363 réponses à ce sujet

[IanPolaris]

AlexXIV wrote...

To be fair people died for his longer lifespan. Same with Zathrian. They may both have thought it was necessary for their goals. Zathrian thought he is the only one who can protect his clan, and Avernus thought he is the only one who can continue his research.

That's not exactly true at least when it comes with Zathrien.  Zathrien's lifespan was due to his life-energy being trapped by an immortal curse that was tied to an immortal spirit-wolf hybrid.  Now I agree that Zathrien was not a nice guy (to put it mildly) and his curse directly caused a huge loss of life over the centuries, but his lifespan did not depend on others dying per se.  However, Flemeth's lifespan apparently did (at least if you believe Morrigan).

-Polaris

[IanPolaris]

AlexXIV wrote...

IanPolaris wrote...

Marionetten wrote...

AlexXIV wrote...

The problem with 'forbidden lore' is that even if you forbid it, people will find a way to learn it from some other source. It would probably be better to let people study it under controlled circumstances and with all the necessary precautions.

This is true. Blood magic is far more dangerous as a forbidden art peddled by demons than it would be as a recognized school. Not only could they explore the art itself without being influced by demons but they could also explore countermeasures.

Unfortunately, I don't foresee that ever happening as long as the chantry remains in control.

Wilhelm of Honneth in his letter to FIrst Enchater Arlen complains bitterly about this very point.  His plainitive point (and it's well taken) is this:  How are mages supposed to protect themselves from possession (and presumably mind-control) if the Chantry forbids all research into it.  Even the Chantry hero Adralla was a Tevinter Bloodmage that performed decades of bloodmagic research into mindcontroll to make the litany...and it's a point the Chantry invariably glosses over....to the point where Wynne incorrectly calls her a bard.  She was not.  She was a bloodmage.

-Polaris

Funny, isn't it? Can't wait to find out that even Andraste was a bloodmage

It wouldn't suprise me in the slightest if we were to discover that Andraste was a bloodmage.

-Polaris

[Eclipse_9990]

AlexXIV wrote...

Eclipse_9990 wrote...

Marionetten wrote...

Eclipse_9990 wrote...

Avernus is pretty much the only one who can continue his research, or at least to the extent that is planned. Before Avernus the wardens only abilities were sensing darkspawn, and destroying an archdemons soul. Thats useful but not overly practical, in actually killing them. As for the people dieing thing.. Their deaths were necessary, I highly doubt he was killing them for his own amusement.
Think about it this way. You gotta break a few eggs to make an omelette(Calm down, I'm only kidding ). Seriously though, his research is very important, and it seems stupid to stop it when its potential good vastly outweighs the evil needed to complete it.

Not a very benevolent viewpoint, is it?

Avernus was a pragmatist through and through. He didn't concern himself with good or evil. He only concerned himself with making sure that the wardens had the biggest gun. To achieve his aims he enslaved people, murdered people and performed horrific experiments. While I let him live Avernus was most definitely not benevolent.

I've never claimed to be benevolent at all. I'm a good person. I like being a good person. It feels good to be a good person. But I'm not blind. I'd accept even the most evil act, if it led to the greatest good..

The end always justifies the means. For the greater good people. For the greater good... 

Then you are a greater person than I. If I was to decide to sacrifice my loved ones to save the world I would probably let the world go to hell and save my loved ones. So you people better hope I never have to make this choice.

Lol. I have to admit if I was forced to make such a decision it would be hard. But I'm pretty sure I would for the sake of the world. I certainly won't be happy in the end though. I'm sure they'd have to lock me up so I wouldn't kill myself from the guilt:P. 

[Eclipse_9990]

IanPolaris wrote...

AlexXIV wrote...

IanPolaris wrote...

Marionetten wrote...

AlexXIV wrote...

The problem with 'forbidden lore' is that even if you forbid it, people will find a way to learn it from some other source. It would probably be better to let people study it under controlled circumstances and with all the necessary precautions.

