Ok. Let's clarify a few facts while we're sitting here and looking at all of this.
First of All. Morrigan and Flemeth do not say everybody is dead. They only give an "all dead" response to a specific question. the Fate of the King and the Grey Wardens. Which in that context "all dead" is true. It is not in response to all of those fighting at Ostagar.
There are a number of survivors from the fight at Ostagar mentioned in various points of the game for many a various reason. The more significant ones have most if not all been touched upon by other posters in this thread. There is no continuity or contradiction to the lore of Origions on this point. To Further Prove this. We can look at the fact that Loghain was cold hearted and pragmatic in his ambitions to the point that he left a group of armed soldiers in Lothering waiting for signs of Grey Wardens so he clearly knew there were survivors and stragglers and he wanted to make sure the ones that worried him most didn't get away while others passed through lothering.
Now. As for the Issue of leaving Fereldan. The demo even answers this depending on the choices you make in the dialogue options. First their mother points out that they lost everything they'd worked so hard to do and build in Lothering. Second she makes a mention of family and an Estate in Kirkwall. So they are not just running away from something. They are running to something as well. That something is a reasonably safe haven in the Templar ridden and dangerous world of Thedas so they can collect themselves and prepare to start over.
Finally as for Cowardice...Hawke and his siblings have no standing obligation or loyalty to Fereldan besides in the fact that fighting helped their family. With The Death of the King and a number of the grey wardens. Reguardless of where they were in that battle. Their Loyalty is at an end. In the same sense that a Mercenary is not a coward for not doing something that you don't pay him to do. Hawke and Carver are not cowards because it's clear their interests in joining the fight at Ostagar are no longer valid and their family lives the closes to the present location of the forming blight. A Location that by all accounts calculations can be outright said not that It might be covered by the blight but that it will be covered by the blight. In fact there are hints of this in the histerics of certain of the refuge's in Lothering when the Warden passes through.
I like Hawke because even when he's being a hero there is just something solid about his choices that he makes. You can really think about them from an objective viewpoint and understand why he would make them even if you wouldn't. but we get an added advantage that from his flight from Fereldan and everything his family has lost there we actually do get to make many of those choices and make them even more our own.
I personally am going to enjoy my playthrough and I think I'm going to be the Snarkiest Hawke I can be because it suits me well. But I will certainly make a diplomatic and well meaning Hawke at some point as well.
edit:fixed a couple of small clerical errors made from typing it all up at midnight after a very long day at work.
Modifié par Reptillius, 27 février 2011 - 08:12 .
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