The Good Worms, BG3 | Running The Game

There's some cool stuff in Baldur's Gate 3. Let's steal it!
🎲 Get notified when the RPG Campaign goes live | mcdm.gg/RPG
🧠Get your copy of The Talent! | mcdm.gg/Talent
👹Flee, Mortals! Can be purchased now! Check it out here! | mcdm.gg/FleeMortals
💝 Support us on Patreon to get MCDM+ and other rewards! | mcdm.gg/patreon
📚 Enhance your game with products from our Shop | mcdm.gg/shop
🐦 Follow us on Twitter!
MCDM - / hellomcdm
Matt - / mattcolville
💬 Join the MCDM community on our official Discord | mcdm.gg/discord
#RunningTheGame #MattColville #MCDM

[@milesmanuse1569]

Babe, wake up. There's a new running the game.

[@LuchoCl93]

Exactly me right now

[@puddel9079]

Ugh, it's 11:41am, people are trying to sleep.

[@MayHugger]

@@puddel9079Sleep can wait, this is more important.

[@kevindaniel1337]

Thanks babe

[@tonimojo5859]

🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@ConFusi0n]

Truly he is a river to his people.

[@Silenc42]

Some ads seem to be muddling the river... Though he might just be his own biggest fan :) Can't really blame him. It is good stuff!

[@kylinsky]

Astarion laughing at the sick irony that the worm will eventually turn him into a monster is just an amazing character beat.

[@TheodoreMinick]

Out of the frying pan, into the Flayer.

[@JirkaKunst]

@@TheodoreMinick That joke was so painfully bad. I love it!

[@andrewmiddleton3487]

Astarion has an amazing story. I love how each of the main characters is literally like, THE main character of the story from their perspective. It's a very real way to write people and very accurate to D&D with a party of human beings who almost always think of themselves as the "main character". Critical to supporting this, every character has these specific, tailored-to-their-story moral decisions that they're put against that really force them to be either a little bit better (morally) than who they were before, or to become something much, much worse.

[@ZorroVulpes]

@@andrewmiddleton3487 you're right, maybe that's why they let you pick any of the companions to be the main character, because any of them can work as the protagonist.

[@WallySketch]

@@andrewmiddleton3487 Playing as a custom character, that annoyed me very quickly. You don't have anything, no friends, no family, your background only adds some dialogue choices, whereas the "Origin Characters" playing as NPCs in your group all behave like the protagonist.

[@JaydenBoyd]

And right when we needed him most, he returned.

[@loghead2437]

I finally reached this episode after binging him for the last month, what do I do now???

[@hayden9431]

@@loghead2437you run the game

[@kain50144]

I'm starting from video 1 again. Also yeah, play some dnd.@@loghead2437

[@brandonmichaelscott]

Matt I hope KZbin never dies, because I need to always have your videos running while I’m doing prep. It’s been a habit for the last 5 years. Thank you for what you do.

[@thatcanadianguy7699]

"I'm pretty cynical when it comes to games like this, because CRPGs tend to view writing the way the Academy Awards view acting; It's not the best, but it's definitely the *most*." THANK YOU. One thing that always drives me bonkers when discussing video games is that people will praise games with lots of writing, saying that it has "great" writing. Like, no, just because it explains something in an overly verbose way doesn't suddenly make the writing "great". It's nice to know I haven't lost my mind and there are others like me out there.

[@grimkaizer8417]

*cough* pillars of eternity

[@StarFyreXXX]

not sure that applies to academy award. people have been nominated and even won even with smaller roles/less lines. depends if the voters selected it. With art being subjective, you will never truly know why person X voted for something over something else.

[@rayganrambles]

The validation of my ideas being cooler because they are mine is something I really needed to hear. Too often I get stuck trying to make something as cool as other people's ideas and eventually give up. So thanks Matt. That bit of advice in this video has inspired me the most. ❤

[@VentureFilmsJake]

Didn’t even mention my personal favorite element of the worms- a supposedly time limiting call to adventure. Whenever the plot starts feeling convoluted and players start asking “what are we doing again?” BG3’s answer is always “get the brain worm that is threatening me out of my head”. Not only that, but there’s an implied time constraint! The players have to be adventurous and dive into the plot quickly and not just dick around because supposedly the worm will kill the players if they don’t act fast. Combined, it keeps the players focused and keeps them moving, amazing assets in a dnd campaign.

