Dalia Hawke

Dalia Revka Hawke is an apostate mage and the infamous Champion of Kirkwall.

Background

Dalia Hawke was born on the 7th of Wintermarch, 9:07 Dragon, in Amaranthine's Chantry-run clinic a month and a half before she was expected. After nearly three weeks under care of the Chantry Sisters with no improvement in health, Malcolm discovered that the Sisters refused to allow magical intervention, fearing it would instill magic in the child. Infuriated, Malcolm stole the infant Dalia away, and began to care for her with the help of spirits. She soon made a miraculous recovery from the brink of death, and finally began the life of a seemingly normal baby.
While simply relieved to have her daughter alive at the time, Leandra would one day come to wonder if Dalia could have been "spared" of her magic, had they listened to the Sisters' superstitions.

When Dalia was five years old, Leandra caught her chasing a wisp around the bedroom of their tiny farmhouse. Initially assuming Malcolm had summoned it, she was horrified to find that it was in fact Dalia’s doing. It was a horror Malcolm did not share, instead insisting that he would teach the young girl how to hide it, and that nothing ill would become of their daughter. But hiding magic is not such an easy feat for such a young child, especially one as overflowing with it as Dalia appeared to be.
From that point on, the Hawke family lived their lives in a constant state of running. A month or two would pass before someone would inevitably notice strange lightshows coming from the Hawke house in the middle of the night, or in one notable occasion, a spontaneous fire in the midst of a temper tantrum. Things only became more complicated when Bethany too came into magic as well.

In 9:20 Dragon, the Hawkes had made their way south down to the small village of Lothering. By this point, Dalia had finally learned to better conceal herself, and Bethany grew masterfully reserved at a rapid rate. Dalia enjoyed seeing how content her family was here; even Carver, who held an enormous amount of bitterness over their constant running for someone so young, seemed happier. Dalia saw it as her job to not be seen nor heard in order to maintain that happiness, and led a secluded life with limited contact outside her family. She spent most of her time when not training with her father wandering the woods, wallowing in loneliness and fantasizing about friends. She prayed to the Maker that he would deliver her one.
One day when venturing further into the Korcari Wilds than she probably should, a 15-year-old Dalia encountered a mysterious Chasind girl who called herself Morrigan, she herself being an apostate. The two instantly hit it off, and Dalia spent every day in the woods in hopes of it would be a day to encounter her again. However, their friendship was unable to last, as one day Morrigan appeared only to tell her that her mother said she could not see Dalia anymore. And she never did. Heartbroken and feeling like the Maker betrayed her, Dalia decided that friendships were nothing but inevitable loss and her family was all that mattered.

Unfortunately, there was plenty of familial loss to go around as well. When Malcolm died in 9:27, Leandra might as well have too, for it was as if she shut down completely. This left Dalia with the responsibility of the family’s welfare, while she herself was also dealing with grief. She tried to take her father’s job in Lothering’s mines, but they had already filled the position. She tried to convince every farmer she could to hire her to work the fields, but without luck there, either. That’s when she noticed the Chanter’s Board was overflowing with miscellaneous requests. Desperate for coin, Dalia accepted every single one, from collecting deathroot in the woods, to taking care of a rabid wolves, to intimidating someone on behalf of someone else. Dalia went from being completely unknown to being the village’s own little mercenary, in a sense. She had a sneaking suspicion that plenty knew of her magic, but said nothing to the templars, as everyone knew if you needed something taken care of, Dalia was the one to get it done. But even still, this only barely kept the family of four afloat, and the minute he was able, Carver enlisted in the army.

Involvement

Dragon Age: II

In 9:30 Dragon when Carver appeared on their doorstep, exhausted, injured and speaking almost incoherently, Dalia barely had enough time to put on her shoes before the darkspawn were on their doorstep. The family fled with nothing but the clothes on their backs, and even still, Dalia would forever wonder what they could have done differently to get out faster and prevent Bethany’s tragic death. It was no small miracle that the rest did not join her, but instead successfully made it to Gwaren, where they hopped on the first boat they could to Kirkwall. (The miracle being a Witch of the Wilds interested in making a deal, of course.)

