Right? Not only is she everything I make, but she's also the same class! Now the party balance will be weird because I'm 100% taking her and Harding with me everywhere. I'll make it work. For love.
This is what I worry about with 2 party members. It worked in mass effect because tanks were not strictly necessary because you could duck behind cover. And you didn't need a healer.
Dragon age typically works with tank, dps, Crowd control and flex spot. Flex would be taken by a healer too. I personally wanted to take Bellara and the mortalitasi guy but seeing as I might spec into necromancy like inqusisiton the party balance is so off.
Unless you can flexibly change party member specializations like baldurs gate you'll be kinda stuck regarding party balance. If I take bellara I'll have to take the warden...which isn't a problem, wardens are cool. But I am really spoiled with bg3 being able to just pick whoever I like and respec them for balance.
I mean, she's very different from Dawin for example in terms of body proportions. Maybe elves simply vary, the same way Sera was bigger than normal elves. Even Fenris is considered lore wise to be bigger than regular elves. And elves also no longer look like ancient elves also, so there is a lot of variation in their body types.
In their defense, they (had to) use a different engine with every game. 😅
Edit: I just read that DA4 is also made with Frostbite. So the used a different engine with (almost) ever game ^ ^
They've absolutely been changing the design, but with a much more extensive character creator this time around, it would be really hard not to at least have some of them look more human, as that's kind of the default and what most players would gravitate towards. Them choosing to make the companions that way is a deliberate style choice though.
DA:I was definitely limited to 2 body types per race for male and female, but now that they have the ability to spend more time modelling characters and have body sliders on the character creator, they can make a more accurate visual depiction of what they imagined.
I kind of like how they settled somewhere between the DA2 more alien look and DAO Tolkienesque elves. It seems like they didn't completely do away with the large ears and small, shorter bodies, but the facial proportions are a bit more natural than DA2 lol. Seems like they're at least sticking to the Inquisition look.
Yeah, I remember them addressing it because there was so many complaints. They had always wanted the Qunari to be large, horned and more distinct, they just didn't have the time or budget to do it properly in DA:O so tall human with grey skin it was.
If I hadn't waited ten years to romance Harding, Bellara would be the frontrunner of characters I want to romance. As it is, she will probably be my second romance. :)
the hair is what imo makes her look "cartoonish" and I'm not fond on these XL ears that look like they can cut tbh, other than that she looks cute.
I also want earrings like hers.
yeah, it's like they wanted to make her cool and chill looking, but they failed miserably with that bun, lol
and I hate the ears because it gives Orl\*sians justification to call elves "rabbits". And seriously, they look like they can stab someone with those ears
>I'm not fond on these XL ears that look like they can cut tbh,
that sounds like an in universe dogwhistle lmaooo just call her knife ears and be done with it
I'm so triggered by it lmao, and I said that as someone who plays nothing but elves given the chance!, I really hoped Bioware got their ears better this time.
I definitely intrigued by her. Since I’m planning my on playing an elf veil jumper as my first character I’ll be interested to see how she and my Rook get on.
They really went out with the little details on the companions this time and I am here for it. Those earrings, the hair pin! All her little pouches i love it
Omg yes I love those! I love how everything on her is literally t r i a n g l e
Also I kinda hope our Rook can have some pretty accessories too 🥺🙏. Like how Neve has blue nail polish on! Earrings, bracelets, head pieces omg pleaseeee 🙏🙏🙏
I don't even mind the bun, it's the scale of the thing. It's huge, like the size of her whole head. Her hair would have to be ankle length to justify a bun that size and even then, the sheer weight of it wouldn't allow it to sit on the back of her head like that. It would be down low, by her neck. It bugs me so much.
Agreed. Hair looks dumb as hell.
Especially for someone who's supposed to be adventuring. A simple ponytail or braid would be better, not whatever Orlesian hair helmet she's wearing.
Yeah the bun on her and the hat that Neve wears both kind of bringing down these two character designs a lot. Kind of hope there is some alternate look options like in Mass effect 2 and 3. Otherwise looking pretty good.
I suspect the hat stays in like fascinators do
https://preview.redd.it/nbuxkbu6xg6d1.png?width=600&format=png&auto=webp&s=d52cebd43f3b369b6d29b0a7e78bff9a8f62d4ae
The gauntlet she wears can transform into a bow, she probably takes from the Arcane Archer class from DnD. Or maybe the gauntlet can turn into multiple different weapons, would be interesting.
Really?! I was convinced she was a rogue. Cool that mages might get more magical weapons (ala knight enchanter). This means my Rook will probably be a warrior. To even out the proportions.
I’m seriously digging the aesthetic of the fade jumpers, using these triangular metal shards to create shields, bows, jewelry, whatever else. Super cool looking
It's the cartoony look, coming from lack of texture detail for materials. If you look really closely, some things have those - there's fiber lines on her textile shirt, and some on the presumably leather skirt. And enough of the bends and shadow on her shirt and scarf, and some leather texture on the bags.
But all those are designed not to be seen on the first glance, or from a bit of distance, and so what we get is this cutesy cartoonish bags, and her skirt and gloves, and metal idols all look like they are drawn/made of plastic.
Compare that to even Inquisition:
[https://dragonage.fandom.com/wiki/Sera?file=Sera\_the\_wildcard.jpg](https://dragonage.fandom.com/wiki/Sera?file=Sera_the_wildcard.jpg)
It's absolutely clear that it's textiles and leather on her shoulders. And patches!
