#also he loves the companion so much just like tav can so adding to that how they take care of the group...

[antiqua-lugar]

no but really, gale offering such a solid relationship with old married vibes is like one of my favourite things about his romance. once you get to act 3 and do his personal quest (which imho is meant to be done pretty early anyway) you are just. settled. everyone is Going Through It and Tav and Gale are just in the background like once we finish all of this we are going to Waterdeep to sleep for a week. should we buy something for your mom. we saved Shadowheart's parents! should we stop by the market I don't think we should feed them random sausages we found in a barrel for their first family dinner. yeah honey I'll come to bed in a bit I gotta feed Astarion today and I think he had a nightmare. babe we gotta save wyll's dad tomorrow can you learn these three scrolls real quick. also you'll never guess what mizora just said. like lae'zel's biggest concern about your relationship is that gale talks in his sleep.

[vixstarria]

Admit that you love me

Connected with my other headcanon fics, but works as a standalone as well.

Astarion x Reader, Astarion x Tav, Astarion x Bard Tav, Astarion is bad at feelings, Gale is bad at everything

Bit of angst, bit of comfort, bit of fluff, love, banter, humour and all the other good things. Non-explicit. Early Act 2.

Approximately 2,000 words. 

AO3

You traversed the shadow-cursed lands. Earlier this week, Elminster had showed up, eaten all your cheese, essentially told Gale to kill himself and promptly went back to wherever he had come from. And you thought 200 year-old vampires were erratic... You hoped you would never come across a vampire wizard.  

It was an average evening in camp. You and your companions were passing time by the fire before calling it a day. 

You were sitting on the ground before the campfire, as Astarion sat on a fallen log behind you, trying to massage a crick out of your neck and shoulders. You weren’t even being obnoxious about it, your neck had genuinely been killing you and he was trying to alleviate the pain and discomfort.  

You’d closed your eyes and leaned forward a bit, trying to give him better access, when a remark from Gale caught your ear, and the hands stilled. 

“It’s truly heartwarming to see how well Astarion takes care of his livestock.” 

In the sudden silence that ensued, before you had even registered your own emotions for the insult, your immediate instinct was to seize the hand that was still on your shoulder, and say: 

“If you kill him, he’ll take us all with him.” 

It turned out to be the right call, as Astarion re-sheathed a dagger you hadn’t even noticed he had drawn (or had on him), and gave your hand a small squeeze.  

“I... I’m sorry, that was a poor joke.” Gale looked at the ground shaking his head. “If you can call it that. I don’t know what’s gotten into me.” He started to get up. “I better-” 

“Disrespect my lover or me again, and I will personally burn everything that you cherish, and rip out the throat of every person you hold dear.” Astarion’s voice was an icicle. “I won’t kill you… But I will fulfill my need to hear you scream.” 

Astarion gave your hand another squeeze and got up. He met your eyes as you turned back to look at him, and gave you a barely perceptible shake of the head before stalking off.  

Gale, who had stood silently through Astarion’s cold outburst, wordlessly turned and left in the opposite direction. 

You still sat on the ground, elbows on your knees, eyes shut, now rubbing your temples. Great. Perfectly normal (in accordance with your definition of ‘normal’, anyway) evening ruined. No Astarion, Gale at a new lowest low, awkward silence, you still with a crick in your neck, and now an unfolding headache. All while feeling like you’ve been spat on.  

“Is that what you all think?” you asked quietly, still rubbing your temples. “That I’m a stupid lamb offering myself to a wolf for slaughter?” 

To your surprise, it was Lae’zel who answered.  

“It is true that the vampire is a predator, and there is hunger and lust in his eyes when he looks at you. But there is also love and yearning. You both carry it. My people are proficient in recognising it, for we are taught from a young age to quash such notions at their conception. Love and attachment make you weak. But you two, you have turned it into a source of resilience and strength. The wizard is as delusional as he is out of line.”  

You were completely taken aback by what you just heard. 

Firstly, by the fact it came from Lae’zel. But also... You hadn’t actually exchanged words of love with each other. Oh, there were the ‘my love’s, but that was more of a silly casual pet name that had started long ago. You both regularly addressed Karlach as ‘love’ as well. It didn’t mean much. 

But to have a githyanki set it out for you so candidly...  

“...I couldn’t have said it better myself, Lae’zel,” spoke Shadowheart.  

“Aw, none of us doubt you or fangs,” added Karlach. “Hells, sometimes I worry my heart will have a meltdown not from exertion, but from seeing you two.” 

You hoped no one could tell your face had coloured scarlet by the light of the fire. 

“Gale just hasn’t been himself lately. I’m sorry you and Astarion took the brunt of it. I’m sure he feels awful about this.” Wyll apologised as though he had anything to do with it. “I better go speak to him, make sure he knows we understand.”  

You excused yourself and went to your tent soon after as well.  

Astarion didn’t return that night. On checking his tent, you noted he did take his weapons with him, though. That’s all you really needed to know. He could take care of himself. After all, he was one of the horrors other people were scared to encounter in the shadows. Still, when you finally fell asleep, it was only due to sheer exhaustion. 

~ 

It was morning when he finally showed up at the entrance to your tent. Probably. You could barely tell night from day in this blasted place. You were sitting cross-legged on your bedroll, getting ready for the day ahead. You didn’t get up to greet him as you continued to fasten the belts and buckles of your equipment. 

“I was worried.” 

“I know,” he said simply. When you didn’t say anything, he sighed and added: “And I was angry. Furious, actually. Murderous. I didn’t want you to see it.” 

You bit back a swear. 

“I can-” 

“Before you say you can handle my anger, that’s not the point. I don’t want you, of all people, to be exposed to it to begin with.” You frowned and he continued: 

“When everyone keeps telling you you’re a monster, eventually you no longer want to prove them wrong – you want to show them just how much of a monster you can be. And you’re the only person who doesn’t think that about me. Why on earth would I do anything that might make you look at me the same as they do..?” 

It broke your heart a little to realise that that’s what he thought. 

“They don’t think you’re a monster, Star,” you said imploringly. “Gale said something stupid which he immediately regretted, yes, but the rest of them were on our side.” You made sure he was taking in what you were saying. “On your side.” 

“...They were?” Astarion’s eyes softened. 

“Yes. Lae’zel gave a whole speech, just about.” 

“Ugh,” Astarion curled his lip. “And I thought you were serious for a moment there.” 

“I am serious! She was quite poetic about it, actually.” 

Astarion suddenly took a step back out of your tent, looking up at the sky in alarm. 

“What is it?!” you reached for your bow. 

“Oh just checking for flying pigs...” he stepped back into the tent. “...So what did she say? I’m intrigued.” He still looked skeptical, but much less guarded than before.  

You paused your preparations, set down your weapons and met his gaze. 

“She said she sees the love in your eyes.” 

You weren’t about to tell him that she actually said she saw love in your eyes as well.  

“Oh...” Astarion seemed momentarily taken aback. “That is quite poetic for a githyanki.” 

You continued to study him without saying a word. 

“...Oh no. No no no.” He waved a finger at you. “I see EXACTLY what you’re doing, and I am NOT falling for it.” 

“What am I doing? I’m not doing anything.” 

“Exactly! You’re not saying anything, forcing me to fill the silence until I start stammering like a fool and admit that I love you!” He paused, turned away and huffed, before turning back to look at you, hand on his hip. “And that is NOT on the agenda!” 

“You’re not going to admit it?” 

Astarion looked away again, wrung his hands, opened his mouth as if to say something, closed it, and looked back at you, cocking his head to one side before finally saying:  

“...Not today..?” 

You burst into a laugh. How long had your heart been pounding? 

“Gaaaaaale! Old buddy, old pal!” you heard from Astarion. 

You lifted your head to see Gale approaching.  

Fucking Gale, you thought.  

You got up to face Gale at the entrance to your tent. 

“Morning! I would say ‘good morning’, only that would be a lie for all of us, in light of-” 

“Oh for the love of all that is unholy!” Astarion cut him off. “Spare me your words and drawn-out explanations, and I will spare you my daggers. We don’t need that. We can sort this out like two mature, adult men.” 

The next thing you knew, Gale was on the ground, looking in disbelief at the blood dripping onto his hand from a possibly broken nose.  

“There. Now, for all intents and purposes, this matter can be resolved, if you wish. As previously advised, in the event of any further disparagement of me, Tav, or the nature of our relationship, I WILL be committing arson and turning everyone you love and care for inside out, Tav being exempt, of course. Now that this has been explained to you, if you accept, the damage you just took to your face can serve as compensation, to the full and final satisfaction and discharge of the idiotic shit you said yesterday. Are we in agreement?” 

Astarion held out a hand 

You stood back observing Astarion, your arms crossed. Theatrics to cattiness to violence to legalese within the span of a minute. How flustered and giddy was this man? 

Gale was still on the ground, also looking at Astarion incredulously.  

“I sometimes forget that you used to be something far worse than a vampire.” 

Gale accepted the offered hand and got up. 

“And you, Tav? Would you like to break the spare lute over my head, perchance?”  

Astarion perked up at that, but you were quick to protest: 

“No, no, let bygones be bygones and all that...” 

“Then it is settled,” Astarion interjected. “Well then, off you go, friend.” 

“Actually,” you cut in. “I think Shadowheart needs to rest a while. Gale could come with us today instead, seeing as you’ve sorted everything out. Gale, are you up for it?” you asked as Astarion stared at you in disbelief. 

After the borderline sleepless night you’d had because of these two idiots, the least they could do was entertain you by suffering each other’s company.  

“...Sure, let me just ah... do something about the blood. I’ll only be a minute.” 

And just like that, you and Astarion were back on your usual bullshit, causing a loud ruckus as you headed out of camp, him on your heels.

