#man. poor aylin

[fallenbhaalspawn]

also; fun fact ketheric was immortal BEFORE the shadow curse and during the war against the harpers/druids, which wasn't my initial assumption, though it makes sense in hindsight—in "The Waning Moon: Consignments", thisobald mentions harpers poisoned ketheric and it didn't do anything, causing malus to label it a fluke, and thisobald to realize ketheric's immortal, something he's "long suspected".

[janearts]

I couldn't help myself from referencing Highlander. There can be only one [wielder of the Netherstones]!

Proper answer (and some character analysis for Roisia) under the read-more.

Roisia was surprised by Gortash, but pleasantly so. In the first place, as far as Roisia is concerned, Ketheric and Orin recall their respective gods in their appearance: Ketheric is withered, a husk of a person, but indomitable, and Orin... well, Orin looks like a flayed corpse with meat-suit clothes, but close enough. Roisia would have expected Bane's Chosen to be more... physically domineering. Terrifying. Intractable. ...Loud? Instead, here's this charming handsome fellow who is really rather ordinary. If Roisia met him on the street, he'd just be another debonair noble lusting for power. (Join the feckin' queue!)

And neither does Gortash behave as Roisia would have expected Bane's Chosen to behave. She would have expected a Banite to be a tyrant, a Faerûnian-version of the Machiavellian prince, who instils a terror of himself and who rules through fear. Instead, Gortash gently curates among the populace not a fear of him, but a xenophobic fear of The Outsider (whether that outsider is a cult like the Absolute or a group of people like the Coast's refugees).

Roisia—by all accounts an oppositional force to his own—encounters a man who is genuinely, fully, confidently willing to partner with her to achieve a common goal and is willing to swear a divine oath to secure that partnership...

Poor man. What a fool.

You see, Roisia is something of a Machiavellian prince. She would despise to think of herself in that way were she to read Il Principe, but she has within herself some (but not all!) of the traits and qualities that are described within. She is frequently a mirror: where she meets evil, she wields evil with aplomb. ("You desire me to kiss your foot? I think not. You shall kiss mine.") She would very much prefer to offer mercy, but if her mercy is rejected—like when Ketheric imprisons Dame Aylin once again before yeeting himself into the primordial soup—then she will dole out cruelty in equal measure. Most importantly of all, Roisia is a liar and a deceiver, all while appearing compassionate, guileless, and true to her word. Roisia only really keeps her word when it suits her purposes. Were she otherwise, she would have found that Gortash would have been faithful to his word to the last. But as the Machiavellian prince, she betrays and slays him.

Actually, having written all that, Roisia is more of an embodiment of the Machiavellian prince than I originally thought: she is virtuous and good, sure, but she is also intimately familiar with baser behaviours (lying, cruelty, conspiracy, etc.) and wields those base behaviours like a tool when and where she feels it is needed and necessary.

Which is why I was absolutely thrilled when I had her do what was only natural to her and had her speak to Gortash post-mortem. Roisia is a character who believes herself to be godless: damned and/or abandoned by Kelemvor, Lord of the Dead and Judge of the Damned, for being a Necromancer. She had a sliver of hope that she would find favour with Myrkul, but Myrkul thought only of the Chosen stolen from him. She thought, perhaps, that she might find favour with Bhaal because, let's face it, she had slaughtered and bloodied so many in her long journey to Baldur's Gate, but the skull only wept blood and that was that. Bane, however, actually speaks to her, acknowledges her, validates her. She won his favour the moment she betrayed and slayed Gortash. She is in her very nature a stellar Banite. Incredible! And absolutely absurd. Thank you to Larian for programming that opportunity in. 😂

[zwolfgames]

Idk, but I think bg3 reader would try to leave the group, if they know about their yandere personalities, lol. Please, your bg3 works are so good. I expect the new one

(So, not a continuation of the last drabble. This is hypothetical for now. Also it deleted my answer the first time :( so this is try two, it may seem a bit rushed. And I got a bit off track, woops.)

Warnings: mentions of yandere stuff I suppose.

Y/N in this au (aka teen tav) really isn't stupid, sure they grew up in a village with just their mother and pulled random spells out of their ass like a true sorcerer, but they're not stupid.

The party started with variable reactions to a minor in the group. Act 1 doesn't showcase a lot of Yan tendencies due to everything still going kind of fine and everyone getting to know each other.

The yandere part really starts in act 2 when they enter the Shadow cursed lands. Unlike the normal region of act 1 are the Shadowlands riddled with danger.

The party quickly gets their wake-up call after things like Kar'niss (who gets his little momemt) and the other bosses and dangers. Katherine Thorm, being a threat, also doesn't help ease the party's feelings.

The group would go from silly to way more protective in act 2. But Y/N can't do anything about that yet. The shadows would eat them alive, or someone else could get them. Better left with unease rather than dead, right?

I've purposefully mentioned Y/N's mother in the drabbles to show the main goal of the reader, which is to return to their mother. This goal is being held back by a party of people who no longer seem intent to part ways with you once this is over.

Sure, Y/N wanted their cool adventure with heroes like Wyll Ravenguard, but staying with them permanently? Haha... no.

So after the wake-up call of act 2, Y/N would take their chances at escape in Baldur Gate. The thing is, though, Y/N isn't from Baldurs Gate. They don't know the alleys like the back of their hand in the same manner that Astarion does. They didn't grow up playing in the secret passageways like Karlach...

This is a dangerous game you're playing. The more you wiggle, the tighter their hold. It's just how it goes with people who have faced enough to lose it.

They handle you in different ways, of course.

Wyll, Gale, and Halsin strike me as the type to have wanted to protect this poor kid from the start, so their resolve just strengthens to unnecessary levels. You wouldn't mind just being carried to bed by a bear man, would you? He knows some good elvish lullabies.

Lae'zel is her own separate category, she's a githyanki, they have very diffrent ways then most folk on faerun. I'm basing her motherly ability on the prologue where she raises the gith egg. She may not be affectionate, but she does not want you out of sight. Expect training.

Karlach and Astarion surprisingly go together here. They don't seem like the parental type. More of an aunt/uncle. Would try and stay your friend. Guiltripping from Karlach that she may or not be aware of herself, and straight up manipulation from Astarion. They both had a bad past. You can stay, right? As a little gift from the gods?

Shadowheart didn't like you from the start, not a fan of kids. Her yandere strikes a lot later. First, she had only been worried about your health as a cleric. After her arc at the end of the shadow cursed lands (freeing Dame Aylin etc) she gets a bit of that parental feeling nonsense too. Though I'd say she shows it the least. You'd be tricked easily into thinking she's the only normal one in the party.

Minthara, I'm unsure if I can find a good way to let her join, but she'd be similar to Lae'zel, just crueler and definitely bot secretive about her want for your stay. If you ask her directly, she'd just plain out and say that if she catches you, you're getting bound.

Jaheira, natural mom, she's got kids, protected the kids. Don't expect her to be sweet, but you're definitely not going out of sight.

Minsc joins in Act 3, so really, he doesn't have the time to get to know you, he's funny, you're funny. Friends. Not that the rest appreciates the time you spent with him. They're scared you're gonna make up a talking animal next.

All in all, Y/N would try and escape. It just isn't very likely to succeed. If you get far... well, there are other beings out there still after you, you know?

Just forget your mom. Aren't they better family now? Your mom didn't teach you spells, did she? Or swordplay? Maybe how to make balms?

Cmon, they're the best option. Stay.

Just an answer lol, hope i didn't make anyone too OOC with just this. Xd.

[mendellyill]

Baldurs gate 3 spoilers about gale (and rolan kinda) under the cut

If you take gale and karlach with you to the counting house in the lower city, they have a conversation about how neither of them have ever had much money and I find that for gale, that provides some fascinating context for his life.

How much did his mother sacrifice to send him to university? Of course hes a mama's boy, getting him into magic college was probably her main priority for most of his childhood. How difficult was it for him to get learning materials? Gale loves libraries, which is a standard nerdy thing but as a kid whose family might not have been able to afford the books he needed to learn about magic? Libraries would have been his one connection to the world of magic. Every scrap of magical material would have been precious and hard won.

