Mages/Mage Underground

The **Mage Underground**, also known as the **Underground Railroad**, is a secret network of apostates and mage sympathizers established in Kirkwall to help mages escape the Gallows.

## Contents

* 1Background
* 2Involvement
* 3Quests
* 4Known members
* 5Codex entries
* 6Note texts
* 7Trivia
* 8See also
* 9Gallery
* 10References

## Background

The Mage Underground was established in Kirkwall sometime in or before 9:31 Dragon by escaped apostates and mage sympathizers. It provided food and shelter for escapees, even transporting some of them beyond Kirkwall and into remote areas of the Free Marches. According to Knight-Captain Cullen, the Mage Underground is somewhat of an exception, as the local population usually assists the Templar Order in recapturing apostates instead of hindering their efforts.

The Underground grew bolder over the years, eventually sending raiding parties into the Gallows through old Tevinter tunnels (often used by lyrium smugglers to supply the templars who crave the substance) to break out mages who lacked the skills to do it on their own.

By 9:37 Dragon, the Mage Underground also had connections to the Resolutionists, an offshoot of the Libertarian fraternity of Enchanters that pursued freedom for mages at all cost, engaging in acts of terror and sabotage against the Chantry throughout Thedas.

## Involvement

In 9:34 Dragon, if Hawke let the Starkhaven mages go free three years earlier, Terrie, one of the mages, credits Hawke and the underground for her continued freedom and directs Hawke towards Mistress Selby, a mage sympathizer who knows of several potential opportunities to help apostates in or around Kirkwall.

One such opportunity is to rescue one of Terrie's friend, an apostate from Starkhaven who was recently freed while on her way to the Gallows only to be captured by bounty hunters instead. Terrie asks that Hawke go to the Wounded Coast to free her friend.

Another opportunity, only available if Keran was allowed to remain in the Order, is to frame Ser Conrad Vernhart, a templar who excels at recapturing apostates, to have him thrown out of the order.

During Dissent, Anders reveals his involvement with the Mage Underground, which he has kept even from a mage-supporting Hawke because of their involvement with the guard and nobility. However, he now requires Hawke's help in investigating rumors of Ser Alrik's "Tranquil Solution," a deliberate plan to turn all mages in the Free Marches tranquil. If Hawke agrees to help, Anders leads them through the same tunnels that the underground uses to free mages from the Gallows, and as such asks that they keep the tunnel's location a secret. After finding the required evidence, and proof that both Knight-Commander Meredith and the Divine rejected Alrik's so-called solution, Anders declares his intention to talk to the Grand Cleric once again.
To counter the Mage Underground's activities, Knight-Captain Cullen recommends fighting both physically and in turning the hearts and minds of their supporters against them. By 9:37, the Underground is on its last legs, as helping apostates has been deemed a hanging offense; a sentence carried out by templar death squads operating around the city. The templars have also set a bounty on members of the Mage Underground. Smuggling people outside of the city becomes their main prioity. The Underground presumably dissolves with the destruction of the Gallows during the Kirkwall Rebellion.