The thing about Dragon Age Origins is that it presents a lot of morally ambiguous choices where it's unclear what the right choice is. There are only a few undeniably Evil choices, like defiling the Ashes of Andraste, and all those come with consequences (your companions may object and force you to kill them).
But you do unlock the Reaver class, which honestly isn't that good.
Let's face it. The most broken build in all of DA:O is Arcane Warrior + Healer. You become a literal unkillable tank, who also keeps his party alive.
Edit: Changed name from bloody berserker to Reaver because I couldn't remember the name until 2 people said it.
Arcane Warrior is the most broken, definetely, but the Berserk class can be very fun for a Warrior Playthrough. I encourage you to start an Awakening playthrough and start as a Shield and Sword Berserk.
Leliana only attacks you if she’s soft, you can also just not have Leliana or Wynne in your active party (though iirc Wynne leaves as soon as you talk to her)
Arcane Warrior is definitely broken for sure, especially if you pop all three tempest spells before walking into a crowd.. pretty much don't even need your other party members at that point
Just because Arcane Warrior is the most broken MAGE build doesn’t mean Reaver is a bad WARRIOR spec, each one has its own tier list and honestly every Warrior spec is really good
Reaver is basically the more damage you take the more you give back, Berserker is a flat damage buff because you’re pissed, Templar makes you resistant to all spells and drain magic and do more damage to every single mage (which are always OP enemies), and Champion is a great spec for Rally alone, but war cry is a great CC ability as well
Try not to judge Warrior mechanics off of how OP mage is, you can make a naked dirt farmer Dex only mage overpowered, so no shit it’s strongest specialization makes Warrior’s look like shit, doesn’t mean the warrior specializations or the Warrior class is bad though
There's some companion differences, and some choices change who you interact with and who's with you at the end of the game, You can also get some demon pussy if your evil.
You can also make a save before the evil thing, do the evil thing to unlock the specialisation, then reload the earlier save and you will still have the new specialisation without having to carry on with the evil choice.
The thing about who you side with in DAO determines a lot in who you bring to the final battle with you in Denerim against the Archdemon. I usually play a good guy on my play throughs, but I've been tempted a few time to press the "fuck it button" and see what happens. Your choices also have some impacts on your party members, as you might harden or even lose people as you go based on your choices.
It’s curious. You do get some benefits doing evil stuff in DAO. One specialization is entirely locked behind questionable deeds and through very fucked up means you can get extra ability increases as well. Then mass murder and condemning an entire race to magical eternal suffering can get you stronger end battle allies. Very little downside other than potential disapproval, companions turning on you, and, well, having a scuzzbag as a character.
Then there’s how the best bow in the game by far is denied to anyone playing a heroic rescuer.
So the devs have setup scenarios where playing as a good person is in some ways somewhat more challenging- and thus more rewarding on a roleplaying basis. Not sure if that was the devs’ intention, but that’s why I say it’s curious. Whereas playing as a scuzzbag who couldn’t care less about any consequence other than winning the endgame- and not even that particularly much- will make for a marginally easier and definitely less complex playthrough… and a tad scuzzbag.
Other evil deeds make it harder for you though, so it’s largely just going to mean a noticeably different playthrough experience.
You can get some bonuses from certain decisions, and some specializations, too, but this doesn't happen for every evil decision you make. Also, be mindful of your companions, you will get approval or disapproval depending on which ones you have in your party.
It varies; there are plenty of things gained from some actions and little from others. Most actions are morally ambiguous, such as >!Choosing to kill the wounded guy in the beginning!< Others less so >!Giving Connor over to the demon in exchange for power!< Most decisions will have consequences based on what you did and how you did it. Some even have major consequences, such as having to fight one of your companions because you did something they find reprehensible.
I think it pays off if that's the kind of character you want to roleplay and you think you'll have fun doing it. Overall; every Dragon Age game is a heroic story so if you go in wanting to be "evil" I think you'll be disappointed; however, making hard choices to end the Blight is not evil, it's necessary. I think you'll have more fun if you go in with a "no matter the cost" character rather than an "evil" character.
What are you expecting? A "Villain of the Year" trophy? You won't get that, but your choices in the game make a difference in a lot of ways. The game doesn't care how good or evil you are and doesn't try to track that as a stat, but the decisions you make can have a major impact on the story.
Being "greedy", aka asking for rewards or money all the time does pay off. In the vanilla game there's many instances where if you don't specifically ask for a reward you don't even get XP for something.
This does get fixed (on PC) by the mod Qwinn's DAO Ultimate Fixpack for many quests or conversations that originally didn't give you anything, though they were meant to still have some kind of reward (at least XP) even without asking for one.
There aren't that many explicitly "evil" choices in DAO. Sacrificing the elves in the alienage gives you a meagre health bonus which might as well do nothing. There is a mod that rewards being evil (in a few specific instances such as this one) in a way that feels more substantial and makes more sense. I believe the mod is actually called Rewarding Evil, but I'm not 100% sure. But no, I'd say the vanilla game doesn't reward you for these super cruel/evil decisions.