Mystras attention would probably have been absolutely life changing for him. If he doesn't have a fortune to fall back on, like lorroakan, having the attention of the literal embodiment of the weave is probably the only way he was ever going to get anywhere in his field. Speaking as someone who works in academia, it doesn't matter how smart you are if you can't get funding. Their relationship is already deeply one sided, but man if gale feels like his opportunities for success are because of her? Fuck.

We see a sort of similar (please for the love of God bear with me) situation with lorroakan and rolan. Rolans poor, reasonably talented, and loves magic more than almost anything besides his family. He was, up until the enslaving dame Aylin plan, willing to put up with lorroakans abuse and whims because he wanted to be a wizard so bad. Now gale has several in universe advantages compared with rolans situation, but it's clear that the Wizarding profession is not a profession you can easily get into if you don't have funds or a very rich patron.

Not really sure where I'm going with this. I saw a post about gale joking about how his tower was never cleaner than after he lost the orb and I just. For a kid who grew up in a low income situation, his tower is 100% a point of pride and something he identifies with very strongly. To have had to literally devour his tower to stay alive, to have had to literally destroy everything in the life he built for himself as a result of the orb. That must have been horrifying for him.

[cordiallyhqs]

16th of APRIL, 1813・.・𓂃۶ৎ ― DEAREST GENTLE READER,

Who knows the nobility best than the one who rules them all? Body and soul belong to the very soil of England, but did they forget she is also in possession of their beating and bleeding hearts? She was not content with the revelation that her aristocracy is human and flaws. The cure, however, is underway. The ton have been tied together in ribbon and pearls no different than a noose if they do not abide by the courtships decreed by their loving queen. The matches have been decided, and I believe they have their reason beyond power and title. As the nobility find out their fate this fine morning to mourn their amorous appetites, the rest of Mayfair and London will know as well.

Ms. Wilhelmina Dalton & Mr. George Thorpe

A quiet chaos, and a supposed criminal— what will come of these two forces combined? Can Ms. Dalton teach Mr. Thorpe discretion if only to favor both their reputations?Hailing from great houses with different roles, it is up to the two of them to climb the ranks of nobility.

Mister Kit Locke & Lord Henry Sinclair

Two ends of the spectrum will sedate bitter and sweet. A lover found in Mr. Locke that knows no bounds, and possibly too many overlapping loyalties, will either entice or intrigue a begrudging Lord Sinclair who has no intention of giving into love. Can they find balance?

Ms. Catarina Barnet & Lord Adrian Harrow

Love marked by the intersection of a commoner and noble, history may have a chance to repeat itself if is born again from a budding rose. Ms. Barnet who has caught the eye of too many in the ton that they may wish to send her own carnations to her door is to be acknowledged as an eligible debutante in her own right. Who better than a man who sits on the edge of brass glory? Can his heart blossom again?

Mr. Avi Lakhani & Ms. Isabelle Adwani

An intellect devoted to books that avoids the real world, and a headstrong heroine who has yet to give into the idea of anyone saving her. It is time for street smarts, and book smarts, to collide.Will Ms. Adwani finally enter the marriage market, and will Mr. Lakhani take initiative?

Lady Alethea Reade & Ms. Natasha Gupta

The hunt for husbands has come to a close and two widows will spin their web to find love at last. Marked by their resilience, it is the queen's decree that they should find a way to make it through the season if only to protect what they think only they know.

Lord Domingo Alvarado & Ruling Countess Josephine Hermance

Who would be worthy of a ruling Countess enough for her to give up the power placed upon her until her younger brother is of age? A knight, a lord, and a diplomat surely makes the cut but will there be blood or passion. Will a man of so many titles become hungry or be left starved in the hands of a woman in power at long last?

Mr. Elijah Hall & Lady Eva Alvarado

A man known for his charm for all the wrong reasons can be an asset to the queen if she can get him to be loyal as she needs. The Lady Alvarado will finally place her eye on something attainable, and prove that she can catch a mouse with the claws she has shown to the ton thus far.

Lord Atticus Sinclair & Ms. Kate Hawthorne

An eldest son who has had his turn about the marriage market one too many times will be paired with a newcomer. Who better to show her the ways of the aristocracy, and who better to deem her prey to the nobles or one of their own?

Lady Dowager Aylin Kara & Mr. Tobias Thorpe

Blessed by the crown and marked by poor luck, Lady Kara will find a reversal of fortune from the ton's infamous rake Mr. Thorpe. A woman of not only resilience, but demand, can surely place him back on the right path. Reformed rakes make the best husbands, don't they? Who better than a former diamond to ring out the best from the rough.

Mr. Lysander Digby & Ms. Cassandra Lockridge

Under the guise of an older gentlemen— even if some may know her newfound guardian under a different alias— it is possible that Ms. Lockridge can avoid further scandal? Will she follow the guidance of a man aged with wisdom? Perhaps Mr. Digby can be persuaded with the Lockridge fortune.

Ms. Penelope Follett & Dr. Silas Elsworth

Science and art will at last be bridged, and what love or hate will come from such an experimental proposition? This is a play at intellect against the heart, mind over matter, passion over wisdom. Will the doctor be able to still his beating heart to avoid a chance at love, and can the musician find a tune the lure her into the queen's symphony?

Mr. Amos Locke & Lady Maude Whitlock

A ball and chain will keep Lady Maude on her best behavior, and what better than an opportunity if even a facade to bring honor back to the House of Whitlock. Mr. Locke must be enticed out of his shell, and who better than the loudest woman Mayfair has ever seen?

Sir Alistair Bennett & Ms. Eleanor Winthrop

The princess that never was is a possible threat to the crown, and while she is not claimed, she must be roped in closer to the palace for a watchful eye. A man of honor will surely prove loyal to Her Majesty, and provide information within the House of Claremont.

Ms. Beatrice Bennett & Lord Leonidas Alvarado

With the queen's diamondlosing her sparkle under the dirt and grime of rumor, perhaps Her Majesty can entice her to behave while putting Lady Whistledown's zirconia to the test. Lord Alvarado will be their prize.

Lord Callum Sinclair & Ms. Chastity St. George

A governess must have a kind soul, and who better to handle the troubled mind of a boy who must become a man? War never touched the Sinclair household, and perhaps with good reason. Can someone who sits at the edge of greatness finally use their heart to be more?

Ms. Lavinia Moreno & Ms. Maia Teach

These two go hand in hand with the doubts they ensue when they chew you up and spit you out. Are they sugar or are they spice? Ms. Moreno is whispered to be a treat, but there are speculations that she is the burn from something too hot to handle. Ms. Teach and her origins remain unknown. When two mysteries are put together, do they disappear or find each other out?

Lady Amelia Rosewood & Mr. Gabriel Young

Two creatures of gossip who bite on scandal for their ownentertainment are to join forces to be the conspirators of Her Majesty's ton. They may think they are drawn to bring two houses together, but she intends to see where their theories lead.

Ms. Marisol Alvarado & Lord Sebastien Whitlock

A tortured soul and a lively one come together to not restore balance, but create a spark. To maintain the alliance between House of Whitlock and House of Alvarado, the youngest blossom will be found with a scandal that must be buried. Her innocence will protect him.

Mr. Edmund Covington & Ms. Violetta Mancini Ms. Violetta Claremont

Let the game of pretend come to a close with a match made by a script both parties can agree is worthy of an applaud. Ms. Mancini, otherwise known as the widow Mrs. Claremont, will at last make an home for her facade by the man who controls the candlelight of awe.

Mr. William Erwood & Ms. Alice Heywood

Just a word off from being of the same name, these two were cut from the very same cloth. What will be the price to repair the frayed the edge of those scorned by the wealthy and noble? Ms. Heywood can make the stitch, but will Mr. Erwood stomp over his bleeding heart to move on?

Lady Madeleine Sinclair & Sir Thayer Claremont

With Sir Claremont taking on their ward as their own, the rumors sprung from his frequent visits will be laid to rest with the excuse of always having an eye for Lady Sinclair. To smooth over speculation of tension between houses, the queen has worked to make this a quiet and seamless transition.

Lady Rosemary Hermance & Sir Edward St. George

News of the bets placed by her dishonorable knight surfaced, and forgiveness was given only with his name placed in a match without warning in Her Majesty's decree. A lady of a noble house, charmed by as the third blessing, will surely entice him to either make him an enemy for certain or a loyal servant. Lady Hermance will also be challenged as a rule follower like the Countess, or a ripple in the pond like her sister Lady Marjorie.

