Spiders get a bad rap, not just in real life, but in video games as well. Any cave or dungeon you delve into is bound to have spider underlings and a big spider boss at the end. People are so icked out by them that the arachnophobia filter is now a common thing in many new games, turning the eight-legged creatures into silly little blobs.
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However, not everyone hates spiders. Believe it or not, there are people who like arachnids and even keep them as pets. So, these spider lovers were overjoyed when they realised that you don’t have to kill the spiders in Baldur’s Gate 3 like in almost every other video game that features them.
Eight-Legged Hug
As pointed out by Soggyglump on the Baldur’s Gate 3 subreddit, the fact that you can actually reason with spiders, and even convince them to turn on their cruel masters, is a cause to celebrate for spider fans. “I’m a spider lover and spider owner. I love that you’re allowed to have positive interactions with some big arachnid friends. Many games just make you kill spiders.”
This was followed by other friends of arachnids to not only appreciate this fact, but share their experiences of dealing with the giant spiders in Baldur’s Gate 3. “Did you go to Grymforge yet?” asked one comment. “One of my favorite bits is being able to persuade the bad guy’s spiders to quit their jobs and go home.” Evidently, you can literally convince them to crawl back where they came from, and in turn wipe a bunch of enemies off the board without a fight.
“Yeah, my favorite thing is clearing the goblin camp and then freeing the spiders. I like the idea of those guys having the whole place to themselves,” said another reply that didn’t take well to the goblins enslaving the poor spiders. Not only did they rescue them, but also gave them a new home after clearing the camp.
I’ll admit, I had no idea that talking to them was even an option. I just went in for the fireball when their health bars showed up. However, I’ll be sure to have a word with them in my next playthrough.
Baldur’s Gate 3 is the long-awaited next chapter in the Dungeons & Dragons-based series of RPGs. Developed by Divinity creator Larian Studios, it puts you in the middle of a mind flayer invasion of Faerûn, over a century after the events of its predecessor.