This is true. Blood magic is far more dangerous as a forbidden art peddled by demons than it would be as a recognized school. Not only could they explore the art itself without being influced by demons but they could also explore countermeasures.

Unfortunately, I don't foresee that ever happening as long as the chantry remains in control.

Wilhelm of Honneth in his letter to FIrst Enchater Arlen complains bitterly about this very point.  His plainitive point (and it's well taken) is this:  How are mages supposed to protect themselves from possession (and presumably mind-control) if the Chantry forbids all research into it.  Even the Chantry hero Adralla was a Tevinter Bloodmage that performed decades of bloodmagic research into mindcontroll to make the litany...and it's a point the Chantry invariably glosses over....to the point where Wynne incorrectly calls her a bard.  She was not.  She was a bloodmage.

-Polaris

Funny, isn't it? Can't wait to find out that even Andraste was a bloodmage

It wouldn't suprise me in the slightest if we were to discover that Andraste was a bloodmage.

-Polaris

Lol I would laugh hard if Andraste was a blood mage.
I would laugh even harder if I had the opportunity to present the evidence to the grand cleric. 

[AlexXIV]

IanPolaris wrote...

AlexXIV wrote...

IanPolaris wrote...

Marionetten wrote...

AlexXIV wrote...

The problem with 'forbidden lore' is that even if you forbid it, people will find a way to learn it from some other source. It would probably be better to let people study it under controlled circumstances and with all the necessary precautions.

This is true. Blood magic is far more dangerous as a forbidden art peddled by demons than it would be as a recognized school. Not only could they explore the art itself without being influced by demons but they could also explore countermeasures.

Unfortunately, I don't foresee that ever happening as long as the chantry remains in control.

Wilhelm of Honneth in his letter to FIrst Enchater Arlen complains bitterly about this very point.  His plainitive point (and it's well taken) is this:  How are mages supposed to protect themselves from possession (and presumably mind-control) if the Chantry forbids all research into it.  Even the Chantry hero Adralla was a Tevinter Bloodmage that performed decades of bloodmagic research into mindcontroll to make the litany...and it's a point the Chantry invariably glosses over....to the point where Wynne incorrectly calls her a bard.  She was not.  She was a bloodmage.

-Polaris

Funny, isn't it? Can't wait to find out that even Andraste was a bloodmage

It wouldn't suprise me in the slightest if we were to discover that Andraste was a bloodmage.

-Polaris

If you think about it, blood mages control minds. Bards boast morale, distract and mesmerize people around them. And thus through the centuries and by influence of the chantry a bloodmage turned into a bard.

[AlexXIV]

IanPolaris wrote...

AlexXIV wrote...

To be fair people died for his longer lifespan. Same with Zathrian. They may both have thought it was necessary for their goals. Zathrian thought he is the only one who can protect his clan, and Avernus thought he is the only one who can continue his research.

That's not exactly true at least when it comes with Zathrien.  Zathrien's lifespan was due to his life-energy being trapped by an immortal curse that was tied to an immortal spirit-wolf hybrid.  Now I agree that Zathrien was not a nice guy (to put it mildly) and his curse directly caused a huge loss of life over the centuries, but his lifespan did not depend on others dying per se.  However, Flemeth's lifespan apparently did (at least if you believe Morrigan).

-Polaris

It wasn't a direct consequence but it was one. Zathrian didn't suck life out of people, that's right. But he did something similar to a spirit, who then went on a killing spree and infected living beings which also went on a killing spree. In the end it cost lives, whether directly or inderectly. Curses are sneaky like that.

Modifié par AlexXIV, 05 février 2011 - 01:17 .

[IanPolaris]

Eclipse_9990 wrote...

Lol I would laugh hard if Andraste was a blood mage.
I would laugh even harder if I had the opportunity to present the evidence to the grand cleric. 

To quote Alistair:  I think her head would explode.

-Polaris

[IanPolaris]

AlexXIV wrote...