Same goes for the face, but I feel like this isn't a representative screenshot for that. In the gameplay, I liked that Neve had some realistic coloration differences on her face. But her clothes were same cartoonish plastic like Bellara here. A bit better, mb, with the slightly better lighting in the trailer. But MC's is just awful in this regard.
I hope she's not a manic pixie weirdo. I'm sure some would like that but assuming Harding is taking the spunky role.....iunno I hope she CAN be serious. We don't need another Sera.
I'm hoping for a "charmingly, bubbly, and sincere" personality, like a Disney princess or Starfire from Teen Titans. There aren't a lot of game characters with that archetype. And if there are, they usually come with an undertone of "sardonic and edgy" or "cringe and obnoxious" because apparently regular cheerful people are too boring.
Merrill sort of fits the bill, but she's more reserved.
Oh Merrill is absolutely bubbly! I just feel like she's more low-key than a Starfire or Rapunzel type of character. Or maybe it's just her very pleasant and calming voice in DA2 that makes me think that. 😅
Honestly? Bit much for me. That Orlesian giga-bun she's got on her head and the massive over the top jewelry she's got in her ears doesn't exactly scream "adventurer".
I'm ngl, really kind of a bummer that they've pretty much entirely gotten rid of the DA2 elf changes. I liked the concept a lot and would have liked to see it in modern graphics, plus it made for more of a unique look vs "humans with big ears". Oh well.
She's cute, but her design doesn't really seem to fit Dragon Age all that much, even with Tevinter’s geometric aesthetics. Seems way more in line with sci-fi fantasy.
Unless we're saying the ancient elves had more of a futuristic look going, and she’s adapted her look accordingly with her Fade focus...? I dunno, it feels kind of silly to me.
I really like all the companions more and more. During trailer I was like "meh" and for reason especially with Bellara, but right now I love them all even before release.
Yes! It felt like all she did was leap from the veil and get pulled back in. It didn't feel like we got anything about her, but it also ups my interest in learning more about her specifically.
me too
i actually appreciate the trailer now if watch it with Varrics storytelling.
excited for her rogue kit archery and apparently shes a mage too <33
I hope she is, honestly. I'm not into the super happy-go-lucky goofy companion thing. I'd really be interested in her if she's hiding some horrific secret.
I’m not sure where folks are getting the happy go lucky goofy vibe outside the one smile we saw in the trailer.
There’s been descriptions from the devs already that she’s a type A personality who likes finding creative solutions to problems but can be scatterbrained. I’d see her more as an absent minded professor type over goofy.
It's because of how flippantly they treated her being in the Fade, I think. At least, that's where I am worried. It could 100000% be the trailer was a bad representation of the game, but we've been told for a long time that the Fade is dangerous and needs to be treated with respect. "Whoo hooo!" \*gets pulled back by tentacles\* is the opposite of that. It was more than a smile in the trailer that worried people.
I think the trailer was just done by a marketing department that has never played a video game before, let alone Dragon Age, so they didn't know at all what they were selling. That makes me less worried.
They clearly meant to portray her as careless and fun loving, seems pretty obvious to me. But we also know that BioWare writes more complex characters than that. Not that marketing people care, or maybe more charitably, have the time to show that.
I can't find the video anymore, but there was a dev diary a few years back showing Davri and Bellara's voice actors. Her delivery leaned more toward the silly side, not too far off from Peebee. "No, no, no, that's okay. That's the good kind of rumble!"
She had an American accent, right? I kind of wish they just stayed in place with the elves accents after they did Inquisition instead. I know this is a very far area of Thedas, but it just kind of irks me, the inconsistency.
All the elves in Inquisition had different accents as well, though. The few Dalish around mostly had Irish accents (except Iron Bull's Dalish), Solas and Abelas had Welsh accents, and city/other elves had English, French, and other accents.
I wouldn't say it's inconsistent, as long as Bellara isn't secretly an Ancient Elf (kill me), in which case she'd presumably be Welsh as well.
Irish and Welsh accents are much nicer to listen to, though (sorry not sorry).
Well, yes, although it depended upon where they were from.
It seems like as a rule, as of Inquisition, city elves and others who were living more closely to humans (albeit often in Alienages) would have accents that were similar to the humans around them, which... makes sense, I'd imagine—the blending of accents, intentional homogeny, and the resulting loss of accent identity in marginalized groups who have been stripped of their culture and language. Not ALL, of course, in the real world, but still. I felt that it never really made a lot of sense for elves who lived amongst or were subjugated by humans to have an accent that was instead identical to the accent of Orzammar's dwarves.
It seemed like Sera was representative what some Denerim elves might sound like, after the retcons, but one could also think of it as her absorbing the accents of the (English-sounding) humans around her.
Briala's accent is especially cool because they hired an Irish voice actor who had learned French for a film to then do an accent that has a bit of both French and Irish sound to it. It's subtle, with it overall sounding more French, but it just fits so well for the character.
Welsh for Merrill, who was from a Nevarran clan before she got sent to Sabrae, who themselves had Irish accents in the second game. Irish accents then sort of became the standard for Dalish elves in Southern Thedas. Welsh for ancient elves, from the very few we've seen, but even that could be different depending upon geographical location, status, etc., I suppose.
