#i mean him and Karlach are super cute together

[errantgoat]

Camelia is past the halfway point of act 3, I might be done this week if I find the time to indulge for an hour or two every day...since I'm not doing every side-quest, and definitely not House of Hope this time around.

Also why the eff I believed the rumors Wyll's questline got cut?! SLANDER. I haven't done it yet... (his and Astarion's are left for me to finish) but it triggered normally. Maybe some dialogue during the quest itself got cut? We shall see.

After that...Astarion's origin playthrough. THE FINAL ONE GODS. I'm so excited for it, you have no idea, but it will take an iron will on my part to not goodie-two shoes him and not reach for those optimal outcomes. He is so very selfish. I mean one can choose to act 'decently' while having ulterior motives but this asshole might be too bloodthirsty and smoothbrained for it. :P

[bosmerbitch]

Hey ho! My name is Sky and I am here to play videogames and write videogame fanfiction like a proper adult!

My current fic is A Collection of Honest Compliments, wherein Sephina (Tav) and Astarion find their footing together and become a ridiculously sappy yet insanely dangerous power couple! Read it here!

Here’s the OC lineup:

Sephina

- tired of dealing with the party but is the only adult with half a braincell so she ends up being the one to make the most decisions

- insanely, nearly toxicly loyal to a fault to two people: her adoptive sister Lya and quickly Astarion (he reminds her of Lya and thus he has an easy in)

- she’s super normal and not at all hiding anything whatsoever. Haha 😳

- uses a mask of indifference to come across as neutral when in reality she’s actually rather ruthless

- “murder’s fine if it’s the best option”

- “can everybody please just get along” (← does not give a rat’s ass about anyone except two people and actively is ready to kill everyone else if they get in the way too much; understandably does not want people to know this, but is also getting a headache from all the bickering)

- compartmentalized trauma so often that she seems okay and well-adjusted until suddenly she really isn’t

- Anger management issues but like for actual reasons outside of her control

- just as fucked up as her adoptive sister and hides it under the mask of flirtation

- her and Astarion are too much alike in many respects and so they turn into 5 year olds pulling pigtails

- “fucking try me, asshole” (← will actively murder anyone who gets in the way of or hurts herself or her sister)

- impulsive but like she gets a pass because her life fucking sucked. And still sucks

- Actively freaking out at all times that she will lose her only family left in her life to a fucking tadpole of all things, not doing great

- Karlach is so very much her type that she can’t help but want to fuck her, but also hot tiefling is A+ distraction from certain doom

- the pairing is technically straight but they are Most Definitely Not and it Shows

- tadpoles have fucked with certain things that have to do with control; Astarion’s is the impulses he has to touch her, and thus an agreement between them is struck that touching is ok. Snowballs from there

- smitten best friends that disgust and confuse the whole party with their weird touchy-ness and habit of whispering and laughing like mean girls in highschool to each other

- we’ll admit how fucked up we are to each other but no one else. Deal? Deal

- hi I would kill for you :3 would you like me to? Is this person bothering you? Can I murder them? Pwease 🥺

- power hungry man meets powerful shortie who’ll whisper sweet nothings in his ear and make him actually interested in sex again because all she wants to do is make him feel good. Through cute bonding moments, plus murder and mayhem of course

- somehow the most romantic gentle couple even though they are. So fucked up. Like SO fucked up

[blackjackkent]

Quick camp chats before heading out on the road again. (I'm thinking about making straight for the creche actually, since Rakha definitely thinks it's the most important thing to do right now, and then circling back for final nautiloid map stuff on the way to the Underdark.)

Rakha questioned Gale much more thoroughly about Karsus and the fall of Netheril; even though it happened a long time ago, she's still hungry for any new knowledge, more pieces in her picture of the world. I think this is probably not the last time that he ends up just discoursing to her on some random subject or another; if there's one thing Gale can't resist, it's an attentive student, even if it's one fully capable of ripping his throat out in the wrong moment. He also explained, much to her disappointment, that there's no way she would be strong enough on her own to channel the Weave as they did together - that it requires intense study even for someone with a natural magical gift like her. She's quietly bummed about this; she was taken with the idea of showing it to Wyll.

