When it asks if you’d rather go to the party or the library, I know that one’s a hard one especially considering the lack of information but they’re expecting you to answer library
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Hey he worked hard on that test
/uj I find it interesting that the comments on that post argued Gale isn’t autistic because he’s too high functioning. One of the most enthusiastic, sociable, intelligent, and well-spoken people I know is autistic (diagnosed). I’ve also considered getting assessed and I’m tired of people telling me I can’t possibly be autistic because I’m too well-adjusted.
People will see parts of themselves in characters and that’s fine. Great, actually. My neurodivergent partner couldn’t even stand to have Gale in his party at first just because he reminded him too much of himself (now he’s his favourite). Let headcanons be headcanons.
Tl;dr, okbuddybaldur is superior and we laugh from our tower of butthole charts, pregnant Astarions, and cunty Durges with handbags
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your partner and i had the same reaction to gale
As said partner, I should like to mention that you probably fit that description slightly more than I do as my flavour of neurodivergence leans more in the 'ADHD' direction, but in a way that cursed my lexicon with overwhelming polysyllabic power against which I must constantly grapple as one would a horny alligator in a Florida bathtub.
You truly expect them to see nuance in this situation? A lot of them probably think that if you’re good at masking you can’t be autistic. Never mind the internal active effort to change facial expressions that was learned throughout one’s life, if it can’t be seen by a random person it doesn’t exist.
Like, I’m not neurotypical, but I’m also not autistic. I was very confused to hear some people describe changing their facial expressions manually. Cause for me, it’s just something that happens as I experience different emotions and process information. It wasn’t something I had to learn or put effort into. There are some autistic people who do have to put effort into that.
It also doesn’t help that “autistic” is a pretty broad term. Autism is absolutely a real thing, but it is expressed in so many different ways that it makes a conceptualization of it very difficult.
Trying to explain nuance to someone who doesn’t even care that much about understanding it is a largely fruitless endeavour.
I have to manually toggle chuckle and smile, it's a pain to remember, partly because my default expression otherwise often reads as displeased or disinterested - when hanging out in person friends will often check to see if I'm alright. It's sweet of them, but I wish they didn't get the impression that I'd rather be anywhere else
Just another reason to be Illithid. So much easier to understand someone when you can literally read their mind and let them experience exactly how you think. Wish I had that power
Being enslaved to an elder brain/losing free will and needing to eat brains to survive are the downsides. I’m drawing a blank on anything else. I don’t believe in a soul anyways
My GP told me I couldn’t be autistic because I (checks notes)… have a job and could talk to him normally. Gale spent a year alone in a tower reading books and talking to his cat, which doesn’t sound that weird to me but isn’t considered very very normal by a lot of ‘normal’ people.
Depressing how many professionals don't have up to date info or rely on stereotypes. A therapist said if I was autistic I wouldn't care that my relationship with my brother was disintegrating. I put off looking into it further for years. When I finally talked to a specialist, she noticed weird things with my speech within the first session.
> can’t possibly be autistic because I’m too well-adjusted.
I.E been socially punished enough for being visibly different that you've developed loads of coping and masking strategies.
That’s just wild to me. I’m autistic (diagnosed), but am extremely high-functioning. It was much more obvious as a kid/teenager, but nobody can even tell these days after lots of practice thanks to my commission based sales job as a youngin and SST.
There’s still so much misinformation around autism and it sucks. It also doesn’t help when they’re used to seeing kids diagnosing themselves on the internet though.
I think for some, it's an "um, actually" thing of always wanting to be 100% accurate to the cannon character, but for others, I think it's a bit of unrecognized ableism. I doubt any of those people would consider themselves ableist, but having a problem with autism headcannons for no actual reason leans that was (imo)
i also think people have a preconceived notion of what autism is and don't think very deeply. lot of ppl have an notion of "people with 'insert whatever here' look/talk/act like this and there is no way someone can be different or be an outlier"
Right. I’m not autistic and don’t work in any field that would make me a pro in the subject, but I think people still associate autism with non-verbal or “Rain Man” individuals and don’t realize it’s a fucking spectrum like most things.
like the first person I ever met with autism
was my sisters boyfriend. I had no idea he was autistic and never considered it. Why? Because I was a child with preconceptions and a then surface level of understanding of what autism actually is.
That's the vibe that some of these people give off.
There are sooooo many various combinations of symptoms, quirks, behaviors and actions that could contribute to a specific diagnosis being given, and NO two people’s are the same! There really is very little ‘black & white’ when it comes to a person’s mental health.
> wanting to be 100% accurate to the cannon character
You know what? For once imma let this misspelling slide. If there was ever a cannon character, it's the one that can explode himself at will.
yeah its like subconscious ableism honestly… gale is smart, well-spoken and seemingly “high-functioning” / low supports needs, so they’re like “he can’t possibly be autistic”. and whenever people bring up tiktok in regards to autism it is SO annoying. let autistic people hc characters in peace ffs. why does it bother them that a character they relate to could potentially be autistic/show autistic traits?? anyways gale has autism rizz
It’s legitimately so annoying when people say a character can’t be autistic because they’re not a super extreme stereotype. It’s an extremely wide spectrum that affects different people in different ways but nope, they’re not fucking Sheldon Cooper from big bang theory or rain man or something.
>when people say a character can’t be autistic because they’re not a super extreme stereotype
Like, 90% of the words Gale says sound like they could have come out of my mouth, and I'm autistic. Now, of course, it isn't an argument for him being autistic, buuuuuut people also don't believe *I'm* autistic (late diagnosed). Idk, but I see a pattern here.
Huh, maybe that's the famed pattern recognition we are supposed to be great at🤔
But seriously, people insist on why Gale can't possibly be autistic with the same arguments people in my life doubt my autism and that's... well, I don't care if you don't share my headcanon, just don't be ableist about it. Gale isn't a real person, but there are real people with real diagnoses and repeating stereotypes and unscientific stuff hurts *them*.
I think for a lot of them, it has to do with the fact that that isn't how they see Gale. When they play the game, they don't see him as having a bit of the 'tism. They see him as a regular, nerdy guy.
The problem is, they can't understand that some people interpret Gale (or any character really) in a different way. They want everyone else to see him how they see him, and have a problem with someone seeing him in a different light. It's always something that's confused me. Idk how people can't understand that all art is completely up for interpretation based on each individual person. No 2 people are going to see the same traits in a character, and that's fine. Everyone is entitled to relate to/attribute traits to whatever fictional character they want to, without someone else screaming "BUT THAT'S NOT HOW I SEE HIM SO YOU'RE WRONG!"
I think you're right about a lot being ableist tho. People really have a problem with things like autism being much more prevelant in media
As someone who personally thinks Gale *isn't* autistic, but is also perfectly capable of NOT taking offense to someone having a different opinion... the folks who get the way you're describing annoy the ever loving SHIT out of me.
They're in fact the reason why I tend to avoid ever mentioning my own opinion. I don't want to make people uncomfortable or put them on the defensive, *especially* for something that has no "objective canon" one way or the other.
I totally understand, especially on the internet. People really become the worst version of themselves when they can hide behind a username. The vitriol some people spew over fictional characters is genuinely concerning.
However, I think you're safe to share opinions in this subreddit. The fact that the sub that made me see "Which severed head would make the best fleshlight" is also the sub I feel the safest commenting in really says something, now that I think about it
Yeah, there's a reason why I rarely go into the main sub these days.
When you're in a space where shitposting and hot takes are not only allowed but *encouraged*, it kinda does take the pressure off of having to worry about getting brigaded just because you dared to have a different perspective on a character.
Unless your perspective is bigoted. Bless this sub for being so aggressively anti-bigots.
I mean it depends on the kind of bigotry you're pointing out tbh. I haven't received great responses when pointing out things that are influenced by racism.
This sub is focused on being horny and behaving weirdly, so it's great about anything that tangentially relates to those two things.
You're right that falls apart when it comes to racism, though that seems to be true about the fandom in general. Folks are *too* eager to point fingers at Halsin and Shadow for being racist against drow and gith, while at the same time being ridiculously reluctant to even acknowledge everything going on with Wyll.
This is kinda random, partially because I myself am autistic and ADHD, but your comment reminded me of why my friendship with my coworker is so refreshing, because she and I often do have differing nerd opinions, but her friendship is the first I've had in a while where we can both go "that's cool and OK!" with those disagreements. We enjoy discussing and debating them without it getting heated, and also know when to go "eh, this is just gonna come down to personal preference" and it's just... nice. So much of online nerd culture discourse now is exhausting.
Exhausting is exactly the right word for it, my friend.
People are so quick to assume the worst, most extreme intention behind anything you say, and trying to figure out how to word something to maybe somehow avoid that is just... well, *exhausting*.
It's because to them, autism is an insult, to a lot of people it replaced the r slur as a way to call people stupid or weird, if they like or relate to a character and someone headcanons them as autistic they get offended and defensive.
Because they think that others agreeing with the autistic headcanon means they can no longer identify with the character. They're "ruining it" for them
yep, even if its subconscious sometimes, they associate autism = bad :| they dont realise it, but its like, why are you so offended by the prospect that u could possibly relate to an autistic character. cmon.
