#taash lucanis and neve were what got me started

[grimwarden]

[housederiva]

Fantasic yes thank you @mt07131 It should be noted I am taking the hottest bubble bath of my entire life while I'm typing this and my skin is the color of Mr Krabs. (these are all cheeses that I have had before so my opinion of each is extremely biased)

We're starting with Neve. I know what you're thinking 'our dear detective has a food pyramid made solely out of the menu of a back alley chippy, obviously she's Kraft cheese or cheese whiz' and you are incorrect. Sit on the floor beside me while I take my bubble bath, we're going on a cheese discovery hand in soapy hand

Neve is specifically a combination of the two cheeses that are in these bad boys that you can find at Walmart for $15. With enough coffee and distractions you can live off these for an entire week. Each piece of cheese is about the size of a quarter, they're powdery, they don't melt well, and the only reason it's in your fridge is that someone brought it to the potluck and no one else ate any of it. We're ignoring the rest of the platter this is only about cheese.

Harding is a fried halloumi stick. It's squeaky cheese that is sooo good when it's melted and somehow still in stick form. The first time an only time I’ve had it was when I lived in the UK. A little cheeky Nandos with Harding? Come on now she's the one suggesting it. This woman eats ham and jam slams, she's eating cold hallumi (bad salty brick ew ew nasty), Taash's first complaint if they ever lived together that would be that they could hear her eating the leftovers right out of the fridge at 3am cause it's squeaking so damn loud while she's chewing

Bellara is the giant babybel. Pictures don't do it justice and the absolute glee of taking off the little jacket before you bite into it like a peach? Undescribable. There's not a doubt in my mind that this woman would collect the wax and leave it in a clump on her bookshelf where she would repeatedly tell you she's gonna do something with it. And yet it grows ever larger with every giant babybel. She's the small ones too but those are somehow worse because she just eats the entire bag of them the second she gets home (not that I do that every time or anything haha dont look in my trash rn)

Davrin is, without a doubt, apple smoked cheddar either from Wisconsin or Lancashire, there's no in between. Once this cheese is in your life you will be fundamentally changed as a person and you can never go back to the way you were. No other cheese holds the same richness and warmth as apple smoked cheddar (either from Wisconsin or Lancashire) It has like this sweetness from the milk in it that's balanced out with the smokiness of paprika. Davrin's bringing this to the cookout and you're going to thank him for putting it on your burger at least four times

Lucanis is Fulvi Pecorino Romano (yes it is Italian why do you ask) This is some of the most expensive cheese I've ever had which is perfect for the man who's offering to pay Harding 6,000 gold to stand around while he kills somebody and then asks if that's too low of an amount when she's speechless. This Romano is made from milk taken from a single herd of sheep that live just outside the city of Rome. It's got this a grainy, crumbly texture that I don't think I'll have anything like again. (I had it at a preview night for this movie I worked on for redacted, I think there was caviar there too it was insane)

Emmrich my sweet vegetarian (and vegan? idk) is Climax Blue cheese. It's plant-based blue cheese, streaked with a natural and flavorful blue-green veining. It is well-rounded, with a creamy, fudgy texture, and with fruity and earthy notes balanced by a warm peppery finish. It's made out of coconut milk instead of animal milk and it's got pumpkin seeds in it somehow. I'm not vegan but my best friend is and she brought me this one time from her work and I ate it all in about 20 minutes. Excellent with wine and those really thin tiny crackers, makes you feel the good kind of fancy

Taash is ghost pepper and fried onion cheddar cheese. Never been hurt by food the way I was hurt the second this touched my tongue. And the cool thing about it is it's also dairy free, and substitutes milk with hemp. The heat from the ghost peppers builds and mingles with the burst from the fried onions and each wheel is aged in a cheese specific cave before it's packaged. It also has that good glowy classic melty cheese flow when it gets hot. If you're like me and you are white people spicy smelling this alone will hurt you

[narriose]

Thoughts on Veilguard so far:

Preface: I’m ~50 hours in with a handful of endgame spoilers.

My general values are: Story > Characters > Gameplay > Romance > Rep > Visuals.

My rating of the previous games: DA2 > DAO > DAI

Spoilers under Cut:

What I expected: Having to deal with an unappealing art style and clunky gameplay with leftover multiplayer and live service era elements that they couldn’t get rid of for the sake of the story and characters.

What I got: Well…

Let’s Start with the negatives:

-Dialogue: I want to know what happened there. Ik for a fact they had veteran BioWare writers on the team and it feels like there was a decision to dumb everything down to the point of me immediately having a line in my head that would sound better in universe every time someone spoke. It proved especially grating once I heard Morrigan speak. And when people compare the writing to MCU I cannot really protest. “Dragon Age has always been unserious” yes but like. Not every other line was a joke or relatable™️ millennial awkwardness . When jokes did happen they became memorable moments for the fandom. It’s often very difficult to listen to. Especially when Rook talks. It is getting marginally better though.

-Tone: Dragon Age has been compelling to me because it wrote conflict and trauma and corruption in a way that felt developed enough to feel grounded and believably horrific. Even with all its faults. DATV mellowed out the horrors and seems to gloss over a lot of sociopolitical dynamics and lore. Stuff like portraying crows as vigilantes and not showing the evils of Tevinter slavery. The tone itself just feels like theyre trying to make an easily marketable sanitized IP out of it to cater to a wider audience.

-Character Writing: A lot of characterization has been “Tell not show” because I’m disappointed in Lucanis and Neve. The story says one is a serious killer and the other is a cynic but both have only been friendly soft and positive which is like??? I feel like a lot of their intro has been cut out or something where they establish those traits on screen. Another thing is: there don’t appear to be actually detestable and controversial traits in characters or even internal conflict they need to overcome. They’re just dealing with some kind of external thing thrust onto them and that is very shallow to me personally.

-Intro: I know we’re not getting Origins style personalized intros again but it felt like too much is handwaived into people making their own OCs and forming headcanons when the game doesn’t let us RP much at all outside identity stuff anyway. Like how do we know Varric? Why should any of the pep talks he gives us mean anything when we haven’t experienced anything to warrant the complements he gives us?

-Villains: possibly the worst part of the story: they lit act like theyre in a preschool cartoon down to body language. No nuance no controversy no actual horror to them when in previous games the evil felt so much more pronounced because some of the villains felt human enough to be a shitty person irl.

-Rep: Sigh. Even as a transmasc I might be a little too internally transphobic for the rep in the game. It feels like so many steps ahead of what the story should be handling. Like fix the slavery problem in a meaningful way then start philosophical gender discussions about what a gender binary even is. And it’s very cringe to me when it’s spoken about in game. Like yeah I love that there’s no way to dispute what the characters are but it also feels so entirely uncreative using modern day terminology for this stuff. And I don’t mean “replace it with ambiguous sad baby talk” but something more. Like is it terrible to want that? Even if you were planning on using the word nonbinary, at least tell us what a binary even is and how it was instituted as an idea into this world. Like I do adore Taash, I just wish the gender stuff wasn’t so clumsy.

-Visuals: It’s hard man. As an artist who sees human bodies as proportion reference points, the bodies still look off to me. Like it was worse and I’m getting used to it but it’s still painful. And I’m all for trying to stylize but this particular heroforge direction was not something I would have picked.

-OST: At first I couldn’t tell Zimmer/Balfe’s stuff apart from Morris’s but yeah, the new stuff is more boring(Sans the Rivain part)

-The 3 choice thing: yeah not a fan of that. I feel like perhaps it was a part of the multiplayer era where they would not be able to import much if everyone had a massively different world state so they limited it to the tiny MC choices. Still sad that the romance thing only really matters if you romanced Solas because the Dorian cameo wasn’t anything to write home about. Kinda feels like they added him in last minute because someone pointed out how much Solas-skewed the choices were. Idk. I so expected Josie in Antiva but alas.

Now Onto the Positives:

-Codices: The very way-too modern simplified conversational dialogue style carries over to the codices. And while I despise that as a creative, I do find myself actually reading them as they come because they are so easy to absorb. I feel like a lot of people would benefit from not skipping them because there are some references and plot reveals worth checking out.

-Story: If you deafen the dialogue style, the story itself is top. Gets way better as you play and from the spoilers I’ve heard, yeah. It’s good. Can’t wait to find out more.

-Gameplay: Listen I have a massive preference for DA style combat even if most ppl call it a slog. The turn based element, the pause button, the hoarding skills I never use. It’s like coming home to me. I hated DAI combat for the amount of anxiety it induced and I usually hate fast-paced action combat in most other games. DATV made me eat my boots. Its combat is insanely fun and engaging and often times I’m looking forward to fights more than quests themselves. Very colorful, very flashy, and very effective. The pause button gives less freedom but it’s there. The combos are fun. It is like Mass Effect except I did not find commanding the companions in Mass Effect as intuitive. Tho I wish non mages had less magicey feeling attacks.

