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Post by mysterd on Mar 31, 2010 23:12:12 GMT
We have that...EK and I even used them in a few places. It's the button on the bottom right, a black smiley face with mouth closed up. But really, it's like 4 of us talking in this thread, and we've all beaten the game. Basically, most if not all of our posts would just be enclosed in those tags...tiny font... Oooh, I got cha! Thanks!!! TESTING SPOILER TAG BELOW Let me see how this looks and works... EDIT: Sweet! Looks and works great.  Thanks for notifying me about the tags! |
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Post by Elliot Kane on Apr 1, 2010 0:26:55 GMT
You forgot to mention that if you talk to Zevran as a male PC he WILL hit on you...and if you give him the Antivan Leather Gloves...yeah so its like a midget Antonio Banderas with pointy ears hitting on you. I don't count people hitting on me as a sign of a disturbed mind. Maybe I'm weird! ;D |
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Post by Flix on Apr 1, 2010 0:42:39 GMT
About how messed up all the characters are: I agree, except for Alistair. He alone has the ability to change himself and exceed his shortcomings, as he does if you handle his personal quest a certain way. The others are basically stuck the way they are, Oghren a drunken, unloved misfit, Zevran a psychopath, Morrigan a heartless power mad witch, Wynne a zombie, and Leliana a delusional faith-head who speaks to the Maker. |
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Post by Elliot Kane on Apr 1, 2010 1:25:39 GMT
I think you're right, Flix. Although: Given the nature of many fantasy worlds, it's wholly possible that the Maker exists in the DA universe. Whether he spoke to Leli is a whole other thing, of course. It's hard to see any reason at all why she is pivotal to the outcome in any way. Still, delusional or not (And odds are pretty strong on delusional) she still has a whole host of other issues to contend with... |
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Post by Flix on Apr 1, 2010 1:43:14 GMT
Yeah. On my first playthough, being open to any possibility, I took all that talk about the Golden City in the Fade being the Maker's home, and the mages that broke into the City becoming the first darkspawn as the gospel truth. This, combined with the supernatural stuff going on during the Urn of Sacred Ashes quest, convinced me it was all true.
Later I realized that was merely the Chantry's version of the Biblical fall of man, in a sense, and was held to be true in Ferelden about as much as the Bible is held to be true in real life; That is, for the faithful Andrastians it is the truth, for others, it is merely one possibility or just rubbish.
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Post by Elliot Kane on Apr 1, 2010 1:59:26 GMT
More like Joan Of Arc as messiah... The golden city stuff is kind of a blend of the war in heaven/fallen angels thing and the tower of babel. Still pretty epic stuff, mind!
There's no actual evidence for any of the gods or beliefs of Ferelden being more than myth or legend. No priests that draw power from their gods, no divine manifestations... The only religious artifact of power is indeed the urn, but there's no knowing what's really in it or whether it was enchanted in some other way, as a sort of mega health poultice. Even the Chantry themselves believe the Maker has turned away from the world - in other words, there's no contact, nor was there ever for anyone but Andraste.
I think this is deliberate fudging by BW, in that they want the players to make up their own minds on whether any of it is real or not. There is room for scepticism (Where is the Maker now? How come he only ever talked to Andraste?) and also for belief (The urn is undoubtedly an extremely powerful artifact with powers that cannot be duplicated by any living mage - Wynne even says magic cannot cure poison in Ferelden, and she should know. There's also the Guardian, who is certainly a very powerful supernatural entity).
Leli herself at some points thinks she might have invented the feeling in order to feel special because everyone else at the Chantry disliked her.
It seems to be a 'whatever works for you' thing, which is very clever by BW, IMO.
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Post by Flix on Apr 6, 2010 18:25:59 GMT
Currently reading some walkthroughs and discovering a handful of quests I missed in my first two playthroughs. If you were wondering what the heck happened to Jowan this is the method to trigger his (currently bugged) quest that resolves his story: Jowan's Intention |
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Post by Elliot Kane on Apr 9, 2010 11:38:17 GMT
Flix - yeah, that was never happening, I have to admit. Just let him go for the heck of it? Weird...
***
Playing with Awakening, now. It's not a bad game, but it's more like an epilogue and would play better if it allowed a full party import rather than just the main char. The new chars aren't dreadful but they aren't really developed enough (And I'm a bit miffed that the one who does carry over doesn't keep either the build or all the stuff I'd equipped him with!). Would be a solid enough game if Origins weren't so good, granted, but it's not blowing me away.
On future playthroughs of Origin, I'm not sure how often I'll bother with Awakening.
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Post by Gray Lensman on Apr 9, 2010 13:47:59 GMT
Yeah, Awakening can be best described as... okay. There are some interesting things, like being able to run your own castle and lands, but otherwise it seemed fairly standard fare. That said, I wasn't impressed with the characters as a whole either, and Nathaniel particularly can be a bit annoying for a while. It's just not keeping my interest terribly well, must admit. All in all, Awakening is massively overpriced for an expansion, given the content we actually see in it; I'd have been irritated had I actually paid full price for it. Ah, well... probably best to go back and play the core game again anyway. |
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Post by Elliot Kane on Apr 9, 2010 15:04:46 GMT
There are a few obvious bugs, too. I had one merchant turn up BEFORE I met and rescued her and a second who's turned up but who won't trade with me.