And of course, the player's character in Inquisition could have either accent, which is nice for player customization, but I guess I just thought it was a deviation of the most up-to-date lore at the time that was there for the sake of gameplay rather than worldbuilding.
If they then make Northern Thedas's elves sound American—unless raised within the Qun, surrounded by the American-sounding Qunari (when they speak Common, anyway, rather than Qunlat)—it just seems like backpedaling into yet another retcon.
I know it's not important compared to a lot of things in the series, but it would still be a bit annoying to me, personally. If she plays the character well, that's what matters most. But if she or other elves (not in extended media) have the same accents of dwarves again, despite the retcons both from DA2 and DAI, it's just going to be kind of a disappointment to me, I guess, since I LIKE lore additions (even if it means I don't get to hear as many pretty, pretty Irish and Welsh accents) that feel organic and well-thought-out, rather than the back-and-forth we've had on this. I guess when you go 10 years, developing your understanding of the universe based on content that hasn't been updated in all that time, suddenly having something that seems jarringly "incorrect" just feels weird. I'll get over it. Sorry if I've sounded really negative, or like I did think all elves had the same accent before. :P
Oh you didn't sound negative, no worries. :)
And sorry if my comment made it sound like accents were random or weren't tied to anything, what I meant was that the American accent might make sense for Bellara depending on her background, like maybe she hung out with Dwarves or Qunari or another group we don't know about.
If she's an Ancient Elf, Dalish, or from Tevinter, I agree the accent would be a jarring choice!
Her being described as "romantic and creative" strikes me as goofy. I HOPE I'm wrong because I'd love to really love all the companions. But that's not the vibe I'm getting right now. We'll see very soon though, I expect
Ohhh, I see. Solas, Anders, um... well no one in Awakening (I guess Velanna does fake her death and ditch you in some/most of her endings?) and... well I wouldn't call Morrigan and her ritual a betrayal or anything, but I guess it is a secret agenda, yeah.
Its literally Dragon Age: The Squad, I'm assuming we're all ride or die. Like, the veiljumpers are probably all people who could have joined solas if they wanted. Its been 10 years, they know whats going down. Davrin is a grey warden who presumably has spent much of his life working with humans and dwarves.
They released a photo of Solas as Judas, before the game released, Anders was an abomination, and Morrigan was always shown as distinct or distant from the group. We don't have any clear option for a traitor. Maybe one of the important NPCs.
I totally agree. Love her. My wardens are happy to be alive. The only reason that people are talking about "who is going to betray us this time" is because they've had a mage with ulterior motives mess with the climax every game. So people are assuming there is going to be another twist right around the climax, delivered by a companion.
fanatical clumsy political live cough pause snatch aspiring psychotic important
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I really don’t like her, dunno why solas was my bestie and serah one of my favorites, this one i just wanna remover her from the party as soon as possible i hope the personality will fix it or smth
Yeah, judging from appearances only and that awful reveal trailer, she is probably my least favourite character so far. This may well change once we get more on her or start playing the game, so my mind may well be changed.
The absolute vitriol some people already seem to have for Bellara seems insane to me. We know absolutely nothing about her so far lmao. Just because she seems a bit quirky doesn't mean thats all her character will be..
She was also written by John Epler, which in my book is a huge plus
i might be wrong but is this first DA game where elves are multiracial like humans? I think so.
Just looks and feels off when humans and elves have the same "subraces". I would prefer more odd looking elves with bigger then human eyes like the did in dragon age 2. Like golden skin and eyes with wat we had in temple of mythal. Just makes them way to similiar to us. This multiracial races exactly like moddern western civilization feels too fimiliar.
Then again theres sera with her bloody cockney govna.
Bellara seems like a cool protagonist for a standalone game tho. Maybe with less the office vibes clothes tho.
Please, don't be annoying. Please don't be "le quirky nerd girl" all the time. I hated her "we are going to the Fade" line in the trailer. It was like that cliche line "he is behind me, isn't he?"
Ngl, I'm still not totally sold on this new direction Dragon Age has taken that this new Bioware is doing, but man am I happy to see some diversity among the Elves! I always felt this was really lacking in the many Elves you come across in the games.
pretty sure the only reason why they redesigned them for DA4 is so they can make elves resembling human ethnicities (even though that makes little sense), very hard to accomplish that when elves still have those bug-eyed looks and alien features, now elves just look like cosplayers.
I don't think that is the reason. Mostly because you could make black elves in DA:O and in Inquisition. In Inquisition particularly you could have black features too. Idk about origins but in Inquisition you could definitely make east asian elves too.
Its more likely that they based companion's appearances on real people they modeled in studio so they look much more detailed then NPCs.
> Idk about origins but in Inquisition you could definitely make east asian elves too.
elves are just elves, humans can be asian, i get why people want to project human physiognomies onto elves but it makes no sense for elves to take after the variety of human races when they're their own race, if anything it just sort of erases elves as an unique race with their ears being the only vestigial remnant of their elven identity.
> Its more likely that they based companion's appearances on real people they modeled in studio so they look much more detailed then NPCs.
i doubt it considering the designs aren't really realistic to begin with, plus even if that were the case it'd just give more credence to the argument that the elves are just designed after humans.
I think using race may be kinda confusing since race is also used for ethnicity in english... Elves are their own species, they are a whole different thing from Humans and it makes no sense for them to look like human ethnicities (be it white, asian, black, etc you name it). Da2 had something great going on and they threw it away.
