In terms of companions, DA 2 truly has some loose cannons compared to Origins. In Origins, it was possible to stay on good terms with every one to the very end. Here, you have two train wrecks in Anders and Isabela. With Isabela, things started off decently. My Hawke casually romanced her before pursuing Merrill. Toward the end of Act 2, you find out she is at the heart of the Qunari problem. Feeling that getting the relic and returning it to the Qunari was the key to resolving things peacefully, my Hawke decided that was what we were going to do once we got the relic. Isabela had other ideas and made off with the relic. And so my Hawke went to fight and defeat the Qunari with no Isabela in sight. Is that it for Isabela? Gone for good? Was I supposed to agree to let her have the relic and let Kirkwall be damned in order to keep her in the party?
Isabela questions?
Nach oben
#2
Geschrieben 13 Januar 2016 - 04:38
-
- Members
- 290 Beiträge
Yeah...I don't really like her. She cheated and got caught by the Warden in DAO,and she's still trying that same bs in DA2...not very respectful. Anders on the other hand,at least he was possessed by this Justice spirit,he was not that crazy in Awakening Expansion Pack...But Isabela is just bad news! And there is no damn way I could ever choose her instead of all the people in Kirkwall.
#3
Geschrieben 13 Januar 2016 - 05:10
-
- Members
- 5.263 Beiträge
Spoiler alert: she always runs off, but she eventually comes back if her friendship/rivalry is high enough.
- ThePhoenixKing und GoldenGail3 gefällt das
#4
Geschrieben 13 Januar 2016 - 05:35
-
- Members
- 515 Beiträge
Isabela's great.
Spoiler alert: she always runs off, but she eventually comes back if her friendship/rivalry is high enough.
That's what I'm wondering about....if it's not high in either direction, is she gone for good? I thought friendship was pretty high, but she didn't come back before the end of Act 2. (I read in the Wikia that she'll bring the relic back to the Qunari if friendship is high enough.)
As to Anders, I liked him in Awakening and I liked Justice too. Amazing how two rights make a wrong in this case! That said, I appreciate the thought that a pure spirit of Justice would be perverted into Vengeance when exposed to Anders peculiar prejudices. In the episode where you defeat Ser Alric, Anders actually killed the mage you trying to save from being made tranquil. (I subsequently did the scene over again and did the dialogue choices that kept Anders from killing her.) This, of course, has made me reluctant to take him on missions likely to set him off.
- vertigomez gefällt das
#5
Geschrieben 13 Januar 2016 - 06:03
-
- Members
- 5.013 Beiträge
That's what I'm wondering about....if it's not high in either direction, is she gone for good? I thought friendship was pretty high, but she didn't come back before the end of Act 2. (I read in the Wikia that she'll bring the relic back to the Qunari if friendship is high enough.)
As to Anders, I liked him in Awakening and I liked Justice too. Amazing how two rights make a wrong in this case! That said, I appreciate the thought that a pure spirit of Justice would be perverted into Vengeance when exposed to Anders peculiar prejudices. In the episode where you defeat Ser Alric, Anders actually killed the mage you trying to save from being made tranquil. (I subsequently did the scene over again and did the dialogue choices that kept Anders from killing her.) This, of course, has made me reluctant to take him on missions likely to set him off.
If you don't get her to come back with high enough Friendship/Rivalry, she doesn't come back. iirc, you need her Friendship/Rivalry to be at 75%+ in order for her to come back. Telling her that you'll let her keep the relic doesn't really change anything since, if your relationship with her is high enough, she'll return with the relic regardless. You can also use that as a way to get one final boost to her Friendship if you're near the threshold, so that she'll return with it.
As for Anders and Justice, I'm of a similar mind as you. Anders was great in Awakening, as was Justice, but having them combined in DA2 changed both of them, and far from for the better. Anders' hypocrisy and vitriol towards Merrill are the main things that make me hate Anders in DA2. Fenris has quite a bit of vitriol towards Merrill as well, but he has an understandable reasoning for it. There are several times where I wish there was an option to punch Anders in the face, but I suppose headcanon will have to do...
- ThePhoenixKing gefällt das
#6
Geschrieben 13 Januar 2016 - 06:47
-
- Members
- 5.013 Beiträge
If it makes you feel better, I lost her on my first playthrough too.
Isabela's recruitment quest glitched on me in my first playthrough, so I couldn't finish it.
Went that entire playthrough without Isabela... 
#7
Geschrieben 13 Januar 2016 - 06:55
-
- Members
- 515 Beiträge
I'm surprised the friendship level wasn't high enough to bring Isabela back. I hit on her every chance I got and gave her gifts. Oh well...
#8
Geschrieben 13 Januar 2016 - 09:49
-
- Members
- 5.013 Beiträge
Taking her on quests and making choices that she approves of will help boost her Friendship. Just look up 'Isabela Approval' on the DA wiki and it should give you a detailed guide on improving her Friendship or, if you so choose, Rivalry.
