There’s always a first time for everything, especially if it’s a player’s first time trying Baldur’s Gate 3. Despite an action-packed plot involving a full-blown Mindflayer invasion, Baldur’s Gate 3 gives players a lot of opportunities to explore the rich world of Faerun and forge their path as they try to save themselves and the world around them. However, picking the wrong choice can have severe consequences in the long term, providing an element of risk accompanying everything they do.

RELATED: Baldur's Gate 3: Underrated Feats Players Should Get

Roleplaying enthusiasts might expect this level of depth for a D&D-based game, but newcomers may always feel pressured to pick the right choice. To avoid playing safe all the time, here are things to avoid that can ruin a player’s first Baldur’s Gate 3 playthrough.

10 Going To Conversations Without The Others

Save for some solo dialogue-locked instances, such as the encounter with True Soul Gut where she asks only the player-controlled character to talk to her, players enjoying their Baldur’s Gate 3 gameplay should try to talk to NPCs with a complete party. This way, players get a "fuller" game experience where they can see the rest of their Companions react to specific situations.

Granted, players still get unique dialogue when they talk to NPCs without certain party members. However, for first playthroughs and players who want to get the most out of their Companion dialogue (especially for relationship development), talking with a complete party makes for a more immersive experience.

9 Ignoring Parts Of The Map

With Baldur’s Gate 3 gameplay offering quite an extensive world map for players to explore, it's easy for players to get lost in the details. However, players on their first playthrough should do their due diligence and explore parts of the map they believe are covered by fog of war. Thanks to movement actions such as Jumping and even the Fly skill of most Familiars, players should be able to explore the overworld and identify points of interest.

It's easy to miss Lae'zel's cage in Act 1 should players stumble straight to Wyll near the entrance of the Emerald Grove, even if it's right above the Waypoint where Gale is found. It's also easy to miss Karlach's location should players go straight for the story missions. Likewise, players can use Familiars to scout ahead to check for potential enemies, helping players and the rest of the Companions prepare by taking note of advantageous positions.

8 Skipping Analysis Paralysis

Given its nature as an RPG with an active choice component, Baldur’s Gate 3 players may feel pressured to make "the right decisions" during their first run. And if players didn't like their initial choice, they may replay the entire cutscene to try and get a new outcome. While this is a viable way to play the game, tailor-making the "perfect" Baldur’s Gate 3 experience can ruin a playthrough by eliminating proper consequences.

Instead, players should enjoy the complete offerings of the game by fully indulging in its choice-based system. Players are free to roleplay their characters into law-abiding citizens or total forces of evil, which is made possible through the Dark Urge Origin. It's much more fulfilling for players to see the domino effect caused by their actions, as it creates a second playthrough and beyond more worth the while once players know which choices not to repeat.

7 Hesitating To Spam Camp

Camp in Baldur’s Gate 3 gameplay simulates the "downtime" experience in Dungeons & Dragons after busy encounters. Aside from being a spot for different conversations to improve relationships between Companions, Camp is also the place for Long Rests. Provided players have enough Camp Supplies, they can Camp between encounters to ensure the party is fully healed with all resources.

RELATED: Baldur's Gate 3: Tips From D&D To Use To Make Powerful Builds

With battles potentially happening at any time, hesitating to Camp can leave players quite open to ambushes with nary the capability to dish out their best attacks. However, players should be wary of this feature as Camping while having time-sensitive Quests will automatically have players fail on these missions.

6 Skipping Food Items

While players can spam Camp to get their full heals, they can only do so if they have enough rations to meet the 40 Camp Supplies requirement per Long Rest. The beginning parts of Baldur’s Gate 3 can encourage players to over-prepare for encounters by Long Resting whenever they end combat, which is a good practice. However, it's game over for players with insufficient Camp Supplies to pull off Long Rests.

Remember, many resources are only recoverable via full rests. In the face of impending combat, the lack of Spell Slots and similar resources can be lethal to a party, and recovering Camp Supplies can waste time and break immersion. Players should grab Food-like items as often as possible to avoid this mishap, as they can be converted into a set number of Camp Supplies. That way, players can breeze through combat encounters knowing they have enough Camp Supplies to sustain their progress.

5 Ignoring Action Economy

Judging actions and spells in Baldur’s Gate 3 solely by their potential damage and not thinking of Action Economy can end up with characters with few options in extended combat encounters. To avoid having limited opportunities in combat, players should have multiple options for Actions, Bonus Actions, and even Reactions whenever viable.

For instance, Warlocks who use their Bonus Action to cast Hex (Level 1 Enchantment) on an opponent can deal more damage towards them with their main Action. Likewise, healers like Cleric can use an Action to cast Cure Wounds (Level 1 Abjuration) and still have a Bonus Action to cast Shield of Faith (Level 1 Abjuration) to boost another character's AC. This way, characters don't end up using just an Action to conduct a big "maneuver" while their Bonus Actions remain relegated to mundane activities.

4 Never Split The Party

It’s a common-enough meme in D&D tables that splitting the party is a pain as encounters could surprise either sub-party at a nasty disadvantage. Such is also the case in Baldur’s Gate 3 gameplay, where a player’s four-person is built specifically to accommodate certain roles for all encounters. While certain Classes like tanky Fighters are certainly built to fight multiple opponents at once, powerful enemies such as spellcasters can easily overwhelm players who don’t have the right defenses.

RELATED: Baldur's Gate 3: NPCs From Other 5e Campaign Settings That Should Make A Cameo

To avoid these disadvantages, players are advised to keep their party together at all times. While mobile classes like the Ranger and the Rogue can serve as scouts, it’s ideal for the rest of the party to remain relatively close as backup. That way, enemies who out-surprise the player’s scout with reinforcements won’t immediately make for an impossibly-hard encounter.

3 Ending The Surprise Round At A Disadvantage

A scouting character who tries to surprise an enemy practically gets their first shot for free, but only to realize this "free shot" will cost them their current Action in the surprise round. However, even if a character can't do anything in their first turn of this surprise encounter, players shouldn't end that Baldur’s Gate 3 Companion's turn just yet.

Players should remember that only characters in battle are affected by turn-based combat, meaning other Companions can move freely provided they're nowhere near the encounter. Gamers should use this opportunity to position the rest of the party where they can hit the most enemies in a single turn. Once these vantage points are found, these characters can "join" the encounter by scoring that "free" attack before they're added to the Initiative board.

2 Forgetting Item Interactions For Attacks

Limited resources in Baldur’s Gate 3 gameplay can make playthroughs difficult for players, especially since some of the game's more powerful attacks are tied to Dungeons & Dragons Spells that cost valuable Spell Slots to pull off. However, players should remember that their attacks aren't the only way to damage opponents.

Gamers can even take advantage of poisonous spores or exploding plants, hitting them so they attack enemies instead of players doing all the work. For instance, when hit with a Fire Bolt, a well-positioned oil barrel can create a nasty explosion, transforming an otherwise single-target Spell into an AOE high-damage masterpiece.

1 Killing Merchants

Players who noticed quite the wares that merchants are packing in the Baldur’s Gate game might be tempted to kill them and loot the items they're carrying. However, Baldur’s Gate 3 players who do this make the grave mistake of not just losing an NPC they can trade with but also realizing that they're not carrying all items in their wares.

Instead, players should consider trying to steal an item from the merchant in question and then selling it to them or another merchant in exchange for coin. And then players can use that amount of Gold to purchase the actual item they need. This of course carries the risk of being caught by guards and thrown in prison - but so does the original idea of murdering the merchant in question.

Baldur’s Gate 3 is currently available for PC and is slated for a September 6, 2023 release for PlayStation 5.

MORE: Baldur's Gate 3: Advanced Tips Players Can Apply From Divinity Original Sin 2