APPLICATION
Mun
Name: Alex
Livejournal Username: radura
E-mail: radura.voce@gmail[dot]com
AIM : RaduraSottoVoce
Current Characters at Luceti: Rita Mordio // Tales of Vesperia // ritacule
Character
Name: Alistair Theirin
Fandom: Dragon Age: Origins
Gender: Male
Age: Specifics unknown - assumption Early Twenties
Time Period: Just after the Landsmeet
Wing Color: GREY
History: Alistair’s past is mostly very straight-forward and decently explained, if not over explained. He’s a bastard to say the least, his mother was a servant in Redcliffe’s castle in service to Arl Eamon and more importantly, his father was the legendary King Maric Theirin. Which, yes. Makes him an heir to the throne (For the majority of the game and pretty much his entire life he has HATED his blood connections and the difficulties with it.). After Alistair was born, however, his mother died and because of his illegitimacy, Arl Eamon offered to raise him and keep his birth unknown to the public so as to let Cailan, Maric’s only legitimate son to Queen Rowan and technically Alistair’s elder half-brother, could take his father’s throne without any challenge or difficulty.
Like I said, pretty straight forward right? Right. Well, there’s a catch. The book “The Calling” raises the suspicion of Alistair coming from slightly different backgrounds. This book would have you believe that Alistair’s mother was an Elven Mage within the Grey Wardens, Fiona. This Fiona had a lovely fling with Maric and had a child. She tossed up the child to Maric, telling him that the baby must be told his mother was human and that she is now dead. After that Fiona went to chill in Weisshapt and isn’t heard about again. This CAN explain a few things about Alistair, yet leaves a lot more up in the air. For one, Goldanna’s story from when she was a child when her mother died from child birth. Although, maybe Maric really just got around. Who knows? But there is a chance Alistair’s just been reiterated a lie all his life to go about his mother’s wishes.
Is it canon? Well, let’s just say it’s a possibility so the explanation is there. Just in case.
Don’t be fooled about his ties to royalty though, Alistair wasn’t exactly treated like a prince or anything. No, he slept in the stables with ponies and dogs, ate with the servants and for the most part was treated like every other orphan servant within the Arl’s castle. Eventually the Arl married a lady from Orlais, (a country that had previously enslaved their country, Ferelden, for eighty some-odd years less than two decades prior - thus tension) and to put it simply, Lady Isolde didn’t like Alistair. So with most likely a great deal of nudging from Lady Isolde, Arl Eamon sent Alistair to the Chantry (Monotheistic religion that rules the world, secretly) when he was ten to become a Templar (an armed force meant to watch over and subdue crazed mages/apostates in the name of the Maker/God). Alistair seriously hated this and felt betrayed by the Arl. In his childish tantrum against this idea Alistair tossed the only memoir of his mother, a locket, at the wall and … well, it broke. Nice going, kiddo.
For the next ten or so years Alistair stayed in the Chantry and went through with Templar training. While there he didn’t really fit in that well. Most Templars were either orphans who had nowhere else to go or children of Nobility and Alistair didn’t really fit in with either and was often the oddball out. Poor thing. Anyways! Before he could make his vows and become a full-fledged, Lyrium addicted Templar, Duncan the leader of Ferelden’s Grey Warden order stopped by to hunt down recruits for fear of an oncoming Blight (Blight in this case means the appearance of Darkspawn, humanoid mindless monsters that twist everything they touch and kill anything in their way. A Blight also means the appearance of an Arch Demon, the leader of all Darkspawn and supposedly the soul of an ancient God twisted by the tainted Darkspawn blood and their once humane desires of greed). Alistair must have looked like one seriously kicked puppy because Duncan tried recruiting him right away. But the Revered Mother would have none of that and probably would have brawled with Duncan if she could to keep Alistair in the Chantry just because. So Duncan conscripted Alistair which means he gets dibs no matter what the law says or others wish. And so Alistair was recruited into the Grey Wardens.
For the Grey Wardens, however, you can’t just be recruited to join their ranks. You have to pass the Joining ritual by consuming Darkspawn blood, (Meaning: Drink AIDs! Become a Grey Warden! Some side effects include but are not limited to: Really bad trips with gibberish talking dragons, Darkspawn spotting, overeating, obligations to a lost cause, becoming possibly sterile, and ultimately death! Go through the Joining now! What are you waiting for? Gryphons no longer included. Some restrictions may apply.) which much like all other aspects of the Grey Wardens is highly secretive, but for good reason. Alistair passes the Joining ritual, luckily, along with one other recruit. Sadly though, a third recruit fails the ritual which essentially means death or transformation into an evil Darkspawn minion. (Darkspawn Chronicles Heeeyooooo~)
Once a Grey Warden Alistair is immediately accepted by his fellow Grey Wardens, for likely the first time ever. He loves his new oddball family and doesn’t regret leaving the Chantry at all. But, Duncan requests he keep up his Templar learned talents since Darkspawn use magic just as mages do and that’s what Templars do - foil magic users.
Six months later King Cailan (Maric died 5 years prior) calls for every army available in Ferelden, as well as the Grey Wardens of Ferelden and Orlais to fight against the Blight in one big showdown at the ruins of Ostagar. Alistair and the other Grey Wardens head there first while Duncan runs amok looking for more recruits. When Duncan returns with the three newest recruits, including the Silent MC, Alistair is instructed to assist them in preparing for the Joining (Gathering Darkspawn blood) and collecting some forgotten Grey Warden treaties in an old fort. When the group of oddballs get to the old Grey Warden fort the important treaties are nowhere to be found, but some half naked “sneaky witch thief” struts around questioning them in its place. Alistair already doesn’t trust the woman who introduces herself as Morrigan and discourages the Silent MC from trusting her. But pfft, no one listens to Alistair. Surprisingly though Alistair is proved wrong this one instance about Morrigan and she leads them to her mother who graciously returns the treaties without any argument despite the groups’ rude accusations. Treaties and blood collected it’s time for another Joining for the 3 noobies. This Joining, however, proves much more fatal than his own and only the Silent MC survives. (In the Darkspawn Chronicles Ex. Pack none of them survive. Hah! Although, because it is an AU Ex. Pack it will not be taken as canon or seriously.) There’s no time to rest, however, and the time has come for the great battle. King Cailan, the Grey Wardens, and Teryn Loghain Mac Tir, a very close friend to the late King Maric and for the most part King Cailan’s advisor, have devised a strategy that Cailan and the Grey Wardens rush into battle on the front and the Teryn’s forces charge in from the rear after receiving a signal from the Tower of Ishal within Ostagar.
Who better to set off a boring signal than the Silent MC and Alistair! If you cannot guess, Alistair wanted to be in the battle but reluctantly agrees to Cailan’s wishes but not without a few groans of protest. When the battle begins, Alistair and the Silent MC head to the Tower but somehow the Darkspawn managed to sneak by the enormous front line and plant a bloody ton of them in the Tower and have taken it over. Not good. Time to put on the heroic cape and almost singlehandedly save the day.
Alistair, the Silent MC and 2 unfortunate guards retrieve the Tower of Ishal from Darkspawn clutches and light the signal for Loghain to advance. Soon after though, their position atop the Tower is forfeit and the Darkspawn ambush them, knocking out the party.
The next thing Alistair knows he’s in the Kocari Wilds by Ostagar with Morrigan and her ancient mother being told that all his Grey Warden BFFs, King Cailan and his armies were all butchered by Darkspawn after Loghain’s men chose to retreat from the battlefield, refusing necessary aid. To top it all off only Alistair and the Silent MC survived thanks to their convenient location (and apparently a few mages since Wynne and Uldred, mages who fought at Ostagar, reappear). What the hell are those odds of that?
