Characters / Dragon Age: Origins – Non-Playable Characters - Orzammar

Dragon Age Character Index
Dragon Age: Origins: The Warden | The Companions (Warriors | Mages | Rogues) | Non-Playable Characters (Fereldan Nobles | Orzammar) | Awakening | DLC Characters
Dragon Age II | Dragon Age: Inquisition

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Citizens of Orzammar in Dragon Age: Origins.

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Noble Caste

Royal Family

King Endrin Aeducan

King Endrin Aeducan

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Richard McGonagle

"Denial of the traditions of our people does not qualify as a political technicality."

The King of Orzammar on the eve of the Fifth Blight, Endrin has ruled for over 40 years and is widely regarded the most respected King in four generations. But while Orzammar is in the middle of a much needed reprieve from the threat of the darkspawn, the machinations of Dwarven politics do not rest and are often far more deadly.

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• Dead Guy Junior: The male Dwarf Noble can potentially father a son with one of two casteless women during the origin story. Upon his return from exile, he gets to meet said son and choose his name; one of the options available is to name him Endrin. If he instead allows the mother of his child to choose his name, she will automatically choose Endrin, remarking that the child greatly resembles his grandfather. Similarly, Bhelen's child with Rica Brosca is mentioned to have been named Endrin as well.
• Death by Despair: If Bhelen's telling the truth about not poisoning him, then Endrin slowly faded away after he was forced to exile his beloved second child to the Deep Roads in order to appease the Assembly.
• Disproportionate Retribution: In the very early years of Endrin's rule, Lord Andvar Tethras was found guilty of fixing the Provings. Endrin responded by exiling not just Andvar, not just the Tethras family, but everyone connected to House Tethras, right down to the servants. Literally hundreds of dwarves were exiled.
• Generation Xerox: His grandson through a Dwarf Noble Warden is said to greatly resemble him, and can even be named after him.
• The Good King: The reason he's one of the most respected monarchs in generations.
• Heroic BSoD: The death of Trian, the exile of his second child, and his realization of the extent of Bhelen's ambition all take a heavy toll on him, ultimately leading to his death. However, some suspect poison may have been involved somewhere.
• Parental Favoritism: The Dwarf Noble seems to be the child upon whom he lavishes the most praise.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: Often comes across as this. Despite his grief at Trian's death and his other child standing over the body, he's still willing to hear his child's side of the story first.
• So Proud of You: Tells the Dwarf Noble this during the ceremony announcing them as new Commander of Orzammar's Army. After their return from exile, the Dwarf Noble can find a letter written before his death, where he repeats this sentiment and admits his guilt at being forced to send them to the death into the Deep Roads, despite their possible innocence, as it was the only way to prevent a scandal in the Assembly.
• Spare to the Throne: He was the second son of King Angsar, but ascended to the throne after the death of his elder brother.
• Succession Crisis: His suspicious death, after Bhelen's sudden rise to prominence, leads to an all-out civil war.
• The Uriah Gambit: Supposedly, Endrin convinced his older brother to fight in a Proving against a convicted murderer and provided said opponent with a poisoned blade. At least, according to Bhelen.

Prince Trian Aeducan

Prince Trian Aeducan

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Zach Hanks

"I know I will never be loved in Orzammar, but I will rule. Nothing, not even treacherous kin, will stop me from claiming my right."

The eldest of the three Aeducan siblings, and the direct heir to Orzammar's throne. Despite his status, he isn't very popular due to his poor attitude.

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• 0% Approval Rating: Let's just say that the only reason he's in line for the throne is because he's the eldest sibling. And it's quite likely he was going to be passed over in favor of the middle child anyway.
  Gorim: Trian would make a terrible king, but no one wants to say it.
• Arranged Marriage: According to his journal, he was planning to arrange one between himself and one of Lady Helmi's daughters once he became king.
• Dead Guy Junior: The male Dwarf Noble can potentially father a son with one of two casteless women during the origin story. Upon his return from exile, he gets to meet said son and choose his name; if he was merely framed for Trian's murder rather than actually committing it, one of the options available is to name the boy Trian.
• Failure Is the Only Option: Even if you decide not to have him killed as per Bhelen's suggestion, he winds up dead anyway.
• Green-Eyed Monster: His journal notes his jealousy at the middle child getting an entire Glory Proving dedicated to them upon receiving a military command, something he never got when he received his.
• Hidden Depths: His journal reveals that he greatly respects Gorim for his Undying Loyalty to the family, and mentions caring about keeping the relations between houses strong. He doesn't seem to quite get why Jaylia Helmi wants to be courted when he considers their marriage a foregone conclusion, but he conscientiously notes her favorite color.
• Jerkass: According to Bhelen, he once told a legless boy to essentially suck it up and deal with it.
• Missing Mom: A conversation between Lady Helmi and a Dwarf Noble reveals that she died many years prior to the beginning of the story.
  Lady Helmi: Your mother would melt the Stone if she knew what you just did!
• Prince Charmless: In comparison to Bhelen and the Dwarf Noble.
• The Resenter: Towards his middle sibling, who is their father's favorite child and far more popular with the people, and therefore more likely to inherit the throne than he is.
• Royal Brat: Clearly seems to believe that being heir to the throne entitles him to push everyone around.
• Unwitting Pawn: Of Bhelen.

Prince Bhelen Aeducan

Prince Bhelen Aeducan

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Wally Wingert (English), Nico König (German)

"We need absolute unity to fight against the fulcrum of true evil."

The cunning and intelligent third Prince of Orzammar, and younger brother to the Dwarf Noble PC. He wishes to become king so that he may end Orzammar's isolationism, but his succession is unlikely, since eldest brother Trian is the acknowledged crown prince, while the Dwarf Noble PC is far more popular with the people. Of course, if a tragic "accident" were to befall his siblings...