Act I

Arriving in the city Dalia would come to call home, she agreed to work for Athenril’s smugglers, in exchange for her family’s entrance in the city and protection from the many, many templars. A year seemed like nothing to lose after having just lost her sister. But while that’s the kind of wound that time can never heal completely, she did eventually grow to better live with it, knowing that’s what Bethany would have wanted. And so when that protection ended with the year’s service, Dalia and Carver refused to accept defeat. They went looking for whatever chance of survival they could find. Eventually, all roads led to the Tethras Deep Roads Expedition.

Collecting the coin required to partner with the expedition was no easy task, but it was one familiar to Dalia after years of working Lothering’s Chantry Board. She might have even decided to simply stay satisfied with the coin she could get as a hero for hire... if not for the fact that Dalia was entirely incapable of keeping her nose out of mage business. With every injustice witnessed, she grew more brazen about her own status as a mage, much to Carver’s worry. Nor did they trust Aveline herself not to turn Dalia in, if she pushed too many buttons. It became apparent that whatever the outcome of the expedition was, getting out of Kirkwall for some time was for the best.

By the end of it though, one of Dalia’s biggest regrets is what occurred on the expedition. After losing Bethany to the darkspawn, she thought she lost her brother, too. The month that followed her lonely return was nothing but guilt and dread, only escalated by the antipathy in her mother’s eyes. When they finally heard that Carver survived the Grey Warden ritual, it was like Dalia herself had her life restored. Even if she could not see him, knowing that her brother was still out there made her feel whole again.

Act II

Dalia had a hard time adjusting to her newfound wealth. After buying her mother's old family home in Hightown and setting up a steady illicit payment for protection against the templars, she didn't quite know what to do with the rest. Everyone she knew said she wasn't supposed to do anything with it, which didn't make sense to her. Dalia instead decided to create a charitable fund with Lirene's Fereldan Imports and the Alienage Hahren, making her a respected figure among the Fereldan immigrants and elves alike.

It seemed like there was no way for Dalia to escape involvement with whatever game the Chantry was playing with the Qunari. Dalia found the Qun confusing, but the Arishok had done nothing so much as remotely threatening, and even seemed to have a bit of respect for her, after she put a stop to plans on setting them up as mass killers with stolen saar-qamek. Many in the city began to turn her away as a "Qunari sympathizer," spreading rumours that she was secretly a spy—rumours fanned significantly by the fanatical Chantry Mother Patrice, who had a personal grudge against Dalia, for repeatedly getting between her and her plans of war with the Qunari. While her mother tried to warn her how important reputation was, Dalia figured that at least as far as rumours go, better that than the public uncovering her status as a mage. Then it wouldn’t matter how much coin she threw at the Chantry to turn a blind eye.

But having her own protection from the templars was not enough for Dalia. If anything, it only fuelled her hatred for the exceedingly corrupt system. Why should she be free while others suffered increasing abuse in the Gallows? She continued to insert herself into mage and templar matters, dangerously so.

A number of folks tried to insist she was spending too much time with Anders and he was rubbing off on her, but this only strengthened her friendship with the man. And strong friendships, Dalia realized, were really like extended family. She treasured all her newfound family, despite plenty of warnings against associating with them, even from within. Sebastian needed to accept her care for Anders, who needed to accept her care for Fenris, who needed to accept her care for Merrill. There was no convincing Dalia otherwise.
Dalia’s friendship with Isabela and Merrill in particular blossomed into something far beyond that, despite all insistence otherwise. As much as Isabela resisted labelling their relationship as anything more than “friends with benefits,” Dalia continued to push for the “L word,” because the “L word” was the only way she could think to describe how she deeply felt about Isabela. As much as Merrill doubted her feelings for Dalia were reciprocated, Dalia adored Merrill beyond measure. She fantasized about them marrying on a boat and sailing off together, no worries about anything but the weather and waves. After years of dancing around the topic, confessions of love finally breached the surface. Merrill was the first to say the “L word” between them, with Dalia immediately behind her. Isabela took more time, but eventually overcame her fear of being loved.