-The CC: Yeah it wowed me with the options. I like how much can be done with the facial sliders and how good the hair looks.

-Puzzles: Listen the puzzles are extremely stupid in this game. But I also am very stupid and lazy when it comes to solving them. I have looked up the vast majority of puzzle solutions for DA games. No more DA2 Fade Barrels and no more trying to circumnavigate the ad infested Fandom Wiki to get to the Kitty’s prison solution. Crafted specifically for me.

-Mechanical Things: The game is optimized insanely well. Both when It comes to your PC and the gameplay. I’m amazed how well it runs on my PC when games like BG3 and Cyberpunk make my CPU scream. Love that. As far as gameplay goes: everything is super streamlined and designed to be as un-annoying as possible. No carry weight, no collectibles as annoying and unrewarding as the shards and mosaics. The maps are easy to parse. The game does not bombard you with useless NPCs, banter can’t be interrupted and characters catch up on banter at the Lighthouse if you’ve been avoiding certain party comps by accident. The quest locator is actually helpful. Skill points can be refunded. Looting is easy and finding shit feels rewarding.

-Characters: Honestly they do have some interesting things going on and while most characters feel a little hollow so far, I was pleasantly surprised by Davrin and Bellara. Davrin is the one I’m romancing and while the actual romance isn’t groundbreaking I’m glad I chose him. Yes, his character has a lot to do with Assan and his arc, but he does have stuff going on of his own. He’s very refreshing because some of the things he says low key both makes you think and also worry about him. He’s also not your usual preppy jock type. He can be a little mean sometimes. He’s artistic and principled. He has some remnants of “opinions I don’t agree with” that I love early DA for. When it comes to Bellara, she absolutely breaks the sort of Manic Pixie/Quirky Awkward young coded girl mold. It is the fact that there is self awareness and hints of history of failure and isolation in her words. There is also masking and over-clarification that I can relate to personally. I hope there is stuff like that to other companions when I get to know them better.

Visuals: the UI and Locations are stunning. The outfits the best the game has had so far(tho wish the overall look was less stylized) The blighted stuff(sans the ogres) and the Crossroads. Beautiful.

-Dwarf Lore: started out as fucking cheesy but I just finished meeting Valta and I’m seated.

-Solas Stuff: Hated the man for a while. Caved and made a solavellan to import to get more story stuff. NGL he is actually tolerable/interesting to me in this game.

Overall: A sickly sweet combo of Disappointed and Impressed. And I’m still gonna be playing. I am used to not liking something about every DA game. That’s part of the fun for me. But damn is this one testing me. Am I having a lot of fun playing it? Absolutely. Am I finding it difficult to get through a concerning amount of dialogue…yeah. It does still feel like a DA game but also like if someone made a pg-13 live action of Inquisition and then made a supplementary game based off that. If I forget that it’s supposed to be a sequel and just treat it like an action game with plot then it’s easier. And like I’m sure at least half of what I listed as a negative can be attributed to EA meddling or prev iterations of the game being inseparable. Anyway. Can’t wait to see the ending and I will add more thoughts when I’m done.

[andersons-bayonettes]

Dragon Age: Vows & Vengeance... The podcast that you are...

It's mediocre.

Now, let me explain. Vows & Vengeance was never meant to be an absolute amazing podcast, it's as supposed to make you hyped for Veilguard/show you the companions. A little teaser to bridge the waiting time until release, that it did pretty well.

However. I loved the story of the podcast up until Episode 7-ish. I still liked episode 7, but I could tell it was going somewhere I probably didn't want it to go. Episode 8 was... Episode 8 exists.

But let me actually get to critique it, before bashing it.

I listen to Podcasts a lot. Some of them Lore Podcasts, other Story Podcasts, with or without narration, talk podcasts, amateur and professional. This one felt like it wanted to be professional - while not quite being there - but still felt amateur enough to be a little off-putting. I don't mind most voices (including Nadia's, I think she's fine.) yet tge acting/writing was sometimes whacky at best. I felt like most voices were just way too similar. I often, especially at the start, got confused who is speaking. It got better, of course, but you don't want your listeners questioning who of your main characters is speaking.

Additionally, the podcast was meant to bring some characters closer to you, it was supposed to be a "hey, look at this, this is what they will be like, are you excited yet?" Kinda thing which worked for some. Mainly, the episodes featuring Lucanis, Emmerich and Taash did a really excellent job characterising them. I am ABSOLUTELY down to see more of them. Bellaras was fine, could be better, could be worse. The episodes with Davrin and Neve were... Not well for characterisation. And don't understand me wrong, you get to meet them, yes, but while most characters showed multiple layers, Neve and Davrin both just seemed like you just met them. I forgive them for the Lace Harding episode because we already know her from Inquisition.

Now, I don't mind Solas not showing up often. I think it's fitting. At the end of Inquisition, they out a heavy emphasis on the fact that if Silas doesn't want to be found, you can not find him. He was supposed to be that sliver of danger lurking all around, but where exactly, you'd never know. Thus, Nadia chasing Solas for weeks was absolutely fitting. Even if I think it's funny how Silas's plans have been ruined twice now by people he used as a pawn, doing something he didn't anticipate.

The ending was very, very, very lackluster. The funeral was nice, the demon battle was okay. I don't understand why they had to squeeze in this "I've been haunting you since you were little" crap, it was absolutely and entirely unnecessary. It's sad we spend so much time wanting Nadia & Elio to be back together, rooting for them to finally get a happy ending and all we get is "I killed him, anyways, lemme kille you now". One last talk maybe would have been nice, or let the demon, in one last attempt to stop Nadia, transform back into him. I know it's cliche, but it's cliche because it works.

Or, have the demon kill Elio in front of her. Let's say teh demon used Elios connection to Nadia to cross over, let him kill Elio and the ending would have been a lot cleaner in my opinion. Semantics and personal preferences aside, if they ever make another Podcast, I do hope they find someone who has experience in how to do them. The actors were good. They absolutely were, I assume it's a directing issue.

All in all it was a decent podcast. It has a lot of issues, but it also has a lot of good aspects, makingbit overall, well, like i said, mediocre.

[kitterkat100]

My thoughts on Dragon Age: The Veilguard

So, I finished datv yesterday and now have time to sit and think about it. Now, obviously this is just my subjective opinion, so take it with a grain of salt. I am going to start with the good and go into the bad and then finish with more good (that teacher training coming in). Also, I learned how to do a read more for this.

I am going to start with the combat. I have made another post about this, but that was like 3 hours into my first playthrough. Veilguard has the best combat in the series. Usually Dragon Age games have combat that is a slog to get through, so much so that many people in the fandom say they don't play the games for combat but for the story. I have never been a fan of the real-time with tactical pause, I find it a little boring. I am not a big fan of turn-based, to begin with ( that is one of the reasons I still have not finished Baulder's Gate). In the past, if I wanted to play a good story game with fun combat, I would play Mass Effect. But I have fun just fighting enemies, if DAI's combat was this fun I would replay it more often.

Next the art direction. Now, I am no artist and I know next to nothing about anything. But I really like the art. I think the environments are beautiful. I like the character models. I know people were complaining about the models having small heads in the lead-up to the release, but I think it was because the game doesn't use heroic proportions. And you don't notice in-game at all, at least I didn't. Also the brought back some reused assets from the Inquisition, and some of the paintings that have been around since Origins.

Okay the companions. I might write a longer post for each companion later on. I am going in alphabetical order.

Bellara: I romanced her, and I love her so much. She has some strong Tali vibes with a strong dose of ADHD. I am a little sad that we did not even kiss until after the final battle, but I just read that as her being ace or demi (like me!).

Davrin: He is such a bro. I love him and Assan so much. His banter with Emmrich is so funny. The ending to his story line is a little weak, but I will talk about that in his own post.

Emmrich: I think Emmrich is one of the best companions in the whole series, flat out. I love this man, he going to be my next romance (Female Qunari Grey Warden).

Harding: Harding is great. I really liked all of the Titan stuff in her storyline. I did get her killed, so I am not sure what her ending is like. I did think her romance with Taash was cute.

Lucanis: I'm going to say it. I think Lucanis is the weakest of the companions, I don't dislike him. I don't if I missed a lot of content because I saved Minrathous instead of Treviso or if it was because his writer got canned during development. And what he did have felt bare bones. I thought we would be dealing with Spite a lot more. I will say his recruitment mission is a blast.