Having talked to Dammon, we have the option to ask Karlach directly about the engine in camp. She's not willing to give the full story until the Paladins are dead, but does explain that it prevents her from touching anyone and how upset that makes her, that she can't have a hug. Rakha spends a lot of time thinking about this afterwards. She has had sex with Lae'zel and she has had Astarion's weight on her as he sucked the blood at her neck, but beyond this, her experience with physical contact of any sort is... limited. But Karlach's longing for it is obvious. It must be comforting, she decides. Like the blanket of the Weave around her. Like Wyll's hand on her arm was, last night.

Astarion is indignant about Gale's orb: "To think, Gale's had this devastating orb within himself the entire time, and only just mentioned it? Who'd keep a secret like that from his friends? You can't trust anyone these days." It takes Rakha a little while to work out that he is being ironic. His response to the question "What do you think we'll find at Moonrise Towers?" amuses me, because his phrasing feels deliberately calibrated for Rakha specifically: "Who knows? Drow? Mind flayers? Death? Hopefully not ours. But maybe answers, if we can convince the right people to talk." Death and answers are Rakha's two favorite things in the whole world.

Wyll is super cute and kinda shy. "Since the party, I've had a spring in my step, and I've got you to thank." Sadly none of the (positive) dialogue options quite fall in Rakha's blunt conversational wheelhouse, but we'll go with, "It was a lovely evening. I hope we can share even more." Because it's true - talking to him was the best part of the party for her by far. She doesn't fully understand her own feelings, but she is realizing she feels better near him than otherwise. He smiles. "I'm sure we will. And when the time comes... I've got something in mind." He raises a hand to forestall her as she opens her mouth to ask questions. "Now, now - no prodding. You don't want to spoil the surprise. But I'll say this... it'll be worth the wait." The odd sense of pleasant anticipation with which Rakha receives this information is a rather new concept for her. She isn't sure what he means... but she is curious to find out.

He also tells her a little bit about growing up as a Duke's son in Baldur's Gate. Most of his descriptions of court and nobility are somewhat lost on her-- more interesting is his description of the transition into becoming Blade of Frontiers. She asks if it was much of a change. "Yes and no," he answers. "Father taught me the four pillars of power - courage, insight, strategy, justice. He reckoned I'd follow in his footsteps, first as a Fist Marshal, then as a Duke. Vanquish evil, maintain order, save the world. But a duke makes bedfellows with more monsters than he slays. Father called it 'diplomacy'. I called it 'hypocrisy.' In the frontiers, there is no posturing, no diplomacy. I slay monsters; I don't consort with them, even if I might look like one." As usual, Rakha tucks away these foundational tenets of his philosophy to consider for herself. Courage, insight, strategy, justice. None of them mean as much to her as violence, hunger, survival, death. And yet they are, perhaps, something to aspire to, if she should ever learn to control the beast... She wonders about that last statement, though. Wyll claims not to consort with monsters - but he travels with Astarion. He travels with her. He travels with Gale and that bomb in his chest. There are many in their group who could be called monsters. What does he see when he looks at them? Does he see his presence here as just another sort of hypocrisy, deep down?

[mzyraj]

I did a (frankly too much) sims 4 legacying as the most available sims option to me now

But I went with one of my major blorbos rn, Astarion from BG3. And like many of my blorbos, he's kind of an asshole but also I love him. I don't have expansion packs to make him more vampire, but close enough

He ran into Dina Caliente pretty early on and turns out they're both flirty so they hit it off quite well (Note: I headcanon OG Astarion as at least very male preference bisexual, but legacy need baby so he can have a bit of ciswoman as a treat)

I got him in the crime career but between working and skill grinding he married Dina, who like her TS2 counterpart is very into money and so focused on her career in culinary stuff

She did not wind up taking much maternity leave for their only child (planned)

And they wound up with a baby girl, named after Karlach, as pale as her father

Though with her mother's green eyes as it turns out. Apparently at some point they added infants between babies and toddlers in TS4 which was very confusing for a good few moments there (also I remembered how to take normal pictures in the sims)

I'm not sure how much of a father figure Astarion would really make, but the two are cute together