It wasn't a direct consequence but it was one. Zathrian didn't suck life out of people, that's right. But he did something similar to a spirit, who then went on a killing spree and infected living beings which also went on a killing spree. In the end it cost lifes, Whether directly or inderectly. Curses are sneaky like that.

Yeah except if that hybrid spirit wolf had not encountered any humans, Zathrien would still have been immortal because of his blood-spirit connection and that is my point.  The curse made Zathrien immortal, but the existance of the curse in of itself did not depend on the taking of life.

-Polaris

[AlexXIV]

IanPolaris wrote...

AlexXIV wrote...

It wasn't a direct consequence but it was one. Zathrian didn't suck life out of people, that's right. But he did something similar to a spirit, who then went on a killing spree and infected living beings which also went on a killing spree. In the end it cost lifes, Whether directly or inderectly. Curses are sneaky like that.

Yeah except if that hybrid spirit wolf had not encountered any humans, Zathrien would still have been immortal because of his blood-spirit connection and that is my point.  The curse made Zathrien immortal, but the existance of the curse in of itself did not depend on the taking of life.

-Polaris

He did it out of revenge, so he wanted the spirit wolf to kill people. And possibly spread the disease. Not sure what he was thinking ...

I often wonder if the ancient elves of arlathan used this bloodmagic to draw on the life force of spirits of nature to extend their lifes. That could be a reason why eventually something went wrong and humans and elves ended up in war.

[IanPolaris]

AlexXIV wrote...

He did it out of revenge, so he wanted the spirit wolf to kill people. And possibly spread the disease. Not sure what he was thinking ...

Honestly I don't think he was thinking coherently at the time, and it's not something that you can easily undo.  Remember his only son was murdered and his daughter was gang-raped and committed suicide because of it.  In his shoes, I don't think I'd be terribly rational either.

I often wonder if the ancient elves of arlathan used this bloodmagic to draw on the life force of spirits of nature to extend their lifes. That could be a reason why eventually something went wrong and humans and elves ended up in war.

I sort of doubt it.  I have no doubt that the Ancients of Arlathan did know about bloodmagic, but clearly they weren't able to deal with the Tevinter Imperium's aggressive use of it.  Based on what little has been released concerning Merrill, I think the Dalish (and likely the Ancient Elves) had a stigma against bloodmagic (how strong I don't know) and considered it dangerous.  It's my understanding that Merrill is exiled because of her bloodmagic.  As for why Zathrien wasn't, I can only guess.  My guess would be that Zathrien added blood magic to his repertoire after he became keeper.

-Polaris

[AlexXIV]

Well it wasn't called bloodmagic then. The elves were few and nature was plenty. So using a bit of the magic in nature to extend their lifes would not have had a big effect. Then the humans came and for once the world got more crowded and also humans destroyed nature to build their cities, so for once the elves source of magic was reduced and the amount of users (since they taught it to humans) was increased. As a result someone thought it a good idea to not only draw on nature and spirits but also on humans and elves. Which kinda was the first time they used their magic as 'bloodmagic'. Since for the first time it was blood and not spirits that fueled it.

That's merely a theory, but it could explain alot of things we hear about ancient elves, blood magic and the conflict between humans and elves. Simply the elves were a bit naive back then and didn't think of the consequences the humans and teaching them their magic would have.

Modifié par AlexXIV, 05 février 2011 - 01:33 .

[Ecaiki]

IanPolaris wrote...

Sure it does.  If you value all life equally and object to any life being spent, then you are morally obligated to save the rabbit from that evil fox.  Seriously, that is the logical extension of everything you've stated.  Sorry if that doesn't suit you, but it is.

I then countered that with my comment about unnecessary killing, a fox killing a rabbit to eat doesn't fall into that catagory.  A farmer slaughtering gophers however...

Still if you've decided (wrongly) that I'm some kind of "OMG, killing any animals at all is wrong!!!" type then there's nothing I can do about that.