“I object! It’s ME or HIM! And if it’s him, you can give me my ring back!” 

Wyll snapped his head in surprise to look at you two, as Karlach gasped and covered her mouth with her hands.  

Astarion paused as if to say something to them, then waved a dismissive hand and continued walking after you. 

“...Because I am NOT dying in camp like a sitting duck just because HE couldn’t keep you safe!” 

“It’s my ring now, and you’re both coming! And so is Lae’zel. Lae, are you ready?” 

“Always,” came an unperturbed answer from the githyanki, as she got up to follow you. 

“There. She can lecture you on poetry, between the fighting.” 

Astarion had finally caught up to you.  

“You cheeky pup,” he said only loud enough for you to hear, his red eyes narrowed and a wry grin on his face. “We’ll need to have a long talk about your behaviour.” 

“Is that on the agenda? For today?” 

Astarion swore under his breath, smiled to himself and fell back again. 

Yep, definitely flustered, you thought, fighting a stupid grin that was threatening to take over your face.  

Oh you were going to enjoy this day. 

~~~~~ 

Author’s note: 

Sorry bloodweave gang, my headcanon is Gale and Astarion are constantly beefing.  

I wanted to work in the “disrespect me again” line from Early Access – although I ended up altering it. A lot. 

~~~~~

Next in series - Confession

OR, chronologically appropriate smut - Seeing stars

Series master list

AO3

[lucrezianoin]

Astarion-centric fics recs (49 fanfics)

I will divide them by ship. They are all complete unless specified. Also, if a fic is not here it does not mean that I did not like it, I could have forgotten it or just not seen it given that there is a lot of Astarion content!

Just make sure to read all the tags warnings when you open the AO3 page. I added the non-ship focused but Cazador focused ones at the end.

Also it feels weird to rec my own fics, but in case you want to read astarion h/c I am writing you can find me here at LadyRagnelle (for now all DarkUrge or Tav/Astarion).

Regarding if this reclist might be useful for you... there are a lot of Astarion fics, a lot of tags used and a lot of preferences! I have a very particular preference for a specific kind of fic (h/c, whump, softness, mainly) and in the case of Astarion I tend to not read nsfw, usually. So if you have been around my blog and you think we might share fics preferences... maybe these are the fics for you too! I will update this post with time.

I am trying to add a small description to all the fics, but I prioritized adding the links, so some of them do not have a description yet, but they were beloved in my bookmarks.

GEN (no ship)

Prying eyes (unsupermarket) - One of my absolute favorite. Karlach and Astarion share one of Astarion's nightmares (thanks to the tadpoles).

Reflecting endless down the hall (Asidian) - Each chapter is dedicated to one of the companions and the way they interact with Astarion, each chapter connected to a part of his past and trauma.

TAV (OR DARK URGE)/ASTARION

After all that I can do for them is done (votiveviscera)

To Aid and be aided (Beppoberry) - Post Cazador, taking care of each other.

Between the lines (Slothquisitor) - Amazing story about Tav gifting Astarion books.

Broken mechanism (laquearia) - Character study on Astarion's "Don't touch me".

Copper blood and silver hearts (netherprince)

The darkest corner of Baldur's Gate (Nebulad)

(Don't) lose your head (CL34R)

Don't you hear me praying? (ridgeline) - Short haunting story about Astarion's trauma.

And his pretty hand hold my leash (osiris_ryes) - one of the few nsfw fics in this rec list. This has some amazing Dark Urge writing and manages to use nsfw scene without ignoring the consent issues present in the game.

Hold me without hurting (fairbutnotsomaiden) - Astarion disassociates, Tav is kind.

I could feel my life begin (Flowercitti)

I have a good place to hide (Flowercitti)

I know how this will end (MyFandomCausesHanaji) - Amazing Dark Urge story about Durge trying to stop themselves from killing Astarion - and reliving the same day over and over.

A long dead pulse (enthugger) - Post-Cazador, Tav takes care of Astarion.

Made / Unmade (Adaphyl)

Mortal shortfall (titasylase) - Giving a gift to Astarion + act 1 angst, perfect combination.

Not something that I was but what I played (WitchyBee)

Out of wine and flowers (enthugger)

Porcelain (cweepa) - Astarion is sick, and he really cares about how he looks. Absolutely stunning story full of very delicate hurt/comfort and angst. I've reread this so many times.

Savages (cweepa) - Astarion finds a kitten.

Seducere (Tlon) - This is THE fanfic. I remember waiting every night for the new chapter. It narrates Astarion's past and his present in the game. Heartbreaking and haunting.

Specter (justfortune) - post game fanfic about Tav and Astarion's new life together, with some interesting concepts about personal space and sharing life.

Suck the rot right out of my bloodstream (Flowercitti) - I love Flowercitti's stories so so much. This one is specifically about consent. Please, read all their fics.

Vanity items (Flowyen) - Incomplete fic, but still amazing. Just Astarion receiving genuine compliments.

You only feel it when it’s lost (gettin’ through still has a cost) (Flowercitti) - Flowercitti's Tav takes care of Astarion after Cazador.

The way you are (imprinted on a page) (cryptidvaquero) - Tav draws Astarion as a gift.

Was it something you ate (Anoke)

Water down what I call being grateful (Flowercitti) - This fic was written for one of my prompts. I will be eternally grateful because I love stories that deal with looking right through Astarion's seductions.

HALSIN/ASTARION

Animal I have become (Ulfrsmal)

Free (Faetality)

Handmande (BerlinBelin) - One of my favourite, absolutely stunning series about touch starved Astarion trying to ask (with difficulty) fo non-sexual intimacy.

Known in its aching (BerlinBerlin) - sick fic with so much tenderness.

Never gonna fall for (modern love) (Dwinkle) - Halsin offers Astarion his blood.

Through sneers and words snide (BerlinBelin)

HALSIN/TAV/ASTARION

Working on it (casswathever) - Very well written series with multiple fics, I particularly loved the relationship discussions.

WYLL/ASTARION

To die with you (WaterSeraphim)

A dream of sweet things (Asidian) - delicious h/c, trust issues and some nightmares too.

Innocence died screaming (Flowercitti) - Wyllstarion fic that starts from Astarion's past with Cazador, from his turning into a spawn. Ongoing.

KARLACH/ASTARION

Repairs (Asidian) - Heartbreakingly angsty fic about Karlach finding her touch again and Astarion expecting their first night to go a certain way.

The Things you miss (Asidian) - A very sweet fic about Karlach and Astarion interacting.

ASTARION/SEBASTIAN

A lyric on your tongue (justfortune) - Sebastian and Astarion meet.

GALE/ASTARION

The heat is only skin deep (ThatKorka)

POLY

Sharing (Asidian) - a touch of angst, touch starved characters, act 1 spoilers so slightly present consent issues.

CAZADOR-FOCUSED (no secondary ship)

Fake it (deerna)

Lost and never found (arenathesia)

Thou art mine (sophos) - The story of Astarion learning how to keep Cazador happy.

your reflection can't offer a word (to the bliss of not knowing yourself) (undermounts)

[galedekarios]

i was thinking a bit more about the drow twins scene again in relation as to why gale might go along with it if so 'persuaded' by tav.

i've talked about the scene itself already (more than once), and i have seen other people discuss the topic very well, too.

i think i have come around as to why larian has the option there, and why gale might agree to go along with it, despite not only his initial refusal and not wishing to talk or think about it afterwards if tav tries to talk to him about it, but also rejecting every other to open the relationship up outside of this scene.

i have seen people say quite often that gale is toxic, but i honestly think that it leans more the other way around: gale is willing to accept toxicity from his partner to some extent, if it means he'll also be "loved".

one could already extrapolate that from what little we know from mystra's relationship with him, but also from the things he's willing to accept from a player character, including a tav, who, in this scene, can potentially coerce him with a dc 25 persuasion check into a foursome/fivesome without prior discussion.

i think this scene shows where gale is at this point in time, relationship-wise and love-wise. by staying even though he refuses initially, and i think it was intentional (in hindsight) on larian's part.

he endures imo because at least in this scenario with the drow twins, he was included here. asked to participate. he's not strong enough to break up with his partner, if they still extend at least this much to him.

whereas he does break up if tav cheats on him without including him, or he feels the relationship may be subsumed by someone else (i.e. the player engaging romantically with someone other than him, see his reaction to also romantically engaging with any of the other companions).

i do believe he's enduring tav's toxicity here with the mindset of pleasing them. he'll accept this, hopes that they have sated their curiosity now that they are done with their "rutting" as he puts it - and hopefully afterwards the entire affair then can be "confined to the footnotes" of their romance:

Gale: Ahem. I hope you’re not here to ask about our recent, erm, activities. I’d rather those were consigned to the footnotes of our romance, if it’s all the same with you.

i'm sorry if this is incoherent. i'm still trying to order my thoughts about this, but yeah, i just think this is where i land on it.

that even with how badly tav treats him here by springing this onto him, by not giving him time to think and even actively encouraging him not to think about it, he's still acknowledged as their partner. singular. and it's clear this is 'just' a sex thing.

the instances where he breaks up with tav is when tav sleeps with mizora, where he was not included nor acknowledged as their partner, or consulted prior (even as briefly as with the drow twins), or if tav tries to bring someone else into their romance, were he believes he would be lost in the equation of adding another person to what he shares with his partner now.

so here, in this moment, he just does it bc well, his partner told him not to overthink, right.

and he loves them. and he wants to please them. and he might come to enjoy it, just like they said. and it'll keep them happy.

he hopes it won't come up again.

(i should clarify that this is a personal interpretation and one that i’m not comfortable arguing over.)

