153429 réponses à ce sujet

[Lethaya]

Oooh! Really? I've been considering whether or not I should pick up a copy. Was already sorely tempted, but you just made it a done deal, I think, Sable. XD Hopefully I can set aside some cash next month for a copy!

[nikki-tikki]

Uh... yes... is that bad?

 

I am jealous....

 

 

Edit: That is such a late response. I do what I want.

[Cee]

I have WoT1 digitally and while it's convenient, the art can sometimes be a bit less on a tablet. I read comics on a tablet all the time, so art isn't necessarilythe issue, but I was wondering if the digital edition would be better this time around. I also have The Art of Mass Effect digitally and that one was done super weird. I still read and loved it but it made me wonder what kind of care they were attempting (or not).

 

I'll likely just wait a bit and get a physical copy.

[ChuChu]

I wonder if it was Gaider's idea for Solas to be all about the butt grab, or if it was an inside joke amongst the animators...

Animator 1: Alright guys, we've got this scene pretty much wrapped up.
Gaider: Where's his hand?
Animator 2: Right where we wanted it! MWAHAHAHAHAHAA....

IE: Character development at its finest. And I don't think we mind at all, haha.

Totally in the moment/fear of losing her/possessive/all that awesome stuff. -because we're talking theories, why not butt grab theories?-

[CapricornSun]

I just got mine, and it's a huge book.  My boyfriend actually thought it was a board game when it arrived because it was in a game-sized box and really heavy.  Definitely worth the physical copy.

 

It is? Damn, I'm running out of shelf space here. xD I've already got the physical copies of The Art of Mass Effect, World of Thedas Vol. 1, and The Art of Dragon Age: Inquisition. I know it's more practical to get the digital copy version but there's just something about owning the actual book in your hands...

 

I want it. I want World of Thedas Vol. 2 so bad... *grabby hands*

[ChuChu]

It is? Damn, I'm running out of shelf space here. xD I've already got the physical copies of The Art of Mass Effect, World of Thedas Vol. 1, and The Art of Dragon Age: Inquisition. I know it's more practical to get the digital copy version but there's just something about owning the actual book in your hands...

 

I want it. I want World of Thedas Vol. 2 so bad... *grabby hands*

I gotta say, WoT V2 is beauttttttiful. I prefer it over the artbook. 

[NightSymphony]

Sadly, I can only afford either JoH this month or WoT2, not both. WoT2 is going to have to wait.

[Sable Rhapsody]

It is? Damn, I'm running out of shelf space here. xD I've already got the physical copies of The Art of Mass Effect, World of Thedas Vol. 1, and The Art of Dragon Age: Inquisition. I know it's more practical to get the digital copy version but there's just something about owning the actual book in your hands...

 

I want it. I want World of Thedas Vol. 2 so bad... *grabby hands*

 

I'm already out of shelf space, and annexing the bedside tables.  Normally I buy digital books and games because I just don't have the room and the convenience is great, but for books with a bunch of art, I crave physical copies.

[Lethaya]

Hehehe. I ran out of shelving a while back after purchasing a very affordable, very large set of leatherbound classics.... many of which now reside tucked away and wrapped up within the drawers of an old dresser that was sitting around, unused. XD

 

Sadly, I can only afford either JoH this month or WoT2, not both. WoT2 is going to have to wait.

 

Curses! I forgot entirely about JoH (shaaaame). D:

 

Hummm. I can find a way to make this work... Maybe. >____>

[Cee]

I wonder if it was Gaider's idea for Solas to be all about the butt grab, or if it was an inside joke amongst the animators...

Animator 1: Alright guys, we've got this scene pretty much wrapped up.
Gaider: Where's his hand?
Animator 2: Right where we wanted it! MWAHAHAHAHAHAA....

IE: Character development at its finest. And I don't think we mind at all, haha.

Totally in the moment/fear of losing her/possessive/all that awesome stuff. -because we're talking theories, why not butt grab theories?-

 

Solas being an ass man is canon.

