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This isn't the first time in 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Baldur's Gate 3 that you've had to determine if you can put your faith in the Emperor, but this will definitely be the last. As you juggle with your trust in your mind flayer companion, the future of the githyanki people rests in the bal🥃ance. How are you supposed to make a good decision?
Thankfully, we've made all the decisions so that you don't have to. In the end, it seems that your mind flayer 🅷companion is not as forthcoming or truthful as you'd like to believe. But let's take a deep dive into all the possibilities and truths hidden on a first playthrough.
What Happens If You Side With The Emperor?
The Emperor, your protector and Guardian, has been with you touched down on the beach, and it's only natural you'd want to side with the person who has supported you along your journey. 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:If you romanced him prior ꦏto your choice, this may complicate thin🌸gs further.
But siding with the Emperor won't be popular with all your allies - namely Lae'zel if you didn't turn he🙈r against Vlaakith.
Any romance with Lae'zel will be broken by choosing to side with the Emperor and failing a DC30 Persuasion roll. She will thank you for past battles but leave you with the promise her future battles will be with🀅out you.
By choosing the Emperor, he'll consume Orpheus's brain and doom the githyanki race to continued subservience to Vlaakith. In the final fight, Voss will continue to assist you, but he will vow to hunt you down after the brain's defe𒀰at.
On the other hand, you'll continue your alliance with a familiar friend and avoid having to face an extra, powerful enemy in the final fight.
You will have the choice, when siding with the Emperor, to give him the Netherstones or have yourself or Karlach (with high approval) become an illithid to use the Netherstones instead.
By siding with the Emperor, you'll give the Netherstones to the Emperor. In the end, this means that he'll fight the brain with you as an ally and then depart in the end, disappearinꦓg from the eyes of the world for the foreseeable futu꧋re.
He will state (although the narrator admits that you are uncertain if he is being genuine) that he will truly miss you and wishes you may see each other again.
However, if you Persuade him to control the Netherbrain and rule the world with you, he'll turn you into his thrall. Ruling the world from his throne on the Netherbrain, you'll become a pet at his throneside without free will or agency.
This ending seems to make the Emperor the most pleased, him even praising you for his ambition and admitting🐈 this had been his primary thought.
Why You Shouldn't Trust The Emperor
As revealed in the book , found in 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:the Emperor's hideout:
"...it is in [mind flayers'] nature to assess the utility, strengths, and weakness of those around them, and to manipulate in order to get what they want. ...Pay attention to its actions, not its words. Especially words that are tailor-spoken to fit a mind flayer's manipu💧lative agenda."
With this in mind, one must look at the Emperor's actions (🌸and inactions) to determine his trustworthiness.
Though your choice to trust the Emperor is completely up to you as a player and your character's morals, if you're wondering if the Emperor is the "good guy," we can safely say, by definition of his actions, that he is not.
Overlooking his eagerness to turn you into a mindless thrall in one of the endings above, he reveals his true colors if you rejected him during his romance scene.
If you asked to look into his memories, he reveals that he had turned his partner, Duke Stelmane, into a puppet and directly states:
"You are my puppet. Make no mistake. Without me, you have no value... Your puerile attachment to your material form jeopardizes us all. If I must, I will force you."
You can also find record logs of his mind-tampering with Duke Stelmane as well as experiment logs where he systematically dismembered her. This log is found in 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:his secret hideout.
On the bank near the skiffy you take to reach the Elder Brain for the first time, you can find a book that reveals that the Emperor had told Gortash, Orin, and Ketheric about the Netherstones and the Elder Brain. Thus, the events of the game are the direct influence of the Emperor himself.
In addition, he has lied repeatedly by stating he has no more secrets to keep. During his romance, he states he has nothing else to hide, but 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:venturing to Ansur's lair reveals this to be entirely false (not to mention, it reveals he'd murdered his best friend for his own preservation).
Although your wants and desires are aligned for the majority of the plot, it appears that your relationship with the Emperor appears to be mostly controlled through the manipulations and lies of your "Guardian."
What Happens If You Side With Orpheus?
