Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - General Karlach vs Shadowheart who do you simp for :)

Title says it all, but hey if you want someone else like a Goblin or another party member, whatever flots your boat, so Argue amongst yourselves keep it civil....for me I like it when Shadowheart gives me them puppy eyes i fall for it everytime but with Karlach im like so mysterious join my party what secrets do you hold?

I only simp for one imaginary being, but Karlach sure is something

I hate the word simp. That said:



Oh, this was SH vs Karlach. Oh well.

I’ve just had to Google the word simp, and now I hate it too!

But if the question is which companion or NPC I as a player would break roleplay fidelity for in order to gain their approval or romance, or would design characters specifically in order to romance, then … I don’t know. Gale, maybe, but though I like him his actual romance scenes are a bit cringeworthy.

Actually, thinking about it, I could totally go for a Barcus Wroot romance option .

This is a judgement free zone, but why the gray egg?

Im sorry for using the word but there was no other word i could think of at the moment to make people chuckle a bit

Lol

Well, he’s funny in a grumpy and self-deprecating way, as well as loyal and willing to go to any lengths for his friends (or lovers, as I’m not quite sure what the relationship between him and Wulbren is meant to be).

I shall continue to dream that he’ll become a potential artificer class party member and romance option, even though I don’t think it’s likely!

Huh. As a rational and sane person, he'd disapprove so much of everyone in the party. Oh, yes, he'd fit right in. I can see him frowning despairingly in camp while Lae'Zel calls a hammer too puny for combat

No worries. It was clear you meant it as a joke rather than in the dodgy way my quick internet education has just taught me it can be used . Plus personally it’s useful to update my knowledge of slang, which is clearly a decade out of date in this area. Actually, I’m pretty sure much of my slang is more out of date than that!

As a straight male, after careful consideration I will say... both.
Currently probably SH, but I have high hopes that Karlach will be a cool companion.

There's also a supposed to be a data mined female halfling companion. But, after playing Pathfinder: Kingmaker where you have a halfling companion, Linzi, and they gave her a really cool voice but kinda childish... mmm, yeah kind of a no from me in the romance department.


Yeaah, personally I wouldn't romance him, but I really like him, with just a few interactions available with him he is really well fleshed out.

I tryed to google that word ...
But whatever i found didnt really seem to reflect this topic. :-/

So i still dont know what you mean. O_o

But as people are talking abour romance ...
I dont really get where Shadowheart get so huge fanbase, i mean i do ... but i dont at the same time. :-/
I see Shadowheart as "in the land of blind man, one-eyed is a king" ...
So since we got only one woman and one antropomorphic toad ... i get why people finds Shadow atractive ...
On the other hand tho, Larian version is ... well, not exactly ugly as really ugly ... more like Anne Hathaway in Princess Diaries ugly ... like when you have really beautifull woman, who is trying every trick that is on planet to mask her atractivity any way possible, plus invent some new ways just to make sure. :-/

I mean ... just look what better hairstyle and proper make up did with her:

Much better. :3

Aaaanyway ...
If this topic is supposed to be about what i googled ... then none, sory.
If this topic is about picking our best romance partner ... then so far, also nobody. :-/

Im sory, but there is only one option for me, and her personality is so repulsive to me so i think i wouldnt be able to anyway. :-/

@Rag, just imagine the title of the post is "Who do you like?"

It's more like - who do you follow around like a sad little puppy hoping they grace you with a crumb of attention.


Simp' is slang for a person who is desperate for the attention and affection of someone else. Pathetic.

Also couldn't this have been a poll question?

"For which RPG characters are you down bad?"
Actually no one answer that. I don't want to know.

Just so we have definitions squared away:
Down Bad: Romantically or sexually attracted to someone at the expense of one's dignity.

EDIT: Obligatory Community Reference (Because there's one for every situation):

So it basicaly is what i googled ... not quite tho.

Anyway ...
Maybe this is just gathering data before poll?

Also it dont realy seems fair ...
While ladies (at least those interested in Male companions, or *also* in Male companions, as the matter of fact) have quite some selection to pick from ...
We, heterosexual man, with no deviation for liveforms from other planes of existence, have to pick between ... well, that ... or empty, cold, lonely tent. :-/

Thanks I hate it. XD

For illustrative purposes, Wyll is a disenchanted Mizora simp.


Your simp obligations are:
-- defending them when they're obviously wrong.

