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“They know what I am. Let them come, if they find the courage.”


Once a slave to the Tevinter magister Danarius, Fenris is a potential companion as well as a romance option for either a female or male Hawke. He is a warrior specializing in two-handed weapons. He can be found during the quest Bait and Switch.

Background

Once a slave of Danarius, a Tevinter Magister, Fenris bears markings of lyrium on his skin that have granted him the unnatural ability to phase through solid objects; however, the experiments performed on him also caused him to lose all of his memories. The limits of his phasing power are unknown, but Fenris uses this ability mostly as an unexpected weapon, phasing through individuals and solidifying, killing them violently. He has fled to Kirkwall as a fugitive, constantly hunted by the soldiers of his former master. The lyrium burned into his body causes him pain, making him guarded against physical contact; however, it is more of an aversion to them being touched rather than physical pain.[1]

Being a former slave himself, Fenris is happy to help slaves flee their masters or kill the ones who hold onto their chains. Because of his unpleasant experience with the Tevinter Magisters, specifically Danarius, he is extremely distrustful of mages. He feels that they would do anything for power, and, at one point or another, inevitably succumb to the temptations that demons and blood magic have to offer, no matter how pure their intentions are or may seem.


This section contains spoilers for:
Dragon Age II.


During the quest Alone in Act 3, Fenris will discover that his name used to be Leto. If Hawke does not let Danarius take him, it will be revealed that Fenris' sister is, in fact, a mage. She mentions that life has been hard since their mother died, but does not say how. If Fenris spares his sister, he will also learn that he competed for the lyrium markings in order to free his mother and sister from slavery.


Involvement


This section contains spoilers for:
Dragon Age II.


Fenris joins the party upon performing the Bait and Switch quest. Upon completion of the quest you have the option to have him join your party as a permanent companion. His home base is Danarius' old mansion, located in Hightown.

When hunting Danarius' apprentice, Fenris may become angry at Hawke if they do not take care of the situation in a timely manner. He may leave the party immediately if the issue is not resolved. If Hawke sides with the mages in the final battle, Fenris may pit himself against the champion, and Hawke may be forced to kill him. This can be avoided if all of his quests are resolved and Hawke has a 100% friend or rival status with Fenris. Alternately, even if his quests were not performed, he may be persuaded to rejoin the Champion if he is pressed about his feeling toward enslavement. If the war breaks out by Anders' interference, Fenris might join back in the Gallows if you ask him no matter how many quests you have done with him.

During his personal quest Alone in Act 3, Fenris confronts his former master Danarius. Hawke has the option to return Fenris and allow him to be taken back to Tevinter. If Hawke agrees he will simply give up and allow them to take him without a fight. Later, Hawke will recieve a letter from Danarius stating; "Many thanks for the kind return of my property. Fenris is his usual compliant self now that his memories have been once again removed. Not a simple process, but considering the investment, I consider it very much worthwhile. As promised, I'm enclosing a little gift from the storehouses of the Arcanist House of Minrathous. Should you ever find yourself in the Imperium, do feel free to visit. I'll provide a tour of the Hall myself, if you like."

If Bethany / Carver are dead during Best Served Cold in Act 3, Fenris can be taken hostage by Grace and Thrask.


Fenris has obtained rather considerable knowledge regarding Qunari culture and practices, a result of him being left behind by his master after a battle between the Tevinter mages and the Qunari on Seheron. His injuries were treated by Fog Warriors and he spent several months living with them before Danarius returned to retrieve Fenris. The Fog Warriors refused to give him up, and Danarius was injured in the subsequent battle. Danarius ordered Fenris to kill the Fog Warriors who had defended him, which he did. He indicates regret at doing so, but apparently still had a lingering propensity to do as commanded upon the return of his master. It was this event that caused Fenris to leave his master, taking advantage of the delay in pursuit that Danarius' injuries offered. If brought to meetings with the Arishok, Fenris has special dialogue that demonstrates this knowledge, which, in turn, impresses the Arishok. However, he also states, when asked, that he is not a follower of the Qun.

