Summary
Dragon Age: The Veilguardwill not be featuring the Blood Mage at launch, but BioWare hasn’t closed the door completely on the notorious specialization coming back in the future. Whereas it could be argued that the Inquisitor could have been a Blood Mage in secret, the narrative inDragon Age: The Veilguardis fundamentally incompatible with Blood Magic as a concept. Given Rook’s unique connection to the Fade after the events of the Prologue, any use of Blood Magic likely ends in demonic possession.
That being said, many fans miss the Blood Mage as a specialization, especially given its popularity in the first twoDragon Agetitles. However, there has always been an undercurrent of ludonarrative dissonance between how the world of Thedas treated aDragon Ageprotagonistfor dabbling in Blood Magic, versus how it treated other practitioners of the art. Despite Kirkwall being a hotbed of Blood Magic, Hawke was not only allowed to be a Blood Mage, but could even potentially side with the Templars during their purge in Act 3.
In a recent showcase ofThe Veilguard’s classes and specializations,Arekkz Gaming revealedthat BioWare was not only interested in bringing back the Blood Mage, but also in finally doing it right. Not having proper reactivity in dialogue and story seemingly bothered the developers, and as such, any future version of the Blood Mage would likely be done as a separate class. Considering that players can refund their entireskill tree inDragon Age: The Veilguard, this decision is logical from a gameplay standpoint as well.
Any Blood Mages in Future Dragon Age Content May Come As a Separate Class
SinceDragon Age: The Veilguardhas no confirmed DLCs or expansion packs, it’s more likely that BioWare will only do Blood Magic in a future sequel. What separates Blood Mages from otherclasses inDragon Age, is that they tend to have a more dubious morality due to the nature of their practice. Not only are its users more susceptible to demonic possession, but its power is used for corrupting purposes such as mind control and demon summoning. As a fantasy archetype, Blood Mages are closer to Warlocks than Wizards, which may justify BioWare’s desire to split the specialization off into its own class.
Having better reactivity in dialogue would go a long way towards legitimizing Blood Magic in aDragon Agegame, as that was often one of its main critiques, both for the Hero of Ferelden, and the Champion of Kirkwall. It should be noted that whileOriginsallowed players to make evil decisions,Dragon Age: Inquisitionwas far more restrained in this regard. Though it remains to be seen what narrative freedom will be afforded toRook inThe Veilguard, the return of Blood Magic should only be entertained ifDragon Ageplayers can lean towards the path of villainy once again.
