#he also has a an exceptional relationship with shadowheart and gale and wyll

[apricote]

love how sirius has an "exceptional" relationship with lae'zel but she greets him by saying "greetings" with a very bitchy face, i love her

[powdermelonkeg]

just saw ur gale/mystra analysis post. im new to the game and dnd lore and honestly… ur take on their relationship feels like the most natural/compelling one??? esp since its all too easy to simplify topics that have many facets and nuance….

thanks for sharing i love analysis and reading people’s takes on narratives : D

My pleasure! (Bee from the future here: congrats, you spawned another meta!)

I love complicated characters, WAY more than I like a clear cut-and-dry case. Flaws, to me, are what make a character compelling and lead to interesting stories about them with choices that can get them into situations. I'm both writing a fanfic and running a campaign where I'm playing as Gale, and in the interest of portraying him properly and in-character, I've gone into SUCH a deep dive into all the decisions and facts that make him him.

It helps to, y'know, also be in love with the fictional wizard, but I digress

The thing about Baldur's Gate 3 is that no character in there is perfect. I've seen a couple analyses about the theme of continuing cycles of abuse vs breaking out of them, but in my mind, in terms of the characters themselves, it goes like this:

The origin characters have just come out of the lowest situation of their lives (Lae'zel being the exception; being tadpoled is a gith's worst nightmare. You're seeing that lowest situation in real time).

Not the lowest point, mind. Gale's lowest was probably the day after he got the Orb. Wyll's was probably the day his father cast him out. Karlach's was the day she lost her heart. But the lowest, accepted normal for them is what they've just left.

They're then thrown out of their depth and forced to rely on you to live. That's #1 priority: living. We get the extremes of these characters before we get their nuances, because they're quite literally at their breaking points.

Then once we get to know them, we see their wants, their hopes, their fears, as they open up to us. Every companion's story is at their own pace, but they all have a moment where they ping-pong between despondency and desire. Sometimes that desire is what we know isn't good for them, like Shadowheart wanting to be a Dark Justiciar. Sometimes that despondency is only for a flicker, like Astarion's realization that he's condemned 7000 people to a half-life of tortured spawnhood for as long as he's been a vampire.

Romance lets us crack all that open more, because if you pursue a romantic partner, they see you as their closest confidant. They WANT to trust you, so they're more willing to explain how they see the world and what decisions they want to chase.

And then their endings. Those often get simplified as good/bad, continuing the cycle vs breaking away from it. But how is Duke Wyll on the same platform as Ascended Astarion? He's not evil, he's not even entirely unhappy. He might even have broken out of his abusive cycle with Mizora, if you played your cards right. And Ascended Astarion is overjoyed, even if he is remarkably more cold.

I think that the endings are less a dichotomy of "this is good for them" vs "this is bad for them," and more one of "bringing out their best traits" vs "bringing out their worst."

Wyll's worst trait is being willing to sacrifice his own wants for whatever people desire of him. His best is standing for what he believes in and ensuring people are safe. Duke Wyll leans into that necessity to turn the other cheek in the name of people who count on him, while the Blade of Avernus has seized that moral compass of his and forged it out of mithral.

Shadowheart's worst trait is blind obedience at the cost of her individuality, while her best is her desire to be kind to things that don't deserve to be hurt. Mother Superior Shadowheart's whole life is defined by Shar. Selûnite Shadowheart's life is defined by her hospitality, especially towards animals.

Karlach's worst trait is how willing she is to accept that things are (to quote her) fucked, letting despair override hope. Her best is her durability in the face of horror. Exploded Karlach would rather die than try to work out a solution in the Hells, because she's terrified of facing Zariel alone. Mindflayer Karlach has accepted her fate and decides to give up her heart and soul to go out a hero, losing who she is. Fury of Avernus Karlach is willing to keep fighting for a solution, and by the time the epilogue happens, she's got her sights set on one.

Astarion's worst trait is his desire for power over people. His best trait is using the tools he has to his advantage. Ascended Astarion has let his powerhungry nature and paranoia lead all of his decisions, with his sights set on dominating mankind. Spawn Astarion has embraced what he is, and carved out a life for himself where he can do as he pleases.

Lae'zel's worst trait is her blind fanaticism, while her best trait is her individual dedication, making her loyalty a marriage of the two. Ascended Lae'zel is a meal for the lich queen, turning a blind eye to all Vlaakith's tried to do to her and literally being consumed by her fervor. Champion of Orpheus Lae'zel has turned her loyalty into something productive for diplomacy. Faerûnian Lae'zel has seized her individuality by the throat and decided her own future.

And then Gale. Gale's worst traits are his hubris and, paradoxically, his low self worth. His best traits are his creativity and wonder for the world. God Gale is the embodiment of ambition, having burned away all but that in pursuit of perfection. Exploded Gale has let his remorse blot out all hope for a redemption in which he does not die, because he thinks he's earned it. Professor Gale leads his life by embracing the school of Illusion and letting his creativity thrive, teaching others to do the same. House Husband Gale has multiple creative projects he's working on, and Adventurer Gale is always finding new sights to see and wanting to share them with you.

There are arguments to be made on which ending the origins are happiest in, certainly, or which one benefits them the most, but each ending represents the extreme of a facet they possess.

So with all that, there's a sort of malleable method to figuring out the ins and outs of a character.

You take their endings—all of them, all variables they can have—and reverse-engineer the flaws and details they carry. Then you start to notice how those work into their approvals for minor things: Astarion approving of your taking of the Blood of Lathander, or Shadowheart approving of standing up for Arabella. Getting a list of approvals and disapprovals is helpful, but having those endings on hand tells you why they react like that to a majority of their decisions.

You take their romance-route explanations of how they act, and apply those to earlier decisions. Astarion's confession to manipulating you and Araj-prompted admittance to using himself as a tool brings to light how he reacts to your decisions, regardless of his actual opinions on them. Wyll's fairytale romance and love of poetic adages speaks to his idealistic nature, and why he takes a sometimes-blinded approach to decisions in which the "right" answer isn't always the smart one.

You take their beginning reactions to stress and use that to measure how future decisions impact them. Lae'zel locks down and gets snappy when she's scared, while Gale immediately turns to diplomacy. Shadowheart has gallows humor, while Wyll turns to quiet acceptance. If they break from these and seem even worse, you know the situation is more dire in their minds than having seven days to live.

And then you factor in all their fun facts and dialogue choices and backstories.

A wizard falls in love with a goddess and her magic, attempts to retrieve a piece of her power for her, is scorned for his attempt and is cursed to die.

Give that backstory to a Tav. Look at how it changes.

A chaotic good wizard fell in love with a goddess, thought retrieving a piece of power for her would be a showy bouquet of love, and was punished for not thinking things through.

A lawful evil wizard fell in love with a goddess's power, snatched the most precious thing she owned, tried to use it to barter his way through to the secrets she kept, and was given a swift retribution.

Same backstory. Same class, same act, same goddess. Wildly different connotations. Wildly different conclusions as to who is in the wrong.

If you take all there is to Gale, all that the game shows us makes up his character, and apply it to this backstory, you get what really happened:

A wizard, enamored with magic, fell in love with a goddess. His desires led him to want more than she was willing to give. In his well-buried fear of inadequacy, he concluded that the reason she wouldn't indulge his ambitions was because he just hadn't proven himself worthy enough. So he tried to prove himself, but he lacked the context for what he was proving himself with. And the goddess, seeing a weapon that had killed her predecessor, saw this ambitious wizard as losing his way and coming for her just like the weapon's creator had. She was angry, she withdrew his link to her, and he didn't know why. So he drew the conclusion that she took his powers to punish him, and let that encompass his fall from grace.

Was he wrong to reach for what was out there?

If you knew that the answers to everything you cared about were not only known, but kept by someone you loved—someone who adored you—what would you do to ask to see them? What if your curiosities were if there were other planets with life out there, or how dark matter worked, or whether or not we could one day travel in the stars? What if it was the potential cure to an illness that's little-understood, or the way to make a program you dreamt up, or the scope of the true limits of your artistic talents? Would your answer change?

Was she wrong to cut him off?

If you were once hurt, and the person you loved—the person who adored you—brought the thing that caused it to your door, believing you'd want it, how would you react to seeing it? What if that thing was someone you thought you'd broken contact with, like a friend or family member you'd been trying to avoid? Would your answer change?

That's the sort of scope that needs to be applied to this, on both sides. You have to take the perspectives of each party, and apply two analogies instead of one.

Gale saw the vastness of the universe, untold wonders, the solution to every question he could ever dream up, and saw Mystra as withholding this from him because she thought he just wasn't worthy enough. To claim Mystra knew his perspective does her a disservice.

Mystra saw a cruel weapon she thought long gone, in the hands of someone who could use it, brought right to her, and thought Gale was willingly following the path of Karsus. To claim Gale knew her perspective does him a disservice.

Should Gale have researched his prize more, so he knew just what he was obtaining? Should he have kept his hands off a cursed book that would devour him? Of course he should have.

Should he have given up on chasing his dreams?

Should Mystra have understood that Gale's pursuit of power was nothing like Karsus'? Should she have communicated when she was angry instead of giving the cold shoulder? Of course she should have.

Should she have given him the benefit of the doubt?

That's the root of their falling out. That's what leads to hurt being inflicted. Understandable, human reactions to the situations they perceive. Unhealthy, unwise choices made afterwards.