Romance

Fenris can be romanced by either a female or male Hawke and by all classes. Because of his strong aversion to mages and blood magic, a Hawke looking to fulfill a friendly romance with Fenris must either follow his views on magic, or leave him behind on missions where the player will be siding with or aiding mages. If the player would like to pursue the rival romance, it doesn't matter if Hawke clashes with Fenris. Fenris can be flirted with almost immediately. There are also several romance dialogue options within questions/information about his past.


This section contains spoilers for:
Dragon Age II.


Act 1

During Bait and Switch, after you leave Danarius' mansion, there is a conversation with Fenris. When you ask why Danarius is after him, a flirt option becomes available. Once Fenris has been recruited, he can be flirted with in his mansion. These will come up in the Journal under "Companion Quests". In Fenris Recruited, Fenris brings up Hawke's former home in Ferelden.. It's in your best interest to say you want to go back (if you want to be his friend instead of rival, of course).

Act 2

In order for the romance to actually begin, Hawke should use the Flirt options during the quest Speak to Fenris. During the follow-up quest Questioning Beliefs, flirt with Fenris again and ask him questions about his past. Friendship Romance: If Hawke has successful romanced Fenris up to this point, near the end of the conversation a flirt option to say "Just friends?" will appear in addition to the other three dialogue choices. Choosing to ask "Just friends?" will add a few lines of romantic dialogue. NOTE: Be sure to complete Questioning Beliefs before leaving Kirkwall. If Hawke embarks on A Bitter Pill before Questioning Beliefs is completed, the romance may become permanently unavailable.

Once Questioning Beliefs is completed, Hawke must take Fenris around the region outside of Kirkwall during Act 2 (usually while traveling to The Bone Pit or Sundermount). There will be a surprise encounter in which Tevinter slavers, send by Danarius' apprentice Hadriana, attempt to recapture him. (If this does not happen, work more towards the main quests of Act 2 and try again.) This encounter begins the quest A Bitter Pill. During A Bitter Pill, you find a lone slave girl by the name of Orana and have the option to tell her she could get employment in your house OR give her coin to start a life on her own, both of which will increase your friendship score with Fenris. For the maximum friendship boost, give her the coin. Telling her that she is on her own has no effect if you are Fenris' rival. Allowing Fenris to make his own decision on how to deal with Hadriana will also increase your friendship score. After dealing with Hadriana, Fenris will need to be alone, and will leave the party temporarily.

When next the player goes to Hawke's mansion, Fenris will be there waiting. Depending on whether Hawke and Fenris are rivals or friends, and if the "Questioning Beliefs" quest has been completed, the situation will play out slightly differently. He will apologize to Hawke for leaving, and follow up with dialogue that leads to the option of letting/asking him to stay. If his Act II Questioning Beliefs quest has not been completed, inviting him to stay will result in him saying that it's best for both of you if he leaves. If the flirt option is chosen and successful, they kiss and the scene dims to Hawke's room. If it is not chosen, or if he will not stay, once Hawke leaves and returns to the mansion, Fenris will be there waiting again to initiate a romance scene if Friendship/Rivalry is high enough.

  • (As of patch v1.02, traveling to Fenris' mansion immediately after killing Hadriana no longer allows you to complete his Questioning Beliefs quest, as he won't be there.)


No matter what options (friends/rivals, gifts, etc.,) Hawke has made up to this point, Fenris will leave. He will tell Hawke that during their night together he experienced flashbacks to his life before lyrium was burnt into him. He will sorrowfully claim that he is in no place to be with someone else (or that all he wanted was to be happy, just for a little while), and will leave.

If the player has romanced him successfully, he will be wearing a red band around his wrist and the Hawke/Amell crest on his belt.

