Character Information

CHARACTER

Name: Mattheus (Matty)
Canon/OC: OC
Journal: mattheus
Race: Human
Nationality: Fereldan
Occupation: Hunter, former stablehand and farmer
Division: Forces
Mage or Not: Not
Age: 32


History


Mattheus was born in Firstfall 9:11, as the only child of a baker and his wife living in Lothering. They were both killed in a fire when he was 6, and he doesn't have any clear memories of them, though he remembers being happy.

He was taken in by a family who knew his parents, and already had a daughter his age. Though they never formally adopted him, they loved him as a son, and told him what they knew of his parents. He learned early how to help out around the farm, to trap and hunt animals.

Matty and Lynne had always been close, but it wasn't until their teens that a true romance started to blossom. They were both pretty smitten with each other, but it wasn't until they were 15 that they were openly a couple. A year later, Lynne became pregnant.

Anyone who might joke about their marriage being merely a fulfillment of responsibility would have to eat their words when they saw how in love the two of them were. While they were understandably nervous about becoming parents, they were also incredibly happy. Their daughter was born early in 9:28. They remained living at the farm, though they were given their own little cabin to share.

In 9:29, they had another child, this time a son. When the Fifth Blight started with the Battle at Ostagar, they wanted to remain at the farm, worried about having to travel with young children. However, Lynne's parents pretty much ordered them to go north to stay with family in the village by Caer Oswin, and they were packed up with a wagon and supplies. Lynne's parents took in refugees, but they were all killed when Lothering was overrun by darkspawn.

Their wagon was attacked by bandits on the way to Oswin, but they managed to escape, which was when Matty decided he needed to be a better fighter to protect his family. However, he couldn't protect his youngest son from falling ill on the journey, and they buried him near the eastern shore of Lake Calenhad.

The rest of the family made it to Oswin, where they stayed with Lynne's elderly uncle, whose farm had mostly fallen into disrepair. They worked hard to rebuild it, and by the end of the blight and the civil war, found themselves still alive and with the makings of a new home.

However, due to Bann Loren's loss of his wife and son at Castle Cousland, Oswin was badly ruled the following years, with bandits and crime becoming an increasing problem. In 9:35, their farm was attacked by bandits, and Lynne and her uncle were killed in the process, while Matty was out riding with his daughter. While he mourned his wife, he saw what Bann Loren's loss had done, and he refused to let himself be consumed by grief and fail his daughter.

With just the two of them, and his daughter still so young, they couldn't keep the farm going on their own. When his daughter was 10 (9:38), and was starting to become a competent hunter on her own, Matty finally decided to sell the farm and head back down south.

They eventually ended up staying in the Hinterlands, making their living as hunters, selling whatever they didn't use themselves. During summers they mostly camped, taking refuge in caves and abandoned buildings when the weather got bad, and in some cases during winter, while other times they stayed in Redcliffe village.

They mostly stayed out of the way of the Inquisition, and of the Mage-Templar war, and really any kind of major conflict. They learned to defend themselves against demons as well as bears. Then one day, his daughter had a close encounter with a rift, and ended up with an anchor shard. As she steadily grew weaker as the pain grew worse, Matty took her to an Inquisition camp, who sent them along to Skyhold/Kirkwall.


Personality

The first impression of Mattheus would be someone gruff, moody, and rough. This is not necessarily inaccurate, but it's an extremely incomplete picture. If you were to mistake him for a mercenary or a bandit, it might be understandable given his appearance, but you would be incredibly wrong.

Matty is a gentle soul who's been through difficult times. If he's guarded or distant, it's because he can't afford to trust easily. Despite this, he is kind and generous and compassionate. He loves strongly, even if this love is currently reserved mainly for his daughter. He loves children and animals, and if you are mean to either, he will not have much patience for you.

He generally doesn't care too much about people's opinions of him, though that doesn't stop him from being polite and respectful. But he doesn't try to impress people, unless it's for purposes such as getting a good business deal, or chasing away bandits.

If you manage to catch him in a relaxed setting, like having a drink at the local tavern, you'll find him to be quite a friendly and cheerful individual. He can be quite playful and fun-loving - it's just that these aspects of him will never been more important to him than being there for his family. But when he gets a moment of rest and safety, he makes sure to enjoy them.

