Baldur’s Gate 3’s Volo is secretly one of Faerun’s most important wizards

Volothamp Geddarm (Volo) is a recurring character in the vast lore of the Forgotten Realms setting, first appearing in Forgotten Realms Adventures, a companion book to the second edition of Dungeons & Dragons. Over the past thirty years, Volo has been popping up all over Faerun. He is a world-renowned sage and traveler and is often loosely involved in some of the empire’s most historical events.

Much of the manual for the original Baldur’s Gate was written from Volo’s point of view, and he also appears in-game at the Belching Dragon Tavern. He is a source of information for some quests in the game, pointing rumors in the right direction to the player. He appears in Throne of Bhaal solely to fool the player and their companions

In Baldur’s Gate 3, Volo is a source of mild entertainment for the party. He is captured by goblins while trying to find out information about the Absolute and can be rescued by the player, after which he becomes a temporary camp follower. Since Baldur’s Gate 3 is set more than a century after Throne of Bhaal, you might be wondering why Volo, a human, is still around.

Volo is crucial

This is because Volo, unbeknownst to him, is in fact an immortal being. Mystra, the goddess of magic, is responsible for maintaining the Weave, the raw energy through which magic flows. On two occasions, once during Karsus’ Folly and then again during the Spell Plague, the murder of Mystra (or Mystryl) caused the Weave to collapse, bringing unintended and devastating consequences to the planet Toril. After the Spell Plague, Ao, the planet’s creator, offered the role of Mystra to a mortal with the instruction that she spread her power to other places and beings to prevent another total magical collapse in the event of her death . The people and locations chosen by Mystra are called Weave anchors.

Yep, that was a necessary lore dump to provide context. While Mystra made some obvious choices, such as Elminster, to act as Weave anchors, these people would be obvious targets if anyone tried to collapse the Weave for a third time. To counter this, Mystra also chose some unimportant people and locations as Weave anchors as fail-safes. You probably guessed this already, but Volo is one such person, making him one of the most important magic users in Faerun. To avoid talking about his importance, Volo was never told that he was imbued with this power.

This has not made Volo a more powerful magic user, but the ‘blessing’ has occasionally saved his life, and Elminster has also occasionally intervened to save Volo due to his connection to Mystra. This is why Volo, and other individuals of short-lived races, are still alive after a century. Ed Greenwood, creator of the Forgotten Realms setting, developed the idea of ​​Weave anchors to explain why some individuals survived after the events of the Spell Plague.

So, the next time you see those goblins making fun of poor Volo, remember how important he is to nature and treat him with respect. And don’t let him touch your eyes.

Baldur’s Gate 3 is the highly anticipated next chapter in the Dungeons & Dragons-based RPG series. Developed by Divinity creator Larian Studios, it puts you at the center of a mind flayer invasion of Faerûn, more than a century after the events of its predecessor.