Anders

Anders is an apostate mage, responsible for the destruction of the Kirkwall Chantry, which kickstarted the Mage-Templar War.

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Anders was born and raised in a small village in Ferelden. His father had originally come from the Anderfels, but had come to Ferelden as a boy. Anders was well-liked in his village, and could often be seen surrounded by a gaggle of village children. When he was twelve years old, he accidentally set a barn on fire with magic. While his mother still loved him and wanted to protect him, his father grew afraid of him and called the templars. He was handcuffed and taken by the templars to the Kinloch Hold in Ferelden. The only personal possession he was allowed to keep was a pillow hand-embroidered by his mother. Upon arriving to the Circle, Anders refused to speak, not even to tell the other apprentices his name. They began calling him "the Ander" because of his Anders heritage, and Anders eventually became the only name he'd use. Anders despised the Circle and compared it to a prison. His first escape attempt was made six months after arriving there. When asked why he escaped, he tearfully replied that he had simply wanted to go home. He made at least seven attempts, each time being re-captured. Yet, First Enchanter Irving believed that Anders, however reckless, posed no true threat. When Anders was still an apprentice, he met and befriended an older boy, Karl Thekla. The two were inseparable for many years. Anders made no escape attempts in the years the two were together. Shortly after their Harrowing, Karl was transferred to Kirkwall's Gallows, a move which Anders did not take well. He attempted to escape shortly after, only to be recaptured on the docks in West Hill, attempting to buy passage to Kirkwall. Anders's next-to-last escape earned him a year of solitary confinement, in which the only company he had most days was the tower's mouser named Mr. Wiggums. According to Anders, the cat became possessed by a rage demon and took out three templars. The final time Anders managed to run away was prior to Uldred's uprising during the Fifth Blight. Anders was recaptured by the Templars and brought to Vigil's Keep shortly before the fall of Amaranthine. There, he encountered Warden Kallian Tabris, with the Warden finding him surrounded by dead darkspawn and templars - Anders insists to this day that he didn't kill the later. Anders joined forces with the Warden for a short time, eventually becoming a Grey Warden. During this time, the Warden also gifted Anders with the greatest gift he'd ever received - a feisty kitten named Ser Pounce-a-Lot. The Wardens eventually forced Anders to get rid of Ser Pounce-a-Lot, claiming the cat made him too soft. Anders gave Ser Pounce-a-Lot to a friend that lived on a farm near Vigil's Keep. It is also during his time with the Warden that Anders first encountered the spirit of Justice.. Not much is known about Anders during the year between when he left the Warden's service and when he resurfaced in Kirkwall in 9:31 Dragon. Anders was next encountered by the Hawke Twins in Kirkwall, where he was using his healing abilities to aid Ferelden refugees free of charge. During this time, Andeers received word about his former friend, Karl Thekla, still imprisoned in the Kirkwall Gallows. Anders made a deal with the Hawke Twins to provide them with maps to the Deep Roads in exchange for their assistance in freeing Karl. Garrett refused to participate in the mission, fearing Templar eyes catching wind of them too soon, but Marian agreed. When Marian and Anders arrived at the Chantry, they discovered that Karl had been made Tranquil, and had lured Anders into a trap set by the Templars. Enraged, Anders revealed himself to be possessed by Justice and killed the Templars with Marian's aid. Karl abruptly regained all of his emotions, saying that Anders "brought a piece of the Fade into this world." He described being Tranquil as a horrificc experience and begged Anders to kill him before the effect wore off. Once Karl became Tranquil again, Anders stabbed him before the party left the Chantry. When Marian visited Anders at his clinic, he explained that shortly after the Fall of Amaranthine, he had agreed to be Justice's host. He believed that together, they could bring justice to every mage ever forced into the Circle. However, Anders' anger warped Justice into a force of Vengeance, and now, Anders had to struggle to maintain control. He gave Marian the maps and jjoined her as a companion - a relationship that would soon grow into a romantic one. Anders joined Marian and Garrett Hawke on the Kirkwall Expedition to the Deep Roads, and in fact was instrumental in ensuring the survival of Bethany Hawke when she succumbed to the darkspawn taint. Anders had some connections from the time he spent with the Wardens, and he brought Bethany to Jean-Marc Stroud, who guided Bethany through the Joining and saved her life. By 9:34 Dragon, Anders had joined the mage underground, and worked to help mages escape the Kirkwall Circle. He often confided in Marian that he believed he was losing control over Justice. Garrett grew increasingly more concerned with the potential risks of having Anders so close, but any concerns he brought to Marian fell on deaf ears, and he couldn't deny that mages deserved to be free. Anders uncovered evidence of a plot called the Tranquil Solution, which was a plan by a templar, Ser Alrik, to turn all mages in the Kirkwall Gallows tranquil. Anders asked the Hawke Twins for aid in stopping this plot, and this time, both Garrett and Marian agreed. They tracked Ser Alrik down and killed him, putting an end to the Templar plot, but also revealing the depths of Anders' possession to Garrett for the first time. Garrett was infuriated, and an argument ensued between the two siblings, with Marian defending Anders. For a time, the Hawke Twins were not speaking, and Marian moved in with Anders at his clinic. However, after the First Battle of Kirkwall, Marian and Anders returned to the Hawke Estate - though relations between Garrett and Anders were still chilly at best. In 9:37 Dragon, Anders confided to Marian that Meredith Stannard, Knight-Commander of Kirkwall, had destroyed the last remnants of the mage underground, and Anders had begun preparing for the worst. He asked for Marian's aid in obtaining ingredients for a potion that would help separate him from Justice, finally freeing him from the spirit's control. He asked that Marian not tell Garrett of the plan, as he wanted to be certain it would work before attempting to mend that fence. Marian agreed, finding the ingredients for him willingly. She also assisted Anders in getting into the Channtry unseen by distracting Grand Cleric Elthina - though why, she did not know. Anders was, in fact, laying the groundwork for the destruction of the Kirkwall Chantry. He blew up the Chantry, killing Elthina and everyone else inside. The blast was not contained, and rained deadly debris from the Chantry over half of Kirkwall as well. Meredith used this as justification to invoke the Right of Annulment, leading to the spark that would ignite the Mage-Templar War. Marian was in shock, and demanded to know if this was what Anders had been asking her to assist with - she maintained she might have understood, if he'd only told her. Garrett was furious, demanding to know how Anders could do this, and how he could bring Marian into it. Anders insisted that the decision was his own, as he and Justice were one being now. He told them that he wanted to make Thedas see the injustice of the Circle, and thus change the world. Anders wished to be killed for his crime, seeing it as bringing justice to those who were sacrificed for his cause. Garrett would not stand for killing Anders, as he felt he needed to stay and defend the mages, try to undo some of the damage he caused. Marian agreed, and Anders was surprised, but eagerly agreed to fight the Templars. As Garrett stormed off, Anders asked Marian to come on the run with him after the final battle. Anders disappeared shortly after the battle, with Marian disappearing shortly thereafter. The two have not been seen since.