What are Inspirational Events in Baldur's Gate 3? Inspiration & backgrounds explained
It's vital to know what Inspirational Events are in Baldur's Gate 3 in order to make the most of your playtime, as it relates to the Inspiration mechanic and backgrounds, and is one of the many parts of the game that adds depth to role-playing.
Baldur's Gate 3 is a role-playing game first, meaning a large part of the experience revolves around your choice and agency as a player. This starts the second you begin creating your character and choose your race and subrace, and continues throughout the whole game as you make choices.
Some of these choices will play into the Inspiration system, but what exactly is it, and how does it all work? Read on for an explanation of Inspiration in Baldur's Gate 3.
- Make sure you know how to find all the Baldur's Gate 3 companions at the start of the game
What is Inspiration in Baldur's Gate 3?
Inspiration is a special set of points you can earn in Baldur's Gate 3, that you can then spend to re-roll Ability Checks and Saving Throws when you fail them; it essentially acts as a second chance mechanic when your initial rolls fail.
Your player character and all your companions can earn Inspiration during the game, with each one holding a max of four Inspiration at any time. When you reach your Inspiration max, any actions you take that would have granted Inspiration, instead only grant XP.
- You may want to know what the Baldur's Gate 3 length is expected to be, so you know how long your journey could take
What are Inspirational Events in Baldur's Gate 3?
Click to enlargeBaldur's Gate 3 Inspirational Events are what earns you Inspiration. These arise when a character performs an action that's true to their selected background, granting a small amount of XP and one point of Inspiration for each relevant action.
When making your own character, you can select your own background, which determines what gives you Inspiration, whereas companions or Origins Characters have predetermined backgrounds.
Each background description directly tells you what actions will result in Inspiration events occurring, and by pressing 'P' you can open the Inspiration menu to see these for yourself and your party.
This screen also gives you a log for each character, informing you what Inspirational Events have happened and what action caused them.
Due to how strong the Baldur's Gate 3 Inspiration mechanic can be when it comes to giving you a second chance on rolls, it's a good idea to make the most of your background and role-play it effectively to earn Inspiration points.
- Check out our primer on Baldur's Gate 3 crafting to see how alchemy and equipment crafting works
What are the Inspirational Events for each background?
Click to enlargeEach background description tells you roughly what kind of actions will grant you Inspiration. We'll list all the backgrounds and what causes Inspirational Events in the table below.
| Background | Inspirational Events |
| Acolyte | Serving the gods and discovering their sacred works |
| Charlatan | Bending the truth and turning allies against each other |
| Criminal | Profiting from criminal enterprise |
| Entertainer | Preserving art and bringing joy to the hapless and downtrodden |
| Folk Hero | Saving innocents in imminent danger |
| Guild Artisan | Repairing and discovering rare crafts |
| Noble | Accumulating renown, power, and loyalty |
| Outlander | Surviving unusual hazards of the wild |
| Sage | Learning about rare lore of the world |
| Background | Inspirational Events |
| Soldier | Show smart tactics and bravery on the battlefield |
| Urchin | Using your street smarts |
That's all for our breakdown of the Baldur's Gate 3 Inspiration system, and now you know more about the game's Inspirational Events, backgrounds, and how they intersect for more role-playing opportunities.
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