Give me a character!! Vilkas, Ulfric, Alistair, and Solas (I tried to think of some you don't have paired with any of your OCs 😂)
GIVE ME A CHARACTER; and I’ll break their ass down:
Vilkas was the hardest one to do this for, LOL! I hope you enjoy my thoughts on these guys, though~
I also made the decision to not include the “unpopular opinions” part simply because I don’t pay enough attention to fandom as a whole to know what counts as “popular” vs. “unpopular.”
How I feel about this character: He’s smart, definitely one of the main strategists of the current set of Companions. He loves his brother more than anything and it shows in a lot of small ways. I wish they had more moments together. I also find it a bit amusing, since Aril romances Farkas, that the first official Companions quest involves having to prove your worth by fighting Vilkas.
All the people I ship romantically with this character: I am actually drawing a blank here. Aril honed in on Farkas SO HARD, Vilkas has always just been ‘the other brother.” Hm... I think his romance partner would need to be someone who can put up with his jabs, someone that doesn’t back down, someone witty... but also sweet. I think Vilkas likes sweet, kind gestures in private. Aril is a bit too public about his sweetness and affections for Vilkas. LOL. I realize I avoided the question, though. Maybe one of the other companions, like Ria?
My non-romantic OTP for this character: Vilkas and Farkas, of course! They stick together, no matter what. He also (eventually) opens up to Aril and they get along really well, too.
One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: Mostly just that he had a MORE prominent role. He, Farkas, and Aela should’ve been the “Nightingales” of the Companions, except each of them has different views on the Beast Blood. (I think Vilkas would be the first to want to follow Kodlak’s example, because he’s always questioned the wisdom of using such power. Farkas is neutral about it - happy either way, but he’ll take whatever path his brother does. And Aela won’t budge from her choice to keep it.)
How I feel about this character: I’ve always thought he was interesting, some of his lines really hit me. There’s a tired, melancholic air around him that I relate to, and... I think he’s caught up in a web he never wanted to be part of. “I fight so that all the fighting I've already done hasn't been for nothing.” Ow.
All the people I ship romantically with this character: ALL? In that case, I’ll admit, Casien’s way up there at this point. I also ship him and Legate Rikke to some degree, I feel like they had SOME kind of history and it MIGHT have been romantic. I don’t think Ulfric falls in love often or easily. (Probably on the grey-asexual spectrum somewhere.)
My non-romantic OTP for this character: Galmar, of course! Possibly Ralof, too. They’re all good friends.
One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: Mm... so this kind of falls under stuff I wish were in Skyrim in general, but I wish more stuff about how elves and other races are being treated would come up, especially if you are PLAYING as someone who isn’t a Nord. He should’ve at least had some kind of comment if the Dragonborn who shows up at his door is an elf or Imperial or anything ELSE unexpected.
How I feel about this character: He’s... so... good. I adore him. He’s smart and clever, looks for the bright side, and tries to make everyone else feel better even when he probably needs someone to give him a pep talk, too.
All the people I ship romantically with this character: Lyanna Cousland, Zevran, Leliana, Morrigan... I also think Dirk Tabris had a one-sided crush on him. I really love Alistair/Warden in general, though. ^-^ (The Leliana and Morrigan ships are a bit conditional, and Zevran... I think is a crush on Alistair’s part, but Zevran knows and teases him because of it. Alistair maybe doesn’t realize it’s a crush until later and he’s like “Oh. I see. Okay. That makes more sense, now.”)
My non-romantic OTP for this character: Duncan came to mind first, but... I might actually say Zevran, even though I also listed him in the previous area. They make for an odd pair of friends, but they complement each other well. I also actually adore how much Teagan cares for him and vice-versa. (At least, from what we see of them together in DA2.)
One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: He deserves to know the truth about his mom. Tangentially related, I really REALLY wish King Alistair had a bigger role in Inquisition... and he should have been able to interact with Morrigan and Kieran, too, especially if Kieran’s his child. It just seems strange to have put all that in there and then do NOTHING with it.
How I feel about this character: I didn’t expect to like him, but I do. I know I use the word “interesting” a lot but Solas REALLY IS. I’ve always been fascinated by ageless/immortal characters, and myths, and characters that long for a past they can’t go back to...
All the people I ship romantically with this character: Passion, Felassan, Varlas, Ash Lavellan (one-sided, more of a crush)... I like him with Lavellans in general, but I do wish there were more fics and art featuring male Lavellans.
My non-romantic OTP for this character: A non-romanced Inquisitor, I suppose? It seems like out of ALL his friends in the Inquisition, it is the Inquisitor alone that can say “I won’t give up on you” whether they’re together or not. Ash is definitely such an Inquisitor.
One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: I wish the conversation about vallaslin happened with EVERY Lavellan Inquisitor, regardless of romance or gender, and every Lavellan was given the choice of keeping them or letting Solas take them. It seems like a really important bit of info to ONLY give to a romanced Lavellan.