#yes Karlach does have multiple endings

[5mcsinatrenchcoat]

"Karlach Cliffgate is gone. Karlach Demonsbane is back" is doing a lot of a heavy lifting in that devnote about Avernus ending.

[fkitwebhaal]

My friends and I have had a very fun conversation which revolves around one question: if you are Ulder Ravenguard, which of the origin companions is the worst option for your son to bring home as his intended.

These were our conclusions:

Gale: one of the best choices as far as Ulder is concerned. College educated, well respected (well despite the orb thing), relatively well natured. Yes, he tends to talk about a subject to death and yes, he can be bitchy but if you gotta pick someone who can make it through a high class dinner without causing an incident from the party at whole, he’s one of the best options. Also he can cook.

Karlach: what Karlach lacks in high society experience she makes up for in sheer warm personality. The fact she fought in the blood war isn’t great, but it was against her will and she’s got a home town hero vibe to her. Yes, if Wyll dates her they will be trekking around Avernus BUT that means Ulder has a ready excuse why they can’t be at political functions: they’re doing hero shit. A solid and respectable choice.

Shadowheart: depending on where she ends up this varies widely, but she was at least part of a cult with an evil goddess, so not great for optics. She also doesn’t take bullshit and will talk shit about you to your face, which isn’t a great combo. However, she does like scheming and that is a point in her favor. Middle of the pack.

Astarion: there are multiple fantastic fics on why Astarion is Ravenguard’s nightmare of a son in law and they are all correct. However, Astarion is charming and assuming no one finds out about the vampire thing, and he’s not ascended, he can make it through a political gathering and not only charm everyone in the room but also get a handful of blackmail. He will absolutely cause problems for Ulder on purpose at the highest rate of any of these options which is why he is so low, but at least it’s on purpose. It could be worse but my God, Ulder is ordering extra ale for his nerves.

Lae’zel: funniest and worst possible option. Zero understanding of politics and zero desire to learn said politics that treated her fiancée like shit. Might take his son to fight a lich in another plane. Would deck a man for talking shit. Causes problems both on purpose but also completely on accident. 10/10 Ulder’s nightmare.

Bonus:

Durge: it in fact, could be much worse

[autistichalsin]

One thing that fascinates me with Halsin is how sometimes, the only way to get him to admit certain things is by being profoundly cruel to him as a player.

For example: the infamous post-Drow scene. He refuses to use the word "captors" to describe the Drow that held him (which is part of why I never got the impression he had actually healed, honestly, but that's a conversation for a different post). Even in the new scene, there is only one way to get him to call his abuse, his rape, what it was. 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."

This is the only option the player has that gets him to admit it, and it requires being unspeakably evil to him, threatening to sell him back to his captors.

He romanticized his past as a sex slave (both as a reaction to the Shadow Curse's stresses, and to make his slavery safer in his mind), but when you threaten to sell him back, you make it real for him again, and he is forced to admit it didn't matter if he did "some things that were less than necessary," he still didn't enjoy it, and yes, they were his captors, not his hosts.

The other example is getting him to admit he loves you. Unless you are playing as Origin Karlach (in which case he will use the word under different circumstances near the ending), he won't use the word love to/about you except as a term of endearment. He might use the words "my love", but never says "I love you."

Unless, of course, you decide to be an asshole and say you are breaking up with him, only to change your mind, multiple times, ignoring how increasingly upset he gets each time, accusing you of liking to see him crestfallen. And then, eventually:

"Why would you test my patience like this? Sometimes it is difficult to love you." (Emphasis mine).

Difficult to love you- but he still does. He doesn't break up with you after this, doesn't say this is the last time and next time you bring it up is it... nothing. He still loves you despite you toying with his heart. And much as above, it is the only way to get him to admit out loud that he loves you- by being a complete and utter bastard to him.

I just find it interesting. Sad, but interesting.

[thechaoticdruid]

°•IF THE BG3 COMPANIONS BABYSAT YOUR KIDS!•°

Lae'zel

Congratulations your children are spending an afternoon at boot camp!

You can rest assured they will be treated fairly at least.

No favoritism going on here.

Anyone who misbehaves shall be sent to solidarity confinement and left there until....Idk

If they want a snack they WILL have to fight one another in a duel to the death.

Or at least until one of them falls down and cries.

To the winner go the cookies.

Or more accurately maybe some giant space hamster jerky.

Karlach

This is assuming her engine has been fixed, naturally.

The kids absolutely love Auntie K.

Legit can carry them all on her shoulders at once.

She gives the best hugs too and is always so nice and warm.

She is up to play any games with them! Especially ones where she pretends to be a monster and chases them around.

Very protective of the little ones.

Brings them new stuffies each time she visits.

You MUST remind her constantly to watch her language around the little ones!

Gale

Arrives via magic portal.

Brings Tara to help him.

Takes it very personally if one of the children don't like him.

Tries to impress them via magic and creates a magical illusion to entertain the kiddos.

Attempts to teach them everything he knows about the weave.

Takes it very hard if the children fall asleep during his lecture.

Must be consoled by Tara.

If any take an interest in the weave they immediately become his favorite.

You'll probably end up coming home to your home appliances floating or having some kind of enchantment on them.

Halsin

Yes he turns into a bear and lets them ride on his back.

Most time is spent outside enjoying nature and all of its beauty.

Will carry the littlest one on his shoulders at all times.

Always brings healthy snacks, mostly fruit like apple slices.

Proceeds to take them to a nearby pond to feed the ducks.

Widdles them little animal figures to play with.

No TV or video games. The thought of technology taking over their lives makes him sick.

We play outside or we don't play at all.

Doesn't mind them grabbing at his ears, if they can even reach them that is!

He has to remind one of them multiple times that he unfortunately cannot turn into a dragon.

Sad sad truth.

Shadowheart

Makes cute little flower crowns with them.

Helps the little ones feel better if any of them are afraid of the dark.

Is very good at comforting them.

Possibly might be one of the older one's first goth girl crush.

Badmouths Lae'zel in front of them shamelessly.

Always puts on a tim Burton movie or something for them to watch.

Definitely the reason for any of their emo phases.

They think she's really cool though.

Wyll

Always the first to volunteer to babysit.

Man has the patience of a saint and can handle even the most unruly of children.

Always talks them up and is very careful to never put them down.

Tells them all kinds of exciting stories of his time as the Blade.

Makes sure to adjust them to be suitable for the kiddos.

Leaves out the scary parts.

If any of them are mean to one another and can't get along he's the type to make them each say something nice about the other as a punishment.

Let's them play with toy swords and teaches them a thing or two about using them.

Never raises his voice at them. Is super calm and collected.

Loves them all to pieces!

Also may or may not take them out to get ice cream if they're good.

Astarion

Assuming this is Spawnstarion we're talking about because the vampire Ascendant would just laugh in your face if you asked him then slam the door on you.

Our sweet little spawn will also likely laugh and think you're joking at first.

"You seriously want a vampire to watch over your children?"

Assuming you pay him and be sure to give him big sweet puppy dog eyes he may consider it.

This man is a very not my child not my problem kind of guy.

Gets annoyed with all the children asking tedious vampire questions and responds with very sarcastic answers.

Does not approve of them wanting to touch his ears.

Agrees to let them see his fangs in hopes to scare them (the mischievous little shit).

The children instead think they're cool, which confuses him. He really isn't sure how to feel about it.

Threatens to eat them if they get on his nerves.

Spends most of the time on the sofa, boredly reading a magazine or watching television.

Miraculously takes a shine to one of the younger girls who call him pretty and compliments his clothes and hair.

This is also given the girl is a little mischief gremlin who pulls pranks on her older siblings.

He lets her paint his nails purple or red while she gossips about her mother/father's new partner or her siblings.

Unapologetically shows her favoritism and lets her sit on his lap and watch TV with him.

Will not bat an eye if the other children run a muck and destroy shit.

Legit just keeps watching TV. Probably some drama filled 'reality' show.

He actually finds the chaos caused by the children quite amusing.

One of the children somehow ends up on the roof.

Once the parents are home and it's time to leave. The youngest girl gives him a hug.

His eyes get all big and round and almost threaten to tear up.

Astarion is not asked to babysit again.

Sorry some of them are so short, I mostly write for Astarion so I'm not very confident at doing the other characters.

Hope you like it though!

[sae1549]

More very random head cannons. -SFW—NSWF-

Characters mentioned: Astarion, Gale, shadowheart, laezel, Wyll, Karlach, Minthara and Halsin +1

Content warning: hair pulling, oral f/recieving & m/recieving, knife play, size kink, predator/ pray kink.

Word count: 3.2k

Astarion

-SFW-

- He has a very gravelly voice in the morning that lasts around 25 minutes.

- He absolutely loves cats. And later you end up moving to the underdark, you both adopt a cat that is able to travel alone to get the things that they need. He sees it as your baby and treats it as such.

- He is the person you go to if you want any gossip. When you both get to the underdark I could see him becoming a bartender or something like that. Where he can swindle people of their money while having fun doing it.

- He can cook. Contrary to him not eating normal food anymore he was once human. But he will look over cookbooks for a while if you tell him that you would like to try his cooking.

- He dislikes flowers, of course he thinks that they are beautiful but they do not live long. He gets sad because he links that thought to losing you. So he tries to keep those thoughts away from him.

- He absolutely loves shoes, he can rant and rave about them, when everyone was in camp he would like to go up to gale the most. He really liked his shoes, even going as far as stealing them. Only to have a grumpy gale walking through camp with his arms crossed pushing Astarion over and taking his shoes back.

- Astarion has to clean himself in his bat form as well as his normal form. So he takes extra long in the shower. But he gets so fluffy!

- He starts seeing a therapist after everything is settled in the underdark.

- He loves to give forehead kisses.

- Astarion loves to be called beautiful!! Call him beautiful often!!!!!

- When you ask him what his natural eye color is he thinks about it for a while getting back to you telling you that they were a steel blue.

- He does not have many things, but he wants to some day. So without him noticing you slowly start to give him little things here and there. Like an extra bedroll that you had, a blanket. Some new pillows, candles, anything that you can find that you think he would like to make him more comfortable.

- He loves horror movie nights!!!!!!!!!

-NSFW-

Ascension ver.

- When he is ascended he does not care as much if you get off first.

- He would be a lot more rough, biting much more feverishly and more often.

- He would give you head, but he would not do it for long.

- He knows exactly how good you are feeling, but will make you tell him.

- He is the dominant one.

