Dragon Age: Origins was one of Bioware’s first major hits, and it has spawned a series of beloved fantasy RPGs. Inspired by Dungeons & Dragons, Bioware gave gamers three races to choose from for their protagonist: dwarf, elf, or human. Each race came with two or more backstories to choose from which would frame the player’s first few hours in the game, and their character’s personality throughout. There were options from the wealthiest class, the poorest class, the nomadic, and the socially institutionalized. These unique origin stories have been beloved by Dragon Age fans ever since, and many clamor for their return in the next installment.

Not only could the player create a detailed and nuanced character, but their Warden was surrounded by NPCs that felt real and consistent. Fans adored some characters, and despised others, pulling their real emotions into the playing experience. With nuanced social, economic, and political struggles surrounding the day-to-day fighting and questing, these characters and their various affinities encouraged players to take a side, make a stand, and actually change the world around them. As fans wait for the next installment, here is a brief reminder to fill in the gaps about the most important Origin characters and their backgrounds.

14 The Warden

The player character in Origins - known simply as “The Warden” - is the Dragon Age protagonist that started it all. Fans adored the detailed customization options that made their own play experience feel unique from any other’s and encouraged the player to spend time pouring over minutia, slowly falling in love with their avatar.

Age: At least 18 and at least young enough to be combat-ready

Birthday: Probably sometime between 8:70 Blessed and 9:12 Dragon

Height: Between 4’ and 6'5" based on racial heights from the roleplaying game

13 Duncan

Duncan is a Grey Warden who recruits the player character into the order. He grew up as a thief on the streets of Val Royeaux, but joined the order after accidentally murdering a warden he was attempting to rob. He was eventually promoted to second-in-command of the Ferelden Grey Wardens and swore to look over Alistair, whose parents he knew and protected during his time serving the order.

Age: Never stated, but assumed to be in his late 30s

Birthday: Never stated

Height: Never stated, but assumed to be approximately 5'9"

12 Loghain Mac Tir

Loghain Mac Tir is a nobleman in Ferelden and the Queen’s father. He was born the son of a farmer, and became friends with King Maric, King Cailan’s father, by a chance meeting. Loghain went on to be one of Maric’s closest friends and key military advisor. When Cailan took the throne, he relied on Loghain heavily. In the introduction to Dragon Age: Origins, the player lights a beacon that is meant to signal Loghain and a huge number of forces to join a huge battle, but Loghain orders his soldiers to retreat, instead. The player is left wondering whether his decision was a tactician’s instinct that their fight was a losing one, or an intentional ploy to kill off Ferelden’s Grey Wardens and the King.

Age: Approximately 52

Birthday: Around 8:78 Blessed

Height: Never stated, but assumed to be approximately 6'3"

11 Anora

Anora Mac Tir is the daughter of Loghain Mac Tir, with whom she had a tight bond. From a young age, around 8-10, she became betrothed to (future) King Cailan. The two were fast friends, and their marriage of convenience soon became a marriage of love. Anora spent much time at court crowing up with her father, so upon Cailan’s accession to the throne, Anora assumed most of the monarchical duties her husband shirked. After his death, Anora has a claim to the throne — everyone knows who was really ruling Ferelden during Cailan’s life.

Age: Approximately 28

Birthday: Never stated, but Loghain begins taking her to court with him in 9:10 Dragon, and she is described as a child — if she is 8 years old at the time, her birthday would be around 9:02 Dragon

Height: Never stated, but assumed to be approximately 5'6"

10 Alistair

Alistair is an ex-templar-in-training, current Grey Warden, with striking blonde hair and a coy, teasing personality. Alistair was born as the bastard son of the late King Maric and the elven Orlesian enchantress Fiona. Alistair does not know the identity of his mother — but, at Fiona’s request, he was told that she was a young human serving girl — but was informed that his father was King Maric by Arl Eamon, who took him in as a child. He worked as a stableboy in Redcliffe until his templar training began, and when it became apparent he was ill-suited to the religious life, he was recruited into the Grey Wardens by Duncan. Alistair’s bashfulness and gentle heart paired with his royal lineage leads to one of the most difficult choices in Dragon Age history.

