Dragon Age: Origins

[Beefbowl]

Originally Posted by BlackMamba

it would be sten probably. My original party was alister, morrigan, elf assassin and me (rogue). I switched to sten, mabari hound, morrigan and me and almost beat the fight without losing both, but murdock got killed. I'll try again tonight.

I have Shale as my tank. Pretty much all enemies runs towards him which lets me pick off the strays. Probably too late to change your party but I'd give Shale a try. I'm surprised you don't have an archer unless that's you.

I've pretty much have given up on Morrigan. While her offensive skills are awesome, Wynne healing spells were more valuable to me. Once my tank goes down, I'm pretty much screwed.

Originally Posted by jsteinhauer

This is my biggest beef with the interface in this game. It is next to impossible to control all party members manually. Since the game is still essentially based on "rolls of the dice" in a turn-based fashion, they should have incorporated a feature like earlier Bioware RPG's had where you could pause the action at the end of each round. You could then direct each character to either move to a selected position in the field or perform a selected action or use a selected item. For instance, in a thick battle, your tank could be programmed to taunt, while your mage and archer could be moved outside of the melee area without having to bring up the menu three different times, meanwhile actions are happening. True, this takes some of the real-timeness out of the action, but this is not a shooter or a fighter, it's a RPG with success/failure depending on rolls of the dice, not the users dexterity with the controls.

Earlier RPGs would also allow you select party "formations", such that you could have the entire party follow the leader single file. This is convenient, say, when you want to have your rogue out front looking for traps rather than have ever character rush up in a bunch to be with the leader. I usually select hold position when opening doors or going around corners. Tank character peeks in and draws enemies out. Leave mage and archer positioned further back, and second fighter right behind warrior to melee each enemy as they exit the door. It works well except those certain scenes where you cut to a scene where the entire party enters a room.

I use my rogue to draw my enemies out. If your rogue has high stealth skills he can pretty much run around anywhere without getting detected which allows you to disable traps or set traps. I normally set up a grease trap, kill the mage let them trigger the grease trap. throw a fire bomb on the grease trap and then run back to my squad. After that the archers and mage starts picking them off and the tank and rogue has mop up duty.

You can get crazy with your rogue laying down traps. It's pretty fun with all the different combinations you can do.

Overall, the majority of your enemies should be attacking your tank. Your healer should be doing most of your healing to your tank. the archer is focused on other archers/mages and the DPS should handle the strays. This is how I play and the majority of the time it's pretty much on auto pilot.

[jsteinhauer]

All Right! So how do I kill the freakin' Sloth Demon?

[Show spoiler] The one who traps you in the fade. I've tried way many times in a row. How many times does he respawn? Do I have to shapeshift? Or do I just need to escape?

[moothemagiccow]

so are there any dragons in this game or is it just the one on the cover

[Beefbowl]

Originally Posted by jsteinhauer

All Right! So how do I kill the freakin' Sloth Demon?

[Show spoiler] The one who traps you in the fade. I've tried way many times in a row. How many times does he respawn? Do I have to shapeshift? Or do I just need to escape?

Without knowing who's in your party or what gear you got, I would say

[Show spoiler] shapeshift. Burning man is immune to fire so when the sloth demon uses fire attacks transform into the burning man. But use Crushing Prison when in spirit form as that is your strongest spell. It freezes him and does damage at the same time.

I equipped my warrior with the knight commander's plate with spellward and pretty much everything just bounces off him in the fade.

Originally Posted by moothemagiccow

so are there any dragons in this game or is it just the one on the cover

yes, there's a few in the game.

[hellmonkey]

Originally Posted by moothemagiccow

so are there any dragons in this game or is it just the one on the cover

I have found 3, 2 of them were optional.

[jsteinhauer]

Originally Posted by Beefbowl

Without knowing who's in your party or what gear you got, I would say

[Show spoiler] shapeshift. Burning man is immune to fire so when the sloth demon uses fire attacks transform into the burning man. But use Crushing Prison when in spirit form as that is your strongest spell. It freezes him and does damage at the same time.

I equipped my warrior with the knight commander's plate with spellward and pretty much everything just bounces off him in the fade.



yes, there's a few in the game.

