Volo is undoubtedly one of the most iconic characters from Baldur’s Gate 3. He is mainly known for his clumsy, eccentric manner and his subtly awkward eye surgery. His role in the game only represents a fraction of what is actually in the multiverse of Dungeons & Dragons behind him.
Who is Volo in Baldur’s Gate 3? Many know Volo as a quirky bard and scholar who encounters you on your journey in Baldur’s Gate 3. You meet him either first in the Emerald Grove of the Druids near the Idol of Silvanus – where he claims to be gathering material for his books – or in the Goblin camp. There, he is held captive for their amusement while he “tries to study them”.
If you rescue him there, he joins you in your camp and offers you “help” with your little larva problem, which, if you trust him, leads to the famous eye surgery. Volo is known for being very eccentric, prone to exaggerations, and generally telling many lies.
However, his role in Baldur’s Gate 3 shows little of what Volo is truly capable of. In the multiverse of Dungeons & Dragons, in which Baldur’s Gate 3 is also set, he is a significant figure who has a major influence, especially on the Forgotten Realms and the Sword Coast.
For players of Dungeons & Dragons, he is indispensable and has long become a walking meme.
Chronicler of the Realms and Collector of Stories and Trouble
What role does Volo play in Dungeons & Dragons? Volothamp Geddarm, as he is fully named, has a long and rich history in the Forgotten Realms that begins long before Baldur’s Gate 3. He first appeared in the late 1980s in D&D sourcebooks and quickly became a recurring character in novels and games.
He serves as a charming character who entertainingly explains creatures and places to players on a meta-level outside of the actual game. His trademarks are a big mouth, half-knowledge, and the unshakeable confidence to know everything – even when he often does not.
Many official sourcebooks are “from his pen,” including humorous marginal notes that characterize him as a storyteller. Many D&D players know his famous works in the “Volo’s Guide to…” series, which you can also hold in your real hands and use as sourcebooks for your campaigns.
He is considered a curious researcher and storyteller who often shoots over the target. He travels through the realms, gathering information – often firsthand, which gets him into dangerous situations – and publishes his findings. His books are known for their detail, but also for sometimes containing anecdotes, rumors, or Volo’s own exaggerations, which he is all too happy to present as facts.
This makes him a lovable but also not particularly reliable narrator of the world of the Forgotten Realms in Dungeons & Dragons. All this would, however, not be possible if he did not live unusually long despite his idiocy.
Long Life as a Chosen One of a Goddess
He owes much of his lifespan to a goddess. For Volo is one of the Chosen of the Goddess of Magic, Mystra. This means he has been blessed by the goddess herself with a portion of her power, granting him an unusually long life, a connection to the goddess, and sometimes even magical abilities or protection.
She made him one of her wards and a tool of her dogma, which is to preserve knowledge about magic and the world, due to his insatiable curiosity and endless quest for knowledge.
As a Chosen of Mystra, he has a special, albeit often complicated relationship with the goddess and her other Chosen ones, such as the legendary archmage Elminster Aumar, who often has to correct Volo’s less accurate claims. You can also meet him in Baldur’s Gate 3, if you keep your eyes open.
He is also often involved in larger cosmic events, even though he often finds himself in them more by accident or his own curiosity than through deliberate planning – like with pretty much everything that drives him and which he engages in.
Through his backstory, Volo is firmly anchored in the D&D multiverse. His friend and colleague Elminster also plays a significant role in the fabric of the Forgotten Realms. In Baldur’s Gate 3, however, he is often referred to as “the Gandalf” and some players just take him out: Players kill the Gandalf of Baldur’s Gate 3 because he gives so much EXP
