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eff-plays · 6 months

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Watching videos of Ascended Astarion and I need to give props to Neil for delivering the lines in a way that they still sound like Astarion's voice but something is off. Like something is deeply wrong. It makes me both really sad and viscerally uncomfortable.

And I also can't imagine how Ascendant apologists can hear all that, even just his regular, non-romance lines, and still hear Astarion. Maybe very early game Astarion, at best? But like ... girlies that is not him anymore. That is not Act 2 Astarion. That is something else.

#bg3 #both the writing and the voice acting are like yup this is a different guy something is wrong you ruined him real bad #and ppl somehow go nooo he still loves me and treasures me and is totally gonna treat me well!#there's headcanon and then there's whatever this is #spawn ending astarion's soft voice in the grave scene is like ...#my entire motivation for romancing astarion #it's so gentle and genuine #it's like the greatest reward to me #bg3 spoilers

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kirain · 3 months

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Why would you pick Gale over Astarion? Man's a walking 🚩

Okay. 😒

This is the third anonymous message I've received regarding my Gale romance, and I genuinely don't get it. This isn't even a Gale-oriented blog, plus I've already answered it. I like him better. That's all there is to it. I've seen other users get hit with this question, too; as if Astarion's the only "right" choice, and it's never even warranted. I haven't said a bad word about Astarion or anyone who romances him, but the irony of you calling Gale a red flag, then shaming me for not choosing Astarion is mind-blowing. If Gale's a red flag, Astarion's an entire bunting.

Since you've pushed me, I would rather romance any of these NPCs before canonically choosing the vampire:

Hope that answers your question, anon. 👌

I was trying not to let it happen, but this fandom has effectively ruined any appreciation I might've had for the character. At this point, I'm just sick of hearing about him, especially in comparison to Gale. Everything isn't about Astarion, anon. Believe it or not, there are other really great characters, but fans like you just can't get through the day without propping him up above all others.

A few hours ago, as I was considering how to respond to this message, I bumped into this drama on a post about Shadowheart. Long story short, the uploader made a positive video where their Tav hugs Shadowheart during her personal quest, then someone came in to talk about how Astarion is "so much better" and expressed their desire to hug him during his personal quest.

Enough is enough. Seriously. I could go on and on about why Gale is actually a green flag, but I feel like I've done that extensively on this blog. And people like you will probably just disregard it anyway, because you don't like him. At the end of that day, that's really your motivation behind this, isn't it? You don't like Gale and you feel invalidated by people who do. I'm sorry, but that's a you problem. Don't go after people just because they prefer a different character. It's ridiculous.

And you know what the saddest part of this is? Astarion was next on my list to be romanced. I made a cute half-elf Durge character just for him. I wanted to do a redeemed run, since I've heard it's really rewarding ... but now I kind of don't care. Thanks for that, anon.

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bananasfosterparent · 10 days

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The difference in AA is his soul being irreversibly gone. That is the point and this is what Larians writers have been hinting at and this is what irks people about AA. The oversexualisation and erasure of his trauma, effectively erasing him as a person. I know we're talking about a fictional character, but if we're gonna go off on the topic, saying something "doesn't matter" is just a cop-out. Astarion didn't need to be "fixed" to the point of emotional lobotomy.

I don't think it's wrong to like or prefer him, but I think it's valid to have opinion on the matter, much like you have yours.

I started to apologize for the length of this, but honestly, since you sent the message, I'm going to respond to every part of it. I'm not sorry for the rambling lol

"The difference in AA is his soul being irreversibly gone."

Okay, show me the quote/scene/dialog in-game where this canonly is said and confirmed? Where does it say the ritual will ever touch his soul or any part of the game talks about his literal soul?

And if by soul you mean the "lose who you are inside" as a metaphor, that's still a matter of opinion and not actually canonly what happens. Astarion is still himself. The "changes" in his personality are shifts to simply adjust to the company he is around. He's essentially code switching.

That is the point and this is what Larians writers have been hinting at and this is what irks people about AA.

Got it. So the point of Astarion's romance is for Larian to write a singular story that has one ending you're "supposed" to enjoy with a "morally good" conclusion, and one ending that's fun and sexy, but "supposed" to be a cautionary warning of how things "shouldn't go". Because that makes sense for a "choose your own adventure" game and that's why the romance stops with AA as soon as you ascend him, and he enslaves and compels your character and you can't continue the romance with him--OH WAIT.

The oversexualisation and erasure of his trauma, effectively erasing him as a person

"The oversexualization".... So you know my Tav's personal motivations and why she chose to ascend him? And you're confident you know I made the roleplay decisions I made because you know it centers entirely and solely around it being to sexualize him?

Interesting.

Because that couldn't be further from the truth. My Tav has an entire story for why she chose to ascend him and it has nothing to do with how sexy it makes him. And it was a story I came up with well before I knew about any of this "sexualization" concept. And as a player, I didn't ascend him because I wanted a sexy vampire. I went into his romance blind and had no idea what would happen when I did it. I ascended him because it narratively made sense for my character and their relationship. But even then, if I wanted a sexy vampire, why is that a bad thing? He's not real.

And I find it so ironic that a lot of spawn fans who are anti-AA only enjoy AA for the sexual parts of that ending. Yet, we're the ones "oversexualizing" him lol

As for "erasure of his trauma"... where do I even start? What does that even mean? lol I'm not gonna lie. You sound young or unaware, but believe it or not, in real life there is more than one way to deal with trauma. And dealing with it in a way you don't agree with doesn't erase the trauma or mean the person is pretending it never happened. Ascended Astarion very much addresses his trauma and exercises a different form of healing.

In a fantasy world, you can actually explore those other options and have the outcome work FOR you, even if it wouldn't in real life. Accepting your fate and trying to align yourself with "morally good" choices is certainly not a bad thing and one way to go. In real life, that's what I agree with, as a Christian and believer in Christ. But Faerun doesn't have a Jesus. They don't have the same real world ideas of morals. They have their own gods, their own history, their own moral perspective outside of our world. Bringing in (your perspective of) our real world morals is a valid way to roleplay, but it's not the "only correct" way to roleplay.