Karlach really takes after her dad physically, she randomised the trait gluttonous and is also very social which became her childhood goal

And I played and played until she reached her teen birthday, with her parents mostly skill grinding, working and arguing because Astarion's mean when I'm not paying attention, while Karlach was an honors student with several friends (she might date a Landgrabb)

Trying to go for a little bit of an OG Karlach look (if you ignore the colouration), she randomised music lover and the gluttonous trait is an ongoing thing (I can't remember crap about TS4 tbh) so her goal is to follow her mother into being a chef (and her waistline will probably do the same as her mother's has as a result, oh well)

Astarion's a get away driver rn and his lifetime want stuff isn't going super well because it requires being soulmates with his spouse, which he lost because he keeps being an autonomous asshole to her, he's a few days away from old age now

Dina is a sous chef and just into full adulthood, perhaps I should have had her take a better paying career when I got her because her lifetime want stuff is about earning X simoleons and having so much in the bank account and... eh, I guess she might get there eventually

[tadbitfooled]

ship bias

Send ‘Ship Bias’ and I will share up to 5 Ships I have a bias for for my muse!

I shall give for all 4 of my mains with either a detailed explanation or a really vague shallow reason, in no particular order

Durante Faust

Lae'zel - because he needs a tough lady to top him I mean. Uh. I just think the whole opposite things with him being a silly avoiding responsibilities kind of guy and her super serious, very responsible-ness would be a fun balance.

Rolan just because Durante flustering him sounds fun

now for a type of character, he would need someone with a firm hand but not a tight grip, someone forward and sure of themself, but also able to have fun and play around a little bit.

Wyll - just because Durante seems to be the type to play romance but be keen to avoid it, but I think Wyll could break that because he's so damn charming

Karlach - Could be cute. They would have fun together and once again, lady to top him. But I think it could be an interesting dynamic to say the least.

Gwenifar van Hol

Oh, someone who's super flirty and charming because she does not ever get the hint that someone's flirting with her because she just...Doesn't register the idea someone could find her attractive. And they just keep trying and she just thinks they're being nice it'd be hilarious.

Halsin - I feel like Halsin would appreciate how she does so much to help others. And Gwenifar would appreciate his wisdom and his whittling. She likes to paint so it'd be cute if he whittled figurines and she painted them.

Gale because sage4sage nerd bullshit. But also I think they'd just be super soft and cute, and the sheer irony of cleric healer with a god who values all life x wizard with a chronic pain condition whose goddess told him to blow himself up is great.

Shadowheart - I have no exact reason but they vibe really well in the game and I think Shadowheart having someone who's supportive but also able to say 'hey you need to think this through' is really good for her.

Um for spice reasons because of Ilmater vs Loviatar stuff...Someone involved in Loviatar like Abdirak...idk like. spice.

Talilah Bluethorn

A drow would be fucking hilarious her father would have an aneurism but don't be like. An overly cruel drow or something. A little nerd drow would be fantastic.

Alfira and her girlfriend, Lakrissa because they'd all be adorable and make a really nice cuddle pile thanks

An arranged set up would be hilarious due to her father's bloodline. She would not be interested in it at all and it'd be funny if they weren't too and both tried to sneak out of the event, helped each other, and then one of the elders is like 'oh so great you two met' and they're like 'what.'

Wyll because folk hero and Talilah has that heroic background with what her entertaining troupe would do (steal from the rich, give to the poor) and just they would have such a fun dynamic with his charm and romantic attitude and how she could match that with some playfulness.

Astarion because I really enjoy the thought of them finding each other annoying when they first meet because he held a knife to her throat and she headbutted him, but then they like each other's humor and find each other attractive and eventually go 'uh feelings have been caught.'

Tavinkas

Shadowheart - amnesia buddies. They're both struggling with abusive gods and trying to figure themselves out so it would be a mutual situation, with being able to give each other the push they need to get on the path they need to be on.

Wyll - look. He's charming, heroic, but also needs support but is fully capable of giving support back. Sure, he needs a few wake up calls to his situation but he would be so gentle with Tavinkas and gods know that's what he so desperately needs.

Someone just able to be gentle and supportive. He desperately wants to have gentleness in his life, as it was never something he was allowed to have.

