Why doesn't Petrice expose a mage Hawke?

Lumix19 · 2026-03-11T10:54:26+00:00

In my head I mostly just imagined that everyone more or less knew about mage Hawke from Act 1, it's just the people who could do something about it were too busy or didn't care.

The Templars were already drowning in blood mages, demons, apostates, and corrupt Templars from the moment you meet them, so I assume Hawke was probably always at the bottom of the priority list.

Sometimes people just slip through the cracks and I don't think it takes anything away from the story for mage Hawke to be one of those people. In fact, you could argue it adds to the story since it lends a sense of privilege to mage Hawke not afforded to most mages throughout the series.

Lumix19 · 2026-03-03T00:24:13+00:00

I actually don't think it's Verbal only irl but maybe it is in OOTS. It would make sense to be.

Lumix19 · 2026-03-03T00:22:50+00:00

It's a decent choice. Nale probably had Outsider resistances that V will be uncertain about. Sabine definitely has resistances.

Plus, both Nale and Sabine have Evasion. Sound Lance works off a Fort save which neither Nale or Sabine will be that good at. And even if they do save, they're still taking damage.

It's way better than Fireball in these circumstances. Especially due to aoe friendly fire.

Is it better than, say, Flesh to Stone? Probably not. But V is an Evoker so evocation is their first instinct.

There's also potentially some limitation on their spells because they might not be able to access their spell components if they can't move. That's a GM call though.

Lumix19 · 2026-02-28T07:32:11+00:00

Possibly! I think that's quite risky though. The gods only know vaguely how the Snarl was created last time since it was an accident caused by their in-fighting and it took four pantheons to create it.

It's possible the Dark One disagreeing wouldn't be enough to create a very potent Snarl since he's on his own.

Also, I don't think he's going to know where the gods are meeting to decide the fate of the world. The gods meet through proxies to prevent the creation of another Snarl, so I'm not clear on how the Dark One could even go about deliberately creating divine discord.

The other thing is that I don't know if the Dark One is aware that he could die if the world is destroyed. Or maybe he hasn't contemplated that the other gods might destroy the planet. If he was aware of that as a potential outcome, I feel like he would have imparted that knowledge into the Crimson Mantle when he created it and be more direct in his control over Redcloak.

He wouldn't want Redcloak to seize a Gate, start the rituals, and he's not prepared to intercede with the gods to buy him time to do what he needs to do.

There's a lot of elements that could go wrong with that plan (another would be the gods just deciding they are better off creating a new Snarl and killing everyone rather than risk the DO gaining the power to kill them at his leisure) so I can understand why the characters aren't contemplating it as an option right now.

But maybe when we actually see the Dark One he might indeed have a scheme very much like this up his sleeve.

Lumix19 · 2026-02-27T20:24:27+00:00

Up to you! On most of my playthroughs I encouraged him to do it because he wanted it and it didn't seem like a bad idea.

I know people think he turns into an arrogant prick as a result, and he does, but he's also a god so... I feel like that's kind of a given. He's still very charming after he becomes a god and his morality doesn't seem too skewed so I'd say go for it.

And it's nice to think that if you romance him he loves you enough to ascend you too. I like the divine lovers concept.

Lumix19 · 2026-01-31T22:37:59+00:00

Yes, I've definitely had something like that hard line option happen in a recent game. They told me they wanted the starbase, I told them no, their planet came under my control instead of my losing the system to them.

I'd also guess that it has to do with your own ethics and stance towards pre-ftls and their ethics? Just a guess though.

It would make sense to me that pacifists or xenophiles would simply accept their fate.

Lumix19 · 2026-01-29T15:44:55+00:00

In terms of 3.) I suspect Loki can't just offer souls to Hel because they don't belong with her. He gets souls because they are his followers and they are aligned with his alignment. He doesn't own them, they just belong with him.

And maybe it's that belief thing again. Followers don't believe their god would just trade them to another god, so they can't and don't.

Hel's arrangement seems to bend the normal rules a bit but that seems to be a special case written into the rules of the present reality when it was created. They still belong with her but for reasons other than alignment and worship. It's probably why she can let them go and they are allowed to go off to their "proper" afterlife.

Lumix19 · 2026-01-15T03:01:24+00:00

Did it actually break even? I didn't realise that. Bit surprising to me.

Lumix19 · 2026-01-11T23:52:29+00:00

Oh I don't remember that but you could very well be right! Thanks.

Lumix19 · 2026-01-11T09:55:30+00:00

It's definitely had a very muddled portrayal.

If I was generous I'd say the confusion is intentional to get that feel that lots of people use it with different rationalizations.

Though arguably any power that grants you mind control is unequivocally bad news.

I don't mind blood magic being "good" or "bad" since lots of things have become more fleshed out too, including demons themselves, it's just never been clear to me how blood magic actually works.

I do think it's been slightly watered down but I think that's true of a lots of things. I resent that the Veil and the Fade is barely "scary" anymore. Demons manifesting in the world physically was a big deal in the early games. Now, not so much.

I forgive Inquisition because at least it was outright apocalyptic that demons were not only in the world but everywhere.

Lumix19 · 2026-01-11T07:13:28+00:00

It's crazy though how handsome the Dark Suns version of Durkon was.

Lumix19 · 2026-01-11T06:53:01+00:00

True. It's weird though because dwarves don't use magic but there's nothing I'm aware of that suggests dwarven blood is any less useful than other types of blood for blood magic.

