Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - Mega-threads and Guides Party Size Discussion

I just leave this here ...

Looks like they spawned npcs with developer tools, I seriously doubt this image implies we will get a 12 slots party.

Maybe we'll have our party plus allies we have recruited along the way (maybe limited to certain quests?) like Halsin and Barcus Wroot? And also merenaries (they were mentioned in official FAQ I believe)?

That's obviously a cutscene, not a party image. I noticed Jaheira, though, which at first made me think she was a party member. Then I realized there are just too many in the image for it to be the player's party only.

Do you guys remember the fight at the end of Act 1 of D:OS 2? Where it is your party and then a bunch of other random people that fight with you?

Wouldn't shock me if this scene is something like that. Your party + a bunch of other people helping you out.

Allright, this one is on me ... should have provide more context.

I didnt think anyone would read it as me thinking that Larian sudently decided to triple our group size.
I seemed quite obvious that this is the same situation as it is with siege of Druid Grove ...

But if we exclude those Heavy armor dudes (probably flaming fist) and those blue bandana/scarf people (harpers my gues?) ... we can count 6 characters ...

1 - In middle is our paladin, no doubt on my mind there.
2 - That Sorcerer tiefling we have seen casting Fireball in another scene, is behind her, on her right hand.
3 - Next to her, still on left side is some white haired persona with druidic armor, shield and club from Woodwoads ... that is our Druid, who transforms into a Owlbear later ...
4 - On the right side from paladin is Barbarian, who we can see rage in this very trailer.
5 - Next to him stands Jaheira.
6 - And up in the front ... is somehow who i believe seems like Counselor Florrick.

Coincidence? Most likely, but man can dream. :P

Did you notice multi-player? Option for party size 4+.

You have certainly confused this with the group level...

Awe dang. You right. I was just checking it out when I got pulled away. Got all excited for nothing. Sigh.

I almost always make experiental parties these days. Even when replaying the classics, even those based around combat. Like playing Icewind Dale with a bunch of exclusively dwaren warriors, exclusively drows who get a bonus at night (and vice versa in sunlight) -- or casters only. I'm not going to pretend that all those playthroughs are the same difficulty-wise -- there's loads of traps in IWD and the like. But it's part of the fun. And what keeps these games interesting.

I played Solasta's main campaign (5e) more recent with two fighters (frontline) and two rogues (archers and sneak bonus attack dealers from the backrow). I'd assume it is far easier to balance 5e than previous editions around lots of viable combinations. Certainly more so than 3e-ish. On the flipside, of course, there aren't as many "crazy" options. It's worth noting that Larian aren't strictly abiding to rules.

4 party size is probably due to fear of too long turns, while also maintaining a 4 man co-op.

But what is wirst you are restricted to Tank-Support-Rogue-DPR. When selecting a characted and knowing companions i feel restricted to certain classes/playstyle.
Thats why I think a party of 5 would be enough without straining the balance.

Dude i played BG2 with Keldorn, Korgan, Minsc and me also melee. Our „ranged” wa Viconia and Aerie.
And they didnt kill one another

IF that is true ...
Then its wrong ... as it was several times prooven.

And this was also discussed few times ...
As far as i remember it was mainly GM4HIM who promoted a lot option to make 6 member party, while easily maintaining 4PC cap ... by simply allowing 4 PC to invite two NPC followers to their party.

I already played with a 4 players group with 2 animal companions, it was an absolute slog to wait for everyone turn. I can't imagine how more tiring it would be with two added NPC.

Pets don't have the same power level and tactical abilities than companions... playing with 6 characters is by far a lot faster than with 4.

Now 6 characters and 2 pets...

It is entirely 100% due to co-op, because co-op is their priority over single-player. Every game building decision Larian has made has been first and foremost about how it affects co-op, and about what is best for co-op, SP be damned.

That may have been their thinking, I can’t comment on that. But I’ve never played a co-op game in my life and am not particularly likely to, and I like a party size of four. I enjoy finding different combinations of character classes and ability/spell selections that can cover essential roles, or finding alternative approaches to solving problems when I don’t have perfect coverage. For me, this enhances replayability.

I can completely understand why some folk prefer larger party sizes, but I don’t think it’s anywhere near as simple as single-player vs co-op.

EDIT: With respect to this …


The current fights shouldn’t be any longer with six party members than four, but if party size were to be increased by default then I do hope that Larian would rebalance the encounters to make them harder, which would I think also make them longer. Otherwise, you just end up with each character having fewer turns per battle, and that I wouldn’t like.

Dont want to acuse anyone or something ...
But have you concidered that maybe, just maybe ... the problem was in people?

I mean ... even when i play solo i can easily have 5min turn.

Passage of time is for sure known for being subjective. Turns out having to wait that long between each turns in big encounters wasn't too pleasant for us, especially during big fights like the goblin camp.