the difference between low approval vivienne and high approval one is crazy!! i always liked her in my playthroughs because my scenes with her were so much different 😭
I was so confused about this aswell! She's so different haha. In my playthroughs I manage to keep all my companions happy enough. Though I'm going to do a playthrough where my Inky is a bit of an asshole so we'll see how Vivienne likes that.
I love when u first get to skyhold and Vivienne with good approval is like “are u okay? Let me see you if ur injured” but this Vivienne is just like “you FOOL” 💀
Daily Dragon Age? This is like a Holiday! Between Mapo doing this and me playing Baldur's Gate 3, how can I have any free time left? And about decision making, there are some that you should take as long as you need. As a viewer, watching you going over the decisions is part of the fun. About why only Sera has the ejection button (maybe Cole too?), consider who has power and who doesn't, what it would look like if you suddenly kicked Vivienne out. A lot of this kind of subtle things are hidden there in DAI's system, instead of its writing. I find it brilliant.
2:11:00 The Wardens are notoriously secretive, even in the first game they say they keep things secrets even from the lesser members of their order, and especially from outsiders. Even when you were joining the Wardens and actively fighting the Darkspawn, you, as a junior member, weren't told that Wardens give their life to kill an Archdemon. And I'm sure none but the Warden leadership even knew about Corypheus and his prison. I doubt they would let it be common knowledge among the regular Wardens. We obviously have inside knowledge about Warden secrets because we played as one, but now as an outsider, Wardens would definitely withhold information, even if we already know it. Edit : He's done with the game and the DLC now, and the entire reason I argued this is to try and keep up the front that Blackwall is actually a warden, and was just being secretive, instead of just not knowing things that only Wardens would know.
Yup. A Warden isn't going to divulge the secrets of the order without reason. And there's no telling how many of the rank and file even know what it takes to kill an archdemon.
Vivienne does hate you, you got some major disapproval hits with her early on and keep getting more. If you did the same with other characters it'd come across similarly in how they talk to you. With some companions you might've even punched them in the face by this point in the game.
At least Mapo hates Vivienne too, so it works in a way. I'm more worried about Cassandra right now. She got some "greatly disapproves" and not many approval to balance it out. It would be sad if Mapo misses certain scenes with her.
"Because your trainer has already taken the risk. The price has been paid." is always a line that sticks with me. its so ominous from a kind of comedic character.
It really is. Considering how quickly the collective had to work to ensure that at least 1 person could theoretically know about the rift, how to manipulate and use it effectively, in time for the Inquisitor to learn means that a number of people probably had to meet...unsavory ends. Your Inquisitor doesn't have to suffer the risks of learning Rift Magic, the people who may have died to learn it in time to impart knowledge to you have paid the price for it in blood.
Yeah, and it gets even darker when you consider what it means when you choose a different specialization. Because it means that Your Trainer was left brain damaged by magic, and the others who died, all paid that price for nothing.
@@MoostachedSaiyanPrince oof yes. I always posit her calling herself Your Trainer as the one focal point that keeps her lucid (she admits being plagued with unruly thoughts). She’s lost everything save being Your Trainer - it’s all she has left.
I actually started to understand Sera a bit better from around this time in the game. I think to me, this whole little crisis was illustrative of a person who desperately wants to do good and help people but is so jaded by seeing the powerful take advantage of the weak that she's skeptical of any form of authority. The Inquisition was more approachable to her when it was small and less respected and not nearly so impactful, when the player is just a rumor and not a real legend. Now, the Inquisition is forming up to be the biggest authority around- with gigantic responsibilities to go along with it, and she's got more irrefutable proof of divinity than most people would need to become monks. It's a lot for someone who admittedly just doesn't want to think about any of it. She just doesn't know how to handle the dissonance between what she's afraid of and what she knows is right. While maybe not as heroic as some other members of the Inquisition, I think her position is respectable. How many "little people" in today's world want to help change things for the better but are overwhelmed by how difficult that is? How many of the nameless figures who roam Skyhold are more like Sera than any of the other companions? She's a vector for the player to gauge how the "little people" Sera champions are feeling at any time. If you ever wonder what the bakers, the runners, the scribes, or the carpenters feel, ask Sera. She knows, but she also IS them, and her feelings often mirror theirs. There's also the whole crisis of faith thing. I find that much less compelling, but I'm sure someone else has commentary on it so i'll leave them to it.
I think it's worth remembering that Sera is (somewhat, kind of) uneducated and has lived a very salt-of-the-earth lifestyle for most of her life. She hasn't been reading/experiencing lore like we as players have, or even people like Dorian who studied this stuff. I think it totally makes sense that she's freaking out a little and having an existential crisis. Also her views of what's "real" or not or "selfish" or not can be difficult to wrap your head around if you don't know her background yet. She's one of those characters that makes a lot more sense in retrospect.
Personally, I don't blame her for freaking out, but the fact that she never learns or grows past her limited view of the world rubs me the wrong way. Especially how much she dislikes anything that challenges her views at all. Her views are understandable at first, but her willful ignorance and constantly judgemental attitude are aggravating. She knows she isn't well educated, but still acts like she knows better than everyone else about things she is literally unwilling to learn anything about. I don't hate her like a lot of people, but I absolutely understand where her haters are coming from.
@@Yolanee The only way I remember DLC Sara showing any growth at all is when she expresses sadness over the Elven Inquisitor's dead clan (assuming they do die). And that's more of an "I'm sad because I like you and this bad thing happened to you" more than an "I used to dislike this group of people and am sad something happened to them". And even then, that "growth" is limited to the DLC and felt like it was thrown in last minute to try and redeem Sera because of how divisive she was up until that point. Emphasis on "try" because most people saw it as "too little, too late" and I personally didn't care because it felt like a hollow effort. Besides, saying Sera got the most growth out of all almost all companions in Inquisition is hardly a compliment considering how low a bar that is. I like Inquisition a lot, but the companions and their lack of character arcs is my strongest sticking point because outside of Cole and Dorian, none of them really have an arc. Cassandra, Varric, Solas, Blackwall, Vivienne, Sera, and Iron Bull all start the story pretty much as the same character they start as. Sure, we learn more about them, so they get plenty of development, but nothing about their motivations or goals really changes. Compare their "story arcs" to most other Dragon Age companions and their arcs are almost non-existent by comparison. Sera gets a few lines of dialogue in the post-game post-launch DLC that make her a tiny bit less insufferable, but that's hardly anything worth noting and came at a time where I had already played through the game multiple times. I don't dislike Sera, but she does not change over the course of the story, especially in the base game. At best, she expresses her unpleasant ideas less often.
@@MoostachedSaiyanPrince Except Sera literally learns and grows more than any other companion (save maybe one) in the game. DLC Sera and 1st encounter Sera are practically different people.
Dragon Ages: 0) Ancient Age (Pre-Chantry) 1) Divine Age 2) Glory Age 3) Towers Age 4) Black Age 5) Exalted Age 6) Steel Age 7) Storm Age 8) Blessed Age 9) Dragon Age.
I thought I saw the height of frustration Mapo had with companions with Merrill when she got the Keeper killed, and then Anders started that world war, and definitely took the spot away. But boy, when Vivienne moved that furniture, this man was seething, and I don't know why, but I am here for it!
28:00 Cole is a spirit of being a good boy. 🤭 1:46:31 I think this particular interaction took place because you have below -75 'friendship' points with her. 👀; If you had positive friendship points with her, this interaction wouldn't have actually existed but rather a more positive one and its place. Whenever you accumulate a certain amount below or above a specified threshold then different events can occur. 1:52:39 I think out of all of the things you can sit in on, this one is definitely my favourite. 😂
After playing this so many times, I'm used to having high/max approval with all of the companions. I forgot how much of a bitch Vivienne is if your approval is low enough lol. She's so petty 😂
Indira Varma (my beloved) does such an amazing job at being high-and-mighty and obnoxious. Vivienne can be so grating when you have low approval (and it's very easy to have low approval). She's a lot of fun when she's your friend though, but that takes careful dialog choices. But yeah, once she doesn't like you she gets really mean and petty. I personally find it hilarious. I'm looking forward to your meeting the arcanist!
Man... Mapo Is Spoiling us with these daily Dragon Age uploads... Not that I'm complaining of course, this playthrough has definetly become one the things I anticipate most in my daily routine.
AHAhaha you got the Vivienne moving furniture scene!!! glorious. She absolutely HATES you. I've always been able to get high approval from her so I have only heard about the furniture moving scene, never seen it. Thank you for letting me live vicariously through you to witness negative approval from some of my usual favourites. bravo.
You are seeing this side of Vivienne bc as of right now she doesn’t like you. When characters don’t like you their attitude switches and you get a disapproval scene. Rn I think she’s the only one you’ve gotten this low of approval with so far. She’s can actually be quite sweet believe it or not haha. Unfortunately it’s really easy to get on her bad side quickly unlike the other companions which is why ppl typically aren’t fans of her.
1:38:50 Odd how Mapo misjudges Vivienne. She is an elitist, but with power comes responsibility. She expects the Inquisitor as the leader to take responsibility about Haven, and not to blame it on others. She wants to see leadership. Perfectly clear and absolutely justified. I always got along fine with her.
Oh boy, you got the moving furniture around cutscene before even leaving Skyhold! XD That's a cutscene you get only if you have really low approval with Vivienne.
10:00 Been a long time since I've played, but I believe you can have only one specialization, so think about which one you prefer. I also think that normally it's the companions who handle your specialization and the trainers were added later? Dorian is a Necromancer, Solas is the whole Breach mage and Vivienne is an Enchanter
As far as the companions teaching you specializations thing, it's kind of a yes and no. In Inquisition, even though the companions each have one of the specializations, none of them teach them to you and you have to pick them up from external sources. This is the opposite of DA2, because I'm pretty sure you learn specializations exclusively from your companions in that game. But for Origins, you learn some from your companions, like Templar and Bard from Alistair and Leliana respectively, but others from external sources, like the Arcane Mage from the imprisoned elf soul or the Duelist from Isabella. Unless you meant that the trainers were added via a patch after the games launch? If that's what you meant, then that's not the case. When I first played this game, I didn't have Internet in my home, and the specializations were still taught by the trainers that were brought in by the war table operation despite not having ever patched the game.
