There is some pretty cool armour in Dragon Age: The Veilguard. It’s helped by the other games being ten years or more older, and therefore made on inferior tech, but The Veilguard is easily the prettiest Dragon Age game, despite flaws elsewhere, and that’s reflected in the gorgeous array of armours on offer. But there’s one particular armour set I love more than any other, despite never, ever wearing it: Paragon of the Unyielding.
I didn’t have high hopes for The Veilguard’s armour at first. Though armour you could see in the character creator sequence looked interesting, none of the characters had particularly standout starting garbs. Add in the ‘deluxe’ bright gold attire and the Blood Dragon armour throwback of the Ultimate Edition, and I wasn’t expecting much. But I soon turned around on the selection.
Armour Is The Best Way To Connect With Culture In The Veilguard
I liked the armour long before the Paragon of the Unyielding, which you don’t get until the final mission of Harding’s arc, The Heart of the Titan. But this solidified by affection for how the game plays dress up. The helmet (Paragon’s Silent Gaze) is a Unique item that boosts Defense by 87, increases Ability damage by 30 percent, and enemies that target you do less damage every second they keep their attention fixed on you.
To my mind, that makes the helmet the best in the game. I unlocked other Unique and Legendary helmets after Harding’s quest was done (I wrapped hers up first, so had plenty of game left), and yet I never took it off. It worked perfectly for my playstyle, and thus became part of my Rook’s most basic stats. The main armour piece less so, because I had Eclectic Armorer and therefore couldn’t wear a complete set, but I still consider it one of the game’s finest anyway.
But I don’t really mean that it’s great because of the stats it offers, impressive as they are. It’s wonderful armour because it makes you look like a dwarf statue, and (sans helmet) we see the dwarves Harding talks to wearing the same bulky suit. Like all the good armour in the game, it speaks to cultural ties beyond our own world realised in the fantasy existence of Thedas. And like all the great armour in the game, it looks a little silly.
Dressing Up Lets You Show Your Rook’s Personality
Part of the reason I like Paragon of the Unyielding is it signals the game’s range and creativity, but there is a whole array of armours to choose from. Like I say, I never actually wore this thing much. And I must admit it was amusing to see portions of the game leak during the review period and have The Veilguard turn into President-Elect of Wokery while I was running around in a completely open feathery jacket that showed considerable cleavage at all times. An outfit I changed into after wearing blue silk and gold discs that left legs and midriff entirely uncovered.
While The Veilguard has less room to give the Rook personality, whether through a range of responses or just straight up yapping, you can dress how you see your character a lot more. There are more epic and heroic suits of actual armour that I wore for the climactic scenes, lighter garbs for Rivain, billowing coats for the Necropolis, practical gear for Arlathan, cosmopolitan outfits for the urban confines of Minrathous or Treviso, and battle-ready plate for the Hossberg Wetlands.
Putting on each outfit can be part of your storytelling, with Rook going to their seemingly unending closest and pulling out the right gear for the occasion. While companions have disappointingly few outfits, and limited range even within that number, you can do this to a certain extent with them as well. None of them, not even Harding, can don the fabled NAME, but hey, why would I let them? This baby’s all mine.
Armour in Dragon Age: The Veilguard is a massive step forward for the series in a lot of ways. Greater range for the protagonist, more digestible and effective bonuses for each outfit, the vast amount of cosmetic options that are completely separate from the statistical boosts. There’s also greater creativity and more embrace of both tradition and silliness. I loved buying new designs, equipping better loot, upgrading my stats – but, even if I so rarely wore it to actually run around in, nothing makes me smile in Dragon Age: The Veilguard like Paragon of the Unyielding.
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OpenCritic
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Top Critic Rating:
81/100
- Released
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October 31, 2024