Marian Hawke (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
unyieldingly) wrote2013-01-23 09:19 pm
unyieldingly) wrote2013-01-23 09:19 pm
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Player Info
Name: Kal
OOC Journal:queensland
Over 18? Y
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onlydawn
Current characters: N/A
Character Info
Name: Marian Hawke
Canon: Dragon Age II
Age: 28
Canon/AU/CR AU: Canon
Reference: Hawke, Dragon Age II's storyline
History: Plot of DAII
Bullet points of how things go for the companions:
Prologue/Act I:
- Bethany dies defending Leandra Hawke from an ogre. Aveline gives her husband Wesley a mercy kill.
- Arriving in Kirkwall, Hawke decides to enlist with the Red Iron.
- Hawke meets all of her potential allies (companions) and all of the companion quests are completed. All of the companions are kept.
- The Starkhaven mages are freed, none of the Templars are killed.
- Feynriel is spared and is sent to live with the Dalish.
- Hawke betrays the Red Iron and kills Meeran.
- Keran is freed and allowed to stay in the Templar Order.
- Hawke meets the Arishok and discusses with him, at some length, about why he's in the city.
- Hawke makes an enemy of Sister Petrice but receives an amulet from the Saarebas named Ketojan.
- In the foundry district, Hawke investigates several missing women and finds the bones and ring of a woman thought to have run away. She befriends Ser Emeric and takes over for his investigation.
- Carver and Hawke find the will in the old estate that says their uncle Gamlen lied about their mother's inheritance.
- Hawke gives Carver letters of correspondence from their father to a Templar named Maurevar Carver.
- Hawke inherits the Bone Pit after killing several dragons and saving the remaining workers.
- Hawke has Fenris kill the Magistrate's son after he killed several elven children.
- The Viscount's son is rescued from the Winters.
- With enough coin, Hawke goes into the Deep Roads with Varric, Anders, and Carver. Infected with the Taint, Hawke chooses to save her brother's life by allowing Anders to help find a pack of Grey Wardens. Carver's taken, enlisted, and survives the Joining.
Act II:
- Three years later, Hawke has moved into the old Amell estate with her mother, Bodahn Feddic, his son Sandal, and her dog.
- Aveline asks Hawke to find Emeric and help him with the old investigation.
- Hawke helps Fenris escape slavers and kill Hadriana.
- Anders enlists Hawke's help to stop Ser Alric and his "Tranquil solution". She stops Anders from killing a mage afterward.
- Hawke goes with Merrill to the Dalish camp and helps her kill the Varterral, but does not give her the Erulin'holm. Merrill orders her to stay away.
- Varric asks for Hawke to help him kill Bartrand. Once realizing he's enraptured with the lyrium idol they found in the Deep Roads, they spare him and Varric puts him in an insane asylum.
- Hawke helps Aveline get over her fear and she ends up falling for Guardsman Donnic.
- Sebastian and Hawke investigate the estate of his family's killers and put an end to them.
- Feynriel is saved from the Fade and he leaves to go to Tevinter. Isabela succumbs to the Desire Demon and Fenris to the Pride Demon, though both survive the encounter and apologize.
- An elven woman tries to steal gunpowder from the Qunari and takes poison instead. She's killed by Hawke's group.
- Investigating the missing women again, Hawke meets Gascard DuPuis, who claims he's helping the investigation, though he's a mage and is practicing what appears to be blood magic.
- Emeric is lured into a trap and killed.
- Leandra Hawke disappears. Hawke follows her trail, and Gascard, to find that she's been taken like all of the other women. Varric kills Gascard for conspiring with the kidnapper, who is also a blood mage. Leandra Hawke is dead, pieced together with other women, because of a man named Quentin. Hawke kills Quentin and holds her mother as she dies. A note left by someone named "O" is discovered.
- Sister Petrice tries to have Hawke killed for her "sympathetic view" to the Qunari. She is killed, in turn, by a Qunari archer...but not before the Viscount's son Saemus is murdered.
- Isabela reveals she knows why the Qunari are still in Kirkwall. Hawke urges her to save herself before they find her and Isabela runs off with the Tome of Koslun, an artifact she stole from the Qunari.
- The Qunari, cornered by Aveline and without the Tome, storm Kirkwall and begin executing the masses. Hawke is helped by a group of Wardens and sees Carver again.
- Hawke meets Knight-Commander Meredith and First Enchanter Orsino.
- Orsino provides a distraction while Hawke gets into the Keep to fight the Qunari. Isabela comes back to help. The Arishok duels Hawke for Isabela and Hawke wins, becoming Champion of Kirkwall.
Legacy DLC:
- Party of Fenris, Varric, and Anders.
- Sided with Larius to kill Corypheus.
Canon Point: Just after the fight with the Arishok at the end of Act II. For reference, the Legacy DLC has been completed but Mark of the Assassin has not.
