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#760823 28/02/21 05:03 AM
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So are we stuck with this lot? Karlach and Helia are rumored to be the next additions and both seem to have a well written story that I can't wait to delve deeper into.
I just hope we get more companions down the road when we reach Baldurs Gate, noninfected ones.
Not to say our current ones are bad, I love the fact you can tell them to piss off or downright kill them (both through action and inaction) but then you are left without options in your party build.

By the time full release rolls out I hope we get more options to choose from because constantly seeing my companions disagree with my choices because I'm roleplaying a certain character is pretty annoying, I don't want to tag along someone like Shadowheart if I'm playing a Githyanki but then I'm left without a cleric if I don't choose to play one.
Not that your standing with them has any real impact on the game right now, you can practically romance whoever you want regardless of it and I know alignments aren't really a thing in BG3, save the reactions from your companions so having at least 2 options to choose from every class would be grand.
Good, Neutral and Evil is enough, we don't have to go into Lawful, True / Neutral and Chaotic because I can't even imagine how much work would go into the nuances of programming and writting. eek
That's just wishful thinking on my part. I doubt we will see that many, but who knows, I remember playing the old games and constantly bumping into new people that could have joined our party so its not a far fetch.

What do you guys think about this?

Last edited by S2PHANE; 28/02/21 05:04 AM.
S2PHANE #760825 28/02/21 05:08 AM
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Oh yeah, I want a LOT of non origin companions of various kinds. Different races and combos, even non traditional races like monsters or full animals. There are many characters currently in the game who could make great companions, maybe have them join in at level 3 so their subclass or extra feature is already picked out and so they feel more established. They don't need to be in depth and there could be an added thing making that they can't or don't engage in conversation unless it is very related to them. Give them some dialogue to say in specific areas, and it'll feel like we can have a varied party.
Also increase party size to 6 so we can actually play around with a balanced and varied party.

CJMPinger #760829 28/02/21 05:17 AM
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Originally Posted by CJMPinger
Also increase party size to 6 so we can actually play around with a balanced and varied party.
This would make sense after we reach a certain level, when encounters get their difficulty spike up with more opponents, but I think Larian already made their mind up.

S2PHANE #760840 28/02/21 05:42 AM
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Originally Posted by S2PHANE
Originally Posted by CJMPinger
Also increase party size to 6 so we can actually play around with a balanced and varied party.
This would make sense after we reach a certain level, when encounters get their difficulty spike up with more opponents, but I think Larian already made their mind up.

I hope they haven't. An increased party size would help a whole lot in making this game feel like BG and not, as some have accused, DoS3.

S2PHANE #760858 28/02/21 07:38 AM
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There have been a few threads on companions that have been full of great ideas for more and varied companions

I'd love an increased party size, I worry as it'd mean re-balancing every encounter it's unfeasible from a development perspective?


Minthara is the best character and she NEEDS to be recruitable if you side with the grove!
Also- I support the important thread in the suggestions: Let everyone in the Party Speak
S2PHANE #760874 28/02/21 09:04 AM
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Originally Posted by S2PHANE
So are we stuck with this lot? Karlach and Helia are rumored to be the next additions and both seem to have a well written story that I can't wait to delve deeper into.
I just hope we get more companions down the road when we reach Baldurs Gate, noninfected ones.

This is one incident when more isn't necessarily better. The more companions we get, the less embellished and interesting each will likely be.


The companions have a vested interest in banding together when they are all part of the same larger whole with seemingly intertwined fates. I wouldn't mind "non-infected" companions as long as they have a really compelling reason to trust their lives in the hands of people who are transforming into brain-sucking monsters. One of them already a blood-sucking monster, another who is liable to explode, two devil spawns, a member of an evil and brutal race who sees all others as inferior, a disciple of an evil goddess of death and deceit.

Quote
constantly seeing my companions disagree with my choices because I'm roleplaying a certain character is pretty annoying

Yet we want choices to matter (for better or for worse), and real companions instead of zombie-esque followers. Clearly there is a balance to be had and Larian already made the companions more agreeable (perhaps at a little loss to their edgy personalities). Perhaps approval changes could be given in a less mechanical, and perceivably less condemning way. Would "frowns", be better than "disapproves" on a psychological level I wonder? wink


Quote
I know alignments aren't really a thing in BG3, save the reactions from your companions so having at least 2 options to choose from every class would be grand. Good, Neutral and Evil is enough, we don't have to go into Lawful, True / Neutral and Chaotic because I can't even imagine how much work would go into the nuances of programming and writting. eek

I dislike this mechanical tick box checklist approach many has to roleplaying. Like following some sort of holy formula handed down from Noah's Ark where two of everything, every race, class and alignment (which WotC impressed upon Larian to tune down for ideological reasons), and preferably a larger party allowing us to play more of these combinations at once, makes bliss.

