614 réponses à ce sujet

[JeffZero]

Hi folks.

So recently I played through Origins for the first time, alongside its expansions. Beginning about midway through the base game I realized it might be fun to document my exploits, which I went ahead and did in the Origins forum. I wrapped things up there this morning and I'm gearing to start the often-maligned sequel tonight. This first post will act as an introduction of sorts to the game world I've been busy creating and I'll ask a few big questions too while I'm at it. If no one answers, that's cool, as I stated in the previous topic I don't really mind talking to myself most of the way through. I was lucky to gain a few regular posters for Origins though which helped make things more exciting for me.

Firstly, why am I doing this? Well I'm quite the rambler, storyteller, you know the sort. I've been a big BioWare fan almost exclusively for its terrific Mass Effect series for a few years now. I've gone to some conventions for them, met a few BSN folks even. Most of the people I used to interact with have moved on, but I do feel an attachment to this place so coupling that with my desire to document my first experience with the Dragon Age universe made here seem the natural fit to satisfy my odd craving.

Origins pleasantly surprised me. I knew it'd be good, but it exceeded my expectations with some great representations of morally grey conflict. I rolled a male human noble warrior because you'll find I'm nothing if not strikingly predictably casual as far as "fans posting on a dedicated video game website" are concerned.

Oh hey, I just remembered the fun of making a new topic on BSN. At this point in the message entry box my phone no longer displays what I'm posting so I'm basically blind. I'll go ahead and submit now, hopefully this last paragraph isn't too you. More to come.

[JeffZero]

Nice. It looks fine.

Aedan Cousland saw Alistair as a brother. Having lost his family, his life -- and then losing Duncan immediately thereafter -- he saw the man as a symbol of all that remained, even as new as that symbol was and as dark as the Warden gig could be. He gradually fell for Leliana, causing a fun little drama as Morrigan in turn fell for him. Poor thing. He saved the mages, let Isolde sacrifice herself, sided with Harrowmont, slew but came to somewhat respect Loghain, reluctantly agreed to the ritual and had Alistair wed Anora. Why is any of this worth a topic? Well, it kind of isn't, but it's important in that it was all my first spin of the wheel. I went in blind. Any of you with multiple runs can probably agree that the first time is something very special. Oh, and then he sacrificed what was left of Amaranthine, begrudgingly sided with the Architect, and watched the mother of his child slip away. (Although I get the impression that last bit is mandatory, ha. Unless you go with her anyway.)

I've also read The Stolen Throne. Pretty good book, I recommend it. I just started The Calling.

So there's my history in a nutshell. For detailed rants of varied quality visit my Origins thread. Enough of that though. On to the questions!

1.) When should I play the DLC? I don't care about best gameplay points, only optimal story flow and sensibility. There's Exiled Prince, Legacy and Mark of the Assassin, right? I have them all.

2.) Is it wise to consult a build guide my first time or can I scrape by with only skinned knees just clicking all the shinies per level up like I did with Origins? The combat in the first game never really left much of an impression on me; generally WRPG stuff does not. It was alright though. I played on console, but I understand I had a somewhat stripped experience compared with PC. I also understand DA2 continues that trend.

3.) Most open-ended and important question of all: is there anything I should know before starting? Please leave blanket statements of "the game sucks, don't waste your time" at the door, but specific gameplay stuff would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance everyone. Lookin' forward to my first update.

[caradoc2000]

Egads, you really did get to become your second legend this soon How are your games when you actually try to be quick?

JeffZero wrote...

I've been a big BioWare fan almost exclusively for its terrific Mass Effect series for a few years now. I've gone to some conventions for them, met a few BSN folks even.

If you haven't played Jade Empire, I suggest you do - hardly surprising considering my avatar is from JE.

1.) When should I play the DLC?

One of the most frequently asked questions. Exiled Prince takes place bit by bit along the main story. You can play the other two at any time (and dialogue changes depending on when you do), but to me they make most sense in  the third act. They are tough but doable in earlier chapters.

2.) Is it wise to consult a build guide my first time or can I scrape by with only skinned knees just clicking all the shinies per level up like I did with Origins?

