Shadowheart: Difference between revisions

Still, Shadowheart displays an innate goodness that is often at odds with her Sharran training. She has a fondness for flowers and animals, disapproves of indiscriminate violence, prefers relatively peaceful resolutions to conflicts and often sympathizes with the plights of party members. She also has a sarcastic wit to match [[Astarion]], and doesn't shy away from dark humour. She is introspective, and often harbours doubts as can be seen by romancing her.

Shadowheart can be recruited as a temporary companion during the [[Prologue]] on the [[Nautiloid]] by freeing her from the Mind Flayer pod. She can then become a permanent companion during [[Act One|Act 1]].

* Shadowheart is first encountered on the [[Nautiloid]] during the [[Prologue]], trapped inside a [[Mind Flayer]] pod. She can be freed by interacting with the nearby console or using certain class-restricted dialogue options on the pod. If she is freed, she will join the party as a temporary companion. Upon escaping the Nautiloid, she leaves the party.

* Shadowheart can be found a second time at the [[Ravaged Beach]] inside the [[Wilderness]]. If she was freed from the pod during the [[Prologue]], she will be unconscious on the ground and wake up when interacted with. If she was not freed, she will instead be found attempting to gain entry to the nearby [[Dank Crypt]]. Either way, she can be invited to join the party after speaking with her.

* If Shadowheart is not interacted with at the [[Ravaged Beach]], she will move to the [[Druid Grove]] on her own in search of a healer. She can be spoken with there and invited to join the party.

*If the player ignores the [[Goblin Camp]] and walks towards the [[Mountain Pass]], she will similarly appear to save the party members from the Voice, as the party members attempt to cross the bridge into the main area.

*If the player ignores the [[Goblin Camp]] and the [[Mountain Pass]], and manages to enter the Underdark, she will appear to save the party from the Voice of the Absolute, as the party members enter the elevator to the Shadow-Cursed Lands.

Shadowheart dislikes those that disapprove of her worship or people pressing her for answers or details. She does not like needless cruelty or violence and can respond unfavorably to being too open with untrustworthy or unknown individuals. While she is afraid of wolves, Shadowheart loves animals and will always react favourably to positive interactions with them and negatively to cruelty towards animals. As a devout Sharran, she also approves of acts against Selûne and selûnites in general.

Born to parents [[Arnell Hallowleaf|Arnell]] and [[Emmeline Hallowleaf]], Jenevelle, as she was named, was raised in a [[Selûne|Selûnite]] household in the forests outside [[Baldur's Gate]]. Devout followers of the Moonmaiden, they worshiped her in quiet seclusion away from the city, raising young Jenevelle in the ways of Selûne. In time, she would take part of an ancient Selûnite inititation rite: abandoned in the wilds, she would have to rely on her skills and faith to fend for herself, proving herself as a devout believer once she returned.

Though the Mother Superior was especially cruel with Shadowheart, forcing her to use the Mirror of Loss more than with any other acolyte, Shadowheart was able to retain a few memories from her past thanks to [[Nocturne|Rennald]], a young [[Tiefling]] acolyte undergoing similar training. Any time she would be subjected to mirror training, Rennald would do his best to remind Shadowheart who she was afterwards. Thanks to him, and whatever scattered notes she was able to jot down between mirror trainings,{{ref|[[Hastily Written Note (Night Orchid Cave)]]}} Shadowheart was able to retain some parts of her identity, such as her fondness for flowers and animals. The two became good friends, and one of the few blessings during her time in the cloister.

At some point during Shadowheart's last stages of training, whispers of the rise of a mysterious cult would reach the Mother Superior's ears. This [[Cult of the Absolute]] as it was being called, was quickly gaining traction among the populace and threatened the Sharran influence over the city. As luck would have it, the Sharrans would capture a [[Githyanki]] [[Lir|scout]] who, after being subjected to merciless torture, revealed the existence of a githyanki artifact of immense power that the cult were desperate to find.{{ref|[[Subject Mapping Results: Githyanki No. 7]]}} Such an artifact could prove an asset for the Sharrans in thwarting the absolutist presence in the city, and so the Mother Superior quickly formed a party of elite devouts, tasking them with its retrieval. Though deemed a suicide mission, Shadowheart and four other companions set out to fulfill what they believed were Shar's commands.

The group was able to locate the [[Mysterious Artefact]] though at great cost: Shadowheart was the only survivor. Disaster wouldn't stop there, however, as she soon found herself captive at the hands of [[Mind Flayer|Mind Flayers]]. How and where she was captured is never explored, however, at some point during her capture she became [[Mind Flayer Tadpole|tadpoled]] and kept imprisoned in a pod awaiting [https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Ceremorphosis ceremorphosis].

 

{{Hatnote|See main article: [[Daughter of Darkness]]}}

Shadowheart may also slowly reveal parts of her past. Upon an encounter with wolves, she can be asked about her apparent fear of them, to which depending on player approval, she may show a memory of a young Shadowheart being saved by a wolf attack by Sharrans. Similarly, if given the [[Noblestalk]] from the [[Underdark]], Shadowheart will remember a young Tiefling named [[Nocturne|Rennald]] who she was friends with during her initiate years. This will add the quest [[A Familiar Face]] to the journal.

Should the party learn about [[Dark Justiciar|Dark Justiciars]], they may ask Shadowheart more about them. She will state that they are elite warriors of Shar and that she dreams of becoming one some day. This will add the quest [[The Chosen of Shar]] to the journal.

A high approval Shadowheart will at some point reveal that one of her favorite flowers is the [[Night Orchid]]. One such flower can be found in the [[Ruined Battlefield]] in the [[Shadow-Cursed Lands]] and given to her. Shadowheart will express her gratitude and lament not having anything to give in return.

Exploring the cloister, the party may run into a tiefling who recognizes Shadowheart. She will introduce herself as [[Nocturne]], once the boy called Rennald that lived with Shadowheart as initiates. Shadowheart and Nocturne can then reminisce about the growing up in the cloister. This encounter completes [[A Familiar Face]].

==Related items==