Dragon Age: Origins Guide Essentials Character Generation
Gender and Race
Character Generation
Entering the world of Ferelden is unlike any experience you’ve had before in a role-playing game. There are six distinct origin stories to play through at the start of the game, separately determined by your race/class combination and your background choice.
Sure, it’s important to pick your race and class based on the bonuses to your attributes and the talents/spells you’ll eventually learn, but it’s more important to select a race/class/background that fits your play style.
Do you want to bust heads in the middle of countless darkspawn? A warrior is the class for you. Love to sling powerful spells? Mage sounds like a good bet.
Hungry for extra treasure and the protection of shadowy corners? A rogue fits your needs. Of course, you can make several characters if you like, though you want to be happy in your adventures with them.
First you choose your gender, male or female; it's cosmetic and has only small bearings on the story regarding romantic encounters.
Next, select one of three races: human, elf, or dwarf. Humans and elves have access to all three classes. Dwarves do not have access to the mage class.
Humans gain versatility across the board: +1 strength, +1 dexterity, +1 magic, and +1 cunning.
Elf bonuses tend toward the mage class: +2 magic, +2 willpower.
Dwarves give fighting bonuses: +1 strength, +1 dexterity, +2 constitution. Due to their natural magic resistance (and reason a dwarf cannot be a mage), a dwarf character gains a 10 percent chance to resist hostile magic.
If you enjoy maximizing your character's stats from the start, pick a race whose bonuses complement your career choice.
Warrior
|
Human |
Elf |
Dwarf |
Class Bonus |
Human Bonus |
Elf Bonus |
Dwarf Bonus |
|
|
Strength |
15 |
14 |
15 |
4 |
1 |
— |
1 |
|
Dexterity |
14 |
13 |
14 |
3 |
1 |
— |
1 |
|
Willpower |
10 |
12 |
10 |
— |
— |
2 |
— |
|
Magic |
11 |
12 |
10 |
— |
1 |
2 |
— |
|
Cunning |
11 |
10 |
10 |
— |
1 |
— |
— |
|
Constitution |
13 |
13 |
15 |
3 |
— |
— |
2 |
Mage
|
Human |
Elf |
Dwarf |
Class Bonuses |
Human Bonuses |
Elf Bonuses |
Dwarf Bonuses |
|
|
Strength |
11 |
10 |
— |
— |
1 |
— |
1 |
|
Dexterity |
11 |
10 |
— |
— |
1 |
— |
1 |
|
Willpower |
14 |
16 |
— |
4 |
— |
2 |
— |
|
Magic |
16 |
17 |
— |
5 |
1 |
2 |
— |
|
Cunning |
12 |
11 |
— |
1 |
1 |
— |
— |
|
Constitution |
10 |
10 |
— |
— |
— |
— |
2 |
Rogue
|
Human |
Elf |
Dwarf |
Class Bonuses |
Human Bonuses |
Elf Bonuses |
Dwarf Bonuses |
|
|
Strength |
11 |
10 |
11 |
— |
1 |
— |
1 |
|
Dexterity |
15 |
14 |
15 |
4 |
1 |
— |
1 |
|
Willpower |
12 |
14 |
12 |
2 |
— |
2 |
— |
|
Magic |
11 |
12 |
10 |
— |
1 |
2 |
— |
|
Cunning |
15 |
14 |
14 |
4 |
1 |
— |
— |
|
Constitution |
10 |
10 |
12 |
— |
— |
— |
2 |