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• Affably Evil: He can be charming and polite in conversation, and he does have many progressive views on civil rights and foreign policy, but it's equally clear that he's utterly ruthless and calculating.
• Always Someone Better: The Dwarf Noble player character can tell Bhelen that they finally realize that Bhelen was only following the unwritten rules of dwarven politics and simply "playing the game," and admit that Bhelen is the only one of the three siblings who is really suited to a political life. Bhelen naturally approves.
• Ambition Is Evil: Subverted. He either kills Trian and frames their middle sibling for the act, or actually cons the middle child into doing the deed; either way, Trian is dead and the Dwarf Noble PC is exiled to the Deep Roads. There are even rumors he poisoned his father, King Endrin. He is eager to kill off any competitor to the throne and kicks the dog anytime something gets in his way. But if he gets the throne, it can be said that he becomes a strong king and empowers Orzammar economically, recovers some of the thaigs lost to the darkspawn in certain circumstances, and gives the casteless greater rights. If told of Bhelen's actions, Duncan will basically shrug and say, "Dwarven politics again."
• Arc Villain: Bhelen's political manipulations of the Dwarf Noble and Trian is the catalyst for the Succession Crisis in the Paragon of her Kind quest. That being said, he only stays this if the player allies with Harrowmont to make him king instead.
• Bait-and-Switch Tyrant: He's ruthless when it comes to attaining power but his rule as the King brings largely positive changes to Orzammar, even as he ruthlessly disposes of anyone who would oppose him. As harsh and cruel as he can be, he does a lot to save Orzammar from the state it was in.
• Cain and Abel: Shades of this between him and Trian, though far more so with a Dwarf Noble PC. Though, if his sibling later makes him king of Orzammar, their relationship is mended somewhat, and the sequels reveal that the two have made peace with each other. In Inquisition, he adamantly refuses to give up searching for his sibling (who is currently MIA), even though the Assembly wishes to declare them dead.
• Deconstructed Character Archetype: Of the Evil Prince. It's true that Bhelen is ruthless, pragmatic and calculating as he has no qualms about murdering Trian and framing the Dwarf Noble for the crime or outright conning the Dwarf Noble into doing it. When he's crowned King, Bhelen's first command is to see Harrowmont executed without trial just to get rid of his political rival. However, he does have progressive views on civil rights and foreign policy for Orzammar and is one of the few nobles to treat the Casteless as people rather than dirt, which even includes marrying Rica and having a child with her despite her being Casteless. He believes his ruthlessness and pragmatism is needed to reform Orzammar, which considering its restrictive caste system, isolation and petty squabbling among the noble houses driving Orzammar into an early grave, proves that he has valid points. If he's chosen as King, he brings much positive change for Orzammar, despite being ruthless and rather brutal about it. He gives the Casteless more rights, does away with the extremely restrictive caste system and brings trade between Orzammar and the surface.
• Easily Forgiven: Possibly, depending on the Dwarf Noble's dialogue choices. If they side with Bhelen from the start, they can simply say they're just trying to make sure the throne stays with House Aeducan and not call him out on his trickery at all. Bhelen will respond that the PC is "more pragmatic" than he gave them credit for.
• Evil Prince: This trope fits Bhelen to a 'T', although his ruthlessness is reserved for his fellow nobles: he's quite egalitarian and progressive towards the lower castes.
• The Extremist Was Right: If he's elected king, he eases discrimination against the casteless and makes it easier for Orzammar to trade with outside world. The city as a whole is far better off in the sequels under his firm progressive rule than it would under the acquiescent traditionalist Harrowmont. The Noble caste throws a fit, but their obstinate regressiveness is what's slowly killing Orzammar society to begin with.
• The Good King: What he becomes if he is elected by the Assembly, with a healthy dose of Good Is Not Soft. He encourages trade with the surface, gives the Casteless civil rights, allows them to join the army and, generally, moves Orzammar to the future. Banter between two dwarven ambassadors in Inquisition reveals that he supports Empress Celene in the power struggle for Orlais (both being progressive and occasionally necessarily brutal rulers), trades food and other essentials with her, and has Orzammar well supplied and organized despite trade difficulties. Contrast these with Harrowmont.
• Green-Eyed Monster: Like Trian, a few of his lines imply that he's always been jealous of the Dwarf Noble's charm and popularity, particularly with their father.
• Hypocrite: Sneers at a male Dwarf Noble if he fathers a child upon noble-hunter Mardy, and calls her a whore, in spite of the fact that he's done something rather similar with Rica Brosca. In his defense, mind, he had a relationship with Rica and married her while Mardy was a one night stand.
• It's All About Me: He takes it poorly if you elect Harrowmont and attacks the assembly in a rage.
• I Will Find You: In Inquisition, he refuses to give up on the Dwarven Warden and only living (or sane, if Branka also lives) Paragon and declare them dead, as the Assembly wants.
• Kick the Dog: If you elect him king and use that save as a base for a Dragon Age II game, Harrowmont's last surviving relative is found in Kirkwall. He's fleeing assassins Bhelen sent after him and mentions that Bhelen systematically exterminated his entire house because Lord Harrowmont opposed him. Given that Harrowmont accepted death when ordered, it comes across as unnecessarily cruel on his part.
• Like Father, Like Son: He believes his father used similar underhanded methods to remove his own elder brother.
• Missing Mom: A conversation between Lady Helmi and a Dwarf Noble reveals that she died many years prior to the beginning of the story.
  Lady Helmi: Your mother would melt the Stone if she knew what you just did!
• Nice to the Waiter:
  • While he's ruthless towards anyone who is a threat to his ambitions, he's also one of the only nobles who actually treats the casteless as people, to the point of marrying one for love. If he becomes king he also grants more rights to the casteless.
  • The tradition of "noble hunting", raising in status by having a child of a higher caste, clearly disgusts him. If the Warden is his brother and sires a child from such an encounter, he will admit the child into the family only grudgingly.
• Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Depending on who the player chooses to be King, he can become the Arc Villain of the Orzammar storyline. Bhelen strongly believes that a King of Orzammar must be ruthless and pragmatic, which considering its morally grey and dangerous political climate among the nobility, he's not without merit. However, his ruthlessness backfired on him after he either murders Trian and frames the Dwarf Noble PC for it or outright cons the Dwarf Noble into killing Trian. This tragically leads to his father, King Endrin, dying of grief and naming Pyral Harrowmont as his heir. By the time the Orzammar storyline begins, Bhelen has lost support due to the rumors that he poisoned his own father and rightfully deducing that he murdered both of his brothers so he could have the throne. If not for the intervention of the Gray Warden (who may also be his sibling), Bhelen's actions would've plunged his homeland into civil war.
• Not Me This Time: If confronted about it by a dwarven noble Warden, he denies having poisoned their father; whether or not he's being honest is anyone's guess, though Harrowmont claims that he made sure Bhelen wouldn't have had the chance to poison Endrin. Nothing outright implicates him either, and if playing as a Dwarf Noble, speaking to Gorim in Denerim suggests that Endrin was overcome with stress and grief and died from that.
• Not-So-Harmless Villain: In the Dwarf Noble origin, he seems to be a bit of an idiot. Then he tricks you into/frames you for killing Trian.
• Obfuscating Stupidity: He pretends to be a bit of a playboy and a buffoon, if Trian's regard for his youngest sibling is any indication.
• Overly Narrow Superlative: If the Dwarf Noble PC is female, she can have a conversation with Bhelen in which he affectionately refers to her as "my favorite sister." She is, of course, his only sister. (It makes a little more sense when the PC is male and therefore "my favorite brother.")This could also be interpreted as a joke between them, the same way that a dad might tell his only son that he's "His favorite son," or a child might tell their mother "You're my favorite mom."
• Pet the Dog:
  • Some that aren't very apparent, unless you play the Dwarf Commoner origin. In the Commoner origin, your sister Rica mentions that not only has she met a noble, but that he's also very kind to her and has agreed to move her and her family out of Dust Town. When you return to Orzammar, this man is revealed to be Bhelen. In the Dwarven Noble origin she gets a cameo hanging around his room waiting for him to come back. This is also foreshadowed by an awed beggar mentioning that he was in Dust Town and smiled at her. His Pet the Dog tendencies are much less clear in other origins, but there is some dialogue around the city which says Bhelen's in a relationship with/engaged to marry a casteless.
  • In Inquisition, if the Warden is a Dwarf Noble or Commoner, he refuses to give up on his sibling or sibling-in-law and has vowed to find them, despite heavy opposition from the Assembly.
  • If made king, he also restores a Dwarf Noble PC to the Aeducan house, which by extension also restores the male PC's mistress and their son to the noble caste. He agrees to care and provide for them in the PC's stead, since as a Warden, he cannot stay in Orzammar.
• Pragmatic Villainy: He's more than willing to force unwilling subjects to undergo the golem-making process if the Anvil of the Void is left intact, but once it becomes clear Branka plans to make golems for more than just him he immediately tries (unsuccessfully) to shut it down, laying siege to her impenetrable underground fortress for years.
• Screw the Rules, I Make Them!: Essentially Bhelen's motto. More to the point, he marries Rica because he loves her, rather than keeping her as a concubine while taking a noblewoman bride as per custom.
• Sore Loser: Should Harrowmont be crowned, he and his followers will try and assassinate both the newly crowned King, as well as the entire Assembly and the Warden. By contrast, Harrowmont only fights in self-defense if Bhelen is chosen when he orders his death as the first thing as king.
• The Unfavorite: More subtle than most examples, but still there. It also seems to bother him more than he lets on. Its why he was so quick to manipulate things to ensure he was the only heir left to take the throne.
• The Unfettered: Is willing to do almost anything to achieve his goals, no matter how distasteful.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: He sees ruthlessness as the only way to strong-arm a regressive ruling class into submission in order to save their society from a slow lingering death. And if chosen as king, he does.
• Xanatos Gambit: Shows how to pull one off. His coup against his two siblings was a good one, if only because he made sure that even in the worst circumstances, it would work, by being honestly prepared for all eventualities, except Duncan, and even that didn't necessarily stop him unless the player sides against him.

