#also also my tav is wearing the camp clothes astarion was wearing after the last fight aaaaa shfskdfjkjsfs

[dailyastarionpics]

[thunderwavesolveseverything]

Words of Mine Will Turn to Ash

[Astarion x Named Tav]

“Who’s this?” Phayelynn asked, looking at the newcomer with unease.

She knew this man- she recognized his face but couldn’t remember where or how.

“This is the Blade of Frontiers." Shadowheart gestured before reaching for her goblet. "He’s been infected like us. He will help us free Halsin after we help him track down a devil he’s hunting.”

"As I've already told Shadowheart," The man smiled, rising from his seat. He reached his hand out for Phayelynn to shake and gave Shadowheart a playful glare. "My friends call me Wyll."

A cold sweat broke out on Phayelynn's forehead. Her heart skipped a beat, and a lump formed in her throat. Of course- that’s who he had to be. Her mind raced as she tried to act normal. But inside, she was panicking.

She needed to get away from camp and the Blade of Frontiers.

---

So, I'm back and with a new computer!

Lol.

There was no saving my old computer, so I splurged and got a new gaming laptop and I'M INLOVE! It runs so smoothly, and it's like I'm playing the game over for the first time. I didn't know it was supposed to look this good 😂

This chapter is a little more on the shorter side for what I usually write, but I have pretty much all the way up to the Tiefling party outlined, so I'm excited to keep going and writing again. 💜💜💜

Also, we're going to start getting more into Phay's backstory which I'm so excited about!!!

(word count: 2,071)

Read on AO3 or below :)

Words of Mine Will Turn to Ash

Phayelynn sat comfortably beneath Alfira’s tent, perched on a grassy cliff side overlooking the river flowing past the grove. The cool breeze brushed against the tent, stirring the fabric and bringing a sense of calm between the pair of bards. 

Alfira sat behind her, her deft fingers working through Phayelynn’s hair as she brained it into two intricate sections, leaving out a few strands to frame her face. 

Hours had passed since they first met-Phayelynn having followed the sound of frustrated hands plucking at strings and stumbling across the Tielfing as she struggled to write. 

Alfira hummed the song they had written together to herself as she continued to lace and weave strands of hair. The song evoked a connotation of sadness and somehow brought a smile to her face. 

Phayelynn, a complete stranger, Alfira noted, was like a close friend after helping her find the right words to honor her teacher- helped her find it in her to play again. And now, Alfira was determined to return the favor. 

She’d help Phayelynn feel like a proper bard. 

As Phayelynn slowly opened her eyes, finding herself humming along to the tune, she eyed her clothes hanging nearby, swaying in the breeze. They were nearly dry after Alfira’s help with dying them. She couldn’t stop staring at the bright purples and reds that now adorned her clothes, colors her father used to wear. 

Alfira sighed in satisfaction as she finally tied off the last braid, “And done,” she sang out with flare. 

The braids were perfectly aligned and neatly secured with thin leather straps. She leaned back to admire her handiwork. 

“Perfect,” she added, a hint of laughter in her voice. “Now your hair won’t be in the way while you slay those goblins tomorrow.” She gave Phayelynn’s shoulder a gentle squeeze. 

Phayleynn smiled, letting a hand fiddle with the braid. The smile quickly turned into a pout. Shadowheart and Gale were busy getting supplies and more important things for tomorrow. All the while, she had spent the day lazing around, playing music, and making a new friend- sprucing up her appearance. 

She pursed her lips as she pondered, wondering whether she should have asked Shadowheart’s permission first before dying the clothes. They were gifted to her. She quickly dismissed the thought. 

“You don’t think they’re too bright?” Phayelynn looked over the clothes. They were…flashy…to say the least. 

Phayelynn shifted to the side so Alfira could get a better look at them. 

“Yes,” Alfira giggled, and Phayelynn shot her a look, gaping at her. Alfira stifled her giggles. “But not in a bad way. Purple is a bard’s color, after all. And the red compliments your skin tone beautifully.” 

“But what if it is in a bad way- this isn’t like I’m about to perform in front of an audience- I’m about to fight a horde of goblins.” Phayelynn wasn’t entirely convinced. She loved what they had done to her clothes but couldn’t stop herself. What if she messed up again? “What if they draw too much attention?” 

