It's been said several times that it's impossible to reach the Level 25 cap without exploiting or using design oversights, mainly:
A. Completing quest loops repeatedly, like Duncan's darkspawn vial quest or the Lothering trap quest (fixed in 1.02)
B. Zoning in and out of certain quest locations over and over, like the Mountaintop near Ruined Temple, which gives about 500 xp every time you zone in and out
C. Donating elfroots/gold repeatedly to the emissaries at Party Camp
D. Using the console and/or mods
However, it is possible to gain Level 25 without exploiting any of these things (you still have to zone into the Mountaintop twice in order to enter and exit the Gauntlet). This is using only the DLC provided at release (Stone Prisoner and Warden's Keep). It relies partly on being a perfectionist, and partly on what seems to be another design flaw:
*Killing friendly NPCs gives XP.
On my last playthrough as a Human Mage, I hit Level 25 during the last phase of the Archdemon (I was 800xp into Level 24 entering the burning city of Denerim). I took several things into consideration during that playthrough:
1. Kill everything. Especially with friendly fire.
Since friendly fire is 100% on the PC version for Hard or Nightmare, I played on Hard difficulty in order to kill friendly NPCs as quickly as possible. This includes:
-All the NPCs who fight at Redcliffe during the Nightfall quest (remember to recruit Lloyd, Berwick and Dwyn's thugs). Even if Dwyn is dead, you can still do Sten's companion quest as the chest will be unlocked by the time you get there.
-The werewolves who get frozen during the fight against Zathrian
-First Enchanter Irving/Knight-Commander Gregoir, Arl Eamon, and possibly Kardol during the Archdemon fight
-Your summoned Archdemon allies (in my case, 50 Dwarves, 50 Redcliffe Soldiers, 50 Elves, 12 Mages and 4 Golems)
-Wynne's Mage friends (Petra, Keili, Kinnon) at the Mage Tower. You can kill them doing the Watchguard of the Reaching quest.
-The friendly nobles in the Chamber of the Assembly (at the end of the Paragon quest)
-The nobles' soldiers at the Landsmeet (when you attack Loghain, before the duel)
-The elf defenders in the Alienage during the Final Battle (make sure to talk to Shianni after clearing the Alienage for an extra +2000 XP).
2. Archivist's Sash
I was worried about the challenge level scaling freezing the area level by going to Denerim immediately after Lothering, but I traveled there anyway. I avoided any battles (including Ser Landry) to buy the Archivist's Sash at Wonders of Thedas, which gives an extra +25 XP for every Codex you find.
3. Origin Story
This actually makes a difference, as each origin story gives varying amounts of XP.
-Human Mage and Male City Elf Rogue results in ~2100 XP into the next level by Ostagar.
-Male Dwarf Noble Rogue results in around ~1600 XP into the next level even with the five Proving Grounds fights (including the challenge against Lord Dace), but the Male Dwarf Noble also gets an extra quest ("Of Noble Birth").
-Being a Rogue PC allows you to open the locked chests at Ostagar, Redcliffe Castle (before and after Arl Eamon is revived) and Arl Eamon's Estate in Denerim.
4. Bonuses for Kill Shots
Although Rogue provides the most possible XP gain, I preferred Mage. The character that gets the killing blow gets a slight (usually +2 XP) bonus per kill. It's easier to get the killing blow when you have Blizzard/Tempest (Storm of the Century), Death Cloud/Death Hex (Entropic Death), Inferno, Blood Wound, Virulent Walking Bomb/Walking Bomb, Mana Clash and several cone AoE spells. I had Wynne specialize in Earthquake/Grease/Glyphs and Leliana in Scatter Shot and Summon Bear to help out my AoE. The bear is especially good for blocking doors in the event that enemies run right past Earthquake/Grease/Repulsion (and they often do, amazingly enough).
5. Area Level Scaling
I'm not sure if this made a difference, but I chose to do Orzammar first, seeing as that it is most difficult of the treaties to accomplish at a low level. This may be due to the fact that some of the enemies there still don't scale down in level after patch 1.02 (especially the enemies before the Orzammar gate). Also, since enemy level freezes upon entering/killing things in the area, I made sure to complete and kill everything in an area before leaving it and coming back to finish other side quests.
The order in which I did the quest chains were:
Orzammar → DLC → Mage Tower → Redcliffe → Brecilian Forest → Denerim
There might be a more optimal order for gaining experience, though.
