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Legacy

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Dragon Age II - Legacy

Legacy is the main plot quest in the Legacy DLC for Dragon Age II. It reveals certain aspects of the Hawke family

Acquisition

The quest is triggered automatically once the introductory quest for Legacy, A Memento of the Past, has completed.

Walkthrough

There are two distinct parts to the quest - the first is battling through the Carta occupied section of the Vimmark Mountains, the second is exploring the Grey Wardens prison housing Corypheus. This quest progresses in a linear sequence.

Vimmark Wasteland

Varric brings Hawke and Hawke's party to the Vimmark Wasteland at the beginning of Legacy. Varric believes it to be the location of Carta dwarves who have been attacking Hawke. You must explore the wastelands in search of the Carta hideout.

Hawke is ambushed twice by the Carta gang in the Vimmark Wasteland.

The first ambush comes just after you are met by the Carta messenger—the party is attacked by a gang which will include Carta thug, Carta sniper, and Carta overseer. You can loot Eye of Blue from the overseer.
The second ambush occurs after you pass through the first wooden gates. You are locked into an enclosure bounded by a wooden fence and walkways. The first enemy is a bronto, with more Carta thugs and Carta snipers on the walkways.

There are trap activation switches on the walkways to the north and south of the enclosure.

The key to the exit gate is in a chest on the on the hillside below the northern walkway. The passageway exits to the Vimmark Chasm.

Vimmark Chasm

Main courtyard: You are lured by the Carta messenger into the main courtyard of a deserted fortified building. You are immediately ambushed by the Carta—first, by two brontos, and then by a gang of Carta thugs. Once you have defeated this ambush, you are able to explore the courtyard, although the gate to the eastern passage requires a key to unlock.

Smaller courtyard: There is a smaller courtyard to the north of the main courtyard. There are two rooms leading off it, with some useful loot, including health potions and some high level class-specific armor for Hawke. You will be ambushed again by the Carta on coming back down the stairs from the northernmost room into the smaller courtyard. The ambushers include lots of Carta snipers and two Carta assassins that can make quick work of your party if you are not careful. If you are having trouble countering their quick dps, remember that they will not attack you if you close the door which allows you a little breathing room if things become somewhat hectic for you.

Note: If you can reach the trap switch in the middle of the small courtyard next to the decaying tree, it will do devastating damage to the Carta thugs ambushing you.

Southern steps: The steps to the south of the main courtyard lead to a room containing the key to the eastern gate, Twisted Steel Ring, and a viewpoint across to the Warden's Prison. You are once again ambushed by the Carta on leaving the small room, including the familiar Carta snipers and an Carta overseer.

Eastern passage: Using the key to open the gate at the east of the main courtyard, you exit into the eastern passage, down steps carved into the hillside. You are attacked again by the Carta (thugs and a master sniper) and watch out for the two simple traps. You exit from the area into the Carta Hideout.

Carta Hideout

On entering the hideout, you are attacked by a Carta thug and a Carta sniper, and the room also contains a trap.

In the room with the already-dead bronto corpse, you are then ambushed by the Carta. There are a few Carta thugs on the floor of the room, but the main threats are the massed snipers on the balconies above the room, who rain down bolts on you. To attack the snipers, you need to pass south through the dead bronto room, up the stairs in the next room, then turn right immediately before the caged live bronto. The first piece of the Regalia of Weisshaupt unique armor set - the boots - is in a chest on this balcony:

Footwraps of the Silent One, for mage Hawke

Warden Scout's Boots, for rogue Hawke

Boots of the Fortress, for warrior Hawke

Next, you have a caged bronto. There are three locked doors opposite the cage. Each holds treasure, as well as health potions and injury kits. The third door is the biggest bonanza, with two treasure piles of gold: the amount depends on Hawke's level.

After passing through this room, you will come across a small staircase leading down to a chest containing an object called Warm Orb. After collecting it, if you backtrack to Vimmark Wasteland, to the large enclosure at the Carta fort entrance, you will find a Pulsing Obelisk. Activating it will summon the secret boss named Malvernis; this is a 3 part battle, see his page for strategy. He will drop Smite and Ichor when defeated. Proceed back to where you found the orb.

