Ugh I KNOW 🩷🩷 I love this man. And I love how he’s just so at ease here at this party. He no longer feels any need to be guarded or tense, he’s just totally himself: a lovable, adorable goofball 🥰
He was given a chance at being a good person. And the fact he's a good person after all the torture he's been through... I don't think he would have developed into the good person without Tav or resist Durge. Astarion truly needed us players.
I swear hearing Minsc say that boo knew other options I imagined my poor ranger just like blue screening. Like of course it’s the one animal they can’t actually talk to despite the spell that might know how to help their partner
Haha, I loved how Minsc just kept going talking about something else. At that point all I could think of was "wait, what? I wanna talk about that other thing". My headcanon is that Boo manages to communicate his tips through Minsc eventually since Minsc does genuinely like spawn Astarion & I'm sure he would want to help even if the words are too long.
@@carianbandit yes this! I like the idea of being a vampire with him. Spending eternity together. But clearly the writers decided that was a wrong decision by way of turning him into a borderline insufferable mustache twirling villain to an almost comic degree, knowing that there's a possibility he can cured takes away some of the sadness knowing the durge/Tav will someday die leaving Astorian alone again. Imma pretend they found a cure. Went on to live a life of adventure, then settled down. Had kids and died at a ripe old age together hahahaha
@@AGxbunny my take based on the comments he has about vampires, his own vampirism and his reactions to Jaheira's scroll of Rite of the Timeless Body is that he might not be that much into being a vampire or living forever & might actually like to be cured. But again, this is my interpretation of his words. Also, depending on how easily you can get/produce the remedy, you could also help the spawn in the Underdark (in my ending we let them out), the kids at least.
@@carianbandit I also agree and interpreted his words the same. He does want to be cured and would (in my opinion) get tired of immortality. My Druid Half Elf wants to reach Archdruid level to acquire Timeless Body, which just extends your life, but doesn't make you immortal in DnD lore, so that she can live as long as him, after he is cured and has the life expectancy of a normal High Elf. I will give them that and a wholesome happy ever after because anything else would make me terribly sad. lol The beauty of DnD is that there are solutions to most everything, so curing vampirism has always been possible, just as the game itself suggests. So no one should feel sad about Unascended Astarion because he doesn't have to live like that forever.
What I really love about unascended Astarion generally and even in this video is how geniune his expressions and voice are. Gone is the flamboyant performance of seduction and charm he had to always put on before. It was a horrid instinct he had to adopt just to survive but not anymore. He now smiles truly instead of giving a seductive smirk, he hugs deeply instead of being afraid to do so and he just feels and looks so happy. He deserves all the hugs and love he gets in this ending ❤
This... This is perfect. Yes ! I was so very sad from his previous Good ending. He fought tooth and nails to survive, learned compassion and courage, sacrificed power and his only reward was to go back crawling in the shadow, forever alone and hungry. But no more. Now he seeks a cure for real, he may yet have a real life again !
seeing him so sweet after all the ascended version i watched is so therapeutic. that hug alone was sooo cathartic 😭 if to drop all the morals and just consider relationship of Tav and Astarion, ascended astarion sounds hot and everything, but i kinda feel some tension in interactions with him. it’s full of manipulation, insecurity, anxiety, control. it looks and sounds transactional. Ascended astarion doesn’t look truly happy to me. and when he’s unascended, he looks truly free from his internal turmoil and past, and his relationship with Tav looks trusting, secure and actually loving. which i cannot see in ascending version.
Ascended Astarion is not the same Astarion that grew as a person throughout all the acts. He reverts to act 1 Astarion where he's not developed as a person. If he doesn't ascend, he remains himself, so it's the only option for me!
Two (2) other things-- Karlach"s fantasy-biker jacket is *the best* thing And also "It would be so easy to come out the other side bitter and twisted!" LOOKS DIRECTLY AT THE CAMERA, YEAH IT WOULD HUH. Sure glad that didn"t happen! (/jk, that one"s a joke. ... mostly)
@@InfiniteAnvil doesn't work due to Netherese magic on the tadpoles, and Astarion doesn't WANT to be mortal again. He wants the immortality and power of vampirism without the drawbacks.
I heard from someone that true resurrection only works before 200 years (as a vampire spawn) and we know he’s a little too late for that since he’s 239 years old
@@mizzysquishii5652 this is True Resurrection in RAW from 5e (same version Larian is using for BG3): "You touch a creature that has been dead for no longer than 200 years and that died for any reason except old age. (...) The spell replaces damaged or missing organs and limbs. If the creature was undead, it is restored to its non-undead form." Astarion says he was turned *NEARLY* 200 years ago, so it MAY be possible it can work on him.. 👀
I am so happy for him. I had to do that blasted netherbrain fight twice, to check if Gale would also be happy with an adventuring life because I had them romance each other in my two saves. (Spoiler: He is and I like his adventurer ending way better than the Waterdeep ones - also calling Astarion a "metaphorical ray of sunshine amongst the darkness" was too cute.)
This is a stretch for sure (and if nothing else, a testament to how obsessed I am with astarion) but when he said “we get to spend every night together”, that just makes me think of like how I’ll spend a bit of time every day looking at fan art, reading fanfics, and just imagining what my tav might be getting up to with him in the underdark. And Neil Newbon himself always loves when the fans create their own headcannons. I think headcannons are so important and hold so much value, because that’s essentially the player’s connection with the character.
Excuse me but Boo is a *miniature* giant space hamster 😆 Also, Minsc will flex his muscles as an idle animation during the party and I thought it was hilarious.
Gorshdarnit Boo knows the cure and we don't even have an option to ask?! Please little friend, share it with us! 😭 Although, I do would prefer to just cure the bad side effects part, mostly the sun.
It wouldn't surprise me since in BG2 Boo and Minsc can possibly witness a vampire being restored to mortal life (like romanced Aerie or Anomen or Hexxat); one being a ritual to Amanuator and the other being a deal with a Netherese lich...
