Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening



"'For centuries, the Grey Wardens—the ancient order of guardians, sworn to unite and defend the lands—have been battling the darkspawn forces. Legend spoke that slaying the Archdemon would have put an end to the darkspawn threat for centuries to come, but somehow they remain.'"

Dragon Age: Origins – Awakening is the first expansion for Dragon Age: Origins. It was released for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 on March 16 in the US, March 18 in Europe, and March 19 in the UK. There are both retail disc and downloadable editions available. However, the PS3 version will not be available at retail in the UK and can only be acquired via the Playstation network.

The writing team on Awakening consists of David Gaider, Sheryl Chee, and Ferret A. Baudoin.

Overview
The events of Awakening begin six months after the conclusion of Dragon Age: Origins. The player takes on the role of a Grey Warden commander, who is either an imported character from Origins or a new Warden from Orlais. The Orlesian Warden is treated differently because of the history between Orlais and Ferelden—and because an imported Warden will be renowned to begin with, having killed an archdemon almost single-handedly in Origins.

While rebuilding the Grey Wardens and establishing Vigil's Keep, a fortress given to the Grey Wardens at the end of Origins, as a new base of operations, the Warden is faced with a new challenge. It is revealed that despite the defeat of the archdemon, the darkspawn have not returned underground and a new variety of sapient, speaking darkspawn have been discovered. Two entities, named The Architect and The Mother, appear to be involved and the Warden may have to deal with them. Once this mission is complete, the world will have changed dramatically.

Origins Characters Reappearing in Awakening

 * Herren and Wade will return to sell new goods. Wade will craft special items for the Warden if provided new "fantastical" materials such as eldest dragonbone, heartwood, and golem shell. After finding such materials, Wade will announce a list of further materials he needs to construct the special items.


 * Alistair, Wynne, Loghain, and Anora can make an appearance depending on the Warden's choices in Origins. Wynne is a side quest giver found in Amaranthine near the local chantry.


 * Oghren is involved regardless of the Warden's choices. He will start at 0 approval regardless of his interactions with the Warden in Origins, and gifts given to him in Awakening continue to receive diminishing returns if the Warden has given him gifts in Origins.

New Companions

 * Anders is a human mage who has escaped the Circle of Magi seven times, but always seems to get caught. The templar woman in an Awakening trailer claims that Anders is a murderer and is not to be trusted. She blames him for the death of the templars that were guarding him at Vigil's Keep when the darkspawn attacked.


 * Velanna is an elven mage of a rather unknown and questionable origin, as seen in her very short trailer. She is aggressive and has the ability to animate the trees (which are similar to sylvans). According to the trailer, she is hunting the merchants who took her sister, and attacks the Warden for killing her "friends" (meaning some Dalish elves she is traveling with). Who her sister is and why they took her is unknown. She is found in the Wending Woods.


 * Sigrun is a dwarven rogue who is a member of the Legion of the Dead. She fought the darkspawn with her group in the Deep Roads and is the last survivor. Also, she thinks that something odd is happening in the fortress of Kal'Hirol.


 * Mhairi is a female human warrior who admires the two Wardens who defeated the archdemon "single-handedly" and jumps at the opportunity to help rebuild the order. Mhairi is a Grey Warden prospect who has not undertaken the Joining.


 * Nathaniel Howe is a rogue and the son of Arl Rendon Howe. He is found in Vigil's Keep dungeon.


 * Justice is a warrior and a noble spirit from the Fade, bound to the body of a dead Grey Warden. He is found in the Blackmarsh.

New Locations

 * Amaranthine: Rendon Howe's previous property estate, with lots of fishing going on.
 * Blackmarsh: Former bustling village abandoned into a gloomy, desolate marsh. The Veil is thin and torn here.
 * Kal'Hirol: The dwarven fortress long known as a center of learning for the smith caste.
 * Knotwood Hills: An area of inhospitable and barren hills to the west of Amaranthine.
 * Vigil's Keep: An ancient fortress in Amaranthine. Base of operations for the Grey Wardens.
 * Wending Woods: Forest area divided by Pilgrim's Path, leading to Amaranthine.
 * Dragon Bone Wastes: Wasteland where dragons go to die and the Tevinter Imperium attempts to harvest greater power from their remains. The area of Drake's Fall lies here.