Knowing Vivienne, that silence was her way of saying "duh" when Solas asked her if she'd say the same thing to an apostate the way she did to Cole. For Viv, apostates are marginally better than demons.
@@amirlewis6638 Yup. Vivienne isn't known as Madame de Fer for nothing. Corypheus could come up to her in all his Darkspawn insanity and she'd still turn her head up to look down on him lol
I was truly surprised at how viv's approval dropped so low but then I remembered No mage conscription followed up by no oversight on the mages whatsoever for a broad fixated on keeping mages and magic safe..It checks out
23:23 you can only pick one. I personally really like Rift Mage. I have never tried Necromage but I did do Knight Enchanter. If you want to experience what it is like to be a KE you should bring Vivienne with you and control her during combat.
This is why I love Vivienne, ironically, considering I rarely see the negative approval cutscene. She won't just blindly smile and accept the inquisitor's choices and they also can't just make her leave to make themselves more comfortable. People don't like that they have to be exposed to someone that might disagree with them and isn't afraid to be blunt about it. It doesn't make her widely loved, but it is realistic that people with different views can be forced to work together under a common goal.
1:38:00 I honestly prefer Vivienne as a character over James, Jacob or Liam. They were boring and forgettable. Vivienne is a character that I hate, but I don't hate her because she's a bad character, but because she's a good character that has very unlikable traits
That’s the fun of characters like Vivienne. I personally like her. But similar to reality shows, they always need a a wild card to keep it interesting lol
Yeah, she has personality in spades. Not particularly likable for a lot of people, but well written. Certainly not forgettable. Same for Sera, honestly. I find her unpleasant but the writing is consistent, you can clearly see why she is the way she is.
I remember when DAI got released a lot of people were making illustrations on the fact that you can have the Inquisitor jump around Skyhold. It was really funny, but nobody was actually complaining. It **is** fun.
@@darthtenebris5250 that ice dash that restores mana, a crest instead of a staff, fire mines that lay out in front of you. Great combo. They get a perk where every attack gives you barrier too. Using that lighting spell that shoots out twenty attacks is instant full barrier. It's the tankiest thing in the game next to blackwall
Protect Clan Lavellan! Yay! In other news. Once you get back to questing you can test out specializations by using the other mages in your party. Each of them has one of the new specializations(Re-specing makes it easier to see the abilities faster but they still need basic magic so that would be up to you). You can at least see the new ability trees through them. Viv is tank as Knight Enchanter, Dorian rains down fire and death, and Egg Man lays the smack down as Rift Mage. *Also, that scene was Vivienne's low approval scene. Any lower and she will leave but doing her personal quest can recover some approval if you want to keep her. Every companion can leave you with Low Approval except the starting 3. (**lol, correction, Vivienne won't leave no matter how much she hates you. Actually hilarious because it does fit her character) I can understand why you dislike her. I don't mind her personally but that's come with understanding her character and perspective after years. Same for Sera (Learning her backstory really changes how you view her personality). Inquisition has an interesting reputation for having the most unlikable/complicated companions. It's just unfortunate the worst 2 are the only 2 out of 3 women of your companions. Josie and Leliana make up for that somewhat but not completely.
Partially wrong about Vivienne. That was her low approval scene, yes, but no force on earth or Thedas can make her leave. She's got her delicate mage fingers grasping at the power the Inquisitor wields, and she ain't letting go. She will be petty and condescending, but she won't leave. Her plot armour won't allow that.
@@BlacknessInTheLight lol, that actually makes sense since she has a goal in joining the inquisition in the first place. Hmm, I suppose I just assumed. I've gotten her low approval scene before but raised it back up since I like keeping all companions regardless of my feelings toward them. *In most of my playthroughs she actually likes me since I'll say what she wants to hear just in her conversations then just do what I want outside of that. Recruit the mages, give them freedom, not be interested in power for myself, so on and so forth.
Honestly I can totally understand the Viv rivalry. As I commented in an earlier episode, I try not to antagonize her too much in my playthroughs and help her a bit so we can have some room for courtesy, and develop some friendship. Even if doing a the full alliance with the rebel mages. It'd be nice to have her on my good side after all, even if you're not a human mage. But as a Dalish mage character, OMG, it's much harder because I couldn't possibly imagine a char with that background not getting on an argument with her right away hahaha. "Mages should be free" is like a no brainer in that case, for example.
With any other companions, I would agree with the finding common ground angle. Vivienne is a bit different. But I think it's best if I elaborate after Mapo progresses further into the game.
I think it’s partly Bioware’s style of making the “opposition” voice either annoying or condescending. They had a great opportunity to create a character who can show us the benefits of having a Circle or the Templars to contrast and add nuance to the whole Mage issue (we already have 2 games of “yes we get it, mages have it bad”) but instead of making this character someone who can allow the player to understand, sympathize and maybe reconsider...they gave this character an attitude that majority of people dislike. What ends up happening is that people will disregard them for being dislikable and without giving the time to actually ponder and think about where the character is coming from. It was the same thing in Mass Effect with characters like Udina or the Salarian Ambassador - these characters have extremely great points that should be considered but players don’t because they come from characters who act asshole-ish. Instead, players fawn over characters like Anderson (who was extremely foolhardy in ME1) or Garrus (a cop who wants to remove oversight and checks and balance because he wants things done his way ASAP) because they’re “cool” and are “bros”.
@@cainyourkids I guess a good example of a character that can give us that perspective of coming to terms with the Circle system, and pointing benefits of it even if when young she had her moments of questioning, is Wynne in DAO. In Vivienne's case, although I understand your point, I think they wanted her to be specifically deeply rooted in her intention of consolidating the status quo and building more power inside that system, and acting with an air of superiority and self righteousness, not because they wanted her to be antagonistic, but because that's her de Fer way of doing things. And as far as agreeing with her or not, it's a very grey zone depending on your background and all. That ends up making her an easily antagonistic char, and I'd even dare say that I'd personally not like her ways at all if I was in Thedas haha
@@viniciusstellium8012 Yes, Wynne was the character in mind when I was writing that, though I'd posit I'd prefer a character who was more...staunch in their beliefs? Wynne came off as very centrist, she believes in the potential of the Circle but doesn't really invite argument for it or against it because she's non-confrontational about it. I actually disagree with a lot of Vivienne's politics, but that's also why I enjoy her as a character because while I can never stomach someone like her IRL, her perspective enriches the argument all around. I'm very much in the anti-Chantry/Pro-Mage freedom camp, but Vivienne raised a lot of points when it comes to the threats of giving mages unfettered freedom, and one of the biggest ones is that Thedas is not ready for that yet. It's not even about mages in Thedas but just the general population - so much rampant fear and bigotry towards Mages, elves, etc., that we even have nobles coming to r*ape Elves willy-nilly (a race many Humans view as secondary), what kind of reception would a non-Circle mage receive at any location (while Elves are seen as secondary, Mages are often viewed with fear, and with fear comes hatred)? With Vivienne, I ended up thinking - is Thedas ready for mages to be free? If a child is born and has the ability to command magic, is there still a risk that said child would be killed/tortured/imprisoned/abandoned by its family or its village? Aughh I could write a novel with all the things I wanna say but I just wanna keep it short before I go overboard lol
I'm honestly surprised just on how bad terms you and Vivienne got. In my games she's always been either neutral or one of my Inquisitor's biggest supporters.
Mapo getting a crash course in how abrasive rivalry can be is fun. Vivy is so nice if you're nice to her and such a bitch if you're not. A true Orlesian. And regarding Blackwall, I love how well he's written. If you're paying attention and soaking everything up, you don't just _think_ something is off with him, you _know_ something is off. But his answers are close enough that you don't know for sure if it's intentional or if it's a case of Warden compartmentalization.
I've literally never seen Vivienne get so antagonistic. I guess that's what happens when your approval with her gets low. How Mapo managed to do this when he makes a lot of the same decisions I do, especially with the mages, is beyond me. She's always been very courteous with my Inquisitor.
Wow I never seen anyone lower Viviene’s approval so much she acts petty 😂 god I love Viviene top 3 characters for sure lol Also I stand by what I said before y’all don’t know how to talk to Viviene Speak to her as if your playing “The Game” never agree or disagree if there’s a middle option take it!
Interesting strategy though imo there's nothing wrong with how Mapo chooses to interact with her. The fact that Vivienne can't handle us not doing what she wants -not to mention acting all superior and talking down to us-shows how spoiled and immature she is.
@@justjdnlbut that's not why she is upset though you can still be full free mages and have a high approval with her. It's not that you aren't doing what she wants you aren't taking responsibility and not giving any new opinions just hard line stances she is already opposed to. 😂
@@yourvalentine3726 I see what you're saying, however to me it still comes down to her wanting us to act a certain way and looking down on those who not think the way she does. Till now she has yet to debunk that she's the type who sits in her ivory tower looking down on the world sipping wine lol. She wants us to be decisive (which we are but barely enough in her eyes) and provide her with our "new opinions" (when philosophically none are necessary). Frankly she wants assurances things will play out the way she desires, whether that means making changes to the system or returning them to their original state. This makes sense considering her Orlesian background: contantly playing The Game, hoping she can control the pawns around her, their views and actions. The fact that she believes Mapolas should've taken responsibility for every action of the Inquisition before she was even considered their leader is kinda ridiculous. I do agree that the response "hey it's not my fault", especially in war times is weak. Yet we also need to remember we literally started as a prisoner of the Inquisition. Despite our growing influence we realistically didn't have any say over the fortifications, military strategy and enemy intel back then (not counting the war table missions). None could have predicted this tragedy would happen, nor did anyone seem sceptical about the security in Haven as our HQ beforehand -Vivienne included. But yes, everyone plays their part in the victories and failures of the Inquisition. Mapolas now more than ever. Much less so before Corypheus appeared.
