Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - Story & Character Discussion Ascended Astarion - headcanons, content, and chatter

The poses are so similar it looks like Astarion is mocking him. xD The campiness of Jareth really does remind me of LordAstarion. And his outfit too, but maybe that's more Gortash's style.

That's right, when I saw that, I too got the feeling that Astarion was mocking and doing it on purpose. (A joke from Neil and the animators or just a funny coincidence? :D)

Hehe, that's awesome, thanks, I'll save it!

I'm leaving one of my newer work here and hope you enjoy it.



Sceleritas is currently busy spring-cleaning the palace and the Temple of Bhaal. Of course, Astarion is making sure that Sceleritas doesn't miss a single corner, but also doesn't "accidentally" throw away any of the valuables. Junior and the cat aren't going to let that stop them from annoying Sceleritas. Basically, everything's as usual... right? *scary music*


Well, how did this get here? For my friend Celestia. Thank you for all the fun we share.

Oh great, this is the moment when Astarion comes back from his misty form back!


What annoyed Sceleritas the most, was that the cat previously didn't seem to have missed a corner, marking his new territory. Junior was running around with his music box, recently given to him by Grandpa Bhaal (scary music was coming from it), trying to put the box to everyone's ear for them to listen too. “Hm-m-meow, I think I'll take you up on your offer to perform with the orchestra!”, the cat stretched his back, cocked his head up, bent his front paw in a portentous manner, and belted out his famous, “ME-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-U-U-U-U-U-U-U-U-U-U-U-U-U!”
Astarion's sensitive ears quivered. Sceleritas snorted contemptuously: “I've heard the cries of demons and tortured souls... And this... Mediocre.”

The look on the face of the cat, having received such harsh criticism of his divine voice:



Astarion with a hamster is an overdose of cuteness! <3

Inspired by old horror posters or novel covers.


He now always keeps the musicbox in his owlbear backpack, and Junior also holds it while he sleeps. He can't figure out how the musicbox got into the sewers with all the old mirrors. But he's very happy to have found it again. Now his dad can sing to him every night a lullaby, and he can always sing karaoke with Junior. How did Grandpa Bhaal know what Junior wanted (and Astarion not) ?

Thank you for liking my work.

Wow, Astarion looks really good in the hat. Oh, how I wish it was the cover for the BG3 add-on...


I imagine Astarion leaning over the kid's crib and singing a lullaby... With his beautiful voice, which will sound soft and gentle at that moment... And sometimes it will sound with joking and playful notes, when Astarion will throw in some of his trademark jokes, replacing the text of the lullaby in some place, and if the kid is asleep, he will not hear it, and if suddenly the little prankster is not asleep, but only pretending, closing his ruby eyes to then sneak out of bed and get naughty, he will not stand it and will start giggling and open his eyes, and everything will be clear with him at once! True, then it will be necessary to cradle him, until...

- Well, darling, are our naughty little pointy ears finally lying on their pillow? - Dark Urge in her nightgown opened Junior's bedroom door with a sigh.

- No, Mom, they're on the back of the chair... Dad fell asleep in it.

Cazador had better not anger the Dark Urge. Astarion has even better plans.


Have fun, darlings.

I wish you all a great start and lots of fun with Patch 8.

I really like that Astarion sang himself to sleep.

"Mom, are you taking Dad with you? I have to have a conversation with Dad tomorrow about my privacy. I'm now... *Junior thinks and gives up*... old enough."

I love Photo Mode. I edited this image afterward to achieve the comic effect.

Haha, I love how Eden only looks at Cazador with dagger in hand and is already fantasizing about the future... Or is that a gift of foresight discovered by Bhaal's daughter?

And Astarion has no doubts about a successful Ascension either! When did he have time to put on the Lord's costume? (I assume Eden brought the costume in advance to make a pre-gift before opening Cazador's coffin). In general, I really like this example of the winner's positive thinking!


Oh, is the baby old enough that Daddy doesn't sing him a bedtime lullaby (and snore in the chair in his room afterward)? And it's probably time for him to get his own separate throne instead of sitting on daddy's!


