#devotionweave

“First have the white queen move all the way across to capture the black pawn. This leaves black king in check forcing him to retreat a square left. Your queen then takes the other pawn. One square up and one square left. Always under the protection of her faithful bishop.”

This is my favourite version of the lanceboard puzzle in the Wyrmway – it makes me feel all warm and giddy because this is Gale and Tav, especially as a strength–based non/ partial caster class like paladin. And we should talk about it more!

Tav is the Queen, moving over the figurative board that is their life and trusts, no, knows without having to look, that Gale, their faithful Bishop, is there, protecting them from behind.

Their loyal wizard, their devoted lover, is keeping their (other) enemies in literal check with his powerful and high damage magic.

Song that illustrates their themes in life

Technically the prompt is called ‘Event that defines character’s past’ but I don’t have a real backstory for Tav, only vibes and loose themes, so I changed it

On My Way To Somewhere by Eivør

I'm on my way to somewhere, I don't know where. I'm on my way to somewhere, I don't know how far [...] I'm on my way to somewhere, I have been walking for so long. I'm on my way to somewhere […] Still so many miles to go [...] So many things l'd like to know. I'm always on my way

Tav always wondered where they could and would belong in life, they were constantly dreaming and searching for a ‘somewhere’ that they could reach one day where they would find themselves as a person and as a druid. A place they could call home. It needed a mindflayer tadpole infection to find this place, which turned out to be not a real place but the friendship and the love of people whose chances of ever crossing paths with them were remarkable thin and still it happened.

How your character sees themselves

creature by half•alive

[…] Discovering the patterns of my soul and where it's placed […] I know I'm made of clay that's worn, blinded by imperfect form […] I am creation, both haunted and holy, made in glory […] Look inside my heart and find a perilous ravine. Carved within the beauty, the darkness in between. Standing in the balance of complete and incomplete. I identify the echo of what is and what will be

How others view them

The Sweet Escape by Poets of the Fall

'Cause you′re fearless in your love, devoted to compassion. The highest state of art. Piercing in your truth, sincere in all intention. The way you wear your heart, the way you hold my heart.

Their closest relationship (platonic or romantic)

Fair by The Amazing Devil

And she brushes her hand through his hair, he’s got so much fucking hair. And he holds her close just to keep the world at bay. And when they’re sure no-one can hear them, she’ll turn to him to say, she’ll turn to him and say: It’s not fair, It’s not fair how much I love you […] 'cause darling I was born to press my head between your shoulder blades at night when light is fading […] It’s not fair, it's not fair how much I love you, it’s not fair 'cause you make me ache you bastard. And he’ll say: Oh how, oh how unreasonable, how unreasonably in love I am with everything you do, I’ll spend my days so close to you 'cause if I'm stood here […] I’ll stand here with you

I fell in love with this song the moment I found it on a Gale playlist on youtube and since it was one of the very first songs I put on my playlist when the Gale obsession began last September lays it now at the core, the foundation, of how I see Gale’s and Tav’s relationship and what they want and need and get from it.

A major fight scene

I don’t have a song for a specific fight scene besides my in-game soundtrack favorites which are Elder Brain, A Threat from Nether Years (especially the last part from ~02:19/20 to 02:50) and Nine Blades (the part from ~04:05/6 to ~04:24)

End Credits Song

Would you fall in love with me again from Epic: The Musical, The Ithaca Saga

[…] Would you fall in love with me again, if you knew all I've done? The things I cannot change. Would you love me all the same? I know that you've been waiting, waiting, for love

[…] I will fall in love with you, over and over again! I don't care how, where, or when, no matter how long it's been – You're mine! Don't tell me you're not the same person, you're always my husband. And I've been waiting, waiting

I began the Fix-it Tav run the same night.

And ‘Tav’ became Tav (i) and ‘Fix-it Tav’ was called Tav (ii) because I am an academic and find it really funny to count/ organise even video game characters with Roman numerals 😌🤭

And somewhere along the way, one Paladin!Tav (Tav (iii)) later did I realise that I have created my very own nuanced multiverse for a character that has grown so incredibly much since the days they were a mere “self-insert”. And this is a beautiful feeling!

