I'm reading through the in-game character descriptions from the tumblr that provided the feelsy audio files, and some of them are f***ing amazing.
Storvacker's accent: Grizzly or Northern Brown
Speech pattern for the Nug King: SQUEAK
'Think Brian Blessed' is my favourite.
That part about Solas and Flemeth confirms my thoughts. He had planned to take her power by force, but the reaction he has when she apologizes means he realizes she is going to let him do it, and it surprises him for a second. I think her apology is because she is going to stop him by sending her power to Morrigan and all she's done to aid the heroes too. She is not with him, she is against him.
Gaspard would be a great guy to hang out with at a party.
Until you force him to eat humble pie 
When I read Masked Empire, Gaspard was the most superficially likeable of the three. I'm guessing that's why he's the Inquisitor's "in" at Halamshiral; he even manages to briefly set aside his racism to be courteous to Lavellan. And he was downright pleasant when I played Adaar.
I also get where they were going with Briala's character in DA:I, though I still think they dropped the ball a bit. I liked her much better in Masked Empire: less bitter, more idealistic. But she did go through a lot, and now she's had time to stew on all that. So it makes sense that at Halamshiral, her anger and resentment have gotten the better of her good sense. Particularly if we're going with the theory that Solas took the eluvians from her while attending the ball.
Until you force him to eat humble pie
When I read Masked Empire, Gaspard was the most superficially likeable of the three. I'm guessing that's why he's the Inquisitor's "in" at Halamshiral; he even manages to briefly set aside his racism to be courteous to Lavellan. And he was downright pleasant when I played Adaar.
Now I kind of get where they were going with Briala's character in DA:I, though I still think they dropped the ball a bit. I liked her much better in Masked Empire: less bitter, more idealistic. But she did go through a lot, and now she's had time to stew on all that. So it makes sense that at Halamshiral, her anger and resentment have gotten the better of her good sense. Particularly if we're going with the theory that Solas took the eluvians from her while attending the ball.
Gaspard is surprisingly sweet to elves and even flirted a bit with my Inquisitor if you choose the sarcastic options. Most likely The Game, but it still charms me sadly. It's hard to turn on him, but sometimes all 3 working together is a bad way to end the game based on how you play. Shame he has to die if we get them together. I would have preferred imprisonment. Too bad we can't marry him and become leader of Orlais like in DAO with Anora either.
Gaspard is surprisingly sweet to elves and even flirted a bit with my Inquisitor if you choose the sarcastic options. Most likely The Game, but it still charms me sadly. It's hard to turn on him, but sometimes all 3 working together is a bad way to end the game based on how you play. Shame he has to die if we get them together. I would have preferred imprisonment. Too bad we can't marry him and become leader of Orlais like in DAO with Anora.
Oh he's sweet when talking to you but then he's saying that 'elves have no place in politics' and you realise that he's sweet because you're the Inquisitor and you have a big army and he wants their support. If you were just another knife ear he wouldn't give a damn if you lived or died. The man wanted to make elf hunting a legal sport!
I knew it! Kenric does like Scout Harding! 
"He's innocent and naive, generally speaking, and may have a slight crush on Scout Harding (who he calls "Lady Harding")."
..And I totally have a crush on Professor Kenric.
Oh he's sweet when talking to you but then he's saying that 'elves have no place in politics' and you realise that he's sweet because you're the Inquisitor and you have a big army and he wants their support. If you were just another knife ear he wouldn't give a damn if you lived or died. The man wanted to make elf hunting a legal sport!
That's why it would be lovely to marry him and rule over him as an elf and he has no say since the Inquisition is almighty.
I'm so-so about elves lately. I'm not sure who's right or wrong and who's good or bad anymore. It seems everyone's turning out to be worse than what we first thought. Especially the Chantry. There's only a few good elves left. What Celene did though makes me wonder why having her and Briala together actually lasts.
Whew! Finally back. Okay, onto this now...
-cut-
(Spoilered, as before, for length)
*Huff huff huff* God I probably missed someone didn't I.
OH GOD THE SPOLIERING DIDN'T WORK WHAT HAPPENED.
Okay, well I... guess I have to... rewrite every thing all over again...
Sorry!
I knew it! Kenric does like Scout Harding!
"He's innocent and naive, generally speaking, and may have a slight crush on Scout Harding (who he calls "Lady Harding")."
..And I totally have a crush on Professor Kenric.
Professor Kenric is the precious-est thing to ever precious. Since I played Jaws of Hakkon after the main campaign, I headcanon that he's Lavellan's new history geek friend. The two of them stay in contact, exchange letters, and squee over random discoveries. She invites him to Skyhold to make use of all the knowledge she's collected over her adventures, and travels to the University of Orlais to hear him defend his work on Ameridan. Possibly with bow in hand and a few Inquisition soldiers, for that whole "Ameridan was a Dalish mage" bit.