There is the route of overthrowing what was meant to control and destroy you, and taking control of it yourself. Taking what was meant to be against you and making it work for you instead. For me, that's what Astarion's ascension means.

A smaller example of this is if you give Astarion Gandrel's crossbrow to use.

This weapon was designed to work against vampire spawn. It allows for its user to possibly inflict Turn Undead on enemies and gives them advantage in a fight against monster types. And yet, Astarion can wield it and use it effectively. He can take what was created to hurt and destroy him and use it to work for him.

Ascension can be the exact same thing. It's not a matter of which opinion of ascension is morally right. It's a matter of which decision on ascension is right for your Tav and their story with Astarion.

...saying something "doesn't matter" is just a cop-out.

Can you show me where I said "something" "doesn't matter"? Cause it wasn't in any of my recent posts. Are you referring to one of my older ones?

Not only do I not know what part of what post you're referring to, BUT I also don't know what I was talking about, if I even said "something" doesn't matter. I don't know what that "something" is.

Astarion didn't need to be "fixed" to the point of emotional lobotomy.

I'm glad we agree on something. I've seen people claim ascension is "fixing" him (because it eliminates the negative traits of vampirism) and therefore it's weird to call anti-AA spawn fans "fixers". But the difference is trying to change(fix) his morals and view of the world to reflect a "good" worldview (the spawn ending) VS trying to change (fix) his circumstances and lack of control (helping his ascend).

AA fans do not want to change his personality or his mental/emotional state. We want to change his circumstances so that he has a place to be able to make those decisions on his own. And for most of us, Ascension provides that perspective.

Spawn fans want the same thing. But the approach is more to convince him from the inside out that he can make those decisions without ascension. And that's also true. But not more valid or the only way.

But his personality does not change in either ending. In one (spawn ending), he is able to find freedom in just being free of Cazedor and exist the way he always has with a newfound confidence and peace.

In another, he is able to find freedom in taking the helm himself, and holding all the cards to be the one on top. He finds confidence in having the power and being able to wield it, without fear of anything he's had to fear with the negatives of vampirism.

But in both, he is still the same person. He still gets joy out of the same things (killing people, having/causing/observing bloodshed, and causing some chaos), he still has the same personality. The difference is in his circumstances and how he presents himself.

I don't think it's wrong to like or prefer him, but I think it's valid to have opinion on the matter, much like you have yours.

You don't mean that. Because if you did, you wouldn't have a reason to send this anon message in the first place. You wouldn't care enough. It wouldn't matter. You wouldn't have this opinion. You would be able to see value in both endings and respect the positive perspective of ascension even if you don't understand it, without arguing headcanon points like "his soul is irreversibly gone".

Your entire message is literally you trying to tell me it's wrong to like him and that the opinion I have of him is invalid and wrong. I already respect your opinion on both sides of him. Because it's your right to how you roleplay and see him. If you respect mine, you're doing a really awful job at showing it.

Regardless, if that is your intention or not. That's what sending this message says. If you really want to say you respect AA fans for enjoying AA, then stop sending AA fans messages like this and either completely avoid AA and the fans or refrain from trying to argue against it. We can discuss it and not agree while also respecting each other's roleplay choices.

This is not a wrong vs right conversation. It's a "what's your preference?" conversation. Spawn vs Ascended should be like "what's your favorite Pokemon type?"

The sooner that is realized, the better off this fandom will be.

#anon #anon ask #ask #ascended astarion

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jahiera · 9 months

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Love your little meta analyses of Astarion and would LOVE to hear your thought on the optional "you don't have to do this just because you feel like you owe me something" line early in Act 1 when he first propositions Tav and his reaction to it?

Okay hi sorry, I lost a bunch of my saves and I thought I'd lost the save for this scene too but turns out NOPE I HAD IT & I'm so glad because I wanted to go back and play the different variations so I could probably scream and... scream I did! And I'm SO compelled by this, so thank you for the ask! & sorry for the late response.

So you actually only get this version of the conversation if you don't express any sort of confirmation that yeah, you're into him. If you confirm you're into him, or the biting, that'll bypass the ability to say "you don't have to do this," altogether, which makes me want to eat drywall because the whole conversation prior is still fairly shady, but the "reward for your noble sacrifice" only comes through if you don't fully confirm you were into it. which is very interesting because in the other two versions you can still express doubt, but only in the format of the "a less trusting person" line seen above as well.

The first time he propositions you, if you get this branch of dialogue, what I think happens here is Astarion quickly shifts gears. He sees that Tav isn't, at least according to what they say, charmed or aroused by the vampire routine.

One other thing: they helped him because, as a result of giving him blood, he would be able to physically help them more. He would be stronger, a better fighter, and thus useful. (Whatever is intended by each individual tav who takes his line is up to the player, but that's what can most obviously be received by Astarion).

So, he switches up instantaneously to accommodate the motivation that Tav seems to have (through his own eyes). Instead of appealing to Tav's horny brain and physical attraction to him, he's appealing to their "sacrifice." Tit for tat. Pleasure in reward for blood. You aren't lustfully interested in him as is? That's fine. He can switch it up and instead offer sex as repayment for what you've done for him, and for his body as an object that functions better due to the blood you've given him. Either way, the end goal will be the same: sex to secure his position in the group.

At this point in the game, it isn't about Tav, not really, I don't think. You could take any version of this conversation to the conclusion and it would mean the same thing to him. (That is to say: seduction and sex for security, and sleeping with Tav is a quick way to get that.)

So when Tav says, "You shouldn't do this just because you feel like you owe me something," I don't even think it really... registers for him? Because he hasn't even begun to conceive of that possibility. He is fully still in the same mindset he had prior to escaping, and is running through the same patterns of behavior as before.

