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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2017 14:28:45 GMT
Please, no Wartable.... heh, procuring an unpopular opinion as usual. No power points, no Wartable, no huge Keep with everyone spread around and only talking to you at their designated location will be my vote.
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Post by gervaise21 on Sept 18, 2017 14:39:57 GMT
Actually Imshael was pretty much like that in Masked Empire. He kept on insisting he was a "choice spirit" not a demon. Also, apart from him ripping apart the elf clan because the Keeper had annoyed him by summoning him, binding him and then refusing to make a choice, he wasn't obviously evil. He did a deal with Mihris to possess her and then kept fairly low key, apart from some rather revealing magic he allowed her to perform.
So to have a companion who is either possessed by a less than benign spirit or is simply like Cole when he killed Lambert would be interesting. I hate the idea that people have to be obviously evil when surely a truly selfish but clever villain would fool everyone into thinking they were okay (sort of like Solas only more so).
Looking back at past Bioware villains, what I liked about Sarevok was that he managed to convince most of the inhabitants of Baldurs Gate that he was a great guy and he had most of the female population in love with him; it was only near the end that he revealed himself to be the chief bad guy to the wider world, even if our PC already knew it.
So how about a companion who is a "spirit of deception"? Their whole persona would then revolve around fooling people into thinking they were something they weren't.
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Post by Fredward on Sept 18, 2017 14:53:37 GMT
I'm one of the people that actually liked the war table (though MEA's take on it was hot garbage), I think it would be really neat if your perspectives and missions were tied to the faction you supported. If you supported the status quo in Minrathous the missions would focus on silencing dissent and shoring up support, if you were on Dorian's side it'd focus around stoking the fires of rebellion and underdog political maneuvering, if you were supporting the qunari it'd be about infiltration and logistics or something I dunno. Competing against the other factions, different perspectives on the same missions etc.
This is ofc assuming a lot about the nature of the game and is probably asking too much but I do think the mechanic has a place and I like the way the little stories flesh out the world. Makes it feel like things are happening beyond just the immediacy of the PC.
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Post by ellawyn on Sept 18, 2017 15:12:00 GMT
Please, no Wartable.... heh, procuring an unpopular opinion as usual. No power points, no Wartable, no huge Keep with everyone spread around and only talking to you at their designated location will be my vote. I have zero opinion on the Wartable. I didn't find it engaging in any real way, but it's so easy to ignore and probably cost (comparatively) little to put in that I don't see any reason to get worked up about it. And as the devs said, the stories that showed up in the Wartable wouldn't have shown up at all, otherwise. So I don't really care if it comes back or not. The powerpoint mechanic can go, though. It basically isn't there to begin with, since getting power is hardly difficult. For the love of God, though, I hope they pare down the gameworld a bit. Give me a scattering of small but plot-significant areas over Inquisition's "You could go the whole game without even touching half the map" nonsense. And keep that pretty environment design. Actually Imshael was pretty much like that in Masked Empire. He kept on insisting he was a "choice spirit" not a demon. Also, apart from him ripping apart the elf clan because the Keeper had annoyed him by summoning him, binding him and then refusing to make a choice, he wasn't obviously evil. He did a deal with Mihris to possess her and then kept fairly low key, apart from some rather revealing magic he allowed her to perform. My understanding of spirits is that they already fall on a scale of complexity and self-determination. Simple "spirits" like wisps are so uncomplicated that they don't even properly associate with anything, and they're barely more than balls of magic. Spirits like Cole are so complex and rigid in their identity that they can physically manifest and interact with people without their nature drastically changing because of it. A lot of spirits fall in the middle, and become demons because their identity's so wishy-washy that it can be changed simply by what others think of them. Given that Imshael has a proper name like Cole, a definable personality that doesn't revolve entirely around a single trait, and the ability to interact with the physical world like a thinking, sentient thing, he's probably pretty up there on the complexity scale (Which would make sense, given that Trespasser suggests that the Forgotten Ones are, scientifically speaking, "old as balls.") That's the things about spirits. They don't have to be mirrors of mortal sins or whatever. But they end up like that because they're so fragile in who they are. The more security and certainty they have, the more stable and self-determined they will be. So I imagine a demon companion would have to be pretty up there, too. Another Cole, where the character's big struggle is figuring out who he is, would just be a rehash.
