I wouldn't mind seeing BG3 be a new story dealing with the aftermath of TOB and with fresh heroes who arise from the chaos that ensued during TOB. I wouldn't want it to revolve around bhaalspawn though. Just the aftermath of what happened in TOB with new characters starting fresh.
I hate the idea that BG3 should be a new plot with new characters. That may be a great game, but it doesn't fit under the title of Baldurs Gate to me. It's like when there's a movie that has nothing to do with the book except the same names. It's just using the name to sell. I don't like it.
I could get over the idea of CHARNAME being absent. Of course, I could do with some new heroes. But if we don't see ANY characters come back, then it's just a whole new title.
Reading all of these posts, I'm starting to think Beamdog would do well to abandon the idea of "Baldur's Gate 3" and instead make a new game, with a different name.
If Baldur's Gate 3 is made it should be a prequel if you're going to go for the whole Bhaalspawn thing. If that's the case, then the story should be about Charname's mom, Alianna, and how she went from Harper to Priestess of Bhaal, and ends when she is killed. Since Alianna is a huge plot hole in ToB.
If not going for the Prequel route, then BG3, depending on what edition of DnD it is, should just be a new character exploring the same areas as Charname and what changed. New NPCs should be implemented, however, the old NPCs, if they're alive by the time this happens, then they should make a small cameo.
When you ascended, you thought you were leaving the troubles of your life behind. The pain. The loss. The joy. You thought your days would be filled with greater things, and your life would be dedicated to a greater purpose. You had plans.
The greatest plans of Gods and men do often go astray, however.
Years have passed, but not so many that the world has forgotten you. Your friends have lived, grown, died. Such trivialities are below you now. You foresaw all of this and planned accordingly.
But then... something happened that you did not expect.
All you remember is a flash. A searing white light both hot and cold, burning you. You are struck down, laid low by the force of it, and you feel yourself falling. Falling into shadow and nothing.
Your plummet into oblivion is halted by a web. A web made not of spiders silk, but the threads of the lives of those who knew you as a mortal.
A million spiders crawl over you, nipping and tearing, rending you to pieces. They consume your flesh, piece by piece, until you're nothing but bones.
The Lord of Murder has, once again, been murdered.
But the threads of those who knew you, loved you, hated you, support you now. Your blood soaks their threads and your life is inexorably bound to theirs.
A gathering of heroes takes place all across the Sword Coast, as those who knew the Bhallspawn in life come together, drawn by some inescapable urge. Some great power brings them to a circle of stones, cloaked in shadows and obscured by driving rain. They come from as far away as Rasheman. From Icewind Dale. From Sembia and Cormyr and Calimshan.
Even from the grave.
They come to witness the return of the Bhallspawn, your power drained away and your divine soul torn to ribbons, a shell of what you became. What you could be.
The skies will rain blood as your rebirth commences, and all along the Sword Coast the mortals will tremble, knowing you have returned.
The world is not as you left it, and so much has changed, but there is one thing you know for certain as you open your eyes, eyes you have not used in nearly ten years.
So you choose to stay mortal and give up your heritage. You think its all over, your power is fading, but though you live extremely long. (BG3 lets you inport your tob charname, you can walk around for 2 minutes). Viekang also knows this and finds you. He walks up to you you have a dialog and you get a scene like the Sarevok-Gorion fight (player loses control) the fight is scripted but uses the skills of you old-charnames class, when both the Bhaalspawn are near dead, a roll of the dice chooses a winner. It turns into the slayer but it is still near dead.
Before this al you created a character/party and played the prologue. After the prologue you withness the fight and have to kill the slayer (about as hard as Tarnesh/Illasera, so you will die a lot the first time )
The rest of the game follows MiBG
You can actualy read/play the first encouter with free material from WotC and its very well written.
George Ziets (NWN: Mask of the Betrayer, Project Eternity, Torment: Tides of Numenera) has a original and worth considering idea for the BG3: http://spring.me/GZiets/q/414930203056307948
This suggestion as described by Ziets is the first time that the idea of an epic level campaign as a god has even remotely appealed to me.
