe's betrayal to Cailan at Ostagar.

Elsewhere in Ferelden:

An elf, from the Alienage in Denerim (the capital city of Ferelden) is preparing for his wedding to a complete stranger. During the ceremony, a young nobleman enters the Alienage and kidnaps both brides and several other female elves, intending to have a party with his friends and rape the young women. The two grooms break into the nobleman's estate, killing his guards, gravely injuring the nobleman, and attempting to rescue the women, though one has been killed, and one has already been abused. One of the brides dies during the escape attempt. Back in the Alienage, the guards come for the young men for the attack on the nobleman, and one of the elves, named Darrien Tabris, takes responsibility for the attack. He and Soris, the other groom, are arrested and thrown in the dungeon of the nobleman's estate.

Another elf, a Dalish, is hunting with his friend Tamlen through the forest. They come across three humans, who they attempt to scare away, when the humans admit they found treasure in a nearby cave which held ruins. Deciding to explore, Theron Mahariel and Tamlen find the cave with the ruins. Fighting their way through many undead creatures, they eventually come across an enormous mirror. Tamlen, entranced, touches the mirror. There is an explosion. When Theron awakes, Tamlen is gone, and Theron is ill. His Keeper – a mage, and the leader of his clan named Marethari – tries to heal him, but he slowly sickens and eventually turns into a ghoul, having to be slain by members of his clan.

A dwarf Princess named Sereda Aeducan is preparing to go on a mission into the Deep Roads, darkspawn-infested passageways originally built by dwarves to connect various dwarven cities. Second in line for the throne, she is well-loved by the people, and hated by her older brother, Trian, the heir to the Dwarven throne. Her lover Gorim, a warrior loyal to her family, helps her prepare. She runs into her younger brother, Bhelen, who informs her that Trian intends to set an ambush and have her killed over fears that she will take his throne. Ignoring the warning, she enters the Deep Roads and recovers the artifact she was sent to find. On her way back, she comes across the body of her older brother, Trian, who has been recently slain. Running to his side, she ends up covered in his blood and holding the weapon which killed him when Bhelen arrives with his father, the King, in tow. Bhelen convinces the King that Sereda killed her brother to take his throne. In response, Gorim is banished to the surface, while Sereda is sent alone into the Deep Roads to be killed by darkspawn.

Another dwarf, Faren Brosca, is a Casteless employee of the Carta (gang) in Dust Town, the slums of Orzammar. Sent to ensure that his boss' favoured fighter wins in the Proving, a gladiatorial arena, Faren discovers that said fighter is passed-out drunk and unable to fight. Knowing he and his family will be killed by the carta if he fails, he impersonates the fighter and wins the Proving. Unfortunately, the fighter wakes up and the deception is discovered, and Faren is arrested by the guards since Casteless are not permitted to fight in the Proving. Somehow the Carta pulls strings and has Faren thrown in their own dungeon, intending to execute him so he cannot reveal their secrets. Faren escapes and fights his way out, only to be apprehended again by the Orzammar guards. He is to be executed for impersonation, despite killing the head of the Carta and providing proof that the Carta were fixing fights.

In the Circle Tower, a young mage named Solona Amell passes her Harrowing, a test designed to determine whether mages are strong enough to resist demonic possession. Afterwards, her friend Jowan asks for her help. He has not yet had his Harrowing, and he learns from his girlfriend, a Chantry Initiate, that he is going to be made Tranquil – a process which burns the magic out of a mage, making them immune to demonic possession, but leaving them without emotions, essentially an empty husk. He convinces his girlfriend to help him escape the tower, and asks Solona for her help as well. Suspicious, Solona informs the First Enchanter of Jowan's plans. He instructs her to aid Jowan so that they can get proof that Jowan is a blood-mage. She does so, and helps Jowan destroy his phylactery, a vial of his blood which templars can use to track him no matter how far he runs. When they are caught and confronted by the templars, Jowan uses blood magic to escape. Enraged, the templar Commander orders his girlfriend to be imprisoned, and attempts to force Solona to be imprisoned or made Tranquil. The First Enchanter intervenes, and Solona is left in the tower under close scrutiny.

Skip forward, and Aedan and Duncan enter the outskirts of the army encampment at Ostagar. They are greeted by King Cailan, where he and Duncan discuss the upcoming battle. Aedan tells the King of the murder of his family, and Cailan promises to turn the army towards Highever and bring Howe to justice once the darkspawn are defeated. He tells Aedan that Fergus is out scouting somewhere in the Wilds and isn't expected back until after the battle.

Aedan is asked by Duncan to find his fellow recruits and a young Grey Warden named Alistair, which he does. They return to Duncan to be given two tasks to perform in the Korcari Wilds – recover three vials of darkspawn blood, which are required for a ritual allowing the recruits to become Grey Wardens, and retrieve some treaty papers which were lost in the Wilds centuries ago. The four men set out, fighting their way through the Wilds and collecting their blood, before finding that the treaties are missing. They meet an apostate named Morrigan, who informs them that her mother has the treaties. She leads them to her home, where her mother gives the treaties to the Grey Wardens. They return to Ostagar.