[stars-and-inkpots]

could you possibly do one where Tav is on the verge on burnout in Baldur's Gate, from carrying the litteral weight of the world on her shoulders, plus the murders, dismembered clown, emperor chattering away in her mind and just tryingto help every soul in the city... oh, and everyone looking to her for guidance in making difficult life decisions... possibly after advising Wyll not to take the pact and/or one of their companions being abducted

And Gale being there to help her and lift her spirits up (maybe a little guilty about being too wrapped up in his hubris before having a forgiving audience with Mystra to notice how hard it all was on her)

I loved this idea so much because Act 3 really is just so overwhelming and stressful I was excited to write something about it! Thank you!! I hope you enjoy!

The Weight of The World | Gale x Reader

There is so much you have to do. So many things you have to fix and people you have to save. It's starting to become overwhelming carrying so much alone.

Pairing: Gale/Reader

Tags: Canon-typical violence, Blood and injury, panic attacks (kinda), hurt/comfort, comfort, angst, cuddling, spoilers for Act 3

Ao3 Link: The Weight of The World

Word Count: 1,799

You like helping people. If there is a way you can make someone else’s life easier, you are both eager and happy to do it. It’s in your nature to give. 

But you’re wearing yourself thin. 

It seems that ever since you got off that nautiloid, you’ve been helping people. First, it was the tieflings in the Grove; then the Shadow-Cursed lands; then the refugees on the way to Baldur’s Gate. And along with all of those problems, you’ve also been helping your companions with their own; some with higher stakes than others. 

Wyll is quiet today, and when you notice the look on his face, guilt quickly settles in beside the exhaustion that rests on your shoulders. 

He is free now, but it has come at such a steep price. You were there with him when Mizora appeared to offer him the deal. He had asked you for advice. You told him that he deserved a chance to be free from the infernal chess board he had been forced to play on for so long. 

But what if you were wrong? What if you don’t find a way to save his father? What if Baldur’s Gate is worse off without the duke once everything is done and over with and the dust has settled. What if Wyll ends up blaming you for the death of Ravengard, resenting your decision that was his own to make. 

You’re happy to help… happy to give counsel to your companions when they (so often, it seems) need it, but why should you be the one making the decisions for such things? How can you be expected to decide between Wyll’s freedom and his father’s life? 

You haven’t even begun to prepare for what could lie beyond the walls of Cazador’s palace, but you’re certain it can be nothing short of dreadful. 

Shaking your head, you try to focus on the task at hand. You have potential murder victims you need to find. 

More people that need saving. 

---

Finding the Stormshore Tabernacle after Elminster arrived to tell Gale that Mystra had yet another message for him was only another goal added on the growing list of things you needed to do. This, of course, took a little priority, given how much you could tell it mattered to Gale. 

You brush off the growing exhaustion that hasn’t had a chance to fully dissipate in the wake of so many new problems. 

You stand in front of the statue of Mystra, Gale beside you while the others wait outside. You can feel the magic that flows around it, crackling and humming like an electric current. It is not a feeling that brings you comfort or a sense of calm that one might expect from a god; perhaps that is mainly because of your own opinions of the goddess though. While he does a good job at hiding it, you can tell that Gale’s nerves are beginning to get the better of him. You bring your hand to rest it on his shoulder. 

“Time was I’d have given my right arm for a chance to speak with Mystra again. The left one too. Maybe a knee…” he says quietly, and as much as you want to believe he is exaggerating, you know there is an air of truth to his words. 

“You know you don’t owe her anything, Gale.” You hope he knows that. It’s impossible for you to understand the nuances of their relationship, and you recognise that, but you know that what she had asked of him was cruel and manipulative. 

“Perhaps,” he answers. Then adds, “Her first love was always the weave. At best, I was always a close second.” 

You can’t tell if he’s trying to justify Her actions to you, or simply giving himself a reason for them that hurts less than the idea that she did not truly care for him like he did for Her. 

“Do you want me to come with you?” Despite your personal distaste for the goddess, you would accompany him in an instant if it was what he desired.

“As much as I’d prefer not to face her alone, I’m afraid the magic is only able to bring one person through. I’ll only be gone a minute though. Wait for me, please.” His voice shakes only slightly. You would wait for him even if he didn’t ask. 

When he turns to face the statue again, he moves his hand like he’s grasping at something in the air. Then just as quickly, he is gone. 

You wait there anxiously. You wonder if you should have told him not to come here. It was entirely possible that Mystra only asked him to come here so that she could punish him for not following her orders to blow up both himself and the Absolute. It would be another lapse of judgement that would impact only your companion. 

The stress of the week is steadily catching up to you again, pushing itself into the forefront of your mind while you wait for Gale to return. Thankfully, he doesn’t take long. 

Gale reappears in a small flash of shimmering purples. He is smiling, which you assume is a good thing in spite of the general unease the thought of him speaking with the goddess brings. 

He recounts the visit with you while the two of you find the rest of your party outside. 

---

No one says anything when you go straight to your tent after you return to camp, Gale letting go of your hand to give you a moment to yourself. 

Lae’zel is gone, taken by Orin, and being held ransom in the Temple of Bhaal. The memory of the encounter makes you sick to your stomach. 

Lae’zel rounding the corner, bloodied and limping, clutching her side while blood pours out in thick rivulets. Your heart beating so fast that you worry it will stop entirely. Grasping her arm to pull her with you, refusing to leave her behind. The feeling of her flesh shifting under your palm, moving, undulating in that unnatural and revolting way you had come to recognize in the shapechangers you had encountered. You recoiled backwards into Gale, watching in horror as Lae’zel’s form shifted; her neck snapping to the side sharply. Her green skin fading to pale grey. It was never Lae’zel at all, but Orin. 

She cornered you into making a deal with her. You were to return with Gortash’s netherstone, or Lae’zel would be left to bleed out on the temple floor. 

You can imagine Lae’zel’s voice, condemning you for giving in to the Bhaalspawn’s orders. But you know Lae’zel. You know that she is not as unshakeable as she likes to present herself. You know that, wherever she is right now, she is scared. 

You can barely think. Everything feels blurry, the world fraying at the edges of your vision dissolving into a mess of colour and sound. 

You should have noticed. Gortash had warned you. 

You still have so much you need to do. 

How did you let this happen? 

---

Gale waits a few minutes before he follows you to your tent. He waits nervously outside, unsure. 

“Can I come in?” He asks softly. 

“Please,” you answer, and his heart breaks at the roughness of your voice; no doubt from crying and struggling to keep the sobs quiet enough that the rest of the camp wouldn’t hear them. 

Your eyes are tired, fresh tears still flowing freely down your face. 

Gale is terrified too, just like you and so many of the others, but something else weighs heavy on his chest. Guilt, he quickly realises as he looks at you. 

You’ve been dealing with so much, and so much of it alone. You’ve taken their problems and made them your own; you’ve done everything for them. You’ve bore their worries, their concerns, and their mistakes. You’ve had no one to do the same for you. 

“Gale-” you start, but a sob bubbles out of you cutting you off as your shoulders shake. 

“It’s going to be alright,” he whispers into your hair after he quickly gathers you into his arms as he sits beside you. He pulls you into his lap, wrapping his arms around you like he’s protecting you from the world itself. 

“I’m sorry,” you apologise through hiccups against his chest. He only gently shushes you, carding his fingers through your hair. 

“If there is any apologising to be done, it is us to you. You’ve been doing so much for us; carrying our burdens and helping with them. I will admit even I have been far too preoccupied with my own mess that I failed to consider the weight that we’ve put on you.” 

“I should be able to bear it,” you say mournfully. 

“Absolutely not,” Gale objects. “It’s impossible to do that alone. You are only one person. You are not weak because you failed to carry the weight of the world alone.” He sounds so certain, so genuine in everything he says that you know he isn’t merely saying this to comfort you. “Even if you struggled with even the simplest problem, it would be no slight on your abilities.” His words, as reassuring and comforting as they are, bring on yet another wave of tears. He rubs his hands soothingly along your back. 

“You are not weak because of this,” Gale assures you once you’ve mostly stopped crying. 

“Thank you,” you answer after a while. “Thank you.” 

The two of you sit there together. The steady rise and fall of his chest while you lean against him helps calm your racing heart. Gale hums softly, and you relax in his arms. 

“Everything is going to be alright. We’ll do this together,” Gale says, with a finality that leaves no room for disagreement. 

You nod, too exhausted in both body and mind to bother with speech for now. You reach blindly for one of Gale’s hands, holding it tightly and pressing a kiss to his knuckles. You feel him return a kiss of his own to the top of your head. You don’t need to use your words to explain your gratitude for his presence in your life. He understands you all the same. Your love may go unspoken, but never unheard. 

You let yourself relax. The weight of the world may be both figuratively and literally on your shoulders, but your companions can help you hold it. 

Yes, you think to yourself as Gale moves you both to lay down on the bedroll, everything will be alright. It will be difficult, but you will be fine. And at least, in his arms, you can pretend that everything will be fine for now. You have to hold onto the hope that everything will be fine.

[merrinla]

Halsin and Minthara weren't always mutually exclusive

Even though you can recruit both of them, in the game it looks like a funny bug. I guess this is what's left of the original idea. It was previously planned not only letting you have them at the same time, but also that they would interact in the party like other companions.

In the audio files, you can find lines of their reactions to each other's deaths. I don't know if these are triggered or not. They are both so bugged that sometimes I can hardly tell which is the cut content and which is the bug.

It's kind of funny that Halsin would be so sad.

I recently completed Halsin's quest with Mintara in my party. In the scene by the lake, when Halsin entered the portal, Minthara said "He made it. Now let's just hope he survives what's on the other side"

Actually this is exactly the same line as Tav's.

