#halsin is end game

[amarmeme]

I've been replaying my Tav Luscinia and am surprised by some scenes I've never had before.

Luscinia is a flirt and full of love. She's very open with her sexuality and sleeps with Lae'zel when propositioned. At the Tiefling party, she sleeps with Astarion.

Two new experiences during Act 1 -- Lae'zel propositions you again with a very quick cut scene of her standing over you at the fire, and Astarion propositions you a second time too. They exchange really bad pick up lines, which is funny because Luscinia is really bad at flirting to the point that her failures are charming.

I've not seen these before! I didn't realize you could be free-wheeling and dealing with both, while getting Gale all worked up.

[daybrightsims]

I have finally done it.

The Absolute is defeated (the Emperor along with it).

Lae'zel is leading her people to freedom.

Wyll is the Blade of Avernus fighting hellspawn with Karlach, whose heart can (and will, dammit) be fixed.

Gale is the wizard professor of our dreams with Tara at his side, free of the Karsite Weave.

Shadowheart is roaming Faerun, finding her true self outside of Shar, her parents released to the Moonmaiden's embrace.

Halsin is the father of all orphans in Reithwin, rebuilding from the Shadow Curse.

Jahiera is helping Baldur's Gate rebuild, along with many others (Duke Ravenguard included).

Oh, Minsc is doing Minsc things, fighting for justice with Boo (and ending up in jail).

And Calliope (my Tav), a hero of legend, has seen many corners of Faerun with her vampire spawn love of her life, Astarion.

There will never be another game like this, and I can't wait to do it again.

[mxkokopuff]

my lil poly heart is happy this is such an amazing representation of poly relationships and ASTARION COMMUNICATING HIS INSECURITY ABOUT AND NEWALA REASSURING HIM AND HALSIN BEING JUST SO RESPECTFUL AND I'M JUST?? IT'S SO CUTE

THIS IS THE POLY REP I NEEEEEED and after the deed he just says this an di'm like; YES- THIS GUY GETS IT!! THANK YOU HALSIN!!!

[bear-bear-bear-bear-bear]

jaheira please im trying to have a serious conversation

[artistictea]

ur blue skrunkly man fascinates me, please tell me about him (and has he managed to make Halsin worse)

HIII ANON THANK YOU FOR THE ASK <3 His name is Tavryn, he spent two entire arcs being the worst man alive who prioritized money over everything else. Karlach wants him dead. I really did think I was going to play a fully evil character but then Act 3 started and it came with all these heavy hitting questions about morality and.......against all odds, he somehow got fixed. More or less. So I guess Halsin was right.

[what-is-it-to-be-pk-esque]

Omg the love triangle/breakup dynamics in BG3 kill me

Astarion offering to have a sordid affair down the road if you romance Wyll is amazing - and you can agree to that lmaooo. Honestly his retorts and jokes about Wyll if you pick Astarion might be the funniest in the bunch, love that he calls you a scoundrel if you agree hahaha

Karlach's got some really kind and funny things to say about Astarion as long as you get his act 2 scene before you sleep with her (the throwing his pomade into the river comment, joking about sharpening stakes, saying he's not one whose heart you should play with, etc). If it's the other way around you def feel like a piece of shit for picking him and she is right to make you feel that way lol. Also let her be the one to end things, don't tell her you're ending things first unless you want to cry, holy shiiiiiit 😭😭😭 I swear she makes me wanna cry more than anyone else this whole game (such good acting!)

Shadowheart, she also has some really insightful things to say about Astarion if that's your love triangle, but I think you can't really do an act 2 scene with her until the end of Act 2 / early Act 3? So in early act 2 she only gets one breakup option instead of 2 like the others, which only happens from Shadowheart initiating the breakup after you get the other person's act 2 scene. Regardless she & Wyll seem to take a breakup best imo

Meanwhile from what I can tell Gale does not take it well if you pick someone else no matter which order you do the love triangle. He's either super hurt or pissed no matter what I did even though I didn't even kiss him in the weave in my game!! I had no way to tell him let’s just be friends before anything with Astarion happened, although to his credit he does have one or two okay responses of wanting you to be happy as long as you let him down gently in the convo before his act 2 scene. He's just clearly very hurt and down bad though, I felt awful the whole time lol, almost as bad as with Karlach

