8061 réponses à ce sujet

[mousestalker]

Looking forward to it!

Top of the page fanart:



From here

{Not my image, not my art}

Modifié par mousestalker, 23 janvier 2011 - 04:38 .

[Sialater]

Tigress M wrote...
@Sialater - That was painfully beautiful. I truly ached for Zevran having to watch the woman he loves with another man. Thank you for sharing.

You're welcome!  I was actually very surprised when he refused to take Leliana up on her offer.  In the back of my head he looked at me sadly and said, "You have already written that I win Moira's heart.  Why would I take anything less, even with a friend?"

A figment of my imagination was metagaming.  *facepam*

[Kismet76]

I absolutely need to share this awesome illustration by Kornichon!!!




From my story The wrong half (which is NSFW).

Modifié par Kismet76, 23 janvier 2011 - 08:46 .

[ejoslin]

Such amazing art (and a fantastic and HOT story) should NOT be on page two. Ever!

[HolyAvenger]

I've been doing the Zev romance and the Leliana romance at the same time and there has been absolutely NO banter or dialogue between them about this yet. Such a shame because I expect the rivalry between those two to get quite funny. Tell me there's some funny Zev lines coming up yes?

[Shadow of Light Dragon]

I don't think there *is* any romance banter between Lel and Zev (except when the jealousy talk comes up).

[Corker]

I think there's one dialogue between them ("knocking boots") that has a slightly different ending if Leliana is romancing the Warden, but that's all I can think of offhand. Certainly nothing like the grief Wynne and Leliana will dish out to Morrigan.

[HolyAvenger]

Oh man, that is disappointing. Sooooo much potential there...

[ejoslin]

Yeh, there are none of the catfights that morrigan/Leliana have :/ Even Alistair and Zevran, if you have a mod that fixes it (*grin* mine) only have one. Leliana is really neglected in the banters :/

[Sresla]

This is a (short), interesting article here about the in-game romances, but I found this quote rather puzzling:

There’s only so much we can do, but I think trying out some different things like DAII takes place over a large span of time, and I always found that the romances can be a bit strange and that they don’t grow organically. It’s sort of a situation where you’re in this life-or-death adventure, you’re comrades that have been thrown together and passion springs out of that. It was nice to get the opportunity to have a romance that took place over years as opposed to a month at best.

I can't be the only person who thinks the timeframe being given for the romances in Origins seems very... short? I've always considered everything (the entire game) happening over a span of 1-2 years (a year at the very least), what with the calculation of travel time (heck it takes what, a month to reach Orzammar from Denerim, give or take a week). I might be able to shave some time off this if there was the implication that the Warden and crew have access to a speedier means of transport besides their feet but there's nothing to indicate horses or mounts of any kind - the only thing they've got is Bohdan's cart.

Especially with Zevran, by the time you reach the Landsmeet and his relationship "crisis point" with Taliesin, it does feel very natural to me (even moreso if you've not slept with him earlier on). In terms of initial interest, I suppose you could argue that the LI's become interersted in the Warden over a month's time, but that's no different than going out on dates with someone really - you either like someone after a couple of outings or you don't.

But a month? I don't think you've seen everything Zevran's romance has to offer in a game's month. If you're going to say that, you might as well do a real time assessment and say X number of hours it took to actually play through Origins (and, by all reports, Dragon Age 2 is going to be a shorter game...)

Modifié par Sresla, 24 janvier 2011 - 03:12 .

[Shadow of Light Dragon]

Last I heard (and if I remember correctly)the official word was that DA:O took less than a full year. Only a month, though? That has to be wrong.



The problem I had with the game was that if you had all the gifts and said all the right things, you could end up in a relationship with a character in about five minutes



I get the feeling whoever's doing the interview is just trying to over-exaggerate that DA2 will be structured heavily around periods of time, while DA:O was not. Save for a few cursory references in game (Dagna for instance) there was little way to tell how much time had passed.

[HolyAvenger]

One of the specific conversations with Wynne (as a Mage Warden) has her mentioning you've been out for a year...so yeah, I think that's at least how long the timeline is supposed to be.

[Sresla]

Shadow of Light Dragon wrote...

The problem I had with the game was that if you had all the gifts and said all the right things, you could end up in a relationship with a character in about five minutes

This is true, but that COULD have easily been prevented - I've never played with the Ser Gilmore mod but I believe that's how dlan_immortality has him set up: the advancement of his relationship only triggers after major plot points and quests so rather than being able to stand in camp and get him to love you all in one go, time has to pass. That's a flaw in the system and not, I don't think, a flaw in the relationships - because it's true for EVERY character you recruit, not just love interests.

