Roadmap guide to all Achievements/Trophies in Act I
This guide will tell you everything you need to do during Act I so that you can get all achievements. Many achievements/trophies require actions in the first Act but that will unlock at the very end of the game so it can be difficult to keep track of everything you need to do in order to fully complete the game and get all of its achievements/trophies.
When you're finished with Act I achievements and trophies be sure to check out the follow up guide that covers Act II, you can get there here.
There are many achievements/trophies in Act I of Dragon Age II that will be gained by playing through the game, completing companion’s quests and side quests. All achievements that cannot be missed are listed at the bottom of this guide. You should be doing this any way to gain access to locations that would otherwise be missable and to gain achievements/trophies like ‘Birthright’ (sibling companion quest) and ‘Gift Giver’ (giving your sibling the Portrait of your Mother or Tobrius's Documents from Birthright).
Just as a forewarning: you should be picking up as many codex’s as you can to unlock the achievement/trophy ‘Knowledgeable’ later on down the line which requires 100 codex’s and you should also be opening treasure chests to unlock ‘Treasure Hunter’ which requires 50 chests. You’ll likely get these /trophies later on in the game but you should start working towards them early on.
Important note for Supplier- Make sure that Isabela, Anders and Merrill remain in your party and have either very high approval or rival points. Isabela is particularly important as she may leave during Act II. Isabela has few approval changes during Act II so it’s best to get in there fast and get her approval/rivalry up high during Act I. She’ll need at least 75% friendship or rivalry before the Act II quest ‘To Catch a Thief’ otherwise you’ll lose her and never gain access to a supplier ingredient. Merril and Anders have side quests that also have supplier ingredients so you need to make sure you keep them around and to have them as your friends. Overall, you should recruit and keep as many people as possible due to their companion quests.
Act I Roadmap
Unstoppable – No party members get knocked out in combat for an entire year in Kirkwall. If anybody gets knocked out, reload a save. This can technically be obtained in Act II though not in Act III.
Mass exodus – Three playthroughs, create a character of each class (rogue, mage and warrior) and play through until Kirkwall. In order to earn both achievements/trophies of “Mercenary” and “Nefarious” you should side with Meeran in one playthrough and Anthenril in another.
Talented – Upgrade a spell or talent. In the talent menu upon levelling up you’ll notice that some spells or talents have smaller icons beside them, if you put a skill point on one of these then you’ll get this achievement/trophy.
Chantry Historian – Grab the “History of the Chantry: Chapter 1” entry from the upstairs table by the fireplace in the Chantry (where you found Karl during Anders quest.)
Master Craftsman - Find all available recipes for one of the three crafting trees then create each item in that tree. The easiest to obtain is the potion crafting tree since it only has six recipes. Two of these recipes are in Act I: The Elfroot Potion recipe obtained off Lady Elegant and the Restoration Potion recipe obtained by completing the Herbalist Tasks and then bought from his shop.
Archaeologist – Grab at least 3 of these 4 entries. They are all Codex's called 'The Enigma of Kirkwall' and to check which ones you have you can check in the lore section.
Entry 1: Gallows courtyard – Turn to an immediate right upon entering and go to the Northern most part of the area. The entry is hidden in a pile of rubble by a closed gate.
Entry 2: Viscount’s Keep – When collecting this entry the icon indicating it is there will not appear but, after collecting it, it will show up on screen. The entry is located on one of the two pictures that are separated by a red vase, on the right side of the desk, in Seneschal Bran’s office.
Entry 3: The Bone pit – After receiving the quest ‘The Bone Pit’ go to the location and find a piece of paper sticking out from under one of the rocks that blocks a pathway leading to the left. It is right beside the Elfroot and is at the southeast dead end.
Entry 4: The Alienage in Lowtown (at night). Beside Merill’s house in a small alcove, beside a manhole.