- He will take up multiple partners as he expects you to do the same. He would go out of his way to ask if you would want to add another partner into your nightly activities.

- His sex drive would increase greatly.

- He sets a brutal pace.

- He likes to tease.

- He would not fall asleep after doing it, but he would ask you about what you liked and how he did.

- He lets you rest your head on his lap to fall asleep after.

Gale

-SFW-

- Man can sing. But mostly does it when he is bathing or concentrating. Quite interesting to hear for the first time when you are in battle together. Singing in a tired gravely voice before shooting off another spell.

- He tried to convince Tara to let him dress her up in a cute little outfit one time. He left around 30 minutes later covered in scratches. That is to say he does not make those comments anymore.

- He likes painting from memory, yes he can control the weave but he would like to have some sort of proof if there was ever a day when he could no longer handle the weave any longer.

- When coming back from a particularly hard day, if you massage his shoulders a bit he will melt into a puddle and fall asleep.

- His favorite juice is apple juice.

- Always likes books more than movies. Does not matter if it is actually a good movie.

- He keeps photos of you on hand so he can show his students. And they know so much about you and he wants to ask if you would visit his class to shed some light on recent events. Totally not an excuse for him to see you more.

- He likes his food hot, even his salads. All food needs to be hot.

- Loves silver jewelry, his wedding ring is silver with purple stones embedded into the ring. You have the matching version obviously but it is a wide band with white and purple stones honored on the ring.

-NSFW-

- He is into pulling hair, if things are getting a bit more rough. You are sitting on his lap. Getting into a very heated makeout session, in a heated kiss his hand snakes up onto the back of your head, seating itself into your hair. The other hand softly rocking you back and forth. He breaks away from the kiss. “You are quite breathtaking my love.” He says through slightly labored breaths, he grips and gently pulls on the hair at the back of your head. Swiftly latching his lips onto your neck.

- He does like when there is a bit of lightheartedness while making love, but it is serious so he will always go back to being more serious.

- He likes to lay in the sun after finishing, watching as you also bask in the light, he thinks it makes you look ethereal.

- He would go at a moderate pace, and would not have very good rhythm when he first starts.

- He thinks it is a bit romantic to have music playing while enjoying eachothers company. So there will be soft piano playing in the background.

- He definitely uses magic, mage hand would come in handy, being able to bind your hands for a little rougher session.

- He does not own any toys, but would be okay with owning some if it helped you get off better. He would end up enjoying it immensely.

- Public sex is something that he could be talked into. As long as it is somewhere where less people are. But there is still the thrill of possibly being caught.

- He masterbates from time to time, it is not often. But if you are not around and he is fully alone then he would enjoy himself.

- His stamina is not very high, but he can fully please you and a little more if he is asked.

Lae’zel

-SFW-

- She would keep a collection of rusted or busted knives to fix while at camp. It helps her calm down plus it gives her something to look forward to.

- She would eat dinner at either 5 pm or 10 pm no in between.

- Talks to herself all the time. Saying she is the best therapist she knows.

- Her favorite color is Silver.

- She likes to read before she goes to bed.

- She also likes to sit on a high point at the camp to look at the stars.

- She would be an astrology girl. And would believe it completely.

-NSFW-

- She is the top.

- She is a biter, lightly gliding her teeth across your skin. She loves to feel you shiver from the touch she is giving you.

- She is not loud, and does not want you to be loud either.

- She would be 100% serious in bed. No laughing, no jokes.

- She has a moderate sex drive.

- She is a C cup.

- She would not fall asleep directly after having sex. She would wait until you fell asleep before she would sleep.

- She would have a small collection of toys that she would bring into your sex life.

- She has a lot of stamina, she would want to go more than one round if you are up for it.

Wyll

-SFW-

- He liked bugs when he was a kid.

- He really likes spicy food, and will go out with Karlach to find it.

- Has a very big sweet tooth, and loves to share it with everyone in camp. He has a whole pocket in his pack dedicated to sweets. Giving them away to children you may meet. It makes him feel extra happy if there is a group that he can give it to. But he has a special place for candy that you specifically like, which he gives to you when you feel down.

- He loves Halsin, and goes to him for advice about his father.

-NSFW-

- He loves sensual romantic sex.

- He could get off to kissing. You don’t even have to fully have sex to get him all riled up.

- Man is cheesy, he will set this up when you are living together. Setting out roses leading from the front door to your bedroom. When you walk into the bedroom it is enveloped in a warm soft glow of candlelight dancing over the horned man laying across your bed that is also covered in flower petals in the shape of a heart. “Welcome home my sweet.” He would say in a sultry voice, getting off the bed to meet you. Taking a rose off the table and handing it to you.

- He would be really good at praising you.

- “Tell me how good I make you feel.”

- He is not very experienced, but that is okay, he is very willing to learn.

- He likes things to be more serious in the bedroom, but a soft giggle or smile would not go missed.

- He would have a slow pace, he would want to take his time and enjoy every moment.

Shadowheart

-SFW-

- She loves yoga. And will do it every chance that she has downtime to do it. But it is mostly just her stretching.

- She would be a Hello kitty girl, and would own so many of the stuffed animals.

- She hates classical and post- disco music. But would love R&B and jazz music. Shadow heart in the garden with soft music playing in the background. She hums along while you are on the opposite side of the garden. This was an activity that you both loved to do. She would be dressed comfortably in a shin length skirt that was covered in loose soil. She turned the music on a little louder, swaying from side to side as you both worked together, sharing in kisses here and there. It was quite an eventful afternoon.

- she hates orange juice. Like genuinely hates it and will get upset if you give it to her.

- Likes a good cup of tea. With very little sugar. But if she were to have coffee she would want a lot of sugar but no cream.

- She wants a flower garden.

- She would end up being a plant girlie.

-NSFW-

-She is somewhat experienced. Having done it with a handful of people at most.

- She would get her nipples pierced. I think it would make her even more confident than she already is.

- She is very confident in bed, she is fully okay with taking charge or letting you take control.

- She would try almost anything once. Outside of things that would hurt her too bad.

- When you are in the comforts of your own home she is really into bondage. Being bound really excites her.

- She is serious while doing it, you can laugh during it. But she does want it to be a more serious moment shared between the two of you.

- She would prefer a faster pace, it would drive her wild.

-She is a B cup.

Karlach

-SFW-

- She gets very protective of scratch, he lays near her when going to sleep for a very long time.

- She loves going swimming since it cools her down. But will refuse anyone to go with her since the water around her would get way too hot. And possibly boil anyone going in there with her. But that is in fact how she has gotten you dinner before. When everyone was literally starving and going off wine and grape soup for the 4th day in a row. Karlach brings back fish. And sets them on the table. She announced that we will be having something different for dinner than the normal everyone was so excited that they forgot to ask. Later on that night she told everyone. And was met with a still silence. Before someone cleared their throat and everyone went right back to conversation.

- She would drink a lot of water to try and cool herself down.

- Her favorite color is Blue.

- She likes doing yoga to stay limber.

- She smells like Vanilla and Amber.

-NSFW-

- She is the top, no questions asked.

- She would have nipple piercings if she could. But her heat would have them melting to her skin. So she just settles for real and natural.

- She is not very experienced. Since she was always fighting for others she never got to find much pleasures of the flesh. But don’t worry she is a quick learner.

- She would definitely be goofy in bed, joking here and there. But does know when to be more serious.

- She would enjoy slow and steady pace, she would also enjoy taking her time. But also loves a brutal pace from time to time.

- She is a D cup

Minthara

-SFW-

- She would jump out and scare children if she could.

- I feel like she eats the crust first on pizza.

- Despises ranch.

- She ends up wearing glasses later in life.

- She would only eat while standing.

- She likes red wine, and will always ask if you would like to join her in a drink.

- She becomes softer and a bit nicer when you start to get close to her.

- She could fall asleep standing up. She is also a really light sleeper.

-NSFW-

- Scary in a hot way.

- She would be into knife play. Holding a knife to yours not the other way around.

- Top.

Her favorite part of her partner's body would be the neck. Thinking that it could be the quickest way to kill you in case you threaten her. But also that it is so sensitive and gives wonderful responses when kissed.

- Gives absolutely amazing head.

- She likes the predator prey dynamic, finding it quite thrilling to chase before taking what is hers.

- loves to see you in skirts (if you wear them) Or really tight fitting pants. And will tell you all about it in confidence later.

- She is quiet, she does not moan too much.

- She is very experienced, she has enjoyed many pleasures of the flesh. And is ready and willing to show you everything she has learned.

- She is very serious during the deed, there would be no laughing.

- Brutal pace or nothing. She wants to go hard and fast bringing herself and you to a high quickly before doing it again.

- She is a D cup.

Halsin

-SFW-

- He walks around barefoot. You question how his feet are still intact from all the rough places that you have traveled together.

- He literally sleeps on the ground for more than half of the time he is in your camp. I think he just didn’t know how to bring up that he didn’t have a bed roll and just waited till he could buy one. He will never tell you that though.

- He cannot handle spicy food in the slightest.

Likes plum juice, and would drink it all the time if he could.

- He has joint pain, so he sits on the ground to relieve a bit of the pain and stress off them. He will often ask if you would like to join him for a walk. When you say yes you both walk together for a few minutes before he sits on a rock in the woods. You sit down next to him and continue your conversation. For a long while. You knew why you had stopped, This had become a favorite spot to stop for him while you are in this area. Before he got up and continued walking. He would give you a soft warm smile as you walked holding hands.

- He will carve you small gifts and sneak them into your pack as long as you have the room.

- he would partake in the grass. But would be away from anyone else so they are not bothered by him.

- He likes fruit and vegetables over meat.

-NSFW-

- He is quite fluid, anything you want to do or try he would be down to do it.

- He loves when you kiss his neck, the tenderness will make him melt.

- His ideal place to do it is in a field of flowers, or a forest area where there is a soft patch of moss.

- He likes to bite, gently of course. But he gives soft nips and bites any part of their body. Loves leaving hickeys.

- We all know this man is experienced, he is ready and willing to give you all of that experience.

- He can be goofy during, he likes when things are lighthearted but sensual.

- Animalistic pace, or soft and sensual no inbetween.

- High sex drive.

- He only masterbates when he has not gotten action in a long time. But would find a very secluded area to do so.

- It takes him a long time before he falls asleep after. But when he does he sleeps like a rock.

- he thinks you being smaller than him is very hot. Definitely has a size kink.

