Shale is a potential party companion who can be recruited from the town of Honnleath. Shale's character (and associated quests) have been the subject of much discussion; originally intended to be a joinable NPC in the shipped game, Shale was cut by developers who wanted to concentrate on further polishing the game prior to release in 2008. When the game release date was pushed back to Q4 2009, developers spent time re-integrating Shale back into the game. Although still not included in the shipped version of the game, Shale is available as free Day One DLC to all purchasers of either the Standard or Collector's Edition of Dragon Age: Origins who download "The Stone Prisoner". For those who obtain a second-hand copy of the game, "The Stone Prisoner" is available for purchase for US$15.
Shale does not use the usual armor and weapons, but, much like Dog, has specialized equipment in the form of crystals. Shale may equip Small Crystals (classified as weapons in the inventory) that grant a bonus to attack damage, as well as converting all damage to that type, and Large Crystals (classified as armor in the inventory) that can grant a defensive bonus and resistance to certain types of damage.
Background
Shale is one of the last dwarven war golems. The knowledge to create such golems was presumably lost after the invasion of the darkspawn and the sealing of the Deep Roads. Shale is extremely proud of being a golem and hates the villagers of the town of Honnleath; citing the expression that "familiarity breeds contempt", and that after 30 years of watching them, Shale has become very familiar with them. Shale's hatred of the town folk may also come from their habit of dressing the golem up in festive garb during holidays or the fact that they spread bird seed around the golem's inert body, which brought near Shale's most dreadfully hated enemies, the birds.
If Shale is a party member when the Warden arrives at the Anvil of the Void it is revealed that Shale was once a female dwarf known as Shayle and she belonged to the House of Cadash. She was one of the first volunteers to become a golem. After becoming a golem, she stayed with Caridin until she was sent away out of mercy. More information is also available through Shale's personal quest.
Involvement
After the Anvil of the Void Quest quest is over Shale remembers where her thaig might be, and it can be explored. If the Warden decides to side with Branka and take the Anvil of the Void while Shale is in your active party, Shale will side with Caridin and you will be forced to fight and kill her in the ensuing battle. Otherwise you can let Shale stay in the Camp before Anvil of the Void and then side with Branka, keeping Shale as companion for the rest of the game.
If Shale is in your active party when you reach Orzammar, she will regularly participate in intimidation efforts by adding that she will squish or pop heads. She will also engage in a conversation with the Shaperate, located in the diamond quarter.
Shale cannot accompany you into the Arl of Denerim's Estate to rescue Queen Anora. If you have her in your party, Queen Anora's hand maiden will tell Shale that she cannot go. You will then get the party selection screen and be forced to select another party member to accompany you. Shale is also not an option for the Captured! quest, which can result after rescuing Anora.
Quest
One way to get Shale's personal quest, is to have her in the party during the culmination of A Paragon of Her Kind. If Shale is not in the party when the Warden speaks with Branka and Caridin or if Shale was collected after A Paragon of Her Kind quest is completed, simply speak to Shale at the party Camp. She will ask the Warden if Caridin was encountered and will follow with a few questions about Caridin. If the Warden sided with Caridin, respond honestly to her questions and she will thank you and give the quest. If the Warden sided with Branka while Shale wasn't in the party, the quest still can be taken later in the Camp through consequent lying to Shale with high Coercion Skill. Return to either Caridin's Cross or Ortan Thaig in the Deep Roads and Shale will automatically make a comment about how the area is familiar and she remembers a Thaig nearby. Agree to see the Thaig and it will be available on the Deep Roads map as Cadash Thaig.
This quest consists of taking Shale back to her home Thaig, called Cadash Thaig to find proof that she was once a dwarf. If this quest is completed, Shale's approval can increase by +23 or more points. Along the way you will have to fight several hordes of Darkspawn. You will also find a few large and small 'Brilliant' crystals to make use of on the trip to your final destination of the Golem Monument (marked as a quest location), and a conversation with Shale that ends the quest. If she was not with you when you met Caridin she will comment that she wishes she would have had the chance to speak with him.
Strategy
Shale serves dual purposes: the party’s main tank or a heavy melee damage-dealer. It is good to note though that as Shale's equipment converts all of her damage into damage with an elemental property, you may have to switch crystals based on the creature/boss that you're fighting (ie having Fire Crystals of any level while fighting a dragon will make all of Shale's damage noted as 'Immune').
