“Nobility does not exist without obligation. We owe everything we have, even our lives, to our land and people.”
Eamon Guerrin (born 8:84 Blessed[3]) is the Arl of Redcliffe. He is popular, and holds a great deal of influence and support with the nobility and the Bannorn—enough to make himself be viewed as a threat by other powerful nobles.
He is the brother of Teagan Guerrin, who is the Bann of Rainesfere, and Queen Rowan Guerrin, who is King Maric Theirin's wife and Cailan Theirin's mother. He is married to Isolde (controversially due to her being Orlesian), with one son, Connor.
Background[]
Eamon was born around 8:84 Blessed, to the Arl and Arlessa of Redcliffe. Eamon's father also had a male lover named Connor, whom Eamon also called father.[1][2] When Eamon was nine, his father Arl Rendorn Guerrin sent him and his younger brother away with their mother so he could join the Rebel Queen without further endangering them. Arlessa Marina took them to her elder sister Thalia Aurum, at the time the ruling Margravine of Ansburg. Marina fell ill during the journey, and died just a day after reaching Ansburg. Eamon and Teagan were raised by their aunt and uncle, who treated them as if they were their own children. When Rendorn and Connor perished in the Battle of West Hill in 8:99 Blessed, the children were formally adopted by their aunt and uncle.[4]
Eamon returned to Redcliffe to claim his place as Arl in 9:02 Dragon,[5] but he found Redcliffe still occupied by Orlesian forces. He joined the resistance in removing the Orlesian forces from Redcliffe, and in the process earned the affections of Isolde, the daughter of the Orlesian governor, who had spent most of her life in Redcliffe, and was sympathetic to the rebels' plight. Though her infatuation proved one-sided at the time she kept helping the resistance by passing on information. The rebels were successful and Eamon claimed his title as Arl of Redcliffe.[6]
Once he'd reclaimed his lands, Eamon turned his attention to the recovery of the arling. He built Fort Connor in the Hinterlands.[2] His efforts resulted in improved trade and security for Redcliffe and its surroundings. He made regular visits to court, where his calm practicality earned him the respect of King Maric. He became one of the King's trusted advisors, and Maric eventually entrusted him with the protection of his bastard son Alistair.
Six years after they had met, Eamon once again crossed paths with Isolde on a trip to Denerim. Isolde had elected to stay with a cousin in the city instead of returning with her parents to Orlais. The two started a relationship, and she returned with him to Redcliffe, where the two married. Their union was rather controversial, as some people believed Isolde to be an Orlesian spy. When Isolde became pregnant with the couple's first child after difficulty conceiving, long-buried gossip claiming Alistair to be Eamon's bastard son resurfaced, and Isolde became fixated on the idea of her husband's "proper Fereldan son". Eamon eventually sent Alistair to a monastery to spare his wife's feelings.[7]
Connor was born on an exceptionally warm afternoon and had the immediate affection of his father. Eamon named his son in honour of his father.[2] The toddler was often seen surveying his future arling from atop Eamon's shoulders.[8]
At some point, Eamon attended the funeral of King Maric while accompanied by a retinue of knights including Jory.[9]
Involvement[]
Sometime before the Battle of Ostagar, Arl Eamon fell ill with a mysterious condition that left him comatose and even magic could not treat.[10]
Due to Arl Eamon's sudden illness, Redcliffe's forces were detained in joining King Cailan Theirin's army. At the time, King Cailan was unaware of Eamon's situation and had just received word from Duncan that Redcliffe's forces could be arriving in a week. Cailan was emboldened by previous victories against the darkspawn and had dismissed Eamon's missing help as unnecessary and glory-seeking regardless. Since Eamon's forces had not joined up with the king's army at Ostagar, Alistair suggests appealing to him for help against Teyrn Loghain and the Blight. Upon arriving in Lothering however, the Warden learns that Eamon has succumbed to a mysterious illness, with knights from Redcliffe being sent across the countryside by the arlessa to find the Urn of Sacred Ashes.
Eamon's illness stemmed from his poisoning by Jowan, a Blood Mage in Loghain Mac Tir's employ; presumably it was an attempt by Loghain to hinder Eamon from arriving in Ostagar.[10] Unfortunately, Eamon's son, Connor—who was being tutored by Jowan in secret— summoned a desire demon in a misguided attempt to help his father and became an abomination. The Desire demon fulfilled its part of the bargain with Connor and kept Eamon alive, but the demon also used Connor to seize control of the castle forces and turned them into undead soldiers that soon began attacking Redcliffe Village.
