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Post by Lee on Nov 8, 2024 18:02:50 GMT
I'm going with Champion probably since it's fire focused and I really wanted to be a fire mage-but there really was only one good fire spell in the whole game for them. v.v
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Post by Scottphoto on Nov 8, 2024 21:18:44 GMT
Andrew Mancer Without going into details, some of your concerns do get addressed later as you play, but I recommend you do crossroads related quests so you don't miss out but you will also know when the time is right as to what specifically to do there. It won't fully make up for it though cuz no keep, but at least a few things get explored, not saying what or who so I don't spoil haha. Regarding familiar face: Yesss Isabela is back! If you pick lord of fortune faction like me, she's actually an old friend of Rook's like they been friends for a while and tease each other like brother and sister, is great. Regarding romance between companions: Sadly, is Lucanis who Neve falls for if they are not romanced and not Bellara which would have been cute. But since your romancing Lucanis figure I might as well say it since your not going to experience that.
All right, Act 1 has been finished so going to discuss act 1 stuff in general but will still spoiler tag some stuff just in case: Overall I get that some people did say act 1 felt rather slow in their reviews, but at the same time I liked that you could quest a bunch of things out of the way so you can later more focus purely on the story content. What I did find rather slow was romances in act 1, there is flirts and such but a lot of the initial flirts for some of the companions is very tame or not even something I would consider a flirt. But overall I like all the companions introduced, they all pretty different and bring something different to the table but none of them feel annoying to be around with. I do however feel some of them are written better than others. Emmrich for example is kinda swooning me because hes writing is really good. His first personal conversations hit me pretty hard than expected: When he speaks about his fear of dying, there was a period of time in my life that I had that pretty aggressively, now is more normal but yeah that was an unexpected scene for me.
The inquisitor in act 1: So far, I actually like the appearance of the inquisitor, I think they play it pretty safe which is fine. It is still a shame however they didn't bring the keep so that the inquisitor dialogues could be more precise on names and moments, same for Harding recounting the tales of inquisition. But still Im happy overall how its been done so far and it doesn't suffer from the uncharacteristic Hawke stuff... for now that is. Even though I chose my inquisitor wanted to redeem solas, he did admit that he doesn't really think that's possible anymore and that was my worry, that he would be fangirling over Solas but he did not, at least not yet. The combat overall I think comes around really well fully upgraded too. And the final mission of act 1 was just excellent, speaking on that mission: I chose and stuck with convincing the first warden, while it sucked most of my companions didn't like it, I thought it was a big deal for my Rook. The reason for that is because his life he always does things out of impulse and brings a lot of mistakes along the way, and him actually speaking to the first warden instead of letting his impulse of punching happen, and that it actually worked to convince him really surprised him. You can see this also in the dialogue when he is like wait me??? When the first warden suddenly trusts him now to activate the dragon trap.
The rest of the mission is great, very epic, intense combat, etc. But I loved bringing Lucanis and Davrin to it because they set aside their differences during it, had great banter, and respected each other and trusted each other to fulfill their roles. They later got mad about it after the mission but they calmed down and make sure I talk with each other that all is forgiven. Lucanis and Davrin also discussed my choice:
lucanis: I really thought you were gonna punch him
rook: though about it!
davrin: its a miracle you talked him down
rook: he better earned it!
And then the fact that both of the boys I'm flirting with were doing actions that could have killed them was like a rush for my Rook XD. Really loved that mission.
So yeah now is time to spend more time with companions, so regarding flirts in act 1 and very start of act 2, but basically I do echo a lot of what farferello has said: I chose Lucanis as main romance but I ultimately decided to flirt also Davrin and Emmrich to compare because it takes so long to get another Lucanis flirt. I also experimented with some Tash flirts but I reverted after.
So essentially, Lucanis starts with pretty good flirts, mainly the coffee scene about the kiss, is very sweet. Unfortunately after that there's like nothing for a long while which is a bit let down with how well the set up is. The last two flirts I done Lucanis responded like I just did a normal dialogue and not a flirt one.
