If you’re committed to the ruse and are walking freely around the Goblin Camp in Act 1 of Baldur’s Gate 3, you’ll come across a guy named Abdirak. He spouts a lot of stuff about Loviatar and suggests you offer yourself up for some punishment. Should you face the wall and let him?
Why the heck not?
I mean, let’s not get personal here. I’m certain a subset of players went along with it because Abdirak is speaking a language they know. Oh, no, I’m not going to extrapolate on that. We don’t kink-shame here at Destructoid.
Anyhow, it’s absolutely safe to face the wall and can even work to your benefit. If you follow his instructions, Abdirak will start wailing on you, then pause to make sure you’re okay. Each time, you’re given a roll to make, usually performance or intimidation. Either is fine, just so long as you can pass it. There are also constitution rolls in there, but if you choose to take them on, you actually want to fail them.
Abdirak will give you a good smacking three times, and if you pass all the rolls (or fail them when it comes to constitution), you’ll be rewarded with Loviatar’s Love (semi) permanent bonus. This will give you a +2 on attack rolls and wisdom checks when your character is under 30% health.
However, take note that if your character dies – even if they’re immediately resurrected – your character will lose the buff. There’s some speculation this might be a bug, but I doubt it. Loviatar loves you for your willingness to accept and endure pain. If you succumb, it’s entirely possible that you’d lose favor with her.
Taking the pain is completely safe for your character because, while this will damage your character, it won’t kill them. If a blow from Abdirak would kill your character, he’ll stop and tell you to heal. As I said, the point is to endure and maybe even appreciate the pain. The guy isn’t a psychopath. He even takes you aside once all this is over, makes sure you’re all right, and tells you what a good job you did. Even when not directly referencing it, Baldur’s Gate 3 is really good at positively representing various sexual preferences.
For bonus points, bring Shadowheart along because she is totally into this. I mean, you’ll gain a lot of favor with her… because she’s into it.
