Dragon's Dogma: Advice for a newby?

[Togath]

So I picked up dragon's dogma dark arisen today, and got curious if anyone here might have any advice/recommendations for someone starting out.
I'm playing on a ps3, if that matters, and have also been curious if my character height will ever actually matter. Like, can I reach taller things with a tall character, and enter smaller areas with a small one? Or is it just an aesthetic difference?

[Anima]

I started playing on PS3 pretty recently as well. Height has several implications. Taller characters can reach higher ledges and take less falling damage. Small characters can reach a few chests in one location and have an easier time running underneath some of the larger monsters. Taller characters are also a bit easier to hit and they weight more everything else being equal. Weight has actually more significant effects. But none of them are game breaking. You can change your appearance with an endgame item as well so I wouldn't worry too much about it and go with a character you'll enjoy.

There are a few sidequests that will become unavailable as the main story progresses. This wiki article has a helpful list: http://dragonsdogma.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Sidequests. Otherwise be careful when facing bandits, those can be a real nasty surprise. And be wary of cliffs, failing damage will kill you and do it gladly.

[Giggling Ghast]

Wolves hunt in packs!

[Tome]

DD is pretty cool in that your character's body type actually does things in game. There's some narrow tunnels that only a short character can enter, while a tall character is going to be able to reach certain ledges more easily, etc.

There's also some switches that need heavy weights to trigger, though height isn't the only aesthetic choice that factors into that. The difference in how long you have to stand around on the darn things can be pretty noticeable. Hell, weight influences all sorts of things (http://dragonsdogma.wikia.com/wiki/Character_Weight).

The weirdest, most specific thing I know of is walking speed though. Which is apparently determined by leg length. Leg length. Not height, not weight like running speed, but the actual length of your character's legs.

[Togath]

How important are things like knockback resistance and carrying capacity?(and how limiting is the 40kg limit for super small?)

[Spacewolf]

Rangers murder everything, Melee only classes cannot kill Iron Golems (Not sure if magic users can either actually) unless they fixed the bug with the Pawns, there's a very useful shop in Gran Soren you want to go to (New game plus it sells an item that makes the last boss quite funny), Play the Final Final boss offline the second time you play through the game.

[Anima]

How important are things like knockback resistance and carrying capacity?(and how limiting is the 40kg limit for super small?)
It's important for melee characters but those can wear heavier armour which has high resistances. There is also a very useful fighter augment that increases carry capacity by 20 kg. It's very useful.

[Calemyr]

This is a little bit of a spoiler, but it's a rather important thing to know walking into the game.


There is a romantic subplot in the game. A very subtle one that you may never notice until the last minutes.

See, the game decides who your love interest is based on the affinity different people have for you. Affinity is earned through doing quests for the person, giving gifts to the person, and (and this is the important one) talking to the person. It doesn't matter why you're talking to them. Every time you talk to a person, you gain a little affinity with them.

Near the end of the game, a villain will kidnap your "love interest" and hold them hostage to force you into a final confrontation. All well and good so far, yeah? Well, here's the catch: anyone is a potential love interest. The brave lady knight, the rebellious queen, the ambitious merchant, the inn keeper in the capital city where you go to heal up, access your bank, and change your class... Take a wild guess who I talked to the most, since I wanted to train up all nine classes? (Note, nobody was kind enough to give me this warning.)

So I'm tooling along, being a badass, having fun, when I get this letter. "I have your lover. Come to XX and face me." Lover? What is he talking about? Yeah, I was pretty chummy with the knight lady, but I figured we'd parted ways as friends... Come to think of it, I didn't see any romantic connections to anyone... Possibly a father/daughter-like relationship with that witch, maybe? So, more curious than concerned, I venture in to Mordor to figure out just who the hell my lover was. The villain steps aside to reveal the innkeeper. Besides the fact that we were both guys (fine for some, just not my thing), there was no chemistry or history there and, let's be blunt, the innkeeper ain't exactly attractive.

So I fight the villain, the innkeeper comes running giddily into my open arms, there's a heartwarming makeout scene next to a campfire... and I'm sitting there with my jaw hanging, asking "what the hell?" while my brother is laughing his head off.


So... yeah. The moral of the story? When you talk to the innkeeper, always punch him in the face afterwards. You won't regret it.

[Togath]

That spoiler thing was actually one of the things I knew about the game... Sounds potentially very amusing:smallbiggrin:

Regarding online stuff, I have limited internet access with my ps3(since it's the original model). How important are the patches? I could hook it up, but it would take a bit of effort.

[Tome]

That spoiler thing was actually one of the things I knew about the game... Sounds potentially very amusing:smallbiggrin:

Regarding online stuff, I have limited internet access with my ps3(since it's the original model). How important are the patches? I could hook it up, but it would take a bit of effort.
Amusing, and sometimes creepy. One of the most useful/important side quests to do is the one for the merchant's daughter. Who looks about eight years old. Side quests raise affinity considerably. :smallfrown:

Patches are probably worth downloading. They were mostly small tweaks and bugfixes as I recall, but some of the bugs were pretty nasty. There was a corrupted save game one I remember hearing about, though I'm not sure if they covered that one.

[Togath]

Definitely sounds worth it to take a few minutes to grab the patches. ^_^

[Inarius]

One thing to look at when picking support pawns is their inclinations. Avoid the Guardian and Nexus inclinations because it messes with the pawns AI. The better options tend to be scather, mitigator and challenger. Medicant is highly useful on mages with heal spells and utilitarian can be helpful if the entire party has it.

[Togath]

Is there any way to get a longer lasting light source than the basic lantern?

[Anima]

Is there any way to get a longer lasting light source than the basic lantern?

There is an elite lantern on Bitter Black Isle, but otherwise no. Simply carry a few vials of oil with you. Those can refill the lamp. Also you can give pawns a lamp as well. They don't need oil but the light radius is far smaller.

[danzibr]

I had truck loads of fun as an archer. In fact, I started once as a two-hander dude based off of Guts, but kept dying. Archer, so much fun. Never had more fun with archery in a game.

Also, people will give your pawn 1/5 stars (or whatever the lowest rating is) for no reason. Jerks.

[Togath]

Darn...
Hmm
Okay, maybe I should check; is it normal for night time to be so dark that with a lantern, you can't see more than about 3 steps in front of you?

[Anima]

Well I'm not sure about 3 steps, but night time is really dark. And of course filled with stronger monsters than usual. Seriously I avoid night travel whenever possible.

[Tome]

I had truck loads of fun as an archer. In fact, I started once as a two-hander dude based off of Guts, but kept dying. Archer, so much fun. Never had more fun with archery in a game.

Also, people will give your pawn 1/5 stars (or whatever the lowest rating is) for no reason. Jerks.

Actually, that's the rating you get if your pawns are killed instead of being returned via the rift. Falling in the water or into bottomless pits are the common ones, as well as certain monsters' attacks.


Darn...
Hmm
Okay, maybe I should check; is it normal for night time to be so dark that with a lantern, you can't see more than about 3 steps in front of you?

Yes. Night is super dark.

Lanterns last for a good while and carrying a few vials of oil is no great burden. Keep a spare lantern in the inventories of your pawns and they'll use them without consuming oil. There's a ranger augment and an upgraded lantern in Bitterblack Isle that increase the luminosity.