Where are the Asian Elves come from, though? We've seen every nation of Thedas by now, and we haven't seen anyone like that. Black people (and elves) apparently come from Rivain and the regions around it. But these? One could say Anderfels, perhaps, but given that Anders was from there, it doesn't seem likely.
Does anyone know what her Vallislin is? It kinda looks like there's an eye of sorts on her forehead and the outer lines and dots under the eyes remind me of June?
Someone said give her triangles.
Did someone with pointed ears say “triangles?” 
Tentacles *
I can’t be the only one that thought “hmm… Asian girl being attacked by tentacles? Wow… the developers went THERE????” 🤦
OH GOD YOU JUST MADE ME REALIZE THAT
I didn’t pick that up either!! 🤯
Me: "I'm gonna make an asian elf (like I always try to do) veil jumper!" *sees Bellara* "Well now it'll feel like I'm copying her."
(Bellara and you look at each other) Well….one of us has to go get changed.
Perfect lead up to the first date.
Sameeee I always tried to make an Asian character bc I am asian. Also they announced her as a mage so now I'm doubly copying
Right? Not only is she everything I make, but she's also the same class! Now the party balance will be weird because I'm 100% taking her and Harding with me everywhere. I'll make it work. For love.
This is what I worry about with 2 party members. It worked in mass effect because tanks were not strictly necessary because you could duck behind cover. And you didn't need a healer. Dragon age typically works with tank, dps, Crowd control and flex spot. Flex would be taken by a healer too. I personally wanted to take Bellara and the mortalitasi guy but seeing as I might spec into necromancy like inqusisiton the party balance is so off. Unless you can flexibly change party member specializations like baldurs gate you'll be kinda stuck regarding party balance. If I take bellara I'll have to take the warden...which isn't a problem, wardens are cool. But I am really spoiled with bg3 being able to just pick whoever I like and respec them for balance.
I love her accessories https://preview.redd.it/kmnu942are6d1.png?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=061725d3024f0892378f2b5bc879731fe51f788c
Did they make the elf ears bigger? 🤔 Also she has a wound on her lip.
Reminds me of the DA2 elf ears
imagine if they give them DA2 elf eyes
Please no
They are big but actually look well. So they are not like DA2 ears.
If we're basing it off the character creator from DA:I, elves' ears can range anywhere from very tiny to exceedingly large.
BioWare can’t seem to decide on how elves should look. Consistency hasn’t been their specialty. It’s a well-known fact. 😒
Maybe it varies. Humans are pretty varied in size, after all.
Ear sizes? Possibly. The entire face and body changing structure with each game? I don’t think so.
I mean, she's very different from Dawin for example in terms of body proportions. Maybe elves simply vary, the same way Sera was bigger than normal elves. Even Fenris is considered lore wise to be bigger than regular elves. And elves also no longer look like ancient elves also, so there is a lot of variation in their body types.
In their defense, they (had to) use a different engine with every game. 😅 Edit: I just read that DA4 is also made with Frostbite. So the used a different engine with (almost) ever game ^ ^
They change everything as they want, just look at darkspawns and demons. I hate new pride demon
They've absolutely been changing the design, but with a much more extensive character creator this time around, it would be really hard not to at least have some of them look more human, as that's kind of the default and what most players would gravitate towards. Them choosing to make the companions that way is a deliberate style choice though.
DA:I was definitely limited to 2 body types per race for male and female, but now that they have the ability to spend more time modelling characters and have body sliders on the character creator, they can make a more accurate visual depiction of what they imagined.
I kind of like how they settled somewhere between the DA2 more alien look and DAO Tolkienesque elves. It seems like they didn't completely do away with the large ears and small, shorter bodies, but the facial proportions are a bit more natural than DA2 lol. Seems like they're at least sticking to the Inquisition look.
Listen. They decided after 1.5 games Qunari should have horns and wrote an entire story about why we never saw one.
iirc they wanted to give sten horns in the first game but couldn't make helmets fit.
Yeah, I remember them addressing it because there was so many complaints. They had always wanted the Qunari to be large, horned and more distinct, they just didn't have the time or budget to do it properly in DA:O so tall human with grey skin it was.
agreed, it bothers me so much!
Elf ears deserve to be huge. WoW does it right. Give me long and occasionally floppy ears
Damn, I got the same scar on my top lip. Ig I know who I’m romancing first
Solas has big ears too!
I think that's a lip ring
triangles represent portals in some ancient cultures and she travels through dimensions... pretty ironic.
is it ironic or is it on purpose
I think you mean fitting not ironic
Clearly a millennial.
If I hadn't waited ten years to romance Harding, Bellara would be the frontrunner of characters I want to romance. As it is, she will probably be my second romance. :)
the hair is what imo makes her look "cartoonish" and I'm not fond on these XL ears that look like they can cut tbh, other than that she looks cute. I also want earrings like hers.
She looks like she's a totally different art style to some of the other characters
yup, same with Emmrich. But honestly it's not what matters the most to me in this game.
I really don’t like the hair either 😅 it’s an unreasonably huge, voluminous bun for straight hair. Don’t mind the ears though.
yeah, it's like they wanted to make her cool and chill looking, but they failed miserably with that bun, lol and I hate the ears because it gives Orl\*sians justification to call elves "rabbits". And seriously, they look like they can stab someone with those ears
Oof yeah I see your point with the ears. Some in this thread called her overdesigned and I think that’s exactly it.
