Things That Makes The Inquisitor The Best Hero Of Dragon Age

Highlights

• The Inquisitor is a larger-than-life figure thrust into fame, whether they choose it or not.
• The War Table mechanic offers opportunities to lead troops and make crucial decisions.
• Inquisition delves into political intrigue, plot-relevant romances, and expansive lore across diverse settings.

Dragon Age: Inquisition is sprawling. It builds on long-anticipated questions, has a stellar character creator, and features many recurring faces fans love, but there’s a lot more to why players are still playing this game. It has had its share of criticisms as well, from featuring fetch quests to a Storm Coast that never stops storming, and yet, it’s an epic that players aren’t likely to forget.

Dragon Age is shaped by the actions of its heroes, and none play the role quite so boldly as the Inquisitor does. For dangers of mythic proportions, only a mythic leader will do. As the Inquisitor, players will navigate battlefields and ballrooms, excavate ruins and repel enemies out of nightmares. Thedas rests in the Inquisitor’s palm, and with this hero, players will do a lot more than just save the world.

1 Unapologetically The Chosen One

Neither The Warden Nor Hawke Gets The Inquisitor’s Adulation

• The player can choose to resist the titles bestowed on them but people will still believe.
• The Inquisitor doesn’t have to do much to shoot to fame, or infamy depending on who players ask.
• Each background has unique dialogue options & offers a unique take on the same role bestowed on the Inquisitor no matter their origin.

While the Warden’s Joining is scripted to be an unavoidable choice and Hawke earns a right to fame with hard work, the Inquisitor is thrust into a very public role very early in the game as the Herald of Andraste.

Regardless of how players roleplay their Inquisitor’s feelings, the public sees the title, not the individual. At least this sword cuts both ways: the Inquisitor commands a power strong enough to conquer nations.

2 The Inquisition Is An Army

And The War Table Is So Much More Than A Minigame

• The War Table represents troop movements & infiltration teams not involving the Inquisitor’s personal team.
• Preparations yield new opportunities, represented by a Power mechanic.
• There are real battles with the army as well.

The progress of the Inquisition is represented in orders handed out to the Inquisitor’s three advisors representing three approaches. Although these choices may seem arbitrary at times, these missions contain a lot of valuable lore.

The War Table mechanic is far from the most popular feature in Inquisition, and it’s easy to forget about its timers unless players regularly check-in. With a little patience – or the right mod – this feature can still enhance the feeling of a leader delegating and commanding.

3 The Great Game Is Grand

Orlesian Balls Put Ferelden & Free Marches Politics To Shame

• Politics is a classic element of Dragon Age.
• Inquisition features the most involved political quests compared to its predecessors.
• Wicked Eyes & Wicked Hearts isn’t optional, but players change the course of Orlais’ future with the choices made here.

Politics is an important facet of Dragon Age games, starting with the Landsmeet in Origins. After the Warden, Hawke also tests the political waters and becomes a familiar face at the Viscount’s Keep in Dragon Age 2.

In contrast, the Inquisition is full-blown military power from the start of the game, therefore political entanglements are inevitable. Aspiring players can choose to learn the Game or risk alienating the support of the nations surrounding the Inquisition.

4 The Inquisitor’s Love Life Changes Lives

Inquisition Gives New Meaning To Plot-Relevant Romances

• Inquisition has gated romances similar to Origins, & not only for gender but race as well in some cases.
• Not all romances have the same amount of content, but all of them have surprises.
• Companions can romance each other, too.

Inquisition’s romance system is founded on preferences that meaningfully tie into the plot. In the case of characters like Solas, Dorian, or Iron Bull, their romances directly relate to the main story and players’ choices.

While not all the romances are equally impactful, players are signing up for plot twists no matter whom they choose. They all add story depth, whether it’s gaining insight into the Templar’s plight through Cullen or appreciating the demands placed upon Grey Wardens with Blackwall.