I want the angst of Gortash and Durge thanks. They've both been dealt bad hands and Gortash just went with it but Tavinkas decides to find a new path and leave him behind. Just drive that dagger in.

Gale because Tavinkas does like intelligent conversation and learning things and I think Gale would be very good for that. Tavinkas is skilled in magic but I think he'd like to learn the finer points of it and Gale would be delighted to discuss it.

[knbposting]

i've been trying to avoid this for a long time because i don't want to get hit with the allegations (insane) but hear me out. knb playing bg3 hcs. this is stupid.

kagami - i think kagami would love karlach best and he'd probably play her if he couldn't make a custom character (and if he ever played video games, which he doesn't). i think he loves the fire stuff, loves the barb, loves how badass she is, loves her attitude. he's a stan. but in terms of romancing people, i think he'd romance wyll because wyll is badass AND kind. and he relates A LIIIIITTLEEEEE BITTTTTTTT TOOO MUCH TO DISCUSS WITH ANYONE :) to the Paternal Problems wyll goes through i think. so he becomes a number 1 wyll defender.

kagami doesn't like shadowheart because he finds her secrecy frustrating and he doesn't have time to deal with her. he likes lae'zel because she's practical even if she is kinda brash (he appreciates that). shut up gale. fuck off astarion. halsin is fine, no big emotions either way. he doesn't even know you can recruit minthara until told much later on.

aomine - shadowmancer born and raised baby. he finds her annoying at first but it interests him, and he's like "fuck you i'm going to find out your secrets eventually, bitch" and that's that!!!! he likes lae'zel, thinks karlach is basically kagami so therefore refuses to confirm or deny if he likes her. shut the fuck up gale. shut up astarion, what do you mean you approve of that? oh lmao that was kind of funny actually. ok astarion you're alright. wyll is fine. recruits minthara. shut up halsin.

momoi - babies astarion because he reminds her of aomine in ways she refuses to elaborate on (and which doesn't make sense to the man himself). romances gale because she loves how nerdy he is and how he just knows everything about everything!!! intel KING! doesn't like lae'zel because she's noisy. karlach is fine. shadowheart is fine. wyll is super nice and she felt so bad about dancing with him and then turning him down :( halsin is yummy and she considers leaving gale to be with him. minthara is dead but on the multi-player game she has with aomine, they recruit her and her character romances her and they absolutely SCREAM at the cutscene. you know the one. that cutscene. she's trying to skip through and aomine's keeping the remote out of reach.

kise - astarionmancer and refuses to accept that there's any other way to play this game. that vampire is his MAN and there's nothing more to say on the matter!!!!!! he murders kagha at the grove but also misses out on saving halsin because he was fucking around in act 1 so :/ he doesn't recruit minthara. he loves shadowheart, loves lae'zel, loves wyll, gale is fine. karlach is fine. karlach reminds him of aomine (and he loves her). he and kagami have a multi-player game together and it's chaotic but good aligned. kise convinces kagami to hear astarion out. kise plays a durge in this pt and kagami is so glad he doesnt have to make any of those bloody decisions. he also loved the cute bard idr her name but hes >>:O when she... you know... durges it up.

midorima - he likes gale best but he isn't interested in romancing anyone. astarion is annoying. halsin is extremely annoying. karlach is noisy. lae'zel is not allowed on any missions because he cannot tolerate her. wyll is fine (he's a main). shadowheart can actually die. doesn't recruit minthara, doesn't care about halsin or the druids. he's studying medicine but he doesn't have any interest in the healers... interesting stuff.

takao - his multi-player game with mido is so dry because he just lets mido make all the decisions :/ like OKAY we won't take lae'zel out. FINE. i don't care. he does decide that his character is a druid bc he knows how mido feels about halsin, and insists that his character would want to work with him. midorima allows this. in his personal game tho takao is a rogue who talks a lotttt of shit. he likes astarion and minthara and has a high chaos run just for fun. his character is probably evil aligned bc he's having to be good aligned with mido's pt.

