Baldur's gate 3's Patch 7 has tweaked the most brutal scene in the game to make it even more brutal.

In the run-up to Baldur’s Gate 3’s mondo-big Patch 7, I was curious about its change to Alfira. She is a significant side-character who gives quests. Larian said that Alfira could level up with Withers and even respec, which raised questions about her storyline, and how it intersects one of BG3’s origin paths. In short: Don't panic, she's still not a full-fledged companion. Spoilers below for Baldur's Gate 3: Act 1 and The Dark Urge.

The Dark Urge mode is my favorite. You can still customize the avatar, and even choose to play as a good guy (the "most heroic" tale in the game according to the lead writer), while seeing new or alternate scenes, and getting a personal hook in plot. The only downside is that the story gets darker in general, with a particular scene setting the tone for the entire game.

If you are playing Dark Urge, a peppy bard will during one of your Act 1 rests. Quil Grootslang is a dragonborn poet who appears in Act 3's optional dialogue. Quil is the one who has to step in if Alfira is unable to make it for her big moment.

The old mariner's trick will ensure that Quil appears at the long rest. You can make Alfira unconscious by using nonlethal attacks before the long rest which triggers her murder. She will be unavailable to the game logic and you will be sent Quil in her place. Quil is a tragic, endearing character in her own right. But you can still preserve Alfira's story and see the happy ending.

Quil's version is unchanged in Patch 7. However, Alfira has the added fake-out that she can be a fully functional companion for exactly one night. You can level Alfira, equip her with the best gear and respec her as a barbarian in Withers. But only until you finish the long rest which triggered her arrival. The Dark Urge story will continue as normal and you can still trigger Quil’s alternate scene using the same method.

This won't affect my future gameplay, but I can see it emotionally devastating a player who isn't prepared: "Oh, look, a new cool companion! Let me take the time to customize her build and equip all my best gear. I hope her questline will be cool -- dear God.

I guess those who followed the pre-Patch 7 scuttlebut got their own little fake out false hope. While it would have been a lot of work to implement Alfira as a full-fledged companion, this is not unprecedented. Halsin and Minthara were all NPCs that first appeared in Baldur's Gate 3 early access. I wonder if this was done to test the game's flexibility with regards to adding new companions, outside of the multiplayer or hirelings systems.

I may have cheated fate by making sure Quil got the bullet meant for Alfira. But I've always admired how in a game centered around wish fulfillment and playing as you please, you can't save everyone. Even the old "knock Alfira out" trick leaves blood on your hands and you contemplating a grim problem with bubbly characters and their fictional lives. Who am I to decide which bards' lives have more meaning? The power gamer in my says it's Quil, because he has a larger role in the game.