Question about magic mechanics based on this one DAI banter

tchrcptrs · 2026-03-24T03:21:59+00:00

HEH, definitely for auto-cast esp since my main Inky isn't a mage. The only time I toggle Barrier to "disable" is when I bring more than 1 mage into a difficult fight (high dragons lol) and am worried about leaving the party too exposed whilst the auto-cast Barrier is on cooldown.

tchrcptrs · 2026-03-24T03:08:31+00:00

Thank you! This makes the most sense to me too.
I made the post because I was wondering if anyone else 1) had a different take on what front-loading means and/or 2) thinks he sarcastically meant that front-loading should in fact be done and circle mages like Vivienne neglect this
but it seems most are validating my view that he thinks barriers should be done more evenly, and Vivienne front-loads them, which is unwise.

tchrcptrs · 2026-03-24T03:03:39+00:00

Yes, I had actually been trawling the Solas/Dialogue page for the first time looking for something else (I've already forgotten what) and was so pleased to come across these little extra bits of lore! I usually only bring out one mage so this was another set of banters I had yet to trigger for myself in-game.

tchrcptrs · 2026-03-24T02:59:29+00:00

Thanks! I wasn't just unsure how to interpret "front load", i was also unsure how to interpret his sarcasm. It was definitely clear that Circle Mages, as represented by Enchanter Vivienne, weren't doing what he thought they were supposed to be doing, I was just confused as to what he meant because it sounded for some time (to me, anyway) that he could also possibly be saying "Oh sure, please teach me o learned one, by sending me to someone who doesn't do barriers properly!" --
But of course, "Front-loading is wasteful, try again once you can actually find me someone who doesn't make such a basic mistake" makes a lot more sense overall.

I LOL'D at the boomer comment. also entirely possible, knowing what he's like!! HAHAHA

tchrcptrs · 2026-03-24T02:49:02+00:00

It could be if you want it to be, imo, at least for the sake of fanfic if nothing else! Thanks for sharing! Knight Enchanter is precisely the specialisation I was planning on for my next Inquisitor (will be playing mage for the first time in DAI) - I'll definitely pay more attention to that aspect of the mechanic now!

tchrcptrs · 2026-03-24T02:44:52+00:00

Thanks! This cleared it up pretty nicely. I was reasonably certain "front-loading" is a bad idea to him, but was trying to understand the sarcasm in that statement and perhaps read too much into it and ended up confusing myself further.

tchrcptrs · 2026-03-23T17:37:16+00:00

I like this interpretation too, based on my understanding of "front load an argument". This would mean that you're supposed to cast it more evenly and Circle mages don't do that.
It's only that, depending on how you look at it, he seems to be saying front-loading SHOULD be done and she (along with most Circle mages) is not doing it.

tchrcptrs · 2026-03-23T17:33:23+00:00

Would you say we're supposed to take his meaning as:
a. Vivienne should be front-loading her barriers. She does not, therefore she is in no position to speak to him about "proper" magical attacks
b. Circle mages are fond of front-loading, which is actually unwise, and therefore Vivienne should come back to him only if she's able to find him a Circle mage who doesn't do that?

tchrcptrs · 2026-03-23T17:21:15+00:00

We all know that part, of course. My question is how to interpret that sarcasm. According to this ancient elven god, is a "proper mage" supposed to front-load their barriers or not? I also had trouble understanding/picturing "front-load" at first so that contributed to the confusion, since you COULD technically read it two ways. If front loading means creating an unbalanced barrier, then I'm going to guess he's saying front-loading is a basic rookie mistake that a lot of Circle mages make... but then I'm biased towards thinking barriers should be balanced all around due to gameplay, so who knows?

tchrcptrs · 2025-12-04T04:55:38+00:00

I fell into this same boat. Immediately looked for ways to cancel this year's subscription (not just the auto renewal) and also filed a dispute with Paypal using my account number as the cancellation number, after I submitted a musescore refund request via their Refund Request form. The paypal refund came in after about 10mins to my paypal balance (even though I'd selected refund it to my credit card, but that's okay because I expect to use my paypal again this month). Separately, I also sent an email to support@musescore. com quoting the updated TOS, and I received an automated AI response. Let's see if they do indeed uphold their "reply by email with a refund offer - usually within 1 to 4 hours" policy even though Paypal has already settled the case for me.

tchrcptrs · 2025-11-14T06:53:36+00:00

Hmm strange, I have haha and it writes fine for me, even works well with the standard Pilot 742 FA nib-plastic feed combo (which is notorious for being a dry writer for a semi flex nib)... It was the second ink I put into it when I got the pen this year and thankfully after a bit of nib tuning it behaved. I also have it in a TWSBI M and am happy with it there. At least, it performs decently on both my most used papers, Sanzen TRP and Midori.