Now in the case of Davrin, he does play hard to get, but at least on his first flirts it is established by him that your going to have to work for it. But he gets a decent amount of flirts for this to happen and I think his act 2 ones definitely show that progression, unlike Lucanis.
On the other hand, to my surprise Emmrich flirts in act 1 were lovely. As in the very first flirt when he invites you to sit down with a table prepared by the adorable Manfred, you can flirt with him, and you ask him: are you trying to impress me? And emmrich gets all flustered like he got caught and then you reassure him that is working. After that, you get another flirt in the lighthouse where he looks forward to do that again and your rook says i would love to spend more time with you and emmrich again responses well to calling you a dear at that point.
In the case of Tash it was a bit odd progression wise, You can ignore every Taash flirt, but take the first flirt with Tash on act 2 and the romance lock dialogue pops up and it gets kinky fast LOL.
So yeah the pacing of these romances is a bit over the place. It does seem these last two coming later in the game do speed run perhaps a bit the longer drag reaction.
Anyways, I'm so happy those of you that really wanted Davrin are happy, he definitely got a good amount, and Assan is just adorable. And Im happy overall some opinions aside on delivery, that all the romances are balanced ish overall. Love that review format farferello ! hahaha. Need reviewers to do it more. Overall how you feel on the game compared to other DAs Lee ? I see you already started a second run so at least you are enjoying it enough to really start another. Also happy you loved Davrin. Also Bioware released first stats from players regarding most used class, factions and lineage:
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Post by Lee on Nov 8, 2024 21:44:59 GMT
Scottphoto I have a feeling I'll need a few more months before I know for sure if this is my favorite Dragon Age or if 2 still holds that honor, but I know I love it a lot. That being said the game really upset me with one thing they did (and it's not even the secret ending that the internet is shitting the bed over). I look forward to discussing what really bothered me when everyone else is caught up.
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Post by farferello on Nov 8, 2024 22:23:38 GMT
I think DA2 is always going to be my favourite. It was the first Dragon Age I ever played and whilst my first playthrough kind of went sideways (sorry Fenris) it will always remain first in my heart. That said, I do deeply enjoy Inquisition, and Veilguard. For different reasons for sure. Though unlike DA2, and Inquisition, I'm not sure how many times I will replay Veilguard. I'm honestly not sure anything could beat my first character and I'm not that interested in most of the romances. As much as I like Davrin, I can't unhear Koth every time he speaks and I just... I can't. As much as I adore Koth, I can't romance someone sounding just like him whilst looking completely different. (Maybe one day it will feel less weird to me idk.) I imagine the game will eventually end up like Inquisition where I just romance the same companion, with the same character constantly. I do want to try a Grey Warden run one day but I need to unhear Koth first.  I'm also not sure any of the other combat styles will bring me as much sheer joy as Spellblade does. |
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Post by disgustednoise on Nov 9, 2024 17:18:13 GMT
I'm way behind the rest of you, but I finally got Emmrich's romance conversation (beyond just a flirt here and there) and this man has me kicking my feet in the air.
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Post by mediocreogre on Nov 9, 2024 17:47:54 GMT
I am still behind too. I have my warrior who recruited Davrin and did the stuff that happens after that and I re-rolled a Mage that just recruited Lucanis and my available free time is dwindling, I took some mental health time from my day job so I had a bit more time than normal. Will be a while for me.
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Post by Lee on Nov 9, 2024 21:25:49 GMT
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carcer
Grizzled Warrior
Posts: 84 
Likes: 331
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Post by carcer on Nov 9, 2024 22:29:24 GMT
Game: "We have to save the dalish/the griffons/my mother!" Me: "Sure! But first..." *wanders off to search for treasure* I love this game so much  I don't think I'm close to finishing, even though I'm already 90 hours in, according to Steam. But there is still so much to do! My warden romanced Davrin, felt like the best choice for the character. But I personally prefer Emmrich, he is such a gentleman! My next character will be a crow warrior, he'll be a better fit for Emmrich, perhaps. I'd also like to make characters to romace Bellara, Neve and perhaps Lucanis. But not Taash, they just seem soo jung I can't. |
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Post by Lee on Nov 10, 2024 6:30:36 GMT
I am very confused about some people's reaction to the writing of this game. A really good friend of mine, that I really respect the opinion on things said he thought the writing was bad and disrespectful to the lore. I...don't really get it. I feel like especially compared to most other triple A games-this one is practically a love letter to fans of the series-with so many call backs, strong character arcs, and a far better paced story than BioWare has had in ages. -shrug- I just don't get what people expected from the game I guess?
