Hey friends! Lots of questions about origins DLCs. You can find info on if I played those in the intro of this video and also in the community posts tab of the channel page! Thanks for being here 🧡
Haven't seen that many rogue playthrough, that will be interesting. If i remember correctly i first played as a rogue in DA II. Playing as a Mage in a place that hates Mages is something mentally taxing but i enjoyed it a lot too!🤣
You're not missing much by forgoing DAO's DLCs. The Golems of Amgarak (or however it's spelled) is more Deep Roads 'fun.' Darkspawn Chronicles is basically the battle of Denerim, but reversed. Where you play as the Darkspawn, with the goal of killing the main game's companions. You win, when you kill Alistair. Leliana's Song is fun and interesting, at least compared to the other two.
@@aaronjohnson8786 well that depends! It's not a must, cause of the Dragon Age Keep! I used it also to have an alternate version of Origin and Inquisition I was hundred percent satisfied, with my choices in DA II
@@pgabrielrds the DA:O mage is by default a member of the _Amell_ family which should apply to human mages only. Leandra and Gamlen are Amell :) dunno if DA2 game content is different if the Hero of Ferelden is your somewhat distant relative.
Not sure if anyone has commented this yet, but with the friendship/rivalry with your companions, it's okay to go either way (and you can still romance someone who is a rival), but you'll want to make sure you pick one side or the other and not stay mid-range or indifferent. Asking for your companions input, or to do actions can affect your approval levels. For instance, if you had let Aveline deal with Wesley herself, she would have approved instead. Just a friendly tip, of course! Just that the approval system is a bit different than DAO :)
@_shhenanigans_ Don't worry, a few dips either side here and there won't affect you too much. But even if you end up on the rivalry side, it doesn't mean they hate you! It'll affect how they respond in certain conversations and their mannerisms may seem a bit more assertive or argumentative, but they still respect you. On the other side of the spectrum, they're much more easy going. But if you stay indifferent, so do they. After watching several of your playthroughs now, I know you get as attached to your companions as I do! I think you'll love this little misfit group, I can't wait to see how it goes 😊
There are some negative things about this game because it only took 18 months for them to make, but it's one of the best for story, it has amazing companions, and people really get attached to Hawke as a protagonist. Your jaw will hit the floor more than once in this game, and I expect lots of laughter and lots of tears.
Yay DA2!! Btw, it said that the imported save is incomplete because the one the game expects is the "Post Campaign - Epilogue" save file that's at the bottom of the list of saves. Not sure which save you picked, but it might've been from right before the final battle instead of the Epilogue save I mentioned... But I *think* it might still be okay (since you did Morrigan's ritual, the game should fill in that your warden survives the final battle)
I could have completely flipped it and They could have said rogue is only good in DA2 and sucks everywhere else 😭🤣. It was a super long comment on a previous DAO video
I'm excited for you to get into DA2! And whatever people's opinions, I'm glad you went mage again. Do what you enjoy! I played a mage in the first 2 games as well and have no regrets ^^
Welcome to DA2 act one where you are a refugee and the natives hate you! Kirkwall was built by the Tevinter Imperium about 1,500 years ago (even before Andraste). It became the center of the Imperium's slave trade. Many of the statutes in the city, such as the ones you noticed at 1:10:22, are remnants from that era.
Shen: "... So far everyone sucks..." Me: Welcome to Kirkwall! 😂 And yeah when it comes to Dragon Age voice actors, Brian Bloom (Varric) and Claudia Black (Morrigan) both have amazing voices in my opinion. I could listen to them read phone books and somehow become emotionally invested. Lol
You can read in the codex that your character is the oldest sibling, while Bethany and Carver are twins. Carver can be a bit of a pain in the ass, but he still loves his family. Glad you're playing this for yt!
The dialogue options are a little more nuanced than Mass Effect and DAO. The middle option was actual a “humorous” response. The icon will give you an idea. For example, later you’ll have options with hearts which are the romance options. The friendship vs rivalry thing is a different take on the approval system of DAO, which I like. Now when you make choices that someone disagrees with you will form a rivalry with them instead of them just leaving. Friendship or rivalry when maxed out gives them different bonus abilities and interactions. If I recall correctly you can even still romance a rival character, but it might depend on the character. It’s more like “agree to disagree” situation.
Ima breakdown the personality system for you: There's no morality meter or anything like that, it just decides Hawke's general personality between dialogue choices. Diplomatic (Green/Blue) Humorous (Purple) Aggressive (Red) What you pick the most will decide how Hawke generally acts outside of picking dialogue choices. Like here at the end of battle 19:30 She says "we're keeping score right?" Because you picked mostly humorous dialogue. And here at 1:28:20 where she sarcastically says "we're off to a fantastic start" aggressive and diplomatic Hawkes would say something else there. Based on personality you'll also get unique options based on personality like here at 1:09:36 in the bottom left. Choices that are in the bottom left that either a start or personality choice mean it's a choice you've unlocked with special conditions. Personalities get unique options in different scenes so it's not like one is better than the other. It all comes down to preference. Diplomatic gets persuasive options, humorous is clever and able to trick people and aggressive is better a scaring people. Personality can change if you start picking some more than others but it would take picking it twice as much. It's not something you need to worry about though. Just have fun and pick what feels natural!
I will say Mage has the most effect and influence in the narrative of the game, as opposed to rouge and warrior. If you want the most juice of the story I would recommend staying as a mage
I am very excited! In DA2 the relationship is like, if u go rival, go rival to 100 and if you go friendship, go friendship to 100. so you can piss them off all u want to get 100 and can still romance them lol. However, the type of interaction will greatly differ between friendship and rivalry and IMO that is the interesting part of this whole game Hawke personality will also solidify the more u pick a type and she will have different automatic lines in several occasion that differ depending on her personality. Also, I play ALL MAGE up to Inquisition, so just ignore the naysayers. There IS something to gain playing a mage, isnt it interesting instead? So, ignore what people say about DA 2, just ENJOY!!
So excited to see you continue the series with this playthrough! Gotta say, I love how invested you get with the story and individual characters... I mean, I know that's the point of these games, but some people don't really immerse themselves as deeply as you do. I can tell you take your decisions seriously and really think things through, which makes watching you play so enjoyable. :) That being said, I hope you don't let any negative comments about your choices get to you. This is YOUR game - even if you make a "bad" decision it's still yours and no one else's. And honestly, sometimes the "bad" decisions make for some of the most interesting gameplay and consequences. Anyway, enjoy your game!
Aw, thank you so much for your kind words! I think dragon age makes it really easy to immerse yourself and get super invested. I can’t wait to see all the ways I’m going to fall in love and then be heartbroken in this game! Thanks for being here!
Welcome to Kirkwal...The City of Chains.. I have a personal experience with DA2 as it was my companion game during the COVID19 era.. I got the virus and I was playing the game during the obligatory home isolation, i will never forget those days and I will never forget DA2, my personal favorite !!! Stay safe and spoiler-free, Hawke !! 😊
You spend the prologue as refugees fleeing war. Act I is you working odd jobs trying make a better life for you and your family. For a fantasy adventure, this game is awfully relatable.
The Origins game did not have the graphics to display proper 'scanned' faces. Flemeth (Kate Mulgrew voiced) was therefore just old, and Morrigan (Claudia Black) looked barely like her voice actress either. DA used Kate's actual face (scan) for the character base. Mulgrew is probably most known as the captain on Star Trek Voyager.
I always go mage too. Mainly because of the lore of the world and oppression of mages, secondly because magic is cool! I usually do a rogue on my second play through.
Dragon Age 2 is my favorite of the series, the story and the characters really just connected with me. I love all three, but this one holds a very special place in my heart. You've also now met Varric, who is my favorite companion in the entire series and one of my favorite video game characters overall. A quick note, as you explore Kirkwall, if can click on your companions to get little comments from them which change depending on which part of the city you are in, and whether it's day or night time. They are usually quite funny and often give you a little bit of insight into either the city or the character, or both. I'm so excited for this playthrough!
Fun fact, if you played as a human mage in Origins, you'd be blood related to Hawke. Leandra comes from the Amell family, same as the human mage Warden
@@_shhenanigans_ I love the human noble intro as well. I was referring to the human MAGE warden, in case you missread my comment. xD Their specific relation is that the Human mage's mother is Leandra's cousin.
the dragon age fandom is just super opinionated, lol, don't worry about playing another mage! I keep playing mages too, they're very spicy and the battlefield control is everything. Plus the AOEs yes good lol Edit: re the dialogue options, it's pretty similar to mass effect, but the options aren't attached to morality like paragon/renegade. They just reflect your Hawke's personality. Blue is generally diplomatic/friendly, Purple is usually sarcastic or charming/witty, and Red is abrupt/direct/aggressive. You can still be a good character who is just rude to everyone if you want to lol. Or you can be a terrible character who is generally diplomatic. If you pick a string of diplomatic/sarcastic/direct options, your Hawke's dialogue will change to reflect the options you mostly pick.