With a background as both a farmer and a hunter, he's a very patient man. He doesn't get bored easily, and he doesn't mind silence and solitude, though he enjoys singing and telling stories. He's meticulous and takes good care of his belongings, even if his personal grooming might leave something do be desired. He rarely gets angry, even if he carries a fair amount of grief inside him.

He appreciates nature and beauty. He admires those who try to help others in need. He hates those who hurt others for the sake of their own greed, vanity or cruelty. He values loyalty, compassion, and hard work.


Opinions & Affiliations

Matty is an Andrastian, though not overly religious or knowledgeable regarding it. He doesn't believe the Chantry is infallible, or that everything he's been told is true. He considers his faith a personal matter. He's not sure if he believes that the Maker will return when everyone worships him, or if this should even be their goal. He definitely doesn't think belief in the Maker should be spread by force. He does observe some rituals, and visits Chantries, but in his eyes, the best way to be a good Andrastian is to be a kind and charitable person.

He's got a healthy amount of fear for magic, but he doesn't believe mages are evil, nor even that magic itself is a corrupting influence, like the Chantry teaches. He knows he doesn't understand the intricacies of the Mage/Templar war enough to know who's right. He's seen atrocities committed by both sides. He just knows the devastation it caused on the land.

He's got pretty limited knowledge about the Qun and the Qunari, so he's filled with a lot of vague propaganda about them, and is likely to be distrustful of them. This might change when he actually gets introduced to some. Still, he generally tries to approach people as individuals.

He's likewise not very informed about the dwarves, and is pretty neutral towards them. He's slightly less clueless about elves, but still has had limited actual interaction with them. Mostly he pities them, and he opposes needless cruelty towards them.


Adaptation Notes

N/A


Strengths & Weaknesses

Matty's very self-reliant and practical. He's got plenty of homemaking skills, basic cooking and baking, sewing, carpentry. How to take care of weapons, and repair things when they break. Coming from modest means, he knows to make things last. He knows lots of little tips and tricks, some that may be superstition, others that have solid scientific background (even if he doesn't know what those are).

He's familiar with the workings of running a farm, lending a hand where he was needed. His favourite job was looking after the horses, as well as other animals. He knows how to calm animals when they're frightened, and takes great care in making sure the creatures under his care are happy and healthy. He's been accused of being a bit too sentimental about it, but he's not squeamish. He knows how to butcher and skin animals, treat meat and leather. He doesn't consider killing animals a bad thing - the crime would be in treating them cruelly, or not taking proper advantage of what they provide.

The past years he's mainly been working as hunter, and he's both stealthy and good at tracking. He supplements his hunting skills with foraging, and knows a lot about what you can find in a forest that is safe to eat. He's also used to living on the road, setting up camp, finding shelter and safe water.

When it comes to combat, Matty's a fighter with focus on agility, deflection and accuracy. He's a skilled archer, and though he's primarily experienced as a hunter, he knows how to take someone down. In hand-to-hand, he uses a rapier and an off-hand dagger. He has little to no experience in actually killing people - his experience is mainly against bandits, where the important part was simply to chase them away. He prefers to injure and disable opponents, and he mourns and begs forgiveness for deaths that were preventable.

He is polite and courteous, but he is no diplomat. He might know how to talk to farmers and commoners, but put him in front of anything resembling nobility and he's way out of his league. He can read and write same as most people, but he's no wordsmith, nor does he have any great scholarly knowledge.


Inventory

Very little. Clothes on his back. A rapier, dagger, bow and arrows. A horse. Some equipment for hunting and camping, but no more than can be traveled with.


Motivation

His daughter's got a sliver of weird magic in her hand that he'd like the Inquisition to deal with. He's hesitant to align himself with such a major organisation, but he's seen the good things the Inquisition has done, and supports their cause. However, his primary obligation is to his daughter.

Once he arrives with her, he will be unwilling to leave her side until he trusts that she's safe. He might need a little convincing to assist the Inquisition, but once he realises that her home has to be Kirkwall from now on, he will do whatever is best for her. If he's unable to find decent work in/near Kirkwall, then joining the Inquisition will be the best choice, even if missions sometimes takes him away from his daughter.