That sounds basically what they're doing for DA2 - over the span of 10 years, you've got Hawke travelling to what... 10 different locations around Thedas? I'm sure each place will have specific dialogue. So, I think the argument they should have used (rather than referencing a month time frame) is that you could talk to a character in camp once you recruited them and be through their life story in 15 minutes. Again, I'm not sure why there wasn't some forethought or fixes put in to prevent the speed romance/dialogue. There are flags like that in the toolset (if X_plot is completed or if X was present for...) although maybe you can't have two flags, like for Zevran, require both he be above say... 70 AND have completed the Gauntlet to get him to talk about Rinna.

[Shadow of Light Dragon]

@HolyAvenger - Neat, I haven't finished a mage playthrough so didn't know that. I'll have to chase up the dialogue... *checks* She says "It has been almost a year since you left the tower, hasn't it?" (She might be a bit off however, since I think she would have left sooner to get to Ostagar. Can't remember the origin very well.)



@Sresla - Yeah, I agree it could have been improved, but even that system wouldn't be perfect. You could just do all the quests and not bother with dialogue until most of them are completed, thus fulfilling the conditions and STILL getting a life story in 15 minutes. XD I still prefer DA:O's system to the Awakening-triggers one, though.

[Shadow of Light Dragon]

Prompt: Jealousy.  I wonder how you think Zevran would act and think about it.
anger? payback? sadden? disregard?
it's up to you!


Time Limit: No more than 3 hours

Deadline: Monday January 24th (not definite hour) 

Prize: Fan art, ask what you want and I'll do!
(but I don't do complex backgrounds, mechanicals, and things that will make me spend too much time on it)

go!

Here's my attempt: Pierced (mildly nsfw)

Prompts: 1

'Jealousy' was haaaaaaaard! *flails* But at least I gave a different Warden some air-time. He's been giving me suggestive looks for a while now...

[mousestalker]

@Shadow of Light Dragon: What a great response to the prompt! Zevran being jealous was completely plausible under the circumstances. And the 'twist' at the end was delicious!

[ejoslin]

@sresla The romances to me felt natural, and like the took place over many months, which IMO is long enough. Hell, i was engaged after dating my husband for 6 months. My parents were married after dating 3 months (their 51st anniversary is coming up). It's not like it takes years to fall in love.

Edit; As far as setting flags, it would be very doable.  I would have it done by number of treaties collected, not by particular treaties.  It may require a bit of new coding, though, and there are a lot of coding errors as it is.  

Modifié par ejoslin, 24 janvier 2011 - 01:31 .

[Tigress M]

Prompt: Jealousy.  I wonder how you think Zevran would act and think about it.anger? payback? sadden? disregard? it's up to you!

Time Limit: No more than 3 hours
Deadline: Monday January 24th (not definite hour)  
Prize: Fan art, ask what you want and I'll do!(but I don't do complex backgrounds, mechanicals, and things that will make me spend too much time on it) 
go!

Well... here's my first attempt at a Zevran prompt fill. Be gentle with me. LOL

-----

“Problem, my friend?” Zevran asked, following Alistair’s gaze as he stared at the retreating figure of their leader.

“What? No!” Alistair replied, tearing his gaze away from Ehrin before scowling at Zevran.

Zevran chuckles. “You do know it does no good to lie to a Crow, do you not?”

“I’m not…! Oh, blast it! Why are you here? To rub it in?”

“I am not here to rub it in, as you say, though perhaps a massage would help ease some of your tension.”

“Absolutely not!” Alistair exclaims, his face twisted up in disgust. “I’ve seen how your massages end!”

Zevran holds up his hand. “I jest, my good man. Truly,” he says, stifling his laughter.

“Don’t you have somewhere else to be?” Alistair asked.

Zevran could see the discomfort in the Warden’s face. Perhaps he should let this go. But no , it would only get worse. Ehrin was already beginning to sense what was going on and it made her uncomfortable. She would never say anything, but she was already shying away from any public displays of affection and he feared if this was not handled soon, she would begin forgoing their intimacy in camp. And that would never do.

Contrary to what everyone thought, he was providing a much needed service to their young leader. Could they not see how giving her a release from all the pressures building around them made her stronger? No. They could not. All they saw was a wily, suave, sensual man taking advantage of their friend and leader; he knew this to be true from the conversations he’d overheard. Ah well, that was a problem for another day. Today’s problem was the ex-Templar, soon to be King.

“No,” Zevran replied. “I am exactly where I am needed, at this time.”

Zevran saw Alistair’s back stiffen. Finally. Alistair turned to face the Crow, eyes furious. “Is that so?” he asked, voice raised. “You’re needed by her side night and day, distracting her from the task at hand?“

Zevran said nothing, seeing that Alistair was just getting started.

