#my first tav will follow into most of my personal options

[ipcearn]

The only thing that made me reload on the hug option was that it came without asking Astarion first?

In a conversation about how much his bodily autonomy had been taken from him and he wasn't sure about what were his desires and what he had been conditioned into, and associating any intimacy with Cazador, that felt just a bit off to me

I'd love an option to ask him if he wants a hug?

Asking him if he wants a kiss is an option, so asking him if he wants a hug shouldn't be a problem

[elspethdekarios]

Gale as an archmage

I've been thinking about this for a while. If you select Gale as an origin character in the character creator and play his intro, he introduces himself as Gale of Waterdeep™ he immediately follows with "please - no need to be intimidated."

Now I think we initially brush this statement off as Gale being full of himself, but the first time you talk to him and ask him to tell you about himself, there's an option to say something like "Come on, you must have stories from your time as archmage."

And I've always wondered - how would tav know this? Gale hasn't mentioned it. Which leads me to my research question:

Is Gale famous?

Not Elminster-famous, of course, but is he THE archmage of Waterdeep, known throughout the Realms? Is Gale of Waterdeep a legitimate title, not just one he decided to use because it sounds important?

Maybe all of this is common knowledge in DnD lore, but it's a fairly new world to me. Here's what I found about archmages:

From the Forgotten Realms fandom wiki (https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Archmage):

Archmages were among the most powerful arcane spellcasters found throughout all of Faerûn. These practitioners of the Art were experts at manipulating and altering their spells, often in strange ways. Many cities across Faerûn had a single archmage who dedicated themselves to serve that settlement and its people. Some notable cities included Lyrabar in Impiltur, and the great western metropolis of Waterdeep. The term "archmage" was often used to refer to spellcasters who took on leadership roles among similarly-inclined practitioners of The Art. In the drow city of Menzoberranzan, the head of the arcane academy known as Sorcere was granted the title, Archmage of Menzoberranzan.

So, to summarize, archmages are super powerful, big cities often have a singular, dedicated archmage, and they take on leadership roles in the city, sometimes (or at least once) being deemed THE archmage of the city.

I've already seen posts about the insane amount of power held by archmages, so I'm not really going to go into that. I'm just interested in how well-known Gale would be in the Realms. One issue I'm running into while researching is that many people seem to approach the archmage in terms of DnD stats (spell levels, player levels, etc) rather than from a storytelling perspective.

I can't find much else specifically on how widely known archmages would be. There is a list of archmages on the Forgotten Realms wiki, but Gale isn't included on it. I'm assuming maybe BG3 lore is considered an off-shoot of FR lore and therefore not necessarily canon? Let me know if I'm wrong about this.

So that leaves me with message board responses. Here are some notable ones:

An old candlekeep.com forum on the differences between the titles used by magic users. Several users seem to agree with this person.

From the same thread as above.

Interestingly, DnD beyond has archmage categorized as a monster. I'm not sure if this applies only to evil-aligned mages or not, so anyone with more familiarity, feel free to chime in. Anyway, here's what DnD beyond says:

"Archmages are powerful (and usually quite old) spellcasters dedicated to the study of the arcane arts. Benevolent ones counsel kings and queens, while evil ones rule as tyrants and pursue lichdom. Those who are neither good nor evil sequester themselves in remote towers to practice their magic without interruption. An archmage typically has one or more apprentice mages, and an archmage's abode has numerous magical wards and guardians to discourage interlopers."

Gale does mention having students/apprentices at some point (he says something about being impatient with them if I remember correctly, but I can't remember when he actually says it), and, if he's Professor Gale in the epilogue, you're told that an apprentice delivered the invite to the party.

I also find it interesting that archmages typically have wards around their home to keep out intruders, implying that they're well-known enough to have people regularly trying to break into their home?? Or at least has happened enough times to warrant protection.

I also appreciate this reddit comment on a thread asking about the rarity of archmages:

This lead me to a super interesting reddit post which I really suggest you check out if you're interested. The OP breaks down the percentages of each class and level and translates that to city populations. I'm bad at math so that may be a horrible explanation. Anyway, here's a chart that they made:

I have been trying my hardest to put the alt text on the images for accessibility but I have no idea how that would work with this chart. I did include the text at the bottom for screen readers just in case. I'm sorry!

Sooooo someone in the comments asked specifically about Waterdeep and here's what someone who is good at math figured out! (They are correcting a previous comment with incorrect math, hence the first part of the comment):

Since a wizard is considered an archmage at level 18, it's safe to say that Gale would definitely be one of only a few wizards in Waterdeep with such a title. And if the above commenter's assumption about the Blackstaff being one of the only archmages in the city, Gale being of a similar level is HUGE, right? The Blackstaff is a big deal. From the Forgotten Realms wiki:

Blackstaff was the title and name given to the master of the eponymous staff and Blackstaff Tower, including Blackstaff Academy, as well as the Archmage of Waterdeep.

So if the Blackstaff is THE Archmage of Waterdeep, Gale, obviously, is not. But!!! If we can trust the math of the reddit users above, and we assume Gale was at least a level 19 wizard pre-orb/tadpole/whatever ... he would be one of two archmages in Waterdeep, second only to the Blackstaff themself.

I personally think that's enough renown to be a somewhat familiar name throughout Faerûn. So yes, Gale is a bit arrogant and, in his own words, pompous about being Gale of Waterdeep™ but perhaps it's warranted.

This has been a deep dive fueled by procrastination about writing the research papers I should actually be writing right now. Thank you for your time

[meanbossart]

I appreciate how you write Astarion so, SO much. I feel like way too many fic writers infantilize him to a point where I honestly start wondering if I'm the one who misinterpreted him so badly.

I'd love to know more about what you think of his character and his arc. Personally I saw him and immediately went "oh god this guy is gonna be the irritating tumblr sexyman of the year🙄" and it took me until Araj basically to warm up to him. What were your initial thoughts and did they change much while playing the game?

OH thank you so much!!! That's a shame if it's the case, and a little surprising to me, to be honest! While he's definitely written be an aloof jerk a lot of the time, I always found him to be surprisingly mature and introspective whenever he's not dishing out witty remarks. He comes off to me as the kind of person who learned to benefit from seeming dumber than he actually is, overall.

HAHA I had a VERY similar experience, not just towards Astarion but all the characters, really (I really disliked Shadowheart at the beginning, too). I had only seen pictures of him and pretty much expected a vapid character that was being carried to stardom because of a talented VA - and because people go nuts for anne rice style vampires lol.

While I was definitely enjoying his voice lines from the start (Again kudos to Neil) I definitely wasn't expecting much else. He piqued my interest after so devastatingly turning my character down at the tiefling party without me even having inquired, and that's when I, the gamer, was like "well, alright, I GOTTA fuck this guy now" (this is also where DU drow's personality began to come out as you can probably guess)

Obviously, if you have two neurons to rub together you can gather pretty quickly that he's not trying to woo you because you're so interesting and wonderful, so I started getting curious! With that dynamic being so different from what you usually expect of romances in these types of games, plus the charming way in which he is written, I started being won over.

