Various Thoughts

My Player Profile

Mod Listing – Spell Notes - Talent Notes - Tactics Notes

Random General OC Tips:

• If you have a Quad-Core Phenom, and are running windows, use this fix to remove pretty much all stuttering.
• If you are planning to Return to Ostagar, do not unlock the Mage Chest on your initial visit.
• Strip the Tower of Ishal party members before you light the signal fire at Ostagar.
• Make sure to finish everything in Lothering before completing a main quest location (such as Redcliffe Castle).
• A Strength of 31 is required for the top one-handed weapons.
• A Strength of 20 is required for the best Light Armor.
• Dexterity is generally better than Constitution as a dump stat for Warriors.
• Have the PC learn a level of Pickpocket to unlock a profitable quest tree in Denerim.
• Pickpocket filler NPCs to get tons of basic crafting components, Lesser Health Poultices, and low-level gems.
• Anyone can detect traps with the Trap-making skill, but only Rogues can disarm them.
• Once you’ve clicked on a trap to disarm it, assuming you have the skill, it’s disarmed. There’s no need to wait for the animation to finish.
• Once a Talent/Spell has been activated you can press a movement key to skip the remainder of its animation (useful for Watcher’s Keep abilities).
• Save these items for quests; 10 Deep Mushrooms, 10 Garnets, 20 Health Poultices, 10 Lyrium Potions, and 15 Venom Extracts.
• Make sure someone has learned Master Herbalism in order to complete Orzammar’s Dwarvish Herbalist quest.
• Buy the Dwarf Merchant Belt (Campsite Merchant) and Archivist’s Sash (Denerim Marketplace; Mage Shop) early.
• Set a Mage to ‘Attack Controlled Character’s Target: <Non-projectile Ranged Attack>’ to have them attack targets behind walls.
• Equip all of your party members as well as possible.
• A ranged weapon is sometimes useful for drawing off portions of enemy groups.
• Upon entering Orzammar’s Dust Town, if you want to become a Smuggler, do not talk to Ragek unless you have 50 gold on hand.
• Specializations stay unlocked through subsequent playthoughs, so unlock as many as you can early.
• Many creatures are immune to Nature and/or Cold damage, while only a few are immune to Fire, and hardly any to Lightning or Spirit.
• The High Dragon has no basic movement, and instead flies to certain key areas. You can take advantage of this by running back and forth on the small strip of land directly to the right of the ramp into the area.
• Attribute Points gained in the Circle Tower: 4 Str, 4 Dex, 2 Mag, 4 Wil, 5 Cun, 2 Con.
• The Memory Band item isn’t worth the ring slot. Its bonus is so minor I seriously wonder whether it even exists.
• If your area-loading times start getting excessively long, exit to the main menu and reload to reset them.

Random General Awakening Tips:

• Reload immediatly if you wake up in the Silverite Mine naked; your PC’s equipment just got deleted.
• If you plan to do Anders’ quest in Amaranthine, do it before any other quests in the city. Otherwise it can get bugged.
• In Amaranthine, either talk to the Captain of the Guard OR the man by the abandoned house. Talking to both of them can lead to both quest lines becoming uncompleatable.
• A Strength of 41 is required for the top one-handed weapons.
• A Strength of 24 is required for the best Light Armor.
• There are next to no detectable traps, so avoid investing in Trapmaking unless you actually plan to make and use traps yourself.
• It requires 32 Novice Runes, 63 Blank Runes, and 36 Etching Agents to create a Paragon Rune from scratch.

