I don't have a problem with the writers doubling down on ascended Astarion being the bad route. That's the message they've been trying to convey, and they have every right to do so. No amount of cognitive dissonance or mental gymnastics makes it a good choice (in-world). I support the right to RP as an evil, power-hungry person, and the choice works well for those specific circumstances. Outside of those specific circumstances, however, it cannot be argued in any way that the choice to ascend him isn't decidedly evil. I can see making a variation for those evil Tavs who are genuinely into that kind of abuse, but I think the point is to show they got more than they bargained for.
(To any AA fans that happen to be in this thread, I am not interested in circular arguments, so please do not engage me. It would only derail the thread further, anyway.)
Back to the actual topic: I'm not surprised about the caveat for having god-Gale cure his vampirism, and I don't even mind. Larian went out of their way to avoid giving Astarion a canon eye color, so having an excuse not to cure him in-game is a good way to keep dancing around it, lol. I'm very partial to the "let's stay together and try to look for a cure" route, as it is hopeful without being shallow, like: "at some point during those six months, you found the cure, so there you go." Regardless, I don't play origin-PCs and I would never ascend Gale, so this is a very specific conversation I would never see in the first place. It sure would be odd if it was the only way for him to be cured in-game!