A little extra…

Rolan

-SFW-

- He thinks it is funny when people try to cast magic and it fails.

- He ends up taking on an apprentice.

- When he has down time he would read all the books that were in the tower.

- When he would go back to his tower after the events of the game he would be sad seeing many of the books, but went in to look for survivors that may have been inside.

- He was a spoiled child, but he grew out of the spoiled attitude.

- He is only sweet in private.

- He would not be into PDA. But does kiss you when no one is looking.

- He wants to be able to teach people magic. But, would treat them all wonderfully. He would be a great teacher.

- He would smell like cedar and old books.

- When he blushes the blush spreads over his face and up to his ears.

-NSFW-

- His favorite part of his partner's body would be their hands.

- He thinks that it is so hot to cum on your face and chest. The thought alone would make him cream his pants.

- He is not experienced. He has not been able to experiment while on his travels.

- He is loud, his moans can be heard from a fair distance away.

- He loves to degrade.

- Power bottom on a good day. Bottom.

- He can get really shy when asking for alone time.

- He loves when you take charge and tell him what to do.

- He has moderate stamina. But will only want to go for one round.

- He will fall asleep soon after finishing the deed.

————————————————————————

I'm sorry for any of them being shorter than others. I have not been able to do all of their story lines yet. I am slowly working towards finishing them all. So if any of my head cannons are very off from the characters I am very sorry! Thank you!!

[bitethedevil]

Am i delulu or does raphael admire tav/durge? I know its him performing, but as gale says "inviting to dine with devil is devils equivilant of serenade and roses" and first scene where we meet him he does eye tav/durge througly from bottom to top. Also he says "im fan of your work" to durge. So idk?? It lowey feels like raphael is fond of us in game but i need proof/ professional analysis. [Ahem you are the professional mouse afterall heehee~]

He Loves Us, He Loves Us Not: What is Raphael’s Relationship with Tav/Durge?

*Puts on my little mouse glasses* I’m glad you asked. I’m summing up a few points that I have also written about in another analysis called ‘Raphael and weaponized mortality’, so if that sounds interesting, you can find it in my reading list.

Everything about Raphael screams wolf in sheep’s clothing (or a cambion in man’s clothing if you will). Here are a few points illustrating this:

Cambions naturally have a really predatory kind of stench to them because they are entirely carnivorous. Yet, he is described as a perfumed trickster who smells of cherries and sulphur, most likely because he is trying to cover up that smell.

Poetry, an art that is very dependent on nasty mortal concepts such as ‘feelings’, is something we know he uses a lot. He’s not really good at it and he even says it’s not his ‘main interest’ to Karlach in the second act. His theatrical nature and use of poetry humanizes him, and I think he is well-aware of this.

When you call him out as a devil in front of Mol, he says something about how she wouldn’t believe them anyway, ‘not with his angelic complexion’. We also know that Gortash’s parents sold him to a ‘warlock’ and that’s how he ended up with Raphael. I’ve seen multiple places that that warlock is supposed to be Raphael himself.

Now this all makes me believe that he usually does not reveal his true nature to his clients unless: 1) they’ve already signed, or 2) they are so utterly fucked that they have already reached the point of no return with him and are forced to take his deal no matter what.

Yet, he reveals his true nature to us from the get-go. Yes, one could argue that the tadpole-gang does fulfill option 2) according to him and that’s why he does it, but I think it could also be something else. I think he knows from early on that we are his best bet, so he chooses to lay out all his cards on the table and tries to build as much trust as he can from the beginning.

This is also the function of helping us with Astarion’s scars. Dealing with a devil when you’ve never dealt with one before? Scary. Dealing with a devil when he has proven once before to keep his word? Much less scary. He’s ‘grooming’ us for trusting him to keep his word with THE deal (and he gets to fuck over Daddy Meph by potentially robbing him of a lot of souls. Win-win.)

I think Gale is right on the money when he says that it’s ‘a devil’s equivalent to serenades and roses’. Raphael is like a bird or something. He’s showing off, charming us, but also reminding us that he is big and scary. Although despite the fact that he is big and scary ‘he simply wants to help us’.

He’s done his research and already knows everything about us, so he knows exactly how to play us. This is demonstrated in the comment to Durge in the beginning and the thing he says in Last Light if you tell him he knows nothing about you: “Don’t I indeed?.

I really think that we turn into an obsession for him at some point and that the lines between the obsession about the Crown and his obsession about us blurs. This seems definitely to be the case in his journals. I mean the poor guy has nightmares about us…

I also am so sure that he is not even trying to trick us into anything with the Orphic Hammer. He truly does believe that the Emperor is a threat to us. See this:

I DO think he admires us or at the very least is heavily rooting for us. I don’t remember the exact quotes, but Korrilla tells us in Sharess’s that her and Raphael made a bet about if we would make it to the Gate, and Raphael won that bet because we had. He really believes in our merry little band of idiots.

His reaction if we betray him is also very telling I feel like. Notice how his eyes widen for a moment before they narrow and say the ‘You’ line. He seems surprised. In that whole sequence he is obviously pissed, but most of all I also just get the feeling of a man that has been humiliated and who is angry that he had put so much time, work, and trust into us.

He says that ‘he is fond of us, in his way’ and that I completely believe. It might not be out of love or affection or anything like that, but he is as fond of us as a cambion can be of someone. We’ve grown on him, and he sees potential and use in us. We fascinate him and I’d even go as far to say that he respects us. I feel like even if you give him the Crown of Karsus and he gets to rule the Hells, he will not forget the people who brought him there. He would not flaunt the fact that he had mortals help him get the Crown, but I think that when he goes on his spree to fuck up the realms outside the Hells, Tav and gang would at the very least be spared or even given privileges in that new world order. Is that a bit fucked up? Yeah…But we have to remember what he is: a devil.

(Thank you so much for the ask <3 That became a long answer. I love to yap lol)

[preciouslittle-bhaalbabe]

Thoughts about Ascended Astarion! (This is a long one, and I'm not trying to change anyones opinion, just highlighting the fact that the player is in complete control of the situation at all times. This game is about choices.) First off, I don't usually prefer to ascend him. But I love all versions of Astarion. His character is so well written and all of his arcs deserve praise and attention no matter what your personal opinion of them are. The devs did an incredible job. If any parts of his arc (ascended or spawn) make you uncomfortable, then romancing him isn't for you. If the dynamic between AA and your character makes you feel scared or upset, don't ascend him. That dynamic is supposed to be 100% consentual. He's a tough nut to crack and his story can be very triggering. I myself broke down a few times hearing him talk about what he went through. There are other companions with lovely character development that you can choose. When people go "ugh he's ruined I didn't want this" My dear, with all due respect. This is the dark fantasy romance option. Emphasis on the fantasy. You didn’t get his approval by being nice. It's not like he's the only option. You chose to romance the vampire. The game warns you of what exactly you're about to do multiple times. You willingly help him murder thousands of people for freedom. A vampire who was a literal slave for longer than he was even alive for just got a MASSIVE amount of power. Were you expecting he was gonna just be a good guy now? He has had NOTHING for so long. His entire life trajectory changed within moments. He’s still figuring himself out. You as the player are still completely in charge. He owes everything to you and he knows that. You can walk away at literally any point. He asks you to kneel and obey to establish trust and a dynamic. To confirm this is what you want. YOU CAN SAY NO. Then, he gets right down on the floor with you. He's either gentle or rough based on your choice. If you don't like the vibe just break up with him at that point like he literally lets you do. Or, even just reload the save. But just remember. "That's what you want, isn't it?". When Astarion ascends, Neil says it best. His mask is off and he's allowed to be at his most terrible with no fear. He doesn't have to perform or be aloof as a distraction from the pain anymore. He was never good aligned. But now, he has the power and ability to give himself and his favourite person the life he thinks they wanted. Otherwise why would you ascend him? His love language becomes acts of service and gifts. He ADORES tav to almost obsession. He's always doting on them and calling them his. The ritual only amplifies that. "but what about what he says if you convince him not to go through with it?"

He’s not lying. He knows tav saved him from himself. It is technically the “good” ending. But that’s not what matters here. The ascension is for characters who are not good aligned. It is for characters that are just as much of a power hungry monster as ascended Astarion is. They want to be a monarch that rules the world over. It’s a role playing thing. Is it wrong? That’s for you to decide for yourself. Not others.

"but what about karlach? He's a massive jackass to her when he ascends" ...Yes. He's not a good guy. Karlach is basically the goodest character in the game. It won't work. And if you do break up with him, he lashes out and says some extremely hurtful things. Because you just broke his heart. It's a perfectly normal response from someone being completely blindsided. He thought you wanted this. You said you wanted this. After everything you both did you get here, he feels betrayed. Not even to mention ascended Astarion does not make you just a regular spawn. You quite literally become his vampire spouse. He thanks you for putting your trust in him. Then eventually you become a true vampire with time. He wants to make sure tav doesn't go insane after being turned. If you wanna learn more about vampire spouses in DnD I highly reccomend doing some google searches. It's fascinating. Is ascending him the right thing to do? No, but it's not "wrong". The game doesn't work that way. Is keeping him a spawn the right thing to do? Maybe, if your character thinks it is. Either route has their sets of pros and cons. It's up to you which ones you think work for your playthrough.

I almost always convince him not to go through with the ritual. But ascended Astarion + durge is a power couple and the vibes are immaculate for evil runs. Just have fun with the game! The devs made all these character arcs for you to explore! Thanks for reading <3

[itsybitsylemonsqueezy]

Wow, my Baldur's Gate 3 post blew up somewhat... nice. Well, time for more headcanons, of the unapologetically horny variety. (Yes, yes, I know everyone and their mother has done this already, well here's mine. Nyeh.)

Including: Astarion, The Emperor, Gale, Halsin, Jaheira, Karlach, Lae'zel, Raphael, Shadowheart, Wyll, and Zevlor

Tumblr is run by unfun prudes who would like my 30-year-old thoughts to remain Chaste and Pristine™ so filth under the cut until they ban me or whatever

Astarion

So the truly hilarious thing about Astarion is that he claims to be a pillow princess, but is almost always a dom. Like, I find it very funny that he enjoys the Aesthetics™ of being a spoiled brat, too delicate and pampered to lift a finger, but in reality, he's a bit of a work horse who finds having nothing to do dull as rocks.

