#but also how much ambition can you ACTUALLY remove from the gale

[lazylittledragon]

open discussion: do you think gale lets himself go fully grey or does he see one silver hair too many and immediately start looking for the fountain of youth

[leiflitter]

So, Mystra-

The more I think about her, the more I want to egg all of her statues, because I am honestly convinced that she's likely way more embroiled in Gale's fall from favour than she seems- and that she likely never cared for him in any meaningful sense.

This is gonna be long, gang.

Also I am 1000% up for screaming about Gale/forming an anti-Mystra union so y'know let's be pals

My thoughts are thus:

She has likely always known about his potential and capability of power. He was a child prodigy, after all- and she's a GODDESS. From the first time he truly used the weave, he was on her radar.

This also makes Gale's relationship with Elminster seem too convenient. As much potential as Gale demonstrates, it's also important to remember that Elminster is Mystra's chosen- and Mystra's chosen are often tasked with upholding and protecting balance in the weave. There are countless wizards that Elminster could mentor- so why Gale specifically?

The same is true of Gale's magical education. I've seen plenty of speculation about his possible potential as a sorcerer, and there's a lot of questions around the circumstances of him entering the Blackstaff Academy- as well as a confirmation of his power when he, a little baby trainee wizard, uses The Actual Blackstaff to cast a spell.

As an aside, Gale's little story about his misadventure with The Blackstaff is especially scary when taking into account that the staff is very devious, and it's primary purpose is to protect Waterdeep- although this is again speculation, I don't think the portal to limbo was just the spell going very, very wonky. I think the Staff, sensing Gale's ability and (through the very clear context clues of him using the fucking staff that you normally would need to attune to and that belongs to the top fancy wizard in waterdeep) his ambition, decided that he was clearly a potential threat that might be better off being quietly removed via Death Slaad.

We also know of at least one story of a young, powerful wizard who, y'know, led to the death of Mystryl and the loss of all magic- in part because he lacked the discipline that he should have learned at Wizard School.

So Gale comes along. Karsus 2.0- he's back, he's human and- most importantly- he's lonely.

How better to neutralise him as a threat than to make him loyal to her? Why would she cast aside a possible asset when she could use him?

The main problem with her plan is Gale himself. She can get him into wizard school. She can get Elminster to mentor him. She can make sure that Gale gets the best magical education, so hopefully he will be content and settle for being an archmage.

She can't, however, account for Gale's brain. Let's be honest, Gale is neurodivergent as fuck, and magic is his number one special interest. He was never going to be content to enjoy magic a "normal" amount, so no matter how many hours he may spend being taught about how great Mystra is and how the limits she sets are to be respected... he won't stop learning, growing more powerful, becoming more and more of a threat to her.

So how does she cement his loyalty? By getting personal. This is why him being isolated is important- it gives her an advantage. She can be number one without any effort. If he has an actual bond to her, not just the concept of her, then he won't be dangerous. Except, again, she's assuming that he'll be like so many other mortals and be so awed by her presence that he'll finally be satisfied. But he isn't.

Why the fuck would a goddess take someone so clearly, deeply intense about magic into her personal realm? Why would she show him all the power he would never be able to access?

Because, to her, he's just a mortal. There has to be a point in which he'll either be sated or he'll realise his limits and give up, because he's just an extremely powerful ant in comparison to her. Mystra has never considered getting to know Gale. If she had, she'd have realised that doing the grand tour of All The Magic You Can't Ever Do was a huge mistake. That making herself the focal point of his entire existence was an absolutely dogshit move.

Gale throws himself so hard into Being Mystra's Best Boy because he has nothing outside of magic other than his mother. He summoned his best friend, and he admits that he has colleagues and acquaintances, but nothing much else. He and Elminster clearly care for each other, but it's clear that Mystra's placed barriers between them- and even if they were able to be best buds and make friendship bracelets, together, they're at vastly different stages of life.

It's also likely that Mystra's interest in him led to his isolation. He has been marked as Special- the old gifted child problem where him being So Smart So Magic meant he bypassed the social side of things.

So of course he wants to prove himself, to impress her- his entire metric for his self-worth is Being A Wizard. He says he's bumped uglies with mortals before- but he doesn't mention anyone specifically. And, let's be frank, the man has a case of foot-in-mouth syndrome- if he had any meaningful romantic experience before Mystra, you know he'd have brought it up at least once. "Ah, autumncrocus- back in my apprentice days I picked a bunch for the object of my youthful affections. Unfortunately I hadn't realised they were allergic- but they certainly appreciated the gesture, if you catch my implication... Once they stopped sneezing, of course."

She becomes his whole world. He wants so desperately to be on her level, to be what he thinks she deserves- and yes, it was incredibly stupid of him. However, what the fuck was Mystra doing?

