One of the more defining aspects of Bioware-developed RPGs is that your choices matter… or in some cases they at least give the illusion that they’re going to matter. The downside of meaning choices are the potential for lingering downsides - a choice has no weight if there aren’t consequences, and for better or worse a decision pops up at the end of Chapter 1 that forces you to choose between assisting Treviso or Minrathous. This page will discuss this choice, how each quest following said choice plays out, and the long term consequences in Dragon Age: The Veilguard.
Page Breakdown¶
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Reaching the Dragon Attack Point of No Return |
Choice: Treviso of Minrathous? |
Consequences After the Dragon Attack |
Reaching the Dragon Attack Point of No Return¶
To reach this decision at the end of Chapter 1 you’ll need to complete main quests in Treviso and Minrathous until you are ultimately tasked with getting the help of the Grey Wardens during the quest In Peace, Vigilance. After that quest ends you’ll need to recruit a Grey Warden in the quest [A Warden’s Best Friend] - complete A Warden’s Best Friend and afterwards you’ll be confronted by Lucanis and Neve telling you about dragons attacking Treviso and Minrathous simultaneously.
Choice: Treviso of Minrathous?¶
You do not get a chance to save following A Warden’s Best Friend, after that quest ends you’ll immediately end up in a conversation with Lucanis and Neve, although the game should create a “Temporary Decision Save”. Lucanis and Neve take the threat facing their city seriously, and will run off to deal with their respective dragons - if you go to Treviso, Lucanis will be in your party, while if you go to Minrathous you’ll complete the upcoming quest with Neve at your side. One other companion of your choice can accompany you, in either case. If you choose to help Treviso the quest [On Deadly Wings] will start, while if you assist Minrathous the quest [On Blighted Wings] will begin.
Consequences After the Dragon Attack¶
There are some significant consequences regardless of which city you neglect, but they largely mirror each other: Neglecting their city will cause Lucanis or Neve to leave your party for a while while they deal with the fallout, and they’ll be notably cold to you for a while going forward. Neve can still be romanced if you choose Treviso over Minrathous, although it’ll be more difficult, but you will not be able to romance Lucanis if you do not save Treviso. Their faction, the Antivan Crows (Lucanis) and Shadow Dragons (Neve), will be severely diminished and their faction merchant will be gone the rest of the game. Later on their shop will appear in the Crossroads, now manned by a wisp, but you will not be able to sell them valuables to raise their Faction Strength. This last bit is probably the most consequential outcome as it can become very difficult to max the neglected faction’s strength if you can’t sell them valuables. By comparison the blighted Treviso and Venatori-dominated Minrathous are mostly cosmetic changes.
You will also get a followup quest in the neglected city dealing with the aftermath, although this is generally more flavor than anything else. You should be able to find all treasures and statues and complete all other side quests in both cities regardless of what choice you make. The quests [On Deadly Wings] and [On Blighted Wings] mainly consist of you fighting different dragons in Treviso and Minrathous, respectively, which mostly play out the same way, so those quests offer little incentive one way or another.
When you return to Treviso or Minrathous (whichever city you neglected) following the dragon attacks you’ll start the quests A City Blighted or [A Shroud Over the Light], respectively, where you’ll track down the missing members of the Antivan Crows and Shadow Dragons to confirm their fate.
You can mitigate the loss of the faction merchant by farming gold and materials early and selling all valuables to said merchant to boost the faction’s strength. The damage to your relationship with Lucanis or Neve is harder to repair, and in the case of Lucanis, irrevocably stunted, although going out of your way to boost Neve’s approval by purposefully pursuing dialog options that please her after she returns can help. All in all, if you buy out the faction merchant your main choice here is which city do you prefer, aesthetically, and which companion and faction do you want to remain close to?
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