Baldur's Gate 3: Apophis
Jan. 14th, 2026 01:18 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
settiaiFor pretty much all video games (at least TTRPGs), I typically have a minimum of three playthroughs going at any time. Baldur's Gate 3 is no exception and, while I'm trying to stay in the habit of playing at least a few times a week, I'm alternating between the playthroughs that I'm focusing on.
The main reason for the multiple playthroughs is that it helps keep me from burning out if I have several different characters who are doing different things at different points in the game. If I'm not in the mood for one particular character's story or the particular part of the plot they're dealing with, I can always switch to another.
On that note? Meet Apophis, my embrace Dark Urge.
I've got to admit, I usually stick with the more good-leaning playthroughs, but it's kinda fun to let loose with the occasional evil one. The playthrough as a whole moves a lot faster than it does when you're playing a good aligned character (and are a completionist like me) since a lot of the various side plots and such start being cut off the later you get in the game, because the characters involved are all dead. And there's some interesting cut scenes and such here and there that you'd otherwise miss, as they're only available when you're taking the evil route.
Major potential spoilers for most of the game, including discussion of some definitely evil actions.
( More under the cut. )
The main reason for the multiple playthroughs is that it helps keep me from burning out if I have several different characters who are doing different things at different points in the game. If I'm not in the mood for one particular character's story or the particular part of the plot they're dealing with, I can always switch to another.
On that note? Meet Apophis, my embrace Dark Urge.
I've got to admit, I usually stick with the more good-leaning playthroughs, but it's kinda fun to let loose with the occasional evil one. The playthrough as a whole moves a lot faster than it does when you're playing a good aligned character (and are a completionist like me) since a lot of the various side plots and such start being cut off the later you get in the game, because the characters involved are all dead. And there's some interesting cut scenes and such here and there that you'd otherwise miss, as they're only available when you're taking the evil route.
Major potential spoilers for most of the game, including discussion of some definitely evil actions.
( More under the cut. )
One of those general updates...
Jan. 13th, 2026 11:25 pmsettiaiTwo days of work down, three days to go. Let's see if I can make it through them. Preferably without strangling any coworkers. 🙃
Overall, it's going to be a busy week. I have D&D tomorrow night, as usual, but my Friday game is also supposed to start back this week after three months of not playing. I'm sure that's going to be very chaotic as everyone tries to remember how to play their characters, both mechanically and personality-wise. Especially since we kinda left off on a cliffhanger thanks to my cleric succeeding on a Divine Intervention.
In addition to that, Critical Role starts back this week after several weeks off. And I still haven't watched the last episode of 2025, because I knew it was going to be entirely combat-based. So, uh, I should probably try to do that during work tomorrow or Thursday if I want to be able to try to watch live on Thursday night.
On the fannish side of things, the first quarter of this year is surprisingly exchange-filled for me, mostly because there's a bunch of new Dragon Age exchanges cropping up that are run by people that I know. In the past, the late autumn and early winter has been the busy season, but several of those have died off the last few years (you're very missed,![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
femslashex) so that time of the year isn't nearly as exchange heavy as it used to be for me.
Holly Poly (multifandom poly relationships) and The Platonic Ideal (Dragon Age platonic relationships) both already have assignments out, the Crow Contracts Exchange (Dragon Age Crows focused) is in the middle of nominations, Spectre Requisitions (Mass Effect rare relationships) starts nominations later this week, Pride's Solace (Dragon Age Solas focused) starts nominations later this month, and Gaatlock & Lyrium (Dragon Age dwarves and qunari focused) is supposed to be sometime in the spring.
In addition to all that, I'm trying my best to set aside at least a little time most days to play video games. It's easier to find the time some days than others, but I'm doing my best. I've learned from past experience that it's healthier for me overall to, you know, set aside some time to actually do things that I enjoy. So I'm giving it a whirl at least. Right now, I'm mainly focusing on Baldur's Gate 3, but Animal Crossing: New Horizons is getting a free update in the next day or so which may see me playing a bit more of it for a while.
Speaking of health, the less said about my sleep schedule lately the better. It's very much its usual chaotic self, which is about as fun as it sounds.
Overall, it's going to be a busy week. I have D&D tomorrow night, as usual, but my Friday game is also supposed to start back this week after three months of not playing. I'm sure that's going to be very chaotic as everyone tries to remember how to play their characters, both mechanically and personality-wise. Especially since we kinda left off on a cliffhanger thanks to my cleric succeeding on a Divine Intervention.