In my opinion, three companions stand out for their difficulty in pleasing or agreeing: Cole (sometimes), Vivi and Sera. I could cite features that could help the youtuber deal with the two girls, but I'm afraid that would provide a spoiler without getting the context. As for the mage, I believe it is fairly frequent to see youtubers clashing with her (and wanting to have the option of strangling her at least once a week), but I like the other two characters. As for Sera, I suggest that try to understand the character's mindset and background, even though she only appears to be immature, stubborn and confused.
Great playthrough as always. I need to catch up! And when Vivienne blinked at Solas when he retorted during the Cole debate whether apostates don’t belong, she wasn’t struck speechless. She was casting shade. Vivienne does not see herself as an *apostate* - she’s a “loyal mage.” However, Solas IS an apostate. So by remaining silent and blinking back at Solas when he said that apostates shouldn’t belong by her logic about Cole, she was saying “precisely, apostates - like YOU, Solas - don’t belong, like Cole doesn’t.” Now, I don’t think Viv actually believes in kicking out the apostates but her response was not her being cowed or outargued, it was quite the reverse, lol
I think Wardens only dream of Darkspawn during Blights and can sense Darkspawn, but its not the same as hearing voices in their heads. Its only the song of the Calling when they're about to die that something like that occurs. To my recollection. Honestly, Blackwall being secretive makes perfect sense. The truth of how to kill an Archdemon is one of the Wardens' greatest secrets and one of the biggest flaws with the Grey Wardens is their need to keep everything secret. It doesn't really seem relevant unless the dragon Corypheus tamed is an actual Archdemon, which no one can fully agree on. Remember, that's a secret that no one outside the order knows. Also, I sort of recall Corypheus being another major secret in the order that only a minimal amount of people know. I think, that might just be a fanfic I read years ago.
That's the smartest thing Sera's ever said, she's literally smarter than Corypheus. If he saw the THRONE OF THE GODS then there is a god. Plain and simple. What does Corypheus think there's just a magical empty throne in the afterlife and nothing else? "A throne needs a butt so the maker, real thing."
Sera could very well be wrong, though. Of course, this is all theorycrafting... but there is little proof that the Andrastean religion is even remotely correct about the "Maker". Or that the Black City was a "throne" of any sort. Old Gods, though? Real thing.
@@AusSP I'm talking about based on Corypheus claims and beliefs. I never mentioned who or what this throne belongs to. But the simple fact that Corpypheus has saw the "throne of the gods" yet claims there are no gods is contradictory, and Sera picks up on that.
@@HollowHighlanderI've always assumed that Corypheus doesn't so much believe there are no gods as much as he believes that whatever god or gods that do exist have completely abandoned the world, and thus he believes that claiming the Black City will grant god-like power to whoever can do so. Like the world Thedas is in is the same position as the world of Dragon's Dogma after the conclusion of the story.
I hope one of Mapos mods suggests using a flycam in the war room. 🙏🏻 There's an incredible chandelier that no one ever gets to see. There's also something under skyhold but that's just weird. Also really hope Mapo meets the Quizisitor. I only ever met him in 2 of 17 different playthroughs.
You're not alone. Vivienne is ... yeah. Can't stand her. Most of all, I always hated how she installed herself on the balcony so she can look down on everyone. She was not welcome back on subsequent playthrus 😊 Cole is delightful though. So interesting too. I loved all his interactions, especially with Varric. Thanks for another episode!
Technically, you were supposed to talk to your companions first before doing a war table quest or dialogue option that lets you leave Skyhold (which the one for Solas did). Because of that, the companions then "vanish" to their places in the castle. If you spoke to them first, then later left Skyhold, and then came back, then the timeline for Skyhold getting the repairs done and your companions changing spots makes sense.
I think Vivienne becomes more annoying the more conflict/disapproval you have with her. Yes, she sounds slightly patronizing, but I remember having her become tolerable after her ego is stroked the right way. The same with Sera, she becomes more annoying the more she disapproves of you, because by then she thinks she should stick it up to you.
Personally I wouldn't call it slightly patronizing. "I'll try to talk slowly so you can follow" (paraphrasing) is one of many remarks that show how petty and condescending Vivienne can be if you don't see eye to eye with her. She shows no respect to those that don't exactly think and act the way she does. It's very clear she considers Mapolas beneath her and wrong in her decisions and overall stance as a leader. I enjoy how dynamic the characters behave depending on their (dis)approval of the MC. Props to the devs for that. Objectively Vivienne, or rather what she stands for, is a great addition to the Inquisition. Personality wise she's the opposite for me - a terrible person to converse with. Realistically, if someone only acts decent around you so long as you side with her they don't deserve your attention to begin with. Perhaps for story purposes I wouldn't mind keeping her on, otherwise her wanting to leave out of principal would be a blessing lol
My mouth was agape watching that Vivienne scene. I'd never seen that dialogue before, because I was always terrified to let my companion approval drop. Haha
I've never seen this side of Vivienne before. Then again, I suppose this is the way she is when you have a low approval rate with you. She's cold. But when you have high approval with her, she cares. This is interesting.
Mapo, it would be really fun to watch you react to all the romances in DAI. I def get it tho if you don't want to so you can avoid any spoilers for another play through. Just wanted to throw a recommendation to think about. Love seeing your reactions. :)
Skyhold is supposed to update with repairs the first few times you leave and come back. A couple of the character cutscenes involve you going to a different instance since the cutscenes are in game. This counts as traveling to and from skyhold, making it repair super fast and unlocking more cutscenes.
Favourite companions both banters and battles. I started to like cassandra at the end only, i mean she was harshly interrogating me lmfao... Sera is fun to talk to, but always go and talk to Cole whenever first, then Dorian and Vivienne... there perspective is unique and they speak their mind. Sera is the one i least took with me on the battlefield, IronBull same dont even remember him in my party that much 🤣🤣 Dorian, Varrick/Solas/Vivienne, Blackwall, 1: Cole 2: Josephine 4: Dorian/Varrick 5: Vivienne/Sera 7: Blackwall 8: IronBull/Cullen 10: Cassandra 11: Solas
You read the ages wrong. The fourth age is the Black Age. Towers is third age. It goes: Ancient (Tevinter Era / pre-Andrastian) Divine (1st Age) Glory (2nd Age) Towers (3rd Age) Black (4th Age) Exalted (5th Age) Steel (6th Age) Storm (7th Age) Blessed (8th Age) Dragon (9th Age)
Petty sidenote but I wanted to point out that Vivienne is happy to blame you for "allowing others to choose" Haven even though you started your relationship with the Inquisition as a literal prisoner and weren't even made leadership officially until arriving at Skyhold, but SHE never once says anything about Haven as a base even though she was also there and also part of the Inquisition. Once again, she passes along only useless, mean spirited nonsense while holding herself accountable for exactly and entirely nothing. I really wish there was the ability to call her out on her shit in a much more public, direct way. The only way to win against someone like her is not to play by her rules, but the game never gives you the chance. (That I can recall. It's been a long time since I've played and even longer since I said more than the absolute minimum to her in any playthrough.)
I think she was more pissed about the "Dont blame me, it was them"-attitude instead of saying you would learn from the mistakes that were made. I've noticed that in my playtroughs, as long as I was upfront with her and be like "yeah it was a bad choice, but I will do better" her approval would rise. My inquisitor would be pro-mage freedom and a spirit-lover, and still end up being good friends with her without playing to Viv's ego. On the contrary, Viv just has a enormous wall, but when you befriend her she becomes really supportive even when she doesnt agree with you at all. *Spoilers below!!!!!* I think one of the reasons you cant go against her in public is because of the influence she has. Heck, even bringing her to the empress' ball will give you an immidiate influence point. Josephines job would also get so much harder, we couldn't do it to her. Also on another note, one of the biggest reasons she became the way she is, was because when she and a friend were happy with the way things were at their circle. Resulting in that friend getting brutally murdered for it by a "freedom mage" (I dont remember the details, just the gist of it). Futhermore, it's not like the game would cause her to become more gentle. Being mean is a defense mechanism that has worked for her thus far.
I love how easily Sera and Vivienne rattle people for not being a typical "player worshipper" companion. People find it hard to see things from their perspective and dismiss them for their unusual opinions right off the bat so they always end up disliked and not given a chance. Sera is literally a kid grown up in a world of poverty, salt of the earth people and zero connection to magic and the 1st world problems the player deals with and people expect her to make sense of world ending stuff and respect authority. Vivienne acts like she's better than you because she quite literally is. She climbed all the way from a Circle "nobody" to Court Enchanter on her own shrewdness and willpower and has seen and experienced more magical and political dangers and machinations than you ever will in your lifetime so it makes sense for her to try and mentor you as a leader and get frustrated at you when you dismiss her heedings and play around with things she deems risky when the fate of the world is at stake like letting mages run unchecked when the veil is torn open and demonic possession is at an all time high instead of getting the help of people who fight magic for a living to seal the breach. She is just thinking of the bigger picture and trying to counsel you but people can't get past her condescending tone. I disagree with most of these 2 companions' opinions but always managed a great relationship with them by understanding where they are coming from and why they feel and act the way they do.
Yeah, my first time playing Sera rubbed me the wrong way at first, too. But she really grew on me as I played, talked to her, and started to understand her better, and she ended up being my first romance. And I've probably romanced her the most out of anyone at this point. I even made a Qunari and an elven mage Inky to see those variations on her romance. But yeah, a lot of people dislike them because they're their own people and not puppets of the player. Those people will always argue that's not true, but then their explanations of why they don't like them prove it is, in fact, the case. Even if they don't actually see it. Like, I have seen *so many* people complain about Sera's personal quest, and what she can do in it. Despite the fact she gives you plenty of warnings. People get mad she actually did something instead of just differing to the player.