“That’s exactly what a bard is supposed to do- draw attention to themselves. All the greats- they don’t hide behind the others, though they don’t necessarily lead the charge. They distract. They rally. They inspire. They stand out and encourage their party in the heat of the battle.” Alfira tries to explain. “Trust me, you are going to do just fine. Now stop overthinking, and let’s get you dressed properly.” she gave Phayelynn a slight push, urging her to stand and stop worrying. 

Phayelynn hesitated, letting Alfira get up first, and watching as the Tiefling walked towards the clothes and began taking them down from the tree branch they hung on. She looked away as she stood. The sun was starting to set. Phayelynn knew she was being silly. She could do this. 

“You’re right.” she nodded, starting to strip out of the shirt Alfira had let her burrow. Alfira grabbed the red top first, throwing it to Phayleynn once she was ready. “This was fun,” she caught the shirt, pulling it over her head as she spoke, “Thank you for today,” she continued as she popped her head out from beneath the fabric. “I needed this. I-I needed a day of normalcy.” 

Alfira beamed, tossing Phayelynn her jacket next, “I should be the one doing the thanking,” she said, sifting through the different belts and holsters they had also dyed a deep red to match. She grabbed an old pair of gloves and gifted them to Phayelynn. “I had completely forgotten what it was like to have that itch in my fingers. To perfect a song until now. The Weeping Dawn will be my gift to Lihala. So thank you, I really needed this too.” 

Both smiled at the other before rushing with excitement to finish putting all the pieces together. Fastened belts and hitching thigh-high boots, Phayleynn had a blazing spark in her eye as they worked. Alfira watched her with a critical eye, nodding her head in approval when Phayelynn was fully dressed and equipped. 

“It’s perfect!” Alfira exclaimed in delight, clapping her hands together. 

With newfound confidence, Phayelynn gave Alfira a spin before pulling her into a warm, grateful hug, which Alfira returned with equal enthusiasm. 

When they parted, Alfira looked her up and down one last time and gave her a firm shake for final reassurance, “You can do this.” 

Phayelynn smirked. Alfira was right. She could do this. 

---

As Phayelynn arrived at camp, darkness had already engulfed the area. She spotted the flickering flames of a fire ahead of her, accompanied by the sound of laughter and chatter. An odd feeling washed over her the closer she got. There were five bodies gathered around the fire instead of four. 

She tilted her head in confusion. 

Shadowheart was the first to notice Phayelynn’s arrival. Her expression quickly changed from concern to a flash of anger in seconds as she stood up, placing her goblet of wine on the log she had been sitting on. Phayleynn felt uneasy as Shadowheart’s stern eye met her own. 

“And where have you been?” She demanded, her voice snipping with disapproval.

Before Phayelynn could answer, Astarion was next to look her over, spreading his lips upwards mischievously, “Our dear cleric was worried sick about you, darling,” he playfully announced, bobbing his head towards Shadowheart. “She was mere moments from heading a search party.” 

“I was not worried!” Shadowheart’s face flushed as she hissed at him. She turned back to Phayelynn. “I didn’t know if you had gotten yourself in trouble again or abandoned us or gods know what else!” 

Gale let out a deep chuckle. 

“That is the definition of being worried,” he pointed out. 

This only made Shadowheart angrier, fixing him with her sharp glare next. She waited for him to let out a nervous cough, clearing his throat and looking away before returning to Phayelynn. 

“Well, what do you have to say for yourself?” she crossed her arms, waiting for an explanation. 

“Um-er, sorry?’ Phayelynn stammered out an apology. A poor one. She shifted in her place. “I lost track of time. I’m sorry.” she tried to sound confident- composed. 

“We can see that.” Astarion let out a loud, nosey laugh. He stuck his nose at her, eyes tracing over every part of her form, not leaving a detail out, “Well, I guess we’ll never lose sight of you again.” 

He found her new attire obnoxious and hilarious, yet something in him couldn’t bring himself to hate it. It oddly suited her. 

“I see you lost track of time while ruining the clothes I bought you,” Shadowheart scolded. 

Phayelynn winced- but then she caught herself. Why was she letting them treat her like this? She crossed her arms against her chest and popped her hip out almost defiantly. “I didn’t know I had a curfew, mum,” 

Gale saw the twitch in Shadowheart’s brow and moved to intervene. He stepped forward andtried to lighten the mood, “I think you look great. I love the purple.” He gave her a supportive wink, pointing at the purple fabric of his robes. 

