Baldur's Gate 3 player spends hours trying to save the RPG's least death-fearing NPCs, only for them to turn on the player right at the end

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"I'm doing this for Barcus," they repeat, while getting their butt handed to them by the prisoners they just saved

The legend himself, Barcus, arms wide.
(Image credit: The Collector's Hubs)

One frustrated Baldur's Gate 3 player has taken to the game's subreddit in a flurry of heartache and confusion, having spent several hours saving every last Gondian prisoner there was to save, only to be savagely turned on right as the fight ended. And of course it all switched to infighting before they managed to hit save.

*Story spoilers for Baldur's Gate 3 ahead!*

"The Gondians yearn for the sweet release of death, and I am sorely tempted to grant it to them", says Danica170. And considering the thing that tipped them over into enemy status, I think I'd be coming to this same conclusion.

The fight in question is a notorious one. It's known among players as one of the game's most brutal tests of mettle. Unless you're a master spellslinger going in with an absolute cocktail of D&D spells - including breaking out Arcane Gate to get the Gondians to safety faster - saving all the prisoners and getting out alive yourself is no easy task.

Having seen all the whining and baying over the battle across the Baldur's Gate 3 subreddit, in posts and comments sections alike, the original poster's headline admits "I thought you guys were being dramatic.... I was wrong."

"This is my third playthrough, and I honestly never really cared about the Gondians because I didn't get most of Barcus' story," Danica170 notes, setting up the story. After delving more into his diresome storyline during this playthrough, the poster makes it clear they're "Trying to help Barcus because he's wonderful and deserves so much more."

In order to play into this newfound respect for the character, they resolve that they'll "Save all the Gondians. It can't be that hard, the subreddit wildly exaggerates Jaheira's suicidality in the Moonrise Towers fight. This'll be fine.

"It was not fine."

(Image credit: The Collector's Hubs)

Twenty tries in, having watched them "misty stepping into explosions, or taking two opportunity attacks to cast melfs acid arrow and then misty stepping 5 feet", and finally the poster appears to have done it. They've gotten through the entire fight with every Gondian mostly intact.

That's two hours of their life wasted on these ingrates, when all of a sudden one of them slips on some grease and turns on the player's party. Keep in mind this is "The same Grease that the player had "THEIR FUCKING LEADER CAST TO SAVE THEIR SORRY ASSES. And then they all aggro on me."

Several paragraphs of profanity later, the poster ends with an apology. "I'm sorry to have doubted you all. I was wrong." As such, I'll end with a little reminder to everyone to hover that quicksave button and smash it before taking a single step after a big fight. Sadly for the original poster, it's too little, too late.

Here are some general Baldur's Gate 3 tips and tricks for getting the most out of the game.

Katie Wickens
Katie Wickens
Freelance writer

Katie is a freelance writer with over 5 years experience covering everything from tabletop RPGs, to video games and tech. Besides earning a Game Art and Design degree up to Masters level, she is a designer of board games, board game workshop facilitator, and an avid TTRPG Games Master - not to mention a former Hardware Writer over at PC Gamer.