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Brunom1 posted:Jory's face is always so amusing. Personally I think he looks like something out of one of the Telltale games, like Sam & Max. e:v Exactly! Koorisch fucked around with this message at 05:10 on May 1, 2015 |
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Apr 30, 2015 08:58
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personified.
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Koorisch posted:Personally I think he looks like something out of one of the Telltale games, like Sam & Max. Ser Bosco.
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May 1, 2015 04:59
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PART 11: HELLO BOYSPreviously posted:Bianca, an exiled dwarven noble. Daveth, a lecherous thief. And Jory, a knight who resembles a frog. Together, they are...   You found Alistair, did you? Good. I'll assume you are ready to begin preparations. Assuming, of course, that you're quite finished riling up mages, Alistair. What can I say? The revered mother ambushed me. The way she wields guilt they should stick her in the army. She forced you to sass the mage, did she? We cannot afford to antagonize anyone, Alistair. We don't need to give anyone more ammunition against us. You're right, Duncan. I apologize. Probation. Horrible Jerk: Alistair. Punishment Reason: Mage sass. Now then, since you are all here, we can begin. You four will be heading into the Korcari Wilds to perform two tasks. The first is to obtain three vials of darkspawn blood, one for each recruit. What do we need darkspawn blood for? For the Joining itself. I'll explain more once you've returned. Surely you could've acquired some blood before now. Of course. You must work together to collect the components, however. It's as much a part of the Joining as what comes after. Nothing bonds a group like recreational killing, I suppose. What's the second task? There was once a Grey Warden archive in the Wilds, abandoned long ago when we could no longer afford to maintain such remote outposts. It has recently come to our attention that some scrolls been left behind, magically sealed to protect them. Alistair, I want you to retrieve these scrolls if you can. What kind of scrolls are these? Old treaties, if you're curious. Promises of support made to the Grey Wardens long ago. They were once considered only formalities. With so many having forgotten their commitments to us, I suspect it may be a good idea to have something to remind them with. So, the next part of the Joining is law school, right? 'Cause I can think of a dozen ways to wiggle out of a contract that old. I'm hoping the large, angry army of monsters will forestall any legal challenges to our position. A time-honored negotiating tactic, at least with dwarves. How will we find this archive, anyway? It will be an overgrown ruin by now, but the sealed chest should remain intact. Alistair will guide you to the area you need to search. And what if they're no longer there? It's possible the scrolls may have been destroyed or even stolen, though the seal's magic should have protected them. Only a Grey Warden can break such a seal. I don't understand... why leave such things in a ruin if they're so valuable? It was assumed we would someday return. A great many things were assumed that have not held true. What, the last Grey Wardens there couldn't take a few scrolls with them when they left? Were they that pressed for luggage space? We are not a wealthy organisation, not anymore, and do you have any idea what coach companies charge for excess baggage? Do you? Ugh, fine. Find the archive and three vials of blood. Understood. Watch over your charges, Alistair. Return quickly, and safely. May the Maker watch over your path. I will see you when you return. [Silly hat brigade... assemble! I've given Alistair, Jory and Daveth some of the better armor I had lying around my inventory, and sorted out their weapons. In classic Bioware fashion you can stop and have a chat with your sidekicks to find out their Interesting BackstoriesTM. Except for Alistair, who just mutters something about getting back to the mission.]   Yes? Where are you from, Daveth? I grew up in a village 'bout a day's trip to the east. Little blot you wouldn't even find on a map. Haven't been back in years. I struck out for the city as soon as I could outrun my pa. I've been in Denerim for, what... six years now? Never liked it much, but there's more purses there than anywhere else. So... you're a cutpurse? ...and a pickpocket, thank you very much. Or was, anyhow. Who'd ever guess I'd end up a Grey Warden? How did the Grey Wardens find you? I found them. I cut Duncan's purse while he was standing in a crowd. He grabs my wrist, but I squirm out and bolt. The old bugger can run, but the garrison caught me first. I'm a wanted man in Denerim, you see, so they were going to string me up right there. Not very good at the whole “don't get spotted” aspect of thievery then? I must just have a memorable face. So what happened then? Duncan stopped them. Invoked the Right of Conscription. I gave the garrison the finger while I was walking away. Don't know why Duncan wants someone like me. But he says finesse is important, and that I'm fast with a blade. You bet your boots I am. Besides, it beats getting strung up. What do you think of Duncan? All right, for an old bugger. He's faster than he looks, too. Useful to know... maybe. Let's go. Hey, I'm following you, aren't I?