#rivage elder

[enolezdrata]

I'm happy for him more than any other character

[arisenreborn]

DD2 text posts: NPC's (with spoilers!)

[lisa-and-shadow]

So you know the gigantus (Talos) that appears at the end of the game. Did anyone else notice the decaying relic of a previous gigantus torso that's protruding from the rocks at the Volcanic Base Camp?

The Rivage Elder tells us the gigantus is controlled by the Brine, and is sent to stop the Dragon from "acting in excess". But he says he doesn't know what that means.

In our game, Talos is sent to stop Phaesus instead of the Dragon. (Because he was threatening the cycle.)

So it would seem that during at least one previous cycle, the gigantus was deployed and destroyed in almost the same spot.

I wonder what happened during THAT cycle. How long has this been here? Is the gigantus common knowledge? Because now I'm wondering if that's what the ballista are for. I had thought they were for the drake that lives on the beach, but now I don't know.

I have many questions.

[transshion]

For the ask game: Arisen #3 and Arisen & Pawn #2 and #11? :)

ARISEN: 3. Do they ever get their memory back; if they do, does that change how they interact with the narrative, and if they don't how do they feel about that loss?

he does, and knowing how the previous cycle he had been a part of progressed pushed him towards the ultimatum of defeating the dragon. realizing that the cycle is not progressing as he knows it should is what drives him to confront and rebel against the pathfinder. when the pathfinder says "you find it strange? but this is your world. the world to which you longed to return." it's a dig at his inability to let go of the past, his grief felt towards his old life, his home world, and his master. basically saying “you wanted it like old times, huh? well, here you go.” still, it cements his drive to bring the cycle to an end on his own terms, no matter how brutal an end it is.

THE ARISEN & PAWN: 2. For each of them - who is their favorite and least favorite NPC?

i think haim’s favorite npc is lamond lol. loser guy former arisen who just wants to hang out. lamond is also the only former arisen who expresses sympathy towards all the fucked up shit he has to go through. his least favorite npc is probably (going for the funny answer) albert, the “master storyteller.” stole his clothes and never gave them back lol. basil likes the rivage elder oddly enough. isn’t offput by any of his ramblings and, in fact, feels at ease around him. feels sympathetic towards him and protective of him too. “can we go visit grandpa, arisen?” basil's least favorite npc is lamond lol. too loser guy for him, apparently.

ARISEN & PAWN: 11. Are there any specific or unique items they carry with them?

funny answer: somebody gave basil a raspberry as a gift early on in the game. shortly after that, i got the “if you have anything edible, i’ll gladly lesson your burden 👀” dialogue, and so i put the raspberry in his inventory, where it stayed till the end of the game. :) serious answer: basil is not object-sentimental at all and usually avoids picking stuff up, unless it's something he can throw at something later. haim is very object-sentimental on the other hand, which basil teases him for (“you're well-fond of picking things up, aren't you?”). the object he’s carried for longest is an old, worn down fragment of a riftstone that doesn’t belong to any of the known riftstones in their world.

ask game

[areeis]

[DD/DD2 game/lore/character spoilers]

I keep thinking about 'former' Arisens' pawns and wonder why it is they never show up nor even get mentioned at all. It would've been interesting to have at least some pawns, seeing as there are a bunch more Arisen than in DD1/DDDA that you can actually meet. It would've been interesting to see some have beastren pawns, especially since none of them are beastren themselves.

It would've also been an opportunity to get more lore through them, since DD2 fleshed out the pawns themselves, but then left them kinda hanging. With how DD2's cycle is really fucked to begin with I understand that a lot of things weren't really addressed (like what happens to the others once one Arisen kills their Dragon) and it really also wasn't the focus of the narrative, but it'd still have been important for the big picture, imo.

I was also thinking about whether or not the known 'former' Arisen would even keep their pawn around and why/why not. It's difficult to really be sure about a lot of things concerning this cycle or its duration, but here are some vague ideas:

Rivage Elder: Likely would've dismissed his pawn after realising the truth and knowing he failed to restore the world, just so he could feel like he freed them and they wouldn't be further wasting their time. Maybe he told them of something to do from now on, but I think he'd rather just tell them to beat it. Alternatively he might've taken them on another fruitless boating trip until the Brine tipped over their boat and his pawn got brined, and then he just never called them back and stayed on his own.

Cliodhna: Seems the least concerned with the whole Arisen thing and that would likely also extend to her pawn. Depending on how long she's already lived (or how long DD2 elves live in general) she might've had to take more time to adjust to her new situation and then for one reason or another didn't go through with killing her Dragon. If DD2's pawns are like DD1's pawns, then she might've noticed her pawn starting to look more and more like her over the years. Maybe she disliked that and told them to leave.

