Dragon Age: The Masked Empire

Last updated
Dragon Age: The Masked Empire
MassEffect3Omega.jpg
Cover of the original edition of Dragon Age: The Masked Empire
Author Patrick Weekes
IllustratorStefano Martino, Andres Ponce, German Ponce, Alvaro Sarraseca (deluxe edition)
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish
Series Dragon Age
Genre Fantasy
Publisher Tor Books (NA)
Titan Books (UK)
Dark Horse Books (deluxe edition)
Publication date
April 8, 2014 (NA)
April 11, 2014 (UK)
June 18, 2019 (deluxe edition)
Media typeOriginal - Print (Paperback)
Deluxe Edition - Print (Hardcover)
Pages384
344 (deluxe edition)
ISBN 978-1-466-83134-6
OCLC 1466828102

Dragon Age: The Masked Empire is a fantasy novel released on April 8, 2014 and written by Patrick Weekes. The novel is set in the Empire of Orlais on the continent of Thedas, the setting for the role-playing video game franchise Dragon Age . The Masked Empire describes the events that culminate in the Orlesian civil war waged between the ruling Empress Celene I of House Valmont and her cousin, Grand Duke Gaspard de Chalons and serves as a tie-in novelization for Dragon Age: Inquisition . Besides Celene and Gaspard, other notable characters introduced in the novel who later appear in Inquisition include Celene's elven handmaiden and secret lover Briala, Celene's champion Michel de Chevin, Mihris the sole survivor of the Dalish Clan Virnehn, and the ancient demon Imshael.

Contents

A preview of the deluxe hardcover version of The Masked Empire published by Dark Horse Books, featuring three pages of prose as well as illustrations by Stefano Martino, Andres Ponce, German Ponce and Alvaro Sarraseca, was released on June 1, 2019. [1] The deluxe edition of the novel was published on June 18, 2019.

Plot

At the University of Orlais Celene meets with Leliana, the Left Hand of the Divine, to ask that Divine Justinia V acts directly to try and ease the tension between mages and templars. Leliana and the empress agree that the Divine will make a declaration at a ball thrown in her honor in no more than a month.

Briala has been Empress Celene's elf servant for many, many years and they worked together in secret, both within Orlesian society's complex game of political intrigue and as lovers; it could never come to light that they were romantically involved, as it would be as scandalous as a lady of an estate sleeping with the gardener. However, since Celene promised Briala she would one day free the elves of Orlais, Briala continued to do Celene's bidding in secret. Briala was mainly her spymaster, using the city elves as her eyes and ears. Along with Celene's chevalier champion, Ser Michel, Briala ensured Celene kept the throne while her cousin Grand Duke Gaspard schemed.

Gaspard eventually launched a coup attempt against Celene while she is in the city of Halamshiral, which forces the Empress and her entourage to do their best to stay hidden from Gaspard and his agents as they attempt to track her down. Celene's goal is to return to Val Royeux and rally forces loyal to her if she has any chance in stopping him. Along the way Celene encounters the mysterious elven apostate Felassan, a clan of Dalish elves who has summoned a powerful demon, the magical mirror artifacts known as the Eluvians, and is even forced to work alongside Gaspard himself to ensure their mutual survival.

Reception

Reviewer Liz Bourke commented that while her experience of reading The Masked Empire felt more like a prologue for a future game as opposed to a complete narrative in and of itself, she found the novel to be enjoyable and praised Patrick Weekes for being a "significantly better prose writer than David Gaider, who authored the previous Dragon Age tie-in novels". She concluded that The Masked Empire is an entertaining novel, "despite possessing in full measure the flaws of its source material". [2] Dominika "Mara" Bieńkowska from the Polish website Nerdheim scored The Masked Empire 9 out of 10. [3]

Keri Honea from Playstation Lifestyle considered The Masked Empire to be essential reading for players, as the novel provides much context for the backstory and lore of Inquisition's events, including how and why Michel freed Imshael in the first place, as well as the “Wicked Eyes, Wicked Hearts” quest. [4] Various sources have cited The Masked Empire as a notable example of BioWare's approach of publishing novels and written works in other media which introduce forthcoming locations, ancillary characters and quest lines leading up to a new release or a further project in the distant future, with the goal of advance the overall narrative of the series beyond the perspective of a specific video game protagonist. [5] [6] [7]

Related Research Articles

Dragon Age is a media franchise centered on a series of fantasy role-playing video games created and developed by BioWare, which have seen releases on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Microsoft Windows, OS X, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. The franchise takes place on the fictional continent Thedas, and follows the experiences of its various inhabitants.