House Branka

Paragon Branka

Paragon Branka

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Helen Wilson

"Is this what our empire should look like? A crumbling tunnel filled with darkspawn spume? The Anvil will help us take back our glory!"

The only Paragon in four generations, Branka was a master smith who invented a new kind of smokeless fuel that allowed Orzammar to increase its production level by a third and ended many diseases related to it. She also happens to be Oghren's wife, who left him two years ago to search the Deep Roads for an artifact that she was convinced could restore the glory of the Dwarven Kingdom. Whichever candidate for the throne the PC supports, Branka's vote is the final push they need to take the throne... assuming she can be found.

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• Arranged Marriage: According to World of Thedas volume 2, this is why she married Oghren.
• Badass Bookworm: In addition to her intellect, she's also a good fighter with a mace and shield.
• Bad Boss: Branka forced her entire house to either die trying to get through the traps around the Anvil of the Void, or intentionally let them get captured and violated by the darkspawn to create a Broodmother so she could toss an endless supply of darkspawn at the traps.
• The Blacksmith: A master smith and most gifted individual since Caridin over a thousand years ago. Her discovery of a smokeless fire, ensuring that miners could work in safety and reducing deaths from "Black Lung" by two-thirds, made the Assembly raise her to Paragon status. Even so, she falls short of being considered the Ultimate Blacksmith, due to having to heavily rely on surviving fragments of Caridin's research in her attempt to rediscover the secret to creating Golems, rather than recreate it independently.
• Brainy Brunette: The only current Paragon has dark brown hair.
• Broken Pedestal: Let's just say that by the time you actually meet her, you'll find yourself wondering why the dwarves revere her as a Paragon. If she survives, then either Harrowmont or Bhelen will go to war with her over different reasons in the epilogue and one dwarf in Inquisition (roughly ten years after the events in Origins) refers to her as "the cracked Paragon".
• Depraved Bisexual: Sort of. She is indeed bisexual and also kind of a prick, but she isn't depraved about being bisexual; she won't flirt a Warden of any gender, her marriage was political, and she has one lover in what by all accounts is a long-term and serious relationship. And what truly cements her as evil is the fact that she's willing to let poor Hespith be turned into a Broodmother so that Branka can have darkspawn cannon fodder to get the Anvil of the Void.
• The Determinator: The reason you have to go fetch her is that she is bound and determined to get the Anvil and won't come back until she's succeeded. She's also willing to sacrifice anything and anyone in order to get herself through Caridin's traps.
• Driven to Suicide: If the Warden sides with her against Caridin, they can then persuade her to see reason at long last and destroy the Anvil, after which she kills herself by leaping into lava.
• Dub Name Change: In Polish language her name means female captive, therefore it was changed to "Branda".
• Even Evil Has Standards: In Golems of Amgarrak, it's revealed that she knew about what was going on in the titular Thaig (creating Harvesters), but either found it too inhumane or too dangerous to consider using.
• Fatal Flaw: Her obsession with the Anvil of the Void. Though Branka has some valid points about the use of golems and using it to reclaim lost Dwarven territory, she has allowed what was presumably an honest expedition to help her people to become an unhealthy, all-consuming obsession. Branka's obsession drove her insane to the point where she actively allowed her own house to be taken by the darkspawn, knowing the horrible atrocities they'd suffer, especially the women being transformed into broodmoothers. When confronted on this, her reasons are that broodmothers can provide an endless supply of darkspawn to overwhelm Caridin's traps and allow her to receive the Anvil. Even if she gets it, her epilogues end with her either kidnapping people from the surface which starts a war between Ferelden and Orzammar or being besieged by the dwarves of Orzammar. Some Paragon.
• Girlish Pigtails: Inverted to hell and back. Branka is tough, driven, and rather insane.
• I Did What I Had to Do: How she regards leaving the rest of her House to the mercy of the darkspawn while trying to reach the Anvil; Branka argues that most of those left were already dying or transforming due to being infected with the taint, and says that allowing the women to be turned into broodmothers would provide her an endless supply of darkspawn to lure into the thaig to hopefully overwhelm Caridin's traps.
• Insufferable Genius: She wasn't very social to begin with.
• Jumping Off the Slippery Slope: It's implied that she was originally somewhat stable, though eccentric; but eventually she became so obsessed with finding the Anvil that by the time of the game's story, it's literally the only thing she cares about anymore.
  • If she succeeds in getting it, there are two very bad possibilities in the epilogue. Under King Harrowmont, she will eventually get volunteers refused to her, which causes her to kidnap people from the surface in raids to create more golems; this kicks off a war with Ferelden, whose forces besiege Orzammar and the dwarves have to seal its gates. Under King Bhelen, she will eventually refuse to create golems only for him, having him ban the use of the Anvil. Bhelen's soldiers attempt to besiege Branka's fortress in the Deep Roads to enforce the decree. They do not succeed after years of the siege, and Branka's stronghold remains locked up tight with golems manning its gates.
• Kick the Morality Pet: By all accounts, her relationship with Hespith was quite pleasant, but when she thought it came between herself and the Anvil of the Void... bad things happened. She deliberately abandoned Hespith to become a broodmother, something that completely broke the poor woman.
• The Lad-ette: She's an interesting take on this trope, but even Oghren says that she was barely more of a woman than him.
• Mad Scientist: Oh hell yes. At first, she was just an eccentric smith and inventor, but then her desire to recover the lost craft of creating golems drove her mad. To the point, she deliberately allowed her entire female retinue to be infected so that their Darkspawn progeny would provide her with a limitless supply of test subjects.
• Meaningful Name: Branka is a form of the Slavic name Branislava, which almost literally means 'defender of glory'. Perhaps unintentional is the other meaning: the word branka means 'goal' (at least when one is referring to soccer).
• My God, What Have I Done?: After siding with her, the Warden can convince her that she has truly gone mad and that the Anvil of the Void is an Artifact of Doom. If persuaded, she'll not only destroy it but jumps into lava soon afterwards..
• The Paragon Always Rebels: An almost literal example.
• Psycho Lesbian: An interesting inversion. She isn't psycho about her relationship with Hespith; by all accounts, it was a normal and loving relationship. What makes her psycho is what she's willing to do to Hespith in her quest for the Anvil.
• Teen Genius: Formerly, anyway. According to Shaper Czibor, she was still a teenager when she invented the smokeless coal that earned her Paragon status.
• Tsundere: From Oghren's conversations, it's quite clear that Branka alternated between "loving and caring" to "violently beating people up" with regularity.
  Oghren: Truth is, I don't know. She was almost crazier than when we were married, it looked like.
  Shale: Almost? It is exaggerating, surely.
  Oghren: Branka was always a bit twitchy. There was that day she took her forging hammer to my head for misplacing her tongs... ah, good times.
  Shale: I am finding the nature of its relationship to this Branka difficult to imagine.
  Oghren: Make-up sex. She really knew how to polish the old anvil, if you take my meaning! [whistles] Paragon! [laughs]
  Shale: I am done imagining, now.
• The Unfettered: She makes Bhelen look downright tame when it comes to willingness to do horrible things for her goal. At least he never decided to solve a numbers issue by turning anyone into Broodmothers.
• Villain Override: She turns some of the golems to her side in the fight against her and even causes Caridin himself to seize up and be of no help.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: Her seeking of the Anvil of the Void is to ensure the dwarves can build an army to wage war against the darkspawn, retake territory, and rebuild their empire. The way she sees it, no price is too high for that, even mutating her female relatives into Broodmothers.