Once back, the ritual to become Grey Wardens is prepared. They learn that not only can the ritual be fatal to the recruit, but they must drink darkspawn blood to become Grey Wardens. Alistair says the words for the ritual: "Join us, brothers and sisters. Join us in the shadows where we stand vigilant. Join us as we carry the duty that cannot be foresworn. And should you perish, know that your sacrifice will not be forgotten, and that one day we will join you." The first recruit drinks the blood and dies. The second, frightened, draws his weapon and attempts to escape, and Duncan is forced to kill him. Finally Aedan drinks the blood, and survives. He has nightmares of the Archdemon while unconscious afterwards.

When Aedan wakes, he is asked to join Duncan at a war council with the King and Loghain. They plan the battle, where Cailan will be on the front lines with the Grey Wardens, and then when a signal is lit on a nearby tower, Loghain's forces will flank the darkspawn and crush them from behind. Loghain attempts to convince Cailan not to stand on the front lines, but Cailan is insistent. They decide to send Aedan and Alistair to light the beacon. Neither man is happy with the assignment, but Duncan commands them and they head to the tower. They discover that their job is complicated by darkspawn that have over-run the tower, so they fight their way to the top, killing many darkspawn including an ogre, before lighting the beacon a bit late. Despite the beacon being lit, Loghain takes his forces and quits the field, marching his troops away. The King and all of the men on the front lines, including Duncan and all the Grey Wardens, are killed. Aedan and Alistair are overwhelmed by darkspawn and pass out.

When Aedan and Alistair wake, they are in the Korcari Wilds, having been rescued by Morrigan's mother, Flemeth. It turns out Flemeth, the 'witch of the wilds', is a powerful apostate who shape changed into a dragon to rescue them from the tower. As the last two remaining Grey Wardens, Aedan and Alistair have the responsibility of ending the blight, somehow. They realise they have the treaties, which are pledges of aid from the dwarves, the Circle of Magi, and the Dalish elves. There is also Arl Eamon, a nobleman whose forces did not participate in the battle, to ask for help. They set off to try to deliver the treaties to the relevant parties and form an army capable of stopping the blight. Flemeth sends Morrigan with them, to aid them in their quest.

Aedan begins having frequent nightmares about the Archdemon, and Alistair explains that they are normal for Grey Wardens. He also gives Aedan the bad news that wardens only live for approximately thirty years after their Joining, when eventually the taint from the darkspawn blood overwhelms them and they become ghouls. To avoid this, most wardens head into the deep roads, in what they call a Calling, to die fighting darkspawn before they can be turned.

They head to Lothering, a nearby town. On the way, Prince, the warhound, finds them and joins them. In Lothering they find a bunch of refugees from further south, and realise there is no way to evacuate them all before the horde descends on the town. They do what they can, recruiting a Chantry sister named Leliana, as well as a Qunari named Sten. Sten was captive, in a cage outside Lothering, slowly starving to death as punishment for slaughtering a farming family. They get his oath to help them end the blight, and they all leave Lothering together.

They decide to head to Redcliffe, a nearby town and the home of Arl Eamon, to get his aid in ending the blight. On the way, Alistair admits that he is actually the bastard offspring of King Maric, and thus King Cailan's half-brother. Aedan realises this means he is the rightful King of Ferelden, though Alistair claims not to want the throne. When they arrive, they learn that the castle has been sealed for days, and the town is under attack by unknown undead creatures. They defend the town, then enter the castle through a secret passageway. They discover that Jowan, after escaping the Circle Tower, was employed by Loghain to poison Arl Eamon. Eamon's wife, Isolde, hired him to tutor her son in secret, as he was a mage and she wished to hide him from the Circle. Jowan poisoned Eamon, and Isolde had him tortured, but Connor, Eamon's son, made a deal with a demon to keep his father alive. It was the demon possessing Connor that was causing the undead to attack Redcliffe.

Reluctant to kill a child, even if he was possessed, Aedan and Alistair decide to travel to the Circle of Magi in search of help to end Connor's possession. When they arrive at the Circle, they learn that Loghain had fomented rebellion among the mages, and a bloody revolt had been attempted by a mage named Uldred. Using blood magic, Uldred and many other mages had become abominations. The templars guarding the Circle were awaiting approval from the Chantry to use lethal force and kill every mage inside the tower. Instead, Aedan and Alistair (and friends) decided to enter the tower and see if any of the mages could be saved. Inside, they find Wynne, an elderly mage who was protecting the young children from demons. She joins them and they purge the tower of demons, along the way becoming trapped in dreams by a sloth demon. They manage to break out of the dreams, and eventually kill Uldred, rescuing a small number of mages.

They succeed in getting the mages agreement to help them end the blight, as well as to help Connor. Wynne decides to join the wardens on their quest. They all travel to Redcliffe where the mages perform a ritual and Connor is freed from the demon. Unfortunately, Eamon is still unconscious and cannot be healed. Isolde informs them that the only hope is the Urn of Sacred Ashes, the last resting place of Andraste's remains. They are said to have miraculous healing properties. No one knows where they are kept, but there is a scholar in Denerim that knows as much as there is to know about the Urn.

On the way to Denerim, the group are ambushed by some mercenaries hired by Loghain. Led by Zevran, an assassin of an order called the Crows, from Antiva, the ambush fails. Zevran switches alliances and gives an oath to aid Aedan in his quest. He reasons that if the Crows find out he has failed, they will kill him, and he believes that Aedan may be his only chance at survival.

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