I'd say that DA2 is easier than DAO. If you didn't need guides in DAO, you'll likely not need them in DA2. The bonus boss in Legacy is an exception.

3.) Most open-ended and important question of all: is there anything I should know before starting?

You have probably encountered this already, but the game mechanics in DA2 is quite a bit different from DAO.

Modifié par caradoc2000, 23 février 2014 - 01:38 .

[Reznore57]

Could you post a link to your DA:O post?

Anyway about DLCs , the Exiled Prince took place during the 3 different acts.
You can play all the other DLC when you want but they can fit the story a little better in Act 3, specialy MOTA.Legacy I'd say act 2 or 3.

And things you should know , try to do all the quests.You can miss some companions .
You can also sometimes find different npc in the Hanged Man depending on day/night.(it's not really a big deal I think it's possible to miss one minor quest or something)
Oh and one big silly thing I did the first time I played is not changing companions 'weapons.I assumed it was like their armor and you couldn't give them anything.
You can find upgrades for their armor during quest (in crates etc..) or some merchant sell them.Same for companions 'gifts.I think gifts are only available in act 2/3.

[JeffZero]

Thanks for all the answers, my friends! They were quite helpful. Reznore, here's a link to my Origins run. Be warned: I'm known for very lengthy roundabout posts.

http://social.biowar.../index/17866923

I started DA2 earlier! Sadly I'm quite tired and agreed to wake up bright and early for a hike with a lovely lady friend so I'm going to be kind of all over the place with this first entry.

My, how gorgeously cinematic everything has become! The reduction in "stilted talking heads character" effect reminds me of the jump from ME1 to ME2, but probably even more so. Lots of more animated people here.

This framing device with Varric and Cassandra is nifty. But I think with things like this it's important to consider I'm a first time player who waited long enough to see the writers regard this game as a kind of smaller-scale bridge between main courses and I have the Next Big Thing in Thedas waiting around the bend for me too. I'm probably going to be far more lenient for reasons such as these. I can already see why certain aspects would be considered a turn-off, but this is fun.

Speaking of which, me oh my, the combat. Talk about frenetic. It *is* kind of goofy-looking, huh? Like Dragon May Cry or something. I bet that joke's remarkably old hat by now. Oh well. New to me! I don't really care though. I thought fighting looked a tad goofy before, but in a different way. Hey, when I press a button something awesome should happen, you know? Button. Awesome.

Hawke speaks! And his VA is as good as I had heard. Wonderful. I've been going with a combination of "Paragon" and "Snark" responses thus far. Which I'm fairly certain have official names but I don't know them. Those icons are really silly, but hey.

I've been skirting around my actual plot progress because I want to save that stuff for when I'm more awake to type things out a bit more formally. But so far so good, really. The beginning felt over-the-top as hell... and then it turns out it was supposed to be. Marvelous. I felt connections with the Hawke folks pretty quickly and I was sad to see Carver go like that. I guess I'm glad I rolled Warrior because Bethany is a mage. Then again, Aveline's a Warrior too. Oh no matter, I'm sure I'll get more of everything.

I found myself tearing up a little at Ser Wesley's passing. Mark of good writing; not ten minutes prior the man was insulting my sister and all. And oh snap it's Flemeth. Dressed in her Thanksgiving finest, I see. The banter here with sarcastic Hawke is very funny. I think thus far the writing is a little freer and less wooden than in Origins. Now don't get me wrong, Origins' script is pretty good, but some of it does feel a bit forced. It's early days yet but 2 hasn't felt that way at all to me yet.

Varric's animation-style exposition is very stylish. I dig. Got to Kirkwall, kicked around a little. Met Gamlen. Agreed to work with the smugglers because everyone loves an elf... wait a bloody minute, what the heck happened to the elves? Goodness, but they do have big ears now. That's uh, odd.

Lots of fun references to the first game going on here. And not just the Blight. Wasn't long before I ran into a couple of old familiar dwarven merchants and let them regale me with stories of assisting Aedan. Cool. Then Hawke tried to get his way into a Deep Roads Expedition, no dice, but a certain narrator saved his purse at least and offered a way to circumvent the fates a little.

