Dragon Age Catch-All

oMonarca wrote:
Nevin73 wrote:

I haven't signed up for Impulse and I'm not thrilled by having yet another distribution system that I need to log into. But the points about spreading around the purchases and particularly the 20% off will have me signing up for Impulse tonight.

Then I'm guessing you'll be glad to know that you only need to log in to Impulse to either download stuff you bought, or update stuff

You can pretty much finish DA:O without ever logging on the Stardock client, except for that one time you dl'ed it - assuming there are no ugly bugs... and there shouldn't, since the game is done for what? 6 months?

(off topic: that's actually something I enjoy about Impulse... it can be pretty discrete).

Impulse also only charges your credit card when the game is released rather than immediately.

Shoal07 wrote:
Nevin73 wrote:
Shoal07 wrote:
imbiginjapan wrote:
oMonarca wrote:

Well, he was complaining that Valve was taking it's sweet time to make DA:O available in Steam.

Assuming he just wants to use digital distribution, I was suggesting an alternative.

If I get this through digital distribution I expect I'll be using Impulse. Since it's a single player game the Steam community aspect is not all the important to me and I'd like to spread my gaming dollars around a bit where I can do so.

I have to get through Fallout 3 before I even consider getting this though. :)

I give a damn about being fair, but impulse gave me 20% off.

I haven't signed up for Impulse and I'm not thrilled by having yet another distribution system that I need to log into. But the points about spreading around the purchases and particularly the 20% off will have me signing up for Impulse tonight.

SURVEY-2009 is the cupon, good until the 1st. Works on anything. I bought Red Faction Gur and pre-ordered DA:O and the new SOASE expansion - got 20% off on all of them. Impulse is pretty liberal with these 20% off cupons for various things. I got another one earlier for Demigod sucking.

Thanks for the coupon! I pre-purchased DA on Impulse and basically got the Deluxe version for more or less the same price as the retail regular version.

You can download the character creator from the dragon age site now.

Nevin73 wrote:
Shoal07 wrote:
Nevin73 wrote:
Shoal07 wrote:
imbiginjapan wrote:
oMonarca wrote:

Well, he was complaining that Valve was taking it's sweet time to make DA:O available in Steam.

Assuming he just wants to use digital distribution, I was suggesting an alternative.

If I get this through digital distribution I expect I'll be using Impulse. Since it's a single player game the Steam community aspect is not all the important to me and I'd like to spread my gaming dollars around a bit where I can do so.

I have to get through Fallout 3 before I even consider getting this though. :)

I give a damn about being fair, but impulse gave me 20% off.

I haven't signed up for Impulse and I'm not thrilled by having yet another distribution system that I need to log into. But the points about spreading around the purchases and particularly the 20% off will have me signing up for Impulse tonight.

SURVEY-2009 is the cupon, good until the 1st. Works on anything. I bought Red Faction Gur and pre-ordered DA:O and the new SOASE expansion - got 20% off on all of them. Impulse is pretty liberal with these 20% off cupons for various things. I got another one earlier for Demigod sucking.

Thanks for the coupon! I pre-purchased DA on Impulse and basically got the Deluxe version for more or less the same price as the retail regular version.

Question about the Impulse release for anyone who might know (Island Dog, you out there?):

Will there be any troubles with mods and/or updates to the game via Impulse that I would be likely not to have if I buy the game in a retail store? I must admit that my favorite aspect of digital distribution is that I don't have to deal with discs in my pc.

If you're a member of the BioWare Social site now, I set up a Gamers With Jobs group there for everybody to congregate.

Farscry wrote:
Nevin73 wrote:
Shoal07 wrote:
Nevin73 wrote:
Shoal07 wrote:
imbiginjapan wrote:
oMonarca wrote:

Well, he was complaining that Valve was taking it's sweet time to make DA:O available in Steam.

Assuming he just wants to use digital distribution, I was suggesting an alternative.

If I get this through digital distribution I expect I'll be using Impulse. Since it's a single player game the Steam community aspect is not all the important to me and I'd like to spread my gaming dollars around a bit where I can do so.

I have to get through Fallout 3 before I even consider getting this though. :)

I give a damn about being fair, but impulse gave me 20% off.