[@Bluecho4]

Absolutely. If your party has Brain Worms - or whatever you give them - it's a dial you can crank to racket the tension and remind them that the clock is ticking. Doing too many "15 minute adventuring days"? Well every time they wake up in the morning, remind them, preferably in a visceral way, that the Worm just stirred in their brain. That the shard of the Wight Lord's sword is inching ever closer to their heart. That the nightmare in their mind has eaten another precious memory, or won't let them sleep. Make this effect thematic, or mechanical. Whatever the case, their condition worsens and they become more monstrous with each passing day. Suddenly, the players will be eager to accomplish as much as they can in a day. They need to stretch out the time between long rests, because 8 hours is a lot of time to spend doing nothing while a Brain Worm is incubating inside you.

[@Cassapphic]

In the later game once the worm is put on freeze and basically openly revealed as being presently harmless until the villains are stopped, the game gives other time sensitive reasons to care and push forward.

[@MonkeyJedi99]

When I played Cyberpunk 2077, I did my full playthrough with ONLY the implants forced on the character by cutscenes. In my BG3 playthrough, I am refusing to use any of the worm abilities. - I am kind of a contrarian, and have been for over 47 years (that I have memory of).

[@foldionepapyrus3441]

@@MonkeyJedi99 I did that in cyberpunk first time around as well - though not for being contrarian, I simply chose to pretend it wasn't a video game logic situation. Which means fastest possible route to cure, no faffing around earning extra and going to the ripper. I was kind of hoping how long you take to complete the primary quest chain would matter to the endings you can get. But all it does is make the progression of your symptoms really fast while also rendering some of the new endings kinda laughable. Really feels like the 'clock ticking' on your life part of Cyberpunk was really really cut back from the initial vision... So for similar reasoning I also did the same in BG3 first time around - when they are putting so much emphasis on how these worms are eating parts of you if you ever use 'em and so potentially going to unmake you on the way to growing tentacles...

[@MonkeyJedi99]

@@foldionepapyrus3441 Yeah. I'm also the D&D player who, when the party finds a Deck of Many Things, ties the deck to a rock and drops it in a swamp.

[@btfx]

Of course Colville likes BG3! It, like Dune, is about worms.

[@TlalocTemporal]

I would Risk to propose that this is some Providence. Well, perhaps that's just Guilding the Rain.

[@dittrich04]

MCDM: Inevitable TTRPG "Fine. I'll do it myself." Picks up 2d6

[@erikeverson7812]

The brain worms also contain potassium benzoate

[@cholulahotsauce6166]

Soy lecithin

[@Xsuh]

... That's bad.

[@Bluecho4]

@@Xsuh "Can I go now?"

[@AlexaderOckham]

13:40 The "leave that in" cracked me up

[@PaulFulbright]

"Baldurs Gate sure as shit doesn't have that problem." amen! lol. You can FEEL their commitment to make a good game above all else.

[@TrairFrair]

It really drives home this feeling that the story that you are experiencing is yours. You talk to some friends about how their playthrough is going, and you hear totally different outcomes from what you're experiencing. One of your friends might have something that nobody else experienced. Because it is a rare combination of their decisions, which the developers put in there knowing that only 1% of the player base might see it! That's the sort of thing that would be considered stupid to develop by most developers. It sets this game apart.

[@andrewshandle]

The best thing DMs can steal from BG3 is the structure of the first 3 parts of Act 1. You start with a linear tutorial that teaches you some mechanics, introduced the brain worms and we meet the squid faces. The second objective is entering an area, it's a linear objective, but you can complete this objective like 5 different, distinct ways. This teaches the players there's more than one way to skin a brain worm. Third objective is when you get to the mini "quest hub" where you are pointed in no fewer than 4 different directions on how to figure out what to do with the brain worm. At this point the players are picking their own objectives, each of which with numerous ways to solve the problem. The progressive freedom players are given is just amazing.

[@Treebohr]

Ah, at last Matt gives us his "steal this from BG3" video! I'm excited.

[@tomhudson8405]

The other thing the worms do (that Matt didn't mention) is not stated outright but is clear from reading between the lines: they reset your level to 1. This might not matter to you, the random mook off the street. But Lae'Zel was a respected Githyanki Knight. Wyll was a hero defending the downtrodden for years. Karlach spent who-knows-how-long as the enforcer to one of the Lords of Hell! It's such a simple conceit, but it solves one of the most awkward problems in TTRPGs: how to have an interesting backstory, while still committing to low-level play. Now, you can have your cake and eat it too! You *were* cool, then some mind whammy happened to you, and now you're starting from the bottom again, with all the memories and connections you used to have, but none of the overwhelming power. Very neat!

