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Dragon Age: Origins Online Walkthrough by David Milward


INTRODUCTION  |  GETTING STARTED  |  NPCs  |  ORIGINS  |  RECIPES |  ITEMS   
Areas in the original game:  
Brecilian Forest  |  The Camp  |  Circle Tower  |  Denerim  |  The Final Battle  |  Haven  |  Landsmeet  |  Lothering  |  Orzammar  |  Ostagar  |  Redcliffe  |  Ruined Temple  
Areas available as Downloadable Content:  
Honnleath  |  Return to Ostagar  |  Warden's Keep 
About the Walkthrough  |  About the Maps  |  About the Author  |  About Playing the Game  |  Where to Begin
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Ruined Temple: 
Ruined Temple  |  Mountain Lair  |  The Gauntlet  |  Wyrmling's Lair  

The Gauntlet

The Gauntlet

  1. Here is the entrance, and also the way back to the Mountain Top.

  2. In this room, you'll find a few containers with random items. Here you will meet the Guardian. He explains the nature of the Gauntlet, that its meant only to allow the worthy to see the Urn of Sacred Ashes. He also has questions to ask of you and your companions, in the nature of whether guilt is felt over the past. The questions vary according to the background of each specific companion, while the question asked of you will vary according to your origins story. The Guardian then disappears for the time being. *Note* If you want to obtain an amulet later in the gauntlet, choose an answer that implies you accept guilt over what happened to somebody during your Origins story.

    A book just to the right of the door yields a Codex entry for "The Maker's First Children."

  3. The GuardianHere is a room with eight spirits. To open the door to the east, you must indulge each spirit in attempting to answer a riddle that it poses. If you answer correctly, the spirit fades away. It you answer incorrectly, the spirit turns into an Ash Wraith and attacks. However it falls out, one way or the other with all 8 spirits will cause the door to open. The incentive to answer the riddles correctly simply means that you get more xp than you would defeating the spirits as Ash Wraiths.

    The correct answers are as follows:

    Brona: Dreams
    Ealisay: Tune
    Thane Shorten: Home
    Lady Vasilia: Vengeance
    General Maferath: Jealousy
    Disciple Havard: The Mountains
    Archon Hessarian: Mercy
    Disciple Cathaire: Hunger

  4. Here you'll encounter a spectre that is potentially a subject of guilt from during your Origins story. The spectre will ask you a question regarding your mutual past. When the Guardian asks you a question regarding a person integral to your Origins story, if you answer in a way that seems to accept guilt over what happened, you'll get Reflection. Otherwise, you won't get anything.

  5. Here you'll have to fight spirits that will be imitations of both yourself and your companions.

  6. Tile PitHere is a room surrounding a pit and no apparent way through. However, you'll also notice 12 tiles. Six on the north side of the pit, and six on the south side of the pit. Each tile causes one or two bridge tiles to partially materialize over the pit. Note that the key word is 'partially'. Note that you have to have characters standing on more than one tile that will materialize a bridge tile. This will cause the bridge tile to fully materialize such that another character can step on it. Once you realize this, the goal becomes apparent, to fully materialize the bridge tiles in a sequence so that a character can step from one end of the pit to the other. Note that it is not enough to cause the next bridge tile to materialize. You have to do it in such a way so that the current bridge tile remains solid under the feet of your 'stepping character.'

    There is a sequence that will make this work. First, number the tiles of the north side of the pit as 1t, 2t, 3t, 4t, 5t, and 6t. Now number the tiles on the south side of the pit as follows, 1b, 2b, 3b, 4b, 5b, and 6b. Now designate your characters as follows, whichever ones you want, Stepping character, 1st character, 2nd character, and 3rd character. Now follow this sequence:

    1st character steps onto 2b.
    2nd character steps onto 3t.
    Stepping character steps onto the first bridge tile.
    3rd character steps onto 6t.
    Stepping character steps onto the second bridge tile.
    2nd character steps onto 4b.
    1st character steps onto 1t.
    Stepping character steps onto the third bridge tile.
    3rd characater steps onto 5b.
    2nd character steps onto 2t.
    Stepping character steps onto the fourth bridge tile and cross all the way. This causes the full bridge over the pit to become permanent so that the party can get across.

  7. Here is the final test, the Altar. An inscription indicates to you that the final test is to strip yourself of all of your belongings to get across. If you do this, you will get through and have all your inventory back in place as though nothing had happened. The Guardian then arrives to indicate that you have passed the Gauntlet and are worthy to see the Urn.

    Another option is to walk through the fire without obeying the Altar's instruction. If you do this, the Guardian will attack along with two Ash Wraiths. If you want to go this route, retreat back down the hall you came through to minimize taking damage from the fire. Now use spells or abiliites that will either incapacitate the Guardian or otherwise minimize his ability to attack. Then take out the Ash Wraiths as quickly as you can. Now pour everything into taking out the Guardian as quickly as possible, since he can score a lot of damage with his Maul and takes quite a lot himself before going down.

  8. Urn of Sacred AshesHere is the Urn of Sacred Ashes. Now you possibly have a choice. One is to take a Pinch of Sacred Ash and walk away.

    Another, and this is if you want to fulfill Kolgrim's quest, is to pour the Vial of Dragons Blood into the Urn and desecrating it. This will still yield a Pinch of Sacred Ash that you can use to heal the Arl of Redcliffe. Note that if you desecrate the Urn while Leliana and/or Wynne are in the party, each or both of them will attack you in outrage over what you did. Even if Leliana is not present, she will still be outraged over what you did, and may leave permanently, although this can be averted with a successful Persuasion check.

    As a sidenote, just before the stairs leading up the Urn is the corpse of an unfortunate adventurer. It will have the Belt of the Magister Lords. There will be a couple of chests on either side of the dias holding the Urn with random items in them.

    *NOTE* Archdemon AlertIncidentally, once you have the Pinch of Sacred Ash and try to leave this area for somewhere else on the world map, the Archdemon will become more aware of what you are up to. You'll have a nightmare regarding this, and shortly thereafter, a number of Shrieks will attack your camp. Shrieks are Darkspawn that can turn invisible, and use a shriek that can stun opponents within a certain radius. Also, keep in mind that your Grey Warden character is the only character that you can control directly during this fight. Your companions will have to rely on the scripting that you set for them beforehand.

  9. Here are exits to the Mountain Top.

    10. Reaver's CupIf you happen to fulfill Kolgrim's quest to pour the dragon blood into the Urn, speak with him again once you're back at the Mountain top. He will then offer you the opportunity to drink from a goblet with dragon blood in it. This unlocks the Reaver specialization.

    When you return to Brother Genitivi in the Ruined Temple, he will want to know how things have turned out. There are a number of ways of handling this, with repercussions for the epilogue. One is to tell him that you destroyed the Ashes. This inspires indignation and disgust on his part, and he immediately leaves for Denerim to spread tales of desecration and heretics which nobody will apparently believe. Another is to relate your successful discovery of the Urn. He will want to spread news of the discovery far and wide. Whether you verbally support him in this endeavour, or kill him to keep the hiding place of the Urn a secret is up to you.

    At this point, you're now ready to take the Pinch of Sacred Ash to Redcliffe in order to revive Arl Eamon.


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