His voice was warm and genuine, even if his motivation for the compliment was more to keep the peace than flatter. Phayelynn felt a flutter in her chest as she took in the praise. It had the reverse effect. They matched now- her cheeks reddened in embarrassment. 

She tried to shake it off, smiling and nodding at the wizard. She looked at the newcomer, who’d been listening in but trying to make it appear that he hadn’t been- he probably didn’t want to get involved in their bickering, Phayelynn assumed. 

“Who’s this?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. 

Shadowheart sighed, sitting back down and reaching for her goblet, “While you spent the day playing dress up, Gale and I were busy finding supplies and allies.” She took a sip, gesturing to the man sitting to her left. “This is the Blade of Frontiers. He’s been infected like us. He will help us free Halsin after we help him track down a devil he’s hunting.” 

“A devil?” Phayleynn gasped; she scrutinized the man’s features. “I thought we said no more distractions. Or is it only okay if I don’t cause the distraction?” 

“As I’ve said, as well.” Lae’zel spoke up in agreement from her spot furthest away from them, “I won’t wait my time chasing devils.” 

Phayelynn rolled her eyes. “You won’t waste your time doing anything,” she muttered under hot breath. 

She narrowed her gaze, shifting it back to the Blade of Frontiers as he stood up. She studied him as he started to approach. 

Her unease from earlier started to grow into fear. This man, she knew this man- somehow and not because he was the famed Blade of the Frontiers. She had heard stories of his heroics, but she recognized his face but couldn’t remember where or how. 

The Blade misplaced her confusion- taking it as her fearing facing a devil. “Karlach is fierce, but from what Shadowheart has told me- how you three had escaped the Nautiloid, I have no doubt we won’t succeed.” He stopped before her, reaching out his hand for her to shake. He gave Shadowheart a playful glare. “As I’ve already told Shadowheart, my friends call me Wyll.” 

A cold sweat broke out on her forehead. Her heart skipped a beat, and a lump formed in her throat. Of course- that’s who he had to be. Her mind raced as she tried to act normal. But inside, she was panicking. 

“I know who you are.”

She failed as her words came out harsher than intended. Still, she forced herself to shake his hand. She felt a pull from his tadpole and quickly let go before he could access hers. She cleared her throat, now trying to cover up her coldness. 

“You know, cause you’re so famous- for being the Blade of Frontiers, like you said-” her thoughts were in disarray. She needed to get away from camp and the Blade of Frontiers. 

“Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you,” Wyll looked at her curiously- cautiously. 

Phayelynn quickly averted her eyes, fearing he was beginning to recognize her. Her eyes met Gale’s first, then Astarion as she darted away before gazing at the river near their camp. 

“Yeah, pleasure. We’ll need all the help we can get. Glad to have you.” she forced a smile and gave a nervous laugh. With a quick nod, she jerked her thumb towards the river. “I’m going to go take a bath now.” 

She sounded so dumb. 

She didn’t let it simmer before abruptly departing from the others. An uncomfortable silence hung in the air as she hurried away without even a glance back at her companions or Wyll. 

“But aren’t you hungry?” Gale called after her, his voice laced with concern. “I saved you a plate!” 

Wyll’s eyes were fixated on Phayelynn as she rushed away. She seemed terrified of him. He felt a hint of concern- unsettled by her reaction towards him. He noticed Shadowheart and Astarion staring at him, most likely trying to determine what had just happened. 

He tried to deflect, unsure what he could have done, “She seems…interesting..” he tried to find the word for the encounter. 

Astarion hummed in agreement, watching after Phayelynn as she disappeared through the brush and trees, “Very interesting indeed.” 

[the-blue-wraith]

I've finished BG3 last night and here are my thoughts: (BG3 MAJOR SPOILERS UP AHEAD)

The progress of Act 1 and 2 were so smooth, my only regret was I should've explored more the areas in both acts and I also missed a few cutscenes in the camp. I really enjoyed my stay in those acts, I didn't feel overwhelmed by the quests. What I love the most was the buildup of my relationships with my companions. Especially with Astarion, at first he distrusted me then when I learned about his tragic past and accepted who he truly was he became much closer with me. One of my fave scenes of him was his confession scene in Act 2, he sounded so sincere there

Act 3 was full of bugs. The game textures were rendering slowly, even the merchants' facial and clothing textures were slow to render everytime I talked to them. This also applies to my companions who are wearing heavy armor. The way they scattered all the quests in the areas was overwhelming unlike in Act 1 and 2.

