One of the first things players should do in Baldur’s Gate 3 is complete the Explore the Ruins quest. This early quest objective involves exploring the depths of a mysterious ruin out in the wilderness of the Sword Coast, only a few minutes walk away from the starting area. Inside, players can practice combat, grab some useful loot, and even find an essential NPC companion.
Before delving into the game’s first dungeon, however, it’s important that you recruit a few of Baldur’s Gate 3’s companions. While the Ruins aren’t excessively dangerous, you’ll need a full party to tackle its challenging combat encounters and properly explore. Astarion, Gale, Shadowheart, and Lae’zel are all found near the Crashed Nautiloid, so you shouldn’t have too much trouble assembling an adventuring party.
How To Find The Ruins In Baldur’s Gate 3
The Overgrown Ruins are located north of the Ravaged Beach and there are a few ways you can enter.
The first way is to pick the lock on the Ancient Door near the Overgrown Ruins fast travel point. To do this, you’ll need at least one set of Thieves’ Tools and luck – cracking the lock requires you to roll a 20. This is extremely high for this point in the game.
It’s likely that only one of Baldur’s Gate 3’s Rogues or Bards will be able to pass the check due to their Sleight of Hand skill. However, if you manage to pick the lock, your party can enter a chamber in the Dank Crypt, bypassing a few early areas.
You can always save before rolling the dice and reload if you’re unsuccessful.
The second way is to enter the Chapel via the entrance directly above the Ancient Door. This doesn’t require any special rolls, but you’ll be confronted by a band of wandering bandits. Depending on your character’s skills and class, you might be able to convince them to back off.
The third and final way involves heading past the Chapel Entrance and following a short path along the cliffs to the right of the Ruins. At the end of the path, there’s a locked hatch that leads down into another chamber in the Dank Crypt.
However, picking the lock also requires you to roll a 20, so unless you’ve chosen a Dexterity-based class with Sleight of Hand, such as a Baldur’s Gate 3 Monk, then the party is better off trying the Chapel Entrance.
How To Clear Out The Bandits From The Ruins In Baldur’s Gate 3
If you’ve chosen to try the Chapel Entrance, you’ll be confronted by some bandits led by Gimblebock and Taman. Before a fight breaks out, you’ll have several options to try and convince them to walk away. You can try and Persuade (10), Deceive (12), or Intimidate them (10) into leaving. Charisma-based classes such as the Sorcerer stand a better chance of success.
Other class-specific dialogue options may be available – use them if you have any!
If you’re successful, the four treasure hunters will leave. If not, you’ll have to fight Gimblebock and Taman, who are both Fighters, and the Rogue Warryn and the Wizard Quelanna. The Fighters can be tough, but it’s worth targeting Quelanna first if possible, as her spells can do serious damage from range.
If you’re not interested in talking, shoot the Coiled Rope directly above Gimblebock and Taman. The rock will fall, killing them instantly and opening up a hole in the floor.
Once you’ve dealt with the treasure hunters, you’ll have to figure out a way into the Ruins.
How To Enter The Ruins In Baldur’s Gate 3
If you’ve shot the Coiled Rope to release the rock, you can jump straight into the ruins through the hole in the floor. This puts the party in a small side room. Be careful here, as a group of bandits is patrolling the hallway directly outside the door.
Alternatively, you can head north to find another locked door. You can pick the lock or talk to Andorn, another member of Gimblebock’s party through the door. You can talk him into letting you in, deceive him, or even trick him by mimicking Gimblebock’s voice. This uses the Performance skill, making it the perfect choice if you’re playing as a Bard.
How To Defeat The Bandits In The Ruins In Baldur’s Gate 3
By entering through the door, you’ll run into Andorn. Luckily, the sudden appearance of the party will leave him Surprised, so he won’t attack the first turn. You can take advantage of this to take him out before he can react.
In the hallway beyond, you’ll find five enemies: Haseid, Mari, Barton, Torgga, and Cefrey. They can’t be talked down, so strike first by igniting the Oil Barrel in the middle of the hallway. This should blast any nearby enemies, potentially even killing them outright. Make sure to focus on killing Haseid as soon as you can; as a Barbarian, he can deal a lot of melee damage and wipe out your weaker party members.
You can loot the bodies and explore the area, but there isn’t much to find. Head deeper inside the chapel past the statue. A successful Perception check will reveal a hidden switch. This opens the locked door in the hallway that leads to the Dank Crypt.
How To Explore The Dank Crypt In Baldur’s Gate 3
Inside the Dank Crypt, you can choose whether to go through the doors on the left or the right. The ones on the left are locked, so it’s generally recommended you go right first.
Inside, you’ll find a sarcophagus in the middle of the room. There are several Grease and Fire traps in here, which will be highlighted if you succeed passive Perception checks. You can use a Trap Disarming Kit to disarm the trap on the sarcophagus, and grab a rare spear called The Watcher’s Guide. There’s also a Key, which unlocks the doors in the previous room.
One possible approach is to use turn-based mode and have one party member attempt to open the sarcophagus. This will set off the traps, but another party member can use their turn to quickly hit the button on the pillar nearby to disarm them before the traps activate.
The other chamber has some interesting items for players to find.
The Book of Dead Gods can be found in a small room to the left. Players will have several options to break the lock on the book, including using magical skill, sheer willpower, or brute strength. If you succeed, you’ll have the chance to pass a Religion and an Investigation check in sequence to read and understand the book.
Successfully reading the book rewards you with a Scroll of Ray of Enfeeblement. Shadowheart, Gale and players with the Sage or Acolyte backgrounds will also gain Inspiration Points – a useful resource for re-rolls.
You can also discover a hidden chamber behind the statue in the middle of the room on the left. However, pressing the button will trigger a fight with four Entombed Scribes and an Entombed Warrior.
This fight can be challenging even if your party already has some of the best spells in Baldur’s Gate 3. The Scribes will frequently cast spells to damage your party members and will also use Silence. This creates a field where verbal spells can’t be cast. As such, if your chosen party composition relies heavily on spellcasting, you should target any Scribe that casts Silence to remove the field.
Afterward, enter the hidden room and interact with the Richly Adorned Sarcophagus. This releases a mysterious skeletal undead named Withers.
Recruiting Withers in Baldur’s Gate 3 is an important step for any party. Despite his intimidating appearance, he’ll actually prove very helpful. After some time, he’ll appear at your Baldur’s Gate 3 party camp and offer his services, which include character respec and resurrection of dead companions.
Franchise: Baldur’s Gate
Platform(s): macOS, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 5
Released: 2023-08-31
Developer(s): Larian Studios
Publisher(s): Larian Studios
Genre(s): RPG
Multiplayer: Larian Studios
ESRB: M
Summary: Baldur’s Gate 3 is a long-anticipated sequel to Baldur’s Gate 2, released in 2000 from BioWare and now being handled by Larian Studios. Set 120 years after the events of Shadows of Amn, Baldur’s Gate 3 puts players in the role of a customizable protagonist who has been captured and infected with a parasite that will turn them into a mind flayer. Before the process is complete, the ship they are on crashes, leaving them on a quest to cure themselves as they meet up with other survivors. Gameplay is turn-based and can be played co-operatively online or tackled alone in a single-player campaign with NPC allies.
How Long To Beat: 50 – 100 hours
Prequel: Baldur’s Gate 2