The MultiTAVerse

from left to right: Tav (i), Tav (ii) and Tav (iii)

Base stats

Name: Tav (i), (ii), (iii), (iv) if something applies for both Tav (i) and Tav (ii) am I putting it in green italic, regular green means just Tav (i)

Names/ Important titles post game: Tav of Reithwin, Tav Dekarios, Faithwarden

Pronouns: They/ Them

Class/Subclass: Druid Circle of the Land, Paladin Oath of Devotion, Druid Circle of the stars

Background: Folk Hero, Outlander

Alignment: Neutral/ Lawful/ Chaotic Good

Species: Human

Gender: Genderqueer (agender)

Sexuality: Pan (Demi); Poly (?) still figuring this one out for Tav (iv) with Gale and Karlach

Signature Colours/ Dyes: Sage Green, Green/ Gold, Pink and Leaf Green (Armour and camp clothes), Grumbar (Faerûn dyes mod) (Armour/ Equipment), Light Blue (Camp Clothes)

Favourite spells/ potions/ attacks: Speak with animals, Moonbeam, Call Lightning, Ice Knife, Heroes Feast, Guiding Bolt, Lay on hands, Divine Smite Level 3 + Cloud Giant Elixir, Command

Favourite wildshape(s): Wolf, Dino, Owlbear, Starry Archer

Favourite gear/ items: The Disintegrating Nightwalkers (Nere's boots), Hellrider's Pride (Zevlor's Gauntlets), Pale Oak (The Faithwarden staff), The Giant Slayer (sword looted from Ansur), Armour of Devotion, Grym Forge Medium Armour

The Tavs

Tav (ii) came from the part of Tav (i) that was unable to move on after they lost Gale to godhood on the day they defeated the brain. The part of Tav’s soul that loved him so much and was desperate enough to face the whole tedious journey again just for one chance to find Gale again, to love him again and to protect him from himself this time. For the chance to have a future with him this time.

Tav (iii) is the manifestation of the oath of devotion paladin that especially Tav (i) had always been in spirit. And armour. Tav (i) wore the armour of devotion during the last third of act 3, feeling immediately and confusingly connected to this armour. Tav (iii) was able to survive and carry the burdens that the druid [Tav (i)] couldn’t. Of course they couldn’t, a paladin’s burden and armour should have never been theirs to carry to begin with. The paladin lost a lot on their journey, like the druid [Tav (i)] had before them. But they didn’t lose Gale, not in this life. He chose Tav and a human life by their side free of the orb’s pain over the false promises of unlimited power and burning ambitions.

And waves of relief and joy, of love and devotion rippled through the cosmos – again. Just like Tav (ii)’s in another life had when Gale had decided to leave the crown in the river after the brain fell. Like Gale’s peace of mind, his love and all-consuming blindingly bright gratitude had when he had woken up to birdsong next to his love illuminated by gentle, hopeful morning light, both of them being alive and well and he without the ever lingering pain of the orb in his chest for the very first time since his folly.

Just like Tav (i)’s desperate, earth and sky- shattering scream of pain had nearly ripped the universe apart when Gale had turned away from them at the docks with indifferent eyes, with no warmth or a word of love left for them after they had defeated the Absolute together. Tav’s scream had been silent, only the stars had felt it breaking through them, tearing them apart.

The cosmos had watched and felt how Tav and Gale fell in love and be a little insane and unhinged about each other, thrice. How they had made this ridiculous journey towards danger and potential death over and over again. Driven by their devotion to each other and their shared desire to finally outrun the one life that haunts both of them in their dreams.

And the cosmos decided that if Tav and Gale would do it all a fourth time, and they would because this is what Tav and Gale do, would it get a piece of the cake. This time would it do more than just watching, would do more than having to suffer through the quakes of their love and grieves that ripple through time and space over and over again.

Tav (iv), a child of the cosmos, quite literally

So the cosmos wove starlight into Tav (iv)’s soul, when it made them and gave them more knowledge of their other lives than any of their predecessors ever had.

