A Paragon of Her Kind

"You don't need a king to face a Blight. You need a Paragon!"

- Oghren

A Paragon of Her Kind is one of the main plotline quests in Dragon Age: Origins. It is started by talking with Alistair after the introductory quests and it takes place around Orzammar, and within the Deep Roads themselves. The Paragon Branka must be found in order to determine the next king of Orzammar.

Entering Orzammar
Entering the Frostback Mountains, the Warden will have to run for a distance before crossing a stone bridge before coming upon a large artificial circle with several stone pylons. There will be a group of bounty hunters waiting, who should not be underestimated. Past this, farther to the north, is the entrance to Orzammar - upon approaching it, a cutscene will play wherein an emissary of Loghain Mac Tir is being refused entry to Orzammar. In the end, two options are available:
 * Fight the emissary and his lackeys, or
 * Intimidate him, at which point he and his lackeys depart without any combat

Either choice results in entry to Orzammar via the Orzammar Hall of Heroes.

The Hall of Heroes has several Codex entries to be found, from the obvious stone statues to the less obvious Council edict involved in The Key to the City quest. There are also some conversations to be overheard which provide some insight into the recent happenings of Orzammar. At the other end of the hall is a door, which leads to the Orzammar Commons.

A cutscene will play after entering the Commons, showing that all is not well within the city - and, in particular, highlighting a dispute between Prince Bhelen Aeducan and Lord Pyral Harrowmont over who will be crowned the next King. When the cutscene is finished playing, the Captain of the Guard can be an initial source of extra information.

At this point, the next quest is to find Steward Bandelor, who is located in the Assembly located at Orzammar Diamond Quarter. After finding the steward, another cutscene will play, further demonstrating the political fissure which exists in Orzammar.

If the Warden is from the Dwarf Commoner Origin, his/her sister Rica will greet you upon entering the Diamond Quarter and show you to Vartag Gavorn.

Choosing sides: Harrowmont or Bhelen
The Warden must take sides in the struggle to see who will become king, either Lord Pyral Harrowmont or Prince Bhelen Aeducan. There are opportunities to change sides and undermine the strategies of the candidate that the Warden supports. Regardless of who is supported early on, after completing the Anvil of the Void, there will be one last opportunity to decide.

The candidates are too mistrustful to meet with the Warden initially, therefore the Warden deals with their lieutenants in lieu. Each will ask the Warden to perform an initial task to prove their loyalty. After throwing support to one candidate, it is possible to return to the opponent's lieutenant and offer to side with them. After passing the initial task, the Warden must meet with the candidate and agree to another favor. Despite all the Warden's efforts, neither party is ready to risk a vote without the support of a Paragon. This next task from either candidate is to venture into the Deep Roads.

The two lieutenants are found in the Diamond Quarter:
 * Vartag Gavorn, first found in the Chamber of the Assembly. The Warden can speak to him either before or after watching the legislators in action.
 * Dulin Forender, first found in Harrowmont's Estate.

The Shaperate is located in the Diamond Quarter, and here the Warden can review the validity of documents that Bhelen has provided, find out information about Orzammar politics and pick up a couple of sidequests.

Comparing candidates
Whoever is put on the throne will determine the ultimate fate of Orzammar, as reported in the Epilogue following the end of the Blight. Speaking to the inhabitants of Orzammar can give some indication of the nature of the two candidates.


 * Harrowmont is more conservative, appears to have weaker Assembly support, and appears to be the more well-meaning of the two. He does not believe in equality, or trade with the surface world. His stance is one of stubborn tradition, and isolationism.
 * His quests result in more experience and cash rewards, mostly because of the quests in The Proving.


 * Bhelen is ruthless, authoritarian, and his Aeducan name carries greater weight with the legislators. Bhelen challenges the traditions of his people by promising greater trade with the surface and abolishment of the caste system. He is the most popular candidate amongst the casteless, and merchant class.
 * Siding with Bhelen allows you to reach Aeducan Thaig (and the helmet Duty) slightly sooner and avoid the series of fights in The Proving. You can still fight in The Proving for Bhelen but you have to go on your own. You won't receive a quest to support him in the proving or any quest while in the proving.

