Originally Posted by autistichalsin
Ketheric, Halsin lowkey blames himself for (even with the removal of the EA plot thread where Halsin killed Isobel); in full release thinking it was his fault for not being able to stop him sooner. He knew that before the Shadow Curse, Ketheric was a loving husband and worshipper of Selune. There was at one point a capacity for good in him.

Wait a second, from what I know, Halsin doesnt even recognize Ketheric when we see a painting of him, but he knows about his past? Yeah, no, unless they changed that at some point in the patches.

Originally Posted by autistichalsin
Halsin is 350 and was a sex slave as a "young Druid." Minthara's exact age isn't know, but she's somewhere between 225-300, because she was alive for the fall of House DeVir and was old enough to understand it but young enough that it left "quite an impression" on her. Halsin VERY likely was kidnapped while Minthara was a young adult from the most prominent Lolth-sworn house in the Underdark. He would have heard about the evil deeds she committed all the way back then. (Such as, you know... owning slaves. Something he barely escaped himself.) And notice that in the ultimatum, never once does Minthara actually apologize for what happened to him (because that's not who Minthara is). She doesn't even explicitly say she won't harm him; she says she "has no quarrel with" him. She turned from Lolth because Lolth rejected her first, not because she disagrees with literally anything Lolth says (she still supports slavery and the subjugation of men).

All of this is headcanon. You can try to mask it as an educated guess, still it is headcanon and as such, it is irrelevant. I think AlexZebol explained it pretty well, so no need to further go down that path.

Originally Posted by autistichalsin
Halsin has been very clear that his one and only redline is DO NOT FUCK WITH THE GROVE. If you do not fuck with the Grove, he can put up with a LOT. If you do fuck with the Grove, he will hunt you down and kill you.

So we are talking about the grove that he leaves behind easily when the chance appears to lift the shadow curse. Let's face it: The most important thing for him isn't the grove but Reithwin and Thaniel. Ofc he cares for the grove, but using said place as the only reason for his decisions is a bit weak.
Beside that, he even went to the Selűne temple as he saw a chance of finding out more about the shadow curse instead of staying at the grove like a true leader would've done.
Correct me if I'm wrong and not sure if it is something in the game, but I remember him not even wanting to be a leader and that his subordinates and Halsin had trust issues. Might just be a discussion I once read, maybe someone can enlighten me on that topic.

About the whole brainwashing:
The same man who knows that the Tav (and all other origin companions) could end up as a thrall to the Absolute (wasn't it for the utterly bad Emperor plot armor) quickly judges Minthara to be guilty even after knowing she was brainwashed. If anything, its seems more of a personal agenda against Lolth Drows than anything else. Which is quite funny, because if you play a Lolth Drow he has no aversion having sex with. Why would Halsin trust the Tav then? (I know, otherwise it wouldn't work out that every Tav could have him, again, that's game features and not story.)
The whole ultimatum makes him just plain umsympathetic and racist ("Cruelty comes to Lolth' followers as naturally as breathing", "A viper cannot escape its true nature") and there is no way to talk good about that, especially not with headcanon.
DnD is about decision making, about seeing your chances, thinking out of the box and such, so at least ALLOW the Tav to roll instead of forcing a decision upon them. Every GM who acts like that would never be invited again if he limits the creativity of the players this way.

Originally Posted by AmayaTenjo
Halsin *is* very forgiving, but hes still firm and holds people accountable. The best example is Kahga, particularly if you save Arabella. He's still pissed, even I got a little intimidated when he scolded her. But he still gave her a second chance. Him being forgiving in this way is one of the resons I liked him so. I also like how he approves when you try to talk Ketheric down, but I see this as him more appreciating Tav trying a more nonviolent approach.

I really like it, too, that he is forgiving, but I wouldn't mind if he has his limits. A limit that shouldn't be Minthara, but more someone like Ketheric. He draws the line at civilization because of Silvanus but at the same time he is fine with letting Minthara go into what is basically her death at some point. Then why does he even care about Arabella if lives can be discarded so easily? Because it is a child? It's pretty contradicting for someone who claims that life is the most important thing. Especially in a situation where we need any possible ally (even if its for just using her, as cruel as that sounds.)
It's not about what Ketheric has been but it's about what he is, what he has done and what he represents now and subsequently what his plans (and that of his comrades) mean to the world.

As for the appreciation for the Tav trying to make a non violent approach, I think that is a valid point.

Originally Posted by Gray Ghost
I would say that as far as Halsin goes, you're not missing anything for not having been part of EA. I'm pretty sure all the Halsin stuff there is in the full release.

There are some huge differences as well as a lot of subtle changes. The most noticable is the complete rewrite of his background with Isobel.
So yes, there are lot of lines that aren't in the game anymore.

Last edited by Filia; 04/03/24 03:59 PM.
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