 

He does seem to express his affection more easily in  physical ways. He has to be so careful with words. I feel like, in the second romance scene, he has to just blurt out that he loves you because that is the only way he could say it. Especially for the first time.

[Sable Rhapsody]

He does seem to express his affection more easily in  physical ways. He has to be so careful with words. I feel like, in the second romance scene, he has to just blurt out that he loves you because that is the only way he could say it. Especially for the first time.

 

The "ar lath ma, vhenan" threw me for a loop the first time I saw that scene.  I looked up what it meant, and I was floored.  It seemed so impulsive and emotional for Solas.  Up until then, apart from the Fade kiss, his romance was pretty subdued compared to other BioWare romances I'd played. 

 

Then I thought about it, and I think his declaration of love in the second scene is pretty much the emotional equivalent of the Fade kiss.  He knows this will complicate matters for both of them.  He even says that it would be kinder in the long run if he just walked away.  But he just can't bring himself to do it.  He loves Lavellan, he's probably known that for a while now, and he wants her to know.

 

(...and hellspiralling now.  Back to WoT 2 to nerd out over the Chant.)

[ChuChu]

The "ar lath ma, vhenan" threw me for a loop the first time I saw that scene.  I looked up what it meant, and I was floored.

I think this was the first thing I read when I looked it up, and so I couldn't help but carry that whole mentality with me for the entirety of my playthrough. I like the idea of it.

[Cee]

The "ar lath ma, vhenan" threw me for a loop the first time I saw that scene.  I looked up what it meant, and I was floored.  It seemed so impulsive and emotional for Solas.  Up until then, apart from the Fade kiss, his romance was pretty subdued compared to other BioWare romances I'd played. 

 

Then I thought about it, and I think his declaration of love in the second scene is pretty much the emotional equivalent of the Fade kiss.  He knows this will complicate matters for both of them.  He even says that it would be kinder in the long run if he just walked away.  But he just can't bring himself to do it.  He loves Lavellan, he's probably known that for a while now, and he wants her to know.

 

 

Same, it's so impulsive, so spontaneous, said with such intensity, and yet, it certainly feels like the result of so much flipping everything over in his head. But he's going to declare it because he has to, even knowing how much more complicated that will make things.  He's already in it and he knows that, and his reservations, he tries, but she pulls him back and tells him not to go, and then as you say, he just can't. He doesn't need to finish that sentence, not really. I feel like he just has to declare his love and say it that way before he can't.

 

Sigh.

 

Hello hellspiral.

[Sable Rhapsody]

I think this was the first thing I read when I looked it up, and so I couldn't help but carry that whole mentality with me for the entirety of my playthrough. I like the idea of it.

 

Oooh, this is interesting.  The elven language is a bit of a mess, but I like the idea that there are multiple meanings to his statement.

 

Though personally, I don't put as much importance on the Anchor (or the Well if quizzy drinks).  While the Anchor is why Solas initially takes an interest in quizzy (and by extension, the Inquisition), I'd like to think that he'd love her with or without the Anchor.  For who she is, for her individual spirit.

[Siha]

Of course you must have interesting debates just while Siha is gone.
Alright, 'tis gonna be long.
You brought that on yourselves!

The first optional companion I've ever deliberately not recruited is Sebastian.

 
...which is sad, because you have to pay for the DLC to even get him...

No.  He annoys me  =p
<snip bout vengeance> 
And not to mention such a reaction is something that would have completely horrified and appalled Elthina herself.

I agree. And this is just why I appreciate him. I never killed Anders, I'm no fan of lynch law in general. So Seb will always walk out on me. And I always have a bad feeling about this. But that's just the great thing. He is so helpless in his ways. He is so caught up in his weird sense of honor, which has been inflicted on him throughout his youth (he was sent off to the Chantry even). He does not really know how to handle the world around him in his own way. He is torn between what is expected of him in his position and what he feels. The typical story of a boy who suffered other people's interpretation of what a man is supposed to be like.