Depressed by the loss of Duncan (a somewhat father like figure to him by that point) and the other BFF Wardens he mopes while the Silent MC recovers. Once the MC is good to go they decide to use the Grey Warden treaties that requests aid from the Dalish elves, Orzammar’s dwarves, and the Circle of Magi, they also agree to visit Arl Eamon and ask for assistance from him as well since his armies never made it to Ostagar in time and therefore are still alive. But first they’ll have to go to Lothering, a nearby farm village, to recover and plan further. To get out of the Wilds and for general assistance Morrigan’s mother forces Morrigan (an apostate and a HUGE Templar no-no.) to tag along to be an ally and guide.
Alistair disapproves (-5).
[Note: From here on out the choices made by the Silent MC determine everything in the game. Since there are several path options, I’ll be sticking to the one (unless a canonmate pops up then this will all possibly be subject to change). Otherwise, here is a link that will explain some of the other options I might not be including. DA:O Wikia general lists of everything - see quests. From this link you can go to specific quests which will list the other possible outcomes. Other than that - tremendous spoilers awaaaaay --]
Continuing on, on the way to Lothering they bump into Dog (or whatever you name it, I just name him Dog usually…) a Mabari war hound that Silent MC saved from the taint while in Ostagar. Alistair likes him right off the bat (d'aw puppies getting along) but Morrigan is against it. Needless to say the dog comes with them. Alistair: 1 Morrigan: 0 When the oddball group arrives in Lothering, word about the great defeat in Ostagar has already beaten them there. The word on the street isn’t so kind either. Teryn Loghain is claiming his retreat was the only way to save them against the Grey Wardens’ treachery and that the Grey Wardens killed King Cailan. Thus, the two remaining Grey Wardens have a great bounty on their heads. And there really isn’t anyone else still alive from Ostagar to say or prove otherwise. Well isn’t that just fabulous.
While in Lothering to gather information in the local, overcrowded due to a bajillion refugees pouring in, Tavern the group gets into some trouble with some of Loghain’s men. They fight. You win. But with the help of a … Chantry priestess? That doesn’t quite add up. The Chantry priestess introduces herself as Leliana and without any further word says she’s coming along to help stop the Blight because the Maker told her so in a dream. The group dubs her crazy but despite that Alistair can tell that even if she’s crazy she at least means well. Morrigan, however, is not entirely for the idea. But the MC says otherwise and Leliana joins the oddball cause. With that it’s back to hunting down info and scavenging the town for items as well as sidequests to make some pocket change. But as the group carries on they find a Qunari warrior stuck in a cage. Let’s investigate! The Qunari calls himself Sten and is very content with dying of starvation for his crimes. But that’s a fine looking ally right there! Let’s not have him go to waste. With a little nudging toward the Revered Mother of Lothering who put him there, the group drags Sten along as well despite the Revered Mother’s warnings that he murdered an entire family for no damn reason. And they were calling Leliana crazy. Alistair has his doubts that having a spontaneous murderer with them is such a great idea. Oh well Alistair, maybe they’ll listen to you next time.
With Lothering scavenged the group heads out to their first destination: Redcliffe village, to ask for assistance from Arl Eamon. But rumor has it that the Arl is ill and his knights have been sent on a goose chase for a possibly imaginary cure. That’s not good, and it has Alistair worried.
Ooooh. But about that. Um. Hmn. As the group enters Redcliffe Alistair requests a moment to speak to the MC and finally spills the beans about his awesome heritage that he despises so greatly. You know, just in case it should come up while they’re with the Arl. He claims he meant to say something sooner but where was the time with the battle and the grief and the beating up soldiers?
Suspicions about the Arl’s condition prove true. Definitely not good. To top it off Redcliffe Village has had no word from the castle and there are ghoulies coming out of the castle and attacking the Village every night and the population is dropping to say the least. The only reason they have survived three nights is because of the help from Bann Teagan, Arl Eamon’s younger brother, who came to Redcliffe to check on his ill brother. Teagan and Alistair play a short lived catch-up and Teagan asks for aid from the group. The MC agrees much to Alistair’s relief.
That night the group helps aid the town from the ghoulies with a few casualties here and there and the next day they plan to find a way into the castle to see what is going on in there. Before they get the chance Lady Isolde comes rushing down from the road leading to the castle. Ah. Awkwaaard. But she seems distressed and she immediately begins to plead that Teagan come back into the castle with her alone because some Blood mage (Bad type of magic with awesome power - very frowned on) has caused some hocus pocus, poisoned the Arl, is now causing the ghoulies, and has made Connor (Lady Isolde and Arl Eamon’s only son) to act funny. Teagan agrees to go and tells the group of a hidden passage into the castle before he departs with Isolde.
On the way into the castle the group waltzes into the dungeon area where low and behold the Blood mage is being held captive. The group interrogates him and he explains that he was hired by Loghain to act as Connor’s magic tutor and poison the Arl but had nothing to do with Connor acting funny or the ghoulies. Wait a minute. Connor’s magic tutor? Connor’s a mage? (Mages are all watched over and supervised by the Chantry since they can be incredibly harmful to others and themselves, any who oppose the Chantry are called apostates and killed by Templars, which as we all recall Alistair was training to become.) Even Alistair is surprised and had no idea, in fact even the Arl didn’t know, the mage was entirely Isolde’s request to Loghain. The MC leaves Jowan in his cell in case he proves useful later and carries on.
Once in the main hall of the castle the group finds Connor, Isolde, and Teagan. But for some reason Teagan is… dancing? Okaaay. Connor also doesn’t sound too fabulous and it appears he’s being possessed by a demon of the Fade (Dream land/afterlife if you will, it possesses good spirits and bad. The bad want out and try to possess people by making a lot of deals and the good don’t give a damn and tend to mind their own business). Connor flees and Teagan is back in his right mind and the group ponders on an action to save Connor. They drag Jowan into the matter to get options. Most options looking grim the MC chooses to take a risk and go to the Circle of Magi for assistance in performing a ritual that will kill the Fade demon and not Connor.
Off to the Circle. They of course are also having difficulties because nothing can be easy. It seems there was a gate to the Fade torn open and all sorts of evil shiz is flying around. The Templars have retreated to the front hall and locked the doors leaving even the living trapped inside to terrible fates. Aren’t they heroic? The group offers to help save the Tower as well as the Senior Enchanter Irving from the person in charge who seems to be a Senior Mage and a Blood magic user who lost a little control and is now possessed by a demon.
They don’t get too far in before they bump into a remaining group of sane mages, including Wynne the awesomest grandmotherly old lady ever. Wynne pretty much invites herself and the MC agrees. Thus begins the plowing through demons and corpses. Just before reaching the top they encounter a Sloth demon who puts the whole group to sleep with NO trouble at ALL and the party members are all tossed into the Fade. While there, Alistair is taken into believe that a spirit is his never before met half-sister (on his supposed mother’s side) Goldanna. He doesn’t question it for a moment and buys into it right away. But the MC has to just ruin it and finds their way to Alistair to try and snap him out of it. It doesn’t work at first and Alistair chooses not to believe the MC, much too pleased with finally having a family surrounding him. The MC beats up Spirit!Goldanna and Alistair sees things as they really are. Before anymore conversation can happen Alistair is whisked away and the next thing he knows he’s standing in front of the real Sloth demon. They fight. You win. And now as the group reenters reality they now have a fancy piece of paper that can dispel some of Blood magic’s worst spells or something like that.
On the top floor, because where else would a boss be, the group fights Uldred, the crazed Blood mage, and win. Irving is rescued and brought to the Templars who are surprisingly glad to see him. Well that’s new, since when are Templars glad to see a mage? Any matter the Circle of Magi agrees to honor their treaty and also sends a group of mages to Redcliffe to help Connor right away.
