peopleofthedas | Entries tagged with discussion: dragon age 2

Who here has DA2 and the Sebastian DLC? I've been thinking of making a deal with myself to buy it, if I can meet certain criteria. First, though, I want to hear more people's detailed thoughts on the matter. And, uh, look up some YouTube videos.

Lots of people have a lot to say about Sebastian and whether he's likable or unlikable, but I'm looking at it from a consumer's POV: I bought DA2 off eBay on the cheap, and the DLC costs about ~~a quarter~~ strike that, I just checked and it's more like half what I paid. I'm not sure if the amount of content in the addon makes it worth the price, and I have heard people say that it feels very unfinished... a general flaw of DA2 in my opinion.

So, I am soliciting as many opinions as possible. Who bought it? What do you think it adds gameplay wise and story wise? Was it worth it? Was it good but overpriced? Do you regret shelling out?

jannifer

The preset slider on the chargen page isn't working. It's lit up and I can move it, but nothing happens. So, right now I'm stuck with the first default fem!Hawke. She's very pretty and uses a hair/skin/eye color combination that I like, but I still want to be able to change her looks. I've also installed the Black Emporium, and the presets don't work there either. Please, please, please! Help meeeeee! (Internet cookies if you get the movie reference.)

Current Mood: frustrated
Current Location: lumpy daybed
Current Music: "Undrentide" Mediaeval Babes

jannifer

...For all your thoughtful replies to my request for info on DAII. I was very pleased to see so many positive replies which still acknowledged the fact that DAO and DAII are completely different games. I thought perhaps that would be the tack I'd need to take.

Current Mood: feeling a bit antsy
Current Location: the less junky daybed
Current Music: "White Rabbit" Jefferson Airplane

jannifer

I'd just like to hear what anyone who cares to comment has to say. DAII has come down enough in price so that I'm considering buying it. I've heard all the criticisms -- lack of story, lack of character development, hate the convo tree, horrible elf morphs, repetitive areas and so on. However, does the game have anything to recommend it? I like series, and I like to get all the installments thereof. However, if DAII is an utter waste of money, I'll just keep replaying DA:O/Awakening and bide myself in patience for DAIII. (And, I really hope they come up with an actual name for the next installment.)

Current Mood: ack!
Current Location: junked up daybed

lokapala

Aaand I continue spamming y'all with lore questions!

So. From time to time, against my best judgment, I go to the BSN boards to read one of the never-ending mages vs templars threads (and it seems that practically any thread that mentions anything even tangentially related to magic & mage characters turns into one). And there is one question that always comes up and that I’ve never seen to be argued with actual examples from the games.

Abominations.

The pro-templar posters say that the problem with mages is that they can get possessed by a demon and turn abomination at any point in time. Just – boom, insta-evil. This is also part of David Gaider’s explanation of the templar POV, with his “kitten that can randomly explode destroying a city block” comparison.

This is the part where I stare at the screen hastily searching my memories of the games, and coming up with... next to nothing that supports these descriptions.

( Am I missing some crucial mage-turns-into-abomination scenes? )

lokapala

After going back to DAO, I finally realised what's been bugging me about the Kirkwall Chantry.

Where is the sodding CHANT?

Where are the Chanters and, er, other people, who are supposed to stand there and sing/recite the Chant? In all of the 10 years Hawke supposedly spends in Kirkwall, we never get to hear it. Gossipers? Politicking mothers? Penitent idiots? Hunted apostates? Yes. Priests reciting the Chant? Nope.

What happened? Did Bioware forget this part of the lore, discard it for some not obvious production reasons, or are we supposed to take from it that, well, the Kirkwall Chantry is heretical?

...Maybe Anders blowing it up was the Maker's retribution :D

Current Mood: confused

lokapala

I've just finished my second playthrough of DA2, and this time, same as the first, I played a Mage supporter. This irks the completionist in me, but my attempts at inventing a Templar-supporting Hawke all end in failure: I don't want to play a blatant hypocrite or a completely egoistical and evil character, and I can't invent enough rationalizations for the pro-Templar path to satisfy me.

So, if anyone is interested in the topic, please, please lend me your brains!

( Here's a lengthy description of pro-Templar decisions )

Current Mood: thoughtful

tevarel

Dragon Age Legacy comes out on 7/26

I presume the same spoiler rules apply since this is story content. :-)

amhran_comhrac

Without a proper toolset the DA2 mod scene is still a bit sparse. A few things have come out that might be worth your attention, though.

One, in particular, inspired my happy dance. There has been one thing I've been howling over in DA2 for ages.
Teeth.

Yeah, they fixed the "hi, I live off unfiltered luckys, coffee, and healthy quantities of brown dye taken orally" issue from DAO...
and replaced it with BLOOD SPLATTERED TEETH.
I don't know about you, but every time I talked to someone with blood on them (basically almost always since you can't go five feet without some gang ambushing you) it looked like they had teeth knocked out.
Not pretty.

I know it can't be just me. I mean, seriously... I've got a decent sized LED monitor. I play with setting on high. I've got direct x 11 enabled. If that looks like missing teeth for me, it must for almost everyone.

And finally... someone made this mod. And I love them for it so very, very much.
No More Blood Splattered Teeth

Other mods of note...

A not too bad Zevran that is a little closer to the DAO look. They also did a Teagan and Alistair set that's worth a gander.

Get rid of the crumb-catcher with Armors De-Shelved

Once that's done, you can put the armor on anyone else. Equip your party lets you play dress up once more. It is not without its flaws, as you lose access to their custom armors.

What about all of you? Seen anything good lately?

Current Location: tropical Buffalo
Current Music: The Smiths- A Rush and a Push and the Land is Ours

amhran_comhrac

This is the first in what will hopefully be an ongoing series of group discussion posts focused on major aspects of the Dragon Age lore.