Blahblah Siha, no-one cares. So in short: his ultimate failure to change his ways is part of his being. AND Thedas is not our world, the law of self-made justice is slapped in our face over and over again. How can I judge Seb while running around and happily killing my way through anything that I don't like or understand? Double standards.

Solas acts like Seb but somehow Solas killing mages is alright for most.
 

I love her. Geniunely. Not because she's got an attitude. I think she is a great character and would make a strong friend to the right Inquisitor.  She's not evil. Just smart.

I like.

And Vivienne was intentionally written to be polarizing. Just like the Qun or Tevinter slavery or blood magic are supposed to be rejected by the player. BioWare wants to poke players and tickle strong (also negative) emotions out of them. Still, they don't want to create flat-out "bad" characters. So they explore Vivienne only in banter (mostly Cole) or hints (e.g. her personal quest). When so much writing skill is deliberately focused to make some players dislike a character, it doesn't surprise that this also works.

But this is also what makes the games stronger. Characters like Varric etc. are problematic. I found it very hard to make him a rival in DA2, and even when I did, it didn't really work out. He was just too likable. But while this is nice for one character, it is awful for all. Why replay, why try friendship and rivalry paths, if the result is the same? I want new insights, new emotions. That does not work with flat characters. Viv will seem like a completely different person if you take the time to explore her various sides. Much like Sera. The characters that are hated most by the majority are also those that actually allow you to roleplay.

And real life drips in too. I can regard people highly if I respect them, even if we have opposing views and I find aspects of them negative or annoying. The higher my respect for a person, the more I can like him/her. (Does not work the other way round, unfortunately. If I do not respect somebody, I also cannot genuinely like.) But I am aware that not everybody is like me. So BW wrote a Vivienne for people like me. No audience is homogenous, which is why the cast isn't either.
 

If I had already read that book (several times) I wouldn't have been able to bring myself to care about the peace talks.  DAI is frustrating because it's got so many things that would make for a fantastic game (the civil war, the mage/templer war, a villian like Corypheus to name just three) but they're not used to their fullest potential.

I am not ashamed to openly confess that I hardly ever read codex entries and that I refuse to read merchandise (until they give me audiobooks alright). I am a gamer after all, I prefer to play. Regardless, I took great interest in it all and I could make up my mind. Simply did I think about it from other angles and maybe had to think more because I didn't have an opinion already, I had to form one. But this is not so bad.

My girl has not read any novels either. She is there accidentally and forced to handle politics. Like me she has no background knowledge and must decide based on what is presented to her. This is life. (Realistically she wouldn't need to make decisions like that, but let's ignore this.)
If you really speak to the people there and observe their attitudes, you will learn a lot. You will not learn everything, but you will get their basic characters, intentions, and events (like purging the alienage etc).
It is a different approach. I am not sure what BW intended, if they simply want to squeeze a few more bucks out of it all or if they deliberately kept the game "more realistic" (based on who the protagonist is) and provided additional knowledge for the "scholars". However, it works both ways.

When people start calling him a bad villain, I feel they didn't take the time to think about the exigencies of his story, Or else, he is not the kind of villain they want. Of course, Bioware messed up on illustrating the heartbeat of his tragedy, but there were outside contingencies (like time, money, bureaucracy) that may have affected how he was presented in game. But the tragic core is still there, if you take the time to look.

 

The tragedy is there, but it's just so hard to find without supplementary material (WoT, writer interviews, etc) or picking through all his codices.  Not every player is going to spend hundreds of hours on Dragon Age, and IMO they shouldn't have to for the storyline of the main villain.

I agree with the two of you. Corypheus would have needed more exploration. But, really, so would have many characters. There were too many people with too little screen time. Fewer shards, smaller world, but more character interactions! But, well, maybe I'm alone with this wish.

