#was going for a tiefling look but idk too much about them to make a character

[theeflowerofcarnage]

fantasy sim brainrot atm

[underdark-dreams]

Hey idk if you only write Tav x character but I am STARVED!!! Starved I say! For Karach x Dammon content. It just makes so much sense and as someone who remained platonic with Karlach I still wanted her to get some action and seeing how Dammon was RIGHT! FUCKING! THERE! It makes sense that they could maybe hook up and he’s been invested in helping her too and huuuuuuuUUUUUUUUH.

I know you like writing about them tieflings so if eventually if you are able you could write the two of them going at it like the touch starved babies they both are (Karlach for obvious reasons and Dammon bc he’s probably focused on his work most of the time).

I’m still shook over your Rolan x Tav fanfic you wrote and I can’t wait to see what you write in the future!

Dammon x Karlach [Explicit]

Touchable

"Damn I'm good. And you, you're...very touchable." An infernal blacksmith and a Blood War veteran walk into a bar. Who would have guessed that Dammon is a natural when it comes to handling fire?

Tags: Explicit Sexual Content, Gentle Angst, Sweet/Hot

Word Count: 3,460 [Read on AO3]

“Of course, you’ll need to install it yourself.”

"Of course, of course—can’t touch the giant flaming woman," Karlach grinned at him. 

Dammon often noticed that Karlach smiled when things made her sad. He remembered the moment well, remembered each time he'd been given an opportunity to help tune that engine of hers.

Their most recent conversation stuck out with particular pain in his mind.

He'd spent many late nights burning the candles down in his room as he sketched and diagrammed and theorized. No matter how many sheets of parchment he filled, Dammon kept arriving at the same awful conclusion.

Even with his niche skills, he was all out of options for Karlach. She could either return to the sustaining fires of Avernus, or live on this plane however long she could manage before her engine was snuffed out.

Dammon couldn't even calculate whether she had years left or only months. Somehow, that made it so much more terrible.

Karlach took the news with superhuman optimism, the way she approached most things. She thanked him with tears in her eyes for at least giving her back the chance to touch and be touched. For that, her first hug in ten years was his. 

Hopefully it wouldn't be the last, Dammon found himself thinking, as her warm body pressed up firmly against him. She wasn't the only one who was long overdue for some physical affection.

Dammon had always thought of her now and then as he worked in his forge. Usually it was idle and passing, wondering whether her infernal parts were giving her any trouble. 

But lately, it was hard to shake her from his mind at all. Had she found someone to finally take to bed yet? Surely so, with how many years she'd be confined to unwilling celibacy. 

It embarrassed him to admit, but he fervently wished it could've been him. He wasn't much more than a humble smith, and she was practically the city’s hero at this point. How many times had she saved his own life? He'd lost track.

All these thoughts ran through Dammon's mind from where he sat at the bar of the Blushing Mermaid. As he surfaced from his reflection, the din and noise of the place pressed against his ears again.

Not as reputable as the Elfsong, perhaps, but it was closer to his forge. And it was easier to be left to yourself when all the other patrons were already piss-drunk.

"Hey, soldier!"

A friendly hand clapped his back, causing Dammon to nearly choke on his pint as Karlach slid into the seat beside him.

"Sorry," she said with a grimace, but her eyes were sparkling. "Gods, am I glad to see you."

Dammon wiped his mouth in surprise as she swung her very large mug up on the table. "You too, Karlach," he said with a genuine smile. It was like the very strength of his thoughts had conjured her. She looked better than ever.

"I didn't expect to see you here," he admitted. "I thought you'd be out enjoying the new you."

"Fucking someone's brains out, you mean?" Karlach finished for him. Dammon found her bluntness unbelievably attractive.

"To be honest that's why I'm here," she admitted, and rubbed her neck with a hand. "Camp's a bit awkward at the moment. I may have made a pass at Wyll that wasn't, er…enthusiastically received. Think I scared him off a bit," she finished ruefully.

Very much Wyll's loss, Dammon thought to himself. What he wouldn't give.

"Well, you picked the right place for drowning sorrows," he told her aloud. As if on cue, there was a loud chorus of booing as an empty glass went hurtling across the room to land on the low stage, where the half-orc lute player promptly lobbed it back into the crowd with a shattering crash. Dammon raised his arm out in demonstration of his point; Karlach was already cracking up.

"Fucking missed this city," she laughed, wiping a tear of mirth from her eye. They each took a generous drink of ale.

But Karlach wasn't distracted for long. "I just wish, you know?" She sighed. "I wish I could be with someone who understands a little bit. Sex is fabulous on its own, but I want everything, all of it."

"What's stopping you?" Dammon asked her, wondering what it would take for her to see him as a very viable option.

"So many things," she said. "I appreciate what you've done for me Dammon, please believe that I do, but…I still feel more machine than Karlach." 

"I'm pretty handy with mechanics, you know." Dammon was flirting with her despite himself. He couldn't help it; she was so radiant and lovely as she sat there close beside him.

Karlach finally glanced over at him, and he saw in her eyes that she'd caught it. 

"You must know I like you," she said, her voice low but intense. "Dammon, I like you so much. But you're so lovely, and I'm—" She gestured a hand down her front. "—This. Wild, unstable. What if I end up, I don't know, hurting you somehow?” She looked at him with a pained expression. “A guy like you deserves someone tender, and I'm not sure that's me."

All traces of joking were gone; the air between them had grown serious in a second. Dammon's heart thrummed strong against his ribs, and he reached for her fingers before he could stop himself.

"Maybe forget what you think I deserve, and listen to what I’m saying." He shook his head at her. "Karlach, you talk like you're some kind of monster. So you've got an infernal engine in your chest. And sure, you're tall as hell. But I mean, you've got plenty of—you're not short on any of the—" He was casting around for a gentlemanly way to describe her curves and realizing that it probably didn’t exist.

"Spit it out," Karlach teased him. But her expectant expression made his face grow warm.

"I just wish you wouldn't talk down about yourself like that," Dammon explained. "You're very womanly, and plenty desirable."

"Oh," she said, taken aback. Her free hand fiddled with the handle of her mug. "That's…no one's ever said something like that to me before."

What a damn shame that was. Dammon watched the doubt and confusion work over her features. How long had she thought of herself as nothing more than a tin soldier? He'd fixed what parts of her his hands could tend, but something in the way she saw herself was still broken. 

Dammon squeezed her fingers under his. "Karlach, there's so much about you to love. That I love. You are…an incredibly beautiful woman. Don't you know that?"

Karlach stared at him with wide eyes; her face looked somehow younger and softer. For a person so sure of everyone else's worth, she seemed so blind and unsure of her own.

"I am?" She asked, so quietly it broke his heart a little.

Dammon could only think of answering with a kiss. He leaned in with a careful tilt of the head, eyes on her mouth—in the last second he was elated to feel her lean forward to close the distance.

He would've honestly, truly believed that there were sparks between them. There was the fiery warmth of her skin, but Dammon also felt a tingling jolt between their lips that had nothing to do with her heat. His insides sung at the feeling of her lips moving over his with just as much urgency as he felt.

Dammon pulled her face deeper to him with a hand at the back of her neck. As his tongue explored her mouth and sought hers, he felt one of Karlach’s palms rest against his thigh. He could have choked on the desire that rose in his throat at her touch.

They both pulled away at the same instant.

"Your place?" She prompted, breathless.

"Mine," Dammon agreed. It was only a few minutes away, and though his bed was cramped even for one, he expected they wouldn't be sleeping much.

Dammon dumped some coin on the bar in a rush before they made their way outside. The cool breeze through the streets made him realize just how flushed and heated his skin was. His arm sought Karlach's waist beside him as they walked, and a thrill went through him at how lovely it was to finally hold her close. She seemed to feel the same.

"Gods, I can't wait to ride you," she said huskily. Dammon tried to keep a grip on his composure; her brazen eagerness made it very difficult. He settled for pulling her into a quick, heated kiss as they continued on. 

The two of them practically stumbled over the dark cobblestones of the entryway in their haze, both buzzing with impatience and expectation. By the time his nervous fingers had finally made work of the lock to his quarters, they were on each other before the door had latched behind them.

Karlach's leg hitched up over his hip as she devoured his mouth. Dammon's hand gripped behind her knee at once, holding their bodies steady against each other, kissing her back with sheer years of pent-up enthusiasm.

"You're strong," Karlach said as she surfaced, sounding pleased and surprised at once.

"'I'd hope so, after throwing around that hammer so long."

"You can throw me around." After a pause she added, "That's an invitation."

"I got that," Dammon grinned, absolutely smitten with her, and captured her lips again.

He guided them both toward the far end of his room and tumbled over her when they reached the mattress. His hands grazed the edge of her shirt, desire muddling his understanding of how to undo the many buckles and straps.

She took more pity on him than he deserved. Almost before he could blink she had freed herself of all her clothing, laying back naked before him on his bed. Pale, dim moonlight from the window illuminated her figure.

