Dragon Age II - Gen. Discussion and Info - Mark of the Assassin DLC 10/11 800 pts.

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[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']You are an extraordinary gentlemen. I'm going to keep tabs on the thread to see what the word is. If demand has already reached critical mass I don't want to waste my time. CAG has a legion of ungrateful lurkers from all over the world itching to ruin a good thing before our community gets first crack at it.[/QUOTE]
Well I just hope that no one at EA customer support gets in trouble over giving away codes that they weren't supposed to. :whistle2:# I praised my CSR as effusively as possible in my incident survey for whatever that's worth. :applause:
 
Before anybody tries it, you cannot socially engineer them. I figured I'd try the chat again and pretend like I had the Antivan code but it wasn't working. Well, they actually ask for the code, so I provided them the one I got with my amazon e-mail. Then, they actually check it against your account, at which point I just basically said 'whoops, must have had wrong code." So, you'll have to actually be legit for that one.
 
Ok ok, finally I can't figure out how to equip runes. The manual said to use the enchanting apparatus, ah where? Can anyone help out? Is this a table in town or in your house? I'd also like to insert the poison onto my awesome sword that I got from the Sig Ed but can't figure out how to implement that either.
Click to expand...

Anyone?
 
[quote name='Spybreak8']Anyone?[/QUOTE]
I didn't figure this out right away either. You need to go see Sandal in the area of Kirkwall with the dwarf statues (act 1), or in your house (act 2).
 
I am loving how party composition can lead to some really funny bits in cut scenes.

In act 2, when Bran tells you that he's sure he doesn't know where you would find an unsavory character--

Anders: "The Hanged Man."

Merrill: "Hanged Man."

Sebastian: "... Even I knew that."

:lol:
 
It seems I forgot about the place where Sandal was, ha funny. Enchantment! Never gets old

I'm glad they carried over the conversations within your party from Mass Effect 2; yeah you can hear some interesting conversations.
 
[quote name='Ryuukishi']I am loving how party composition can lead to some really funny bits in cut scenes.

In act 2, when Bran tells you that he's sure he doesn't know where you would find an unsavory character--

Anders: "The Hanged Man."

Merrill: "Hanged Man."

Sebastian: "... Even I knew that."

:lol:
[/QUOTE]


Haha, yeah. That was pretty damned funny. Another funny part is
Anders is on your when King Alistair visits Kirkwall and they exchange similar phrases. Also, Swooping is bad!

I'm pretty happy at how difficult the bosses are (dragons, golems, rock wraiths, etc) are within the game. They're not pushovers like they were in Dragon Age.

For the longest time I was having trouble figuring a third member out for my team. What I had was my Hawke (2h Warrior), Avaline (tank) and Anders (healer). I wanted a rogue but Varric and Isabella weren't doing it for me and eventually I gave Sebastian a shot and he proved more worthy than the other rogues, but my group just felt less than what it should be. I'm using Merrill now and Spirit buffs are pretty damned good. I'm also curious if I even need Avaline as a tank.
 
[quote name='Spybreak8']Anyone?[/QUOTE]

You equip runes by going to your old friend Sandal, right? That's how I did it last night without a problem. I had two runes and equipped them both no problem.
 
[quote name='Ryuukishi'] I'm just not going to give too much thought to why the stick figures in that comic have genitals.

*backs away slowly*[/QUOTE]

I actually thought they were semen stains. But that didn't make too much sense considering all the stains are the same size, and I don't know why someone would ejaculate when they're scared shitless.
 
So people who have gotten to Act 3, what did you choose at the beginning?

I
Didn't side with either. Just wondering what happens if you side with either of them
 
Man everyone else you're making me look bad haha. I'm still in Act 1 and just got to lvl 9 last night. Does anybody else read ALL the codex entries like I do?! It's unbelievable what Bioware created as this world and such. I like Lord of the Rings like the next person but this fantasy world is great! It's funny I was given the same information in DA:O but I was like meh.
 
Yeah, I've done that in all Bioware games. The codex entries are just so well put together and I wouldn't mind buying a compilation of the codex entries from Dragon Age (Mass Effect, too!).
 
[quote name='whoknows']So people who have gotten to Act 3, what did you choose at the beginning?[/QUOTE]
I sided with Orsino. I still get quests from Meredith but in conversation she openly treats me as en enemy of the Templars. I also got the 'Arcane Defender' achievement when I went against her.