Sigurd: Would welcome anyone willing to bring down wyrms, so why he wouldn't have at least his MP still with him I really don't understand. He was the first Arisen where I was really curious and I couldn't come up with a good reason. Maybe his pawn was becoming less able to traverse the rift and would've therefore been a risk to keep around as a fighter or the like in case they died. Still, I would like to know the real reason.

Lamond: Might still be connected to his pawn in some way, likely telling them to make money so he can buy more liqueur. It would be funny if one of the two pawn merchants you can meet was his pawn in this case, since it's clear he's well travelled and knows Vernworth as well as Bakbattahl. Alternatively he might've also told his pawn to leave in a similar way the Elder did, since there was just no use for them any more.

Luz: Might want to keep her pawn around to aid with her profession as an oracle, as an informant perhaps. Depending on how much time has passed (and depending on DD2 pawn lore details) they might even look similar enough to pass as each other, which would fit with her being trickster in case she's attacked. I also think she forms bonds easily with anyone, so it would be comfortable to have someone around whose company she trusts after leaving Vermund. Who knows, maybe when talking to her it was her pawn half the time and not actually her.

Dragonforged: Doesn't seem the kind of hermit to dislike company, so I think his pawn could still be around, wandering and exploring the world, coming for a visit sometimes. For his enhancements it would help to have someone around, I bet, but I also think that he has to enhance things so rarely it wouldn't be worth keeping anyone there permanently. That and him living in the smallest cave he could find.

Rothais: By this point his pawn could've already become a person many times over and died of natural causes. Though I think Rothais was a little busy with other things to have paid that much attention to it.

Thoughts?

[arisenreborn]

Obsessed with this particular dialogue from the Rivage Elder.

"Mayhap 'tis beyond your ken, but this world of ours is not the real one. This world is a cycle: the dragon emerges, the dragon is slain - and just when we think we have found peace at last, the dragon appears once more." (is the starting bit I didn't catch)

(also it cracks me up almost every time Liùsaidh comes to give me something Emrys also rushes over like buddy. It's okay we know you're down bad.)

[arisenreborn]

Thinking about the idea that the 'first playthrough' of Dragon's Dogma 2 isn't actually the first playthrough solely because the Rivage Elder starts talking like he knows you, always picking up where he left off.

Which of course can just be chalked up to 'that's how he is' absolutely, but I think it's possibly way more fun to think actually, we might've been through this before and just don't remember.

[arisenreborn]

Okay so it's another pawn lovers guild qotd, but this one... got out of hand. 😅 Took a couple different things and slapped them together for "Meeting the Former Arisen/Arisen Boss Fight".

Since Rann and Reverie are based on old very powerful OCs, I got a little gratuitous with them sorry. Hey, it's entirely optional! (Just like clicking read more because it's long.)

Quest: “A Dream Apart”

After staying at the Nameless Village inn for a night, there’s a chance for it to be attacked by a Drake. It must be allowed to flee - in the process of doing so it will crash into the mountain and reveal a hidden path. (If defeated, this can be attempted every time a drake happens to attack, but low probability, and can’t be repeated after completing the questline.)

This path will lead through a cavern behind the waterfalls not far from the Nameless Village. Following it further, the path twines up through the mountain to some ancient ruins (similar vibe to going up to Sphinx).

There the Arisen will meet with the Pawn, Avierann, who stands over the remains of the Drake - its loot can be obtained scattered around the area, and he encourages the Arisen to take it. In this area you’ll start to notice a strangeness in the air, a ‘distortion’ quality you can pick up on visually from time-to-time. Multiple options here:

>Try to pass Avierann

He will stop you. This will lead to conversation options, or if you persist, he will engage in battle. 

>Talk to Avierann

He’ll inquire what you’ve come here for. Depending on your answer, he’ll say the answers you seek may be ahead, but if you seek a fight you’ll be shown no mercy. (This can lead to fighting him.) 

>Fight 0 - Avierann

Throughout the fight he’ll often shield himself and levitates around the battlefield often, pummeling the battlefield with both fiery and icy meteors. His abilities are above that of your average Pawn, and his voicelines will mostly seek to deter you from continuing down this route. “Please, don’t be foolish.” “There is a better way.” (If you stop attacking him long enough, it will cancel the fight and you can talk.) Once you get him to his final healthbar he’ll start spamming meteorons and maelstroms so have fun. This is definitely a ‘mini boss’ in terms of difficulty tho. 