Gotta say, barely an hour in Varric is already one of my favorite companions in the series. He's fantastic. Quick-witted, well-voiced, named his crossbow Bianca. What more do you want, seriously? Stoked to already know he's an encore lock for Inquisition.

Fifty sovereigns, eh? Tall order, but I think we can handle it. Seems there's plenty of work to be had in Kirkwall. Which as I understand it is basically pretty much all I'll ever be seeing outside of the occasional outskirts expeditions, so it's time I started familiarizing myself with this beautiful bustling city. Time for a stroll.

Pretty soon we ran into Sebastian. He seems happy. Took his job posting. Hey, need the coin anyway. Can't forget Hawke agreed to deliver that thing for ol' Flemmy, too. That's on the agenda. And then upon visiting Gamlen's house for the first time I kicked off yet another quest to sneak into the old Hawke Estate. Places to go, people to say. Lots of activity already. If this is general flow for the game -- bombarded with quests of varying levels of relevance -- I'm OK with that. Seems appropriate for a bridge centered on one man's rise to power and the people he influences on the way.

And that's my opening volley. A great deal of unstructured observation. As I said I'll deal with a few more direct thoughts tomorrow. Long story short: intriguing premise, pretty cool setup. It helps that I'm going in with the low expectations of someone who's had three years to hear some of the more prevalent complaints, but unless the game spirals into a crater of significantly worse pitfalls sometime soon, I think I'm going to be glad I came to Kirkwall.

...now watch that happen just to spite me...

Modifié par JeffZero, 23 février 2014 - 06:21 .

[caradoc2000]

JeffZero wrote...

I can already see why certain aspects would be considered a turn-off, but this is fun.

For me, the biggest annoyance in DA2 are the recycled environments. It isn't an issue on the first playthrough, but for subsequent ones it becomes a bother.

I've been going with a combination of "Paragon" and "Snark" responses thus far. Which I'm fairly certain have official names but I don't know them.

Diplomatic, Sarcastic and Aggressive are the most frequently used names. The tone locks after a while, after which all Hawke's autodialogue uses that tone.

I felt connections with the Hawke folks pretty quickly and I was sad to see Carver go like that. I guess I'm glad I rolled Warrior because Bethany is a mage.

If you play a warrior or a rogue, you get Bethany. Mages get Carver.

If this is general flow for the game -- bombarded with quests of varying levels of relevance -- I'm OK with that.

Pretty much yes. There are quite a few side quests that may or may not occur depending on your actions in DAO.

Modifié par caradoc2000, 23 février 2014 - 04:49 .

[Jaison1986]

You will be happy being an warrior. I personally played an rogue. If you player either of these classes you get Bethany, who is an loving and caring sister, while if you play an mage you get Carver who will scream at your ear every 10 minutes how you suck for being better then him. It's a lot more confortable having Bethany around.

I suggest two handed sword. Then choose the vanguard skill tree and unlock the ability named cleave, it boosts your damage up to 75%, it's an blessing. You can wipe out dozens of enemies in seconds.

I suggest using sarcastic dialogue for Hawke, the game becomes a lot more alive when Hawke haves an snappy response for every situation. Sarcastic Hawke especially shines during the DLCs.

[JeffZero]

Thank you for the insight you two. As is customary by now the both of you have been especially helpful. I did enough quests this evening to elevate Hawke all the way to Level 7, so needless to say a.) the advice on speccing came in handy and b.) I did a fair bit, although I've only progressed the main story a few inches.

As a result I think my second update is going to follow the first one's trend of a lot of gameplay impressions. After all, I'm still getting my feet wet. Combat is starting to click more. I think I'm more open to this fast-paced healthbar-slicing mad dash than some folks due to my relative lack of attachment toward more standardized WRPG models. I may have already mentioned that, but alas, it's late again. One thing I'll outright praise is the ability growth system. I like these trees, I like their coverage, I like the idea behind a lot of these upgrades. I like the interconnectivity between them and how they synergize. I also really like the smoothness of the inventory and tactics screens, even if I am very sad to see the feeling of uniqueness between every item Origins provided thrown by the wayside.