Spoilers Mapo, there be dragon (age inquisition spoilers) here. That really isn't true for Vivienne though- she didn't "win" her way to her seat of power by doing great things, being a good person, fighting well, commanding others from a position of leadership- none of it. She schemed and betrayed others and lied until she could find someone powerful enough to literally carry her into high society. From there she used The Game to concentrate political power to herself but uses none of it to actually help other people. It's all about her own climbing ambition and personal fulfillment. All of her opinions are based around the idea of returning to a status quo that SHE benefits from and she doesn't seem to care in the slightest that it was crushing other people- people who weren't willing to do all the vile things she's done in order to gain power- into dust. Of course, she blankets all that in carefully worded half-truths about the status quo having been so great for non mages, but she has never even so much as experienced that herself. Her early induction and achievement in the Circle (which is somewhat impressive magically... except every mage we've ever met from a Circle has also achieved it, so it's more about early progress than any real feat of strength) meant that she probably never even worked at her parents' shop. She has no idea what life is like outside of her cushy Circle, the estates of the Orlesian wealthy, or Celene's political functions. To her, 'those people' must have been doing alright, because they kept serving food at the dinner parties and sewing the precious clothes she values so highly. Or at least, I think that's a valid way to view her. In my personal opinion, I think she's probably somewhere in the middle. To me, she's definitely not as well meaning and innocent of selfish ambition as you made her out to be, but she isn't quite as hard and uncaring as I have either. Despite 100% using her benefactor for his political influence, I do think she cares about him. I don't buy the idea that she is only looking out for 'the people' though- it just doesn't add up. She either doesn't have the context and refuses to even consider that she might be fallible- which would make anyone a fool to follow her advice, or she does have the context and chooses to ignore or equivocate about it because acknowledging it would mean all the careful work she's put in over decades to ensure SHE is powerful would go down the drain. She stands to lose everything she's ever worked for if the Inquisition manages to accomplish their goals and resolve the "mage issue" without a return to the old power structure. Shading her own goals by advocating for "the people" is probably how she advised Celene when she wanted things to go her way. I am unsurprised she uses the same tactic with the Inquisitor. I think it's a bit dismissive to suggest that the only reason people don't like her is that she doesn't fawn over the player character- Fenris hated my Hawke's guts but I loved him still, despite disagreeing with almost every word that came out of his mouth. Likability doesn't always align with being agreed with. I'd argue that if anything, her insistence that she's above the player (and just about everyone else) is evidence of how little it's true. The best of the best don't have to caw and needle others in order to make their position clear, and if she'd ever used anything other than The Game, arguably seduction, and political trickery to get her way, she might know that. She thinks she's the bees knees, and that's really annoying when so much is at stake. Vivienne would NEVER advocate for a future or solution that didn't benefit her, EVEN if it was in the best interest of everyone else. That concerned me, a lot. I want advice from someone who values what I value, and the only thing I was ever convinced for sure that Vivienne values is her own ambition. A respectable personal goal, but not one that I'd ever use to help steer an organization like (my) Inquisition. I find her haughty, narrow minded, unjustly superior, and therefore... unlikable. It has nothing to do with the fact that we disagree (I disagree with Bull on a lot, for example, and Cassandra) and everything to do with WHY we disagree. Gosh... sorry for writing so much.
@@xyexCouldn't have said it better than "they're their own people". Sera doesn't talk to you like you're her boss and someone of importance, something most other characters do, which leads to people having no patience for her, unfortunately.
@@octo448 I agree with most of what you said and disagree with most of what Viv says but still can't find it in me to hate her or hate listening to her. She found a way to secure the bag while playing the same game everyone around her played despite the hand she was dealt with to begin with so I respect her way more than the non-magical people that share her opinion but want to regulate things they know little about. She speaks from experience and makes interesting points if you tune out her tone and her polarizing opinions make her invaluable to an Inquisition full of "Yes men" and Herald worshipers. She also is capable of caring despite looking out for number 1 as evidenced by her reaction to the Tranquil's fate at Redcliff and her approval of saving Haven's townspeople (which only her and Varric do) so I don't think her completely selfish. I disagree with her and her methods but respect the hell out of her and love listening to her, if only to challenge her views. One of the most interesting characters in the series.
@@ricardolionheart8504 Yeah. I saw one person who argued "I'm the Inquisitor, I'm her boss, she's along helping me on my quest, she should actually listen to me" and it's like... no. You being the "Inquisitor" means jack shit. You're not her boss, she's an ally, a partner, not a minion. And that quest was *her* quest that she *invited you* along for because you helped her out with it. It was *her* contact you were to be meeting. But people get so caught up in their power fantasy and they don't even realize it. Which is one of the reasons I *love* Sera as a character. She's almost a litmus test, to see if the player has let their authority go to their head, and the vast majority of them absolutely have. They try to couch it in excuses, but they're all thinly veiled ways of saying "she doesn't make me feel powerful so I don't like her."
28:10 I mean, it's a fair assumption that Cole could be a demon. As So as said, spirits don't usually go around physical plan, but demons always crave to get there and gi to town. And it definitely doesn't help that Cole rocks dual daggers and can shank people from shadow.
02:11:19 i mean, how Wardens kill Archdemon is a massive secret if you remember. As much as Joining. So even if you are his favorite boss lady he can't just tell it
I know this is rather old (trying to catch up on the playthrough), but if I remember correctly, the reason why some have "leave the Inquisition" while others don't is because of MS plot. The ones that you can kick are more side characters vs the others which are more main characters to the story plot.
Please do not disregard the knight enchanter. Vivienne has this specialization, and if you (like I) want nothing to do with her but want all specs available. Choose this for yourself. And it is also the most fun spec to play :)
Yeah, first time in Skyhold can be quite overwhelming. Especially because some cutscenes are treated like you going out, passing time and coming back. It does little sens and extends the Skyhold time. I hate missing dialogues and scenes so I always exhausts all dialogue options from everyone. + the lore
Wow. I have never encountered mean Vivienne before. I always took a polite disagreement approach with her, rather than the, "The Templars should be fully abolished," approach.
1:44:30 cutscene here is result of your bad relations with Vivienne. if you are doing better with her, cutscene is much more positive and she has dropped some of the condecending attitude
The knight-enchanter is probably the most overpowered class in the game as you can get a skill/perk/ability that makes hits with spectral blade build barrier and so long as you have barrier you'll never die it's so broken the second I had access to specialization and picked it, I soloed all the dragons I had seen up to that point( party was there but they all died pretty quickly)
They nerfed it pretty hard after Trespasser, I think. I would say rift mage is almost as good anyway if you take all the good passives. So much damage with unlimited mana and fast cooldown
@@quantum_leviathan It's been years, but I think they quartered the spirit blade damage. Even though they also added some bonus to it, it really didn't offset the heavy nerf. You cannot simply hack away as KE anymore. Have to use fire mine as main damage output, which is also the best damaging spell for other specialization. Comparing KE and rift mage now, basically it's more barrier vs unlimited mana. Rift mage slightly wins for me, but KE is still good, just not op.
Idk how far ahead you are from this recording, but it you take each party member into the field youll unlock each of their specialization so you can see what each offers. Solas is rift mage, dorian is a necromage, and her royal highness vivienne is a knight enchanter.
![The Undercroft & Back Out Into The World - Dragon Age Inquisition | Blind Playthrough [Part 18]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/3fYbBXtapqw/mqdefault.jpg)
![The Undercroft & Back Out Into The World - Dragon Age Inquisition | Blind Playthrough [Part 18]](/img/tr.png)
![The Crestwood - Dragon Age Inquisition | Blind Playthrough [Part 20]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/FaCiNQgVZK4/mqdefault.jpg)
![The Still Ruins & Subjected To His Will - Dragon Age Inquisition | Blind Playthrough [Part 24]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/t3kF3ARUUqM/mqdefault.jpg)
As the Inqusitor ran, Blackwall screamed: DON'T PLAY DIAMONDBACK WITH SOLAAAAAS. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNEEEEEEED
the difference between low approval vivienne and high approval one is crazy!! i always liked her in my playthroughs because my scenes with her were so much different 😭
I have never, in all my playthroughs, seen this side of Vivienne 😂 The difference is wild.
@@etodraws same 😭 i can understand now why people hate her
I was so confused about this aswell! She's so different haha. In my playthroughs I manage to keep all my companions happy enough. Though I'm going to do a playthrough where my Inky is a bit of an asshole so we'll see how Vivienne likes that.
@@BlueEyedRaven_ good luck. I once made an Inquisitor whose main goal in life was to be a jerk. He still ended up friends with almost everyone
I love when u first get to skyhold and Vivienne with good approval is like “are u okay? Let me see you if ur injured” but this Vivienne is just like “you FOOL” 💀
I see Mapo succumbed to the daily DAI posting
Easy to understand why. Battle of Haven is such a mic drop moment, it gets you really invested.
Mapo vs Vivienne lmfao, Her attitude is priceless.🤣 I know i am gonna life with every interraction, My dear
laugh/life
Daily Dragon Age? This is like a Holiday! Between Mapo doing this and me playing Baldur's Gate 3, how can I have any free time left?
And about decision making, there are some that you should take as long as you need. As a viewer, watching you going over the decisions is part of the fun.
About why only Sera has the ejection button (maybe Cole too?), consider who has power and who doesn't, what it would look like if you suddenly kicked Vivienne out. A lot of this kind of subtle things are hidden there in DAI's system, instead of its writing. I find it brilliant.
Same here lol
"Do you have any advice for me?"
"Don't play Diamondback with Solas, you've been warned"
2:11:00 The Wardens are notoriously secretive, even in the first game they say they keep things secrets even from the lesser members of their order, and especially from outsiders. Even when you were joining the Wardens and actively fighting the Darkspawn, you, as a junior member, weren't told that Wardens give their life to kill an Archdemon. And I'm sure none but the Warden leadership even knew about Corypheus and his prison. I doubt they would let it be common knowledge among the regular Wardens. We obviously have inside knowledge about Warden secrets because we played as one, but now as an outsider, Wardens would definitely withhold information, even if we already know it.
Edit : He's done with the game and the DLC now, and the entire reason I argued this is to try and keep up the front that Blackwall is actually a warden, and was just being secretive, instead of just not knowing things that only Wardens would know.
Yup. A Warden isn't going to divulge the secrets of the order without reason. And there's no telling how many of the rank and file even know what it takes to kill an archdemon.
Vivienne does hate you, you got some major disapproval hits with her early on and keep getting more. If you did the same with other characters it'd come across similarly in how they talk to you. With some companions you might've even punched them in the face by this point in the game.