Prince Bhelen


Vartag will want the Warden to expose a real-estate deal that is causing two people to vote against the Prince.
 * Lord Helmi can be found in Tapster's (Commons). Having a pulse is enough to convince him of the truth.
 * Lady Dace waits outside her estate in the Diamond Quarter. Despite the evidence, she cannot ask her house to change sides unless her father, Lord Anwer Dace, agrees. Find him in Aeducan Thaig in the Deep Roads.
 * This also grants access to the previously blocked area.
 * Upon informing Lord Dace of Harrowmont's betrayal he will offer the party a surface merchant discount (however, this appears to apply only to Gorim).

At this point, the quest lines of the two candidates converge.

Lord Harrowmont


Dulin will ask The Warden to fight as Harrowmont's champion in The Proving. The grounds are located in the Commons. There are two sidequests to accomplish while there:


 * Baizyl is a warrior being blackmailed into walking away from a fight due to some sensitive love letters. Recover them from the east wing of the area and return them.
 * Gwiddon is ambivalent. A little Coercion sets him straight.

Next, the Warden must win a series of combats in the Proving. You can choose to fight with a partner in the initial battle; the final challenge will include the full party or the two abovementioned dwarves. After completing the Proving, head back to Tapster's and speak with Dulin.

At this point, the quest lines of the two candidates converge.

The Carta


The second request from both candidates will be to deal with Jarvia and her Carta, and all roads lead to Dust Town.

At this point, gaining access to the hideout can be accomplished by two ways; a little sleuthing, or a little luck.

First, the luck: when traversing the Commons, several suspected Carta members may be witnessed accosting the owner of a local business, Figor. After a brief altercation, Figor and his friends will retreat inside the shop, at which point, they can be followed. A dialogue will ensue, where if the Warden is skilled enough, intimidation may be used to avoid a fight and gain information; alternatively, a fight will ensue and a "bone key" will be retrieved. However, fighting will cause Figor to run away and he will not return for the rest of the game. Of note, Figor sells a remarkable gem which can be given as a gift to Shale and unlimited flasks for only 1 silver.

The second option is to ask around Dust Town itself. To gain access to the hideout this way, speak with Nadezda by the fire facing the 'Suspicious Door' in Dust Town. The 'bone key' that is needed can then be found by traveling to the 'Slums House', where a carta member and his thugs will attack the Warden. The key is located here.

The hideout itself can be found at the northern end of Dust Town in the same area as the second option above - a door, labeled as 'Suspicious Door.'

Once inside, there is little choice except to battle all the way to Jarvia. Along the way, several boxes will be encountered of particular interest (see Jammer's Stash for more details).

Once Jarvia and company have been dealt with, return to the appropriate representative to progress the quest. There is a bug where none of the finger bone tokens appear on neither the guy in Figor's Imports or the other men in dust town.

Entering the Deep Roads
The third request from both candidates will be to sally forth into the Deep Roads, find a missing Paragon named Branka, and ultimately discover a lost relic of the dwarves used to create golems - the Anvil of the Void. The entrance to the Roads is in the Commons, past the entrance to the Diamond Quarter - after getting close enough to the entrance, dialogue will be initiated by a firehaired dwarf named Oghren who will explain his involvement with the missing Paragon. Choosing to put him in your party at this point is entirely optional (Oghren will comment on progression through cut-scenes). Completing this quest involves battling through several locations in the Roads, in the following order: (optional) - This area can be cleared regardless of who the Warden supports, supporting Bhelen just gives access to it earlier.

As the Roads are being explored, be wary after reaching the Dead Trenches location. Two "special" darkspawn are known to inhabit the area: the Ancient Darkspawn and the Genlock Master Forger. Details for each are as follows:
 * Ancient Darkspawn: Make sure you have enough health poultices and, if possible, Wynne in your group on this trip. She's an excellent healer, the best in the game, and the Ancient Darkspawn can flatten an unprepared group really quickly. As with most special creatures, the Ancient Darkspawn will have a unique weapon and/or piece of armour on him. He will also have a portion of the Topsider's Blade, but only spawns if you have the quest, An Admirable Topsider, active in your Codex; i.e. you have to have clicked the Warrior's grave in Ortan Thaig or collected the Topsiders Pommel from the vase in Ruck's area.
 * Genlock Forge Master: This Genlock is a serious hazard if the Warden runs into him unprepared. He is surrounded by numerous darkspawn both melee and bow users. He himself can use a bow and has very heavy hitting attacks. He will use a bow until a character actually approaches. The Forge Master will drop a unique weapon, his maul when he is defeated.

