#lae'zel is not included because she can't do it

[bhaalbaaby]

another kinky poll: who would be the most into the breeding kink?

[bolognamayhem117]

Hot Take: Astarion does NOT hate flowers. You just missed a few subtle hints through Act 1 and early Act 3.

Astarion's negativity is directed toward just about anything remotely pleasant as you move through early act three, starting the moment you leave Wyrm's Rock. First thing after Gortash's coronation he marvels near tears at the colors of the city in daylight. If you ask if he's alright, it pisses him off.

There's other instances I can't quite remember but he's a straight crank throughout early Act 3 and it took me several hours of gameplay to have a lightbulb moment about his newly crappier attitude.

He just spent the last two hundred years seeing everything in the overwhelmingly warm dim tones of indoor lighting via sconces, rushlights, and braziers, or the dingy blue gray of moonlight outside. Daylight colors are something he had more than a lifetime to forget and now that he has a chance to remember that vibrancy in his own home town, he knows he's going to have to forget it all over again either by death or by remaining a vampire spawn forever. The worm isn't going to live rent free in his head forever, and killing Cazador to ascend in his place likely feels like an insurmountable and impossible fight against a literal titan who could stomp him flat without a corm of effort.

He doesn't hate flowers, he hates EVERYTHING right now because it's all going away very soon and if he convinces himself he hates everything then he won't miss it when it's all gone again. He was denied this for two hundred years and he's PISSED at what was stolen from him and PISSED it's all going away again.

He behaved similarly in Act 1 about anyone besides him enjoying physical intimacy. Some of this content was cut, to my best knowledge, but the overwhelming majority of his dialog addressing the PC romancing anyone but him are negative or backhanded. This is for two reasons, I think. A: his Simple Plan just dissolved right before his eyes when you chose someone else which in his mind means he has zero safety net, and EVERYONE gets to enjoy sex (key wording being ENJOY, not simply having) except him... And it pisses him off.

He also gleefully interrupts the bug bear and the ogress, I think for the same reason as the above paragraph, being: If he doesn't get to enjoy intimacy neither do they.

He reacts with anger and disgust at anything he's being unfairly denied. Which... That's fair. His feelings are valid, but his reaction to it is pretty shitty and meanspirited.

The other companions I tend to keep in my party, (that is Lae'zel, Halsin, Karlach, and Wyll) however, are actually appearing to behave pretty patiently with him in Act 3 which I find interesting.

In the instance with the flowers Karlach doesn't bother trying to convince him otherwise of his opinion, she just tells him how they make her feel instead and rather than getting snippy or doubling down he more or less agrees to disagree. I also don't recall anyone disagreeing with Astarion during Gale's last quest tasks when he mentioned that he quit praying to gods who wouldn't hear him a long time ago but to be fair, I think the gods did everybody in this crew dirty and they all know it. It seems like they're consciously giving him the space to be mad about things, is what I'm saying.

Everyone I know including myself who crawled out of a long-term hot garbage situation kinda went wild for a bit with freedom, spoke poorly, behaved strangely, had extreme emotional reactions to things, and made some particularly terrible choices. I think that's just a part of recalibrating yourself, healing and learning how to be okay again.

Point is, I wouldn't conflate too many of the turbo-negative things he says with how he actually feels about anything. We certainly know what he says and what he feels are two very different things.

[ecoamerica]

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[avocado-writing]

Ok this request might be a bit specific but can you write headcanons for halsin,astarion ,dammon karlach and lae'zel (feel free to add any other character if you want) when their petite partner comes back from fighting the god of death and suddenly they're towering over them? (It's temporary but they'll take advantage of the fact that they can carry halsin)

This happened to me in my play through, I kept trying to remove items from my inventory because I was slower and it wasn't until I came across halsin in the camp that I was like " hold on... Halsin why are you so tiny???" Then realised

LMAO i have never had this!!! do you change size during the myrkul battle? that's SO funny if so. gonna change the prompt to be a bit less specific, but will still include a size change! under a cut bc nsfw, minors dni

Astarion

your shadow falls over him. he looks up. and up, and up. "oh... darling. you've... grown."

you apologise and tell him that this is only temporary, but he really doesn't seem to mind it all that much.

sits in your lap and likes to feel very small, curling up like a cat. you can practically hear him purr.

when you go to bed that night, if you're intimate, he'll enjoy straddling you and feeling how wide his legs have to splay around your wide hips.

he falls asleep on top of you, like you're his giant pillow. it makes him feel safe and protected.

he's woken up when you're back to your usual size, slapping at him to move off you - he's crushing you!

Halsin

he feels relieved not to be the tall one for once. it's nice for him to look up at you!