Back to Redcliffe they go. But on the way they are stopped by a band of assassins. They fight. You win. The leader of the group of assassins is tied up for questioning, but there’s no need for questioning since he eagerly spills all the details. His name is Zevran and he was hired by Loghain to kill the Wardens. Go figure. With that he asks for his life by accompanying and assisting the Warden. The MC agrees and Zevran joins the group. Alistair disapproves to say the least. Really? First a spontaneous murderer, now an assassin? Totally sleeping with one eye open and then some.
They get to Redcliffe and the ritual is performed and Connor is saved. Jowan on the other hand awaits trial by the Arl. Alistair is extremely grateful and relieved. Family is family, no matter how you twist it up. Speaking of, that locket Alistair smashed before he went to the Chantry as a kid? Turns out the Arl pieced it back together for him and was more than likely meaning to give it back to Alistair while he was in the Chantry but Alistair was one of those angry teenagers and always ignored the Arl when he came to visit. Feel bad Alistair, feel bad. Continuing on though, now they have to save the Arl from his illness which requires going on a goose chase for the Urn of Sacred Ashes, in other words some dead chick’s dust. Their only clue is to head to the capital of Denerim and ask Brother Genetivi who has been studying the Urn for assistance.
The group takes a detour, however, and heads to a relatively nearby Dalish Camp for their treaty. They need help of course due to werewolves. Great, more beasties. The group fights the werewolves, find out that the Keeper or leader of the Dalish tribe was actually the one who made the werewolves… well, werewolves. Get him to commit suicide and end the werewolf curse. Lanaya, the apprentice Keeper and now Keeper, agrees to uphold their treaty to the Grey Wardens. Two down, two to go.
Now it is time to investigate the Urn of Sacred Ashes. While in Denerim Alistair asks to make another slight detour and track down Goldanna, that half-sister of his, who is living in Denerim. He’s never met her and only recently found out she even existed so he’s eager to meet his last remaining family. The MC agrees and it is an absolute disaster. She’s a complete money grubbing bitch and wants nothing to do with Alistair unless there is something in it for her. After the meeting Alistair is in shock that he could possibly be related to … that. The MC might as well kick him in the balls and reminds him that everyone is out for themselves, and he needs to learn that or be walked on the rest of his life. (This is actually an important dialogue for Alistair and this particular dialogue choice with the Warden changes his personality a tinge by the end of the game - the game calls this path choice “hardened”) Alistair takes this to heart.
Anyways, back to the Urn. The group succeeds in their task (cutting a long story short here by at least 2 pages) and obtain the Ashes but not without being tested and nearly bitten by a High Dragon. Yikes. They return to Redcliffe and the magic dust does the trick and cures the Arl. Alistair is glad about that. Arl Eamon is then briefed of all the occurrences since his illness. After being briefed he decides to call a Landsmeet of all the nobility once all the treaties are sorted out so they can then figure out who will be the next King since Loghain has since placed himself as Regent to Anora, Cailan’s widow and Loghain’s daughter. Immediately, Arl Eamon brings up the idea of Alistair being the next King. Wait. What? First they tell him all his life the throne will never be his and treat him poorly because of it and now they want him to be King? Well that’s a little messed up and the idea of so much responsibility isn’t an idea Alistair is fond of but he’s a whipped little puppy and won’t argue against Arl Eamon. Besides, nothing is final yet.
The group heads to the last treaty in Orzammar the city of dwarves but they are apparently in chaos debating over a new King. (They don’t have the same King as Ferelden yet are still in Ferelden… it’s confusing but, just go along with it I guess) With the group’s help a new King is chosen, Bhelen who is late King Endrin’s third son, after bending over backwards to help him out. Along the way you even get a slobbering drunken dwarf in your party named Oghren. Alistair is indifferent and a little jealous that the dwarf gets to walk around/fight drunk and Alistair can’t.
Treaties collected it’s off to the Landsmeet. Before it can even begin, however, it seems Queen Anora is being held hostage by Loghain’s right hand man, Arl Howe. The MC + group is off to save the day. The Queen is saved and therefore prevents Loghain from placing blame of her possible death on Arl Eamon or the Wardens. Jerkface. Even so, Alistair still doesn’t really trust Anora because she thinks far too much like her father and he is beginning to sloooowly adjust to the idea of being King. Also while they were rescuing the Queen they bumped into a Grey Warden from Orlais, Riordan, who was also being held captive. Riordan has been in the Wardens as long as Duncan and therefore is senior like and knowledgeable about Grey Warden stuff like how to even kill the bloody Archdemon. I’m getting ahead of myself though and there’s work to be done still to win the nobles’ favor before the Landsmeet. The Elven Alienage has gone mad and Queen Anora urges an investigation. Off they go.
The Elven Alienage in Denerim is saved, because you’re the good guys and that’s what you do. Save kittens and things.
The Landsmeet happens and with all the evidence against Loghain the MC wins the nobles’ favor and Alistair is selected to be King despite Anora’s dismay. Riordan, however, is a heart-jerker and offers Loghain a spot as a Grey Warden. No. Hell. No. Alistair does NOT agree by any means and when the MC considers it he threatens to leave. Okay, okay, we won’t let him join, don’t throw a tantrum Alistair. Instead, Loghain is killed by the MC. ‘Bout time.
Before Alistair takes the crown there is still the Blight to deal with, and Anora isn’t standing down from her position as Queen. So Alistair, intelligently enough, has her put away for the time being and should he fall in battle then she’ll get the crown. In the mean time until the Blight is finished, he sets Arl Eamon as Regent to Ferelden. The next step is to head to Redcliffe and prepare to fight the hoard.
But he won’t get there, instead he’ll be in Luceti. Awe, shucks.
Personality: Alistair is your classical hero type, comic relief, and often compared to a puppy or even a kicked puppy at times.
He is probably the most childish ally within your party, even making Dog seem more mature - and he’s a dog. But he does get just as excited as puppies do and he can also be just as ignorant. Alistair will also pout at times, grumble and even whine like children often do. He’s also got this thing for little figurines, like little boys and their action figures. Also like a kid, responsibility isn’t his thing. He’s very against the idea of leading or being requested to make decisions. He likes to follow and he’s very good at it. Having been told what to do all his life and never getting the opportunity to argue otherwise was probably what made him that way. However, this can change if he goes through with the “hardened” trait. If so (and as I stated in the history, this is what I’m sticking to), by the end of the game and even by the time of the Landsmeet he is much more fond of the idea of leading, standing up for himself, and making his own decisions for a change.
Despite that though, he still never disobeys orders and is as loyal as they can come. You want him to run up to some Alpha Genlock while running through a maze of traps then he is your guy. Game play failures aside, he really will stick around no matter what the Warden MC does. While others may depart the party due to different views, Alistair is there for the long run because in the end, killing that nasty Archdemon is his duty as a Grey Warden. (And only Loghain can get in his way, but that’s because of Loghain and not the MC)
Being a Grey Warden is a big deal for him. He is extremely proud to be one. He truly believes Duncan saved him from his awful fate within the Chantry as a Templar and in that sense feels rather indebted to him. Not to mention, Alistair never felt like he belonged anywhere until he joined the Wardens. The Wardens, to him, were family and the closest to family he had ever really gotten. It is probably because family has always managed to elude him so he is very fond of the idea, like his eagerness to meet Goldanna. Other than the concept of family, however, he isn’t too much of a fan of his own heritage. It has always been a hindrance to him and has caused him to hate it. Which is another reason why he wanted to meet Goldanna, she was the only family member he knew of that wasn’t involved in any royalty nonsense.