You work backwards from this to figure out their dynamic as Chosen and goddess. You work forward from this to understand more of where Gale and Mystra are during the events of Baldur's Gate 3. Gale reached too high, and understands this. His goddess hates him, and he regrets this. Mystra isolated Gale, and understands this. Her Chosen wants redemption, and she wants to make it happen.

Just like we took Gale's character into account, we also have to take Mystra's.

A goddess is faced with a problem. She uses someone who's desperate for approval to solve it, by telling him to kill himself.

An evil goddess is faced with a threat to her reign. She sees someone who's unfailingly loyal and hates himself, and elects to have him tear himself apart rather than do anything about it.

A good goddess is terrified of the future. She sees someone who tried to hurt her, who's going to die anyways, and tells him to use it to save the world.

Same story. Same act, same power, same pawn. Different character. Different perspective. Different outlook on whether or not this is the right thing to do.

Mystra has died, multiple times, to people trying to stake claim to her domain. Someone appears with the very thing that could do it again, right as she's regained her stability.

She does not see mortals the way mortals do. She is timeless. She is eternal. She has a duty to protect billions of people, and one person lost to protect that number is more than worth the sacrifice.

People like to bring up the Seven Sisters as proof of Mystra's cruelty. For those unaware, Mystra asked permission to, then possessed, a woman, used her to court a man (with dubious consent from the woman), and bore seven children, all of whom were capable of bearing Mystra's power as Chosen without dying. The woman she possessed was killed in the process (reduced to no more than a husk, then slain by her now-husband, hoping to end her suffering), and the husband was horrified by the whole story.

Mystra needed Chosen in order to restore herself in the event that she was killed again, to prevent magic as a whole from collapsing and wreaking havoc on the mortal realm, like it had in the few seconds Mystryl had been dead. Elminster, Khelben Blackstaff, and the Seven Sisters contributed to this. The more Chosen she has, the better; what happens if Elminster dies? She can't afford to have all her eggs in one basket.

Mystra has Volo (yeah, that Volo) as a Weave Anchor, imparted with a portion of her power to prevent the Weave from shredding itself to pieces in her absence. All Chosen of Mystra are Weave Anchors by nature. The creation of Weave Anchors was mandated by Ao, the Overgod, and Chosen are the best way to make sure those anchors aren't drained by ambitious people hoping for godlike power. Chosen can, and will, defend themselves, unlike static locations (which Mystra also has). The anchors are why the Weave wasn't completely obliterated during Mystra's last death, when the Spellplague rose up, because they stabilized the Weave around them.

Everything Mystra does is in the name of the big picture, to prevent a catastrophe like the fall of Netheril from happening again. Her restriction of magic, her numerous Chosen, her creation of Weave Anchors, her destruction of those who would claim her power, it's all in the name of the stability she's been charged with. Dornal Silverhand's grief and Elué Silverhand's death, while regrettable, were worth it to bring seven more anchors into existence to save all of the Material.

So someone appears with the Crown of Karsus, potentially powerful enough to try to kill the other gods in the name of the Dead Three. She can't risk being a target of them. She can't risk the destruction of magic again.

Gale is going to die. He lives in fear. He begs for forgiveness.

In Mystra's eyes, she's offering him the best outcome. She'll let him die in service to her, to save Faerûn, and she'll forgive him. He's going to die anyways, and if he does this, she'll give him everything (she thinks) he could ever want in her realm. She's asking him to do what (she thinks) is the right thing.

"She would consider what she considers to be forgiveness."

Notably, she leaves the decision in his hands. She doesn't have Elminster lead him to the Nether Brain. She doesn't activate him as soon as he's there. When he lives yet, she doesn't revoke the charm that keeps him stable. And when he declines, when he lets it go and starts pursuing Karsus' path, she doesn't smite him on the spot.

She is (she thinks) being incredibly patient. If Gale is going to try to be Karsus II, she's ready for him. If he decides to walk off and keep the Orb, he's dug his own grave in the Fugue Plane (those who don't have a god to claim them roam endlessly as husks and form a wall of bodies around the City of Judgement).

From her perspective, she's not being unreasonable. But from the perspective of a mortal, she absolutely is.

"Now, I have a question for thee: what is the worth of a single mortal's life?"

This is a question she cannot answer properly.

I think a lot of characterization is lost whenever someone paints one of them as being totally in the right. But I also think you have to be invested in them as characters to want to see that characterization. If you want to write about Mystra, you have to try to get into her head, analyze the decisions she made, figure out why she thinks she was right, and follow the pattern.

Gale's sacrifice is a very predictable thing for her to ask for.

[thechaoticdruid]

So I've finished my first run through of the game and did the epilogue which was just so precious! But anyways, it made me think, how would the companions react upon announcing at the reunion you and your partner are expecting!

I actually don't do requests but I like this one. I haven't made it to the epilogue yet in game but I think I can still answer these. They might be short though so please forgive me! 😔

I also tried to keep the reader's sex and gender as ambiguous as possible, but some words are hard to convey in gender neutral terms. Also the reader's partner is not specified.

But if your partner is Astarion (like my Tav's) I feel like everyone would have a similar "Is that even possible!?" reaction, except maybe Gale cause he's well studied.

Shadowheart

If you're the pregnant one she remarks on how she thought you were getting fat.

Like girl has no chill.

But if you're the father I can see her teasing you about not being able to keep your hands to yourself around your partner.

Proceeds to gift you gothic style clothes for the little one when it's closer to the birth.

Wyll

He immediately congratulates you both and wishes you well on your new adventure in parenting.

Assures you that the two of you will make a beautiful baby.

Also he asks to touch the bump if the pregnant person is showing. 🥺

Buys toys for the baby before it's even born.

Karlach

Immediately screams "FUCK YEAH I'M GONNA BE AN AUNT!!!"

Runs around to tell everyone else and buys you both drinks to celebrate for the occasion.

Needs to be reminded that drinking is bad for the baby.

Will plant a big smooch on the baby bump if the pregnant person is showing.

Starts wearing a T-shirt that says "BEST FUCKIN AUNT EVER." Also gets a matching shirt for the little one.

Lae'zel

Unless she has Xan she isn't particularly interested. She'd probably still congratulate you in her own githyanki way I suppose if you're on good terms.

If she does have Xan she suggests they spar together some day. Though she is confident her son will be victorious.

This is probably her own way of having a play date for your children.

Gale

Congratulates you both and wishes the two of you the best.

Offers to teach the child magic when they become old enough to learn.

Buys you lots of parenting books and tries to help by reminding you lots of useful facts, but in the end he kinda just low-key starts to be a bit annoying.

He means well though.

Astarion

Of course he may already be well aware of the pregnant person's bun in the oven depending on how far along they are.

His vampiric senses alert him to the little heartbeat within, you see.

"Enjoy your last few months of freedom and sleep filled nights while you can, darlings!~"

"But really, I am rather happy for the two of you. Especially you, I didn't think you had it in you." He says condescendingly to the father of the child.

Honestly he's just a little bitter he's single and alone.

Pretends not to have any interest in touching the baby bump, says he has no interest in the little creature growing inside.

But if he has a good relationship with either of the two parents he will make the baby eccentric little outfits. Especially goes all out if it's a little girl. Purple and red ruffles all over.

Will get very offended if he doesn't see the baby wearing them.

He put his soul into those outfits godsdamnit!

[rawrsatthetree]

I think the best way to tackle a Modern AU for BG3 isn’t to make it a slice of life but to some how combine the elements of a collage drama, organized crime, a dooms day cult, and an alien invasion all into one coherent plot.

I do not know how to do this but I do have some ideas. All the characters have no reason to associate with each other until they’re all abducted by aliens, wormed, and released back into the wild like a bird that just got tagged. Everyone kind of writes it off as either a bad trip or a dream until the cross paths and the worm does the connection thing. Eventually bringing them all together with a few people investigating the invasion to get to the bottom of what’s happening.

Wyll is a pre law student mostly against his will to appease his dad. He wants to help people but doesn’t necessarily want to be a cop like his father the chief of police. He half asses his classes because he doesn’t have much passion for them, blowing them off to volunteer in clubs and community outreach programs. I think Mizora should be either a professor, Dean of students, or academic advisor. In exchange for favors she alters his grades pushes him through the system. Little does he know she’s also idk involved with a crime organization and her favors go from small and perverted to slowly becoming more dangerous and criminal. He’s young and she has a lot of power over his future and could even expose him as a fraud and an accomplice to his father so he feel helpless to defy her.

Astarion is a law school drop out but that’s old news. You’ll find him prowling the local bar and club scene looking for potential clients. After a string of bad luck and poor life choices he’s a prostitute and drug dealer for a local gangster in the Black Hand gang only known as The Vampire (I know I’m so creative). Cazador’s deal is still the pretty much the same local rich public figure is secretly a very cruel and evil man who uses fear and addiction to control his underlings.

Karlach worked as muscle for the leader of the Black Hand gang before she was forcibly sold and enlisted as a mercenary over seas. After a ten years fighting in foreign years she’s back and ready to get her revenge on the whole Black Hand cult unfortunately she has to do it quickly because (ok idk I tried doing some research and couldn’t find any condition caused by an injury that can suddenly become fatal idk maybe cancer from a bullet or shrapnel)

Gale isn’t a professor but like a doctorate student on a tenure track, but bordering on the mad science kind of research. He’s in an abusive relationship with his over seeing faculty Mystra. Ultimately a lab accident during his research leads to the orb.

