Loghain Mac Tir

Born into a time where his country was under the boot of a foreign tyrant, Loghain Mac Tir and his close friend Maric Theirin drove out the occupying forces of the Orlesian Empire more than 30 years ago. He is more a symbol than a man, representing the Fereldan ideals of hard work and independence. Now with his friend's death, he is left to defend the land with the naïve and inexperienced King Cailan Theirin, who is married to Loghain's daughter Anora. Loghain is the Teyrn of Gwaren.

Background

This section contains spoilers for:
Dragon Age: The Stolen Throne.

Loghain was born a "Freeman". He and his family were farmers until the Orlesian Emperor forced them from their land with higher taxes after the invasion. The Emperor declared a new tribute tax that applied to all of Ferelden's Freemen. Loghain's father, Gareth, refused to pay the tax collectors, and as a result the farmhold was declared forfeit and Loghain’s father was arrested for tax evasion. The family resisted and, as a result, Loghain and his father were forced to watch soldiers rape and kill his mother. From that point forward they lived on the run in the Fereldan wilds, banding together with other desperate Fereldans to eke out a living however they could.

While living with the outlaws, he met Maric and subsequently joined the rebel army. He became one of Maric's closest friends and a key military advisor of the rebel cause, with his strategies responsible for many of the rebels' greatest victories. He was rewarded for his contribution to the rebel cause by being made a teyrn.

He also fell in love with Rowan, who was betrothed to Maric. After Maric fell in love with Katriel, Rowan and Loghain formed a romantic relationship. It was short lived, however, as Loghain revealed to Maric that Katriel was a spy, which resulted in Katriel’s death. After this, Loghain encouraged Rowan to marry Maric to help him become a better king, and because he felt Ferelden needed her as a queen. With Maric and Rowan married, his friendship with them grew strained and he rarely spent time with them again.

This section contains spoilers for:
Dragon Age: The Calling.

During Dragon Age: The Calling, Loghain appears to be the closest advisor and friend to King Maric after the death of Queen Rowan. Duncan observes actually that he seems to be the one who is really in charge. Loghain is suspicious if not outright hostile to the Grey Wardens, whom he suspects are a cover for nefarious Orlesian interests. This suspicion is only confirmed later on when he comes to the rescue of Maric in the Circle of Magi, which had been taken over by Orlesian mages allied with the Architect. From his perspective, Maric had almost died due to a Grey Warden plot, and was highly naïve to still believe in them.

It is also suggested throughout the novel that, although married to a beautiful woman and father of a beautiful daughter in Gwaren, he prefers to stay in Denerim, claiming Maric needs him. Maric reflects on this by saying "we are all running away from something".

Involvement

This section contains spoilers for:
Dragon Age: Origins.

Loghain is responsible for devising the tactics that will be used in the Battle of Ostagar. Although Loghain advises Cailan not to fight on the front line, Cailan wants to fight with his men, away from Loghain. As part of his plan, Loghain and the bulk of the army will stay apart from King Cailan and the Grey Wardens and wait for a beacon to be lit, signalling Loghain and his men to come in and flank the darkspawn. Despite a darkspawn attack on the beacon tower, the Wardens eventually manage to light the beacon; however, on seeing the lit beacon, Loghain instead orders his troops to retreat, leaving King Cailan and the Grey Wardens to die.

After the battle at Ostagar, he labels any remaining Grey Wardens traitors and places an extremely large bounty on their heads. He also declares himself regent for his daughter Anora. This is not met with approval from the Bannorn, and civil war ensues. Loghain takes drastic measures to secure Ferelden, including allowing elves to be sold into slavery, and hiring Zevran Arainai, an Antivan Crow to assassinate The Warden, on the advice of Arl Howe.

At the Landsmeet, The Warden finally has a chance to confront Loghain. If The Warden has not gathered enough support from the nobles in attendance, Loghain will attempt to arrest the party and Arl Eamon, and a fight will ensue. This fight can be avoided with enough support. Whether there is a fight or not, the matter of who will rule Ferelden is still uncertain. To resolve the impasse, a duel must be fought. The Warden can elect to fight this duel, or select another companion.

Loghain will eventually yield, and The Warden must decide his fate. He can be executed by either Alistair or The Warden, or at Riordan's suggestion he can undergo the Joining and become a Grey Warden and companion. If he becomes a Grey Warden, Alistair will permanently leave the party as he is incapable of accepting Loghain as a brother. If The Warden chooses to let Alistair fight the duel he will kill Loghain after he yields without the option to allow him to surrender.

Adding Loghain to your party gives you a strong tank-character with a good set of armor; he can play a similar role to Alistair in combat. His high willpower also gives him good damage-dealing power, and he has all four Champion talents at his disposal. Recruiting Loghain also develops his character further and will reveal his feelings about Ostagar and other recent events.

If Loghain becomes a companion, it is easy to get high influence with him. When he asks what The Warden sought to gain by making him a Grey Warden, speaking to him in a forgiving manner and asking him "What do you want?", will also raise his approval. When discussing Anora's childhood, using the final option that says "No one alive knows her better than you" will net some good influence with him as well.

