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Post by Daos on Feb 1, 2021 14:39:28 GMT -8
I mean, she didn't; the possibility of a romantic relationship was never even brought up. Unless he counts an attractive woman he spends a lot of time with not actively pursuing a relationship with him as friend-zoning. Which I hope he doesn't, it's kind of a trashy viewpoint. I thought I remember you accidentally romanced him and then had to dump him. |
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Post by GravityEmblem on Feb 1, 2021 14:49:43 GMT -8
I mean, she didn't; the possibility of a romantic relationship was never even brought up. Unless he counts an attractive woman he spends a lot of time with not actively pursuing a relationship with him as friend-zoning. Which I hope he doesn't, it's kind of a trashy viewpoint. I thought I remember you accidentally romanced him and then had to dump him. Well, yes, except the "dumping" consisted of going back in time to make sure a relationship was never initiated. On second thought, maybe he has a reason to get annoyed. But anyway, we found out that the Warden's big plan consists of sacrificing non-mages (and any mages who won't go along with it, I expect) to provide the power for a Blood Magic ritual which can bind a demon to their will. And, conveniently, bind them to Corypheus'. But the Magister and Mages were all killed, leaving Alistair feeling sorry about it. Iris, however, was less sympathetic. ("That's the price they pay for being idiots! The first thing every responsible Blood Mage--that's NOT AN OXYMORON, by the way--the first thing they learn is You Can't Control Demons (TM).") |
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Post by Daos on Feb 1, 2021 15:57:12 GMT -8
The first thing every responsible Blood Mage--that's NOT AN OXYMORON, by the way--the first thing they learn is You Can't Control Demons (TM).A lesson Merrill never learned until it was too late, sadly. |
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Post by GravityEmblem on Feb 2, 2021 6:30:15 GMT -8
The first thing every responsible Blood Mage--that's NOT AN OXYMORON, by the way--the first thing they learn is You Can't Control Demons (TM).A lesson Merrill never learned until it was too late, sadly. I mean, I don't think she tried to control the demon, just to parley with it. In fact, Iris still holds her up as an exemplary example of a responsible Blood Mage, who took along several friends to kill her in case she became an abomination, an outcome she explicitly meant to avoid. Meanwhile, the Keeper willingly took a demon into her body, and told no one, which directly led to the deaths of her entire tribe thanks to poor communication and somehow being less careful with demons than a Blood Mage. But you know, that's just Iris' opinion. Coriander and Kevlan are likely to agree with you, that messing with Blood Magic is inherently dangerous, no matter how careful you are and how pure your intentions. Coriander is less likely to actually blame her for the death of the Keeper and clan, but they both agree that Blood Magic is at fault--once you start messing with demons, there's no way anything can end well. Iris thinks that the stubbornness and stupidity of Maerathari is at fault. I do think they'd all like Merrill, even if Coriander and Kevlan think she's foolish and irresponsible. She shares the honor of being a companion all of my characters would like with Alistair, (arguably) Leiliana, Shale, Ohgren, Varric, Blackwall, and maybe Solas. |
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Post by Daos on Feb 2, 2021 14:07:21 GMT -8
I mean, I don't think she tried to control the demon, just to parley with it. In fact, Iris still holds her up as an exemplary example of a responsible Blood Mage, who took along several friends to kill her in case she became an abomination, an outcome she explicitly meant to avoid. Meanwhile, the Keeper willingly took a demon into her body, and told no one, which directly led to the deaths of her entire tribe thanks to poor communication and somehow being less careful with demons than a Blood Mage. But you know, that's just Iris' opinion. Coriander and Kevlan are likely to agree with you, that messing with Blood Magic is inherently dangerous, no matter how careful you are and how pure your intentions. Coriander is less likely to actually blame her for the death of the Keeper and clan, but they both agree that Blood Magic is at fault--once you start messing with demons, there's no way anything can end well. Iris thinks that the stubbornness and stupidity of Maerathari is at fault. I do think they'd all like Merrill, even if Coriander and Kevlan think she's foolish and irresponsible. She shares the honor of being a companion all of my characters would like with Alistair, (arguably) Leiliana, Shale, Ohgren, Varric, Blackwall, and maybe Solas. Granted, I might be misremembering, but I just remember being frustrated with how little caution Merrill would use with regard to blood magic. Her attitude wasn't of someone who understood they were dealing with powerful forces that could easily backfire. She always insisted that demons were really no different than spirits and that blood magic was really no different than regular magic, and that everyone was making a big deal over nothing. When Anders or Fenris or others would say things like, "Blood Magic is incredibly dangerous!" her reaction was never, " I know, that's why I always take the utmost care," but more, "Pish-posh, you don't know what you're talking about!" She was incredibly naive, at best, and downright stupid at worst. Dealing with her felt like dealing with a kender demolitionist, running around with several sticks of lit dynamite in hand like they were sparklers, going, "Wheee, this is fun!" But I still took her to bed and asked her to move in with me, so what I do know?  