Iron Bull

Tal-Vashoth.

## Background

The Iron Bull was raised in the schools of Par Vollen by the tamassrans, though he was called Ashkaari, "one who thinks", at the time. He was big and strong for his age and liked to act as a secondary caregiver for his fellow children, reporting to the tamassrans when someone wasn't feeling well or was about to cause trouble. But Ashkaari sometimes got into trouble himself. On one occasion, after he'd eaten all the meat on his plate but left the vegetables untouched, his "Tama" told him that he wouldn't be allowed to go and play until he ate two more things off his plate. Without hesitation, he took two pieces of meat he had hidden in his pocket, placed them upon the plate, ate the two pieces while looking at Tama and ran off to play. This convinced her that Ashkaari would make a poor Qunari soldier, as they needed to be obedient to the spirit of an order as well as the letter. She recommended him for the Ben-Hassrath.

As he began his training, Ashkaari gained a new informal name to set him apart from his peers: Hissrad, "one who creates illusion" or "liar". His early work in Par Vollen involved uncovering smuggling operations, discontented groups considering fleeing the Qun and a Tevinter spy ring, which saw him recognized as a valuable asset. He was recommended for service on the Qunari-held island of Seheron. According to him, the island was "a sack of cats". Incursions from Tevinter, marauding Tal-Vashoth, and native rebels fighting on multiple fronts made life chaotic. The Ben-Hassrath considered two years of active service the maximum time most agents could perform in Seheron before prolonged stress rendered them unable to carry out their duties effectively but Hissrad lasted almost a decade before burning out, rising through the ranks as his superiors broke down or died.

On the eve of his last major battle in Seheron, Bull's unit suffered heavy losses when a friendly Seheron merchant was pressured into poisoning his men. When the same poison was used to kill a school full of children, Hissrad vowed to avenge them. He mounted an assault on a Tal-Vashoth stronghold in the jungle. He lost several more of his men in the fighting, including his longtime friend Vasaad, which sent him in a berserk state. When his surviving soldiers later came back for him with reinforcements, they found him unmoving, covered in wounds and surrounded by the butchered corpses of the Tal-Vashoth warriors. He declared himself unfit for duty and too dangerous to be around civilians, submitting himself to the Ben-Hassrath re-educators.

The Ben-Hassrath reassigned him to Orlais to work undercover, ostensibly as a Tal-Vashoth. He worked for the mercenary company Fisher's Bleeders for several years but Fisher was a mediocre commander and he eventually left, taking several of Fisher's men with him, to form his own mercenary company: the Bull's Chargers. Fisher, angered by this, entered into a brief fight with Bull, but the two ended up talking things over drinks and parted ways peacefully. Bull uses the Chargers to gather information on Orlesian nobles, feeding the intelligence to the Ben-Hassrath. Though he still reports to his old masters, time in Orlais led to something of an identity crisis for him.

He remains in command of the Bull's Chargers, though spends much of his time drinking, lazing about and overindulging - all clear violations of the Qun. Despite his unusually friendly demeanor and lax attitude to his philosophy, The Iron Bull still has a loyalty to the Qun which dies hard. He doesn't proselytize, but neither does he apologize for his way of life.

## Involvement

### *Dragon Age: Inquisition*

Just as The Iron Bull and his troops, the Bull's Chargers, emerge victorious from a skirmish with the Venatori, The Breach occurs. Spotting the disturbance, Bull sets off to investigate.

After the Herald returns from dealing with the Chantry in Val Royeaux, a member of Bull's mercenary group tells them that the Iron Bull is interested in being hired on to the Inquisition. Should the Inquisitor choose to meet up with the Chargers, they will find them on the Storm Coast in Ferelden. The Iron Bull admits to being a Ben-Hassrath, and explains that he will be relaying information about the Breach and the Inquisition to them. However, he will also relay information to the Inquisitor as well. If the Inquisitor is Qunari, Iron Bull will laugh and say that he now owes Krem money.

Should the Inquisitor decide to hire him on, he can be found outside of Haven by the stables, and later in Skyhold's main courtyard near Cassandra, before he eventually winds up in the ground floor of the tavern.

The Iron Bull's Ben-Hassrath reports come in the form of two war table quest chains which start with Choose Successor in Lydes and Investigate Hunter Fell.

