472 réponses à ce sujet

[tuppence95]

tgail73 wrote...

tuppence95 wrote...

Re: the hardening.  I believe the "rule by his side" option will only come up if you have a high enough coercion?  I'm not sure that comes from hardening.  You get the hardening option immediately after he leaves his sister's home and you tell him everyone is out for themselves, and he needs to learn to stand up for himself.

Really? It has always been an option for me. I just thought it was always available. I swear, you learn something everyday with this game.

No, I was wrong.  Sarah corrected me.  All females get that option.  I guess it's just being human noble and having high enough coercion that makes that option successful.

[Sueno]

errant_knight wrote...

Sueno wrote...

@errant_knight I did not state that Alistair's characterization came from anime but he reminded me of the princess archtype I've grown used to from reading a bunch of shoujo and romance novels. I have to disagree with him being the hero archtype. He may share some character traits but--in my opinion--not enough to label him as such.

@Sarah1281 Thansk for the list! I wasn't sure what the difference was between the hardened and unhardened Alistair. I had no idea it was so varied.

@Tgail73 Ah, okay. I had read the option only came up if Alister was hardened.

I'm not the only one who sees this. The hero's journey is frequently referenced regarding Alistair. Personally, I think he fits the archetype to a tee, so.... In what way don't you think he fits?

I think we may be talking about two different things. The heroe's journey focuses more on the plot and not the characterization. I was solely focusing on Alistair's character archtype. I'm sorry for the confusion. I do believe the hero's journey plays into who Alistair is, but I do not think he is the typical hero we would see. I hope this was a little more clear.

[Tigress M]

errant_knight wrote...
Yeah, I've used it too, for the same reason. It's practically an internet standard across fandoms, isn't it?

Exactly.  When in Rome... LOL

[ejoslin]

Actually, I've been 'corrected' here for saying none of the LI are broken. But none of them are. It's part of what so appealing about them. That they've had varying degrees of crappy things happening to them in their past (I think Alistair may have had it the easiest, but it was still traumatic) yet are functioning adults. With Morrigan and Zevran, they were the stronger for it.

[errant_knight]

Sueno wrote...

errant_knight wrote...

Sueno wrote...

@errant_knight I did not state that Alistair's characterization came from anime but he reminded me of the princess archtype I've grown used to from reading a bunch of shoujo and romance novels. I have to disagree with him being the hero archtype. He may share some character traits but--in my opinion--not enough to label him as such.

@Sarah1281 Thansk for the list! I wasn't sure what the difference was between the hardened and unhardened Alistair. I had no idea it was so varied.

@Tgail73 Ah, okay. I had read the option only came up if Alister was hardened.

I'm not the only one who sees this. The hero's journey is frequently referenced regarding Alistair. Personally, I think he fits the archetype to a tee, so.... In what way don't you think he fits?

I think we may be talking about two different things. The heroe's journey focuses more on the plot and not the characterization. I was solely focusing on Alistair's character archtype. I'm sorry for the confusion. I do believe the hero's journey plays into who Alistair is, but I do not think he is the typical hero we would see. I hope this was a little more clear.

Oh. okay, I get what you're saying now. Well, the's not John Wayne, but he has strong principles, is a tough fighter, and is good and wants to protect people. He shows confidence in some ways, if not in others. He's resilient, or a childhood that made him as unhappy as his did, would have taken away his natural humor and optimism. He's no less of a hero than Luke, who isn't a tough guy at the beginning of Star Wars.

[Sueno]

Also, errant_knight, since you brought up the hero's journey I'm curious if this had anything to do with why you like Alistair as a romance option? I used the comparison to Sailor Moon because others had posted about the sterotypical stocic hero and I wanted to share how I saw Alistair as another archtype. But since the hero's jouney is so tried and true throughout many cultures do you think more females are drawn to Alistiar becasue he is familiar?

[errant_knight]

Sueno wrote...

Also, errant_knight, since you brought up the hero's journey I'm curious if this had anything to do with why you like Alistair as a romance option? I used the comparison to Sailor Moon because others had posted about the sterotypical stocic hero and I wanted to share how I saw Alistair as another archtype. But since the hero's jouney is so tried and true throughout many cultures do you think more females are drawn to Alistiar becasue he is familiar?