#9
Geschrieben 13 Januar 2016 - 10:38
-
- Members
- 1.679 Beiträge
I'm surprised the friendship level wasn't high enough to bring Isabela back. I hit on her every chance I got and gave her gifts. Oh well...
Fwiw Isabela at 100% rivalry is great, really nice story arc. Are you on PC? You could go back and enable the console just before the end of Act 2. It's super easy to give your companions extra points either way, friendship or rivalry.
As to Anders, I liked him in Awakening and I liked Justice too. Amazing how two rights make a wrong in this case! That said, I appreciate the thought that a pure spirit of Justice would be perverted into Vengeance when exposed to Anders peculiar prejudices. In the episode where you defeat Ser Alric, Anders actually killed the mage you trying to save from being made tranquil. (I subsequently did the scene over again and did the dialogue choices that kept Anders from killing her.) This, of course, has made me reluctant to take him on missions likely to set him off.
Perfectly put, I'm still sore about how they changed Anders so much. 
#10
Geschrieben 13 Januar 2016 - 03:52
-
- Members
- 5.263 Beiträge
), so I'll reiterate the important bits: if she isn't back by the end of Demands of the Qun, she's gone for good. Her friendship or rivalry has to be equal to or greater than 50% for her to stay. It's kind of hard to tell based on the approval bar, though...
#11
Geschrieben 13 Januar 2016 - 05:16
-
- Members
- 1.679 Beiträge
My post got nuked for profanity (
OMG it was you!!! I got told off for quoting an inappropriate post and I couldn't for the life of me think of what it was.....but it was your comment about Varric wasn't it? Grrrrr
You were right tho, he really is what you said. Hate you so much right now 
#12
Geschrieben 13 Januar 2016 - 05:20
-
- Members
- 5.263 Beiträge
OMG it was you!!! I got told off for quoting an inappropriate post and I couldn't for the life of me think of what it was.....but it was your comment about Varric wasn't it? Grrrrr
You were right tho, he really is what you said. Hate you so much right now
Sorry!
I figured if it was that bad the censor would have caught it, lol.
- ArcadiaGrey gefällt das
#13
Geschrieben 13 Januar 2016 - 07:10
-
- Members
- 5.013 Beiträge
My post got nuked for profanity (
The mods are pretty selective about which posts they delete and which posts they ignore.
I think it's that they ignore the more active forums (which seems counter-productive), while roaming constantly on the less active forums. I've actually had a few posts where the censor didn't catch certain words and only 1-2 of them got deleted, at most.
- vertigomez, ThePhoenixKing und ArcadiaGrey gefällt das
#14
Geschrieben 14 Januar 2016 - 03:53
-
- Members
- 615 Beiträge
Yeah, you need to have Isabella's friendship or rivalry status up to 75% or else she leaves for good. Also, on the subject of rivalry, Isabela's rivalry path is pretty much the only one I actually like. I don't really care about Anders or Fenris enough to have a preference either way (Anders gets a visit from Mr. Stabby no matter what so it's a moot point), and I can't bring myself to go rivalry on anyone else, Merrill in particular.
#15
Geschrieben 14 Januar 2016 - 04:34
-
- Members
- 5.013 Beiträge
Yeah, you need to have Isabella's friendship or rivalry status up to 75% or else she leaves for good. Also, on the subject of rivalry, Isabela's rivalry path is pretty much the only one I actually like. I don't really care about Anders or Fenris enough to have a preference either way (Anders gets a visit from Mr. Stabby no matter what so it's a moot point), and I can't bring myself to go rivalry on anyone else, Merrill in particular.
I'm not usually a fan of Rivalmancing, but in Merrill's case, it is well done. Headcanoning that Hawke is trying to protect Merrill is a good way to make it seem less odd.
Haven't Rivalmanced anyone else, though. Don't exactly plan on it either.
#16
Geschrieben 14 Januar 2016 - 05:07
-
- Members
- 5.263 Beiträge
I love the friendship and rivalry system because it gives you such a unique insight into the characters. You truly see them from two different points of view, so at the very least I think they're worth watching on YouTube (both the non-romance and romance versions). The biggest issue is the fact that it can take some serious micromanaging... and rivalry path Anders always assumes you're in Meredith's pocket. But I guess that makes sense considering who he's sharing headspace with.
I even love the descriptions that accompany their friendship and rivalry ability trees:
- nightscrawl und ArcadiaGrey gefällt das
#17
Geschrieben 14 Januar 2016 - 07:47
-
- Members
- 23.768 Beiträge
I'm surprised the friendship level wasn't high enough to bring Isabela back. I hit on her every chance I got and gave her gifts. Oh well...