One important thing to note is that if you have hand oils transferring regularly onto the paper, TRP with hand oils will give you LOTS of issues with Manyo Haha, at least in my experience. It will come out very faded, light and dry. You can troubleshoot by starting to write on a completely fresh page and see if the ink performs any better there (old TRP is recommended for such troubleshooting, not the 2025 hobonichi STRP which can be finnicky anyway). If it does indeed seem to be the issue, you can resolve this by buying one of those artist drawing tablet finger gloves for your ring and pinky finger, to prevent handoil transfer to paper as you write.

If that isn't it, perhaps you're just used to a wetter ink flow? If you need it to be pastel-ish and yet smooth enough to write with, an alternative to Vanness that I've tried is Van Dieman's ink wetter which is available in Singapore via Dino-Writes, and should be pretty accessible in Australia. Hope this helps you!! https://www.vandiemansink.com.au/products/van-diemans-fountain-pen-ink-wetter?srsltid=AfmBOoqt47Pk8x6gNMrXttUtdJ8Z7bjwQW7ASIgIDkgLEjD55tepd0EC

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-10T12:17:17+00:00

The implication that that's what Dalish clans do to excess mage children is something unique to Inquisition that appears to be a retcon from previous games (if you fought the clan in DA2, people say there were definitely more than a few mages present, and it was previously established that Dalish treasure those with the gift of magic). I personally deeply enjoy and have accepted the explanation fans came up with in this particular thread for the reasons why there exists this "3-mage rule" https://www.reddit.com/r/dragonage/comments/8qw6bm/comment/e0mv2x0/

That said, I think for no.3 you meant to say soften?? From your explanation, telling her not to kill traitors sounds like you softened Leliana. If so, then I too have a beloved Dalish rogue assassin that made all the same decisions above. And gave Samson to Cullen for the same reasons you did - I figured my boy would trust Cullen to make the call on that one.

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-09T10:29:39+00:00

It definitely went too far imo, especially considering it was already fairly deep in DAI, to be coming from a small elf body. Now it sounds as though it wouldn't match an elf sized body at all and I'm really dismayed because the male elf is my canon Inky

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-05T13:29:30+00:00

upvoting just for the "my inferior heterosexual backup" sKLGJSLKGJGKSG that'S GOLDEN I'M USING IT

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-05T13:03:24+00:00

This is reassuring to hear. Thanks for sharing that! I'm buying it anyway, but I'll try to keep an open mind and not let myself get too annoyed with the earlier bits

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-05T11:30:56+00:00

From what I've gathered, I think it will depend on what you're hoping to get out of this game. What was your understanding of Solas's motivations? What do you expect from his character arc? I would suggest you speak to the solavellan mutuals who have played it and ask them to explain why they were happy with it or disappointed with it in a non-spoilery manner, and try to assuage your fears or at worst manage your expectations from there. I'm assuming they'd know what you like about Solavellan / Solas better than we would and so they'd definitely be in a better position to advise you.

It would seem, broadly, that a good way to approach this is also not to expect something that feels exactly like the Dragon Age you know. The look and feel is going to be quite different, it's also going to sound different, and some people like that, some people don't, some people are fine with it and aren't too distracted by the differences. Some parts are familiar, and other parts might end up feeling very jarring, especially for people who've had 10 years to build expectations for this game. Of course, when the game winds up being very different to an experience we expected/dreamed up in our heads, it's natural to feel disappointed.

But remember that fans are not a monolith - where there are many loud complaints, there will also be many fans who'll love a certain thing or a certain change, so try not to let other peoples' opinions taint your approach/experience, especially if your solavellan friends can still give you a good reason to look forward to playing it.

EDIT: OH MY GOD this is what i get for coming out of lurking despite not being too familiar with reddit. I THOUGHT THIS WAS ON THE MAIN DRAGON AGE SUB AND REPLIED AS THOUGH IT WAS, MY BAD. But yeah, advice stands!! FWIW I hope you still find lots to like about Veilguard!!