I think what really did it was how gradually his attitude changed when responding to new, mostly trivial dialogue options and doing his greetings as you earned his trust, and ESPECIALLY with how he responds to your tav when you express any kind of fear or insecurity during his romance - which was with a lot of sincerity and confidence in his resolve to support you, and in you as a person, a complete 180 from his usual front - Which, again, makes me all the more surprised to hear that he's often painted with such an immature brush.

And obviously he has a DEEPLY ugly side to him (if you've read ANE, hopefully it's clear that I know this, and that I like to explore it just as much as anything else lmao) but it's very interesting to me how it seem to always come in the form of outbursts, rather than a constant evil-streak, usually followed by a glimpse of self-awareness. It feels very much in line with someone who's actually making a great deal of effort to manage their RAMPANT emotions and going through a lot of internal conflict in the process.

GAH. Yeah if you can't tell by this friggin' thesis I just wrote, I love the way they wrote this character a lot and I was definitely proven PROFOUNDLY wrong in my first impression of him - which, if that's not irony at it's finest I don't know what is.

And as an aside! I also very much appreciate that he's a "queer" coded character who's effeminate (in the Old Homo kind of way, but I digress) and flamboyant, but taken Dead Fucking Seriously. With as much progress as we've made in LGBT rep in media, I still often feel like gay men will only get that kind of treatment for as long as they "Aren't That Gay" (I know Astarion doesn't have a set sexuality - But lets not mince words: stereotypes exist, and he fits into most of them) and as a thin-wristed gay guy who's a little too found of linen shirts, I can honestly say that experiencing a character like that helped me with my own confidence.

[magicjesuscup]

I have feelings towards solo-romanced Halsin's ending/epilogue.

Halsin and Tav celebrate all night, and in the morning Halsin starts throwing out mixed signals. He's leaving to take care of the kids that were orphaned after the netherbrain fight and doesn't give any indication that he wants Tav to go with him, but it also doesn't sound like his feelings for Tav have changed.

I would've been (1) confused by the lack of an option to go with him, (2) hurt because this sounds like a break-up speech (like a "we shouldn't be together anymore, but let's stay friends" type thing), and (3) concerned that something's wrong because he's otherwise been a very good communicator up until this point.

It looks like originally going with him wasn't even an option (which was a weird choice to offer him as a love interest, but not give players a way to stay with him at the end of the game), and when that was patched in, they did it in the meanest way they could. Tav's line is:

Visit as soon as I can? Don't be an ass, Halsin. I'll come with you right now.

Oof. I wouldn't talk to my lover like this, and I don't know that I'd stay with someone who talked to me like that. I also want to note that I think you only get the cute, bragging "I love Halsin" lines to say to the other companions at the party if you call him an ass here first. Thanks, I hate it. I wish it was something more along the lines of:

Why can't I go with you?

Either option could've led to (most) of Halsin's dialog that followed.

But what about all that you'll miss out on? Your name will be feted in this city - there will be parades, medals, feasts, hands to be shaken, babies to be kissed…are you truly sure.

I know in the epilogue he's still surprised Tav chose him, and I'm trying to figure out why, and why he didn't throw out Tav accompanying him as an option. I get that a lot of people he loved/cared about didn't stay in life, but none of them left him voluntarily. His parents, the archdruid before him, and his peers died to either illness or the shadow curse. Thaniel's absence is only temporary if you lift the shadow curse, and the only reason he "left" in the first place was because he was trapped by the curse.

It would've made way more sense to me if he had a little freak out after falling in love with Tav and having the realization that the person he loves could turn into an illithid thrall. They would be gone, and he might have to kill what's left if they tried to eat his or someone else's brain. Also, it would absolutely be horrific to watch Tav go through ceremorphosis. Having a mind flayer parasite isn't the same as being sick, but it is a physical affliction that Halsin can't fix. He's weirdly positive that they'll find a cure, and they never do (at least not in the sense of medication or surgery).

It also would've made sense if he had a bit of a breakdown if Tav asks for one last kiss before the final battle starts ramping up. Things are getting stupid dangerous, and this has historically been when his friends start dying. But, nope he's still super calm here too and optimistic that they'd live (although after their night together, he admits he didn't dare believe they'd actually survive).

I'm not sure if they did the whole, "I'm going to ride off into the sunset, but watch the horizon for you everyday," thing to add some drama, but it feels out of place considering these other options. If Tav was going to "leave" it would've been due to the parasite or not surviving the battle. In the epilogue, those dangers have passed. If anything, it's at this part of the story where he should've felt most secure in their relationship because he's never had someone leave him "just because."

[designing-frantically]

Okay but you don't understand, this BG3 epilogue party is KILLING me. Can't sleep, can only continue thinking about this party. Namely in regards to Astarion and Gale.

MAJOR EPILOGUE SPOILERS AHEAD

Thought 1: I've been to the party having romanced Astarion and got the little bit from living in the underdark with the other spawn and the bit of the narrator telling you how the night before he says the past six months of happiness have weighed equally against his 200 years of torment (ugh my heart). But that's not what wrecked me. What DESTROYED me was the party from a different run where I did not romance him..... This man talks about how when he ran from the sun he felt so ashamed that his lowest day of running back to the dark was our biggest day of victory. He then recounts how he has learned to not see the dark as a curse but a part of himself and has found a way to be happy and a bit of a hero (in his own twisted way). Seeing him find happiness for himself almost feels like a better ending for him than loving him and that is wrecking my soul and tormenting my mind because I only want the best for him (he deserves it and more).

Thought 2: Fucking Gale (I say with all the love and sweetness I'm the world). I have three different runs with three different endings for him and I romanced him in N0NE of them, but he is what is keeping me awake the most right now.

Option 1: Blow up Gale... He has an astral projecting that shows up to give you a letter and when I tell you the look on Tav's face was devastating. When they tried to hug the projection only to pass thru him, their face had me in tears, you could SEE the hurt of them realizing AGAIN that Gale is truly gone. And the letter!? It's an unfinished last will and testament

Option 2: Gale becomes a god... And he is the worst version of himself. Ascended Astarion may be cruel and possessive, but there is still a sadness and insecurity underneath that drives his wicked nature. Gale is just.... So consumed by his new power that he truly feels like this is the best version of himself and feels so hollow. Not to mention, Raphael tells of the chaos he will bring and you just know that it would crush our Gale's heart to know he caused that when he thought he was inspiring people to follow their biggest ambitions.

Option 3: He's a teacher...... He teaches magic and it is perfect for him and he loves it and he loves the kids (even though he complains about them) and he wants to catch up over wine and have you as a guest lecturer and meet his mom. Just seeing him so perfectly happy after seeing those other options makes all of it hit that much harder.

I love Astarion, he will always be my favorite. But Gale is a close second, which is crazy to think about because when I first played I thought he was so annoying.

Astarion's story is so compelling and complicated and full of deep emotions... But Gale's is too. The perfect foils to each other and the best written characters (in my personal opinion).