Note: There appears to be a bug with the dialogue wheel during the conversation. When Fenris leaves and the final dialogue wheel appears for Hawke, the option 'So you're ending it.' appears to have the effect of ending the romance, even though it doesn't have a 'Reject' icon. Fenris will still wear a red ribbon and companions may still make comments suggesting a continued romance, but the corresponding scenes and dialogues in Act 3 will not occur.

+ There is a situation where choosing to give the girl a job will sometimes end the Fenris romance entirely, causing him to leave when Hawke asks to him to stay- even if his personal quests have been completed/his friendship-rivalry values are high. Reloading the save and choosing to give her money instead fixes the problem. (Xbox 360) This problem did not appear on PC as of patch 1.03.

+ Romancing other characters: There are several accounts of being able to sleep with Isabela before romancing Fenris. In my attempts, having Hawke spend the night with Isabela effectively halts a romance with Fenris, even if Hawke sleeps with her and then ends the romance before speaking with Fenris at all in Act 2 (as the guides suggest). Flirting with Isabela during Isabela's Ongoing Search does not impact a romance with Fenris, so long as Hawke turns down Isabela's offer to romp at the Hawke Estate. If Isabela does spend the night, Hawke can still flirt with Fenris, but he won't spend the night and doesn't get the armband or belt crest. (Attempted as female Hawke with full Friendship with Fenris on PS3). The key to this is romancing everyone you want to romance BEFORE Hawke initiates a romance with Fenris in Act 2. Act 1 flirting does not count. Once you have begun fully romancing Fenris, sleeping with anyone else will end the romance.

Act 3

When next you visit Fenris, he will tell Hawke that he has obtained information about his sister and wants Hawke to go with him to meet her. After Varania talks about a few segments of Fenris' past, Danarius appears, revealing that it was all a set-up on his behalf. He promised to make Variana his apprentice in exchange for baiting Fenris to him. You will have the option to engage in combat with Danarius, or to turn Fenris in. If you turn Fenris in, you will lose him permanently, thus obviously ending the romance.

Once the party has killed Danarius, Fenris will have the option to kill his sister. If you choose to persuade him against killing her, Varric will agree and help you with the persuasion. Fenris will let her go, and Varania will reveal that Fenris received his lyrium markings in order to free her and their mother from slavery. She then leaves.

Regardless of which option you chose, Fenris will lament that he is now definitely alone. Hawke can tell him that he has him/her.

After this, and once Friendship or Rivalry has been maxed out, the second Questioning Beliefs quest will appear for Fenris, requiring Hawke to visit him at his mansion.

For a Rivalry romance, Fenris will be pacing in front of his fireplace restlessly when Hawke enters the room. After angry words about his revenge "tasting like bitter ashes", he will ask Hawke what he should do next, and after that ask for Hawke's forgiveness for ending the relationship in Act 2. Hawke has the option to forgive him, thus continuing the romance.

For a Friendship romance, Aveline and Varric will be there if you haven't spoken to Isabela yet, if not she will be there, trying to convince Fenris to find a better place to live. However, unlike Merrill and Anders, Fenris does not have the option of moving into the Hawke manor. Hawke can console Fenris at this point, and the option to state that he/she does not care what Fenris does as long as he is by his/her side will be available. Like in the Rivalry romance, he will apologize for walking out on the relationship in Act 2, and the option to forgive him is available.

If you successfully pursued a romance with another character after Fenris broke it off in Act 2, telling them that Fenris left you, this scene will still occur, but without any flirt option that would allow Fenris to apologize. He does, however, continue to wear the red armband and Amell crest for the duration of the game.

Once The Last Straw has been started, talk to Fenris in the courtyard to receive the achievement for romancing him. Fenris will want to side with the Templars, however if he and Hawke are friends or are rivals he can be convinced to side with the mages. At maximum friendship or rivalry and in a romance with Hawke, Fenris will take Hawke's side without needing to be convinced even if Hawke sides with the mages.