I think Lae’zel should still be an alien. She was abducted on another planet and escaped while the earthlings were being tadpoled. Now she’s stranded and tadpoled on a strange planet.

Halsin is a university professor and a local environmental activist. He’s been investigating strange occurrences and is onto the alien invasion thing.

I’m honestly not sure about Shadowheart. She should definitely be college age. But I’m not sure how to approach the shar thing.

Not sure about Minthara either except maybe military turned death cult member.

Jaheira and Minsc are cops investigating the alien invasion I’m so sorry not like real world cops but like fun fictional cops that only exist in movies. Boo is their police dog. OMG wait no they’re Park Rangers!!

Other stuff

The dead three chosen are instead three gang leaders. Except Bhaal cult also doubles as a murder cult still on top of being a criminal organization.

The alien invasion is still the mind flayer grand design.

I don’t think the dead three are controlling the mind flayers this time. Instead they’re using the strange alien invasion occurrences as grounds to start a dooms day cult or maybe they are idk

[gobbochune]

Baldurs Gate III gets relationships right

so one thing ive always hated about the relationships in rpgs is the much-meligned 'give them stuff until they sex with you' thing but also that they make navigating interpersonal relationships overall too simple. you first meet them, ask a laundry list of questions, that opens up quests with handy little markers on the map, and if you go to those locations they progress the plotline. its like they tell you their goals and tragic backstory right away, and then you give them what they want until they're your friend. what they want (unless their name is evil McBadrun) is a net good for the world, and you're rewarded for always supporting them. (the obvious exception being solas dont even go there)

but BGIII doesnt make it so easy for you. Shadowheart immediately gets her hackles up if you ask her too many questions too quickly. Asterion gets angry if you're too simpering about his tragic backstory. You pretty much know that Wyll is lying/wrong from the jump, but pointing it out will piss him off. Gale has a thirst for power that he never quite shakes, and you have to talk him down from making the same mistakes again.

So far every character quest ive done culminates in a moment where you have to save your companions from themselves. The shadowheart and gale plotlines are particularly tense, you feel like you're at a real crossroads in your friendship and choosing the words wrong will ruin things forever.

I was a EA player, and I remember articles about how everyone in the party is a bitch who spits at you when you're nice to them. Shadowheart and Asterion in particular were kinda advertised as the 'main waifus' and people got mad when those two dont just automatically want you to save them and be their friend. I could make a joke about 'gamers who cant have relationships be too complicated or else they'll fail the quests' here but you get the point.

While full release made them a lot less rude, the companions are still complicated people who you need to navigate your feelings with whilst also trying to do whats right. I'm really glad that a rpg like this exists, and i hope it marks a change for these kinda games in the future.

[shenanigans-and-imagines]

Keep Thinking About Gale x Single Mom!Tav

A/N: Shout-out to @leighsartworks216 for letting me ramble to them about it. I just need to get all this stuff rattling around in my brain out.

I know, I know, Gale repeatedly says he's not father material, but have you considered that I want him to be a dad anyway and it's cute

So in my brain this single mom is named Gwen (Guinevere); a half-elf, wild magic sorceress

She came from a fairly well to do family, married a handsome and acceptably rich merchant and soon had a child on the way

Problems came when she gave birth to a healthy baby girl, who also happened to be a teifling

Seen as a bad omen, both her family and husband wanted her to give up the child, she refused causing her husband to leave her and her family to reject her

She didn't let that stop her though and soon she found a new home for her and Clara

Over the next eight years she worked hard to build a life for herself and make sure Clara never doubted for a moment she was loved

Gwen knew the world would be hard on her girl, so she made a point to build up her confidence and teach her it's never wrong to fight back when people are treating you unfairly; you can't take that shit lying down

Blunt and a bit intense, Gwen has seen and done plenty of shit and thought she finally had a handle on her life; and then she got kidnapped by illithids

Still haven't played the game, so I can't give a play by play of every interaction, but I do know early game she would be a bit distracted

Obviously her first goal is to figure out if her daughter is okay so it frankly is the only thing on her mind until she gets her hand on a sending scroll or something like it

Only after does she confirm that Clara is safe and with people she trusts can she focus on the task at hand

Takes a liking to Gale basically from the word go; he's respectful, he know hows to cook, he keeps making comments about his tongue, there is only so much a woman can handle

Gods know it has been a while since she's gotten laid

He starts rambling about magic and she can't not fuck him

Gale is hesitant at first because first the orb, second Gwen has made no secret she had a child and Gale doesn't see himself as father material, and three because he does really, really like her and doesn't want to make promises he can't keep

I'd say they're able to meet Clara before they head come to Baldur's Gate so Gale and the rest can meet her earlier; and to give Gwen some peace of mind

Clara is a very curious and headstrong, both of which Gale can appreciate; he can see why Gwen was so determined to get back to her, which only makes him admire her more

Also, quick aside about the rest of the companions; Wyll and Karlach would be ready to baby sit at any given moment, Lae'zel admires the child's fighting spirit and absolutely gifted her a sword, Shadowheart enjoys her more mischievous tendencies, and Astarion is classic wine aunt who hates all kids except Clara (he's been helping her stage of coup of the swing set)

Eventually feelings are confessed between Gale and Gwen leading to a proper relationship (and Gwen actually getting laid)

Gwen is absolutely not having it with him trying to blow himself up or becoming a god

Mystra: You must destroy yourself and the orb. Gale: Alright, let me ask Gwen. Mystra: No, that's not--. Gale: She said no.

Once everything is said and done, I'm going back and forth on if they would settle in Waterdeep

Clara has friends and it would be hard to ask her to leave, but I think Gale could compromise and get a position at a different magical university closer by

Either way, Gale settles into the domestic life rather nicely and dives head first into being the best father to Clara he can be

He absolutely devours every parenting book he can get his hands on, only to throw it all out the window once he's actually in it; Gwen did warn him, but old habits and all that

Probably waits a little longer to actually get married to see how they all function as a family together first; plus he wants to properly ask Clara if she's okay with him marrying her mother

I've got other random thoughts, but that about covers it for now, if you want to know more, feel free to drop an ask! I'm up for anything.

[domnorian]

How does isekaied Luthor get along with his companions?

Oh boy, it's gonna be a long one. I'm gonna make a list in order of appearance.

First, let me tell you that for ALL the companions, Lex WILL adapt his personality to be sure they will stay by his side. Because he's a manipulative bitch. But I guess everyone knew that already.

Lae'zel : She's an alien. And an alien from a species that tries to conquer the galaxy. So of course Lex first reaction to her and her people was not particularly friendly. But the fact she get things done, she's strong and efficient, made him quickly change his mind. He realized she was a very helpful asset. He also started asking questions about her people, to learn more about them because he's a giant nerd. Lae'zel quickly showed an interest in him: Lex is strong, charismatic (16 in charisma helps), smart and pragmatic, so of course she fell hard for him. And since it was just about sex and no feelings attached, Lex went with it. Lex still would betray Lae'zel if she wasn't enough of an asset for him anymore though. Lucky for her, she is pretty useful. He made sure to make her see what her Queen really was. And I think Lae'zel would now follow him until the end of times.

Shadowheart : Yes, Lex saved her on the mindflayer ship. For the same reason that he agreed to take all the others with him: he is aware he needs all the help he can get. So he opened her pod, hoping she could prove useful or throw her on a mindflayer to be able to escape. Fortunately, she was useful. The main issue is that Shadowheart tends to trust the wrong kind of persons, as you must know. And Lex is no exception. He did try many times to steal the artifact from her but failed. The fact she was avoiding telling the truth, though, that annoyed Lex pretty badly. When she finally revealed who she was, he at first was sceptical about her religion, but eventually showed great interest in Shar (you know, the whole "hope is pointless" was the moment he decided her religion wasn't so bad). Since Shadowheart was used to people hating on her cult, she was pleasantly surprised and well... let's just say she likes Lex. She approves his decisions most of the time and regrets hiding the truth from him since he's so trustworthy and comprehensive (lol). I think deep down she knows who he really is... but in the full meaning of it. She sees a broken man who will fight until the end to get what he wants. I think she pities him in some way.

Astarion : I was actually not that surprised when I realized Astarion and Lex wouldn't get along really well. Sure, Astarion approves Lex's decisions most of the time. But he still disapproves when Lex asks him to fuck off. Which is pretty often. For Lex, Astarion is annoying and clearly tries way too hard to get his nose into Lex's business. Also, the fact he hid he was a vampire. I wouldn't say Lex hates him, though. They have a relationship that looks more like siblings bickering. Astarion likes to mess with Lex and Lex likes to remind Astarion who's boss and who's the man who gave his blood so Astarion could finally be useful. I think maybe Astarion doesn't trust Lex because he reminds him too much of Cazador.

Gale : Ha. Gale. Poor darling. He really was right when he told Lex that he made him worse. Lex has a very bad influence on Gale. And Gale knows it. But he also knows he has no choice but to follow Lex to survive. He really is the one companion I'm truly sad about. He knew from the beginning that Lex was bad news but he went with it anyway. They both try to be civil with one another. Lex is a very good student to Gale and always listen to him when he talks about magic. Because for Lex, magic is science unexplained. And he's dying to find an explanation.

Wyll : Lex tried his best to manipulate Wyll. Only to fail again and again. Wyll isn't dumb, he sees clearly that Lex isn't a hero but is a selfish bastard with too much ambition. Lex thinks Wyll is an annoying goody two-shoes. When Wyll left after they attacked the emerald grove, Lex was relieved.