She was extraordinary.

Dammon quickly tugged his shirt past his snagging horns, wishing to feel her skin against his as soon as possible. Even before his head was free, he felt Karlach’s fingers helping with his pants, tugging them down past his hips and sliding them off onto the floor.

He hovered over her as they gazed at each other. The promise of bare flesh against flesh was almost overwhelming, now they were here. Dammon leaned down to place a tender kiss on her lips and then descended to explore her neck. 

Karlach’s arms clutched him eagerly as he kissed along her soft, warm skin. When he made his way down to her chest, he placed lips tenderly above her breast where the soft ticking of machinery resounded. It may not be a flesh and blood heart, but its rhythm was no less dear to him. She let out a soft, low hum.

Dammon wished he had more patience to linger. But instead he pushed his body down between her thighs, glancing up to check in on her for just a moment. Karlach watched him with a pained expression, lips parted—as if afraid he might not follow through with what his movements suggested. 

He wouldn't be teasing her for one second tonight. Dammon leaned down and ran the warm flat of his tongue up over her center.

His head was jerked slightly to the side as she grabbed at one of his horns with a moan. He didn't break from her, only licked at her steadily, smoothing and spreading her wetness up and over her soft folds. 

Even after all the work he'd done to cool her, she was still molten hot under his tongue—he thanked every god in the universe for his natural resistance. His lips closed firmly over her clit, sucking the spot as his tongue rolled her side to side in an achingly slow rhythm.

"Holy fuck," she panted from somewhere above him. "Holy fuck, Dammon—"

He curled one arm under and around her thigh, used thumb and index finger to spread her better for his mouth. He released his lips’ suction with an obscenely wet sound, replacing it with the circling pad of his thumb. She was delicious, but he sought to taste her deeper.

Dammon's tongue plunged deep into her cunt, so far that his nose pressed against where his fingers worked against her clit. 

Karlach cried out and squirmed violently under his mouth. Dammon's arms held her firm, angling her hips up and open against his searching mouth. His tongue thrust over and over unto her unbelievable heat as he tasted the sweet center of her, felt her satin walls constrict around him with each nudge of his tongue.

By now his own erection pressed painfully into the bed under him. He only shifted a little and continued on. She had so much more time to make up for, and Dammon was determined to be the one to satisfy her.

It wasn't long before Karlach's thighs were trembling against his ears. "Please," she whimpered desperately, nails clutching his hair to hold his face against her, as if begging him not to stop. He wouldn't have dreamed of it. His mouth worked her over with more enthusiasm than ever, swirling and sucking against her hot folds.

When she came around his tongue, the rush of her heat burst against his mouth and gushed out from her core. Dammon thought he might come just from the way her legs clenched desperately to keep his mouth working over her. He lapped up her sweet release faithfully with his tongue, even as his ears took in the far sweeter sounds of her shuddering, gasping moans.

Only once the twitching waves of her climax were receding under his lips did he glance up over her to see her face. 

Karlach’s eyes were closed, an expression of transcendent bliss painting her features. As he watched her pant through parted lips, her eyes opened slightly to look down at him where he still hovered between her thighs. He knew the lower half of his face must be dripping with her climax.

With a guttural sound, Karlach’s legs gripped around his middle to pull him just to where her arms could take over and guide him up over her. Dammon gathered himself just in time to land with palms braced on either side of her.

“Wait—” Dammon started, wishing to clean himself up first, but she was already pulling him into a kiss. She licked across his lips, tasting herself on him, before her tongue demanded entry into his mouth. He yielded more than willingly.

His painfully hard cock grazed her thigh as he moved over her. Karlach groaned into his mouth; the vibration of her lips against his sent yet another rush of blood to his throbbing length.

She broke away with a fresh glint of arousal already building behind her eyes. “Inside,” she directed him. “Right fucking now.”

Dammon needed no more encouragement. With fingers grasping under her back, he firmly lifted her body up and over his lap. The way she landed over him pressed her still-dripping heat against the underside of his cock. A trembling groan escaped him at the sensation. Nevertheless, he gathered himself enough to scoot back against the headboard for support.

Before he could fully prepare himself, Karlach’s hand had guided his tip between her folds. In the next motion, she descended down around his whole length at once.

“Fuck,” Dammon gasped. He wished he could find something more eloquent or romantic to describe the feeling, but his mind was wholly overwhelmed by the fiery warmth that gripped all around his cock. He could even feel her walls still fluttering against him from her recent climax. His fingertips dug into the flesh of her hips.

They crossed glances as she sat still to take him for a moment. Karlach’s eyes shone with desire and excitement, and something almost like love. One of Dammon’s hands slid up along her spine, dipping her neck down, capturing her lips in a tender kiss. He felt his mouth shaking slightly against hers.

“Every time alone, I imagined this,” Karlach breathed against him as they parted. 

Dammon thought he might unravel completely at her words. He leaned back against the hard wood behind him, eyes taking in every beautiful inch of her flesh, inviting her to do whatever she wanted with him.

She accepted the offer wordlessly. As her fingers clasped behind his neck, Karlach rocked her hips up and down over his length. He felt his jaw go slack at the feel of her heat surrounding him, taking him, over and over and over—

Dammon’s grip dug into her hips to add more force with each of her rhythmic thrusts down onto him. He gazed up at her with pure adoration as she took him. The feel of her warm skin against his lit a fire in his chest; his cock throbbed against the hot, squeezing silk of her walls.

“You’re so beautiful,” Dammon gasped before he could think. It was the truth, and she deserved to be told it—she deserved everything. He held her tight on his lap as took him, chasing her next release. Karlach’s hips faltered for a moment, and he realized she was already close.

Dammon felt her thighs trembling against him and pushed his back up straight to hold her closer as she rode his length. His palms pressed against her back, strong forearms circling and supporting her as she started to come apart yet again.

And she did—with a shuddering quake, Karlach grabbed his shoulders and let out a jumbled cry that was some mix of obscenities and his name.

She was incredible. Dammon watched the agony and ecstasy on her face as long as he could bear, as she rode out her second orgasm onto him, as her tight heat gripped and pulsed relentlessly around his cock. In the next moment his eyes squeezed shut as he was thrown wide to the delayed force of his own release, his hands spasming against her back as stars burst bright behind his eyelids.

After a long moment filled with nothing but the sounds of them keening and panting against each other, her chin dropped over his shoulder. Dammon felt her arms circle to grip around him tight.

As he listened to her breathing slow, she began to shake against him again. 

This time it was from the quiet sobs that heaved up from her chest. He held her head against the crook of his shoulder and stroked her hair as her tears flowed, feeling the droplets splash against and roll down his back.

Karlach cried from joy, blessed relief, aching sadness…from the pain of so much lost time and the knowledge of her limited future. It wasn't fair, none of it, and Dammon didn't know a single thing to say that might ease her burdened heart. 

Engine or no, she had more heart than anyone he'd ever known. He could only hold her to him tight as could be.

Seeking to comfort her further, Dammon worked his hips down the bed with her seated on him and tipped their connected bodies gently backwards. She collapsed without resistance on top of and against him. At least he could support her for a while, even if it was just with his silent body. 

After a little while, Karlach raised her head to look at him. Her face was streaked with tear tracks, but she was trying to smile through trembling lips. "I'm s-sorry," she choked out.

Dammon’s heart couldn’t bear it. He silenced her at once with a kiss. "Don't apologize to me," he whispered to her as he broke away, "or to anyone, ever."

He gathered her back up in his arms immediately. Karlach didn’t protest, only rested her cheek against his chest with a shuddering sigh. Dammon was vaguely aware of the sheen of sweat cooling all over his bare skin, but with her warm body nestled back up against him, he was more than comfortable.

Dammon pressed his lips to the skin of her forehead. He closed his eyes to focus on the way his heart beat against her chest; the steady hum of her body reverberated against him in response. Despite everything, the sound was dearer to him than he thought possible.

“Ready to go again?” Karlach asked suddenly. 

Dammon chuckled low in his chest, feeling the delayed ache in his limbs and realizing a bit late that the night’s exertions had only just begun.

“Give me a few minutes,” he requested with a lazy smile. “We’ve got time.”

[thecryptidgrey]

As an avid lover of his Dark Materials I have yet to see a BG3 daemons concept and that is a Crime. So here are some Thoughts below the cut :)

(Also something something about the representation of religion in HDM and how it correlates to BG3's depictions of faith and trauma. I have the Idea but I am too tired to do much with it; may return to the thought later.)

Shadowheart- a borzoi. Elegant, spooky looking, dramatic. Borzoi don't make much vocal noise but are very playful- instincts surpressed by Sharrens that thrive with the party (see that very cute night orchid scene specifically). Generally very sweet, loyal animals, like SH when you get to know her. Plus they look amazing.

(Act 3 spoilers- I also appreciate that she'll match it when she dyes her hair. Seems suitable dramatic for her.) Anyways, I also really like borzois and think it's be funny af to see in them trotting around in game like the weird willow tree ghost things they are.

