The Veilguard Bucks a Problematic Fantasy Villain Trend

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home November 15, 2024 10 Views 5 Min Read
The Veilguard Bucks a Problematic Fantasy Villain Trend

A fantasy story is nothing without a good villain, and Dragon Age: The Veilguard is no exception. The game is absolutely packed to the gills with baddies, from the elven gods Elgar’nan and Ghilan’nain to the antagonists of each companion’s personal story to, of course, the Dread Wolf himself, Fen’Harel aka Solas. Dragon Age: The Veilguard’s villains are creepy, compelling, and effective – and, best of all, they subvert the frustratingly common fantasy trend of having minimal female villains who are only present to provide some fanservice.




While gaming isn’t without its iconic female villains – such as Lady Dimitrescu from Resident Evil Village, Ultimecia from Final Fantasy 8 – they are few and far between. And, with a few key exceptions, like Portal’s GLaDOS or Metroid’s Mother Brain, these antagonistic ladies are mostly focused on sex appeal. Dragon Age: The Veilguard bucks the trend by having tons of female villains, only a handful of which are conventionally attractive “fanservice” types.

This article contains spoilers for
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
.

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Every Cameo in Dragon Age: The Veilguard Explained

Dragon Age: The Veilguard includes a range of returning characters who featured in previous stories, some with some unexpected consequences.

The Female Villains Of Dragon Age: The Veilguard


There are a number of female villains in Dragon Age: The Veilguard, including one of the game’s key bosses fought in the main story and several antagonists appearing in various companions’ personal quest lines. They are:

  • Ghilan’nain, the escaped elven goddess
  • Johanna Hezenkoss, a rogue necromancer who opposes Emmrich
  • Zara Renata, the magister responsible for Lucanis’ imprisonment
  • Aelia, a high-ranking Venatori who Neve pursues
  • The Gloom Howler, a blighted creature who was once a female Grey Warden named Isseya

In addition, while most of the High Dragons in the game cannot be considered outright “evil” because they are simply aggressive, predatory creatures following their nature, one, Kataranda the Stormrider, is explicitly female, and Taash calls a few of the others “she” as well. Also, while not necessarily a “villain,” the elven goddess Mythal can become angry at the player and serve as a tricky boss fight in her draconic form.


Rather than having a single “token” female villain, Dragon Age: The Veilguard’s lady antagonists equal or perhaps even outnumber its male baddies. Ghilan’nain, in particular, is one of the game’s most frequently encountered antagonists, with her male counterpart Elgar’nan preferring to stay out of the fight until nearly the end of the game. Similarly, the “Dragon King” encountered in Taash’s companion story is a coward who prefers to make his pet dragon do the fighting for him.

Veilguard’s Female Villains Are So Much More Than Their Looks


There’s nothing wrong with a female villain being gorgeous – Lady Dimitrescu captivated the Internet for good reason – but it is refreshing to see some bad ladies who are not just nice to look at. While Aelia is good-looking and Zara Renata is attractive, if one can get past the whole “bathing in blood” thing, Hezenkoss is short and elderly, Isseya is irreparably blighted, and Ghilan’nain is a twisted, tentacled creature that wouldn’t be out of place in an HP Lovecraft story.

These female villains are also some of The Veilguard’s best characters. Johanna Hezenkoss is a half-lich whose pursuit of immortality and cavalier attitude towards death is elegantly contrasted with Emmrich’s fear of mortality and respect for the deceased. Isseya is a tragic figure who truly wanted what’s best for the griffons at some point in her life, but has become so affected by the blight that she is no longer thinking clearly. And Ghilan’nain – well, Ghilan’nain is terrifying, and players get an intimately detailed look at how she turned from the kind figure Solas remembers to the terrifying antagonist they find themselves facing.


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