kuroko - loves wyll, stands by him through anything. doesn't like astarion, shadowheart, or gale. he picks lae'zel to follow primarily and essentially plays act 1 like she's the main character and his is just a side character (a... shadow...). he misses out on saving halsin. he doesn't romance anyone in the game. he has a multi with kagami momoi and aomine and it's a complete disaster. kagami wants to steam ahead to get karlach even tho he can't bring her in his party, aomine is making his busty tiefling character wander around in lae'zel's bdsm underwear because it's a "design choice". momoi is info-dumping about gale. kuroko basically doesn't get a word in but leads the group through thick and thin. kise joins when aomine cba that day and things go SO MUCH SMOOTHER.

akashi - starts playing but decides he doesn't like the lack of control he has. what do you mean he can't be a devil? let him be a devil. he wants to coerce people into making DASTARDLY DEALS with him. he is also an atrocious backseat driver with other people's games if he watches and though he mostly doesn't speak, he makes these little "hm." noises of disapproval when the person he's watching makes a choice. just PLAY THE GAME akashi oh my god

[blackjackkent]

Looking at the patch notes for patch 5! This is the first set of patch notes I've actively paid attention to and man, it's fucking huge!

Honestly, reading through this, I am just mind-boggled all over again about the scale and ambition of this game. Obviously there were (and probably still are) quite a few bugs, unexpected interactions, etc., but Larian have worked their fucking tails off to make a fully functional automated D&D combat system and a story that has a monumental amount of potential variables, and speaking as a programmer it makes my head hurt just thinking about all of the moving parts that must be involved in making this work.

And they seem to be blasting through fixes at an incredible rate too. This is a good development team who seem to have a brilliant combination of technical know-how, good humor, community-mindedness, and passion for their source material, and I'm incredibly impressed even in the short amount of time that I've been playing the game so far.

Obviously I already knew about the addition of the epilogues, which it sounds like makes the ending much more satisfying overall, but some other things that stuck out to me:

"While at camp, you can now access and manage the inventories of companions who aren't in your active party." Yesssss; this has been one of the more annoying aspects of the game up to this point.

"You can now sell and barter items inside containers when trading." This will simplify things for me given I have a System involving Karlach and Shadowheart each carrying a Bag Of Crap to sell.

"Improved grouping and sorting of items in containers while trading." Please tell me this means all the dyes will finally be grouped together when I try to buy them for hoarding.

"A romanced Minthara can now refer to her bond with you using a drow word for deep, unbreakable love." Minthara is probably coming a good deal later in priority on my playthroughs but this is cute.

"Withers will sneakily resurrect any dead companions that fell before the final battle so they can join the ending cinematics. What a helpful skeleton." Good job, Withers.

"The loading screen art now unlocks gradually as you progress through the game." That's a neat touch.

"Fixed occasional T-poses and frozen animations related to the Incapacitated condition." No more T-posing drunk goblins!

"Fixed the combat UI not automatically skipping to the next available party member after a controlled character dies." I think this was why Hector's whole party almost died to the Selune lasers. XD

"Two new play modes: Honour Mode and Custom Mode." No idea what that implies at all but I'm intrigued. More content!

"Improved Astarion's Ascendant route at-will gnome kiss for masculine body types." This is not relevant to any playthrough I'm currently doing but just reinforces what I was talking about above, regarding the incredible number of variables this game juggles (for the most part super successfully).

Also quite a lot of updates that just made me laugh:

"Boo will no longer take damage when thrown."

"When players start a combat inside the Elfsong Tavern, all the patrons will now cower instead of continuing to drink."

"You can no longer use the awesome force of bombs to flip the switch behind the final door in the Gauntlet of Shar to force the door to open."

"You can no longer loot the entire inventory of unconscious traders - instead you have access to a limited selection, as with dead traders. Nice try, pacifists."

"Added the intensely satisfying 'Ahhh' sound for players who Short Rest using a keybind rather than a UI button."

"Shar is now aware of Shadowheart's actions even if she is using Disguise Self."

"Using the lift in the House of Healing when in Turn-Based Mode no longer causes it to loop between floors indefinitely upon exiting Turn-Based Mode."

"Fixed a rare bug where Halsin would decide to turn into a bear whenever you went to talk to him at camp in the Shadow-Cursed Lands."

