Villainpedia: Sarevok Anchev 

Somehow, Sarevok returned

Hi, long time Sarevok fan here. I feel there should be an addendum here about Larian's Implementation of Sarevok. The inclusion of Sarevok isn't very random, nor is his return to evil. Between the launch of Fifth Edition D&D and Larian's BG3 many supplemental books were released, namely "Minsc and Boos Journal of Villainy" in 2021 which is sadly accepted into Forgotten Realms Canon. This book is pretty controversial with old school Baldur's Gate fans due to it's slapshod continuation of these famous characters, Sarevok being one of them. Stripped of any second chance or redemption he went into a depression and became a poor beggar, in which the revived Bhaal recruited him back into the murderous fold. I think Larian's use of Sarevok is their subtle attempt to close the book on this famous villain, in a less abused way. If you would like to read more you can see the BG1-BG2 canon being destroyed on page 125 of the book. You can also read up on other characters from BG1/2 that had their canon screwed up in the book as well.

Learning that Sarevok is an adaptation of a character from just a normal D&D campaign played with some friends is the most oddly heartwarming thing.

Could you imagine a Sarevok who is actually on your side and good trying to help the dark urge through his urges trying to be a good brother like you were to him in BG2 remember how we cared for him back then and him swearing to guide you on the right path or kill you before you can fall. I like to think that would be an amazing story line.

Man, Black Isle used whatever clout they had to keep the most badass VA on that they could. Him voicing the Enclave soldier you prank call is still fucking hilarious.

My personal head canon for bg3 is [spoilers for a dark urge play through] in act 3 if you stand against Bhaal he kills Durge. Withers then mentions that technically Bhaal can only take back what he gave, freeing you of the curse of Bhaal. I think something similar happened with Sarevok. Where Bhaal needed Orin to be born so brought Sarevok back as he was the most successful Bhaal spawn for his plan. Thing is, Bhaal only has the urge part of Sarevok, not the whole thing. Meaning this modern Sarevok is just the aspect devoted to Bhaal. Just a head canon tho

Ah Sarevok. The first time I ever played BG1 and got to that final battle, both me and him were killed because we failed a save roll from one of his mages spells. The game over played, I reloaded and then the final cutscene played with my character surviving. Got to love old coding sometimes.

Wow, i never played baldur's gate one or two, so this deeply changes my thought on Sarevok in bg3. When i came across him, he just seems like a cool wrestlemania villain. Now I get some of the comments down here.

Dude look at this dude Sarevok, he has all them resistances and still gets bounced by magic missile

11:45 “So who knows how many babies were apart of this…” Well, if you count the columns at the end of Baldur’s Gate 1 that has all the statues of Bhaalspawn, you’ll see they’re 18 around in a circle, and the game’s scene ends before you can see how many stories they extend upward, although you can make out a minimum of 20 stories high. And since 18 times 20 is 360, we know there were AT LEAST 360 children of Bhaal before Sarevok got the first kill in the prologue to Baldur’s Gate 1. And yes, there MIGHT have been more, but the ending cutscene fades before the camera can pan higher, so we don’t know if there were more than 20 flights of statue columns hidden below the underground temple where the final boss fight against Sarevok takes place. I should also mention that this is for the original version of the game with the old late 90’s CGI. The enhanced edition doesn’t conform to small details of the original.

Never played BG1 or did I know the history of Sarevok. But when I stepped into that tribunal and heard his voice for the first time and then heard his and Jaheria’s shared history, I knew there was something more to him and I thought that was pretty cool.

Oh yeah, Sarevok, one of my favorite villains. I remember when i was a kid, and i first played the game, and i met Koveras.

this game shocked me as a 15 year old. I bought it because my computer sucked and it was cheap but oh man I didn't expect this, BG1 opened my eyes for old games and along with portal games it's still the most special experience I've had in gaming

Kevin Michael Richardson was the god of fire in Sacrifice, a game with some serious voice acting elites behind it. Makes sense, since his performance as Sarevok is godly as well.

Props to Ghostcharm for saying Baalspawn so often without laughing. 👏 👏 👏

Thank you for this video. I love Sarevok. I'm glad to see he's become a sort of Legacy character for D&D games, like Minsc, Boo, and Jaheira. The first two games (and their respective expansions) were well played and well delved. They stayed a part of my gaming rotation for years. Thanks for the nostalgia rush. For the next video (or at least a future video), how about Jon Irenecus, the foe from Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn? Whomever you choose, keep up the good work!

I'm writing a paper on the legacy of Frankenstein for one of my classes and I'm using your Frank Horrigan and GLaDOS videos as two of my sources with my professor's blessing. Strange world eh?

savory anchovy seems like an alright guy

Wizards basically took a huge dump on BG2 with the supplemental book called Minsc and Boo's Journal of Villainy. They made Sarevok a homeless drug addict. That's why he's back to serving Bhaal even though it makes no sense since he specifically said that he no longer had any of Bhaal's essence in Throne of Bhaal. But Wizards didn't just screw up Sarevok. They brought back Irenicus and Bodhi. Irenicus is now a lich. Imoen is a leader in the Shadow Thieves and she was turned into a vampire by Bodhi. The book just had a bunch of stuff that didn't make sense. Like how Sarevok was recruited by Bhaal but Bhaal wasn't resurrected until about 100 years after Throne of Bhaal. And they said that Irenicus and Bodhi learned how to steal godly essence from the Shadowfell which led to the events of BG2, but the Shadowfell didn't even exist during BG2.