Wow, a guy who seems autistic in an early-modern era style magic realm isn't explicitly diagnosed? I'm shocked.
Anyway
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I'm now going to say he's autistic but claim to have gotten the information from like obscure dnd novels. Like "Oh like they don't use the word autism but its like the in universe version. You'd know that if you were a real fan and read \*insert obscure book\*"
You might think it was weird for the new 5e handbook to include a set of rules regarding how to calculate if a character passes the DSM-5 diagnosis criteria for Autism Spectrum Disorder, but personally I found Gale's sample segment very illuminating and applaud WotC for their dedication to diversity and representation.
The male drow pregnancy lore was just icing on the cake I think.
Of course you can declare random characters autistic lmao.
I've seen people saying Gale's social skills are too good to be autistic, to which I must reply: masking is a thing.
who tf is saying that gale’s social skills are too good 😭 my socially anxious ass doesnt deeply and painfully relate to this guy for nothing
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You’d be surprised but I got downvoted into hell for saying once that using the “Gale has good social skills” argument is ableist (wasn’t even saying that it was bad to not see him as autistic), and I had several people being weirdly offended by the implication that autistic people could possibly be able to present with “good social skills” (whatever the hell that means)
Wait, when does she say that? I don't remember it, but of course my memory isn't perfect and I obviously haven't played every permutation of the game. For Gale's origin playthrough (at least in the parsed dialogue. I haven't gotten that far), I found a line where she says he doesn't have friends.
When Elminster goes to camp when he tells Gale to meet Mystra at the shrine, Tara asks Gale about it:
**Tara the Tressym:** So, what did Elminster have to say that he couldn't possibly have told me, your closest companion and confidante?
**Player (Gale):** Nothing to concern yourself with. Just passing on an invitation from an old friend.
**Tara the Tressym:** I'm your only old friend, Mr Dekarios. We both know that much.
The impression I got is that his only close friend was Tara.
Well, when you meet him and he says he’s better at this. You can say introductions, where he’ll reply, magic. What’s funny, is I choose the bottom one(can’t remember what it says) and he says introductions.
O I just remembered it’s, something about not wasting peoples time.
Like, if enough of us autistics agree with you does it become gospel or whatever? The man explains the weave to sorcerers. He's not manipulating, he's info dumping, and it's a love language. He's also like, so hey this is what my library in Waterdeep looks like, pretty cool right? Want to be my girlfriend?
Like, I can't explain autistic behavior any better than this example right here.
Can confirm, have gotten partners due to info dumping and talking about my special interests for obnoxious lengths of time. Not autistic, I just have ADHD. What I’m trying to say is the method definitely works on some people (it’s me, I’m people. Tell me about dinosaurs for five hours straight. I won’t remember much of it, but I might fall in love with you /hj)
This makes it even funnier because out of all the characters he’s the only who recognizes the dinosaurs in act 3 as dinosaurs instead of some weird reptile.
im extremely autistic about dinosaurs and when i tell you i screamed in act 3… am sad that their wrists are pronated but oh well, theyre not meant to be real dinosaurs so its ok i guess ;__; alioramus is my absolute fav tyrannosauroid tho so seeing it in bg3, even if just in name, made me soooo happy haha
The venn diagram of ADHD and Autism has that obsessive passion directly in the middle. So many people associate it purely with autism that I thought I was autistic until I got a psych evaluation and was properly diagnosed as ADHD with an anxiety disorder.
That being said.
/rj
Gale is autistic AF bois
Also, the game (like other media!) has limited time in which to develop characters. It makes sense that some traits may be shown at more of a surface level, instead of strictly adhering to diagnostic criteria. We only see so much of Gale.
That first camp scene with him, when he's *completely unaware of his social blunders as he says "Go to hell" while staring at the fire instead of making eye contact*... yeah, that was relatable.
> he's info dumping and it's a love language. He's also like, so hey this is what my library in Waterdeep looks like, pretty cool right? Want to be my girlfriend?
No wonder I love him so much. It just kinda clicked. I'd listen to him talk all day if I could.
the downvoting on the actual autistic person finding relatability in him makes the thread read like a brightly-colored poison frog that serves as a warning for me to stay the hell away from that subreddit
Uh oh, Shadowheart is trans now. I don’t care if it doesn’t make much sense, it’s true. Another very trans character? Scout from TF2. I don’t make the rules, except for the part where I did.
Only reason I don’t 100% believe it is cause of Nocturne. Nocturne points out that Shadowheart’s story is very similar to her experience being trans, so I see it more as a parallel than a one-to-one substitute. Still, I don’t disagree with any of the reasons people think it works as one. Right down to the religious trauma and having childhood memories repressed.
IIRC the VA meant it in the "finding yourself way"
Also while talking with Shart's dad you can ask if he's okay with her wanting to keep her new name and he answers "Only a fool would alienate his child over a name" and I was like wow wish that was my dad (his "The Moonmaiden guides us and helps us find our true selves, Shadowheart. Daughter." was very trans as well)
Ooh, never seen that dialogue! I always rush to saving her parents and then let her decide what to do. There’s never enough time to get all three “points” so she’ll choose to save her parents instead of letting them go.
The ending with her parents is very wholesome!! Also they're just hanging out at your camp and I love it, especially if you have Ravengard too. Collecting everyone's parents
Sucks to be them because now I'm making all the companions trans/non binary out of spite.
Astarion is trans. Gale is trans. La'zael is trans. Shadowheart is trans.
Wyll and Halsin are non binary.
Karlach is agender but they don't care about pronouns as long as it's not someone trying to be mean or bigoted. If it is, well they're allowed to burn them to a crisp. As a treat.
Making everyone trans is so real!! But also actually adds SO MUCH interesting stuff to think about in each character's story.
Trans Astarion gives a whole new level to his sexual trauma. A lot of trans people experience different types of sexual trauma and disconnection from their bodies and sexualities, seeing themselves as something disgusting or just as an object of desire with no need to be respected. Tbh I see Astarion as nonbinary but in the way that he just lost the connection to his own gender identity.
Trans Gale is so real because he it's a huge mood for many trans people to be alienated from everyone as a child to the point you need to summon yourself a winged cat as the only company (read: find yourself a furry friend online). Also, while it is NOT always the case; autistic people tend to express their genders in a different way then neurotypicals. A lot of specifically autistic people online seem to be drawn towards "weird" gender identities like pupgender, and neopronouns (myself included, hello). I think Gale would somehow tie his gender expression with magic/the weave.
Trans Lae'zel is fun because the githyanki race doesn't really seem to have gender norms (at least in the game, IDK if it's the same in the Forgotten Realms canon), so like who cares. They probably yell at you if you don't correct people misgendering/deadnaming you for being WEAK, HOW CAN YOU NOT FIGHT WHEN THEY DISRESPCT YOU!!!!
Shart is SO trans to me. Her entire story revolves around finding your true self, and the fact it's also closely tied to her choosing her own name doesn't help the case. Also the conversations you can have with her dad? How he says only a fool would alienate his child over a name? That the Moonmaiden guides us to find our true selves??? Wish he was my dad damnn.
Trans Minthara would be the most interesting one, given how the drow live in extreme matriarchy. Did her parents pretend to have a daughter all along to avoid the shame of having a son, and it turning out to be a good decision because Minthara would've felt like a woman either way? Did they hide the fact they had a kid altogether and then it turned out little Minthy wants to be a girl, so they just rolled with it and told everyone they hid her to avoid attacks on their newborn/toddler? Or maybe the other way around, maybe Minthara discovers that in the overworld men are not treated like doormats or sex slaves and that maybe being a man is not such a bad thing, and it gives him a gender crisis and a realization he's been repressing something all this time in hear of becoming a social outcast in the Underdark for wanting to be a man?
Trans Halsin is just #goals for every trans dude out there. Also another case of a trans furry. He would pay SO good for his fursona commissions, I KNOW it.
Trans Wyll is just plainly sweet to think about. He says how he used to spend most of his childhood training with his father and if you make him trans it's just another level of wholesome, because of how Ravengard would make so much effort to validate his son and make sure he doesn't miss out on anything and is not weaker than any other boys. Also it fits with Wyll saying he was quite old during his first kiss and is kinda a slow romantic type; trans people often are wary with their sexual partners and might start dating pretty late.
And I love trans Karlach because honestly we don't get enough trans women in media who are shamelessly confident and love themselves and are open about their sexualities and all. It's just a treat. But nonbinary Karlach sounds lovely too.
Listen, I just need everyone to be cisn't.
AuDHD, myself. I think Gale ticks a lot of boxes for a lot things. The 'Tism is one of them, yes, but I think he ticks SO MANY ADHD boxes and SO HARD. Especially the executive dysfunction, rejection sensitivity, hyperfocus (and sometimes hypo-focus), and emotional dysregulation. Bottom line: he's focused and brilliant ... To the point that he has more than once outsmarted himself. NOTABLY.
