The Awakening Wardens Brigade

Nathaniel is my favorite and I leave Justice to be recruited last because he's already a warden. Whoever you recruit last doesn't get to drink from the cup so recruiting Justice last, allows the others to get their cup drinking ceremony.

Sigrun is one of my favourite Bioware characters of all time. I like Anders in Awankening a lot, but not so much in DA2. The one npc I'd love to have available for romance out of DAA is Nathaniel, but given the number of Cousland PC's out there, it's probably for the best you can not.

By popular demand

source

I mean, harrumph, but also it's good that someone is counterbalancing my "TAKE NATHANIEL FREAKING EVERYWHERE" urges.

In my defense, he has a lot of great banter and that wry sense of humor really gets me when it does pop out.

I suppose letting Nate become a Warden or not depends on how you RP your Warden. Personally, I really like his character so I always let him live; from an RP perspective, my Cousland let him become a Warden because he didn't want anymore noble blood on his hands. (Also I headcanoned that they were friends when they were younger and Cousland didn't want to kill him).

Awakenings never gets enough love, in my opinion. Still ticked that Mhari died and you couldn't recruit the Dark Wolf .

"Isn't perspective wonderful? You'd think people who are so tall would have more of it."

Sigrun. Her fangirling over a casteless Warden is adorable, as well. And I love her banters with Nate, and keeping a knife under her pillow for Oghren.

I agree about the recruitments. It would have been much better, imo, to have them all done or rejected before the first 'act' is over. You can't very well recruit Justice w/o doing the whole Blackmarsh-in-the-Fade thing, . I find myself going to Vigil's Keep but staying outside, or at least not talking to Varel, just so I can wander around with everybody a bit. I think,iirc, that way you can have Velanna and Sigrun in the same Joining. It's contrived, but what can you do? I want to spend time with the last recruit.

I like Nathaniel. I think he and Fenris should have a brood-off: the one attracting the most dark clouds wins. I like that when he realizes just how truly terrible his father was, he becomes determined to restore the family name and honor. I also like having excellent archers in my party. I usually let him go at first, just so he can decide on his own to become a Warden.

I never liked Velanna. She's too angry and too impulsive. Weakening her clan by taking warriors with her, attacking merchant caravans because she assumed humans took her sister without evidence. I understand that would be her first thought, but she didn't actually follow up on any clues. The Warden had to point out the oddities for her. Developing a friendship with her is too much work. That said, I love the banters between her and Oghren, especially about where dwarven babies come from. I never proceed to the final stage without making sure I hear that.

Justice is frequently last, but not always. I do want to do the quest with his/Kristoff's wife. I admit, I liked him less after DA2.

Anders is fun. I like his flirtatiousness and light-hearted quips. And you get Ser Pounce-a-lot as well, woo-hoo!

Oghren, Oghren, Oghren. I go back and forth on him. I do respect him when he admits to his short-comings and sadly realizes that won't change. I believe he kind of wishes it would but . . .

I, obviously, saved Sigrun for last, at least last of the companions. I'm not a perky person. Perky people usually annoy me. But I like Sigrun. I like how she finds happiness in little things and that she won't let her situation (casteless, Legion of the Dead, etc.) destroy that. You know, that's one thing where she reminds me of Zevran. He says he learned to appreciate life's joys when they come his way because you never know what tomorrow may bring. Sigrun takes it further, imo, by looking for them. She's a silver-lining person but no Pollyanna. I think she and Nate are my two favorites.

Seneschal Varel. I like that man. Then there are the convos with Wade and Herren, ha ha ha.

I'm disappointed Mhairi died in the Jioning.

There could have been an interesting story with her idealism of the Grey Wardens being tested by the events of Awakening, and you taking her under your wing as a mentor, like Duncan to Alistair, and either hardening her into the "stop the Blight at all cost" mindset or helping her through the shock of the realities of being a Warden and hold onto her idealism as a drive to be the kind of noble, heroic Warden told about in stories. Or do nothing, and she eventually goes AWOL because she became disillusioned to the life of a Grey Warden.

Would have been nice to have Mhairi survive the Joining.

She could have come to the slow realisation across Awakening that the reality of the Wardens is far different from that sung by the bards, or the Hero of Ferelden being far different in person than she expected. With how stunned she was that the Warden accepted Oghren as a recruit (and was potentially an old friend of his), would have be fun to see what she'd have made of Justice being added to our ranks?

My team is defined by which class I'm playing. I do prefer to use Anders over Vellana and Nathaniel is my DD choice.

It would have been nice to let Mhairi to live too for a choice of tank, but I find the Awakening Warden joining odds are high enough as it is. Except for her everyone else survives, which is so different from our Warden ceremony where only 1/3 lived.

I should probably stick this opinion into unpopular views thread, but I've never grown warm feelings for Nathaniel. I do not dislike him as he is one of a few decent men to join, however, my first run through was human noble. When they meet, Nathaniel is a complete douche to my Warden and completely undeserved too as I played that one as honourable as a Warden could be. My resentment for Howe factored into it. I think Nath is a good warden and very useful dps/lockpick combo in one, but I've never considered him to be my best buddy. I maintain a neutral/cool disposition towards him.

Also, Nath needs to can it and not lie on my behalf during battles by yelling 'Surrender and we'll be merciful.' I most certainly don't want darkspawn to surrender and don't intend to be merciful. I wish to rain pain and destruction upon them and then to steal their loot. ];P

I would have preferred to romance Anders to Nathaniel.

Anders x Nathaniel's a nice pairing!

About Nathaniel: I found him very honest and fair. My Cousland felt respect toward him when spoke with him in the cell. And despite his family, he felt similarities with him: when his family massacred by Howe-mobs, he became an outlaw, just as Nathaniel due of his father sin.