Baldur's Tales | BG3

Someone Else's Skin

“Tara!.. Tara, your kitt—oh, I’m sorry, your tressss..itten—has run away again and was caught at the docks!”

Nobody reacted to his indignation.

“What do you mean, ‘they are perfectly independent’?! He is only a month old! He’s only just learned to fly. I wouldn’t say I’m outraged, but…”

Tara opened a single eye, slanting it toward the wizard who was pacing in irritation across the room. She gave a lazy flick of her tail, stretched her hind legs, and sprawled out even further on the sun-warmed windowsill.

The “Perfectly Independent” one hid behind his mother’s back, watching the scene with only his eyes showing, occasionally flattening his ears at the particularly loud exclamations.

“I do not understand your attitude, Tara. The esteemed Otto Fart literally fished him out of a basket from the morning catch! He could have been crushed, dropped into the water, or simply devoured by any of the local cats, gulls… or the fish themselves!”

"Independent" flashed his eyes angrily and immediately flattened his ears again, realizing his reaction hadn't gone unnoticed.

Gale approached the windowsill, extending an open palm toward the small creature, waiting to ensure his gesture wouldn't be mistaken for aggression. The little one thoughtfully sniffed his fingers. Sensing no threat from the human—only warmth and care, much like from his mother—he boldly leaped onto the palm. From there, he quickly scrambled up the sleeve onto Gale's shoulder, burying his nose right into his ear.

“Tara, I am speaking to you with the utmost seriousness. I cannot bear the thought of anything happening to them! Please, stop ignoring me.”

A loud pop echoed outside the window. In that exact instant, Gale felt a sharp rush of air against his cheek. The "kitten" vanished, instantly materializing right behind his mother's back.

“In-credible…” was all the wizard managed to utter. “Can they all do it?”

“All of them, Mr. Dekarios, from the moment they begin to see.”

“And you kept quiet, Tara?.. All this time you've let me worry about them, literally driving me out of my mind every time one got lost or went missing? That is terribly cruel, Tara.”

“Cruel?..” Tara finally opened her eyes. They held a look of genuine amusement. “Nothing cruel about it, Mr. Dekarios. I was simply enjoying the moment.”

“The moment of what?”

“The moment when you finally learned what it’s like to be in my skin.”

—

Original painting: "The Old Man's Treasure" by Karl Gussow (1843–1907) "Remake" by an unknown artist from the internet :)

This story is almost two years old, and I had a lot of fun writing it. Share something, even if it's old, that still brings you joy—a story, a photo, art, anything.

Three. Mel Stormrage

The team's co-leader. Paladin and ranger, as much as those two can possibly be combined. Ember’s brother. No, wait—Ember’s blood brother. And her younger brother at that, though he bosses everyone around like the head of a family. The very same Mel who, up until this moment, had managed never to be caught in the frame. A fairly significant character in the whole story. Many had the chance to not only witness this firsthand but also to feel it on their own skin. :)

Mel considers himself a paladin, since he is a priori entirely for everything good, wise, eternal, and, preferably, quite expensive. Devotion, courage, and selflessness are his core principles, and he relies on this unwritten code in his actions.

But. Mel has never taken a public oath, nor has he ever belonged to a paladin order. His oath was made to himself, and that is more than enough for him.

A few facts:

Mel is an excellent ranger and pathfinder.

Just like Ember, he did not receive a traditional elven upbringing, but unlike his sister, he does have an adult name. His father gave it to him right before the war with the drow began.

He deeply treasures his sister; she is his only family.

Mel is quite a romantic person, but he wants to look like a brutal warrior who knows no words of love.

He smokes a pipe.

Lately, I've been seeing periodic references to the idea that Gale can replace Mystra in her domain. Hmm, let's try reading the lore.

Do you really want to become a god?

Mystra emerged from the fusion of the essences of Selune and Shar, long before the first elves, humans, dwarves, etc. appeared. She has always been the essence of magic.

Mystra is nowhere described as the embodiment of the Weave. She is not the boss of the Weave. She is the Weave itself. Аnd the magical field of Faerûn is, roughly speaking, her body (© Ed Greenwood). She cannot be dismissed and replaced without destroying the Weave. And no one but her is capable of controlling it. The only way to become Mystra is to merge with her, to become one. Obviously, this cannot be done by force. This was precisely where Karsus's mistake lay.

Ember, Gale, and their beloved lantern. A walk through Waterdeep's old park.

Two. Astarion Ancunin

Rogue, excellent archer, convicted cynic. The main "antagonist" in the team, who has his own opinion on everything.

A few facts:

A loner who dislikes teamwork, believing that others lack professionalism and might ruin the job.