Lae'zel- Githyanki don't have daemons; she finds them baffling. Very impractical to carry one's soul on the exterior, although perhaps an efficient companion in combat to have someone you share instincts with. After much discussion by the others she decides for them if she did have one it would be a red dragon. Nobody argues with that.

(She does decide she'd have to prove herself worthy of such a beast first, and if she trusts Tav admits that maybe she'd like if Vlaakith could give her a daemon bond with her future dragon. Would she get a dragon if she became Vlaakith's chosen? Idk, she would now.)

Karlach- Tieflings also don't have daemons. She wants one wholeheartedly. The party finds her a magic ring that allows her to summon a familiar- she gets a direwolf puppy as enthusiastic and adoring as she is :)

Said ring is obtained somewhere in the Shadowlands after she gets the cooldown upgrade so she can hug it as soon as she has it. Also it grows up absolutely massive. Its paws are the size of its head when it's a puppy. All the better for cuddling with!

Gale- Tara. Wizards, sorcerers, etc, tend to have magical creatures as familiars. This AU he had Tara since the beginning. He still summoned all the other weird shit he did as a kid, just with Tara's help. She is his voice of reason and holder of the braincells; he gets to keep one and it's all about Mystra. She's protecting the rest from its corruption. He gets them back when the party convinces him to tell Mystra to go fuck herself.

(I do chew upon the trans Gale headcanon sometimes. If anyone wishes to muse with me on how daemons, which are typically of the opposite sex to their human, would be incorporated into that, please do.) Edit- pls see comments for very illuminating interpretations of daemons and gender!! Very cool stuff!

Wyll- lanner falcon. Medium sized yet formidable bird of prey, the head of which was often depicted on Egyptian gods like Ra and Horus. Beautiful, noble and nimble creatures (good for a dexterity based build, which I focused on for him alongside charisma).

Mizora's pact significantly lengthened their tether; her devil-form punishment broke it and weakened their bond significantly, much to their distress- they hate to be out of vision of one another as a result. Halsin, Jaheira and especially my Tav Cerewyn helped him adapt to and understand the new tether.

Druids and their daemons are based on the His Dark Materials witches, who have significantly lengthened bonds. Druid bonds are just as strong in markedly different ways; each is more independent and their personalities more distinct. I will definitley expand more on this; I adore Wyll and really want to do his character justice. He's the knight in shining armour but he also made a deal with a devil to be said knight, so, y'know. His daemon should really reflect that complexity.

Astarion- luna moth (changed when he turned- he can't remember what she was before.)

Beautiful in a fragile, showy way. Short-lived. Desperate for the light. A silkmoth; silk for embroidery. He resents her for being such a reflection of the self he tries so desperately to hide yet is fiercely protective of her, so beautiful and soft and hopeful- moths exist to seek light, craving it like he longed for a knight in shining armour, like he yearns for the sun.

Cazador liked to pin her wings.

(I love my sad wet cat very much and so as payback for hurting my soul he is subjected to the tragedy that is my attempting to be poetic :) )

Halsin- bear. Druid daemons reflect their favoured Wild shapes. Strong, steady, reliable, protective. Optimal shape for snuggles, very nice and warm, overall :) vibes to look at and be around. (Bear is not present for That Scene. That Scene and daemons are not up for discussion, you degenerates. Thank you <3)

Jaheira- Eurasian lynx. Struggled a bit on this one- didn't think any of the wild shapes suited her as a daemon- so looked up the national animal of Romania (supposedly Jaheira's accent?) for potential inspiration. Got the lynx, which seems perfect. Medium sized, elegant, very dignifed and deadly hunters who inhabit forests. Notably very quiet and hard to track. Endangered, which resonated with me because of Jaheira's status as one of the last of the Old Guard, so to speak. Nocturnal, which I like because we meet Jaheira in the shadow-cursed lands. Ambush predator, which just goes with my Gloom Stalker build for her. Overall seems perfect for the legendary druid.

Minsc- Boo? Fuck knows man, Minsc gonna Minsc. I spent way too long thinking about Jaheira and now I don't have the energy left. If Gale can have Tara, Minsc can have Boo. I do love Minsc so I will be back to expand on him if the mood strikes me but also I think maybe I don't need to? Daemon Boo just seems Right. Will consult Minsc's backstory and update later if necessary.

Minthara- yet to recruit her so uncertain. Displacer beast seems apt, maybe? Something felinoid would really fit her tbh. Elegant and lethal, very aloof but loyal once you've got her. Input would be appreciated.

My Tav, Cerewyn, just in case ya'll are interested- a raven named Gwyn, short for something I haven't figured out how to spell yet.

Clever, calculating, very blunt and sarcastic to balance out Cere's generally stoic, quite, calm demeanour. Sharp eyed bird for a sharpshooter ranger's daemon. Cere is a beast master ranger/ druid of land multiclass; ravens are summonable both for wild companions and familiars and are a wild shape (Cere's preferred wild shape too).

A common species but not to be underestimated and generally unpredictable, which suits her. She romances Astarion and both she and the raven think he and his luna moth are the prettiest things they've ever seen. They're also very patient and perceptive of trauma due to (Extensive Backstory), so they're more than happy to take their time with earning his trust. Astarion is very appreciative of all the shiny things the raven likes to bring him, and also that it clawed one of Cazador's eyes out for daring to speak to Astarion like That.

CONC.; symbolism is fun and also painful :)

Daemon names are a work in progress; the muses gave me this then said lol nope and fucked off before I could ask them for appropriate names. Might post them with some sketches of the party and daemons together?

(I wrote this in Notes app at an ungodly hour with fuck all editing. It is incoherent, but if anything is genuinely incomprehensible, please tell me so I may at least try to fix it. Much love <3 if you made it this far you get to know I welcome suggestions for NPCs to give daemons next!)

First edit- I misspelled quiet so many times omfg

[malicedafirenze]

I unintentionally skipped a lot of the romance content in Baldur's Gate 3 and I want others to learn from my mistakes:

So: I managed to lock myself out of romance entirely and ended up alone, which was a huge bummer and a serious crack in my motivation to play the game. I finished my playthrough (because I was already close to the end of Act 3 when I realized it), and plan to do another one eventually. I'm making this post in hopes of a) keeping others from making the same mistakes and b) to possibly get some additional insight re. what to watch out for in my next playthrough.

PSA: Pick a Partner before Act 3

The key learning here for me was this explanation from the poly mod

In BG3, romance is divided into 2 steps: dating and relationship(also called partner). Dating is basically where you are at after the 1st romance scene. Relationship is where you are at after the 2nd romance scene (relationship also unlocks the kissing menu). BTW, If you enter A3, all dates will break up with you (partners won't, ofc).

I hadn't realized this until well into Act 3, at a point where going back to a save to properly fix it would have meant replaying large parts of Act 2 as well - I decided to finish my run instead and then start a completely new one later.

Note: lots of spoilers below. (click here to read this post on reddit instead)

My Romance Woes

I read in advance that you couldn't romance multiple people (except for the specific Halsin combos with Shadowheart and Astarion) and therefore turned down Gale and Lae'Zel early in the game (not realizing you could just date/bonk them without fully committing or getting anyone upset)

I didn't take approval all that seriously, thought I'd have more opportunity to fix things later. I was playing pretty good guy, and ended up with high approval for Karlach and Shadowheart, but low for Astarion. Weirdly, I don't recall an option to romance Shadowheart (no clue what I missed?) and the only option I had for Karlach was at the Tiefling party, where I went with Astarion instead. I had a scene or two with him, but then didn't progress further in the relationship, without really realizing what I was missing.

I wanted to romance everyone, sat on the fence for too long, and ended up not romancing anyone at all, by missing a thing or two in act 1 and 2 and being too late to fix it in act 3. Don't be like me, it feels bad man.

Early Act 3, I got Astarion's breakup dialogue ("we haven't spent a night together in some time" --> him explaining it was just transactional and he doesn't see the value in it anymore) and got super worried, but when trying to look up if I'd messed up, I didn't find a clear answer for without more spoilers, so I just continued playing Act 3, including all of the companion quests.

I later learned that I missed out on at least one important Astarion romance interaction by not going to Moonrise Towers until after freeing Nightsong. (when the Towers are already on high alert, i.e. I could only fight and not have a lot of conversations)

After realizing I had messed up companions romance, I instead fucked everyone it was unwise to fuck (Emperor, Mizora, Harleep...) for fun and to see what would happen... but chickened out and reloaded after Emperor and Mizora. Still, got to enjoy some fun content that way!

The ending I got (going to Avernus with Karlach) was really cool and made me cry a lot. I then did try to reload my last save though, to see if I'd get any other epilogue content if I didn't go to the Hells, but... apparently that scene on the docks (Astarion goofily running off, everyone kinda agreeing to go party after this, no other conversations with anyone again.... is just... it?

Idk how much of this is the lack of romance, but I really felt like something was missing there. I at least wanted to talk to everyone again one last time.

