Companion Analysis

Bethany & Carver

Quick Facts

General Notes

• Bethany is a fairly straightforward character. Building a friendship with her is easy if you favor helpful or diplomatic dialogue options; you should also side with mages whenever possible. To foment rivalry, the reverse applies.

• Carver begins the story with a preexisting tilt towards rivalry, so attempting to achieve full friendship is a challenge only for the dedicated repeat player. Supporting the templar position of controls for mages will please him, though don’t assume that he’s somehow the antithesis of Bethany: he’s by no means brutal or ungallant.

• Unless you pick Carver or Bethany as permanent party members throughout Act 1 and make efforts to pander to their specific personalities, it’s unlikely that you will reach full friendship or rivalry. If you do manage to max out the relationship gauge in either direction, this will give you access to extra reactive lines in the later game.

Crisis Points

• It is purely your choice of class that governs which sibling survives to reach Kirkwall: Carver if Hawke is a mage, or Bethany for rogues and warriors.

• If you refuse to take them on the Deep Roads Expedition, Bethany will be forcefully recruited to the Circle, while Carver will voluntarily join the templars on your return.

• Take Bethany or Carver to the Deep Roads with Anders in the party, and you have the choice of sending them to join the Grey Wardens or allowing them to die. If Anders is not present, death is unavoidable.

Later Appearances

If Carver/Bethany joins the Grey Wardens, they will appear in the following quests:

• The first encounter is in Lowtown during Demands of the Qun in Act 2.

• The second is during the Finding Nathaniel secondary quest in Act 3. This optional storyline has very specific unlock requirements.

• They will make a cameo appearance as the kidnap victim in Best Served Cold in Act 3.

• If Finding Nathaniel is completed, they will appear in Lowtown during The Last Straw. You have the option to take them with you (and even have them rejoin as active party members in later battles) or send them away. The latter option will prevent them from playing any further part in the conclusion of the story.

If Bethany or Carver joins the mage or templar factions:

• You will cross paths with one briefly during Demands of the Qun in Act 2.

• The surviving sibling will make a cameo appearance as the kidnap victim in Best Served Cold in Act 3.

• Bethany or Carver make more telling contributions during The Last Straw. They appear in the opening confrontation between Orsino and Meredith and can later be recruited back into the party for the final confrontations under very specific circumstances.

There is one small consequence to having both Bethany and Carver die: this is the only condition under which another companion can be kidnapped during Best Served Cold. This will be of interest to completionists who feel compelled to see every last potential outcome.

Aveline

Quick Facts

General Notes

• Reflecting her position as a leading guardsman (and, later, guard-captain), Aveline frequently makes observations or comments that make many conversations more interesting. Only Varric can rival her as a figure of note in Kirkwall, so she’s definitely a core party member if you want to get the most out of the story.

• Maintain a courteous or humorous tone and stay on the side of law and order (the occasional off-the-record execution of a truly rotten apple notwithstanding), and it’s hard to do anything but secure a lasting friendship with Aveline. If you want to reach full rivalry, you’ll need to play as a thoroughgoing bastard for the most part and take a confrontational or spiteful approach when you undertake her companion quests. Either way, a romance is not an option with her (though flirting is possible).

• Aveline has an interesting idiosyncrasy that will trouble those striving to gain every possible quest reward: asking for payment or attempting to secure additional reimbursement will often lead to a rivalry increase.

• If you complete The Long Road and have her in your party during the final confrontation with Meredith, there is a chance that Donnic will join in during the final battle.

Crisis Points

• If you do not secure a complete friendship or rivalry with Aveline, there is a chance (though small) that she will leave the party during The Last Straw.

Varric

Quick Facts

General Notes

Unless you are obnoxious, petty or cruel, a gradual drift towards a full friendship with Varric is almost inevitable over the course of the adventure. Say the right things in his companion quests (he responds very well to humor), and you can accelerate this process dramatically. You cannot complete a romance with him, though.

Varric’s lack of a personal crusade means that he’s easy to have around. Unless your Hawke is a truly nasty piece of work, you’ll rarely need to worry about how the dwarf will react.

Like Aveline, Varric has many interesting and unique reactions during dialogue sequences. He contributes a number of genuine laugh out loud moments to certain quests.

Varric’s final armor upgrade is only available in the Finding Nathaniel quest, which few players will have access to on a first playthrough. It could be considered a reward for those who chose to preserve Nathaniel’s life in Awakening.