A few rooms later, after some further brushes with the Carta, the passage turns north and opens into a larger room with disused mine carts and mine shaft entrances. The dwarf Gerav, an acquaintance of Varric, appears. He makes a number of cryptic references to the need for "the master" to be free, and how the Carta drink darkspawn blood in order to hear his music and his calling. A fight with Gerav is triggered, after which a rueful Varric (if he is in your party) explains that Gerav constructed Bianca for him. Gerav drops Turquoise Ring of the Archon.
Note: There is (+5) from Varric if "Call on companion" dialogue option is selected during conversation with Gerav.

After you have fought your way up through a fight on the curved stone steps against a Carta mob (including a Coterie alchemist and thugs), you come to a griffon statue (similar to that in the Hawke Estate or Gamlen's House as is used to trigger Legacy) which can transport you back to Kirkwall.

Don't miss the crate with over 7 sovereigns and a few other treats, behind the statue.
If you use this statue, you can change your party and restock goods etc.
When you restart Legacy, you are returned to this point.

Note: If you wish to engage the secret boss Malvernis and you haven't already done so, this is your last chance. If you go through the metal gate, the previous part of the map becomes inaccessible

Once you pass through the metal gate next to the statue, it locks behind you and you are locked into the hideout. The dwarf Rhatigan appears, and explains that he swore he would bring the blood of Malcolm Hawke to Corypheus. You have to fight Rhatigan, and the Carta snipers supporting him to pass on. The traps in this area can be highly effective to deal with the snipers. It is recommended that at least one character go up the slope and flip the switch that is straight ahead. This trap kills all of the snipers, be careful not to put any other characters near them. Rhatigan's body is looted to obtain the item The Hawke's Key. You then exit through the Passage Down, which leads to Corypheus's Prison - Sashamiri's Floor.

Corypheus's Prison - Sashamiri's Floor

There is a Gather Your Party horn and the Storage Chest next to each other located right as you enter the prison.

Note: It is a good idea to put all unnecessary/junk items in the chest as there will be no vendors or storage chests further on

In the large room just north of the entry point, you encounter a group of Genlocks and Hurlocks. After the battle you will notice the first of several magical prisons housing demons - a Shade is imprisoned here. The voice of Malcolm Hawke, Hawke's father, speaks to confirm that all manner of demons have been bound in the prison. To kill the Shade, it is necessary to activate the two glowing trigger points called a Mark of the Binder on nearby walls. You then activate the third trigger point on the magical barrier which releases the demon. The fight involves the imprisoned Shade and several replicas. Once all of the demons have been killed, the quest Malcolm's Will is triggered.

Further into Sashamiri's Floor you encounter Larius for the first time. He explains that The Hawke's Key can be used to break the seals holding Corypheus, and that Hawke must work down through the prison breaking each seal. Continue along and you will come to the first seal. Activate the seal and you will battle the first Guardian, a pride demon with an affinity to fire. After the battle a cut-scene plays and you will be able to upgrade The Hawke's Key with an elemental damage. On your way to the next floor you will have to defeat a Genlock Alpha.

Corypheus's Prison - Farele's Floor

Hawke enters Farele's Floor from the end of the first floor in the prison - Corypheus's Prison - Sashamiri's Floor. This floor of the prison is shaped roughly like the letter 'n' - with areas to explore on the east, north and west sides. You enter the floor in the south east corner and exit in the south west.

In the corridor leading right out of the first room, you encounter a Mark of the Binder (a glowing red light on a Grey Warden banner) used to unlock the second magical prison for the side-quest Malcolm's Will, along with the magical prison itself. The second Mark of the Binder is beyond in the next room. This prison contains an Abomination, who summons four Profane to attack you in the battle. Defeating the Abomination and the Profane updates the Malcolm's Will quest.

In the next room, a Darkspawn Emissary locks you in with a group Corpses. Once the initial four are defeated, you can get through to the next room (which is the main room on the east side of this floor) to tackle the emissary and a larger group of corpses. A crumbling walkway to the west of the room contains a Viewpoint which triggers some party dialogue, and the room to the north (a long room with galleries overlooking the central pit) contains a big battle with Hurlocks, an Alpha, and a number of bolters.

A side room to the east contains the Crown of Dumat, the first of four ancient Tevinter artifacts required for the Altar of Dumat side-quest.

