#i'd also love to see carver or cassandra

[queen-scribbles]

3 & 7 for the veilguard asks?

3. Do you usually play as a warrior, mage, or rogue? Which class are you planning to try first this time around? Which subclass?

DA:O it's an even split bc you could do dual wielding warriors(rip). DA2 is mostly mages(bc I freaking love Carver and that's the only unmodded way to have him*), and DA:I is an even split between rogues and mages with one or two warriors thrown in as curveballs.

7. Which character from the previous games or other media are you most hoping will make an appearance in DAV?

I know it's a snowball's chance in hell, but Sigrun or Nathaniel from Awakening. I love them and if BW can find ways to handwave Anders' potential death to have him in Awakening, one of my beloveds can surely have a cameo in DA4. (rationalizing, who me?)

DA4 Asks

[stop-breaking-my-heart-dragonage]

who do you think are the most annoying companions from each game?

Hmmmm, that's kind of tough. All of the companions have annoyed me one way or another at some point, but most annoying? in general?

For DAO, I'd say Oghren. I love all of my DAO companions, Oghren included. I think he's a more compelling character than people give him credit for, but his grossness does grate on my nerves easily. Actually, I think he's the only companion I've ever sent back to camp after a party banter triggered because I was like "....alright, that's enough of that, I'm bringing the dog instead."

It's especially bad in Awakening when you have him in a party with Sigrun, but I keep them together because it's worth it to hear her take him down a bunch of pegs while accusing him of being terrified of women.

For DA2, at this point I think it's on brand for me to say Aveline, though Sebastian's a close second. Sebastian's only in second because I straight up forget about him for long periods of time... but then when I do have him in a party, so much of what he says makes me stop and go, ".........Sir, if you could stop talking, that'd be great."

I use Aveline a lot, however. I've talked about my beef with her in several posts, usually when it comes to her dynamic with my Hawke and Carver. But she's also in a position of power while saying things like "people choose to live here? it amazes me" about the people of darktown, and what happened with the elves, I just.... I want to grab her by the shoulders and shake her, she annoys me.

For DAI, that's a hard one... I think most people would say Sera, but honestly? Sera doesn't annoy me any more than the other companions??

I'm really wracking my brain here to remember if anyone annoys me above the others... I don't know! I almost want to say Blackwall solely because of the Thom Rainier thing but that would make me a massive hypocrite! My Lavellan lies about her original identity, too; she's Surana from DAO who escaped the tower with Jowan! I can't be annoyed at Blackwall for lying!

Cassandra annoys me with her Chantry bullshit, Bull annoys me with the qun bullshit, Solas annoys me when he shit talks about the Dalish, Dorian gets fed to a high dragon every time I hear him talk about "well slavery's not ALL bad-", Vivienne and Blackwall are made to wear The Armor of Shame every time I get sick of their bickering, I threaten to take Bianca away every time Varric talks about Anders, like.... y'know what? Everyone but Cole.

Cole is the only companion in DAI who doesn't annoy me, let's put it like that because I can't honestly decide.

But this could change, like it's been a hot minute since I've replayed DAI and I'm currently replaying the series soooo.... we'll see.

[nightingaletrash]

1, 2, 4, 7, 12, and 20 for the DAV asks??? (Hopefully not too many ;w;)

There's no such thing as too many!! :D

I already answered 1 and 4 in another ask, but I'll copy-paste them below a cut for you ^^

2. Which Dragon Age game is your favorite so far?

Gotta be da2, it's the game that compels me most in terms of story and characters. I love that it's a tragedy, that the ending never changes no matter what you do because you are a little guy against an overwhelming forces BUT what you do still matters - Hawke is my favourite Dragon Age protagonist and I will love them forever because they might not have power in the overarching story, but in the little things? In the everyday lives of people? Hawke matters so much, they help people and make things a little better for them, and they did their best. It's not a perfect game, but it's a game that makes me feel a lot of things, and I love that <3

7. Which character from the previous games or other media are you most hoping will make an appearance in DAV?

Isabela, Dorian, Maevaris, Fenris, Vaea, Francesca, Valta, Calpernia, Valya, ISSEYA (not in-person obvs, but I'm begging for just one mention of my aroace Warden Queen, she deserves acknowledgement), Sandal <3

(there's definitely someone I'm forgetting but these are the ones I know for sure I want to see in some fashion)

12. What's one thing you're hoping we DON'T see in this next game?

Anders.

jks I know bioware won't bring him back now but I genuinely struggle to think of what I don't want because shard searching, multiplayer and micro-transactions are confirmed to be gone for Veilguard :D

20. Post a picture or gif that conveys your current level of excitement for Dragon Age: The Veilguard!

an accurate representation of the goblin in my brain <3

1. What was the first Dragon Age game you played?

Origins!! It was back in 2014 - I'd seen some Inquisition clips and looked into the series, and decided to start right at the beginning ^^

4. What does your worldstate look like going into DAV?

This... got lengthy, but here is my canon world state for Dragon Age:

Origins: Warden was a female Human Mage who romanced Leliana; Redcliffe was saved, sided with Mages, Connor was freed from possession, Anvil was destroyed, Bhelen was crowned King, Zathrian sacrificed himself to end the curse, the Urn Sacred Ashes was preserved, all companions recruited, Alistair became a drunk, Anora was crowned as Queen alone, Warden performed the Dark Ritual (modded lol), Avernus was spared and allowed to continue experiments, Shale rediscovered their past, and Morrigan was allowed to leave through the Eluvian