It's very cute. Scеleritas looks funny and smirks.

In patch 8, Astarion's facial expressions changed in the first meeting scene!

The video shows Astarion's recruitment scene (dialog) in Act 1. Comparison of facial animation changes between patch 7 and patch 8:

They had a last-minute appointment for Cazador. The schedule is full, as you can see from Eden's thoughts, so Astarion immediately put on the lord's costume... They don't have any doubts. Astarion tries to be a little careful not to cause too many bloodstains, but that's the lesser evil for both of them. They're very sure about their future together, so Astarion is hurrying. If Cazador causes any trouble, Bhaal's little princess will intervene; she wants to get married today. I can already imagine Bhaal grumbling that she married the "scented candle" and not Gortash.


Oh no, Dad is allowed to sing him a lullaby, but Dad can sleep somewhere else, not in his room, Junior is too old for that (he can't say how old he is as a bat, he has no fingers to count).


I was a bit surprised. I wasn't mistaken about something being different there. I put it down to my general confusion.


I'm currently working on a graveyard scene and testing the lighting, this is a test pre render, but Astarion looks great in sunglasses... he can wear anything.

Oh my goodness, folding the wings almost killed me.

Have fun.

I love this comic effect.

Have fun.

A quick note as I’ve removed a post from this thread: this is a fanfic / fan art / headcanon type thread and not an appropriate place to give feedback about the game or characters, and nowhere in this forum is an appropriate place to criticise other fans or reignite community drama. Especially coming into what is clearly a thread for mainly AA fans to hang out and criticise and set them up in oppose to spawn fans is completely out of order.

Please keep posts constructive, on topic, and be mindful of the specific rules about discussion of Astarion and particularly the Ascended vs Unascended Astarion endings. These were introduced due to a breakdown of civil, constructive debate that our attempts at moderation couldn’t seem to address, and while we’d love to be able to review that, the post I removed sets the probability of that back.

Hey all!

We have modified the title of this thread to make it a bit more in-line with the current topics of discussion in here and to reduce confusion and prevent off-topic.

As always, please remember to keep the conversation fun, civil, and respectful of all players, their playstyles and choices, and their own headcanons and theories. As per the current standing rules, this title change is not an invitation to debate the different character routes or to turn conversation into arguments.

Thank you for your understanding!

Thanks for renaming the thread. At the time the thread was created, it wasn't entirely clear where it was headed. At the time, there were only serious topics about Astarion and no room for anything else. We knew that the thread title was no longer appropriate at some point, and now it's clearer. I didn't give the title much thought at the time, so it's fine with me/us.

I'd also like to mention that the story about Sceleritas and AA's son we're telling is nonsense and we're just having fun. We know none of it appears in the game and nothing in the game even remotely supports this story. This story isn't even headcanon, nor is it being demanded by us as canon. We're just telling complete nonsense like other fandoms do. We like to tell creepy slapstick stories that entertain us. We understand the game's story and that Bhaal, for example, wouldn't support anything we're telling. The whole story is based on a fictional ending that doesn't exist in the game.

We apologize to those who took our story seriously and thought we were seeing our story as headcanon and demanding that it be canon.

Have fun.

I'm glad you posted this for those who get the wrong idea. ❤
Idk where the idea comes from that you're trying to force your headcanon on anyone. It's sad to hear that fans (still) get harrassed for sharing their lighthearted fun. I hate seeing people wanting to hurt and silence others for something like that. I've never made fun of or tried to belittle other fans for their preferences, artwork, or stories. If people don't like it or it's not to their taste, they don't need to engage and rob others of their joy. There's a lot to like in this game and Larian gave us different options to suit a variety of preferences.
And thanks again Larian for giving us such an awesome character : D

Oh, I'm not hurt. I'm just surprised that someone actually takes our story seriously. I think that settles everything and we can continue sharing our fun.


Another part of the story I'm currently working on ...

Sceleritas is clearly not enthusiastic about walking through the city.



