“Who better serves the Maker: a brother of the faith, or a prince who can sway a whole city?”
Sebastian Vael is a Chantry Brother and a member of the royal Vael family of Starkhaven—contending for the title of Prince after the murder of his family. Being both a skilled archer and rogue, he is a potential companion in Dragon Age II available through the The Exiled Prince DLC, and a romance option for a female Hawke.
Background
- See also: Sebastian (short story)
The Vaels believed that their youngest son of three, Sebastian, was a disgrace to the family name, and would be a weight around his brothers' necks. He spent his considerable allowance on drink, entertainment, and the wooing of the ladies of Starkhaven. Fearing that Sebastian might father a bastard that could grow to challenge the Vael throne, his parents forced him into the Chantry, exiling him from their principality.[2] While he was not without faith, Sebastian did not wish to give up his life in service to Andraste so early in his existence, and with the aid of Grand Cleric Elthina, escaped. Elthina helped him to regain his faith however, and after reflection, Sebastian returned to the Chantry, this time willingly, and through the front door. Embracing his new role, Sebastian took vows of poverty and chastity to become a sworn brother of the Chantry... until word of his family's deaths forced him to take up worldly concerns once again.
Now, Sebastian is forced to re-enter the viper's nest of princely politics when his family is brutally murdered, leaving him as the sole surviving heir.[3]
Involvement
Dragon Age II
Banding together with Sebastian and his unshakable loyalty and excellent aim, Hawke must choose to either avenge Sebastian's murdered family to reclaim his title or direct his holy vengeance on their enemies in Kirkwall.
Act 1
Following the murder of his immediate family by the Flint Company mercenary group, Sebastian has an argument with Grand Cleric Elthina in front of the Kirkwall Chantry in Hightown. In his anger he puts up a notice, promising a reward to whomever kills his family's murderers. The Champion has a choice of accepting Sebastian's bounty from the Chanter's Board. If so after all of the Flint Company has been destroyed, Hawke can meet with Sebastian in the Chantry. Sebastian will thank Hawke for their aid and go to petition the Viscount for aid in retaking Starkhaven. Hawke will not see him again until three years later.
Act 2
When he is met for the second time, Sebastian will join Hawke in full. He has discovered who hired the Flint Company, an old Kirkwall noble family who was once allied with his own, the Harimanns. Sebastian and Hawke discovered that the Desire Demon Allure had corrupted the family, which drove Lady Harimann to become obsessed by her desires to seize Starkhaven until it was all she could think of. She masterminded the assassination and placed Sebastian's feeble cousin on the throne as a puppet ruler. Johane Harimann is killed by Sebastian and Hawke and the demon is defeated. In the aftermath, Sebastian becomes conflicted over whether he should remain in the Chantry or retake Starkhaven.
Act 3
By 9:37 Dragon, the Divine began to fear that the situation in Kirkwall was growing out of control and that more extreme measures might be warranted, potentially even an Exalted March against the city itself. Sebastian was asked by Elthina, along with Hawke, to meet with Sister Nightingale, the so called "Left Hand of the Divine" and persuade her this was not necessary. Before the rendezvous could take place however, they were attacked by a Mage extremist faction, The Resolutionists. Unable to persuade the Divine's agent, Sebastian attempted to persuade Elthina to go to safety at the Grand Cathedral in Orlais. Elthina refused however, not wishing to abandon Kirkwall during a crisis and so Sebastian resolved to remain as long as Elthina did.
When Anders destroyed the Chantry, killing Elthina and many others, Sebastian demanded Hawke kill Anders or else he would retake Starkhaven and seek vengeance on all of Kirkwall.
If Hawke kills Anders, Sebastian will follow Hawke whichever side Hawke chooses to ally with. If Hawke refuses to kill Anders, Sebastian will leave, vowing to go to Starkhaven and raise an army to hunt down and kill Anders.
If Hawke kills Anders and side with the mages, Sebastian will join, saying that all creatures have the right to redeem themselves in the Void while the others are free to walk with the Maker. He will then vow to stop the "tyranny" of the Templars. Alternatively, siding with the Templars shows that he is eager to end the threat of all "Maleficarum".
Sebastian is not mentioned in the epilogue by Varric Tethras, unlike other love interests.
Dragon Age: Inquisition
Trespasser
Dragon Age: Knight Errant
Sebastian at his birthday party in Starkhaven
Shortly after attending Varric Tethras' appointment as Viscount of Kirkwall, Ser Aaron Hawthorne and his squire Vaea receive an invitation to Sebastian's birthday party in Starkhaven. Varric reveals that he's the one who secured the invitations to help Vaea in her mission to free the two Inquisition agents imprisoned in Sebastian's keep. Though Sebastian has refused to stoop to torture, despite the insistence of his Seneschal, the agents are being questioned daily as to their motive, which they have so far kept secret. When Vaea successfully free them from their prison, Tessa Forsythia and Marius reveal that their mission was to steal a journal of study on red lyrium kept by Sebastian. Though Sebastian is one of their allies, and the Inquisition trusts him not to misuse this information, they are worried about the journal falling into the wrong hands.