I haven't signed up for Impulse and I'm not thrilled by having yet another distribution system that I need to log into. But the points about spreading around the purchases and particularly the 20% off will have me signing up for Impulse tonight.

SURVEY-2009 is the cupon, good until the 1st. Works on anything. I bought Red Faction Gur and pre-ordered DA:O and the new SOASE expansion - got 20% off on all of them. Impulse is pretty liberal with these 20% off cupons for various things. I got another one earlier for Demigod sucking.

Thanks for the coupon! I pre-purchased DA on Impulse and basically got the Deluxe version for more or less the same price as the retail regular version.

Question about the Impulse release for anyone who might know (Island Dog, you out there?):

Will there be any troubles with mods and/or updates to the game via Impulse that I would be likely not to have if I buy the game in a retail store? I must admit that my favorite aspect of digital distribution is that I don't have to deal with discs in my pc.

I think your asking if you'll have problems with mods. Odds are, no, as impulse is typically even more mod-friendly than steam, which isn't often a headache either. I don't believe impulse alters the .exe at all, unlike steam.

Michael Zenke wrote:

If you're a member of the BioWare Social site now, I set up a Gamers With Jobs group there for everybody to congregate.

I've already sent my request to join

Thanx Zonk!

Im starting to be annoyed by these digital distributions. Pretty much gave up on Steam after they started to charge like 30-40% more in Europe (since $1 is obviously equal to 1€).
Impulse seemed great however as they still charge in dollars. But apparently they cant bother to sell Dragon Age in Europe, which makes their better prices kinda moot.

Its a shame, I liked getting pretty much all my games on Steam for a while, but in the last year its gone the wrong direction, and I'm back to buying pretty much all my games on disc So much for the digital revolution.

/rant off

I dont think you should have problems with mods through Impulse, afaik it basically installs the disc version and have it loadable without using Impulse. Unlike Steam which requires its own patches etc.

Michael Zenke wrote:

If you're a member of the BioWare Social site now, I set up a Gamers With Jobs group there for everybody to congregate.

I just sent a request to join, but my username on the BioWare forums is kevlarcardhouse.

Michael Zenke wrote:

If you're a member of the BioWare Social site now, I set up a Gamers With Jobs group there for everybody to congregate.

Also joined and sent out friend invites to everyone I could find. Thanks for setting it up Zonk!

Also, since you've been on the podcast a bunch shouldn't you be automagically promoted to something higher than Intern. I might have to start an internet petition.

Shoal07 wrote:

I think your asking if you'll have problems with mods. Odds are, no, as impulse is typically even more mod-friendly than steam, which isn't often a headache either. I don't believe impulse alters the .exe at all, unlike steam.

Thanks man, that's exactly what I wanted to find out. I've had mod problems on Steam from time to time (like Rome: Total Realism for Rome: Total War for example), so for games that I'm going to want to be running mods and such, I tend to avoid Steam anymore.

Shadout wrote:

Im starting to be annoyed by these digital distributions. Pretty much gave up on Steam after they started to charge like 30-40% more in Europe (since $1 is obviously equal to 1€).
Impulse seemed great however as they still charge in dollars. But apparently they cant bother to sell Dragon Age in Europe, which makes their better prices kinda moot.

Its a shame, I liked getting pretty much all my games on Steam for a while, but in the last year its gone the wrong direction, and I'm back to buying pretty much all my games on disc So much for the digital revolution.

/rant off

I dont think you should have problems with mods through Impulse, afaik it basically installs the disc version and have it loadable without using Impulse. Unlike Steam which requires its own patches etc.

Offtopic: Both Valve and Stardock don't have the final say in either pricing or availability. As a glaring example, go to Impulse Driven and take a look at Demigod and Red Faction Guerilla. One has a fixed price in $, the other regional pricing. Guess which one has the 49,99€ tag? Who's to blame? EU retailer pressure, but that's for another topic.

Ontopic: Take a look at D2D.uk, it might be interesting to you. It's so far the only digital distribution option that I like. I'm still waiting for Steam's move, but not that hopeful. D2D.uk will most likely get my moneys.

PS.: EA Store will rip your nads off. That's how pricey they are.

Michael Zenke wrote:

If you're a member of the BioWare Social site now, I set up a Gamers With Jobs group there for everybody to congregate.

