Main Quests

Dragon Age: Inquisition - Main Quests

This section details the critical main quests of the Trespasser DLC, serving as the definitive conclusion to the Inquisitor's saga. Set two years after the events of the base game, Trespasser thrusts the Inquisitor into a world grappling with the aftermath of their victories, facing political scrutiny, lingering threats, and profound choices that will shape the future of Thedas. This guide provides a comprehensive walkthrough, detailing every step, key decision, and consequence.

The Trespasser Main Questline: A Grand Finale

The Trespasser DLC begins with the Inquisitor summoned to the Winter Palace in Orlais for a summit intended to determine the Inquisition's future. This is not merely a political maneuver; it's the catalyst for a series of events that will test the Inquisitor's leadership, alliances, and resolve.

1. The Parliament of Trees

   Your journey commences with an invitation to the Winter Palace for a summit. This initial phase is heavily dialogue-driven, focusing on navigating the intricate web of Orlesian politics and addressing the growing concerns surrounding the Inquisition's power. You'll interact with key figures from Orlais and Ferelden, including Empress Celene, Grand Duke Gaspard, and Lord Seeker Lucius (who may be alive or dead depending on your choices in the main game). Your primary objective is to attend the summit and prepare for the discussions regarding the Inquisition's future.

   • Location: Winter Palace, Orlais.
   • Key NPCs: Empress Celene, Grand Duke Gaspard, Lord Seeker Lucius, Leliana, Cassandra, Cullen, Josephine.
   • Objective: Attend the summit and engage in diplomatic discussions.

   Walkthrough: Upon arriving at the Winter Palace, you'll be guided through a series of social events and diplomatic meetings. Your companions will offer commentary and advice. Pay close attention to the conversations; they lay the groundwork for understanding the political climate and the underlying tensions. You'll be tasked with speaking to various dignitaries, each with their own agenda. The "Parliament of Trees" is a metaphorical term for these discussions, highlighting the deep roots and complex branches of Orlesian politics.

2. The Inquisition's Future: Unraveling the Conspiracy

   During the summit, a shocking revelation emerges: a conspiracy aimed at dismantling the Inquisition from within, orchestrated by the Venatori and potentially involving elements of the Qunari. You'll need to investigate suspicious activities within the palace, gather evidence, and make crucial decisions about how to proceed. This questline involves stealth, combat, and critical dialogue choices that will impact your relationships with various factions and individuals.

   • Location: Winter Palace, various wings and chambers.
   • Key Enemies: Venatori agents, Orlesian guards, rogue mages.
   • Objective: Uncover the conspiracy, identify the perpetrators, and secure the Inquisition's position.
   • Strategy Tip: Pay close attention to dialogue and environmental clues. Certain choices made here can influence later events and the availability of allies.

   Walkthrough: The conspiracy begins to unravel when an assassination attempt or a suspicious incident occurs. You'll be tasked with investigating specific areas of the Winter Palace. This often involves:

   • Interrogating suspects: Use your dialogue skills and companion abilities to extract information.
   • Searching for evidence: Look for hidden documents, unusual items, or signs of forced entry in rooms and corridors. For example, you might find coded messages in a noble's chambers or discover a hidden passage used by infiltrators.
   • Following leads: Pursue individuals or clues that seem out of place. This might involve tailing a suspicious guard or investigating a disturbance in a less-trafficked area.
   • Making critical choices: You'll face decisions on how to handle captured individuals or how to respond to escalating threats. For instance, you might have to decide whether to trust a seemingly repentant noble or to use force against a group of rogue agents.

   Actionable Strategy: To uncover the conspiracy, actively seek out all optional dialogue and investigate every room you can access. Look for items that don't belong, such as Qunari weaponry in an Orlesian noble's quarters, or listen for hushed conversations. Interacting with your companions about their suspicions can also reveal crucial information. For example, if Leliana suspects a particular guard, focus your investigation on that individual's patrol route or quarters.

3. The Qunari Threat: The Dread Wolf Rises

   The conspiracy quickly escalates, revealing a deeper Qunari plot involving the return of the Ben-Hassrath and a dangerous artifact. You will be tasked with confronting this threat head-on, often leading to intense combat sequences. This questline will take you to new areas and pit you against formidable Qunari warriors and their allies.