Of all the endings I've seen so far (which I'm sure is not all of them) Gale has the most options for world shattering, devastating endings and his best ending is teaching magic... The two radical ends of this spectrum are killing me slowly by way of insomnia.

Send help

[lanaevyssmoved]

👀 what if I was interested in that Gale poly rant but in a positive way?

LKSJFDLKFJGDFG i can't use the rant on you then because it would be too clinical and i would angry swear sometimes probably

but honestly like. first we need to talk about halsin . wait first we need to talk about poly as a sexuality

i'm going to try and not turn this into a massive character analysis or analysis of queer identity in media etc so i will attempt to retain my humour throughout to ground me

people who are poly tend to sit on either side of a coin. poly is a preferred state of relationship, or just a state of relationship they enjoy, and they can do just fine with monogamy, and everything is chill - ultimate relaxed person mode. the other side is the group of poly individuals who view poly as important to them and their sexual identity as being straight or gay or bisexual or pansexual or any other identity. for them it is part of the queer umbrella and it is fundamental to their being, they can't turn it off, they can't be ok with monogamy, this is who they are.

for reference, halsin is the latter. poly is part of his sexual identity.

halsins poly rep is, spoken from a poly person, ok. it is ok. it's not good, it's not bad. it's mostly the stuff around halsin i don't like. (and i am not going to talk about his drow situation, for reference, because that shit goes beyond poly rep.) making halsin token poly, for lack of a better word, would realistically be fine in most situations, in fact i've talked with aisling about this and i would have preferred they made him poly with no poly options in the game to go with him over what we got - we can't forget he was added late, he isn't as fleshed out, he feels a bit misplaced sometimes, and his poly goes hand in hand with that. he could have existed as a poly character, which nearly all wood elves are in canon, without shoving in some poly options for him with existing companions who would explore that with anyone else despite the game allowing you to romance those companions with the other companions if you play as them? and they flirt with each other in banter quite regularly? i don't know. it feels very like, o shit we gotta make him poly he's a wood elf! and he's a druid! but we have no options for him! who are the easiest to add without it feeling odd??? like idk. it doesn't feel great from a poly pov, and if you enjoy like halsin x shart x tav or halsin x astarion x tav that's totally cool - i am not dismissing these at all because i don't fucking care about canon so even if it didn't exist in canon in a way i don't really like, i would still be cool with it.

our poly rep leaves much to be desired, tldr.

i am happy it exists, however. and my hope is that one day in the future when we have an rpg where every romance option is bisexual or pansexual that they are also poly. that is my ultimate ideal for the future of these situations in gaming. i know some people are uncomfortable with poly, but that's why we refer to what i first said. you can have characters like halsin where it is fundamental to their being - they will never be monogamous, you cannot change them. but you can also have individuals who are cool with monogamy if you're not comfortable with polyamory. i want characters who will date each other on their own, and you can join the polycule, or get involved with just one of them. i want devs to be open minded and not give us a token polyamorous character and instead explore it in better ways.

i have known many poly people, i've dated poly people of both sides of the coin, i've been involved with people who are married to someone they don't live with but have nesting partners (a partner they live with who isn't their spouse) and multiple partners on the side and follow the hierarchy side of poly. my ex helped me understand poly as a sexuality and they also didn't subscribe to poly hierarchy and all their partners would be equal. poly is an expansive identity and it deserves the attention and respect other queer identities do.

a poly person creating poly ships and poly situationships with a character or characters who are confirmed monogamous is the same to me as a gay person creating gay ships and gay situationships with a character or characters who are confirmed straight. and that might be divisive, because many people, including queer people are not ready for or not comfortable with polyamory yet in their spaces. now i can be respectful of people who have trauma around polyamory because they were involved with someone who used it as a weapon - usually done by someone who isn't actually poly. but we as poly people deserve to take up space, we deserve to be in your media, we deserve respect, we deserve to be represented well.

and if video game devs aren't going to do that for me, you bet your ass i'm gonna do it for myself. no one can take that power for me.

what exists in my game doesn't have to mean shit for yours - it doesn't exist in yours. it is a thing i do for me to make me happy. if anyone gets upset about that they need to go outside.

please don't cast a witches curse on me

i might come back to edit this ... i haven't proof read it..... this was just screaming <3 i'm too tired to read my own words back

[blackbirdswhispers]

It is time for a mostly done with Act 2 Astarion ramble. Spoilers, discussion of trauma, and general too much thinkery ahead

So I ended up redoing a chunk of Act 2 specifically so I could turn down the drow and get the alternate dialogue for Astarion’s romance scene. I’ve seen both cutscenes ahead of time. Games with this many choices and so many things that can be missed give me mad anxiety, I just plan my route ahead of time to remove the stress of missing specific moments I want to see.

I’ve seen it said that some people strongly prefer one course of action over the other, and of course there is a lot to dig into in the first real steps Astarion takes to be more genuine with Tav. Personally, the drow related dialogue for me hits well because it isn’t just him rambling at Tav again.

He’s nervous in both scenes, but in the non-drow conversation he’s particularly unsettled. He’s working through what he has to say but it comes off to me as he’s been overthinking for so long he just had to spit it out.

Full disclosure I think both sets of dialogue are peak writing, truth be told. I have a fondness for each of them for different reasons. But it’s the clarity with which Astarion thanks Tav for standing up for him that really gets me. There’s a little bit of awe in it, which I think is what makes Astarion so afraid still.

How do you really admire someone but not become beholden to them? He, who has had no one to admire in two centuries, fell in with a group of people who are all beholden to gods and devils and ideals. And they’ve, most of them, been betrayed already or are in the process of being wounded by those very bonds.

I haven’t played with Minthara but, obviously she’s been trapped by the Absolute. I think Halsin is the only one Astarion might see as truly free from the shackles that hold everyone else.

I also think it’s why he shows so much dislike when Tav is quick to do the good thing selflessly. The lack of self preservation! What if you get tangled up in some horrible trap! What if you piss off the wrong bad guy!

And we all know the Bad Guys are much, much worse than the Good Guys can ever counter. Who in 200 years was Good enough to help him? Who in 200 years even touched an evil so great as Cazador?

But here comes Tav, doing good (depending on the playthrough, but accurate enough for mine) and surmounting a curse laid on a land for a century. Even at this point where we haven’t made it all the way to the end of Act 2, we’re really doing it.

And for my Tav (Zane), he’s been helping the companions break free of their bonds through it all. Encouraged Wyll to try and get out of his pact. Scolded Gale for thinking of following Mystra’s plan. Stood by Lae’zel as her goddess outcast her. Implored Shadowheart to really think about following through with Shar’s murderous request. Sought out the metal to help Karlach to boot, with her ‘master’ yet to be handled.

Their futures already on a knife’s edge with mindflayer tadpoles buried in their brains, yet Zane’s out here quietly demanding they talk on personal growth as well as worldly peril. And isn’t that just life for you?

Sooo yeah, why *wouldn’t* Astarion be terrified to find himself catching feelings for someone like that? At first it would have seemed the safest option, bait the bleeding heart to bleed for you. For you alone if you could manage to captivate them well enough.

And bleed they do. Bleed right into your mouth each and every evening just to keep you Happy.