[@MCXL1140]

Yep, you can be a brand new adventurer or you can have the back story that you were like. Gale basically a near Archmage. It doesn't matter. You're all on equal footing level 1, 5th edition heroes. It's a great conceit.

[@RetroToast53]

Is this actually said in game? If it's what's intended it seems a real shame that none of them talk about how powerless they suddenly are. E.g. Wyll would have to deal with expectations of being an important hero while no longer having the power to be that hero. To be honest I just figured its like Divinity though, they made characters who are supposed to be super powerful because they wanted to give them cool backstories, but also you've gotta start at level 1.

[@martinpringle2127]

​@@RetroToast53gale says it outright. That he used to be way more powerful. Own tower and a title. Karlach was a front line fighter in the blood war and wyll hunted devil's and been to avernus. Not much feind killing to be famous at level 1.

[@Xsuh]

@@RetroToast53 We do know Gale was explicitly a very powerful wizard at some time in the past, far more powerful than he is now, though he seems to blame the artifact in his chest for his current power level, rather than the worm.

[@ZePeniz]

​@@RetroToast53I actually do remember Wyll specifically mentioned to me that he had more powers before the parasite was implanted. Somewhere in Act 1

[@pkohlmeier]

Holy God I LOVE your story telling.

[@trexdrew]

You should watch his entire running the game series. I promise you won’t regret it and they’re all as good as this.

[@Lishtenbird]

5:18 This was something that really impressed me in the original Ghost in the Shell animations. Moments of cinematic "nothing", put there specifically to let you process things that just happened along with the heroes of the story; a moment for a lull before the storm, a moment to discover a new perspective, a moment that can feel real and that will make your character's experience relatable. I often miss that in modern cinema - like there's no light without shadow, there's no action without stops... and when everyone is always running, nobody is. And then it's just hard to care.

[@Seth9809]

This is why the second Bladerunner was so good

[@nickb8883]

The Japanese concept of Ma

[@Lishtenbird]

​@@Seth9809I remember thinking "this is what GitS live action should've been" after watching it. And I also remember it getting criticized for being too slow and too long...

[@Seth9809]

@@Lishtenbird Yeah and some people were insane enough to like the shitty, non-canon Dune movie that came first, and not the latest one that is way better. Same director as the second bladerunner.

[@vision_is_augmented1213]

@@Seth9809 ​ Funny, for that exact reason I liked the Lynch Dune way better than the new one. 🤷 But yeah, totally agree with GitS. Something like Cowboy Bebop is also full of it, I feel.

[@IcepersonYT]

About the level appropriate thing, another really neat detail is that they used the tadpole to justify why all of these characters are suddenly on the same power level, pretty much all of them have had their abilities reset and brought back down to an appropriate level by the tadpole. Wyll mentions this frequently, but it makes sense just in the context of characters like Karlach(who fought demons for a living) and Gale(definitely like a level 20 wizard) suddenly having to worry about goblins and intellect devourers being a real threat.

[@BoredToBoard]

The Run DND Shirt harkening back to some of the earliest videos when I remember thy shirt was in a more pristine condition - it brings a tear to my eye just noting how far we've been running together.

[@ASpaceOstrich]

I decided my custom character was a level 0 commoner before being abducted, and the worm has given him some connection to some eldritch horror, making him into a level 1 Great Old One Warlock. I decided this right at the start, and had no idea how much this video game was going to "yes, and" me with that, because I hadn't played early access and didn't know about the features that I would later encounter. There is a common sentiment amongst the playerbase that Durge is the real main character, as theres content custom tailored to them. I had more "custom tailored" content for my custom character thanks to that background choice than the Durge does. That felt like a campaign run by a GM tailored specifically to my PC. I had, completely by accident, turned the main plot into my PC's character specific plot. And it was awesome.

[@tonysladky8925]

Kidnapped and tortured by the Muppets? Matt, you weren't supposed to spoil my campaign pitch like that! Props on going above and beyond with the Morgul Knife Wound suggestion. It would have been really easy to make the undead suggestion a Vampire bite with all the powers and risks that might entail, and even an MCDM monster who could lead it, but the Morgul Knife Wound suggestion is way more interesting.

