Forum:Favorite Dragon Age Antagonist?

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Who is your favorite antagonist in the series so far (include games, books, movies, comics, etc.)?

Personally I like the Arishok from act 2 of Dragon Age II because not only is he one of my favorite fights in the game he also put up with a bunch of crap from many people in Kirkwall aimed at starting a war with the Qunari. WardenMaster (talk) 14:00, June 4, 2014 (UTC)

Dragon Age, much similar to another fantasy series has a grey area in regards to some antagonists. For example the Arishok. But for the sakes of it, for me my favourite antagonist in the series so far is Loghain. Simply is. Love that guy, what he's been through, his military prowess but his audacity and ability to win. He got a bit off in DAO, but still, he's my most favourable.

My most hated one, is as many would probably anticipate, Arl Howe. And the fact that I hate him so much shows how good of a character he is. Oh, and how can I leave out the Broodmother ;) 14:54, June 4, 2014 (UTC)

I'll have to agree with Laz here, Loghain is by far first option... that guy is simply thinking of Ferelden and keeping his tradition of hating Orlais, he is not evil he is just willing to do what ever he believes is right. Second option is the Arishok, I just can stop thinking he was there doing what was right for his people even if Isabel was a bitch for stealing from them.--Dave The Maniac (talk) 15:03, June 4, 2014 (UTC)

For the record when I said antagonist I did not mean evil I meant a character or creature that serves as an enemy of the main character. To me Arishok is my first favorite and Loghain is my second favorite but my most hated antagonist would be Rendon Howe where Loghain was fighting for his beliefs and what not he was stuck in his paranoia Howe was just jealous of the fame and fortune of others he was bitter fool who many believed should have died at that battle in white river. He just wanted to be important he believed he deserved more than what he got. In close second would have to be that red lyrium idol (Which I know isn't much of an antagonist) to me it caused the events of act 3 of Dragon Ages II and it was partially the cause of the Mage-Templar war. WardenMaster (talk) 15:34, June 4, 2014 (UTC)

Well you still got our answer :D Howe is much more than just a jealous and bitter fool. The guy's literally evil, despite his motives. He's a maniac, who's clearly on the side that benefits "him" the most. He's willing to abandon his allies and dearest of friends in order to get what he wants. The guy's a psychopath and a twisted one at that. I may be exaggerating but that's it in a nutshell. The arishok in my opinion, was not my enemy until his siege on Kirkwall. Even then, i contemplated handing Isabela over. He respected Hawke (well mine) and although he's a pretty good warrior, with obvious feats of strengths, i can see why people would like him. I just felt like Bioware could have made him more interesting IMO. 18:04, June 4, 2014 (UTC)

Favorite? The Archdemon. The one I hated the most? Howe of course. That child-murdering POS is probably everyone's most hated antagonist in the series. Silver Warden (talk) 18:38, June 4, 2014 (UTC)

So we're all in agreement Howe is a major D-bag and everyone loves to kill the A-hole? The Archdemon fight to me is just a tad too easy now if the Archdemon could destroy the giant crossbow ballistas so that you only had a limited time you could spend at each before you had to move or it gets destroyed WardenMaster (talk) 19:44, June 4, 2014 (UTC)

Agree, the Archdemon battle was pretty straightforward, in my opinion. And i would have liked to seen the AD feature more, but that's just a personal desire of mine nothing more. I would have loved it if we saw more nightmares of the Archdemon leading the darkspawn. 19:54, June 4, 2014 (UTC)

That's weird, the Archdemon does break the ballistas whenever I face him. They don't look broken visually, but if the Archdemon uses his purple tornado attack on them, they no longer fire. Theoretically a rogue can repair them, but that's nearly impossible thanks to all the darkspawn attacking the Warden at the time. Is it different on the PC version?

