How to build the Arcane Blood-Archer - Dragon Age Origins

The Arcane Blood Archer build for Dragon Age Origins. Excellent controller character for the party! Using a bow with the Arcane Warrior grants us better hit rate than a melee weapon would and better damage than a staff would!
A very unique and pretty overpowered build for mages!

[@endanarchy]

At this point, you have to legally be declared a mad scientist

[@Hawaiian_Pizza_Enjoyer]

You never fail to impress with these ideas, very cool!

[@priscilla8864]

I am so glad you decided to try this build!! I’ve been eagerly looking forward to what you’d accomplish with this build for so long! Awesome build! Totally playing through DAO again with this build 😎

[@Sarydormi]

Now we have something to show to people who joked about arcane archers being useless

[@Sarydormi]

And sorry, deleted prev version of the comment because wrote mages instead of archers

[@EfingLego]

Maaan shout out to you for innovating with a 10+ year old game. The absolute goat 🐐 Btw you should create a tier list video, I feel since you have such a variety of unorthodox builds it would be super fun!

[@F8isRIPPIN]

Love this!! Always badass to see new builds for this amazing game in 2023!

[@PowerhouseKlaus]

At this rate you'll find a way to make spider form good!

[@quicochines7492]

Somebody in an old video said the only build that left was a mage archer, and you took that to the heart friend.

[@Cruddyhorse]

This might be the only way to make Archers enjoyable in this game, excellent.

[@Optaquon]

Was just about to replay DAO and will definitely be trying this build😊

[@markth078]

very cool build, motivated me to replay the game and try it out thanks! subbed

[@barbarachainiaux9937]

This is great! (and I can bring my fav team with me: Zev, Morrigan and Shale with no worries :) )

[@RiverHB]

Very creative. I'm going to try this soon. I've always done sword and shield as the arcane warrior to sustain Shimmering Shield. Never even thought of this honestly

[@sharkdentures3247]

I LOVE your "off the beaten path" builds! (And have even tried a few of them! Less successfully than you, of course. But still LOADS of fun.) Also, in the intro, when you are fighting Lohgain? Thanks to the timing of your shots, I momentarily thought you had some kind of "knockback arrows"! It wasn't until a little later I realized it was a Glyph of Repulsion! lol I once was doing an "Archery focused" party with Shale using Rock Mastery skills to further boost the party's effectiveness with bows. That might help strengthen THIS character too? If so, maybe I'll try again with my Warden based on THIS build.

[@AKisHerceg]

Thanks! :) A fully upgraded Rock Mastery gives 10% bonus to ranged crit chance and 50 missile deflection(also reduces aim speed, but that does not matter since you already have max speed with the Repeater Gloves), so I would say the build would work very well with Shale.

[@user-uu8jl2xd3x]

Very creative and viable build. great job!

[@swagit4174]

This is definitely the build Andraste would go for against the Imperium

[@lolodarkness]

Wow, i must try this one!!! Awesome build

[@leandrohidalgo9195]

This is just amazing. Genious!

[@luney1283]

WHAT. omg this game is amazing

[@Nicomancer001]

Every time you make a new weird build in Origins that actually works, I get sadder that we won't be getting that kind of customization in the next games.

[@jasonsterlingentertainment478]

Creating a subclass system, absolutely amazing

[@trassage]

Your imagination with these builds is boundless :) Wouldn't it work even better with a crossbow since Combat Magic turns strenth requirements into magic and would scale accordingly? And you equip a high-end weapon for the build, too.

[@AKisHerceg]

Sadly, crossbows will not gain damage boost from Combat Magic, since crossbows are not governed by any attribute.

[@trassage]

@@AKisHerceg oh, that's a pity. Thanks for clarification

[@user-nw8pp1cy8q]

I don't understand why some game developers puts strength multiplier into crossbows. Entire point of crossbow is in removing strength requirement by using complex mechanism and sacrificing of reloading time.

[@oleh_lunin]

Thank you for the build explanation video! That being said, wouldn't Armsman's Tensioner or even Bergen's Honor (since you have Rapid Aim on your gloves, having that on a helm is redundant) be a better choice for helmet in Origins? The Long Sight is nice, but if you are using Death Hex, it's kinda pointless (then again, you won't cast Death Hex on your every target, but still, it's an open question, whether something that adds cunning or attack would ultimately contribute more).

