diceyphck

[diceyphck]

I've seen a lot of fanart of Astarion dressed like this. This is from the BAFTA Games Awards 2024 event where Neil Newbon, his interpreter, wore this costume. 🖤

#baldur’s gate 3 #baldur's gate 3 fanart #astarion #astarion ancunin

[diceyphck]

Rick Grimes fighting in the CRM THE WALKING DEAD: THE ONES WHO LIVE

#twd #twd gifs #the ones who live #the ones who live gifs #rick grimes #rick grimes gifs #andrew lincoln #andrew lincoln gifs

[diceyphck]

Look at this gorgeous beauty that wouldn't be out of place in a museum.

Link to creator below

#baldur’s gate 3 #astarion #astarion ancunin #baldur's gate 3 fanart

[diceyphck]

#baldur's gate 3 #astarion #gale dekarios #gale of waterdeep #bloodweave #meme #baldur's gate 3 humor #astarion ancunin #astarion x gale

[diceyphck]

Some notes about this that I think are interesting. In low approval he's unnaturally still and doesn't blink. Not even once. He's fully alert and on guard. He does NOT trust tav. In high approval he literally slow blinks like a cat and sways back and forth a little like he's giddy to talk to tav. He shows complete trust and absolutely adores them. Either platonically or romantically. Just some details that I think are really cool and show how much thought the devs put into these interactions. Even though most of the time we can't even see the faces he makes when talking to him.

#baldur's gate 3 #astarion #astarion ancunin

[diceyphck]

How to Write Betrayal

Betrayal is a powerful plot element that is represented in countless stories. The gravity of betrayal brings a profound depth to character dynamics, plots, and themes alike, making it an indispensable tool for writers to explore emotions, conflicts, and the complexities of human nature. Let’s explore some quick tips on how to write betrayal!

Behaviour

Secretive actions

Dishonesty

Becoming emotionally distant

A sudden change in routine

Pushing people away

Nervous or fidgety movement

Frequent lying or making up stories

Unexpected aggression or irritability

Unjustified mood swings or emotional outbursts

Increasingly defensive

Interactions

Disturbed interpersonal relationships

Frequent misunderstandings or fights

Withholding information

Avoiding personal discussions

Insincerity in conversations

Frequently cancelling or missing plans

A sudden shift in relationship dynamics

Quick to deflect or place blame

Frequent subject changes

Gradual emotional detachment

Body Language

Avoiding direct eye contact

Defensive stance and crossed arms

Covering mouth or touching face

Shuffling or restless movements

Forcing smiles or laughter

Constantly looking around or at the ground

Stiff, tense posture

Heavy breathing or frequent sighing

Avoiding touch or skin contact

Exaggerated gestures

Attitude

A lack of concern or empathy

Increasingly personal and hurtful arguments

Erratic or unpredictable reactions

Self-centeredness

Insincerity

Dismissive or negative attitude

Callous disregard for other's feelings

A negative or pessimistic outlook

Inability to handle criticism

Withdrawal from relationships

Positive Story Outcomes

In the wake of a betrayal, a story can manifest various positive outcomes that add depth to the plot and its characters. Relationships can be strengthened, showing their resilience. Characters may discover newfound self-reliance and learn valuable lessons about trust and forgiveness, leading to an increase in empathy and understanding, personal growth, and the reinforcement of personal values. These experiences can encourage a clearer understanding of personal boundaries, prompt self-reflection, introspection, and the development of healthier coping mechanisms. Ultimately, these positive outcomes can bring about improved communication and honesty, forming the silver lining in the cloud of betrayal.

Negative Story Outcomes

The aftershocks of betrayal can reverberate throughout your story. This might include an irreparable fracture of trust and damage to relationships. Betrayal can trigger psychological trauma, leading to an increase in suspicion and insecurity. Feelings of inadequacy or self-blame may surface, and characters can experience a heightened sense of isolation. The fear of forming new relationships or trusting others can become overwhelming. There may also be an escalation of conflict or violence and the reinforcement of negative behaviours or patterns. Damaged self-esteem or self-worth may be another repercussion, and this can encourage destructive coping mechanisms.

Helpful Synonyms

Treachery

Deception

Double-crossing

Duplicity

Backstabbing

Two-faced

Disloyalty

Unfaithfulness

Infidelity

Falseness

Perfidy

Treason

Fraud

Deceit

Slander

Misrepresentation

Falsification

Chicanery

Double-dealing

#writing #writing tips #writing advice #writing resources #creative writing

[diceyphck]

@nathanwpyle

I literally love this.

I couldn't stop laughing for 20 minutes.

No joke.

#house plants #lol #humor

[diceyphck]

@smallsith thank you for reminding me that I had this animation ready but completely forgot to post it lol

#baldur's gate 3 #the dark urge #durge #baby durge

[diceyphck]

uh oh

oh damn he was just dreaming

#twd #twd fanart #twd negan #rick grimes #rick x negan #negan x rick

[diceyphck]

No character is going to live unscathed.

We writers seem to be an expert at getting our darlings bashed up, beaten and abused (sometimes to the point of insanity). That' great, and let's make sure we are doing it right.

Cuts and Scrapes

The area will immediately begin to swell up.

Blood rushes to accelerate the healing process, and that makes the skin around the wound look red and swollen, and it will feel warm (though not hot).

Most wounds wouldn't bleed too much, unless it's a head injury.

Try to give indications of how severe the wound is.

How wide is the injury? How far does it stretch across the character's body? Can bone be seen? Is blood seeping into their clothes or pooling underneath them?

Is it a clean slice, or is it torn open? Have parts of the flesh been pulled away?

How much does the wound frighten the injured character?

Bruises

When the injury is first sustained, it will look swollen and red.

Over time, the bruise will darken to a shade of blue, purple, or black.

After that, it will gradually turn yellow or green. Then it will turn brown and eventually fade away.

The word choice matters!

Describing a bruise as a "contusion" creates a violent connotation, while "blemish" doesn't sound so harsh.

Describing bruises as "discolored" or "shadows" comes with a more melancholy connotation.

How They Feel

An injury from blunt trauma, such as a bruise, is going to feel dull, and like it's throbbing.

It will feel stiff and firm from the swelling, and it may sting if touched.

As the bruise ages, it may feel tender and sore, but only when pressure is applied or the area is moved.

A wound from a sharp object, however, is likely to feel hot, tingly, or numb.

The pain may be delayed, but after the initial rush of adrenaline wears off, the pain from this type of injury will be fairly constant.

Scrapes tend to feel hot and itchy, and the scab from a nasty scrape can cover a wide area. It will also get itchier as it heals, motivating the character to pick at it and delay healing.

Healing Duration

The time it takes an injury to heal is going to depend on the severity of the injury.

As a general rule, however:

Bruises take about 2 weeks Scrapes take about 1 week

Minor cuts take about 2 weeks

Surgical incisions and sutured wounds take about 4-6 weeks

A bad wound that doesn't get stitches could take up to 3 months

If you like my blog, buy me a coffee! ☕

#writing #creative writing #writing tips #writing advice

[diceyphck]

Get to Know Your Character

Here are some questions to consider for character development:

What parts of their childhood trigger them?

How do they treat themselves when they're feeling sad?

What parts of themselves do they tend to hide?

How do they punish themselves when they make mistakes?

Who are they loyal to? Why?

Who do they avoid? Why?

What emotions or situations do they try to avoid? Why?

What angers them?

What are their insecurities?

What are their emotional triggers?

How do they feel about love?

What are their fears?

What is their relationship with their family like?

What kind of people do they tend to gravitate towards?

What do they like/dislike about themselves?

Happy writing ❤

#writing #writing tips #character development

[diceyphck]

Our Son (2023) dir. Bill Oliver

#our son #luke evans #luke evans gifs #isaac powell #isaac powell gifs

[diceyphck]

haters and losers jealous they don't have a vampire bf who will say strange and off putting things in public

#baldur’s gate 3 #astarion #astarion ancunin

[diceyphck]

Help why is this so funny

#baldur’s gate 3 #astarion #astarion ancunin #bg3 dev notes #neil newbon #lol

[diceyphck]

Everything I found in Szarr's palace, for all your fanfiction-writting needs. I haven't found any other post like this one, so i hope i m not copying anyone. Posting it here, because editing the official wiki feels intimidating. Feel welcome to add anything I missed.

Astarion's siblings (the other spawn):

Petras - one of the two you meet in the Flophouse.

Dalyria - the other one from the two you meet in the flophouse. Her diary can be found in the "guest room". Before Cazador turned her, she was a doctor, a "Physician General to the Parliament of Baldur's Gate". She thinks vampirism is a disease and plans on curing herself of it by drinking blood of someone young and healthy - other spawn's daughter, Victoria.

Leon Onufrio - before Cazador turned him, Leon was a sorcerer. He is the one whose daughter's (Victoria's) body is found, cursed, in the room where with the Kozakuran dictionary.

Leon put a protective counter-curse on her, to discourage other spawns from attacking her. Despite his efforts, Dalyria bit her, hoping it'd cure her vampirism. Needless to say, it didn't and Victoria died @easterlingwanderer found out that if you use "speak with the dead" on the body, it turns out that it was a random urchin and Leon did get Victoria out of the city on time. After removing the curse inflicting you with necrotic demage, you can loot a letter of her body from her father instructing Victoria to read said dictionary, so she can freely move around the castle.

In the favoured spawn room, you can learn that Leon was the one usualy occupying it (along with his daughter). His diary reveals that he put extra effort to be Cazador's best hunter, so he can keep Victoria away from others and that he came up with a plan with Figaro to disguise and sneak Victoria out of the palace.

He also notes that he doesnt like the way Violet looks at Victoria and Cazador's wicked smile, when Leon asked him what his master was planning to do with his daughter.

Violet - you can find her Diary in the Dormitory of Spawn. She notes that she put garlic in Yousen bed as a prank.

Aurelia - a tiefling

Yousen - @neophytepagan noticed he is a gnome

Other:

The chamberlain of Cazador was Antwun Dufay. In his diary, which can be found under his bed in his room after a successful passive perception check, it says that he had a lover Lurianna (a werewolf, who can be found dead by walking through fake north wall of chamberlain's office, or through another fake wall in Chamberlain's private room). He knew about Cazador's Black Mass enough to fake his death in order to avoid the threat of taking Astarion's place. Unfortunately for him, it seems he confused the actual death potion and fake death potion, and really died. His lover drank the other potion, which melted her guts. The actual fake-death elixir can be found in his desk, which puts the player in 10-turn coma. He ordered the elixir from Bonecloaks', where he also ordered most of the things the palace needed to function (like bloodstain remover, candles and food for "guests").

Godey - Cazador's right hand. Astarion says that while Cazador was the master of the palace, the kennels (the room where the spawn d be tortured, when they did something Cazador didnt approve of) was the domain of Godey. Godey tortured the spawn when Cazador didnt feel like it. Cazador trusted Godey with the key to the sealed ballroom for the duration of the ritual.

Through the palace, fanatic-servants cleaning the palace: Syrin - human, Greenfern - wood half-elf, Vilhelm - human, Varderola - also human. All of them are servants, who Astarion said are devoted to Cazador and came to the palace of their own will, beggining Cazador to turn them into vampires. Vilhelm is most noteable, as you can talk to him and he asks Astarion why isn't he downstairs, that he is late and the ballroom is already locked. If pressed, he informs that Godey has a key and that the Cazador is going to punish Astarion for missing the ritual (and from his expression, he seems to quite like the thought).

Chamberlain Dufay wrote a blooddonnors ledger, instructing the Spawn to favourite the lower class as prey, as too many missing patriars may drow too much attention.

The language Cazador uses is Kozakuran, from a distant land of Kara-Tur. Astarion notes that they were strictly forbidden from learning it. From Cazador's Journal you can learn that Astarion was not an unreliable narrator when he said Cazador liked torturing him the most: Cazador paid the most attention to him in the journal.

In the favoured spawn room, there is a ledger with the list of spawns who have been favoured (its only Leon and one time Violet).

Amanita Szarr - on her 13th birthsday, invited by her Uncle Cazador. She was invited to the ballroom. She became a vampire, but was not happy about it. She rejected her family name Szarr and named herself Lady Incognita. She claims she stays in the attic and writes stories. One of the books written by her can be found on Cazador's desk.

Mrel Alkam - vampire mastress from Athkatla that Cazador wrote a letter to.

#baldur's gate 3 #astarion #astarion ancunin #astarion's siblings #cazador szarr #godey #lore

[diceyphck]

Thinking about how Cazador chose to use a rat king as his symbol. An allegory for being in his family, ensnared, an omen of impending doom and death; So clearly stated as a reminder to the spawns what their place is.

Astarion not seeing his reflection for two hundred years feels a lot heavier if you think about how Cazador unrelentingly forced this view point on him.

This is how I see you. This is what you are. You will be forced to eat away at yourself to survive. You are doomed.

The door really brings it all together, how unyielding he was in his cruelty.

Im sure someone’s addressed it better but I was ponderin

#baldur’s gate 3 #astarion #astarion ancunin #cazador szarr #rat king

[diceyphck]

Something I love about confronting Cazador is how he obviously never processes that Astarion has friends until it's too late.

Petras and Dalyria must have mentioned that Astarion wasn't alone when they met him, but when you read Cazador's journal? He's 100% fixated on Astarion. How Astarion stood in the sun, how Astarion was willing and able to disobey him. And when Astarion shows up, Cazador barely acknowledges the party at all - and sure, that's partly because this is Astarion's moment in the narrative, but Cazador doesn't so much as ask why these random strangers are there! They're not part of his plans, so they don't exist.

And then they immediately save his errant spawn from the ritual and start beating his ass.

Just. What must have been going through Cazador's head when that fight starting turning against him? 'Is that... the Blade of Frontiers? Why is a monster hunter - and is that a cleric? - helping a vampire spawn? An undead? Ah, but they must be treating it as a necessary evil to have a chance to slay me, of course - hold on, why is the cleric healing Astarion? Why does that wizard keep Counterspelling everything I'm casting at Astarion, why waste the spells when I'm not even targeting him? Did... did that druid just cast Daylight on Astarion's weapons? And that brute of a tiefling - that's not just disgust in her eye when she looks at me, it's fury - and she keeps putting herself in front of Astarion, why in the hells would she - she's running right at me- '

I hope that one of the last things Cazador ever knew was the choking realisation that Astarion didn't just come back strong, or free. Astarion came back loved.

#baldur’s gate 3 #astarion #astarion ancunin #cazador szarr