Talking is one of his fortes, not necessarily for quality but quantity. He tends to lack a filter, if you will, and often speaks whatever is on his mind before thinking it through. This leads to him stating the obvious a lot, asking ignorant questions ("Why do they call it a 'brothel?' There's no broth. Or is there?"), making random comments and remarks, and socializing with party members even when they don’t really want to socialize back. In that sense he’s very stubborn. He’ll try and get the truth out of them even if it takes several tries, as he brings up the topic whenever he can. Most often, he’ll be the one to instigate conversations with the other allies, whether it be getting to know them or peculiar questions that have little to do with anything. But even though he is tremendously vocal there are some things he does not like to talk about. Whenever that comes up he’ll eagerly change the subject and talk about something that has nothing to do with the original topic. The most commonly known example of this has to do with lampposts…
Alistair is a rather manly man who cries manly tears. He certainly wears his emotions on his sleeve, much like with his speech habits. During a great deal of the game even a slight mentioning of Duncan and the other deceased Grey Wardens will set him off into sniffles and those manly tears. He has no shame in admitting these weaknesses either. In fact, he encourages it and often frowns on those who act tough and don’t admit their fears. He’s also very protective. He often admits that perhaps if he was in the battle with Duncan he could have shielded him from something or had made something of a difference.
He’s a bit on the sarcastic side and doesn’t mind making fun of a situation or even himself. It’s his way of coping, maybe. Or it could just be his way of lightening the mood even in the worst of circumstances. But even when he mocks himself, he doesn’t really appreciate others doing it for him. He’s well aware a lot of people think of him as an idiot, there’s no need to point it out or rub it in because he really won’t appreciate it. Also, being called cute. Guys don’t like being called cute.
Since he was a Templar, he’s also built a bizarre dislike for mages. It’s not the most dominant issue with him and he often doesn’t judge right off the bat but their abilities is something he is at least wary of. Also with the Templar training, as he puts it, was being taught how to be a “gentleman” so commonly his behavior and demeanor toward others is rather polite and kind. Though not always… Even so gentlemanly or otherwise, his hygiene is pretty bad. More than once other people complain and comment about his lack of hygiene. But at least he shaves, which is more than what can be said of Oghren.
He’s not the best cook, as he readily admits at the start of the game. And his alcohol tolerance is pretty low as well. Supposedly it only takes him about a half pint before he gets all red and giggly. He still likes drinking though and is often jealous that Oghren gets to drink to his heart’s content at any time he wishes and Alistair can’t.
Ally wise, it’s a pretty decent 50/50 split between like/neutral and dislike/neutral. His favorite other party member is by far, the mage Wynne. Besides being all grandmotherly, he likes her morals and appreciates her care and wisdom she bestows upon others. She looks out for him as well and never fails to remind him and the Warden MC of the importance of their task. Wynne is probably the one character he is most childish with, truly acting like a grandson with their grandmother as he asks Wynne to mend his shirts and tend to his ouchies to make them all better.
Leliana is also one of the other members he likes. He thinks she’s a little strange, what with that vision nonsense and all, but he also believes she’s got a good heart and knows right from wrong and is just generally a good person. They also have at least a little in common what with both having lived in the Chantry for some time even though Leliana enjoyed it and Alistair despised it.
More along the neutral side is a combination of Sten, Oghren, and Zevran. So basically, all the other males in the group.
Sten is a little intimidating to say the least and Alistair is never one to try and REALLY piss him off. He will poke fun though. Sten is ridiculously quiet and only speaks whatever is necessary and nothing more than that. Silence isn’t really Alistair’s thing so he’ll often try and get Sten to open up and just talk or dabble in conversations in general.
Oghren is … a handful. Even though he’s a little jealous of his excessive amount of drinking, he’s otherwise rather neutral with him. Although Oghren calls him little pike twirler, for whenever Alistair tries “practicing” while at camp. Oghren also tends to talk about things that makes Alistair feel a little uncomfortable and embarrassed. Like I said, a handful.
But that can also be said about Zevran, one who also possesses no filter or consideration on embarrassing topics. At first, Alistair is very uneasy about Zevran. But who can blame him? He’s an assassin that was sent to KILL the Wardens and now he’s parading around with them? Pretty sure anyone would be uneasy in that situation. He does warm up to Zevran though and eventually is rather neutral with him. Alistair knows, however, that Zevran isn’t really telling them everything and often tries to pry the truth from him with little success.
And then. Morrigan. Alistair HATES her. See? Behold that emphasis. The two do not get along by any means. Besides being an apostate, that big Templar no-no, she’s just an outright bitch a lot of the time. Usually anytime they do speak it is in quarrels and mockery, often against his intelligence. There’s just seriously something about her, that even he isn’t all that sure of, that irks him to no end. He really doesn’t trust her and after the first few conversation attempts he just tries to not speak with her. At times and given certain scenarios he’ll just tell her to outright Shut up. You go, good sir.
Oh. And Dog. Well. They’re like two puppies put in a small space for hours and hours together. They get along and they don’t get along. Alistair enjoys mocking the Dog though, and his intelligence. Probably because Dog is the only party member with a clearly established lower IQ.
Strengths:
Physical:
- Sword and shield user in combat
- High defense
- Able to subdue mages and magic with Templar skills~
Emotional/Mental: (Many of them bleed over...)
- He doesn't mind admitting he's frightened or worried or ... anything. He's very open about almost anything about himself, almost. This can also be bad.
- He's rather friendly with most everyone. Unless you're Morrigan. He's one of those good guys that tries to find the best in everyone.
- His humor can make you smile sometimes, even if it is poorly placed occasionally while in grim situations
- He has a very strong grasp of right and wrong as well as good and evil, if you will
- His constant questions can be annoying, but at least he's learning and he's also aware of how stupid people think he is
- A devoted friend and ally, even if he haaaaaaaates your guts (Morrigaaaaaaan), he'll bite his lip and do what's best for the overall outcome and team
- He is a very devoted Grey Warden, there is very little that will deter him from his duties (Hah, Loghain - but there are ways around this). It’s why he won’t, for the most part, abandon the Warden no matter what their choices may be.
- Even though he may pout and whine he’ll still do what he’s told
- He’s decently educated because of being in the Chantry, which is more than some in Thedas can say.
- He’ll try to make the best of most situations, whether he’s cracking a joke, or just trying to get along with the other party members
Weaknesses:
Physical:
- He's a Grey Warden! Which means the taint is killing him slowly. 20 to 30 years left maximum
--- Also means he will perform his duties as such no matter what - death or otherwise
- Even with his Templar AWESOME skills his resistance to magic isn't THAAAAAT big
- He isn't the strongest with the sword and doesn't manage the most damage in the group, but his defense makes up for it
Emotional/Mental: (Again, bleed over with many of them…)
- He holds a TREMENDOUS amount of regret concerning Duncan's death. He's convinced that maybe if he was on the front lines with the other Wardens he could have shielded him or something
- He doesn't really think before he speaks and sometimes says some pretty Captain Obvious things which don't really help people think he’s all that smart
- He's childish and does pout, complain, cry MANLY tears in the open, and whine. This can get annoying.
- He can sometimes wear his heart on his sleeve and is greatly affected when someone he cares for dies. Example: He mopes about Duncan's death at LEAST the first quarter of the game. And when you gift him Duncan's shield he starts sniffling all over again.
- He's a little easily flustered and has quite the ... innocent mind for a dude his age. This can lead to awkward conversations and just embarrassment for him.
- Ignorant to boot. AND gullible to Fade spirits.