[Daveth is another rogue. He has both a basic archer skill (Pinning Strike, which lets you freeze an enemy in place for a short time), and some dual wielding skills (the basic Dual Wielder buff that lessens the penalty for using two weapons simultaneously). Given Bianca's an archer rogue, I'm going to have Daveth as a dual weapon dude.]   I am ready. You said you were from Redcliffe? I hail from Redcliffe, but Duncan recruited me in Highever, a city off the northern coast. Have you traveled there?[Highever is the city the Human Noble PC's family rules over. If we were playing a Human Noble, Jory would be kissing our rear end right about now.] I've never been to the surface before. I was in Arl Eamon's retinue when he attended King Maric's funeral. It was in Highever that I met my Helena.[Arl = Earl. This has been your daily Stupid Fantasy Analogous Words explanation.] I was smitten. She has the most beautiful eyes, my Helena. For years, I found any excuse to return there. We married a year ago. Arl Eamon gave me leave to serve in Highever, but I was attempting to persuade Helena to come to Redcliffe with me. At least, until I was recruited. How did the Grey Wardens find you? Last month, Duncan visited Highever, and the bann held a tournament in his honor. I won the grand melee.[Bann = Baron. This has been your second daily Stupid Fantasy Analogous Words explanation.] It was hard to leave my wife. We married only a year ago, and she is heavy with child now. Ferelden needs my blade, and I shall not falter. Hmm. What do you think of Duncan? He has a seemingly impossible task, with a scarce handful of Grey Wardens, yet he does not complain or flinch from his duty. What do you think we should do now? We need to find those documents and the darkspawn blood. It should be... interesting. With any luck.[Jory is a fighter that uses two-handed weapons, which tilts him more towards damage dealing than the tankier fighters we've had previously.]  [Oh, and we've got Alistair as well. He's a sword and board, plank and tank, swing and thing, generic fighter man.] A SHORT JOURNEY LATER...  [The Wilds. A gloomy swamp full of wolves, darkspawn and the odd enigmatic ancient ruin. There are also a few sidequests to show off as well.]  Keep at it, meat shields! I can use a bow as well. I'm just saying. Looks like what's left of the scouts. You'd think they would've seen it coming. Hey, this one's moving!  Who... is that? Grey... Wardens...? Well, he's not half as dead as he looks, is he? My scouting band was attacked by darkspawn! They came out of the ground... Please, help me! I've got to... return to camp... Let's try to bandage him up, at least. I have bandages in my pack.*bandaging* Thank you! *Groans* I... I've got to get out of here! Did you hear? An entire patrol of seasoned men killed by darkspawn! Calm down, Ser Jory. We'll be fine if we're careful. Those soldiers were careful, and they were still overwhelmed. How many darkspawn can the four of us slay? A dozen? A hundred? There's an entire army in these forests! There are darkspawn about, but we're in no danger of walking into the bulk of the horde. How do you know? I'm not a coward, but this is foolish and reckless. We should go back. We're far from helpless here. We'll be fine. I still do not relish the thought of encountering an army. Know this: All Grey Wardens can sense darkspawn. Whatever their cunning, I guarantee they won't take us by surprise. That's why I'm here. You see, ser knight? We might die, but we'll be warned about it first. That is... reassuring. That doesn't mean I'm here to make this easy, however. So let's get a move on. [Near the dead soldiers you find the remains of Missionary Jogby. And thus begins the sad sad tale of the Rigby family. On the corpse is a letter.]  [It's an orienteering quest! You wonder why Rigby made it so hard for his son to find him. Maybe if he'd been a little less obtuse, Jogby wouldn't be dead. A valuable lesson for us all.]  That flower really stands out. Beauty amidst the filth. The Maker's grace shines even here. Heh. They should've sent a poet. Give me a moment and I'm sure I can come up with a limerick. Just need a good rhyme for “swamp”. [The flower is required to heal the poisoned dog we ran into two updates ago.]   [There are darkspawn mobs all over the place. Fortunate really, as we need to collect their blood. They all drop blood vials regularly, and we only need 3.]  I'm not an educated man, but I'm pretty sure blood shouldn't fizz like that.  [On the western side of the map, you find this small camp, overrun by darkspawn.]  [This is the camp of Missionary Rigby, father of the deceased Missionary Jogby. No, I don't know what's up with the theme naming either. Anyway, in the chest is Rigby's journal and a curious amulet.]   [The sidequest this unlocks is utterly stupid. You have to find each trail sign in order, click on it to unlock the next, then when all are unlocked, a cache of goodies is revealed. There is a problem though.]  [See what they're looking at... No? That's because there's NOTHING THERE. You have to hit the Tab key to highlight interactable points to find the trial signs. At least they're all marked on your map... except for the last one. The one that has the actual treasure hidden in it. You just have to hope you bumble across that one. I think we'll skip to the end on this quest.]   Wow, they managed to fit a lot into one log. [This is decent armor for mages, and there's also a nice helmet for fighters and bow for rogues. Something for everyone really. There is also a “Chasind Crusher” maul, which is a powerful 2 handed weapon that also has some powerful penalties to hit chance. Better to stick with weapons that don't whiff in my book.]   drat these wolves! What has them so riled? I can think of at least a dozen possible culprits in the Wilds. Darkspawn ain't the only things out here. [Past the wolves is a treasure chest, the end point of the quest we started by checking out Missionary Jogby's corpse. You can find it just by wandering around, you don't need to follow the directions. This isn't the Lost Woods.]  [In the chest is an excellent Greatsword for Jory, and also a letter that wraps up Jogby's story.]  The Chasind knew which way the wind was blowing. Wolf battle! [Wolves fighting darkspawn. No matter who wins, we all lose.]  [Near the wolf battle is the corpse of Missionary Rigby. On his body is his Last Will and Testament, which is an awful morbid thing to just carry around.]  [So yeah, you have to travel back to Rigby's camp to find the lockbox.]    (You rummage around in the rubble and find Rigby's secret cache. Inside is an iron Iockbox scaled with wax.) (Take the lockbox to bring to Jetta.) (You stow the Iockbox in your pack.) What, are we heading to Redcliffe now? I'm sure we can pass it to a courier or something back at Ostagar. Let's go.[We could've smashed open the box and scored a few gems and some money. We would also would've got a “Lovely Amulet”, which is a worthless item that apparently “symbolizes the love between a wife and her husband”.)  [Back on the road of the main plot, we come to this bridge. The Bridge of Death!]   [There's a Hurlock Emissary on the bridge that throws a few spells at you and then retreats when you close in. This is to bait you into running straight into a shitload of traps, hence why everyone is on fire.]  [And then you get swarmed by darkspawn. This bridge actually succeeded in giving me a TPW when I first started playing Dragon Age. I'd blame the AI except you can take full control of everyone at any time, so it was mostly just a result of me being lazy and not realising DA:O will occasionally kick your face in.]  Phew... looks like we weren't the first to fall for that. This soldier had some interesting reading material.... and a bag of ash? So... who's up for a little sprinkling? Heretical nonsense. I want no part of it. I could do with a few wishes. Let's try it. Two for, one against. You have the deciding vote, Alistair. Hey, I have no vote. I'm just here to observe. If you want to feed yourself to a demon, I have no objection. And the motion carries. To the overhang!  [You see a pile of stones covered in a fine layer of dust and ash.) (Sprinkle more ash on the pile of stones.) Called it. [Gazarath is the single toughest enemy on the map. He's got some powerful fire attacks, but he's alone and has no AoE abilites, so it's pretty easy to surround him and beat him down.]  I suppose we've all learned a valuable lesson. Hey, the demon dropped some sweet boots! Or maybe not.[You get some good mage boots from Gazarath. As none of our characters are mages they're kind of pointless right now.]  Those are the Warden ruins, dead ahead.  That chest seems to be the only thing left intact. Worth a look. I'm not seeing any scrolls...  Well, well, what have we here? Are you a vulture, I wonder? A scavenger poking amidst a corpse whose bones were long since cleaned? Or merely an intruder, come into these darkspawn filled Wilds of mine in search of easy prey? ...What are you wearing?NEXT TIME: The Witch of the Wilds NEW CODEX CONTENT: Wolf The Korcari Wilds Inferior fucked around with this message at 15:31 on Oct 27, 2019 |
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May 2, 2015 22:32
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I've always wondered about the witch's weird dialog in this scene. It sounds really strange and unnatural.Inferior posted:
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May 2, 2015 22:54
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She probably has really weird tan lines.