   • Location: Various, including the Frostback Mountains and ancient elven ruins.
   • Key Enemies: Qunari soldiers (Arishok's remnants), Viddasala, dragonlings, high-level mages.
   • Boss Encounter: Viddasala. She is a formidable warrior with powerful Qunari abilities. Focus on crowd control and interrupting her special attacks.
   • Objective: Neutralize the Qunari threat and prevent them from achieving their objectives.
   • Strategy Tip: Bring a balanced party. Warriors with taunts and defensive abilities are crucial, while rogues can provide critical damage and mages can offer crowd control and support.

   Walkthrough: The investigation leads you out of the Winter Palace and into more dangerous territories. You'll be pursuing the Qunari agents and their leaders, often involving:

   • Tracking Qunari movements: Follow trails, decipher Qunari communications, and interrogate captured soldiers.
   • Assaulting Qunari encampments: Engage in large-scale battles against disciplined Qunari forces. These often involve waves of enemies and require strategic use of your party's abilities.
   • Navigating treacherous environments: Explore areas like the Frostback Mountains, which may feature environmental hazards like avalanches or extreme cold, or ancient elven ruins filled with traps and guardians.
   • Confronting Viddasala: This is a significant boss fight. Viddasala is a skilled Qunari warrior who utilizes powerful attacks and can summon reinforcements.

   Boss Strategy: Viddasala

   • Weaknesses: Vulnerable to crowd control effects like stuns and knockdowns. Her powerful charged attacks can be interrupted.
   • Recommended Loadout:
     • Warrior: A tank with high defense and abilities to draw aggro (e.g., Templar specialization for anti-mage capabilities or Champion for defensive buffs).
     • Rogue: A damage dealer with high critical hit chance and abilities to debuff enemies (e.g., Assassin specialization for burst damage or Tempest for utility).
     • Mage: A controller with spells that can stun, freeze, or otherwise incapacitate enemies (e.g., Storm specialization for lightning-based crowd control or Spirit for defensive barriers).
     • Companion: Consider bringing a companion whose personal quest or lore directly relates to the Qunari or the events unfolding, as they may offer unique dialogue or combat advantages.
   • Tactics: Keep your tank between Viddasala and your squishier party members. Use your rogue's abilities to focus damage on her when she's vulnerable. Your mage should prioritize interrupting her most dangerous attacks and keeping the party healed or shielded. Be prepared for her to summon reinforcements, which should be dealt with quickly to maintain focus on the boss.

4. The Well of Sorrows: A Choice of Sacrifice

   This pivotal quest delves into ancient elven lore and the history of the Fade. You will discover the Well of Sorrows, an artifact with immense power that offers a significant choice with far-reaching consequences. This quest is deeply personal for the Inquisitor and explores themes of sacrifice, memory, and the nature of power.

   • Location: Ancient elven ruins, the Fade.
   • Key NPCs: Solas (if present and romanced, his role becomes even more significant).
   • Objective: Understand the Well of Sorrows and make a choice regarding its use.
   • Key Decision: Whether to drink from the Well of Sorrows. This choice has profound implications for the Inquisitor's future, their abilities, and their connection to the Fade.
   • Consequences: Drinking from the Well can grant immense power but also carries a significant personal cost, potentially affecting the Inquisitor's memories and physical well-being.

   Walkthrough: This quest often involves exploring ancient elven ruins, piecing together lore about the Fade and the elven gods. You will eventually discover the Well of Sorrows, a pool of potent magical energy. The core of this quest is the decision whether or not to drink from it.

   • Learning about the Well: Through lore entries, dialogue with companions (especially Solas), and environmental storytelling, you'll learn about the Well's history and its connection to the Fade and ancient elven magic.
   • The Decision Point: You will be presented with a clear choice: drink from the Well or refuse.