When I've tried to make the love triangle happen with Lae'zel, she was just ultra salty no matter what I did & Astarion only had like one non-generic line 🤷‍♀️ might also be bugged cause when I tried to pick her after getting his Act 2 scene she said nothing and all I could choose was leave/breakup. Felt like they didn't add as many options for her? You can tell it def affects her though cause even though she's pissed she says your "bruises will scar" :( so... still a bummer

Similarly for Wyll if you choose someone else over him, his comments are mostly generic about writing your story and honestly he’s pretty mature about it, but you don't even get to tell him you wanna date both, which is where they can say some pretty emotional/funny stuff, so again, doesn't seem like a lot of variations were put in for him

I find it interesting that you seem to only get the "you chose me instead of X?" dialogue with Astarion if you break it off with Shadowheart or Karlach, where you can tell him you're "dead serious" about the relationship. Unless I missed it, he didn't have anything to say when I talked to him after breaking up with Gale or Wyll or Lae'zel, which is when that dialogue pops up with the other two.

He seems to have the "i hear you have a new lover / what, why?" speech with everyone though. If you choose someone else over him before his act 2 scene he has the same various replies of "lucky you, you'll think of me / i'll think of everything we did / having you once was enough" etc, but if it's after his act 2 scene it's all "I didn't think / you were a mistake" :( and you'll feel terrible about yourself

ALSO while I'm talking about it, idk if this happened to anyone else, but the "I hear you have a new lover" speech was bugged for me for Gale/Wyll/Lae'zel, so he skipped saying the 1st shady unique line for them, BUT I could see it in the journal. Karlach's seemed to work fine though. Adding pics for reference minus Shadowheart

UPDATE ok it is a known bug and Shadowheart def has variations too, adding the youtube link for these. Also I had NO idea about the act 3 versions, omg these are SAVAGE towards Wyll and Gale ahhahaha

[tadpolebrains]

Love Language Headcanons BG3 (Pt. 1)

Love language headcanons for the male companions! Female companions will be in a part 2. Because I have nothing better to do :D

Astarion’s love languages revolve less around the specific type and more about the intent. He’ll listen to you spew thoughtless praise and such at him for hours, but it’s when you complement things that people don’t tend to notice that he’ll really melt. Because sure, he’s used to people calling him handsome and using his body to seduce people, but he’s not so used to someone pointing out, say, his fine skills with sewing. Or using words like ‘pretty’ or ‘beautiful’ instead of ‘charming’ and ‘handsome. It’s why he’ll get a bit shocked during the one mirror scene if you start pointing out smaller, seemingly inconsequential details, like the curls of his hair or his smile lines- he’s not used to people caring enough to look that closely. In the same vein, he also enjoys physical touch, but moreso anything non-sexual. Hand-holding, forehead kisses, hugs- any touch that has no ulterior motive behind it. It takes him a while to get used to, but once he does it’s like you can’t get him off of you. He’ll get all whiny about it too sometimes if he doesn’t feel like you’ve been touching enough, “Tav, darling, you’re simply neglecting me, holding that dagger instead of my ever so cold hand. Positively cruel.”

Gale defaults to acts of service at first. It’s what he’s kind of used to after Mystra, trying so hard to keep up with pleasing her again and again. Putting all of his self-worth into what he can provide for her. But after helping him work through a bit of that trauma and making sure he understands that he doesn’t constantly have to be doing something for you for you to stay, he realizes he simply enjoys just passing the time together. Quality time. Even if you two are in the same room doing entirely different things, he just finds it comforting to know you’re there, that he’s not alone, and that you’re not going anywhere. Of course, he’ll still go out of his way to do things for you, but it starts becoming more of a gift giving habit. He’ll bring you something from the market because ‘it reminded me of you, so you had to have it.’ He’ll get you books he’s read that he thinks you’ll enjoy. Tiny trinkets that he could go into hour-long explanations on why he just had to get it for you. Poems and little notes written and handed to you before he walks out the door. Eventually, you’ll have so many tiny little things he’s given you that you’re running out of space, but you’ll just have to get a bag of holding, because there’s no way in hell you’re getting rid of them. Later, when he finds out you not only still have every single little thing, and also remember when you got every single one, he’s so touched that he… totally isn’t crying, no, there’s just something in his eye.

