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valc0 · 26 days

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Hannibal rewatch and Baldur's Gate 3 ramblings

I recently re-watched the first season of Hannibal after almost 8 years and since I’m now deep into another fandom (BG3) I analyzed some of the themes of the show and how parts of it could tie in with the story of the game, particularly when it comes to the Dark Urge.

I’m also doing a review because why the hell not. I divided the text into sections for convenience, so if you want to read only the review or are exclusively interested in my speculating ramblings on BG3 you can easily do that.

It’s a long one so let’s start.

REVIEW

THIS REVIEW IS NOT SPOILER FREE AND WILL GO INTO GREAT DETAILS ABOUT THE TWISTS AND PLOT POINTS OF THE SHOW.

If you didn’t watch it and you like thriller/crime/horror please do yourself a favor and watch this show now!

I’ll start by saying season one, to me, is almost perfection. It’s 13 very well crafted and acted episodes and almost none feel like filler (almost but we’ll get to it). The crime of the week structure is integrated with the horizontal themes of the season seamlessly and the story avoids exploring too many parallel plots, making the theming very cohesive.

I remember watching this show for the first time and finishing season 1 in about 2 to 3 days, but I’d never think the same would’ve happened a second time. The first 5 episodes had me in a clutch from the start. Every character is fleshed out and extremely well written, the acting is impeccable, the writing is phenomenal and the visual, even when getting symbolic, never seem gratuitous or nonsensical in their use of analogies and dream-like visions.

The photography is also phenomenal, with great use of contrast that makes the image and scene clear even though it's set in the dark or at night.

If I had to rate the season I think I’d definitely give it a 9/10, and the 9 is only because of two small things that I figured I’d get out of the way first:

(I must remember whoever is reading this that these are my opinions, they don’t mean to offend anyone else differing opinion. You’ll see what I mean in a second.)

Alana Bloom x Will Graham is forced, comes out of nowhere, and makes Will act out of character most of the times.

I’m not getting into ship-fighting, this is not about shipping, I like Hannigram but I have no dog in this fight so this is totally not about it. Episode 8 is great, it has one of the best kills in the whole season and Will deteriorating stability makes for great lines and visuals, other than a lot of tension since he can no longer be predictable and ends up disrupting Hannibal plans.

And though I could attribute the way he acts towards Alana as something he does because of this deteriorating mental state, it doesn’t really feel like it. He seems very present during those scenes and acts weirdly romantic for the reclusive stray-collector, whose primary hobby is fishing and who’s been plagued by visions of death in the past episodes.

I would have rather see them to grow more of a non-romantric connection that may or may not have become romantic in later seasons. It all seems a bit rushed imo.

I also know they are setting up the Alana x Will x Hannibal. Which I’ll be honest I don’t remember liking the first time I watched it...but we’ll see.

2. Episodes 9 and 11 slow the show and kind of drag the pace.

Episodes 9. The totem of bodies is a very striking and memorable visual, but the crime in itself is very bland and the killer only gets a 5 minute scene towards the end which is anticlimactic and kinda too much tell with too little show. It’s honestly a shame because the murders in the previous episodes were very well crafted and paced. This one, not so much. I understand the need to connect the themes of “legacy” and “family” with Abigail’s actions but I feel like there could have been better ways to do that in previous episodes.

Episodes 11. I loved the whole Chesapeake Ripper fake-out, but I’ll be honest I don’t think I needed a whole other episode of Abel Gideon’s story. Didn’t really care for the plot of this and the pace was a little too slow. Good things about this episode are the ending with Hannibal at his most manipulative, and the fact that it starts Chilton’s comedic chain of misfortunes– which cracked me up the first time I watched the show because come on!! this guy is awful and can’t catch a break, you love to see it.

Now that the “bad” is out of the way let’s talk about the good, which is honestly everything else.

Episode 1

Banger of a pilot. Everything for the rest of the show is set up in only 42 minutes if you can believe that. Characters are fleshed out, themes are placed, conflicts are started. By the end of the episode all you want is MORE. I have very little else to say other than the pacing of this one should honestly be studied, a lot of modern series would need the lesson imo.

Episode 2

Interesting case with a lot of great scenes that reinforce the characters and their relationships. You get a first glance at how campy? the show can be, which is honestly something I love, I’m kinda tired of the “realistic to the point of boredom” trend I’ve been seeing lately. Freddie Lounds is properly introduced as the disrupting force she is and we get a jumpscare that made me curse. Sorry, did I forget to mention I’m watching Hannibal and I cannot stand horror? Lmao

Episode 3

LOVE this episode, the way this show makes you feel powerless as you watch the events unfold knowing full well what is happening and who is responsible...amazing! I love Abigail’s character and the very innocent and pristine way she is portrayed when you know later on the truth will come out is chilling.

Episode 4

I remember how grim I found this episode the first time and the feeling returned the second time around. Hated the killer with every fiber of my being and the fact that she kinda looks like Catherine Tate made me die a little. Also the scene of Hannibal making himself a family through gaslighting and creative use of drugs and lies was amazing.

Episode 5

I loved this crime and the way the episode paces the killings. The angel symbology was great, I’m a sucker for catholic and religious themes tied into vicious crimes. The series also introduces Bella, Jack’s wife, which I’ll be honest I don’t remember having a good ending...I don't remember exactly how, but I know I will cry.

Episode 6

Favorite episode by far, the tension in the flashback scene is palpable and when you see Miriam looking at the sketch with the silhouette of Hannibal pacing towards her in the background AAAHGGG- RUN Miriam OMG! This is the episode where you realize how absolutely scary Hannibal’s physicality can be. Mads Mikkelsen is 1,83 (5ft 11) but he feels like a giant in those scenes, like you can do shit about it.

Episode 7

The episode’s case is a botched transplant one and it’s just okay, nothing too spectacular, but the way this series makes me hungry should be concerning, since I just watched Hannibal kill and butcher people who slightly wronged him to make a feast out of them. I’m sorry, whoever is directing the shooting of the food is doing a good job, okay?

Episode 8

My second favorite episode yay! I love this kill because it’s so over the top. Also the visual of a person played like a cello is haunting just as much as the sound they decided to give it. “He had to open you up to get a decent sound out of you.” okay Will go off?!?! A bit sad they took this murder from Hannibal since I believe it was his in the books, but the end fight was worth it (though when Tobias started swinging his impromptu cello string weapon I did cackle because omfg calm down)

Episode 9

See section above

Episode 10

I shat myself watching this episode with all the horror vibes I’m dying please, I’m watching this through my fingers like a baby. I did love this episode though, and the final twist of Hannibal going to such lengths to be sure he leaves NO ONE behind is terrifying. Dr. Sutcliffe even agreed with him and didn’t show signs of wanting to betray or rat him out, and yet in the big scheme Hannibal still found it better to kill him. Scary stuff.

Episode 11

See section above

Episode 12-13

Putting these together because they are the finale and are closely linked to each other. There is no real “crime of the week”, though Georgia Madchen dies at the start of episode 12 and Abigail...dies at the start of episode 13. Will continuously declining psyche is very well portrayed, you really feel powerless with him as his brain keeps betraying him over and over at the worse possible times. Also Hannibal fake-empathy is so uncomfortable to me...knowing the lengths he’d go to manipulate the situation after seeing all the “behind the scenes” is chilling. All in all it’s a good finale though it really doesn’t feel like one. By the end Will managed to see Hannibal’s true colors, but I don’t think he’ll fully understand what he’s fighting against until he actually sees Hannibal in action, so it does feel inconclusive in a way. We do get Hannibal funny naked fursona is all its glory though so, big happy for me!

