Anders
Race: Human
Class: Mage
Specialization: Vengeance
Role: Healer
Personality: Hopeful, Charitable, Melodramatic
Anders has been dodging Templars since he was knee high to a dragonling. As a result, he’s staunchly sympathetic to any mage-related cause, and will prove to be a valuable ally should you side with magic users throughout the Dragon Age 2 campaign. Fans of the franchise may recognize the mage from Dragon Age: Origins – Awakenings.
Unless you plan to side with the Templars at every turn, Anders is arguably the easiest companion to fully romance. Not only does he react to more storyline conversations than any other companion, he also gives you plenty of opportunities to flirt, and doesn’t seem to mind if you flirt with other characters early on.
Act 1
- Ander’s companionship is initially mandatory, and he’ll join you during the “Tranquility” main plot quest. You’ll meet him in his clinic in Darktown, which serves as his home base throughout the game. Make sure to side with Anders during this quest no matter what. You can get a flirt in early on by selecting the “I like men with dark pasts” option during the conversation at the end of the quest.
- You can get a nice friendship boost (+10) if you chastise Merrill at the magical barrier during the Sundermount quest. Since Merrill isn’t officially in your party yet, you won’t offend her (at least on paper).
- During the “Talk to Anders” quest in Darktown you’ll have another chance to flirt with the Grey Warden.
- Make sure not to hand over the Saarebas during the “Shepherding Wolves” quest, or you’ll lose friendship points from Anders.
Act 2
- To kick things off, talk to Anders at his clinic in Darktown. This will be an opportunity to unleash a chain of cringe-worthy flirts that pay off big time in terms of friendship score. You can get 30 points right here by selecting the following – “You need a safer place,” “I’ll keep you safe,” “Stay in control,” and “I can’t let you go.”? 4-flirt combo ftw: there’s no such thing as overkill when it comes to love in DA2.
Above: Wow Anders. You really can’t tell when someone’s using you for cheevos, can you ?
- In order to unlock Anders’s main Act 2 companion quest, you’ll need to complete the “Blackpowder Courtesy” quest. Once you have, speak to Anders in his clinic to get things going. The quest you want is called “Dissent.”
- The “Dissent” quest is chance to gain an enormous amount of friendship points with Anders. For the maximum amount, select “Anders, calm down” when speaking to him in his clinic after you come out of the Gallows Dungeon. There’s also yet another chance to flirt during this conversation.
Gift – Tevinter Chantry Amulet (Act 2)
- You can find this in a chest inside the central room of the Abandoned Slaver Den during “A Bitter Pill” (Fenris’s Act 2 companion quest).
- If you’ve reached 50% friendship and completed the “Dissent Quest,” you can take on the “Questioning Beliefs” quest in Anders’s clinic. Flirt away to your heart’s content. After that, Anders will visit you at your estate at night. Make sure to ask him to move in with you during this scene.
Act 3
- By now you should have all but cemented your romance with Anders. If you’ve been following along, your friendship score should be at 100% and you should have already given him his only gift (there is no second gift here in Act 3). The next step to complete his final companion quest, “Justice.” This quest will be unlocked soon after you talk to Anders at the start of Act 3.
- All that remains is to complete the “Questioning Beliefs” quest by speaking to Anders. Now just maintain your 100% friendship score until the final quest, “The Last Straw.”
- Anders plays an important role in the game’s final moments as you’ll discover. Make sure to support him and the mages throughout. When you are finally in the Gallows Prison, talk to Anders to complete the romance.