However, marriage was never meant to be in Dalia's cards, after she was forever scarred by the sight of her undead mother in a wedding dress. Leandra's death would haunt Dalia for the rest of her life. In her early stages of grief, it was hard to think about anything like love, or anything at all beyond a dreading sense that she failed her mother for the last time.

In a very complex grief over her mother, Dalia refrained from leaving the estate for nearly two months. She left all house affairs to Bodahn, his son and Orana to handle and if not for her companions routinely coming to check on her, would have gone without any contact with the world. Finally, a letter from the Viscount requesting her presence brought her out of the house. Though Dalia couldn’t’ve cared less about whatever was going on between Marlowe Dumar and his son, Saemus, her instincts told her there was more going on.
Sure enough, in yet another attempt to stir up a fight between Kirkwall and the Qunari, Chantry zealots had killed Saemus and planned on pinning the murder on Hawke to cement the rumours of her as a Ben-Hassrath spy. Fortunately for Dalia, Sebastian was able to vouch for her, and Grand Cleric Elthina took their side of the story over Mother Patrice.

After taking a spear through the chest, Mother Patrice was no longer a threat, but there were plenty to carry on her bigotry. Tension grew to a breaking point, and finally came to a head when all the stars aligned in the worst way possible. Isabela revealed the stolen treasure she was after was the Tome of Koslun, the very reason the Arishok refused to leave Kirkwall, at the same time Aveline attempted to arrest two elves who had joined the Qun as viddathari. Dalia was heartbroken over Isabela fleeing after retrieving the Tome, she still adamantly refused to sell her out. Unable to stand Kirkwall’s dysfunction any longer, yet refusing to leave without the Tome that Isabela fled with, the Arishok launched an attack on the city.

Dalia was forced to throw all secrecy out the window and defend the city. She had never in her life fully let lose her magic before, and surprised even herself with just how much she had in her. Figuring that Knight Commander Meredith would have her head after all was said and done anyway meant all the more reason not to hold back. For years to come, people would tell stories of how their Champion could make fire rain from the sky, raise the ground into stone prisons, and crush an entire Karataam to the ground with an invisible force. There wouldn’t have be a soul in Kirkwall who didn’t know about her power after that night, even if things didn’t come down to a very public fight in the Viscount’s Keep. But when Isabela returned with the Tome and the Arishok demanded she be taken prisoner, a duel between he and Dalia was initiated over Isabela’s freedom. In the end, Dalia roasted the Arishok with lightning nearly beyond the point of recognition.

If it was up to Meredith, Dalia would have been executed on the spot, after such a display of massive magic—and therefore in her eyes, danger waiting to happen. But with every living noble of the city cheering and fawning over their saviour, Meredith’s hands were tied, if she wanted to stay in control. She reluctantly declared Dalia Hawke to be the Champion of Kirkwall.

Act III

In the time since becoming Champion of Kirkwall, tensions between the mages and templars only grew. Exacerbating this issue was Meredith standing in the way of electing a new Viscount, turning Kirkwall into a templar-controlled military state. Dalia grew frustrated with the lack of willingness from people to stand up against this, despite the fact that even the nobility agreed it was not sustainable. At every turn, she used her rule as Champion to defend the mages of the city, yet at every turn, this was met with more crackdowns from the Knight-Commander. The templars openly discussed Meredith sending for the Right of Annulment to Val Royeaux, while rumours from Val Royeaux were that an Exalted March against Kirkwall were in the works.

Before either of those scenarios came to fruition though, Anders and Justice pushed the conflict to a breaking point by blowing up the Chantry, with Grand Cleric Elthina inside. While horrified by the extreme act, Dalia could not bring herself to fault Anders, as she saw his act as that of a desperate man who tried everything he could think of, finally pushed to his own breaking point.
Meredith unsurprisingly took it upon herself to enact the Right of Annulment, and Dalia did not hesitate to jump to the Circle’s defence. Though internally prepared to meet her end, Dalia made sure to put on a brave face and insist they could win. She was successful in rallying all her companions against Meredith’s forces.