The following quests have flirtation dialog options with Fenris

Act 1: Bait and Switch, Fenris Recruited

Act 2: Speak to Fenris, A Bitter Pill


If you wish to have a romance with several characters and Fenris. Avoid speaking to him immediately after Act 2 and romance any other characters you wish first. However, for a romance with Fenris to be possible after sleeping with another character, you must end the romance with the other character by choosing a broken heart dialogue wheel option before beginning the romance with Fenris. (This has been tested and confirmed to work with Isabela and Anders.) It is speculated amongst fans that Fenris will not attempt a romance with you if he thinks you may be able to find happiness with another.[2] However, you CANNOT sleep with anyone after Fenris, or it will automatically end the romance, even if you break up with the other person. Additionally, be careful not to leave Kirkwall for the duration of your attempts at romancing the other characters. Leaving Kirkwall can trigger Fenris's quest A Bitter Pill. If you do not complete this quest quickly, you may be forced to complete it automatically (see quest description for details). For the relationship with Fenris to proceed normally, you want to complete the quest Speak to Fenris before A Bitter Pill, so it is best to avoid leaving Kirkwall while romancing other characters. NOTE: During the quest Blackpowder Courtesy, you will technically leave Kirkwall for the Wounded Coast, but this does not trigger A Bitter Pill. Once you have finished romancing any other characters you wish, return to Fenris's Mansion, complete the companion quest Speak to Fenris and proceed with the quest A Bitter Pill as indicated above.

Important Note: Sleeping with either Isabela, Anders, or Merrill after you have initiated a romance with Fenris will supercede and automatically end Fenris's romance. However, finishing the romance with Fenris can still be completed if Hawke sleeps with Zevran. The reason is most likely because Zevran is not able to be romanced since he is not a companion.[3]

Fate


This section contains spoilers for:
Dragon Age II.


If romanced, it is possible that Fenris leaves Kirkwall with Hawke if he or she sides with the mages. If Hawke sides with the templars, Fenris also stays with Hawke through Hawke's term as Viscount and until Hawke disappears if romanced. In both scenarios, neither Fenris or Hawke's whereabouts are known by the end of the game.

If Hawke sides with the mages, hasn't sent Fenris away, and hasn't secured a relationship with him, then he will refuse to fight with Hawke and will turn up just before the confrontation with Meredith along with several city guards and can be killed. It is possible for Fenris to side with the mages provided that Hawke has completed both his personal quests and has a full Friendship or Rivalry with him.


Friendship and rivalry

See the approval page for more information.

Friendship with Fenris can generally be earned by siding against any mages, not being sympathetic towards his problems but understanding them, being ruthless to slavers and being kind to the innocents- particularly elves and slaves- in the game.

Rivalry with Fenris can generally be earned by siding with any mages in the game.

Gifts

Gifts that can be given to Fenris to increase friendship or rivalry:

Gear

See Companion armor for a list of all Companion Armor upgrades.

In Dragon Age II, you cannot change what armor your companions wear, but you can upgrade it. Fenris' armor may be upgraded by using the gift mechanics in Dragon Age II. You will find companion armor upgrades that can be purchased at shops in the tab designated by the Gem Icon. Fenris' armor has four slots available for upgrades. These upgrades may be purchased or found at various locations in the game. Upgrading a companion's armor once unlocks the "A Friend In Need" achievement and fully upgrading a companion's armor unlocks the "I Got Your Back" achievement.

Fenris' armor upgrades can be found at the following locations:

If Fenris is romanced in Act 2, he'll wear a red scarf around his right wrist (which is Hawke's favor to him[4]) and a Hawke Family Crest placard/badge on the left side of his belt.