Not to say that he doesn't enjoy receiving, I fully believe he does, but I think it's mostly relaxing at best and dissociative at worst. We'll assume though he's with a trusted partner for now though, rather than deal with the Hang Ups. I think inevitably he'd eventually roll over and change positions and end up in charge. I think it's an undeniable itch for him, even when he's being treated very well. There's just something so enthralling and exciting about being in control and playing with someone. It gives him a satisfying challenge the way being a pillow princess doesn't.

I think sex is particularly about aesthetics for Astarion as well. Bondage, costume, the art and immersion of it would be appealing. Role play would naturally extend out of this, especially as a safe outlet for some of his more complicated feelings. Succeeding at multiple layers of social interaction and intimacy would be extremely rewarding for him, I think.

He's also a very giving lover. I'm not sure praise would quite do it for him, that's not exactly his build. The submission though... oh yes, that does wonders. And he's very keen to reward that submission with nice things, sweet things, unbearably sweet, more than you can take... that's the kind of torture he's into, whining, begging, pleading, from the too muchness of it all, from how good he's being to you... mmm, yes, that's the stuff. It's soothing to understand you can be in control and not hurt people, to know that the control is not corruptive, not a bad thing in itself. I think it'd do a lot for his confidence and self-image.

Also, very into feeding as a sexual thing. He is a hedonist after all, more pleasure is more pleasure.

(The) Emperor

Hey, haters to the left, please. We believe in free love here and that includes the tentacle-y kind.

Look, okay, the dude comes on... strong. Too strong, to be honest. A little overly possessive, overly needy, but there is a hot, sweet core in there. And with a little patience, time, and reassurance, that can be honed into a respectful balance. If you can be patient and take your time, you can help him understand that he doesn't need to be in your every thought or be constantly touching to still have a deep bond. Do gotta watch those tendencies though.

That said, tentacles are a gift! Strong, dexterous, perfect for holding, squeezing, manipulating, and of course, inserting. It's hard to imagine a more intuitive metaphor for desire than tentacles, constantly grasping as they are. And boy, the Emperor wants. Also potentially has some experience using these, probably has a fair idea of how to make this good for both of you, so a pretty good bonus there.

While the Emperor tends to think he knows best and never enters anything without a plan, I think he'd be willing to take instruction. Your pleasure would be a point of pride so if something could be going better, I think he'd listen. Communication reaffirms trust after all. It's no dishonor to be spoken to or even commanded.

Honestly not sure illithid experience pleasure outside of making you orgasm and just like voyeuring or skimming the pleasure off your brain, so it's probably all about you here. Which also means we're probably not looking at marathon sessions; it'll be just the right amount of attention to a big, satisfying orgasm and then warm, languid rest. But the trick is, you're not going to get any gentle, casual encounters. His focus is unparalleled so it's very hard to back off of 100. That's fun, but can be exhausting, especially if you like a bit of variety.

Gale

Sometimes it's hard to see what Mystra saw in Gale; other times it's blinding. He's the most self-congratulating, infuriating, annoying bastard you know and he's also, somehow, perfect. What the fuck. The basic problem with Gale is that he'll tell you, to your face, that he fucked a goddess and when and where and how and the worst thing of all is he's not lying; he's actually good.

Gale has the enviable qualities of simultaneously being very laid back and very enthusiastic. He's happy with whatever position you suggest and is just thrilled to be invited. Throws himself into whatever's on the table.

Not to say that he doesn't have ideas, god, but he never shuts up about his ideas. And they're all, frustratingly, really good ideas too! "Oh, well I thought since we're in the hot tub, a little ice in my fingertips might be electrifying." "Have you considered the effects of shifting local gravity so you could ride me longer?" "I've taken the liberty of enchanting your dildo so you can feel it when you peg me!" God, don't you just hate him for being right all the time?

And to make matters worse, the stupid prick is full of wondering adoration for you, always trying to give you the best time possible, the best time ever. And he cares So Much he even notices if The Most Sensations Ever isn't the right thing right now and adjusts. He's just as happy to sit and cuddle or read next to each other. Ugh, disgusting. It's like someone made him in the Best Lover Conceivable factory and blew the whole budget on just him! Like, why Mystra gotta ruin the dating scene like that?!

Trouble is, he's obsessively good at doing exactly what you want because he was groomed by a goddess so... 😬 Sometimes you have to remind him he's enough. Sometimes you have to let him know that he isn't as good as what he could do for others, that he was already good, just on his own. Sometimes you gotta take care of him because he won't remember and he won't realize. And he might pout and object, but he deserves a good time too. Not that he wasn't having a good time but... you know what I mean. Let him be the focus.

Gale's very into attention and a slow, sweet time. Work him up painstakingly, bring him to the edge of begging, tell him what a good boy he is. He'll be crying with pleasure. Don't let him rush, rushing is a cheap shortcut and it means he doesn't have to endure being adored just as much as he adores you. It's the only time he'll ever be shy, having to accept love. But this should also, of course, always be paired with letting him reciprocate. One-sided affection or interaction would be torture for the poor boy. He wants so badly to be good, but gotta temper that a bit with reminding him he already is.

Halsin

Oakfather giving Mystra a run for her mother for "ruining the dating scene" with this one. Only The Oakfather went "thicc whores only" and the world cried amen for we were blessed.

What can we say about this polyamorous icon that hasn't already been said? Well, perhaps counter to some above examples, Halsin blessedly doesn't have to be at 110% all the time. Having a soft time is just as good as a rough ride. Although... we all know you're getting more of the latter on average, right?

The nice thing about Halsin is you don't have to worry about him denying himself or doing things just because he thinks you want them; he's a master of balance. He absolutely has his own personal, selfish desires and he knows how to serve them in turn. There's something refreshingly organic about Halsin's attraction, he's into you for perceptible maybe even measurable reasons, you don't have to worry about what's going on in that beautiful head of his so much.

A lot of energy in this one though, gotta be aware of that appetite. But hey, if you're into Halsin, you're probably open to maybe a couple more partners, together or separately. Halsin is certainly down for all of those combos.

Very generous lover, not satisfied until you say so. Down for any length of time, any position, but he strikes me as a man who's not into a lot of frills. Sex is about the physical pleasure, those animalistic instincts, and the kinetic energy between people being used and blended to create something more, something almost beyond us. A lot of artifice and dressing up wouldn't make a lot of sense to him and he's not likely to get much out of it. Don't think he'd yuck your yum, but unlikely to participate himself.

Might even prefer multiple partners at once and the longer the session the better. Short sessions are possible, but he's not going to enjoy it as much unless he can get really into the rhythm of it. Again, it's about balancing the energy, which often involves a bit of warm up and getting into the groove to truly satisfy. If one partner, high energy is best if possible. Come in with some goals in mind or you might get overwhelmed. Wouldn't be surprised if sometimes Halsin doesn't come at all due to his unreal stamina and thresholds.

Can't think of a better teacher to help you try something new though. Patient, kind, thoughtful with feedback from long experience. And he's incredibly appreciative of the unique skills every person has, the things only they bring are always valuable to him, something to be cherished and enjoyed. One of the few people who can be instructive, encouraging, and erotic all at the same time. It's a rare breed.

Jaheira

I'd let Mama Harper boss me around any day. And she is decidedly the boss, she's been giving orders since before I was born and that isn't about to change. Strong dom MILF energy here. And she definitely knows what she wants so those orders are going to be clear and consistent.

I don't think the strap is her preference, but I don't think she'd be opposed. But as another druid, I think she likes to go in bare handed, as it were. And, to be fair, she doesn't need help, I've seen those hands work a lash. She's strong and flexible, whatever you ask for she can give. She seems to have less in the raw energy department than Halsin, but I'll chalk that up to not being chief. I think it would take awhile to wear her down though, can't take her for fast or easy. Just like Halsin, I bet she prefers longer sessions to shorter, but would probably be a bit more flexible on this.

I think her real specialty is probably ropes, any kind of bondage. And she seems keen to teach the uninitiated, to make it not scary and safe. Her argument being the restraint in and of itself heightens the pleasure, why not try it? Not a bad argument.

She also probably enjoys herself most getting a work out in. She can be gentle for you, but her own pleasure is found in conquering, mastering. A test of strength or wills would probably be called for here. Tbh, I can't imagine her being that interested until you can prove you're a match for her in some way. Not terribly interested in coddling.

Karlach

Oh, a goddess among mere mortals. Those tits, that ass! She could break me in half and I would thank her, crying tears of joy. Karlach deserves every happiness on earth. Karlach is maybe the most enthusiastic person here, and that's saying something. The feeling of being close to others, but specifically sex, is such an important love language to Karlach. She has high physical needs and so is very excited and very determined to make you have as good a time as she is having. Unfortunately, sometimes this has a spiraling effect that results in questions like "how many orgasms is too many orgasms?" She just gets carried away, poor thing. But, nonetheless, as addictive as a good time is, you'll probably run out of stamina before she does. Though I bet she'd still keep going past the point of discomfort for herself, just because she's so excited and in love and bursting with joy and energy. It's hard to stop when there's so much you want to say and do and experience. Especially after being restrained so long.

On that topic, bondage probably not a good fit here. Anything that prevents touch for her is not really going to be her thing.

On the flip side, there is no such thing as too much, too hard, too long. I cannot imagine someone more eager to gobble you up, to taste you everywhere, to squeeze you close and shudder and gasp until your sweat smells the same. Like... she is here for this, she is into it. And she'll intuitively go for whatever is going to be more tactile, more of your touch and your body on hers. But also more scent, more excitement. She's going to respond like lightning to any little squeak or shiver to get any reaction out of you. She's so hungry for it.

And she's had a lot of time to think of ideas so you won't run dry on creativity for a good long while. Also important to note, she's only going to be a fast draw in the early days when everything is so urgent. She will slow down in time, though I think she'll end up running faster and hotter than most here. Her appetite is strong, but her stamina is actually on the low side. So more orgasms, but less space between them. Over stimulation is going to be huge here.

Not sure she has the patience for role play or anything fancy. This is not to say she isn't vocal she is... very vocal. Constantly. But that's quite affirming. And I think she'd be pretty into displays, perhaps even a bit of exhibitionism. After all, voyeurism/exhibitionism is all she had for awhile, so I suspect that would carry over into now. I think in particular she'd like to show you off, since she has a keen understanding of the eroticism of visuals. Not everyone's cup of tea of course, and she doesn't have to, but she just gets excited and proud. This makes her feel so good she can't help wanting to shout about it.

All of this said, she's also probably the most attentive in safety and aftercare. Halsin is a safety nut as well, but Karlach absolutely dotes. She wants to make sure she didn't hurt you or wear you out in any way and so will make extra, extra sure any little need is taken care of.

