Dragon Age mage Morrigan is about as close to an iconic character as the series has yet achieved. A darkly seductive sorceress and shape shifter, the outlaw 'apostate' appeared at this year's E3 festivities, to announce her return to the chaotic realm of Dragon Age: Inquisition.

As spellbindingly beautiful as she is deadly, Morrigan's mysterious comeback follows the conjurer's creative attempts to conceive a child back in 2009's Dragon Age: Origins. Whether players chose to indulge her wishes or not, Morrigan would eventually find her way into a nameless dark realm, effectively disappearing from Fereldan in order to pursue greater, god-like power.

Following Thursday's extensive Inquisition detail drop, Mike Laidlaw, creative director of Dragon Age: Inquisition has been sitting down to discuss Morrigan's magnificent return. Speaking to Game Informer on Monday, he explained:

"[Morrigan] will not be a party member […] that's going to disappoint some people, but I think it's important for us to be upfront about that […] It's not a cameo. She plays a significant role."

Is it possible that Morrigan could reappear here as an arch-villain? Origin players will certainly recall the character's feisty temperament, callous attitude and at times, utter indifference toward NPC suffering. A role in narration could also await the mighty mage, as the character's voice-over work has already appeared in conjunction with the game's E3 trailer.

Laidlaw goes to on hint at the sheer scope and centrality of Morrigan's role, stating —

"The story of Inquisition is [Morrigan's] moment […] She has a human role in this plot, which I think may surprise some people because they might only think of her as a plot device […] I'm taking her to a human place."

Given Morrigan's well-known mother issues — the character was raised by an aging witch [spoiler ahoy!] intent on possessing her youth — she could certainly make for a very 'human,' even sympathetic villainess. Depending on Bioware's chosen canon, the character may also have a particularly large axe to grind, as Laidlaw confirmed that many of the decisions taken in DA:O would carry over here.

"[There are] various states that Morrigan can be in […] whether or not they [reflect previous choices pleasingly] depends on the person. But we do recognize them and it does play a role of varying degrees depending on the surroundings."

Are you excited for Dragon Age: Inquisition? What role do you think Morrigan will play? Are there any other characters you would like to see reappear here?

Dragon Age: Inquisition will return order to the realm, when it releases sometime in the third quarter of 2014. The game is scheduled to appear on Xbox 360, PS3, Xbox One, PS4 & PC platforms.

You can follow Sam on Twitter @GamingGoo.

Source: Game Informer