Rodric

*The Rodric method... Random, but effective.*[src]
Arthur on Rodric's course of actions

**Rodric** is the son of a blacksmith who was tortured by the Inquisition. Strong as an ox, he has a penchant for breaking down doors and can tackle enemies from behind to eliminate them.

## History

### Background and Early Life

Rodric was born to a French blacksmith, who taught him the art of smithing and the two were close. His father was approached to build a special door by an order of monk-like people who "didn't talk much", to protect forbidden literature and although his father designed it the two of them built it together.

### The Way of Roses

*Vitalis has brought back a young lad to open the last door...*[src]
An Inquisitor

In November 1348, when the Inquisition rolled into town and evacuated it under the guise of protecting its people from the Bite (which they had intentionally released into the city to facilitate their operation) they took over the University and captured Rodric's father to make him open the special door that he and Rodric had built. When his father refused, they tortured him but he died rather than comply, so the order had Rodric captured instead. He was first taken to the Bastion but was brought to the University on Vitalis' orders.

Amicia de Rune spotted Rodric in his predicament when she had infiltrated the University to steal the Sanguinis Itinera: the exact same book the Inquisition was trying to access via Rodric. Like his father, Rodric refused to help Vitalis open the door, and so he was sent to be tortured as well. Amicia freed the boy, killing the heavy knight guarding him by dropping a chandelier on his head, and his strength immediately became apparent as he took down the other soldier on his own with ease. This ability proved to be useful as the two progressed. He also showed her how to make extinguis (a substance that can put out fires), having overheard its recipe at the Bastion. He opened the door for her and they made their way into the hidden library, where he helped Amicia by raising/lowering platforms so she could reach the book. They narrowly escaped Vitalis' arrival, and as they fled they discovered the building was ablaze thanks to Amicia's rescue effort. When their way was blocked, much to Amicia's surprise, without hesitation he rammed through a burning door, nearly being scorched in the process and they escaped into the night. Returning to the Château d'Ombrage hideout, he was easily accepted into the group, getting along well with Amicia's young brother Hugo.

### Penance

Sometime later in December, Rodric has moved into a small forge situated in the castle, but his work has put him in a foul mood so he takes a break from his work to explore the castle with Amicia. He helps open a stuck door by shouldering it, whimsically remarking how when he enters a long-forgotten place, it feels like he is interrupting a conversation between the stones. When Amicia and Lucas return with the elixir to help Hugo with the Prima Macula in his blood, he congratulates the young alchemist with a clap on the back that nearly knocks the smaller boy over.

Days after Hugo runs away, Rodric beats Arthur at using a sling, leading to an argument. Mélie and Lucas comment on the friendly argument between the two.

### Remembrance

*Even if it kills us, what have we got to lose?*[src]
Rodric, ready to take on the Inquisition

In January 1349, as Amicia and Arthur set up the defenses, Rodric can be heard loudly arguing with the mechanisms, beating them until they function correctly, which fixes the problem of the rolling braziers moving on their own. However, the castle defenses are swiftly overrun by the biggest horde of plague rats yet, so many that they overflow the pitfalls. Rodric takes cover inside the keep with Mélie and Lucas while Amicia and Arthur deal with the arrival of Nicholas and Hugo, who is in control of the rats. When Melie fails to open the same door from before, Rodric shoulders it down once again so the group can get through and go down a damaged passage. By the time he reaches the courtyard again, the Inquisitor is defeated, but Arthur is killed. Mourning his friend, he joins the others in their mission to wipe out the Inquisition with Hugo's power.

### Death

Arriving at the town, Rodric is full of confidence in their victory thanks to his faith in Hugo and his rats. He demonstrates his true strength in lifting a heavy portcullis on his own. While moving through a burning building, Rodric assists the group by smashing through doors. He supports Hugo, telling the struggling boy that he’s stronger than Rodric.

Before reaching a courtyard, the group has the option to enter a side alley. Rodric will protest going down this path, stating that he’s been here before and that entering this area is a bad idea. Further down the alley Rodric will dash in front of Amicia and Hugo, reaching a leveled building— the remnants of his father’s forge. Rodric will fall to his knees, unable to cope with the ruin, but will be convinced by Amicia and Hugo that he has a future worth moving towards.

As the group nears the cathedral, the Inquisition's headquarters, they realize they have to cross a wide-open courtyard defended by archers who are out of Amicia's sling range. Seeing no other way, Amicia points to a nearby carriage to push together to use as cover for Hugo. Without hesitation, Rodric pushes Amicia aside to push it himself instead, so Amicia could survive and protect Hugo. However, this strategy leaves Rodric defenseless and he takes two arrows to his neck and back. Despite the pain, he soldiers on the rest of the way and even lifts another portcullis to let the others pass. His remaining strength finally exhausted, he collapses and succumbed to his injuries, apologizing to Hugo that he could not have done more.

His friends are devastated by his death, but thanks to his valiant sacrifice, the group reaches the cathedral, defeats the rest of the Inquisition, and ends the threat of the Inquisition and the plague.

## Physical Appearance

Rodric is the biggest, and possibly the oldest of the younger characters appearing to be in his late teens or older. He is heavyset with messy brown hair and burly arms. He dons a thick leather apron over a dirty white shirt rolled at the sleeves, trousers, a belt, tall leather boots, and a heavy-duty work glove over his left hand. A hammer, a soiled red handkerchief, and varied small tools hang from his belt.