Lae'zel

Lae'zel's pussy could kill a man, in fact, it probably has. Not the most romantic of our choices, at least at first, but vigorous, satisfying, honestly intimidating. But, sex is very accessible with Lae'zel. Sex is part of communion for her, but in a different way than Halsin. It's exercise and contest and entertainment and group cohesion all in one. For these reasons, she's not as intimidating as you'd expect because just you saying yes to her pleases her. If she's invited you, that means she's already judged you worthy. She's not going to be upset when giving pointers because she has no hang ups about how sex is supposed to work. She doesn't expect you to read her mind and would probably be mad if you tried. Clear communication is part of this and you already earned the trust for it.

And on the flip side, she will not be distressed by you stating your desires because she's also not trying to read your mind. She wants you to trust her enough to say what you want. Honestly, she's probably a good starting place for virgins, her openness would be soothing. She might even have the patience to instruct, though she's not a terribly patient woman in general.

Also, not to bury it, Lae'zel just likes sex, the sweat, the scents, the weird, sticky feelings of it, the shivering glow through the body. Sex is fun for her and that's obvious in her vocalizations, both articulated words and not. And she knows that the more times you have sex with the same partner, the easier it gets, the more enjoyable it is. I think she'd like watching that progress, like a good team coming together. It's a sign of trust and affection. And in time, if she comes to trust you a lot, the sex becomes even more intimate and vulnerable, as you start to trust each other experimenting, going by instinct rather than plan. Those little shifts would be thrilling for her as she learns to improvise and accept new ideas. Surprising her would be delightful because she always thinks she has the upper hand. How fun to show her that's not always the case.

Lae'zel is a dom more out of necessity than desire, I think. She's probably a switch, happy with whatever suits; she just ends up doming a lot because no one has earned her subbing/she doesn't trust enough yet. But taking turns would also be valuable team building for her, important everyone trains even the skills they're weak at. Together, we become better at sex and at understanding each other. Weirdly, a very emotionally healthy outlook.

Raphael

I think I feel about Raphael as others feel about Enver Gortash. I want to project every flithy, nasty ass thought onto this wet rag of a man. So, without further ado: humiliation is the name of the game. I think if you fucked Haarlep in front of him, binding him so he couldn't do anything, only watch as Haarlep groans about how much better you are than Raphael, I think he'd come in his over-tailored pants. Cuckold the shit out of him. I think he needs to be stepped on, pegged, and drooling in the street. Never let him have his own way. I think he'd see stars getting pushed around like that. I think it would be great for him. Just use him like a cock sleeve, really dig in there. Absolutely deserved.

Like, imagine if this whole thing is his cringefail attempt to court Zariel. Imagine that level of humiliation. Works on this for thousands of years, only to burn his own house down over a few puny mortals stealing his shit. Oh my goddddd.

If nothing else, it would be Fucking Hilarious.

Shadowheart

So Shadowheart is probably into some hardcore stuff, right? She strikes me as someone with a bit of a home invasion kink. Definitely here for the blindfold/sensory deprivation kink. Restraints, but not just bondage, I'm thinking vinyl suits. Shadowheart's definitely into the unconventional. The more toys and artifice, the better.

It's probably next to impossible for Shadowheart to relax sexually. I don't think it's that she isn't into sex, but it's probably difficult for her to calm down and feel safe being vulnerable, get in touch with soft, gentle things that are just nice. Things that hurt a bit are more comfortable, more familiar, and even have less to do with her personally so she doesn't have to deal with her own feelings and preferences. But, with a bit of patience and a firm hand, you could coax Shadowheart into easing up, allowing herself to be taken care of, and to enjoy just a simple hand job or the too soft touch of lips. She's a bit of a project, but especially if you enjoy a bit of darkness and danger, very rewarding.

And Shadowheart would be big into reciprocation, you can't do something nice for her without her doing the same to you. And she'd take it as a point of pride that she's very good at making people beg for mercy. I think she'd become very giving over time, if you can be patient and teach her how to enjoy herself, in time she will give as much and more back to you.

And to be clear, not suggesting she doesn't also and always enjoy a bit of bondage and sensory deprivation, but I think she'd enjoy it more once she's come to terms with the fact this is not a service she's required to provide, an act which could determine her worth, but just occupations she enjoys for herself, outside of external validation. Teaching Shadowheart to masturbate could be huge. I do worry about her some times. A little self-love lessons might be necessary.

Edging also definitely something to try here. The slower the better. But, it's gotta have that pay off, or she'll start circling back to denial is the end in itself. Which... maybe sometimes, but there's also a lot to be enjoyed in the climax too!

Wyll

Hard to find a sweeter, gentler soul on the road. And a softer touch too. Needless to say, it's a lot of firsts with Wyll. But, he's a quick study and enjoys being tender and lovely. And I'll say it right now, even with this illustrious company, I don't think anyone gives better head than Wyll Ravenguard. Such a soft mouth and singularly focused and determined, he genuinely enjoys it too. It's such an act of service and this boy is all about acts of service. He wouldn't even get distracted by his own pleasure, just entirely focused on what he can give you. Halsin might have greater skill, but that heartfelt desire is unparalleled.

Wyll is made to be commanded, he will do whatever you say in bed. Even if you gave him control, I'm not sure he'd want it and definitely wouldn't know what to do with it. Now, not to say he's a pillow princess, those hips are doing their share of heavy lifting. Just to say that he wants instruction, he wants to follow your lead and let you tell him what to do. Praise would be huge here, tell him what a good boy he is, how well he's doing, he'd go mad.

To prolong the pleasure, a little orgasm denial may be useful, make him work for it. He loves a challenge and a test to prove his worthiness. And, in time, you could get experimental with him as you build his confidence. Maybe a little exhibitionism. Maybe a little bondage, a little role play. As long as the trust and love is there, Wyll's willing to try anything once.

Maybe the most fun thing about Wyll is Wyll actually can keep it down. Some of us just have to scream about it, but Wyll can actually get away with a fair mount because of his cool exterior. And Wyll is available for quickies, an advantage over some others here since he doesn't require a huge amount of energy set aside to have a good time. Wyll responds better to smaller but frequent affection and physical touch than big events spaced out. And Wyll is impulsively romantic, he likes to surprise with fun ideas and sudden invitations, which is a reward unto itself.

Zevlor

And a win for Team Sexualizing Old Men! I remember my roots. It is truly a tragedy that Larian won't let me sex up that old man. Look at him, you know it'd be good. So tender, so thorough. And Zevlor deserves something nice god damn it.

You know he knows what he's about. None of that shy, awkward fumbling you get with the new kids. Heck, he probably knows how to get you off standing against a wall, still in his armor! A true prince among men here. Don't think because no one's asked in awhile his skills have diminished.

Very passable oral skills, surprisingly long stamina, not just in oral too ;). Not the fastest ride you'll ever have and some positions are probably going to be out, battle-scarred knees and such, but for my money, absolutely delightful. Don't have to contend with more power than sense here.

And hey, if you want some Honorable Mentions like Aylin, Enver Gortash, or Dammon, let me know! I'm always down to give sexual headcanons no one wanted! 

[alpaca-clouds]

I need to explain this!

While I am uploading a lot more about this polycule, I kinda feel like I need to explain my headcanon for them. Because, ah, I love them quite a lot - and also... polyshipping needs so much more love.

And yes, it should be noted, that my entire headcanon very much lives on the fact that in my headcanon Karlach gets her engine fixed in Act 3. (tl;dr: Tav bullies Gortash into fixing it. Gortash should be able to do this, based on the fact that he managed to stabilize the Infernal Engines in the Steel Watch.)

After the engine is fixed, Wyll confesses his feelings for Karlach and the two get together before the final battle.

Because Shadowheart ends the game hunted by the other Sharrans - and because Karlach is after all very clear that there is a list of things in Faerûn she wants to measure her battle powess against - Wyll and Karlach decide to go on a big adventure taking her along. Because... I guess some people really cannot get enough of camping in the wild.

During said adventure they do however find out one thing: Karlach's libido is a lot higher than Wyll's. (Mostly because I headcanon Wyll as demisexual with a very low sex drive. He prefers cuddling.) And after some consideration, Wyll decides he is fine with Karlach also sleeping with Shadowheart. Though he is super jealous at the beginning - though that jealousy does mellow out after a while, when he realizes that it does not change his relationship to Karlach.

"Find out" part of that FAFO lesson is, that Karlach and Shadowheart do realize that they might actually have romantic feelings for each other. So one thing leads to another.

There is however one more thing: Shadowheart is still writing letters with Nocturne. And while she cannot fully recover her memories, she is starting to realize that the two of them were romantically involved before. So, in the end, they go and fetch Nocturne, who is still super awkward around Karlach and Wyll.

Now, this only leaves Lae'zel. Lae'zel in my headcanon stays in Faerûn to find out who she is without a cult leader. She also is the one who takes the owlbear cub (who my Tav lovingly named Pogo, which the cub loved and everyone else hated) along. Given however that other than Karlach and Wyll she is not big on the entire "running around, randomly fighting monsters and helping people", she mostly just wanders around and gets herself into trouble. Most of the times she gets herself out of it, too. But... At some point she doesn't.

And maybe because she is lucky, at this point Shadowheart and company just come by and safe her ass. And Shadowheart afterwards asks her to travel with them.

Now, does Lae'zel have a sort of obsession with Shadowheart? Yes. Does she rather quickly start fucking with both Shadowheart and Karlach? Yes. Will she admit that she has romantic feelings for at the very least Shadowheart, if not both of the other women? Nooooooooo!

And yeah, that is where the stories are right now. Mostly told through one shots, even though I do plan on writing a story for halloween with multiple chapters, that will involve a lot of Lae'zel angsting about her romantic troubles.

I love my toad girl so much. <3

[monsterlimbs]

Always thinking about how my durge Mordriel (or durges with high intimidation rolls in general) somehow attract Astarion. Like he is ALL OVER durges. And Mordriel and Astarion's romance is so wildly unlikely and funny to me.

