Prompt: What would your Tav/Durge’s Instagram look like?
Tavernus’ Instagram
They didn’t post much before the whole ‘post-nautiloid amnesia’ thing, though the majority of their followers are from then as of halfway through Act 1. After though, they enjoyed being able to make and capture new memories - and, most importantly, reminders of what they now have. And why they can’t afford to lose it.
As such, they don’t have a set theme beyond “their life,” mostly using it as a journal to chronicle things they want to remember - good and bad, liked, or thought of as funny. It’s just unfortunate that there’s a significant amount of overlap between those topics and “evidence of extreme violence.”
It is kind of strange that they had only been following three people before their amnesia, though. And that most of their pics from before are of ominous architecture, what are probably crime scenes, and disgruntled photos with two of the three they had been following.
Huh. Eh, it’s probably nothing.
——————Bonus Content——————
Withers, messing with Tav’s memories while sending them to the past: Who needest manners? Not one whose wheel turns ever to the dark. Instead, thou shall rememberest Fireball.
(several days later)
Wyll: Wait, Tav - Tavernus - Tav, I don’t think you should post that - there are kids following you - what do you mean ‘so?’ Tavernus no!
+
The Dead Three Chosen, seeing the presumed dead Durge/Tavernus start posting random animal and massacre shots along with some concerningly familiar faces and - memes? For some reason?: …
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I have joined a lovely tumblr community called The Astral Campfire where people can share their BG3 OCs and discuss lore, design, etc. Or just lurk and enjoy the food haha. This template is from there, and some other prompts I share likely will be as well!
✧ Birth Name / Chosen Name / Alias / Nickname(s):
The Dark Urge, now called Tav Tavern Tavernus after joking with the companions to come up with a new name after their escape from the Hells. Goes by Tav or Tavernus.
✦ Race & Subrace:
Bhaal got creative, because I think it makes sense that the god with a bunch of shapeshifters and doppelgängers would have a modded child/Titan. They’re a Bhaalspawn/Titan, but their base is drow, but they also have Dragonborn and tiefling characteristics. They have no idea what they are due to amnesia and don’t particularly care, either. Astarion is convinced they’re a demon.
✧ Age | Gender | Pronouns:
Tavernus is several hundred years old, but ages slowly due to drow + Bhaalspawn and doesn’t remember their actual name. Equivalently in their late 20s. Tavernus is nonbinary and use they/he pronouns, preference on they. They’re also aroace, but form a QPR with the companions and are gray-asexual, so are open to those kind of relations if it’s with someone they really care about.
✦ Class | Subclass:
Wild Magic Sorcerer, eventually slight multi-class in Bard
✧ Background:
Their first memories are being found by a drow scouting party in the Feywild. They were kept as a pet and soldier for Lolth by the House they served. They spent 20-30 years there until they snapped due to [censored] and slaughtered every member of the House and vanished into the Underdark and, eventually, back to the Feywild. Another decade later and Sceleritas Fel came to guide them to Baldur’s Gate.
They were initially close with Orin, who looked up to them as the cool, slightly rebellious perfect sibling. Pressure and abuse from Bhaal broke them apart over time, but they still cared for their little sister, despite knowing that their Unholy Father would not approve.
Eventually, they met the Chosen of Bane, and the story began to play out.
Tavernus rejected their Father and saved Baldur’s Gate… but was the only one of their companions to get a happy ending. Withers decided to intervene and sent them back in time to the nautiloid, but the price was their memories. Now they have to navigate the world with strange emotions, instincts, and flashes of visions that they don’t understand.
✦ Family History:
Bhaal, Orin, Sarevok… fun times. Was taken in by a House in Menzoberranzan as a tool, gladiator, and “exotic pet.” That House no longer exists. They wandered the Feywild before Sceleritas found and brought them to Baldur’s Gate.
✦ Pets / Animal Familiars:
Forget saving Faerun, they want to collect all the creatures. Eventually collects Us, Scratch, owlbear cub, the second owlbear cub that hatches from the egg if you have the right mod, Shovel, the Displacer Beast from Yurgir, and tries to adopt both the hook horrors and netherbrain without much success.
✧ Three Words That Describe Them:
Loyal
Protective
Determined
✦ Physical Trait / Anomaly / Disability:
They have white Dragonborn horns and a tail like default Durge, white and red scale patches, and tiefling eyes and some characteristics in their scale and ridges along their skin. They are slightly taller than Karlach and much more muscled than the average sorcerer due to Bhaal’s training. They are intersex and have had top surgery.
They have an excellent sense of “smell” due to glands/organs that are similar to a snake’s.
Due to Orin’s assassination attempt - and some magical shenanigans - they get crippling migraines often and have difficulty seeing out of their red eye. They are also heavily scarred on the right side and have broken horns from Orin.
(Left image by me, right image commissioned from taygra5shaon)
Currently at base level, eventually becomes [censored]
✦ Game Stats (RP Flavor or Mechanics):
They’re more powerful than average both due to being a Titan and because they’re on their second run. Withers sacrificed their memories and some abilities to preserve others.