I'm not reading the codex entries too closely-- too anxious to keep the plot going. :) In my second playthrough I'll really dive into them and read everything. I agree that it's amazing how deep and well though out this world is, and it gets better with every game.
 
The Digital Foundry head-to-head is out. Overall verdict is very close, but slight edge to the PS3 version over Xbox 360-- though it really comes down to your preference between lower frame rate (360) and more screen tear (PS3).

I've run into only one story-related bug so far (spoilers for one of Merrill's companion quests):
The first time I went to see her after the start of act 3, the conversation that played out was about the death of Marethari. It came out of nowhere and I was like, wha?? Since actually doing the quest, the conversation hasn't repeated, I guess since the game marked it as complete.
 
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[quote name='GhostShark']Yeah, I've done that in all Bioware games. The codex entries are just so well put together and I wouldn't mind buying a compilation of the codex entries from Dragon Age (Mass Effect, too!).[/QUOTE]

I remember wanting something like this ever since I heard the idea come up in a Bombcast. The lore in Bioware puts into it's games is fantastic.
 
Ending spoilers:

Damn, cliffhanger ending! I wonder if Dragon Age III will be a direct sequel. Or maybe the DLC will tie up the story of Hawke.

I sided with the mages and I'm really curious to know how things play out if you side with the Templars instead. Is Meredith still the final boss? Do you lose Anders/Bethany/Merrill instead of Fenris? Is there still a worldwide mage revolt?

(I'm also super curious about a playthrough as an apostate mage, where you side with the Templars. I mean obviously the game will let you do it, but what kind of dialog could BioWare write that would make it make any sense whatsoever?)

Very tough choice at the end! Even though I had been on the mages' side pretty much throughout, I was so disgusted with Anders at that point that part of me wanted to just kill them all. I seriously had to sit and think about it for a little while. :) Finally I decided I couldn't let the Templars kill Bethany, no matter what.

I did kill Anders, which felt right, though I regretted having to kill Fenris as well. I had also lost Isabela at the end of act 2, so the party was starting to feel pretty thin at the end. I was very relieved to get Bethany back, especially since I had just killed my only healer.

My final time was just over 27 hours, and I had done the majority of the sidequests if not all. Awesome game, I'm already ready to dive back in for a second playthrough.
 
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[quote name='RichMeisterMan']Where do I get companion armor? I can't find any bits to go with them![/QUOTE]

Shops, mostly. Here's the list; and note that each piece is available for only one Act:

[quote name='http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/rpg/dragon-age-2/show_msgs.php?topic_id=m-1-58400230&pid=98896']Bethany
-Heirloom Amell Protective Sigils (Act 1, found during Birthright quest)

Carver
-Fereldan Girded Plating (Act 1, found during Birthright quest)

Aveline
- Underplating Guardsman Pattern (Act 1, armor shop in Lowtown)
- Impact Plating (Act 2, armor shop in Lowtown)
- Flex Chain Guardsman Pattern (Act 2, found during Raiders of the Cliffs quest)
- Deflecting Joints Guardsman Pattern (Act 3, found during Favored and Fault quest)

Varric
-Inscribed Leather Harness (Act 1, Apparel shop in Lowtown)
-Coat Lining with Concealed Pockets (Act 2, Shady Merchandise shop in Docks)
- Silverite Reinforced Buckles (Act 2, found during Family Matter quest)
- Drakeskin Leg Straps (Act 3, found during Finding Nathaniel quest)

Anders
- Armor Struts (Act 2, Lirene's Fereldan Imports shop in Lowtown)
- Lyrium Weave (Act 2, Mage Goods, shop in Gallows Courtyard)
- Spirit Essence (Act 2, found during Dissent quest)
- Sigil of the Mage Underground (Act 3, found during Best Served Cold quest)

Merrill
- Samite Lining (Act 2, Robes by Jean Luc shop in Hightown)
- Carved Ironwood Buttons (Act 2, Dalish shop in Sundermount)
- Silver Threaded Dalish Embroidery (Act 2, top of Sundermount)
- Halia Horn Buckles (Act 3, found during A New Path quest)

Isabella
- Rigid Boning (Act 2, Apparel Shop in Lowtown
- Supportive Corselet (Act 2, Robes by Jean Luc shop in Hightown)
- Lambswool Insoles (Act 2, found during To Catch a Thief quest)
- Boiled Leather Plates (Act 3, found during A Murder of Crows quest)