You make it sound pretty easy. This was a really tough battle. I found it much more difficult than the boss fight at the end of the Broken Circle quest. It really hinged on choosing the best shape at the best time, which for some forms was obvious, but for others was not. My warrior is a Dwarf so I could not take advantage of the Lyrium veins, and I was not well equipped with potions. Anyway, so good to move on, go back to camp, enchant some new runes and decide what to do next. That Fade was REALLY boring.

[dk3dknight]

Originally Posted by Beefbowl

I forgotten about the spell weaver. Definitely good for an arcane warrior but not for your regular mage.

You're forced to go to Loering, after that it's free roaming. Loering will be around as long as you don't complete any of the 4 major story arcs.

Red cliff is also an easy quest to do.

Yep.

Originally Posted by BlackMamba

dk3dknight, where have you been?! Thanks for the lengthy responses. I did pick up the two characters last night and think I've done all the quests the town currently has to offer.

Another question - if I recruit everyone I possibly can recruit I can imagine your party getting quite large. Is it the case that most story-related characters stay with you or do they come and go (no spoilers, please!).

I actually was visiting Microsoft Office and on top of that I usually access this site while at work, and ive actually been doing stuff lol..

Apparently Microsoft office is a real place.. who would have thought..



As the ancient proverb goes "pictures or it didn't happen"

Originally Posted by Beefbowl

No...any of them can leave at any time (maybe except for the dog) depending on the decisions you make and how high your approval ratings is.

On my first playthrough I lost about 1/3 of my party by the end of the game.

Yes you can piss them off but wow..

Originally Posted by Beefbowl

yes...I was pretty upset to see my Juggernaut Armor walk away. lol. i recommend you save often just in case you make a decision that you end up regretting later. I can't even count how many times I started over with this game.

I suggest ever so often make a new save game..

Originally Posted by BlackMamba

That's really good to know, thanks again.

I have some more questions for you guys (it never stops!):
1) For the most part, will characters stay with you if your approval rating with them is positive? It actually takes good effort to kick them out, or flat out desecrating something they hold dear which the little voice in you will tell you is a bad idea.
2) Does everyone have a special gift you can give them that they're partial too? I gave Leiliana the andrasian rose/flower and it prompted a little mini-dialogue and gave me a +19 approval rating.
There are unique items that greatly make people happy, usualy its connected with a story they talk about or something precious to them, these unique items you will know as no other party member will accept them.
Black Grimore I believe is morrigans.. there are some boots for the male elf and a amulet for alister, but again these are things they tell you about in there stories..
3) what are the best ways to build approval with teammates besides through dialogue?

Gifts, and decisions in there presence they agree with.

Originally Posted by hellmonkey

1. There are certain plot events that will make certain charcters leave if they happen. But they wont just flake out and leave for no reason.
Yeah some of the stuff should be day and night, think about the alignment of your characters and you can generally gauge there response to your actions.
2. Most if not all of the party has one or 2 special gifts that will prompt a dialogue. Also certain gifts have a greater affect. For instance, jewelry gives Morrigan +6 to +10, while it gives others +1. Everyone has a theme of gifts that they really like.
Also remeber any story they tell you about something they lost, or was taken from them or was destroyed, or things that match that characters presonality.

3. See above. Also, doing their side quest really helps, Morrigans mom, Allisters sister, Lelliannas old mentor ect.

Originally Posted by silversnake

I don't really know where to ask this so I'll ask here. Christmas is coming up and my brother loves RPG's. I bought him Oblivion last Christmas and he has played it non stop until I bought him Demon's Souls.

Do I buy this game or Borderlands as the next RPG?

Thanks guys.

Borderlands is more of a FPS then a RPG and more of a MMORPG FPS then a RPG.. if that makes sense, the game is structured as a MMORPG but plays like a fps.

Originally Posted by hellmonkey

Lillianna likes religous stuff, anything that says andresta.
Morrigan likes jewelry.
Allisters likes statues
Zervran likes bits of armor, gloves/boots ect. You can google for a complete list.

and dwarf likes beer.

Originally Posted by Pondosinatra

I was looking forward to getting this until I read about the 'gay controversy'. Frankly if they're gonna start putting this crap in games, give me an option along with whether I want 2x aliasing or 4x aliasing to turn off 'hot man on man action'.

There is no required Gay Sex.. in fact there are no gay characters there are at least 2 characters who are bisexual, (they swing both ways) but this is no way is a forced relationship you would have to actually form the relationship and bonds.. all relationships are optional..

