#halsin lore

[manesthia]

Thoughts on Halsin as an "atypical druid"

I've seen a number of excellent metas lately about Halsin's atypical druidism (the fact that he does not abhor the undead, does not have complete control over his wildshape, etc.). While I agree completely with those points, I've also noticed a tendency to sometimes frame this as Halsin being a "bad" druid or never really belonging with the druids in the first place. And I strongly disagree with that. I feel that Halsin's druidism is a core aspect of his character and implying that he is somehow "bad at it" robs him of something essential. The fact that he is a unique, complex character with far more depth than just "typical DnD druid" doesn't mean that he is not still a druid at heart - and a pretty formidable one, at that.

I see him as a character who has something in common with the nature deities and magician-priests of ancient myth and legend: Merlin (a mentor whose teachings are rooted in the natural world; who guides kings rather than wishing to rule himself; who mediates between the kingdom of men and animals; and who changes into an animal) and Dionysus (who celebrates multiplicity, fluidity, nature-based wisdom, carnal pleasure, the subversion of unnatural restraints - and who also shapeshifts, by the way). Druidism informs Halsin's entire belief system, ranging from his view on relationships (Halsin never uses the word 'polyamory'; instead, he speaks of "doing as nature does" and explains all of his preferences with nature metaphors - "the bear partners as its instinct dictates", etc.) to the importance he places on community. Halsin is unhappy as Archdruid not because he is just an incompetent leader or can't get along with other druids, but because he is so in tune with nature that he only thrives in communities with a structure more like the branching network of roots or mycelia - like our group of "weirdos" or his rebuilt community in Reithwin. He does know how to guide, counsel, and mediate - all of which are essential leadership abilities. But he needs to be part of an interconnected organism that grows and learns together, not the sole leader of it. To me, this is connected to his shapeshifting abilities and druidism: Halsin is connected to all other beings by literally becoming them (even if he is most attuned to his bear-shape).

Halsin speaks very highly of the grove as a place of worship (let's not forget how deeply religious Halsin is, too), but he also says that life in the grove made him feel cut off from nature. It's ironic that a druid grove runs on politics and power hierarchies (aspects of civilisation that most druids should despise), but it does. This is also a theme in a sidequest in BG2, if anyone recalls. In my opinion, the fact that Halsin feels out of place in a grove that has grown corrupted with politics and power plays actually makes him more true to core druidic beliefs, not less so.

I think the idea that Halsin doesn't get along with other druids gets taken a little too far at times, too. Members of his grove have issues with him primarily because they have been radicalised by Shadow Druids, not because Halsin is just too good-aligned for other druids in general. Note that every single druid in the grove who expresses strong anti-refugee sentiment also supports Kagha and the Rite of Thorns. Halsin welcomes outcasts into the grove because he is compassionate and empathetic as a person, yes, but also because it is part of his druidic belief in harmony, unity, and the value of life. Compare with Olodan's line:

This is not to say that I think Halsin's would never clash with other druids at all, or that I think his relationship with the grove is without friction. Obviously, part of the blame for the infiltration of the Shadow Druids falls on him. Obviously, there would be more neutral-aligned druids who would disagree with him on principle. But the fact that the previous Archdruid chose Halsin as his successor (we must assume that he did, since Halsin obviously didn't sign up for it) strongly indicates to me that the deceased, much wiser elders of the grove valued him greatly. Jaheira also repeatedly refers to him with the deepest respect.

I think it's also worth noting that there is room for nuance in druidic beliefs in the BG series. Faldorn in BG1, Cernd in BG2 and Jaheira in all three games are all very different. In many ways, Jaheira is more Harper than druid, which I think was indicated by her being a multiclassed fighter/druid in the earlier games. It also comes out in her conversation with Halsin about the Shadow Curse:

And if you tell her (speaking as Halsin) that she doesn't have to explain herself to him:

Of course, Halsin has a personal investment in lifting the Shadow Curse that Jaheira doesn't share, namely Thaniel. Only Halsin has a special connection with the very spirit of the land. This is also why he is completely unable to heal and move on until the Shadow Curse is lifted, unlike Jaheira. If the spirit of the land is wounded, then so is his own spirit. Jaheira, as a Fighter-Druid-Harper, is very much a protector of the realms as a whole (nature and civilisation), while Halsin is referred to over and over again by various NPCs as Nature's Steward, Keeper of Groves, Guardian of the Land, etc.