From the biography of the King of Simps himself:

"Due to deeply loving Xie Lian since he was very young, he despises everyone who has wronged Xie Lian in his eyes. He does not care about the objective circumstances and is firm in his distaste for anyone who left or stood against Xie Lian at one point."

-- having negative self worth. Their purpose is your purpose.
"If you don't know the meaning to your life, then make me that meaning, and use me as your reason to live" (This can be your Simp origin story as well!)

-- shadowing your target's footsteps 'till the end of time
"To me, the point is 'you left', not 'only two hours'. Even for an instant, it's still separation"

-- I cannot understate this, so I will say it again: NEGATIVE SELF WORTH

"If I could, I would have you use me as your stepping stone, the bridge you take apart after crossing, the corpse bones you need to trample to climb up, the sinner who deserved the butchering of a million knives. But I know you wouldn't allow it."

-- & much more, but this will get you started as a Grade E Simp!

To rank up, try forfeiting all worldly possessions to the target, developing a crippling fear of rejection and dying at least once in their name. If questioned, I recommend: "To die in battle for you is my greatest honour".

You will never beat the King of Simps and his no less than three deaths. Nor, his willpower to reshape himself after having his soul scattered. He was not done simping!

HOWEVER, worry not! You may still be able to call yourself a simp just for how truly sad your courtship methods are, given enough dedication

OP right now:

As being a simp is truly hard work, here is how you can better yourself:

-- has your target ever chased any former friends away?

Well, it's on sight! Beat them up regularly for 800 years.

-- think you're ugly? Master shape shifting to the point no one knows what you look like.

-- Bored? Crafting some 10 thousand statues is fine. (They must all be of the target)

-- don't accept any friends, ever. Underlings and people who owe you money are okay.

However, it's better you only tolerate people who help you achieve your goals, such as: undermining the heavens. Crafting a massive spy network, and being extremely fashionable! Any other human relationship is a distraction and should only be a means to an end. Like you are a means to an end.

This is very good real life advice. You should have a podcast.

Thanks! I kept some of the truly next level techniques to myself, such as:
-- parting because they asked to see your true face? Hand over your soul to cheer them up. Say it's something small to keep for fun.
-- making them believe you're hanging onto spooky unlife for someone else. Rendering you completely unavailable.
-- accepting any and all alternative explanations for why that wasn't a kiss. (Including, but not limited to: making sure you're alive, transferring air, and stealing spiritual energy to possess another body).
-- in case of rejection, kill yourself.

From the women, Karlach seems the most like the kind of woman I'd be attracted to under normal circumstances; she's practical, pragmatic, has a dry sense of humour and isn't afraid to show genuine gratitude or accept help when she needs it.
From the men, Gale is another figure in a line of various video game characters that have shown me that I very much have a 'type' when it comes to men, and it involves a strong intellect, a sharp wit and a dry humour that avoids actively insulting people.

At least, in video games - I'm much more take-folks-as-they-are for men, women and all types between, in my real life - there's just traits and behaviours I avoid (though Shadow, Wyll, Astarion and Lae'zel each invoke enough of those particular traits that they would not be considered options for me regardless).

=

By the by, halflings are small, and they will generally trend towards higher pitched voices as a result - especially in the traditionally feminine register - but there's still not much chance of them being taken for anything other than a mature adult unless they're actively trying not to be... and even then, their size and build ensures that there's no real possibility of them being mistaken or taken for a human child - they're actually Too Small to be mistaken as human children at anything more than a hurried glance.

Three things in life are certain:
-Death
-Taxes
-Icelyn's thirst for Man-Bear

🐻🐻🐻

Actually I am curious about the usual forum posters opinions...

Of the RPGs you have played, pick your ONE (and ONLY ONE) favorite romance per each game, and explain your favorite overall.

You never forget your first.

Alistair in DAO. My first rpg. I didn’t even understand that romance was part of the game, and was shocked when the sweet bumbling young warden started hitting on me. The whole romance was sweet, heartfelt, and very cute. I was having a silly good time with it all.

Then … the stupid bastard. He becomes king and breaks my elven heart by choosing Ferelden over our love. 😭😭 And I was furious. I did not want to talk to him ever again. My elf planned to leave Ferelden for good and find a nice elven hunter to forget that bastard prince and his cute little quips.

But we had a job to do first, and we did it…even tho I was heartbroken. I take him along to the final battle…what does he do? The stupid arsehole who broke my heart and left me a mess? He sacrifices himself for me by killing the archdemon. He just…ran off…sword held high…while I stood there horrified and helpless and sobbing.