5 Knife Ears, Topside Dusters, & Zealous Andrastians

The Inquisitor’s Background Changes Things

• Including DLC content, all backgrounds have significant lore representation in Inquisition.
• The Inquisitor’s advisors, followers, and enemies respond to the player’s race and class.
• Each background combination offers unique dialogue options.

Some races are more comfortable with Andrastian beliefs than others, and being in charge of an organization with religious affiliation can be interesting with a non-human background. While a Dalish mage might be viewed by some as an apostate, a human one might have reason to side with the Circle.

One of the best things about Inquisition is the range players can roleplay when it comes to how the Inquisitor’s character responds to the world coming apart at the seams. This influences how players lead the Inquisition, and some quests and decisions will land quite differently.

6 Orlais, Ferelden, The Frostback Basin, & Ancient Thaigs

The Inquisitor Really Gets Around

• Together with the Jaws of Hakkon & The Descent DLCs, the Inquisitor goes to more places than either preceding Dragon Age hero.
• The Inquisition’s seat is in the Frostback Mountains between Orlais & Ferelden.
• Players have to gather Power but it’s not specified where, so some areas can be skipped.

Making the map so expansive is not one of Inquisition’s most popular design choices, and some argue that it’s stretched thin with fetch quests. On the other hand, this game has some gorgeous settings to explore, and each area offers a different flavor of experiences and encounters.

Completionists and lore enthusiasts will want to grind through, however, to take in all the vistas, unearth every secret, and visit long-forgotten temples and haunted chateaus alike. Not counting Shard hunting, there are things of note in every corner.

7 Lost History Is About More Than Revising Textbooks

Genetivi Would Have Been All Over The Inquisitor’s Ruin Spelunking

• The history the Inquisitor unearths often connects back to lore first hinted at in Origins and Dragon Age 2.
• The lore Inquisition and its DLCs reveal upends commonly accepted myths & histories.
• The Veilguard expands on the biggest revelations of Inquisition.

Depending on the Inquisitor’s origin, the forgotten history of their race might have unexpected details to surprise anyone who played the previous games. The true history hinted at is fascinating, but not all Inquisitors will like what they learn.

Although every race has something relevant to learn in the game, without a doubt, Inquisition has the most to offer for elf players. Those who played a Dalish Warden in Origins will have the most to appreciate in some respects, and it’s the most emotionally intensive background in this game.

8 The Inquisitor Can All But Time Travel

Actually, Not Even Time Travel Is Out Of The Question

• The history of the elves is scattered all over forgotten nooks in & around Orlais.
• The Descent DLC is the first huge lore drop players get about the distant past of the dwarves since Origins.
• Even the past of the Inquisition itself has murky depths, as the Jaws of Hakkon DLC reveals.
• Inquisition also revisits the history of the Grey Wardens.
• The Trespasser DLC is a massive lore boost for elves, but also for the qunari.

The Inquisition serves justice and seeks truth while moonlighting as a scarily well-funded archeology department. Aside from the actual dig sites the Inquisitor explores, the party’s adventures uncover plenty of startling facts in forgotten places.

Thanks to the Inquisitor’s diverse companions, players will learn new things about modern Thedasian cultures in a way the previous games only alluded to. This insight also offers a fascinating contrast to the ancient lore the Inquisitor uncovers.

9 The Inquisitor Has Impressive Enemies

Magisters Can Make Way For Veritable Gods

• The enemies of the Inquisition are many, although it’s founded to face just one.
• Corypheus represents a long arc of uncovering the truth about the origin of darkspawn that begins with lore learned in Origins.
• The Venatori make their first appearance in Inquisition.

Although every Dragon Age has followed the formula of the hero gathering influence and might to combat the pressing issues facing each of them, Inquisition outdoes its predecessors in showing multiple sides of the conflict. Corypheus might seem larger than life, but it’s not his Shakespearean threats or Red Templars that make him so dangerous.

Much like the Architect’s machinations revealed in Origin’s Awakening DLC, Inquisition proves that not all evil is straightforward or obvious. The true enemies of Thedas are only just awakening, and players have to wait for The Veilguard to learn just how deep and dark the threat goes.