"my, when you're this size, i can appreciate all of you so much more... see magnified what nature has blessed you with..."

if you're comfortable with your size he wildshapes into something small so that he can really enjoy how big you are. little cat halsin nestled in your huge shirt <3

pick him up and carry him to bed. he's thrilled.

when you lay together that night he labours over every lovely inch of you, musing in great detail about how wonderful you are, how he enjoys you feeling so large compared to him...

but the next day he is just as happy to have you back to your normal body. no matter how you look, you are perfect.

Karlach

like Halsin, she is so pleased to be the small one for a while.

keeps wanting to compare the size of her hand to yours. they're so big now! amazing!

can't stop giggling when you reach down to kiss her. likes it when you cup her face.

when you have sex, she's thrilled by how small she feels, how you can take control of her a bit physically.

afterwards she just lays there going. "wow. wow. WOW."

lets you know that she wouldn't mind a repeat performance...

Lae'zel

is confused, but you can see her try and hide a smile.

"an interesting development. is this permanent?" "it shouldn't be." "hmm. then we shall explore what it means later."

before you go to bed, she's pleased to have you slightly stronger in order to help her around the camp. you can hold her weapons and stuff for her while she sharpens them lmao

at night you can tell she's thrilled when she dominates you and you're this size. you're both even more exhausted than usual the next day, and she's just smug.

Dammon

you walk into his forge and start knocking stuff over accidentally

probably bang your head too...

he's so surprised and helps you get your bearings, asking what's happened.

you explain you took this elixir and in order to help him more in the forge... but now you're just causing a ruckus.

he smiles sweetly and brings you down for a kiss, reassuring you there's no problem and it was a sweet idea.

probably gets you to sit to the side and keep him company while he works though, he doesn't want you hurting yourself!

and bonus:

Gale

my man loves to be thrown around a bit. prove me wrong.

eyes light up when you walk in.

does a lot of experiments to test your altered strength. you suggest maybe you'd prefer to explore hypotheticals in the bedroom...

you pick him up and carry him, bridal-style, to the bedroom.

pin him against the wall and suck his cock until he's a whimpering mess...

you need a lot of aftercare for him because he becomes easily overstimulated but keeps asking for more. wears his massive love bites with pride the next day <3

[nightingaletrash]

Okay, but Durge constantly suffers from headaches, and the only way to relieve those headaches is to indulge the urge. Imagine the rest of the party trying to help however they can, whether to ease their discomfort or to distract them from it.

Gale makes a soup that his mother would make for him when he was ill as a child. He'll happily make any adjustments that don't include roast dwarf, and he'll spout off some tips he's come across in his books.

Lae'zel recommends some martial exercises that focus their attention to other parts of the body. Focusing on anything besides the throbbing behind their eyes is useful when food and magic don't cut it.

Wyll will ask what they need from him; someone to vent to, words to fill silence and distract from the pain, or a good old-fashioned rub down to help ease their aches and reduce their discomfort. Whatever they need, he'll do his best to provide.

Shadowheart knows what it's like to live with chronic pain. She'll help with magic if asked, but she knows a few physical methods that make a difference. Just don't ask how she learned them.

Astarion really doesn't think he has any help to offer in this department, but he's good at coming up with distractions and unexpected words of comfort and solidarity. And sometimes a bite, if the nausea is preferable to the ache.

Karlach struggles with helping at first because she can't touch anyone and in Avernus, all she could really do about physical pain was grin and bear it. Once touching is on the table, she's happy to be a heat pad for Durge if needed.

Halsin knows a few herbal remedies and teas that help with headaches, and if those don't feel like they're particularly helping, he can take the edge off of it with some magic.

Jaheira is all too familiar with the things that a Bhaalspawn might have to deal with. Durge might think she's joking when she offers them some bark to chew, saying that it helps... until she starts chewing some herself because when you take on the kinds of responsibilities she does, you end up with a lot of headaches.

Minsc is also familiar with the struggles a Bhaalspawn might endure and will back Jaheira up on the bark chewing suggestion. He'll also offer to distract Durge with stories and hamster cuddles, because hamster cuddles from Boo are wonderfully restorative.

Minthara will offer her healing skills, as any kind of distraction of pain can be fatal in battle, especially when the head is involved. If that doesn't help and they just need a distraction, she'll offer to teach to play them the lyre if they'd like.

[mass-effect-galaxy]

Another Baldur's Gate 3 Roleplaying Idea: The House Baenre Retrainer

After the concept for the "good drow", the Eilistraee Sworddancer, here is an idea for an "evil drow": The House Baenre Retrainer. She is one of the assassins of Minthara's mother. She is comparably young and holds no official rank in Lady Baenre's retinue, so Minthara doesn't know her.

She calls herself Jezzara, sometimes also Ssizzara or Shessara. She is no nobility but a classical rouge assassin from the depth of Menzoberranzan. That's why Lady Baenre entrusts her with the most delicate family matters. No one knows Jezzara and her connections to House Baenre, and since she hasn't the habit of leaving behind witnesses, it stays that way.