Caridin's Cross
Upon entering, if Oghren is present in the party, there will be a short dialogue sequence with him. If you suggest that Branka and everyone else may be dead,. It is advisable to clear the area completely, although it is not necessary. The southernmost exit leads to Ortan Thaig; it doesn't matter what path is taken to get there. Note that the Darkspawn Emissaries here are one of the few monsters who use the spell Curse of Mortality.

During this part of the Deep Roads, the branches off the main road contain the last two bloody sacks for the quest Asunder. The torso is in a bag in the southeast cavern. The head is in the deepstalker clearing. The first of the three is the bag of limbs and it is in the first darkspawn clearing in the Aeducan Thaig.

Once all three components have been obtained, seek out the Altar of Sundering in the Ortan Thaig and place the body parts on the altar.

Ortan Thaig


Upon entering, Oghren will make a few more comments. It is advisable to clear the area completely, although it is not necessary. The important thing is Branka's Journal, found in the large open area to the north. It is surrounded by spiders, including the Spider Queen, all of which need to be cleared first in order to access the diary safely. The Spider Queen will retreat to the ceiling after taking a certain amount of damage, and will summon more spiders throughout the fight. As with all spiders, she has the ability to trap enemies in her web, so fighting from afar may be advisable. Exiting through the north after having read Branka's Journal should take you to The Dead Trenches.

Although it's not necessary to speak to him, Ruck can be found in the large open area with the two bridges. You will almost definitely run into him on the way to Branka's Journal. He will accuse the Warden of coming to steal his items, and soon scurries off. Follow him to learn a bit about Branka, and to complete the quest A Mother's Hope. If you are nice to him he will also become a vendor for you, an excellent opportunity to reduce a near-full inventory as you continue on further on.

In the immediate vicinity on the other side of a wall is the altar for completing Asunder. The body parts found in Caridin's Cross and Aeducan Thaig can be used here to summon the Fade Beast with the appearance of a Pride Demon. The beast will ask the Warden if he/she is there for revenge (to kill him) or for reward (to set him free). If the Warden chooses to fight, dropped loot may include a breastplate or frost sword, or possibly nothing. If the Warden allows the demon to leave, it will reward the Warden with 25 50. Crossing either bridge from the area with Ruck's cave leads the Warden to a spider lair area

Spider Queen Strategy
At the spider's lair, just outside, will be two darkspawn emissaries, one on the left side of the large cavern and one on the right. You can attack each individually (the right-hand one will have a couple of spiders for help). Make sure to destroy both groups or they will become involved in the challenging boss fight to come. When ready, step into the spider lair.

The Corrupted Spider Queen will appear along with a few minions (or she may appear when attacking the Emissary on the right-hand side, so be ready for that) - if you're quick it is possible to pull the spider queen on her own without the minions following (set to Hold mode and get everyone except your tank to stay where they are outside of the lair, then use your tank to grab her attention). It just makes it a bit easier if you can. Once the queen comes for you, one of the first things she'll do is target party members with lowest max HP and hit them with poison spit, so try and grab her attention again with your tank ASAP. If you have nature salves it's worth having your low HP characters use them as the spit will quickly drain their health. The queen has an annoying tendency to attack your spirit healer, even if she's furthest back, so be prepared for that.

Every time you reduce her hitpoints by twenty-five percent the queen will cast a long-lasting Web at your entire party (freezing them) and withdraw back to her lair. Try not to follow her as it'll draw more of her minions to you. It's worth killing the minions first as they'll keep using Overwhelm to interrupt your attack on the queen (and do some nasty damage). I found attacking with two melee at the right-hand entrance to the lair in Hold mode, keeping my archer and spirit healer well back inside the large cavern and using the tank to pull as few minions as possible worked well. If you do it just right the queen will actually disengage you each time she retreats, giving you a chance to save your game. Just keep whittling at her HP and fending off her minions while keeping the HP of your weakest characters up (watch their health carefully) and you will win eventually. This is easily the hardest boss battle so far of the four treaty questlines so don't feel bad if you die a few times!

