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Ddriana β Arishok
Published: 2011-03-25 18:54:33 +0000 UTC; Views: 2930; Favourites: 36; Downloads: 29
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Oh, Dragon Age 2... you lovely, lovely game, which unfortunately had no clue which characters you really wanted to get to know better. Had I been able to join the Qun, I would have.The Arishok... his character, his design, his voice
When he lost his temper I genuinely flinched I finished the game in 6 days, and it took less than 24 hours before the first fanart was in the making. And more is coming, indeed...
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Comments: 23
I would have loved to be able to convert to the Qun. The Arishok is by far my favourite fantasy character from the last several years.
As to the art, what markers did you use?
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Oh if only you had the chance to join the Qun... I would have done so in a heartbeat.
It's copic markers
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The sexy " And you all should be grateful!" that got me to become a big puddle of trembling lust!!!
I would of joined the Qun if there was that option
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Oh the Arishok's voice
It didn't exactly help that the Qun made more sense than the crazy templars and the crazy blood mages either...
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Oh yes... I will do anything you want, just... yea..
The Qun seemed more... accepting than the crazy Templars, and the omg crazy Bas Saarebas. And the Mages didnt help either
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I love his designs as well ^_^
Though sadly I wouldn't recommend following the Qun 
I can see where your coming from mind you 
Still, love this picture!
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Well, my first Hawke was a rogue, so she'd be fine. Probably getting stuck applying that cunning to papers though...
I rather not have a fanatical believer of anything in real life, but the Qunari are very intriguing *because* they are so different. I believe they do have relationships, but they're expressed differently than what humans, elves and dwarves are used to and I find such an alien culture really interesting to explore. It was a challenge to interact with Sten in DA: O and figure out how to deal with him, and I found myself really enjoying the interactions with the Arishok (and the Sarebaas) in DA2.
Besides, honesty and backbone is attractive. I suppose that's why (new, improved, sane) Cullen really won me over too. Bioware are really bad at figuring out which characters I want to romance XD
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Well I agree that their interesting
And what did you enjoy about their interactions? So far what I've seen he does act kind of down on you for not being a follower of the Qun, though I haven't gotten that far yet
And Cullen did become sane again
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My experience with the Arishok is that he's like a tiny island of sanity in the crazy storm of Kirkwall. Sure, he comes from a completely alien culture, with a completely different way of looking at things, but I have to agree with Saemus. The brutal honesty of the Qunari was refreshing.
I also found myself agreeing with him on so many things it was silly (Aveline got a bit upset with me...) and won his respect without even trying. After even being told that I'd do well in the Qun, I must say I was disappointed that I never got the option to join.
Also, his design and voice are *fantastic* Any voice actor who can make you forget that you are playing a game and make you genuinely flinch when they raise their voice in anger is worth every penny and then some.
Without giving too much away, you end up fighting side by side with Cullen a couple of times, and just before the final battle with him? The display of backbone took my fangirlism to new levels! He was definitely my favorite of the cameos from DA: O
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Well to be honest, isn't the Arishok a whole new form of insanity? I found the Qunari to be very interesting, and I liked their alien view of things. However, when your part of the Qun you are pretty much forced to spread the religion by the sword if the needs arises, and you do give up a lot of things that pretty much mean you. I like to think that Saemus saw the Qunari through a more naive viewpoint, in which he still had his individuality. Because while I think that it does give peace through taking away your decisions and struggles, those decisions and struggles are what makes you yourself.
And what kind of things were those then?
Don't get me wrong, I like the Qunari as a race
And that does sound cool! XD Tell me, after seeing that, did you wish that he was a romance option?
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I have to agree on the Qunari's "convert or die" is on the harsh side, yes. But I also think it could be a very rewarding roleplaying experience to enter into such a society with the eyes of a newly converted, where you are allowed to ask stupid questions and not feel out of character. And who knows? Maybe their society works better and maybe people are happier that way? It's hard to know when we've only ever seen the military. They do say that the areas that have been converted to the Qun tend to be very reluctant to change back if they are freed. If that is due to brainwashing or a genuine preference for the Qun is hard to say.
I think the charm of the Qunari to Saemus was mainly that he had lived an isolated and mollycoddled life which he did not want. Blunt honesty from someone who didn't care who his father was must have been a fantastic experience indeed. Yes, he was naive and didn't see the whole picture, but I can understand how he came to grow fond of them.