World Information: Dragon Age is set in the world of Thedas, a fantasy realm full of the 'generic' races of dwarves, elves, humans, and others (like Kossith and Darkspawn). Long ago, mages who wished for power stormed the Golden City where the Maker ("God") presided. They were cast out and transformed into horrific monsters called the darkspawn. These creatures brought a great scourge upon the world, corrupting the land and murdering thousands and thousands of people. Thousands of years later, the darkspawn still exist, kept in check by Grey Wardens who protect the people from Blights and Archdemons (dragons corrupted by the darkspawn). Magic is still primarily feared and abhorred, except in the Tevinter Imperium, a nation where mages rule. The rest of the world keeps magic in check through the use of the Templar Order, a group of knights from the world's defining religion. The elves are divided amongst those who retain the old ways (the Dalish) and those who live in the cities as little more than servants, practically enslaved (the city elves). Beneath the earth are the dwarves, long since hunted and nearly wiped out by the darkspawn. Their main city is Orzammar, a rich and noble city full of fairly advanced technologies. The main religious sect of Thedas is the Andrastian Chantry, a following that worships the Maker and His prophet, Andraste, a woman who led armies against the mages in Tevinter and freed the elven slaves long ago. While the Dalish believe in the Creators and the dwarves respect their Ancestors, there is also the Qunari way. It is not necessarily a religion so much as a way of life, a very militaristic and socialistic society. They have forged armies to combat Tevinter as well, and they are slowly attempting to convert those who wish to defy them.
As Hawke is a mage, she understands another aspect that the normal folk do not, which is the Fade. It is the other side, the realm of spirits, demons, and the dead. When a mage sleeps, they go into the Fade, and they can be propositioned or controlled by demons. Spirits can be both harmful and good. Thus, mages are doubly dangerous, as they draw their magic from their connection to the Fade and can be controlled at any time. The Rite of Tranquility has been created to ensure that if a mage cannot protect themselves, they will be stripped of their magic...and their emotions.
Hawke is also from Ferelden, a nation once put together by warring tribesman. They have a great deal of pride in their strength and honor, and they have only recently come out of being completely occupied by another nation. Thus, they are not very trusting of other nations or politics, and they are very patriotic about their own nation. They also hold their dogs - the mabari - in high esteem.
The entire game of Dragon Age II takes place in Kirkwall, a city in the Free Marches. Kirkwall is one of the three major cities (the other two being Starkhaven and Tantervale). The Marches are rather diverse in their population because of their access to the sea and to a large trade market. Each city is self-governing, with each city's central power having the capability of naming one person Champion of the city. In Kirkwall, there is the Viscount, who is Marlowe Dumar until the end of Act II; Meredith Stannard, the Knight-Commander of Kirkwall's templar sect, takes over after his death.
Kirkwall, like all of the cities in the Marches, was once ruled by the Tevinter Imperium. It's very obvious, too; Kirkwall is called the City of Chains because of its architecture, which features large statues of tortured slaves and chains that wrap around the Gallows' courtyard. It is divided very clearly by class and status as well: Hightown is for the nobility, Lowtown for the common folk, and Darktown for the poor. The Gallows, once the prison for Tevinter slaves, now houses the Circle of Magi for the city. Nobility in Kirkwall are mostly comprised of those of Orlesian descent while Lowtown is mostly the market and foundry district. The docks cater to merchants, travelers, traders, and even smugglers. Darktown is practically beneath the city and in the dark, where many are sick and there are those who will resort to any means for their bread and coin. This is also where a small clinic is located for Fereldan refugees.
Personality:
(In Dragon Age II, Hawke can take on one of three "core" personalities: Diplomatic/Helpful, Charming/Sarcastic, or Aggressive/Direct. Of these, this Hawke is Diplomatic with a side of Charming.)
Were someone to describe Hawke, they would undoubtedly call her helpful and dedicated, as she spends most of her time in Kirkwall doing odd jobs, meeting new people, and doing what she can to assist others who may need it. This also makes her undoubtedly nosy in many aspects as well; she puts her head into the business of others even if they say they don't need any help, which often leads to nothing but trouble. Most times, the people of Kirkwall just want someone to take care of things and Hawke is flexible enough (and cheaper than your average mercenary) to take on any odd job that comes her way. The fact that she continues this habit even when she's obtained the status of nobility and, eventually, Champion speaks well of her...though it also betrays her curious and adventurous nature. There's never a dull moment to be had when you're friends with Hawke, though that often means you're being dragged around on strange errands and nearly killed by dragons and demons.
That isn't to say she isn't good to her friends. Far from it, in fact; being Hawke's friend means you get her loyalty and all the perks that come with it. She's fiercely dedicated to the people closest to her, willing to watch their backs and do them favors with hardly any questions asked. She doesn't seem to discriminate when it comes to friends, either: she has a blood mage, a pirate, and what constitutes as an abomination in her repetoire of companions and she still doesn't see anything wrong with this. That doesn't mean that Hawke is necessarily blind or ignorant to what they're doing, though. She disagrees with Merrill's blatant use of blood magic and the contract she made with a demon, speaks out against Anders' eventual desire to destroy the Templar menace directly, and will often get into debates with Fenris over the rights of mages. Being her companion, though, does mean that she'll turn a blind eye to some of the morally grey decisions that go on, including the murders of many slavers, bandits, corrupt Templars, etc.