During his birthday party, Sebastian is gifted a blue crystall skull by Professor Cedric Marquette of the University of Orlais. He is also the one who prevents a fight between the professor and Ser Aaron Hawthorne from breaking out. Despite his intervention, more conflicts arise. As Seneschal Granger leaves the party to investigate a disturbance, Sebastian asks Varric for help.
Sebastian later meets up with Ser Aaron, Vaea and Granger, while they are discussing the theft of the red lyrium's journal. Sebastian is quite taken by Vaea's heroism and exploits, and believes her story over Granger's. He regrets that the journal was stolen; Ser Aaron vows to follow whoever stole the journal. Sebastian gives them his eternal gratitude and says that they are welcome to return at any time.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
Quests
Dragon Age II
Act 1
Act 2
Act 3
Mark of the Assassin
Dragon Age: Inquisition
An Ally from Starkhaven (war table) (conditional)- Aiding Kirkwall (war table) (conditional)
- Annexing Kirkwall (war table) (conditional)
Friendship and rivalry
- See the approval page for more information.
Friendship with Sebastian can generally be earned by encouraging him to stay with the Chantry, by siding with the Chantry and the templars and by being helpful to those in need.
Rivalry with Sebastian can generally be earned by pushing him to retake Starkhaven, by siding against the Chantry and by making aggressive, disagreeable or otherwise "dishonorable" choices.
Romance
Even though Sebastian can be romanced, he will never actually sleep with Hawke due to his vow of chastity.
It is possible to win Sebastian's heart if:
- You are playing as a female Hawke.
- You are not in a romance with anyone else and have not slept with any of the other romanceable companions.
- You have 100% rivalry or 100% friendship and complete all Sebastian's quests.
- You execute Anders.
If you romance him as a rival, he will say that he will take back Starkhaven, saying that he will give Hawke no less than a Prince. If Hawke agrees with his encouragement to compete for the title of Viscount, he will claim that the marriage between the Viscountess of Kirkwall and the Prince of Starkhaven will be the strongest alliance the Free Marches has ever seen.
If you romance him as a friend, he will vow to stay in the Chantry as a brother of the faith, but he will ask Hawke to become a sister of the faith so they can have a chaste marriage in the eyes of the Maker.
Friendship and rivalry will noticeably affect his demeanor during The Last Straw. While he will follow Hawke no matter which side he chooses as long as his demand is met, the choice to befriend or rival him as well as the side chosen will affect how he views the situation.
As a Friend, his demeanor is much calmer. On the mage side, he will show sympathy for the mages, and say that the party must help those who have suffered at the Chantry's hands, that they must show the Chantry they cannot tolerate tyranny among its templars and they'll worry about the mages after. He is unsure if what they're doing is right, but he will not abandon Hawke in this. On the templar side, he will lament that the mages will not rest until they have destroyed the Chantry, and that there was never any peace to be had with them.
As a Rival, his tone is much more direct and aggressive. On the mage side, his statements regarding this are the same, but he does not indicate any doubt over the decision. Instead, he intends "victory, at any cost." On the templar side, he vows revenge on every single mage for the actions of one man.
Gifts
Starkhaven Longbow - found on a dead Flint Company mercenary at the Harimann Estate during the quest Repentance.
Statistics
Initial talents
Available talent trees Initially selected talents 
Archery
Pinning Shot
Sabotage
Miasmic Flask
Subterfuge
Specialist
Speed
Scoundrel
Royal Archer (specialization)
Initial equipment
Armor upgrades
- See also: Companion armor
Upgrades to Sebastian's armor, Vael Family Armor, can be found at the following locations:
Reinforced Bracers (Act 2) – available at Olaf's Armory in Hightown. +(0.5 * ATK(LVL)) attack.- Enhanced Articulation (Act 2) – available at Armor Shop in the Gallows Courtyard. Extra rune slot.
- Mail Undertunic (Act 2) – found in the Harimann Estate during the Repentance quest. +2% critical chance.
- Protection of the Faith (Act 3) – found on the Templar Lieutenant in Hightown during the Best Served Cold quest. Extra rune slot.
Restricted weapons
Starkhaven Longbow – see Gifts
Restricted accessories
The Light that Pierces – requires Rogue Item Pack
The Adherent's Belt – requires Rogue Item Pack II- Gift of the Epicurean – requires Mark of the Assassin
Quotes
Sebastian's concept art
- Main article: Sebastian Vael/Dialogue
- (To Grand Cleric Elthina) "It is my right, my duty, to show these assassins there's nowhere in the Free Marches to hide."
- (Said if he is in the party when accepting Justice from Anders) "Huzzah! He's seen the light!"
- "This is why the Chantry instituted the Circle in the first place. Mages need to be protected from themselves."
- "Elthina is risking her life by not deserting her flock. Could I do the same?"
- "Andraste said, 'The Maker is king in the heavens, but it is the kings of Thedas who must recreate his worldly glory.'"
