мerrιℓℓ (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
chainlightning) wrote2015-12-07 04:41 am
chainlightning) wrote2015-12-07 04:41 am
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faderift
PLAYER
Name: Gadgets
Age: 26
Contact:
Other Characters: n/a
Interests: I'm horribly excited for characters who have only heard negative things about blood magic to meet the cutest blood mage in the entire world. I'm likewise looking forward to Merrill And Politics (Maker help you, Inquisition) and her general attempts to help everyone, but I think I'm probably most excited for her to get her hands into some of the history of the elves that crops up. That is her Jam.
CHARACTER
Name: Merrill
Canon/OC: Canon - Dragon Age
Journal:
chainlightningRace: Elf
Nationality: Dalish
Occupation: Former First of the Sabrae clan and Hawke companion, now protector of alienage elves
Division: Research
Mage or Not: Mage
Age: Late twenties/early thirties.
History
Merrill on the Dragon Age wiki.
After the events of Dragon Age II, Merrill remained in Kirkwall to help protect the alienage elves. As the fighting grew worse, those with magical abilities couldn't get the same training they could get among the Dalish or in a Circle and the Templars were about as pleasant to elves as they were to mages. While Merrill and the few elf mages that had joined them did their best with the elves that knew magic, their presence also made them a target. As word of the Inquisition spread, the group decided that they would potentially be both safer and more useful there... assuming they could survive the trip.
She vanished from the Inquisition shortly after the Inquisition came to Kirkwall - partly because she got lost, and partly because she had things to do. These 'things' were mostly mourning on Sundermount a lot and helping the alienage elves that she'd met as part of the Inquisition - and getting more lost - but who's counting?
Personality
When first meeting Merrill in Dragon Age 2, she appears to be a socially awkward but friendly elf mage. These are all true: Merrill herself says that she isn't very good at people. Unfortunately for Merrill, she was the First to the Keeper of her clan -- people were supposed to be part of her job. With her skills there lacking, her seclusion as First only aggravating matters, Merrill turns instead to the other part of a Keeper's job: to remember the history and culture of their people, to pass it on to the others so that it isn't lost. She keeps a shard of a Blight-tainted Eluvian to try to restore it, to create an Eluvian of her own, going so far as to learn blood magic and work with the demon Audacity to do it. Her pride in the history of her people, in what she can potentially do for them in recovering pieces of their lost history, leads to conflict between herself and her clan -- after meeting Hawke, Merrill leaves them. Still, despite their dislike for her self-imposed mission and the likely already existing tension between the clan and their socially awkward First, Merrill never gives up on restoring a piece of the lost culture of the elves.
This lack of flexibility is perhaps surprising in a character who is otherwise quite pleasant. Her stubbornness in regards to Audacity and fixing the Eluvian led to her exile and multiple deaths. Merrill wants and hopes for what's best, sometimes to the point of ignoring what is likely to happen. This stubborness is shared by most who follow Hawke, but unlike several of the others, Merrill is consistently polite to those that have different opinions; Fenris and Anders, specifically, often call Merrill an abomination for her work with blood magic and for learning from a demon. Despite this, she still asks after them and their feelings, telling Anders of a litter of kittens and asking Fenris about his sister.
With little to no experience with other cultures, people tend to think Merrill is a bit stupid, an image not helped by her age and cheerful demeanor. In actuality, she's not stupid at all, just from a different background. When someone attempts to speak down to Merrill, especially if it involves differences between elves and humans, she bites back quickly. She may be kind and friendly, but she's not a pushover, not when it really matters to her. Aside from the few topics she's stubborn on (mainly revolving around her work with the Eluvian), Merrill's very open to learning and has no problem asking questions to fill the gaps in her knowledge. They may seem ridiculous, but she's satisfying her own curiosity and helping herself adapt to an entirely new way of life.
Opinions & Affiliations
The Dalish: Her people. She loves them - if only they would love her back. She wants them to remember their past, but she doesn't want them to be so afraid that it holds them back... and it does.
Templars: Scary as a group, but she's met some nice ones. Religious zealotry has never done anyone any favors.
The Chantry: It's nice that humans have religion. It is not nice when they want to shove it down her throat.
The Qun: Do Not Treat Mages Like That. No. Nooo.
The Mage/Templar War: It'd be super cool if people could stop saying this war is hers when she's Dalish, Anders. She doesn't want mages to be treated horribly but she doesn't want elves to be treated horribly either. Everyone slow your roll.
Basically, Merrill's theme is "Why Can't We Be Friends?" combined with telling everyone why they're wrong about her.
Strengths & Weaknesses
As the First to the clan Keeper and someone whose magic likely manifested at a young age, as well as someone who was in contact with the demon Audacity, Merrill has had a great deal of time to learn her magical skills and a large amount of tutelage. In Dragon Age II, Merrill has access to the Elemental, Primal, Spirit, Arcane, and Entropy schools of magic, as well as her specialization, Dalish Pariah, and blood magic. In the Inquisition, Merrill learned how to become a Griffon Rider with the mount that chose her, Ghostface.