This is a post about my romance failures and regrets so I'm not gonna talk about everything else that I loved about the game, but just in case this is getting a bit too negative: I had an absolute blast with the whole game regardless, I'm stoked to give it another go the "proper" way (i.e. with romance). I also generally think it's really fucking cool that this game's romance options depend on how you behave, and that you can't just e.g. give someone the right kind of gift 20 times in a row to make them love you, like it works in games like Stardew Valley.

Next Playthrough Plans

I'll probably wait for another patch or two - considering how much got fixed and tweaked with the first three patches, I suppose it's worth to wait a bit and see what's coming

I'll play with the Poly mod next time and try to romance all of the Origin characters.

I plan to play with the camp notifications mod, as well as the approval ratings in dialogue mod. Both in hopes of being able to game the romance a bit better and get much of the romance in one playthrough

I'll play Dark Urge (haven't seen any of that so far!), but probably still go for a "good" playthrough mostly

I plan on equipping & levelling all Origin companions and switch them out more freely, in order to get approval from everyone and edit my party as makes sense depending on story events (e.g. take Lae'Zel to the Creche, take Gale to the Ketheric fight...)

I want to romance everyone. I already saw some tips for early game Astarion approval and assume the aforementioned mods will help in optimizing this

Am probably not gonna do anything all that differently otherwise because my heart can't take an actually evil playthrough

Aand that's about it. As mentioned, I'm mostly posting in case this helps anyone else.

I was really damn sad when I realized I had locked myself out of all romance, because the romance was a significant part of my motivation to start playing this in the first place. At the same time, I loved so much about the game that I still got a lot out of it in 110+ hours even with minimal romance content.

If you see any red flags about my plans for the next playthrough (or if you have experience with the mentioned mods!), I'd appreciate comments and insights. Other than that, here's hoping others can learn from my mistakes. Thank you for reading <3

[regina-cordium]

Absolute garbage at coming up with prompts but uhhhhhh Crutchie being a menace? Maybe with someone else but dealer's choice on that

idk why i decided to set this in the dnd au, but here we are.

---

It’s hotter than all nine hells combined out, and Crutchie is starting to worry his brain is melting out of his ears.

It’s too hot to exist, let alone string a thought together. When he mentions it, voice monotone because emotions take effort, Davey makes a vague noise of agreement, which really just proves his point further. If a wizard thinks it’s too hot to think, then it’s too damn hot to think.

The only person not suffering is Albert; damn tieflings and their heat resistance. Honestly, Crutchie wouldn’t even care much because at least one of them isn’t dying slowly, but Albert’s been a smug dick about it (whether or not Crutchie adores Albert’s smug little smile is beside the point). Something simply must be done, and if Jack can’t summon the energy then Crutchie is just gonna have to take matters into his own hands.

He gently knocks his foot against Sarah’s ankle, the closest person he can reach from where he’s sprawled on the floor of the house they’ve all taken over. He’d hoped the stone floor would be at least a little cooler, but apparently halfling Luck only gets a guy so far.

When Sarah lolls her head his way, he smirks and whispers, “Watch this.”

He makes a face as his magic surges warmly through him – it’s too hot for magic, what the fuck, man – and summons Mage Hand. When Albert is distracted enough, Crutchie has the Hand flick Albert’s tail, quickly dismissing the spell as Albert whips around.

“Who did that?” he demands, looking around.

“Did what?” Race asks halfheartedly.

“Hit my tail!”

“Ain’t nobody hit your tail,” Jack sighs from the other side of the room.

“How would you know? You’re not even looking over here!”

“Cause it’s too hot to move, let alone start a fight.”

Next to Crutchie, Sarah is biting her lip hard to stop from laughing.

Once Jack and Albert stop bickering, Crutchie gives it another couple minutes before nudging Sarah again. When she looks over, he smirks again and gives a repeat performance.

“Who the fuck!” Albert snaps.

“For the love of all that is holy, stop screaming,” Race groans.

Albert whirls on him immediately. “Is it you?”

“Why would I hit your tail?” Race asks, rolling his eyes. He’s slumped so far in his chair he looks like he’s actually melting.

“‘Cause you’re a dick!”

“Hey!” Race objects, getting to his feet. “Fuck you, Al, I didn’t hit you!”

Sarah snorts, but quickly turns it into a cough when Jack sits up and looks over at the two of them. Crutchie holds Jack’s gaze before flicking Albert’s tail again. Jack slams a hand over his mouth to stop himself from laughing as Albert turns in place.

“He looks like a dog chasing his tail,” Sarah whispers, clearly struggling to keep her composure.

Crutchie finally cracks, practically sitting up from the force of his laughter.

Albert spins around and points at him. “You!”

“Gotta go,” Crutchie decides quickly, before casting Dimension Door and rolling himself into it.

The last thing he hears is Albert yelling, “Fourth level spells won’t save you, you asshole!”

[unreadpoppy]

Minthara and Galatea Relationship rundown + HCs

A/N: I was going to write a fic about this but college has left me too drained and headcanons were easier so...have this instead.

Act 1 + 2

When Galatea and the tadfools were wiping out the goblin camp, they accidently left Minthara alive. Despite Karlach poiting out that the drow still drew breath, Gal told her to leave her because "what can a drow, alone, with their entire army of goblins dead, do to us? better to keep going." Some of the others weren't too pleased by this, but they kept going.

When they arrived at Moonrise, Galatea was shocked to see not only Minthara there, but also that the drow was discarted by the general so quickly. She tried to vouch for her, saying that she had served the Absolute faithfully but it hadn't been enough and soon, Minthata was dragged away.

And like...it's not that Galatea feels compassion, but she thinks it's bullshit what's being done to Minthara. And there was a little bit of guilt as well, that in a way, it was her fault that the drow was in that situation. Besides, just as Shadowheart pointed out, Minthara was really good in combat and could potentially make for a great ally. And so, they decide to bust her out of Moonrise, alongside the tieflings and the gnomes.

After Minthara joins their cause, Galatea quickly begins to pay more and more attention to her.

The first thing that draws her in is how wise Minthara is. The fact that even if she knew them for a short while, she was able to read practically the whole party like a book impressed Galatea, and made her want to constantly ask Minthara's opinions on things.

The second thing was just how amazing at combat Minthara was. More often than not, in the middle of combat, Galatea would notice just how strong and capable Minthara was.

And it was in the heat of battle that her gaze would linger, seeing how strong the drow was, her slashing through enemies as if they were nothing. She'd get slighlyt distracted until the sound of someone screaming brought her back to reality.

Also, the more time Galatea spends with Minthara, the more her demeanor rubs off on her. Galatea starts noticing that she has become more ruthless in combat and when dealing with their enemies. Like if someone is bothering her, she stars to not mince her words as she would previously.

On the other side of the force, I think the same also happens to Minthara. Like, obviously she doesn't become a goody two shoes, but seeing that Galatea's kindness can lead to some advantages, I could see Minthara slighlty becoming more open to non violent approaches and more understanding of some of the stuff that happens with their companions. (idk how to explain this properly ok but i hope it made sense, like Minthara brings out some of the """""""""""""""bad/evil""""""""""""""""(i'm using this many quotations marks bc i don't necessarily see minthara as evil/bad so i don't like those words that much) side of Galatea and Galatea brings out the "good" side of Minthara.)

Minthara gets interesting in Galatea because of how she acts as a leader. How she's willing to listen to the others opinions but will still hold firm onto her decisions, which will more often than not, benefit the group as a whole.

Also, Galatea may not be the physically strongest, but Minthara is impressed by the fact that she can hold her own in battle. And, despite everything, Galatea is good at coming up with plans on the spot to keep everyone alive.

Also, Minthara was there when Galatea managed to make 4 different people/bosses kill themselves just using her words, so mark her as very impressed.

The more time they spend together, the more they notice the little things about the other. Galatea sees how loyal Minthara is, and takes an interest in learning about drow culture, leading her to ask about her home, Menzoberranzan. She notices the smirks and frowns on Minthara's face and wonders what a smile would look like. Where others might see her as off putting, Galatea sees her a very complex and interesting individual she wants to know more.

Minthara, I would say, is almost confused by Galatea sometimes. While she prefers to be alone, she craves company. She's a tiefling but doesn't speak infernal or know a thing about her people. She's a noble but rarely talks about her house. This leads Minthara to ask her about this sort of thing, usually out of the blue, which often leads to them spending a long time just...talking about each other's lives.

Another big thing for Minthara is that Galatea does really value her opinion and thoughts. She respects Minthara, and often comes to her without judgement for who she is or what she has done. And also, she enables Minthara's plans of seeking vengence on those who wronged her.

By the time the attack on Moonrise Towers, they are both very, veeeeeeeeery, fond of each other. There is just one problem thought. Galatea is in a relationship with Astarion and Minthara does not share.

Galatea knew this would happen, as she felt her feelings shift from the elf to the drow. And while she is poly, Astarion was feeling like he was replaced and so the two end things.

