Dragon Age: Guardian of the Veil is a game about forming a team to fight ancient elf gods, but the more time I spend in Thedas, the more I realize I’d rather be chasing a different villain. Elgar’nan and Ghilan’nain are two of the ancient elven pantheons known as the Evanuris, and they are up to no good in laying waste to villages, killing innocents, and trying to rebuild their ancient empires. But I think it’s a complete snooze compared to the real evil star of the game, Johanna Hezenkoss, the evil lich and absolute queen in progress.

I should probably explain why I’m not worried about Evanuris, even though they represent a very real and immediate apocalypse. There are things I definitely like about the character designs and some great moments with the story. Ghilan’nain looks great; Whether it’s an annoyingly limber figure blinded by disease and struggling to hold on with too many limbs, or a giant face in the clouds, I love his design. I also loved those chilling moments when Elgar’nan whispers into the mind of protagonist Rook, promising impossible gifts.

Unfortunately, these moments are drowned out by the duo’s rather simplistic dialogue. The two bellow about drowning the world in disaster, infinite power, the futility and immortality of those who seek to fight them. This is exactly what you’d expect from a world-ending villain, and I found myself bored after the second encounter. Elgar’s in particular is a disappointment. Ghilan’nain can rely on its amazing visual design and army of monsters; Elgar’nan is nothing more than a big man wearing a cumbersome hat.

Compare them to Johanna Hezenkoss, a woman who seems utterly ordinary in comparison. He wears the simple attire of the Mourning Vigil, a pair of glasses and a practical hairstyle. If it weren’t for the scary flashlight next to him, you might have mistaken him for a simple lab assistant. Emmrich, one of the game’s best companions, asks you to hunt Hezenkoss on his behalf. By revealing that the party’s Hand of Glory is actually a severed extension of itself, he literally gains the upper hand and exiles the party to the Left.

It’s a pretty strong start for a villain, but it gets better as we continue Emmrich’s story. You eventually learn that Hezenkoss is throwing a big, lavish party at the evil wizard’s mansion. This is clearly suspicious, so the team goes to investigate, but find that Hezenkoss has invited his minor rivals, annoying nobles, and other enemies so that he can sacrifice them all and inhabit the body of a giant golden skeleton monster. as if Menubut for witchcraft.

I appreciate the point of sacrificing a bunch of people you don’t like so you can ascend to the immortal form of a giant skeleton. It reminds me of the Spider-Man meme where the hero tells a pterodactyl scientist that he can cure cancer with his technology, and a triceratops-wielding pterodactyl guy says he doesn’t want to cure cancer. He wants to turn humans into dinosaurs.

Hezenkoss and Elgar’nan want power, of course, but one of them is much more theatrical about it. I love a good mad scientist, and Hezenkoss takes on the role with aplomb. I won’t spoil the outcome of his confrontation with Emmrich, but it’s Guardian of the Veil‘s most powerful moments. Part of me longs for an alternative history Guardian of the Veil It had a much smaller scope and less immediate risks. In this hypothetical alternate timeline, I think Johanna Hezenkoss deserves to be the lead villain. I have long forgotten Elgar’nan and his plans, but Hezenkoss will live on in my heart; a villain with ambition, goals, and the freedom to chew the scenery a bit in his moment of triumph.