#I normally wouldn't post or even MAKE oc & canon content but I had such a visual in my head and am really happy w how this came out

[bludgeon-alt]

this requires too much context to properly explain in a caption so please just take the art at face value

[bg3sinbin]

Alright so I told myself I wouldn't post anything about it... but I still can't stop thinking about the A!Astarion kisses, Tav/Durge's face during it, and the stupid blow up around it. So here we go

Warnings: This is long and rambly and contains all kinds of spoilers. I am an A!Astarion lover. I will not be responding to discourse on this post. I do not care if you disagree. Make your own vent post.

OKAY so the brunt of the arguments I keep trying to ignore seeing surrounding this are how the expressions are "immersion breaking" for A!A fans, and everyone else clowning on them (sometimes rightfully so tho, ngl) because "the game gives the player expressions all the time! why are u mad now? do u just want ur Tav/Durge to be a blank slate?? lmao idiot" which ??? okay it feels like ur purposefully missing the point.

Yeah, actually sometimes this game gives my Durge some really ooc reactions. And it does, in fact, bother me. That being said, that is to be expected when u take an oc u had for like ten years and try to stick them in a pre-programmed video game. Things are gonna get ooc sometimes.

It also though, is usually smaller moments. Or things that happen Once and then u move on. Conversations where I go "hmmm. he wouldn't say any of these. oh well." or moments where he reacts negatively to terrible things that this evil bastard would normally laugh at. OH. WELL.

Now here's where my frustration actually come in. This game does a really good job, probably a better job than anything else I've played, at letting u play an interesting evil char. Something more than just "I am Rude, Aggressive, and A Dick To Everyone" and thus being punished for it gameplay wise.

I can play The Dark Urge, literal child of the god of murder, a canon necrophiliac, cannibalistic, gore freak that was going to flatten the entire world. There is a whole ass plot line and ending (multiple achievements included!) surrounding doing just that. There's all kinds of nasty interactions/plot options programmed in.

Yet, to the best of my memory, my Durge doesn't look horrified when we choose to slaughter the grove. He doesn't look horrified when we choose to kill the Dame Aylin, or Isobel. He isn't Obviously Distraught when we choose to help Astarion complete the ritual, or when we kill Shadowheart's parents, or become an Unholy Assassin of Bhaal.

To my knowledge, the player character isn't made to look afraid when kissing Dark Justiciar!Shadowheart, nor when they are literally poisoned by kissing Minthara. Sure, u CAN be offended about it in the convo with her after, but its still ur choice as the player.

I mean shit, they even patched in (in that very same patch) a positive, supportive reaction from ur evil partners at the end when u take over the nether brain! (at least for A!Astarion, and Minthara) so now when u do the evil thing that u and ur evil partner have been talking about all game, they don't suddenly change their opinion the second u actually do it.

And I really appreciate that about bg3. I can make evil choices and get interesting outcomes rather than the game just locking me out of all content actually made for that quest. Like ffs u can only get Minthara's romance scene if u slaughter dozens of innocents.

THIS GAME REWARDS U FOR DOING THE BAD THING. And like the evil options do usually have drawbacks and/or are less fleshed out than the good ones, but there are whole ass plots arcs u will never see if u only play good chars. This game makes playing an evil character interesting.

So why is it that I can do all that, and make/have my Durge react (mostly) accordingly, yet the moment the partner I chose acts controlling, now is when my characters feelings are being decided for me?

I can spend the whole game hearing Astarion talk about how spawn are controlled, how all vampires want is power, and I can say to his face "yes! this character wants that! turn me!" and yet somehow... what? the creators think I didn't know?

It just genuinely doesn't make sense to me. Like I can choose, through dialogue, that my Durge is power hungry, and very into the idea of being Astarion's pretty little lap dog. He knew what he was signing up for! And yet he looks terrified when his vampire bf (who has been feeding on him all game) bites his lip?? really?

Idk I just have some really weird feelings on some of the ways they try to Really Emphasize that u made the wrong choice for Astarion specifically, and this just exemplifies that.

Either do the rest of ur characters this service, make all of them (make every choice in the game) a moral lesson for the player to learn, where u hold their hand and say "u didn't listen to what they actually needed :c u could have done the good thing but u didn't :c"

Or let me play my evil bastard. And let me revel in it.

