#BG3 is so good for art thank you Larian

[a2zillustration]

I love ur silly little bg3 comics :3 I plan on making some because you are one of my inspirations

Yes!!! YES!!!! My plan to make everyone document their runs in comic-form so we can flood this site with tavs is WORKING!!!

[the-muffin-master]

"Since the Netherbrain fell, you and Astarion have seen more of Faerûn than you ever thought possible. One night, he tells you that these last six months of happy memories are the counterweight to two hundred years of misery."

idk what's up with my obsession with drawing astarion being happy and cared for but I'm sure it's not gonna come up in therapy. AFFECTION BEAM!!!!

[weaveandwood]

Today is the one-year anniversary of BG3 being released, and while I didn't start playing it until the end of March 2024 (and still haven't completed a play through), I am so happy this game exists. Something about this game unlocked so much of my creativity that I had buried so deeply inside me I thought it would never come out again. I hadn't drawn regularly in eight years, I hadn't ever written creatively.

Now? I am drawing almost every day. I have two ongoing longfics. I have a completed fanfic. I have numerous one-shots. I wrote smut for the first time a couple months ago and it turns out I love it and am pretty good at it - I love drawing soft romantic things and writing explicitly dirty things. I contain multitudes!

One of the best and brightest things this game has given me is a community. I have made so many friends through love of this game, that I hope will remain friends long after the popularity of the game has waned and we move on to other things. I have been inspired daily. I remain inspired by every single one of you who puts themselves out there and publishes fanfic, posts their fan art, makes me laugh with screenshots, makes me swoon with videos of your Tavs kissing their love interest. You give me the confidence to do the same. I joked when I first joined this side of Tumblr that I was a Hype Girl and I hope that is what reputation I have. I have always found it difficult to be accepted into spaces, either online or in real life, and that has not been the case here. This community has been so welcoming, so open, so positive for me that I believe I am changed as a person for that.

So thank you to Larian and thank you everyone who worked on BG3. You helped me reclaim part of my identity I thought I had lost and helped me cultivate new facets of myself, and for that I am forever thankful.

[mythalism]

i agree completely with the bootlicking and also the “um just let people enjoy things” mentality. it’s not great art and that’s okay! it’s pretty aggregeous in some areas and i wish people would just own that instead of throwing themselves at the feet of bioware. bioware as a company doesn’t care about paying its staff or honoring the writers of the past games. they literally fired almost all of them. they care about money! they view the fanservice and “deep lore” cameos as a way to earn more money! any credit for artistic value should be given to the current writers’ attempts and NOT to the company or game as a product itself! everyone needs stop being insecure about the fact that it’s kind of garbage and call this shit out because that’s why we keep getting games with shitty writing quality. because the community lets it slide! stop letting it slide! demand and expect high-quality writing the same way we demand and expect high-quality graphics.

i completely agree and i love that you brought up how these business practices harm the actual people who work at bioware and the developers themselves and how a refusal to express our criticism and anger with a product that not only is disappointing but was also advertised deceptively (again, thats EA marketing, not bioware) just further enables business practices like the massive layoffs that lost us writers that were foundational to dragon age like mary kirby. if you love dragon age and you want games with depth and complexity and that carry over your past decisions and that prioritize narrative over combat and flashiness and are made for adults and not teenagers etc. etc. etc. you have no choice but to speak up and be critical! or else EA is just going have some out-of-touch marketing consultant decide that making dragon age 5 rated T for teens is the future of the franchise because gaming's largest demographic is 12-18 year old boys and they really need to "expand to new markets" or whatever other bullshit (no i dont think this will actually happen its hyperbolic). we KNOW how beholden EA is to their own market trends because of the fact that veilguard is single-player at all thanks to fallen order!!!!! we can send a similar message again!!!!!!! there is a reason baldurs gate 3 is so good and was such a breath of fresh air. its not because those devs have some magical talent that bioware devs dont have. its because larian isn't owned by a mega media conglomerate that will happily crush any remaining shred of human creativity under their boot to make an extra dollar. and so they could make a game like bg3 that looked at every single larger, more lucrative gaming trend in the face, shrugged, and did what they actually wanted to do. the only way we will ever get a game like that from bioware will be if you STAND UP!!!!!!!!!