If you ask him to consider Morrigan's offer, he will express reluctance to participate and request to be the one to sacrifice his life to strike the killing blow against the Archdemon, arguing that it is a form of redemption for his mistakes. The Warden can still insist on doing the deed, though.

If Loghain survives the battle with the Archdemon: During the Post-Coronation celebrations he'll state that he has come to respect the Warden and reveals that Anora has now tasked him with recruiting new Grey Wardens. Later during the events of Awakening (if a Warden was imported with Loghain alive at the end), he arrives at Vigil's Keep and states that he has been transferred to the city of Montsimmard to serve with the Orlesian Grey Wardens, by order of the Grey Warden leaders in Weisshaupt. He hands the Warden-Commander a Grey Warden shield banner he found in the Denerim vault before departing.

Strategy

When Loghain has to be fought for the crown, any of the four people in the group can fight him (except Dog). Every class can beat Loghain with the right strategy.

Loghain has high physical and mental resistance, so it is difficult to knock him over or paralyze him. Unlike other boss level creatures he is not explicitly immune to these effects.

He will use shield bash and war cry to knock over the player, so high physical resistance is very helpful.

Warrior

You can beat him fairly easily as a warrior with average stats (~40 str/dex) if you equip some +physical resistance weapons/armor so that he can't knock you down as often. The fight ends pretty quickly if you can get to the point where you don't get knocked down every time he uses War Cry. Just watch your health (his shield bash will still send you flying) and hack away at him, and he won't last long.

A PC with the full Shield-and-Weapon tree should have little-to-no trouble with him with proper handling, due to the relatively high Dexterity and Strength requirements for mastering the tree. Activating Shield Wall will prevent your PC from being knocked over, which is generally the largest factor in taking damage from him due to his War Cry and Shield Bash.

Another efficient strategy is using a warrior with maxed-out 2H skill tree as well as the second Reaver talent. Keep him feared, pummeled to the ground, and stunned by the passive 2H ability. The Legion of the Dead massive armor is a good goal for this battle, as it requires much strength, which aids you in the battle -- and the Legion armor is not half bad either.

Mage

His high resistances make it unreliable to disable him with spells that have resistance checks, but unlike most bosses he is not immune to most disabling effects, so spells that do not have resistance checks are highly effective - Crushing Prison in particular is almost an "I win" button, and Mind Blast and Cone of Cold are also effective.

While he has high physical and mental resistance, he does not have spell or elemental resistance, so damage spells are quite effective compared to rogue and warrior attacks.

One tactic is to use Morrigan. She will have Mind Blast, and probably Cone of Cold. Sleep plus Horror makes for a great combo if you can get through his resistance.
If you have Wynne in your party, you can also use her strong damage mitigation abilities (healing, Heroic Defense, Lifeward, Rock Armor, etc.) combined with frequent barrages of Stonefist and Arcane Bolt to whittle his health down. However, when Loghain activates Perfect Striking, it may be a good time to use Wynne's Vessel of the Spirit ability for a quick health/mana regeneration, plus disorient effect.
If you have crushing prison then you have many options. Vulnerability Hex followed by Crushing Prison and stacking area persistent effect spells (Tempest, Inferno and Blizzard) and/or damage over time spells (Virulent Walking Bomb, Flame Blast) can defeat him before crushing prison expires.
If you have Blood Mage specialization, using Blood Wound is very effective against him.

Rogue

A rogue with at least level 3 Stealth and level 1 poison-making can simply enter stealth mode at the start of the fight, stand at a distance, and throw ranged attack items (such as acid flasks or shock bombs) at Loghain until he runs out of health. Loghain cannot attack stealthed opponents, but he can approach the Warden's position whenever he takes damage. When he gets close enough, your character may attempt to automatically attack him, but this can be prevented simply by running away from him until he stops chasing you.
Dirty Fighting always works to stun Loghain.
A rogue who uses the Dirty Fighting talent to stun Loghain and then backstabs him should have little difficulty, providing they maintain distance when Loghain is not stunned.
If you've invested in the Dual-Weapon tree and you happen to get your hands on Concentrated Deathroot extract (whether from drops or Poison-making), all you need to do is use the extract and fight Loghain. If your dexterity is high enough, you'll rarely miss, and he'll stay stunned throughout the whole battle.
If you are invested in the Ranger Specialization you can use the trick to summon two pets at once and have both of them use overpower on Loghain. Make sure to click on the new tactics prompt when you summon each one, or you won't be able to use the skills. Using Dirty Fighting while Loghain is targeting your pets will insure an easy victory.
A Duelist/Assassin can very easily win this as a straight fight. You could probably win with just auto-attack, but using Dirty Fighting and Riposte to stun him will allow you to Backstab him if you have Coup de Grace to make the fight faster.
If your Warden is skilled with a bow then you can try and create a distance between you and Loghain, if you get enough distance he will swap weapons to a weak Crossbow and can easily be defeated.

Gifts

Loghain is fond of maps; giving these as gifts will significantly boost his approval.

