History DragonAgeInquisition / TropesFToK

** A promotional image for the game features the Inquisitor and their inner circle arranged around the war table in a homage to Leonardo's da Vinci's ''The Last Supper.'' [[spoiler: Solas is the one in Judas Iscariot's position.]]

** Corypheus' widespread use of Red Lyrium itself actually a pretty big hint that the Blight is involved; [[spoiler: with Corypheus being one of the original Magisters that invaded the Golden City, he ''is'' Blighted, and yet unlike the Architect, who is also one of the original Magisters, he doesn't surround himself with the ranks of the Darkspawn. Instead, he uses Red Lyrium as his connection to the Blight, producing and experimenting on it to infect and augment those under his command into zealous, Blighted followers, much like the intelligent Darkspawn which served the Architect. This also explains Anders' pleas to destroy the red lyrium shard on Varric's second companion quest Haunted back at the second game and his temporary FaceHeelTurn back at ''Legacy DLC''.]]

** Corypheus' widespread use of Red Lyrium itself actually a pretty big hint that the Blight is involved; [[spoiler: with Corypheus being one of the original Magisters that invaded the Golden City, he ''is'' Blighted, and yet unlike the Architect, who is also one of the original Magisters, he doesn't surround himself with the ranks of the Darkspawn. Instead, he uses Red Lyrium as his connection to the Blight, producing and experimenting on it to infect and augment those under his command into zealous, Blighted followers, much like the intelligent Darkspawn which served the Architect.]]

* FighterMageThief:
** As in previous ''Dragon Age'' games, the three base classes are Warrior, Mage and Rogue. Your first three companions consist of one of each (Cassandra, Solas and Varric, respectively).
** The sub-class specializations are kind of a subset of FighterMageThief within each discipline. Rogues can double-down on their stealth and melee combat as Assassins, become a TrapMaster as an Artificer to further confuse and take advantage of enemies' weaknesses, or go nuts with elemental concoctions that provide enhancements as a Tempest. For Warriors, the choice between Reaver, Champion, and Templar specialization is that of pure damage and consuming HP from fallen opponents, heavy defense and becoming an ImplacableMan, or battlefield control using anti-magic. Mages become defensive warriors and healers as [[MagicKnight Knight-Enchanters]], control the battlefield with debilitating spells as a Necromancer, or just blow crap up even better as a Rift Mage.

* FallenHero: [[spoiler:Solas. He saved the world one thousand years ago from false gods by creating the Veil. Now he seeks to undo his "mistake" through genocide. To be fair, Solas woke up to a Thedas stuck in the dark ages for one thousand years, and rejoining reality with the Fade would ascend the current elves while killing all the other races. The Inquisitor disagrees, since they see these "Tranquil non-elves" as more than pitiful, lost souls - especially if they ''are'' a non-elf themselves.]]

** In the quest journal, major quests have unique art pieces attached to them. If the player looks closely at the accompanying art for "In Your Heart Shall Burn," they'll realize that it's [[spoiler:a picture of Cullen, Josephine, and the Inquisitor fleeing from the burning village of Haven]]. This is difficult to see, especially on smaller screens, but the art can be found online and in official books and it's not hard to compare them and realize which picture is being shown.

* GroundPunch: [[GiantMook Brute]]-type enemies love to do this with their friggin' huge [[DropTheHammer two-handed mauls]] whenever they don't feel like performing their equally devastating SpinAttack. A basic smash at whoever's standing in front of them is dangerous enough already, but they also have an advanced version where they flail around wildly, pounding everything around them with repeated strikes that deal massive damage. Unsurprisingly, this is the bane of any squishy rogue caught in the process of backstabbing the raging brute.

