Mage (Origins)

Introduction:

 * A Mage is one of the three playable classes in Dragon Age: Origins.

A Mage is able to interact with the forces of magic, using different elemental powers. In order to qualify to be a mage, one must be either an elf or a human, and one will have to choose the Mage Origin Story. . While Dalish elves do have magic users in their tribes, all elf mages in DA:O are assumed to have come from an Alienage. Two Dragon Age: Origin Races can play as a Mage, Dwarves cannot play as a Mage, since they are unable to connect with The Fade and therefore are unable to control the forces of magic.

Mage - The Class:
As a class, mages focus on spells in order to deliver damage and debilitate their enemies, as well as support and heal their allies. One of the more unusual features of Dragon Age: Origins is the ability to use multiple spells in a row and achieve a "spell combo". For example, casting Grease, a spell which will cover the ground in a layer of slippery grease, and then casting Fireball onto the greased floor will result in the grease catching on fire, burning anybody caught in the area in a giant inferno. To put out the fire, Blizzard may be used.

The default weapon of mages is the staff and they can use any armor or weapon, provided they meet the minimum strength or dexterity requirement. Most staves deal "Spirit Damage", special damage that ignores armor and to which very few creatures are immune. Their rate of fire is slightly quicker than that of the bow and arrow, but the damage they deal is less, in order to accommodate this. Despite all this, it will still be possible for mages to use melee or other ranged weapons, but due to some of the later strength and dexterity requirements for some of the more powerful weapons, this will likely come at the cost of sacrificing points that could have been put into Magic, lessening the spellcasting power of the mage.

Mage Specializations

 * Shapeshifter


 * Morrigan can teach this specialization. In the Dalish Camp (Brecilian Forest), Verathorn sells the shapeshifting manual.


 * Blood Mage


 * This specialization can only be learned by making a deal with the Desire Demon in Redcliffe Castle.


 * Arcane Warrior


 * This specialization is learned by cooperating with a spirit trapped in a phylactery the Lower Ruins section of the Brecilian Ruins (Brecilian Forest).


 * Spirit Healer


 * It appears that Wynne will not teach Spirit Healing. Instead, a tome must be bought to learn the specialization.  After completing the corresponding quest, players with the Warden's Keep expansion can buy it from the vendor at Soldier's Peak.  Those without the expansion must purchase the tome at Wonders of Thedas, in the Market District of Denerim.

Mage Party Members:

 * Morrigan
 * Wynne

Notable Mages:

 * Irving
 * Severan
 * Uldred
 * Jowan

Mages in Thedas:
Most mages in Thedas belong to the Circle of Magi. As such, they are taken from their families while still children, and highborn children who are able to use magic will lose all claims to their family's estates and titles when they are taken to the Circle. This helps to create a bond stronger than social class or race, since everybody in the Circle is raised and taught the same way.

Some mages manage to escape the notice of the Chantry and the Circle, and grow up without the training that those who are taken from their families will have. Any mage not a part of the Circle is considered to be an apostate, and will be hunted by templars if discovered.

Some groups, such as the Dalish, are, for all intents and purposes, outside of the jurisdiction of the Chantry and the Circle, and will carry on their own magical traditions. A Dalish Keeper has considerably different training than a Circle Mage, as their tradition is supposedly based on the old elven magics. A Keeper typically has a First, the Dalish term for an apprentice.

Another example of an extra-traditional mage organization are the Witches of the Wilds, to which Flemeth and Morrigan belong.

In Thedas, magic is a natural phenomenon like air pressure, gravity, inertia, or anything else. Some people are born with the ability to interact, control, and shape it.

Magic originates from the Fade, the realm where Spirits dwell and humans and elves visit when they dream. As such, using it can draw the attention of the beings on the other side of the Veil, leading to an increased risk of demonic possession. A possessed mage becomes a distortion of their former self, a twisted monster known as an Abomination.

What a mage is able to do with magic in Thedas is somewhat limited when compared to other fantasy worlds, namely those used by Dungeons and Dragons. Interdimensional travel (discounting interaction with the Fade) and teleportation are non-existent, and the average person will rarely ever see any true example of magical power.

Mages are, however, capable of manipulating the basic elements, such as conjuring gouts of flame and small localized ice and electrical storms. There are also spells that allow for the temporary reanimation of corpses and the draining of an opponent's life-force.

Forbidden Magic:
Some uses of magic are strictly forbidden by the Chantry, and, by extension, the Circle. Blood Magic, an offshoot of magical abilities that allow for things like using life-energy to power one's spells and the ability to penetrate the very mind of an enemy, is one example. While not particularly "evil" in their own right, the Circle has adopted a strict no-tolerance policy on the use of these abilities, to protect non-mages from their abuse, and mages from the fear generated by the common use of such powers. It has also been hinted that demons have something to do with the use of these spells, but for now such information remains unavailable.

Talents:
There are four different specialization of Mage Shapeshifter, Spirit Healer, Arcane Warrior, and Blood Mage.

Tree:
See spells.