Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - Suggestions & Feedback Story Enhancement Suggestions

The point of this thread is to provide Larian with some story enhancement ideas that I think would help players, especially new players, understand what is happening in the game and also help explain certain game mechanics from a story perspective. Basically, although I'd love for Larian to implement 5e rules more strictly, I also love the game as is. However, I need a little help from a story perspective in explaining things. If you aren't going to change the mechanics, at least give me some story enhancements to explain things:

1. Magic Pockets and Party Size. They're there. They aren't really explained. In the very beginning of the game, can we get a small cutscene or something right away where your main character picks up a set of four magic pockets? Make it a forced cutscene. They find them on the floor or something just beyond the character's pod. Then the narrator says, "You've found a set of four magic pockets. They will magically adhere to a person's outfit. These pockets are like bags of holding. You can fit virtually anything into them and transfer items from one magic pocket to another instantly by simply willing it to happen. If you do ever travel with others, you may want to limit your party to four so that each member will have one." Hence, unlimited item space and the ability for any character to grab any item from any other character is explained in the game from a story perspective right from the start. It also explains to players why they can have only four party members.

2. Other mechanics that people have issues with. Trigger Tutorials or cutscenes that explain how it makes sense from a story perspective. Example: The first time you come across a barrel you can pick up and throw, a cutscene is triggered. The narrator says something like, "A strange force is at work within you, giving you the ability to pick up and throw objects like barrels at your enemies. But beware, whatever strange force is aiding you may also be aiding your enemies." This could be used for all types of game mechanics to explain that this is not the norm but is something implemented in this game because of some strange, mysterious power. Is it the tadpole? Is it the gods having their hand(s) upon every hero and villain in the story? Who knows? Doesn't even ever need to be explained. It can remain a mystery. Another Example: You go to make a jump that is impossible for a normal person to make, like jumping up in the air and landing on your feet like a superhero. A Tutorial message pops up something similar to what I just described. "Something is at work in you, granting you the ability to jump higher and further without difficulty. Only truly difficult jumps can hurt you. Beware of dropping from heights that are too great. Those can still hurt you."

SPOILERS!!! SPOILERS!!! SPOILERS!!!

3. Long Rests and the Hag Lair. Ethel tells you that she wants to have a bit of fun with you. Then she turns into a hag and the Red Cap fight begins. This is fine. However, it makes no sense from a story perspective to Long Rest from that point on until you beat the hag. This is a truly difficult fight even if you Long Rest right before fighting her. To explain allowing players the ability to Long Rest beforehand, and even encouraging it, why not have Ethel taunt the characters while they are making their way down by saying something like, "Are you sure you don't need to rest, Deary? Don't worry. I'll wait for ya. The prize you have in your head is too good for me to pass up. Take all the time you need. I want you at your best when I RIP YOUR SKULL OPEN AND PLUCK THAT WIGGLER FROM YOUR BRAIN!!!" Thus, Ethel is even telling you that she is willing to wait in her lair for you to Long Rest as much as you want before you fight her.

4. The Gobbos Still Don't Attack Even After Days and Days. A small cutscene could explain this easily. A tiefling comes to your camp at the end of a day after you have triggered the Raphael sequence. He/she explains that scouts just reported that the goblin leaders are preparing to attack the grove, for they now know where it is thanks to Aradin and his companions. But they've had a minor setback. Necessary supply shipments haven't arrived yet. As soon as the shipments arrive, the attack will commence. This could take some time because the road has been mysteriously cut off.

5. The Druids Don't Kick The Tieflings Out Even After Days and Days. The girl stole the idol. Kahga says that the ritual needs to start all over. This needs to be emphasized more. My suggestion. Kahga has the idol in her hands during this conversation. She says, "The ritual will need to start over from scratch because it was interrupted by this nasty, little parasite. It is so powerful that it may take over a week to actually complete, and we have to start all over! THAT'S why her theft should be so severely punished. THAT'S why I view her as a dirty, little parasite. She eats our food and drinks our water..." Now players know that Kahga doesn't even know how long the ritual will take and it is at least a week and they have to start all over right then and there. Then make it so that when you leave the grove headquarters the ritual has now begun.

6. Githyanki Don't Disappear Even If You Long Rest After Fighting Them. When you return to the area where you meet the Githyanki, if you didn't kill them but fled because they were too tough, have a cutscene showing that they are hunting the area for you, or that they are waiting in ambush for you. Then have the Narrator say, "Looks like the Githyanki haven't given up on their mandate to remove your heads from your shoulders." Then the fight begins. So even if I escape and Long Rest and return to fight again, it is explained why they are still there.

I think little things like this would go a long way to at least appeasing some of the angry players who don't like the way things are right now because they feel that things are immersion breaking. Of course, implementing mechanics that they want might be the only solution to make them happy, but as an alternative to at least make the game more immersive for some of us, to explain certain things as to why they are the way they are, can we at least have something like what I've just described?

1. this is a good idea, however I would like it more if we got the pockets a bit later. Not much later, maybe you could find them somewhere in the blighted village. Until then, no magic pockets. Shouldn't be too difficult to play until then without them, and I don't think it makes much sense that we find them in the nautiloid.

2. no real opinion on this, I wouldn't need it.

3. great idea to make the game more immersive imo. could be implemented in many other scences similarily.

4. a good idea if Larian doesn't change how time doesn't at all influence what is happening in the world, but this is an entirely different topic altogether.

5. same as 4.

6. yes

The only reason I said to put magic pockets right in the beginning is I have tried to offer an idea of limited inventory space in the beginning of the game. Makes more sense from a story perspective. I nearly got my head bit off. People apparently don't like that idea at all. So I figured finding the magic pockets right away would give people what they want and explain it from a story perspective instead of just having this nebulous unlimited magic pockets for me and all my party members that no one really knows how we got them. A mind flayer ship might have them, I guess, if they either found them on some random plane of existence or they were creating some experimental magical items. Something like that.

In fact, the whole post was to cater to those who don't want the system to change. At least if Larian explained why they are allowing certain typical D&D rules to be broken that would ease the minds of some, I would think. As it stands, certain things just don't make sense from a story perspective such as:

Magic Pockets you just somehow have that all have unlimited bag space (bags of holding are traditionally not something you acquire in D&D at the beginning of an adventure)
Jumping like super heroes
Indefinite Long Rests without triggering any events like gobbos attacking or the druid ritual being completed
The Ability to throw barrels full of liquid at your enemies
Resting at all in a place where enemies are lurking around, like the spider's lair or goblin base after you kill one of the leaders
Gith just waiting around for you to Long Rest and return

I mean, I'd prefer them to fix these things and make them more D&D 5e believable, but if they aren't, maybe they could at least explain these rules somehow from a story perspective. Throw me a bone or something.

well, this pretty much sums up the main things I want Larian to adress at the moment.

Lol. Me too