Neve: I played a Shadow Dragon so my character had a lot of in common with Neve. I like her, but I don't have any strong feelings towards her one or another. Her romance with Lucanis is a thing that happens. I might change my mind when I get around to romancing her.

Taash: I am cis, so take this with a grain of salt. But I think their storyline about being non-binary was oddly paced. I did like everything past that, I think it was much better paced. I do like them a lot. Also, they are really cute with Harding. I do wish there was more of a reaction to me getting Harding killed on Tearstone Island, but that is a writing complaint.

Speaking of the writing. It is really a mixed bag. Some of it is great and then some of it was giving slop comics from the mid-00s. The first several hours are story slog, some of that is because of all the lore dumps, and some of it is because it is oddly paced. The writing gets progressively better throughout the game. From the point of no return to the credits it is the strongest writing, maybe not in the whole series but definitely since the last third of DAI. That after-credit scene was a choice. I will probably talk about that more after I figure out how I feel about it. I think Elgar'nan and Ghilan'nan are the strongest villains since Loghain, it really helps that they are present throughout the game. There are definitely moments where you feel that Rook is HR, but not a lot, but enough that I understand why that made it into some reviews. I don't think it is any more quippy or Marvel-like than any other Dragon Age game, "Swooping is bad" comes to mind.

Finally, some random thoughts. I think this game really nailed the horror of the Blight, I can't get the image of Bellara wrapped in Blight tentacles during the final section out of my head.

I played a non-mage elf shadow dragon, and there was a lot of reactivity for the shadow dragon part, less the elf part. I know I missed a conversation with Tarquin about it, but still. It's like no one even noticed the pointy ears.

That's it for now. I might add more as think about it.

8/10, I had a blast.

[scurvgirl]

Learning about my Rook through banter. Just a little self-indulgent writing.

-

Bellara: So...you're Dalish, right?

Rook: Yep.

Bellara: But...you don't have Vallaslin.

Rook: I don't.

Bellara: Did you leave before you could get it?

Rook: No. My father isn't Dalish, and I was born in a city - I joined my mother's clan later. Didn't feel like the Vallaslin would suit me at the time.

Bellara: Oh.

-

Lucanis: Rook, what foods would you like prepared?

Rook: Anything really. Dalish, Free Marches, Tevinter, any kind of sea food.

Lucanis: Good to know.

-

Rook: You know, Taash, you don't have to choose to be Qunari or Rivaini.

Taash: What, you think I don't know that?

Rook: Hold your dragons. I'm saying - I'm Dalish and from a city. I respect the Vhenadahl and the halla. I sang prayers to Andraste and to the creators...before, you know, we knew shit.

Taash: Okay.

Rook: It's all important, and...you're all of it, put together into a unique experience of yourself.

Taash: I'll think about it.

-

Neve: Alright, your accent is not Tevinter, Antivan, Fereldan, or Orlesian. You're a Marcher.

Rook: She's found me out!

Neve: Now to figure out where.

Rook: Do you want me to tell you or is it more fun for you to put the clues together?

Neve: Don't tell me.

-

Rook: Fucking Venatori!

Harding: You really hate them.

Rook: Assholes kill people and use my gods as a fucking excuse.

Harding: You made that one explode.

Rook: Yeah, well, sometimes we deal with personal shit by exploding an evil shithead.

-

Neve: I've got it.

Rook: Oh do tell!

Neve: Kirkwall - Varric recruited you, told you to keep where you're from a secret.

Rook: Good thought but nope. Not from Kirkwall, and thank goodness for that.

Neve: Dammit.

-

Lucanis: You're quite good with that blade Rook. Who taught you?

Rook: My mother. She's a very skilled swordswoman. All of her kids are mages but she insisted we all learn how to defend ourselves with weaponry against Templars.

Lucanis: Smart woman. You have siblings?

Rook: Yeah, two older brothers.

Lucanis: Why am I not surprised you're the baby?

Rook: Because I am baby.

-

Bellara: I don't understand. Why not get the Vallaslin?

Rook: My clan was informed of its true meaning. My keeper started offering everyone a choice.

Bellara: True meaning?

Rook: Slave markings, apparently. Makes sense now with what we know of the gods.

Bellara: That's horrible!

Rook: My brother decided to get his despite that. He said "Whatever they were, they are now how we find each other. How we take pride in who we are." I didn't feel ready. I don't know if I will ever feel ready.

Bellara: That...makes a lot of sense, actually. Thank you.

-

Davrin: You saw the Inquisitor, right?

Rook: Yeah. For someone who has been fighting for so long, she looked great.

Davrin: She's like you - Dalish but no Vallaslin.

Rook: There's a few of us out there.

Davrin: I wonder how she got rid of it.

Rook: Ah. Don't like Ghilan'nain's design upon you?

Davrin: Most days it doesn't bother me, but some days...it makes my skin crawl.

Rook: I'll try to ask her next time I see her.

-

Neve: Alright. You don't have Vallaslin because your clan found out information about them from ancient times. You showed an odd familiarity with the inquisitor. You said you are both Dalish and from a city. You hate the Venatori. You're from Wycome.

Rook: Huzzah! You discovered it!

Neve: You were there when the Venatori tried to take over.

Rook: They poisoned our wells. Blamed the elves in the alienage. They killed so many.

Neve: That means your mother was from clan Lavellan - the same clan the Inquisitor was from.

Rook: That would be my clan.

Neve: No wonder Varric gave you a code name and made it so hard to find anything out about you.

Rook: I was twelve when Miriel, I mean, the Inquisitor, left the clan. We were so proud of her, and so worried for her. When she came back...without her Vallaslin...there was a lot of heartbreak that day.

-

Solas: You knew the Inquisitor.

Rook: I did. And you broke her heart.

Solas: I didn't have a choice.

Rook: From what she's said - you did. You just chose wrong.

[raezlove]

Dragon Age: The Veilguard

I finished it after 90 hours over the last week. I did all quests and side content available to me and was pretty thorough with notes and momentos. I was hooked from the start, definitely saw why the writing got criticized during the middle, and then was continually surprised by the end sequence.

For me this was a solid 7/10 game if looking at it from a linear story game rather than a branching rpg.

Thoughts below. Some spoilers.

Starting with some general categories then moving on to larger issues I had.

I’d say the majority of the voice actor performances were really good. There were moments throughout where they weren’t great but that was combined from the very cringe/generic writing. But when the characters needed the emotion for a moving scene, I felt it. Even characters I, at the time didn’t care for or were biased against, the voice actor’s performance made me hurt for them.

Companion cast had some gems as well as some underwhelming members. For me I was taken by Lucanis, Emmrich, Neve, and Davrin as characters. They still weren’t spared from poor lines throughout though. Bellara came around for me by the end as I had initially been biased hearing she was incredibly annoying but I also didn’t have her in my party very often for gameplay reasons. Taash and Harding I also rarely took out for gameplay reasons nor did they pull me in as companion characters.

Companion arc quest lines I enjoyed them all well enough but I liked Davrin and Harding’s the best for world and lore building,though I admit the actual quests for Harding felt lacking to me. The map locations also didn’t feel utilized as they were only ever seen those couple times. Bellara’s quest was also interesting for lore but other than the ending, which was not unexpected, felt mundane to me. Lucanis’s and Emmrich’s were decent arcs though they didn’t feel like anything groundbreaking, it just helped that I had already found their characters compelling. Neve’s was very underwhelming to me which was disappointing because I initially was quite intrigued by Neve. Taash’s was done as well as they could’ve with the direction they decided paired with their safe writing. I mean no disrespect for them wanting to include a gender queer story but something about this didn’t land. I saw someone else say it but the modern lingo in this fantasy setting made it seem out of place just for the sake of it. I don’t know how they could’ve implemented that aspect of Taash better but their writing and performance came across too stiff at times. ((This is not an issue of including lgbt characters, rather how they are written and if they are pushed to be defined solely by that one sole aspect of their identity))

Art design and world direction was never an issue for me even from the trailers (except for that first one where I thought I was watching a live service mobile trailer). I don’t mind brighter exaggerated designs or flashy colors. Nothing stood out but nothing was bad either, it was just an average design to me. As mentioned above though there were specific locations I felt were underutilized and sometimes felt included just to make the map seem bigger. I liked the character designs but outfit choices were definitely not my favorite and I wished they had an all black outfit for Rook but that’s just an irrelevant personal wish.