6. Almost always attack an NPC if he doesn't continue a quest afterwards
I avoided using Persuade or Intimidate unless it required completing a quest for more XP. Examples:
-Killed Master Ignacio after I was done with the Trial of Crows quest
-DON'T kill the White Falcon mercenaries for Sergeant Kylon's first quest, otherwise you won't get Cristof taking revenge for chasing you out and Kylon won't be agreeable to giving you the next quest.
7. Almost always demand a reward during dialogue
Several quests allow you to be the good guy and walk away with nothing. However, it seems most of the time you will get much more XP if you demand a reward (especially if it's gold). Such as:
-The Mabari Hound – demanding a reward from the Mabari caretaker in Ostagar nets you +500 XP.
-The Tortured Noble – demanding a reward from Bann Sighard nets you 40-50 gold and XP.
There are a couple of more quests that are like this, but I don't remember the others.
8. Die during the fight against Ser Cauthrien and escape from Fort Drakon
During the Rescue the Queen quest, you have a choice between surrendering and attacking Ser Cauthrien at the castle. If you attack and die, you don't go to the game over screen – instead, you get sent to Fort Drakon as if you would when you surrender the first time. To get the most XP from this, kill Ser Cauthrien and then AoE the entire room with your party still in it (that way, everyone dies, including you). You get the XP from killing her army then, the XP from escaping Fort Drakon, and then more XP from killing her and her army as she sits outside the Landsmeet.
9. Crime Wave quest line
In order to do the Crime Wave quest line (which gives a significant chunk of XP by the end where you infiltrate Bann Franderel's estate twice), you do not need to be a Rogue. However, your main character does need one point in Stealing and you need another character with Stealth (Zevran/Leliana). Make sure to fight your way through instead of stealthing whenever you have the option in order to gain more XP.
10. Stealing and Random Encounters
Stealing from certain cities results in random encounters during your travels. This includes:
-Denerim guards (there is more than one patrol)
-Melora and the Dalish Elves
-Templars at the Mage Tower
11. Gifts with Dialogue
Certain plot/dialogue gifts such as Alistair's Amulet give about 200 XP when you hand it to your companions.
12. Picking the Right Side
The way each quest ends can affect how much XP you gain by a significant amount. Even with DLC:
Warden's Keep - Side with Sophia to kill Avernus; after Sophia fixes the rift, kill Sophia. I'm pretty sure this nets the most XP since Avernus summons more enemies from his own hiding spot than Sophia does.
13. The Broken Circle - I was worried that siding with the Templars may affect what happens with the Dagna quest as well as the lyrium smuggling quest, so I ended up siding with the Mages. However, I did not use the Litany of Adralla until Uldred started to sacrifice First Enchanter Irving, in order to get more XP from the abominations that are summoned off the other Mages.
14. Nature of the Beast - When you get up to the Gatekeeper werewolf in the Lair of the Werewolves and he wants to make a deal, kill him and clear out the adjacent rooms. You will still be able to talk to the Lady of the Forest. Tell her that you will agree to cure the werewolves and bring Zathrian. Continue siding with the Lady to get the fight against Zathrian. Use AoE and make sure to kill Zathrian, his Wild Sylvans as well as the Werewolves that are paralyzed during the fight for the most XP. Once the werewolves are cured, ask Swiftrunner for a reward and then murder all the Cured Werewolves for even *more* XP. Also, during a random encounter you will run into Panowen, who demands to know what happened to the werewolves (even though you cured them and killed them). Kill her too.
Added Note: When doing the Elven Ritual, do it improperly by drinking the entire jug. It will summon shades the very first time that you can kill for more XP.
Added Note: Do the Grand Oak's quest to return the acorn (and not the Hermit's quest to kill the Grand Oak). Trade for everything *except* the acorn and then have the Hermit attack you by reaching into the tree stump. He will also summon two fire demons, which gives more XP than you would if you attacked the Grand Oak instead.
15. Paragon of Her Kind - After receiving both tasks from Vartag and Dulin, complete Vartag's quest all the way until you get up to Lord Dace in the Aeducan Thaig. However, DO NOT talk to Lord Dace. Instead, go and *betray* Bhelen and complete the Proving Grounds (both official and unofficial) to help both of Harrowmont's soldiers. If you're able, you can use Harrowmont's soldiers to fight with you in the last Proving and AoE them to death as well. After you complete Dulin's first task, Vartag will approach you. Persuade him that you will act as a spy for Bhelen to *betray* Harrowmont. Dulin will also be wary of you because you slandered Harrowmont from the first Vartag quest. Persuade him that you will act as a spy to *betray* Bhelen. Assuming this doesn't cause the quest to crash (it didn't for me), you will continue working for Harrowmont as a spy for Bhelen until the very end. Side with Branka for the Paragon quest (so you get golems you can kill with friendly fire later on). Once you get the crown, triple-cross Bhelen by betraying him and giving the crown to Harrowmont. Bhelen and the nobles will attack you, allowing you to slaughter the entire Assembly with AoE. If you avoided fighting the fanatics in the city until now, you WILL run into both Bhelen's and Harrowmont's fanatics for even more XP.