Striking a balance between the myriad of personalities among her friends is a difficult act, one she struggles with at times. She can't please everyone, though she certainly does her best to try. Hawke is someone whose morals are sometimes ambiguous, especially since she offers kindness in one hand and death in the other so often during the game. When one person is rescued, another has to die, and this doesn't seem to keep her up at night. She looks at what's best for the whole picture, where to strike balance, and that often means she can't stop and be passionate about one cause over another. Freedom and rights for mages is important to her, for instance, but she's also well aware that there's little that can be done that won't start an outright war. And so she tries to reason with Meredith instead of being as outspoken as Anders about the issue, for fear that her friends will come under fire for her transgressions.
Blessed with a silver tongue and a quick wit, she usually knows just what to say to get things rolling. This makes her clever but manipulative in many ways, much to the chagrin of others, especially when she uses her talents to eavesdrop to gain the upper hand. She can often be frustrating to deal with when she is asked to give a definitive answer one way or another, as she's often the devil's advocate and wants to acknowledge all sides of an issue before making her final decision. Weighing outcomes on the fly is one of her strengths, a skill she's picked up from her days of running with her family from town to town to hide from Templars. One misstep means imprisonment, Tranquility, or death to her, something she's never shaken from her early years. It doesn't keep her from playing it safe, though, and she's not afraid of going all-out if it means keeping the people she loves safe. In the end, someone's safety is more important to her than status, money, or even their favor.
Behind a simple smile is an overly curious mind, one that never stops working through ideas and plans. She could very well have decided to be a thief or a killer for hire, and perhaps she is at times, but she uses her talents for the greater good...as cliche as that sounds. "Magic serves that which is best in me, not that which is most base," her father said, and Hawke took it to heart. Even with the 'curse' of magic, she does what she can to help others, regardless of the cost. A slip here and there for the sake of private enjoyment still happens, of course (you can't stop her mischievousness, after all), but she does her best to uphold her father's will and she succeeds in many ways.
In a way, Hawke is invariably selfish. Her friends and family take precedence over everything else in her life. Most decisions are made with them in mind, whether it's risking her life in the Deep Roads to get enough money to pay for her family's well being, confronting and killing slavers, or even keeping an eye on the Darktown clinic in her spare time. Ensuring Kirkwall thrives is her goal solely because of who lives in the city, not because she's interested in the city as a whole. In fact, she'd be more than willing to leave if it didn't mean abandoning the people she's come to care for or the lives they've worked so hard to build. Many would say this makes her a good friend or even a kind person, but she doesn't see it that way. She's well aware of her selfish nature and she knows that she needs the people around her as much as they need her, if not more so. She wants to protect people - it's in her nature - and without that cause, she would be entirely lost to the world around her and the pain it's brought her. Losing her siblings and her parents gives her little choice but to attach herself to her companions instead, giving everything she has to keep them safe.
Hawke has a great deal of pride in her family and in her name, despite all that's happened. She doesn't take the Amell name once ascending to her noble status in Kirkwall, instead choosing to remain 'Hawke'. "I'm going to make the name Hawke something to be proud of," she says, and her mother even comments how Malcolm Hawke would say the same. She looks after Carver and Bethany (the former at Ostagar, the latter in Kirkwall) and seeks to provide enough coin and care for her mother. She does whatever is necessary to keep her family going and surviving, even if it means fleeing home, resorting to being a mercenary, or skirting the lines of justice. During the DLC Legacy, Hawke discovers her father had to use blood magic to bind a darkspawn Magister. Had he not, Leandra (who was pregnant with Marian) would have been killed. Even this isn't enough to make her change her mind about her family or what they've done. If it's to keep everyone safe, then sacrifices must be made. She's a bit of a hypocrite about this, considering what happens at the end of the game with Anders.
When it comes to her personal feelings and her emotional well being, Hawke likes to keep quiet. It's not simply that other people matter more to her, but she is usually the last to be able to express herself among her household and her group of friends. It's easier to smile and feign contentment when there's a thousand other problems she could be voicing. Being the oldest of three, Hawke is considered to be the emotional rock of the family once Malcolm passes and this usually means everyone else comes first. She stops thinking about herself unless it's in conjunction with another person, whether she will be a burden to them. It doesn't exactly make her a martyr, just someone with a hesitance to show just how much she's really feeling. A conversation with Aveline is rather telling. When Leandra Hawke dies, Aveline is the only companion (outside of Hawke's love interest) who tries to speak with her about the ordeal. When Hawke mentions that she has a smile on her face and that should be enough for the world, Aveline calls her on this and insists that Hawke needs to think of herself now and not others. It's one of the few areas that Hawke is still hesitant about but, little by little, she hopes to change that.
Being blessed (or cursed, as some may say) with magic has also cost her a great deal of trust in others. Anyone who gives her a friendly smile could just as easily call the Templars on her. The inherent fear the general populace has about mages is not lost on her. In fact, she readily accepts that mages can be dangers. Can be. But at the end of the day, so is everyone else. It is just as easy to kill someone with a sword as it is to kill them with magic. While the Fade is its own threat and mages are much more susceptible to the possession of demons, that does not make them inherently more evil or monstrous. But the constant pressure and scrutiny of others does take its toll; there is self-doubt beneath Hawke's confident smile, something she will always carry with her. She may not espouse mage propaganda the way Anders does but she has faith in other mages and knows that they are as capable of doing good as anyone else. But she is mindful of her use of magic and of the impression it gives others, a balance that is sometimes very difficult to control.
