Questions for the Warden/HoF #s 5, 7, 9, 12, 19, 22, 27, 33 and 40? For both of your wardens please!
5. What are their thoughts on Duncan? How did they feel about his actions during the Joining?
Marcela already did not trust Duncan but she's not going to argue with the guy that saved her from getting executed. If they'd had more time together he would have won her trust eventually; she appreciates people who get things done and would quickly come to appreciate the darkspawn threat as worthy of his shady actions. She resents him for dying, however.
Rosemary, on the other hand, trusted Duncan from the start. Anyone with Irving's trust gains hers by proxy. However, she's horrified by Jory's death. She knows from her time in the circle that secrecy and isolation breeds the worst in people. Especially people with big swords.
7. How did they feel about being put in a leading position? Do they resent Alistair for putting that on them or are they ok with it?
Marcela would rather it be her. She likes Alistair well enough but she sees his goofiness as incompetence before she really gets to know him. She's a lot closer with Morrigan than Alistair to start and they gang up on him. Back at the alienage, Marcela ended up with responsibilities like taking care of her father and working as a carpenter because no one else was stepping up, so taking charge is nothing new for her. Other elves paid her to do odd jobs when they needed someone and she would often work for the elderly alienage community for free. She never really breaks out of the "be a good daughter" mindset when making decisions. The only time she gets frustrated is when she's consulted on things she considers so not her business like Harrowmont/Bhelen. Normally she'd defer to the nearest dwarf who actually has stake in things but she doesn't trust Oghren as far as she can throw him. Honestly she resents Oghren more for not stepping up there, which is a tad hypocritical because she overrules him as soon as he does make a decision regarding Branka, but that's neither here nor there. She ends up liking Oghren but it's a long road that doesn't really turn to friendship until Awakening. She feels the burden of decision making but the feeling of helplessness when others are in charge is worse.
Rosemary gets frustrated with Alistair when he waffles, but overall they tend to agree on things. She consults everyone in the party before making decisions, which she considers making decisions as a team, even if she has the final say. It's a good thing Leliana and she have similar values because she is very susceptible to going along with whatever Leliana wants. She heavily values Wynne's advice especially.
9. If the Warden was trapped in a nightmare, what would it be like?
Marcela already lived her nightmare in the prologue. They only way it could have been worse would be if she was watching helpless as they hurt Shianni or if Shianni had been killed in front of her. Her best friend is Nessa (the girl who missed the wedding because her family suddenly has to move for whom Tabris can intervene—Marcela invited Nessa to live with Cyrion and her), and Nessa being killed like the unnamed bridesmaid who could not move would result in Marcela not thinking clearly. Her nightmare is helplessness in the face of that. If she did get free in the dream she would fight Vaughn's guards endlessly and have to be convinced that this has already happened and she can wake up.
Rosemary being put in the Circle again would be the equivalent of scruffing a cat. She's very good at adapting to the size of her enclosure. Before Duncan, she didn't dream of freedom, she dreamed of her favorite meal being served in the canteen. If asked what she might want as a gift she would bluescreen. It would be most effective if it wasn't a bad dream, just a monotonous one. She starts dreaming of a life of her own once she escapes, but finding herself in a circle of the Nightmare's making, dusting the library or practicing her spells, would crush her will to escape. All it would take to remind her she can be more is seeing one of her friends (other than Wynne)
12. Did the Warden end Zathrien's curse?
Marcela does: She sympathizes with Zathrien and Witherfang in equal measure. Zathrien's story echoes her own, but as a ranger, she recognizes something familiar in Witherfang, the nature she was denied in the alienage—plus her wolf likes the lady of the forest. (not saying her wolf's name because it's an irl past dog & I am cagey about personal details)
Rosemary does! She's a big softie and she feels a lot of guilt she could not save Danyla. She begs Danyla to wait for her to find a cure.
19. Who are the people in camp that the Warden is closest with and why?
Marcela is closest to Zevran, Morrigan, and Alistair. Guess which dumbass completely missed Leliana in her first playthrough, that's right, me. Marcela naturally gravitates towards other elves, people who feel like outcasts (which would make her close to leliana, but leliana's ignorance about the alienage would put her hackles up). Zevran's dreams of the Dalish are similar to hers. He makes her feel like she can have a life outside of the alienage, as well as a life after tragedy. His lack of expectations and adventurous spirit make her feel safe and not smothered in the relationship. She and Morrigan bond over enjoying animals and hiking, as well as riffing with sarcastic humor. Marcela is as loyal and steadfast as a rock which Morrigan needs, and Morrigan is blunt, speaks her mind, and doesn't expect social niceties or small talk from Marcela, which Marcela needs. Marcela doesn't have to be "on" around Morrigan and can just be herself. If Alistair isn't careful he's going to find himself adopted by Cyrion. Marcela thinks Alistair is dumb at first but as soon as she realizes his humor is a mask, things click for their friendship. Alistair enjoys that she will "yes, and" him, and he can snap her out of her stress spirals with jokes easier than anyone.
