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so, funny story

when I was trying to get a picture of ascended Gale that I liked for my fic about, well, him ascending, I decided to speedrun the last half of act 3 in my Dani saves. I knew if I just launched from the morphic pool save I had and went to the end, Gale would reject godhood, because Dani was like “I don’t need the stars I love you as you are” AS SHE SHOULD and he was so smitten that even trying to be like “but power?” at the last minute would result in him being like “haha no are you crazy I’m a better man now” AS HE SHOULD

so I had to go with an earlier save

and in that save I decided I would just encourage him to go with godhood and skip very quickly through conversations and skip all the stuff I had to do to run to the morphic pool. we’re talking ZOOMZOOM through act 3 to the epilogue, sorry Wyll, sorry Shadowheart, there will be no Ansur or House of Grief, like bitch we didn't even talk to Raphael or crash his house we had to GO

I didn’t zoomzoom through Gale’s confrontation of Mystra because tbh god-path Gale’s spat with her in the Tabernacle scene is worth a watch, it’s very cathartic (and I think she explains things better when he’s mad at her but I digress)

but essentially the plan was to do the boat scene with Gale, go yell at Mystra, kill Orin, bop over to the brain, give it a good smack, boom epilogue

Problem: I hadn’t encountered Sarevok yet, so I couldn’t make it to Orin

now, Sarevok isn’t a super tough fight but he’s a pain and I was in a rush. so the quickest way to get the amulet of Bhaal was to…well, become an unholy assassin and kill Valeria

(Which I hate Valeria so like on the one hand, cathartic, on the other, Dani would never and Gale was AGHAST)

(Side note #2: he did immediately follow up the mention of him not approving by saying that Dani’s eyes were capable of tenderness while she was still covered in blood from the unholy assassin baptism so…………yeah)

anyways now that we’re unholy assassins (sorry Gale) we bop over to Orin. I’ve got this all planned: we’ll just blow her up.

well, no, we won’t because when Orin jumped over to where Karlach was waiting with 8 barrels of smokepowder and runepowder bomb, Orin still had 2 unstoppables, and I, like a FOOL, didn’t think to use Gale’s turn to cast magic missile to get rid of them, because I’m thinking “these barrels are going to all explode, that’s multiple hits, it’ll be fine”

reader it was not fine

I blew up the barrels and you how much damage Orin had received?

8 smokepowder barrels and a runepowder bomb took one ONE UNSTOPPABLE. BITCH WAS STILL INVINCIBLE.

and then she killed Karlach dead dead and it all went downhill from there and we all died I was out of saves so I had to reload back to the boat scene with Gale

thus began Dani’s villain era

we go yell at Mystra, we go stabbity stab Valeria (Astarion ends up in the baptism because, idk, reasons, but good for him), we bop over to Orin, we fight Orin the old fashioned way (aka with magic missiles and cloud kill and stuff), and then Dani steals her armor and turns it black and puts it on and I’m like “wait a minute she’s looking, like, really hawt”

so I put Gale in Gortash’s fit and then we went and dominated the world

temporarily of course because I did need my epilogue but like look at her

of course I was going to let her dominate the brain for a bit

so we did

and anyway I guess the lesson is let your ocs become villains together for a minute??

anyways thanks for reading please enjoy my two OOC villain babies kissing like ten feet from Orin’s dead body I guess

what if we kissed inside the lord murder’s temple

#bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #gale #gale dekarios #dani #meridan zavrai #my tav #and her wacky adventures

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“you should be at the club” i should be by the sea. i should be in the mountains. i should be awestruck and rendered speechless by the majesty of the natural world. if you even care

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AITA for refusing to let my own best friend kill me?

Such writings appear to amuse you, so I shall write one of my own. I'm intrigued how you will deign to judge me...

I have a complicated history that you need not know save this: one of my closest friends (a bronze dragon) was at one point in my life as dear to me as my own soul. We were more than friends for a time. What we were to one another was indescribable.

But my friend did not approve of the path I was taking. My adventures without him had caused me to transform. To become better. Become more. You may be able to guess what I have become.

But he never saw my new form the way I saw it. He saw my transformation as something to mourn. Something to heal or fix. And eventually...something to eradicate.

He came to me as I slept and tried to kill me. I could tell he took no pleasure it in; I saw the tears in his eyes. But it did not matter. He would have killed me. So I killed him first. An act of self-preservation.

Some would say this makes me what you term, the AH. I am curious. Do all of you feel that way?

What are these acronyms?

Click here to submit a post or read our FAQ page!

#bg3 #bg3 aita #unreality #fandom aita #the emperor #I’ve apparently angered the emperor fandom recently so #vent your feelings in a poll I guess???

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Commission tarot card of Aster - an air genasi necromancer with a cottage core aesthetic. I really like how this picture turned out! Aesthetics of wildflowers and skulls. I also spent a lot of time depicting the cornflowers. They are so cute :3

If you are interested in a commission please send me an email to [email protected]

#she is beautiful!!! #dnd #dungeons and dragons #tarot #tarot card commission #I love your art as always op

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Normally I wouldn't bother making a post like this but it came to my attention yesterday via a twitter thread that tumblr user fridaypls is using AI elements in their fanart. Now, if they were doing this because they didn't feel entirely confident in their artistic ability, and they were just doing this for fanart they posted online, then I'd shrug my shoulders and go "eh, whatever"

However, I then found out that fridaypls is selling this fanart and even making posts like "buy my Gale print and get Tim Downie to sign it" and I just can't sit idly by whilst someone makes profit off AI 'art' and there are so many other artists (myself included) trying to make a living off our own art.

The tweet thread about the use of AI by fridaypls can be viewed here and here but I'll also copy and paste some of the examples under a cut line in this post.

So far on twitter, fridaypls got wind of the thread going around about them and they deactivated their account rather than take accountability. I'm probably going to be blocked by them for making this post, but I encourage you to reblog this and spread the word and please, PLEASE don't buy artwork from someone using AI generated images. There are so many other hardworking artists out there making amazing fanart and merch that you can give your money to instead.

Examples from twitter:

#for the most part I’m staying out of this #but I really appreciated stuffforthestash’s explanation for why this is icky #ai art is theft #but also monetizing ai art when you can’t even claim it as your own original work #is just gross all around #if you use ai you should disclose that #period #and let people decide whether they want to deal with you or not

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#wait is this not normal #this is me all the time #adhd

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WAIT IVE BEEN SO CONFUSED IS CONNECTICUT TAV NAMED CONNECTICUT OR IS HE FROM CONNECTICUT THE US STATE????

That's his last name! (I mean until he gets married, after that the Connecticut name is dead). For all I know Connecticut is a fantasy land to me. You can't convince me there's a place in this world that's called that.

#THATS HIS LAST NAME???? #lmaooooo I thought that was a his first name and that Tav was his last name #respectfully I reject this narrative #he is connecticut tav hallowleaf after marriage #and if this has to be a headcanon I was carry this burden with pride #bg3 #connecticut tav #baldur's gate 3 #shadowheart

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“You may only call me Mrs. Dekarios when you are completely, and perfectly, and incandescently happy”

—

Reference from Pride & Prejudice (2005)

#yes good very good yes perfect wow #bg3 #baldur’s gate 3 #gale #gale dekarios #I love this

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newbie fic authors, shooting themselves in the foot: This fic is bad haha I suck at writing lol I am being mean to myself in the hopes that you will be nice to me but actually am dissuading anyone from even clicking on my fic because all I have done to advertise it is tell you why you shouldn't read it

me: I am King Big Dick of Fanfic Mountain and I have arrived in your fandom with the Express Intention of writing my Very Favorite Fics, which I will generously allow you to read. You're welcome.

#I can be both depending on the day #but I’m learning to hide my insecurities in the tags if I post them at all #we’re LEARNING!

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I can’t plead the fifth I literally already blabbed about my interest in Gale’s hands/forearms 💀

Do all the other Gale fans have a hand/forearm thing? Any gifset where I see either makes me go completely feral.

#and still laughing at the fact that several Gale fans loved that fic #literally called forearms #get outta here lmao #but also I see you forearm/hand lovers #gale dekarios #gale #bg3

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Evocation: Healing Word

#is this a series because I need gifs of all the magic hand movements #for reasons #but also because pretty #bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #gale dekarios #gale of waterdeep #gale

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Yes yes yes all of this!!

I want to add a couple of details here, however! If I may.

Lest we believe that a book capable of such insane destruction as the Netherese Orb is capable of is just lying in Blackstaff Academy where any nosy wizard can have a poke around (looking at you Gale), don’t forget that there are other locations where Gale might have gone snooping. I’ll offer my personal favorite headcanon:

✨The Archives in Candlekeep✨

This library-fortress is home to thousands of books, scrolls, and lore, and they are very, VERY difficult to access. To even get into Candlekeep, you have to have a seal from a renowned wizard and an offering of knowledge (usually a very rare tome) to add to the collection. If Gale didn’t have his own seal, he could have very easily obtained Elminster’s or the current Blackstaff’s (the archmage) seals. And if he was already renowned as a wizard of archmage talents, he could have potentially skipped the gift of knowledge bit, too. That man could have waltzed right into the Halls of Wisdom.

BUT! one does not simply check out a book in Candlekeep. Those books STAY there. Most people aren’t even allowed back into the Inner Ward, where the books actually are, without a signed letter from important people inside Candlekeep. Gale could have likely obtained this too, of course, but that doesn’t mean he can walk out with any book tucked under his arm.

The Great Library of Candlekeep is guarded by all sorts of magical wards, failsafes, gates, and more. You can’t teleport in or out, for example, and there are spells and things to prevent theft as well. The Avowed protect the place—think of them like librarians if librarians were also monks and wizards with enough magical knowledge and zeal to kick your ass six ways to Tuesday for breathing on a manuscript wrong. The ultimate goal of Candlekeep is the preservation of all knowledge, and they would much rather you die than you steal a book. You can’t even copy down notes from the books yourself, you have to pay the Avowed to copy things for you, and at a steep price and a long wait.

So was the Netherese tome inside Candlekeep? It’s impossible to say, but if it was, Gale single-handedly launched a heist to rival Gortash and Durge’s theft of the Crown of Karsus. Alone.

And he absolutely would do that! OP suggests that Gale may not have had a lot of hubris for simply doing his job, but here’s the thing: if Gale was trying to obtain a piece of the Weave that was sealed even from Mystra’s reach, AND he was sneaking into places like Blackstaff, Candlekeep, or other highly guarded institutions that keep dangerous lore in secure places, he has a great deal of hubris indeed. Why seek out a book that is safely secure inside a vault, harming no one, unless you simply want to know the knowledge inside and impress your goddess by completing a feat that even she is allegedly incapable of completing? Gale’s favorite thing is knowledge and he wants to impress everyone, even (and perhaps especially, at the time) the goddess of magic herself.

If that man took on the entirety of Candlekeep to abscond with the Netherese Tome then holy cheeseballs, Batman!—even Gortash would have to acknowledge who the better heister is.

There’s also the very real possibility that no one was keeping tabs on this book and it was lost to the ages. This would mean that Gale really did go on an Indiana Jones style hunt into some ancient temple or the ruins of a fallen Netherese city to dig this book up. Treasures have turned up in the weirdest places. If this is the case, I still like to think Gale visited Candlekeep and spent days, maybe even months in the Chamber of Lost Lore, where he could commune with long-dead scholars and sages and suss out the location of this missing tome lost to time.

Of course, Mystra should have warned him before he got too far. I imagine if opening the Annals of Karsus was enough to set off “fireworks” to alert Mystra, then Gale investigating the location of the Netherese tome (whether in Candlekeep or some abandoned temple/ruins) would have been the equivalent of him setting off—well, a nuclear bomb. There would be no hiding it from her. And yet, she chose to watch and see what happened, and then get mad when Gale not only failed to do anything productive with the Karsite Weave, but also threatened her own Weave with its very presence. As if Gale getting magically fried by the orb was an intentional plot to screw up her Weave.

Plot twist, it wasn’t. Gale was trying to give her a gift, and he flew too close to the sun in his zealous love for her (and his own prideful thirst for more and more knowledge) and she didn’t intervene to say “Hey, that’s sweet, but that’s actually going to fuck up quite a bit, dear. I’ll take flowers and chocolates instead.”

Nope. She wanted to see what would happen. And if she has any sense of foresight (and she usually does), then she probably foresaw a future or two where Gale having the orb would be convenient for her. So she just let it happen, and then strung him along with silence until she found a use for him.

I have been thinking on this question for a long time: How did Gale the orb? Considering that DUrge and Gortash had to go to Hell to steal the Crown from Mephistopheles (one of the major nine archdevils), I feel like Gale probably went on some horribly dangerous quest to get this thing. I imagine his family and friends probably didn't see him in the months preceeding him geting the orb, and suddenly hear he's back in the city and no longer taking visitors. But I'm interested in how others envision him coming into possession of it.

Hello hello Anon ☺️

This is such a great question, thank you!

It’s interesting that you mention Gale going on some horribly dangerous quest, because I think it’s safe to say that Gale must have embarked on many such quests during his time as Chosen.

WARNING: I nerded out way too hard about this, so it’s going to be a loooong one. Bear with me 🙏🏼

Let’s start with the basics.

What do the Chosen of Mystra do?

In a nutshell, their main concern is to fight evil and imbalances in the Weave, but also to promote and advance the use of magic in a safe and controlled manner, so as not to put the world (and magic itself) at risk.

So, a bit like itinerant teachers/researchers/preachers, they will go out into the world to spread magic and further the existing knowledge of it.

On some occasions, they will offer counsel to rulers and others in a position of power (think of what mages do in The Witcher).

But, on many occasions, they will also need to stop anyone misusing the Weave (by whatever means necessary), and ensure that only those who are deemed as ‘deserving’ are allowed to wield magic. Sounds dangerous, right?!

And then, there is the issue of Silver Fire, which all Chosen of Mystra are canonically imbued with (so we can assume that Gale, too, must have been able to wield this at some point). This is an extremely powerful magical flame which is, essentially, made of pure Weave and capable of obliterating any objects, undead creatures, and most living beings on impact. Probably something that at least one or two ill-intentioned (and deluded) magic users would kill to get their hands on, right?!

So, yes — I think it’s safe to say that Gale has most definitely experienced his fair share of danger before both the orb and the tadpole found a new, cosy home inside his body.

Now, on to the next point.

How did Gale come across the orb?

Okay, so this is what Gale says when he tells us the story of his downfall (Gale’s Folly, as he calls it):

[…] in the course of my studies I learned of a book. A Netherese tome in which a piece of the fractured Weave had been sealed beyond [Mystra’s] reach.

But what does this mean?

It means that, although the orb lodging itself inside his body and feeding upon his magic was an event that Gale could not have foreseen, him coming across the orb was no accident at all. He knew of the book, he knew that it contained some extremely powerful magic, and yet he sought it out anyway. Why?

Love? Ambition? The desire to please his goddess? Sure. But also, he honestly believed that the book contained a piece of Mystra’s lost Weave, and what danger could there ever be in that? Besides, if he ever even thought that opening the book might be dangerous, he also thought that his abilities as an Archwizard and a Chosen would save him.

Is it hubris to believe in yourself and your abilities? Is it hubris to believe that you are capable of doing exactly what your goddess has tasked you with: protecting and nurturing her magic?

Of course, Mystra never asked him to retrieve the book — he went out on a limb and did it of his own volition. But it shouldn’t have been any harder than retrieving a magical artefact at her request, or dealing with dangerous magic on her behalf. He had done it so many times before, and he had never failed. It should have been easy. Only, this time, it wasn’t.

Should the Netherese provenance of the book have warned him of its dangerous contents and dissuaded him from opening it? Sure. But, really, how much more dangerous could it have been than facing Shar’s Shadow Weave? That is one of the Chosen’s main responsibilities, after all, and we can assume that Gale must have had some dealings with that, too.

Besides, the Chosen are tasked with researching magic to improve upon the existing knowledge of the Weave. So, Gale was, once again, doing his job when he decided to go look for the book and retrieve the magic inside it. Sure, wizards are innately curious — but it wasn’t curiosity that killed the proverbial cat here (or unleashed the orb, in this case), it was lack of information.

If Mystra had been more forthcoming about the existence of the Karsite Weave and its dangers — if she had not tried to gatekeep the information from her Chosen — Gale would not have sought out the book, and he most definitely wouldn’t have opened it, in the misguided belief that he was properly equipped to deal with its contents.

Finally, let’s move on to the crux of the matter.

How did Gale acquire the book?

Well, where could such a book have been hiding? Surely, it can’t just have been lying around on a dusty shelf in some gods-forsaken bookstore.

If The Annals of Karsus, a tome containing no real magic (except for a Scroll of Dethrone), is kept locked away in the vaults of Sorcerous Sundries (because the knowledge contained within it is dangerous), it makes sense for a book that actually contains dark, powerful magic to be also stashed away in a secure location, where people cannot chance upon it and accidentally unleash its catastrophic contents.

As an aside, I would also like to imagine that such a tome must require a very complex spell to be unlocked (it’s not Tom Riddle’s diary, just there to be opened by anyone with hands), one that only an extremely adept practitioner of the Art could master. Definitely not something that your average Lorroakan could open, but certainly no big deal for a Chosen.

So where exactly did Gale find the book?

Well, let’s look at where some of the most powerful artefacts in Forgotten Realms lore are stored and, hopefully, we’ll get some ideas.

The Nether Scrolls, a collection of scrolls created before Netheril with the purpose of gathering all known magical knowledge into one location: although information about their current location is scarce, what we do know is that some of them were once stolen by the elves and stored at Windsong Tower, a school of magic in the ancient elven city of Myth Drannor, long before the events of BG3.

The Scepter of the Sorcerer-Kings, designed by the Netherese to strip gods of their power: its current whereabouts are also unknown, but it’s mainly been owned by powerful spellcasters (who I don’t think would have simply left it lying around for anyone to grab).

The Scepter of Savras, an artefact created by Azuth and capable of containing the essence of a god. It is known to have been in the possession of Syluné Silverhand (daughter and Chosen of Mystra) for many years, and then eventually handed back over to Azuth before the Spellplague, when it vanished again or was possibly destroyed.

The Crown of Karsus: this was held in Mephistopheles’s vault prior it being stolen to control the Netherbrain.

The Blackstaff: stored inside Blackstaff Tower, seat of Blackstaff Academy. We don’t happen to know of a wayward young apprentice who managed to steal such a powerful item just to prove his worth, do we?

Based on the examples above, I think we can safely assume that the book would most likely have been in the possession of a powerful individual/institution with strong links to the arcane.

Because of its worth, and the inherent threat it posed, I would be tempted to lean towards it being stored in the vaults of a respected magical institution, where it could be easily protected by a group of people rather than one single person who might be tempted to open it.

See where I’m going with this?

No, I’m not saying that Gale stole something from under the Blackstaff’s nose again (although it would admittedly be incredibly funny).

All I’m saying is that many respectable institutions would have gladly opened their doors to The Great Gale of Waterdeep, Chosen of Mystra™️, and that it probably wouldn’t have sounded all that weird for him to want to view such an artefact.

People probably even let him handle the book unsupervised, because surely a Chosen would know of its danger? And, surely, he would never do anything to threaten the safety of the Weave (and Mystra along with it)?

So, yes, for all the perils that Gale must have faced in his career as Chosen, I think that getting access to the book was actually extremely easy for him. Getting it out of such an institution, however, must have been an altogether different matter, one that required considerable skill.

So how did he do it?

Charm, a penchant for mischief, and plenty of talent.

Sure, Gale may often complain about having to be stealthy; however, is he or is he not the same guy who stole the Blackstaff as a child? I’m sure he can be plenty sneaky when he wants to!

Besides, let’s not forget his magical prowess! Who knows, maybe he just cast Wish and the book simply materialised into his hands without him even needing to leave his study!

Okay, surely protection wards would have been in place to avoid just such a scenario, but it’s a fun thought nonetheless.

In all honesty, I think that he did it by simply making use of his best skill, the one we know he’s great at: elaborate illusions.

Think of that scene from Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, when the image of an empty corridor is projected onto a screen so that Ethan Hunt can freely sneak into the Kremlin’s archive and steal precious information while the guards remain blissfully unaware.

Exchange technology for magic, throw in some extra charm and a masterful bit of sneaking, and voilà, you have one very smug wizard, a mysterious book ready to be opened, and the promise of greatness just lying there, within reach…

What could possibly go wrong?

#god now I need to write a Gale Candlekeep heist don’t I #bg3 #baldur’s gate 3 #gale #gale dekarios #bg3 meta #bg3 headcanon #bg3 lore #all excellent points op and it has me very exited!!

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my demi/ace ass sipping tea and watching the gale fandom go absolutely feral over the latest spicy fanart of our favorite wizard man: glad you’re having fun babes 😌 remember to drink water when you’re done screaming 😌 Gale wouldn’t want you to lose your voice 😌 thirst responsibly babes 😌

#I may just reblog this every time I see the Gale fandom going collectively feral #love you all #bg3 #baldur’s gate 3 #gale #gale dekarios

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upon reflection I realize I didn’t phrase my silly request inclusively enough to encourage fancy outfit descriptions for non-wedding couples :’) sorry non-marital shippers and polycules that’s my bad

hey psst hey reblog this and describe in the tags what your tav/durge is wearing on their wedding day to their romanced partner (or what they’re wearing on a special occasion like an anniversary or other relationship milestone celebrated with their romanced partner)

#still interested in outfit descriptions tho #bg3 #baldur’s gate 3 #bg3 headcanons

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hey psst hey reblog this and describe in the tags what your tav/durge is wearing on their wedding day to their romanced partner (or what they’re wearing on a special occasion like an anniversary or other relationship milestone celebrated with their romanced partner)

#I’ll go first #dani is in an airy white peasant dress her mother sewed and embroidered for her #beautiful embroidered flowers and swirls along the hems and such #and she’s got four scarves tied around her waist from the merry rovers #the scarves are dark blue and gold and pinkish red and light blue #I could do the others but that’s a lot of tags #bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 companions #bg3 headcanons #ngl I’m bored today and curious what other people envision for their ocs

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wyll in elegant robes...

(lines-only version undercut)

#i love him your honor #wyll ravengard #bg3 #baldur’s gate 3

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Do Connie and Shadowheart ever plan to have kids? If so what would name ideas be?

There are two wolves inside me: one yells "you don't need kids to be happy" but there's also a second one that's like "connecticut dad ehehe cute :3".

So let's just say here's a scenerio where they have a daughter (no name yet, haven't found a good meme to name her after).

#both views are valid #child free and not child free #but oh my god dad connie #I hope baby conniheart loves his stories #about her highness saer shadowheart and her loyal squire connecticut tav #bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #shadowheart #connecticut tav