#charming singing murderer is my durge'

[maegalkarven]

Just finished the game and!!! It was good. Some aftermath convos and cuts/slides would be great, but even without them it was very satisfying!

Also Zevlor showed up to help me alongside other allies and I screamed. And Mol. And Arabella. And Rolan! 4 beloved tieflings out of 4.

Also the mercy kill of Orpheus (turned illitid) was very satisfying in terms of turned good Durge who used to murder bc father said so and for fun and now deals mercy kill probably for the first time in his life. It truly feels like his story went the full circle.

Also the Elder Brain recognizing Durge as its creator and saying it would follow and obey Durge, but not Ketheric, Orin and Gortash (who, Brain says, immediately started fighting like children the moment Durge was out of the picture) was AWESOME.

Brb gotta go find our wayward 7000 vampire spawns and help them to adjust.

Also Yenna is 100% Durge's child now. Astarion hasn't signed for co-parenting? Well, he better sign the fuck up real quick bc Yenna is coming to Underdark with them.

[avionvadion]

Screenshots and silliness from my Durge playthrough so far. Because I have no self restraint and I needed to keep myself awake a few more hours.

SHADOWHEART, GALE, AND DARK URGE SPOILERS BELOW

She's doing her best!!!

Astra can sing. Kai'mana, on the other hand... can not. Oof. Anyways, I have been talking to so many animals. It's delightful. Although Kai'mana did unintentionally kill a squirrel, which is what led to me reloading and constantly using Speak to Animals because it helped avoid the... Urge just immediately offing the poor thing. But now I'm paranoid, lol.

Kai'mana: What's he talking about???

He was still in neutral by this point. T_T I don't know how, but I'm having a harder time raising his favorability as a good Dark Urge than when I was playing Astra- a good Tav.

OHHHHHHHH, ASTRA DIDN'T GET THIS ONE.

Anyways. I had Kai'mana say they should get to know each other better, then say she was joking- because she could tell he wasn't being serious, and it left him so flustered, alskjfldkjflkdj. It was adorable.

Astarion can not get a good read on this Dragonborn gal.

Gale, sweetie, this scene is super cute... but not what I intended. T_T

I'm obsessed with how pretty Kai'mana looks.

Oh no... here it is... I've heard about this...

I'M SORRYYYYYYYYYYYYY.

Gods, the Guardian is so pretty.

BASSY!??? SEBAS-CHAN!??? *Is immediately sent plummeting back into my middleschool years* WHAT'RE YOU DOIN' HERE!??? GO BACK TO CIEL!

Astarion is so short next to Kai... askjjflkdjljfdl. I love it. Also, fun fact: I did not kill the Gur this time around! I did with Astra, but not with Kai. I'm curious how his survival will affect Act Three.

*crying at how pretty she is*

Wyll: "Is no one else seeing this? No? Just me? Sigh... just another day in camp."

*Downs his wine*

Aw, shucks! That's cute. They're eyeball buddies! I'm surprised her fake eye is still pink though. It's a lot more muted than the other, but I was expecting it to be silver. I guess it's different for Dragonborns. Neat.

I've... been putting her through several different outfits, trying to find a good one, and a good dye, that'll fit. I currently (where I'm at in the game, not in the screenshot) have settled on her wearing Minthara's camp clothes. Which look REALLY good on her with her scales.

...Astarion has the armor, though, lol.

Kai'mana just... has the charm I guess. First Gale's magic lesson, then Lae'zael trying to seduce her, and now Shadowheart. Okay. Maybe this'll be like with Astra and Lae'zael. A thing at the beginning, before eventually breaking off. I do think Shadowheart and Kai'mana just talking together was a super cute scene. Maybe that's the ace in me speaking. I dunno. But I liked it.

Kai'mana: "You're beautiful."

Shadowheart: "I know. But you're sweet for noticing."

LIKE THAT WAS SO CUTE YA'LL I CAN'T.

Kai'mana: "I unintentionally murdered the bard bestie in my sleep..."

Shadowheart: "And I almost intentionally murdered Lae'zael in her sleep. It's fine."

Kai'mana: "...Fair enough."

I think it'll be a thing where they're not used to the company/trust of others, both of them being amnesiac and harboring "darkness" inside of them, and they lead themselves on to believe it's a romantic attraction to one another, but then realize they're just meant to be besties. They click, but not necessarily in the way they think. It's a pleasant/fond experience for them, though.