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Post by Walter Black on Sept 18, 2017 15:14:12 GMT
So now I'm low-key interested in a stray awakened Darkspawn (and yes I know, "But the blight will follow them wherever they go!" But I'm ready for that to be an interesting part of their story if you bring them along.). I want to know about a darkspawn's thought process and them becoming their own person after lifelong enslavement to the song. Do they remember what they used to do, think, feel? If they do, do they regret? Do they take pride in their previous actions? Do they miss being a part of the hive mind (kind of like how 7 of 9 spoke of the comfort of being a part of the Borg hive mind at times) and feeling like they truly belong? Who do they want to become now that they can think on their own? I WANT TO KNOOOOWWWW. And for those who think/want a grey warden to be the next protagonist, I think it would be very funny and ironic to have a darkspawn as a companion. Plus a grey warden wouldn't be susceptible to constant exposure to them! I remember brainstorming with other posters about a Darkspawn companion a long time ago. That was fun. I remember us thinking that at first it would just be a knight that seems to never remove his armor even when not fighting. After a while after becoming allies with them, there would be a cutscene where they are hit and their helmet is knocked off, revealing that under the armor was a Darkspawn. They wore the armor which was enchanted to keep the Blight they had from spreading outside the suit, and then when revealed all the drama that comes with that. I don't think a Darkspawn Companion would work right now, maybe in a future game that can devote more time to the Titans, what happened to Orzimmar and Kal-Sharok. Even the least psychotic Awakened were always a bit off, having levels of dissociation similar to autism and/or Asperger's. Given some of the writer's recent comments, I doubt they would include anything that makes such a connection. Even if it is true to established lore. Then there's the great big elephant in the room; Darkspawn reproduce from mass rape and body horror, with broodmothers being their only females . Unless they decide to completely ignore or retcon that, there's no way they could include a Darkspawn Companion without "triggering" some people.
A pity, really. Myself, I partake of speculative fiction to explore what does not, cannot exist. To treat fantastic ideas on their merit, rather than a ham fisted metaphor for something else. That, and actually being treated like an adult when the author says they will give you an adult story. Hopefully I'm wrong, we shall see...
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Post by Walter Black on Sept 18, 2017 15:36:18 GMT
Actually Imshael was pretty much like that in Masked Empire. He kept on insisting he was a "choice spirit" not a demon. Also, apart from him ripping apart the elf clan because the Keeper had annoyed him by summoning him, binding him and then refusing to make a choice, he wasn't obviously evil. He did a deal with Mihris to possess her and then kept fairly low key, apart from some rather revealing magic he allowed her to perform. My understanding of spirits is that they already fall on a scale of complexity and self-determination. Simple "spirits" like wisps are so uncomplicated that they don't even properly associate with anything, and they're barely more than balls of magic. Spirits like Cole are so complex and rigid in their identity that they can physically manifest and interact with people without their nature drastically changing because of it. A lot of spirits fall in the middle, and become demons because their identity's so wishy-washy that it can be changed simply by what others think of them. Given that Imshael has a proper name like Cole, a definable personality that doesn't revolve entirely around a single trait, and the ability to interact with the physical world like a thinking, sentient thing, he's probably pretty up there on the complexity scale (Which would make sense, given that Trespasser suggests that the Forgotten Ones are, scientifically speaking, "old as balls.") That's the things about spirits. They don't have to be mirrors of mortal sins or whatever. But they end up like that because they're so fragile in who they are. The more security and certainty they have, the more stable and self-determined they will be. So I imagine a demon companion would have to be pretty up there, too. Another Cole, where the character's big struggle is figuring out who he is, would just be a rehash. Oh come on, everything in Dragon Age is a rehash. Especially from previous Bioware games:
-An adorkable half-elven fighter in love with a more assertive female hero? Khalid begets Alistair.
-A brooding fighter who hates magic for what it's done to him and his family, yet hypocritically uses it anyway? Valygar begets Fenris.
-A perky red haired rogue who came back to life through controversial means? Imoen begets Leliana.