I'm afraid to spoil you XD But there's an incident which strongly resembles that of the city elf origin in DA: O, where he essentially acts the role of Duncan. Even if I hadn't played DA: O first as a city elf, I would probably still have felt that his actions were logical and right (to a degree). I also like the fact that you essentially need only be honest with him and you are forgiven for killing his men and the like (context, context, you are needed XD)
I did play my first game doing what felt right, and a lot of those options happened to be what the qunari agreed with, so obviously Iβm a bit partial here
Haha, I wanted Cullen as a romancable option in DA: O, even with his insanity and anger issues. It would be a nice change from the constant complaints that the romance options usually have, because I have a hard time seeing him throwing his issues at you until you really get to know him (Anders, I'm looking at you).
I think it would have been great to have him as a companion in DA: O even if he most likely would have gone berserk and killed the mages in the group right before you went up against the Archdemon XD
... that was WAY too long D:
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From what I can tell, the area's that have been converted have sadly been brainwashed in the sence that following the Qun has proven very easy and removes the struggles. However, that also means no individuality sadly, so while they may be happy to be without it, it also removes who they are :C That is sadly the danger there is in the Qun I think
I think that is the reason as well 
Ah, you mean where he takes the city elves in? Yep, I heard about that
And you mean that there was no sanity because the mages and templars were fighting each other? Or you mean their leaders were insane?
I see
And don't worry XD It's good to talk about it with you
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To say that they have all been brainwashed is making it too easy, I think. At one hand, yes the Qun is very restrictive, but on the other hand it is a system that doesn't exploit a large number of its population for the comforts of the few. For that very reason, I think it is likely to be popular among the poor who are suddenly given a chance to do well based on their abilities rather than birth.
Well, a treaty is really no guarantee, even in the real world. It's one of those "for the time being" things, but it's better than nothing
Thing is, the rapist was a guard, and you'd think that the captain of the guard would take such a matter seriously enough to investigate it at once, to minimize the damage done to the guards's reputation, but Aveline doesn't. She admits that she's heard rumors about it, but she hasn't actually questioned the guards or the victim. She says she'll look into it, but only after the elves have sought help and been denied it, murdered the guard and found shelter among the qunari.
I really like Aveline, but had she watched the watchmen, as is her job, it wouldn't have come to that :/
And technically, Duncan only saves the city elf if you agree to become a Warden, so it's really essentially the same situation, only Duncan has the law on his side. The Arishok only has the Qun on his side, which is not the same in a country that is not under the rule of the Qun.
As Hawke puts it "Someday, I'd like to go one week without meeting an insane mage. Just one week." They really pop up everywhere, and though I'll agree that there are a few templars who seem to be sane and reasonable, Meredith and most who you meet are if not outright insane, then sadists or paranoid to the point where they forget that mages are people too. The mage-templar struggle in Kirkwall makes the Circle in Ferelden seem like a snugglefest with rainbows and dancing unicorns.
Next to them, the Arishok and the qunari seem reasonable, logical, and by far preferable for the majority.
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Wow! That's a lot of text XD
I'll try to answer tonight, because I'm now after my iphone
I will say though, it's very unfair and naieve to say the Qunari and Qun are the best option for the city. It might seem like it now with all the drama, but in the long run you condemn your people to tiranny, one ehich mercilessly strikes down those who are against, and brainwashes pretty much their population. Sorry to say this, but that is how it goes in practice. It sounds nice and all, but the ones who don't like it either don't know any better (like that poor Qunari mage :C) or are "reeducated" or killed...
Sorry if I go too much into this, but I just don't get how some fanboys/girls act like it works like the chantry, while in truth it works much grimmer
I can understand though, seeing as the Arishok is a good example: He is charismatic and to fangirls attractive, and on first sight it looks better on the survace. However once an area is Qun dominated, your pretty much doomed as someone who disagrees with it and as an individual.
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Well it does take away your personality, so it's more then just being strict
And while a treaty shows no garantees, it is signed normally because countries don't want to fight. Under the Qun they are forced to fight, it is part of their religion. Other countries have the Chant, but that doesn't compel them to war unless it's an exalted march, and usually preaches peace between the nations (difficult because of differences, but still better then nothing), while the Qun wants to go on until every culture different then their own is destroyed.
And I haven't gotten to that part yet, but I think that Aveline would have punished the Guard, and would have stood up for the elves had he heard about it. Trust me, Aveline would have been the first to kill those elves.
Your right about the Duncan part though, but had the Qunari not been in the city then the elves wouldn't have gone and taken the risk of killing a guard and then seeking refuge at the Qun. If they waited, Aveline would have done something about it. And did the elves get to Aveline for help? In that case it aren't rumours, sounds to me like they didn't go to her.
