It is pretty obvious that Baldur's Gate 3 is one of the best turn-based RPGs ever made, and a big reason for that is how well it manages to translate the tabletop game into the virtual world. A lot of mechanics, elements, and ideas are faithfully recreated on-screen, giving players a chance to experience an epic campaign in a much more streamlined way that relies less on other people and more on the design of the game.
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As more players journey through the story, many have attempted to make the leap over to tabletop DnD, and hopefully, use some of their BG3 knowledge to help them. However, there are lots of differences between the two, aside from the obvious shift between the digital and real world, which results in new players thinking they know more than they actually do, leading to countless mistakes that can result in anything from a minor setback to an entire story being completely derailed.
Trusting That They Have Complete Control
They Are Called The Dungeon Master For A Reason
Details:
- DM rulings can override expectations
- Agency becomes a game of questions rather than absolutes
Baldur’s Gate 3 trains players to believe that if an action is technically possible, the game will allow it. The systems are robust, but they are still deterministic, governed by code and predefined outcomes that can be pushed to their limits, yet always exist within a closed framework.
Tabletop D&D works differently. The Dungeon Master is not a physics engine but a human arbiter with the power to reinterpret, deny, or reshape actions for narrative or balance reasons. Devising a clever plan does not guarantee success, and improvisation cuts both ways, with many situations ending in negotiation rather than an absolute outcome.
Expecting Perfect Information About Enemies
Uncertainty In Every Fight
Details:
- Knowledge about enemies is learned over time
- Health bars are often obscured
In BG3, enemies are readable entities that can be approached from afar and studied well before the actual fight starts. Health bars, resistances, and status effects are visible or easily inferred, allowing tactical decisions to be made without much guesswork at all.
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At the tabletop, information is intentionally incomplete, with enemy health being hidden, and a lot of powers being completely unknown, being replaced with visual descriptions that become the main focal point. Players must rely on deduction and in-character knowledge rather than set systems, which feeds into the core idea of role-playing and organic discovery.
Thinking Dialogue Choices Replace Skill Checks
Words Carry All The Weight
Details:
- Dialogue is entirely improvised
- Rolls support but do not replace speech
BG3 often presents dialogue as a menu of optimal responses, with highlighted options clearly tied to specific outcomes. Choosing the “right” line can bypass entire encounters without much improvisation, and even when options become unclear, players can still roughly gauge their effectiveness.
In D&D, the dialogue is a performance, not a selection of a few distinct options, and what is said matters just as much as how it is said, creating an engaging loop where the best role-players often end up with the best outcomes. Also, the rolls are there to supplement the speech rather than replace it, and even a bad one can turn out great if the players put enough into their conversation.
Misunderstanding Action Economy
Following A Stricter Rhythm
Details:
- Actions must be tracked manually
- Bonus actions aren't free
BG3’s interface makes action economy feel intuitive and natural right from the start. Bonus actions are clearly labeled and visually separated from the rest, allowing players to rely on them at all times without actively thinking about them.
At the table, action economy is far more abstract and unforgiving. Forgetting what consumes an action, bonus, or reaction is common, especially for new players, and misusing them can derail turns or invalidate plans entirely, meaning that everyone in the party needs to study up and fully understand how their skills work and when they can use them.
Assuming High Ground = Advantage
Context Matters More Than Elevation
Details:
- Advantage is situational
- Terrain is defined by the DM
BG3 heavily incentivizes verticality as the primary method for gaining advantage. High ground becomes the most optimal position in virtually every scenario, as it offers better sightlines and increased damage, and makes it a very important factor, particularly in the larger fights.
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D&D, on the other hand, treats advantage as a situational bonus rather than a guaranteed one. The benefit is not something that can be gained automatically, and instead it relies on visibility, positioning, and the decisions of the DM, meaning creative positioning must be justified narratively, not assumed mechanically.
Treating It Like A Video Game
The World That Talks Back
Details:
- Improv is expected
- Creativity reigns supreme
The world of BG3 responds predictably in a lot of ways because the game is confined by digital logic, quests, NPCs, and even the moments of chaos exist within designed boundaries that can be stretched but never fully broken.
Tabletop D&D is far more malleable, giving players the chance to think outside the box a lot more, whilst still inside the confines laid out by the DM. Many sessions boil down to a series of questions asked by the players, as they cannot simply exploit a system or find a workaround, and will instead have to come to a solution that works for both themselves and the leader of the game.
Expecting Every Problem To Have A Scripted Solution
Failures Can Be Equally Rewarding
Details:
- Not all situations are winnable
- Open-ended outcomes
BG3 rarely presents players with utterly unsolvable problems. If a quest exists, it can be completed in some way, even if the solution is obscure or difficult, which encourages players to go above and beyond in their search for answers and complex resolutions.
On the flipside, D&D embraces uncertainty and failure as absolutes within the world, as some problems have no clean solution, while others end badly despite the best efforts of the team. This directly clashes with the expectations formed by video games, but the unpredictability is actually part of the appeal that comes from the more open-ended medium in the tabletop world.
Obsessing Over Optimal Builds
Characters Aren't Math Problems
Details:
- Balance is more social than systemic
- Flavor carries a lot more weight
In BG3, players are able to do quite a lot of build optimization, turning their fairly weak characters into powerful fighters capable of taking on any threat in the world. Builds can be tested, respecced, and refined to maximize efficiency, often becoming the primary driving force for many players in the game.
When playing at the table, over-optimization can lead to a disruption in balance and a complete tonal shift away from the more communal feel of the game. Party cohesion and narrative consistency matter more than raw damage output, and a suboptimal character with strong role-playing can often contribute far more to the experience than a perfectly tuned build disconnected from the story.
Forgetting Other Players Aren’t NPCs
Agency Goes Both Ways
Details:
- Shared spotlight at all times
- Cooperation is key
While it can be played in co-op, the majority of BG3 players will go through the story at least once by themselves, being aided by companions rather than actual players. Each character is deeply reactive and intelligent, but they still remain fairly static compared to real individuals, existing to support the player and rarely challenging their decisions beyond scripted moments.
This same idea simply doesn't exist at the table, as the other players all have the same influence as one another. The party isn't a tool to be used for a selfish pursuit, but a group of equals all progressing towards the same long-term goals and helping one another reach the personal ones that arrive along the way.
Misunderstanding Rules Enforcement
Automation Is Never A Factor
Details:
- Ruling takes over rules
- Interpretation can become more important
Baldur's Gate 3 sends players to a world governed by rules that are enforced flawlessly and consistently from start to finish. Edge cases are resolved instantly, and even slight mistakes can be costly setbacks that cannot be easily swept under the rug.
In the real world, the rules are far more open to interpretation. Some may be forgotten, bent, or even made in-house for specific pacing or narrative reasons, and while a sense of consistency does exist, the enforcement is still human and flexible, so understanding that is half the battle to becoming a great D&D player.
- Franchise
- Dungeons & Dragons
- Original Release Date
- 1974
- Publisher
- Wizards of the Coast
- Designer
- E. Gary Gygax, Dave Arneson