Changes: Tamlen

Revision as of 11:40, 18 November 2019

Tamlen is a Dalish elf of the Sabrae clan. He is a childhood friend to Mahariel and a fellow hunter. He is a temporary companion during the Dalish Elf Origin.

Involvement

Dragon Age: Origins

This section contains spoilers for:
Dragon Age: Origins.

While hunting in the woods of the Brecilian Forest, Tamlen and Mahariel meet three humans who claim to have discovered ancient ruins in a nearby cave. Once the fate of the humans is decided, Tamlen and Mahariel investigate the cave. In the center of the ruins Tamlen finds a strange mirror in which he sees fascinating images of an underground city. When he touches it, there is a flash of light and he vanishes. Mahariel passes out and is rescued by Duncan, only to awaken two days later to find that no one in the clan knows Tamlen's fate. While searching for Tamlen in the ruins, Mahariel finds Duncan, who warns that there is no hope for Tamlen.

Much later in the campaign, the Warden's party is attacked at the camp by a group of shrieks. After this attack, Tamlen reappears. He is suffering from the effects of darkspawn corruption and he pleads for the Warden not to look at him and runs away. The Warden can follow him to the edge of camp to question him further. He retains some of his memory and describes to the Warden how he hears the darkspawn song. He begs the Warden to end his pain. Any attempts to help Tamlen do not work. He attacks the Warden, claiming "the song" told him to, which causes the party members to attack Tamlen. Alistair questions the Warden about the incident, then says Tamlen's death was a mercy. Tamlen does not carry any special rewards and his body disappears after the Warden's discussion with Alistair.

A spirit or demon assumes the form of Tamlen and will appear to the Dalish Warden in the Gauntlet during the Urn of Sacred Ashes quest.

During the Origin story, if a female Warden encourages Tamlen to talk inside the ruins and says that she came along to be with him, he will say that he's glad. If this conversation takes place, in a later conversation Ashalle may hint that she hoped that the Warden and Tamlen would be together, and Master Ilen may mention that Mahariel and Tamlen were "...very close." When Tamlen reappears as a ghoul, before attacking he will inform the Warden that he has always loved her. If, however, the Warden did not choose the "I wanted to be with you" option, or didn't initiate the conversation at all, Tamlen will instead treat the Warden as simply a friend, and no romance is mentioned.

Dragon Age II

This section contains spoilers for:
Dragon Age II.

Tamlen spirit — A vision of Tamlen during A New Path

Tamlen appears briefly in Act 3 during the fight with the Pride Demon in Merrill's companion quest A New Path. Tamlen fights against Hawke's party as an illusion along with the other Dalish elves who were lost because of the Eluvian, and warns that Merrill's curiosity will be the end of her.

Initial statistics

Skills

Improved Combat Training

Talents

Warrior	Precise Striking
Dual Weapon	Dual-Weapon Training Dual Striking
Archery	Aim Pinning Shot Rapid Shot

Equipment

All tier 1.

Weapons	Longbow Longsword
Armor	Dalish Leather armor set Small Shield

Trivia

If Mahariel speaks to Tamlen after entering the caves and suggests that he talk to calm his nerves, Tamlen says that he thought Mahariel was meant to be helping Master Varathorn. This could well be a slip, as Varathorn is in the clan met later in the campaign, and Master Ilen is the Sabrae clan's master craftsman.
Tamlen's equipment during the Origin story will disappear along with him, so it may be wise to take all his equipment before examining the mirror.
When the shrieks attack the party camp, Tamlen is named "Tormented Shriek," despite technically being a ghoul.
A possible dialogue option for the Dalish Warden in Witch Hunt DLC reveals that, after Tamlen's death, the clan named a new infant after him.
Tamlen's eye colour is unique to him and cannot be selected by the player in character creation.

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 * A possible dialogue option for the Dalish Warden in ''[[Witch Hunt]]'' [[Downloadable content (Origins)|DLC]] reveals that, after Tamlen's death, the clan named a new infant after him.
 * Tamlen's eye colour is unique to him and cannot be selected by the player in character creation.
-* The name Tamlen is likely a reference to the titular character of the Scottish ballad "Tam Lin", an elven knight who dwells in the forest of Carterhaugh.
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