Templars vs. Mages is a major decision thrown on the player throughout the Dragon Age series. In Origins, it was relatively minor. In the second game, the decision was everywhere and everything exploded to the Mage rebellion. And, in Dragon Age: Inquisition, players are put in a place where they decide whether to have the Mages or Templars join their upstart organization. Whoever is not chosen becomes part of Corypheus' army.
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So, what is there to consider when making such a big in-game decision? A lot. Enough for a full-fledged list, in fact. Let's get started!
Updated on July 12, 2023 by Quinton O'Connor: Someday, for certain, for real this time, almost definitely, Dragon Age: Dreadwolf will come out. And when that happens, we'll all stop replaying the first three Dragon Age games. (No, we won't.) Regardless, this is never not a burning question among the fandom, and if you're new to the series or returning after a hiatus, you may wish to either acquaint or reacquaint yourself with the eternal debate.
15 Mages: The Oppression Is Real
Mages are oppressed everywhere except in Tevinter. There are horror stories of them being abused by their Templar guards, forgotten in jail cells, and turned Tranquil. That is just how it is in Mage Towers. Outside the towers, Mages are hunted, killed, and live in hiding.
Even worse is if they are among the Qunari. Qunari sew the mouths of Saarebas (Mages) shut and use them as living weapons. So, why not choose them? Give them protection and show the world that they are worth more.
14 Templars: Mages Are Dangerous
The reason Mages are oppressed is that they are feared. There are many examples of Mages just losing control of themselves and hurting people. They can turn into Abominations, they can set people on fire, use blood magic, necromancy, and much more.
Templars are not as dangerous in that they cannot become abominations. They are simply trained in a certain kind of combat with ways to fight magic. This can lead to lyrium addiction, but that's nowhere near as dangerous as a Blood Mage or abomination can be.
13 Mages: Meredith Happened
On the other hand, one bad apple can spoil the bunch. Meredith from Dragon Age 2 is an example of one of the worst kinds of Templars. She has no mercy for Mages to the point that she does not treat them as people. In fact, she gets paranoid enough to destroy an entire city in the name of Mage-bound paranoia.
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It makes players wonder just how much fearmongering goes into Templar training. There's even a (retconned) potential epilogue slide in Dragon Age: Origins which reveals Cullen goes mad and slaughters a group of Mages. These things don't just happen!
12 Templars: Anders Happened
For every bad Templar, there is a bad Mage. Anders is just such an example. He commits an act of terrorism to incite a Mage rebellion. He destroys a Chantry. He also is a great example of how Mages can lack control.
A bit of a tragic character, Anders has a spirit of Justice inside him. But Anders' own anger twisted the spirit into one of Revenge. As such, the spirit sometimes takes him over and possesses him to the point that Hawke has to fight him depending on where the player brought him and what choices were made.
Though technically an abomination, Anders keeps himself under control...until he blows up a Chantry to send the Templars a message. Pretty extreme.
11 Mages: The Player And/Or Their Friends Are Mages
In the series, the player meets a lot of Mages. There is Morrigan, Wynne, Anders, Merrill, Solas, Dorian, Vivienne, and many more. Fans may have romanced some of them, or the player character is of the Mage class. Logically speaking, a Mage would probably prefer to choose Mages over Templars. (Though Vivienne might disagree.)
Dorian and Solas obviously prefer the player choosing Mages over Templars. Vivienne does tolerate the choice if the Inquisitor makes sure they are controlled. In the epilogue, she transforms the Templars into a shell of themselves if made Divine.
10 Templars: Calpernia Is A Cooler Second-In-Command To Corypheus
If the player sides with the Templars, then the Mages serve Corypheus, and his second in command becomes Calpernia. Many fans prefer her to Samson, courtesy of her backstory.
Calpernia is an ex-slave from Tevinter and a talented, capable leader. She loves her homeland but also wants to make the enslaved have more rights. What's also cool about her is that the player finds that she doesn't entirely trust Corypheus.In fact, players can convince her to betray Corypheus if they have the right leverage.
But if players choose the Mages to ally with the Inquisition, then they never even get to meet this character.
9 Mages: Cool Time Travel Plot
Many fans have agreed that the Mage quest is far more interesting than the Templar one in terms of lore implications. In the Mage quest, players actually get to time travel to a future where Corypheus wins.