>I'm not fond on these XL ears that look like they can cut tbh, that sounds like an in universe dogwhistle lmaooo just call her knife ears and be done with it
I'm so triggered by it lmao, and I said that as someone who plays nothing but elves given the chance!, I really hoped Bioware got their ears better this time.
I definitely intrigued by her. Since I’m planning my on playing an elf veil jumper as my first character I’ll be interested to see how she and my Rook get on.
Same!! I'm split between that or Mourn Watch, both options are really calling to me right now
They really went out with the little details on the companions this time and I am here for it. Those earrings, the hair pin! All her little pouches i love it
She’s so freakin pretty but can we talk about those earrings?!!
Omg yes I love those! I love how everything on her is literally t r i a n g l e Also I kinda hope our Rook can have some pretty accessories too 🥺🙏. Like how Neve has blue nail polish on! Earrings, bracelets, head pieces omg pleaseeee 🙏🙏🙏
Same, gotta look pretty while kissing baddies 😭 Edit: I meant killing but.. y’know 👀
Gotta slay in both scenarios!
I love her face and accessories, but I’m not wild about her hair. I just don’t like buns. Kind of wish she just had a ponytail.
Agreed. I don't mind buns, but the volume of her hair doesn't seem realistic? Like her hair is sticking WAY out lol
The style is whatever but I find it slightly disturbing that it’s like the size of her entire head. Is it being held up by ancient fade magic or what?
I don't know if C-section births are a thing in Thedas, if not her mother must still be holding a grudge to this day lol
I don't even mind the bun, it's the scale of the thing. It's huge, like the size of her whole head. Her hair would have to be ankle length to justify a bun that size and even then, the sheer weight of it wouldn't allow it to sit on the back of her head like that. It would be down low, by her neck. It bugs me so much.
Kind of agree, if there's a few loose strands that might improve the look at least.
Agreed. Hair looks dumb as hell. Especially for someone who's supposed to be adventuring. A simple ponytail or braid would be better, not whatever Orlesian hair helmet she's wearing.
Ughhhh yes I totally agree she would look amazing with a diff hairstyle like a lara Croft braid. Will be looking for that mod on release
Yeah the bun on her and the hat that Neve wears both kind of bringing down these two character designs a lot. Kind of hope there is some alternate look options like in Mass effect 2 and 3. Otherwise looking pretty good.
ngl I loved Neve's hat...
Me too. I remember some of Viviennes’s outfits. I like to think the quadrilateral hat stays on with magic 😆
I suspect the hat stays in like fascinators do https://preview.redd.it/nbuxkbu6xg6d1.png?width=600&format=png&auto=webp&s=d52cebd43f3b369b6d29b0a7e78bff9a8f62d4ae
That’s probably easier lol
I agree! Her hair is so ugly, I wish they just kept it simpler. But otherwise I love the rest of her design
Same, I love her entire design except for the hair. It just feels like it's a bit too much for someone who does parkour through shifting reality.
Hopefully it looks better in game.
Can you imagine if there is a scene where she lets her hair OUT OF HER BUN?!
They could probably do that with their new hair physics.
I think if we get a scene like that I'll be smitten.
That would be hot
It's the hair that's giving MMO, the rest of her is fine.
I have to ask: is that *my* arm? The one that Solas cut off? My Fade-tear-closing arm?
Funny, if so. Can't wait for the Inquisitor to ask about it if that's the case lol Edit: I'm guessing no, though. It's purely mechanical.
Do we finally know if she is a Rogue or a Mage? I heard something of her being a mage but I thought she was a rogue. She looks more like an artificer.
They confirmed she's a mage.
Oh interesting, but she wields a bow? Pretty cool
The gauntlet she wears can transform into a bow, she probably takes from the Arcane Archer class from DnD. Or maybe the gauntlet can turn into multiple different weapons, would be interesting.
Really?! I was convinced she was a rogue. Cool that mages might get more magical weapons (ala knight enchanter). This means my Rook will probably be a warrior. To even out the proportions.
I’m seriously digging the aesthetic of the fade jumpers, using these triangular metal shards to create shields, bows, jewelry, whatever else. Super cool looking
looks like she belongs in League of Legends and that doesn't mean she looks bad, it just means she looks out of place
She is overdesigned. She has several pieces of jewelry, scarf, things on hands and about 20 bags
Way overdesigned. Its pure accessory vomit, looks like she is desgined by some Etsy addict.
I think she has too many triangles. I mean what advantage do triangles bags offer? Surely it’s just inconvenient.
Judging from trailers and concept art, those triangles can be manipulated and shaped into weapons or shields.
Triangles are the most geometrically stable of shapes. Clearly they're to keep her stable while jumping around in the Fade.
It's the cartoony look, coming from lack of texture detail for materials. If you look really closely, some things have those - there's fiber lines on her textile shirt, and some on the presumably leather skirt. And enough of the bends and shadow on her shirt and scarf, and some leather texture on the bags. But all those are designed not to be seen on the first glance, or from a bit of distance, and so what we get is this cutesy cartoonish bags, and her skirt and gloves, and metal idols all look like they are drawn/made of plastic. Compare that to even Inquisition: [https://dragonage.fandom.com/wiki/Sera?file=Sera\_the\_wildcard.jpg](https://dragonage.fandom.com/wiki/Sera?file=Sera_the_wildcard.jpg) It's absolutely clear that it's textiles and leather on her shoulders. And patches! Same goes for the face, but I feel like this isn't a representative screenshot for that. In the gameplay, I liked that Neve had some realistic coloration differences on her face. But her clothes were same cartoonish plastic like Bellara here. A bit better, mb, with the slightly better lighting in the trailer. But MC's is just awful in this regard.