-A deconstruction of the alcoholic, boisterous bruiser? Black Whirlwind begets Ohgren.
-An aged mercenary who wants to redeem his Warrior Culture? Canderous Ordo begets Urdnot Wrex.
- An undead, spirit possessed girl who provides aid and wisdom to the hero? Wild Flower begets Wynne.
-A homicidal automaton? HK-47 begets Shale.
-Since Jowan was cut a possible Origins Companion, his plot was integrated into Anders (renegade apostate) and Merrill (naïve blood mage).
-And many, many more...
Nothing is new under the sun, so it matters more how you tale your tale.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2017 15:49:04 GMT
Please, no Wartable.... heh, procuring an unpopular opinion as usual. No power points, no Wartable, no huge Keep with everyone spread around and only talking to you at their designated location will be my vote. I have zero opinion on the Wartable. I didn't find it engaging in any real way, but it's so easy to ignore and probably cost (comparatively) little to put in that I don't see any reason to get worked up about it. And as the devs said, the stories that showed up in the Wartable wouldn't have shown up at all, otherwise. So I don't really care if it comes back or not. The powerpoint mechanic can go, though. It basically isn't there to begin with, since getting power is hardly difficult. For the love of God, though, I hope they pare down the gameworld a bit. Give me a scattering of small but plot-significant areas over Inquisition's "You could go the whole game without even touching half the map" nonsense. And keep that pretty environment design. On the first playthrough, and without doing DLCs I was sort of okay with power points, but on the second playthrough, the points necessary to unlock the Descent seriously set me back, and I am playing at a deficit ever since, unable to continue the story before having to go and do maps/rifts despite having no interest in doing it. An NG+ at the very least that lets you to just replay the main story with whatever romance, choices and areas you do want to pursue will certainly win me as a feature. I prefer a focused gaming experience to exploratory one, and more options available for doing the main story centered PT would be very good.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2017 15:52:34 GMT
Wait... why is Alistair half-elven and Wynne undead? Some comic book stuff or max approval dialogues or smthng?
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Post by midnight tea on Sept 18, 2017 15:57:56 GMT
Wait... why is Alistair half-elven and Wynne undead? Some comic book stuff or max approval dialogues or smthng? Um, Alistair's mother is an elf? And Wynne technically is kept alive by spirit that revived her.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2017 16:11:16 GMT
Wait... why is Alistair half-elven and Wynne undead? Some comic book stuff or max approval dialogues or smthng? Um, Alistair's mother is an elf? And Wynne technically is kept alive by spirit that revived her. Never seen it in the games, so I assume it's part of the dialogues that open up if you really progress far into the chars, unlock max affection, etc. I talked to both of them fairly regularly and played a full game with them, but never really saw either mentioned. I liked Wynne just fine as a human, and don't mind having Alistair to be half-eleven. But, tbh, he is nothing like Khalid even if he is a half-elf.
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Post by midnight tea on Sept 18, 2017 16:29:44 GMT
Um, Alistair's mother is an elf? And Wynne technically is kept alive by spirit that revived her. Never seen it in the games, so I assume it's part of the dialogues that open up if you really progress far into the chars, unlock max affection, etc. I talked to both of them fairly regularly and played a full game with them, but never really saw either mentioned. I liked Wynne just fine as a human, and don't mind having Alistair to be half-eleven. But, tbh, he is nothing like Khalid even if he is a half-elf. Wynne being kept alive by friendly spirit is a rather big deal in terms of her story arc in DAO. She even gains new powers as a healer and so on. Not that hard to gain that information if you progress enough with her friendship. And Alistair being elf-blooded is not apparent in the game - DAO at least. Alistair doesn't even know that Grand Enchanter Fiona is his mother and that she's bonded with his father during events of The Calling (book). The reason Fiona asks for Alistair in a world-state where mages are picked and Alistair is either Grey Warden or King? Well, that's why.