Now let’s get in my current fixation and tie in some of the themes of Hannibal with Baldur’s Gate 3. YAY!

BALDUR’S GATE 3 – Dark Urges, Bad Dreams and Worse Influences

Let’s get something out of the way first.

The Dark Urge is a very flexible and versatile character which is mostly – if not completely– shaped by the player. We get to decide if they refuse the Urge, with the bittersweet realization they still took all those lives and will have to deal with that guilt. OR we could make them machines of slaughter and death, embracing their father’s plan for them to be the killer they were made to become.

There are other variations of this and from what I’ve seen many Durges have very different characteristics depending on how the player interpreted and played the game.

This to say, all of the following dissertations on BG3 and the themes of Hannibal are my personal view of MY Durge or the way I see the character in general, which is extremely personal and could crash with someone else’s interpretation or headcanon. Keep that in mind while reading, if you see me using absolutes or if I forget an “imo” at the end of a sentence, remember this is ALL In my opinion, none of this is to be considered as a general and all-encompassing statement for every Durge out there.

That said, you’ll be surprised to know in my interpretation the Dark Urge isn’t Hannibal, what’s funny is that the Dark Urge isn’t Will either.

Durge is both characters at the same time, and depending where they are in their journey, this may change.

In the case of Will, towards the end of the series you get a more “start of the game” Durge. The memory loss, the confusing thoughts, the haunting dreams and then this weird hellish creature (Sceleritas Fel) guiding them. By this point Durge is still a victim of their circumstances, they can’t really grasp who or what they are and their mind is in complete shambles.

I can see a Resist!Durge in this scenario, someone completely horrified by their actions starting to question who they are, what they did, and if they can ever change. This point in the game isn’t spelled out as much, the narrator often refers to it but the real extent of psychological damage a Resist!Durge must face is left completely to the player’s interpretation, that’s why I think Will is such a great starting point to understand and visualize the character of Durge from a distant POV.

With Hannibal you get a more pre-tadpole pre-Orin-meddling Durge. Someone who knows what they’re doing and how to get what they want. I personally never saw my own Durge as this calculating, something in the feral way the Urge gets to the character in game made Hannibal a tad too composed to fully be an inspiration for Durge, but I’ve also seen other people Durges as cool and collected killers, and the comparison in that case works really well.

Another interesting characteristic of Hannibal we can see in Durge is the twisted way he thinks in relation to others. Hannibal calls himself Will’s friend, and I believe he’s genuine in his affection since the way he helps Will is in done in earnest.

This helping though, it’s monstrous in all sense. Hannibal lies, literally gaslights Will, meddles with his head and denies him medical help. He manipulates him into killing, only to watch what unfolds simply because he needs someone who understands him. By dragging Will deeper into his world and making him a killer, Hannibal cultivates what he perceives as Will’s true nature and potential, making the man a suitable friend for himself.

It speaks to Hannibal narcissism that he would consider helping someone as making them more like him. But then again that’s also why Hannibal is so drawn towards Will, because he thinks differently and he IS different from him. He doesn’t have the same amount of interest or even respect for someone like Tobias, who’s probably the most Hannibal-like killer we get to see in season 1.

He needs the challenge, he needs to feel in control. And ultimately, though not in an usual sense, Hannibal needs a friend. He is lonely.

This works a lot for Durge in the sense that they may or may not corrupt people around them. As a player we get the choice and power to influence how companions act and react, and this kind of duality of “I like them, I want to help them” and “I want to make them like me” is a good motivation to give a Durge who may, for example, ascent Astarion, or turn Shadowheart more towards Shar, or give Gale a power complex (more so than he already has) ect.

BONUS! And then came Durgetash

In episode 1 Hannibal visits Will and brings him breakfast. While they chat in a honestly beautifully lit scene, this exchange happens.

Hannibal: You know, Will, I think Uncle Jack sees you as a fragile little teacup. The finest china, used only for special guests. Will: How do you see me? Hannibal: The mongoose I want under the house when the snakes slither by.

Did I mention I love Durgetash? Did I mention I go completely feral over unhealthy dynamics and specifically this kind of dynamic?

“The mongoose I want under the house when the snakes slither by.” is an amazing line for Gortash because I do believe the reason he wanted Durge to side with him was that Durge was extremely good at being undetected, and even more so skilled at killing the right target at the right time.

I love the idea of Gortash using Durge as a shield/weapon, and Durge using Gortash to economically sustain and socially shield Bhaal’s cult. I love to think their relationship was born because they were useful to each other and that in this completely selfish ecosystem they somehow found company.

Because I’m sure Durge pushed back. I’m sure they realized they were being used and didn’t like it one bit, and Gortash kept Durge around even though they may pose a threat, for the same reason Hannibal keeps running circles around Will. Gortash needs a challenge. Being head of Bane’s cult means that other than his God, no one else is above him, and I think a man who’s been fighting his whole life to gain control would feel a bit lost when this control is automatically given to him without a fight.

In the same way I think Durge would yearn for something more, something different than what they’re stuck with, which is a dying cult forced to hide beneath the city, and a jealous and over-zealous sister who I’m sure tries to kill them once a week. I think they would get pulled in by the promises Gortash would make. To rule together, above ground, for once not having to hide, getting back the power Durge feels like belongs to them.

The similarities I found between these characters are way more than these but I think I’ll have to make a part 2 of this once I’m done re-watching season 2. I’m aware the series has been out for a while and I’m sure people already made way more interesting and in-depth analysis. I still hope you liked my little morning ramble that turned in a full on essay on the subject.

Thank you for reading!

#bg3 #hannibal #the dark urge #baldur's gate 3 #nbc hannibal #durgetash #hannigram #i love murderous idiots what do you want from me

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what-is-it-to-be-pk-esque · 25 days

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Omggggg so I'm only like 5 mins into the BG3 epilogue and I already love everything about it so far ❤️ I had to write out my current initial thoughts about each romanced spawn!Astarion option.

So of course I couldn't resist and saved right when Astarion asks about what's next in the relationship/what you want so I could see everything & ughhhh my Tav & him are so cute with every option. I am still SO TORN between the 2nd/3rd options of underdark or sun cure.

On the one hand i'm like yeah! My Tav is an optimist so let's go find you a way to be in the sun again!! but also I kiiiinda feel like we have a responsibility to go help out a bit with the spawn in the underdark even though when it was discussed earlier in my game he said he wasn't going to volunteer for that (another positive imo though is underdark = less constantly worrying about the sun coming up, outside of nights where we decide to go topside). It's a lil messy, but so is he, and it's also a way for him to deal with the consequences of his choices - a theme brought up frequently in his story.

His reactions are v. cute about the "let's be heroes" and "quiet life" options too but that seems less... fulfilling or a good fit for them imo?? Being heroes is fine, but either way that doesn't really address the very real problems that would come up while living with him (and felt like a weird fairytale ending cop-out) so I didn't want to do that

I love love love that most options say the next 6 months with Tav are a happy contrast to the past 200 years, but I'm sad you don't get that line if you go with the underdark option (but I do love that you get to make a fortress a "home" which is great cause he def enjoyed like... all of the ruins in the game haha). So i'm still sitting here like a clown debating on what I'll "officially do" 😭 Probably doesn't matter and you can headcanon whatever but still haha. I want to do both, why can't we live in the underdark but take little adventures in Faerun to go find leads on items or spells or whatever that might be able to let him go enjoy the sun!?! Also my Tav is a half-elf so she'll need to figure out how to expand her lifespan to better match his if they're gonna "have forever" like he says. There's no way they're just spending all their time down there just being leaders (and let's be real he'll have relevant input of course, but it's your Tav probably making most of the better judgement calls lol)

Lastly, I haven't peeked at his reaction to the last option yet but can I also just say @ Larian WTF stop offering me opportunities to break up with him!! I mean I'm sure some people do it and want this, but after everything you're telling me your OC is gonna wake up all adorably next to your sweetie & break up with whoever you romanced right after you saved the world!?? Nah, couldn't be me lol, no matter who I picked that is not the goddamn time for a breakup you heartless person lmao

#astarion #baldur's gate 3 spoilers #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #bg3 spoilers #can't wait to finish work and fully enjoy this epilogue today 😭#it was like 1am when I beat the game and I had to just stop and go to bed #if you see this & you romanced him & kept him a spawn please tell me what yall did i need to know!#i am here for the headcanons too #astarion x tav #i am here with my feels yall #first playthrough beating this game and I want it to be perfect lol #and you better believe i'm gonna be using the freecam later with all his reactions because i'm down bad for this fictional man

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passionesolja · 3 months

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So at risk of not sounding like an oldhead, I’ve been a fan of Baldur’s Gate since I was 13-14. Baldur’s Gate is one of those games that I buy on any system I can. I have BG1 and BG2 for iPhone, Computer, switch. Everything I can get it on, I can. Ima be 100 wit y’all, I was in the “DnD game made by Larian” mental frenzy like most mfs was, because end of the day, I think Larian made a great DnD cRPG in THEIR style, but they didn’t make a Baldur’s Gate game.

“Why do you say that?” Because mechanically, gameplay wise, if you’ve never played any other game in the series but BG3, you’re not going to have the proper skills to go back. Game from the 90s or not, I think it’s an issue that Larian made a game so close to Divinity: Original Sin that it makes it difficult for Baldur’s Gate 3 players to go back to play Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2. Because Larian didn’t create the series, BioWare did, they were just given the rights to make the third installments.

I’ve never really tripped over it up until this point because imo, Pathfinder is keeping the Baldur’s Gate/Infinity Engine cRPG torch going. Plus, Larian made a great DnD cRPG but as I’m seeing more and more “Baldur’s Gate 3 is my first cRPG game” types be recommended D:OS 1 and 2, instead of the previous games in a series that introduced them to the genre, I just gotta raise the red flag here.

Fuck the “my fave romance doesn’t have as much focus as Astarion” discourse. This is the real shit that Larian should be dragged for. cRPGs are not sports games or FPS games. The individuality of a cRPG is super important to its existence, whether that be gameplay, setting, story, etc. Game titles and IPs aren’t just flashy names to catch your eye, the names “Pathfinder:”, “Divinity:”, etc. have a lot of baggage and expectations attached to them. When the next Pathfinder or Divinity game comes out, I know what to expect from it because I know the legacy of their respective previous games. cRPGs have their roots in table top games, and if you buy the new DnD 6e rulebook, and it’s Rogue Trader then you’d be like “wait”.

That’s what makes cRPGs so special, is because a new IP in the genre is a new IP in the genre. The most pivotal thing a cRPG has to do is forge its own style. This—imo, in the modern age—is because of all the Infinity Engine games that came out. BG, IWD, PST, are all on the same engine but they’re totally different games.

With the popularity of Baldur’s Gate 3, that ethos is lost on a lot of new players. The game will always be a fantastic DnD cRPG, but it won’t ever be a good Baldur’s Gate game.

#Larian #larian critical #bg3 #baldur's gate #baldurs gate 3 #baldur's gate iii #bg3 critical #video games #crpg #crpgs #BG1 #bg2 #dnd #dungeons and dragons

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modwyr · 2 months

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the thing about bg3 is that it relies on its flashy fully animated cutscenes too much it's all "look how fancy and detailed we could make these!" while mostly ignoring the very obvious glaring flaws with the story, tbh it's why i prefer text based crpgs like poe or wotr cause cause i feel like more emphasis and thought is put into the story and making the world feel alive through the lore since they don't have cutscenes to fall back on

yeah i think there's some real narrative structural issues (the implementation/execution of the three act structure being a major one imo) and on a first playthrough (or at least until you hit act 3) these are hidden by the fact that the game genuinely looks amazing so its very easy to be wowed by whats visually happening on screen, and im not saying this meanly i genuinely think there's some great scenes and set pieces in the game, its just that the second you stop and think about what's happening on a broader scale things start to not add up. imo this comes down to something i typically hold to be nearly always true in that having clear limitations can work in a story's favour. i think text based rpgs have to be so much more smartly written and structured because there's very little wool to pull over the player's eyes if they aren't, whereas, like you say, if there's super detailed and complex cutscenes, it can be very easy for narrative flaws to slip under the radar

#ask #anon #of course there's a whole other discussion about mechanics fitting into this #but looking at bg3 as an rpg narratively is interesting in how it isn't really revolutionary at all #and is a lot of style with little substance at points

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tau1tvec · 4 months

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Hello! Would you recommend starfield? Cyberpunk has been my favorite game for almost a year now and I've played almost every day. However, recently I downloaded a mod (unsure which one) and the game just flatlines every time. I've deleted every file associated with cyberpunk and completely reinstalled multiple times, but nothing stops it from flatlining. So, I'm now looking for a new RPG game that can give me a similar feeling. Is starfield one to consider? Or should I look elsewhere? Tysm <3

Well that sucks, but tbh that's a lotta the reason why I won't go back to it despite the temptation. I had to obliterate my mods folder for the DLC, I can't force myself to it again for a few cute scenes with NPC's I'll likely just replace with other NPC's for the brainrot ( sorry Panam ).

When it comes down to it, Starfield and Cyberpunk 2077 aren't a thing alike, which is gr8 bc games shouldn't be alike just bc they share a genre, we should encourage different experiences for different kinds of players. Cyberpunk 2077 is more linear and cinematic narratively, I enjoyed it, but haven't touched it since I finished it and probably never will, where as Starfield, although having imo a great story too, is like any other BGS game where it's more about, "here's a ship and some gear, now go collect plushies and shoot pirates!" So lots and lots of fun for me, who just likes making pretty characters, hoarding stuff, going pew pew, and occasionally getting trapped in a string of story missions, all at my own pace, to the tune of the brainrot in my own head.

Considering all the hubbub around Starfield recently however, esp the Steam version, I'm just not gonna recommend it to anyone, lol. Like you'd probably be better off seeking out your favorite YouTuber who aligns with your interests and play style, and see how they feel about it. Bc unless you just enjoy building a character through mostly text based conversations and encounters, snooping through ppl's emails for the lore, helping out NPC's, walking around on mostly uninhabited planets while enjoying the wonderful music of Inon Zur, building space ships, or just really, truly enjoy space in general, I'd be more inclined to suggest something else.

BG3 perhaps, or anything by BioWare. They've got plenty of kissy, kissy scenes, a just big enough open world, and story focused content for those who prefer that stuff.

#hope this helps #lol #asks #anon

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xalygatorx · 3 months

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hi!! i just found your bg3 fic unbound last night and read all 100k words in about 24 hours. it’s seriously one of my favorite bg3 fics i’ve ever read. this type of retelling of the source narrative, but fleshed out with blanks filled in, deeper characterization, and a named and specific protag, is a genre that i’ve seen other fics tackle and it seems hard to do well. but unbound does it so successfully that it feels like im experiencing the game we love for the first time all over again!! that’s a huge feat imo. the companion characters’ voices feel so true and áine is really fantastic as a protagonist. for my personal taste, this fic is checking all the boxes. i’ve been wanting to read more strong, capable protagags for whom the title of leader actually feels appropriate, while also maintaining the gentleness and loving nature that these flawed companion characters need in their lives. áine is fascinating, smart, and i cannot wait to learn more about her. i’ve been wanting to read more fics with the combat and violence that is very important to the bg3 story world and imbedded in who these characters are. not a knock on what people like, but for me, these characters are both soft at times AND also badass killers! it’s what they do! let’s see them fight! you also just write combat so well. áine in the gnoll fight was amazing. i’ve wanted to see more interactions between the companions in fics—not just protagonists with every companion circling them like the sun, but companions that feel like true people with their own inner lives and relationships to each other. yes all eyes are on áine here, which feels earned as she’s a strong leader and alluring person, but it doesn’t feel forced here. it feels true that these people who just met would latch onto astarion’s budding romance with her, but they ALSO talk about other things with him sometimes! it’s great! unbound really just nails these things and more! i’m so excited to read more and am finally going to sign up for an ao3 account just to give it the hits it rightfully deserves (seriously how does it not have more attention!). excellent work!!!!!!

Thank you so much. 🥹 This gave me all the warm fuzzies to read and it means a lot that you've been enjoying it so much and that it's renewed the game story for you in some way. 🩷 Also big big thanks for the feedback! I don't usually write combat (at least not with regularity), but I like to, and sometimes I wonder if I'm doing it in a way that makes any sort of sense. 😅

I feel you on the "mc is the center of the universe" frustration, it makes sense and that's the way the game kind of is too except for travel party cross-talk but I'd love it if there were little nuggets of that during camp stops too! Maybe that's why I like adding them so much.

Seriously thank you so much for the kind words and for taking the time to write this, this was a joy to start my morning with, and thank you for reading too. 🥰

#unbound fic #ask #answered ✨#bg3 #bg3 fanfiction #bg3 fanfic

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sybaritick · 4 months

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it's the BG3 fic writing 2023 summary meme!

just doing this for fun because I've seen a few writers taking part!

What are your Ao3 stats? How many words written, how many hits, kudos, and comments?

For 2023, words: 24608 hits: 19414 kudos: 2115 comment threads: 97

oooh, statistics!! now let's do a regression or something. ("on what"?? i don't know. could do something with the fic-by-fic data i suppose on comments vs kudos vs hits or whatnot) I'm happy with these stats, and the comments make me happiest -- I had so many great reactions to my fics that really made me smile to read. (Or laugh, in some cases, which might be even better).

Did you have a favourite canon character to write?

Gale. gotta be Gale. I love doing Astarion's dialogue too tho because he has SUCH a fun voice.

Did you have a favourite OC to write?

I’ve written very little OC stuff, only a single Tav/Gale fic. So Vierlin, the morally deficient enchantment wizard and fellow nerd to Gale, wins by default in Suggestion!

Which fic was your most popular?

That's nor heaven peep through the blanket of dark, the Astarion/Gale sussur flower fic! IMO it's only the most popular because it was posted in September.

Which fic was your personal favourite?

Hm, I think oh, rotten little thing, just because corrupting Gale makes me horny :) my upcoming gortash/gale fic will be. very much about that

Was there anything you wrote that was a surprise to you? Why?

in full honesty no I'm not surprised. I'll write anything. I did do a very overtly niche-kink-driven fic tho for us feeders/fat fetishists, catalyst!

What is your favourite piece of description you wrote? Why do you like it?

It's hard question, but one of the most fun is this section with ascended!Astarion in At Knifepoint: Astarion's face was cruel and angular in the half-light of the darkened library, stark shadows cast across his features, lips curled into a teasing smile. The Dispel Magic spell rushed over him faster than he could answer it, dark and sour like a sickening wave, and the invisibility curled away from his body like the burnt edge of a newspaper. lots of tasty sensory detail and imagery!

What was your favourite piece of dialogue you wrote? Why do you like it?

the Conversation Full Of Lying between precanon gort and durge in Grim Trigger was just fun as hell to write: "What, as an arms dealer? If I were to judge you by your victims, I would hardly be willing to set foot in the same room. But the cattle you so devoutly dismember are not me-- and the politicians and power-brokers that come under my influence are not you. Our relationship differs fundamentally." The Dark Urge was silent for a moment, but Gortash saw by the set of his jaw that he remained very much unconvinced. "What is it you imagine I would do to you?" Enver said. "You'd like to hear that, wouldn't you?" the Dark Urge answered, his lips curling into a cruel smile. "With the blessings of Bane it's only become easier for you to have anything you please. An ordinary mortal falls apart underneath you so dreadfully easily-- and you wish I would go down just as soft and easily, swallowed up to satisfy your urges." “You confuse your condition for mine, Bhaalspawn.” Gortash felt the air thicken with the thoughts coalescing in the Dark Urge’s mind. "You are not as different from me as you imagine." "I'll take that in the complimentary spirit I'm sure you intended.”

What was your overall feeling about your writing in 2023? What were you proud of? What were the highlights?

I feel positive about it! The biggest highlight is just that I'm happy I started writing again-- I'm glad to be banging this stuff out instead of letting it languish in my head until I forget it.

What would you like to explore more in 2024?

A Lot. Possibilities include: - several pairings I want to write but haven't yet (or at least haven't posted yet), especially Gortash/Gale or Gortash/Durge/Astarion - a longer fic or two - more and worse kinks (things i currently have at least in the back of my mind? hypnosis, sexual coercion/blackmail, some stuff that is fetishizing the political corruption in baldur's gate lol, forced impreg and misgendering, some medical play...) - perhaps additional originals/non-bg3 works as well because i do still enjoy writing them!

i encourage anyone who sees this and feels like it to do this too! it was fun to reflect on the past year of fanficcing :D

#cal txt #fandom #bg3

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bananamarshmallowz · 8 months

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BG3-

Prior to writing all of this out, I had no idea what Baldur's Gate 3 is about other than fight and flirt. I know that I've never been into dnd like other peers, i couldn't really wrap my head around some aspects of dnd, particularly the math side but I know that's only a portion of it ANYway- I believe I heard of Baldur's Gate before but kind of dismissed it. Finally looked into it once friends started talking more about it now, and feel free to correct me- it's all linked with Dnd? I've just read article upon article and try to piece together what makes sense. Faerun, which is where Baldur's Gate is. Which is in a world called Toril, in The Forgotten Realms. Forgotten Realms was/is a setting for stories that Ed Greenwood wrote from the age of 8. And a campaign in DnD. MtG came from DnD but isn't completely 'related' with Forgotten realms. DnD was made by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson (roughly). And ALLL of this is from that? Or at least different iterations through the years but still. * Well. It was certainly a lot to process but writing it down it doesn't look that complicated. I'm just impressed and fascinated that we're still using the same stuff that makes the stories special. Playing with other humans and sharing stories is such a great human thing. * Right, back to Astarion. He's voiced by Neil Newbon, which I previously knew from Detroit: Become Human, Resident Evil 3 as well as Resident Evil Village. When I tell you I wouldn't believe you if you told me he was British... He's from the UK. I just had to hear him talk a few times. Astarion is a sad vampire man that plays his very touching backstory -at least what i can piece together for myself- off with jokes, being elbow deep in gore and flirting. I don't know why he makes me all giddy but he does and I love him. I can understand why a lot of people don't like him up to a point, and I certainly understand why there's a lot of thirst after him too. What I don't understand is why does he go so hard? The narrator is one thing, but he is the spice on top of everything imo. You know, for someone who hasn't played it and doesn't really plan to, don't judge me too harshly lmao * I feel like there's characters that give me the same vibes as Astarion does, Lucifer played by Tom Ellis, Tim Curry's Hexxus from Fern Gully, Frank-N-Furter from Rocky Horror Picture, Darkness from Legend, and pretty much the most of his roles lol; David Tennant as Davina in Rab C Nesbit They all have such an allure, there's horniness and 'mystery' to everyone of them. * Baldur's Gate 3 also reminds me of Witcher 3 and Dragon Age: Inquisition, both games I adore and played all the way through and played them again and again. All deal with magic, fighting, flirting and are so immersive. Though I'm sure Witcher 3 had little nudity, BG3 takes the cake, you can customize sex organs and I wasn't prepared for that in any way.

TL;DR: I looked into the origins of DnD, MtG, and Baldur's Gate all to connect with people better, all the find out that I have a crush on Astarion and can't really share how deep of a crush it is, with people that know me, or I would be shunned and possibly mocked lol.

#bg3 #potential spoilers #baldur's gate 3 #baldurs gate astarion #baldur's gate spoilers

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zeynatura · 27 days

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With all the news of my bg3 campaigns with family and friends, I forgot to announce I finally finished the game my self lmao

Spoilers under the cut

So Sahar, my storm sorcerer ended up sacrificing Orpheus to defeat the Absolute (as in Orpheus became a mindflayer and then Sahar killed him as he was asked to do), respected Karlach's desire to die and was there for her (I cried), romanced both Shadowheart and Halsin and i truly believe in my mind they would visit Halsin, Thaniel and the kids (I finally found where the "they call me Daddy Halsin" comes from!) at every change they get, and adopted the owlbeard cause ofc.

I also was so scared of my allies dying in the last fights I didn't summon most of them LMAO

Only summoned the dragon :v Yurgir and Dame Aylin :D

Very proud of our bestie Astarion for his character development, didn't ascend him cause when I tried I didn't like that he didn't treat me as a friend anymore more like an asset or a pawn (I was fine with the being evil part but why can't we be evil and besties together!?)

Gale is a god lmao cause Sahar definitely do not like deities, in general, he does not believe Gale should have sought forgiveness from Mystra cause screw her but as long as Gale still remembered Sahar and all we did together (unlike Astarion) they approved of Gale becoming a God and he did do that, so grats

I feel betrayed because Mayrina said she was gonna name her kid after me and ended up naming them after her husband 🥲 gurl u were my second fav npc

My fav npc is definitely Arabela, Sahar was like their godparent in magic and felt proud of her (also I love how she calls Sahar "hero person" 😭 adorable)

It really is noticeable how much the pronouns of your character change how they address you specially if you watch cis people play the game and notice the differences when they call them gendered terms, but if you play the game with they/them pronouns it's unnoticed in the best way possible and that's me playing in english, just recently found out that neo pronouns/ neutral pronouns are implemented in the Spanish version as well, I bet that is gonna be more noticeable and if the translation were more neutral spanish or even latam spanish I'd play that version on my own time

I STILL NEED CROSSPLAY AVAILABLE LARIAN!? WHEN AM I GONNA BE ABLE TO PLAY WITH MY FRIENDS WHO ARE ALL ON PC AND I'M THE ONLY ONE ON PS5

The game as solo player is great, but playing with someone else always makes it a better experience imo, and the only way I've been able to do that is transporting my ps5 to my brother's house every Saturday to play with him and his bf 😭 Larian please, I need crossplay

Also bg3 is serving as a snack for my dnd hunger in the meantime cause we haven't been able to play in so long 😭 I have even been creating more dnd ocs, it's crazy

#bg3 #bg3 oc #sahar oc #dnd oc #my thoughts on the game after finally finishing a playthrough #it only took me 300hrs #love the game def

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daddopenguin · 1 month

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I do have critiques that I'll state which is again just certain areas of performance and I do agree the micro transactions are unnecessary considering the items are in game as well that you can easily get by exploring and finding them along with just doing quests that can reward said items.

I do enjoy the game for what it is, a dark fantasy journey to kill a dragon with political/social issues which gives it that 80s movie feel to it like Dogma 1.

I enjoy the class system even though I don't like certain classes over others but that's more of a personal taste thing. Like for example archer I dislike cause it doesn't fit my style of hit big thing with big weapons.

Music is really good, though once more on personal taste, I prefer the first game music in certain aspects over the second but I enjoy the second game music over the first in other aspects.

I'm not one to mod Dogma not because I'm a purist I just don't think there's really a mod that I want to use so far even with the first game I was like this.

Just like the first game resting at an inn allows you're pawn to report their journey with another Arisen which if generous said Arisen can give your pawn an item to give to you along with how many people they assisted determines how many rift crystals they bring back. Glad they kept that in, simple and easy to understand.

Nighttime is just as dangerous as it is in the first game so while early in and if you're new don't do it until you're more familiar with it and have better gear/skills trust me it'll save you some frustration if you're trying to do exploration at night. I made the same mistake when I first played the previous title and have learned the hard way.

The sickness pawns get I've yet to come across but I wouldn't mind having my pawn go ape shit for a bit since the devs did confirm there is a way to revert that condition.

I love the character creator because Lord have I seen the characters y'all post and they're amazing! Congrats Dogma 1 and 2 for being as great as the BG3 creator (imo)!

Speaking of: Part of why I love Dogma as a game is how the community is just very willing and excited to show what they have made. It's a big part of how we get together and enjoy the game albeit no co op we still are able to show off our styles both Arisen and Pawn alike.

Well those are my thoughts so far, I can't really play much more until Sunday when I get back home from a vacation. But I hope this gives a good insight on the Dogma games and my experience so far with the series.

#dragon's dogma #dragon's dogma 2 #my thoughts #i think no game is perfect #there have been worse releases #if anything #reviews get better #because people bothered to actually play

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margridarnauds · 5 months

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🎬🚦💎 mwah

THANK YOU BRO ILY

🎬 If a movie or show were based on your fic, which fic would you choose and who would you fancast?

My beloved Abominationverse for a full series covering the entirety of the French Revolution, from Lazare and Ronan as children with the American Revolution hanging over their heads to their reunion as adults shortly before the fall of the Bastille. For actors...I've always thought that Louis Garrel had the right look for Lazare. Though, frankly, if I'm going to cast a 40 year old in the role, I'm just going to beg Matthieu Carnot on my hands and knees to come back. Camille Lou is still gorgeous so she can play Olympe again. Louis Delort...he's lost the scruffy little boy look, but he could still play Ronan. Nathalia as Solène again...

The problem is that I have a combination of three casts in my mind when I'm writing 1789, but I really do still primarily visualize the French cast, I think. The one thing I'd prioritize would be that Ronan and Solène should both be Breton, ideally both being fluent in Brezhoneg, because so much of how I write them is informed by that.

🚦What sort of endings do you prefer to write: ambiguous, bad, happily ever after, etc.?

Ambiguous to bittersweet. I don't like writing bad endings, or at least not straightforward bad endings, but I don't believe that many of my fics end on a straightforwardly happy note, because, in real life, there aren't many truly happy endings. Instead, you grab moments of peace, you enjoy the calm before the next storm, you enjoy moments in bed with your partner, or celebrations with your friends, you hope the fog gets lifted for a little while, and you enjoy the peace while it lasts. "And for that moment, all was fine" is very much the vibe of most of my endings -- it doesn't make promises that I can't keep or they can't keep, but it says that, for a little while at least, they can be happy.

💎 Do you often write about a relationship or focus on an individual?

I feel like...it's a combination. Because the relationship is at the core of it, yeah, but something that I've found about me is that I ALSO need to focus on the individual. Something that's interesting, when you're dealing with pieces of media that strongly encourage the consumer to customize a character -- especially, say, video games -- is that it's very common to get 2nd person fics or Reader x Character fics, or else OC player characters who are meant to be self-inserts. And that's great, I'm not going to knock anyone for doing that, but it's not to my taste. I *need* to be able to get into my characters' minds and to be able to really personalize them, I need to figure out how they work and what is going on in their heads, beyond just "X Character is Attractive." The goal is that, when I'm doing my job right, the reader can see how the relationship is developing the character and how this character is developing the relationship.

With what I'm doing with BG3, for example...Kitrye's my girl, she's my main character, and her relationship with Raphael is, imo, the single most important one she has, even though her relationships with her companions are also important in various ways. But I can also tell you exactly how she works outside of him, some of the quirks she has, why her thought process is the way it is, etc. And if I ever actually WRITE the fic where she goes back to Menzoberranzan...her relationship with Raphael develops, but it's also very much about her and her relationship with Drow culture. He's her evil, hot arm candy.

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ultramaga · 7 months

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Comparison of Leftist Promotion and Effective Promotion.

Have a look at this BG3/DnD promotion. By having the cast effectively promoting not only BG3, but DnD 5E AND THEMSELVES, they are both winning over the audience and making money for the companies and improving their earning potential. Compare that to Rachel Zegler.

She claims she hates the original, that it is hopelessly outdated, and it gives a horrible message of peace and love (vomit), and that she hopes her male co-star is cut out of the movie altogether. She also despises the old Disney fans and claims anyone who criticises her hates women and brown people. Rachel is the anti-fan. Whereas the BG3 cast - whatever their private beliefs - are definitely the old Hollywood star power types. They either believe the products are good, or they are ACTING and you can't tell otherwise. Which is why not only BG3 is a massive hit, but so are the voice actors. I don't think I have seen such an instant hit for the voice actors, usually it takes long years.

Samantha Béart, for example, has appeared in almost nothing as far as I can see, but now has a large following. She projects kindness. People respond to that.

She might be an awful person in private, and I urge everyone not to look at your favourites on social media, because they almost always disappoint, but if you watch the podcasts for their dnd game, you only get a positive impression, not just of her, but of the cast as a group. This is a bunch of friends, and you could sit down at that table and be welcomed. That might be an illusion, but it doesn't matter unless you are one of the tiny number of humans who might encounter those people in real life. Compare that to how Rachel acts. Can you imagine her being friendly and sharing a game with a normal person? What about Brie Larson? I don't see how it is possible. Whereas when I see these people playing, I am either honestly seeing approachable people, or I am seeing people who are great actors, and it is a win either way. There's few people in Hollywood who are what they seem. I think Henry Cavill is an example.

I very much doubt he is faking his passions, his commitment to nerd culture.

IMO opinion, getting rid of him in The Witcher was an act of monumental idiocy. He seemed to bring authenticity to the role. He was a genuine fan of the material. The writers hated that, just as they hated the source materials. They were anti-fans. He was and is - a - FAN. And audiences connect to that. If he's faking it, he's doing a masterful job of it. He reminded me of Christopher Lee.

Someone who had actually met Tolkien, someone who knew the materials well, and who had fought in WW2, and knew how to kill a man, and how that man would sound as he died.

If you look at old Hollywood, mostly, these were not people you would genuinely want to meet, but they knew how to project that glamour, they knew how to shine like a star. When I see Norma Jean, she just seems an ordinary girl.

She could be cute in the right conditions.

But Marilyn was a role she played. It wasn't who she was. If you wanted to be with Norma because you thought Marilyn was hot, you would be disappointed. Her relationships failed rapidly, and I have to wonder if that is why.

Whereas with the Marx Brothers, according to Harpo at least, they were mostly unlike their stage personas, except for Groucho, who apart from the painted on moustache, was what you saw on the screen.

Harpo was apparently quite handsome in person, and had to deal with female attention from a very young age, which was less fun than it sounds.

According to every record I can find, Harpo was humble, fun and approachable, and didn't let the Hollywood system go to his head.

#marketing #antimarketing #snow white #bg3 #leftism

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the-apocryphal-one · 3 years

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Apo Plays BG3 EA Part Six: Companion Thoughts

So I guess I’m pretty much finished with EA, three playthroughs has been fun (especially Isaniel’s), but it’s gotten to the point where I’m getting tired of doing the same content over and over. Which means it’s time to stop either until full release or a major update.

I’m probably gonna procrastinate on a proper review like forever, but I did post my thoughts on the companions in a reddit thread and decided to just copy + paste them here.

(unmarked spoilers ahead)

For Gale and Wyll, I don't think their motivations can easily be summed up in just one word. Like yes, there are selfish undertones to why they do what they do--but at the same time, there's layers. Wyll wants to be perceived as a hero, but he takes time to teach little kids to swordfight. He hates the goblins for what they've done (the war party that torched that town and stole his eye) and wants to protect people from them, but also wants vengeance. He's a mix of selfishness, appearance and genuine altruism, imo.

Likewise, Gale simps for Mystra, but will go for you, which isn't exactly faithful (I've heard--can't confirm--but I've heard that he'll try to persuade you to cheat on your LI with him, if you got the Weave scene but didn't pick him at the party, which is Not Cool). He regrets his past actions and wants to make sure no one else is hurt by them, so he's willing to go off and die alone. But he doesn't want to just lay down and give up, he wants to find a cure. So he'll consume magical artifact and not stand up for his principles when it matters the most (not turning on you if you attack the tieflings). I think he's a man who talks a lot about the value of life, protecting kids, helping others, and believes it, but is being held back by fear from committing.

Astarion is definitely the most relatable of the companions right now, imo, just because his reactions are exactly the kind of stuff you'd see from an abuse victim. Flinching away from genuine vulnerability (the shoulder pat), trying to mask his pain at what he went through (look at how often he talks about what Cazador did like it's a joke), and showing genuine terror at the thought of going back? All super humanizing and compelling. Then he turns around and laughs at people being hurt or hurting animals and it's awful, unjustified--but it makes sense because sadly, abuse victims can become cruel themselves as a way to cope. But then he goes and approves of helping Karlach, so maybe he's not beyond hope? You could take out the fantasy stuff and plop him in the real world and he would still fit, is what I'm saying.

Lae is full of herself, but the way the other gith treat her really gives me the impression she's a young teen trying too hard to impress the adults. Like with that context, the scenes where she talks about how she's definitely going to have a silver sword and ride a red dragon one day, or where she talks about proving her loyalty to Vlaakith, come off less as sure arrogance but more as a kid talking about what they want to be when they grow up. Which, along with her complete inexperience with the Material Plane, is kind of adorable. But I definitely think she's been indoctrinated by her culture to not question anything and just lay down her life for Vlaakith, which is not so adorable.

SH's super secrecy frustrates me as a player, but as a roleplayer it's great and fitting for her deity worship. I think there are a lot of hints lying around that she's not who she thinks she is, with the missing memories, magic stirring up around Selune, and her own (to her admitted surprise) compassion for the tieflings. I feel like I don't have as much to say about her as I do the others? Maybe because there's a lot missing from her past, but what is there is very consistent with her secretive personality.

tl;dr the “evil” companions’ worldviews stem from past evils done to them--abuse, indoctrination, or cult brainwashing--and hopefully you can help them heal from that, thus bringing about a redemption arc; the “good” companions aren’t entirely altruistic, but struggle with human flaws that hinder their better natures; and all of the companions so far have been nuanced, consistent, and interesting.

EDIT: I should clarify Gale’s unfaithfulness isn’t because he’s with Mystra (he isn’t, and he even says he’s not sure how to feel about her), but because he still has some hang-ups from that relationship and thus can’t give full emotional fidelity right now.

EDIT #2: I should also clarify that I have no delusions that Astarion was a good person pre-turning. I would be more surprised if he was than if he wasn’t. I just think he may not have been as bad as he is now and that many of his beliefs have been predominately shaped by his experiences with Cazador.

#baldur's gate 3 #baldur's gate 3 spoilers #astarion #shadowheart #gale #wyll #lae'zel #meta #my meta

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mybg3notebook · 3 years

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Loving your analyses of Astarion's behaviour and character so far! It has really reaffirmed in my eyes just how much of a bastard he really is. (I say that fondly, of course.) Do you have any thoughts on why the general reaction on tumblr has leaned so much towards woobifying him? After looking at his actual (explicit and implicit) morals in game it seems quite odd that some people are reading him as an edgy soft boi who just needs a hug from the right person to fix him.

Hello!

Thank you very much! I really enjoy seeing chars in a deep way. It makes me change my opinion on them, sometimes. That's why I like to do these analysis, even though it's a lot of work for a person who doesn't speak English as a native.

Lol, please, I won't be offended. Astarion is a bastard in the whole sense of the word, lol.

However, I find Astarion an interesting evil (evil neutral imo) char to explore the narration of “abuser who found a greater abuser”, with all the topics I talked about in those posts. I would feel a bit disappointed if Larian suddenly changes him into a man who always had a gold heart (because for that, you need to give hints, even in EA, and none of that has been seen so far).

An example of how this is done is with Shadowheart, she is evil and she supports a lot of cruelty that Astarion does too, but we got meta-knowledge (and not so much meta when we see her heavily drunk after killing the tieflings) that gives us enough reasons to believe she has some heart in her, despite Shar and her teachings. I do not support the idea of “she is a softie”, because she is not, but she doesn't have the same level of cruelty nor revels in murder so much as Astarion does. They represent different degrees of evilness. What plays in her favour is her face, which gives the idea of more softness than she truly has; the same happens with Astarion. Lae'Zel is less cruel than Astarion in general, with more logical reasons to be so because her brainwashed culture made her to be more pragmatic than a taster of cruelty, and yet, she receives a lot of more hate in the fandom... and it is clear to me why: she is not “beautiful” in the traditional white euro-centric standard sense.

And this is my point to answer your question (remember all this is personal opinion): I think there are many reasons why people woobify Astarion (not only in tumblr, but also in Reddit or in Larian Forums, it's a big part of the EA fandom).

First and foremost, I believe it's his appearance. If he were a bugbear or a goblin, few in this fandom would give a thought about his abuse, his pain, Cazador, etc. They would focus on his “bastard” side and leave it at that (again, Lae'Zel has this treatment). I want to make clear that I'm not questioning people's taste, everyone can like whatever they want to. I'm saying that, for me, there it proof enough to sustain this idea that Astarion is woobified because he is beautiful: when you read that a lot of people in this fandom never had an interest in Larian's previous games, or isometric rpgs, or even turn-based combat games (there are some people who are giving feedback against the game being a turned-based combat one! It's the nonsense because it's basically Larian's style), but they bought bg3 because they saw Astarion, even though they knew nothing about him.... All this, clearly, shows to me that a lot of people approached this game for only one char, for only his design (a big amount of them say it explicitly), and it is not far-fetched to know that people justify more easily beautiful villains than ugly ones. We can explore a lot of examples of this in many fandoms. People can love villains because they have real complex reasons to be so (like Loghain in DAO), but they also can like whimsical villains just because they are “hot”. I feel this is Astarion's case, he is a “beautiful villain” who apparently has always been evil. His reasons for his whimsical evilness is more like “it's always been in his nature”. Unless the family part has a different role in his backstory (mirror option) and it's not a mere line for a player to play a “good aligned” Astarion when picked as Origin. I don't like to read much about it in that scene because the game still doesn't have companion Tags; those options in the mirror can be there just for the player to pick, flavoured with each origin, but not necessarily the three of them are canon. This will be seen once we have the companion tags activated as it happened in DOS2.

What we can say for sure is that Larian knew what they were doing when they picked Astarion's design; they choose a dangerous white guy with white hair and evil alignment: an archetype that catches a lot of people in many fandoms.

Part of his woobyfication process has a deep root there, in my opinion. Again, if he were a bugbear, a goblin, a githyanki, a monster-humanoid... we would not have 90% of the EA fandom collapsed with his image, or Larian focused on him to the point that after 4 patches he had new scenes, lines, corrections, and development, while Wyll is still there, sitting in the bench of “the less developed chars” (with around 2k less lines than the rest of the chars, and his personal quest bugged since the first day). Yes, I don't like the preference on one single companion when I am seeing the “future Beast” (from DOS2) in Wyll.

Second, he is a vampire. Vampires are a great element in any fantasy narrative. You know you will have a lot of fans behind a vampire char. Not by chance Vampire The Masquerade is one, if not the most important product of White Wolf, which keeps still giving them a lot of profit despite being decades old. Vampires are always a good element of personal horror, of lack of control of your own body, and also an allegory of abuse, power, and rape. This concept of “being a monster without control” that they embody helps a bit more for the woobification.

Third, people tend to mix a lot headcanon with what a character gives us as canon. We can have a long useless discussion about which is more worthy: canon or headcanon, or about why one should or should not respect canon, but putting all that discussion aside, and considering the previous two points, I see that a small part of his woobyfication comes from the fact that people love denial and self-projection instead of analysing of what they are given (and let's be honest, we know in tumblr, reddit and others social networks, people lack of reading comprehension skills, which makes analysis all about self projection without a real effort in understanding the character's perspective. It's all about the player unilateral perspective. How can you analyse a char you didn’t play with or explored in all its paths? ).

So if their beautiful character is behaving in a way they don't want to, they start considering him “random” (I read this so much that confuses me, because Astarion has clear patterns for everyone who wants to see them, like the rest of the companions. He is not random, he follows pretty well all what I listed here, that list helps you to predict what he will disapprove or approve) so they end up filling this apparent “randomness” with headcanons and self-projections. Don't get me wrong, I don't despise headcanons, I love them, I have a lot of them and create with them. But I also like honest analysis and separate what I want from what I get from a company (to correctly give them feedback, otherwise I will be giving them my headcanons).

If you don't want an aspect of a given char, and you want to deny it, it's perfectly fine. Do it, it's your entertainment, but be honest with the fandom about it, acknowledge this is a personal denial you enjoy. And mainly, don't use headcanons and self-projections to attack the rest of the chars you don't like in their own tags. We know how aggressive some people in this fandom are, and it's a bit frustrating to see aggression without the slightest effort in understanding the character they hate.

There is also something sad to say, related to self-projection, that contributes to Astarion's woobyfication too: a lot of players are survivors of abuse who connect with him from trauma, and I can understand if denying his past is a way to help them to release any kind of pain or need for vengeance against their abusers. It's a natural and totally understandable projection. The woobyfication, then, ends up in an intense self-projection where they give to the char something that they needed because their own trauma.

This is why I would like Larian to give us other survivor chars that people can project onto, whose stories are really about survivors of abuse who were not evil in the beginning. Because I feel a lot of people approached Astarion as a narration of a “victim who will become a victimiser” or as a “bad behaved victim”, instead of what I think it's shown: an abuser who found a greater abuser (and his story is about punishment of the abuser and the concept of justice in a world which has none), so trauma survivors will end up with disappointment if they think Astarion is something similar to the representation of what they experienced. Plus, vampirism is never good to use as allegories of abusers/victims because the relationship Sire/Childe is too sick and twisted. So, again, this is a mere opinion from all what I've been reading since the game came out.

I hope Larian sticks to the narration they seem to follow with Astarion: an abuser who found a greater one, and now wants to become the next Cazador, and this woobifycation doesn't change the real potential of a dark deep story that I believe they want to give us: not every char is redeemable, and sometimes evilness is capricious. We had chars like these in bg1 and bg2 after all.

#bg3 early access - answers

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shinglescat · 3 years

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Low-key disappointed in the game. Gameplay wise it’s good, story wise - okay. It’s vast but ultimately empty.

The first game made by CDPR that I finished (and sorta-kinda enjoyed). Deffo better than their previous game *cough* tw3 *cough* Wasn’t waiting it, wasn’t hyped for it either, just needed a brand new game to play. I’d say it’s 6/10. Will definitely be 8/10 once they fix bugs and do something about that shitty optimization. I mean, it’s playable in its current state, but every bug breaks the immersion.

A mess of thoughts:

Despite my initial neutral to negative opinion of this game, it grew on me after the prologue; it started to pick up and all that stuff. I loved the side quests, I loved the main quests, and my main issue with the game is the writing for V. It’s not bad, it’s just... it’s more for a game like Skyrim with a generic avatara-protagonist, but not for a game where personality and persona matters the most, story wise. It had a lot of potential to turn into a mindblowing mindfuck, but instead it’s just... disappointing. V’s character and personality never gets defined either by the game or by the player, and the background does very little to help the matter. Feels like I bought another BG3, but without the EARLY ACCESS badge. Actually hoping Larian would handle this whole head parasite problem better. This whole “you’re turning into Johnny” thingy is just there to, I dunno, just to add some more shits and giggles to the story, I guess. I’ve been expecting V to start turning into the guy, or the guy starting to turn into V, buuuuuuuuuut with exception to the smoking - there’s nothing. Thought at first that Johnny had a better writing compared to V, but in the end - they’re at the same level of shitty. Both need a lot more definition than that. The endings are all the same, it was obvious that there’s nothing that could help V to stay in the land of the living - so went with Arasaka to close the circle for the corpo kid. It was all alright up until the point where mr. Reeves started scolding me for my choice, like lmao, what the heck game, you don’t know my V and why we went this route. Sorta-kinda redemption, stfu Silverhand. I dunno, man. I was hopeful before the “point of no return” for the DLC to come out, but now I’m just depressed a bit, ‘cause well - the protag grows on you either way.

The game tries hard to be several games at the same time. It’s trying to be GTA-like, it’s trying to be an immersive sim like Deus Ex, it’s trying to be an rpg, but it fails miserably at almost everything. The game would be better, imo, as a linear experience, not as in corridor one, but rather in character development - haven’t seen those games in ages. Yeah, keep your rpg mechanics for leveling up, skills and yada-yada, but leave the character linear without any player input to better tell the story of Silverhand’s and V’s. Also, the city is E M P T Y. It’s pretty and all, but that’s just a shell.

Did I mention the AI? It’s the fucking worst. Imagine Karens from NFS: Heat and multiply that by 100 - that’s the traffic in CP2077. Also, if you ever thought NFSH’s police was brutal - try Night City’s, it literally forces you to obey the law, and god forbid if you ever get a lot of wanted stars - it’s insta death.

Optimization is sucky too, dunno how people play it on non-Turing cards. I played on ultra with RT turned on at psycho ’cause I wanted to see if the lighting is still a piss with it to the max (spoiler - lighting is indeed a piss), DLSS set to auto, and maaaaaaaaaaaan, from 20 fps up to 60 down to 20 again in a heart bit just because I was playing the game for too long. Possible memory leak? Disabled DLSS for funsies - fps cut in half. Oy vey. Also, this game turns the PC into a really nice space heater. -15C outside, windows open, +50C radiates from the case and warms the footsies. Nice.

Sex scenes are hilarious, by the way. My V banged Meredith, and oh boy did I laugh hard at that.

Aight, now to some positive parts that I still remember:

I loved River’s quest line (and prerequisites for it), tho a bit short, and yes, I’m gonna complain about the dude being not available for the dudes because I did not know that and did not started as a dudette. The Hunt quest was... it was thrilling, disgusting but amazing at the same time. Not a masterpiece, but it you get the idea. Would’ve loved more jobs with him, like a buddy cop stuff, idk. Then there’s Panam, her quests are great too, not gonna go into the details. Judy’s quests, a thriller too. The main quest isn’t so bad too except for the protag duo who would benefit from a better writing.

To be honest tho, overall it was... a really plain experience. The only time I had goosebumps and some semblance of water in my eyes is with Alt’s part, Johnny’s memories and that stuff. Annnnnnnnnnnnnd that’s that.

Gameplay is fine, I had a lot of fun dicing enemies with katanas.

Looking forward to see what DLCs would bring. Hopefully a happy-happy ending, because fuck this world is depressing as is already.

Edit: wanted to add, there are not enough of proper side quests. A lot of generic gigs, but a handful of normal side quests.

#cyberpunk 2077 #annie does rant #SC_ShinsukeVincent

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