[@AKisHerceg]

I don’t have Bergen’s Honor. AT actually gives a nice attack boost, that is why I pick it up. Long Sight boosts my crit chance to 30+ with Leliana, so one out of three attack will be critical this way. I only use Death Hex on bosses or Elite Bosses so crit chance is pretty important. :)

[@satriapersada8601]

pure genius

[@MrCheBY]

this will be the first build , that I will not can solo play on nightmare )

[@AKisHerceg]

Yup, its more of a team build.

[@vond5829]

Bro made a magic archer

[@Massinissathefirst]

Pretty witty!

[@Alpha_Morningstar]

Been a while since i didn't play origins, this idea cross my mind mind once... But i never get it working well, but ser just made it possible, btw can you make more build for mass effect i really enjoy the trilogy

[@AKisHerceg]

Yes, I’m currently working on the Shotgun Infi build for ME as well. :)

[@nightdoom98]

got a question, i said i was going to build a pure mage in a comment the other day and wanted to ask what good spells are? i know fireball and mana clash are good. i was going to be the only mage so i would take heal up to regen and grab haste on my mage I do have balance mods and a mod that lets me level up anyone i get if i'm a higher level than them (i can make oghren not just have willpower) and the tactics mod that allows me to let rogues to go behind and backstab without me needing to place them there.

[@AKisHerceg]

It really depends on what your focus is as a mage. Support? Control? Damage? Tanking? Lots of good spells in Origins: If you bring melee fighters in the party, get Haste asap. Rock Armor is a must, since it gives much needed armor. Arcane Shield is also good, but it turns into awesome in Awakening. Cone of Cold, Petrify, Paralyze, Glyph of Paralysis, Mass Paralysis are all great for paralyzing bosses and crowds. Combining Glyph of Paralysis with Glyph of Repulsion will result in a massive combo that will paralyze enemies for a long time. The Hexes are also great. Vulnerability and Affliction can greatly increase your elemental and staff damage if you are using an elemental staff. Death Hex will cause your warriors and rogues to always crit on the target. Misdirection Hex will make hard hitting melee bosses always miss. Crushing Prison is the best way to get Elites out of the fight, and mages if you don't have Mana Clash. Sleep and Horror are also great, especially when combined together. These would be my favorites without specialization. :)

[@seniorwhite8324]

I started playing this game last week and when I was looking through builds I saw this and wanted to copy it, but I didn't realize that specializations are tied to achievements 😅. So after realizing that I started a new warrior game and speedrun to get arcane warrior so I can get back to my previous character haha. I'm recommending this game to my friend and I'm wondering what class/build is good for a fresh install, no specs unlocked playthrough?

[@AKisHerceg]

When I do a clean install I always go for a full Dex rogue(usually double dagger, but archer can work just as well). I find it to be the easiest to finish NM with it without specializations. Still, you can still get the Bard, the Duelist and the Ranger instantly after leaving Lothering(Bard - get Leliana's approval above 25 which is very easy, and she will teach it to you after you ask where did she learn to fight like that; Ranger - Bodhan sells the manual in the Party Camp so get enough money and save before you buy it, then reload the save to keep your money; Duelist - after leaving Lothering go to Denerim, open the map, go the Pearl and talk to Isabella - with a full dex rogue, you should have more than enough Dex at this point to pass her test when she ask you to play Wicked Grace, but you can bring Leliana just to be sure). The Assassin is the only one that takes time, since you get that from Zevran and he won't show up until you finish your first storyline quest. After that play Awakening and get the Blood Mage and the Reaver there(this way you don't have to do morally questionable things during Origins). You don't use them anyway on your current playthrough since you play as a rogue. Every other spec can be unlocked by a rogue without any problem or harsh consequences so this way you can have a fully unlocked game by the end of your first Origin/Awakening playthrough. :)

[@seniorwhite8324]

@@AKisHerceg thank you for the nice advice! What skills should dex rogue prioritize at early levels? Should you go for stealth 4 asap? Coup de grace? Also all points dex? Or a couple here and there at early (strength or cunning). I'm taking notes too because I haven't seen the intro of dwarf race yet and there's 2 of those haha. Planning dex rogue on one of those eventually, nightmare difficulty too.