@@teaz3139 Not to mention that Jaheira herself can be one of the companions relieved of vampirism by the Amanuator ritual. And if the ritual/deal conditions can’t be met, there’s the cloak dropped by the vampire Dragomir in the enhanced edition of BG2 (lit. Cloak of Dragomir) that allows a vampire to walk in the sunlight unharmed, albeit while being ”weakened” (aka basically being as strong as the average mortal with their vampire senses dulled).
If you want to look to earlier entries in the series for some headcanon fodder and do not no mind spoilers for Baldur's Gate 2, allow me to nerd dump: CURE 1: If the main character has finished a romance with a certain party companion (Aerie, Anomen, *Jaheira* or Viconia) a BG2 companion quest involves a vampire kidnapping the romanced companion and inflicting them with vampirism. The character has to be killed, but if killing the vampire, cutting out their heart and bringing the dead companion's body to a certain ruined temple of a certain sun god and performing a ritual using their body and said vampire heart, they will be brought back to life WITHOUT vampirism. There is also a book that details the ritual. (Baldur's Gate 2) CURE 2: A vampire companion in BG2 could make a deal with a specific ancient Lich Necromancer to have their mortality returned to them. Note: it can be a monkey's paw cure, depending on the individual. The deal does indeed turn them mortal, but the vampire companion in question was a human before they were turned and as the companion was born 237 years ago they turn to their mortal age and die of old age immediately from the deal. (BG2: Enhanced Edition) CLOAK OF SUNWALKING: Killing another specific vampire, they drop a cloak which enables a vampire to walk in the sun without harm, albeit with the setback of being "weakened" while wearing it. (Mechanically becoming about on par with the average mortal as opposed to having a vampire's strength/charm/senses.) (BG2: Enhanced Edition) All in all, the Baldur's Gate series has provided ways to deal with vampirisim, so it's not far fetched for a headcanon Ring of Sunwalking to be plausible in the world of BG3. Or that Jaheira, one of the possible party companions of BG2 for that matter, at least to some extent would know of them. Some BG2 SPOILERY Google search terms for the curious: Bohdi, The final battle with Bodhi, The Vampiricus Omnibus: Unabridged, Amaunator*, Ruined Temple, Cloak of Dragomir, Hexxat, Korkorran. NERD ALERT: (*Before a lore event (the Second Sundering) the sun god Lathander seen in BG3 was an aspect of the sun god Amaunator, but they are now seperate gods. And if someone wants to be nitpicky, the system that BG2 uses (2E) did not have the term "vampire spawn" yet, so individuals who were inflicted with vampirism by vampires were also called "vampires" but could be controlled by the turner in a similar way. The party companion Hexxat who can use the Cloak of Dragomir is a vampire, but later editions would likely have called her a vampire spawn.) Edit: spelling
I just got to the ritual part. Why would anyone choose to kill 7000 people. I know is a game, and it’s not real. But it’s obvious that that’s a horrifying and unforgivable thing to do.
The thing that confuses me is some folks sacrificing 7k people in a devil’s ritual for selfish reasons & still claiming their character is good-aligned. Literally no.
My head is screaming, "DON'T LET HIM ASCEND! DON'T. LET. HIM. ASCEND! HE IS HEALTHY AND HAPPY HERE!" 😭😭😭 My heart! I'm so happy to see this ending and omg he looks so healty and sounds so much more happy! Need. To. Save. This. Man.
Ahhhh this is my headcanon 100%!!!!! So wonderful! I mean I knew this is what can happen with a romanced, unascended Astarion, because we have that dialogue right there in the ending, about searching for a cure, but finally seeing it in game as pure canon is exhilarating!! Thank you so much for uploading this! It seems very few Unascended fans have put up content with the epilogue, which is surprising because it is so well done and perfect for his story.❤
The epilogue dialogue depends on what you pick in the scene with him after the docks. :) I saw a video with the "taking care of the spawn in the Underdark" choice, and Minsc & Boo do not make any comment regarding the cure in this case (fade from black comments are different too). But if you do pick the cure option it's now canon that there is a way.
I didn’t romance him, my giant hunk of a human fighter somehow got with Gale instead (couldn’t be happier with that nerd), but seeing Astarion at the party legitimately made me cry tears of joy. I’d gotten so frustrated with him trying to get approval as a good/redeemed urge and he seemed to hate everything I did. But seeing him at the party, being *himself,* seeming genuinely happy and just a chaotic dork made me *begging* for a dialogue option to just tell him how damn proud I was of him. Larian needs to patch that in.
im so happy i got to play the game just in time they putted this outcome!! i was so scared to finish the game and have to see astarion just hide in the shadows hopeless forever. the fact that there is hope, that we can actually help him in a journey for a cure, it all just makes my heart melt. thank u for this larian 😭
Thank you for the clip! + I kind of love that in there"s the, kinda, harsh option to break up w/ him after the ending. Like out of game, you spend however many hours in this world w/ this dude and go through this whole emotionally significant character arc and a Lot of violence and then right at the end,, fucking point-blank,, just "Nah
Mean dialogue options in this game give me intrusive thoughts sometimes. I'd never pick them... but what if??? Luckily, UA-cam exists to sate my curiosity.
Even if not for the consent issue, it would have destroyed his soul the same way ascending does and caused the same personality shift, if I understand the lore right.
I sided with the Guild against the Zhentarim & then talked to Nine Fingers together with Minsc. They negotiated something of a partnership, it was a funny conversation. How did you resolve his quest?
@@carianbandit I also sided with the guild. But I didn't talk with nine fingers together with him afterwards. I will try that. Thank you very much! I was very confused as to have the zhentarim imprisoned him when I killed them hahaha
No, she’s alive, don’t worry. :) She is using a projection to visit from the Astral plane. She’s busy with an important mission and couldn’t attend in person.
I saw a video of it. 😅 It’s like your character has been waiting for a good moment, which never came, and finally decided it’s better to say something before making any plans for the future. Poor Astarion.