[defira85]

Apologies for the delay! 1 and 11 for the latest creator ask?

And my apologies for the slow answer😅from your very magnificent ask meme here (and I've JUST seen the political minutiae one from today as well and I'm WHEEZING)

1. Your hottest Durgetash take. The kinda heat Gortash had to endure in HoH. (But be respectful about it fellas, this means everyone)

Oh man I sort of try to avoid posting "hot takes" because I did my time in the Dragon Age fandom and it's very easy to hurt people's feelings because there's such a fine line between vagueblogging and hot takes sometimes... I suppose my thing would be that as much as I'm notorious for writing a happily ever after tragic romance with Gort, I feel like it does him a fundamental disservice as a character to try to... whitewash? His capacity for cruelty? There are piles of rotting bodies in the Steel Watch factory from what we are told are explicitly his experiments, based on the correspondence between him and Balthazar about controlling an undead brain with a tadpole. He kidnaps several young women and girls - at least one of whom he murders and puts her head in a jar 'because he liked her singing voice'. And yes teddy bear bombs etc etc, we all talk about that one, but as much as I love reading romantic Gort stories (with Tav or Durge! I'm not fussy!) he's so much more than just a charming bad boy villain, he's a man with a cruel and sadistic streak a mile wide. He's not afraid to get his hands bloody, and will in fact enjoy it

And yes we can all have our own headcanons of course, that's what makes fandom such a beautiful place, is the depth and breadth of ideas people bring to a character and offer up to one another by way of fic and meta and art but I suppose that's just one that'll always make me go hmm

11. Sceleritas my beloved, how exactly does he fit in there?

He’s my best friend, he’s my pal, he’s my homeboy, my rotten soldier, my sweet cheese, my good time boy-

Younger Kass had a relationship with Sceleritas that I would almost classify as... he was like an extension of herself. He was there almost before she could anticipate a need, and they worked together in a fluid harmony that could be unsettling. This synchronism was fundamentally broken by Bhaal's resurrection, because of course she wasn't supposed to survive that event and so they never reconnected on that same level again. That's the point when he became more of a babysitter, spending his time trying to realign her with Bhaal's desires and slowly failing over the next decade

I wasn't as huge of a Sceleritas fan until I saw a video of an Accepting Dark Urge kill him permanently. That was the moment I saw him as a creature fully separate from Bhaal and not just a shadow puppet Bhaal was projecting onto the wall of the cave. His capacity to change like Durge is questionable, but his fear of death and his anxious desire to live really hit me hard and since then I've been ride or die for him. Bhaal can't have him in my canon, if I can redeem Gortash then I can redeem Sceleritas

[all-pacas]

i am BORED at WORK, doing this one too, also for my fanfic's version of durge.

1: Where in the Faerûn is your Tav from?

Baldur's Gate. She looks Drow, but thanks to the whole "born of the discarded flesh of Bhaal" thing, she's never even been to the Underdark. She has a very recognizably Baldurian accent, which most of the party probably takes in stride but Minthara at least would find Weird.

2: What is your character's alignment?

Neutral Evil as Durge. As Tav, she's trying her best to at least hit Neutral Good. Probably more like Lawful Neutral.

3: Race and subclass?

Drow. She'll say Selardine if asked, but she has no clue. Just knows she doesn't worship Lolth.

As Durge she was an Oathbreaker Paladin. As Tav, she's currently a Great Old One Warlock/Paladin. In a story and not mechanics sense, she's more apt to use swords and armor, but is weirdly good at mind control magic.

4: If your Tav was a companion, where would they be found?

On the little dock by the crashed ship, staring out at the water. Approached, she'd at first seem not to notice you, and be distracted and even seemingly unconcerned about the tadpole -- before abruptly deciding to follow you.

5: Dark Urge or no?

Yessss

6: What companion are you platonically close with?

Shadowheart and Gale, potentially also Wyll. Thanks to the artefact deciding to float on over to Tav, Shadowheart is sticking pretty close and Tav is like "this is friendship?" Gale meanwhile is (going to) give her magic lessons, and Wyll is just someone Tav admires, without seeing any of his faults and downsides.

7: Romantically close with?

Gonna be hooking up with the asshole vampire boy.

8: Who are they suspicious of?

No one. Which is a problem. Tav at her core believes she should be worshipped and feared and adored, and so she also believes that she is treated that way. She takes praise as a matter of fact. She's very easy to manipulate.

9: Is your Tav from Baldur's Gate? Why are they travelling there?

