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Dragon Age: Origins Nightmare Guide by David Milward


INTRO & ABOUT  |  CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT GUIDELINES  |  EQUIPPING CHARACTERS  |  COMBAT GUIDELINES  |  CHARACTERS
Areas in Order of Appearance:  
Origins  |  Ostagar  |  Lothering  |  Circle Tower  |  Warden's Keep (DLC)  |  Return to Ostagar (DLC)  |  Stone Prisoner (DLC)  |  Brecilian Forest  |  Redcliffe  |  The Urn of Sacred Ashes  |  Orzammar  |  Deep Roads  |  Denerim  |  Final Onslaught  
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Orzammar: 
Frostback Mountain Pass  |  Orzammar Commons  |  Chamber of the Assembly  |  Aeducan Thaig  |  The Royal Palace  |  Harrowmont Estate  |  The Proving Grounds  |  Dust Town  |  Carta Hideout  |  Shaperate  |  To the Deep Roads  

DUST TOWN

Casteless Ambush

I get attacked by several Casteless Dwarves as soon as I enter Dust Town. Wynne's generous use of Fireballs plus routine physical combat suffices to win the battle. A nearby pile of rubble provides a Codex entry for "The Casteless".

Precious Metals

This next quest can net me quite a lot of gold if I can make enough Persuasion checks.

Immediately ahead is a Casteless Dwarf named Rogek. I agree to act as a middleman between him and his contact in the Circle Tower for the purchase of Lyrium. I use a successful Persuasion check to knock my initial purchase price down to 40gp. Be warned that if you don't have enough gold to make the initial Lyrium purchase from him, Rogek may very well attack you then and there.

Now I head back to the Circle Tower. I then go up a floor because Rogek's contact, Godwyn, turns out to be the same mage who was hiding in a closet earlier. As with Rogek, I can use Persuasion or Intimidation to score a better deal for myself. Note that scoring 65gp and a Crow Dagger (+15% critical/backstab damage) requires a very high Persuasion check. I also use another Persuasion check to press him on the specifics of his arrangement. Despite Alistair's apparent outrage, I don't lose any influence over him by seeing the deal through. I suppose I could have used another Persuasion check for the option "share the wealth" to score another 8gp if I had wanted to, but I've already scored big.

I then come back to Orzammar and talk to Rogek again. I make another Persuasion check to raise my finder's free from 10gp to 25gp and milk yet more gold out of the quest.

Alimar's Emporium

Just a little past Rogek will be the entrance to a store called Alimar's Emporium. It has almost every trap component possible for sale. For those of you who rely on trap-setting as a mainstay of your strategies, and are in need of Trap Triggers, Alimar sells them in unlimited supply. He also sells a few lower end armor pieces. His more notable items include:

I also, for interest's sake, show Aldarion paying some silver to get some information on how to find the Carta's hideout. Be careful not to back out of the deal, otherwise the shop will be closed to you permanently.

Key to the City

The point of this video is to show how to obtain a powerful ring in Orzammar. I need to click on five scrolls in order to make a certain cache available. They are the Assembly Writ in Dust Town (at 0:44), the Document on the bridge leading to the Proving Grounds (1:45), the Writ of Censure in the Proving Grounds (2:16), the Commission Report in the Hall of Heroes (3:06), and the Council Writ in the Diamond Quarter (3:42).

Once I click on all of these, I then go to the Assembly Chamber and find the Assembly Cache just as I enter. Inside the Cache is the ring, The Key to the City (+2 to all attributes, +4% spell resistance, +10% healing effects received). This will be Aldarion's other ring for the balance of the game, and thus he has the two best rings in the game in anticipation of importing into Awakening. The spell resistance bonus also stacks with bonuses provided by other items.

Cute Nug

I'm including this video for interest's sake more than anything else. I speak to the Idle Dwarf briefly on the subject of Nugs. I then speak to Leliana, who expresses an interest in keeping a Nug as a pet. Note that either an active romance with Leliana or an approval of 75 or more with her is needed to trigger that particular dialogue. I then speak with the Idle Dwarf again, and hire him to catch a Nug for me. The Cute Nug will then appear in my inventory, which I gift to Leliana. Her pet Nug, which she will name Schmooples, will appear next to her during Camp. It cannot be interacted with though.

Zerlinda's Woe

Now I speak with Zerlinda, who's close by towards the southeast corner of Dust Town. She explains her rather unfortunate situation. I could use a Persuasion check to convince her to "mercy kill" her Casteless child, but I prefer to resolve the quest a different way. I head over to Tapster's Tavern, the entrance to which is in the Commons near the east exit. I next speak with Zerlinda's father, Ordel, and use a Persuasion check to convince him to take Zerlinda and her child back in. I then complete the quest by delivering the good news to Zerlinda.

Entering Jarvia's Hideout

There will be another Dwarven beggar nearby named Nadezda. I ply information on how to find the Carta Hideout from her with a little silver.

There is a Slum House nearby, towards the southwest corner of Dust Town. I enter, and get attacked by several Dwarven Thugs. There's quite a few of them, and they jump me from all sides in a very tight space. Leliana takes that as her queue to position herself and begin her Captivating Song. Wynne catches several with a carefully placed Flame Blast. Quite a few of the Thugs make for Wynne, so Aldarion neutralizes the aggro by protecting Wynne with a Force Field. I cut their leader down to minimal Health, so he offers to surrender. There's no benefit to letting him go. I kill him and his Thugs instead for the xp. The leader leaves behind the Fingerbone Token that I need.

I next go to a Suspicious Door towards the southeast corner, near where I first spoke to Zerlindam, and insert the Fingerbone Token. The way is now clear into the Carta Hideout.


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