So it seems I missed this because I only had the options to either let Karlach die or go with her to Avernus. When I came to the party I couldn't even hug him despite romancing him before. 😭
I would never want to cure Astarion's vampirism, I'm too much into him biting & sucking me. However I would find a potion/spell for him to walk in the sun once again and maybe quench some of that nagging blood thirst. Maybe find a reasonable true vampire to make Astarion a true vampire, too. Something like that.
@@carianbandit From what he says if you don't romance him, he seems to really accept and enjoy being a vampire now. I don't think he'd want to be mortal again. He's accepted himself and loves himself as he is. He doesn't feel the need or desire to change. He doesn't want his body to be changed any more. He'd love to walk in the sun again, but I don't think he wants to be cured of vampirism entirely.
@@LuxLightly I think it is definitely not a priority for him as he does accept himself. After killing Cazador you can ask if he's giving up on walking in the sun again, and he will answer that it's not him giving up, but more reconsidering what it is he really wants. In dialogue with Tav after defeating the brain he does say that if there's even a small chance to help him walk in the sun, he'd take it. But in the end, I think looking for a cure with Tav is not so much about the cure itself here but about adventuring with someone he loves. And be sure, they are doing all the side quests, helping all the randos & smiting foes. (speculation here) Imo, based on other dialogues, I think he might like to be cured if such option was on the table, but it's not something that really bothers him too much.
@@carianbanditOh I think for sure he wants to walk in the sun again, he's made that quite clear. I just don't think he wants to be mortal again. I think he'd want something more like what he had with the tadpole: still a vampire but without some of the weaknesses.
It’s strange, but I also had this option in the dialogue with Minsk, although I chose to control and rule the spawns in the underdark. And at the party, Minsk was straight from prison and said something about putting a spoke in the wheels of the Zhentarim, and in the dialogue there was an option to answer him that they say he needs to accept that the Zhentarim now rule the city. But I sided with Ninefingers and killed the Zhentarim, and the Ninefingers fighters were allies in the final battle.
Did you bring Minsc to talk to Nine Fingers after helping the Guild? They should make an alliance. If you don’t do that you get the outcome you got. Not sure if it’s a bug or if the Guild just can’t keep control without the help of Minsc.
@@carianbandit no, only Jaheira spoke to her. I didn’t even think about it, I thought only Jaheira had a connection with her :с Thanks, now I know what to do in the new playthrough)
It should start after the docks scene. Common reasons for it not working: mods, if restarting an old save - restarting from the wrong point. Some “bad” endings don’t have an epilogue.
I had Wyll choose to become the Blade of Avernus. He intervenes during Karlach's scene in this case and suggests they both go to Avernus together. You can tell Karlach it is a good idea and Karlach will agree since she isn't alone anymore. I think your Tav/Durge can also go with Karlach in the friend route, but I haven't tried myself. I believe your romance epilogue might be overwritten in this case and during the reunion you will get "friend" conversation with your romance.
@@carianbandit you’re right. I romanced Shadowheart but choose to go with Karlach. When I met Shadowheart again it was the friends conversation. I’m not sure why but Wyll never stepped up to say anything even thought he was the Blade of Avernus and his dad was still alive.
@@ANCIENTWARRI0R and im pretty sure that once the reunion with his dad happens after saving him you have to not convince him to become a duke cuz if u convince him to accept his fathers proposal to become a duke im pretty sure he chooses not go go with karlach
@@carianbandit I convinced him not to become the duke. He was actually the blade of Avernus that’s why I dont understand why he didn’t go with karlach. Even in the epilogue he talks about being the blade. I’m sure I did something wrong just not sure what.
It's a personal thing, but I have no idea why anyone would want to cure him of vampirism, of all things. Yeah, I get that not everyone may wish to do the ritual which will grant him everything back plus extra new stuff - for some reason - but to make him mortal again? Why? IDK, it seems that Astarion has issues adapting to life as it is, and you want to put even more of that pressure on him? Especially considering that he is reluctant and even scared to go through any drastic transformations? A transformation which will make him even weaker? Seems like a strange wish, but whatever works for your story, I guess 🤷🏻♀
The way he talks about being wracked with hunger 24/7 is reason enough alone to seek mortality again. Vampirism will always have that drawback (aside from ascended, but the ascended route leaves him feeling the weight of 7000 souls he damned and twists him further into self-hatred and evil than before. The perks do not outweigh the mental damage it does to him and the way it forces him into the role of the person he hated most.) So yeah, mortality is a good option both mentally and physically. It's not a transformation, it's a release from a curse. Ascended fans also fundamentally misunderstand vampirism in the world setting. Which is fine, they don't discuss it enough in the game for you to get a full grasp on why it's bad for him. I'd recommend actually digging into the lore because there is a LOT of info that you'll never understand without it and would probably change a lot of people's minds about how 'great' ascended is.
As the commenter above said, do read some actual vampire lore. I know the game doesn’t fully show the burden that vampirism is, though the few times it does, should be proof enough for you that all the perks aside, the torment and hardship it comes with is not worth it. He is dead. His body is dead, he has no heartbeat, he has to use certain essences to mask the smell of decay, he is permanently cold and wracked by unquenchable hunger, he cannot rest and as an elf he cannot enter trances to commune with his past. Speaking of being an elf, because apparently many Ascarions, such as yourself choose to conveniently overlook that part.;) He is an elf, before he is a vampire. Sorry, to break it to you. Elves in DnD have exceedingly long lives, between 700 and up to a 1000 years. The only way for them to remember everything from their long pasts is trough meditation/trances. They don’t sleep like humans, but they enter trances for about 5 hours during which they revisit their entire past, plus some of their past lives. This helps their brain remember and retain so much information. Astarion cannot trance anymore. He hasn’t done it for hundreds of years and as you can see he barely remembers his life or what happened to him since being turned, or even before. He has shards of memory that tbh, we can’t even verify to be true, they can just be his imagination and story he tells people to manipulate them. He cannot remember his eye color or his family, but he wants to. He struggles so hard to regain himself. In Origins you can speak to a magic mirror who asks him what would he want to see most in it and he answers “My home. My true home that haven’t seen in centuries.” He probably has a very blurred memory of it, but he knows there used to be a place there for him. As ascendant all of that is erased. He’s just a vampire and everything he was before is gone, which to me is tragic, but to each their own indeed. Vampirism is a prison. It isn’t pleasant, or pretty. It is terrible and nightmarish. Have you seen what Cazador thinks of while sleeping in his coffin? You can find that scene on yt. I don’t want that for him. I want him to live because in elven years he’s still young and can have a long, fulfilling life ahead of him. Also, it would be wonderful and respectable if you didn’t just trample all over other people’s hc, alluding to some imagined moral superiority on your part, just because you have a dom kink. No one is judging you, do your thing beb, but let other do the same and maybe stay in your Ascarion bubble.