Karlach : Lex and Karlach didn't interact much. Lex did try to manipulate her as well but she too left camp after they attacked the emerald grove.

Minthara : She and Lex are adorable. In a creepy kinda way. That's all I'm gonna say for now because I will post screenshots of them later I think.

Halsin : Believe it or not, Halsin is still alive. He reminded Lex too much of Clark to be able to kill him from the get go. So Lex made sure the goblins already left the place when he rescued Halsin. Of course, Lex lied and didn't tell him he was with the goblins at the time. Halsin left, trying to reach the grove in time. Lex told him: "good luck". Maybe he did have luck because Lex didn't find Halsin on the battleground. He's hoping Halsin left and is still alive somewhere.

That's it for now. It may evolve as I progress into the game.

[ceo-of-sloppy-men]

(77anon) yup, that's the angst I was talking about. It's not great, and I'm scared (literally, most of the time)

Karlach can also explode so I think they’re like two potential endings? Very much avoidable ones, hopefully. Kinda like how we can free Astarion from Cazador (hopefully).

It’ll just take some elbow grease and a giant middle finger.

Honestly though what is with every companion being taken advantage of by older beings in positions of power? Wyll has his patron (I hate her so much I ain’t remembering her name). Astarion has Cazador. Gale has Mystra. Shadowheart has “Mother” from her cult. Karlach has Zariel. I’m not sure who Lae’zel has but I’m sure she’s got someone too.

Except halsin, he seems pretty fine (for now).

Like is it weird? Am I looking too deep into this? Because these are some wild but scarily accurate depictions of toxic relationships that all kinda align with each other. And yes, I am saying Gale has a toxic relationship, Mystra literally tells him to kill himself and she’ll offer him “her definition of redemption”.

[baldursgatethoughts]

Theory: Why all the origin characters have the pasts they have

The Origin characters and potential party members in this game are generally amazing and so well crafted. One thing that make them stand out from characters of other games is how their narratives are so intrinsically linked to the main story, and that in itself is not only good world building but most likely part of the story itself.

Heavy spoilers for the entire game coming up >>

Do not read unless you have played through the entire game from start to finish and want to know even more than one playthrough would reveal:

All of the original tadpoled characters share a type of background; they've all been manipulated, indoctrinated, groomed and abused.

This is a very likely reason for them specifically being chosen my the Guardian aka the Emperor, since he can read all of their minds and knows their thoughts, feelings and weaknesses.

In the intro scene you can see the Emperor* putting the tadpoles in our eyes on the nautiloid. He is making all the origin characters into "beautiful weapons" (as he says to Shadowheart) to combat the elder brain as part of a plan to regain his freedom, something you can hear the story of in Balduran's song itself:

When three, though dead, assailed his port (the three start their plan) transformed (he is a mindflayer) he fell their thrall, succumbed (he was mind controlled) as threat from nether years arose to conquer all (the absolute came) Now hope is gone, or so it seems, but game's not over yet New cards are drawn, new hands are played, newcomers place a bet A knave, a wizard, devil, gith, the odds are cast anew (the tadpoled ones) And Baldur's fate now turns upon the whims of fortune's few

The Emperor thinks these characters would be especially easy to control and manipulate, as they never been independent and free, at least not for a long time.

Astarion - by Cazador

Gale - by Mystra

Shadowheart - by Shar (through de Vir)

Karlach - Gortash and Zariel

Wyll - Mizora and Zariel

Lae'zel - by Vlaakith

The Dark Urge - by daddy Bhaal

Except for this bringing an additional layer of epic proportions to a game where divine forces are battling for the destiny of souls and power (Bhaal, Myrkul, Bane, Jergal, Selune, Shar, Mystra, Raphael/Zariel, Vlaakith, Orpheus, the Elder Brain to mention the most involved ones, Lliovathar, Magblubiet, Cyric and Silvanus among others also being in the game) which adds so much lore lore, understanding and impact to the main story, this also makes for very interesting character arcs.

You can through the game bring all of the origin characters further into the manipulative machinations of their evil patrons or you can free them from their past abusive cycles.

Astarion - free from his master or make him the new evil master

Gale - have him succumb to the magic power hunger or make him see that there are other values in life than magic power

Shadowheart - make her into the weapon Shar has been forming wants or let her reclaim her lost Selunite past

Karlach - let her give up and die from the results of her abuse or embolden her to fight back to those who have wronged her

Wyll - let him be manipulated or free him to create his own fate

Lae'zel - let her keep being manipulated by a false god that will eat her or let her believe another fate of the githyanki race is possible

The Dark Urge - embrace murder in the name of your controlling dad or free yourself from your ungodly father

There are many more nuances to those quest lines of course and other options like killing everyone, betraying them and so on, but these are some of the main dichotomies when it comes to playing out the relationship between the tadpoled origin characters and their abusive gods and masters.

BALDUR'S GATE 3 - NO GODS NO MASTERS Or obedience, abuse, murder and power? ;)

You decide!

* aka Balduran, who navigates the prism heist nautiloid for Gortash, an idea the elder brain puts in his head in a dream as part of its grand design to become free again, after giving them the idea to steal the crown of Karsus and control it in the first place, and mr Balduran Guardian Emperor doesn't realize he is being used as a pawn in the elder brain's grand game. Boi this game is so full of twists and turns and lore!

[kelpie-bael]

Bg3 epilogue spoilers and thoughts below. I have romanced no one except the Emperor and all companion quests were completed. Orpheus was killed.

First off, I talked to Lae'zel first and foremost expecting to be hated for killing Orpheus but she calls me old friend 😭😭😭. I love you so much, thank you for still liking me!!

Ajdjdjddj she calls herself Zealous, bossy, and insistent and that it's all part of her charm. God she's really making me regret not romancing her.

Lae'zel says she missed me 😭😭 It's confirmed she's Bael's best friend

Shadowheart says she missed me and then says I've gotten fatter XD She's much more soft spoken and calm. She truly seems at peace and happy. And then she makes fun of herself for spouting sharran drivel lol HAHA still so sassy!

HAHAHAHA SCRATCH HAS THE ASTRAL PRISM AND WANTS US TO THROW IT

For some reason Volo is fucking here lmao and Withers didn't invite him XD he fucking showed up on his own. He's fucking forging our signature for release forms. Arrogant bastard but he's hilarious

Gale is a professor! Esteemed and honored! I got to hug him!! He unfortunately gave the crown to Mystra and no longer has the orb yet threatens the students with blowing up XD LOLOLO references how I failed at his magic lesson

TARA MY BELOVED!!

!!!!! I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am to get the Cleric option!!! Roleplaying Bael as super devout and getting this is a blessing <3 AND THEN! Gale says he expects nothing less!

YES YES YES, MY EVANGELIZING BABE!! Lol he's still attempting to rizz me up and inviting me to stay in his tower

Right out of the gate, Astarion is flirting with me too X3 LOLOL if you ask him if he's been drinking and he calls us cheeky and that he's been well behaved. Aww little grumpy cat became respectable and a hero, killing the right people. He still doesn't consider himself 'good' which tracks. Aww he's accepted himself and seems happy, good for him. He's now less wet cat and more satisfied and happy. And he still wants the sun which of course he does

Halsin is still so formally articulate. Awww you offer a hug and he makes a joke about never declining and he's a doppelganger otherwise. Which hits because Orin did kidnap him 😭 Aww the Shadow lands are healing well and they've done wonders with reconstruction! Aww everyone is welcomed! What a shift from what we see from the grove at first. HALSIN HAS CHILDREN, 'CHARGES' TECHNICALLY BUT CHILDREN!! HAHA he jokes about tucking us in and telling bedtime stories. It's a little disappointing telling him about your time is less descriptive than the other companions.

Oliver and Thaniel are happy!! Yay!! Also he stills loves bear form and the children love it <3 Also he doesn't fuck as much anymore XD He's settled now and is happy!

He's not involved in the grove at all now but things are going well! I killed Kagha, good riddens. One last Halsin hug 🥰 HE GAVE ME A WOODEN DUCK!! I'm very happy about this duck

Jaheira is such a mom right out of the gate makes fun of me for being presentable for once lol And then I give it right back. Baldur's Gate reconstruction is going well! Jaheira still has a rough relationship with her kids but it seems to be better. Aww she doesn't truly care for the city but she helps for her children <3 Adopt me Jaheira! Aww unfortunately not too much to talk about with her. Very dry but I didn't bring her with me much.

Karlach is doing well in Avernus! Her and Wyll have been fighting hard to survive! AND! She might be able to fix her condition!! She does immediately make fun of me being clean though XD Aww and she really wants to come back to Baldur's Gate and she asks if she can find us 😭😭. Of course you can!!

LOLOLOL Withers is torturing a bard who owes him a favor to play for is. AJDHDJDJFJS EXCUSE ME??? THIS BARD IS AN ALLY OF MY GOD??? I just made fun of him... And then I said it is an honor to meet an ally of Oghma.

Honestly this feels so nice to be called a fellow Oghmanyte! Bael loves her god so much and to meet a peer is wonderful! I really appreciate how much I can bring up my class in this. He also pepped up so much knowing I worship Oghm

Awww Minsc and Boo are already so cute!! Lmao Minsc and Boo were locked away by Zhentarians for execution. He is so very happy to get a chance to beat his way out ... I don't think he'll survive tho... Aww he says don't cry because you've missed us! Also he's gonna get himself presentable which is fair, he's literally in prison garb

Baldur's Gazette articles are very interesting. Lol Astarion gets in the paper for sparing people!