Age: 20

Birthday: 9:10 Dragon

Height: Never stated, but assumed to be approximately 6'1"

9 Arl Eamon Guerrin

Eamon is the Arl of Redcliffe, and an incredibly popular and influential leader. His family was deeply connected, and his sister, Rowan Guerrin, was betrothed at a young age to (future) King Maric Theirin, making her Cailan Theirin’s mother. When Alistair was born, Eamon agreed to take him in to protect his sister’s honor, but when he eventually married a woman named Isolde, she became convinced that Alistair was Eamon’s bastard child. Finally, Eamon sent Alistair to live at a monastery and train as a templar to spare his wife’s feelings. In Dragon Age: Origins, the player seeks out Eamon’s help at Alistair’s suggestion — only to find that he has fallen mysteriously ill.

Age: 46

Birthday: 8:84 Blessed

Height: Never stated, but assumed to be approximately 5'11"

8 Dog

The dog companion in Dragon Age: Origins, lovingly referred to as “Barkspawn” by the community, is a mabari warhound. This is a race of hyper-intelligent dogs bred for war by generations of humans living in Ferelden. The dog’s origins vary depending on the Warden’s backstory: for human nobles, Barkspawn was a childhood pet. For other origins, Barkspawn’s original master died in a battle, and a kennel master asks the player to find a medicinal herb that could save the mabari’s life. If the player completes that quest, Barkspawn rejoins them after the Battle of Ostagar. Barkspawn is (thankfully) one of the few dogs in video games that doesn’t die, or the player isn’t forced to kill.

Age: Never stated, but mabari are assumed to live approximately 30 years (or seven, if they contract the blight)

Height: Never stated, but assumed to be approximately 2'8" based on the heights of real dogs, like golden retrievers

7 Leliana

Leliana is a young bard-turned-lay sister of the Chantry. She was born and raised in Orlais, but she considers herself to be Ferelden because her mother was. In Thedas, bards are musicians and performers, but they are also thieves, spies, and assassins. Leliana grew up in this environment until she escaped the thumb of her master, Marjolaine, and decided to atone for her sins in the Lothering Chantry. Her tale of abuse, heartbreak, romance, intrigue, and renewal has made her a fan-favorite character, and even a healing experience for some.

Age: 24-26, according to the game’s toolset

Birthday: 9:04 Dragon - 9:06 Dragon

6 Morrigan

Morrigan is an apostate mage, who lived in the Kocari Wilds. Her mother was Flemeth, a woman known as the “Witch of the Wilds” who was said to have hundreds of daughters and lived for centuries. Morrigan is an only child, though, and she simply knows Flemeth as her mother, if an odd woman and a mage. Flemeth plucked Morrigan as a young child from a nearby town when Morrigan was too young to remember it and fostered her magical abilities. After the introduction of Dragon Age: Origins, Morrigan joins the player on their quest at Flemeth’s insistence. As a mage in a society that fears and locks away her kind, Morrigan often comments on the otherwise-accepted parts of society and religion that the player might have taken for granted.

Age: Never stated, but assumed to be approximately 18-22

Birthday: Approximately 9: 12 Dragon - 9:08 Dragon - it is noted that in 9:20 Dragon, a childhood Morrigan is seen observing Avvar and people from the nearby towns, and this estimation would make her an appropriate age at the time (8-12)

5 Oghren

A fan recently ran a game of Dragon Age: Origins where every decision was made by dice rolls, which was unusual, but it must be Oghren’s everyday experience. A crude dwarven warrior, Oghren is seldom sober. But he wasn’t always like this — as a young man, he was one of the best fighters of his generation. Born into a middle-caste family, Oghren fell in love with a woman named Fels, but his dreams were thwarted when his family betrothed him to a higher-caste woman, Branka. Oghren begrudgingly agreed at the behest of his family, but the marriage went quickly downhill as Branka became obsessed with the Anvil of the Void. When she took their entire household into the Deep Roads to look for it, only Oghren was left behind, a depressed, drunk, angry man, which is how the Warden finds him.