Fenris specific gear

The Lost Memory The Lost Memory

Band of Emancipation Band of Emancipation

Talent Trees

Quotes

Main article: Fenris/Dialogue
  • "I am not a slave!" (Upon first meeting him)
  • "What has magic touched that doesn't spoil?" (During the quest, A Bitter Pill)
  • "Mages in glass houses shouldn't throw fireballs." (To Anders during random party banter)
  • "Do you want to guess what color my underclothes are again?" (To Isabela during party banter)
  • "There are no puppy eyes." (To Merrill during random party banter, if he is in a romance with Hawke)
  • "Ah, here we are at the center of power. Smell the oppression, everyone!" (In the guard barracks/Viscount's Keep)
  • "'Ignore the tiger. Not its fault that it's going to eat you.' Sound advice." (To Merrill's defense of demons)
  • "She's courting the man. With a fear reserved for dragons." (Referring to Aveline during The Long Road)
  • "Do not bare your heart to me, mage, unless you would have me rip it out." (To Anders during random party banter)
  • "Here I am, about to defend these mages in hopeless battle. You lead me to strange places, Hawke." (To Hawke when he/she sides with the Circle on the final battle)
  • "I disavow all knowledge of any gambling occurring in my household." (To Aveline during party banter regarding Donnic playing cards at Fenris' Mansion)
  • "Now the battle awaits us. Na via lerno victoria. 'Only the living know victory.' Fight well."
  • "I do love the way the merchants glare at me, as if I'm going to steal something."
  • "I'm not sorry she died. I'm sorry she died for you." (To Merrill, after the death of Keeper Marithari)

Gallery

Trivia

  • David Gaider wrote Fenris for Dragon Age II.[5]
  • Gideon Emery, who is well known for voicing Balthier from Final Fantasy XII, also voices Taliesen, Alarith and several other characters in Dragon Age: Origins.
  • The name Fenris alludes to the name of the wolf, Fenrir of Norse mythology (spelled and pronounced Fenris in Scandinavian languages) who bit off the right hand of the god Tyr. It was also foretold that he would kill the father of the gods, Odin, at Ragnarok. He also states that his master called him "his little wolf." The Tevinter language absorbed a number of elven words, one among them being "fen" -- for "wolf". The root of the Tevinter word "Fenris" shares a root with the name of the elven god "Fen'Harel", the Dread Wolf.
  • The name Fenris is also shared with the name of one of the available realms in the World of Warcraft games.
  • Fenris primarily swears in Tevinter, but occasionally will break into meditation-like comments on the fight. He's one of the few soundsets that never actually yells during combat.[6]
  • During a conversation with Hawke, Fenris mentions that he is originally from Seheron, though he appears to be unsure whether this is true or not.[7] This may explain why Fenris knows so much about the Qunari.
  • The name Leto may be a possible reference to Children of Dune (by Frank Herbert). "My skin will not be my own," said by Leto in reference to accepting the sandtrout to change his own skin. In both cases, the appearance of their skin changes and grants them special abilities. It is also a Slavic name for "summer" and "he who is always happy" in Latin, hinting that Fenris used to have a happy past with his family before it was all taken away when he sacrificed himself to allow his family to be free.
  • Fenris has a particular dislike for fish.
  • Fenris apparently plays cards with Varric, as he comments that he owes him some gold, and claims he'll ask Hawke for the money when Fenris says he'll pay him.
  • In Act 3 and the Legacy DLC, if neither Isabela nor Fenris have been romanced, then party banter between Fenris and Isabella suggests that they are in a intimate relationship - but it appears to be purely physical.
  • In Mark of the Assassin dialogue with Sebastian Fenris states he likes apples.

References

  1. Gaider David, The Official Fenris Discussion thread. BioWare Social Network.
  2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6nuzI_5tpw
  3. [1]
  4. Gaider David, The Official Fenris Discussion thread. BioWare Social Network.
  5. Gaider David, David Gaider, BioWare Social. BioWare Social Network. Retrieved 2011-01-12.
  6. Gaider David, The Official Fenris Discussion thread. BioWare Social Network. Retrieved 2011-01-14.
  7. Fenris: I would return to Seheron if I could but... there is no life for me there. Hawke: Seheron? Is that where you're from? Fenris: So I've been told.

External links

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