I think the hero's journey is a 'monomyth' because that type of story appeals to many people, both male and female. People like a story of a hero who comes from a difficult, often poor, beginning, to overcome obstacles and personal demons/failings, to ultimately triumph and reach their true potential/destiny. There's a reason that it appears again and again. across cultural boundries.

Yes, I like Alistair because he's a 'hero', but also because he's funny, witty, brave, kind, and loyal. And very romantic. He's all 'round awesome. And with that I have to go to work. Late!

[KnightofPhoenix]

Viewing Alistair as the hero, or even a hero, in the story, depends heavily on how you play. I for one never saw him as a hero (as in an active protagonist) in the slighest and if it wasn't for his blood, he wouldn't have made much difference. A "hero" always needs help and guidance true, but he remains the protagonist. I think it's hard to see Alistair as the protagonist (as he doens't do anything and just follows you), and just ignore the importance of The Warden. But that's just me.

[tuppence95]

I'm drawn to Alistair as a love interest, partially because his character is familiar.  But that's not all.  When I first played the game, I was very aware at his character's introduction that he was a possible LI.  I remember going through the beginning of the game, sitting here at my computer thinking, "Yeah, ok.  Damaged, but likable man thrown into a fight against evil.  Very predictable."

But then the writing (and also the voice acting) started surprising me.  

- I enjoy his sense of humor a lot.  That's the first thing that really attracted me.
- I know this irritates many people, but I liked that he was not too manly to show his grief.
- I like that he would say things in anger, then realize he was wrong and was able to admit his mistake and apologize.
- I liked that, no matter how much Eamon manipulated him and ground out his self-esteem and confidence, he never lost the ability to open his heart and give love.

[Moondoggie]

Matter of taste i guess. Personally i'm not a fan of the overly sensertive types who are really shy. But some girls like that.

[Sarah1281]

You know, even the people who don't really like Alistair the character seem to agree on his hotness. I can't be the only one who thinks he looks kind of bland but, God help me, I have yet to see anyone express this.

[KnightofPhoenix]

Sarah1281 wrote...

You know, even the people who don't really like Alistair the character seem to agree on his hotness. I can't be the only one who thinks he looks kind of bland but, God help me, I have yet to see anyone express this.

I don't think my opinion counts.

[Gilsa]

@Sueno -- Heh, all fandom will overhype characters. The Alistair thread is mostly the same people socializing with each other and using Alistair as a common theme so the thread doesn't get locked. There are people who are not fans of Alistair that post in there because they like to mingle with the other posters.



There are a few reasons why I like Alistair as a romantic interest:

- He makes a lot of the first moves to confess his feelings or to give out the rose. I remembered thinking it takes a lot of guts to make the first moves because he was constantly setting himself up for rejection.

- And this one line is cheesy, but it is what sold me on Alistair on my first game with him. I love playing dwarves and I had reservations about romancing a human because it seemed like an odd match, but I wanted to see how it played out. When he fell in love with the dwarf and wanted to stay with her, the dwarf was able to ask him what about the fact that she was a dwarf. Alistair's reply was to say not to be ridiculous, that he actually worried he was too tall for her. I just liked how it validated how awesome I perceive dwarves to be and that won me over. (It's also why I can't wait to play a human/dwarf romance in DA2 if there's one!)

- I mainly like Alistair as a romance because he's so tied into the story as a Grey Warden. I just like the brother-in-arms angle so it's a personal preference.



You are welcome to come into the Alistair thread, btw! No screenshots necessary. =p

[tuppence95]

Moondoggie wrote...

Matter of taste i guess. Personally i'm not a fan of the overly sensertive types who are really shy. But some girls like that.

I haven't seen him being really shy.  Yes, re: sex - he does want to wait until he's sure.  But he's fairly assertive about making moves once he's decided.  And yeah, matter of taste.  I've had too much crap from men in my life who are too tough to be sensitive.  I'm so lucky I found a husband who has a lot of similarities to Alistair.

[Sueno]

@Gilsa The Alistair thread looks like a lot of fun so I'll be sure to drop in. When it comes to Alistair he reminds me of that awkard guy friend a lot of girls have growing up. He kind of reminds me of Ducky from Pretty in Pink. I think if Ducky looked like Alister Andie would have been all over him . Anyhow, thanks for your input. I'm just curious because I have two sisters and we were playing DA at the same time and none of us cared for him as a romance option. When I started reading through the threads on here it was quite obvious our opinions were in the minority. Bioware did something right since there are so many Alistair fangirls and since he did nothing for me romantically I was just curious what I was missing.