My argument here is not that Halsin is a more "typical" druid than Jaheira or that one is a "better" druid than the other (I love them both deeply). I'm just saying that all of this demonstrates to me how deeply intertwined Halsin's druidism is with the rest of his character. And I really, really appreciate him as a druid along with everything else he is.

I'm not really sure that I understand Tumblr etiquette regarding discussion (what is the polite way to interact with each other here? Commenting? Reblogs with hashtags? I'm too old for this site lol), but I would love to talk about this more. Please don't hesitate to comment, even if you disagree.

[pedros-immaculate-vibes]

Halsin’s town

So Halsin grew up hanging out with Thaniel, right?

Thaniel is bound to the shadow-cursed lands, IE, reithwin and the western heartlands areas

Which means that that whole area was Halsin’s home at some point. That there was this monumental battle that not only ravaged his childhood home and his neighbors and his fey bestie, but it was then fucking cursed.

And the player, by helping to remove the curse, is essentially helping heal his fucking childhood.

I keep thinking about that shit, and ALSO why is there no where with “Halsin was h3re” graffiti carvings into a rock or something? Like you know he was a punk ass lil kid who got into trouble and ran around free as a bird.

So he grew up there, and his family is buried under the grandfather Oak tree. How far is that?

Did he stay in the Reithwin area after they passed?

SO MANY FUCKING QUESTIONS

[baldysgate]

found this off hand comment halsin makes if you look into a mirror while controlling him. He remarks how he looks more like his father with each passing day.. but the way he says it sounds so sad- or disgusted. Like he doesn't want to be anything like his father. It very much has the same tone as his reaction when you take him into the city.

[carmsgarms]

I saw a post saying you can threaten to sell halsin back to his drow captors which sounds absolutely insane I never knew about this and your the halsin expert so do you know when in the game this is

me?? the halsin expert??? you flatter me anon ^^; I do actually know the answer haha. So maybe I am a bit of an expert at this point. You get this dialogue after the Drow twins if you are playing as a Lolth-sworn Drow (actually not entirely sure if you have to Lolth-sworn) after the Sharess's Caress scene where you ask him about his "youthful misadventures" I cannot find a clip of it but I pulled this quote from this post by @autistichalsinabout how Halsin's backstory is largely hidden and only found if you're mean to him:

if you are a Lolth-sworn Drow Tav, you have one of the evilest dialogue options in the game- "So the mighty bear is an escaped pet, then. I wonder if there is a reward for your return..." To which Halsin responds with a terse, "you would be unwise to attempt it, trust me. In any case, the house of my captors is long extinct." Then he pauses and looks thoughtful, "interesting. Part of me still thought of them as hosts. But I suppose 'captors' is indeed more accurate."

I have a clip of this SOMEWHERE but this is the first record of that scene I could find and my tags are a mess so it's hard to find the clip - but once I do I'll post it :>

[owlbearwildshape]

I'm so used to when you use a companion to speak to another companion at camp it automatically switching to the player that I wasn't expecting this (think it's supposed to be triggered in act 2)

[jeeaark]

You have no idea how much I really wanted a 'call Orin out on her bullshit' dialogue option

Wishful thinking this comic. I did not know about the initiate-combat-while-talking option until after this campaign, so I have no idea if there are actual consequences to kicking orin's ass mid-trickery or not

Bonus in Regards to Sleepy Gale:

[gaymergirlie]

On one hand I realize it’s not lore friendly that Halsin as an elf has any body hair at all

On the other hand I think they need to give him even more

[inaconstantstateofchange]

The Sorrow Glaive, and Halsin's Backstory

So, one of my favorite things about second playthroughs is going back through with the context to put meaning to information you overlooked in your first playthrough.