Random question: Does anyone know any good Solas crossover fics?
There are so very few good crossovers at all, but I haven't seen anything with Solas. It's a shame, I'd love to see the unwashed hobo apostate traipsing across different universes. I think I may throw him at Middle Earth and see how that shakes out, but I've got my plate full with some mass effect stuff right now.
The bears description, I laughed so hard!
"This is a bear. Like, literally a bear." "Unless there is an actor who does like an AWESOME impression of a bear, I am assuming we are using existing audiofile"
Florianne's description was also really interesting. It added layers to her character I didn't really see in game, like how she isn't taken seriously, taken everywhere but hardly noticed. It's not how I saw her at all, which is strange.
Professor Kenric is the precious-est thing to ever precious. Since I played Jaws of Hakkon after the main campaign, I headcanon that he's Lavellan's new history geek friend. The two of them stay in contact, exchange letters, and squee over random discoveries. She invites him to Skyhold to make use of all the knowledge she's collected over her adventures, and travels to the University of Orlais to hear him defend his work on Ameridan. Possibly with bow in hand and a few Inquisition soldiers, for that whole "Ameridan was a Dalish mage" bit.
Entirely agreed and heacanon borrowed! 
That's why it would be lovely to marry him and rule over him as an elf and he has no say since the Inquisition is almighty.
I'm so-so about elves lately. I'm not sure who's right or wrong and who's good or bad anymore. It seems everyone's turning out to be worse than what we first thought. Especially the Chantry. There's only a few good elves left. What Celene did though makes me wonder why having her and Briala together actually lasts.
But his earlobes. His icky, fleshy earlobes! 
At this point, I don't think anyone is right or wrong or good or bad. That's never been the point of Dragon Age, has it? We as players empathize with and agree with different people. Our opinions might even change as we play different protagonists. My take on the mage/templar thing certainly evolved, and so has my opinion of the elves.
Florianne's description was also really interesting. It added layers to her character I didn't really see in game, like how she isn't taken seriously, taken everywhere but hardly notice. It's not how I saw her at all, which is strange.
Seeing stuff like this makes me sad. I liked Wicked Eyes for what it was, but it could have been so much more. I shouldn't have to read Masked Empire or go through the game files to learn about the basic motivations and personalities of these characters.
But his earlobes. His icky, fleshy earlobes!
At this point, I don't think anyone is right or wrong or good or bad. That's never been the point of Dragon Age, has it? We as players empathize with and agree with different people. Our opinions might even change as we play different protagonists. My take on the mage/templar thing certainly evolved, and so has my opinion of the elves.
Seeing stuff like this makes me sad. I liked Wicked Eyes for what it was, but it could have been so much more. I shouldn't have to read Masked Empire or go through the game files to learn about the basic motivations and personalities of these characters.
His earlobes are weird. Like he used to wear gauges r heavy earring and doesn't anymore!
Also, Florianne seems so much more layered and grey in that description than she ever came across in the game 
It does make me happier though that I spared her and got her to work with the peasants and eat some humble pie...
Also, I forgot to mention a correction to the timeline in WOT in the "Errata" section of WOT2, whereas the timeline in WOT stated that the Old Gods started whispering from the Black City in -2800 Ancient. The corrected text verifies that it was still the untainted Golden City "as it had not yet been sullied by the presence of men."
Edit: This confirms for me that the Veil was constructed many years before the Blight reached the Golden City, thus making a dual-purpose scenario unlikely.
Well, I certainly could be wrong. It wouldn't be the first time.
But... I'm not sure WOT is always completely factual, as it is written from within the world, from in-world people's perspectives, right? If it's a Chantry perspective, then they're going to assume that the Magisters are the ones who created the Blight by entering the Golden City, turning it black. That could be true, but it could also be allegorical, or it could be a mistake. Maybe all they did was release the Blight, not create it.
I'm not sure which it is. I'm open to more than one interpretation. But I don't think we can necessarily rule out the idea that the Blight is older than the Magisters entering the Fade physically. The Dwarves have always disputed that claim, insisting that the Blight came from the Deep Roads. So even in-world, we have disagreement on whether the Blight pre-dates Corypheus' & co's attempt to enter the Golden/Black City. Maybe Blight doesn't come from the Black City at all, as the Dwarves claim, and it really does come from the Deep Roads. That's borne out by the "Veilfire in the Deep Roads" codex.
And if the Magisters weren't already Blighted when they entered the Golden City, why would they leave Blighted if the Blight weren't already there? I don't buy "It's the Maker's punishment for their hubris!" argument. But that's just me, I suppose. I'm pretty skeptical of the Chantry and their claims, as a rule.