If the Warden wants Shale to act as the main tank, concentrate on the Stoneheart chain first. Stoneheart activates Shale’s defensive talents and increases the golem’s threat. Stone Roar gains a health regeneration bonus for Shale and attracts the attention of a single targeted enemy, who will veer toward Shale immediately and has a chance to stun nearby enemies if they fail a mental resistance check. Regenerating Burst damages and possibly stuns nearby enemies, plus it increases stamina regeneration and threat generation.
The Stone Aura chain supports a Shale tank strategy. It imbues nearby party members with bonuses to attack, defense, and health regeneration; however, the sustained ability paralyzes Shale and imposes a personal penalty to defense (also it drains stamina). Inner Reserves beefs up Shale’s armor, and party members within Stone Aura gain additional bonuses to armor, spellpower, stamina regeneration, and health regeneration. Renewed Assault further increases Shale’s armor and ability to resist hostile spells, and party members within the aura gain bonuses to attack, stamina regeneration, critical chance, and armor penetration where the enemies within the aura suffer penalties to attack, movement speed, and defense. Supernatural Resilience gives more bonuses to armor and the ability to resist hostile spells meanwhile the party members within the aura gain additional bonuses to health regeneration, damage, spellpower, and to resist hostile spells.
If the Warden wants Shale to act as the main damage oriented character, first concentrate on the golem’s Pulverizing Blows chain. It activates Shale’s offensive talents, which gives a bonus to damage with a penalty to defense. Slam swings at a nearby enemy and, if it connects, automatically generates a critical hit and knocks the target back. Quake hits nearby enemies with an AoE that damages and knocks them back. Killing Blow smashes a target with a critical hit (for successful connects) and extra damage equal to Shale’s remaining stamina, which drains away after the blow.
Rock Mastery supports damage orientation and gives Shale more ranged options and it activates the golem’s ranged talents and gains a large bonus against incoming ranged attacks, but with a penalty to armor, defense, and melee critical chance. Nearby party members also gain bonuses to ranged critical chance and ranged attack speed. Hurl Rock throws a stone projectile at a targeted area and all enemies near the point of impact take physical damage and may be knocked down. Earthen Grasp immobilizes enemies unless they pass a physical resistance check. Rock Barrage throws multiple rocks into the air, which rain down on a targeted area and inflict movement penalties and knock down anyone within if they fail a physical resistance check.
Gifts
Shale has a preference for Remarkable Gems. Note: There is an issue with the console version of this game (XBOX 360 in my personal experience) which causes Shale to not gain the standard +10 approval for the first Remarkable Gem received. Instead you receive only +5 approval (regardless of your approval rating with her) which rapidly goes down as usual so that after receiving only 4 of the Remarkable Gems, Shale seems no longer interested in receiving the others ie "So I'm to keep this then am I? Fine" with only +1 approval received for any remaining Remarkable Gems. It is uncertain if this will be corrected with an update to the game.
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Shale's Talents
Unique Talents
Shale can serve four different roles through her talents. Each has a set of four talents (one sustained plus three related active or passive) designed around a role. The three related talents become accessible in combat if the corresponding Sustained Talent is activated. In addition, learning any of the three related talents increases the power of the sustained talent. In addition to unique talents, Shale has access to Warrior Talents. Shale does not have access to any of the skills the other characters have nor can she specialize in any of the Warrior specializations. The four roles, and information/tips on each are:
Pulverizing Blows Tree
| Pulverizing Blows
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Shale activates a mode that allows for offensive talents, taking a penalty to defense in exchange for a bonus to damage. With slam, Shale gains and additional bonus to damage. With Quake, Shale gains a bonus to armor penetration. With Killing Blow, Shale gains an even greater bonus to damage. | ||
| Killing Blow
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Shale slams a stony fist into the enemy target. If the blow connects, it generates an automatic critical hit and knocks the target back. After learning this talent, Shale gains an additional bonus to damage whenever Pulverizing Blows is active. | ||
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Shale strikes the ground repeatedly, sending out multiple shockwaves that damage all nearby enemies and knock them back. After learning this talent, Shale gains a bonus to armor penetration whenever Pulverizing Blows is active.