Rosemary is closest to Leliana, Wynne, Morrigan, and Alistair. She and Leliana click because Rosemary loves stories. They're the only things that kept her sane during the alienage. Rosemary will recount books she's read and hang onto Leliana's every word. They both enjoy snooping out information about new places and finding out the local stories. She would follow Leliana anywhere even to the grand cathedral. Wynne is a known factor, living in the same circle as Rosemary, holding similar values, and reinforcing Rosemary's ingrained beliefs in a way that makes Rosemary feel safe. By contrast, Morrigan pushes Rosemary out of her comfort zone and Rosemary is genuinely fascinated by her knowledge, her confidence, and her ability to shapeshift. Rosemary has often wished to be someone or something else which makes the specialization fascinating to her. Learning to shapeshift in the Fade sealed the deal. Rosemary loves Morrigan's catty little comments. Morrigan and Alistair sometimes try to one up each other with jokes to see who can make Rosemary laugh harder. Morrigan and Rosemary's friendship ends with Rosemary panicking and pushing Morrigan away over the dark ritual, something Rosemary will regret for the rest of her life. Alistair holds a special place in Rosemary's heart as the first person her age she meets outside of the circle. Her humor is also dry, goofy, and self deprecating so they get on well. They commiserate as much as two people ducking emotions with jokes can commiserate over not knowing their families and ultimately considers him like a brother. Alistair is the only one who could have convinced Rosemary to step down from the ultimate sacrifice. She looks back at Leliana as he tells her to let him do this for her and she can't say no.
22. Which gifts would raise the Warden's approval, if they were a companion?
Marcela would enjoy archery equipment (fletching, new string, enchanted arrows, a bow stringer (she's been using the cheap and dirty thigh method)), dalish crafts—she especially loves the Dalish longbow and Elfrope, mabari crunch for Dog & Wolf, cute outfits for Dog & Wolf, actual spices for food, please, she's dying outside the alienage—
Rosemary would enjoy books and sweets. Her standards are so low I gotta think of more things because just the fact that you're thinking of her enough to give her a present would overjoy her even if it's a rock or a leaf you picked up off the ground. Actually, after being indoors her entire life, a rock or leaf would be great.
27. How does the Warden feel about what is happening in the Alienage? How do they feel about how elves are treated?
Marcela's entire life is her screaming into the void "are you listening? do you care?" about the treatment of elves. The fact that most people don't know or worse, choose not to see, makes her feel like she's losing her mind. This is the single most important issue in all of Thedas to her. The only reason the blight is taking any priority all is because she knows it'll kill everyone equally.
Rosemary doesn't realize how bad things are in the alienage. If she'd had to guess, she would have assumed it was very similar to the circle, where there is no privacy and no rights but one's basic needs are taken care of. She believes removing Loghain and Howe will fix everything and is very disappointed when Queen Anora quells the later uprising but feels helpless to do anything now that she no longer has the power of a warden during the blight. She does believe Leliana will fix everything when Leliana is Divine.
33. Who killed the Archdemon and are they still alive?
Marcela kills the archdemon. Because she had such full faith in Morrigan's ritual it wasn't exactly like she cared whether it was her or Alistair slaying the archdemon. She saw her shot and took it.
Rosemary let Alistair slay it, resulting in his death. She has a lot of guilt over this decision. Whether or not she had attempted the dark ritual, whether Morrigan would have stayed if she had... what if what if what if
40. How does the Warden feel about the Calling?
Marcela doesn't ever feel as though she's lived enough of her life. She's bitter about having spent so long trapped in the alienage, and the fact that she cannot free her whole family with her. There's always more of Thedas to see, always more to do. She devotes the later part of her life to finding a cure while Zevran goes with her, but it isn't that much of a change because they were traveling before then too. They've been just about everywhere in Thedas but Tevinter, for obvious reasons.
Rosemary has made her peace with it. She's already gotten to see more of the world than most mages. That's enough. Nothing is worse than false hope. She would be frankly frustrated if she knew how many Chantry resources Divine Leliana was putting towards finding a cure for the Calling.
Thank you for asking! I'm sorry it took so long for me to get back to you!!