Lady Marjorie Hermance & Lord Callum Sinclair

An oversight on Her Majesty's behalf, or a game for her to be entertained in the midst of the scene she lays? Lord Sinclair requires a gentle hand all the more one that will rip him from his antics and entice him into new behaviors. Perhaps this is why the queen went back and forth on his match, and Lady Hermance chosen because she needs someone to distract her from poor decisions. A challenge indeed on both ends.

Ms. Edith Cooke & Ms. Dorothea Alwyn

A woman scorned is a force of nature, but what will come of the world when there are two? Placed together to build an alliance and keep them occupied from spreading their distaste for the social season all about Mayfair, Her Majesty plans to ease their souls with friends to lovers.

Ms. Esther Chaidee & Mr. Hunter Thorpe

The House of Thorpe needs to be managed, and who better than those within their own household who know their secrets to set them along the path of avoiding scandal. Ms. Chaidee is no servant, but a governess in her own right that will gloss over the scandal of their household with something far more intriguing but not wrong for a man without title.

Ms. Adelaide Locke & Ruling Lady Mun Ahri 

Ms. Locke is in need of direction, something to draw her out from the clouds of her own grief and away from the woe of her brothers' poor reputations. A blessing to her, but will Lady Mun agree? Her wisdom is valued by the queen once more, but it is up to her if she will abide by a pretty face or deny having to share her power.

Ms. Rosalina Alvarado & Ms. Mun Dasom

The opposite of perfection is only existence, and it is time for Ms. Mun to grow away from the wall. A beauty concealed from the ton who has returned to Mayfair is to be inspected and adored, and who better than the quiet and gentle hands of Ms. Mun. Will they bring each other out of their shell, or will they begin a feud borne of someone getting too close?

What do you, dear reader, assume of these matches? I do not doubt some will last, and others will burn down Mayfair itself in the throes of their passion.

Yours truly,

Lady Whistledown

[traceofexistence]

Ketheric Thorm

a rich ass man who controlled controlled all of his town's important places along with his extended family.

death takes his wife and later his daughter, through his grief he starts worshiping the goddess of loss, and trains her dark justiciars in her name.

then he lures his daughter's lover (the immortal child of a goddess) into a trap, enslaves her, torture her, mutilate* her, kill her over and over, and has his justiciars target practice on her, as she's reborn over and over as it is her nature, and all the while he feeds on her immortality.

he wages war against all selunites, and pretty much commits genocide, until someone sacrifices his soul to the devil so the devil will put an end to Ketheric's justiciars, and the good guys could finally stop him. upon his defeat he put a curse on his entire town to finish everyone who was still standing.

he later betrays his goddess, and followed the god of death, who promised him to raise his daughter from the dead. when his daughter wakes up he tells her that her lover is dead. and she leaves him. if he manages to capture her again, he puts a tadpole in her brain to make her a slave to his will.

fandom: poor guy he lost everything, I wish we could redeem him uwu

Dame Aylin

the immortal child of a goddess, she falls in love with a human, her lover's father hates her, calls her a thief, and generally doesnt accept her. later when her lover dies, she's lured into a trap by her lover's father, and she gets enslaved, tortured, mutilated*, killed over and over, and his justiciars use her as target practice, as she's reborn over and over as it is her nature, and all the while he feeds on her immortality.

when she escapes her chains, she fights the father of her lover who she thinks dead, and once she defeats him, she crashes his skull while curses him, in an outburst of fury.

fandom: omg I hate her so much, if it wasn't for her I could have saved ketheric, she's so annoying, and brutal for no reason!11!!

*mutilation: according to the lore, and data mining, we know that she had her tongue cut for "speaking too much" , her torturer cuts her wings. he even laments that she was being difficult during the process...

[blackjackkent]

Interestingly, we get a completely different opening sequence upon entering Lorroakan's tower this time! I'm not sure if this is a new patch addition, or if it's because we're here without Aylin.

The scene opens on Lorroakan, one of his magical armors ("Krank"), and a poor hapless halfling named Miklaur, engaged in setting up a William Tell-esque archery challenge in the center of the tower's atrium.

"Hold very still, Miklaur!" Lorrokan says cheerily. "Krank's aim is much improved but still leaves something up to chance!"

"Yes, sir," the poor halfling says miserably, holding as still as possible.

(A/N: I'm actually quite pleased because this answers a little mystery from Hector's playthrough. Miklaur was in the boss fight against Lorroakan there, with a solid eight hit points and basically nothing to show for himself, including any explanation for why he was there. At the time, he didn't even have a wiki entry, which lends some credence to the idea that maybe this scene was added in a more recent patch. Either way, it answers the overall mystery of who this guy is; clearly he's another of Lorroakan's "apprentices", being subjected to bodily harm and mental torment for his master's amusement.)

"All right, Krank," Lorroakan says, utterly uncaring of Miklaur's evident terror. "Ready... aim..."

An unexpected sound splits the air as a portal opens at the far end of the room, revealing Rakha and her companions striding forward.

"Hm." Lorrokan's eyes narrow. "We have a visitor." He jerks his hand dismissively. "Miklaur, you may go."

The halfling doesn't need to be told twice; with a relieved grin he darts away, followed by the animated armor, which clanks with unsteady steps into the corner.

Lorroakan looks Rakha up and down, then eyes Wyll, Jaheira, and Minthara one by one. Then he makes a show of looking behind them and raises his eyebrows.

"I see no Nightsong," he points out with a brittle smile. "Surely you wouldn't have entered my tower without the Nightsong."

He steps closer to Rakha, his voice lowering with what he clearly thinks is a dramatic aura of threat. "Surely you wouldn't have wasted. My. Time."

He might have more of the desired effect if Rakha weren't almost a foot taller than he is. As it stands, she just looks down at him, deeply unimpressed. This, then, is the wizard who thinks so highly of himself, who wants to see another of Rakha's companions stolen out of their camp - small, smarmy, and self-righteous, tormenting his staff with the threat of arrows through the skull.

(What a show that would have been, purrs the beast in her head. Blood spilled all over this lovely carpet. A little shriek of fear-pain, and then silence...)

"What do you want with her?" she asks curtly.

Lorroakan's head draws back and his lip curls; he examines Rakha with a suddenly keener eye. "Her. Fascinating. You've been to Shar's temple, haven't you?" he says coolly. "To the Shadowfell?"

Ahhh.

Rakha's use of the word was neither accidental nor arbitrary. She is gauging the man carefully. There are various possibilities here.

If he truly thinks that the Nightsong is no more than an artifact he could acquire, then perhaps he is less dangerous. Perhaps the situation could simply be explained to him, and then he would call off his hunters before any of them tried to enter Rakha's camp.

But this... this is the other possibility. He knows exactly what-- who-- the Nightsong is, and is only surprised that Rakha does as well. He knew exactly what he was doing when he sent Aradin into the nest of goblins in search of the entrance to Grymforge.

He wants Aylin, child of a goddess. He wants to be the next in line to steal someone out of Rakha's shaky and unstable family. He wants to attack the woman Rakha has fought so hard not to kill.

He is a threat.

"I have," she says between her teeth, her eyes narrowing to slits.

Lorroakan's smile widens unpleasantly. "And the Nightsong? Speak true, now, for I *detest* a liar."

Rakha is no liar - but she wants information far more than she wants to give him any. "Why do you want her so badly?" she asks.

Lorroakan rolls his eyes with a noise of sudden impatience. "I'm growing tired of this repartee, my friend," he growls. "Let us cut to the chase."

He flicks out a hand sideways; an echoing snap ricochets through the Weave and suddenly a small scepter is in his hand - silver with a dark blue inlay of lapis.

Rakha's eyes widen. Lorroakan begins to explain the nature of the object, but she almost doesn't need him to; she can see the warm shimmer of powerful magic over the scepter's surface.

(A/N: I love this moment of animation. This is absolutely the expression I picture Rakha wearing whenever some bit of magic fascinates her enough to make the murder urges shut up.)

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Lorroakan says with a smirk. "Worth more than your life, too. I bought it from a Calishite warlock with very little of his soul left to him." He lifts the scepter and twirls it in a dramatic gesture. "It can bind a celestial to the wearer's service with a snap of the fingers."

He jerks his head to indicate a side alcove of the tower. "And this? This can keep her in place... forever."