But his earlobes. His icky, fleshy earlobes!
At this point, I don't think anyone is right or wrong or good or bad. That's never been the point of Dragon Age, has it? We as players empathize with and agree with different people. Our opinions might even change as we play different protagonists. My take on the mage/templar thing certainly evolved, and so has my opinion of the elves.
Seeing stuff like this makes me sad. I liked Wicked Eyes for what it was, but it could have been so much more. I shouldn't have to read Masked Empire or go through the game files to learn about the basic motivations and personalities of these characters.
I like how each game opens our eyes and helps us see new POV's that keep things from being biased. Especially Grey Wardens! Surprisingly the Qunari are turning out to be just what Sten implied.
The bears description, I laughed so hard!
"This is a bear. Like, literally a bear." "Unless there is an actor who does like an AWESOME impression of a bear, I am assuming we are using existing audiofile"
Florianne's description was also really interesting. It added layers to her character I didn't really see in game, like how she isn't taken seriously, taken everywhere but hardly noticed. It's not how I saw her at all, which is strange.
I was left with that impression of her if you let her live and arrest her. She looks like the helpless forgotten sibling who tried to be more and lost it all.
Also, Florianne seems so much more layered and grey in that description than she ever came across in the game
My Adaar...may have just judged her remains in a box and sent her on a tour of Orlais. For the orphans How can you have that dialogue option, and not take it? The appalled look on Josie's face was so, so worth it.
On another hilarious note, I originally intended for Adaar to leave Blackwall in jail once his background came to light. But he's been oddly quiet this playthrough. Turns out that even with his Warden artifact quest complete (all 8 f***ing artifacts), I have ticked him off enough where Revelations won't trigger. I haven't even gotten his conversation about the Grand Tourney. Oops
I'm reading through the in-game character descriptions from the tumblr that provided the feelsy audio files, and some of them are f***ing amazing.
Storvacker's accent: Grizzly or Northern Brown
Speech pattern for the Nug King: SQUEAK
BRIAN BLESSED. AVVAR BRIAN BLESSED.
*ahem*
I think the thing that annoys me the most about this was that Briala wasn't really self-motivated at all in TME - otherwise she would have clung to Celene. I think at best you could argue her viewpoint of the elves' plight was perhaps rosier than most because she as the Empress's side, but this changed as the novel went on and she realised exactly what Celene was willing to sacrifice for power.
I know in DA:I Briala isn't very friendly to the Inquisitor - firstly she's dealing with a sudden massacre of her own people and isn't in the best place, and secondly she expects very little of Inky, which is unsurprising because we arrived with Gaspard, of course she'll question their motivations at first. And it's clear that Briala's agent was set up by Florianne rather than Briala herself, so I never got really where the dislike of her came from in DA:I asides from a portrait which didn't do her justice?
As said before, the civil war quest should have been longer, with multiple stages where there would be the opportunity get to know each side of the battle better, including a visit to the burnt remains of the parts of Halamshiral Celene torched, before it culminated in the ball. I think if the events of the novel had been more properly foregrounded, we'd be in a better position to judge character. Lots of potential stuff there, not very well realised. Does make me appreciate how good TME is though, as a novel.
*nod nod*
Yes!
I feel like whatever is in the Fade is more substantial than a reflection, but that's just me.
I have to wonder about whether the lack of Solas talking about the Blight/the taint in regards to the Evanuris/the ancient elves, or there being more clues might just be story segregation. As in, they wanted to save those plot beats for a future game, so they left a few breadcrumbs, but not enough to spoil anything for the next couple of games where the Darkspawn/the Taint/Red Lyrium/possible Darkspawn Evanuris would all feature as a main plot.
Well...I suppose Arlathan could have been "sundered from itself" in a manner of speaking, but re: my other posts, I don't believe the Golden City became the tainted Black City until many years later...That made me think of the murals depicting what appears to be the Black City...if any of them are ancient, I now have to headcanon Solas going around painting them back after waking!
Well, I certainly could be wrong. It wouldn't be the first time.
But... I'm not sure WOT is always completely factual, as it is written from within the world, from in-world people's perspectives, right? If it's a Chantry perspective, then they're going to assume that the Magisters are the ones who created the Blight by entering the Golden City, turning it black. That could be true, but it could also be allegorical, or it could be a mistake. Maybe all they did was release the Blight, not create it.
I'm not sure which it is. I'm open to more than one interpretation. But I don't think we can necessarily rule out the idea that the Blight is older than the Magisters entering the Fade physically. The Dwarves have always disputed that claim, insisting that the Blight came from the Deep Roads. So even in-world, we have disagreement on whether the Blight pre-dates Corypheus' & co's attempt to enter the Golden/Black City. Maybe Blight doesn't come from the Black City at all, as the Dwarves claim, and it really does come from the Deep Roads. That's borne out by the "Veilfire in the Deep Roads" codex.