[@AKisHerceg]

@@seniorwhite8324 Well, I'm assuming you are not going to min/max, so yes, you can place a few points here and there. Still, prioritizing Dex is a must. The rogue is extremely squishy at the beginning so you need high defense. Otherwise enemies will mop the floor with you(talking about NM difficulty, I don't really remember on lower difficulties, but I guess it would be the same there too). 1 point in Dex gives 1 point to your defense, so you better pump it up as high as you can. Endgame you can have 180+ defense, which will let you avoid around 95+% of all enemy attacks - to put that into perspective, Cauthrien, an Elite Boss has 116 Attack which means that she can almost never hit us and she is the strongest melee enemy in the game. Remember: we are focusing on avoiding attacks, not soaking up damage, so high health is not a requirement here. Most enemies use physical attacks in the game and they have to pass your defense check to successfully hit you. Stealth is usually not my first option when it comes to the Dex rogue. Later you can pick it up(needs 22 Cunning to master it though and you still can't use it against Elite Bosses), but our main goal is to survive without Stealth. This is why we go Dex. Dex = very high defense. Very high defense = enemies can't hit you or shoot you. Only three things will be capable of hurting you: Magic(spells don't care about your defense, but this is when magic res comes into play), area effect attacks(aoe attacks deal damage on a huge area so defense is useless there - however, you can run away from them when you see them coming) and auto-hit attacks(like the Ogre's Ram or the Golem's Slam or Scattershot - these attacks will always hit, so not much you can do about them other than having enough health to not die from them). Strength is not important at all. We go after Light armors and daggers(or bows). They have very low STR requirements(daggers and bows have DEX req not STR). Get a set of Dalish armor from Varathorn from the Dalish camp. It does not matter what tier it has, it will always give boost to your defense. Since we boost DEX, you will have no problem equipping any dagger or bow in the game. Cunning should reach 16 so you can get Master Coercion. Still, you should not place much here at the beginning. Just place enough to unlock Coercion level 1 before you leave Lothering(City Elf starts with Coercion level 1 by default). Releasing Sten does not require you to convince the Mother, you can just let Leliana pick the lock and that is the hardest Coercion in the beginning. Constitution and Willpower. I usually don't put any on these, but I have the Reaper's Cudgel to sell, so I always have money for the Spellward(+5 WP, +30% magic res) amulet and the Lifegiver ring(+3 armor, 3 combat health regen, +10 Constitution). If you just start the game with no items from achievements, then you can put 6-6 point on each, but not at the beginning. Around the time you start your first main quest after Lothering and the dlc quests, you can put 3 on each. A few levels later you can put another 3 on each again. That should give you enough life and WP. Naturally you should buy the Lifegiver as soon as you have the money for it. It will definitely enhance your survivability immensely. Don't even think about giving it to your tank - it is your precious. Magic, nothing. Obviously. :) As for skills, we will use backstabs so prioritize skills that can stun enemies so that after unlocking Coup de Grace you can just stun enemies and automatically backstab them. This is why this build does not require much Willpower, since your mains source of damage comes from auto-attacks. Skill that can stun: Dirty Fighting and Riposte. As you see, the build is extremely easy and requires almost nothing. Dex just works, no matter what. This is why it is my first choice when it comes to going through the game without dlc equipment, extra money from dlc items or unlocked specs. For more info, you can check out my "Dex vs Cunning rogue" video, or my "Master Archer Trilogy build". :)

[@seniorwhite8324]

@@AKisHerceg bro thank you for the help. I've been playing this game non stop since last week and your vids + tips you give in comment section helped a lot!!

[@williamjohnson7899]

Have you considered crossbows? Since they require strength vs dex arcane warrior should allow you to wield stronger bows.

[@AKisHerceg]

Crossbows don’t get the dmg buff because they are not governed by any stat. They require str to equip but they don’t use it as a modifier. Sadly they are useless in this case.

[@dereguejohnson5529]

Bellara build

[@Lena-di2ln]

Any alternatives to the Battledress?

[@AKisHerceg]

Felon's Coat or the Wade set. Shadow of the Empire can work as well. Reaper's Vestment is also great for this build.

[@Lena-di2ln]

@@AKisHerceg thank you

[@bigquazz3955]

What year is it again?