Name	Notes	Description

Ancient Map of the Imperium	Located: Denerim Market District	An antique, wine-stained map showing the boundaries of the ancient Tevinter Imperium.
Botanist's Map of Thedas	Unobtainable via normal means	A botanist's map of Thedas, showing where rare plants may be found on the continent.
Current Map of Ferelden	Located: Denerim Alienage	A clean and fairly up to date map showing the borders of modern Ferelden.
Map of the Anderfels	Located: Grey Warden Vault	A beautiful illustrated map of the Anderfels that includes drawings of strange beasts.
Map of Occupied Ferelden	Located: Redcliffe Castle	An old map showing Ferelden as part of Orlais. Naturally, many such maps were destroyed when the Orlesians were driven out.

Starting Stats, Talents, Unique Gear and Plot Skills

Loghain's Starting Stats

Relative Attribute Weightings on Auto-Level: Strength 0.95, Dexterity 0.8, Willpower 0.5, Magic 0, Cunning 0.15, Constitution 1.6.

Loghain's Starting Talents

Champion: War Cry, Rally, Motivate, Superiority.

Warrior: Powerful, Threaten, Bravery, Precise Striking, Taunt, Disengage, Perfect Striking.

Weapon and Shield Talents: Shield Bash, Shield Pummel, Overpower, Assault, Shield Block, Shield Cover, Shield Tactics, Shield Mastery.

Note: neither his strength, nor dexterity is high enough to normally learn high-tier Weapon and Shield Talents. It is also noteworthy he will have Superiority even if you trigger Landsmeet before he reaches level 16 (marginally possible, if you postpone all side quests and all DLC content until after Landsmeet).

Loghain's Unique Gear

Armor of the River Dane

Armor of the River Dane Boots

Armor of the River Dane Gloves

Loghain's Shield

Borders Yet to Be

Loghain's Plot Skills

Skill Name	Benefit	Requirement
Inspired: Minor Strength	+1 to Strength	25% approval
Inspired: Moderate Strength	+2 to Strength	50% approval
Inspired: Major Strength	+4 to Strength	75% approval
Inspired: Massive Strength	+6 to Strength	90% approval

Note: These bonuses are non-cumulative, i. e. the companion will get a total bonus of +6, not of +13.

Quotes

See also: [[:Loghain's Dialogue|Loghain's Dialogue]]

Loghain: "Pray our king proves amenable to wisdom, if you're the praying sort."
Warden: "And if he doesn't?"
Loghain: "Then simply pray."

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"You're pretty for a Grey Warden. Don't let anyone tell you that you don't belong. The first Warden Maric brought to Ferelden was a woman, best warrior I've ever seen." To city elf female Warden at Ostagar.
"You're no surface dwarf. I can see it in your eye, smart of the Wardens to look for recruits in Orzammar." To the Dwarven Warden at Ostagar.
"Your fascination with glory and legends will be your undoing, Cailan! We must attend to reality."
"You rely on these Grey Wardens too much, Is that truly wise?."
"Understand this: I will brook no threat to this nation. From you... or anyone!"
"Lords and Ladies... Stand with me, and we will defeat even the Blight itself!"
"The Emperor of Orlais also thought I could not bring him down. Expect no more mercy than I showed him. There is nothing I would not do for my homeland."
" 'A man is made by the quality of his enemies.' Maric told me that once. I wonder if it's more a compliment to you or me." At the Landsmeet, once The Warden defeats Loghain in the voting
"Daughters never grow up, Anora. They remain six years old with pig tails and skinned knees forever."Before dying at the hands of Alistair or the Warden during the Landsmeet.
"You'll have to forgive me if I shut my eyes and think of my dead wife." Before performing Morrigan's ritual
"Now it is time for me to go. The Orlesian Wardens await my presence, daggers and all." Before departing to Orlais in Awakening
"I am surprised. Thank you." When given a gift he likes.
"Be good to Anora. If I hear differently, remember that Orlais is only just across the border. I can always return." When speaking with the Human Noble Warden in Awakening, if the Warden married Anora.

Trivia

Simon Templeman, the voice of Loghain, is also widely known for his voice acting in The Legacy of Kain and Uncharted series. He also provides the voice of Admiral Han'Gerrel in Mass Effect 2.
Loghain may have been based on the Irish king Lóegaire mac Néill who was a frequent antagonist of St. Patrick. Several accounts describes his schemes to kill St. Patrick and his followers and supposedly submits at the counsel of his people and is baptised or is not converted and dies unbaptised.
Loghain's last name, Mac Tir, may be a reference to mactìre, which is Gaelic (gàidhlig) for wolf.
In the novel, The Stolen Throne, Loghain forms and leads a skilled company of elven archers known as the 'Night Elves.' These were elves recruited from within the rebel army.
Teyrn Loghain bears a passing physical resemblance to Simon Templeman's best known role, Kain, the titular protagonist from the Legacy of Kain series. Before Kain was reanimated as a Vampire, he had the same pale skin and dark, long hair as Loghain. Additionally, both characters were Nobles.