OK then.
So, as I've previously mentioned, I'd been considering doing a Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age 2 playthrough, with the twist of user feedback driving the main in-game decisions.
For those of you who don't know, DAO is a game published in 2009 by Bioware. It was billed as a "spritual successor" to the extremely popular and critically acclaimed Baldur's Gate series, which made Bioware's name as the creator of stories with multiple, branching endings and convincing, engaging characters.
Bioware chafed a little under the IP restrictions which the owners of Dungeons&Dragons put them under for that series, and so sought to develop their own intellectual property which they could then take in the direction they wanted. After 5 years(!) in development, Dragon Age: Origins was the result.
I won't give too much of the story away, but suffice to say, whicever Origin is chosen, the main character gets drafted into the Grey Wardens, a Templar-esque transnational order of warriors, whose main purpose is to defend against the Blight - periodic invasions by creatures called darkspawn - by any means necessary. And then things get all
complicated. There's more than a hint of influence from certain modern fantasy stories too, such as George RR Martin's
A Song of Fire and Ice, Robert Jordan's
Wheel of Time and (more in the second game) Steven Erikson's
Malazan setting.
Just so you are aware, the choice of Origin does have an in-game impact, and can change the possible choices of how the game ends. The event which causes your drafting will have repurcussions later on in the game, though even if you chose another origin, some of those events will still have happened (the elves in Denerim riot regardless, a power struggle breaks out in Orzammar, Arl Howe kills the Couslands). It can, however, make certain confrontations and story lines have a bit more resonance.
And if you ask me personally, I like either the Human Noble or City Elf (Female) storylines the best, for that resonance.
Gender primarily influences who you can romance in the game. There are always two hetrosexual and one homosexual romance option for each gender. It can also have an influence on the ending, depending on in-game choices and origin story.
There are three classes in the game: Warrior, Rogue and Mage. As per usual, warriors are the heavy hitters and the tanks, who can wear the heaviest armour and use the heaviest weapons, deal out and take the most damage. Rogues are the agile burst DPS specialists - if you really need that one character dead, right now, they're your best friend. Mages are the distance based, crowd control specialists. Blowing things up, setting things on fire, boiling people's blood while its still inside them...you know the drill. They can also heal, however, in a slight departure from standard RPG fare. Don't go crying to a priest if you cut yourself, unless you just want a sermon.
Each class has 4 specializations, which give certain stat bonuses and open up a new talent tree. Rogues get Assassins, Duellists, Rangers and Bards, Warriors get Templars, Champions, Reavers and Beserkers and Mages get Arcane Warrior, Spirit Healer, Shapechanger and Blood Mage. Since they fall under character build and, in some cases, require specialised builds to properly utilise, they will be down to my discretion, though again popular demand may influence me in certain ways.
I've showcased each different type of fighting style in each playthrough. As I intend to keep control of the build for whatever character you select, that doesn't really matter much, but I may take into consideration preferences on the subject. So for warriors, there is sword and shield style, which primarily helps defend the character, there is two-handed weapons which is primarily offensive in nature, there is two-weapons style and archery as well.
Two-weapons and archery are mostly intended for rogues, though they can work on the warrior as well. Two weapons is, of course, up close dual-wielding, and archery involves hanging back and using precision strikes to take down the enemy. And mages are entirely different.
You may also be wondering why my characters are starting off with some high level, powerful gear. These are the result of completing certain achievements for DLC in the game. For instance, the Battledress of the Provocateur involves finding the six scraps of leather in
Leliana's Song, and the Dragonbone Cleaver is obtained by defeating the Varterral on Hard difficulty in
Witch Hunt. They are extremely powerful...but they come with restrictions like all the game items, and since they are high-tier, some of those restrictions mean it can take quite a bit of levelling up before those items are available for the classes they are intended.
In terms of DLC I intend to play...I only think
Awakening,
Witch Hunt and
Leliana's Song have any story impact or are of enough quality to do, besides those which are integrated into the game itself.