Abilities, Weaknesses, and Power Limitations:
Hawke has the gift of magic! In Dragon Age, this allows her to draw on her inherent power and that from the Fade to bring magic into being. There are several schools of magic:
Elemental
Primal
Spirit
Arcane
Creation
Entropy
There are also three specializations for mages (two of which can be chosen per Hawke):
Spirit Healer
Force Mage
Blood Mage
Hawke is skilled in Elemental (what it says on the tin), Arcane (telekinetic spells), and Creation (healing and support) magic. She has a few spells with Primal (earth-elemental) and Spirit magic. She has NO Entropy magic.
For her specializations, she has Spirit Healer and Force Mage as her specializations, which mean that she is a very skilled healer and has a great deal of force magic at her fingertips, allowing her to smack things around and to create quite a bit of damage.
Elemental: Fireball, Firestorm, Winter's Grasp, Cone of Cold.
Primal: Stonefist, Chain Lightning, Rock Armor.
Spirit: Spirit Bolt, Dispel Magic.
Arcane: Mind Blast (default), Barrier, Crushing Prison.
Creation: Heal, Glyph of Repulsion, Haste.
Spirit Healer: Healing Aura, Group Heal, Revival, Second Chance.
Force Mage: Fist of the Maker, Telekinetic Burst, Pull of the Abyss.
A link is here for your perusal! And if you need any sort of modification, that's fine.
In simple terms, Hawke is a rather powerful mage that does more to support the party and deal a great deal of damage from a distance. She can get into the thick of things with Force Magic, allowing her to push and pull enemies, or even beat them around. For the most part, however, she keeps to the back and does her best to ensure her group is still standing when the battle is over. As far as hand-to-hand combat goes, it's shown that she can throw a punch with the best of them (as she punches a Qunari in the face and is able to knock him back) but she's never engaged in an outright brawl (except maybe at the local tavern but that's totally different). She's also skilled with a staff and can twirl it around and smack enemies in the face if she needs to. Should the staff have a blade on the end of it, then so much the better.
However, Hawke has some significant weaknesses as a mage. Mages are not inherently fighters, not like rogues and warriors. She can't pick a lock to save her life and she's definitely not the group's battering ram. While she can run and possibly fight with her fists, she almost always has to rely on her magic and keeping away from the enemy, else she's very likely to be stabbed or tackled in some way. Being a mage, she's also usually the first one targeted by enemies; they see a magic-user and are quick to deal damage her way for fear of her power and to make sure she can't heal anyone else. Hawke's toughened up over the years despite this but this still means she's in a lot of trouble if there aren't a few fighters between her and whoever's trying to kill her.
On top of that, using magic tires her out, as it does with any mage. Go all out and you're bound to be burnt out and drained well before the end of the battle. But if Hawke is the only healer, she's probably not fighting and is instead pumping all of her energy into keeping the group protected. And if there are other mages present, then she's still liable to need to help heal up injuries later. It takes time for mana to regenerate and if she doesn't keep a careful eye on how much energy she has, she might be stuck with a very basic attack and nothing else to protect herself with. Very bad.
Mages are also susceptible to anything Templars can throw at them. Templars can stop a spell from forming and can effectively cut a mage off from using magic temporarily. This can easily put a stop to casting and can stun Hawke long enough for a Templar to capture her or even cut her head off, should that be their goal. So Hawke is only effective against Templars so long as she gets the first strike in or if she can defend herself adequately before they cut her magic off.
Inventory: Staff of Parthalan, three health potions, two lyrium potions, some elfroot...and let's say 50 gold coins, not that it'll get her anywhere.
Appearance: Hawke
Alternate Universe Info
If AU, how is your version different from canon, and how will that come across?
Samples
Log Sample:
From the test drive meme
Network Sample:
[Hawke's omni-tool turns on, not necessarily by mistake but...well, she's curious about all of these capabilities. Video, voice, hologram; each one flickers in and out in turn, her laughter faint. At length, it settles on video.]
Very sleek little device here.
[She can't even feel it. It's settled on her left arm purely for strategic purposes. Can't be swinging around her staff and accidentally causing problems for the tech, right? Of course, she has to wonder how it's going to hold up against real magic. Ah, well. Her smile is sly.]
Really, I think it's the only thing I like about this whole place. [She inclines her head to the side.] Don't get me wrong, of course. It's a lovely piece of scenery and the people are...interesting. [Understatement.] But this place isn't for me.
[It's one thing to shoot lightning out of your fingers. It's another to be able to feel the electricity underneath your feet with every step.]
I'm sure I'm not the only one complaining, for the record. Thought I'd just add my voice to the dissenting populace.
[And she's about to disconnect the feed when one last thought occurs to her.]