- He doesn't like being mocked which makes him pout and disapprove things (which is a bitch in game :|)
- He can talk a lot. And it's not always something worth listening to. With that he also dodges questions he doesn't like with some odd humor of his which is frustrating to say the least
- Not the best cook
- Bad hygiene
Name: Alex
Livejournal Username: radura
E-mail: radura.voce@gmail[dot]com
AIM : RaduraSottoVoce
Current Characters at Luceti: Rita Mordio // Tales of Vesperia // ritacule
Character
Name: Alistair Theirin
Fandom: Dragon Age: Origins
Gender: Male
Age: Specifics unknown - assumption Early Twenties
Time Period: Just after the Landsmeet
Wing Color: GREY
History: Alistair’s past is mostly very straight-forward and decently explained, if not over explained. He’s a bastard to say the least, his mother was a servant in Redcliffe’s castle in service to Arl Eamon and more importantly, his father was the legendary King Maric Theirin. Which, yes. Makes him an heir to the throne (For the majority of the game and pretty much his entire life he has HATED his blood connections and the difficulties with it.). After Alistair was born, however, his mother died and because of his illegitimacy, Arl Eamon offered to raise him and keep his birth unknown to the public so as to let Cailan, Maric’s only legitimate son to Queen Rowan and technically Alistair’s elder half-brother, could take his father’s throne without any challenge or difficulty.
Like I said, pretty straight forward right? Right. Well, there’s a catch. The book “The Calling” raises the suspicion of Alistair coming from slightly different backgrounds. This book would have you believe that Alistair’s mother was an Elven Mage within the Grey Wardens, Fiona. This Fiona had a lovely fling with Maric and had a child. She tossed up the child to Maric, telling him that the baby must be told his mother was human and that she is now dead. After that Fiona went to chill in Weisshapt and isn’t heard about again. This CAN explain a few things about Alistair, yet leaves a lot more up in the air. For one, Goldanna’s story from when she was a child when her mother died from child birth. Although, maybe Maric really just got around. Who knows? But there is a chance Alistair’s just been reiterated a lie all his life to go about his mother’s wishes.
Is it canon? Well, let’s just say it’s a possibility so the explanation is there. Just in case.
Don’t be fooled about his ties to royalty though, Alistair wasn’t exactly treated like a prince or anything. No, he slept in the stables with ponies and dogs, ate with the servants and for the most part was treated like every other orphan servant within the Arl’s castle. Eventually the Arl married a lady from Orlais, (a country that had previously enslaved their country, Ferelden, for eighty some-odd years less than two decades prior - thus tension) and to put it simply, Lady Isolde didn’t like Alistair. So with most likely a great deal of nudging from Lady Isolde, Arl Eamon sent Alistair to the Chantry (Monotheistic religion that rules the world, secretly) when he was ten to become a Templar (an armed force meant to watch over and subdue crazed mages/apostates in the name of the Maker/God). Alistair seriously hated this and felt betrayed by the Arl. In his childish tantrum against this idea Alistair tossed the only memoir of his mother, a locket, at the wall and … well, it broke. Nice going, kiddo.
For the next ten or so years Alistair stayed in the Chantry and went through with Templar training. While there he didn’t really fit in that well. Most Templars were either orphans who had nowhere else to go or children of Nobility and Alistair didn’t really fit in with either and was often the oddball out. Poor thing. Anyways! Before he could make his vows and become a full-fledged, Lyrium addicted Templar, Duncan the leader of Ferelden’s Grey Warden order stopped by to hunt down recruits for fear of an oncoming Blight (Blight in this case means the appearance of Darkspawn, humanoid mindless monsters that twist everything they touch and kill anything in their way. A Blight also means the appearance of an Arch Demon, the leader of all Darkspawn and supposedly the soul of an ancient God twisted by the tainted Darkspawn blood and their once humane desires of greed). Alistair must have looked like one seriously kicked puppy because Duncan tried recruiting him right away. But the Revered Mother would have none of that and probably would have brawled with Duncan if she could to keep Alistair in the Chantry just because. So Duncan conscripted Alistair which means he gets dibs no matter what the law says or others wish. And so Alistair was recruited into the Grey Wardens.
For the Grey Wardens, however, you can’t just be recruited to join their ranks. You have to pass the Joining ritual by consuming Darkspawn blood, (Meaning: Drink AIDs! Become a Grey Warden! Some side effects include but are not limited to: Really bad trips with gibberish talking dragons, Darkspawn spotting, overeating, obligations to a lost cause, becoming possibly sterile, and ultimately death! Go through the Joining now! What are you waiting for? Gryphons no longer included. Some restrictions may apply.) which much like all other aspects of the Grey Wardens is highly secretive, but for good reason. Alistair passes the Joining ritual, luckily, along with one other recruit. Sadly though, a third recruit fails the ritual which essentially means death or transformation into an evil Darkspawn minion. (Darkspawn Chronicles Heeeyooooo~)
Once a Grey Warden Alistair is immediately accepted by his fellow Grey Wardens, for likely the first time ever. He loves his new oddball family and doesn’t regret leaving the Chantry at all. But, Duncan requests he keep up his Templar learned talents since Darkspawn use magic just as mages do and that’s what Templars do - foil magic users.
Six months later King Cailan (Maric died 5 years prior) calls for every army available in Ferelden, as well as the Grey Wardens of Ferelden and Orlais to fight against the Blight in one big showdown at the ruins of Ostagar. Alistair and the other Grey Wardens head there first while Duncan runs amok looking for more recruits. When Duncan returns with the three newest recruits, including the Silent MC, Alistair is instructed to assist them in preparing for the Joining (Gathering Darkspawn blood) and collecting some forgotten Grey Warden treaties in an old fort. When the group of oddballs get to the old Grey Warden fort the important treaties are nowhere to be found, but some half naked “sneaky witch thief” struts around questioning them in its place. Alistair already doesn’t trust the woman who introduces herself as Morrigan and discourages the Silent MC from trusting her. But pfft, no one listens to Alistair. Surprisingly though Alistair is proved wrong this one instance about Morrigan and she leads them to her mother who graciously returns the treaties without any argument despite the groups’ rude accusations. Treaties and blood collected it’s time for another Joining for the 3 noobies. This Joining, however, proves much more fatal than his own and only the Silent MC survives. (In the Darkspawn Chronicles Ex. Pack none of them survive. Hah! Although, because it is an AU Ex. Pack it will not be taken as canon or seriously.) There’s no time to rest, however, and the time has come for the great battle. King Cailan, the Grey Wardens, and Teryn Loghain Mac Tir, a very close friend to the late King Maric and for the most part King Cailan’s advisor, have devised a strategy that Cailan and the Grey Wardens rush into battle on the front and the Teryn’s forces charge in from the rear after receiving a signal from the Tower of Ishal within Ostagar.
Who better to set off a boring signal than the Silent MC and Alistair! If you cannot guess, Alistair wanted to be in the battle but reluctantly agrees to Cailan’s wishes but not without a few groans of protest. When the battle begins, Alistair and the Silent MC head to the Tower but somehow the Darkspawn managed to sneak by the enormous front line and plant a bloody ton of them in the Tower and have taken it over. Not good. Time to put on the heroic cape and almost singlehandedly save the day.
Alistair, the Silent MC and 2 unfortunate guards retrieve the Tower of Ishal from Darkspawn clutches and light the signal for Loghain to advance. Soon after though, their position atop the Tower is forfeit and the Darkspawn ambush them, knocking out the party.
The next thing Alistair knows he’s in the Kocari Wilds by Ostagar with Morrigan and her ancient mother being told that all his Grey Warden BFFs, King Cailan and his armies were all butchered by Darkspawn after Loghain’s men chose to retreat from the battlefield, refusing necessary aid. To top it all off only Alistair and the Silent MC survived thanks to their convenient location (and apparently a few mages since Wynne and Uldred, mages who fought at Ostagar, reappear). What the hell are those odds of that?
