Dwarf Commoner Origin

"Dust town, it sticks to the skin."

- Kalah Brosca

The Dwarf Commoner Origin is one of six playable origins available in Dragon Age: Origins. As a casteless dwarf, this character is reduced to a life of petty crime.

Introduction
"There was a merchant come by Dust Town the other day, some poor sod who's had his skin burnt by the sun up on the surface lands once too often I'd say. How he gets let back into Orzammar I can't rightly say; he claims that he has a deal worked out. Who am I to argue when someone has an angle?

''Point is, he tells me what them cloudheads think of us dwarves down here. It isn't even just the humans, there's surface dwarves who're born and bred up in the sun who think the same things, don't know any different. He says they say dwarves are smiths. Proud, noble warriors who like nothing better to mine a vein of ore or forge a decent sword.''

Had us a good laugh, we did.

''What would them humans think if they came to Dust Town and saw how the rest of us really lived? The ones that are casteless, the ones who aren't even considered worthy of being servants in the homes of the wealthy or pure enough to work the forges in the Shaperate. The nobles make sure we casteless get tattooed so they know who we are when they see us. That way they know who to spit on, right? Helps us, too. Makes it easier to figure out whose pockets are worth picking.''

''That's a joke. Not all of the casteless are criminals. Some of us are beggars, nug-catchers, street sweepers, and noble hunters. We do what we can to survive."''

Plot
As part of the casteless, the Dwarf Commoner is extremely poor and has to run errands for the local crime boss, Beraht, in order to stay alive. The Dwarf Commoner's sister Rica Brosca is also working for Beraht, but is trying to find a wealthy male suitor while the Dwarf Commoner has to do some of Beraht's more unsavory tasks. The first one is finding and killing Oskias, a smuggler who has been hiding lyrium from Beraht. The next task Beraht gives the Dwarf Commoner is to drug a fighter's drink in the Proving, thereby rigging the event so the fighter Beraht has bet on can win. The Dwarf Commoner makes it to the Proving Ground, only to find that Beraht's fighter, Everd, has passed out from drinking too much. Since failure is not an option, the Dwarf Commoner decides to wear the fighter's armor and win his match for him. Unfortunately, Everd stumbles out into the field just before the last battle, and the Dwarf Commoner must reveal the deception. Beraht managed to apprehend and imprison the Dwarf Commoner in his personal dungeon. The Dwarf Commoner escapes and kills Beraht, only to come face to face with Duncan, who has watched the Dwarf Commoner compete in the tournament. Faced with either exile, death, or joining the Grey Wardens, The Dwarf Commoner chooses to go with Duncan and leave Orzammar.

Walkthrough: On the Streets of Dust Town
The origin story opens in the Slums Home, where Beraht is discussing work with Rica and you. When the first conversation sequence ends, you may converse further with Rica, your sister (Codex entry: The Casteless), and Kalah, your mother. If you buy some wine and bring it back to Kalah, you can converse with her a bit more, but there is apparently nothing that changes any quest outcomes at this point.

Looting the chest in the back of the room yields a dagger (iron). You can then head outside, where Leske is waiting. Bug: It is possible that you can't open the chest in your room.(pc confirmed) It is, however, usually possible to do it by snugging the character in very close to the chest. You can also walk Leske right up against the chest even though you cannot do the same with the Warden.

Beraht's Favor
Oskias, one of Beraht's smugglers, has been holding his own pockets. Find Oskias and show him exactly how Beraht feels about being cheated. Oskias was last seen in Tapster's Tavern.

Proving Loyalties
The Warrior Caste is holding a Proving today. Beraht has lots of coins riding on the young fighter Everd and wants you to make sure he wins. Beraht gave you a drug to use on Mainar, Everd's opponent.

Captured
You have ended up in Beraht's custody. Beraht is quite put out with you, and hope for your continued survival is slim if you don't manage to get out of here.

Result
Enjoy your last moments as a casteless dwarf in Orzammar, for Duncan has conscripted and saved you from a death sentence for "ridiculing the entire Warrior Caste," much to the Proving Master's annoyance, Rica's and Leske's joy, and your mother's (alleged) drunken indifference. If it has not been unlocked in a previous playthrough, on arrival in Ostagar the Casteless achievement will be awarded.

Items
Plot Items:

Commons: (given by Duncan at the end of the Origin story)

The Proving:

Beraht's Hideout:

Characters

 * Adalbo: The Dwarf Commoner's second opponent in the Provings
 * Ademaro: A merchant and a surface (and hence casteless) dwarf who paints a "brand" on his face
 * Beraht: The crime lord the Dwarf Commoner and Rica are forced to work for; the main antagonist in this origin.
 * Duncan: Commander of the Grey in Ferelden. He does not appear until much later in the story.
 * Everd: The warrior whom Beraht is betting on and the Dwarf Commoner impersonates
 * Goilinar: A beggar in Dust Town; he was crippled in a mine explosion.
 * Kalah Brosca: The Dwarf Commoner's drunken mother.
 * Jarvia: Beraht's second who also appears later in the campaign.
 * Kasch: A member of the Artisan caste that offers to buy the Dwarf Commoner's teeth
 * Lenka: A Silent Sister; the Dwarf Commoner's final opponent in the Provings
 * Leske (temporary companion): The Warden's partner-in-crime - also appears later in the campaign.
 * Mainar: Everd's (and hence, the Dwarf Commoner's) first opponent in the Provings
 * Olinda: A merchant, also Leske's friend
 * Oskias: The smuggler whom Beraht is after
 * Proving Master: He placed the Warden under arrest, only to have him conscripted by Duncan. He also appears later in the campaign.
 * Rica Brosca: The Warden's elder half-sister - also appears later in the campaign.
 * Unna: A member of the Servant caste; she is very proud to serve the Shaper's assistant.

Initial statistics
In addition to those selected by the player at character creation, a Dwarf Commoner Warden automatically begins with the following:

Skills
and either (Warrior) or  (Rogue)

Codex entries
(after conversing with Rica) (upon entering Orzammar Commons) (after talking to Unna) (after receiving the Proving quest) (touching the carving in Proving Grounds) (after talking to Duncan) (after talking to Duncan) (after talking to Duncan) (after talking to Duncan)

Trivia

 * Jennifer Hepler wrote the dwarf commoner origin.

Bugs

 * The in the Dust Town Home sometimes will not open because you cannot get close enough to it. Strangely, Leske can walk right up (the mouse pointer is gold, indicating a valid right-click location, instead of silver, indicating an unreachable location).
 * Dialogue Bug: Dwarf Commoners have the same dialogue option as Noble Dwarfs during the conversation with Morrigan after the Tower of Ishal (quest), and can - without lying, i.e. there is no (Lie) prefix - chose to say "I happen to be of royal blood, you know."
 * The achievement award items from The Golems of Amgarrak, Witch Hunt, The Darkspawn Chronicles, Leliana's Song and the Blood Dragon Armor may not be present in the chest after being captured by Beraht. There is no way to get them back.