Anyway, this debate you had is actually a clash of different approaches. The problem about Corypheus is that he's not a villain at all. A villain (whatever the definition of the word) involves an evil element. But there is nothing evil about Corypheus. Many of you said it, he is sad, and that's the problem. Maybe the player doesn't want that? Fight somebody who's confused, helpless, and sad? Maybe the player wants to fight a big bad, to feel good about defeating it in the end?

I will now try to put my thoughts in words but I might fail miserably... So:

We have a problem here, which is the running time of DA. If it were a movie, two hours long, it would work better. But the player is forced to spend weeks playing through DA, so we get emotionally involved. I think most people tend to avoid helpless situations in real life. If you have to put all your energy into fighting something, you want to feel an accomplishment when finally beating it; satisfaction, triumph. Beating evil will give you that. But how much triumph is in smashing something that's already sad and broken... If you really look at what Corypheus is, there will be no happy "Yay, we did it!" but a pitiful, sorry "That poor guy...". This is not a nice ending. Some will appreciate it, others won't, but whatever -- it is not "good".

Most long running series I know, from Batman to Doctor Who, always make sure to include that evil aspect. The Dalek are so tragic and it breaks my heart when one of them... but then it will snap again and scream EXTERMINATE. Or Scarface, Hush etc. they are so sad actually, they were decent people with dreams and hopes and good intentions (I know, the road to hell is paved with good intentions) and you feel sorry for them... until they laugh madly while trying to kill a group of kids. Usually villains are, while you fight them, evil (with positive traits of character), the most it will come down to is that they used to be better.

DA tried to invert that formula and it doesn't work for everybody. (They actually did the same with Saren in ME1, but better. They depicted him as the big evil most of the game and then twisted it at the end, thus crushing us under the weight of the sudden sorrow. But with Cory they introduced his intentions "far too early", which contradicts what we are used to and allows the player to simply disregard him.)

[Cee]

Watching that scene again (feeding the spiral), the number of times he hesitates, falters, looks away, even his little sigh with the right option, it is piling feels upon feels.

[laurelinvanyar]

High-five. *high fives*

Dragon blood is incredibly potent and is used for all kinds of magical mischief. And it makes more sense than the distant Maker throwing down the Old Gods for subverting his worship, and yet being fine with their worship continuing. (It's very interesting that the Tevinter Imperium worshiped imprisoned gods. Or did they just think that the gods were creatures of the Fade? I need more Old God information.) If the Titans captured and used dragon gods as batteries, I've got nothing but mad respect for them. 

It's Riordan who mentions the Waking Sea one, isn't it?

So, assuming that the Archdemons rise up in the same relative kingdom that they were imprisoned in, (they can only take the must of the Deep Roads for so long  ) here's where they were imprisoned beneath:

Dumat: Somewhere in the Deep Roads. He puts up with dust for over a decade as they dismantle the dwarven empire.  Probably in the North, as the darkspawn take awhile to mess with the Alamari, and the concentration of veterans and the Wardens is in the Anderfels and the Tevinter homeland.

Zazikel: Anderfels. Interesting, I believe the Abyssal Rift in the Western Approach happened at this time as well.

Toth: Nevarra and the rest of the Free Marches.

Andoral: The Northeast and Northwest of Thedas. Anderfels and Antiva, specifically. This implies that the Archdemons are strategic enough to not just pop out of the ground.

Urthemiel: Ferelden. Strategically the best location for a Blight at the time. Very wise placement. Turned out badly.

Razikale: Believed to be under the Western Approach. A good location for a horde build up, similar to the Korcari Wilds.

Lusacan: Under the Waking Sea. Either a long walk through the Deep Roads or a rather metal opening scene of flying through rock and through the Waking Sea. In the middle of Orlais, Nevarra, Ferelden, and the Free Marches. Probably will try to find a better spot to build, unless the darkspawn want to develop a navy and become rivals to the Felicisima Armada.   The Architect could rock a pirate hat.

...So they've convinced me that the Archdemons don't pop up where their prisons are.  Kardol's points to a prison having been in Ferelden.

