Summary
For the most part,Baldur’s Gate 3adheres pretty closely to the rules that governDungeons & Dragons, for better or worse. All the little irritations and frustrations that players faced in the TTRPG were lovingly carried over into Baldur’s Gate 3 byLarian Studios, including many spells that had problems of their own. Thankfully, the rules of Dungeons & Dragons can be altered, which is exactly what lead designer Jeremy Crawford is doing in the 2024 Player’s Handbook.
In a new video on the official Dungeons & Dragons YouTube channel(thanks GamesRadar), Crawford talked about all the new spells being added to the handbook, and which ones are being altered and improved. He goes into the finer details about a bunch of them, though there are two rather notable spells that appear to have been altered due to frustrations in Baldur’s Gate 3, those being Cloud of Daggers and Produce Flame.
Crawford begins bytalking about Cloud of Daggers, a spell that he found frustrating in both Dungeons & Dragons and Baldur’s Gate 3. Those who have used the spell will know that it summons - you’ll never believe this - a cloud of daggers that swirls in a circle in the specified location. Unfortunately, this spell can’t be moved once it’s set, meaning enemies can simply move away from it, rendering it kind of useless. It’s the same in Baldur’s Gate 3, though it can also be an NPC killer if you’re not careful with it.
Baldur’s Gate 3 Convinced Dungeons & Dragons To Alter Two “Excruciating” Spells
Crawford explains that the players will be able to move their deadly cloud once the 2024 Player’s Handbook drops, and then goes on to explaining how much he hates how “painful” it is to castthe Druid cantrip Produce Flamedue to its “action economy,” claiming that it was actually Baldur’s Gate 3 that convinced him to finally redesign the cantrip.
“[Produce Flame] wasexcruciatingto cast in Baldur’s Gate 3, and it was actually while playing Baldur’s Gate 3 I thought ‘we are going to redesign Produce Flame, so there will not be this much friction to cast this cantrip.’
You can check out the rest of the video to see Crawford go into how other spells have been changed, though none of his decisions have been influenced by Baldur’s Gate 3 quite so heavily. Unfortunately, it’s too late for Baldur’s Gate 3 now, as I think Larian is too busy to implement a whole new set of rules for the game’s spells, especially sincework has already begun on the studio’s next title.
