HoonDing

As long as party members can fight well on their own and don't require constant micro-management, such a system could work. Demon Stone had a party of three and combos, it worked alright in that game. Another example is Summoner, which didn't have combos but chain attacks instead. IIRC even Ninja Gaiden Sigma had a couple of levels where you fought alongside another character.

I can't even remember any sidequests of DA:O that weren't fetch and/or kill.

You know what... FemHawke's voice sucks, while Male Hawke's renegade voice is awesome. She speaks as if she's sipping tea in a Victorian boudoir. Not to mention those sarcastic lines are completely out-of-place. Guess it's poetic justice after all the Mark Meer bashing. Couldn't BioWare have hired Keeley Hawes, the voice actress of Lara Croft? At least she manages to sound badass & classy at the same time, without sounding like a snob.

The party now enters the main hall, and is again faced with the choice of either (literally) knocking down the main door and fight about twenty guards, or take the more quiet route through the dungeons. FORGRIMM: This must be the great hall. Without his lackeys outside, it should be easy to arrest that wretched Tollgate commandant. Come on, let's kick the door in and grab him! CANO: Wait! I'm sure this place has a few more surprises in store for us. It would be smarter to find a way through the dungeon. That way we can avoid any more trouble. FORGRIMM: You can sneak around on your own, thief! I told you not to get in my way. CANO: There's no point in arguing with you, Forgrimm. What about you, Urdiriel? Which way will you choose? URDIRIEL: Let's take the more cautious route through the dungeons. CANO: Excellent decision! See, Forgrimm? You're outvoted. FORGRIMM: Bah! I'll follow along just to keep an eye on you. Let's go. Inside the dungeons, the party must deal with an elusive jail keeper who first sets his hounds on us, then locks himself into a jail. Some creative use of levers, however, and he is forced to hand over the key that gives access to the higher levels of the fortress. Upstairs in the fortress, the party finally confronts the Commandant, Stitus Bloomfold, after disposing of his bodyguards. BLOOMFOLD: Ah, we meet at last! Allow me to introduce myself. I am Stitus Bloomfold, commandant of the fortress you just assaulted so loutishly. FORGRIMM: Spare us the pleasantries, villain! We know what you're up to! You're in league with the pirates! BLOOMFOLD: Oh, so you discovered that already. Truly impressive. Did Tashman talk before you did away with him? URDIRIEL: You seem to find the death of your underlings amusing. Are you really that unscrupulous? BLOOMFOLD: Pah! I'm a practical man, I don't cry over spilt milk. But if you care so much, perhaps you shouldn't have killed them, hmm? URDIRIEL: Tashman said you had been warned about us. Who told you about us? BLOOMFOLD: Oh, wouldn't you like to know? Did you really think your snooping would go unnoticed? How simple-minded of you! It's incredible, how you got this far... URDIRIEL: Let's get to the point! What kind of deal do you have with the pirates? BLOOMFOLD: A lucrative arrangement. We give them information, and they always drop off a little package here and there... they'll be raiding an Elf village soon. I wonder what they'll bring me? BLOOMFOLD: They say the most peculiar things about female Elves... maybe I'll find out the truth for myself soon, hehehe. JAAKON: We'll make you eat your words, scoundrel! I just can't think of anything more repellent than you. BLOOMFOLD: We'll, I think our little discussion is drawing to a close. I'm a very busy man, you see, and you're beginning to bore me... URDIRIEL: Very well, since you're so impatient to be clapped in irons. Just tell us where the pirates are. FORGRIMM: Yes, where are those scoundrels hiding? I'm getting sick of trawling up and down this river looking for them! CANO: And what about Mora? Is she also with the pirates? BLOOMFOLD: Mora? Hmm, interesting you ask ... my river pirate friends have mentioned that name a few times. They sounded quite agitated... if she's so important, then maybe she's still alive. That would be important to you, wouldn't it? Such a pity that you'll never find out. URDIRIEL: You are defeated, fool. Surrender and we will be merciful. BLOOMFOLD: Hahaha! You don't seem to understand your position. Right now Coldstone's man is dealing with your friends on the ship... and I have a very special surprise for you. BLOOMFOLD: Time for you to meet my little pet... FORGRIMM: Bah! We're not scared of your little lapdog. Bloomfold presses a button and something awesome happens. BLOOMFOLD, Oh, not this one! Hahaha. The floor disappears under our party's feet and they drop down to a humid cave floor. BLOOMFOLD: Come on boy, come on. Feeding time... Bloomfold's pet turns out to be a Kraken Newt. Urdiriel has seemingly found the tentacles that Emmeran has warned her about... The Kraken's tentacles cause knockdown and poison effects. It can also spit ink that causes temporary attribute damage and it will periodically duck under water and summon some morfus (huge snail-like creatures that spit poison). Key to defeating the Kraken is summoning a creature and sending it to keep the tentacles busy together with Forgrimm. The rest of the party then concentrates on shooting the head with ranged attacks. Cano's star throwing is particularly effective. It doesn't take too long for our party to defeat the Kraken... and in its final throes, it breaks down the rest of the floor... ... and sends the blimp to an ironic death. Among other shinies, the Kraken drops a cube-like artifact with a dolphin engraving that Brother Emmeran might be interested in. Next up: wrapping up the Tollgate & sidequests