And then, finally, Minthara and Galatea begin their relationship.

Act 3

Ok so first things first, in act 3, cannonicaly, Galatea sleeps with and begins a brief relationship with Halsin, sleeps with the drow twins and Haarlep. But we also know that, cannonically, Minthara is not too keen on sharing so my HCs for how all of these happened goes as follow.

With Halsin, I think what would happen is that he goes and speaks with Minthara about this, and then the three have a whole conversation about it, and it would probably end with the three having a threesome, or at the very least, Minthara is looking. I'm saying this because like, I think for it to work is that Minthara would have to agree/be comfortable, and I think they could get to that point eventually.

With the drow twins, i think it's another similar situation and then Galatea just showering Minthara with attention afterwards. And haarlep....well, I wrote about it here, but the main excuse is "it was for information". Thought, after the incubus, Galatea does stop sleeping with everyone else and is only with Minthara (not only because of what happens in that fic ok, but also because she just genuinly wants to be only with Minthara from now on).

Anyways, back to their relationship.

So, Galatea is a very touch starved person, which leads to her be constantly touching Minthara. Like a hand on her shoulder, caressing her cheek, and kissing. Lots of kissing, too much kissing, more kissing than should be legally allowed

And Minthara is more than happy to oblige every time. (also, look, i'm trying not to make this too NSFW, but these two are a sexually active couple ok)

Minthara also allows herself to be vulnerable around only Galatea, telling her of her deepest fears and worries.

I think the main thing about their relationship is that they're there for the other, always. They support each other in everything, and they communicate a lot.

They also balance each other out, while also each picking a bit of the other's mannerisms and personality.

In shorter words, i just think they're neat.

Also, some ideas that I plan on making into fics one day:

Galatea has like a parasol/umbrella that she uses when it's too sunny, since she does get burned easily. She starts offering it to Minthara, who argues at first, but eventually, the two are seen walking underneath the same umbrella.

Galatea tells Minthara about her past and being a first born daughter of a noble house in Cormyr, but being rejected by most of her family, especially her grandmother, because she was a tiefling while everyone is either human or elven. Sometime after that conversation, Gal catches Minthara lowkey plotting on taking down Galatea's grandmother (and the rest of her family) so that she can could inherit everything (and also as a lowkey revenge on them for wronging her lover). Galatea ends up tearing up because no one had cared about her that much.

After the Orin fight, they both get in like an awkward situation, in the sense of there's too many feelings. They both got revenge (Minthara, for all that Orin did to her, and Galatea for her sister, who was murdered by Orin) but they're both kinda distant. It would be one time in their relationship where they aren't as close, but give it a week and a long conversation (with Minthara talking about the asslurin thing) and they're back to how they were again.

At first, Minthara is not the biggest fan of Shovel and how the quasit follows Galatea around. After she realizes the attacthment that the tiefling has for the little thing, she'll begin to tolerate her more and once or twice, go out of her way to protect her in combat. Minthara comes around to the quasit when she realizes the demon's murderous intonations.

After Galatea begins wearing the Wavemother's robe, Minthara cannot keep her eyes away from her (Just like Galatea can't look away when Minthara is killing someone in combat. it's just a very...hot sight to see).

And i do have to mention....they just look at the other with so much love and care all of the time.

[the-phantom-otaku]

What if Bayonetta was in Tav's place in BG3?

This thought has passed through my head once or twice, so why not?I can't talk about within the context of the whole game, of course, so I'll just hit points that I think are interesting or that I have thoughts on.

Just some groundwork: Witch Hunts and the War still happen and all that, just in the BG3 world. I think all of that would go down on a different plane of existence, tho, much like how the Gith reside on a different plane. Anyway, Bayo probably set up shop in Baldur's Gate. She still has guns, too, but guns are something exclusive to the Witches. Just another secret they kept hidden from everyone else. As a result, they're considered to be some of the rarest weapons one could possibly attain.

Anyhow, on with the show:

-Unlike Tav, she doesn't end up there bc she was captured. Enzo was snatched and she went after him. She managed to get him out of there but she basically took his place and got wormed instead. The ship escaped to the Hells before she could get off.

-Joined up with Lae'zel and saved Shadowheart like Tav did.

-Found Astarion on the beach after taking out some of those brain things. Tho she falls for his ruse initially, he's unable to pull her to the ground like he planned, and he found himself faced with the barrel of a gun. He weaseled his way out of it tho and she agreed to let him join them so long as he didn't pull anything like that again.

-Finds Gale on the beach too. Pulls him free with ease and allows him to join the party as well. I think bookworm Gale would recognize what she is immediately and begin asking her questions regarding Umbran magic and their history.

-They rescue Lae'zel from the Tieflings. I imagine Bayo managed to convince them, but she could've also just threatened them. I think they managed to get through this without actually killing the Tieflings.

-Speaking of Lae'zel, her and Bayo don't get along at all. They take pot shots at each other and insult one another. She isn't scared of Lae'zel at all either. They do have a begrudging respect for one another, tho, based on fighting prowess.

-Probably threatened to beat the shit out of Nettie after she tried to poison her and her companions. But ultimately, she agreed to clear out the Goblin camp to look for Halsin. Any complaints (from Astarion & Lae'zel) were met with the absolute fact that they needed Halsin anyway, and there was little chance of them sneaking him out.

-Idk if Astarion would actually try to bite her considering the fact that he's seen how strong she is, but since she's in Tav's place, we're gonna say he wanted a taste of witch blood. She'd once again threaten him but wouldn't throw him out of camp. If he acts up, she could kill him without much trouble and she makes sure he knows that. I don't think she'd let him have blood, but we're gonna say she agreed bc he was very pitiful and she did like the promise that he'd fight better if he had some.

-Speaking of that, I almost wonder if he'd fight even better or if he'd gain some residual magic from her bc it runs so thick in her blood.

-Everyone in the party would be shocked, to say the absolute least, the first time the angels come down to fight her. Gale's the only one who is sort of in the know about the Umbra, but even his knowledge of them is limited by quite a bit. I imagine she'd tell them to stay out of the fight, but with the angels gunning for them as well as her, they don't have a lot of choice. Anyhow, the angels are the first time they really see what all she can do bc up until that point, they haven't faced anything that's made her use her entire skillset.

I think that's about all I've got. I'll update if I end up with any ideas.

[vole-mon-amour]

Going with Minthara and her plan is truly something else.

My Durge broke a Vengeance oat as soon as I pointed the grove on her map.

Wyll left immediately, wasn't even at the camp when I came back.

Karlach left as soon as I entered the goblin's party (and Dammon was killed by Minthara, which is another yikes moment.)

Gale hates me and himself and wanted to leave, but I convinced him not to. Gale going "...and I participated" like... Yeah? You did? You could've left? Or does the mechanics of the game do not allow the character to leave if they're in your party? Either way, he blames my DUrge.

I haven't saved Halsin and haven't even met him. I just didn't enter the prison room and went straight for the slaughter, so Halsin hasn't appeared just yet. Maybe later, I don't know, but I fucking miss him and his voice.

Minthara's sex scene is very nice and horny (she literally sits on a dragonborns' face), but then she tries to kill you just like Lae'zel (btw, in this run I saved her but didn't invite her to the camp. So no idea where she is.)

Shadowheart is simply drunk and doesn't really care and thinks that the ambush was meh and that a child could've done it.

Astarion rejected my DUrge with "I'm flattered, but I think not. I have standards." The approval was negatively neutral. Like? He seems in the elevated mood because the wine is way better and he really doesn't mind the killing, but what's the point when there's no Astarion romance? Maybe I should've went full into killing and doing everything to earn his approval, IDK. At the beginning I still tried to help the tieflings and look where that got me. (Sure, on my first playthrough I spent WAY more time exploring the map before the party happened & I was still struggling getting Astarion's approval until I figured it out and the romance happened. But to have that approval for the romance without exploring the map much? Yeah, I should have probably went full on with killings, hmm.) UPD: Oh, and Astarion hasn't tried to bite me even ONCE, which I find incredibly weird. I can't use his bite either cause its not showing.

Zevlor screaming that I betrayed them and watching all those spiders and goblins attacking the tieflings... :/

And all the time I was forcing myself to choose all those options that come with Minthara bc I'm curious what all fuss is about, but I don't think I enjoy it very much. The tieflings were frightened and didn't fight back. It really IS like slaughtering children (Shadowheart's words) & I felt awful about it.

It's obvious that Larian wants you to go with the good path. Sure, they give you the option to go this path, but the consequences are awful.

And to play the entire game just to see what comes out of romancing Minthara and from trusting the Absolute? I'm sure that nothing good. I'm surprised the sun is still shining tbh. With the slaughter and the betrayal that happened at the grove, the shadowcurse should just spread on those lands, too.

Like, going with the same choices (Saving Halsin, helping Karlach, Wyll etc) is boring, but going with this path? Yiiiikes. Maybe I'll just look it up on YouTube. I want new achievements, but I'm not ready to explore the map all over again & I'm not sure if there are any for the choices you make with Minthara.