I remain convinced that a significant part of the story is Varric telling tall stories to impress his listeners. Just not the really important bits, which are things he'd probably like to forget. The dialogue is very Mass Effect like, including that most options on the left are continuing quations in the current part of the conversation and ones on the right advance it. The ones on the right are typically Diplomatic (top), humorous/Witty (centre) or Aggressive (bottom). And like in MAss Effect, if you make enough choices along one line you'll get extra options.
Reasons I prefer Melee in this game. 1 I prefer Bethany to Carver. There is no Break Chests open mod like in Origins so if you are not a Rogue you can forget about a lot of loot in the game and 3 the combat is a lot faster, especially for melee
I love that the mage fighting animations feel so strong in this game. Staffs are a weapon, not just a prop. That said! Narrative wise, I think it makes more sense to play as a non-mage character. Like you said, there's more suspension of disbelief required to run around kirkwall openly as a mage haha. Plus the mage-related conflict is more interesting/complicated if you're not a mage yourself imo. And bethany is so much more palatable to have around than carver 😅
Crazy to hear that people actually got mad that you picked a mage in DA:O? Considering at least like 70% of playthroughs are mage lmao. That's bonkers. Play what you want to play, some Bioware fans get genuinely uptight if you don't do a 1-1 playthrough like they did. Even if you disagree, let someone else play the game.
NiceHawke (blue) is noble, honorable, and kindhearted. ToughHawke (red) is aggressive, blunt, and hot tempered. SnarkHawke (purple) is funny, sarcastic, and sometimes silly. My favorite example of the three personalities is this exchange- NPC: He inherited it. Mmm...maybe inherited is the wrong word. What do you call it when you kill someone and take all their stuff? Blue Hawke: Murder. Red Hawke: Tuesday. Purple Hawke: An unfortunate misunderstanding?
Heyy welcome to Dragon age 2!! 🎉 Im glad you like the combat as much as me its really dynamic 🥰 For the dialogue system its a bit like mass effect with diplomatic and pragmatic at the top and bottom but theres the middle one in bonus that is more the jokey/chill responds (my favorite) and you won't unlock perusasion dialogues or have interruptions like ME. The only consequence you'll have selecting a certain type of dialogue is the approval and disapproval of companions and the default personality of your character. Sometimes she will anwser or make comments by herself and the game will use the personnality you use the most, always calculating wich one is on top.
Thank you so much! And yes, I’ve really enjoyed the combat so far! Maybe it’s because I’ve played MMOs for years, so it doesn’t bother me as much that it’s not like origins combat? Either way, I’ve been having fun!
In DA2 your three styles of replies effect how the world sees you and how your character speaks. Diplomatic/Nice=top. Sarcastic/Witty=middle. Angry/Forceful=bottom. The more you use one that will be what you dpeak like more when even using the others. They also effect events and companions in the rest of the game. Its much deeper than Paragon/Renegade.
I love 2! It either my favorite or my second favorite (so hard to decide 😂). Origins has my favorite characters overall, 2 has my favorite gameplay (combat, side quests, etc), and Inquisition has my favorite main quest plot line. 1:08:49 Varric is my favorite non romancable character
I really love Dragon Age 2, it’s not as popular I guess with a lot of people but I really like it. Origins will always be my favorite but DA2 is a close second. Playing a Mage in DA2 is actually a really great decision, much of the story will involve mage issues. Someone already commented that you can go through the mirror with Morrigan if you romance her and keep her ring. To me it’s such a great romance arc hunting her down and going with her through the mirror. I’m glad you enjoyed the DLCs. DA2 is a great story, can’t wait! Edit: I see my mage comment was premature 😅 well playing a rogue in this is fun too and obviously the mage elements are still there, only now it’s your sister that’s in danger. Loved the episode by the way.
Threw that lil surprise in there last second 🤣. I will miss mage, but I think having Bethany as the mage makes it even scarier for Hawke and me personally now.
Rogue archer is insanely strong. Not sure who told you that but all the classes in DA2 are great. Also don't pay attention to people who are upset you choose a mage. It's definitely the best class story wise in all dragon age games. And don't be reluctant to select the dialogue options they give your companions their opinions, you'll miss alot of story content that way
I am so happy you went with mage!Hawke~ also, i love the signature look of hawke for both genders so im happy you went with it as well. I prefer male hawke just a bit more personally. I also headcannon that mage hawke pretends to be a warrior with their staff blade and just deadpans that no no that dude just spontaneously combusted if anyone questions them lololol. About your origins save, ive heard that has some bugs, so i dont know if you need a mod for it, i personally played on console so no mods for me unfortunately. So, the dialogue wheel. You usually have 3 possible options for dialogue, green/blue, purple or red. the colours represent an emotion or tone of the dialogue. green/blue is good, nice, kind, purple is sarcastic, and red is angry and aggressive. the more you choose a certain color, the more all dialogue starts to sound like that same tone. (purple hawke is def fan fave, but do not let that affect your choices!) no paragon/renegade system though. the friendly/rival system doesnt necessarily mean your companion dislikes you and is not a bad thing. you can even have a rivalry with your romance. carver is not a grey warden, just a regular ferelden soldier, that was just embellishment our dwarven storyteller put in at the beginning. Also, your choice of class affects which of your siblings survive and which dies (sorry bethany, i like your twin better). carver only lives with mage hawke, bethany lives with warrior and rogue hawke. And yeah, hawke is def the oldest sibling. Lol i laughed so hard when you recognised flemeth despite her overhauled looks. Also, marethari, the dalish keeper you need to deliver the amulet to, is the same marethari from dalish elf origin, i figured you might not remember off the bat. I went with smugglers personally, i felt they fit my hawke and his need to stay undercover a bit better, though i played him as very obviously a mage doing mage shit and innocently denying everything lol while varric spins the most silliest of tales. varric being unromanceable is the biggest crime of this game series, so many of us wanna bury our faces in his chest hair lololol he is one of the most beloved characters in the whole series. Aaand now i reached the end of the video, and you went rogue OTL ignore my mage hawke love ballading lololol well, that means i can tell you i went with blood mage hawke in my canon run thanks to one cinematic trailer for this game that just absolutely sold me on male blood mage hawke for good lolol once again will do my best not to spoil anything, i look forward to watching you fall for this cast of characters as much as you did in origins~ I am super excited for this playthrough and cant wait for more!
Ooohhh blood mage would have been really cool! I didn’t even think about that! Is it an option in DAI? Man, I bet that was a fun run as you could lean into I’m going to do whatever it takes to keep myself safe, so blood magic is on the table!
@@_shhenanigans_ unfortunately blood mage is not in inquisition, but you can go for a kinda necromancer if you want. or a semi-melee mage, knight-enchanter, ooor another specialisation that I think is a bit spoilery so I won't say it's name just in case lol though if you were thinking of doing ranged rogue in inquisition, that is cool too (my inky is a melee rogue, there is one rogue specialisation that was insanely fun called tempest, highly recommend)
1:13:43 😄 Oh, you have no idea. Carver takes after his uncle, just so ya know. 😁 I think your sentiments pretty much sum up those held by everyone who has played DA2.
For all its flaws, this is my favorite game out of the three in the character area. Maybe because I don´t care about the hero trope and saving the world in stories that much and Hawke is a relatable individual. Have fun! :)
@@_shhenanigans_ Carver is an 18 year old boy lol, people don't like that he's headstrong and wants independence. He's also salty about Hawke always being cooler than him, because he wants to be cool in his own way but if Hawke is a mage, then Carver is literally the only non-mage sibling. And Papa Hawke only spent time with his mage children to teach them how to safely use/hide their magic, and he didn't have much time for Carver. So Carver grew up trying to get attention too, and without as much of a male role model. Plus, he can't really shine on his own, even as a warrior, because if he ever drew too much attention, people might look more closely at his family and realize they're apostates, so he didn't get much attention from Papa Hawke, and he can't get attention outside of the home either. He struggles to feel like he has purpose and identity, and it leads to him being kinda shitty at times. But if you make certain choices in game (and he survives), he has a really interesting character growth arc where he kinda finds himself and matures a ton. He's a really complex character, and I love him a lot, but he is definitely a bit of a shit at times lmao
@@fizzysod8a I can't like this comment enough. I love how realistic and fraught the relationship as a sibling with Carver feels, and his arc throughout the game, haha. He's a little shit, but he's my little shit. The character growth is what makes it good!
Hooray for DA2! Already very different from Shen (I miss her): making jokes directly after your sibling is killed, joining up as a murderer-for-hire - it's going to be interesting how your juggle such a character with your gentle heart :) Maybe go full Dwarven Origin style xD I'd forgotten how rough it looks, but no shade as there was such a small development window. Most importantly, the characters are still awesome - whether you love them or hate them! xD Aveline was a favourite of mine (and Varric not) when I played years ago; looking forward to seeing how I feel now. I played a Rogue archer (as ever), good luck with your... Rogue ;) Flemeth looking boss.