Another easier way to overcome this boss is by using the combination of Force Field and Crushing Prison on the spider queen. Whenever she has summoned her minions and droped down from ceiling to attack, cast either Force Field or Crushing Prison to disable and prevent her from using her Poison Spit while you clear her minion. Without her stacking poison spit, the queen is a pushover. After clearing out her minions, use the standard melee tank plus range plus backstab tactics to chip away her health bar. If she starts to Overwhelm a party member, just cast Force Field on that particular member or Cone of Cold both of them to interrupt her attack. The only downside of this tactic is that you need two mages with considerably high level.

An alternate strategy is to avoid the wide open spaces and take advantage of the choke point at the bridge that leads into the spider queen area. This is an ambush strategy that takes advantage of a choke point. Position party members at the side of the bridge opposite from the Spider Queen area. Then send one member over to entice the minions. Once the minions start chasing simply lead them to the party members waiting to slaughter them at the choke point. It took me ten waves of doing this to eventually overcome all of them with minimal use of healing potions or saves.

A solo rogue with expert trap making can easily defeat the queen by laying multiple firetraps near the corner.

The Dead Trenches
Upon arrival at the Dead Trenches, a cutscene will play. Following the only path leads to a bridge, where some dwarven warriors are fighting off darkspawn. Assist them, and once the battle is over talk to the head of the Legionnaires Kardol, who will tell the Warden about what he and his brothers in arms do. Fight through the area (be aware of traps in some of the small rooms), and an ambush from both sides on the large bridge in the middle of the area. Scattered throughout the area are pieces of Legion of the Dead armor. Finding the complete set triggers the quest The Dead Caste.

Past the long bridge with the ambush, after going through the caverns and stepping back into normal architecture, the Warden encounters Hespith. She will reveal a bit about Branka. After conversing with her, continue on to the next large open area, where two Ogres await. After taking care of the ogres, enter the room furthest to the south, which is inhabited by Legionnaire Spirits. They will not attack until you have retrieved the key found at the very end of the room, in a container with the final piece of the Legion of the Dead armor. In some rubble on the broken bridge is the fairly amusing codex entry of Load Limit Reached.

Head back out and use the key on the large door in the center of the area. Saving is advisable because the next encounter is the Broodmother. Although immobile, she is fairly strong, and is made more difficult by the darkspawn she summons during the battle.

After felling the Broodmother, Hespith will make another appearance. Listen to what she has to say, then continue to the exit. At this point. there is a brief opportunity to switch party members and also travel back to camp if necessary to offload inventory. The Anvil of the Void area is now unlocked and accessible through the Deep Roads map.

Anvil of the Void
The last stop on this journey, Branka can finally be found here - accordingly, Oghren is a forced party member. Branka, seemingly immune to reason, will trap the party inside the area, forcing the completion of the quest. She is kind enough to warn of many traps ahead, and motivates the Warden with the reminder that she is your Paragon.

The Traps
The first trap is a tunnel full of darkspawn. This is a very narrow tunnel, with a mix of darkspawn throughout.

The second trap is a gas filled room. This room appears empty at first, but entering it will bring golems to life one by one. There are four gas valves, two by each closed doors on the left and the right. After killing the golems, the party may proceed through empty tunnels to another room filled with golems. There are a couple of traps in this room and four golems come to life, two at a time as the room is traversed.

The third trap takes place in a large chamber that has a column reaching down from the middle of the cavern with four faces on it. Surrounding the column are four spirit anvils matching up with the four faces. When the battle begins shortly after entering the room, the faces will summon enemy spirits. Defeating a spirit activates the Spirit Anvil nearby, which the Warden or his companions can use to damage the associated face. To defeat this trap, each face must be damaged 3 times by killing the spirit in front of it and then touching the Spirit Anvil.

When a party member touches a Spirit Anvil, it damages only the face on the pillar looking at that anvil. This has two consequences:
 * 1) The face that is damaged will transform into a more powerful form.
 * 2) The face that is damaged will summon more powerful spirits.

