Highlights
- Baldur's Gate 3 incorporates iconic creatures from Dungeons and Dragons, such as tressyms, shadows, displacer beasts, mummy lords, hollyphants, green hags, owlbears, red dragons, spectators, and mind flayers.
- The game stays true to the source material, showcasing the unique traits and abilities of these creatures, while also adding new elements, like the ability to communicate with certain creatures using spells like "Speak With Animals."
- Players can expect exciting encounters with these creatures throughout the game, with each creature providing its own challenges and opportunities for memorable gameplay moments.
Larian's Baldur's Gate 3 takes its content, such as locations, characters, classes, and races, from the tabletop role-playing game, Dungeons and Dragons. The same goes for the diverse cast of creatures that can be encountered throughout the adventure.
The fantasy creatures that players encounter are a large part of both Baldur's Gate 3 and Dungeons and Dragons, so it comes as no surprise that Larian has included some of the most iconic beasties from their source material. The following entries are some of the creatures that are likely to delight any avid Dungeons and Dragons player when they rear their heads.
10 Tressym
The adorable winged cats called tressyms first appeared in the Dungeons and Dragons book Storm King's Thunder, and appeared later in Descent into Avernus. They are first mentioned quite early in the game, as Gale can discuss his familiar and staunch friend, Tara the tressym. She can be encountered later, on the rooftops of Baldur's Gate.
One nice change that Baldur's Gate 3 makes from its source material regarding tressyms is that, while they are still classed as monstrosities, the "Speak With Animals" spell can be used to communicate with them as if they were beasts. It's definitely nice to hear Tara's thoughts and makes it easier to convince her to stop eating important courier pigeons.
9 Shadow
There are plenty of creepy undead to be found in the various Dungeons and Dragons materials, but shadows are up there, and Baldur's Gate 3 takes these monsters and runs with them. Shadows are found in the Monster Manual and players will recognize their infamous Strength Drain ability transferred to Baldur's Gate 3.
The video game adds even more depth to the creatures, though, in the form of vestiges that the shadows leave behind after death. Players can interact with these to hear a memory from the person who died and became the shadow.
8 Displacer Beast
Also found in the Monster Manual, displacer beasts are another cat-like monstrosity that Baldur's Gate 3 players can communicate with through "Speak With Animals." A lot more sinister than tressyms, they attack with their two tentacles and are named for their ability to displace where they are standing.
In Baldur's Gate 3, a displacer beast can be found in the company of Yurgir the orthon, who she happens to be in love with. Investigating her food, players can find that she is actually being charmed by Yurgir, and she can fight him alongside players if they can convince her of this.
7 Mummy Lord
Mummy lords are one of the stronger types of undead found in the Monster Manual. The same can be said of the mummy lord in Baldur's Gate 3, Mystic Carrion. A mansion in Baldur's Gate is an unusual place to find a mummy lord, as Carrion himself acknowledges in his journal, but it is a thrill to uncover his true nature, especially for Dungeons and Dragons players familiar with mummy lords.
As with mummy lords in their source material, Baldur's Gate 3 mummy lords will return to life as long as their heart remains intact in a canopic jar. Baldur's Gate 3 turns this creature trait into its own quest.
6 Hollyphant
Found in Descent into Avernus, hollyphants are unique celestial creatures. They appear as small, golden, winged elephants, and they act as divine messengers and helpers. Valeria the hollyphant in Baldur's Gate 3 breaks away from this career path slightly.
She is a detective of questionable talent, who likes a drink in the local pleasure house. Despite this, she is still a good and holy creature, making her a target of the cult of Bhaal. Hollyphants are unique Dungeons and Dragons creatures, and Baldur's Gate 3's Valeria may have made them even more charming.
5 Green Hag
Green hags are one of the three types of hags that can be found in the Monster Manual, and the green hag within Baldur's Gate 3, Auntie Ethel, does a remarkable job of exceeding their terrifying reputations.
Many of a green hag's Dungeons and Dragons traits are displayed by Ethel, including their tendency to live in swamps, take on illusory appearances, mimic voices, revel in tragedy, and even steal children to birth new hags.
4 Owlbear
The part bear, part owl monstrosities known as owlbears have become synonymous with Dungeons and Dragons, with owlbear merchandise being quite popular, so it is no surprise that they are relatively prevalent in Baldur's Gate 3. As early as act one, players can encounter a mother owlbear and her cub in a cave.
Players can rescue the cub from a goblin camp, with the rambunctious cub becoming an ally for the rest of the game. Despite being monstrosities, players can use "Speak With Animals" to communicate with them, and druids can even Wild Shape into an owlbear.
3 Red Dragon
The TTRPG is called Dungeons and Dragons, so players are likely to expect a fair share of both. Baldur's Gate 3 delivers plenty of dungeons and also adds the occasional dragon. They are as impactful as these terrifying creatures should be. Right from the opening, Baldur's Gate 3 establishes itself as a Dungeons and Dragons game, showing githyanki riding their red dragon mounts.
Later, the red dragon mount to Kith'rak Voss can be met with terror from the player character. With the awe of these creatures established, it makes a final battle with one quite momentous. It is just a shame that players can't encounter a good-aligned metallic dragon to have a conversation with, as dragons can prove just as imposing in amicable conversation as they can in combat.
2 Spectator
Beholders are another iconic Dungeons and Dragons creature, so even seeing a lesser version, such as the spectator, can be memorable. The spectator in Baldur's Gate 3 may be one of the first combat encounters players have in the Underdark. Spectators can crop up at other points in the game too, notably in some tough Act 3 fights.
A mysterious artifact known as the Iron Flask, which can be looted from the Zhentarim chest in the gnoll cave, will also summon a spectator when opened. While it is great to see such an iconic Dungeons and Dragons creature, it is another one that may have been entertaining to converse with, at least on one occasion, as spectators in the Monster Manual are said to display interesting quirks due to countless years in isolation.
1 Mind Flayer
Given that they are an iconic Dungeons and Dragons creature, and that they are front and center to the plot of Baldur's Gate 3, it would be criminal to have any creature other than the mind flayers in the number one spot.
Disturbing aberrations, Baldur's Gate 3 is true to their stats and lore, delving into the monstrous nature of mind flayers, the hive mind pull of the elder brain, their conflict with the githyanki, and even the individual stories of outcast mind flayers.
Baldur's Gate 3 is available on PC and will be released for PlayStation 5 on September 6, 2023. A version for Xbox Series X/S is currently in development.