Bull later informs the Inquisitor that the Ben-Hassrath recognize the threat Corypheus and his Venatori pose and are willing to offer an alliance. To that end, they set up a joint effort to attack a Venatori red lyrium smuggling operation on the Storm Coast. Upon arrival, the party meets with Bull's contact, Gatt, a former elven slave whom Bull recruited on Seheron, who details the plan for a Qunari dreadnought to ambush the smuggling vessel before it reaches open waters. In the meantime, the Inquisitor, Bull and the Chargers would separately take two hills where the Venatori are stationed so their mages can't sink the dreadnought. Bull assigns the Chargers what he believes to be "the easy job", but a large Venatori force begins advancing on their position. Gatt insists that the Chargers hold the hill, as the dreadnought would be destroyed otherwise. Bull looks to the Inquisitor to decide whether or not to sacrifice the Chargers. If told to signal the Chargers to retreat, the dreadnought is destroyed, the alliance scrapped, and Bull is cast out and becomes Tal-Vashoth.

The Ben-Hassrath send two agents to Skyhold to assassinate the Iron Bull. As he had noticed subtle signs of their arrival, Bull is easily able to counter their attack. He tells the Inquisitor that sending only two guys after him is a formality and that there's no need to retaliate.

#### *Trespasser*

The Iron Bull returns to attend the Exalted Council, two years after Corypheus is defeated.

The Iron Bull is enjoying drinks with his company at the tavern. The Chargers want to surprise him with a dragon skull as a birthday present. The Inquisitor can help them in this by occupying Bull with dialogue (requires the four 'Knowledge' Inquisition perks), or give up the charade to which Bull reveals he heard them dragging the skull all along.

If brought to the final confrontation at The Darvaarad, Viddasala will plead with 'Hissrad' to rejoin them and orders him to kill the Inquisitor. However, Bull refuses and remains loyal to the Inquisition.

After the Dragon's Breath conspiracy is dismantled, Bull and the Chargers return to taking jobs across Orlais and Ferelden, doing their part to maintain the order for which the Inquisition fought so hard. If he was romanced, he keeps the dragon's tooth charm so that no matter how far his missions take him, he and his Kadan will remain inseparable. If he was in a relationship with Dorian, Bull and Dorian continue meeting in a border-town villa. When Dorian is kidnapped by leftover Venatori, Bull leads the Chargers across the Tevinter border in a dangerous rescue operation, leaving a trail of freed slaves and dead Venatori that enabled Dorian to escape.

## Approval

*Main article: Iron Bull/Approval*
Iron Bull's approval can most easily be gained by taking him along on battles. Fighting groups of Venatori enemies will grant slight approval, so keeping him in your party in areas heavy with Venatori will earn you a fair amount of approval quickly. After killing a High dragon, a cutscene will occur after you return to Skyhold where the Inquisitor can have a few drinks with Iron Bull in celebration—approval can be gained there by agreeing with him about dragons and drinking when he prompts you to. Furthermore, killing High Dragons with him in the active party gains great approval.

Iron Bull generally approves of the Inquisition's actions, approval gains from specific events and quests are usually low to moderate; however, there are several instances that will yield  Iron Bull Greatly Approves:

## Trivia

* In official promotional material, Iron Bull is described as "The Muscle".
* When comparing Iron Bull to food, Patrick Weekes describes him as "either rump roast for size or chili dog for delicious bad decisions."
* According to the character's voice actor, Freddie Prinze Jr., Iron Bull does have a fear of demons, due to their ability to possess people, including Qunari.
* Prinze described Bull's voice as a cross between Disney villain Pete and Winston Churchill.
* Iron Bull is described as humorous, dismissive, and a naturally charismatic leader, but he’s struggling with being a fish out of water.
* Bull's greatest fear is madness.
* During the scene when the player and Bull have sex before giving him the Dragon's tooth as a gift, Bull can be seen with two patterns on his shoulders. It is not currently known if these are tattoos or some kind of Qunari body paint. How he got them also remains a mystery.
* Iron Bull lost his eye saving Krem from a flail blow meant for him when the two first met. He also has a brace on his left ankle and is missing several finger joints on his left hand.
* Iron Bull's name under the Qun, Hissrad, literally means "liar" or "weaver of illusions".
* He is pansexual.
* If the Inquisitor doesn't romance Iron Bull or Dorian, the two will have party banter indicating a sexual relationship. If your friendship is high enough with either of them, you can ask them about their relationship before defeating Corypheus. If they are together, Dorian will say at the celebration party that his delayed return to Tevinter might be because of Bull.

* Their relationship is still ongoing by the time of the Exalted Council and continues beyond that despite Dorian's return to Tevinter.