It was marvelous. So much wonderfully cheesy and hamfisted angst. Loved it. 💚

So, I'm pretty sure I'm forgetting a few, I'm not a huge romance focus player.

I was playing Pathfinder: WotR with a female halfling with the Azata path, and it has a lot of cool interactions with Arueshale, I liked her character and tried to romanced her.

Thing is, I liked the game but it was reaaaally messy and buggy in a lot of things and at some point I was unable to continue my pursue to romance her because supposedly I accepted to romance Lann or something. It didn't make any sense to me, and didn't went back to try again because I don't know where the mess up was and didn't thought it would lack fluidity going forward so to be able to try with a different npc.
The game feels like a chore at times so, I ended it and that's it.

A heartbreaking story I guess (?

Ok that will sound weird but Viconia in BG2.

Every single RPG I played since then most romance scenes/dialogues tend to be kinda...forced upon me. In BG2 it did feel a bit more natural even if it still remained very simple.

Also I think I just liked Viconia's story and evolution to begin with if you played her in a Neutral - good party.

Hmm, let’s see. In general my favourite romances are with male characters, just because while I do mix it up, my favourite characters to play tend to be straight women like myself. In some of the below games I’d totally accept there are better written romances with other genders.

BG2: Dorn (he’s EE, but I can’t say Anomen even though he’s the only option for female characters in the original game, Jaheira would have to be my pick if I was restricted to that)
NWN HotU: Valen
DA:O: Alistair, even though I didn’t like Alistair as a character much, my favourite romance plot in DA:O is a romance with Alistair, then saving Loghain so Alistair has a huge strop and leaves the party but marries Anora. Sometimes an unhappy ending feels more fitting, somehow! On which note, the tragic Alistair romance timebean mentions above is really good too, in a heartbreaking way.
DA:2: Anders rivalmance after sleeping with and being left by Fenris
DA:I: Blackwall until his secret comes out then swap to Cullen (the Sera romance is dead cute though)
Mass Effect: Kaiden (or Liara, though she loses out to Kaiden mainly because I have so much love for the platonic friendship that develops with her over the trilogy if you don’t romance her)
ME2: No one or Thane (I like the idea of the Thane romance but the writing doesn’t really work for me, and I love Garrus but feel he works so much better as a friend than an LI)
ME3: No one or Kaiden again (again, somehow an unhappy ending feels more right for my favourite Shepard, especially as she’s not going to be around for an HEA anyway)
ME:A: Liam (a sweet and optimistic romance, which feels right for that game and for Ryder)

And okay, they’re all BioWare games, which is partly because I’ve played their games more than any others, but also because I’ve not found romances in any of the other RPGs I’ve played particularly memorable.

Of the above, the Alistair romance is probably the one I think is best, even though he’s the character I like least, just because it has a story that can feel like it is part of the game’s plot rather than an add-on.

I don't really like video game romances. That being said, I am going with the odd choice of Nameless Hero and Patty in Risen 2. Mostly because I really, really like Risen 2 (me and about 5 other people I think) but also because its totally integrated into the game and not something that feels like an artificial side quest. Also, she really does a good job of tanking Tacarigua early game and its fun to watch her be a badass while I try not to die.

The companions I like the most don't necessarily have the most... romantic romances. Or any at all. Afraid no one ever really fried my brain circuits.

Let's see...

Huh, not a lot of game's I can bring to mind had developed romances that you could make choices about...

NWN etc.: I enjoyed Aerin Gend, and Linu, but I really wanted more development with Tommy. Expansion content, I'm fond of Valen.
NWN2: Deeply disappointed that the romance line for Neeshka was cut and incomplete. Bishop and Cas never really did it for me, either of them. I wanted to hang out with Sand more.
To My Great Shame: I've not actually played MotB, despite being told I simply must many times by others... I keep meaning to, but haven't. But I have heard a lot about Gaan and Safyia both, and they both sound like folks I'd like to get to know better...

Kingmaker: Angel boy was sweet, but not really my type, and Octavia and Reggie were... a project, that really needed to get themselves healthy *before* getting me involved, so it wasn't the most healthy relationship progression, which kinda made it feel not so great. I'm all for poly rep in games, for obvious reasons, but they didn't portray it as well as I'd have liked - or rather, they showed the difficulties that come of insufficient communication and understanding. Mostly I was just put out that the two individuals I'd liked to have had romances with - Linzi and Jubilost - were both put off limits by the game. Owlcat has something against romancing smalls characters. *grumbles*

I always appreciated that a lot of final fantasy games have romance/flirtation variables that affect certain dialogues and scenes, but I'm continually disappointed that they ultimately don't let you derail from the story-book-mandated romance that they pick in advance.... You can Tell Riku that she's more your type, over Yuna, but it doesn't actually change anything in the story. Sadness.