Before I confronted the Netherbrain I wasn't able to find Voss during Lae'zel's quest, he literally disappeared in the sewers. However I managed to release Orpheus in the Astral Plane. I was so worried about the outcome of this, I thought I will never get to finish Lae'zel's quest.

When I was about to rescue Ulder Ravengard in the Iron Throne he was missing there as well. Before I went there I attended the coronation and was able to talk with him and Gortash. Wyll's quest was triggered afterwards and I chose to break his pact with Mizora. I went to the Steel Watch Foundry to trigger the quest of saving the Gondians and went straight to the Iron Throne. Wyll even said "Ulder Ravengard is here - he must be" yet he wasn't there. I went back to Wyrm's Rock Fortress only to find out he stayed there lol, I had no choice but to kill him.

The epilogue was full of bugs too. Some of the NPC's voices became inaudible and Orpheus (he became an Illithid in my playthrough) was not following me. My last romance scene with Astarion was bugged (I'm still pissed about this lol). I also heard some of the romance scenes with the other companions were bugged too.

I hope Larian will fix these bugs I've mentioned. Witnessing a buggy epilogue was disappointing.

Also!! I felt the ending was rushed. I was expecting we would be able to talk to all my companions before and after the battle. But the battle was very straightforward to the Netherbrain. During their last scene on the docks everything happened so fast. Tav killing Orpheus, Astarion running from the sun, Gale pursuing the stones in the Chionthar, Karlach saying her last word before dying and Wyll lending her a hand. It all happened so fast!

Do I still think BG3 deserves to be GOTY? Yes. Do I think Act 3 and the ending were rushed? Yes.

Sorry if I sounded pessimistic I really enjoyed the game!! The rushed ending and bugs were the only let-down to me.

[rottenbrainstuff]

BG3 playthrough - Wasting time at the southern checkpoint

Spoilers below

Guess who backtracked about 5 hours of game time because they only just discovered that the newspaper actually changes every day based on what you did that day, and now they need to go back and collect them all? This is why I’ve been playing since October, have over 500 hours on my steam account, and still haven’t finished one single playthrough yet…

I’ve been playing since October. Wow. This game has just totally taken over my brain. On the one hand it’s been amazing to have my brain so thoroughly distracted, cause things have been getting really rough, and I appreciate the distraction, so so much. But on the other hand… I do sometimes wish I could be spending all this effort doing something actually useful. Last year I had been making some progress on personal projects, and I’ve had no desire to touch it at all since October. Sigh.

After finishing the backtracking and collecting all the papers, guess who found Carm’s Garms and wasted a few hours dressing everyone up like barbie dolls? I am NEVER going to finish this game!!! Look, it’s not my fault that Astarion looks so fabulous in so many things. I think my favorite dye for him is the white and scarlet, but sometimes the black and furnace red has good results. My tav used to wear a lot of red but has lost his taste for it - reminds him too much of what he wore as a bhaalspawn. He’s been using the azure and blue dye a lot.

So of course I finished the Open Hand Temple investigation. That was super interesting but also super sad, more tiefling refugees getting shit on, and the only person who really cared about them got murdered for his trouble. I like the little touch that Astarion disapproves of any religious comments that you make: on brand. I only just noticed getting a statue made gives the subject a permanent buff. Enjoy, Astarion. (and everyone else in the camp: enjoy Astarion) Found Petras and Dalyria at the flophouse. Trying to kill each other - that’s how you know they’re really siblings.

Obviously if I was at the clothes shop, I ran into Naaber. Oh boy. I didn’t get the joke at first and was quite bowled over by how strange and out of place he is, though I did find it funny and listened to everything he had to say. Then I looked him up online and found out he’s a running gag brought over from BG2 which is funny… But I ALSO came across a discussion where people were, as far as I am able to tell, asking in complete earnest if there was any way to deal with him besides killing him. ??? Look I know there’s no “wrong” way to play and whatever way makes you happy is the right way, but like damn. WTF are some of you doing? He’s an annoying dude to be sure, but it is a LITTLE bit funny, and if you don’t like him, you don’t have to even talk to him at all. (right? It almost sounded from what people were saying that he was following them around being a nuisance, but he definitely didn’t follow me. Did he used to follow players in previous patches or something?)