Rakha follows his gaze sideways, and it doesn't take long to figure out what he's referring to. Etched into the floor of the alcove is an enormous, elaborate sigil, glittering with power - power she recognizes. She has seen this symbol before, and this same magic surrounding it.

This is a Soul Cage. The same spell Balthazar constructed to contain Aylin in the Shadowfell. Once again, Lorroakan's version is visibly sloppy, frayed at the edges where it connects to the Weave... but it is, undoubtedly, the same spell.

Everything clicks into place at once. This is merely yet another way that Lorroakan is proving himself a second-rate imitator of spells Rakha has seen better done elsewhere. Somehow, by some means, Lorroakan learned of Thorm, of his immortality deep in the shadowlands, and he means to steal that power for himself.

Probably an ill-fated venture from the start, one he was never going to be able to accomplish - certainly not while Thorm lived. With the general dead, he might have more of a chance to lure Aylin into this new captivity... if Rakha were willing to let him.

Unfortunately for him, she is not.

You are a pathetic imitator of those with skill. You make a mockery of the Weave. You would cage Aylin again just like the last would-be immortal I destroyed. There is *purpose* in killing you, and I will enjoy watching you die.

[SORCERER] "First Ketheric and now you," she growls disdainfully. "I thought wizards were supposed to be the smart ones."

Lorroakan laughs. "It didn't work out for poor Ketheric, did it? He was a fool. A desperate mercenary who whored out his soul to whichever god flattered him. I serve no god but that which stares back at me in the mirror." He tilts his head, preening before an imaginary audience that is certainly more appreciative than Rakha. "The Nightsong will be put to a grand purpose - equalizing man and god. Whoever helps me attain that which I seek will be greatly rewarded."

Now the beast - that echo of Bhaal's divine blood in her veins - is awake and snarling in Rakha's head as well. How dare he? it growls. Imposter. Pretender. Useless wretch with delusions of grandeur!

"Equalizing man and god," Rakha says coldly. She is struggling to maintain control now, her fingers twitching with the urge to lash out and seize the wizard by the throat. "Quite the lofty ambition."

He smiles. "I intend to achieve greatness!" he crows. "And I intend to do it for a long, long, long time."

(A/N: This conversation is VERY convoluted, and it took considerable examining of the parsed files to figure out which path through it I liked best. The challenging aspect of this was that the path I really liked - which allows us to bring Aylin here at a companion's urging and thus gives a reason for Rakha not to just open up on Lorroakan immediately - requires Rakha to FAIL an Intimidation check, which took several reloads because she is very good at intimidation. But it is a DC20 and Rakha only has +14, so a failure isn't out of the realm of possibility; in this case we are saying that Lorroakan's self-aggrandizing is far too impenetrable even for her. :P )

He has started to draw closer to her, enraptured by his own power, oblivious to the tight fury that has drawn across her face - and at this moment he makes the mistake of reaching out to slap her lightly on the shoulder.

At once, her hand flashes out and catches him by the collar, yanking him almost off his feet.

[INTIMIDATION - FAILED] "Get out of my face. Now," she growls.

At once, the brittle smile falls off of Lorroakan's face. Both his hands come up, crackling lightning between his fingers.

"Choose your next words carefully, friend," he says icily. "They determine the length of your very life. You *will* bring me the Nightsong... won't you."

Rakha goes still, her weight shifting, calculating whether she can crush his head against the wall before he can unleash the spells he is holding. She's just about determined that the answer is yes when, to her surprise, an unexpected voice weighs in from behind her.

"We should kill this petulant wizard on our own terms," Minthara growls. "And allow Nightsong the pleasure of taking his head. Do not provoke him."

Rakha hesitates. She can kill him now, she is certain of it, and the beast keens in her head eagerly at the idea. But Minthara feels Aylin should have a chance at the killing blow, and even despite the strained nature of their friendship at present, her opinion is enough to sway Rakha, to stay her hand.

She releases Lorroakan with a jerk back onto his feet, scowling. "Have it your way," she mutters irritably. "I'll bring her here."

Lorroakan relaxes, straightening his mussed robes and looking at her with deep dislike that is ill-masked by the smile once again plastered onto his face. "Good," he says brightly. "I was growing scared for you. The last person who disappointed me is suffering for it still." He takes a few rapid steps back until he is a good deal more than arm's length away from her, flanked by two elementals that come shimmering out of the walls.

"Do not return without my prize," he finishes crisply, giving a dismissive wave and picking up a book on a nearby table. "Do you hear me? Good day!"

[kitthenameless]

I finished my BG3 evil durge run!

Evil runs were clearly not the intended vision, judging from how spotty the content is. But I did see some new stuff, and the new ending cinematic goes hard. (I did the evil Tav ending.) Overall, I had a lot of fun really leaning into the evil, and getting a whole little movie in the end was a nice finale.

Also this was my first Tactician run, though I had 5-6 people for most fights, and my durge could fly. Still, was a higher difficulty than I've done before, so *pats self on back*

Anyway, here's the summary of my Act 2 and Act 3. Warning for general spoilers and evil ending screenshots at the end!

Not much happened in Act 2. Killed Isobel but spared Aylin and managed to get her and Jaheira to join camp. Poor Gale tried to save the gnomes by opening their cell once the guards were all dead, but they just died outside. Astarion broke up with Durge (Remiel), but there were never feelings involved anyway. I made a whole post about my mess of a Myrkul fight in which I decided to loose a spectator instead of reloading lol. Other than that, they did what they had to do and moved on, leaving the lands cursed.

Then it was onto Act 3. Memories rushing back after the coronation, Remiel decided to go give the Archduke a little private visit. Gortash warned him not to come back without the netherstones, but he doesn't take orders from Gortash. And he needed to remind him of that ;-)

In the city, I couldn't figure out how to kill the people on the list without initiating combat with everyone nearby, so the group started kidnapping people and taking them to the sewers to kill them there. The fact that you can technically do that (by exploiting fast travel) is a lot funnier to me than it should be. Also met this mysterious man!

Continued doing evil things. (Skip this paragraph if you don't care about the list of evil choices.) Got into the Murder Tribunal, sacrificed Jaheira, and killed Valeria to become an Unholy Assassin. Killed Thrumbo. Went to the Society of Brilliance where they found a massacre and met the gith egg baby all grown up. Made a deal with the hag. Broke into House of Hope just to steal Raphael's valuables and kill his boy toy. Handed Aylin over to Lorroakan, because Remiel figured it'd be easier to bring Lorroakan under his thumb than Aylin. Handed Shadowheart over to the Sharrans. Did not help Astarion ascend because he didn't want him to have that much power. Still killed Cazador and the spawns though. Regretted killing the spawns when all the Gur kept calling it a kindness and praised him for doing the "right" thing.

And of course he killed Orin. But he rejected daddy because he decided he wants to do evil for himself.

The only person Remiel has a soft spot for is Gortash. He doesn't want to mind control him, he wants to rule with him sorta, but he still wanted the power for himself and couldn't have Gort getting in the way. So when they met at the Morphic Pool, he (in my headcanon) knocked him out or used poisons to put him to sleep. He even left his crossbow and a healing potion. (But of course they acted like immature children before that.)

Skipped the entire courtyard with invisibility. Got to the final bit of brain quickly, but I failed all attempts to hit it at the Morphic Pool, so it had full HP, and it got dicey at the end. The few characters still alive just barely managed to win before their platform was obliterated.

And then Remiel betrayed everyone and took control of the brain... and the world. *muahahahaha*

The end 🙂 Gosh I love his evil faces lol.

Mods: Kylin's Heads. Silver's Hair Pack. Slutty Closet. Glitzy Horns. Heroes never die - Angel Wings. One of Astralities's skintone mods, I think. Y-Shaped Autopsy Scars. Lokelani's Lavish Livery.