Supplier – See the guide here for everything you need since there are a lot of ingredients and some are difficult to fnd. These quests have ingredients during them so check back to guide if you’ve started these: Blackpowder Promise: (Dead man’s pass and the Tal-Vashoth cavern), Shepherding Wolves: (Vimmark mountain pass), The Way It Should Be: (Sundermount Ambush site), The Bone Pit: (Bone Pit Mines), Act of Mercy: (Runaways Cavern), Wayward Son: (Slaver Caverns).
Before going on the Deep Roads Expedition (a point of no return) you should have:
Poisons and Bombs: Deep Mushroom 3/9, Deathroot 3/6, Glitterdust 1/6, Felandaris 0/1
Runes: Lyrium 3/9, Silverite 3/6, Orichalcum 0/6, Dragon's Blood 0/1
Potions: Elfroot 6/9, Spindleweed 3/6, Embrium 1/6, Ambrosia 0/1
After the Deep Roads Expedition you should have:
Poisons and Bombs: Deep Mushroom 5/9, Deathroot 3/6, Glitterdust 1/6, Felandaris 0/1
Runes: Lyrium 5/9, Silverite 4/6, Orichalcum 1/6, Dragon's Blood 0/1
Potions: Elfroot 6/9, Spindleweed 3/6, Embrium 1/6, Ambrosia 0/1
Mage Hunter/Arcane Defender – Side with the Templars twice out of either: 'Wayward Son', 'Act of Mercy' and 'Enemies Among Us'. And the mages on whichever one is left. (You can reverse this and side with mages twice and Templars once but it means making Feynriel Tranquil in Act II to side with Templars and make the score even, 2:2)
By following it this way (having 2 points on mages and 2 points on Templars) it means you can receive both achievements/trophies in one playthrough just by reloading a save to replay Act III and without having to play through Act I and II again.
A Worthy Rival – You need 5 points for this achievement/trophy to unlock, some of which can be earned in Act I. Bring Fenris with you at the end of 'Blackpowder Promise' and tell the Arishok you were promised future profits to earn 2 respect points for A Worthy Rival. At the end of the quest ‘Shepherding Wolves’ go back to the Arishok and inform him of the deaths of his Quanari for another point.
Financier – You must fund Bartrand the 50 sovereigns to join the Deep Roads Expedition, do not accept the quest ‘Friends in Low Places’ that can be found on your desk as you will be unable to unlock this achievement/trophy.
Great Minds Think Alike – reach 100% friendship or rivalry with four of your party members. This cannot be mixed and match so they must all be friends or all be rivals. Check this website for the approval and rivalry points of all companions.
Rival – Earn 100% rivalry with one of your companions. If you’re trying to keep everybody as your friend then you can easily achieve this on one of the playthroughs for Mass Exodus and just play through whilst purposefully making someone hate you i.e.: Aveline (since you can earn 15 rivalry points during the prologue alone) Check this website for the approval and rivalry points of all companions.
Friend – Earn 100%friendship with one of your companions. Same conditions as the above achievements and provided you agree with the companion on important issues and do their personal quest then you’ll get this easily. This can easily be obtained early on in the game with Bethany by getting back the Ancestral mansion and finding your grandfather’s will.
Achievements and trophies you cannot miss:
Tale within a Tale – During prologue
Immigrant – Reach Kirkwall
Craftsman – Acquire your first crafting recipe from Lady Elegant in Lowtown.
Delver of the Deep – Enter deep roads
Dedicated – Reach level 10
Full House – Recruited four party members.
Legendary – Reach level 20
Champion of Kirkwall – Complete the game
Epic – Complete game once with imported dragon age origins save or complete the game twice.
Darkness Falls – Switch to night-time on the map
Explorer – Travel to another location on the map
Friends in High places – After you have met Grand Cleric Elthina, Viscount Dumar, Knight-Commander Meredith and First Enchanter Orsino.
Conqueror – Secret achievement, story related, final boss of the game.
Stone cold – Secret achievement, story related during Deep roads.
When you're finished with Act I achievements and trophies be sure to check out the follow up guide that covers Act II, you can get there here.
