The use of the word “freedom” in the context of Astarion’s lines.
Freedom is Astarion’s central theme. Astarion wants freedom. Even in Astarion’s Character Sheets, in his backstory, freedom is his ideal:
“Freedom almost tastes finer than blood, and Astarion will do everything he can to secure it”.
It’s interesting to see how the word “freedom” is used in the game’s script (in Astarion’s lines) in relation to the key plot choice—whether to Ascend or to refuse the ritual.
Before Astarion learns of the possibility of breaking free from all chains—the chains of his state of being a spawn, the chains of the vampire curse—hunger and shadows (“Immortality is your gift, but darkness is your prison and hunger its gaoler”)—his primary goal was the death of Сazador: liberation from the power of the bastard who had enslaved him.
“Free and a true vampire, capable of creating my own coven? Yes. Although I'd settle for just killing the bastard. I wouldn't be a 'true' vampire, but I'd be free of him.” – At this moment, Astarion does not yet know about the possibility of becoming an Ascended Vampire himself, and he does not see any existing options for how he could become a “true vampire” himself, and, of course, the most important thing for him now is to kill the bastard Cazador. We always judge based on the options we have, the ones that are available to us, but
“Free and a true vampire, capable of creating my own coven? Yes.”
Astarion would like that, at least in his imagination, because he doesn't know how such a dream could ever be realized. And the possibility of becoming a true vampire in his imagination goes hand in hand with the concept of freedom.
But the concept of “freedom” is far broader than simply the “absence of slavery.” And as soon as Astarion learns of the possibility of performing the Ascension ritual—in his words, this possibility is inextricably linked to the concept of true freedom.
“Besides, I'll need something to protect me from the sun if things don't work out with our parasite friends. This ritual could set me free.”
“It's the ultimate freedom. Freedom from the hunger, freedom to live a real life in the sun - no tadpole required. And if I were to ascend instead of him: freedom from Cazador, once and for all.”
“And if I can take this power from him, it would set me free. Truly free.”
“This would be true freedom.”
“I could get rid of the worm in my head and still walk in the sun. I'd finally be free of the hunger.”
Astarion Wants To Ascend Because Of This | Baldur's Gate 3
If Astarion learns about the ritual from The Necromancy of Thay, he will also say that this ritual grants freedom to those like him:
“I was hoping for something that would let me escape whatever fate Cazador had planned for me. Instead, I found the Rite of Profane Ascension. It grants my kind the freedom to walk in the sun, be free of our hunger, and accrue all manner of powers.”
The description of the ritual itself states that the person who performs it will be freed from their chains:
“The Rite of Profane Ascension will release you. Walk in the sun. Suffer not from hunger. Grow your power beyond anything you imagined. A pact has been made with the Lord of Hellfire. Deliver unto him seven thousand souls, each bearing an Infernal mark, and you shall be free of your chains.”
Before the ritual itself, Astarion asks his beloved the most important question:
“But if they die and I ascend, I won't have to rely on the parasite to walk in the sun. I'll be free - truly, completely free. Isn't that what you want?”
“I'll be free - truly, completely free. Isn't that what you want?”
He asks this, and you can hear the pain and doubt in his voice at that moment. Doubt as to whether his beloved truly wants this freedom for him.
Even this insight check makes it clear that Astarion will gain FREEDOM.
“The freedom to do anything – to be anything.”
And the theme of true freedom is further explored in his lines after the Ascension:
“I... I can't feel it. That ache in my stomach, that hunger - it's gone. I'm free. I'm finally free! Oh it feels delicious.”
Astarion’s first words after the ritual ended. And in the bitter finale of Unascended, he will never even know what it’s like to be free from agonizing hunger. (“Believe me when I say it was for the best. The pain from the hunger alone - there's nothing like it.”)
And in the developer notes:
“He is powerful. He is free/ They're enjoying it.”
It's very similar to “The freedom to do anything – to be anything.” Astarion received this.
Ascended Astarion about freedom in the epilogue:
“It feels so good. Freedom - true freedom. Finally.”
AA without the romance will also say about “finally free”:
“I know, I'm better than he was. Stronger. Finally free of my past. I'm who I always wanted to be. I have everything I ever wanted.”
And here:
“Of course, so do I. Luxury, sin, all the Baldurian comforts I'm finally free to enjoy.”
Enjoying luxury and comfort is also part of “finally free.”
Unascended Astarion. His lines emphasize that he is free from only one threat—Сazador.
UA in the dialogue after refusing the ritual:
“Of course, now that I’m free from one threat, we’ll have to face the other: the tadpoles that let me walk in the light.”
Without the ritual, Astarion is free ONLY FROM ONE threat. It’s an incomplete freedom. Without the ritual, Astarion will say: “I want to feel alive again.”—Immediately after killing Cazador. He only WANTS to feel alive again. But here’s what he actually feels right now: “I just feel numb.” And in the graveyard scene: “It’s time to try living again.” Just TRY. Ascended: “I feel alive, hahaha!” Without Ascension, Astarion faces the chains of hunger, the chains of darkness and shadows, the chains of existence as an undead (devoid of the colors of life, with dulled senses and the stench of the undead), the chains of others’ desires, others’ “rules”—what others want from him.
“It's strange, knowing I'll never hear Cazador's voice again. Knowing it'll never command me to bow against my will. I'm free from him. Forever.”
He is free, but free only from Сazador. Ascended Astarion revels in being “finally free,” looking ahead and savoring the fullness of life. UA says he is free from Cazador, but he thinks about him more often, and the past weighs heavier on him. “There’s always going to be a part of him in me.”—this line from UA about Cazador is particularly painful. Physically free, but has Astarion truly freed himself emotionally from his tormentor?
If Tav kills Cazador without Astarion, then:
“Free? I'm not free - I'm trapped! I'll never be anything but a spawn now. You've sentenced me to an eternity in darkness.”
“I had a chance to live forever in the sun. To be free of the hunger that wracks me day and night.”
Also:
“As for those wretches in the cells—if I don’t get my freedom, neither do they.”
Astarion breaks the staff and dooms the wretches in the cells out of spite, driven by the pain of his anger at being denied true freedom, and so that they, too, may suffer.
Even after being murdered, Astarion replies to the question of what he had planned to do:
“Rule this place... finally be free...”😭
“Ultimate freedom”, “truly, completely free”, “The freedom to do anything – to be anything”, “be free of your chains”, “finally free” (in the dialogue immediately following the ritual, and in either of the epilogues—the romantic one or the friendly one). The Ascension grants Astarion complete, final freedom.
