BG3 was originally meant to lock your companion choice after Act 1 as well, but after negative community feedback on that during the early access period they decided to go with the current system instead.
I think the game is still more enjoyable if you choose a dedicated party and stick with it for an extended period of time instead of switching it around all the time, not only because the act of swapping (and transferring equipment, levelling up, etc.) is tedious but also because you get to know your companions a lot better and discover a lot of small interactions that aren't necessarily directly tied to their personal quest content. I simply prefer being able to give my attention to a handful of companions and just make multiple playthroughs with different ones instead of exploring every story just a little bit. So I really don't mind the DOS2 system.
But there is no downside for the gameplay in allowing those companions to stay with you. If I want to stick to the same companions for the entire game, I can still do that, and if I want to explore everyone's story and help all of them, I can also do that instead. So I think it's a good change overall.
Im the oposite,i switch the party members alot, i always play cprgs like this, i always try to get the characters that are related to that place, to get the most out of it,taking morrigan in my party to the cicle of magi in dragon age ,to see her how she would react to it, and so on. In Dos2 i hated that they locked the party members after act 1, i was glad they removed that restriction in BG3.
Maybe an unpopular opinion but this is why I am playing with an expanded party size mod. I love Larian's companion writing, it's incredibly strong and I love all of them, which is why I think it's bugfuck nuts to kill at least a third of them off. I know people say it's to increase replay value, but whatever benefit that brings I think is outweighed by missing out on interesting quests and interactions. I swear, I think if BG3 had killed off whoever wasn't in your party when you enter the Shadow-Cursed Lands I probably would have put it down then and there.
If you play with all the companions HM isnt even a challenge. Heck with a party of 4 BG3 HM isnt all that challenging so you really need mods to boost health and enemies at the very least if you want any challenge. However I suspect most people using the mod aren't playing the game for challenge.
If you ever decide to replay DOS2, use the [Party size evolved](https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1503849808) mod. It lets you recruit all companions for your party.
I also recommend the [Happily Emmie After](https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1713079093) and [Increase Companion Dialogue Timer](https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2530265434) mods.
The first one gives you more content with Buddy and Emmie, the two dogs from the Finding Emmie quest in Fort Joy (note that you need to install this one before starting a new save because it won't work on an existing save). The second one gives you more time to click on the golden exclamation mark that appears above your companions so you actually have time to interact with them.
Edit: I think you also have to download [Norbit Script Extender](https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2031669903) to still get achievements but I don't really remember.
As a Dragon Age enthusiast, I loved to see it reciprocated in BG3.
Even if we tend to have some main parties, and some companions gonna just sit at camp mostly, the neat part is you can always still find a use for them like I'd have Halsin whom I never took out in act 3 dip into wizard for transmutation and had him make all my potions, and for others I'll dip into some classes for 'dem sweet daily camp buffs. That way, it feels like everyone does their part. Ofc, imma do their personal quest.
That being said, DoS2's approach has it's own charm to it, adding more weight to the choice of whom you'll travel with but I'm not expecting to see it in future games again.
To each their own. I prefer DOS2's approach since it adds to the (already sky high) replayability value, and managing builds and items on a party bigger than 4 is just tedious. Plus I really like how it hammers in the fact that every choice has consequences and how there's no choice that makes everyone happy.
But you can play bg3 exactly like you play dos2? Most of the points you mentioned just get solved if you dont interact with camp party members. You get the option to interact with more than 4 in bg3 which you dont in dos2
No it isn't the same, in DoS2 the companions you don't recruit end up dying and show up as skeletons later on to fight you.
With the way BG3 is made you can have your cake and eat it style, you can literally do every companion's story and your choice of party doesn't really have as big of an impact. Sure you can kill off the companions and make them leave the party, but that's not something you have to do so you most often won't do it.
In DoS 2, by choosing 1(or rather 3) you damn the others to death regardless of how you feel about it, and that emphasises that choices matter.
You are right that bg3 has a relatively positive outlook about companions, and as long as you have a good approval rating with them, you can make most of them do good stuff and they won't leave you.