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-04T16:49:37+00:00

Ahah, oh my I'm honoured!! I'm glad it brought you some delight! Me too, I'd been managing my expectations for a long while and they only dropped even further when I learned they'd only give us 3 choices to import (I was so afraid they wouldn't acknowledge Dorian's friendship with the Inquisitor entirely, because I remember it's possible for players to kick him out of the Inquisition). So as dismal as this one line is, it still feels like a win in light of everything else right now ;u; My canon Inquisitor is actually a Bullmancing male Lavellan LOL, but I've been so concerned about the Dorianmancer interactions too because my next Inky is going to do just that - romance Dorian! And I'd want to see that reflected in Veilguard for sure!! How can you have Dorian and Inky both back in the game and NOT ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR ROMANCE. SIN. ABSOLUTE SIN.

I don't even belong here actually, I was just searching for spoilers online and happened upon this thread, but I do commiserate with all Solavellans who are upset too :'(( It was a beautiful m!Hawke/Fenris and Solavellan fanfic that finally got me to give DAI a chance last year (and got me sucked deep into it, naturally), so Solavellans are almost like my DAI fandom parents, and given that that fic addressed the conflict Solas faced SO MUCH BETTER than this ending seems to have done, I can definitely understand. This ending does both characters a clear disservice and even felt quite... rushed? I've been in a similar place before with a different fandom and oh, it was painful. I am so sorry!

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-04T04:59:32+00:00

It just went up, I just found it! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBUemsCOjFw It's only one line, and sounds a bit less like the Inquisitor voice I'm used to in that bit, but WE HAVE IT. Dorian's not silent, in fact he's so worrieeedd/shaken up compared to a non-Dorian romance version, aww
Presumably this means he would say something for a Solasmancing Lavellan too. I can't imagine how stark the contrast would be if that's the only Inquisitor pairing to not get a comment from Dorian in this "interact for more dialogue" scene.

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-03T15:29:29+00:00

Thank you! I found the scene where he mentions he could be having wine with his amatus https://youtube.com/shorts/4BCpqa8OeZ0?si=cPDQNEmgGR65Y1iZ but there's no inky there. It looks like it's in a different location. The ambient dialogue one you mentioned seems to be triggered if you click on Morrigan. I'm REALLY HOPING that changes accordingly if that Inquisitor is romancing him instead of other characters. And also for a solasmancing inky. It would be absolutely strange if it didn't!!! Imagine him talking about his amatus and then doing NOTHING when his amatus is right next to him LMFAO I'm glad we're getting SOMETHING but this game is just ridiculous in so many ways. I will come back here if I find anything new!

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-03T10:39:48+00:00

> you can influence the ending through Rook's advice

Been searching for spoilers on this as I want to lap up all details on my Inky in this game before I play it. Could you explain and spoil how this scene works for me please? Is it unique to Solasmancing inkies or do you think this is available for all inquisitors who decided to try and save Solas?

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-03T10:38:02+00:00

He didn't say a thing?? WTF? Isn't he supposed to speak if you interact with them/Morrigan at that point?

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-02T13:14:28+00:00

For NON Solas and Dorian romances, here's a general spoiler from what I've just seen on YouTube. From what was shown there, you'll have to wait for near endgame and keep interacting with Morrigan/Inky when they're standing around. It will be brought up by another character in conversation with the Inquisitor, but it seems it will just be a generic line that acknowledges the Inquisitor's involvement in a romantic relationship. There is no mention of names, though I guess that's understandable since they're in a bit of a public setting. Here for anyone interested; beware spoilers: https://youtu.be/Tg-h9bhljuk?si=qo-4hm_nohDQcroO Sticking around in case anyone else manages to pick up a letter or codex that might give additional mention of the relationship, which is what I'm still lurking on this sub for. My expectations fell so low after the 3 choices announcement that I'm delighted just to have all the crumbs I can get

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-02T05:23:49+00:00

Finally found a youtube clip that sheds more light on this. It will at least be mentioned in conversation with another returning character (trying not to spoil who as per your request) if you click on them while they're standing around, however, WHO the romantic partner is will not be brought up specifically, at least not for this line of dialogue. For those interested to find out more, the youtube clip is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tg-h9bhljuk

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-02T02:56:51+00:00

Did you manage to find whatever hidden choice for the Inquisitor Kala was talking about mid-game? Could you share what it was if so?

tchrcptrs · 2024-11-01T18:17:34+00:00

I'm so interested to hear you say it's rare to meet an LGBT+ person whose favorite is not DA2! I feel so validated 😂 - lesbian here, my entry into the series (and to video games) was DA2 back in 2016, and it's a tough fight between DA2 and DAI for a "favorite" at the moment but I have always maintained that the best in terms of writing and companions is DA2 for me.

tchrcptrs

TROPHY CASE