By telling the Emperor you wish to free Orpheus, he will completely reject you and leave the prism to join the Netherbrain's forces. He'll become an enemy you must face in the final battle.
If you were afraid that Orpheus would attack you as the Emperor warned, don't worry; Orpheus makes no aggressive actions against you no matter what choices you've made in your jou♒rney.
In order to free Orpheus, you must have 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:obtained the Orphic Hammer.
If you haven't, there is one last chance to obtain it after the🌳 Emperor leaves as Raphael will appear and offer you his deal once more.
Although Orpheus will be unhappy with you - even if you haven't consumed any tadpoles, he will agree to join you in your fight. However, someone must still be an illithid to use the Netherstones.
Whether you turn Orpheus into a mind flayer or not, Kith'rak Voss will side with your group, and Lae'zel will have a positive opinion of the situation (if not a little more sour if Orpheus is t🔯he one who becomes an illithid).
In the final battle, you must face the Emperor and a red dragon he's controlled intoℱ submission, making the final fight much harder than it would have been by siding with the Emperor.
When facing the Netherbrain, you can choose to stab Orpheus in the back and kill him, becoming the Absolute yourself.
Otherwise, Orpheus will destroy the Netherbrain and all tadpoles.
If Orpheus survives to the end, there will be four possible endings:
|
Orpheus Remains Mortal And Leaves With Lae'zel |
If Orpheus doesn't become an illithid, he'🗹ll try to convince Lae'zel to come with him and liberate the githyanki people. If you don't stop her, the two will leave o♑n two red dragons to face Vlaakith. |
|---|---|
|
Orpheus Remains Mortal And Leaves Alone |
The same as ☂above, but if you convince Lae'zel to stay on Faerun with you (DC30 Persuasion), Orpheus will leave to face Vlaakith alone while Lae'zel continues her journey with you. |
|
Orpheus Becomes Illithid And Sacrifices Himself |
If Orpheus becomes an illithid, he'll ask you to kill him aft👍er defeating the Netherbrain. He'll die at your blade after requesting Lae'zel take his dragons and face Vlaakith in his stead. |
|
Orpheus Becomes Illithid And Survives |
On a successful DC20 Persuasion check, Orpheus can be persuadeꦐd to live rather than die at your sword. After requesting Lae'zel face Vlaakith, he'll find a far corner of the realms to stay in complete solitude and witness th🌠e liberation of the githyanki people thanks to Lae'zel and Voss. |
Who Should You Turn Into A Mind Flayer?
Whether you choose the Emperor or Orpheus, you do not have to give the Emperor the Netherstones. You m🅰ay choose to ma✅ke yourself or another into an illithid and control the stones.
People fit for becoming an illithid include:
- Yourself
- Orpheus
- Karlach - With high approval
Although Gale offers to blow himself up, there is🀅 no way to bypass someone becoming an illithid if you don't give t🔜he stones to the Emperor. Orpheus in particular will not allow it.
Byfar, the best person to turn into a mind flayer appears to be Karlach. Although there are a few requirements and the chance that bringing Gale renders this entirely im൲possible, Karlach's offer tꦕo become illithid is willing and eager.
Above all, turning Karlach into a mind flayer is a way to prevent her from dying or returning to Avernus (something she strongly is against).
Turning yourself into a mind flayer affects all romances in different ways, strongly complicating all but Gale's (who, yes, would still love you if you were worm). Most notably, it ends Astarion's and Lae'zel's romances entirely.
For the most part, you will either need to seclude you🌌rself from all humanity without ever receiving recognition for your deeds or embrace the evil impulses of your transformation.
Choosing to become a mind flayer but still side with the Emperor is possible, and it also unlocks two additional endings:
- Reform the Knights of the Shield to protect Baldur's Gate
- Eat the Emperor's brain
By turning Orpheus into a mind flayer, you will prevent the prince from becoming personally involved in the revolution of the githyanki people againsꦆtꦛ Vlaakith. This may have severe consequences against their efforts.
You will have a choice between killing him or sentencing him to a future of separation in distant corners of the astral planes.
