Baldur’s Gate 3 takes place over 100 years in the future from the events of the first two games. In my mind, I hope that Larian, the developer of BG3, will find a way to incorporate elements like this without establishing an explicit version of events. RPG makers struggle with this decision; deciding on the official story for a sequel when there are multiple permutations and endings.
For example, in Fallout: New Vegas, the developers had to decide on the official story of what happened in the Mojave Wasteland between Fallout 2 and Fallout 3. As a fan of the series, I prefer a loose interpretation of events that doesn’t establish a concrete answer. Fans typically refer to the protagonist of Baldur’s Gate as the “Bhaalspawn,” based on the Dungeons & Dragons canon. But this didn’t stop BioWare from leaving the final decision to the player.
In official D&D lore, there is a canon Bhaalspawn named Abdel Adrian, a Neutral Good human Fighter. While I believe this choice is boring, I will respect BioWare’s direction. But in my mind, Abdel Adrian is not a human, but an horny elf Fighter/Mage. I don’t know why, I just am. And I encourage you to cherish your own interpretation of the Bhaalspawn character.
In the games, Abdel Adrian appears as a pre-generated character and has ‘90s-style card art in a Magic the Gathering tie-in. In the 5E module Murder In Baldur’s Gate, it’s revealed that Adrian dies in a gruesome way and the events of the games didn’t matter. The players in the module fight the Slayer, a superpowered Bhaal-fueled beast mode that Adrian morphs into. With Bhaal’s last children dead, he is reborn, rendering everything you did in the first two games meaningless.
Murder In Baldur’s Gate takes place ten years before the events of Baldur’s Gate 3, and there are hints of Bhaal’s influence in the game. The presence of original party members Minsc and Jaheira also connects to the original series events.
I hope Larian finds a way to incorporate these elements without establishing an explicit version of events. I love the save transfers and the Dragon Age Keep world state tool, but I also love fiction that allows for the freedom to imagine what did or didn’t happen. Bethesda’s “Warp in the West” explanation for Daggerfall’s multiple endings is mentioned as a clever solution.
Until convinced otherwise, I will always envision the Bhaalspawn as a horny elf Fighter/Mage with some sort of sexual innuendo in their name. I’d also love it if all the references to “Bhaal’s children” in the first game referred to this character’s descendants, not Abdel Adrian’s.