Back in BG2 I did the Aerie romance. That ticked all the boxes under the Sun; rapport, flirt, love triangle, first fight, romance, deferred sex, she became a monster, have to kill, rescue beyond death, sex, decide to stay mortal together or ascend to demigod, then a baby! Only missing a wedding.

Later on I did BG2 SoD and a romance with a captain. By comparison it was sparse.

BG3 romances seem to be an enhanced version of Aerie one, seemingly with more on and off ramps. I appreciate that.

I’m hoping Karlach has a romance option, I like her demeanor, face, voice and hair. Oh, and she a complementary twohander warrior.

****

Given some more thought, the reason I like romance in BG games is that it adds a game within the game where I have to consider another dimension in my party make up.

I recall relationship music coming on in BG2 a welcome change to fighting trolls or inventory management.

Let's see...

I have to preface that while I'm lesbian in real life, I normally select my romances on which character I like the most.

I often so all romances possible in different playthroughs to see all the content, I never finished my Solasmance, since I hated that guy.

BG1 : mostly modded characters
BG2: same, since females only get Anomen aka one of the worst characters in gaming history


DAO: Zevran- he has a really great development

DA2: Isabela - just love her

DAI: tie between Sera ( If you're not elf) and Iron Bull .

KOTOR: Juhani
KOTOR 2: I really don't like any of them that much

SWTOR: Lana Beniko- she is just my favorite character

BG3 : so far Shadowheart

I don't have any favorite romances in other games.

Now I can guess what "simp" means.

Totally Shadowheart, I would do anything to get intimate with her (except doing harm to others/destroy the world, so I have some concerns wether we'll go well together or I possibly have to stick a dagger into her guts in the end). That goes on to the meta even, for example, when I made a Cleric, I avoided gods who could utterly displease Shadowheart (not that it would matter in the bland game ...). Isn't that spineless? But it's for a worthy cause.

I like Karlach, from the short moments I had with her, but I don't find her attractive. If we had a bigger party, she probably would be in.

In other games often many characters are not to my liking. I always play as male, and I like men and women, usually with a slight preference to men, and more of the androgynous kind. I prefer elves over dwarfs, so to say. They ideally have to be lean, mentally strong, rational, deliberate, cautious, reserved and self-aware (aka be-not-Halsin) and of course show some skin, but I feel I'm straying off a bit.
Anyway, I was interested in Zevran and Morrigan in DA:O. In DA 2 I tried to get busy with Fenris. In Morrowind, Skyrim or Fallout 4 I make me my own male companions and mostly use a female from a mod (who is not too distorted by male fantasies), I like e.g. Ellis in Fallout 4. In DOS2 I preferred Sebille.

Dragon Age Origins: Morigan ...
I know its quite common answer, but i just like how she goes from "love is a burden" to "screw it, i love you" ... its a little shame that little later she went back to her original mindset, but i kinda get it ... still, i dont enjoy any romance in whole Origin as when your character meets her in Witch Hunt and you leave together. :3

Dragon Age II: Isabela ...
I dont really remember anything of that game, except i hated every single aspect of it ... and that i liked this treacherous b****.

Dragon Age: Inquisition: Solas ...
If we would talk about wich character i liked most, it would be Iron Bull ... or Dorien, but i never played gay male, so this romance was locked for me ... but story of Solas is awesome one, and my first character was traditional Dalish ... so as Solas teached my Elf truth about her people, while they fall in love, only to reach that tragic end ... i just love that story.

Mass Effect: Liara ...
There is not much to say, characters in original Mass Effects arent very interesting to me ... i allways killed Alenko and never felt any desire to romance Ashley ... so it was Liara or nothing.

Mass Effect 2: Morinth ...
Bcs f**k to your death is my dream!
NO! Just kidding! ... Actually its Garus, bcs it felt most natural.
Or Liara, im not really sure if it can be counted, since its not really new romance, you can just state that you two are returning together when talking with her.

Mass Effect 3: Liara again ...
Not even single doubt on my mind! She is just too sweet to resist.
I heared tho that there is a secret option to have threesome with her and Tali ... not really sure if that is still favourite romance, or just fulfilling my dirty fantasies.

