The Dragon Age series is filled with tough decisions, and those choices often have consequences - both for the rest of the game and beyond into future installments. With Dragon Age 4 in production, it's time to think about which previous in-game decisions will have the biggest impact on DA4's story.
Realistically, more than one decision from the previous Dragon Age games will come back to haunt players come Dragon Age 4. However, there's one particular decision from Dragon Age: Inquisition that, based on what we know of Dragon Age 4's story so far, seems most likely to have a big impact.
Here Lies The Abyss
Everyone who played Inquisition likely remembers "Here Lies the Abyss" quite well: it's the quest that took the Inquisitor, their army, Hawke, and a Grey Warden ally to Adamant fortress in the Western Approach. The Inquisition laid siege to the Grey Wardens holed up there, as they had begun to hear the Calling (unbeknownst to them, at the interference of Corypheus) and in desperation, they began to summon demons and bind them in a disastrous attempt to end the Blights for good.
Players saw the consequences of this in an earlier Inquisition quest: if allowed to complete their summonings, the Grey Wardens would be forced to bring their demon army down upon Orlais in a wave of destruction that would leave the whole world vulnerable to Corypheus' plans. Thus, "Here Lies the Abyss" follows the Inquisitor's mission to stop the Grey Wardens from bringing their plans to fruition.
At the end of the quest, players are faced with one of the more potentially devastating choices in the game: the choice to sacrifice either Hawke or the Grey Warden ally to a Nightmare demon in the Fade, so that the rest of the characters can escape. Now, to some people, this was an easy choice. The Grey Warden ally varies based on decisions made in Dragon Age: Origins; it can be either a man named Stroud, Loghain Mac Tir, or Alistair.
Seeing as players don't really get a lot of time to get to know Stroud (at least compared to Hawke, the player character of Dragon Age 2), players may have found it easy to sacrifice Stroud and save Hawke. Other players may have had a harder time if faced with the decision of saving, say, either Alistair or Hawke. Regardless of who the Grey Warden ally is, or which character was ultimately sacrificed, it is this decision that seems extremely likely to rear its head in Dragon Age 4.
Choice 1: Sacrificing the Grey Warden
Sacrificing the Grey Warden will have likely have a profound impact on the order. By the time Dragon Age 4 will begin, the Grey Wardens as an organization will have been through the wringer. They were the main heroes of Origins, but went through a major fall from grace due to their actions in Inquisition. Depending on the player's choice, they can either be recruited into helping the Inquisition to atone for their reckless actions at Adamant, or exiled from Orlais completely.
By the end of Inquisition, no matter what the player's decision regarding the Wardens' presence in Orlais, there's a major constant in the organization's epilogue: their numbers have been severely reduced by the damage already done from their blood pact with demons, and ultimately, a schism forms within the order, resulting in some kind of civil war between Grey Wardens. Not only that, but Weisshaupt, the Grey Wardens' base, goes completely silent. Whether the reason for that silence is the civil war or some other sort of sinister interference remains to be seen, but the fact remains that the Grey Wardens are a diminished order and in a fairly awkward spot following Inquisition.
Essentially, the Grey Wardens may be particularly susceptible to manipulation in Dragon Age 4. We know that Solas is trying to tear down the Veil, and that Dragon Age 4 will continue that storyline (likely as the main plot). Could tearing down the Veil have consequences for the Grey Wardens, too? The darkspawn and their taint originated from the Fade and the Abyss, so it's entirely possible. It's also established that with the death of Warden-Commander Clarel in Inquisition, the Wardens outside of Weisshaupt have no senior Warden to take control of the situation, unless the Inquisitor's Grey Warden ally survives.
Thus, sacrificing the Grey Warden ally could mean that, whatever form the Wardens take in Dragon Age 4, they'll be more confused, leaderless, and vulnerable than they've ever been.
Choice 2: Sacrificing Hawke
Sacrificing Hawke hurts, as many players may feel closer to them than, say, Stroud or Loghain. Hawke, as the protagonist of Dragon Age 2, is near and dear to many players' hearts, so sacrificing them is never going to be fun. Then, there's the impact on Dragon Age 4 to consider.
If any of the previous Dragon Age protagonists is going to make a cameo in Dragon Age 4, it seems most likely that it'll be the Inquisitor from Inquisition. However, that's not to say that Hawke (if they survive) couldn't make a cameo, or even be mentioned as having an impact elsewhere. And if any of Hawke's former companions return for DA4, the fact that their former leader and friend is probably dead is going to be demoralizing. Plus, it seems like the other protagonists will play some part in the future of the Dragon Age series: the Inquisitor is hunting for Solas, the Warden is searching for a cure to the Calling, so what is Hawke doing? Moreover, what isn't Hawke doing if they're killed in Inquisition?
For the most part, it seems like sacrificing Hawke means they won't be able to help at all in the future struggles that Thedas is guaranteed to endure. But it's also likely that there are other, more specific problems that'll arise from Hawke's demise that we just don't know about yet. Hopefully, the release of Dragon Age 4 will fill in the blanks surrounding both the Wardens' and Hawke's fate beyond Dragon Age: Inquisition. Until then, we'll just have to cross our fingers, wait, and see.
Dragon Age 4 is in development now.