I like how when I stumble upon codex entries for the lore they pop up like datapad messages in Mass Effect or something. It seems that from the ground up DA2 was designed to eliminate Origins' rather cumbersome approach. As a console player I assure you it was even more cumbersome for me; there were performance issues aplenty which made shifting between screens a real crawl in addition to being something of a chore. But 2 does seem to have sacrificed a bit much in the process. It's like the designers felt attention to finite details can lead to Blights and it'd be best if such thoughts were confined to towers and closely guarded.

I also bore witness to enemies seemingly descending from the heavens for the first few times tonight. The first incident involved spiders out at the Wounded Coast, so that was kind of hilarious. Doesn't bother me, but seeing them descend from actual ceilings before spoiled me a little. Strange how such things can lend to a world's believability factor so well. Again, though, shrug.

So let's talk about my progress, then! Well, Garrett Hawke has quite a few sovereigns to earn before he's welcome aboard the expedition, so in perhaps the best explanation for why a lead character would run around taking odd jobs BioWare has ever offered, he's been hard at work doing lots of righteous-sarcastic killing and errand-running. I did two thirds of "Duty" for that Sebastian bloke but I want to reserve the third for when I decide to make the trip to Sundermount for the main plot too. Which I'll totally get around to doing reasonably soon, but I've had my hands full.

Ran into my old friend Athenril, who apparently Hawke made quite a scene when he walked out on. Agreed to take up her offer for more work, but I sent that boy packing with her goods. That ends that relationship.

Did some work for my *actual* friend Aveline too. Slimy guard captain with his stupid I'm-clearly-slimy voice. We're not gonna take that. Sending people to their deaths to fuel your greed... despicable. We've got a curseword for that back in Ferelden, you know. It's called "Rendon"... You're a real Rendon and I sentence you to prison.

Next up on the roster was a trip to the old Amell Estate with my sweet sister. Holy corridors, Batman, but we managed to hold our own. That slave master at the end very nearly poisoned us all asunder but button-awesome proved too awesome-button for his foul spells. We retrieved the will and to absolutely no one's surprise it revealed Gamlen to be even more of a lowlife. I swear there must be fortune cookies in Lowtown that say it too for how obvious it is. Mama's got a plan to make our name mean something again and I wish her luck with that. For now it's enough to show Bethany a locket and reminisce. And I've gotta say, it's nice having such personal interplay in this game. I'm loving being Hawke.

Met with Varric for a little business speak at the Hanged Man. Nice kicks. The talkative patron knows the truth is out there. Here's a smart lad. Varric wants us to meet with some Grey Warden healer and I... why I bet it's him! I bet it's Anders! Had it spoiled he's a companion in this game after all. Off to go see if my suspicions prove true... why slap my taint and call me a darkspawn, it is him, it is Anders!

Anders! So good to see you, pal! I bet you're still dutifully serving the Wardens because it said so right on the Awakening epilogue slide! ! ...what? You left them? But it... but it said! Wh... why would it lie like that? I don't... of all the... blast! Vashaden! Wait a sec, they wouldn't let you keep Ser Pounce-a-lot? That's disgusting. This never would have happened if Aedan hadn't stayed like I wanted. Damn you Awakening, you're almost starting to prove more trouble than you were worth. If Nathanial goes evil and the Architect blows up Denerim later I'm done with Amaranthine, done, you hear me?

So Anders wants us to just Karl out of prison. Seems legit. Hawke's beloved sister is an apostate and she's the world to him. Well, a good chunk of it anyway. He's got no love for the oppression of magekind. No sir. He hasn't seen the horrors Aedan encountered. Mostly just the running from the bad men who want to shackle his sister. The Chantry has a point in there somewhere but they've probably misplaced it beyond all that red tape and Templar superiority complex. And besides, it's for the expedition.

I'm game.

[caradoc2000]

JeffZero wrote...

