Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - Story & Character Discussion Question about Orpheus at the end (SPOILERS)

I saved Orpheus from the Astral Prism, which angered Emperor. So Orpheus sided with my party, and Emperor became our enemy and refused to help us fight the Elder Brain. Since we needed a mind flayer to fight Elder Brain, we had Orpheus transform into a mind flayer. At the end, we chose to destroy the Elder Brain, and all mind flayers along with it. After we did that, Orpheus did not die like the other mind flayers did. Why didn't he die? Shouldn't he die too? Later he did die, because he couldn't bear being a mind flayer so he offed himself. I bring up all this background detail just to make clear all the permutations I triggered. My question is just: why didn't Orpheus die the moment we killed the Elder Brain?

goes to hell to save his wife, but fails at the last moment. That seems to be apt metaphor for the Orpheus in this game because he, too, is a similar type of tragic figure, at least with the permutations I got.

it is Orpheus' power that keeps everyone from transforming. Presumably, even as a mindflayer he should have that the power. Likewise, if someone else becomes the mindflayer they eat his brain, keeping the power active.

Additionally, the PC/Orpheus/Karlach mindflayers look different than either grown mindflayers or the newborns we see elsewhere. So... is it the same kind of mindflayer or has the Orpheus protection of the magic used by the Absolute to suspend them affected the transformation? Even Omeluum asks if his race is evolving.

Narrator: *The brain is on the cusp of its final thought. And it's taking all of Orpheus' strength to keep it there. An opportunity perhaps?*
Player: Go ahead. Command the brain to destroy all tadpoles and then itself.

So, Orpheus issues the command to the Absolute to destroy only the tadpoles and then itself which the Absolute must obey. The Absolute's death appears to trigger a wave of psionic energy which leaves the mindflayers under its command temporarily stunned or impaired. We then see the citizens of Baldur's Gate finishing the mindflayers off, which is why all the other mindflayers are dead at the end.

if Gale kills the Netherbrain in the Moonrise tower, everyone infected turns into a mindflaier, but if he does the very same thing in BG, contaminated simply die (not Tav and Co, of course).