2: Hawke was a female Mage who romanced Isabela; Bethany died escaping Lothering, accepted Merchant Cavril's bribe and worked for the mercenaries, protected the mages without killing Karras, sent Feynriel to the Dalish then to Tevinter, Carver became a Grey Warden, killed Bartrand, Aveline married Donnic, didn't side with Petrice, killed the Arishok, made Tallis angry, sided with Janeka and killed Larius, Varric didn't keep the idol, killed Castillon, helped Merrill leave her people peacefully and preserved the Eluvian, let Zevran go, let Keran go, turned conspirators over to Orsino, reunited Gamlen and Charade, helped Anders, killed Anders, sided with Orsino

(I also have a rogue Hawke who is the twin brother to Marian; he romanced Fenris, helped Tallis, and sided with Larius)

Inquisition: Inquisitor was a Female Elven Mage and Merciful Judge who romanced Solas; denied being Andraste's Herald, helped refugees in the Hinterlands, recruited and dissolved the Templar Order, declared for the Inquisitor, left Hawke in the Fade, recruited the Grey Wardens, Celene rules and was reunited with Briala, Dorian reconciled with father and planned to return to Tevinter, Blackwall redeemed as Rainier, Bull saved the Chargers and became Tal-Vashoth, Cassandra discovered the book and rebuilt the Seekers, Sera killed Harmond, Cole became more human, Solas freed his friend, helped Varric track the red lyrium source, Vivienne was given the heart of the snowy wyvern, Cullen did not take lyrium, Josephine and the Inquisitor did favours for the du Paraquettes, Leliana was inspired, Calpernia's past was investigated, respected the Temple Guardians, spoke to Calpernia, Inquisitor drank from the Well, Leliana became Divine Victoria; shared the truth about Ameridan, earned a legend mark from the Avvar, discovered the source of the tremors, Bull stayed loyal, redeem Solas, disbanded the Inquisition. Additionally, Inquisition forces were deployed regularly, all keeps were captured, lake rift was closed, and Sutherland's company was successful.

[stop-breaking-my-heart-dragonage]

So you mentioned how you leave Hawke in the fade, do you ever bring Varric with on that quest? (Maybe I'm just a sucker for angst ((which I totally am cuz for my canon warden I have her date a soft Alistair who is pissed and dumbs her when she makes him king and then she makes the ultimate sacrifice and Alistair is devastated he never got to talk it out with her)) so I always take Varric and Cassandra with cuz I think it's nuts that the game doesn't have him react in the fade to leaving Hawke. So I picture a dramatic speech like fuck this Hawke let someone else be the hero for once, you deserve to live. And Cassandra is there seeing someone she put on a pedestal and saw as an unstoppable hero met their end.)

I've brought a few different combos into the fade but my favorite combo is definitely Varric/Cassandra/Solas; Varric because of Hawke, Cassandra because of Divine Justinia, and Solas for the fade itself.

I love and hate the fade quest for a number of reasons, but the part of me that revels in angst just adores it, it's such a heartbreaking part of Inquisition's story. I keep Alistair a Grey Warden, so it becomes a final choice of either making him stay behind, or my Hawke, Ed... it's a brutal choice that ends with Ed staying behind.

The meta reason for making this choice is I love Alistair too much. I want him and my warden to remain together until the end so I'd leave nearly anyone in the fade just to save him. And I don't want to make him king just to avoid the hard choice; he never wanted it, and Rose wasn't ever going to force it onto him.

But from a story-telling standpoint, Ed staying behind hurts so much because that's literally his fear; if he had his own fear engraved tombstone in the fade, it'd say something like "Abandonment" or "Being Left Behind." It's one of the reasons he stays by Anders' side after the events of DA2 despite ending their romantic relationship, he can't abandon the man he's loved for years even when everyone tells him he should....until, of course, we get to the fade and he feels he no longer has a choice.

Ed never wanted to be some hero or champion, but it's so engrained in his identity now that he constantly feels the burden of sacrificing pieces of himself for others. He feels the guilt of every loss he's suffered, whether it was actually his fault or not. In his mind, no matter how much it hurts, or who it hurts, it's the "right" choice to leave him behind... he's read enough of Varric's tragedies to know how this goes.

I also headcanon that when Carver's made a warden, he goes back to Fereldan to serve under the Hero of Fereldan and becomes best friends with Alistair. So I imagine that's another reason Ed insists he be the one to cover them. He went to great lengths to keep his brother out of this mess [even though Carver protested every step of the way] and doesn't want Carver to lose his best friend, even though he would also be devastated to lose his brother, but y'know.... Ed's just like, "Tell Carver I'm sorry, and that I always thought the world of him."

Even as Alistair, who never got to know his brother and dreamed about meeting his sister only for her to reject him, argued back... it's no use. Ed made up his mind to face his greatest fear to save them, and Ash begrudgingly agrees with him.

As for Varric, it hurts to watch him ask happened to Hawke... and then to listen to him recount a story about the kind of person Hawke was... and to give him a comforting hug... it all hurts.

But... that being said, I have thought about possibly doing a run where I do leave Alistair behind in a worldstate where Rose made the ultimate sacrifice. Alistair lost her and became disillusioned with the Grey Wardens, only remaining because what else is there for him? When it comes to someone staying in the fade, he insists it be him. He faces the nightmare as Hawke and the Inquisitor escape, and mutters under his breath, "Wait for me a little longer, my love," before attacking.

...because why not break my own heart some more, y'know?

Whether I'll be brave enough to attempt that is yet to be seen.