As generally or specifically as you care to get with it: what are your thoughts on Merrill?
Ooh, what a fun question! I really do like Merrill -- if you think about it she really is the most fresh-from-the-clan Dalish character/companion we get in DA, canonically (if you don't get a Dalish Warden or a Lavellan, it's at least nice to have Merrill there for the representation). Bellara and Davrin are Dalish, yes, but they seem a bit more removed from their Dalish roots, especially Davrin. (And part of that may be just the way VG treats Dalish in general, which is neither here nor there...)
I do feel a little bit like Merrill was there partially for shock value -- a Dalish blood mage whaaaaa??? But the more I got to know her, the more I liked the character they made for her. She's naive but principled, she's willing to do what she thinks needs to be done to protect her culture and her people, even if she doesn't always think things through the whole way. She's willing to learn more about the rest of the crew and companions, but she doesn't let them change her core, either. And even though some companions give her shit, by the end of the game she's confident (and jaded) enough to give them back a little bit of shit, too.
(And honestly, her naivete and general fish-out-of-water nature with culture shocks makes for some of the sweetest and funniest moments in the game. If Varric loves her, then so do I.)
I've never kept Carver alive, so I've never seen her romance with him (that's a thing, right? I think I heard that's a thing.) but I do conceptually find it a bit hard to wrap my head around. Maybe also because I don't know Carver very well at all. Regardless, she deserves to be happy, even if it is with a Hawke Jr. with, um, issues?
Anyway, I am a little sad that we never get any more with Merrill, but I also think her story was more or less closed by the end of DA2. I like to think that she either ended up with the Veil Jumpers, or perhaps helping with Briala's network in Orlais? I could see either option being good for her, in some way. Thanks for the ask! It's been a while since I thought of Daisy!