* ForWantOfANail: [[spoiler: The reason why the Elves lost Halamshiral. If the Jaws of Hakkon had not put Hakkon into a dragon and threatened Orlais with it, Inquisitor Ameridan would not have been sent to deal with it and ended up having to trap himself and the god-dragon in magic stasis. Ameridan, who was an elf, wanted a united front of both the Dales and Orlais against an impending darkspawn invasion, and also served as a stabilizing influence for his close friend Drakon, a.k.a. the then-Emperor of Orlais; without Ameridan's influence, the elves instead stood by and focused on their own while the darkspawn ravaged Orlais during the Blight, which severely cooled relations between the two, only compounded when Drakon's son, after inheriting the throne from his late father, began a campaign of expansionism and religious zealotry which would eventually set its sights on the Elves' homeland after conquering Orlais' human neighbors, which pretty much negated the goodwill Ameridan and Drakon I had built between Orlais and Halamshiral in a time when common ground was sorely needed. This would eventually come to a head at the Red Crossing incident, and from there, war broke out between the two, reducing the elves to what they are at present.]]

** Making the wrong dialogue choice with Leliana ([[spoiler: telling her to kill the traitor OR not saying anything]] towards the beginning of the game hardens her and [[ForWantOfANail prevents certain outcomes in her personal quest]], which occurs towards the end of the game. The game gives no indication that this is an important choice. And just because you choose this first time don't think Leliana will let you off the hook that easily: she will remained hardened if certain choices are made, clearly, but to save her soul you have to pick specific dialogue during her personal mission (that is, not tell her sacrifices have to be made, and hiding that ruthless streak is generally a good idea as well).

** There is plenty of foreshadowing concerning [[spoiler:Blackwall's true identity]], especially if the player is knowledgeable of what happened back in the [[VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins first game]], such as the fact that [[spoiler:he's not affected by the Calling, becomes disproportionately aggressive when asked by Varric about his 'dark secret', and didn't know that there were only three Wardens[[note]]the Hero of Ferelden, Alistair/Loghain, and Riordan[[/note]] involved in the Battle of Denerim. In fact, a perceptive player may realize that his answers to any questions directed at him regarding the Grey Wardens are actually rather vague and evasive, even regarding things that practically ''every'' Grey Warden would know just by virtue of ''being'' a Grey Warden, hinting at the fact that he didn't even get to his Joining.]]

** Several Grey Warden corpses are seen during the BadFuture of In Hushed Whispers quest. [[spoiler: This underscores their involvement with Corypheus which will not be revealed until Here Lies the Abyss.]]

* KickTheSonOfABitch: One particularly evil and haughty Tevinter mage is brought before you and he's looking forward to death, since he thinks it'll let him be one with his god. Locking him up and throwing away the key doesn't faze him and only mildly pleases a couple. Handing him to the Wardens makes him sneer that their justice is no better than yours. You can make him Tranquil, the only option that truly upsets him; but this is controversial, few party members approve, and most will disapprove. Chopping off the son of a bitch's head is the only option that pleases everyone, victim included.

* ForWantOfANail: [[spoiler: The reason why the Elves lost Halamshiral. If the Jaws of Hakkon had not put Hakkon into a dragon and threatened Orlais with it, Inquisitor Ameridan would not have been sent to deal with it and ended up having to trap himself and the god-dragon in magic stasis. Ameridan, who was an elf, wanted a united front of both the Dales and Orlais against an impending darkspawn invasion, and also served as a stabilizing influence for his close friend Drakon, a.k.a. the then-Emperor of Orlais; without Ameridan's influence, the elves instead stood by and focused on their own while the darkspawn ravaged Orlais during the Blight, which severely cooled relations between the two, only compounded when Drakon's son, after inheriting the thronw from his late father, began a campaign of expansionism and religious zealotry which would eventually set its sights on the Elves' homeland after conquering Orlais' human neighbors, which pretty much negated the goodwill Ameridan and Drakon I had built between Orlais and Halamshiral in a time when common ground was sorely needed. This would eventually come to a head at the Red Crossing incident, and from there, war broke out between the two, reducing the elves to what they are at present.]]

