Quote Originally Posted by Zevox View Post
Then explain the half-Elven boy. Or Bethany. Or Merril. Or the escaped Mage you track to the tavern in act 3. Or the mages you help in Anders' companion quest in act 2. Or Marethari.

Really, that criticism grows out of nothing more than the increased use of mages as enemies in DA2, which is likely precisely because of the Mage-Templar conflict being central to it (there's an increased use of Templars as enemies compared to Origins too, after all), and the tendency to make enemy mages blood mages (which is present in both games).

In general, I simply do not agree that mages were poorly written in DA2, nor that DA:O portrays the conflict better. The difference is that tensions between the two factions are worse in Kirkwall than in Ferelden - the Templars are more oppressive and the mages more desperate right from the start, and it only gets worse. Naturally, this leads to more trouble and less peaceful co-existence on both sides, eventually leading the third act of the game to play out as it does.

The only real issue I take with the game in this area is that Orsino should not have gone wild on you in the finale if you sided with the mages. That one doesn't make sense from that perspective. Beyond that, I say "well done, Bioware."
Merrill IS a blood mage. My Hawke never trusted her. Bethany was the best character in the game, IMHO, followed by Mr Exposition.

I just don't agree... The whole "who to support" thing gets ruined fairly quickly because they push all these abominations on you all the time. Basically, you have to do a story and gameplay separation in your head or you would never side with the mages, period, simply because the game, by utilizing these enemies and idiot-ball confrontations, does a show-and-tell that proves that all mages should be purged at birth, just to be sure (it doesn't matter if you try to help them, or talk to them, they "all" (99% of them) attack and use blood magic or turn into abominations after you have talked to them, or during, or attack you on sight).

The ONLY reason my Hawke stuck with siding with the mages (until my rage quit) was because Bethany was a mage.

Basically, to sum it up neatly, when playing DA2 I feel it like the writers are standing behind my back pointing and laughing at me: "Haha he tries to make a difference! How stupid and naive he is! Oh look! eveything he worked for went down the drain...! hahaha!!!"/