Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - General LOVE the update, (except for Karlach)

So far, I absolutely LOVE the new changes I've see, especially when it comes to graphics. So much just looks so gorgeous! In particular, Astarion's updated bite scene is fantastic!

My only quibble is Karlach's new look. I'm not in love with it. I liked her better before.

I liked her better before too...I don't mind the bulky look from what I've seen, but I preferred her old face and lips etc. and it looks like they've 'white'ified' her now. Took away her more POC features.
Now she looks like a fat shadow heart tiefling.

Good for you. The new update for me is unplayable. game crashes every 5 minutes!

I liked the old Karlach model too, but I'm glad they've updated her to something that you can't create in the character creator. The first time I found her I was a tiefling with exactly the same face and hair, and almost the same colouring. It was spooky! I'd rather keep that model as something I can have for a custom character and have Karlach be different.

Whatever happens to this data mined version?

She got the photoshop treatment, it seems. Not a fan of the new model, it looks like someone has run the datamined version through one of those instagram face filters.

Karlach's personality and story is tough, and she's fought DEMONS. Woman should look T O U G H! If I met her in broad daylight on a city street, I should tremble in fear of her just by looking at her.

Her image should scream, "Fear me, Peasant!"

Something like this:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dp-DYhMlRdxzYLI5Y9Lf_ktavML7e3DK/view?usp=drivesdk

But, honestly, the data mined version also works. She certainly looks tougher than current. The only thing I don't get is why the Drow armor? I mean, she's wearing Minthara's, or a reasonable facsimile.

Oooh, that tiefling looks amazing! Is there a bigger version somewhere? It'd make a great character portrait for other games.

I think the datamined Karlach is just wearing whatever armor the modder put on, hI've seen her in a few different armor types.

I am pretty sure Karlach is still a work in progress. Just like Minthara's did, her appearance will receive many more tweaks.

I found that image by doing a Google search for Tiefling Demon Slayer.

Would somebody mind posting a pic of her new appearance?

Here some on reddit https://www.reddit.com/r/BaldursGate3/comments/stq5lu/mommy_karlach_patch_7_glowup/ I didn't get to her yet.

This is a much better model, considering her background. She just looks badass.

The new model is like the cover of vogue. Pretty, fashionable, not badass.

Her voice doesn't match this model though. I was hoping they would use filters to make her voice lower and more fiendish.

The new Karlach with the basic voice is just pretty with attitude.. boring.

I like the new model, missing horn and all. But the armor in the pic looks much too intricate for her, much too fantastical. It just doesn't fit her. In my opinion armor has taken a nose-dive in appearance since the beginning of early access, it's no longer grounded in general, much too fantastical in appearance.

Relax, the armor was just picked so she dont stand there naked.

This is her actual armor:
(Acording to datamining)

Also ...
Looking at that datamined visual ... and the new visual ... they seem quite simmilar to me. O_o
She only recedived her own hairstyle (wich is cool as f***) ... and some makeup ... and she dont have her scars yet as it seems. But besides that?

That armor has nothing to do with her. It's modded drow armor a dataminer did put on her. Also that's not new model, that's old datamined model. Currently in the game she got new model that looks differently, I gave the link with screenshots way up.

I liked this version (or more specifically the potential of this this version after some additional final touch) a lot more, too.
The current one just looks weird.

I wouldn't even say that the problem is being "too pretty" as 1varangian suggested. It's just a mismatch between character, build and face. Not the biggest fan of her hair, either.

Yeah. New model is cool, but it just doesn't fit. The people after her make her sound like she's a brutish devil who is vicious and scary. She was a demon slayer, and from her story, a darn powerful one. So, she should look, like I said, TOUGH. Scary. When I meet her, I should believe she's evil, and only after talking to her maybe wonder if I misjudged her based on her looks.

The overall face shape and proportions are similar, but the details are not. Not sure how to explain it to you, but (edit) I'll try. It looks to me as someone did more work on the datamined face to make it look younger and prettier, like those instagram apps that you can use on your own photos.