As far as Marethari, what she did was stupid, but I can understand her reasoning. She was desperate to protect Merrill and knew she could not stop her from releasing the demon, perhaps being even possessed by it. So she essentially 'took the bullet' for her. Not just to prevent Merrill from being possessed, but perhaps in hopes that the sacrifice would make Merrill see the error of her ways. Maybe I just have more understanding for what she did because it's a position I've been in myself. When you love someone who is on a path of self-destruction, you'll do just about anything to save them from it. |
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Post by GravityEmblem on Feb 2, 2021 14:25:48 GMT -8
I mean, I don't think she tried to control the demon, just to parley with it. In fact, Iris still holds her up as an exemplary example of a responsible Blood Mage, who took along several friends to kill her in case she became an abomination, an outcome she explicitly meant to avoid. Meanwhile, the Keeper willingly took a demon into her body, and told no one, which directly led to the deaths of her entire tribe thanks to poor communication and somehow being less careful with demons than a Blood Mage. But you know, that's just Iris' opinion. Coriander and Kevlan are likely to agree with you, that messing with Blood Magic is inherently dangerous, no matter how careful you are and how pure your intentions. Coriander is less likely to actually blame her for the death of the Keeper and clan, but they both agree that Blood Magic is at fault--once you start messing with demons, there's no way anything can end well. Iris thinks that the stubbornness and stupidity of Maerathari is at fault. I do think they'd all like Merrill, even if Coriander and Kevlan think she's foolish and irresponsible. She shares the honor of being a companion all of my characters would like with Alistair, (arguably) Leiliana, Shale, Ohgren, Varric, Blackwall, and maybe Solas. Granted, I might be misremembering, but I just remember being frustrated with how little caution Merrill would use with regard to blood magic. Her attitude wasn't of someone who understood they were dealing with powerful forces that could easily backfire. She always insisted that demons were really no different than spirits and that blood magic was really no different than regular magic, and that everyone was making a big deal over nothing. When Anders or Fenris or others would say things like, "Blood Magic is incredibly dangerous!" her reaction was never, " I know, that's why I always take the utmost care," but more, "Pish-posh, you don't know what you're talking about!" She was incredibly naive, at best, and downright stupid at worst. Dealing with her felt like dealing with a kender demolitionist, running around with several sticks of lit dynamite in hand like they were sparklers, going, "Wheee, this is fun!" But I still took her to bed and asked her to move in with me, so what I do know? As far as Marethari, what she did was stupid, but I can understand her reasoning. She was desperate to protect Merrill and knew she could not stop her from releasing the demon, perhaps being even possessed by it. So she essentially 'took the bullet' for her. Not just to prevent Merrill from being possessed, but perhaps in hopes that the sacrifice would make Merrill see the error of her ways. Maybe I just have more understanding for what she did because it's a position I've been in myself. When you love someone who is on a path of self-destruction, you'll do just about anything to save them from it. Eh, maybe it was because I was playing the game through an Iris-lense, but I really didn't see her as ignorant of the dangers. Spirits are no different then demons, she does say, but to her, that meant "spirits are no less dangerous then demons" and well as "demons are no less safe then spirits." To quote her: "Anders... There's no such thing as a good spirit. There never was. All spirits are dangerous. I understood that. I'm sorry that you didn't." Aaaaand I'm still not a big fan of Marethari, because...well, first of all, as long as Iris is around, Merrill's gonna keep using Blood Magic. So, you know. Maybe try to convince her that she has a toxic influence on her. AND MAYBE...you know. Tell the clan about your plan. Her plan--I get it. She was trying to keep Merrill safe from the demon. But she didn't tell anyone, which not only put the whole clan in danger from the demon, it directly led to the clan attacking Merrill and everyone in it dying. But you know, different viewpoints. Rivalry with Merrill VS Friendship with Merrill, two sides of the same coin. we should probably stop before this becomes a Dragon Age Internet Argument (TM) |
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Post by Daos on Feb 2, 2021 18:54:09 GMT -8
Well, keep in mind that even if Hawke isn't a bad influence on Merrill, she still does the exact same thing. In fact, she became a blood mage before she ever met Hawke, so they probably aren't much of a factor in Marethari's reasoning.