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May 3, 2015 00:04
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Inferior posted:
And had a jolly good romp The discovered a flower In search of a tower And many darkspawn did stomp! Inferior posted:
Oh if only you could see end game right now ser Jory, a hundred darkspawn is a warmup.
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May 3, 2015 00:42
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wereboat posted:She probably has really weird tan lines.
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May 3, 2015 00:55
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I likewise had my first party wipe in the Emissary fight (I still think it's pretty dirty pool to have your first mage enemy be behind a bunch of traps, which depending on your origin may also be new). Ever since then for the first couple dungeons, I Baldur's Gate 1 the sucker and have everybody switch to bows and force the enemy to come to you. It even works against ranged enemies if you can get to somewhere they can't shoot you; they'll almost always run up until they can. Then you deal with the Emissary's traps and the tasty, tasty XP. Daveth's history with Duncan is actually a pretty good warning; you can Steal from almost everyone in the camp with no difficulty with a single point in the skill (and your odds are pretty great if you've pumped Cunning), but Duncan is one of the hardest marks in the entire game. Doesn't mean you shouldn't do it; if you don't count "NPCs saying mean things about you," you don't even get punished.  I didn't know Daveth comes with one each Archery and Dual-Wielding, huh. Never bothered to check due to the above, heh. That does remind me that the inability to respec NPCs (and the fact that they come pre-built, as opposed to a ton of empty levels for you to assign) is probably my single biggest gripe with the game.
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May 3, 2015 03:05
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Poil posted:I've always wondered about the witch's weird dialog in this scene. It sounds really strange and unnatural. I assume she's deliberately trying to sound mysterious and vaguely menacing.
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May 3, 2015 05:57
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I remember reading somewhere she speaks in iambic pentameter, but never bothered to check if it's true.
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May 3, 2015 06:20
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I did not know you had to to all that extra crap for those Rigby quests, for some reason I thought you just got the lockbox but I guess not. It is a cool theory for quests but it is tedious and actually really annoying, which seems to be par for the course for Bioware when it comes to first games in a series for them
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May 3, 2015 06:25
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I vaguely remembered those sidequests. Thank Also, you should show off those Chasind robes; they're a riot. Poil posted:I've always wondered about the witch's weird dialog in this scene. It sounds really strange and unnatural. Personally, I thought that there was a reason behind the weird dialogue that's kind of valid when you think about it, but explaining will have to wait until later. 
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May 3, 2015 06:36
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Wayne posted:Daveth's history with Duncan is actually a pretty good warning; you can Steal from almost everyone in the camp with no difficulty with a single point in the skill (and your odds are pretty great if you've pumped Cunning), but Duncan is one of the hardest marks in the entire game. Doesn't mean you shouldn't do it; if you don't count "NPCs saying mean things about you," you don't even get punished. That reminds me of an issue I have with Daveth. Dude's a cutpurse and your first and only rogue if you went warrior or mage. Naturally he has zero skill in lockpicking and can't open a single chest in the wilds.