Oh, AND the game offers you the dragonborn for DUrge by default, yet many options as you answer Minthara are, "There was no honor in this" or "I did not enjoy that." So they want you to resist the urge? And kill Minthara and save everybody?

[vvo1d1ing]

... Okay, listen, I had this idea, I wrote it, I didn't beta it, and fuck it, I'm now posting it.

I usually post my fanfics on ao3 but since this is a very short One Shot that is mostly just a dumb thought I had, I'm posting it here.

English isn't my first language and I'm sure if I spent more time on this, it'd flow better. But I, I just need to post it and hope better writers see my idea and make fics of Durge and Gortash having much more of these "Deniable acts of kidness and love because if I try to actually show romantic or sexual interest in you, I'm going to kill you." moments that make me feral.

If you read this, hopefully you'll enjoy it. In mind while writing it I had my Durge but I tried to keep it any descriptor to a minimum so you can kind of maybe imagine your own Durge easier (if you like this, idk, my writing is all over the place)

TW: Slight dubious consent and mentions of human taxidermy, murder, stabbing, slitting throats. Nothing really gets described, mostly just thought about or mentioned in conversation.

What was there to say about Lord Enver Gortash? He was charismatic, he was inventive, he was the biggest bastard The Dark Urge knew but besides these few admirable qualities, he was a prick, he was a moron, he managed to be more annoying than having a pebble stuck in one's shoe. The Dark Urge wanted nothing more than to rip that smug grin off his face but they couldn't because that would ruin their plans.

Or so they told themselves every night. 

What they didn't wish to admit to themselves and even less to him, is that behind all their opinions and critiques, they admired him. All of him. Though they cared little for Bane, they admired Gortash's devotion to him. They admired his ingenuity, especially for tinkering with machines that they never would've thought of and even less heard of. They admired the way his hair always looked perfectly messy, the way his eyes would soften when he looked at them, the way he laughed when they said something supposedly funny. If that wasn't enough, they enjoyed how he made them feel their own heartbeat when he'd call them his 'Favourite Assassin' or 'Friend', though the one they loved and hated the most was when they'd be alone, planning for possible circumstances that could ruin their plan and he'd simply whisper-

"Dearest?" He basically purred it out, only loud enough for them to hear it. They only wished to acknowledge his presence with a glance but before they could, they felt his hand touch their spine and travel upwards. Too much. Too much touch!

Without a warning they grabbed him by the neck with one hand, pinning him down on the table in front of them and pressing down just enough to keep him in place as they took out their dagger and stabbed it right next to his head.

"I've warned you before. One more time and I'm cutting that hand of yours off. Do you understand?" 

"Such empty threats, if you meant it I know you would've already begun hacking it off."

When the Dark Urge warned him first for grabbing them by the waist, they left a nasty stab wound in his shoulder. When he tried to touch their thigh during a meeting with Kethric, they made a quick cut against his fingers. When he used the opportunity to help the Dark Urge with taking off their coat and barely managed to kiss the back of their neck, he got hit in the face with their elbow. 

The damage they have done was never permanent, besides maybe the stab wound, and never something that couldn't be healed…something they never would. And Gortash knew that. Oh he knew that and he would use that knowledge to its full advantage. 

Growling under their breath, they let go off his neck but as they pulled the dagger out of the table, they on purposely pulled it in a way where it would gently cut Gortash's cheek. 

"Insufferable scum…" The tiefling said as if spitting out venom before they focused their attention back on the papers they were looking at before. The list of murders they committed in the name of the Absolute, only a few more left to do before they were to go to Moonrise to see how the situation is going there, by what Ketheric wrote it's all going by plan but he couldn't be trusted. Nor could Gortash be.

"Your insufferable scum, my dear." He sounded just as smug as he probably looked, but they didn't react to it. They knew that that's what he was after. 

To change the topic and stop their thoughts from drifting away to the idiot, they started to speak about Ketheric, a topic they knew would make Gortash less annoying to talk with. The mere mention of his name was enough to make his smile turn into a disappointed frown.

Though even as they talked about Ketheric, their mind began to drift. They noticed how his shirt was slightly more open than usual, how there were a few strands of his hair that they knew were out of place, how his fingers just twitched a slight bit whenever they mentioned Ketheric. Though their mind and gaze lingered the longest on his jaw. He hasn't shaved for at least a week by what they could tell. 

Mid-way through him talking, they decided to mention it.

"You haven't shaved."

He looked confused for a moment, before touching his cheek with the back of his fingers and knuckles, checking with his touch just how noticeable it was. "I haven't indeed. Strange of you to point it out, friend."

"It annoys me." The Dark Urge explained plain and simply.

"Simply do not stare at it then, you're usually quite good at ignoring my face."

"But I'll still know it's there. Fix it."

"Making demands that I go to a barber right now just because it annoys you? Please, don't make me laugh, we have much more important things to do now." He mocked the tiefling, looking at them with slight disbelief at what they were asking of him.

"Then let me shave it for you. It's bothering me." 

"Let you- Haha! Absolutely not. As much as I enjoy our usual game, it would be ridiculous of me to trust that your twitching knife hand won't slit my throat the second I present it to you."

"If I wanted to kill you I wouldn't use such petty tactics. I'd just do it. Not to mention, I find slitting throats to not be any fun unless the person is hanging upside down."

"Morbid.." Gortash mumbled under his breath, instinctively touching his throat and somewhat scratching at the imaginary cut he just felt. 

"More importantly, I need you for our plan to work. Killing you now would be a waste of all the time and resources we put into this…It would also be disobeying the wishes of our gods." 

"I suppose you are right about that…" He sighed, slightly disappointed in himself as he now knew he had little excuses to get him out of this. Looking away in thought before looking back at the Dark Urge. "Fine. Shave me then. Though from where will you-"

"Sceleritas!" They snapped, their imp butler appearing from behind them and stepping to their side with a small bow.

"Yes, my vile master?"

"Bring me my razor...and the cream I use for my taxidermy."

"Right away, my lord!" 

Gortash did not ask for what reason The Dark Urge used cream on taxidermied animals, but he was wrong in thinking they were animals. After all, he never saw what their room looked like in the temple of Bhaal and it was for the best. The ten or so stuffed corpses wouldn't have made for a relaxed visit. 

As soon as Sceleritas came back with the items requested, the Dark Urge had Gortash sit in a chair and lift his head up. Forcing him to lean and relax a bit as they went behind him and took the items from Sceleritas before shoo-ing him away. 

They grabbed his face with their left hand, forcing it to lean to the side before leaning the blade against his throat where his beard hairs just started. 

And they just began to shave. Carefully and with patience, they made sure to not make a single mistake, not leave a single hair uncut. They were a bit aggressive with handling his face but one couldn't deny that they didn't do this with love. He could see a bit just how focused they were, just how much they cared to do this without properly hurting him.

And they knew just how much they used this as an excuse to touch him, to be close to him and to allow themselves for just a moment to escape into a world where they could take care of Gortash. When they were done and made sure to brush away all the fallen hairs they could, they opened up the cream and took a bit of it on their fingers before applying it on the shaved areas.

This was when he was able to feel just how soft and caring their touch could be. Even if they tried to deny it, the fact they took the care into not just shaving him but also taking care of skin, was such a clear sign that they could actually be loving, if they wanted to. 

Lost in the act, Gortash didn't seem to hear when the Dark Urge was done and told him as such but was brought back into reality when they snapped their fingers to call upon Sceleritas once more to take away the items.

"I…Thank you. This is probably the smoothest shave I have gotten."

"Don't care. I only did so it doesn't bother me."

A lie so clear it was basically written all over their face as they looked at him with a glare.

"Right."

"...Right." 

After a moment of silence, the tiefling was quick to try and move back to talking about their plans. And was as usual, back to avoiding looking at Gortash as they spoke. 