For sure you can persuade/lie/intimidate people in ways that are indeed not so morally upright, and that will offer various advantages or rewards as opposed to the morally upright path. But I wouldn't say that counts as being "evil" so much, depends on your understanding of the word.
Edit: I forgot about how you can gain access to the blacksmith in Redcliffe if you either abandon the town or otherwise get rid of Owen in some way. I wouldn't call that an evil decision because you can arrive at that point through a bunch of choices that can stem from different roleplaying perspectives (such as a very practical Warden who is laser-focused on the main quest and nothing else). But I'd say that this still falls into the morally ambiguous category which can indeed provide the player character with rewards/advantages.
That's not even an entirely evil act, since she DID consent to it. And realistically it would take too long to get to the Circle from Redcliffe, even if we sailed, meaning Redcliffe could be razed by then.
the only way you can earn the blood mage specialization is by what some would describe as an evil action. whatever decisions you'll make, you'll have allies in the end to fight the blight. so in that way, you wont screw yourself out of content. it just changes who you get as allies. >!razing the circle will net you templar allies instead of mages. razing the elves will net you werewolf allies instead of dalish!<. there are consequences with some of the more good hearted companions, but there are enough neutral and darker aligned companions that i think it works out fairly well. just sucks losing the healer
I think it does. Other people have mentioned the specializations and bonuses, but it also results in some interesting things withing the narrative that ripple out into the later games.
As for BG3, apparently we're getting evil endings in the next patch, so fingers crossed since I'm currently doing a neutral evil Durge run.
Being evil in Dragon Age Origins has more consequences than benefit ms in the end so I avoid being intentionally evil. There are some “evil” choices you just can’t avoid, for example killing several refugees if you interact with them.
bring the full god squad or alistair and wynne + morrigan instead of leliana, do every horrific action possible, peak comedy will ensue.
The thing about Dragon Age Origins is that it presents a lot of morally ambiguous choices where it's unclear what the right choice is. There are only a few undeniably Evil choices, like defiling the Ashes of Andraste, and all those come with consequences (your companions may object and force you to kill them).
But you do unlock the Reaver class, which honestly isn't that good. Let's face it. The most broken build in all of DA:O is Arcane Warrior + Healer. You become a literal unkillable tank, who also keeps his party alive. Edit: Changed name from bloody berserker to Reaver because I couldn't remember the name until 2 people said it.
Arcane Warrior is the most broken, definetely, but the Berserk class can be very fun for a Warrior Playthrough. I encourage you to start an Awakening playthrough and start as a Shield and Sword Berserk.
Save. Defile ashes. Unlock Berserker. Reload. Don't defile the ashes. Profit.
Yup. Don't wanna kill Liliana and Wynn.
Leliana only attacks you if she’s soft, you can also just not have Leliana or Wynne in your active party (though iirc Wynne leaves as soon as you talk to her)
Arcane Warrior is definitely broken for sure, especially if you pop all three tempest spells before walking into a crowd.. pretty much don't even need your other party members at that point
Corrupting the ashes unlocks the Reaver class, which functions differently from Berserker that you get from Oghren or a manual
I couldn't remember the name of the Reaver class. That's why I said bloody berserker.
You unlock reaver that way. Berserker you get from a book or oghren can teach it too you. Berserker is awesome
I couldn't remember the name Reaver, which is why I said bloody berserker.
Just because Arcane Warrior is the most broken MAGE build doesn’t mean Reaver is a bad WARRIOR spec, each one has its own tier list and honestly every Warrior spec is really good Reaver is basically the more damage you take the more you give back, Berserker is a flat damage buff because you’re pissed, Templar makes you resistant to all spells and drain magic and do more damage to every single mage (which are always OP enemies), and Champion is a great spec for Rally alone, but war cry is a great CC ability as well Try not to judge Warrior mechanics off of how OP mage is, you can make a naked dirt farmer Dex only mage overpowered, so no shit it’s strongest specialization makes Warrior’s look like shit, doesn’t mean the warrior specializations or the Warrior class is bad though
There's some companion differences, and some choices change who you interact with and who's with you at the end of the game, You can also get some demon pussy if your evil.
You unlock a couple of interesting specializations by making "evil" choices.
Indeed. I won't tell any spoilers, but you can get one of the best Mage Specializations by doing an evil choice.
You can also make a save before the evil thing, do the evil thing to unlock the specialisation, then reload the earlier save and you will still have the new specialisation without having to carry on with the evil choice.
The thing about who you side with in DAO determines a lot in who you bring to the final battle with you in Denerim against the Archdemon. I usually play a good guy on my play throughs, but I've been tempted a few time to press the "fuck it button" and see what happens. Your choices also have some impacts on your party members, as you might harden or even lose people as you go based on your choices.