He brushes off that reassurance immediately, says it's "more of an excuse," than anything, doing the same thing as before. When he gets this reaction from Tav, he switches gears again: oh it's not the only reason I want to have sex with you, I'm mostly interested in you, I promise. He's navigating the very shallow social interaction that this seduction routine entails by adjusting at a moment's notice to the next thing Tav says. If they're interested or flirty back, he'll fully play up the whole thing. If they're reluctant, he offers new reasons for why they should want to sleep with him.

And then if you reject him entirely:

"Deny your feelings all you like, it doesn't matter to me."

You don't get disapproval for rejecting him, but he still reinforces this idea to Tav that yes, you're interested in me. You just haven't realized it yet. Typically this kind of line in romance would be annoyingly obnoxiously all about "oh you want me you just haven't realized it yet" and the other party is supposed to find this hot, but with the context of the rest of his arc, it's fascinating. Because Astarion only knows how to secure safety and power through seduction and sex. He only knows how to get what he needs through emotional manipulation and cunning--and SHALLOW emotional manipulation at that. He's not playing an intricate game here. His manipulations become prettyyyyy overt by the second time he propositions you:

Like, it would take some serious emotional blindness to miss the hints he's laying out here. He's delighting in dangling the fact that he's lying and manipulating Tav right out in front of them. Because now he feels more secure in his position in the group. In Tav's attraction to him. Because they've already slept together once, he has less to fear about losing his station of safety via Tav within the group.

So then I thought. Okay what does he say when you reject him in other places where he propositions you. In the actual sex scene itself, he simply says "Why are you here then? I thought we had an understanding? (...)" but if you reject him during the "little treat," scene, he says:

In both instances, the "you don't have to" and "I don't think I really want this," Astarion gives Tav a glimpse at the, huh, trauma behind the scenes. In this later scene, when you've already slept with him once, he outright admits he's slept with tons of people and doesn't remember most of them, and in a very.... passive, "gotten on my back," phrasing that's so offhanded for all that it implies. Like can we go back. Can we unpack that. And he does not! I don't know what to make of that last line. "You, I'll remember." Maybe he's being saccharine one last time to keep up some manner of security within the group. Maybe he's confusingly genuine, growing to care about Tav in a way he has no idea how to unpack yet, if at all. Probably doesn't even realize it yet, if that's the case.

Either way, he gives you unintentional glimpses behind the scenes to the inner workings of his intentions. The inconsistencies in how he talks to Tav depending on their next reaction. The switching gears quick to accommodate different statements and personalities. The offhanded reveal of his total lack of care or feeling about the "lines" he spews to get people to be interested. IT HITS. It hits badly.

#astarion #bg3 meta #bg3 spoilers #sa mention #BIG ... BIG FEELINGS ON THIS ONE. Apparently.#I'll add transcriptions of the dialogue in a sec I'm just on the go right now but #you're A DARLING & thank you for asking & thank you for liking what I have to say that's very sweet of you!! <3333 #MWAH. Hope this is coherent? and also... way too long #but. hopefully coherent!

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rauzagel · 7 months

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I want to rant a bit about how the sexual aspect of Act 3 Raphael is handled, so be warned, you know what this is about. Just me whining for a bit.

First of all, it was very clear to me that the game would give us some sexy Raph scenes the moment they let us engage with Mizora because it had been pretty equal up until that point. If the game lets you do the lady devil, they'll undoubtedly let us have some fun with the handsome male one, right? They even gave us some Squid boy action after all. So the moment I got that Mizora scene my main motivation in the game shifted to finish Raphaels quest line as soon as possible to get to that point.

Then we get to the House of Hope and it's just... some random shapeshifting fiend and he's just grinding on my gals stomach, riding air. So from an anatomical standpoint the animation itself only works for male player models to begin with and uh... it was just really awkward, not enjoyable at all and the actual Raphael is just reduced to a joke and then that's it.

To me, a Raphael simp, this was the equivalent of dating Astarion/Shadowheart for three Acts and just when you're about to finalize the romance with some sexy scenes, Dribbles the (shapeshifter) Clown swoops in and takes that romantic interests place instead.

What's the purpose of replacing the actual Raphael with a guy whos sole alure lies within the fact that he copies the voice and looks of Raphael? It's literally him but without any of the charme. It would've been fine if that's all it was, but why ruin the characters sexual appeal on top of it? There were so many other things in the house of hope that could've been used to make fun of him, why not at least leave us the fantasy? I don't accept the "Oh, he's a villain and all villains are secretly pathetic" angle because as others have already mentioned, that is not how Mizora is handled, who is Raphaels female equivalent for those who're attracted to women. I'm not the only one who feels this way considering how many fans interpret the available information so that we can still get something out of it. Which I mean works just fine, but in the end it's all speculation. It's also the only way he'll still keep his appeal for many, myself included.

With the way he conducted himself, controlling and dominant, I don't find it unreasonable to expect any romantic scenes involving him to play out a certain way, it's very much the implication of writing him this way and it's exactly those qualities that people would be drawn to for the first 2 and a half acts in the first place. Raphael had such an intimate and prominent role by directly interacting with the player throughout the game, especially if you sign the contract and was, with his flirting, pretty much perfectly set up for some romance content. Even the locations we meet him at, such as the brothel are teasing the player and pointing towards it. The writers are aware that it was anticipated by many too, you can literally tell Haarlep sleeping with Raphael is what you wanted all along, but then that line is just treated as a joke once again. Raph is the only alternative to the emperor, in the end it's literally him or squid and even the squid gets a scene for those who are into him. Raphaels appeal isn't just the visual, but his charme and personality, the entire package, so to say. A shapeshifter that copies his visuals is just that, a hollow copy with none of those qualities, none of the charme and in the end none of the appeal. I'm still pretty disappointed by it. As it stands I would have preferred no intimate scenes involving him or his clones and keep the fantasy over what we got.