Possesses a perfect ear for music and hates it when people play or sing out of tune.

Loves being the center of attention in the team.

A master of sarcasm who enjoys telling scandalous stories about himself. Everyone knows he made them up, but that does not stop them from listening.

Inside Astarion, there is darkness and a scream.

Wears so many masks that he has forgotten who he truly is.

The only thing he remembers from his childhood is a box of colored threads.

A cynic, liar, and manipulator. This, too, is a mask.

One. Ember Stormrage

One of the team's two leaders. A Storm Sorcerer / Cleric of Eilistraee, she is also a bit of an artificer and an explorer.

A few facts:

Highly proficient with melee weapons.

With a Neutral alignment, she has a rather positive outlook on the world.

Reserved and cold toward strangers, but will defend "her people" or "her inner circle" to the bitter end.

Possesses high Intelligence and a rather sarcastic way of speaking, yet remains extremely diplomatic.

Believes that the best victory is one where not a single drop of blood is spilled.

Confident that displays of feelings between people are a weakness and an unnecessary relic, and she tries to avoid it. "She is a beautiful, but very sharp shard of ice." © Mel

Curiosity is Ember's main driving force. In everything :)

For those interested, I have a whole post about Ember, featuring her biography and backstory prior to the events of BG3.

This post was written two months ago. But I'll publish it anyway. It's possible. Anything is possible. Thank you, friends, for sending me tons of mentions and tags. It's nice to be remembered 💕

— Outsiders on the air. Hi!

A huge thank you for the tags from my wonderful friends: @bladesingerlily (What is Lily going to tell us soon?), @cursed-nyxan (Want a spoiler? "CAPTURE. MORE. WOMEN"), and of course @starlit-serpent (You know, I’m just dying over these gorgeous drow. Dendar Project is at the starting line.) But that’s not all. I’ve read everyone else's plans too. And you know what? Now I want to see all of it :)

So. Better late than never. Here are a few words about my plans.

What are you currently working on?

A series of portraits of Ember’s companions from the game. First up will be shots of those who make up my main squad most often.

I’ve already posted a photo of Ember, so here’s another one.

Ember's mighty nine

You can follow this project via the tags #ember's mighty nine or #bg3 mighty nine.

By the way, feel free to join in! I made #bg3 mighty nine a general tag on purpose. Share your own companion portraits using it—let’s gather everyone in one place! :)

Your latest VP (even a WIP)

I'm currently processing some old photos so they don’t just sit there as dead weight. I really hate leaving things unfinished. I'm trying to finish my project "Winter night stroll through old Waterdeep park". This photo is from that set.

Winter night stroll through old Waterdeep park

What’s your next project?

I actually have a whole "little book" (the one and only, yes) for themes and ideas.

"Indiana Gale" series

I want to get serious about the "Indiana Gale" series. I have some test shots, but VP mods have made such a massive leap in the last couple of months that I’m going to reshoot everything from scratch.

I want to take a few photos for a couple of my stories to publish them with illustrations. (Let’s be real, it’s even worse: I want to create full illustrations for Ember’s entire story. But will one lifetime be enough, considering the story isn’t even finished yet?.. 🤔)

I’m definitely doing a ballroom dancing shoot. I’ve wanted to do this for a long time, and I finally have a real opportunity. There might even be a video (somebody stop me).

And finally, I have one very big project in the works involving almost all the main BG3 characters. Which one? Oh, let me complete those three points above first, and then I'll tell you all about it!

I’ll leave the traditional tags here—no pressure at all—just to invite you to join me in the BG3 mighty nine project: @cursed-nyxan, @aristenfromwarsaw, @twilight-sanctuary, @wasteful-sam, @starlit-serpent, @catherynne-e, @bhaal-battle-beer-bard, @drmace, @judasiskariot, @perpetualmaladaptivedaydream, @swordsbardkat, @mintharasfreckles, @bladesingerlily, @obsessedwhyyes, @purpleasters-inseptember, @somer-psionic 💕

Reading order: "Hawk, Night Dancer" (day 1) | "Evocator" (day 3) | "Love is" (day 2)

Day 5. Fine robes (No robes!)

Ember absolutely detests robes. She believes that for wizards who spend their days sitting idle in academies, they are undoubtedly comfortable—much like a dressing gown. But not on the road, not while traveling, and certainly not in the heat of battle. To her, they are utterly impractical and inconvenient.

Well, that’s a conviction born of her own life experience. I’m not about to argue with her. I don’t like robes much, either.

But despite her active lifestyle, even during the most grueling march or expedition, she will always find a moment to tidy up her outfit. Even dressed in rags, she manages to look… decent! It’s a remarkable trait.