Her current assignment, however, is a rescue mission: Minthara has gone to the surface with her entire retinue in pursuit of some bizzar cult. No one has heard of them since then and Minthara's mother is worried sick. Of course, she can't show openly that, despite all the times those two tried to kill each other, she still cares about her daughter. That would be a show of weakness and an invitation for the rest of Menzoberranzan to use Minthara to get to the head of the house.

In fact, Lady Baerne wouldn't even admit it to Minthara. So, Jezzara has strict orders to not tell Minthara that she was sent after her, let alone by whom. Jezzara's orders are to go to the surface, find Minthara, get her out of whatever trouble she has gotten herself into, and bring her back alive; failing that, to kill everyone and their next of kin who could be held responsible for the death of Minthara and recover Minthara's body. You don't fuck with House Baerne and life to tell the tale.

Of course, getting infected by Mindflayers wasn't part of the plan, nor was falling in love with the target.

Roleplay-wise, this is a typical red-eyed drow: arrogant, ruthless, cruel. She doesn't care about the surfacers. She is here to do a job, not to make merry with faeries like Shadowheart and Astarion, let alone an abomination like Lae'Zel (a drow would rather tolerate an illithid than a githyanki). So, if companions are recruited at all, she considers them "helpers" not "friends" and plans to kill them after the job is done (the "no witnesses" part).

Because we will destroy the grove, no point in recruiting Wyll and Karlach. Gale would be a no-go too: Jezzara is a sellsword and that way quite greedy. There is no chance that she would feed valuable magical items to some wizard tramp.

While Jezzara doesn't care about the other companions, Minthara's wishes are her creed. This also includes the ending.

[thegreatyin]

Hey what are your feelings on

1. lae'zel

2. Emperor

lae'zel is actually one of the best companions in the game and everyone who hates her or says she's just mean fundamentally doesn't understand her character. she's literally the nicest girl in the world given her usual environment and upbringing. she essentially has the exact same backstory as shadowheart in that she was raised in a controlling violent cult and has spent most of her life (including the start of the game) brainwashed by that cult into the person she is today. and yet despite it all she is trying her best to help people. she DID NOT have to save you on the nautiloid and she DID NOT have to promise to take you to what she had every reason to believe was a cure-all for the tadpoles and she goes so far as to defend you and the rest of the party to other gith despite her extremely xenophobic society pressuring her around every corner to do otherwise. over the course of the game she literally had her entire way of life and belief system uprooted from top to bottom and she ultimately decides to deal with it by becoming a hero and dedicating her life to saving others from the same situation she was in. her entire character, at its core, is so extremely dedicated to helping other people even at the cost of herself. she has the same trauma and should get the same treatment and sympathy as shadowheart and you guys just don't like her because she's not conventionally attractive and standoffish at the start of the game but when you actually follow her companion quest and/or romance her she is so sweet and trying her best and she is a TOP TIER companion and i am not going to pretend like she isn't.

the emperor is one of my favorite characters in all of bg3. i know i just went off about lae'zel but god the emperor is so good. he is a LIAR. he is a Bastard Capital B In Bold. he is the deceiver trope played straight from the very beginning and you can't trust a word he says and half of act 3 is practically dedicated to proving just how full of shit he is. he is an awful person who presents himself as a savior and a hero but at the first sign of resistance or hesitation he snaps and doubles down his manipulation in an attempt to control and corral the player into doing what he wants. his first reaction to the player turning down/questioning his sex scene in any way is to gaslight and accuse them so he can shift the blame and keep up his veil of heroism. he encourages them to let go of their humanity and turn themself into a cannibalistic monster while constantly swearing it's for the greater good. he literally runs off to join the netherbrain if you free orpheus. ansur was right all along. balduran died the minute that tadpole took over and transformed him into a mindflayer and the emperor is a shell of his former self masquerading around with the same gravitas and veil of kindness he used to have, but it's gone, if it ever existed to begin with. the emperor is a fascinating example of a manipulative piece of shit done right because even the fanbase can't agree wholeheartedly on if he's good or not but if you couldn't tell my money is wholly in the "he fucking sucks guys" camp. as a character i adore him though.

[ecoamerica]

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[glacierbash]

Okay, I'm going to try and write this out because I can't stop thinking about this. Spoiler warnings for Act 3 Dark Urge content, Post Orin fight, as well as a general warning for every companion character. Not all will be listed, but take this as a big, general warning: this is a very spoiler heavy post. If you have not defeated Orin as a Dark Urge, or are worried about a companion's story being spoiled, I suggest looking away.

TL;DR: Dark Urge puts you in the place of a companion character, but not merely in the fact that it's an Origin, and in doing it creates one of the most unique and interesting experiences I have ever played in a game.