Next up on
the roster was a trip to the old Amell Estate with my sweet sister. Holy corridors, Batman, but we managed to hold our own. That slave master at the end very nearly poisoned us all asunder

Ah, yes, the trap. I'd suggest keeping your rogue's cunning up to date to be able to disarm the numerous traps. Even if you don't consider them a threat (most of them are a mere nuisance, but a couple are very nearly instakills), they do net a hefty amount of XP when disarmed. I'd say aim for cunning of 30 before you head for the expedition.

Speaking of XP, the level cap is 50 in case you were wondering. That is in theory. In practice you won't get anywhere near that.

As a side note, if you're into puzzles, Legacy and Mark of the Assassin have plenty of those.

Modifié par caradoc2000, 24 février 2014 - 04:38 .

[Jaison1986]

If I'm not mistaken, the maximum level you can reach with DLC included is about 27-28. But you need to be really dedicated to reach that.

Make sure you have an rogue leading the party when you explore an dungeon. It's a lot safer. You need to get cunning pumped up before spending on deixtery in order to open locks and disarm traps. Also, don't bother spending on things such as health with Varric, he is an archer after all. If you want, I can give you an viable spec for every companion once you recruit them.

Also, AWAYS target enemy mages first during a fight. Highlight enemies during an fight to see if any of them are mages. Blood mages and qunari seerabas are deadly and can easily kill the entire party if not dealt with first.

There are some side quests that are really easy to miss, so let me give you some advice: At night, there will be criminal gangs patroling the streets, once you kill most of them (requires usually more then one visit at the district to happen), you get a note about their hideout. Go there and destroy them for good (the districts to clear are Hightown, Lowtown and the docks) After that go to the hanged man at night and a person at the second floor will reward you for your deed (make sure to visit that person each time you clean an district, otherwise your reward gets smaller).

[JeffZero]

Thanks y'all. I'll start taking command of Varric before the fights break out fairly often when exploring the unknown.

27-28 max, hmm? Alright. I'll likely not quite hit that bar. I wonder why the system goes to 50? I guess so it was in place in case the game was wildly successful and future content scaled that far up?

[caradoc2000]

I'll start taking command of Varric...

I said rogue, not Varric

I wonder why the system goes to 50?

To allow more leeway for DLC.

The system has apparently been edited to yet another system. Too Bad

RIP Ye Olde Bioboards, you know the ones before this -2009.

Edit: Cool, we now have a warning point count. How do we have those. I've been a member since - looks up - 15 Jul 2005 and I've never had one of those.

Edit 2. Even cooler (freezing?), we have the total post count again.

Edit 3. My settings and friends are gone....

[JeffZero]

I wasn't around until the beginning of 2011, so I've only witnessed the one change. But I've been on GameFAQs ten years. Seen a lot of switches there.

I'm playing now! Got home an hour ago, got some stuff done. Looking forward to the next update, I've been really enjoying this stretch. Spoilers: omg AndersJustice WHAT.

[caradoc2000]

Spoilers: omg AndersJustice WHAT.

Two party members for the price of one!

[Ozzy]

Glad to see you're enjoying it! First impressions are always a treat. Shame you've already been spoiled on a few details though! I suppose that comes with being on the BSN though. DA2 hate was permeating to all corners, lol. 

[JeffZero]

It really was. And it happened very shortly after I joined, although technically it had been going on a while. What's funny is how time alters perception and refocuses negativity on the new. History is a pendulum, and gaming communities are no exception. I recall perusing aging Mass Effect 1 and 2 threads three years ago and discovering intense pockets of major disapproval from people. Those games are generally beloved but there was a lot of vitriol toward them. I'm sure the same applies to Origins. Now I'm not saying Dragon Age II will ever become a hallmark of greatness in the eyes of the overall fandom; indeed, its dark reaction was far more profound and far-reaching. But time heals some wounds, and I spoke with more people with positive things to say about the game in 2013 than 2012 or 2011. Ditto Mass Effect 3 and last year over '12, but that game's criticism is so sharply leveled at its ending that complaints over the rest of the ride are usually drowned out anyway.