As of level 4 wild magic sorcerer (modded):
• Strength: 12
• Dexterity: 17
• Constitution: 20
• Intelligence: 16
• Wisdom: 14
• Charisma: 24
✧ Companion Affinity Key:
💜 = Close bond / Romantic interest 💚 = Rivalry / Mutual respect 🧡 = Strong friendship / Ally ❤️ = Romantic interest / Complex bond 💙 = Trustworthy companion / Mentor 🤍 = Mutual admiration / Professional respect
✧ Companion Affinity (as of halfway through Act 1), from the POV of the companions):
Shadowheart: 💜🧡💙🤍
Lae’zel: 💜💙🤍
Gale: 💚❤️💙
Astarion: 💚❤️
Wyll: 💜🧡💙
Karlach: 💜🧡💙🤍
Arabella: 🧡💙
[censored]
Has not yet met: Halsin, Minthara, Jaheira, Minsc, Boo, Yenna, etc
✦ Theme Music:
Fight Song: Dirty by Grandson and NaNaNa by My Chemical Romance
Love song: pre-Orin: RUNRUNRUN by Dutch Melrose; post-Orin/nautiloid: Driver by Måneskin
OC’s Choice: Screaming Bloody Murder by Sum 4 and What Friends are For from 1 for All
✧ Moodboards / Aesthetic Extras:
Fanart by nivalbat.
✦ Voice Claim:
None. I've swapped their in game voice like five times. Just imagine something medium-low and you've got it.
✧ Reputation / What Others Say:
They have a reputation of being a fierce and frankly savage fighter, who destroy their enemies with cruel and efficient methods. They are also a wise strategist and always put the safety of their companions first, but their temper can get the best of them and cause them to rush into situations despite knowing better.
Their companions trust them to protect them, despite everything, but some also fear that Tavernus may not be able to control themself.
Shadowheart thinks those companions are idiots. She also thinks that Tavernus may be the Chosen of Jergal and somehow connected to Shar. She’s been crushing on them since they caught her from falling out of the nautiloid pod.
Gale is one of the ones who thought Tavernus might attack him due to the orb being a threat to everyone else, but Tavernus was more concerned with his wellbeing than anything else. He doesn’t quite know to make of them but, they’re… kind. To him. And their skill with both magic and weapons is remarkable. It’s rather... attractive.
Astarion thinks that Tavernus is a demon and is trying to convince the other companions that he’s correct. He doesn’t mind it, though. A demon sounds like exactly what he needs to defeat Cazador.
Wyll thinks that Tavernus is a bit too prone to violence and theft, but they have a good heart beneath it all and are kind when it counts. They just also have a thing for punting shadow druids and a slight tendency for cannibalism.
Lae’zel thinks they need anger management lessons to become a more efficient fighter, but has great respect and admiration for them as well. Trying to romance Tavernus.
Karlach likes them. Thinks they’re a bit weird but in a lovable way. Would definitely tackle a devil for them. They’re also the only one she can touch and has been flirting hardcore, though Tavernus is a bit dense about such things. Has some other theories she’s not sharing.
Arabella thinks they’re the coolest thing ever. The rest of the grove is rather off-put by their appearance - especially since they tend to be covered in blood and sharing horrifying stories with that rather Strange Ox more often than not - but they’re good with the kids and have protected the grove twice now, so. They approve, some more reluctantly than other.
Tavernus wants to kidnap all the kids and some of their parents, but that’s a separate issue.
✦ Beliefs / Personal Code:
As long as their companions survive and get a happy ending, they don’t care about anything else. And they’ll do anything to make sure that happens, even if the gods themselves stand in their way.
✧ Most Prized Possession:
Their companions. Komira’s Locket. It’s a reminder to themselves that they can choose to be good and bring light despite their darkest urges.
✦ Greatest Fear:
That their urges will take over and cause them to harm the ones they love. They're also claustrophobic after being kept in a nautiloid pod for several months underneath Moonrise Towers.
✧ Alignment (Personal or D&D):
Chaotic Neutral
✦ Authors Notes
They are the main character in my story “How to Save the World (one companion at a time).” It can be read on both ao3 and tumblr if anyone is curious. It's also posted to Royal Road under RyuuLusca13. <3
Me, trying to figure out what excuses I’d have to come up with to make my non-binary Durge do a stint as a drag queen in my fic taking place in 1492 DR Faerūn where there is the imminent threat of world destruction via Netherbrain:
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Alternatively, do they drink? How often? If they do, how do hangovers go?
Tavernus has a difficult time getting drunk in the first place, since growing up in Menzoberranzan and being a psuedo-demonic Bhaalspawn has given them a pretty durable poison resistance.
Luckily, that's what actual poison is for. No one is allowed to drink from any bottle Tavernus claims because they'll spike it with their favorite Underdark flavorings.
When drunk, they tend to fall into one of two modes. They are either very hyper and excitable, unable to sit still and becoming very touchy feely and prone to dancing, despite constantly tripping over their own feet and tail, or become very quiet and morose.