Oh, and one more thing... Can someone please explain to me why gold isn't accepted as actual currency?
Name: Kal
OOC Journal:
queenslandOver 18? Y
Email/IM/Plurk:
Current characters: N/A
Character Info
Name: Marian Hawke
Canon: Dragon Age II
Age: 28
Canon/AU/CR AU: Canon
Reference: Hawke, Dragon Age II's storyline
History: Plot of DAII
Bullet points of how things go for the companions:
Prologue/Act I:
- Bethany dies defending Leandra Hawke from an ogre. Aveline gives her husband Wesley a mercy kill.
- Arriving in Kirkwall, Hawke decides to enlist with the Red Iron.
- Hawke meets all of her potential allies (companions) and all of the companion quests are completed. All of the companions are kept.
- The Starkhaven mages are freed, none of the Templars are killed.
- Feynriel is spared and is sent to live with the Dalish.
- Hawke betrays the Red Iron and kills Meeran.
- Keran is freed and allowed to stay in the Templar Order.
- Hawke meets the Arishok and discusses with him, at some length, about why he's in the city.
- Hawke makes an enemy of Sister Petrice but receives an amulet from the Saarebas named Ketojan.
- In the foundry district, Hawke investigates several missing women and finds the bones and ring of a woman thought to have run away. She befriends Ser Emeric and takes over for his investigation.
- Carver and Hawke find the will in the old estate that says their uncle Gamlen lied about their mother's inheritance.
- Hawke gives Carver letters of correspondence from their father to a Templar named Maurevar Carver.
- Hawke inherits the Bone Pit after killing several dragons and saving the remaining workers.
- Hawke has Fenris kill the Magistrate's son after he killed several elven children.
- The Viscount's son is rescued from the Winters.
- With enough coin, Hawke goes into the Deep Roads with Varric, Anders, and Carver. Infected with the Taint, Hawke chooses to save her brother's life by allowing Anders to help find a pack of Grey Wardens. Carver's taken, enlisted, and survives the Joining.
Act II:
- Three years later, Hawke has moved into the old Amell estate with her mother, Bodahn Feddic, his son Sandal, and her dog.
- Aveline asks Hawke to find Emeric and help him with the old investigation.
- Hawke helps Fenris escape slavers and kill Hadriana.
- Anders enlists Hawke's help to stop Ser Alric and his "Tranquil solution". She stops Anders from killing a mage afterward.
- Hawke goes with Merrill to the Dalish camp and helps her kill the Varterral, but does not give her the Erulin'holm. Merrill orders her to stay away.
- Varric asks for Hawke to help him kill Bartrand. Once realizing he's enraptured with the lyrium idol they found in the Deep Roads, they spare him and Varric puts him in an insane asylum.
- Hawke helps Aveline get over her fear and she ends up falling for Guardsman Donnic.
- Sebastian and Hawke investigate the estate of his family's killers and put an end to them.
- Feynriel is saved from the Fade and he leaves to go to Tevinter. Isabela succumbs to the Desire Demon and Fenris to the Pride Demon, though both survive the encounter and apologize.
- An elven woman tries to steal gunpowder from the Qunari and takes poison instead. She's killed by Hawke's group.
- Investigating the missing women again, Hawke meets Gascard DuPuis, who claims he's helping the investigation, though he's a mage and is practicing what appears to be blood magic.
- Emeric is lured into a trap and killed.
- Leandra Hawke disappears. Hawke follows her trail, and Gascard, to find that she's been taken like all of the other women. Varric kills Gascard for conspiring with the kidnapper, who is also a blood mage. Leandra Hawke is dead, pieced together with other women, because of a man named Quentin. Hawke kills Quentin and holds her mother as she dies. A note left by someone named "O" is discovered.
- Sister Petrice tries to have Hawke killed for her "sympathetic view" to the Qunari. She is killed, in turn, by a Qunari archer...but not before the Viscount's son Saemus is murdered.
- Isabela reveals she knows why the Qunari are still in Kirkwall. Hawke urges her to save herself before they find her and Isabela runs off with the Tome of Koslun, an artifact she stole from the Qunari.
- The Qunari, cornered by Aveline and without the Tome, storm Kirkwall and begin executing the masses. Hawke is helped by a group of Wardens and sees Carver again.
- Hawke meets Knight-Commander Meredith and First Enchanter Orsino.
- Orsino provides a distraction while Hawke gets into the Keep to fight the Qunari. Isabela comes back to help. The Arishok duels Hawke for Isabela and Hawke wins, becoming Champion of Kirkwall.
Legacy DLC:
- Party of Fenris, Varric, and Anders.
- Sided with Larius to kill Corypheus.
Canon Point: Just after the fight with the Arishok at the end of Act II. For reference, the Legacy DLC has been completed but Mark of the Assassin has not.