“And what of her? What will she do once you’re done with her? Providing this isn’t some elaborate plan to complete your Contract and she actually survives her relationship with you.“

Zevran’s jaw clenched, his right hand gripping his left wrist behind his back with enough force to bruise. But he remained silent, breathing deeply in an attempt to calm his anger.

Alistair, on a roll, saw none of this and continued on. “She deserves a chance at happiness if we survive this. She deserves more than you’ll ever be able to give her!”

Zevran’s eyes smoldered before turning to amber orbs of ice as his temper flared and then cooled down to dangerous levels where it could be harnessed and finessed.

“And I suppose you are the one to give her this happiness? This fairy tale ending?” he asked, all smooth words, the ice almost undetectable.

“It would be better than the one you will give her!”

“Interesting that you should know what my future holds, when I do not. Perhaps you are clairvoyant, yes? I, however, do not need magical powers to see into your future, my Prince. One needs simply to open the shutters to see clearly the direction you are headed.”

“Yes, it doesn’t take a great scholar to know that I will most likely be Ferelden’s next king. I’m astounded you managed to figure that out on your own,” replied Alistair in that snarky tone he could pull off so well.

“And then what of your lovely Warden? Your lovely, ELVEN Warden, my friend?” Zevran asked, softly. “Did you truly think, should you have managed to win her heart, that you would have actually been allowed to keep her once all of this is done?“

Alistair bowed his head, staring into the fire. “I – I hadn’t thought about that… about that part of my future.”

Zevran chuckled softly. “Of course you didn’t. You are a man; we tend to only see so far and no farther. It is our curse… and our blessing, no?”

He laid a hand on Alistair’s shoulder and motioned him to sit. Alistair nodded. Once the two of them were seated by the fire, Zevran continued.

“But she did. Once she learned that you were to be king, she saw where your path would take you… and she knew there would be no room for her along it.”

Alistair’s stared into the fire. “She spoke to you of this?”

“We do more than knock boots in her tent, my friend,” said Zevran, laughing. “While boot knocking is wonderful, even I need time to recover, so to speak. Makes for a perfect time to chat. Pillow talk serves more than one good purpose, my dear man.“

“You talked about me… after… THAT?” he asked, his face turning crimson.

“Well… yes. There was not much time for talking beforehand.” Zevran continued on, glad to feel tensions on both sides receding. “She does care about you, Alistair. Enough that your jealousy is eating away at her, making her uncomfortable.“

“I… I had no idea,” said Alistair, stunned.

“I know. Which is why I decided it was time to tell you,” Zevran replied. He paused, drawing in a deep breath and letting it out slowly. He opened his mouth and then stopped, not sure he wanted to go on.

“What is it? What are you not telling me?” Alistair asked, sensing Zevran’s discomfort.

“You asked me where my future lay,” replied Zevran, his face grim. “And I do not know. But, I do know that I want her to be a part of it for as long as she desires to be.” He paused again, taking another deep breath before turning to look directly at Alistair. “I would like to say I am speaking to you on her behalf, but that would be lie. The truth… the truth is much more difficult to admit.”

Alistair looked at the Assassin, no, Assassin no longer. Just a man. A man obviously in love. “I think I can figure it out. I’ll go talk to her. This is obviously something I should have done long ago.”

Zevran looked at Alistair with a new level of respect. There, in that moment, he saw the first glimpse of the future King and he liked what he saw.

“Thank you, my friend.”

Alistair chuckled. “Do not thank me, yet. Once I’m done it will be your turn.”

“My turn?” Zevran asked, confused.

“To tell her how you really feel,” Alistair said as he stood up and walked towards Ehrin’s tent.

Zevran stared into the flames, saying nothing as Alistair left. Alistair was right, curse him. He did owe Ehrin the truth about his feelings, but he’d have to be honest with himself first... and that was the hardest part of all.

Modifié par Tigress M, 24 janvier 2011 - 03:02 .

[Tigress M]

@Shadow - That was exceptionally good! I am not a huge fan of m/m romances but I actually found that wonderfully written. And of course anything that get Anora's goat is always a good thing!

[Corker]

ejoslin wrote...
Edit; As far as setting flags, it would be very doable.  I would have it done by number of treaties collected, not by particular treaties.  It may require a bit of new coding, though, and there are a lot of coding errors as it is.  

I don't think that solves the problem.  If you didn't talk to a LI at all, did all the treaties (so that Number_Treaties_Done == 1 is TRUE and Number_Treaties_Done == 2 is TRUE, etc...), then all the flags would be true and you could churn through the LI's conversation options in one late session in camp.  