I know a lot of people didn't like this one, but I think it's my favorite! I'm so excited to watch this!! Edit: I don't know why anyone would be mad about you playing a mage in any of these games, mage is so good. But I also love Rogue Hawke! Another edit: I forgot about my hairy-chest husband Varric omg I love him
So exited for this playthru! Honestly I think for DAO and DA2 playing mage is very immersive because most things travel back to the mage dilemma or consequences of mage hubris or oppression so it feels more personal. (I think in DAI, is the only game where I'm not always a mage and it depends a lot more on your roleplaying/who you're romancing etc etc) Also oof just a small warning about DA2. It is an insanely polarizing game and people will try to debate your choices or morality and try to sway you one way or the other without even having all the facts themselves most of the time(Even more so than in DAO) so I think going with your gut and not worrying too much about what other ppl think will lead to the most enjoyable experience of DA2 for you. (This is my favorite game of all time and I've seen countless Lets Plays and there's always ppl from the comments in the player's ear) Anyway! Can't wait to see what you think of the companions and who you romance and what you make of Kirkwall. (And Inquisition when its time) and thank you for giving this series a chance as I enjoy your videos.
I am so excited for you to play this game. Back in 2013 when I was playing through the trilogy for the first time, I was told repeatedly to skip this game as it was “boring”. I am forever grateful I decided to ignore those people because this game (story and character-wise) remains my favorite Dragon Age game. It is so full of life and realism for me. I will say, the relationship mechanic in this game is not as complicated as it seems on the surface. Each character is very realistic and set in their opinions and ways, so no real need to worry. If you want to appeal to things you know they would approve of, you will get friendship approval, if you debate back and forth and push on topics they do not approve of, you get rivalry. But both are still relationship building! when i played i maxed everyone out on the friend path in one playthrough, so it is possible if you want it (dont let other tell you otherwise LOL) AHHHHH again i am so excited for you to experience this game !! i am obsessed with the fact that what you are playing could either be how it actually was OR unreliable narration from the dwarf telling the tale ❤️ TLDR tho I highly recommend you to play this game SOLELY how you want to. It is easily the most divisive of the three games so my recommendation is for you to trailblaze ❤️
46:55 (re: familiar voice): I should hope so...that's Captain Janeway! But yes, she's also Flemeth...with a sequel redesign. There is an Origins mod to change her appearance to be closer to this game's. Also; Bethany and Carver are twins; you're their older sibling.
I found a mod that helped me fix it after this episode! I think it’s called vault editor. But it runs a program and checks to make sure things from the previous game are correct and if not lets you fix it
@@_shhenanigans_ I was just about to comment on that it didn't import correctly. glad you fixed it. it wouldn't make too much of a difference or tragedy for this game but you would lose out of a specific scene and few lines :)
also want to say im SO excited to watch you play da2 in particular. this part of the series was actually my first introduction to the series. my older brother wouldnt let me play his copy of Origins lmao. so its got a special place in my heart. cant wait to see how you react to different points of the game! i look forward to each new episode 😁❤
SSHHAAANN omg im so excited! Commenting now but ill also edit at the end once ive watched 🤣 Dragon age 2 is wonderful, it has a very different progression to Dragon age origins, so i hope you enjoy it. Definitely the most controversial of the 3 games so far haha. Also i was literally sat here getting ready to do some work wishing something would come along and distract me for a bit longer.. 10 mins later this video pops up! 😭 (Mage best as first class in all games. Always has the most interesting interactions 😮)
I’m super excited about DA2! I’ve heard really good things about it and the protagonist! Also so glad I could provide a bit of distraction! Have a wonderful work day!
Mods are limited in this game. EA did not release the coding for it. So nearly everything is cosmetics. You're good with what you have. Just remember to always have one rogue, one mage, one warrior in your squad.
& we’re off!! soo pumped to see how your Hawke’s story plays out - it’s very different from the Warden’s story, which involves more world-wide implications & involvement - but Hawke’s story is just that - a personal, individual journey. Really interested to see how you feel about the story, companions, etc, once you’ve finished it. On a side note, since you decided to not play as a mage, I giggled when you kept freaking out about being a mage & doing magic right in the middle of the city because as the game goes on, the templars (including the Knight Commander!) will outright admit they know you’re a mage but they don’t do anything about it lmao - it’s very jarring.
Glad you're playing. This one gets a lot of hate. But I love it. And I played a rogue my first playthrough in each game. And I will do the same for DAV lol
@_shhenanigans_ Yeah it sucks that it does. But I've played it so many times and I still love it. It can hit you with the feels. Be ready. I know you can do it. And nice choice going to rogue. Have fun.
- I am sorry but I will spam comments so I will put all thoughts and advice here hehe, the change in combat and how fast paced it is after origins always gets me but DA2 probably has my fave combat of the series. it's faster paced and exciting but has all the tactics of DAO. perfection! - rivalry system can be deceiving. friend and rival are both good. being rival with someone doesn't mean enemy just means you are close but passionately disagree on some subjects. but not that your not friendly. being either high friend or high rival is good, and it unlocks new skills. staying in the middle is worst. so don't be afraid to lean into rivalry with someone you can even romance someone and have high rivalry with them. - dont feel like you need to fight faster just cuz combat animation is faster. pause and assess a lot. - I feel that it's strange they show you the scenes with default Hawke first, than put you in character creator, but by than you already have default image of her in your head hehe. I still made custom Hawke's of course but I actually love that you went with default one, shes pretty and iconic! :) it's one game to chose origin preset for! :) - There is no friendly fire unless you play on the hardest Nightmare difficulty so don't have to worry about that any more just blast your spells at everyone :) - WILLPOWER WILLPOWER WILLPOWER! its so important not just for mages as usual but for all classes. for warrior and rogues it gives them stamina to actually use their skills so amped it up for everyone! - ofc in the start your magic is more important. and some constitution points. for warriors and rogues dexterity strength constitution... but eventually you want to be sprinkling willpower points in for everyone and get it up to 20 at least. - Flemeth's entrance and new looks are so epic! 🥰 omg love this game... enjoy! :)
@@kamilkukowski5369 I literally said constitution is the first thing mage needs along with magic, that those two stats are most important for a mage. so I don't know what you're so viscerally disagreeing with. but after you get that to reasonable numbers you need to start investing into willpower. for all classes. which people tend to ignore if they're not playing a mage.
I absolutely love the default look! And can totally see what you mean by them showing us how she looks before customization, which probably does make it easier to choose the preset!
Heyhey, great to see you start DA2! I see a lot of people have given information about the dialogue and approval system in DA2. There's one thing I haven't seen mentioned, so I'll add that myself! With the three types of responses with the friendly blue, jokester purple and aggressive red, they aren't only choices on their own, they also form Hawke's general personality and how she talks in-between dialogue choices. If you choose the purple options the most for example, she's likely to make quips and try to lighten the mood no matter the subject, whereas choosing the red options most will likely have her super serious and sometimes pessimistic. Then choosing blue the most could have Hawke be gentle and empathetic a lot of the time, even when others are being hostile. Alongside coloring Hawkes's general personality by having blue, purple or red chosen most, it will also give unique dialogue choices depending on your personality at times. A jokester purple Hawke or gentle blue Hawke wouldn't be very convincing trying to intimidate someone, whereas a red Hawke absolutely would for example. As you were picking purple the most, at 1:09:20 you can see you had the extra option "wouldn't you rather we left?" with the purple icon as a unique dialogue choice based on your Hawke's personality. So they've done stuff like this with the dialogue and personality shaping to really make it feel like your specific Hawke through the choices you've made up to that point! 😄 Have fun playing ME2, looking forward to the next video!
Darn it girl, Archer in DA2 is so cool! Not only you use bows (which are OP here), but game automatically moves you to daggers when you are at melee range, like normal person would. Archer in this one is so meaty... Also, playing mage you won't get Bethany.
this game received a lot of backlash, but honestly i love it so much! i guess i understand the criticism regarding some of the aspects but at the end of the day the story is just so good that i kinda forget about its flaws! also i don’t know if this could interest you, there’s a mod that allows you to customize the default hawke appearance, since the game takes place during a 10 years period, personally i like to change her hair or makeup once in while, just because it makes sense in my head that you would change your hairstyle a couple of times during 10 years of your life😂! so if you’re interested i can maybe link the mod to you! just be sure to have the black emporium dlc installed and working, that’s where you can customize hawke’s appearance.
The dialogue wheel isn’t paragon/renegade as in Mass Effect, the game doesn’t really have this metric, the icons simply indicate the tone of your answer. More space for role playing without severe consequences aside from a few choices which are obviously consequential.