Fenris
- Tevinter Spirit Symbol (Act 2, Robes by Jean Luc shop in Hightown)
- Lyrium Scales (Act 2, Shady Merchandise shop at the Docks)
- Reinforced Scraps (Act 2, found during A Bitter Pill quest)
- Enchanted Resin (Act 3, found during Mine Massacre quest)

Sebastian
- Enchanted Articulation(Act 2, Armor shop in Gallows Courtyard)
- Reinforced Bracers (Act 2, Olaf's Armory in Hightown)
- Mail Undertunic (Act 2, found during Repentance quest)
- Protection of the Faith (Act 3, found during Best Served Cold quest)[/QUOTE]
 
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Got a quick question!

Does anybody know if the achievements tied to the Exiled Prince DLC are bugged out?
I met with the hidden figure (Leliana) and got no achievement. I confronted the culprit of his family's murder (and in turn murdered them). And I gave Sebastian his grandfather's bow as an heirloom
.

I did all of those and didn't get any of the achievements for it.
 
[quote name='GhostShark']Got a quick question!

Does anybody know if the achievements tied to the Exiled Prince DLC are bugged out? [/QUOTE]
Yes, they are glitched right now and impossible to unlock. I haven't heard anything about a patch yet, but hopefully it will come soon and it will award the achievements retroactively.
 
[quote name='Spybreak8']Crap I got most of them but missed Ander's upgrade for Act 1. Man am I so glad dragons are easier to kill in DA2 lol.[/QUOTE]

It's actually in Act 2. I fixed it.
 
[quote name='Ryuukishi']Ending spoilers:

Damn, cliffhanger ending! I wonder if Dragon Age III will be a direct sequel. Or maybe the DLC will tie up the story of Hawke.

I sided with the mages and I'm really curious to know how things play out if you side with the Templars instead. Is Meredith still the final boss? Do you lose Anders/Bethany/Merrill instead of Fenris? Is there still a worldwide mage revolt?

(I'm also super curious about a playthrough as an apostate mage, where you side with the Templars. I mean obviously the game will let you do it, but what kind of dialog could BioWare write that would make it make any sense whatsoever?)

Very tough choice at the end! Even though I had been on the mages' side pretty much throughout, I was so disgusted with Anders at that point that part of me wanted to just kill them all. I seriously had to sit and think about it for a little while. :) Finally I decided I couldn't let the Templars kill Bethany, no matter what.

I did kill Anders, which felt right, though I regretted having to kill Fenris as well. I had also lost Isabela at the end of act 2, so the party was starting to feel pretty thin at the end. I was very relieved to get Bethany back, especially since I had just killed my only healer.

My final time was just over 27 hours, and I had done the majority of the sidequests if not all. Awesome game, I'm already ready to dive back in for a second playthrough.
[/QUOTE]

I
Did the same thing pretty much but I didn't kill Anders since I needed him for healing :lol:
I actually have a save right before you have to choose, so I'm going to go back and side with Meredith and see what happens. I'm guessing the ending will be pretty much the same, but we'll see.
 
I got the free DLC from the EA chat myself just now. Didn't ask for the new Antivan thing though.

Pretty cool that EA is willing to do this.
 
I hope they fix the damn DLC achievements soon. I'm well into Act 2 and will have to stop playing if not fixed soon since Duty you can't do in Act 3.
 
[quote name='Hell Monkey']I hope they fix the damn DLC achievements soon. I'm well into Act 2 and will have to stop playing if not fixed soon since Duty you can't do in Act 3.[/QUOTE]

Yeah I kept a save file right before completing that quest but then saved over it since I'll probably play this game again. Besides it's not too far into the game if you start another playthrough.
 
[quote name='MSUHitman']Well I know Joe2187 beat the game tonight, has anyone else? I'm near the end of Act 2.[/QUOTE]

I'm also near the end of Act 2.
 
[quote name='MSUHitman']Well I know Joe2187 beat the game tonight, has anyone else? I'm near the end of Act 2.[/QUOTE]
Finished it Saturday night with 27 hours on the clock.

I started a new game as a male rogue, this time with guide in hand to mop up the achievements I missed.
 
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[quote name='MSUHitman']Well I know Joe2187 beat the game tonight, has anyone else? I'm near the end of Act 2.[/QUOTE]

I beat it around the same time Ryuukishi did. It took me about 31 hours. I just started a Female Rogue and I'm going to do almost everything opposite of what I did on my male warrior.
 