Halsin also share many lines with Tav and other origins. Most of them are unused. But in this case the line is not only voiced by Emma Gregory (Minthara's VA), it's triggered.

There is another interesting line. In Moonrise Towers, when Ketheric punishes Mintara for a failure in the grove and sends her to the dungeon, the player can choose not to interfere and leave the location without helping her. In this case one of the characters in your party will remind you that she can be saved as a potential companion. I was wondering if Halsin would say anything. And he did. "Minthara may prove useful to us, should we wish to save her…"

This isn't cut content. This isn't new content added with patches. It's in the game since the release. And this line works. Moreover, this is his personal line.

If they implement the dialogue with an ultimatum it will be nonsense. I mean, first he suggests to save her from the Absolute as a useful ally, and then in the camp he will say that it's the right choice to kick her back under the Absolute control. It's even hard to blame the character for such contradiction. Rather, it's just a stupid limit set by the script.

Next. In Act 3 if you make one of them to go up on the clown stage, the other one will approve.

There is also an unused flag for Act 3 in the game files with the description "Orin pretended to kill Halsin during the Minthara abduction campnight." Which means in Act 3 they were both in the party.

You can see what the abduction of Mintara looks like in this video. Only instead of Halsin, Jaheira is mentioned here.

Maybe there are other confirmations that I do not know about, that they were not mutually exclusive before. But that's enough for me.

They were both not originally planned as companions. Their roles were expanded much later. Most likely, Larian didn't have time to polish their content, so scissors were used. This is why their content seems so unfinished compared to others. Except for Wyll, probably. That's why they are so buggy.

I suppose the reason they are both mutually exclusive is because it is the easiest solution when you have a deadline on the horizon. Just easiest as "it's fine for a companion to just hang out at the camp". Otherwise, you need dialogs, animations, scripts, etc. And you also need to make sure that it will work with everything else. This is time and resources. But this doesn't mean that it's impossible to fix anything later.

I faintly hope that the defenetive edition will have the option to recruit them both.

And I really hope that in the future Larian will look at the games of their colleagues from BioWare (who made the original BG). I mean games from better times than now. The companions below will show you how much they "loved" each other. Not all of them became friends in the end. But nevertheless, we saved the world. Together.

[bg-brainrot]

Hugs for a Vampire (Astarion x GN!Reader) - Chapter 18: At Withers' Party

Bonus Hug - Chapter 18: At Withers' Party

Each chapter can be read as a standalone hug.

Pairing: Astarion x GN!Reader (Rogue!Tav)

Genre: Fluffy, Filling in Canon

Rating: Teen

Tags: Gender-Neutral Pronouns, POV Second Person, post-game, epilogue, cw: alcohol, jealousy

WC: 2.1k words, 18/18 chapters

Summary: An epilogue hug! Astarion sees Rogue!Tav giving out hugs and wants one of his own.

Author's Note: This was not part of the original fic, added on after the epilogue was released, however I chose to put my own spin on the epilogue hug.

Finally, Whether you read this fic AO3, on Tumblr, or a combo of both, thanks so much for joining the hugfest! I love this vampire man, and may he have many, many more hugs <3

Ao3 | [Hug17] | Hugs for a Vampire Masterlist

It’s been six months since your victory at Baldur’s Gate.

Six months of traveling through the Underdark with Astarion, establishing a base for the vampire spawn, and figuring out your next steps together. It was perilous and difficult work, but you wouldn’t change a single thing. 

You have missed your former companions dearly though, so when you received the invitation from Withers for a celebration, the smile that broke across your face could blind a celestial. I wouldn’t miss this for anything – not even a fresh new apocalypse, you wrote back.

So that’s how you and Astarion have found yourselves above ground once again, the familiar wilderness of the Sword Coast a welcome sight, the distinguished company an even more welcome one.

Everyone seems to be doing quite well, despite how you all left each other. Lae’zel is only able to visit through a projection, and the reprieve is rather temporary for a few of your companions– namely Wyll and Karlach– However, it’s a rare opportunity and you’re incredibly grateful to have it.

The elation must be obvious on your face, as Astarion takes one look at you and laughs. His sing-song little giggle never fails to bring a smile to your face, and right now your face is liable to crack open. “Go on, dear,” he says, sensing the eager tension in your body. “Mingle! If you need me, I shall be near the wine.”

“You can mingle too, you know,” you say, though you’ve already begun to walk away.

“Invite me again after a few bottles,” he responds. You know he loves them all in his own way, but he also finds them to be a bit too much at times. Ever the stray cat, he’ll find his way to them when he’s ready, at least you hope. So you nod to him in agreement and wander off to chat with your dearest friends.

You’re so excited to see them all again that you’re practically jogging to meet them. 

Shadowheart is the first. When you get a good look at her, you see a peace in her face that you haven’t seen in any of the months you’ve known her. Something about it brings you relief. You knew they would each find their happiness without you, but seeing it firsthand is something else. Perhaps it’s because she’s looking so much more herself than ever, but before long you find yourself asking, “Could I have a hug?” The hug is caring and welcoming and everything you knew Shadowheart has always been.

Next you make your way to Karlach. She’s alive and well, which is ten times better than the last time you saw her, and you just might cry from the sight. She tells you about Avernus and about the possibility to fix her heart and you just might cry from that as well. Again, you can’t resist, especially knowing she’s been fighting for her life for six months. “Could I have a hug?” The hug is warm and strong, just like the woman in your arms.

After that, you make your way to Wyll. He’s doing rather well in Avernus with Karlach, and, when he mentions that he’s planning to ensure Karlach finds a solution to her heart, a few tears well in your eyes. Wyll is among the best of mortal and immortal men, and you’re glad he went with Karlach when you couldn’t. The grateful feeling is more than you can put into words, so you ask, “Could I have a hug?” The hug is strong and bracing and an absolute testament to Wyll’s enduring friendship.

You find your way to Lae’zel. After learning of her diligent efforts to save her people from Vlaakith, you can’t help but be awestruck by how much she’s changed. You’re inspired by her ability to learn to fight with words and stunned by how much she truly misses you. Even though she’s not there, you can’t help yourself, “Could I have a hug?” She simply clicks her tongue at you and calls you an idiot, somehow melting your heart all the same.

Eventually, you find Gale, tucked away with the tressym Tara. He’s a teacher and no longer at risk of exploding – you can’t help laughing at that, remembering the various times he almost blew you all up without the help of an all-powerful orb. Something about the way he speaks of his new role and invites you to visit, either to teach or just to spend time, makes you realize that this is what a happy wizard looks like. You love it and ask, “Could I have a hug?” The hug is all-encompassing and lengthy, much like one of Gale’s lessons in magic.

Finally, you find Halsin, dancing the night away. When you learn more about his endeavors, you find that he’s reestablishing the settlement at Reithwin, reconnecting the land to its people. He mentions that Thaniel and Oliver are no longer lonely and that the children of the settlement bring him a fulfillment he never thought possible. After regaling him of an exaggerated tale of your and Astarion’s adventures, you assure him that the two of you will visit soon to tell more. “Could I have a hug?” The hug is surprisingly gentle and comforting, and you walk away feeling quite content.

You determine that you’ll need to ask the rest, even Withers, for hugs if they’ll all be this enjoyable. But before you do that, you decide to take a moment to yourself, to process everything.

That’s how you find your way to a quiet corner, head spinning with warm, fuzzy feelings and maybe a smidge too much wine. Just being here, surrounded by some of the best people you’ve ever had the privilege to encounter, fills you with a companionship you weren’t aware you’d been missing. Astarion fills you with so much love and happiness, but this– this is different.

As if summoned with your thoughts, the vampire walks toward you, wine glass in hand. "Are you done mingling?" Sensing your mind is elsewhere, he leans closer, inspecting your glassy, faraway gaze. His hand lands on the small of your back, jolting your attention back to the present and you turn to look at him. His eyes sparkle at you with radiant joy and a hint of something else. Could that be annoyance?

You decide to focus on the joy. "Yes, I think I've managed to get good conversations out of everyone. Did you know Gale wants me to go teach at Waterdeep?" Your voice sounds incredulous, after all, you warned him: once a rogue, always a rogue. Unless he wants his students to learn how to stab more efficiently, he would do best to seek someone else.

Astarion clearly agrees, making an exaggerated, aghast expression. "You? A teacher?" He shudders in fake-fear. "My love, I pity the poor students who would be subjected to your methods."

“Hey,” you say, shooting him a glare. “I thought you were supposed to be the supportive one!”

He laughs and shakes his head. “I can only support so much, my dear.” Then he takes a long look at you, noticing how unfocused your eyes are, the flush to your face. “And from the looks of it, I may need to support your entire body before the night is over.”

You only grin at him and say, “What did I do to deserve such a caring man?”

“Yes, yes,” he says, rubbing gentle circles along your back. “Likely whatever you did to deserve the affections of every adventurer this side of the Chionthar.” His tone is joking, but the dark look on his face says otherwise.

Pushing aside your own amusement, you pull his hand from your back and lean into him. “Okay, what's the matter, love?”

“Oh nothing. I just thought my jealous days were behind me.” He sounds sullen, and you note a sad tilt to his eyebrows.

Jealous days? You groan, recalling his concern over the fiery barbarian. “Love, really truly, if I were leaving you for Karlach, I would have gone to Avernus months ago.”

He waves his wine glass at you dismissively. “I know that, and I don’t mean Karlach, contrary to all evidence thus far.” Suddenly avoiding your gaze, he takes a sip of wine and changes the subject. “No matter, let’s go ask Withers where he found this vintage.” 