Star Wars - Knights of the Old Republic: None ...
I didnt even know you can romance anyone when i played it, and i just mention it here so i can say that whole relationship with Bastila felt forced. :-/

Star Wars - Knights of the Old Republic II.: Brianna ...
Im not even sure if there is any other to be honest, most of them just admire you so much, so they fall in love ... but Last of Handmaiden feels different.

Star Wars - The Old Republic: Elara Dorne ...
Its not like she is the best character, or that her romance would be somehow especialy good compared to others ... but i really liked that she (as far as i know) is the only romanceable companion, whos life was put into danger, and in order you save her, you need to sacrifice lots of inocent lives.
I just like tragic endings, what can i say.

Witcher III.: Yeneffer & Tris ...
You can pick at several occasions in game ... and when you cant really pick one, at certain point, they offer you actually have them both at once ... i wouldnt spoil surprise here, but i loved the outcome! :3

Vampire the Masquerade - Bloodlines: officer Chunk ...
I know this isnt really standard romance, but if you play a Toreador Female, and have low humanity (or at least that is the only combination i managed to trigger it) ... then, if you seduce Chunk at the start of the game, but dont kill him ... he falls in love with you ... and later in game, you can be the cruelest bitch that ever walked this world, when you stomp on his heart so hard so he NEVER speaks to you again.

Fallout 4: Paladin Danse ...
Its not really a "romance" in the true meaning of that word ... for in-world reasons ... more like best buddies story, but i like it anyway.

Metal Gear Solid: Otacon & Sniper Wolf ...
This may be a bit cheating, since its not player romance, but its still sweet ... bitter at the end, but sweet.

Heroes of Might and Magic IV: Alana &. Gauldoth Half-dead ...
If you dont know their story, i strongly recomend to google it ... its a bit Romeo and Juliet style, but epic!

And i gues thats all i can remember.

//Edit:
There is one thing i find funny about BioWare ...
They offer us romancing gays, lesbians, bisexuals, humans, elves, several type of aliens, even dude who is twice as big as our character and have horns as big as we have arms ... but once some fans mentioned that our Dwarves have no romance options except other races, they get all offended and start yelling that they are not our virtual pimps.
I mean, what is wrong with Dwarves? O_o

Actually you can 'date' officer Chunk with every female character
If you seduce him to get into the gallery, he will think, you are his girlfriend afterwards. You have especially funny dialogue as a Malkavian.

Yeah i know.
But what i like about that particular "romance" is that potential outcome ... you dont just break his heart, you litteraly emotionaly destroy the man.

I honestly can't think of any "romance" in any game I played across the years that stuck with me over time.
I always try to chase at least one when the option is available (i.e. Viconia in BG2, Morrigan in DA, etc) but there isn't one that I can think back to with particular fondness.

I remember when in Bioware's Jade Empire by the end of the game if you picked the "flirty options" with both the female leads (and companions) across the entire game you suddenly had the option just before the final battle where both confronted you with a "We decided that choosing is not fun, so let's have a threesome" (and then it's basically a fade-to-black, so don't go in expecting much after reading this post).
If nothing else that was an amusing development and something different from the usual attempt to moralize because you didn't "stick with one", but that aside I remember very little of the two characters.

I also never liked the game very much in general and I think its entire cast was dramatically under-utilized, so there's that.

The "dwarves are a fetish" mindset is really weird. I'm sure they are to people, but so are elves, giant races and anything with too much fur. The True Weirdos will go for mindflayer hentai. Not sure if Larian will pull a BioWare here, if it's true there's a gnome companion.

Yes. I’m all for designing companions as interesting characters with good stories first, and potential love interests second, and can understand why writers wouldn’t want to shoehorn in a character specifically created in order to be a romance option for dwarves (or other shorter races).

But at the same time, for me a satisfying epic story in an RPG usually (though not always) includes a dash of sex and romance, as it does in other media too. And once writers realise that there’s a pattern over a number of games of not giving a whole category of characters the opportunity for a satisfying romance sub-plot, you’d hope they’d question whether they were writing enough diverse characters of different races if there aren’t any that could reasonably develop a romantic and/or sexual relationship with the player character.

They don’t even need to be a companion, and in fact I’m all for being able to build interesting relationships with recurring NPCs. And despite the fact there was hardly anything to it, I really liked the romance between a dwarf noble female in DA:O and Gorim, as it had an interesting structure being a relationship that predated the start of the game and was brought to an end by events in it. It alone certainly doesn’t get BioWare off the hook for not giving dwarf romance options, but I think shows how they could offer much more variety in potential relationships without having to create a plethora of companions specifically for that purpose.