[@daltonurza]

Okay, now I have to know the "unforgivable sin" from bg3 that Matt is talking about.

[@40Found]

It's that Tav is the least interesting character in the cast. The solution is to play Dark Urge 😈

[@junderlandgames1186]

Same here I want to know

[@junderlandgames1186]

@@40Foundfair but that’s the same for most “create your own character RPGs”

[@ofrund]

@@junderlandgames1186 Except there are a lot that offer a really unique character experience for the player character. The KOTOR games come to mind.

[@andrewmiddleton3487]

@@40Found Interesting. I don't really put much on that criticism, because you can play as any of these super cool and interesting characters, or as you said, the Dark Urge, which is really the main solution. Honestly though, playing as a default Tav, while not "interesting" gives you a very pure lens from which to view the rest of the cast, and I find that valuable. For me, the biggest mistake is the ending. It's commonly understood that Larian struggles with the last acts in their games, and this is no different here. The ending doesn't feel finished, and the promises of several key decisions you've made throughout the game just end up going undelivered on. And what kills me the most is that these are simple fixes! A minor, 5 second cutscene here, a couple dialog options there. Not major script revisions, just ... tweaks. But, alas!

[@Crowmanhunter]

I didn't realize it until Matt pointed this out, but enemies inadvertently giving otherwise normal heroes a powerful tool is one of my favorite story beats and it actually appears in a lot of my favorite works. In Enslaved, your character wears a slave collar of old world ancient tech, but manages to repurpose it to let him tap into a lot of other old tech items throughout an apocalyptic wasteland. In Fire Punch, your character only has minor regeneration powers. But his village is burned down by a cultist whose power creates flames that never burn out. Thus making you into a walking wildfire wherever you go.

[@albertmartinez2539]

I see the moment by the hole, before you fall from the nautiloid, as a makeshift mirror. You have a tadpole in your head, and you see before you the mind flayer you are fated to become.

[@iPivo]

“Leave that in…” I cannot stop laughing

[@Pumpkinhead9092]

The amount of mechanics that larian homebrewed that work better than base 5e is stellar. I have already stolen and will continue to steal so many of their magic items, most of the lower tier magic items add small fun mechanics and benefits that you don't see from the dmg. I hope wizards pays attention to this success when making onednd.

[@DessieDoyle]

Baldur's Gate 3 has some AMAZING inspiration for DMs/GMs out there! I've learned so much about encounter building, map design, social encounters and so much more! It's a fantastic game in its own right, but it's also a fantastic resource for TTRPG players/DMs/GMs!

[@simracing4simpletons978]

100% agree. It's like a DM's candy store as you play through it.

[@WestOfEarth]

Agreed as well. It's a master class in DMing ;) I want to incorporate the way it uses skill checks, as well as encourage my players to use more options like jumping, shoving, etc.

[@TheKarishi]

The one huge aspect of the Worms that you didn't mention, perhaps because it seemed too obvious to you or implied by the "doesn't matter, you're in the adventure now," was that you Can't Run. There's no "hero denies the call" in this journey, because it's not a "call," or if it is it's of the kind coming from the killer already inside the house. There are a LOT of adventure hooks willing to drag you kicking and screaming INTO the inciting incident. The party at the start of Pathfinder's "Strange Aeons" campaign sees the heroes kidnapped and brain-fried by an evil cult, awakening in a prison with total amnesia regarding their former life (but with assurances that they were pretty bad people, actually). The thing is, after they escape that prison there are a reasonable number of character (or perhaps player) archetypes who might peace out; You're back to a standard fantasy game's need to talk with your players and collaboratively contrive why they'd stick around, or let that character leave and the player come up with another who'd be part of the further adventure. BG3 has no such problem. You can spend a long time - potentially the whole game - looking for ways to merely escape the problem posed by the worms so you can get back to your own life. But, well, they're worms. In your brain. With Magic Powers. There's pretty reasonable reason to believe that nothing short of god-level intervention can save you from their influence without killing you. So perhaps you go searching for just that, but then such entities want you to do a favor for them first... That dynamic can keep a party together for a whole campaign, all by itself.

[@Treebohr]

On the xenomorph egg, I assumed he was about to start talking about slaadi.