Da2 isnt my favourite dragon age game but it isnt a bad game by any means the story is really good. Also it has varric in it which is an instant win and i guarantee ur gonna fall in love with him lol Looking forward to the next episode!!💞
Awesome your back with DA2! 🍿 This will be a great watch. To answer your question earlier your the older sibling while Carver and Bethany are twins. Will be interesting to see a full play through as a mage. I remember starting one back in the day but I couldn’t stand Carver so went back to rouge, which is my usual class, so I could have Bethany instead 😅
So so so excited for this! One small thing you may not have noticed in the initial "made-up" version, Varric exaggerates certain things (like Bethany's bust size amongst other things). I always found that really funny how they leaned into the "frame-tale" idea. Also -- mage? what mage? I recall no mage ;)
I'm so excited you are playing this game I think it's my fave of the 3 tho I love them all. it's gets so much hate but mostly it's because of repeating maps and little faults because it was made in 18 months. Personally I think they did incredible job for that time frame. and story and characters and great, and combat is fun. 🥰 Just wanted to comment on dialogue wheel.. it's not exactly like Mass effect where you always have the same Paragon/Neutral/Renagade.. There are actually more than 3 personality choices in dialogues, there is five of them. top row usually features Diplomatic (Green) or Helpful (Blue), depending on situation, middle one is the iconic sarcastic Hawke (Purple) it's actually described as Humorous/Charming, and bottom one is red but it can mean either Aggressive or Direct. You don't have to max out anything or stick with one, it doesn't give you any special points or anything like in ME, so you can chose whatever you like in the moment. However choosing same option a lot will make Hawke have that kind of attitude in dialogues and cutscenes where you don't control her.
Which save file did you transfer from Origins because if you chose the one from Witch Hunt it won't have transferred you choices which might be why it said the save wasn't completed. Your Origins, Awakenings and Witch Hunt saves are treated as 3 different characters and the witch hunt one doesn't have most of the choices included. I know you've already restarted it once but if you did transfer the witch hunt save you may want to start again and choose a save from Origins or Awakenings, some of the default choices are different to what you chose. On another note I am super-hyped for this playthrough, Dragon Age is my favourite series and DA2 is my favourite of them so far.
I def loaded the witch hunt save 😭. I just thought that would have all the awakening + origins info 😑. But there is a mod that allowed me to check all save flags and correct any info that didn’t get transferred so we should be good to go!
@@_shhenanigans_ I don't know why the Witch Hunt save doesn't have all the choices because it's the one that every player go's with because it's the last one and seems the most obvious choice. And long as there's a mod that's got it sorted. The transfer process to Inquisition is completely different and uses something called the Dragon Age Keep but that's something you can think about nearer the time.
If memory serves you can go with Morrigan in Witchhunt, but only when playing a male character who is in a relationship with her. 4:35 That is only the case in Dragon Age: Origins. Archers have been buffed A LOT in Dragon Age 2 and in Inquisition and are perfectly viable options. As for DA 2 - playing a mage is a terrible choice because you're stuck with Carver instead of Bethany (Bethany survives the intro if you play as a warrior or rogue, Carver survives if you play as a mage). 9:15 Not exactly like Mass Effect. The icons stand for feelings - in this case the upper answer is encouraging, the middle one his humourous and the lower one is combative. But this pattern is (unlike Mass Effect) not entirely static, and the results are also more varied (combative options for example are not always meant to piss people off as Renegade was in Mass Effect. In DA 2 it depends on the situation). The choices you make affect the story itself as well as the friendship/rivalry bars of your companions, but it is not simply black and white as it was in ME. Friendship/rivalry are working differently from Origins btw: In Origins a character with too low approval leaves the party permanently - in DA2 it affects their behaviour. Both rivalry and friendship offer a lot of dialogue and roleplay options. 20:24 (yelling ;-) ) Constitution is not worth it for mages. The 5 HP you get are completely negligible. Willpower on the other hand is extremely important because your amount of spell points depend on it. Low willpower = few spell points = less spells cast. For mages the primary focus should always be Magic and Willpower with maybe a bit of cunning. The other stats are not really relevant for mages. 36:43 Lock bash mods are cheating. They violate a design choice in the game. The answer as simple as it is obvious: Always have rogue in the party - which is a good choice anyway since rogues are awesome. PS: Mage is the most boring class actually. Warriors and rogues have such cool moves.
@@Hauke-ph5ui I hope to god you're like, 7 years old, because it would be pretty cringey if you were any older and still going "waaah, its ChEaTiNg to mod a game so you can enjoy it how you want, at the literal expense of no one!"
Hi, regarding the Morrigan deciding to go alone: I think the ONLY way to go with her is to be Male, (probably mage), Have full romance with her, and maybe some other pre-requisites (like to have the Ritual done with her personally, give her the Flemeth Book etc). It is quite complicated, but the "best secret" ending for that DLC. And yes, the Flemeth design in DA2 is great, especially the reveal of her :D I like DA2 quite a lot, especially some of the companions are ones of my most favourite (no spoilers for now) :D Good luck with the series, I am catching up your DA1 playthrough, I am at Brellician forest videos now. :)
@@kamilkukowski5369 OK, I forgot to mention the ring. It was years when I played it, but when I make import save (main character), it is Human Mage that went through all DLCs and went with Morrigan :)
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Hey friends! Lots of questions about origins DLCs. You can find info on if I played those in the intro of this video and also in the community posts tab of the channel page! Thanks for being here 🧡
Haven't seen that many rogue playthrough, that will be interesting. If i remember correctly i first played as a rogue in DA II. Playing as a Mage in a place that hates Mages is something mentally taxing but i enjoyed it a lot too!🤣
You're not missing much by forgoing DAO's DLCs.
The Golems of Amgarak (or however it's spelled) is more Deep Roads 'fun.'
Darkspawn Chronicles is basically the battle of Denerim, but reversed. Where you play as the Darkspawn, with the goal of killing the main game's companions. You win, when you kill Alistair.
Leliana's Song is fun and interesting, at least compared to the other two.
@@aaronjohnson8786 well that depends! It's not a must, cause of the Dragon Age Keep! I used it also to have an alternate version of Origin and Inquisition I was hundred percent satisfied, with my choices in DA II
its not DRAGON AGE, ITS DRAGON MAGE (its always best class for the story, like seriously)
@@pgabrielrds the DA:O mage is by default a member of the _Amell_ family which should apply to human mages only. Leandra and Gamlen are Amell :)
dunno if DA2 game content is different if the Hero of Ferelden is your somewhat distant relative.
Not sure if anyone has commented this yet, but with the friendship/rivalry with your companions, it's okay to go either way (and you can still romance someone who is a rival), but you'll want to make sure you pick one side or the other and not stay mid-range or indifferent. Asking for your companions input, or to do actions can affect your approval levels. For instance, if you had let Aveline deal with Wesley herself, she would have approved instead. Just a friendly tip, of course! Just that the approval system is a bit different than DAO :)
This is really great advice! I didn’t realize asking their input affects their approval 😬. Aveline is gonna hate me 😭
@_shhenanigans_ Don't worry, a few dips either side here and there won't affect you too much. But even if you end up on the rivalry side, it doesn't mean they hate you! It'll affect how they respond in certain conversations and their mannerisms may seem a bit more assertive or argumentative, but they still respect you. On the other side of the spectrum, they're much more easy going. But if you stay indifferent, so do they. After watching several of your playthroughs now, I know you get as attached to your companions as I do! I think you'll love this little misfit group, I can't wait to see how it goes 😊
@@_shhenanigans_ I think you'll get along with Aveline
One of the most under appreciated aspects of this game is the music and the sound design, it’s really well done
There are some negative things about this game because it only took 18 months for them to make, but it's one of the best for story, it has amazing companions, and people really get attached to Hawke as a protagonist. Your jaw will hit the floor more than once in this game, and I expect lots of laughter and lots of tears.
I've heard as low as 11 months...still play it in 24 :D
Adore all 3, but 2 is probably my favourite.
Purple Hawke is the best Hawke, so you’re good. ❤
must agree with other comments, purple hawke (middle option of dialogue) is the funniest XD happy to see you chuckle at them. have fun with this one!
Excited to see what purple Hawke is like!
@@_shhenanigans_ hawke is my favorite MC of the series because you can actually see a lot of personality :)
Yay DA2!! Btw, it said that the imported save is incomplete because the one the game expects is the "Post Campaign - Epilogue" save file that's at the bottom of the list of saves. Not sure which save you picked, but it might've been from right before the final battle instead of the Epilogue save I mentioned... But I *think* it might still be okay (since you did Morrigan's ritual, the game should fill in that your warden survives the final battle)
Who said Rogue in DA2 was bad? It's absolutely *amazing*.
I could have completely flipped it and They could have said rogue is only good in DA2 and sucks everywhere else 😭🤣. It was a super long comment on a previous DAO video
@@_shhenanigans_rogue is brilliant in DA:O.
the class to avoid in DA2 is the warrior
I'm excited for you to get into DA2! And whatever people's opinions, I'm glad you went mage again. Do what you enjoy! I played a mage in the first 2 games as well and have no regrets ^^
Welcome to DA2 act one where you are a refugee and the natives hate you!
Kirkwall was built by the Tevinter Imperium about 1,500 years ago (even before Andraste). It became the center of the Imperium's slave trade. Many of the statutes in the city, such as the ones you noticed at 1:10:22, are remnants from that era.