I put a request in and my name on there is LordLothars

Michael Zenke wrote:

If you're a member of the BioWare Social site now, I set up a Gamers With Jobs group there for everybody to congregate.

Thanks! Request sent!

georob wrote:

Also, since you've been on the podcast a bunch shouldn't you be automagically promoted to something higher than Intern. I might have to start an internet petition. :)

Bah. Just happy to actually be able to actually take part in the community bit nowadays.

Farscry wrote:
Shoal07 wrote:

I think your asking if you'll have problems with mods. Odds are, no, as impulse is typically even more mod-friendly than steam, which isn't often a headache either. I don't believe impulse alters the .exe at all, unlike steam.

Thanks man, that's exactly what I wanted to find out. I've had mod problems on Steam from time to time (like Rome: Total Realism for Rome: Total War for example), so for games that I'm going to want to be running mods and such, I tend to avoid Steam anymore.

Just want to further confirm that impulse games are very mod friendly. They are also much easier to backup and install on another PC. Don't forget that for impulse games, you can specify what directory you want the game to be installed to, it is in the preference settings.

Also, there is the Stardock Goo. Which is a special "licensing feature" that let you resell your games that are covered by "Goo."

If you're a member of the BioWare Social site now, I set up a Gamers With Jobs group there for everybody to congregate.

Haven't been here for a while, so hopefully I can make it in. The name should be "lethial."

thanks

Michael Zenke wrote:

If you're a member of the BioWare Social site now, I set up a Gamers With Jobs group there for everybody to congregate.

Just applied, under name "Denikker".

Seeing as how Dragon Age is like NWN, in how it's providing the entire toolset the designers used to the community to make their own content and probably still utilizes their "override folder" feature, I don't see mods being a problem on any version anyways. It was specifically built to expect them.

Still waiting for my 360 version preview (taps foot impatiently)

farley3k wrote:

Still waiting for my 360 version preview (taps foot impatiently)

I was pretty disappointed by the PC character creator, so don't worry. One notable omission is the lack of hair colors. You can only choose from most realistic tones. Nothing green.

The Dragon Age listing for Steam[/url]]

Pre-Purchase Dragon Age: Origins and receive the following:

Steam Exclusive Item

The Wicked Oath

Countess Luciana of Antiva lived as a virtual prisoner in her husband’s castle until an elven slave offered her a way out. The slave magically bound a small amount of the countess’s blood into a ring in return for a promise of freedom. The countess agreed, and the count was found stabbed soon afterwards, this ring lying beside him. Neither Luciana nor the slave were seen again.

  • Adds +10% to critical strike damage
  • Improves armor penetration by 2
  • Adds +1 to combat stamina regeneration

Pre-Purchase Exclusive Item

The Memory Band

Made by the Formari, these lyrium-infused rings are supposed to help apprentices retain their lessons. They work rather well -- too well, perhaps, as less capable students sometimes wear three or four per finger.

  • Adds +1% to XP
  • Adds one skill point

Additional content included in Dragon Age: Origins:

Blood Dragon Armor

Commissioned by an infamous Nevarran dragon hunter, this armor was crafted in a time when dragons had almost been hunted to extinction. Infused with their blood, the armor gained notoriety after the hunter died at the hands of men rather than the dragons it was designed to protect him from.

  • Grants exceptional protection in combat
  • Armor will be usable in BioWare's upcoming science fiction epic, Mass Effect 2

The Stone Prisoner

The darkspawn-infested village of Honnleath holds a secret: the forgotten stone figure at the town’s heart is a powerful golem frozen in time. Free the creature and reveal a storied quest to unlock its power and mysterious past.

Download The Stone Prisoner and gain access to Shale, a mighty stone golem who can join the party and travel throughout Dragon Age: Origins. One of the most powerful characters in the game, Shale comes with a rich back story, extensive voice acting, and a unique follower quest to explore. The Stone Prisoner also includes new environments, items, and hours of additional gameplay that adds to the Dragon Age: Origins campaign.

  • A powerful new party member to aid in the epic quest to save Ferelden from the Blight
  • New areas, including the troubled village of Honnleath
  • New achievements, items, and unique insights into the Dragon Age: Origins storyline

No purchase button yet, though.

Nice to see Steam getting the goodies too.