[@TheCodemasterc]

While that is a neat idea, Saladin are far to chaotic to have an organization to infiltrate while having the egg inside you...a new strain or color of slaadi corrupted by some lawful organization on the other hand...

[@Cassapphic]

That last bit about the undead cult reminded me of pointy hat's "which lich" series of undead for every class and now I want to run an undead campaign with an evil council of liches for every class ruling it.

[@jasonlasica7651]

This was also the first thing I thought of -- I'm dying just to use one of them, but turning a handful of them into their own lich former adventuring party of antagonists makes the brain synapsis fire off.

[@Cassapphic]

@@jasonlasica7651 I'm currently running dragon heist for my friends but once they finish, I'm planning out a homebrew sequel arc built around a hierarch. Using various sorcerer adjacent villains to fill out his family, theres a tournament arc with a wild magic barbarian as the reigning champion, an illusionist sheltered in the mountains by stone giants, an evil teacher etc

[@drewforchic9083]

If you make more videos about BG3, I for one would be interested to hear what choices it made that you didn’t like. Not for the sake of drama, but I’m curious how you think it could improve or what you think shouldn’t be copied.

[@zanthox]

Matt talking about a party member being an agent of the mind flayers triggers my Yoshimo PTSD.

[@sidecharacter7165]

I never did not kill him on any subsequent play through.

[@hweidigiv]

4:49 "They're called movies, folks, not explainies." Well, for awhile they were known as "talkies"... Talking being an upgrade from just moving pictures. 😂

[@eleintblood]

The dragon claw idea showed up in Scavenger's Reign. Great animated series!

[@PatheticApathetic]

That’s kind of how I flavor my dragon blood sorcerer/fighter character. His draconian power doesn’t come from lineage, but rather that his soul is bonded with a dragon’s soul due to a ritual that went wrong. Every time I take a level of sorcerer, that’s giving in to the dragon, and if it happens too much, then the dragon’s soul gets the body and the man’s soul is lost forever

[@89Dienekes]

I think once you finish the game, or you know, whenever you feel like it, it’d be interesting to hear a full rundown of parts of BG3 you think are great, and which mechanics and decisions you think are problematic or you just dislike. Anyway excellent video.

[@davrosdavros7198]

Didn’t expect to suddenly visualize Kermit in my d&d game. Also your thoughts on what would you have wanted in the game and the limitations on magic

[@cakeyjunior]

Mr. Colville I want to thank you sincerely for this series. I'm 13 sessions into DMing my first campaign and I would have been lost at sea without this River to our People. If my first time players ever start watching you're videos they'll know where I get 80% of my good ideas and get wise to the techniques I've adopted.

[@collinoswald2916]

Playing BG3 (also the best game I've ever played) after watching this channel for years had me thinking the folks at Larian must watch Running The Game. There were so many little moments that made me think of the advice from this channel.

[@bean2562]

Return of RTG! BG3 has so much for DMs to learn from and steal, 85 hours in and there always seems to be some new quest or quirk to grab and transplant into my game.

[@discosludge]

Baldur's Gate 3 is (in my opinion) required gaming for anybody interested in or already playing Dungeons and Dragons. It's elevated gameplay at our table like crazy and has made rule concepts that seemed unattainable and complicated in the abstract to run much smoother during our sessions. I love this game so much. Thanks for the video, Matt!

[@mrmattdollar7915]

One of the coolest things for me about the worms was that when you make a Tadpole ability check the DC is almost always two... TWO! The first time I saw that it was like oh, I know what's happening here. The Illithid powers are "quicker, easier, more seductive." I think that's an important part of introducing something like this in your game. Give the players something that *just works* even though they know it could slowly turn them. This is how Warlocks should work, or at least how to tempt a non-Warlock into becoming one.

[@TheKnightArgent]

Matt, I love how supporting and warm you've always been. Thanks.

[@pdubb9754]

I was on the verge of articulating this for myself. Clearly we both have the same type of worm in our brains.

[@josephallan5467]

18:20 "I should write this down" lmao i think you accidentally found your way to the plot of NWN2

[@Shjinn]

The subtle frogurt Simpsons reference was perfect.

[@donnieenfield8280]

Love everything you put out man. Never stop doing what you do 😁👍

[@nkozi]

Glad to hear praise for BG3's amazing cinematics. Larian's Cin. Anim lead, Jim Southworth, just passed a few hours before this went up. May he rest in peace!