“No, no, no,” you say, tugging him back to you before he can walk off. After another six months together, getting used to each other’s idiosyncrasies outside of mortal peril (mostly out of mortal peril), you knew the escape was only a ruse. He wants to talk, but he seems too embarrassed to begin. “You’re allowed to be jealous, Astarion. But I can’t help you if you don’t tell me why.”

Astarion stops in his tracks, looking back at you with a pair of vulnerable red eyes. “Do you promise not to laugh?”

You take a beat to debate this, but ultimately honesty wins over and you shake your head. “I wish I could, but I do promise to try my best?”

A sigh escapes him, and you’re graced with a soft, reluctant smile. “Typical. You were truthful though, so I shall be too. I was rather jealous of…” He wipes a hand over his face dramatically. “I was jealous that you’ve gone and hugged everyone else. Gods, I sound like a child.”

It’s a good thing you only promised to try your best because an involuntary huff leaves your lips, which you'd firmly pressed together in preparation. "That is…" you gasp out.

"Idiotic? Pathetic?" Astarion supplies.

"Rather adorable actually," you say, finally allowing a snort out. “How do you always manage to be both adorable and sexy?”

You swear you can see the tips of his ears color pink, but that may just be the firelight or your own tipsy vision. He only says, “I’m quite talented.”

“Would a hug help you feel better?”

Astarion looks at you, eyes darting between yours. You can see a bit of hesitation in them, and you’re wondering why when he says, “Only if it’s not a pity hug.”

“Never,” you say, solemnly. “You know I only give hugs I mean.”

He clicks his tongue, annoyed again. He places his wine glass down on the ground with a flourish, as if preparing himself. “Yes, exactly. Which is why I’ve gone and become jealous. This is all your fault and I expect you to remedy it.”

You nod, accepting this burden with ease. “In that case… Could I hug you?” Astarion waves his hand at you as if to say, get on with it already, and you dive right in. 

The hug is loving, it’s understanding and supportive. It warms you, it cools you, and it makes you want to tackle this man to the ground in an aggressive affection– a feeling you only barely temper after a few glasses of wine. After experiencing so many hugs tonight, you find that the hug is so very perfectly him.

No, not just him. It’s the type of hug that the both of you make together. And it’s the hug you want to experience again and again for the rest of your life.

When you finally pull away from him, Astarion is smiling once more, jealousy evidently placated. “Well now, I have you every night, don’t I? Go on then, continue to bless them with your presence. I’ll be here when you’re ready. I’ll always be here, my love.”

You shake your head at him. “A lovely sentiment, of course, but you’re done hiding. Come on.”

“What?” he asks, brows furrowing as he tilts away from you.

“I said, you’re done hiding. No more shadows, they all keep asking about you and I’d rather you answer them yourself,” you say, all but dragging him back to the party now. “They miss you too, you know.”

“Darling, please. What if they ask me for a hug?” Astarion looks truly appalled at the thought.

You laugh, imagining him reacting like a cat forced into a bathtub. “You can say no, of course. But I promise not to get too jealous if you do.”

“What will it take for you to forget I ever said that?” he says, laughing and allowing himself to be dragged.

You quickly swipe his wine glass back up off the ground as you pull him along, and take a long drink before returning it to him. You only say, “At least two more bottles, though I suppose that depends on how wild Withers likes his parties.”

Hand-in-hand, you both walk off to enjoy the rest of the celebration. The night is young, the wine is flowing, and there are still many more hugs to be shared.

[jessiemeows]

New head-cannon for Astarion because I love him

New head cannon that I will be adding to my long fic. But I can definitely see Astarion having a giant crush on tav/durge when they first meet them but having absolutely no idea what that feeling is or why he's having it.

Example: When he first meets tav/durge his undead heart flutters a bit, he's most likely like "what in the 9 hells was that? Must be the tadpole." Or he hears tav/durge small giggle or finds them smiling at one of his corny jokes he gets butterflies in his stomach and once again is blaming the tadpole. Essentially he's just blaming the tadpole on everything that he feels for the player character at least in Act 1 he is.

Another head cannon for my durge is that he finds himself staring at Eris A LOT. He one time found himself staring because he see's her wearing a corset for the first time (when she popped off the nautiloid she had to borrow some old clothes that were a little baggy until she bought some at the grove.) But he is absolutely feral over seeing her in that and find himself staring below eye level.

A few times he was caught staring at her by other companions. One particular time I head cannon was when the group were at camp all by the fire. Gale was yapping to Astarion and Wyll about who knows what, while Shadowheart and Eris were in the corner together by Eris' tent drinking wine. (Lae'zel was busy battling her mindflayer dummy and Karlach wasn't in the party just yet.) And Astarion was basically not paying attention a word to what Gale said and was picturing him and Eris kissing or maybe some other things lololol.

I can see it like this:

Gale: "don't you agree Astarion?"

Astarion busy staring at Eris basically in a trance

Wyll: "Astarion, are you all right?"

Gale now nudging at Astarion: "Astarion?"

Astarion finally snapping out of it: "Huh? oh um yeah I agree. Sorry, did you want something?"

Then Wyll and Gale just giving each other a look like this fool is down bad.

He has definitely been caught the most by Shadowheart and Karlach when he's in one of those mindsets.

I also head cannon he's low-key a VERY jealous little guy, so whenever someone is clearly flirting with her he gets so jealous and this is a feeling he also blames heavily on the tadpole. When his jealousy is very much so prevalent he is giving the nastiest look to whoever is doing it, his arms are folded his eyes are narrow with a murderous glare towards that person. But then he also has an overprotective look onto Eris and is staring at her cautiously in case he needs to intervene. If I wrote what I head cannon about his jealousy I would have to make an entire new post for that because it runs deep lmfaooooo.

[ceeridwen99]

BG3 is a R O L E P L A Y I N G GAME...

Okay, time to be a bit controversial but I need to get this off my chest. Mainly because I've been seeing it everywhere. Instagram. Here. Youtube. Even the cursed site that is Reddit. I doubt this will reach many people, but I'll feel better having gotten it out of my head.

I think that a lot of people who play/played BG3 have forgotten that it is of ROLEPLAYING game. Let me repeat that. ROLEPLAYING. That means, that your game is based off of YOUR choices and YOUR choices alone. Meaning that the things you choose to do in this game are based on YOUR interpretation of the media. There is NO canonical interpretation of the game because it is YOUR campaign based on how YOU play. The plotline, the romances, and everything that happens is based on YOUR choices and how YOU decide to ROLEPLAY it.

Why am I putting so much emphasis on this? Well, because with the new patch, some additions were made to Durge's storyline. Mainly regarding Gortash. Nothing major at all, honestly. But, as we know, durgtash is quite a popular ship in the fandom. There was an added line during Gortash's coronation when Gortash expressed that he "liked" the Dark Urge in comparison to his sibling. A line has been added where the Durge can reply "I think I liked you too." That's it. That's what all the fuss is about. Because oh boy, did some people interpret that as Larian forcing durgetash on the players. First...what? How--

Let me preface this by saying I'm NOT a durgetash shipper AT ALL. I don't even like Gortash. Believe me, I've tried to see what people see in it (and him). I went and found all the journals and letters trying to see the romantic connection, and I just couldn't. It seems more like admiration and respect than love for me, but hey...guess what...that's MY interpretation. That's not what those who love this ship feel and that's perfectly okay because it's THEIR Campaign.

My point is, in no way is Larian FORCING a romantic relationship between Gortash and the Durge UNLESS you interpret it that way. Gortash says he "liked" you. Okay, That can mean many things. He respected you as his partner in this whole scheme. He enjoyed your company in comparison to Orin. Or, he saw you as a true friend. Or if you want--and only if you want it--he liked you romantically. And this is vice versa for the new line that was added to further differentiate the Durge from a Tav. It is such a vague line and can be interpreted in so many ways, that I truly don't understand what all the fuss is about. If you don't see Gortash as a previous romantic partner...then don't.

The Dark Urge is in many ways a blank slate. Yes, they have a bloody past when it comes to murder, but you don't have to add personal relationships to it if you don't want to. Hell, in my latest playthrough, my durge was a virgin when this whole mess began lol (They, of course, didn't know that, but it's what I roleplayed). They also never fully recover their memory outside of what's shown in the game. They're a complete blank slate at the start and the end. The durge has no personal background so you can make your own. So you can ROLEPLAY.

If you don't like the idea of Durge and Gortash being a thing...don't roleplay it that way. And, if you interpret that line as romantic DON'T click it. But there is no reason to be going around saying something is being forced on you when it isn't.

(If you want to be mad about something, be mad about Wyll constantly being sidelined compared to every other companion, but that's another post in itself.)

Anyway, if you read this thanks and have fun with whatever headcanon you carry.

[moyashidoodles]

Tiny doodles of Pidge (my Tav) from act 1 and early act 2. Her hair changed for each act so it’s easy to tell where they are in their journey by how disheveled she looks.

Pidge is a wild magic sorcerer with an affinity for soul magic. She can see the color of others souls (I don’t consider this game breaking, but also it’s my brain baby so idc if that’s possible in the 5e rule set) there are some supplemental fan spells and materials for adding soul magic and flavor and there’s the soul knife subclass rogue which I think was a Critical Roll addition? Ugh, look at me spreading misinformation on the internet.

OC lore below the cut.

Content warning: abusive relationship discussion (parent and child), implied sexual and physical abuse.

Anyway, Pidge grew up Rapunzel like with a very controlling and narcissistic “mother knows best” mom. The only reason her mother even had a child was to be a “spare” body for when her mother succumbed to a fatal illness (and to help her mother transfer souls into soul coins and gems to be bartered in the 9 hells. Lots of devil’s work)

Pidge’s mother is controlling to the extent that Pidge was not allowed to learn anything about her wild magic and spent much of her life warded to keep her from accessing the weave. “For her own safety,” of course. The only magic she was allowed and praised for learning was soul magic, and this was to help her mother with her research into immortality and with business ventures.