 

Haha the same questions occurred to me. "How the heck do you get a dragon underground anyway?" Another thing I NEEED to know is when the dragons were put underground. I'm stuck between "very distant past" and "when the Old Gods went silent". There's a codex somewhere that I can't find of an eyewitness from the First Blight. The writer seems to recognize Dumat right off, which implies that Dumat was above ground sometime within this man's lifetime before the First Blight. Or it could be he doesn't recognize Dumat until after the fact and just writes it down as fact. ARGGGGH. 

 

It is indeed Riordan who says that there is an Old God unreachable under the Waking Sea. But I don't know if we can trust warden knowledge on this. Or if we can trust it won't be retconned. 

 

We don't know the exact location of the prisons. Urthemiel rose in the Korcari Wilds, but the prison itself could have been much farther south and still technically in the Korcari Wilds. The deep roads run everywhere, so conceivably they could pop up in a wide range.  

[lynroy]

I have WoT1 digitally and while it's convenient, the art can sometimes be a bit less on a tablet. I read comics on a tablet all the time, so art isn't necessarilythe issue, but I was wondering if the digital edition would be better this time around. I also have The Art of Mass Effect digitally and that one was done super weird. I still read and loved it but it made me wonder what kind of care they were attempting (or not).

I'll likely just wait a bit and get a physical copy.

Get a physical copy, the art must viewed in all its glory. I first bought WoT1 digitally and regretted it because I was trying to read it on a small screen. Didn't make that mistake this time around.

I splurged for the exclusive edition and was very happy when it arrived the day before I went on vacation. Almost read the whole thing while I was on vacation too!

[Illyria]

Spoiler

Ciphers are tremendous fun to play, and they come in two major flavors: high INT cipher for status effects and AoE, high Might cipher for spike damage.  INT and Resolve are going to be your two major conversation stats, so don't dump either.  But if you have one of the two, you should be ok.  Honestly, you don't really wanna dump any stats too hard, they're all important to some extent.  You want at least decent DEX so you can hit things and build up focus points.

 

Spoiler

I've narrowed it down to elf or godlike (haven't chosen a subrace though) as a cipher, rouge, druid or wizard.

[Caddius]

 

 

A+ for the GIF. I loved that movie.

Anyways, that Codex entry is about him recognizing Dumat because of his having seen statues of Dumat in the temples all his life. I would imagine that the Old Gods had been silent or communicating through dreams only by the time of Corypheus and the Architect. If he'd met them in person, or had more extensive contact in the Fade, he wouldn't be so questioning. He really wanted to serve Dumat in person.

We don't really have much timeline information on Tevinter from the fall of Arlathan to the Blight. A few brutal civil wars, a list of their conquests, the construction of the Imperial Highway, Aeonar, and Ostagar. A few amusing Codex entries about various Archon's being assassinating and assassinating. It's also possible that they were imprisoned for the entirety of the Imperium's existence. The gods go silent as the Imperium starts to lose faith and focus more on secular matters. Which is cause and which is effect, I wonder? How active were they at their peak?

 

Siha, are you trying to oust me as the word-machine-gunner? 

And yeah, it's weird that characters in cutscene get so upright about, "No, it would be wrong to kill that person," when we spend most of our time killing minions without pausing to think about it. It always bothered me in Star Wars, for instance, even with the family connection, that Luke focuses so hard on saving his father, but no attention is brought to the hundreds of thousands of Imperials dying all around them. (I know, I know, In the EU Luke feels guilty and dwells on it. But then the moral ambiguity is raised one Kyp Durron.  ) I think Sebastian's case is less justified as he's conquering a city to find a guy who's already left. While Solas hates ignorance and they did bring about the death of his friend. To his credit, all it takes is a, "Solas," and he'll restrain himself. To his anti-credit, it seems like he'll be a lot less merciful next time something like that happens.

I liked how Varric really regrets Bartrand's possible death, and pleads with Fenris to spare his sister.