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May 3, 2015 12:34
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Poil posted:I've always wondered about the witch's weird dialog in this scene. It sounds really strange and unnatural. It's been a long time since I played Origins but I'm pretty sure she's just talking like that because she thinks it makes her sound all mysterious and poo poo. There are other reasons but I think those count as spoilers.
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May 3, 2015 17:12
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Alistair's reaction if you kill that wounded soldier is another of the game's hilarious evil moments.Alistair posted:Does the word insane mean anything to you? .....it's the way he delivers the line.
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May 4, 2015 13:57
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Glad to see there's a DA:O LP going on, especially the screenshot variant. Since I usually read LPs during breaks from work, I don't usually have the luxury to watch a VLP. Also, I'm sure I'm in the minority, but this is my favorite of the DA series.
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May 4, 2015 22:35
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Actually, you're probably in the majority, considering how much poo poo 2 and 3 get.
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May 4, 2015 22:47
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Heir03 posted:Also, I'm sure I'm in the minority, but this is my favorite of the DA series. I don't think you're in the minority. Also I have to say - "favorite of the DA series" is a pretty low bar in a world where DA2 exists. I haven't played Inquisition so I can't judge that.
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May 4, 2015 22:47
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Yeah, I think Origins is the most popular Dragon Age, especially now that people have forgotten the moronic marketing campaign.wereboat posted:I remember reading somewhere she speaks in iambic pentameter, but never bothered to check if it's true. Wayne posted:Daveth's history with Duncan is actually a pretty good warning; you can Steal from almost everyone in the camp with no difficulty with a single point in the skill (and your odds are pretty great if you've pumped Cunning), but Duncan is one of the hardest marks in the entire game. Doesn't mean you shouldn't do it; if you don't count "NPCs saying mean things about you," you don't even get punished. FoolyCharged posted:~limerick time~ 
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May 4, 2015 22:49
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Inferior posted:Yeah, I think Origins is the most popular Dragon Age, especially now that people have forgotten the moronic marketing campaign. well it's no longer The New poo poo soooooooooo it stands to reason people have forgotten! And at least it's not the Button->Awesome Connection or whatever. As in all things, DA2's existence retroactively makes DAO's terrible marketing less terrible.
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May 4, 2015 23:09
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Cathulhu posted:Actually, you're probably in the majority, considering how much poo poo 2 and 3 get. I thought 3 was pretty well received, albeit quite different from the original?
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May 4, 2015 23:19
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Inquisition is quite good, I really enjoyed it. But I still find the more isometric/traditional WRPG feel of DA:O.
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May 5, 2015 00:06
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wereboat posted:I remember reading somewhere she speaks in iambic pentameter, but never bothered to check if it's true. Nope, she's going way over iamb in a few places. I'm going for "seem mysterious".
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May 6, 2015 01:09
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PART 12: JOIN THE GREY WARDENS, THEY SAID. SEE THE WORLD, THEY SAID.Previously posted:On a mission to recover ancient treaties from a ruined tower, our heroes have encountered a mysterious witch...  What say you, hmm? Scavenger or intruder? I am neither. The Grey Wardens once owned this tower. ‘Tis a tower no longer. The Wilds have obviously claimed this desiccated corpse. We're in the middle of a swamp. Desiccated would be an improvement. I have watched your progress for some time. “Where do they go," I wondered, "why are they here?” And now you disturb ashes none have touched for so long. Why is that? Don't answer her. She looks Chasind; and that means others may be nearby. You fear barbarians will swoop down upon you? Yes, swooping is bad. She's a Witch of the Wilds, she is! She'll turn us into toads! Witch of the Wilds? Such idle fancies, those legends. Have you no minds of your own? You there, dwarf. You have nothing to fear from any witch. Tell me your name and I shall tell you mine. Let us be civilized. You can call me Bianca. If you'll be my bodyguard, and I can be your long lost pal. And you may call me Morrigan, if you wish.