It really comes down to the decisions you make during quests you bring her on and other dialogue options with other NPC's. Flirts and gifts don't do nearly enough, since there's not a whole lot of either. Also, if Isabela left and never came back, then she only got one gift. The ship in a bottle is given to her in Act 2, and the Rivaini Talisman can only be given to her in Act 3.
#18
Geschrieben 14 Januar 2016 - 07:54
-
- Members
- 7.443 Beiträge
Taking her on quests and making choices that she approves of will help boost her Friendship. Just look up 'Isabela Approval' on the DA wiki and it should give you a detailed guide on improving her Friendship or, if you so choose, Rivalry.
Even if you don't care to bring her around for whatever reason, it is still pretty easy to get her friendship high enough to get her to return if you follow the wiki and bring her along on certain quests. You don't even have to flirt with her to get a friendship boost.
Also, in any thread about friendship/rivalry points, it's important to know that you can get a needed significant boost by bringing whoever along on the Fade mission.
#19
Geschrieben 14 Januar 2016 - 11:21
-
- Members
- 615 Beiträge
I'm not usually a fan of Rivalmancing, but in Merrill's case, it is well done. Headcanoning that Hawke is trying to protect Merrill is a good way to make it seem less odd.
Haven't Rivalmanced anyone else, though. Don't exactly plan on it either.
Ehh, comes across as a bit controlling to me. I've never been a big fan of the whole "I Can Fix My Beloved" attitude to begin with; if you don't respect someone as a person and accept that they can make choices you disagree with, then why are you with them at all?
#20
Geschrieben 14 Januar 2016 - 11:59
-
- Members
- 1.679 Beiträge
FWIW I recently rivalled Varric. It was awkward for a while but at the end there was a great scene. He and my Hawke didn't really see eye to eye and it was a bit tense, but by the end they were firm friends. He likened her to a bronco which was really funny cause she was like a bull in a china shop, and I enjoyed for once not being his best bud right away. Instead they were slowly learning to like each other despite rolling their eyes constantly at what the other said. It's a special version of their friendship for me.
I love Fenris's rivalmance.
I love the friendship and rivalry system because it gives you such a unique insight into the characters. You truly see them from two different points of view, so at the very least I think they're worth watching on YouTube (both the non-romance and romance versions). The biggest issue is the fact that it can take some serious micromanaging... and rivalry path Anders always assumes you're in Meredith's pocket. But I guess that makes sense considering who he's sharing headspace with.
I even love the descriptions that accompany their friendship and rivalry ability trees:
Spoiler
I admit, I cheat. My mage was pro-mage through the whole game, only to reluctantly realise that the only way Kirkwall could have peace was to side with the Templars. She thought if she sided with the mages that all mages would then be fair game all over Thedas, but she made the decision with a heavy heart.
Anyway, this posed a problem with Anders. She loved him but ended up with Fenris (loved that romance SO much). I thought, of all my Hawkes, she's the one who could convince Anders to fight with the Templars to make up for what he'd done. She was kind and diplomatic and super super good, he loved her and her him, so she's the one who could talk him round. Sadly the only way you're allowed not to literally stab him in the back is to have 100% rivalry. Now, getting that entails being anti-mage, which of course she wasn't at all. She was pro-mage until the end. Saying bad stuff just to get the rivalry score with Anders was incredibly immersion breaking for me, so instead I decided to say whatever felt right then mess with the console. I gave him a huge amount of rivalry just before the end them boom, saved his life.
I'm okay with it, I think that's justified as it was needed to tell her particular story and Ander's rivalry path just plain assumes you hate mages. If you're roleplaying anything other than that you're screwed...so Maker bless the console. 
Love those descriptions Vertigomez, Merrill's almost breaks my heart. 
#21
Geschrieben 15 Januar 2016 - 05:45
-
- Members
- 5.013 Beiträge
Ehh, comes across as a bit controlling to me. I've never been a big fan of the whole "I Can Fix My Beloved" attitude to begin with; if you don't respect someone as a person and accept that they can make choices you disagree with, then why are you with them at all?
Fair enough. It felt more like Hawke was trying to help Merrill in order to prevent her from doing something she might regret later on (most obvious would be having to wipe out clan Sabrae), to me.
But yeah, I agree with you about the whole "I Can Fix My Beloved" thing. It's just that I didn't get the same feeling about Merrill's Rivalmance that you did. It does help it you think about it as Hawke trying to help her when she doesn't believe she needs it instead of Hawke trying to 'fix her' or 'control her'.
But then, to each their own.
- ThePhoenixKing gefällt das
#22
Geschrieben 15 Januar 2016 - 06:37
-
- Members
- 582 Beiträge
I managed to become friends with everyone. It's just a matter of taking certain people on certain missions. As far as Isabela goes, if it's for love i'd burn down Kirkwall for her.
#23
Geschrieben 15 Januar 2016 - 11:22
-
- Members
- 3.539 Beiträge
(not that it matters in DAI... It's friendship always!)