The callbacks to Inquisition were something I was incredibly curious to how they would handle and was looking forward to. For transparency, my original Inquisitor romanced Solas and refused to give up on him so I was holding out for my Solavellan heart to be fixed or at least something that dulled the ache. The Inquisitor appearances were about what I expected. Lavellan shows up a couple times, sends some letters, then shows up for the finale. I did get my Solavellan ending and while selfishly I wish it could’ve been more, I think it was adequate (though that kiss animation left something to be desired). It felt like an appropriate end for my Lavellan who was so sad and beaten down for so long after losing someone she loved with her entire being and after having the weight of so many people looking to her for guidance for the last decade when she never asked for the responsibility in the first place. She finally got to save her person and leave the world’s problems to someone else. As for Dorian, I’m not sure if he shows up/is mentioned more if you saved Minrathos but his appearances kind of felt unnecessary. I loved him in Inquisition but he didn’t feel properly utilized in the Minrathos story lines I saw. He could’ve just been a name in letters and he would’ve had the same impact.

Main Story was a trip. Overall I found it intriguing and compelling, though sometimes it dragged or some missions were boring. I enjoyed Ghilan’nain and Elgar’nan as villains though Ghilan’nain was more interesting with her molding the blight. Elgar’nan was compelling as a direct comparison to Solas with their pride and arrogance. Their dragons were cool though I really wondered how we were supposed to fight Elgar’nan’s dragon after seeing its size. The end solution did make my jaw drop but also made me chuckle after because I can’t imagine how else they would’ve had the player fight that. Again, I’m biased as I loved Solas as a character for all his complexities and flaws so I enjoyed any of his scenes and appearances. I especially enjoyed the story’s direction in terms of regrets and guilt. Prison sequence was a highlight to be sure. I will also say I really wasn’t expecting them to commit to main companion cast consequences at the end considering how safe they had played it to that point.

Gameplay was a welcome improvement to me over Inquisition. I played Inquisition for the first time about 3 years ago as a mage but I played it again in the last year as a rogue. Both times I played on easy difficulty because I found combat such a nuisance. I am biased as I prefer combat systems more in the realm of Witcher 3 and Breath of the Wild so this fit in with that if a bit busier. I played my Rook as a mage and I tended to use the ability wheel rather than the shortcuts because I needed the time to process and think about what I wanted to do, also the fact I kept switching companions and their abilities depending on the situation I couldn’t remember what abilities were mapped to what buttons. Dodge and parry didn’t feel the best, although I admit that could be fully on me (especially parry). For parry it constantly felt like there was a delay in pressing it though it could very well have been made worse depending on which tv my Xbox was connected to. My issue with dodge was the fact that after a double it basically left you halted with no momentum. Again, very possible it’s just a me thing and I need to “get good” but for how much certain encounters were chaotic enough to be constantly dodging it did become annoying especially if you get hit once and then get caught repeatedly. On normal difficulty as a mage, fights usually felt fair and doable with some more challenging than others depending on wave size or vulnerability paired with specific companions. There was only one fight in a miscellaneous side quest for a haunting that I got too annoyed with and even after trying multiple companion pairings I lowered the difficulty to just get it over with because I couldn’t be bothered. For a random side quest with no real story or likely payoff it didn’t feel worth it.

Now for the largest problem I had with this game: it’s gall to call it an RPG. I don’t expect or need Balder’s Gate level in every RPG game. But this didn’t feel like it even met the level of RPG that Inquisition offered. Whether it was world choices or companion choices very few things felt consequential. For the world, I can only think of 2 or 3 choices that I felt would have any change on the world one of which is literally just a 50/50 of which city is getting destroyed. And of course for the others you never saw or heard and real consequences or reactions aside from initially following the decision. There was nothing that made me second guess myself like deciding to forgive or banish the wardens like in Inquisition, who drinks from the well, the inquisitions fate. And for companion arcs, the choices all felt underwhelming and more a direct effect on gameplay/rewards than any story ramifications. There was never a moment that felt like it mattered to the companion story or their future interactions with me or others. Nothing that felt like it mattered like making Bull choose between his friends and the Qun, encouraging/dissuading Cullen from taking Lyrium, or having a hand in choosing the new Divine. A common thought I had throughout this game was it seemed really hard to get a “so and so disapproves”. There seemed to be more instances in Inquisition where decisions would inevitably be both approved and disapproved by various characters so it was never going to be a case of pleasing everyone. I remember seeing the disapprove notification maybe three times in Veilguard. The critique of the dialogue wheel is also very valid. There is no real choice as all options typically lead to the same outcome just with a different line. You can’t even really be mean or an asshole from what I could tell. Options were sincere, joking/less serious, and stern. None of this I think would’ve mattered as much if it weren’t for the fact this was advertised as a choice based RPG when that just isn’t the case and going in with those expectations is bound for disappointment.

As a last issue it had to do with romance. I liked Lucanis. I like him as a character and I like the voice actor’s delivery. There were lines of his that made me giggle and smile. But the overall writing of the romance and their moments sometimes came across as awkward with the subpar writing. There also wasn’t the same charm I got from Inquisition when at the base. Part of that comes from the lack of actual interactions of being able to talk with your companions in the lighthouse. I hate to keep comparing it but in Inquisition you could still talk to the characters even if they had no new dialogue. In that, you’d have the moments where Solas would call you vhenan or speak Elven or like in my second with Cullen you always had the stealing away for a kiss option. It just felt warmer in a way where in The Veilguard I would get a random one off line when I stood in front of Lucanis and, while some of them were sweet, the lack of player input and interaction caused more disconnect.

So overall as a game I think it’s a good buy assuming you go in with the right framing of what you’re going to be getting. A competent story, some interesting characters, good performance, good gameplay marred by a good helping of juvenile safe writing and lack of choice.

[seigephoenix]

Happy Friday! "Laying a gentle kiss to the back of the other’s hand." for Senna and Davrin because fuck. Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck.

Happy DADWC!! Sorry I didn't get to these last week. Our power went out, thought it was from the storm, but it was from someone crashing into a pole. Thankfully no one was hurt but we got power back later that night.

For @dadrunkwriting!! I love Davrin and Senna. I went into Veilguard thinking Lucanis or Emmrich would be my favorites, but nope. The Grey Warden turned reluctant griffon dad did!

Content Warning: game spoilers, wholesome, flirting Length: ~800 words

“We have to what?” Senna demanded leaning over the chair as Neve gave her a serene smile.  She could not believe the words she just heard.  A gala to celebrate their victory over Solas.  A gala.  All their allies and factions were invited and it would be awful if the hero that started the entire war skipped it.  “A ball?  Do I have to wear a dress?” Senna demanded as if the word made her ill.

“Of course.  I’m excited to take everyone dress shopping,” Neve replied with a smirk.  “Bellara is thrilled.”  Senna glared at her in warning for the attempt.

“That’s Bellara.  She’d look amazing in a dress.  Me?” Senna placed both hands on her chest.  She couldn’t remember the last time she wore a dress honestly, probably well before she joined the Wardens.  “I’ll wear nice clothes but I draw the line at a dress.”

“Fine.  As long as you’ll go with me to get new clothes.” Senna realized she’d fallen into the trap and glared at Neve’s victorious smile.

“I’m going to go punch something,” Senna huffed and stormed out of the kitchen area.  She’d been so easily maneuvered; no wonder Solas had been able to manipulate her.  She grumbled and stormed towards Taash’s room where the punching bag hung.

“Yo Rook.  You good?” Taash asked when Senna breezed past her.

“Neve cornered Rook into going shopping for the gala,” Harding explained as they sat together at the table.  “I think Senna needs to hit something.”  Both let out a chuckle as they heard Senna grumble in affirmation before slamming her fist into the punching bag.  They looked up as Davrin made his way inside and decided they were going to get some snacks.  Let Davrin calm Rook down.

Davrin leaned against the column next to the punching bag watching as Senna focused on it.  She had incredible focus, which was honestly a huge turn on for him, but she also had a temper.  One that had never been directed at him or anyone in their team, but he’d seen her take down a Hurlock twice her size when she’d been pissed off before.  He waited quietly as she pummeled the punching bag, finally running out of steam and letting out a frustrated groan.

“You ready to talk about it?”  She tilted her head as he got her attention.  Senna huffed at him but that only made him grin.  She was adorable when she was irritated, but he’d never tell her that.  He looked down at her hands and saw her knuckles.  Swollen, one cracked, and a deeper red color that worried him.  He reached for her hands, cradling them in his own and pulling her to the bench where Taash kept their bandages.  “Anymore punches and that punching bag may have won against you.”

“Pretty sure Taash packs it with bricks,” Senna grumbled as she let Davrin dab at the cuts on her knuckles.  “I don’t want to look stupid at this gala being held in Minrathous.”

