Dragon Age Primer
There really is no substitute to playing Dragon Age Origins Ultimate Edition. I'll give you a rundown of the world of Thedas (THE Dragon Age Setting). Elves are segregated and oppressed. They've lost a lot of their culture and trying to hold on to what they have. There are city elves who are mostly servants or slaves, segregated from the humans (think African American history allegory). There are Dalish elves who live outside human laws in the forests (think gypseys and native American history of losing culture). They do not have extended lives though they might have had way back.
Dwarves have a caste system, dependent on who your father was, you become what rank they were (smith, noble, warrior, servant etc.). The lowest rank are the casteless. Dwarves traditionally live underground and hold that being "close to the stone" makes you a true dwarf. Those that leave are surface/sun touched, no better than casteless. Surface dwarves are vital for trade though. Dwarves are naturally resistant to magic which allows them to mine lyrium without it effecting them too much. Lyrium helps power Templars and Mage spells. Their resistance though means they can't be mages.
Mages are mostly feared en masse. Think how some people are paranoid every Muslim is a terrorist. Most humans follow a religion run by "the Chantry". Think Catholicism if instead of Jesus being their figurehead, it was Joan Of Arc. That's why the Divines (Popes/Bishops) of the Chantry are all women. Mage phobia isn't without precedent. Some mages tap into dark magics too much and get possessed by Demons. Like Elves, Mages fall under 2 main categories. They're either part of The Circle of Magi, watched closely by Templars and controlled in a tower under Chantry rule, or are Maleficar, free mages under no rule. Recently mages and Templars have been fighting, Templars abusing their power, entire circles of magi rebelling. If you have a chance read Dragon Age Asunder. That all leads to the events at the start of Inquisition. Templars and Mages meeting to discuss peace talks with the Divine Justinia as a referee. What could possibly go wrong...
Oh and Qunari? Think Dothraki but with horns and more intellect. Like dwarves, your role under Qun society is defined for you. Unlike dwarves it isn't a caste system, it's more based on what you're best at, not what you desire to be or who your father was. Hense there are no artists and things are very matter of fact with them. Think Drax in Guardians Of The Galaxy, only less emotional. Their culture allows for no wiggle room. Hense if you play as a Qunari you play as one who does not follow the Qun, a "Tal Vashoth", to allow you to be more free. They're also really oppressive to their mages, often chaining them up Hannibal Lector style. This is probably due to their vulnerability to magic.