Hespith

Hespith

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Wendy Braun

"That's why they hate us... that's why they need us. That's why they take us.... that's why they feed us."

Hespith is the commander of Branka's troops as well as the Paragon's former lover. When Branka disappeared into the Deep Roads along with her entire House, Hespith went with her, and she's presumed lost by the people of Orzammar. She turns up near the end of the Warden's search for the Anvil of the Void, however, offering some helpful information about Branka as well as what became of the rest of the house.

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• Better to Die than Be Killed: Jumps off a cliff rather than complete her nightmarish transformation.
• Body Horror: Has begun the horrific process of turning into a Broodmother — but she apparently avoids this fate by committing suicide.
• Creepy Monotone: At almost all times, she speaks in a dead-still tone.
• Despair Event Horizon: It's clear from the moment you meet her that she's lost all hope after being betrayed by Branka and being left next in line to become a Broodmother, to the point that she can barely bring herself to express anything other than horror and exhaustion. It ends with her committing suicide - both out of despair and to avoid becoming a full-fledged Broodmother.
• Dissonant Serenity: The result of being broken both by circumstances and Branka's obsession isn't pretty.
• Driven to Suicide: Developer notes in the toolset reveal that she walks off the edge of a cliff after her last conversation with the Warden, killing herself. Considering the Fate Worse than Death she would have suffered otherwise, this is probably a good thing.
• Dying as Yourself: It's implied that she leaps off a ledge to her death after speaking to the party, rather than face transformation into a Broodmother.
• Face-Revealing Turn: Introduced kneeling on the floor with her back to you, she then gets to her feet and turns to face you... revealing that her face is horribly blotched and withered away by the taint.
• Fate Worse than Death: Though it's suggested she avoids it.
• I Am a Humanitarian: Forced to eat her fellow dwarfs in order to turn into a broodmother.
• Ironic Nursery Rhyme: Continuously recites a nerve-wracking nursery rhyme in an attempt to force her ordeal into the realms of fiction.
• Madness Mantra: After reciting the poem once, she will continuously repeat it from the top until you approach and speak to her.
• The Mistress: To Branka, in spite of her being married to Oghren. It's evident from his reaction Oghren wasn't aware of the true nature of their relationship.
• My Greatest Failure: Implied by something she says to the Warden regarding Branka.
  Hespith: I was her captain, and I could not stop her... her lover, and I could not save her.
• Offering Another in Your Stead: She mentions that she and another woman by the name of Laryn were being selected for something by their Darkspawn captors, and that she wished that Laryn would be taken instead of her; "wishing" caused it to actually happen - though it's not made clear if Hespith forced Laryn to take her place or if she just passively begged and deliriously blamed herself when it actually happened. As it turns out, Laryn was being forced to eat the corpses of her friends and the vomit of the Darkspawn, a process that would eventually turn her into a Broodmother. For added horror, Hespith is already in the initial stages of her transformation by the time you run into her, so wishing for Laryn to go instead was All for Nothing.
• Sanity Slippage: Being forced to eat her fellow dwarves while being violated (in more ways than one) by the darkspawn and undergoing a horrific transformation has left Hespith a psychological ruin. Along with continuously reciting a terrifying poem, she cannot acknowledge the fact that rescue has arrived, and mistakes the Warden for a hallucination.

House Caridin

Paragon Caridin

Paragon Caridin

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: David Lodge

"The Anvil of the Void allowed me to forge a man of stone and steel, and because of it I was made into a Paragon."

An ancient dwarven smith of legendary skill and one of Orzammar's most famous Paragons, Caridin was the creator of the Golems. At the time of Origins, his home thaig has long since fallen to the Darkspawn and everyone assumes the discoveries he made are lost, but Branka is fascinated by his research and goes into the Deep Roads in an attempt to recover it.

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• And Then John Was a Zombie: Was turned into a golem after attempting to destroy his research.
• Artifact of Doom: In his opinion, this is what the Anvil of the Void is. He's mostly right; no good comes in the end of either dwarf king trying to use the Anvil, and many people lose their lives in the process.
• Everyone Has Standards: He was willing to allow volunteers to become golems to turn the tide against the darkspawn, but when King Valtor, greedy for the advantage the golems would give him, started ordering casteless, criminals, and his political enemies to be used, Caridin refused to go along with it.
• Fate Worse than Death: He only realized that being turned into a golem was this when he was turned into a golem himself.
• Forging Scene: If you choose to side with him, he forges a crown of exquisite craftsmanship easily identified as coming from the hands of a Paragon Smith for the new king of Orzammar for you.
• Forgotten First Meeting: Caridin was responsible for the creation of Shale. In her former life as Shayle of House Cadash, she was one of his closest friends and staunchest allies.
• Golem: Duh. Was sentenced to go under the hammer himself.
• Hero Antagonist: Should you choose to side with Branka and fight him. Between the two, he's treated with more sympathy and deeply regrets his past actions, though slaying him and preserving the Anvil is admittedly the more pragmatic option.
• Human Resources: He discovers that as powerful as the Anvil of the Void is, it can't create life from scratch — meaning he has to use dwarves to make golems.
• I Did What I Had to Do: Regards the creation of the Anvil and the Golems as this originally, as it was the middle of the First Blight, the Dwarves were rapidly losing ground to the darkspawn and the military value of the golems was too great to be passed up.
• Knight in Sour Armour: Due to his creation of the Golems. After being forcibly turned into a Steel Golem, a rather literal example.
• Modest Royalty: Despite becoming a Paragon and being able to found his own house, he chose to remain in his ancestral home in Ortan Thaig. Furthermore, when chosen to smith the crown for the King of Orzammar, he uses the crest of House Ortan instead of his own.
• Mr. Exposition: If Shale is in the party, he'll spill all of the beans of just who the golem really is: Shayle of House Cadash.
• My God, What Have I Done?: He eventually came to view his research this way.
• Nothing Left to Do but Die: He believes his current state is a Fate Worse than Death, and desires nothing more than to end his existence. But he won't, because he can't destroy the Anvil himself and is unwilling to risk allowing it to fall into the wrong hands. Once the player destroys it for him, he thanks them and throws himself into the magma below.
• Pet the Dog: Designed the fortress of Bownammar to serve as a headquarters and mausoleum for the Legion of Dead, in recognition of their sacrifices to safeguard the Dwarven Empire from the darkspawn.
• Power Echoes: Like all free-thinking golems, his voice carries a deep, metallic echo.
• Skippable Boss: Though if you don't fight him, you'll have to fight Branka instead.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: At first, though he later came to regret his creation of the Golems.
• Ultimate Blacksmith: Could seriously be a contender for the ultimate one in the history of Thedas.

