Dragon Age: The Veilguard – Guide to Unlocking Companion Abilities and Ultimates

Elaine2 weeks ago

Key Takeaways

Strengthen your companion’s Bond to unlock most abilities, leading to powerful Ultimate abilities.
Completing character questlines opens Legendary rewards and exclusive passives.
Each class offers specialized Ultimate abilities, making customization dynamic and strategic.

As fans dive into Dragon Age: The Veilguard, they’ll discover an intricately designed system of abilities and Ultimates for each companion, setting the stage for powerful combat combinations and personalized playstyles. This guide covers everything you need to know about unlocking these abilities, from enhancing your Bond with each character to mastering specializations and character-specific quests.

Understanding the Companion System in Dragon Age: The Veilguard

Similar to past Dragon Age titles, The Veilguard introduces a diverse cast of companions, each bringing their own set of skills, passives, and unique Ultimate abilities. These companions don’t just fight by your side; they contribute significantly to your strategy, thanks to various AoE abilities, Detonations, and synergy-driven combat roles.

Unlocking Companion Abilities: Building Bonds

The journey to unlock a companion’s full suite of abilities begins by strengthening your Bond with them. In Dragon Age: The Veilguard, the Bond system functions like a reputation system where actions, choices, and interactions impact your relationship with each companion. Here’s how it works:

Bond Levels and Ability Unlocks: Each companion has six main abilities, five of which become accessible as you increase your Bond. By reaching Bond Level 2, five abilities are available, while the coveted sixth ability an Ultimate requires more dedication.
How to Raise Bond Levels:
- Choose Companion-Friendly Dialogue Options: Make choices that align with your companion’s values and beliefs.
- Complete Companion-Specific Side Quests: Each companion has unique side quests that further their storyline and help strengthen Bonds.
- Give Gifts: Certain companions respond positively to gifts, enhancing Bond levels.
- Take Companions on Missions: By having them in your party, you’ll gradually increase your Bond.

Once you reach Bond Level 2, your companion will have five of their six abilities. But the journey doesn’t stop there the Ultimate ability awaits!

Unlocking Ultimate Abilities: The Path to Hero of the Veilguard

To unlock a companion’s Ultimate ability, you’ll need to complete their entire questline. Achieving the “Hero of the Veilguard” status is essential, and it goes beyond just gaining Bond levels.

Complete Companion Quests: Each companion has a unique questline that adds depth to their character, revealing backstories and motivations. Completing these quests is a must to unlock Ultimates.
Unlocking Legendary Armor and Passives: When you complete a questline, you’ll gain access to Legendary armor and exclusive passives for that companion. These rewards are tailored to complement their abilities, making them even more formidable.
Choose Mutually Exclusive Rewards: At the end of a questline, players can choose between two different reward sets. Though the Ultimate remains the same, the additional rewards provide unique advantages, adding a strategic layer to companion customization.

Companion Abilities and Ultimates Breakdown

Each companion has a distinct skill set that contributes unique status effects and damage types. Let’s look at the primary abilities and Ultimate for each character, ensuring you know what each one brings to your team.

Harding

Abilities: Shred (Physical), Heavy Draw (Physical), Seismic Shot, Adrenaline Rush, Soothing Poison.
Ultimate: Heart of the Titan Provides a massive boost in resilience, turning Harding into an unbreakable force.

Neve

Abilities: Glacial Pace (Cold), Icebreaker (Cold), Blizzard (Cold), Replenish, Time Slow.
Ultimate: Winter’s Wrath Unleashes a wave of freezing cold, slowing and damaging multiple enemies.

Bellara

Abilities: Enfeebling Shot (Electricity), Fade Bolts (Electricity), Galvanized Tear (Electricity), Replenish, Time Slow.
Ultimate: Chain Lightning An electrifying attack that jumps between enemies, causing heavy AoE damage.

Lucanis

Abilities: Debilitate (Necrotic), Eviscerate (Necrotic), Abominate, Adrenaline Rush, Soothing Potion.
Ultimate: Demon of Rebellion Harnesses dark energy, granting a massive buff to attack speed and power.

Emmrich

Abilities: Entangling Spirits (Necrotic), Final Rites (Necrotic), The Bell Tolls, Replenish, Time Slow.
Ultimate: Death’s Caress Summons necrotic energy to weaken and disorient enemies.

Davrin

Abilities: Heroic Strike (Fire), Death From Above (Fire), Assan Strike (Fire), Battle Cry, In War, Victory.
Ultimate: Defender Dramatically increases Davrin’s defensive capabilities, making him ideal for frontline defense.

Taash

Abilities: Spitfire (Fire), Dragonfire Strike (Fire), Fire Breath (Fire), Dragon’s Roar, Fortune’s Favor.
Ultimate: Fortune’s Favour Taash gains immense strength, dishing out heavy fire damage to all nearby foes.

Customizing Ultimates: Exploring Class Specializations

Beyond companion abilities, players can also unlock new Ultimate Abilities by investing skill points in specific class specializations. Each class in The Veilguard Warrior, Mage, and Rogue offers distinct specializations with unique Ultimates to enhance combat versatility.

Warrior Ultimates: Warriors start with a powerful baseline Ultimate, with three additional options available as they advance in their specialization.
Mage Ultimates: Mages can access Ultimates that focus on crowd control, high-damage AoE, or supportive roles.
Rogue Ultimates: Rogues’ Ultimates emphasize stealth and critical strikes, ideal for players who prefer high-risk, high-reward playstyles.

After spending skill points on a new Ultimate, go to the Character tab, select the new Ultimate, and equip it. From here, it’ll be ready to activate in combat.

FAQs

Q1: How do I increase Bond levels with companions quickly?
To raise Bond levels efficiently, prioritize taking companions on missions, making choices they approve of, completing their side quests, and giving gifts when possible.

Q2: Can I change a companion’s Ultimate ability after unlocking it?
Once a companion’s Ultimate ability is unlocked through their questline, it’s set for the remainder of the game. However, you can equip new Ultimates for your main character based on their class specialization.

Q3: Are new Ultimates for each class better than the default options?
Not necessarily. Each class starts with a balanced Ultimate that’s highly effective. The new Ultimates offer situational advantages depending on your playstyle but may not always surpass the original in versatility.

Q4: Do I lose any abilities if I choose one set of mutually exclusive rewards over another?
No, choosing between mutually exclusive rewards affects passives or equipment, not the companion’s abilities or Ultimate.

Unlocking and mastering each companion’s abilities in Dragon Age: The Veilguard offers endless possibilities to create dynamic team compositions. From powerful AoE Detonations to high-impact Ultimates, each companion’s skill set can be tailored to your preferred combat style. With the added depth of Bond levels and class specialization, the game invites players to explore, strategize, and make choices that can shape the fate of their allies and the realm itself.