Like Mordriel, a hulking half-elf with solid black claws, spooky eyes, and no memories, only the urge to kill, somehow got Astarion to fall in love w him. Mordriel, the man who's muttering "all is ash and meat" under his breath, who can't get away from his chronic pain and takes it out on others, who threatens people by saying "Do you have children? Yes? I see. Do you want your children to continue having parents? Or do you want them orphaned? You don't want them as orphans, do you? Then, do as I say." and constantly using his illithid authority, who's covered in explainable scars and tattoos, who is literally murder incarnate, who has killed THOUSANDS and has no remorse except for like a couple of his kills, who can't take a joke, who doesn't even acknowledge or understand flirting and actually gets annoyed at flirting until act 3, who has nearly killed all of his party members at least once including Astarion (who actually, has nearly been killed the most amount of times out of everyone), who thinks "Gods, I can smell our last kill on you. I love it." and "Will you hunt someone with me today?" and "Your teeth are so sharp. You could crush someone's windpipe with ease." is FLIRTING and GOOD flirting at that, etc etc.... That man. That man somehow caught Astarion's eye, PAST MANIPULATION. Past "oh gods gotta buddy buddy with the monster in our group because he's been designated leader and now he has the power to exile me, kill me, or worse, send me to Cazador". Past all that. HE LIKES HIM. He actually likes him. Worse, he loves him. Loves the murder incarnate. Feels SAFE with the murder incarnate. Do you see the irony in that? The first person he's felt safe with probably in 200 hundred years, is a man who's been seconds away from killing him, multiple times and hated his guts for a good amount of time. But now, that man is protecting him, projecting all of that murderous energy onto others, others who have wronged Astarion. And somehow that's romantic to Astarion. Which, in a way, sure, being protected by a horrible monster who's all sweet and lovey dovey towards you is romantic. But also what the fuck.

And even funnier to me, is that Mordriel and Astarion... out of all the people in the camp, is one of the most unlikely pairings for Mordriel. Mordriel, if he hadn't slept with Astarion first, would've ended up with Gale or Lae'zel likely. Lae'zel had the "you've been looking at me differently" option so she was feeling it too, and Gale was like "well Astarion has a certain charm about him. So does a tiger when it purrs" so he did too, and Mordriel was all over those two and really enjoyed their company. Even Wyll, he actually admires Wyll quite a bit, and it actually wildly hurts his feelings when Wyll begins to think of him as a monster. Astarion is like his... third to last choice, behind Karlach and then Shadowheart. Karlach is "his sister's Tiefling", so off limits. And then he and Shadowheart are just kind of neutral until act 2, then they're best friends and she's like a sister to him.

And the only reason Astarion and Mordriel ever slept together and showed Astarion the "plan was working", was because Astarion was just... persistent. And in Mordriel's mind, the more persistent someone is on something, the more nice it is, right? In Astarion's mind, Mordriel's all over him. But Mordriel is like. kinda curious about sex? Kinda? And that's it. The plan is not working.

Also, Astarion is just about the opposite of Mordriel's type at first. The first time Mordriel even begins to tolerate Astarion, is during the bite scene funnily enough. He nearly kills Astarion in that moment, but his "must get the whole story first" type view urges him to press on first. And then their minds link, and Mordriel gets to see the first bit of Astarion's vulnerability, which Mordriel actually sees as a strength (because, in his eyes, surviving 200 years on rats is impressive. He partially pities Astarion for the moment, but it's replaced with almost... admiration. He's impressed, and willingly lets Astarion bite him, and even waited until the very last second to persuade him to stop. Even said "I trust him. He won't hurt us" the next morning, although that was said with a silent threat of "Because if he does hurt us, I think he knows he'll be dead by my hands easily", but still. He starts standing up for Astarion and his affliction because he now has some respect for the "weak, flirty, annoying thief" he once hated). And then they bond over their shared hatred for Cazador. Cazador angers the urges because he has power, so even without Astarion being around, he likely would harbor a good deal of disdain for Cazador. Astarion takes Mordriel being like "we WILL kill him." as the plan working. Again, it is not. Mordriel's merely added another powerful being to his kill list.

The way that Astarion caught Mordriel's eye, is in the moments that Astarion was not preforming and being flirty, but instead being like "Can we kill that guy over there?", or being demanding and such, or when he's giving Mordriel his "doe eyes". The performative mask Astarion has created is..., well, annoying to Mordriel. But when Astarion gets sassy, silly, soft-eyed, or bloodlust-y, THAT is endearing to Mordriel. And so, it is insane these two ended up together. Everything Astarion does to attract, annoys Mordriel. And it is a wonder Mordriel HASN'T killed Astarion because of that. So, for these two to end up together is just. insane. I guess the shared interest for other people's torture really makes you fall in love.

Also GOD did this get so much longer than I meant.

[faorism]

niche crossover of the day that im too lazy rn to clean up and post to ao3 but may in the future: alec hardison (leverage) plays bg3

hardison balances playtime with hacker hours well, which means he moves through hyperfixations but has learned through working with the crew how to prioritize when there's a friend's life on the line. (there will be no more repeats of his crew sitting on a bomb without him right next to them.) sometimes though his partners lose him for a week after a new release, but now that they live together at least parker can drag him to bed for cuddles (and to sleep) and eliot will kept him fed.

it should go without saying that hardison loves baulder's gate 3. he heard such good things about it during early access from his dnd buddies, but hardison refuses to play EA because he will end up encountering bugs and basically writing the code that the devs will end up doing anyway, so why waste his time.

he plays without any prior knowledge, doesn't even know the characters really except from glimpses at their promo pics. but he's excited. he downloads the game, kisses his partners """goodbye""" for the foreseeable future (as long as a job doesnt spring up, but even then it would be a quick one because eliot sprained his ankle and needed to rest it no matter how much he complained he was good).

he decides to play his chaotic good halfling wizard mendula from two campaigns back - fresh enough in his mind to remember the character, but not too recent so that he wont feel conflicted if the tav storyline doesnt allow for precise oc characterizations. hardison gets super into it, but he doesnt linger on side quests, not yet: he wants to get a feel of the game without mods and follow its arc. hardison doesnt usually romance on a first playthrough, but wyll!!!!! wyll was right there being perfect and beautiful and righteous and black and bi and yeah, hardison had to fan himself off during the dance sequence

his party is wizard tav, shadowheart, wyll, and lae'zel, and barely switches them out. when astarion drains him dry and kills him, hardison is so annoyed he kills astarion. he feels very proud of himself when he sniped wyll's devil karlach without much fuss. then he skips a lot of the companion sidequests because he just wants to rush to the end. he gets married to wyll, then starts right over and plays wyll origin, now able to take his time and understanding the mechanics of the game. he also downloads QOL mods that have already come out for EA, and he has notes about ones he will make if no one else does when he's ready for playthrough #3. he purposefully avoids any major ones (so no Polyam Mod for him, though he does eye it, but he wants to see how multiple romances play himself).

he plays will as accurately as possible, which means engaging heavily with the very companions hardison spent ignoring because wyll? wyll cares (and fuck, hardison loves him for that because yes yes, that's him too!). and......

ah. okay so. maybe hardison shouldn't have ignored the companions so much since they do add a lot to the game! and..... maybe, just maybe, hardison was too hasty killing astarion and karlach the first go around. maybe a lot. he thought they would be companions for evil tavs/origins only! he played kotor and [insert game references here, i dont play games like this usually...], so he thought he knew what was up.

anyway, he is drawn so much to these two out of the novelty of them that he puts them into his party (the fourth spot he switches around, thought once hardison gets him, halsin is a fun mainstay because BEAR. hardison gets up romancing both astarion and karlach (and a little halsin, HALSIN IS SO EASY TO FLIRT WITH, larian WANTS you to fuck him)

and....... okay. okay. maybe romancing them both at the same time was a mistake because. because he loves them both. so much. for very different reasons. hardison feels so deeply and then he's forced to make a decision, and hardison crumples a bit. considers downloading the polyam mod but opts out of it to suffer vanilla game logic to its very end.

when he breaks up with astarion, who plays it so damn cool, hardison had to walk away from the computer to mourn by burying himself in his nearest partner's arms (eliot, this time).

he finishes the game, makes wyll go to avernus with karlach (as he made them do during this tav playthrough) and... thinks about astarion.

hardison had carried over the breakup scene save this whole time, and he decides fuck it, and goes back and tries it the other way this time.

he didnt know karlach will just... die on the pier. wtf. wtf. or wyll will go and there wont be any interaction with astarion?? hardison is Distraught. he downloads the polyam mod and while it doesnt force the issue, he can just feel at the edges that nope, this isnt authentic

finds partner's arms again. parker this time. she asks whats wrong with his make believe people, and he pauses for so long that parker thinks he fell asleep or didnt hear her, and then he quietly says that wyll has a heart big enough for two, a romance can be fairytale when made for three, dont they know there's nothing more beautiful than being held between by both the people you love?

parker kisses his temple as tears legit well in his eyes (and he feels embarrassed) and she yells for eliot for emergency group hugs.

eliot, with hardison squished between his two partners, usually doesnt get involved with hardison's gaming but this time he's just like, okay what is it about these characters that's getting to you like this? and why them together? who are they?

and hardison had already talked about wyll a little because disney prince. so he reiterates some of that with a major case of projection. and then when he turns to talk about the companions, hardison stops. and just.

oh.

a black man who was forced to make impossible desperate choices when he was still a teen, which got him into trouble as a consequence, and then being alone and wandering for years until he ran into a pack of different people come together for a common purpose. trying to be good, the best he could be, and hiding behind a flashy name to hide some of the more raw parts underneath. ravenguard and nana have strikingly similar cheekbones.

then theres a rogue with a deeply traumatic past who can be selfish and kinda insensitive and likes shiny things. a pale thief who likes a little bit of chaos even when running good alignment, and who can't help sticky fingers reaching for unsuspecting belts and also... well, also is a top, through and through. a top who likes to bite. vicious when upset. also... also touch adverse and who at first laughs at sincerity and then basks in it but only once your commitment is fully and well established. the only bit of code hardison wrote as he played his wyll origin was to remove astarion saying dont touch me when you switch to him; hardison flinched every time, hearing the cadence of parker's voice scratching at him when she's triggered.

then, a barbarian who handed from one handler (who ended up being a totalitarian dick) down the road until being owned by the literal devil. body put through hell, scars littering a body that spells strength at a distance. once escaped from the nightmare, only wanted their own perseverance. their own life. wanting so desperately for a touch, to be loved, to be held in a way that didn't spell murder. "heartless" after years of working for, again, literal devils, but so full of life and kindness and (also eliot is more coy about it) a deep sense of joy for the world. kind to children. protective of children. wary of deals too good to be true. willing to die than return to a life they once lived. death feels imminent, despite the protestations of everyone around them. really good bedroom eyes.

