Once you start your adventure through the world of Baldur's Gate 3, you may be wondering if there's something you should've done differently or if there's anything important you may have missed. Fret not, as we'll cover some of the most important things you should do first when starting up a new adventure in BG3. However, don't be too worried if you miss things or make an uncertain choice. Sometimes the organic experience is the most authentic one.

Things to Do First in Baldur’s Gate 3

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Rescue Shadowheart from the Nautiloid

Unless you're playing as Shadowheart or are roleplaying in a way where you wouldn't rescue her, this will make the beginning portion of the game slightly easier, as you can have her in your party a bit earlier than normal. Shadowheart is a Trickery Domain Cleric who is very useful with her support spells.

Defeat the Commander to Loot the Everburn Blade

In the very beginning on the Nautiloid, you'll encounter Commander Zhalk fighting a Mind Flayer. If you defeat the Commander, you can loot his powerful Everburn Blade! As long as one of your playable characters makes it to the transponder, you should all still wind up on the beach.

To make this easier, if you start a multiplayer party of four playable characters on the Nautiloid, such as four people controlling characters, and Lae'zel is one of them, then you'll have another Githyanki named Losiir join you in the spot that would be her usual cutscene where she drops down from the ledge to talk to you. (He shows up for that cutscene if you are playing as Lae'zel from the start!)

With a starting party of four, this means that you will have 5 total in your battle with Commander Zhalk, which makes it a little easier to take him down and loot his Everburn Blade. If one of your playable characters dies during this battle, you can resurrect them. If Losiir dies, you can't. You can only resurrect a playable character.

Loot Everything on the Beach

Pick up the Thieves' Tools on the beach next to the first locked chest. Astarion can use them to pick locks, or you can if you invested in the Dexterity Ability Score and Sleight of Hand Skill.

There's a trio of dead Goblins just north of the crash. They have a couple of gold pieces and weapons, but more importantly, a supply pack. These supply enough resources to take a restorative Long Rest.

Find a Shovel to Keep in Your Inventory

Find the shovel after you land on the Ravaged Beach and keep it in your inventory. It is located a bit north of the Nautiloid wreckage and northwest of the Roadside Cliffs waypoint. You only need one shovel to share with your party, but you cannot dig up treasure from mounds of dirt you find without it.

Recruit All the Companions

Find and recruit the other Adventurers, the remaining Origin Characters you did not choose in the character creator. You'll want a robust party to not miss out on things - for example, Astarion can pick locks, Shadowheart can heal, and Lae'zel can leap across long distances. There are even more companions to find than just the Origin Characters, too, so be on the lookout.

Find Withers’ Sarcophagus

Complete the Overgrown Ruins and Dank Crypt. You can find it if you hug the beach from the starting area to the right. Eventually, you'll find a room within with a button - press it, defeat the Skeletons, and interact with the sarcophagus in the room to find Withers.

Releasing this NPC is how you unlock the ability to respec, resurrect fallen allies, and acquire Hirelings.