Needed to scream this into the void.

#Raphael baldur's gate 3 #Raphael bg3 #Raphael x Tav #raphael/tav #bg3 #house of hope #raphael #baldur's gate 3 #we got so close #someone tell me it'll be okay #they just need to release the raphael cut right? It'll change everything #Honestly as far as my fantasies of villainy men go he was perfect until Hoh #yes I wanted him to dom me til I see the lights it's true #I have no shame about it it's what we deserved #should've let us have this #male attracted subs need love too

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collegeoflore · 6 months

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i do not have the screenshots i need to make the post i want to make but i’m going to ramble abt this for a second because i’m thinking abt it now.

this line is in direct conversation imo with the “this isn’t you” “it should be” line in the dungeon (that i don’t have a screenshot handy for rn). whether or not he actually believes what he says here is irrelevant because in order to do the ritual it needs to be true. and i do think to some extent he believes it because well. he’s astarion. but at the same time you can look at dialogue astarion has with durge where he makes it clear he thinks whatever is happening to them wrt to the urges and bhaal is wrong, and see that it is not so cut and dry as he wants it to seem. (at least for a romanced durge who resists the urges, which is the only route i’ve played so far! and again i don’t have my screenshots. this is a failure of a meta post LOL)

i think honestly a lot of what’s going on for astarion in this part of the game is less about how he actually feels and more about how he Needs to feel in order for the ritual to be a viable option. if he acknowledges, at any point, that what cazador has done is wrong on a broad scale he will also have to acknowledge that he is going to become cazador and deal with the emotional fallout of That and, well. that’s not something he necessarily wants to consider at this point. not to say i don’t think he feels like what cazador did was wrong only because it happened to him, i do think he does, but even if he didn’t it wouldn’t matter. it Has to be true or his whole plan falls apart. it doesn’t matter if it’s who he is or how he actually feels because it should be.

also like. being back in baldur’s gate makes him revert to the behavior and feelings that are familiar despite any progress he may have made up until this point. and the behavior he has the strongest reinforcement history for it cruelty. of course he’s cruel to the other spawn, of course he feels no remorse for planning to sacrifice them for his own gain - that’s what has kept him alive to this point. pity and care have only ever been punished, and it was a little easier to feel those things when the context and environment were different but here and now? back in the place where it all happened? it’s nearly impossible. of course he’s cruel and heartless and awful, anything else will (according to his mind and also his entire central nervous system that has been trained this way for centuries) get him tortured or killed.

anyway. all of this to say he’s horrible and i love the way they gave his cruelty substance and motivation and layers. even when he’s cruel for the sake of being cruel there’s an underlying Reason there that doesn’t make it okay but Does make it so much more fun and interesting. and i love that he is genuinely just awful. even spawn!astarion is still an asshole and that’s beautiful to me.

#i will remake this post with more screenshots and better thoughts. someday #[guy with dog training autism voice] well you see it’s about reinforcement history #astarion #bg3 meta

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malicedafirenze · 8 months

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I unintentionally skipped a lot of the romance content in Baldur's Gate 3 and I want others to learn from my mistakes:

So: I managed to lock myself out of romance entirely and ended up alone, which was a huge bummer and a serious crack in my motivation to play the game. I finished my playthrough (because I was already close to the end of Act 3 when I realized it), and plan to do another one eventually. I'm making this post in hopes of a) keeping others from making the same mistakes and b) to possibly get some additional insight re. what to watch out for in my next playthrough.

PSA: Pick a Partner before Act 3

The key learning here for me was this explanation from the poly mod

In BG3, romance is divided into 2 steps: dating and relationship(also called partner). Dating is basically where you are at after the 1st romance scene. Relationship is where you are at after the 2nd romance scene (relationship also unlocks the kissing menu). BTW, If you enter A3, all dates will break up with you (partners won't, ofc).

I hadn't realized this until well into Act 3, at a point where going back to a save to properly fix it would have meant replaying large parts of Act 2 as well - I decided to finish my run instead and then start a completely new one later.

Note: lots of spoilers below. (click here to read this post on reddit instead)

My Romance Woes

I read in advance that you couldn't romance multiple people (except for the specific Halsin combos with Shadowheart and Astarion) and therefore turned down Gale and Lae'Zel early in the game (not realizing you could just date/bonk them without fully committing or getting anyone upset)

I didn't take approval all that seriously, thought I'd have more opportunity to fix things later. I was playing pretty good guy, and ended up with high approval for Karlach and Shadowheart, but low for Astarion. Weirdly, I don't recall an option to romance Shadowheart (no clue what I missed?) and the only option I had for Karlach was at the Tiefling party, where I went with Astarion instead. I had a scene or two with him, but then didn't progress further in the relationship, without really realizing what I was missing.

I wanted to romance everyone, sat on the fence for too long, and ended up not romancing anyone at all, by missing a thing or two in act 1 and 2 and being too late to fix it in act 3. Don't be like me, it feels bad man.

Early Act 3, I got Astarion's breakup dialogue ("we haven't spent a night together in some time" --> him explaining it was just transactional and he doesn't see the value in it anymore) and got super worried, but when trying to look up if I'd messed up, I didn't find a clear answer for without more spoilers, so I just continued playing Act 3, including all of the companion quests.

I later learned that I missed out on at least one important Astarion romance interaction by not going to Moonrise Towers until after freeing Nightsong. (when the Towers are already on high alert, i.e. I could only fight and not have a lot of conversations)

After realizing I had messed up companions romance, I instead fucked everyone it was unwise to fuck (Emperor, Mizora, Harleep...) for fun and to see what would happen... but chickened out and reloaded after Emperor and Mizora. Still, got to enjoy some fun content that way!

The ending I got (going to Avernus with Karlach) was really cool and made me cry a lot. I then did try to reload my last save though, to see if I'd get any other epilogue content if I didn't go to the Hells, but... apparently that scene on the docks (Astarion goofily running off, everyone kinda agreeing to go party after this, no other conversations with anyone again.... is just... it?