House Harrowmont

Lord Pyral Harrowmont

Lord Pyral Harrowmont

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Robin Sachs

"Your father made me swear on his deathbed that you would not succeed him."

The best friend and confidant of King Endrin Aeducan, as well as High-General of Orzammar and a deshyr in the Assembly. At Endrin's request, he tries to claim the throne to stop Bhelen's schemes.

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• Arc Villain: If the player chooses to ally with Bhelen during the Paragon of her Kind quest, Harrowmont becomes the main antagonist in his stead. Despite appearing to be the better man of the two, Harrowmont will still send assassins to kill the Warden when they try to find Branka.
• Deconstructed Character Archetype: Of the Reasonable Authority Figure and Cool Old Guy. Harrowmont is renowned for being honest, generous and honorable, though sadly, his kindness is played negatively. Harrowmont acknowledges that change is needed in Orzammar, but he is far too unwilling to go against the nobles out of fear of losing their support and is nothing more than their puppet. Even worse, Harrowmont takes great pride in the very traditions and practices that are driving Orzammar into stagnation and self-destruction. He openly hates the Casteless, viewing them in the same way most Dwarf nobles view them and believes that they do not deserve their rights as people. If he is chosen as King, Harrowmont proves to be a horrible ruler as he cares too much about appeasing the nobles rather than being a good ruler. Instead of bringing much needed change to the Dwarves, Harrowmont enforces the broken system that's driving Orzammar to ruin and even passes several bills that furthers isolation between the Dwarves and the surface.
• Extreme Doormat: If elected King, Harrowmont proves to be a horribly weak ruler who does everything in his power to appease the Nobles, regardless of how broken their system is. This is particularly obvious if the Anvil of the Void is taken intact; he completely fails to control Branka's relentless thirst for subjects to utilize in the golemization process, even sparking a war with Ferelden when trying to cut her off from dwarf subjects leads to raids on the surface that continue even after Ferelden beats them.
• Fatal Flaw: Unwillingness to stand up against the nobles and his pride in Orzammar's traditions and caste system. Harrowmont is a kind, honest and generous Dwarf who refuses to use underhanded tactics to get what he wants. Sadly, he's too scared of losing the nobles' support to actively stand up to them and if he becomes King, it's made clear that he's nothing more than a puppet of the nobles and cares more about appeasing them rather than governing Orzammar. To make it worse, Harrowmont is very proud of the traditions and caste system that is driving Orzammar into stagnation, allowing the nobles to stay in power while the Casteless and lower castes are left to fend for themselves. Because of this, Harrowmont does nothing to improve Orzammar's living, eventually leading to his assassination and an outbreak of civil war in Orzammar.
• Green-Eyed Monster: Towards the Warden Aeducan , according to two chatting dwarven ambassadors in Inquisition. The Paragon statue in his/her honor is somewhat smaller than normal, as some deshyrs quickly point out. Note that Paragon Brosca gets a normal-sized statue.
• Honor Before Reason: He follows Orzammar's laws and traditions to the letter, even if he personally disagrees with them. This is why he doesn't dare resist if King Bhelen orders him executed. It is also the main reason why he turns out to be an absolutely disastrous king for the dwarves, as instead of making changes to the system, he basically maintains the status quo, causing more problems in the long term.
• I Will Find You: Averted. In Inquisition, he gives up rather easily on the Dwarven Warden and only living (or sane, if Branka's still alive) Paragon, declaring them dead per the Assembly's request soon after they disappear.
• Laser-Guided Karma: If a falsely accused Dwarf Noble Warden gets him his kingship, then Bhelen watches the sibling he screwed over help his rival get the throne, and screw over all the manipulating he did to get to the current moment.
• Not Quite the Right Thing: If chosen as king, he means well and avoids underhanded actions, but will turn out to be ineffectual and traditional, worsening the city in the long run. Harrowmont passes several isolation- and seclusion-related bills to placate the noble caste and causes further stagnation in Dwarven society.
• Pet the Dog: If the player supports him, he will happily accept a male Dwarf Noble's illegitimate son into his house. Unlike Bhelen, he never says a single disrespectful word about the child or his casteless mother, despite his distaste for the casteless in general. While he also proves to have a bit of envy for an Aeducan Warden, he's also appropriately grateful to a Brosca, in spite of his prejudice against casteless.
• Reasonable Authority Figure:
  • In the Dwarf Noble origin; he's shown to be a very kind man who wants what's best for king and kingdom alike, and does his best to help the doomed PC.
  • Again to the Warden upon reaching Orzammar, refusing to stoop to Bhelen's underhanded tactics and instead requesting the Warden only do tasks that are to the letter of Dwarven law and honour.
• Slave to PR:
  • Harrowmont toes the line with being a Tradionalist, which makes him more popular with his fellow nobles than a radical reformer like Bhelen. He knows that some among of change is needed, but he is too worried about losing the support of the other nobles, and generally acts with their interest in mind.
  • In Inquisition, he supports Grand Duke Gaspard, the nephew of the previous Emperor, for the Orlesian throne, sending him weapons. His isolation of the Dwarves and disdain for the casteless almost costs him Orzammar, due to insufficient supplies after trade gets disrupted and the constant threat of the darkspawn.
• Troubled Sympathetic Bigot: Hates the casteless, but otherwise appears as a sympathetic character.
• Unexpected Successor: Endrin appointed Harrowmont as his successor on his deathbed over his own son. But given that said son practically killed both his siblings and basically caused Endrin to die of grief... Harrowmont himself claims he never wanted to be king, but runs since Endrin wished it so.
• Ungrateful Bastard: He knows he owes his throne to the Warden. See Green-Eyed Monster above.

Warrior Caste

House Ivo

Frandlin Ivo

Frandlin Ivo

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Gideon Emery

"You fight well. I wish you glory today and glory tomorrow."