And Merrill's entire tribe only dies if Hawke encourages her blood magic. In my playthrough, I rivaled her (and therefore kept discouraging her), and the tribe survived, but exiled her. (Marethari dies regardless of what you do, though.)
But like I said, it's been awhile, so I might be misremembering things a bit. I should really find the time some day to replay Exodus and Inquisition, especially before the fourth game comes out. I might have a different perspective now than I did at the time.
Or maybe I should wait and see if they do a trilogy remaster, like they're doing with Mass Effect? (Actually, that seems unlikely, at least not before DA4 comes out, anyway.)
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Post by GravityEmblem on Feb 3, 2021 6:15:35 GMT -8
Well, keep in mind that even if Hawke isn't a bad influence on Merrill, she still does the exact same thing. In fact, she became a blood mage before she ever met Hawke, so they probably aren't much of a factor in Marethari's reasoning. And Merrill's entire tribe only dies if Hawke encourages her blood magic. In my playthrough, I rivaled her (and therefore kept discouraging her), and the tribe survived, but exiled her. (Marethari dies regardless of what you do, though.) According to the wiki, she's exiled if Hawke takes the blame, but they attack and are killed if you tell them to stand down or that Marethari was possessed. So, not a direct Friendship/Rivalry, but a strong correlation. The Rivalry path mentality is that it's the fault of Merrill and Blood Magic for all the tragedies, so those Hawkes are more likely to place the blame in the party's hands. The Friendship path mentality is that it's the fault of Marethari and the clan, so those Hawkes are most likely to attempt to justify what happened. Anyway, I've mostly just been doing sidequests to build up power for Here Lies The Abyss. Boring stuff, busy-work, etc. Though I did do Josephine's personal quest! Siding with Leiliana and her murderness, which triggered some bad memories Joe told Kevlan about. If you haven't done the quest, she signed up as a bard because of the romanticism, but ended up killing a man she thought of as a friend during a scuffle. So she hung up her lute and stabbing instruments to dedicate her life to Diplomacy. So, what would you say is the most effective way to earn power? So far, I'm thinking Rifts and Camps. They're one of the few activities that give you straight-up power, rather than Influence, which gains you power at certain thresholds. (I think) And unlike Requisitions, they don't require scrounging about all over for materials, it's just "Go to Place," "Fight some demons if it's a Rift," "Profit." Still extremely boring, though. Well, at this rate, I'm going to be done with Inquisition about the time 4 comes out. Maybe then, we can make a "Gravity AND Daos' (and Horizons') Journeys Through Dragon Age 4" thread, and all swap stories. |
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Post by Daos on Feb 3, 2021 13:38:08 GMT -8
When I played, I just did everything; the completionist in me insisted on it. So I never was lacking power or influence or anything else, because I would do every single job, quest and sidequest available until moving on to the main story. But from what I remember, rifts and camps are a good way to grind for power.
As for DA4, I think it's still going to be a long time before it's released. We have only had a single teaser trailer for it, we have no release date yet, have not seen any actual gameplay yet, don't know who the companions are yet, and don't even know what it will be called yet (everyone is calling it Dragon Age 4 out of a lack of anything to call it). I'm not sure how far into development they are currently, but I do know they scrapped everything and started over from scratch at one point.
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Post by GravityEmblem on Feb 3, 2021 13:44:22 GMT -8
From what I've heard, they're planning for a Spring 2022 release. So, the game will be done and ready to play in...oh, 5 years or so.
By the way, I reached the power threshold, only to discover I was 3 levels off of the minimum recommended level. ...well, I guess it's back to the sidequests.