<i>Dragon Age: The Stolen Throne</i>

Dragon Age: The Stolen Throne is a fantasy novel written by David Gaider, released in March 2009. It is Gaider's first novel, as well as the first novel set in Thedas, the setting of BioWare's Dragon Age role-playing video game franchise. The Stolen Throne serves as a prequel to the BioWare role-playing game Dragon Age: Origins. Set thirty years before the events of Origins, this novel tells the backstory of characters important to the game, such as Loghain Mac Tir, as well as how the kingdom of Ferelden, the setting of Origins, achieved independence from the neighboring nation of Orlais.

Characters of <i>Dragon Age: Origins</i>

Dragon Age: Origins is a story-driven role-playing game set in a world called Thedas, where the player usually assumes control of one primary character as the protagonist of the story. Throughout the course of the story, player characters in Origins are continually presented with choices for how to deal with major game events, and any decisions made usually influence the overarching narrative. While the player does retain control over forks in the narrative, the overarching narrative in each game follows a specified path, and the player's influence is confined to certain pre-ordained events in the game rather than the entire narrative itself.

<i>Dragon Age: Inquisition</i> 2014 video game

Dragon Age: Inquisition is a 2014 action role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts. The third major game in the Dragon Age franchise, Inquisition is the sequel to Dragon Age II (2011). The story follows a player character known as the Inquisitor on a journey to settle the civil unrest in the continent of Thedas and close a mysterious tear in the sky called the "Breach", which is unleashing dangerous demons upon the world. Dragon Age: Inquisition's gameplay is similar to its predecessors, although it consists of several semi-open worlds for players to explore. Players control the Inquisitor or their companions mainly from a third-person perspective, although a traditional role-playing game top-down camera angle is also available.

Characters of <i>Dragon Age: Inquisition</i>

Dragon Age: Inquisition, the third main video game in BioWare's Dragon Age series, is the most successful video game launch in BioWare history based on units sold. The game features a large number of characters who are members or potential allies of the organization known as the Inquisition; its formation was sanctioned by Divine Justinia V of the Andrastrian Chantry, the dominant religious organization in the Dragon Age series, prior to the events of Inquisition. The organization's primary purpose is to restore order to the continent of Thedas, the setting of Inquisition, where civil unrest and civil wars have already plunged entire nations and societies across the known world into chaos. A supernatural calamity in the beginning of Inquisition led to the deaths of the Divine and the majority of the Chantry leadership, and the subsequent opening of a mysterious metaphysical tear in the sky called the "Breach", which is unleashing dangerous demons upon the world and sends Thedas deeper into crisis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flemeth</span> Fictional character from Dragon Age

Flemeth is a character in BioWare's Dragon Age franchise. She first appears in the 2009 novel The Stolen Throne as the Witch of the Wilds, a notorious sorceress who resides in the Korcari Wilds region within the Kingdom of Ferelden in the world of Thedas, and provides conditional aid to the novel's main characters when they pass through her territory. Her first video game appearance is Dragon Age: Origins, which is set several decades after the events of The Stolen Throne, and again aids the game's protagonists. She saves the Hawke family and guides them to Kirkwall, which sets the events of Dragon Age II in motion, and provides insight on how to defeat the main antagonist of Dragon Age: Inquisition. She is voiced by American actress Kate Mulgrew for all relevant media.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leliana</span> Fictional character

Leliana is a fictional character from BioWare's Dragon Age media franchise, first appearing as a party member in the 2009 role-playing game Dragon Age: Origins. A bard who is originally from the nation of Orlais, she came to Ferelden prior to the events of the Dragon Age series. Following the events of Leliana's Song, a DLC pack which serves as a prequel to the base game, she encounters the surviving Grey Wardens of Ferelden in the town of Lothering, and accompanies them to stop the monstrous Darkspawn from overrunning the world of Thedas. Leliana has appeared as a supporting character in subsequent video game sequels to Origins as well as other expanded media. She is voiced by French actress Corinne Kempa.