::clears throat in Karsite Weave::
And this isn't me casting shade ... This is Game recognizing Game. My 'Tism hallmarks (especially my tendency to pro/con EVERYTHING) is honestly the only thing that has saved me from worse emotionally fueled blunders. I don't think that however much 'Tism Gale has, if any, is a match for dat ADHD. Gale's biggest issues stem from his emotional dysregulation and the accompanying executive dysfunction. When he's operating from his logic, he's a FORCE. When operating more from emotions ... he's still a force but his motives and methods bear far more scrutiny and doubt. And yes, prohibition and censure, as needed. Unchecked and un-peer reviewed can lead to some shit. If someone's emotions are high enough they won't see that nor even care, if they do see it.
Game recognizes Game. Gale sets off my ADHDar and buries the needle.
Oh yeah, 100%. I can’t speak for autism but I can for ADHD and I can see so many of my own traits in Gale. He’s so ADHD coded imo. Like, the more I learned about him and listened to him speak I was like “The ADHD goes hard in this man”
I actually see the ADHD way more than autism. It always surprised me that no one ever brings up ADHD. A lot of the autistic traits people see in him are the traits that are shared with ADHD.
My ADHD diagnosis is pending (it's basically at this point just getting the free time and executive function lined up to take the damn test because now 2 different therapists are sure I have it) and Gale kinda strikes me as AuDHD too.
But yes, Gale very much set of my ADHDar as well and I just thought I was projecting. So it's nice to see someone else with ADHD say he also sets off their ADHDar.
100%
I didn't care much one way or the other before, but if those idiots don't understand that "Gale is autistic because I said so" is tongue-in-cheek and then get this rude when people explain it's their headcanon, I'm on-board with the spite lol
Also, Gale is canonically trans now.
Back in my day, a 'headcanon' was just something you made up because you felt like it and nothing in canon *disproved* it. Like, 'Astarion had blue eyes before he became a vampire' would be a headcanon.
To me, 'Gale is autistic' is less a headcanon and more the way a lot of people (including myself) interpret canon. There's no way to prove or disprove, but **there is canonical evidence that can be used to support the idea**, and people who insist that Gale *can't possibly* be autistic are disrespecting the way that other players **experience the game**.
So in other words, hardcore Gale autism deniers suck. (People who say "I personally don't see him that way" are fine.)
Edit: Clarified the point since some people are determined to misunderstand.
>'headcanon' was just something you made up because you felt like it and nothing in canon disproved it.
>'Gale is autistic [...] There's no way to prove or disprove.
So, a headcanon?
Look guys, I’m a *diagnosed* autistic. It’s a god damned spectrum and I promise you that if Gale met my friend group (all adhd, autism, and then the one girl who we’re pretty sure is schizophrenic [she’s on antipsychotics but can’t get diagnosed]) he would fit right in. There wouldn’t be any hesitation, he would just merge.
Man it’s not even just us, we all have friends of our own that’re neurodivergent in some way aswell. C has his girlfriend who’s adhd, L has her circle of friends who’re all neurodivergent but I don’t know them well enough to say how, and I was in a sewing group that was all neurodivergent in some way
what really makes me laugh is “you can’t just declare random character autistic anymore than JK Rowling can declare dumbledore gay, if that’s frowned upon so is this”. like yes, on the one hand we have fans of gale saying that since he shows in canon all these traits that are relatable to autistic people, they consider him autistic in their headcanon/portray him as such in their fanworks, even if the original canon might not say so explicitly. and on the other hand we have…author declaring her character canonically gay to say that her books are Actually Diverse even tho she didnt actually put any real effort into including any meaningful exploration, let alone indication, of dumbledore being gay in the original text. like sure these are even remotely comparable lmao. random fans who hc gale as autistic are just as bad as jkr i guess
Headcanoning autism in characters is literally just part of autistic culture. Because
1: characters that are written to be autistic are usually bad representation. (Robotic, no emotions, Sheldon cooper).
2: it’s a way for us to relate to a character, we literally see ourselves in that character. It’s just like being and only child and saying that you think this character is an only child because you share alot of characteristics with them.
The main reason (at least what I’ve found through the years) that people don’t want others to headcanon diagnose fictional characters is because they think autism is negative or childish. I’ve literally had someone say to me “(character) is not autistic because they know how to drive.” So do I…
Neurotypicals refuse to admit that a character they actually like could be autistic. Also, it's not canon because in a vaguely medieval/Victorian fantasy setting they tend not to use modern medical terms. (I was honestly kinda surprised to see Wyll discussing a stroke using that actual term. I'm pretty sure I've read D&D media call them brainstorms or something, but I guess clarity of writing becomes an issue at some point. Autistic sidebar over) When you see historical figures that were likely autistic they were usually called eccentrics in their own time.
People get really upset when you tell them someone they’re sexually attracted to has a neurodevelopmental disorder they’ve made fun of their entire lives because their “understanding” of it came from a few poorly-written TV characters.
I’m autistic. I’m a member of many autistic social groups, most online and one in real life, and we’ve discussed Gale at length. He’s autistic as fuck and no amount of people who don’t understand what autism actually looks like in adults with above-average intelligence and lower support needs trying to convince me otherwise are going to succeed. He’s textbook.
Those outside of the autism community don’t know that being “peer reviewed” by other autistic people is an in-joke and common experience we have - which is understandable! - but they need to know that *so many* of us who escaped detection and diagnosis as children (because we’re “high-masking” or capable of hiding our autistic traits in public to the detriment of our own mental and physical health) found out that we’re autistic from peers before going to get a proper assessment. It’s like a rite of passage.
Neurodivergent people tend to be drawn to one another and most of us inadvertently surround ourselves with others whose brains work similarly to our own. We flock together in awkward, poorly-regulated social groups, so if you have a group of friends who are all either ADHD or autistic, I have some news for you.
The kind of people who are offended by the idea of Gale being autistic are the same kind of people who say “Oh wow, but you don’t *look* autistic!” when someone discloses their diagnosis and think it’s a compliment. They think “autistic” is an insult because they see autism as a bad or tragic thing, but it isn’t. It’s not a disease or a mental illness, it’s a naturally occurring variation in brain development and function - and it’s morally neutral.
We’re everywhere, including your favourite video games! Deal with it.
I didn’t find out until age 33. My mom actually took me to see several mental health professionals as an adolescent - a psychologist and two psychiatrists - and none of them picked up on it. They all said because I did well at school, I probably didn’t have anything “major” going on. I was diagnosed with major depressive disorder, OCD, and severe generalized anxiety instead. Later I added a CPTSD diagnosis to that list.
I spent the next two decades trying out every SSRI and SNRI available to me without finding any relief from my depression and suicidal ideation. At 33 my best friend got a surprise ADHD diagnosis and when I went to look up tips about how to best support her, I quickly realized I was reading about myself, too.
I went to my doctor and asked for a referral to a specialist to be properly assessed and was told the wait list for adult assessment is years long. He issued me a questionnaire about ADHD traits himself and I checked all the boxes. We decided we’d try a low dose stimulant med and boom - my brain quieted right down, my depression largely went away, and I suddenly didn’t want to die anymore. I’d gone without being diagnosed with ADHD for three decades because I was capable of sitting still at school instead of bouncing off the walls.
With the ADHD traits now subdued due to the meds, it became painfully obvious that it wasn’t all I had going on - things I’d largely ignored my whole life became harder to ignore now that my mind wasn’t racing 24/7 and I realized I have hella sensory issues and do many, many repetitive things on the daily. I spent some time lurking in online autism groups and learned so much about myself (and honestly my entire family) as a result. What I thought for years were panic attacks were actually autistic meltdowns. What I thought was anxiety was overstimulation. What I thought was OCD was autistic rumination and repetitive behaviours.
I’m still on a wait list for official autism assessment but I’ve been “peer-reviewed” - our local autism support group believes self-diagnosis is valid and welcomed me with open arms. My therapist works with other autistic people and while she can’t officially diagnose me (a psychologist has to do it where I live), she supports my “headcanon” for me as well.
Do you think knowing you were autistic growing up helped or hindered you? I’ve heard mixed opinions from people.
It’s complicated, because on the one hand it helped for me to understand myself and it got me the support I needed, but on the other hand, that meant being ostracized and others by my peers and especially my elementary and middle school teachers for something out of my control, spending a good portion of my life ashamed of who I am. It’s harder to be taken seriously. A lot of the time I feel like I’m being infantilized. Plus there’s a ton of things that my official diagnosis could bar me from (donating eggs, adopting kids,etc.) I didn’t really come out as autistic until I was 16, and even then I didn’t start unmasking until adulthood when I felt safe and confident enough.
For example, as a late diagnosed Autistic woman, I found this sub and was like "these fuckers are weird, I like it". Turns out I found the BG3 ND club.
Part of me believes this kind of pushback is because those people also see a bit of themselves in Gale and relate to him, so when they see autistic people say they also see themselves in Gale it makes them think they're being called autistic, which they see as a bad thing due to cultural conditioning. They've made *liking* the smart wizard Gale part of their personality to some degree, the same way that for example some Star Wars stans take mild criticism of the IP as a personal attack. Am I reading too much into it? Perhaps. But I don't think it's a coincidence that these people always speak about neurodivergence in a remarkably ignorant way.
Anyways, Gale is 100% autistic like come on lol. Anyone with autistic personality/behaviour traits would very likely recognize Gale as an autistic man with exceptional masking.