[Morrigan is the name of an ancient Celtic deity, often described as a goddess of war and death; using crafty magic to turn the tides of battle and forsee men's deaths. She's commonly associated with crows, hence the feathers on this Morrigan's pauldron. While reading up on the legend, I found that there are a pair of hills in County Meath, Ireland called Dá Chich na Morrigna - “Two Breasts of the Mórrígan”. Further research led me to one of Wikipedia's sauciest pages. Then I needed to go have a cold shower. Anyway, where were we?]  Shall I guess your purpose? You sought something in that chest, something that is here no longer? "Here no longer?" You stole them, didn't you? You're... some kind of... sneaky... witch-thief! How very eloquent. How does one steal from dead men? Quite easily, it seems. Those documents are Grey Warden property, and I suggest you return them. I will not, for 'twas not I who removed them. Invoke a name that means nothing here any longer if you wish; I am not threatened. Then who removed them? ‘Twas my mother, in fact. Your mother? Metal Gear? Yes, my mother. Did you assume I spawned from a log? A thieving, weird-talking log, perhaps. Not all in the wilds are monsters. Flowers grow, as well as toads. If you wish, I will take you to my mother. 'Tis not far from here, and you may ask her for your papers, if you like. We should get those treaties, but I dislike this... Morrigan's sudden appearance. It's too convenient. Hmm...Tell us more about your mother, first. She prefers her privacy, but I imagine she will be curious enough why you are here. Come. See for yourself. Why are you interested in helping us? Why not? I do not meet many people here. Are you all so mistrustful? ...I say we go with her. [As this is a gritty extreme RPG, fighting covers your characters with enemy blood. As this isn't Bloodborne, blood spatter is shown by applying an identical texture to every character, regardless of their size or fighting style.] She'll put us all in the pot, she will. Just you watch. If the pot's warmer than this forest, it'd be a nice change. Follow me, then, if it pleases you.LATER...   Greetings, Mother. I bring before you four Grey Wardens who-- I see them, girl. Mmm. Much as I expected. Are we supposed to believe you were expecting us?[Morrigan's mother is voiced by Kate “Janeway” Mulgrew. She does pretty great work as a crazy old woman.]  You are required to do nothing, least of all believe. Shut one's eyes tight or open one's arms wide... either way, one's a fool! She's a witch, I tell you! We shouldn't be talking to her! Quiet, Daveth! If she's really a witch, do you want to make her mad? There is a smart lad. Sadly irrelevant to the larger scheme of things, but it is not I who decides. Believe what you will. And what of you? Does your dwarven mind give you a different viewpoint? What do you believe? I'm no fool, if that's what you're asking. *Laughs* If you must protest so quickly, perhaps I need not ask? So much about you is uncertain... and yet I believe. Do I? Why, it seems I do! So this is a dreaded Witch of the Wilds? Witch of the Wilds, eh? Morrigan must have told you that. She fancies such tales, though she would never admit it! Oh, how she dances under the moon! *Laughs* They did not come to listen to your wild tales, Mother. True, they came for their treaties, yes? And before you begin barking, your precious seal wore off long ago. I have protected these. You... oh. You protected them? And why not? Take them to your Grey Wardens and tell them this Blight's threat is greater than they realize! Wait, wait, wait. No one makes hazily ominous foreshadowing in my presence. What do you mean the threat is greater than they realize? Either the threat is more or they realize less. Or perhaps the threat is nothing! Or perhaps they realize nothing! *Laughs* Great. That's cleared everything up, thanks. Oh, do not mind me. You have what you came for! Time for you to go, then. Do not be ridiculous, girl. These are your guests. Oh, very well. I will show you out of the woods. Follow me.BACK AT OSTAGAR...  [You're sent back to Ostagar once the conversation ends. We can't return to the Wilds now, so good job we completed all those boring quests before talking with Morrigan. Also, Ostagar after dark is technically a different map from Ostagar in the day. This means the Quartermaster's stock has been replenished and we can steal from all the NPCs again.]  Told you we'd get back safe. So the dreaded Witch of the Wilds turned out to be... really helpful. She's probably playing a long game. Scheming up some curses or something.   The mabari is stable for now, but not improving. Unless I get that herb I told you about, there's not much hope. Look what we found. Is this the flower you're looking for? Let me see... yes, that's exactly it, wonderful! Give me a moment and I'll make this into an ointment.*a moment passes*  Woof! He looks better already. I'm sure he'd thank you himself, if he could. What will happen to him now? Let's give him a day or two to recover. Why not come back after the battle? Perhaps we can see about imprinting him on you. You think that's possible? Maybe. It's likely he understands you're responsible for curing him. Mabari are at least as smart as your average tax collector.  