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Post by Hanako Ikezawa on Sept 18, 2017 18:30:26 GMT
I remember brainstorming with other posters about a Darkspawn companion a long time ago. That was fun. I remember us thinking that at first it would just be a knight that seems to never remove his armor even when not fighting. After a while after becoming allies with them, there would be a cutscene where they are hit and their helmet is knocked off, revealing that under the armor was a Darkspawn. They wore the armor which was enchanted to keep the Blight they had from spreading outside the suit, and then when revealed all the drama that comes with that. I don't think a Darkspawn Companion would work right now, maybe in a future game that can devote more time to the Titans, what happened to Orzimmar and Kal-Sharok. Even the least psychotic Awakened were always a bit off, having levels of dissociation similar to autism and/or Asperger's. Given some of the writer's recent comments, I doubt they would include anything that makes such a connection. Even if it is true to established lore. Then there's the great big elephant in the room; Darkspawn reproduce from mass rape and body horror, with broodmothers being their only females . Unless they decide to completely ignore or retcon that, there's no way they could include a Darkspawn Companion without "triggering" some people.
A pity, really. Myself, I partake of speculative fiction to explore what does not, cannot exist. To treat fantastic ideas on their merit, rather than a ham fisted metaphor for something else. That, and actually being treated like an adult when the author says they will give you an adult story. Hopefully I'm wrong, we shall see...
Wait, what recent comments are you referring to? Connection to what?
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Post by smilesja on Sept 18, 2017 18:37:14 GMT
I do hope we learn more about the Titans. What learned from Decent was very vague.
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Post by midnight tea on Sept 18, 2017 18:42:54 GMT
I don't think a Darkspawn Companion would work right now, maybe in a future game that can devote more time to the Titans, what happened to Orzimmar and Kal-Sharok. Even the least psychotic Awakened were always a bit off, having levels of dissociation similar to autism and/or Asperger's. Given some of the writer's recent comments, I doubt they would include anything that makes such a connection. Even if it is true to established lore. Then there's the great big elephant in the room; Darkspawn reproduce from mass rape and body horror, with broodmothers being their only females . Unless they decide to completely ignore or retcon that, there's no way they could include a Darkspawn Companion without "triggering" some people.
A pity, really. Myself, I partake of speculative fiction to explore what does not, cannot exist. To treat fantastic ideas on their merit, rather than a ham fisted metaphor for something else. That, and actually being treated like an adult when the author says they will give you an adult story. Hopefully I'm wrong, we shall see...
Wait, what recent comments are you referring to? Connection to what? I have no idea too. Especially that Patrick Weekes already openly admitted that he wrote Cole as one having certain similarities in behavior or expression to Asperger's/autism and people seemed either pretty cool or quite happy about it.
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Post by Hanako Ikezawa on Sept 18, 2017 18:47:28 GMT
Wait, what recent comments are you referring to? Connection to what? I have no idea too. Especially that Patrick Weekes already openly admitted that he wrote Cole as one having certain similarities in behavior or expression to Asperger's/autism and people seemed either pretty cool or quite happy about it. Yeah. And Mary Kirby said something similar recently regarding Merrill, where if the player sees evidence that supports that reading then it is a valid view of the character. Those are the only times I recall Bioware devs commenting on that, and both are positive.
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Post by Walter Black on Sept 18, 2017 23:54:04 GMT
I don't think a Darkspawn Companion would work right now, maybe in a future game that can devote more time to the Titans, what happened to Orzimmar and Kal-Sharok. Even the least psychotic Awakened were always a bit off, having levels of dissociation similar to autism and/or Asperger's. Given some of the writer's recent comments, I doubt they would include anything that makes such a connection. Even if it is true to established lore. Then there's the great big elephant in the room; Darkspawn reproduce from mass rape and body horror, with broodmothers being their only females . Unless they decide to completely ignore or retcon that, there's no way they could include a Darkspawn Companion without "triggering" some people.
A pity, really. Myself, I partake of speculative fiction to explore what does not, cannot exist. To treat fantastic ideas on their merit, rather than a ham fisted metaphor for something else. That, and actually being treated like an adult when the author says they will give you an adult story. Hopefully I'm wrong, we shall see...
Wait, what recent comments are you referring to? Connection to what? More of a general feeling, than any specific comments that the writers are treating the characters and setting as what they want to happen, rather than explore what would actually happen.