A warrior encountered in the Dwarf Noble Origin, during both the Proving and the Deep Roads expedition segments.

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• Social Climber: Gorim notes that while House Ivo is relatively minor, Frandlin is expected to change that, and get a full command of his own soon. Combine that with how easily he turns on the Dwarf Noble Warden, and it's not hard to piece together that Bhelen offered him more prestige for himself and his house.
• Ungrateful Bastard: No matter how kind, generous, or magnanimous you are to him in the Proving (even if you don't fight him at all and just present him the champion's helm), he will always turn on you when Trian dies. Gorim will call him a "treacherous bastard" for it.
• What Happened to the Mouse?: He's never seen again after the Dwarf Noble origin story, even for a Dwarf Noble themself.

Loilinar Ivo

Loilinar Ivo

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Pat Fraley

"I'm Loilinar Ivo, warrior. Which is more than I can say for that useless sod."

A somewhat grouchy Orzammar warrior who's introduced arguing with Oghren.

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• Mr. Exposition: He pretty much exists to provide backstory on Oghren and Branka.

House Saelac

Gorim Saelac

Gorim Saelac

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Steve Blum

"Dwarven crafts! Fine dwarven crafts! Direct from Orzammar! You won't find better."

The second of the Dwarven Noble PC.

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• Absence Makes the Heart Go Yonder: Marries a surfacer shortly after being exiled from Orzammar, even if he and the female Dwarf Noble were lovers. He'll even gush to her about how happy he is with his new wife and unborn child. In his defense, while he was sure you would survive, he was fully expecting to never see you again, which is fairly reasonable given the events of the story.
• Badass Normal: Warrior caste dwarfs are about as normal in combat as they get, yet Gorim not only is a skilled warrior in the Dwarf Noble origin, but he's noted by several people for his skills.
• Broken Record: "Dwarven crafts! Fine dwarven crafts! Direct from Orzammar!"
• Career-Ending Injury: He was badly hurt as he left Orzammar, crippling him enough that he was forced to put down his weapons and live a merchant life instead, though he finds himself much happier now thanks to it.
• Deadpan Snarker: Steve Blum nails every single line.
  Gorim: Why not? I'll just wear a sign that says "Assassinate me before Lady Aeducan marries beneath her".
• Double Standard: A victim of this if he and the female Dwarf Noble PC are in love. While male dwarf nobles take lovers, concubines, and marry beneath their station all the time, female dwarf nobles cannot marry beneath them under any circumstances. (They can even run into her brother Bhelen's socially accepted casteless lover, while they have to keep their relationship a secret). He's aware of this issue, and comments that he knew it wouldn't work in the end, but still cherished the time you spent with him.
• Happily Married: He admits to the Dwarf Noble Warden that he's happier in exile on the surface than he ever would have imagined possible, including being married to a lovely woman and expecting their first child.
• I Will Wait for You: Subverted if the Dwarf Noble is female and they're in love. Even though he's the one to suggest the Dwarf Noble seek out Duncan and the Grey Wardens to survive exile in the Deep Roads, he marries a surfacer soon out of his exile from Orzammar. If confronted on this, he apologies, as while he believed you would survive, he never expected to see you again, and feels guilty for doing so, though he stays loyal to his wife.
• Retired Badass: If you haven't played through the Dwarf Noble origin, you would never guess that the somewhat snarky merchant you met in Denerim was formerly a badass soldier who worked from the ground up to become one.
• Star-Crossed Lovers: If playing a Female Dwarven Noble who is romantically interested in him, its made clear he feels the same, but because he is basically a nobody in Dwarf society and female dwarf nobles cannot marry people of lower stations, they cannot get married, and knows that that their love is basically a "fling". He'll outright mention it was never going to work out if confronted on it.
• Undying Loyalty:
  • While it's up to the player to establish what the dwarf noble PC's relationship with their second is like (lovers, friends, master and servant), Gorim's loyalty to his Lord/Lady Aeducan will be one of his defining traits throughout the origin sequence. He's so loyal, in fact, that it is neatly and efficiently used after Trian's murder to condemn him via guilt by association. "Your loyalty makes you a useless witness, Ser Gorim." However, he's not loyal enough to stay faithful to the female PC he's in love with — although in his defense, he had no way of knowing that the Warden was still alive.
  • When re-encountered in Denerim, he will provide the Dwarf Noble with the Shield of Aeducan and letter given to him by their dying father, in addition to one of the best discounts in the game.

Smith Caste

Ruck

Ruck

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Nolan North

"It's my claim, not yours! Crunch your bones!"

Ruck is a young Dwarf who was stranded in the Deep Roads for five years. Like anyone abandoned there, he's grown deformed and half-mad from consuming darkspawn flesh, likely in the early stages of ghoulification. However, he is willing to trade with you, and is essentially a store in the middle of the Deep Roads.

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• Admiring the Abomination: Is implied to be in awe of the Archdemon's power when he felt it awake through the taint, and says that he barely resisted the taint's compulsion to see the creature for himself.
  Ruck: After the Dark Master awoke, he called his children and they all went...I wanted to go to, and gaze upon his beauty.
• Anti-Frustration Features: His practical function in the game is to be a place to sell your junk and empty your bags without having to trek all the way back to Orzammar.
• Anything but That!: He begs you to tell his mother he's dead. He doesn't want her to see him like that. His mother is enough of a Mama Bear that she'll rush to the Deep Roads to seek him out if you tell her he's alive.
  Ruck: Nonononono! No Filda! No mother! No warm blanket and stew and pillow and soft words! Ruck doesn't deserve good memories! No, no, NO!
• Expy: Of Gollum. Was Once a Man who has become a Talkative Loon Third-Person Person, simultaneously misses and curses his old life, lives alone in deep, dark, undermountain caves, is forced to eat giant spiders and worse to survive, etc.
• Fate Worse than Death: Most companions see his condition as this, and feel it would have been better if he had died in a mining accident with the others. Zevran will even insist on the Warden performing a Mercy Kill rather than let him continue to live like this, and the Warden has to agree.
• Gameplay and Story Segregation: When you ask to trade with him, he'll tell you that you don't have to pay him for his wares...but you do. And if you kill him, you won't be able to loot any of these wares (including a rare and expensive Templar chestpiece) but will get some random low-level item.
• I Did What I Had to Do: Consuming the flesh of darkspawn to survive. The taint in his veins keeps the darkspawn from noticing, but at the cost of destroying his mind.
• Mercy Kill: Can receive one from the Warden, especially if Zevran is in the party.
• My Significance Sense Is Tingling: He's likely undergoing ghoulification from eating darkspawn flesh, since he can sense the Taint within the Warden.
• Noodle Incident: It's not quite explained what he's doing alone in the Deep Roads, though his dialogue implies he killed someone and fled into the tunnels to avoid being punished for murder.
• Talkative Loon: He never stops jabbering to himself.
• That Man Is Dead: Ruck firmly believes this about himself.
• Third-Person Person: Ruck refers to himself as such.

Dagna

A young girl of the Smith Caste, who wishes to study in the Circle of Magi.

For more info, see this page.

