Dragon Age: Origins

Dragon Age: Origins

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The Ultimate Sacrifice

The Ultimate Sacrifice

The ultimate sacrifice was made in defense of Ferelden

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How to unlock the The Ultimate Sacrifice achievement in Dragon Age: Origins - Definitive Guide

*Spoilers*

This achievement is tied to one of the different endings. The night before the final battle, when Morrigan confronts you in your bedroom and proposes her "alternative" solution, you must decline. You cannot let her perform the ritual, whether it be with you, Alister, or Loghain.

On a side-note. If you decline her dark ritual, she will leave your party for good.

Later, after beating the archdemon, you will be forced to sacrifice a Grey Warden (you, Alistair, or Loghain) and the resulting ending will net you the achievement.
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14 Nov 2009 19:37

19 Comments
I got this achievement after sacrificing Alistair instead of myself, so this might be for just not using Morrigan's ritual, forcing someone to be sacrificed. Or it could be glitched.
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By risseless on 30 Nov 2009 03:33
As long as ANY Grey Warden dies, the achievement will unlock, whether it is the main character, Alistair or Loghain. Just make sure you decline Morrigan's ritual and then sacrifice any Grey Warden and you'll have it. I have confirmed this on multiple playthroughs.
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By WeisGuy9 on 01 Dec 2009 16:47
Also remember to do the same thing twice, but with your hero the second time (instead of Allistar or Loghain) so that you can easily get two of the four total endings for the other achievement.
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By Sir Baronish on 31 Dec 2009 00:45
No clue. The achievements in the game have been a bit off altogether, so I wouldn't be surprised if it glitched for you.
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By Taco Bob on 30 Jan 2010 16:24
This achievement glitched for me too. I did the dark ritual with Morrigan, and got both achievements. No clue as to how this happened though. At least it was a happy glitch
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By GrumpyTurtle on 05 Feb 2010 12:38
This achievement glitched for me too. I resumed my character's career after beating the game/end credits and it unlocked.
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By Damian254 on 27 Feb 2010 22:44
Same here. I just finished the game after laying with Morrigan, then when I went to finish off some DLC it popped for me. Not that I mind >_>
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By ChainReaction01 on 19 Mar 2010 09:29
fyi, you can still net this achievement without killing anyone. (ei, sleeping with morrigan)
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By deuceSVT on 23 Jun 2010 17:47
Awesome, got this one while taking morrigans offer. 2 in one, I don't mind at all!
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By Carbokris on 30 Jul 2010 02:06
I got it too and I did the ritual
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By Iceberg082006 on 11 Aug 2010 01:51
funny thing, I accepted the offer and still got the achievement somehow (among with the Morrigan-achievement)
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By Sophiaso on 03 Oct 2010 19:20
I just sacrificed myself and didnt get the achievement....made me a sad panda...
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By xFallenCastielx on 22 Feb 2011 03:35
i used morrigans ritual, got the achievement, then after the credits i got this one too...
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By ACS Eldres on 19 Apr 2012 15:13
same bug here, I did the ritual w/ Morrigan, got that achievement, end game, and then when I resumed the game after the credit roll is when this achievement popped. Not that I mind either.
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By I nic I knack I on 16 Jul 2013 15:05
just got this achievement when I loaded my epilogue save too, very strange
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By Arador on 16 Aug 2013 11:30
Epilogue save worked for me as well. Not that I'm complaining, but it does go some way to balancing out how the 500 darkspawn kills only popped when I was over 800
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By NegativeCreep08 on 15 Nov 2013 18:58
I had heard that but wasn't sure, so I tried to leave my solution as ambiguous as possible. Anyway, now that it has been confirmed, I have updated the solution accordingly.
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By Taco Bob on 01 Dec 2009 17:47
The achievement appeared for me too - I got Alistair to do the ritual with Morrigan and killed Loghain before he became a grey warden, and it still popped after the credits (Alistair was alive at the celebration). I think this is down to the Return to Ostagar patch.
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By HeyMrBassman on 06 Feb 2010 23:47
I had Dark Promise achievement (the one where you/Alistair spend(s) some quality time with Morrigan before the final battle), but when I downloaded "Return To Ostagar" DLC and arrived at Ostagar I got this achievement. Bug? I don´t mind =)
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By Misc1ief on 30 Jan 2010 10:40
View all 19 comments Show less comments
Once again there is a glitch in this game which will get you this achievement. Let morrigan perform her ritual and go with it. After beating the game you will get a dark ritual achievement. Complete the epilogue, get back into camp and you get it.
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06 Jun 2010 18:06