* ForWantOfANail: [[spoiler: The reason why the Elves lost Halamshiral. If the Jaws of Hakkon had not put Hakkon into a dragon and threatened Orlais with it, Inquisitor Ameridan would not have been sent to deal with it and ended up having to trap himself and the god-dragon in magic stasis. Ameridan, who was an elf, wanted a united front of both the Dales and Orlais against an impending darkspawn invasion, and also served as a stabilizing influence for his close friend Drakon, a.k.a. the then-Emperor of Orlais; without Ameridan's influence, the elves instead stood by and focused on their own while the darkspawn ravaged Orlais during the Blight, which severely cooled relations between the two, only compounded when Drakon's son, pretty much negating any good will Ameridan and Drakon I had built between Orlais and Halamshiral in a time when common ground was sorely needed, began a campaign of expansionism and religious zealotry which would eventually set its sights on the Elves' homeland after conquering Orlais' human neighbors. This would eventually come to a head at the Red Crossing incident, and from there, war broke out between the two, reducing the elves to what they are at present.]]

** In one of the earliest conversations you can have with Solas, he talks about how the artifact that created the Breach is unlike anything seen in this age, and that he refuses to believe it could be destroyed until he sees it shattered with his own eyes. [[spoiler: He already makes a slip about revealing the detail about the thing that caused the Breach to materialize being an ''artifact'', even if no one among the Inquisition knows it yet until Corypheus' appearance during his attack at Haven. He knows exactly what that artifact is and what it does, and at the end of the game, he does indeed see it shattered.]]

** In one of the earliest conversations you can have with Solas, he talks about how the artifact that created the Breach is unlike anything seen in this age, and that he refuses to believe it could be destroyed until he sees it shattered with his own eyes. [[spoiler: He knows exactly what that artifact is and what it does, and at the end of the game, he does indeed see it shattered.]]

** When reading the description for any of the Cleansing Runes or their crafting schematics, you may notice that it states it augments damage against darkspawn and Red Templars. An odd combination... [[spoiler:until you learn that Red Lyrium is [[TheCorruption Blight]]-tainted Lyrium. The rune causes greater harm to Red Templars because, in a way, they're Blighted ghouls now.]]

[[folder: F]]

[[folder: G]]

[[folder: H]]

[[folder: I]]

[[folder: J]]

[[folder: K]]

** There is plenty of foreshadowing concerning [[spoiler:Blackwall's true identity]], such as the fact that [[spoiler:he's not affected by the Calling, becomes disproportionately aggressive when asked by Varric about his 'dark secret', and didn't know that there were only three Wardens involved in the Battle of Denerim. In fact, a perceptive player may realize that his answers to any questions directed at him regarding the Gray Wardens are actually rather vague and evasive, even regarding things that practically ''every'' Gray Warden would know just by virtue of ''being'' a Gray Warden, hinting at the fact that he didn't even get to his Joining.]]

** The sub-class specializations are kind of a subset of FighterMageThief within each discipline. Rogues can double-down on their stealth and melee combat as Assassins, become a TrapMaster as an Artificer to further confuse and take advantage of enemies' weaknesses, or go nuts with elemental concoctions that provide enhancements as a Tempest. For Warriors, the choice between Reaver, Champion, and Templar specialization is that of pure damage and consuming HP from fallen opponents, heavy defense, or battlefield control using anti-magic. Mages become defensive warriors and healers as [[MagicKnight Knight-Enchanters]], control the battlefield with debilitating spells as a Necromancer, or just blow crap up even better as a Rift Mage.

** The sub-class specializations are kind of a subset of FighterMageThief within each discipline. Rogues can double-down on their stealth and melee combat as Assassins, become a TrapMaster as an Artificer to further confuse and take advantage of enemies' weaknesses, or go nuts with elemental concoctions that provide enhancements as a Tempest. For Warriors, the choice between Reaver, Champion, and Templar specialization is that of pure damage and consuming HP from fallen opponents, heavy defense (fighter) , or battlefield control using anti-magic. Mages become defensive warriors and healers as [[MagicKnight Knight-Enchanters]], control the battlefield with tactics as a Necromancer, or just blow crap up even better as a Rift Mage.