I want interesting, contrasting personalities, that despite common fates have their own and conflicting agencies. This was the essence of the original series more than the large (and largely uninteresting) cast.

S2PHANE #760875 28/02/21 09:06 AM
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I am also slightly worried about our variety of companions for the future - however, I could see this being resolved by using the "adventurer" model from PoE (perhaps this even was a thing in the old BG games?). I do absolutely approve of Larian focusing hard on involving their characters as much as possible - but I hope then can see the reasoning in that it is possible to have characters with "deeper" engagement for the story/PC and still add some... Less developed companions for the sake of completion. Comparing the DLC characters from PoE2:D, like Rekke and Ydwin, to the "core" companions, such as Aloth (anyone more than me who'd swap Gale for Aloth in a heartbeat?) and Edér (and Larian, please give us another frontliner companion - I dislike being "stuck" with Lae in the party for the sake of team balance).

The reason that DOS2 get away with so few companions is because they are all class fluid. You can choose either character to whatever role you need - BG3 does not have that and hence you might get stuck with companions you really do not want (and pass up on companions you would want to bring) just for the sake of having a decent party composition.

While I do not necessarily dislike our current companions (I find Astarions snark comments especially hilarious), the character I am playing as certainly do and I would very much like to have something better suited for her company. Especially if we're going to discuss romance - NONE of our current options make even the slightest sense for my character. I cannot see many reasons she'd bring them along after reaching Baldur's Gate / getting their tad pods fixed unless there are some major turn of events ahead of us (and yes, I am aware of the complex content regarding the follower stories that is being data-mined).

So, of course I'd like to see some good alignment characters, considering hardly any of our current ones can be considered good. I'd also enjoy some non-meta characters, however, I am a fan of the regular cookie-cutter options as well. c:

I just hope that Larian keeps in mind that we should at least get enough options so that all can have a supportive character, at least one frontline character, and one damage dealer / utility character that does not hate each of the PCs option, regardless of the PC alignment.


Hoot hoot, stranger! Fairly new to CRPGs, but I tried my best to provide some feedback regardless! <3 Read it here: My Open Letter to Larian
S2PHANE #760935 28/02/21 02:19 PM
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Originally Posted by S2PHANE
So are we stuck with this lot? Karlach and Helia are rumored to be the next additions and both seem to have a well written story that I can't wait to delve deeper into.
I just hope we get more companions down the road when we reach Baldurs Gate, noninfected ones.
Not to say our current ones are bad, I love the fact you can tell them to piss off or downright kill them (both through action and inaction) but then you are left without options in your party build.

By the time full release rolls out I hope we get more options to choose from because constantly seeing my companions disagree with my choices because I'm roleplaying a certain character is pretty annoying, I don't want to tag along someone like Shadowheart if I'm playing a Githyanki but then I'm left without a cleric if I don't choose to play one.
Not that your standing with them has any real impact on the game right now, you can practically romance whoever you want regardless of it and I know alignments aren't really a thing in BG3, save the reactions from your companions so having at least 2 options to choose from every class would be grand.
Good, Neutral and Evil is enough, we don't have to go into Lawful, True / Neutral and Chaotic because I can't even imagine how much work would go into the nuances of programming and writting. eek
That's just wishful thinking on my part. I doubt we will see that many, but who knows, I remember playing the old games and constantly bumping into new people that could have joined our party so its not a far fetch.

What do you guys think about this?
Don't remember what people have datamined about Helia, but isn't Karlach a Fighter? Another one?
I hope the devs at Larian know that party composition is fundamental in a D&D game, and it'll change according to your MC class. There should not be more than one companion with the same class before there are companions for all classes.

Seraphael #760964 28/02/21 03:44 PM
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Originally Posted by Danielbda
Don't remember what people have datamined about Helia, but isn't Karlach a Fighter? Another one?
I hope the devs at Larian know that party composition is fundamental in a D&D game, and it'll change according to your MC class. There should not be more than one companion with the same class before there are companions for all classes.
With a bit of research we can narrow it down to either Paladin or Barbarian. Chubblot came to the conclusion that Karlach is a Barbarian, due to her armor and the explanation we get from the Paladins of Tyr in the Tollhouse (she can tear people in half, etc.) and Helia datamine is only in the form of voice lines but she is supposed to be a werewolf. I agree with you on the last part. You can watch the Chubblot video and draw your own conclusions.