Anders

Quick Facts

General Notes

• On a mage-friendly playthrough, Anders is easy to please. Favor the templars, however, and complete rivalry is assured unless you make an effort to appease him in other ways, and leave him at home during storylines that might elicit the full extent of his fundamentalist fury.

• The Dissent quest offers massive boosts to friendship and rivalry. With the correct decisions and a little forward planning, you could reach the maximum level in either direction early in Act 2 and therefore remove the need to consider his feelings as you spend the rest of the story appeasing templars.

• If you have not chosen the mage class for Hawke, Anders is the only candidate for the support healer role. Think very carefully before saying anything that might cause him to leave the party at key junctures in his personal storylines. Act 3 features many challenging battles, so you may sorely miss him later.

Crisis Points

• If Hawke is less than understanding in the closing dialogue of Dissent, Anders will offer to leave the party. Accepting this will remove him from the game until the events of The Last Straw.

• In the aftermath of the Chantry’s destruction, you can exact immediate retribution by killing Anders on the spot. If you send him away and side with Orsino, you can re-recruit him later – or fight him if you opt to serve the knight-commander’s cause.

Romance

• To complete a full romance with Anders, you must satisfy the following requirements:

• Achieve 50% rivalry or friendship, then complete his Questioning Beliefs mid-stage relationship conversation during Act 2.

• Flirt with Anders at any point before or during Questioning Beliefs. If you don’t, the romance cannot start.

• During Questioning Beliefs, Anders will intimate that a nocturnal visit is forthcoming. Returning to Hawke Estate in the evening at any point before the end of Act 2 will then trigger his arrival at the house. Flirt with him to begin the romance. In the conversation that follows, invite Anders to live with Hawke.

• Finish his remaining companion quests (including the delivery of his gift, the Tevinter Chantry Amulet) and any ambient dialogues that crop up. You must also reach a full 100% friendship or rivalry.

• You must side with the mages in The Last Straw (and, naturally, spare his life) and speak to him in the Gallows Prison to complete the romance.

Merrill

Quick Facts

General Notes

• Another mage, another set of awkward sympathies to address for those on a templar-specific playthrough – though it’s fair to say that Merrill is less touchy about the subject than Anders or Bethany.

• For a happy relationship with Merrill, treat her with kindness and complete her Act 2 and 3 companion quests to her satisfaction. For rivalry, disparage or discourage her throughout, withhold the Arulin’holm at the end of Mirror Image, then castigate her savagely for the death of Keeper Marethari at the conclusion of A New Path.

Crisis Points

• If you do not achieve 100% friendship or rivalry before The Last Straw and side with the templars, Merrill will leave the party. If she is a rival, but not at 100% on that side of the scale, you must fight her.

Romance

• To see a romance with Merrill through to its conclusion, you must satisfy the following requirements:

• Reach 50% friendship or rivalry, and flirt with Merrill at least once before or during the Questioning Beliefs mid-point relationship conversation in Act 2.

• After Questioning Beliefs has finished, Merrill will visit the Hawke Estate in the evening if her friendship or rivalry level remains at least 50% in either direction. Flirt with her to initiate the romance and invite her to move in.

• You must then reach 100% rivalry or friendship, complete her companion quests, give both gifts, speak to her in any ambient conversations that arise, then – finally – complete the Friend or Foe dialogue.

• If you are on the rival path, you will need to ally Hawke with the mages to guarantee that the romance reaches its optimum conclusion. On the friendship path, you can still side with the templars and complete the romance by convincing Merrill that the choice is not Hawke’s to make: pick the “Anders tied our hands” option. Finally, speak with her in the Gallows Prison or Gallows Courtyard (during the Last Straw) to complete the romance.

Isabela

Quick Facts

General Notes

• Isabela is one of the toughest companions to secure a full friendship or rivalry with. The only surefire way to develop the relationship to either extent is to pander to her shamelessly in her companion quests, deliver both gifts and sleep with her for good measure. As a rule, she tends to respond well to humor.

• An interesting facet of her character is that she really doesn’t feel any fondness for Meredith. This isn’t a case of her siding with the mages, but merely that she doesn't like working or bargaining with Meredith because she thinks the knight-commander is, well, off her rocker.

Crisis Points

• Isabela is unique in that you must secure 50% friendship or rivalry and complete her Questioning Beliefs mid-stage relationship conversation before the end of Act 2 if you wish to retain her as a companion. This should ideally be achieved before you begin Following the Qun.