[sugarbundust]

Blurb and question; Of Snowscapes & Explosions

SPOILERS FOR NEXT CHAPTER

First of all: I had to type this up like four times, because tumblr likes to just eat my text posts. Omg. WHY. Why does CMD+Z for 'undo' (which you could normally use for undoing a text replacement) erase THE ENTIRE POST YOU JUST WROTE? 😭 Who decided this change was GOOD? 😭 It never used to do that!

Okay.

Anyway.

So.

I'm having a conundrum with the next (few) chapter(s).

I decided I'm absolutely breaking this update up into multiple parts, because while trying to trim it down I somehow managed to bloat the chapter up in size to 22k words lmfao (DO NOT ASK ME HOW. I DO NOT KNOW. 😭) And I am not posting that lol (It's bad enough I go over 10k at times for extra long chapters. That would be insane.) However, now that I've found a good spot to slice off at for the next update, it puts me in a pickle because it's in the middle of some stuff I could completely edit out (thus, rendering the update a lot shorter).

For context, this next scene focuses on Bakugou and OC talking while eating. He's discussing a few topics—things he likes and fan stuff regarding All Might, but then turns the tables on OC and starts asking her about things she enjoys—favorite heroes, hobbies, specifics about her quirk and family. Stuff like that.

A nice bonding moment.

This wouldn't be a problem if not for the fact that I've been trying to keep OC as vague as possible (since she is supposed to reflect the reader).

My question then becomes: how detailed am I allowed to get with her?

Some readers in the past have asked me to go into more details about these exact things, saying they already see her as her own character and not a stand-in for themselves. They have said it would make her a more interesting character, too, since it would broaden the plot.

And on that point, it's really interesting for me hearing that as the writer of this piece specifically, because I have tons of headcannons for her! 😅 All sorts of info I never bother to add into the story and just kept to myself lol. Stuff she likes. Hobbies. The way she looks. Her family (and extended family). All sorts of thoughts regarding other heroes and pop culture... Her favorite songs, books, etc. I'm constantly thinking of new stuff to add in 😂 I just... never do.

It's not a huge problem for me (or it hasn't been, anyway). And I've indulged a little bit here and there in the past. Ya'll have been kind enough to overlook content regarding her family dynamics, assumed height, food preferences, etc. I just don't know how far I'm allowed to go where people will still be interested.

I've tried to veer on the safe side, not just with canon as a guideline, but also keeping in mind I have a lot of readers from different lifestyles and cultures than myself. I guess I don't want to say she likes XYZ and then readers hate her, or be turned off from her possible perspectives on things. 😅

And I know I'm probably overthinking it; that as the author I can do as I please. But with this story I've tried to be mindful of the reader's point of view since the beginning, and I think that it's also part of the story's charm. I like incorporating your thoughts and feelings. It feels like a bit of a group effort. 🥰 And I don't want to ruin a formula that seems to make most readers comfortable.

I would really love to hear your thoughts regarding this, whichever way you feel. I can continue to write it the way I have, and that wouldn't be a problem (I wouldn't be upset!). But it might be more fun for us if I indulge? I could even ask about some specific opinions from the readers and try to incorporate that, too. It would certainly open up a lot of doors for content I could write.

I have a few things I'm considering revealing in one of these upcoming updates, but I don't want to divulge just yet what that is (Maybe my next blog post). It's not something serious or prominent to the plot, but it's revolving around one of her potential hobbies and possible club activities she partook in at her old school.

I did a lot of research on a few topics for it, but it's just something that I thought was interesting, and not a necessity to the plot. 😂 It's also not something I think a lot of people will care about, so I'm contemplating cutting it specifically because of that. (It's fluff, really. I know I could always just blabber away here to what it is lol but I did think of a way I could incorporate a callback to it in a later chapter if I wanted.)

But yeah, it's late and I'm just rambling at this point lol

With that all out there, I'm going to try and get all my editing and formatting done later today for this chapter (I'm on my way to bed!), that way I can post between late tomorrow night and sometime on Sunday when I get home. Here's to hoping I can finish on time! 💪💪💪 There's still a little bit left to refine! ٩(⁎❛ᴗ❛⁎)۶