Originally Posted by Seraphael
The companions have a vested interest in banding together when they are all part of the same larger whole with seemingly intertwined fates. I wouldn't mind "non-infected" companions as long as they have a really compelling reason to trust their lives in the hands of people who are transforming into brain-sucking monsters. One of them already a blood-sucking monster, another who is liable to explode, two devil spawns, a member of an evil and brutal race who sees all others as inferior, a disciple of an evil goddess of death and deceit.

I know we want our characters well written and with good motives, but sometimes the promise of glory or gold is good enough for motivation, theres no shortage of mercenaries in Faerun and Aradin comes to mind, what if we could hire him as a helping hand in our exploits down the line? Maybe we already bounced into a whole lot of potential companions and we don't know it?

Originally Posted by Seraphael
Quote
constantly seeing my companions disagree with my choices because I'm roleplaying a certain character is pretty annoying

Yet we want choices to matter (for better or for worse), and real companions instead of zombie-esque followers. Clearly there is a balance to be had and Larian already made the companions more agreeable (perhaps at a little loss to their edgy personalities). Perhaps approval changes could be given in a less mechanical, and perceivably less condemning way. Would "frowns", be better than "disapproves" on a psychological level I wonder? wink
No, no you misunderstand me mate. I didn't say that it bothered me in a sense of a mechanic, but only and exclusively in roleplaying sense. I like that they have their own morals, history and personalities but I'd like to go a different route with each playthrough when the full release comes out and constantly having these starter companions for the duration of the whole game would be, I feel, so detrimental to the gameplay experience that I'd drop it after two runs. There's only so much depth you can go to with a character and that is where some variety would be a welcome thing. If Lae'zel or Shadowheart kept their current personalities up to Act 2/3 I feel like I'd want to strangle them. laugh

Starshine #760973 28/02/21 04:12 PM
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Originally Posted by Starshine
There have been a few threads on companions that have been full of great ideas for more and varied companions

I'd love an increased party size, I worry as it'd mean re-balancing every encounter it's unfeasible from a development perspective?

It would likely make Act 1a fights easier, but this is the introduction to the game so it would not feel too bad as you want the start to be easier so people adapt to the mechanics and experiment with what works and doesn't. All they'd have to do is construct 1b and 2-? with the idea players may have 6 instead of 4 and things will be balanced.

S2PHANE #760980 28/02/21 04:24 PM
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Originally Posted by S2PHANE
Originally Posted by Danielbda
Don't remember what people have datamined about Helia, but isn't Karlach a Fighter? Another one?
I hope the devs at Larian know that party composition is fundamental in a D&D game, and it'll change according to your MC class. There should not be more than one companion with the same class before there are companions for all classes.
With a bit of research we can narrow it down to either Paladin or Barbarian. Chubblot came to the conclusion that Karlach is a Barbarian, due to her armor and the explanation we get from the Paladins of Tyr in the Tollhouse (she can tear people in half, etc.) and Helia datamine is only in the form of voice lines but she is supposed to be a werewolf. I agree with you on the last part. You can watch the Chubblot video and draw your own conclusions.


Originally Posted by Seraphael
The companions have a vested interest in banding together when they are all part of the same larger whole with seemingly intertwined fates. I wouldn't mind "non-infected" companions as long as they have a really compelling reason to trust their lives in the hands of people who are transforming into brain-sucking monsters. One of them already a blood-sucking monster, another who is liable to explode, two devil spawns, a member of an evil and brutal race who sees all others as inferior, a disciple of an evil goddess of death and deceit.

I know we want our characters well written and with good motives, but sometimes the promise of glory or gold is good enough for motivation, theres no shortage of mercenaries in Faerun and Aradin comes to mind, what if we could hire him as a helping hand in our exploits down the line? Maybe we already bounced into a whole lot of potential companions and we don't know it?