His face bears several scars, likely from the work he undertook with his father, and the scar on his hairline likely came from barging through a burning doorway of the University.

## Personality

*THIS, at least, I know how to do!*[src]
Rodric shoulders open a door

Rodric is physically and mentally tough, ignoring searing heat and even agonizing injuries from arrow fire, but he also has a gentle side. He is jolly and gets along well with others. He seems to particularly like young children, quickly making friends with the young Hugo. He also displays reckless courage, charging through a burning building and opening himself up to archer fire to protect his friends. His final sacrifice showed his nobility and love for his friends.

Rodric especially likes to use his brawn to take the shortest route to a solution, shouldering open doors rather than lock-picking them. He has a bit of a temper as well, loudly arguing with finicky machinery and bashing it to get it to work the way he wants. He shows no mercy against the Inquisition, often stating that he’s happy to be hurting them while performing a silent takedown against members of the Inquisition. Despite his temper, Rodric is smart enough to recognize a fight he cannot win, and as such had to pull Amicia back from their first face-to-face encounter with Vitalis. He can also be rather sentimental, stating that his father used to yell at and smash unwilling machinery and that he may as well continue the practice.

## Abilities and Skills

Amicia: *Wow, err... do you do that a lot?*
Rodric: *No, but I'm starting to like it.*[src]
Amicia watches Rodric take down a soldier

* **Silent Take-down**: Accustomed to hard labor as a blacksmith, Rodric is strong and heavily built. He is also a relatively large young man, allowing him to physically overpower enemies by grabbing them from behind, slamming them onto their back and then smashing them in the face with his fist, snapping their necks with a headlock, or kicking them in the head. This makes him the only younger character besides Arthur and Amicia who engages in combat. He is also able to perform takedowns on enemies with helmets. However, as he wields no weapons of his own, Rodric knows better than to attack a prepared or well-equipped enemy and will break off his attack if the enemy is alerted beforehand.

* **Rapid Entry**: Thanks to his size and sturdy build, Rodric is able to break down doors by throwing his weight against them. He jokes about this action being "almost painless".

* **Durability**: Rodric is mentally tough, able to take several arrow hits and keep going, enduring wounds that immediately kill grown adults while still performing strenuous physical labor like lifting a portcullis or pushing a cart—although even he would succumb to these injuries eventually. He also was able to keep going despite having almost set himself on fire breaking down a burning door.

* **Mechanic**: Upon arriving at the old castle, Rodric worked on the aging, malfunctioning machinery and was able to fix it: where the braziers in the courtyard would roll uncontrollably, now they would rotate to where they were needed.

## Relationships

### Amicia de Rune

*You know a lot of stuff, Amicia.*[src]
Rodric

Rodric was very trusting and grateful towards Amicia, especially since the latter rescued him from torture and saved his life during their first introduction. Although he had been tasked to never open the door and had only just met her, he knew she was much more worthy to trust with the book's care than the Inquisition, even if only to keep it out of enemy hands. Rodric came to enjoy her company, spending time with her by exploring the old castle. When the situation called for it, he placed himself in danger with no hesitation to protect her and see her through to her goal as he understood Hugo's best chances for survival with his sister there to protect him.

Rodric’s final act was to return the favor Amicia gave him, sacrificing himself to save Amicia and Hugo from the Inquisition.

### Arthur

Arthur: *Ugh, you don't play by the rules!*
Rodric: *You're going to tell ME about rules?*[src]
Arthur and Rodric banter

Arthur and Rodric frequently competed with each other and got into arguments, but seemed to be friendly with each other regardless. Like the others, Rodric was devastated by Arthur's death, and agreed to destroy the order who had killed his friend with little hesitation.

### Hugo de Rune

*Hugo, you beat the Captain of the Inquisition! You're a tough guy, tougher than I am!*[src]
Rodric encourages Hugo

From the moment the two met, they got along well with Rodric treating Hugo almost like a little brother. He would give encouragement to the little boy when he was afraid, calling him tough, and showed faith in the boy's power even against an army. In the end, he gave his life to protect the little boy, and his last words were to Hugo, apologizing that he could not have done more for him.

### Lucas

Being a simple smith, Rodric showed respect for Lucas' erudite and talent with alchemy, calling him a "good'un".

### Vitalis Bénévent

*We were asked to build that door precisely to keep out scum like you...*[src]
Rodric

Even before they met, Rodric hated the Inquisitor with a passion, for it was by his orders that Rodric's father was tortured to death. He called Vitalis "scum" and even under threat of torture defied the Grand Inquisitor. It was this hatred that made him side with Amicia, and eventually brought him and the others to finally put an end to Vitalis' mad tyranny.

### Mélie

Rodric seemed to keep his distance from Mélie for one reason or another, likely due to her hot temper. When Arthur died and Mélie was left in a broken-hearted rage, Hugo asked him if she was angry with him. Rodric reassured the boy, saying she was "just angry full stop".

## Trivia

* The name **Rodric** comes from the Germanic root words *hrod* meaning "fame/glory" and *ric* meaning "power/ruler", thus meaning "famous ruler". This makes it a name associated with strength in literature like Sir Walter Scott's eighteenth-century poem *The Vision of Don Roderick* which refers to the eighth century Visigoth King Roderick. This makes it a fitting name, as strength is Rodric's main trait.