Idk how much of this is the lack of romance, but I really felt like something was missing there. I at least wanted to talk to everyone again one last time.

This is a post about my romance failures and regrets so I'm not gonna talk about everything else that I loved about the game, but just in case this is getting a bit too negative: I had an absolute blast with the whole game regardless, I'm stoked to give it another go the "proper" way (i.e. with romance). I also generally think it's really fucking cool that this game's romance options depend on how you behave, and that you can't just e.g. give someone the right kind of gift 20 times in a row to make them love you, like it works in games like Stardew Valley.

Next Playthrough Plans

I'll probably wait for another patch or two - considering how much got fixed and tweaked with the first three patches, I suppose it's worth to wait a bit and see what's coming

I'll play with the Poly mod next time and try to romance all of the Origin characters.

I plan to play with the camp notifications mod, as well as the approval ratings in dialogue mod. Both in hopes of being able to game the romance a bit better and get much of the romance in one playthrough

I'll play Dark Urge (haven't seen any of that so far!), but probably still go for a "good" playthrough mostly

I plan on equipping & levelling all Origin companions and switch them out more freely, in order to get approval from everyone and edit my party as makes sense depending on story events (e.g. take Lae'Zel to the Creche, take Gale to the Ketheric fight...)

I want to romance everyone. I already saw some tips for early game Astarion approval and assume the aforementioned mods will help in optimizing this

Am probably not gonna do anything all that differently otherwise because my heart can't take an actually evil playthrough

Aand that's about it. As mentioned, I'm mostly posting in case this helps anyone else.

I was really damn sad when I realized I had locked myself out of all romance, because the romance was a significant part of my motivation to start playing this in the first place. At the same time, I loved so much about the game that I still got a lot out of it in 110+ hours even with minimal romance content.

If you see any red flags about my plans for the next playthrough (or if you have experience with the mentioned mods!), I'd appreciate comments and insights. Other than that, here's hoping others can learn from my mistakes. Thank you for reading <3

#bg3 #baldur‘s gate 3 #baldur's gate #astarion #bg3 romance #karlach #gale #lae'zel #shadowheart #astarion romance #baldur's gate 3 romance

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wetcatspellcaster · 2 months

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So in the context of Pieces, did the Ascendent originally break up with Rosalie because he didn’t want her at first but then regretted it? He seemed pretty quick to want her back after she shows up 10 years later. Did he ever try to find her and seek her out on his own? Especially with the lines “I was born out of love for you” and “you were the first thing I ever saw and the last thing I will ever see”. I’m curious when his motivations to have her back started.

hey anon. i think i may have answered this elsewhere so apologies if i contradict myself!

the break-up is partially dictated by canon. But at my end, I rationalise it as an impulse decision in a moment of intense betrayal that he then has to commit to. He wasn't expecting her to not want to be spawn - given that in this version of Astarion ascending Rosalie never says anything or speaks out, while it's happening.

So the Ascendent comes out of the ritual, already feeling some kind of way... but it's fine! bc he has his girlfriend, who was supportive of him, 100%! Only then he speaks to his girlfriend that night and she's like "we did the wrong thing, I don't want you" - even though she didn't say anything at the time? she waited until now? when it's irreversible, when he's stuck like this, and she's leaving him alone? I figured that would feel like a massive betrayal, particularly in the tumultuous aftermath of just making a big decision that you're still dealing with the implications of. I often feel like Tav is what makes Ascendency worth it (in a romance route), so getting rid of that would I think cause a lot of hurt, anger, and rage.

He didn't try to seek her out bc after the break up (instigated by him) he was too prideful to do so. If you're the perfect sexy version of vampirism and your girlfriend loves you, surely she'll come crawling back eventually? and when she doesn't, and you start to feel depressed and lonely, what are you going to do? Admit you're sad, and prove yourself weak?

He was excited to see her back after ten years, because he had engineered her return through the murders.

And the lines he says in his final speeches ('I was born out of love for you', etc) are essentially the narrative that the Ascendent has been starting to build for himself since getting Rosalie back in his life again. Life is so exciting! Things keep happening, and all so unexpectedly! He's being kept on his toes! He knew he was right! this is definitely the cure to everything he's been feeling, time to make his entire existence about keeping and controlling Tav.

He may genuinely believe it at the point where he says it, but he hasn't felt that way since the beginning. He thought he would survive fine on his own, and when he doesn't he starts looking for things that might give his existence meaning, and settles on Rosalie as one potential answer.

hope that all makes sense! :)

#asks #anons #wip: pieces still stuck in your teeth

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pythoria · 8 months

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something about bg3 i find fascinating is just How Many characters are good and compelling. Usually with most media, be it games or tv shows or movies you have one or 2 characters you get attached to, but with baldur's gate i love almost every single character in their own way.

Astarion is instantly charming and witty, he's the sassy vampire who most people find themselves drawn to, but he's not the only compelling character by far. Gale takes some time to grow on you, but after you actually see how his story unfolds and maybe even romance him, you start understanding that he's just as hurt and sad as any of the other characters, groomed from a young age and misunderstood because of it. Astarion sees himself as just a body to be used, but Gale also thinks he's worthless deep down, especially after losing the bulk of his magic. He's passively suicidal and thinks his abuser is worth sacrificing everything for, and needs the whole camp to yell at him for being stupid to realise he might deserve to live and even, get this, find happiness.

Shadowheart's story and ending isn't talked about a lot, but it is HEARTBREAKING, and both endings for her are the only ones that actually brought tears to my eyes. In a similar way to other characters, her bad ending gives away a lot about her character, almost more than her good ending, and without spoiling it, i'll just say: it's impossible to make her character evil. she will always be governed by a sense of good and justice, and the only thing that goes wrong for her is being misguided and unable to turn back. Whatever she does, she does it because she thinks it's good and just.

