I find it rather funny how shy and private he is when it comes to bedding, yet not shy at all when it comes to killing. That's our adorable psychopath, the one and only Astarion, the man of contradictions.
I'm personally a fan of the theory that Shadowheart was a worshipper of Selune that Shar stole away to spite Selune, hence the "missing memories" that Shadowheart often references. It would explain the dissonance between her apparent faith and her discomfort with actually performing evil acts.
Since this is definitely a thing in D&D FR lore, it seems quite likely yes. I feel that this game with all of the current companions will ultimately allow us to change their alignment, or stick to their current one.
@@sandrols7 That’d be nice. The current group runs a bit too dark for my taste (Wyll’s the only somewhat good. The others are practically neutral or full down evil. ) it’d be nice to see a change so our whole party doesn’t revolt eventually on our decent good or full good routes.
This just proves I could never go straight evil. Sorry, Astarion. You’re growing a sense of morality if even if my monk has to drag you kicking and screaming.
Please revisit this comment on release detailing your thoughts on Astarion backstabbing your party several times over, I crave Astarion stan tears. Thank you in advance.
@@urdimsum7961 *spoilers* wanted to follow up on this. Astarion rocks and his growth is satisfying. I played a chaotic neutral/good character, got the good ending with him. He never backstabbed anyone in my camp and was honestly forthcoming with everything regarding himself, all things considered. He actually agreed to go be heroes with me, too.
If you don't romance him, he will just leave the party once his quest is concluded (badly) in such a case. You are definitely proving that the self-righteous good doesn't like allowing others agency.
Man, I remember seeing a clip of how Astarion acts if you choose to side with the goblins. He’s super sexy which is entertaining but Shadowheart’s responses make me legitimately sad. Shar approves of violence and badder choices it seems but she sounds so guilty about what happened. Her voice actress did an amazing job here because she sounds so drunk and confused about everything. I can’t wait to see more of her story. As for Gale he also made me sad. Way more depressed than Shadowheart’s dialogue. I honestly don’t know if I could genuinely choose this path even for fun. I’m too much of a softy to do “evil genocide” runs in any game :’(
If you just have Astarion when talking to the Sovereign, Astarion will tell you exactly why he wants us to help them, calling it "A tad genocidal". Just as he tells you exactly why he likes you to tell Auntie Ethel the whole truth ("She sounds positively demented! Lets tell her everything!" with that killer mischievous smirk
You’ve given me a lot to think about 😭 I agree that after living a life of torture and violence, his perspective may be a little warped. He’s had 200 years of being immortal, so I can’t imagine death holds much weight. He’s a little nihilistic and has a “fuck it” attitude and just likes stirring the pot I think
@@mlj3347 He's also a vampire spawn and according to DnD 5e rules, vampires and their spawn are evil. But thanks to the tadpole, Astarion has already broken several rules about being a vampire. So I there could be a few less obvious ways that he changed.
@@Mio21008 you get an idea. He was vain and petty. He pretty open about it if you get the right scene. If you know enough of his history before going to Kahga and letting her kill the Girl, you can ask Him what he would have ruled. He says it was a little harsh as he would have just had her hand cut off for theft. I mean he hasn’t changed much after being turned... just 200 years of torture and trauma
@@megakaren2160 are Spawn considered Evil? I know True Vampires are evil as hell since it corrupts the purest hearts into purest evil. Astarion was a vain entitled arsehole before though. When you can trigger the conversation after Kahga kills the girl he will tell you he would have just had her hand cut off for theft. And his vanity was pretty much from the beginning. What did it corrupt? I guess I’m wondering o.o
Funny - I got a different vibe from Astarion's reaction. I think he's being fake-charming here and trying to protect himself in order to stay on your good side in case he's next. He's also way more guarded in this version. It would make sense given his history, the cutthroat environment he was in and the fact that he used to lure in nobles and had been a magister before - That's the game he knows how to play to survive, especially now that he has seen what your character is capable of.
@@mishmash2293 Yeah I know, he's just very broken :( Since he's a fan favorite I'm guessing they'll leave this open-ended (as BioWare did with Fenris and Solas)
5:22 I can confirm because when I got a signed pic of Astarion, Neil (his actor) wrote in-character "I don't about you but the smell of blood turns me the fuck on!" soooo.... 👀
Plot twist: Shadowheart is a brainwashed Selune follower :) that's the reason for her conflicting feelings and the reactions Selune artifacts have on her.
Yup 100%that , i believe she has been coerce to become one of them, probably tortured too and that's why they erased her memory, to use her, not has a proof of faith. She'll turn to be a good little boyscout at the end lol.
Thanks! I might find Gale being a second if they can bring him back from his goddess infatuation though. I really liked him until I saw his romance scene - then I got kind of meh
I really can't wait for this game to be completely finished. Like I really enjoy the almost Origins like quality of it. Like I stumbled upon a bunch of Astarion and Gale romance vids, and after that I've had my interest piqued. I hope they get it out in its totality in the next couple of years cause they, uh, really need to work on dialogue animations.
I got the game specifically because it looked like Origins and I have not been disappointed. It's doing really well for early access and from what I recall hearing from when they realeased DOS2 for EA, it took a year.
Wouldn't it be interesting if Shadowheart was actually a cleric of Seluna, brainwashed and mind-wiped by Shar to get the weapon. That may explain why she is confused and not as bad as she thinks she is.
Potential spoilers (theorizing) for Shadowheart's backstory I've seen people suggest she may have lost her memory and gotten indoctrinated into Shar's cult. During the romance scene at the tiefling celebration, she can't think of anything to share from her past, and her surprise at her own emotional reactions to both the tiefling and goblin paths seems to support the idea that she's just now starting to rediscover her real self after getting away from the direct influence of the cult. Shadowheart's mind during this goblin celebration scene seems to recall a time back when she was in the cult and so under their sway she *enjoyed* killing innocents, and is confused why she feels differently now. All that may point towards her not quite knowing who she herself is - which would also explain her thorniness to the player character if they try to get to know her. Have to put up a front of not *wanting* to open up, if there's nothing you *could* reveal if you opened up, don't you? Additionally, she never speaks of Shar as if she actually likes her, more as if she's repeating reverent lines that were hammered into her, and she's isn't even happy about meeting a fellow player character cleric of Shar either. According to some of what she says after the Raphael encounter, she knows people who are very good at "breaking people" using "fear and self-doubt." I surmise this is the cult she was in - what's to say she wasn't one of its victims?
Very good possibility and would definitely make a lot of sense. I definitely think the fact that she doesn't remember much of who she was gets in the way of everything.. like whether she actually chose to be there in the first place!
There's a goddess who's like Shar's good twin. I can't remember her name or details, but she and Shar are rivals. Iirc Shar has been known to steal the other goddess's followers and brainwashing them. I've seen other people speculating that Shadowheart was a cleric for the good goddess and Shar brainwashed her.
@@Kennisaurus Selûne? Yes, she's her twin and the goddess of the moon. That's a really interesting point - if this theory is true, I think Shadowheart would most likely be a brainwashed former Selûnite. That would allow her to retain clerical powers, while switching domains, if she ever broke free of the brainwashing throughout the game.
Datamined spoilers! Extreme spoilers for Shadowheart's story. Click read more if interested. My discord server datamined a scene where the Shar clergy forces Shadowheart to torture someone. The dialogue doesn't occur linearly so I did my best to piece the scene together. If you play as Shadowheart, this is a dream that she has. If you play as Tav (the player character), you view Shadowheart's past in a dream. After the boat ride in the Underdark, Shadowheart sees torture equipment in a Shar temple. It reminds her of something but she has trouble remembering. This is what triggers the scene to occur. In this scene, the Sharrans are holding two people hostage. Shadowheart feels conflicted. The higher ranking Shar clergy member is evasive about who these kidnapped people are and where they are from. This member describes the people as "enemies of Shar" to justify the torture. The higher ranking woman (who is called Sister Superior) hits Shadowheart every time she expresses hesitance. If you play as Shadowheart, you choose who to torture (human man or half-elf woman) and how to torture them. If you play as Tav, you can beg Shadowheart to stop. The narrator informs you that Tav is just a spectator in a memory; nothing you do will modify the outcome. Shadowheart feels pressured but agrees. However, the higher ranking member is not satisfied with just one act of torture. She commands Shadowheart to continue with another act of torture. Shadowheart has a vision of her parents who express their pride and love for her. Shadowheart can't ignore her conscience any longer and refuses. Wild magic appears in Shadowheart's hand. The higher ranking woman commands Shadowheart to stop. Shadowheart has no control over the wild magic. The magic explodes, killing the high ranking Shar woman. As punishment, the clergy tortures her for several weeks. Shadowheart gets a scar on her arm here. They force her to go on a suicide mission to retrieve an artifact. I assume they wiped her memory. There's no way Shadowheart would willingly agree to retrieve an artifact for people that just tortured her. If you go through the Shadowcursed Lands instead, there is a priest of Selûne who wishes to speak to Shadowheart. Shadowheart is suddenly possessed by Shar and intends to kill the priest. Tav can let her or pass a persuasion check to make her stop. Shadowheart either kills the priest or gets snapped out of the possession. The Selûne priest knows about Shadowheart's wild magic powers. He asks her to meet with him in Baldur's Gate. In camp, Shadowheart expresses concern that Shar disapproves of her. Lastly, the romance scene is supposed to have wild magic. Wild magic is the glow effect that occurs in Shadowheart's hand. Basically, she kisses Tav and there's a surge of wild magic. That's why she asks Tav if it hurt. To me, it seems like her powers are triggered by intense emotion. I love how she's very "I'm an evil cleric" until you learn she loves puppies and friendship lol. In the party banter about love, Shadowheart says she doesn't like long-term romantic relationships. She's "short-term amusements" only. Then, the romance scene is very much like a first date where you get to know each other and maybe smooch. I think she definitely struggles with her identity like you said. To me, it seems there's inconsistency between who she wants to be and who she actually is.
@@anonymouse8124 Yes, Selûne, thank you! That's exactly the theory, with people speculating if it'll be a choice. Either convince her to stay as a cleric of Shar and have her go down an increasingly darker path, or have become/return to being a cleric of Selûne, possibly with benefits and ramifications to both options. There's a scene in game where you can find a statue (i think) of Selûne and Shadowheart reacts badly to it. It's been a while since I saw that scene but I think she calls it evil or something but I think there's an implied connection between Shadowheart to the goddess in the scene. I'll have to find the video again
It seemed the same as it did from the other game so far - aside from the different dialogue options. IE - he seems to stay interested in you / call you lover, etc / after both celebrations :D
1:44 Vampires cant feed on non-living things. If you attempt use vampire bite on a dead body as Astarion he'll take damage. Very curious if it's possible to romance Gale if you slaughter the Tieflings. I'm not going to try for myself, because I cant handle seeing Gale being upset with me.
If you want to get super technical about it - we're not there for the beginning of the party.. He could have taken a nibble while they were still alive! :O I don't believe you actually get to kill everyone during the raid as some can't fight. But that's getting super dark.. I agree about the Gale thing, I really wish it were easier to woo him because I would have liked to test it out on this game.
@@Mmogurl Or I'm thinking of the old battlefield days when they had the throat cutters. Ones who would scour the battlefield killing those who were gravely wounded, but not yet dead. Only he got in a quick feed instead.
As far as I know, Gale doesn't want to romance (for now) you even if you would have been romantic with him earlier if you choose the goblin path. It even goes as far as his story time will be different. I don't know why, but it really makes me appreciate him even more. I kinda wish that he would be later still romanceable if he could be turned full on evil companion. I have a video about the goblin path story time with Gale on my channel, before the cutscenes were taken out.
It definitely made me appreciate him more. He comes off sometimes like he might be fake.. maybe he's not really a good guy sort of deal. I feel like seeing his reaction here adds more authenticity to him actually being a decent person.
Good stuff gurl! I think perhaps Shadowheart is Lawful Neutral as opposed to Lawful Evil via the D&D5e rule set. That's the only way I can put it to explain her responses in an evil play-through of the game. I still want to see what MMOGurl looks like ;) Your voice is too mesmerizing!
as a goody two shoe player and a big Gale simp this hurt a lot of watch xP but I am glad I got to see what would happen without playing this route myself. Did enjoy seeing more of Astarian though
That's really dark, especially Alfiras lute. She is one of my favorite npcs, so no evil path for me. And since I'm not a fan of Astarion (yeah, I can hear the gasps of terror from the fans), I don't need to do it to get his different scene. SHs and Gales reactions are heartbreaking. Oh - and I didn't see Scratch in the video. Do the goblins kill him?
Yeah, I'm a weird bird in these games. I tend to be neutral good my first playthrough, but as I become accustomed to how everything works and what happens in the story, I tend to become more true neutral. I can really go either way then. I figure a lot of people won't ever do this, which is why it makes a good video - people can see what happens without actually having to do it. As far as Scratch goes, I didn't bother to get him in this playthru - went through rather fast because I was testing a lot with the paths and reloading / doing other things as well for the previous video.
@@Mmogurl I would play evil more, if it would be a more subtle approach. As it is, it's just not very appealing. In our pen & paper groups, I sometimes love to play an evil character. It doesn't help, that I really don't like anyone on the goblin side, aside from Abdirak, who isn't really with the Absolute cultists, so he doesn't really count. Glad that Scratch is alve and well somewhere. The owlbear cub is anotehr reason not to do evl playthrough, I don't think, we can save it, when siding with the gobbos?
I talked to Scratch during the goblin party. He says he hopes they are not friends of ours. He says he is scared and doesn't like them because they are loud and scary. 😥
wow I'm surprised that companions can leave you so soon in the game ( i hope that there will be at least like 3 more companions ) and in every new video that shows how bad Astarion can be sometimes, I'm more ashamed of myself for like him 😔
There are 2 companions, with the possibility of 1 extra although I'd have to dig to see how confirmed that last one is as of now. As for Astarion, I don't feel too bad about it. I've always been the type who enjoys having that one friend you make cracks on everyone else with. xD The Beavis to my Butthead if you will - hahah
There is a youtuber called Chubblot that does data mining on the early access of Baldur's Gate 3 and he found information about 3 companions other than the one already available. One of them is Karlach, the tiefling that fought in Avernus
I think since you lose Wyll if going the evil path, and a chance of losing Gale - goblins should take their place. A ranger goblin and a caster - and start to form your own evil companion team.
I wonder if Larian is doing something akin to dragon age orgins with "hardening" or "unhardening" your companions based on decisions. But Larian is doing it with bigger game decisions you do with the party instead of choices during companion quests
Shadowheart definatly the more " reclusive/abrasive" of the group at first. I now got her approval at " Exceptional" on my Chaotic Good Pramagtic Rogue and her approval seems to be a mixed of pragmatism,clever problem solving and respecting her privacy. There is one conversation with her when she fiddles with the artifact in her inventory that the only way to get approval after confronting her about it is to leave rather then keep pushing for discussion. After the celebration party her tone is alot gentler and she gave my character proper greeting rather then the mildly annoyed tone she had at the start. Considering this is basicly chapter 1 of the adventure im curious to see where her character goes.
I haven't gotten far in making a game with this new patch, but I've already seen some major improvement in the introduction "level". I'm still working on playing the game amidst all my other things I have to do but I'm excited to see what new things the upcoming patches have in store!
I tried to do evil path on my 4th play through and it went horribly: druid grove fight was a true pain: Astarion went in -out of the battle constantly, rolling initiative every second, and I was unable to do something. Also Minthara was yelling about killing everyone, despite the fact I killed every living thing, including squirrels. And I had to do the battle all over again :'-( Karma, I guess.
I think Shadowheart feeling guilty only further supports the theory that she's a brainwashed cleric of Selune As for the companions "hardening", I think that might be very possible. The same way it is hinted that Astarion and Lazael can possibly care for you more down the line, or be more "good aligned" as they become more selfless, I think it makes perfect sense you can make good characters become more "evil aligned", or selfish. I don't think you can completely change their personality (it would be very unrealistic and dumb), but you can maybe influence their moral choices a bit as you did with poor Gale. I think that's actually amazing! It is also nice that you can't do that to every character. Characters like Wyll, with very strong morals, should stay the same and die the same. But morally inconsistent characters may very well be influenced by someone with stronger morals (in this case, the player character. I think it is very hard for your player character to take a neutral position in decisions)
Oh damn, I hardened Alistair just to get the orgy scene...I REGRET NOTHING! 😄 Also getting major Anders: Justice vs Vengeance vibes from Gale in the few clips I've seen.
hahah - take a look at my patreon - they're public links you can see easily if you click the fanfic tag at the top of the page. www.patreon.com/mmogurl
So i just found this scene where i didnt recruit Shadowheart I talked to her at the grove and failed to convice her to join me, without spoiling too much the dialogue makes me think that your theory about the tadpole might be right. It also makes me wonder if it happens to the other companions as well?
I'll have to check that out - I haven't experimented much with picking up Shadowheart.. I have experimented a lot with Lae'zel though and have outright killed her before. It did change a lot of things too so I should have known it would be he same thing for other companions!
HAHA - I am pretty neutral anymore.. You test games enough and you just lose track of the whole goodie goodie thing. It becomes more.. "Ooo I wonder what happens when I do this?"
@@Mmogurl I'm actually playing with mods now lol. Got a group almost to lvl 20, snuck into the crypt and killed the entire group with a 9D6 fireball. They didn't even get a turn.
@ Mmogurl Hello again ive asked you before if you will be rejoining bdo as you explain that you might look into it. i would like to let you know they are about to Delete all accounts that do not reregister before march 31 (my date may not be exact) do to dropping Kakao from publishing So i wanted to make sure you knew so that you wouldnt get deleted after all that hard work sorry to post it here but it was your latest post
It's no problem - I should probably look into it then since I'd hate to lose my account.. even if I don't play a lot.. i have a ton of horses and such. I play through steam though - is it still an issue since I don't really have a PA specific account?
So cruel of them to give Astarion so much better dialogue for this party scene smh. Even playing an evil-ish drow there's not much reason for my character to side with the goblins; especially with minthara being a heretic.
wonder if a playthrough is possible were you literally just social fu your way through the game, a pacifist playthrough. Potentially not having to fight anyone ever save for creatures you cannot speak to at all like phase spiders or in the worst case convincing others to do your fighting for you. Guidance gives +4, thaumaturgy gives you a bonus to intimidation and performance and friends gives you advantage on all charisma rolls and your passive charisma proficiency you can have up to +10 for most social rolls with those 3 active, just have to remember to always have them up before dialogue begins and yes guidance, thaumaturgy and friends all stack together.
It's so funny because I find this character to be such a cliche not necessarily a bad thing just boring and predictable. The vampire bad boy rogue with a dark past who was at first insensitive but then probably become sensitive like what is this character? He's pulled from a 90s teen girls wet dream 😭.
I find it rather funny how shy and private he is when it comes to bedding, yet not shy at all when it comes to killing. That's our adorable psychopath, the one and only Astarion, the man of contradictions.
Here Here! To our man of taste!
@@Mmogurl and all hail Neil Newbon for voicing him.
I want to like this comment but it has exactly 69 likes and that would ruin it.
I'm personally a fan of the theory that Shadowheart was a worshipper of Selune that Shar stole away to spite Selune, hence the "missing memories" that Shadowheart often references. It would explain the dissonance between her apparent faith and her discomfort with actually performing evil acts.
Since this is definitely a thing in D&D FR lore, it seems quite likely yes.
I feel that this game with all of the current companions will ultimately allow us to change their alignment, or stick to their current one.
@@sandrols7 That’d be nice. The current group runs a bit too dark for my taste (Wyll’s the only somewhat good. The others are practically neutral or full down evil. ) it’d be nice to see a change so our whole party doesn’t revolt eventually on our decent good or full good routes.
When Shadowheart talks about Selune in cinematic mode, she often looks sad first before getting angry. Could be a hint? :D
This just proves I could never go straight evil. Sorry, Astarion. You’re growing a sense of morality if even if my monk has to drag you kicking and screaming.
Yep! Same! *grabs Astarion by the ear* Come on, if you can take sunshine you can stand in the light now!
Please revisit this comment on release detailing your thoughts on Astarion backstabbing your party several times over, I crave Astarion stan tears. Thank you in advance.
@@urdimsum7961 *spoilers* wanted to follow up on this. Astarion rocks and his growth is satisfying. I played a chaotic neutral/good character, got the good ending with him. He never backstabbed anyone in my camp and was honestly forthcoming with everything regarding himself, all things considered. He actually agreed to go be heroes with me, too.
If you don't romance him, he will just leave the party once his quest is concluded (badly) in such a case. You are definitely proving that the self-righteous good doesn't like allowing others agency.
@@urdimsum7961 aged horribly btw LMFAO
Oh god. A hot vampire elf man who veers towards evil and chaos?
I could never win.
Don't even try :D
Man, I remember seeing a clip of how Astarion acts if you choose to side with the goblins. He’s super sexy which is entertaining but Shadowheart’s responses make me legitimately sad. Shar approves of violence and badder choices it seems but she sounds so guilty about what happened. Her voice actress did an amazing job here because she sounds so drunk and confused about everything. I can’t wait to see more of her story.
As for Gale he also made me sad. Way more depressed than Shadowheart’s dialogue. I honestly don’t know if I could genuinely choose this path even for fun. I’m too much of a softy to do “evil genocide” runs in any game :’(
If you just have Astarion when talking to the Sovereign, Astarion will tell you exactly why he wants us to help them, calling it "A tad genocidal". Just as he tells you exactly why he likes you to tell Auntie Ethel the whole truth ("She sounds positively demented! Lets tell her everything!" with that killer mischievous smirk
You’ve given me a lot to think about 😭 I agree that after living a life of torture and violence, his perspective may be a little warped. He’s had 200 years of being immortal, so I can’t imagine death holds much weight. He’s a little nihilistic and has a “fuck it” attitude and just likes stirring the pot I think
How do think he was before becoming a spawn? When he was still a magistrate?
@@mlj3347 He's also a vampire spawn and according to DnD 5e rules, vampires and their spawn are evil.
But thanks to the tadpole, Astarion has already broken several rules about being a vampire. So I there could be a few less obvious ways that he changed.
@@Mio21008 you get an idea. He was vain and petty. He pretty open about it if you get the right scene. If you know enough of his history before going to Kahga and letting her kill the Girl, you can ask Him what he would have ruled. He says it was a little harsh as he would have just had her hand cut off for theft. I mean he hasn’t changed much after being turned... just 200 years of torture and trauma
@@megakaren2160 are Spawn considered Evil? I know True Vampires are evil as hell since it corrupts the purest hearts into purest evil. Astarion was a vain entitled arsehole before though. When you can trigger the conversation after Kahga kills the girl he will tell you he would have just had her hand cut off for theft. And his vanity was pretty much from the beginning. What did it corrupt? I guess I’m wondering o.o
Oh That delicious line is making me melt.
I LOVE when she says delicious.. he needs to say it more!
🤢
Funny - I got a different vibe from Astarion's reaction. I think he's being fake-charming here and trying to protect himself in order to stay on your good side in case he's next. He's also way more guarded in this version. It would make sense given his history, the cutthroat environment he was in and the fact that he used to lure in nobles and had been a magister before - That's the game he knows how to play to survive, especially now that he has seen what your character is capable of.
Yeah 'stay on her good side so I don't end up on the corpse pile.'
Can this beautiful creature ever learn to truly love us?? 😩 my heart. I had not considered this angle.
@@mishmash2293 Yeah I know, he's just very broken :( Since he's a fan favorite I'm guessing they'll leave this open-ended (as BioWare did with Fenris and Solas)
@@art_illeries8274 I hope they do not...
5:22 I can confirm because when I got a signed pic of Astarion, Neil (his actor) wrote in-character "I don't about you but the smell of blood turns me the fuck on!" soooo.... 👀
No way! That's hilarious xD where did you get that signed Pic?
That’s Astarion to a T, but tbf can’t blame him for being a bit mental given he had 2000 years of being abused in every way possible.
As much as I love Asterion. Gales terrible time is really braking me.
I love the different paths you can take! The detail that Larian studios adds is amazing. Love the videos ❤
I agree - I'm very happy with all of the different ways you can play the game!
Plot twist: Shadowheart is a brainwashed Selune follower :) that's the reason for her conflicting feelings and the reactions Selune artifacts have on her.
Yup 100%that , i believe she has been coerce to become one of them, probably tortured too and that's why they erased her memory, to use her, not has a proof of faith.
She'll turn to be a good little boyscout at the end lol.
he used to be so pale hes been putting on makeup- his eyeshadow is getting darker every update.
Yeah they've been working on all that lighting and such.
@@Mmogurl so your telling me hes actually had on dusk blue eye shadow this would time but i never noticed cause he was so bright ( ；ﾟДﾟ ; )
@@wuftchan8299 I think its more of the tired look rathern than actual eyeshadow since he doesnt seem to sleep in the game.
4:45 omfg you should have warned me i nearlt fainted
I love your vids, your level of Astarion love is the same as mine for Shadowheart.
Thanks! I might find Gale being a second if they can bring him back from his goddess infatuation though. I really liked him until I saw his romance scene - then I got kind of meh
I really can't wait for this game to be completely finished. Like I really enjoy the almost Origins like quality of it. Like I stumbled upon a bunch of Astarion and Gale romance vids, and after that I've had my interest piqued. I hope they get it out in its totality in the next couple of years cause they, uh, really need to work on dialogue animations.
I got the game specifically because it looked like Origins and I have not been disappointed. It's doing really well for early access and from what I recall hearing from when they realeased DOS2 for EA, it took a year.
Wouldn't it be interesting if Shadowheart was actually a cleric of Seluna, brainwashed and mind-wiped by Shar to get the weapon. That may explain why she is confused and not as bad as she thinks she is.
He's so chaotic neutral lmao
shit, that Gale part just killed me inside. literally knocked the air out of my lungs.
A well-laid plan ;)
It would have been corny if he didn't laugh at it xD
Potential spoilers (theorizing) for Shadowheart's backstory
I've seen people suggest she may have lost her memory and gotten indoctrinated into Shar's cult. During the romance scene at the tiefling celebration, she can't think of anything to share from her past, and her surprise at her own emotional reactions to both the tiefling and goblin paths seems to support the idea that she's just now starting to rediscover her real self after getting away from the direct influence of the cult. Shadowheart's mind during this goblin celebration scene seems to recall a time back when she was in the cult and so under their sway she *enjoyed* killing innocents, and is confused why she feels differently now. All that may point towards her not quite knowing who she herself is - which would also explain her thorniness to the player character if they try to get to know her. Have to put up a front of not *wanting* to open up, if there's nothing you *could* reveal if you opened up, don't you?
Additionally, she never speaks of Shar as if she actually likes her, more as if she's repeating reverent lines that were hammered into her, and she's isn't even happy about meeting a fellow player character cleric of Shar either. According to some of what she says after the Raphael encounter, she knows people who are very good at "breaking people" using "fear and self-doubt." I surmise this is the cult she was in - what's to say she wasn't one of its victims?
Very good possibility and would definitely make a lot of sense. I definitely think the fact that she doesn't remember much of who she was gets in the way of everything.. like whether she actually chose to be there in the first place!
There's a goddess who's like Shar's good twin. I can't remember her name or details, but she and Shar are rivals. Iirc Shar has been known to steal the other goddess's followers and brainwashing them. I've seen other people speculating that Shadowheart was a cleric for the good goddess and Shar brainwashed her.
@@Kennisaurus Selûne? Yes, she's her twin and the goddess of the moon. That's a really interesting point - if this theory is true, I think Shadowheart would most likely be a brainwashed former Selûnite. That would allow her to retain clerical powers, while switching domains, if she ever broke free of the brainwashing throughout the game.
Datamined spoilers! Extreme spoilers for Shadowheart's story. Click read more if interested.
My discord server datamined a scene where the Shar clergy forces Shadowheart to torture someone. The dialogue doesn't occur linearly so I did my best to piece the scene together. If you play as Shadowheart, this is a dream that she has. If you play as Tav (the player character), you view Shadowheart's past in a dream. After the boat ride in the Underdark, Shadowheart sees torture equipment in a Shar temple. It reminds her of something but she has trouble remembering. This is what triggers the scene to occur.
In this scene, the Sharrans are holding two people hostage. Shadowheart feels conflicted. The higher ranking Shar clergy member is evasive about who these kidnapped people are and where they are from. This member describes the people as "enemies of Shar" to justify the torture. The higher ranking woman (who is called Sister Superior) hits Shadowheart every time she expresses hesitance. If you play as Shadowheart, you choose who to torture (human man or half-elf woman) and how to torture them. If you play as Tav, you can beg Shadowheart to stop. The narrator informs you that Tav is just a spectator in a memory; nothing you do will modify the outcome. Shadowheart feels pressured but agrees. However, the higher ranking member is not satisfied with just one act of torture. She commands Shadowheart to continue with another act of torture. Shadowheart has a vision of her parents who express their pride and love for her. Shadowheart can't ignore her conscience any longer and refuses. Wild magic appears in Shadowheart's hand. The higher ranking woman commands Shadowheart to stop. Shadowheart has no control over the wild magic. The magic explodes, killing the high ranking Shar woman. As punishment, the clergy tortures her for several weeks. Shadowheart gets a scar on her arm here. They force her to go on a suicide mission to retrieve an artifact.
I assume they wiped her memory. There's no way Shadowheart would willingly agree to retrieve an artifact for people that just tortured her.
If you go through the Shadowcursed Lands instead, there is a priest of Selûne who wishes to speak to Shadowheart. Shadowheart is suddenly possessed by Shar and intends to kill the priest. Tav can let her or pass a persuasion check to make her stop. Shadowheart either kills the priest or gets snapped out of the possession. The Selûne priest knows about Shadowheart's wild magic powers. He asks her to meet with him in Baldur's Gate. In camp, Shadowheart expresses concern that Shar disapproves of her.
Lastly, the romance scene is supposed to have wild magic. Wild magic is the glow effect that occurs in Shadowheart's hand. Basically, she kisses Tav and there's a surge of wild magic. That's why she asks Tav if it hurt. To me, it seems like her powers are triggered by intense emotion.
I love how she's very "I'm an evil cleric" until you learn she loves puppies and friendship lol. In the party banter about love, Shadowheart says she doesn't like long-term romantic relationships. She's "short-term amusements" only. Then, the romance scene is very much like a first date where you get to know each other and maybe smooch. I think she definitely struggles with her identity like you said. To me, it seems there's inconsistency between who she wants to be and who she actually is.
@@anonymouse8124 Yes, Selûne, thank you! That's exactly the theory, with people speculating if it'll be a choice. Either convince her to stay as a cleric of Shar and have her go down an increasingly darker path, or have become/return to being a cleric of Selûne, possibly with benefits and ramifications to both options. There's a scene in game where you can find a statue (i think) of Selûne and Shadowheart reacts badly to it. It's been a while since I saw that scene but I think she calls it evil or something but I think there's an implied connection between Shadowheart to the goddess in the scene. I'll have to find the video again
I hope we don't have to go full evil to get a romance and not a fling from Astarion. It looks like they are going in that direction.
It seemed the same as it did from the other game so far - aside from the different dialogue options. IE - he seems to stay interested in you / call you lover, etc / after both celebrations :D
They REEEEALLY make it hard to hate Astarion lmao 💕
I would say impossible
Well, vampires love power, and he is basically being venerated as a 'True Soul'... so... why not love it from his end?
1:44 Vampires cant feed on non-living things. If you attempt use vampire bite on a dead body as Astarion he'll take damage. Very curious if it's possible to romance Gale if you slaughter the Tieflings. I'm not going to try for myself, because I cant handle seeing Gale being upset with me.
If you want to get super technical about it - we're not there for the beginning of the party.. He could have taken a nibble while they were still alive! :O I don't believe you actually get to kill everyone during the raid as some can't fight. But that's getting super dark.. I agree about the Gale thing, I really wish it were easier to woo him because I would have liked to test it out on this game.
@@Mmogurl The Gale romance has new dialouge options. Any plan to do an update on the romances post patch 4?
@@Mmogurl Or I'm thinking of the old battlefield days when they had the throat cutters. Ones who would scour the battlefield killing those who were gravely wounded, but not yet dead. Only he got in a quick feed instead.
As far as I know, Gale doesn't want to romance (for now) you even if you would have been romantic with him earlier if you choose the goblin path. It even goes as far as his story time will be different. I don't know why, but it really makes me appreciate him even more. I kinda wish that he would be later still romanceable if he could be turned full on evil companion. I have a video about the goblin path story time with Gale on my channel, before the cutscenes were taken out.
It definitely made me appreciate him more. He comes off sometimes like he might be fake.. maybe he's not really a good guy sort of deal. I feel like seeing his reaction here adds more authenticity to him actually being a decent person.
Good stuff gurl! I think perhaps Shadowheart is Lawful Neutral as opposed to Lawful Evil via the D&D5e rule set. That's the only way I can put it to explain her responses in an evil play-through of the game. I still want to see what MMOGurl looks like ;) Your voice is too mesmerizing!
as a goody two shoe player and a big Gale simp this hurt a lot of watch xP but I am glad I got to see what would happen without playing this route myself. Did enjoy seeing more of Astarian though
That's really dark, especially Alfiras lute. She is one of my favorite npcs, so no evil path for me. And since I'm not a fan of Astarion (yeah, I can hear the gasps of terror from the fans), I don't need to do it to get his different scene. SHs and Gales reactions are heartbreaking. Oh - and I didn't see Scratch in the video. Do the goblins kill him?
Yeah, I'm a weird bird in these games. I tend to be neutral good my first playthrough, but as I become accustomed to how everything works and what happens in the story, I tend to become more true neutral. I can really go either way then. I figure a lot of people won't ever do this, which is why it makes a good video - people can see what happens without actually having to do it.
As far as Scratch goes, I didn't bother to get him in this playthru - went through rather fast because I was testing a lot with the paths and reloading / doing other things as well for the previous video.
@@Mmogurl I would play evil more, if it would be a more subtle approach. As it is, it's just not very appealing. In our pen & paper groups, I sometimes love to play an evil character. It doesn't help, that I really don't like anyone on the goblin side, aside from Abdirak, who isn't really with the Absolute cultists, so he doesn't really count. Glad that Scratch is alve and well somewhere. The owlbear cub is anotehr reason not to do evl playthrough, I don't think, we can save it, when siding with the gobbos?
I talked to Scratch during the goblin party. He says he hopes they are not friends of ours. He says he is scared and doesn't like them because they are loud and scary. 😥
I'm not sure if he's actually having a good time. But hearing his alternate lines makes an evil playthrough so much more appealing :b
Astarion 😍
I know, right?
@@Mmogurl It would be cool if we had bite marks on our neck from Astarion, and when we confront Cazador he says something about them.
Damn, Niel is so good at lowering his voice and being so seductive at 4:15
Shadowheart's drinking animation looks like she's pouring the drink into her eye 🤣
wow I'm surprised that companions can leave you so soon in the game ( i hope that there will be at least like 3 more companions )
and in every new video that shows how bad Astarion can be sometimes, I'm more ashamed of myself for like him 😔
I actually think you'll be able to get Wyll back on this route, becuase the journal entry is weird, and you dont get his inventory when he leaves.
There are 2 companions, with the possibility of 1 extra although I'd have to dig to see how confirmed that last one is as of now. As for Astarion, I don't feel too bad about it. I've always been the type who enjoys having that one friend you make cracks on everyone else with. xD The Beavis to my Butthead if you will - hahah
@@Mmogurl I'm still looking for my Daria *Sigh*
There is a youtuber called Chubblot that does data mining on the early access of Baldur's Gate 3 and he found information about 3 companions other than the one already available. One of them is Karlach, the tiefling that fought in Avernus
never ashamed
Shadowheart is a preistess of Selune that was Chaotic good that was brainwashed into being Chaotic neutral by Shar worshipers.
I think since you lose Wyll if going the evil path, and a chance of losing Gale - goblins should take their place.
A ranger goblin and a caster - and start to form your own evil companion team.
Oh mah gawd that wink when he says delicious! Wow
And then when he says delicious too :)
I wonder if Larian is doing something akin to dragon age orgins with "hardening" or "unhardening" your companions based on decisions. But Larian is doing it with bigger game decisions you do with the party instead of choices during companion quests
Shadowheart definatly the more " reclusive/abrasive" of the group at first. I now got her approval at " Exceptional" on my Chaotic Good Pramagtic Rogue and her approval seems to be a mixed of pragmatism,clever problem solving and respecting her privacy. There is one conversation with her when she fiddles with the artifact in her inventory that the only way to get approval after confronting her about it is to leave rather then keep pushing for discussion. After the celebration party her tone is alot gentler and she gave my character proper greeting rather then the mildly annoyed tone she had at the start. Considering this is basicly chapter 1 of the adventure im curious to see where her character goes.
I haven't gotten far in making a game with this new patch, but I've already seen some major improvement in the introduction "level". I'm still working on playing the game amidst all my other things I have to do but I'm excited to see what new things the upcoming patches have in store!
So you could corrupt Gale to evil...tempting
I tried to do evil path on my 4th play through and it went horribly: druid grove fight was a true pain: Astarion went in -out of the battle constantly, rolling initiative every second, and I was unable to do something. Also Minthara was yelling about killing everyone, despite the fact I killed every living thing, including squirrels. And I had to do the battle all over again :'-(
Karma, I guess.
lol i pressed "space" to speed up the conversations in the video
Hahah - I do this with the middle mouse button for turning the camera when I'm in other games xD
Omg this bit of of shadowheart just confirms she is a follower of seline brainwashed to be a follower of Shar like they say Shar enjoys doing
I think Shadowheart feeling guilty only further supports the theory that she's a brainwashed cleric of Selune
As for the companions "hardening", I think that might be very possible. The same way it is hinted that Astarion and Lazael can possibly care for you more down the line, or be more "good aligned" as they become more selfless, I think it makes perfect sense you can make good characters become more "evil aligned", or selfish. I don't think you can completely change their personality (it would be very unrealistic and dumb), but you can maybe influence their moral choices a bit as you did with poor Gale. I think that's actually amazing!
It is also nice that you can't do that to every character. Characters like Wyll, with very strong morals, should stay the same and die the same. But morally inconsistent characters may very well be influenced by someone with stronger morals (in this case, the player character. I think it is very hard for your player character to take a neutral position in decisions)
What I really need... is the link to that fanfic you mentioned. Pretty please.
Oh damn, I hardened Alistair just to get the orgy scene...I REGRET NOTHING!
😄
Also getting major Anders: Justice vs Vengeance vibes from Gale in the few clips I've seen.
if only all men in the world could be like astarion, id never walk again XD
Also you write fanfiction?! WHERE IS IT TELL MEEEE
hahah - take a look at my patreon - they're public links you can see easily if you click the fanfic tag at the top of the page. www.patreon.com/mmogurl
@@Mmogurl OHMYGOD! Just read the fanfiction. I LOVE IT Mmogurl!! You nailed his personality. Thank you so much for writing it! :D
better direction to approach the topic from
So i just found this scene where i didnt recruit Shadowheart I talked to her at the grove and failed to convice her to join me, without spoiling too much the dialogue makes me think that your theory about the tadpole might be right. It also makes me wonder if it happens to the other companions as well?
I'll have to check that out - I haven't experimented much with picking up Shadowheart.. I have experimented a lot with Lae'zel though and have outright killed her before. It did change a lot of things too so I should have known it would be he same thing for other companions!
@@Mmogurl that would be awesome if you find them. The scene is a bit bugged like I can't add shadowheart into the party right now haha.
This... this is why my delicate heart can't do and evil playthrough. ;_;
no pixel is innocent
I bet Shadowheart likes Astarion and is jealous.
Are u going to upload all your playthrough?
I think you are diggin the dark side more than you let on... join us😜
HAHA - I am pretty neutral anymore.. You test games enough and you just lose track of the whole goodie goodie thing. It becomes more.. "Ooo I wonder what happens when I do this?"
@@Mmogurl I'm actually playing with mods now lol. Got a group almost to lvl 20, snuck into the crypt and killed the entire group with a 9D6 fireball. They didn't even get a turn.
@
Mmogurl Hello again ive asked you before if you will be rejoining bdo as you explain that you might look into it. i would like to let you know they are about to Delete all accounts that do not reregister before march 31 (my date may not be exact) do to dropping Kakao from publishing So i wanted to make sure you knew so that you wouldnt get deleted after all that hard work sorry to post it here but it was your latest post
It's no problem - I should probably look into it then since I'd hate to lose my account.. even if I don't play a lot.. i have a ton of horses and such. I play through steam though - is it still an issue since I don't really have a PA specific account?
@@Mmogurl yes
you still need too i mean i am on steam as well
@@Mmogurl when you get to the page follow the option for steam not the standalone version
You wrote a fanfic? 👀
Link? Where? Your author username?
Just...curious...for a friend...👀
haha on my patreon - public link.. there's a tag for fanfic. link is in the info section of all my vids or most of them at least.
@@Mmogurl oh thank you! I'll definitely check it out! 😊
a woman with a good taste in guys, as a gay dude i approve of astarion. why is he so fucking hot?
What!? A fanfic? Detailss.... pls.
So cruel of them to give Astarion so much better dialogue for this party scene smh. Even playing an evil-ish drow there's not much reason for my character to side with the goblins; especially with minthara being a heretic.
wonder if a playthrough is possible were you literally just social fu your way through the game, a pacifist playthrough. Potentially not having to fight anyone ever save for creatures you cannot speak to at all like phase spiders or in the worst case convincing others to do your fighting for you. Guidance gives +4, thaumaturgy gives you a bonus to intimidation and performance and friends gives you advantage on all charisma rolls and your passive charisma proficiency you can have up to +10 for most social rolls with those 3 active, just have to remember to always have them up before dialogue begins and yes guidance, thaumaturgy and friends all stack together.
It's so funny because I find this character to be such a cliche not necessarily a bad thing just boring and predictable. The vampire bad boy rogue with a dark past who was at first insensitive but then probably become sensitive like what is this character? He's pulled from a 90s teen girls wet dream 😭.