So what do I mean by that? Essentially, due to the fact that the Dark Urge (which shall henceforce be referred to as the Durge, mainly to make my life easier) is an Origin character, the story was written with them in mind, including a lot of story beats. As the rest of the cast, the Durge has a story revolving around freedom and escaping chains placed upon them. Much like Astarion seeks freedom from his master, and Shadowheart learns to find purpose without Shar, the Durge is plagued by a piece of themselves that they seek freedom from.

Much like the other Origin characters, as well, the Durge can embrace these aspects--Just like how Astarion can ascend through Cazador's ritual, or how Shadowheart can become a Dark Justiciar. The way that Larian has done this feels so spectacular that I simply had to call attention to it. The game places a big aspect on companions acting in a logical and expected way, with their own wishes and goals. Lower approval on characters means they will act however they wish, whereas higher approval characters may follow your nudging a bit more. Ultimately storyline changing decisions may be altered based on the approval of your character--for example, using one that everybody will have witnessed by act 3, the Nightsong and Shadowheart. With Shadowheart in your party, the decision appears to be "Convince Shadowheart to stand down," "Force Shadowheart to stand down," or "kill the Nightsong." But there's also the option to simply... Stand back. Allow Shadowheart to act how she sees fit.

And with a high enough approval, you need not convince her--she can spare Aylin of her own accord, all through your hidden nudging behind the scenes. Similarly, Lae'zel can forsake Vlaakith of her own free will, and Wyll can choose to wander the lands as the Blade of Avernus. These are decisions you can ultimately step back and allow companions to take, and how you change them. Now, circling back to what I said earlier: The Durge lets you be a companion.

Thinking about what I stated prior, the Durge is influenced by people around you. With your overarching story of freedom and fighting the urge that comes with being a Bhaalspawn, you are just like the other companions: You seek freedom from the Tadpole, and also from something else. And the companions have thoughts. People like Shadowheart and Lae'zel believe in you shirking your heritage and standing stronger, while others such as Minthara (who I had as a companion during my Dark Urge playthrough) encourage you to embrace your heritage. The companions have unique opinions, and ultimately they sway you.

When the choice comes to either embrace Bhaal or reject him, become his Chosen or stand on your own path, you are standing at the same decision all your other companions have stood at or will stand at. When Astarion is deciding whether or not to ascend via Cazador's ritual, where Shadowheart is deciding where to forsake Shar or become a Dark Justiciar, where Lae'zel is deciding whether she curses Vlaakith or stands at her side, they are all standing in the same position that you are standing at. You influenced them, and now they have influenced you.

Do you believe you can walk your own path, or do you covet the power that Bhaal offers you? The words of your companions may very well shape you--I know they did for me. I know that hearing them speak about how brave I was when I turned my back to Bhaal made me feel I made the right decision for my character, and that's when I realized, "Ah, this is what I do to all of them."

Now, this may just be a me thing, and I can totally stand by that! But all in all, the Durge feels like one of those experiences that truly elevates the game, by making you stand on the same footing as your companions. You are all motivated by a desire for freedom, both from the tadpole and from something else entirely, and now it's not in mere headcanons and roleplay moments. Now, your freedom is integral to the game and the narrative itself. You are one of them. While they fight for their personal freedom and turn to you for advice and aid, you do the same to them--You look to them for guidance and wisdom, and they give it to you, and in the end the choice is yours.

Brilliant.

[yesjejunus]

I only have one truly grave complaint with bg3, which all things considered is fantastic, and I can't fault the game too much if this is all I have to moan about

this post contains MASSIVE spoilers for every single part of the game, including the VERY END, so if you haven't fully completed it, don't read this!

or do, I'm a sign, not a cop. But don't say you weren't warned!

Lae'zel. Oh my perfect warrior queen, how I love you. What I do not love is that every, and I mean EVERY single step of the way through the game, I consistently worked against her. From the moment I met the Emperor and took the astral tadpole, and straight up told him, IN FRONT OF HER, that I was cool with keeping Orpheus chained up for our safety, she never had anything more to say than vague complaints and threats.

She gets ( justifiably) upset in the end game when the Emperor saves you and you don't even have the hammer. She's angry when you agree to undergo full ceremorphosis, but ultimately doesn't act against you. You literally change into a full blown illithid and CONSUME ORPHEUS'S BRAIN IN FRONT OF HER, as she's shouting at you that she's going to rend both you and the Emperor limb from limb... and then in the end tells you that she'll fight the Netherbrain with you, but after that she's done.

And she is. You destroy the Netherbrain, everyone is happy, Lae'zel comes up to tell you that she'll fondly remember your travels but that she must leave.

