Iron Bull

"Also, it's 'THE Iron Bull.' I like having an article at the front. It makes it sound like I'm not even a person, just a mindless weapon, an implement of destruction... That really works for me."

The Iron Bull is a one-eyed Qunari mercenary, companion and a pansexual romance option for the Inquisitor in Dragon Age: Inquisition.

Background
The Iron Bull was raised in the schools of Par Vollen by the tamassrans, though he was called Ashkaari, "one who thinks", at the time. He was big and strong for his age and liked to act as a secondary caregiver for his fellow children, reporting to the tamassrans when someone wasn't feeling well or was about to cause trouble. But Ashkaari sometimes got into trouble himself. On one occasion, after he'd eaten all the meat on his plate but left the vegetables untouched, his "Tama" told him that he wouldn't be allowed to go and play until he ate two more things off his plate. Without hesitation, he took two pieces of meat he had hidden in his pocket, placed them upon the plate, ate the two pieces while looking at Tama and ran off to play. This convinced her that Ashkaari would make a poor Qunari soldier, as they needed to be obedient to the spirit of an order as well as the letter. She recommended him for the Ben-Hassrath.

As he began his training, Ashkaari gained a new informal name to set him apart from his peers: Hissrad, "one who creates illusion" or "liar". His early work in Par Vollen involved uncovering smuggling operations, discontented groups considering fleeing the Qun and a Tevinter spy ring, which saw him recognized as a valuable asset. He was recommended for service on the Qunari-held island of Seheron. According to him, the island was "a sack of cats". Incursions from Tevinter, marauding Tal-Vashoth, and native rebels fighting both sides made life chaotic. The Ben-Hassrath considered two years of active service the maximum time most agents could perform in Seheron before prolonged stress rendered them unable to carry out their duties effectively but Hissrad lasted almost a decade before burning out, rising through the ranks as his superiors broke down or died.

After eight years in Seheron, his unit suffered heavy losses when a friendly Seheron merchant was pressured into poisoning his men. When the same poison was used to kill a school full of children, Hissrad vowed to avenge them. He mounted an assault on a Tal-Vashoth stronghold in the jungle. He lost several more soldiers, including his longtime friend Vasaad, which sent him in a berserk state. When his surviving soldiers later came back for him with more Ben-Hassrath agents, they found him unmoving, covered in wounds and surrounded by the hacked and butchered corpses of the Tal-Vashoth warriors. He declared himself unfit for duty and too dangerous to be around civilians, submitting himself to the Ben-Hassrath re-educators.

The Ben-Hassrath reassigned him to Orlais to work undercover, ostensibly as a Tal-Vashoth. He worked for the mercenary company Fisher's Bleeders for several years but Fisher was a mediocre commander and he eventually left, taking several of Fisher's men with him, to form his own mercenary company: the Bull's Chargers. Bull uses his mercenaries to gather information on Orlesian nobles, feeding the intelligence to the Ben-Hassrath. Though he still reports to his old masters, time in Orlais led to something of an identity crisis for him.

He remains in command of the Bull's Chargers, though spends much of his time drinking, lazing about and overindulging - all clear violations of the Qun. Despite his unusually friendly demeanor and lax attitude to his philosophy, The Iron Bull still has a loyalty to the Qun which dies hard. He doesn't proselytize, but neither does he apologize for his way of life.

Approval
Iron Bull's approval can most easily be gained by taking him along on battles. Fighting groups of Venatori enemies will grant slight approval, so keeping him in your party in areas heavy with Venatori will earn you a fair amount of approval quickly. After killing a High dragon, a cutscene will occur after you return to Skyhold where the Inquisitor has a few drinks with Iron Bull in celebration—approval can be gained there by agreeing with him about dragons and drinking when he prompts you to. Furthermore, killing High Dragons with him in the active party gains great approval.

Iron Bull generally approves of the Inquisition's actions, so many choices you make won't have a big effect on his approval. However, there are a few major choices that he will greatly approve of. These include:

Romance
Iron Bull is a romance option for both male and female Inquisitors.

Unlike many of the game's romance options, the Inquisitor's relationship with Bull begins as a physical one instead of a romantic one. After having flirted with Bull enough and having completed his personal quest involving the possible Qunari alliance, speaking to him will trigger a cut scene where the Inquisitor walks into their quarters to find the Bull sitting on their bed. He then tells the Inquisitor that he "got the hints" and knows the Inquisitor wants to "ride the Bull". If the Inquisitor admits this and does not reject him, Bull will proceed with a sexual encounter. The next time the Inquisitor speaks to Bull on the topic of their relationship they can either choose not to pursue further romance with Bull or agree to Bull's ground rules for something similar to a friends-with-benefits arrangement.

