Summary
- The lyrium dagger may have been foreshadowed by Solas in Inquisition.
- Solas mentions daggers quite frequently, but one piece of dialogue is particularly on the nose.
- He’e a bald man full of regrets.
The lyrium dagger in Dragon Age: The Veilguard has an inordinate amount of influence over the game’s narrative, despite having never been mentioned in the series before its appearance in the prologue of The Veilguard. However, this may not be the case. The dagger in question could have been foreshadowed in Dragon Age: Inquisition, after all.
This was spotted by the observant NovaShyne on Reddit who happened across snippets of dialogue with Solas on a replay of Dragon Age: Inquisition. It should be noted that Solas does use the word dagger in other contexts in Inquisition, so not every example of him mentioning a dagger is necessarily a reference to the lyrium dagger.
Dagger and Sacrifice
All of this dialogue takes place in the conversation between the Inquisitor and Solas about blood magic. The first mention of a dagger occurs when Solas says “I once saw a woman stabbed in the stomach with a dagger. She died slowly, in agony. It was repulsive.” As the poster points out, we know that Mythal was murdered with the lyrium dagger, so this could be a reference to that event. However, Solas referring to Mythal as just “a woman” is unlikely given their relationship.
The Inquisitor then offers “You don’t need to sacrifice a slave’s life to make a dagger,” to which Solas responds “I suppose it depends on the dagger.” There’s a good chance this could be a foreshadowing of the lyrium dagger, which was used to sever the connection between the Titans and the Fade, rendering them tranquil and creating the Blight.
Solas’ apparent defence of blood magic is indicative of his character as a whole. He’s made a myriad of mistakes and is wracked with regret beneath a thin veneer of pride and pragmatism. The creation of the dagger was a massive misstep by Solas and Mythal, but Solas still maintains that everything he’s done is for the greater good.
Commenters like Storayster believe that Solas isn’t necessarily an advocate of blood magic, but he has sacrificed people and spirits for his goals. This could be literally with the dagger, or figuratively through his command. We know from The Veilguard that the latter is certainly true.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard is the long-awaited fourth game in the fantasy RPG series from BioWare formerly known as Dragon Age: Dreadwolf. A direct sequel to Inquisition, it focuses on red lyrium and Solas, the aforementioned Dread Wolf.