In addition to that, Critical Role starts back this week after several weeks off. And I still haven't watched the last episode of 2025, because I knew it was going to be entirely combat-based. So, uh, I should probably try to do that during work tomorrow or Thursday if I want to be able to try to watch live on Thursday night.
On the fannish side of things, the first quarter of this year is surprisingly exchange-filled for me, mostly because there's a bunch of new Dragon Age exchanges cropping up that are run by people that I know. In the past, the late autumn and early winter has been the busy season, but several of those have died off the last few years (you're very missed,
femslashex) so that time of the year isn't nearly as exchange heavy as it used to be for me.Holly Poly (multifandom poly relationships) and The Platonic Ideal (Dragon Age platonic relationships) both already have assignments out, the Crow Contracts Exchange (Dragon Age Crows focused) is in the middle of nominations, Spectre Requisitions (Mass Effect rare relationships) starts nominations later this week, Pride's Solace (Dragon Age Solas focused) starts nominations later this month, and Gaatlock & Lyrium (Dragon Age dwarves and qunari focused) is supposed to be sometime in the spring.
In addition to all that, I'm trying my best to set aside at least a little time most days to play video games. It's easier to find the time some days than others, but I'm doing my best. I've learned from past experience that it's healthier for me overall to, you know, set aside some time to actually do things that I enjoy. So I'm giving it a whirl at least. Right now, I'm mainly focusing on Baldur's Gate 3, but Animal Crossing: New Horizons is getting a free update in the next day or so which may see me playing a bit more of it for a while.
Speaking of health, the less said about my sleep schedule lately the better. It's very much its usual chaotic self, which is about as fun as it sounds.
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Baldur's Gate 3: Taviana
Jan. 11th, 2026 11:44 pmsettiaiAges ago, I said that I was going to start making posts about my various OCs in video game playthroughs since I mainly play TTRPGs. And then, you know, I never actually did it. So, since I actually managed to spend most of yesterday and today playing Baldur's Gate 3, let's talk about the playthrough that I focused on. Minor spoilers for early Act 3 and a few very, very broad ones for Acts 1-2.
Meet Taviana.
( More under the cut. )
Meet Taviana.
( More under the cut. )
Vid rec: Around the Bend by danegen
Jan. 10th, 2026 08:15 pmcesyhttps://fanlore.org/wiki/Around_the_Bend
I love this vid, I remember it well, I saved it and rewatched it when I needed a mood boost, I even saved the song after hearing it for the first time from this vid.
And I'm posting here to have the memory published and quotable for Fanlore. Did any of you see it when it first came out?
I love this vid, I remember it well, I saved it and rewatched it when I needed a mood boost, I even saved the song after hearing it for the first time from this vid.
And I'm posting here to have the memory published and quotable for Fanlore. Did any of you see it when it first came out?
Video Games
Jan. 10th, 2026 12:34 amsettiaiOkay, I'm going to spend all day tomorrow playing video games if it kills me. My plans to set aside time for gaming over the holiday break never actually happened, and with everything going on in the world right now it will do me good to just get offline for a day and spend it wandering Faerûn or Thedas or the Andromeda galaxy.
I'm not sure yet which game I'll focus on, but it's definitely going to be Baldur's Gate 3, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, or Mass Effect: Andromeda because I have ongoing playthroughs in all of them that have been gathering dust for too long.
I'm not sure yet which game I'll focus on, but it's definitely going to be Baldur's Gate 3, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, or Mass Effect: Andromeda because I have ongoing playthroughs in all of them that have been gathering dust for too long.
(no subject)
Jan. 8th, 2026 11:13 amsdwolfpupHappy More Joy Day 2026!
Welcome to the 19th More Joy Day!
The goal for today is to seek out and give a little joy to others, in the hopes that it will expand outward into the world. As the TWOP recapper Jacob said:
...you continue to stand, and you continue to remember that you’re not alone, and with reverence for this fact, you can’t help but add to joy. Which is your entire job, from the day you’re born until the day you die: more joy.
This is our job more than ever. We can build a better world than this, and it starts with small acts of community and caring for each other.
Please post your little bits of joy, whether performed online or in physical space, on Tumblr (tagged with some version of More Joy Day), in the comments of this post, and/or on Bluesky or wherever you are, so that we can all enjoy them. :) I'll try to reblog when I see them pop up in the tags here!