I just leveled a punch on someone in Skyhold today. Felt great.
At least Mapo hates Vivienne too, so it works in a way. I'm more worried about Cassandra right now. She got some "greatly disapproves" and not many approval to balance it out. It would be sad if Mapo misses certain scenes with her.
I have never, in 4 full playthroughs of this game, had Vivienne rearrange my furniture out of spite.
I absolutely love the way Cole talks. Dropping into alliteration at the drop of an oversized hat but everything gets his meaning across perfectly.
28:45 this is why Solas became my favorite character. He won me over in the countless arguments he has with the other companions.
"Because your trainer has already taken the risk. The price has been paid." is always a line that sticks with me. its so ominous from a kind of comedic character.
It really is. Considering how quickly the collective had to work to ensure that at least 1 person could theoretically know about the rift, how to manipulate and use it effectively, in time for the Inquisitor to learn means that a number of people probably had to meet...unsavory ends. Your Inquisitor doesn't have to suffer the risks of learning Rift Magic, the people who may have died to learn it in time to impart knowledge to you have paid the price for it in blood.
Yeah, and it gets even darker when you consider what it means when you choose a different specialization. Because it means that Your Trainer was left brain damaged by magic, and the others who died, all paid that price for nothing.
@@MoostachedSaiyanPrince oof yes. I always posit her calling herself Your Trainer as the one focal point that keeps her lucid (she admits being plagued with unruly thoughts). She’s lost everything save being Your Trainer - it’s all she has left.
I never thought about all this before. Great observations, folks. Man, I love this game.
I actually started to understand Sera a bit better from around this time in the game. I think to me, this whole little crisis was illustrative of a person who desperately wants to do good and help people but is so jaded by seeing the powerful take advantage of the weak that she's skeptical of any form of authority. The Inquisition was more approachable to her when it was small and less respected and not nearly so impactful, when the player is just a rumor and not a real legend. Now, the Inquisition is forming up to be the biggest authority around- with gigantic responsibilities to go along with it, and she's got more irrefutable proof of divinity than most people would need to become monks. It's a lot for someone who admittedly just doesn't want to think about any of it.
She just doesn't know how to handle the dissonance between what she's afraid of and what she knows is right. While maybe not as heroic as some other members of the Inquisition, I think her position is respectable. How many "little people" in today's world want to help change things for the better but are overwhelmed by how difficult that is? How many of the nameless figures who roam Skyhold are more like Sera than any of the other companions? She's a vector for the player to gauge how the "little people" Sera champions are feeling at any time. If you ever wonder what the bakers, the runners, the scribes, or the carpenters feel, ask Sera. She knows, but she also IS them, and her feelings often mirror theirs.
There's also the whole crisis of faith thing. I find that much less compelling, but I'm sure someone else has commentary on it so i'll leave them to it.
I think it's worth remembering that Sera is (somewhat, kind of) uneducated and has lived a very salt-of-the-earth lifestyle for most of her life. She hasn't been reading/experiencing lore like we as players have, or even people like Dorian who studied this stuff. I think it totally makes sense that she's freaking out a little and having an existential crisis.
Also her views of what's "real" or not or "selfish" or not can be difficult to wrap your head around if you don't know her background yet. She's one of those characters that makes a lot more sense in retrospect.
Personally, I don't blame her for freaking out, but the fact that she never learns or grows past her limited view of the world rubs me the wrong way. Especially how much she dislikes anything that challenges her views at all. Her views are understandable at first, but her willful ignorance and constantly judgemental attitude are aggravating. She knows she isn't well educated, but still acts like she knows better than everyone else about things she is literally unwilling to learn anything about. I don't hate her like a lot of people, but I absolutely understand where her haters are coming from.
It doesn’t help how young she is. I think once she got older she’d chill a bit more.
@@MoostachedSaiyanPrince except she has one of the most marked growths compared to all companions. Compare dlc Sera and the Sera you first encounter.
@@Yolanee The only way I remember DLC Sara showing any growth at all is when she expresses sadness over the Elven Inquisitor's dead clan (assuming they do die). And that's more of an "I'm sad because I like you and this bad thing happened to you" more than an "I used to dislike this group of people and am sad something happened to them". And even then, that "growth" is limited to the DLC and felt like it was thrown in last minute to try and redeem Sera because of how divisive she was up until that point. Emphasis on "try" because most people saw it as "too little, too late" and I personally didn't care because it felt like a hollow effort. Besides, saying Sera got the most growth out of all almost all companions in Inquisition is hardly a compliment considering how low a bar that is. I like Inquisition a lot, but the companions and their lack of character arcs is my strongest sticking point because outside of Cole and Dorian, none of them really have an arc. Cassandra, Varric, Solas, Blackwall, Vivienne, Sera, and Iron Bull all start the story pretty much as the same character they start as. Sure, we learn more about them, so they get plenty of development, but nothing about their motivations or goals really changes. Compare their "story arcs" to most other Dragon Age companions and their arcs are almost non-existent by comparison. Sera gets a few lines of dialogue in the post-game post-launch DLC that make her a tiny bit less insufferable, but that's hardly anything worth noting and came at a time where I had already played through the game multiple times. I don't dislike Sera, but she does not change over the course of the story, especially in the base game. At best, she expresses her unpleasant ideas less often.
@@MoostachedSaiyanPrince Except Sera literally learns and grows more than any other companion (save maybe one) in the game. DLC Sera and 1st encounter Sera are practically different people.
Dragon Ages: 0) Ancient Age (Pre-Chantry) 1) Divine Age 2) Glory Age 3) Towers Age 4) Black Age 5) Exalted Age 6) Steel Age 7) Storm Age 8) Blessed Age 9) Dragon Age.
I thought I saw the height of frustration Mapo had with companions with Merrill when she got the Keeper killed, and then Anders started that world war, and definitely took the spot away. But boy, when Vivienne moved that furniture, this man was seething, and I don't know why, but I am here for it!
And that... would be the Vivienne disapproval cut-scene.
28:00
Cole is a spirit of being a good boy. 🤭
1:46:31
I think this particular interaction took place because you have below -75 'friendship' points with her. 👀;
If you had positive friendship points with her, this interaction wouldn't have actually existed but rather a more positive one and its place. Whenever you accumulate a certain amount below or above a specified threshold then different events can occur.
1:52:39
I think out of all of the things you can sit in on, this one is definitely my favourite. 😂
After playing this so many times, I'm used to having high/max approval with all of the companions. I forgot how much of a bitch Vivienne is if your approval is low enough lol. She's so petty 😂
The way the VA delivers Vivienne's lines is hilarious, I'm sorry 😭
Indira Varma (my beloved) does such an amazing job at being high-and-mighty and obnoxious. Vivienne can be so grating when you have low approval (and it's very easy to have low approval). She's a lot of fun when she's your friend though, but that takes careful dialog choices. But yeah, once she doesn't like you she gets really mean and petty. I personally find it hilarious.
I'm looking forward to your meeting the arcanist!
Man... Mapo Is Spoiling us with these daily Dragon Age uploads...
Not that I'm complaining of course, this playthrough has definetly become one the things I anticipate most in my daily routine.
AHAhaha you got the Vivienne moving furniture scene!!! glorious. She absolutely HATES you. I've always been able to get high approval from her so I have only heard about the furniture moving scene, never seen it. Thank you for letting me live vicariously through you to witness negative approval from some of my usual favourites. bravo.
You are seeing this side of Vivienne bc as of right now she doesn’t like you. When characters don’t like you their attitude switches and you get a disapproval scene. Rn I think she’s the only one you’ve gotten this low of approval with so far. She’s can actually be quite sweet believe it or not haha. Unfortunately it’s really easy to get on her bad side quickly unlike the other companions which is why ppl typically aren’t fans of her.
high approval Viv after haven is so sweet, checking up on you, making sure you're ok preparing you for whats coming, she's a cutey tbh
And the funny thing is you can still get high Viv approval while being pro-mage freedom/anti-chantry.
1:38:50 Odd how Mapo misjudges Vivienne. She is an elitist, but with power comes responsibility. She expects the Inquisitor as the leader to take responsibility about Haven, and not to blame it on others. She wants to see leadership. Perfectly clear and absolutely justified. I always got along fine with her.
Oh boy, you got the moving furniture around cutscene before even leaving Skyhold! XD That's a cutscene you get only if you have really low approval with Vivienne.
10:00 Been a long time since I've played, but I believe you can have only one specialization, so think about which one you prefer. I also think that normally it's the companions who handle your specialization and the trainers were added later?
Dorian is a Necromancer, Solas is the whole Breach mage and Vivienne is an Enchanter
As far as the companions teaching you specializations thing, it's kind of a yes and no. In Inquisition, even though the companions each have one of the specializations, none of them teach them to you and you have to pick them up from external sources. This is the opposite of DA2, because I'm pretty sure you learn specializations exclusively from your companions in that game. But for Origins, you learn some from your companions, like Templar and Bard from Alistair and Leliana respectively, but others from external sources, like the Arcane Mage from the imprisoned elf soul or the Duelist from Isabella. Unless you meant that the trainers were added via a patch after the games launch? If that's what you meant, then that's not the case. When I first played this game, I didn't have Internet in my home, and the specializations were still taught by the trainers that were brought in by the war table operation despite not having ever patched the game.
I've completed this game like, three times, and I still always run to the door to the Quarters when I want to go to the war table :')
I think its physically impossible to not make this mistake lol
Funny, I've never seen that scene with Viv before. I guess it only happens when you have low approval with her lol😂
i vote for sitting with a difficult choice until you've made a decision ✋ no need to rush it
Woah, this is my first time seeing those cutscenes with Vivienne. You two really got off on the wrong foot, huh?
Knowing Vivienne, that silence was her way of saying "duh" when Solas asked her if she'd say the same thing to an apostate the way she did to Cole. For Viv, apostates are marginally better than demons.
Yeah, I interpreted her stare as "if it's my decision, YOU are also not welcomed here, Solas"
@@pkuvincentsu Exactly. Her eyes were like "If I could kick the demon and you down the mountainside, I would do so. Twice. with heels."