• If you fail to help Isabela first when she and Aveline arrive at the Hawke Estate after Following the Qun, she leaves the party permanently – no matter what the current state of your relationship may be.

• Even if you complete To Catch a Thief, Isabela will only make her timely return during Demands of the Qun if you have satisfied the requirements detailed earlier. While handing her to the Arishok enables you to resolve the Qunari crisis without further bloodshed, this will lead to her permanent departure.

Romance

• To sweep Isabela off her feet (despite her apparent disinterest in such an outcome beyond a purely physical interpretation of the phrase), you must complete the following objectives:

• You have to be on the friendship path to complete the romance with Isabela, though this isn’t necessary for the first steps. She will sleep with Hawke no matter the state of their relationship.

• Flirt with the Rivaini during the Isabela’s Ongoing Search companion quest, available from the start of Act 2. This will cause Isabela to make a random visit to Hawke Estate at night during the events of Act 2. Flirt again to sleep with her. In the following dialogue, you must ask why Isabela is hesitant to fall in love, then explore all “investigate” options (as denoted by the icon).

• Ensure that Isabela returns after To Catch a Thief (see Crisis Points).

• The final steps are to find and bestow both gifts, reach 100% friendship, then begin the Questioning Beliefs final-stage relationship conversation. When Isabela says the line that begins with “Now that I have my ship...”, reply with “I’d like that”. Last, but not least, converse with her in the Gallows Prison or Gallows Courtyard in The Last Straw to complete the romance.

Fenris

Quick Facts

General Notes

• To secure a friendship, leave Fenris out of the party for quests that involve the escalating mage/templar conflict if you intend to side with the practitioners of the arcane arts. Alternatively, just favor Meredith’s worldview throughout the story.

• If you desire rivalry while siding with the templars, you’ll need to be artfully unpleasant during his companion quests.

Crisis Points

• You will permanently lose Fenris as a companion if you:

• Fail to complete Bait and Switch.

• Refuse to journey to the Slaver Camp after the second Tevinter ambush in A Bitter Pill.

• Substitute Fenris from the party after the first ambush that triggers A Bitter Pill, then fail to resume the quest. After a certain period of time, the outraged elf will confront Hawke and leave.

• Allow Danarius to take him during the Alone companion quest.

• Unless you complete his companion quests, reach 100% friendship or rivalry and complete his final-stage relationship conversation, Fenris will abandon the party after the destruction of the Chantry if you support Orsino. He can be persuaded to rejoin during the negotiations at the Gallows if you have a solid friendship with him. If Fenris does not return to the fold, those siding with mages must fight him at the Templar Hall.

Romance

• To see a romance with Fenris through to its conclusion, you must satisfy the following requirements:

• Reach 50% friendship or rivalry, then flirt with Fenris during the Questioning Beliefs mid-stage relationship conversation. If the friendship or rivalry level remains at least 50%, Fenris will subsequently visit the Hawke Estate if you return at night. Flirt with him to trigger the romance. The next step is to ask him to move in.

• Complete remaining companion quests and dialogues, give him both gifts, reach 100% rivalry or friendship, then complete the Questioning Beliefs final-stage relationship conversation before the start of The Last Straw.

• If you are on the rivalry path, you must ally yourself with the templars. If you are on the friendship path, you can convince Fenris to stay if you choose to support the mages. Speak with him at the Gallows Courtyard or Gallows Prison during The Last Straw to complete the romance.

Sebastian

Quick Facts

* Sebastian is only available with the Exiled Prince downloadable content.

General Notes

• Sebastian is a very “pure” character, which makes his responses fairly easy to anticipate. It’s wise to leave him behind during the Dissent and Justice companion quests if you aspire to a friendship with both him and Anders.

Crisis Points

• If you do not kill Anders following the destruction of the Chantry, Sebastian will leave the party permanently.

Romance

• Though it may seem unlikely, it is possible to win Sebastian’s heart. To achieve this feat, take the following steps:

• While all other potential love interests happily swing either way, Sebastian is resolutely heterosexual: only a female Hawke has any hope of success.

• The second requirement is equally pivotal: you must never flirt with another character at any point in the story.

• The remaining steps are to achieve 100% friendship and complete Sebastian’s companion quests. Flirt with the Starkhaven exile both before and during the Questioning Beliefs final-stage relationship conversation to have him suggest an unconventional partnership.

• The execution of Anders in The Last Straw is the penultimate step required to complete the romance. A conversation with Sebastian at the Gallows Courtyard or Gallows Prison will lead to the conclusion you seek.