Lol bug

OMFG THE LETTER CHEST!!! I DONT GET TO TALK TO THE EMPEROR BUT HE LEFT ME A LETTER!!

It is less than I wanted but I'm still so so so happy we got anything

I won't be going over all the letters in here lol, but they're great! Actually no, fuck you Valeria. Barcus you lovable bastard lmao. Arabella you're growing well and I love you! Aww the gur to Astarion is cute. Araj, wtf. Voss doesn't seem to hate me much anymore either 🥹 Aww zevlor, stop being so hard on yourself

Finally saved the best for last, Wyll. Enjoying the fresh air!! Obviously much more enjoyable than sulfur. He missed me too <3 Hes very soft and saying he can't imagine doing everything again without us <3 He's still deadly as ever without his powers, get fucked Mizora!! His father is proud of him and they've seen each other often. I still hate his father and he should be a little bitter but he's happy so I won't intrude. Also the fists have been forgiven and are back in good order. Hes getting fucking wasted!

Withers!! You've done wonders to this dilapidated building!

Lolol withers gives us a speech and says it's over for now with a naughty little finger wag. I love you Withers so much!! <3

[barbwillbrb]

Finally finished my full playthrough of BG3. Here be my thoughts:

For context, I had been sitting on my first playthrough for a month, as I had 4 huge fights left that I was putting off and little else left (Orin, Ansur, House of Hope, and the last battle). I did start a second playthrough in the interim, getting that character to the Gauntlet of Shar, then decided to go back to finish my OG character. I finally finished the game a couple days ago and have been collecting my thoughts. Here are some resolutions from my playthrough and thoughts on the game/characters:

1. First, here is my first Tav— Quil, a nonbinary tiefling Bard with very high charisma. I adore the character creator, but have one gripe— why can’t we yeet the titties in the vanilla creator (I know there are mods)? I want no titties please.

2. I did not get the Volo eye during my first run; Quil knew a bad idea when they saw one (my second Tav, Rackal, not so much). Quil also didn’t fuck with the Necromancy of Thay.

3. Scratch and owlbear cub made it all the way to the end!

4. Fucked up Auntie Ethel’s quest and got Mayrina killed.

5. Minthara was killed (I only recently fully learned how non-lethal attacks work).

6. It was really hard for me to pick a romance; I spent a good hour loading/reloading the tiefling party to go through my options (everyone but Gale and Wyll were interested, as I was specifically playing a character who wasn’t openly flirting with anyone; I wanted to see what characters came to me first. That said, I had to keep pushing Lae’zel back because girl wanted me within moments of meeting). Karlach ended up stealing my heart; I adore her.

7. I also had Halsin join us. I don’t see a lot of talk about KarlachxTavxHalsin on here, and it kinda bums me out; I was sold on the polycule when KarlachxHalsin started flirting with each other.

8. As a high-charisma character, Act 2 was my favorite, especially when it came to Yurgir. I did not know you could talk your way out of that fight completely; I think I was as shocked as Astarion when it worked. I’ve never seen a game where you could just… talk people to death. It was amazing.

9. Speaking of Act 2, Ketheric Thorm’s introduction is one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. It was perfect at conveying the magnanimity of the situation.

10. I got everyone’s happy endings I think. Wyll, Karlach and I went to Avernus and are kicking ass, Gale is a professor/crown destroyed, and Astarion did not ascend/spawn were spared (the Gur letter at the epilogue is AMAZING). Shadowheart turned away from Shar, but her parents died so she could be free; she has the owlbear cub though, so I think she’ll be okay.

11. I don’t understand the whole “Wyll can’t make a decision” discourse. I get the issue with the pact scene (I can’t remember if I had the option to let him choose, but we worked with Mizora), but people make it out like he doesn’t make any decisions about his future at all in the game. I was able to leave the Blade of Avernus/Duke decision to him, and he chose the Blade. He had some cool dialog about the decision as well.

12. The goddamn Orpheus vs. Emperor choice is about the dumbest thing ever. I feel like if you maintained an overall positive relationship with the Emperor and managed to pull Lae’zel away from Vlaakith, I think there should be an opportunity to break Orpheus free and convince him to join you WITHOUT the Emperor turning tail to the Netherbrain. You should be able to free Orpheus and then have another high persuasion check to get him to stand down/join you. I feel that given the severity of the current situation, Orpheus would accept joining forces if it meant no additional mindflayers be made. Just the fact the Emperor goes by, Orpheus gets freed, and someone has to become a mindflayer is just…. Frustrating at best.

13. I think that regardless if romanced or not, a Lae’zel with high/exceptional approval who turned from Vlaakith is in love with Tav. The emotion in her goodbye at the docks is so powerful.

14. Similarly, I think the same can be said for Shadowheart (if turned away from Shar/had high approval).

15. The Dribbles quest sucked, but worth it just to make Lucretious happy/have her say nice things to me.

16. The character that grew on me the most was Astarion. I honestly didn’t like him too much, but his growth over Acts 2 and 3 really changed my mind. Plus, when I met Yenna, he actually gave approval towards any means of helping her— I was SHOOK.

17. I think the Orin kidnapping would be more impactful if your love interest was taken instead (the angst/race against the clock would be amazing). I also think that if one of the tadpole crew gets taken, the fact that Orin doesn’t have one should tell someone something’s up.

18. My favorite companion is tied between Karlach and Lae’zel. Karlach is so optimistic/stands true to herself despite the bullshit she goes through, and Lae’zel character growth is spectacular.

19. My least favorite companion is Shadowheart, although she’s beginning to grow on me. It’s just that some of her offhand comments are so off-putting in a real hypocritical way. For example, the “I didn’t expect to feel empathy towards refugees” thing is really hard to ignore.

20. My favorite NPCs are, in no particular order, Ketheric Thorm, Rolan, Yurgir, Omeluum, Blurg, Lucretious, Barcus Wroot, Auntie Ethel and Mol.

21. My least favorite NPCs are Gortash (I think he is a great villain, but he’s the kind of manipulative, opportunistic evil that makes my skin crawl), Wulburn Bongle and honestly most of the creche. Also that lady who’s mean to the dogs, but I nuked her with fireball and don’t see her as much if an NPC.

22. WHY CAN’T I ADOPT THE FUCKING CATS?

[dwarfsized]

leetleblue fanfiction masterlist

hi! you might also know me as leetleblue over on ao3

thought it was time to collect all the links in one place, so ta-da! find my fic below the read more! as i update this i'll only indicate if something isn't bg3 because at this point it's all bg3 babey.

series:

the transformed tiefling (astarion/kira)

true colors shine in darkness and in secrecy (ongoing), the more straight-forward longfic, the game-events-rewrite except we get very involved in druid politics

Astarion grabs a fistful of her robes and hauls her closer, the full brunt of his terror and rage slamming back into the front of her mind. He demands, snarling, “Why didn’t you let me kill him? What have you done to me?”

eldath's mercy (ongoing), AU: different first meeting, Astarion stuck in a druid's grove

Astarion did have a plan to flee his Master. He'd take some gold and run for a merchant city and make a new, luxurious life for himself. Despite that, he ends up at the Circle of Calm Waters, surrounded by druids.

that's the kind of love ive been dreaming of (ongoing), dubcon, inappropriate use of the tadpole, dream sex.

At first Astarion was stuck in his trance, but Kira pulls him into a dream, instead.

waltz with five eyes, two hearts (karlach/shadowheart/wyll)

ease (oneshot, 2189 words) Wyll-centric character study, pre-relationship, examining how isolated Wyll has been because of the Mizora of it all before the tadpoles

Wyll has gotten so good at small talk that when Karlach says, “Copper for your thoughts?” He ought to comment on how lovely the sunset is shaping up to be this evening or grin and ask if Karlach thinks Gale will put any vegetables in their dinner tonight. What he does say is, “Mizora.”

new steps (oneshot, 5277 words) Wyll considering his history with his father as they get ready to enter Baldur's Gate, with some early relationship stuff in there also for the triad.

Wyll had believed, in the deepest and most secret parts of himself that he’d dared not even think about for the last seven years, that he might get to return home hailed a hero.

other fic:

troubled thoughts and the self-esteem to match (ongoing), Modern AU, Astarion/Auri/Kira

Auri expects the Ironhand Warehouse gig to change her life, at least a little bit. The vampire is a surprise.

innatism (explicit, no ships, 1996 words) Second Person POV, You are the Dark Urge and you are giving someone a Very Bad Night.

When Minthara said she would meet you to burn the Grove, you wanted to tell her yes and bathe in the blood of all those wet-eyed fools you’d promised to save. The word had formed on your tongue and swallowing it down had been bitter.

[kalamitykas]

Rant about BG3

MASSIVE SPOILERS FOR BG3 COMPANION STORIES

So... I finished my first playthrough and I have.... OPINIONS.

I feel that there's a pattern between the character stories of the companions depending on if they are male or female. It's subtle but I feel it's there quite strongly.

DISCLAIMER: I haven't done the evil run, so I haven't gotten to know Minthara so I won't be talking about her.