[leofrith]

hiii aaah I‘m excited to talk about my tav(s) haha so where do I start?

please bear with me I have only read forgotten realms wiki entries and never knew anything of the universe before but I wanted to make a detailed backstory for her😭

she‘s a cleric of oghma with acolyte backround. in my head her backstory is that her parents and her left elturel when she was younger before the fall into hell as certain things started to be weird in the city before it‘s collapse into hell. her father was a soldier, who laid down his work after a grave injury, to spend more time with his family and start a business of their own. they decided to move to baldurs gate to potentially establish trading of elturian products there.

on the way to the city they fell victims to an ambush of goblins that killed her parents as she was hiding. she didn‘t move on for days but buried her parents alone and finally decided to go the rest of the route alone. she managed to get into the city by herself but ended up spending an 1-2 years on the streets until a bard that she had built trust with took her to a temple of oghma. there she was taken in and spent years studying and learning. when she was abducted by mindflayers she was on her way to where elturel used to be to find potential refugees and offer her medical knowledge and anything she can do as help. in my playthrough her and karlach are in love (aaah i love them so much hahaha) and it‘s honestly so amazing cause sometimes the game itself just does things that just fit so perfectly with the story i have thought for her. like of course she is absolutely invested in helping the tieflings and the kids like arabella and mol just remind her of herself. i will keep it at that to keep it somewhat short and not spoil any of the games plot haha.

thennn my second tav (dark urge)

this is xerxa. she‘s a seldarine drow cleric of eilistraee that is so deeply unhinged and struggling at this point i truly feel sorry for her even though she committed atrocities. since idk much about the dark urge yet i cant really say things about that but her whole plot idea is that she desperately tries and has tried to be good to find hope and live up to who she wants to be but just cannot due to her finding pleasure in the brutal and macabre. she gave into it when minthara offered her so directly to slaughter the whole grove that she could not refuse this urge. I think she‘s in a process of changing right now?😭 she became a lot more neutral but will evil in the underdark now. she arrived at moonrise and saw minthara being sentenced to death and something im her changed because she geniuenly likes minthara. i think all the reveals and her being able to relate to minthara a lot leaves room for character development. I‘ll look forward to where her story leads me😭 but the things I did in her playthrough truly are HORRIBLE. I think her story will be a story of finding and reclaiming herself and her own power for herself.

you and me 🤝 knowing nothing about forgotten realms lore when coming up with backstories for our characters

I LOVE THEM!!!!! i love your tiefling's whole colour scheme. it's giving pastel karlach. also what is the point of bg3 if not constantly reading too far into everything tav does and pretending everything is deeper than it actually is (because it is).

one of these days i will get around to raiding the grove for minthara. just once. Do It For Her.

tell me about your bg3 ocs!!!

[sorcerous-caress]

Wait, do we know which races menstruate?? …which of the companions would? I assume Lae’zel wouldn’t, and with the menstrual cycle being directly under Selune’s domain Shart might be blocked from going through it via Shar’s magic (if half elves do at all)

(Sorry if this makes you uncomfortable, please don’t feel pressured to answer this if it does!)

Hey, no, it doesn't make me uncomfortable at all, but uh, wait, why does Selune control the menstrual cycle? Kinda sounds way too op of a power.

Any reptile or egg bearing do not, so Lizardfolks and dragonborns plus most other animal based races. Dragons don't, either.

Races that came from humans definitely mentruate. So Aasimar, tieflings, cambions, gensai and others do.

Elves? Idk they look human but they came from the fey, they didn't descend from apes like us so they wouldn't require menstruation. Sounds bullshit but so does lack of the need to sleep so let them have their mary sue moments.

Githyanki used to he humans, so they probably did at some point, and they do have a mammal build unlike other egg laying species. I think they do menstruate much like we still have the remains of tails in our backbones despite not having tails anymore. But they're all infertile, until Vlaakith, which allows them to reproduce, so I don't think they menstruate despite being able to.

Half-elves? Yeah, human genes feel dominant so much like sleep. They'd suffer our other symptoms of being alive.

Gnomes, dwarves and halflings are the ones I'm not sure about. Based on a hunch, imma just say they do, but it's probably different than humans. We breed, a lot a lot so we have monthly cycles. The rest of dnd races? Not so much, they seem to keep it in their pants.

So maybe each period cycle is three months apart? a months? A year? Who knows. They didn't come from humans so it makes sense for them to be different.

Lae'zel wouldn't

Shadowheart would

Karlach would

Minthara wouldn't

Jaheira would but I think she hit menopause

Dame Aylin and Isobel both would

Any trans headcanon for male characters would unless it's Halsin and Astarion.

Actually, I think being a vampire would cut off your cycle, too. But Astarion, as an elf, probably didn't have it to begin with.

[nessietessie]

so wait tell me about song

Oh boy! Well, Song is a tiefling paladin, but he's not really the god-fearing type. My original idea for him is that his power comes from the pure drive to protect the people close to him and the people who can't really protect themselves. Though I have been flirting with the idea of him unknowingly being like. Idk what the proper term is for paladins. Sponsored? By Ilmater, who is the god of people who have been oppressed. From what I've read he kind of fits perfectly with Song's whole deal. It hasn't exactly come up yet though, so I'm not too worried about that lol.

We've just hit level three, and Song is now an Oath of the Ancients Paladin, mostly because he doesn't feel the Vengeance type and Devotion would technically make him a "White Knight" which is WAAAAY too stuffy for him. He's more of a rough and tumble kinda guy, who is mostly just trying to do his best. (There are other oaths in different books, but I wasn't sure what all our DM had access to, so I just kinda went with it lol)

Most of his beliefs come from his time in a crappy orphanage in Baldur's Gate, where he had a pretty tough time. He grew up wanting to make sure people wouldn't have to go through the same shit he did.

Song is pretty quick to make friends, or at least consider people friends even if it isn't mutual. He's pretty fond of Alastair in particular, and he trusts him in a lot of ways. Alastair seems like the type to use his brain where Song will more often not think too much before acting, though he's getting a little better. And he's starting to learn that not everyone is as trustworthy as he'd like them to be, unfortunately.

Dearleigh is crafty, and generally pretty reliable, but she also asks a lot of invasive questions of people, and the first time Song met her, she was stealing jewelry or money or something from one of the stalls at the Firefly Festival, so his opinion of her isn't exactly stellar, lol. Also she keeps insisting that Song and Alastair are "her boyfriends" which he's not exactly thrilled about.

He has respect for Flester as another person who has a little more regard for life than, say, Dearleigh does. Though Song is a little more prepared to do what has to be done in dire situations, he definitely understands where Flester's pacifism comes from.

Anyway I guess the upshot is that Song looks a little rough on the outside, and acts pretty unrefined for a paladin, but he's so dedicated to helping people, and now especially the people he's fallen into a party with. He would die for Alastair in a heartbeat.

[ashes-acedia]

HEYO! For the fandom ask! Either BG or Fallout!

hell yeah!! okay disclaimer... i've only played bg3. and i need to replay fallouts plural-- so i'm a bit rusty on that front.

bg3:

1. The first character I first fell in love with

i saw a clip of astarion's meltdown after being exploded at rosymorn... i was absolutely Enchanted by his screeching so i bought the game.

2. The character I never expected to love as much as I do now

the conglomerate of tiefling babies you meet at the grove and follow throughout the game. that funky little gaggle owns my heart. mattis swindling your sorry ass. silfy crying!!! mirkon writing you a fucking story?! ide? umi?! DONI?! precious queen mol!?!?

i wish tav could invite them to live at camp. the children need to be housed, dammit!!

@lariannnn let eleanor have her wretched little brood. mol and astarion would be devastating. 🖤

3. The character everyone else loves that I don’t

okay... i might have to go into hiding after this... but... halsin? it's not that i don't like him. i do. but i like him most when orin is posing as him... whew. my love for gale probably makes this hypocritical*-- he just comes on too heavy, like bro i've never once hinted at flirting with you 🥲 i'msosorrytothehalsinstans

*without a doubt i have chosen the flirty dialog with gale, so jot that down

4. The character I love that everyone else hates

trying to rack my brain-- i stay on the fringes of fandom nowadays, so i don't really know this stuff-- UHH he's an asshole but i really enjoy ketheric as a character? his whole backstory with the curse. the battle with him and myrkul is always a good time. and myrkul looks fucking sick. so does ketheric's armor. necromancy. ✨

(but please rot forever for hurting isobel and aylin)

oh and ORIN... since apparently people don't like her. i support women's rights and wrongs.

5. The character I used to love but don’t any longer

honestly? i don't have one. i feel like my brain has the faves on rotation. but nothing's changed much.

6. The character I would totally smooch

gale or wyllym. unless we're talking domesticated astarion... in that case, well

7. The character I’d want to be like

probably jaheira or karlach.

jaheira with her wit and wisdom. when i get older, or even now, i'd like to be that person. come here sweet babies, let this old lady learn you something.

karlach because she's so excited for life. she has no reservations about who she is. i want to be that jazzed about life and not care what other people think, even if it ruffles feathers.

8. The character I’d slap

mizora. a good openhanded slap.

you know what! raphael too. what a bastard. kick him right in the balls. full force.

i say all this with affection and disrespect. 🖤

9. A pairing that I love

i'm gonna list so many... astarion/gale, wyll/karlach, shart/lae'zel, karlach/gale, jaheira/minsc, aylin/isobel, astarion/karlach, alfira/lakrissa, karlach/dammon, wyll/astarion, and now that i thought about rolan/gale it's a real neat concept...

i always thought that halsin and art would be cute.... but.... sad.

i'd like to put each character and minthara under a microscope if that counts for anything.

10. A pairing that I despise

idk, man. you do you... but if i have to say one, mystra/gale. she groomed him. she's gross. in this house we hate mystra.

uhh i'm just gonna... make... another post for fallout. i've rambled way!! too!! much!!