“Now why would you think you’d look stupid?  I’ve seen you dressed as bait for griffons, and even then, you didn’t look stupid.”  Senna felt the heat rising in her cheeks at the mention of that training session.  She’d been covered in straw and feathers, but it had been a fun memory.

“That’s different.  I’m used to that, but I’m not used to fancy.”  Davrin nodded as she explained her feelings about it.  She’d never been one to really get in touch with her feminine side, which he vehemently disagreed with, and she didn’t want the gala to highlight that.  “I’m used to a dagger in my hand rather than a wine glass.  Armor instead of silk.  You know?” Senna asked quietly.

“I think I do, and I know you’d be just fine.  Not all outfits have to be frilly dresses.  Pretty sure Taash would knock someone out if they were offered a dress.  Why not get with them and see if they can tell you what they’re wearing?  Maybe you’ll get some ideas.”  Senna’s lips parted as if to protest but she closed them instead.  Davrin lifted her hand to his lips.  He placed a tender kiss across the back of her hand, just past the bandages where warm skin met his touch.

“I can’t wait to see what you wear Rook.”  Davrin leaned forward and his lips paused at her ear.  “And I can’t wait to see it on the floor.”  He quickly leaned back as she let out a surprised gasp.  They looked up as the door opened and Davrin stood before Senna could grab him.  “See ya Rook, take care of your knuckles, okay?”  He brushed past Taash who walked in and sent Senna a withering look.

“Can you not flirt in my bedroom?” Senna glared up at Taash who merely shrugged.  “I can smell it you know.”  She groaned and buried her face in her arms.

[carabas]

Dragon Age Veilguard liveblogging, through the end of the game -

Bianca's broken pieces really were left on Varric's bedside table this whole time, not sure if that's better or worse than if she was part of Rook's hallucination.

And now it's Bellara's turn to send me codex entries from the future, talking about wishing Harding was here now that we've... solved all the big endgame problems that we absolutely have not solved yet? Spoilers, Bellara. i mean, i did already expect to defeat the big bad and save the world in the end. This does rather squash hope for Harding making a last minute Titan-magic-fueled reappearance though.

Talking to Emmrich about when we stopped Solas's ritual back at the very beginning of the game. "It was a team effort. Me, Harding, Neve. And Varric." And the conversation goes on to be specifically about Varric and mourning, no more mention of the others, but that list of names laid out like that is hitting me - Rook is the only person on that list who is not missing or dead. I mean, I've got my fingers crossed for getting Neve back. But the specific people who were lost were the entire team Varric put together, no one left in the Lighthouse ever met him, Varric's team is gone except for Rook.

Talking with Lucanis, Rook questioning if he actually got out of the god prison, this could be more of the Fade... i'm just. flailing in the general direction of the mental Ossuary about this.

And also thinking about all the Dread Wolf's legends about traps, and Rook following in the Dread Wolf's footsteps in this too, both in his own story and as this foundational part of this love story, Rook as the person who opened the door for Lucanis

Also Lucanis wanting to hear Rook talk, "your voice is a comfort" - Rook's voice actor is pretty great, I get it. Pretty sure my love for Rook is mostly due to Alex Jordan's delivery.

Assigning the team to different missions with the allies we've gathered and seeing that play out in this big final battle - feels like everything we did mattered, Dragon Age has really learned from Inquisition's mistakes on this front. Honorary Crow Taash, omg, they get to fulfill their childhood dream!

SOLAS. incoherent flailing in delight about the Rook-Solas confrontation, but WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU WON'T TEAR DOWN THE VEIL, the gasp I gasped, YOU TAKE THAT BACK. Turning on Rook in order to escape the trap wasn't a betrayal, we knew he was going to do that, Rook himself repeatedly said he was going to do that, this is a betrayal. What are you thinking, talk to me Solas... oh, fine, i'm too happy about fighting side by side to be that alarmed right now. One cataclysm at a time.

Bellara thinking over all the questions she had for Solas and what she really wants to know is why he killed Mythal ;_; my girl. i'm so glad I brought this team. And Solas also refers to Spite as a spirit of Determination!! I was starting to wonder if that comes up in this game at all if you don't happen to bring him to fight in the Hall of Valor but Solas points it out too, I'm so happy about this. Lucanis and Spite refusing Solas's offer to separate them, oh my god, everything I want all the time in this game!! except the veil coming down i guess.

BIG WOLF MONSTER SHAPESHIFTER BOYFRIEND i still can't believe they put that in the trailer IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWED BY THE RETURN OF SHAPESHIFTER WIFE, this game is for shady apostate enjoyers specifically

Oh thank god it was a trick lmao, Veil tearing down plan is still on, why did I doubt that, of course it was a trick.

TEN YEARS SINCE INQUISITION. TEN YEARS. and they get their happy ending, lavellan's role in this story was everything i could possibly have dreamed of, no words.

my solavellan heart is very full.

...my mage-rights-obsessed, spirit-loving heart on the other hand is having mixed feelings. i am not surprised the veil did not come down but i did not feel great about turning solas away from that purpose, not without offering him some kind of alternative, someone else picking up the duty he's finally laying down - Lavellan says the people he has wronged are asking him to stop, and indeed some of them are, but the spirits are still so desperate to get back into a world they were separated from that they twist into demons and abominations, Cole in Trespasser was so delighted to discover the Veil was not natural and that he wasn't a wrong thing... but then all my reasons for wanting the Veil torn down come from the previous games and not from Veilguard, why would that be in the ending when it wasn't in the previous hundred hours. Lots of smoothing over of previously complex subjects happening in this game, most of which I'm happy to roll with, but this one's so central to Solas - and the reason this game otherwise works for me even with all its changes in style is because it usually seems to have been built entirely out of love for Solas.

Anyway. I was so incredibly tempted by the option to try to trick the Dread Wolf himself. I want Rook to follow in the Dread Wolf's god-imprisoning-trickster footsteps so badly. But Mythal. And Lavellan's hope for talking Solas around. The lasting reunion for Solavellan that I'd hoped for but wasn't sure we could truly get. So. I haven't looked up what the other endings are like yet, maybe trickster Rook can be something for my Dorianmancing Inquisitor's worldstate.

That post-credits scene - I feel properly rewarded for doing all the sidequests and they've got villains set up for another game if they want them, but by Dragon Age standards that's not even slightly a cliffhanger. The four-game-long story is over. I don't know how I feel but I'm feeling it.

Oh, there's no playable epilogue. I appreciate Bellara's codex entry from the future now.

...okay so I wrote out those last few paragraphs and then actually I couldn't stand having talked him into giving it up, I went back to play through what happens if Rook tries to trick the Dread Wolf and I feel better lmao, it solved my mixed feelings by giving me another, different set of mixed feelings, the mixed feelings balance each other out. I had a blast with this game, we're ending on an odd note, i'm going to be chewing on this for a while.

[thessalian]

Thess vs Subtle Support

So still going through Veilguard, with whatever spoons I can spare. And apparently, despite every complaint that no one does enough or says enough or is reactive enough, I've had two very distinct indications that the Veilguard is very happy to step in and ensure that at least Rook's love life is going smoothly.

First it was Taash. We were on one of her personal quests, and I'd heard that this bit of banter existed but I didn't expect to get it quite so soon. Taash obviously assumes that Lucanis and Rook are already boning, so they're like, "Pop the wings next time. Take them flying. All non-binary people love flying". I understand that Taash says that whatever gender Rook is loves flying, but I do like how it comes across with a non-binary Rook, because when Lucanis says, "You like flying; your whole dragon thing", it feels like it vindicates Taash. Not that they need it specifically, but they kind of do, deep down where their insecurities still live. Taash is very, very keen on precision - on getting it right (they get that from their mother, I'm sure). So when Taash says that non-binary people love flying, and Lucanis says that Taash loves flying, I feel like Taash is internally nodding, like, "Right; I'm non-binary, and I love flying, so non-binary people love flying. I got this." And I imagine it makes them feel a little more confident in their identity.

And then Neve. I've read all about how Lucanis apparently still flirts with Neve even if not being romanced by a Rook, but I've never seen it. They're friendly, they banter, but not ... like that, if you get me? And that just got underlined when I was on my usual tendency to check the map for where colleagues are gathered outside their usual living spaces and go over to eavesdrop. (Seriously, if you only wait for the light to go on outside their spaces, you're missing out; check the map and eavesdrop.) So I see Lucanis and Neve in Neve's office and I think, "Oh, hey, maybe I'll finally see this 'Lucanis flirting with Neve even when romancing a Rook' thing I keep hearing about!"

Did I hear that? No.

