Highlights
- Baldur’s Gate 3 includes hidden Easter eggs referencing other popular cultural milestones in the fantasy genre, such as books, TV shows, and video games.
- These references can be found throughout the game, either hidden in plain sight, obscure parts of the world, or as inside jokes for players who have played certain other games.
- Examples of Easter eggs in Baldur’s Gate 3 include references to previous companions from the old games, a tribute to the game Undertale, a literary reference to Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven, and nods to popular fantasy works like A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Avatar: The Last Airbender.
A video game as big as Baldur’s Gate 3 is going to have some familiar references to other popular cultural milestones in the fantasy genre. That includes books and TV shows along with other video games, and these Easter eggs are hidden throughout the game in a variety of creative ways.
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These references can be hidden in plain sight, obscure parts of the interactable world, or inside jokes that only those who have played certain other games would understand. A few are part of the main quest, while others are part of side quests or hidden quests.
Updated January 23, 2024, by Kristy Ambrose: It has now been nearly half a year since the launch of Baldur’s Gate 3, and the game’s popularity remains as strong as ever. As BG3’s console launches have slowly rolled out, more players have gotten their hands on 2023’s Game Awards GOTY, and in doing so, have spotted more Easter Eggs hidden throughout the world. While there are surely many more Easter Eggs still out there to be discovered, this article has been updated to feature some of the more recent discoveries.
10 Companions From Previous Games
Karlach Gave Our Joy A Voice
Jaheira is the first one the player meets on their journey, and for those in the know, the appearance of the Harpers foreshadows her arrival. When she was a companion in Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2, she was an active member of the secretive faction and there were some quests available related to their usual meddling. Karlach’s reaction to meeting Jaheira at Last Light Inn is a way of telling us how famous she is.
Other companions from the old games include Minsc the righteous Ranger, and Sarevok, a rival Bhaalspawn and also a playable character in later expansions. Players who are following Shadowheart’s storyline will meet the more obscure Viconia DeVir, a Cleric of Shar, who appears in Baldur’s Gate 2.
9 The Mirror Of Undertale
A Tribute To Another Game With A Dark Side
Undertale looks like an old game, but it was released in 2015 and designed with the classic 2D side-scrollers of the 1990s in mind. The simple look hides a sophisticated story complete with some complicated lore, and some of the scenes and sayings from the game have been named into fame.
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One of them is the dialogue prompt that comes up in Undertale when the protagonist looks in a mirror. It comes up as “Despite everything, it’s till you.” When the main character looks in a mirror in BG3, they say, “Still me, despite everything” or some close variation.
8 Quothe, The Raven
A Famous Literary Reference
Calling it Nevermore might have been too on the nose, which might be why every Raven companion in the game is named “Quothe” instead. Whether it’s a Ranger spell, the Wizard’s Find Familiar, or those Raven Gloves from He Who Was, the summoned bird always has the same name.
This is a reference to the famous poem “The Raven,” which could be the most well-known of any work by Edgar Allen Poe. Even those who don’t know the author or any of his notoriously dark work will know the lines, “Quothe the Raven, nevermore.” At one point Astarion quotes another of Poe’s works, but this time from the short story, “The Telltale Heart.”
7 The Doomhammer
The RPG That Made MMOs A Thing
Baldur’s Gate 3 has been credited with bringing CRPGs out of the fringe and into the mainstream. Two decades ago, World of Warcraft did the same thing for massively multiplayer online role-playing games, and there’s a nod to this among the weapons players can find in BG3.
The Doomhammer of Ogrim was forged in a lava pit in Draenor and was passed on through his family name until it found its way to Thrall, Warchief of the Horde. In BG3, a weapon called the Doom Hammer is available from the Goblin vendor, Grat, who’s standing near the elevated platform where Volo is performing.
It’s of Uncommon quality and gives the wielder a condition called “Edge of Terror,”” and every time they hit an enemy, they prevent them from recovering hit points. This is the Bone Chill condition, and it lasts for two turns and gives an undead target Disadvantage on attack roles.
6 Gale Of Shakespeare
References To Devils, Angels, And Fey Creatures Alike
Who knows where Gale picked any of this up, but being a Wizard and a former lover of the god Mystra might have something to do with it. Whatever the reason, this spellcaster from Waterdeep often quotes Shakespeare, and his favorite play seems to be “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”
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“What fools these mortals be” is the famous quote that Gale repeats, and it’s spoken by the fairy Puck, a servant of the fey monarch. That makes sense for Gale, who has had his own tryst with Faerun’s version of Titania.
5 Old Dialogue Snippets
Another Callback To The Other Games
Another Easter egg from the older games is hidden in the dialogue spoken by certain companions. These aren’t the conversation cut scenes, but the short bits of spoken dialogue that are triggered automatically when a player clicks on a character’s portrait or figure on the screen.
Astarion’s “Don’t touch me” is the same line that was also featured in BG1 and 2. When the main character would interact with NPCs in a more upscale neighborhood of Baldur’s Gate, the target would snarl the same thing. Karlach also has a maniacal laugh that was in the older games and Jaheira repeats some of her old lines about preferring the wilderness to the city.
4 The Cabbage Vendor
Avatar: The Last Airbender Is Also About An Adventuring Party
Fans of the beloved TV series, “Avatar: The Last Airbender” will recognize this running joke. The show featured an innocent bystander who was just trying to sell his vegetables but always getting mixed up in the Avatar’s hijinks.
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In the game, his name is Geezer Loryss, and he’s in Baldur’s Gate crying over a pile of cabbages. He complains that thieves and vandals are always causing him trouble, and he has some extra angry words for characters who happen to be Monks. Aang, the main character from AtLA would be a Monk if he appeared in D&D.
3 The Book Of The Evil Dead
Ash Should Be A Playable Character
Perhaps one of the most notorious Easter eggs in the game so far, most players will recognize that the design on the Necromany of Thay tome is the same as the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis as it appeared in the Evil Dead franchise. The book was bound in something that resembled leather and had a screaming face on the front.
In the movies, the design is just intended to be edgy, but in the game, the gaping maw has a purpose. To read further into the book, the player has to find a special gem in the sewers underneath the Blighted Village and insert it into the mouth on the book’s cover.
2 “A Smile Better Suits”
A Heartbreaking Reminder Of Tragic Endings
Haurchefant Greystone was a character in Final Fantasy 14 that has a dedicated fan following, enough to make favorites like Astarion and Lae’zel blush. He died in a canon event, and his final words were “Oh, do not look at me so. A smile better suits a hero.”
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Folk Heroes can be any class, but they tend to be Bards, Paladins, or other heroic types. For those that have customized their Tav and chose the Folk Hero as a background, or are playing Wyll’s storyline since he also has this Background, they can get this Inspiration Point by helping Alfira, the Bard, in the Druid Grove.
1 Divinity: Original Sin 2 Portraits
D:OS2 Character Portraits Hang As Artwork On Walls
Larian Studios is the gaming development company responsible for Baldur’s Gate 3, and in previous years they’ve been responsible for other successful games in the RPG genre. One of their other big hits was the Divinity: Original Sin series and, such was its popularity, that BG3 uses several of the same combat mechanics.
Shrarp-eyed players who are familiar with both games will notice that a few of the paintings that appear in BG3, either on the walls of houses or as decor in taverns and inns, feature the character portraits from the second game, Divinity: Original Sin 2. So far, players have identified depictions of the Red Prince and Fane, and checking the Examine option describes the character.