Hopefully Larian are thinking along the same lines too, as things aren’t looking particularly promising otherwise for having romances with characters from the shorter races.

(By the way, while personally my main problem with lack of shorter race love interests is the lack of suitable romantic partners for my shorter race protagonists who happen to be attracted to folk closer to their own size, I’m not for a moment saying that only relationships between races with similar average heights are valid, or that dwarves should have relationships with other dwarves and so on! Only that any protagonist should have a variety of relationships available with different genders and races, but that personally I feel the lack of romance options with shorter races most as a gap when playing as one myself.)

Hits the nail on the head for me. Some people are into height difference. A lot of people, actually. I see it in fan art way too often that someone suddenly gains 10cm of height.

I feel about this the same way I do about pugs. Not for me.

Creating a short character unfortunately forces my hand here. So I don't play any. I think I'll pick a dwarf if Karlach isn't a barbarian, but only with at least one more custom character to use for romances. If the gnome is romanceable and good/neutral, I may go for them with a dwarf in the same run.

If there's no gnome, maybe Shadowheart to see her full story line or Astarion. Though, I'm more likely to romance Astarion with a paladin just to see him suffer.

Is it Astarion or the paladin you’d want to see suffer? Though I suspect there would be angst and doubt on both sides!

Both. Both is good. Excellent, even

It could have been but my phone tends to spazz out when i tap on in, maybe in time i could probably during the official release.

Daddy

Yeah, I’m also a sucker for a tragic, turbulent love affair (in media, not so much IRL!) so really enjoyed the Solasmance too. The only reason it doesn’t get to the top tier for me in DA:I is because, as BioWare confirmed, it was something of an afterthought and is rather underdeveloped as a result. There’s a massive swathe of the game where there’s no specific interactions with Solas that are any different depending on whether you romance him or not. But it still almost gets up there for me despite that, especially given the extra content in Trespasser.

Yes, I’m with you on that. The Shadowheart romance so far seems to me to be the one that develops most naturally (depending on player choices of course) and I particularly like that you can feasibly elect to spend the party night chewing the fat with her purely platonically and the scene still works, even if she’s a bit disappointed if you choose not to take it in a more romantic direction at the end. In fact, if my characters aren’t romancing anyone else and get on with Shadowheart I’ll usually have them do just that, even if they just want to be friends.

Astarion’s “romance” is a close second for me, purely because it feels honest and it’s not cheesy, whereas Gale and Wyll both get marked down for cringeworthy chat up lines. Though if the pace of the Gale romance was slowed a bit (as I suspect is intended given the issues cramming it in before the party) I’d probably like it more, and Wyll may become a more attractive prospect once there’s been some progress on his Mizora situation. Lae’zel I’ve never got round to trying, though I do enjoy her speech telling me I have no chance with her. The Minthara option is one I’m glad is there and I can see me choosing to pursue for some of my characters (I do like that it can be played either as a power game in which both parties are trying to use one another or an honest sex-for-pleasure encounter), but a hell of a lot more would need to be done down the line in the full release for it to have any chance of becoming my favourite.

Absolutely.

I dont, to be honest.

You mentioned "shorter races", that may be good point ...
But still, shouldnt it be easier to model Dwarf-Dwarf romance, than Dwarf-Iron Bull?
And yet, while the first they strictly refuse to give us, second we have.
I mean, if there is some technical problem, moral problem, or it just seems disgusting to them ... you can allways just fade screen to black.

Personaly, i LOVE Dwarves, especialy in Dragon Age, Orzammar is my most favourite place in whole Origins ... and i never forgive them that they give so little Dwarf-themed locations to Inquisition.
And i admit it, im mostly not thrilled from cross-species relationships in Fantasy ... i see nothing wrong if that option is there, but still it feels like every character deserves some love from their own.

When you take Inquisition ...
Even Qunari have that option and that is quite uncommon race, compared to Dwarves, so there it would kinda make sense ...
You have, how many 5 humans if i count right? Cullen, Josephine, Cassandra, Blackwall, and Dorian ...
And two Elves ...
If amount of companions is supposed to be a problem, just make one of them a Dwarf. :-/

Blackwall would be excelent Dwarf.

//Edit:
Really? o_O
Well, i didnt even noticed, bcs i never finished replay ... that game have too many ugly, boring and tedious mechanics, to repeat it properly. :-/

Speaking about ...
I wonder how different would be romancing Iron Bull, who will be still loayal to the Qun ... can you even romance him under those circumstances?