I can't go in depth about every character, although they are all incredible, but honourable mentions for me are literally all the villains. Gortash is instantly compelling, and how could he not be with a voice actor like That. Him and Orin are also incredibly visually interesting, as well as their personalities being so magnetic. Ketheric is deeply tragic in his own way, act 2 is practically dedicated to his shattered family and it's so fascinating to see the shards of a broken man scattered across a broken, cursed land.

Raphael has the best theme song by far, he's overflowing with charisma, he speaks in riddles and verse, he's the perfect devil. He draws you in, you almost start to like him, and then you arrive at the House of Hope and the illusion both shatters and builds even further, because his lair is by far the best map in the entire game. You find out he only ever wants to sleep with himself, but that he's terrible in bed according to his succubus. You see people's lost souls pop in and out of existence, and you can only watch them beg for reprieve, but cannot interact. You see debtors crawling around rabidly on all fours, or worshipping his toilet, or sitting in front of his budoir, endlessly bound to watch him and his succubus through the peep hole but never allowed to join. And then there's the final fight, with its incredible song that everyone should experience for the first time in game.

So many compelling characters and i could write an essay about each one. i've barely scratched the surface, and i haven't even mentioned all the origin characters. it's just insane to me how detailed every story is, how they all have their own individual arcs and motivations and they're all fully fleshed out, and feel so god damn REAL. Yeah, bg3 should get GOTY, but honestly that's not even enough. The voice actors need oscars, the composer needs a grammy, and so on and so forth. what a game.

#pythoria.txt #bg3 #astarion #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 gale #bg3 spoilers

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sweetmage · 6 months

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Some Tav!Abdirak thoughts pertaining to intimacy and healing in regards to his backstory and relationship with Ast*ri*n (don't want it in the tag)

⚠️ TW for mentions of sexual trauma and general sexual topics, self-harm, general potentially triggering subject matter

So original I had it in my head that at some point him and Alois became sexually intimate with each other, but after actually writing out his backstory I just don't really think that's realistic or feasible given the amount of trauma he endured prior, the timespan, and the nature of his relationship with Alois. I think the extent of their intimacy was chaste physical affection and domestic activities like sharing a bed for sleep, hair braiding, kissing, etc.

Of course there is certainly a sexual element to his worship, and quite an empowering and cathartic one at that, though there is never any direct sexual contact and he remains fully clothed and doesn't tend to actually get off then and there unless it's a spontaneous thing that happens without touching.

Actual sexual intimacy in any sense (except by his own hand) has remained wholly off the table, both from lack of desire and lack of necessity. It doesn't hold the greater purpose that pain does and it's territory he still is not ready to tread, especially since he has had no close relationships since Alois because he doesn't stay in one place too long.

So with all that said, this actually makes the situation with Astarion far worse than I had initially intended. The first time he slept with Astarion was... not entirely pleasant. He had been lonely, stressed, and for the first time was in close enough proximity for a long enough time to actually form a genuine bond with someone, so when the party came around he was apprehensive but not entirely opposed to the idea. However, after a few drinks with Shadowheart (liquid courage as she calls it), he ends up going through with it... the next day he is certain he never wants to do that again. It was an overall unpleasant experience for him that was only made tolerable by the alcohol, but you live and you learn. He didn't hold that against Astarion, it was his own experimentation and he had confirmed he wasn't ready for sex.

But the next time... that time Astarion was really pressuring him even though he didn't want to (for the dialogue options I kept choosing the ones that hinted at uncertainty). Astarion kept insisting that Abdirak clearly wanted him and it was obvious, which made Abdirak question himself and his own judgement. In a way most out of character for him (brought about as a result of latent, unprocessed trauma) he ended up caving to Astarion and having an over all awful time. In fact, he suggested Astarion bite him midway (feigning that he simply enjoyed it more) to end the encounter more quickly, since he sensed that there was some ulterior motive there.

Sure enough, that was the end of it. The night of the event he secluded himself in the ruins on the far side of camp, going very heavy on the "worship" (read: self-harming with the excuse of it being worship) to clear thoughts. Shadowheart ended up finding him there and dragging her bedroll over to spend the night there with him even though he insisted he'd be alright and neglected to tell her what happened.

He didn't talk to Astarion or offer him blood for several weeks after that and their relationship remained very rocky for a while. At one point (in the variant romance scene you can get from talking to Araj before Raphael) Astarion very flippantly mentions how easy he was to manipulate. This, of course, crumbles any repairs they'd made to their relationship by that point and Abdirak once again refuses to speak to him, leaving before the love confession and explanation. Astarion is genuinely confused by this reaction.

Despite all this and his anger and disgust towards him, he still helps Astation with the deal with Raphael because he's nothing if not good on his word and he is still sympathetic towards the trauma he faced, even if he feels like he has not been offered the same in return.

Naturally, Astarion is quite confused by this and tells him as much and then the main romance scene more or less plays out (with added questioning as to *why* he helped). Somewhere in that conversation (probably after Astarion reveals his own sexual trauma and motives) Astarion gleans the truth and is rightly mortified at what he'd done to Abdirak.

Abdirak, of course, isn't happy that Astarion went through that and he's not also not thrilled about what he did either, but there is some understanding and even a little messed up relief in knowing that he was not senslessly used for Astarion's pleasure.

Likewise he apologizes to Astarion for using him that first night to assess the depths of his own traumas instead of taking the time to work through that on his own.

After a very long, uncomfortable, and difficult talk they take entirely off the table and agree to start over.

I don't think they actually sleep together again until post canon, not even at the graveyard scene. Astarion becomes ready before he does which makes so much more sense for Abdirak now that I've realized his first times ever willingly engaging in a purely sexual encounter were those two horrendous encounters with Astarion.

I think it's a very emotional experience when they finally do though 🥺 Of course naturally things get kinky later as the trust between them develops further, but it's still a very big thing that first time. It takes more trust than letting Astarion bite him every night (even after Astarion nearly killed him that first time he drank from him lol) does.

