Baldur's Gate 3 Release Announcement Plus Familiar Faces and New Content

Dec. 8, 2022

Baldur’s Gate 3 Release Announcement Plus Familiar Faces and New Content

Let’s dive in and see what the Game Awards Trailer has showcased, and what it means for the game moving forward.

First and foremost is an actual glimpse of thecity of Baldur’s Gate. It is just as stunning as ever, and looks to be quite the 3D rendition of the classic games. New and old locations are shown off, interwoven to distract us from the fact that a lot of these areas look quite new and not part of the current Early Access builds.

We can even get snippets of what looks like an actual tavern. I wonder what kind of mischief our characters can get into when we get a healthy mix of alcohol.

We also get to see a montage of the companions announced so far, such asGale,Lae’zel, andShadowheart. Everyone’s quite on edge because of the fact that our friendly neighborhood Mind Flayer tadpole is still squirming around in our brains. Even our sweetAuntie Ethelmakes a very short appearance.

It also looks as if there’s a new Paladin companion in the mix, as we see a hammer-wielding holy warrior in one quick sequence. Of course, it could just very well be our character, Tav, being highlighted.

Another of the biggest reveals was one of more legendary status. Apparently, the infamousCult of the Absolutehas captured the old hero Minsc (and trapped him inside a Mimic, of all things!). While Minsc was already teased for Baldur’s Gate 3 a few days ago, he was in hardened statue form.

This legendary hero has been missing for quite some time, but has resurfaced in our hour of need. Minsc, a chaotic goodranger, has been present in both mainline Baldur’s Gate games as well as other D&D iterations.

Minscis also perfect to be an addition to Tav’scompanions. We do not currently have a ranger. He, with his ever trusty hamster Boo, should be a nice lighthearted contrast to the current dark and broody current.

We also get to see what looks like Jaheira, a half-elf from the older Baldur’s Gate games. She is aDruidand could fill out the companion roster quite nicely along Minsc and Boo.

Some eagle-eyed fans have already begun dissecting the trailer for new locations, characters, and spells. Magic, in particular, seems to have gotten a lot of new toys to play with.

Some quick things seen were Lightning Bolt, Smite, Fireball, and a new Druid transformation:Owlbear. OwlbearWildshapeforms aren’t native to D&D, so it must be Larian’s attempt at homebrew content for Baldur’s Gate 3. Fans were probably enthralled by theOwlbear Cuband its mother in the early parts of the game.

Also announced was the physical collector’s edition for Baldur’s Gate 3. The extremely limited set (a maximum of 25,000 units worldwide) includes a treasure trove of all things Baldur’s Gate and Dungeons & Dragons.

Aside from a digital copy of the game (boo, no disk!), the highlight of the collector’s edition is theMindflayervs.Drowstatuette. The 25-centimeter diorama shows an action sequence where a Mindflayer menacingly looms above its target (or perhaps, its prey?).

Based on the mushroom-filled terrain, it is safe to assume that this particular battle is taking place in the Underdark. This statue is also quite hefty, weighing in at 1.1 kg. It is made up of PVC plastics and has a hand-painted finish.

Other goodies include a 160-page art book filled with concept art and other visual eye candy. The pack will also come with D&D Character sheets for all the Origin Characters, a cloth map of the Faerun region, a tadpole keychain, an extremely largeD20die, a game certificate, and 32 chibi stickers of the cast and creatures of the game. All of this will come in a huge Collector’s Edition box to house everything adorned with an intimidating mind flayer.

The first 15,000 prepurchases will also receive some booster packs forMTG: Battle for Baldur’s Gate. Additionally, a “Collector’s Edition” Certificate of Authenticity will also prove that you have the greatest trove that a Githyanki would want.

Auberon

Writer at Fextralife. I really like vanilla ice cream.