[spoilers all] What are the Archdemons/Old Gods?
Ok lore experts, I'm replaying DA:O and I have a question. There was an old fan theory that the Archdemons (which are confirmed as the "Old Gods" worshipped by Ancient Tevinter), were one and the same as the ancient elven gods. I'm not sure if DA:I ended up debunking this theory, or left it open to interpretation.
Basically, there were 9 ancient Elven gods, ("Creator gods") and since Mythal and Fen'Harel rebelled, that leaves 7. Those 7 gods were said to have been imprisoned in the Fade by Fen'Harel. There are also 7 Archdemons. We know who Fen'Harel & Mythal are, but the other ancient Elven gods are pretty mysterious, other than their names and some vague Codex entries.
Elven Gods:
*Mythal: Protector
*Fen'Harel: The Dread Wolf
Elgar'nan: God of Vengeance
Falon'Din: Friend of the Dead
Dirthamen: Keeper of Secrets
Andruil: Goddess of the Hunt
Sylaise: the Heartkeeper
June: God of Craft
Ghilan'nain: Mother of Halla
Archdemons:
Dumat: Dragon of Silence
Zazike: Dragon of Chaos
Toth: Fire
Andoral: Slaves
Urthemiel: Beauty
Razikale: Mystery
Lusacan: Night
Other than the fact there are 7 of them, and Andoral sounds similar to Andruil , it's still open to interpretation. There are also the Forgotten Ones: https://dragonage.fandom.com/wiki/The_Forgotten_Ones
There isn't an exact number of Forgotten Ones, but their are three known ones that are named: Anaris, Daern'thal and Geldauran. It's also said that the Forgotten Ones were locked in the Void or the Abyss by Fen'Harel while the Creator gods were trapped in the Fade (aka The Beyond). According to Fen"harel and/or his supporters, the Creator Gods weren't gods at all, but were just very powerful Elven mages, who also weren't benevolent, but quite cruel and wicked, sacrificing countless lives of Elves for their own vanity.
So what do you think? Are the Old Gods of Tevinter one and the same as the Ancient Elven Creator Gods, just a coincidence, a red herring by the writers? Is there any confirmation either way, or more updated fan theories?
[EDIT]: Here's a very good on the subject: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPqYg3rvrB0
It seems like there's enough in there to say the writers are teasing the idea, without confirming it, and putting just enough contradictions for skeptics to reject without being able to definitively debunk it. Seems to be a clever part on the writers to keep it just within the realm of mystery.
[EDIT 2]: Several people have mentioned a statement by David Gaider asking why the elven gods would want to teach humans magic?
For reference, here is the full quote, he wrote in response to a question about overlapping mythology:
"The Dalish have slowly reassembled a religion from those pieces of Lore, though complete it is cannot be known. Even so, a few things are factual. For one, the original elven religion predates the cult of the old gods by a long time, could the old gods have been based on the elven gods? Possibly, but there's nothing to suggest the elven gods were ever dragons\, and certainly the contempt the imperium held for elven culture makes it unlikely that they would think elven gods worth worshipping**.*
Consider also that it was the old gods that taught humanity its magic and encouraged them to destroy Arlathan -- why would elven gods do this? \** one could point to the forgotten ones (look at the codex entry on Fen'Harel for their mention) and suggest that they had reason for vengeance, though that would probably be against Fen'Harel and their good brethern and not against the elven people themselves, no? Still all of that depends on how much of the knowledge given by Dalish tales is complete."*
Firstly, this quote was written by Gaider in 2009, long before DA:I expanded on the lore in question. Here's a timestamped link of the vid discussing this quote: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPqYg3rvrB0 It originally appeared on the now-defunct Bioware social network, so you won't find the original text.
*- we know it is canonical that Mythal/Flemeth can turn into a Dragon, but she wasn't confirmed to by Mythal until DA:I. in Inquisition there are several codex entries alluding to other Evanuris as having dragon-like features.
**- Why humans? Well, this "Whispering" starts 50 years after the elves on Thedas are cut off from the fade and start quickening. Is it possible that this quickening also resulted in loss of elven magical talent? Remember, only certain people are born who can reach into the Fade in their dreams and have magical ability. Perhaps the Evanuris were able to detect a shift in magical power to certain humans and that is why they reached out to them. Only certain Tevinter magisters were hearing the whispers from the Old Gods, and the whispers and promises of power is why they were worshipping them, not because they admired them based on any pre-existing history or lore. In fact, there is a complete lack of any mention of the Old Gods prior to the whispers heard by the magisters. Could it be possible that the the Evanuris gave the magisters false names to hide their elven heritage? Another explanation is that the lore around Tevinter hating the elven gods is not entirely true. In DA:O dalish origin, you discover a statue of an Elven god, Falon'Din, but your temporary companion is confused as to why it is in human ruins. The same statue is found where you encounter Blood Mages connected to Tevinter.
*** This becomes more clear at the end of trespasser. Solas/Fen"harel trapped the Evanuris AND the Forgotten Ones, and they wanted out. It's also clear at the end of DA;I that the forgotten ones "good brethern" aren't good at all, and were quite cruel to their elven subjects.