#jun rambles

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tadpole-apocalypse · 5 months

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Ok now that I’ve had a chance to play all the way through Morgan’s game to the epilogue and work on her story in my head, I’ve got some new ideas for how I intend the story and romance to proceed.

Act 1 - very early game

Morgan knew something was off about Astarion from the beginning. All of the other tadpoled brains in their party had minds that she could skim surface thoughts and feelings from to determine threats to herself. But her magic bounced off of him with no impressions...unless she uses her tadpole. But she's still getting used to being connected to a hivemind with all the others and can't go digging in his head with the finesse she is accustomed to; it's all clumsy and obvious and they can tell right away when the tadpole is being forcibly used to read into the other's mind. (And everyone gets mad when she tries)

Even without doing it deliberately they do still get impressions of the other’s thoughts and feelings over the mind link. And his seem normal to her considering their situation, except that she cannot use detect thoughts on him and it pisses her off.

When she caught him at her neck the third night, she forcibly used her tadpole on him because she thought she was about to be attacked. She saw and felt echos of what he felt, the pain of a never ending hunger, the disgusting slide of coagulated vermin blood down his throat and the barest amount of satiety it brought. The entire conversation he made himself as small and pathetic as he could and it worked on her; she pitied him.

To Astarion's delight, she knew nothing of vampires other than what she'd read in tawdry publications. She believed him when he said he would only need a little of her blood. He wasn't anything monstrous that she could see, just had peculiar diet needs. Now she understood he had a condition that prevented her from reading his mind and she was able to relax around him. The vampire thirsting for her blood.

(Shadowheart eventually has the vampire talk with her)

Astarion at this point thought Morgan was a naive idiot. For willingly offering her neck like the fools who showed up at Cazador’s front door begging for his dark gift, and while she didn’t go out of her way to help others, she could be swayed by the occasional sob story and then waylay them for days off on some unprofitable venture she swore would only be a trifle to deal with. He resented having to tag along to all of it, especially once they knew they had to stay in range of the artifact to keep their minds. He had to stay with this group because he’d lose himself either to the Absolute or to Cazador if he left on his own. And he had to get her on his side (in love with him would be even better).

He didn’t find her looks particularly attractive (he has elvish beauty ideals and also Cazador’s twisted beauty standards in his brain, he’s a dumb idiot bastard man) but her naiveté towards what he was was too enticing for him. And useful. She had experience being pursued by random men for sex and was stone faced to his usual sweet talk. But she still responded to his flirtations anyways and was eager to see if he lived up to his boasts about his sexual prowess, and then was pleasantly surprised to see that he did indeed. It was a welcome reprieve from the constant threat of death they faced each day, and he was nicer to her and bitched less about her decisions, at least to her face.

No one caught feelings yet, this was just depraved carnal lust as far as both are concerned, or at least what Morgan assumes is the case for him as well. She doesn’t know or pick up on his ulterior motives because she assumes his motivations are sex and blood. This early in the game he is still vague about his slavery and Morgan does not stop to really think about it; she assumes he was in some kind of shitty servitude arrangement; not a continuous, torturous hell he had no escape from.

She won’t really comprehend that until much later into Act 2 dealing with his scars.

Next part - Tiefling party, and Morgan’s sexuality thoughts 🤭

#baldur’s gate 3 #bg3 #astarion #bg3: Morgan #astarion x tav #morganposting

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spagyricqueen · 4 months

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Quest for Dawn update

I'm not actually sure who follows me on here, but if you've been keeping up with my indulgent fic where Astarion is blinded, here's an update on that:

I just wanted to reassure my readers that the story is still being written. I'm trying to develop the next few chapters all at once for a big update. The plot is mostly worked out. I didn't just make him blind for funsies. I have 140 pages worth of notes alone. heh

The whole purpose of this fic is somewhat a major writing exercise. I wanted to create a well-rounded, fully complete story. I've been trying to practice developing character motivations, fleshing out personalities, diving into how characters might develop, change, and mature. I wanted to give Astarion a whole backstory, and family history. I've been attempting to incorporate Elvish language, psychology, and tie up some loose ends (the Gur children, and the vampire spawn).

I mean, it's a lot. At this point, I'm really just writing it for me. I get that turning Astarion back into a mortal might turn people off, even more than making him blind (which I sense might make some uncomfortable). Everyone has their own head canons. This is just one trajectory out of thousands I've seen written.

I've done yet another playthrough of the entire game, recording every significant interaction with Astarion and others - all the way through to the epilogue. The way I understand it, if you romanced Astarion and stayed together with him after beating Cazador, you tell Minsc that you are "still searching for a cure". This leads me to believe that Astarion wished to be cured of vampirism. I guess I'm defending my choice here... a little. There is even a voice line where he says something to the effect of, "I will do anything, pay any price to undo what he [Cazador] did to me!".

Just my thoughts. Wanted to share where this was going, and to reassure my readers (all seven of you...heh) that I'm still writing. School started back up, so that's one reason for the delay. The other was likely just that my brain needed a break. I squeezed it pretty hard and produced an entire novel in the span of three months. I kept pushing to write more, to which my heart said "Yes" and my brain said "No. You sleep now."

I promise I'm still alive, and still writing.

Thank you for reading. <3

#ao3 fanfic #astarion fanfic #baldur's gate 3 #astarion

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gaysebastianvael · 6 months

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no but it's actually very easy to reimagine Astarion's romance as a nonsexual pone while still keeping it in character for him. i have it so he finds out my Tav has never kissed anyone before and he uses that as a way to gain his trust rather than seducing him. same motive, same character development, etc. frankly i don't think that takes anything away from him as a character unless your entire perception of Astarion as a character is how much sex he's having, something he, in the game, asks you not to do.

#it's sad that you think so little of astarion that you think he can't successfully manipulate someone without using sex

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eldrichthingy · 7 months

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Okay, so. Just some random thoughts on bg3 endings that were probably said before, but I need to express my opinion too.