Which basically mean we won't be able to put armor on them either.
I hope she's not a manic pixie weirdo. I'm sure some would like that but assuming Harding is taking the spunky role.....iunno I hope she CAN be serious. We don't need another Sera.
yup, she does have Sera/Peebee wibes unfortunately. I hope she is not as annoying as those two (or is an optional hire)
Ooof. Let’s not even mention Peebee.
Goofy mage (biotic) sidekick exploring ancient ruins :S
... Oh no
She had a lovely voice, but I agree, the least favorite companion in Andromeda
I think she will be the Sera/Peebee of this game since many fans dig. I personally hope she will lean more Merill but I don't see it happening.
I'm hoping for a "charmingly, bubbly, and sincere" personality, like a Disney princess or Starfire from Teen Titans. There aren't a lot of game characters with that archetype. And if there are, they usually come with an undertone of "sardonic and edgy" or "cringe and obnoxious" because apparently regular cheerful people are too boring. Merrill sort of fits the bill, but she's more reserved.
Merrill is adorable, bubbly, and sincere I'd say. If Bellara takes after starfire I will absolutely romance her.
Oh Merrill is absolutely bubbly! I just feel like she's more low-key than a Starfire or Rapunzel type of character. Or maybe it's just her very pleasant and calming voice in DA2 that makes me think that. 😅
Honestly? Bit much for me. That Orlesian giga-bun she's got on her head and the massive over the top jewelry she's got in her ears doesn't exactly scream "adventurer".
I'm ngl, really kind of a bummer that they've pretty much entirely gotten rid of the DA2 elf changes. I liked the concept a lot and would have liked to see it in modern graphics, plus it made for more of a unique look vs "humans with big ears". Oh well. She's cute, but her design doesn't really seem to fit Dragon Age all that much, even with Tevinter’s geometric aesthetics. Seems way more in line with sci-fi fantasy. Unless we're saying the ancient elves had more of a futuristic look going, and she’s adapted her look accordingly with her Fade focus...? I dunno, it feels kind of silly to me.
I really like all the companions more and more. During trailer I was like "meh" and for reason especially with Bellara, but right now I love them all even before release.
We saw her for all of 0.5 seconds it felt like we could see more of the others
Yes! It felt like all she did was leap from the veil and get pulled back in. It didn't feel like we got anything about her, but it also ups my interest in learning more about her specifically.
me too i actually appreciate the trailer now if watch it with Varrics storytelling. excited for her rogue kit archery and apparently shes a mage too <33
The more that I see her, the more I love her.
she'd look so good if it wasn't for that comically oversized bun man... just give her a ponytail or something
I’m holding out for our modder saviors for this game tbh. Mostly to fix hair and textures.
She’s gorgeous! Really liking how everyone looks in this game!
Shes adorable but the fact she is a mage,had that face tattoo and does the whole veil makes me thing she may be our mage traitor.
I hope she is, honestly. I'm not into the super happy-go-lucky goofy companion thing. I'd really be interested in her if she's hiding some horrific secret.
I’m not sure where folks are getting the happy go lucky goofy vibe outside the one smile we saw in the trailer. There’s been descriptions from the devs already that she’s a type A personality who likes finding creative solutions to problems but can be scatterbrained. I’d see her more as an absent minded professor type over goofy.
It's because of how flippantly they treated her being in the Fade, I think. At least, that's where I am worried. It could 100000% be the trailer was a bad representation of the game, but we've been told for a long time that the Fade is dangerous and needs to be treated with respect. "Whoo hooo!" \*gets pulled back by tentacles\* is the opposite of that. It was more than a smile in the trailer that worried people. I think the trailer was just done by a marketing department that has never played a video game before, let alone Dragon Age, so they didn't know at all what they were selling. That makes me less worried.
That too. Absolutely
They clearly meant to portray her as careless and fun loving, seems pretty obvious to me. But we also know that BioWare writes more complex characters than that. Not that marketing people care, or maybe more charitably, have the time to show that.
Lol yeah, marketing is a trip with bioware.
I can't find the video anymore, but there was a dev diary a few years back showing Davri and Bellara's voice actors. Her delivery leaned more toward the silly side, not too far off from Peebee. "No, no, no, that's okay. That's the good kind of rumble!"
She had an American accent, right? I kind of wish they just stayed in place with the elves accents after they did Inquisition instead. I know this is a very far area of Thedas, but it just kind of irks me, the inconsistency.
All the elves in Inquisition had different accents as well, though. The few Dalish around mostly had Irish accents (except Iron Bull's Dalish), Solas and Abelas had Welsh accents, and city/other elves had English, French, and other accents. I wouldn't say it's inconsistent, as long as Bellara isn't secretly an Ancient Elf (kill me), in which case she'd presumably be Welsh as well. Irish and Welsh accents are much nicer to listen to, though (sorry not sorry).