[@xaviercarmona4439]

I don’t have a PC or a console, so I have yet to play BG3, but my brother has played it three times already and loves telling me the basic story elements or hilarious moments,yet withholding the serious spoilers. I AM using Vlaakith, though she is the bad guy in the current arc/ next arc. I run West Marches style and got a crew gathered from my new job and plan on them being prisoners on a crashing Spelljammer, so I’m glad there’s some precedent in the zeitgeist lmao. I felt like a hack but thanks for reaffirming me Matt! I truly appreciate everything you do!

[@trexdrew]

14:00 lmao Matt going full Palpetine then chuckling and saying “leave that in” is but one of many things I love about him and his channel 😂

[@Calebgoblin]

While i havent played BG3, I'm not only thankful for you parsing and delivering inspiration from it for me, But I also know the turmoil you went through with that game to do so haha. So thanks

[@teddyhoffman8391]

A BG3 video AND a running the game video!?

[@swagmomite7177]

y o u w i l l e a t t h e b u g s

[@AspelShuyin]

I got the Astral Tadpole and used Ilithid Persuasion to convince Shadowheart and Karlach to go all in on the dark powers but then I asked Astarion and his response absolutely killed me and I was like "nope, I think I'm going to stop asking". Sucks that he can't Fly, but I'm not making that boy meditate on the worm. Couldn't ask Wyll to do it either after everything he went through. Do wish it didn't make me look ugly.

[@ts25679]

Your PC's are sacrifices to the mythic beasts from which you draw your power. Once you reach the creatures lowest CR you begin a contest of wills to retain your will and remain human. Failure will advance the transformation another step until the point the beasts will overwhelms you and the beast rips free of its human egg...

[@MK-vd7hu]

I’m curious about how everyone feels about the *other* special power of the brain worms that Matt surprisingly omits here: any two people who have them can share memories - and often do so by accident when under stress. Larian uses it well, if a bit too often, as a Dramatic Misunderstanding Instant Resolution Device. But you can also cast Detect Thoughts on almost anyone in the game to get free information, at the risk of them noticing and becoming hostile. It’s a great mechanic for RP purposes, but not a mandatory one, and still has a chance to go wrong. Love that aspect. I do wish that dialogue scenes and cutscenes didn’t use it automatically quite as often, and gave me more chances to talk my way out, but it’s still used very effectively. Credit to them for that.

[@TheDuelManiacs]

Funny you mention changing the adventure to make it your own. I ran Waterdeep: Dragonheist where the twist revealed itself after the party took three long rests. They woke up right back in the Yawning Portal - with all their levels and memories, and a select few items, but every three days the loop would reset. The knot would tie, and they'd wake up back in the Yawning Portal, racing against the wizard Manshoon to find the Vault of Dragons before it's too late.

[@alberthord9527]

Back when BG3 was in pre-release, our group decided to run a relay campaign (where every player takes turns being DM for an arch) as described by Seth Scorkowski. I started as first DM and used the opening cinematic from BG3 as the intro for our group of misfits who ended up based out of Sigil at level 5. Fast forward to lvl 15, and we have a group including a Githyanki Dragon Knight, a Rakshasa, a Death Knight, a Lich, and a half-gold dragon Illithid Paladon (LG) fighting and endless swarm of demon bugs, on a field of infinite holes, looking for the portal that will let them assassinate a demon general running part of the blood war. This game has been epic.

[@lloydfromfar]

Wow... the intro stuck Matthew very hard... I remember that scene, but it didn't freeze in time and my brain as it did in Matthew's description! :O

[@Moonmiist]

After playing baldurs gate 3 I started playing dnd with my family (I’ve always wanted to play but I’m so introverted I never had the guts to walk into a game store and jump in lol) and your guides have really helped me with learning how to play and dm!! Thank you so much for all you do ❤

[@relhaz4326]

BG3 taught me that I will abandon all my morals when offered unlimited flight

[@pancakewizard1533]

As another example of a brain worm variant, you could literally rip off/tweak the OLD Baldur's Gate plot device for the same thing: The Bhaalspawn!

[@jc-uv7vq]

Second visit with Uncle Matt in like a week... Yay!