[thelikesoffinn]

been thinking about it lately and Ascended Astarion = Dead Dove content and I'm not sure that's really understood, even by the writers. when I finally got around to the character I decided to ascend him with, I was SUPREMELY disappointed by the conversations options following it. it seemed like the dialogue choices were trying to push the narrative on my character that they made this choice w/o considering the consequences and they are bound to regret it. the closest I could get to answering his question of "why did u let me go thru w it?" was "I wanted u to be powerful".

but with that character? my accept Bhaal durge? that isn't the reasoning. at all. (related: "what do u want as a reward?" "ur body" was the closest answer my character could give. otherwise I'd've answered "murder :))")

for context, this run was born of a conversation w my friend discussing supposed content no one had seen bc "no one's that evil". we thought, what's more evil than killing literally every npc? I failed the conceit of the challenge immediately bc I can't handle senseless animal cruelty in my games. killing children? fine (u need a mod to do this in BG3, but I am thankfully plenty delighted to use mods), killing a neutral animal npc? no can do.

so I started this durge (they are the only character that can come close to "killing" Gale with that first interaction) run with the intention of killing everyone except Shadowheart (only a cleric of Shar can truly kill Aylin) and Astarion (bc I need to smooch him). (and there is a mod for playing an origin character as durge, which would have meant playing as Shadowheart, but I MUST smooch Astarion and I don't tend to do het or female romances, unless I'm forced to (*sighs dreamily* oh, Garrus Vakarian). I'm just not interested in that set of equipment in that way, so may as well just make a durge dude.) somehow something went wonky and Halsin ended up joining us and I was so perplexed I just allowed him to stay. (he's meant to attack if u destroy the grove but free him anyway, but instead he just showed up that night and went straight into his Moonrise spiel. is it bc the wolf Silver never aggro'd me and thus survived???) so I fixed the Shadow Curse all while killing every single humanoid and hostile animal in acts 1 & 2. including Thaniel, which makes Halsin's talks later in act 3 of getting news from Thaniel and the Grove hysterical. idk what I did but I sure as hell broke this poor man.

(on a related note, Halsin will give out to u when u accept Bhaal, but will still give u the "u have exceeding my expectations, also we should bang" in the same conversation. I DON'T KNOW WHAT I DID BUT IT'S DARKLY FUNNY.)

in the conversation when Astarion is expressing surprise that u let him go thru w it, my durge is just like, yes my motivation is that I like to kill ppl :))). it's not a sex thing for him (that is separate from the murder!), but he's still fine w the outcome. yes, Astarion looks down on him, but that's fine! he's allowed to be wrong about that, durge doesn't care. so long as Astarion lets him kill ppl he genuinely just does not give a shit.

(I actually had the idea that if Halsin were to ever rediscover his morals and tried to leave he'd ask Astarion to turn him so Halsin would not have a choice. as I said, this durge *does not fucking care*.)

this is probably the only character I will play that would let Astarion ascend bc I enjoy dead dove SOMETIMES, but not always or in large doses, but I get so few dialogue options that convey that in an rp sense! I don't think the writers/devs REALLY took that into consideration, sometimes. like, yeah, there are going to be ppl making fucked up choices but surely no one would go THIS far! for THIS reason! honey, u need to look up the Dead Dove tag on AO3, there are absolutely ppl making choices for those fucked up reasons.

(and I understand the whole "this confirms to Astarion about sex yadda yadda". even if that's not Tav/Durge motivation, that's how ASTARION would *interpret* it.)

(oh yes, and also, don't let Orin abduct Yenna. it doesn't matter whether u find out in camp or the sewers, Grub will not survive. I was devastated. if I'd known, I would have made sure Halsin was available for her, but she won't abduct a party member or someone ur romancing.)

long story short, I want to play a durge that even ascended Astarion finds unsettling. that's the dream.

Hello there, duck!

Your run sounds delightfully evil! I wish I could play one of those, haha, but I'm too soft hearted. My one evil run with my durge Salira was ended before even entering the grove because I felt horrible after getting rid of Gales hand! Seriously, I can barely take killing the squirrel as durge, and I always save Alfira because I feel horrendous otherwise!

(Fun fact, on all five runs I've done Yenna just vanished at some point and grubs was left standing in my camp, which was like...eh?)

And yes, Halsin is always somewhat of an issue, isn't he? He's just running around, causing mayhem in peoples games because he seems slightly bugged out, haha. I had one run, where he wouldn't go to the spot where we save Thaniel because he joined the fight against Marcus at Last Light and somehow got stuck, for some reason. Same run, none of his vocals would play, which was also very interesting. Everybody would make noise when they climbed or got hurt but Halsin was always silent and just there! And in another run the dude really straight up hated me - he was so mean and snappy, I swear to god he wanted my Durge dead - and then he suddenly went: "Hey you're super cool and strong and I just want to gently fuck you beneath the moonlight if you'll let me" and I was like: Say what.

Regarding the dead Dove: I've talked to people of Discord before, and some of them mentioned something similar a couple of times, but personally, I do think the writers actually knew what they were doing here!

Of course, I do agree that it relies heavily on the regret notion and that it somewhat shoehorns you into a certain narrative corner, I noticed that too when I was ascending him for research - I hated doing that, but all for the asks, haha - but I thought it was really fitting for what it is!

The bad ending, that is. I know we all somewhat forget that because of how people view him as a character, but ascension is the bad ending. Even on an evil run, where your character may have considered all options, it is very likely that Tav hasn't accounted for one very important part of being a true vampire.

The obsession.

It's still somewhat mild in the game, though definitely there, but it will only get stronger as time goes on, and it will probably get to the point that the only escape is death. Either his or Tav's. So, in the end, ascension will come with an armload of regret and the writers were making sure we know that.

And, on top of that, even if we let him ascend in a pursuit for power - or in in your durge's special case: murder :) - we still cast spawn Astarion aside because he doesn't fit our needs, thus making it very clear to him that who he is isn't enough and his behaviour is the price we now pay.

It's pretty much the same with all the other companions as well - justiciar Shadowheart and ascended Lae'zel, for example. However, it doesn't bother us as much, because we have different expectations towards ascended Astarion than, for example, dark justiciar Shadowheart. We don't expect a positive narrative here, a narrative where becoming shady-shar's loyal subject isn't an objectively dumb decision to make, so we don't mind the dead dove as much. It's exactly what we've been expecting - and Aylin even warned us how Shadowheart would change upon becoming a dark justiciar - so yepp. This went exactly how we thought it would and this is what we wanted.

Astarion, however, is a somewhat special case, because his bad ending is, by far, the one that gets the most romanticised. He's so heavily romanticised by so many, that the bad parts nearly start to fade, even with those who don't like the ascended ending. It becomes just 'the other ending', if you will.

And yet, it's still the bad ending.

Ascension is the bad ending for a character that we've somewhat given up on. That we misunderstood so deeply, mayhaps, that we traded his entire being for power and, quite frankly, beauty. We showed him that he isn't enough, we let the boy run and hide the only way he knew how and now we're faced with the consequences and yes, it's really dead dove but...what did we expect?

[oathkeeper-of-tarth]

Hiya I saw those 3d models you have of isobel and aylin and I was wondering if you made them yourself? Or if you got them online somewhere? I'm looking to make prints of them myself

Oh man, I wish I had the skills to make those! No, the models were made by artists for Bulkamancer. You can get sets of STL files on their Patreon or just buy them individually on Gumroad, if you're going to print them yourself. They also have a separate subscriber tier for people who want to print and sell their models, so there's lots of them available already printed in different sizes on etsy and similar storefronts.

Reminds me (as if I'm not reminded daily by half my desk being taken up by someone's giant wingspan and a bunch of half-painted accessories and spare bits) I rather desperately need to finish Aylin's head and do a bunch of gold lining on her armour, and then poor Isobel can maybe be something other than partially primed? Perhaps?

[funniestbitchinfaerun]

OC Meme

Thanks for the tag @optimisticgrey! I tag everyone out there who would like to do this.

BASICS

- Full name: Kestrel MacDuff. Named after Mum #1's favorite bird.

- Gender: Female

- Sexuality: Bisexual with a strong preference for men. There are certainly women she finds beautiful and sexy, but is mostly interested in dating guys.

OTHER

- Family: Kestrel has 2 moms and 2 younger sisters. Mum #1 is Vickrey MacDuff, a human former mercenary turned schoolteacher and farmer. Mum #2 is Bettina MacDuff, a wood-elf cleric of Selune. Her sisters are 12 years old, twins, and named Noretta and Velma. They're very smart and a bit unsettling.

- Birthplace: The tiny settlement of Hargrave, a stop along an old Selunite pilgrimage route. It's east along the Chionthar from Baldur's Gate, and the closest nearby city is the trading hub of Scornubel.

