Baldur’s Gate 3 epilogue party gives the RPG of the year the send-off it deserves
When I finished and watched the epilogue of Baldur’s Gate 3 for the first time in September, I felt I’d perhaps missed something. After a magical 120+ hours of exploring the wonderful world Larian Studios had so expertly crafted, I’d come to an end that wasn’t as fulfilling as the journey.
I certainly wasn’t alone in that feeling, but with Patch 5, the epilogue party that I and others have been gnawing at the bit for is finally here. And I couldn’t be happier to jump in and enjoy it.
Initially, Baldur’s Gate 3‘s credits rolled after your destruction of the Netherbrain. But now, 6 months after the brain’s destruction, you, your companions, and other friends and fellows you’ve made throughout your adventure, have been brought together by Withers for a party. Considering there are so many variations for every companion and NPC, I can’t imagine how much work Larian must have put in for this new epilogue.
But it more than paid off. For my run, Wyll, Karlach, and I had headed off to Avernus to have a grand old time killing imps and finding a new way to fix her heart. Not only did I receive closure (and a very loose lead) about what that means for these characters in the future, but the epilogue party also helped establish what else was happening in the world of Faerûn. For me, Lae’zel is off fighting Vlaakith and her heretics. However, a new cutscene is added if you take her Vlaakith route where you can see her ascension, which is beautifully crafted but hurt my Lae’zel-loving heart in ways I won’t ever recover from. In contrast, Shadowheart has taken to live in the middle of nowhere in a cottage with 33 animals, including a protective squirrel (oh Corinna, you cad) and an imp called Bing Bong (if you know, then you know).
As for Astarion and Gale, those two have been settling down in their own unique ways. Astarion as a reluctant, albeit very-good-at-his-job hero that’s guiding the many, many spawn under his wing as best as he can, and Gale as a professor who threatens to blow himself up when his students get on his nerves. Honestly? Good for them.
I should remind you all that this was just my playthrough though, and what can happen and be said in your party epilogue will no doubt be very different (for example, Jaheira and Minsc are both missing for me) from mine. I can’t say what those changes are, but I’m sure players will spend the next month trying to see each variation themselves.
What I can say is that this short but beautiful epilogue finally gave Baldur’s Gate 3 the send-off it deserves. One of the worst things about the endings before Patch 5 was how much was left unsaid. The question ‘well, what happened to ___?’ was never answered. This epilogue party fixes that and makes my favourite RPG of this year even better.
And, dare I say, even hinted that there’s very much the potential of something more Baldur’s Gate related on the way? Speculation, of course, but a healthy, non-delusional amount at least.
Baldur’s Gate 3 is available to play now on PC, Mac, and the PS5.
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