In the next area, the party is made aware of Forgrimm's "exploits". HEAD TOLLKEEPER TASHMAN: Hey, archers! Stop stuffing your faces! There's a crazy Dwarf out there smashing everything up. Stop him! GRUMBOLD THE COOK: Hehe, did you hear the Head Tollkeeper, people? We're under attack... by a Dwarf! Sounds like we're really in for it, hahaha! HEAD TOLLKEEPER TASHMAN: Silence! If we're found out, we're all in for it! Cook! You stay here and bolt the door behind us! Come on boys, let's get that snooper! CANO: That stubborn Dwarf really did storm the fortress! It looks like he's taking on the whole garrison by himself... by Phex, I'd laught if it weren't so horrifying. URDIRIEL: Then let's take the opportunity while the guards are distracted. What do you think? CANO: I completely agree. It looks like we'll have to cross the room behind this door. Unfortunately, one of those fellows is still in there. To pass this area the "Phex" way, Cano is supposed to sneak up on the cook, pickpocket the key off the cook, disarm the trapped chest and open it with the key. At this point, however, a succesful pickpocket is pretty much out of the question. Cano gets caught, however, there is still the option to use some smooth talking. GRUMBOLD THE COOK: Huh, who... by Phex, who's that?! You must be with those snoopers, aren't you? Wait! The guards... URDIRIEL: Take it easy, my friend. I'm sure we can come to some agreement. GRUMBOLD THE COOK: Bah, I've already seen your good intentions! Your Dwarf friend is smashing everything up out there! CANO: [Fast Talk] Wouldn't you rather avoid any trouble and let us pass? We wouldn't want you to get hurt. GRUMBOLD THE COOK: It's not that simple! You don't know what the Commandant is capable of when he thinks he's been betrayed. What can you give me in return? CANO: The chance of a new life, my friend! When we're finished here, the Commandant won't be able to do anything to you. Then nobody will bother you... we promise. GRUMBOLD THE COOK: [success] V...very well, if you promise... alright, I'll keep quiet. Ah, erm, you probably want the key for the door, don't you? Here, now go! Once outside, the party finds itself on the battlements... meanwhilst Forgrimm is pacing the courtyard while several archers are shooting him (and continually missing because he won't stand still). Head Tollkeeper Tashman has a ballista deployed under the gate to shoot Forgrimm. Our task is to sneak upon each archer and knock them out from behind. This task needs careful timing since after a while the archers will run out of ammunition and go fetch some new arrows, during which the party can be detected (spawning a lot of guards out of nowhere). After elimination all archers, Cano reaches the lever that brings down the gate and destroys the ballista, saving Forgrimm's butt. CANO: Excellent, you've done really well so far! I'm glad you decided to come with me. But with your good judgement, you'd hardly want to run after that clumzy Dwarf. URDIRIEL: Well, if he hadn't distracted the guards, things would've been a lot more difficult for us... why do you have such a problem with him? CANO: Sure, he's hard as nails... but he is also just as stubborn. He doesn't have too much respect for the ways of the Fox. Also, our first acquaintance was... rather unfortunate. CANO: He and Ardo surprised me as I was performing a Phex-pleasing task. To smoothe things out, I promised to help them look for a thief named Mora. CANO: Thanks to the Cunning One, in Ferdok I managed to discover that she's with the pirates. That's why we're looking for them... but enough of that. We need to keep moving. After this mild revelation of Cano, the party catches up with Forgrimm and now faces Head Tollkeeper Tashman. TASHMAN: by all the Lower Hells, where did you spring from? Are you with that Dwarf? How could you just walk into our fotress like this? FORGRIMM: You better worry about me, lackey! I want some answers from you, and quickly! My ax is impatient. CANO: I strongly suggest you cooperate, Head Tollkeeper... things rarely end well when he starts talking about his ax. TASHMAN: Alright, alright, stay calm! Maybe we can cut you in. The pirates can be very generous, if... CANO: The pirates? You're working with the pirates? JAAKON: Things are starting to make sense... so the smuggler goods come from the pirate attacks. By Hesine, this conspiracy is on a much bigger scale than we thought. TASHMAN: You... you didn't know? By all the Gods and Demons! You come here, kill nearly all my men... and you didn't even know about the pirates? URDIRIEL: We had a vague suspicion... but we were obviously on the right track. TASHMAN: Now I understand... you're not in another gang... you don't even want to make a deal, this is about something else. TOLLKEEPER: What.. what should we do, Head Tollkeeper? If they know about our deal with the pirates, then... TASHMAN: What do you think? There's no going back now! It's us or them... attack! FORGRIMM: You seem a little slow on the uptake, human! All of you drop your weapons, or I'll crush you flatter than that little toy beneath the gate! CANO: Much as it pains me, I must agree with the Dwarf... you should listen to him, Tollkeeper. TASHMAN: Never! Men, finish them! However, Cano can get rid of all Tashman's goons with his silver tongue. CANO: [Fast Talk] Lay down your arms and go home, men! Leave this madman to his fate. TASHMAN: Do you really want to anger the Commandant? I said: Attack! TOLLKEEPER: [success] Why should I worry about the Commandant when I'm dead? I'm done with this madness. TOLLKEEPER: Yes, to Boron with Bloomfold and his darned scheming! Come on lads, let's get out of here! TASHMAN: Now... now everything's ruined! Why did you have to poke your noses in? Arrghh! The lone Tashman now attacks the party and gets flattened pretty easily. CANO: What a pointless death! He must have feared somebody more than us. FORGRIMM: Ah, finally you skulkers turn up? I thought I'd have to do everything myself here. CANO: Sounds like you were enjoying all that ducking and diving, Shorty! So sorry if we're interrupting. FORGRIMM: Pah! I could have dealt with that ridiculous plaything myself. You just made things a bit quicker. URDIRIEL: We're bound to have better chances if we work together, don't you think? FORGRIMM: I must admit it can sometimes be quite useful to have a skulker watching your back... as long as you don't get in my way, I think we can work together. CANO: That was almost praise, wasn't it, Forgrimm? And don't worry: if you still want to get your head caved in, I won't stop you. URDIRIEL: Alright, let's go. Thus, Forgrimm joins the party. Forgrimm is a powerful fighter who comes with a nice set of melee abilities, like Mighty Blow and Knockdown. His Dwarfnose skill allows to find secret chambers in dungeons, he also will craft all armour & weapons for the party with his Blacksmith skill.