That's was exactly what it was. The slow blink and folded arms told everything.
@@amirlewis6638 Yup. Vivienne isn't known as Madame de Fer for nothing. Corypheus could come up to her in all his Darkspawn insanity and she'd still turn her head up to look down on him lol
I was truly surprised at how viv's approval dropped so low but then I remembered
No mage conscription followed up by no oversight on the mages whatsoever for a broad fixated on keeping mages and magic safe..It checks out
23:23 you can only pick one. I personally really like Rift Mage. I have never tried Necromage but I did do Knight Enchanter. If you want to experience what it is like to be a KE you should bring Vivienne with you and control her during combat.
You have to love Vivienne VA. She really does sound petty and spiteful when you have a bad relationship with her and makes you hate her so much lmao
Love Indira Varma! She showed a bit of that Viv-bite when she played Ellaria Sand on Game of Thrones!
Take as much time to ponder choices as you want- it’s really interesting to hear your thoughts on each option!
Never seen anyone execute the Avvar before.
This is why I love Vivienne, ironically, considering I rarely see the negative approval cutscene. She won't just blindly smile and accept the inquisitor's choices and they also can't just make her leave to make themselves more comfortable. People don't like that they have to be exposed to someone that might disagree with them and isn't afraid to be blunt about it. It doesn't make her widely loved, but it is realistic that people with different views can be forced to work together under a common goal.
1:38:00 I honestly prefer Vivienne as a character over James, Jacob or Liam. They were boring and forgettable. Vivienne is a character that I hate, but I don't hate her because she's a bad character, but because she's a good character that has very unlikable traits
Yes! It feels like Vivienne's writer knew exactly which button to push to make (some) players hate her, myself included.
That’s the fun of characters like Vivienne. I personally like her. But similar to reality shows, they always need a a wild card to keep it interesting lol
I agree but leave james out of this, not his fault he was only a companion in me3, he's actually way more interesting than the other two.
@@nightfrost1891 I second that, James is such a bro and is lovable to me. Leave my guy out of this haha
Yeah, she has personality in spades. Not particularly likable for a lot of people, but well written. Certainly not forgettable.
Same for Sera, honestly. I find her unpleasant but the writing is consistent, you can clearly see why she is the way she is.
I remember when DAI got released a lot of people were making illustrations on the fact that you can have the Inquisitor jump around Skyhold. It was really funny, but nobody was actually complaining. It **is** fun.
"i thought i liked viviene and then she started talking"
lmaooo
I'm so glad I found your channel. I love these videos so much! Thanks so much for the daily uploads
Knight enchanter is my favorite subclass in dragon age. It makes mage a lot of fun. Pretty much turns you into a paladin
I'm usually play as a mage, I usually go with the Rift class. I should try with the Knight class. It'll be interesting.
@@darthtenebris5250 that ice dash that restores mana, a crest instead of a staff, fire mines that lay out in front of you. Great combo. They get a perk where every attack gives you barrier too. Using that lighting spell that shoots out twenty attacks is instant full barrier. It's the tankiest thing in the game next to blackwall
Mapolas commits medieval torture casually and looks great doing it 😅
Protect Clan Lavellan! Yay!
In other news. Once you get back to questing you can test out specializations by using the other mages in your party. Each of them has one of the new specializations(Re-specing makes it easier to see the abilities faster but they still need basic magic so that would be up to you).
You can at least see the new ability trees through them.
Viv is tank as Knight Enchanter, Dorian rains down fire and death, and Egg Man lays the smack down as Rift Mage.
*Also, that scene was Vivienne's low approval scene. Any lower and she will leave but doing her personal quest can recover some approval if you want to keep her. Every companion can leave you with Low Approval except the starting 3. (**lol, correction, Vivienne won't leave no matter how much she hates you. Actually hilarious because it does fit her character)
I can understand why you dislike her. I don't mind her personally but that's come with understanding her character and perspective after years. Same for Sera (Learning her backstory really changes how you view her personality). Inquisition has an interesting reputation for having the most unlikable/complicated companions. It's just unfortunate the worst 2 are the only 2 out of 3 women of your companions. Josie and Leliana make up for that somewhat but not completely.
Partially wrong about Vivienne. That was her low approval scene, yes, but no force on earth or Thedas can make her leave. She's got her delicate mage fingers grasping at the power the Inquisitor wields, and she ain't letting go. She will be petty and condescending, but she won't leave. Her plot armour won't allow that.
@@BlacknessInTheLight lol, that actually makes sense since she has a goal in joining the inquisition in the first place. Hmm, I suppose I just assumed. I've gotten her low approval scene before but raised it back up since I like keeping all companions regardless of my feelings toward them.
*In most of my playthroughs she actually likes me since I'll say what she wants to hear just in her conversations then just do what I want outside of that. Recruit the mages, give them freedom, not be interested in power for myself, so on and so forth.
Please look at the door left when loading in skyhold for storage!!!!!!!
😊👍👍👍❤❤❤❤❤....ALWAYS save before you do a Throne/Judge thing! 😉😅 Hmmm.... never have those glitches in my DAI on PS4
The gibbit ruling was so bad it broke the game. 😉
Honestly I can totally understand the Viv rivalry. As I commented in an earlier episode, I try not to antagonize her too much in my playthroughs and help her a bit so we can have some room for courtesy, and develop some friendship. Even if doing a the full alliance with the rebel mages. It'd be nice to have her on my good side after all, even if you're not a human mage. But as a Dalish mage character, OMG, it's much harder because I couldn't possibly imagine a char with that background not getting on an argument with her right away hahaha. "Mages should be free" is like a no brainer in that case, for example.
With any other companions, I would agree with the finding common ground angle. Vivienne is a bit different. But I think it's best if I elaborate after Mapo progresses further into the game.
I think it’s partly Bioware’s style of making the “opposition” voice either annoying or condescending. They had a great opportunity to create a character who can show us the benefits of having a Circle or the Templars to contrast and add nuance to the whole Mage issue (we already have 2 games of “yes we get it, mages have it bad”) but instead of making this character someone who can allow the player to understand, sympathize and maybe reconsider...they gave this character an attitude that majority of people dislike. What ends up happening is that people will disregard them for being dislikable and without giving the time to actually ponder and think about where the character is coming from.
It was the same thing in Mass Effect with characters like Udina or the Salarian Ambassador - these characters have extremely great points that should be considered but players don’t because they come from characters who act asshole-ish. Instead, players fawn over characters like Anderson (who was extremely foolhardy in ME1) or Garrus (a cop who wants to remove oversight and checks and balance because he wants things done his way ASAP) because they’re “cool” and are “bros”.
@@cainyourkids I guess a good example of a character that can give us that perspective of coming to terms with the Circle system, and pointing benefits of it even if when young she had her moments of questioning, is Wynne in DAO. In Vivienne's case, although I understand your point, I think they wanted her to be specifically deeply rooted in her intention of consolidating the status quo and building more power inside that system, and acting with an air of superiority and self righteousness, not because they wanted her to be antagonistic, but because that's her de Fer way of doing things. And as far as agreeing with her or not, it's a very grey zone depending on your background and all. That ends up making her an easily antagonistic char, and I'd even dare say that I'd personally not like her ways at all if I was in Thedas haha
@@viniciusstellium8012 Yes, Wynne was the character in mind when I was writing that, though I'd posit I'd prefer a character who was more...staunch in their beliefs? Wynne came off as very centrist, she believes in the potential of the Circle but doesn't really invite argument for it or against it because she's non-confrontational about it.
I actually disagree with a lot of Vivienne's politics, but that's also why I enjoy her as a character because while I can never stomach someone like her IRL, her perspective enriches the argument all around. I'm very much in the anti-Chantry/Pro-Mage freedom camp, but Vivienne raised a lot of points when it comes to the threats of giving mages unfettered freedom, and one of the biggest ones is that Thedas is not ready for that yet. It's not even about mages in Thedas but just the general population - so much rampant fear and bigotry towards Mages, elves, etc., that we even have nobles coming to r*ape Elves willy-nilly (a race many Humans view as secondary), what kind of reception would a non-Circle mage receive at any location (while Elves are seen as secondary, Mages are often viewed with fear, and with fear comes hatred)?
With Vivienne, I ended up thinking - is Thedas ready for mages to be free? If a child is born and has the ability to command magic, is there still a risk that said child would be killed/tortured/imprisoned/abandoned by its family or its village?
Aughh I could write a novel with all the things I wanna say but I just wanna keep it short before I go overboard lol
I'm honestly surprised just on how bad terms you and Vivienne got. In my games she's always been either neutral or one of my Inquisitor's biggest supporters.
yeah even during my own mage playthrough she was my Inquisitor's best friend lol
Mapo getting a crash course in how abrasive rivalry can be is fun. Vivy is so nice if you're nice to her and such a bitch if you're not. A true Orlesian.
And regarding Blackwall, I love how well he's written. If you're paying attention and soaking everything up, you don't just _think_ something is off with him, you _know_ something is off. But his answers are close enough that you don't know for sure if it's intentional or if it's a case of Warden compartmentalization.
I've literally never seen Vivienne get so antagonistic. I guess that's what happens when your approval with her gets low. How Mapo managed to do this when he makes a lot of the same decisions I do, especially with the mages, is beyond me. She's always been very courteous with my Inquisitor.
It's cute how one conversation with our beloved Dwarf Bro cures all the frustration of Vivienne's mean girl bullshit
Wow I never seen anyone lower Viviene’s approval so much she acts petty 😂 god I love Viviene top 3 characters for sure lol
Also I stand by what I said before y’all don’t know how to talk to Viviene Speak to her as if your playing “The Game” never agree or disagree if there’s a middle option take it!
Interesting strategy though imo there's nothing wrong with how Mapo chooses to interact with her. The fact that Vivienne can't handle us not doing what she wants -not to mention acting all superior and talking down to us-shows how spoiled and immature she is.