LARIAN STUDIOS, WHY. I felt such a tremendous amount of guilt (wonderful guilt!) throughout the entire game. Because I KNEW she must hate me so much for following the Emperor every step of the way, for never questioning him, for being as perfect a puppet as any master could wish to have. And it was so gratifying that in the end the Emperor really is on your side and quite thrilled to have an equal companion... but Lae'zel. You were done so unfathomably dirty that you never even once tried to behead me for so openly, and CRUELLY, throwing the foundations of your faith, your entire reason for BEING, in your face. It's my only true disappointment in an otherwise amazing character and game.

but hey on the other hand, love wins!

genuinely massive props to Larian Studios for letting me fall in love with a mindflayer and have a happily ever after with him. In a lifetime of consistently falling for unromanceable characters, this one was worth waiting for 😩

[blackjackkent]

Very weird taking the north path to the Risen Road and not having Raphael pop up to say hi. :P

And of course we're immediately greeted by the truly upsetting gnoll sequence.

Given how Rakha's felt about Scratch and the owlbear cub, normally I think she would be mildly intrigued by the hyenas and perhaps try to interact with them... except that the whole place is soaked in blood.

Her companions can all see it - the way she goes still and her eyes dilate. The beast rising in the back of her mind. So much death, a small caravan's worth of traders all stretched out in their own gore.

She strides forward among the bodies without a backward glance, coming to a halt over the writhing body of a dying creature.

Narrator: The beautiful broken heap smells oddly enticing. You find you can't resist inhaling her offals.

(A/N: Oh, gross.)

The smell of the shattered, dying body fills her with hungry adrenaline. She crouches over the body, deftly moving aside as the hyena snaps weakly at her hand.

Narrator: You hear what comes next before you see it. The sharp snapping of bones and a yelp of pain as her body starts to twist and undulate. [ARCANA] You watch with cold realization - this isn't the end of one life, but the start of another... Her darling pups will not be of her own species. Gnolls bring forth their iniquitous litter from many corpsed wombs - including hyenas.

She is not sure where the knowledge comes from. Some innate understanding of death and the twisted life that can spawn from it. Life like her own, the energy swirling in her from witnessing this still-moving carrion.

Her jaw spasms as she clenches it sharply, feeling the beast growling excitedly. With a wrench of energy, she turns her head away, looks back over her shoulder. Wyll stands just behind her, an appalled, disgusted look on his face as he eyes the squirming creature.

The beast's control flickers, just for a moment.

Stifle your excitement. This is grotesque.

She clenches her fists at her sides, squeezes her eyes shut. And thus she hears the moment of death and birth even more clearly.

Narrator: Her belly splits like a rotten fruit, birthing a frenzy of claws and fangs.

The blood spatters outwards, drenching across Rakha's body, into her mouth, her nose, her eyes. And the beast in her head roars, and she is lost to it, the moment of resistance shattered apart by the pure smell of death.

Narrator: The raw hate of life, reared from the miracle of death. A tear almost springs to your eye.

-----

When the fight is over and she is standing in a much deeper pool of blood, she becomes aware of Shadowheart standing next to her, slowly healing a long burn along her arm. The cleric squints at her with a wry expression. "I'll say one thing for you, you know," she quips. "You're thorough."

"They're all dead?" Rakha asks hoarsely. But of course she knows the answer; the beast is quiet again, satisfied.

"Dead and done with," Wyll confirms. "Monsters won't hurt anyone ever again."

Shadowheart laughs softly. "Another success for the Blade of Frontiers."

Wyll chuckles. Rakha looks at him sideways, and feels herself relax slightly. Yes - these were good kills, she thinks. Not because of the beast, but because of what the creatures did. They killed indiscriminately, and she and her companions put them down. That is what the caring hound means that Halsin spoke of. What Lae'zel meant by attack with purpose. What Wyll described as his cause. It is coming more clear to her all the time, an understanding that stands against the dark urges.

And yet, deep down, she knows that the understanding had nothing to do with it. It was the beast that struck, not her. And she still doesn't know how to make it stop.

[snailanimations]

I finally finished my first playthrough of baldur's gate 3! and my lovely wife (@cantolopejeevas) made a fun template for a little overview of the party!

Amrynn uhhh wasn't great at keeping up relationships, but I blame it on the constant assault of things to do and people to save!

His party's biggest grievances include (spoilers):

-Being an aggressively good aligned character, thus not letting Astarion have ANY fun (sorry Astarion)

-Not letting Wyll break his pact with Mizora because Gale disapproves if you do, and I like to play where I can't get disapproval from my romance partner (sorry Wyll)

-Forgetting to take Shadowheart through the Gauntlet of Shar to the Nightsong and having to reload because she LEFT MY PARTY OVER IT (sorry Shadowheart)

-Figuring out that the zath'isk was actually a murder machine, so Amrynn just....never got in it. Thus never finishing the creche quest, which the game treats as you just never going. Also not even taking Lae'zel with me to the creche at all (sorry Lae'zel)

-Turning down Halsin's romantic intentions because Gale is an AGGRESSIVE monogomist (sorry Halsin)

-Letting Gale do what he wanted and encouraging him to pursue the Crown of Karsus because I wanted to be a SUPPORTIVE BOYFRIEND DAMMIT, thus getting the """"bad"""" romance ending (sorry Amrynn)

-seeing Withers' ass :((( (sorry me)

my second run is going WAY better.