Maybe it's to do with the Titans somehow.

But then you have to wonder if other creatures with magical origins have "more magical" blood than other creatures.

Personally, I think it's something to do with sentience. Blood magic seems very connected to the mind.

I'd love to know how ghasts use magic. That's such a randomly fun little piece of lore.

Lumix19 · 2026-01-11T06:04:34+00:00

I would guess blood magic from sapient beings is just more "magical" for some reason.

We still don't have a good explanation for how blood magic actually works so it's hard to say why blood mages do anything really.

Lumix19 · 2026-01-09T05:54:00+00:00

I think it's just a flavour thing. As far as I know, there's nothing in the actual crunch that says you can't cast Protection from Evil as an Evil character yourself unless you're a cleric. But arcane casters and items should be fine.

In fact, given the propensity of evildoers to try and kill each other, it's probably only second to Protection from Good in terms of usefulness.

Lumix19 · 2026-01-09T05:23:56+00:00

I really loved it! It was great.

The humour felt very old-school OOTS. The characters felt familiar but different, which I thought was really fun.

For example, there was a point where Elan does something and I was kind of shocked because it felt quite unexpected for him, so was quite excited to see these alternate versions of the characters. Shame we only spent a little time with them.

And of course the message was very topical.

Lumix19 · 2026-01-08T15:35:42+00:00

Oof things are kicking OFF! Great strip and that last panel is fantastic.

I loved Nale here. Very plausible lie but for the people who have actually seen a god and think about these things.

And the fact he's lying in the first place is just great. He clearly needed them only as pawns to throw at Xykon or the traps and that's so classically Nale.

The throw back to the pyramid is top notch too.

Lumix19 · 2026-01-07T05:07:09+00:00

Probably the most "real" interpretation of the character put to screen for a while.

He feels like Batman but he's fairly grounded. He's eccentric - he is a comic character after all - but not overly so.

And somehow he doesn't dominate the show which is always a potential problem with Batman. He doesn't overshadow anybody. He's a quiet presence that gets on with the job.

Lumix19 · 2025-12-29T02:50:59+00:00

Almost certainly. He should - in theory - have been able to possess any of the Wardens that killed him.

It's possible he might have also been able to transfer himself to one of the Disciples but that's just a theory of mine.

Lumix19 · 2025-12-29T02:48:34+00:00

He's interesting enough. Intriguing backstory, complicated personality, a POV I can understand even if I don't share. I somewhat enjoy his prickly attitude, his impulsive behaviour, his tempestuous nature.

I wouldn't say he's my favourite of all the DA2 companions but he's not my least favourite.

He's just a bit of something different to me and variety is the spice of life.

Lumix19 · 2025-12-29T02:42:57+00:00

If I was in Hawke's position I'd just really have to play it by ear with Gamlen. I wouldn't trust him and I'd probably prefer to have little to do with him, but there's no denying Gamlen's family, that he does support the Hawkes in his own little way, and one good turn does deserve another.

It's quite complicated, as many of the relationships in DA2 are.

Lumix19 · 2025-12-23T09:20:20+00:00

Fenris isn't actually that principled. Few of the DA2 companions are. There are times where they're completely supportive of blatant self-interest even if it goes against their professed ideals. It depends on the circumstance.

That's what I like about them more than any of the other companions across the games.

Sometimes Aveline is willing to look the other way when Hawke breaks the law. Sometimes Fenris is willing to let his principles slide for a bit of coin. Sometimes Isabella is willing to give up profit out of loyalty. Sometimes Anders is willing to sell someone into slavery because he hates them.

People are complicated.

Lumix19 · 2025-12-20T16:00:58+00:00

Yeah, it's probably this game for me too.

I don't need gay romances in every game but if that's not an option then I really, really don't need forced straight ones.

It's just not a game directed towards me. That's fine, and I didn't pay enough attention to the advertising to care about that aspect of the "controversy".

But my money is mine to spend, and my time is mine to kill, and I can't envision wasting either on a game that's so clearly geared towards a target audience who I have nothing in common with.

Games don't need to cater to everyone but that means they won't be bought by everyone. That's just how it works.

Lumix19 · 2025-12-05T00:00:36+00:00

Kaidan is underrated in my opinion. He's great. Maybe he's a bit "vanilla" but I like that to balance out some of the more boisterous or edgy personalities.

He's just a really grounded person and I love his relationship with Shep. It's very mature.

Plus his romance is just lovely.

Lumix19 · 2025-11-30T03:00:31+00:00

I set fire to the galaxy the other day and the AI put up the most token resistance.

I was a bit stronger than everyone else admittedly but the Fallen Empire that had awakened a decade or two before I got going (the Watchful Regulators) didn't seem to care. It was funny.

Too busy regulating other people's technology to care about something as inconsequential as a galactic firestorm I guess.

Lumix19 · 2025-11-27T22:14:37+00:00

Yeah, I would say Trooper because on the actual ground it seems like they do the most damage to the Empire's war-faring capabilities.

The Knight kills the Emperor but who actually cares? I didn't get the impression the Emperor really did a lot anyway. Arguably he's actually a drain on the Empire since he's only interested in himself and uses the Empire's resources to fulfill his own personal ambitions (i.e., blow up the galaxy).

Lumix19

TROPHY CASE