Dragon Age 4 will put players in the shoes of a new protagonist in the Tevinter Imperium. Like all Dragon Age player characters, this new protagonist will not be alone.
The upcoming game will see the player backed up by a band of companion characters. Some of these are likely to be returning companions from previous games, while many will be completely new to the series. BioWare should include some major changes in its companions in Dragon Age 4.
Different Factions, Different Goals
Dragon Age 4's companions may be united in their desire to stop the Dread Wolf bringing down the Veil, but that doesn't mean they can't have totally different visions for a post-Dread Wolf world. The companion roster of Dragon Age: Origins contained a Witch of the Wild, a Templar-turned Grey Warden, an Antivan Crow, and a member of the Qunari army among others. While they all had their reasons to stop the Fifth Blight from overrunning Thedas, the fact that the Blight risked wiping out all life on the continent allowed for alliances between characters who otherwise would never have teamed up.
In contrast, the companions of Dragon Age 2 and Dragon Age: Inquisition had a great range of personalities but little diversity when it came to actual allegiances. The companions in Dragon Age 2 all tended to be outcasts without allegiances to formal organizations, while the companions in Inquisition were joined by their allegiance to the Inquisition itself. While Sten in Dragon Age: Origins is determined to stop the Fifth Blight, there's no doubt that his ultimate allegiance is to the Qunari. Similarly, Morrigan is sent by Flemeth to help stop the Blight, but both character clearly have ulterior motives.
As Varric puts it in the teaser trailer, Dragon Age 4's villain Solas wants to "break the world" by bringing down the Veil between Thedas and the Fade. While the precise consequences of this have yet to be made clear, Solas intends to use the magic of the Fade to restore the long lost empire of the Elves. It is possible that in doing so the other races of Thedas will be destroyed, which is a price he is willing to pay if necessary.
The threat of extinction could unite people from a wide array of factions that would otherwise be totally opposed. A mage could find themself in an uneasy alliance with a female Qunari who, in different times, would have been responsible for turning any mage she encountered into a mindless worker using the Qamek poison.
An elf born into slavery in Tevinter and a Magister who presided over the Imperium's government would suddenly have common cause, at least while the Dread Wolf remained a threat. Dragon Age 4's main threat is a chance for BioWare put together a team of companions who aren't just rag-tag outcasts, but represent a wide array of allegiances in the world of Dragon Age. This could even lead to some serious inter-party conflicts that need to be resolved.
An Executor
The Executors are a group that began to make their presence known throughout Dragon Age: Inquisition. The Executors claim to represent powers across the sea, but their exact motivations are unknown. Their identity has been a total mystery so far - some have even speculated that they may be a totally new race in the Dragon Age universe.
In Dragon Age: Tevinter Nights, an Executor is present at a meeting of Thedas' greatest spies. They are described as hooded, while it's strangely difficult to identify their gender or age by their voice. In Inquisition player decisions can lead to several Inquisition outposts on the border with Nevarra being found abandoned. This will then lead to the Inquisitor receiving a letter form the Executors telling them that their agents left to join a higher cause.
Inquisition heavily implies that the identity of the Executors will finally be revealed in Dragon Age 4. It seems likely that the Executors would also want to avoid Solas' plan coming to fruition, opening the door for a companion who is part of the faction. They could be a member of a new race if the Executors turn out to be a distinct people, or they could be someone who joined the Executors, like the missing Inquisition agents. In any case, an Executor companion would help add a familiar face to a faction that has had extremely ambiguous goals in the games so far.
Varric even suggests that the Executors could be behind the murder of Queen Madrigal at the end of the Exalted Age. An Executor companion could be one of the most interesting additions to Dragon Age 4, with players getting to know both the character and the strange history of the organization they belong to at the same time.
Dwarven Romance
Not a single Dragon Age game so far has included a companion character who has been both a Dwarf and a romance option. This limits the roleplaying opportunities of players who want to play Dwarves themselves, as well as more broadly. While Varric Tethras has been a fan-favorite companion in past games he has not been able to be romanced so far. The next game could finally give Varric a chance to find love, with his voice-over for the Dragon Age 4 teaser trailer heavily implying his return as a companion character.
It also seems likely that players will have another Dwarf companion in the next game. Dragon Age: Inquisition's The Descent DLC saw a Dwarf named Shaper Valta struck by a vein of pure Lyrium. This then allowed her to cast something that the Inquisitor identified as a spell. Dwarves in Dragon Age are usually unable to become mages due to their resistance to Lyrium.
This makes it seem likely that Dwarf mages will be included in Dragon Age 4. This also makes a Dwarf mage companion - whether it's Shaper Valta or not - seem likely. A new Dwarf companion would be a great opportunity for romance, especially if the writers wanted to keep Varric off-limits. Aside from Varric, however, the companions of Dragon Age 4 remain a mystery for now.
Dragon Age 4 is in development.