Arriving at the Tollgate, the Thalaria and crew are quickly approached by two tollkeepers who prevent Urdiriel and her companions from performing any investigations. Ardo decides to keep the two busy while Forgrimm and Cano set out to the Tollgate Keep. Ardo also urges Urdiriel and Jaakon to follow the two and prevent them from fighting. When Urdiriel and Jaakon reach the gate, Cano and Forgrimm are already quarreling about how to best break into the Keep. Forgrimm wants to rush ahead and kill everything in sight, while Cano wishes to take the more subtle route. Urdiriel needs to make a choice which of the two to follow. CANO: Ah, there you are! Maybe you can talk some sense into this stubborn mule. Meanwhile, I can find an inconspicuous way into the fortress. FORGRIMM: Save your sneaking around for your thieving jobs! I'm doing this my way, the honest way! Just make sure you stay out of my way! URDIRIEL: Why are you arguing? Ardo wants us to work together. CANO: Shorty here wants to just knock on the main gate. If I know him, we'll soon have the whole garrison on our backs. I'm sure there is a less conspicuous way. FORGRIMM: Shorty?! One more word, and I'll make sure you can never sneak again! I'm doing this the only honorable way! If they don't play along... that's their hard luck! URDIRIEL: What is your plan, Cano? CANO: We should try to get into the fortress unnoticed... if the guards here have a dirty secret, we're bound to find it as long as we don't arouse any suspicion. FORGRIMM: Bah! You should be worried about your own filthy secrets, Scallywag! I'm going to do a little cleaning ith my ax! That's how we do it! URDIRIEL: Tell me again what you intend to do, Forgrimm. FORGRIMM: Right! I'll go in and ask these scoundrels a few questions... if they refuse to answer, I'll give them a few solid reasons to start talking. It's a tried and tested method and it saves time. CANO: Lord of the Night preserve me! That's more Dwarven wisdom than I ever wanted to hear! I'm sure you're very impressed by such a cunning plan. Being a peaceful tree-hugger, Urdiriel decides to follow Cano. URDIRIEL: You're right, Cano, it is better to be careful. CANO: Ah, I see you have both the beauty and the wisdom of the Elves. Just stay behind me, fair lady. FORGRIMM: Pah! Go and creep through the weeds together then, I have work to do! Cano is a thief and an indispensable party member who will open all locks, disarm traps and take care of all social related business. His pickpocketing can also make the party very rich. His only weakness is his mediocre melee skills, on the other hand as someone who fights with fencing weapons he will eventually learn the skill Mortal Blow, an attack which ignores armour and inflicts two wounds (and in combat, five wounds means instant death). He starts already with Precision Strike, which ignores armour and inflicts one wound. Apart from all this, Cano is also a deont of Phex, giving him spell-like abilities called "miracles" including the ability to throw stars (each inflicting 1D6 damage), an area buff/debuff, an ability that boosts his primary attributes and his most powerful ability: "The Better Offer", which charms a humanoid enemy into temporarily joining our party. Cano soon finds the sewer entrance of the fortress and leads Urdiriel and Jaakon into it. However, once inside it appears they are not alone. The sewer tunnels are guarded by a half-Ogre rat catcher named Ontho and his dog, Snapper. Soon, the Commandant Bloomfold himself shows up. BLOOMFOLD: Ontho, my fine fellow... have you been a good boy? Did you catch those rats? ONTHO: Yes, yes, Ontho always do what Bloomfold say! Ontho catch rats and put key in chest like Blumfold want! BLOOMFOLD: Yes, Ontho, you're a good boy! Listen to me, this is important! We've had a visit from a couple of snoopers. BLOOMFOLD: I want you to deal with anyone you find here, understand? Make short work of them! ONTHO: Yes, yes, Ontho break all who come! And go look traps! Snapper guard here! All what Bloomfold want! BLOOMFOLD: Ah Ontho, you really are a gem, the finest in my collection, hehe! JAAKON: Hmm, that cheerful blimp must have been Bloomfold, the fortress commandant. He matches Gerlin's description precisely. We're on the right track. CANO: Unfortunately, they're expecting us. People even seem to know why we're here... It seems someone was a little clumzy with their "secret inquiries"... CANO: Anyway, we should definitely avoid running into that Ontho... maybe we can distract him and his dog somehow. If we can get them both out of the room with the stairs, then we should be able to get into the fortress unseen. We just need to find some way of attracting their attention... The key to sneak past Ontho is to disarm the rat traps that Ontho placed, then attract Ontho by making some noise. Ontho then goes to check his traps and spends some time re-enabling them, giving the party the opportunity to sneak past. To get rid of the dog, Urdiriel frees Ontho's "pets". This causes Ontho to call for Snapper and gives the party a clear run to the exit.