Actually it is.  A blood transfusion is a direct injection of someone else's life energy (blood) in order to save a person whose vitality (blood) is at critically low levels.  In fact using bloodmagic to heal can be thought of in game terms of exactly that:  A blood transfusion from you (the life energy donor) to the target (the life energy recipient).

Except blood mages only heal themselves, they are basically vampires.

It's still not right to compare a blood transfusion to what is essentually a battery that only runs on blood.

Not always.  You can trap, you can get others to do it for you, etc.  All these are found in nature (and not just with human beings).  Expand your horizens.

Using traps and teamwork still fall under catching, it's just using different tactics to do so.

Sure it does in the same way you claim that bloodmagic does.  The plant had to use it's life energy to make those leaves and fruit, and the cells in those leaves and fruits are most assuredly dead after you digest them (except for perhaps the seeds that are designed to withstand this of course).  That doesn't make it evil but it is a fact of life.  Furthermore even plants get their energy from the sun which is dying as we speak (abeit over the couse of billions of years but it is) to supply that energy. It's all a consequence of the second law of thermodynamics.

You twist things so well, your favourite dance I take it?  

Seriously though, that's a rather pessimistic view of the cycle of life.

Except modern blood transfusions and even your eample of fruit and leaves provide direct evidence that you can in fact seperate life-energy from life in the sense that blood magic doesn't have to kill anyone.

As I said in an earlier post, we aren't going to agree on this because, according to your morality, only human life has value, and it's ok to just drain life from someone.

AlexXIV wrote...

Funny, isn't it? Can't wait to find out that even Andraste was a bloodmage ../../../images/forum/emoticons/lol.png

Oh man, now wouldn't that just be a nut-shot to the Chantry.  Their great prophet was nothing more then a disgruntled ex-noble who wanted payback. 

...actually, that wouldn't surprise me, nor would finding out she was indeed a mage and the Chantry made up the whole blessed by the Maker thing, because they couldn't bear their great hero being their worst enemy.

[AlexXIV]

Ecaiki wrote...
Except blood mages only heal themselves, they are basically vampires.
 

No. For once vampires are cursed creatures driven by an unholy hunger. At least the classic vampires are. Also bloodmages heal like normal people, and eat and drink like normal people. True is that their magic requires blood as a source, they use it like others use lyrium. Also they don't heal themselves with bloodmagic. They heal themselves with healing magic, they just can use blood as a replacement for lyrium if they are low on mana.

Also if one human dies because they need their blood and they manage to save hundrets by that, how was that a bad choice? Questionable? Yes. But you can't beat a blight with philosphy lectures.

Modifié par AlexXIV, 05 février 2011 - 01:49 .

[Eclipse_9990]

Ecaiki wrote...

IanPolaris wrote...

Sure it does.  If you value all life equally and object to any life being spent, then you are morally obligated to save the rabbit from that evil fox.  Seriously, that is the logical extension of everything you've stated.  Sorry if that doesn't suit you, but it is.

1)I then countered that with my comment about unnecessary killing, a fox killing a rabbit to eat doesn't fall into that catagory.  A farmer slaughtering gophers however...
Still if you've decided (wrongly) that I'm some kind of "OMG, killing any animals at all is wrong!!!" type then there's nothing I can do about that.

Except blood mages only heal themselves, 2) they are basically vampires.

It's still not right to compare a blood transfusion to what is essentually a battery that only runs on blood.

Bold 1: How is that different? If the farmer doesnt kill the Gophers the gophers eat the crops. If the gophers eat the crops he cant sell them. If he can't sell them, he doesn't make money. If he doesn't make money, he can't eat. Theres no difference at all. 

Bold 2:
Lily: "You can use magic without mana, you can boil the blood of people, your skin is ruddy, and acne ridden, and you speak with such disdain towards the chantry... I know what you are.." 

Jowan: "Say it... Out loud.." 

Lily: "Blood Mage.. "

Yes I know I just quoted twilight, and yes I'm about to kill myself. 

Modifié par Eclipse_9990, 05 février 2011 - 01:57 .

