Aveline Vallen

"Protect what matters with everything you have, or you'll have nothing, and deserve it."

Aveline Vallen is a female human warrior. She was fleeing Ostagar with her husband Ser Wesley during the Fifth Blight when they were set upon by darkspawn and rescued by the Hawke family. Aveline is the first companion Hawke encounters besides their sibling.

Background
"Aveline Vallen is a soldier, a master of sword and shield, and a tireless guardian... to a point. The daughter of an exiled chevalier, Aveline is not the knight her father wished her to be. Although fully trained in chivalrous combat, she was raised in the shadow of a lost life and will not lose another for the sake of honor. Protecting her adopted home of Kirkwall becomes a chosen duty, not a privileged calling. The people she stands for will not be wasted on lost causes or protecting the foolish from themselves. Pride can be bandaged like any other wound—when threats are dead and everyone is safely home."

Aveline is the daughter of a chevalier named Benoit du Lac, who fled from Orlais to Ferelden after losing his patron to assassination. Raising her on stories of knights and adventures, he hoped Aveline would be a knight, even naming her after Ser Aveline, the Knight of Orlais. He eventually sold everything he had to sponsor her into King Cailan Theirin's service.

Aveline met and married Wesley Vallen while in the Fereldan army. However, Loghain's betrayal at the Battle of Ostagar forced them to flee the darkspawn horde. They eventually made their way to Lothering, where they met Hawke.

Friendship and rivalry
Aveline is a kind and moral person who respects authority and values friendship and family. Friendship is earned when Hawke acts lawfully and helps those in need. She is not unreasonable, however, and will occasionally favor bending the law in order to help her friends (especially Isabela).

Rivalry with Aveline is earned when Hawke ignores people in need, takes illegal or seedy jobs, or takes jobs solely for personal profit.

Quests
Prologue

Act 1

Act 2

(gift)

Act 3

Mark of the Assassin

Armor


Aveline's armor upgrades can be found in the following locations:


 * Act 1 – – at the Armor Merchant in Lowtown. Increases attack.
 * Act 2 – – during the Raiders of the Cliffs quest. Extra rune slot.
 * Act 2 – – at the Armor Merchant in Lowtown. Increases armor.
 * Act 3 – – on Jeven's corpse during the Favor and Fault quest. Increases defense.

Aveline's armor changes from Modified Officers' Issue to Guardsman Plate and Chain after Hawke's first year in Kirkwall. If Aveline becomes the new guard captain her armor changes to Guard-Captain's Ranked Plate, reflecting her new role.



Other
– Aveline's initial weapon – Aveline's initial shield – requires Warrior Item Pack DLC – requires Warrior Item Pack II DLC – requires Mark of the Assassin DLC – requires Mark of the Assassin DLC

Quotes

 * (To darkspawn) "You will not have him!"
 * (To Wesley) "They will not have you...not while I breathe."
 * (To Hawke about Carver) "Bit of a tit, your brother."
 * (To Hawke about Dog) "Just checking on my best guardsman. He's teaching my men respect... and how to run."
 * (About Fenris) "You talk to him, Hawke. I've had my fill for today."
 * (In combat) "I stand for all of us!"
 * (To Hawke) "Shout if you need me, Hawke. I'll always be there for you. Just... knock first."
 * (If Isabela falls in battle) "Isabela is on the ground... appropriately."
 * (About Leliana) "I'm uncomfortable around Chantry sisters. All because of that red-haired trickster in Lothering."
 * (To Isabela) "Shut up whore."

Trivia

 * Lukas Kristjanson wrote Aveline for Dragon Age II.
 * In Dragon Age: Origins, Leliana tells the tale of the female warrior Aveline, Knight of Orlais who fought and was executed, during an arena match, after she was revealed to be a woman. Her courage and skill ensured her knighthood as the first woman ever to receive that honor. Additionally, if Fenris is in your party at the same time as Aveline, Fenris will make a comment that he has heard of a legendary knight called Aveline, but that he was not told the legend, as his masters never told him it. Aveline shows exasperation for her namesake, and when Fenris tells her that Tevinter masters don't typically tell their slaves stories, she says "No offense Fenris, but thank the Maker for that".
 * According to Lukas Kristjanson, if Aveline were a food she would be "Steak. Rare. But with caramelized onions and baby corn nibbled from the side like a full cob when no one is looking."
 * Aveline's favorite colour is green.
 * Aveline was at Ostagar, and remembers Carver and Hawke (if a warrior or rogue), and is aware that Loghain betrayed King Cailan.
 * Although Aveline is not a romance option, she can be flirted with by both a male and female Hawke during The Way It Should Be in Act 1 and The Long Road during Act 2.
 * When talking about Wesley's death, she says that she does not find the Chantry's doctrine compelling, and says that the Chant is lovely, but perhaps that is all it needs to be.
 * Hawke receives a letter from their cousin in which she asks if it is true that they are sleeping with the captain of the guard after the quest Gamlen's Greatest Treasure.
 * During the final boss battle with Meredith, Aveline may occasionally resist the area-wide stun that applies to all other fighting characters while Meredith monologues in-battle. She will do damage to her target enemy, and may actually fell a stunned statue or two during the monologue. (Due to the passive ability Indomitable which protects her from Stun)

Bugs

 * When using the skill "Immovable", Aveline has a chance of becoming frozen in place in the combat stance, unresponsive to even manual control. Unlike the skill associated movement reduction, this will not eventually wear off and can only be fixed by leaving the area.
 * When giving Aveline the Shield of the Knight Herself, her dialogue indicates that Ser Wesley's Shield was sold even if it was merely being kept in Hawke's storage chest. (all platforms) However if you make her equip Wesley's shield and then initiate the dialogue - she will say that she "still has his shield and doesn't need a new one".
 * During the quest Demands of The Qun, when the Arishok attacks the guards in the compound, Aveline's shield will disappear and her sword will revert to the one she carried when first met for the duration of the scene.