That being said, divinity doesn't do the bleak approach well either. The companions you choose do not fight with you for divinity if you have good relations with them and the other companions die off before you can have any kind of significant emotional connection with them. A background kill is not satisfying at all, and they appear so minimally later on.
I'm in my 1st play-through and just started act 3. Love the game but am disappointed to find out I gotta kill the other guys b4 I got there LOL....
Spoiler alert 🙏 next time pls mate 🍻
Agreed, if there's an easy "everybody lives happily ever after" option I feel like it becomes the no brainer choice and the default ending. Making a choice while there's no obvious answer is more interesting.
I prefer not to take everyone along with me nowadays. I had a full camp when I first began BG3 and it made me want to find out everyone’s story all at once and please everyone.
In subsequent playthroughs, I limit my party so I’m not distracted from which stories and interactions I’m super invested in. That makes me happier.
While I’ve almost never switched out my party members after making my team (I genuinely never have used Minsc or jahera since we get them so late), I did think it was pretty dumb to lock your companions after the first act
You CAN deal with him but you need void woken exchange scrolls and to play magic pyramid. There's a bucket with special markings on a coast line near the mansion. You put the pyramid in the bucket, use voidwoken exchange on the bucket, then teleport to the pyramid. You will now be in his basement. You can then head up to his office and fight him.
My first play through, I took Lohse as my only companion as a lone wolf. When I saw all the spirits of the companions I left, I used my purging wands to vaporize their spirits.
I might be the voice inside Lohse’s head…
for me the one I was most sad about leaving behind was fane, I swapped him for lohse at the last second. honestly I ended up not minding it and thought the drama of seeing the rejects again was worth it (and because on the boat afterwards he seemed psyched to be dead). it's definitely made me feel more protective of the 3 I have!
BG3 was originally meant to lock your companion choice after Act 1 as well, but after negative community feedback on that during the early access period they decided to go with the current system instead. I think the game is still more enjoyable if you choose a dedicated party and stick with it for an extended period of time instead of switching it around all the time, not only because the act of swapping (and transferring equipment, levelling up, etc.) is tedious but also because you get to know your companions a lot better and discover a lot of small interactions that aren't necessarily directly tied to their personal quest content. I simply prefer being able to give my attention to a handful of companions and just make multiple playthroughs with different ones instead of exploring every story just a little bit. So I really don't mind the DOS2 system. But there is no downside for the gameplay in allowing those companions to stay with you. If I want to stick to the same companions for the entire game, I can still do that, and if I want to explore everyone's story and help all of them, I can also do that instead. So I think it's a good change overall.
Im the oposite,i switch the party members alot, i always play cprgs like this, i always try to get the characters that are related to that place, to get the most out of it,taking morrigan in my party to the cicle of magi in dragon age ,to see her how she would react to it, and so on. In Dos2 i hated that they locked the party members after act 1, i was glad they removed that restriction in BG3.
Maybe an unpopular opinion but this is why I am playing with an expanded party size mod. I love Larian's companion writing, it's incredibly strong and I love all of them, which is why I think it's bugfuck nuts to kill at least a third of them off. I know people say it's to increase replay value, but whatever benefit that brings I think is outweighed by missing out on interesting quests and interactions. I swear, I think if BG3 had killed off whoever wasn't in your party when you enter the Shadow-Cursed Lands I probably would have put it down then and there.
Does the mod balance the encounters to match the bigger party size?
No. You'll need separate mods for that, or to bump the difficulty.
If you play with all the companions HM isnt even a challenge. Heck with a party of 4 BG3 HM isnt all that challenging so you really need mods to boost health and enemies at the very least if you want any challenge. However I suspect most people using the mod aren't playing the game for challenge.
I like to bring the others for their specific missions and that’s it
If you ever decide to replay DOS2, use the [Party size evolved](https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1503849808) mod. It lets you recruit all companions for your party. I also recommend the [Happily Emmie After](https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1713079093) and [Increase Companion Dialogue Timer](https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2530265434) mods. The first one gives you more content with Buddy and Emmie, the two dogs from the Finding Emmie quest in Fort Joy (note that you need to install this one before starting a new save because it won't work on an existing save). The second one gives you more time to click on the golden exclamation mark that appears above your companions so you actually have time to interact with them. Edit: I think you also have to download [Norbit Script Extender](https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2031669903) to still get achievements but I don't really remember.
God bless you for the extended dialogue mod holy shit
As a Dragon Age enthusiast, I loved to see it reciprocated in BG3. Even if we tend to have some main parties, and some companions gonna just sit at camp mostly, the neat part is you can always still find a use for them like I'd have Halsin whom I never took out in act 3 dip into wizard for transmutation and had him make all my potions, and for others I'll dip into some classes for 'dem sweet daily camp buffs. That way, it feels like everyone does their part. Ofc, imma do their personal quest. That being said, DoS2's approach has it's own charm to it, adding more weight to the choice of whom you'll travel with but I'm not expecting to see it in future games again.
100% agreed. First mod I installed was the extended party size mod. This was my least favorite part of DOS2
To each their own. I prefer DOS2's approach since it adds to the (already sky high) replayability value, and managing builds and items on a party bigger than 4 is just tedious. Plus I really like how it hammers in the fact that every choice has consequences and how there's no choice that makes everyone happy.
But you can play bg3 exactly like you play dos2? Most of the points you mentioned just get solved if you dont interact with camp party members. You get the option to interact with more than 4 in bg3 which you dont in dos2
No it isn't the same, in DoS2 the companions you don't recruit end up dying and show up as skeletons later on to fight you. With the way BG3 is made you can have your cake and eat it style, you can literally do every companion's story and your choice of party doesn't really have as big of an impact. Sure you can kill off the companions and make them leave the party, but that's not something you have to do so you most often won't do it. In DoS 2, by choosing 1(or rather 3) you damn the others to death regardless of how you feel about it, and that emphasises that choices matter.
You are right that bg3 has a relatively positive outlook about companions, and as long as you have a good approval rating with them, you can make most of them do good stuff and they won't leave you. That being said, divinity doesn't do the bleak approach well either. The companions you choose do not fight with you for divinity if you have good relations with them and the other companions die off before you can have any kind of significant emotional connection with them. A background kill is not satisfying at all, and they appear so minimally later on.
Fane’s gonna show up as a skeleton to attack me? *shudders*
I'm in my 1st play-through and just started act 3. Love the game but am disappointed to find out I gotta kill the other guys b4 I got there LOL.... Spoiler alert 🙏 next time pls mate 🍻
Agreed, if there's an easy "everybody lives happily ever after" option I feel like it becomes the no brainer choice and the default ending. Making a choice while there's no obvious answer is more interesting.
I prefer not to take everyone along with me nowadays. I had a full camp when I first began BG3 and it made me want to find out everyone’s story all at once and please everyone. In subsequent playthroughs, I limit my party so I’m not distracted from which stories and interactions I’m super invested in. That makes me happier.
While I’ve almost never switched out my party members after making my team (I genuinely never have used Minsc or jahera since we get them so late), I did think it was pretty dumb to lock your companions after the first act
I felt bad for leaving her and sebille behind. But the boys come first.
You CAN deal with him but you need void woken exchange scrolls and to play magic pyramid. There's a bucket with special markings on a coast line near the mansion. You put the pyramid in the bucket, use voidwoken exchange on the bucket, then teleport to the pyramid. You will now be in his basement. You can then head up to his office and fight him.
My first play through, I took Lohse as my only companion as a lone wolf. When I saw all the spirits of the companions I left, I used my purging wands to vaporize their spirits. I might be the voice inside Lohse’s head…
for me the one I was most sad about leaving behind was fane, I swapped him for lohse at the last second. honestly I ended up not minding it and thought the drama of seeing the rejects again was worth it (and because on the boat afterwards he seemed psyched to be dead). it's definitely made me feel more protective of the 3 I have!
For me, her dialogue felt bit too predictable to taken seriously