#she's just gonna be rotten most of theplaythrough

[princeofhags]

Musings on my playthrough with Iraestra, my Lolth-sworn drow wizard and romance. spoilers for Minthara & Astarion stuff under the cut because I'm me.

Still debating what noble house I want Iraestra to be from, but thinking a lot about how you can tell her that you committed the grove atrocities for Minthara, no other reason. While Iraestra certainly did it to integrate herself into the cult and look for more answers, I think she mostly decided to do it when she saw the mark of house Baenre on Minthara's neck.

Unsure how well Iraestra would know the actual faces of House Baenre aside from the matron mother and a few others, but she would have immediately recognized their emblem. Iraestra's curiosity about how Minthara ended up in this situation would be insatiable, as well as her desire to gain Minthara's favor. The life of a few tieflings and druids was nothing in comparison to gaining Minthara's favor.

In my current game I turned down Minthara because I'm doing Astarion's romance, but I hope? That when Minthara is less buggy I can either keep both active at the same time, or...? Because even if Iraesta wasn't attracted to Minthara (which she very much is), she would never say no to sleeping with her in the vein of trying to get on her good side.

That being said, I also think Iraestra borders on being just as possessive as Minthara; she's owed the world and intends to take all that she can, after all. It's her right, carved into her face by the eye that she has given Lolth (she has a scar running across one eye and my headcanon is that she did so in a ritual intended to please her goddess/show her devotion. Which I'll also have to contend with how faithful Iraestra is and how clearly Minthara has abandoned their goddess hMMMM).

So poly is an interesting concept to play with for Iraestra, but I think it works because she would begin a fling with Astarion not thinking of him as an equal.

I have a lot to say about Iraestra and Astarion's relationship in general, especially with how Iraestra views men and surface elves (very much what you would expect of her upbringing).

I obviously already like Astarion as a player, but his line that triggers when you take him into the Underdark about vampires thriving down there really made me begin to think about Iraestra considering taking him back down there with her as a consort. That may even be my headcanon for when she really started to consider him as 'hers' internally. Ah yes, this one is very pretty, dangerous, and happy to go along with my multiple war crimes.

I feel like her relationship with Astarion begins as her viewing him as an incredibly useful asset. She finds him amusing and fun to look at the very least. She's not exactly...the best person ever, and doesn't have issues with drow-typical slavery, so her affection for non-drow probably leans more towards 'they're mine and I protect what's mine' in an unflattering way. I was joking with my friend that Astarion bucked off Cazedor's yolk just to get Iraestra instead.

Me: Yeah, he's still on a leash but don't worry! Iraestra has a gentler hand! And she would never make him eat bugs <33333 He's only allowed to feed off her so he's reliant on her uwu. Also why settle for swill when he could be having the finest wine in all the realms every night (Iraestra).

Astarion really went from from mansplain manipulate to girlboss gatekeep 😔 Is there potential for their relationship to bloom into something more real on both their ends? I think so. But I don't see Iraestra changing as a person, more just maybe growing to have real affection for Astarion and thinking of him as an exception, not the rule.