Did I hear Neve note that Lucanis was smiling a lot more, elaborate that she reasoned that Rook was good for him, and, when Lucanis kind of sheepishly says, "I ... am starting to figure that out", say "Good. Just making sure" in a tone that suggests, "You'd better not fuck this up, assassin; I Know People"? Yes. Yes, I did. And it gave me warm fuzzies like you wouldn't believe.

I know it's not enough for everyone. I guess for me, I think it's the subtleties that make it. They hardly have time to really talk romance while they're trying to sort out their issues and save the world from effective gods. But it seeps out regardless. It's there in his notes, in his smiling more, in Taash noticing. I'm anticipating another romantic scene with eager anticipation. I like my slow burns; what can I say?

Anyway, I also got Mythal's essence, kicked the ass of a couple of dragons, and at some point have to go rescue some Dalish folks from Elgar'nan, because apparently he thinks that his followers are only good for sacrificing in a blood ritual. ...I hate him. Aaaaand I'd better get some sleep because it's going to be more work and more overtime tomorrow. No fucking wonder I'd rather be in Thedas right now.

[wardencallings]

I was inspired by Harding's unsent letter to her mother to write one I think she'd pen after getting together with Rook and just before the fight with Ghilan'nain. Enjoy!

Ma,

It’s almost time. We have only weeks until Ghilan’nain and Elgar’nan perform their ritual and try to end the world. I won’t lie to you, I’m scared. Rook says we’re ready, and we have so many allies now, but Ma, it still seems impossible. Although, I would’ve said the same about a dwarf having magic, and look at me now. Moving rocks with my mind and lyrium in my blood!

Your letter has kept my spirits up. I read it all the time, and I’m always wondering if I’m making you proud out here. I’m really trying, Ma. I’ve been helping the dwarves of Kal-Sharok learn more about the Stone. Neve and I have been tending to the people in Dock Town in Mintrathous, and I’m even helping Davrin train Assan so that the griffon can become a great Warden someday. 

I’ve been keeping Taash company since their mom died. It’s made me think about you a lot. I hope you’re safe in Ferelden. Rook let me read the letters from the Inquisitor about the south and Maker, Ma, I can’t believe things have gotten so bad since I left. Do you know if the farm is okay? What about our neighbors? Have you heard from any of my friends? I’m just grateful that the Inquisitor got you to safety. I owe her so much. Hopefully saving the world will be enough to repay her.

I keep thinking about my time in the Inquisition. I think it was easier being one of the little people who existed in the background of the Inquisitor’s inner circle. I liked it there. I felt like I was a part of something, but I wasn’t in charge of anything but scouting and sometimes Leliana's ravens. Now, I have all these responsibilities, and I’m always close to the action. Almost too close. Speaking of close…

There’s something I have to tell you before whatever comes next. I’m seeing someone. I definitely wasn’t expecting it, and I don’t think he was either, but Rook and I are together. It just happened. For months I thought he was just being nice. It wouldn’t be the first time I misread someone’s kindness as something more. How embarrassing would it have been to assume there were feelings involved and be wrong? Things would’ve been so awkward! Then I started having nightmares and he offered to stay by my side and then I kissed him and almost killed him and he still wanted to be with me! 

I don’t know what will happen when we take on the gods, and honestly, I don’t really want to guess. All I know is Rook promised me that he’ll be by my side no matter what. He takes care of me, Ma. It’s almost like he knows what I need before I need it. Just the other day he showed up with a pot of my favorite stew, just the way you make it. He’d remembered me telling him about it weeks ago and asked Lucanis for help putting it together. And I caught him a couple of days ago waiting for me in my room, whispering to my plants about how much he likes me. I’d told him that talking to them makes them grow stronger, and telling them happy things keeps them healthy, so he chose to talk about me! 

I promise when this is over I’ll introduce you to him. Just maybe avoid showing him the baby portraits of me? And please don’t tell him that story about me falling off my horse? Or actually, don’t tell him any of your stories. He thinks I’m cool, Ma. Let’s not ruin that yet.

Love,

Lace

[shallow-between-stars]

As I said yesterday, I have beaten the game. I've slept on it and chewed the fat of my thought processes and now am ready to talk about it under cut.

Huge endgame spoilers beyond this point.

So let's start with the big one. Varric.

They actually foreshadowed this really well - when I got to that part of the game and heard Varric's voice for the first time in the regret prison I went "Oh," very sadly and the reveal wasn't so much a shock but a confirmation of what I'd already worked out.

Partly this was because I read a lot of fiction and a lot of mystery fiction in particular, and had already twigged that a) Bianca being broken was symbolic, b) No-one else visited Varric except Rook and Varric didn't visit anyone at all c) No-one other than Rook had a Varric nickname and d) During table meetings no-one asked for Varric's opinion and Varric was being very quiet, flat and weird in these moments. Highly social, sarcastic Varric was being neither highly social nor sarcastic. The foreshadowing was enough that I absolutely knew something was off from quite early in the game and the reveal, for me, was much more of a confirmation of what I already half-knew than so much a reveal.

I don't like that it was Solas manipulating Rook, I think the story beat would have been a lot stronger if it was Rook failing to deal with their trauma properly and would have been more meaningful without the 'it was blood magic!' handwave but I can also see why the devteam put it in the way they did.

Moving on from that.

My endgame.

I chose Davrin, without realising what that choice would end with and goddamn was that a gut punch. It wasn't helped by the fact that Davrin was my Rook's best friend out of all of the companions. And Assaan added salt to the wound. I'm clinging to "They haven't found their bodies" like it's a lifeline although I know there's probably going to be something that makes "They haven't found their bodies" even worse in potential DLC like "They've been turned into Darkspawn Emissaries". I was literally ready to restart the whole mission to save him and send Harding but decided to google it before I did and -yeah- the game only took my two absolute favourite cast members and went "Pick one."

And fuck me, I'm still questioning that choice now and wanting to go back and change it but I also don't want to do that to Harding, because she's my best girl and has been my best girl for ten years.

I chose Bellara to break the wards, and she survived. There was something eminently satisfying about Bellara looking at Elgar'nan and shouting "You are not my God!" At him with this mix of anger and betrayal. This was definitely helped by the fact that my Rook wore Elgar'nan and I can imagine the affront that the arrogant prick would have experienced with "I was defeated by a slave???? My slave???" Which kind of added to the sweet irony.

I must admit though, when I saw Bellara get taken I shouted in dismay. I chose Bellara mostly because Neve was hardened and I didn't want Neve to die and then - well. I wanted to punt someone into the sun for that.

I managed to get through without losing anyone else - I chose Taash for the golem fight and to protect the Inquisitor, Emmrich to dismantle the wards (again I didn't choose Neve because hardened) and Lucanis to assassinate the mage (because, well, assassin.) Everyone had their missions completed, so they were all Heroes of the Veilguard, and the lowest rating I had with the factions was with Shadow Dragons who were only just at three stars (because I found a shop in the crossroads where I could sell valuables and get SD reputation and exploited the FUCK out of it after choosing to save Treviso.) All my other factions were maxed out. Because of my completionist tendencies.

Romance

I chose to romance Lucanis, and thought it was a really satisfying, if basic, story. I would have loved to see more layers in terms of Lucanis housing Spite, and does Rook love Lucanis in spite (lol) of that, or do they embrace that? I've headcanoned that my Rook has her boyfriend, Lucanis, and her other boyfriend Spite who sometimes possesses her boyfriend and they're in a slightly-unhealthy polycule, but it would have been nice to see the game treat Spite as less of an afterthought (not even really even an inconvenience, just there) and explore that with a tighter hand. But, y'know, that's what fanfiction is for!

And like... the game indulged my wing!Kink, what can I say.

In terms of the other companions - Taash hooked up with Harding which was ridiculously cute, and absolutely I've headcanoned that my Inquisitor and Lace are swapping stories about their respective qunari. And while they're at it they discover that the two are really similar and timelines are such that a young!Bull could potentially have had an accident in Par Vollen and we never found out who Taash's father is and the conversation gets a little awkward quite fast. Sorry, what? Oh. I think my speculation is showing.

Emmrich caught me by surprise by starting a relationship with Strife, but it was also really cute. I love when stories have older people finding romance - it's a reminder that it's not just for the young. And then Strife worrying about Emmrich in the final mission was icing on the cake.

Other choices

I'm not going to outline every choice I made in detail, but the cliffsnotes are:

I had Lucanis spare Illario for Lucanis' sake and because I thought that choice might mellow Spite out a bit. If it weren't for Spite, Illario would have been DEAD dead, and I'm still quite surprised that Lucanis bowed to my Rook's wishes here. Lucanis isn't a wee woobie rookie assassin, I don't think that my Rook's opinion on this choice should have mattered. But, y'know, game mechanics.