When it comes seeing Alistair as a hero I'm pretty much on the same wavelength as KnightPhoenix. I didn't see him as a hero but like KnightPhoenix pointed out, that probably had a lot to do with how I played DA. Which makes me wonder if how you play the game also affects whether or not you enjoy Alistair as a LI.

[Moondoggie]

Sarah1281 wrote...

You know, even the people who don't really like Alistair the character seem to agree on his hotness. I can't be the only one who thinks he looks kind of bland but, God help me, I have yet to see anyone express this.

The only thing that ever bothers me about his look is his hair. It's a gelled up styled look. Im not sure they had hair gel in medievil times XD

[Gilsa]

@Sueno -- Interestingly enough, the Alistair you're seeing is a second rewrite from David Gaider. Alistair was originally tougher and more brooding, but the response was not positive so DG did a complete rewrite of Alistair to what you see. He also wrote Zevran's character if you didn't already know that so it's nice to see the similarities and contrast in different approaches. If you're a fan of either character (and Morrigan, since he wrote her, too), then keep your fingers crossed that we'll see the same underlying elements carried over into the DA2 romances.

[nos_astra]

On my first playthrough I ended up playing a character who looked very much to Alistair for moral guidance, that's probably why I didn't get the "he leaves everything to the Warden" feeling. I saw him unwilling to lead, but not incapable of doing so.

My favourite part about the romance is that it doesn't always end in a way you can control. He can decide to break up with you, he can decide to ignore your orders and kill the AD himself, he can even decide that he's done following you. It's all part of his character and it has kept my interest alive.

He's the youngest companion, a bit immature and naive, but also brave and a capable fighter. I love that you can tease him and he will tease right back. I liked that fact that he will judge you and apologize when he's done ranting. I like that despite his inexperience he's bold enough to pursue a relationship. I found his character to be well balanced and consistent (others disagree).

The fact that he's the only other Grey Warden and tied to the plot is also a plus for me (but it depends very much on how you play).

Modifié par klarabella, 26 novembre 2010 - 06:10 .

[maxernst]

Alistair's weaknesses are what make him appealing to me. He is insecure, but he's honest about his insecurities, rather than hiding them behind a mask of ****iness (see: Zevran). When he finally does make his move, he's certainly assertive enough without being pushy. And I see him as sensitive in the positive sense, meaning that he shows his feelings, but you can tease him and joke around with him without him taking offense. So he's a bit immature; it's understandable given his age and upbringing.

[kyles3]

KnightofPhoenix wrote...

 I think it's hard to see Alistair as the protagonist (as he doens't do anything and just follows you), and just ignore the importance of The Warden. But that's just me.

yeah, the only way this works for me is as a loose parallel to the stolen throne; i like to think of my warden as playing loghain to alistair's maric. i suppose it's somewhat absurd to be playing second-fiddle in a game where i'm ostensibly the main character, but somehow this feels the most satisfying to me.

Modifié par kyles3, 26 novembre 2010 - 06:16 .

[Sueno]

Gilsa wrote...

@Sueno -- Interestingly enough, the Alistair you're seeing is a second rewrite from David Gaider. Alistair was originally tougher and more brooding, but the response was not positive so DG did a complete rewrite of Alistair to what you see. He also wrote Zevran's character if you didn't already know that so it's nice to see the similarities and contrast in different approaches. If you're a fan of either character (and Morrigan, since he wrote her, too), then keep your fingers crossed that we'll see the same underlying elements carried over into the DA2 romances.

I'm glad they went with the rewrite. Alistair is great complex character and I hope I'm not coming across as an Alistair basher, I just feel like when it comes to romancing him I'm on the other side of the spectrum from the majority.

A lot of people seem to share the sentiment it's about how you play the game. Did anyones view on a character  change on your second, third, or fourth play through? I have noticed I tend to like Alistair more when I watch my sister play. She's a dwarf commoner and is way nicer than my human noble (who--as I stated before--is very much a brat).

[Zjarcal]

Sarah1281 wrote...

You know, even the people who don't really like Alistair the character seem to agree on his hotness. I can't be the only one who thinks he looks kind of bland but, God help me, I have yet to see anyone express this.

You're not alone Sarah. Then again, I think ALL the men in Dragon Age look kind of bland.