[TJPags]

I'm surprised to see so many people who seem to fall for the Chantry hype that "blood magic is always evil".

Mages themselves are tolerated - locked up, true, but tolerated.  And any mage, with training, can cast an explosive fireball.  Or walking bomb, which essentially boils a target from the inside, until it explodes and dies, injuring others.  Or flying swarm (or whatever the actual name is) in which insects swarm a victim and kill it, then move to the next.

Blood mages are reviled, why?  Because blood powers their spells?  Blood is spilled?  So what?  Is that really the distinguishing factor here?  Blood isn't spilled with walking bomb, but people die.  Blood can be spilled with blood magic with NOBODY dying.  You don't HAVE to kill your victim, you know.

And honestly, if I use my own blood, is that anyone's choice but mine?  I mean, it's my blood, just like it's my mana.  If I want to use my mana to cast fireball rather than rock skin, that's okay.  But if I want to use my blood to power a healing spell, that's bad?
if I use the blood of a willing person, why is that bad?  People today give blood all the time - is that evil?  My companion, in a battle for our lives, offers his blood to power my spells so I can save us.  We both live - I don't kill him.  Why is that inherently evil?
Or is it the whole "learn it from demons" thing?  So, the source of knowledge now changes it's purpose.  Well, what if I learned blood magic from a Tevinter blood mage?  They were originially taught blood magic by the Old Gods, no?  Or possibly by elves.  So, is it still evil?  What if I find an old tome written by Andraste herself, and it teaches me blood magic?  Would it still be inherently evil?  What if it wasn't written by Andraste, but by someone who travelled with her?
Or is it the mind control?  You know, this comes up a lot, but really, do we ever actually see mind control?  The only spell close to that is Blood Control.  That controls the suspect by controlling his blood.  Not his mind.  So where's the mind control, really?  Does it actually even exist?
Let's face it, the real reasons the Chantry disdains blood magic so much are these:

1.  It's use led to Tevinter mages despoiling the Golden City.  Obviously, anything that led to this event, a major religious event, MUST be evil.

2.  Blood magic was used extensively by the Tevinter Imperium.  Andraste, the prophet who wrote the Chant and the Maker's bride, was a slave who excaped from Tevinter, and who fought to overthrow the Tevinter mages.  Clearly, again, anything that the prophet of a religion fought a major war against MUST be evil.

Blood magic is a tool, just like a hammer, or an axe.  I can use either for good things, neutral things, or evil things.  In the end, I'm the one who decides, and it is me who is good or evil, not my tool.
 

[ReallyRue]

The only way to learn blood magic in the game is by exchanging Connor in a deal with a demon. If there are less-evil methods of learning it, then I'd say it's not inherently evil, and the person who uses it isn't automatically bad. Jowan doesn't seem like an evil person, just an idiotic one. It depends on whose hands the magic is in.

Tbh, I think fewer mages would be interested in blood magic if the Chantry didn't drive them to desperate measures.

[Nerevar-as]

You can buy a book in Awakening I think (or was it Reaver?). Same goes to Jowan, I don´t see him as Uldred´s apprentice.

Just the fact it is forbidden probably makes mages more curious.

[Razored1313]

Personally i see blood magic as a powerful tool for a mage to posses. I'm not saying that it is a good form of magic, and mages who practice it walk either a dark path or a shadier gray one. You can't be a pure hearted champion with blood magic, but you don't have to be the mass murdering sociopathic controller the chantry claims you to be. In our terms, it would be like the pope doing witch craft and being successful, however that doesn't mean he will be a heartless killer, it would certainly be easier, but isn't required.

[bsbcaer]

hhh89 wrote...

Althoug I HATE the magister of the Tevinter imperium, they clearly abuse their power (in the blood mage entry of the codex it's stated that blood magic is born as an alternative method to fuel spells). If I use only my blood to fuel my spells, and if I used blood control only when I fought against some enemies, why I can't do that?

What (or who) is to stop you to use others blood unwillingly when you are about to pass out (for using too much of your own blood) to cast blood magic.