Anyway, I'd still prefer that, if a BG3 is ever made, it be the story of a new protagonist set in and around Baldur's Gate in the current timeline, it's quite the large and populous city these days, plenty of real estate for new adventures and occasional references to the events that took place in the original games.
Bhaalspawn saga is great but It's complete and enough tbh. I'd rather something fresh. It can be again set in Time of Troubles and may have some connections with Baldur's gate but no more advanture of the Bhaalchild to fulfill his\her fate.
I don't even like epic level play. ToB is my least favorite part of the trilogy. If a game gets made where the player character is either a god or an epic level mortal, I don't think I would like it very much.
I want to start a first level character and progress that character. So, I like both the ideas of playing descendents of the original characters (lots of epic fantasy does that, for example, The Chronicles of Narnia), or of playing totally new characters who see the effects of the Bhaalspawn Wars around the Sword Coast during their adventures. Cameos by long-lived races from the original would be good, but not as party members, because they'd be too powerful and important.
But there is so much disagreement and arguing about what BG3 could or should be, I am starting to think that it should not be made under that title, because it will alienate and make angry a big percentage of its market, no matter what direction the devs decide to take.
Maybe a franchise series of games under a title like "More Tales of the Sword Coast" would be better. Then, they could make several different games for 1-30 level characters, with lots of creative freedom to write new stories that won't make anybody mad.
The great thing about a divine level campaign is it's an excuse to completely reset the levelling scheme, as a demigod is on a completely different level from a mortal, so the normal scale of power would no longer apply. You would start as a level 1 demigod, and even your normal unadorned armor would be better than anything a mortal could possibly wear, so why have special stats attached to it?
Bg3 could be about making Cyric's life hell. Ao must have chosen him because he would be easy to control. The only aspect of the game I would have to insist on, is AD&D 2.5.
there is no point in using CHARNAME in BG3 the character goes through enough, though if you could import still the new char could be related and depending on who CHARNAME romanced depends on what race you get (and for those who romanced no one adoption kinda like gorion and CHARNAME) and then the story picks up from there. but i siad this in another topic and ill say it here *ahem*
if you even THINK of using 4th edition rules i will gut you with a cabbage *cough*
but all in all a sequel / reboot would be good for the gaming community as games have been getting easier and easier because publishers got it into their heads "easy games = good games, coddle players as much as possible" dont believe me? look at fable 2 and 3 (fable one is exempt as ive not played it) or look at even "hard core titles" mass effect, its only challenge is its tendancy to sucker punch you with instant death scenarios like getting flanked with two heavy mechs and then stunned by some guy hiding with a rocket launcher so you get shot to death...and the lack of ability to heal in ME2 (but ranting over, bed time now)
personally I would have no interest in a prequel, a side story or a divine campaign. That said I wouldn't want the story to be entirely unrelated either I think the best approach would be to have a story that is linked to the original saga in some way but which featured a new cast perhaps with one or two familiar faces popping up along the way.
Comments
I could get over the idea of CHARNAME being absent. Of course, I could do with some new heroes. But if we don't see ANY characters come back, then it's just a whole new title.
You've got that the wrong way around, it's 2/3 of the BG saga that has nothing to do with Baldur's Gate
If not going for the Prequel route, then BG3, depending on what edition of DnD it is, should just be a new character exploring the same areas as Charname and what changed. New NPCs should be implemented, however, the old NPCs, if they're alive by the time this happens, then they should make a small cameo.
That's just my thought on it.
When you ascended, you thought you were leaving the troubles of your life behind. The pain. The loss. The joy. You thought your days would be filled with greater things, and your life would be dedicated to a greater purpose. You had plans.
The greatest plans of Gods and men do often go astray, however.
Years have passed, but not so many that the world has forgotten you. Your friends have lived, grown, died. Such trivialities are below you now. You foresaw all of this and planned accordingly.
But then... something happened that you did not expect.
All you remember is a flash. A searing white light both hot and cold, burning you. You are struck down, laid low by the force of it, and you feel yourself falling. Falling into shadow and nothing.
Your plummet into oblivion is halted by a web. A web made not of spiders silk, but the threads of the lives of those who knew you as a mortal.
A million spiders crawl over you, nipping and tearing, rending you to pieces. They consume your flesh, piece by piece, until you're nothing but bones.
The Lord of Murder has, once again, been murdered.
But the threads of those who knew you, loved you, hated you, support you now. Your blood soaks their threads and your life is inexorably bound to theirs.
A gathering of heroes takes place all across the Sword Coast, as those who knew the Bhallspawn in life come together, drawn by some inescapable urge. Some great power brings them to a circle of stones, cloaked in shadows and obscured by driving rain. They come from as far away as Rasheman. From Icewind Dale. From Sembia and Cormyr and Calimshan.
Even from the grave.
They come to witness the return of the Bhallspawn, your power drained away and your divine soul torn to ribbons, a shell of what you became. What you could be.
The skies will rain blood as your rebirth commences, and all along the Sword Coast the mortals will tremble, knowing you have returned.
The world is not as you left it, and so much has changed, but there is one thing you know for certain as you open your eyes, eyes you have not used in nearly ten years.
The world has need of you once more.
Murder in Baldur’s gate (PnP) is a perfect start for BG3. http://www.wizards.com/dnd/Product.aspx?x=dnd/products/dndacc/45370000
I don't understand what you guys don't like about this ending for Charname. IF you want BG 3 this is the only way (I think). You can't become a God because off lore (PnP books). A LG paladin god of Murder, yeah right :S.
So you choose to stay mortal and give up your heritage. You think its all over, your power is fading, but though you live extremely long. (BG3 lets you inport your tob charname, you can walk around for 2 minutes). Viekang also knows this and finds you. He walks up to you you have a dialog and you get a scene like the Sarevok-Gorion fight (player loses control) the fight is scripted but uses the skills of you old-charnames class, when both the Bhaalspawn are near dead, a roll of the dice chooses a winner. It turns into the slayer but it is still near dead.
Before this al you created a character/party and played the prologue. After the prologue you withness the fight and have to kill the slayer (about as hard as Tarnesh/Illasera, so you will die a lot the first time
The rest of the game follows MiBG
You can actualy read/play the first encouter with free material from WotC and its very well written.
Anyway, I'd still prefer that, if a BG3 is ever made, it be the story of a new protagonist set in and around Baldur's Gate in the current timeline, it's quite the large and populous city these days, plenty of real estate for new adventures and occasional references to the events that took place in the original games.
I'd rather something fresh. It can be again set in Time of Troubles and may have some connections with Baldur's gate but no more advanture of the Bhaalchild to fulfill his\her fate.
I want to start a first level character and progress that character. So, I like both the ideas of playing descendents of the original characters (lots of epic fantasy does that, for example, The Chronicles of Narnia), or of playing totally new characters who see the effects of the Bhaalspawn Wars around the Sword Coast during their adventures. Cameos by long-lived races from the original would be good, but not as party members, because they'd be too powerful and important.
But there is so much disagreement and arguing about what BG3 could or should be, I am starting to think that it should not be made under that title, because it will alienate and make angry a big percentage of its market, no matter what direction the devs decide to take.
Maybe a franchise series of games under a title like "More Tales of the Sword Coast" would be better. Then, they could make several different games for 1-30 level characters, with lots of creative freedom to write new stories that won't make anybody mad.
if you even THINK of using 4th edition rules i will gut you with a cabbage *cough*
but all in all a sequel / reboot would be good for the gaming community as games have been getting easier and easier because publishers got it into their heads "easy games = good games, coddle players as much as possible" dont believe me? look at fable 2 and 3 (fable one is exempt as ive not played it) or look at even "hard core titles" mass effect, its only challenge is its tendancy to sucker punch you with instant death scenarios like getting flanked with two heavy mechs and then stunned by some guy hiding with a rocket launcher so you get shot to death...and the lack of ability to heal in ME2 (but ranting over, bed time now)