She is. And she wasn't going there in particular, but now that she has Shadowheart's Artefact, she kind of wants to ride that mission's coattails.

10: Are they proficient in playing any instruments?

Not in the least. Can't sing, either.

11: Weapon of choice?

Shortswords and daggers. Much more finesse that way, you want delicate control when you're mangling a corpse in Bhaal's name.

12: What is their orientation?

Pansexual, like everyone else. Specifically "you are into me, so I am into you." Not really uh... sexually outgoing? It's more like she will reflect any affection she's given first.

13: What are their thoughts on killing? Is it a necessary evil or do they enjoy it?

She enjoys it a lot.

14: What hobbies does your Tav have?

She's kind of trying to figure that out. Amnesia sucks! She doesn't really care for reading, she wants to do something with her hands. She could potentially get into something like embroidery or wood carving, if her companions teach her.

Durge's hobby was murder.

15: What NPC's do they like? Which one's do they dislike?

She really likes the Emperor. He seems like a really nice dude. :( None so far that she dislikes, but because of her habit of mirroring, anyone who is rude first she'll probably treat in kind.

16: Do they have a favorite creature in the Faerûn?

Shovel

17: Do they enjoy life as an adventurer?

A lot! I mean, Tav doesn't remember anything before that, but she knows enough to know her past life wasn't pleasant. She was also kind of a workoholic as Durge, you know, always murdering and plotting! Adventuring is kind of relaxing.

18: What would your Tav be doing if they weren't kidnapped on the Nautiloid?

Leading a murder cult and taking over the world. The more aware of this she becomes, the more uneasy she feels.

19: How do you think they'll meet they're end?

In the Temple of Bhaal. :)

20: Would they destroy the elder brain or control it?

Is serve it an option?

21: What is your Tav's favorite spell?

Friends or Charm Person, oops.

22: What languages is your character fluent in?

Common. This is mildly embarrassing to her. She doesn't know anything else.

23: What do they do after the absolute crisis?

Find a new life. Try to find a purpose as Tav, not as the Dark Urge or as the woman she was before Bhaal. Maybe do some good: not in a Wyll heroic way, but as a way of balancing the scales of her bad deeds. Adventuring more sounds fun.

24: Does your character believe in the afterlife?

She's terrified of it.

25: What arcana major best represents your Tav?

Hanged Man / Death. Being trapped, being renewed.

26: What animal best represents your Tav?

Snowy owl. Not for the wisdom tropes. For the unblinking stare and silent kills.

27: What was their life like before the events of BG3?"

She was Durge. She killed people. She fucked Gortash. She was semi-conscious, given entirely to her father Bhaal.

28: Is your character the de facto leader of the party? Or do they consider someone else to be the leader?

Gale's the DEEPLY reluctant leader. I plan for Tav to take over slowly, due to Gale hating the job and her having some type A tendencies. But no one's trusting her with a full time leader position.

29: Does your Tav want to utilize the tadpole powers or not?

Right now she does, because her bestie The Emperor said she should.

30: What's your favorite thing about your Tav?

??? I... like the idea of Tav being just naturally a bit quiet and stoic as a half-joking reaction to the mostly silent protagonist thing. I also think the extreme gullibility will be a lot of fun and lead to a lot of bad decisions.

[rinwellisathing]

You're Awful, I Love You: Part 29

Enver Gortash/Trans Male Tiefling Durge

Finally, Sentry and Fel crawled out of the correct sewer entrance and stood on the nearly empty moonlit streets of the lower city. The graveyard was misty tonight and Sentry took that as a good sign. Just like a copper dreadful. He turned his gaze towards the rather ostentatious building beside the cemetery gate. Golden demon heads gleamed on the walls, lit with hell fire, or at least that was the look the owner seemed to want to portray. Sentry passed through the gate and drew closer to the building. A wave of nausea washed over him, the familiar undertone of his paladin senses detecting hellish influence. The nausea was a new aspect however and he vaguely wondered if this was similar to the hyper sensitivity to smell he'd read about in some of his books. He was certainly surprised his 'condition' would start affecting him so suddenly, but there was a bit of satisfaction that his act of rebellion was successful. A smaller part of him felt a pang of sadness, wishing Commander Mum was here to talk to about it.

