Learn About a Painful Part of Their Past

In the village, you meet an NPC named Spengler, a cynical man. He doesn't care if his entire village is destroyed.

Initially Spengler is set up as someone you dislike. But later in the game, you learn that he wasn't always this way. His wife and young son were visiting friends in one of the first towns destroyed by the dragon. They all perished.

Spengler was devastated. All purpose and meaning evaporated from his life in an instant. His life effectively ended at that point.

The next time you meet Spengler, despite his cynicism, you'll understand the pain underneath it. And even he will have Rooting Interest.

In Sling Blade, Billy Bob Thornton plays Karl Childers, who is mentally retarded. At one point, he relays a painful part of his past to a boy for whom he feels protective. Karl tells of how he had a terribly physically abusive father. When Karl's mother gave birth to a very sickly child, his father forced Karl to bury the child, even though the child was still alive. Karl was horrified and distressed by the act. Karl, afraid of his father, did as he was told but the experience emotionally devastated him. This painful part of Karl's past causes us to identify with him, despite his retardation.