But they keep bleeding for everyone else too. They aren’t afraid to ask for help. They cheerfully stroll up to Shadowheart every morning, shamelessly asking to be restored after you’ve taken a chunk out of them, again. Everyone knows it’s happening! It should feel like you’re the one keeping them! But does it?

They keep taking requests for everyone they meet. They drag you out and about for far far too long each day, making you party to their endless favors.

One night they come to you, bruises all over them, their eyes shadowed because they were literally beat to death in a fight, spared by Shadowheart because you were on the other side of the room handling some other Absolute minion. They come to you in such a state, and offer again to bleed for you. What a freak, how can you not feel for them?

And then you get to this drow, and they’re another person asking for a favor. Another person wanting something. Sure this time it’s specifically from you but, it’s not even a hard task, from the outside. You’re a vampire, biting other creatures is literally what you do. And she wants it for a boon to the party.

Surely they’re going to try to convince you. It’s not even a task you have to fetch anything for! You’re standing right there with them! And when they express their surprise to you, of course you get defensive and brace yourself for the worst!

Part of you starts to crack a little as the Good lays it’s oppressive hands on you. Of course this is how it’s going to go. When has it ever gone differently. There are ideals to uphold. Tasks to help with.

Then you look them in their eyes, and they’re looking right back, careful and a little sad, watching as you prepare to put up a fight or give in to despair. And they’re speaking and….genuinely mean it when they tell you it’s your decision. To do what *you* want.

They subvert all your concepts of Good. They don’t call you selfish, they don’t even push back at all. They just support your decision. They don’t make you do the one thing vampires do best. They don’t hold it over your head. They just, let you make your decision and carry on with the rest of their life.

Oh gods you were going to obey them if they ordered you to do it. You would have, but why? Your natural order is to be under someone’s thumb, but the whole intention was for you to have them under yours. You slipped into your place without a second thought, even while panicking about getting stuck back there again.

For me, the romance conversation happened the same night. My next long rest Astarion was immediately pulling Zane over to thank him. To thank him!

Not the through gritted teeth thanks for helping him fulfill his deal for Raphael. Astarion genuinely desired to express gratitude. He still gives some background as to why he’s making such a show of it, but it feels less hurried and anxious. Or at least it did to me.

Anyway this is another hot mess post by 2am me so it’s time to sleep. I will not be reading over this before I post so sorry for the absolute stream of consciousness, or near unconsciousness as it were.

Good night

[wetcatspellcaster]

I am very curious after reading pieces... How do you feel about Tav/Rolan as a couple?

(sorry if this has been asked before!)

Oh boy, anon. Dangerous question!

I am a big fan of Rolan/Tav, tbh, and I think the parts of it that I like most did sneak into Pieces, even if it is doomed to fail with Rosalie.

While I'm more than happy with all the romances in bg3, I think the appeal of an NPC romance option to me (that isn't in a brothel lmfao) is the like, hero worship/idolatry of an adventurer who passes in and out of your life, has a massive, seismic impact on it almost by chance... and then the gradual dismantling of that hero worship as you get to know them.

Dammon/Karlach has it, bc he gets to see her at every major step of her own personal journey and help her with the biggest issue in her life, even if they're just ships passing in the night. And Tav/Rolan have it bc I think Rolan is one of the NPCs who has the biggest change from Act 1 to Act 3, and Tav is present for every single beat of his character development, and is instrumental in some of it (Act 2 and Act 3).

That's why the dynamic he has with Rose in Pieces is conceived of as a kind of futile 'I know this is never going to happen but still, I owe everything to you' kind of crush. Rolan's arc (to me, as a 'humble that man' enjoyer) is about him becoming more humble and going from big ambitions to having becoming disillusioned with those big ambitions and deciding to value his family (and still getting the wizards tower, I am kissing Larian on the mouth). Unfortunately for him, my first Tav also happened to be a wizard who's power is her compassion and who doesn't aspire to much greatness at all, it's all a side product of like, her bigger goal of 'love and protect my friends and my awful boyfriend'. So I just couldn't imagine a version of events where he didn't idolise her as the model he should've always been following, rather than Larroakan.

On a much more basic level, I long ago fell prey to the 'what's sexier than wizards? nothing' disease so of course I love Rolan. Of course I do. Maybe one day he'll get a Tav all to himself lmao

[fandom-geek]

just finished my first run of bg3. spoilers for basically everything, although i don't actually go into too much detail abt the actual climax, more the ending cutscenes and companion quests.

i love jergal so much. that just needs to stand on its own. he's such a sassy skeleton git who hides the fact he still cares for humanity under it all - his scene with arabella was one of my favourite moments of the entire game.

(on that note, anyone else assuming his whole "follow the weave" thing to her is him basically protecting her? finding her in act 3 surrounded by four dead adults while she has a nary a scratch certainly makes me think she's got some secret godly supervision going on).

anyway - the ending.

i think that if i hadn't been warned that there aren't any epilogue slides, i would've been disappointed. so i'm glad i knew that, even it still felt a bit abrupt because of it. but hey! given larian's history with expanded/definitive editions, i'm guessing we'll either get it in a patch several months from now or in bg3's expanded edition.

personally, i think the section from when you enter the morphic pool to when you kill the netherbrain feels very rough and abrupt. very rough. but the rest of the game is just so stupidly perfect as far as i'm concerned, with like one exception for the cut content for karlach. which is blatantly obvious even without looking at datamining, because why else would we get a ton of different types of infernal metal in act 3?

and god i would've loved to see the upper city (as advertised, larian!) and the ducal palace before it all went to shit. cazador's palace was clearly meant to be there, and i was really looking forward to my urchin tav (malias) actually walking around the upper city and having opinions.

(on that note, i loved that bust gortash has in his office [which was presumably meant to be in the ducal office but anyway!] where the founder of the counting house was an ex-urchin who didn't give a shit abt the patriars because they never cared for him before he became important. malias absolutely would've found that an inspiration for any upper city shenanigans)

but those ending cutscenes on the pier? pretty great, even if i was internally screeching the whole time gale was talking because hey astarion is right there in the sunlight and he doesn't have a tadpole. but thank god gale was just like "yeah, you're right, leaving it there is probably a good idea".

and his line abt some things being more important than power! i adore that line. it's essentially the point of everyone's quests, that power imprisons you and the most important thing in life is the freedom to choose. and of course gale is the one to verbalise that, and to openly say how fond he is of everyone!

then gale made his slightly dickish comment about astarion fleeing, lol. boys, please.

honestly that felt hilariously fitting to my playthrough where i accidentally fell into romancing gale while intentionally romancing astarion, and broke it off with gale (despite never actually being with him). yes buddy, i know you're still a bit salty about that. please wait until malias isn't distraught over their boyfriend literally burning up and running off in front of them.