In memory. My pet passed away several years ago. His name was Lynx (though he had another, longer name coming from his lineage). He was a thinker and my best friend—loyal and loving. He traveled with me far and wide, visiting so many places. He shared my joys and my sorrows, understanding me better than any human could. Toward the end of his life, he lost his sight and eventually died in my arms. He gave me 18 years of his friendship and will forever be a piece of my heart. I haven't been able to find a replacement for him, and I doubt I ever will. If guardian angels truly exist, then he is certainly one of mine. I am so grateful that he was in my life. I took this test on his behalf, and I suppose it’s true—he was never just a cat.

Thanks for tagging the wonderful @cursed-nyxan! Look at her beautiful pet bandits. They deserve all the love with which this text is written 💕☺️.

No-pressure tags for @aristenfromwarsaw, @wasted-sam, @bladesingerlily, @bhaal-battle-beer-bard, @r3drozebud, @starlit-serpent, @purpleasters-inseptember, @mintharasfreckles and all my other friends.

Oh, how ironic 😄. It seems I didn't try on that Crown for no reason.

Uquiz is the only one that works for me. The other site keeps giving me a 403 error. So I'll only publish half the answer.

Should Have Been A Villan You're a good guy, but you shouldn't have been. Your appearance, your skillset, your backstory, it would have been perfect. But no, they had to make you a hero. I guess you were just too good to be true. You will always be a villain in our hearts.

And. Who am I? 😈😄

Thank you so much for tagging me dear @bladesingerlily; her answers are here.

And I'll pass the baton to @starlit-serpent, @swordsbardkat, @aristenfromwarsaw, @esp3ria, @bhaal-battle-beer-bard, @wasted-sam and @cursed-nyxan (and wrote it down in my little book) if you'd like to join in the fun ☺️💕

It's tomorrow, it's evening, and you owe me an explanation. What’s the deal with that funny little book of yours?

Oh, damn. Okay, "most likely" didn't work. Sigh. Well… How do I even explain this properly?

I’m writing my memoirs! What does Obscyre have to do with it? Who knows? I mean, no one knows what role he might play in my life.

I see you don't believe me.

Fine. I’m working for foreign intelligence. Yes, yes, for Raphael. And Colonel Raphael asked me to keep an eye on every tiefling I come across.

What? You say Gale will laugh himself into hiccups over that? Agreed, weak excuse. Didn't buy it again.

Alright, I confess—I’m conducting a census of the population of Toril!

Still a weak argument?

Ok. I have the memory of a goldfish… like Dory! Who is Dory the fish?.. Hmm. Let me check my little book, wait a second...

—

A voice from above: Don't listen to her, master tiefling. Ember is just overly suspicious and loves her some paranoia 🥴

—

My dears, if you follow me only for my creative work but find it hard to accept, understand, or ignore my views on the game's characters and events—please, just unfollow me. There’s no need to force yourself to suffer and feel angry.

It is much better than sending anonymous messages with made-up accusations and then, after reading a public response, performatively blocking me, as one follower just did. (Yes, now I know the author of the anonymous letter)

Seriously, we are all adults here. No one is forcing anyone to do anything. But no one is obligated to meet your specific expectations of how things "should be," either. The world is multipolar; we are simply from different poles, and that’s completely fine.

Day 2. Love is magic.

This is a continuation of the story "Hawk, Night Dancer" (part 1). And "Evocator" (part 2).

"Em" is a diminutive of Ember.

“Em, are you all right? What… what did they do to you?”

“I’m fine, truly,” she whispered softly.

Ember stared at her feet, afraid to show the tears welling in her eyes. Just moments ago, she had felt so light amidst the raging flames that did her no harm. She had been happy; she had danced her victory. Her long-awaited freedom. Her salvation! And then, it all ended as abruptly as a summer storm. Fatigue and pain came crashing down, and her lips trembled treacherously.

Day 3. You won’t pass on the right subclass.

In my story, the combination of an Evocator wizard and a Storm domain sorcerer is practically canonical for me. Besides, Professor Gale doesn't exist in it, so the Illusion's specialization is a nice bonus, but nothing more. Why? I'll tell you :)

This is a continuation of the story "Hawk, Night Dancer".

Want to make up your character for a photo shoot? Throw a fireball at them :)

“Gale! What are you doing? No!!!”

Mel knew he wouldn't reach him in time to stop the wizard. Down there, on the arena floor, was his sister. She had just downed one of the three massive ogres with a skillful dagger strike to the base of its skull. The other two, enraged by their comrade's death, were closing in, emboldened by guttural roars.