Pidge was also used as “entertainment” for her mother’s important guests. Basically anything that her mother could get from Pidge, she would try to use to her benefit.

About 3-5months before the beginning of the game, Pidge escaped and crafted an amulet to protect her body and soul from being hijacked by her mother.

She is the only member of the bg3 origin crew who did not lose skills when she was infected by the tadpole. She didn’t really have skills to begin with. Much to Gale’s dismay, she learns basically on the fly and does a lot of “firebolt first, ask questions later.” To her, practical experience is much more important than book learning. Really she has adhd and can’t rote memorize for the life of her.

She identifies with Karlach early on as they both have had dealings with the hells, although Pidge is just beginning to understand the ramifications of her mother’s hellish business of soul coin forging.

Pidge is also very afraid in act 1 of Gale finding her out as she was told to keep her soul magic affinity secret by her mother. In truth the stigma for soul magic is not so bad, but it was a manipulation technique to keep Pidge from explaining to any magic practitioners what they were working on and how her mother planned to use the research to steal Pidge’s body.

Her mother is still hunting her down, so Pidge needs a permanent solution or soul barrier to keep herself from her mother “living vicariously” through her.

Bodily autonomy is stupid important to her. She rejects the Emperor the moment he tells her to “embrace her ilithid potential” for fear of losing herself. She is self conscious to the extreme and keeps notes on her newfound companions likes and dislikes so she can keep them happy. She had a legitimate panic attack when both Gale and Astarion wanted the necromancy of Thay because, according to her calculations, they would disapprove if the other was the recipient.

She fell for Astarion after rather disliking him for a good ten day or two. He won her over by being actually reliable in scrapes and being really funny. She can’t remember the last time anyone made her laugh, so she loves the feeling. They are the two smooth brained members of the group. Similar brain cell count.

This ended up being a lot longer than I thought it would be. If you made it to the end, then you will have made it to the end! *salutes in Barcus Wroot*

[animentality]

I love Baldur's Gate and the Dark Urge and all -

And the idea of the Dark Urge redeeming themselves after a lifetime of horror by literally choosing to die and go to purgatory forever is really amazing. In fact, it's why I'm so dedicated to the Dark Urge as a character.

The idea of a villain losing their memory, becoming a hero, and then realizing that they need to die not just once, but twice to truly DESERVE their redemption is honestly brilliant.

But.

But.

Withers revives you way too fucking fast.

You literally die...and then Withers instantly brings you back.

In fact, it takes him fucking longer to revive your COMPANIONS than you, and your companions dying and being revived at camp aren't even part of the story, it's just you fucking something up and not wanting to waste a revive scroll.

Withers bringing you back instantly comes across as like, oh, so dying for your morals, being a true hero in the end, a martyr, defeating the villain, which is you...it's totally negated.

You died for about twenty seconds.

I've known people who died for longer on the operating table.

Where is my lover crying and clutching my body?

Where are my friends, all looking devastated, because they're all gotten to know me and root for me and truly care about me after I've done ALL THIS for them???

So that they could be safe from me?

Where is the emotion?

He brings you back and then your companions have a single line that's essentially just, "good job buddy."

Karlach says something like, I'm proud of you and Wyll says I'll drink in your name or whatever.

And Astarion has a really obnoxious line about how this means you aren't going to attack him anymore...and it's like... okay.

Cool.

So you guys are totally unphased by the fact that you just watched me die...but I suppose death doesn't mean shit in this game, since you have Withers to constantly bring you back.

Cool.

So then what? Nothing matters?

It's just frustrating because I know it's the cut content curse. They had more planned for Orin and the Dark Urge and Bhaal...but it just feels so underwhelming.

I think BG3's primary flaw comes in the fact that they wanted to build this richly crafted narrative, while also accounting for player choice. And they did a magnificent job of adding SO MANY extra scenes and alternate interactions, to the point where I'm still finding new shit, after like 800 hours of playing...

But the tradeoff is that the character stories...fall really flat, because they want so desperately for a Tav to be the main character, and no one else.

The Dark Urge especially suffers from this, because they made them a murder hobo in one ending, and basically just a Tav in the other ending.

As soon as you are brought back by Withers, you might as well just be a Tav. It has no bearing on anything anymore.

And that's such a shame.

I just wish it had some weight. The Dark Urge has spent their entire life ending lives... it should be beautiful, that they would end their own life to atone...their last victim, would be themselves, as they always knew...but for different reasons-

oh wait, withers is here.

cool, i'm back, guys, let's go to arby's and celebrate.

i just think the game should legitimately make you think you died, at least until a long rest or two.

force the squad to go on without you, make someone else your fourth member.

THEN withers can come to you, maybe in some kind of new Jerrgal-form, so you know he's Jergal for sure, and then reveal he was secretly a retired god.

And honestly, that makes Withers a far more interesting character too. To give him this huge hero moment, and have him say, no, this will not stand. I know he HAS that moment, but it's so rushed.

Let the player breathe on it. Let them FREAK OUT. Can you imagine how much stir it would've created, if Dark Urge players LEGIT thought they were dead permanently?

That would've given their sacrifice real weight.

But Larian was scared, probably, of players being upset that their characters are dead, even though that kind of sacrifice is literally the most heroic thing you could do in the game, besides become a damn mindflayer.

So some sacrifice! You sacrificed ten seconds of your life, and your companions barely care.

Alright. Fine.

I'll just be over here writing your story for you!

[thingsseenandheard]

Regrettably I have added more Cazador meta to my horrible vampire stew

His thing about family and love - it is my favourite aspect of his character because it is so horrible and so interesting and so telling - and I look at that and like yeah. You can see the absolute depth of his delusion so clearly in those lines. Because yeah. I think there was a time when he truly thought that he loved Vellioth and Vellioth loved him. And I think Cazador has not and will never come to terms with the fact that none of this is love, because this is the only type of love he knows. And he thinks he loves Astarion and that Astarion should love him because this is the only type of family that either of them know at this point, and up until Astarion met the other companions/tav, it was the only type of love he could recognize. Cazador is obviously extremely manipulative but he is also deeply deluded and he has put himself in this horrible box of the worst family ever and his fucked up version of "love" and I just have to wonder. If he had escaped when he was a spawn, would he have come back? I think yes. And I think he knows that. I think he is so confident that Astarion would come back to him because he knows, whether he is able to admit it to himself or not, that he would go back to Vellioth.

Cazador knows what matters - besides power, it's family, and what ties family together but love. And who loves him? Well, no one but Vellioth, really. Who else could? Who else has given as much time and effort to him as Vellioth has? Who else suffered him for so long willingly and put up with his disobedience and who else tried so hard to teach him the way Vellioth did?

Idk. I enjoy it when Cazador creates his own parallels. He is both Astarion and he is Vellioth and he is every vampire lord that preceeds him and every spawn that has suffered at their hands and he is so fucking blind to that that it makes him look stupid.

More Cazador meta to come on the subject of self perception and identity and running from who you used to be.

[bhaalbaaby]

kinktober day 4

fantasizing, stuffing, breeding (i looked up stuffing and decided against that for me personally)

gale loves fantasizing about all the things he wants tav to do/what he wants to do to tav, especially during the early parts of their adventure together, letting his mind let loose to distract from the pondering of his orb lol so you can ponder his orbs ha ha ha he had a lot of time on his hands when he was in his tower in waterdeep so he can easily slip into erotic fantasies when alone in his tent, too shy to approach tav to make them a reality. he would love breeding. the thought of filling tav up with his seed with the chance that they could have his child is something he has thought about plenty. he does have a timeline on when he would like to start a family, but that doesn't mean he won't do the act before his timeline. the added riskiness turns him on.

wyll is fueled by fantasies and that's what keeps him from not acting up and not just taking tav the first chance he gets since he wants to go slow and be a gentleman. but if you could read his mind, you would see how freaky he is and how much he wants to give in to those desires. he also would be into breeding for similar reasons as gale. he wants to have a big family and watching tav swell with his seed would make him so proud. definitely would end up with stairstep/irish twins.

lae'zel would not be into either of these. fantasizing would be a waste when she could just do them. and on breeding: "hideous, to imagine a life where i couldn't partake in the pleasures of sex without the looming threat of bearing children."

shadowheart likes fantasizing as a rebellion against shar even if she gets punished for it, especially after opening up a little to tav about what she wants and desires. i don't think she'd be into breeding either. if tav is into it, then she'd try it, but i think she'd mostly be into draining just not inside of her lol

karlach fantasizes all the time. when she can't touch anyone it's what keeps her going even if it isn't the same as being with someone. her favorite fantasy would be sitting on someone's face until she can't walk anymore from cumming so hard which ends up in a lot of pillow humping in her tent. she'd be open to the idea of breeding mostly flattered at the idea that tav thinks she could be theirs forever and the mother of their child. she would definitely be into feeling the burst inside and giddy from the what if.

astarion would be into fantasizing, but i feel like out of the core companions that would, his would be the least sexual. they'd be mild fantasies on how far he can go with tav without sex, ei holding their eye contact, touching their shoulders, thighs, hands, etc, and random normal things they can do. like go on a date, being out and about without being afraid of them only using him for his body and how they make him feel. there are two sides to breeding for him. spawn!astarion would be into it if tav is into it, but the idea of having a child would terrify him to a point. ascended!astarion would never let tav go anywhere without his seed inside of them. definitely into mind games of seeing how long they can keep his seed inside without spilling a single drop.

halsin knows what he likes and wouldn't spend time really thinking about it. he would simply act on it as soon as he can. definitely into breeding. it's nature's call for him to plant as many of his seeds he can into tav and he must heed to his natural duties lol. personally surprised he hasn't had any mini halsins around already.