(to detour for a moment - again, thank you larian for letting me play a nonbinary characters. honestly, that alone makes it a game in its own sphere of perfection, especially since vtmb 2 originally promised that then cut it then maybe it's back in with the new studio??? genuinely perked up with happiness whenever someone used the right pronouns or referred to malias in a clearly gender neutral way.)

even if astarion fleeing and his lines about it were genuinely agonising. at least the romanced cutscene with him started immediately afterwards - i was kinda debating between the "heroes" and "sunlight" options, but honestly? as absurdly good-aligned as malias is, i absolutely think they'd value helping astarion to have the freedom to walk in the sun over being heroes. pretty sure this whole adventure has shown they're pretty good at that multi-tasking element lol. and i love that astarion is so happy about going on another adventure.

like not to go tmi, but astarion's character and plot was... painfully relatable, especially when he just started sobbing after killing cazador, and it's just so good that you can give him a happy future. not an ending, of course, because i don't doubt he and malias will get into a fuckton of mischief, but like he says - he's free! it's just such a perfect moment. my favourite companion and companion quest by an absolute country mile.

i'm also just internally assuming that malias sprinted off after astarion as soon as karlach's near death brush was finished - i am so glad i went the "have my cake and eat it" route of breaking wyll's pact and saving his dad regardless. it lets wyll and malias/tav persuade karlach to return, swearing that she'll be safe from zariel, and personally malias would absolutely be looking for a way to help karlach return safely while off finding a way for astarion to walk in the sunlight.

(also i'm a bit curious abt what others think - there's a little bit of ambiguity abt whether it's just going for the sunlight, or straight up curing his vampiric nature. after all, as his grave inscription happily points out, he was turned 194 years ago and the true resurrection time limit is 200 years. since gale wants to stick around, he can call in a favour with elminster to figure out a way to do that.)

and to backtrack for a second, i am happy that malias persuaded lae'zel to make her own path instead of following orpheus' orders! was it selfish? probably, yeah, which was a bit surprising from how otherwise strongly good-aligned malias is but between that and the mindflayer choice after freeing orpheus (i asked orpheus to do that), i just... think malias doesn't want to lose that.

to explain smth for a sec, i'm going back and forth on whether to keep malias' backstory as is (urchin/orphan who grew up in the lower city) or to make them my dark urge character. from what i've heard of the dark urge, it really ties into my favourite character dynamics and themes (and seems a bit reminiscent of kotor lol), so it's a little bit of debate.

but either way, i think malias would override any moral concerns of goodness for "fuck that, this is my family and i am not losing them". regardless of which backstory i end up picking, that's definitely staying the same. but malias as a former orphan and street kid sure as fuck isn't giving up on their new and beloved family. so yeah, i think the moral concerns of "ok you were just told to go save the githyanki as a whole" would be pushed to the side of "you've always been following orders your entire life, i want you to be free".

and if lae'zel chooses to go help the gith regardless? that's great. but malias would want it to be her choice, not orders she feels obligated to follow.

i also love that you get to say "yes, let's go to the pub to celebrate!". even if we don't see it on-screen, i just love it. those fuckers (astarion included once someone managed to throw something thick enough over him so he didn't burn en route) absolutely partied until they crashed and they fucking deserved it. i love my found family shit so much. and i'm guessing that probably ties into the cut epilogue stuff, even if that was meant to be six months later.

but yeah. i just fucking love it all. now time to do my dark urge run, which i heavily suspect will also be an astarion romance again just bc i'm curious how those differences pan out.

[asspinkie]

Tav Character Worksheet

thank you for the tag @hybernating-bear <333

i'm doing my dark urge because she is my favorite! and also because i don't have a tav yet who has a developed enough background to share. i don't have a ton of photos bc i am lazy by nature but this is her:

Name: Finwe (because I am a fringe Tolkien fan and it sounded cool)

Sexuality: Bisexual

Pronouns: She/her

O T H E R

Family: She's a Bhaalspawn so her biological family is Orin the deranged as fuck and Bhaal. Not a great lineup, but she has strong familial companionship with her travelling companions.

Birthplace: Created by Bhaal!

Job: Pregame - murdering the innocent citizens of Baldur's Gate. During game - amnesiac ranger that's gonna save that stupid fucking city if it kills her.

Phobia: spiders. god, why are there so many of them in the underdark.

Guilty Pleasure: Uhm. Thinking about Raphael probably. But also, since leaving the Cult of Bhaal and forging her own identity, she's been trying out a lot of mundane things. Her favorites (which make her feel instinctually guilty because they're not murdery) are 1. saying out of pocket things to the other patrons of the rowdy mermaid to try to get astarion to laugh. he does not. and 2. eating so many baked goods

Hobbies: Doing something hilarious at every opportunity to piss off astarion. She's also trying to learn to play the lute but none of the criticism has been,,, constructive so far.

(sorry if the image quality is terrible! i am not tech smart)

M O R A L S

Alignment: Chaotic good I think? I spent the game picking the funniest (most likely to get her into fights) dialogue options and helping people. Shithead energy for real.

Sins: Death is a necessity and Finwe isn't afraid to be its arbiter if it accomplishes her goals. She takes things too personally and acts impulsively, but is often too stubborn to admit when she's wrong. She can also be on the manipulative side if it serves her purposes.

Virtues: She'll help anyone who asks (if their morals align with hers). She's also fiercely protective of her friends and will go to bat for them if they're threatened in any way.

(^the weed in baldur's gate just hits different apparently) (i just can't take good screenshots)

THIS OR THAT

Introverted / Extroverted

Organized / Disorganized (she spends hours on camp inventory with lae'zel. clipboard and everything)

Close Minded / Open Minded

Calm / Anxious / Restless

Disagreeable / Agreeable / In between

Patient / Impatient / In between

Outspoken / Reserved / In between

Leader / Follower / Flexible (she can and will drag everyone into danger. the only time she steps aside is when its their business - she won't make personal choices for anyone she cares about).

Empathetic / Unempathetic / In between

Optimist / Pessimist / Realist (has a lot of stupid hope that somehow pays off every time?)

Traditional / Modern / In between (this means gender roles i think?? the first person she encountered with amnesia was lae'zel. women are god to her.)

Hardworking / Lazy / In between (often accidentally hard-working because she doesn't ever think long enough to strategize and thus ends up doing everything the hard way)

R E L A T I O N S H I P S

OTP: Astarion, but she's also involved with Halsin.

Other ships: She is a little bit in love with everyone (someone new, Hozier vibes), but if she had to pair with someone else it would be Lae'zel.

Brotp: Her best friend, ride or die, is Lae'zel. they will fuck you up together.

Notp: She's not the best of friends with Gale or Shadowheart. Because she definitely led them both on and is incredibly evasive by nature, so things are a bit awkward now. She also absolutely hates mizora.

thanks again for the tag!! i had a lot of fun with this. i don't really tag, so if you want to do this, feel free!

[spoopy-owl]

(Doing a wiki post of my Tav Calcifer)

Personality

Calcifer’s personality runs through his emotions, young with no guidance of his emotions. At first most would be introduce to a rude bard, whose motivations surrounds his selfish desires. Cunning is one word to put his name, having cards to study others he knows what to say to get what he needs, of course to Tav he shows it most, not afraid to come off as rude, it was the only way he survived in the circus from others doing him wrong. Later in game with companionship, Calcifer opens up more, showing his true self, a soft man, one of bliss and kindness, wanting to make sure others he cares are safe and well loved, not wanting to lose another person. Emotional with tears with the slightest memory, however he knows how to bottle up in public, but closed doors he releases all.

