If you’ve spent any time in the Rook’s dive bar or wandered the neon-soaked streets of Minrathous, you’ve likely felt the gravitational pull of the Mage-Killer. Lucanis Dellamorte isn't just another rogue with a sharp accent and sharper daggers. He is a mess. Honestly, that’s why people love him. In Dragon Age: The Veilguard, BioWare took a massive gamble on a character who literally shares his headspace with a literal demon of the Fade, and it paid off in ways that make the old Alistair vs. Anders debates look like child's play.
Lucanis is the First Talon of the Antivan Crow—or he was, before things went sideways. He’s supposed to be dead. The world thinks he is. But instead, he’s back, haunted by Spite, and obsessed with coffee.
The Dual Nature of Lucanis Dellamorte
Most companions in RPGs have a secret. Lucanis has a roommate. Spite isn't just a plot device; it’s a mechanical and narrative weight that alters how you interact with him throughout the entire game. When you first recruit him during the "Sea of Blood" quest, you aren't just getting a master assassin. You're getting a man who hasn't slept properly in years because a manifestation of the Fade is screaming inside his skull.
It's exhausting. You can see it in his animations. The way he winces. The way his voice shifts.
Spite represents everything Lucanis tries to suppress—his hunger, his rage, his desire. It makes his romance arc uniquely frustrating and rewarding. Unlike characters who are "all in" from the jump, Lucanis is constantly fighting himself. He’s scared that if he lets Rook in, Spite will take that affection and twist it into something ugly. It’s a classic BioWare trope—the "dangerous lover"—but it feels grounded because the stakes are internal. He isn't worried about a dark god or a brewing war in those quiet moments; he's worried about losing his mind.
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Coffee, Antiva, and the Crow Legacy
Why is he obsessed with coffee? It’s not just a quirk. It’s a tether. For Lucanis, the bitterness and the ritual of brewing are ways to remain grounded in the physical world. It’s one of the few things Spite doesn't understand.
The Antivan Crows are a fascinating backdrop for his character. We’ve seen them since Origins with Zevran, but Lucanis shows us the crushing weight of the hierarchy. Being a "Dellamorte" isn't a privilege. It’s a death sentence. His grandmother, Viago, and the rest of the Talons expect him to be a tool. A weapon. When you talk to him in the Lighthouse, those conversations often circle back to duty versus identity. Is he a Crow who happens to be Lucanis, or is he Lucanis who was forced to be a Crow?
Most players miss the nuance of his dialogue regarding his "death." He spent time in a Tevinter ossuary. That kind of trauma doesn't just go away because a hero shows up to save the world. It’s baked into his combat style—frenetic, teleporting, and desperate.
Mastering Lucanis in Combat: Beyond the Daggers
If you're bringing Lucanis along just because he's pretty, you're doing it wrong. He is a powerhouse for detonating Sundered status effects.
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- Abilities to Watch: Eviscerate is his bread and butter, dealing massive damage to single targets. But "Adrenaline Rush" is where the synergy happens.
- The Spite Meter: Watch his UI elements during combat. When Spite takes over, his damage output skyrockets, but he becomes a glass cannon.
- Synergy: He pairs exceptionally well with a Warrior Rook who can stagger enemies reliably.
The game labels him a rogue, but he functions more like a magical assassin. His "Abyssal Strike" can clear crowds, which is rare for a Crow. Most players struggle with his survivability on higher difficulties like Nightmare. The trick? Don't treat him like a tank. He needs to be in and out. If he stays in the thick of a fight for more than five seconds, he's going to go down. He relies on mobility, not armor.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Lucanis Romance
There is a common complaint online that Lucanis is "too cold" or "takes too long to open up." That’s the point.
If you try to rush the romance, you'll hit a wall. BioWare gated his progression behind specific main story beats—specifically those involving the Venetian and the broader Crow plotline. You can’t just spam "flirt" and expect a payoff. You have to earn his trust by acknowledging Spite.
One of the most poignant moments in the game is when you stop treating Spite as a monster and start treating it as a part of him. If you tell Lucanis to "just ignore it," you’re failing the relationship check. You have to acknowledge the duality. It’s messy. It’s not a clean, "happily ever after" type of vibe. It’s a "we’re both broken and trying to kill a god" vibe.
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The Impact of the "First Talon" Decisions
Late in the game, you're faced with choices regarding the future of the Crows and Lucanis’s place in it. No spoilers here, but your influence on his confidence directly impacts his ending slides. If you push him too hard toward being a leader, he loses part of himself. If you let him walk away, the Crows suffer. It’s a genuine "needs of the many" versus "happiness of the individual" dilemma that actually feels like it has weight.
Practical Steps for Your Next Playthrough
To get the most out of Lucanis, you need to be proactive. He isn't a passive companion.
- Prioritize the "Coffee" Side Quests: They seem like filler. They aren't. They unlock critical dialogue trees that explain his relationship with his family.
- Equip Fire Damage: Many of his late-game daggers scale with fire and necrotic damage. Focus your gear drops on boosting those specific elements.
- Listen to the Party Banter: If you pair him with Neve, you get a deep dive into Tevinter/Antivan politics. If you pair him with Taash, you get some of the funniest, most awkward conversations in the series as Taash tries to understand his "ghost."
- Visit the Ossuary: When the plot takes you back to his roots, pay attention to the environmental storytelling. The notes scattered around explain exactly how he was tortured and why Spite is so protective of him.
Lucanis Dellamorte is a triumph of character writing in The Veilguard. He isn't just "the hot assassin." He’s a study in trauma, compartmentalization, and the terrifying reality of living with a demon. Whether you’re romancing him or just trying to keep him alive in a fight against a stray Pride Demon, he demands your full attention.
Stop trying to fix him. Just play the game and let him be the disaster he was meant to be. You'll find the story is much richer when you stop looking for a "perfect" hero and start embracing the shadow-damaged man he actually is. Focus on building his "Soothing" and "Mage-Slayer" skill branches first to maximize his utility against the game's toughest bosses. Check your equipment regularly for items that reduce his ability cooldowns; a Lucanis who isn't casting is just a guy with a knife, and in Thedas, that's never enough.