Anyway, the Archdemon is my favorite antagonist, not the one I think is the most complex or sympathetic. He's the Big Evil played straight, a classic pure destructive force that cannot be reasoned with or understood - he must simply be killed. Yes he's shallow, but on purpose, as there's nothing more to him than wanting to cause death and destruction. His mentality is so alien to mortals that it cannot be comprehended. And in a game where everything else is grey, it's very satisfying to finally unite everyone against something that is entirely black, and destroy it in one big battle. It's a cliche, but it's a cliche done masterfully. And that is often harder to pull off than writing a complex antagonist. Silver Warden (talk) 19:08, June 6, 2014 (UTC)

I definitly agree on Howe. I just absolutely loath that man. The only thing I like about him is that he's voiced by Tim Curry who, in my opinion, is amazing. I would have to say, though, that Loghain is my favorite. Even after reading The Stolen Throne, I understand his motives to an extent. I don't agree with what he did, but I understand.Jessica Sutter (talk) 23:21, June 4, 2014 (UTC)

Favourite rival? Arishok, no doubt. The man was practically made of ice he was so cool. Most hated foe? Howe. Best villain in total? Loghain, as others have noted, he clearly has reasoning behind everything he does, he's not as ruthless as Howe, or as underhanded, and has redeeming qualities like a patriotism I can respect. EzzyD (talk) 23:32, June 4, 2014 (UTC)

Loghain is by far the most complex and interesting antagonist in DA. He's a man who was once a hero and who has become consumed by his (mental) demons and his obsession with protecting Ferelden; in so doing, he ends up becoming the very thing he hates (a tyrant). He very much embodies the idea of the tragic hero who lives long enough to become a villain. The fact that he is driven by what are essentially noble intentions to do terrible things makes him a fascinating figure, as does his psychology - he justifies his actions as necessary, yet acknowledges they are nonetheless awful, but does not resile from responsibility for them. The fact that people are still arguing about Loghain some five years after Origins was released is a testament to what an intriguing character he is. The only other characters in DA that come close to the complexity of Loghain are the Arishok (with his blue and orange morality Qunari world view) and Flemeth (with her enigmatic world-shaping agenda).--Darkly Tranquil (talk) 05:41, June 5, 2014 (UTC)

Loghain. Absolutely.--Turuzzusapatuttu (talk) 10:02, June 5, 2014 (UTC)

Loghain is truly one of the best characters in the whole dragon age series. I sometimes wonder if he may suffer from PTSD from the rebellion and that may have escalated is intense hatred of orlais in to full on paranoia of Orlais invading Fereleden once again. I choose the Arishok solely for the reason that he isn't truly a bad guy he's just doing what his beliefs demand of him much like Loghain but he is a member of a race of people who is viewed completely wrong by others particularly the chantry who says the Qunari are blood thirsty savages that kill people for no reason. —Preceding unsigned comment added by WardenMaster (talk • contribs) 20:29, June 5, 2014‎

As a mention, Asunder and the Masked Empire had wonderful villains in the form of Lord Seeker Lambert van Reeves and Grand Duke Gaspard de Chalons respectively both believed they were doing what was right for the people of Thedas and for Orlais.

But even then I really do think my favourite villain would be Sister/Mother Petrice. I mean, it's super easy to dismiss her as just some mega-bitch - and hey, maybe she really is - but like Loghain, Meredith, Lambert, and Gaspard she really did believe she was doing what was right - the Qunari are heathens and people were loosing faith in the god she was sworn to serve. I really appreciate how cunning she was (though I think she underestimated Elthina, but I think everyone does to an extent, but that's for another day), the twist of words, manipulations, abuse to the sacred trust - I just really love to hate her and if she survives the events of DAII, I do hope we see her again in future Chantry/Qunari conflicts with her whole plans for a schism and all. User:ChaosMorning

Honestly the sister/mother petrice is just an annoying scheming bitch I don't think she did what she did for the people of Kirkwall I think she did it more just to start a war with the Qunari because she did not like them I think she was using Hawke to further her own agenda WardenMaster (talk) 15:00, June 6, 2014 (UTC)

My favorite antagonist was the Desire Demon possessing Connor. She was a multifaceted boss who could be fought in a number of ways, spoken to in a number of ways, and even allied with to an extent. I wish she had been a recruitable character actually. My male human mage character Varos would have allied with her for sure. The dialogue could have went something like, "They will send Connor to a tower surrounded by mages and Templars. He will be trained to resist you, and even if you should possess him again, the Templars will cut you down immediately. The boy is of no use to you anymore." Then a deal could be set up to have the player find a new vessel for the Desire Demon to possess. Varos' pick would have been Ser Cauthrien for that role, but multiple options would have been available had I created the game. Then if you don't pick someone the Desire Demon would try to possess the player, at which point you would have to fight her. But yeah, even as she is in the canon she's an awesome antagonist and a fun enemy to fight. Her attacks and tactics were the most unique out of all the enemies in the game. Believe it! (talk) 15:11, June 6, 2014 (UTC)