@@justjdnlbut that's not why she is upset though you can still be full free mages and have a high approval with her. It's not that you aren't doing what she wants you aren't taking responsibility and not giving any new opinions just hard line stances she is already opposed to. 😂
@@yourvalentine3726 I see what you're saying, however to me it still comes down to her wanting us to act a certain way and looking down on those who not think the way she does. Till now she has yet to debunk that she's the type who sits in her ivory tower looking down on the world sipping wine lol.
She wants us to be decisive (which we are but barely enough in her eyes) and provide her with our "new opinions" (when philosophically none are necessary). Frankly she wants assurances things will play out the way she desires, whether that means making changes to the system or returning them to their original state. This makes sense considering her Orlesian background: contantly playing The Game, hoping she can control the pawns around her, their views and actions.
The fact that she believes Mapolas should've taken responsibility for every action of the Inquisition before she was even considered their leader is kinda ridiculous. I do agree that the response "hey it's not my fault", especially in war times is weak. Yet we also need to remember we literally started as a prisoner of the Inquisition. Despite our growing influence we realistically didn't have any say over the fortifications, military strategy and enemy intel back then (not counting the war table missions). None could have predicted this tragedy would happen, nor did anyone seem sceptical about the security in Haven as our HQ beforehand -Vivienne included.
But yes, everyone plays their part in the victories and failures of the Inquisition. Mapolas now more than ever. Much less so before Corypheus appeared.
Wow, I’ve never had vivienne treat me like that omg, that was WILD
Every single day 😍😍😍
In my opinion, three companions stand out for their difficulty in pleasing or agreeing: Cole (sometimes), Vivi and Sera. I could cite features that could help the youtuber deal with the two girls, but I'm afraid that would provide a spoiler without getting the context. As for the mage, I believe it is fairly frequent to see youtubers clashing with her (and wanting to have the option of strangling her at least once a week), but I like the other two characters. As for Sera, I suggest that try to understand the character's mindset and background, even though she only appears to be immature, stubborn and confused.
Great playthrough as always. I need to catch up!
And when Vivienne blinked at Solas when he retorted during the Cole debate whether apostates don’t belong, she wasn’t struck speechless. She was casting shade. Vivienne does not see herself as an *apostate* - she’s a “loyal mage.” However, Solas IS an apostate. So by remaining silent and blinking back at Solas when he said that apostates shouldn’t belong by her logic about Cole, she was saying “precisely, apostates - like YOU, Solas - don’t belong, like Cole doesn’t.”
Now, I don’t think Viv actually believes in kicking out the apostates but her response was not her being cowed or outargued, it was quite the reverse, lol
I fucking love Vivienne! So petty. Sera thought me a lot about how a character dialogue may be innacurate when they're in conflict within.
I think Wardens only dream of Darkspawn during Blights and can sense Darkspawn, but its not the same as hearing voices in their heads. Its only the song of the Calling when they're about to die that something like that occurs. To my recollection.
Honestly, Blackwall being secretive makes perfect sense. The truth of how to kill an Archdemon is one of the Wardens' greatest secrets and one of the biggest flaws with the Grey Wardens is their need to keep everything secret. It doesn't really seem relevant unless the dragon Corypheus tamed is an actual Archdemon, which no one can fully agree on. Remember, that's a secret that no one outside the order knows. Also, I sort of recall Corypheus being another major secret in the order that only a minimal amount of people know. I think, that might just be a fanfic I read years ago.
I find some of the judgements from the throne can be tricky to gauge in advance.
Great episode. Thank you!
That's the smartest thing Sera's ever said, she's literally smarter than Corypheus. If he saw the THRONE OF THE GODS then there is a god. Plain and simple. What does Corypheus think there's just a magical empty throne in the afterlife and nothing else? "A throne needs a butt so the maker, real thing."
Sera could very well be wrong, though. Of course, this is all theorycrafting... but there is little proof that the Andrastean religion is even remotely correct about the "Maker". Or that the Black City was a "throne" of any sort. Old Gods, though? Real thing.
@@AusSP I'm talking about based on Corypheus claims and beliefs. I never mentioned who or what this throne belongs to. But the simple fact that Corpypheus has saw the "throne of the gods" yet claims there are no gods is contradictory, and Sera picks up on that.
@@HollowHighlanderI've always assumed that Corypheus doesn't so much believe there are no gods as much as he believes that whatever god or gods that do exist have completely abandoned the world, and thus he believes that claiming the Black City will grant god-like power to whoever can do so. Like the world Thedas is in is the same position as the world of Dragon's Dogma after the conclusion of the story.
So...did you keep the gibbet thing, or did the goat thing not come up again after loading an old save?
I hope one of Mapos mods suggests using a flycam in the war room. 🙏🏻 There's an incredible chandelier that no one ever gets to see. There's also something under skyhold but that's just weird. Also really hope Mapo meets the Quizisitor. I only ever met him in 2 of 17 different playthroughs.
You're not alone. Vivienne is ... yeah. Can't stand her. Most of all, I always hated how she installed herself on the balcony so she can look down on everyone. She was not welcome back on subsequent playthrus 😊
Cole is delightful though. So interesting too. I loved all his interactions, especially with Varric.
Thanks for another episode!
Are we in the Fade? Is this real? What do you mean I wake up every day and see a new DAI upload? What do you mean??
Technically, you were supposed to talk to your companions first before doing a war table quest or dialogue option that lets you leave Skyhold (which the one for Solas did). Because of that, the companions then "vanish" to their places in the castle. If you spoke to them first, then later left Skyhold, and then came back, then the timeline for Skyhold getting the repairs done and your companions changing spots makes sense.
I think Vivienne becomes more annoying the more conflict/disapproval you have with her. Yes, she sounds slightly patronizing, but I remember having her become tolerable after her ego is stroked the right way.
The same with Sera, she becomes more annoying the more she disapproves of you, because by then she thinks she should stick it up to you.
Personally I wouldn't call it slightly patronizing. "I'll try to talk slowly so you can follow" (paraphrasing) is one of many remarks that show how petty and condescending Vivienne can be if you don't see eye to eye with her. She shows no respect to those that don't exactly think and act the way she does. It's very clear she considers Mapolas beneath her and wrong in her decisions and overall stance as a leader.
I enjoy how dynamic the characters behave depending on their (dis)approval of the MC. Props to the devs for that. Objectively Vivienne, or rather what she stands for, is a great addition to the Inquisition. Personality wise she's the opposite for me - a terrible person to converse with. Realistically, if someone only acts decent around you so long as you side with her they don't deserve your attention to begin with. Perhaps for story purposes I wouldn't mind keeping her on, otherwise her wanting to leave out of principal would be a blessing lol
My mouth was agape watching that Vivienne scene. I'd never seen that dialogue before, because I was always terrified to let my companion approval drop. Haha
Honestly low approval vivienne just reminds me of morrigan in dao. She liked me but was still a bitch for no reason
I've never seen this side of Vivienne before. Then again, I suppose this is the way she is when you have a low approval rate with you. She's cold. But when you have high approval with her, she cares. This is interesting.
Mapo, it would be really fun to watch you react to all the romances in DAI. I def get it tho if you don't want to so you can avoid any spoilers for another play through. Just wanted to throw a recommendation to think about. Love seeing your reactions. :)
I love how eh doesn't even care about Vivienne approval hahahaha
HOW DO YOU BREAK THE GAME EVERY EPISODE!!!??
This is the fastest I've seen Vivienne's disapproval scene.
PS: I *love* Vivienne!
Skyhold is supposed to update with repairs the first few times you leave and come back. A couple of the character cutscenes involve you going to a different instance since the cutscenes are in game. This counts as traveling to and from skyhold, making it repair super fast and unlocking more cutscenes.
my fav team (Varric,Cassandra,Iron Bull) they are so good together😹
big love💞
I'm the same, sometimes I switch out iron bull with blackwall
Favourite companions both banters and battles. I started to like cassandra at the end only, i mean she was harshly interrogating me lmfao... Sera is fun to talk to, but always go and talk to Cole whenever first, then Dorian and Vivienne... there perspective is unique and they speak their mind. Sera is the one i least took with me on the battlefield, IronBull same dont even remember him in my party that much 🤣🤣 Dorian, Varrick/Solas/Vivienne, Blackwall,
1: Cole
2: Josephine
4: Dorian/Varrick
5: Vivienne/Sera
7: Blackwall
8: IronBull/Cullen
10: Cassandra
11: Solas
You read the ages wrong. The fourth age is the Black Age. Towers is third age. It goes:
Ancient (Tevinter Era / pre-Andrastian)
Divine (1st Age)
Glory (2nd Age)
Towers (3rd Age)
Black (4th Age)
Exalted (5th Age)
Steel (6th Age)
Storm (7th Age)
Blessed (8th Age)
Dragon (9th Age)
Petty sidenote but I wanted to point out that Vivienne is happy to blame you for "allowing others to choose" Haven even though you started your relationship with the Inquisition as a literal prisoner and weren't even made leadership officially until arriving at Skyhold, but SHE never once says anything about Haven as a base even though she was also there and also part of the Inquisition. Once again, she passes along only useless, mean spirited nonsense while holding herself accountable for exactly and entirely nothing. I really wish there was the ability to call her out on her shit in a much more public, direct way. The only way to win against someone like her is not to play by her rules, but the game never gives you the chance. (That I can recall. It's been a long time since I've played and even longer since I said more than the absolute minimum to her in any playthrough.)
I think she was more pissed about the "Dont blame me, it was them"-attitude instead of saying you would learn from the mistakes that were made. I've noticed that in my playtroughs, as long as I was upfront with her and be like "yeah it was a bad choice, but I will do better" her approval would rise. My inquisitor would be pro-mage freedom and a spirit-lover, and still end up being good friends with her without playing to Viv's ego. On the contrary, Viv just has a enormous wall, but when you befriend her she becomes really supportive even when she doesnt agree with you at all. *Spoilers below!!!!!*
I think one of the reasons you cant go against her in public is because of the influence she has. Heck, even bringing her to the empress' ball will give you an immidiate influence point. Josephines job would also get so much harder, we couldn't do it to her.
