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Dragon Age: Origins Hints
Combat Tips
1 of 10: Unless you're looking for a real challenge, you should always play through the game on Normal difficulty (which is the default setting) and with the max number of companions with you at all times. Gameplay was carefully balanced to give a not-too-hard-and-not-too-easy experience in this way, though there are some particular combats that will make you wonder about that.
2 of 10: It always pays to use the Pause key (SPACEBAR on the PC) frequently during combat. While paused, you can scroll the screen around to survey the battlefield and see what's happening, you can give each member in your party individual orders (by switching control to them and having them do something), and you can take your time in deciding on a new target when you finish off the one you're currently attacking.
3 of 10: If you don't like to constantly pause the game and micromanage every move your characters make, you'll want to customize their tactics so they'll do what you want them to without constant supervision. At the start of each combat, switch control to whichever character least often does what you want him to by default, and carefully control his moves while everyone else is handled by the game's AI according to their tactics settings. (I've found it very effective to take control of my party's mage so I can micromanage what spells he casts.)
4 of 10: Two general strategies that are very frequently useful are to lead enemies away from the main group a few at a time for easier disposal, and to make the entire party focus on one enemy at a time.
6 of 10: If you run fast and far enough from a combat, you may be able to leave the enemies far enough behind that combat mode will end, allowing you to stand around to regenerate health and mana before going back. However, many enemies (especially melee fighters) will follow you relentlessly no matter how far you go, and you're not allowed to do area transitions during combat. Running away from enemies usually only helps if you're using one of the above two strategies, or if you want to be able to use health poultices while not under immediate attack.
7 of 10: Watch your characters during combat closely. Not only will you need to monitor their health and decide when to use poultices or spells to restore it, but they'll sometimes stop attacking and just stand there. This often happens after they kill their current target, or right after they use a talent. It helps to frequently right-click on the enemy you want them to attack to prevent this lazy behavior. (Note that this only seems to happen with the currently selected character(s), and must therefore be watched for constantly when using the party-attack strategy.)
8 of 10: It's a good idea to save items you find in treasure that can protect you against certain spell effects or forms of attack, even if those items aren't ones you'd normally wear. For instance, there are several jewelry items that protect against fire and spirit damage. That's not usually useful, but there are some tough combats in which that would be very helpful. (See the Magic Resistance Item Lists for lists of all non-random items that increase resistances.)
9 of 10: There are also several types of items that can give temporary resistance or attack bonuses. Check the "other" section of your party inventory right before (or during) a tough combat to see if you have anything that can make the combat easier to survive.
10 of 10: There are several things that you need to always remember to do right after a combat is over. They are (in order): run to a spot near any fallen party members to get them to revive, use the "Highlight objects" key to find lootable enemy corpses and containers, see if anyone can level up, check characters for persistent injuries that need to be healed with injury kits (or by visiting the party camp), and stand around to regenerate health, stamina, and mana. After all of that's done, quicksave.