I would like to point out that nothing is forcing you to use blood magic at all.  You make the conscious decision to turn and use the power of life to power your magic instead of mana.

Couple of things:  First, I've never really played a blood mage.  Second, lets look at the DA:O blood magic tree:

Blood Magic[/b]
Sustained

Range: Personal
Fatigue: 5%
Cooldown: 10s

For as long as this mode is active, the caster sacrifices health to power spells instead of expending mana, but effects that heal the blood mage are much less effective than normal

-- The initial ability to use health instead of mana to cast spells

Blood Sacrifice[/b]
Activated

Range: Medium
Activation: 0
Cooldown: 15s
Requires: Level 12

The blood mage sucks the life-force from an ally, healing the caster but potentially killing the ally. This healing is not affected by the healing penalty of Blood Magic

-- Ok...now we're using blood magic to heal oneself.  You are choosing to take the lifeforce of an ally, obstensibly a friend, into your own to heal yourself instead of using convential healing (spells, poultices, etc.)  Doesn't seem that it's a "noble tool" there, seems rather selfish.

Blood Wound[/b]
Activated

Range: Medium
Activation: 40
Cooldown: 20s
Requires: Level 14

The blood of all hostile targets in the area boils within their veins, inflicting severe damage. Targets stand twitching, unable to move unless they pass a physical resistance check. Creatures without blood are immune

-- Now we're talking an offensive spell.  Bringing this outside the game for a second; in theory, this means that any blood mage could target any person and boil their blood.  As an offensive spell, this is probably the one that seems the "least grey" as it could be argued that a number of regular spells can have similar DA:O effects.

Blood Control[/b]
Activated

Range: Medium
Activation: 40
Cooldown: 40s
Requires: Level 16

The blood mage forcibly controls the target’s blood, making the target an ally of the caster unless it passes a mental resistance check. If the target resists, it still takes great damage from the manipulation of its blood. Creatures without blood are immune

-- Finally, we're talking about a spell that forcibly controls another to act under the power of the Mage while doing severe damage.  I don't know about you, but it seems to me that the forcible invasion of another's mind can be equated to a form of mental rape. 

Modifié par bsbcaer, 05 février 2011 - 04:52 .

[jaikss]

I really dont understand how anyone can claim blood magic in and itself is "evil".In my opinions its no different from other forms of magic,in that it is very powerful and can be used for both good and bad.I mean really,if a village could be saved through a blood magic ritual that requires a sacrifice,and you had a person willing to be that sacrifice, should the village be allowed to be destroyed because "blood magic is evil"?In my opinion,no.

TJPags wrote...


Or is it the mind control?  You know, this comes up a lot, but really, do we ever actually see mind control?  The only spell close to that is Blood Control.  That controls the suspect by controlling his blood.  Not his mind.  So where's the mind control, really?  Does it actually even exist?
Let's face it, the real reasons the Chantry disdains blood magic so much are these:

 

I agree with the rest of your post,but we do see pretty clear evidence of it ingame imo.For one Bann Teagan being controlled by Connor when you enter the mainhall,ofcourse it isnt precisely mentioned that it was blood magic,but to me it was pretty evident considering the context.

Also somewhere in Wardens Keep it is mentioned that Avernus had used blood magic to influence the minds of some of the nobles to join their cause.

"Others may speak of the sanctity of the mind. To those who know the true
power of the blood, this is foolishness. The mind is no more sacred
than the knee, the small toe, or the ear. It is man's organ of
reasoning, nothing more. And true reasoning requires connection to the
rhythm of the blood, the tireless pounding of life. Interrupt this, and
even the mind is yours to attack.
"

Quote from the scrolls of Banastor would suggest a degree of mind control as possible aswell

 http://dragonage.wik...lls_of_Banastor

Modifié par jaikss, 05 février 2011 - 04:55 .

[The Elder King]

@bsbcaer:Sorry, I don't get your point. Are you agreeing or arguing with me?

[bsbcaer]

Eclipse_9990 wrote...