You mentioned

Yep, according to this post from Mike Laidlaw in the BioWare forums, the Solas romance was added only when development was extended for a year, but here he says so was the Cullen one which I hadn’t realised and I don’t think suffers the same issue of feeling like it’s missing something. I couldn’t find the actual quote I’d initially half remembered, which I think was from Patrick Weekes saying that they’d added the Solas romance later in development mainly because of its tragic potential.


You can, but . I’ll not spoil here, but yes it is different. And in my view not really done justice.

Oh fun.

Persona5 - being set in highschool and very anime the artificial "choose our wifu" works pretty well. It's really hard to choose one (that is why it's so good!) but you can pick all, and than get trashed for it! (in general, I prefer romances in jRPG and jRPG likes (Witcher3, Mass Effect [I recently realized that those game have more in common with jRPGs than cRPG - vertical progression with little customisation? Rigit storylines? Few choices to makes? Pre-written characters?) as due to limited reactivity and I am more of a passive watcher).

Mass Effect1-2 - Liara. She is sweet and has a decent arc throughout the trilogy and is a consistant option throughout the three games (thanks, Shadow Broker, you fix my main issue with ME2). I don't like Liara in ME3, because it is ME3 and somehow everything but combat got worse.

Witcher3 - As a fan of books I have to nominate Yeneffer - it was a really sweet resolution of their lengthy, troubled romance. If I weren't a book reader, I would probably nominate Shani - the wedding was a great sequence.

Planescape Torment: Annah. I must admit, my recollection of Torment romances was pretty fuzzy, but I remember playing it after BG2 and thinking: "huh, this is actually pretty decent".

Dragon Age: Origins - Morigan - I feel her arrogant, self serving nature makes her actually quite believable as a romance option for such a short adventure, and that she uses you at the end for her own, likely nefarious needs makes it even better. Now, that's a deal with a devil. Learn some lessons Rafael.


Most other romances in RPGs, I don't have strong feeling towards. A one negative mention I would give is:
Pillars of Eternity2 - all of them. There was something terribly tragic to see bickering, horny teenagers trope come back in force in PoE2, after strong, diverse and throughtful line-up of PoE1 cast.

I honestly never tried that with any of my characters.

So far Karlach looks dull and her story is also dull. But if she turned out to be a cambion-ish who casted a Disguise spell on herself while her real identity was actually a demon looking badass, then I will farm her Approval more than what I did with the rest of the team. Otherwise, even Kagha was more interesting than she, don't mention that telescope tiefling.

Wait, is there any new content relates to Karlach been released?

You betrayed Liara, how dare you! Bad simp, baaaad simp.

In my defense ... it was different characters!

You have been found in violation of:

"The one standing in infinite glory is you; the one fallen from grace is also you. What matters is 'you' and not the state of you.”

Simp card revoked!

Which romance option intrigues me the most? Maybe Karlach or Minthara since the latter isn't implemented yet and thus we know the least about, the former because it has the least content in the game out of the available options and because it's seemingly exclusive to evil characters.

On the other end of the spectrum, Gale and Wyll, because of their Mizora/Mystra problems make it a 'complicated' relationship I don't care for.

Lae'zel and Asterion are near the middle. Lae'zel doesn't have much atm and is pretty casual, not really a romance. Asterion is a hammy vampire which has its appeal, even if he has 'bad idea' written all over him. Easiest to qualify too, since AFAIK it's only tied to how much he likes you, not triggering certain camp scenes or taking certain dialogue options etc. Shadowheart feels the most like an actual romance, which makes hers the best of the ones implemented so far IMO.

There's another option that's been datamined, but we don't know if it'll be in the full version and IMHO it would be better off if it didn't. I'll leave it at that.

Somehow, after reading this, my head keeps echoing the "it was his caravan" line again and again xD And "blood excites me" xD That's an interesting character.

I wouldn't say there's any romance in a game where I was like "Oh my god this person is incredible... I AM DOWN BAD." I can say that I used the romance features in games where they were available, so there's that. Might as well throw my two cents in:

-Mass Effect 1: Romanced Liara (Disappointed with the writing in this one though for all options)
-Mass Effect 2: Miranda
-Mass Effect 3: Tali

-Dragon Age Origins: Morrigan
-Dragon Age 2: Merrill

-Baldur's Gate 2: Viconia
-Baldur's Gate 3: Shadowheart

-KOTOR: Bastilla

Tali ME1 to ME3
Kotor same

To clarify, I romanced Miranda in my first run-through of ME2 when it was standalone, but Tali all the way through when Legendary Edition came out.