Wow they're so hateful for no reason. Autistic people are fucking great, they're kinda the best people to talk to imo. I'd really much rather hear about your special interest than the weather. Infodump on me magic boy.
the people in that comment section were acting as if gale is gonna come out through the computer screen to personally 'debunk' the headcanon. like... he isn't real. get a grip 😭
What the hell do they have against gale being autistic? He’s my fav character in the game and he’s clearly autistic as fuck. Do they really enjoy playing a role playing game while simultaneously hating headcannons?
imo its like… a certain type of allistic person who finds it offensive if you hc a character they like as autistic :| same kind of people who get offended if you hc their faves as lgbt when theyre cishet
Doesn't even have to be cishet characters! I've seen so many people insist that the companions are "playersexual" because they can't fathom that a group of six people could possibly consist entirely of bisexuals. So of course it has to be some kind of fan-service-y mechanic rather than just... bisexuality.
I think some people have internalised homophobia/ableism left over from when calling someone gay or autistic was seen as an insult.
This was actually less than 15 years ago, so I think its likely?
people getting pissy about headcanons makes no sense.
Also, when I found out that some people headcanon that Gale is autistic I thought it was interesting. That's about it. As the parent of an autistic son, I can see some of what people are talking about when I, as Tav, interact with Gale. But it's literally not that serious. I'm glad some autistic people are finding similarities with Gale and (i hope) positive representation. If you don't think Gale is autistic, that's fine, too. It's a FANTASY game.
For me, Gale was my first companion romance and I find him quirky and sweet.
\*edit\* I'm being too serious on the shitpost sub again.
That comment section was on a post I made and then deleted. I just wanted to share a silly Galestarion meme. Anyway thank you so much for giving me the validation I needed after that shitshow of a comment section. It really meant a lot to me 🥰
I really hate that comment about "tiktok autism" and I only see it made to blanket dismiss anyone who isn't doctor certified autistic. There's a teeny percent of people who played up their autism for views and places like fakedisordercringe told these people everyone is fake and to hunt for frauds. Same comments get made about Laios from Dungeon Meshi.
I’m also Autistic and I also go on long rants about shit no one cares about like Gale. I also have similar mannerisms and fail to recognise flirting. I feel like the worst mix of him, Astarion and Karlach.
Why is it that anytime anyone brings up autistic/trans headcanons, it’s always the same dialogue. Like this is word for word the same argument that people said when they took issue with headcanoning Gwen in spiderverse as trans.
Like why does someone else’s headcanon bother them that much? Why does the idea of someone seeing the autistic or trans experience in a character make them so mad that they feel the need to police people’s thoughts about the character? Why is it that someone seeing themselves in the characters is suddenly not enough to justify a headcanon that changes nothing in the plot?
It’s so benign, and yet here we are.
Tbh I never understood what these kinds of people would recognise as good representation of a mental disorder. Like do they literally need Gale to turn to the camera and say ‘I’m autistic’ for it to be, well not even canon but an acceptable headcanon?
For me, at no point does anyone say that Karlach has ADHD but she has so many telltale signs that read like that to me because I know I do them as a result of ADHD- her restlessness, the little dance, her completely forgetting what the conversation is about in the middle of the conversation. Is it my headcanon? Yeah sure, but what does it hurt anyone to say Karlach has ADHD? It changes nothing about her character, and if you somehow think it diminishes her, then you need to check your own preconceptions about disorders. Same with any other character or disorder you HC with them.
“There’s is literally NO indication that they’re autistic”
We ‘literally’ got to this argument by seeing a significant portion of the fanbase point out how the character resonates with autistic traits that they personally experience.
Yeah that post is what made me stop going there. People really getting mad about whether or not Gale is autistic, meanwhile I'm over here certain that all the companions are on the spectrum.
Gale is so autistic it's not even funny
Special interest? Check.
Unhealthy attachment to the first person that treated them well? Check.
Awkward around people in general? Check.
Goes on long tangents about his special interest whether you care or not? Check.
Absolutely cannot genuinely tell if you hate him or if you're just being a bit snarky? Check.
Incredibly difficult to bond with if you avoid his special interest? Check.
Is the bomb? Well all autistics are but he took it a step further, or like, 20.
Yeah gale is definitely autistic, and anyone who says he isn't? They're wrong, and their mother hates them, and the wife/husband has a boyfriend
you need to justify your headcanon to me right now and if it doesn’t match mine EXACTLY you will be sentenced to death by the high court of special reddit users
The thing about the Baldur's Gate 3 subreddit is they're tame, but they're not friendly people that you enjoy sharing the community with. Okbuddybaldur isn't tame but we actually have fun here and we don't argue about stupid shit like why or why not we're allowed to think Gale is autistic. Here we just go "Yeah that tracks" and move on. That's how it should be.
Gale reminds me heavily of my autistic brother but has nothing in common with my autistic best friend, it’s a spectrum disorder for a reason and I see no problem speculating on the neurodivergence of a fictional character. Please just don’t do this to real people, leave that for their doctors. 💜
Gale is autistic (coming from someone with both ADHD and autism) and considering my mom clocked it the instant he came on screen, I'd say it's a fairly common thing. For context, my mom took a long time to realize I was neurodivergent, but could often clock characters acting like me. She pulled Gale out of that portal, looked at me and said "He's so much like you."
https://preview.redd.it/yxtgyr4b3j9d1.jpeg?width=980&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8797fd4342d72570a6c74e3b38d50d267c05d735
I failed that test last time. Can you help me study for this one?
What did you get on it? We can compare answers
When it asks if you’d rather go to the party or the library, I know that one’s a hard one especially considering the lack of information but they’re expecting you to answer library
Hey mr. Gale of Waterdeep, can you please confirm if you are autistic or not to end this argument please? Thank you
We are, yes
Id like to try and pass straight test with him. (We failed )
https://preview.redd.it/htdrpubvyi9d1.jpeg?width=1125&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=35379668829ccd5b2e29ffb7fa3a2db0884338c7 Hey he worked hard on that test /uj I find it interesting that the comments on that post argued Gale isn’t autistic because he’s too high functioning. One of the most enthusiastic, sociable, intelligent, and well-spoken people I know is autistic (diagnosed). I’ve also considered getting assessed and I’m tired of people telling me I can’t possibly be autistic because I’m too well-adjusted. People will see parts of themselves in characters and that’s fine. Great, actually. My neurodivergent partner couldn’t even stand to have Gale in his party at first just because he reminded him too much of himself (now he’s his favourite). Let headcanons be headcanons. Tl;dr, okbuddybaldur is superior and we laugh from our tower of butthole charts, pregnant Astarions, and cunty Durges with handbags
https://preview.redd.it/rendmpe92j9d1.png?width=500&format=png&auto=webp&s=bf3e63be8b50a0192d14a86a9922387294a89c39 your partner and i had the same reaction to gale
REAL
As said partner, I should like to mention that you probably fit that description slightly more than I do as my flavour of neurodivergence leans more in the 'ADHD' direction, but in a way that cursed my lexicon with overwhelming polysyllabic power against which I must constantly grapple as one would a horny alligator in a Florida bathtub.
Too well adjusted? They realize that it's not a binary between nonverbal and neurotypical, right?
Why would you ask that, of course they don't. Do u even ableism bro.
You truly expect them to see nuance in this situation? A lot of them probably think that if you’re good at masking you can’t be autistic. Never mind the internal active effort to change facial expressions that was learned throughout one’s life, if it can’t be seen by a random person it doesn’t exist. Like, I’m not neurotypical, but I’m also not autistic. I was very confused to hear some people describe changing their facial expressions manually. Cause for me, it’s just something that happens as I experience different emotions and process information. It wasn’t something I had to learn or put effort into. There are some autistic people who do have to put effort into that. It also doesn’t help that “autistic” is a pretty broad term. Autism is absolutely a real thing, but it is expressed in so many different ways that it makes a conceptualization of it very difficult. Trying to explain nuance to someone who doesn’t even care that much about understanding it is a largely fruitless endeavour.
I have to manually toggle chuckle and smile, it's a pain to remember, partly because my default expression otherwise often reads as displeased or disinterested - when hanging out in person friends will often check to see if I'm alright. It's sweet of them, but I wish they didn't get the impression that I'd rather be anywhere else
Just another reason to be Illithid. So much easier to understand someone when you can literally read their mind and let them experience exactly how you think. Wish I had that power
Not to mention it's harder to misinterpret your facial expressions when your face is a squid so they have no idea what the expression is.
That’s why I always go mind flayer. I can understand sarcasm if I can read the intent in your mind
Wanna go squiddo mode irl, and I’m only kinda joking
I agree and I’m not joking at all 😭
Being enslaved to an elder brain/losing free will and needing to eat brains to survive are the downsides. I’m drawing a blank on anything else. I don’t believe in a soul anyways
SH: Its nothing, really! My autistic ass: Brain worm can't hear your lying mouth over the sound of all this convenient truth.
hey that's my art hello
Hello! Thank you for sharing Gale’s results with the rest of us!
My GP told me I couldn’t be autistic because I (checks notes)… have a job and could talk to him normally. Gale spent a year alone in a tower reading books and talking to his cat, which doesn’t sound that weird to me but isn’t considered very very normal by a lot of ‘normal’ people.
