Varric Tethras is a fictional character from BioWare's Dragon Age franchise. The character made his debut in 2011's Dragon Age II, where he appeared as part of the game's framing device as the unreliable narrator of its plot. He also serves as a party member, a role which he reprises in its sequel, Dragon Age: Inquisition. In-universe, he is a renowned novelist as well as a self-appointed biographer to Hawke and the Inquisitor, the protagonists of Dragon Age II and Dragon Age: Inquisition respectively. In Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Varric reprises his role as narrator while also acting as the
Varric Tethras is a fictional character from BioWare's Dragon Age franchise. The character made his debut in 2011's Dragon Age II, where he appeared as part of the game's framing device as the unreliable narrator of its plot. He also serves as a party member, a role which he reprises in its sequel, Dragon Age: Inquisition. In-universe, he is a renowned novelist as well as a self-appointed biographer to Hawke and the Inquisitor, the protagonists of Dragon Age II and Dragon Age: Inquisition respectively. In Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Varric reprises his role as narrator while also acting as the
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Varric Tethras is a fictional character from BioWare's Dragon Age franchise. The character made his debut in 2011's Dragon Age II, where he appeared as part of the game's framing device as the unreliable narrator of its plot. He also serves as a party member, a role which he reprises in its sequel, Dragon Age: Inquisition. In-universe, he is a renowned novelist as well as a self-appointed biographer to Hawke and the Inquisitor, the protagonists of Dragon Age II and Dragon Age: Inquisition respectively. In Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Varric reprises his role as narrator while also acting as the mentor for Rook whom he'd recruited to help him stop Solas from destroying the Veil. Brian Bloom provides the voice for Varric in all media.
Varric has consistently received a positive reception since his debut, with attention drawn to his sense of humour, loyalty, and wisecracking personality. The character's popularity have led BioWare to turn his most notable in-universe work, Hard in Hightown, into a real-world publication. Varric is listed as the first author; the actual novel is written by Mary Kirby, a former BioWare employee who was one of the main writers of the Dragon Age franchise.
Conception and creation
Varric was originally written as a sleazy and untrustworthy character, one who "knows a good shirt can sell a story, and the right clothes are every bit as valuable as coin". The development team later decided that given all the opposing personalities in the party, a companion who would stand up for the protagonist of Dragon Age II was necessary, and Varric was eased into that role. In order to find Varric's voice, Bloom would metaphorically "gargle glass and scotch and sharks' teeth". Though he is not a romance option in either installment of the series, he can be flirted with in dialogue conversations. Mary Kirby wrote Varric in both games.
Varric's character design is noted as a departure from the usual sword and sorcery dwarf archetype, being "clean-shaven, bare-chested, playfully roguish and broadly disinterested in the usual Dwarven concerns of mining and industry". His dress style is described as "a subtle snub to tradition, foregoing the typical beard while making light of ostentatious merchant families".
In Dragon Age II
Varric first meets Hawke a year after their arrival in Kirkwall. Varric's brother, Bartrand, rejects Hawke's request to join his expedition into the Deep Roads. The future Champion is pick-pocketed by a thief whom Varric shoots and pins to a wall using Bianca. Returning Hawke's money, Varric, having heard of Hawke's reputation for skill, competence and reliability, offers them a place on the excavation as an investor. Tagging along to help Hawke gain the necessary money, Varric requests that Hawke speak to him privately in the Hanged Man in Lowtown later. At the Hanged Man, Varric tells Hawke the excavation lacks a suitable route to the Deep Roads and requests Hawke get one from a Grey Warden Varric has found in the city. Var
Varric is a dwarf from House Tethras, a dwarven noble house which was exiled in disgrace to the surface world from their subterranean homeland, the kingdom of Orzammar, generations prior to the events of Dragon Age II. He is depicted as wielding considerable de facto political power by virtue of economic assets derived from his family's involvement in trade and commerce. He is considered a merchant prince among the surface dwarves of Thedas, the setting in which the Dragon Age franchise take place, and has a reputation for being the best dressed man in Kirkwall's Lowtown.
Varric claims he runs a "spy network" with contacts to deal with various troubles that come along with being in a family that is part of the Dwarven Merchants Guild, although he has little interest in their agenda and schemes; he maintains an outward facade as the idle younger scion of his family; while his older brother is in charge of the family business, he usually spends his time in taverns spinning wild stories to the local gamblers and thieves while people buy him drinks. On occasion, his storytelling act is also a cover of him to rob his audience blind. Varric is also an accomplished author renowned throughout Thedas; his most notable work is Hard in Hightown, which features the clash between a secretive group of agents of the Chantry's leader Divine with a mysterious organization known as the Executors over a mysterious artifact, with a member of the Kirkwall City Guard, Donnen Brennokovic, caught between the fronts.
Varric is the only companion member to be a permanent fixture in both Dragon Age II and Dragon Age: Inquisition; the player will never encounter crisis points with Varric or risk him leaving the party due to his central role in the games' storylines. His loyalty to the player characters of both games is noted by Mike Darrah as a defining character trait. His signature weapon is a repeating crossbow he named Bianca. Bianca has a carved wood stock and brass embellishments, as well as a retractable bayonet that slides out of a slot in the front. As such, Varric is the only companion who cannot equip alternative ranged weapons in the Dragon Age series besides his crossbow, which could be upgraded throughout the course of the games. Whenever he is asked about the story behind how Bianca got her name, he replies that it involves a girl and a promise, and that it is the one story that he can never tell.
In Dragon Age II, Varric is depicted as constantly spinning exaggerated stories about Hawke's heroic deeds. Solving problems and gaining an advantage through diplomacy, lying, and blackmail impresses him, whereas he finds straightforward violence and outright thuggery to be distasteful. He also responds well to irreverent humor and sarcasm. The events of Dragon Age II evoke his compassion and selflessness, revealing Varric to be a goodhearted person who appreciates kind and thoughtful acts, and who is determined to rebuild Kirkwall after being elected as Viscount following his adventures in Inquisition.