The heartbeat of the universe beats gently in Tav (iv)’s soul and guides their steps. Tho it also made them an outsider, the odd one amongst fellow humans. A fate they could carry, there was so much joy waiting for them after all. So much love! And so much uncertainties and danger. But this unhinged, a little hubristic druid is not as concerned as they should be. Surely nothing bad will happen as long as they have Gale around.

A wizard with burning eyes and a gentle smile, a blade singer because he had been loved so fiercely by the paladin of another life. Of course are swords singing to him in this one now when the hands that had wielded them had held him close, had danced over his whole body with adoring touches. Hands that had healed him. Had protected him relentlessly with blows of blades that were radiating holy light.

*And a beautiful barbarian who was anything but barbaric with her passion for life and an even bigger heart of gold, tho made from infernal metal. A gentle giant with golden eyes and a happy toothy grin that can turn so effortlessly into a dangerously burning smirk… More on that below under “relationships”

RELATIONSHIPS

OTP: Tav/Gale in case anyone missed that one ^^, *Tav [(iv)]/Karlach the most complicated case of ‘friends to lovers’ there ever was! It only needed three shared lives for them to act on their feelings, one of the lives included surviving Avernus together and eventually fixing Karlach’s heart, one time not being in Avernus together and the last time having Karlach die in her paladin’s arms (as far as possible until it got too hot and Karlach pushed Tav away as her last act of love for them) only to go nearly insane with desire and longing when they meet again in a next life but being unable to touch each other.

Acceptable ships as in ‘if things would have went differently, if there would have been no Gale or Karlach could Tav have potentially fallen in love with these people, too’: Halsin, Shadowheart, Lae’zel

ОТ3: Gale/Tav (iv)/Karlach

Besties: Shadowheart (i; iv), Karlach (ii), Lae'zel (iii), Astarion (iv), Zevlor, Aylin

PROFICIENCIES AND WEAKNESSES

Strengths: Patience, gentleness and sincere compassion. A welcoming, genuine smile and a way with words that makes it easy for people to trust their ideas, to believe them and to be persuaded by Tav.

A powerful moonbeam, the tendency to fry enemies with lightning/ divine smite and the (very annoying, according to Astarion) trait of seeing and believing the best in people.

Proficiencies: Strength, Wisdom/ Charisma (Persuasion, Nature, Survival, Animal Handling)

Weaknesses: Tendency to loose themself in service of others, sneakiness and stealth (try to hide in a heavy armor), deception/ speaking their mind/ truth and finding themselves and their friends in many fights that could have been avoided if the paladin had been willing to lie. (They weren’t.) Being prone to hubris, believing so much in their abilities and powers that they believe that nothing can come close to hurting them or their friends.

Disadvantages: Stealth, Deception, Sleight of Hand

Fears: Not being good enough in everything they do, the oath breaker knight, loosing Gale [(again) to godhood], a rust spot on their armor, the shadow curse and everything it entailed, not being able to fix Karlach’s heart, loosing Astarion to the dark and his pain, insignificance, loneliness, being the reason that everything terrible is happening again (the shadow curse, the goblins raiding the streets, torturing people, everything in Baldur’s Gate, the chosen of the dead three and their cruelties etc) because of them, because of the selfishness of their soul to love Gale and Karlach again…

THIS OR THAT

Introvert/Ambivert/Extrovert

Organized when it comes to leading/ supporting people, keeping track of things / Disorganized when it comes to their stuff (camp chest, scrolls etc)

Close minded/Open minded

Calm on the outside and during a crisis also on the inside/Anxious/Restless on the inside (usually)

Disagreeable/In-Between/Agreeable maybe not so much in the beginning if your name is Astarion

Patient/In-Between/Impatient

Outspoken/In-Between Tav has the courage to speak up when it matters and the wisdom to stay quiet when it is necessary/Reserved

Leader/Follower/Flexible

Empathetic/In-Between/Apathetic

Optimist/Realist/Pessimist

Traditional/In-Between/Modern

Hard Working doesn’t consider themself to be, tho others would disagree /Lazy Tav is absolutely duty-bound and goes above and beyond to help people, thus ends up feeling like they are failing them or ‘lazy’ when they do focus on themself and their comfort and leisure occasionally

Thank you so much for reading and spending time with the Tavs!🩷 I hope you enjoyed your time!