Not a fan of hers. I find her abrasive, so I usually heal her with a spell and leave her there.

I like the cut of her jib. I was sad when I first learned she was moving on instead of having a longer quest line. I want her crossbow, though

They would need to change her voice actress. Doesn't match this version.

looked at Chubbalot's twitter. I guess she's using the datamined body, and the horns, but not the head? Very weird, considering she still has the extensively scarred body, and has the broken horn, but an otherwise pristine face. Hope they update her face in a later patch so she has those badass head scars.

Well it was still work in progress ... wasnt it?

I like the new model, the only thing that seems off are her eyes. :-/
She should have burning eyes, like Zevlor do!

I for one really like the new look of Karlach.

And I don't like the current version. I'd rather they'd changed the voice actress to fit the datamined model. Lae'zel has the "young brash hothead fighter" character covered, now Karlach looks like she's fresh out of the creche too.

I do like the new hairdo, but agree with folk who think she looks too pristine, human and not tough enough. Toning down the makeup and adding demonic eyes and some facial scars would help for me. I reckon that datamined model would look great with the new hair too (though even that pic looks like she’s wearing lipstick). And I also agree her voice doesn’t seem quite right for her character.

As has been said above, hopefully and presumably we’ll see more iterations if she really is going to be more of a major player in future.

The new UI is good, albeit with some problems still.

The graphical tone continues to darken and improve, except for the overblown animations.

More of the cutscenes and conversations seem to actually work properly, though there's still a long way to go.

And I like the new Karlach model - but considering I am playing a female halfling bear barbarian, I may have a different attitude to what is badass 😁

Sounds like we'll have plenty more time for continuing improvements as well 😋

Rushed to Karlach to see he new model. She definitely doesn't fit her background story as much as what was datamined before. She is cute in a very bland way - then again, considering companions seem to be aimed at horny teenagers I would say she fits right in.

I wouldn't loose sleep over any of it though. She still looks very much like a work in progress - at the very least lacking almost any facial expression.

Or maybe Karlach was using a Disguise spell that changed her voice as well?

So maybe later when player meet this bald figure with a rather masculine voice in BG city, she suddenly introduce herself: "hey Tav, miss me? this is Karlach, surprise!"

I think the baldness here is just a byproduct of the model being datamined incomplete and not a specific design choice, for the record.

wow she looks like a total badass. Where the hell is THAT companion? She looks honorable and just the right amount of "I don't give a shit" that would just piss Lae and SH off so much. Would be wonderful.

Yeah, i think "cute in a very bland way" is a perfect way to summarize the issue.
I've seen people complaining she's "too pretty" now but I don't think prettiness is the real issue.

The problem is that she's bland. Her face lacks any hint of personality and it's not particularly expressive and life-like in general. Even from a technical standpoint (amount of detail, moving facial muscles, etc) she seems like a step back not just from the previous datamined version but also from the previous generic NPC placeholder.

Quite frankly the bluntest way I can put it is that it looks almost as if a less talented artist/modeler worked on her face this time around.


EDIT - Now compare and contrast with this:



(minus the lack of hair and the bullshit custom glowing eyes added by the modder here)

And add 1 horn with the other broken maybe halfway, not fully.

YES! That is more of what I picture when I hear her story. Demon slaying tough bad butt tiefling paladin. She doesn't even need hair. Hair can get caught and can be grabbed. Better without it. What? She needs hair to be tough? Does every female have to be hot and sexy? Can't she just be muscular and scary even? And who's to say that's not sexy to some?

Why paladin? She wears heavier armor so far and is awesome with a crossbow. So not a mage or rogue or warlock, most likely. Not likely a Bard since she's a Demon Slayer. What class would make a good demon slayer? Paladin. And she's got a serious vengeance quest against the cult of Zariel.

And, fan theory, Oath of Vengeance Avenging Angel can sprout wings. With them, she could fly onto the Nautiloid to try to escape Zariel. Face hugger eye booger tadpole crawls up on her unawares as she's trying to hide from mind Flayers and devils both in the ship. Floop! Right in the ear.