- Job: Pre-tadpole: Apprentice cleric/healer/teacher (and aspiring writer). Post-tadpole: Reithwin-rebuilder, author, orphanage matron.

- Phobias: Crabs. They move weird.

- Guilty pleasures: Smutty romance novels, sweets of all kinds, straight up jorkin it.

- Hobbies: Reading, writing, cooking, gardening.

MORALS

- Alignment: Neutral good. She wants to help people and generally follows rules but has no problem disobeying unjust laws. or just stupid ones XD

- Sins: Lust (she's very horny over Halsin), envy (she's really jealous of how talented her friends are), and sloth (can the poor girl please take a nap)

- Virtues: Kindness, charity, humility

THIS OR THAT

- Introvert / Extrovert/ Ambivert : Kestrel is friendly, but a bit shy as well, and she does need to recharge after a lot of socializing.

- Organized / Disorganized: Organized with work-related things, disorganized with her own stuff.

- Close-minded/Open-minded: To quote the girl herself: “People don’t go on pilgrimages to Hargrave when their lives are going brilliantly. We got people passing through who’d lost their entire families, who were dying of venereal diseases, who were retired assassins or gang bosses–you wouldn’t believe some of the confessions Mama Bettina heard when she was handing out blessings. After a while you stop being shocked, give them what they need, and send them on their way.”

- Calm / Anxious / Restless: As much as she'd like to be as serene as Mama Bettina, Kestrel is an anxious mess.

- Disagreeable / Agreeable / In between: Kestrel dislikes conflict and her role in the gang is "peacekeeper."

- Cautious / Reckless / In between: "guys do you REALLY want to kill Aylin/blow yourself up/do the Ascension ritual/etc. maybe we talk it out first"

- Patient / Impatient /Inbetween: See above, peacekeeper.

- Outspoken / Reserved / In between: Varies wildly. She couldn't bring herself to tell Halsin she loved him until he told her, but was perfectly happy to yell at Kagha for being a xenophobe.

- Leader / Follower / Flexible: She doesn't WANT to be the leader, necessarily, but it happened by accident because she's the least cursed and most diplomatic person in the friend group.

- Empathetic / Unempathetic / In between: Empathetic to a fault.

- Optimist / Pessimist / Realist: Kestrel has a lot of faith in her friends, even when it's not always justified.

- Traditional / Modern / In between: As stated, she's very open-minded, but is traditional in some ways because she grew up in such an isolated community.

- Hard-working / Lazy: As much as she'd like to be lazy, Kestrel is on that grind 24/7.

RELATIONSHIP

- OTP: Halsin <3333 They share most of the same values (caring for kids, animals, and the underprivileged; loving nature; being open-minded) and they both love puns.

- OT3: Well, I am working on a sexy one-shot set after the reunion party and including Milil the Music Man...

- BROTP: She's close friends with most of the squad, but some of her dearest besties include: Shadowheart (half-elf cleric gals), Wyll (fellow Wattpad-esque romance novel enthusiasts), and Gale (nerd time).

- NOOTP: Her and Astarion, for the specific reason that he flirted with her to get her on his side despite there not being any attraction between them. She turned him down, they slowly became buddies, and now they're practically siblings.

[the-weeping-dawn]

Character sexualities that are subject to change at a moments notice as they develop

Ilztaun: Very much bisexual. Has only had serious relationships with men, knows he's sexually attracted to women but he's not doing the personal work to untangle why he doesn't so much believe it's even possible to have an actual het relationship until yoinked

Also he normally isn't poly. This is an such a single contextual exception for all involved.

Vascice: Lesbian. You wouldn't think someone could comp het so hard in a matriarchy but she was trying to be the not disappointment. She would eventually need to take a consort an have children to continue and strengthen their house but keeps finding ways to put it off

Nilrysn: Gay to the point his disinterest kept him from being taken as consort once.

Nataivin/Tai/Needles: ....I look at her she looks at me and we both shrug.

Sylfiel: I say bisexual right. But that's my default, realistically I think she's demi- and straight.

Shrinia: Aggressively bisexual. Tends more towards men because if she gets too serious with another woman she needs to know they're at least her equal in combat in case they have to protect her or to know who she's fighting if they betray her.......So There's a flaw in this plan right.....When I said aggressively. I meant it.

Nymyraen: Pansexual but also the less we interrogate on this man the better.

Fun fact: He refuses to have any more children because he can't go against his craft more than he has in creating life.

Marina: Baby is currently discovering herself before the save got corrupted.

Ian: Lesbian. Like a pair of ducklings with Shadowheart to Aylin and Issobel as they learn how to couple.

(Lena/Pre-Moonrise: No specific sexuality. However she does wish to consume those she loves in the hopes that she can take in the emotions their stir in her, as well as become what they claim to see her as....)

Florian: Pansexual. Leans towards men and poor choices no matter what gender they do or do not present as.

Xeltisal: Asexual. Aromantic. To the delight of everyone. Also doesn't understand genders conceptually anyway. They refuse to mind you, it's not for lack of having it explaind. They researched it and went 'no.'

Syriniss: Jack Harnkness levels of Omnissexual.

Rym Anwan: Asexual but in a way that makes you willing to make an exception for a single mindflayer.

Mythrin: ...It is complicated. It loves Rym and they do fuck just what it gets out of it, well it'll tell you just grab a seat I suppose.

[clazberryk]

Sometimes the unknown is safer

Taveleigha (Tav) and Astarion have spent the last month is the Shadowcursed Lands, finding a way to destroy Ketheric Thorm, finally with his secret revealed they just might be able to complete the task.

This is their fight against Ketheric and then the Myrkll Avatar.

Words: 2833

Chapter One:

“Perure”

Taveleigha with a scream of pure anguish, fear, and the last month in the shadowed lands was released in her spell, she let everything go, she was battered and bruised, her mind body and soul ached and all she wanted to do was curl up and sleep for a week in the arms of her pale elf partner, if he allowed it. She knew that contact with him was still a difficult situation, especially after he was so open and truthful with her back in the Sharran temple. Every touch every physical connection between them was with a question which he could choose. Yes or No, with no expectancy or complaint from her. It had enabled them to grow stronger together, they learnt from each other, they learnt about their pasts, well as much as she could give regarding her past.  She watched as the sparkling blue energy of her magic released and crackled into Ketheric Thorm’s chest causing him to stumble back and allow Nightsong to get the final blow.

Taveleigha dropped to her knees, completely spent, she had magic left but she did not have energy left herself, she could hear her companions fight around the chamber as she took a breather, she was overwhelmed with fear, but she just had to push through. This place and the shadowlands had released a shadow over herself, and it was taking a toil. As the days and weeks dragged on Taveleigha could feel herself pulling in on herself, putting on the mask in front of her companions as she rescued Tieflings, gnomes, harpers, Rolan and Thaniel day after day after day, trudging through the broken, desolate, cursed lands. Not even allowing herself a respite as she took on Astarion’s trauma, and slowly, slowly started to help him heal, showing him that not all hands come with a bite or with pain. Not that she blamed Astarion at all, she would do anything for the High Elf, ensuring that he had a chance once all this mess was over. That he would not be abandoned again, knowing what that abandonment could do.

Astarion rushed up the mesh of the platform that he had released Aylin from only minutes ago, seeing Taveleigha drop to her knees gasping, he had heard her voice call the lightning a lower tenor than her usual, and when she released the spell, he knew the sorcerer threw everything into it. He watched as she gasped and regained some spell slots expending her energy more. He dropped to his knees and slide the final two feet to the elf.

“Time to get up darling” He smiled a rare kind smile only saved for her. She smiled back, battered and bruised. The two watched as Ketheric fell to his knees under Dame Aylins attacks, and Shadowheart’s lathandar mace. Everyone was struggling but at least Ketheric was being beaten back, for the first time since this day started Tav felt like they might win today.  She took his hand and Astarion pulled her to her feet, realising how much Tav was leaning on him to get up. She could feel her body trembling, and he steadied her with a brush of her shoulders, she gripped his hand and then in a flash of white the two of them where on the central platform, Shadowheart, Karlach, Jaheria and Damn Aylin surrounding the broken Paladin of a man.  He gasped and rose to his feet unsteadily, and looked at them, he then glared at Taveleighal

“You really think you could win? Did you honestly think you could best me, child?” The way Ketheric said child did not sit well with her, and she grimaced, she just wanted to sleep. “You poor lost little lamb, I recognised you the moment you walked into my throne room, do you not remember the last 100 years? I certainly do, I remember holding you as a babe, kicking and screaming, you certainly came into this world defiant and even now 100 plus years later I see that defiance has caused me more pain. Always defiant, you wretch”

“What are you talking about?” Taveleigha whispered she did not have enough energy to raise her voice louder, it was taking all her energy just to keep her body upright, please someone just let her sleep.