One such piece of information is the "Druid Notebook" you can find in Nettie's chambers in the Emerald Grove.

Inside, the writing is incredibly fragmented, and doesn't come together into any sort of coherency based on the Act 1 knowledge you could have at the time of reading it.

However, if you go back after completing the quest to free Halsin and save the grove, you could put together the link to the glaive you can receive as your reward, named Sorrow.

Note: there is an additional piece of information that I clearly recall, but was not able to trigger when I went back through and attempted it on one of my save files. After you pick up the glaive, the character who does so has a line that describes an overwhelming tide of sadness filling them.

If you get even further in the game, to conversations with Halsin in Act 2, he reveals the way he became Archdruid one hundred years ago:

In the battle against Ketheric, his master, the previous Archdruid, was felled, and the responsibility fell on Halsin's shoulders to take charge of the druid forces and get them to safety as the shadow-curse fell upon them. He describes it as an incredible weight of regret on him that he was never able to do more to help them - his master, the land, and Thaniel.

There is a possibility that I am wrong of course, but I'm pretty confident in this conclusion:

That journal is Halsin's, and the shade he describes is his master's.

He had to destroy the shadow-cursed version of his beloved teacher.

Not only did he have to go through the sorrow of losing him in the first place, but he had to "kill" him himself, all over again.

We also know that many of the shadow-cursed creatures leave vestiges behind, with echoes of who they were when they were alive.

That vestige would have been Halsin's last fleeting memory of his master, as he was in life.

Thank you for coming to my TEDxtalk, I am going to go throw myself in the nearest river (nonlethally).

[mumms-the-word]

guys

GUYS

you’ll never believe what nonsense I came across while I was brainrot doomscrolling through all the books and notes on the BG3 wiki trying to find stuff I might have missed in act 2

druid self-insert romantic fanfiction about the first battle against Moonrise and Ketheric

fanfic that Halsin read and criticized!!

Okay if you played early access you shouldn’t be surprised because these books existed in EA. I’ve tried to find them in my game post patch 6 but all I can find is volume 3, which is disappointing because I was hoping to find volume 4

But as a treat, if you’re like me and completely didn’t know about this, buckle up and please enjoy the self-insert adventures of a certain “Roa” who totally isn’t Roan Featherway, a druid of Silvanus and colleague(??) of Halsin himself

———

Book Draft - Volume I

The name on the inside of this faded journal suggests it belonged to a 'Roan Featherway', a druid of Silvanus.

[Neatly written chapters fill this journal. A list of what appears to be book publishers in Baldur's Gate are on the first page. The cover has a multitude of titles, all crossed out: 'The Unforeseen Alliance, volume 1', 'Druids and Harpers, a fight for good!', 'The Shadowed Evil: who dares to stand against it?'] Our hero, the [brave? mighty?] druid Roa arrives in the grove. When he received the summons from the Emerald Enclave, he knew something was afoot. Filled with druids and rangers alike, members of the Enclave are scattered across the realm. They fight to preserve the natural order, keep the elemental forces of the world in check, and do battle with those who would upset this delicate balance. They are fierce warriors, though none as fierce as Roa. Built like [an ox? A bear?], he stands head and shoulders above the crowd. The grove is buzzing with activity. Roa spots a beautiful woman with ebony hair flowing past her shoulders, her eyes as blue as a [summer's day? bluebird?]. His smile turns to a frown as he notices the crescent moon and harp pinned to her chest. By Silvanus, what was a Harper doing here?

———

Book Draft - Volume II

Formed from several journals, paper scraps and, in one case, the back of an envelope, this book has been carefully glued together to form the second in a series of romance novels.