[fritterbat]

prev anon can’t imagine a happy ending for an illithid? Sounds like a skill issue. Your art made me so happy to see I got butterflies because it’s such a sweet concept and so well executed. Also, (I haven’t played the full game myself) but doesn’t bg3 make it a point to say how illithids are capable of being their own unique people if given the chance? Sounds like anon would rather make sweeping shallow statements on a race without thinking much deeper on that. A huge talking point of dnd nowadays is looking past the borderline racist original depictions of evil-aligned races and finding something good and fun and compelling about them. This is why we have orcs that defy their “evil dumb” archetype and vampires and drow capable of good and tieflings in so many different colours!! 😂 Im so sorry for the tangent in your inbox but free your mind anon!! kiss an illithid! You have nothing to lose but your chains!!! 🦑💞

awww thank you anon, what a sweet message!! I was nervous to post that art of my character because it was my first time showing her off and I thought people will be weirded out by it (I had meant to post some kind of character design reference sheet explaining her Deal, first, but... I got bit by a galemance fixation......) but I won't let one single rude anon spoil my fun, I was actually blown away by how many notes that art got and how enthusiastic people have been in the tags about illithid tavs!! 🥰

I agree with you that since the very beginning of D&D it's been a grand tradition that the monster manual will say that some monster race is ALWAYS evil and there will be always be the people who look at that and go "okay, but what if there were a good one of them though" lolol. While drow and orcs and so on have been thoroughly moved into the category of "just people who have a different culture" for a while at this point, it's a lot harder to justify a non-evil alignment** for an eldritch sci-fi alien that is required to consume sentient creatures to live and is biologically hardwired to dominate and mind control... but damn if Larian didn't take a look at that and do so ANYWAYS, with ~three completely different characters no less. IMO it's a big part of the themes of this game to look at a supposed "monster" and be forced to see the nuance in them. [i mean, just look at the dark urge's character arc!!! if that person can be a hero despite their innate biological bent towards evil, why can't a mind flayer?]

**ngl vennet miiiight be neutral evil, if i rly had to put her on the alignment scale i'm btwn that and true neutral, but she was Bad before the ceremorphosis lmao. sorry if i tricked anyone with how cute her & gale are but also she's essentially a 'mad scientist' character and if anything becoming a mind flayer Fixed Her. lol

Anyways since you guys seemed to like Vennet, there is more art of her (with & without Gale) coming from me at some point but in the meantime if you want to see some pics of what she actually looks like in-game here are a fewww! obviously as her original drow self and not tavflayer which always looks the same and which i didn't even do in the actual gameplay lol

[animentality]

So I’ve been scrolling through the Durgetash tag and wtf.

First I’m fcking heartbroken that my Durge will not experience the moment of finding the letter/s to Franc in it’s original form or at all(?)

And THEN I FIND queerphobic posts and insane comments about Gortash “definitely not” being queer or “just having had a “business relationship” with Durge..? Even tho there’s enough evidence✨

Now… remember when we all adored Astarion and then more and more ppl started joining the tags, groups whatever and now it’s a whole toxic mess that you cannot scroll thru without getting a headache? (It’s sad the magic of it all is kinda dare I say gone.. I just look at it/him idk different, involuntarily at that, but I’m glad that Durgetash is giving all that back in insane amounts that let’s my adhd feet kick in dopamine fully-sated energy *incoherent babbling*)

I think the same is (bhaal forbid) maybe swapping over to Durgetash and I’m scared … cuz this, here… what y’all create! (art, hc’s, stories & just fun post’s overall) is so fxking special and so lovely🌷

And I really fxing hope that the ppl at bg3/larian have a REALLY good reason to *cough cough* meddle in each other’s I MEAN OUR affairs, when we already barely have anything, WHAT WAS THE REASON– just why, there’s enough bugs and crashes or other stuff that needs tending WHY TAKE AWAY?!

