Where To Find All The Characters In Dragon Age 2: Gaining and Losing Party Members in DA2

Players can come across a wide variety of different allies and party members in Bioware's hit roleplaying game, Dragon Age 2. Just like in the original game, it is possible to miss out on some party members completely if you don't play your cards right. Even if you manage to play your cards right and get a new party member, there can be certain events in the game that can cause you to lose access to them.

Luckily, the DA2's Friend/Rival system makes it harder to have party members lost to you completely. For anyone wondering how to get all the Dragon Age 2 Party members the easy way should read on. We'll make sure that there are no hiccups in getting difficult to find Dragon Age party members like Sebastian in your party for good.

Before the game even really begins, it is possible to miss out on a party member.  Hawke, your main character, has two siblings: Bethany and Carver.  During the opening sequence, one of them is going to die. Which one survives and continues to fight alongside your main character, however, depends on what class you choose to play as.  If you begin the game as a Mage, your sister Bethany will perish. Players who choose a fighter or rogue as their protaganist, however, will lose Carver and gain Bethany.

Unfortunately, this isn't the only time in the game you could lose your sister.  If you bring Bethany to the Deep Roads at the end of the First Act, she could become infected with darkspawn taint and die.  The only way to save her is if Anders is in your party.  He will bring her to the Grey Wardens and initiate her as a member to save her life.

If you choose to leave her at home while you head into the ancient dwarf ruins, she will instead be forced to join the Circle of Magi.  Regardless of whether she joins the Grey Wardens or The Circle, she will be unavailable as a party member until the third act begins.

The same rules that governs Bethany's survival applies to Carver: you can only have him as a playable companion if you begin the game as a mage. Unlike Bethany, Carver is not a huge fan of the Circle or the Mage's within.

Similar to your sister, you can also lose Carver if you bring him to the Deep Roads and don't have Anders in your party. Otherwise, he will join the Templars and be unavailable for the remainder of the game until the final battle begins.

If Carver joins the Grey Wardens, he will periodically involve himself in your storyline.

Good news! Aveline is easy to get and hard to lose. You'll encounter her in an unavoidable sequence early in the game and she will be at your side throughout. Although the two of you can form a fierce rivalry as you progress through your adventures, she will almost never end.

The only exception is at the very end of the game where she might object to you asking her to turn against her cohorts in the city guard. A high friendship is enough to keep her on your team, though.

Varric is a dwarven rogue who will join your party early on after Hawke reaches Kirkwall. As the narrator of the story, there's literally nothing you can do to make him leave - no sin too foul, no comment too cruel. He's here to stay. Which is good news, because he's a pretty great character and it is important to have a bro by your side when you're fighting demons.

Enjoy that luxurious chest hair.

Fenris is one of the first characters it is possible to miss in Dragon Age. To recruit him to your group of playable companions, you'll have to complete the quest "Bait and Switch" in Act 1. If you're unsure of where to go, check out Danarius' mansion.

An elf who has suffered much at the hands of mages, Fenris is not a fan of magic. Although he will join with a Hawke who is a mage, he will be difficult to befriend if you have too many mage friendly opinions. Be sure to leave him behind if you want to be pals (or more than pals) if you plan on being nice to magic users.

It is possible to have Fenris leave your party several times during Dragon Age II. In Act 2, he will leave if you do not agree to help him get his revenge when he asks. If you want to keep Fenris with you, complete the quest "A Bitter Pill" as soon as you can once it is added to your journal. If he leaves because you dawdled or refused to help, he will not rejoin your party.

In Act III, Fenris will usually leave the party if you side with the mages over the templar. An extremely high friendship value will convince him to stay. If he does leave, though, you can still get him back. A friendship of 50% or higher is all it takes to convince him to return. A rivalry pumped all the way up to 100% will also bring Fenris back into the fold.

A dalish elf mage, Merrill will join your party when you visit the dalish outside of town. She will move into the alienage and become a fast friend to your party. Unfortunately for you, the sweet natured elf girl has a bit of a predilection toward blood magic. If you're not a fan of deals with demons or using forbidden spells, you'll probably find it hard to get along with Merrill.

It is actually fairly difficult to permanently lose Merrill as a party member. There will be a few periods during the story where you will lose control of her, but completing the related quests will always bring her back into your party.

The only time you can permanently lose Merrill is if you side with the Templars against the mages. She can be convinced but it requires an extremely high friendship rating. A high friendship with Anders also helps. If she leaves your party and you can't convince her to rejoin, Merrill will die in battle and be forever lost as a companion.

A Grey Warden mage, Dragon Age II's storyline will not proceed until you recruit him into your party. Once your party is gearing up to go to the Deep Roads, Varric will tell you to meet with Anders for help. He will join you to help free his close friend from The Circle.

Up until the climax of the game, there is no way to lose Anders as a party member. It is possible for him to die during a story sequence, but the game will make it exceedingly clear that your choice will either allow Anders to survive or cause him to leave your party for good.

A brigand a thief, Isabela is a pirate through and through. She won't join your part until after Anders has already joined. She can be found in the Hanged Man tavern, drinking and fighting. Agree to help her and she'll join your party.

Keeping Isabela, though, is another story all together. At the end of Act 2, she will steal something important. If you don't have a high friendship (or an even higher rivalry), she'll be gone for good. If she does return, you can either offer to have her pay for her crimes or defend her. Defending her means she'll rejoin your group, otherwise, she's gone.

The good news is she doesn't have any major opinions about the drama that occurs at the end of Act 3, so she'll be sticking around no matter what you choose.

Sebastian, Dragon Age II's DLC character, can be a bit tricky to find if you aren't the type who has to do every quest before he moves on with the main story. To bring him into your group, you'll have to speak with him in the Chantry in Act 1 and complete the quest he gives you before the act ends. He will not join your party at this time, however.

Once Act 2 starts, you'll be able to return to the Chantry and find him praying. Speak with him and he will join your group. He will remain with your group throughout the rest of the Act, although he is unappreciative of heretical behavior.

In Act 3, he will leave your party if you don't force Anders to pay for his crimes. No amount of friendship, rivalry, or romance will keep him with you if Anders is not punished. However, if you do punish Anders, he will be happy to stay with you no matter what side you choose.