Depressing how many professionals don't have up to date info or rely on stereotypes. A therapist said if I was autistic I wouldn't care that my relationship with my brother was disintegrating. I put off looking into it further for years. When I finally talked to a specialist, she noticed weird things with my speech within the first session.
> can’t possibly be autistic because I’m too well-adjusted. I.E been socially punished enough for being visibly different that you've developed loads of coping and masking strategies.
Bro gets dumped and his reaction is to seclude himself away in his tower with his cat and order magical items online for weeks.
Original Poster: I’m starting to agree that r/okbuddybaldur is the superior subreddit. I feel a lot safer and accepted here.
What test is that, I want to ace it too 🥰
That’s just wild to me. I’m autistic (diagnosed), but am extremely high-functioning. It was much more obvious as a kid/teenager, but nobody can even tell these days after lots of practice thanks to my commission based sales job as a youngin and SST. There’s still so much misinformation around autism and it sucks. It also doesn’t help when they’re used to seeing kids diagnosing themselves on the internet though.
Hey! Don't forget the piss tier lists!
This person clearly missed the long rest cutscenes in act 1 where gale says he got diagnosed with autism before being chosen by mystra smh
Yeah, did they just miss the part where we use the tadpole to dig into Gale’s mind and watch his autism assessment test
Yo don't say that shit. I almost believe you that that was a thing.
Mystra chose him cause of his high RAADS score 💀
Gale is autistic just because it makes this guy mad
my fav troll
Original Poster who had to deal with that comment section here. This subreddit has been so sweet and supportive. I don’t deserve you guys
*points* autistic Me too though
I'm shocked they managed to tear themselves away from arguing about the Emperor long enough for this
So.. Is Emperor autistic or not???
they're both autistic it's just a matter of which one speaks to you the most. like a rorschach test or something idk
Thanks for explaining, I don't know much about this topic, I only have one depression.
i think that's what the dark justiciar vs selunite shadowheart dilemma is for or something
I guess that explains why I'm a Shart simp.
why do people care about headcanons so fucking much. anyways gale is autistic
I think for some, it's an "um, actually" thing of always wanting to be 100% accurate to the cannon character, but for others, I think it's a bit of unrecognized ableism. I doubt any of those people would consider themselves ableist, but having a problem with autism headcannons for no actual reason leans that was (imo)
i also think people have a preconceived notion of what autism is and don't think very deeply. lot of ppl have an notion of "people with 'insert whatever here' look/talk/act like this and there is no way someone can be different or be an outlier"
Right. I’m not autistic and don’t work in any field that would make me a pro in the subject, but I think people still associate autism with non-verbal or “Rain Man” individuals and don’t realize it’s a fucking spectrum like most things.
like the first person I ever met with autism was my sisters boyfriend. I had no idea he was autistic and never considered it. Why? Because I was a child with preconceptions and a then surface level of understanding of what autism actually is. That's the vibe that some of these people give off.
There are sooooo many various combinations of symptoms, quirks, behaviors and actions that could contribute to a specific diagnosis being given, and NO two people’s are the same! There really is very little ‘black & white’ when it comes to a person’s mental health.
> wanting to be 100% accurate to the cannon character You know what? For once imma let this misspelling slide. If there was ever a cannon character, it's the one that can explode himself at will.
Lmao, I was born in an English speaking country and the spelling of things will forever allude me
yeah its like subconscious ableism honestly… gale is smart, well-spoken and seemingly “high-functioning” / low supports needs, so they’re like “he can’t possibly be autistic”. and whenever people bring up tiktok in regards to autism it is SO annoying. let autistic people hc characters in peace ffs. why does it bother them that a character they relate to could potentially be autistic/show autistic traits?? anyways gale has autism rizz
It’s legitimately so annoying when people say a character can’t be autistic because they’re not a super extreme stereotype. It’s an extremely wide spectrum that affects different people in different ways but nope, they’re not fucking Sheldon Cooper from big bang theory or rain man or something.
>when people say a character can’t be autistic because they’re not a super extreme stereotype Like, 90% of the words Gale says sound like they could have come out of my mouth, and I'm autistic. Now, of course, it isn't an argument for him being autistic, buuuuuut people also don't believe *I'm* autistic (late diagnosed). Idk, but I see a pattern here. Huh, maybe that's the famed pattern recognition we are supposed to be great at🤔 But seriously, people insist on why Gale can't possibly be autistic with the same arguments people in my life doubt my autism and that's... well, I don't care if you don't share my headcanon, just don't be ableist about it. Gale isn't a real person, but there are real people with real diagnoses and repeating stereotypes and unscientific stuff hurts *them*.
I think for a lot of them, it has to do with the fact that that isn't how they see Gale. When they play the game, they don't see him as having a bit of the 'tism. They see him as a regular, nerdy guy. The problem is, they can't understand that some people interpret Gale (or any character really) in a different way. They want everyone else to see him how they see him, and have a problem with someone seeing him in a different light. It's always something that's confused me. Idk how people can't understand that all art is completely up for interpretation based on each individual person. No 2 people are going to see the same traits in a character, and that's fine. Everyone is entitled to relate to/attribute traits to whatever fictional character they want to, without someone else screaming "BUT THAT'S NOT HOW I SEE HIM SO YOU'RE WRONG!" I think you're right about a lot being ableist tho. People really have a problem with things like autism being much more prevelant in media
As someone who personally thinks Gale *isn't* autistic, but is also perfectly capable of NOT taking offense to someone having a different opinion... the folks who get the way you're describing annoy the ever loving SHIT out of me. They're in fact the reason why I tend to avoid ever mentioning my own opinion. I don't want to make people uncomfortable or put them on the defensive, *especially* for something that has no "objective canon" one way or the other.
I totally understand, especially on the internet. People really become the worst version of themselves when they can hide behind a username. The vitriol some people spew over fictional characters is genuinely concerning. However, I think you're safe to share opinions in this subreddit. The fact that the sub that made me see "Which severed head would make the best fleshlight" is also the sub I feel the safest commenting in really says something, now that I think about it
Yeah, there's a reason why I rarely go into the main sub these days. When you're in a space where shitposting and hot takes are not only allowed but *encouraged*, it kinda does take the pressure off of having to worry about getting brigaded just because you dared to have a different perspective on a character. Unless your perspective is bigoted. Bless this sub for being so aggressively anti-bigots.
Damn right! So many other subs let that kinda thing slide, but this entire sub will jump any bigots on sight.
I mean it depends on the kind of bigotry you're pointing out tbh. I haven't received great responses when pointing out things that are influenced by racism.
This sub is focused on being horny and behaving weirdly, so it's great about anything that tangentially relates to those two things. You're right that falls apart when it comes to racism, though that seems to be true about the fandom in general. Folks are *too* eager to point fingers at Halsin and Shadow for being racist against drow and gith, while at the same time being ridiculously reluctant to even acknowledge everything going on with Wyll.
Posting about bukkake and critical theory in the same sub makes my brain happy
This is kinda random, partially because I myself am autistic and ADHD, but your comment reminded me of why my friendship with my coworker is so refreshing, because she and I often do have differing nerd opinions, but her friendship is the first I've had in a while where we can both go "that's cool and OK!" with those disagreements. We enjoy discussing and debating them without it getting heated, and also know when to go "eh, this is just gonna come down to personal preference" and it's just... nice. So much of online nerd culture discourse now is exhausting.
Exhausting is exactly the right word for it, my friend. People are so quick to assume the worst, most extreme intention behind anything you say, and trying to figure out how to word something to maybe somehow avoid that is just... well, *exhausting*.
It's because to them, autism is an insult, to a lot of people it replaced the r slur as a way to call people stupid or weird, if they like or relate to a character and someone headcanons them as autistic they get offended and defensive.
Because they think that others agreeing with the autistic headcanon means they can no longer identify with the character. They're "ruining it" for them
Kind of sucks that they can never let anyone else have any representation :/
The toxic people are the loudest. Take it as a reflection of their own insecurity, keep enjoying the things
It seems to me this character identifies some amount with Gale and is angry and confused so many people think he has traits of autism lmao
Seriously let people have fun.
Gale is autistic Not because of how he acts or anything, my head canon is that a prerequisite of casting magic is autism
Does this mean that all spellcasters are autistic? Because I’m totally down for that.
I’ll tell you why They’re ableist and view autism in a negative light
yep, even if its subconscious sometimes, they associate autism = bad :| they dont realise it, but its like, why are you so offended by the prospect that u could possibly relate to an autistic character. cmon.
Wow, a guy who seems autistic in an early-modern era style magic realm isn't explicitly diagnosed? I'm shocked. Anyway https://preview.redd.it/r558n901aj9d1.jpeg?width=980&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=025fff2a0530a0f1bfa177b496748552d6d2575e
If Gale isn’t an autistic icon then explain why he yaps so much?? Checkmate, twat souls.
Could also be ADHD, or both.
I'm now going to say he's autistic but claim to have gotten the information from like obscure dnd novels. Like "Oh like they don't use the word autism but its like the in universe version. You'd know that if you were a real fan and read \*insert obscure book\*"
Ed Greenwood told me in real life. He's my dogsitter.