‘Best’ Area Visitation Order (RtO omitted because it is terrible):

1. Denerim Marketplace
   1. Purchase Archivist’s Sash
   2. Acquire various Faction quests
   3. Acquire Sacred Ashes quest
2. Circle Tower (gain a companion as well as a host of free attribute points)
3. Stone Prisoner (easy and you gain a companion, should always be done before Orzammar)
4. Soldier’s Peak (easy area, has a storage chest and some mid-level unique items that are wasted late-game)
5. Redcliffe Village
   1. Save village
   2. Acquire Faction quests
6. Denerim (assuming you’ve encountered Zevran)
   1. Acquire Assassination quests
   2. Clear The Pearl area
7. Orzammar
   1. Recruit Oghren
   2. Clear Aeducan Thaig, Caridin’s Cross, and Ortan Thaig
8. Temple of the Sacred Ashes (easy area)
9. Orzammar (City of the Dead and Anvil of the Void bosses are somewhat tricky)
10. Brecilian Forest (high concentration of boss fights and no companion to pick up)
11. Redcliffe Castle (fairly easy, done last so you can jump straight to the Landsmeet)

Circle Tower Sloth Demon Island Order:

1. Darkspawn Invasion (Arcane Horror form)
2. Burning Tower (Burning Man form)
3. Mages Asunder (Stone Golem form)
4. Rest in any order

Apparent Storyline Order for Awakening (based on first playthrough):

1. Amaranthine
2. Knotwood Hills (Rogue; Legionnaire Scout)
3. Blackmarsh (Fighter; Spirit Warrior)
4. Winding Woods (Mage; Keeper)

Allied Army Item Requests:

• Arl’s Mercenaries
  • Money
• Dwarves
  • Topaz, Amethyst, Malachite, Sapphire
• Elves
  • Elfroot, Deep Mushroom, Deathroot
• Mages/Templars
  • Runes
• Werewolves
  • Nothing

Specialization Locations:

• Fighter
  • Berserker
    • Denerim Marketplace; Gorim
    • Party Member; Oghren
  • Champion
    • Quest; Save the Arl of Redcliffe
  • Reaver
    • Temple of the Sacred Ashes Mountaintop; Kolgrim
  • Templar
    • Campsite Merchant
    • Party Member; Alistair
• Mage
  • Arcane Warrior
    • Brecilian Ruins; Phylactery
  • Bloodmage
    • Redcliffe Castle; Seducer Demon
  • Shapeshifter
    • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
  • Spirit Healer
    • Denerim Marketplace; Mage Shop
• Thief
  • Assassin
    • Party Member; Zevran
  • Bard
    • Orzammar Dust Town; Emporium
    • Party Member; Leliana
  • Duelist
    • Denerim Brothel
  • Ranger
    • Campsite Merchant

Recipe Locations:

• Herbalism
  • Improved
    • Double-Baked Mabari Crunch
      • Ostagar; Quartermaster ‘Other Goods’
      • Redcliffe; Tavern
    • Health Poultice
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
      • Denerim Marketplace; Tavern
      • Ostagar; Quartermaster
      • Redcliffe; Tavern
    • Incense of Awareness
      • Lothering; Inn
      • Circle Tower; Templar Quartermaster
    • Injury Kit, Lesser
      • Denerim Marketplace; Tavern
      • Lothering; Inn
      • Ostagar; Quartermaster
      • Redcliffe; Tavern
    • Lyrium Potion
      • Circle Tower; Templar Quartermaster
      • Haven; General Store
      • Lothering; Inn
    • Rock Salve
      • Denerim Alienage; Alarith’s Store
      • Ostagar; Quartermaster ‘Other Goods’
  • Expert
    • Elixer of Grounding, Lesser
      • Haven; General Store
    • Health Poultice, Greater 
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
      • Denerim Marketplace; Tavern
      • Orzammar Commons; Figor’s Imports
    • Ice Salve, Lesser
      • Frostback Mountains
    • Injury Kit
      • Circle Tower; Templar Quartermaster
      • Denerim Marketplace; Tavern
    • Lyrium Potion, Greater
      • Denerim Marketplace; Mage Shop
      • Frostback Mountains
    • Nature Salve, Lesser
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
      • Denerim Alienage; Alarith’s Store
    • Spirit Balm, Lesser
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
      • Circle Tower; Templar Quartermaster
    • Swift Salve
      • Denerim Marketplace; Mage Shop
      • Frostback Mountains
    • Warmth Balm, Lesser
      • Circle Tower; Templar Quartermaster
      • Denerim Alienage; Alarith’s Store
  • Master
    • Dwarven Regicide Antidote
      • Orzammar Diamond District Palace; Herbalist
    • Health Poultice, Potent
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
    • Ice Salve, Greater
      • Denerim Marketplace; Mage Shop
      • Soldier’s Peak
    • Injury Kit, Greater
      • Denerim Alienage; Alarith’s Store
    • Nature Balm, Greater
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
    • Lyrium Potion, Potent
      • Denerim Marketplace; Mage Shop
    • Spirit Balm, Greater
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
    • Warmth Balm, Greater 
      • Denerim Marketplace; Mage Shop
      • Soldier’s Peak
• Poison Making
  • Improved
    • Acid Flask
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
      • Haven; General Store
      • Ostagar; Quartermaster
    • Crow Poison
      • Orzammar Dust Town; Emporium
    • Deathroot Extract, Concentrated
      • Lothering; Merchant
      • Ostagar; Quartermaster ‘Other Goods’
    • Fire Bomb
      • Circle Tower; Templar Quartermaster
      • Lothering; Merchant
      • Ostagar; Quartermaster ‘Other Goods’
    • Freeze Bomb
      • Lothering; Merchant
    • Shock Bomb
      • Denerim Marketplace; Mage Shop
    • Soulrot Bomb
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
      • Soldier’s Peak
    • Venom, Concentrated
      • Lothering; Merchant
      • Ostagar; Quartermaster
  • Expert
    • Acidic Coating
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
      • Haven; General Store
    • Adder’s Kiss Poison
      • Orzammar Dust Town; Emporium
    • Crow Poison, Concentrated
      • Denerim Marketplace; Cesar
    • Demonic
      • Denerim Marketplace; Cesar
    • Flame Coating
      • Circle Tower; Templar Quartermaster
      • Denerim Alienage; Alarith’s Store
    • Freezing Coating
      • Denerim Alienage; Alarith’s Store
      • Orzammar Dust Town; Emporium 
      • Soldier’s Peak
    • Fleshrot Poison 
      • Frostback Mountains
    • Magebane
      • Denerim Marketplace; Cesar
    • Shock Coating
      • Denerim Marketplace; Mage Shop
    • Soldier’s Bane
      • Denerim Marketplace; Cesar
    • Soulrot Coating 
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
      • Soldier’s Peak
  • Master
    • Demonic, Concentrated
      • Denerim Marketplace; Cesar’s Special Stock
    • Magebane, Concentrated 
      • Denerim Marketplace; Cesar’s Special Stock
    • Quiet Death
      • Denerim Marketplace; Cesar’s Special Stock
    • Soldier’s Bane, Concentrated 
      • Denerim Marketplace; Cesar’s Special Stock
• Trap Making
  • Improved
    • Caltrop, Large
      • Orzammar Commons; Smithy
    • Choking Powder, Mild
      • Haven; General Store
      • Lake Calenhad; Tavern
      • Orzammar Dust Town; Emporium
    • Claw, Large
      • Lothering; Inn
      • Orzammar Commons; Smithy
      • Ostagar; Quartermaster
      • Redcliffe; Smithy
    • Grease, Small
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
      • Frostback Mountains
      • Lake Calenhad; Tavern
      • Lothering; Inn
      • Ostagar; Quartermaster
    • Lure, Mild
      • Haven; General Store
      • Lothering; Inn
      • Orzammar Commons; Legnar
      • Ostagar; Quartermaster ‘Other Goods’
    • Shrapnel, Large
      • Lothering; Inn
      • Orzammar Commons; Smithy
      • Redcliffe; Smithy
    • Sleep Gas, Mild
      • Orzammar Dust Town; Emporium
      • Ostagar; Quartermaster ‘Other Goods’
  • Expert
    • Acidic
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
    • Caltrop, Poisoned
      • Redcliffe Smithy; Owen
    • Choking Powder
      • Orzammar Dust Town; Emporium
    • Fire
      • Lake Calenhad; Tavern
    • Freeze
      • Random Encounter; Dwarven Merchant
    • Grease, Large
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
      • Frostback Mountains
    • Lure, Interesting
      • Orzammar Commons; Legnar
    • Shock
      • Random Encounter; Dwarven Merchant
    • Sleep Gas
      • Orzammar Dust Town; Emporium
    • Soulrot
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
      • Frostback Mountains
      • Soldier’s Peak
  • Master
    • Acidic Grease
      • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
    • Choking Powder Cloud
      • Denerim Alienage; Alarith’s Store
    • Lure, Overpowering
      • Denerim Marketplace; Mage Shop
    • Sleep Gas Cloud
      • Denerim Alienage; Alarith’s Store