World Information: Dragon Age is set in the world of Thedas, a fantasy realm full of the 'generic' races of dwarves, elves, humans, and others (like Kossith and Darkspawn). Long ago, mages who wished for power stormed the Golden City where the Maker ("God") presided. They were cast out and transformed into horrific monsters called the darkspawn. These creatures brought a great scourge upon the world, corrupting the land and murdering thousands and thousands of people. Thousands of years later, the darkspawn still exist, kept in check by Grey Wardens who protect the people from Blights and Archdemons (dragons corrupted by the darkspawn). Magic is still primarily feared and abhorred, except in the Tevinter Imperium, a nation where mages rule. The rest of the world keeps magic in check through the use of the Templar Order, a group of knights from the world's defining religion. The elves are divided amongst those who retain the old ways (the Dalish) and those who live in the cities as little more than servants, practically enslaved (the city elves). Beneath the earth are the dwarves, long since hunted and nearly wiped out by the darkspawn. Their main city is Orzammar, a rich and noble city full of fairly advanced technologies. The main religious sect of Thedas is the Andrastian Chantry, a following that worships the Maker and His prophet, Andraste, a woman who led armies against the mages in Tevinter and freed the elven slaves long ago. While the Dalish believe in the Creators and the dwarves respect their Ancestors, there is also the Qunari way. It is not necessarily a religion so much as a way of life, a very militaristic and socialistic society. They have forged armies to combat Tevinter as well, and they are slowly attempting to convert those who wish to defy them.
As Hawke is a mage, she understands another aspect that the normal folk do not, which is the Fade. It is the other side, the realm of spirits, demons, and the dead. When a mage sleeps, they go into the Fade, and they can be propositioned or controlled by demons. Spirits can be both harmful and good. Thus, mages are doubly dangerous, as they draw their magic from their connection to the Fade and can be controlled at any time. The Rite of Tranquility has been created to ensure that if a mage cannot protect themselves, they will be stripped of their magic...and their emotions.
Hawke is also from Ferelden, a nation once put together by warring tribesman. They have a great deal of pride in their strength and honor, and they have only recently come out of being completely occupied by another nation. Thus, they are not very trusting of other nations or politics, and they are very patriotic about their own nation. They also hold their dogs - the mabari - in high esteem.
The entire game of Dragon Age II takes place in Kirkwall, a city in the Free Marches. Kirkwall is one of the three major cities (the other two being Starkhaven and Tantervale). The Marches are rather diverse in their population because of their access to the sea and to a large trade market. Each city is self-governing, with each city's central power having the capability of naming one person Champion of the city. In Kirkwall, there is the Viscount, who is Marlowe Dumar until the end of Act II; Meredith Stannard, the Knight-Commander of Kirkwall's templar sect, takes over after his death.
Kirkwall, like all of the cities in the Marches, was once ruled by the Tevinter Imperium. It's very obvious, too; Kirkwall is called the City of Chains because of its architecture, which features large statues of tortured slaves and chains that wrap around the Gallows' courtyard. It is divided very clearly by class and status as well: Hightown is for the nobility, Lowtown for the common folk, and Darktown for the poor. The Gallows, once the prison for Tevinter slaves, now houses the Circle of Magi for the city. Nobility in Kirkwall are mostly comprised of those of Orlesian descent while Lowtown is mostly the market and foundry district. The docks cater to merchants, travelers, traders, and even smugglers. Darktown is practically beneath the city and in the dark, where many are sick and there are those who will resort to any means for their bread and coin. This is also where a small clinic is located for Fereldan refugees.
Personality:
(In Dragon Age II, Hawke can take on one of three "core" personalities: Diplomatic/Helpful, Charming/Sarcastic, or Aggressive/Direct. Of these, this Hawke is Diplomatic with a side of Charming.)
Were someone to describe Hawke, they would undoubtedly call her helpful and dedicated, as she spends most of her time in Kirkwall doing odd jobs, meeting new people, and doing what she can to assist others who may need it. This also makes her undoubtedly nosy in many aspects as well; she puts her head into the business of others even if they say they don't need any help, which often leads to nothing but trouble. Most times, the people of Kirkwall just want someone to take care of things and Hawke is flexible enough (and cheaper than your average mercenary) to take on any odd job that comes her way. The fact that she continues this habit even when she's obtained the status of nobility and, eventually, Champion speaks well of her...though it also betrays her curious and adventurous nature. There's never a dull moment to be had when you're friends with Hawke, though that often means you're being dragged around on strange errands and nearly killed by dragons and demons.
That isn't to say she isn't good to her friends. Far from it, in fact; being Hawke's friend means you get her loyalty and all the perks that come with it. She's fiercely dedicated to the people closest to her, willing to watch their backs and do them favors with hardly any questions asked. She doesn't seem to discriminate when it comes to friends, either: she has a blood mage, a pirate, and what constitutes as an abomination in her repetoire of companions and she still doesn't see anything wrong with this. That doesn't mean that Hawke is necessarily blind or ignorant to what they're doing, though. She disagrees with Merrill's blatant use of blood magic and the contract she made with a demon, speaks out against Anders' eventual desire to destroy the Templar menace directly, and will often get into debates with Fenris over the rights of mages. Being her companion, though, does mean that she'll turn a blind eye to some of the morally grey decisions that go on, including the murders of many slavers, bandits, corrupt Templars, etc.
