The vast wilderness and cultural centers of Ferelden live and breathe each day that passes on your mission to stop the Blight. You can immerse yourself in the world and enjoy much that it has to offer, but Ferelden is so huge that it will take several plays to fully explore its majesty. For those who want a sneak peek of what’s in store or want a guide to the essential quests, NPCs, items, and skills that you’ll encounter on your travels, look no further.
Essential Locations
Ostagar
After your origin story, Duncan guides you to King Cailan and the rest of the Grey Wardens at this ancient fortress. You meet companions Alistair and Morrigan, as well as a couple of Grey Warden trainees who travel with you temporarily as you quest for the elements of the Joining. As part of the prelude quests, you must complete all of Ostagar before you go anywhere else. Your adventures will take you into neighboring Korcari Wilds and Flemeth’s Hut before setting off into the wide open world.
Lothering
A small town on your way up the Imperial Highway, Lothering supplies you with lots of side quests to build up your novice characters. You meet companions Leliana and Sten inside the village limits, and you gain a dwarven merchant and his enchanter son for your party camp after you leave. Be sure to do all Lothering quests before leaving the town; once you complete one of the major quest lines, darkspawn destroy Lothering and you can never return.
Circle Tower
Home to the Circle of Magi, the tower falls prey to abominations and the dark lure of the dreamworld, the Fade. You gain the services of spirit healer Wynne inside the tower, and she should be a permanently part of any group that doesn’t already have a healer. To reach the tower, you must first convince the guard on the Lake Calenhad Docks to let you pass. When you finish the “Broken Circle” quests here, you choose either mages or templars to serve in your army against the archdemon.
Redcliffe
The “Arl of Redcliffe” quest line takes place in Redcliffe Village and Redcliffe Castle. Undead plague the area, and another demon has imprisoned the royal family. Your travels take you through the village, basement, courtyard and both floors of the castle. You need Arl Eamon to call the Landsmeet for the finale, but you cannot save the arl until you also complete the “Urn of Sacred Ashes” quest line.
Denerim
Visit the game’s largest city early to partake in the market district’s many vendors and to accept a wealth of side quests. The experience and rewards from these side quests will help your characters develop their talents and gear. Later in the story, after Arl Eamon calls the Landsmeet, Denerim serves as the final battleground for the events leading up to the confrontation with the archdemon.
Urn of Sacred Ashes
Part two of the effort to save Arl Eamon eventually brings you to the remote location of Haven. The cultists in the town and connecting dungeons want to keep strangers in the dark at all costs. Ultimately, though, the Urn of Sacred Ashes resides at the end of a trio of dungeons: Ruined Temple, Wyrmling Lair, and the Gauntlet. When you finish the “Arl of Redcliffe/Urn of Sacred Ashes” quests, the arl promises you his men to serve in your final army against the archdemon.
Orzammar
The mountain home of the dwarves is also home to the “Paragon of Her Kind” quest line. Delve into dwarven politics and the lost secrets of the Deep Roads to earn the graces of the next dwarven king. During your travels, you pick up the warrior Oghren for your party. If you can survive darkspawn and golems within the underground catacombs, the dwarves will come to your aid in the final battle against the archdemon.
Brecilian Forest
Hidden in the lust forests, a lone Dalish camp holds out against werewolf attacks. But is all what it seems? Discover the secrets of the forest and its denizens as you adventure through the “Nature of the Beast” quest line. When you uncover the final answers, you choose either elves or werewolves to join your army against the archdemon.
Landsmeet and Final Battle
After you complete all of the main quests in Circle Tower, Redcliffe, Orzammar, and the Brecilian Forest, Arl Eamon will call the Landsmeet to select a new ruler of Ferelden. Aid Arl Eamon in the task of discrediting the traitor Loghain and drumming up support for your chosen candidate to take the throne. Once the Landsmeet is resolved, you have one last hurdle: Slay the archdemon before the Blight consumes all of Ferelden.
How to Use the Walkthrough
Main quests as you travel around Ferelden can sometimes seem complex and daunting. The following walkthroughs provide in-depth, precise explanations for every main quest line in the game. If it doesn’t appear in this chapter, it’s not a main quest and will appear in the Side Quests or Random Encounters chapters. The walkthroughs that follow this introduction are presented in the most efficient sequence, from your origin and the prelude to the various “Ancient Treaties” quests to secure the aid of the Ferelden races to “Landsmeet” endgame quests. Here’s a quick breakdown of what’s in each walkthrough:
Map
Each walkthrough contains all the necessary maps to navigate from the quest’s starting point to ending point. Labels on the maps indicate NPCs, enemies, quest spots, treasure locations, general points of interest, and runthrough markings to show the best route through the area. A walkthrough will generally contain multiple maps to all the important locations.
Runthrough
This small sidebar boils the walkthrough down to essential steps. The steps are marked on the map in orange letters. To progress through an area effectively, start with “A” and continue in alphabetical order to the last letter. If you’re familiar with an area, you can use the runthrough as a guide to moving through a map very quickly.
Cheatsheet
Each main map has a cheatsheet that tracks the main quest, important NPCs, key items, monsters, and side quests. Use this cheatsheet to make sure you didn’t miss anything critical on your journey, or to scout out what you need to accomplish in the area.
Walkthrough Text
We pack as much comprehensive strategy and expert guidance as we can into each section. The runthrough can give you a nice overview, but if you really want to know how to avoid the traps, tackle the monsters, and collect the important items, read the walkthrough. Whenever you encounter a really difficult enemy—whether it be a boss or other ranked, troublesome adversary—we’ll give you tips on its battle tendencies and how to defeat it.
Reference the world map for your global questions, then flip to the appropriate walkthrough section for the nitty gritty of that quest line. You might scratch your head at the Gauntlet’s riddles or wonder how to escape the Fade that has enveloped the Circle Tower; with these walkthrough, though, you won’t waste time for long.