- (To Anders questioning the origin of the darkspawn during Legacy) "The Chantry would not make such things up! The story is true, or as true as we can ever known."
Codex entries
Notes
- Letter: A Strangely Official-Looking Letter references a Corbinian Vael. As the letter is clearly meant to parody the Nigerian Prince scam, it's unclear whether Corbinian is a real person or was invented for the purpose of the scam.
Trivia
- Sebastian was written by Jennifer Hepler.[6]
- Sebastian "Seb" Hanlon, a part of the BioWare team, was at a time assigned to do most of the bug fixing and such for the character. The main reason for this was because of their similar name and it did not please him. The shared name also caused some confusion for Hanlon as every time someone mentioned the character, Hanlon thought they were directing their comments toward him.[7]
- If one is to calculate Sebastian's age from what info he reveals about himself, Sebastian says he was thirteen when his grandfather made a promise to give him the Starkhaven Longbow, and he was given to the Chantry some time after this. In Act 3, he states that he hasn't been to Starkhaven in fifteen years. That makes Sebastian's age at least twenty-eight by Act 3.
- If David Gaider could write another Dragon Age comic, it would be dedicated to Bethany and her adventures with Sebastian Vael in Starkhaven, and maybe Nathaniel Howe.[8]
- If interacted with after his final conversation in the Gallows during The Last Straw, Sebastian will say “though I walk through the mists on the edge of the void, I shall not fear, for you are with me.” This is in imitation of the Biblical verse Psalm 23:4 - "though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me" (KJV) - which is sometimes spoken as a profession of faith during trials.
- According to Devon, Sebastian Vael is very popular in Starkhaven.[9]
- Roast turkey is a popular dish in the Free Marches including Starkhaven, and it is often served at feasts and dinner parties of the rich and nobility, along with various sides. One such occasion was the birthday party of Prince Sebastian.[10][11]
- In an interview for The Gamer, David Gaider revealed that Sebastian was not necessarily intended to be heterosexual, and that this may have been an oversight in the development process. Specifically, Gaider said that he "doesn't know why" Sebastian was not presented as bisexual like all the other romanceable companions, but that, due to time constraints and Sebastian's late addition to the game, he "didn't have time to look over [Sebastian's] writing".[12]
- At one point, Nathaniel was considered as a companion for Dragon Age II. The DLC Exiled Prince was originally intended to focus around Nathaniel Howe instead of Sebastian Vael, but the concept was changed due to the possibility of Nathaniel's execution.[13]
Bugs
- A bug can occur where Sebastian's loyalty bonus will apply as a negative value to Hawke even though he is not in the party. The normal bonus is 5% damage resistance, therefore during the bug it applies as -5% damage resistance. This bug stacks upon each reload of the game with Sebastian in the party adding -5% each time.
- Infinite Friendship of +10 can be earned by talking to Elthina in the Chantry. This must be done before completing Following the Qun. Talking to her about "helping the community" will yield that. Infinite Rivalry can also be obtained the same way, but by choosing the "You're Useless" dialogue option when talking to the Grand Cleric in Act 2. (Does not appear to work on PC or PS3 as of at least patch 1.04)
- A bug can occur in Act 2 and Act 3 when after finishing Repentance or Faith quest Questioning Beliefs won't trigger even if character has required amount of Friendship or Rivalry points. This cannot be prevented and leaves player unable to complete romance with Sebastian.
Sebastian's armor may fail to show up on his equipment screen. His upgrades will also not show, and when the upgrades are found/purchased there will be no "level up" animation/sound indicating that the upgrade was equipped. It's as if Sebastian is simply not wearing armor. It's unknown what causes this, or if the equipped upgrades still give bonuses.
Gallery
.png "Sebastian Vael (HoDA).png (6.58 MB)")
References
- ↑
David Gaider. "The Exiled Prince, Sebastian Vael" . BioWare Social Network Forums. (offline). Retrieved on January 9, 2011.
- ↑ Sebastian (short story)
- ↑ The Exiled Prince
- ↑ Varric's Whereabouts
- ↑ According to the Inquisitor's dialogue in Dragon Age: The Veilguard
- ↑ David Gaider. "The Exiled Prince, Sebastian Vael" . BioWare Social Network Forums. (offline). Retrieved on January 9, 2011.
- ↑ Sebastian Hanlon. "The Exiled Prince, Sebastian Vael" . BioWare Social Network Forums. (offline). Retrieved on January 9, 2011.
- ↑
David Gaider. "On Speculative Flights of Fancy" . Tumblr.
- ↑ Dragon Age: The Official Cookbook: Tastes of Thedas, p. 89
- ↑ Dragon Age: The Official Cookbook: Tastes of Thedas, p. 97
- ↑ Dragon Age: Knight Errant
- ↑ Rhiannon Bevan (March 8, 2026). "David Gaider Reflects On 15 Years Of Dragon Age 2 - A Fan-Favorite Story That Was The Team's First Draft" The Gamer. Retrieved on March 9, 2026.
- ↑ David Gaider. "Answering Questions: Cut Content?" . Tumblr.
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