so.

yeah.

maybe... maybe

hardison couldnt get the words out to say all of that. all he says is, they're a lot like us. (like with astarion, if hardison spelled out the exact overlaps of the characters.)

the games dumb then, parker says. or at least broken. if the game isnt right, just go fix it?

and hardison has protests about the limits of what is possible within someone else's game and...

parker is like, you made a guy hold up a bank in like, 10 min? on a laptop with spotty internet and without a mouse or any preparation?

and this takes some time between other projects he really has to get to, but.... he does it. codes like a motherfucker and bribes eliot & parker into mocap and also genuinely pays the VAs to voice lines for him. shit hardison does for the love of his ot3:

script out unique banter for karlach and astarion in your party that hints of their attraction to one another

code in an extra option when astarion or karlach confront you for to prompt them to consider their own feelings for the other (different from the current but i want to be with you both! line)

a short nighttime cutscene that with dialogue that implies the three have just finished talking and have agreed to be together. they are all holding hands

include astarion and karlach in each other's act iii scenes (they arent the most chatty, admittedly, but they are there and integrated)

outside of camp, if you three are standing near each other, you can cast a spell that cuts to astarion and karlach kissing either of wyll's checks (this is admittedly somewhat buggy but!

edits out astarion cowering on the pier from the sun, just rushes the three to avernus which hardison doesnt have to edit; just uses astarion origin version for wyll.

nexusmods community begs desperately for him to do this for some other ot3s and he is willing to hear them out for shadowheart/lae'zel/tav, he absolutely refuses to break up karwyllstarion and only offers wyll pov. will not even allow for edits being made for a tav/karlach/astarion mod. he deeply pisses off some people, but overall this mod is downloaded a fuckton as the only truly viable polyam romance option in the game. people start writing fanfic specifically for this one mod and eventually it is just integrated into canon lore that karwyllstarion exists as an option

[piratemousey]

Bg3 fluff for non-ao3 people

Tav - Tiefling Bard

Tav x Gale

Bg3 act 3 spoilers

The group returned to camp. An eventful day of scouring Baldur's Gate for resources and allies. Tav traveled with Gale, Wyll, and Shadowheart that day. They'd managed to investigate a series of murders around town and it all ended in a high end tailor's shop. Covered in blood, they begin removing armor and packs first thing.

Karlach bounded up with Scratch and the owlbear cub in tow. "Hey-oh! My people! Out having all the fun."

"I got you a bear," Wyll said, pulling a small toy bear with switched eyes from his armor.

Tav laughed and set a bag of jewelry and bobbles on the table where Astarion sat. With a book in hand and a glass of wine chilling in one of the glasses Gale enchanted. He was waiting for them, though he appeared disinterested, enraptured by his book.

"My gods, you're perfect!" Karlach jumped up, sure that Wyll would catch her. He swung her around easily, using his dancer's feet to offset the force.

"Astarion, I brought you some stones to appraise." Passing judgements was one of Astarion's favorite past times.

"How did it go? Traversing Baldur's Gate without me?" Astarion asked, ignoring the bag.

"We're all Baldurians," Shadowheart pointed out, pulling off her gloves.

"Well, you hardly count my dear because you don't have a memory." Astarion responded.

"I lost "some" memories, Astarion," She snapped back.

"Wyll hasn't been home in years and lets face it Gale is Gale."

"Meaning?" Gale asked, an eyebrow arched.

"Wizards are absent minded," Astarion replied.

"You cast wizard spells, you know," Gale said. "I helped you learn how to shoot beams of fire at multiple opponents."

"But at heart, I'm a rogue." Astarion replied, his hand flattened against his chest.

"And me?" Tav asked. "I suppose I'm too doe eyed over the wizard to know my way around the city i grew up?"

"No, I think you know the city, you just don't know the darker corners like I do." Astarion admitted.

"That's probably true," Tav answered. "But, we did pretty well today. Where's Lae'zel? I found a sword that's completely unbalanced, she's going to flip."

"You've come to taunt me with the ineptitude of your smith's, an interesting strategy." Lae'zel appeared from behind her tent, her hair damp from training.

"So, Tav, tell me, how many?" Astarion asked, rolling his glass over his fingers.

"What?" Tav asked, a mask of bemusement.

"How many lockpicks did you use without me?"

"Eight," Tav spat out begrudgingly.

"Eight! My gods, a good day for you then was it. Seems being a jack of all trades doesn't necessarily make one skilled at anything, does it? You do sing pretty though."

"Astarion," Karlach said his name like a warning.

"I'm just making an observation," Astarion continued. "I use two lockpicks tops most days that I adventure with you, yet you insist on leaving me here, my gifts languishing."

"You love to lounge in your tent," Tav noted.

"I was only thinking of your scarce inventory. Burn through as many lockpicks as you like, I'm not the groups treasurer." Astarion lifted the bag of jewels and begins sifting through them.

"We'll need you tomorrow certainly," Tav said. "We're going to murderize that damned steal watch then break into the newspaper."

"How fun," Astarion bobbed his head from side to side with amusement. "Maybe I'll find a horrid guard to bite. One whose had too much bree I think."

"Most guards can't afford bree," Wyll commented.

"Look my love, a scroll of knock," Gale held the parchment up for Tav to see. "I could learn it right now and cast it right away."

"That's great," Tav threw an arm around Gale's neck kissing his cheek.

"Yes thats great. I'm sure it'll help that one time a day you can use it. " Astarion's good mood evaporating as his temper is ruffled. "The very idea that a scroll could replace my talents is offensive and you should all be ashamed."

"I can use it as many times as I like." Gale said.

"You really are trying to take all my fun, wizard." Astarion's hand shot out pointing to Shadowheart. "I'm sure you learned some memory spells under your former God."

"Yes a few." Shadowheart answered, confused at what Astarion was getting at.

"Good, Lae'zel, hold the mage down. He won't be remembering much." Astarion's gaze threatening as it landed on Gale.

"Maybe we can also get rid of his detestable earing." Lae'zel stepped forward, her training sword at her side still.

"Well, I wasn't going to tear into his appearances..." Astarion said, taken aback at first.

"He wears the symbol of his former lover," Lae'zel said, he fury boiling. "Mystra, a manipulation queen who would have him end his own life. He parades her token blatantly while wooing Tav with nonsense about stars. I've been to the tears, I've smelt them as they burn across your sky. They are not baubles for your vain seductions."

"I'm right here, folks," Tav pointed out.

"Mystra is magic," Gale stuttered, growing concern in his words. "... and I wield magic. It's not uncommon to wear a charm for the goddess."

"One whom you bedded," Astarion's smirked as he rhetorically pored oil over the fire. Things were going in a different direction, but he could work with it.

"Tav hasn't complained," Gale said, his eyes resting on the bard.

"Of course not, they're the nice one, remember?" Shadowheart said, her arms crossed.

"Tav? Does it bother you?" Gale asked, his voice thin with worry.

"I'm not going to tell you how to dress." Tav said avoiding eye contact. "It's not really about the fact that you bedded her, Gale," Tav said holding up her hands. "It's about the fact that she's terrible and she used you and threw you away."

"You shouldn't waste time honoring gods who would ignore you so easily." Shadowheart chimed in.

"You know what would make this better?" Karlach asked. "Let's go kill mystra."

"Now, hold on," Gale said. "Mystra is magic. You can't kill magic."

"You know I think of the word "can't" as a challenge at times," Tav smiled teasingly.

"My work here is done," Astarion gathered his wine, book, and the bag of jewels. "I need to go rest up for tomorrow. Lots of locks waiting. Maybe a few spells if you decided to leave the extra baggage at home, Tav."

Lae'zel remained beside Tav, her arms crossed as she glared at Gale's earing as Astarion sauntered away to lounge in his tent.

[maleficore]

I love BG3, I really do. And I loved each and every one of my Durge playthroughs, but the more I play the more I notice places that are... seriously lacking.

The game seems to give you the option to play as a character that while disgusted and scared of their murderous impulses, can't really resist them, be it out of that fear or because of the sheer strength of the Urge being too much for them to bear. There are multiple dialogue choices where both of these are acknowledged, companions hear you admit those things, but the moment you commit A Bad everyone who's good aligned enough damn near rips you to shreds over it.

I've gotten the option to plead my case exactly ONCE when that happened, with Karlach, but that's it. The only time you can talk to everyone about being out of control is after Alfira, but they don't seem to remember it or take it into consideration at all. It's especially jarring with Wyll because like... you're being as much forced and threatened to do these horrible things as Karlach was to serve Zariel, but he sees absolutely no parallels there. He gets SO upset after you kill Isobel and during that conversation I was waiting to be able to tell him that Sceleritas threatened to force Durge's hand against one of them again instead, but no. He just called Durge a monster and conversation ended. What???

That's still not the worst of it though, the worst example of the issue is after you become Bhaal's Chosen. After killing Orin you can ask Dad what he's going to do if you refuse him, to which he literally answers "eviscerate you" and you have two ways to respond (other than still choosing to refuse him) that are basically -- "Seems like I have no choice then" and "Yes father, I will slaughter countless innocents in your name". EVERYONE hears it, but if you say yes they still act like you've done it because you simply wanted to, no matter your words. I thought that choce would decide people's reactions to the whole ordeal, but NOPE. It's exactly the same either way save for Jaheira's confrontation where she tells Durge they should've made the choice to die with a smile on their face (bruh). And I don't know if it's an Astarion thing or a romance interest thing, but as always he's the only one who acknowledged it was "servitude or death" and seemed understanding of Durge's choice (even tho I'm sure he personally would've picked different, he's said as much)

It just sucks. I geniuely wish they did not give you a chance to do a more gray-ish approach to playing that orgin if they were not going to commit to it. You want it to be a good vs bad story with no nuance? Then don't give me the option to have my character continuously talk how much they hate doing the things they're being forced to do. Playing a unwilling Durge that is not strong enough to overcome these challenges is so damn depressing. Not only everyone hates you and you have no support network that would even make it worth trying to do the right thing, but the only choice you get to amend all that is to fucking KILL YOURSELF. Yeah Withers brings you back, but your character does not know that's going to happen when they tell daddy to go fuck himself. What in a good!Durge playthrough is a heroic moment of defiance, here turns into a person so alienated and helpless they would rather die than have to endure it any longer. I love a good dose of angst, don't get me wrong, but I also love to be able to CHOOSE and have my choices matter instead of everything I pick carrying no real value in the end.