   Key Decision: Drinking from the Well of Sorrows

   • If you drink:
     • Immediate Effect: You gain significant power and insight, often related to ancient elven magic or the Fade. This can manifest as new abilities or a deeper understanding of certain magical phenomena.
     • Personal Cost: You will lose a significant portion of your memories, particularly those related to your life before becoming the Inquisitor, and potentially some memories of your companions and their relationships with you. This can lead to a feeling of detachment and a profound sense of loss. Your physical appearance might also subtly change, reflecting the magical infusion.
     • Impact on Companions: Companions may notice the memory loss and react with concern, confusion, or even suspicion. Your relationship with them can be strained as they try to help you remember or come to terms with your altered state.
     • Impact on Solas: If Solas is in your party and romanced, his reaction to you drinking from the Well is particularly significant. He may see it as a tragic loss of self or a necessary step, depending on his own motivations.
   • If you refuse:
     • Immediate Effect: You retain all your memories and your current state of being.
     • Consequences: You forgo the immense power and insight offered by the Well. This might mean facing future challenges with fewer advantages, but you maintain your sense of self and your connections to your past.
     • Impact on Companions: Your companions will likely approve of your decision to preserve your memories and identity.

   This decision is one of the most impactful in the DLC, directly influencing the Inquisitor's personal narrative and their ultimate fate.

5. The Final Confrontation: The Heart of the Tempest

   The DLC culminates in a climactic battle against a powerful adversary, the architect of the Qunari plot and a figure deeply connected to the events of the main game. Your choices throughout Trespasser, and indeed the entire Inquisition saga, will directly influence the nature of this final confrontation and its outcome.

   • Location: The heart of the Qunari stronghold or a corrupted Fade realm.
   • Key Enemies: The main antagonist (revealed during the quest), elite Qunari forces, corrupted Fade creatures.
   • Boss Encounter: The final boss is a multi-stage fight that will test all your party's skills. Utilize environmental hazards and focus fire on weak points.
   • Objective: Defeat the final antagonist and secure the future of Thedas.
   • Strategy Tip: Ensure your party is at their highest level and equipped with the best gear. Consider bringing companions who have strong personal quests tied to your choices, as their presence might offer unique dialogue or combat advantages.

   Walkthrough: The final quest involves confronting the mastermind behind the conspiracy and the Qunari plot. This is a multi-stage boss fight that will test everything you've learned and all the preparation you've done.

   • Infiltration and Approach: You'll typically need to breach the antagonist's stronghold or reach their corrupted domain, facing elite guards and environmental challenges along the way.
   • The Antagonist Revealed: The identity of the final boss is a major reveal, often tied to the lore of the Fade, ancient elves, or the Qun.
   • Multi-Stage Boss Fight: The final boss will have multiple phases, each with different attack patterns, resistances, and mechanics. For example, one phase might involve fighting the boss directly, while another might require you to destroy corrupted artifacts or defend against waves of summoned enemies.

   Final Boss Strategy:

   • Preparation is Key: Ensure your party is at max level, has the best available gear, and has potent potions and crafting materials.
   • Adapt to Phases: Learn the attack patterns of each phase. Some bosses might become invulnerable during certain stages, requiring you to focus on adds or environmental objectives.
   • Utilize Companion Strengths: Assign roles effectively. Your tank should hold aggro, your rogue should focus on damage and debuffs, and your mage should provide support and crowd control.
   • Environmental Interaction: Many final bosses utilize the environment. Look for opportunities to use cover, trigger traps, or exploit environmental hazards against the boss.
   • Focus Fire: When the boss is vulnerable, concentrate all your damage on them to end the phase quickly.
   • Manage Resources: Keep an eye on your party's health and mana/stamina. Don't be afraid to use your most powerful abilities when needed.

Key Decisions and Their Far-Reaching Consequences

Trespasser is renowned for its impactful choices, shaping not only the immediate narrative but also the long-term future of Thedas. The following are some of the most significant decisions you will face:

The Fate of the Inquisition

• Options: Disband the Inquisition, reform it into a smaller, more focused organization, or maintain its current structure.
• Consequences:
  • Disbanded: The Inquisition ceases to exist, leading to a power vacuum and potentially increased instability in Thedas. Companions may pursue individual paths, some seeking new purposes, others retiring. This can lead to a less secure future for Thedas, with old conflicts potentially resurfacing without a strong unifying force.
  • Reformed (e.g., as a specialized intelligence agency or a peacekeeping force): The Inquisition continues in a modified capacity, with new objectives and leadership structures. This can lead to a more stable but potentially less influential future. For example, reforming it as an intelligence agency might focus on covert operations and threat assessment, while a peacekeeping force would focus on maintaining order.
  • Maintained: The Inquisition retains its power and influence, but this may lead to further political friction and scrutiny from nations like Orlais and Tevinter. This path often results in the Inquisitor becoming a powerful, but potentially isolated, political figure.

