Disclaimer: All of this is completely canonical knowledge. Nothing headcanoned, there are sources for it and I’ve gathered from every source that I could. This includes: Dragon AGE: Blood in Ferelden (Amber Rage Adventure) [Official Dragon Age RPG Adventure Book].
Nothing is headcanon and nothing is taken from an unreliable sources (i.e. Wikipedia).
(A Firesprite. Page 29, Blood in Ferelden)
Firesprites are tiny, winged creatures living in the deep marshes of the Korcari Wilds. They’re named for the soft orange or yellow glow they give off, flickering in the dark marshes like fireflies.
They have semi-humanoid appearances, with a small face, two arms, and two legs. However, they also have many insect features. They have two pairs of insect wings, that hum when they fly and their eyes, upon close inspection, are compounded, like a fly’s or dragonfly’s eyes. They also have two antennas that protrude from their foreheads.
The average size of a firesprite is about four inches tall. Their skin is yellowed and they tend to be quite gaunt. They do not wear clothing of any kind.
When it comes to their legs and feet, they are actually relatively unused. Firesprites would rather hover than stand and fly everywhere they travel, whether it be miles out or mere inches away.
Chasind Legend speaks much of the “little people of the swamps”.
Firesprites are very old creatures, pre-dating the Tevinter Imperium. Many of their groves are actually located around or even within ruins that are also shown to pre-date the Imperium. The original creators and residents of these ruins, made for those much larger than just firesprites, is completely unknown.
During the First Blight, a sickness, known as Amber Rage, begun to affect the Alamarri; it was during this time that the Firesprites made contact with the Alamarri. The Firesprites knew of a mossy substance, called Shadowmoss, that could combat the Amber Rage and taught the Alamarri how to use it. The Firesprites also willingly provided Shadowmoss to the Alamarri, but only when and what it was needed.
The Alamarri grew greedy for the Shadowmoss and its medicinal properties, they begun to raid Firesprites groves to stockpile the Shadowmoss. During the raids, they would slaughter Firesprites they came across. Due to the frequent theft and murders the Firesprite population fell quickly and soon they were brought to near-extinction.
The living Firesprites retreated from the world and their interactions with the Alamarri, protecting their homes by never straying too far; appearing as only lights bobbing through the marshes and singing sad songs of what had been lost.
In present times, Firesprites are known of by the Chasind but rarely seen and their relationship with the Shadowmoss, how they knew to use it and where it came from, is unknown to many.
And while it is also unknown to the outside world, there is in fact only one colony of Firesprites still living within the Korcari Wilds. The rest having been ravaged by time, Alamarri raids, and the loss of their Guardians.
Firesprites cannot speak, at least in no known way that allows them to communicate with mortals verbally. However, they can sing. Their songs are wordless, but can invoke emotions or images in a listener.
A haunting song sung by the Firesprites can bring a foreboding sense or hopelessness over the listener, causing them to be thrown off by the feeling or even give up all together. While a happier song can give whimsy and can-do attitudes to those who hear it. Though whether the Firesprites mean to invoke the feelings, rather than just convey them is unknown.
The same influence goes for their images or ideas, though they are far more intentional. While there songs cannot create comprehensive, fully-fleshed visions of events, they can give their listeners a sense of having seen it. A listener just knows what the Firesprites are trying to convey. The idea that an old, majestic civilization used to live side-by-side with them or the face of a thief that the listener would just Know immediately.
Every Firesprite colony has/had a Guardian, a large serpent-like creature who protected their groves and the Shadowmoss. Many of which were killed in the raids on the grottos, seeing as they are aggressive creatures who will chase intruders completely out of the groves or die trying.
Guardians are typically 40 feet long with tiny, practically useless legs. They move more like a snake than a lizard and are known to rear back, strike, and coil around enemies, also reminiscent of a snake.
They have greenish-silver scales and sport two horns on their head, that it uses for gouging opponents before swallowing them whole.
The real secret to the Guardians though, is it’s origins and true purpose. Unknown to anyone who has never been close to the Firesprites, the Guardian is actually the mature form of Firesprites.
It takes many years for a Firesprite to mature into a Guardian serpent and even longer for them to shed to full size. Usually only one Guardian in a colony is alive at a time, though whether this is due to biological factors (the presence of a Guardian might stunt the growth of other Firesprites) or just coincidental is unknown.
What more the Guardian is the main source of food for the Firesprites.
Firesprites actually feed on Shadowmoss, a sickly, green, moss-like substance that glows in the dark where the sun cannot reach it. It has a very, strong nauseating smell that can cause someone to get physically ill. The Firesprites consume nothing else and have no interest in any other edible sources/items.
Shadowmoss is also the famed medicine against the Amber Rage, which still appears throughout the Korcari Wilds at times. Many Chasind continue to share the knowledge of the Shadowmoss, even if they lack the exact location of it.
But Shadowmoss is also the feces of the serpentine Guardians/Mature Firesprites.
This is what had caused the death of so many of the Firesprite colonies. As the Alamarri raided, they would kill the Guardian (the producer of food and protector) and then take the Shadowmoss stored within the grottos (stored food). The death and theft would then lead to the starvation of the Firesprites before a new Guardian could mature and take on the role as provider and protector. Thus causing the near-extinction of them, seen today.
Humans/Mortals and Firesprites
Firesprites are curious about mortals, simply as alien creatures who approach them; however, they lack interest in anything they offer. Firesprites are not enticed by shiny objects, do not bother with human food, find nothing appealing about mortal-given gifts, and are unamused by mortal mechanisms.
In fact, the only way to “lure” a Firesprite out into the open is to replicate the stench of Shadowmoss. The lure will only work for a little while though, for the disappointment of there being no actual food for them and pure boredom will cause the Firesprites to quickly retreat back to their home.
The Chasind had one other (dark) purpose for Firesprites, back when they were numerous. Swamp Lamps were once created using Firesprites. The soft, but powerful glow ideal for lighting the marsh’s night. Chasind would capture Firesprites and imprison them in portable cages or glass lanterns, but since it was unknown what they survived on many died in the glass prisons.
