“It shapes the Stone. It is the Stone. It sculpts the world within and without.” ―Primeval dwarven carvings
Titans, also known as "the pillars of the earth",[1] are powerful primordial entities that dwell deep beneath the earth. They are massive creatures of stone and metal who sing in the Stone, shaping it.[2]
Background
There is no mention of the titans in Orzammar's Memories, although there are at least two dwarven texts which describe them, predating the First Blight.[3] All knowledge of the titans was likely erased from the Memories by the Shapers[4] as it would have had huge implications for dwarven culture and faith.
The titans are said to have sculpted the world with their Song, and it is theorized that earthquakes may be their method of reshaping Thedas. The titans consider dwarves to be their "children". Lyrium has been called "blood of the titans".[5] The substance emanates a song that is different from the call of the Old Gods.[6]
The space within the only known titan at the time of the second Inquisition is a gargantuan cavern with its own verdant ecosystem, with stalactites interconnected with bridges and dotted with structures. It houses the civilization of the Sha-Brytol, who regard themselves as the titan's guardians and drink of its blood for sustenance. The place has an organic feel to it, and darkspawn avoid it[7] for an unknown reason.
This titan has been asleep for centuries. The last time it awoke was during the rule of King Orseck Garal, around -1170 Ancient, before the fall of Arlathan, and its rhythm "bled despair".[8] Eventually something caused the titans to fall, and according to Valta the fate of dwarves fell with them.[9]
The titans used to roam the land and reshape the earth according to their whims. They sang to each other the eternal hymn, the prayer, and the proclamation of "Isatunoll". Isatunoll is described as an affirmation; a statement of existence and of being. Isatunoll roughly translates to "I/we are here." It is the eternal hymn that encompasses all time and all spaces.
The titans' progeny, the dwarves, were part of Isatunoll.[12] Isatunoll is suspected to be a sort of hive mind with a system of understanding one's purpose, and also understanding instinctually how that purpose fits within the whole.[13]
When the Evanuris were still primeval spirits who wanted to become corporeal beings, they used raw lyrium pulled from the veins of the Titans to craft physical bodies for themselves, thus becoming the first Elves. In the process, however, they angered the Titans and entered into a great and terrible war with them. When the elves began losing the war, Mythal had Solas craft a Lyrium Dagger which Fen'Harel used to sever the Titans' connection to the Fade, rendering them all Tranquil. The Titans' dreams, now severed from their bodies and locked away inside the Fade, mutated into the Taint and Blight out of anger, fear, and confusion. Solas banished these corrupted dreams which would become the Blight to a prison which would be known to contemporaries as the Black City.
The Evanuris weaponized the Blight in their wars of supremacy, especially during Solas' rebellion against them. For unleashing the Blight onto the world, Solas imprisoned the Evanuris in the Fade and used their lives to sustain the Veil. Yet Solas did not anticipate that the Elven pantheon that he had imprisoned would speak through the Old Gods and manipulate the Magisters Sidereal into breaching the Black City and releasing a portion of the Blight onto Thedas.[14][15]
After the elves' war against the titans, some titans died while others became dormant and were forgotten. The dwarves were changed after the titans fell—they forgot Isatunoll and became individualistic, discordant, and insensitive to the titans, unable to hear the true Song. The dwarves formed their own kingdoms and sold lyrium—first to the Tevinter Imperium—for gold.[12]
Involvement
Dragon Age: Inquisition
Following the Battle of Haven, a string of violent earthquakes grip the Storm Coast region. Ordinarily, it wouldn't have been brought to the Inquisitor's attention, but the quakes aren't subsiding and are threatening the Inquisition's vital lyrium trade with the dwarves of Orzammar, collapsing mining tunnels and causing casualties. The Inquisitor is asked to meet with a Shaper on the scene named Valta.
The Inquisition descends into the Deep Roads to find the cause of the worsening earthquakes with Valta and Lieutenant Renn. Along the way they battle the monstrous darkspawn and the ancient dwarven Sha-Brytol guardians, who manage to ambush and kill Renn in their first encounter. During their adventure, they discover that the source of the earthquakes is a recently stirred Titan. Valta uncovers information about the ancient Titans from old lyrium etchings and pieces together its relationship with lyrium and the Sha-Brytol. Eventually they reach a verdant cavern that is surmised to be the inside of the titan itself. At the heart of the cavern is a massive stone of raw lyrium, which strikes Valta with lyrium energy and knocks her unconscious. Several large rocks and stone then unite surrounding the raw lyrium to form a rock-lyrium Guardian that the Inquisitor must confront.
Trivia
- Titans are mentioned by Kieran, should he have the soul of an Old God. In response to a humorous jest made by a dwarven Inquisitor about attempting to be taller, Kieran says, "But you can't be taller. Not without the titans."
- After completing the war table operation the Arcanist and the Fade, Dagna mentions that she was face-deep in a rune and for a moment she "felt mountain-tall, moving as if around all her people," their combined thoughts constituting her thought like parts.
- Some of Cole's cryptic comments may be related to the titans:
- During the events of the game, Cole may be asked to give his opinion on Templars. To this, he explains that they use lyrium to reach out to a powerful something that fills in the gaps, which Solas describes Templar abilities as pulling in the reality of the world around them to shut out the use of magic. Templar abilities may potentially be the result of humans establishing a connection with the Titans through lyrium, but it does not explain the origin of a Seeker's powers.
- "It's singing. A they that's an it that's asleep, but still making music."
- "Their ancient shapers were mountains drawn of all their wills, walking their memories into valleys of the world".
- "They made bodies from the earth, and the earth was afraid. It fought back, but they made it forget."
Codex entries
Codex entry: Titans- Codex entry: Old Elven Writing
- Codex entry: Veilfire Runes in the Deep Roads
- Codex entry: The Guardian
Codex entry: Harding's Notes: Dead Titan?- Codex entry: Harding's Notes: Orzammar and Titans
Gallery
.jpg "Titan heart (The Heart of the Titan quest).jpg (1.51 MB)")
References
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