Throughout BG3, high approval Gale is actually incredibly receptive if you tell him not to persue power. Yes, his earlier mistakes may play into this, but I find it hard to believe that he'd be any less receptive to Mystra.

To quote- "I pouted. I pleaded. I swore my ambition was only to serve her better. But she only smiled and told me to be contented."

So, then, why did Mystra not actually engage with Gale on this?

Because she never cared about him.

She tried all the options she thought would work on a mortal, and when they were done she didn't consider trying anything else. She never knew him well enough to understand his motivations- he should have been satisfied with Magic Sex because surely any mortal would be. She couldn't even consider that his love wasn't just him liking the company and getting laid, that he'd still want to prove himself to her. To be worthy of the Mystra she'd let him believe in.

And when he fucked up- if she had helped him, even in a tiny way, then she'd have achieved her goal. Imagine if he'd come to her, agonised by the dark magic within him, and she'd been merciful. The way you would be, if you loved someone. If she had actually known Gale? She'd have done it.

But Mystra doesn't see it as an act of love gone wrong. To Mystra, it's proof that she can't control him, that his potential isn't worth whatever effort she'd need to put in.

She abandons him to die- expects him to go on a pilgramage into the wilderness and just go boom.

When he doesn't? She decides that, fine, she'll deal with it- by sending Elminster to tell Gale the good news! She'll "forgive" him if he detonates himself, honest! He trusts Elminster, Elminster's a father figure to him, he'll do what Elminster tells him. Except that's another example of her not understanding Gale in the slightest. Instead of hope, she's rubbing salt in his wounds- she's flexing her power and showing Gale that his bond with Elminster was always conditional on Mystra's approval, and that Elminster's loyalty lies with her.

No wonder Elminster sent a construct- it's the closest thing he can do that isn't abject refusal.

I am gonna stop rambling now but in conclusion:

Mystra, you absolutely suck. Get wrecked. I hope Bhaal shits in your pocket dimension.

[four-leaf-loco]

On Gale's Inactivity as a God

So one thing I noticed while autisticly reading the forgotten realms lore is that Tymora (goddess of good luck) is weaker than other gods because she gives so much of her divine power to her followers; aka she actually helps them. Gale taking an approach of 0 real contact might actually be a part of a plan to overtake the godly power structure, like Lathander tried (resulting in a lot of fuck ups and Tyche, his long term lover, dying and splitting into Basheba and Tymora, essentially saved via the help of Selune). Lathander wanted to dethrone Ao and take his place essentially.

On romanced partners; having a fellow loyal God to possibly be interconnected with in the eyes of mortals and most likely give out their divine powers like or more than other gods could be a tactical move. Take off some suspicion from him maybe. It will make taking over Ao easier too. Just one more god on his side guaranteed. I mean he is to thank for making you a god. You're allied to him, a lesser god to an even lesser god. But who knows, this is all conjecture.

My Roleplay Choices

Romancing Gale as a good or neutral aligned character often leads to encouragment or inspiration for him. Maybe a character like that would become a God of those things. A kind God who wishes to help their followers with inspiration and bouts of creativity/intuition. That would pair very very well with Gale, God of Ambition. Encouragment leads to Ambition. It's exactly what happened to him, well meaning words lead to him getting bolder. Defy his mortal status. Not just use the crown but reforge it. Yes you threw the crown into the river but baby your fault for letting me know where it went.

Using your powers only helps his. Maybe people will worship you together. Maybe Gale will be the main deity due to him ascending first and being the end goal. Most of the divine power would filter to him as you are left to gather the souls of your dead followers, attend to their needs, help them. Grow your flock. Gale will have statues and temples dedicated to him (with small shrines to you). He'll say it's to your love but you as a god know better, you just turn a blind eye, another cheek. He doesn't tell you of his plans and the other gods take pity. They can all see it clear as day, already taking sides. You're stuck with him, dressed in his regalia, his, his, his. Gale's ambition fully removed from you now. A project of the past. But as a god, not really a person anymore, the two of you an endless loop of give and take that feeds into an inseparable dynamic. He wouldn't grow as much as he needed to without you and you couldn't either, not really. The target would be on your back when the other gods decide it's time to put a stop to Gale's plans. You could leave and join the others but oh how your divinity sings for his. Intertwined for eternity. If you die he'll bring you back as soon as possible (he won't) (it's only fuel for his fire, oh what have you done)(the divine will come undone)(or he will fall harder than any else).

But idkkk just some messy thinks and thoughts and interpretations 💭

Hope you enjoyed them! Also comment your ideas for what God your character would be, I mostly play bards or bard multiclass so I wanna knowwwww yoursss 🔥💯❤️