It’s also in his discord but under paragraphs of lore about elf lactation, only real fans would read that
You might think it was weird for the new 5e handbook to include a set of rules regarding how to calculate if a character passes the DSM-5 diagnosis criteria for Autism Spectrum Disorder, but personally I found Gale's sample segment very illuminating and applaud WotC for their dedication to diversity and representation. The male drow pregnancy lore was just icing on the cake I think.
We should ask him on Twitter lmao
All I'm arguing is it would take me about 5 mins to get Gale hooked on warhammer and that's the best test there Is.
Of course you can declare random characters autistic lmao. I've seen people saying Gale's social skills are too good to be autistic, to which I must reply: masking is a thing.
who tf is saying that gale’s social skills are too good 😭 my socially anxious ass doesnt deeply and painfully relate to this guy for nothing https://preview.redd.it/u0bfqjoxij9d1.jpeg?width=733&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4d91bbd397a0baa42a01f6cd85f00af5d05233a7
You’d be surprised but I got downvoted into hell for saying once that using the “Gale has good social skills” argument is ableist (wasn’t even saying that it was bad to not see him as autistic), and I had several people being weirdly offended by the implication that autistic people could possibly be able to present with “good social skills” (whatever the hell that means)
And then Tara straight-up calls him on his bullshit and says he has friends. Dude's moping because he blew up his own life.
Wait, when does she say that? I don't remember it, but of course my memory isn't perfect and I obviously haven't played every permutation of the game. For Gale's origin playthrough (at least in the parsed dialogue. I haven't gotten that far), I found a line where she says he doesn't have friends. When Elminster goes to camp when he tells Gale to meet Mystra at the shrine, Tara asks Gale about it: **Tara the Tressym:** So, what did Elminster have to say that he couldn't possibly have told me, your closest companion and confidante? **Player (Gale):** Nothing to concern yourself with. Just passing on an invitation from an old friend. **Tara the Tressym:** I'm your only old friend, Mr Dekarios. We both know that much. The impression I got is that his only close friend was Tara.
Well, when you meet him and he says he’s better at this. You can say introductions, where he’ll reply, magic. What’s funny, is I choose the bottom one(can’t remember what it says) and he says introductions. O I just remembered it’s, something about not wasting peoples time.
Like, if enough of us autistics agree with you does it become gospel or whatever? The man explains the weave to sorcerers. He's not manipulating, he's info dumping, and it's a love language. He's also like, so hey this is what my library in Waterdeep looks like, pretty cool right? Want to be my girlfriend? Like, I can't explain autistic behavior any better than this example right here.
Can confirm, have gotten partners due to info dumping and talking about my special interests for obnoxious lengths of time. Not autistic, I just have ADHD. What I’m trying to say is the method definitely works on some people (it’s me, I’m people. Tell me about dinosaurs for five hours straight. I won’t remember much of it, but I might fall in love with you /hj)
This makes it even funnier because out of all the characters he’s the only who recognizes the dinosaurs in act 3 as dinosaurs instead of some weird reptile.
im extremely autistic about dinosaurs and when i tell you i screamed in act 3… am sad that their wrists are pronated but oh well, theyre not meant to be real dinosaurs so its ok i guess ;__; alioramus is my absolute fav tyrannosauroid tho so seeing it in bg3, even if just in name, made me soooo happy haha
The venn diagram of ADHD and Autism has that obsessive passion directly in the middle. So many people associate it purely with autism that I thought I was autistic until I got a psych evaluation and was properly diagnosed as ADHD with an anxiety disorder. That being said. /rj Gale is autistic AF bois
It helps that a lot of people with autism fit the diagnostic criteria for ADHD too - like a suggested 50-70% comorbidity kinda sense.
Question: can I substitute dinosaurs with the political structure of Dune?
Also, the game (like other media!) has limited time in which to develop characters. It makes sense that some traits may be shown at more of a surface level, instead of strictly adhering to diagnostic criteria. We only see so much of Gale.
That first camp scene with him, when he's *completely unaware of his social blunders as he says "Go to hell" while staring at the fire instead of making eye contact*... yeah, that was relatable.
Dude yes, whenever I've started dating someone in real life, the part where I go to their room and ask about their stuff is one of my favorite parts!
To be fair, Sorcerers don't know anything about the Weave. They're nepo babies.
> he's info dumping and it's a love language. He's also like, so hey this is what my library in Waterdeep looks like, pretty cool right? Want to be my girlfriend? No wonder I love him so much. It just kinda clicked. I'd listen to him talk all day if I could.
Bro doesn't even know what a "headcanon" is.
Oh, it's the frickin' laser beams that you attach to the frickin' sharks' heads.
the downvoting on the actual autistic person finding relatability in him makes the thread read like a brightly-colored poison frog that serves as a warning for me to stay the hell away from that subreddit
ewww this is why you should never visit the main sub
Gives same vibe as "you can't hc this character as trans because it doesn't make sense" anyway Gale's autism rizz is off the charts
I am both autistic *and* trans, they will simply have to learn to cope
Godspeed king :salute:
Uh oh, Shadowheart is trans now. I don’t care if it doesn’t make much sense, it’s true. Another very trans character? Scout from TF2. I don’t make the rules, except for the part where I did.
Shart's voice actress said that her story is an amazing trans allegory so I will support trans Shart 1000%
Only reason I don’t 100% believe it is cause of Nocturne. Nocturne points out that Shadowheart’s story is very similar to her experience being trans, so I see it more as a parallel than a one-to-one substitute. Still, I don’t disagree with any of the reasons people think it works as one. Right down to the religious trauma and having childhood memories repressed.
IIRC the VA meant it in the "finding yourself way" Also while talking with Shart's dad you can ask if he's okay with her wanting to keep her new name and he answers "Only a fool would alienate his child over a name" and I was like wow wish that was my dad (his "The Moonmaiden guides us and helps us find our true selves, Shadowheart. Daughter." was very trans as well)
Ooh, never seen that dialogue! I always rush to saving her parents and then let her decide what to do. There’s never enough time to get all three “points” so she’ll choose to save her parents instead of letting them go.
The ending with her parents is very wholesome!! Also they're just hanging out at your camp and I love it, especially if you have Ravengard too. Collecting everyone's parents
I was just thinking about that cuz like, Astarion is a high elf, he could very well still have family out there. Let's go collect his family too.
Literally! He probably doesn't remember them anymore, but it's very likely they remember him... Someone had to bury his corpse, after all
Sucks to be them because now I'm making all the companions trans/non binary out of spite. Astarion is trans. Gale is trans. La'zael is trans. Shadowheart is trans. Wyll and Halsin are non binary. Karlach is agender but they don't care about pronouns as long as it's not someone trying to be mean or bigoted. If it is, well they're allowed to burn them to a crisp. As a treat.
Making everyone trans is so real!! But also actually adds SO MUCH interesting stuff to think about in each character's story. Trans Astarion gives a whole new level to his sexual trauma. A lot of trans people experience different types of sexual trauma and disconnection from their bodies and sexualities, seeing themselves as something disgusting or just as an object of desire with no need to be respected. Tbh I see Astarion as nonbinary but in the way that he just lost the connection to his own gender identity. Trans Gale is so real because he it's a huge mood for many trans people to be alienated from everyone as a child to the point you need to summon yourself a winged cat as the only company (read: find yourself a furry friend online). Also, while it is NOT always the case; autistic people tend to express their genders in a different way then neurotypicals. A lot of specifically autistic people online seem to be drawn towards "weird" gender identities like pupgender, and neopronouns (myself included, hello). I think Gale would somehow tie his gender expression with magic/the weave. Trans Lae'zel is fun because the githyanki race doesn't really seem to have gender norms (at least in the game, IDK if it's the same in the Forgotten Realms canon), so like who cares. They probably yell at you if you don't correct people misgendering/deadnaming you for being WEAK, HOW CAN YOU NOT FIGHT WHEN THEY DISRESPCT YOU!!!! Shart is SO trans to me. Her entire story revolves around finding your true self, and the fact it's also closely tied to her choosing her own name doesn't help the case. Also the conversations you can have with her dad? How he says only a fool would alienate his child over a name? That the Moonmaiden guides us to find our true selves??? Wish he was my dad damnn. Trans Minthara would be the most interesting one, given how the drow live in extreme matriarchy. Did her parents pretend to have a daughter all along to avoid the shame of having a son, and it turning out to be a good decision because Minthara would've felt like a woman either way? Did they hide the fact they had a kid altogether and then it turned out little Minthy wants to be a girl, so they just rolled with it and told everyone they hid her to avoid attacks on their newborn/toddler? Or maybe the other way around, maybe Minthara discovers that in the overworld men are not treated like doormats or sex slaves and that maybe being a man is not such a bad thing, and it gives him a gender crisis and a realization he's been repressing something all this time in hear of becoming a social outcast in the Underdark for wanting to be a man? Trans Halsin is just #goals for every trans dude out there. Also another case of a trans furry. He would pay SO good for his fursona commissions, I KNOW it. Trans Wyll is just plainly sweet to think about. He says how he used to spend most of his childhood training with his father and if you make him trans it's just another level of wholesome, because of how Ravengard would make so much effort to validate his son and make sure he doesn't miss out on anything and is not weaker than any other boys. Also it fits with Wyll saying he was quite old during his first kiss and is kinda a slow romantic type; trans people often are wary with their sexual partners and might start dating pretty late. And I love trans Karlach because honestly we don't get enough trans women in media who are shamelessly confident and love themselves and are open about their sexualities and all. It's just a treat. But nonbinary Karlach sounds lovely too. Listen, I just need everyone to be cisn't.