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carcer
Grizzled Warrior
Posts: 84
Likes: 331
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Post by carcer on Nov 10, 2024 7:57:38 GMT
A really good friend of mine, that I really respect the opinion on things said he thought the writing was bad and disrespectful to the lore. I'm curious, did he elaborate? Give you an example of what he considers "bad writing"? |
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Post by Lee on Nov 10, 2024 8:37:02 GMT
A really good friend of mine, that I really respect the opinion on things said he thought the writing was bad and disrespectful to the lore. I'm curious, did he elaborate? Give you an example of what he considers "bad writing"? No, I may have to follow up about it I guess. I didn't want to press the issue at the time, as it just feels like the popular thing this day in age to dislike a thing. But I guess what really bothers me is he quit DATV to replay Cyberpunk 2077...and I think something in my brain broke.  |
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carcer
Grizzled Warrior
Posts: 84
Likes: 331
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Post by carcer on Nov 10, 2024 9:49:42 GMT
But I guess what really bothers me is he quit DATV to replay Cyberpunk 2077...and I think something in my brain broke. Ah. Well. I don't get it either, but I despise CDPR and their games, so... He is your friend, so it's up to you to decide if this is worth a follow up or not  |
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Post by Beefy Titans on Nov 10, 2024 14:32:45 GMT
Trying to finish side quests, I decided to tackle Heart of Corruption quest and ended up fighting lvl 50 Revenant Dragon boss at level 32. It was very intense especially when it used the attack that blinded my companions. After a few tries, I learned its movement and finally killed it. It's a great boss fight!  I am also making moves on Davrin. He soon shall be mine!  |
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Post by mediocreogre on Nov 10, 2024 15:17:09 GMT
Lee there has been an across the board backlash to many aspects in this game. Even CP2077 had a backlash to aspects of the writing by certain people, but it never reached critical mass. Wizard Game from last year had some people freak out about it but it never reached critical mass (certain fans thought it was too woke or was too diverse etc) where as this game its more concentrated. Not only is it getting attacked by anti woke gamer nerd freak out, it is highly anticipated (hype creates high expectations), it is a new BioWare team (most the OG DA team is gone or in different roles), and DA has suffered from inconsistency from game to game and people seem to think there was a coherent DA that this game steps on, which is not true. Compare DAI to DAO and its vastly different, people were just more comfortable with things being different in 2014. Plus I do think there are traces of a multiplayer game lurking here and there, even in the writing, that exacerbate people's negativity. But yeah, it's better than I thought it would be anticipating this game tbh. Bellara seems to get a lot of hate, and its like... she's a continuation of the DA trend to have a silly character (Oghren, Merrill/Isabella, Sera) and to me her biggest crime is that she's basically another wasted elfy elf mage and doesnt quite have the edge Merrill or Solas had.