[pagesofkenna]

what all of you people who haven't romanced Lae'zel don't get is that romanced Lae'zel is obsessed with Tav. she gets ahold of their body just one time and cannot stop thinking about them. the first time you go from 'casual sex' to 'committed relationship' is when she challenges Tav to a duel, because that's how she was trained to show compatibility, except that for me after she got just one lick in she immediately stopped and said no I can't do this, I can't hurt you, I don't want anything bad to happen to you ever, and isn't that strange for someone trained to be a weapon in a society that only prizes how good you are at killing??

she gives you a series of petnames over the course of the relationship, from 'source of my bruises' (/affectionate) to 'object of my obsession' to 'my everything'. in her last romance cutscene (that I've seen, at least) she takes Tav to watch the sun rise over the city and tells them how beautiful she thinks it is, and how before Tav she never thought to look for beauty in the world

and also, when I was looking up the romance options for this game, basically everything I saw assured me that you can really only do one romance 'path' but if you want to sleep with Halsin certain partners will be OK with that, including Lae'zel. I didn't get Halsin's offer until fairly late, and went to ask Lae'zel how she felt about polyamory; she immediately clocked that I meant Halsin, agreed with me about hot he is... and then said no. gave me a possessive 'you're mine and if you want to sleep around I'm breaking it off'. which, like, I'm a bit disappointed by but also something about her being so possessive of Tav that she doesn't want anyone else to touch them, even when the internet was under the impression that she 'doesn't care'? it's so endearing to me. she cares SO MUCH

do you see what I'm saying here? Lae'zel is OBSESSED with Tav

[crossdressingdeath]

In my Gith playthrough i just had Karlach become a mindflayer so my Tav, Lae'Zel and Orpheus go on to liberate the Githyanki together. And hey, Karlach doesn't have to go back to the hells.

It's always bizarre to me when people talk like Karlach becoming a mind flayer is a better ending for her than going back to the Hells. Especially now that the patch 5 epilogue confirms that just six months into her time there she and whoever she went with have made huge steps towards a permanent solution. Does it suck that Karlach has to go back to the Hells even temporarily? Yes. But it is temporary. Once they figure out how to fix the engine she can come back, and all evidence suggests that they are going to figure out how to fix it (and quite soon at that). Becoming a mind flayer, though? That's forever. There's no fixing it. She will be a soulless, tentacled monster vulnerable to being dragged into hive minds and forced to eat brains to survive until the day she dies, and even that's assuming she doesn't eventually lose herself. Like, obviously everyone can do what they want with their story (gith Tav, Lae'zel and Orpheus going off to free the githyanki together is a solid ending!), but to say that that's a better ending for Karlach just because she doesn't have to go to the Hells is... hm. I don't buy it. And I know she's the one who suggests it and I know she seems happy with it, but she thinks about it for what, thirty seconds? A minute? That's really not enough time to actually consider the ramifications of this choice! It's a huge thing that can't be taken back or undone and it's done as a snap decision immediate solution with the fate of Faerûn hanging in the balance, that's... not a combination that gives me hope she'll be happy with it long term even before going into things like how a mind flayer player character—and presumably also a non-player Karlach, since there's no reason for her response to be different in that situation—spends the whole party being tempted to devour their friends' brains (not a pleasant situation for anyone to be in, especially not someone as kind as Karlach). It's a bit like saying ascended Astarion is the better ending because he can walk in the sun, or god Gale is the better ending because the orb situation is dealt with; sure, that particular problem is sorted! But their other endings also either solve that problem (if Gale gives Mystra the Crown she removes the orb for him) or include plenty of hope that they'll find a solution (there are loads of ways for vampires to walk in the sun and if you romance him you can suggest to Astarion that the two of you go looking for one), and while those solutions might not be as perfect as the characters would like they don't come with the massive negative side effects of their bad endings. I really don't think not having to go to the Hells makes up for turning into a mind flayer!

[beanieman]

WRITE THE BG3 PARAGRAPH! (Only if you want to ofc)

Well....since you asked I guess I have to. (I have been wanting to write a BG3 paragraph since the game came out.)

BG3 is so good. I've never seen a game have so many choices that have effects on both the story itself and your relationship with your companions. You can a 100 different versions of the same game and it'll feel like a new experience every time. Plus I love how open ended your player character and how you can truly make them your own.

