What did you do today in DA? [Spoilers]

I know it's a typo but I can't help I'm of a mind to change my monitor although it's still good but it's like six years old. Trying to resist as it'll be a waste of $$. Also want to change my keyboard to a gaming keyboard. ... resist....resist.

That's one awesome monitor!  How much did it cost you?  And what benefit does having the screen curved give you?  Possible 3D?

Regarding Sten, I initially thought the same thing when I first played DA2.  But it is just a title.  According to Iron Bull, the Qunari companion in Inquisition,  Qunari don't use proper names; just job titles and numbers.  So it's not our old friend from Origins! 

Absolutely love it. In DA2, when you are out of doors, it opens up a larger shot, and brings the stuff in the peripheral vision more into view, so it feels like there is more world around Revel. When there is a cutscene, or they are indoors, it does put black bars on the sides. It cost slightly under 1,400 CND bucks, but I am lucky because among my job benefits there is a very weird benefit that covers "personal growth/interests" that includes personal computers. So, yeah, my job pays for my rig over the years of upgrades.

Riya traveled to the Western Approach to investigate the strange behavior of the Wardens there. Now that I'm playing that part the second time, I'm amazed, that I wasn't baffled by Blackwalls lack of knowledge concerning any warden business.



Some badass screenie



My Hawke, Lyra. And she is with Fenris again. After I changed the keep again (some decisions just had changed themselves for some reason, I must have accidently clicked a decision, that made others unreachable.)


Stroud explaining things (I so like this character)


The gang looking baffled (must be the stupidity of that Venatori guy, who goes on about his plans instead of being clever and killing everyone quickly: 'blahblah... gratitude.... blahblah bring Cory your head... blahblah... damn my trap failed )


Badass archdemon


The gang again, Solas is missing, probably off chatting with some wraith about how cool the fade is

Yes, with Riya, I was already at the Winter Palace (with the steampunk dress). But I took Blackwall with me in my last playthrough. My rogue Lyana romanced him and you are right, there was one guy, who almost recognised him.
I like Blackwall as a character, but if he tries to impersonate someone from a specific group, he should try and find out as much about this group, as he can. Ok, admittedly, that could have been a bit of a problem in the case of the GW, but I think, he could have tried to find out a bit more at least

@domi fylimar

Yes, Fenris would return in Act 3 if you had stayed single at end of Act 2.

What's great about DA2 is how the scenes can change based on factors. Rival vs friend as well as timing. If you had done his personal quest in a different order, he wouldn't have slammed but left. Then come back later saying he hasn't been able to stop thinking of you. *Swoon*

I didn't find the jealousy banter between Fenris and Anders funny. It made me fall in love with Fenris and think Anders was a jerk.

Then the next PT where I stayed with Fenris and Anders pulled me aside to tell me I'd made a mistake? Wanted to punch him in the face.

I read that, I was just telling her stuff that may tempt her to do her 2nd playthrough. She even made a second Hawke and everything already.

Iona may need to borrow the steampunk dress!  lol 

With Blackwall, I have this feeling that after the real Blackwall was killed, Thom assumed his identity and went around freelancing by himself without any contact with other Grey Wardens.  Without any mentor, how was he to find out all those dark GW secrets?  He has this vision of the GWs as altruistic heroes without any of the real details.  He can get away with this because the general public doesn't know the GWs' secrets either.  He's safe so long as he doesn't run into any real GWs.

After finishing up loose ends in Crestwood (i.e., the Dragon!), Iona went to the Western Approach yesterday where she was to meet up with Stroud and Hawke. She postponed the rendezvous, however, as she soon found the approach to be a hotbed of Venatori activity. In one location, she found ancient Tevinter ruins which indicated that Alexius wasn't the first Vint to experiment. And as with Alexius, it didn't work out well in the past either. Within these ruins, time stands still with ancient Tevinters forever battling demons no doubt unleashed by their experiments with magic. Could this be what turned the Western Approach to a desert?

They found the main Venatori forces at Griffon Wing Keep, an ancient Grey Warden facility. After a fierce battle, Iona claimed the keep.

Elsewhere, they came across the ancient Tevinter prison of Coracavus. Apparently, Venatori digs here had opened up a hole to the Deep Roads and naturally: Darkspawn. Iona and her crew cleared the area and sealed up the Darkspawn tunnels. Outside Coracavus, they finally caught up with Servis, the leader of Venatori operations in the Approach. They managed to take him alive and had him transported to Skyhold for judgement.

They also caught up with Leo of Lucien Bay, an apostate long hunted by Cassandra. (Gamer note: On nightmare, with both "Even Ground" and "Walk Softly" trials set, this was the biggest boss fight of the Western Approach! Cassandra definitely gave her "Templar" powers a heavy workout here! I also had to craft staves with "barrier penetration" because of how quickly Leo kept throwing up barrier.)

With the Venatori defeated, Iona went to meet with Hawke and Stroud to find out what was going on with the Wardens. There, they caught the Venatori in the midst of blood mage ritual where a GW rogue or warrior was sacrificed so that a GW mage could bind a demon. All this was done under the careful guidance of a Venatori mage, Livius Eremond. He had the Wardens convinced that they could bind demons and send them into the Deep Roads to hunt down darkspawn and ultimately the sleeping Old Gods and thus, prevent future Blights and end the Calling forever. What the Wardens didn't know was that the Calling they were sensing was from Corypheus and the ritual they performed put the GW mages under his complete control. After driving off Eremond, Iona returns to Skyhold and has her advisors make plans for battle against the GW fortress of Adamant.

Gamer Notes: Normally, I would go into Adamant with Varric, given his connection to Hawke, and Blackwall, given his supposed status as a Warden, or Cassandra, so she could see Justinia, and, of course, Solas, the local Fade expert. This time, I opted to take a totally different team: Dorian, IB, and Cole. I figured a Vint like Dorian, who I used for most of the Approach as well, might have some interesting things to say about the Tevinter ruins or about the old Darkspawn Magister himself. I also believed it would get interesting reactions out of IB and Cole. As always, when I plan for interesting banter, I come away disappointed.

After escaping the Fade sans Stroud (the red shirt of the DA universe), Iona recruited the Wardens.

Also, I completed the "Archdemon" mosaic for the first time. In all pics I have seen of the completed mosaic, it's hard to make out what's being depicted. The Gatsy codices read like stream of consciousn blather. Maybe it would have been humorous if he read his reports out-loud.

Next stop: Emerald Graves.

I remember that banter but didn't connect it to DAO Sten.  Do they ever come up with reasons why some Qunaris have horns and others don't?

Also, what about DAO Sten's contention that "women don't fight"?  In Trespasser, it seems the Qunari rogues were all women as was the Vidasala.  A bit annoying when the lore isn't consistent.