Need more info or ideas? Read all about it here! The ultimate goal is to do just one joy-filled thing for someone(s) today; either something small, like paying someone an unexpected compliment or leaving a short comment on a fanwork; or something big, like writing a fic or making a vid or buying groceries for someone. The smallest amount of joy helps, and is a kindness that wasn't there when you started. Online OR offline counts! Whatever you can manage is wonderful - there is no joy-shaming on More Joy Day! Happy More Joy Day to you all!
Aurendor D&D
Jan. 8th, 2026 12:34 amsettiaiTo add to a previous posts on the subject, my cleric, Siân, has had a really, really, really bad couple of weeks in-game. Over the course of the last three weeks or so, she has:
( A list of bad things under the cut. )
Poor Siân really is well on her way towards a complete and total mental breakdown at the rate she's going.
( A list of bad things under the cut. )
Poor Siân really is well on her way towards a complete and total mental breakdown at the rate she's going.
On the D&D front...
Jan. 7th, 2026 12:50 amsettiaiIt's been several weeks since I played any D&D at all, and I've missed it a lot.
My Wednesday game has been on break the last two weeks because of people having plans for Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, which wasn't particularly unexpected once we realized both of those holidays fell on Wednesdays this year. We're supposed to be back this week, though, so hopefully nothing happens to push it back. 🤞🏻
... although that reminds me that I still haven't recorded the summary video of the last game. Oops. I should get that done during my lunch break so that I can get it uploaded.
My Friday game has been on hiatus since mid-October because A. the DM desperately needed a mental health break and B. a number of people were going to be unavailable in November and/or December. Right now, the plan is that we're going to start back next week. One player may still be unavailable for a while because of work reasons, but we've got a plan for where her character will be for a bit.
And then there's my Sunday game, which went on hiatus at the end of November. It's a bit more up in the air at the moment when it will start back. One of the players is in the middle of planning his wedding and another is currently in Ireland until the end of February, as they're visiting their boyfriend (and presumably soon-to-be-fiancé if things work out well) to see if living together more long-term works out. She also plans on moving to Ireland if things do work out, so making sure it's somewhere they could see themself living long-term is important too.
We took all of December off just because everyone's schedules were super busy, but as far as I'm aware the plan is that we might have some mini sessions here and there in January and February. We're doing a time skip in the game, so there's lots of opportunities for one or two characters to have some side adventures. Plus we can shift times and even days around a bit for those, depending on people's availability.
The plan is that we'll be back to playing regularly in March once the currently-in-Ireland player is back in the United States, but we'll see if that changes at all.
My Wednesday game has been on break the last two weeks because of people having plans for Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, which wasn't particularly unexpected once we realized both of those holidays fell on Wednesdays this year. We're supposed to be back this week, though, so hopefully nothing happens to push it back. 🤞🏻
... although that reminds me that I still haven't recorded the summary video of the last game. Oops. I should get that done during my lunch break so that I can get it uploaded.
My Friday game has been on hiatus since mid-October because A. the DM desperately needed a mental health break and B. a number of people were going to be unavailable in November and/or December. Right now, the plan is that we're going to start back next week. One player may still be unavailable for a while because of work reasons, but we've got a plan for where her character will be for a bit.
And then there's my Sunday game, which went on hiatus at the end of November. It's a bit more up in the air at the moment when it will start back. One of the players is in the middle of planning his wedding and another is currently in Ireland until the end of February, as they're visiting their boyfriend (and presumably soon-to-be-fiancé if things work out well) to see if living together more long-term works out. She also plans on moving to Ireland if things do work out, so making sure it's somewhere they could see themself living long-term is important too.
We took all of December off just because everyone's schedules were super busy, but as far as I'm aware the plan is that we might have some mini sessions here and there in January and February. We're doing a time skip in the game, so there's lots of opportunities for one or two characters to have some side adventures. Plus we can shift times and even days around a bit for those, depending on people's availability.
The plan is that we'll be back to playing regularly in March once the currently-in-Ireland player is back in the United States, but we'll see if that changes at all.
Advent Calendar: Cheese
Jan. 5th, 2026 06:50 pmsettiaiI was able to grab a 12 day cheese advent calendar from Aldi for pretty cheap because I got it in mid-December so it was on sale by that point. They presumably thought it was too late to properly use it, but in my mind a 12 day advent calendar works great for starting it on December 25 vs. a 24/25 day advent calendar which starts at the beginning of the month and goes through Christmas.
So, hey, I ended up getting to have two advent calendars after all! I picked up with this one the day after I finished my Adagio tea one.
( Cheeses under the cut. )
So, hey, I ended up getting to have two advent calendars after all! I picked up with this one the day after I finished my Adagio tea one.
( Cheeses under the cut. )