Come back after the battle and just... take another look. [Besides wrapping up the dog sidequest we can also finally unlock this chest. You know, the one where we got the key from the rear end of a condemned man.]  [We get some potions and some mage hats. We also get an Injury Kit, which exists due to the game's combat death mechanic. If a character is reduced to 0 HP in a fight, they get resurrected when the fight is over with an “Injury”. This is a permanent debuff that reduces one of their stats by a small amount; for example, a concussion reduces cunning while a fractured leg reduces dexterity. Exactly which injury you get is random, so you can get lucky and take injuries that don't affect your characters' primary statistics, like a warrior picking up a magic debuff. Injuries only affect combat, so you don't get the delight of a heavily concussed protagonist trying to navigate a dialogue tree. Injuries can be removed by using one-shot injury kits, or by resting at a camp, although there are a few long stretches (such as this prologue) where camps are unavailable. Or you could play in Easy difficulty, where injuries don't exist. I like the injury mechanic, it punishes you for getting people killed, but not so severely as to break the game if you have a few bad fights.]   So you return from the Wilds. Have you been successful? Not that it was easy, but yes. Good. I've had the Circle mages preparing. With the blood you've retrieved, we can begin the Joining immediately. Maybe we should tell you about Morrigan and her mother. There was a woman at the tower and her mother had the scrolls. They were both very... odd. And badly dressed. Were they Wilder folk? I don't think so. They might be apostates: mages hiding from the Chantry. I know you were once a templar, Alistair, but Chantry business is not ours. We have the scrolls; let us focus on the Joining. Now will you tell us what this ritual is about? I will not lie; we Grey Wardens pay a heavy price to become what we are. Fate may decree that you pay your price now rather than later. You're saying this ritual can kill us? As could any darkspawn you might face in battle. You would not have been chosen, however, if I did not think you had a chance to survive. Let's go, then. I'm anxious to see this Joining now. I agree. Let's have it done. Then let us begin. Alistair, take them to the old temple.AND SO...  The more I hear about this Joining, the less I like it. Are you blubbering again? Why all these damned tests? Have I not earned my place? Maybe it's tradition. Maybe they're just trying to annoy you. That's what I'd do, if I was Duncan. Calm down. There's nothing we can do about it now. I only know that my wife is in Highever with a child on the way. If they had warned me... it just doesn't seem fair. Would you have come if they'd warned you? Maybe that's why they don't. The Wardens do what they must, right? Including sacrificing us? I'd sacrifice a lot more if I knew it would end the Blight. But we don't know that, Daveth. I didn't come all this way to be anyone's sacrifice. Don't we? The Grey Wardens have saved the world from darkspawn before. I'd say they know better than anyone what it takes. You saw those darkspawn, ser knight. Wouldn't you die to protect your pretty wife from them? I... Maybe you'll die. Maybe we'll all die. If nobody stops the darkspawn, we'll die for sure. I've just never faced a foe I could not engage with my blade.[VIDEO: The Joining]  At last we come to the Joining. The Grey Wardens were founded during the first Blight, when humanity stood on the verge of annihilation. So it was that the first Grey Wardens drank of darkspawn blood and mastered their taint. We're... going to drink the blood of those... those creatures? As the first Grey Wardens did before us, as we did before you. This is the source of our power and our victory. Those who survive the Joining become immune to the taint. We can sense it in the darkspawn and use it to slay the archdemon. Those who survive? Not all who drink the blood will survive and those who do are forever changed. This is why the Joining is a secret. It is the price we pay. We speak only a few words prior to the Joining, but these words have been said since the first. Alistair, if you would? Join us, brothers and sisters. Join us in the shadows where we stand, vigilant. Join us as we carry the duty that cannot be forsworn. And should you perish, know that your sacrifice will not be forgotten and that one day we shall join you. That's all folks. Daveth, step forward. *gulp*   A-a-a-- AAAAAAAAAAGGGGHHHH!!! Maker's breath! I am sorry, Daveth. Step forward, Jory. But... I have a wife. A child! Had I known... No! You ask too much! There is no glory in this!    I am sorry. But the Joining is not yet complete.  You are called upon to submit yourself to the taint for the greater good. From this moment forth, you are a Grey Warden. *FLASH*   NEXT TIME: Everyone's dead and we're all doomed Inferior fucked around with this message at 15:31 on Oct 27, 2019 |
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May 9, 2015 01:15
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Morrigan's mother is... more or less Bioware's self insert. Mysterious, wise, knows more than she lets on, can see the future (or, alternatively, through the fourth wall) and is more than happy to prompt the protagonist in one direction or another.
