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[Giggles_Manically]

My only Dalish run of Awakening... left a sour taste in my mouth with Velanna.

He kind of felt like all the good he did was being undermined by Velanna.
To bad for her she ended up being part of the circle of life since.... I already had Anders in the party and I really did not need another mage at that point.

He saved the city.
Mostly because he felt like as an elf he always had to do more to protect elven kind.
Even though he was no fan of the chantry he helped to get the ashes out.
He pretty much always went out of his way to play hero.

My female human noble.... was more than happy to leave the entire arldom to burn to wipe the Howe legacy out of existence.
There are no more Howes running about in that game.

[Sialater]

Giggles_Manically wrote...

Thanks to you Skadi I now have the mental imagine of a drunk Pride Demon dancing on a large table with a giant lamp shade on its head rocking out to "Little Less Conversation" by Elvis.

Thanks.

And thank you SO MUCH for sharing that image.


by Maoileoin

Lookie what I found yesterday...

Modifié par Sialater, 31 août 2011 - 02:07 .

[Heidenreich]

oooooooooooo

[YamiSnuffles]

I liked Velenna. Sure she had... issues, but I liked that you could encourage her to start writing new history and stories for the Dalish instead of just raging about what was lost. Maybe just because I'm partial to the idea of my companions writing stories.

That said, she did get left behind at the end because I brought the same three people I always had: Anders, Sigrun, and Nate. The only one of those three that would have made sense for me to switch out as I had built them was maybe Anders, but no way was that going to happen. For one, he was my healer. And another... Anders! I always had Anders. He was the one companion that never once got switched out once recruited.

[Skadi_the_Evil_Elf]

YamiSnuffles wrote...

I liked Velenna. Sure she had... issues, but I liked that you could encourage her to start writing new history and stories for the Dalish instead of just raging about what was lost. Maybe just because I'm partial to the idea of my companions writing stories.

That said, she did get left behind at the end because I brought the same three people I always had: Anders, Sigrun, and Nate. The only one of those three that would have made sense for me to switch out as I had built them was maybe Anders, but no way was that going to happen. For one, he was my healer. And another... Anders! I always had Anders. He was the one companion that never once got switched out once recruited.

Anders is also a permanent fixture in damned near every Awakening party I have, even when he has the same specs and all as my warden. Because Awakening would be nothing if I did not have Anders and the Pounce in my party, blessing my endeavors with furry, purry, cuddly awesomeness.:wub::wub:

It is sad how many times in the game I clicked on ser pounace alot to get his banter with Anders, lol.

[berelinde]

Skadi_the_Evil_Elf wrote...
It is sad how many times in the game I clicked on ser pounace alot to get his banter with Anders, lol.

Yeah, Anders was a permanent party member in my group, too. And that was before I found out about Ser Pounce-a-lot's superpowers!

[YamiSnuffles]

berelinde wrote...

Skadi_the_Evil_Elf wrote...
It is sad how many times in the game I clicked on ser pounace alot to get his banter with Anders, lol.

Yeah, Anders was a permanent party member in my group, too. And that was before I found out about Ser Pounce-a-lot's superpowers!

I went my whole first playthrough without figuring out what Pounce did beyond make Anders say adorable things, haha.

[LT123]

Anders is pretty much always in my party in Awakening, and Nate generally is too.

On my first playthrough, I left Sigrun at the Keep without doing her (then bugged) quest. Now she's always in my party for the final boss fight.

It took me forever to figure out that Ser Pounce-a-lot actually did something in combat.

[Skadi_the_Evil_Elf]

I didn't learn about the Pounce's superpowers until I read in it on the forums, either. But just the little bromance between man and cat alone made it more than worth the inventory slot The Pounce occupied.

I mean, the most awesome companion banter since....the history...of...ever.

Anders: Whose the pretty kitty? Oh yes you are!
Pounce: Meow!

Anders: Shall I train you to be a vicous attack kitten? rwarrrgrrrrrr!
Pounce: Meow!

Anders: So, does this make you my familiar, Ser Pounce a Lot?
Pounce: Meow!

Anders: Maker's breath, kitty, what have you been eating?
Pounce: Meow!