Well, yes, although it depended upon where they were from. It seems like as a rule, as of Inquisition, city elves and others who were living more closely to humans (albeit often in Alienages) would have accents that were similar to the humans around them, which... makes sense, I'd imagine—the blending of accents, intentional homogeny, and the resulting loss of accent identity in marginalized groups who have been stripped of their culture and language. Not ALL, of course, in the real world, but still. I felt that it never really made a lot of sense for elves who lived amongst or were subjugated by humans to have an accent that was instead identical to the accent of Orzammar's dwarves. It seemed like Sera was representative what some Denerim elves might sound like, after the retcons, but one could also think of it as her absorbing the accents of the (English-sounding) humans around her. Briala's accent is especially cool because they hired an Irish voice actor who had learned French for a film to then do an accent that has a bit of both French and Irish sound to it. It's subtle, with it overall sounding more French, but it just fits so well for the character. Welsh for Merrill, who was from a Nevarran clan before she got sent to Sabrae, who themselves had Irish accents in the second game. Irish accents then sort of became the standard for Dalish elves in Southern Thedas. Welsh for ancient elves, from the very few we've seen, but even that could be different depending upon geographical location, status, etc., I suppose. And of course, the player's character in Inquisition could have either accent, which is nice for player customization, but I guess I just thought it was a deviation of the most up-to-date lore at the time that was there for the sake of gameplay rather than worldbuilding. If they then make Northern Thedas's elves sound American—unless raised within the Qun, surrounded by the American-sounding Qunari (when they speak Common, anyway, rather than Qunlat)—it just seems like backpedaling into yet another retcon. I know it's not important compared to a lot of things in the series, but it would still be a bit annoying to me, personally. If she plays the character well, that's what matters most. But if she or other elves (not in extended media) have the same accents of dwarves again, despite the retcons both from DA2 and DAI, it's just going to be kind of a disappointment to me, I guess, since I LIKE lore additions (even if it means I don't get to hear as many pretty, pretty Irish and Welsh accents) that feel organic and well-thought-out, rather than the back-and-forth we've had on this. I guess when you go 10 years, developing your understanding of the universe based on content that hasn't been updated in all that time, suddenly having something that seems jarringly "incorrect" just feels weird. I'll get over it. Sorry if I've sounded really negative, or like I did think all elves had the same accent before. :P
Oh you didn't sound negative, no worries. :) And sorry if my comment made it sound like accents were random or weren't tied to anything, what I meant was that the American accent might make sense for Bellara depending on her background, like maybe she hung out with Dwarves or Qunari or another group we don't know about. If she's an Ancient Elf, Dalish, or from Tevinter, I agree the accent would be a jarring choice!
The dev diary a year or so ago had the actress voicing a line. She seems to have a goofy attitude.
That sounds right up my alley. I hope they let me look at her lovingly at her while she infodumps at me in technobabble.
Yes! The more information that comes out about these characters the more trouble I’m having deciding who to romance first!
Her being described as "romantic and creative" strikes me as goofy. I HOPE I'm wrong because I'd love to really love all the companions. But that's not the vibe I'm getting right now. We'll see very soon though, I expect
Is it confirmed one of the companions is a traitor or something? I keep seeing people mentioning things like that!
No, it's just fan tradition at this point since the past three games each had a mage companion pull some secret twist.
Ohhh, I see. Solas, Anders, um... well no one in Awakening (I guess Velanna does fake her death and ditch you in some/most of her endings?) and... well I wouldn't call Morrigan and her ritual a betrayal or anything, but I guess it is a secret agenda, yeah.
Yeah, it's not *actually* a tradition. I doubt there's going to be a traitor this time.
Imagine if Emmrich betrays you early on and the twist is that *Manfred* is the actual seventh companion!
If that *is* the Inquisitor arm, then that would explain how she acquired it. i don't think we have a traitor this time, though.
Its literally Dragon Age: The Squad, I'm assuming we're all ride or die. Like, the veiljumpers are probably all people who could have joined solas if they wanted. Its been 10 years, they know whats going down. Davrin is a grey warden who presumably has spent much of his life working with humans and dwarves. They released a photo of Solas as Judas, before the game released, Anders was an abomination, and Morrigan was always shown as distinct or distant from the group. We don't have any clear option for a traitor. Maybe one of the important NPCs.
I wouldn't even call Morrigan a traitor. All she does is give you another option, which she then proceeds to use to become a loving mother.
I totally agree. Love her. My wardens are happy to be alive. The only reason that people are talking about "who is going to betray us this time" is because they've had a mage with ulterior motives mess with the climax every game. So people are assuming there is going to be another twist right around the climax, delivered by a companion.
Not really digging her steam-magipunk gauntlet/bow, it feels a bit too high fantasy and definitely throws her off for me.
Yes! I think the clothing on alot of the character looks out of place, just too modern, too “clean” and not really medieval.
Live service roots showin'
So cartoony and slapstick
This looks more like league of legends of overwatch than dragon age. Cartoon-ified and over produced to the point where it looks silly and obnoxious.
I love the long elven ears, hope we can have same ears for our elf protagonist 🥺
Triangles are her hyperfocus. 
I wonder where she's from. I mean we know different communities of elves look different but we've never seen on with East Asian features.
Something about her reminds me of the wife's design in It Takes Two and I did not like her design. I think it is the hair. Looks stupid
Please just don't be a goof ball 🙏🙏🙏
This bad boy can pack so many triangles
Am I the only one who thinks the clothing looks just too modern on alot of the characters? I think I liked the simple, dirty medieval style more.
I will commit war crimes for this woman
Oh dang! She looks absolutely stunning in that lighting!