“Do you not recognise yourself? Can you not feel your blood calling to its kin? Have you truly fallen that far off the path?” Ketheric smirked, knowing he had the knowledge that she seeked, he almost did not want to let her know, but he wanted her to hurt as much as he did when he lost Melodia from this world. “Wandering the world, not finding the answers, oh with my resurgence and my resurrection as Myrkll’s avatar, I kept tracks on you, especially seeing as you killed Isobel and your mother.” He smiled watching as Taveleigha stumbled back, her eyes searching his for the lie but there was none, and he saw as the memories released and took hold in her mind. He watched as her multicoloured eyes faded lost in memory, he carried on

“I knew it would only be a matter of time before you took me as well. SO tell me how an elf was born of two half elves, it was unheard of, especially from a paladin, and a cleric of the Moonmaiden, and then a little red haired, elf comes along her magic as innate and unpredictable if I ever did see one” He continued, Taveleigha stumbled back, colour draining from her face as the memories came thick and fast then, a younger Ketheric Thorm, light in his grey eyes, a young silver haired girl, and a dark haired half elf, smiling down at a red haired baby Taveleigha, Ketheric taking her in his arms, grimacing at the odd coloured eyes glancing at his wife only to watch the light disappear from her.

Taveleigha was running through the garden meadows, a giggle lighting the environment, it was a clear bright blue-sky, warm enough for no overshirt as the spring was bleeding into summer, she ran her hands through the wildflowers. She raised her hands to her sides, face to the sun and twirled, she always felt peace in the sun, no worries no stress no practicing spells that she just could not connect with or twist the weave to her want and need, heat and the sun invigorated her, made her feel at peace, and not have a worry in the world.

“Tavi? Tavi? I’m going to find you”

Tav giggled and glanced behind her, and lowered herself into the long grace, she waited until her elder sister was close enough and jumped up

“Boo” arms raised bent at the elbows her hands curled like claws, and she straightened laughing harder as her older sister startled, she relaxed and joined in the laughing with Taveleigha.

A slightly older Taveleigha, she was in the woods, it was darker than usual, and she was practicing her spells, seeing as her father refused her to access and use her magic, forcing her to try healing spells, stating that if she was in this family she would do what is expected. She was hiding from the constant arguing with Isobel and Ketheric, it felt like the days were getting shorter and the nights getting longer.

“You cannot force her into something she is not, she is no cleric, or paladin her magic is a part of her, forcing her to be something else would be her end” She heard Isobel’s raised voice from the gardens that ran parallel with the woods.

“She is a Thorm, she stole my Melodia from me she will do as is requested”

“Mum died from natural causes, not because of Tavi” Isobel screamed. She always did protect her little sister, she knew her father held a grudge against the baby elf, but she didn’t think he would hold it against her for her whole life, she could understand the grieving process but surely not these past 18 years, it was ridiculous to blame a baby, and then not treat her like his bloodborne daughter, instead as an experiment forcing her to try magic she was incapable of and then punish her because she just couldn’t not produce radiant magic, or healing spells.

“Don’t you dare!” Ketheric screamed at his oldest child, his eyes a blazoned with anger and fury, Isobel just stood there, even as her father got into her personal space, and she smelled the lunch time dinner on his breath. She missed her father, the laughing doting father that he was, she smiled a sad smile.

“Stop it” Taveleigha screamed, coming out of the woods, flying, oh my flying, towards them “Stop it, stop it stop it!” She raised her left hand a firebolt prepared, and she released it only the firebolt expanded into a ball and exploded on Isobel and Ketheric, Taveleigha stopped suddenly falling to her knees, the screams of her father and sister echoing in her ears, once the spell dissipated, she saw both father and sister on the ground. She watched with horror as her father stood coughing, a murderous glare on his face, she shrunk, and slowly got to her knees, knowing the punishment tonight would be exponential. Taveleigha turned to Isobel, but she had not stood up, and she had not moved, she just lay their shock frozen to her face. Hair, clothes and body singed and burned beyond comprehension. Taveleigha gasped, and screamed in horror, she had done this, her magic her anger had pushed her beyond her limits and caused this damage. She watched in slow motion as Ketheric turned and screamed, he dropped to Isobel’s side picked her up and rocked his daughter tears streaming down his face, startling lines through the soot and grime from the fireball.

“You took everything from me” He snarled and went to lunge at Tav, Astarion pulled her behind him

“Don’t touch her” He snapped and Ketheric smiled, there was an air about him now, he was almost serene, no longer angry, or beaten or even defeated, he backed up to the sickly green circle in the middle of the central platform, arms raised to his sides face up to the ceiling.

“I. AM. YOURS” He bellowed and dropped into the circle.

For a moment there was silence, Astarion, Shadowheart, Karlach, Taveleigha, Aylin and Jaheria just stared at the circle in utter shock, and then there was a rumble, followed by a green mist vortex, a guttural omniscient voice filled the chamber, as they all watched stunned, unable to move as two colossal skeleton hands pulled a titan out of the abyss.

Ketheric Thorm the Avatar of Myrkll.

“For I am death, and I am not the end for I…” The omniscient voice vibrated in everyone’s chest, around the chamber, it reached its left hand out and a Scythe of inconceivable size flew into it hand as a shockwave of energy blasted out throwing everyone to the ground, Astarion was thrown off the platform “AM THE BEGGINNING” The avatar of Mrykll, swung the large scythe.

Astorian watched in horror as the women that had gotten onto their feet where pushed away again, Karlach, Shadowheart and Aylin managing to stay on their feet, Jaheria went flying and landed near him where as Tav got skewered by the scythes blade and she screamed, and sound he wished to never hear again, it was one of pure anguish and something inside of Astarion shattered, unsure if she was alive or dead. He started to panic his body trembling, then unconsciously his tadpole reached out and he found the connection, weak, failing but there.

Taveleigha’s voice bubbled out and she was flung landing on one of the platforms on the right, Astarion watched as necromites started popping up again around the chamber, too many near a downed Taveleigha. He moved faster than he ever had in his life.

“Get up damn you” He shouted to Jaheria who was still recovering from the concussive attack and ungraceful landing, she shook her head and took in her surroundings.  Feeling the necrotic energy and shuddered, she released a storm of lightning onto the avatar and joined the fight.

Shadow dropped off the central platform, to help Jaheria as she started to attack the necromites before they could spawn undead beings, between the two of them they managed to clear a lot of them, she had lost track of Tav and Astarion, but she knew he would help her, begrudgingly she had to admit the vampire spawn cared for their friend, and they did have a blossoming relationship.  She released her Spirit guardian’s and attacked the first exploding incubation chamber, allowing the Spirit guardians to do most of the damage and followed up with a swing of Lathandar’s mace, finishing one, then two then three. She could hear Aylin and Karlach screaming and fighting the avatar behind her.

Astarion watched as Taveleigha dragged herself with her right arm, her left holding her midsection, away from the necromites, one of the incubating chambers in front of her exploded in necrotic energy and went to attack, she fell to the floor holding both hands out keeping her shield up, he could see the iridescent sphere around her, could hear the grunts of pain and exhaustion as just this simple spell was keeping her alive, and the exertion was too much for her failing body. The sound of her blood rushing where it did not belong pushed him forward, he released a firebolt at the necromite and followed up with an arrow from his crossbow, the arrow flew true and the necromites dropped in a clatter of bones. Tav, dropped fully onto her back and just stared up at the ceiling, not even attempting to stem her bleeding, she was crying, gasping. He dropped to her, crossbow on the ground next to them, but in easy reach, he stroked her face, and she sputtered, gasping, he could see pooling in her mouth and leaking from the corner, she coughed

“Darling, time to get up” He smiled, ignoring the fear grip his heart, she tried to smile but that fell short and just came out as a grimace, she rolled to her side, and struggled with her pack looking for a health potion, he pulled it from her grasp and grabbed a potion, superior healing, he helped her drink it and watched as she glowed with blue light, it was not enough but he saw her smaller wounds close. At least the lack of healing wasn’t throughout the whole chamber, just in proximity of the avatar.