16 Comments
That's what happened to me.
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By SeanMHJ on 14 Jun 2010 02:41
ohh so thats what happened....
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By NoobEddie on 21 Jul 2010 23:38
yeah found it a little odd it pinged when i started up a previously completed game to do some DLC
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By Radimathidius on 24 Aug 2010 22:49
same here , it popped when i loaded the last auto-save hoping i could go on from there 2 mop up the last couple quests after defeating the dragon but i could only play dlc after the final battle.bummer.but the achievement made up 4 it lol.gonna get the dlc anyway...
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By FL trooper be on 02 Sep 2010 01:02
Yeah I got this. Weird.
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By Orlesian Bard on 19 Apr 2011 15:51
Yeah same here, did the dark ritual, just happened to reloaded and it popped :o
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By Asslinn on 22 Jun 2011 19:37
I did the ritual(for Alister cuz I chose a female) killed the archdemon myself, and it popped when I chose to travel the world istead of staying at the castle
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By Shadow Da Human on 12 Jul 2011 11:40
Me too, I don't know why :S
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By DeeKIDestiny on 28 Jul 2011 15:03
It's because bioware make very glitchy games and they never fix them.
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By Schwifty Dayman on 01 Aug 2011 09:03
I have only done one ending so far but got the 2 achievements so do I still need to get the other 3 endings or does this now mean I only have 2 endings left to get ?
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By Dropkick Hope86 on 24 Aug 2011 15:47
You only have 2 endings left
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By Schwifty Dayman on 26 Aug 2011 12:48
Thanks for the great info, I can confirm this is method still works as of 05-22-13.
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By Dom2096 on 23 May 2013 03:01
This just happened to me.
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By XxTOXICITY202xX on 23 Jun 2013 22:36
Great, bioware won't ever fix this, I think it will happen to everyone.
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By Schwifty Dayman on 24 Jun 2013 19:27
This just happened to me on the PS3. And I'm so glad to know that I don't need to go through the game's final battle again for that ending. Now for the second playthrough.
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By boldfoxrd on 09 Oct 2014 23:04
Reloading the last auto-save still works as of today. Note you actually have to load the auto-save; you can't just select "resume" from the menu.
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By Boots Orion on 03 Sep 2015 23:56
View all 16 comments Show less comments
****Spoilers****

Just to add something that wasn't mentioned in the other posters solution, if you are playing as a female character and have romanced Alistair do not take him with you if you are trying to get this achievement. The conversation options can make you think you're talking him out of taking the final blow in your place, but he does it anyway. There is no way to prevent him from taking it to save your character if you turned down Morrigan's ritual and take him with you.
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13 Apr 2010 13:21

3 Comments
I romanced Alistair, he took the final blow and I still got the achievement.
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By im4u2nv1977 on 11 Sep 2011 03:02
same here lol
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By NORML RASTA MAN on 08 May 2012 04:48
Must have been a glitch on my end then cause it didn't pop for me until I finished the game without him present.
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By Jennamarae on 11 May 2012 20:18
View all 3 comments Show less comments
*Spoilers*



Not sure if many people will be trying to get this still but you can also get this even if you take Morrigan's offer.

After you defeat the arch demon a scene will play where, in my case, Alistair will make some statements and ask a few questions. After he was finished talking and before going out the doors to greet the public I saved and loaded the auto save file. As soon as the auto save loaded the achievement popped!

Not sure if this counts towards getting all possible endings but will update when I find out.

*update*

It did count towards getting all four of the endings!
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30 Sep 2017 09:29

If you struggled with the other achievement, then feel free to start a new play through for this one. This time, pick a mage. With multiple mages, you have multiple opportunities to use group heal, which will make the final battle easier. Now it will be easier to get the other endings.

Choose a king for Orzammar, gain the support of the Elves, enlist the Mages and poison the Urn of Sacred Ashes. Then finish up the rest of the story. This time, pick someone to sacrifice during the final battle and don't accept Morrigan's offer. Now sacrifice either that person and you'll unlock the achievement. To get the other ending, simply redo the battle and sacrifice yourself. Now, all you should have is to sacrifice another ally. If you picked Loghain the first time, then simply pick Alistair. Then finish the game and you'll unlock the following achievement:

Dragon Age: OriginsPerfectionistCandidFever3The Perfectionist achievement in Dragon Age: Origins worth 162 pointsAcross all playthroughs, discovered all possible endings
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07 Jul 2021 02:56

Note: If you go this route, Morrigan will leave your party.

Note 2: Even if you aren't the one to make the sacrifice (see Perfectionist), then this will unlock.

After "The Landsmeet" ends, travel to Redcliffe. You will find out what the fate of the Grey Wardens is. Morrigan will offer you the chance of going through a dark ritual the night before the battle. Refuse her. Then complete "The Final Battle". There's nothing special to "The Final Battle" other than surviving waves upon waves of Darkspawn.

Once you make your way to the top of Fort Drakon, the fun begins. This isn't quite the same as your other encounters with dragons. The Archdemon is much, much tougher. Plus, you'll have to deal with a few waves of Darkspawn that run out of the Fort. Call in support troops (see Defender for moe details) to help out. There are also several ballistas around the roof. Get behind one, push to rotate it so it's aimed at the Archdemon and fire away. You can basically stand behind the ballista, and pushing when it's ready to fire over and over, only moving away from it when there are Darkspawn near.

One Playthrough Method: After discussing what to do in Redcliffe, make an extra save. In one, refuse Morrigan, complete the game, and then reload. Accept Morrigan's offer.

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Note: If you go this route, then Morrigan will leave your party.

After "The Landsmeet" ends, travel to Redcliffe. You will find out what the fate of the Grey Wardens is. Morrigan will offer you the chance of going through a dark ritual the night before the battle. Refuse her. Then complete "The Final Battle". There's nothing special to "The Final Battle" other than surviving waves upon waves of Darkspawn.

Once you make your way to the top of Fort Drakon, the fun begins. This isn't quite the same as your other encounters with dragons. The Archdemon is much, much tougher. Plus, you'll have to deal with a few waves of Darkspawn that run out of the Fort. Call in support troops (see "Defender" for more details) to help out. There are also several balistas around the roof. Get behind one, push to rotate it so it's aimed at the Archdemon and fire away.

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After completing the quest “Gathering of the Lands” in Redcliffe, you will learn the true purpose of the Gray Wardens. Refuse Morrigan's ritual, she will be offended and leave your group. After this, complete the "Final Battle" quest. The achievement will open even if someone other than the main character dies - see the “Perfectionist” achievement.
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10 Jul 2011 12:26