The Status of Mages and Templars

• Options: Your decisions throughout the main game and Trespasser influence the fate of these groups. You may have the opportunity to re-establish their previous orders, create new alliances, or enforce specific regulations. For example, you might decide to grant mages more autonomy or place stricter controls on their use of magic.
• Consequences: The future of magic and its control in Thedas is directly impacted. This can lead to periods of peace and cooperation, or renewed conflict and persecution between mages and non-mages. The choices made here can have ripple effects for generations.

The Fate of Companions

• Options: Certain companions face pivotal moments where their future paths are determined by your actions and dialogue. This often involves their personal quests and their reactions to the events of Trespasser.
• Consequences: Companions may choose to retire from adventuring, join new organizations (such as a reformed Inquisition or a different faction), embark on personal quests to find closure or a new purpose, or even face exile or death depending on your choices and their personal arcs.
• Example: If romanced, Solas's ultimate path is heavily influenced by your relationship and choices regarding the Well of Sorrows and ancient elven lore. Your decision to drink from the Well, or not, can directly impact his perception of you and his subsequent actions. Similarly, a companion like Blackwall might face judgment for his past, and your intervention could determine his fate.

The Inquisitor's Personal Fate

• Options: The DLC explores the personal journey of the Inquisitor, including potential sacrifices, new responsibilities, and the long-term impact of their actions.
• Consequences: The Inquisitor's ending can range from a triumphant ruler bearing the weight of leadership to a weary figure who has made a profound personal sacrifice for the greater good. The choice to drink from the Well of Sorrows is a prime example of a decision with significant personal repercussions, potentially altering the Inquisitor's identity and memories. The ultimate fate of the Inquisition itself also directly shapes the Inquisitor's role in the world.

Combat and Challenges in Trespasser

While Trespasser is narrative-heavy, it does not shy away from challenging combat encounters. Players will face new enemy types, including elite Qunari soldiers, corrupted Fade creatures, and formidable boss figures. Mastering your party's abilities, understanding enemy weaknesses, and utilizing the environment are crucial for survival.

Recommended Party Composition and Strategy

• Warrior: Essential for tanking and crowd control. Characters like Blackwall or Cassandra excel here, especially with tanking specializations like Templar or Champion.
• Rogue: High damage output is vital for quickly eliminating threats. Cole (especially his Assassin specialization for burst damage) or Sera (for high-volume attacks and debuffs) can be excellent choices.
• Mage: Support and crowd control are key to managing large groups of enemies and interrupting dangerous spellcasters. Vivienne or Dorian offer powerful offensive and defensive spells, with specializations like Knight-Enchanter or Necromancer offering unique utility.
• Strategy:
  • Prioritize interrupting enemy spellcasters and heavy hitters. Use abilities that stagger or knock down enemies to prevent them from unleashing devastating attacks.
  • Utilize environmental hazards to your advantage. Explosive barrels, unstable terrain, or magical anomalies can be used to damage or control groups of enemies.
  • Manage your cooldowns effectively, especially for powerful ultimate abilities and crowd control spells.
  • Boss fights often have distinct phases; adapt your tactics accordingly. Be prepared to switch targets or change your approach as the fight progresses.

New Threats and Mechanics

• Qunari Elite: These soldiers are heavily armored, possess powerful melee and ranged attacks, and often fight in disciplined formations. They can be resistant to certain damage types, so varied party compositions are recommended.
• Fade Creatures: Corrupted by the events of the DLC, these creatures can inflict status effects like fear, confusion, or drain your health and mana. They often appear in large numbers and can be quite resilient.
• Environmental Hazards: Be mindful of traps, magical anomalies, and unstable terrain that can hinder your party or be used against your enemies. Some areas may feature areas of magical corruption that deal damage over time or create hazardous zones.

Trespasser offers a rich, challenging, and emotionally resonant conclusion to the Dragon Age: Inquisition saga. By understanding the quests, making informed decisions, and preparing for the combat, You can ensure a satisfying and epic finale to their Inquisitor's journey.