Schmooples' Den! The DA News Discussion Thread

I won't answer all of your points because some of the arguments we have are a matter of opinion, and I don't feel like discussing these is getting us anywhere

You said you see them as a faction of adventurers, not fighters, and while I agree that Bharv is indeed not very impressive, his friend LoF, Elim, managed to hold out on her own against a Starkhaven knight (I vaguely remember the book describing them as pretty impressive) and then was killed by a gigantic man who managed to fend off a few knights on his own. There was also Hollix (Luck in the Gardens), who managed to outrun and even injure the Cekorax, as well as Mateo (Gentivi Dies in the End) who, if I recall correctly, is a warrior.

I'll also attach this excrept from Gentivi Dies in the End:
"Their hired driver and delver was a broad-shouldered man called Mateo, one of the famed Rivaini Lords of Fortune. A guild of treasure hunters and dungeoneers, they specialized in pulling gems from the eyes of statues and, for added cost, protecting the softer people who hired them to do so."

It did strike me that a lot of the stories in Tevinter Nights would fit with the Joplin heist concept and it occurred to me that originally many of these might have been quests in the game. Then when Joplin was ditched those who had come up with these ideas didn't want to abandon them altogether and instead decided to write a series of short stories instead. That way all their work wouldn't be wasted and they could keep the fan base happy by giving them something to tide them over during the extended development time for the next game. This would also explain why many of the characters we meet in them feel like possible companions (they could still be).

However, that said, doing covert work behind the backdrop of the war taking place in northern Thedas would also fit with the idea put forward at the end of Trespasser that the shadow Inquisition needed to find new people that Solas doesn't know to move against him. Having a high profile figure like our PC has been in previous games just wouldn't really fit with the need for secrecy to avoid him identifying who they are. It also seems to me that it would also suggest them establishing a smaller team to work with. Our name is also likely to reflect our low key approach, so we won't start of as a "Herald" of anyone with some magic bauble that makes everyone think we are special, nor are we likely to end up the "Champion" of anywhere, at least not before Solas has been dealt with. Our PC may be recruited to work with the Shadow Inquisition but it is unlikely they will be told that is who they are working for (we may realise as a former player but they won't know in game) and it would just appear to them and any agents of Solas watching that they are a free agent who just happens to be doing a one off job for someone with connections to the Inquisition.

So there may be no central contact, at least not initially, with the organisation but different people dotted around the north who come up with these jobs that we as players know have connections with the Inquisition but the PC does not. I have to admit that if you were a freelance Lord of Fortune that would fit with this scenario but it could equally apply to a number of other backgrounds. It might also be that for a time a member of the Ben'Hassrath might seek our aid and again we might not be aware initially of who they represent. Ditto the Tevinter siccari or even the Executors. Only once we have gained the knowledge, items or whatever other benefits we gain from these various quests will our PC start to see some sort of pattern and connection between them, which will probably be the point at which the true hunt for Solas can begin. If they are working with the dual protagonist idea, then this could be the point at which the Inquisitor steps back into the story.

Yes, I'd prefer to play as my Inquisitor, too. So I am hoping we get to do that or that we have dual protagonists. If we have dual protagonists or a brand new protagonist with no Inquisitor in sight, though, a Lord of Fortune does seem to be a strong contender for our new protagonist's background.

I love Jar of Bees and Antivan Fire. All the fire! 

Also I just remembered something, once in the Hinterlands I got chased by bears (who would've thought  ) everyone was dead but Varric, so I decided to throw a confusion grenade, because that was all Varric had left. Next moment, two very nice bears stood there, not attacking anything I used the moment to run away to the nearest camp.

I quite like the idea of a LoF protagonist - it could bring back some of that, somewhat amoral, swashbuckling adventurer vibe that was in DA2. And a Rivaini protagonist would be interesting.

Then again, I've always been enamoured by the idea of being able to choose the background of my PC, and I think that would work well with what we know from Tevinter Nights where different organisations are expressing concern with Solas' deeds.

For me the only bright side to part of the game as the inquisitor would be getting the chance to leave them to die in the fade.

I'm afraid it might be getting crowded, what with all my Hawkes being left there.

I was thinking more in the way of tragedy, such as Solas killing a romanced Inquisitor at the end, and/or petrify all others so that their story is finally over.

By that logic you can say that pretty much any character ever that does something beneficial at a crucial moment in a plot is the Chosen One. Still using LotR as an example, that would mean that Gollum is actually the Chosen One, because it's his presence that leads to the Ring being destroyed. Frodo taking the Ring and Sam begging him not to is a mirror of Elrond doing the same to Isildur. Since Gollum is the only change in that scene and the Ring does get destroyed then, that should make Gollum the Chosen One, right? Gandalf did say that maybe he still had a part to play, didn't he? And again, Frodo ultimately FAILS in his task, he becomes Isildur. The Warden/The Inquisitor might have setbacks but they ultimately succeed; they might get help from companions and advisers, but in the end they succeed in what they set out to do.

Don't give ideas to EA.

No, I don't think we do. I'm sorry, for me LoF simply don't come across as a faction of fighters, especially in a way Wardens or a bulk of Inquisition was.

Also, I didn't ignore anything - I think perhaps you shouldn't ignore the fact that LoF protect people who hire them, but people who hire them are probably crap at fighting (a seasoned adventurer will likely be better at fighting than Average Joe... or a scholar like Genitivi) while we are talking about a situation in which actual fighters (like veterans of Inquisition) are looking for people way above that level, given the task ahead of them.

This is why I say that, even if we'd spend quite a bit of time around LoF, it will likely be for their other useful talents (and likely with individuals from LoF who can handle themselves in combat, even if rest of the faction wouldn't).