Is Zevran worth it?

I have a small dilemma on my hands.
So I made a city elf and at first I really wanted her to romance Zevran.Until she came to Ostagar and there was our favorite subject and some comments about him in a dress and dancing and I had a serious case of relapse...
Does anyone have first hand expierience with the naughty elf and how fleshed out is his romance in comparison with Alistair? (we all know that he's got pretty big shoes to fill, don't we?)

No first hand experience (damnit Alistair..) but from what I've heard, he is worth the chase.
He talks about the fact that he's never really experienced proper affection and love before, and you see a much deeper, personal side to him, rather than the "lol I'm a flirt who might kill you" persona he's got going on. Which, you know, is actually kind of awesome, but by the time he'd joined my party I was too far gone with Alistair..

I think the only way would to be a MPC! lol otherwise keep getting side tracked by Alistair

That he joins the party that late in the game is rather a hindrance. By that time most of my PC's are a goey puddle at Alistairs feet.
Hm, perhaps I could try then to leave him at camp to minimise the temptation...
Decisions, decision...

I'm an unabashed Zevran supporter even though I haven't been able to play the game a second time through in order to romance him completely yet, so I say yes.
I've just found that through my playthrough the first time around where I just made him a really really good friend, while Alistair was my love interest), that alone was enough for me to see that Zevran has built up so many defenses over the years to protect himself and that through his connection to the PC he's able to finally peel some of those back, and that appeals to me a lot. Trust is something that someone like Zev obviously won't just hand over to people, so watching him progress in the game was really touching for me. And that was just a friendship with him, not a romance. I can only imagine how things are if he genuinely loves you.

He is the way that he is when you first meet him, that is frivolous and flighty, as a result of what he's been raised with. He adapted to the life he was being forced in, and the horrible things he had to do (and what he had done to him... ) but rather than using it as something to angst over constantly he hides it away and puts on a smile and deflects everything to protect himself. (see: his conversations with Wynne especially. They're hilarious for the sheer pervyness, but Zevran twists her inquiries into his life and his feelings away from the subject so easily that it's obvious that he's managed to put up some serious emotional fortifications)
In a lot of ways he's more mature than people give him credit for, given the fact that he's able to let those barriers down at all. He changes a lot if the player takes the time to give him cause to trust and have faith in them, and that's something that I think most people would cherish. It's not exactly easy to get someone so wounded to trust them and be willing to turn their back on what they've always known just to stand by them.
I'm not huge on the hurt/heal type relationship (seems cliche to me), but the way that the PC is able to heal him without it turning into this huge emotional sobfest was really rewarding for me.

...Plus he's really really funny? *cough*

TrishaMcMillan wrote:That he joins the party that late in the game is rather a hindrance. By that time most of my PC's are a goey puddle at Alistairs feet.

How late into the game did you get him? I went and played the game way out of order so it never seemed like he came into the game that late because there were still a bunch of major quests to be finished that I had him around for. XD

Honestly, it's not nearly as in depth as Alistair's relationship, nor is it as integrated in the plot, but it's definitely worth it.

Possible spoilers incoming?

Unfortunately there's two ways to take Zevran's relationship, and one way will always lead to it being a pretty shallow deal (its also harder for him to fall for other men in my experience). However playing things right, taking it slow and caring about him sharing his thoughts will lead to him admitting a few secrets and eventually gifting you with some earrings (just like Alistair's rose).

You can also choose to be with him at the end, should you not sacrifice yourself.

In my opinion, if Alistair's relationship is a perfect 10 (integration to the plot, depth of character, etc), Zevran's would be something like an 8.5. Even Leliana's relationship is a bit ... more, I suppose.

I actually found Zevran to be an intriguing character.

**Spoileriffic**

On my first playthrough as a FemNoble, I was (of course) going for the ending where she's Alistair's queen, and that's what I stuck with. Quite by accident, though, solely through conversing with him, I boosted Zev's approval to the point where one more gift and he'd proposition me. Urgh. /LoadSave.

But, at a certain point, a plot encounter occurred, and the only thing I could do was throw Zevran to the wolves to die, or support him as a good friend. As this happened in a public place, it prompted not the 'Bed Me' convo, but rather one about the closeness of Alistair and the PC. And Zevran, bless his heart, comments that although he wouldn't necessarily be put out by sharing the PC, Alistair wouldn't take it the same way, and he wants a decision to be made to be fair to Alistair.

In a lot of ways, I find Zevran to be very similar to Morrigan's character for much of the game. He has a tremendous depth of character, but to get through to it, you must surmount the defenses that he has in place to protect himself. Morrigan has a stinging tongue and biting rhetoric, while Zevran hides behind his sarcasm and sexuality. If he offends people with it right off, well, then, at least they're not going to get close enough to him to really hurt him.

Thanks, your replys all helped me to understand him a little better. If not in this playthrough then I will surely try in the next.
He does sound like he has a few layers and that really makes me want to peel him.

I only got him after I already recruited to allies against the Blight, thats why I think he shows himself rather late into the game.
I also find it quite hard to find gifts that please him, perhaps I should google for a list of all of them to make my life a bit easier.

TrishaMcMillan wrote:Thanks, your replys all helped me to understand him a little better. If not in this playthrough then I will surely try in the next.
He does sound like he has a few layers and that really makes me want to peel him.

I only got him after I already recruited to allies against the Blight, thats why I think he shows himself rather late into the game.
I also find it quite hard to find gifts that please him, perhaps I should google for a list of all of them to make my life a bit easier.

He loves luxury. The gold and silver bars are his non plot +6-10 gifts, and then Dalish Gloves (Brecillian Forest) and Antivan Boots (in Haven before Sacred Ashes) are his plot-significant gifts. He also likes the plain Wine gift, saying you have excellent taste when gifted to him (more of a + to him than Oghren at least)!

Thanks Bidelle, I found the gloves on my own but for some reason the boots eluded me last playthrough.
Now I will keep my eyes open in Haven and get him some booze.

I reckon he is. I've had moments where I've been torn between him and Alistair My solution? Two separate save files, one dedicated to each, so I never feel too guilty about ditching either of them.

Eh, I don't really like Zev (at least in terms of a romantic interest) . . . or Leliana (at all) for that matter. Those are the only two characters I'm kind of meh on, but I must say that reading fanfiction has helped me to be more open to the potentials they have. (Zevran is someone I enjoy just to cause drama between the Grey Warden and Alistair.)

That said, I haven't romanced Zev yet. Well at least not intentionally. The first time I hit that proposition from Morrigan before the final battle she mentioned something along the lines of how would Zev feel if you died. My reaction was priceless. Pretty much a --->

I think I'll romance him on my city elf. Maybe. Though now that I think about it she may already have Alistair. . . uhoh.