I like Cole in Inquisition, but there do seem times in the game where Patrick Weekes glossed over his darker aspects; the continuous mind reading without permission, the fact that he mercy killed to "feel more real", that he may have inadvertently involved Rhys, or that he sometimes invoked depression and paranoia as much as compassion, among other things. You could argue that he had David Gaider's blessing, but so many of Weekes characters read like he wants to eat his cake and have it too; he wants to write complex characters, but he still wants you to like them. That kind of indecisiveness can hurt character development, especially where it would be better to take a stand. That's the thing, Merrill and Cole were meant (for the most part) to be likable and heroic. Darkspawn are monsters; you can't really do "cute" with the literal living embodiment of disease, hatred and perversion. "But having a good Darkspawn is the whole point!" you might say? Well, if Darkspawn are capable of being three dimensional, what was the point of making them monsters to begin with? From a thematic standpoint it's redundant since the Qunari are already "good orcs", werewolves are cursed monsters, and Grey Wardens and (possibly) Kal-Sharok Dwarves fill the "tainted" archetype. I'm not saying an Awakened Companion wouldn't be interesting, I would love one. But not if the writers remove that deranged alienness that make Darkspawn unique in Dragon Age. I don't think the current DA writing staff would flesh out a character coded for autism, but is also physically and spiritually monstrous. If our potential Darkspawn Companion is more or less a regular person with bad skin, what's the point?
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Post by midnight tea on Sept 19, 2017 0:21:36 GMT
Wait, what recent comments are you referring to? Connection to what? More of a general feeling, than any specific comments that the writers are treating the characters and setting as what they want to happen, rather than explore what would actually happen. I'm not sure I follow... Like, the fictional world will always follow what authors want them to happen. As for what 'would actually happen'... you sure that ain't just a personal projection on the narrative? The Cole in Gaider's book is darker because he's at a different stage of his development during a chaotic time. Cole in Inquisition simply grows more (though people are still uncomfortable with mind-peeping, which they harp about endlessly in banter), plus he has more sources of positive inspiration/people to lean on. Also - I don't see reason why 'writing complex characters but wanting people to like them' is supposed to be a bad thing. It's actually a talent, given that people not that rarely react to complexity with hostility, confusion or oversimplification and if he can make people like characters who are complex, it counts as a plus in my book. I agree somewhat - barring the Architect and unlike Cole (spirits) and Merril (blood mages) they're not really trying to humanize them and even in Awakening then it's all creepy and just off. Still, it depends what exactly they want to do with the Blight. Maybe there's a twist there somewhere, although at one point it'll reveal itself remains to be seen. As of now Blight is just a big pile of no-no and even seems to be signifying he potential presence of something even more sinister that may lay at its roots. Still... what if it turns out that there are some sort of primordial darkspawn that turn out to not belong to their twisted ilk. Quite a lot of races after all (elves, dwarves, Qunari) are suggested to have been different in the past - maybe it's the same with darkspawn?
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Post by Walter Black on Sept 19, 2017 0:48:02 GMT
Um, Alistair's mother is an elf? And Wynne technically is kept alive by spirit that revived her. Never seen it in the games, so I assume it's part of the dialogues that open up if you really progress far into the chars, unlock max affection, etc. I talked to both of them fairly regularly and played a full game with them, but never really saw either mentioned. I liked Wynne just fine as a human, and don't mind having Alistair to be half-eleven. But, tbh, he is nothing like Khalid even if he is a half-elf.Never meant to imply that the comparisons had to be exact. On the contrary, that the writers took those archetypes in different directions is a good thing. Morrigan for instance, could just as easily have Faldorn or even Aerie in her creative lineage as Viconia . DA2 Anders could be seen as deconstructing Wynne's "good" Abomination, and Aveline is pretty much Bizarro Leliana*. I stand by my theory that Khalid is one possible starting point for Alistair, though. More so than Anomen .
*Seriously, Aveline's personality and history zigs where Leliana zags:
-Leliana was born in Fereldan but raised in Orlais, Aveline was born in Orlais but raised in Fereldan.
- Leliana was raised to be a bard and loved it, Aveline hated knights but grew into being a soldier.
-The Ballad of Ser Aveline was one of Leliana's favorite stories. Modern Aveline was less than impressed.
-Leliana is faithful, idealistic and overtly feminine, but malleable. Aveline is agnostic, practical, a tomboy, and remains mostly stoic.