Also on another note, one of the biggest reasons she became the way she is, was because when she and a friend were happy with the way things were at their circle. Resulting in that friend getting brutally murdered for it by a "freedom mage" (I dont remember the details, just the gist of it). Futhermore, it's not like the game would cause her to become more gentle. Being mean is a defense mechanism that has worked for her thus far.
When asked about Corypheus' corruption towards the wardens, Blackwall really said, "RIP to them, but I'm built different" 😂😂😂
I love how easily Sera and Vivienne rattle people for not being a typical "player worshipper" companion. People find it hard to see things from their perspective and dismiss them for their unusual opinions right off the bat so they always end up disliked and not given a chance. Sera is literally a kid grown up in a world of poverty, salt of the earth people and zero connection to magic and the 1st world problems the player deals with and people expect her to make sense of world ending stuff and respect authority. Vivienne acts like she's better than you because she quite literally is. She climbed all the way from a Circle "nobody" to Court Enchanter on her own shrewdness and willpower and has seen and experienced more magical and political dangers and machinations than you ever will in your lifetime so it makes sense for her to try and mentor you as a leader and get frustrated at you when you dismiss her heedings and play around with things she deems risky when the fate of the world is at stake like letting mages run unchecked when the veil is torn open and demonic possession is at an all time high instead of getting the help of people who fight magic for a living to seal the breach. She is just thinking of the bigger picture and trying to counsel you but people can't get past her condescending tone.
I disagree with most of these 2 companions' opinions but always managed a great relationship with them by understanding where they are coming from and why they feel and act the way they do.
Yeah, my first time playing Sera rubbed me the wrong way at first, too. But she really grew on me as I played, talked to her, and started to understand her better, and she ended up being my first romance. And I've probably romanced her the most out of anyone at this point. I even made a Qunari and an elven mage Inky to see those variations on her romance.
But yeah, a lot of people dislike them because they're their own people and not puppets of the player. Those people will always argue that's not true, but then their explanations of why they don't like them prove it is, in fact, the case. Even if they don't actually see it.
Like, I have seen *so many* people complain about Sera's personal quest, and what she can do in it. Despite the fact she gives you plenty of warnings. People get mad she actually did something instead of just differing to the player.
Spoilers Mapo, there be dragon (age inquisition spoilers) here.
That really isn't true for Vivienne though- she didn't "win" her way to her seat of power by doing great things, being a good person, fighting well, commanding others from a position of leadership- none of it. She schemed and betrayed others and lied until she could find someone powerful enough to literally carry her into high society. From there she used The Game to concentrate political power to herself but uses none of it to actually help other people. It's all about her own climbing ambition and personal fulfillment. All of her opinions are based around the idea of returning to a status quo that SHE benefits from and she doesn't seem to care in the slightest that it was crushing other people- people who weren't willing to do all the vile things she's done in order to gain power- into dust. Of course, she blankets all that in carefully worded half-truths about the status quo having been so great for non mages, but she has never even so much as experienced that herself. Her early induction and achievement in the Circle (which is somewhat impressive magically... except every mage we've ever met from a Circle has also achieved it, so it's more about early progress than any real feat of strength) meant that she probably never even worked at her parents' shop. She has no idea what life is like outside of her cushy Circle, the estates of the Orlesian wealthy, or Celene's political functions. To her, 'those people' must have been doing alright, because they kept serving food at the dinner parties and sewing the precious clothes she values so highly.
Or at least, I think that's a valid way to view her. In my personal opinion, I think she's probably somewhere in the middle. To me, she's definitely not as well meaning and innocent of selfish ambition as you made her out to be, but she isn't quite as hard and uncaring as I have either. Despite 100% using her benefactor for his political influence, I do think she cares about him. I don't buy the idea that she is only looking out for 'the people' though- it just doesn't add up. She either doesn't have the context and refuses to even consider that she might be fallible- which would make anyone a fool to follow her advice, or she does have the context and chooses to ignore or equivocate about it because acknowledging it would mean all the careful work she's put in over decades to ensure SHE is powerful would go down the drain. She stands to lose everything she's ever worked for if the Inquisition manages to accomplish their goals and resolve the "mage issue" without a return to the old power structure. Shading her own goals by advocating for "the people" is probably how she advised Celene when she wanted things to go her way. I am unsurprised she uses the same tactic with the Inquisitor.
I think it's a bit dismissive to suggest that the only reason people don't like her is that she doesn't fawn over the player character- Fenris hated my Hawke's guts but I loved him still, despite disagreeing with almost every word that came out of his mouth. Likability doesn't always align with being agreed with. I'd argue that if anything, her insistence that she's above the player (and just about everyone else) is evidence of how little it's true. The best of the best don't have to caw and needle others in order to make their position clear, and if she'd ever used anything other than The Game, arguably seduction, and political trickery to get her way, she might know that. She thinks she's the bees knees, and that's really annoying when so much is at stake. Vivienne would NEVER advocate for a future or solution that didn't benefit her, EVEN if it was in the best interest of everyone else. That concerned me, a lot. I want advice from someone who values what I value, and the only thing I was ever convinced for sure that Vivienne values is her own ambition. A respectable personal goal, but not one that I'd ever use to help steer an organization like (my) Inquisition. I find her haughty, narrow minded, unjustly superior, and therefore... unlikable. It has nothing to do with the fact that we disagree (I disagree with Bull on a lot, for example, and Cassandra) and everything to do with WHY we disagree.
Gosh... sorry for writing so much.
@@xyexCouldn't have said it better than "they're their own people". Sera doesn't talk to you like you're her boss and someone of importance, something most other characters do, which leads to people having no patience for her, unfortunately.
@@octo448 I agree with most of what you said and disagree with most of what Viv says but still can't find it in me to hate her or hate listening to her. She found a way to secure the bag while playing the same game everyone around her played despite the hand she was dealt with to begin with so I respect her way more than the non-magical people that share her opinion but want to regulate things they know little about. She speaks from experience and makes interesting points if you tune out her tone and her polarizing opinions make her invaluable to an Inquisition full of "Yes men" and Herald worshipers. She also is capable of caring despite looking out for number 1 as evidenced by her reaction to the Tranquil's fate at Redcliff and her approval of saving Haven's townspeople (which only her and Varric do) so I don't think her completely selfish. I disagree with her and her methods but respect the hell out of her and love listening to her, if only to challenge her views. One of the most interesting characters in the series.
@@ricardolionheart8504 Yeah. I saw one person who argued "I'm the Inquisitor, I'm her boss, she's along helping me on my quest, she should actually listen to me" and it's like... no. You being the "Inquisitor" means jack shit. You're not her boss, she's an ally, a partner, not a minion. And that quest was *her* quest that she *invited you* along for because you helped her out with it. It was *her* contact you were to be meeting.
But people get so caught up in their power fantasy and they don't even realize it. Which is one of the reasons I *love* Sera as a character. She's almost a litmus test, to see if the player has let their authority go to their head, and the vast majority of them absolutely have. They try to couch it in excuses, but they're all thinly veiled ways of saying "she doesn't make me feel powerful so I don't like her."
To me, the Knight-Enchanter specialization is the only correct choice if you are playing as a Mage. It's OP as fuck
28:10 I mean, it's a fair assumption that Cole could be a demon. As So as said, spirits don't usually go around physical plan, but demons always crave to get there and gi to town. And it definitely doesn't help that Cole rocks dual daggers and can shank people from shadow.
02:11:19 i mean, how Wardens kill Archdemon is a massive secret if you remember. As much as Joining. So even if you are his favorite boss lady he can't just tell it
I know this is rather old (trying to catch up on the playthrough), but if I remember correctly, the reason why some have "leave the Inquisition" while others don't is because of MS plot. The ones that you can kick are more side characters vs the others which are more main characters to the story plot.
This is a really good time to review your companions abilities.
Vivienne is truly the most well written companion
and Varric is still the most boring lol.
I take that back, i forgot how much Blackwall annoys me hahaha.
Please do not disregard the knight enchanter. Vivienne has this specialization, and if you (like I) want nothing to do with her but want all specs available. Choose this for yourself. And it is also the most fun spec to play :)
Yeah, first time in Skyhold can be quite overwhelming. Especially because some cutscenes are treated like you going out, passing time and coming back. It does little sens and extends the Skyhold time. I hate missing dialogues and scenes so I always exhausts all dialogue options from everyone. + the lore
Wow. I have never encountered mean Vivienne before. I always took a polite disagreement approach with her, rather than the, "The Templars should be fully abolished," approach.
You think respecing Sera will stop her doing archery? Oh sweet summer child!
1:44:30 cutscene here is result of your bad relations with Vivienne. if you are doing better with her, cutscene is much more positive and she has dropped some of the condecending attitude
Cole is a legend
ha Vivienne is really pissed at you. Love to hate her. Such good writing and voice acting
Except we aren't allowed to give her shit the way she does us
The knight-enchanter is probably the most overpowered class in the game as you can get a skill/perk/ability that makes hits with spectral blade build barrier and so long as you have barrier you'll never die it's so broken the second I had access to specialization and picked it, I soloed all the dragons I had seen up to that point( party was there but they all died pretty quickly)
They nerfed it pretty hard after Trespasser, I think. I would say rift mage is almost as good anyway if you take all the good passives. So much damage with unlimited mana and fast cooldown
@@pkuvincentsu oh I didn't know, how did they end up nerfing it?
@@quantum_leviathan It's been years, but I think they quartered the spirit blade damage. Even though they also added some bonus to it, it really didn't offset the heavy nerf. You cannot simply hack away as KE anymore. Have to use fire mine as main damage output, which is also the best damaging spell for other specialization.
Comparing KE and rift mage now, basically it's more barrier vs unlimited mana. Rift mage slightly wins for me, but KE is still good, just not op.
Idk how far ahead you are from this recording, but it you take each party member into the field youll unlock each of their specialization so you can see what each offers. Solas is rift mage, dorian is a necromage, and her royal highness vivienne is a knight enchanter.
That title is... VERY NICE!
"Not my mega mind boy" 😂
Great success!!!
Wow that’s funny to see that you don’t lik viviene and how she talks to you, I personally love her and she never talks to me like that.
Oh god, my same response with the gibbet
Sadly you can't have all the specialisations only one.