Personally, I enjoyed Dragon Age II a lot more than the first. It's a subjective thing, but I just find the story, characters, and setting a lot more compelling than the first game. Like in Awakening, almost every character "hooked" me and made me want to know their story, unlike in Origins where Morrigan and Shale were the only companions that I found interesting at all. I also vastly prefer the voiced protagonist and the tone-based dialog wheel for conversation.

I think the changes to gameplay are overstated for the most part, but those changes that are there are mostly positive. There's no doubt that things like inventory are streamlined and simplified, in somewhat the same way as the change from Mass Effect to ME2. In both cases I see that as a positive direction but again, YMMV. Honestly though, for the most part, it plays and feels very similar to Origins.

There is a lot of environment reuse in this game, just like in Mass Effect 1, which is disappointing. It's kind of a small thing but it does make the game feel a little low-rent. On the other hand, the voice cast is impeccable and the characters animate a lot more naturally than in Origins.
 
I got this on Friday and played a little over 10 hours on the weekend.

I find it better than DA:O in pretty much every way. I honestly don't really think the combat system worked on 360 for DA:O. DA2 is much more streamlined and I find most of it works well. I struggled with tactics in DA:O, in DA2 they work very well. There's one warrior ability that I can't get Aveline to use right (the dash/charge one). I also liked that they really toned down the sustained abilities and put in upgrades, so if you want to play a simpler game you can. Just upgrade your favorite abilities and spam those.

I don't totally get the stagger/brittle/disorientate system. Does pinned shot only disorientate pinned enemies when upgraded?? Do upgraded cold spells only brittle frozen enemies??? Pummel strike only staggers stunned enemies I think, so you have to stun them first with a rogue then stagger them with the warrior. So in tactics you would want to set pummel strike to be used on stunned enemies (is this right?).

I find the story and characters to be much more like DA:Awakenings than DA:O (which is a good thing). I really like that the story and characters are totally hidden from new players. I found the Tolken-esque story of DA:O to be a little ho-hum. They spent all this time saying it's "Dark fantasy", but then it was just a Lord of the Rings world and story.

So anyway, my opinion so far is DA2>DA:A>DA:O.
 
I've come to notice that Eve Myles (from Torchwood and some Doctor Who episodes) voiced Merrill. She has a fucking sexy voice.

I, too, am a huge fan of the voice acting for Hawke and the new dialog wheel. I'm going through as sarcastic and witty on my rogue and some of the lines are pretty funny.
 
[quote name='Ryuukishi']Personally, I enjoyed Dragon Age II a lot more than the first. It's a subjective thing, but I just find the story, characters, and setting a lot more compelling than the first game. Like in Awakening, almost every character "hooked" me and made me want to know their story, unlike in Origins where Morrigan and Shale were the only companions that I found interesting at all. I also vastly prefer the voiced protagonist and the tone-based dialog wheel for conversation.

I think the changes to gameplay are overstated for the most part, but those changes that are there are mostly positive. There's no doubt that things like inventory are streamlined and simplified, in somewhat the same way as the change from Mass Effect to ME2. In both cases I see that as a positive direction but again, YMMV. Honestly though, for the most part, it plays and feels very similar to Origins.

There is a lot of environment reuse in this game, just like in Mass Effect 1, which is disappointing. It's kind of a small thing but it does make the game feel a little low-rent. On the other hand, the voice cast is impeccable and the characters animate a lot more naturally than in Origins.[/QUOTE]

Agreed, some of the caves or interior spaces make you go hmm I know where to go because around this corner there is a door, yup. That's kinda good but kinda bad since you can navigate better but you're also told, subconsciously, you're in a game world where there are cookie cutter levels. I do agree though that the story, characters and environment are way better than Origins. I have to agree I absolutely didn't feel anything for most of the characters in Origins but I feel for all the characters, mainly with the superb voice acting and writing, in DA2. It's actually a beautiful Fantasy world and glad they didn't go the typical Tolkien way of presenting and telling it.

Oh also forgot, the animations are great but I was shocked to see the same order a drink>drink it>shake head>step back series of animations I've seen oh so many times in Mass Effect 2.