Also it's quite unfair to say this. The struggle there was the result of Meredith losing it, and the majority of the Templars aren't like that at all, nor are the majority of the mages. In Kirkwall you had the worst both groups had to offer, and the least worst the Qunari had to offer (which was as bad as the Templars and mages there to be honest, seeing as they planned to genocide the entire city :/)
I hope my english is understandable
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Actually, they believe that men are better at fighting, therefore women should not be warriors. Women, on the other hand, are believed to be better at other things, such as organizing so professions that involve that to a high extent become a non-male profession within the Qun. It is a highly generalizing and flawed thinking, but I don't believe it's right to say that they value one gender over the other
They also wait to assign the individual to their path until they are 12 years of age, not at birth, and then only after tests to evaluate where they are likely to do best. At 12 you have had time to become a person and show some degree of talent at least, and though not a perfect system I still feel that it is better to be judged at 12 on your own merits than to be judged by who your parents are. The son of a good king is not necessarily going to be a good king himself after all.
The people who get dealt an extraordinarily crappy hand in the Qun are the mages, that I agree on. They are treated worse than elsewhere, but a mage outside Tevinter is unlikely to live a fabulous and free life regardless. I was saddened by Sareebas' decision, but it made sense when you consider his background. The advantage of the Qun, in comparison to the Circle, is that their mages seem much more content with their lot in life *because* they are not accustomed to freedom.
Yes, the Qun wishes to spread, but at the same time, surely they too need time to recover from wars? Treaties are good for that, buying you time to recover and repopulate a bit
Though I don't think that the Arishok planned a genocide on Kirkwall. He was there for the tome, but ended up stuck there for such a long time that making backup plans was really the only responsible thing to do, especially with his own people getting attacked and killed.
Actually, the elves say that they tried to talk to the guards, but that they didn't listen to them no matter what the elves said. Since they are elves, and thus second class citizens, they are extremely unlikely to get anywhere near the guard captain. While I do believe that Aveline would have taken the matters seriously had she heard the case directly from them, she evidently did not investigate the case when she heard the rumors about the original crime, which had dire consequences indeed.
We see a similar case with the magistrateβs son, who gets away with kidnapping and murdering elven children not just because his father is a magistrate (though that is important) but also because the victims are elves. As the father of the recently kidnapped girl says, it doesn't matter that he has money because they are still just elves, they cannot expect justice like everyone else.
Frankly, I think they would have killed the guard regardless of the presence of the Qunari, but they'd probably have disappeared into darktown or fled the city instead. The Qunari were simply an easier solution, which would protect them from being hunted.
But even before Meredith loses it, we see that Kirkwall is particularly harsh to mages. Her views, even before her insanity, are extreme and she raises templars who share those extreme views in rank (as with Cullen). The mages are not only being made tranquil at an alarming rate, but the threat of being made tranquil is used to have them remain silent to the abuse of individual templars (poor Alain D: ) And yes, the majority of the templars are probably descent men and women, but we see that the few push the mages to the breaking point over and over, and as they outrank the descent ones, thanks to Meredith, the rule of terror prevails.
And I am not saying that the mages are without blame. They get pushed to the extremes, but they still choose to turn to blood magic, over and over and over, proving the templars right and justifying the extreme methods that caused the problem in the first place. It's a vicious circle, and I for one feel that the Circle only works as a system as long as templars and mages remember that the templars are not only protecting the outside world from the mages, but they are protecting the mages as well. I don't think there would be even a tenth of the number of blood mages in Kirkwall if the mages had felt safe with the templars in the first place :/
If you compare Kirkwall to the Circle in Ferelden, it is much, much harsher. Aside from the Harrowing, I experienced the templar presence in the Circle to be mild if not vaguely friendly. Sure, it must be trying to be watched all the time, but the greatest strain seemed to come from within the mage community and its many fractions. The templars there seemed to be almost exclusively descent. The fact that Gregoir sends Cullen away from his Circle when the younger templar displays signs of being heavily traumatized by the events that take place in DA: O is very telling. He is protecting not only the mages but Cullen as well. Meredith, meanwhile, encourages the paranoid, "assume the worst" mentality, and at the same time we are told that the veil is very thin in Kirkwall. It has the worst possible conditions, so it's not surprising that chaos breaks out.
And to me, the Qunari were much calmer and logical. Between the extreme templars and the blood mages that kept popping up all over the place, as well as the large number of very poor, it was hard not to feel that the Qun would be the preferable option for the city.
Don't worry about the English. It's my second language too, but I think we're doing alright?
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Mm, that stare...
I honestly don't understand why we didn't have the opportunity to flirt with him and be eschewed in a sexy Qunari way.
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I know D: I kept running back to him over and over and trying every conversation option just to see if it would help T_T
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I wanted a Sten easter egg of some sort...
Hawke: Are you flirting with me, messere?
Arishok: Flirt? I do not know this word.
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Haha, that would have been lovely XD But I would have been satisfied with a sad "feeling horny, are we?" joke.
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That should have been an option. It really should have.
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Even if it would be met with a firm 'No.' Which it would have. Unfortunately.
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