I mean, every time I see Anders and the pounce bonding, I just want to jump through my monitor and squee in exstacy.

[esper]

LT123 wrote...

Anders is pretty much always in my party in Awakening, and Nate generally is too.

On my first playthrough, I left Sigrun at the Keep without doing her (then bugged) quest. Now she's always in my party for the final boss fight.

It took me forever to figure out that Ser Pounce-a-lot actually did something in combat.

Wait what?
What does Pounce do?

[Furtled]

esper wrote...
Wait what?
What does Pounce do?

If I remember right he can revive characters that die in battle. Pretty impressive for a kitten :happy:

[Skadi_the_Evil_Elf]

esper wrote...

LT123 wrote...

Anders is pretty much always in my party in Awakening, and Nate generally is too.

On my first playthrough, I left Sigrun at the Keep without doing her (then bugged) quest. Now she's always in my party for the final boss fight.

It took me forever to figure out that Ser Pounce-a-lot actually did something in combat.

Wait what?
What does Pounce do?

He can revive the fallen just like the spirit healer's revive spell, if clicked on in combat and one of your companions has fallen.

Truly, he is indeed the feline Messiah. I am in awe. :wub:

[esper]

Skadi_the_Evil_Elf wrote...

esper wrote...

LT123 wrote...

Anders is pretty much always in my party in Awakening, and Nate generally is too.

On my first playthrough, I left Sigrun at the Keep without doing her (then bugged) quest. Now she's always in my party for the final boss fight.

It took me forever to figure out that Ser Pounce-a-lot actually did something in combat.

Wait what?
What does Pounce do?

He can revive the fallen just like the spirit healer's revive spell, if clicked on in combat and one of your companions has fallen.

Truly, he is indeed the feline Messiah. I am in awe. :wub:

Oh... No one usually dies in Awakening for me, but now I must go and try kill someone.
. Pounce

[Skadi_the_Evil_Elf]

esper wrote...


Oh... No one usually dies in Awakening for me, but now I must go and try kill someone.
. Pounce

yeah, same here. A couple times I stripped anders and let him get killed, so the Pounce could revive his beloved minion and show the world His Greatness.

He holds the power of life and death itself in his awesome paws. I am humbled.:wub:

[CulturalGeekGirl]

Velanna was the first Dragon Age character to trigger my "I see what you're trying to do, but you're NOT HELPING" response. Believe me, I get you Velanna. Attempted genocide and apartheid suck, centuries long campaigns aimed at destroying a people and its cultures suck, and most of human culture is also pretty terrible. There needs to be an elven revolution, and fast. I'm willing to kill as many humans as you like, if they're actively attacking elves. But what you're doing is so not helping.

I felt that way about Anders a lot of the time too. When you get that tone of voice, that "I can't believe people are so barbaric that they still believe X" voice, I completely understand you. I was nineteen and idealistic once, too. But you are a grown man, and you used to be so goofily persuasive. Comedy is one of the best techniques for that... there's a reason the Jester is allowed to say whatever he likes. He has unbelievable power. Sigh.

And regarding the drinking, I can picture both Anders and Varric enjoying a shandy. What is a shandy, you ask? Beer and Lemonade (usually carbonated)... basically the least alcoholic thing you can get. Using old-timey beer, it'd likely be even weaker. You can also use ginger ale, cider, or other citrus-flavoured sodas.

[KnightofPhoenix]

While Velanna is mostly irrational, there is one thing that made me appreciate her more as a character. If you tell her that the elves would have been no different were they strong enough, she gets confused, changes the subject and even approves.

That shows me that behind her anger, there is some wisdom and sense of realism in there.
There is also a lot of wisdom in her determination to write *new* history, instead of being obsessed with a past that will never return.

Velanna was a pretty interesting character, I thought. More interesting than Merrill imo. And hotter.

[Collider]

If we could die tomorrow...

[CulturalGeekGirl]

KnightofPhoenix wrote...

While Velanna is mostly irrational, there is one thing that made me appreciate her more as a character. If you tell her that the elves would have been no different were they strong enough, she gets confused, changes the subject and even approves.

That shows me that behind her anger, there is some wisdom and sense of realism in there.
There is also a lot of wisdom in her determination to write *new* history, instead of being obsessed with a past that will never return.

