Baldur's Gate 3 is built on the Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition system, adapted for CRPG by Belgium-based developers Larian Studios. As with any tabletop-to-video game adaption, Larian has had to add, remove, and tweak the Fifth Edition rules to fit Baldur's Gate 3.
Tabletop players will easily recognize the familiar races, classes, features, and monsters in Baldur's Gate 3. However, it's worth noting the more major changes that Baldur's Gate 3 makes to Fifth Edition, so that players who are relying on their tabletop knowledge don't find themselves missing out.
The Biggest Rule Changes in Baldur's Gate 3
The most impactful changes that Larian Studios has made to the Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition system can be found in the game's core rules and mechanics:
In Act 1, players will meet an NPC that can respec their characters
HP gained when leveling up uses the average result of the class' Hit Die
There is no cover system
When a character makes a ranged attack at a target at least 10ft lower than them, they get a +2 bonus. If the target is at least 10ft higher than them, they instead take a -2 penalty
Player characters with shared initiatives can act simultaneously
There are no Tool or Language Proficiencies
There are no Hit Dice, but Short Rests restore half of each character's HP
The party can only Short Rest twice between each Long Rest
Long Rests require Camp Supplies
Each Weapon type has a set of Weapon Actions that can be used once per Short Rest
Characters earn Inspiration based on their Background, and can only use it to reroll Ability Checks
Shoving, Jumping, and drinking a Potion are all Bonus Actions
Players cannot ready actions or grapple
Characters can throw other characters that are at least one size smaller than them
Bonus Action attacks, such as offhand attacks, do not require a main hand attack to be made first
RELATED: Baldur's Gate 3: How To Change Party Members
The Biggest Spellcasting Changes in Baldur's Gate 3
Along with tweaks to individual spells, there have also been several major changes to the spellcasting system:
Characters can cast both an Action Spell and a Bonus Action Spell on the same turn
Clerics, Druids, and Wizards can change their prepared spells at any time outside of combat
There is no Verbal, Somatic, and Material Components system, and spells can be cast with both hands full
Some spells can be cast when Silenced or Hidden
Longer duration spells now last until the next Long Rest
Any character can cast a Spell Scroll, but only spellcasters get to add their Proficiency Bonus
Ritual Casting spells takes no additional time
The Biggest Race Changes in Baldur's Gate 3
The 11 Races of Baldur's Gate 3 can all be played in Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition, though some have received fairly major changes:
All races get +2 and +1 to two Ability Scores of their choice, rather than their racial bonuses
All races with Darkvision have a reduced range to compensate for the smaller maps in Baldur's Gate 3. Races with Superior Darkvision, like the Drow, also have a reduced range, but it's still double basic Darkvision
Elves and Drow don't have the ability to Trance instead of sleeping
Drow are no longer weaker in sunlight
Half-Elves don't get additional Skill Proficiencies
High and Wood Half-Elves can't take Elf Weapon Training
Halflings can't pass through other creatures' spaces
There is no Variant Human option
Forest Gnomes have permanent Speak with Animals
Deep Gnomes' Advantage on Stealth checks doesn't require rocky terrain
RELATED: Baldur's Gate 3: All Negative Combat Status Effects, Explained
The Biggest Class Changes in Baldur's Gate 3
The 12 Classes in Baldur's Gate 3 have all been tweaked extensively, but here's the most impactful changes for each class:
The Barbarian's Rage and Reckless Attack features work with Finesse weapons and thrown weapons/objects
The Bard's Song of Rest allows the party to take an additional Short Rest per Long Rest
The Cleric's Turn Undead can no longer instantly kill weaker undead
Druids can wear metal armor but can't alter their concentration spells while in Wild Shape form. Additionally, Wild Shape no longer has a fixed duration
Monks receive their Ki feature at 1st level and gain more Ki points overall
Paladins select their Oath at first level, and can lose their powers if they break the tenets of their Oath
The Ranger's Favored Enemy and Natural Explorer features are greatly expanded with new and more powerful options
Rogues no longer gain Thieves' Tools Proficiency as the Sleight of Hand skill is used to pick locks instead
Sorcerers gain Metamagic at level 2 and get a third Metamagic option at level 3
The Warlock's Pact of the Blade feature now allows characters to use their Charisma for attacks and damage with weapons
The Wizard can instantly learn a spell scroll but still must pay a gold price per spell level
Baldur's Gate 3 is available now for PC. The PlayStation 5 version will be available on September 6th, 2023. A version for Xbox Series X/S is still in development.