Taash embraced their Rivaini heritage. Of all the companions, Taash felt the least likely to make their own choice, given that they are early-twenties at the oldest. (I'm headcanoning like... 23, 24, to make me feel less icky about the fact that Harding is in her thirties.) And yeah, I've seen a lot of the comments going around that giving a nonbinary character a binary choice like that is... not great... but I'm also trying to remember that Taash's writer is nonbinary, and they were written as baby's-first-experience-with-a-nonbinary-person in order to appeal to a mass audience. Taash is written to be a character to teach people about enbies, rather than to be about every single enby experience out there, which, you know, every experience is different and there's only so much you can explain in half an hour of game content.

I gave the griffins to the Wardens, but if I played the game through again as Nala I would change this choice. Maybe. Because unchecked Blight and Darkspawn with no archdemons controlling them sounds like a bad time.

I got Harding to embrace her compassion because she's fucking Harding. This one was a no-brainer for me.

I got Emmrich to chose Manfred because I felt that Emmrich wasn't really becoming a lich because he wanted to, he was becoming one because he was afraid of death and that's not healthy. Also because Manfred.

I made Bell destroy the archive. Mostly because at that point my Rook was all "THIS IS SHIT. ANCIENT ELVES ARE SHIT. EVERYTHING ANCIENT MAGIC RELATED IS KILLING PEOPLE."

And Neve didn't give me a choice in her mission.

Final thoughts

I said yesterday that this game is a Mass Effect game in Dragon Age cosplay, and I stand by that. I enjoyed the game while I was playing it and will probably play it again at another point, but right now I'm in a bit of a hangover from it. It's very, very raw and the edges are a bit sore when I poke them at the thought of playing through the last mission again. I'mma let it sit for a bit before I pick it up again, if I do.

For now though, it wasn't a bad game, it was actually really fun! I'm a bit disappointed that all I got in terms of Bull content was a lousy letter but that's a step up from a singular name drop (Fenris) and not being mentioned by the game at all (Zevran) that I've gotten before. I also went in expecting to get nothing from Bull given that FPJ is on the outs with the studio and Bull could, y'know, die in Inquisition.

I think a lot of the issues people are having is because they have solidly embraced Death of the Author in the past ten years, and in this case the Author reminded us that they are Very Much Alive and are still Making The Same Choices as they always have. We have brought a wealth of headcanons and analysis and fandom essays to Dragon Age the past ten years and this game kind of stripped a lot of that back and tried to appease it at the same time, which left the world really struggling for nuance. By trying to make a world in which everyone could apply their headcanons, the game made a world that was no longer rich in the societies and cultural nuances that Dragon Age usually embraces, which also had the unfortunate side effect of making the cities and cultures seem sterile and under-defined.

However, there was a lot of environmental storytelling to fill the gaps. I've already talked about this in another post so I'm not going to go into it now given that I've been typing away for about an hour and a half now, but it basically boils down to the game showed us a lot that it didn't explicitly tell us. And that jarred with people because we're used to a clickywheel and explicitly laid-out opinions, and that was missing. I actually think this game would have benefitted a lot from a clickywheel! A lot of the gripes people have could have been fixed by Rook going to Neve "What about slavery?" And Neve responding "In Dock Town? Don't be daft. Dock Town is where the slaves and servants live. It's too poor for people to own slaves, if they even wanted to." Like, obviously, you can work that out from context but one thing I've learnt after being in the Dragon Age fandom for so long is that Dragon Age fans have two favourite games - Dragon Age and Jumping To Conclusions. So yeah. Clickywheel would have helped.

Anyway, that's it from me! Feel free to (respectfully) agree or disagree with me! I love chatting and debating with people, even those who don't share my opinions because that's how I learn to be more openminded. If you read this far, thank you so much.

[mossarchives]

Veiltober Day 1 - Veilguard

Name: Rook Brosca-Aranai de Riva Pronouns: They/Them Race/Class: Qunari Spellblade Faction: The Antivan Crows Background: The adoptive Qunari child of Warden-Commander Beth Brosca and Zevran Aranai, trained in magic by her aunt Morrigan, and now leader of the Veilguard.

What a nightmare… 

Rook sighs, letting their legs dangle into the ether of the veil swirling below the Lighthouse. One wrong move and they might slip into the void forever, though they can’t deny there’s a part of them that is curious what would happen. It’s the fade, so they wouldn’t die. They’d just float. Would the Dreadwolf save them? Or maybe the Caretaker? If things got desperate, maybe Davrin could send Assan to lug them back to semi-solid ground. 

Most of them is just… tired. They’ve been running all across Thedas like a nug in a maze, fighting, recruiting, arguing, learning, leading -- it was starting to wear on them. Between the numbness in their fingers from channeling mana and the various half-healed wounds across their skin, their whole body is wrapped in a dull ache. 

The view is nice, though. That sunrise warmth casting a gold glow over the pale stones with thin white clouds swirling beneath their feet. Rook lets their mind drift with those pale wisps, trying to pretend they’re alone in the world and not the far-too-young leader of a group fighting blighted gods.

They’re not sure how long they’ve sat there before footsteps bring them back to themself. A pair of black boots catch their eye first, then the bottom of a mug being offered down to them. Lucanis is quiet, but his mouth twists upwards in one corner. It’s more of a smile than smirk, and Rook accepts the mug of coffee he’s offering with a grin of their own. 

“Thanks.” 

He straightens up and Bellara appears at his side, followed by Davrin. “Mind if we join you?” 

“Not at all.” Rook pats the stone beside them.  “Plenty of space for more on this rock. Just watch your step, I’m not sure what happens if you slip.” 

“Let’s not find out.” Lucanis cautions, taking a seat on one side of them while Bellara flops down on their other side. Davrin settles in further back with Assan sprawling in his lap, chirping happily at being included. 

“I’m with you on that.” Rook takes a sip of coffee, kicking their heels back against the rock beneath them. A childish motion that they quickly put an end to, frowning into the drink. Just another reminder of how unsuited they are to leading the group.

Bellara smiles sweetly at her. “Maybe there are other ways we can test it. Safer ways! Maybe Assan can scout it out for us!”

“I doubt it.” Davrin’s words are affectionate but ring with exhaustion. “We’re still working on his training.” 

 A new voice adds to the discussion as three more join them, Taash reaching out to ruffle Rook’s hair as she passes. “We could tie a rope around your waist and throw you over, see what happens.” 

“Not me!” Rook bats her hands away and then smiles at Harding and Neve. “I’m too big, we need someone smaller!”

Harding holds up her hands, retreating to Davrin’s side before Taash can get any closer. “Not it. What about Manfred?” 

“Absolutely not.” As if summoned, Emmerich and the skeleton in question appear. Manfred sets a stool down behind the group for his summoner to rest on, the man waggling a stern finger at Harding. “You cannot simply throw him around!” 

“That’s enough.” There’s a tired sigh from the resident detective who eases herself beside Bellara. “We’ve already invaded Rook’s hiding spot, let’s not fill it with pointless chatter, hm?” 

The group quiets down at her words, settling down to take in the view. Bellara and Harding occasionally point out a strange cloud or sparking light, while Rook raises the mug towards Lucanis, who cheers them with a slight roll of his eyes. The quiet had been nice, but Rook finds they don’t mind the intrusion. They may have come together under odd circumstances, but were united in more than just their goals.

[heylavellan]

Antonio de Riva

Maker, I don't remember when they started popping up. Five, six years ago? First it was just one qunari on the gondolas, lovely fella named Riccardo. Had this broken horn. Everyone wanted to be on Riccardo's gondola. They hired another qunari. And suddenly most of the gondoliers were qunari. Those qunari gondoliers were the best thing that happened to Treviso. Fucking Antaam. - Overheard in Treviso Market

˚∘⊰⋆ about ⋆⊱∘˚

age: 27

pronouns: they/them

class: spellblade

beliefs: none

strengths: adaptable, good listener, loyal

weaknesses: stubborn, distractable, hoarder

the crows: House de Riva plucked them off the streets after they were caught stealing food. One of the first qunari Crows, they stood out. During those early years, they stuck it out for the food and shelter. When Viago joined, things got a lot easier. The bastard prince and the qunari were inseparable, allegedly even lovers.

After a complicated contract to become a fully fledged Crow, Antonio abandoned they cover in Antiva City and returned to Treviso where Viago helped them take over the gondola business and in turn they helped him become Talon. The Crows -- Viago -- gave them everything. And for them, they are the perfect weapon.

˚∘⊰⋆ the veilguard ⋆⊱∘˚

Bellara: "She brings such joy to my life. I hope she continues to find her own."

