teineplaysveilguard

[teineplaysveilguard]

This is in my head now...

Here how I see it starting:

Varric writes to Hawke regularly - because come on there's no chance they are not in touch still. How what did he just know where Hawke was and get them to Skyhold so fast? In one of the letters he casually mentions that he's in Tevinter and thinks he's finally found Solas. Hawke well know at least the basics of the whole Solas situation.

Hawke decides they have to get involved/help because come on, it's hawke.

I see Hawke getting in touch with Isabella who likely knowns where the rest of their dysfunctional "family" is - I seem to remember this was implied in inquisition? Even if not it seems fitting that when if she doesn't stay in touch she knowns at least vaugely where everyone is.

And then Hawke and Isabella go on a road trip picking everyone up before just turning up at Varrics door. And Hawke is like "right, What's the plan?"

I do not have the skill or patience to do this myself...

But I really want someone to rewrite the narrative of DATV with the characters from DA2

Like Varric tracks down solas, sends Hawke (who is not in the fade) a letter and about a week or so later they are all just turn up (dragged by hawke) to the inn where Varric is staying 🤣

Merrill would have this shit sorted in minutes so we need to find a way to taper her knowledge... But otherwise I think it has potential.

I also want Zevran there... I feel he'd fit in well and get a kick out of this.

[teineplaysveilguard]

One of the things I loved about DA2, like the main reason I loved that game, and still love that game, was that hawke was just... Some guy. They were not particularly special, they were just a refugee running from the blight in a fucked up city. Yes there were demons and the blight, slavers and blood mages, but that was more like... Background noise. Just part of the world. A reality they all had to live with.

Certain stuff was essentially pre-ordained, certain characters doomed from the start. It didn't matter how hard hawke worked or what they did the big picture was never going to change. All they could do was make small impacts, try to help those they cared about, and try to make a difference even if they knew that really it was impossible.

Not that it didn't have issues too. There were so many things that could have been explored more fully, a lot of the interactions felt out of character at times, and don't even get me started on the copy and paste dungeons. But... It didn't shy away from the dark aspects and there was something that resonated about the helplessness and tragedy of it all.

The fact that since then it turned out that the few things Hawke did manage were actually failures - honestly did anyone Hawke kill stay dead? - in a way added to that fact.

I should maybe stop comparing veilguard to kirkwall as it's got no chance of winning 🤣

[teineplaysveilguard]

I really really really wanted to enjoy this game... I was actually excited for it. I mean I've waited TEN YEARS!!!

And don't get me wrong technically speaking is a good game. It is a visually beautiful game, the fight mechanics as a mage are incredible, and several of the characters are really interesting.

But below the cut, hidden incase of inadvertent spoilers.

But... And I don't know maybe it's a vibes thing... It just feels like it's lacking something...

I feel like the first three games didn't shy away for the dark shit as much as this one does. They were messy. Every faction, every nation, and every person felt more real. No-one really felt entirely good or bad, the world was fucked up and peoples mindsets had been influenced by that.

I mean I was literally running around Tevinter as an elf... I literally picked to play as an elf because damn that should result in some drama in Tevinter... But so far... nothing... Not even an offhand comment from a random NPC.

the fact that slavery is a thing in Tevinter hasn't even been mentioned, let alone the complex social hierarchy or implied racism. I mean there was fantasy racism in the south, logically it should be far more overt here in a place who's entire economy is built on (mostly elven) slave labour? They'd probably not even see it as racism, it would just be a thing, a fact of life, just there. We sort of got a bit of this with Dorian in DA:I and his opinion made sense given his past, he explained it calmly, ot wasn't made into a huge thing, it was just casual comment during a discussion but it was there.

I don't know... I've not finished yet so I might change my mind but this just feels very sanitised.

There are also SO MANY unfinished plot points and disjointed lore snippets from the other games that I thought might at least get a mention, even a subtle nod, but I'm not holding it much hope for that now.

Also the others felt more like true RPGs... Not that I've ever been one to play in a "be awful to everyone and piss everyone off" way, but it was nice that the option was there.

[teineplaysveilguard]

Possibly spoilers

So I've not played in a few days... And hers why.