Besides the 24/7 hunger, the sun was the one thing that Astarion loved the most. If you ask him if he regrets his choice, he says no he doesn’t, but he regrets the choices he had. The way I see it is you’re helping a partner fulfill a wish or a dream they have, which for Astarion is to walk in the sun. Also, Astarion is an elf. If he gave up his immortality he’d still live at least another 5 centuries. Those are my reasons for seeking a way to cure him of his vampirism.
For some reason? Bruh, like sacrificing 7k innocents to the Lord of Hells, etc? This epilogue is from goody playthrough, so definitely not happening. Also, he wants to and has been very happy doing this quest for 6 months as we can see. Not like you are forcing him. He doesn’t seem at all maladjusted or under any pressure. Additionally to what others have said, literally mentioned in the game: vampires can’t walk in the sun, bloodthirst sucks, can’t got into homes uninvited, they can’t see their reflection, can’t wade through rivers, etc. Being a mortal doesn’t make you weaker than being a vampire spawn. Not uncommon for vampires in this setting to want to be mortal again and this is present in the previous BG game. And in conversation with Jaheira about the Rite of the Timeless body Astarion mentions that eternity is only as good as the life you’re living & commends her when she decides to not cling to prolonging her life too much. So that is my assumption of what he would have liked to do since I can’t ask him. And he seems happy with that choice, so I’m happy.
It doesn't make him weaker though? There's not very many upsides to being a Spawn Vampire, aside from immortality. Mortals in DnD are very powerful; look at the rest of the team, none of them are weak compared to Astarion. If anything, it's freeing him from a boatload of drawbacks. True vampires/ascendant vampires would be stronger but the cost there is his soul, which isn't worth it. The loss of his immortality is literally the only drawback, and considering how he talks in some earlier scenes, I don't think he was all that excited to outlive the love of his life into eternity anyways. Nothing about this feels ill-fitting to his character to me 🤷♀️
I haven't updated my game since patch 1 because my mods were stable, and there was nothing substantial enough in patches to make me want to update. I may reconsider that choice now. But ugh, those vanilla faces are all so ugly without exception.
@@river_brookfr lol, this is one of the few of these games where I find the romancable characters very hot in their vanilla forms. All my mods are so that I can be hot enough for THEM.
I love how relieved he looks when he hugs you.
🖤 Face animations in this game are top tier when it comes to conveying emotion.
That man is such a sweetheart. Seeing him act and react like a healthy individual makes my heart soar. That and his cute idle animations.
The animations were such a nice touch. 🥺
Ugh I KNOW 🩷🩷 I love this man. And I love how he’s just so at ease here at this party. He no longer feels any need to be guarded or tense, he’s just totally himself: a lovable, adorable goofball 🥰
I love how sweet Astarion gets. He's such a good person deep down inside. We just have to be patient and draw it out of him.
He was given a chance at being a good person. And the fact he's a good person after all the torture he's been through... I don't think he would have developed into the good person without Tav or resist Durge. Astarion truly needed us players.
I swear hearing Minsc say that boo knew other options I imagined my poor ranger just like blue screening. Like of course it’s the one animal they can’t actually talk to despite the spell that might know how to help their partner
Haha, I loved how Minsc just kept going talking about something else. At that point all I could think of was "wait, what? I wanna talk about that other thing". My headcanon is that Boo manages to communicate his tips through Minsc eventually since Minsc does genuinely like spawn Astarion & I'm sure he would want to help even if the words are too long.
@@carianbandit yes this! I like the idea of being a vampire with him. Spending eternity together. But clearly the writers decided that was a wrong decision by way of turning him into a borderline insufferable mustache twirling villain to an almost comic degree, knowing that there's a possibility he can cured takes away some of the sadness knowing the durge/Tav will someday die leaving Astorian alone again.
Imma pretend they found a cure. Went on to live a life of adventure, then settled down. Had kids and died at a ripe old age together hahahaha
@@AGxbunny my take based on the comments he has about vampires, his own vampirism and his reactions to Jaheira's scroll of Rite of the Timeless Body is that he might not be that much into being a vampire or living forever & might actually like to be cured. But again, this is my interpretation of his words.
Also, depending on how easily you can get/produce the remedy, you could also help the spawn in the Underdark (in my ending we let them out), the kids at least.
It honestly is the best thing. I would die for this space hamster
@@carianbandit I also agree and interpreted his words the same. He does want to be cured and would (in my opinion) get tired of immortality. My Druid Half Elf wants to reach Archdruid level to acquire Timeless Body, which just extends your life, but doesn't make you immortal in DnD lore, so that she can live as long as him, after he is cured and has the life expectancy of a normal High Elf. I will give them that and a wholesome happy ever after because anything else would make me terribly sad. lol
The beauty of DnD is that there are solutions to most everything, so curing vampirism has always been possible, just as the game itself suggests. So no one should feel sad about Unascended Astarion because he doesn't have to live like that forever.
What I really love about unascended Astarion generally and even in this video is how geniune his expressions and voice are. Gone is the flamboyant performance of seduction and charm he had to always put on before. It was a horrid instinct he had to adopt just to survive but not anymore.
He now smiles truly instead of giving a seductive smirk, he hugs deeply instead of being afraid to do so and he just feels and looks so happy. He deserves all the hugs and love he gets in this ending ❤
I also love how you can really see the difference. :)
This... This is perfect. Yes ! I was so very sad from his previous Good ending. He fought tooth and nails to survive, learned compassion and courage, sacrificed power and his only reward was to go back crawling in the shadow, forever alone and hungry.
But no more. Now he seeks a cure for real, he may yet have a real life again !
Yes, it was really sad, especially if you didn’t romance him. :( I’m happy Larian heard the players and added the extended epilogues.
seeing him so sweet after all the ascended version i watched is so therapeutic. that hug alone was sooo cathartic 😭
if to drop all the morals and just consider relationship of Tav and Astarion, ascended astarion sounds hot and everything, but i kinda feel some tension in interactions with him. it’s full of manipulation, insecurity, anxiety, control. it looks and sounds transactional. Ascended astarion doesn’t look truly happy to me. and when he’s unascended, he looks truly free from his internal turmoil and past, and his relationship with Tav looks trusting, secure and actually loving. which i cannot see in ascending version.
The non ascended Astarion seems so much sweter than vampire Lord Astarion to me. Maybe i'll give him a try next time :D
Please do ❤ his character development on that path is absolutely wholesome :')
Ascended Astarion is not the same Astarion that grew as a person throughout all the acts. He reverts to act 1 Astarion where he's not developed as a person. If he doesn't ascend, he remains himself, so it's the only option for me!
My only complaint is that the hugs feel rushed. Like, 3-5 seconds longer would feel much more natural and meaningful, imo.
Yeah. Isn't the hugs for Shart and Halsin waaay longer? The could have just used the same animation..
Two (2) other things-- Karlach"s fantasy-biker jacket is *the best* thing
And also "It would be so easy to come out the other side bitter and twisted!" LOOKS DIRECTLY AT THE CAMERA, YEAH IT WOULD HUH.
Sure glad that didn"t happen!
(/jk, that one"s a joke. ... mostly)
technically there are two ways of turning a vampire back to a non vampire. 1 is to kill them and cast true resurrection on them. 2 is a wish spell
...You know the res scroll Gale provides as part of his resurrection protocol is True Resurrection. Has anyone tried using it on Astarion?
@@InfiniteAnvil doesn't work due to Netherese magic on the tadpoles, and Astarion doesn't WANT to be mortal again. He wants the immortality and power of vampirism without the drawbacks.
I heard from someone that true resurrection only works before 200 years (as a vampire spawn) and we know he’s a little too late for that since he’s 239 years old
how convenient that we happen to just know an extremely powerful wizard who on some playthroughs is trying to become a literal god?
@@mizzysquishii5652 this is True Resurrection in RAW from 5e (same version Larian is using for BG3):
"You touch a creature that has been dead for no longer than 200 years and that died for any reason except old age. (...) The spell replaces damaged or missing organs and limbs. If the creature was undead, it is restored to its non-undead form."
Astarion says he was turned *NEARLY* 200 years ago, so it MAY be possible it can work on him.. 👀
I am so happy for him. I had to do that blasted netherbrain fight twice, to check if Gale would also be happy with an adventuring life because I had them romance each other in my two saves. (Spoiler: He is and I like his adventurer ending way better than the Waterdeep ones - also calling Astarion a "metaphorical ray of sunshine amongst the darkness" was too cute.)
Awww, that’s so adorable. 🖤
I have a Gale and Astarion romance fanfic somewhere in my head 😂❤
"he tells you that these last six months of happy memories are the counterweight to two hundred years of misery"
oh he is way too precious 🥺
This is a stretch for sure (and if nothing else, a testament to how obsessed I am with astarion) but when he said “we get to spend every night together”, that just makes me think of like how I’ll spend a bit of time every day looking at fan art, reading fanfics, and just imagining what my tav might be getting up to with him in the underdark. And Neil Newbon himself always loves when the fans create their own headcannons. I think headcannons are so important and hold so much value, because that’s essentially the player’s connection with the character.
Excuse me but Boo is a *miniature* giant space hamster 😆
Also, Minsc will flex his muscles as an idle animation during the party and I thought it was hilarious.
Minsc is the best. Also him aggressively gobbling food from the table is super funny.
Gorshdarnit Boo knows the cure and we don't even have an option to ask?! Please little friend, share it with us! 😭
Although, I do would prefer to just cure the bad side effects part, mostly the sun.
Larian is teasing us. 😔
@@carianbandit I bet they are doing it on purpose too
@@ember612 yes, very naughty.
It wouldn't surprise me since in BG2 Boo and Minsc can possibly witness a vampire being restored to mortal life (like romanced Aerie or Anomen or Hexxat); one being a ritual to Amanuator and the other being a deal with a Netherese lich...
@@teaz3139 Not to mention that Jaheira herself can be one of the companions relieved of vampirism by the Amanuator ritual.
And if the ritual/deal conditions can’t be met, there’s the cloak dropped by the vampire Dragomir in the enhanced edition of BG2 (lit. Cloak of Dragomir) that allows a vampire to walk in the sunlight unharmed, albeit while being ”weakened” (aka basically being as strong as the average mortal with their vampire senses dulled).
"I'll always be her my love" 😭😭😭😭 ASTARIONNNNN
Get this man a Daylight Ring, stat!
“i would understand if you wanted to go your own way” babe don’t be silly
Ugh Astarion is too cute and sweet 😭
the way he sighed full of contentment when you hug him i cant do this- 😭
Gaaaaaaaale, come over here, we need a bit of a Wish spell! Or, if you are a god, a Divine Intervention, please!
My Durge was a drow, so going to the Underdark made sense for us. But this will be my next ending
Astarion gives me life.
Karla ha epilogue also has hints of her finding a cure thag made me happy
Yes, finally!
THANK YOU!!!! 😭🥲
My pleasure! Bless Larian. 🖤
OMG ITS HAPPENING! Are we getting a Sun walker ring ?!????
Well, something is definitely happening, but Boo didn’t go into details of what he meant exactly. :D
If you want to look to earlier entries in the series for some headcanon fodder and do not no mind spoilers for Baldur's Gate 2, allow me to nerd dump:
CURE 1: If the main character has finished a romance with a certain party companion (Aerie, Anomen, *Jaheira* or Viconia) a BG2 companion quest involves a vampire kidnapping the romanced companion and inflicting them with vampirism. The character has to be killed, but if killing the vampire, cutting out their heart and bringing the dead companion's body to a certain ruined temple of a certain sun god and performing a ritual using their body and said vampire heart, they will be brought back to life WITHOUT vampirism. There is also a book that details the ritual. (Baldur's Gate 2)
CURE 2: A vampire companion in BG2 could make a deal with a specific ancient Lich Necromancer to have their mortality returned to them. Note: it can be a monkey's paw cure, depending on the individual. The deal does indeed turn them mortal, but the vampire companion in question was a human before they were turned and as the companion was born 237 years ago they turn to their mortal age and die of old age immediately from the deal. (BG2: Enhanced Edition)
CLOAK OF SUNWALKING: Killing another specific vampire, they drop a cloak which enables a vampire to walk in the sun without harm, albeit with the setback of being "weakened" while wearing it. (Mechanically becoming about on par with the average mortal as opposed to having a vampire's strength/charm/senses.) (BG2: Enhanced Edition)
All in all, the Baldur's Gate series has provided ways to deal with vampirisim, so it's not far fetched for a headcanon Ring of Sunwalking to be plausible in the world of BG3. Or that Jaheira, one of the possible party companions of BG2 for that matter, at least to some extent would know of them.
Some BG2 SPOILERY Google search terms for the curious: Bohdi, The final battle with Bodhi, The Vampiricus Omnibus: Unabridged, Amaunator*, Ruined Temple, Cloak of Dragomir, Hexxat, Korkorran.
NERD ALERT:
(*Before a lore event (the Second Sundering) the sun god Lathander seen in BG3 was an aspect of the sun god Amaunator, but they are now seperate gods.
And if someone wants to be nitpicky, the system that BG2 uses (2E) did not have the term "vampire spawn" yet, so individuals who were inflicted with vampirism by vampires were also called "vampires" but could be controlled by the turner in a similar way. The party companion Hexxat who can use the Cloak of Dragomir is a vampire, but later editions would likely have called her a vampire spawn.)
Edit: spelling
I just got to the ritual part. Why would anyone choose to kill 7000 people. I know is a game, and it’s not real. But it’s obvious that that’s a horrifying and unforgivable thing to do.
The thing that confuses me is some folks sacrificing 7k people in a devil’s ritual for selfish reasons & still claiming their character is good-aligned. Literally no.
I love Astarion sooooo muuuuuuch!!! 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰
me, seeing the 'hug him' button: OH - PICK ---
me, immediately when ya picked it: YEAH!! 👏👏👏
I’ll never not pick a hug option if such is present. ☺️
My head is screaming, "DON'T LET HIM ASCEND! DON'T. LET. HIM. ASCEND! HE IS HEALTHY AND HAPPY HERE!"
😭😭😭 My heart! I'm so happy to see this ending and omg he looks so healty and sounds so much more happy! Need. To. Save. This. Man.
Char development gosh love itttt ♥♥❤❤🥰🥰
Ahhhh this is my headcanon 100%!!!!! So wonderful! I mean I knew this is what can happen with a romanced, unascended Astarion, because we have that dialogue right there in the ending, about searching for a cure, but finally seeing it in game as pure canon is exhilarating!!
Thank you so much for uploading this! It seems very few Unascended fans have put up content with the epilogue, which is surprising because it is so well done and perfect for his story.❤
The epilogue dialogue depends on what you pick in the scene with him after the docks. :) I saw a video with the "taking care of the spawn in the Underdark" choice, and Minsc & Boo do not make any comment regarding the cure in this case (fade from black comments are different too). But if you do pick the cure option it's now canon that there is a way.
We DID change him 🥹
I didn’t romance him, my giant hunk of a human fighter somehow got with Gale instead (couldn’t be happier with that nerd), but seeing Astarion at the party legitimately made me cry tears of joy. I’d gotten so frustrated with him trying to get approval as a good/redeemed urge and he seemed to hate everything I did. But seeing him at the party, being *himself,* seeming genuinely happy and just a chaotic dork made me *begging* for a dialogue option to just tell him how damn proud I was of him. Larian needs to patch that in.
im so happy i got to play the game just in time they putted this outcome!! i was so scared to finish the game and have to see astarion just hide in the shadows hopeless forever. the fact that there is hope, that we can actually help him in a journey for a cure, it all just makes my heart melt. thank u for this larian 😭
Thank you for the clip! + I kind of love that in there"s the, kinda, harsh option to break up w/ him after the ending. Like out of game, you spend however many hours in this world w/ this dude and go through this whole emotionally significant character arc and a Lot of violence and then right at the end,, fucking point-blank,, just "Nah
Mean dialogue options in this game give me intrusive thoughts sometimes. I'd never pick them... but what if??? Luckily, UA-cam exists to sate my curiosity.
Talk about a satisfying ending.
WHY DOES MY MINSC LOOK LIKE HE'S BEEN THROUGH HELL AND BACK?? YOURS LOOKS SO CLEAN AND HEALTHY! AND I HAVE NO IDEA WTF I DID!
You have to take care of your Minsc, what can I say? But in seriousness, I sided with the Guild and had him talk to Nine Fingers to close his quest.
Came here with a migraine and now it is GONE, BABY. GONE.
That look on his face when you hug, oh my god I’m melting
honestly i am so confused why he didnt just drink a dying cazadors blood to at least be a full vampire? Or did i miss something
You have to have the consent of the vampire to do it I'm pretty sure. Cazador never would have given him his blood willingly, so it was impossible.
Even if not for the consent issue, it would have destroyed his soul the same way ascending does and caused the same personality shift, if I understand the lore right.
When I saw Happy Hoarson I thought he was a chef hired by Wither.....
lmao 🤣
What?! My minsc looked like shit and was imprisoned by thugs on his way to the gallows lol How did you get this outcome?!
I sided with the Guild against the Zhentarim & then talked to Nine Fingers together with Minsc. They negotiated something of a partnership, it was a funny conversation. How did you resolve his quest?
@@carianbandit I also sided with the guild. But I didn't talk with nine fingers together with him afterwards. I will try that. Thank you very much! I was very confused as to have the zhentarim imprisoned him when I killed them hahaha
@@AGxbunny happy to help! If he doesn't speak to Nine Fingers the Guild is still after him because of the Stone Lord shenanigans.
@@carianbandit awe got ya that makes alot of since:)
I was never able to close that quest, no matter how much I talked with Nine-Fingers with Minsc. I think it just bugged for me.
Is Laezel deceased?
Astral projection ?
No, she’s alive, don’t worry. :) She is using a projection to visit from the Astral plane. She’s busy with an important mission and couldn’t attend in person.
That is a space hamster. Looks just like the one commander Shepard had.
I did the break up one and it was so funny. Like all the build up and he's like wtf. I reloaded but had to see it.
I saw a video of it. 😅 It’s like your character has been waiting for a good moment, which never came, and finally decided it’s better to say something before making any plans for the future. Poor Astarion.
Oh my goood 😭😭 « I will always be here my love » I will cry 😍
The irony that there is a cute BG2 iirc.
So it seems I missed this because I only had the options to either let Karlach die or go with her to Avernus. When I came to the party I couldn't even hug him despite romancing him before. 😭
I would never want to cure Astarion's vampirism, I'm too much into him biting & sucking me. However I would find a potion/spell for him to walk in the sun once again and maybe quench some of that nagging blood thirst. Maybe find a reasonable true vampire to make Astarion a true vampire, too. Something like that.
From my side I'd consider what it is he wants. (: For the true vampire thing I believe it has to be the one who turned you.
There are a lot of fics with Astarion finding a ring to walk in the sun
@@carianbandit From what he says if you don't romance him, he seems to really accept and enjoy being a vampire now. I don't think he'd want to be mortal again. He's accepted himself and loves himself as he is. He doesn't feel the need or desire to change. He doesn't want his body to be changed any more. He'd love to walk in the sun again, but I don't think he wants to be cured of vampirism entirely.
@@LuxLightly I think it is definitely not a priority for him as he does accept himself.
After killing Cazador you can ask if he's giving up on walking in the sun again, and he will answer that it's not him giving up, but more reconsidering what it is he really wants. In dialogue with Tav after defeating the brain he does say that if there's even a small chance to help him walk in the sun, he'd take it. But in the end, I think looking for a cure with Tav is not so much about the cure itself here but about adventuring with someone he loves. And be sure, they are doing all the side quests, helping all the randos & smiting foes.
(speculation here) Imo, based on other dialogues, I think he might like to be cured if such option was on the table, but it's not something that really bothers him too much.
@@carianbanditOh I think for sure he wants to walk in the sun again, he's made that quite clear. I just don't think he wants to be mortal again. I think he'd want something more like what he had with the tadpole: still a vampire but without some of the weaknesses.
Doesn't Gale have a true resurrection scroll
It’s strange, but I also had this option in the dialogue with Minsk, although I chose to control and rule the spawns in the underdark.
And at the party, Minsk was straight from prison and said something about putting a spoke in the wheels of the Zhentarim, and in the dialogue there was an option to answer him that they say he needs to accept that the Zhentarim now rule the city. But I sided with Ninefingers and killed the Zhentarim, and the Ninefingers fighters were allies in the final battle.
Did you bring Minsc to talk to Nine Fingers after helping the Guild? They should make an alliance. If you don’t do that you get the outcome you got. Not sure if it’s a bug or if the Guild just can’t keep control without the help of Minsc.
@@carianbandit no, only Jaheira spoke to her. I didn’t even think about it, I thought only Jaheira had a connection with her :с
Thanks, now I know what to do in the new playthrough)
👀 so uh~did ye get Orpheus to become a mindflayer to have karlach intact or?
Yes. Orpheus is a bro and took one for the team. 🫡
@@carianbandit Orpheus thank you for going squid for the squad. 😩 I will try that outcome in my current run lolol
Wait how does the epilogue even start cause mine doesn’t??? Lol it sucks
It should start after the docks scene. Common reasons for it not working: mods, if restarting an old save - restarting from the wrong point. Some “bad” endings don’t have an epilogue.
DLC incoming 👀???????
Would have been nice, but I doubt it, unfortunately.
How…. How did Karlach survived? I thought the only way to make her go to avernous was romancing her?
I had Wyll choose to become the Blade of Avernus. He intervenes during Karlach's scene in this case and suggests they both go to Avernus together. You can tell Karlach it is a good idea and Karlach will agree since she isn't alone anymore. I think your Tav/Durge can also go with Karlach in the friend route, but I haven't tried myself. I believe your romance epilogue might be overwritten in this case and during the reunion you will get "friend" conversation with your romance.
@@carianbandit you’re right. I romanced Shadowheart but choose to go with Karlach. When I met Shadowheart again it was the friends conversation. I’m not sure why but Wyll never stepped up to say anything even thought he was the Blade of Avernus and his dad was still alive.
@@ANCIENTWARRI0R and im pretty sure that once the reunion with his dad happens after saving him you have to not convince him to become a duke cuz if u convince him to accept his fathers proposal to become a duke im pretty sure he chooses not go go with karlach
@@ANCIENTWARRI0R weird indeed, his dad was alive in my case too.
@@carianbandit I convinced him not to become the duke. He was actually the blade of Avernus that’s why I dont understand why he didn’t go with karlach. Even in the epilogue he talks about being the blade. I’m sure I did something wrong just not sure what.
Cloak? Umbrella? Are these not options for Astarion?
It's a personal thing, but I have no idea why anyone would want to cure him of vampirism, of all things. Yeah, I get that not everyone may wish to do the ritual which will grant him everything back plus extra new stuff - for some reason - but to make him mortal again? Why?
IDK, it seems that Astarion has issues adapting to life as it is, and you want to put even more of that pressure on him? Especially considering that he is reluctant and even scared to go through any drastic transformations? A transformation which will make him even weaker?
Seems like a strange wish, but whatever works for your story, I guess 🤷🏻♀
The way he talks about being wracked with hunger 24/7 is reason enough alone to seek mortality again. Vampirism will always have that drawback (aside from ascended, but the ascended route leaves him feeling the weight of 7000 souls he damned and twists him further into self-hatred and evil than before. The perks do not outweigh the mental damage it does to him and the way it forces him into the role of the person he hated most.) So yeah, mortality is a good option both mentally and physically. It's not a transformation, it's a release from a curse.
Ascended fans also fundamentally misunderstand vampirism in the world setting. Which is fine, they don't discuss it enough in the game for you to get a full grasp on why it's bad for him. I'd recommend actually digging into the lore because there is a LOT of info that you'll never understand without it and would probably change a lot of people's minds about how 'great' ascended is.
As the commenter above said, do read some actual vampire lore.
I know the game doesn’t fully show the burden that vampirism is, though the few times it does, should be proof enough for you that all the perks aside, the torment and hardship it comes with is not worth it.
He is dead. His body is dead, he has no heartbeat, he has to use certain essences to mask the smell of decay, he is permanently cold and wracked by unquenchable hunger, he cannot rest and as an elf he cannot enter trances to commune with his past.
Speaking of being an elf, because apparently many Ascarions, such as yourself choose to conveniently overlook that part.;)
He is an elf, before he is a vampire. Sorry, to break it to you.
Elves in DnD have exceedingly long lives, between 700 and up to a 1000 years. The only way for them to remember everything from their long pasts is trough meditation/trances. They don’t sleep like humans, but they enter trances for about 5 hours during which they revisit their entire past, plus some of their past lives. This helps their brain remember and retain so much information.
Astarion cannot trance anymore. He hasn’t done it for hundreds of years and as you can see he barely remembers his life or what happened to him since being turned, or even before. He has shards of memory that tbh, we can’t even verify to be true, they can just be his imagination and story he tells people to manipulate them.
He cannot remember his eye color or his family, but he wants to. He struggles so hard to regain himself. In Origins you can speak to a magic mirror who asks him what would he want to see most in it and he answers “My home. My true home that haven’t seen in centuries.”
He probably has a very blurred memory of it, but he knows there used to be a place there for him.
As ascendant all of that is erased. He’s just a vampire and everything he was before is gone, which to me is tragic, but to each their own indeed.
Vampirism is a prison. It isn’t pleasant, or pretty. It is terrible and nightmarish. Have you seen what Cazador thinks of while sleeping in his coffin? You can find that scene on yt. I don’t want that for him. I want him to live because in elven years he’s still young and can have a long, fulfilling life ahead of him.
Also, it would be wonderful and respectable if you didn’t just trample all over other people’s hc, alluding to some imagined moral superiority on your part, just because you have a dom kink. No one is judging you, do your thing beb, but let other do the same and maybe stay in your Ascarion bubble.
Besides the 24/7 hunger, the sun was the one thing that Astarion loved the most. If you ask him if he regrets his choice, he says no he doesn’t, but he regrets the choices he had. The way I see it is you’re helping a partner fulfill a wish or a dream they have, which for Astarion is to walk in the sun. Also, Astarion is an elf. If he gave up his immortality he’d still live at least another 5 centuries. Those are my reasons for seeking a way to cure him of his vampirism.
For some reason? Bruh, like sacrificing 7k innocents to the Lord of Hells, etc? This epilogue is from goody playthrough, so definitely not happening.
Also, he wants to and has been very happy doing this quest for 6 months as we can see. Not like you are forcing him. He doesn’t seem at all maladjusted or under any pressure.
Additionally to what others have said, literally mentioned in the game: vampires can’t walk in the sun, bloodthirst sucks, can’t got into homes uninvited, they can’t see their reflection, can’t wade through rivers, etc. Being a mortal doesn’t make you weaker than being a vampire spawn. Not uncommon for vampires in this setting to want to be mortal again and this is present in the previous BG game.
And in conversation with Jaheira about the Rite of the Timeless body Astarion mentions that eternity is only as good as the life you’re living & commends her when she decides to not cling to prolonging her life too much.
So that is my assumption of what he would have liked to do since I can’t ask him. And he seems happy with that choice, so I’m happy.
It doesn't make him weaker though? There's not very many upsides to being a Spawn Vampire, aside from immortality. Mortals in DnD are very powerful; look at the rest of the team, none of them are weak compared to Astarion. If anything, it's freeing him from a boatload of drawbacks. True vampires/ascendant vampires would be stronger but the cost there is his soul, which isn't worth it. The loss of his immortality is literally the only drawback, and considering how he talks in some earlier scenes, I don't think he was all that excited to outlive the love of his life into eternity anyways. Nothing about this feels ill-fitting to his character to me 🤷♀️
Oh my oh my, it's the best gift for spawn fans that Larian could ever give 🥹❤️🔥
A sweet taste of hope✨
Yes, that is all I wanted. :)
I'm thumping my chest out of pure joy 🥰🥹 Seeing him truly happy does it for me
I haven't updated my game since patch 1 because my mods were stable, and there was nothing substantial enough in patches to make me want to update. I may reconsider that choice now. But ugh, those vanilla faces are all so ugly without exception.
you have tastes that I am unable and unwilling to understand, but in any case I hope you can enjoy this epilogue soon!
@@river_brookfr lol, this is one of the few of these games where I find the romancable characters very hot in their vanilla forms. All my mods are so that I can be hot enough for THEM.
Counterpoint: no, they aren't. ✨