So... let's talk.
Let's talk about the Chantry

No, not that specific Chantry, mind you. I mean the institution. The belief system. The enormous, glaring, inconsistencies.

A few things are certain. We know a woman named Andraste, born in Denerim, was married to a man named Maferath. We know she was an escaped slave, and led an uprising against the Imperium. A successful uprising, perhaps because she was the "spiritual bride" of the Maker... or perhaps because the Tevinter Imperium was still in shambles from the first blight.

Her husband betrayed her and she was burnt alive.

But beyond that.... It seems like mythology shuffle.

( Seriously, I went to Catholic school and even I'm confused now... )

Current Mood: REDBULL
Current Location: tropical Buffalo
Current Music: Depeche Mode - Stripped

amhran_comhrac

Sorry, I may have overcooked it a bit.
I meant to post about this a couple days ago but forgot.

One Month Left!
That's right, everyone... start prepping your manifestos. We decided three months would be a decent chunk o' time for the spoiler lockdown, which means the floodgates open on June 8.

If you've been putting off that last love interest playthrough, well, there's your inspiration.

In the meantime keep using cuts and tags (and everyone has been awesome about that so far). I just wanted to give everybody a good chunk of advance warning.

And speaking of cuts and tags... don't forget the NSFW/AO checkbox when you're posting that extra spicy Sister Petrice/The Mother/Ser Jory hurt/comfort[1] yarn. We've got a lot of new members, and most haven't had time to learn who the smutpeddlers among us are. (hint: I'm one of them)

...and I almost forgot. There's a new box on the sidebar, titled "Right Now" (as in "right now I'd love it if someone would give me a better title for that thing since that's really a bit too pta newsletter for my tastes") where you will always find any ongoing community prompts, winners of the recent prompt contest, current news... and maybe eventually a few other things we've got cooking up.

[1]the result of me trying to think of the most unappealing DA smut ever to be conceived. Please, don't take it as a challenge! Please

Current Location: tropical Buffalo
Current Music: Amy Winehouse - Me and Mr. Jones

ashfae

( Failed Fenris romance question. )

amhran_comhrac

Remember This? It was fun! Let's go again!

Rules:
1) Pick one or more of your FCs/OCs
2) Fill in the questions/statements as if you were your FC/OC
( Onward- to quiz! )

Current Location: tropical Buffalo

kelcat

So, my anal retentive personality finally paid off and ffnet added the new DA2 characters for me!

We now have:

Fenris
Sebastian
Bethany H.
Aveline

(Maybe now I can get off my butt and write those fics I've been planning)

elysium_fic

So, I was doing Act 2 the other day in the Gallows and caught some very interesting ambient dialogue I hadn't caught before. This is my first visit to the Gallows in Act 2, before the Dissent quest.

( Cut for Act 2 Spoilers )

darkrose

Since

scarylady linked to the cool armor for Fenris, I did some poking around to see what's new on the Nexus.

A lot of the available mods are intended to change the looks of the NPC's in ways that make Darkrose grumpy (lightening Isabela's skin tone; making Aveline's features less strong and distinctive). The lack of a toolset makes creating all new items like the fantastic Phoenix Armory and the Wings of Velvet robes difficult, but there are a few nice item mods out there:

Sunnie's item packs tweak the stats of existing objects in game, and most notably, adjust them so that they evolve as the character levels. Her modded evolving Staff of Parlathan is the only staff I used for Julian, my mage Hawke. I also like the idea of Aveline keeping her original sword and Wesley's shield through Act 1. The one caveat is that the evolving items can be a bit unbalancing, especially at early levels.

Sunnie's Item Packs 1-5
Sunnie's Item Pack 6
Sunnie's Item Pack 7

This mod is also quite useful: it replaces all of the dress-style mage robe models with the jacket/pants combo that doesn't scream "I AM A MAGE!" There do appear to be some issues, and it's definitely a work in progress, but the idea is a good one.

ETA: One of the big issues that caused me to uninstall this mod is that it changes ALL the robes for ALL characters--including NPC's. Karl in the Robes of the Notorious Pirate just doesn't work for me.

The Apostate's Wardrobe

This mod adds additional runes. I haven't actually used it, so I have no idea how it affects game balance, but it was done by a modder whose work I've liked in both Origins and DA2.

Rune Expansion Pack

amhran_comhrac

I've typed out the Malcolm-related codex entries for the new DLC. Figure the DA2 writers among us might be able to use the backstory.

(my DA2 "how they met" fic? Totally, completely shelved in light of this.)

( Four below cut. DA2 spoilers? )

Current Mood: aggravated

darkrose

New items for your Hawke! Only $5!

Information on the actual item stats can be found here.

darkrose

I mean, really:

( Read more... )

elysium_fic

This is a fascinating read. I'm sure I could manage more insightful commentary on it, if not for the fact that I've been sick for a week and a half. So, instead, I'll just fling you a link and say, "read it."

http://azeroth.me/2011/04/the-kirkwallers-guide-to-social-justice/

People of Thedas

Fanfic, fan art, game-play, fun!

Questions about DA2

I Installed DA2, and...

Thank You!

Since I know there are no opionated people here...

Abominations, abominations everywhere!

Chantry question!

Discussion: playing a Templar supporter

Dragon Age 2 DLC out on 7/26

Mods! (no, not the bossy kind... the PC game kind!)

LORE TALK! May the Chant reach the Maker's ears...

News! Get your news, fresh off the griddle!

gah! help please?

Character Interview take two: The Hawkes

Hooray!

It pays to stand still and wait for ambient dialogue to happen

DA2 Item Mods

Malcolm Hawke codexes

DA2 DLC Announced

Danarius...not that bright, actually

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