My Tav is an elf bard who can talk herself out of any situation. She's mostly a good person, but every now and then she has a chaotic lapse that throws the party into unimaginable situations. Like when she brought down the entire creche trying to grab a rare weapon that was not supposed to be touched. However, the chaos in her life suits her just fine because she has an entertainer background and honestly she just lives to have fun. Which is partly why she romanced Astarion even though she considered Karlach or Shadowheart for a bit there. (She is a pansexual queen.)

More Undercut

Also, outside of the player character the companions all have such good stories. Every single one of them are so fleshed out and easy to get attached to! Even though my party ended up being Astarion, Shadowheart, and Karlach, I'm still really attached to Gale, Wyll, and Lae'zel even without experiencing their stories fully. Which just means I need to do another playthrough to give them a time to shine.

Also Act 2 has the best writing in any video ever in my very biased opinion. It's fantastic how you're introduced to the shadow curse and then all of your companions stories start coming into focus while you're faced with trying to heal the land and finding the Nightsong. Also also the song that plays when you free the Nightsong?? Cinematic genius. The entire OST is a 10/10 though, including in The House Of Hope. Having one of the main villains give a full Disney performance while you fight him was such a good idea. I don't know who decided to do that but they need a raise.

So if you can't tell I clearly have plenty of thoughts about BG3. I'm going to leave a screenshot of my Tav here because I genuinely love her and kind of want to write something with her as the main character.

[thessalian]

Thess vs The Patch/Hotfix Cycle

So ... okay, much as I love Larian, and how much they've grown and developed as a studio between Divinity: Original Sin 2 and Baldur's Gate 3 ... does anyone else feel like we're still somehow in early access, just because of the Patch/Hotfix Cycle?

It's like ... they do a patch. And these patches are huge, with big quality of life improvements, and that's great and everything? But the more they tinker with the code, the more chance you're going to have of coming out with a game-breaking bug somewhere along the line. Patch 6 in particular, with all of its significant QOL changes, somehow brushed up against a change in ... *checks* ah, yeah, Patch 5 ... and completely broke the game for some of us in the process.

See, there's a condition that you can pick up - "Enemy of Justice". It's supposed to be for killing a guard or something. I'm assuming some kind of criminal activity. Thing is, even if you're not doing any criming, you can pick this status up - specifically if you want to try to recruit Minthara on a good playthrough. Because if you kill anything before you knock her unconscious (including, apparently, the 5hp Scrying Eye which'll get you everybody's attention if you're not careful, and the low hp goblins everywhere), whoever struck the knockout blow gets Enemy of Justice. Which I guess makes sense. You assaulted her and killed her guards. She's going to take issue with that, and probably know that you're not as devoted to the Absolute as you pretended to be early on. (Though why anyone should believe her at that point, no idea.)

The problem is ... apparently Enemy of Justice doesn't discriminate. If you killed any kind of guard, anywhere, and left a witness ... everyone will be after you. Look, I first found this out because Lady Esther over in the Rosymorn Monastery literally attacked me on sight. She doesn't know jack from shit about the whole Absolute cultist bullshit, and probably doesn't care because it's not her assignment. So she has no valid reason to attack me. However, Enemy of Justice says that I am Public Enemy Number One for ... killing minions of the big bad, okay. And somehow everyone in Faerun knows this.

And I mean that literally, as some people have gone into Act 2 and found that everyone in the entire zone wants them dead. The Harpers at the Last Light Inn and the Absolutists at Moonrise Towers will both auto-aggro if you've got the bug that sticks that fucking Enemy of Justice to you. It's a pain in the arse, and basically makes the game unplayable. I mean, the worst part is, this only seems to really come into force when you come out of the Underdark and into what's ostensibly Act 2-adjacent content, so you go through the Underdark thinking all's cool and then boom! Just ... everyone hates you. Apparently it all goes away when you kill a certain Big Bad at the end of Act 2, but ... I mean, how do you get to that point if everyone wants to kill you?

So ... yeah, sometimes it feels like we're still in early access, because we're still seeing such massive patches that, just because of how much the code's being tinkered with, is an open invitation for more game-breaking bugs. I do love Larian trying to polish the game to make it the best game it possibly can be. But ... I mean, I would like to be able to play it at some point. And I can't do that if I'm stuck just a bit before the Grym fight, unable to continue because if I'm going to kill Lady Esther (and make no mistake - I am going to kill Lady Esther), I want Lae'zel approval for it. Which I don't get if she just runs at me screaming.

Larian ... please. Make it actually playable, and then stop trying to polish it. Let it be finished. It's a great game. Stop breaking it trying to make it somehow better. We can't play it when you do this.

[dravenxivuk]

After getting Lily stuck in the Lower City (thanks Patch 4) I went back through her saves and managed to find one that worked from before I added mods. It was also not long before the teifling party.

Perfect.

Lily can go mop up some goblins, chat to Halsin, get Gale to show her something magical, then tease Tygo until the end of time.