Along the north side of the prison, you encounter two interlinked rooms of prison cells. The first of these two rooms contains the third and final magical prison as part of the Malcolm's Will quest. The two Marks of the Binder are located in the first prison room, and then just inside the next prison room. The prison holds a Desire demon who summons Corpses and skeleton archers to her defense. Defeating the desire demon and the other enemies completes the Malcolm's Will quest. The voice of Malcolm Hawke explains the background to his role in imprisoning these demons. If Carver Hawke is in the party and it is after Act I, some dialogue is triggered with Hawke as to why Carver joined the Templars.

Heading down into the west side of the prison, into a long thin room with open galleries over the central pit, you are attacked again by a big group of Darkspawn, including Hurlock Grunts, Hurlock Alpha, and Genlock Alpha.

In a side room, you can pick up Dumat's Sacrificial Dagger, the second of the four artefacts required for the Altar of Dumat side-quest.

Finally, the path south leads you to the main central room containing the next Seal for Corypheus, it is guarded by a Genlock Alpha and an Ogre. The Guardian summons a number of replicas of itself as part of the battle; if you focus down the Guardian all the replicas will die as soon as it does. After the battle you can again upgrade the Hawke's key. You have a choice of an increase in attack speed, armor penetration, mana/stamina drain, or health drain.

Following another dialogue with Larius, you exit down to Corypheus's Prison - Tower Base.

Corypheus's Prison - Tower Base

Hawke enters the Tower Base from the end of the second floor in the prison - Corypheus's Prison - Farele's Floor. This level explores the area at the base of the tower - the area consists of a number of open clearings surrounded by various collapsed buildings and caves.

You are lured by a pack of deep stalkers into the first clearing, where you are attacked by deepstalkers.

On a dead-end path to the south of this clearing is the First Legionnaire's Journal, which triggers the optional side-quest The Paragon's Heir.

In the next clearing, you are attacked by a large group of Darkspawn, including Genlock alpha, Hurlock Alpha, and Hurlock bolters.

In a large submerged stone building to the north of the clearing is the Second Legionnaire's Journal, which continues the optional side-quest The Paragon's Heir.

You exit the clearing through a gap in the south-west corner between two griffon statues. Immediately ahead of you are stairs leading up which split into two directions. The steps on the turning to the right lead to a raised platform where you can pick up Dumat's Ritual Scroll for the Altar of Dumat side-quest. The path which continues straight ahead (i.e. heading towards the far west of the map) leads to a sunken room containing six torches. One of your party will suggest lighting the torches. To solve this puzzle you only need to light two torches, the middle torch on the north wall and the eastern torch on the south wall (for orientation purposes, the sarcophagus is on the west wall). Lighting all six activates the sarcophagus at the end of the room, which gives up 19+ gold in loot, and the Gloves which form part of the Regalia of Weisshaupt armor set. The gloves vary depending on Hawke's class:

Gloves of the Silent One, for mage Hawke

Warden Scout's Gloves, for rogue Hawke

Gauntlets of the Fortress, for warrior Hawke

Returning the bottom of those steps, you come out into another clearing, where you find the Altar of Dumat up some carved stone steps in the south-west corner of the map. At this point, you may only have three of the four artefacts to perform the ritual - the fourth is further through this level. See the Altar of Dumat quest page for further details on the options of defiling the altar or performing the sacrificial ritual.

You exit the main clearing through a gap between two griffon statues and then through a doorway in a stone wall. You emerge into another clearing into a fight with Deep stalkers, Corrupted Spiders and Giant spiders.

In a small gap to the south, there is a cave with a burning pool of water where you find the Sacred Urn of Dumat for the Altar of Dumat quest.
In a small alcove just west of this cave is the Third Legionnaire's Journal, which continues the optional side-quest The Paragon's Heir.

Just before you head up the steps to the raised stone bridge, there is a side-path which leads to a small fortified area where you find the body of Tethras Gaven. If you have found all three of the Legionnaire's Journals, and speak the Dwarven prayer, you will complete the side-quest The Paragon's Heir. Continuing back across the stone bridge, you are ambushed at the halfway point by a Genlock alpha.

Once you have crossed the bridge, you can explore the rocky path to the right (which is a dead-end), and continue round to the left which heads towards the seal. There is a massive fight with Darkspawn, including Hurlocks, a Hurlock Alpha and an Emissary in the first wave, and Genlocks, a Genlock alpha and an Ogre in the second wave.*

If Anders is in your party, then at this stage he will find Corypheus's calling too much to bear, and Justice will take over. You will have to fight and defeat Justice and two shades. Once he has been defeated, Anders rejoins the party.