[This seems to be the second volume in a series written by an amateur novelist. The title on the cover, 'Love in Shadowed Lands', is crossed out.] The ebony-haired woman notices Roa's gaze and crosses the grove, [winking? smiling?] as she stands by the druid's side. 'I don't usually wear it out in the open,' she says, tapping the brooch on her cloak, a crescent moon and harp pinned to her chest. 'Except for special occasions.' 'What's a Harper doing in a grove of Silvanus?' Roa asks. 'Not just one.' She gestures to a group by the sacred pool. 'We're generally more cloak and dagger,' she continues, 'thwarting tyrants and [guarding? protecting?] the realm is best done in secret. But you lot have a fight on your hands. We're here to help.' 'Since when do the Emerald Enclave need a bunch of Harpers?' Roa says. 'You haven't heard?' She laughs, her laugh tinkling like a bell. 'Strap in, sweetie. We're about to take on Dark Justiciars, their demented leader Ketheric Thorm and, if we're very lucky, Shar herself.'

———

Book Draft - Volume III

The third book in a series of romance novels, this once beautifully bound book has had pages ripped out, glued back in and even tied to the book's spine using a piece of twine.

['Volume Three' is written in bold on the front. The title 'The Cost of Sorrow' is followed by a number of question marks.] 'But why?' Roa screams, the beast within barely contained. 'Why follow Shar? Why destroy Moonhaven?' Ketheric stares down [haughtily? cruelly?] at Roa as he steps over the bodies of Harpers and druids alike. 'Shar knows all.' He smiles [maliciously?]. 'She gave me a holy mission. I'm merely fulfilling it.' 'The people of Moonhaven trusted you!' Roa cries, his anger rising. 'How could you turn your Dark Justiciars on them?' Ketheric smiles, 'They needed the target practice. Can't have Shar's elite getting rusty, now can we? As for you...' a crescent blade appears in his [cruel?] hands. 'You are but one lone druid, Roa. Who are you to stand against me?' Roa forces himself to his feet, Silvanus' fury coursing through him. 'I'm your downfall. Today you die, Ketheric!'

———

And for the pièce de résistance 😮‍💨🤌

Book Draft - Volume IV

The fourth volume and final novel, this book has had almost every single page ripped out, except for the last twenty or so pages.

['Shadow's Kiss' is written in bold on the front. Pages of crossed out lines have notes in the margin reading 'finale!', 'more exciting!'. The final entry reads:] 'Get out of here.' Roa whispers, clutching his side. Blood pours from his fingers, a final gift from Ketheric's blade. 'I'm not leaving you,' Selene sobs, blue eyes filling with tears. Roa cups her face. 'I won't make it out in time. But you can.' Selene presses her forehead against his. Her ebony hair falls forward, forming a curtain that envelops them both. Roa closes his eyes, a smile lifting his lips as her scent, wild roses, washes over him. 'That grappling hook. You still have it?' He asks. 'Of course. Why do you -' With the last of his strength, Roa pushes her from the balcony. He watches her fall, watches her pull the hook from her pack and expertly throw it, swinging gracefully to the ground. A mighty crack splits the floor beneath him as the tower crumbles. He smiles contentedly. Selene was safe. That's all that mattered. Epilogue: 'Selfish bastard.' Selene says, kicking the base of the grave. Balsin places a comforting hand on her shoulder. 'He was the greatest of us all,' Balsin says, a towering behemoth of a druid, although not as tall as Roa. 'We will forever honour him, for he single-handedly broke Shar's hold on the land, and helped -' [A different hand appears beneath the final entry.] Roan, you had one job. This is not a historical record of what occurred, it is poorly written romance with no basis in fact. And if I ever see the name 'Balsin' again, I will personally feed you to Ormn.

Halsin you’re such a critic

we were robbed

[manesthia]

Still thinking about how much cool stuff there is in Act II and how much I love Halsin's quest. Thaniel's song (sung by unconscious Art Cullagh in Last Light Inn) is so haunting. Hm, hm, Thaniel and me,

Are climb, climb, climbing up a tree,

And we, we see what we see,

And do just what we please, together,

Waiting for the sun, forever.

We see shadows, they get darker,

But our hiding place is brighter.

Monsters snuffling and stalking,

In the shade where we are walking.

We are fearsome, black and red,

We are living, they are dead.

Two of us, safe to the end.