My jaw dropped over the statues by the stairs. Horrific!
DA2 rogues are fun. So are mages, TBH. I think DA2 combat is probably my favourite out of all three games, tbh.
Shen: "... So far everyone sucks..."
Me: Welcome to Kirkwall! 😂
And yeah when it comes to Dragon Age voice actors, Brian Bloom (Varric) and Claudia Black (Morrigan) both have amazing voices in my opinion. I could listen to them read phone books and somehow become emotionally invested. Lol
I feel like everyone’s attitude is just gonna get worse too 😬🤣
You can read in the codex that your character is the oldest sibling, while Bethany and Carver are twins. Carver can be a bit of a pain in the ass, but he still loves his family.
Glad you're playing this for yt!
I played my Hawke as a mage. It’s the best way to play da2, in my opinion
Yay! I've been looking forward to this since you finished DAO! So glad I found your channel 💖
I’m so excited you’re here! DA2 is going to be so fun!
The dialogue options are a little more nuanced than Mass Effect and DAO. The middle option was actual a “humorous” response. The icon will give you an idea. For example, later you’ll have options with hearts which are the romance options.
The friendship vs rivalry thing is a different take on the approval system of DAO, which I like. Now when you make choices that someone disagrees with you will form a rivalry with them instead of them just leaving. Friendship or rivalry when maxed out gives them different bonus abilities and interactions. If I recall correctly you can even still romance a rival character, but it might depend on the character. It’s more like “agree to disagree” situation.
Oohhh, I like the agree to disagree aspect. I wish other games had it more like that instead of “agree with me or I’ll leave or I’ll hate you” 😭
Ima breakdown the personality system for you:
There's no morality meter or anything like that, it just decides Hawke's general personality between dialogue choices.
Diplomatic (Green/Blue)
Humorous (Purple)
Aggressive (Red)
What you pick the most will decide how Hawke generally acts outside of picking dialogue choices.
Like here at the end of battle 19:30 She says "we're keeping score right?" Because you picked mostly humorous dialogue.
And here at 1:28:20 where she sarcastically says "we're off to a fantastic start" aggressive and diplomatic Hawkes would say something else there.
Based on personality you'll also get unique options based on personality like here at 1:09:36 in the bottom left. Choices that are in the bottom left that either a start or personality choice mean it's a choice you've unlocked with special conditions. Personalities get unique options in different scenes so it's not like one is better than the other. It all comes down to preference. Diplomatic gets persuasive options, humorous is clever and able to trick people and aggressive is better a scaring people.
Personality can change if you start picking some more than others but it would take picking it twice as much. It's not something you need to worry about though. Just have fun and pick what feels natural!
I will say Mage has the most effect and influence in the narrative of the game, as opposed to rouge and warrior. If you want the most juice of the story I would recommend staying as a mage
Woho! Embrace sarcastic Hawke 😎
I am very excited! In DA2 the relationship is like, if u go rival, go rival to 100 and if you go friendship, go friendship to 100. so you can piss them off all u want to get 100 and can still romance them lol. However, the type of interaction will greatly differ between friendship and rivalry and IMO that is the interesting part of this whole game
Hawke personality will also solidify the more u pick a type and she will have different automatic lines in several occasion that differ depending on her personality.
Also, I play ALL MAGE up to Inquisition, so just ignore the naysayers. There IS something to gain playing a mage, isnt it interesting instead?
So, ignore what people say about DA 2, just ENJOY!!
So excited to see you continue the series with this playthrough! Gotta say, I love how invested you get with the story and individual characters... I mean, I know that's the point of these games, but some people don't really immerse themselves as deeply as you do. I can tell you take your decisions seriously and really think things through, which makes watching you play so enjoyable. :)
That being said, I hope you don't let any negative comments about your choices get to you. This is YOUR game - even if you make a "bad" decision it's still yours and no one else's. And honestly, sometimes the "bad" decisions make for some of the most interesting gameplay and consequences. Anyway, enjoy your game!
Aw, thank you so much for your kind words! I think dragon age makes it really easy to immerse yourself and get super invested. I can’t wait to see all the ways I’m going to fall in love and then be heartbroken in this game! Thanks for being here!
Welcome to Kirkwal...The City of Chains..
I have a personal experience with DA2 as it was my companion game during the COVID19 era.. I got the virus and I was playing the game during the obligatory home isolation, i will never forget those days and I will never forget DA2, my personal favorite !!!
Stay safe and spoiler-free, Hawke !! 😊
The city of chains gave me chills! What a nickname 😬💀
You spend the prologue as refugees fleeing war. Act I is you working odd jobs trying make a better life for you and your family. For a fantasy adventure, this game is awfully relatable.
da2 is my favourite out of them all so i can’t wait for you to experience it!
The Origins game did not have the graphics to display proper 'scanned' faces. Flemeth (Kate Mulgrew voiced) was therefore just old, and Morrigan (Claudia Black) looked barely like her voice actress either. DA used Kate's actual face (scan) for the character base. Mulgrew is probably most known as the captain on Star Trek Voyager.
It's been YEARS since I last played this game! It will be a good refresher for the new one coming out
Watching you play Dragon Age is super cozy :D ! I'm very glad to have found your channel, loving your content :D !
So glad you’re here!
I always go mage too. Mainly because of the lore of the world and oppression of mages, secondly because magic is cool! I usually do a rogue on my second play through.
Dragon Age 2 is my favorite of the series, the story and the characters really just connected with me. I love all three, but this one holds a very special place in my heart. You've also now met Varric, who is my favorite companion in the entire series and one of my favorite video game characters overall. A quick note, as you explore Kirkwall, if can click on your companions to get little comments from them which change depending on which part of the city you are in, and whether it's day or night time. They are usually quite funny and often give you a little bit of insight into either the city or the character, or both. I'm so excited for this playthrough!
Oh I didn’t realize!! Now I’m going to be clicking on them all the time lol
There are entire fandoms that revolve around Varric's Chest hair lol
I can totally see why 🤣
Fun fact, if you played as a human mage in Origins, you'd be blood related to Hawke. Leandra comes from the Amell family, same as the human mage Warden
Omg, that’s actually really cool! I love the human noble intro
@@_shhenanigans_ I love the human noble intro as well. I was referring to the human MAGE warden, in case you missread my comment. xD
Their specific relation is that the Human mage's mother is Leandra's cousin.
the dragon age fandom is just super opinionated, lol, don't worry about playing another mage! I keep playing mages too, they're very spicy and the battlefield control is everything. Plus the AOEs yes good lol
Edit: re the dialogue options, it's pretty similar to mass effect, but the options aren't attached to morality like paragon/renegade. They just reflect your Hawke's personality. Blue is generally diplomatic/friendly, Purple is usually sarcastic or charming/witty, and Red is abrupt/direct/aggressive. You can still be a good character who is just rude to everyone if you want to lol. Or you can be a terrible character who is generally diplomatic. If you pick a string of diplomatic/sarcastic/direct options, your Hawke's dialogue will change to reflect the options you mostly pick.
I remain convinced that a significant part of the story is Varric telling tall stories to impress his listeners. Just not the really important bits, which are things he'd probably like to forget.
The dialogue is very Mass Effect like, including that most options on the left are continuing quations in the current part of the conversation and ones on the right advance it. The ones on the right are typically Diplomatic (top), humorous/Witty (centre) or Aggressive (bottom). And like in MAss Effect, if you make enough choices along one line you'll get extra options.
Reasons I prefer Melee in this game. 1 I prefer Bethany to Carver. There is no Break Chests open mod like in Origins so if you are not a Rogue you can forget about a lot of loot in the game and 3 the combat is a lot faster, especially for melee
Sarcastic Hawke (purple) is the best Hawke.
Subjective.... but correct.
I love that the mage fighting animations feel so strong in this game. Staffs are a weapon, not just a prop. That said! Narrative wise, I think it makes more sense to play as a non-mage character. Like you said, there's more suspension of disbelief required to run around kirkwall openly as a mage haha. Plus the mage-related conflict is more interesting/complicated if you're not a mage yourself imo. And bethany is so much more palatable to have around than carver 😅
Crazy to hear that people actually got mad that you picked a mage in DA:O? Considering at least like 70% of playthroughs are mage lmao. That's bonkers.
Play what you want to play, some Bioware fans get genuinely uptight if you don't do a 1-1 playthrough like they did. Even if you disagree, let someone else play the game.
pick as many purple options as you want, it doesn't mean it is neutral, just that it is usually funny
NiceHawke (blue) is noble, honorable, and kindhearted.
ToughHawke (red) is aggressive, blunt, and hot tempered.
SnarkHawke (purple) is funny, sarcastic, and sometimes silly.
My favorite example of the three personalities is this exchange-
NPC: He inherited it. Mmm...maybe inherited is the wrong word. What do you call it when you kill someone and take all their stuff?
Blue Hawke: Murder.
Red Hawke: Tuesday.