Added Note: By killing Bhelen, you can go back to the Royal Palace and kill Vartag and his guards. You will also get a random encounter from Bhelen's fanatics on the World Map.
Added Note: When you rescue Shale, DO NOT talk to Shale at camp until you have enough Coercion to lie to her about killing Caridin. Otherwise, you won't get Shale's personal quest.
16. The Arl of Redcliffe - Although going into the Fade as a Mage to save Connor nets a little XP and an extra talent book from dealing with the demon, you get more XP by clearing out both floors of Redcliffe Castle and killing Connor. Additionally, Connor's minions allows you to quickly loot the 18 Corpse Gall needed for the Chantry Board quest.
17. Urn of the Sacred Ashes - Korgrim has more minions surrounding him when he's on the Mountaintop; therefore, you get more XP if you tell him you will pour the Dragon's Blood on the ashes but betray him later on. When going through the Gauntlet, answer all questions correctly (you get more XP for answering correctly than from killing the Shade that appears answering incorrectly) and pass through the fire with the altar (you get more XP for this than for killing the Gauntlet Guardian when you pass through without the altar). Even though you have the Dragon's Blood, do not pour it onto the ashes. Take a pinch and walk outside, and you will find Korgrim with 2 minions, who will attack you for betraying him. Up ahead you will find 2 more of his minions as well as a Drake for an extra drake scale and more XP.
Added Note: You can still attack Korgrim even if you pour the blood into the ashes; however, killing Leliana and Wynne as a result of doing this doesn't seem to net any XP.
18. The Alienage - When you get there, make sure to kill all the guards at the front door of the Hospice as well as the elf guard at the back. Clear the entire Alienage warehouse systematically and don't Intimidate/Persuade anyone into living or running away. For the 'Something Wicked' quest with Ser Otto, DO NOT kill Otto with AoE or you will end the quest prematurely.
19. The Landsmeet - I'm not sure whether getting the overwhelming win (6-to-1) over Loghain gives you more XP, but I chose to attack him even after he lost to get more XP from his guards and the surrounding nobles' guards. The Chantry Mother stops the slaughter and *then* asks for the duel against Loghain. In my playthrough, my Mage dueled Loghain and also executed him as well.
20. The Archdemon - although it seems like the Archdemon's waves of darkspawn are infinite, the gates will run out of darkspawn eventually during Phases Two and Three. For Phase Two, if you don't hit the Archdemon at all (and you kill First Enchanter Irving so he doesn't either), he will drop back down while still at 50% after you've cleared all the darkspawn from each gate.
21. Other Notes for Side Quests/Enemies:
A. A Change in Leadership (Blackstone Irregulars) - Killed Taoran instead of Raelnor, as Taoran has more guards.
B. Lost to the Curse - Got the scarf and continued talking until Danyla was forced to fight you, netting you some XP for engaging in battle rather than just killing her outright.
C. The Gangue Shade (Legion of the Dead) - Wear the full Legion of the Dead set and right-click on the relic in the room where you get the Helmet to fight the Gangue Shade (boss level, I think).
D. Caged in Stone - In the Orzammar Royal Palace, there are secret switches around the throne room that, when activated, summon the mini-dragon boss.
E. Honor Bound - In Denerim, make sure to attack Ser Landry and his guards with your whole party instead of simply dueling him.
F. The Crimson Oars - After completing this quest, Sergeant Kylon will give you more gold as a reward if you talk to him later on.
G. Defying the Collective - After completing all the quests from the Mage Collective, give 10 more lyrium potions to Knight-Commander Tavish in Denerim (even if you've already completed the quest with Knight-Commander Harrith) and then hand in the evidence to him.
H. Asunder - Kill the summoned demon. It doesn't net you any gold, but it does get you some XP.
Feel free to add anything (especially quest choices/dialogues) that results in gaining more XP than usual.
Modifié par Ecael, 27 décembre 2009 - 08:35 .
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