Originally Posted by Seraphael
Quote
constantly seeing my companions disagree with my choices because I'm roleplaying a certain character is pretty annoying

Yet we want choices to matter (for better or for worse), and real companions instead of zombie-esque followers. Clearly there is a balance to be had and Larian already made the companions more agreeable (perhaps at a little loss to their edgy personalities). Perhaps approval changes could be given in a less mechanical, and perceivably less condemning way. Would "frowns", be better than "disapproves" on a psychological level I wonder? wink
No, no you misunderstand me mate. I didn't say that it bothered me in a sense of a mechanic, but only and exclusively in roleplaying sense. I like that they have their own morals, history and personalities but I'd like to go a different route with each playthrough when the full release comes out and constantly having these starter companions for the duration of the whole game would be, I feel, so detrimental to the gameplay experience that I'd drop it after two runs. There's only so much depth you can go to with a character and that is where some variety would be a welcome thing. If Lae'zel or Shadowheart kept their current personalities up to Act 2/3 I feel like I'd want to strangle them. laugh


tell me you're joking with the werewolf...are you kidding me? A vampire AND a werewolf? I already think the companions act like edgy teenagers enough, no need to throw in twilight thoughts laugh

Boblawblah #760984 28/02/21 04:30 PM
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Originally Posted by Boblawblah
tell me you're joking with the werewolf...are you kidding me? A vampire AND a werewolf? I already think the companions act like edgy teenagers enough, no need to throw in twilight thoughts laugh

Really didn't need to quote the whole thing for such a remark. You can, as with any companion so far, choose to not take her with you.
Who knows what variables she'll bring to the game though, I for one can't wait to see how they implement it.

S2PHANE #760987 28/02/21 04:38 PM
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A thing I wonder is will she be "infectious" and be able to turn the player character, unlike Astarion who is only a vampire spawn and therefor unable to infect?

S2PHANE #760989 28/02/21 04:45 PM
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Yeah, I thought about that as well. If they add the option to select being a vampire/werewolf in character creation, what interaction could we get from the two of them respectfully?
Would be fun to see the difference in gameplay when (read: if) they add a Day/Night cycle.

S2PHANE #760991 28/02/21 04:47 PM
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Originally Posted by S2PHANE
Yeah, I thought about that as well. If they add the option to select being a vampire/werewolf in character creation, what interaction could we get from the two of them respectfully?
Would be fun to see the difference in gameplay when (read: if) they add a Day/Night cycle.

That might be a cool thing, select a special aspect of your character. Kinda like the abilities of DoSII but selectable.

CJMPinger #760993 28/02/21 04:51 PM
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Originally Posted by CJMPinger
Originally Posted by S2PHANE
Yeah, I thought about that as well. If they add the option to select being a vampire/werewolf in character creation, what interaction could we get from the two of them respectfully?
Would be fun to see the difference in gameplay when (read: if) they add a Day/Night cycle.

That might be a cool thing, select a special aspect of your character. Kinda like the abilities of DoSII but selectable.
I don't usually like comparing BG3 to DoSII, but yeah, in this instance I am onboard for more choices (I for one don't want to be a Baldurian, but apparently I am, etc).

S2PHANE #760997 28/02/21 04:59 PM
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Originally Posted by S2PHANE
Originally Posted by Boblawblah
tell me you're joking with the werewolf...are you kidding me? A vampire AND a werewolf? I already think the companions act like edgy teenagers enough, no need to throw in twilight thoughts laugh

Really didn't need to quote the whole thing for such a remark. You can, as with any companion so far, choose to not take her with you.
Who knows what variables she'll bring to the game though, I for one can't wait to see how they implement it.

team jacob i see wink

fair enough though, you're right, i didn't need to quote the whole post, apologies. I'm just concerned that every companion is going to have to be edgy with a dark past.

Boblawblah #761001 28/02/21 05:09 PM
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Originally Posted by Boblawblah
team jacob i see wink

fair enough though, you're right, i didn't need to quote the whole post, apologies. I'm just concerned that every companion is going to have to be edgy with a dark past.
Team more-diverse-companions laugh
That's half the reason for this thread, obviously people have a problem with the current cast of playable characters, so why not voice out what you'd like to see in the upcoming patches and have an active discussion with other members of the community?

S2PHANE #761004 28/02/21 05:18 PM
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Besides, I doubt that Helia will be wet-dreams material - according to the datamined character model, she is an elderly lady. I'm hoping for a Wynne like character - the voice of reason in the camp.


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fylimar #761009 28/02/21 05:31 PM
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Originally Posted by fylimar
Besides, I doubt that Helia will be wet-dreams material - according to the datamined character model, she is an elderly lady. I'm hoping for a Wynne like character - the voice of reason in the camp.

Just wait till Astarion begins to comment on her bosom.

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