Davrin: "He isn't the same warden that l first met. He seems happier with Assan and reconnecting with his uncle. He deserves a chance to exist unburdened for a while."

Emmrich: "His perspective on death is fascinating, and his interaction with spirits is incredible. I'm sorry he didn't become a lich, but he seems so happy with Strife and Manfred."

Harding: "I loved her. I wish I told her that more. She changed things for the dwarven people, and I couldn't save her."

Lucanis: "He doesn't see it, but he makes every day better. I love him, I love his diablillo. He is my angel."

Neve: "She had every right to be mad when I chose Treviso over Minrathous. I can only hope I proved myself her friend and supporter."

Taash: "I see so much of myself in them. Finding peace with the Qun, finding yourself. Then living. I'm glad I could be there for them."

Varric: "He trusted Solas was capable of good. I wish he got to see the mission through to the end."

˚∘⊰⋆ outside the veilguard ⋆⊱∘˚

Viago: "Asshole. He really expected me to hide away while the others got to take contracts? Poisoned the letter I got in Tevinter once I left with Varric. But if anyone hurt him..."

Teia: "She's one of the few people who can piss off Viago more than me, and I really admire that about her. Also, she doesn't poison the dinners she buys me."

Elwyn Lavellan: "Weird guy. I think that's what I like about him. Not afraid to be different."

The Viper: "He was blighted because of me, and yet he kept fighting for Minrathous. I'd do the same for Treviso."

Solas: "He is impossible. He is complicated. I despise what he did to me, how he hurt Lucanis. But he was friends to Lavellan, to Pavus, to Varric."

˚∘⊰⋆ relevant works ⋆⊱∘˚

sous chef - pretending to be normal is a luxury the lighthouse affords them.

[butterflydm]

It's ~official~ (DAV posting)

I don't know how much of the game is left but it feels like things might be picking up towards the endgame. My save game data tells me that I'm currently over seventy hours into playing this character (though that includes menus and such, I assume), so no complaints if we are headed towards endgame! But I am loving the game, so I will be sad when we reach the ending (though I do already have my plans to replay as a dwarven and/or Shadow Dragon Rook).

Put down those two blighted dragons that attacked Treviso and Minrathous, so that's a win, and I shot a ballista bolt into Ghilan'nain. So that was a pretty big success, and I'm back to doing all the side quests and character quests that popped up in the aftermath of that story quest.

We finished through Harding's personal quest and confronted the Titan's Shade, so she's now officially a Hero of Veilguard. It feel fitting that she be the first one to get that status, considering that she came from DAI and all. She's finishing what the Inquisitor started.

I really liked learning more about the history of the dwarves and the Titans, heartbreaking as it could be at times. And since I took Bellara with me on Harding's personal quest, it was two elves that were talking to her at the end. Unintentional on my part there, but it really made a lot of Harding's lines feel like they resonated even more, because it was the elven people who benefited from what Solas and the other elven gods did to the Titans.

The damage that history does feels like a big theme - both in things like the elven gods being the ones who shattered the Titans, or in things like those same elven gods trying to recreate their glory days of being worshipped. One of the lines that Harding says at the end of her personal quest - "we will thrive in spite of you" (and having two elves there definitely gave that line a special punch; I wonder if that line is different if you don't play as an elven Rook or if Harding processes that part any differently if you're also a dwarf) just really felt powerful.

Sins of the past would be an other way to put it -- that applies in most every case we've seen. Regrets that stem from the past.

I got confirmation on a few of my guesses from last time -- the Gloom Howler was a Gray Warden who left on her Calling. More specifically, she's an elven mage who blighted the griffons on the First Warden's orders in order to win the fourth Blight.

Emmrich also interrogated Rana's body and confirmed that Illario is a traitor and sold Lucanis out to her in order to gain his place as First Talon of the Antivan Crows. But she was supposed to kill Lucanis, not use him for her experiments, so Illario was genuinely shocked when Caterina learned that Lucanis was alive and imprisoned.

Harding haunted by the trauma of what was done to the Titans centuries ago (millenia ago? i haven't plotted out the timeline), the splintering that created the dwarven people. Bellara is haunted by her brother, who she thought died chasing the very elven artifact that we first found with her (the archive spirit) but who made a deal with one of the Forgotten Ones of the elven gods instead. What she could have been, a deal that she fears she would have made if put into his place.

Emmrich haunted by an old colleague and Neve by an old case that got away.

Darvin is haunted by the ugly legacy of the Gray Wardens and what it means to be willing to do anything to stop the Blight, no matter what the collateral damage may be. Even if that's an entire species.

Taash's struggle has been against gender expectations, as set against the background of growing up with a Qunari mother and having escaped the Qun. A legacy of their birth culture, and deciding what they want to take from their differing cultures they grew up in. Not the sins of Taash's past but of the culture that they escaped from but still feel some connection to.

And Varric, of course, is haunted by Solas -- a friend that he's worried he can't save (and who is the echo of a friend that he believes he failed to save -- Anders and Solas have a LOT in common).

(the list of things that Solas is haunted by span the entire game lol)

On a lighter note, I took Harding and Taash out together and they flirted! <3 And then they flirted again back at the Lighthouse! <3 Harding had a dream about Taash! <3 It's charming! <3

And to get to the title of the post -- I went through Lucanis's Inner Demons quest and then we talked in the kitchens afterwards and we are officially exclusive.

It was really great too -- the quest. Spite leading me through the prison that Lucanis had constructed around himself, because he's afraid of himself after what happened in the prison. Being able to support Lucanis and also to talk to Spite to let him know that... that Lucanis isn't trapping him in that prison deliberately. It's just that it takes time for people to heal from deep trauma like that. I love how it was entirely dialogue-based and not about literally fighting to get to Lucanis but about talking to the parts of himself that were afraid and hiding.

It seemed like a good place to stop for the weekend, since I do have some non-DAV things to do.

[benefitnoone]

I just finished Dragon age the Veilguard

and here are my thoughts and spoilers

I played as Female rogue and lord of Fortune with female Inquisitor who romanced Solas

SPOILERS! and english is not my firts language and I am emonitional right now so be beware of mistakes

uff I need this to get out.... lets start with positives

I liked the art style :D seems like I am the only one...but it was pretty...some locations are breath taking

not dying in easiest settings was amazing...

Manfred ♥ and when he started talking....amazing

Assan ♥ => just love

Neve=> I wasnt sure about her but she is my fave...and I am pissed at myself not romancing her....

Davrin => loved him

Taash => I liked them more than I thought

Emmrich was fun

and now for negatives and wtfs

I dont think this game was made for fans of the series and hear me out...I was there whe Dragon age 2 came out and it was mess but Hawke and companions made up for it and I dont think Rook and their team matched that

it was too positive? Like everyone agreeing with Rook... ok Lucanis and Neve can leave but they come back and there is like no change in them? Yes, Lucanis will not romance Rook (Idk about Neve bcs I saved Minrathous)

since we are talking about Lucanis...him not romancing Rook If they choose Minrathous but end up with Neve ( if not romanced) is like WTF? and big fuck you to Rook... I think i would make sense that he woudnt romance anyone when hardend, and If you save Treviso he would be with Neve or Rook... also missed angst in romance with him with Rook wo does not save Treviso

back to companions... Like I said it was too positive for my liking... Bioware said in begining they want to focused on building found family and there was a lol effort and quest and cut scenes... but it felt flat... and even in family you can struggle but work it out and there was no working out

the decisions were also meh... and I dont realy know about replayability of the game...major decision was Minrathous vs Treviso and I think thats all? later you can decide somethings about companions....

I though that playing as rougue elf would mattered to the game.... like Elgar'nan and Ghilan'nain  would be extra disgusted by that their oponent is nonmage.... but lols on me...

i romanced Emmrich and I was really excited, but idk romance itself was fine but the building for it was there if I compare it to rest of the game series was bland

Solas and Solamancers... well I am one of them... in DAI it was great...chef kiss....but in DA:VE.... it felt like nothing... there could be one memory from his time in inquisition... also his stance ond blood magic... no comment

omg i think I know what is wrong with Dragon age the Veilguard...It is black and white in world wiev and DAO and DA2 is gray and that is what I loved about it

also Rook backstory should be prologue tutorial like DAO....Varrics mentorship and death would be more impactful for new players... you know show dont tell ...

also writting in general was meh ...

why wasnt Hawke pulled from fade by power of friendship?

Varric not mentioning Hawke was heartbreaking as well as Isabela

the game would be fine If it wasnt Dragon age.... You had 10 years and you got us this...

I am sad

Game was fine and I had fun most time but it dint felt like home like rest of the games