My thought process: "how is the dagger missing? It was in varrics chest, it's not like you could take him back to the lighthouse and lose the damn dagger... Oh... Oh... Shit... Varrics dead isn't he... This is some Sixth Sense Shit...

But I pushed that thought down. Kept playing. But I noticed more and more "sixths sense shit". So my next thought was:

Nope... If I don't continue then he's not dead on my world state. Ha! I win."

Which is course it's bullshit because now I've spent a lot of money on a game that my brain won't let me play 🤣🤣🤣

[teineplaysveilguard]

Maybe a weird one... But i love the animation for opening chests 🤣

[teineplaysveilguard]

Partner: so when do you fight a dragon?

Me: launches into a long explanation about the different ages and this being the dragon age because dragons are back but that does not mean that you fight dragons constantly.

Two seconds later:

Oh...

(not that you fight it right now but still it undermined my point)

[teineplaysveilguard]

Now... I do not want to defend Varric in his BLANTENT DOUBLE STANDARDS when it comes to Anders and Solas... But I've been thinking...

What if it's because he knew Anders for so long? Because they were close - I mean Anders wanted to leave his mothers pillow to Varric so they must have been close - that he seems to judge Anders so harshly?

Yes in many ways they both did things that Varric likely views as questionable and a betrayal. But Anders likely feels so much more personal.

Not that this makes his double standards right, or even justifiable... But I guess it's realistic that regardless of the objective severity of an act it's going to hurt more when you're closer to a person.

[teineplaysveilguard]

Everytime solas opens his damn mouth he makes me laugh... I'm sure he wasn't this funny in inquisition 😅 either I'm misremembering or dudes see if humour has improved greatly in 10 years

[teineplaysveilguard]

Solas: I was TRYING to simply MOVE Elgar'nan and Ghilain'nain to a better prison so that I might spare the world their evil before the Veil inevitably collapses and then this PUNK INTERRUPTED ME because the IDIOT thought I was DESTROYING THE WORLD!

Lavellan: Wow, Solas, that sucks. You know, it really is unfortunate that you never had, say, an extremely powerful girlfriend who runs the most powerful paramilitary organization in the world willing to listen to you and support you. If, say, you had someone who knew the truth about who you were and still loved you and wanted nothing more than to help you fix things without killing tons of people, that would have been really useful, huh? Like, imagine, for a minute, that there was someone actually willing to listen to all of your explanations, LIKED doing that in fact, who also just so happened to have countless resources at hand to help you better handle the Evanuris and their prisons and would have also kept Varric and Harding from sabotaging you with a word.

Solas: ....

Lavellan: Wow, it sure does SUCK for you that you never had any means to get necessary help for all of your plans. Your always 100% foolproof plans that have never gone catastrophically wrong before. Gosh, if only SOMEONE might have been willing to help!

Solas: Vhenan, I--

Lavellan: ---I mean, how could you have known that the people of this world are far more resourceful and useful and driven than you give them credit for? Your plans blowing up in your face never went wrong because you underestimated people before, right?

Solas: Please, I---

Lavellan: Gee, if only there was a world in which SOMEONE could have given you an army of genius mages to guard and help your ritual. And help you find a way to take down the Veil without an apocalypse. Shit, would that not have been SO HELPFUL??? Gee, you could have gotten rid of Ghilain'nain and Elgar'nan and the others in minutes then went home to a hot meal and pussy. Too bad that was never on the table for you. Maybe in another world...

[teineplaysveilguard]

Merrill and Bellara should get to hang out.

[teineplaysveilguard]

First thought on meeting Bellara: I want to lock you in a room with Merrill and just watch because it would be fascinating!

Honestly she's only said like 5 lines so far but she just reminds me of merrill so much that I'm getting urges to play DA2 again 🤣

[teineplaysveilguard]

My Rook

i accidentally managed to time the screeenshot for while she was blinking 😆

Can anyone tell me if there is a set hashtag we are using for spoilers and such?

[teineplaysveilguard]

No idea how side blogs work

I have no idea how this works 😂 but welcome to @teine-mallaichte's side blog where I will blog my first play of Veilguard - mainly to keep my inevitable brain dump off my main blog.