Striking a balance between the myriad of personalities among her friends is a difficult act, one she struggles with at times. She can't please everyone, though she certainly does her best to try. Hawke is someone whose morals are sometimes ambiguous, especially since she offers kindness in one hand and death in the other so often during the game. When one person is rescued, another has to die, and this doesn't seem to keep her up at night. She looks at what's best for the whole picture, where to strike balance, and that often means she can't stop and be passionate about one cause over another. Freedom and rights for mages is important to her, for instance, but she's also well aware that there's little that can be done that won't start an outright war. And so she tries to reason with Meredith instead of being as outspoken as Anders about the issue, for fear that her friends will come under fire for her transgressions.
Blessed with a silver tongue and a quick wit, she usually knows just what to say to get things rolling. This makes her clever but manipulative in many ways, much to the chagrin of others, especially when she uses her talents to eavesdrop to gain the upper hand. She can often be frustrating to deal with when she is asked to give a definitive answer one way or another, as she's often the devil's advocate and wants to acknowledge all sides of an issue before making her final decision. Weighing outcomes on the fly is one of her strengths, a skill she's picked up from her days of running with her family from town to town to hide from Templars. One misstep means imprisonment, Tranquility, or death to her, something she's never shaken from her early years. It doesn't keep her from playing it safe, though, and she's not afraid of going all-out if it means keeping the people she loves safe. In the end, someone's safety is more important to her than status, money, or even their favor.
Behind a simple smile is an overly curious mind, one that never stops working through ideas and plans. She could very well have decided to be a thief or a killer for hire, and perhaps she is at times, but she uses her talents for the greater good...as cliche as that sounds. "Magic serves that which is best in me, not that which is most base," her father said, and Hawke took it to heart. Even with the 'curse' of magic, she does what she can to help others, regardless of the cost. A slip here and there for the sake of private enjoyment still happens, of course (you can't stop her mischievousness, after all), but she does her best to uphold her father's will and she succeeds in many ways.
In a way, Hawke is invariably selfish. Her friends and family take precedence over everything else in her life. Most decisions are made with them in mind, whether it's risking her life in the Deep Roads to get enough money to pay for her family's well being, confronting and killing slavers, or even keeping an eye on the Darktown clinic in her spare time. Ensuring Kirkwall thrives is her goal solely because of who lives in the city, not because she's interested in the city as a whole. In fact, she'd be more than willing to leave if it didn't mean abandoning the people she's come to care for or the lives they've worked so hard to build. Many would say this makes her a good friend or even a kind person, but she doesn't see it that way. She's well aware of her selfish nature and she knows that she needs the people around her as much as they need her, if not more so. She wants to protect people - it's in her nature - and without that cause, she would be entirely lost to the world around her and the pain it's brought her. Losing her siblings and her parents gives her little choice but to attach herself to her companions instead, giving everything she has to keep them safe.
Hawke has a great deal of pride in her family and in her name, despite all that's happened. She doesn't take the Amell name once ascending to her noble status in Kirkwall, instead choosing to remain 'Hawke'. "I'm going to make the name Hawke something to be proud of," she says, and her mother even comments how Malcolm Hawke would say the same. She looks after Carver and Bethany (the former at Ostagar, the latter in Kirkwall) and seeks to provide enough coin and care for her mother. She does whatever is necessary to keep her family going and surviving, even if it means fleeing home, resorting to being a mercenary, or skirting the lines of justice. During the DLC Legacy, Hawke discovers her father had to use blood magic to bind a darkspawn Magister. Had he not, Leandra (who was pregnant with Marian) would have been killed. Even this isn't enough to make her change her mind about her family or what they've done. If it's to keep everyone safe, then sacrifices must be made. She's a bit of a hypocrite about this, considering what happens at the end of the game with Anders.
When it comes to her personal feelings and her emotional well being, Hawke likes to keep quiet. It's not simply that other people matter more to her, but she is usually the last to be able to express herself among her household and her group of friends. It's easier to smile and feign contentment when there's a thousand other problems she could be voicing. Being the oldest of three, Hawke is considered to be the emotional rock of the family once Malcolm passes and this usually means everyone else comes first. She stops thinking about herself unless it's in conjunction with another person, whether she will be a burden to them. It doesn't exactly make her a martyr, just someone with a hesitance to show just how much she's really feeling. A conversation with Aveline is rather telling. When Leandra Hawke dies, Aveline is the only companion (outside of Hawke's love interest) who tries to speak with her about the ordeal. When Hawke mentions that she has a smile on her face and that should be enough for the world, Aveline calls her on this and insists that Hawke needs to think of herself now and not others. It's one of the few areas that Hawke is still hesitant about but, little by little, she hopes to change that.
Being blessed (or cursed, as some may say) with magic has also cost her a great deal of trust in others. Anyone who gives her a friendly smile could just as easily call the Templars on her. The inherent fear the general populace has about mages is not lost on her. In fact, she readily accepts that mages can be dangers. Can be. But at the end of the day, so is everyone else. It is just as easy to kill someone with a sword as it is to kill them with magic. While the Fade is its own threat and mages are much more susceptible to the possession of demons, that does not make them inherently more evil or monstrous. But the constant pressure and scrutiny of others does take its toll; there is self-doubt beneath Hawke's confident smile, something she will always carry with her. She may not espouse mage propaganda the way Anders does but she has faith in other mages and knows that they are as capable of doing good as anyone else. But she is mindful of her use of magic and of the impression it gives others, a balance that is sometimes very difficult to control.