While much of the history, language, and rituals of the elves have been lost to time, as a Dalish elf and the former First of her clan, Merrill knows more than most about what information has been retained (and, as so often happens over history, the information that they only think is correct). That being said, she has been absent from the Dalish for several years; while she considers herself Dalish, other Dalish elves may not. This and what happened with her clan are all emotional blows that Merrill carries where others may not necessarily see.
From navigating new cities to not playing in the Viscount's garden to the name of the Wounded Coast, Merrill doesn't know much about the culture of anyone who isn't Dalish. While she's learned more from living in Kirkwall for several years, there are still parts that confuse her. The addition of other cultures to try and remember rules about is going to make her head spin, though she's more than willing to learn.
Idealistic and stubborn, Merrill hopes for the best and generally likes to think it happens or will happen if she tries hard enough. She's unaware of Varric having her protected when she walks at night in Lowtown until he tells her. She doesn't seem to think about the consequences of her work with the Eluvian until they're right in front of her. Still, she's well aware that she should keep her mouth shut about some things, like the fact that she's a mage around Templars or that Anders has a clinic or that the Captain of the Guard watches Hawke break into things. She's just... not so good about other things.
Inventory
+ 1 small halla statue
+ 1 Vestements of the First with all upgrades
+ 1 Sylaise's Favor
+ 1 The Inner Eye
+ 1 Sylvanwood Ring
+ 1 staff; I'm thinking something with stats similar to the Corrupted Acolyte's Staff only a little more. wooden.
+ 1 knife
+ 1 dog, Barkley (Benevenuta Thevenet)
+ 1 carved wooden griffon (Gavin Ashara)
+ 1 bone carved Avaar sex toy (Asher Hardie)
+ 1 portrait of David Bowie (Ruby Lucas)
+ 1 handmade fan (Malcolm Reynolds)
+ 1 silver, circular locket pendant with a griffon on the front and a compass inside on a leather cord (Hercules Hansen)
+ 1 aravel
+ 1 war horse, Honeysuckle (AC reward, bought with Malcolm Reynolds)
+ 1 bouquet of glass flowers with wire stems (Satinalia gift from Thranduil)
+ 1 loosely bound stack of papers, containing effectively baby's first sinadrin- an index with letters and their trade equivalents, and a small dictionary of the most basic sindarin verbs and nouns, all written in thranduil's hand (Satinalia gift from Thranduil)
+ 1 glass halla figurine (Satinalia gift from Ellana)
+ 1 braided leather bracelet (Satinalia gift from Ellana)
+ dog treats for Barkley (Satinalia gift from Ellana)
+ notes on different knots to use on her aravel's sails (Satinalia gift from Ellana)
+ 1 braided leather belt, with vines carefully etched onto the leather strips (Satinalia gift from Beleth)
+ 1 Chantry-approved book on magic (advanced theory and spells - she's trying to help, not be condescending) (Satinalia gift from Cassandra)
+ 1 new scarf. The scarf is fine, but practical - blood and gore from battle is easily washed out, and will not stain. (Satinalia gift from Cassandra)
+ 1 small wooden charm that's been carved to look like a griffon feather, with a small loop at one end so she can take a piece of string (or twine) and attach it to something (Satinalia gift from Jamie)
Motivation
The world is in trouble, Hawke is missing, and she has friends in the Inquisition. Under any other circumstances, this would be enough for Merrill to go. With the war and her responsibility to the alienage elves, it's their safety and agreement as a group to go that has brought Merrill to the Inquisition. She wants to help them, wants to help the world, and besides... she misses them.
SAMPLES
original app samples:
test drive meme
[ The guard looks dubious. The elves with her look mostly tired and cold, their belongings clutched tightly in their arms. Merrill looks a bit more awake than they do, but perhaps that's the way she's animatedly gesturing with one hand while the other holds her staff.
(On second thought, some of the other guards look a bit concerned by the staff. Oh, well.) ]
I told you! We're here to join up!
[ There are some mutters from a few of the collected guards -- refugees, possible thieves, 'apostate' as though mages aren't all apostates now. Merrill cheerfully ignores them, though some of the bolder elves narrow their eyes and wait in case this, like so many other encounters, becomes a fight. ]
It's really a very nice castle, even with the ruined bits, and it's very cold out here. May we come in yet?
[ They will survive if they aren't allowed entry tonight, but it would do wonders for everyone's mood. Merrill shifts in place, feet bare in the snow. The guard she's been speaking to is about to open his mouth -- to say no, most likely -- when there's a shout from another guard approaching the gate.
There was a Dalish mage matching her description that followed the Champion. Serrah Tethras has mentioned her in his book.
If possible, Merrill perks even more. ]
Oh! Yes, that's me! Is Varric here, at the moment? I told the children he'd tell them a story.
[ The guard blinks. Merrill beams.
The gates are opened, and the group enters. ]
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the rookery
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