He was pulled from his thoughts by a hand on his shoulder and he looked behind him to see Enver standing there with a rather fine bag of holding slung over his shoulder. Sentry smiled and inclined his head with a confident, winning grin on his face, sharp teeth glinting in the firelight. “Hullo love, shall we?” Sentry asked, nodding towards the door. Enver looked down, giving a dismissive expression when he saw Fel standing there by Sentry's side looking rather irritated. “Yes. But before we go any further, your servant will behave, right?” “Yeah, Fel's just here to help with acquisitions...I mean, hopefully we just sneak in and sneak out, but if we DO get to kill something interesting down there in the hells, I'd be pretty devastated if I couldn't even bring home some parts for my work.” Sentry explained. “But yeah, trust me, father's explained the importance of this plan.”

Enver looked at Fel again, who gave him a haughty sniff of disapproval, but nodded in agreement with Sentry's response. Gortash knew he could trust Sentry's word, one of the few people he could, and he inclined his head in approval, turning to open the door. The three crossed the threshold to the strange shop. It smelled heavily of incense and the aura of the hells was strong. Sentry felt another wave of dizziness and nausea, but fought it back. His focus was drawn to the various specimens displayed throughout the shop and he was briefly distracted by wondrous thoughts of terrifying sculptures he could add to his garden with a fruitful harvest from creatures like this. Fel wrinkled his nose and shuffled behind Sentry. “This tawdry curiosity shop is quite ill kept, my master. Sacred artifacts of murder and death allowed to gather dust. Perhaps we ought to liberate them.” “Relax, Fel. We need this diabolist's help...We'll worry about that if she decides to be a problem or if I think she can't keep a secret.” Sentry whispered, eyes flicking towards the attractive dwarven woman at the counter. Enver motioned for Sentry and Fel to follow his lead as he approached the shopkeeper. The three fell into a sort of formation, Enver at the front to do the talking, Sentry behind as the muscle, and Fel to the side, out of the way.

“I welcome thee to The Devil's Fee.” The woman behind the counter greeted them in a somewhat sing-song, dramatic tone. Sentry couldn't help but chuckle, one had to appreciate the showmanship after all. “Yes, thank you...I've heard you and your patron offer a certain service to adventurers seeking treasures in the hells.” Enver gave a charming, winning smile, leaning carelessly on the counter as he spoke to the woman.

“Then you've done your research, I see.” The woman responded, eyeing up the group before her, seeming to assess her clientele carefully. “And where is it you're asking to infiltrate?” “The vaults of Mephistar. Surely nothing to a warlock of your caliber.” Enver's voice oozed with flattery. “You can get us in, can't you?” The woman gave a derisive little laugh and rolled her eyes. “You plan to steal from Mephistopheles himself? Do you have a death wish? I can get you in, but it will be 100,000 gold and you perform the ritual yourself, I need full deniability.” 100,000 gold? That was insane. There was no way she could be serious. Sentry stepped a bit closer, teeth bared, hands pressed to the counter, long, sharp nails digging in. He let out a low, feral growl, ears pinned back against the sides of his head, tail raised and flicking aggressively. “Yes, yes, you're quite intimidating, but no tiefling is going to possibly be able to do worse to me than a Lord of the Hells.” The woman's expression was utterly nonplussed. Enver placed a calming hand on Sentry's shoulder and gently guided him back behind him. “My partner was merely taken aback. He's not familiar with these sorts of negotiations.” The Tyrant explained calmly. “How about this? You charge us half that and we bring you back a lovely little souvenir from the vaults, hm?” The woman thought a moment and then slowly nodded. “Alright, I suppose I could use more stock for the shop. 50,000 and some of those cold resistant cloaks, they should be an easy sell and more than that, useful should I ever find myself in Cania.” “You have a deal.” Enver extended a gauntlet clad hand to shake the woman's hand, passing her a pouch filled with gold in the process and receiving one filled with reagents in return.

“Hmmph...foolish, disrespectful peasant. You could do far more than some tawdry devil.” Fel murmured, patting Sentry's hand. “She knows not to whom she speaks!” He gave a pointed glare at the woman, who to her credit, was still quite unbothered.

“Come along, gentlemen. Our time is limited and The Crown of Karsus will not liberate itself.” Enver nodded towards the door that would lead to the ritual room, gently taking Sentry's hand and guiding him in, leaving Fel to scurry along after them, his hat tumbling from his head in his hurry.

[parasite-core]

My next Durge is going to be the most beautiful elf who looks like they couldn’t hurt a fly, and who sings like an angel. But they’re actually a murder machine who uses their charm to get close to people before going for the kill.

Oh yeah, it’s all coming together.