I never played MotB but I played the BG series and in it resisting the pull of evil came with mechanical benefits - lesser benefits to be sure but benefits nonetheless.
I wish there'd be a way to get rid of the Emperor earlier, release Orpheus, side with him and get some mechanical bonus from him in return.
That said, for me the mechanics wasn't the motivation to use the tadpoles. But when Lae'zel
saw Orpheus sacrificing himself to become a mindflayer
, I couldn't keep her from following his lead and devouring the whole pile of tadpoles within a second.
Agreed completely. And if you just save the tadpoles for one time there is a cosmetic downside you can gobble them like gummie worms with no consequences.
@Dangerferret happy to spoiler my response but I wonder if @flyimar would be willing to alter the title to allow spoilers? I took the title to be inherently spoilerly.
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but he's definitely used to having the final word and getting his way. And Tav does have the option to respond to a push to use the tadpoles with, "I'm trying to have it removed. I thought you were helping me."
You're right that is a good dialogue option. And he follows it making it clear that he wants you to transform into a half illithid and eventually a full mind flayer. But we're still on rails. He may be used to having the final word - it's a character trait that makes me like him all the less - but the game doesn't have to assist him. If he is taking away our agency that's great and will make the moment we turn a tables all the better - but if the game decides that Tav is going to be struck mute at that moment that's not something I enjoyed.
At the least we should be able to make it clear that we see this a betrayal.
Compare this to a similar moment in WotR. At a similar point in the story, right after a hard won battle, the equivalent the Guardian The Queen strips the MC of formal title, critiques the MC's actions and upbraids even the most loyal follower. The commander has been betrayed at the moment of her victory! And the player can choose to respond to a host of ways - they can respond with heavenly grace and request a reevaluation, with disinterested reserve and submission, with rebellious spite or demonic fury. You can vow to take revenge or you can decide be the better person.
And later you can either receive an apology or you can have your revenge. In all cases the choice you made is vindicated.
But this game is so told from the POV of the guardian that most fans describe the release of Orpheus as a betrayal. Which only makes sense if you saw the guardian as an ally an not an evil mastermind. Why isn't my POV supported by the text: the betrayed the party. He betrayed us when he told us to seek a cure and only later revealed that he didn't believe a cure existed and that he wants us to transform.
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and he's also not objectively evil
Oh come now He mentally enslaved a woman, took over her criminal enterprise, he eats people, and his criminal empire is controlled secretly controlled by a devil
but I wonder if @flyimar would be willing to alter the title to allow spoilers? I took the title to be inherently spoilerly.