Depressed by the loss of Duncan (a somewhat father like figure to him by that point) and the other BFF Wardens he mopes while the Silent MC recovers. Once the MC is good to go they decide to use the Grey Warden treaties that requests aid from the Dalish elves, Orzammar’s dwarves, and the Circle of Magi, they also agree to visit Arl Eamon and ask for assistance from him as well since his armies never made it to Ostagar in time and therefore are still alive. But first they’ll have to go to Lothering, a nearby farm village, to recover and plan further. To get out of the Wilds and for general assistance Morrigan’s mother forces Morrigan (an apostate and a HUGE Templar no-no.) to tag along to be an ally and guide.
Alistair disapproves (-5).
[Note: From here on out the choices made by the Silent MC determine everything in the game. Since there are several path options, I’ll be sticking to the one (unless a canonmate pops up then this will all possibly be subject to change). Otherwise, here is a link that will explain some of the other options I might not be including. DA:O Wikia general lists of everything - see quests. From this link you can go to specific quests which will list the other possible outcomes. Other than that - tremendous spoilers awaaaaay --]
Continuing on, on the way to Lothering they bump into Dog (or whatever you name it, I just name him Dog usually…) a Mabari war hound that Silent MC saved from the taint while in Ostagar. Alistair likes him right off the bat (d'aw puppies getting along) but Morrigan is against it. Needless to say the dog comes with them. Alistair: 1 Morrigan: 0 When the oddball group arrives in Lothering, word about the great defeat in Ostagar has already beaten them there. The word on the street isn’t so kind either. Teryn Loghain is claiming his retreat was the only way to save them against the Grey Wardens’ treachery and that the Grey Wardens killed King Cailan. Thus, the two remaining Grey Wardens have a great bounty on their heads. And there really isn’t anyone else still alive from Ostagar to say or prove otherwise. Well isn’t that just fabulous.
While in Lothering to gather information in the local, overcrowded due to a bajillion refugees pouring in, Tavern the group gets into some trouble with some of Loghain’s men. They fight. You win. But with the help of a … Chantry priestess? That doesn’t quite add up. The Chantry priestess introduces herself as Leliana and without any further word says she’s coming along to help stop the Blight because the Maker told her so in a dream. The group dubs her crazy but despite that Alistair can tell that even if she’s crazy she at least means well. Morrigan, however, is not entirely for the idea. But the MC says otherwise and Leliana joins the oddball cause. With that it’s back to hunting down info and scavenging the town for items as well as sidequests to make some pocket change. But as the group carries on they find a Qunari warrior stuck in a cage. Let’s investigate! The Qunari calls himself Sten and is very content with dying of starvation for his crimes. But that’s a fine looking ally right there! Let’s not have him go to waste. With a little nudging toward the Revered Mother of Lothering who put him there, the group drags Sten along as well despite the Revered Mother’s warnings that he murdered an entire family for no damn reason. And they were calling Leliana crazy. Alistair has his doubts that having a spontaneous murderer with them is such a great idea. Oh well Alistair, maybe they’ll listen to you next time.
With Lothering scavenged the group heads out to their first destination: Redcliffe village, to ask for assistance from Arl Eamon. But rumor has it that the Arl is ill and his knights have been sent on a goose chase for a possibly imaginary cure. That’s not good, and it has Alistair worried.
Ooooh. But about that. Um. Hmn. As the group enters Redcliffe Alistair requests a moment to speak to the MC and finally spills the beans about his awesome heritage that he despises so greatly. You know, just in case it should come up while they’re with the Arl. He claims he meant to say something sooner but where was the time with the battle and the grief and the beating up soldiers?
Suspicions about the Arl’s condition prove true. Definitely not good. To top it off Redcliffe Village has had no word from the castle and there are ghoulies coming out of the castle and attacking the Village every night and the population is dropping to say the least. The only reason they have survived three nights is because of the help from Bann Teagan, Arl Eamon’s younger brother, who came to Redcliffe to check on his ill brother. Teagan and Alistair play a short lived catch-up and Teagan asks for aid from the group. The MC agrees much to Alistair’s relief.
That night the group helps aid the town from the ghoulies with a few casualties here and there and the next day they plan to find a way into the castle to see what is going on in there. Before they get the chance Lady Isolde comes rushing down from the road leading to the castle. Ah. Awkwaaard. But she seems distressed and she immediately begins to plead that Teagan come back into the castle with her alone because some Blood mage (Bad type of magic with awesome power - very frowned on) has caused some hocus pocus, poisoned the Arl, is now causing the ghoulies, and has made Connor (Lady Isolde and Arl Eamon’s only son) to act funny. Teagan agrees to go and tells the group of a hidden passage into the castle before he departs with Isolde.
On the way into the castle the group waltzes into the dungeon area where low and behold the Blood mage is being held captive. The group interrogates him and he explains that he was hired by Loghain to act as Connor’s magic tutor and poison the Arl but had nothing to do with Connor acting funny or the ghoulies. Wait a minute. Connor’s magic tutor? Connor’s a mage? (Mages are all watched over and supervised by the Chantry since they can be incredibly harmful to others and themselves, any who oppose the Chantry are called apostates and killed by Templars, which as we all recall Alistair was training to become.) Even Alistair is surprised and had no idea, in fact even the Arl didn’t know, the mage was entirely Isolde’s request to Loghain. The MC leaves Jowan in his cell in case he proves useful later and carries on.
Once in the main hall of the castle the group finds Connor, Isolde, and Teagan. But for some reason Teagan is… dancing? Okaaay. Connor also doesn’t sound too fabulous and it appears he’s being possessed by a demon of the Fade (Dream land/afterlife if you will, it possesses good spirits and bad. The bad want out and try to possess people by making a lot of deals and the good don’t give a damn and tend to mind their own business). Connor flees and Teagan is back in his right mind and the group ponders on an action to save Connor. They drag Jowan into the matter to get options. Most options looking grim the MC chooses to take a risk and go to the Circle of Magi for assistance in performing a ritual that will kill the Fade demon and not Connor.
Off to the Circle. They of course are also having difficulties because nothing can be easy. It seems there was a gate to the Fade torn open and all sorts of evil shiz is flying around. The Templars have retreated to the front hall and locked the doors leaving even the living trapped inside to terrible fates. Aren’t they heroic? The group offers to help save the Tower as well as the Senior Enchanter Irving from the person in charge who seems to be a Senior Mage and a Blood magic user who lost a little control and is now possessed by a demon.
They don’t get too far in before they bump into a remaining group of sane mages, including Wynne the awesomest grandmotherly old lady ever. Wynne pretty much invites herself and the MC agrees. Thus begins the plowing through demons and corpses. Just before reaching the top they encounter a Sloth demon who puts the whole group to sleep with NO trouble at ALL and the party members are all tossed into the Fade. While there, Alistair is taken into believe that a spirit is his never before met half-sister (on his supposed mother’s side) Goldanna. He doesn’t question it for a moment and buys into it right away. But the MC has to just ruin it and finds their way to Alistair to try and snap him out of it. It doesn’t work at first and Alistair chooses not to believe the MC, much too pleased with finally having a family surrounding him. The MC beats up Spirit!Goldanna and Alistair sees things as they really are. Before anymore conversation can happen Alistair is whisked away and the next thing he knows he’s standing in front of the real Sloth demon. They fight. You win. And now as the group reenters reality they now have a fancy piece of paper that can dispel some of Blood magic’s worst spells or something like that.
On the top floor, because where else would a boss be, the group fights Uldred, the crazed Blood mage, and win. Irving is rescued and brought to the Templars who are surprisingly glad to see him. Well that’s new, since when are Templars glad to see a mage? Any matter the Circle of Magi agrees to honor their treaty and also sends a group of mages to Redcliffe to help Connor right away.