If you seek out a homosexual relationship you will have a homosexual relationship. And the only male that is bisexual is not a required pickup character.

Originally Posted by Pondosinatra

Well is there any way to score with a chick? Cause then I'd be ok with it. Each to their own and all that. The way I understood it was that it was a scene integral to the plot, ie. not optional story branching etc.

No not at all, its there for roleplaying, if you want a homosexual relationship the game will not stop you, if you don't want any relantships either hetro or homo you can, of if your seeking a purly hetrosexual relationship you can, or you can be a player if you want.

Originally Posted by jsteinhauer

The Fade

[Show spoiler] that the sloth demon traps you in at Calenhad

is extremely tedious and boring! I fault the game designers on this one. This little aside is a bit too long, takes you out of the rhythm of the game and has really lost my attention. Perhaps that's the curse of the

[Show spoiler]sloth demon...apathy.

I am spending more time simply figuring out how to get from one section of the map to the other.

Its a mental jigsaw.

Originally Posted by hellmonkey

Its no soo bad, although it was aggrivating my first time through. Just know that you can not get to all parts of any of those levels until you get all 4 shape changes. Start with Darkspawn until you get the first shape chanage. I forget where to go next, but basically just go to each of the other levels until you get teh shape change, then exit, and get the missing shapes until you have all 4. Then you can clear all of the levels.

Jigsaw puzzle lol..

Originally Posted by BlackMamba

wow,

[Show spoiler]I can't keep both Tomas and Murdoch alive in the battle for Redcliffe. I have no problem with the fight itself but at least one of them dies everytime. I even managed to draw the fight almost entirely away from them one time (so the NPCs switched to arrows) and still one of them ended up dying!

Any tips?

Inferno.. and fireball.. problem solved.

I noticed that Morrigan's Mind Blast ability stuns all enemies in a region and I have everyone using at least one stun technique, but I still can't keep them both alive.

Well I was a mage so my suggestions will not match with what your probably going to do.. note there is a dwarf locked behind a door in the city that you can recruit...

Originally Posted by BlackMamba

it would be sten probably. My original party was alister, morrigan, elf assassin and me (rogue). I switched to sten, mabari hound, morrigan and me and almost beat the fight without losing both, but murdock got killed. I'll try again tonight.

Alister is my tank..

Originally Posted by jsteinhauer

All Right! So how do I kill the freakin' Sloth Demon?

[Show spoiler] The one who traps you in the fade. I've tried way many times in a row. How many times does he respawn? Do I have to shapeshift? Or do I just need to escape?

Suggestion make sure you rescued your entire party before confronting the sloth demon as a suggestion.

Originally Posted by moothemagiccow

so are there any dragons in this game or is it just the one on the cover

Yes there are dragons, they are very cool battles.. they can also be extremlly stressful battles.

[Beefbowl]

Originally Posted by dk3dknight

Yep.




Well I was a mage so my suggestions will not match with what your probably going to do.. note there is a dwarf locked behind a door in the city that you can recruit...

there's also the bartender, thomas and the spy that you can get to fight. The blacksmith to equip the soldiers and talisman for the morale. Also the oil for the traps.

I just finished this part and i didn't have too much trouble. I used alistair, shale liania and my character which was a warrior. It was a pretty bad combination but worked out in the end. What helped me out the most was my character's two handed sweep and Shale's Bellow and regenerating burst. Shale has to be my favorite tank.

[Beefbowl]

Originally Posted by jsteinhauer

You make it sound pretty easy. This was a really tough battle. I found it much more difficult than the boss fight at the end of the Broken Circle quest. It really hinged on choosing the best shape at the best time, which for some forms was obvious, but for others was not. My warrior is a Dwarf so I could not take advantage of the Lyrium veins, and I was not well equipped with potions. Anyway, so good to move on, go back to camp, enchant some new runes and decide what to do next. That Fade was REALLY boring.

It is easy when you have the right equipment on. I'm on my 3rd playthrough right now so I pretty much know where everything' at and what I'll be facing. The thing I hated most about Broken Circle was all the side quest. they were such a pain. The best part was getting the Yusaris

[jsteinhauer]

Originally Posted by Beefbowl

It is easy when you have the right equipment on. I'm on my 3rd playthrough right now so I pretty much know where everything' at and what I'll be facing. The thing I hated most about Broken Circle was all the side quest. they were such a pain. The best part was getting the Yusaris

The only annoying side quest, I thought, was The Fade. The other subquests pretty much seemed to happen as you advanced through the tower. Though I did not complete the 4 pages, 5 mages quest. I don't know, if that completes in the tower, or if I am supposed to complete it elsewhere. The quest descriptor is not specific. After defeating the boss, I did make a run back through the tower, to make sure I did not miss anything. There is a locked metal door that can't be picked. This could very well be part of a quest picked up elsewhere, so I won't belabor it.