While the Warden deals with the demon, Eamon is only cured once a pinch of sacred ashes is used to revive him. Learning about what has transpired since Ostagar, Eamon hatches a plan to remove Loghain from power by calling a Landsmeet to put forth Alistair, King Maric's bastard son, as a candidate for the throne. Tasking the Warden with gathering all the armies with the Grey Warden treaties, he adds his own Redcliffe forces to help fight the Blight.
Once the armies have been gathered, Eamon brings the Warden, Alistair, and their companions to his estate in Denerim, and offers advice in preparation for the upcoming Landsmeet. He remains adamant about putting Alistair on the throne, believing that Ferelden must be unified by Theirin blood or risk being divided once more, and warns the Warden to be wary of Anora's attempts to retain power. During the Landsmeet itself, Eamon gives the opening argument as The Warden arrives, and should fighting erupt, draws his greatsword and joins the brawl with his men.
Alistair will appoint Eamon as his regent if he becomes king alone. Eamon accepts it with honor.
During the final onslaught, he will assist the Warden in the battle against the Archdemon atop Fort Drakon ( only). During this battle, he is seen wielding a sword and shield and is clad in heavy armor. If the Warden survives, he appears during the Post-Coronation celebrations if Alistair becomes king.
In Return to Ostagar, The Warden can retrieve a letter from Eamon to Cailan which infers that the Arl attempted to gently encourage the King to "put Anora aside", as she would soon be thirty, and had not yet produced an heir.
Quests[]
Quotes[]
- (When selecting Dog as your champion in the Landsmeet) "Ah, Warden... No. I'm afraid we can't leave the fate of all Ferelden up to your dog. Anyone with a leftover ham bone could buy his allegiance. Choose someone else."
- "Must we sacrifice everything good about our nation to save it?"
- (Speaking in the lead-up to the Battle of Denerim) "We have gathered all the forces we can. The darkspawn horde is sure to reach the capital before us, and so we must race to Denerim, as quickly as we can. The lives of many thousands hang in the balance; we must not forsake them. You have gathered an army to replace the one lost at Ostagar, Grey Warden. Let us pray...that it will be enough."
Codex entries[]
- Codex entry: Arl Eamon Guerrin
- Codex entry: Fort Connor
- Codex entry: Redcliffe
- Codex entry: A Study of the Fifth Blight, Vol. Two
- Codex entry: Temple of Sacred Ashes, Rediscovered
- Codex entry: Arlessa Isolde
Trivia[]
- David Gaider indicates that Loghain poisoned Eamon in the hopes that his absence would make it easier to win a potential showdown with King Theirin—and that the poison was never truly meant to kill Eamon, merely incapacitate him. Although this is never explicitly stated or supported in-game, other than Gaider's say-so on the Bioware forums when speaking of Loghain's possible motives.[12]
- Despite Jowan and Isolde stating that Eamon was ignorant about Connor being an apostate mage, and would have sent him to the Circle of Magi had he known, Loghain Mac Tir suspects Eamon turned a blind eye to Connor's apostasy and even aided in covering it up so he could inherit the Arling of Redcliffe. According to Loghain's dialogue, Loghain claims Eamon is a conservative man who believes in tradition and inheritance; he would prefer Connor remained his heir rather than let the arling pass to his childless younger brother or pass out of the hands of the Guerrin family altogether.
See also[]
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Trick Weekes (November 3, 2014). "So I got Arl Eamon's father's name wrong in a codex. Old name already existed. We've decided Arl Eamon had two dads." (archive). Twitter.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Codex entry: Fort Connor
- ↑ Dragon Age: The Stolen Throne, Chapter 12. It's mentioned that around the time of the lost battle of West Hill in 8:99 Blessed, Eamon was fifteen years old.
- ↑ Dragon Age: The World of Thedas, vol. 2, p. 105
- ↑ Dragon Age: The World of Thedas, vol. 2, p. 106
- ↑ Dragon Age: The World of Thedas, vol. 2, p. 102
- ↑ Dragon Age: The World of Thedas, vol. 2, p. 103
- ↑ Dragon Age: The World of Thedas, vol. 2, pp. 102-104
- ↑ Mentioned during conversation with Jory.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 When asking Ser Donall, "Do you think Loghain is involved with the arl's [Eamon] illness?", Donall responds, "The arl fell ill before the king died. But what if Loghain planned that too? Ah, such thoughts do not sit well with me."
- ↑ As stated by Connor in Dragon Age: Inquisition
- ↑ David Gaider (January 11, 2010). "The Complete Defense of Loghain Mac Tir" (archive). The BioWare Forum. (offline).