Back to Redcliffe they go. But on the way they are stopped by a band of assassins. They fight. You win. The leader of the group of assassins is tied up for questioning, but there’s no need for questioning since he eagerly spills all the details. His name is Zevran and he was hired by Loghain to kill the Wardens. Go figure. With that he asks for his life by accompanying and assisting the Warden. The MC agrees and Zevran joins the group. Alistair disapproves to say the least. Really? First a spontaneous murderer, now an assassin? Totally sleeping with one eye open and then some.
They get to Redcliffe and the ritual is performed and Connor is saved. Jowan on the other hand awaits trial by the Arl. Alistair is extremely grateful and relieved. Family is family, no matter how you twist it up. Speaking of, that locket Alistair smashed before he went to the Chantry as a kid? Turns out the Arl pieced it back together for him and was more than likely meaning to give it back to Alistair while he was in the Chantry but Alistair was one of those angry teenagers and always ignored the Arl when he came to visit. Feel bad Alistair, feel bad. Continuing on though, now they have to save the Arl from his illness which requires going on a goose chase for the Urn of Sacred Ashes, in other words some dead chick’s dust. Their only clue is to head to the capital of Denerim and ask Brother Genetivi who has been studying the Urn for assistance.
The group takes a detour, however, and heads to a relatively nearby Dalish Camp for their treaty. They need help of course due to werewolves. Great, more beasties. The group fights the werewolves, find out that the Keeper or leader of the Dalish tribe was actually the one who made the werewolves… well, werewolves. Get him to commit suicide and end the werewolf curse. Lanaya, the apprentice Keeper and now Keeper, agrees to uphold their treaty to the Grey Wardens. Two down, two to go.
Now it is time to investigate the Urn of Sacred Ashes. While in Denerim Alistair asks to make another slight detour and track down Goldanna, that half-sister of his, who is living in Denerim. He’s never met her and only recently found out she even existed so he’s eager to meet his last remaining family. The MC agrees and it is an absolute disaster. She’s a complete money grubbing bitch and wants nothing to do with Alistair unless there is something in it for her. After the meeting Alistair is in shock that he could possibly be related to … that. The MC might as well kick him in the balls and reminds him that everyone is out for themselves, and he needs to learn that or be walked on the rest of his life. (This is actually an important dialogue for Alistair and this particular dialogue choice with the Warden changes his personality a tinge by the end of the game - the game calls this path choice “hardened”) Alistair takes this to heart.
Anyways, back to the Urn. The group succeeds in their task (cutting a long story short here by at least 2 pages) and obtain the Ashes but not without being tested and nearly bitten by a High Dragon. Yikes. They return to Redcliffe and the magic dust does the trick and cures the Arl. Alistair is glad about that. Arl Eamon is then briefed of all the occurrences since his illness. After being briefed he decides to call a Landsmeet of all the nobility once all the treaties are sorted out so they can then figure out who will be the next King since Loghain has since placed himself as Regent to Anora, Cailan’s widow and Loghain’s daughter. Immediately, Arl Eamon brings up the idea of Alistair being the next King. Wait. What? First they tell him all his life the throne will never be his and treat him poorly because of it and now they want him to be King? Well that’s a little messed up and the idea of so much responsibility isn’t an idea Alistair is fond of but he’s a whipped little puppy and won’t argue against Arl Eamon. Besides, nothing is final yet.
The group heads to the last treaty in Orzammar the city of dwarves but they are apparently in chaos debating over a new King. (They don’t have the same King as Ferelden yet are still in Ferelden… it’s confusing but, just go along with it I guess) With the group’s help a new King is chosen, Bhelen who is late King Endrin’s third son, after bending over backwards to help him out. Along the way you even get a slobbering drunken dwarf in your party named Oghren. Alistair is indifferent and a little jealous that the dwarf gets to walk around/fight drunk and Alistair can’t.
Treaties collected it’s off to the Landsmeet. Before it can even begin, however, it seems Queen Anora is being held hostage by Loghain’s right hand man, Arl Howe. The MC + group is off to save the day. The Queen is saved and therefore prevents Loghain from placing blame of her possible death on Arl Eamon or the Wardens. Jerkface. Even so, Alistair still doesn’t really trust Anora because she thinks far too much like her father and he is beginning to sloooowly adjust to the idea of being King. Also while they were rescuing the Queen they bumped into a Grey Warden from Orlais, Riordan, who was also being held captive. Riordan has been in the Wardens as long as Duncan and therefore is senior like and knowledgeable about Grey Warden stuff like how to even kill the bloody Archdemon. I’m getting ahead of myself though and there’s work to be done still to win the nobles’ favor before the Landsmeet. The Elven Alienage has gone mad and Queen Anora urges an investigation. Off they go.
The Elven Alienage in Denerim is saved, because you’re the good guys and that’s what you do. Save kittens and things.
The Landsmeet happens and with all the evidence against Loghain the MC wins the nobles’ favor and Alistair is selected to be King despite Anora’s dismay. Riordan, however, is a heart-jerker and offers Loghain a spot as a Grey Warden. No. Hell. No. Alistair does NOT agree by any means and when the MC considers it he threatens to leave. Okay, okay, we won’t let him join, don’t throw a tantrum Alistair. Instead, Loghain is killed by the MC. ‘Bout time.
Before Alistair takes the crown there is still the Blight to deal with, and Anora isn’t standing down from her position as Queen. So Alistair, intelligently enough, has her put away for the time being and should he fall in battle then she’ll get the crown. In the mean time until the Blight is finished, he sets Arl Eamon as Regent to Ferelden. The next step is to head to Redcliffe and prepare to fight the hoard.
But he won’t get there, instead he’ll be in Luceti. Awe, shucks.
Personality: Alistair is your classical hero type, comic relief, and often compared to a puppy or even a kicked puppy at times.
He is probably the most childish ally within your party, even making Dog seem more mature - and he’s a dog. But he does get just as excited as puppies do and he can also be just as ignorant. Alistair will also pout at times, grumble and even whine like children often do. He’s also got this thing for little figurines, like little boys and their action figures. Also like a kid, responsibility isn’t his thing. He’s very against the idea of leading or being requested to make decisions. He likes to follow and he’s very good at it. Having been told what to do all his life and never getting the opportunity to argue otherwise was probably what made him that way. However, this can change if he goes through with the “hardened” trait. If so (and as I stated in the history, this is what I’m sticking to), by the end of the game and even by the time of the Landsmeet he is much more fond of the idea of leading, standing up for himself, and making his own decisions for a change.
Despite that though, he still never disobeys orders and is as loyal as they can come. You want him to run up to some Alpha Genlock while running through a maze of traps then he is your guy. Game play failures aside, he really will stick around no matter what the Warden MC does. While others may depart the party due to different views, Alistair is there for the long run because in the end, killing that nasty Archdemon is his duty as a Grey Warden. (And only Loghain can get in his way, but that’s because of Loghain and not the MC)
Being a Grey Warden is a big deal for him. He is extremely proud to be one. He truly believes Duncan saved him from his awful fate within the Chantry as a Templar and in that sense feels rather indebted to him. Not to mention, Alistair never felt like he belonged anywhere until he joined the Wardens. The Wardens, to him, were family and the closest to family he had ever really gotten. It is probably because family has always managed to elude him so he is very fond of the idea, like his eagerness to meet Goldanna. Other than the concept of family, however, he isn’t too much of a fan of his own heritage. It has always been a hindrance to him and has caused him to hate it. Which is another reason why he wanted to meet Goldanna, she was the only family member he knew of that wasn’t involved in any royalty nonsense.