<i>Dragon Age: Last Flight</i> 2014 fantasy novel

Dragon Age: Last Flight is a fantasy novel released on September 16, 2014 and written by Liane Merciel. The novel is set in Thedas, the setting for the role-playing video game franchise Dragon Age. The novel is centered on two characters: a young elven mage named Valya who is recently recruited into the Grey Wardens and rediscovers the last of the griffons, once serving as steeds for the Wardens and was thought to be extinct after their kind died off at the end of the Fourth Blight; and her predecessor who lived during the Fourth Flight, an elven mage named Isseya who practiced blood mage and was the sister of the hero Garahel who slew the Archdemon Andoral to end the Fourth Blight.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corellon Larethian</span> Fictional character in Dungeons & Dragons

In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Corellon Larethian is the leader of the elven pantheon, and the god of Magic, Music, Arts, Crafts, Poetry, and Warfare. Corellon is also considered a member of the default D&D pantheon. Corellon is the creator and preserver of the elven race, and governs those things held in the highest esteem among elves. Corellon's symbol was originally a crescent moon; in the 4th edition Corellon's symbol is a silver star on a blue field.

Morrigan (<i>Dragon Age</i>) Fictional character

Morrigan is a fictional character from BioWare's Dragon Age franchise, first appearing as a party member in Dragon Age: Origins. She is a shapeshifting Witch of the Wilds, one of several sorceresses whose legends originate in the Korcari Wilds region of the kingdom of Ferelden, the setting of Origins. Morrigan leaves her home to accompany the protagonist of Origins, the would-be Hero of Ferelden, at the request of her mother Flemeth to stop the monstrous Darkspawn from overrunning the world of Thedas. Morrigan also appears in Dragon Age: Inquisition as a supporting character. She is voiced by Claudia Black.

Solas (<i>Dragon Age</i>) Video game fictional character

Solas is a character in BioWare's Dragon Age franchise. He first appears in the 2014 video game Dragon Age: Inquisition, where he serves as a party member. He presents himself as an elven outlaw mage operates outside of the edicts of the Chantry, the dominant religious organization in Thedas, the world setting of Dragon Age. Solas joins the Inquisition and serves as an expert on the Fade, a metaphysical realm that is tied to Thedas which is normally accessible only through dreaming, and its denizens. His knowledge and expertise prove instrumental in aiding the Inquisition's struggle to close the Breach, a massive dimensional tear in the sky that allows multitudes of demonic spirits to pass through into the physical world through dimensional rifts. A post-credit scene of Inquisition reveals his true identity as Fen'Harel. Trespasser, the final DLC pack released for Inquisition, provides further insight into his backstory and motives, as well as his involvement in the current world state of Thedas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loghain</span> Fictional character

Loghain Mac Tir is a fictional character from BioWare's Dragon Age franchise. He hails from the kingdom of Ferelden, a realm in the world of Thedas, where the Dragon Age series is set. Loghain first appears in the 2009 novel The Stolen Throne as one of its main characters alongside his friend, King Maric Theirin. The novel's story is set during their youth, where Loghain served as Maric's right hand during Ferelden's war against the Orlesian Empire. He would next appear in The Calling, eleven years after King Maric and his companions ventured into the Deep Roads as described in The Stolen Throne, and eight years after the rebellion led by Prince Maric managed to liberate Ferelden from the Orlesians.

Dragon Age II is an action role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts (EA) for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and OS X. It is the second major game in the Dragon Age series and was released worldwide in March 2011. The game features a total of six downloadable content packs that were released from November 2009 to September 2010 on Xbox Live, PlayStation Network, and BioWare's website. Most of these content packs feature new quests and new locations for players to access in the base game, as well as new items for the player to make use of. Two story-focused content packs serve as standalone side stories from the base game, both of which advance the narrative of the Dragon Age series as a whole: Legacy, and Mark of the Assassin.

