sapphim:

orsinohawke:

lingering-nomad:

tatteredpantaloons:

Was it ever explained why Krem has the Kirkwall insignia on his armour?

Probably for the same reason Cullen wears an Orlesian helmet in the promos. (they screwed up).

actually i heard that the reason cullen had a helmet in the promos was that they couldn’t figure out how to animate his face right and his mouth was stuck open so they put a helmet on him to hide it

The short, glib answer is the same reason Aveline’s guard captain armor sports the grey warden logo: they had an blank spot and reused an existing art asset to fill it. But @kittyfreud and I have discussed this before and come to the conclusion that it’s absolutely a political statement. Consider:

1) Kirkwall, at Tevinter’s height, housed the largest quarry in the Imperium, relying heavily on the manual labor of slaves. When construction of the Imperial Highway was completed it easily became the capital of the Imperium’s slave trade, known as “The City of Chains.” Even though that time is over a thousand years in the past, the city is still struggles under the weight of that legacy. The Gallows, which used to host the slave population and now hosts the captive mage population, is covered in demoralizing murals depicting slavery, and you can’t enter the city by boat without passing underneath these great big fucked up statues – an old warning of what lay ahead.

2) Krem’s father was forced to sell himself into state-sponsored slavery after his business went under. It’s likely Krem feels very, very strongly about the subject of slavery.

3) Kirkwall’s coat of arms is a heavily stylized knotwork dragon (Bull approves). It evolved from this:

According to old official merch: 

This stylized knot work representation of a dragon evolved from a symbol of rebellion etched into countless walls during the time when Kirkwall was a center for the Tevinter slave trade. It was an image that catalyzed the slaves who overthrew the ruling magisters, and while the symbol has changed, its meaning has not: Kirkwall is a city unto itself, beholden to no one.

4) Dragon Age: Inquisition takes place in 9:40 Dragon. Three years previous, in 9:37 Dragon, Kirkwall became very, very infamous on a global scale when the Chantry was symbolically literally destroyed and the subsequent attempted annulment of the circle turned into a full-scale bloody conflict, events leading up to which were popularized by one of the current bestselling books in all of Thedas. Two years following that, The White Spire in Val Royeaux revolted, Circle in Dairsmud was annulled, and the College of Enchanters officially voted for Independence from the Chantry, turning the fighting that started in Kirkwall into the all-out war for independence and survival that is taking place at the start of the Inquisition.

In conclusion: The Kirkwall heraldry is a very visible, very politically charged image: anti-Tevinter, anti-slavery, anti-Circle… anti-establishment. It’s not a far stretch of the imagination at all to see how a sentiment like that would appeal to Bull’s Chargers, especially Krem, who can relate to its legacy more than many. This is the equivalent of some punk pinning an anarchy patch on their jean jacket. And it makes total sense. And I bet he’s not the only one doing it.