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Anon who was pondering Gale’s orb here. Thank you for delivering with that post! Yeah, I can see him using charm, wit, and illusions to secure the book from some well-guarded location. It certainly would fit with him later requesting to retrieve the Annals of Karsus from Sorcerous Sundries and him acting like that isn’t a truly wild suggestion.

If you don’t mind additional questions: On a related note, I also wonder if the Act 1 quest to save the grove would be frustrating for him. I mean, at one point, he had enough magical power to steal some ancient artifact like the Netherese tome containing the orb. Now, he’s struggling to cast basic spells on a mission that would normally be a cake walk. I’m sure he’d find saving the tieflings rewarding, but personally, were I in such a situation, it would be tinged with some level bitterness.

Hello again, friendly Anon!

I am so glad you liked my essay/nerdgasm on Gale’s Orb Acquisition. I had lots of fun writing it and I also learned a lot in the process, so it was definitely a win-win 💜

With regards to your current question, it’s funny you should ask that, because I definitely asked myself the very same thing yesterday while I was researching Mystra’s Chosen and their powers (I am planning on writing a post about that when I have some time, btw, so watch this space!)

It’s a shame that so much of Gale’s Early Access content is no longer part of the game as we know it, because there once used to be a scene in Act 1 (commonly known as the Loss Scene) where his frustrations and regrets would be voiced out loud:

Just now, I was trying to cast a spell I once cast with ease, but I failed. You see, this fire — there was a time that I could make it come alive. That it would take the shape of a dragon and roar in delight. There was a time I could silence a Beholder with a word, and lift a tower from its foundations with a flourish. There was a time I was all but one with the Weave. But no more – a mere shadow of the wizard I used to be. Why? Because I’ve lost.

And then, a little later in that same scene, when asked how he can still do magic after being cast out by Mystra, Gale would say this:

The Weave is still here, all around us — inside of us too. As long as the goddess lives, magic is a tangible thing for those who know how to touch. I’ve studied magic for many years and in as many ways I am still a more than capable wizard. It’s just that I’m no longer able to perform those feats even archwizards would marvel at. To have one’s hand on the pulse of divinity.

Powerful words, huh?

Whereas now we are left to somewhat imagine what it once meant for Gale to be an Archwizard and a Chosen — the full extent of his abilities, the sort of things he could do — this scene tells us in detail. And not only does it tell us that he was good, it tells us that he was great, so great that even his fellow Archwizards would be impressed and befuddled by the sheer power, scope, and majesty of his magic.

And, if you look at his words in light of Gale’s Act 3 storyline, this scene delivers even more than that. It explains precisely why Gale would want to pursue godhood. Because not only does he (quite literally) know what it feels like to touch divinity, but he also knows what it feels like to have power beyond the limits of comprehension. And he wants it back.

I think this scene, and the knowledge it equips us with, makes it even more meaningful for Gale to eventually give up on that plan and be content with living a simple life with the people he loves (whether he is in a relationship or simply surrounded by friends).

Because it is not just the idea of godhood that he abandons, it is the very tangible feeling of holding such incredible power in the palm of his hand. It’s not just something he wishes to have, it’s something that he already had, in a way. Not a dream, but a memory.

Of course, godhood would improve and magnify Gale’s power, once he no longer had the need to abide by Mystra’s rules — but it’s not as if Gale the Archwizard didn’t have godlike powers already.

When the orb latched on to him, such powerful, dark, hungry magic should have killed him instantly. Instead, it feasted on Gale’s considerable talents, stripped him of the bulk of his powers, but still left him enough to carry on casting, re-learning, improving (not to mention conjuring elaborate illusions far beyond your average caster’s abilities, even diminished as he is). A lesser wizard would almost certainly have died.

But Gale is not just your standard wizard, and there’s nothing average about him.

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I neeeeeeed this beautiful grumpysad tiefling.

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I want to be the filling in a Rolan and Gale wizard sandwich.

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Karlach is just one of my faves!

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"Tressyms are exceptionally intuitive. And also, you wear your emotions like a very garish cravat."

(pretty Tara reference photos)

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Lay on hands.

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Throwing hands on sight when I find out who labeled Tara as a MONSTROSITY.

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So… Gale nation, I heard you guys wanna lay in his tent while he looks at you longingly, right?

Enjoy.

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Galemancers I propose Morena Dekarios call Gale her rosebud boy since Gale always loved roses and even cried when he accidentally burned his neighbor's roses from a fireball

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❤️💜

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Y'all know those professors who you could email a question to at 1:30 AM and they would email you back like 10 minutes later because their sleep schedule was also a mess?

That's professor!Gale in a modern AU

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Preparing some galethara comics.

They're so funny. lol

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Happy lesbian visibility week 🥰🌈

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I have a proposal towards the bg3 fandom:

✨Them✨🥹

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larian wheres the romance scene that we help him braiding?

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