#accidently posted without factchecking so i deleted it. but then the factchecking confirmed my memory was right so

[wormskullsblogging]

an interesting parallel (& inversion) between Astarion and Wyll:

Wyll's humanity & soul is imperilled by him making selfless choices and can only be saved through a selfish decision, while Astarion's humanity (humanoidity?) & soul is imperilled by him making selfish choices and can only be saved through a selfless decision.

note: i'm using selfishness/selflessness as a tool -- the choices faced by Wyll & Astarion are too complicated to perfectly fit into that dichotomy, but i think it's the best for illustrating a comparison. i'm also not attaching any moral judgement to the dichotomy.

Wyll entered into a contract with Mizora and became a warlock in order to save Baldur's Gate from destruction, with no one but him knowing of this heroic deed. the only thing he gained from selling his soul was saving people; this is understood in the game as a selfless choice, even if potentially a foolish or bad one. even when he kills people on Mizora's behest, he doesn't (or at least believe he doesn't) target innocents. when he is faced with killing an innocent (Karlach) he refuses, and in turn loses his humanity, becoming a (pseudo-)devil; another selfless choice.

throughout the game, he constantly has the threat of losing even more of his humanity and his soul hanging over his head, with Mizora being able to drag his soul to the Hells (completely his transformation into a devil) as punishment. the only way to free him of his contract--rather than simply breaking it, which would cost him his soul & humanity--is to accept Mizora's ultimatum and sacrifice Wyll's father. this is a selfish choice (though not necessarily a foolish or bad one). in essence: Wyll entered into his contract, putting his soul and humanity at risk, through a selfless choice, and can only leave it, preserving his soul and humanity, through a selfish choice.

Astarion, meanwhile, becomes a vampire spawn through (at least comparatively) a selfish choice: choosing to live (or, rather, not die). (there's also potentially him being a corrupt magistrate, but that's mostly speculation so i'll leave that to one side). whether Cazador would have respected the choice to die is uncertain (personally, i'd place my bets on no), but it is important for this parallel that 'saving' Astarion was framed as an 'offer', one that Astarion accepted. (Wyll and Astarion also share in their original choice, the one that gave them their warlockhood and vampirehood, not being much of a choice at all). unlike Wyll, he had far less free will in his relationship with Cazador and when he killed, he was forced to target primarily innocents. the moment he did gain free will, from the tadpole, he immediately begins prioritising himself again; he acts in his own interests, and approves of selfish decisions.

as a vampire spawn, like Wyll with his warlockhood & (pseudo-)devilhood, he straddles the line between possessing his soul and being soulless, between being humanoid and being undead. and like Wyll, the story provides the possibility of crossing that line, losing his soul and human(oid)ity in the process. unlike Wyll, he wants to step across the line not to save innocents but to gain power (and, within his view of the world, safety). it is only by convincing him to make the selfless choice--by not sacrificing 7000 souls, at the cost of losing his ability to walk in the sun and the 'safety' that comes with power--that he remains in possession of his soul and his remaining human(oid)ity.

so, effectively, Astrarion's soul is endangered by his selfish decisions and can only be saved by a selfless choice, while Wyll's soul is endangered through his selfless decisions and can only be saved by a selfish one. they are inversions and i think that's really interesting, that bg3 can explore the nuances of prioritising yourself vs others through the parallels between their characters (and in the rest of the cast as well).