In a dialogue option where you ask Bull how "serious" your relationship is, he says that it’s up to you and that he’s fine keeping things casual and light if that’s what the Inquisitor wants. When asked how Qunari show they’re serious about a relationship, Bull explains that Qunari don’t have sex for love but that to show their commitment to an individual they craft matching necklaces out of a dragon’s tooth broken in half, each party wearing half the tooth. “Then, no matter how far apart life takes them, they’re always together.” You’re given a requisition for the necklace, called the “Necklace of Kadan”, and once you have it you can give it to Bull. Before Bull will let you give him the necklace, he will initiate another sexual encounter. After you're finished (but before Bull has dressed), Cullen, Josephine and Cassandra will walk in on you. At that point you can either denounce your relationship with Bull (calling it “just a fling” to save face and ending the relationship), or you can tell the three that you intend to continue relations with Bull. If the latter is chosen your advisors leave you be and you can give the necklace to Bull – in exchange, he calls you “Kadan” (Qunlat: "my heart") From then on, he addresses you primarily as Kadan in conversation.

If the Inquisitor begins a relationship with Iron Bull before killing a High Dragon for the first time, there will be a few extra lines of dialogue at the end of the cutscene in Skyhold where the Inquisitor has celebratory drinks with Iron Bull, where Bull either compliments the Inquisitor's breasts (if female) or bottom (if male). He will also refer to the Inquisitor as "Kadan" during the cutscene, even if he has not yet been given the Necklace of Kadan.

Quotes


Bull: "Oh... Shit. That would have been better."
 * "You don't need blood magic or demons to change someone's mind. We're a lot more fragile than we'd like to believe."
 * "How many personal freedoms do you figure that baker in Val Royeaux has? Life isn't about freedom."
 * (Regarding living by the Qun) "It's like being a block of stone with a sculptor working on you. One day, the last of the crap gets knocked off, and you can see your real shape, what you're supposed to be."
 * "Whenever you need an ass kicked, The Iron Bull is with you."
 * "I know every soldier under my command. You don't have that option... but a few faces might help."
 * "People don't always tell the truth when you're polite. You've gotta poke them a bit."
 * "Dragons are the embodiment of raw power. But it's all uncontrolled, savage... So they need to be destroyed. Taming the wild. Order out of chaos. Have another drink."
 * "My people don't pick leaders from the strongest, or the smartest, or even the most talented. We pick the ones willing to make the hard decisions... and live with the consequences."
 * "Don't get me wrong, I'm sure you're careful and all, but I like my nipples uncauterized, thanks."
 * "It's a good thing we brought all these nobles with us. Perhaps the Templars are attracted to shiny objects."
 * Cole: "I like your horns The Iron Bull. But they're dragon horns, not bull horns. You could have named yourself The Iron Dragon."

Trivia

 * In official promotional material, Iron Bull is described as "The Muscle".
 * When comparing Iron Bull to food, Patrick Weekes describes him as "either rump roast for size or chili dog for delicious bad decisions."
 * It was revealed that the Iron Bull was meant to be a race-specific romance due to technical limitations related to him being extremely large and tall. He also originally had dialog that explained why he couldn't romance the Inquisitor. However, the animation team and cinematic designer John Epler was able to fix the issue.
 * He is the first Qunari companion who is a romance option for a protagonist in the Dragon Age series.
 * According to the character's voice actor, Freddie Prinze Jr., Iron Bull does have a fear of demons, due to their ability to possess people, including Qunari.
 * Prinze described Bull's voice as a cross between Disney villain Pete and Winston Churchill.
 * Iron Bull is described as humorous, dismissive, and a natural charismatic leader, but he’s struggling with being a fish out of water.
 * Bull's greatest fear is madness.
 * During the scene when the player and Bull have sex before giving him the Dragon's tooth as a gift, Bull can be seen with two patterns on his shoulders. It is not currently known if these are tattoos or some kind of Qunari body paint. How he got them also remains a mystery.
 * If the Inquisitor doesn't romance Iron Bull or Dorian, the two will have party banter indicating a sexual relationship. If your friendship is high enough with either of them (or both), you can ask them about their relationship.
 * Iron Bull lost his eye saving Krem from a flail blow meant for him when the two first met. He also has a brace on his left ankle and is missing several finger joints on his left hand.
 * Iron Bull's name under the Qun, Hissrad, literally means "liar".
 * If Iron Bull becomes Tal-Vashoth, he can admit that he is not sure which frightens him more: going mad, or confirming that many of the Tal-Vashoth he has killed in the past could have been fully sane.
 * Iron Bull was written by Patrick Weekes and designed by Casper Konefal.
 * Originally, the Iron Bull was to be one handed, and use a prosthetic for his left hand. At one point the prosthetic hand was meant to be a cannon, but implementation turned out to be too difficult.