Reward: EXP, Wakestone, Moonbloom

If you seek wisdom, he will lead you to the summit. The ‘distortion’ in the air grows thicker, (but so help me it’s not giving you a headache). Before going, he warns you there will be no turning back, and you won’t be able to use ferrystones. Finally you’ll come to where Reverie resides.

*Just made a post about this recently,* but she’s an Arisen of a previous cycle who fused with her Dragon rather than either of them killing one another. She basically looks like a red dragon with a griffins feathers along the upper portion of her body up to the humanoid torso of Reverie where the head would be.

She shouldn’t exist here, and you definitely shouldn’t be able to meet her. Especially not on the Pathfinder’s watch.

She’ll start talking to you like the Sphinx does, and will say *you* shouldn’t be here, suggesting a certain someone (the Pathfinder) would not be happy with his latest toy if she ruined it. (You can take that as her killing you or sullying you with information you shouldn’t have.) Her demeanor is notably a little… well, yeah, Sphinx-like. Not quite the same, but she’s got a monstrous viciousness to her though that’s playfully and carefully restrained.

I don’t wanna get too in-depth about what sort of things she could say that could be spoilery, but it’d probably be a step above Rivage Elder in terms of clarity and direction in what you should do going forward - but still just frustratingly vague enough in perfect DD fashion. 

Then she’ll tell you she’s curious if you might truly be capable of breaking free, and asks if you would amuse her with a fight, suggesting that you, too, must enjoy the thrill of combat Zenos ass behavior. If you disagree she’ll call you boring, but that will be that. She warns that once you leave, you will not be able to return - and you won’t until a NG+. You can talk to her again and accept her offer of a fight though, otherwise you return to the Nameless Village and can no longer reach the path that led there.

REWARD: Minimal EXP, Wakestone Shard

>Fight 1: Friendly Fight

Fast and fierce, she fights much like the Dragon but much more mobile. She’ll grab and throw individuals in the air and then smack them across the field with her tail. She conjures magick arrows that hover around her and will act as a sort of ‘shield’, exploding if you come into contact with them (which also means you could destroy them), and after several seconds will hone in on all targets. Ultimately it does feel rather ‘fun’ and ‘light-hearted’, she is not holding any punches but she laughs and cheers you on, praising you when you do well and encouraging you when you muck it up. 

It’s the effects around the battlefield that are scarier; the world itself will look like it’s beginning to fray at the edges and come undone, like you’re doing something dangerous on the fringes of reality. The summit transforms and the world twists around you, giving you a kaleidoscope of glimpses of familiar and foreign landscapes, of worlds unmoored and worlds rejected from the cycle…

Eventually she will stop the fight and praise you, admitting she isn’t sure if you’ll be able to break the cycle, but she’ll choose to believe you can. 

At this point, you can choose to continue talking for the above rewards, or press the fight with intent to kill. If you continue talking:

She’ll warn you that pushing too hard against the cycle may result in leading to a path like hers - existing on the fringes of the worlds and unable to truly change anything within them. But figuring out just what that breaking point is -how far is too far?- is something only you can decide. She’ll wish you safe travels on your road ahead, and an ending that you can take pride in, before casting you in a light that returns you to the edge of the Nameless Village. You cannot return to this place again until NG+.

Reward: EXP, Wakestone, Dreamer’s Enigma (Magick Bow) A deep red bow formed seemingly from the crystalized blood and flame of a dragon. “This bow seems to be from another world, and exists precariously within this one.” (Noteworthy feature: zero weight cost.)

If you choose to continue the fight:

>Fight 2: Gloves Are Off

Rann: Reverie… Are you certain? Reverie: Yes… So long as we’re together. Rann: …Very well. Together then.

Avierann fully heals her as the battle begins, hovering on the edge of the battlefield. She sounds sadly resigned: if this is the path you’ve chosen, she won’t deny you - nor will she make it easy for you. Indeed, it’s her job to make it as hard as she can so you can face the trials to come. Rann will constantly cover the field in either Maelstrom or Meteorons, will heal and shield her - taking him down should be the first order of business, though she will viciously defend him in turn. 

You may need to stun her (achieved primarily by attacking her human part), and sacrifice her down time to whittle him down - he will prioritize healing her while she’s downed even over himself. 

“I won’t allow it to end like this.” - If you kill her first Rann will shatter the remaining stability of the battlefield; you’ll be clinging to small bits of viable land in a sea of jagged, pieced-together realities and have to navigate to get back to him in time and break his shield before he resurrects Reverie (half health). If she resurrects the field will return to ‘normal’, albeit with increasingly less safe/convenient areas to stand and maneuver. 