[bleedingheart-s]

🎫 gush pass because I'm curious about your BG3 ocs 🔍👀

BWEHDHFLAKFHFJDU HIIIII KUROH 🩵 THANK YOU FOR THE ASK AND THE EXCUSE TO GUSH ABOUT MY BABIES I WAS LITERALLY ROTATING TJEM EARLIER

some of them are with characters other than gale who i don't self ship with (yet- i'm tempted to self ship with pretty much every other companion too bless my polyamorous heart)

this ended up being so long i'm putting it under a read more

nox- fighter. dumbass (affectionate). Tries their best. Very reluctant leader. Absolutely no sense of direction (Astarion regularly asks why they all let Nox hold the map... it's currently upside down in their hands). Tiefs don't usually come in a green flavor so Nox is sort of shunned even within tief circles. They're also big so they inevitably attract attention- that's why they hate leading. Their biological parents abandoned them, and they were raised by humans (who loved them dearly). Misses the farm they grew up on. Just wants a quiet life and a couple of kids. Favorite color: blue, specifically the sort of soft light glowing blue of the Weave because its usually coming from Gale. They're SOOO protective. Them and Karlach are besties. Has more tattoos than shown.

ledi- paladin. She's smaller than your average aasimar and she has a bit of a complex over it. She WILL puff up her wings to appear bigger (it barely works.) She's sort of cold at the beginning, but she opens up as the story goes on. Her eyes are haloed by wings because she was rendered permanently blind in a fight (kind of like Kanan in Star Wars Rebels) (details pending). This changed her, she ended up switching her paladin oath from Devotion to Vengeance. She has a bit of a rage streak at the start of the game. Looks up to Aylin like a big sister. Hates Shadowheart. (I haven't gotten to act 2 with her yet but I think Ledi would want to kill her for what happens at the end.) Falls in love with Wyll and learns a lot from him. Won't touch alcohol. Likes having her hair played with. Preens when she's bored. Has a very... interesting dynamic with Raphael.

freya- ranger. Left her family behind as a teenager. Used to spending a lot of time alone in nature. mean lesbian. Hits it off with Lae'zel almost immediately, and they admire each other greatly (and in a very gay way). Takes no shit. If looks could kill, she'd have murdered a continent. Just wants to go back to her neck of forest and 'live in fucking peace'. Has a 'oh no he's hot' moment when she first meets Halsin after rescuing him. Completely self sufficient, she doesn't like relying on others (trust issues much? /j). Ends up making good friends with Jaheira and Minsc. Can drink half of Faerûn under a table. If you can make her do it, she snorts when she laughs. Only Karlach has so far. Minsc has gotten close.

livia- my s/i. Lore bard. Uhhh idk what to say about her 😭

i also have two new ocs i haven't managed to talk about yet!

sethe- resisting durge. tiefling, wildshaping druid. Has difficulty controlling their wildshape, so they're liable to turn into a pure white direwolf with eyes so blue they glow at any given point. Honestly prefers being in wildshape. She bonds with Halsin over this. They struggle greatly with allowing anyone to get close to them due to their urge, so Halsin is the only person in their memory to do so. Won't admit it, but she likes being scratched behind the ears while in wildshape. Better at showing positive emotions in wildshape as well (tail wagging, playful behavior.) doesn't like being hot (ironic for a tiefling)- and she will pant even in her bipedal form if she is. Admires Karlach and wishes they could be more like her. Likes rain.

anne- regular tav. sort of an s/i but not quite. human, storm sorcerer. Naive, a bleeding heart, refuses to think the worst in any situation- which causes contention with Lae'zel, Astarion and Shadowheart in the beginning. Fiercely loyal and will back up her friends to the bitter end. She was raised a noble, so she's poised and very charismatic. Knew Wyll before he took his contract with Mizora and honestly missed him after he disappeared. Her positive and supportive attitude wears on Astarion, and eventually he falls for her. Becomes great friends with Gale. She's braver than she looks but she'll be crying about it. Very homesick. Worries about her family constantly. Has a little brother. Likes spicy food. Smells vaguely of ozone due to her proficiency with lightning magic. Kinda looks like Anne Hathaway, hence the name.

[miintsprigz]

Mandela Catalog x Dungeons and Dragons AU

Why??? Because my brainrot never sleeps.

D&D I am still kiiinda hyperfixated on, and of course y’all know the same is very true for The Mandela Catalog.

Lemme know if y’all want any more of this. I’ve already started to sketch designs.

So I’ve been thinking: what if the story was set in a D&D universe?

The Alternates are actually an elite group of Changelings sent from the Feywild, by Gabriel, a high-ranking Fey (who sealed away and disguised himself as a high-ranking Celestial who oversaw it) that wants the main plane of the world to fall to its knees, and become basically a new Feywild. I switched up some races (as in human or something else, I mean) but kept them humanoid and roughly human-sized.

This all began when I started making classes for the main cast:

Mark: Fighter (Battlemaster, a more modern setting would be Gunslinger) / Barbarian (Zealot), Half-Elf. I think he comes from a tough family as far as all that training goes.

Cesar: Fighter (Psi Knight) / Cleric (Knowledge), Aasimar. Don’t wanna talk much about the alt one tbh, though I do have ideas for him. This dude is just clever, nice, and not to be trifled with.

Adam: Blood Hunter (Mutant) / Warlock (Celestial, but could also be fiend), Changeling (believes he is a Tiefling, and looks as such). I did not choose Tiefling to demonize here, we don’t do that around these parts. On the contrary, Tieflings are my favorite race, and I like their misunderstood history and feel it fits Adam wonderfully.

Jonah: Rogue (Arcane Trickster), high elf. Because hehe stoner but also just The Vibes. Was thinking of making him a Tiefling too, but decided not to.

Sarah: Monk (Long Death) / Paladin (Vengeance), Half-Elf. Let her be POWERFUL, dangit. Imo she already is in canon. Her and her brother tag team really well.

Evelin: Druid (Dreams), Eladrin Elf. I thought it would be interesting that her Druidic power is connected to the Feywild, referencing how she was influenced by Adam in-series. Idk why she gives me Druid vibes. I think she’d mostly take her autumn form, possibly winter.

Dave: Sorcerer (Divine Soul), Half-Elf. Going off the idea that he’s related to Mark and Sarah. Just because I think that it would be neat to upgrade him to have more of a metaphysical kind of skillset given that this horror ain’t so analog, but he’s also a Normal Dude caught up in bullcrap. …the audience for this AU, I’m pretty sure, consists mainly of me and my friend Bel. Wah.

Ruth: Paladin (Ancients) / Rogue (Swashbuckler), Air or Fire Genasi. Not sure what kind. I just know she’s neat, tbh. NO WAIT I FORGOR, AASIMAR! CUZ GUARDIAN ANGEL. And I know there isn’t much confirmed about her in-universe, but I think these classings fit her. Charismatic and crafty when she has to be, but doing all she does for the greater good.

Thatcher: Rogue (Phantom) / Paladin (Watchers), Shifter. I do think Thatcher is so entrenched in the stuff that he’s up against that he’d need to be a bit like it to stand tall as long as he has, and I feel like making him a shifter is perfect for that.

[caroldantops]

More nerd!reader x Leighton

You make a deal with Leighton- you will go shopping with her and let her do your makeup and pick an outfit for you, if she will indulge you in one nerdy evening— and you make her fill out a character sheet.

“Okay so now you have to pick a class!”

“Like a major?”

“There’s Bard, you heal people with songs-“

“Like a band geek? No.”

“There’s cleric, you are devoted to a god who gives you powers-“

“Babe I had a strange enough time getting to where I am now, I’ve got no interest in religion in this dumb escapism game”

“Sorcerers are naturally gifted with magic powers and their magic comes from their charisma and bloodline.”

“…. Alright that’s not awful…”

Her getting confused by all the rules but once you get into it and offer to let her stop if it’s too much she’s stubborn “no fuck you, were this far in. Besides I need to make her hot”

“There’s not really a mechanic for that-“

“I’ll make it happen.”

YOU DONT UNDERSTAND I AM VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT CHARACTER CREATION IM READY FOR THIS

Leighton who is not really into this roleplaying thing is definitely the type to lean towards making a character that's just Her so she doesnt have to think too much about it

Race: Elf/Half-elf. It's easy. It's sexy. Most of them are stereotypically blonde white bitches. perfect. BUT AN ALTERNATIVE: tiefling - she was a devil in that one ep where she's helping kimberly with her hormone injections. plus, again, inherently sexy

Class: Like you said I think sorcerer is the pick here 👀 Wizard is too nerdy for her, she's not someone who studies her skills, they come naturally. Charisma being the spellcasting stat makes a lot of sense, but I feel she'd put lots of stats into intelligence too. Alternatively: I think she'd think rogues were cool.

as for subclass the only thing I'm sure of is that she's too much of a control freak to want to go with a wild magic sorcerer :p idk tons about sorcerer subclasses but just looking at some i think aberrant mind sorcerers seem cool enough without the Chaos that she'd vibe with it. I don't think she'd go naturey or elemental like storm or lunar sorcerers

obligatory picrew: