Summary
- Keeping an Act 2 checklist ensures a rewarding and meaningful Act 1.
- It is possible to miss highly important side or main quests before reaching a point of no return in Baldur's Gate 3.
- Several quests continue in Act 2 and beyond, making certain quests more important than others.
Baldur's Gate 3 has no shortage of quests to find when exploring the world of Faerûn, but some that help create a more fulfilling playthrough can be easy to miss. The ability to progress into Act 2 without completing every quest, even those considered part of the main questline, doesn't make things any easier. While some quests are worth doing for the rewards, others enhance the roleplaying experience, which might be considered essential for a game based on Dungeons & Dragons 5e.
[Warning: This article contains spoilers for Baldur's Gate 3.]
The main quests in Baldur's Gate 3 have multiple options for completion, meaning that not every path will be explored in a single playthrough. Additionally, entering Act 2 means players will reach a point of no return, meaning that NPCs in Act 1 change locations, and most quests are no longer available to start or complete. Keeping track of an Act 2 checklist is a great way to facilitate a playthrough with a meaningful and rewarding Act 1, whether that's from item rewards or story content.
7 Investigate the Beach
Perhaps one of the easiest quests to miss in Act 1, "Investigate the Beach," is picked up in the Sacred Pool section of the Emerald Grove. This quest unlocks access to an area called the Dragon's Lair, and that leads to more information about Mol, a tiefling child who appears multiple times when siding with the druids. Going through with the quests from Mol also results in receiving a Ring of Protection, which provides armor and a boost to saving throws.
6 Search the Cellar
The quest "Search the Cellar" takes place in Blighted Village in the building to the left of the Waypoint, leading to discovering the Ancient Tome in Baldur's Gate 3. The cellar is filled with potions and ingredients for Alchemy, which makes it useful to explore before heading into the Goblin Camp and Shattered Sanctum. Opening the Ancient Tome leads to a small side quest involving Necromancy and a lot of Phase Spiders, but it shows the depth that can be added to the game through reading books and scrolls scattered throughout the world.
5 Find The Githyanki Crèche
Another quest for "Find a Cure," locating the githyanki crèche is suggested by Lae'zel after freeing her from the tieflings after the Nautiloid crash and recruiting her as a companion. Completing it reveals what Shadowheart's artifact is, how it's protecting the party, the situation of the Githyanki, as well as providing a glimpse into Lae'zel's past. But there are even more reasons to complete the Githyanki Crèche questline in Baldur's Gate 3.
A small amount of information about the Guardian is given depending on the choices made when confronting the Inquisitor. It's possible to lose Lae'zel as a companion, given how important this questline is to her as a character. But there's also a chance to earn the Awakened buff that turns illithid powers into Bonus Actions. As such, this questline is filled with risk and reward.
4 Save Mayrina
This questline falls under the "Find a Cure" main quest since speaking with Auntie Ethel in Emerald Grove and explaining the Mindflayer Tadpole results in her offering to try curing it using supplies she has at her house. Like "Search the Cellar," there are plenty of useful items to gather from Auntie Ethel's house, followed by a lesson in Hags, mind-controlling masks, and a possible dabble in Necromancy. Every choice for this chain has both positive and negative effects, which makes it a great example of how unexpected consequences can be in Baldur's Gate 3.
3 Hunt The Devil
"Hunt the Devil" is a Baldur's Gate 3 quest that reveals information about Wyll, and it provides the opportunity to recruit Karlach as a companion. Using the spell Speak with Dead adds another layer of intrigue to this quest, and it can help when deciding whether to side with Karlach or Anders because the information being given by the living doesn't match the information given by the dead.
To complicate matters, Karlach is the devil that Wyll is meant to kill as part of his pact with Mizora. For the best story experience, the "Save the Devil" option is highly recommended plus the rewards for killing her are lackluster at best anyway.
2 Embrace Your Potential
"Embrace Your Potential" has characters accept and use the powers offered by the mind flayer Tadpole that has taken up residence in their skulls. This quest includes finding mind flayer parasites in Baldur's Gate 3 to consume for power upgrades, and this leads to contact with the Guardian created at the start of the campaign. There's the option to deny the potential that the Tadpoles bring, however, there isn't any reward for doing so, and the game's story is arguably more interesting when the decision to embrace the parasite is chosen.
1 Save The Refugees
The biggest conflict of Act 1 revolves around the decision to save the refugees or side with the goblins to kill the druids and tieflings in an attack on Emerald Grove. Both options will allow for progression into Act 2 in Baldur's Gate 3, but choosing to save the refugees is essential in at least one playthrough to experience the fulfilling story that continues into the next act.
In addition, this is also what is considered to be the "good" option. It keeps multiple companions as part of the party, which makes for a richer game experience with more romance options and companion quests to complete moving forward compared to siding with the goblins.
Baldur's Gate 3 is full of possibilities, but it's easy to miss impactful content given how difficult it is knowing how small decisions may play out, potentially preventing some content from being explored. These are the essential quests for Act 1, filled with both story content for NPCs and useful items to keep the party strong. Both of these aspects will improve the experience of Acts 2 and 3. With so many options available to create different playthroughs in the first Act alone, it's easy to see how hundreds of hours can be put into Baldur's Gate 3.
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