Solas

Inner Circle Quests:

• Measuring the Veil (Approval)
• All New, Faded for Her (Personal Plot)
• What Lies Dormant (Personal Plot)

Romance: Inquisitor must be female elf.

Solas has spent his life as an apostate, living in the wilderness well away from the civilized world and those who would shackle him for what he is. He mastered his magic without the help of tutors, spending years exploring the spirit realm of the Fade and coming to an understanding of its denizens that few others could claim. He would be happiest left alone to sleep in ancient ruins, searching for memories and knowledge that has been lost for ages, but the Breach in the sky threatens all worlds.

At a time when other mages flee into hiding, Solas has put his freedom at risk by emerging from the shadows to assist those who would combat the chaos. He will not stand idly by when his knowledge of the arcane could mean the difference between salvation and utter destruction.

Starting Abilities

Ability	Name	Description
	Barrier	You create a shimmering protective barrier that acts as temporary additional health. The barrier decays naturally over time.
	Winter’s Grasp	You lock a target in a sheet of ice, freezing it in place.

Specialization

Rift Mage: Years spent studying the Fade have given Solas the ability to manipulate its energies in unpredictable ways. He can pull matter from the Fade and even twist the Veil into a weapon to hammer his opponents.

First Encounter

During the prologue, you run into Solas and Varric at the first Fade rift—Solas shows you how to use the mark on your hand to close the rift. As the first mage you encounter, Solas offers a welcome mix of skills and abilities, including Barrier. As you continue your adventure in the Hinterlands, use Solas’s staff to defeat elemental barriers and his veilfire skill to reveal ancient runic writings—this unlocks different rune schematics.

Approval

The key to winning approval with Solas is to show that you are thoughtful and inclined to see shades of gray in the world. Declaring things to be simple black-and-white matters will earn Solas’s disapproval quickly, but asking many questions and looking for more information will impress him. He prefers the thoughtful approach in most situations, and does not approve of you claiming to be sent by Andraste in order to win alliances. You can improve Solas’s opinion of you by finding elven artifacts and activating them in order to get a more accurate measurement of the strength of the Veil. These are scattered around the world, but Solas will point them out when you are near one.

Approval Gained

• Go to Redcliffe Castle and ally with the mages.
• At Therinfal Redoubt, accept the templars as conscripts.
• Exile the Wardens after securing Adamant.
• Gain enough court approval (85+) to have Florianne arrested at the Winter Palace.
• Perform the rituals at the Temple of Mythal.
• Accept alliance with Abelas at the Temple of Mythal.
• Allow Morrigan to drink from the Well of Sorrows at the Temple of Mythal.

Approval Lost

• Go to Redcliffe Castle and conscript the mages.
• Say you’re a “servant of faith” when made Inquisitor.
• Say you’ll “do it for my own power” when made Inquisitor.
• Allow the Wardens to join the Inquisition after securing Adamant.
• Support Briala at the Winter Palace.
• Ignore the rituals at the Temple of Mythal.
• Refuse an alliance with Abelas at the Temple of Mythal.
• Drink from the Well of Sorrows at the Temple of Mythal.

Romance

Once you have asked Solas all about himself and impressed him, you can go with him from Skyhold to Haven for a talk about your first meeting. If you have flirted with him before and are a female elf, you can choose to kiss him here, which opens up the possibility of romance.

After the talk at Haven, Solas will give his plot—a spirit friend has been summoned by mages against its will, and Solas wishes to go free it. If you can free the spirit from its imprisonment without killing it in combat, Solas will approve strongly. Failing to even try to free the spirit will cause Solas to disapprove strongly, and if you are not appropriately apologetic later, you will cut off any chance of romance.

Once his plot is complete and his approval is high enough, Solas will ask you about yourself, confessing himself surprised by your intelligence and thoughtful nature. You can choose to officially begin the romance here. After completing the Temple of Mythal, Solas will talk with you about the future and then ask to spend time together in a scene that marks the culmination of your romance.