Summary
Astarion is a gorgeous, gorgeous man. But at some points in the game, he can pull a very… strange face. This smile has been dubbed Astarion’s “Grinch face”, or “Grinchstarion” for short. It’s such an odd expression thatfans were modding it out, with the mod’s creator suggesting that it may have been caused by a bug.
Now,Baldur’s Gate 3’snew Patch 7 updatehas removed it for everyone, giving Astarion a far less menacing smile. At long last, we can romance him without being jumpscared by Grinchstarion, as he’s finally got the hang of showing his joy to the rest of the world.
Larian Removes Grinchstarion From Baldur’s Gate 3
However, after it was in the game for more than a year, it looks like some players got attached to Grinchstarion, and are modding him back in.
Better yet,the modto re-Grinch Astarion was created by the same person who un-Grinched him in the first place, Nexus Mods user Magnetuning. “I can’t help feeling like this is partially my fault,” he writes in the mod’s description. Hopefully, the Grinchstarion community has forgiven him.
Thankfully for Grinchstarion enthusiasts,modding just got a whole lot easier.Larianhas released the mod tools to the community, and now allows fans to download mods straight from the game itself. This means you won’t have to implement them all into the game manually as you had to before, making it much more accessible to newcomers.
This system will be coming to console as well, although we’ll have to wait a little longer. PC players got Patch 7 last week, but it was pushed back to October for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Mac. So, if Astarion’s smiling mug is haunting you, you’ll have to wait a little longer until the fix is rolled out. And if you actually like Grinchstarion, then you should be able to add him back into the game as well - everyone’s a winner.
Baldur’s Gate 3
WHERE TO PLAY
Baldur’s Gate 3 is the long-awaited next chapter in the Dungeons & Dragons-based series of RPGs. Developed by Divinity creator Larian Studios, it puts you in the middle of a mind flayer invasion of Faerûn, over a century after the events of its predecessor.
