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    How Baldur's Gate 3 put Dungeons & Dragons' underrated Githyanki race in the spotlight

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    By on THENEXUS
    How Baldur's Gate 3 put Dungeons & Dragons' underrated Githyanki race in the spotlight

    Set Dungeons and Dragons' Faerun, Baldur's Gate 3 includes a lot of content based on the original tabletop game. With its enormous popularity reaching far beyond those unfamiliar with pen and paper role-playing games, it was many people's first experience with the D&D game world and system, only in video game format. It might just be the closest thing to emulating a proper, planned campaign.

    Baldur's Gate 3 was praised for its customization options and the quality of Larian's translation D&D classes and races in the game. Among the playable races are the Githyanki, a less commonly used choice in other Dungeons & Dragons-based media, despite their connections to mind flayers and allies with red dragons, both creatures being some of the most iconic in the franchise. However, at the launch of Baldur's Gate 3the Githyanki get a chance to finally shine.

    Many casual Dungeons & Dragons players didn't know much about the Gith before BG3

    Baldur's Gate 3 pushes the Githyanki into public view, exposing players to lore they might not have known otherwise.

    The Githyanki are a rarer race in Dungeons and Dragons parties – being extraplanar, they don't tend to fit into many Faerûn environments. They are also not included in the old or current Player Handbookalthough they have been around for quite some time, with their first official appearance in 1981, in a revised version of 1e D&D called “Demon Folio.”

    In 5e, they are a playable race in Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse. With such a complicated history and rarely being exposed to new players, it was unfortunately inevitable that the Gith would be left to the sidelines.

    Baldur's Gate 3 There are 11 playable races, one of them being the Githyanki and the rest being the original roster of the Player's Handbook. Considering Baldur's Gate 3the plot of the player trying to get rid of a mind-eating parasite, It makes perfect sense that they would include a playable race with a history with Illithids. Mind flayers are the absolute basis of Dungeons and Dragons stories, and Baldur's Gate 3 serves as a great example of how to weave already iconic monsters into a story.

    Although still not as popular as other breeds this is undeniable Baldur's Gate 3 greatly improved the popularity of the Githyanki. Peaking around the official release date of August 2023, search terms for “Gith” and “Githyanki” (via Google Trends) are now about 4 times more popular compared to before the game's release.

    Also, even though the Githyanki were the least favored race initially, according to Baldur's Gate 3official website, its popularity soon grew throughout the year (via BG3 in X), surpassing all shorter races. In fact, Githyanki can be quite powerful and have a lot of unique dialogue, which may have encouraged players to consider giving them a chance.

    Baldur's Gate 3's story puts the Githyanki at the center

    The story of BG3 wouldn't be complete without the Githyanki

    Baldur's Gate 3 rewards the player for playing as a Githyanki in a variety of ways. The Githyanki race shines in Act 1 of the game, with some of the most unique dialogue potential. There are several items, especially those found in the Githyanki Day Care Center, that provide additional buffs if equipped by a Githyanki. The first companion players encounter, Lae'zel, also has a very different reaction to encountering a Githyanki Tav, so if players want an easier bond with Lae'zel, or want unique Gith-specific dialogue, then choose- o how your race is a tempting choice.

    Likewise, players see more of the Githyanki where they feel most comfortable, the Astral Plane, in Act 3. While the lore, history, and politics of different races in Baldur's Gate 3 can be hard to follow, the player will always have to face Githyanki warriors due to their apparent allyship with the Emperor, because The Githyanki and the mind flayers have been at war for eons, ever since the Gith broke their bondage to the illithid. Later on, whether players choose to free the Githyanki prince Orpheus or betray him is also the main focus of the game's end story.

    Briefly, there is no way for players to completely leave the Githyanki of their story. Lae'zel is one of two companions that have multiple spots where they can be recruited, and even though players will miss Lae'zel in Act 1 and the Githyanki Daycare, her story will always take her back to the Astral Prism. It's impossible for anyone to play Baldur's Gate 3 without having received any exposure to the Gith, and their queen, Vlaakith.

    Despite its focus on Githyanki, Baldur's Gate 3 is missing the other half of Gith society – The Githzerai

    Baldur's Gate 3's prominence on Githyanki overshadows a large part of Gith's lore

    Although in Baldur's Gate 3“gith” and “githyanki” are used interchangeably, the term “Gith” actually refers to two subsets of Gith – the Githyanki and the Githzerai, with the latter not being present in the game. The two are sometimes called subraces, but this must be said provisionally as they are really just two different cultures of the same species. While the Githyanki want revenge on the mind flayers for what they did to their people, the Githzerai want to move forward and focus on developing their culture outside of the past.

    The Gith are known for their cruel nature, surpassing even that of the drow, one of the most notoriously “evil” aligned societies in the world. Dungeons and Dragons. However, while the Githyanki tend to be lawful evil, the Githzerai tend to be lawful neutral. While they tend to be less inclined towards violence, the Githzerai are hardly docile beings – many of them are monks, and while they have moved away from active warfare against mind flayers, they still don't treat them very well and can be just as formidable as their counterparts. Githyanki cousins ​​- they simply prefer psychic attack over physical weaponry.

    After dividing into two groups, the Githyanki and Githzerai have become sworn enemies, raising their young to hate each other – the Githyanki see the Githzerai as traitors, while the Githzerai criticize the Githyanki for their needless violence. With that in mind, it would likely complicate the plot of Baldur's Gate 3 to include the Gith rivalry above all else.

    As the Githyanki take a more active role in condemning the Illithids, it's obvious why they were chosen over the Githzerai in BG3. However, a Githzerai Tav disguised as a Githyanki would have been a lot of fun to play with.

    “All who call themselves Gith will be united under one heaven. Ghith'ka tavkim krash'ht.” – Orpheus, “The First Protocol”

    There are a few references to the Githzerai in BG3 despite his absence. In the Mind Flayer Colony of Act 2, the “awakened mind” of a Githzerai can be found in the Necrotic Lab and can be talked to, and has different dialogue when addressing a Githyanki. In the finale, where Lae'zel joins Orpheus in rebelling against Vlaakith, it will be implied that the newly freed prince plans to repair the relationship between the Gith. Baldur's Gate 3The promotion of the Githyanki has opened up so many new ideas for tabletop players, and maybe the Githzerai too will have a chance to one day be in the spotlight.

    Sources: Google Trends, Baldur's Gate 3 Community Update #23, BaldursGate3/X

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