Dalia was shocked over Orsino transforming himself into a harvester; she couldn’t understand how he could resort to such a thing. But she didn’t even have time to process this before it was time to face off against Meredith herself. For the second time, Dalia reminded everyone just how powerful she was, defeating Meredith and her red lyrium sword with overflowing magic. This display of power led some people to believe it was Dalia who turned Meredith into a statue, and not the red lyrium. Dalia found this so amusing, she has never corrected it.

Dalia and her allies escaped Kirkwall before templar reinforcements arrived. The name Hawke became a rallying cry for oppressed mages everywhere.

Legacy

When Hawke was attacked by deranged Carta dwarves after her blood, she had no idea what was awaiting her in the Vimmark Mountains. That her father was responsible for sealing away an ancient Tevinter magister in a secret warden prison was certainly not on the list of expectations. Discovering that her father was a blood mage just as she was made Dalia feel more secure in that choice, even if Carver was disturbed.

Finding out that Corypheus could potentially end the Blight, according to Janeka, Dalia thought about the loss of her sister and her home in Lothering. She chose to ally with Janeka because of this, although just before opening the final seals, came to regret this decision and at the last minute, saw her as under the thrall of Corypheus. Hawke switched sides and joined Larius, but the end result was the same: Corypheus was freed, and Dalia destroyed him… at least, so she thought.

Mark of the Assassin

Dalia was easily swayed by Tallis into joining her in infiltrating Chateau Haine and stealing a precious relic. It sounded like a fun day out like any other, and indeed, Dalia thoroughly enjoyed playing espionage—at least, up until getting caught. She took the news that this relic was in fact a list of names of Qunari agents rather well, all things considering, and agreed to help Tallis prevent Duke Prosper de Montfort from getting his hands on it all the same. She let Tallis keep the list, and hoped their paths would cross again.

Dragon Age: Inquisition

When Hawke received word from Varric that the Inquisition was in need of her help, she almost didn’t show. It was only out of her friendship with him that she opted to, in the end… that, and she enjoyed scaring the shit out of Cullen.

Dalia was disturbed to find out that Corypheus was not in fact dead as she previously believed. She couldn’t help but feel responsible for him being free, mostly because she was the one who freed him. She joined the Inquisition’s assault on Adamant Fortress, and fell into the Fade alongside the Inquisitor. She was ready to sacrifice herself therein order to see his defeat, but in the end, the Inquisitor chose Stroud over her to cover their escape. This only added to Dalia’s guilt, and she chose to go with the Wardens to Weisshaupt, hoping to help clean up the mess and hoping to meet up with her brother there.

Personality

Dalia is the type of person that commands attention the moment she steps into a room. She is loud, charming, and sociable. It’s not uncommon to hear from a story anyone in Kirkwall about how they met the Champion of Kirkwall at some point, as she has the habit of involving herself in everyone else’s business, for better and for worse. Dalia loves every minute of it, and is easily bored when not the centre of attention.

Dalia has undying loyalty to her friends, whom she considers her family, and would follow them to the ends of the earth if they asked it of her. She hates seeing the people she cares about upset, and will try to cheer them up by making a clown of herself. (Sometimes this toneless approach backfires.)

Dalia doesn’t waste time thinking about the past or present much. She’d rather focus on living in the moment, and living spontaneously. As a side effect, she’s a very poor planner for the long-term.

Her biggest fear is loneliness.

Trivia

• While Dalia has a preference for women, she is in fact bisexual, and greatly dislikes people trying to tell her otherwise.
• The Amell family are Inghirsh, their ancestors coming from what is today called the Fields of Ghislain.
• Malcolm was a city elf originally from the Highever Alienage. He was sent to the Kirkwall Circle as his elder sibling was already a member of the one in Ferelden, and the Chantry does not allow siblings in the same Circle.
• Being an elf, it is highly suspected that 'Hawke' was never in fact an officially recognized surname but rather one Malcolm adopted himself, perhaps originally as a nickname.
• Dalia is almost a splitting image of her mother, with her freckles being the only sign of Malcolm.
• Dalia almost always has a swipe of red kaddis across her cheeks and nose, a touch of Fereldan pride and connection to her beloved mabari. It was the work of a certain dwarf that led said swipe to be rumoured as the blood of the Arishok. It's a rumour that greatly amuses her.

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