Note: This also stuns enemies with each shockwave unless they pass a physical resistance check.
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Shale concentrates all remaining energy into one tremendous blow. If the attack connects, it is an automatic critical hit, but Shale's remaining stamina is drained and added to the attack's damage. After learning this talent, Shale gains a greater bonus to damage whenever Pulverizing Blows is active. |
Stoneheart Tree
| Stoneheart
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Shale activates a mode that allows defensive talents and gains bonuses to armor and elemental resistances, while nearby enemies become more likely to target Shale. Bellow, Stone Roar, and Regenerating Burst increase the effects. Stone Roar also gives Shale gains a bonus to health regeneration and Regenerating Burst gives a bonus to health regeneration and stamina regeneration. | ||
| Bellow
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Shale erupts with the sound of the Rock itself, stunning nearby enemies unless they pass a mental resistance check. After learning this talent, nearby enemies are even more likely to choose Shale as a target whenever Stoneheart is active, and the bonuses in that mode increase. | ||
| Stone Roar
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Shale attracts the attention of a single targeted enemy, who now views Shale as the most urgent threat on the battlefield, although the enemy may re-engage other party members if they attack it. After learning this talent, Shale gains a bonus to health regeneration whenever Stoneheart is active, while increasing the existing bonuses of that mode. | ||
| Regenerating Bust
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Shale explodes with energy, damaging all nearby enemies, who are also stunned unless they pass a physical resistance check, in which case they are merely knocked back. After learning this talent, Shale gains a bonus to stamina regeneration whenever Stoneheart is active, the other bonuses of that mode increase and nearby enemies are even more likely to choose Shale as their target. |
Rock Mastery Tree
| Rock Mastery
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Shale activates a mode that allows range-attack talents, gaining a large bonus against missile attacks but suffering penalties to defense, armor, and melee critical chance. Nearby party members also gain bonuses to range critical chance and range attack speed. With Hurl Rock and Rock Barrage, the bonuses for party members increase. With Earthen Grasp, Shales bonus against missile attacks increases, and enemies become more likely to attack others.
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| Hurl Rock
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Shale pulls a rock from the ground and hurls it to a target. All creatures near the point of impact take physical damage and are knocked down unless they pass a physical resistance check. Friendly fire possible. After Shale has learned this talent, party members who are nearby whenever Shale has Rock Mastery active receive additional bonuses to ranged critical chance and range attack speed. | ||
| Earthen Grasp
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Shale pounds the earth, immobilizing enemies unless they pass a physical resistance check. After learning this talent, Shale received a greater bonus against missile attacks whenever Rock Mastery is active, and enemies will be more likely to seek other targets.
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| Rock Barrage
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Shale tosses up multiple rocks that crash down in the targeted area. Creatures within the area take damage, suffer penalties to movement speed, and are knocked down unless they pass a physical resistance check. Friendly fire possible. After Shale has learned this talent, party members who are nearby whenever Shale has Rock Mastery active receive greater bonuses to ranged critical chance and ranged attack speed. |
Stone Aura Tree
| Stone Aura
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Shale activates a support mode that imbues nearby party members with bonuses to attack, defense, and health regeneration. With other talents in the chain, Shale gains bonuses to armor and to resist hostile spells and party members gain bonuses to most statistics. However, the aura paralyzes Shale and imposes a personal penalty to defense as well as draining stamina. With Renewed Assault, nearby enemies suffer penalties to attack, defense, and movement speed. | ||
| Inner Reserves
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Whenever Stone Aura is active, Shale gains a bonus to armor. Party members within the aura receive additional bonuses to armor, health regeneration, stamina regeneration, and spellpower. | ||
| Renewed Assault
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Whenever Stone Aura is active, Shale gains additional bonuses to armor and to resist hostile spells. Party members within the aura gain additional bonuses to attack, stamina regeneration, critical chance, and armor penetration. Enemies who enter the aura suffer penalties to movement speed, attack and defense. | ||
| Supernatural Resilience
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Whenever Stone Aura is active, Shale gains additional bonuses to armor and resist hostile spells. Party members within the aura gain additional bonuses to health regeneration, spellpower, damage, and to resist hostile magic. |
With both Inner Reserves and Reserved Assault, Stone Aura grant +4 stamina/mana regeneration (yes, it does increase mana regeneration as well) to all party members (except herself) in the aura. While this mode is active, Shale has a -10 stamina regeneration penalty, however, this mode does not automatically deactivate when Shale loses all stamina. Thus this mode can be activated when Shale does not have much stamina left.
