One of the longest-running discourses in the Baldur's Gate 3 fandom has to be the debate surrounding Gortash's appearance. Before we ever meet him, we're given a description of his physical appearance, telling us that he's a "handsome, younger man".
Many fans don't feel that this description quite matches what we see when we finally meet him. I think even those who do find him attractive would have to admit that he's an acquired taste. However, it turns out there might actually be an in-universe explanation for this discrepancy - and it's all to do with the god he's chosen to follow: Bane.
In the Dungeons & Dragons book, Faiths & Avatars, we get a description of the type of mortals that the god of tyranny, Bane, likes to inhabit whenever he walks Faerûn. As noted by Reddit user Timely-Comparison572, this pretty much perfectly matches Gortash's appearance in Baldur's Gate 3.
<ｓｃｒｉｐｔ> window.arrayOfEmbeds["explanation_for_gortash_being_described_as"] = {'reddit' : '"\n<blockquote class=\"reddit-embed-bq\" data-embed-height=\"435\" style=\"height:500px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/BaldursGate3\/comments\/1bnfi9m\/explanation_for_gortash_being_described_as\/\">Explanation for Gortash being described as handsome & young<\/a>\nby<a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/user\/Timely-Comparison572\/\">u\/Timely-Comparison572<\/a> in<a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/BaldursGate3\/\">BaldursGate3<\/a><\/blockquote>\n<ｓｃｒｉｐｔ async=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/embed.reddit.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"UTF-8\"><\/ｓｃｒｉｐｔ>\n"'}; window.arrayOfEmbedScripts["reddit"] = "null";"Bane preferred never to be seen in person and hence almost never sent a pure avatar to the Realms," reads the passage on Bane's avatars. "He did possess mortals from time to time to serve as his ersatz avatars, preferring young and good-looking men of slim build, cultured tastes, wealth, and power often bored young noblemen.
"Any person Bane possessed quickly assumed the appearance of a handsome, black-haired man of oily looks and a derisive, even cruel, manner." Well, that's Gortash, dead to rights.
Now, it's worth mentioning that Gortash is Bane's chosen, not his avatar. The difference is that, as far as we know, Gortash is willingly serving Bane as his most loyal follower, seeing his will carried out in the mortal realm. However, the description matches so perfectly that it's possible Larian took inspiration from the effect Bane has on the men he inhabits and applied that to his chosen. Gortash does look pretty goddamn oily, after all.
With all of that said, some adore Gortash just the way he is, oil and all. As we covered last year, there are a bunch of players who wish that he was a romance option , especially for The Dark Urge. Alas, Larian has already confirmed that it won't be adding any new content into Baldur's Gate 3 , so that's probably ruled out any more romances being thrown in further down the line. There will be more evil endings added to the game though, so at the very least, Gortash-loving Dark Urges might get an extended cutscene of themselves ruling over Faerûn in his memory.