<i>Dragon Age: Magekiller</i>

Dragon Age: Magekiller is a five-issue dark fantasy comic book series published by Dark Horse Comics set in the Dragon Age universe, and released between December 2015 and April 2016. The series was written by Greg Rucka, with artwork by Carmen Carnero and Terry Pallot. The timeline of the series run concurrently with the events of Dragon Age: Inquisition and tells the story, in several arcs, of the "mage-killer" Marius and his loquacious handler Tessa Forsythia. The series also tells the origin story and rise of the Venatori faction, and features appearances by several secondary characters from the Dragon Age series.

<i>Mass Effect: Andromeda</i> (book series) Novel trilogy

The Mass Effect: Andromeda book series consists of a trilogy of science fiction novels based on the Mass Effect series of video games. The books in the series are Nexus Uprising (2017), Initiation (2017), and Annihilation (2018). All three books are released in paperback, e-book, and audiobook. The audiobook formats of Nexus Uprising and Initiation are narrated by Fryda Wolff, the voice of Sara Ryder, while the Annihilation audiobook is narrated by Tom Taylorson, the voice of Scott Ryder.

Characters of <i>Dragon Age II</i>

Dragon Age II, the second main video game in BioWare's Dragon Age series, features an ensemble cast of characters. Several returning characters from its antecedent Dragon Age: Origins may appear in a major or minor capacity, including Flemeth, Anders, Merrill, Isabela, Alistair, Zevran, Leliana, Marethari, Bodahn and Sandal Feddic.

Vivienne (<i>Dragon Age</i>) Fictional character from BioWares Dragon Age franchise

Vivienne is a fictional character from BioWare's Dragon Age franchise, first appearing as a party member in Dragon Age: Inquisition. Within the series, she is the official enchanter to the Imperial Court of the Orlesian Empire who achieved her position through political savvy. She presents herself to the Inquisition as a representative of the Orlesian Court and a self-styled leader among the mage community of Thedas, the world setting of the Dragon Age series, who supports the status quo of cloistering magic users into supervised training facilities known as the Circles of Magi. The character was featured prominently in promotional material and advertisements released by Bioware's parent company EA leading up to the release of Inquisition. She is voiced by British actress Indira Varma.

<i>Dragon Age: Inquisition – Trespasser</i> 2015 video game

Dragon Age: Inquisition – Trespasser is a downloadable content (DLC) pack developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts for the 2014 action role-playing video game Dragon Age: Inquisition. It was released for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Microsoft Windows through Electronic Arts' digital distribution platform Origin, on September 8, 2015. The pack follows members of the Inquisition as they uncover a conspiracy to invade southern Thedas, while at the same time being confronted over their relevancy as an organization two years after a cataclysmic series of events which unfolded in Inquisition. As the Inquisition works to undermine a secret invasion by the Qunari, its leadership will eventually have to decide whether the organization itself should continue to exist.

References

  1. Rollin Bishop (June 1, 2019). "Dragon Age: The Masked Empire Preview Offers a Look at New Illustrations From the Hardcover Edition". Comicbook.com. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  2. Liz Bourke (April 11, 2014). "Dragon Age: The Masked Empire by Patrick Weekes". Tor.com. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  3. Dominika "Mara" Bieńkowska (April 24, 2016). "Recenzja książki Dragon Age: The Masked Empire" (in Polish). Nerdheim. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  4. Keri Honea (December 6, 2018). "A Little Look at Lore: The Game of Celene, Briala, and Gaspard Before the Inquisition". Playstation Lifestyle. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  5. Andrei Dumitrescu (May 14, 2014). "BioWare: Inquisition's Emprise du Lion Area Is Tied to Dragon Age Novels". Softpedia. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  6. Lauren Morton (July 22, 2019). "Dragon Age 4 setting all but confirmed by upcoming short story collection". PC Gamer. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  7. Ravi Sinha (July 23, 2019). "Dragon Age 4 Characters Could Be Teased in Upcoming Short Stories Collection". Gamingbolt. Retrieved July 17, 2021.