And yeah, Mr. Amladaris is a sad, sad man. I would have loved to have had a moment like at the end of KotOR, where after everything that's happened, as the villain lies dying, they have a simple moment of conversation. Still one of my favorite Bioware moments, Light Side ending or Dark Side. 

[ChuChu]

So, fellow Solasmancers who recently had their WoT II arrive:

Spoiler

I haven't had time to read it all yet (obviously), but I hadn't before read so much about Shartan. Thanks to the book I finally have, and there's really no doubt in my mind now that Shartan = Solas. We've seen the paintings in-game, yes: hooded bald looking elf wielding Andraste's sword and a foci. Seemed obvious, but I had reservations especially since SO MANY ancient elves are bald. But in the WoT II, it accompanies Shartan's verse with pictures of wolves to embody the elves. And he says that line with "jaw" and "wolf" and ... well, with everything else it says, I just really can't call it a "mayhaps" thing any longer. AHHH. Combine this with the fact that Andraste's children were 60% a-holes, I wouldn't put it past Fen'Harel to do a little dream walking and inception the forceful idea that they relinquish the Dales to the elves after her death.

Also, does Andraste remind anyone else of a spirit? So singular in her goals? If I entertain that idea, I wonder if her purpose was ever corrupted...

So much reading to do! But I must sleep. And paint. And eat. Though apparently Solas didn't eat much and he managed to do the other two well enough. Hum.

Edit: c-r-a-p

I'm supposed to do something if I'm top aren't I? No one explained the rules to me?!! I figured I would play it safe and TRY not to get first page post. I failed. I don't even know what ToP Solas means. I assume it means top post must offer a Solas.

OK, FINE! Have this. Peek. At the painting so far.

 

[Caddius]

 

That's a lovely painting.

WoTII spoilers.

Spoiler

Holy cow. I'm now on either the Shartan=Solas train, or the 'Solas acted as a mentor and gave Shartan advice on rising up against the Imperium'. This also explains the view the Dales had on wolves as guardians. Let us know if you find any more Shartan nuggets?

[Delphine]

Gratuitous hellspiral post:

 

Source: http://valrider.tumb...st/118804905053

[ChuChu]

Gratuitous hellspiral post: 

Spoiler

 

In another world?
Why not this one?
-sobs sobbity sobs-

[CapricornSun]

So, fellow Solasmancers who recently had their WoT II arrive:

Spoiler

I haven't had time to read it all yet (obviously), but I hadn't before read so much about Shartan. Thanks to the book I finally have, and there's really no doubt in my mind now that Shartan = Solas. We've seen the paintings in-game, yes: hooded bald looking elf wielding Andraste's sword and a foci. Seemed obvious, but I had reservations especially since SO MANY ancient elves are bald. But in the WoT II, it accompanies Shartan's verse with pictures of wolves to embody the elves. And he says that line with with "jaw" and "wolf" and ... well, with everything else it says, I just really can't call it a "mayhaps" thing any longer. AHHH. Combine this with the fact that Andraste's children were 60% a-holes, I wouldn't put it past Fen'Harel to do a little dream walking and inception the forceful idea that they relinquish the Dales to the elves after her death.

Also, does Andraste remind anyone else of a spirit? So singular in her goals? If I entertain that idea, I wonder if her purpose was ever corrupted...

So much reading to do! But I must sleep. And paint. And eat. Though apparently Solas didn't eat much and he managed to do the other two well enough. Hum.

Edit: c-r-a-p

I'm supposed to do something if I'm top aren't I? No one explained the rules to me?!! I figured I would play it safe and TRY not to get first page post. I failed. I don't even know what ToP Solas means. I assume it means top post must offer a Solas.

OK, FINE! Have this. Peek. At the painting so far.

 

 

ChuChu, your painting is looking so beautiful.  Do you have a DeviantArt account or Tumblr? I would love to fave or reblog this whenever this is finished.