"Who are you?". All her paladin powers reset to level 1, just like everyone else.

To add to this, you encounter her later, at least level 3 or 4, so why not give her SOME better starting equipment. Plate armor and greatsword or maul or that axe looks cool with heavy crossbow+1 and traps and maybe some alchemist fire and such. And make the armor battered and such to begin with so it fits the story of her fighting off a bunch of things just before you meet her.

I honestly imagined Karlach as Oathbreaker paladin ...
I thought it would be cool or hot as hells, if she would be using hellfire against our oponents.

Eh. Oath breaker didn't seem to fit as well as Vengeance. Wings, for one thing, explain her flying up to the nautiloid, but she REALLY emphasizes her desire to make those bleepers pay. That's what really made me think Vengeance.

Lady Aribeth. Technically Oathbreaker (Blackguard in D&D edition of her times), practically also Vengence, because she broke her oath to get revenge for her lover's death. In other words from story point of view this 2 architypes can be mixed and confused pretty easily.

Oh no you missunderstand me ...
Im talking about what she is NOW ... not in the Avernus.

She could be some twisted kind of Vengeance Paladin under Zariels comand ...
But now, when she run off?
That sounds to me like perfect example of breaking oath.

Ah, I see. Well, I think that could be up to the player. Vengeance or Oathbreaker would work. Both fit.

Yeah, but as I mentioned I would be surprised if it was the final version. As you mentioned it is not up to the standard of random NPCs, not to mention a likely companion.

I think that would be very cool. There is a clash between Tyr champions claiming she is a devil in disguise, and her accusing Tyr champions of being cultusts. Now we know one of those accusations is true... what if the other was as well? Karlach presenting herself as far more innosence presence at first? Maybe helping her out isn't as an obvious choice as it might seem right now. Is she really a tiefling?

That said, I would welcome a straight up good companion at some point. We have enough edgelords and dodgy goodish characters as it is.

please, not another haunted past edgelord, we have a lot of those already.

Karlach's story was something I really delved into a lot. I loved it because it was an obscure mystery, and I really wanted to know who was in the right and who is not.

I think she's good and the Tyrites are Zariel Cultists, but I won't go into why.

Bottom line is, I want Karlach as a party member. I'm REALLY hoping we get to have her in the party after the toll house situation if we help her. What I like about her is that she is:

1. A FREAKING DEMON SLAYER. All I can imagine is that she must have been SUPER powerful before the nautiloid tadpoles sucked her powers and put her at level 1. Fighting demons is no joke, and she says she was one of Zariel's champions. Yeah, woman should be tough as nails and then some, and she should be like a She-Hulk muscular lady with tattoos and scars and either bald or a tough looking hairstyle.

2. She SEEMS, at least, to be a no nonsense person. Kiss her butt. She don't care what you think. She'll tell you off and tell you like she sees it.

3. Fearless - well not entirely, but pretty close to fearless. I imagine her getting right up in Lae'zel's face and telling her to go to the Bad Place and Fast and to stop "Nagging like an old person." Or I see her getting up in Minthara's face and being all like, "You don't scare me, $#@$. I've taken down manes scarier than your $#@$."

4. Sincere. Yes, she could be lying and deceiving us, but I don't think she is. I think she's actually one of the most honest people in the game so far. She tells you straight. "I served Zariel. I fought in the Blood War killing demons. I was her champion. I've got crap to take care of in Baldur's Gate, and you don't want to get involved with me. I might put you in danger." Straight forward, blunt and honest.

All I could think of when I was done talking to her was, "Dang! She swears a lot, and is probably one of the most cussing character in the game thus far, but MAN do I like her. I want her as a companion. I feel like I could put her at my back and she'd guard it without me having to worry. I could be wrong and naive, but whatever. Her character, whether truly good or evil, was something I wanted more of in the game - especially since I'm fairly certain we're going to be going up against more fiends in the future. Who would I want to have in my party more than Karlach - THE DEMON SLAYER?