Coincidently I just got Awakening in the mail because I ordered it from Newegg before DA2 shipped although DA2 had quicker shipping thanks to Amazon lol. So If I beat DA2 then I guess I'll try to finish my DA:O playthough and then go to Awakening or should I just skip to Awakening?
 
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[quote name='Spybreak8']Coincidently I just got Awakening in the mail because I ordered it from Newegg before DA2 shipped although DA2 had quicker shipping thanks to Amazon lol. So If I beat DA2 then I guess I'll try to finish my DA:O playthough and then go to Awakening or should I just skip to Awakening?[/QUOTE]
I would go ahead and finish Origins since it directly continues into Awakening. But I totally agree with waka above-- DA2 > DA:O-A > DA:O. I don't know exactly how to put my finger on it, but DA2 and Awakening share a certain "flavor" in the storytelling and the personalities of the companions, that's pretty different from Origins.

I do think that with each game in the series, they are getting more comfortable with the world they've created. Like in Origins, so many things felt like they could have come straight out of Tolkien, but since then they get further from that and deeper into their own unique flavor.
 
[quote name='Ryuukishi']Finished it Saturday night with 27 hours on the clock.

I started a new game as a male rogue, this time with guide in hand to mop up the achievements I missed.[/QUOTE]

Good lord, 27-35 hours?! I've put that much time in the game and I'm only at the end of Act 2. I have about 2 or 3 side quests left before I start the end of Act 2.

I'm playing on normal as a female warrior, only been wiped twice, got the no one knocked unconscious achievement for Act 1. Did every single quest in Act 1 except the gift one for the sibling because I didn't find it on the mission I was supposed to find it on, and I'll do every quest on Act 2.

My team was primarily FemHawke, Bethany, Isabella, and Anders for Act 1 and in Act 2 I've been alternating Varric and Merrill in someone's spot.

If you want the choices in Awakening to carry over (including some quests being triggered/not triggered in 2) then you will want to do Awakening first. The save system goes:

Origins > Awakening > Golems > Witch Hunt

One thing Bioware did right with Awakening and DA 2 was up the amount of banter between party members in areas that makes their individual character traits come out better. What they did wrong IMO was not having a central location/hub where you interact with them as you can only really interact with them when the game tells you you can. In DA:O and the Mass Effect series you can interact with everyone in between missions while this game forces it at certain intervals.

Also hate the ME 1 syndrome of reusing environments. Makes me greatly worried about ME 3 since it only has a 1.5 year turnaround time frame as well.
 
[quote name='MSUHitman']If you want the choices in Awakening to carry over (including some quests being triggered/not triggered in 2) then you will want to do Awakening first. The save system goes:

Origins > Awakening > Golems > Witch Hunt[/QUOTE]So, since I'm slogging through DA: O in the beginnings, I should wait on doing Golems and Witch Hunt until after I've done DA: O - A? The other DLC missions for DA: O won't have bearings on DA2, so they can be done at any time?
 
[quote name='MSUHitman']Good lord, 27-35 hours?! I've put that much time in the game and I'm only at the end of Act 2. I have about 2 or 3 side quests left before I start the end of Act 2.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, I don't know. I don't feel like I rushed or anything. I did pretty much every sidequest that I encountered, though I know I missed the companion quests for Fenris and Isabela since I never built up adequate friendship or rivalry with them. Also some of the ones where there was no objective marker because you just had to find X number of books or whatever on your own, I didn't finish all of those if I hadn't naturally found them all by the time I was ready to move the plot along. Combat went very quickly since I was playing on Casual. Also, Act 1 is by far the longest, Act 2 is a good deal shorter, and Act 3 is over in a flash.

To those who have finished,

what do you think about having Anders, the party's only healer unless Hawke is a mage, play the role in the story that he does, such that you could end up opposing him or even killing him in Act 3? It definitely raises the stakes of the decision you need to make, since it becomes a pivotal party-composition decision instead of only a role-playing decision. From one perspective, it makes the decision that more dramatic and consequential, but from the other side could look like shunting players into a certain story outcome because of a gameplay mechanic. And if you need to stop and consider whether to make a decision you don't agree with just because you depend on the unique skills that a specific character brings to your party, is that meta-gaming, or is it still role-playing? It's food for thought in any case.
 
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I have such a love-hate relationship with this game right now.

Though I may have to add "fear" in there, as presently I'm very much afraid that Merrill's sidequests are bugged to the point that I won't be able to continue with them.

We shall see.
 
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