Purple Hawke: An unfortunate misunderstanding?
Heyy welcome to Dragon age 2!! 🎉
Im glad you like the combat as much as me its really dynamic 🥰
For the dialogue system its a bit like mass effect with diplomatic and pragmatic at the top and bottom but theres the middle one in bonus that is more the jokey/chill responds (my favorite) and you won't unlock perusasion dialogues or have interruptions like ME. The only consequence you'll have selecting a certain type of dialogue is the approval and disapproval of companions and the default personality of your character. Sometimes she will anwser or make comments by herself and the game will use the personnality you use the most, always calculating wich one is on top.
Thank you so much! And yes, I’ve really enjoyed the combat so far! Maybe it’s because I’ve played MMOs for years, so it doesn’t bother me as much that it’s not like origins combat? Either way, I’ve been having fun!
If someone play Dragon Age i will definitely watch :)
It’s actually my favourite one because of the story!
Interested in your playthru because of your decisions in Awakening. Also, DAII is an underappreciated. gem with great story and great characters.
In DA2 your three styles of replies effect how the world sees you and how your character speaks. Diplomatic/Nice=top. Sarcastic/Witty=middle. Angry/Forceful=bottom. The more you use one that will be what you dpeak like more when even using the others. They also effect events and companions in the rest of the game. Its much deeper than Paragon/Renegade.
I love 2! It either my favorite or my second favorite (so hard to decide 😂).
Origins has my favorite characters overall, 2 has my favorite gameplay (combat, side quests, etc), and Inquisition has my favorite main quest plot line.
1:08:49 Varric is my favorite non romancable character
I really love Dragon Age 2, it’s not as popular I guess with a lot of people but I really like it. Origins will always be my favorite but DA2 is a close second. Playing a Mage in DA2 is actually a really great decision, much of the story will involve mage issues. Someone already commented that you can go through the mirror with Morrigan if you romance her and keep her ring. To me it’s such a great romance arc hunting her down and going with her through the mirror. I’m glad you enjoyed the DLCs. DA2 is a great story, can’t wait!
Edit: I see my mage comment was premature 😅 well playing a rogue in this is fun too and obviously the mage elements are still there, only now it’s your sister that’s in danger. Loved the episode by the way.
Threw that lil surprise in there last second 🤣. I will miss mage, but I think having Bethany as the mage makes it even scarier for Hawke and me personally now.
@@_shhenanigans_ Yeah I can see why that would be the case. It’s tougher when someone you care about is in danger.
Rogue archer is insanely strong. Not sure who told you that but all the classes in DA2 are great. Also don't pay attention to people who are upset you choose a mage. It's definitely the best class story wise in all dragon age games. And don't be reluctant to select the dialogue options they give your companions their opinions, you'll miss alot of story content that way
Rogue Archer only feels inferior when compared to Varric, but comparing yourself to the most broken NPC isn't a fair comparison.
I am so happy you went with mage!Hawke~ also, i love the signature look of hawke for both genders so im happy you went with it as well. I prefer male hawke just a bit more personally. I also headcannon that mage hawke pretends to be a warrior with their staff blade and just deadpans that no no that dude just spontaneously combusted if anyone questions them lololol. About your origins save, ive heard that has some bugs, so i dont know if you need a mod for it, i personally played on console so no mods for me unfortunately.
So, the dialogue wheel. You usually have 3 possible options for dialogue, green/blue, purple or red. the colours represent an emotion or tone of the dialogue. green/blue is good, nice, kind, purple is sarcastic, and red is angry and aggressive. the more you choose a certain color, the more all dialogue starts to sound like that same tone. (purple hawke is def fan fave, but do not let that affect your choices!) no paragon/renegade system though.
the friendly/rival system doesnt necessarily mean your companion dislikes you and is not a bad thing. you can even have a rivalry with your romance.
carver is not a grey warden, just a regular ferelden soldier, that was just embellishment our dwarven storyteller put in at the beginning.
Also, your choice of class affects which of your siblings survive and which dies (sorry bethany, i like your twin better). carver only lives with mage hawke, bethany lives with warrior and rogue hawke. And yeah, hawke is def the oldest sibling.
Lol i laughed so hard when you recognised flemeth despite her overhauled looks. Also, marethari, the dalish keeper you need to deliver the amulet to, is the same marethari from dalish elf origin, i figured you might not remember off the bat.
I went with smugglers personally, i felt they fit my hawke and his need to stay undercover a bit better, though i played him as very obviously a mage doing mage shit and innocently denying everything lol while varric spins the most silliest of tales. varric being unromanceable is the biggest crime of this game series, so many of us wanna bury our faces in his chest hair lololol he is one of the most beloved characters in the whole series.
Aaand now i reached the end of the video, and you went rogue OTL ignore my mage hawke love ballading lololol well, that means i can tell you i went with blood mage hawke in my canon run thanks to one cinematic trailer for this game that just absolutely sold me on male blood mage hawke for good lolol once again will do my best not to spoil anything, i look forward to watching you fall for this cast of characters as much as you did in origins~
I am super excited for this playthrough and cant wait for more!
I'm still pissed aveline wasn't romanceable
@@kamilkukowski5369 I would have liked to have her as an option as well, but I also absolutely love her storyline as it is
Ooohhh blood mage would have been really cool! I didn’t even think about that! Is it an option in DAI? Man, I bet that was a fun run as you could lean into I’m going to do whatever it takes to keep myself safe, so blood magic is on the table!
@@_shhenanigans_ unfortunately blood mage is not in inquisition, but you can go for a kinda necromancer if you want. or a semi-melee mage, knight-enchanter, ooor another specialisation that I think is a bit spoilery so I won't say it's name just in case lol though if you were thinking of doing ranged rogue in inquisition, that is cool too (my inky is a melee rogue, there is one rogue specialisation that was insanely fun called tempest, highly recommend)
Damn I forgot that Tevinter put giant slave statues on the cliffs. Peoples suffering is apart of their architecture.
Shan, the potions can be used by pressing the buttons next to the quickbar
screaming!! lets goooooo!! I'm about to make some hot chocolate and enjoy this!! 😍😍😍
Hot chocolate sounds so good!
1:13:43 😄 Oh, you have no idea. Carver takes after his uncle, just so ya know. 😁 I think your sentiments pretty much sum up those held by everyone who has played DA2.
Enjoy the story! This one really had choices you had to stop and think about before making a selection. 🤔
Carver is the bitter second born brother. He feels overshadowed by Hawke, the First Born.
Bethany is the youngest?!? Well, as much as twins can be I guess?
@@_shhenanigans_ it's only mentioned in passing in the next game.
Jugar como mago en Dragon age 2 es muy divertido, buena elección. El rediseño de Flemeth es hermoso e imponente.
¡Flemeth era absolutamente hermoso! ¡Qué sorpresa!
Holy, plot twist!?
Gotta keep em on their toes 🤣
For all its flaws, this is my favorite game out of the three in the character area. Maybe because I don´t care about the hero trope and saving the world in stories that much and Hawke is a relatable individual. Have fun! :)
Only thing I don't like about being Mage Hawke is how they do the twins. Love Bethany, Carver is a little shit lol
Omg, everyone hates Carver!! What has he done to yall?!? 😭🤣
@@_shhenanigans_ Carver is an 18 year old boy lol, people don't like that he's headstrong and wants independence. He's also salty about Hawke always being cooler than him, because he wants to be cool in his own way but if Hawke is a mage, then Carver is literally the only non-mage sibling. And Papa Hawke only spent time with his mage children to teach them how to safely use/hide their magic, and he didn't have much time for Carver. So Carver grew up trying to get attention too, and without as much of a male role model. Plus, he can't really shine on his own, even as a warrior, because if he ever drew too much attention, people might look more closely at his family and realize they're apostates, so he didn't get much attention from Papa Hawke, and he can't get attention outside of the home either. He struggles to feel like he has purpose and identity, and it leads to him being kinda shitty at times. But if you make certain choices in game (and he survives), he has a really interesting character growth arc where he kinda finds himself and matures a ton. He's a really complex character, and I love him a lot, but he is definitely a bit of a shit at times lmao
@@fizzysod8a I can't like this comment enough. I love how realistic and fraught the relationship as a sibling with Carver feels, and his arc throughout the game, haha. He's a little shit, but he's my little shit. The character growth is what makes it good!
Hooray for DA2! Already very different from Shen (I miss her): making jokes directly after your sibling is killed, joining up as a murderer-for-hire - it's going to be interesting how your juggle such a character with your gentle heart :) Maybe go full Dwarven Origin style xD
I'd forgotten how rough it looks, but no shade as there was such a small development window. Most importantly, the characters are still awesome - whether you love them or hate them! xD Aveline was a favourite of mine (and Varric not) when I played years ago; looking forward to seeing how I feel now. I played a Rogue archer (as ever), good luck with your... Rogue ;)
Flemeth looking boss.
I know a lot of people didn't like this one, but I think it's my favorite! I'm so excited to watch this!!