minthara wouldn't be into fantasizing as she would rather just do it. on occasion, she may yearn for something more, questioning what she was made for and her true feelings for her partner, but sexual fantasies? no lol. also not into breeding, well for her. if she could breed her partner, then yes. she would definitely do it as a mark of her ownership on them.

gortash would be a man of action. he wouldn't need to fantasize because his partner would just be there so he can act on it. definitely into breeding as a power kink and a sense of narcissistic pride. he made them full of his seed and the world will know and see how strong his line will be.

ketheric would let his fantasies consume him, but he wouldn't think about anyone other than his wife, even if he is with someone else afterward. nothing would compare to his devotion to her. he wouldn't be into breeding.

orin also would let her horrifically kinky fantasies consume her. they would veer on the kinks that are banned due to the morality of ie sn*ff and such that she would have a hard time convincing partner to be into. she would be similar to minthara as she would only be into breeding if she can fill her partner up. do not give her a child

[galedekarios]

Idk if you’ve been asked before but what are your thoughts on EARLY early access Gale? The Gale that has bandages on his arm in some early promotional art? There’s an old Auntie Ethel vicious mockery line for him: “I can smell what’s under those bandages wizard! You’re all rot and ruin.” I always wondered if the orb was originally going to have nastier side effects. Like it was making Gale fall apart slowly OR maybe Gale was trying to become a Lich to better handle the orb before being abducted by the mind flayers so he’s in this half alive and undead state when Tav meets him. I feel like that last one would explain the necrotic damage he emits when he dies better. Anyways those are just two tiny details that I roll around in my mind from time to time. I might be thinking too deeply about it. Maybe the writers just wanted to figure out a way to show how much the orb was hurting Gale and the bandages were a start but for some reason they decided against it.

i loved early access gale. there were a lot of uncharitable reads / bad faith takes about him back then, ranging from him being the secret bbeg, the ultimate and guaranteed betrayer, the absolute, to being myrkul because he had a triangles on the robe he was wearing (no, i'm not joking), etc etc etc.

personally, i always loved his character, though, and found him the most interesting and intriguing out of the companions.

overall, i think that he's not that much changed - however, as with all companions and a lot of the npcs, some things have been whittled down or away entirely by larian due things like fandom feedback, but that's a discussion for another time.

i don't subscribe to the lich idea myself, because i think that's not something that gale would want for himself for a multitude of reasons. having said that, however, i always enjoyed this theory:

so, early access gale had this key art, which is still one of my favourites:

left hand wrapped in bandages, the almost stone-like texture of what little you can see of his skin.

adding to that, as you also mentioned, ethel had these vicious mockery lines for gale:

Auntie Ethel: I can smell what's under those bandages, wizard. You're all rot and ruin.

and

Auntie Ethel: Come to greet death early? You'll be a lovely spectacle.

to add to this, this was the way gale talked about the orb and what he thought it was, as well as karsus:

Player: I was wondering about that “mighty lord” you told me about in your story. Gale: Ah, yes. Karsus Karsus was perhaps the most powerful wizard that ever lived. The child-who-would-be-a-god, the elves called him. And he tried. With a spell of his own devising he endeavoured to usurp in one fell swoop the power of the goddess of magic.  Mystryl, she was called then. Imagine what it must have felt like. To be a god. To know yourself to be untouchable. To be mistaken. As Karsus aimed his spell at her she began to unravel, and with her, the entire Weave. Too late did he realize what he had unleashed. It would have been the end of everything had not Mystryl sacrificed herself.  Gale: The goddess of magic is all magic. By dying, the entire weave was lost, and the spell that challenged a god failed. It was the end of Mystryl, the end of Karsus, and the end of an entire civilization. As the child-who-would-be-a-god was turned to stone, his empire came crashing down around him. The floating cities of Netheril were no more. An event that came to be known as Karsus' folly. Player: So at that moment in time, all magic was gone?  Gale: For a spell. Mystyl was reborn as Mystra. Upon her return, the Weave returned with her.  Gale: Now, so many centuries later, I tried to follow in the footsteps of Karsus, not to destroy Mystra, but to prove my love for her. I tried to control only a fraction of the magic that was unleashed that fateful day. I merely sought to return one tiny diamond to an imperfect crown. Gale's Folly one might call it. History. Repetition. It's the way things go.

some of this is still in the game.

more lore about karsus's folly:

Unfortunately, his choice was a terrible mistake, for one of the responsibilities of the deity of magic was to regulate the flow of magic to and from all beings, spells, and magic items in the world. Lacking the ability to do so properly, magic surged and fluctuated. With her last remaining bit of power, Mystryl sacrificed herself to block Karsus's access to the Weave, causing all magic to fail. The flying cities of Netheril plummeted to the earth. The severing of the link also killed Karsus and transformed him into stone, and the last thing he saw was his entire civilization being destroyed because of his actions. This was to be known as Karsus's Folly. The stone form of Karsus eventually landed in a part of the High Forest, now called the Dire Wood.[8] The city of Karse was built around its base. Karsus was never accepted as a petitioner by any god, nor did he go to the Fugue Plane when he died. Instead, his soul was bound to the Material Plane. Those with experience in pact magic could call up his vestige, where he appeared as a giant blood-red boulder,[5] like the one found in the High Forest where his petrified form landed.[8] Blood burbles up from the top of the stone, trickling down the side facing the summoner, pooling at the base. [x]

there are also lines of gale referring to this corruption he carries within as a "taint" and a "shadow", corrupting him "within", affecting his blood as well (another thing that carried over to release).

i think what might have been originally planned (and again, some of this did carry over) is that the orb not only affected gale's magic, but also his body even more severely (it still does to an extent in the release version even though this part is very, very sadly almost entirely glossed over).

putting all of this together, i think that by absorbing a part of that magic unleashed on the day of karsus's folly - the failed magic, the severing of it, karsus turning into stone, petrifying him - might have affected gale in a similar, albeit weaker fashion.

"history. repetition. it's the way things go."

karsus's folly.

gale's folly.

perhaps as the game continued this petrification might have spread, from his hand, up his arm, to his shoulder, and on, either by leaning onto the darker aspects, or by the treatment failing (the consumption of powerful pieces of weave).

maybe that concept was then turned from petrification, to a sort of corruption/rotting that ethel referred to in her lines.

either way, it would have been interesting to see, for sure.

[not-so-lost-after-all]

You're right that it's also Larian's fault (through marketing but also some of the writing) that's been causing "fans" to believe that Astarion is truly some sex obsessed horny vampire who would be up for any kink or fantasy or infidelity they and their self-insert Tavs may have. Most people don't check datamined lines and fandom spaces, they didn't know his lack of reaction to Mizora was a bug, so why believe otherwise considering he had nothing against other horny fan service stuff the game offers? And there are quite a few people out there complaining about his new reaction all over social media, more than expected…You could literally fuck anything that moves and he was okay with it. You still can do that, mostly. For example someone said on the Larian forums this feels like moralizing the player, and it makes no sense for an immortal vampire who's had hundreds of lovers to be against Tav sleeping around lol.

Oh and by the way, you don't even have to run a deception or a persuasion check on him to forgive you for cheating on him. I tested it and every time he says something you have to say you're sorry and/or that it didn't mean anything and he will forgive Tav. So Larian STILL provided a lot of fanservice when they could've written Astarion the same way they wrote Gale, Lae'zel and the others who will automatically break up with Tav, with no option to gaslight and manipulate. But they didn't, I wonder why…

To be honest I don't even care much about this, it was added so late to the game that it doesn't matter anymore. In the long run, WOTC will still use Act 1 Astarion in any future content regardless. It's not even about AA vs Spawn anymore. They know this horny crap sells, most fans want it as well so why bother portray him as anything else other than your generic sexy carefree hedonistic vampire? Wanna bet the next cards will show Astarion in a brothel or perhaps riding a certain bear with some random Tav besides him? God knows what they have in store for him.

Hello, Nonnie. For the marketing, I agree. For the writing not so much. Even Neil and the animation team did a great job in showing his discomfort, despite of what he´s saying. It´s not their problems that many of his "fans" have no reading skills and don´t see that or just want to project whatever kinks they have on him because he´s fictional (that Larian should have seen coming). I have to laugh - how does a vampire who´s been used as a whore for two centuries wanting to have his newfound love on a pedestal not making any sense? :D Too bad for them Larian thought it´s important enough to add at least now and it won´t change anymore because they are only going to do maintance for the game from now on.

Yes, it´s easy to get him to forgive you because he lacks self esteem and very much wants to believe you. It´s so sad when the player gaslight him, really, the supposed love of his life. The only scene when he´s complete aware of his value is suprisingly when you offer the poly situation after completing his personal quest - he tells you in nicer words not to screw it up because he´ll be fine with or without you.

Now, the brothel I can´t justify but all romanced companions are just worried about you when you sleep with Haarlep and don´t comment on the Emperor.

I seriously wonder if we´re ever going to see such nuanced character in a game again when it´s easier to just throw tropes at the players. Sadly, I´ve talked about how the thirsthy WOTC cards are most probably his only future. But thank you for the mental picture of a huge bear with Astarion and Tav on his back having a laugh :D

[thetavolution]

20 TAV/OC QUESTIONS

More of these!

Please consider yourself tagged if you want to! Feel free to @ me so I can read them.

This time it's Sebastian (Ingrid's little brother, half-deep gnome and half-forest gnome wizard) and Viktor (tiefling paladin, oath of vengence). If artificer was available, Sebastian would have been that instead though.

This helped me get to know them better.

Sebastian

I. what do they smell like at their freshest? (and/or after a tenday. your choice)

He always smells like a forest and smokepowder, at least a little.