Wyll is very much a words of affirmation man. He is the Disney prince of BG3, and can and will rave on about you for days on end. He’ll spin tiny things you’ve done and tell them to people like they were the most incredible things he’s ever seen. You could wake up with a bedhead and be the groggiest you’ve ever been and he’ll still tell you you’re gorgeous. He’s horrible at taking what he dishes out after Mizora changes him, though, especially at first when it comes to his own looks. He’s used to the praise people spew about the Blade of Frontiers, but less used to your little compliments about Wyll Ravengard. Many nights after the transformation, you spend them with him spewing sweet words about his new horns or idly tracing fingers along them to make sure he knows you’re not afraid of it. You still see him as a person, and that’s where physical touch comes in. Because your words and touch reminds him that he’s still there. Still human. And still loved. And of course, like the gentleman he is, he will always try to find some way to return the favor and attention later on. Will ask what he can do to repay you, and if you answer with a ‘don’t worry about it’ or ‘you don’t need to do anything,’ he’ll just find little things to do in return anyway. You mentioned liking this one specific thing from a town five days ago? Well, it appears on your pillow later that night. His acts of service side tends to come out during those times too. A minor inconvenience that you could easily handle? Oh, he’s got that covered. Don’t even try to protest it, he’ll start listing off all of the things you’ve done for him lately, and by the time he’s convinced you to sit back down the task could have been handled already.

Halsin is a very tactile person. With everyone. Physical touch is a natural need of the body, after all, and he is a man of nature. So even platonically, he will be setting a hand on people’s shoulders, or ruffling hair, or bumping shoulders- any of it. You initiating it, though, is very much appreciated. Maintaining prolonged points of contact, ie hand-holding, cuddling, hugs, etc, is really what makes him feel attached. And when he’s in bear form, he loves the feeling of gentle hands combing through the dense fur, and curling protectively around you when you’re both asleep. He’ll let you braid his hair with a chuckle if you ask, and if you have longer hair, will return the favor. He’s also a gift giver by habit; perhaps it’s the animal instinct. But he’ll bring gifts of foraged berries, or a catch from the river, or even random little flowers and leaves (and of course, will indulge any questions about the specific types of plants he’s bringing back). He’ll light up with any of those questions about nature, and it encourages you to ask more often, even if it’s just a simple “hey, Halsin, what’s this?” on the road. He gets this little twinkle in his eye. Long nature walks become a pretty frequent routine, and if your legs start hurting he’ll either carry you or turn into a bear to let you ride on his back.

[talesofthedm]

List of ships I have and why (companions only):

Wyll x Karlach: wyll is a hopeless romantic and Karlach just wants soft relationship and I think she'd help him with the new horns and he'd help her reexperience all the intimacy and soft relationships she missed during her time in Avernus and also I want a dance scene with them here he tries to teach her without actually touching her. It would be some of Wylls most cherished memories, even after she dies and it takes him a while to move on and she's forever the one who got away because he couldn't bring himself to send her back to Avernus cuz it's the one wish she had and now I'm sad writing this

Lae'zel x Shadowheart (short term): they would not be a healthy (romantic) relationship in the long term. But I feel like they force all the pent up emotions about all the bullshit they're experiencing out of each other and by extent help each other process it. Ultimately they figure that out and just kinda part ways romantically, but the understanding makes them lifelong friends.

Lae'zel x Gale: he'd reach out to her in that awkward 'idk what to say or do because I don't deal with people but I know how you feel' kinda way after the creche. She just tolerates him as he rambles about special interests and maybe answers questions about the astral sea and the gith as she opens up more. They kinda bond over the realization that their respective gods are both assholes and that each other are worth more than they were originally led to believe.

Shadowheart x Halsin (later life): idk if they'd be long term, but I like the idea what after shadowheart is forced to revaluate her beliefs and faith and ultimately herself and place in the world that Halsin is just a kind shoulder and he helps her rediscover herself and what it is to have healthy relationships without expectations and also she gets to climb mount Halsin but that's a later thing.

Astarion x Halsin: Idk if it would be long term, but the two would def help each other through their respective traumas and at minimum always mean the world to each other even if they decide to pursue it as a friendship and not a romantic interest and Astarion would help Halsin realize self care and it's okay to be selfish sometimes and Halsin would help him understand that he can find fulfillment in helping others

[0ccuria]

Don't mind me, just thinking about post game Qi'zyr'ra and Halsin watching over the githyanki egg in the commune and fully adopting the baby as theirs when it hatches.

