✭
for every person that sends me ✭ i will give you a random headcanon about my muse. | always accepting |
headcanon: the templar order
there was always something that really bothered me about Cullen’s nonchalance in regards to him recalling his time with the templars. he’s always quite vague when asked about the order itself ( his answers being quite mundane, like him telling the inquisitor about the time he had to memorise the chant of light by heart ) and doesn’t divulge much ( not even about his time at Kirkwall ). realistically speaking it’s easy to ( at least somewhat ) imagine what he went through during his time being locked up in kinloch and when the chantry exploded in Kirkwall, but he never once divulges what kind of training and treatment he underwent during his time as a trainee templar ( before undergoing the joining ritual and being introduced to lyrium ).
if da:o is played and the warden character is a female mage, then right after the harrowing there is an option to speak to Cullen ( and make his ears turn crimson from embarrassment if she is to proposition something less than decent ) and the conversation quickly takes a nasty turn if certain options are chosen:
Cullen: t-they picked me as the templar to strike the killing blow if…if you became an abomination. i-it’s nothing personal; I swear ! I…I’m just glad you’re alright. You know.
Warden: would you really have struck me down ?
Cullen: I would have felt terrible about it…but I serve the chantry and the Maker, and I will do as I am commanded.
the intonation in his voice instantly changes as he says the last part it becomes monotone, as if the words were practically drilled into his mind over the years. so, to the actual headcanon:
Cullen is the perfect poster boy for the templar order, not only due to excellent swordsmanship and upheld values, but also because he serves as a stellar example of how good the chantry is when it comes to brainwashing its templars. they take in kids ( most younger than Cullen, and he was 13 when he joined the order ) and, over the years, brainwash them into thinking that mages are these terrible things that deserve to be slain without hesitation - whilst simultaneously robbing them of free will and the ability to think for themselves.
children are incredibly easy to manipulate, especially by those who hold their trust and are seen as authoritative figures, which serves as the perfect platform for a religious organisation eager to remain in power. the chantry has its fingers in most ( if not all ) Ferelden affairs, political and otherwise and in order to maintain its influence, the templars are needed. I don’t quite remember if it was Cullen or Alistair who said this, but one of them called the templars an “army” belonging to the chantry and honestly they aren’t wrong. with their sheer numbers, abilities and training, the templars are an army and are trained as such ( by using tactics that dehumanise their enemy, which takes away that pesky & rather inconvenient feeling of guilt when one slaughters the mages ). in addition, to keep their templars in check, the chantry uses lyrium as a way to leash them ( the chantry controls all lyrium exports and for a damn good reason ) and stop anyone from even considering disobeying their orders.
although it was not as well explored as it should have been in da:i, lyrium withdrawal is a terrible thing to go through, especially if one does not have emotional support to lean on when times are truly dire. if a templar decides to abandon the order, they are not only cut off from lyrium supply, but also from their friends ( to reiterate: most join the order as kids. over the years it becomes akin to family for some and, because the majority of templars only socialise with other members of the order, their options when it comes to picking friends are rather limited ) who shun them because the chantry tells them to. because they do not want to share that fate. and everything just continues to slowly spiral out of control.
tl;dr: fuck the chantry. the templars need help. the mages need to be free. burn the establishment.