Additional notes:
 * The spirits will not move unless they are provoked. However, the Indignant Spirit has a very long attack range which must be avoided t not be provoked.
 * The faces rotate approximately every five seconds after a spirit is killed and will unsummon all of the spirits in the area temporarily.
 * If you are trying to focus on one face, don't lose track of it as they rotate.
 * The faces can't shootanyone if they're off to the side or extremely far away.
 * It is pobble to rest and recover between rounds by hiding out of sight behind the rock walls or in the long hallways.
 * If there's anyone with the Master Shapeshifter ability they can transform into the Flying Swarm and position themselves close enough to hurt the spirit, but not so close that they can be attacked. The spirits will not move unless you stop using Flying Swarm.

After inflicting 1500 damage (3 hits) to a face, it deactivates and no longer summons spirits or damages the party. The safest approach to this trap is to concentrate on a single face, until you damage it 3 times and it deactivates permanently. This prevents multiple faces shooting AOE damage at the party. Avoid provoking The Forgotten Spirits that aren't associated with the targeted face. Think of this trap as a series of rounds, in which you fight a single spirit each round.

Decision point: Caridin or Branka
The Warden will meet Caridin who will tell his story. According to Caridin, no amount of magic can create life, and so to "power" his golems, he needed the life forces of dwarves. If Wynne is in your party, she will comment that this is equivalent to blood magic. At first, Caridin accepted volunteers, until the king at the time began to force the procedure upon others. Golems became a common sight, often being traded to the magocracy of the Tevinter Imperium and controlled using control rods. Caridin states that when he opposed the king's decisions, he was punished by being forced to become a golem himself. Caridin asks the Warden to destroy the Anvil as a golem cannot do so. Branka will state that the technology of the golems will make the dwarves great again and with their power, the dwarves would be able to reclaim the Deep Roads and their homeland. Caridin responds by stating the sacrifice is too great and stands by his decision to have the Anvil destroyed.

Regardless of which Paragon is supported, these enemies will appear:
 * two Elite Golems
 * two Normal Golems
 * the Paragon not supported
 * additionally, Shale will become an enemy if she is in your party and you support Branka.

The allies assisting the Warden will be:
 * two Normal Golems (the paragon you support will be immobilized)

The Warden will be forced to decide the fate of the Anvil:


 * Support Caridin and destroy the Anvil
 * Support Branka and keep the Anvil
 * Support Branka and convince her to destroy the Anvil

The following items will drop from each Paragon:
 * Branka: Vanguard and Branka's Shield
 * Caridin: Caridin's Cage and Caridin's Shield
 * Siding with Caridin gives the Warden an option to ask for an additional reward (Master Lightning Rune) if Oghren is not allowed to ask for a reward in order to gain influence.

Outcomes
Depending on who was supported during the conflict involving the Anvil (Caridin or Branka), the Warden Treaty will be fulfilled in varying ways:
 * Caridin - Caridin will commit suicide, Branka will die, a king will be crowned, and dwarven warriors will join the fight against the Blight. You will get Liberator achievement.
 * Branka - Caridin will be killed, Branka will live, a king will be crowned, dwarven warriors and golems will join the fight against the Blight. You will get Pragmatist achievement.
 * If you have sided with Branka, after the battle it is also possible to 'persuade' or 'intimidate' her into destroying the Anvil (if you used your skill points to unlock a high enough 'Coercion' skill level). If you convince her that she is wrong she will destroy the Anvil and then commit suicide. But in this case no golems ally against the Blight. Oghren will still approve of your efforts, despite her decision to commit suicide.

Before leaving the area, approach the tablet. After interacting with the tablet, Oghren or Shale will inform you that it is a registry of some kind. This is, in fact, the Golem Registry, a record of all the people who voluntarily and not-so-voluntarily sacrificed themselves to become golems. Take a tracing of the tablet; this can be returned to the Shaperate for a reward. Showing the list to Shale will also trigger the quest A Golem's Memories provided you agree to look into it.

Approval
Supporting Branka:
 * - or if you give in when he tries to convince you
 * Sten will mock you, but his approval won't change.
 * Sten will mock you, but his approval won't change.
 * Sten will mock you, but his approval won't change.
 * Sten will mock you, but his approval won't change.
 * Sten will mock you, but his approval won't change.
 * Sten will mock you, but his approval won't change.