So a Blood Mage that uses his own blood to help people, and do good in general. Needs to die? Frankly your point of view is way more evil than simply using blood magic. Who cares if a blood mage wants to use his own blood or hurt himself to do his spells, its none of your business. Besides what about people who donate their own blood or organs(Yes I know this example was already used)?
Needles hurt, but the blood is being taken out to help someone. Also Blood Magic's main purpose isn't enslaving people, its just using your blood to bolster regular spells, and as a alternative to Mana. 

Based on the Blood Mage specialization from DA:O, I fail to see anything in that school that lends itself to "helping people and do good in general."  Even if you say: "But I use blood magic to fuel my other spells" then why don't you merely use mana to power the spell in the first place?

just a little bit from the description from the DA Wiki:

In the contemporary world, blood magic is described as being one of the more "sinister" types of magic. Blood magic is the magical practice of using blood, life itself, as a potent fuel for magical spells. This life may be supplied by the mage, or by willing or unwilling sacrifices. It lets the mage control the minds of others as well as use their very own life force to fuel their power. This practice is so rare in Thedas now that it can now only be learned from contacting a demon, with the risk of becoming an abomination.

In particular, I'd like to point you towards the last sentence of the description

[AlexXIV]

bsbcaer wrote...

-- Ok...now we're using blood magic to heal oneself.  You are choosing to take the lifeforce of an ally, obstensibly a friend, into your own to heal yourself instead of using convential healing (spells, poultices, etc.)  Doesn't seem that it's a "noble tool" there, seems rather selfish.

-- Finally, we're talking about a spell that forcibly controls another to act under the power of the Mage while doing severe damage.  I don't know about you, but it seems to me that the forcible invasion of another's mind can be equated to a form of mental rape. 

You know, if you want to see something as a bad thing then by all means do. Comparing mind control to rape is far off. If the spell was called 'charm person' and was not bloodmagic you probably wouldn't even come up with this ridiculous anology. Saying that because I played plenty RPGs where mind control is pretty usual and nobody goes around calling it rape.

And to the self heal. If you stood next to Leliana and she is pretty healthy and you are about to die I am sure she wouldn't mind if you'd use her to stay alive. Potential death doesn't mean certain death. It means there could be a situation where someone dies, I guess when the one you draw blood of is already pretty weakened.

Whether it is evil or not still depends how you use it, not if you use it at all.

[jaikss]

bsbcaer wrote...


just a little bit from the description from the DA Wiki:

In
the contemporary world, blood magic is described as being one of the
more "sinister" types of magic. Blood magic is the magical practice of
using blood, life itself, as a potent fuel for magical spells. This life
may be supplied by the mage, or by willing or unwilling sacrifices. It
lets the mage control the minds of others as well as use their very own
life force to fuel their power. This practice is so rare in Thedas now
that it can now only be learned from contacting a demon, with the risk
of becoming an abomination.

In particular, I'd like to point you towards the last sentence of the description

The last sentence is actually incorrect;You can learn blood magic through a tome in Awakening.

[bsbcaer]

AlexXIV wrote...

Ecaiki wrote...
Except blood mages only heal themselves, they are basically vampires.
 

No. For once vampires are cursed creatures driven by an unholy hunger. At least the classic vampires are. Also bloodmages heal like normal people, and eat and drink like normal people. True is that their magic requires blood as a source, they use it like others use lyrium. Also they don't heal themselves with bloodmagic. They heal themselves with healing magic, they just can use blood as a replacement for lyrium if they are low on mana.

Also if one human dies because they need their blood and they manage to save hundrets by that, how was that a bad choice? Questionable? Yes. But you can't beat a blight with philosphy lectures.

You really have to take a look at the blood mage specialization again...Any healing effects (while blood magic is active) only operate at 10% efficiency (that is 90% of the healing doesn't work), whereas blood sacrifice is a much more efficient means of healing.  If you, as a blood mage, had to chose, would you choose to use healing magic on yourself or blood sacrifice?