I'm a simple person. I will 'simp' for whoever is nice to me and I enjoy their company.

I romanced Merrill too, but it’s difficult for me not view Anders as the most narratively effective romance plot. Especially for a Hawke that kills him.
Also like Linzi, the person I was most personally interested in, Bethany, wasn’t a romance option. Of course unlike Linzi, a Bethany romance would have actually been problematic. That would have been a very different game.


I find “Toxic” relationships are interesting fodder for roleplaying games. Even if the writing wasn’t all there, Octavia and Regongar, were at least something I hadn’t really seen before. And I’m interested to see where they go with an Astarion romance, which looks like it might be similar to Anders, addiction and revenge.

Persona is interesting, I like the sort of light novel coming of age romances they have, but being constrained to little vignettes keeps it from both over taking the narrative and giving you as much as you might want. They’ve made spin-off fighting games and a brawler, I wonder if they’ve ever considered making spin-off dating sim before.
I think the kinda focus a smaller roster has is why I enjoyed Yukiko’s story in P4 more than most of ones in P5
Persona 4 also had Chekov’s ragamuffin which might just mean I’ve been too emotionally manipulated to feel differently. Oh no, P4 is my toxic relationship.

That said, I’m also in the camp where no romantic subplot in an rpg has really been exceptional.
In review the ones that were most effective, were stories where I knew my character was being taken in. I don’t need to like Yennefer for a romance with her to be effective because I can tell what’s going on with Geralt when they talk. I know Geralt has deep feelings for Triss because he gave her that rose, and Chose to save her over a number of probably ‘smarter’ choices. Conversely, it doesn’t matter to me the Bhaalspawn is a plank of wood with face painted on, because I can tell what’s going on between him and Viconia because of the writing and the voice acting on her side of it. As well the relationships the Nameless one has, the more-so because our incarnation is experiencing past romances the way a player normally does.

I don’t know where to fit Final Fantasy games into this matrix. The love triangle between Cloud Tifa and Aeris or the impending marriage with Lunafreya might veer so far into meladrama that they become effective again

There have to be better examples I’m not remembering. Where do Ico and Shadow of the Colossus fit in. Or the current generation of Zelda games I haven’t played

I wonder who'll win the contest for most mutually destructive romance subpath.

Camellia - WotR

Some choice comments from Steam

She's passionate about her hobbies. Who am I, an aspiring lich, to judge? And yeah I did romance her, because she's always telling me to open my heart to her. Hopefully I'll have the chance to truly do so as I progress my lichdom.
-- DrunkPunk

This is what happens when you don't choose the succubus, you end up on the path of debased evil. Sad times.
-- Angry Trash

Don't kink shame
-- Soft Lockpick

My trickster kept her alive. My roleplay was I just kept party members that I found interesting, I felt like I was pushing her towards even further insanity, which was quite entertaining. I'm not crazy too, I promise.
-- Lusty Muse

Won't somebody please think of the cannibals?
-- Soft Lockpick

Doesn´t matter: had sex.
-- Cloudhunter

How are you any better after killing so many nameless cultists and people? You catch her killing one guy in private and suddenly its NOOOOOOO YOU CAN'T DO THAAT. lmao c'mon.
-- Elley

I like how Camellia exposes us, players as hypocrites.

Her secret is very easy to read since first chapter, yet we keep her near, in some position of power as one of our inner circle.

Some let her be because she's useful, some because she pretty, some dont care. And after facing truith which anyone sane can predict, commanders start acting saint.

Great character surprisingly.
-- Northern

What if Camellia wants to repent like 20-30 years later? The question against Arueshalae is that you never met her during her evil times so her killing and eating mortals in past will never bother you while you see Camellia on the act, so that will bother you. That was my point.
-- urartu

She can't leave you, if you execute her first.
#Rollsafe
-- Thraknar/Soap

Woman still had simps among these, it seems. I meant Bg3's characters, though. Camelia is not quite powerful enough to win the crown despite not being in the game.

When forum posters see a hot lady engage in ritual sacrifice in a psychotic episode and bathe in the blood of the victim:


(Actual when they see an isometric figure over a dead body and are told that's what happened)

I would say rivalmanced Anders. If you rival him, he becomes totally unhinged ( and I mean he isn't the most sane person to start with) and that on top of him manipulating you.

Anders_irl