Gaming

The Veilguard Fan fixes the Elven Rooks issue

Gia January 25, 2025

Summary

Dragon Age: The Veilguard uses factions instead of backgrounds, making race less important in character creation.
However, the game doesn’t tell you that there is only one faction you can play as a Dalish elf.
This mod adds references to being a Dalish elf regardless of which faction you have chosen.

Dragon Age: Veilguard’s character creator works a little differently than in previous games. In Dragon Age: Origins and Inquisition, the race you select determines your backstory, sets out your place in the world, and perhaps gives you another motivation in the story.

However, the Veilguard opted for factions instead of backgrounds. None of the factions are limited by race either, so it often feels like being a Gray Warden is more important than being an elf, or whatever combination you choose. Frustratingly, this often means we don’t know key facts about our character – such as whether an elven Rook is Dalish or not – until the dialogue confirms otherwise.

A cartoon fox photoshopped into Dragon Age: The Veilguard, holding up a cup and pleading with a Dragon Age character

I beg Dragon Age: The Veilguard to let me roleplay

I keep trying to roleplay Dragon Age: The Veilguard, but my Rook feels the same as everyone else’s.

That’s where this mod comes into play. Dalish Elf Rook – Dialogue Edits by Nexus Mods user flowersforthemachines allows elves Rooks of all backgrounds to identify themselves as Dalish via dialogue options. Normally this type of dialogue is limited to elven Veil Jumpers, so this mod makes the lines appear no matter what your Rook’s job is.

Dragon Age: With the Veilguard Mod you can actually be a Dalish Elf

That Vallaslin isn’t just for show

The character creator screen in Dragon Age: The Veilguard, showing a Veil Jumper elf

“When I first played DAVG, I was a little disappointed that my Rook couldn’t be Dalish. It turns out you can be Dalish – but only if you’re a Veil Jumper! Which the game doesn’t tell you about at all,” says the mod author.

Right now the mod adds five lines of dialogue that were previously behind the Veil Jumper background – even though there’s no reason why a Dalish elf couldn’t come from most other factions. A future update will also add references to the party banter, so you get the full Dalish experience without having to be a Veil Jumper.

If you’re looking for other mods that will give you more freedom while playing, there are a few out there. We recently discussed the mod that allows you to romance Lucanis regardless of the decision you made about Treviso’s fate early in the game. Another mod adds some reactivity to decisions you made in Inquisition.