Abilities, Weaknesses, and Power Limitations:
Hawke has the gift of magic! In Dragon Age, this allows her to draw on her inherent power and that from the Fade to bring magic into being. There are several schools of magic:
Elemental
Primal
Spirit
Arcane
Creation
Entropy
There are also three specializations for mages (two of which can be chosen per Hawke):
Spirit Healer
Force Mage
Blood Mage
Hawke is skilled in Elemental (what it says on the tin), Arcane (telekinetic spells), and Creation (healing and support) magic. She has a few spells with Primal (earth-elemental) and Spirit magic. She has NO Entropy magic.
For her specializations, she has Spirit Healer and Force Mage as her specializations, which mean that she is a very skilled healer and has a great deal of force magic at her fingertips, allowing her to smack things around and to create quite a bit of damage.
Elemental: Fireball, Firestorm, Winter's Grasp, Cone of Cold.
Primal: Stonefist, Chain Lightning, Rock Armor.
Spirit: Spirit Bolt, Dispel Magic.
Arcane: Mind Blast (default), Barrier, Crushing Prison.
Creation: Heal, Glyph of Repulsion, Haste.
Spirit Healer: Healing Aura, Group Heal, Revival, Second Chance.
Force Mage: Fist of the Maker, Telekinetic Burst, Pull of the Abyss.
A link is here for your perusal! And if you need any sort of modification, that's fine.
In simple terms, Hawke is a rather powerful mage that does more to support the party and deal a great deal of damage from a distance. She can get into the thick of things with Force Magic, allowing her to push and pull enemies, or even beat them around. For the most part, however, she keeps to the back and does her best to ensure her group is still standing when the battle is over. As far as hand-to-hand combat goes, it's shown that she can throw a punch with the best of them (as she punches a Qunari in the face and is able to knock him back) but she's never engaged in an outright brawl (except maybe at the local tavern but that's totally different). She's also skilled with a staff and can twirl it around and smack enemies in the face if she needs to. Should the staff have a blade on the end of it, then so much the better.
However, Hawke has some significant weaknesses as a mage. Mages are not inherently fighters, not like rogues and warriors. She can't pick a lock to save her life and she's definitely not the group's battering ram. While she can run and possibly fight with her fists, she almost always has to rely on her magic and keeping away from the enemy, else she's very likely to be stabbed or tackled in some way. Being a mage, she's also usually the first one targeted by enemies; they see a magic-user and are quick to deal damage her way for fear of her power and to make sure she can't heal anyone else. Hawke's toughened up over the years despite this but this still means she's in a lot of trouble if there aren't a few fighters between her and whoever's trying to kill her.
On top of that, using magic tires her out, as it does with any mage. Go all out and you're bound to be burnt out and drained well before the end of the battle. But if Hawke is the only healer, she's probably not fighting and is instead pumping all of her energy into keeping the group protected. And if there are other mages present, then she's still liable to need to help heal up injuries later. It takes time for mana to regenerate and if she doesn't keep a careful eye on how much energy she has, she might be stuck with a very basic attack and nothing else to protect herself with. Very bad.
Mages are also susceptible to anything Templars can throw at them. Templars can stop a spell from forming and can effectively cut a mage off from using magic temporarily. This can easily put a stop to casting and can stun Hawke long enough for a Templar to capture her or even cut her head off, should that be their goal. So Hawke is only effective against Templars so long as she gets the first strike in or if she can defend herself adequately before they cut her magic off.
Inventory: Staff of Parthalan, three health potions, two lyrium potions, some elfroot...and let's say 50 gold coins, not that it'll get her anywhere.
Appearance: Hawke
Alternate Universe Info
If AU, how is your version different from canon, and how will that come across?
Samples
Log Sample:
From the test drive meme
Network Sample:
[Hawke's omni-tool turns on, not necessarily by mistake but...well, she's curious about all of these capabilities. Video, voice, hologram; each one flickers in and out in turn, her laughter faint. At length, it settles on video.]
Very sleek little device here.
[She can't even feel it. It's settled on her left arm purely for strategic purposes. Can't be swinging around her staff and accidentally causing problems for the tech, right? Of course, she has to wonder how it's going to hold up against real magic. Ah, well. Her smile is sly.]
Really, I think it's the only thing I like about this whole place. [She inclines her head to the side.] Don't get me wrong, of course. It's a lovely piece of scenery and the people are...interesting. [Understatement.] But this place isn't for me.
[It's one thing to shoot lightning out of your fingers. It's another to be able to feel the electricity underneath your feet with every step.]
I'm sure I'm not the only one complaining, for the record. Thought I'd just add my voice to the dissenting populace.
[And she's about to disconnect the feed when one last thought occurs to her.]
Oh, and one more thing... Can someone please explain to me why gold isn't accepted as actual currency?