While disrupting Solas' ritual, they accidentally unleash two imprisoned elven gods – Elgar'nan and Ghilan'nain – who then wreak havoc across Thedas with the Blight in an attempt to conquer the world.

The main series games have all met with commercial success as well as positive acclaim for their narrative, universe lore, character development, voice acting, and emphasis on player choices affecting the experience.

[1] Other noteworthy civilizations explored in the main series games include the Free Marches, a human-dominated confederation of politically independent territorial entities to the north of Ferelden, and the Kingdom of Orzammar, one of the few remaining dwarven city states scattered throughout the Deep Roads, an underground highway system beneath the surface of Thedas created by the dwarves millennia ago.

They proudly live a nomadic lifestyle away from the urban settlements of their city elf counterparts in an attempt to preserve and reclaim their cultural heritage, which was mostly wiped out millennia ago when the ancient elven empire of Elvhenan, which spanned most of Thedas, mysteriously collapsed.

[1][3][4] The Qunari government is a totalitarian regime ruled by a triumvirate of leaders who represent the body (military), the soul (priesthood), and the mind (merchants and craftsmen) of their people.

Unlike other races, Qunari do not adorn themselves with tattoos or wear helmets, instead making use of war paint called Vitaar which provides a ceremonial purpose as well as practical benefits.

The Qunari are locked in a perpetual conflict with the Tevinter Imperium and often seek to spread their influence throughout Thedas via covert agents or military offensives.

[1] Mages in southern Thedas are cloistered into training facilities called Circles of Magi by The Chantry, which teaches that "magic must serve man, not rule over him".

The Chantry is a monotheistic religion who worship a personal god known as the Maker and venerates the prophet Andraste, a former slave who led an uprising against the Tevinter Imperium in a movement called an "Exalted March".

Mages who live outside the Chantry's control, which includes the Dalish clan chieftains known as Keepers, are considered to be extremely dangerous by many societies in Thedas.

The dwarves in particular have a specialized group of warriors known as the Legion of the Dead to fight the Darkspawn, though their civilization is a shadow of what it once was due to an unceasing war of attrition against the constant threat.

[1] Dragon Age: Origins is the first game in the series, and was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 in November 2009, and for Mac OS X in December 2009.

Set in the kingdom of Ferelden during a period of civil unrest, the game puts the player in the role of a warrior, mage, or rogue coming from an elven, human, or dwarven background.

The player character is recruited into the Grey Wardens, an ancient order that stands against monsters known as the Darkspawn, and is tasked with defeating the Archdemon that commands them and ending their invasion.

The game puts players in the role of Hawke, a human mage, rogue, or warrior who arrives in Kirkwall, a city state in the Free Marches as a lowly refugee.

The game puts the players in the role of the Inquisitor, a warrior, mage, or rogue coming from an elven, human, dwarven or Qunari background, who survived a cataclysmic event which led to the creation of a mysterious tear in the sky called the "Breach", which is unleashing dangerous demons upon the world.

Dragon Age: The Last Court was a free-to-play browser game released in November 2014, with its gameplay focused on drawing cards and managing resources.

Previously accessible from the online platform Dragon Age Keep,[19] The Last Court was taken offline by November 17, 2020, although fans led a project to preserve its contents prior to the due date.

This establishes a skill tree that the player can advance through killing enemies or completing quests (and thereby gaining experience points) until a preset value is met, whereupon they level up.

This is presented through what BioWare called a Dialogue Wheel, with the fully voice acted player-character reply options shown as choices extending radially outward from a circle at the bottom of the screen.

This requires certain pre-requisite conditions such as gender and race being met, and possibly securing a high approval rating of the companion through the player character's actions and/or words.

[1] Gaider seeded numerous elements of lore all across Thedas during the developmental cycle for Origins, without any expectation that the material he wrote would ultimately be used for the final product.

[1] Dragon Age also takes inspiration from A Song of Ice and Fire, a fantasy novel series by George R. R. Martin, particularly in the depiction of a morally ambiguous world where characters are often embroiled in no-win scenarios.

[54][55][dubious – discuss] An act of betrayal by the Ferelden lord Loghain Mac Tir which led to the disastrous outcome of the Battle of Ostagar as well as his final fate are thematically reminiscent of the treacherous political machinations depicted in A Song of Ice and Fire.

[54] The Grey Wardens’ concept of a sworn brotherhood with its grim outlook and constant vigilance in anticipation of the threat of a monstrous invasion are particularly similar to that of the Night's Watch organization.

[59] Subsequent instalments in the franchise retroactively explained that most Qunari in fact have horns, and that hornlessness is a rare genetic variation found in certain individuals.

Roberts consider Origins to be "an exhaustingly detailed RPG, with intricate combat and extensive ways to customise your party behind the scene", though "complex storytelling and characters" only occur in "infrequent flashes".

[71][72][73] Dragon Age II was released to generally favorable reviews from video game media outlets, but received a divisive reception from players.

[77] According to John Riccitiello, CEO of Electronic Arts, the company is very satisfied with the sales of Origins; more than 1 million DLC packs for the game were sold before the end of 2009.

[79] Dragon Age II sold more than one million copies in less than two weeks following its launch on March 8, 2011, a faster sales pace than its predecessor when it was released in 2009.