I still haven't finished yet so maybe the "good" ending you can get after this will mend it a bit, but I doubt it. I hate act 3 so much, maybe that's why in all my 300h of playtime I have finished the game exactly once lmao

[ryttu3k]

Ship it meme, Crossover Edition: Astarion/Beckett.

[ship meme]

Ohoho, interesting! Let's go with this AU for it, where Astarion is a Lasombra Embraced around the 1290s, who got involved with the Anarch Revolt and later rejected the Sabbat to stay with his coterie of fellow autarkis.

How would Beckett meet him? Well, there's some interesting figures in their coterie. I think he'd be pretty fascinated in particular by Halsin (a Gangrel who's also a Gurahl kinfolk; a) it's unusual for kinfolk who are Embraced to stay in contact with their packs, but Halsin has, and b) Gurahl are thought to be extinct), Shadowheart (also kinfolk, was part of an Abyss cult), Wyll and Karlach (involuntarily involved in infernalism), and, if he knew about them, Aylin (Salubri. Just… Salubri). Astarion might get some attention due to Cazador's attempts at infernalism, especially if he actually is Azanaeli/Angellis Ater.

So, that's how they could meet in the first place! From there…

Don't Ship It

1. Why don't you ship it?

I feel there'd be some irreconcilable differences in opinion. Beckett, for instance, is very open to using seduction as a manipulative tactic. See: the Dracula thing, where he specifically seduced Dracula to get information and access to his library. I feel that would rub Astarion the wrong way in a bad way, because even if it's been five centuries since then, I don't think he'd be able to just disregard the prior two centuries of Cazador using him for the same purpose. I could see Astarion being a little disgusted by Beckett's tactics just because it is something he used to be all for.

Like I don't feel it's just casual sex that Astarion has an issue with. So long as everyone is consenting and not trying to control him, yeah, he might be fine with that. It'd specifically be the seduction for an ulterior motive thing that would make him go, "…no thank you."

Other than that, they just really don't have a lot of interests in common. Beckett is obsessed with uncovering The Truth and knowledge in general and routinely throws himself into peril for it, Astarion wants to live a comfortable, safe life. His top priority is not being controlled or manipulated, and Beckett has got himself in multiple situations where he's being messed with due to his thirst for knowledge. Astarion would just be. Ah. No. You go throw yourself into the lion's den, I'll stand back here, thank you very much.

If I was to ship Beckett with any of the BG3 characters? It'd be Gale. Both seekers of knowledge, whatever the cost. Of Beckett's coterie, I feel Astarion would be most drawn to his clanmate Lucita. A certain level of sophistication + badassery + willingness for bloodshed + has relatable sire-related trauma. They could sit at the back of the room and snark about the others.

2. What would have made you like it?

I feel if Beckett made it very clear he was into Astarion because he was very attracted to him, and that any sex would be solely due to that and not to Get Something Out Of It, Astarion would be more into the idea? Like so long as it's not transactionary, it'd be much more palatable. I can't see an actual romantic relationship developing, but friendship / maybe FWB could work.

3. Despite not shipping it, do you have anything positive to say about it?

If Astarion could be persuaded to go on an adventure, the sheer amount of Chaos these two could get into would be incredible :D Their alignments at this point would just be. Chaotic. Yes, I know True Chaotic doesn't exist but it does now. (No but really I feel Astarion starts out Chaotic Evil due to sheer... lack of knowing how to People otherwise, but is much more Chaotic Neutral by the end of the game. Beckett I see as Chaotic Neutral-Good. So even if their interests and personalities clash, their alignments aren't too far off, at least.)

[irradiatedsnakes]

hey i just wanted to drop a note to say that i adore your art so much. your style is so round and cosy and your designs are so expressive, and your poses have such a wonderful “weight” to them if that makes sense? just really nicely grounded, not floaty, like i can almost feel the actual real weightiness to the droop of penny’s tentacles in karlach’s hands, or the force behind a very snuggly hug. that’s the best i can explain it lol but yeah it’s just really nice to look at!

also i love that you had your tav unabashedly become a mind flayer, which i don’t think nearly enough people commit to in the player base, and i love that shes still with karlach anyway, it’s so sweet and very refreshing. (oh and i LOVE that your durge is a kobold omg, that is just so delightful and honestly inspired and must have been such a fun playthrough)

anyway yeah i just really enjoy your art and your unique ideas in general and i wanted to thank you for sharing both!

SOBBING!!! this is such a wonderful sweet comment, thank you so much!! that sort of organic, weighty quality is something i really enjoy in art and that i have a lot of fun playing with myself, so i'm very glad to hear it's coming across well to you! especially since you're singling out poses where multiple characters are interacting- that's always something i've had difficulty with, so it's very nice to hear that :]

yesss, penny eventually becoming a mind flayer is something i was set on before i even knew for sure that it was an option- let it never be said that i'm not a sucker for people becoming monsters. and i agree, i would love to see more illithid!tav stuff around- there's so much neat area there to explore! i'm also allllways a sucker for "a kind/good-aligned character becomes a monster and must learn to deal with their monstrous urges/nature while trying to stay true to themself but still in a very real sense becoming someone/thing different". always

i really enjoy the fic "thy people shall be my people" by leomona on ao3 about this- it's post-canon, a mind flayer tav and astarion navigating the whole Seven Thousand Vampire Spawn In The Underdark situation. its from tavs perspective, and does the perspective of a mind flayer in a super interesting and fun way.

no shade to the people who love the emperor (i love it too! fantastic character makes me want to gnaw my arm off) but i do wish more people played around with illithid!tav outside of the context of emp/tav.. like idk i find the concept of a tav that freed orpheus and became an illithid to wield the netherstones really really interesting and graauaag!!h. i have plenty of thoughts on penny's story, her relationship with the emperor leading up to the climax of the story, and her post-ceremorphosis but writing is shrimply not my forte. we'll see if i end up doing more stuff with that

(& EHEHE i love oth. he's just a little guy they're just a little birthday boyyyy. i haven't finished his playthrough yet- still on the latter half of act 3 (and a little burnt out on act 3 rn since i just finished up pennybun's second playthrough. we'll finish oth at some point, though, i still have a final romance scene to get to with wyll.). i'm so glad for the fantastical multiverse mod making playing as a kobold possible- i'm a furry so any more options for animalistic-looking species is a win for me. and i love the idea of bhaal's chosen being a 3-foot tall lyre-playing lizard. they're also just very fun to watch in cutscenes and stuff when the cutscenes aren't breaking. also when they are breaking)

but yes thank you so much this message really made me smile :]

[marshmallow-bg3]

Durge ask game questions: general + post-nautiloid edition.

19. Has your Dark Urge become particularly close to anyone romantically and/or platonically in their journey? If so, who, and what is the relationship like? If no, why not?

Astarion - close romantically. They hit it off from the start even before all the bloody reveals. They are on the same wavelength, both being chaotic bloodthirsty rogues with dubious morality, multiple layers of trauma and personal horror and gentle hearts somewhere underneath it all. "Two souls walking the same path" unironically. It does help that Astarion's seduction techniques work exceptionally well on desperate Bhaalspawn with latent praise kink.

Karlach - close platonically. She reminds Roux of someone he can't quite remember - his foster sister - loud, brave little tomboy who protected the puny nonverbal half-elf from bullies. He doesn't remember her face, but he does remember the feeling, and Karlach totally radiates the same aura of heartiness and safety. She's the best friend to Astarion. With Roux it's complicated - there's is this secret grudge after killing Gortash under a lot of pressure from Karlach that he hides well. Roux loves Karlach and wants what's best for her, but there's that.

Gale - close platonically. "The hand that feeds is the hand that's loved". Roux doesn't really get half of the nerdy stuff Gale dumps on him, but he's genuinely drawn to Gale's kindness and care. He thinks Gale is precious - yes, also megalomaniac and narcissistic, but it's hardly big vices in Roux's book - and must be protected at all costs. Ok, maybe it's not that platonic. Post-game Roux and Astarion can't deny their crush on professor Dekarios and trying to seduce the hot teacher is a fun constant game for the three of them.

Halsin - close physically. They exist on completely different levels mentally, they have little in common and not much to talk about. However between constant headache, sleep deprivation and a series of existential crises Roux often approaches Halsin for help and comfort and finds himself in close physical contact with the druid - soothing touches, bear hugs, falling asleep next to him. Mutual attraction stems from there, but it doesn't grow into anything more profound and remains just a pleasant memory of shared warmth and affection. (Astarion's relationship with Halsin remains pleasantly neutral throughout it.)

Shadowheart - it's complicated. They both start with massive memory loss. At first Roux is disproportionately repulsed by the Sharran's religious zeal. But as he remembers more and more of himself he realizes just how much Shadowheart reminds him of his own time in the cult he never truly belonged in. It happens around the same time Shadowheart learns the truth about herself. Their parallel self-discoveries reveal how similar and relatable their stories are. In a way Roux sees a reflection of Orin in her - a little sister he could have had. The point is - they start to build their genuine relationship closer to the end of their journey against Absolute. By the time they meet in the epilogue it's still work in progress with a lot of potential for found family.

Lae'zel - neutral. The fun part is that Roux is a submissive type in general and when someone talks to him with the level of unadulterated authority Lae'zel demonstrated from the moment they met all he can do is obey. It takes some time to realize she's just a young girl with a severe case of janitor's syndrome. Roux doesn't hold it against her, but finds it hard to bond with her anyway. Lae'zel is a good, trusted, valued ally, but not quite a friend.

Wyll - neutral. Roux thinks Wyll is too idealistic and half-expects his principles to crumble under duress. But when they don't, he develops genuine respect and admiration for Wyll's integrity. May have written a couple of comical songs about their adventures with the Blade of Frontieres as the protagonist, but nothing offensive. Wyll finds them funny. In the end Wyll is Karlach's boyfriend to them more than any of his other roles and titles.

Jaheira - ooof, they clash! Jaheira likes to troll and patronize. Roux likes to troll and doesn't like to be patronized. Jaheira doesn't like to be trolled. Every time they interact one or the other disapproves. She claims to know all about Bhaalspawn and Roux is having none of it. Sarevok didn't stay dead, Orin and Roux himself existed and she had no idea. What kind of expert that makes her? Besides, Jaheira doesn’t try to get to know or understand Roux outside of his bloodline - it's like talking to a wall.

Minsc - neutral. Roux has no idea how to react to Minsc most of the time so he just avoids the man. Too unpredictable.