In BioWare’s entire catalog, there is probably no character with greater emotional range than Merrill, the Dalish blood mage. When Hawke first meets her, she seems young and innocent, but it becomes clear that her elven clan views her with disdain. Shortly after, it becomes clear that she has been working with a demon and using the much-maligned blood magic. Even though she casts spells that would be taboo elsewhere in the world, she is still somehow one of the most lighthearted and humorous characters in the entire series. Merrill is the sweetest character in Hawke’s crew, even though she is berated by almost everyone else for her “crimes” of using blood magic. While it would be easy to make her seem like an abused puppy, she remains true to her choices, believing she can use this magic for the good of the Dalish by restoring a piece of their history.
Merrill’s conviction leads her and those around her down devastating paths, and her story is one of the most frustrating and complex situations Hawke deals with in his story because every decision and outcome is painful for everyone involved. Ultimately, there is no happy ending for someone who consorts with demons, nor for people who distrusted her so much they couldn’t confront her with the consequences. But Merrill is subversive, tragic, and somehow still a joy to know.
Dragon Age 2 has always been the most controversial game in BioWare’s fantasy series, but The Veil Guardian seems to benefit quite a lot from it. It has an action-oriented approach, brings back DA2‘s three-route dialogue system and reduces the party. Overall, it looks like it’s learning some of the right lessons from the 2011 RPG. We’ll see if its characters live up to this merry band of misfits when The Veil Guardian starts this fall.