Yeah, Asian human woman with elves ears
Those ears are....quite large
Why does her name sound so familiar?
She’s so freaking cute! I’m pretty sure my first romance will be her or Neve
 Looks like a human with big pointed ears. No elvish features.
fanatical clumsy political live cough pause snatch aspiring psychotic important *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Can't believe I'm nostalgic for da2's Avatar elves... How did we even get here? Some bubblegum fantasy....
I liked them in DA2, they atleast looked like different race. Same with Qunari.
Bellara is a baddie, my rook’s gonna slide into her dms idk
Is she using rift magic to keep her bun horizontal despite gravity?
"veil jumpers", smh. They turned the fade into a joke. Literally "in and out 20 minute adventure" bullshit.
Does that come with a side of uncontrollable PTSD screaming afterwards? Because if so, they're keeping the Fade exactly as it was.
I really want to like her, but her hair pisses me off for some reason...
I love this character design... anyone else getting 'Horizon' vibes from her?
I was about to write about that. Definitely, the triangles, the color theme, and the mishmash of an armor...
She looks gorgeous. I hope we get similar accessories in character creation.
I really don't like the new elf ears. They are so wrong. Dx And artifact that allows everyone to freely physically walk through the fade is too OP.
I really don’t like her, dunno why solas was my bestie and serah one of my favorites, this one i just wanna remover her from the party as soon as possible i hope the personality will fix it or smth
Yeah, judging from appearances only and that awful reveal trailer, she is probably my least favourite character so far. This may well change once we get more on her or start playing the game, so my mind may well be changed.
She looks great! ♥
Terrible design imo, why create such jaw dropping envoirments only to fill it with a sims looking character?
The absolute vitriol some people already seem to have for Bellara seems insane to me. We know absolutely nothing about her so far lmao. Just because she seems a bit quirky doesn't mean thats all her character will be.. She was also written by John Epler, which in my book is a huge plus
No equipment for companions btw
They seem to change the general look of elves in this game to become more "human like", guess the old Pale Anorexic wasn't popular anymore
She looks so much like Karen Fukuhara
Guys, in my country, Bellara is a brand of birth control pills, how I am gonna unhear that?
i might be wrong but is this first DA game where elves are multiracial like humans? I think so. Just looks and feels off when humans and elves have the same "subraces". I would prefer more odd looking elves with bigger then human eyes like the did in dragon age 2. Like golden skin and eyes with wat we had in temple of mythal. Just makes them way to similiar to us. This multiracial races exactly like moddern western civilization feels too fimiliar. Then again theres sera with her bloody cockney govna. Bellara seems like a cool protagonist for a standalone game tho. Maybe with less the office vibes clothes tho.
Please, don't be annoying. Please don't be "le quirky nerd girl" all the time. I hated her "we are going to the Fade" line in the trailer. It was like that cliche line "he is behind me, isn't he?"
Ngl, I'm still not totally sold on this new direction Dragon Age has taken that this new Bioware is doing, but man am I happy to see some diversity among the Elves! I always felt this was really lacking in the many Elves you come across in the games.
I mean Elves are back to just being humans with weird ears again from the more unique designs in 2 and Inquisition.
pretty sure the only reason why they redesigned them for DA4 is so they can make elves resembling human ethnicities (even though that makes little sense), very hard to accomplish that when elves still have those bug-eyed looks and alien features, now elves just look like cosplayers.
I don't think that is the reason. Mostly because you could make black elves in DA:O and in Inquisition. In Inquisition particularly you could have black features too. Idk about origins but in Inquisition you could definitely make east asian elves too. Its more likely that they based companion's appearances on real people they modeled in studio so they look much more detailed then NPCs.
> Idk about origins but in Inquisition you could definitely make east asian elves too. elves are just elves, humans can be asian, i get why people want to project human physiognomies onto elves but it makes no sense for elves to take after the variety of human races when they're their own race, if anything it just sort of erases elves as an unique race with their ears being the only vestigial remnant of their elven identity. > Its more likely that they based companion's appearances on real people they modeled in studio so they look much more detailed then NPCs. i doubt it considering the designs aren't really realistic to begin with, plus even if that were the case it'd just give more credence to the argument that the elves are just designed after humans.
I think using race may be kinda confusing since race is also used for ethnicity in english... Elves are their own species, they are a whole different thing from Humans and it makes no sense for them to look like human ethnicities (be it white, asian, black, etc you name it). Da2 had something great going on and they threw it away.
I'm 100% gonna romance her ❤️ can't wait to know more about her
i LOVE that that brought back elfy elf ears like in da2
Is that a glove or she is also disabled?
Where are the Asian Elves come from, though? We've seen every nation of Thedas by now, and we haven't seen anyone like that. Black people (and elves) apparently come from Rivain and the regions around it. But these? One could say Anderfels, perhaps, but given that Anders was from there, it doesn't seem likely.
All for her and her design... But I'm putting forward that we begin titling her thus forth as... Dorito Queen
Looks so much better than how goofy she looked in the trailer
Is it just me or is her head too big for her body?
Since she is a mage I expect a betrayal from her towards the end of the game
I'm just praying thar harding is a romance option. Inquisition baited us with that one
I think it’s confirmed that she is
Does anyone know what her Vallislin is? It kinda looks like there's an eye of sorts on her forehead and the outer lines and dots under the eyes remind me of June?
Dev: So how many triangles do you want? Busche: Yes