Everything you've heard? Completely true.

[alaterdate]

31 Days of Dragon Age is a prompt list floating around tumblr meant to celebrate what we love about Dragon Age in the lead up to the release of the next game. Prompts here.
I decided to post them by game rather than each day, so here are my answers for the Dragon Age Inquisition questions.

21 — Introduce your Inquisitor

Like Origins I've played tons of different PCs in Inquisition. Did I finish the game with all of them? No. Most of them? Also no. I got something like 5 distinct Inquisitors to the end, but I've played a certain guy multiple times.

Basically my main world state contains the characters that I feel like writing the most about. Which, well, I still have trouble with for the Inquisitor. I keep replaying the PC I'm most interested in to get more of a feel for him. This most recent playthrough has been more of a breakthrough. Yeah, it's taken me 10 years to connect with a PC in this game, and it's still a work in progress.

With that said, Fenian is a Dalish elf who has long struggled with what that means to him. This is mainly the fault of his father who always sought to use the power structure of the clan for personal reasons. In his father's eyes, with his sister manifesting magic and him being mundane, anything he could ever achieve would never be as worthy as her simply existing.

Still, he's a master archer with a love for history including military battles. Since most books are written by and about humans he grows a deep interest in them to the rest of his clan's dismay. They're fine when he's haggling out a deal with a passing merchant for them, but they hate that he's so pulled toward the shems.

Of course he's the one sent to the conclave. No matter how much his sister protested his going. Just as she feared, he left the clan and never returned.

He's the kind of guy that makes jokes so that people will like him. He's always thinking about how to get people to like him. He'll do things other people don't want to do, so that they'll like him. He'll do what he's asked, so that you'll like him.

It takes a while for him to grow into the leadership position. He's still always somewhat swayed by his favored companions. The more decisions he makes, the more he grows into it. He becomes less interested in the ideal outcome and more concerned with the pressing needs immediately in front of him.

22 — Favorite Inquisition romance

Uh er ah. I wouldn't say I have a favorite. But there's aspects in some of them that I think are fantastic.

Josephine - The duel against her arranged marriage fiance. It's already romantic enough as a human male. But pick any other race or gender and it skyrockets.

Cassandra - I had such a wonderful time doing her romance quest. I went out by myself to collect all the things for the romantic picnic and it was no picnic. I got attacked by several  bears that I had to fight alone mind you. That added to my experience, but the actual scene is incredibly saccharine and wonderful. I enjoyed it to say the least.

Solas - He breaks up with you. A bajillion points right there for that. But I simply love the scene where he removes Lavellan's vallaslin if she wants. It's so ethereally beautiful.

Dorian - Points for also breaking up with me. While I don't have any great feelings for his romance arc I had a wonderful time with a little glitch I got that made us simultaneously broken up and together in Trespasser. Great fun, will probably never get to experience it again.

23 — Favorite Inquisition companion

Ah, I don't have a favorite companion either. Definitely ones I like more than the others, but a favorite? Nope.

24 — Favorite Inquisition location

The Storm Coast. It reminds me of my beloved Wounded Coast. I just love staring out into that violent water from the shore. I've killed my Inquisitor a lot of times by just walking straight into it until he "drowns" and respawns.

25 — Favorite Inquisition quest

I really like the two quests after settling the mage-templar war: Wicked Eyes and Wicked Hearts and Here Lies the Abyss.

WEWH is a little annoying when you have to run around finding all those halla keys, but otherwise it's an interesting type of quest with political implications and a few really fun scenes.

HLA is the quest with Hawke in it and I love my Hawke sooooo much I killed him. It was such a shocking option much like Virmire in Mass Effect (but even more so for me because I don't like Kaiden and I sacrifice him every time). It has so much emotional weight packed into it with the fear demon talking shit and everyone finding the graves where they're buried under their greatest fears and then you have to sacrifice someone and go back to dealing with the wardens. There are tons of cool scenes packed into this one and there's a dragon.

26 — Favorite Inquisition NPC

It's Gaspard. Don't talk to me.

I loved him in The Masked Empire. He quickly became my problematic fave. And even though it's more fun to dance with his sister and she's quite the challenging fight otherwise. I always have to make him Emperor. Alone.

And I love the little chat you get to have with him in the Arbor Wilds during What Pride Had Wrought. He's out there fighting for his country and his continent and I'm like hell yeah me too my guy, we're front line.

27 — Favorite Inquisition scene/dialogue

When you're invited to Vivienne's party and meet some courtiers who let you know that they've heard about you to which you can say, "Everything you've heard? Completely true." I don't know why, it's probably the really fun delivery all the VAs have put into it, but I love this line a lot and I always pick it even if my Inquisitor is denying being the Herald.

I also really like the speech you can have the Inqy give after leaving Hawke in the Fade: "He gave his life. Not because he'd sworn an oath, or been marked as special, but because someone had to do it."

28 — Favorite Inquisition lore/codex entry

The fact that there are just ancient elves living in the forest in a hidden temple. The history of the Elvhen empire rather reminds me of the Aztecs and Mayans than anything else. "Discovering" a hidden temple in a dense wilderness really hit for me.

There are a lot of new codex entries in Inquisition (2 recycled way more). Here's a new one I liked:

The Creation of a Phylactery

We let the boy rest, the first night they brought him to the White Spire, I convinced Knight-Commander Belrose to delay the ritual 'til the morning. The journey was long, and the lad could barely keep his eyes open, poor thing. I was certain escape was the furthest thing from his mind. Medine found him a clean cot in with the other young apprentices, and when I came in with his supper, he was already fast asleep.

In the morning, I showed Medine how the phial was to be prepared. First, a simple charm to preserve and protect the glass. Then a spell that to keep the blood from forming dark clots. The last step could only be completed with the apprentice present. I sent a young templar recruit off with the message that we were ready.

The boy was escorted to the chamber by Belrose himself. I could tell he had just been awakened. There was a smear of dirt from his face, perhaps from the road. I called the boy to me and cleaned his cheek with my sleeve as I explained the ritual. "We have to take your blood," I said. "Because you're special and we don't want you to be lost. If it happens, the blood will allow us to find you and bring you home again."

I let Medine take the lancet this time. The tremor in my hands was worse that day, and I didn't want to make too deep a cut. I held the boy close, and Medine made a small, neat incision on his palm, exactly as instructed. I felt the boy struggle and start to cry. He tried to pull away, but Medine gripped his hand firmly, letting the blood run into the phial.

Then Medine cast the spell, like we practiced. Within the phial, the blood churned, and grew bright in the presence of the mage to whom it was bound. It was done. Another phylactery, another link forged. He was leashed to the White Spire.

The boy could not look away from the glow. He was enthralled, and the pain and the tears were forgotten. "See? This is magic," I said to him. "When you are older, I will teach you." Belrose let the boy hold his phylactery for several minutes before he locked it away in the chamber.

—From The Memoirs of Enchanter Reva Claye, 8:72 Blessed