#I think someone encouraging Halsin to not dismiss his past trauma and let him express that is good for his character

[alicelufenia]

Damn I wish so bad

I want to recruit every member of Team Tadpole and friends on my next playthrough (my chosen of Eilistraee tav)

And at the rate I'm going with my first run, I worry I won't be able to start that before they add that controversial ultimatum scene that forces you to choose.

Specifically between Halsin being alone or Minthara suffering a fate worse than death - she literally tells you she'd rather die, and to kill her quickly should she return under the Absolute's control.

Not exactly equivalent choices in my opinion.

I say, let Halsin still find it in himself to overlook his own discomfort for the sake of others. Say he decides he trusts Tav's judgement more than his own.

And then, because she doesn't sugarcoat her opinions of others, Minthara out of everyone else, calls Halsin out on his habit of capitulating and brushing aside his own feelings because "something something balance in all things". She doesn't believe in that, and she thinks his refusal to acknowledge his own emotional needs is just going to distract him, and his enemies will take advantage of that. It makes him a liability.

Halsin is naturally taken aback by this, and can lead to more toxic interactions to rival Shadowheart and Lae'zel (this can be before Halsin joins as a companion in act 3). The culmination can be Halsin confronting her on her past and designs against his grove. At which point she can point out that she was the Absolute's puppet at the time and dismisses his concerns, and then he says the corruptive nature imparted in her by Lolth is what truly disturbs him, the thing that reminds him of the torment he suffered in the Underdark, and he won't remain silent on that any longer.

At which point she surprises him by saying he is right to be fearful and cautious if that is what happened, and if he hates her for that, then so be it. She has no qualms about being hated. But his true enemy remains the same people who wronged her, and so long as his ire remains directed at them, she will continue to back him up regardless of his feelings towards her.

And at THIS point we can have the ultimatum, with Tav able to side with Minthara or Halsin against the other, except now Tav can Persuade Halsin to let their feud be, which he will reluctantly honor, but now his shell has been broken somewhat.

They are both candid in party banter once Halsin joins permanently, but when the camp is infiltrated by Orin, the mood shifts. If either Halsin or Minthara get taken, the other will express concern, including Halsin as he realizes no one deserves to be at the mercy of their tormentor again, not even Minthara. After the Orin fight, their relationship starts to heal.

(I don't know what else happens in act 3, so extrapolate from the above. I don't even know how much interaction the non-origin companions normally have with each other, but I assume not much more than what I plotted out.)

Halsin and Minthara

Can I ship them