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Post by GravityEmblem on Feb 5, 2021 6:14:30 GMT -8
I ended up doing Cassandra's personal quest! First, let it be said that Cassandra rocks. Leliana tracked down the missing Seekers to a castle, overrun by members of a cult known as the Promisers. They're basically Seeker fanboys, except they said "Hey, instead of protecting the world, why don't we just--you know. DESTROY IT?!" It turned out Lord-Seeker Lucius had been slowly sending them to their deaths, here. Cassandra was understandably upset. So was Kevlan. He may not believe in the Maker, but Cassandra considered the Seekers to be her family, her clan, and he understands the pain of losing them. Lucius was duly murdered, and the book of Seekerets (Seeker secrets) was uncovered. Cassandra was shaken by what she discovered in the book: the Seekers had known about a cure for Tranquility all this time. In fact, they invented Tranquility. That was what gave them their sick powers. And yet, they refused to share the cure with the Circles of Magi. She began to doubt that the Seekers were ever truly doing the Maker's work, but Kevlan encouraged her to rebuild them--to make them better. ALSO IRIS' COUSIN IS A RED JENNY!  That was cool. |
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Post by Daos on Feb 5, 2021 13:51:50 GMT -8
I ended up doing Cassandra's personal quest! First, let it be said that Cassandra rocks. She really does.  Cassandra was shaken by what she discovered in the book: the Seekers had known about a cure for Tranquility all this time. In fact, they invented Tranquility. That was what gave them their sick powers. And yet, they refused to share the cure with the Circles of Magi. She began to doubt that the Seekers were ever truly doing the Maker's work, but Kevlan encouraged her to rebuild them--to make them better. Yeah, this was lightly hinted at back in Exodus, when Anders' tranquil friend briefly regained his sense of self. Still, it's a big twist. Not only is there a cure for tranquility, but it turns out that non-mages can be made tranquil, too. Imagine if that sort of info got out to the public. I can only imagine. Wait, Gamlen's daughter? I honestly don't remember that. |
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Post by GravityEmblem on Feb 5, 2021 14:23:28 GMT -8
Cassandra was shaken by what she discovered in the book: the Seekers had known about a cure for Tranquility all this time. In fact, they invented Tranquility. That was what gave them their sick powers. And yet, they refused to share the cure with the Circles of Magi. She began to doubt that the Seekers were ever truly doing the Maker's work, but Kevlan encouraged her to rebuild them--to make them better. Yeah, this was lightly hinted at back in Exodus, when Anders' tranquil friend briefly regained his sense of self. Still, it's a big twist. Not only is there a cure for tranquility, but it turns out that non-mages can be made tranquil, too. Imagine if that sort of info got out to the public. I can only imagine. Wait, Gamlen's daughter? I honestly don't remember that. If it's not her, it's someone in the Free Marches who is also named Charade. Which is, like, a few steps up from naming your kid mistake, but whatever. As for the Tranquility cure, you're right! Who knows what would happen if that got out! A Mage-Templar War, that's what. (Although I didn't quite get if Wynne was releasing it to the public, or just to every Circle) Speaking of Wynne and Asunder, I find her death weirdly hilarious? Because in Origins, she was like "oh, i'm really dead i just have a spirit, im living on borrowed time this will be my last adventure," and she lives for ten years after, and in fact only dies because she gives the Spirit to someone else. Jeez, Wynne is just...unkillable. |
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Post by GravityEmblem on Feb 7, 2021 14:12:29 GMT -8
I finally got around to finishing Solas' personal quest, where we discovered his Spirit of Wisdom friend was summoned by some idiot Kirkwall Circle Mages who were probably influenced badly by Iris. They told her to kill (albeit to defend them) which corrupted her nature, turning her into a Pride demon. We freed her, but Solas still had to kill her, though Kevlan prevented him from murdering the mages. I also met up with the Dalish tribe and completed every side-quest relating to them, which I normally wouldn't bother with, but Kevlan cares about his Dalish brethren.
Also, Cassandra liked me enough to access one of the best quests in any Dragon Age game, where she secretly reads Varric's novels, in which fanfiction terms are thrown around. And he writes the final chapter of his bad romance serial for her. It's lovely and adorable.
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Post by Daos on Feb 7, 2021 20:03:31 GMT -8
Yeah, Cassandra's rival relationship with Varric is one of my favorite parts of the game.
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