Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - General My name is SaveScummer and I'm a Goodyholic

I've been playing RPGs for, well, let's say a long time. I have never, ever, been able to play as an evil character. I don't know what it is, I'm sure it's some guilt-ridden character flaw. I'm a freaking junkie RPGer and I couldn't even play Tyranny.

In RL, let's just say I'm chaotic good.

The worst alignment I have ever played as is chaotic good in Pathfinder WoTR.

Anyone else with this affliction? I have buddies who swear they can't play anything but evil. Then I smite them.

There are others for sure. Have a look through recent threads, and you'll find the examples. A conversation among y'all together would be really interesting to read.

I mentioned this in another thread, but I feel like it's a reasonably on-topic tangent to what you're bringing up.

I always default to the good choices myself, because they just feel more natural. But after trying a few different playthroughs like that, I play through with an awful character, mostly to see how the game reacts. I think of it as a game played between myself and the game designers. "What do you do if I do this?!" Some games reward you for this, almost always with amusing dialog. Outer Worlds does something wonderful, where they reward you with amusing dialog that explains how much more difficult they're going to make things for you as a consequence.

What feels new about Durge is that Swen suggests they'll reward you in game-play ways for making those choices, and I'm not sure I've ever encountered that before.

It's probably due to you inserting yourself into the MC shoes, which I completely understand, I usually do it too at least on some subconscious level, on my first playthrough maybe. However, on subsequent playthroughs, I am able to detach myself from the characters I am playing, sufficiently to be able to commit acts that I would never conceive of. It's really about perception, are you able to view the character you are playing as simply a character that exists outside of yourself and that you are simply making decisions for? Or do you internalize? I think that's really what this is about.

It's not that uncommon. Especially since evil choices in games have a tendency to just be Stupid Evil and just over-the-top cruel for immediate short term gain or gratification. But it's nothing to worry about I'd say since most RPGs tend to cater to overwhelmingly "good" play. If it wasn't popular it wouldn't be so common.

thats the nice thing about choice ... you can just play the same thing over and over
i mean i know players that never did the evil side of KOTOR or BG1 & 2 so missed out on over 1/2 their fav game

I understand running through testing scripting, etc, shit I've been doing that for at least 20 years. What I'm talking about is making your main, in a game that can handle it, evil or at least 'fuck you bitches' alignment.

Trust me when I say I'm no motherfucking choir boy. It's that i will not have fun unless I am helping everyone in a game. Must be 'hero syndrome' or something.

That's what I'm talking about, though. I can't seem to pull that off. I feel guilty. hah.

I have 2000 hours in Pathfinder WoTR. Guess how many hours are invested in evil characters?

Yes, you win.

Modern games don't want you to pull that off, and with good reason! Just like in life, making the most moral choices has unfortunate consequences, so we're forced to make a choice that has broadest benefit, or the most long-term benefit, to the most, even if it isn't the most strictly correctly moral choice in the moment.

As long as you are playing single player I guess it doesn't matter if you save scum but be aware this is a D&D based game...which means that in order to save scum you have to be able to pass certain checks in the first place...and if you don't have the proficiencies and bonuses necessary you may not be able to pass the very hard checks at all and some may require a lot of reloading. Now if you hit a nat1 on a roll you should easily be able to pass and that ends up resulting in the death of a party member or something terrible then sure. But I really wouldn't try to make playthrough that is all about save scumming every little thing that goes wrong.

Hi SaveScummer. Welcome to the club.

That's just my username, bro. Savescumming wasn't the question, it was about playing an evil character.

But, yeah, I have savescummed in the past. Past 100 days. Past um 20 days. Oh, shit 19 minutes ago.

Not what we are talking about here.

Fuck that, Bob, I saw you eat that armored human! Looked a lot like a Paladin to me.

I didn't ask for pragmatism, I didn't ask for reality!!! I ASKED FOR....

wait, what did I ask for?

Well you put that in the thread title...weird forum name too. So I just thought I'd mention the concept. At any rate, playing evil is probably more interesting, especially since we can't do it in most games, and of those that do have morality spectrum they either have fake evil like just applying a jerk sarcastic tone to situations that don't matter or the game treats the evil path as a failure ending or it just tries to make you feel bad about it. BG3 is a game where you can have genuine evil victories. That's something that hasn't been done properly in a looong time.

Peace, peace, peace, names might show up in thread titles when it's a meaningful cultural reference. No need to go off topic on account of a name

I'm definitely the same. It takes a lot to really make myself take evil options. It was only in the past several years that I've been toying with lawful evil characters. I tried to be evil in my first EA playthrough and it really was no fun at all.

I won't/can't play an evil character either, at least not in video games. Even when I tried it on my 2nd KotOR playthrough, I ended up at 100% Light Side.

That, however, doesn't mean my characters won't torture or enslave someone (depending on the setting of course).

I think the biggest problem with evil in games its 'I WANT POWER I CRUSH YOU'... which is boring to me. Most video games I usually also end up chaotic good (on personal level with lawful neutral tendencies - there is a reason for law and order, but I know better, right? Right!).

But as a DM I have to play evil characters and actually they can be fun - a lot of fun. The thing is if you have more than the simple wish for power and greed it can be a very fulfilling new experience. I remember having a player in my game who was protecting a town from demonic cultists meet the leader of a faction that was serving devils. The player could be called chaotic goood guy, who just wanted to stop the monsters and through the dialog with the devil-worshipers I managed to convince him that they are actually just doing what is needed - not because I offered power, but because I explained their motiviation from a personal convinction and experience that drove the leader and the devils to commit heinous acts that in their experience were sadly necessary. Something the leader didn't enjoy doing, but he was certain that no other way would lead to a final victory against the great threat of demons.

Like I said, it was far more fulfilling than tearing a man's arm of because Shadowheart can then drop a lame joke. And 5min later I had to convince the player that without hope and being a guiding example for others victory would be meaningless because he had to talk to the lawful good cleric he usually confided to... and I convinced him again. That's the reason why I also now love playing demons of seduction/manipulation...

Also all of my players loved the mini drow campaign although they usually all play the good guys. I told them its a short one so feel free to kill each other, scheme against each other and everyone else - what happens in the Underdark stays in the Underdark. They didn't go after each other openly, but they enjoyed for once to be scheming bastards that put their own interests above their party. And they now want to return to that mini campaign. But again each character had their own motivation beyond just 'lets be a murder hobbo'.

As I said, playing 'evil' can actually enhance your experience and give you new perspectives. Its a great thing in life when you can actually take on someonelses' view on things and walk a day in their shoes... over the corpses of innocents...

I am too, which is why it's frustrating BG3 is just not designed for us. The seven origins are all evil, only one of the unique companions is good. Four of the origin characters are stupid evil, Of the available non cameo female characters and origins four of the five are stupid evil. It's literally impossible to have a lesbian romance in this game without at least one of the chracters being stupid evil.