Recruitment

Calcifer can be found in Act 1 Emerald Grove, playing his lute as he plays tunes telling tales to brighten the mood. Twirling around the player and proceeds to move along as the crowd claps and enjoys this moment. If the player succeeds in a perception check, they will notice as Calcifer performs, his tail slips around, taking gold, jewelry, items, and their own. You can either confront him on the spot or confront him after his performance at his little tent.

To recruit this companion the player must confront Calcifer either way privately or publicly. Calcifer will be angered by this and insult the player, wanting answers on why they would expose a poor mans performance? With a roll of 13 persuasion, you can tell him there is more ways than stealing. He will ignore this advice but both will be connected with the tadpole, panicked he will realize you are like him, a tadpole, wanting to return to Baldurs to his circus and family, player can let him know they too are from Baldurs. This will influence Calcifer to follow along the adventure with the player to join their team.

Approval

Calcifer’s approval is based on sacrifice, willing to do what’s right to protect others. Wanting to make sure others can be safe than oneself is respected by Calcifer, knowing this personally with his life. If the player makes actions to give up something to help others, whether time, etc, he knows one is doing this for the right thing, even if it’s a questionable decision.

Romance

Act 1 - in act one his is neutral with the player, as the scene play of Calcifer playing on his lute. The player can either continue to listen by the tree, speak “the tune is wonderful, what’s it about?” Or leave.

The first two options he will stop and look at the player acknowledging their presence but a bit stunned they’re still awake. He will open a little with his personality is more calm, not rude, but jokes with rudeness to the player to tease them. The song they are playing is special, one him and his sister would always play during the circus performance back home when they were little. You notice he fidgets with a locket necklace he wears, but don’t mind. He will ask if you wish to hear more. You can accept or deny.

Act 2 - You learn more about him as a person when Raphael reveals he belongs to him. A pet, trophy of a deal he won years ago. The scene begins with you either wanting Calcifer to talk about this or listen to his own offer first. If you wish to know answers, he will tell you he has no knowledge of this or what deal he speaks of. All he knows is that Raphael has been around popping in and out of his life for all he can remember. He doesn’t know of what Raphael speaks.

Two options can be considered, first is asking about the necklace if it has connections like a collar. Or hear his offer.

First option: Calcifer will be confused and he does not remember, all he knows it was his mother’s necklace, she gave it to him before she passed away from the fire. Most cant read the notes of this locket, but he can, he explains to his best knowledge that this locket contains a piece of music that is strange, any time he tries to play it, his hand slowly burns, so he stops immediately. He’s not sure what his mother was holding but he remembers her telling to never play unless needed.

Second option: Calcifer offers and asks if the player will have sex with him, if player says yes, he will take them by the river. Undressing the player slowly and guides them to be on top, as he wraps his arms around their shoulders, he smiles and asks again if they are still ok for this, if yes, they begin to kiss as the night passes.

Act 3 - After the player finds out the truth of Calcifer’s past from his father and sister in the Dampierre manor without Calcifer in the party. You visit him at camp as he wishes to speak with you, still believing his father was the one who set the fire killing his mother. He is determined to return to home, to kill his father, reunite with his sister again. Knowing it might be dangerous, he swears to use this piece of music, not afraid to sacrifice himself to get his sister back. You have three options…

1. Tell Calcifer his father is not the killer, Raphael is playing a game with him to get Calcifer in a tighter leash if he proceeds with the song. Explain everything to him (will need a persuasion roll)

2. Tell Calcifer you will be by his side, to save his sister and to do what is right.

3. Tell him he’s stupid, that doing this will send to madness, the one thing Raphael wants.

Calcifer will hesitate, deny that (1) is not true. He will look down with tears trying to make sense of everything, but will break down as he just wants his family back. As the player will comfort Calcifer with an embrace, he will hold on to them as he weeps, a few moment he will stand back up, looking at the lute and necklace, he will agree to not use the sheet. And they will need to head to the house of hope to kill Raphael, to set him and his family free from this nightmare to be together again, to not follow his mother’s steps.

(2) This will lead to bad ending, if played the sheet of music, he will fall to Raphael’s hands. Becoming his personal slave, losing all hope of humanity, loyal, cunning, a shallow puppet awaiting his orders from his master.

(3) Calcifer will be offended greatly and deny the player, not only ending the relationship, but will leave camp, going to do what he wants, unless player stops him before he plays the sheet.

Personal Quest

Calcifer’s personal quest is located at the Dampierre Manor and House of Hope.

In the manor players MUST leave Calcifer waiting at the lobby or at camp as they explore the manor, player will meet Calcifer’s sister, Mencia, speaking to her she will be in panic, hearing Calcifer is near, she will tell them she can’t speak of why they must keep him away from now. But speak to her father. Further into the manor, you will find his father in the basement, sitting in front of a grave, with flowers around. From there you will find out what truly happened that night and why Raphael has Calcifer’s soul.

Second part if House of Hope, to kill Raphael, setting Calcifer and his family free from this hell.

Backstory

Calcifer Dampierre was born of a set of twins. However, twins that were never to be born. Calcifer’s mother Lucia made a deal with Raphael before the twins were born as two. Lucia’s deal was not only for greed of power, but to follow her family’s cult legacy, to wield a hand of a devil’s pact, in return the child she carried will be split to two, one to keep the cult alive and destined to be the next wielder of this role to her family, as the other child, was of use to keep in mortal life. A single soul split to two souls. His father Alois, was a ringmaster of a circus his family run in Baldurs, big and known, he calls all a family. His mother was the main bard that played tunes of tales to the audience as the two met eyes were a match, sadly Alois never knew this side of his wife, nor her use of the circus as a hide out for her family’s side cult. The twins were born, both each missing one leg, Calcifer grew up around the circus his whole life. With his lute ready, his mother taught him the ways of being a bard, helping him practice with each string, instrument, wanting to keep the legacy alive. Though riches were never reached the family struggled to keep the circus alive at times, resulting the boy to start learning to pickpocket others as he performed with his sister. During this time however, time and time again, the boy would always stumble on a man who watched him, a mysterious man seem to appear with flames. His poetic speech always caught his eyes, but no matter what his presence felt wrong. The man Raphael would lure the boy alone, teaching him special tunes to play, tunes that brought more than an audience, pain, suffering. As he performed many would be drawn to the sounds never realizing these notes harmed many at the same time as they were blinded by the music, Lucia started to notice.

Turning 6, the boy was ready to get his special lute, a lute gifted to him passed down by his mother, including her necklace, a locket once open, a mysterious sheet of music can be seen, Calcifer didn’t take much of it, but thanked his mother for the gift. Hugging his mother he left with a big smile as Mencia, gathered her gifts. But before leaving both got a new set of their own prosthetic leg.