[pedros-immaculate-vibes]

A Peaceful Elf

Part XXII

The Great Halsin

“And I think I recall there being a story of you fighting a band of ogres single-handedly outside of the grove? I can’t remember why, though…” Jaheira was clearly setting him up to expound further.

“There was a young family on the road, coming to the grove for shelter before a storm. The ogres planned on making short work of them. I could not stand by and watch,” he said, matter of factly.

“Of course, of course. And, how many of them were there?”

“Of the family?” Halsin looked confused.

“No, Archdruid,” she almost chuckled, “ogres.”

“Oh, well, I believe there were five. Three escaped with mild injuries and never returned.”

The group of at least five dozen warriors now all made some sound of awe.

—

Traveling with him had not made you immune to these stories. By the gods, no wonder he wasn’t worried about those half-orcs when we were at Rosymorn. I thought he was just being modest.

You could see the elf blush even deeper as the crowd continued to titter.

[meanbossart]

I've got some questions about Du Drow.

1. What does he think of Halsin?

2. Is he embrace the urge or resist the urge?

3. What does he think of Gortash?

4. Did he have any lovers in the past?

1- Doesn't care for him. Too nice and too pragmatic and talks too much about how pretty trees and leaves are. What's a little ironic is that DU drow has in-depth knowledge about nature and survival because of his background, so, technically, they could have had a lot to chat about - but Halsin's outlook on nature is rather... Ethereal? Theological? In comparison, nature is a parent's cold, stern hand in DU drow's mind. There's a simplicity and straightforwardness to it that he finds a great deal of comfort in, and I think Halsin's druidic agenda must have really, really gotten on his nerves very quickly. Also he's like 2 inches taller than DU drow so that's not good for his ego.

The gang didn't fix the Shadow Cursed lands so they parted ways by the end of act two, the drow didn't miss him LOL

2- Like - resist, embrace, resist. He was a little bit freaked out at the start, took to it pretty quickly and reveled for a while, then decided to resist it again once he realized these weren't a part of his own, free will. He still enjoys killing and maiming, but he needs to do it as a free man bound to no gods, otherwise he feels like a pawn.

3- Pre-campaign he thought Gortash was kind of a character. He enjoyed his company in a "get a load of this guy" way but probably saw some uncomfortable pieces of himself reflected in him as well. They were "friends", but only because Gortash put up with his constant abuse with little more than an eye-roll and a wave of the hand, which continually encouraged DU drow to push the bill further. In a weird way, it worked for them.

Post tad-pole, DU drow retained the "get a load of this guy" attitude. He looks at Gortash and just wants to laugh. He thinks he's a poor excuse for a man and a joke of a leader and retained no memory of that inkling of childish terror and desperation he saw of himself mirrored in him.

I've gone much more in-depth about Gortash before, so just look up the "enver gortash" tag in my blog if you're curious about it!

4- No. Astarion is his first functional, romantic relationship. He went through long streaks without sex interspersed with "cruising binges" as a titular Bhaalspawn, and sometimes got creative with corpses in and outside the temple. Otherwise, he considered Orin to be his soulmate.

Thank you for the questions! :D

[carmsgarms]

i think one of my favorite things about replaying bg3 (I needed a palette cleanser after doing evil durge so I'm playing with my comfort tav because I want to explore her character better. I'm making the same/similar choices and also making the choices I regret not making in the first playthrough) is going through each area and discovering how deep the environmental storytelling in this game is. It's truly incredible how many little stories are littered throughout the game.

the story with Yrre the Sparkstruck and Lenore the cleric of Mystra is lowkey one of the saddest stories in the game and it i told exclusively through items (and you can't even get all of the items in one playthrough) and one small area in the underdark that I completely missed on my first couple of playthroughs because I was so intent on getting through the main story.

Ketheric and Halsin's stories are also very deeply intertwined the more you look at the environmental storytelling in act 2, and it makes sense why Halsin is so rude and skeptical of Shadowheart for being a Shar worshipper, constantly questioning her devotion, prodding at her to ask if she's aware of what she devoting herself to and teasing her for sounding like she is reciting words from a book without understanding their meaning (which you only see if you have both of them in your party before finishing the gauntlet of shar).