Tome Locations:

• Attribute Tomes
  • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
  • Orzammar Commons; Legnar
• Magical Ability Tomes
  • Campsite; Merchant
  • Circle Tower; Templar Quartermaster
  • Denerim Marketplace; Mage Store
• Physical Ability Tomes
  • Campsite; Merchant
  • Orzammar Commons; Garin
  • Redcliffe Castle (Endgame); Campsite Merchant
• Skill Tomes
  • Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
  • Denerim Alienage; Alarith’s Store
  • Random Encounter; Dwarven Merchant

Backpack Locations:

• Brecilian Outskirts; Dalish Merchant
• Campsite; Merchant
• Circle Tower; Templar Quartermaster
• Denerim Marketplace; Gorim
• Ostagar; Quartermaster

Notable Merchant Items

• Accessories
  • Amulets
    • The Spellward; Campsite Merchant
  • Belts
    • Andruil’s Blessing; Circle Tower, Templar Quartermaster
    • Archivist’s Sash; Denerim Marketplace, Mage Shop
    • Dwarven Merchant Belt; Campsite Merchant
  • Rings
    • Lifegiver; Orzammar Commons, Garin
    • Ring of Ages; Denerim Marketplace, Mage Shop
• Armor
  • Heavy
    • Evon the Great’s Mail; Denerim Marketplace, Wade
  • Light
    • Bard’s Dancing Shoes; Campsite Merchant
    • Katriel’s Grasp; Denerim Marketplace, Gorim
    • Shadow of the Empire; Orzammar, Garin
    • The Felon’s Coat; Denerim Marketplace, Wade
  • Medium
    • Camenae’s Barbute; Denerim Marketplace, Gorim
  • Robes
    • Reaper’s Vestments; Denerim Marketplace, Mage Shop
• Weapons
  • Axes
    • The Veshialle; Campsite Merchant
  • Bows
    • Far Song; Redcliffe Village, Replacement Blacksmith
    • The Dark Moon; Brecilian Outskirts, Dalish Merchant
  • Daggers
    • Rose’s Thorn; Orzammar Commons, Garin
  • Mauls
    • Chasind Great Maul; Denerim Marketplace, Gorim
    • Thorval’s Luck; Denerim Marketplace, Gorim
  • Staves
    • Staff of the Magister Lord; Circle Tower, Templar Quartermaster

Companion Preferred Gifts:

• Alistair – Runestones and Statuettes
• Dog – Bones
• Leliana – Religion-themed Items
• Loghain – Maps
• Morrigan – Jewelry
• Oghren – Non-wine Alcohol
• Shale – Gemstones
• Sten – Paintings
• Wynne – Books and Wine
• Zevran – Bars of Precious Metal

Notable Pickpockets

• Denerim Marketplace, Habren; Tiara (Gift)
• Denerim Brothel, Sanga; Headband (Gift)
• Lake Calenhad Spoiled Princess Inn, Innkeeper; Bad Luck Charm
• Lothering, Profiteering Merchant; Imperium Crossbow
• Orzammar Aeducan Thaig, Lord Dace; Thorn of the Dead Gods (Steel)
• Orzammar Chamber of the Assembly, Vartag; Champion’s Shield
• Orzammar Diamond Quarter, Lord Dace; Thorn of the Dead Gods (Steel)
• Orzammar Proving Grounds, Myaja; Myaja’s Key
• Orzammar Royal Palace, Vartag; Champion’s Shield
• Orzammar Shaperate, Shaper; Shaper’s Amulet
• Ostagar, Prisoner Guard; Food and Water
• Redcliffe Smithy, Owen; Owen’s Key
• Redcliffe Tavern, Berwick; Letter