Outside the boy was excited to try his new lute, curious he started to tune the lute, and begin to play tunes to his liking, however, whispers spoke, it was the man again. Showing him the locket, as the music notes begin to be seen around Calcifer. The boy wanted to know, it felt as if he needed to play it for the man, as one note played.

Calcifer doesn’t know how it happened, but during the night of his 6th birthday, the twins were awakened by the smell of smoke, this smoke was thick, suffocating, the sounds of burning wood, crashing rubble, confused and worried, he notices his sister struggling to breath, he quickly gets out of his bed and tries to help, but sees a drow woman take her by the hand out of the flames, as the boy watched and screamed for his mother and father, he sees his mother body on the ground, bludgeon to death. The boy shaken to the core, he looks around and spots the same man watching, as the man points out of the flames. Calcifer watches the woman run with his sister to his father, who stands there without a scratch, holding a torch. Watching the flames. Calcifer didn’t know how to react but betrayed…his father leaving him to die in these flames, with his mother. He looks around in a hurry, grabbing the lute of his mother’s and his necklace, he tries to run, but the man stops him as he smirks and cuts a small gash on the boy’s lips, as his finger covers his own mouth, a way of silence, vanishing within the flames. Calcifer cries as the flames engulfed the home.

Ashes was all that was left…

Miraculously, in a strange situation the boy survived, not harmed by the flames. As he awakened, he held the lute and necklace, looking around seeing the after math of what his father did…of what his life is now. With only the lute and locket, the boy ran, now in the streets, almost forgotten by everyone, he was willing to do whatever it takes to survive, and so he did.

Willing to sacrifice himself to help his own life survive, his value, his name, his own self love to be able to live within the lower city, it was a hefty price. But one thing that kept him from giving up was his mother’s lute, playing the tunes he grew up learning was his ability to make his own way of living in adult hood along with pickpocketing. Learning more skills within his own means, he swears to find his father, sister, to return to the circus, to his family again, to avenge his mother. He is willing to do anything to make this right. But many secrets kept from him, his path is met with many roads that will lead to empty space, or even death…a game Raphael enjoys to play, wanting his soon slave to break, so he can have the gain. Thanks to Calcifer’s mother, his soul is now Raphael’s forever a puppet played with by strings, with no knowledge. A game Calcifer will soon have to learn…

If he doesn’t lose. Willing to sacrifice himself to help his own life survive, his value, his name, his own self love to be able to live within the lower city, it was a hefty price. But one thing that kept him from giving up was his mother’s lute, playing the tunes he grew up learning was his ability to make his own way of living in adult hood along with pickpocketing. Learning more skills within his own means, he swears to find his father, sister, to return to the circus, to his family again, to avenge his mother. He is willing to do anything to make this right. But many secrets kept from him, his path is met with many roads that will lead to empty space, or even death…a game Raphael enjoys to play, wanting his soon slave to break, so he can have the gain. Thanks to Calcifer’s mother, his soul is now Raphael’s forever a puppet played with by strings, with no knowledge. A game Calcifer will soon have to learn…

If he doesn’t lose.

[sorcerous-caress]

Sending this all in one ask even though it's technically four different things, hope that's alright-

1. Ik it's small and just in the tags but the Sol response for the soulmates post is so 💞

2. I really liked the writing in your Yurgir post, just thought it was really neat and I liked your wordings (I could not come up with a better way to word this, though- my bad). Let him protect Tav!! Even though he's also completely wrecking them <3

3. I agree really hard on the backgrounds giving dialog options. It really feels like it should be a thing- I think maybe all background affects dialog wise, is whether or not your character gets the Baldurian tag..? But that might just be a race thing (in which you'd either get Baldurian or Underdark. Or... Nothing for githyanki? Unless they have the Planar tag? Idk)

I may not be able to have the option in game, but in my mind's eye my noble Tav introduced themselves proudly with their full name, and Astarion immediately poked fun at them for how much of a mess their family is known to be. Them most likely recognizing Wyll as the Ravengard son and assuming he'd know of them as well but he straight up doesn't. Beautiful stuff

-Tressym anon

Thank you for taking the time to write this! Love hearing your thoughts <3

1 - You read it!! I didn't think anyone would notice, I'm so happy. I really want to add them to the several characters mini-lists I make but I always hesitate because since the post will leave my blog tags, I don't want it to feel like I'm forcing my OC into the fandom main media?

So I just leave it in the tags for my readers to hopefully find, since only you guys know about Sol and will see the OG post while most people will see reblogs of reblogs without my tags.

It's like, while Halsin embraces fate and has faith in it, Sol and Minthara do not. They realise how incredibly lucky they are to have met you. Sol condems fate for being so pitiful, how easily they'd have never met you and just spent their life hiding their true self and following their family.

While Minthara fears fate, she knows she would've killed you under any other circumstances. She dreads the idea of never waking up from her brainwashing, be it from Lolth or the Absolute.

2 - I'm glad to hear you liked it! I can't stress how I will never get tired of hearing this or how these comments never get redundant to me. Honestly, I'm having a really bad day rn but still pushed out a fic bc I felt like it's been a while, it makes me feel appreciated when people tell me they liked anything about my works. So thank you again from the deepest of my heart.

3- omfg, the Astarion idea is gold. He would totally have gossip on most noble families since he spent so much time in the upper city. You'd be announce yourself and titles so proudly and he'd be like "didn't your cousin runaway with that barmaid and leave his wife and three kids behind?"

Or playful banter with Wyll since he came from nobility originally, the two of your characters could've seen each other as kids or something before the whole Mizora thing and he'd be like "wait...I remember you! You're that kid who stole my piece of cake during my birthday party"

Also imagine insulting Gortash during his coronation with a noble background, basically calling hime fake nobility and how he doesn't know the first thing about rulling or etiquette.

Maybe when you come back to the city, you already have an account made in the bank and don't need to start another? Maybe you get pickpocketed quite often because you "look rich" and if you sleep at any camp besides the elfsong tavern, you remain restless and don't heal to full.

Being an obnoxious noble sounds way too fun. A spoiled rich person who has to trudge around in the mud in the underdark and complain about their silk clothes getting absolutely ruined while the party snicker behind you.

Imagine teaching Lae'zel and Shadowheart how to slow dance <3 or taking Karlach to a very fancy restaurant reservation during her date in act 3!

