Darkspawn and Disciples

The Disciples
Disciples are hard to kill and their numbers are few - there are only 3 Disciples who can Awaken. The Architect was one and the other two are "The Builder" and "The General". They have, since the end of the Fifth Blight, become the heads of clans along with a few other less powerful Disciples. These lead smaller groups of more elites darkspawn, the alphas.

In the case of this AU Thedas and in the absence of the Architect, there are most definitely more Disciples then in Awakening. During the last 20 years they have been "awakened" by The Three. Their numbers have increased since DA: Origins but they are not huge in number. There are still only a few, but more then we see during the timeframe of Awakening.

Disciples can be any type of Darkspawn. All Disciples have magic to varying degrees, thus they have varied motivations and values. Over the years some of them have become barely magical. They come in all shapes and sizes and abilities. Some Disciples are able to intentionally hide the taint via magical masks and some have powerful wards. Theses masks create an illusion that can make them look like any dwarf or human or elf in Thedas. The more powerful masks and spells can actually stop the taint from infecting the people and places around them as quickly, akin to what we see in "The Calling". This is temporary though.

Darkspawn Clans
Darkspawn Clans and their plots does not mean they are as numerous as Darkspawn themselves. Disciples are more like generals of an army and there are several armies now as there are several clans.

At the end of Awakening one of the fears was that a new hoard would be led by a Disciple, not an Archdemon and there would be a Blight without there being an actual Blight. This is the premise upon which the Darkspawn Plot for CoT is set. That this is a very real fear and the Disciples have not been sitting on their hands for 20 years. They have organised and the power of the Architect to keep his promise and control the Darkspawn has waned. With the Architect's whereabouts unknown other Disciples have taken the initiative - forming their own plots and alliances with each other and who knows who else.

Known CoT Canon Disciples

 * The Builder (can "Awaken")
 * The General (can "Awaken")
 * The Assassin (Awakened by The General)
 * The Reap (Awakened by The General)
 * The Puppeteer (Awakened by The General)