Halsin coming to cherish something so (quite literally) alien to him, turning into a mother hen.

Taking it along his walks, carrying it in a little sling over his chest so his arms can be free to point out things of interest to it.

Always talking to it as if it can hear him, teaching it about different animals and plants and cooing encouraging affirmations.

Even if it didn't directly come from Qi'zyr'ra, he sometimes slips up and refers to it as 'their baby'.

Qi'zyr'ra wanting to name it Tha'ni'ael in honor of a little nature spirit, while keeping to its cultural roots.

Referring to Lae'zel as 'auntie' and even Voss as 'uncle' at times when they visit to plan liberation strategies.

When it finally begins to hatch, Halsin turns it into a big occasion, dropping literally anything and anyone he was tending to, importance or others be damned.

And although the means of 'conception' were unconventional, he's always thankful to Qi for bringing him this gift - a chance to raise a brand new life from the start as his own - 'their own'.

😭😭😭

[stormcallart]

Made it all the way to Act III on my Origins Karlach run to romance Halsin just for the initial romance dialogue with him to bug... life is so cruel my dudes.

[artschoolglasses]

Halsin Hugs 🖤

Baldur's Gate 3

[imperatoralicia]

When my druid companions are shapeshifted into dinosaurs, this is all that goes through my head.

[rebelontherocks]

With all the relevant criticisms irt Larian's treatment of Wyll, I still won't leave people off the hook for completely ignoring him, though. He is a very interesting character, with a fascinating story. 'He's too good' so are Halsin and Karlach, and that doesn't seem to stop anyone from engaging with them. Halsin as a non-origin character has way less content than Wyll, and it's not as if his personality particularly evolves or if he has a very nuanced arc. Karlach may have more content than Wyll but has a very flat arc, with no development, so the most interesting outcome for her narratively is dying, but people hate engaging with that, because they're allergic to experiencing any emotions that aren't puppies and doggies positive. So, people aren't even getting the most out of her story, and she's still a fan favorite. Much in the way I know I'm not getting the most out of Wyll's story and he's still my favorite.

You have no excuses, saying 'he has less content' is no excuse because you love characters with equal amounts of content that are just as 'good' with no problem.

[what-is-it-to-be-pk-esque]

I am so... empty and happy and idk... experiencing withdrawal after that baldur's gate 3 epilogue yall

I can't get over everything around the endgame scenes with Karlach and Astarion (and I mean the "good" endings!), I am literally still processing it days later 😭

Plus Gale being a professor, free of the orb?? Shadowheart being at peace, finding herself and able to adopt the Owlbear?? Her visiting Gale and Tara for tea??? Making her own cider and wanting to do a reunion party every year??? Being invited to lecture Gale's students and bring Astarion too and also stay and chat in his tower??? Halsin gets to be a dad like he's always wanted with all the orphans??? Karlach has hope for a new engine and may return home and might be more than friends with Wyll??? Lae'zel raging her dream, riding red dragons and learning to be more diplomatic? Jaheira being Jaheria and Minsc visiting Astarion much to his dismay (and somehow when he's not with my Tav in the Underdark or looking for a cure lol)?? Just... everyone living their best lives??? All of the hugs!???? My heart is so full the more I think about it but I also want to see it in the game and not my head 😭

Only issue is who gets Scratch??? Where has he been the past 6 months and where is he staying afterwards?? Did I miss this detail??

Basically that epilogue is so so wholesome and hopeful. Got me feeling like this once again

[mirrorhouse]

i know a lot of people have said it already but it does kinda suck that the only thing you actually gain from recruiting minthara is minthara herself. the obvious way to get her (siding with the goblins) locks you out of three companions (karlach, wyll, halsin), all the tiefling refugee npcs and their associated quests, and a whole quest related to halsin in act 2. and there's nothing to make up for it, you just have less things to experience now

even if you're not doing a necessarily 'evil' playthrough, like i am, and you don't choose sides and moved on to the creche (which i did, because it made sense for my character to want to get there as soon as possible), you still lose most of the same things. functionally, aside from keeping karlach and wyll, you get pretty much the same result as you would personally slaughtering a whole bunch of refugees

[brain-rot-central]

There is a severe shortage of breeding fics in this fandom.