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Post by Scottphoto on Nov 10, 2024 15:20:08 GMT
carcer I wonder off too much as well, and even more so hearing that faction level is important so more excuse to run around doing everything haha. Beefy Titans I left that fight for later. Those fights take me forever if I'm under leveled haha. But I did do one In the necropolis, that one was 40 at least. Lee Yeah I don't get the comments of the dialogue being bad or cringe, they are on the same level as any bioware game, specially even inquisition. Hell Inquisition would even go very far with the corny humor at times with things like Varric's book with Cassandra and sleeping with Iron Bull advisor reactions. In Veilguard however I haven't really seen that level of humor. If people are always picking the humor dialogue though your rook will be constantly be more jokey even on banters as some have said that the tone of banters is also defined by what you most often choose in the dialogue wheel. As for lore and story, people need to understand we are in another region of Thedas, people that come from different backgrounds will have different view points of certain things. Like I seen complains about Taash and the Qun, but Taash is just saying what they think from their perspective about it which is going to be very different from say Iron Bull's perspective. The other thing is people do forget a bit the 10 year gap. Has for the characters in the game overall, some will click for some, while others will click for others. I always enjoy Harding but I have a friend who considers her boring, I have another friend that's nonbinary and just started meeting Taash and is loving them. I connected strongly with Emmrich's story, others may not. Some of us find Lucanis romance really slow, while others online adore it that way. So like the way we connect with each character will be pretty subjective on that regard. Has for some spoiler memories you can get in act 1: I don't think it retcons, but instead just add onto it and piece together a couple of lore pieces of the game. I think the dissatisfaction from some people comes more from people not liking those answers being put together, rather than retcon itself. Like answers about the dwarf titans, elves being spirits. I will say I'm glad they did address flemeth/solas thing in inquisition. I do think Flemeth being involved in that is kinda messy but that was inquisition, not Veilguard's doing. The only writing complain I have is that we don't get as solid stuff as we could have from inquisition because of not having the keep, that's my only major gripe about the writing.
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Post by farferello on Nov 10, 2024 19:55:32 GMT
I'm gonna be salty again for a minute. I made the mistake of looking at the other two male romances last scenes. Lucanis is seriously the only male romance where you don't get to say 'I love you' back??? Seriously?!  Right now I'm working my way through another playthrough, this time as a Rogue, Warden, for Davrin. Though at this point I expect it will only make me even saltier about Lucanis's romance. I really did the least romantic one first.  |
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Post by disgustednoise on Nov 11, 2024 21:17:31 GMT
Think I'm getting close to the end. I've finished Lucanis and Harding's personal quest chains.
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Post by farferello on Nov 11, 2024 21:24:46 GMT
I'm pretty sure most of you are past that point by now but I will keep it vague.
Which choice did everyone make in Act 1. I'm curious.
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Post by disgustednoise on Nov 11, 2024 21:59:42 GMT
I'm pretty sure most of you are past that point by now but I will keep it vague. Which choice did everyone make in Act 1. I'm curious. Treviso and regretted it the whole game because I'm a Shadow Dragon, but I was worried about possibly romancing Lucanis lol. |
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Post by Scottphoto on Nov 11, 2024 23:01:06 GMT
I also went Treviso, and a friend of mine that is their first DA also picked Treviso. I did it for Lucanis, my friend did it because of story reason. The fact lucanis says civilians will die where as the others con is just venatori takeover. Plus my friend doesn't know the venatori much lol.
I am very curious to see the stat on which one is more popular choice as I see a lot of Treviso in socials. Also my friend did decide to pick up this DA because they are non binary and wanted to try being able to make a trans character. And they got a scene very differently because of this regarding Taash in act 1: Where Neve And Taash are talking about being a woman, if your Rook is established as trans, you can talk to Taash about your personal experience of transitioning, open up with Taash and help them during this process of figuring out their identity, I saw the clip and was very impressed by it how much it changed with multiple new dialogue choices.
But for those that don't want to see the spoiler, in summary making your character trans has a very significant impact on specific scenes like this one where you can actually talk about your transition and choose how your Rook feels about it, their process, etc. So I definitely recommend it for any of our fellow trans or non binary members here or anyone that wants to simply try it out. |
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I'm also not sure any of the other combat styles will bring me as much sheer joy as Spellblade does.
I don't think I'm close to finishing, even though I'm already 90 hours in, according to Steam. But there is still so much to do! My warden romanced Davrin, felt like the best choice for the character. But I personally prefer Emmrich, he is such a gentleman! My next character will be a crow warrior, he'll be a better fit for Emmrich, perhaps. 