Velanna was a pretty interesting character, I thought. More interesting than Merrill imo. And hotter.

See, I don't see the Dalish elves' obsession with the past as quite as useless as you do. I think there is a HUGE amount of really important information about the world that was lost when the Dales were lost, and recovering that is bloody important just For Science! if for nothing else.

So far we've seen that the Dalish had tons of magical knowledge that nobody has today... the dreamers like Feynriel, the Spirit Warriors, their months-or-years-long soujourns into the fade... a fade that did not seem to be as dangerous a place as it is now.

I also think that the Dalish social system is a good one, and I wonder if the Dales and Elvhenan had societies similarly based on mutual support and a sense of extended family. Even in their current situation, it seems like life sucks less for the average Dalish elf than most people in Thedas. I think there is a lot to be learned about and from the Dalish, but I think that humans should be trying to learn it too.

[Tommy6860]

KnightofPhoenix wrote...

While Velanna is mostly irrational, there is one thing that made me appreciate her more as a character. If you tell her that the elves would have been no different were they strong enough, she gets confused, changes the subject and even approves.

That shows me that behind her anger, there is some wisdom and sense of realism in there.
There is also a lot of wisdom in her determination to write *new* history, instead of being obsessed with a past that will never return.

Velanna was a pretty interesting character, I thought. More interesting than Merrill imo. And hotter.

I agree with your assessment between Velanna and Merrill. I actually think Velanna would have been a better fit for DA2 than the the alter-ego morph of Merrill that was in it.

[KnightofPhoenix]

CulturalGeekGirl wrote...
See, I don't see the Dalish elves' obsession with the past as quite as useless as you do. I think there is a HUGE amount of really important information about the world that was lost when the Dales were lost, and recovering that is bloody important just For Science! if for nothing else.

I don't think wanting to learn about the past is useless. I think being obsessed with it is not only useless, but dangerous. And this is something I know my own people do. They create a fantasy version of history as either opium to deal with their current situation, or to drive them to extremism thinking life is as simple as being able to recover the past just via belief.

I also think that the Dalish social system is a good one, and I wonder if the Dales and Elvhenan had societies similarly based on mutual support and a sense of extended family. Even in their current situation, it seems like life sucks less for the average Dalish elf than most people in Thedas. I think there is a lot to be learned about and from the Dalish, but I think that humans should be trying to learn it too.

That's typical of any tribal or nomadic society vs a settled one and nothing particularily Dalish. The former are always inclined towards egalitarianism as opposed to the latter. A wealthy society is almost axiomatically one with unequal distribution of wealth (the degree of inequality of course varies).

We have no indication on how the Dales functionned as a state. They could have kept some tribal values, but I doubt they kept that much of it.

As far as I am concerned, the elves are for all intents and purposes done after Tevinter sunk their complacent civilization. I am much mroe curious about the Tevinter Imperium, on which ruins all of Thedas is built. 

Modifié par KnightofPhoenix, 01 septembre 2011 - 01:47 .

[Skadi_the_Evil_Elf]

KnightofPhoenix wrote...

As far as I am concerned, the elves are for all intents and purposes done after Tevinter sunk their complacent civilization. I am much mroe curious about the Tevinter Imperium, on which ruins all of Thedas is built. 

What I find curious about the tevinter/Elven war is that it is almost automatically assumed that the Tevinter were just being greedy, aggressive evil humans that attacked the elves for no reason other than being aggressive and territorial.

yet someone on another thread brought up the possibility that the Tevinter might have wiped out Arlathan because they were doing something the Tevinter saw as fundementally dangerous or inherently threatening. The level and scale with which the Tevinter wiped out Arlathan seems pretty intense and total to be motivated by mere need for conquest/territory. There was certainly some looting and preservation of some things, and they did carry off a number of Elven artifacts. But the war and the annihilation of elven civilization seems, at least according to the lore, to have been pretty intensive and total. Even conquoring armies usually leave some cities and infrastructure intact.

Anyway, my point being that it's just as possible the elves could have done something, or been doing something, to provoke such an extreme reaction. It had to be more than just deciding humans were giving them cooties that made them no-longer immortal, and deciding to wander off. Hell, I'm still uncertain that eluvians are mere portals. Something about them creeps me out. Maybe because they eat Morrigans?