Enough of my kumbayah soapbox, however. On to the next update!

The somewhat episodic nature of DA2, reminiscent in some ways of ME2, makes journey-style blog-esque reflection more difficult than with Origins. Or ME1/ME3 for that matter. But it's fun running around working Hawke's way into a position of greater respect. I think that's where this whole first segment is headed, anyway. I mean, I can't imagine the game ends with the Deep Roads Expedition. Not unless that's one loooong expedition, filled with rising mage/templar tensions. (One can't so much as lurk BSN without being spoiled that this is a major element. Thankfully that's pretty much all I know.)

So Garrett Hawke has been workin' his naaaame back to youuuu, prestige.

Let's go to the Chantry, Anders says! Let's go rescue Karl, he says! Karl has been forced into the role of tranquil, he says. This is terrifying, Jeff thinks. Jeff is well-acquainted with the concept of tranquil, having recently played through the first game and all, but never before has Jeff witnessed such diabolical abuse of power on the matter. And Hawke... now, Hawke, as I've said more than once now, loves his dear sister. An apostate. Hawke's views are definitely in favor of mages gaining further freedoms. He's a bit naive, perhaps, to disregard Tevinter so flatly. Maybe Jeff is, too. But Anders... Anders is upset. And Jeff can't blame Anders for that. Neither can Hawke. Anders is...

...glowing.

Anders is glowing. Why is Anders glo --... my god. Holy pseudo-abominations, Justiceman. I knew the writers intended to take Anders into a newer, fuller path, but I didn't expect this. I might have brought the two of them along together more frequently in Awakening if I knew this was going to happen. You know. Let them get to know each other a little bit more. Before, um. The Joining.

Well, he always did have a pension for trouble. So now Anders and Justice are as one, more so than was intended. Intriguing... and somewhat horrifying. He's offered to tag along whenever, wherever, which is just as well, because I could use another healer.

Various little quests later, I fell for a trap intended for a Gideon Emery elf. Let me be clear: I love Gideon Emery. He's one of my favorite voice actors. His work as Balthier made even some of the most droll stretches of FFXII doable. I knew that voice at once. Granted I knew it was coming because one of my exes made me giddy with the news that Mr. Emery himself was a companion. But still.

Fenris is Anders' antithesis, ain't he? Talk about anti-mage. It's nice to have someone drive home the Tevinter thing and make Hawke think about that stuff. I can't help wondering what their relationship probably turns to by default if Hawke is a mage though. As it stands Garrett's closeness with Bethany won't let him stand for much of what Fenris is spewing, but the sarcastic flair I'm decorating him with still allows them to laugh together here and then. Daenerys -- ahem, *Danarius* -- was nowhere to be found, but some of his... guards... had me scrambling to stay alive a little. Specifically an arcane horror I had trouble locating for a moment. That's all it took for the foul thing to slice our collective health bar to ribbons. Fortunately, awesome-button Scythe carved a path straight through to the thing, leaving it open for me to button-awesome it back to oblivion.

More on Fenris. Getting him to max rivalry to open up his granted ability (really, *really* rad how you can unlock something in both directions, by the way) seemed at first glance to be exceptionally easy, but then I conversed with him in his "newfound" estate afterward only to wind up +15ing my friendship with him. Curses! I can't help but agree with the fellow on his desire to free himself from a terrible former master's shackles forevermore. What was done to him is awful, and Hawke isn't so mage-sparkled not to recognize that. Looks like I'm in for a more complicated relationship here than I'd expected. Groovy.

More to come.

[JeffZero]

Have I mentioned how much better DA2's music has been so far overall? Because man, The Hanged Man's got such a delightful jig to it. But that's not the melody I walked in on this time. Oh, no. This time I saw an old familiar face in a markedly more cinematic series of angles beating the Maker-loving pulp out of a band of bothers.

Isabela! My, what big... ambitions you have. And the shortness of your... patience is noteworthy. To say nothing of that particular way in which you carry yourself. How incredibly... precise, your steps.

Hey now, Hawke, don't criticize the "swill" here! I just got you drunk on it!