And then I went to Sharess’ Caress. Boy oh boy, the devs really liked this location didn’t they, they put in a ton of detail, lol. It’s kind of funny how everyone wants to meet at Sharess’ Caress. I thought it was just a funny brothel, but apparently it’s a respectable taphouse as well, judging from how many people just hang out here / conduct business meetings? Or is this like the people who claim they like to go to Hooters for the wings? Anyways I adore the cat, I adore mamzell Amira, I adore the put-upon chef. I adore how Amira introduces Raphael and makes the services he’s offering sound ambiguous. I wonder if she knows full well what he’s actually doing in that room, but this is how she introduces him, and some poor asshole who just wants a quick blowjob gets talked into selling his soul instead, or if she really does just think he’s some kind of freelance gentleman whore, temporarily renting out a room from her. I can’t decide which is more funny.

Drow twins: god the dude is hilarious and the girl is interesting. I must have spent at least one solid half hour just reloading and trying out all the different dialogue branches with them. What do other races get to talk to them about, I wonder? Being a drow I had some options to ask about their history and how they ended up here, and also point out that Sorn’s Menzoberranzan Love Trick is just a name to make customers excited. I assume at least that non-drow characters have other paths to get to their backstory? I wasn’t able to see the foursome because I was romancing Astarion, and he’s not comfortable with that, but I checked them out each on their own. Everything with Sorn made me laugh and laugh. If you say you aren’t sure what you’re into, he chats with you a bit, and dark urge has a few extra little options that are so funny. The only thing I didn’t get to see was what happens if you fail the athletics or persuasion checks. Nym was kind of an interesting encounter - first you have the humour option of just complaining and crying to her for a couple hours, or you can actually just talk, listen to her talk about herself or get some weight off your own chest. If you choose to talk about boundaries, she will talk about how the female drow stereotype is a spicy dominatrix, but she doesn’t feel comfortable doing the rough stuff. That suits my drow just fine - as his boundary, a male drow can say he’s uncomfortable with dominant drow women. It was very interesting. And apparently my tav keeps his gauntlets on during sex. Not sure if that was a bug or on purpose but it was funny, lol.

That was just me checking things out for my personal curiosity anyways - in my actual save game, I didn’t do anything with either of them. I know Astarion says he’s ok if you fool around, and whether he actually is or not is debatable (he seems more comfortable here than when you talk to him about Halsin, IMO), but my tav just really has no interest if Astarion isn’t there.

I walked in on the nymph and her client… I had no idea what happened there so that was a shocking surprise.

I was stuck for a while trying to decide what to do about Raphael offering the contract. I had said that I would do anything in my game to trigger his hilarious little monologue at the epilogue party. It sounds like you must sign the contract then break it in order to get that. But everyone in the party is so freaking mad about it, I don’t have dialogue options to indicate I’m doing it fully intending on going back on it later, I don’t really want to deal with the Emperor being pissed off just yet, but if I lie to him, what do I do with Voss? Lie to him too? Man I dunno. I think it’s simpler just to tell Raphael to fuck off. Plus it’s also pretty funny to go and steal the hammer from him later. He’s the one who made me aware of the hammer: if he hadn’t mentioned it at all, I wouldn’t have known about it, but now that I know that he has it, BECAUSE HE TOLD ME, I’m going to go steal it? I just think that’s hilarious. Idiot.

HOWEVER IN THE END: I decided to do the contract. I have a second playthrough that I started and put on hold with a tiefling paladin, and since she would NEVER sign a contract with Raphael, I think I’ll make my durge do it. But besides just meta game reasons, I also reasoned… he just recently found out he’s a bhaalspawn, and I think he’s feeling like his crummy soul is forfeit. No big deal signing over his soul to a devil when he’s already completely fucked. Who knows, maybe Raphael and Daddy Bhaal will have a fistfight over it later. That’s where my tav is coming from.

I also did Gortash’s big fucking coronation but I’ll write that up as its own thing I think. Goddamn I am enjoying this game so much.