The games that make up theBaldur’s Gateseries have been around for over 20 years, and there were two solid decades between the second and third installments. That doesn’t mean you have to play the first games, and their expansions, to enjoyBaldur’s Gate 3.
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It’s easy to get immersed in the lore of the game if you’ve never experienced the series before, but some Easter eggs are waiting for those who have played the other, older titles. It’s part of the immersion factor, but it’s also something that only players of the previous games would notice.
8The Party Members
When Karlach had a fangirl hissy fit about Jaheira at Last Light Inn, she was speaking for those of us who knew this characterfrom Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2. When an NPC, book, or map talks about an era called The Time of Troubles, when the Bhaalspawn rose across the sword coast, they’re referring to the events of the previous games. She’s the first one that we meet, but not the last.
Minsc is another famous character, and Jaheira’s assertion that he can’t possibly be the leader of a vicious gang is based on more than her knowledge of him. A Barbarian was famous for his brawn, not exactly his brains, and any players who remember him from Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2 will be laughing at the notion of him running anything more complicated than a checkerboard. Other familiar characters include a Cleric named Viconia, who is connected to Shadowheart’s quest, and the rival Bhaalspawn, Sarevok.
7Khalid’s Gift
In the original game, Jaheira was a playable character along with her husband, a half-elf Fighter named Khalid. Baldur’s Gate 2: Shadows of Amn opens in a dungeon, and the protagonist can free and recruit Imoen, Minsc, and Jaheira, but Khalid is suspiciously absent.
RELATED:Best Isometric RPGs, RankedSadly, his remains are found, but no healing or resurrection is possible, and a heartbroken Jaheira swears revenge. This necklace, which you can find in her house in Baldur’s Gate 3, is named after him and is a Very Rare accessory that grants the wearer the power to cast Aid and if Jaheira is wearing it, she can’t be cursed.
6The Tomb Of Gorion
The main character’s nickname in the previous games was “Gorion’s Ward” because the venerated old scholar had adopted them as one of his own children. The tomb of Gorion can be found in the Lower City Graveyard in Baldur’s Gate 3.
The tomb itself has a few references to the older games with mentions of Gorion’s past in the form of books and scrolls that littler his mausoleum. This is also one of many ways to reach the city sewers if your Perception check reveals a crumbling wall.
5"Don’t Touch Me"
The tradition of NPCs with snippy, funny, or shocking bits of dialogue started with the first Baldur’s Gate game and continues to the present day, with some funny references to those times that only players of the previous games would notice. Plenty of the upper-class NPCs in castles, posh homes, or expensive taverns would snarl, “Don’t touch me,” if you tried to talk to them.
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Astarion has an identical piece of dialogue. If you click on him, there are a variety of things he might say and one of them is this same line. Once you get to know him, he reveals that he was a judge, a part of the upper class, before he was turned about a hundred years ago. It’s possible he was one of those same nobles from years past.
4Vampires And Doppelgangers
Speaking of vampires, those who have experienced the older Baldur’s Gate titles, know that this isn’t the first time these menacing undead and their doppelganger minions have taken a role in the story. The same thing happens as the first game progresses, with the bad guys chasing immortality in a variety of ways and vampirism is one of them.
You have to fight through a vampire named Bodhi and her shapeshifters to progress through a major part of the story in Baldur’s Gate 2. The same thing happens in BG3, but this time it’s because of the Cult of the Absolute and Cazador, the vampire lord at the center of Astarion’s storyline.
3Shanties For The Bitch Queen
The second Baldur’s Gate installment included a journey to the Underdark via an oceanfaring voyage. This results in an unexpected stop in an underwater city ruled by the amphibious Sahuagin race who worship the merciless ocean, and there are references to their diety everywhere.
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There’s a book that references that sequence that you can find in the game, and it’s called Shanties For The Bitch Queen. It’s a simple tome sitting on one of the semi-destroyed docks in the Ravaged Beach zone, just south of the back door to the Dank Crypt. This is also a good place to forage for camp supplies, in case you need an excuse to go looking for them.
2The Grave Of Eldoth Kron
Speaking of the companions from the previous games, some of them are missing, since the timeline for those was about a hundred years ago and it’s not a surprise that some have passed on. You can find one of them in the Lower City Graveyard if you have the patience to look for a tombstone with the name Eldoth Kron.
The grave is located on the same small rise as the Dortmell tomb, where young Nina is trying to resurrect her brother Garret. The tombstone only asks that the reader “Raise a glass to the poor bastard.”
1Missives Of Candlekeep
Pokearound in the Druid Grove, the Dank Crypt, or Gorion’s Mausoleum for a bit and you’ll come across a dusty old tome entitledMissives of Candlekeep. It mentions the character of Elminster, a famous figure of the Sword Coast, who appears in BG3 as an emissary between the goddess Mystra and Gale.
The book is a collection of letters and records that have little or nothing to do with the story at hand or even the events of the other games. For those who have played through the originals, however, this is a great breadcrumb of lore that adds to the immersion and history of the whole series.