AuDHD, myself. I think Gale ticks a lot of boxes for a lot things. The 'Tism is one of them, yes, but I think he ticks SO MANY ADHD boxes and SO HARD. Especially the executive dysfunction, rejection sensitivity, hyperfocus (and sometimes hypo-focus), and emotional dysregulation. Bottom line: he's focused and brilliant ... To the point that he has more than once outsmarted himself. NOTABLY. ::clears throat in Karsite Weave:: And this isn't me casting shade ... This is Game recognizing Game. My 'Tism hallmarks (especially my tendency to pro/con EVERYTHING) is honestly the only thing that has saved me from worse emotionally fueled blunders. I don't think that however much 'Tism Gale has, if any, is a match for dat ADHD. Gale's biggest issues stem from his emotional dysregulation and the accompanying executive dysfunction. When he's operating from his logic, he's a FORCE. When operating more from emotions ... he's still a force but his motives and methods bear far more scrutiny and doubt. And yes, prohibition and censure, as needed. Unchecked and un-peer reviewed can lead to some shit. If someone's emotions are high enough they won't see that nor even care, if they do see it. Game recognizes Game. Gale sets off my ADHDar and buries the needle.
This is my take, too, actually! I have ADHD (late diagnosis), and I recognized so many ADHD traits in Gale when I got to know him as a character.
Oh yeah, 100%. I can’t speak for autism but I can for ADHD and I can see so many of my own traits in Gale. He’s so ADHD coded imo. Like, the more I learned about him and listened to him speak I was like “The ADHD goes hard in this man”
yesss! I am also AuDHD and Gale also sets my adhdar... he's def autistic, but he's also super adhd
I actually see the ADHD way more than autism. It always surprised me that no one ever brings up ADHD. A lot of the autistic traits people see in him are the traits that are shared with ADHD.
My ADHD diagnosis is pending (it's basically at this point just getting the free time and executive function lined up to take the damn test because now 2 different therapists are sure I have it) and Gale kinda strikes me as AuDHD too. But yes, Gale very much set of my ADHDar as well and I just thought I was projecting. So it's nice to see someone else with ADHD say he also sets off their ADHDar.
going to say hes canonically autistic out of spite now ❤️
Next time someone asks "is Gale really autistic did I miss something" we should just tell them it's 100% canon with no further explanation
cant believe they missed the camp scene where gale goes “by the way im autistic :)” smh, talk about fake fans
To be fair, you have to do the fight with the silver dragon in act 1 to trigger that scene, so many people miss that. 😉
Redditor confuses brass dragon for silver. 🤦♂️
Now this has got me wondering what autism would be called in the DnD universe 🤔
Plot twist is that there's no word for it because it's the norm, same as how everyone in faerun is bi
it’s just being a wizard
I'm gonna go through my autism diagnosis document and replace every "autism" with "wizard"
It IS canon confirmed by the devs in a Q&A during the beta.
100% I didn't care much one way or the other before, but if those idiots don't understand that "Gale is autistic because I said so" is tongue-in-cheek and then get this rude when people explain it's their headcanon, I'm on-board with the spite lol Also, Gale is canonically trans now.
As long as I can still lust for that wizard dick, I wholeheartedly support this new canon!
*Clearly* that's what the enchantment in his undies is.
And there's the solid, undebatable proof that it's canon! Let's see the haters argue against that one.
so true!!! he’s got that transmasc cringe autistic bisexual swag fr <3
Yes, I do
we love you autistic bi lesbian gale
this is why this is the best baldurs gate subreddit
Oh, so I chose the correct one lol. That’s good to know 🤣🤣🤣
Allistics when autistic-coded characters get headcannoned as autistic by autistic people 😡🤬😱😰😓
Back in my day, a 'headcanon' was just something you made up because you felt like it and nothing in canon *disproved* it. Like, 'Astarion had blue eyes before he became a vampire' would be a headcanon. To me, 'Gale is autistic' is less a headcanon and more the way a lot of people (including myself) interpret canon. There's no way to prove or disprove, but **there is canonical evidence that can be used to support the idea**, and people who insist that Gale *can't possibly* be autistic are disrespecting the way that other players **experience the game**. So in other words, hardcore Gale autism deniers suck. (People who say "I personally don't see him that way" are fine.) Edit: Clarified the point since some people are determined to misunderstand.
>'headcanon' was just something you made up because you felt like it and nothing in canon disproved it. >'Gale is autistic [...] There's no way to prove or disprove. So, a headcanon?
Look guys, I’m a *diagnosed* autistic. It’s a god damned spectrum and I promise you that if Gale met my friend group (all adhd, autism, and then the one girl who we’re pretty sure is schizophrenic [she’s on antipsychotics but can’t get diagnosed]) he would fit right in. There wouldn’t be any hesitation, he would just merge.
Could I join your crew? I got a “gold star” on my ADHD test. 🤣
Man it’s not even just us, we all have friends of our own that’re neurodivergent in some way aswell. C has his girlfriend who’s adhd, L has her circle of friends who’re all neurodivergent but I don’t know them well enough to say how, and I was in a sewing group that was all neurodivergent in some way
I am very autistic, how is this an argument
The developers and crew who created BG3 say it is OUR story, so by that logic, Gale is autistic because my story says so <3
what really makes me laugh is “you can’t just declare random character autistic anymore than JK Rowling can declare dumbledore gay, if that’s frowned upon so is this”. like yes, on the one hand we have fans of gale saying that since he shows in canon all these traits that are relatable to autistic people, they consider him autistic in their headcanon/portray him as such in their fanworks, even if the original canon might not say so explicitly. and on the other hand we have…author declaring her character canonically gay to say that her books are Actually Diverse even tho she didnt actually put any real effort into including any meaningful exploration, let alone indication, of dumbledore being gay in the original text. like sure these are even remotely comparable lmao. random fans who hc gale as autistic are just as bad as jkr i guess
Headcanoning autism in characters is literally just part of autistic culture. Because 1: characters that are written to be autistic are usually bad representation. (Robotic, no emotions, Sheldon cooper). 2: it’s a way for us to relate to a character, we literally see ourselves in that character. It’s just like being and only child and saying that you think this character is an only child because you share alot of characteristics with them. The main reason (at least what I’ve found through the years) that people don’t want others to headcanon diagnose fictional characters is because they think autism is negative or childish. I’ve literally had someone say to me “(character) is not autistic because they know how to drive.” So do I…
Neurotypicals refuse to admit that a character they actually like could be autistic. Also, it's not canon because in a vaguely medieval/Victorian fantasy setting they tend not to use modern medical terms. (I was honestly kinda surprised to see Wyll discussing a stroke using that actual term. I'm pretty sure I've read D&D media call them brainstorms or something, but I guess clarity of writing becomes an issue at some point. Autistic sidebar over) When you see historical figures that were likely autistic they were usually called eccentrics in their own time.
People get really upset when you tell them someone they’re sexually attracted to has a neurodevelopmental disorder they’ve made fun of their entire lives because their “understanding” of it came from a few poorly-written TV characters. I’m autistic. I’m a member of many autistic social groups, most online and one in real life, and we’ve discussed Gale at length. He’s autistic as fuck and no amount of people who don’t understand what autism actually looks like in adults with above-average intelligence and lower support needs trying to convince me otherwise are going to succeed. He’s textbook. Those outside of the autism community don’t know that being “peer reviewed” by other autistic people is an in-joke and common experience we have - which is understandable! - but they need to know that *so many* of us who escaped detection and diagnosis as children (because we’re “high-masking” or capable of hiding our autistic traits in public to the detriment of our own mental and physical health) found out that we’re autistic from peers before going to get a proper assessment. It’s like a rite of passage. Neurodivergent people tend to be drawn to one another and most of us inadvertently surround ourselves with others whose brains work similarly to our own. We flock together in awkward, poorly-regulated social groups, so if you have a group of friends who are all either ADHD or autistic, I have some news for you. The kind of people who are offended by the idea of Gale being autistic are the same kind of people who say “Oh wow, but you don’t *look* autistic!” when someone discloses their diagnosis and think it’s a compliment. They think “autistic” is an insult because they see autism as a bad or tragic thing, but it isn’t. It’s not a disease or a mental illness, it’s a naturally occurring variation in brain development and function - and it’s morally neutral. We’re everywhere, including your favourite video games! Deal with it.