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May 9, 2015 09:50
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JT Jag posted:Morrigan's mother is... more or less Bioware's self insert. Woah. That explains her design changes in the next game completely! 
Ephraim225 fucked around with this message at 21:06 on May 9, 2015 |
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May 9, 2015 11:10
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Ephraim225 posted:SPOILER Perhaps it would be better to spoiler or redact that? Anyway, Claudia Black and Kate Mulgrew as voice actors were a great catch for Bioware.
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May 9, 2015 11:36
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The way Morrigan pronounces "t'is" pisses me off as does the way her actress mispronounces "Ori" in Stargate SG-1.
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May 9, 2015 15:21
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Torrannor posted:Perhaps it would be better to spoiler or redact that "A character's design changes between games" isn't a spoiler, for fucks sake.
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May 9, 2015 16:59
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"A character is in the next game" is itself a spoiler, because it allows you to conclude they survive the plot of the current game.
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May 9, 2015 17:01
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That whole Grey Warden business is pretty lovely, you only have a 50%(?) chance to survive the joining of the order, aren't told beforehand and cannot change your mind when told, else you get cut down.
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May 9, 2015 17:11
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Torrannor posted:That whole Grey Warden business is pretty lovely, you only have a 50%(?) chance to survive the joining of the order, aren't told beforehand and cannot change your mind when told, else you get cut down. And these are the good guys! Did we mention how dark, gritty, and super mature our game is?
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May 9, 2015 23:50
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Jesus inferior, could you add the white teeth mod? The wooden teeth REALY freak me out 
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May 10, 2015 02:56
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This is the authentic medieval dentistry experience, Siegkrow. Brown teeth for all.Torrannor posted:That whole Grey Warden business is pretty lovely, you only have a 50%(?) chance to survive the joining of the order, aren't told beforehand and cannot change your mind when told, else you get cut down.
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May 10, 2015 10:53
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FoolyCharged posted:And these are the good guys! Did we mention how dark, gritty, and super mature our game is? Inferior posted:I'm surprised that the Joining's still a secret, given the Wardens have been doing if for centuries. It just takes one guy to have an attack of conscience and let someone like Jory escape before the truth's out. 
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May 10, 2015 11:03
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I imagine it's still a secret because it's super loving gross and everybody knows that darkspawn blood is hella poisonous (see the dog handler guy talking about how mabari that get a mouthful of it often die), so even if anybody did escape to tell people about it, they'd be written off as bananas.
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May 10, 2015 14:59
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So, do those dogs become Gray Wardens if they survive?
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May 10, 2015 15:09
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CuwiKhons posted:(see the dog handler guy talking about how mabari that get a mouthful of it often die),
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May 10, 2015 15:13
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my dad posted:So, do those dogs become Gray Wardens if they survive? No, you don't drink "just" darkspawn blood at the joining. It's a mixture of other ingredients with darkspawn blood.
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May 10, 2015 15:40
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Torrannor posted:No, you don't drink "just" darkspawn blood at the joining. It's a mixture of other ingredients with darkspawn blood. A special mix of herbs and spices created by Warden Sanders?
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May 10, 2015 16:05
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