That’s fair. Out of curiosity, how often do you usually rest in the early game?
I'll try to list it here, because I'm not sure 😅 Keep in mind I'm only doing this from memory :
- I recruit SH, Astarion and Gale, then rest to trigger the "Where are you" dream.
- I explore the Dark Crypt, then rest (outside of the crypt!). This triggers Astarion going on a hunt.
- I recruit Laez'el, go to the grove, save Aradin & co, talk to Zevlor, go check the npcs above the gate, the vendor Arron, Rolan & co and Zorru, then rest (to trigger Lae'zel and Astarion cutscene).
- I go check on Sazza, usually I don't intervene and cast Speak with the Dead on her, I go explore the hidden tunnel to save the druid, go talk to Mattis, Volo, Alfira. Depending on whether I need it or not, I rest. This triggers a scene with SH.
- I go save the kid from the harpies then I go to Kagha, then go to Nettie. I go to the bloodless boar. Then rest. This triggers Raphael scene and Astarion bite scene.
- I go to the dying true Soul Edwin. I let Astarion or Gale talk and trigger the tadpole power (make more sense to me RP-wise). Then rest. This triggers the first visual tadpole dream.
- I go to the blighted village to trigger the power one last time (by Astarion or Gale) one way or another. Then I go rest (SH needs to die because I want to trigger Astarion's scene with the nightmare about Cazador).
- I go to "shop for pets' by visiting the Scratch and the owlbear nest. I trigger a first time SH's revelation about being a Sharrian. I go help the gnome at the windmill and go check the scene that triggers SH's weird magical power affecting her. I might rest (I don't need it if I don't take Wyll with me).
- I go explore the southern part of the map and go to Gur then Ethel. I don't confront Ethel yet (not strong enough : level 3 and potentially low on spell slots). I do rest after that.
- I investigate the Shadow Druids situation at the bog. Then rest.
- I finish this quest at the grove. Then rest.
- I go deal with Ethel (since I've reached level 4 at that point and I'm well rested), then rest. At that point, I've already given Gale an artefact and this is usually when the Weave scene triggers.
- I go explore the Blighted village a bit more (going to collect the orb and going in the "cellar"), which can required one or two rests.
- Then I finally approach the Goblin Camp. I deal with the goblins at the gate then rest. This usually triggers Gale's "Loss scene" (doesn't trigger indoor).
- I go across the bridge, have fun at the Goblin party, save the owlbear cub, enter the Shattered Sanctum. Then rest.
-...
I mean, that's already about 15 long rests and I haven't explore the Shattered Sanctum yet.
The owlbear cub also postpones other scenes, like Astarion's "Scar scene" which usually trigger not long after Tiefling party (in my case, at least) and only if I spam Long Rests before the party to trigger all cutscenes related to the cub (there are a few of them).
I usually explore the northern part of the map to trigger this scene and the scene where Gale talk a bit more about him and Mystra (I don't think this one triggers if not at the "main" camp, could be wrong).
This type of itinerary is odd but it's the only way that I can triggers a maximum of scene with all companions (including Wyll when I recruit him) and still make sense of it...in my own head. But this does require doing a lot of meta, and a good portion of this could be avoided with the suggestions made by OP.
Thanks for going through the detail of your itinerary. You’ve mentioned two reasons for your resting schedule: you want to experience the full story and you rest when it feels natural. I take it this itinerary satisfies both requirements for you. Is that correct?
I’m of two mind on the camp cutscenes. On one hand, I’ve felt the urge to cut through the BS in order to see what a game has to offer (eg: “go find seven blue acorns for a sidequest” becomes “go to the wiki to find the quickest way to progress the game”). I could skip the sidequest, but at the cost of feeling like I’m missing out, which sucks.
On the other hand, I’ve tremendous respect for a game like Dwarf Fortress where the sheer size and complexity of the world means players cannot experience (or even understand) it all. Imagine if every run of BG3 was significantly different from the last, if the story felt brand new each time. That would be amazing to me, a powerful illusion that the world is real, inhabited by well-rounded people with their own things going on.
Whether or not it succeeds, I believe that BG3 is striving to accomplish something like this. The current cut-scene system helps in that endeavor: relationships and stories shift slightly early on due to factors the player doesn’t know about; I assume the early differences snowball into massive divergences down the line, seeing how many different ways the first fews days of the story can play out.
In conclusion, though I understand the urge to experience it all, I see value in a story-driven game where the story remixes itself. The key is for players to feel like they’re reading a new book every time, not the same book with some pages torn out.