The Men

With the exception of Astarion, it feels all the male characters are in their current situation out of their free will. Gale was a dumbass and decided he wanted more tha what Mystra was offering him and messed up. Wyll might have been deceived into the pact, but he confesses that he has never regretted it. Halsin is not responsible for the curse, he only feels that way because he was there when it happened. And all the mess that happens in the grove? He left his post in the middle of a complicated situation because he was curious.

And even Astarion! True, he was turned against his will and abused by Cazador, but he still is an evil bastard. He's selfish, mean, and hates any attempt of helping others while very demanding on helping him. I know you can change him, so in this particular rant, he's kind of middle ground.

The Difference

Each female character's issues and trauma was IMPOSSED on them. Shadowheart gets kidnapped and brainwashed as a child. Lae'zel grows in an abusive regime that also brainwashes her. And Karlach is traded to hell against her will as a teenager. They didn't had any autonomy in their stories.

And then we go into the endings. I'll admit, except Karlach, you get the option to give them kinda happy endings. For Shadowheart to have a happy ending, you have to "fix her". Undo years of brainwashing, potentially sacrificing her family, her friends who she'll never see again (Nocturne is too precious for this world). Lae'zel will be put either in charge of a massive civil war that will kill thousands of her people against a living godess, or be the second in command of said war (or you can convince her to abandon her people and stay in Faerun).

And then we get to Karlach. I cried myself to sleep over Karlach's endings. They were all messed up. Turn her into something else and she stops being herself, let her die, send her back to the place she hates and abused her. Even if you and Wyll go with her (and if you do this, and you had romanced someone else, you have to leave them behind), is still sending an abuse victim right back to where she was abused.

I feel like there's a bias here, or maybe is a coincidence, or maybe I'm too angry I couldn't make all my friends have a happy ending and instead my character was left without the love of her life, never seeing Lae'zel again and escorting her best friend into hell again. Is just so.... shite.

I did research, checking other possible endings I could have gotten, and they weren't much better... It just feels that Larian wrote the female companions to be "They are hot, and have a tragic backstory and you can FIX THEM and have fun", and then just made their endings fit that.

The male companions all get to achieve what they wanted. Gale can give Mystra the crown to get healed of his own fuck up. Wyll get's to become the Blade of Avernus and hunt down the deamons that wronged him. To be a hero with his relationship with his dad restored. Halsin gets to achieve his goal and cure the curse. Astarion get's to either be free of his abusive sire and become a better person, or destroy and supplant him. And all of them can still visit and see their friends.

On the other hand? Only Shadowheart gets this. Lae'zel either abandons her people, or leaves her friends behind to engage in a terrible war. And Karlach either sacrifices herself, or leaves her city and friends behind to spend the rest of her life battling in a place she hates.

Dunno, I was loving BG3, I'm still playing it, doing new campaign as Lae'zel to get to see her story from her perspective. But this kinda put a bitter taste in my mouth. I was super invested on these characters, and it felt like a sad ending. One thing I kept thinking about was, Shadowheart gets the "Divine Favour" once per game spell.... couldn't I just use that to cure Karlach? It feels like is something that on a tabletop session would have gotten so many options to have a nicer ending, one that left all the players happy.

Maybe I'm sad I didn't get to live in a sapphic colony with my friends at the end haha.

Anyway, thanks for coming to my TEdRant.

[emmy-dekarios-bg3]

Heart of the Weave - A Baldurs Gate Fanfiction

CHAPTER 7 (GALE’S POINT OF VIEW)

I’m waiting outside the facility with Shadowheart, questioning if Emmy is alright and how I wish I could be there for her. I have numerous questions racing through my mind such as: I wonder why I was asked to leave the room if I’m her husband? What would he be telling her that I can’t be there for? No matter, I suppose; nothing I can do except leave the man to his practices. We stare at the outskirts of the city, admiring the entertainers and noticing a new circus is opening up downtown.

“What do you think is going on in there?” Shadowheart asks, both of us staring in the distance ahead of us. “It’s taking quite a long time.”

“I wish I had the answer to that question. I’m sure everything is fine. Besides, if it were fatal, she wouldn’t have waves of feeling perfectly fine, right? It may just be a bug. Ah, if only we had a doctor back in Waterdeep.”

“If they don’t remedy that soon enough, I may lose my mind. Maybe I should become a doctor. I am a cleric after all. I am perfectly capable of curing the wounded and guiding them to a path of spiritual healing.”

“A religious doctor? I’d love to see how that plays out.”

“Shut it, Gale.” I notice Karlach and Wyll heading our direction, Karlach appearing to be more enthusiastic than usual as she approaches us. It seems she’s trying to convince Wyll to take her to the new circus and all I could hear was him saying, “No, not right now. Maybe later, okay?” Thank the Gods for Karlach’s energy, otherwise I’d be even more anxious than I am right now.

“OH. MY. GODS. Fytz has the cutest baby I have ever seen. I’m so glad she’s alive and well after what went down in the city over a year ago. Man… How fortunate for them. Now I need a baby to cuddle… But I don’t want kids,” she says with the utmost energy in her voice. “I need a glass of wine.”

“Are you going to be that weird aunt that brings too much booze to the parties?” Wyll teases. She elbows him playfully in the shoulder. I chuckle, rolling my eyes at their nonsense, though I will say I think their relationship is rather sweet in a chaotic sort of way.

“Shhh! Don’t give away my secrets! Say, where’s Emmy? Is she still in there?” At that very moment, the door opens and she walks out, her skin still pale and her face in complete shock and bewilderment. Her eyes are staring at the ground, not making any contact as she walks out. She appears to be speechless and I begin to worry about what happened in there. What did he tell her?

“There she is! Looking like she might die, but she’s here,” Karlach says. Emmy still doesn’t say a word, not even a light smile appears on her face, just a blank stare. “Oh. Soldier?”

“I’m…okay. I won’t die thank the Gods,” she murmurs, but there’s still something she’s still hiding. I walk up to her with a smile, waiting to see if she’s going to say anything about her situation. Her bottom lip appears to be quivering, as if she’s trying to fight off the urge to cry. My smile fades and worry takes over, making my heart race at an intense speed. She keeps trying to speak, but not a single sound escapes her lips.

“Honey, I’m worried about you,” I say. “Can you please tell me what’s going on?”

“I’m pregnant. We’re having a baby.” At that very moment, I could feel my heart sink to the inner abyss of my stomach, causing a hint of nausea as she confides the unexpected news to us. Everyone stares at her in astonishment, then all eyes are on me shortly after. I’m unsure how to respond, and I also can’t explain what feelings are swimming around inside me at this moment. We’ve been married awhile, we love each other deeply, we’re more than content with our home lifestyle. So what is the problem? Why do I feel this way?

“You’re…pregnant?” I mutter, trying to process the words she said out loud. I certainly can’t see the expression on my face, but I imagine it’s a blank look. “We’re…having…”

“Gale? Are you going to be alright?” Wyll asks. “The poor man looks like he’s going to faint.”

“Were you eavesdropping on our conversation? How I said I need cuddles from a baby? Or…am I crazy?” Karlach asks.

“I think the crazy ship has sailed long ago,” Shadowheart says with a chuckle. “Besides, I think she’s serious.”

“Holy shit.” I wrap my arms around Emmy, feeling the warmth of her tears soak themselves in my robe. I want to be there as much as I can for her, though I will admit this comes to an extreme shock. Silence is very present right now as well as trying to process this unexpected news, though I honestly can’t say I’m surprised in any way. I look into her dark eyes, wiping away the tears on her cheekbones with the tip of my thumb. She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath as I try to comfort her, which seems to help to some degree. This isn’t bad news for us, but I will say we weren’t exactly planning on having a family of our own.

“It will be okay,” I whisper in her ear. “As long as we can avoid any Absolutists or bloodthirsty devils at all costs, we should be okay. We need to head back to Waterdeep as soon as we can.”

“Without saying hello to your favorite bloodsucker? How rude,” a familiar voice mutters nearby, and we all turn around to see Astarion standing there in the open, smiling and exposing his hungry fangs. “And darling, I heard the news. I do hope you’re alright.”

“Astarion! Wow… I didn’t realize the sun is already setting,” Emmy says. “How are you? What are you up to?”

“To be honest, I’m trying to get out of this god-forsaken city. Ugh! Then again, when Raphael has the crown, we’re fucked no matter what.” More news for my exhausted mind to process. Why and how would Raphael have the damned crown?

“RAPHAEL?!” Shadowheart and I shout, intense shock in our voice. That is not the news I expected to hear today, but I’m also not surprised. With our sheer string of weird luck, I’m not quite sure what to expect anymore. On top of that, as if the entirety of our situation couldn’t get worse, Raphael is now an archdevil and has complete control of all nine Hells. He also might be after Emmy now, but I sure hope that’s not the case. However, I do not think Raphael’s intentions are to overpopulate the world with mind flayers, so there’s that going for us at least.

“Boy! What a day!” Karlach says. My mind is racing with so many thoughts and fears, like: what will happen if Raphael has the crown? Will I be a good father? Will I be strong enough to protect my family should anything happen?

“Gods… Why? There’s way too much for me to process right now,” I mumble. Emmy continues to hug me with her head lying on my chest. I kiss the top of her head, trying to ignore these worries but I doubt they’ll perish any time soon.

“We will get through this like we always have. I promise,” she says, looking up at me with her innocent brown eyes. I can’t help but smile at her, the love of my life, the one person who keeps me the man I’m meant to be. She’s right.