1. The endings are probably one of the most disappointing I can even recall. They're not worth the long journey of 60+ hours, however, the journey is worth it itself. For the amount of different routes you can take in this game and attention to details, it's a shame there are only two endings with slight differences and one with none.

2. Evil ending should have variations. I don't get it why Larian had characters express their desire to become the Absolute and dominate the cult (talking about Astarion & Minthara) TOGETHER just for them to become mindless thralls at the end, if you choose this ending. You're not given any options, you just simply can't spare your lover/partner in crime. Absolutely fucking nothing. We should have the option to rule with the person we choose, we should have the option to take it for ourselves as well. And while maybe Durge-specific evil ending might have a reason for that, I don't see any in regular evil ending. Evil couples exist and rule together, so we should have a specific romanced evil ending.

3. Durge suicide ending should be a proper tragic scene with romanced companion. Companions should react to their death, especially the one you've been with the entire game. (And while I get why it wouldn't happen with Karlach and Unascended Astarion, I don't see why it can't happen with others.) It doesn't make sense to me why no one doesn't do anything, especially Ascended Astarion with Spawn! Durge - their bond as a sire and spawn is very strong and if he can control them, then he should at least try? Or otherwise, watch them die in his arms. It could've been done similarly to Karlach scene.

4. Durge regretting killing Isobel/Alfira no matter what reaction they had to these murders in the playthrough/their actions whatsoever. Tell me why my evil Durge that defied Bhaal to be evil by choice and is a cleric of Lolth (evil spider goddess, yes) regrets that and "will remember it for their remaining days" (which is eternity btw, they're a vampire spawn as well). The reactions to urge doesn't matter in the end, neither the option you choose after being brought back to life by Withers. Defiying Bhaal doesn't mean your alignment changes. Different characters have different motivations and that is just. Weird to not consider in the end, especially when the majory of playthrough was them acting evil.

5. Unascended Astarion should have different ending in terms of reaction from companions and MC's actions. You should be able to follow him, cast darkness or just do SOMETHING. And companions that were fucking emphasizing with him the whole game shouldn't be cruel and joke about him not seeing the sun again. It just makes me go murderhobo, I'm sorry. They cared about each other though the entirely of the game and it doesn't feel right for them to act so.. unnecessary cruel towards Astarion after everything they've been through together.

6. If I'm not wrong, there was something like characters meeting months after in the game files/cut content. Fucking bring it back! Make them, idk, attend a ball or celebration of defeating Elder Brain, something like that and meet again, talking about everything that happened, their plans and just. How are they doing?? At least something. The 2 or so? Minutes cinematic is not enough. It doesn't feel right when the game is so long and it makes you deeply care about your companions to just leave it like that at the end. Maybe, they could've even done a meeting the night after in the main hall, like you get with romanced companion.

#nonsims #olya's rambles #bg3 spoilers #idk how to tag #I'm just very close to the end on the current playthrough I have and act 3 is pissing me off as well as the realization that I soon have to #experience the endings all over again #I guess??

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dragonswithjetpacks · 3 years

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Fic Writer Meme

I have been tagged by @noire-pandora. Thank you for the tag! ❤️

Name: dragonswithjetpacks. But I don't mind being called Kay.

Fandoms: I've written for Final Fantasy, Fable, and Pillars of Eternity which you can’t find here. But I'm known for Dragon Age, Mass Effect, and recently Baldur's Gate.

Most popular oneshot: The Quiet Closet. Which is ironically the first piece of smut I've published. I've tried only one other time before. But this one was a more serious take.

Most popular multichapter: Strange Fates, an offshoot of Fenris and my Inquisitor Lavellan. Which will resume! As soon as I can get Astarion out of my head. I am still really excited about it. It’s a slow burn. And really dives into what Aeva is about.

Actual worst part of writing: Getting into the flow. I have an easy time with ideas and getting them down. But sometimes sitting down and editing and putting together the sentences is hard. Sometimes I lack motivation. Sometimes it's inspiration. Sometimes creativity. When all three of those things are together, it's great. But I have to time it right.

How you choose your titles: I'll either find a short title that relates to something said in the fic or the name of the song that inspires. Sometimes it's a lyric, too.

Do you outline: For longer fics, yes. I actually have many outlines with unfinished fics. I also like to do it with timelines, too. Sometimes with maps attached.

Ideas I probably won’t get around to, but wouldn’t it be nice?: I'd really like to finish Voices of the Fade, which I’ve changed the name of like three times. I really just loved the idea. But when I started the fic, I had gotten writer's block really bad. And I just never went back to it. It's about a romanced warden Alistair who starts to crazy after the warden sacrificed herself.

Callouts @ Me: I won't go back and finish big projects because I hyperfixate on new things too quickly. Like I started a PoE fic and lost interest before I even beat the game. I just jumped fics.

Best writing traits: I'm actually unsure. I always thought my dialogue and fight scenes were great. But I'm still experimenting and getting know where I’m best.

Spicy Tangential Opinion: People aren't as open about appreciating fanfic. And they aren't willing to give things a chance. Like smut seems to be the only thing to draw people in. But there are other really good stories out there with heavy plot. It may take awhile, just like in an actual book, but the delivery is usually always worth it. That and readers don't understand the weight of leaving comments. Like just one comment from one person makes my entire day and will keep writing. A lot of us are hard on ourselves and knowing someone out there enjoys our work is a huge boost to our confidence. I love it when people tell me what they liked about my story. Or if they think I could have wrote a certain scene better. Like, I want to know how I am doing and how I can improve. But no one really takes the time the express how they feel about what they've read. Unless it's smut. Ya'll are just horny all the time.

Most of you guys have already been tagged. But uh I’m not sure if I saw anything from @skullharvester yet!

#fic writing meme #dwjp writing tag #dwjp writes #i love doing this #tag me in all the things

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