Lack of healing only seems to be close to Mykll He pushed the connection of the tadpole to Shadowheart letting her know of the new information, he she did not reply but he felt her nod through the connection. He turned back to Taveleigha and watched as she stumbled to her feet, her robes covered in viscera, grime, dirt, and blood, mainly her blood he could still smell it in the air and it clung to her, mocking him, taunting him, reminding him that she was not immortal, granted she had a longer life than most mortals being a full Elf, but she could still easily die, and that thought sent a shock of unadulterated fear through his body, grasping his heart and squeezing. He watched as she glowed yellow, and he recognised the spell Mage Armour. Good, she needed all the protection required.

“Perure” She released a shock of lighting against the avatar, eyes and hair blazing and Astarion returned to the fight at hand, they could talk once they survived this, and they would survive this. Astarion turned his attention to the undead skeletons around Tav, keeping her safe as she rained down lightning spell after lighting spell on the avatar, Astarion risked a glance to the central platform he watched as Aylin was flying circling the avatar and came don in a resounding crash of metal against bone, glowing in moonlight, he saw Karlach swing twice at the being and got two solid hits in. He saw Jaheria and Shadowheart handling the other necromites, killing them with acid and Shadowheart’s radiant magic. Yes, they could win this, they just needed to keep going, they just needed to keep…

“Look out…” He heard, and then felt himself get thrown to the ground, he managed to tuck the push and turn it into a roll, he stood up, and watched as Taveleigha got blasted from behind by a stream on red crackling energy, it pierced through her back and out of her chest. She fell forward, eyes wide and Astorian caught her realising the spell was for him and she had pushed him out of the way, taking the full spell into her back and out of her chest. She was limp in his arms, legs not holding her weight, her cheek pressed against his chest.

[mercymaker]

Top five Baldur's Gate characters outside the controllable party. :D

Ask me my "TOP 5/TOP 10" anything!

Ooooh, this one's quite difficult!! In no particular order these would be:

I feel like I might get some hate for this, but Mayrina ended up being one of my favorite characters in this game and reading her letter in the epilogue was so so touching. Her story arc is very satisfying, even if she's comes across as quite unlikable during the Act 1 events.

Dammon! There's just something about a kind-hearted blue-eyed man that reeled a basic bitch like me in! And he's also a bit freaky judging by the smut stories he reads, so that's just perfect!

Miss Dame Aylin would probably be in my top 5, yeah. Who doesn't love a vengeful lady with a magical girl transformation?

Enver Gortash. Honestly, it's quite hard to pick out just one character when it comes to the Chosen Three, but I feel like Gortash just sort of.. is a teeny tiny bit higher. Mostly because I was really impressed by his story, considering his traumatic childhood and really poor upbringing, he really stands out in the sea of magical creatures and shapeshifting demigods and all. Just an underdog with enough hatred in his bones to climb to the very top using violence and his wits.

And I guess I quite like Raphael because when you think about it, he's just a dramatic bitch who is all over the place, going from luring a child to sign her soul away to literally trying to claim the Crown of Karsus just to stick it to his dad. And then we find out all he's been doing down in the House of Hope was basically fucking his own clone.. like... work, lmao.

Honestly, my mind kinda short-circuited on this one because the choices are endless and I'm probably forgetting so many characters oops MY BAD.

[invisiblegarters]

23.5 Episode 9

Last week: sapphic teachers, Aylin and Luna being adorable and confessing in morse code, kisses!

I dunno man. Eight hours a day could mean that we work two of them. I feel like I could handle that.

I say this every episode, but Sun and Ongsa really are cute.

Latte is still best dog.

I would snatch up the chance to do an exchange program if I were Ongsa. I did not have the opportunity as a teen but man, that would have been so great.

Oh Aylin. I love her. Those awkward smiles i'm dying.

Ongsa absolutely can't ride a bike.

I am so glad that Sun decided to start with a bicycle instead of a scooter.

Okay I know they gotta do their advertising thing so I'm not gonna say a word about the makeup ad. I'm not.

Okay one thing: I do think it's cute that Aylin wants to look cute for Luna. Not that she need the makeup for that, but you know.

Hahaha Sun I love you. I love that she's like "well my girlfriend moves faster than you two, I'm so lucky."

...is that not how it went?

Aw poor Alpha. I bet she feels so out of the loop.

I do love how concerned they all are for her. This show is so damn cute and lovely.

I'm sorry but can they just keep putting Ciize in those sleeveless shirts? Please? For me?

Aw that advice was good.

Okay this looks like an intervention though.

Dammit, Alpha! What did your teachers just tell you? Although to be fair I get her feeling cornered.

Oh my gosh this girl is so cute. Is she making octupi out of the sausages? ADORABLE.

Aw this family stuff is so great.

LOL okay this is hilarious. I think it's great Ongsa isn't going to have more time than one day to prepare. Girl is gonna stress herself into a heart attack if she gets any more time.

Ton is killing me with the second hand embarrassment my god. I am beginning to think that he only wants what he can't have. Or that he deliberately pursues girls that he knows aren't gonna ever take him seriously. I read a theory that he might be ace (or aro, or both) and my goodness I'd love that but I'm trying not to get my hopes up because I still feel like TonCharoen is gonna happen.

Welp that went well. I don't think Ton was being malicious because he's just not that type, but also Aylin just isn't comfortable. I don't think that Luna is in the wrong to want her to open up to her friends a little, but poor Aylin must feel so pushed.

Although a part of me does wonder if part of Aylin's thing is that she does want friends, but she's so used to being treated like shit for just being herself that she's ultimately decided not trying at all is better.

Oh hey this is very sensual for this show. Good for them!

I'm sorry I just got all caught up in my Aylin feelings again. She's hands down my favorite, I feel for her so much.

Next week: MORE NIDA AND BAMBAM. Bambam please get hit with a clue by four before this show is over I am begging you.

[fire-emblem-drabbles]

Oh man I just beat Baldur's gate 3 like for real for real and since it's spoilers I'll put it under a read more but folks!!! this aint it!!

So before the big battle, when you have to dominate the brain... blegh. Listen I can accept that maybe my mortal brain just can't comprehend a netherbrain, but it make it so that even half ilithid characters can't even do it? I feel like that's such an oversight. No matter who you pick for this out come it feels bad! You could have the Emperor eat Orpheus, but this pretty much mutes Lae'zel's whole quest line and leaves the Githyanki to suffer. Free Orpheus, and the Emperor immediately defects? Like... squad could we not set aside our differences for 3 hours to deal with the netherbrain? no? okay.

So if you do choose to free Orpheus, your options are: make the poor guy become ilithid himself and make his people hate him, became a mind flayer *yourself* and laugh in the face of this whole fucking adventure, or have Karlach sacrifice herself and become one! Litterally no winning here.

The fight itself also fucking sucked btw. It's annoying and every time I summoned Dame Aylin she would drop her weapon. and couldn't pick it up. because she's controlled by you Ig?? Beyond the dragon and the mindflayers casting level 6 magic missles every turn, it is interesting (at least) to see your companions dream guardians. And once you get into the brain fight proper it's easy enough to kill, just annoying to get to that point.

Now, if there were anything of substance in the post ending, I could ignore some of the graphical issues. My game immediately became a smooth untextured wasteland if it wasn't a character that hadn't been previously loaded from the fight (so pretty much myself, Mind flayer Karlach, Orpheus, and Gale). I could have forgiven that if there was anything else! You get one tiny scene with your romanced companion, an even smaller scene with all your companions after its done, and some stuff around Baldur's gate that reflects the choice you make (dominating the brain vs defeating it).

That's it!

The credits are longer than any post battle cut scene your gonna see. Which is like fine it's a huge game and people deserve their due, but when I say there's nothing of substance, I'm telling you it's almost like they forgot the had to end the game at some point. It really feels like it drops off at nothing! If the rest of the game itself wasn't amazing, and if larian as a team weren't fixing stuff as often as they are, it wouldn't be worth it.

Alas, I have faith that something is gonna be done. Surely im not the only person to put (checks game time) 300+ hours in a game only for it to come to such an ending... yeah.