Voice acting sounds way off. Everyone sounds as if they're in Pride & Prejudice rather than running/fighting for their lives.

It's true, Zandalor is pretty lame in Divinity 2. In Divine Divinity, he had a much better voice actor and he was pretty badass as well, saving your butt a couple of times.

How long after the game's events does the dwarf's framed storytelling take place?

You forgot his most important role: Autolycus in Hercules and Xena.

Ukraine is a modern-day Tortuga. The butthurt in that .pdf is exquisite.

I did a playthrough as a dual-wielding blaster pistol user in heavy armour once. It was pretty boring and felt like playing Space Siege. To the game's credit, though, at least pistols/rifles builds are equal to melee builds. In KOTOR 1, ranged weapons are pathetic.

If you found that first dragon part hard, I am sure Zagan must've caused (or will cause) a lot of raeg...

I think he meant the cave with the two rival sisters. It's easy to miss on a first run. Sentinel Island is my favourite area in the game, simply because of the awesome theme. The first time you arrive in the sunset and that time starts playing, is pretty awe-inspiring.-

Suck it, haters.

The Thalaria arrives at the Isle of Forgetting and is welcomed by Brother Emmeran. BROTHER EMMERAN: Greetings! In the name of the Riverfather, I welcome you to the Isle of Forgetting! BROTHER EMMERAN: You have come, just as I asked. I am pleased to meet you again. URDIRIEL: Greetings, I am also pleased to see you again. BROTHER EMMERAN: And as I see, you are not alone. URDIRIEL: Yes, this is Ardo with his companions Forgrimm and Cano. I'm sure you are already familiar with Captain Delbrack and his crew. ARDO: It is an honor to meet you, Brother Emmeran. After hearing of you, we all wished to meet you ourselves. BROTHER EMMERAN: Then I'm glad to answer that wish. Please, come down from your ship. I would like to tell you a little about this place. ARDO: I thank you for your invitation, Brother Emmeran. I am intrigued to discover more about this place. For now, there's nothing more to do on the Isle of Forgetting than follow Emmeran and Ardo on a tour of the island and listen to a history lesson about the place. When the tour ends in front of the temple, Urdiriel asks Emmeran about his words in Nadoret. URDIRIEL: You mentioned my destiny when we met in Nadoret... Is that why you wanted me to find you? BROTHER EMMERAN: Yes, the Riverfather revealed your face to me in a vision... you will play a role in the fate of the river, that is certain. Give me your hand... BROTHER EMMERAN: Yes... the image is becoming clearer. A dark cave filled with putrid water... Tentacles that search for you in the dark... beware the death that lurks beneath your feet... URDIRIEL: What are you talking about? What do you mean? BROTHER EMMERAN: Forgive me, I can tell you no more. in the end, it is your deeds that will determine your fate. I will follow your progress and speak with the Riverfather. BROTHER EMMERAN: But heed my warning: take care at the Tollgate. This fortress is a place of suffering and fear. Do not be deceived by appearances to the contrary. ARDO: Wait, what makes you think we want to go there? BROTHER EMMERAN: It is your destiny... you may set your own course on the waters of the Great River... but the River of Time has a will of its own. When you have found it, bring it to me... URDIRIEL: It? What do you mean? BROTHER EMMERAN: You will know when the time comes. But enough of this, my friends. Your tasks are preordained... only you can decide how you face them. ARDO: Well... so be it. Since you mention our tasks... I had best return to the ship. We must prepare to continue our journey. ARDO: It was an honor to meet you, Brother Emmeran. BROTHER EMMERAN: I thank you. It was good to have guests again. Visit me again whenever you wish. Until then, go with the blessing of the Riverfather. And thus, the party continues on to the Tollgate. More to come, on Friday.