“As much as I love romantic dramas as much as I love debauchery, I’d really like to know… If it’s okay that I come back with you all. To Waterdeep,” Astarion asks. “I know that was very sudden and you’ll need time to think about it, but holy Hells, I can’t be here any longer.”

“What? You don’t like it here, even with Cazador gone?” Shadowheart asks.

“There’s far too many memories here for me, way more bad than good. I’d like to start anew. Everywhere I turn, I see Cazador, even though he’s dead. I’m reminded of the alleyways where I was beaten to a pulp and then turned. I can’t live like this anymore, facing my own trauma day by day. I don’t want to live in fear any longer.”

“Well, come stay with me. No offense, but I can’t for the life of me imagine you living with three humans, one of them being a baby.”

“Aw! I’m offended, but also, you’re not wrong at all. Fine. I accept your offer.” Emmy and I watch these two have the most humorous conversations, grateful that we’re reunited as a group, even if it’s a temporary situation.

“Bite my neck though, and your ass is grass.”

“Aw, I love family reunions!” Karlach cheers while jumping up and down.

I look at Emmy, nodding to the north to have her follow me to a distant area for a moment, allowing everyone to catch up while we get some private time. The sun is setting beautifully while the moon ascends into the lavender sky. The entire city is bright underneath the silver glow. We find an empty field of grass and various flowers just west of the city.

“Come sit in the grass with me,” I tell her. She sits down next to me and we both admire the glistening silver stars in the sky. I hold her hand as we admire the night time atmosphere.

“I love you, Gale. I always have and always will,” she murmurs, grabbing my face and planting a delicate kiss upon my lips. I feel a calm feeling overwhelm my body and I finally feel less anxious than before. I don’t want her to know about the anxiety I felt earlier. She doesn’t need to feel worse.

“And I love you until my dying breath.” As I say these words to her, I notice something is on her mind. She begins to disassociate. “Is everything alright, baby?”

“Just thinking about the crown, how there needs to be some way to get it back, how the world might be worse than it was with the elder brain.” She sighs, leaning her head back and I can tell she’s under a lot of stress. I wrap my arm around her and kiss the side of her head.

“I don’t think Raphael would do anything like the brain did. If anything, he will use it as a means to be the master of the Hells, where Zariel and the other archdevils will have to bow down to him and serve him. In reality, it’s a means for power in Hell.”

“You’re definitely right. I shouldn’t be worrying so much. Thank you.” She takes my hand and places it on her delicate, small belly, where our child is growing.

“So a baby, huh? Boy, that will certainly change our lives,” I say. We both look at our hands that are placed on her stomach, just admiring it as we’re sitting outside underneath the astral sky.

“Right now, I’m just in shock, but… I will get used to the idea. I know I’ll love him or her, no matter what.” She turns to face me with her adorable eyes, admiring me with her gaze. She wraps her arms around my neck, kissing my cheek. I chuckle and return the favor by kissing her lips, placing my hand underneath her chin. Our tongues intertwine as we kiss passionately, just enjoying each other’s company underneath the darkest of nights. Is it strange I don’t want this night to end?

[wheretheharekissesthefox]

Open up your loving arms - Chapter 3: A new flow

Astarion asks Gale about cleaning out the unused spaces of their tower house to give Tav and Shadowheart some personal space. The wizard agrees and the vampire spawn sets to work. Shenanigans occur and plans are made.

Notes:

This is self-indulgent domestic fluff. I want this little bunch of weirdos to be happy. They deserve it. This fic mostly drives my post-canon headcanon forwards regarding character study/development.

Astarion's origin fic is mentioned.

Also, long story short; Tav’s married to Astarion, Gale and Shadowheart. Astarion and Gale are married. Halsin’s Tav’s and Shadowheart’s additional lover. They’re in a closed polyamorous relationship, except for Halsin who apparently sleeps his way through all of Faerûn.

One week later, Gale finally found the time to go through the huge pile of random stuff that Astarion had put aside for him when decluttering and cleaning the two upper floors. As promised, the vampire spawn hadn't thrown out anything, but had piled them up for Gale to look through it before parting ways with all the useless knickknacks. Originally, Gale had been convinced that he only owned important, useful things that couldn't been thrown away, but reality proved him wrong. The wizard was rather miffed at the sheer amount of clutter and rubbish that he'd collected over the years. Astarion was very happy to assist him in throwing almost three quarters of it away.

"What use has a pair of nice boots if you don't wear them?" grumbled Gale and threw the mentioned footwear into the donation bin.

"Well, if you'd still host the Orb, you could feed it with it," grinned Astarion.

Gale groaned, replying: "You're aware these are normal boots with no magic applied? They wouldn't do a mite."

"I know, darling. I'm just teasing," snickered Astarion and kissed his husband's cheek.

They made fast progress and soon, the first upper floor looked much more like liveable space instead of an antique store or a storage unit. Only the books were still to be looked through. Together, Astarion and Gale carried them upstairs to the library where Gale spent the rest of the weekend weeded out all the books he never needed and the ones he had multiple copies of (naturally, he always kept the first editions).

Shadowheart made good use of her new room. She invited some of the other priestesses over to discuss the upcoming holidays, workshops they planned to install for the children, and prepared for other ceremonies. Astarion served the ladies tea and cake with his usual flattery and left them brood over their projects. He found Tav in his basement room, composing her newest piece.

"What are you doing down here, darling?" the vampire spawn asked confused.

"Oh... I just don't want to harass Shadowheart and her friends with my unfinished song. I know it's annoying when I play the same part over and over again for hours," the bard explained bashfully. "Would you like to be alone? I could go to the park instead."

"No, no. It's alright," Astarion answered hastily. "I was just wondering why you're down here. By all means, continue."

He gestured with a hand movement for her to keep going and she chuckled. While Astarion made himself comfortable and slowly drifted into reverie because he had nothing else to do, Tav worked her magic. Smiling softly, the vampire spawn listened to the bard's gentle humming while she strummed the lute and scribbled down notes on a piece of paper. Tav always created such hauntingly beautiful music that touched one's soul. Astarion's heart may have been cold and dead in his chest, but his soul danced and wept to his wife's songs.

They decided to turn the second room in the first upper floor into a guest room for either Halsin, Lae'zel, or Karlach, Wyll, and the twins. The nook next to the stairs was remodelled into Gale's alchemy laboratory and he had finally the space to brew potions again. Tav made herself cosy in the second upper floor where the library and observatory were located. There, between shelves upon shelves filled with books and hanging models of planets, stars, suns, and moons, the bard set up her instruments and started to compose. Gale got all sappy and babbled something about the mingling of two different kinds of magic and how books are able to feel the vibrations around them. Astarion called bullshit on it all, but let his husband be.

The vampire spawn used the extra room that was basically the spacious hallway of the first upper floor as a creative space. He finally tried his hands at some sewing projects. Astarion had been rather nervous about it because he hadn't really sewn anything since he'd been turned into a spawn. He'd spent the last two hundred years simply fixing his clothes, but hadn't been allowed to create anything. Now, he made his own patterns and used the beautiful fabrics he'd found between Gale's junk to makes some clothes.

After two weeks, Astarion nervously gifted his creations to his family. He'd sewn a robe for each of them because it was one of the easiest patterns and he'd wanted to start lightly. Awestruck, Shadowheart put her light blue robe on and it flowed around her silhouette like water.

"Astarion... it's beautiful," she breathed. "Thank you!"

She hugged and kissed him.

"I'll wear this at the next holiday ceremony at the temple. I'll be the most beautiful and stylish person there!"

"You're always the most beautiful person," replied Tav without thinking.

"Ahem!" Astarion gave a little cough, accusingly.

Smirking, the bard announced: "You're always the most beautiful person, Shadowheart, but you share first place with Astarion and Gale."

The cleric snickered while the vampire spawn was pleased. The wizard, on the other hand, seemed honestly confused.

"Share the first place with me? Are you sure? I mean I understand why with Astarion, but me?"

"Of course you too, silly," smiled Tav and kissed him. "You're beautiful."

"Hm," muttered Gale, blushing slightly.

He slipped into the dark blue, star-littered robe that fit him like a glove and ran his hand across the material.

"If I remember correctly, I bought this fabric in Cormyr when I attended a seminar about local poetry twelve years ago. Fascinating topic really. I always intended to give it my mother so that she can turn it into something, but I never got around to it. You outdid yourself, Astarion. It's wonderful. I knew you have an eye and a talent for sewing."

"Thank you," said the addressed, feeling bashful for the first time in a long while.

"It's damn pretty, I feel so fabulous!" cheered Tav and whirled around to show off the dramatic swoosh of her dark green robe.

The vampire spawn preened, not really used to receiving compliments about anything else but his looks. It felt incredibly nice though.

"What about you?" asked the bard now. "Where's your robe?"

Astarion blinked dumbly.

"I didn't even think about that," he answered then. "I was so focused on giving you all a gift that it didn't even cross my mind to make something for myself."

"Awww," cooed Shadowheart and smooched his cheek.

"I'm honoured, but you mustn't forget about your own comfort," Gale told him sincerely, stroking the vampire spawn's cheek.

"Here, try it on," urged Tav and held out her robe to Astarion who pulled it over his shoulders without complaint.

"Lovely," she remarked. "It compliments your pale complexion and is a nice contrast to your eyes."

Once more, the vampire spawn was frustrated to not be able to see his reflection. He still walked over to the mirror to take a look at how the robe fell around his body. He nodded, satisfied with what he saw.