Merchant Caste

Bodahn Feddic

A dwarven merchant whom the Warden and his companions rescue on the Imperial Highway outside of Lothering, Bodahn and his adopted son Sandal thereafter travel with the party, providing a ready source of supplies as well as enchanting services.

For more info, see this page.

Sandal Feddic

The adopted son of the dwarven merchant Bodahn Feddic. Sandal is...special, to say the least, as he is lyrium-addled. However, he has a unique and natural talent when it comes to enchanting, displaying skill that surpasses that of even grandmasters. He follows the party along with his father and the two offer their services in the party camp.

For more info, see this page.

Corra

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Corri English

"A Grey Warden is always welcome in Tapster's."

The owner and barkeeper of Tapster's Tavern. She provides information about the city from a "mole's-eye view" and can direct you to notable patrons.

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• Ms. Exposition: She gives information on a variety of aspects of Orzammar life from a commoner's perspective.
• Persona Non Grata: She outright refuses to serve a Dwarf Noble Warden, believing them guilty of Trian's murder. She'll also initially refuse to serve a Dwarf Commoner, though hearing they're a Warden will change her mind.

Casteless

Rica Brosca

Rica Brosca

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Corri English

"I can only imagine the horrible things he's made you do."

The Dwarf Commoner PC's older half-sister, Rica was forced into noble-hunting by the crime lord Beraht, while her sibling does Beraht's dirty work to pay off the debts from the lessons to make her act like a noble lady.

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• Aerith and Bob: Rica is the only dwarf character with a recognizably human name.
• Babies Ever After: After the Dwarf Commoner origin story, she gives birth to Bhelen's son Endrin and becomes an official royal concubine. Given that Bhelen does apparently actually love her, she's as close to being queen as anyone in Orzammar can get. According to the town criers, he intends to marry her as well and in Inquisition, it's revealed that he actually does.
• The Cameo: Briefly appears during the Dwarf Noble origin, where she mistakes their footsteps for Bhelen coming to visit her.
• Cool Big Sis: She's the elder sibling, and her younger brother/sister can be played as genuinely adoring her.
• Girl Next Door: Very much. The toolset even describes her as this, word for word.
• Gold Digger: Not that as a casteless dwarf she has much choice about it.
• Half-Sibling Angst: Thoroughly averted; despite confirming that they have different fathers, Rica is as doting and protective of the PC as one could expect any big sister to be.
• High-Class Call Girl: The crime lord Beraht spared no expense on fine dresses, music and vocal lessons, all so Rica could snag a promising noble, get pregnant and ascend them out of Dust Town.
• Hooker with a Heart of Gold: She's been forced into the role of concubine out of necessity more than choice.
  • One line of dialogue indicates that she is actually far from happy with what she's been forced into, only doing it out of love for her family, or at least the PC. If a female PC tells her she doesn't have to hide anything from her, she will respond sadly, "I've always tried, though. At least I've kept you from buying your future with what's between your legs."
• I Have No Son!: If the Dwarf Commoner Warden sides with Harrowmont, Rica declares that they are no longer her sibling.
• Morality Pet: Possibly to a Dwarf Commoner PC. Definitely to Bhelen.
• Parental Abandonment: Both of their fathers left the family, causing their mother to take to drinking shortly afterwards.
• Parental Substitute: Forcing Rica to become this to her younger sibling.
• Promotion to Parent: Rica had to raise her younger sibling herself due to their fathers' abandonment and their mother's alcoholism.
• Rags to Riches: Orzammar criers announce that Prince Bhelen actually intends to marry her
• Selective Obliviousness: Says that if her sibling ignores what Beraht forces her to do, she'll pretend to ignore all the times they've come back from a job, covered head-to-toe in blood.
• Significant Green-Eyed Redhead: She's the key to Beraht becoming a Noble.
• Team Mom: Has been forced to take on this role, since her mother spends most of the day stuck in a bottle.
• Tomboy and Girly Girl: Compared to the Female Dwarf Commoner, who works for Beraht as Hired Muscle, while Rica is a High-Class Call Girl.

Kalah Brosca

Kalah Brosca

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Jeannie Elias

"The world's a cruel place. You had to learn that! You think you'd be where you are if I'd let you run from a few slaps?"

The Dwarf Commoner PC's useless drunk of a mother. She doesn't seem to do much except drink mosswine and yell at her children trying to keep her afloat.

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• Abusive Parents: All but stated to have been this. She says smacking Rica and the PC around was necessary, and according to Rica was verbally abusive and less than supportive of them as children.
  • Is perfectly fine with the fact that Rica, her own daughter, is basically whoring herself out to nobles. The PC can ask if this bothers her - she will coldly tell a female PC that "she would have put [the PC] out there with her" if Rica hadn't begged her not to.
• The Alcoholic: Her most defining feature. If the player buys some mosswine from Olinda, they can get some more dialogue from her about her dependence on the stuff. When Morrigan asks about the player's mother, they can tell her the truth and call Kalah a "useless drunk."
  Rica: She comes and goes. I think the mosswine's finally rotted her brains.
• Jaded Washout: She had hope for a better life when the Dwarf Commoner's father was still in her life, but ever since he left for the surface, she's been bitter and depressed.

  "You'll always end up back in Dust Town."

• Nouveau Riche: When the Dwarf Commoner's achievements are recognized by the assembly and the Brosca family is raised to Warrior caste, Rica mentions Kalah "lording over" her old compatriots in Dust Town.
• Ungrateful Bastard: Doesn't seem very grateful for Rica's relationship with Bhelen bringing her into the royal palace, always finding something to complain about anyway. The PC can call her out on this. If they do so with Morrigan in the party, she'll remark on their similar situations with their mothers. Even before that, she has no gratitude towards Rica or the PC for keeping her in a house rather than in a gutter.

The Carta

Beraht

Beraht

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Pat Fraley

"You keep your head down and say 'aye' to any job I decide is low enough for scum like you."

The leader of the Carta, one of Orzammar's largest crime syndicates, and a member of the merchant caste. He dreams of becoming a noble and moving to the Diamond Quarter. The Dwarf Commoner PC and his/her sister, Rica, are forced to work for him due to their Casteless status.