Larian Studios is a Belgian independent video game developer and publisher founded in 1996 by Swen Vincke. Headquartered in Ghent, Belgium, Larian focuses on developing role-playing video games but has previously worked on educational games and casino games.
has made to the Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition system can be found in the game's core rules and mechanics: The maximum level is 12. Multiclassing ignores Ability Score requirements. In Act 1, players will meet an NPC that can respec their characters.
First, the book will now refer to “races” as “species.” The book will also be doing away with “half” races (notably the half-orc and the half-elf). Racial modifiers will also become less important. Instead, players will choose a background which determines ability score bonuses and a first level feat.
A character's massive damage threshold is equal to 25, +2 per Hit Die. Whenever a character takes damage from a single hit that equals or exceeds this value, he must succeed on a DC 15 Fortitude save or suffer the effects of massive damage.
Though the arrival of Dungeons & Dragons 2024 is hotly anticipated and will provide players with a new way to play the tabletop RPG - as well as a fresh entry-point with the new books - it will not mean that 5E will vanish from existence.
However, Baldur's Gate 3 makes one significant change. In D&D 5e, creatures always take their turns one by one, even if they're surrounded by allies in the initiative order. Baldur's Gate 3 makes things far more flexible. Allied characters who are next to each other on the initiative tracker can act simultaneously.
Will there be a D&D 6th Edition? According to Dungeons & Dragons publisher Wizards of the Coast, there are no official plans to release a DnD 6e. What is in the works, however, is a new product which has been codenamed One D&D.
DnD 5e is getting a major update in 2024, focusing on tougher monsters, support for martial classes, and sensitivity changes. High-CR monsters will be revamped, supporting high-level play, while martial classes will receive boosts to balance game mechanics.
A player that's been dealt 21 or more combat damage by the same commander over the course of the game loses the game. The commander is tracked across zone changes for this purpose (for example, if one player takes control of another player's commander, any damage that commander already dealt is still counted).
Beginning at 9th level, you can roll one additional weapon damage die when determining the extra damage for a critical hit with a melee attack. This increases to two additional dice at 13th level and three additional dice at 17th level.
No other spell even comes close in terms of immediate, raw damage dice in 5th Edition D&D, and any casters looking to take down their enemies fast and hard need look no further than Meteor Swarm.
Advantage reflects the positive circ*mstances surrounding a d20 roll, while disadvantage reflects the opposite. When you have either advantage or disadvantage, you roll a second d20 when you make the roll. Use the higher of the two rolls if you have advantage, and use the lower roll if you have disadvantage.
Cantrip: A type of spell in Dungeons & Dragons that is relatively low-powered but can be cast without using up a spell slot. Cantrips can be cast an unlimited number of times per day.
In Baldur's Gate 3, the combat system is faithfully recreated so that players are put into a turn order and combat will be turn-based, with the order determined the same as in D&D.
Baldur's Gate 3 does an excellent job of adapting the Dungeons & Dragons experience to video game form, but there's no small number of differences between it and its inspiration.
This page and related pages summarise rule changes from the implementation of Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition (D&D 5e) rules to Baldur's Gate 3 (BG3). The rule changes described on this page and related pages are written with the assumption the reader understands the relevant D&D 5e rule.
The 2024 Dungeons & Dragons release schedule currently shows the new Player's Handbook dropping in September and the Dungeon Master's Guide releasing in November, but the updated Monster Manual is not scheduled until February 2025.
The most radical change to combat in D&D 4th edition is the use of powers, a unified game mechanic encompassing class abilities such as spells or combat manuevers. Powers are divided into at-will, encounter, and daily. At-will powers can be used once per round as a standard action, with unlimited uses.
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