I finally beat the game after something like 150 hours of in-game time according to Steam. I tried to play the role of a good guy half-elf monk that wasn't afraid of to use violence to achieve his goals. My major story decisions included:
- Recruiting all party members (excluding Minthara obviously) and doing their side-quests except for Astarion
- Saving all Tieflings
- Romancing Shadowheart because I'm basic
- Telling the Emperor the entire playthrough that I will consider all of the options until the time comes
- Not evolving into a half Illithid to maintain my appearance and free-will
- At the final moment, freeing Orpheus against the Emperor's wishes, leading him to turn against me and side with the Elder Brain
- Convincing Orpheus to become a Mindflayer
- Deciding to destroy the Elder Brain/Emperor instead of allowing Gale to explode himself
- Letting Karlak die in a blaze of glory instead of convincing her to go back to Avernus (as she insisted the entire game)
- Watching Astarion burn in the sunlight
- Telling Gale to leave the crown beneath the water and to move on.
- Telling Lae'zel to go fight Vlaakith
- Killing Orpheus honorably at his request
- Living happily ever after as a legend of Baldur's Gate?
Overall, I feel like I achieved my good guy run pretty well. Maybe it would have been better had I convinced Karlach to return to Avernus, but it was hard for me to do that when the only thing she said the entire game was how she never would allow herself to go back. I felt like siding with the Githyanki was better than siding with the Emperor despite not viewing him as entirely evil. At the end of the day, he was a soulless husk of the person he used to be and more Mindflayer than anything else.
I'm curious to hear how everyone else's runs ended.
Romanced Lae'zel and convinced her to stay because there was no option to go with her, being badass fantasy space pirate revolutionary forever. I imagine my dragonborn sorc will help Gale with his crown retrieval project. Mind flayer Karlach seems to have adjusted to her reality very quickly and is content to no longer be cursed to burn to death or be a soldier in Hell forever. I imagine she'll be like Omeluum was. I convinced Wyll signing away his soul for eternity so his dad could live a little longer before going to the Elysian Fields was a raw deal, but was mad that I couldn't call out Mizora on her bullshit and tell Wyll to refuse to sign either contract and let the six months play out, at which point she'd have to release him no matter what. Astarion I'm hoping will keep in touch now that he's required to be gay as fuck in the dark again. Shadowheart rejected Shar and let her parents die because they begged her to do so, so she could be free. I'm guessing she and Wyll will be drinking buddies for a bit to cope.
I don't think it's possible for everything to turn out good for absolutely everyone; I never did run across Minsc, because I never had Jaheira in my party and he didn't spawn when I cleared out that part of the sewers. Oh well.