So, I want her in the party, and I want her to look as tough as she seems. Buff, fierce, bad-butt tiefling paladin (assuming paladin) who looks like a bouncer from a bar with tattoos and scars and tough skin and the whole lot. PLEASE don't give us some stereotypical sexy or frilly tough-wannabe tiefling girl who looks like she's trying to act all tough. No. Give me someone who LOOKS like she's faced some seriously evil $#@$ in the Hells.

Really? Why? Honestly this version (with hair) would fit perfectly and she looks incredibly cool.

What's with the sly website link in the above post?

Well spotted, I didn't even noticed. It's been reported. This user has done the same thing three times.

I was gonna say, something's just not right about that post, but I missed it too. Couldn't figure out why it looked different from what I posted, and I didn't look close enough.

Weird.

Thank you; it, and the earlier two posts, have been deleted, along with the account.

Thanks Raze!

I missed all the fun. Let me guess: porn?

Nah, it's a specific kind of bot that scrapes threads and composes facsimile posts that can tangentially look like they're kind of on topic, if you don't look too closely, and which plug an external site - usually either a gambling site, or a stock marked scam site, but occasionally other similar things.

There's been a little bit of a mild infection here, but it's not rampant - just report them when you see them and the mods are usually very quick to clean them up.

Back to OP. All companions are so distinct in their presentation I find it hard to believe that is Karlach 1.0. Both new and old model feel oddly generic and forgettable.

I like the new Karlach. I think it fits very well with her story - although it is clear that Karlach is not a big part of ACT 1 in EA. Maybe she will be in full version? I hope so considering that in the last announcement Larians said that EA will feel new even to players who have played EA for hundred of hours, and I would love it since I have clocked more than 1,100 hrs.

Considering there is a big chance we will visit , I'd say her time will come.

I suppose it depends which things that Larian say we choose to believe.

When Larian talked about wanting the BG3 release to feel fresh, I did wonder exactly how much of what we have played in EA will remain the same at release. DOS2 was criticised for Act 1 of the release being almost identical to EA ( I can't judge as I have not played DOS2 ), so it seems to me they might have heard that criticism and have an intentionally different EA build, at least in some details, if not the overall story elements.

I have wondered particularly about our meeting and intereactions with companions, not all of which seem to make sense to me. Gale popping out of the fast-travel glyph near the Nautiloid crash seems odd, since logically he would need to have accessed some other, more distant glyph to manage that. But likewise, the interaction with Karlach does not seem to allow her as a companion, although we think she will be.

If what Larian said about having to commit to companions by the end of Act 1 is also true, then we should expect ample opportunity to meet, recruit and interact with those companions, but in EA Karlach now runs off to BG on her own, and we don't have more than the 5 companions we have always had.

So will our companion options in Act 1 change markedly at ( or before ) release? Or does our end of Act 1 committment only choose between a subset of companions, with more available to be recruited later?

I can see how with our existing EA companions and the choices available for story progression, we would likely have companions leaving naturally to follow paths we do not choose. To me that would certainly be a better way to "commit" than making some artificial choice at the end of Act 1 as some people seem to be fearing.

Karlach is basically ready, if Larian wanted. By which I mean all it requires is a change to the end of her quest. We can interact with her and deal with the others and Larian just changes the end of it to her joining us instead of saying see you in BG.

That only leaves 1 or 2, depending if cut, expected origin companions left to be added in Act 1. That isn't really much for Larian to squeeze into the map somewhere. That should then be all "real" companion options. They mentioned a mercenary system very early in EA and I believe implied that would be our non-origin companion option.

That's all true, yes. What I was really mulling over is how similar the EA build is to their release build. How much of what we see in EA will actually be changed at release, rather than simply added to?

Generally we have assumed that Larian will just add content, as that is the obvious thing to do. And it doesn;t seem likely that the main story beats will change much, but I think there is scope for the companion interactions to not conform to our expectations.