Except, things had changed.

We did exactly the same, including the long rest mid killing-all-the-remaining-things. A long rest that Karlach woke Lily up from to be very flirty. Lily was baffled, this didn't happen last time, and Karlach is pretty neutral about her at this point. Ride her until she sees stars? Really? That's pretty forward but ok. Some mild flirting later and she went back to sleep.

Time skip to the party after necessary conversations and selling of loot.

Shadowheart, told Lily excessive amounts of backstory then tried to get her to stay for 'a bottle of wine'. I see through your ruse Shadowheart. Lily politely declined. No change since the last party.

Lae'zel admired Lily's ability to still be alive, then said Lily would forever regret not getting to know her better because now she'd always wonder what a night with Lae'zel would have been like.

Lily: ??? This is new.

Karlach flirted more, a lot more. Lily, still baffled by this new turn of events, stayed nice and went away after being told Karlach likes her unburnt with a mental note to aim her very intense and enthusiastic new friend at that nice smith who seemed to be into her.

Gale. Ah ha! The main reason we're back here! Time to see magic and... wait, what? he would have shown her magic if they were closer but their bond isn't that strong? Another time perhaps? This isn't how things went last time Gale.

*Sounds of Tygo dying of laughter somewhere in the background*

OK, well, let's have that quick chat with Wyll by the lake about how she'd like to see him dancing and then she can - , wait, what? What does he mean he thinks Lily would cut an excellent figure on the dancefloor? A kiss? She gets a kiss now?! Wyll, I didn't know you felt that way. Also, sorry. Lily already has two boyfriends in Faerun (they just don't know it yet this run) and I now can't see her with anyone else. I will try and get her to extract herself gently and stop whatever unintentional flirting she's been doing.

She ended the night as before, in the woods with Astarion. And just as before, told him his scars were in infernal.

[kudzuoath]

6, 8, 15, and 25 for Temperance pleasee?

I cannot convey to you how excited I get when people ask me about her! Thank you so much for sending this in!

(Questions are from here)

What companion are you platonically close with?

Temperance honestly loves all of them dearly. Wyll and Karlach are almost always in her party, though. It's really a matter of (very small) degrees by the end of the game. She's ride are die for all of her companions. Astarion and Shadowheart are both being pulled along back to Waterdeep if they let her though.

I'd say out of everyone she connects with Lae'zel, Halsin, and Minsc the least. Which isn't to say she doesn't like or care about them, just that they didn't end up clicking as much as she did with the others.

Who are they suspicious of?

Suspicious isn't quite the word, but keeping in the spirit of it, she was extremely Wary around Wyll -- to the point where he's not recruited until he comes after Karlach. Why? Because she is a wanted woman, and out of everyone she meets he's most likely to recognize her. And he does -- even if he doesn't realize it's from a wanted posted.

Actually suspicious and not just wary -- Shadowheart, and Astarion. For obvious reasons. They're both just very suspicious people. That said even suspicious of Shadowheart she's still friendly to her from the start because she sort of senses a kindred exhaustion in her. Astarion just is shaped like a red flag and she doesn't start to 'trust' him until after the vampire reveal.

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

Temperance immediately takes a liking to Lia, Cal, and Rolan (in that order)-- admittedly the latter because his ego and grandiosity amuses her. She also likes all of the tiefling refugees and stays in contact with all of the ones who survived even after the game, including Rolan and his family. She also really liked Aylin and Isobel.

On the other hand, Temperance can't stand Valeria, is unimpressed with Councillor Florrick, and wants to bite Wyll's father, Ulder Ravengard. She's also not particularly fond of Volo. She doesn't hate him or anything, and she's polite, but he makes her eye and her tail twitch. She also didn't much like Voss, or any of the Zhents she encountered sans Olly (and in his case it was less she liked him and more that she didn't hate him).

Lorroakan opened his mouth and she wanted to feed him his teeth. Hell, the moment she spotted Rolan's face at the front desk that wizard was marked for death.

Obviously the antagonists are on her shitlist. And Mystra, Cazador, Shar, Mizora, Zariel and Vlaakith. But so is the Emperor. I cannot convey to you how much simmering loathing that being managed to evoke in her. She would kill the emperor a second time given the chance. With her teeth.

What arcana major best represents your Tav?

Funnily enough, none of the major arcana speak to me for Temperance as a whole -- though a combination of several could fit. A lot of it depends on where she is in her journey.

On the other hand, the Ten of Swords in the minor aracna suits her entire life very well.

UPRIGHT: Painful endings, deep wounds, betrayal, loss, crisis

REVERSED: Recovery, regeneration, resisting an inevitable end

The reversed card in particularly speaks to her present, while the upright version speaks to her past. I think by the end of her arc the card that best suits her is -- ironically -- Temperance.