[@QuirkyEclipse]

The idea of having an agent of the enemy within is AMAZING

[@Keovar]

Slaad slugs work similarly, but for power at a high cost, there’s also the darkspawn hunters in Dragon Age. The potion that lets you sense and fight darkspawn is also going to kill you. It won’t be immediate, of course, but you’re sacrificing half your potential lifespan. A similar thing could be done with vampirism; maybe you are only half-turned, but won’t become a true leech until you kill and consume your first mortal. You can use the power you’ve already developed to destroy the monsters which did this to you, but eventually, you’ll probably loose control of yourself and become a monster too.

[@kdog005]

Matt, the revelation you had, in real time, reguarding how you would reveal from a party member... This is why you are a master of storytelling. Keep sharing your passion with the world.

[@jonothanthrace1530]

Dammit Matt, now I want Muppet Mind Flayers.

[@AspelShuyin]

The way the tadpoles give you powers outside of your race or class options is really good. Though I think the individual powers aren't great unless you get the opportunity to use them as bonus actions. I actually wanted to run a game where the players were invited to Dracula's castle or something and the players were forcibly implanted with this ancient force from before Dracula came to the land. Each town in the cursed place would have a different classic movie monster inspired villain or character (Frankenstein, Wolfman, Mummy, Creature from the Black Lagoon, etc) and each time the players defeated one of them they'd get the opportunity to choose an upgrade to their mysterious Eldritch Lovecraftian skills because each of the bosses and minibosses had similar powers to theirs. All the while Dracula would be tempting them, wanting them to take his place so that he could leave the cursed land. Sort of Curse of Strahd meets Baldur's Gate 3 meets Castlevania meets Bloodborne.

[@Grue_bait]

"The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out..."

[@JelliThePilot]

was not expecting an AC6 namedrop in a Matt Colville video, i basically howled

[@kickit246]

When you mentioned the dragon, it reminded me of Dragon's Dogma where the BBEG, the dragon, devastates a town at the beginning, then your character tries to feebly stop it, only to have your heart plucked from your chest and devoured by the dragon. But it doesn't kill you. It in fact links you to him and sets you on the path for revenge. God, there's so much more to it. Phenomenally underrated game and the second one is coming out next year, I believe. Very compelling characters and story for the most part. Gameplay as well.

[@FlyingDominion]

Here's here's an idea to add to what's presented in this video. In order to remove whatever thing is simultaneously empowering and endangering the PCs, they need to perform several longterm steps (rituals, surgeries, alchemical concoctions, all of the above) to remove it, but each time they accomplish one of the steps, they lose a power that's been granted by the thing. Now there's the dilemma of how fast to try to remove it. The powers are cool and helpful, but if they wait too long for the sake of maintaining the power, they risk missing the chance to save themselves. I recommend having the removed power be randomly chosen from among the powers they have that aren't the most recently gained one. Give them time to get accustomed to the new toy before it can be taken away.

[@centurion7398]

The first 30 seconds of this video sums up my entire relationship with Larian studios in a nutshell :)

[@rojerfaust6365]

Since Vecna is such a popular character: Vecna has returned. He took revenge on his betrayer, Kas, and reasserted his will over the blade he once wielded. Afterwards he began his unholy crusade , using shards of the sword inserted into the hearts of his victims to turn them into his greatest champions. But somehow the shard has not yet fully penetrated your heart, and you only have a matter of weeks. Once it kills you it will raise you as a something only vaguely resembling your former self and you must remove it before that happens.

[@Danmarinja]

This is how I, a Cyberpunk 2020/Red GM, feel about so much of the start of Cyberpunk 2077. Having Johnny Silverhand in your brain opens up so much of the game in fun ways.

[@123FireSnake]

16:44 why do i get the feeling that dragon's name is Gregory ;D An important addendum to stealing from good products, don't just steal from one, steal from everywhere :D

[@0num4]

Now I want a campaign where the Muppets are the bad guys. Thanks, Matt.

[@thelorax355]

There was a draconic bloodline sorcerer in the campaign Im currently running (who unfortunately had to leave for personal reasons before the conclusion of the game) who gained his power from the experimental cybernetic implants of a mad techno litch. These implants were a failed experiment because the dragon heart integrated into the core of the machine effectively had too aggressive of an immune system, so the cybernetics were slowly spreading to take over the host. The PC played it like a terminal illness slowly eating away at the PC, while feeding new strength and elemental power into his veins

[@josephprice5872]

@09:30 Without spoilers, I'm pretty sure that there are playable 3 characters without tadpoles.

