I remember... Marjolaine had given me clippings from a Fereldan book. A social dissection of Orlais, or some such: "Orlais presents a veneer of opulence, but the aristocracy are committed to a system of social one-upmanship they call the game. Sprawling receptions delight friend and foe, while bards strike from shadow with insinuation, larceny, and assassination, often to the strange delight of their targets. Control of these auteur agents is yet another layer of the game.