[Beefbowl]

Originally Posted by jsteinhauer

The only annoying side quest, I thought, was The Fade. The other subquests pretty much seemed to happen as you advanced through the tower. Though I did not complete the 4 pages, 5 mages quest. I don't know, if that completes in the tower, or if I am supposed to complete it elsewhere. The quest descriptor is not specific. After defeating the boss, I did make a run back through the tower, to make sure I did not miss anything. There is a locked metal door that can't be picked. This could very well be part of a quest picked up elsewhere, so I won't belabor it.

after you get the 5 pages, you fight a guy on a random encounter. I thought summoming sciences and watchguard of the reaching was a pain. a lot of going back and forth. I guess it as worth it though.

the locked metal door that you're talking about is only available when doing the mage origin story.

[romac]

I've got a question: How easy is this game on easy? I ask because I'm really interested in picking this up, but I'm not too big into RPG's or Tactic games, and I've read that on normal there are some fights that can be frustrating at times (mainly because a bit more strategizing occurs).

I get in the mood for a game with an epic story occasionally so I'm really looking into it to enjoy the game and the story and everything that happens in between, not to play through it 6 times and get every trophy and see every possible cutscene etc. The only recent RPG's I've sat and beat in the past few years is Oblivion (which I absolutely loved) and Fable 2 (which I thought was a huge disappointment). Fable 2 did a good job of keeping the pace up and making everything accessible, but I thought it was a pushover difficulty wise. Is DA like this on easy?

[MCT]

Game of the year.

that is all.

[Beefbowl]

Originally Posted by romac

I've got a question: How easy is this game on easy? I ask because I'm really interested in picking this up, but I'm not too big into RPG's or Tactic games, and I've read that on normal there are some fights that can be frustrating at times (mainly because a bit more strategizing occurs).

I get in the mood for a game with an epic story occasionally so I'm really looking into it to enjoy the game and the story and everything that happens in between, not to play through it 6 times and get every trophy and see every possible cutscene etc. The only recent RPG's I've sat and beat in the past few years is Oblivion (which I absolutely loved) and Fable 2 (which I thought was a huge disappointment). Fable 2 did a good job of keeping the pace up and making everything accessible, but I thought it was a pushover difficulty wise. Is DA like this on easy?

I never played it on easy, but I don't think the game is that hard on normal. The difficulty will be determine by how strong your characters are, what equipment you have and who you have in you party. When I first started playing this game, I spent the first 20 hrs or so getting the hang of the game and started over several times. But I didn't start over because the game was hard, I was just trying out different characters.

[Agent Bond]

Its a fun game. I love being an a**hole to whoever I talk to because I usually wind up getting free stuff.

[Beefbowl]

Originally Posted by Agent Bond

Its a fun game. I love being an a**hole to whoever I talk to because I usually wind up getting free stuff.

yea I do that too. I end up killing a lot of people cuz I was mean. Everyone in Redcliff survived except for the blacksmith cuz I was the one that killed him on purpose. lol.

[Terjyn]

Originally Posted by hellmonkey

I have found 3, 2 of them were optional.

There are 4, 2 of which are optional.

[Show spoiler]Just because the last one's an arch-demon, doesn't mean he's not a Dragon Arch-Demon.

[hellmonkey]

Originally Posted by Terjyn

There are 4, 2 of which are optional.

[Show spoiler]Just because the last one's an arch-demon, doesn't mean he's not a Dragon Arch-Demon.

I was counting the arch demon as the one that was not optional. I must have forgotten the 4th one, I cant remember it for the life of me.

[Beefbowl]

Originally Posted by hellmonkey

I was counting the arch demon as the one that was not optional. I must have forgotten the 4th one, I cant remember it for the life of me.

there's 5 if you count

[Show spoiler]Flemeth

[BlackMamba]

Thanks for all the tips again dk3dknight! Cool that you got to visit the Microsoft offices too