Talking is one of his fortes, not necessarily for quality but quantity. He tends to lack a filter, if you will, and often speaks whatever is on his mind before thinking it through. This leads to him stating the obvious a lot, asking ignorant questions ("Why do they call it a 'brothel?' There's no broth. Or is there?"), making random comments and remarks, and socializing with party members even when they don’t really want to socialize back. In that sense he’s very stubborn. He’ll try and get the truth out of them even if it takes several tries, as he brings up the topic whenever he can. Most often, he’ll be the one to instigate conversations with the other allies, whether it be getting to know them or peculiar questions that have little to do with anything. But even though he is tremendously vocal there are some things he does not like to talk about. Whenever that comes up he’ll eagerly change the subject and talk about something that has nothing to do with the original topic. The most commonly known example of this has to do with lampposts…
Alistair is a rather manly man who cries manly tears. He certainly wears his emotions on his sleeve, much like with his speech habits. During a great deal of the game even a slight mentioning of Duncan and the other deceased Grey Wardens will set him off into sniffles and those manly tears. He has no shame in admitting these weaknesses either. In fact, he encourages it and often frowns on those who act tough and don’t admit their fears. He’s also very protective. He often admits that perhaps if he was in the battle with Duncan he could have shielded him from something or had made something of a difference.
He’s a bit on the sarcastic side and doesn’t mind making fun of a situation or even himself. It’s his way of coping, maybe. Or it could just be his way of lightening the mood even in the worst of circumstances. But even when he mocks himself, he doesn’t really appreciate others doing it for him. He’s well aware a lot of people think of him as an idiot, there’s no need to point it out or rub it in because he really won’t appreciate it. Also, being called cute. Guys don’t like being called cute.
Since he was a Templar, he’s also built a bizarre dislike for mages. It’s not the most dominant issue with him and he often doesn’t judge right off the bat but their abilities is something he is at least wary of. Also with the Templar training, as he puts it, was being taught how to be a “gentleman” so commonly his behavior and demeanor toward others is rather polite and kind. Though not always… Even so gentlemanly or otherwise, his hygiene is pretty bad. More than once other people complain and comment about his lack of hygiene. But at least he shaves, which is more than what can be said of Oghren.
He’s not the best cook, as he readily admits at the start of the game. And his alcohol tolerance is pretty low as well. Supposedly it only takes him about a half pint before he gets all red and giggly. He still likes drinking though and is often jealous that Oghren gets to drink to his heart’s content at any time he wishes and Alistair can’t.
Ally wise, it’s a pretty decent 50/50 split between like/neutral and dislike/neutral. His favorite other party member is by far, the mage Wynne. Besides being all grandmotherly, he likes her morals and appreciates her care and wisdom she bestows upon others. She looks out for him as well and never fails to remind him and the Warden MC of the importance of their task. Wynne is probably the one character he is most childish with, truly acting like a grandson with their grandmother as he asks Wynne to mend his shirts and tend to his ouchies to make them all better.
Leliana is also one of the other members he likes. He thinks she’s a little strange, what with that vision nonsense and all, but he also believes she’s got a good heart and knows right from wrong and is just generally a good person. They also have at least a little in common what with both having lived in the Chantry for some time even though Leliana enjoyed it and Alistair despised it.
More along the neutral side is a combination of Sten, Oghren, and Zevran. So basically, all the other males in the group.
Sten is a little intimidating to say the least and Alistair is never one to try and REALLY piss him off. He will poke fun though. Sten is ridiculously quiet and only speaks whatever is necessary and nothing more than that. Silence isn’t really Alistair’s thing so he’ll often try and get Sten to open up and just talk or dabble in conversations in general.
Oghren is … a handful. Even though he’s a little jealous of his excessive amount of drinking, he’s otherwise rather neutral with him. Although Oghren calls him little pike twirler, for whenever Alistair tries “practicing” while at camp. Oghren also tends to talk about things that makes Alistair feel a little uncomfortable and embarrassed. Like I said, a handful.
But that can also be said about Zevran, one who also possesses no filter or consideration on embarrassing topics. At first, Alistair is very uneasy about Zevran. But who can blame him? He’s an assassin that was sent to KILL the Wardens and now he’s parading around with them? Pretty sure anyone would be uneasy in that situation. He does warm up to Zevran though and eventually is rather neutral with him. Alistair knows, however, that Zevran isn’t really telling them everything and often tries to pry the truth from him with little success.
And then. Morrigan. Alistair HATES her. See? Behold that emphasis. The two do not get along by any means. Besides being an apostate, that big Templar no-no, she’s just an outright bitch a lot of the time. Usually anytime they do speak it is in quarrels and mockery, often against his intelligence. There’s just seriously something about her, that even he isn’t all that sure of, that irks him to no end. He really doesn’t trust her and after the first few conversation attempts he just tries to not speak with her. At times and given certain scenarios he’ll just tell her to outright Shut up. You go, good sir.
Oh. And Dog. Well. They’re like two puppies put in a small space for hours and hours together. They get along and they don’t get along. Alistair enjoys mocking the Dog though, and his intelligence. Probably because Dog is the only party member with a clearly established lower IQ.
Strengths:
Physical:
- Sword and shield user in combat
- High defense
- Able to subdue mages and magic with Templar skills~
Emotional/Mental: (Many of them bleed over...)
- He doesn't mind admitting he's frightened or worried or ... anything. He's very open about almost anything about himself, almost. This can also be bad.
- He's rather friendly with most everyone. Unless you're Morrigan. He's one of those good guys that tries to find the best in everyone.
- His humor can make you smile sometimes, even if it is poorly placed occasionally while in grim situations
- He has a very strong grasp of right and wrong as well as good and evil, if you will
- His constant questions can be annoying, but at least he's learning and he's also aware of how stupid people think he is
- A devoted friend and ally, even if he haaaaaaaates your guts (Morrigaaaaaaan), he'll bite his lip and do what's best for the overall outcome and team
- He is a very devoted Grey Warden, there is very little that will deter him from his duties (Hah, Loghain - but there are ways around this). It’s why he won’t, for the most part, abandon the Warden no matter what their choices may be.
- Even though he may pout and whine he’ll still do what he’s told
- He’s decently educated because of being in the Chantry, which is more than some in Thedas can say.
- He’ll try to make the best of most situations, whether he’s cracking a joke, or just trying to get along with the other party members
Weaknesses:
Physical:
- He's a Grey Warden! Which means the taint is killing him slowly. 20 to 30 years left maximum
--- Also means he will perform his duties as such no matter what - death or otherwise
- Even with his Templar AWESOME skills his resistance to magic isn't THAAAAAT big
- He isn't the strongest with the sword and doesn't manage the most damage in the group, but his defense makes up for it
Emotional/Mental: (Again, bleed over with many of them…)
- He holds a TREMENDOUS amount of regret concerning Duncan's death. He's convinced that maybe if he was on the front lines with the other Wardens he could have shielded him or something
- He doesn't really think before he speaks and sometimes says some pretty Captain Obvious things which don't really help people think he’s all that smart
- He's childish and does pout, complain, cry MANLY tears in the open, and whine. This can get annoying.
- He can sometimes wear his heart on his sleeve and is greatly affected when someone he cares for dies. Example: He mopes about Duncan's death at LEAST the first quarter of the game. And when you gift him Duncan's shield he starts sniffling all over again.
- He's a little easily flustered and has quite the ... innocent mind for a dude his age. This can lead to awkward conversations and just embarrassment for him.
- Ignorant to boot. AND gullible to Fade spirits.
- He doesn't like being mocked which makes him pout and disapprove things (which is a bitch in game :|)
- He can talk a lot. And it's not always something worth listening to. With that he also dodges questions he doesn't like with some odd humor of his which is frustrating to say the least
- Not the best cook
- Bad hygiene