II. what would their blood taste like to vampires?

It'd be coffee. It'd just be straight black coffee with how much he ingests. He'll give a vampire the caffeine jitters.

III. how would they kiss their LI?

He adapts to his LI. He follows their lead on what they want. He's not good at knowing what he wants.

IV. how do they sleep with their LI (what position, does one steal the blankets, is one too hot/cold, etc)?

Dude can sleep anywhere. People joke about the weird positions he falls asleep in. It's no different when another person is added. He'll start the night up against them and then off the side of the bed by morning.

V. what does their tent area look like? where do they prefer to pitch their tent (next to water, covered on three sides, etc)?

He's a tinkerer. He has so many random parts and tools. He has things taken apart to see how they work, or he's trying to build his own. He's also an alchemist so there are a lot of ingredients. Most people fear stepping foot inside because what if something explodes in there?

VI. if they had a set of dnd dice, what would they look like?

It'd be forest green.

Photo from dnddice.com

VII. do they collect anything (gems, bottles, keys, etc)?

Does his artificer supplies count? He has so much of it. He also hordes smokepowder.

VIII. if either, are they part of the astarion/gale book club (magic & literature) or the wyll/shadowheart book club (trashy romance novels)?

Astarion/Gale, but he'd definitely get recommendations from Shadowheart and Wyll to give his sister, Ingrid.

IX. if they had to be put in a “get along shirt” with a companion, who would it be?

Astarion. Astarion's anti-gnome bullshittery would get under his skin. They eventually get along though.

X. do they prefer speak with dead or speak with animals?

Speak with animals. He's half-deep gnome and half-forest gnome, taking after his forest gnome side a bit more.

XI. what are their thoughts on clowns?

He doesn't care for them. They make him uncomfortable ever since the clowning incident of 1476.

XII. their companions are gossiping about them behind their back! who is it and what are they saying?

Back home, Ingrid and their family was gossiped about. Ingrid and Sebastian share a father, but have different mothers. The drama between them is common gossip back home. No matter where he is, his heritage is cause for gossip. There aren't a lot of half-forest half-deep gnomes running around.

The others gossip about how he could be a lawyer with how much he knows legalities of wherever they go. Astarion is impressed and jealous of how good he is at finding loopholes. They'd gossip about how and WHY he's so good at that. What crimes has he committed and justified? (This skill was inspired by Manager to Manager from Central Park.)

XIII. what makes them laugh? what does their laugh sound like?

He stifles his laugh a lot. It's very quiet chuckle as a result. It's hard to get a loud belly laugh out of him. He usually has to be drunk before he lets loose. He does have a good sense of humor though. He particularly loves puns and dad jokes.

XIV. do they have any inside jokes among their companions?

Karlach gets him to put his defenses down and he has a few inside jokes with her. He'd slowly start joking with the whole team eventually.

I am SO BAD at knowing what these jokes would be.

XV. what’s the description of their camp clothes in the inventory menu?

"These clothes smell like they've been rolling around in dirt and explosive powder."

XVI. what’s the description of their underwear in the inventory menu?

"Oh for the Gods' sake, does he have smokepowder on EVERYTHING he owns?"

XVII. how do they celebrate their birthday?

He never liked celebrating his birthday. His narcissistic mother would make the day about herself and what she wanted. Once he moved away, he really had no interest in engaging with it because of his bad memories. He'd only start to celebrate if someone eased him into it and made it about what he wants. He'd want something really low key.

XVIII. what modern day tv show would they binge over a weekend? do they get their LI to watch with them?

His list is more electic than his sister's but equally surprising. They would both watch From, What We Do In The Shadows, and ghost hunting shows together though.

Outside of that, he'd be watching House of the Dragon, Mythbusters, Fallout, and Yellowjackets. He'd also watch Love Island and The Great British Bake Off.

He'd never ask his LI to watch with him, but he'd feel warm and cozy if they offered. It'd make him happy.

XIX. do you have a playlist for your tav? if so, what’s the title + description?

I don't really do titles or descriptions. I just make the title their name and list the songs.

Failsafe — The Choir Practice

This Year — The Mountain Goats

Always Tired — Weathers

Money Issues — Chase Petra

Waving Through A Window — Ben Platt

Hate Myself — dodie

Save Me — Aimee Mann

Safe Travels (Don't Die) — Lisa Hannigan

Little Sister — Trixie Mattel (this song made me think of his relationship with his sister, Ingrid, even though she's older)

Crucify — Tori Amos

A Better Son/Daughter — Rilo Kiley

Narcissist — Avery Anna

feelings are fatal — mxmtoon

all the kids are depressed — Jeremy Zucker

My Ugly — Cloudfodder

Older Than I Am — Lennon Stella

Lemon Boy — Cavetown

Passenger Seat — Death Cab for Cutie

High On Life — Rasputina

I'm Still Standing — Elton John

XX. if you were to try pickpocketing them, what would they be carrying?

So much smokepowder. This man is a walking powder keg.

Viktor

I. what do they smell like at their freshest? (and/or after a tenday. your choice)

Rum and leather.

II. what would their blood taste like to vampires?

I'd say a spiced rum.

III. how would they kiss their LI?

He a bit emotionally stunted at the moment. His kisses begin reluctant. After his walls come down more, his kisses tend to be passionate, as if he's afraid his LI will disappear when he lets go.

I have no idea who he'd romance at this point. Barcus was the original goal, but I can also see him with Shadowheart and Wyll.

IV. how do they sleep with their LI (what position, does one steal the blankets, is one too hot/cold, etc)?

He's used to sleeping alone these days. He's always a bit warm so he's not likely to steal blankets. He's more likely to only be half-covered by them. As he grows more comfortable, he does become a cuddle bug.

V. what does their tent area look like? where do they prefer to pitch their tent (next to water, covered on three sides, etc)?

It's lacking as he doesn't carry a lot with him. He'd be a gunslinger if that were available in BG3 so he has paladin weapons or gunslinger weapons about. He has some clothing in there, but not much else. Can a gun paladin be a thing? They just show up to a sword fight with a gun.

VI. if they had a set of dnd dice, what would they look like?

It'd be red and black.

Image from Crystal Maggie.

VII. do they collect anything (gems, bottles, keys, etc)?

Not really. He doesn't like to have a lot of things on him. He hates owning things he doesn't need.

VIII. if either, are they part of the astarion/gale book club (magic & literature) or the wyll/shadowheart book club (trashy romance novels)?

Neither. He reads, but it'd be his own thing.

IX. if they had to be put in a “get along shirt” with a companion, who would it be?

Wyll. They ultimately have the same goals, but they argue so hard about how to reach them. The fact they're not that far off from each other's beliefs is why they have the worst fights.

X. do they prefer speak with dead or speak with animals?

While he does love animals, he'd say speak with the dead. He wants to give the dead a voice one last time.

XI. what are their thoughts on clowns?

He really doesn't care. While he doesn't want them to bother him, he doesn't feel strongly about them. He does avenge Dribbles because, well, he avenges all those wronged.

XII. their companions are gossiping about them behind their back! who is it and what are they saying?

He's the mysterious stranger with a dark past. Everyone would have opinions on what that dark past is and how much they should be worried about it. What has he done? What has he seen? What is the horrible sin that follows him like a shadow?

He won't open up about his past like the rest of the trauma piñatas at camp, so they gossip about it.

They'd gossip about his love life, too, regardless of who he romances.

XIII. what makes them laugh? what does their laugh sound like?

He doesn't laugh often. He might let out a little amused breath most of the time if someone does amuse him. He'll only laugh loudly and heartily once his walls are completely down with someone. He does enjoy light-hearted comedy and dark humor.

XIV. do they have any inside jokes among their companions?

He would be hesitant to try to joke around. He tries to keep people at arm's length, but they'd slowly creep in. He'd end up having the most inside jokes with Jaheira, Gale, and Shadowheart though.

XV. what’s the description of their camp clothes in the inventory menu?

"Well worn but not well loved, they're haphazardly mended after years of use."

XVI. what’s the description of their underwear in the inventory menu?

"At least he believes in getting new underwear regularly, unlike the rest of his clothing."

XVII. how do they celebrate their birthday?

He doesn't.

He'd only celebrate if someone else does something for him.

XVIII. what modern day tv show would they binge over a weekend? do they get their LI to watch with them?

He probably wouldn't watch a lot of TV. He's more of a reader. If you did get him to watch TV, he'd probably enjoy Baby Reindeer, Breaking Bad, and The Wire. If the right person introduced him to it, he'd also like White Lotus.

He'd only want his LI to watch if they were genuinely interested without his input.

XIX. do you have a playlist for your tav? if so, what’s the title + description?

Big Iron — Marty Robbins

Johnny Guitar — Peggy Lee

Glory of Love — Peter Cetera

Wrong Side of Heaven — Five Finger Death Punch

Million Reasons — Lady Gaga

Idfc - Blackbear (for him and his love interest)

Pretty Pills for Broken Hearts — Cloudy June

Diamonds And Rust — Joan Baez

Further On Up The Road — Johnny Cash

The Stranger Song — Leonard Cohen

People Ain't No Good — Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

The Devil Wears a Suit and Tie — Colter Wall

I Am All I Got — The Dead Brothers

Devil's Backbone — The Civil Wars

I Hope That I Don't Fall In Love With You — Tom Waits

Lithium and a Lover — Sirenia

Grave In the Valley — Jim & Jesse

I Am Stretched on Your Grave — Kate Rusby

Take Me to Church — Hozier

Devil In You — The Haunted Windchimes

XX. if you were to try pickpocketing them, what would they be carrying?

Money and some lint. He doesn't carry anything unless he has to.