New Creatures

 * Charred Sylvan
 * Blighted Werewolf
 * Armored Ogre
 * Inferno Golem
 * The Children
 * The Disciples
 * The Withered
 * The First
 * The Lost
 * The Herald
 * The Mother
 * The Architect
 * Queen of the Blackmarsh
 * Baroness

New Skills

 * Runecrafting
 * Vitality
 * Clarity

Random Encounters
Random Encounters

Main Plot Quests

 * The Awakening (Quest)
 * The Righteous Path
 * Last of the Legion
 * Shadows of the Blackmarsh
 * The Assault on Amaranthine
 * The Siege of Vigil's Keep
 * Depths of Depravity

Differences Between Origins and Awakening

 * Characters sometimes approve/disapprove of actions even when they are not present. (Unsure if this is a bug)
 * There will be no romance options in Awakening.
 * There are 2 new tiers of material. Heavy Armor gains White Steel (Tier 8) and Volcanic Aurum (Tier 9), Light Armor gains Dragonwing (Tier 8) and High Dragon Hide (Tier 9), and Wood gains Vhenadahl (Tier 8) and Ancestral Heartwood (Tier 9).
 * Merchants are not likely to have high-end Runes (like Masterpiece or Grandmaster) in stock, most sell the low to medium-end Runes and the crafting materials. This way you will be able to craft your own runes and use them on armor or weapons. Runes that are in stock cost significantly less than in Origins.
 * You will have the ability to re-spec your character without losing plot decisions made in Origins through an unlimited amount of Manual of Focus tomes, sold for 6 each.
 * Most promotional and DLC items will not transfer into Awakening. However, items received during Return to Ostagar and the Memory Band will transfer. (So make sure you have non-promotional equipment on or else you start out in your small clothes.) (Most/Some)Items from The Stone Prisoner will transfer also (Dead Thaig Shanker, Cadash Stompers, Harvest Festival Ring) [Though not on the PS3. If these items are worn when importing your Origins Character, their stats get absorbed into the characters stats-permanently; eg their bonus's, fatigue rating, etc].
 * All Power of Blood abilities from the Warden's Keep DLC can no longer be used in Awakening, although the icon still shows.


 * Characters approvals from The Origins will not be translated into The Awakening. Everyone (including Oghren) will start at 0 approval. (ref: I received Awakening today @ Bioware forums)
 * The Origins characters who used Character Respecialization Mod can be imported to The Awakening without any issues.
 * Oghren will meet you with his new Legion of the Dead gear, set with a magical weapon. (So be sure to strip him out prior to The Awakening)
 * Inside the Throne Room in Vigil's Keep (to the right after entering the room) there is a personal chest where you can store all of your items.
 * You level up and gain money at a much faster rate in Awakening compared to Origins
 * A higher level cap of 35.
 * All characters, with the exception of Justice, The Warden can recruit can be put through The Joining and made Wardens. This is logical since Kristoff has already done the Joining. (Only possible if the Blackmarsh is the last main quest completed)
 * Crafting cannot be exploited nearly as easily to make money, due to increased prices of crafting materials. This is offset by the large amounts of money received during normal gameplay, however.

Importing an Origins Warden versus creating an Orlesian Warden

 * People of Amaranthine will treat a Ferelden Warden with respect, as opposed to suspicion towards an Orlesian Warden.
 * An imported Warden appears to tier all companions to his/her level also.
 * An imported Warden will only be imported with the weapons and armor that the Warden had equipped with when imported, but will have all unassigned accesories and all basic items. Your companions equipment will be lost unless you unequip them and keep them as unassign accesories in your inventory.
 * New Wardens do not benefit from the stat or talent gains garnered from Lost in Dreams or increases from tomes.
 * Importing a Warden equipped with any of the gear from Soldier's Pass, or any of the DLC released before Awakening, will appear "naked" with all of those items removed from the game. However the stats of those items, like fatigue or health, are still present on your character.
 * (PC) Importing a warden while having mods installed that no longer work properly in Awakenings will result in some enemies not spawning. This will cause the first level not being able to complete since not all of the enemies had been killed. A list of mods that do work in Awakenings can be found here: Bioware Social Network - Post Your Mods That Work with Awakening