Golems of Amgarrak is a slogfest, and after the last time, I refuse to do it on Nightmare again, which I know you sadists would otherwise make me do. Though it
is delightfully creepy, I wont deny. But no-one wants to sit through 500 reloads of "Cain trying to defeat the Reaper and getting frustrated at everything."
Each playthrough was done on Hard difficulty, which the developers consider the "baseline" difficulty for the intended DAO experience (why is this not the Normal setting? People whining, most likely).
I have modded the game...slightly. All my mods fall into three basic categories: bugfixes, graphics and lore.
Bugfixes are simple. When the game shipped, a lot of things didn't work properly. Spells didn't draw threat, archery and two-handed weapon talents didn't work as described or intended, DoT damage for certain talents didn't work...all a mess. A lot of this was patched, but Bioware have limited resources and cannot do everything. Some rewards were also not given.
Graphics are also simple. The game came out 4 years ago. I think the graphics are fairly decent, but they weren't top-notch even back then, and so have suffered in the interim. Some HD textures, tint changes and minor facelifts bring a new clarity to the game.
Lore may be a bit more debateable. One mod replaces the Cousland armory, to give weapons and armor a bit more suited to one of the most ancient noble houses of Ferelden. Steel tier armor, to be exact, with a Silverite blade. The blade has the normal strength restrictions, meaning it wont be used until mid-game at least, but it does come with a minor enchantment and two rune slots. The armor is normal steel armor, but restricted to the main character alone. It also adds a little bit more gold and some jewels to the Cousland treasury.
Another improves Warden's Oath, the necklace you are given when joining the Wardens. It makes it a bit more competitive for end-of-game play, and with an enchantment that makes sense.
A third installs stamina potions, which are included in the expansion pack, but were apparently an oversight for the main game.
Finally, a mod is installed which means skill and talent points are not automatically assigned to the character on creation, allowing a bit more freedom when starting out.
So no godlike weapons, invincibility or nudity mods. Sorry to disappoint.
To start with, we'll have three polls. One poll for origin, race and gender, and one for class. Please note, dwarves do not get to be mages, so don't vote for the dwarf origins, then that. The mage origin is the same regardless of race.
I missed the first half of the Human Noble origin because fraps crashed, but the story is essentially: you are the second child of the noble Cousland family. Your father and brother intend to ride south and join the King at Ostagar, where Ferelden forces are planning to confront the darkspawn. Arl Howe, an old friend of your father, intends to ride south with your father and brother, but his forces have been delayed. And Duncan, a Grey Warden, is at your castle to see Ser Gilmore, in regards to recruiting him to the Wardens. During the night, Arl Howe's men launch a surprise attack on the keep, which is where the action starts.
You may also like to know that Arl Howe is voiced by Tim Curry, who is a great choice. In fact, great voice acting abounds in this game, with some very well known people voicing certain parts.
Human Noble (Warrior, Sword and Shield) playthroughCity Elf (Rogue, Dual-wield) playthroughDalish Elf (Rogue, Archery) playthroughCircle of Magi (Human Male) playthroughDwarf Commoner (Rogue, Dual-wield) playthroughDwarf Noble (Warrior, 2-handed) playthroughThe final part of the Dwarf playthrough is uploaded, it just isn't yet processed. It should be within the next 24 hours, however, so maybe watch that one last.
And as for the polls
Race, Gender and Origin
http://www.easypolls.net/poll.html?p=528e2fd9e4b0988a5cf2a2bcClass poll
http://www.easypolls.net/poll.html?p=528e3df5e4b0988a5cf2a2ffDifficulty poll
http://www.easypolls.net/poll.html?p=528e3e35e4b0988a5cf2a300And just one more question...when commentating, do you want me to read out the character's answer before selecting it? No voice actor voices the main character in this game, as you'll notice. And while on the topic, do you want the Codex entries reading out? Some of the lore is quite interesting, and certain adds to the feeling of the game, but there is a fair bit of it as well. It's up to you guys.
Once an origin is decided, I'll put up another poll with choices relating to that origin.