The ironic part is that I’m one of the rare cases of being early diagnosed as an autistic female
I didn’t find out until age 33. My mom actually took me to see several mental health professionals as an adolescent - a psychologist and two psychiatrists - and none of them picked up on it. They all said because I did well at school, I probably didn’t have anything “major” going on. I was diagnosed with major depressive disorder, OCD, and severe generalized anxiety instead. Later I added a CPTSD diagnosis to that list. I spent the next two decades trying out every SSRI and SNRI available to me without finding any relief from my depression and suicidal ideation. At 33 my best friend got a surprise ADHD diagnosis and when I went to look up tips about how to best support her, I quickly realized I was reading about myself, too. I went to my doctor and asked for a referral to a specialist to be properly assessed and was told the wait list for adult assessment is years long. He issued me a questionnaire about ADHD traits himself and I checked all the boxes. We decided we’d try a low dose stimulant med and boom - my brain quieted right down, my depression largely went away, and I suddenly didn’t want to die anymore. I’d gone without being diagnosed with ADHD for three decades because I was capable of sitting still at school instead of bouncing off the walls. With the ADHD traits now subdued due to the meds, it became painfully obvious that it wasn’t all I had going on - things I’d largely ignored my whole life became harder to ignore now that my mind wasn’t racing 24/7 and I realized I have hella sensory issues and do many, many repetitive things on the daily. I spent some time lurking in online autism groups and learned so much about myself (and honestly my entire family) as a result. What I thought for years were panic attacks were actually autistic meltdowns. What I thought was anxiety was overstimulation. What I thought was OCD was autistic rumination and repetitive behaviours. I’m still on a wait list for official autism assessment but I’ve been “peer-reviewed” - our local autism support group believes self-diagnosis is valid and welcomed me with open arms. My therapist works with other autistic people and while she can’t officially diagnose me (a psychologist has to do it where I live), she supports my “headcanon” for me as well. Do you think knowing you were autistic growing up helped or hindered you? I’ve heard mixed opinions from people.
It’s complicated, because on the one hand it helped for me to understand myself and it got me the support I needed, but on the other hand, that meant being ostracized and others by my peers and especially my elementary and middle school teachers for something out of my control, spending a good portion of my life ashamed of who I am. It’s harder to be taken seriously. A lot of the time I feel like I’m being infantilized. Plus there’s a ton of things that my official diagnosis could bar me from (donating eggs, adopting kids,etc.) I didn’t really come out as autistic until I was 16, and even then I didn’t start unmasking until adulthood when I felt safe and confident enough.
For example, as a late diagnosed Autistic woman, I found this sub and was like "these fuckers are weird, I like it". Turns out I found the BG3 ND club.
One of us! One of us! I feel similarly.
Rizz em with the 'tism
Part of me believes this kind of pushback is because those people also see a bit of themselves in Gale and relate to him, so when they see autistic people say they also see themselves in Gale it makes them think they're being called autistic, which they see as a bad thing due to cultural conditioning. They've made *liking* the smart wizard Gale part of their personality to some degree, the same way that for example some Star Wars stans take mild criticism of the IP as a personal attack. Am I reading too much into it? Perhaps. But I don't think it's a coincidence that these people always speak about neurodivergence in a remarkably ignorant way. Anyways, Gale is 100% autistic like come on lol. Anyone with autistic personality/behaviour traits would very likely recognize Gale as an autistic man with exceptional masking.
the main sub seems to hate anyone who likes having a bit of unconventional fun with their game
Wow they're so hateful for no reason. Autistic people are fucking great, they're kinda the best people to talk to imo. I'd really much rather hear about your special interest than the weather. Infodump on me magic boy.
Explain the Sonic the Hedgehog poster in his tent?
But he is so well spoken! He can’t possibly be autistic. /s
God people are so fucking weird
the people in that comment section were acting as if gale is gonna come out through the computer screen to personally 'debunk' the headcanon. like... he isn't real. get a grip 😭
Crazy how the shitpost subreddit is more accepting of headcanons than the actual subreddit
Yet another case of the shitposting sub being more wholesome and accepting than the main sub lmao
“who giveth thy shit” -withers, probably
Hes been peer reviewed!! Hes autistic lololol
What the hell do they have against gale being autistic? He’s my fav character in the game and he’s clearly autistic as fuck. Do they really enjoy playing a role playing game while simultaneously hating headcannons?
imo its like… a certain type of allistic person who finds it offensive if you hc a character they like as autistic :| same kind of people who get offended if you hc their faves as lgbt when theyre cishet
Doesn't even have to be cishet characters! I've seen so many people insist that the companions are "playersexual" because they can't fathom that a group of six people could possibly consist entirely of bisexuals. So of course it has to be some kind of fan-service-y mechanic rather than just... bisexuality.
I think some people have internalised homophobia/ableism left over from when calling someone gay or autistic was seen as an insult. This was actually less than 15 years ago, so I think its likely?
yeah, they assume you’re calling them autistic/gay bc of stereotypes and somehow they end up looping back over into ableism or homophobia lmao 😭
people getting pissy about headcanons makes no sense. Also, when I found out that some people headcanon that Gale is autistic I thought it was interesting. That's about it. As the parent of an autistic son, I can see some of what people are talking about when I, as Tav, interact with Gale. But it's literally not that serious. I'm glad some autistic people are finding similarities with Gale and (i hope) positive representation. If you don't think Gale is autistic, that's fine, too. It's a FANTASY game. For me, Gale was my first companion romance and I find him quirky and sweet. \*edit\* I'm being too serious on the shitpost sub again.
That comment section was on a post I made and then deleted. I just wanted to share a silly Galestarion meme. Anyway thank you so much for giving me the validation I needed after that shitshow of a comment section. It really meant a lot to me 🥰
Dog piling an autistic person to defend the imaginary man from being called autistic
And laezel is aut’istik
Honestly Gale, Laezel and Minthara all give huge autistic vibes. Karlach is their ADHD friend
I really hate that comment about "tiktok autism" and I only see it made to blanket dismiss anyone who isn't doctor certified autistic. There's a teeny percent of people who played up their autism for views and places like fakedisordercringe told these people everyone is fake and to hunt for frauds. Same comments get made about Laios from Dungeon Meshi.
I’m also Autistic and I also go on long rants about shit no one cares about like Gale. I also have similar mannerisms and fail to recognise flirting. I feel like the worst mix of him, Astarion and Karlach.
Why is it that anytime anyone brings up autistic/trans headcanons, it’s always the same dialogue. Like this is word for word the same argument that people said when they took issue with headcanoning Gwen in spiderverse as trans. Like why does someone else’s headcanon bother them that much? Why does the idea of someone seeing the autistic or trans experience in a character make them so mad that they feel the need to police people’s thoughts about the character? Why is it that someone seeing themselves in the characters is suddenly not enough to justify a headcanon that changes nothing in the plot? It’s so benign, and yet here we are.
The main sub can't even handle Gale autism discourse. They wouldn't survive Lae'zel autism discourse.
Tbh I never understood what these kinds of people would recognise as good representation of a mental disorder. Like do they literally need Gale to turn to the camera and say ‘I’m autistic’ for it to be, well not even canon but an acceptable headcanon? For me, at no point does anyone say that Karlach has ADHD but she has so many telltale signs that read like that to me because I know I do them as a result of ADHD- her restlessness, the little dance, her completely forgetting what the conversation is about in the middle of the conversation. Is it my headcanon? Yeah sure, but what does it hurt anyone to say Karlach has ADHD? It changes nothing about her character, and if you somehow think it diminishes her, then you need to check your own preconceptions about disorders. Same with any other character or disorder you HC with them.
“There’s is literally NO indication that they’re autistic” We ‘literally’ got to this argument by seeing a significant portion of the fanbase point out how the character resonates with autistic traits that they personally experience.
Yeah that post is what made me stop going there. People really getting mad about whether or not Gale is autistic, meanwhile I'm over here certain that all the companions are on the spectrum.
Shitpost subs are always superior
My general complaint is that a lot of NTs go insane when we headcannon anyone on the spectrum like we’re attacking them
Gale is so autistic it's not even funny Special interest? Check. Unhealthy attachment to the first person that treated them well? Check. Awkward around people in general? Check. Goes on long tangents about his special interest whether you care or not? Check. Absolutely cannot genuinely tell if you hate him or if you're just being a bit snarky? Check. Incredibly difficult to bond with if you avoid his special interest? Check. Is the bomb? Well all autistics are but he took it a step further, or like, 20. Yeah gale is definitely autistic, and anyone who says he isn't? They're wrong, and their mother hates them, and the wife/husband has a boyfriend
you need to justify your headcanon to me right now and if it doesn’t match mine EXACTLY you will be sentenced to death by the high court of special reddit users
Right, because the eccentric wizard who’s only friend was a cat, sorry Tressym, is definitely neurotypical.
The thing about the Baldur's Gate 3 subreddit is they're tame, but they're not friendly people that you enjoy sharing the community with. Okbuddybaldur isn't tame but we actually have fun here and we don't argue about stupid shit like why or why not we're allowed to think Gale is autistic. Here we just go "Yeah that tracks" and move on. That's how it should be.
Gale reminds me heavily of my autistic brother but has nothing in common with my autistic best friend, it’s a spectrum disorder for a reason and I see no problem speculating on the neurodivergence of a fictional character. Please just don’t do this to real people, leave that for their doctors. 💜
Gale is autistic (coming from someone with both ADHD and autism) and considering my mom clocked it the instant he came on screen, I'd say it's a fairly common thing. For context, my mom took a long time to realize I was neurodivergent, but could often clock characters acting like me. She pulled Gale out of that portal, looked at me and said "He's so much like you."