[@blingkong1045]

You're forgetting the 4th secret one 👀

[@batmenic365StopMotion]

Over the course of the pandemic I ran a 5e game where the Spawn of Kyuss were invading the world, heralded and guided by the reanimated corpses of a few legendary heroes. Each of those heroes, much like the undead in this video, were in some way warped by their reanimation and were tragically aware of how their fundamental natures had been shifted towards the cause of the Worm that Walks. Pro-tip if you are going to do any of that worm infection stuff, have it target the character's HD not their HP. HD goes down faster and becomes a sort of infection timer, so no matter their level or class there is always a risk of infection. This slight modification works for vampires, werewolves, and zombies too.

[@mathewkevan5646]

For the love of god, please, please, bring this series back.

[@TheLeftHandedGuy]

Oh wow, you weren't kidding about the crowdfunding campaign for your RPG to be soon; I clicked through the link and it says it starts in like 3 weeks! Best of luck MCDM!

[@AdmiralKarelia]

For those that want a monster that can transform players but isn't an illithid, look at the Spawn of Kyuss. It can turn you into a worm infested zombie by burrowing into you. Maybe do something sort of like that, but much like the Absolute's tadpoles, these ones don't turn you right away. Maybe an Orcus cult decides to change them to make you (and many others) into a ticking time bomb and you have to work against the cult while also being its unwilling weapon.

[@Zai-kyu]

I am on my 5th playthrough of BG3, and it still blows me away how different each playthrough has been based on different choices you can make (for better or worse). You can be good, evil, in the middle somewhere, and even if you play a 2nd playthrough as a "good" character, it can STILL be very different based on choices you make. Also... Dark Urge playthrough... do it.

[@KalonOrdona2]

"the problem isn't the cult, the problem is 'I'm not in charge'." Brilliant. Every CN player ever. :P

[@CrazyKungfuGirl]

I was actually confused about the nautiloid crashing cutscenes, thanks for clearing it up 😂 I was just like:" why am I looking at this squid? Am I supposed to know who that is? Why is it just sitting there staring at me? "

[@freefall945]

Hey, glad to hear you decided to stick with it. I look forward to seeing how you review it when you reach the end, and can speak about it without fear of spoilers.

[@danjal87nl]

I am convinced that 5-10 years from now, people are still going to find "new" content within BG3 that seemingly nobody has before. Definitely two playthroughs are possible with sufficient diverging choices that they feel like largely different stories.

[@oliro]

For a second there I thought the Flee, Mortals! book in the back read Flee, Mortimer!

[@mrmuffins951]

Is anybody planning on going the dragon route, the MM says half-dragons can be born OR made. “A creature might also transform into a half-dragon as a result of a mad wizard’s spell or a ritual bath in dragon’s blood.” Maybe that ritual was only partially complete or it takes time for the transformation to take effect and the party was able to escape before it did. Either way, it sounds like a great way to move the campaign along.

[@GateKeeperPat]

My god I love Matt Colville... been watching Running the Game series for what feels like forever. Has had a direct link to the success of my several many year campaigns. Thanks Matt!

[@Chomp-Rock]

Matt's batman impression sounds like Duke Nukem 😂

[@JonEnge]

That moment when you sit there and just exchange looks with the mind flayer is a favorite of mine. I never skip it. It's just so striking a moment. Cheers, Matt!

[@sidecharacter7165]

Did make me question things when it didn’t just save itself the way Balduron saved you.

[@carlosgutierrez3918]

Now im curious what you don't like about balburs gate 3

[@stevemanart]

The Keepers from Babylon 5 have shown up in a few campaigns I've run, and my players (who are familiar with the concept) still love them. I don't use them every story, and rarely even more than two or three times a campaign. But my players always choose to enjoy the overbearing terror of those little neck octopodes.

[@anathema1828]

HOLYMACKEREL- learned so much watching this series from start to finish! Looking forward now ♥️

[@nolan1722]

“But the powers contain potassium benzoate…that’s bad”

[@Myllorelion]

Hilariously enough I started a campaign in like 2018 or so that did a lot of the same things you get into just before 3m, Matt. Planned on using Mindflayers for the big bad of the campaign, or at least 1 major arc, introduced them to one at level 1, (He even mindblasted them, but due to some incredible saves and an incredibly poor rol for Mind Blast damage, they all survived without getting downed) but I didn't have the hook built into it like the kidnapping in BG3, they just met in a literal Adventurerer's Guild.

[@donwebster9292]

Love the videos where Matt is really into the subject.