And within seconds they were flirting. Can't say as I blame the sea lady for noticing the overwhelming sexiness of my not-at-all customized Garrett. I'm straight as an arrow through and through, myself, and neither do I typically find the beard look to be much more than a hassle, either, but Hawke's designer just made it all sing somehow. He's like a... younger, funnier Joel. I'm supposed to be talking about the plot though. Right.

Isabela wants help. Well of course she does. Damn if she isn't managing to squeeze it out of Hawke by default though. He's game. Of course he's game. He is a proud, powerful, capable man. (And he really needs money. Shh.) A duel, eh? Well this isn't going to go well. She said so herself. Oh look, an ambush! Multiple ambushes. And we're back to the Chantry. And the scumbag is dead. And isabela will tag along whenever. Because of course she will. Because she can't resist Hawke. Because attractive people.

Did some work for her shortly thereafter. Wasn't going to pay that dock fellow, but it's not Hawke's style to forcefully intimidate unless necessary or in cases of utterly despicable individuals. So we snuck back, pilfered the papers, followed the trail, found the goods less than noble, told the client to screw off, upset Isabela a little. Tough luck, pretty lady, you're gonna have to get used to Hawke's swagger.

I also started something off of a rumor (these things just pop up out of nowhere, huh?) that has unexpectedly transformed into a "main quest" -- Enemies Among Us, I think it's called. Boy, the more I hear of this Meredith...

[caradoc2000]

Anders is glowing. Why is Anders glo --... my god. Holy pseudo-abominations, Justiceman. I knew the writers intended to take Anders into a newer, fuller path, but I didn't expect this.

Justice bodyswapped from Kristoff into a - shall we say - better preserved body :-)

Fenris is Anders' antithesis, ain't he? Talk about anti-mage.

Yes. For some interesting banter take Anders and Fenris in your party.

More on Fenris. Getting him to max rivalry to open up his granted ability (really, *really* rad how you can unlock something in both directions, by the way) seemed at first glance to be exceptionally easy, but then I conversed with him in his "newfound" estate afterward only to wind up +15ing my friendship with him. Curses!

It is very easy for all companions to get both friendship and rivalry points, effectively keeping them in the neutral zone. Two observations: first, when you hit certain F/R thresholds, you will get a quest to talk to said character, these quests are all named "Questioning Beliefs". Second, when you hit max F/R, it will lock up for the rest of the game.
 
 

Isabela! My, what big... ambitions you have. And the shortness of your... patience is noteworthy. To say nothing of that particular way in which you carry yourself. How incredibly... precise, your steps.

Isabela is yet another Mass Effect alumni - namely Maya Brooks.

I also started something off of a rumor (these things just pop up out of nowhere, huh?) that has unexpectedly transformed into a "main quest"

The rumors will all transform into main quests at some point.

[Jaison1986]

It's pretty damn tricky to pull the rivalry path with Isabela without being an ass to her. But I like it better. She used to be my romance untill I readed some unsetling stuff about her in the comics, let's just say I can't do it anymore.

 

While I do understand why Fenris thinks the way he does, I don't accept it as an excuse. He is not in Tevinter anymore, so I don't think it's fair for him to treat mages in the andrastian nations as if they were the same as the mages overlords from the north. Bringing him to quests while being pro mage usually sets his rivalry sky rocket.

 

Bringing Isabela and Aveline also leads to some heated banters in a similar way as you get from Fenris and Anders.

[Ozzy]

Hawke's probably right about the booze at The Hanged Man. Probably leads to alcohol hepatitis faster than usual, heh. Everyone wants Hawke's help and what's in his pants. Dude is just radiating swagger. 

[JeffZero]

Yeah, I noticed Bethany locked into maximum friendship very quickly, probably five hours in. Judging by what I've heard, I'm assuming it's about as easy to get Carver into max rivalry. I also noticed she doesn't possess a unique skill tree, offsetting the super-easy boost she could have received by damning her from ever gaining any of that stuff. Poor girl.