That would certainly be a cliche' breaker.

[KnightofPhoenix]

I doubt that no elf tried to do something after their supposed immortality was compromised due to humans. I think it is likely that extremists did do something to provoke Tevinter to react in such a fashion. Perhaps even then it wouldn't have been warranted, but it sounds more likely than Tevinter destroying something that magically valuable (I am assuming) for the sake of it.

In either case, I dislike being judgmental when looking at history anyhow. At the end of the day, Tevinter proved to be the strongest of the two and it lived on while the weaker one was extinguished. Until Tevinter became weak and virtually collapsed. Just like the Chantry is seemingly collapsing now.

[phaonica]

Skadi_the_Evil_Elf wrote...

yet someone on another thread brought up the possibility that the Tevinter might have wiped out Arlathan because they were doing something the Tevinter saw as fundementally dangerous or inherently threatening.

I had not found the lost elven culture to be that interesting until this theory was proposed. That and the suggestion that Tevinter may have learned magic (including blood magic) from the elves.

Other than the accusation that Tevinter used blood magic to destroy Arlathan, I wasn't quite sure if there was any other reason for the Dalish to be against blood magic.

Whatever the case, Dalish history had not really interested me until this idea came up.

[berelinde]

Skadi_the_Evil_Elf wrote...
Anyway, my point being that it's just as possible the elves could have done something, or been doing something, to provoke such an extreme reaction. It had to be more than just deciding humans were giving them cooties that made them no-longer immortal, and deciding to wander off. Hell, I'm still uncertain that eluvians are mere portals. Something about them creeps me out. Maybe because they eat Morrigans?

That would certainly be a cliche' breaker.

Mythology often blames the loss of immortality on hubris, daring an assault on or immitation of the gods. If the fall of Arlathan is similar, it's an interesting parallel to the Andrastian myth of the first darkspawn.

And yeah, the symbolic significance of mirrors is profound, especially when they're reflected into each other. The image diminishes because the mirror absorbs as well as reflects. And then there's that whole palantir aspect. What if one of those mirrors has fallen into the wrong hands? Even ordinary mirrors are spooky things, though. Who hasn't been startled by one?

[Skadi_the_Evil_Elf]

phaonica wrote...

Skadi_the_Evil_Elf wrote...

yet someone on another thread brought up the possibility that the Tevinter might have wiped out Arlathan because they were doing something the Tevinter saw as fundementally dangerous or inherently threatening.

I had not found the lost elven culture to be that interesting until this theory was proposed. That and the suggestion that Tevinter may have learned magic (including blood magic) from the elves.

Other than the accusation that Tevinter used blood magic to destroy Arlathan, I wasn't quite sure if there was any other reason for the Dalish to be against blood magic.

Whatever the case, Dalish history had not really interested me until this idea came up.

yeah, me too. the whole idea that, instead of the usual, steryeotypical poor glorious elven societies being corrupted by greedy humans, that ancient elven society held its own share of depravity and less than noble acts or systems that sustained it. or that the elves were possibly tampering with things that were incredibly dangerous, risky, ad likely the source of many problems still sometimes encountered in current Thedas.

Now here's a really far out theory. Not an incredibly strong one, but an interesting one nonetheless. What if the eluvians have something to do with time, or the manipulation of time? I don't know why, but one impression of many that I got with the eluvian Morrigan was going through was that it had some sort of power warping time. Morrigan saying she was going to a place beyond Thedas or the fade. Plus the talk of elven immortality/elves not aging the same way they do now, made me wonder if ancient elves had developed some sort of chrono manipulation knowledge. Maybe the possibility of the elves of Arlathan possibly getting ready to do something to f*ck with the sanctity of the space-time continum was enough added incentive for the Tevinter to wipe them out so.

Of course, as I said, it's a far out theory, but one I thought I'd share, as maybe demonstrating the possibility that the ancient elves had gotten into some pretty freaky, dangerous shyte certainly being far more interesting to discover than the usual innocent victimhood trope.

And of course, I'm a nerd who often has difficulty understanding the divisions placed between sci-fi and fantasy, lol.:lol: