History Characters / BaldursGateIIIOriginCharacters

[[folder:Custom Origin]]

** In Shar's Gauntlet, they can find a spider carcass which they can quite bafflingly decide to ''eat'', causing each companion to voice their utter bewilderment at the decision.

* ContrastingSequelMainCharacter: Unlike Charname, Tav has no backstory to speak of and is virtually a blank slate while having no connections to any deities beyond being a potential worshipper of gods like Tyr or Bahamut.

* ContrastingSequelMainCharacter: While (a good-aligned) Charname was able to by and large resist Bhaal's influence, never suffering much more than vivid nightmares, the Dark Urge is ''far'' more at their father's mercy: Not only must they actively resist the Urge if they wish to remain good, doing so becomes increasingly difficult as the game goes on and their body practically ''shrieks'' at them to ''murder something already''. What's more, the Dark Urge was a prolific serial killer who terrorized Baldur's Gate fifteen years before the events of the game, while Charname started out as just a squire in Candlekeep. Furthermore, Charname was meant to be just another of many sacrifices to fuel Bhaal's resurrection whereas Orin claims Bhaal actually ''loved'' the Dark Urge. To really top off the contrast, Charname is a 'normal' Bhaalspawn born from Bhaal and a mortal mother. The Dark Urge was created by Bhaal alone using the latter's divine blood, making them the game series' equivalent to an ArtificialHuman (or whatever race the player makes them).

A mysterious, amnesiac individual who suffers from a violent 'Urge', which they can either indulge or resist. The Dark Urge is [[UniformityException unique among the Origin Characters]] in many ways: Though they are canonically a male white dragonborn sorcerer, their race, appearance, gender, and class are all fully customizable; the only exception is their background, "Haunted One." They're also an avatar-only origin, and not available as a companion if not played as your main character. \\\

[[StoryBranchFavoritism For good reason.]] \\\

Unlike other Origins, the Dark Urge has several more scenes and lines of dialogue exclusive to them, [[DarkerAndEdgier shining a new light on their bloody past in nearly every sequence of the game]]. Their personal story is deeply linked to the primary crusade against the Absolute, similar to the original ''Baldur's Gate'' duology. Even when they aren't selected as the main character, their presence can still be felt throughout the story. \\\

* AmbiguouslyEvil: Prior to their amnesia, the Dark Urge committed a series of brutal murders in Baldur's Gate. It's not entirely clear whether these murders were intentional or the Dark Urge just failed to curb or suppress the Urge, though they did have enough control of themselves to deliver a taunting letter to Tav daring the detective to catch them before they added ''Tav'' to the pile. The memory described after consuming a Noblestalk gives us a glimpse of the Dark Urge pre-amnesia, but it's ultimately up to the player to decide whether they were just as helpless against the Urge then as they are now. Gortash also claims that when the Dark Urge was Bhaal's Chosen and representative in the Cult they showed restraint, though this just raises the question of whether the Dark Urge's "restraint" was because they were resisting the Urge or just PragmaticVillainy. A note called "Prayer for Forgiveness" found in the Necrotic Laboratory next to the severed head is asking Bhaal to forgive them for showing respect to Bhaal's Chosen Gortash before rambling how they're going to slaughter everybody, with a separate note from Balthazar stating they were right about "Orin's sibling".

* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: On top of the above quote, the [[UsefulNotes/Playstation5 PS5]] version of the game will state during character creation that Tav always felt that they had a greater calling but it never bore fruit. Being kidnapped and infected with an illithid parasite was likely not what they had in mind.

** When you first meet Ketheric Thorm while General Z'rell delivers judgment upon the goblins or Minthara for failing to retrieve the githyanki artifact, the Dark Urge feels as if they've been to Ketheric's throne room before, with the narrator later mentioning how the last time the Dark Urge was greeted there they were treated like a god. Ketheric himself is surprised, then baffled, then amused upon seeing them and says they'll enjoy the goblins[=/=]Minthara's punishment "even in [their] diminished state". The narrator notes how Ketheric knows who the Dark Urge is, but he will not say a word. It's the first hint that the Dark Urge's MysteriousPast is tied to the Cult of the Absolute and that they had a personal connection to its leadership.

* FantasticRacism: Depending on your race, you're either on the giving or receiving end. A githyanki character, like other members of their kind, can express nothing short of disgust toward other races for being "lesser". In reverse, both a githyanki and a Lolth-sworn drow PC get this from everybody else, albeit to varying degrees. Githyanki have a reputation for being xenophobic whereas drow who live in the Underdark and/or are sworn to Lolth the spider goddess are near-universally despised and feared. If you play as either race, don't expect to get a warm welcome.

* YouAreACreditToYourRace: Typically playing as races who are feared and/or despised by others such as a githyanki or Lolth-sworn drow as morally good elicits this reaction from several characters. Zevlor and a few of the inhabitants at the Emerald Grove even express surprise that a Lolth-sworn drow would even ''want'' to help them and consider you an exception to your species' dark reputation or a TokenGoodTeammate.

* DarkIsNotEvil: If you play as a morally-good Lolth-sworn drow, who are almost universally feared and despised for being ChaoticEvil. Wyll even surmises somewhat jokingly that Lolth-sworn drow Tav is, at worst, a JerkWithAHeartOfGold.

* TokenHeroicOrc: It's possible to play Tav as such if played as a race that doesn't have a good reputation with others, particularly the githyanki who either HatesEveryoneEqually at best or is xenophobia incarnate at worst or a Lolth-sworn drow, who are otherwise almost always evil and understandably feared if not despised by other races. The game will even account for this, with some people being surprised that a gith[=/=]Lolth-sworn drow would ''want'' to help them.

'''Origin-only Characters''' | '''[[Characters/BaldursGateIIIOriginCompanions Origin Companions]]\\

'''The Origin Characters'''\\

!!Origin Companions

[[folder:In General]]
* AFriendInNeed: Despite being a textbook DysfunctionJunction, the party is often willing to offer sympathy or assistance whenever one of the others needs it. For example, they all agree to help Astarion kill his former master in Act 2 without prompting.
* BadassCrew: They may not look it at first, especially given their TeethClenchedTeamwork, but they can tear through ''anything'' that gets in their way. It starts with a Goblin horde (or a group of tieflings if going the evil route), then quickly escalates to an entire cult, the githyanki, shadow creatures, mind flayers, numerous monsters, [[spoiler:the Chosen of three gods, two ''avatars'' of said gods, and finally an Elder Brain [[SuperpoweredEvilSide empowered by the Crown of Karsus]]. Depending on their choices, they can also take down a dracolich, a vampire lord, an entire ''factory'' of steel automatons, an entire Sharran congregation, and a powerful cambion ''in his own home''.]]
* BecameTheirOwnAntithesis: [[spoiler:If you pick any of them as your Avatar, their choices and moral code are shaped entirely by you, which can cause you to make them act in ways that would be otherwise wildly out of character. The most straightforward case of this is turning [[TokenGoodTeammate Wyll or Karlach]] into power-hungry {{VillainProtagonist}}s or playing the [[TokenEvilTeammate more amoral Astarion and Lae'zel]] as straight laced, kindhearted heroes, but even other actions, such as making Shadowheart give away the Nightsong to Balthazar, count.]]
* BittersweetEnding: Or DownerEnding depending on how you resolve the companion's personal quests.
** '''Astarion:''' [[spoiler:If Astarion hijacks Cazaron's ritual and becomes "the Vampire Ascendant", he'll quickly let his newfound power go to his head and become no different than his former master. It's worse if he's romanced, as any romantic feelings he may have had for the PlayerCharacter quickly turn into possessive ownership in the most literal sense. (It's not as extreme if he IS the PlayerCharacter, in which case he can abandon his plans to take over Baldur's Gate or even join Karlach in Avernus to protect her -- something Spawn Astarion ''can't'' do.) If he doesn't take over the ritual and remains a vampire spawn, then he loses his [[DaywalkingVampire daywalker]] status after the tadpole is destroyed, robbing him of his greatest joy and hampering his ability to be with his friends and/or loved one. He even tearfully notes "it was nice while it lasted" before diving for cover.]]
** '''Wyll:''' [[spoiler:Wyll can break his contract with Mizora, but in doing so he most likely loses his father and is potentially turned inhuman for his breaches of their contract. If the contract isn't broken, Wyll becomes Mizora's servant in full and "assists" her in fighting the [[ForeverWar Blood War]]. It's also possible for Wyll's story to end horribly if you kill Mizora during Act 2, in which case Wyll will be dragged off to Avernus with her and suffer a FateWorseThanDeath.]]
** '''Karlach:''' [[spoiler:No matter what you do, Karlach doesn't get a happy ending, or at least not a [[GoldenEnding golden one]]. Her infernal engine finally gives out at the end of the game, at which point she can either decide to return to Avernus to keep herself alive and be hunted by Mizora and Zariel for the rest of her life or [[IDieFree go out peacefully]] while in Faerûn. The PlayerCharacter and/or Wyll can go with her to Avernus, the latter doing so explicitly to protect her from Zariel. Alternatively, you can turn her into a mind flayer with her identity and will intact, but she will also have to deal with the [[BrainFood Horror Hunger]] that comes with it.]]
** '''Shadowheart:''' [[spoiler:Regardless of how you pursue Shadowheart's questline, she will ''not'' end up in a good place, particularly where the end of her personal quest is concerned. If she commits to the Sharran priesthood and becomes a Dark Justiacar, her final test sees her standing in front of her parents. Shar restores her memories of who they are and tells her that her final test is to kill them. Shadowheart either acquiesces, which breaks her so completely that she begs Shar to erase her memories again, or turns against Shar at the last minute to save her parents, causing her to suffer Shar's curse for the rest of her life and lose the support of the Sharran cult she'd just taken over. Alternatively, you can convince Shadowheart to turn away from Shar, converting to her counterpart and rival Selûne in the process and becoming an enemy of the Sharran priesthood. Like in the evil path, Shadowheart finds her parents, but both Shar and they confirm that the only way to be free of Shar is to kill them. Either she does and is freed at the cost of her parents' lives, or she saves them but remains bound to Shar's curse.]]
** '''Lae'zel:''' [[spoiler:While her questline doesn't have a DownerEnding like the others unless you ''really'' go out of your way to screw her over, Lae'zel's view of the githyanki and its leadership are irreparably shattered. No matter which githyanki royal you side with, the other side will condemn her and the ending cutscene implies that she'll be hunted for the rest of her days. Between this, seeing the corruption within the gith ranks, ending up on the receiving end of their xenophobic views for associating with the party and learning how her people are ''way'' too gung-ho about killing anyone infected with an illithid tadpole, she realizes the githyanki [[BrokenPedestal aren't what she thought]] they were.]]
** '''Gale''': [[spoiler:Gale's questline can end in either AesopAmnesia where he's learned absolutely ''nothing'' and wants to use the Crown of Karsus to [[AGodAmI become a god]] -- which will end in his death if he immediately tries to usurp Mystra's domain (though Patch 5 does add a new ending where he succeeds by choosing the domain of ambition instead) -- or he'll give it to Mystra in the hopes it can be used to cure or, at the very least alleviate, his "affliction". He can also sacrifice his life by blowing himself up to take out the Netherbrain, not only redeeming himself in Mystra's eyes but also leading everyone, even the githyanki, to declare him a hero.]]
* BreakingTheFellowship: What's likely to happen by the end of the game.
** [[spoiler:Lae'zel may leave to join Orpheus or to escape Vlaakith's assassins, though she can be persuaded to stay under certain circumstances.]]
** [[spoiler:Astarion loses his daylight immunity if he chooses to reject the ritual, meaning his capacity to spend time with the party becomes very limited.]]
** [[spoiler:Shadowheart may leave to settle down if she saves her parents or go elsewhere to deal with her grief.]]
** [[spoiler:Karlach either dies or goes to Avernus with Wyll and/or the player, though her plans are more ambiguous if she becomes a mind flayer]]
** [[spoiler:Gale makes plans to recover the crown and is killed if he tries to use it to usurp Mystra. If he chooses to return it to her, however, he implies that he'll stick around since he's grown fond of the party.]]
** [[spoiler:Wyll can go to Avernus with Karlach. If he doesn't do that, then he either retires from adventuring to become the new Grand Duke or he becomes the Blade of Avernus and hunts down infernals, with Mizora potentially being at the ''top'' of his shit list.]]
* CharacterizationMarchesOn: In terms of backstory and player interaction:
** Wyll and Gale are the most obvious examples. In Early Access, Gale was something of a GreenEyedMonster-cum-CrazyJealousGuy who takes a ''long'' while to explain that he's got an unstable magic nuke in his chest and would heavily crank up the emotional manipulation if the avatar tried to break off their romance, whereas Wyll had a personal vendetta against the goblins for razing a civilian village and torturing him and could be a bit of a braggart. In the full game, Gale is much less manipulative and more upfront about his ArtifactOfDoom while Wyll is less boastful of his achievements, has no vendetta against the goblins, and is more conflicted about his contract with Mizora -- He doesn't really regret giving up his soul to protect others, but he's not blind to how dangerous the cambion is.
** In earliest Early Access (around 2019-2020), Astarion was a corrupt and decadent nobleman who used his position as a magistrate to funnel criminals to Cazador's coven as food until they turned ''him'' for knowing too much. This concept was almost entirely rewritten in the full release to place more emphasis on the trauma of spending 200 years as Cazador's puppet. His background trait was changed first from "Noble" to "Courtesan" on the official character sheet, and then in-game to "Charlatan", while the "decadent gentleman" persona became his cover. The only remnant of the original character concept is that Astarion still claims to have been a magistrate back in Baldur's Gate when he first meets the player after the Nautiloid crashes; Cazador himself never brings it up when taunting Astarion, instead calling him "a small, pathetic little boy who never amounted to anything" and saying Astarion should be grateful to him for making him a vampire spawn. It honestly wouldn't have made much sense for Cazador to turn him if he'd been a wealthy, well-connected city official, since he would've lost both a man on the inside and a relatively stable source of food. The description text of Astarion's clothes he starts the game with was likewise changed: In late Early Access the description stated that Astarion was no stranger to working with needle and thread, and had even embroidered poetry into his shirt and a joke into his underwear. After Launch, a patch changed the description of his padded doublet, shirt and boots to note that they were clearly old, faded and falling apart, but that Astarion had carefully mended then many times in an attempt to still look presentable.
* DysfunctionJunction: To call this team[[note]]Comprised of an amoral vampire, a bloodthirsty githyanki, a priest of an [[IllegalReligion illegal]] GodOfDarkness, a Hell-bound slave tiefling with an artificial demonic heart, a wizard with an unstable magical WMD inside him, and a warlock who struggles to reconcile his heroic deeds with the very unheroic patron that helped him do them[[/note]] "dysfunctional" would be a colossal understatement. And if you play as the Dark Urge, you're the most dysfunctional of all of them what with your innate urge for violence [[spoiler:caused by the fact that you're a Bhaalspawn, and thus the servant of another evil god.]]
* EveryoneHasStandards: Or EvenEvilHasStandards, in Lae'zel and Astarion's cases. There are certain choices or events in the story that are so shocking or heinous that they manage to unite the normally [[TeethClenchedTeamwork squabbling]] group:
** [[spoiler:''No one'' is happy about Mystra telling Gale to use the orb in his body to suicide bomb the Absolute, partly because of the catastrophic collateral damage the explosion would cause but mostly because of how utterly callous it is and how little faith Mystra shows in not just her former human lover, but also the party as a whole's abilities to handle the ongoing crisis.]]
** Likewise, [[spoiler: nobody approves of Shadowheart murdering the Nightsong. Wyll, Karlach, and even Lae'zel openly regard it as her JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope, Gale somberly muses that he hopes [[WasItReallyWorthIt it was worth it]], and Astarion [[FlatJoy mockingly cheers]] that the party is now walking around with [[TheAntichrist the Chosen of]] [[GodOfEvil Shar]].]]
** [[spoiler:Killing Isobel and obtaining the Slayer form as the Dark Urge is also not well received by anyone, with reactions ranging from a full-throated condemnation of what you've become, to pragmatically noting that Isobel was a completely kind and trusting ally who you've just tossed aside. The only exceptions to this are if Shadowheart killed the Nightsong, in which case she's apathetic to Isobel's death but still unnerved by your Slayer form, or if Minthara's in your party, in which case she admires your Slayer form but still disapproves of Isobel's murder.]]
* EveryoneCanSeeIt: If you make plans with someone at the Teifling/Goblin party in Act 1, the entire camp seems to know instantly (aside from Wyll, who is standing away from the party). Shadowheart directly states that you seem "cozy" with your chosen LoveInterest.
* EveryoneIsBi: All of the origin companions are open to romancing anyone regardless of gender.
* FictionalDisability: The tadpoles aside, several companions deal with some form of this. Gale and Karlach contend with painful and potentially fatal bodily conditions; Wyll has one of his eyes [[spoiler:replaced with a sending stone]], Shadowheart has a magical wound that sporadically causes intense pain. Astarion is an inversion as the tadpole has "cured" the drawbacks of being a vampire spawn, allowing him to freely walk in daylight. [[spoiler:However, should Astarion remain a spawn when the Absolute is defeated, said drawbacks will affect him again in full force.]]
* FirstNameBasis: The characters are only referred to via their first names, even by strangers. The only exception is Gale, who is called Master Dekarios by his former Familiar Tara, and Shadowheart [[spoiler:where her finding her real name is an important character milestone, but even then she prefers to go by Shadowheart]]. Wyll's last name is inferred from his father's. Astarion's last name is seen [[spoiler:on his tombstone at the end of his quest, if you go visit his grave with him]], while Karlach's only appears in [[AllThereInTheManual promotional materials]] or by randomly finding her parents' tombstone with her in the party and clicking on them. Lae'zel being a Githyanki has no family name.
* FireForgedFriends: Mostly with Lae'zel and Shadowheart. It takes a ''very'' long time for either of them to even slightly trust one another without a sneering jape or comment, since Shadowheart hates the githyanki and Lae'zel is, well, [[HatesEveryoneEqually a githyanki]]. Averted with Karlach and Wyll -- despite him pulling a sword on her during their first meeting, they get along with each other quite well once they've cleared up some misunderstandings.
* FriendshipMoment: They might not always rub each other the right way, but they all agree that [[spoiler:it's completely out of line for Mystra to demand that Gale make up for his mistakes by using the orb inside him to suicide bomb the Absolute, killing him and who knows how many others in the process. Even Lae'zel has a rare non-backhanded compliment for Gale's intelligence when asked about the matter.]]
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: If you play as one of the Origin Companions instead of making a Custom Origin or playing as the Dark Urge, the Origin character becomes the PlayerCharacter, and dialogue interactions change accordingly since you're the one in control. This also includes personal quests where you're more involved in shaping that questline's outcome.
* InksuitActor: The actors for each origin character also provided the motion capture and their likenesses. Later interviews also had the actors point out that some of the verbal or motor "tics" they did during mocap were intentionally animated in their characters, such as Lae'zel's annoyed head jerk or Shadowheart's haughty wobble.
* MirrorCharacter: Several sets among your companions:
** Shadowheart and Lae'zel: Both are dedicated to their Goddess/Queen to the point of near-fanaticism, and both have their faith severely tested over the course of the narrative.
** Gale and Wyll: Both sought greater power with noble intentions, but paid a higher price for it than they bargained and are forced to deal with the consequences.
** Astarion and Karlach: Both had extreme bodily changes forced upon them (or in Astarion's case, "chosen" under extreme duress) by abusive masters, to whom both have sworn never to return.
* OutOfFocus: Several of the Origin characters have extra elements of plot or gameplay if they are the player avatar, rather than merely companions. Gale, for example, gets several times the opportunity to absorb strange magics for permanent buffs, and gets several more interactions with Tara, his former familiar, where she visits him in camp and acts as a sounding board to his conflict with Mystra (while Tav/The Dark Urge fills the role normally to a non-player Gale), her suggestions and dialogues are based on her long shared history with Gale, and prior to Patch 5, playing with him as the Avatar was the only way to see the consequences of his decision regarding the Crown of Karsus .
* OverratedAndUnderleveled: All Origin Characters start at level 1, even though some have reputations that state otherwise: Gale is a prodigious-enough wizard that the goddess of magic herself was willing to sleep with him and Astarion has been a vampire spawn for the last 200 years. This is justified for Gale, Wyll, and Karlach, however, who achieved great renown in Faerûn and Avernus: Wyll explicitly states that he seems to have lost much of his power after being infected, Karlach's infernal engine [[spoiler:only works properly on Avernus and was frequently supercharged with Soul Coins by Zariel]], and Gale [[spoiler:lost most of his magical ability after absorbing a part of Karsus's Weave, which actively eats the Weave used by nearly all other magic users.]] It's not as clear in Astarion's case, since it's never mentioned one way or another, but it's possible that the tadpole suppressing some of the typical vampire ''weaknesses'' also applies to some of the associated ''strengths''[[note]]It's also possible that after 200-ish years of A) being forbidden to eat anything but rats and bugs and B) apparently being [[TheChewToy everyone's favorite whipping boy]] in Cazador's palace, he's not exactly in top form when the player first meets him[[/note]].
* {{Polyamory}}: ZigZagged. Most companions won't mind if the PlayerCharacter also romances other characters in the early stages of the romance, but after a certain point they'll make you choose between them. However, some of them[[note]]Shadowheart, Astarion, and Karlach[[/note]] are okay with you also romancing the strictly-polyamorous Halsin, or having flings with non-companion characters.
* ThePowerOfLove: Romancing a companion will often influence how their personal quest plays out, namely that the player can guide them towards certain critical decisions by appealing to them as a lover, ''without'' any persuasion checks.
* RagTagBunchOfMisfits: This roster sounds like the beginning of a joke: "A Sharran cultist, a mage with a magical time bomb in his chest waiting to go off, a githyanki, a DaywalkingVampire, a tiefling slave, a monster hunter, and potentially [[spoiler:a Bhaalspawn]] all walk into a tavern..." Astarion explicitly refers to them as "Weirdoes" at one point.
* RewardingInactivity: In some companions' personal questlines, the most effective option for the player character is to stand back and allow the companion to handle the situation on their own. Rushing in to help may be regarded as CondescendingCompassion and can backfire ''horribly'', causing the companion to emotionally shut down and do the opposite of whatever the player character was trying to accomplish.
* TeethClenchedTeamwork: It's a small miracle these people can work together ''at all''. Lae'zel is a githyanki who HatesEveryoneEqually and is the first to suggest slitting everyone's throats because of the tadpoles in your brains, Gale is a walking FantasticNuke waiting to go off ([[InsufferableGenius with the typical mage ego]]), Karlach is an escaped slave with a malfunctioning infernal engine for a heart, Astarion is being hunted by his former vampiric owner, and Shadowheart is a follower of [[ReligionOfEvil Shar]]. Really, the only reason they ''haven't'' tried to kill each other is because the threat of becoming a mind flayer is a much bigger concern, and is initially the only reason they work together at all.
* TookALevelInKindness: They all undergo this at some point, to varying degrees. As the PlayerCharacter, you have the option of making them come off as more gentle, or at least less of a prick. It's especially poignant of you choose to play as Lae'zel and make her into a TokenHeroicOrc. [[spoiler:The biggest example is probably Ascendant Astarion; as a companion, he's a power-drunk lunatic no better than Cazador. As the PlayerCharacter, however, he can decide to put his newfound status to better use and even dismiss any plans to conquer the world.]]
* TrueCompanions: What they eventually turn into toward the end of the game, if your approval values with them are high enough. This is especially true with the Dark Urge, [[spoiler:as your companions stick by you even after learning you're a Bhaalspawn if you've managed to curb your murderous desires (or at least suppressed its worst moments)]].
* WeAREStrugglingTogether: The devs have said that this group would never travel together under normal circumstances. As the de facto leader, you're usually the one to remind them when arguments come up that maybe you don't all trust each other — some of you might even ''hate'' each other — but right now you ''need'' each other to get out of this mess alive.
* WhatDoesSheSeeInHim: Your squadmates will judge ''everything'' you do, and this includes whom, if anyone, you sleep with. Reactions range from "fair enough" (usually from Wyll and/or Shadowheart[[note]]slightly more cattily[[/note]]) to this, which they are happy to go into detail about: Astarion thinks Shadowheart's boring, Gale thinks Astarion's dangerous, Lae'zel thinks ''everyone'' is inferior to her, etc.
* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: The new epilogue added with Patch #5 sees the party reuniting six months after the game's ending, showing what's become of them since the finale depending on how you handled their personal questlines.
** '''Astarion:''' [[spoiler:If he remained a Vampire Spawn, Astarion has re-acclimated to living in the shadows and has undergone a HeelFaceTurn, having decided GoodFeelsGood after his travels with the party and helps whoever he comes across at night (also, he has discovered that people don't actually care about murder if the victims are the "right kind," to his delight). If he and the Player decided to spare the 7000 spawns from the ritual, he may instead talk about how he has become the leader of a small Vampire Spawn settlement in the Underdark. If the PlayerCharacter didn't complete his questline and/or didn't kill Cazador, Astarion still lives in perpetual fear of him tries to convince the avatar to help him kill his old master. An Ascended Astarion, meanwhile, has taken over Cazador's palace as his own base of operations, and will gloat to the avatar about how his schemes will eventually ensnare Baldur's Gate. You can either act impressed by his ambitions, or tell him that his megalomania will eventually blow up in his face. If romanced, Ascended Astarion is also incredibly possessive of the avatar, especially if they complain about their lack of freedom thanks to being trapped in his GildedCage.]]
** '''Gale:''' [[spoiler:If Gale is convinced to go through with his plans for godhood, he uses the Crown of Karsus and becomes the God of Ambition, much to the disapproval of many, and will offer to ascend the avatar as well if romanced. If he returned the Crown to Mystra, he's become a professor at Blackstaff Academy and offers the avatar the opportunity to assist him in a new lesson he has planned. If Gale uses the Netherese Orb to destroy the Netherbrain, an astral projection of Gale will be waiting for you at camp to deliver Gale's message.]]
** '''Lae'zel:''' [[spoiler:If Lae'zel is loyal to Vlaakith, she doesn't show up at camp and is implied to have "ascended", though Withers makes it clear the honor of "ascending" is actually a death sentence. If Lae'zel defected and sided with Orpheus, she's aiding him in overthrowing Vlaakith and convinced him to create an astral projection of her to interact with the party after receiving Withers' invitation. If she was convinced to remain in the Material Plane, she speaks happily of the friends she's made in the world she's come to love, and has been systematically wiping out all of Vlaakith's loyalist bases on the Sword Coast-she invites the player to join her in assaulting the final one in Chult, for old times' sake. She may also be raising a child, Xan, the githyanki egg from Creche Y'llek.]]
** '''Karlach:''' [[spoiler:If Karlach returned to Avernus alone or with company, Withers makes it so she can temporarily reunite with her old friends. Her return is also heralded with good news as she found a solution to her Infernal Engine, implying she might be able to fix or finally be rid of it and return to the mortal plane. If Karlach becomes a mind flayer, she will have stayed in Baldur's Gate and found a personal ethical solution for her need for brains; an arrangement with a healer for the terminally ill, for whom she provides voluntary euthanasia. As a mind flayer she assimilates the memories and lives of all those whose brains she eats, and she has come to consider herself a kind of living repository of those people.]]
** '''Wyll:''' [[spoiler:If Wyll refused to renew his contract with Mizora, he'll have resumed his "Blade of Frontiers" lifestyle albeit now having to rely on his natural abilities and skills. Wyll can also have taken over as the new Grand Duke of Baldur's Gate if his father wasn't rescued, and in this case will have adopted an orphaned child, Lily Aurora Ravenguard. If Wyll goes with Karlach to Avernus, he'll have racked up a reputation as the "Blade of Avernus" and is helping Karlach find a solution for her Infernal Engine problem. Wyll can also become the "Blade of Avernus" if the Ansur questline has been completed, regardless of the status of his pact with Mizora.]]
** '''Shadowheart:''' [[spoiler:If Shadowheart converted to Selune and {{Mercy Kill}}ed her parents, she has become a wandering adventurer, learning about her parents' faith and traveling the Sword Coast while hunted by Sharrans (though she is able to easily evade them with the covert help of Nocturne, who she hopes will one day join her free of the cult); if she spared her parents she states to have taken up a humble life and now owns a farm and several animals. If romanced, the avatar may also have settled down with her. If Shadowheart remained loyal to Shar, then as the Chosen of Shar she has been busy spreading her faith far and wide in the aftermath of the Absolute's destruction, and is happy, as she does not know what she has sacrificed to Shar and never will again. If romanced as a Sharran, it's established that while she separated from the PlayerCharacter to focus on her duties, she's more than willing to LoopholeAbuse in order to give them opportunities to "reconnect", including at the party itself.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Astarion]]
!!Astarion Ancunín
[[quoteright:539:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/539px_astarion.png]]
[[caption-width-right:539:''[[OurVampiresAreDifferent Vampire Spawn]]'']]
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Creator/NeilNewbon
->''"Don't be shy, I promise not to bite until we've been formally introduced."''\\\

->'''Race:''' High Elf (Vampire Spawn)\\
'''Class:''' Rogue\\
'''Background:''' Charlatan\\
'''Place of Origin:''' Baldur's Gate\\
\\

A high elf vampire spawn whose tadpole infection has somehow given him the ability to move freely during the day. While the rest of the party seek to remove their tadpoles, Astarion hopes to learn to control his and master his new powers.
----
* AcquiredSituationalNarcissism: If you [[spoiler:don't prevent him from Ascending (or if you play Origin as Astarion, committing to Ascension, should you choose to), Astarion becomes more arrogant, possessive, and power-hungry as a full ascended vampire. His attitude is more pompous and theatrical, also dripping with even more condescension and flowery words and an even more callous disregard to his companions and to the sacrificed thousands of souls he devoured out of fear and hunger. Notably, both Neil in an interview and the developer notes outright say that him being very theatrical is a mask. Another thing to note is if you found Vellioth's skull, you'll find out that [[ChainofHarm Cazador was also in Astarion's place under his predecessor]] and laid out his rules of control unto him. And if you play as Astarion being your Origin character, it turns out Cazador also has rules for his slaves to remember- which he will also eventually impose should he Ascend and let loose in the ending.]]
* AdaptationalDyeJob: Of a sort: Back in Early Access he had a few black strands in his otherwise white hair, implying he may have just turned gray over time (and/or from Cazador-induced stress). In the full release he's naturally white-haired.
* AdmiringTheAbomination: He admits several times that while he's not thrilled about the prospect of being turned into a mind flayer, he’s still very fascinated by the tadpole and its abilities. [[spoiler:Mostly because it's the only thing keeping him in the sunlight.]]
* AffablyEvil: He's an amoral and selfish BloodKnight, but he can still be quite the charmer, especially if romanced. Either way, he has a particular soft spot for [[OpposeWhatYouSuffered the enslaved]].
* AgentPeacock: Astarion looks, sounds, and acts like a mix of [[Film/TheRockyHorrorPictureShow Dr. Frank-N-Furter]], Creator/DavidBowie, and Creator/MattBerry, but he's also a full-fledged BloodKnight that loves diving headlong into the fray.
* AmbitionIsEvil: Once he learns what the scars on his back really mean, he immediately starts scheming to overthrow Cazador to become the Ascendant himself. The player can point out to him that too much power too soon can corrupt, [[spoiler:and "corrupt" is about the tamest thing you can call him if he Ascends.]]
* AntiHero: Through CharacterDevelopment, he can become this. If you manage to get enough approval and get him to open up, Astarion will [[DefrostingiceQueen defrost]] and start going from an outright amoral prick to still morally grey but ultimately far less villainous person. This culminates if you convince him not to Ascend with Astarion breaking the the routines caused from Cazador's abuse by showing compassion and forming genuine bonds.[[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] if he Ascends, as Astarion becomes a straight-up villain and an evil shell of his former self.
* ArmorPiercingQuestion: Can receive one from a romanced player in Cazador's palace. [[spoiler:After finding most or all of his former marks imprisoned, you can ask if ''you'' might have met the same fate at his hands. Despite insisting that you would have been different, he's clearly rattled by the idea.]]
* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: Throughout the game, Astarion encourages the player character to embrace the power of the mind flayer tadpoles and look for ways to grow stronger while minimizing the risk of being turned yourself. He even suggests that they should [[spoiler: use the Netherstones from the cult leaders to control the Netherbrain for their own gain. If they do, even a Vampire Ascendant Astarion ends up reduced to a mindless thrall under their control through the elder brain.]]
* BecomingTheMask: Partway through his romance arc, he admits to the player that he initially seduced them simply to manipulate their feelings in the hope that they wouldn't throw him out. Of course, his plan backfired when he started to actually ''feel'' something for them, much to his dismay.
* BerserkButton:
** Acting like a FearlessFool seems to get on his nerves. When discussing Raphael, a Fiend Pact warlock character can point out that Raphael is "only" a cambion, and therefore inherently less dangerous than a full devil. Astarion very impatiently reminds them that as long as they don't know who messed with the worms in your heads, why they did it, and why a devil — "[[SarcasmMode Pardon, a]] ''[[SarcasmMode cambion]]''" — is interested enough in the situation to personally get involved, Raphael is still holding all the cards, whatever species he might be. He did mention a few sentences earlier that Cazador really gets off on doing this to his slaves ("Let them think there was hope, right until the end... Until he snatched it all away."), so being back in almost exactly the same situation probably has him on edge.
** '''Do not mock his enslavement if you value your life'''. If you can get him to admit that his mind flayer dream was [[spoiler:a nightmare of being bound to Cazador again]], you can snark at him that you "never guessed (he)'d want a 'master' in the bedroom." He [[LimpAndLivid just about]] [[PrimalStance stops himself]] from ripping your guts out right then and there and snaps that A) There is a difference between sapient creatures and animals — one actually considers its options in a situation while the other acts purely to fulfill its needs, B) traveling with you is a choice on his part, and C) If you ''ever'' make a crack like that again he will ''butcher'' you, "on instinct, to fulfill (his) need to hear you scream". It's part of why he's so hostile to Act 2's Araj Oblodra in Moonrise Tower, as she immediately assumes he's the player's slave.
* BetterTheDevilYouKnow: [[InvertedTrope Inverted]]. If you argue that he'd just be trading one master for another if he lets Raphael remove the tadpole, he has this to say:
-->'''Astarion:''' You're familiar with the phrase "Better the devil you know"? I ''know'' Cazador. And I'll take anything that saves me from ''that.''
* BigShutUp: He does ''not'' appreciate the player [[spoiler:[[NotSoDifferentRemark pointing out how similar to Cazador he's become]] post-Ascension]].
* BloodKnight: Puns aside, he clearly enjoys violence, possibly because it's the first time he's really been able to let loose with his powers since he got turned.
* BoomerangBigot: He (perhaps understandably) doesn't think much of vampires, deriding them as "scheming, paranoid, power-hungry beasts." Of course, he also [[InsistentTerminology doesn't exactly consider himself a vampire]].
* BrokenTears: [[spoiler:After convincing Astarion not to undergo Ascension]], Astarion will still stab Cazador to death. Afterwards, he falls to his knees and sobs as the weight of the abuse and fear he suffered under Cazador lifts from his shoulders.
* ButForMeItWasTuesday: [[AvertedTrope Averted]] come Act 3. [[spoiler: Upon discovering that the many victims Cazador made him seduce and bring back to be fed on were actually turned into Vampire Spawn for the Ascendant ritual Astarion can remember them all, including their names and what went on between him and them. Seeing them again absolutely wrecks him.]]
* CannotCrossRunningWater: In Early Access he would take acid damage if he tried, as is common for all vampires in ''D&D''. His AI would even identify it as a hazard the same way other characters' would react to fire or clouds of poisonous gas.
* TheCasanova: Deconstructed to hell and back: Astarion is attractive and a shameless flirt, but it's eventually revealed that he was often used as a HoneyTrap for Cazador's victims, and that even beyond that he's used to using his sexuality to get what he needs regardless of whether he's actually interested in his target, something he admits he hates. During his romance arc, his [[LadykillerInLove deepening feelings]] for the player eventually make him withdraw sexually, wanting to come to terms with the emotional aspect of their relationship before continuing with the physical. Downplayed regarding his interactions with the party members: He'll flirt with most of them, which usually results in witty rejections, though some still admit behind his back that they aren't ''unwilling'' to sleep with him. His Charisma is also just an average 10, but his persona is already enough to bring back several victims over the years even if none of them lasted for more than a night.
* CursedWithAwesome: Astarion is the only one of the infected who was actually ''strengthened'' by the tadpole. Namely, it grants him immunity from the sun -- which freed him of a vampire's greatest weakness and allows him to hide his true nature -- and freed him from Cazador's influence, allowing him to finally act against his former master. He also still possesses Vampiric Bite, which enhances his abilities further.
* CuteAndPsycho: [[spoiler:Leans more into Cute if he remains a spawn, teeters towards Psycho if he ascends.]]
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Despite impressive competition, he's the undisputed winner of the 'most horrendous backstory' prize among your recruitable companions, which goes a long way towards explaining what an absolute mess of a person he is. Getting kidnapped, turned into a vampire spawn, and subjected to centuries of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse by his sire while serving as his evil minion will do that.
* DarkSecret: He's a vampire spawn. This is [[ObviouslyEvil immediately obvious]] to the player, what with the UndeathlyPallor, the [[FangsAreEvil mouthful of fangs]][[note]]Which was downgraded to CuteLittleFangs in a later patch[[/note]], and the [[VampireHickey puncture scars on his neck]], but it takes a few nights in-game before their character figures it out. If he trusts you enough to volunteer this information, you can even casually reply that it was obvious.
* DaywalkingVampire: Justified. Fifth edition D&D vampire spawn normally take the same damage in sunlight as their masters, but the mind flayer tadpole apparently lets Astarion go about in daylight with no visible consequences, much to his delight. There is a limit to it, as being in the vicinity of the [[LightEmUp Solar Lance]] will disintegrate him like it does everyone else(note that this thing was powerful enough to destroy a building). [[spoiler:In the Good Ending of the game, if Astarion doesn't hijack Cazador's ritual for himself and remains a vampire spawn, he'll lose his [[DaywalkingVampire daywalker]] status. This understandably upsets him, tearfully stating "it was nice while it lasted" before diving for the nearest patch of shade.]]
* DeadpanSnarker: While all companions have their moments, Astarion stands out as the biggest smartass of all of you. You can probably count the number of times he's actually sincere on one hand... Maybe two, if romanced.
* DealWithTheDevil: He's ''extremely'' eager to strike a deal with Raphael because, as mentioned under BetterTheDevilYouKnow above, he considers any alternative to being forced back into Cazador's service or turning into a mind flayer viable solution to his tadpole problem. If you go through the various encounters with Raphael without Astarion in your party, he'll tear you a new one for it every time you talk to him in camp.
* DeconstructedCharacterArchetype: Of TheCasanova[=/=]LadykillerInLove -- He mostly acts like this out of habit, after spending over 200 years being [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil forcibly pimped out by his master Cazador to draw in prey for him]] ([[DarkAndTroubledPast when he wasn't being starved and/or]] [[ColdBloodedTorture gruesomely tortured]]). He eventually learned to almost completely dissociate during sex, but the fact that he genuinely comes to care for the player during his romance arc his makes him unable or unwilling to keep doing so. Astarion really struggles to deal with his growing feelings for the player, and he actually staves off a romantic tryst because he wants to make sure he really does love the player. Sure enough, if the player presses forward during this event, Astarion recoils from it and ends up breaking things off from the player. Astarion demonstrates how an obsession with sex can ruin you, especially if you're forced into it to survive. [[spoiler:This is even sadder if you romanced him and decide to try being with someone else; he'll dejectedly ask if it's because they haven't been sexually intimate in a while. It takes Astarion coming to terms with his past and his growing love for you that he'll initiate by asking to make love in the resolution of his arc. He lets you choose whether to finally be able to have sex without the feeling of being tainted, wait for another time, or just simply be there and reflect in calmness. Either way, Astarion respects your choice.]]
* DeconReconSwitch: Of the LadykillerInLove. Most of his life is spent on using his charms and body due to having no choice in the matter and can seduce the player [[spoiler:in an effort to manipulate and remain in your good graces and to protect him. When he sexually withdraws, he's in the matter of settling his past and separating that from his genuine attraction and love towards you. The recon part is that, eventually, he has come to terms with his feelings and even offers to be sexually intimate again (on top of his grave, even), this time out of genuine desire and love. He showers you with praise and all the reasons behind his affection for you, but compared to him using his facade, his wording is less ornate, but straight from the heart. Note that he doesn't stop being flirtatious towards you or calling you pet names by the end- being charming is just a natural part of his personality, but devoted to you.]]
* DefrostingIceQueen: He's initially very condescending and brushes off any attempts to get to know him with [[DeadpanSnarker mean-spirited snark]]. If you accept [[OurVampiresAreDifferent what he is]] when it finally comes out, he's genuinely grateful once the surprise wears off, and sincerely thanks you if you let him drink some of your blood. If you don't romance him but still keep his approval high, he'll greet you with a genuinely cordial "What can I do for you, my friend?" or call you "(his) favorite traveling companion."
* DistressedDude: His siblings can ambush your party after you arrive in Baldur's Gate, and if he goes down they will successfully kidnap him. Then you're treated to a unique cutscene where you play as him trying to resist his captors.
* DontCelebrateJustYet: [[spoiler:After defeating the Absolute, Astarion notes with surprised elation when he appears to be unaffected by the morning sun, wondering if being a host for his tadpole affected his vampire physiology. It turns out, much to his disappointment, that it was simply a delayed reaction and he's forced back underground.]]
* DontYouDarePityMe: Laying the sympathy on too thick or [[DeclarationOfProtection promising to protect him if Cazador comes knocking]] will just make him lash out and/or mock you for apparently thinking ''you alone'' can protect him from a vampire lord.
* EvenEvilHasStandards:
** If you ask him where he plans to get blood in the future after possibly feeding on you, he immediately promises not to target innocents, "Only villains that we need to kill anyway." While you could just write it off as PragmaticVillainy on his part, it should be noted that even after being freed from Cazador's control, he still opted to go after animals instead of some vagrant or hermit no one would miss.
** If the player tries but fails to save Arabella from Kagha, he admits in an [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness unusually serious tone]] that he considers death a harsh punishment for theft. If pressed about what -- if anything -- he would’ve done differently, he claims that he would’ve gone the "merciful" route of [[AnArmAndALeg amputating her hand]].
** He's genuinely disgusted by Malus Thorm's twisted experiments, noting how they are no different from how Cazador would treat him.
** When confronted about the children he kidnapped, he's quick to assert that unlike the adults, he didn't lure them through seduction.
** If you convinced the owlbear mother not to fight you, returning to the cave later will show that goblins came by, killed her and took her baby. He seems to be genuinely sad for the fallen owlbear, lamenting that the goblins found her little hiding spot.
* EvilHasABadSenseOfHumor: He thinks [[spoiler:Mayrina's husband rising as a zombie]] is hilarious. If you express pity for her, he'll even quip that it was "a shame she couldn't see the funny side."
* EvilIsHammy: [[spoiler:If he becomes the Vampire Ascendant, he develops [[ChewingTheScenery a taste for scenery]] and a penchant for MilkingTheGiantCow. How he addresses the romanced player also depends on whether you chose to let him take over as an Ascendant usurper or killing Cazador but remaining as a spawn. He tends to use more flowery wording in the former while declaring world domination while being more straightforward but genuinely heartfelt in the latter.]]
* EverybodyKnewAlready: Nobody is terribly surprised that he turns out to be a vampire, with everyone suspecting it already at least a little. Should the player go to the Underdark without triggering his bite scene, he'll fess up to it directly, to which the player can tell him it was already obvious.
* ExtremeDoormat: Is one to Cazador, and has been for 200 years -- It's just how things work between vampires and their spawn, with the master vampire's will being able to overwrite the spawn's own mind and even control the spawn's body like a puppet, as Astarion remarks he was never able to resist Cazador's command, "the body reacts by itself" when the master gave a direct order. Cazador treatment of Astarion involved carving a "poem"[[note]]later revealed to be in fact not a poem but part of an infernal ritual sigil written in the language of the Hells[[/note]] into Astarion's back with a razor without his consent, making him feed on rats and bugs, threatening to flay him for disobedience (and actually doing so more than once, if the "again" is any indication), constantly gaslighting and humiliating him verbally and physically and forcing him to undergo torture or making him perform self-mutilation.
* FantasticRacism:
** ''Hates'' the Gur, both for [[ItsPersonal personal reasons]] and probably because it's a pretty common prejudice in Faerûn. He also more than once lumps in kobolds in with animals.
** He also makes disparaging remarks about gnomes, and unlike with the Gur, there's no apparent personal history involved.
** As a vampire spawn Astarion is himself a victim of this, as vampires are considered monsters. Even though vampire spawn are themselves victims and suffer all the downsides of being undead but have none of a true vampire's powers, they are treated as unpersons without legal rights that anyone can murder without repercussions. It doesn't help that they're officially dead and were buried years ago, or that they suffer from constant painful hunger for blood... And while they can survive on animal blood (and even ''exist'' in a weakened dazed and feral state with no food at all, as seen on Sebastion who has suffered for 170 years without being fed), Astarion's low-key orgasmic reaction to drinking "the blood of sentient creatures" (the player character's) for the first time in his unlife makes it clear he wasn't lying when he said subsisting on animal blood makes a vampire's senses dull and their mind clouded.
* FauxAffablyEvil: Downplayed, [[AffablyEvil in that his charm and good manners are genuine parts of his personality]]; however, when pissed, he can ''really'' crank up the insincerity when delivering threats and brutal critiques with the same smile.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: The morning after an early OptionalSexualEncounter, the player character has the option to remark that Astarion's mind seemed elsewhere at times. [[spoiler:That's because it was; his motives for seducing the player are self-serving at that point in time, and he's developed a tendency to dissociate during such encounters.]]
* FreudianExcuse: He's spent the 200 years he's been a vampire bound mind, body and soul to the whims of a [[{{Sadist}} sadistic master]]. Now that he's free, he's a [[ItsAllAboutMe selfish]] BloodKnight who only cares about enjoying said freedom. [[spoiler:You can call him out on his actions and he'll tell you not to judge for never being in control of his own body for the majority of his enslavement, but you can also branch out to telling him off that there are others of his plight that he shouldn't reduce to being a commodity.]]
* FriendlyNeighborhoodVampire: PlayedWith. The only person he really cares about is himself, but he only ever drinks blood from animals or hostile enemies. [[spoiler:Painfully averted if he becomes a Vampire Ascendant. He loses whatever morality he has left, begins plans to dominate as much as he can, and essentially becomes no different from Cazador in how he treats a romanced player character. On the other hand, he can become much more moral if he refuses to complete the ritual, possibly even helping the 7000 released spawn in the Underdark as a leader.]]
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration:
** The tadpole lets him walk in sunlight and enter houses uninvited, but in Early Access "running water still burns like acid," and he did in fact take acid damage if he tried to cross it.
** If the player allows it, he'll feed on them at night without waking them up. Fittingly, his Vampire Bite ability doesn't break stealth and won't wake or damage a sleeping target.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: Beyond his unique appearance and his bite ability, Astarion is built using the same creation rules as every other playable character and counts as a regular high elf gameplay-wise, being a humanoid and not undead. This means, amongst other things, [[NoCureForEvil that healing magic affects him normally]] (instead of having to rely on [[HealingFactor Vampiric Regeneration]], which he does not have, to recover HP), nor does he resist Necrotic damage like most undead. Spells and effects that only work on undead (like being turned, or the Circle of Bones) do not impact him either. Having to adapt Astarion 'correctly' by the rules would likely be an InterfaceSpoiler and would make him extremely difficult to balance, as vampire spawn have several abilities (resistance to all nonmagical damage, a permanent HealingFactor, [[VampireBitesSuck the ability to bite as a standard attack]], and the ability to climb any surface) that would be either game-breaking or impossible to implement.
* GoodFeelsGood: In the PlayableEpilogue, if unromanced and encouraged to turn good, Astarion admits that he taken a liking to being called "hero" and admired.
* GroinAttack: Can be on the receiving end of one when caught trying to drink the Player Character’s blood. [[spoiler:Can also be subjected to it again if he becomes Vampire Ascendant in Cazador’s place and if you romanced him. Doing so causes him to leave your party.]]
* HaveIMentionedIAmSexuallyActiveToday: Astarion talks a ''big'' game about all the hedonistic debauchery he got up to in Baldur's Gate, although it's not to cover for a lack of sexual experience. [[spoiler:It's to cover for a lack of ''consensual'' sexual experiences while he was enslaved by Cazador, and the deeply conflicted attitude toward sex that resulted. When presented with actual opportunities for "debauchery," such as with the drow twins, he balks.]]
* HealItWithBlood: His Vampire Bite ability recovers 2d4 hit points and gives him a StatusBuff.
* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:In the Patch 5 epilogue, an unascended Astarion has happily embraced actual ''heroics'', albeit in his own [[GoodIsNotSoft snarky murderous]] way. He's come a long way from the guy who threw around disapprovals like confetti against a player who volunteered to help innocent refugees and slaves.]]
* HemoErotic: PlayedWith. While he universally approves of the player letting him feed from them, and even specifically has an extra approval should they let him bite them during sex, he expresses a lot of discomfort in his vampirism being openly fetishized by a [[BloodMagic blood-obsessed Apothocary]] found at Moonlight Towers.
* HiddenDepths: Astarion likes and knows how to do embroidery. If you check his underwear, you can see a cheeky message that's embroidered there. Other descriptions on his clothes also express that it's been worn and retained by him, continuing to resew and mend the threads that have loosened over the decades.
** There's also a line where Shadowheart says while she can smell the "distinct whiff of undeath", she doesn't notice the same about Astarion. To which he mentions that his "olfactory disguise" is a mix of bergamot, rosemary, and a hint of brandy, and that he missed his calling as a perfumer.
** Observing his tent more closely is a pretty good summation of the HiddenDepths of his character. At first glance, it appears elegant and fancy, well-suited to his AgentPeacock looks. However, if you pay closer attention, the inside of his tent is surprisingly squalor--featuring a drab gray blanket (which may or may not be his death shroud), hay scattered about, a ratty straw mat and a broken shelf of blood jars. Unlike the other companions, whose tents have cozy furs and/or bed rolls for them to sleep on, Astarion sleeps on some sort of wooden platform. Much like his own appearence, he maintains the thin outward facade of elegant beauty to hide the ugly truth of his existence as an enslaved vampire spawn.
* HorrifyingTheHorror: When encountering Dribbles the Clown in Baldur's Gate he openly calls the clown a horror and one made all that much worse by constantly speaking in horrible puns. [[spoiler:He's right to be creeped out by Dribbles too, since he's an Absolute cultist doppelganger MonsterClown and the whole performance is quickly turned into a trap for the party.]]
* IfYouKillHimYouWillBeJustLikeHim: Played with in regards to Cazardor [[spoiler:the party will all agree that Astarion is perfectly justified and should kill Cazador, but believe that stealing his place and becoming Vampire Ascendant in his place will make Astarion just like his former master. They are absolutely correct in this idea; if Astarion succeeds in hijacking Cazador's ritual, he quickly becomes drunk with power and starts behaving not too differently from his former master.]]
* IHateYouVampireDad: Cazador is ''not'' good to his spawn, to put it lightly. Astarion hates and fears his Master for very good reason, and is clearly traumatized despite his attempts to sound dismissive if asked about it. His known abuses include:
** being forced to bed with victims to lure them to his master, even when he doesn't want to
** Carving a poem[[note]]later revealed to be in fact not a poem but part of an infernal ritual sigil written in the language of the Hells[[/note]] into Astarion's back one night, with Astarion sadly recounting how "the more I screamed, the more ''revisions'' he needed to make".
** Demanding that Astarion join Cazador and their "guest" (the person Astarion had seduced) for dinner, then forcing Astarion to eat putrid decaying rats while Cazador feasted on the human in front of him. But if Astarion refused, Cazador would have him flayed.
** Frequent torture, with Astarion being Cazador's favorite victim among Cazador's seven vampire spawns because Astarion "screamed the loudest". Astarion recounts how he was once tortured for ten days straight by Godey the undead Master of the Slave Kennels. When we meet Godey, he will corroborate this, calling Astarion a "doggie" and proudly proclaiming that Astarion "sang so sweetly" for him and always screamed the most.
** Even ordering Astarion to torture ''himself'' if Cazador felt like it.
** The "Year of Hell", when Cazador had Astarion sealed, starving, in a dusty sarcophagus in darkness and total silence for an entire year of sensory deprivation. Likely the incident Astarion refers to when he tells the Dark Urge he was once so wracked by hunger he lost all sense of self and became feral like an animal. [[note]]A memory the player character can dig from Astarion's mind via the tadpole's psychic link to use against Astarion, and also one Astarion himself will recount in another scene in a broken tearful hollow voice while trying to keep his dignity.[[/note]]
* IJustWantToBeFree: Astarion was turned by a vampire lord named Cazador Szarr 200 years ago and has been completely under his control ever since. He's ecstatic about the tadpole breaking his hold on him, and mostly wants to learn to control it so he doesn't have to [[MortonsFork go back to being a slave]].
* ImmortalImmaturity: Chronologically he's about 263, maybe 264[[note]]According to his tombstone, he was 39 when he died 224 years ago[[/note]] but he acts more like you'd expect of a bratty teenager. There's implied to be a rather grim explanation for this - he was roughly the elven equivalent of a teen when he died, and spent the next couple of centuries in the sort of nightmarishly abusive environment that's pretty much guaranteed to cause severely arrested development. That said, however, it's unknown if the culture in Baldur's Gate is/was different considering that he was also handed the high position of magistrate before his enslavement. It's possible that he was viewed as rather young as a 50-year-old human would view someone in their early 20s or 18 to 19- a very young adult physically, but still considered inexperienced socially and legal maturity was probably considered differently.
* InLoveWithTheMark: If the player romances Astarion, [[spoiler:he will admit he initially planned on seducing them so they would protect him and never turn on him, but that he later fell in love for real.]]
* InsistentTerminology: He's not a vampire, he's a vampire ''spawn''. Yes, the difference ''does'' matter, considering how one is an immortal apex predator and the other is a slave bound completely to said predator's whims.
* InterfaceSpoiler: It takes a little while before his vampirism is revealed... Or, in Early Access, you could cross running water while controlling him and scroll over the status effect to discover that "running water eats away at vampiric flesh". [[CaptainObviousReveal Then again, his appearance doesn't exactly hide what he is either.]]
* InsecureLoveInterest: While he is, of course, [[ProudBeauty extremely aware that he's an incredibly handsome and sexually attractive guy]], that confidence in himself largely begins and ends there. If in a LoveTriangle with another member of the camp, he'll straight up assume you're going to break up with him and go be with your "true love" before you've even spoken to him about it. He seems to discount himself automatically as a real partner, emphasizing himself as someone to have a "sordid affair" with and being genuinely baffled if you tell him you're choosing to be with him. If broken up with before fighting Cazador, he admits to believing it was only a matter of time before the player dumped him for being more trouble than he's worth.
* ItsAllAboutMe: After being completely subservient to a bona fide {{sadist}} for two centuries, his first and last priority is himself and what he wants. He's got no interest in being a hero, especially if there's nothing in it for him.
* JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope: [[spoiler:It's possible to hijack Cazador's ritual and turn Astarion into a full-blooded vampire himself. If you do this, Astarion almost immediately starts to have megalomaniacal thoughts of raising up an army of vampire spawn and becoming the most powerful vampire to live. If romanced, it's heavily implied the player's worth to him has dropped to 'property I cherish, but still my property' and if you allow him to turn you, is implied will eventually turn just as abusive as Cazador's relationship with him was. Effectively, he adopts all of Cazador's behaviors, [[HeWhoFightsMonsters becoming exactly what he hated for over 200 years]].]]
* KickTheDog:
** Some of his responses can be downright cruel. If the party [[spoiler:tries to bring Mayrina's husband back to life, he'll only be raised as a zombie and she'll be devastated.]] While the player character can express anything from remorse to apathy, Astarion will shrug that he found it funny, and approves if the player agrees.
** In Ramazith's Tower, [[spoiler:the ''only'' option Astarion approves of is selling Dame Aylin out to Lorroakan and he gives disapproval if you do anything else. This is not only hypocritical given his virulent hatred of his own enslavement, but also borders on StupidEvil considering that he/his party ''just'' witnessed Aylin wrecking Moonrise Tower and stomping Ketheric's skull into paste for doing the exact same thing to her. This also brings to mind his offhanded remark to Karlach if they're both in the party where he says that she has Gortash to thank for her being the way she is.]]
** [[spoiler:If he becomes an Ascendant Vampire and the player turns themself into a mind flayer to stop the Absolute, he breaks off any romance at the end because they’re simply too hideous for him to considering continuing.]]
*** [[spoiler:This is doubly painful, as the player can choose to discuss breaking off a relationship with a non-Ascendant Vampire Astarion, specifically due to the fear of becoming a mind flayer and how they’ll look if they do change. Non-Ascendant Astarion will be heart-broken at the thought and insist that he’d still love the player even if they did become a mind flayer... Only to be a lot more conflicted than he expected should it happen. Unlike his ascended counterpart he's willing to try, and breaking it off instead of accepting his friendship still hurts him, but he's a lot less confident in what your future holds.]]
* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler:Should you decide to stake Astarion when his vampirism is revealed]], it will be impossible to revive him if you succeed. [[spoiler:If you confront Cazador with him in the party, Cazador will immediately shackle him to his ritual and can succeed in sacrificing him unless you free him or defeat Cazador fast enough.]]
* KissOfTheVampire: If you let him bite you, you're explicitly stated to ''like it'' after the initial pain. The bite scene itself is even framed to evoke the imagery of a sex scene, with the camera panning to over his shoulder and both he and the player character jerking against each other in ways that are ''extremely'' suggestive. Taken even further if romanced, where you can encourage him to bite you during sex.
* LadykillerInLove: The core of his romance: it's revealed that Astarion was often used as a seductive lure for Cazador's victims, and has had many lovers as a result, none of them serious and most of them so he could get something out of them… and then you came along.
-->'''Astarion:''' Look, I… had a plan. A nice, simple plan: seduce you, sleep with you, manipulate your feelings so you'd never turn on me. It was easy… instinctive. Habits from two hundred years of charming people kicked in. All you had to do… was fall for it. And all I had to do was not fall for you… [[LoveConfession which is where my nice, simple plan… fell apart.]]
* LetsJustBeFriends: [[spoiler: If the player chooses to have Tav become a mind flayer and they romanced him, he will be hesitant to continue a romantic relationship with them due to the changes, both in their appearance and the likelihood that they're not the same person he fell in love with anymore, though he does entertain the possibility that they could find love again in each other in time. The player has the option of accepting his proposal to remain friends or leaving him, and he accepts their decision humbly, thanking them for all they'd done]].
* LivingForeverIsAwesome: As violently as he hates Cazador, he doesn't seem to have any problem with actually ''being'' a vampire -- In any ending where he remains a spawn, he only ever seems interested in finding a workaround for his weakness to sunlight rather than being brought back to full life.
* LovableRogue: Literally as the rogue of the party, but Downplayed in that, while party members (and perhaps also you) welcome him, there is disapproval of certain jerkassery that Astarion gets behind of (or even directly do). He can also be rather standoffish and prickly even when the attitude is undeserved. He's affable towards you and your party for survivability.[[spoiler:.. at first. He cranks the act at times, but can gradually warm up.]]
* LoveRedeems: Depending on how you resolve his personal storyline, namely [[spoiler:whether you allow him to become a vampire ascendant or not]] this trope is either played straight or subverted.
** If you think his love for the PlayerCharacter is strong enough to overcome his lust for power, you're in for a brutal awakening after [[spoiler:turning him into a Vampire Ascendant, which pretty clearly ends with him sidelining you ''at best'' in favor of striving for world domination. Should you also allow him to turn you into a vampire spawn, your relationship is strongly implied to become a recreation of the hell he himself went through while under Cazador's control.]]
** On the other hand, [[spoiler:should you talk him out of the ritual and he remains a vampire spawn, he starts to show more genuine empathic behavior and shows a softer side -- if not just around the player character. He'll beg the player not to break up with them if they indulge in the astral tadpole or if the Dark Urge is worried about killing him in their sleep, and in the epilogue, while saddened the parasite's removal means he's become weak to the sun again, he's less broken up than he would be in any other permutation of the ending because he at least has you with him.]]
* ManBitesMan: Once you find out he's a vampire spawn, he gains the ability to bite enemies in combat to damage them and heal himself. Logically, enemies without blood are immune.
* MasterOfUnlocking: He's far and away the best of your recruitable NPC party members at disarming traps and picking locks, and is, in fact, as good as it's mechanically possible for a character to get at such things. He's a Rogue (a Dexterity-primary class that can upgrade Proficiency in skills to Expertise) who's proficient in Sleight of Hand (the disarming/unlocking skill) by default - if you have nonmagical security to breach, then he's your man.
* MightMakesRight: A firm believer in this, so much so that he considers avoiding fights a sign of weakness and thus ''' ''hates'' ''' when you do it. How (or even if) he applies this line of thought to himself is unclear, as he recognizes that there are different types of power, i.e. He now has tremendous power of his own but is still leery of Cazador, who is both himself very powerful ''and'' has control over others. [[spoiler:If you progress his story to be a positive influence, though, he grows out of seeing power as a means to everything.]]
* MissingReflection: As a vampire spawn, he lacks a reflection in mirrors. He {{Lampshades}} this several times, and it's a bit of a sore spot given that he [[TraumaInducedAmnesia doesn't even remember what he looked like]] when he was alive.
-->'''Narrator:''' The mirror reflects nothing. Lacking any evidence to the contrary, [Astarion assumes he looks] amazing.
** As of Patch 5, [[spoiler:if he Ascends, he regains his reflection, and is overjoyed to see his face once more]].
* MortonsFork: Like the rest of the party, the tadpole in his head will eventually turn him into a mind flayer. ''Unlike'' them, if he does get rid of it, he'll go back to being Cazador's thrall and lose his immunity to sunlight, stripping away whatever freedom he enjoyed. Thus, he has a pretty blasé attitude toward Raphael's [[DealWithTheDevil offer]]; if he's up a creek either way, why not hand over whatever soul he's got left to a devil? "Better ''he'' has it than Cazador", apparently.
-->'''Astarion:''' ''([[MirthlessLaughter slightly insane laugh]])'' Of ''course'' it'll turn me into a monster! What else did I expect?
* MyFistForgivesYou: Might end up on the receiving end of this if he accidentally kills the player when he drinks their blood. Funnily, he doesn't even disapprove of you punching him for it, so he likely knew that he deserves it. He has the nerve to ask if you want another nibble.
-->'''Astarion:''' I understand you're upset, but let's not get carried away.\\
'''Player:''' Oh, I feel ''much'' better now.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: In Cazador's palace, [[spoiler:to his horror, Astarion discovers the people he has seduced while kidnapped others over the centuries imprisoned and transformed into vampire spawns. While Astarion, under Cazador's influence, took them for the purpose of being fed by his sire. Subjugating them to AndIMustScream existence was not his intention.]]
* NayTheist: States that he doesn't believe he owes respect to any of the gods. He further clarifies that he prayed to every single one for help over his long existence, and since none of them answered or helped him, he sees no reason he should worship any of them. The game makes it clear that vampires do still have souls, because otherwise the Rite of Profane Ascension wouldn't work as it consumes the souls of the vampire spawns that are the sacrificial victims and feeds them into the ascending vampire. But as an immortal nihilist, Astarion seems to view his own soul only as a potential bargaining chip.
* NiceMeanAndInBetween:
** The In-Between of Early Access's three "evil" companions; while an [[ItsAllAboutMe almost-pathologically selfish]] SocialDarwinist, he's also quite the sweet talker -- [[AffablyEvil whether he]] [[TermsOfEndangerment means it]] [[FauxAffablyEvil or not]] -- and he does occasionally approve of doing the nice/right thing -- not as much as Shadowheart, but a lot more than Lae'zel. See PetTheDog below.
** In the full release, Astarion is much more on the mean side. He's still AffablyEvil but readily disapproves of most "good" choices. He's also the one most out for himself, as his experiences have taught him that the world is fundamentally unjust and the strong will always seek to dominate the weak, thus he hates feeling weak and vulnerable and seeks power to be able to protect himself. [[spoiler:While Lae'zel can be made to see Vlaakith's corruption and aspire to free her people, Astarion's initial empathy tends to be limited only to people who experience what he has had -- a lack of freedom. He's outright giddy at the idea of completing his master's ritual to make a new type of Ascendant Vampire and the most openly power-hungry of the companions, although he vehemently refuses to accept the Astral Tadpole's considerable power because using it would turn him into a half-illithid and that is where he draws the line.]] Granted a lot of this comes from his own personal baggage, his deep-seated fears and a general desire to never be hurt or enslaved again. He angrily states he never had ''anyone'' care for him or even offer him a kind word in his life. If the player character offers him support without asking anything in return, Astarion is visibly confused, admitting he is not used to asking for help and actually, well, receiving help! [[spoiler:Well, he's an asshole... at first. You can steer Astarion to be less mean throughout his story and help him earn redemption and think about others more. The player must teach Astarion that there are others that are just and empathetic for him if he chooses to care for them too. And if you've seen his interactions with other party members and Non-Playable Characters that have nothing to do with him like Karlach and Yenna, that's proof enough that he already does.]]
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Astarion recounts a time during the first decade of his slavery, where he decided to spare one of his conquests. For his act of mercy, Cazador [[AndIMustScream sealed]] Astarion inside a tomb for an entire year, leaving him starving and begging for death. The torturous experience broke his spirit and he resolved to not disobey his master again. The fear of punishment likely is one of the reasons that factored into Astarion being a jerkass.
-->'''Astarion:''' You don't know what it was like. There was no way out. Once -- in the first decade of my slavery -- I found a darling boy who I couldn't bear to bring back to him. So I ran instead of hurting that sweet man. After Cazador caught me, the bastard ''sealed'' me, starving, inside a dusty tomb, all on my own, for an entire year. A year of silence. Months of scratching my hands raw, trying to claw my way out. More months of not moving at all. Months wishing only for death. So don't you ever ''judge'' me for doing what Cazador ordered.
* NotSoDifferentRemark:
** In one of your early interactions with him, you can say that you're also just trying to survive. He'll remark that he and you aren't that different.
** If the Dark Urge has been fighting off their impulse to kill those around them [[spoiler:and reveals their origins to Astarion while expressing fear over whether they'll be free of Bhaal, Astarion notes the Dark Urge isn't too different from himself, having feared Cazador for so long he doubted whether he would be free of him]]. This also causes Astarion to encourage the Dark Urge [[spoiler:to fight Bhaal as much as they can]] rather than let their fear rule them as his fear of Cazador did.
* NotUsedToFreedom: He'll occasionally mention how "intimidating" or "daunting" he finds the concepts of having to make decisions for himself and (especially) having to deal with the consequences of said decisions.
-->'''Astarion:''' 'You can do whatever you want' sounds... ''Terrifying''. And it ''is''.
* OneHeroHoldTheWeaksauce: His illithid tadpole inexplicably protects him from sunlight. It's a tenuous handwave, but a necessary one to avoid planning all his gameplay around his vampiric vulnerability.
* PermanentlyMissableContent: Should you reveal him to the monster hunter looking for him, Astarion is knocked out and permanently removed from your party. You also get multiple opportunities to permanently kill him yourself.
* PetTheDog:
** He approves of helping Karlach escape her demon captors, even if you don't get anything for it. Probably because her situation reminds him of his own.
** The fact that you can still have Astarion like you [[spoiler:even if you're doing a good run means he's not entirely off the moral slope. Over time, he'll approve you doing good, culminating in him helping you helping others, even in his own sarcastic way.]]
** To his credit, despite not asking permission that first time, after that point he will only ever feed from the player when they offer. Even if you have established a relationship where you frequently let him feed from you, he never does so unless given the expressed, direct permission each and every night.
** If you feed and care for the owlbear cub, Astarion will approve, even letting it loaf on one of his cushions while idling in camp. It's notable that he's only neutral to Scratch (an already lovable dog), but it does say something about him (and you) when you choose to take in a known monster. By act 3, he does become extremely attached to even Scratch and has the strongest response if somehow the dog [[spoiler:ends up dying due to an attack on the camp, being the only one to get genuinely weepy about it]].
** He loves cats in general and always approves of being kind to them and/or admiring them. You can even get not just one approval, but ''two approvals in a row'' if you indulge His Majesty in the Last Light Inn. He additionally approves of petting an alley cat found in Act 3 and disapproves of scolding Gale's Tressum Tara.
** [[spoiler:When Lae'zel is almost killed by the 'cure' at the githyanki creche, he worriedly asks the player if they're just going to stand there and let her die. He also approves if the player successfully manages to save her.]]
** He opposes [[spoiler:Gale being sacrificed to kill the Absolute]], even if he voices that protest in his usual sarcastic way.
** He opposes [[spoiler:the killing of the seven thousand vampire spawn if convinced not to become the vampire ascendant, believing they deserve a chance to live like does even if there is risk of releasing such a large number of blood sucking undead into the Underdark]].
** [[spoiler:If Yenna is taken by Orin he states that the party needs to go rescue her as soon as they can. He catches himself after and brushes it away as a child dying in the city not looking good, but it’s obviously half-hearted.]]
** If you [[spoiler:took up Haarlep's game and give in, he'll gain your form. Every time he has pleasure in your form, you *will* know. If you openly moan in public, Astarion will be the only one in your party to say that he recognizes your moan being the result of the incubus's doing and seemingly is the only one who grasps the implications of such an arrangement. In his seriousness and zero sarcasm, he'll sympathize with you, as he knows what it's like to have your body out of your control.]]
** If you separate Astarion from your party without dismissing him to camp, he'll confess to the Gur if he [[spoiler:killed one of their hunters. And regardless whether said hunter stays alive or not, he'll volunteer to try saving their children in Cazador's hold even though he'll be skeptical that they're not dead yet.]]
** If you convince him not to [[spoiler:Ascend but still kill all the caged Spawns, he has serious regrets about killing them and believes they had as much a right to try to live as he does.]]
** [[spoiler:In a total inversion of what happens if he becomes an Ascendant Vampire, if the party talks him down and he remains a vampire spawn and a romanced Tav starts looking more monstrous from using their illithid powers and tries to end it to save his feelings, Astarion will make it clear that he doesn't care and will continue to love them, and beg them to not end the relationship through genuine tears.]]
** Astarion is selfish and can even be cruel due to having only known callousness and letting his negativity loose once he's off the collar, calling you naive if you're on the morally good [[spoiler:for the first half of the game. He even tries to appeal to your heart by suggesting of doing the "right" thing of taking over a cult.]] However, [[spoiler:as Astarion learns to trust the player more while continuing to be upright, he will gradually approve more and more virtuous deeds, becoming more than what Cazador made him out to be in the ending where you stop him from committing the ritual. Just moments ago, he tells you off that he can't be the person he wants you to be. But, in a conversation between you two a bit after, he thanks you for believing that he can be more than just his fears and doesn't need to be an Ascendant to rise up. In this route, he treats you as his equal- someone neither to fear nor needing to manipulate that helped him to be genuinely free.]]
-->'''Astarion:''' [[spoiler:But you saw something else in me- someone else I could be. Someone who could break the cycle of terror that started centuries ago. You saved me back there. I may not have appreciated it at the time, but I do now. Thank you.]]
** If you let Astarion bite you, he has this to say:
--->'''Astarion:''' This is a gift, you know. Thank you -- I won't forget it.
** And in another parallel, he also says the above [[spoiler:in the no ritual ending. He's genuinely grateful for you in both instances. This is especially heavier if you knew the context behind it.]]
--->'''Astarion:''' [[spoiler:You did more than that. You believed in me -- believed I was enough just the way I am.]]
* PragmaticVillainy: For all his experience lurking in shadows, Astarion has little experience or interest in engaging with the criminal underworld of Baldur's Gate. Not for moral reasons, but rather because of how ''profoundly'' stupid it would be for a vampire to provoke a war with the local mafia by hunting among their ranks. He's unenthused about getting involved in the feud between the Guild and the Zhentarim for similar reasons.
* PrimalStance: He tends to slump forward a little bit when angry enough and/or hoping for a fight.
* ProperlyParanoid: Is extremely paranoid that Cazador will recapture and re-enslave him, or that even if he doesn’t he'll lose the tadpole and revert to a mindless thrall. During the first act, the party encounters a Gur seeking to capture Astarion and bring him to Baldur’s Gate. He panics ''hard'' when he learns this, realizing that no matter where he goes, Cazador ''will'' eventually find him and he ''will'' have his spawn back.
** [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] in that while Cazador does want Astarion back, [[spoiler:the Gur are not actually working for him -- they only want to interrogate Astarion to find the whereabouts of their abducted children.]]
* ProudBeauty: Despite having no idea what he actually looks like, he is well aware of how beautiful he is.
* QuitYourWhining: Astarion can give a Dark Urge player a surprisingly heartwarming version of this [[spoiler:if the latter laments that they are too dangerous to live. Astarion outright scoffs and points out it's still nothing compared to what he was made to do for Cazador. If there's hope for someone like him, there's hope for an amnesiac former serial killer-necrophiliac like you.]]
* RapeAsBackstory: Heavily implied. Given his [[BerserkButton absolutely thermonuclear rage]] at the implication that he and Cazador were sleeping together, [[HoneyTrap being used as a lure to seduce victims whether he wanted to or not]], and his nigh-obsession with personal choice and freedom, it’s pretty easy to draw some dark conclusions.
* RapeByProxy: That said, Cazador forcing him to sleep with his marks qualifies as one-sided rape by proxy.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: Has bright red eyes and a (mostly) pitch-black heart. Whatever colour they were before he was a vampire is left to headcanon, as Astarion himself doesn't even remember.
* ReducedToRatburgers: One of the many ways Cazador degraded his spawn was forcing them to feed on rats and other pests. Now that he's free, Astarion relishes the chance to feed on higher creatures.
* {{Revenge}}: Aside from learning how to control the tadpole, he intends to pay Cazador back ''several times over'' for everything he's done to him. He even admits that he wouldn't mind staying a vampire spawn forever if it meant he could kill him.
--->'''Magic Mirror:''' ... If you could see anything in me, what would it be?\\
'''Astarion:''' I'd see Cazador, my old master, burning in the sun.
* RomanticVampireBoy: As a vampire who can be romanced by a player of any race or gender, he fits this trope pretty well.
* SavedToEnslave: He vaguely remembers that Cazador saved him from death by turning him into a vampire spawn, and then spent the next 200 years subjecting him to unspeakable tortures. [[spoiler:An evil Dark Urge run can also inflict this to him again in the ending, even in a playthrough where you get Astarion to ascend.]]
* ScrewTheRulesIHaveSupernaturalPowers: Somehow, the tadpole in his head is overpowering some of the typical vampire weaknesses. As the PlayerCharacter, his curiosity about how far its power goes can drive him to try feeding on "thinking creatures," namely the rest of the group.
* SexualEuphemism: Occasionally uses "little death" to refer to orgasm.
-->'''Astarion:''' Just you and me and -- well, maybe a little death. Figuratively speaking.
* SoLongAndThanksForAllTheGear: As a further consequence of selling him out, whatever he's wearing or carrying is lost with him.
* SophisticatedAsHell: Astarion is pretty witty like a learned noble, but he's not above occasionally mixing it with "fuck" and "shit" and other crude words that he seldom uses, often for emphasis.
* StatusBuff: Aside from recovering HitPoints, his Vampire Bite also grants him the "Happy" status effect, which gives him +1 to attack rolls, saving throws, and ability checks until the next long rest.
* StepfordSmiler: Crossed with StepfordSnarker: In Early Access, the morning after your party's first parasite dream, Astarion seemed in the best mood of all of you, cheerfully talking about how much better he feels and how "enticing" the dream was. [[spoiler:If you passed first an Insight and then a Persuasion check, he'd admit that it was actually a nightmare of being with Cazador again... And then snap at you if you try to reach out to him.]] If he can't deflect by pretending nothing's wrong, he'll deflect with cruel words. He's pretty much more of a StepfordSnarker in the full release, covering his vulnerability with cattiness. He's also occasionally a StepfordSmiler at times when trying to stay at your good side. You can even point out to him after an Insight check that his smile is a tad too composed. In an Origin playthrough as Astarion, one of his options in his nightmare include trying to appease Cazador and trying to smile is described as one of his go-to responses to situations like this.
* TokenEvilTeammate: The most outwardly callous and purely selfish of the Origin characters, his taste for bloodshed and conflict surpassed only by BloodKnight Lae'zel. He's out for himself first and foremost and makes no bones about it, being sour and abrasive to the party for most of the game and having no qualms with killing whatever is in his way. He can show a softer side if the player appeals to him properly (or plays as him), but he's also the only Origin character (other than the player themselves) that can dive headlong into purely self-serving villainy after his character arc.
* TookALevelInKindness: If the player character consistently makes kind or altruistic decisions and manages to keep a friendship or relationship going with Asterion, he'll gradually start approving of more and more altruistic decisions himself, albeit while [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold being as abrasive as possible to keep his mask up]].
* TraumaInducedAmnesia: If asked about his life pre-vampirism, he admits that he doesn't remember most of it and chalks it up to having been tortured for about 200 years straight. All he can tell you for sure is that he was a magistrate, he was attacked by a group of Gur nomads one night after making some legal decision they disagreed with, and he would have died right there had Cazador not chased them off and offered him "eternal life."
* {{Troll}}: Implied, as he approves of actions like throwing dung at goblin sentries or walking in on an ogre and a bugbear having sex. He'll even ask to be the one to open the door for that last one.
* UngratefulBastard: Should you [[spoiler:kill Cazador without him in the party, Astarion can chew you out for it because he didn't just want to be free, he wanted to be as powerful as his late master and you took that away from him. You can call him out on his lack of gratitude for you putting your life on the line for his sake, but it'll only get you more scorn and mockery. Subverted if you Persuaded Astarion from his ambition of a takeover. He'll remark that it was likely for the best because he can see himself becoming like his abuser if he wasn't prevented from performing the ritual. He still would've preferred being present in the confrontation and enacting vengeance, though.]]
* UpperClassTwit:
** Astarion claims he was a magistrate back in Baldur's Gate when we first meet him. [[note]]You can check certain instances of this if you play as him being your Origin character and can even say to Wyll that he would've spotted loopholes in his contract due to his past career before he first died and converted to vampirism.[[/note]]
** He starts out wearing an expensive-looking padded armor [[note]]In Early Access that padded armor had a -1 penalty to stealth rolls despite Astarion's default class being rogue, but the penalty was entirely removed in the full version of the game along with visually upgrading the padded doubled from brown and white to the red and blue outfit seen on the game's cover art[[/note]]. Subverted in that during late Early Access the description of his clothes stated that Astarion had embroidered his shirt with poetry and his underpants with a cheeky joke. After Launch, the description of his clothes was updated however to state his doublet, shirt, trousers and boots were clearly old and threatening to fall apart, the gold thread on the padded armor threadbare, but that it was apparent Astarion had carefully mended his clothes many times in an effort to still look good. [[note]]Implying these clothes are the only things Astarion owns and they might have been looted from young noblemen he seduced in those 200 years. Clearly Cazador doesn't even bother to give his spawn clothes despite the player being able to find many expensive outfits in Cazador's personal bedroom.[[/note]]
** On the first night of camping in the woods Astarion remarks that he is not used to "curling up in the dirt" and that he is used to spending his nights in the crowded streets and bustling taverns of Baldur's Gate. This might, however, just be Astarion playing the role of a noble he presented himself as to the player character, as we later discover that he spent the past 200 years being locked up in a literal "kennel" like a dog when he wasn't sent out to seduce and lure victims to Cazador's palace... the only time he was allowed to use a luxurious bed to "entertain the guest" until Cazador arrived to feed on the victim.
** That said, he's also a vampire spawn and clearly competent in a fight -- his first action upon meeting the player is to (at least try to) trick them into turning their back on him and then interrogate them with a knife at their throat because he makes the same mistake as Lae'zel and thinks the player character might be a servant thrall of the mind flayers who abducted him.
* VampireHickey: He still has the puncture wounds from when Cazador turned him, though the high lace collar on his starting armor partially obscures the scars. He additionally leaves one on the neck his love interest, if the player allows him to bite them during his Act 1 sex scene.
* VampiresAreSexGods: While the circumstances in which he acquired his skills are [[DarkAndTroubledPast extremely grim]], the fact remains that he's an incredibly pretty man with centuries of experience in the art of seduction, and he routinely gets rave reviews from his partners. Lae'zel is particularly impressed if neither of them are romanced and she enters a friends-with-benefits relationship with him.
** He directly invokes this trope, if unromanced and after defending him from a Drow in Moonlight Towers who is HemoErotic, ruefully commenting that "there's nothing more diserable in the world than a vampire".
* VegetarianVampire: PlayedWith. He really has never killed someone just to feed on them, but [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5U7cWMyz3I that's mostly because Cazador forbade him]]. Even then, he still initially sticks to animals after being freed, and only feeds on hostile enemies (and you, if you're willing) if/after you agree to let him expand his diet. He can choose to keep this up if he refuses to feed on his teammates as the PlayerCharacter, but then it's implied that he's so conditioned by Cazador's torture that he just doesn't have it in him to break his rules even now that he's free. Feeding on intelligent sapient creatures remove the muddiness in his mind compared to just feeding on animals.
* WhatTheHellHero: A romanced Astarion can deliver a scathing one to the player character after the encounter with Araj Oblodra. [[spoiler:If the player defended him, Astarion may share the uncharacteristically vulnerable admission that he's grateful as Cazador never permitted him to say no to the use of his body... to which the player can respond by pressuring him to show his "thanks" via sex, pushing past his attempts to refuse. If this happens, Astarion will go along with it, [[VideoGameCrueltyPunishment but the next morning he will permanently dump the player in absolute disgust, calling them out for being no better than his previous abusers]].]]
* WhiteHairBlackHeart: Has a mop of pale grey-white curls[[note]]Despite the most common hair color for High Elves in the Forgotten Realms setting being black, and during early Early Access Astarion's character model still had black strands in his pale hair.[[/note]] and, barring the occasional [[PetTheDog dog pat]], is not a nice guy. It turns into [[spoiler:a grey heart if you steer him right, though- still weary and cynical, but definitely more open to help others.]]
* WouldHurtAChild: Not that he has much of a choice given that he can't disobey his master. [[spoiler:You find some child Gur he kidnapped for Cazador in his dungeon. He'll claim that he didn't feel anything when he kidnapped them, but when confronted by seeing them imprisoned and called out behind bars, it's clear that he feels guilt and can help free them- either mercy killing them from remaining a potentially dangerous spawn or getting them back to their parents.]]
* WoundedGazelleGambit: Pulls a variation of one upon meeting the player character, claiming to need their help to kill an intellect devourer. Whether or not it works depends on your choice of dialogue and whether you pass or fail a perception check.
* {{Yandere}}: If you've romanced him [[spoiler:and fail to keep him from ascending]] he can develop these tendencies towards the end of the game.
-->'''Astarion:''' Don't be stupid, darling! You're ''mine.'' [[spoiler:The tadpole is gone]], which means your fate is mine to decide. How lucky you are that I chose you -- [[spoiler:chose you to help me take Baldur's Gate and sit by my side as I rule it.]] There's no backing out now. We'll be together ''forever''. I can promise you that.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Gale]]
!!Gale Dekarios
[[quoteright:695:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/gale2_9.png]]
[[caption-width-right:695:''[[GentlemanWizard Wizard Prodigy]]'']]
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Tim Downie

->''"There's a gust of Weave about you, but it's a mere breeze. I need a tempest."''\\\

->'''Race:''' Human\\
'''Class:''' Wizard\\
'''Background:''' Sage\\
'''Place of Origin:''' Waterdeep\\
\\

An unusually powerful human wizard from the City of Splendors, Gale's ambition and love for the goddess of magic Mystra drove him to seek out extremely powerful -- and volatile -- ancient magic. Now he faces not only the threat of ceremorphosis, but also a tangle of dark magic that will cause unfathomable destruction if it ever slips his tenuous control.
----
* AbandonmentInducedAnimosity: Although Gale is self-aware enough to understand why Mystra cut ties with him, deep down, he's still ''very'' angry and hurt to have been left to deal with the Netherese orb on his own. This explodes into a full-blown MotiveRant [[spoiler:after he finds a way to reforge the Crown of Karsus, in which he reveals he considers ''all'' gods to be contemptibly fickle and unworthy of the power they hold, and thus deserving to be challenged by mortals (namely, him).]]
* AesopAmnesia: Gale is openly ashamed of his prior actions, directly comparing it to Karsus' Folly and accepting that its consequences were a direct result of his own hubris. [[spoiler:Once Gale learns how to recreate the Crown of Karsus, his desperation to cure his affliction and resentment over Mystra seemingly abandoning him leads to him immediately scheming to recreate the crown himself and make himself a god. It's up to the player to either talk him down or encourage it.]]
* AmbiguouslyAbsentParent: Gale references his mother frequently and affectionately (to borderline MommasBoy levels) and carries her surname; mention of his father is noticeably nonexistent by contrast.
* AmbitionIsEvil: Gale's ambition goes hand-in-hand with his hubris, which led to his affliction with the Netherese orb. In one of his epilogue endings, [[spoiler:Gale accordingly can become the literal ''god'' of ambition if he takes the Crown of Karsus for himself. While he's not as obviously evil as certain other deities, he ''is'' a condescending, indifferent JerkassGod who embodies everything he once claimed to despise about how the gods treat mortals. Moreover, as the embodiment of ambition Gale will now never be able to stop trying to challenge other gods to elevate his own station, implying his fate is almost an IronicHell.]]
* AnArmAndALeg: A Dark Urge player can rip his arm off when he first asks for help in the opening area.
* AndThatLittleGirlWasMe: In Early Access, he explained his past with Mystra to you in the form of a "story". It was obvious from the get-go that he was talking about himself, which you could either point out -- and he admitted that it was easier for him to talk about it this way -- or play along with.
* AndThenWhat: Gale was fully ready to sacrifice himself to [[spoiler:take out the Absolute in Act 2, even if he deep down doesn't want to die]]. If he doesn't, he's at a loss for what to do now, as he still has the orb in him. That said, he realizes the [[spoiler:Absolute having the Crown of Karsus]] gives him an opportunity he doesn't want to pass up.
* AntiHero: Very [[DownplayedTrope downplayed]], if not outright [[AvertedTrope averted]]. While Gale has the typical Wizard's ego and has made plenty of mistakes in his quest to regain Mystra's favor, Gale is still a [[NiceGuy friendly and kindhearted man]] who consistently approves of heroic actions.
* TheArchmage: Gale was a powerful wizard in his own right before the Netherese orb and the tadpole, and one of the Chosen of Mystra, goddess of magic. Although he was a wizarding prodigy, [[spoiler:the Netherse orb in his chest consumed most of his own magical potential]]. However, [[LinearWarriorsQuadraticWizards as he levels up in the game he can reach those heights again if he remains a single-classed wizard]] up to [[{{Cap}} level 12]].
* BadassTeacher: [[spoiler:If Gale is convinced to give up on his desire for godhood and returns the Crown to Mystra, the epilogue shows him having become a teacher at Blackstaff Academy.]]
* BerserkButton: Gale values his mind and his privacy; thus, if the player attempts to use the tadpole to enter his thoughts without permission, it ''really'' pisses him off. Trying it too many times can make him angry enough to permanently leave the party.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Gale is friendly, cheeky, and approachable. He also approves of [[PayEvilUntoEvil slaying the goblins who make up the Absolute's cult]], casually threatens to incinerate Astarion if he puts a dagger to Tav's neck on first meeting, and delivered many a TotalPartyKill to aggressive players who attacked him in Early Access. [[spoiler:And that's before you get into the whole issue of him being a walking FantasticNuke.]]
* {{Bookworm}}: Befitting TheSmartGuy of the group, Gale LOVES books. A glimpse of his home in Waterdeep reveals it's overflowing with books, and a key part of his personal quest takes place in a bookshop (which he is beyond excited to finally reach). He also frequently invokes "something I read in a book" in his romantic arc to convey his developing feelings, including books that cover [[EroticLiterature spicier topics]]. Lastly, he freaks out and disapproves if the player attempts to destroy an ObviouslyEvil tome found in the Blighted Village, specifically aghast that you are harming a ''book.''
* ChildProdigy: Gale was profoundly gifted with magic from childhood. Although much like a FormerChildStar, he's fallen ''hard'' from his glory days and isn't dealing with it as well as he might outwardly let on.
* TheChosenOne: Gale is a ''prodigious'' wizard, to the point that the goddess of magic, Mystra, briefly took him as a paramour. She cut all ties with him after he made almost the same mistake that drove Netheril into ruin and got that orb stuck in his chest.
* CloseToHome: Gale will rant at ''length'' about his disgust with Kagha's treatment of Arabella. When he remarks bitterly on how youthful folly doesn't deserve such harsh punishment, it's clear he's also talking about his own past.
* ComicalOverreacting: His disgusted freakout at spider-licking is most infamous, but Gale also isn't above "jokingly" threatening to [[FantasticNuke blow himself up]] in response to more mundane annoyances. For example, this gem if he's pushed to go onstage with Dribbles the Clown:
-->'''Gale:''' You truly are testing the patience of a man who could level a city if he wished, you know.
* ComplexityAddiction: The PlayerCharacter can accuse him of this with his resurrection protocol. Gale retorts that it's necessary to get people interested.
* CovertPervert: In contrast to his otherwise bookishly oblivious demeanor, Gale does drop a few lines indicating a particular enthusiasm for (giving) oral sex.
* CrazyPrepared: If he dies within the first two in-game days, he'll have a magical projection prepared that will guide you through a process to revive him.
* CutscenePowerToTheMax: [[spoiler:Should Gale proceed with a suicide attack against the Netherbrain in Act 3, he will magically transport the rest of the party to a safe distance, an action otherwise unavailable in gameplay.]] Averted with the Netherese Orb itself, which at a certain point ''can'' be triggered from the regular actions menu.
* DarkSecret: He's got both a mind flayer parasite in his head ''and'' a FantasticNuke leftover from the fall of Netheril in his chest that will explode -- and take most of the Sword Coast with it -- if not regularly "fed". His reaction to {{Friendship Moment}} below implies that revealing that last one has already burned a bridge or two.
* DeaderThanDead: [[spoiler: Using the Netherese Orb annihilates him so thoroughly that in the epilogue, his recorded message tells you that not even his usual methods for reviving himself can work, as no traces of his physical or spiritual essence can be found anymore. His magical projection will also say the same thing if he attempted to usurp Mystra and got desintegrated for it.]]
* DeadpanSnarker: He's quick to joke and tries to keep things light, despite being very aware of how precarious your -- and his -- situation is.
* DealWithTheDevil: He's the most open to making a deal with Raphael of the group. [[spoiler:If the protagonist doesn't help him find magical artifacts to feed on, he'll make one behind their back. But in later acts, once it becomes clear that Raphael wants the party to deliver the Crown of Karsus that's sitting atop the elder brain to him, he would strongly discourage the player character from accepting his deal as he also wants to lay claim to the Netherese artifact, regardless if he intends to return it to Mystra or to keep it for himself to become a god.]]
* DeathSeeker: [[spoiler:When Elminster informs him of Mystra tasking him to use his orb to destroy the Absolute, Gale is remarkably resigned to the mission and will go through with it unless convinced otherwise.]]
* DeconstructedCharacterArchetype: Unlike most high intelligence, low wisdom characters, with Gale it is not PlayedForLaughs. For one thing it has led to some costly mistakes, ones that you would only make if you were exceptionally skilled at magic and very unwise in its use. [[spoiler:He has a magical nuke in his chest that threatens to destroy him and much of the Sword Coast unless he does some very particular and risky things]]. And then there is the fact he can suffer some AesopAmnesia [[spoiler:and attempt the same experiment that led to said magical nuke being in his chest]]. Unless the player helps remind him of his past mistakes, he'll make them all over again without realizing it.
* DeityOfHumanOrigin: [[spoiler:If Gale was able to reforge the Crown of Karsus after defeating the Netherbrain and keeps it for himself, he would end up using it to ascend to godhood as the god of Ambition. In the epilogue, he states that in the months that have passed since the Absolute's downfall, there have already been a number of temples and shrines built in his name all across Faerûn.]]
* DestructoNookie: Out of fear of this, a romanced Gale will indicate that sex is off the table in Act 1, as too much "excitement" might destabilize the orb. Once the orb is temporarily stabilized in Act 2, however...
* DivineDate: Mystra, the goddess of magic. Although considering Mystra’s history and the fact that Gale himself says he first met her when he was a child, there are some disturbing implications there even beyond the inherent power imbalance.
* DoNotTauntCthulhu: [[spoiler:One truly ambitious choice Gale can go with on ascending to divinity, is to try and ''usurp Mystra'' as the God of Magic. It results in him being swiftly destroyed by the far older and more powerful goddess.]]
* DyingAlone: He mentions that if he can’t find a way to disable the Netherese bomb, he’ll go to some far-off corner of Faerûn or the Underdark to ensure few-to-no others die in the blast.
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Like Wyll (although not to the same extent), he has an example within the same game. He's subjected to becoming noticeably weaker during his introduction compared to how he was in early access, as he gets trapped in the portal he created to escape the crashing Nautiloid and requires the PlayerCharacter to rescue him. His romance arc was also overhauled to have him be ''far'' more up front about his orb issue, rather than holding back until after you've potentially already slept together, and to push physical intimacy much further down the timeline (originally, you could sleep with him at the party; now Tav and Gale won't get it on until Act 2). In general, his ManipulativeBastard tendencies are mostly absent or toned down.
* FaceDeathWithDignity: [[spoiler:Should Gale go through with his suicide attack in Act 3, he will greet the Netherbrain with the utmost calm and decorum, even ''politely introducing himself'' before nuking it and himself into oblivion.]]
* FantasticNuke: Gale has not one, but ''two'' unwelcome guests in his body: in addition to the mind flayer tadpole, he also has a Netherese Destruction Orb in his chest capable of wiping out a city -- and given that he's still worried about collateral damage even out in the middle of nowhere where the game begins, probably a lot more. [[spoiler:He can do this in either the climax of Act 2 or Act 3.]]
* {{Foreshadowing}}: One of the few non-evil actions Gale disapproves of (and may outright scold the player for) in Act 1 is [[spoiler:attempting to destroy the Necromancy of Thay]], hinting that he hasn't fully mastered the temptation that dangerous magical items represent.
* FriendlessBackground: While Gale is perfectly sociable, he struggles to make actual friendships. He admits that after his fall from grace with Mystra, almost no one came to visit him, let alone helped him.
* FriendshipMoment: Can have one with the PlayerCharacter if they affirm that they’ll stand by him and help him get rid of the orb. His tone makes it clear how grateful he is to finally have an ally after dealing with it alone for so long.
* GeniusBurnout: The Netherese orb induced this most directly. However, there are implications that even aside from that, Gale has invested so heavily in living up to his potential that he's neglected almost every other area of his life and is secretly miserable for it. He has little sense of his own identity outside of being a great wizard, has no real friends other than Tara, and shows signs of near-suicidal depression. In the extended epilogue, [[spoiler:the strongly implied happiest ending for Gale is settling into a humbler, more balanced life as a professor at Blackstaff Academy.]]
* GentlemanAndAScholar: On top of being a GentlemanWizard, he's also a brilliant scholar, a [[SharpDressedMan dapper]] and genial wine connoisseur, amateur poet, and KindheartedCatLover.
* GibberishOfLove: Gale's SesquipedalianLoquaciousness can run away with him ''very'' awkwardly in his attempts to convey his attraction toward his love interest.
* HeroicNeutral: At the time of his abduction, Gale had spent a year in seclusion and was far more preoccupied with managing his condition than with any active heroics (and was ready to die in some far-off corner of the world if he could no longer manage). Getting tadpoled forces him into conflict against the Absolute, making him a spectacularly bad choice of abductee given his [[FantasticNuke unique ability]] to bring them down.
* HeroicSuicide: Mystra comes up with a way for Gale to fix his orb problem and the Absolute problem in one go: she sends him a charm (via Elminster) that will hold back the orb's power until he chooses to blow it up, with the intent being that he find the Elder Brain and suicide-bomb it to dust.
* HiddenDepths:
** If he looks into the MagicMirror in the Blighted Village, it will show that despite [[TooCleverByHalf "Gale's Folly"]], he still dreams of [[GodhoodSeeker becoming a god in his own right]]. He also shows surprising malice in his desire to see his rivals humbled, and some {{Yandere}} leanings in wanting to create a safe haven for him and his sweetheart. Just the two of them. Alone. '''Forever'''.
** Certain dialogue options can reveal that despite his generally upbeat demeanor, [[spoiler:he genuinely believes the world would be better off if he were dead.]]
** [[spoiler:He takes Mystra's demand that he sacrifice himself surprisingly well. Noting that it offers him redemption, and that knowing when he'll die removes the uncertainty and gives him peace.]]
* HistoryRepeats: He recounts Karsus's Folly -- when the ancient Netherese archmage Karsus destroyed his empire by [[GodhoodSeeker trying to usurp the power of the goddess Mystryl]] -- and draws a direct parallel to his own situation, calling it Gale's Folly. While Gale wanted to ''restore'' the power his goddess[[note]]known then as Mystryl, now as Mystra[[/note]] lost , he admits that the damage he might still cause for it makes the distinction academic at best. [[spoiler:If you push him towards claiming the Crown of Karsus for himself instead of delivering it to Mystra as ordered, the ending strongly implies that he'll end up retreading Karsus' path to ruin, thus truly repeating history.]]
* HomeSweetHome: Gale ''really'' wants to go home to his tower in Waterdeep and curl up with his books, his tressym, his wine, and (if applicable) his love interest. Come the PlayableEpilogue, [[spoiler:if he survives and remains mortal, his default ending is to do exactly that, becoming a happily RetiredBadass professor.]]
* HowTheMightyHaveFallen: Once a wizard of such skill he was TheChosenOne and lover of the deity of magic, Gale lost it all after a catastrophic overreach. Lorroakan states the trope almost word-for-word when snarking at Gale.
* HypocriticalHeartwarming: Gale himself may be utterly exasperated with Elminster, but should the ''player'' character tell Elminster to "hit that country road," Gale will be outraged.
* InferioritySuperiorityComplex: Underneath his intellect and ego, Gale is quite lonely and insecure; he clings to his status as a great wizard precisely because it's his main (if not only) source of self-worth. This becomes particularly apparent if he is chosen as a romantic option. [[spoiler:All of his attempts to flirt with or impress you involve showing off with the Weave; and if you comment that you value him as a person rather than for his abilities, Gale is genuinely taken off guard, as if that possibility had never before occurred to him.]]
* InsufferableGenius: Like all great wizards, Gale has an ego to the point of [[TooCleverByHalf hubris]], and frequently boasts about his intelligence and skill. The player character can tolerate this or call him out on it.
* IntelligenceEqualsIsolation: A subtle variation on the trope; while Gale is friendly and kind, he also reveals that while he's had numerous acquaintances, he has almost no real ''friends''.
* KindheartedCatLover: When describing himself, he brings up the fact that he has a cat as a point in his favor. He also mentions that as a child, his parents wouldn't let him have a kitten, so he conjured a [[https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Tressym tressym]], which he fondly recalls by name as a "beautiful creature". And, as noted under NiceGuy below, he is a generally decent fellow who prefers to follow a morally good Tav and objects to evil actions like razing Silvanus' Grove.
* KilledOffForReal:
** [[spoiler:If the player fails all of their rolls to rescue him from the portal, it is implied Gale remains stuck there until he finally explodes and dies.]]
** [[spoiler: If he detonates the Orb in the final battle to stop the Netherbrain, a projection of him will appear at your camp in the epilogue, explaining that with both his physical form and soul completely erased from the mortal plane, there's no way to bring him back.]]
* TheLastDance: Invoked by Gale himself as the reason he so readily accepts Mystra's charge. [[spoiler:The Netherese orb has been slowly destroying him for a long time; being given a clear end point with a purpose comes almost as a relief.]]
* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: Give him an order and he might wish for "the dice to roll in [his] favor", in a game that's all about rolling dice and hoping for favorable outcomes.
* LoveTriangle: Given how prominent his divine ex-lover Mystra is in his personal quest, this is touched upon if you choose to romance Gale. [[spoiler:However, this is ultimately subverted. It becomes ''very'' clear that Gale and Mystra's relationship was an unhealthy one that neither has any desire to rekindle.]]
* TheMagnificent: He admits that he goes by "Gale of Waterdeep" as he thinks it sounds more impressive than his given name. [[spoiler:In a romanced Gale's "good" ending, he reverts to "Gale Dekarios", admitting "Gale of Waterdeep" sounds pompous -- a sign that he's genuinely brought his ego under control.]]
* MasterOfIllusion: Gale makes heavy use of Illusion School spells in cutscenes, such as his death protocal, sending messages to others, or [[MundaneUtility checking his face]]. [[spoiler:If he becomes a professor at Blackstaff Academy, he specifically teaches a class on Illusion magic.]] Gale's use of magic in story and cutscenes all point to the Illusion School as his "canon" subclass.
* MerlinAndNimue: He was the Nimue to Mystra's Merlin. In a smaller scale repetition of the cycle, his romantic arc also begins with ''him'' in the Merlin role, giving you lessons on channeling the Weave.
* MundaneUtility: Early in Act 1, he can be seen at camp using a Mirror Image in lieu of an actual mirror to check his appearance.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone:
** If the player opted to sack Silvanus' Grove, Gale has an emotional breakdown afterwards, wracked by guilt for going along with you.
** In Act 3, Gale is ''horrified'' [[spoiler:if he is informed by Mystra the true nature of his affliction, that it is the Karsite Weave, and almost immediately backs down from his ambitions for the Crown of Karsus.]]
* NiceGuy: Overall decent despite his ego, and approves of selfless behavior from the party. He even states that the reason he trusts you is because you do things like defuse arguments and be nice to children. He's also the only companion who doesn't protest if the player chooses to break up with them, although he's clearly hurt.
* NoSell: If the player tries to use the tadpole to push into Gale's mind before he's ready to share, he can shut them out ''immediately'' thanks to his high mental defenses. He'll also be [[WhatTheHellHero furious]] at the attempt.
* NotSoDifferentRemark: When asked how he feels about having a vampire in their party, Gale acknowledges that he himself isn't exactly safe or convenient to keep around either and has no standing to judge.
* ObliviousToLove: Should the player envision something romantic during the Weave lesson, Gale will be taken by complete surprise (though not unpleasantly). His obliviousness is also hilariously shown if the player presents him with Halsin's proposition for a three-way.
-->'''Tav:''' How would you feel about adding a third person to our relationship?\\
'''Gale:''' What? Like a child? I'm not sure I'd consider myself father material...
* OldFashionedRowboatDate: A romanced Gale will conjure a magical version of this for a key conversation in Act 3.
* OneTrueLove: If romanced, this is very much Gale's mentality and approach. Emphasis on ''one'' -- of all romantic options, he is one of if not the most hardline monogamist and reacts poorly to even a hint his love interest doesn't feel the same way. With that said, he gives as much devotion as he expects in return, perhaps best demonstrated [[spoiler:in the ending where he proposes marriage. He will do so just as enthusiastically whether the player has become a mind flayer or not. If asked if he could really accept the player's illithid form, he seems perplexed as to why that would be an issue.]]. In the endings added with Wither's party, a romanced Gale that has [[spoiler: ascended to become the god of Ambiton]] will offer to bring the chosen avatar back with him and ups them to similar status in the process, simply because he loves them.
* OverratedAndUnderleveled: When you meet him, Gale introduces himself as a talented wizard and you later learn that he is gifted enough to have once been the chosen of the Goddess of Magic, Mystra. However, he starts off in the low-levels which doesn't back his claim.[[spoiler:It later turns out to be a Justified example. During a meeting with Mystra, Gale learns that the Netherese orb wasn't carrying her lost magic, but rather the remnant of Karsus' Weave from his brief moment of godhood. When he took in the orb, Gale's magical talent was the first thing it consumed, which explains his low levels at the beginning of the game.]]
* PowerIsSexy: In Act 2, a romanced Gale will (rather awkwardly) blurt out that he's ''extremely'' turned on watching you kick ass in battle.
* PowerPerversionPotential: His OptionalSexualEncounter can make ''full'' use of his abilities with the Weave, culminating in conjuring [[SelfDuplication multiple versions of himself]] to more thoroughly make love to his partner.
* PreClimaxClimax: Gale is spurred to consummate his romance (emotionally and physically) by [[spoiler:the realization that his HeroicSuicide may be very soon impending.]]
* PungeonMaster: Part of his death protocol involves playing four notes on a flute. The notes needed are [[BlackComedy D, E, A, and D]].
* TheProfessor: He'll likely serve as TheSmartGuy of the party by default, with a starting Intelligence score of 17, and has a tendency to [[MrExposition deliver information about Faerûn and the Weave]] as lengthy lectures, which the player can call him on. [[spoiler:In one of his possible endings in the Patch 5 epilogue, Gale has ''literally'' become a professor at Blackstaff Academy and is happily dedicated to his research.]]
* RealMenCook: Gale is the group chef and makes multiple references to his previous culinary endeavors, including making his own hundur sauce and sumptuous roasts.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: In the epilogue [[spoiler:if he returns the Crown to Mystra, he becomes this as a professor at Blackstaff. While he might gripe about his students, he says they're exceptionally bright and offers Tav[=/=]The Dark Urge to come with him to Blackstaff to help him with a new lesson. If the PlayerCharacter turned into a mind flayer and expresses worry that the students might not like them, Gale assures them and says he taught his students to be very open-minded]].
* TheResenter: While openly regretful of his actions and saying that Mystra casting him out was a justified punishment for them, [[spoiler:should he find the means to recreate the Crown of Karsus, he'll admit during his MotiveRant that he actually resents Mystra for abandoning him over what he considers a "youthful folly", and actually believes that the gods are fickle and unworthy of worship. Should the player talk him out of trying to go through with it, he'll admit that his desperation to cure his condition caused him to act rashly.]]
* RichesToRags: Gale joking describe the [[spoiler:the orb in his chest]] as "one of the most expensive hobby there is" and admits he was running out of magic items to feed [[spoiler:the Netherese contraption]] (by saying his tower had "never been free of so much clutter") to the point he was reduced to sending his familiar to steal some in the city, implying he had sold or used a great deal of his posessions by then.
* SadClown: He deeply regrets [[HistoryRepeats "Gale's Folly"]], but you'd never know it from how much of a wisecracker he is. You can call him on it after he rebuffs your initial attempts to get to know him with light-hearted humor.
* SenselessSacrifice: [[spoiler:Zig-zagged. Patch 5 updated the ending where Gale uses the orb but Raphael remains alive. If Gale uses the orb in the final battle, he succeeded in destroying the Absolute. However, the Crown of Karsus remains undamaged, [[TheBadGuyWins which allows Raphael to go and claim it for himself.]]]]
* SesquipedalianLoquaciousness: He flexes an impressive and needless vocabulary. He even lampshades it in one conversation when due to melancholy, his vocabulary is noticeably more grounded and he apologizes for not being the eloquent speaker that the player has gotten to known and possibly love.
* ShoutOutToShakespeare: Somewhat bizarrely, given that Shakespeare doesn't exist in Toril, Gale is fond of quoting him[[note]]though canonically -- if ''very'' rarely acknowledged after 2E -- people have gone between Toril and Earth, so it's not impossible that some of Shakespeare's works have ended up in the Forgotten Realms[[/note]]. One of his start-of-turn quips is [[Theatre/AMidsummerNightsDream Puck's "What fools these mortals be!"]], and if [[StopPokingMe clicked on enough]] he'll spout [[Theatre/AsYouLikeIt "All the world's a stage..."]] Despite the FridgeLogic, the habit is an effective way of characterizing Gale as [[GentlemanAndAScholar well-read]] and [[InsufferableGenius somewhat pretentious]].
* SmartPeoplePlayChess: There are a couple of instances within the game where Gale is shown to be well-versed in playing lanceboard (the Faerûnian version of chess):
** In Act 2, upon seeing Mol and Raphael playing lanceboard within the Last Light Inn, Gale can provide some suggestions for Mol to turn the tables against the devil and win the game.
** In Act 3, one of the trials within the Wyrmway requires the party to win a game of lanceboard in just two moves only. If allowed to, Gale can offer a solution for them to easily pass the trial.
* SociallyAwkwardHero: Although well-mannered, Gale is also stoic, introverted, and at times downright shy. It's played for laughs in that some of his attempts to socialize are amusingly awkward (such as his ramble about the player's "musk"). It's also played for drama, as it's implied his time as Mystra's chosen stunted him socially, and that at least some of his bluster is because being TheSmartGuy is the only way he knows how to connect with people.
* SquishyWizard:
** Very, ''very'' squishy. Gale has apparently died '' '''hundreds of thousands of times''' '' in early access, more than every other character (possibly combined). It doesn't help that the AI prioritizes attacking characters with the lowest armor class, and, in Early Access, he's the only party member who can only ever equip clothing. Downplayed in that he's actually pretty sturdy for a wizard: his Dexterity and Constitution are above-average, and his access to Abjuration magic and defensive spells like Mage Armor give him about the equivalent of "leather armor and a shield." He's also recruited at level 2, while the other characters are typically late level 1. Finally, the full release of the game gives humans and half-elves a racial trait (Civil Militia) that grants proficiency with light armor and shields.
** In a twisted bit of irony, he was also the enemy with the most [[TotalPartyKill Total Party Kills]] for a while in Early Access -- players often reacted aggressively to his sudden first appearance, and he'd wipe out the entire party with Burning Hands.
* TheStoic: Gale can use the tadpole connection to show the player ''exactly'' how awful the Netherese orb feels, something he's heretofore masked with easy humor. He accepts Mystra's suicide mission with similar outward ease, but a very high rapport player can get him to admit that he's actually terrified.
* TeamChef: Multiple ambient companion dialogues reference the fact that Gale is the one who prepares food for the group every night.
* TokenGoodTeammate: He's determined to ensure no one else suffers for his ambitions, and is looking for a way to control -- or preferably, defuse -- the powerful magic in his chest. [[spoiler:He, along with Wyll and Karlach, is unequivocally disgusted should you join the goblins in sacking Silvanus's Grove, though unlike those two he goes along with your actions and you can later talk him out of leaving.]]
* TooCleverByHalf: Gale's in the kind of pickle you can only get into by being extremely good at magic: Because he was strong enough to ''conjure'' Mystra's lost power, he assumed he was also strong enough to ''channel'' it. As FantasticNuke and WhyAmITicking can attest, he was not.
* UndyingLoyalty: Once Gale commits to a love interest, he ''commits''. He will happily remain with his love interest [[spoiler:even if they become mindflayer]]. The "undying" part is near-literal in fact; if a romanced Gale dies in combat and "Speak with Dead" is cast on his corpse, he indicates he will be waiting for his partner in the afterlife. As of Patch 5, after Wither's party if he became [[spoiler: The God of Ambition]] he'll also offer to do the same for the player, so they can remain together forever. If the offer is accepted [[spoiler: the player returns to Elyisum with him, ascending the player to godhood in the process]].
* UnequalRites: Gale usually [[AvertedTrope averts this]] by being respectful of other casters and acknowledging that forms of magic outside of his expertise are just as legitimate. However, if other casters try to prop up their form of magic as superior, Gale will respond in kind.
-->'''Sorcerer Tav:''' Bet that took hours of preparation. I can do it without thinking.\\
'''Gale:''' And I can pass water without thinking, but that hardly makes it magic.
* WhyAmITicking: The Netherese Destruction Orb in his chest will vaporize him and a large portion of everything around him if and when it goes off.
* VideoGameCrueltyPunishment: If you continuously disregard Gale's need to feed on magic items, [[spoiler:he will eventually announce that he found another solution to his predicament, and that he no longer needs your help. If you pass a skill check, you learn that his solution was to [[DealWithADevil make a deal with the cambion Raphael to remove the Netherese Destruction Orb from his body]]. Either way, he will leave your party afterwards, and he will never come back.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Karlach]]
!!Karlach Cliffgate
[[quoteright:521:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/521px_karlach.png]]
[[caption-width-right:521:''[[TheBerserker Fury of Avernus]]'']]
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Samantha Béart (Full Release), Shala Nyx (Early Access)

->''"Lately I have gotten used to being called the 'devil'."''\\\

->'''Race:''' Zariel Tiefling\\
'''Class:''' Barbarian\\
'''Background:''' Outlander\\
'''Place of Origin:''' Baldur's Gate\\
\\

A former champion of the archdevil Zariel and veteran of the Blood War, Karlach's battle history is written across her body in scars, burns, and tattoos, all serving to paint the picture of a legendary warrior filled with unyielding resilience. Having finally escaped from the Hells and the endless war between devils and demons, Karlach is determined to live her life to the fullest... And perhaps take revenge on the man who sold her to Zariel years ago.
----
* HundredPercentHeroismRating: Within the team itself at least, Karlach is the only origin member that is universally liked and admired by the rest of the team, and never falls into the insults or outright hostility some of the other members fall into. Even the conflict of her initial introduction is purely down to Wyll being misled as to who she truly is, something Karlach doesn't hold against him, and quickly bonds with Wyll if he spares her.
* AmbiguousSituation: [[spoiler:How much of Karlach remains if she becomes a mind flayer? Withers and Mystra claim that mind flayers have no spirits and thus it's possible that the 'Karlach' that comes after being transformed is just the parasite with her memories. She also acts differently, speaking with much more refined language and mannerisms. However, Withers refers to her still being the same person despite her transformation and, in a cut epilogue narration, states that her 'spirit singeth, even in thy form, so changed'.]]
* AffectionateNickname: Cheerfully refers to people she likes, mostly the PC, as "soldier".
* AmazonianBeauty: As befitting her barbarian class and a seasoned veteran, Karlach is tall and well-muscled and is depicted as attractive because of her strength. Shadowheart comments on how Karlach's arms look strong enough to carry her to safety should the need arise.
* AngerBornOfWorry: [[spoiler:If romanced, her reaction to Tav accepting a tryst with Mizora comes across like this. She doesn't mind having an open relationship, but a servant of Zariel is another matter. After her past experience, she doesn't the want the Hells to get their hooks into someone she cares about.]]
* AwesomeButImpractical: Her infernal engine is a hell of an asset for her in battle, but maintaining it and keeping it from killing her requires her to visit a mechanic. She's got nothing on Gale, though.
* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Zigzagged. Her body is heavily scarred and modified with infernal machinery, but her face is both conventionally attractive and free of any scarring. Put any armor other than her default outfit on her and you've got yourself one hells of an AmazonianBeauty tiefling.
* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: Gets a moment of this if you "[[GotVolunteered volunteer]]" her as Dribble's assistant; before going up on stage, she'll quip "This had better be violent or sexy or both." [[spoiler: It's the former, as it turns out Dribbles was replaced with a shapechanger who attacks whoever goes on stage.]]
* TheBerserker: Comes naturally with the barbarian class-- even moreso if specced into the [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Berserker subclass]].
* TheBigGuy: Tied with Lae'zel for the highest starting strength score in the party, and as a Barbarian she does the most damage and has the most HitPoints. She's also [[HeroicBuild tall and broad-shouldered]] enough to dwarf every companion except Halsin.
* BigRedDevil: She's a tiefling, so this comes with the territory. She's also one of the more fiery members of her kind, in no small part due to her infernal engine.
* BlueAndOrangeContrast: Her fiery aura is normally orange, but turns blue in moments of intimacy.
* BodyguardBetrayal: Inverted; [[spoiler:She was once Enver Gortash's bodyguard, who then sold her to Zariel]].
* BodyHorror: In addition to her downright gruesome scarring, she's got an overheating demonic engine for a heart that glows bright enough to silhouette her ribs against her skin.
* BolivianArmyEnding: [[spoiler:The game can end this way for Karlach if the player character and/or Wyll chooses to accompany her back to Avernus to prevent her infernal engine from killing her. Upon arrival, they are soon met with Zariel's forces determined to reclaim her and the adventurers charge towards their infernal foes.]]
** [[spoiler: Softened slightly with the epilogue, where the PC and Karlach return from Avernus for a night, showing that they can visit, and Karlach mentioning that they found blueprints for an upgrade that could allow Karlach to leave permanently. And their dialogue, both with each other and with other characters, shows that while their life isn't easy, they're happy with each other.]]
* BreakingTheFourthWall: During your second playthrough and beyond, she has a rare random conversation trigger to show you some "devil magic" interogation method which consists of a non-violent technique torturers use to gleaning the truth out of someone. If you agree to it she will ask a few test questions, finding it odd when the ability triggers when she asks and is given your player characters name, despite knowing the answer is right. She delves further into this, having a minor freakout as the weave of reality and the metaphysical opens up to her sight, seeing her reality as fixed lines of potential permutations mixed in with chaos. Cue her suddenly turning to look straight at the screen, at US and addressing us directly to ask about our nature, how many cycles of events have we gone through and then, after squashing down her existential crises, she asks us the most important question of all to her, ''Are you having fun?'' The entire scene is very non-sequitur but heartwarming and wholesome. At the end she goes back to addressing the group and player character, who is left very confused even after she shrugs it off.
* BruiserWithASoftCenter: Karlach is a tall, buff BloodKnight, but she's also friendly and pleasant to talk to. Her romance arc in particular shows her to be EndearinglyDorky about her feelings for the player character, with her practically ''shouting'' her LoveConfession out of enthusiasm before flusteredly admitting that she'd been dying to say it.
* BrutishCharacterBrutishWeapon: She starts out wielding a greataxe, which is, conveniently, the most mathematically effective weapon for a barbarian thanks to having the highest critical hit damage in the game when combined with their various CriticalHitClass bonuses.
* CantHaveSexEver: Her infernal engine makes her skin too hot for anyone to safely touch, making physical intimacy more-or-less impossible for her. Performing maintenence on it enables her to eventually overcome this. Even before this, temporary measures can allow moments of physical intimacy, but not long enough for this trope.
* CoveredWithScars: Her time fighting in the Blood War has left her covered in scars and burns, to the point that her right side is disfigured.
* CriticalHitClass: She's a barbarian, a melee class specialised in delivering gigantic critical hits. Brutal Critical increases the number of extra damage dice she rolls on a crit (particularly useful with greataxes like her starter weapon, which do [=1d12=] damage per hit and therefore benefit greatly from getting more [=d12s=] to roll), and Reckless Attack gives her advantage on attack rolls, increasing her odds of getting that magic natural 20.
** This also means Karlach benefits immensely from a three-level multiclass dip into [[CharlesAtlasSuperpower Champion Fighter]] for the signature ''Improved Critical Hit'' feature, which reduces the critical hit threshold by 1 and makes them happen quite a lot more often. It's fairly easy for the player to justify this dip in-story as well, given Karlach's obvious physical prowess.
* CuteMonsterGirl: She's an attractive tiefling, and has an upbeat personality.
* DeconstructedCharacterArchetype: Of ThePollyanna. Karlach's cheerful BoisterousBruiser attitude wins her a lot of fans, but it doesn't stem from a place of genuine happiness but rather having no real other way to confront her trauma and her uniquely terrible situation. [[spoiler:When she is informed that the infernal heart in her chest is breaking down and means either a painful death or an inevitable return to Avernus, this facade cracks a bit and the vulnerable woman underneath appears.]] Her [[{{Manchild}} "big kid" qualities]] also stem from a dark place, as Karlach is a young woman [[FridgeHorror in her early twenties who has spent well over a decade]] fighting some of the most vicious and destructive conflicts imaginable.
* DemonSlaying: She is known for slaying countless demons back when she was serving Zariel in the Blood War.
* DesecratingTheDead: Should the player kill her on behalf of the "Paladins of Tyr", they will cut her head off and present it to them as proof of the deed. The sight of Karlach's severed head is particularly grisly.
* DesperatelyCravesAffection: Her Infernal Engine runs so hot that she cannot touch anyone for fear of accidentally burning them. Her personal quest involves finding a means to cool her engine down enough so that she can be close with others without fear of harming them. [[spoiler:The first time an Infernal Iron is installed to cool her down, she can manage to get a quick kiss in: while she's still too hot for anything more, just that much is enough to elate her after being touch-starved for so long. Installing the second Infernal Iron will finally cool her down enough that she can hug you, and if you pursue a romance with her, make love with her, such that as far as she's concerned, it makes the fact that her engine would still eventually kill her if she doesn't return to Avernus WorthIt.]]
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Much like Wyll, in that the early installment is an early access version of the game rather than a previous title. Karlach started not as a companion, but as a far more generic tiefling in a one shot quest, albeit one that ended with the implication she'd re-appear later as a major character. She had no ties to Wyll. She had a different voice actress, and was far more hostile and standoffish - far more the stereotypical personality one might expect from one fleeing hell, rather than the upbeat, friendly, BigFun person she is on release. She gained her distinctive face later in early access, hinting that her character would play a major role and might be a late-game companion, though she still wasn't the joyous flaming barbarian she'd become until release. The decision to make her both a companion and an origin character was done fairly late in development which is why she's absent from a lot of the promotional materials. Even Minsc and Jaheira, who join much later in the game than she does, appeared in trailers before she did.
* EasilyForgiven: She holds no grudge against Wyll for his repeated attempts to kill her once he realizes that she isn't a devil but a tiefling who was forced into working for devils. Particularly after [[spoiler:he defies his demonic patron for her, causing him to be turned into a half-fiend.]] In fact, if [[spoiler:you kill Mizora, which causes Wyll to be taken to hell where he will be turned into a flesh blob to suffer for all eternity]], she will ''absolutely'' lay into you, yelling at you for what you've done.
* FaceOfAThug: Look at her profile picture, then back at her list of tropes. Yes, the huge, terrifying BigRedDevil berserker who's StillWearingTheOldColors from her time in TheLegionsOfHell is a charming NiceGirl and a steadfast hero. Don't worry, the other characters are just as surprised as you are.
* FashionableAsymmetry: Her entire character design is built around this, from her lopsided undercut to her shattered right horn and her default outfits. Considering most other companions have a largely symmetrical design, it serves to highlight both her free spirit and her long departure from civilized life.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: She has one of the lowest charisma stats among the party members, but she is highly charismatic in-game; she's naturally friendly, outgoing and fun-loving. She is the only party member that every other member likes.
* GirlsLoveStuffedAnimals: She keeps a teddy bear called Clive in her tent.
* GoodCannotComprehendEvil: [[spoiler:If you accept Gortash's deal in Act 3, and tell Karlach that you genuinely trust him, she's utterly baffled by this, as she can't comprehend how a man who's already betrayed her once could possibly keep his word. This contrasts her with the Emperor, who was also screwed over by Gortash, but realizes that his offer is sincere, and thus encourages you to accept it. This is averted in the case of the Dark Urge, however, as she showcases a remarkable degree of loyalty and patience if they are open about their ugly impulses. Furthermore, Karlach can end up mending her rift with Gortash if played as an avatar, as Gortash will make the same offer of an alliance to her, and if she accepts it, he will commend her for finally understanding his point of view.]]
* TheHeart: Her kindness and fun-loving nature easily wins her the affection of the whole party, even TokenEvilTeammate like Astarion, Lae'zel and Minthara appreciate her presence.
* HellishPupils: Comes with being a tiefling. Her eyes are a blazing orange and have slit pupils like a snake's.
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:A non lethal variety, but if you have her in the party when your free Orpheus, she'll volunteer herself to become a mind flayer and wield the netherstones, arguing that both Orpheus and the player have much to live for, while she's about to die at any moment. The transformation prevents the infernal engine from killing her, but it's explicitly stated in the game that ceremorphosis destroys the soul, and it's unclear if the transformed creature can be considered the original person or an evolved version of the tadpole with the host's memories and personality. At best, this can be considered a slow death of personality for her as even free mind flayers are doomed to lose their more human traits; even by the end of the game she stops returning affection with a romanced MC like she used to.]].
* IDieFree: [[spoiler:She would rather die in the upcoming days from her Infernal Engine melting than return to Avernus for another minute. The Party is much more concerned about her dying than she is, but Karlach makes it clear that fighting for Zariel is something she hated, and wants nothing more than to be free from.]]
* IncendiaryExponent: A side effect of her infernal heart is her entire body constantly being engulfed in flames. Unfortunately for her it's useless in combat while being just hot enough to make physical contact with friendlies impossible.
* TheKnightsWhoSaySquee: Karlach is this towards Jaheira and Minsc, having heard of their heroic exploits from the past century while growing up in Baldur's Gate and is now elated to have met the legendary heroes in person.
* TheLadette: Karlach is blunt, to the point, nearly impossible to disgust, and like any self-respecting barbarian, can drink copious amounts of alcohol -- and even more questionable substances -- with virtually no ill effects.
* LadySwearsALot: Is easily the most foul-mouthed of all the potential companions.
* LastGirlWins: Should you choose to romance her, as she's the last female Origin character you meet.
* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: Casually mentions how she has an infernal engine for a heart, much to the bafflement and shock of the PlayerCharacter. When they attempt to ask her how she got it, she drops this gem:
-->'''Karlach:''' But it's a bit early in the game to be getting into tragic backstories.
* MamaBear: Develops this attitude toward the rest of the party and becomes fiercely protective of them.
* MercyKill: [[spoiler:If she becomes a mind flayer, she'll mention during the PlayableEpilogue that she's maintained her [[BrainFood new diet]] by making an arrangement with a healer; if a patient is beyond help, they're given the choice of a quick death at Karlach's jaws instead of waiting to die naturally with nothing but pain to look forward to.]]
* MyBloodRunsHot: Should Astarion bite her and suck her blood, he'll immediately start burning.
* NayTheist: Not a lot of attention is drawn to it, but Karlach's dialogue implies that she doesn't worship any god, likely due to her experiences. She even states that her likely fate after dying is wandering eternally in the Fugue Plane before eventually ceasing to exist altogether.
* NeverGoingBackToPrison: When Zariel sends some underlings disguised as paladins in service to Tyr to drag her back to Avernus, she makes it unequivacally clear that she is, to quote her directly, "'''''[[PunctuatedForEmphasis NEVER! GOING! BACK!]]'''''" [[spoiler:Potentially subverted late in the game, as even with some help from Dammon to craft some insulation for her Infernal Engine, it simply cannot operate outside of Avernus without eventually melting down and killing her painfully from the inside out. It's possible to convince her to return to Avernus as a matter of survival, though she needn't go alone: either Tav or Wyll can accompany her and ensure that she at least has a [[TrueCompanions True Companion]] at her side to greet the legions of Avernus. Also, an additional scene added in patch 5 for the game suggests that [[RayOfHopeEnding there may be a way to permanently fix her engine]], if she and a companion can pull off a heist in Avernus.]]
* NiceGirl: UnstoppableRage and LadySwearsALot tendencies aside, Karlach is one of the kindest and most genuinely good-hearted of the Origin companions, and consistently approves of heroic actions.
* OneHeadTaller: Than any character that doesn't have the Large body type she has. It makes her even more imposing than her hellish looks already do, plus it looks plain adorable whenever she kisses an average-sized character, not to mention a gnome or dwarf.
* OverratedAndUnderleveled: For a soldier with ten years of experience in [[GreatOffscreenWar the Blood War]] to the point she became The RoyalFavorite of Zariel, Karlach really shouldn't start the adventure at level 1. The explanation that her infernal engine is malfunctioning outside of Avernus at least mitigates this, but still.
* PlayingWithFire: Thanks to the infernal engine she has for a heart.
* PowerfulButInaccurate: An unusually optimal playstyle for her. Barbarians benefit more than any other class from the Great Weapon Mastery feat, which lets them choose to significantly reduce their chance to hit in order to greatly increase their damage and also grants bonus attacks for scoring critical hits or killing enemies. Barbarians are a CriticalHitClass with Reckless Attack, which lets them re-roll misses at the expense of giving enemies Advantage against them, which means that Karlach can benefit greatly from the feat's advantages while mitigating its weaknesses in a way that Lae'zel or Minthara (your other NPC great weapon users) couldn't.
* PercussiveTherapy: After the party takes out the [[spoiler:so-called]] Paladins of Tyr who are hunting her, Karlach celebrates by going absolutely berserk on the tollhouse, smashing furniture and walls to pieces while screaming and setting the place on fire. A tooltip mentions that she's releasing "ten years of pent-up frustration", and she seems much happier after she calms down.
* PromotedToPlayable: During early access she was initially just an NPC encounter, but she was so well received that come the official release she was completely reworked to a playable Origin character/companion.
* ThePollyanna: Downplayed, as she is genuinely TheBerserker and sweary, but when calm, Karlach is extremely optimistic, sweet-natured, and friendly.
* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver: Inverted; Karlach is one of the two companions in your camp that's clearly on the good side and she has a red and black color scheme. She can be a counterpart to the default form of Dark Urge's WhiteAndRedAndEerieAllOver this way, especially on an evil run on your part.
* RedBaron: Although mostly used in promotional material, you really shouldn't mess with someone called the Fury of [[{{Hell}} Avernus]].
* RoyalFavorite: Zariel treated her with favoritism, which puzzled many, including Karlach herself, since as far as they know Karlach isn't special. Karlach suspects that jealousy of this favoritism is why Mizora detests her so much.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: [[spoiler:If you side with the goblins and kill the refugees and druids for them, Karlach will leave the party. You cannot prevent her from leaving if you do this.]]
* SoldierVsWarrior: She's the Warrior to Lae'zel's Soldier, having a comparatively relaxed demeanor and a less polished fighting style that focuses on aggression over technique. Unusually, they get along pretty well.
* StepfordSmiler: Behind her amicable, romantic personality is actually a deeply traumatized and scared woman. Considering her Infernal Engine could kill her if she gets too angry, it's implied she's had to force herself to look on the bright side of life lest she be reduced to ashes. [[spoiler:If you choose to kill Gortash with her present, the bottled up pain of his betrayal and the subsequent 10 years fighting in the Hells comes gushing out all at once.]]
* SquareRaceRoundClass: Downplayed, but as a tiefling she gets racial spellcasting ability (specifically the ability to cast to Smite spells that add extra damage to a melee attack) which clashes with her default class, Barbarian, who's main feature is the ability to Rage, which prevents spellcasting while it's active. Her other racial abilities, Darkvision and resistance to fire damage, are still perfectly useful, though.
* TinyGuyHugeGirl: She has the Large body type. Any player character that doesn't will be at least half a head shorter than her, forcing them to stand on their tiptoes and Karlach to bend down to them while sharing a kiss. Gnomes, dwarves and halflings barely reach up to her navel, taking the trope to its fantastic extreme.
* UnkemptBeauty: Exaggerated. She's a barbarian with years of service in TheLegionsOfHell, which means she's (a) an imposing AmazonianBeauty in her physical prime, and (b) the recipient of enough scars, mutations, and weird demonic prosthetics to stray into BodyHorror territory.
* UnstoppableRage: Aside from [[TheBerserker the usual]] for her class, she also unleashes ten years of pent-up rage on the nearby furniture after killing the [[spoiler:fake paladins]] who were tailing her.
* VegetarianVampire: [[spoiler:Becomes a mind flayer version of this if she undergoes ceremorphosis to save Baldur's Gate. Karlach will explain that she has an arrangement with a healer for the terminally ill, and approaches select patients when their situations deteriorate. Her new mind flayer powers ensure that she can painlessly euthanize them if they consent, and she retains much of their memories, becoming a kind of repository for all those she has devoured.]]
* VengeanceFeelsEmpty: [[spoiler:Despite being the one responsible for her heart being replaced by a machine that's killing her, killing Gortash brings her no satisfaction because at the end of the day it changes nothing about the fact that she's still living on borrowed time. She's actually a lot happier if she sees Gortash get one-shotted by the Absolute, which can ironically only happen if you allied with him despite her objections]].
* YouAreWorthHell: [[spoiler:The only way she can survive the end of the game (without turning into a mind flayer) is if she returns to Avernus after the final battle. Should she be convinced to do that, a romanced player and/or Wyll (if he renewed his pact with Mizora) can choose to come with her to keep her company and help protect her from Zariel's forces.]]
* YoungerThanTheyLook: Dialogue implies she was sold into infernal slavery well before she came of age, ten years before the events of the game, which would place Karlach in her early to mid-twenties, although her bulk and battle scars make her look quite a bit older.
* YourDaysAreNumbered: [[spoiler:The Infernal Engine that makes up her heart is too hot to function in the Prime Material Plane. It's slowly melting and the only way it can properly function is to return to Avernus. Karlach is perfectly fine with leaving it to melt as it means she dies free.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Lae'zel]]
!!Lae'zel
[[quoteright:439:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/439px_laezel.png]]
[[caption-width-right:439:''[[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Ferocious Warrior]]'']]
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Creator/DevoraWilde

->''"Who am I? Your only chance of survival. And you mine, though it pains me to say it."''\\\

->'''Race:''' Githyanki\\
'''Class:''' Fighter\\
'''Background:''' Soldier\\
'''Place of Origin:''' [[SpaceBase Crèche K'liir]] (a.k.a. Stardock)\\
\\

A fearsome githyanki warrior, considered ferocious even by her own people. Lae'zel now faces the prospect of becoming the very monster she's been raised to destroy.
----
* AntiHero: While La'zael may come across as ruthless and cruel, she's lawful neutral at worst. She never lures any people to their deaths, and she doesn't torture anyone. She's just guarded because she grew up in an evil cult and frankly came out of it much more well adjusted than, for example, Shadowheart. she's also not actively a murderer. In fact, she says she thinks [[EvenEvilHasStandards murder is pointless and bad]] if you play as the Dark Urge. On top of that, her character arc can culminate with her [[spoiler: either choosing to become her own person]] or [[spoiler: joining the fight to free Githyanki from Vlaakith's control.]]
* BabiesEverAfter: [[spoiler:If she still has the gith egg from Crèche Y'llek in her inventory at the end of the game, and turns against Vlaakith, the epilogue will reveal it has hatched. She names the resulting gith boy Xan, "freedom," and vows that he will have the freedom to choose his own path in life, either raising him herself if she remained in Faerûn or entrusting him to other followers of Orpheus if she went to war with Vlaakith in the Astral Plane.]]
* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: Play your cards right, and she can achieve [[spoiler:her lifelong ambition of becoming a dragon rider]], but it's a somber occasion. Either [[spoiler:Orpheus lives and grants her a dragon, but he's only alive because one of her friends sacrificed themselves to become a mind flayer or Gale sacrificed himself and set of the FantasticNuke in his chest]] or [[spoiler:Orpheus himself made the sacrifice, gave her his dragons as his dying wish, and now she has to become one of the spearheads of his rebellion.]] Either way, it's a very bittersweet victory.
* BestHerToBedHer: She's a firm believer that her mates have to be as strong or stronger than her, as per githyanki culture. The first time she hits on the player is because their strength turns her on. This comes up often during her romance [[spoiler:until she actually causes you injury when invoking it. She then utters a DeclarationOfProtection instead]].
-->'''Tav:''' My bruises still sting from our battle.\\
'''Lae'zel:''' Exquisite, isn't it? The pain is a mutual promise branded on our flesh and bone. Inside your every wound lives my obsession. Inside my every wound lives your passion.
* BetterToDieThanBeKilled: When [[spoiler:your party suffers their first brush with ceremorphosis]], Lae'zel decides that she would rather [[DyingAsYourself die as herself]] than be consumed -- and offers this same [[SarcasmMode mercy]] to the rest of you. The player can talk her down, but even then she insists that [[spoiler:if you haven't improved by morning,]] she ''will'' kill you all.
* {{BFS}}: Encouraged as a weapon for her via PlayerNudge. Greatswords are amongst the best weapons for fighters due to their high, consistent damage, and githyanki warriors are famous for their ornate silver greatswords (many of which you will be able to loot, and some of which have racially-exclusive bonuses). It's probably not a coincidence that her profile picture has her wielding one.
* BloodKnight: She greatly enjoys combat and bloodshed, as expected of a githyanki warrior. Her romance scene even starts with her lustfully recounting how many kills the player racked up [[spoiler:during the fight in the Goblin camp.]]
* BrutalHonesty: In a game filled with enigmatic companions who are keeping tons of secrets, she's notably the one who's most upfront with the player, even if her suggestions and opinions are often brutally harsh and/or morally reprehensible.
* ChildHater: She's the only companion who disapproves of saving the tiefling child Arabella. She has no sympathy for the githyanki youth who are killed during their training for being "weak", and she scornfully remarks, when asked about the differences between githyanki and human biology, that she couldn't imagine enjoying sex if she knew she risked getting ''pregnant'' from it.
* CulturalPosturing: Lae'zel believes that githyanki are simply ''better'' at everything than all other races, from warfare to statecraft to child-rearing. It gets particularly silly when she insists, [[TheComicallySerious completely earnestly]], that githyanki ''noses'' are superior to the "inelegant lumps of flesh" that other species have and takes umbrage at the description of githyanki as a "humanoid" species.
* DeconstructedCharacterArchetype: The ProudWarriorRaceGirl. The githyanki are a proud, dogmatic and fiercely militaristic and xenophobic race (effectively interdimensional fascists via HeWhoFightsMonsters), and Lae'zel is deeply invested into their culture... but by their standards she's practically a WideEyedIdealist. It comes to the point where Lae'zel actually begins to get cognitive dissonance when faced with the ever-increasing evidence that her fellow githyanki's "purification protocol" for ghaik infectees is [[MercyKill just murdering said infectee]], rather than doing anything to help. [[spoiler:Sure enough, they eventually fully turn on her]]. Lae'zel's obsession with her culture and inability to deal with how paradoxical it is end up making her look pretty pathetic, but there is an element of tragedy to it too. Lae'zel shows how cultures like these are far less stable and cohesive than they might appear, and that they breed individuals who struggle to think for themselves in spite of their incredible martial prowess.
* DefrostingIceQueen: Part of her romance arc involves this. She's initially hostile toward Shadowheart for a few reasons, such as being a non-gith [[spoiler:and stole a githyanki artifact]], but Lae'zel does warm up to her eventually. She's equal parts baffled and horrified when she sees how much Shar and her cult demand of Shadowheart and what it costs her, even though she's a devout follower. [[spoiler:If Shadowheart turns away from Shar and converts, Lae'zel becomes considerably more friendly with her.]]
* DeliberateValuesDissonance: Most githyanki are outsiders to the Material Plane, so Lae'zel is as unfamiliar with its customs and inhabitants as she is devoted to her own culture. For example, the devs mention that she'd be confused if you protested her sleeping with someone else if romanced, because the gith don't practice monogamy.
-->'''Wyll:''' Lae'zel, have you ever performed a good deed just for the sake of it?\\
'''Lae'zel:''' I have performed tasks well and efficiently. Is this what you mean?\\
'''Wyll:''' ...Not exactly. But you've answered my question.
* DoYouWantToCopulate: Lae'zel doesn't mince words when she's interested in a sexual partner. There's a reason sex speedruns were based around her character.
* DramaticIrony: If the player confronts Voss in Act 1 without Lae'zel in the party, she will remark that she is impressed you survived, as a lesser person would have been dead on the road after an encounter with her kin. [[spoiler:Should the player fail to recruit Lae'zel in Act 1, this is precisely her fate: she will be found dead on the road near the northwestern gate, having presumably been killed by her own kin.]]
* EvenEvilHasStandards:
** Like the rest of the companions, Lae'zel doesn't approve of [[spoiler:Mystra commanding Gale to [[HeroicSacrifice sacrifice himself by detonating the Netherese Orb to take out the Absolute.]]]] She even unfavorably compares her to [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen Vlaakith]], although [[DramaticIrony the comparison isn't too far off the mark]], given Vlaakith's [[WeHaveReserves attitude towards her "children".]]
** For all her problems and tensions with Shadowheart, Lae'zel expresses nothing but confusion and fear for her during the latter's personal quest, finding the lengths the Sharran priesthood go to test her unwarranted as even she can tell right off the bat Shadowheart has been nothing but a loyal follower of her goddess.
** If the PlayerCharacter is the Dark Urge and has been indulging their instincts, Lae'zel is one of the harshest voices of condemnation in the party about their behavior and warns them to keep their hunger in check.
* EvilVirtues: She's harsh, xenophobic, quick to violence, and fanatically dedicated to her people's inter-planar crusade. She's also loyal, honorable, and courageous to a fault.
* FantasticRacism: Towards all non-gith and quite overt about it. Though by githyanki standards, her willingness to work with other races and her apparent sincerity in seeking a cure for the entire party makes her remarkably inclusive.
* FireForgedFriends: With Shadowheart. The latter doesn't have the highest opinions of githyanki in general, and Lae'zel is suspicious and hostile of Shadowheart [[spoiler:because her artifact is a gith relic]]. Suffice to say, the two get into frequent arguments and will threaten to kill each other unless you get involved. That said, they do eventually soften up around each other, particularly after [[spoiler:Lae'zel realizes how Vlaakith is ''far'' from the ruler she expected her to be and Shadowheart is abandoned by Shar]].
* FirstGirlWins: Lae'zel is both the first companion you meet as well as the first ''female'' companion you meet. This trope goes into full effect if the player chooses to romance her.
* ForTheEvulz: If you [[spoiler:sell Astarion out to the monster hunter Cazador hired to track him down]], she calls you out for being selfish and shortsighted, since you need all the help you can get, but still approves of just how ''cruel'' it was nevertheless.
* HiddenDepths: If you dive into her thoughts, [[spoiler:you'll find that her greatest fear isn't actually turning -- it's ''insignificance''.]]
* {{Hypocrite}}: She's abrasive, and dismissive of everyone around her who isn't of use to her. She dislikes helping other, or being merciful. But whenever she's treated the same way she reacts poorly and assumes something must be wrong with whomever she's talking to, despite the fact that she'd do the exact same if the positions were reversed.
* InLoveWithYourCarnage: If the main character chooses to kill the goblin leaders, talking with her at the party that night will have her say that the main character stinks of blood, violence, and death and she is ''incredibly'' turned on by it. If the main character hasn't already committed to spending the night with someone else, she'll proposition them.
* IntroOnlyPointOfView: La'ezel features prominently in the game's opening cutscene and the prologue mission where you escape the Nautiloid, but unless you pick her as your Avatar, she won't be any more relevant to the overall plot than the other Origin companions. You can even play the rest of the game without properly recruiting her, or even after killing her partway.
* InferioritySuperiorityComplex: Lae'zel carries herself like a queen, exudes an aura equal parts confidence and arrogance, and clearly expects the rest of you to fall in line behind her. Even her name is "proud, regal even" according to Voss. [[spoiler:She's also terrified that she'll never accomplish anything in her life, to the point that it overshadows her fear of becoming a mind flayer.]]
* IRejectYourReality: Each time she is confronted with signs that githyanki society and her queen would kill her in an instant rather than save her, she dismisses it as whoever or whatever she's talking about being corrupted and someone up the hierarchy from them will clearly fix this. [[spoiler:The player can call her out on this after Vlaakith herself sicks her inquisitor on her and Lae'zel decides this must be a test for faith from Vlaakith. She can only reply she needs time to think this over]].
* {{Jerkass}}: Lae'zel disapproves of pretty much everything that doesn't involve removing the tadpole, which she will make ''excruciatingly'' clear to you. Loudly. And often.
* JoinOrDie: She gives the player this ultimatum when they meet after escaping the Nautiloid. This is no idle threat, either, as she ''will'' turn hostile toward the party once she's freed if they don't side against the tieflings harassing her.
* KilledOffForReal:
** [[spoiler:If you fail to talk down Lae'zel and Shadowheart during their confrontation over the artefact and they agree to duel at dawn, Shadowheart will slit Lae'zel's throat just before sunrise.]]
** This is also Lae'zel's fate if [[spoiler:the player never recruits her in Act I. A return to the first zone will reveal that she has evidently attempted to travel to the githyanki creche alone, as her bloodied corpse is found at the northwestern gate where the githyanki patrol is first encountered.]]
** [[spoiler:If Lae'zel remains loyal to her Queen, she ultimately ascends as she desires - meaning she's killed and her soul consumed by the Lich-Queen. In the epilogue, Withers will confirm this is what happened to her]].
* LightningBruiser: She can equip the heaviest armour and joint-heaviest weaponry of any Origin character, with only Minthara matching her amongst your recruitable [=NPCs=], and her githyanki psionics and the Action Surges she gets for being a fighter make her extremely mobile and extremely capable of dishing out absurd amounts of attacks in a single turn.
* LiteralMinded: Much of her banter tends to involve her taking statements at face-value due to lacking the understanding of what someone means. Demonstrated in this bit of party banter.
-->'''Shadowheart:''' So, have we buried the hatchet, Lae'zel?\\
'''Laezel:''' No. Why would I bury a weapon? Is it broken?\\
'''Shadowheart:''' It's a metaphor.\\
'''Lae'zel:''' I do not know your metaphor, but if you need help digging, I will find a shovel.
* LanguageEqualsThought: If she is the one [[spoiler:who gets kidnapped by Orin in Act 3 and is successfully rescued afterward]], she will have a camp conversation where she reveals that the closest term in the Githyanki language to "thank you" literally translates to "may your enemies suffer exquisite agony" but there's no term for simply expressing gratitude.
* LyingByOmission: Lae'zel's blind obedience to githyanki protocol ironically helps the party in the first confrontation with Kith'rak Voss. [[spoiler:Voss will point-blank demand the Astral Prism, only for Lae'zel to focus so single-mindedly on "purification" as the top priority that she bypasses the question entirely.]] She is so LiteralMinded that it's questionable whether she is intentionally lying, but it has the same effect either way.
* MagicKnight: Downplayed. Multiclass mage/fighters and fighter/psions[[note]]A combination they call "gish", which has since become an out-of-universe slang term for mage/knights across ''D&D'' and other tabletop [=RPGs=][[/note]] are common among githyanki, and she naturally gains a number of innate racial PsychicPowers as she levels up, along with those granted by the parasite. As a 5th edition fighter, she can also become an Eldritch Knight and gain access to spells and cantrips, but her average INT means she's not the best at it unless you specifically choose to have Withers respec her for a better starting stat balance.
* MultiMeleeMaster: As a fighter, she's the only companion who starts out proficient with all weapons. And since she has the highest strength score, and thus the highest carrying capacity, she'll probably be the one carrying all those heavy-yet-sellable weapons you find. Though this can also see practical usage, if she's carrying the right weapons to quickly switch between damage types and exploit different vulnerabilities.
* NobleDemon: Githyanki are generally considered brutal, xenophobic raiders and slavers who still have a deep sense of martial honor and courage. Lae'zel is no exception, starting off rude and distrustful but quickly becoming one of the most loyal members of the party if you treat her well. She's also genuine about wanting to cure the rest of the party of their mind flayer parasites rather than simply using them purely for her own gain.
* NiceMeanAndInBetween: The Mean of Early Access' three "evil" companions; while she's a genuinely honorable and loyal companion who seems sincere in wanting you all cured, she's easily the most abrasive of the group, bossy, short-tempered, and [[HatesEveryoneEqually utterly disdainful of anyone and anything not githyanki]]. The release version shifted the Mean role mostly on Astarion's uncompromising selfishness and cruelty, making the still highly abrasive but loyal and honorable Lae'zel the In-Between. Astarion also more broadly disapproves of "good" choices, while Lae'zel can be supportive of choices that display honor or loyalty.
* OddFriendship: Some of her nicest, least confrontational party banter is with NiceGuy nerd Gale, as she responds positively to his genuine curiosity about the githyanki. She even attempts to joke around with him!
* PairTheSpares: If not romanced, she will sleep with another member of the party that the player hasn't romanced, though it's made clear that casual sex is the only thing she's after. Amusingly, if the player inquires about it after, she'll be [[VampiresAreSexGods quite satisfied with Astarion's performance]] and [[LousyLoversAreLosers quite unsatisfied with Wyll]]. She'll also ''try'' to sleep with Gale, but he spends so much time talking to her that it ends up not even happening.
* PerpetualFrowner: Her most common facial expression is a disdainful scowl. The only alternatives she's capable of is an enraged scowl when provoked, and a look of surprise and utter reverence when faced with githyanki that're ''really'' high up in their hierarchy.
* PetTheDog: She will approve of talking [[spoiler:Wyll down from killing Karlach]].
** She will also question the necessity of [[spoiler:Mystra's order that Gale use the orb in him to blow up the Absolute, killing himself and who knows how many others in the process. She notes that his brilliant mind, along with the rest of the party's talents, surely are enough and that Mystra should have more faith in them. It's shockingly complimentary for one who usually has nothing but barbs ready.]]
** [[spoiler:If Karlach becomes an illithid, Lae'zel will admit that for the first time she's happy to hear a Mind Flayer will live, because doing so saved Karlach]].
** Normally, Lae'zel and Shadowheart get along very poorly, but [[spoiler:if Shadowheart abandons Shar, Lae'zel becomes more friendly towards her and encourages her to take revenge on Shar, and says that Shar never deserved Shadowheart's devotion.]]
** When talking to Danis and Bex, the tiefling couple who want to get themselves a pet cat in Baldur's Gate, and while most of the options are dismissive, she can ask about it and eventually one of the options is to express approval to their choice in the most githyanki way possible.
--->'''Lae'zel:''' A vermin hunter? I approve.
** Should Astarion [[spoiler:ascend, Lae'zel won't be too happy with it, noting that githyanki seek power in order to strengthen the collective, not for individual gain. Depending on how her story is progressed, she will then note the party as an example of a collective whose strength she values.]]
* PragmaticVillainy: She's one of the few party members who doesn't object to evil actions on principle, but does consider over-indulgence to be wasteful, particularly if using The Dark Urge origin.
--> '''Lae'zel''': Many a good warrior savours the sccent of blood in the air. There's no shame in a capricious murder now and again. Too many, though, and you waste energy and dull your weapon.
* ProudWarriorRaceGirl: Both gith races are ancient foes of mind flayers, and the githyanki are the ones known for their brutality. Lae'zel is as brusque and quick to violence as is expected of a githyanki soldier.
* PsychicPowers: A racial trait among gith, all githyanki start with the Mage Hand cantrip and can cast the Jump spell at level 3.
* RightForTheWrongReasons: [[spoiler:When he tries to have her executed, Lae'zel assumes Kith'rak Voss is a traitor to Vlaakith. She's correct, but that had nothing to do with it, he was simply acting as a Kith'rak would -- and offering her a quicker death than in a Zaith'isk. That said, Kith'rak Voss IS a traitor, as he's secretly a supporter of the Son of Gith.]]
* SexGoddess: She's very confident about her sexual prowess, and often brags about it. Given how utterly spent the player is the morning after they sleep with her, it's not just empty boasting.
-->'''Narrator:''' Your whole body aches. Even your tongue is tired.
* SmallNameBigEgo:
** Lae'zel acts like an experienced warrior destined for greatness and is better than everyone around her, even considering herself her "Queen's chosen". Turns out she's a nobody in githyanki society, still living with her crèche in the Material Plane instead of the Astral Plane home of githyanki "adults", implying she hasn't completed her RiteOfPassage and thus is still considered a child. When she interacts with Kith'rak Voss and his patrol, he even addresses her as "child" and puts her down for overreaching her station when she starts making demands.
** This even colors her view of her own culture. Lae'zel will proudly talk about how she had to kill some of her clutchmates when training as a child because they were weak and how that's how her culture operates. She'll constantly suggest the player should kill people for pragmatic reasons or because they are weak. She'll disapprove of the player helping the weak. But whenever someone else in her society turns around and treats ''her'' as equally disposable, Lae'zel assumes they must be corrupt. She similarly reacts poorly when her people see her as not worth helping or saving despite the fact she reacts the same when she's on the other side.
* SoldierVersusWarrior: She's the Soldier to Karlach's Warrior. Lae'zel is cold, reserved, and disciplined, with training that makes her more tactically flexible in battle at the expense of raw damage. Unusually, Karlach is one of the only party members that Lae'zel doesn't hold in total disdain.
* TheTeamNormal: Everyone in the party is some kind of unique being, ranging from a servant of a god like Shadowheart and (at least slightly) Gale, to having enhanced abilities or features because of something thrusted upon them (Astarion and Karlach for instance). Lae'zel by contrast is a normal gith warrior who happened to end up becoming involved in the events of the game by chance. Even by the standards of her people, she is a near MagicallyIneptFighter, and as she opposes mind flayers, she's more likely to not use the tadpole powers, making her pretty much the most normal warrior of the group.
* TeethClenchedTeamwork: She says as much herself about being forced to work with "lesser races" in general, but it's especially prevalent with Shadowheart. They're so diametrically opposed to each other that almost every choice that raises one's approval will lower the other's. [[EvilIsPetty Even things she normally approves of -- like prioritizing removing the tadpole above all else -- will earn her disapproval if Shadowheart recommends it and you agree]]. [[spoiler:That said, depending on the CharacterDevelopment Lae'zel and Shadowheart undergo, they can become friendlier and learn to respect one another. Especially if Lae'zel becomes disillusioned with Vlaakith and Shadowheart abandons Shar for Selune.]]
* TokenHeroicOrc: If she is the PlayerCharacter avatar, she can be portrayed in this light. Yes, she's a githyanki, but she ''can'' be made to lack her kind's [[HatesEveryoneEqually xenophobic attitude]]. Subverted if she's an NPC companion otherwise, in which case she's proud to be githyanki and won't hesitate to remind you. [[spoiler:Depending on her CharacterDevelopment, even her NPC can become much more heroic, especially during act 3, where she will oppose most evil actions.]]
* TrainingFromHell: If [[PlayerCharacter Tav]] is also a githyanki, she'll remind them that your people's basic training involves beating, burning, and poisoning.
* {{Tsundere}}: Despite being the most outwardly hostile of your party members, she's actually by far the easiest to get on her good side and subsequently to romance. If you do romance her, then she's harsh type definitely, as she's constantly abrasive towards you until you defrost her in which you get to see her sweet side.
* UncertainDoom: [[spoiler: If Lae'zel does not turn against Vlaakith and returns to her people on a Red Dragon, there is a short cutscene where she prepares for ascension before Vlaakith herself-surrounded by undead Githyanki, as Vlaakith levitates a sword over her head. In the epilogue, Withers states that he could not locate Lae'zel if she was loyal to Vlaakith, and elaborates that ascension is consumption by the lich queen.]]
* UndyingLoyalty: As a githyanki, she is exceedingly loyal to Queen Vlaakith and her race as a whole. [[spoiler:Her experiences throughout the game and witnessing the githyanki's general {{Jerkass}} attitude for her own eyes and being on the receiving end by association with the party shakes her loyalty, but she's convinced her faith is simply being tested...until Vlaakith orders her and the party's deaths. Her loyalty is also further tested when she meets Prince Orpheus, another royal githyanki. Depending on how you end her personal quest, Lae'zel will either still be loyal, but now fully aware her people are nowhere near as "perfect" as she once thought or hunted down for assisting Orpheus for killing Queen Vlaakith.]]
* WideEyedIdealist: The githyanki equivalent, anyway. Lae'zel fully buys into her culture's internal propaganda and is blind to their more unsavory ways, particularly the more "[[LawfulEvil Lawful]] ''[[LawfulEvil Evil]]''" aspects of Githyanki culture or how anyone higher up their tight social ladder tends to view those beneath them as completely disposable. She believes that tracking down her people is the best way to get rid of the tadpoles, [[spoiler:and is horrified when Kith'rak Voss -- the DragonRider in charge -- merely orders his soldiers to execute her and the party, refusing to believe that any true githyanki of his rank would even consider such a thing and instead rationalizing that he must be a traitor. When the cure is revealed to be designed to kill her, she assumes someone must've tampered with it, and that the Creche's inquisitor will resolve this. When Vlaakith orders said inquisitor to kill her (after promising Lae'zel [[ReleasedToElsewhere "ascension"]]), she decides it was all a test of faith from her Queen. Only after reflecting on this for a while does she finally start coming around to the idea that maybe it was all a lie.]]
* WouldHurtAChild: [[ImpliedTrope Implied]]. She disapproves of saving the tiefling child Arabella, and of you calling Kagha a monster for threatening or killing the girl.
* YoungerThanSheLooks: Implied. While gith ages are admittedly hard to gauge relative to humans, Lae'zel certainly talks and carries herself like an experienced warrior -- But then when you meet a gith patrol, Kith'rak Voss derogatorily calls her "child" and she doesn't correct him, although this may be at least partially out of deference to his rank. Her official age is stated to be 22, which ''is'' relatively young. Further complicating matters is the fact that githyanki are usually raised on the material plane until they prove themselves worthy of being called adults, and then migrate to the Astral Plane -- where time as we understand it stops passing -- and [[TheAgeless they can go for hundreds or even thousands of years without aging]]. It's noteworthy that her origin cinematic explicitly states that she is undertaking her coming-of-age ceremony, so its unlikely that she is older than her very early twenties at the most.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Shadowheart]]
!!Shadowheart
[[quoteright:401:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/401px_shadowheart.png]]
[[caption-width-right:401:''[[UndyingLoyalty Loyal Warrior]]'']]
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Creator/JenniferEnglish

->''"We're in this together, but I'll happily go it alone. My faith will keep me company."''\\\

->'''Race:''' High Half-Elf\\
'''Class:''' Cleric (Trickery Domain)\\
'''Background:''' Urchin (Early Access), Acolyte (Full Release)\\
'''Place of Origin:''' Baldur's Gate\\
\\

A half-elf cleric of Shar, the infamous goddess of darkness and loss. While out on a secret mission [[SoleSurvivor that killed the rest of her team]], Shadowheart was captured by the mind flayers and infected with a tadpole. Now beset by enemies on all sides, her faith in her goddess will be tested throughout her journey.
----
* AffablyEvil: She's a worshipper of Shar and can act haughty at first, but netting her approval -- which can be done via good deeds and talking your way out of fights -- can lead to her being very kind and almost sweet to the player. She's also very grateful if they save her from the Nautiloid. [[spoiler:The evil part can be removed if she spares the Nightsong and converts to Selûne.]]
* AloofDarkHairedGirl: She has long dark hair and usually acts very aloof and haughty.
* AmnesiacHero: [[spoiler:She eventually reveals that a large part of her memories were [[LaserGuidedAmnesia taken/suppressed]] by the Sharran church for the sake of her mission. She's pretty sure she'll get them back if she succeeds. You later learn that she's actually had her memories wiped numerous times during her training with the priesthood, including torture sessions where she unknowingly hurt her parents.]]
* AnimalLover: Kindness to animals is a sure way to get approval from her, and in the Epilogue [[spoiler: playing a route where she rejects Shar sees her settled into a farmhouse full of pets.]]
* AntiHero: Shadowheart is a devout Sharran with a strong sense of duty, seeking to carry out Shar's will with almost single-minded fervor. Fitting for someone of her faith, Shadowheart holds the goddess Selûne and her followers in extremely low regard. Regarding personal matters, she's known to be secretive and private, not abiding her boundaries being disrespected. However, despite her [[TheFundamentalist fanatical worship of Shar]] and initial coldness, she's one of the nicest companions in the game and [[spoiler: can ultimately become an outright hero by rejecting Shar and turning to worship Selûne instead]].
* ArmorPiercingQuestion: All a morally good Tav with high approval has to do to [[spoiler:induce the doubt Shadowheart already experiences towards Shar during her pivotal choices is ask whether Shar's path is what she really wants.]] Trusting her leads to the same outcomes as persuading her.
* AwfulTruth: As she learns in Act 2, [[spoiler:Shadowheart is ''not'' a street urchin nor was she adopted into the Shar priesthood. She was actually an initiate of Shar's sister and rival deity and was in fact kidnapped alongside her parents. Her memories were wiped afterward. Learning this ''breaks'' Shadowheart immensely; while she does break away from the Shar priesthood and is promptly condemned by her former goddess for it, she has no clue what to do until she learns her parents are still alive and held captive]].
* BelievingTheirOwnLies: A persistent subtext throughout Shadowheart's lines where she shares the specifics of her upbringing in the Coven is that she's not trying to convince you, [[CrisisOfFaith but herself.]]
* BerserkButton: Attempting to make light of her phobias is a surefire way to set her off.
* {{Brainwashed}}: Canonically, Shar is widely known to be a selfish, evil goddess of darkness and destruction, and her worshipers regularly kidnap, torture and murder non-believers, if not worse. Shadowheart claims to have been raised by the Sharrans since she was a child and firmly believes Shar to be TheSacredDarkness, but even she notices that she's much softer-hearted than the average Sharran[[note]]If the player calls her explanation of Shar's doctrine comforting, she flat-out admits that many initiates "break" before feeling comfort[[/note]]. Newcomers to the world of TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms might take her at her word, but those familiar with Baldur's Gate lore will know she's either hiding something or been duped. Probably both. [[spoiler:Her personal quest reveals it's a mix of both: Shadowheart was an initiate for the Selûnite faith when the Sharran priesthood abduced her and her parents, then wiped her memories before making Shadowheart into a Sharran trainee, with the purpose of proving to Selûne that Shar can corrupt any of the former's followers.]]
* BreakThemByTalking: One reason Shadowheart respects cunning and diversion from the PC is that her training taught her that the most effective torture exploits fear of pain and loss more than pain itself.
* BrutishCharacterBrutishWeapon: Played with. She's certainly not brutish by any definition of the word, but the most effective weapons she's proficient in are maces, flails, and morningstars, which are certainly vicious enough to be appropriate to her ReligionOfEvil (even if she wouldn't see it that way). Subverted in that the weapon given by her personal quest, regardless of how you solve it, is a spear; a more "refined" weapon.
* CallToAgriculture: [[spoiler: In the epilogue, a romanced Shadowheart has settled down on a farm with the Player Character, complete with a garden full of Night Orchids, many pets, and regular moonlight swims.]]
* CasualKink: Probably has the most "hints" of the companions:
** Her response to watching your cleansing at the hand of a Lovitar priest is to praise the priest's whipping technique and ask him to leave something of you for her.
** She'll also quickly adapt to the [[spoiler:body worship roleplay if you engage with her and the drow twins in Sharess' Caress,]] and DM describes the orgy as "The night skips on, filled with fantasies Shadowheart seemed all too primed to suggest" in the fade to black.
** She's quite commanding [[spoiler:in all her sex scenes, though it's even clearer if she became a Dark Justiciar. In the latter case, she can also berate a player for being "too gentle" depending on dialogue choices.]]
** If you figure out that a deceased dog's collar is tied to a magical food dispenser in the Arcane Tower, most of the companions keep their reaction fairly close to the facts. Shadowheart?
--->'''Shadowheart:''' Well look at that, self-service for a pet. Or other collar-wearer, I suppose...
** When the party convenes after the first dream guardian encounter to talk about what will they do to each other if the other starts to turn, Tav can reply that they'd tie Shadowheart up long enough to find a cure. While her initial reply is more serious, reiterating that she'd "just kill you," her parting remark is more cheeky:
--->'''Shadowheart:''' Anyway, get some rest. Try not to dream about tying me up.
** If you romance both her and Halsin, she is very open to the idea and her one condition is that you tell her all about "climbing Mount Halsin" after you do the deed. If he also participates in the aforementioned orgy, she will admit she thought about inviting him for a threesome multiple times and outright dreamt about it at least once. In idle banter she will also tease him about his shapeshifting PowerPerversionPotential.
** Her reaction upon finding out Astarion is a vampire spawn:
--->'''Shadowheart:''' Maybe we could get him to wear a bell? Dissuade any night-time prowling.
* ChekhovsGun: That relic she's carrying around? Yeah, turns out [[spoiler:it's not only a ''very'' important githyanki artifact, but it's also the '''only''' reason why none of your companions have turned into mindless thralls as the being trapped within the artifact is shielding their minds from the tadpoles, and by extension, the Netherbrain]].
* TheChosenOne: [[spoiler: She was chosen by Shar to be her champion and proof that she can corrupt her sister Selûne's most faithful. Whether or not she becomes this, is up to the choices of the player.]]
* ClingyJealousGirl: Depends. It seems Shadowheart doesn't want to share you with the characters that are available as an origin, but allows you to have relationships with some of those that are not. Also, under some circumstances, she is very eager to engage in orgy with two courtesans and main character (and possibly [[spoiler:Halsin]]) when visiting brothel.
* CombatMedic: Clerics are this pretty much by default, combining basic healing spells with decent combat abilities. Her Trickery domain means she [[MasterOfNone doesn't excel in either of the two]], but it's still the best you'll get unless you're playing a Life domain cleric yourself, who are the true healers in the ''D&D'' class system but not available as a companion. Shadowheart being [[HealerSignsOnEarly the first permanent party member]] you can recruit gives her bonus medic points. That said, you're free to respec her into a Life domain cleric to strengthen her healing abilities, [[spoiler:which even serves as GameplayAndStoryIntegration if she became a cleric of Selûne in Act II]].
* CombatPragmatist: When Shadowheart and Lae'zel eventually clash over the former having an artifact belonging to the latter's people, if you ask them how they want to resolve the issue, Lae'zel suggests trial by combat, which Shadowheart accepts. Lae'zel taunts Shadowheart by telling her to be ready to duel at the break of dawn. [[spoiler:Shadowheart does so by getting up before Lae'zel does and attempt to slit her throat before everyone wakes up. Fortunately,you are awoken by the commotion and can make the two come to a truce.]]
* CosmicPlaything: Shar's, more specifically. [[spoiler:Despite having hundreds if not thousands of devotees all across Faerun, Shar ''really'' wants to make Shadowheart her most devout priest. Every time Shadowheart has faltered in her training or had doubts, Shar always dragged her back and wiped her memories. Its telling that her most screwed up test for her 'follower' is to have her kill her own birth parents. Even in the quest route where Shadowheart rejects Shar, she ''still'' presents Shadowheart with the choice of killing her parents as doing so is the only way to be free of her; a final "screw you", to put it lightly. Keep in mind, Shar did all of this just to prove to her sister that she could corrupt her followers. It never had to be any Selunite in particular, Shadowheart was just the unlucky girl Shar chose for her "experiment".]]
* CrisisOfFaith: She was raised by the church of Shar, so is loyal and devout, but has recently come to question their more overt cruelties. She finds Shar's teachings comforting, but there's a kindness in her that she herself is surprised at. The game itself even lampshades this, stating how the game will test her faith in Shar. [[spoiler:Her personal quest can potentially end with Shadowheart being abandoned by Shar because she's too empathetic and kind, which ironically makes her an ideal follower for Shar's ArchEnemy and rival deity Selûne.]]
* DarkSecret: She's a cleric of Shar, goddess of darkness, a [[IllegalReligion banned]] ReligionOfEvil. She's not remotely ashamed of it, and believes she has every reason to mistrust others.
* DatingCatwoman: The player can romance her even if they're good-aligned or a worshipper of Selûne, which would normally make Shadowheart close to an ArchEnemy. Ironically, she's such a MinionWithAnFInEvil that it's ''easier'' this way. [[spoiler:The trope can also be subverted if Shadowheart ends up converting to Selûne herself.]]
* DeconstructedCharacterArchetype: Of TheFundamentalist, and possibly also TheSacredDarkness. Shadowheart is a Cleric of [[GodOfEvil Shar]], mistress of the night and [[GodOfDarkness goddess of darkness]], loss, sorrow, misery, bitterness and [[OmnicidalManiac entropy]]. She has sacrificed much in the name of her goddess and vehemently rejects and opposes other gods especially [[LightIsGood Selûne]], which [[TeethClenchedTeamwork causes friction with a Selûne-worshipping Tav]] and to a lesser degree with the rest of the cast. Shadowheart claims that her faith brings her comfort but in truth, she is ''terrified'' of Shar and is mostly going along with the vile religion out of sheer fear of the goddesses' wrath and the promise that her memories will be returned upon completion of her holy mission. [[spoiler:Upon learning that she was in fact raised by kindly worshippers of Selûne and kidnapped and brainwashed from a young age to be TheParagon of Shar, Shadowheart's faith is shattered and she falls into a deep depression and sense of humiliation that the "moon-witch" she has spent her entire life condemning is her ''real'' goddess.]]
* DecoyBackstory: Shadowheart claims that she was an orphan who was adopted by the Sharran temple. [[spoiler:However, if she confronts the Nightsong in Act 2, the Nightsong tells her that this isn't true. Choosing to spare the Nightsong reveals that she was in fact the daughter of a pair of Selune worshipers and all three of them were captured by Shar's clergy on the eve of Shadowheart's initiation into Selune's service. Shadowheart's memories were [[LaserGuidedAmnesia magically erased]] in order to try and mold her into being the perfect champion for Shar.]]
* {{Deuteragonist}}: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]] -- but in any playthrough where she isn't chosen as the protagonist, she still plays a major role due to holding the artefact keeping the party safe from the influence of the Absolute, is the only party member that forcibly joins your party even if you refuse her (due to the plot necessity of said artefact).
* DoesNotLikeSpam: When initially resisting eating the Noblestalk mushroom, Shadowheart comments that she's not a fan of mushrooms in general.
-->'''Shadowheart:''' I think it's because of the gills.
* DramaticIrony: If you're romancing her as a Selûnite cleric, one dialog choice lets you ask her if she thinks Shar would disapprove of them being together. Shadowheart's response is to theorize that Shar wants her to convert you, and would be keen to see her lure a Selûnite into the darkness. [[spoiler:Turns out this is ''exactly'' what happened to Shadowheart, who was raised as a Selûnite until she was kidnapped by Sharran cultists during her Rite of Passage. In addition, if you end up turning her away from Shar, then you've basically done exactly what she theorized Shar wanted her to do, just with the opposing goddess.]]
* DrowningMySorrows: [[spoiler:If you help the goblins kill the refugees]], you'll find Shadowheart getting absolutely ''shitfaced'' afterward trying to forget what she just did.
* EatingTheEyeCandy: If you [[spoiler:strip without turning around in her sex scene]], she clearly enjoys every second of ogling your character.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: As a cleric of Shar, she's no stranger to theft, betrayal, and/or murder, but she doesn't support acts of random or wanton cruelty, and she does have lines she isn't willing to cross.
** [[spoiler:Slaughtering the helpless tiefling refugees, including the children,]] upsets her so deeply that she [[DrowningMySorrows tries to drink herself unconscious]].
** She'll be horrified at Kagha for killing Arabella [[DisproportionateRetribution simply for stealing]]. If the player acts surprised that she cares, she'll be offended that they think so low of her morals.
--->'''Shadowheart:''' Do you truly think I'm that callous? [[DeathOfAChild A young life snuffed out isn't so easily shrugged off]].
** [[spoiler:She's horrified that Mystra is demanding Gale sacrifice himself to kill the Absolute.]]
** She'll [[spoiler:shout that Lae'zel is about to die if you let her stay in the zaithisk purification.]]
** She'll be horrified [[spoiler:if you kill Isobel and cause everyone in Last Light to die from the shadow curse. This is especially notable since she, as a cleric of Shar, is upset with you when you kill a cleric of Selune, her goddess' most hated enemy, because of all of the collateral damage you cause while doing it.]]
* FantasticRacism: While Lae'zel just [[HatesEveryoneEqually looks down on everyone regardless of race]], Shadowheart is generally accepting but has some hostility towards the githyanki, derogatorily referring to them as "flat-noses". If you play as a gith yourself, unless you saved her on the Nautiloid, you have to pass a Persuasion check just to get her to join you at all. This is partly justified by the fact she's carrying an artifact stolen from the githyanki while on a mission that resulted in losing the rest of her squad; presumably, she views githyanki as enemy combatants and is hostile towards them as a result. She herself receives the brunt of Lae'zel's own bigotry compared to everyone else, and when you encounter githyanki soldiers with Shadowheart in your party they'll single her out for sniping, so the bigotry seems to go both ways.
* FauxActionGirl: Downplayed and not really a reflection of her character in-story; though as a cleric she's a CombatMedic, and especially as a Trickery Domain cleric she's oriented more for rogue-like underhanded combat than purely healing. However, it's been noted that for some reason, Shadowheart has ''atrocious'' luck with her combat spells and weapon attack rolls, with many players reporting her missing or failing to hit her targets the majority of the time. Why this is exactly is unclear[[note]]Trickery Domain is generally seen as the weakest overall cleric subclass, and with Shadowheart being more magic focused, likely she doesn't have enough support from her class features to stay consistent, given other cleric subclasses tend to focus on things she would benefit more from.[[/note]], but its become so notable that Larian themselves noted she actually has the highest number of deaths than any other companions. Still downplayed, as she still works well as an effective healer, and her poor attack rolls can be mitigated with AOE spells or passive damage spells like Spirit Guardians.
* FireForgedFriends: She's not initially keen on traveling with you despite having the same goal, and she is ''definitely'' not thrilled to be around Lae'zel or the PlayerCharacter if they play a githyanki, though she does come to befriend them at high approval. As you progress through the game, she slowly becomes more and more friendly with the party, or slightly more tolerant of Lae'zel in the latter's case. [[spoiler:Some of Shadowheart's hostility with the gith stems from having lost many of her comrades when they stole the artifact]], and Lae'zel herself similarly distrusts Shadowheart because of [[spoiler:her possession of a gith artifact]]. They do eventually soften up around each other as you progress through their personal quests.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: For a follower of a religion who practices pain and suffering, Shadowheart can be surprisingly empathetic, being a FriendToAllChildren and friendly to the avatar character when at high approval. Looking at her character as a whole, she really doesn't fit in with Shar's ReligionOfEvil despite being a devout follower. [[spoiler:Unsurprisingly, her personal questline can end with her converting to the Selûnite faith when she refuses to kill the Nightsong and is subsequently abandoned by Shar because of her empathy.]]
** When Shadowheart shows you the memory of when she was taken in by the Sharran priesthood, if you pass a religion check (or previously read a scroll that explained this), you remember that [[spoiler:a Selûnite initiation rite involves leaving the initiate alone in the wilderness for a time, similar to the situation Shadowheart finds herself in. You can also notice that young Shadowheart appears to be wearing a Selûnite pendant, all implying she was training to be a Selûnite priest before the Sharran priesthood took her in. She indeed fits much better as a Selûnite priest and becomes one depending on how you handle her storyline.]]
* FriendOrIdolDecision: If Tav has been romancing her when [[spoiler: they encounter the Nightsong, Shadowheart is faced with this as becoming a Dark Justiciar requires giving her whole heart to Shar; leaving no room for anything, or anyone, else. At this point, unless Tav actively encourages her to kill the Nightsong, Shadowheart will almost certainly take the "Friend" path and toss away the spear. Furthermore, even if Shadowheart does kill the Nightsong, she's more than willing to indulge in LoopholeAbuse to continue the romance provided Tav can adjust to that.]]
* TheFundamentalist: Due to being a follower of Shar. At the beginning, she despises all the deities other than Shar in general, but especially Selune. She's very hostile towards her followers, due to them essentially being the rival faith to her Shar worship. This is actually a case of BoomerangBigot at play, as [[spoiler:Shadowheart is actually the daughter of Selunites who was kidnapped as a child and brainwashed]]. Her hostility towards Selune causes her to butt heads with Isobel when they first meet, who snipes back at her in return. [[spoiler:If you convince her to spare the Nightsong and, subsequently, cause her to be rejected by Shar, she'll convert back to Selune, dying her hair silver in tribute, and turn firmly against the Sharran cult.]]
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration:
** Shadowheart's FriendToAllChildren status is more than a little weird given [[ReligionOfEvil the goddess she worships]]... Until you consider the fact that she has the [[StreetUrchin Urchin]] background and can at one point explicitly tell you that she lived on the streets until Shar's church took her in. In that case, you could very easily argue that seeing young kids struggling like she had to makes her want to help them like she would've wanted someone to help her. This changes in the game's full release, but the trope still applies as she now has the "Acolyte" background and is a cleric.
** Shadowheart's starting, religiously-decorated armour is the heaviest you can wear without incurring a Stealth disadvantage, barring magical enchantment. This makes sense, given her training.
** Shadowheart's default DumpStat is charisma. She's a miserable liar, terribly prickly, haughty, and often unpleasant, at least until you get on her good side. She doesn't really attempt to lie to the player about her worship so much as warn them to back off if they pry. Charisma is also tied with force of personality and self-awareness and conviction, something she is shown having trouble with at times. [[spoiler:Which ties into her not knowing her past and that her being a follower of Shar is not what chose to be. Her entire identity is a lie]].
** Even after [[spoiler:abandoning the worship of Shar, Shadowheart's chosen class clerical deity will remain Shar and can't be altered even when respeccing with Withers. It doesn't change to Selûne until you complete her personal quest.]]
* GameplayAndStorySegregation:
** [[spoiler:After switching to worshipping Selûne, Shadowheart will retain the Trickery Domain, despite this not being a Domain of Selûne. It's so any player who might've become used to her Trickery Domain powers wouldn't find themselves suddenly no longer having those powers. However, you're free to respec her to a more suitable domain like knowledge or life, if you so desire for roleplaying or gameplay reasons.]]
** Her first romance scene always takes place on a cliff overlooking a vibrant forest under a clear night sky, even if you're currently camping in the Underdark or the Shadowlands.
** The dryad in the Planar Circus in Baldur's Gate always describes Shadowheart as black-haired even if this is no longer the case.
*** Related to the above, her character picture never adapts to her change of hair color.
** Shadowheart's remarks in the [[spoiler:Dark Justiciar temple in Act 2 and her coven in Act 3]] imply that she's received extensive training in infiltration and psychological torture, but she herself is not proficient in Stealth, Sleight of Hands, Deception, Intimidation, or Performance, which would probably be the skills described. [[ZigzaggedTrope That said]], she also mentions receiving ''a lot'' of punishment for failing training lessons, so perhaps her not being proficient in these skills simply means she never quite got the hang of them.
** The Inspiration granted from events tying to the Acolyte background don't take the deity involved into account, and there are no fewer than two instances where Shadowheart can gain Inspiration from events involving Selûne before [[spoiler:she has a chance to renounce Shar]], both of which she expresses clear displeasure of.[[note]]Opening the chest in the Selûne shrine near the Owlbear nest, and [[spoiler:seeing Isobel's ritual protecting the Last Light Inn.]][[/note]]
* GivenNameReveal: Finishing Shadowheart's personal questline will reveal that her real name before she became a Sharran was [[spoiler:Jenevelle Hallowleaf]].
* GoodCostumeSwitch: [[spoiler:If she becomes a Selûnite, she may dye her hair white-blond.]]
* GoodCounterpart: [[spoiler:Becomes one to her EvilMentor Viconia if she chooses to spare the Nightsong. Viconia had the chance for redemption and refused to change, as Minsc bitterly points out. Meanwhile, Shadowheart can successfully turn from Shar and become a Selunite cleric.]]
* GoodFeelsGood:
-->'''Shadowheart:''' Never gave (tieflings) much thought. Certainly not that bunch in the grove. And yet, we came through for them. We saved their lives... [[WhatIsThisFeeling Odd]].
* GoodScarsEvilScars: She has a thin horizontal cut on her right cheek that reinforces her LadyOfWar credentials without detracting much from her good looks.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: [[spoiler:She's a good person at heart despite the Sharran church's best efforts to corrupt her, and she shows it by dyeing her hair blonde if she becomes a cleric of Selûne.]]
* HalfHumanHybrid: Shadowheart's father was a high elf, while her mother was a human.
* HealerSignsOnEarly: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]]. She's the first potential companion you can encounter and recruit after the nautiloid crashes, and the only one who starts out with healing spells. However, while all 5e clerics have ''access'' to healing spells, the only subclasses meant to ''function'' as healers are the Life and Grave domains, of which only Life is available in-game. Shar's subclass, Trickery, is meant to be more of a StealthExpert and MasterOfIllusion.
* HearingVoices: If the protagonist doesn't recruit her, [[spoiler:she'll eventually find her way to their camp, raving about how whispers in her head have been driving her there. She'll attempt to pull a knife on them, and they have to either talk her down or kill her.]]
* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:If you convince her to spare the Nightsong, she’s abandoned by Shar and switches to becoming a cleric of Selûne.]]
* HeroWithBadPublicity: Believes that Shar, and by extension her followers, ultimately seek to [[YourTerroristsAreOurFreedomFighters bring down a corrupt establishment]] both on Toril and in the heavens, breaking the chains the world uses to weigh down mortals and gods alike -- Chains like love, hope, the past, the future, the lives of the 'heretics' they fight... Pretty much everything that doesn't involve Shar and/or worshipping her. The player character can sympathize with her views, recognize the ideals behind them, or reject them outright.
-->'''Shadowheart:''' Most fear the dark, like children, because in darkness they see their fears reflected. But Shar teaches us to step beyond fear. Beyond loss. In darkness we do not hide -- we act.
* HiddenDepths: She doesn't have the [[FriendToAllLivingThings Animal Handling]] talent herself, but Shadowheart seems very fond of all things four-legged -- being nice to critters always raises her approval.
* HollywoodSpelling: PlayedForDrama. She can't remember her original name, after she took the name 'Shadowheart' to honor Shar. When she learns she was born [[spoiler:Jenevelle Hallowleaf]], she laments that her attachment to that name is so far gone, she had to look up how it was spelled.
* {{Hypocrite}}: She asks you to be open-minded to her [[ReligionOfEvil religion]] while she looks down on others for simply not being hers. [[spoiler:Initially.]]
* IDidWhatIHadToDo: Her justification for [[spoiler:slitting Lae'zel's throat before sunrise, should you fail to talk them down during their confrontation over the artefact.]]
* IllegalReligion: Worship of [[ReligionOfEvil Shar]] is restricted and/or banned across much of Faerûn for very obvious reasons.
* ImportantHaircut: [[spoiler:She cuts her hair into a more flattering style shortly after her choice with the Nightsong. The style remains the same regardless, but if she chooses to abandon Shar then she also dyed her hair blonde.]]
* INeedAFreakingDrink:
** When approaching the remains of a tavern in Act 2, she has a chance to quip that she could use a drink after exploring all these ruins.
** [[spoiler:As the party meets up after the Absolute is defeated, she mentions that after all that, she needs "a drink in each hand and one more on the table.]]
* InformedAttribute: Despite being a worshipper of Shar, it’s hard to describe her as evil. She generally approves of kind actions and avoiding fights and it’s rare to get approval from committing evil acts around her. She also has far more firm moral standards compared to Lae’zel and Astarion since she WouldntHurtAChild and feels awful if the player chooses to side with the goblins over the refugees. [[spoiler:Unsurprisingly, these qualities don't make her very suited to be a Sharran priest. A ''Selûnite'' priest, on the other hand...]]
* InterfaceSpoiler: She's initially very cagey about which god she worships, and will only open up to you after you build up enough of a rapport with her... Or you could just open her status screen and scroll down to the "tags" subheading. Patch 7 just moves this info to the top of her character sheet.
* IOweYouMyLife: If you save her on the Nautiloid, she will say this almost verbatim and bring that debt up in later conversations. This even goes for a githyanki character, who she normally hates.
* ItsNotYouItsMe: If you pursue other romances while trying to romance Shadowheart, she will break things off using this excuse. Its particularly poignant if you are romancing Wyll, as Shadowheart claims that even if they love her and Wyll equally, Wyll's associates and friends will not take kindly to you, Wyll's lover, being involved with a Sharran priest.
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: Related to the above, Shadowheart will cite this as another reason for why she chose to break things off with you if you pursue someone else, admitting that there is no hard feelings and that you deserve to be happy. Apologizing afterwards would even have her tease you for it.
* LadyOfWar: She's a capable and versatile MagicKnight who carries herself with elegance and a haughty grace. Exactly how haughty depends on how you approach her personal quest, but the grace remains regardless.
* LightEmUp: Ironically for a cleric of darkness, she's your primary NPC source of Radiant damage, making her very useful against undead and fiends (demons and devils). She starts out with the Sacred Flame cantrip and the Guiding Bolt spell, and her toolkit only gets more diverse and powerful from there. [[spoiler:Going for the 'good' path of her personal quest, where she converts to worshipping Selune, the goddess of moonlight, will naturally make her even better at dishing out Radiant damage via equipment and spells.]]
* LoopholeAbuse: [[spoiler:If she kills the Nightsong at Shar's command, Shadowheart will become conflicted about continuing her romance with the player, as her devotion to Shar would mean that she must fully commit herself to her Goddess at the cost of everything else (which the Nightsong even warns her about). The player can try to continue the romance nonetheless, in which case she'll engage in this trope, even pointing out that it's a widespread practice among Shar's followers, as otherwise they'd be an outright celibate order. If she kills her parents as part of Shar's final test, she'll separate from the PlayerCharacter, but leave an open invitation to the House of Grief where they can reconnect, and will happily get intimate with them once more during the Patch 5 epilogue.]]
* LukeNounverber: Possibly [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname some kind of Sharran title]], but the only name she'll give you is "Shadowheart". Her true name, [[spoiler:Jenevelle Hallowleaf, is revealed at the end of her arc]], but she refuses to use it stating that "Shadowheart" has become a part of her — and she doesn't want to forget it, not anymore.
* {{MacGuffin}}: Has a [[https://imgur.com/Vx87D5k mysterious puzzle box inscribed with strange runes]] in her inventory. [[spoiler:[[https://www.reddit.com/r/BaldursGate3/comments/j9chy2/theory_possible_spoilers_about_shadowhearts/g8iymly The runes are githyanki, and the box is the weapon that Kith'rak Voss is after]]. It's possible that her mission was to steal it from them, which might explain her lingering distrust.]]
* MagicKnight: As a cleric she epitomizes this trope by being proficient with various weapons, shields, medium armor, and magic both offensive and defensive. Her stats push her mainly towards magic though, so she's usually more effective slinging spells from a distance rather than cracking skulls in close combat, although short-ranged spells like Spirit Guardians work well to make the most of both aspects.
* MaliciousMisnaming: She tends to refer to Selûne as "that/the Moon-Witch." [[spoiler:If she converts to the Selûne faith, this fades away and refers to her new goddess in a more respectful manner.]]
* MasterOfIllusion: Her high elf ancestry and her classing as a Trickery cleric means she starts out with multiple illusion spells.
* MasterOfNone: She suffers badly in this department stat wise, prompting many players to respec her at the earliest convenience for a more concrete party role.
* MeaningfulName: {{Invoked}} at the end of her personal questline [[spoiler:if she rejected Shar, as she explains that there can be no shadow without light.]]
* MeaningfulRename: She chose the name "Shadowheart" to honor Shar. [[spoiler:Subverted if she learns her original name; she chooses not to retake it and continues going by Shadowheart.]]
* MinionWithAnFInEvil: It's pretty apparent that Shadowheart is incredibly mellow for a cleric of an evil goddess like Shar. It becomes even more apparent as the player explores old Sharran ruins and finds what actual clerics of Shar engage in -- torture and worse. Meanwhile, Shadowheart approves of saving people and even shows concern for her fellow party members over time.
* MythologyGag: An elven cleric of Shar who A) is more noble than you'd expect and B) has an [[TheSacredDarkness unusually positive interpretation of Shar's creed]]? Girl's basically [[VideoGame/BaldursGate Viconia DeVir]] 2.0. [[spoiler:Interestingly enough, the game later reveals that Shadowheart's superior is none other than Viconia herself.]]
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Lae'zel, herself from a LawfulEvil warrior culture, thinks "Shadowheart" sounds like a strong name, which is [[HeadbuttingHeroes pretty much the nicest thing the two of them ever have to say to each other]].
* NiceGirl: Leans towards this despite her deity of worship. Outside of her interactions with Lae’zel, she’s generally polite (if lightly teasing) to the other party members and approves of kind acts, particularly towards children and animals. [[spoiler:Choosing to embrace Selune has her fully transition into this while staying with Shar severely dims her kindness.]]
* NiceMeanAndInBetween: The Nice of early access' three "evil" companions; while rather standoffish and savagely pragmatic, she mostly prefers avoiding fights if you can help it -- so as not to delay your mission to get the tadpoles out of your heads -- and approves of you being nice to animals and/or children.
* OffscreenMomentOfAwesome: The details of her quest to [[spoiler:steal the Astral Prism from the githyanki]] are never revealed, but considering how ruthless and single-mindedly determined they are in trying to recover it, it's virtually guaranteed to be have been one hell of a mission.
* OlderThanTheyLook: Records found in a Sharran temple indicate that she’s at least 40 years old, and likely older given how old she was when taken by them, but she appears to be in her twenties at most. Justified since she’s a half-elf who have a lifespan of 180 years. Her official age is stated to be 48 years old.
* TheParagonAlwaysRebels: Zigzagged, seeing how it depends on how you handle her CharacterDevelopment through Acts I and II, but the game seems to nudge players towards [[spoiler:convincing her to turn away from Shar and return into Selûne's fold. Pull this off and you successfully destroyed decades of work in grooming Shar's Chosen ''just'' as she was about to become the holy warrior and leader of Shar's church Shar herself wanted her to be.]]
* PerkyGoth: Downplayed, but at the beginning, her raven hair, penchant for dark clothes, and worship of a goddess who is associated with darkness and the night definitely marks her as a goth, but while she's quite haughty at firs she's ultimately quite a friendly and easygoing woman with a penchant for snark. As part of her character development if she converts to Selune, she actually becomes much more perky, but with it far less goth, even dying her hair silver-blonde. If she commits to being a Sharran, she becomes more hardened, but still has a soft spot for the PlayerCharacter.
* PetTheDog:
** Literally. Alongside [[TokenGoodTeammate Wyll and Gale]], petting Scratch the dog is the easiest way to raise her approval.
** She approves of saving Arabella alongside the other good-aligned party members along with teaching a training tiefling on how to be a better swordsman.
* PragmaticVillainy: Unlike [[BloodKnight Lae'zel or Astarion]], Shadowheart approves of talking your way out of fights and avoiding conflict -- not (usually) on any moral grounds, she just prefers to avoid taking unnecessary risks or delaying your mission to remove the mind flayer tadpoles. If the player justifies walking in on a bugbear and ogre couple as trying to stop a potential threat, she just scoffs that all they did was turn it into a ''definite'' one. As far as good deeds go, while she generally supports helping people in need, she disapproves of providing that help without expecting anything in return, unless you're helping [[FriendToAllChildren children]] or [[AnimalLover animals]].
* ProperlyParanoid: She was raised by the church of Shar, a ReligionOfEvil outlawed throughout much of Faerûn. There are good reasons for her distrust of others, and she's unapologetic about hiding it from you. She's also usually right about assuming the worst -- if Shadowheart warns you that she's suspicious of someone or their motives, it's probably a good idea to listen. And even if she doesn't openly voice suspicion, expecting the worst from others and erring on the side of caution will generally garner her approval.
* ProudBeauty: If you tell her she's beautiful in her first romance scene, she just says "I know" with a confident smile. [[BookEnds The same can happen in her second romance scene]].
* ReligionOfEvil: She's a cleric of Shar, goddess of darkness and loss, sworn to oppose any disciple of Selûne, Shar's [[CainAndAbel twin sister]] and ArchEnemy.
* TheSacredDarkness: Believes that Shar is ultimately [[DarkIsNotEvil much kinder and nobler]] than the "heretics" have written her off as. [[spoiler:Shar really isn't, but if she's ultimately rejected by Shar for being too merciful, the ''actual'' noble darkness-related deity, Selûne, happily takes her in.]]
-->'''Shadowheart:''' (Shar)'s my mother. She nurtures me, cares for me, loves me.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: Shadowheart will permanently leave the party if the player [[spoiler: allows Balthazar to capture the Nightsong, since Shadowheart has been tasked with killing the Nightsong by Shar.]]
** She will do the same if you [[spoiler: save her parents [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential and then immediately murder them]].]]
* SecretTest: Shadowheart thinks [[spoiler:Raphael is categorically untrustworthy, and that it's unreasonable to consider his offer to remove the tadpole, at least without knowing why he's so interested in it.]] However, the player wouldn't know this, because the way she discusses it is by [[ObfuscatingStupidity playing dumb and asking the player what they think.]] Tav only learns of her very strong opinion on this if their answer is unchanged after being badgered twice by Shadowheart, after which she approves if Tav agreed with her.
* SelfMadeOrphan: [[spoiler:If she remains a follower of Shar, her questline can end with her killing her parents with her own two hands. The same can happen if she turns to Selune, though in that scenario her parents encourage her to so she can be freed from Shar’s curse.]]
* SkinnyDipping: [[spoiler:Her second major romance scene should she abandon Shar involves doing this on a moonlit beach before her and her chosen partner consummate their relationship in the sand.]]
* SlapSlapKiss: If you romance Shadowheart as a Selúnite cleric, her romance will have elements of this.
-->'''Shadowheart:''' What's your game, exactly? A Selúnite bearing gifts sounds like a trick if I ever heard one.\\
'''Tav:''' Just accept the gift and kiss me like you hate me.\\
'''Shadowheart:''' Easily done. [- How am I ever going to explain this in my prayers...? -]
* SoleSurvivor: Of the mission she was sent on pre-abduction, apparently a mission at the behest of Shar herself.
* StreetUrchin: She lived on the streets of Baldur's Gate as a child before the Sharrans took her in. [[spoiler:Or so she is led to believe; in reality she had a happy homelife with her parents until she was kidnapped and brainwashed.]]
* SugarAndIcePersonality: Her approval of you determines how much is sugar and how much is ice at least towards you. Whereas for everyone else it tends to very from aloof haughtiness to calm affection.
* SurvivalMantra: "I must not fail." Spoken during her Origin intro, [[spoiler:several times when she's under pressure to discuss her mission to deliver the artefact to Baldur's Gate,]] as well as during one of Shadowheart's barks when you switch to controlling her. Doubles as {{Foreshadowing}} since the actress' delivery of the line (thinly-veiled panic) hints that [[spoiler:Shadowheart may be driven in part by fear of Shar, rather than loyalty to her.]]
* TeethClenchedTeamwork:
** With the player character if they worship Selûne, since they get dialogue options to distrust or outright hate her once they find out she’s a cleric of Shar. She'll mock them back if these options are picked, and even if they aren't will still disparage their religion to their face.
** ''Especially'' with Lae'zel. They're so diametrically opposed to each other that any decision that raises one's approval almost always lowers the other's. It doesn't help that Shadowheart [[FantasticRacism hates githyanki in general]].
*** [[spoiler:That said, depending on the CharacterDevelopment Lae'zel and Shadowheart undergo, they can become friendlier and learn to respect one another. Especially if Lae'zel becomes disillusioned with Vlaakith and Shadowheart abandons Shar for Selune.]]
* ThatManIsDead: [[spoiler:Regardless of how her questline ends, Shadowheart will refuse being called "Jeneville". If she converts to Selune, she says that she can't bring herself to use her old name after all the suffering she's endured, instead opting to use the name the Sharrans gave her and redeem it in her new goddess' name.]]
* TokenGoodTeammate: Not so much to you as to the [[ReligionOfEvil Church of Shar]] as a whole; even ''she's'' a little confused by her compassion for others and her desire to justify Shar as TheSacredDarkness when most of her clergy just hates everything. She’s also the least cruel of the three "evil" companions, and approves of you taking care of animals and being nice to children. [[spoiler:One potential end of her questline sees her abandoned by Shar precisely because of this trope.]]
* WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: She's afraid of wolves, and has a unique passive about being frightened near them if she fails a will check. This is due to a encounter with one when she was a child, where she had to be rescued by worshipers of Shar. [[spoiler:The wolf in question was actually Shadowheart's father, who, in addition to being a high elf and a cleric of Selune, is also a werewolf. The Sharrans' brainwashing included erasing Shadowheart's memory of the wolf's identity so she would think their kidnapping was a rescue. As of Patch 4, she loses this fear if she recovers the true memory of her kidnapping.]]
* WouldntHurtAChild: Implied. She usually approves of the player being nice to kids, and part of what makes her [[spoiler:[[DrowningMySorrows hit the bottle so hard]] during a goblin party is that so many of the refugees killed ''were'' children]]. She also reacts poorly if the player fails to save Arabella and gets offended if the player says it's unexpected of her. Downplayed however, as she'll state that the party shouldn't get involved when they find out Arabella is in danger, and she'll approve of the player saying that harsh punishments are necessary when talking with Kagha about the situation.
* WoundThatWillNotHeal: She has a wound on her hand that doesn't heal, and occasionaly flares with pain every now and again. Shadowheart claims it is a "gift" from Shar to remind her of her purpose, though even she doesn't quite understand why the wound flares up in certain occasions [[spoiler:such as a broken statue]]. It's all but implied the wound is actually [[spoiler:Shar's "leash" on Shadowheart. It's later revealed the random bouts of pain Shadowheart experiences are actually the pain her parents feel at that moment. The wound can be healed if Shadowheart breaks the curse over her, [[BittersweetEnding but not without a heavy cost to pay for it]]...]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Wyll]]
!!Wyll Ravengard
[[quoteright:664:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/664px_wyll.png]]
[[caption-width-right:664:''[[FolkHero A Living Legend]]'']]
!!!'''Voiced by:''' Lanre Malaolu (Early Access), Theo Solomon (Full Release)

->''"Damnable roach. Provoke the Blade... and suffer its sting!"''\\\

->'''Race:''' Human\\
'''Class:''' Warlock (Fiend Patron)/Ranger (Hunter)\\
'''Background:''' Folk Hero\\
'''Place of Origin:''' Baldur's Gate\\
\\

Born into nobility in Baldur's Gate only to be exiled due to his unholy pact with a cambion, Wyll soon made a name for himself across the Sword Coast as the heroic [[HunterOfMonsters "Blade of Frontiers"]]. Having already escaped the mind flayers, Wyll now seeks to escape his fiendish patron before her price becomes too much for him to pay.
----

* AntiHero: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]]. He's one of the most well-intentioned and selfless Origin characters, but he still made a DealWithTheDevil, and is hunting Karlach at the behest of his patron.
* BabiesEverAfter: If [[spoiler:he chose to remain in Baldur's Gate and become a Grand Duke, Wyll will adopt an orphan girl named Lily Aurora Ravenguard. If he became a heroic ranger, on the other hand, "Lily" is the name of his wolf companion.]]
* BadLiar: His attempts to deflect about [[spoiler:his eye being a sending stone, or having more reason than just general heroics to go after the goblins,]] are ''hilariously'' bad.
* BadassNormal: [[spoiler:Becomes this in the ending if he breaks his pact with Mizora. The player can ask what he’ll do once he loses his powers, and he states he’ll have to make do with his father’s training in the bow and sword.]]
* BadPowersGoodPeople: Heroic/good-aligned warlocks are generally a straight example of DarkIsNotEvil, since they use their powers to help others rather than just serve their patrons' whims. Wyll himself bartered away his soul to an honest-to-gods fiend in order to better protect people.
* BlueBlood: Comes from a Baldurian noble family. [[spoiler:He's actually the son of Grand Duke Ulder Ravengard, though their relationship has been estranged ever since Ulder found out about Wyll's pact with Mizora.]]
* BroughtDownToBadass: [[spoiler:If Wyll rejects Mizora's attempt to renew his contract, he starts losing his warlock powers after the defeat of the Absolute. He comments that he'll have to make do with the training his father gave him, though just slowly losing access to his magic doesn't mean he can't still kick ass.]]
** {{Subverted}} when he becomes a ranger to compensate.
* BuffySpeak: He seems to enjoy coming up with goofy idiomatic phrases and colorful names for things, like calling your parasites "brain-bugs" or passing along "words of wisdom" he just made up.
* CantHaveSexEver: If you romance him, a {{flashback}} of Mizora will kill the mood when you try to hook up, and he'll resignedly decide that he can't offer you either his heart or his body until he's free of her. (This doesn't end the romance, it just means there's no sex scene.) {{Downplayed|Trope}}, since he can be slept with if you pass a Persuasion check.
* CasanovaWannabe: Flirts with both Lae'zel and Shadowheart and utterly fails: the former just taunts and insults him, while the latter points out that she ''heard'' him flirting with Lae'zel and ''will not'' be second fiddle to the likes of her. And the one time he manages to ''not'' strike out, when romanced, well... see above.
* CassandraTruth: [[spoiler:The circumstances behind his becoming a Warlock and his subsequent exile from Baldur's Gate involves this: Mizora guided Wyll to a group of cultists attempting to summon the wicked dragon god Tiamat, and offered him the power to stop them and save the Gate in exchange for his soul. Wyll accepted and wiped out the cultists, then tried to tell his father, Duke Ravengard, about it. The Duke saw Wyll in Mizora's company, but the terms of the pact prevented Wyll from explaining her role in saving the Gate. When he tried to show him the sight of the battle, but all signs of the battle had been removed, making it seem as though it never happened. Ashamed of his son, whom he saw as having sold his soul to a devil for no good reason, Duke Ravengard cast Wyll out of the city.]]
* DanceOfRomance: He's quite fond of dancing and has lots of practice thanks to his noble upbringing, and the scene in which the PC can officially start a relationship with him involves the two dancing together, which can then lead into a kiss.
* DarkSecret: He made a DealWithTheDevil to become a heroic HunterOfMonsters.
* DealWithTheDevil: Wyll's magical abilities stem from a pact he made with a cambion named Mizora, but now he wants out.
* DemonSlaying: Part of his pact with Mizora involves him hunting down devils and demons for her, which gets him into conflict with Karlach, since she's one of Mizora's targets.
* DiscardAndDraw: [[spoiler:In the epilogue where he escapes the pact, Wyll uses his training and what little magical ability he had to become a ranger, and is still strong enough to survive six months in Avernus. He can casually mention making "splinters" of a Bone Devil.]]
* DraggedOffToHell: If Mizora gets killed in Act 2, Wyll will go down with her.
* DynamicEntry: Makes a genuinely impressive one the first time the player's party meets him at the Emerald Grove, where he leaps into battle, disarms and slays a goblin, and then fires off a spell. ({{Subverted}} in Early Access before the cutscene was implemented: he often lept too far and [[FailedAttemptAtDrama knocked himself out after shouting his catchphrase]].)
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: An odd example in that it happened in a single game due to rewrites between Early Access and the final release. In Early Access, Wyll's patron Mizora seemed to have disappeared... which was a problem, because he was looking to escape his contract with her, and his conflict with the goblins was [[ItsPersonal very much personal]] due to them being responsible for the incident that prompted him to make his pact in the first place. In the final release, while he still opposes the goblins, Wyll no longer has a personal history with them, and Mizora is most ''definitely'' around [[spoiler:albeit as an AstralProjection initially, since she still does get captured]] and [[spoiler:will show her displeasure with Wyll if he refuses to kill Karlach, turning him partially -- and apparently permanently -into a half-devil himself (which isn't great for Wyll, given his reputation as a noble hero across the realm).]] He also is less boastful about his accomplishments and more conflicted about his contract (compared to his originally unambiguous regret) in the final release.
* EasilyForgiven: Karlach is quick to forgive him for pointing a sword at her and hunting her down, since she knows he's being used by Mizora, and he's an otherwise pleasant fellow whose values align with hers.
* TheExile: Became this from Baldur's Gate due to his infernal pact with the cambion Mizora, [[spoiler:even after using said pact to defend the city from the Cult of the Dragon years ago]]. Despite this, he still found new life as a wandering hero and monster hunter. [[spoiler:Completing his personal questline, especially with his father Ulder Ravengard alive and well, will cause him to end up being welcomed back to the city as a hero for all the sacrifices he had made to protect it.]]
* EyepatchOfPower: His right eye is made of colorless white glass and has several scars running across it. The power part -- aside from his skill in battle -- comes into play if you figure out it's a magical item, [[spoiler:specifically a [[https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Sending_stones sending stone]]]].
* TheFace: He's your only recruitable NPC with Charisma as their primary stat, and his Warlock passives can make him even better at Persuasion, Intimidation, and Deception if you so choose. If you're a good-aligned character who hasn't invested heavily in Charisma yourself, then you'll be relying chiefly on Wyll to do the talking for you. If you're an evil-aligned character who's chosen to alienate him, then all you've got as a consolation prize is Minthara, who has Charisma as her secondary stat.
* FaceOfAThug: [[spoiler:If he undergoes the ForcedTransformation below, he develops a look of an individual heavily corrupted by devils...which he is, but it's precisely ''because'' he's refused to debase himself before Mizora, remaining a fundamentally noble individual.]]
* FakeUltimateHero: Played with. He's definitely got the power to back up his reputation as the "Blade of the Frontiers" (or at least he did before the mind flayer tadpole apparently sapped his strength). But the power he uses to perform his noble deeds comes from a very ''not'' noble source, aka a powerful devil named Mizora. Even though he is by and large a pretty genuinely good guy, he also very notably keeps the source of his powers very close to his chest.
* FamedInStory: He's fairly well-known by some as a successful monster hunter with equal tenacity, given how he pursued Karlach aboard the Nautiloid while the ship was being assaulted by both infernal and githyanki forces.
* FateWorseThanDeath: [[spoiler:If Mizora gets killed in Act 2, a horrified Wyll will be dragged down to Baator with her. If Karlach's statement is any indication, Wyll will suffer as a tormented blob of flesh in the Hells forever.]]
* FireForgedFriends: Subverted. Wyll quickly realizes that Karlach is not evil, simply another poor soul being used by devils, and gets along very well with her since she's just as gung-ho about doing good as he is. The feeling is reciprocated, as Karlach also finds him to be good company despite their first meeting involving him pointing a sword at her. [[spoiler:He can even go to Avernus with Karlach when her infernal engine cannot support her anymore and protect her from Zariel's henchmen.]]
* ForcedTransformation: [[spoiler:If Wyll chooses not to kill Karlach, Mizora will punish him by turning him into something like a tiefling, with horns, bumpy skin, and a blackened eye. He takes it pretty well, all things considered.]]
* FourthDateMarriage: Part of his romance arc is proposing to the player character, after knowing them for a few weeks at ''best''. Given the heavy storybook-romance feeling of his romance, this is rather fitting.
* FriendToAllChildren: Wyll is a kindly, encouraging teacher to the tiefling children at the Grove, and gives approval when the player shows similar kindness.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: The charisma score is generally focused on strength of personality. Standing firm, willpower in regards to influencing the world, proactivity and the ability to influence others. Wyll generally comes across as being weak-willed and easily influenced, and people tend to see him more as a joke than as an impressive individual.
* GloryHound: Some of the group accuse him of this, due to his "Blade of the Frontiers" reputation and penchant for drama.
* GracefulLoser: Should the player turn him down [[spoiler:for a kiss during his dance scene in Act 2]], Wyll is clearly crushed, but will apologize the next day for potentially misreading the situation.
* HeroicSacrifice: Deconstructed. Wyll's sacrifice, selling his soul to Mizora [[spoiler:to stop the cult of Tiamat]], is all in his backstory, and instead of his big glorious moment, we just get to see the fallout. It's an interesting examination of what making sacrifices really costs. Wyll flat-out admits that given the chance
* HeroOfAnotherStory: [[spoiler:Wyll was among the heroes who defeated the Cult of the Dragon to prevent Tiamat's summoning, as told in ''TabletopGame/TyrannyOfDragons'', though he's absent from the campaign itself as he would presumably be replacing one of the player characters.]]
* HiddenDepths:
** Similar to how quickly he accepted Mizora's pact, he also accepts the powers the tadpole grants without question, showcasing a pattern of risk-taking behavior and a willingness to seek out more power regardless of the cost to himself, [[DownplayedTrope although he does caution against falling for the temptations and agrees with Shadowheart to avoid using said powers without properly understanding them. He's also immensely wary of Raphael's attempts to tempt the party, showing that as reckless he can be, he's not completely gullible]].
** Wyll becomes ''extremely'' upset if he learns [[spoiler:the tiefling child Mol]] has made a deal with Raphael, specifically decrying that Raphael took advantage of one so young. Given that Wyll's own pact was struck when he was a mere teenager, it's implied he's emotional about his own situation as well, even though he otherwise purports not to have any regrets about taking Mizora's initial deal.
* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter:
** Wyll believed Mizora, a cambion and fiend of Hell, would only send him after actual evil monsters. While he had suspicions some of his targets might not be evil at all, it takes meeting Karlach for him to realize Mizora is simply using him for her own benefit and sincerely apologizes to Karlach and the avatar for his foolishness. If he fulfilled his bargain and killed her, he will initially try to vainly evoke his titled cheer and heroic bravado in a hollow attempt to convince himself he had just struck down yet another devil like he has so many times before. When meeting Mizora, however, he drops the charade and lambasts her for sending him after a normal tiefling. Despite Mizora saying the world is better off, when you speak to him later he will acknowledge Karlach was just an innocent tiefling, and mournfully admit to himself his terrible deed of having hunted down one of Zarial's suffering victims.
** Averted if Wyll is asked his assessment of Duke Stelmane and the Emperor's alliance. [[spoiler:He regards the Emperor as manipulative, speculates he made the Duke "an offer she couldn't refuse," and suspects there was more to Stelmane's ailments than an ordinary stroke.]] All of this is revealed to be dead-on accurate in a later cutscene.
* HunterOfMonsters: A monster hunter by trade, FamedInStory throughout the Sword Coast as a hero whose reputation precedes him.
* {{Irony}}: Among the party members, his base Charisma is among the highest, yet his attempt to flirt with the female party members are all quickly shot down.
* KingIncognito: As early as Act 1, you can learn that Wyll is actually [[spoiler:the son of Ulder Ravengard, the Grand Duke of Baldur's Gate. Even Baldurian player characters with backgrounds associated with the affluent citizens of the city don't even know that Ulder had a son. And that's before you learn that Ulder exiled his own son from the city due to his infernal pact with Mizora, [[BadPowersGoodPeople despite Wyll's good intentions for doing so]].]]
* KnightErrant: [[spoiler:In the Patch 5 epilogue, depending on choices made throughout the game, Wyll can become a Ranger who travels from town to town slaying all manner of monsters.]]
* LargeHamTitle: Invoked. In a bit of side banter, Wyll can suggest more impressive epithets Gale might go by (similar to his own "Blade of Frontiers"). Gale will demur with a comment that their group has already reached a maximum limit of theatrical titles.
* LoopholeAbuse: On the receiving end of this from his patron. [[spoiler:Wyll protests killing Karlach because Mizora asked him to kill demons and devils and Karlach is a tiefling. Mizora then proceeds to quote a clause and section of their contract that either Wyll knew nothing of or skimmed over when he entered into a contract with Mizora that specifically states he must kill not just fiends, but also anyone heartless, and while in the moral sense Karlach is anything but heartless, in a literal sense her heart has been replaced by a magical mechanism. As such, Mizora punishes Wyll for his breach in the contract and puts him through a ForcedTransformation.]] That said, it's implied [[spoiler:Mizora's punishment has less to do with loopholes and more to do with spite, as Karlach was Zariel's favorite]].
* MissingMom: Wyll's mother died while in childbirth with him, leaving him to be raised by his single father.
* MyNaymeIs: Wyll claims in a banter with Shadowheart that his father named him after his (Wyll's) great-uncle, although he just thinks his father didn't know how to spell.
-->'''Shadowheart:''' So, Wyll with a "y" -- Why?\\
'''Wyll:''' "Y", that's right.\\
'''Shadowheart:''' But why?\\
'''Wyll:''' Why "y"? A great-uncle's name, my father said. But I just figured he couldn't spell.
* NiceGuy: Has a pleasant, cheerful disposition, and is met at a refugee camp where he divides his time between teaching the kids to fight and fending off attacking goblins. He also seems to have made his DealWithTheDevil out of a genuine desire to help people, rather than to be famous or even just the power for its own sake.
* NotSoAboveItAll: Although he's one of the most genuinely honorable and noble among your companions, Wyll isn't above giving approval if you heckle Dribbles the Clown -- or push someone ''else'' into going on stage with him.
* OverratedAndUnderleveled: Invoked. It's a plot point that, as a party member, he's not ''nearly ''powerful enough to have accomplished all his supposed feats. It appears that his abduction -- and subsequent infection with the mind flayer tadpole -- has sapped his powers.
* PunishedWithUgly: It's subjective how "ugly" he actually is, but Wyll's ForcedTransformation certainly leaves him ''feeling'' as if this has happened to him. He's too ashamed of his own appearance to join the tiefling party, and elsewhere, characters like Zevlor or Counselor Florrick (who knew him pre-transformation) will react in shock to his new appearance.
* RebelPrince: Wyll is the son of a grand duke, but his pact with Mizora led to his disownment and exile. Even aside from the pact, Wyll's dialogue frequently suggests he chafed against the political maneuvering required of someone in his father's position, and that he is far happier as a monster-slaying adventurer.
* RedBaron: The Blade of Frontiers. [[spoiler:If he's turned into a half-devil by Mizora but continues to resist TheLegionsOfHell, he assumes the title of "Blade of Avernus" instead.]]
* RuggedScar: Along with his missing eye, he's got several deep claw marks along the sides of his face and neck. He's apparently [[CoveredInScars covered with them]].
* RoyalRapier: Wyll's signature weapon is a rapier, which warlocks and humans are not normally proficient in, [[spoiler:but is a fitting weapon for the son of a duke to be trained with]].
* SadisticChoice:
** [[spoiler:Mizora offers him one in Act 3 regarding his father, Ulder Ravenguard, should the player not know where he was taken to. Either Wyll continues his pact and makes it eternal and serve Zariel in exchange for the location of his father, or break his pact and be free, but Mizora will not reveal his location, effectively condemning his father to death. Wyll can be convinced to break the pact and find his father outside of Mizora, but he's unsure which to do given he wants to save his father and be free of Mizora]].
** [[spoiler:If Ulder Ravenguard isn't rescued from the Iron Throne and subsequently dies, Mizora will offer one of these to him. She can either resurrect his father, but damn Wyll to an eternally binding contract... ''or'' they can break the pact, but Ulder will stay dead. Whichever one happens is up to Wyll/the player.]]
* {{Swashbuckler}}: Wyll [[InvokedTrope actively attempts]] to embody many of the conventions of a swashbuckling hero: he's a free-spirited do-gooder who selflessly defends the downtrodden, he fights with a rapier by default, and he's got a penchant for bombast and showmanship.
* TokenGoodTeammate: Wyll's not only one of the nicest companions, he's also the most genuinely heroic. [[spoiler:If you sell the Emerald Grove out to the goblins, he's the only one other than Karlach who either [[GoThroughMe leaves the party to fight you to protect the refugees]] or [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere storms out in disgust after the fact]]. Furthermore, should you embrace your Bhaalspawn heritage as the Dark Urge, Wyll is the only one who will join Minsc and Jaheira in trying to stop you, which even Karlach can't bring herself to do.]]
* TongueTied: [[spoiler:Due to his pact with Mizora he can't actually disclose the circumstances that led to him making it until she gives him permission to. Indeed if he should try, the words seem to stop in his throat.]]
* WellDoneSonGuy: He claims to have been "a steadfast dagger in (his) father's side" when he was young, and apparently [[https://preview.redd.it/7aweuhbw2tx51.png?width=1920&format=png&auto=webp&s=681580353678898bc0667a84946774b74cbaf9e9 wants his forgiveness for it]]. [[spoiler:It later turns out that discovering his pact with Mizora caused his father, Ulder Ravengard, to exile him from Baldur's Gate; Wyll has since then wanted to prove to his estranged father that he can still be a hero.]]
* YouHaveFailedMe: Downplayed. If Wyll spares Karlach, then his patron Mizora will later pull a LoopholeAbuse to put Wyll through a ForcedTransformation as punishment. A player character that succeeds in an Arcana check can point out to him that [[YourSoulIsMine Mizora could've claimed his soul for breaching their contract]], and Wyll responds that the only reason she hasn't done so is because [[CantKillYouStillNeedYou she still has a use for him]].
[[/folder]]

* AntiHero: A potential way to play both Tav and Dark Urge. Given the sheer amount of dialogue options in the game, it's possible to play as any sort of grey character the player chooses, ranging from [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold heroic]] JerkAss [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold who does good deeds while casually insulting everyone they meet]] to a NominalHero who does horrible things to get what they want (up to and including killing children). Githyanki, drow and half-orc characters are particularly susceptible to this, as they tend to get harsher dialogue options than other races.

* FriendOrIdolDecision: If Tav has been romancing her when [[spoiler: they encounter the Nightsong, Shadowheart is faced with this as becoming a Dark Justiciar requires giving her whole heart to Shar; leaving no room for anything, or anyone, else. At this point, unless Tav actively encourages her to kill the Nightsong, Shadowheart will almost certainly take the "Friend" path and toss away the spear.]]

'''Place of Origin:''' Baldur's Gate (Default)\\\

* AdaptationalBackstoryChange: Downplayed. No matter which race you play as, the Dark Urge will always be a Bhaalspawn with the Haunted One background. The only thing that does change is their place of origin; a Lolth-sworn drow's place of origin is the Underdark, a gith a creche, etc.

A mysterious, amnesiac individual who suffers from a violent 'Urge', which they can either indulge or resist. The Dark Urge is [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers unique among the Origin Characters]] in many ways: Though they are canonically a male white dragonborn sorcerer, their race, appearance, gender, and class are all fully customizable; the only exception is their background, "Haunted One." They're also an avatar-only origin, and not available as a companion if not played as your main character. \\\

* TokenHeroicOrc: It's possible to play Tav as such if played as a race that doesn't have a good reputation with others, particularly the githyanki who either HatesEveryoneEqually at best or is xenophobia incarnate at worst or a Lolth-sworn drow, who are otherwise almost always evil.

* ButForMeItWasTuesday: [[Averted Trope Averted]] come Act 3. [[spoiler: Upon discovering that the many victims Cazador made him seduce and bring back to be fed on were actually turned into Vampire Spawn for the Ascendant ritual Astarion can remember them all, including their names and what went on between him and them. Seeing them again absolutely wrecks him.]]

** When confronted about the children he kidnapped, he's quick to assert that unlike the adults, he didn't lure them.

* KissOfTheVampire: If you let him bite you, you're explicitly stated to ''like it'' after the initial pain. The bite scene itself is even framed to envoke the imagery of a sex scene, with the camera panning to over his shoulder and both he and the player character jerking against each other in ways that are ''extremely'' suggestive. Taken even further if romanced, where you can encourage him to bite you during sex.

** To his credit, despite not asking permission that first time, after that point he will only ever feed from the player when they offer. Even if you have established a relationship where you frequently let him feed from you, he never do so unless given the expressed, direct permission each and every night.

** In Moonrise Tower, they can find a spot in the wall above the kitchen where [[spoiler: the mindflayer colony below is seeping through a crack in the brick]]. They have the option to stick their hand through the crack not just once, but TWICE, much to their companions' dismay.

** If you feed and care for the owlbear cub, Astarion will approve, even letting it loaf on one of his cushions while idling in camp. It's notable that he's only neutral to Scratch (an already lovable dog), but it does say something about him (and you) when you choose to take in a known monster. By act 3, he does become extremely attached to even Scratch and has the strongest response if somehow the dog [[spoiler:ends up dying due to an attack on the camp]].
** He also approves you indulging His Majesty the cat in Last Light Inn.

** If you [[spoiler:took up Haarlep's game and give in, he'll gain your form. Every time he has pleasure in your form, you *will* know. If you openly moan in public, Astarion will be the only one in your party to say that he recognizes your moan being the result of the incubus's doing. In his seriousness and zero sarcasm, he'll sympathize with you, as he knows what it's like to have your body out of your control.]]

* KissOfTheVampire: If you let him bite you, you're explicitly stated to ''like it'' after the initial pain. Taken even further if romanced, where you can encourage him to bite you during sex.