[lunastrophe]

BG3 Elven Lore: Names Written In Elven Script

In connection to this post, here are some examples of elven names from Baldur's Gate 3 written in elven script from DnD universe, Espruar.

There are, in fact, two Espruar scripts. One of them is an elven runic alphabet used in the earliest and the newest editions of DnD - you can even find some examples of its use in game.

3e Espruar is a completely redesigned elven script that appeared in DnD universe only briefly and is no longer used. It was an attempt to give Espruar more elven and graceful look - but in newer editions of DnD the game creators decided to return to original Espruar design. 3e Espruar alphabet looks like this.

Personally, I like it more than original Espruar script ❤️

Some examples of elven names from BG3 written both in 3e Espruar and in original Espruar:

Espruar font and Old Espruar font are by Neale Davidson.

[kirain]

Question. How do you handle the age differences and life spans of your tavs/romances in bg3?

Are you asking if I've made my Tavs age-equal to the romances I've picked for them? If so, then I've actually been very careful about that. Lore-wise, I can't stand the thought of my character dying hundreds of years sooner or living hundreds of years longer than their partner. So I adhered to D&D 5E lore. If you're interested, I've explained most of the lifespans below.

Serena, my canon character, is human and romanced Gale. In D&D, the average lifespan of a human is 120 years, but since she and Gale are both wizards, they could potentially live for thousands of years. It all depends on the magic they wield. Elminster, for example, is nearly 1,300 years old. Otherwise, they'll age alongside each other as equals.

Saska is a Seldarine drow. On average they last between 400-750 years, depending on if they survive and leave the Underdark. Saska has indeed left the Underdark, works as a bard, and romanced Karlach. Tieflings typically live to 150; however, Karlach has the potential to live longer since her body has been so drastically altered. Upon finding a permanent upgrade for her engine, it's possible she could live just as long as a drow, if not longer, as she's been touched by infernal technology.

Ez'ria is a githyanki fighter/storm sorcerer. This one was easy, since she romanced Lae'zel. With any luck, they'll both live to a nice, healthy 120 years old; the average lifespan of a gith.

Eilonwy is my redeemed Dark Urge half-elf. On average they last about 180 years. This one's a bit more complicated because I partnered her with Astarion, who's a pure high elf and a vampire. High elves live to an average of 750 years, and vampires/spawn are of course immortal. But I've given this a lot of thought. Eilonwy, for example, is a druid, and because of their connection to nature/magic, their aging slows to 10% of what they would normally age. This means Eilonwy has the potential to reach 1,800. I should also mention that there are cures to vampirism in D&D 5E, so I like to think they find one at some point during their travels.

Bakara is a tiefling sorcerer of the draconic bloodline. Another semi-easy one, since I partnered her with Wyll. As I mentioned before, tieflings typically live to 150, whereas humans live to 120. I headcanon that my tiefling was already 50 when she met Wyll; who, according to Larian, is 24 during the events of BG3. To clarify, tieflings are considered young adults by the age of 20 and full adults when they reach the age of 60. So despite being 50, she's mentally around the same age as Wyll.

Thalias is a high half-elf Selûnite cleric. Possibly the easiest one, since he romanced Shadowheart, who is also a high half-elf who becomes a Selûnite cleric (at least in my game). With Selûne's blessing, they could live however long she desires, but on average they'll both live to be 180.

I also made an adorable little deep gnome named Mira to sweep Barcus off his feet. I shall wait patiently for Larian or a clever modder to make him romancable. The average lifespan for gnomes is 350 years.

Halsin is a bit more complicated, since he's a pure wood elf and a druid. This means he could conceivably live to be 7,500 years old, which is wild. I do plan on doing a playthrough where I romance him, and when I do I'll be making a mysterious wood elf named Arawen, a warlock who made a pact with an ancient archfey. So in addition to living to 750; as per the average lifespan of her race, as long as her pact remains in tact, she will live as long as her patron allows.

[narriose]

more doodles + new tav (not a cry for help /lie)