Good day and thank you for sharing your thoughts with us and without sugarcoating anything ❤️

I hope a build-a-bear lil dragon or whatever appears outta nowhere for you, that says stuff when you squeeze too hard (just like Durge–) like “ah my favorite bhaalspawn/ my favorite assassin” :)

First off, I hear that some people still see the letter, and others do not. Apparently, it's SUPPOSED to have replaced it, but some people just have computers that are built different, I guess. So you might possibly see it. Not sure.

As for if toxicity is spilling into the Durgetash fandom...maybe? I don't know. We were all pretty civil. I admit, I lost my cool for a minute there, but to be FAIR TO ME, I have not STARTED anything with anyone in literal years.

This was someone sending ME a reply that really pissed me off with its biphobia, like, absolutely ticked me off in one foul swoop.

But for the most part, it's not THAT Combative. But this note changing HAS divided people quite a bit.

So I don't know.. I want to believe durgetash and gortash love are still not mainstream enough to maintain the levels of toxicity that astarion fans seem to cultivate like horticulture.

We'll see.

As for why they changed it...I don't know?

Really seems odd. Maybe they didn't like the tone of it.

Truthfully, as much as I love that note for just being so out of pocket and weird, I admit it's more in character for Gortie to be a more serious guy...but honestly?

It's the fucking game's fault that they made Gortash a boring villain. They FORCED us to cling to his every note. To read more into his interactions with the Dark Urge.

To love that one iconic letter from him.

So they can't walk back on their weirdness....unless....they're planning on....expanding his role....

O.o

We'll see on that too.

Anyway. Thanks for the ask and glad I can entertain! By being an asshole! And a lunatic!

I NEED a Gortash plushie to keep my Dark Urge company!!!

If anyone knows where I can get one, I need that ASK or DM.

[thedarkstrategist]

🥳🎨

🥳: Why did you start writing fan fic?

I started writing fic when I was like 10 years old back on fanfic.net. I've been at it a long time lol. I was inspired to take up writing by the Artemis Fowl series by Eoin Colfer bc I loved the complex characters and how Colfer wrote dialogue and set scenes and it made me want to do the same and it turned into an outlet. I don't think my first fics were very good as I was...yknow...a child lol but I kept at it. I've also done original stories but I've never published those anywhere bc I feel that's much more vulnerable lol

🎨: If someone were to make fanart of one your fics what scene would you want them to do?

I actually have had that happen! When I was more active in Twitter me and a small group of very passionate fans of DOS2 were making fanart and fics together and we were like a little tribe that came together bc of how niche it was bc this was during the early access of bg3 so larian hadn't blown up yet and so no one was checking out their other games outside of people who already knew about it. So we all would write fics of each other's art or draw art of other fics. It was my first small fandom experience and it was honestly sooo fun!

But if it was one of my current fics? Probably either the healing scene from Pulled Into Orbit or Shadowheart having her meltdown on Dror Ragzlin

Thank you as always for the ask! I'll hit you with one soon friend :D

[tisiphonewolfe]

10 Fandoms, 10 Characters

Thanks for tagging me, @author-a-holmes!

This is one of those posts where I suddenly forget everything I've ever read, watched, and played. But here we go, I'll do my best!

Tagging gently: @sam-glade @writingmoth @darthnell @aziz-reads

In no particular order -

The Locked Tomb - Gideon Nav

She may have single-handedly made me realise that butches are my type.

Star Trek - Seven of Nine

Blimey, Jeri Ryan's a good actor, isn't she?

Overwatch - Brigitte Lindholm

I just wish Blizzard had let her in-game model keep those fucking biceps, good lord

Discworld - Susan Sto Helit

Death's granddaughter is just such a cool character concept to start with, and PTerry took it to another level.