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Post by lucidae on Sept 19, 2017 6:47:25 GMT
That's the thing, Merrill and Cole were meant (for the most part) to be likable and heroic. Darkspawn are monsters; you can't really do "cute" with the literal living embodiment of disease, hatred and perversion. "But having a good Darkspawn is the whole point!" you might say? Well, if Darkspawn are capable of being three dimensional, what was the point of making them monsters to begin with? From a thematic standpoint it's redundant since the Qunari are already "good orcs", werewolves are cursed monsters, and Grey Wardens and (possibly) Kal-Sharok Dwarves fill the "tainted" archetype. I'm not saying an Awakened Companion wouldn't be interesting, I would love one. But not if the writers remove that deranged alienness that make Darkspawn unique in Dragon Age. I don't think the current DA writing staff would flesh out a character coded for autism, but is also physically and spiritually monstrous. If our potential Darkspawn Companion is more or less a regular person with bad skin, what's the point? I don't want a "cute" thing with a darkspawn. And I don't want a good darkspawn. I just want to know what happens to one over time after being awakened. I want to know what sort of individual they become. I want to know how loneliness gnaws at them because they are no longer a part of the hive mind, but spread disease and are horrific to everyone else in Thedas. I don't think they are thematically redundant as they come from a background that no other species does in Thedas. Awakened darkspawn would face challenges that no one else would. What do you do once you have lost the only thing you've ever known? And how do you survive in a world where no one can even tolerate being near you? Would they even want to keep on living after a certain point? I think darkspawn are arguably the most social creatures in Thedas because they have the greatest sense of community due to hearing the song and having that hive mind. So being separated from that would just be complete vertigo for them. Awakening made it clear that some darkspawn handled it much better than others, but we didn't really get to explore the concept of a darkspawn trying to find their place afterwards. There was just that cool epilogue slide that some ppl got depending on their choices about the messenger in Awakening.
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Post by alanc9 on Sept 19, 2017 6:51:51 GMT
Please, no Wartable.... heh, procuring an unpopular opinion as usual. No power points, no Wartable, no huge Keep with everyone spread around and only talking to you at their designated location will be my vote. With you on the no war table option for DA4. We've done that and I found it boring after the first couple of times. I wanted to go on some of those missions! Of course, not having a war table doesn't mean that you get to go on the missions.
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Post by formerfiend on Sept 19, 2017 9:43:10 GMT
I know I'm in a minority here but if their aim was to make Cole likable then as far as I'm concerned they missed the mark by a country mile. He's the only one I dislike more than Solas. Between the two of them I actually have major concerns as to whether or not I'm going to enjoy where Weekes takes the story, which is disappointing to me because Weekes wrote several of my favorite parts of Mass Effect so I had high hopes going into Inquisition.
For me the issue with having a Darkspawn companion has nothing to do with the moral implications - I'm perfectly fine having horrible people on side and as I alluded to earlier, I wouldn't mind more of that, really. But rather it's the practical implications. Bioware's always played fast and loose with the taint/blight sickness; Origins and Awakening implied that it was airborn, or like radiation; just being in the area would make you sick, but in game play it was never an issue for your non-grey warden companions, however deep they waded into darkspawn corpses. DA2 shifted it to be more about blood-to-blood transmission, presumably to cover that plothole. But having one just walking around still waters down that concept.
Besides, darkspawn just don't look cool anymore, aside from hurlok alphas.
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Post by lucidae on Sept 19, 2017 14:24:29 GMT
Besides, darkspawn just don't look cool anymore, aside from hurlok alphas. This is so true. Darkspawn are the only thing ever that I think looks better on older gen. They used to be so much scarier
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Post by phoray on Sept 19, 2017 15:14:20 GMT
Of course, not having a war table doesn't mean that you get to go on the missions. True. It is an interesting idea and the war table fits perfectly with the role of Inquisitor and makes sense that he would delegate those tasks. And the missions outcome can depend on the advisor you choose which makes the player want to read and think about which advisor is the best choice or to not do a mission until a preferred advisor is available. It is quite clever an idea and worked well. Lots of information passed about the state of the world. Not disputing that. I just found that I was not as engaged as I probably should have been and started to ignore it because I want to get back to the action, combat more than being place in the role of the delegater. Wouldn't mind if they do the war table missions again we go on some small interesting ones with combat - maybe a mixture would have helped. I'm echoing other complaints, but I would have preferred to Delegate the collection of herbs and other resources (or at least have the DA2 style the colleciton of such things) and then used all that time collecting and growing elf root to actually go on, if not all, some of the War Table missions. I think there is a lot of use to the War Table that grew from Hawke's Writing Desk. I'd like to have more of a Hawke's writing Desk situation, because all the letters were either just for me to know or to lead me to a quest I did myself. If they then added sending letters OUT for missions too public/risky for my DA4 spy person to do, I'd like it better than the huge drama and formality of the war room. Some of these things I kept wonderiing-- what is that desk in my bedroom for if not to sit at and do some of this work?
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2017 15:14:26 GMT
Never seen it in the games, so I assume it's part of the dialogues that open up if you really progress far into the chars, unlock max affection, etc. I talked to both of them fairly regularly and played a full game with them, but never really saw either mentioned. I liked Wynne just fine as a human, and don't mind having Alistair to be half-eleven. But, tbh, he is nothing like Khalid even if he is a half-elf.Never meant to imply that the comparisons had to be exact. On the contrary, that the writers took those archetypes in different directions is a good thing. Morrigan for instance, could just as easily have Faldorn or even Aerie in her creative lineage as Viconia . DA2 Anders could be seen as deconstructing Wynne's "good" Abomination, and Aveline is pretty much Bizarro Leliana*. I stand by my theory that Khalid is one possible starting point for Alistair, though. More so than Anomen .
*Seriously, Aveline's personality and history zigs where Leliana zags:
-Leliana was born in Fereldan but raised in Orlais, Aveline was born in Orlais but raised in Fereldan.
- Leliana was raised to be a bard and loved it, Aveline hated knights but grew into being a soldier.
-The Ballad of Ser Aveline was one of Leliana's favorite stories. Modern Aveline was less than impressed.
-Leliana is faithful, idealistic and overtly feminine, but malleable. Aveline is agnostic, practical, a tomboy, and remains mostly stoic.
i see Alistair as Anomen done right (or less abusive towards a female player) in some respects, but Khalid with his background as a Harper and complete loyalty to Jaheira and Gorion, as well as comic stutter and being cowardly, hardly resembles anything of Alistair. Alistair might like the PC, but he likes her being kindly to him, not domineering like Jaheira was to Khalid who tried to mollify her in that only original banter between the two of them. He hates domineering Morrigan. And, well, he sets aside the PC and goes against her orders in the name of his vengeance in a jiffy, something Khalid is incapable of doing. Also, despite Alistair's humble upbringings, you can see nobleman in him, and he knows he is a king's bastard. Nothing of the sort is evident in Khalid. As for Morrigan, she is obviously Viconia, but Aerie is reborn in Merrill. Faldorn had frankly very little to go on save for her allegiance to the Shadow Druids, and Velanna is closer to her Coran and zevran have much in common... And, yes, I often see the original 25 BG1 NPCs in their other characters, but Khalid does not remind me of Alistair. The young Ajantis Ilvastarr might be closer if anything, but not by much. BioWare does reuse archetypes once in a while, and why would not they, in the same genre, but the influences are often either vague or once in a while the characters stand on their own or borrowed from outside bio's pen like Zenith was borrowed from a clone wars general. The archetypes I want back are Faldorn, Kivan, Jan Jansen and Zenith.
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Post by alanc9 on Sept 19, 2017 16:07:18 GMT
I'm echoing other complaints, but I would have preferred to Delegate the collection of herbs and other resources (or at least have the DA2 style the colleciton of such things) and then used all that time collecting and growing elf root to actually go on, if not all, some of the War Table missions. Well, we get a little bit of that in DAI. The war table is my primary source of great bear hide in the late game, for instance. They're annoying to hunt and I do a lot of crit builds, so I need it. Everite too. Of course, by the time you take the required keeps you probably have a bunch of the stuff. It doesn't seem to work as well for herbs. I don't think the missions pay off with enough units to help.
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