Plot Skills and Plot Talent
As you befriend Shale and gain her approval she will gain additional skills, including the following:
| Skill Name | Benefit | Requirement |
| Inspired: Minor Strength | +1 to Strength | 25% approval |
| Inspired: Moderate Strength | +2 to Strength | 50% approval |
| Inspired: Major Strength | +3 to Strength | 75% approval |
| Inspired: Massive Strength | +4 to Strength | 90% approval |
Quotes
- (If removed from party) "Pigeon crap."
- "The darkspawn are an evil that must be destroyed, it's true. Though not as evil as the birds... damnable feathered fiends!"
- "I wonder if there are any pigeons here...I think we should look for them"
- "I wonder what it is like to float...or drown."
- (To Templar at Lake Calenhed when you have difficulty crossing) "Just let me crush a few things it can't possibly miss."
- (Battle cry) "Death to all pigeons!"
- "It's a wonder this Maker has any followers at all. I mean, pigeons--what was he thinking?"
- "I could have done this in Honnleath." (When selected at a time when your party isn't moving)
- (If given one of the Remarkable Gems) "Oooh, Shiny!"
- (approaching Lake Calenhed) "I could just walk along the lake bottom to reach the tower. It, however, could not."
- (To the Guardian) "It seems that reflection on past mistakes is a constant preoccupation of the religious mind."
- "It is at times like this that I am grateful for the inability to smell."
- "And... do try not to get swallowed whole. If the beast were to fly about afterwards and poop it out, irony would dictate that it would land on me. I couldn't take it."
- "Oh, somebody please kill somebody!"
- (When heavily injured after battle) "Oh look! I think I got chipped after that last fight!"
- "The birds are the true blight and must be utterly destroyed"
- "Now, let us crush something soft and watch it fountain blood. That is a girlish thing to want to do, yes?"
- (After revival) "I can't believe it actually put me down."
Dialogue
See Shale's Dialogue for the full list.
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- The Warden: "So... what now? You go on a killing rampage?"
- Shale: "Don't be ridiculous. Well, I wouldn't mind killing the birds... those evil birds and their foul droppings! I could crush them all!"
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- The Warden: "And how do I know you can be trusted?"
- Shale: "I have no idea. How does it trust anything else without a control rod?"
- The Warden: "Good point."
- Shale: "They haven't killed it, yet. I consider this a good sign."
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- Shale: "I see it found some augmentation crystals. I was not even aware it knew about them... well done! So? What does it think? They don't make me look any wider, do they? I find I am already too wide as it is."
- The Warden: "I think they're so pretty!"
- Shale: "They are, aren't they? I so adore them! I think it should find some more as soon as possible. I want to glitter from ear to ear... so to speak!"
--
- Leliana: You aren't all stone, Shale. There is a person inside of you.
- Shale: If so, it is because I ate him.
Trivia
Shale's Concept Art
- Shale has an undying hatred for birds, and if you recruit her into your immediate party after releasing her, she will violently stomp on a chicken just as you leave Honnleath. This hatred may stem from the fact that the roosting birds may have defecated on her, as she mentions the feces throughout the dialogue.
- Shale mentions she used to be 10 feet tall, but was chiseled down to fit through doors. Referring to how Shale's in-game model was actually too large and caused problems during game development. Shale was possibly the same size as the Golems you encounter in game. (During Shale's nightmare in the Fade you will be able to see a full-sized shale, and is indeed much taller than her playable counterpart).
- If Shale accompanies you to Soldier's Peak after Levi has set up shop, the camp ravens slowly migrate towards her and begin to follow her around.
- Shale's gender appears to be a mystery to those who do not know her, as Loghain will refer to Shale as a male (using the phrase "I think the odds might be slightly in his favor at a test of strength") if Shale is the Warden's champion at the Landsmeet.
- Renewed Assault has a typo in the description, calling the skill Stone Aura 'Stona Aura'.
External links
- Print-Version of GameStar 11/2008 (German)\