Prima Games eGuides Dragon Age: Origins eGuide

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Dragon Age: Origins eGuide Walkthrough Side Quests

The Mages' Collective

A Gift of Silence (or Justice Must be Served)

Type: Crafting

Start: Mages' Collective at Denerim Market District

Destination: Knight-Commander Harrith in Redcliffe Village or Knight-Commander Tavish in Denerim Market District

Task: Bring 10 lyrium potions to either of the Knight-Commanders

Quest Tips: Note that this quest is only active after the attack on Redcliffe by the undead. First, create or buy 10 lyrium potions. You then have a choice to bring the 10 lyrium potions to the knight-commander in Redcliffe Village (Harrith up by the windmill) or in Denerim Market District (Tavish by the estate gate). This sets up whose side you'll be on in the "Defending the Collective" final Mages' Collective quest.

Blood of Warning

Type: Exploration

Start: Mages' Collective at Denerim Market District

Destination: Four doors around Denerim

Task: Mark four blood mage relatives' doors

Quest Tips: As you leave the Mages' Collective in Denerim, open up your map and note the two nearby doors you have to mark. Click on those, then head to the Dirty Back Alley and mark the single door there. The last door is in the Dark Alley, and there may be a large group of thugs waiting to ambush you if you haven't cleared them out already. Dispatch the enemy group and mark the final door for your reward.

Careless Accusations

Type: Exploration

Start: Mages' Collective at Lake Calenhad Docks

Destination: Random encounter in Wooded Glen

Task: Prevent an adventuring group from delivering false testimony

Quest Tips: Shortly after you pick up this side quest, while traveling across the world map, you will trigger a "random" encounter in the Wooded Glen. You can either persuade or intimidate the adventuring party there into not giving false testimony in Denerim, or you can just battle it out for extra experience and loot. It's a relatively simple quest once you find them.

Defending the Collective

Type: Messenger

Start: Mages' Collective at Redcliffe Village

Destination: Knight-Commander Harrith at Redcliffe Village

Task: Deliver the bundled testimony to Knight-Commander Harrith

Quest Tips: If you choose Harrith in the "A Gift of Silence" quest, you will deliver your bundled testimony to him in Redcliffe Village. Otherwise, seek out Knight-Commander Tavish in the Denerim Market District. Pick up your big reward for completing all the Mages' Collective quests.

Have You Seen Me?

Type: Combat

Start: Mages' Collective at Denerim Market District

Destination: Random encounter

Task: Defeat the abomination in the random encounter

Quest Tips: Shortly after you pick up this side quest, while traveling across the world map, you will trigger a "random" encounter in the Out of the Way map. Stun the abomination often and don't give it much chance to counterattack. After it dies, return to Mages' Collective operative for your reward.

Herbal Magic

Type: Exploration

Start: Mages' Collective at Lake Calenhad Docks

Destination: Various places

Task: Present 10 deep mushrooms to the Mages' Collective

Quest Tips: As you adventure, save the deep mushrooms you find until you have 10 and hand them in. If you don't feel like waiting, you can visit the following shops to pick up the deep mushrooms immediately: Lloyd's Tavern in Redcliffe, Olinda's in the Orzammar Commons, Gnawed Noble Tavern in Denerim, and the biggest mushroom stockpile in Alimar's in Orzammar's Dust Town (or Figor's in Orzammar if you've unlocked the door).

Notice of Termination

Type: Messenger

Start: Mages' Collective at Lake Calenhad Docks

Destination: Three separate locations across Ferelden: two in the Denerim Market District and one in the Frostback Mountains

Task: Deliver three termination notes to apprentices across Ferelden

Quest Tips: The toughest part about this quest is traveling to find all three apprentices. Once you find each one, hand him the note and that part of the quest is complete; there is no fighting involved. You can find Sheth in the Wonder of Thedas in the Denerim Market District, Fayd in the center of the Denerim Market District, and Starrick standing out in front of the main doors to Orzammar, by the row of market goods in the Frostback Mountains.

Places of Power

Type: Exploration

Start: Mages' Collective at Denerim Market District

Destination: Four separate locations across Ferelden

Task: Unlock four hidden locations

Quest Tips: The four hidden places of power are: East Brecilian Forest (gravestone in the northern ogre grove), Ortan Thaig (Altar of Sundering), The Alienage (Alienage Tree), and Apprentice Quarters in the Circle Tower (activate the middle of the floor). Because these are in difficult-to-reach places, this will likely be the last Mages' Collective quest you complete before the final "Defending the Collective" quest.

The Scrolls of Banastor

Type: Collection

Start: Mages' Collective at Denerim Market District

Destination: Various places

Task: Collect five scrolls hidden around the world.

Quest Tips: The scrolls are in ancient texts treasure piles in the following locations: Circle Tower (Senior Mage Quarters level, southeast ruined room), Circle Tower (Great Hall level, northwest large room), Wyrmling Lair on the "Urn of Sacred Ashes" quest (southeast library), Wyrmling Lair on the "Urn of Sacred Ashes" quest (middle west barracks), and Werewolf Lair in the Brecilian Ruins (southeast werewolf bedroom). Once you have them all, return for your reward.

See the Circle Tower maps in the "Broken Circle" walkthrough, Ruined Temple map in the "Urn of Sacred Ashes" walkthrough, and Lair of the Werewolf map in the "Nature of the Beast" walkthrough for the Scrolls of Banastor ancient texts locations.

Thy Brother's Killer

Type: Combat

Start: Mages' Collective at Lake Calenhad Docks

Destination: Northern grove in the East Brecilian Forest

Task: Slay the dark Maleficarum Cabal

Quest Tips: To discover the Maleficarum Cabal's hidden ritual, you must first clear the northern grove in the East Brecilian Forest of the ogres that normally inhabit the area. Leave the East Brecilian Forest, then reenter and return to the northern grove. Four dark mages will be chanting in a circle. Speak with them and then the fight is on. If you have Alistair, use his templar abilities to great effect against the mages, especially if you have Holy Smite to drain the mages of mana and deal Spirit damage. A rogue's Dirty Fighting or mage's Crushing Prison can nullify a single target, or Earthquake can knock most or all of them off their feet. If you have distance, and the mages do like to keep their range, return deadly AoE of your own with spells such as Fireball or Inferno. Anti-Magic Ward on your tank will usually mean lights out for at least one of the mages.

Origin Stories