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• Actually Pretty Funny: According to Rica, Berath allows the Dwarf Commoner's to snark at him because he finds it amusing.
• Ambition Is Evil: Dreams of becoming a noble and moving to the Diamond Quarter.
• Last-Name Basis: Dialogue with Oskias will reveal that his first name is Aron, but people only ever call him "Beraht."
• The Mafia: He certainly runs the Carta like one.
• Self-Made Man: His lack of brand, shop and ability to provide a legitimate pass to the Commons imply that he's likely a member of the Merchant Caste. However, his dreams of becoming a Noble are hampered due to his well-known connections to Dust Town and role in the Carta.
• Social Climber: According to Rica at least, this is his chief motivation. He has plenty of money, enough to singlehandedly control Orzammar's underworld and pay off any guardsmen who may give him trouble, but in Orzammar's rigidly stratified society, he'll never be anything more than a merchant regardless of his wealth. He funds numerous noble hunters, including Rica, in the hope that one of them will father a noble son and thus finally bring him the noble caste he desperately craves.
  Rica: As far as the nobles are concerned, he still reeks of Dust Town. He's got money now, but you can't buy caste, you know?
• Starter Villain: For the Dwarf Commoner.
• Rape Is a Special Kind of Evil: After the Dwarf Commoner is discovered at the Proving and locked up in his dungeon, he plans to cut Rica loose as well, and casually informs his guards that they can have their way with her since he no longer cares about getting his investment back from her. He says she "tastes as good as she looks," implying that he's slept with her as well, and given his position of power over her, it's coerced consent at best.
• Too Dumb to Live: Oh sure, mouth off to your two ex-carta thugs (one of whom just won a tournament against Orzammar's most seasoned darkspawn veterans) who just broke out of your personal jail and cut their way through your hideout guards like weeds to escape. That'll intimidate them into submission, Beraht.
• Villain with Good Publicity: It's stated a few times that he has "good friends" in the upper Castes. Jarvia specifically says he was working with House Vollney to fix the Provings.
• What Happened to the Mouse?: If the Dwarf Commoner isn't the player character, they die in Beraht's dungeon without ever getting a chance to kill him. Despite that he is never present when the Grey Warden arrives in Orzammar, with Jarvia always being the leader of the Carta by then.
• You Have Failed Me: Plans to have Brosca and Leske tortured to death for getting discovered at the Proving, even though they were Just Following Orders. (Granted, he didn't tell them to impersonate a contestant, but since they found said contestant too blind drunk to compete, the narrative makes it clear they had to to ensure that the warrior he bet on won, as he would have tortured and killed them for failing anyway.)

Jarvia

Jarvia

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Salli Saffioti

"Well, you picked the wrong side, stranger. It doesn't matter who's king, as long as there's a queen!"

Beraht's second-in-command and rumored lover, who takes over the Carta after his death. Like him, she cultivates allies among the people of Orzammar, both common and noble, which makes it difficult for the authorities to act against her. Both Bhelen and Harrowmont will ask the Warden to eliminate her in order to curry favor with the assembly.

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• Benevolent Boss: It's hinted she does care to some extent about her men (at least probably more than Beraht). If you chose a different origin than the Dwarf Commoner, it’s possible to make her lose her cool by taunting her about how you just slaughtered her whole Carta.
  Casteless Thug: Jarvia was no Paragon, but she looked after her own.
• Combat Pragmatist: When you finally meet and fight her in person, she faces you surrounded by several of her henchmen, including several archers, in a closed room full of traps and spends half the fight in stealth mode.
• Depraved Bisexual: Implied to have been in a relationship with Beraht before he died, and pulls an I Have You Now, My Pretty with a female PC of any background except the Dwarf Commoner. Still in the Carta regardless.
• Gayngster: If the PC is a female Warden of any background except the Dwarf Commoner, Jarvia specifically tells her goons to kill the entire party, "but leave the pretty one — I have plans for her." (The male Warden is "the mouthy one.")
• I Have You Now, My Pretty: She's strongly hinted to intend to do this with the Warden, regardless of the Warden's gender.
• It's Personal: If the PC is a Dwarf Commoner Warden, Jarvia is noticably more aggressive towards them than Wardens of other origins thanks to what happened with Beraht. While she is willing to leave the Warden alive if they come from any other background, she very much looks forward to killing the Dwarf Commoner Warden ever since they returned to Orzammar. It can certainly be mutual on the PC Dwarf Commoner's part, considering that Jarvia turned Leske to her side.
• Justified Criminal: Many of the people of Dust Town consider her one, to the point that they'll attack the Warden for killing her.
• The Mafia: Takes over as the boss after Beraht's death.
• The Queenpin: After taking over from Beraht after his death, she takes advantage of the political chaos to cement her power and expand the carta's influence and reach. While Beraht was known throughout Orzammar, Jarvia is feared throughout Orzammar.
• Villain with Good Publicity: As with her boss, she's got lots of connections, and is actually fairly well-liked among the inhabitants of Dust Town, because she looks after them. At least, she's liked by the ones that aren't cowering in fear at the mere mention of her. After she's killed by the Warden, a group of them attempt to avenge her death.

Leske

Leske

Appears in: Origins

Voiced by: Brian Bloom

"I've been writing a poem about it. It starts, 'Oh, you're really, really cursed to have no caste / You noble lords can shove it up your...' but I couldn't think of a rhyme."

Best friend of the Dwarf Commoner PC, Leske works with the PC as one of Beraht's casteless thugs.

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• Abhorrent Admirer: He openly lusts after Rica, who makes it clear that she does not reciprocate and doesn't like being around Leske in general.
• Boisterous Bruiser: He's more this about the Dwarf Commoner warden than himself.
• Deadpan Snarker: His conversations can be a good source of witty banter between him and the PC.
• Face–Heel Turn: By the time the Dwarf Commoner returns to Orzammar, Leske has sided with Jarvia.
• Guest-Star Party Member: He accompanies you throughout the Dwarf Commoner origin.
• Locked in the Dungeon: If the PC is any origin other than the Dwarf Commoner, this is where he will be found during the invasion of Jarvia's hideout.
• Loveable Rogue: His cheerful, devil-may-care attitude, enthusiasm for his job and tendency to flirt with virtually every woman he encounters (including a female Dwarf Commoner) as well as his encouraging you to join the Grey Wardens when Duncan offers you to make him a rather archetypical one. This is subverted later in the game, however, when he willingly betrays you in order to secure his position as Jarvia's lover and second-in-command and doesn't express a hint of remorse.
• My Sister Is Off-Limits: A possible reaction to his open lust for your sister.
  Brosca: If you lay a hand on Rica, I'll be back with an army.
  Leske: Why do I think you mean that literally?
• Professional Butt-Kisser: Leske pretty much has no spine or even an honest desire to take charge of his own life in the Carta, instead willingly kowtowing to Beraht and later Jarvia.
• Sarcasm Failure: Driven to this by the grotesque appearance of darkspawn.
  Leske: I can't even think of a joke! That should tell you how bad it was.
• Those Two Guys: If the Dwarf Commoner is male.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: Possibly, depending on dialogue choices.

The Shaperate

Shaper Czibor

Czibor

Appears in: Origins | Inquisition (mentioned)

Voiced by: David Sobolov

"The Memories often speak of the swiftness with which change overtakes us, but it is different to see it firsthand."

The head of the Shaperate, Orzammar's official record office that catalogs all dwarven history in lyrium.

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• Beleaguered Bureaucrat: He's essentially Orzammar's chief civil servant, and his job is demanding at the best of times. During the royal election, he has to deal with backstabbers, cheats, fraudsters, and bribers even more than usual, and he sounds very weary from it.
• Consummate Professional: He takes his duty seriously and refuses to even give his opinion on the election, saying that "history can be changed with a careless word."
• Mr. Exposition: He's the main source of information on dwarven history and culture, explaining everything from the old Dwarven Empire, to the darkspawn wars, to the caste system.
• Noble Bigot: He's a dedicated professional and unfailingly polite, but he still harbors the usual prejudice towards the casteless. He'll say that it's better that casteless children die young, even to the face of an obviously-branded casteless Warden. If a Dwarf Commoner Warden presses him on this, he'll say they don't officially exist and that he can only deal with them as a Warden, not a resident of Orzammar.

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