[vagueiish]

fuck i wish i could write. oliver just signed the deal with raphael (because he constantly feels like he's doing nothing to help the party or anyone and putting his soul on the line is the very least he could do, even though he helps everyone and also is like.... at max approval with the whole party and has finished or done the majority of everyone's personal quests)(he's trusting the emperor less and less, for Reasons, which i guess would involve more writing because it involves personal backstory shit, and he's already burned the bridge with gortash by crashing the party at the iron throne and saving wyll's dad, so his options to deal with the tadpoles are becoming fewer and fewer)(so. raphael it is. for now...?)

and astarion's basically just like 'well that was stupid, but what do i care, it's not *my* name on the contract lol' (even though oliver's apparently the first person he's truly cared for, bb, what are you doing? is this a 'id rather you hadn't, and i'm actually kind of upset but don't know how to deal and also you're a fuckin adult and made your choice, so what's the point in saying anything' moment or what, i am having trouble deciphering this right now)(and i know the dude is an ass, i dont expect him to be Nice, but your honor, theyre in love. and he did sound kind of pissed about it! or irritated/sarcastic??? but! how did he mean it? my brain is not cooperating, i hate this, lmao, i wish there was a follow up convo or something so i could pin down this fuckin plot bunny)

(and i mean. this is deviating into headcanon/oliver as tav specific territory, and is me trying to figure out how it'd figure into the thing i'd wind up writing for this if i do, and again, astarion is an ass and all that, maybe not the most emotionally mature dude in the realms to put it mildly, but he'd know, right? eventually, at least??? that he fucked up saying that? that however he actually meant it, it's going to sound very much like 'i don't actually care about you' to the first person he professes to actually care about?)(and in terms of oliver's canon timeline, i think he signs well after his own 'personal quest' would have occurred. so astarion would know about oliver's mother and all that baggage. not that he'd necessarily know what do to with it, but he'd probably have heard her be all 'yeah, i never actually cared for or wanted you, soo....')(which is an oversimplification and the whole situation is quite complicated, but. that's the gist he gets, so anyway...)

and then karlach. my love. the bestest of girls, she's angry and insisting on going to avernus one last time to save oliver's fucking soul because she's awesome and also because he's her friend and, tangent, i wish there was an option at all times to hug her, whether as a friend or lover. she deserves all the hugs, romantical or platonic or whatever, fuck, i want to hug karlach so fucking bad

and there is something *there* with all of this because oliver, sweet and sad and self-loathing, wouldn't have any of her help. he'd want her to let it go. gently, at first, but of course she doesn't, so then he gets pissed. because this is his decision. because it's not her name or anyone else's on the dotted line, so why the fuck does she care? (hm. sounds familiar.......) let it go. let him help for once, not be a burden on the party for *once* (as if he hasn't spent the whole adventure bending over backwards not just for our merry band of adventurers, but everyone he's come across)(because it's not enough, never enough, it'll never be enough to make up for being him) he isn't worth the trip to avernus, isnt worth her forcing herself to face that place again. and he's rarely loud or angry but he's both now, the exhaustion and frustration and uncertainty and fear re: the future that he's been trying to ignore pouring our of him, horribly misdirected at probably his best friend in the whole group, so of course the rest of the party is going to hear it and it's just.... there is something here, i feel it in me bones

(also. tangentially related, but didn't raphael imply that fucking up the contract would fuck over the whole group and not just whomstever is signing it? said something about hanging you and your friends from meathooks while watching the world burn??? so either he's full of shit or the contract actually fucks over everyone if broken, which..... oliver as tav would not have signed if breaking it affected anyone else, so this might all be moot. i dunno. just rambling)

[seareigns]

OOH just saw I was tagged, thank you @selene-themoon!! 💃

shuffle your ON REPEAT playlist and list the first 10 songs:

lmaooo most of these are definitely from the playlist I made for my tav 🫡 spotify has told on me

The Curse - Agnes Obel

Big God - Florence

Downhill Lullaby - Sky Ferreira

I Follow Rivers - Marika Hackman

Raised by Wolves, Opening Title - Mariam Wallentin, Ben Frost

Under Giant Trees - Agnes Obel

KINDRED I - Kelsey Lu

Rise Up O Flame - Kiki Rockwell

Dream Walk (Baldur’s Gate 3 OST) - Borislav Slavov

Let Me Follow - Son Lux

list your top 15 tv shows because it reflects your personality:

for some reason I always struggle to come up with favorite liiiists

Fargo

The Americans

Halt and Catch Fire

Severance

30 Rock

Better Call Saul

Breaking Bad

The Knick

Justified

Hannibal

Mindhunter

Chernobyl

Superstore

Bob's Burgers

Mad Men

I am very behind on my to-watch list so most of these are now OLD (like me)

*~optionally tagging @bebeocho, @themanicnami ~*

[all-pacas]

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

1: Where in the Faerûn is your Tav from?

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

2: What is your character's alignment?

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

3: Race and subclass?

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

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

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

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

5: Dark Urge or no?

Yessss

6: What companion are you platonically close with?

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

7: Romantically close with?

Gonna be hooking up with the asshole vampire boy.

8: Who are they suspicious of?

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

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

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

10: Are they proficient in playing any instruments?

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

11: Weapon of choice?

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

12: What is their orientation?

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

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

She enjoys it a lot.

14: What hobbies does your Tav have?

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

Durge's hobby was murder.

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

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

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

Shovel

17: Do they enjoy life as an adventurer?

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

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

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

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

In the Temple of Bhaal. :)

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

Is serve it an option?

21: What is your Tav's favorite spell?

Friends or Charm Person, oops.

22: What languages is your character fluent in?

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

23: What do they do after the absolute crisis?

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

24: Does your character believe in the afterlife?

She's terrified of it.

25: What arcana major best represents your Tav?

Hanged Man / Death. Being trapped, being renewed.

26: What animal best represents your Tav?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

[streetsandsodiumlights]

1 and 2 for the Tav asks

Tell us about your Tav! Name, class and subclass, race, pronouns. Do you have a headcanon for where they're from? Their family? Are they a Dark Urge? Or did you choose an Origin Character? Was it an easy decision? (1)

Ena (they/he) is a wild magic sorcerer! They’re from Baldur’s Gate, where they were an acolyte at a very small temple. They aren’t an especially devout person and don’t follow one god in particular, but they got into it when they were a kid hoping a god could help them with their magic and never really left, until the Nautiloid snatched them up. They’re an incredibly persuasive person who wants to do good in the world, but they sometimes get caught up in their perfect vision for other people’s lives and forget that not every problem can be solved.

Their fatal flaw is their hubris; being a sorcerer, they’re accustomed to playing with fire, as it were. All magic carries inherent risk to them, so to hear “I can give you power, but it comes with a cost” doesn’t scare them off at all. They don’t always make good decisions with it.

My goal with Ena was to make a character who was plain enough to absorb the story without giving me a lot of pressure to rp. I didn’t want to make a detailed backstory that I would have to contradict with my dialogue choices, so I kept it simple! Ena grew a A Lot with the story though. They ended up being the perfect character to play the first time through :D

Was there something about the character creator that just couldn't capture your Character? Please tell us about their hair, facial hair, tattoos, piercings, disabilities, their trans or intersex body, or anything else you're comfortable sharing. (2)

I actually sat in the character creator for a long time trying to make a person who was… NOT too special looking? My actual on-paper goal was to make a blank slate character and I kept choosing options that were super over-the-top. It didn’t match the vibe. My original plan was to play a tiefling but I couldn’t make it look how I wanted, so I switched to elf.

The one thing I really wished I had for Ena was longer hair. They’re loosely modeled after my da:o warden, and in that game I had lots of mods including some really nice long hair… unfortunately bg3 has limited choices and most of them are too styled for me, and I can’t mod the game atm. But I ultimately ended up happy with my choices in appearance!