They see allies at their lowest and the stakes suddenly become incredibly high. It is emotional, frightening, and quite a bonding experience to see friends fight for the Inquisition with their lives in a doomed world. Leliana is especially amazing in this quest, as she has been tortured for so long but still has enough fight in her for the slim chance that she can change history. It's all rather Star Trek, really.
8 Templars: Save Ser Delrin Barris
For every rotten Templar, there is a good soul, and Ser Barris surely qualifies. He is not afraid to ask questions of his superiors and does not give as much into fearmongering as some of his peers. The player can see this when he is first seen in Val Royeux. He's a lot like Cullen in some ways, the Inquisition version at least.
So, he's a cool character. However, if the player chooses Mages, then he will die. The only way to save him is to choose the Templars. Have we mentioned BioWare doesn't make this easy?
7 Mages: Save Grand Enchanter Fiona
On the other side is Fiona, first introduced in the Dragon Age books. Those familiar with content outside the games will know she is Alistair's mother. Going into Inquisition with this knowledge, it's even more tragic if she dies, and she will die if the player chooses Templars.
With her dying goes any hope of her and Alistair being reunited. Poor Fiona is stuck between selling herself and her people to Tevinter and/or being saved by the Inquisition due to their need for protection from the Templars.
6 Templars: Lore-Wise, Templars Make More Sense
Templars are built to fight magic, and Corypheus is a Mage. Cullen brings this up at the beginning of Dragon Age: Inquisition: that Templars are literally built for issues like what the Inquisition is facing. That is to say, the player is trying to shut a magical portal to the Fade, and Templars are basically anti-Fade warriors.
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They are used to fight demons -- a primary enemy in the game. So, it stands to reason that siding with the people who are not susceptible to possession is the wisest move to make regarding lore and the world of Thedas.
5 Mages: Seems Like What The Developers Want Players To Pick
Despite the fact that the lore tells players that the Templars are a necessary evil in Thedas, the developers consistently push players to sympathize with Mages and adopt Mage characters into their party ranks.
From the original game, fans are told (ad nauseam) that apostates are dangerous heretics. But most of the interactions with apostates show that they are just ordinary people. In the same way that there are "bad eggs" among the Templars (Meredith, Ser Otto Alrik), there are bad eggs among Mages (Jowan, Livius Erimond).
4 Templars: The Fight Against Envy
Though siding with the Mages introduces the player to the fabulous and sassy Dorian Pavus more quickly, siding with the Templars gives the player insight into a very interesting boss battle against an Envy demon.
The boss battle itself isn't as cool as the one against the mighty Fear demon later on in the game. But it introduces some compelling lore implications and the build-up to the fight is arguably more interesting than the nightmare of walking through a red lyrium prison where all the player's friends are dying or dead.
3 Mages: No Lyrium Addiction... That We Know Of
By now, everyone who has played through Dragon Age: Inquisition at least once knows about Cullen's tragic lyrium addiction. The Inquisitor can even urge Cullen to keep taking it, eventually leading to his death.
This problem is rampant among the Templar ranks — so much so that Cullen opens a halfway house rehabilitation center for Templars once he retires. But this begs the question: do Mages have the same problem?
After all, lyrium just enhances a Mage's connection to the Fade and, thereby, the Mage's magical abilities. Since they have a Fade connection, they ostensibly don't need lyrium according to some fan theories.
2 Templars: It's What Connor Would Want
This might be reopening some very old wounds for long-time Dragon Age fans, but let's recount the tale of young Connor of Redcliffe. He was but a boy, the son of Arl Eamon when his mother discovered his magical talent. He had no Circle guidance, and his tutor, unfortunately, turned out to be a blood Mage sent to poison his dad.
Connor soon found himself beset by a Desire demon amidst the outbreak of the Fifth Blight. The player has many ways of addressing the situation, but one lets Connor appear in Dragon Age: Inquisition in Redcliffe along with all the other "rebel" Mages.
He isn't fond of recalling what happened and voted to keep the Circles despite following his fellow Mages when they rebelled. Seems as if he might vote for the Inquisitor to side with the Templars.
1 The Answer: Goodness, It's Complicated
We know you were hoping for a clear answer, but in fairness, can there ever in truth be a clear answer? BioWare has fashioned one of gaming's toughest choices with this one, and props to their fabulous writers for pulling it off so well. Go with your heart on this, and remember the golden rule: there's always next playthrough.
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