Edit: I don't know why anyone would be mad about you playing a mage in any of these games, mage is so good. But I also love Rogue Hawke!
Another edit: I forgot about my hairy-chest husband Varric omg I love him
Varric deep v shirt with his hairy chest is perfect!
So exited for this playthru!
Honestly I think for DAO and DA2 playing mage is very immersive because most things travel back to the mage dilemma or consequences of mage hubris or oppression so it feels more personal. (I think in DAI, is the only game where I'm not always a mage and it depends a lot more on your roleplaying/who you're romancing etc etc)
Also oof just a small warning about DA2. It is an insanely polarizing game and people will try to debate your choices or morality and try to sway you one way or the other without even having all the facts themselves most of the time(Even more so than in DAO) so I think going with your gut and not worrying too much about what other ppl think will lead to the most enjoyable experience of DA2 for you. (This is my favorite game of all time and I've seen countless Lets Plays and there's always ppl from the comments in the player's ear)
Anyway! Can't wait to see what you think of the companions and who you romance and what you make of Kirkwall. (And Inquisition when its time) and thank you for giving this series a chance as I enjoy your videos.
1:41:00 oh😢
Carver is more interesting character than Bethany, and hawke family history is connected with magic itself.
I think this is the only comment I’ve read that’s pro carver. Most people seem to hate him 😭
I think you will like it
50:52 well, up until now you met Flemeth at her house, possibly during a mental health day 😂 now she is going out 🎉
I love this 🤣
I am so excited for you to play this game. Back in 2013 when I was playing through the trilogy for the first time, I was told repeatedly to skip this game as it was “boring”. I am forever grateful I decided to ignore those people because this game (story and character-wise) remains my favorite Dragon Age game. It is so full of life and realism for me.
I will say, the relationship mechanic in this game is not as complicated as it seems on the surface. Each character is very realistic and set in their opinions and ways, so no real need to worry. If you want to appeal to things you know they would approve of, you will get friendship approval, if you debate back and forth and push on topics they do not approve of, you get rivalry. But both are still relationship building! when i played i maxed everyone out on the friend path in one playthrough, so it is possible if you want it (dont let other tell you otherwise LOL)
AHHHHH again i am so excited for you to experience this game !! i am obsessed with the fact that what you are playing could either be how it actually was OR unreliable narration from the dwarf telling the tale ❤️
TLDR tho I highly recommend you to play this game SOLELY how you want to. It is easily the most divisive of the three games so my recommendation is for you to trailblaze ❤️
I have a feeling I’m going to love it! It’s been talked up by people that play similarly to me, so I have a good feeling about it!
46:55 (re: familiar voice): I should hope so...that's Captain Janeway!
But yes, she's also Flemeth...with a sequel redesign. There is an Origins mod to change her appearance to be closer to this game's.
Also; Bethany and Carver are twins; you're their older sibling.
I can’t believe I didn’t pick up on the fact they were twins!!
Sad you couldn't import your save! But super excited!
I found a mod that helped me fix it after this episode! I think it’s called vault editor. But it runs a program and checks to make sure things from the previous game are correct and if not lets you fix it
@@_shhenanigans_ AAAAw perfect! I was so scared, it would be so sad if your choices wouldnt have an impact!
@@_shhenanigans_ I was just about to comment on that it didn't import correctly. glad you fixed it. it wouldn't make too much of a difference or tragedy for this game but you would lose out of a specific scene and few lines :)
not sure if anyone mentioned this but theres a DLC available called The Black Emporium that you can have your own mabari once more!
also want to say im SO excited to watch you play da2 in particular. this part of the series was actually my first introduction to the series. my older brother wouldnt let me play his copy of Origins lmao. so its got a special place in my heart. cant wait to see how you react to different points of the game! i look forward to each new episode 😁❤
That’s such an older sibling thing to do! Omg 😅🤣
SSHHAAANN omg im so excited! Commenting now but ill also edit at the end once ive watched 🤣 Dragon age 2 is wonderful, it has a very different progression to Dragon age origins, so i hope you enjoy it. Definitely the most controversial of the 3 games so far haha. Also i was literally sat here getting ready to do some work wishing something would come along and distract me for a bit longer.. 10 mins later this video pops up! 😭
(Mage best as first class in all games. Always has the most interesting interactions 😮)
I’m super excited about DA2! I’ve heard really good things about it and the protagonist! Also so glad I could provide a bit of distraction! Have a wonderful work day!
@@_shhenanigans_ Loved that surprise near the end!
This brings up the first time I played too. You did much better then I did lol keep it up!
Mods are limited in this game. EA did not release the coding for it. So nearly everything is cosmetics. You're good with what you have. Just remember to always have one rogue, one mage, one warrior in your squad.
& we’re off!! soo pumped to see how your Hawke’s story plays out - it’s very different from the Warden’s story, which involves more world-wide implications & involvement - but Hawke’s story is just that - a personal, individual journey. Really interested to see how you feel about the story, companions, etc, once you’ve finished it. On a side note, since you decided to not play as a mage, I giggled when you kept freaking out about being a mage & doing magic right in the middle of the city because as the game goes on, the templars (including the Knight Commander!) will outright admit they know you’re a mage but they don’t do anything about it lmao - it’s very jarring.
Glad you're playing. This one gets a lot of hate. But I love it. And I played a rogue my first playthrough in each game. And I will do the same for DAV lol
I was so surprised so many have said it gets a lot of hate! I must be in a little bubble because I’ve heard nothing but good things about it!
@_shhenanigans_ Yeah it sucks that it does. But I've played it so many times and I still love it. It can hit you with the feels. Be ready. I know you can do it. And nice choice going to rogue. Have fun.
- I am sorry but I will spam comments so I will put all thoughts and advice here hehe, the change in combat and how fast paced it is after origins always gets me but DA2 probably has my fave combat of the series. it's faster paced and exciting but has all the tactics of DAO. perfection!
- rivalry system can be deceiving. friend and rival are both good. being rival with someone doesn't mean enemy just means you are close but passionately disagree on some subjects. but not that your not friendly. being either high friend or high rival is good, and it unlocks new skills. staying in the middle is worst. so don't be afraid to lean into rivalry with someone you can even romance someone and have high rivalry with them.
- dont feel like you need to fight faster just cuz combat animation is faster. pause and assess a lot.
- I feel that it's strange they show you the scenes with default Hawke first, than put you in character creator, but by than you already have default image of her in your head hehe. I still made custom Hawke's of course but I actually love that you went with default one, shes pretty and iconic! :) it's one game to chose origin preset for! :)
- There is no friendly fire unless you play on the hardest Nightmare difficulty so don't have to worry about that any more just blast your spells at everyone :)
- WILLPOWER WILLPOWER WILLPOWER! its so important not just for mages as usual but for all classes. for warrior and rogues it gives them stamina to actually use their skills so amped it up for everyone!
- ofc in the start your magic is more important. and some constitution points. for warriors and rogues dexterity strength constitution... but eventually you want to be sprinkling willpower points in for everyone and get it up to 20 at least.
- Flemeth's entrance and new looks are so epic! 🥰 omg love this game... enjoy! :)
I have to viscerally disagree on the mage build...
Daisy needs lots of CON
@@kamilkukowski5369 I literally said constitution is the first thing mage needs along with magic, that those two stats are most important for a mage. so I don't know what you're so viscerally disagreeing with. but after you get that to reasonable numbers you need to start investing into willpower. for all classes. which people tend to ignore if they're not playing a mage.
@@mayaamis my bad, I.shouldn't have commented before having my morning coffee and I should've read more carefully
@@kamilkukowski5369 I can totally understand "before morning coffee" effect my brain doesn't work than either lol
I absolutely love the default look! And can totally see what you mean by them showing us how she looks before customization, which probably does make it easier to choose the preset!
Heyhey, great to see you start DA2!
I see a lot of people have given information about the dialogue and approval system in DA2. There's one thing I haven't seen mentioned, so I'll add that myself! With the three types of responses with the friendly blue, jokester purple and aggressive red, they aren't only choices on their own, they also form Hawke's general personality and how she talks in-between dialogue choices. If you choose the purple options the most for example, she's likely to make quips and try to lighten the mood no matter the subject, whereas choosing the red options most will likely have her super serious and sometimes pessimistic. Then choosing blue the most could have Hawke be gentle and empathetic a lot of the time, even when others are being hostile.
Alongside coloring Hawkes's general personality by having blue, purple or red chosen most, it will also give unique dialogue choices depending on your personality at times. A jokester purple Hawke or gentle blue Hawke wouldn't be very convincing trying to intimidate someone, whereas a red Hawke absolutely would for example. As you were picking purple the most, at 1:09:20 you can see you had the extra option "wouldn't you rather we left?" with the purple icon as a unique dialogue choice based on your Hawke's personality.
So they've done stuff like this with the dialogue and personality shaping to really make it feel like your specific Hawke through the choices you've made up to that point! 😄
Have fun playing ME2, looking forward to the next video!
As a Mage Magic, Willpower so you can cast more often, Constitution for your Health especially in the beginning
Darn it girl, Archer in DA2 is so cool! Not only you use bows (which are OP here), but game automatically moves you to daggers when you are at melee range, like normal person would. Archer in this one is so meaty...
Also, playing mage you won't get Bethany.
…just curious, but how far did you get into the video? 😊
@@_shhenanigans_ Hah... this was still during character creation. I was not expecting the twist.
this game received a lot of backlash, but honestly i love it so much! i guess i understand the criticism regarding some of the aspects but at the end of the day the story is just so good that i kinda forget about its flaws!
also i don’t know if this could interest you, there’s a mod that allows you to customize the default hawke appearance, since the game takes place during a 10 years period, personally i like to change her hair or makeup once in while, just because it makes sense in my head that you would change your hairstyle a couple of times during 10 years of your life😂! so if you’re interested i can maybe link the mod to you! just be sure to have the black emporium dlc installed and working, that’s where you can customize hawke’s appearance.
It takes place over 10yrs? How old is Hawke at the start?!
@@_shhenanigans_ hawke should be in her early twenties, while her siblings are twins and should be 18 years old!
Welcome to Flirt Age 2
By the way..install the valuable junk mod, it fixes a mistake the developers left in the game
Full friendship/rivalry unlocks a passive skill for your companions in their specialization tree
My favorite of all of the dragons and ages.
The dialogue wheel isn’t paragon/renegade as in Mass Effect, the game doesn’t really have this metric, the icons simply indicate the tone of your answer. More space for role playing without severe consequences aside from a few choices which are obviously consequential.
Early Game locked chests make Rogue the best class
I've never cared for this game, but it's an important step in the entire DA journey, and I'm excited to see your journey through it.
Da2 isnt my favourite dragon age game but it isnt a bad game by any means the story is really good. Also it has varric in it which is an instant win and i guarantee ur gonna fall in love with him lol Looking forward to the next episode!!💞
I love Varrics character design! But I need to find out more about it. He pushed pretty hard for us to try and join the expedition…lil suspicious
The Marchers, the peoples of tbe city states certainly do have a different perspective and attitude than Fereldan's dont they?
Yea…its really something 😬😅
some will grow on you though, like varric. He's one of the best characters in the series
Awesome your back with DA2! 🍿 This will be a great watch. To answer your question earlier your the older sibling while Carver and Bethany are twins. Will be interesting to see a full play through as a mage. I remember starting one back in the day but I couldn’t stand Carver so went back to rouge, which is my usual class, so I could have Bethany instead 😅
Awks I just got to then end of the video and realised you changed class 😅
Not awkward at all! I’m excited to see what playing through with Bethany is like! Lots of people seem to really hate carver 😅
So so so excited for this! One small thing you may not have noticed in the initial "made-up" version, Varric exaggerates certain things (like Bethany's bust size amongst other things). I always found that really funny how they leaned into the "frame-tale" idea. Also -- mage? what mage? I recall no mage ;)
Omg, I hadn’t noticed that! Varric 🤦♀️. And exactly, what mage! 🤣
I'm so excited you are playing this game I think it's my fave of the 3 tho I love them all. it's gets so much hate but mostly it's because of repeating maps and little faults because it was made in 18 months. Personally I think they did incredible job for that time frame. and story and characters and great, and combat is fun. 🥰
Just wanted to comment on dialogue wheel.. it's not exactly like Mass effect where you always have the same Paragon/Neutral/Renagade..
There are actually more than 3 personality choices in dialogues, there is five of them. top row usually features Diplomatic (Green) or Helpful (Blue), depending on situation, middle one is the iconic sarcastic Hawke (Purple) it's actually described as Humorous/Charming, and bottom one is red but it can mean either Aggressive or Direct. You don't have to max out anything or stick with one, it doesn't give you any special points or anything like in ME, so you can chose whatever you like in the moment. However choosing same option a lot will make Hawke have that kind of attitude in dialogues and cutscenes where you don't control her.
That’s crazy to put out an entire game in 18mos 😱
Which save file did you transfer from Origins because if you chose the one from Witch Hunt it won't have transferred you choices which might be why it said the save wasn't completed. Your Origins, Awakenings and Witch Hunt saves are treated as 3 different characters and the witch hunt one doesn't have most of the choices included. I know you've already restarted it once but if you did transfer the witch hunt save you may want to start again and choose a save from Origins or Awakenings, some of the default choices are different to what you chose.
On another note I am super-hyped for this playthrough, Dragon Age is my favourite series and DA2 is my favourite of them so far.
I def loaded the witch hunt save 😭. I just thought that would have all the awakening + origins info 😑. But there is a mod that allowed me to check all save flags and correct any info that didn’t get transferred so we should be good to go!
@@_shhenanigans_ I don't know why the Witch Hunt save doesn't have all the choices because it's the one that every player go's with because it's the last one and seems the most obvious choice. And long as there's a mod that's got it sorted. The transfer process to Inquisition is completely different and uses something called the Dragon Age Keep but that's something you can think about nearer the time.
If memory serves you can go with Morrigan in Witchhunt, but only when playing a male character who is in a relationship with her.
4:35 That is only the case in Dragon Age: Origins. Archers have been buffed A LOT in Dragon Age 2 and in Inquisition and are perfectly viable options. As for DA 2 - playing a mage is a terrible choice because you're stuck with Carver instead of Bethany (Bethany survives the intro if you play as a warrior or rogue, Carver survives if you play as a mage).
9:15 Not exactly like Mass Effect. The icons stand for feelings - in this case the upper answer is encouraging, the middle one his humourous and the lower one is combative. But this pattern is (unlike Mass Effect) not entirely static, and the results are also more varied (combative options for example are not always meant to piss people off as Renegade was in Mass Effect. In DA 2 it depends on the situation). The choices you make affect the story itself as well as the friendship/rivalry bars of your companions, but it is not simply black and white as it was in ME. Friendship/rivalry are working differently from Origins btw: In Origins a character with too low approval leaves the party permanently - in DA2 it affects their behaviour. Both rivalry and friendship offer a lot of dialogue and roleplay options.
20:24 (yelling ;-) ) Constitution is not worth it for mages. The 5 HP you get are completely negligible. Willpower on the other hand is extremely important because your amount of spell points depend on it. Low willpower = few spell points = less spells cast. For mages the primary focus should always be Magic and Willpower with maybe a bit of cunning. The other stats are not really relevant for mages.
36:43 Lock bash mods are cheating. They violate a design choice in the game. The answer as simple as it is obvious: Always have rogue in the party - which is a good choice anyway since rogues are awesome.
PS: Mage is the most boring class actually. Warriors and rogues have such cool moves.
If you think mage was boring then you're definitely playing it wrong
@@bluemoon1716 Definetly not. And yes, I know that you can do a lot of things with mages. Still boring.
Oh no 😱 “cheating” in a non competitive game, with no rankings, or competitors, that I play completely by myself?! The travesty! 🙄
@@_shhenanigans_ Yep^^
@@Hauke-ph5ui I hope to god you're like, 7 years old, because it would be pretty cringey if you were any older and still going "waaah, its ChEaTiNg to mod a game so you can enjoy it how you want, at the literal expense of no one!"
Personal opinion Witch Hunt is more for those who romanced Morrigan and a set up for Inquisitiion
I can see this now that I know only romanced HoF can go through the mirror!
SO MUCH HYPE LETS GOOOOOO
!!!!!!!!
Hi, regarding the Morrigan deciding to go alone: I think the ONLY way to go with her is to be Male, (probably mage), Have full romance with her, and maybe some other pre-requisites (like to have the Ritual done with her personally, give her the Flemeth Book etc). It is quite complicated, but the "best secret" ending for that DLC.
And yes, the Flemeth design in DA2 is great, especially the reveal of her :D I like DA2 quite a lot, especially some of the companions are ones of my most favourite (no spoilers for now) :D Good luck with the series, I am catching up your DA1 playthrough, I am at Brellician forest videos now. :)
Any male warden can get through,if he romance morrigam and have her ring
@@kamilkukowski5369 OK, I forgot to mention the ring. It was years when I played it, but when I make import save (main character), it is Human Mage that went through all DLCs and went with Morrigan :)
@@kamilkukowski5369 without ring you can go with morrigan i tried myself doesn't matter you have ring or not
4:50 It's the other way around. Rouge-archer is a lot of fun in DA2 and sucks a lot in Inquisition.
Huh, I found Rogue Archer/Assassin build in DAI really fun.
@@Incoherent-excitementme too lol, i switched to a certain character a lot when i had them in my party just to play with it sometimes
5:00 do what class you like, I play mage every play through lol
It was the best of times (mage Marian), it was the worst of times (Carver)
LET'S GO GIRLYYYY
SO PUMPED!!!
Shan, for your arachnophobia you could have picked a rogue archer, they're all about staying out of enemy range
37:42 this is exactly why I never play as a mage in DA2