After the fateful night where Fayris bit the dust, Urdiriel and Jaakon have a nice batch of leveling points, which is spent on raising some their skills/spells and learning some new ones. Importantly, Jaakon picks up Alchemy and Urdiriel learns the art of bowyery. Following Gerlin's instructions, they visit the Leaping Stag to share their experiences with Ardo, Forgrimm & Cano. ARDO: Ah, there you are. Did you find out anything useful? URDIRIEL: More than useful. A certain "Gerlin" approached me... he's on a secret mission to track down the river pirates. ARDO: Gerlin, you say? Never heard of him. What does he have to do with this? And who is this with you? JAAKON: My name is Jaakon Zagor. I work with Gerlin - in his name I would like to join you in your search for the pirates. ARDO: Jaakon Zagor. Hmm. Well, if you think so... URDIRIEL: I think we can trust Gerlin. He suspected that a band of smugglers were taking goods from the pirate attacks from here further inland. JAAKON: That's right. Your friend helped me and my partner Fayris Lynxeye explore the docks one night to try and find out about this contraband... FORGRIMM: Well, well. So we're supposed to trust these people... hmm. Did you find anything suspicious? Were smugglers there? URDIRIEL: You can say that again... we were instantly ambushed several times. We had to rescue Gerlin, as he was being held by the smugglers and a magician by name "Coldstone". Unfortunately one of Gerlin's companions was killed in the attempt... whereas Coldstone was able to use his magic to escape. FORGRIMM: Hmm... What have we gained, if he escaped? We still don't know where these pirates have their hideout. If this keeps up, we'll never... we'll never get the stolen merchandise back. URDIRIEL: Well... it's not at all certain whether the smugglers and this "Coldstone" have anything to do with the pirate attacks. Gerlin was, however, able to overhear a conversation that linked the Commandant of the local Tollgate to the smugglers. CANO: The Commandant of the Tollgate, you say? Hmm... perhaps we should pay the gentleman a visit, what do you think, Ardo? ARDO: Aye... I think we should see what's what there. What about you? Are you joining us? URDIRIEL: Of course! What did you think? JAAKON: I will go with you as well... and not just because Gerlin wishes it. This Coldstone must be stopped, whatever he's up to. ARDO: Right, then it's settled. We'll meet at the docks. Ardo secures the services of Captain Delbrack and his boat, the Thalaria. However, there is a problem that needs solving. Delbrack fell out with his crew and they left in a huff. Urdiriel's task is to convince them to return. Delbrack gives her 10 ducats in case all persuasion attempts fail. The first sailor, Four-Finger Salm, is harassing the local blacksmith near the South Gate of Nadoret. Now, if our characters had good social talents, a lot of experience could be won here by convincing the sailors without having to pay up. But alas... All persuasion checks fail, however, and Urdiriel is forced to cough up 4 ducats. The second sailor, Silvertooth Yallik, is in the caverns underneath Nadoret, betting on fights in an arena. Again we convince the sailor by using 4 ducats. Dumb Dan is a drunk, picking fights at the Leaping Stag. Urdiriel manages to succesfully intimidate Dumb Dan and this time doesn't have to pay up. Leaving the tavern, Urdiriel and Jaakon run into the beggar Old Greyhair. Turns out Greyhair is working as Gerlin's eyes and ears in Nadoret. GREYHAIR: Ohh... excuse me... do you have a farthing for a poor one-legged man? URDIRIEL: I'm busy at the moment. Out of the way... GREYHAIR: Psst! Gerlin sent me, I have a message for you! URDIRIEL: Aha! A message. How can I tell it's really from him? JAAKON: Because I can confirm it. Old Greyhair is Gerlin's contact here in Nadoret. We had strict instructions to keep it a secret - unless he contacted us. We can trust him. Greyhair hands over a letter which contains the interesting tidbit that Coldstone does not wear any magician seal, i.e. not acting under the authority of any guild laws or regulations, i.e. being a rogue mage. After all this hoopnanny, the Thalaria can finally depart. Urdiriel, remembering Brother Emmeran's invitation, decides to make a stop at the Isle of Forgetting before pushing on to the Tollgate.

I'd say all pre-ME boards are worth visiting.

Et tu, Felicia?

Hermosa is awesome. She always kicks Kenneth's ass when they duel. Best French accent ever as well.

The game will make for a very entertaining Let's Play, that's for sure.

Would anyone be surprised if the Witcher 2, a completely DRM-free game, gets leaked before release? It will be interesting to see how much that game will be pirated... maybe the final test for the PC gaming industry before finally going over to exclusively developing MMOs, indie & browser games.

Is there seriously a woman in Gears of War 3?

That's the point. The entire game is taking a piss at the whole serious business epic fantasy trend in RPGs. It's the fantasy version of Anchronox.

Paint the Elf blue in Photoshop and we have a Na'vi.