Dishonored: The Brigmore Witches Review

Bitches Witches Be Crazy!

 

The Brigmore Witches is the conclusion of the Daud storyline we were introduced to in Knife of Dunwall for Dishonored. Although your saved game info from the previous installment can factor into your chaos level going in, you don’t have to play Knife of Dunwall in order to play this DLC. It can be played as a standalone installment, but the downside is that you will be missing out on a big chunk of Daud's storyline and you'll have to fill in the pieces with your imagination. 

 

Daud, who is seemingly haunted by the murder of the Empress, is having nightmares starring Corvo at the start. Is this a premonition of his fate or simply an amplification of his regret for his actions?  The overarching theme in Daud’s story seems to be irony. As Corvo you battle your way through the main story trying to figure out who framed you and enact your vengeance, but here, you see that while Corvo is on his vengance quest, Daud is also doing his part to save Emily. Delilah, the leader of the Brigmore Witch coven, has put in motion a plan that threatens her life and the entirety of Dunwall. As Daud, it is your job to put a stop to it.

 

There are three different primary locations in this DLC: Coldridge Prison, Draper’s Ward, and Brigmore Manor, which was my favorite area of them all. The area around the Manor and inside of it is patrolled by gravehounds who make it more challenging to go the low-chaos route because they are harder to sneak around then regular enemies. The temptation to coax them away from their post and bash their deviled brains in may prove to be too alluring for some. Like other levels throughout the series, once you get from point A to point B you’re left wondering how many different ways you could have gotten there. This was especially true for me because there were numerous times I had thought I had made a serious dent in the amount of gold lingering around each level only to find out at the end that I had not only missed several collectibles, but also overlooked more than half of the gold stashed around each map.

The same perks available in Knife of Dunwall exist in this DLC. You can still summon assassins to do your dirty work for you or buy supplies and favors at the start of each mission to allow you to have more advantages in each level. While I found most of the favors useful, there were times when finding the clues involved with them were harder than actually continuing through the level without them. There are a few favors you can buy that shed a little more light on Delilah’s backstory, though. You also encounter more statues of Delilah in certain areas that will talk to you or threaten you, instilling an eerie vibe to the storyline. 

 

Along the way you’ll find yourself facing off with members of the Brigmore Witch coven. Fighting them can be a bit tricky because they can teleport around the battlefield and be a bit more of a nuisance then other assassins. It is usually best to sneak by them if possible, but at times it can be difficult because they have a terrible habit of teleporting directly in front of you when you are sneaking around. That’s part of the reason I decided to take a more destructive route. When I craftily traverse a level without detection only to have some bitch witch teleport in front of me at the last minute and ruin my cover, it’s a bit troublesome to go the low-chaos route.

 

For 800 MSP ($10.00), The Brigmore Bitches Witches is an adequate addition to the Dishonored universe. I think showing the parallel storyline of Daud has been a great addition. If you have been on the fence about picking up the DLC for this series, I can assure you that the collective price of 1600 MSP ($20.00) is well worth the content you get from Knife of Dunwall and The Brigmore Witches.