I don't think this has been discussed before, and if it has, I'm sorry. I just thought it might make for a good forum topic. So is Thedas a flat world like Narnia or Medieval Europe or is it round like our own good ol' earth? Thoughts?
I am more or less agnostic on the matter but I do bear a slight tendency to lean towards flat. This is because seasons do not fluctuate in any of the games, and each of them spans at least a year, if not longer. Since seasons are caused by the earth tilting on its axis, it seems likely that Thedas has no such tilting motion. Also please note that there appears to be no such thing as a compass, even amongst the technologically advanced Qunari, a device that should have been invented by this point when Thedas is juxtaposed to the countries it is based upon. This would likely mean that there are no magnetic poles, which is another trait of a round world. Also, the DA moon is always full, regardless of how far the story has progressed, indicating that the relations between earth and it's moon are not there, and again lending to the idea that Thedas is flat. They're not the strongest arguments, but they're what I have, and I find them less weak then the ones I've been able to align against them.--Isolationistmagi (talk) 04:22, November 30, 2011 (UTC)
Fine points. But we can't be at two distant places at the same time in the game to check if those venues have either similar or different, "opposing" seasons. For the compass, the writers might have forgotten very small details (and geology, for this matter); perhaps their thoughts overshadowed by more unique concepts like mirrors that allow you to teleport, or a hybrid species of a pig and a rabbit. And the moon's other phases are not seen, simply because only the full moon is "programmed" to be there every night, like how it's always daytime in Darktown, even when venturing into the night; same goes for Sundermount and the Wounded Coast, which have no night option.
NicKeL BreaD Talk 04:46, November 30, 2011 (UTC)
Sten says to the Warden in DA:O "Interesting strategy. Tell me: Do you intend to keep going north until it becomes south, and attack the archdemon from the rear?" This suggests (i) a concept of compass directions, understood at least by the Qunari, and (ii) a round world, as Sten's implication is that you will keep going so far across a spherical planet that your direction relative to your starting point has changed? --NickyStuu (talk) 12:00, November 30, 2011 (UTC)
The Thedas map and in-game maps for Ferelden and Amaranthine all have compass directions on them, but there's no necessity for an understanding of magnetic north or a round earth. Sten's comment certainly implies one, however. Does anyone know if sextants rely on the earth's sphericity? Rexel and Nathaniel both use one... - Wandrew (talk) 12:17, November 30, 2011 (UTC)
- A sextant is used to calculate the angle between the horizon and the sun/moon in order to determine your latitude/longitude when you're at sea. So yeah, I'm not sure that'll work too well if you're in a flat world... --Nihilarian (talk) 15:46, November 30, 2011 (UTC)
Ostagar, at least, exhibits seasonal weather changes: temperate during the Prelude, frozen and snowy during RTO. Theskymoves (talk) 14:54, November 30, 2011 (UTC)