I'm pretty sure I'm nearly through the first section, but one of the quests that should be really easy is either bugged or I'm losing the plot, somewhere. The 'ransom the chick' quest should be easy. Turn up, pay the ransom, get the girl. I've tried reason, threats and just plain old paying and NOTHING works. They kill the girl and attack me EVERY time! I've even tried stealthing Sigren past them but she just runs into 'omnipotent cutscene disease'. The fights are mostly easy, but THIS is either fiendishly hard, or badly bugged.
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Post by Flix on Apr 9, 2010 16:46:05 GMT
I joined the Bioware forums and I see an awful lot of bug complaints about Awakenings. That, combined with the non-import of many items (DLC and mod items), the non-integration with Origins itself, and the high price tag, mean I may have to wait a while or avoid it altogether.
I don't regret my Return to Ostagar and Warden's Keep purchases though. Fun little campaigns that extend my Origins playthrough, offer up some great items, and only 9 bucks altogether - not bad.
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Post by Elliot Kane on Apr 9, 2010 18:44:05 GMT
I think Awakening should have been similar, Flix, honestly. I just finished it and it really plays out like a bridging chapter between DA1 and the doubtless forthcoming DA2. I was looking at some of the bug lists on their forum earlier, myself, and I think I escaped very lightly, with only a few occurring and none that were game breakers.
Awakening adds an ending of sorts to a game that already had an ending. If it has any actual advantages at all, it'll be in the new options it should give within Origins - assuming all the new stuff appears there, which I have yet to test.
The coming of the last part definitely caught me by surprise and I don't think I finished even half the sub quests, but I don't find myself bothered by that. It's interesting to play through once, but as Steve says, it's not really worth paying full price for.
I can see myself playing Origins again very soon, other unplayed games or not. Awakening... Well, it'll be a long time until I play it again, if I ever do.
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Post by Flix on Apr 9, 2010 21:09:56 GMT
If the new specializations, talents, and spells carried back retroactively into Origins I would probably get the expansion pack. I don't think this is the case though.
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Post by Elliot Kane on Apr 9, 2010 21:26:35 GMT
Just checked. It doesn't. Hugely missed opportunity, IMO. As near as I can tell from a quick start up, nothing of Awakening affects Origins in any way - certainly not the new skills & talents, which I would expect.
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Post by Gray Lensman on Apr 10, 2010 1:13:05 GMT
The "ransom the girl" quest turned out okay for me, in what was a pretty fun moment of gameplay. I basically swindled the brigands into releasing the girl first with the promise of payment, then after they let her go, I killed the lot of them. I don't like letting kidnappers get away with the loot. Or letting them live, for that matter. ;D
Agreed on the rest of it, though... awesome game, but only a passable expansion.
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Post by Elliot Kane on Apr 10, 2010 1:49:46 GMT
Steve - the only answer I could get to anything was "We'll take the gold from your body!" or something close to that. Gave up in the end.
***
ONE change: DA now requires the Awakening disk in order to play Origins, rather than the Origins disk. I somehow don't think that's worth getting Awakening for! ;D
***
Starting playing the dwarf noble as I was really intrigued by his story while playing my original game. Obviously, his main concern will be getting his throne back...
I'll start an elven female mage, too. Just for the heck of it, if I'm honest! ;D She won't do anything for my goals I'd like to accomplish in future playthroughs, but I just like female elven mages! ;D
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Post by Ubereil on Apr 10, 2010 8:43:31 GMT
I am going to restart DA again today. I'm not quite sure what build I'll go for (2W fighter, 2W rogue or 2H fighter) or where I'll start. All I know is that I'll have loads of new mods installed when I do start again (thanks for the list Flix).
Übereil
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Post by Elliot Kane on Apr 10, 2010 9:42:44 GMT
I think my dwarf will emulate the virtues of the stone he semi-worships. A strong bulwark to his allies, but hard and unyielding to his foes. A shame for Zevran when I come across him, but given his background I don't think my dwarf is going to offer any second chances - he's very much a 'cross me and you're dead' type. He'll have no truck with the human religion and no patience for silly whining. I called him 'Durin'. No better name for a dwarven king, after all... "He looked upon the Mirrormere and saw a crown of stars appear..." |
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Post by Elliot Kane on Apr 13, 2010 0:05:15 GMT
Well, that's quite odd. Morrigan appears to assume you're dating her just because her opinion of you is very high, even if you've never pursued the romance options with her. Sort of makes sense given her unusual background, I suppose, but a bit annoying to have to dump someone you were never dating...
On another note entirely, Leliana calls her pet nug WHAT?!? ;D
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