In their first life, after the loss of their companions, they fell into alcoholism to cope and tended to be quiet, somber, and sometimes bitter. Jaheira and Mol tried to help them, but could only do so much.
In their current, once-more amnesiac playthrough, they tend to leave the wine and alcohol to the others. It takes too much effort to get drunk when they're stuck near the grove, anyway, and they'd rather be sober in case any enemies show up. They have a grudge against Mizora greater than the Astral Sea itself and are just waiting for the chance to meet her.
Hangovers aren't much of an issue, since their metabolism and poison resistance tend to blaze through it. A quick dunk in some cold water at most, and they're usually raring to go.
Well, according to Scratch in canon, Durge has “death in their scent,” so jot that down.
Beyond a General Aura of Death, Tavernus also does tend to smell quite a bit like blood, not in the least because they enjoy being the most hands-on sorcerer in existence and will just as soon rip someone apart with their claws as they will blast them with a fireball. They enjoy getting messy - as long as the mess doesn’t include sand. Their scent may also be influenced by their “snacking habits.” They’ll never tell.
Past that, however, they tend to carry a faintly sweet floral scent that lingers from their time in the Underdark and Feywild. Depending on their circumstances, this could tip their scent to something milder or into the sickly sweet of rot.
Pre-canon, they would also smell like sewers and whichever cologne Gortash had all but dumped on them during their last meeting. Bad enough he has to deal with Ketheric’s undead-ness; he did not escape both the actual gutters and literal Hells just to have a lover that smells like sewer gunk.
Post-nautiloid, they tend to smell like campfire smoke from always sleeping outside by the fire… and their arsonist tendencies.
They rarely smell too much of sweat, despite traipsing all across Faerûn on the daily, due to much of their skin being covered in scales and thus not exactly suited for typical sweat glands.
If they could pick, they would smell of blood, campfire smoke, and honey. And also their companions.
The upcoming ten questions were part of a discord server event from a member of "The Astral Campfire" Tumblr community to help determine if OCs were compatible.
1. Where does your OC fall on the polyamory spectrum?
Tavernus is demi-aroace, so just getting them to feel romantic attraction is a challenge in and of itself. However, they’re fully open to polyamory and eventually the camp forms a QPR/polycule-ish relationship, but they would have difficulty if everyone was not also involved with each other in some way, even friendship. They struggle if there are divided loyalties.
2. Would they “settle down”?
Is the author too aroace for this question? Who's to say. Idk if this means be loyal to one lover or settle down domestically, but based on the existence of question 3, I'll assume it was meant the first way.
Once Tavernus is invested in a relationship, they're invested. They'll never cheat, but if the other person is fully monogamous and/or overly (imo) invested in an allo-style relationship, they'd probably avoid the relationship to begin with, since. Camp QPR, etc. This does make things rather difficult for Gale, for a while there.
3. What kind of lifestyles do they want and are willing to have?
They're the type meant to travel and always stay moving. However, they also enjoy having all of their loved ones close at all times. They'd enjoy a communal nomadic lifestyle the best, and would make annual trips - at least - to visit all their loved ones wherever they've settled down.
4. Do they want/are willing to have kids? How many? How soon?
Tavernus is terrified of the responsibilities of parenthood, especially considering their role model(s). They have yet to realize that there is a motley gaggle of adopted children in the very near future. So - 8, at least. In a couple weeks-months.
Actually having kids of their own? They aren't sure if that's a good idea, what with their Bhaalspawn/pseudo-demon genes. Plus, pregnancy sounds pretty rough, and they wouldn't want to be at a disadvantage if they needed to fight. They would definitely lean more towards adoption.
5. Does religion play a role in your OCs life? How could it impact a relationship?
Only good gods are dead gods and the OG death god. All hail Withers/Jergal. Fuck the Dead Three and Lolth.
They're willing to keep their mouth shut about it around the more devoted ones they care about - Gale, Shadowheart, Halsin, etc. - but will also trash talk them if they think whatever deity isn't "fulfilling their divine responsibilities acceptably" - Mystra, Shar, etc.
They hate Lolth. So much. Luckily Minthara has already converted to their way of thinking by the time they meet, or that would have been a major problem.
6. Would your OC share finances with a significant other?
In a hummingbird's heartbeat.
Besides, Tavernus really only needs money to keep Withers supplied with a steady resurrection fund. Everything else is what five finger discounts are for.
7. How does your OC feel about their career’s priority?
Lmao. They've resigned.
Being the Chosen of Bhaal just wasn't for them, though they've been offered much better pay as the Chosen of Jergal.
They don't really have need nor the desire for a career. They'd like to focus on traveling and experiencing the world first, and helping out those who need it along the way.
8. What chores can your OC do and which ones can’t they do?
Anything except cook.
9. Does your OC want/have pets?
They have Scratch and Us, and will be adding to the menagerie as quickly as possible. The "normal" pets are the minority.
10. What gender and sexual preferences does your OC have and how flexible are those preferences?
They have no preferences, though it's convenient if whoever they're with is also ace and/or aroace.
