Baldur's Gate 3 player uncovered the chilling meaning behind the game's iconic music through cut content
When players first launch Baldur's Gate 3 and reach the character creation screen, they're asked to design the Dream Guardian – a mysterious figure who visits the protagonist in their sleep. What few people realize is that this character was originally conceived very differently and was meant to be one of the game's central elements.
A fresh wave of Reddit discussions has reminded the community about a cut character named Daisy – and just how radically the story changed between Early Access and the final release.
In the Early Access version, instead of the neutral prompt "You need a guardian," players were asked something entirely different: "Who do you dream of at night?" The character they created wasn't a protector – they were a vision of a lover pulled straight from the protagonist's subconscious.
Based on game files and recorded Early Access cutscenes, Daisy was a manifestation of the illithid tadpole inside the character's head. The parasite would take the form of the person the player desired most, using that image to seduce its host into embracing ceremorphosis.
Rather than a blunt "you need this power, just trust me" – it was a slow, intimate pull into a dream you wouldn't want to leave. The character even promised a kind of "paradise" – the victim's consciousness wouldn't be destroyed, but would remain forever in a blissful dream beside a river, while their body transformed into a mind flayer.
This is exactly what gives meaning to two of the game's most beloved songs. "Down by the River" is literally about staying in that dream forever ("Don't wake me up, just leave me dreaming"). "The Power" is about merging with another being. Both songs were written around the Daisy concept, and without her, they read as beautiful melodies missing their full context.
Player reaction to Daisy during Early Access was mixed, and that's putting it mildly. Many noted the character's outright aggressiveness – Daisy would invade personal space before players had even properly met her, and her manipulation was transparent from the very first scenes.
Down by the River:
Some fans felt the scenes produced genuine discomfort rather than any temptation to give in. Larian took the feedback to heart and reworked the concept entirely – the tadpole's manifestation gave way to the Dream Guardian, who ultimately turned out to be the Emperor, a fully realized character with his own history, motivations, and vulnerabilities.
The debate over which version is better shows no sign of dying down. Daisy's supporters argue that the concept of a parasite seducing you through the image of a lover was thematically richer and tied the mechanic of using tadpole powers to the narrative in a far more organic way.
Critics, meanwhile, point out that the specific Early Access scenes were poorly executed, and the character's cartoonish villainy gave players no reason whatsoever to trust her. Some players who skipped Early Access and unknowingly modeled their Guardian after a parent were then caught completely off guard by the romantic scenes that followed.
Notably, the name "Daisy" still remains in the files of the final game – that's how the Dream Guardian is still listed in the code. Larian didn't quietly retire the character; it replaced the entire concept while preserving the musical legacy of the original vision in the soundtrack.