Killing her first is not advised. sorry breaking/reordering reality and resurrection is Rann’s specialty But if you can cancel him before he resurrects her, the battle will eventually end - he will try to keep doing this though. Once you finally get him down he will fall to one knee and fade away, “Very well then, this was what she wanted…”

If you go for him first, on Avierann’s final health bar Reverie will go into a rampage, mostly just increasing the speed and strength of her attacks. She’ll grab and stand on a target with one hand for a frustrating amount of time, or fling them other targets. Once Rann is defeated she’ll let out an anguished scream that creates a stunning shockwave. Regardless of any attacks she’ll go over to pick up Rann’s body and embrace it to her for the remainder of the battle. 

“I knew… I knew it would hurt, but…” She straightens up. “Very well. Together then.”

Her movements will be far less brutal - her attacks mostly continue same as before but she’s slowed drastically. On the final half of her final health bar she has more or less given up and will only give cursory slaps of her tail and retaliatory swipes of her claws. She speaks as if to him, but her words might also guide a careful listener. 

“After countless turns around this world… Time and time again we’ve found ourselves here… But at the very least, we were together… Was there another way? … Perhaps there are as many paths as there are wills seeking to find them… But mine leads only to you… So, surely…”

Finally she will collapse, still clutching Rann’s body and talking only to him. “Perhaps… next time, then.”

If you can divide your forces to whittle them both down at the same time they’ll talk to one another as their health dwindles. Their voices are tinged with both deep sorrow and a sense of burgeoning joy. The embracing of an ending towards a new beginning.

“Reverie… Do you remember when we met?” “What a funny question, which time?” “The first time.” “Well, that’d have to be… Soon, wouldn’t it?” “Hah, yes. Soon.”

Once both of them are destroyed their bodies will disappear in a burst of light that swallows the entire area, and you’ll be left outside the Nameless Village. 

Reward: EXP, Wakestone, Path of the Heart (Archistaff) A dark red stave seemingly made of the twined hardened fibers of a dragons heartstrings, the crown of the staff is half-broken, as if it once held a gem, but a glowing red power energy lingers here now, seemingly in bitter defiance of it’s own fate. (Noteworthy feature: zero weight cost.)

>Fight 0-1: Vengeance

If you fought and killed Avierann when you first met him, Reverie will not talk to you, and will immediately launch into battle. There is no mercy here, no fun. Guttural snarling roars of: “What have you done?!” and “You fool!” Rabid, berserk repetitions of “Why!? Why!? Why!?” 

Along with her above tactics, she’ll occasionally leap to five points around the battlefield, creating huge aoe telegraphs for each element (fire, ice, lightning, dark, holy)  that will erupt in the order she went to them. Staying close to her and avoiding all of the damage can be perilous. She’ll occasionally grab a target and throw them *into* one of the aoe ranges, giving them a small window to run out of it. If attacking her from behind her tail may also smack you into one. 

Similar to above fights, the battlefield is an increasing hazard being broken down and restructured. You’ll see places from DD1, BBI, and others yet unrecognizable. Sometimes she'll raise the ground up to prevent you from running.

She’ll occasionally let out terrible screams that stun anyone too close, it seems she'll keep trying to restore some order and calm down occasionally, but will keep falling back into a despairing rage. At about half health she will start ripping at her human body in a blind frenzy.

“I don’t want to do this anymore! I don’t! I don’t! I don’t! Not without him! I must go, I must go to him!” 

The human/griffin parts of her will be replaced by pure dragon, as the familiar visage of The Dragon comes forth. The music will end and go mostly silent before slowly the harps from DD Main Theme come in and lead into a rendition of Eternal Return. You’re fighting the Dragon now, you know how that goes. His dialogue is limited but:

“A cruel hand to hunt down they who pose no threat. Yet such cruelty may yet be needed to forge the path thou desire. Above exists the watchers gaze, with hands that would strangle the will from thine soul and make a puppet of thee.” And upon death: “Go forth, and bleed the watcher dry, O blessed butcher.”

Reward: EXP, Wakestone, Ragnarok (A duospear with a staff made from dragonbone, and the blades from dragons fangs, the description reads: “Once a man sought to defy the Dragon and became Arisen. Once the Arisen sought to defy fate and became the Dragon. Once, the Dragon sought to defy all, and turned its fangs on the chains that bind this world.” (Noteworthy feature: zero weight cost.)

So in order to get all of the rewards.... :'D There is ONE more route option I'm imagining where if you somehow manage to leave Rann alive (unconscious) when you first meet him and then kill Reverie, he will then proceed to stalk you through the world, occasionally assassinating your pawns, showing up mid-Drake fight, and just generally wreaking havoc.

There's a similar route for Reverie doing this if you kill him and then turn back without going to the summit - you lose the ability to go back, but she will break into your world for revenge. :'D