Larian looked to popular homebrew D&D rules for Baldur's Gate 3: 'We were like—okay, we're not crazy, some people do it, so maybe we can try it as well'

GamesRPGBaldur’s GateBaldur’s Gate 3Larian looked to popular homebrew D&D rules for Baldur’s Gate 3: ‘We were like—okay, we’re not crazy, some people do it, so maybe we can try it as well’When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

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(Image credit: Larian Studios)

Swen Vincke

Baldur’s Gate 3 is a fascinating game if you’re into Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition, the tabletop ruleset it’s built upon—because while it’s a decently faithful recreation of those rules, it also has enoughhomebrew nonsense(in the form of magic items and overall tweaks to the TTRPG’s core systems) to stand out as its own thing.

Choosing what to scrap, change, and keep hasn’t been a straightforward process, however, according to Larian Studio’s co-founder Swen Vincke and design director Nick Pechenin during aretrospective panelat PAX West 2024 this weekend:

“We literally went through forums looking for homebrew rules … like the rule where you cannot cast a full action spell and a bonus action spell on the same turn,” Pechenin said. For the uninitiated, D&D’s action economy gives players movement, an action, and a bonus action. While spells that cost a bonus action to cast exist, using them traditionally locks you out of any spell more powerful than a cantrip on the same turn.

Vincke also takes a moment to joke about the homebrew rules the team experimented with in its early days: “We had our version—we said, ‘these are our homebrew rules’, and then we saw the community who didn’t agree with that. That was also an interesting moment in our careers.”

Baldurâs Gate 3: A Retrospective | PAX West 2024 - YouTubeWatch On

Baldurâs Gate 3: A Retrospective | PAX West 2024 - YouTube

I’m guilty as charged here, although in fairness, I’m glad Larian scrapped a few of those rules. For example, unlimited-cast cantrips like Firebolt would leave damaging surfaces that made them better than some 1st-level spells (which you have to spend your limited spell slots on). Hiding was also a bonus action for everyone, taking away from the rogue’s skillset. My inner rules lawyer still bristles—perish the thought!

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Pechenin adds that the team “really experimented quite a bit with it, because it’s part of D&D’s ruleset, but we just found so many problems with how it works in 3D, from a top-down camera.”

“The reaction system was put in place purely because the community really wanted it,” Pechenin explains. “That’s a really good example of what we added in early access that we really didn’t plan. We really hoped that we’d get away with not pausing the game because it’s so difficult technically—and things like sound really hate when you stop things.”

Baldur’s Gate 3 is rife with this sort of stuff—for instance, 5e’s grappling system is completely absent, replaced with bonus action shoves—but as a rules nerd myself, it’s really interesting to see the kinds of concessions and adjustments you need to make as a game designer when you have to translate a TTRPG to code. Such a thing’s bound to bring with it its own unique challenges, like figuring outhow to make the camera stop zooming on on goblin toes.

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