Arcane - Vi

If I hadn't already realised butches were my thing thanks to Gideon, then Vi would definitely have done it.

Bleach - Hiyroi Sarugaki

Honestly, my original blorbo. She should have been the main character of Bleach, she was way more fun.

Divinity: Original Sin 2 - Malady

Larian, please! Where is she?! What was her whole deal?! I need to know more! Let us romance her next time! For god's sake!

Lycoris Recoil - Chisato Nishikigi

It was hard to choose between her and Takina actually, but I just love Chisato's energy and outlook on life.

Baldur's Gate 3 - Lae'zel

I mean, BG3 is sorta my current obsession, so it's not too shocking she made it this far. But I feel like she's gonna become a mainstay in my brain somehow. Like a little worm, or a tadpole.

The Serpent Gates - Csorwe

No official art for her, so I'll give you a link to this charming drawing

I . . . don't know what to say. Read The Serpent Gates books, please. Csorwe is so good.

[xanfeursel]

heard you were bored so here are some questions :) (i realized halfway through that these are all durgetash because those little shits have taken over my mind) do you like leaning into the angst of durgetash or do you prefer the more lighthearted (aside from the atrocities) dynamic? if larian dropped a gortash romance, is there any icks that would absolutely ruin it for you?

or conversely, what would be the best thing they could add in a hypothetical gortash route?

what were your biggest inspirations for lophi and vyper? do you prefer one over the other or are they equal in your eyes?

(hopefully you won't have to answer these since you'll get out of work soon)

HELLO ANON. im sorry to tell you infact waited till i actually got home to answer these because i have!!! THOUGHTS and OPINIONS about the questions asked . thank you very much btw these are all really good questions ill have fun answering

FIRSTLY, it all depends on the kind of durge gortash is being paired w imo. with vyper i tend to lean more into These Two Are Fucking Insane while w/ lophi i lean more into the sort of melancholic 'angsty' side of durgetash that i think can be real yummy too. and it's all because of who vyper and lophi are as characters pre-tadpole, too. vyper liked being a loud insane freakus while lophi was a lot more reserved and kind of a miserable mess, and that informs their relationships w/ the characters around them. i think both are good and fun to explore and i definitely like exploring the more angsty side w vyper x gortash and vice versa w lophi x gortash, so. i guess both. really. LOL .

secondly, going to answer both of the gort romance related questions in one, but i think i'm probably in the unpopular opinion that gortash doesn't really neeeeeeeed a romance and i could go without it in game. i do think he deserves more content and screentime, but that's something i can say about orin also, and frankly a Lot of parts of act 3. me and act 3 have a toxic on/off again relationship. alright.

that being *said*, if i was mr larian and i was to implement a gortash romance, i'd have it be something exclusive to a durge/evil run. or at the very least, have it have consequences with your party (i.e karlach leaving or something. love gort but i do not think you should go off romancing him scott free).

i Do think having it be exclusive to a more evil-aligned run would help add more actual content to doing an evil run (and god knows we need some with how bg3 seems to like punishing people who just want to do the evil options They Gave You) and would make the most sense, but all in all i'd just hope it's handled better than the mizora sex scene cause god how that whole thing is handled still pisses me off. hopefully this all makes sense

tl;dr, its a fun idea but i can very easily go without it especially knowing how the game treated its one other antagonist romance option

now for the lophi and vyper question... i do obviously have my biases towards vyper /looks at my blog theme/, but i genuienlly cannot pick favourites with them besides that... i use them both to explore different aspects of the durge origin in different ways bc despite what some other people say i Do think you can be very flexible w durge as a concept despite the pre-established lore for them ^_^ and i think it's very fun to play around with.

