The Battle of Denerim
Make the final sacrifice/ritual choice, command your armies and kill the Archdemon.
The finale begins with the darkspawn assault and eventually locks you into Denerim. Prepare equipment, tactics, healing supplies and your preferred final party before committing.
Route at a glance
Defend Redcliffe
Respond to the darkspawn attack and fight through the village/castle approach. After the strategic discussion, choose the companions who accompany you into Denerim and assign others to defensive roles.
Enter Denerim
Fight through the city districts. You can call allied army units earned through treaties; save limited-use troops for difficult waves rather than spending every unit immediately.
Clear the district objectives
Work through the city encounters and commanders. Focus darkspawn emissaries and ogres before basic grunts. Use doors, corners and stairs to reduce how many enemies can engage your party at once.
Reach Fort Drakon
Push toward the fort while the allied forces hold other sectors. Heal injuries and restock from any available supplies before entering the final ascent.
Climb Fort Drakon
Fight floor by floor through elite darkspawn. Keep crowd-control abilities ready for emissaries and avoid chasing enemies so far that you pull the next room at the same time.
Fight the Archdemon
On the roof, attack the Archdemon when it is in melee range and switch to ranged attacks/ballistae when it relocates. Clear dangerous adds so they do not overwhelm the party while you focus the boss.
Use the ballistae
Ballistae around the arena can damage the Archdemon at range. Interact when safe; if a device jams, a rogue or repeated interaction depending on state can get you firing again. Do not stand exposed to waves while operating one.
Resolve the final sacrifice
The Dark Ritual and Grey Warden choices made before the battle determine who can survive killing the Archdemon. The ending sequence reflects the ruler, companion, treaty and personal decisions accumulated through the campaign.
- If the Archdemon stays out of melee reach, use ranged attacks and the roof ballistae while controlling the spawning darkspawn.
- If adds are wiping the party, stop tunneling the boss and clear emissaries/ogres first.