Supporting Caridin:
 * - but this can be offset to if you allow him to choose Caridin's boon (he will still ask for Caridin's help in crowning a king). Alternatively when Caridin offers some sort of reward, if you ask Oghren what he would like you will net +7 approval after Caridin commits suicide and the new crown is made.
 * - this can be offset to if you successfully intimidate her
 * - this can be offset to if you successfully intimidate him
 * - but this can be offset to if you allow him to choose Caridin's boon (he will still ask for Caridin's help in crowning a king). Alternatively when Caridin offers some sort of reward, if you ask Oghren what he would like you will net +7 approval after Caridin commits suicide and the new crown is made.
 * - this can be offset to if you successfully intimidate her
 * - this can be offset to if you successfully intimidate him

Results
Upon returning to Orzammar, proceed to the assembly area and speak with the steward. This will begin a cut-scene to crown the new king. If Bhelen is chosen, he will insist that Harrowmont is executed. If Harrowmont is chosen, Bhelen will attack and be killed. An Orzammar crier will refer to the incident as an "epic fail" (on either candidate's part). Either candidate may be chosen by the Warden regardless of whom he worked for during the first part of the mission.

Once the new king is crowned, he will honor the Grey Warden treaties and pledge the Orzammar's forces to help you battle the Blight. In addition, you will be given a gift (either a) Trian's Maul or b) Aeducan Mace from Bhelen or Harrowmont's Staff from Harrowmont), and Oghren will remain in the party as a permanent companion.

An additional quasi-ally is available as well: the opportunity to recruit the Legion of the Dead will arise after crowning a new King. Kardol will see you outside the palace to thank you for solving the succession crisis; you can persuade him to join (dwarven wardens need only ask, non-dwarves must pass a high persuade check), and they will integrate into the regular dwarven units, becoming half of the unit, and Kardol himself will fight alongside you against the Archdemon. If you miss talking to him outside the palace, you can go back to the dead trenches and talk to him there.

Side quests
- A woman at the Shaper's, Orta, wants to prove she's in the nobility. A chest in Ortan Thaig contains the proof she desires. After you have given her the papers, meet her at the Assembly and she will give you a reward of 5. When you come back later, she will give you another 10 - Only available if you completed the Dwarven Noble origin as a male. You have to secure a birthright for your illegitimate child. - You will encounter the Legion of the Dead here as well for the first time, just across from the Bridge. Later, when you are rifling through sarcophaguses you will locate several 'Dead Legion' armour parts; a Strength of 42 is required to wear them. The final armour piece, the helm, is in the Altar at Bownammar. Once you take it you will be attacked by all the dead legion spirits there. Once you have every piece of armour, a sarcophagus in the pathway leading to Broodmother will be begging you to activate it. Do so and take the Insignia from within. To fully complete this quest you will need someone who is actually capable of wearing the armour. Have any player capable equip a complete set of Dead Legion armour, enter the Dead Legion Shrine and interact with the small statute in the middle of the room. This will spawn the Gangue Shade that you have to defeat. His rewards may be various, but on my playthrough I received a single piece of Chainmail Armour (Dragonbone). Defeating the Gangue Shade is not however necessary to receive or complete the 'Dead Caste' quest and is suggested only as a completionist point of the quest. Take the insignia you found back to the Shaperate and it can be entered into the Book of Memories, now highlighted in the alcove to the right of the Shaperate.

- As you activate various piles of rubble you will gain Codex on the 'Crosscut Drifters'. Once you have gathered all of them, you will receive a new quest and will see a new point of interest on your map. Leave the side tunnel and go out into the main tunnel, check your map. The western tunnel will now have a point of interest marked "The Drifter's Cache." The cache contains Thorn of the Dead Gods (Silverite) dagger which has a +3 to damage and armor penetration along with two enchantment slots, a Ring of the Warrior (+2 str, +2 dex) and an Effort's Gloves which just have a +1 str to them but require a 38 strength to equip and also have a pretty hefty stamina boost.

- Taking a paper tracing of the list of Dwarven names at the location of the Anvil of the Void will begin this minor sidequest.