Note: The rocky path to the right that turns into a dead end, (the path just before the massive fight), has the Codex entry: Speculations on Kirkwall.

Finally, you reach the Seal and have to fight the Seal Guardian. After the battle you again have 4 choices to upgrade the Hawke's Key weapon. You either get critical chance up, critical damage up, stun chance up, or chance at speed reduction of enemies up.

As you are exiting, Larius appears again and warns Hawke about the Grey Wardens in the prison. Janeka then appears supported by three other wardens, and explains that instead of destroying Corypheus, she would like Hawke to help with harnessing his power. Hawke must decide to side with either Larius or Janeka (the decision can later be reversed). Note that the quest splits at this point, depending on which path you choose:

If Hawke sides with Janeka: the three wardens turn on her and follow Larius off into the tower. You exit into Corypheus's Prison - Daneken's Floor.

Sebastian: friendship (+5)

Varric: friendship (+5)

Isabela: friendship (+5)

Merrill: friendship (+5)

Fenris: rivalry (+5)

Carver: rivalry (+5)

Bethany: rivalry (+5)

Aveline: rivalry (+5)

If Hawke sides with Larius: Janeka casts a spell and she and the three wardens disappear. You are left with Larius to find a way into the prison. You exit into Corypheus's Prison - Riannon's Floor.

Sebastian: rivalry (+5)

Varric: rivalry (+5)

Isabela: rivalry (+5)

Merrill: rivalry (+5)

Fenris: friendship (+5)

Anders: friendship (+5)

Carver: friendship (+5)

Bethany: friendship (+5)

Aveline: friendship (+5)

There is little overall difference between the two paths other than the puzzle you have to solve. Larius's path gave about 2K more XP while Janeka's gave ~15 more gold at level 28.

Corypheus's Prison - Riannon's Floor

Note: Only if you side with Larius at the end of the Tower Base level.

The Helmet part of the unique armor set Regalia of Weisshaupt is in a chest in a room at the north of the maze, which is detailed below.

Cowl of the Silent One, for mage Hawke

Warden Scout's Cap, for rogue Hawke

Helm of the Fortress, for warrior Hawke

You will enter a room where you fight some Carta mercenaries. You will have to solve the puzzle to get the orange line from one side of the room to the other to unlock the door. Further through this area, searching each room and long corridor, there will be a further 3 power nexus' which will show a different colour light on the pillars (Green, Red, Blue) - these will update the previous puzzle where you must align all the new color beams appropriately. When each individual color is "solved" the color beam will turn white. You will know that the entire puzzle is solved when there are four white (and no colored) beams running throughout the puzzle room. This will unlock all of the barriers leading to the Legacy item set helm.

- - After sloving the Orange line puzzle, hit the Blue power Nexus (furthest) then Red (closest), and finally Green (middle). You will be left with three white lines and one red - just move one column twice to have all white lines. Puzzle solved***

De-activating certain barriers will release demons.

Almost nearing the end of this floor, Janeka will return and block Hawke and others by summoning Kel-Sarag (a Revenant) and four emissaries who protect Kel-Sarag. They are:

Littus, The Healer - heals Kel-Sarag.
Zuthraal, Defender of Magic - protects Kel-Sarag from spells.
Azerthan, Defender of Blades - protects Kel-Sarag from physical attacks
Osra, The Nullifier - protects Kel-Sarag from negative effects.

Killing them before attempting to kill Kel-Sarag will make killing Kel-Sarag a lot easier. They keep switching their locations among themselves but easy to kill as they will not attack Hawke or anyone else but only try to protect Kel-Sarag. Larius will attack Kel-Sarag by default and you can not control him. But you can order each of your party members to attack one emissary each (one member for one emissary).

Corypheus's Prison - Daneken's Floor

Note: Only if you side with Janeka at the end of the Tower Base level.

You have been trapped by Larius in a floor of the prison, with many doorways blocked by magical barriers. You can remove particular barriers by interacting with a nearby Power Nexus. Each Power Nexus (when activated) removes one specific barrier, and Janeka can only activate one Power Nexus at a time. It is necessary to work through the maze, using the Power Nexus activation to bring down barriers.

The Helmet part of the unique armor set Regalia of Weisshaupt is in a chest in a room at the north of the maze (identified on the map to the right) blocked by a gold barrier. The Power Nexus for this barrier is found in a jail cell blocked by a red barrier in a room to the northeast.