Age: Approximately 25

Birthday: Never stated, but Branka took their entire household into the deep roads in 9:28 dragon, after at least a year of marriage to Oghren. Assuming the pair married when Oghren was 20 years old, and two years of marriage passed, Oghren would have been born around 9:06

Height: Never stated, but assumed to be approximately 4'8"

4 Shale

Shale was, once upon a time, an excellent dwarven warrior who served King Valtor. When Caridin, an ancient dwarven smith, made an anvil capable of creating golems and locking souls inside them, she volunteered: Caridin’s experiments were designed to create a creature powerful enough to defend the dwarves during the First Blight. Eventually, as the dwarven kingdom lost territory and the Deep Roads were overrun by darkspawn, Shale was left, deactivated, in one of the lost thaigs. That is, until she was found and reactivated by a human mage, who studied her, used her as a weapon, and showed her off as a trophy. Eventually, the mage was found dead, with Shale standing over him deactivated. Shale was believed to be the murder, so she was left deactivated, until the Warden finds her, years later.

Age: At least 1,185 years

Birthday: Sometime before -255 Ancient, when she was turned into a golem by Paragon Cardin

Height: Never stated, but assumed to be approximately 6'5", keeping in mind that she was chiseled down so as to be transported and moved through doorways more easily

3 Sten

Sten is a Qunari warrior. He was sent to Ferelden by the Qun to bring back information about what the Blight was. When his group was attacked by darkspawn, he lost his sword — the sword is the soul of a Qunari warrior, and to return to his homeland without it would mean certain death. Out of panic, he murdered a human family who discovered his body among the dead. Sten could have fled the scene, but felt great remorse and chose to stay and be discovered. When he was arrested by humans, he didn’t resist and was caged and left to die.

Age: Approximately 37

Birthday: Never stated, but he is mentioned in a note from 9:03 Dragon as a young homeless boy soldier, so assuming he was 10 years old at that time, he would have been born around 8:93 Blessed

Height: Never stated, but assumed to be approximately 6'9"

2 Wynne

Wynne is a human Circle mage from Ferelden’s Circle of Magi. She has a strong sense of duty to the Circle, and grew up there from a young age, as many mages did. Wynne took on several apprentices and cautioned them harshly on the dangers of demons. She was so highly regarded that she was asked to be Ferelden’s First Enchanter — but she refused, choosing instead to join King Cailan at the battle of Ostagar. As players get to know her, she reveals herself to be a stereotypically friendly old woman, sharing calm advice and making socks. Indeed, Wynne is one of the essential reasons why Dragon Age: Origins should be remastered. Despite being only 49, her in-game character model looks to be a woman aged 60 or older.

Age: 49

Birthday: Around 8:81 Blessed

Height: Never stated, but assumed to be approximately 5'4"

1 Zevran Arainai

If you ask Zevran (and many of his fans IRL), there are lots of perks to dating him. He’s suave, handsome, fiercely loyal, and up for anything in the bedroom. However, that pretty face hides a lot of baggage. Zevran Arainai grew up in a brothel in Antiva City, after his Dalish mother was forced into a life of prostitution to pay off his father’s debts. His parents died when he was young, and Zevran was raised by the other prostitutes until he was seven. At that time, he was purchased by a noble house affiliated with the Antivan Crows, and was trained as one of their assassins. Zevran was an excellent member, but when was forced to kill a lover, his heart went out of his work. When he takes on a job to kill the Warden in Dragon Age: Origins, he expects he will never return.

Age: 25-26

Birthday: 9:04-9:05 Dragon

Height: Never stated, but assumed to be approximately 5'5"

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