You could set it up so that you also tie it to transition screens (like getting the drakeskin armor from Wade), although just leaving camp and coming back might foil that.

OR you could code it so that if you don't talk to the LI after each quest, you miss conversations: they're *only* available while Number_Treaties_Done == N and not for any other values.  You couldn't put "mainline" dialogue points under those conditions, unless you wanted to make the romance impossible to complete unless it were consistently tended, but you could get different tidbits, I suppose.

[ejoslin]

Corker wrote...

ejoslin wrote...
Edit; As far as setting flags, it would be very doable.  I would have it done by number of treaties collected, not by particular treaties.  It may require a bit of new coding, though, and there are a lot of coding errors as it is.  

I don't think that solves the problem.  If you didn't talk to a LI at all, did all the treaties (so that Number_Treaties_Done == 1 is TRUE and Number_Treaties_Done == 2 is TRUE, etc...), then all the flags would be true and you could churn through the LI's conversation options in one late session in camp.  

You could set it up so that you also tie it to transition screens (like getting the drakeskin armor from Wade), although just leaving camp and coming back might foil that.

OR you could code it so that if you don't talk to the LI after each quest, you miss conversations: they're *only* available while Number_Treaties_Done == N and not for any other values.  You couldn't put "mainline" dialogue points under those conditions, unless you wanted to make the romance impossible to complete unless it were consistently tended, but you could get different tidbits, I suppose.

well, yes, you COULD do that, but I don't think that closing conversation branches off is a better solution.  It takes away from the love triangles and such.  New dialogs opening up at certain points of the game did work quite well in DAO, though some could have been improved.

The fast forward romances (i've done them) can be silly, but it's better than, say, getting Zevran to adore in the ambush area (doable with a gift or two).  Yes, of course, there's then the issue where a non-HNF can start Alistair's romance after the landsmeet to avoid that whole situation, but I don't consider having that option a downside, though it does take something away.  

However, honestly, my first playthrough, I romanced Alistair and got dumped, then started the romance with Zevran.  Even though Zevran's romance happened VERY quickly (while finishing up sidequests and such), it still had a huge emotional punch -- possibly because all the friendship dialogs were done at that point, so I just got the romance dialogs and had no clue what to expect.  I think just allowing for dialogs after certain points would be enough of a change.

What i find concerning, actually, is how the devs are spending so much time putting DAO down.  The romances really are something they did RIGHT.  I hate the thought that they're going to change them in order to "fix" them.

Edit; i think the main complaint about romances and such were the dialogs just running out too quickly.  There actually are guides as well as to how to open up romance dialogs the most quickly.  Putting in stops of some sort would stop that from happening, while at the same time, leaving people the option for their fast forward, all-at-once romance if they wait.

Modifié par ejoslin, 24 janvier 2011 - 02:06 .

[Ramante]

ejoslin wrote...

What i find concerning, actually, is how the devs are spending so much time putting DAO down.  The romances really are something they did RIGHT.  I hate the thought that they're going to change them in order to "fix" them.

Edit; i think the main complaint about romances and such were the dialogs just running out too quickly.  There actually are guides as well as to how to open up romance dialogs the most quickly.  Putting in stops of some sort would stop that from happening, while at the same time, leaving people the option for their fast forward, all-at-once romance if they wait.

In the latest interview Gaider said that they realized that the romances were one of the most popular (and best) parts of Origins. The only changes (given so far) are that the LIs will not be the same as in Origins (so no 'just-like'Alistair'-romance and that this time the romances will evolve over years and not a month.
I think that in DA2 the romance convo's will be spread out over a larger part of the game, so you won't be able to get them in love in the first conversation.

[ejoslin]

Ah, that's good news. I have to admit I have not been following DA2 much -- I have seen the devs say SO much bad about DAO, and I am glad to hear that they still will admit that the romances in DAO were good.



I do think slowing down the dialogs is a very good thing. They do it in DAO for Alistair's friendship dialogs. It would have made sense had they done it for all the dialogs, actually instead of having most approval based only.

[Corker]

ejoslin wrote...

However, honestly, my first playthrough, I romanced Alistair and got dumped, then started the romance with Zevran. 

I tried that.  Imagine my surprise when Flirty McFlirterson had no more sweet words for my Warden!  He must have realized it was a Bad Idea Rebound thing.  

[Tigress M]

The only thing that scares me about the LI's in DA2 is that the dev's might try something like an ME/2 approach where if you try to talk to your LI too frequently, you get nothing but the same comment from them over and over. But, like ejoslin, I haven't been following the DA2 forums at all (really want to be as surprised as possible when I sit down to play for the first time) so my fears could be completely unfounded.