Useful early items in Baldur's Gate 3 that'll grant your party the advantage

If you’re looking to give your gang of adventurers a swift boost in Baldur’s Gate 3, these early-game items can help. A little exploration (and a bit of cash spent) in the game’s opening act can equip your party with valuable magical weapons and trinkets that’ll swing both combat and ability checks in your favor.

Useful early items in Baldur’s Gate 3 Act 1

All of the Baldur's Gate 3 items below can be found in the game's first act, and most can be collected fairly early within that. Not all of them will be useful to all classes, however. To save you scouting them all out, we've included a description of each item with a recommendation for which classes they suit best. After that, you'll find a guide to the location you can grab it from.

A head’s up for new players: we’ve kept spoilers to a minimum, but expect to see some map images of the act one area below. Here’s where you need to look to grab these useful early items in Baldur’s Gate 3.

Silver Pendant

What is it?

A necklace which grants the wearer Guidance, a cantrip which offers a 1d4 boost to Ability Checks. Shadowheart has this cantrip by default, but this is a very handy trinket for those who don’t want to include her in their team and don’t have someone else with Guidance equipped. This will help swing the odds in your favor in all manner of skill checks throughout the opening act.

Location: Roadside Cliffs - atop a tall hill

You can grab this early-game Baldur’s Gate 3 item pretty much as soon as you’ve crash-landed from the nautiloid. Follow the roadside cliffs northwest and look out for this ledge on the left you can scale using a jump.

Follow the hill up to the top to possibly find an interesting conversation and definitely find a lookout point above the nautiloid crash site. Loot the skeleton by the campfire to grab the Silver Pendant with Guidance.

Amulet of Silvanus

What is it? 

A necklace which grants the wearer Lesser Restoration a level 2 Abjuration spell which cures disease, poison, paralysis, or blindness. A great boost for tricky act one encounters, especially when most of your party don’t have necklaces.

Location: Emerald Grove - on the beach. 

Once you get access to the central location of the ritual, head down the southeast path to the lower beach area. Shift the rock on the right side of the path to find the amulet underneath.

Why is such an important necklace hidden under a random rock on the beach? We’re not sure, but provided you’re sneaky about grabbing it, this useful early-game Baldur’s Gate 3 item will be put to better use about your neck.

Corellon’s Grace

What is it?

A quarterstaff which grants +2 to saving throws for unarmored wielders and +1 to attack rolls and damage for unarmed wielders. This is a fantastic weapon for wizards and monks, or other classes which don’t rely on actual armor to determine their armor class. It’s especially good for Monks making use of unarmored attacks as followups to their main strikes.

Location: Emerald Grove - sold by Auntie Ethel.

When you gain access to the druid’s grove and surrounding camp, head up to the northwest camp of tiefling refugees. Tucked in a covered area in the center is Auntie Ethel, an unusual trader with a selection of valuable items.

You can obtain Corellon’s Grace later in the game, but if you save up enough money early, it’s well worth picking it up for a few hundred gold here.

Cap of Curing

What is it?

A hat which heals for 1d6 any time the wearer inspires an ally with Bardic Inspiration. An essential pickup for any bards which will help them keep their friends alive in combat.

Location: Emerald Grove - near Alfira the tiefling bard.

After you reach the Emerald Grove (or approach it from the northeast), you can find Alfira the tiefling bard high on the hill west of the grove itself. Help or hinder her song-making efforts, then head past her to find a nice view.

To get the item we need, you'll want to find the locked gilded chest on the rear side of the stone pillar. Pick the lock however you can and the Cap of Curing will be yours.

Sword of Justice

What is it?

A powerful enchanted two-handed sword which grants the wielder Tyr’s Protection. This level 1 Abjuration spell increases the target’s AC by 2. Best of all, it can be cast once every battle – no need for short rests. It’s a fantastic weapon for heavy-hitting melee fighters or allies like Lae’zel.

Location: Risen Road - held by Anders.

Head northwest from the entrance to the Emerald Grove and you’ll be able to make your way to the Risen Road. To get there, stick right along the western path, heading past some of the Absolute’s followers until you reach a river near Scratch the dog. You’ll want to use jump to head north over the river, then travel uphill further north – either across the bloodied bridge or up the ladder on the lower path – until you reach a wooden building surrounded by dead gnolls.

Inside the former toll house you’ll meet a character called Anders. He’ll promise you the Sword of Justice if you help him with a certain task. We won’t include any spoilers here, but the end of the quest will reward you with the blade in question. Just be prepared for a bit of a tougher fight. We’d recommend being at least level 3 or higher. While you’re at the house, be sure to enter the cellar to find plenty of camp supplies and, if you grab the key from the further down the cliffside, access to a vault with plenty of money and weapons including a Greataxe +1.

Everburn Blade

What is it?

A really rad flaming two-handed sword which deals 1d4 fire damage on top of its base attack. A great weapon for fighters or Lae’zel.

Location: Nautiloid - held by Commander Zhalk.

If you’re feeling especially brave, consider testing your might against Commander Zhalk, a level 8 fiend encountered in the game’s prologue. Right at the end of the nautiloid sequence, you’ll encounter Zhalk fighting against a mindflayer in the ship’s helm. He’s a seriously tough enemy – one you’ll need some fairly lucky rolls in order to hit. But if you take him down, the sword if yours for the taking.

We’ll keep our eye out for any other valuable early-game items in Baldur’s Gate 3 and add them to this list when we find them! Give your real-life gear an upgrade by picking up the HyperX Cloud III gaming headset. With memory foam in the headband and ear cups, it'll keep you cozy and immersed throughout all your adventures in Faerûn.

Henry Stenhouse

Associate Editor

Henry Stenhouse serves an eternal punishment as the Associate Editor of AllGamers. He spent his younger life studying the laws of physics, even going so far as to complete a PhD in the subject before video games stole his soul. Confess your love of Super Smash Bros. via email at henry@moonrock.biz, or catch him on Twitter.