Cowl of the Silent One, for mage Hawke

Warden Scout's Cap, for rogue Hawke

Helm of the Fortress, for warrior Hawke

De-activating certain barriers will release demons.

The final battle of the level takes place in the central tower, where you fight three golems activated by Larius. One of them will drop Unity ring.

The Final Seal

See Corypheus (strategy) on defeating him.

This entire chapter is a boss fight that takes place in a single, round room with four alcoves (or rather balconies) around the perimeter. The exit is sealed for the duration of the fight, and you will not have any opportunity to save during the fight. If you don't employ the right strategy for this fight, it will be difficult even in Casual mode. The strategy involves timed running to avoid lethal blasts, and any teammates on autopilot will be killed quickly. You need to pause frequently and micro-manage the positioning of all your teammates.

If you sided with Janeka, Larius will arrive right after you, with the Wardens that took his side at the base of the tower. A dialog will give you an option to side with Larius instead. If you change your mind, Janeka is killed by Larius in a cutscene, leaving the other three Wardens to go rally the rest of the order across Thedas. If you do not change your mind, you will have to fight both Larius and the Wardens. Once they are down, Janeka asks you to deactivate the four gryphon statues that seal the magical holding cell of Corypheus and then to drain some of your Hawke blood to release him. He wakes up, and Janeka casts a spell to bind him. Her spell fails because Corypheus counters it. She curses and a dialog section starts where it becomes apparent what Corypheus is. After some confusion, Corypheus realizes that the people before him are hostile, and the final fight starts.

If you sided with Larius, you will arrive at the scene to find Janeka and the three Wardens already there. They offer you a choice to change sides. If you change sides, Larius will be killed by Janeka. If you stick with Larius, you need to fight both Janeka and the Wardens. Once you have defeated them, Larius says that the seals are getting too weak to hold Corypheus, and that you need to free him and slay him.

So, choosing to support Larius or Janeka has almost exactly the same result. The only difference is whether Janeka or Larius survives this chapter. The Wardens die in most scenarios unless you turned against Janeka just before the final battle, and you always end up releasing Corypheus. When he finally falls, you will get a short cutscene where Hawke lands the killing blow.

If you sided with Janeka, she will show remorse after the fight and tell you that she realizes she was misled by voices in her head. She thinks she will be heading for the Final Walk after filing her report with the Wardens, though her dialogue suggests that Corypheus' influence over her might not be completely gone.

If you sided with Larius, he will be the one giving a short concluding speech. He seems to be clear in the head now, thanks you for his freedom and talks about not only reporting back to the Warden-Commander, but returning to service. His dialogue suggests that he feels strongly compelled to do this, for reasons unknown. The scene seems to suggest that he has been taken over by Corypheus, given how he's now speaking coherently, is standing tall, and is speaking in the same manner as Corypheus.

The camera shifts to Varric telling this story to the Seeker, and a short epilogue follows where Hawke and Carver, or Hawke and Bethany, get an opportunity to talk some things out (if Bethany and Carver are both dead, Hawke will instead talk with Gamlen and the "spirit" of Hawke's mother). If the Legacy is completed before Hawke's mother's death then Hawke will be talking to both Hawke's mother and Bethany/Carver (if one of them are alive/present), Hawke's mother will reminisce about their father and regret that he could have saved Carver/Bethany from the ogre (in prologue). You are returned to Gamlen's house/Hawke's Estate (depending from where you started playing the DLC), and the Legacy areas become inaccessible.

Notes

Bringing Anders against Corypheus will result in an additional amulet, Seal of Dumat, exclusive to him in the loot drop from Corypheus. Having Anders in the party will also add some dialog where Anders declares his disbelief in the Chantry lore that the Tevinter magisters of old corrupted the Golden City and brought the darkspawn corruption into Thedas. Seeing the amulet will make him change his mind on that issue. Anders' initial comments about the Golden City and the Magisters contradict his comments in the Act II quest Tevinter Chantry Amulet.
Following the final battle, make sure to REMOVE any equipment that you'd like to keep from Bethany or Carver, as they'll leave immediately after you return to Kirkwall. Fortunately both Bloodline (Legacy) and Staff of the New Growth are restricted to Bethany, so you will only have to worry about any accessories you may have equipped her with, while Carver you will want to remove his items.