as for specific inspirations, lophi takes a lot of insp from vintage pierrot art + has accidentally gotten a very 1920s makeup vibe in My Mind. i should also note her name comes from the scientific name for anglerfish, cuz thats what i had in mind when giving her those freaky sharp ass teeth i always draw her with

and while of course, both of my durges are trans, lophi specifically was birthed from my want to make a dark urge that leans in as heavily as she possibly could in the whole trans allegory thing. so theres that as well!

vyper's specific inspos are harder for me to pinpoint cause he's much more of a 'made up as i went' character than lophi, given he was my First dark urge and i didnt really fully know what i was going into all this yet while making him (and also i was maybe a little bit high while doing so...lol) THAT SAID THOUGH, i did initially make him with akira fudo from devilman in mind. he has the horn style he does because it reminded me of devilman ... although the akira insp is very lose and barely effects his character now.. ~_~ despite bg3 being my main fixation atm devilman is still a very very important piece of media to me so vyper being loosely akira-pilled is not too surprising if you know me well enough lololol

[a2zillustration]

Farewell

Not "farewell," but "see you later."

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[[ All Croissant Adventures (chronological, desktop) ]]

[[ All Croissant Adventures (app) ]]

...Time to blather on under the cut. I've got thank yous, some notes about potential future comics, and if you scroll to the end of the post, I've decided to compile Croissant Adventures into a physical book. It's mostly for me, so I can hold all TWO HUNDRED AND FIVE of these strips in my hands, as a brick, but if you'd like to own a copy as well, I'll have a link to the preorders down below. If this is where you're going to stop reading, I'll extend a quick heartfelt thanks to you for joining me on this adventure!

Thank you, reader.

This is undeniably the largest project I've ever tackled in my art career; it was never supposed to be this big, and I expected maybe a handful of people to read it, at most. Instead, it became this massive project that I've been working on for ten months straight, and in the end these characters meant so much to me. I'm incredibly grateful for everyone who's bothered to read my little comic strips, whether it was just one or two, or if you've been here since the beginning, following Croissant's adventure from the minute they plummeted off the nautiloid. Thank you so much for being here and supporting this project. Thank you to everyone who left kind words and comments, sent me asks about Croissant, liked or reblogged these posts, or just read these and enjoyed them! While I was determined to finish this project no matter what happened, you certainly made it all the more fun and kept me excited to tell you the next part of Croissant's story.

Thank you, Larian.

If by some chance someone at Larian ever happens to see these, I also want to give an immense thank you to everyone who was a part of making this game. I don't play that many games these days, but BG3 rocketed to the top of my all-time favorite games almost immediately. (It was also the game that made me feel the most out of anything I've ever played; I got legitimately depressed for a few days during my run don't worry I'm fine now we're all good haha). You can tell there was so much work, and so much love involved in this game's development, and I'm so happy the studio has been rewarded with multiple awards in recognition of that dedication to making a fantastic game. Thank you again for sharing this story with us, and I can't wait to see what the studio does in the future.

Is this goodbye?

I'm hoping this is less of a "goodbye," and more of a "see you later." I'll probably take a bit of a break, since I've put off other projects for months, and art fight is happening, but I have many more things I'd like to add to Croissant's story! I have yet to play the epilogue, and I intend to illustrate parts of that depending on what happens. I also have a handful of comics for post-game Breadweave, in addition to some scenes I thought would've happened in-game but weren't canon so I left them out of the original story. (If I haven't gotten to these in a few months and you find yourself wondering about Croissant again, my ask box is always open, feel free to give me a good kick to get me back into their story, lol).

...A book?

I said I never intended this project to be so large, and I meant it. But now that I'm sitting here with two hundred and five Baldur's Gate 3 Tav comics, I really wanted to compile them into a physical book for me to hold. This is mostly for me, but if you'd also like one, I'll have a preorder available in my shop until the end of July.

✨✨✨ Croissant Adventures Preorder ✨✨✨

If you made it to the end of this post, I can only thank you again, from the bottom of my heart. I hope Croissant's story brought you joy, and if you're able to play BG3, I hope that you're having just as much fun in your own tavs' stories.