And if the Magisters weren't already Blighted when they entered the Golden City, why would they leave Blighted if the Blight weren't already there? I don't buy "It's the Maker's punishment for their hubris!" argument. But that's just me, I suppose. I'm pretty skeptical of the Chantry and their claims, as a rule.
We already know the Blight is older than the Black City. The red lyrium tainted Thaig that Varric & Hawke found was older than any Dwarven settlement on record when it was discovered. We didn't find out that red lyrium was blighted until DAI, though. This is why all those theories about a Blighted Titan being under Kirkwall have popped up.
We already know the Blight is older than the Black City. The red lyrium tainted Thaig that Varric & Hawke found was older than any Dwarven settlement on record when it was discovered. We didn't find out that red lyrium was blighted until DAI, though. This is why all those theories about a Blighted Titan being under Kirkwall have popped up.
We also know Mythal killed a Titan and that started everything going wrong.
We already know the Blight is older than the Black City. The red lyrium tainted Thaig that Varric & Hawke found was older than any Dwarven settlement on record when it was discovered. We didn't find out that red lyrium was blighted until DAI, though. This is why all those theories about a Blighted Titan being under Kirkwall have popped up.
Right, I forgot about that.
I played DA2 and liked it (I know, scandalous, right!) but I feel like I somehow absorbed zero lore from that game. I remember Origins' lore so much better!
I know in DA:I Briala isn't very friendly to the Inquisitor - firstly she's dealing with a sudden massacre of her own people and isn't in the best place, and secondly she expects very little of Inky, which is unsurprising because we arrived with Gaspard, of course she'll question their motivations at first. And it's clear that Briala's agent was set up by Florianne rather than Briala herself, so I never got really where the dislike of her came from in DA:I asides from a portrait which didn't do her justice?
As said before, the civil war quest should have been longer, with multiple stages where there would be the opportunity get to know each side of the battle better, including a visit to the burnt remains of the parts of Halamshiral Celene torched, before it culminated in the ball. I think if the events of the novel had been more properly foregrounded, we'd be in a better position to judge.
I don't mind Briala not being friendly. As you say, she has no reason to buddy up with quizzy. I mind her being foolhardy. She's an excellent spymaster for Celene in TME, but she leaves bodies and notes all over the Winter Palace where even the most dull-witted quizzy can casually stumble upon it? She's overconfident even with a giant Damocles sword of blackmail hanging over her? She never, not even once, adjusts her game plan even if quizzy walks up to her and tells her what they know. I know they needed to leave the player some breadcrumbs to follow, but they could have done it without handing poor Briala the Idiot Ball 
If Florianne is relatively unpracticed at the Game, have her carry the Idiot Ball during Wicked Eyes.
Also, her VA bothers me. But that's strictly personal preference. Not much anyone can do about that.
Well, I certainly could be wrong. It wouldn't be the first time.
But... I'm not sure WOT is always completely factual, as it is written from within the world, from in-world people's perspectives, right? If it's a Chantry perspective, then they're going to assume that the Magisters are the ones who created the Blight by entering the Golden City, turning it black. That could be true, but it could also be allegorical, or it could be a mistake. Maybe all they did was release the Blight, not create it.
I'm not sure which it is. I'm open to more than one interpretation. But I don't think we can necessarily rule out the idea that the Blight is older than the Magisters entering the Fade physically. The Dwarves have always disputed that claim, insisting that the Blight came from the Deep Roads. So even in-world, we have disagreement on whether the Blight pre-dates Corypheus' & co's attempt to enter the Golden/Black City. Maybe Blight doesn't come from the Black City at all, as the Dwarves claim, and it really does come from the Deep Roads. That's borne out by the "Veilfire in the Deep Roads" codex.
And if the Magisters weren't already Blighted when they entered the Golden City, why would they leave Blighted if the Blight weren't already there? I don't buy "It's the Maker's punishment for their hubris!" argument. But that's just me, I suppose. I'm pretty skeptical of the Chantry and their claims, as a rule.
I definitely believe that the Blight is much older, see my previous posts!!!
I just don't think there's enough evidence for me to believe the Black City was tainted before the creation of the veil, or a dual purpose scenario. I think that the Blight was being contained by other means, perhaps long before the Veil's creation! 
We also know Mythal killed a Titan and that started everything going wrong.
Yes. And I'll bet you that Titan was killed at Sundermount. A mountain that was sundered. What is as big as a mountain? A Titan. What is a Titan full of? Lyrium and Sha-brytol dwarves and Thaigs. What is near Kirkwall and Sundermount? A red lyrium and darkspawn-filled Thaig.
Retour en haut