Is Gamestop doing a deal on this? That might push me over the edge to get it now on the 360 rather than wait until next year when I have my new PC.

Steam needs some kind of wishlist feature, so I can add all these blasted games that are about to come out onto it and have one page to go to to see when they're available for purchase/pre-order.

There doesn't seem to be any price cut for DA on gamestop right now. Also, the CE version of the game seem to be all sold out right now too.

But in term of bonus items Gamestop preorders will get
Feral Wolf Charm
(+ armor & health regen... & + enchanted by scantily clad women?)

lethial wrote:

But in term of bonus items Gamestop preorders will get
Feral Wolf Charm
(+ armor & health regen... & + enchanted by scantily clad women?)

They better be enchanting something more than a charm.

lethial wrote:

But in term of bonus items Gamestop preorders will get
Feral Wolf Charm
(+ armor & health regen... & + enchanted by scantily clad women?)

Hmm. Hungry Like the Wolf, eh?

Hypatian wrote:

Steam needs some kind of wishlist feature ...

I have been sending them that suggestion since the thing launched, via their feedback forms. Nobody listening over there, apparently.

lethial wrote:

I am not making that up, I promise, here is the official description:

Feral Wolf Charm - With this charm, hunters claim that they are enchanted on moonlit nights by scantily clad witches deep in the heart of the Korcari Wilds. As if that's not enough, the charm also adds to your armor and increases your health regeneration.

I think it is just Gamestop trying to be funny.

Stay classy, Gamestop. Stay classy.

I am not making that up, I promise, here is the official description:

Feral Wolf Charm - With this charm, hunters claim that they are enchanted on moonlit nights by scantily clad witches deep in the heart of the Korcari Wilds. As if that's not enough, the charm also adds to your armor and increases your health regeneration.

I think it is just Gamestop trying to be funny.

By the way, someone over at the DA forums has extracted the skills the specialized classes in DA, here is the thread.

Skills for specialized Classes posted by immeyourenot on DA Spoiler Forum:

Spoiler:

Mages:
Blood Mage:
Health used as mana
Blood Control - Controlled by Blood
Blood Wound - Duration AoE
Pool of Blood - O
Blood Sacrifice - Drain Health, Heal with Blood

Spirit Healer:
Revival - AoE Ressurection
Cleansing Aura - Duration AoE, Aura of Healing, Healing Pulse
Lifeward - Conjure - AoE, Green Glyph, Heal
Support the weak - Conjure AoE, Heal

Arcane Warrior:
Combat Magic - Mana increases Strength
Fade Shroud - Phased out of reality
Shimmering Shield - Ultimate Magic Barrier
Aura of Might - Attack Bonus

Shapeshifter:
Bear Shape - Transformation
Spider Shape - Transformation
Flying Swarm - Transformation

Warriors:
Reaver:
Devour - Healing from Corpse
Frightening - Horror / Fear
Pain - Psychic Damage, Duration AoE
Blood Frenzy - ><

Beserker:
Beserk - Beserking
Final Blow - Target Death Impact

Templar:
Righteous Strike - ><
Cleanse Aura - Placed Impact AoE - Dispel
Holy Smite - ><
??

Champion:
Rally - Defense Bonus, Duration AoE
War Cry - Attack Penalty AoE

Rogues:
Bard:
Captivate - Duration AoE
Demoralize - Critical Chance, Attack and Damage, Defense Penalty, Placed Impact AoE
Cry of Valor - Mana and Stamina Regen

Duelist:
Pinpoint Strike - ><
Upset Balance - Target Slowed
Dueling - Attack Bonus

Assassin:
Mark of Death - Target Marked
Feast of the Fallen ><

Ranger:
Summon Spider - Summoning, Placed Impact
Summon Wolf - Summoning, Placed Impact
Summon Bear - Summoning, Placed Impact
Natural Regeneration - Regeneration

Shapeshifter:
Bear Shape - Transformation
Spider Shape - Transformation
Flying Swarm - Transformation

Not a lot to be found about Dog it seems, all I could find was this:
Wardog Intimidation:
Mabari Howl - Defense Penalty AoE
Growl - Defense Penalty

Wardog Strength:
Shred - Bleeding

Edit: On page 4 of the above posted thread contains the "speculated" descriptions for all the skills, read them at your own risk.