Highlights
- Playing as each Origin Character in Baldur’s Gate 3 provides unique insights into their backgrounds and motivations.
- Shadowheart’s storyline explores her struggle with misguided devotion and the hidden trauma she experiences.
- Karlach gets internal monologues that the player wouldn’t otherwise get to experience, while Gale brings his cat along to camp.
I have been playing RPGs since I could hold a controller. So, when I had a friend recommend Baldur’s Gate 3 to me and swear up and down that it would blow the likes of games like Skyrim, The Witcher 3, and World of Warcraft (my favorite games) out of the water, I was not convinced. However, I decided to give it a shot, and I am so glad that I did. The game has quickly become my “Roman Empire,” and I just cannot stop playing. One thing that I knew I had to do from the moment I finished the game for the first time was that I needed to play as each of the Origin Characters. Which, let me tell you, was a bigger undertaking than I could have ever imagined, but totally worth it.
Since I knew that my quest was to play the game a total of seven more times, I had to decide how I should go about deciding the order of my playthroughs. In the end, I decided to go for a tried-and-true method, playing it in order of my favorites. While this is great in theory, I didn’t account for the fact that by the time I had played the game five or six times, I would be stuck with the characters I wasn’t entirely invested in (sorry Wyll and Gale).
Is This Love Or Torture? Or Both?
By the time I started my next playthrough, I ended up with this order: Shadowheart, Astarion, Karlach, Lae’zel, Wyll, Gale, and The Dark Urge. I did my Durge last because I knew it would be hard. By this point, I was heavily invested in all my companions, and my dark urges did not hold back when it came to them.
Baldur’s Gate 3 Is Missing The Unique Charm Of Dwarven Companions
Dwarves and gnomes have made for some great RPG companions in the past, but Baldur’s Gate 3 ignores them.
You’re probably wondering why on Earth would anyone want to play a game so many times, back-to-back, and as characters that they don’t particularly like. Well, the reason I did this is also the reason you should follow in my footsteps: character development. The truth is, if you don’t give the Origin playthroughs a try, you will never truly understand where these characters are coming from. There are moments of voice acting you will miss since you decide where the conversation goes, but the additional insights into the characters make it worth it.
If you decide to play as an Origin Character, you will quickly learn that the person you knew wasn’t who you thought they were. When I played as Shadowheart, I learned very quickly that she truly is God’s favorite princess and the most interesting girl in the world. Playing as her, you get a sense of her misguided devotion towards Shar. Her internal struggle between who she thinks she is and who she really is takes center stage in an even larger way than it would in a regular playthrough. One heartbreaking realization you will have is what truly happens when her Sharran wound begins to hurt, with fully narrated segments expressing the private, lonely trauma and suffering she goes through. When playing as anyone else, Shadowheart pretends she’s fine when in reality, she is anything but.
Taking on the role of Astarion, you learn so much. On your first night in camp, you will dream about Cazador, and learn about the horrible rules he forced on Astarion and his siblings. You will also have the opportunity to see how long you can keep his vampirism hidden. Throughout his playthrough, you will see firsthand the fear, horror, and hatred that he felt for himself and his master. He was a voice for victims of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse before seeing the game through his eyes; this experience just adds to that.
Karlach’s playthrough was one of the highlights of this experiment. While the other characters will give away different thoughts and ideas via dialogue, Karlach gives her thoughts away via a monologue she has with herself. Unfortunately, Larian cut an amazing part of her monologue. Her narration can be hilarious and truly brings out her character in a way you don’t see in any other playthrough. Karlach makes her love of Jaheira loud and clear when you meet the legendary hero, but with her as an Origin Character she continues to excitedly fangirl in her own head for a good while afterwards, something you don’t get to hear otherwise.
Lae’zel’s playthrough was lacking a bit. She does have some exclusive dialogue that allows you to roleplay as either a loyal Vlaakith follower or a rebellious Githyanki and you get some interesting additional interactions with other Githyanki. You will even meet a brand new Githyanki character on the Nautiloid who will help you make it to the helm. The fight Lae’zel has with Shadowheart is pretty interesting from her perspective too (you can even avoid the fight altogether). Overall, her story gives you an insight into Githyanki culture.
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Gale was great because his Tressym, Tara, shows up at camp when he’s your Origin Character. She makes sure he has his magical items to eat, which makes me wonder where she was when he was eating through all my shoes to stave off his internal magic-bomb. Gale also gets some interesting interactions in Act II that give him additional bonuses in the game. For example, he can consume Shadow Weave from the Thorms in Act II, which gives him an extra level 3 Spell Slot, making him more powerful than in any other playthrough.
Dare You Go With The Durge?
The most talked about (and probably best) Origin Character is the Dark Urge. I couldn’t tell if their story was a masterpiece or a trainwreck, and I love that. The unpredictability of what horrors you may do next is what makes this story stand out. I won’t lie, I ended up with a lot of sleepless nights regretting everything that I did to Shadowheart. If you’re looking for a different experience than Tav’s and don’t care about the companion’s backstories, go with the Dark Urge.
Overall, my journey is one that I encourage every Baldur’s Gate 3 fan (well, at least the ones with time to spare!) to take. There were moments when my heart shattered for these characters, not realizing the horrors they went through. The game does well developing the characters regardless, but these Origin Stories truly highlight who they were and their journey to becoming who they are.
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