Elfroot

For the ingredient in Dragon Age: Origins, see Elfroot (Origins).

For the crafting resource in Dragon Age II, see Elfroot (Dragon Age II).

For the herb in Dragon Age: Inquisition, see Elfroot (Inquisition).

Elfroot
Type	Ingredient Crafting resource Herb
Locations	Various
Appearances	Dragon Age: Origins Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening Dragon Age II Dragon Age: Inquisition

Elfroot is the common name for canavaris; the herb actually has little to do with elves other than being commonly collected and traded to outsiders by the Dalish. It is the primary ingredient in many healing salves.

Information

Elfroot was first used by the elves of Arlathan, hence the name. The root gave their medicines particular efficacy, so when the Imperium conquered the elves, the magisters adopted its use and its popularity spread to all corners of the empire.

Elfroot is a hardy plant with large green leaves that grows wild in many places. It's so common that it tends to show up in most gardens and fields, almost like a weed. Unlike a weed, however, most people appreciate having access to the wonderful little plant. The roots can be used with very little preparation. Rubbing some of the juice on a wound, for example, will speed up healing and numb pain. And chewing on a slice of root treats minor ailments like indigestion, flatulence, and hoarse throats.

There are several varieties, but the most useful for herbalists are the Bitter, Gossamer, and Royal Elfroots.

—An excerpt from The Botanical Compendium by Ines Arancia, botanist

Codex entries

Codex entry: Elfroot

Codex entry: Gardner Diary

Codex entry: Healer's Notes at Redcliffe Crossroads

Codex entry: Letter About Lyrium

Codex entry: Patient Observations

Codex entry: A Supply List

Codex entry: Waterlogged Diary

Note texts

A Torn Page (the Herbalist)

Vivienne's Alchemy Notes

Trivia

• Dalish children learn short rhymes about plants and their characteristics, meant to help with identification of foraged goods. The rhyme about elfroot goes like this: "Heart-shaped leaved with veins of green: elfroot, to ease the pain."
• Elfroot can be combined with wine to make restorative draft.
• Occasionally, elfroot is added to dishes.
• Elfroot is known as "Hari" in Rivain. Isabela's mother, posing as a seer, assumed the identity of "Madam Hari", calling herself after the local name for elfroot.
• The library of Kinloch Hold contains a book titled This is Your Brain on Elfroot. Its description reads: "A battered pamphlet that informs parents on the dangerous and addictive properties of elfroot. Ironically, there's a fistful of dried elfroot stuffed in the front cover." This is a parody of an American anti-drug campaign that used a frying egg imagery as a comparison to the effect of drug use on the brain, stating "this is your brain on drugs."
• Elfroot's medicinal properties were re-discovered in 4:20, likely a joke by the developers that alludes to the code-term that refers to the consumption of cannabis and by extension, as a way to identify oneself with cannabis.

See also

Fauna and flora