Some other creepy stuff, not about Astarion.

I made this for a very kind and funny Durgtash fan.


My version of the House of Grief, this is what I see.




Disclaimer: This is all not canon and not supported by the game in any way, Sceleritas did everything voluntarily and not a single little bat was harmed.

“Scented candle” - ha-ha (*bury yourself in silky white curls and savor the scent...)


Oh, yes! (in my head now revolves fantasies of a trip to the sea with Astarion...).


Such a little cutie! The wings are adorably folded... Lord Cuteness and Cutie Junior. I love how Astarion looks at his son with a cheerful and playful smile (it seems that Junior had been mischievous somewhere before, but now he's sitting on his daddy's shoulder, portraying the most innocent charm).


Oh, I loved it! It's beautiful...


It's funny, I never thought anyone could demand that a humorous tale on the subject of post-game events be considered canon. Or perceive it that way. Only what is directly reflected in the game itself - in scenes, lines, plot - can be canon. Larian themselves used their own headcanon for the DU in the game, because the Bhaalspawn in the canonical version (BG1, BG2) would never have been able to give up Bhaal. And is that a bad thing - no, BG3 has its own story for the DU who rejected Bhaal, which would not have been possible without departing from the original canon. Our story is based on a fictional ending in which the DU doesn't reject Bhaal, but destroys the Brain in doing so. In the game, the canonical ending is different - DU goes insane, and it's not clear why Bhaal would want to do that (okay, let it be for a bad ending and “drama”, I just don't choose that ending in the game). The option where the DU stays in their mind, but due to hyperfertility (which is just canon for the Child of Bhaal) gives birth to other Bhaalspawns and Bhaal can get his in the future, fits well with the overall lore of the BG world (given the very concept of Bhaal and the previous games in the BG series). Astarion is the first Ascended Vampire, there is no canon in DnD lore yet about a living vampire, and canon can only be considered what is in the plot of the BG3 game. In-game:

“If he completes the rite, he will become a new kind of being - the Vampire Ascendant.”

“All the strengths of his vampiric form will be amplified, and alongside them he will enjoy the luxuries of the living.”

“The arousals and appetites of man will return to him, and unlike Astarion, he will have no need of a parasite to protect him from the sun.” (Raphael about the ritual, from these lines we can infer how Astarion will feel after going through the ritual).

"I feel alive"= “The arousals and appetites of man will return to him” + “he will enjoy the luxuries of the living.” After undergoing the ritual, Astarion ceases to be “undead” and becomes a new type of vampire - a living vampire. In Astarion Origins, you can hear the narrator line that “your heart is beating again”. In fact, Astarion now has a living body, can he become a father? There's nothing in the game specifically on this topic, but unless there are some hard contradictions or facts in the lore indicating that this can't happen, then the headcanon in which this happens doesn't contradict the lore. At least until a creature type like the Ascended Vampire appeared in the official DnD rules, where it was stated otherwise. Combined with the hyperfertility of the DU - the possibility exists. The percentage of its likelihood? That's enough for a fanfic, I suppose. And... Gosh, the little copy of Astarion is just so cute! I've been dreaming a bit about a similar story since before our story even started, to be honest. And a comedy about a fun villainous family is also just fun (I bet Minthara's fans could come up with their own funny family stories about life with Minthara and the kids too, just like with Gortash such a thing can be imagined, if you want). Our story contradicts the canon of the game, because in the game you have to reject Bhaal in any case and without options, otherwise everything will be bad. But abandoning Bhaal in BG3 is also an authorial change that contradicts the canon of previous BGs. If Larian wrote such a story and decided it would be more interesting that way, what could be wrong with stories based on the events of BG3 with the same departure from some canon events in the game?


Wow, ha-ha! That's awesome, I laughed for a long time! And your disclaimer is super, I'm finally relieved, now we know for sure that Sceleritas likes it all and we don't have to worry about him! And the little bats in the “filming process” were treated with all the loving care, fed from a pipette and their tummies scratched!