** As in previous ''Dragon Age'' games, the three base classes are Warrior, Mage and Rogue. Your first three companions consist of one of each (Cassandra, Solas and Varric).
** The sub-class specializations are kind of a subset of FighterMageThief within each discipline. Rogues can double-down on their stealth and melee combat as Assassins, become a TrapMaster as an Artificer or go nuts with elemental concoctions as a Tempest. For Warriors, the choice between Reavers, Champions and Templars is that of pure damage, heavy defense or battlefield control using anti-magic. Mages become defensive warriors as [[MagicKnight Knight-Enchanters]], control the battlefield with tactics as a Necromancer, or just blow crap up even better as a Rift Mage.

* ForWantOfANail: [[spoiler: The reason why the Elves lost Halamshiral. If the Jaws of Hakkon had not put Hakkon into a dragon and threatened Orlais with it, Inquisitor Ameridan would not have been sent to deal with it and ended up having to trap himself and the god-dragon in magic stasis. Ameridan, who was an elf, wanted a united front of both the Dales and Orlais against an impending darkspawn invasion, and also served as a stabilizing influence for his close friend Drakon, a.k.a. the then-Emperor of Orlais; without Ameridan's influence, the elves instead stood by and focused on their own while the darkspawn ravaged Orlais during the Blight, which severely cooled relations betwthe two, only compounded when Drakon's son, pretty much negating any good will Ameridan and Drakon I had built between Orlais and Halamshiral in a time when common ground was sorely needed, began a campaign of expansionism and religious zealotry which would eventually set its sights on the Elves' homeland after conquering Orlais' human neighbors. This would eventually come to a head at the Red Crossing incident, and from there, war broke out between the two, reducing the elves to what they are at present.]]

* HurricaneOfPuns: In the ''Jaws of Hakkon'' DLC, [[spoiler: you actually have the opportunity to recruit Storvacker, the Hold-Beast of Stone-Bear Hold. This "agent" is basically a grizzly bear housing a spirit. During the [[ItMakesSenseInContext judgment of the bear]], the Inquisitor has an option to make some puns about it right from the start. If you recruit the bear, an operation opens up. Upon completion, Leliana asks Cullen if he thinks this mission was a [[IncrediblyLamePun roaring success]] to which Cullen just replies with a flat no.]]

*** [[spoiler:Celene, Gaspard and Briala can be forced to set aside their differences and work together]]... provided you found ''every single'' Halla statuette and opened ''exactly'' the right doors with them, which is unlikely to happen without a strategy guide in your hand.
*** [[spoiler:The reconciliation between Celene and Briala as friends and lovers]] requires that you find the aforementioned Halla statues, use them to open one specific door, talk to Celene's assistants, then Celene, and then Briala with the correct dialogue choices, and then make the correct choices again at the end of the quest. Oh, and maintain at least 85 Court Approval at the same time.

** Most of the time it doesn't really matter who you pick for a War Table mission... but sometimes you need to pick one specific advisor to continue to the next stage of the chain. Often, there is no way of knowing which outcome is the correct one. For example, choosing Josephine to ask local nobility to [[spoiler:help protect the Dalish Inquisitor's clan from bandits]] results in a total massacre. Likewise, taking Cullen's advice to flip off people upset about [[spoiler:Blackwall's fake Grey Warden treaties]] turns out to be the "correct" choice, rewards-wise.

* GuiltBasedGaming: A Bioware tradition. The first gameplay demo shows the Inquisitor deciding whether their soldiers should stay with the wounded, protect the nearby village of Crestwood, or push an assault on the attacking Red Templars. The Inquisitor picks the last one - and Crestwood is burned to the ground by the time they return.

** There is plenty of foreshadowing concerning [[spoiler:Blackwall's true identity]], such as the fact that [[spoiler:he's not affected by the Calling, becomes disproportionately aggressive when asked by Varric about his 'dark secret', and didn't know that there were only three Wardens involved in the Battle of Denerim. In fact, a perceptive player may realize that any questions directed at him regarding the Gray Wardens are actually rather vague and evasive, even regarding things that practically ''every'' Gray Warden would know just by virtue of ''being'' a Gray Warden, hinting at the fact that he didn't even get to his Joining.]]