"But it needs to be a tad longer for me," he noticed. "Or otherwise, I show off my scandalous calves."

Tav laughed and kissed him, hyped-up.

"You know, I thought about what you said, Gale, and you're right." Astarion turned around to face his husband. "I'd like to become a tailor. It's one of the things I enjoy most."

"That's good to hear," smiled the wizard. "When you're happy, I'm happy. And when you find your life's purpose on the way, well, then that's all the better."

"You have such a way with words, darling," chuckled the vampire spawn and sauntered over to kiss him. "The little greenhouse on the rooftop looks rather sad, our druid would be mortified. Is it alright if I’ll polish it up and bring it back to life? Some herbs for your cooking and flowers to look pretty in a vase. What do you think, eh?"

"Sounds lovely," replied Gale and kissed him again.

Astarion fussed about his husband's hair before adding: "You know, a very long time ago, when I lived as a magistrate in Baldur's Gate, I shared a house with my better half, Solaria. We had a little balcony where we loved to eat breakfast, brunch, and dinner, and it was covered in flowers. Morning glories, forget-me-nots, ivy, violets, rosemary, and even a little bush of roses. I remember how we spent our late afternoons there, when I was back from work, and we had tea. When it was the season, Solaria always bought peaches for me and we ate them while judging the poor clothing choices of the people who walked by on the street below. – Ha! It's been more than two centuries since then."

Astarion averted his gaze staring out of the window. Gale's heart was leaping in his throat and his hands were shaking when he touched his husband's face. The latter had never revealed this much about his past before.

"Astarion," the wizard murmured. "I'm so sorry, my dear."

The addressed finally turned to look at him again, smiling pained.

"There's no need to apologise. You weren't there. At that point, you weren't even born yet. But I'm glad that the one good thing that came out of the shitshow that calls itself my life is that I met you."

Gale pulled Astarion closer, squeezed his eyes shut, and leaned their foreheads together.

"I love you," whispered the wizard thickly.

"I love you too," replied the vampire spawn, at the verge of crying.

They kissed softly and the tears spilled over after all. When they finally parted, they were both weeping and Gale brushed Astarion's tears away with his thumbs.

"I'm here now," he told his husband. "We all are."

The vampire spawn swallowed and nodded. The wizard kissed him again before embracing him. Astarion went willingly and wept on his shoulder. When Gale finally looked up from his sobbing husband, he realised that Tav was crying too. Shadowheart, who was also teary-eyed, held the bard in her arms and made soothing little shushing noises.

"Gods, look at us! We're absolute messes!" sniffed Astarion.

Chuckling slightly, Gale rubbed the vampire spawn's shoulders before letting him go with another kiss. The vampire spawn moved over and embraced Tav who was still sobbing.

"Don't cry for me, darling. I'm not dead yet. – Well, you know what I mean."

The addressed snickered despite the tears still running down her cheeks. Astarion kissed her tenderly before wrapping his arms around her again. He beckoned Shadowheart closer again and gave her a peck on the cheek.

"Alright, that's enough tears and misery for today," Astarion decided. "Let's go downstairs and brew some lavender tea to soothe the nerves and eat some vanilla cake to soothe the soul, hm?"

"Splendid idea," nodded Gale.

"I can use a tea," admitted Shadowheart with a sigh.

Smiling, the wizard wrapped an arm around the cleric's waist and made his way downstairs with her while Astarion and Tav followed them, arm in arm. They made themselves comfortable in the living room and talked about more pleasant topics while enjoying their tea and cake. Astarion snuggled in-between Tav and Gale, daydreaming about how to organise the greenhouse. Later, he got more kisses and was allowed to drink from his spouses, moaning at their blood's unmistakable bouquets, and if that led to spend some passionate time in the bedroom afterwards... well, Astarion wasn't about to complain.

[corgijones18]

I've been enjoying Baldur's Gate 3 SO much and none of my friends have played it, so I've decided to share things onto Tumblr! I'm annoying and want to share/talk about my lovely characters, so I'm gonna share some information about my first character. I honestly want to replay the game and romance every character because I want to experience all the character moments with a character I visualize. If you like this share some info about your characters! I love learning about everyone's Tav/Durge!

My first character:

Gwendolyn Springsong

Gwendolyn is a Half-Elf and she grew up in a small town outside of Baldur's Gate with her Mom, who is a Wood Elf. Gwen is a Bard, College of Lore, and is the leader of the group (in my game/world/lore). Unlike everyone else, cause most my Tav's are gonna have sob stories, Gwen lived a pretty normal life prior to her abduction. Most of her youth involved her questioning her gender, but when she was 12 she knew she was a woman and her Mom supported her in getting the medical care she needs (Gwen didn't originally start as trans, but as a trans woman the more I thought about it the more it made sense). She moved to Baldur's Gate to start Bard College, as she had a natural talent and would play at her local Inn for coin. Gwen then decided to officially stay in Baldur's Gate after graduating, but she visits her mother frequently. The day she was abducted, she was performing for a family outside of Baldur's Gate. Wrong place, wrong time. As she begin to work with new faces and figure out how to rid of the tadpole, Gwen ended up falling into the "leader" role due to her charisma & protectiveness over everyone, and due to how nosey she is. Gwen never felt destined for anything, but somehow destiny found her.

Fun Facts:

Gwen is 36

Gwen is Bisexual, she doesn't necessarily follow the "Bard's are sluts" trope, but she is a disaster bisexual and has too many crushes

If Baldur's Gate had Alignments, Gwen would be Chaotic Good

Gwen is 5'2" (short Queen), she gets her height from her Dwarf father

Gwen's instrument of choice is the Lyre

She is naturally a brunette, but dyed her hair pink since she wanted it to stand out (it's also her favorite color)

Gwen knows some Druid circle practices, since her Mom is a Druid

Her focus is "College of Lore" because she wants to know as many things as she can

Tends to be blindly optimistic & wants to see the good in everyone

Gwen's VERY good at lying and putting a facade on when she's not ok as she normally puts on a positive front for everyone else

Gwen doesn't follow any of the Gods, but she will pray to Selune or Chauntea occasionally

Most charismatic member in the group

Is the group healer, along with Shadowheart

Group dynamics/relationships:

Gwen is best friends with everyone at camp, but questions Minthara's choices A LOT

She loves stealing with Astarion

Everyone tends to express their feelings to Gwen, she's like the group leader & therapist, but Gwen normally only confides in Shadowheart

Originally Astarion & Gwen didn't get along, but the two bonded over their similar taste in wine & impressive skills in breaking into places they probably shouldn't be in

Gwen was the one who prevented Shadowheart from killing Lae'zel

Gwen's blind hope in each group member has led her into dangerous situations which annoys Shadowheart, but is something she also loves about Gwen

As soon as Karlach was able to touch people, Gwen basically gave her a hug every hour

One early night when the group was very drunk, Gwen let it slip that she's had a crush on everyone in the group except for Astarion & Gale

She knows ALL the group dirt & drama

Gwen has met met Wyll's Dad prior to the start of the game, as she has performed at a ball he was at and she is best friends with Charity, one of my other OC's, who comes from a noble fanily

Karlach and Wyll would try to get Gwen to work out with them, but she is not athletic at all and would frequently sneak away

If anyone says anything out of pocket, Gwen makes eye contact with Shadowheart (love a side eye queen)

Gwen would try to read books Gale recommends, but most of them would bore her (so she asks Charity to tell her about the book)

Gwen would, though, find something each member was interested in and try to be good at it/learn more about it

If anyone questioned Gwen's leadership choices, Shadowheart & Lae'zel would instantly back her up. Lae'zel would also make several comments how nice it is to have a woman in charge.

Gwen's Mom knew Jaheira & talked about how heroic she was, so Gwen totally fangirled when she met her, and Minsc

Romance dynamics with Shadowheart & Halsin:

As soon as Gwen met Shadowheart, she had a crush on her. Shadowheart learned of this crush pretty early on and would constantly tease Gwen, until the Teilfing party where they finally kissed

Gwen is in a polyamorous relationship with Shadowheart & Halsin, the three of them are very happy together (they agreed they can sleep with others if they inform the others, but Halsin is really the only one who MAY sleep with another)

Halsin was the one who yearned for Gwen, and when they finally talked about their feelings, Gwen told Shadowheart everything and gave her a speech, to which Shadowheart responded with "so, we both want to climb mount Halsin, huh?" (my bisexual, in my headcanon, queens)

Shadowheart will tease Gwen by calling her "shorty", even though Shadowheart is barely taller than her (in my headcanon)

After they dealt with the parasites, Gwen & Shadowheart find a cozy home in Gwen's hometown and invited Shadowheart's parents to stay with them, Halsin would visit frequently and at some point he just ends up staying

Gwen would wait for Shadowheart to go back to sleep when Shar would hurt her, and if Halsin was there he'd stay up to comfort her (and at some point the pain stops)

Gwen & Shadowheart frequently have everyone over to reconnect

Gwen always worried about Shadowheart's relationship with Shar and would drop subtle hints of worry with Shadowheart, believing at the end of the day Shadowheart would do what was best for her, but whenever Shadowheart directly asked for Gwen's opinion she would SHARE IT

Shadowheart & Halsin would go to Gwen's performance and just talk about how talented and beautiful she was

ALWAYS little spoon, no matter who she is cuddling with

This is everything I could think of at the moment. If you enjoyed this, aw thanks! I just love sharing information about my characters I create in any game! My next OC I'm going to do is Charity!