Oh, I don't know that I would say I excuse Fenris, per se, but I like a mix of sensible and blindfolded characters in my stories. Makes things more fun. Also makes me rather easy to please!

Hawke *is* radiating swagger. I can't take five steps without someone telling him he looks like a man who can get things done. And he is.

I didn't have much time to play last night; middle-of-the-schoolweek blitz, midterms on the horizon and all that jazz. I'd remark that progress will be slowing down by about half for the next several days, even, but the last time I claimed similarly I ended up blasting through segments at light speed, so uh, just... no promises either way right now.

What did I do, you ask? Well, you probably don't ask, because you know I'm going to tell you anyway. I went to a Bone Pit and found a dismembered hand and cleared two thieves dens and ran into a Cullen, that's what I did.

Hubert ain't nothin' but a hound dog, you know that? But if you wanna climb the city ranks you're gonna have to get your Fereldan paws wet. I rescued a miner and slew several dragons, including a "mature dragon", which if memory serves is as big and bold as males ever get. Well regardless of sex, it hit hard. And then it died. Hubert really isn't very smart if he still thinks dragons are 100% extinct, because 32 years ago when he was but a wee pup himself a high dragon scorched several Orlesian towns in its wake. I suppose he could have presumed that was the end of that? Aww, look at me, beginning to call upon the lore to make character judgments. I'm so proud of me.

Anyway, I agreed to go in 50/50 with him as a workers advocate, then told them their wages will be doubled if they go back. Frankly, that can come from our stock if it has to; Hawke is slowly but surely ascending.

Ran into a schmuck with a disappearing wife problem. Agreed to locate her, although it was an oddly tough decision, because it sort of sounded like she'd just ran off to start a new life. Well, I'm glad I called that wrong, because one Mako blue-eyed elf and a disheartened veteran templar later and I found what remained of the poor woman. I've agreed to continue this investigation at a later date, because these people deserve justice... and he's stuck inside Anders.

Badum. Tish.

Difficulty with some of those demons in that hovel makes this seem like an opportune moment to comment on what must be the stupidest problem I have with the game: at least one in three times when I tap X to strike the next foe they prove too far away, which is by no means an issue on its own, but Hawke's incredibly goofy... what is that, even, a rally cry? Well, it has led to at least one hundred times too many goofy-arse "rally cries" in the thick of battles. Would that there were some way to disable this before he throws his arm out!

Last noteworthy gig: progressed that one quest a bit more so that I ended up taking arms (and wagging them, too...) alongside that Cullen bloke. Figured I'd run into him sooner or later, considering his character page here seems to update every ten seconds. He's a perfectly serviceable character thus far but I kind of hope there's a fair bit more to him than this encounter in DA2 for as talked-about as he seems to be. In any case, it was cool hearing him defend his views by bringing up Uldred. And also hearing him laugh about the rumors surrounding the initiations and Meredith. I'm inclined to believe him on the former, but the latter seems to possess one too many dark whispers about her already, so I'll reserve judgment on that front.

And that's a wrap!

[Jaison1986]

If you return the remains of that missing mage lady to the templar with an sarcastic personality while bringing Bethany along you get an amusing convo.

 

Also, Bethany does get an personal skill tree. That happens after the end of act 1.

 

Oh, Cullen is perfectly resonable, until you hear his opinions about mages.

[caradoc2000]

Mako blue-eyed elf

This was an intended pun, right?

Because Jethann VA is the original Mako-riding Spectre, MaleShepard himself, Mark Meer.

[JeffZero]

She gets a tree! Praise Andraste, it's Christmas indeed!

Actually mako is a harmful substance which as a byproduct alters one's eye color to that particularly vivid shade of blue in Squaresoft's 1997 JRPG phenomenon Final Fantasy VII, but I'm always happy to double my entendre. ...and that is hilarious, too, Mark Meer is ridiculously diverse.

[caradoc2000]

I stopped following Final Fantasy since the 2001 film, although Aki Ross wasn't that bad.

Anyway, off-topic...

The most interesting point in DA2 is the various shades of grey of the NPCs. Make sure to have fun with this aspect.