"If Wyll somehow managed to avoid Mizora's punishment for keeping Karlach alive, he'll be punished retroactively."

"Fixed Astarion accidentally telling the Dark Urge's future."

"Astarion no longer asks the Dark Urge about killing Isobel even if they didn't."

"You no longer comment on Mol if you haven't met her before."

"Locke no longer blames Zevlor for his death if Zevlor died in Act I."

"Fixed several instances of sleeping goblins waking up wanting a chat when they should have been hostile."

"Halsin will no longer forget about saving Thaniel if you travel back to Act I while he's waiting at the lakeside. Focus, Halsin."

"Players who arrive to the Ketheric showdown shape-shifted will have to face him person-to-person, not apostle-to-badger."

"If Isobel is thrown off her balcony, she'll make more of an effort to get back upstairs again."

"Fixed some beggars in the Brampton District facing the wrong way when asking for coin."

"Dame Aylin no longer waits ten days to bring up the time she killed Ketheric Thorm."

"We have convinced Shadowheart not to join the final nautiloid combat if she is already dead."

"Umberlee's worshippers are now considerably more security-conscious about the donations in the Water Queen's House. "

"Fixed a state where the Chamber of Insight trial could be both succeeded and failed."

"Apprentice Laridda will no longer assume you to be the bearer of bad (break-up) news if you didn't bring her the break-up message."

"Ravengard should now use the correct pronouns when addressing you during the ceremony in Wyrm's Rock."

"Karlach no longer thinks she's left the Hells when you explore the rocky outcrop near Hope's prison."

"Added a profanity filter for custom map markers. You'll have to find more creative ways to label the kennel master."

"Splitting a green dye stack in the Traveller's Chest at camp will no longer change the dye's rarity from Uncommon to Very Rare."

"The hanging cages in Cazador's dungeon will no longer tell you they're safe to step on, only to drop you to your death in the chasm below."

"Fixed Mirkon sometimes cowering in fairly deep water when you talk to him while he's running away from the harpies."

"Improved Cazador's home security by locking a chest and a door."

"Locked one of the Caza-doors."

"Fixed padded armour sometimes appearing as underwear on bigger body types. "

"A dead fisherman on the beach will no longer hint that you can find Shadowheart just ahead if you are, in fact, Shadowheart."

"Minthara's haughty stare will now correctly look at players she's talking to towards the end of the game. "

V excited to continue my playthrough, even more than I was already. Feels like we're in good hands. :)

[blackjackkent]

Karlach continues to be the cutest and Hector wants to hug her so bad.

"Oh my God, Soldier. That's Jaheira. *THE* Jaheira."

This is partly an exposition dump, but it's a super cute one because Karlach is so excited about it.

"You know her?"

TBH, I'm pretty sure Hector knows who Jaheira is too. I've already established he's had contact with the Harpers who have come through his monastery for research, and he is a massive history nerd so there's no way he doesn't already know about Caden and his party, Sarevok, Argent, Irenicus, the whole deal.

So this question is also adorable, because he is asking it purely because he can tell she is excited and he wants to hear her voice. When she gets excited and the words spill out of her like this, each syllable tripping over the next, it is strangely mesmerizing to him, invigorating. Her energy bolsters his own.

He likes to hear her happy...

"Not personally," she answers eagerly. "I mean - I *wish*. She's an absolute legend!" She begins to pace back and forth rapidly as she does when she has excess energy that she needs to shed somehow; he can feel the heat of her engine starting to pulse a little stronger. "Years ago, over a century, Jaheira was part of a group that saved Baldur's Gate from Sarevok. A Bhaalspawn trying to plunge the city into war. My mum used to tell us stories about them - the legends who protected the city from evil! She said Jaheira was a powerful druid - adamant, tough."

She stops pacing abruptly and looks at him with a wide grin. "I've told myself those stories a thousand times since. I *never* thought I'd meet Jaheira. She's a hero, and I was always...some Outer City kid. Can't believe she wants to talk to *us* about working together. What a day!"

He finds that he is grinning too. Her excitement is infectious and combines with the relief and tension release of their safe arrival here and he smiles until his cheeks hurt, more than he has smiled in weeks.