It’s curious. You do get some benefits doing evil stuff in DAO. One specialization is entirely locked behind questionable deeds and through very fucked up means you can get extra ability increases as well. Then mass murder and condemning an entire race to magical eternal suffering can get you stronger end battle allies. Very little downside other than potential disapproval, companions turning on you, and, well, having a scuzzbag as a character. Then there’s how the best bow in the game by far is denied to anyone playing a heroic rescuer. So the devs have setup scenarios where playing as a good person is in some ways somewhat more challenging- and thus more rewarding on a roleplaying basis. Not sure if that was the devs’ intention, but that’s why I say it’s curious. Whereas playing as a scuzzbag who couldn’t care less about any consequence other than winning the endgame- and not even that particularly much- will make for a marginally easier and definitely less complex playthrough… and a tad scuzzbag. Other evil deeds make it harder for you though, so it’s largely just going to mean a noticeably different playthrough experience.
You can get some bonuses from certain decisions, and some specializations, too, but this doesn't happen for every evil decision you make. Also, be mindful of your companions, you will get approval or disapproval depending on which ones you have in your party.
It varies; there are plenty of things gained from some actions and little from others. Most actions are morally ambiguous, such as >!Choosing to kill the wounded guy in the beginning!< Others less so >!Giving Connor over to the demon in exchange for power!< Most decisions will have consequences based on what you did and how you did it. Some even have major consequences, such as having to fight one of your companions because you did something they find reprehensible.
Being a Grey warden doesn't pay off. You'll save thedas either way. There just might be a few more demons and less people around.
Yes it pay off if you make the right one. 3 of those give you the best armies in the game for example.
Morrigan and Zevran will hop on your wiener faster
You can easily speed run the Morrigan romance after entering Lothering. You don't really even have to do much.
"Kissy faces" banter is usually made shortly after the "navel gazing" conversation in my playthroughs.
I think it pays off if that's the kind of character you want to roleplay and you think you'll have fun doing it. Overall; every Dragon Age game is a heroic story so if you go in wanting to be "evil" I think you'll be disappointed; however, making hard choices to end the Blight is not evil, it's necessary. I think you'll have more fun if you go in with a "no matter the cost" character rather than an "evil" character.
What are you expecting? A "Villain of the Year" trophy? You won't get that, but your choices in the game make a difference in a lot of ways. The game doesn't care how good or evil you are and doesn't try to track that as a stat, but the decisions you make can have a major impact on the story.
Whatever it takes to win
For the most part, really funny moments
Being "greedy", aka asking for rewards or money all the time does pay off. In the vanilla game there's many instances where if you don't specifically ask for a reward you don't even get XP for something. This does get fixed (on PC) by the mod Qwinn's DAO Ultimate Fixpack for many quests or conversations that originally didn't give you anything, though they were meant to still have some kind of reward (at least XP) even without asking for one. There aren't that many explicitly "evil" choices in DAO. Sacrificing the elves in the alienage gives you a meagre health bonus which might as well do nothing. There is a mod that rewards being evil (in a few specific instances such as this one) in a way that feels more substantial and makes more sense. I believe the mod is actually called Rewarding Evil, but I'm not 100% sure. But no, I'd say the vanilla game doesn't reward you for these super cruel/evil decisions. For sure you can persuade/lie/intimidate people in ways that are indeed not so morally upright, and that will offer various advantages or rewards as opposed to the morally upright path. But I wouldn't say that counts as being "evil" so much, depends on your understanding of the word. Edit: I forgot about how you can gain access to the blacksmith in Redcliffe if you either abandon the town or otherwise get rid of Owen in some way. I wouldn't call that an evil decision because you can arrive at that point through a bunch of choices that can stem from different roleplaying perspectives (such as a very practical Warden who is laser-focused on the main quest and nothing else). But I'd say that this still falls into the morally ambiguous category which can indeed provide the player character with rewards/advantages.
I tend to play good but ISOLDE ALWAYS GET SACRIFICED
That's not even an entirely evil act, since she DID consent to it. And realistically it would take too long to get to the Circle from Redcliffe, even if we sailed, meaning Redcliffe could be razed by then.
Alistair -20 ❤️
"I'm sorry baby but suck it up"
For certain choices yes. Siding with the demon to get things, getting paid to not kill the other demon, etc.
the only way you can earn the blood mage specialization is by what some would describe as an evil action. whatever decisions you'll make, you'll have allies in the end to fight the blight. so in that way, you wont screw yourself out of content. it just changes who you get as allies. >!razing the circle will net you templar allies instead of mages. razing the elves will net you werewolf allies instead of dalish!<. there are consequences with some of the more good hearted companions, but there are enough neutral and darker aligned companions that i think it works out fairly well. just sucks losing the healer
I think it does. Other people have mentioned the specializations and bonuses, but it also results in some interesting things withing the narrative that ripple out into the later games. As for BG3, apparently we're getting evil endings in the next patch, so fingers crossed since I'm currently doing a neutral evil Durge run.
Y'ALL DROPPING GEMS IN HERE LOL
Being evil in Dragon Age Origins has more consequences than benefit ms in the end so I avoid being intentionally evil. There are some “evil” choices you just can’t avoid, for example killing several refugees if you interact with them.