Villanpedia is my absolute favorite of your series 😊 Always stoked to see a new one pop up

Sarevok failed because he didn't have the power of friendship.

1:00 hey!! That's from one of my build guides!! It's an honor to be included in such a great Lore video brother :D I was in bed watching this and was like man that looks like - HEY IT ME!!!

It seems like well-handled dialog could have covered that gap well. Like he spent all that second life seeking purpose and never finding it, loving and losing and conquering and exploring, but never having the satisfaction of a clear personal desire or achievement. Then he gets word that his father is reborn, and all that long fatigue and desperation collapses in on him and his will finally breaks. He gives up on finding a purpose of his own and submits himself to Bhaal, sacrificing his freedom in return for purpose as custodian. Make it a clear tragic end, at least.

I remember the first time I encountered Sarevok. It was 1997, and for years he became the most elusive and difficult villain. It took 2 iterations of the first game with Tales of the Sword Coast and then the Enhanced Edition before I finally mustered the know-how to beat the first game. I love everything Baldur's Gate has given me over the last 30 years. I love BG3, but nothing will have a grip over me like the first game. The music, the story, being just a kid discovering your first Forgotten Realms story, it becomes very personal as you dive into this world of magic and monsters.

Have only played BG3 and even there he was interesting enough to read into his bio and his previous games appearances. Thanks for the video

Ao going "Ayo-!" was the best thing I heard today. Thanks.

Great story telling. I’m driving from California to Minnesota for Christmas by myself and I’ve been putting videos into playlists. ADDED MATE 💯💯💯💯👍🏽

Sarevok has always been a favorite of mine, and I was also a bit skeptical of his inclusion in bg3. Not sure if he's already in the Villainpedia pipeline, but Jon Irenicus for a followup would be an amazing go! Legendary voicework by David Warner (Morpheus from Fallout 1 as well!), and quite a backstory and evil gameplan!

47:58 Great video as usual! I'm super happy to see Sarevok being added to the Villainpedia. Just a small correction to a detail that doesn't concern Sarevok specifically, that being that Amelyssan wasn't a Bhaalspawn, though she's certainly up to no good as you pointed out. She's a former high priestess of Bhaal, the one follower that the God of Murder trusted the most.

Man I just love your videos, you have such a unique style of commentary that I haven't seen anyone else do in the lore scene here on youtube. I got hooked on your dark souls videos but then I started watching all your other stuff aswell and at this point i've watched basically everything you put up on your channel in the span of a few weeks😄Keep up the great work man! ❤

More Baldur's gate characters! I love your way of storytelling and would also love to hear more about those old RPG villains.

Currently in the midst of an EET run (modded smoosh together of bg1, sod, bg2, tob, etc in one continuous campaign), and I beat sarevok about a week ago. Awesome timing! looking forward tp bg3 when I'm done with EET. Sarevok is a great and underrated villain for sure.

I feel like his appearance in BG3 might be his released essence from his first death that became a part of Bhaal. The "Bhaalspawn soul fragment" of him perhaps. It would explain his reversion to BG1 tendencies.

Brilliant, I been looking forward to this. One of my fav voice acting in a rpg having the bloodlust of Bhaal but stoic too.

i fought Sarevok yesterday in bg3. i enjoyed him as a character, but then again i haven’t played the first two games. his story of at least partial redemption is much more compelling than him regressing and becoming an undead arbiter of the dread lord’s will. since baldurs gate is all about player’s choice, i choose to believe that this new Sarevok is nothing more than a shade. a hollow echo of what he once was. the real Sarevok is elsewhere in Toril, living out his second chance at life.

Major Spoiler here: When you play as Dark Urge and discover your legacy of being a Bhaalspawn born from blood of the very god and not his seed, your encounter with Sarevok is very unique, he basically tasks you with killing Orin and when you do, he then attacks you to try to claim his divine herritage once again.

I made Aribeth from NWN and had her duel Sarevok 1v1 in my BG3 playthrough. Felt it was a fitting crossover and bookend to his arc: his death coming from the hands of a Neverwinter Nights character who had embraced her redemption rather than discard it.

As someone who found Sarveok trough bg3, I loved his look and presence, didn't know anything about his past, I just love the old style, bloodthirsty, evil but smart villains, and he while not a villain, still presented this menace and a simple yet layered evil...it was perfect

Fabulous video Ghost and a fantastic tour through a game series I haven't played in ages. The original BG 1 & 2 were such incredible formative experiences when I was a teenager first digging into western RPG's and really helped shape my own gaming interests to this day. Great villain deep dive all around. I wonder if perhaps covering everyone's favorite Banshee Queen, Sylvanas might make for a compelling exploration in a future Villainpedia entry. Especially considering how heavily her story circles your previous coverage of Arthas. She's always been a personal fan-favorite and it's been interesting to see her character go through some controversial changes through the years, partly because of behind-the-scenes issues with a particular (now-notorious) figure at Blizzard. And then to see her character come forward once again in recent expansions for...perhaps not a redemption, but at least a new reframing of her journey by the newer writing team is as intriguing as it is ambiguous. Talking through some of the strengths and weaknesses of her character writing over time would be pretty fascinating.

I never played BG3 but played 1 and 2 and loved how Sarevoks story unfolded. It feels like his appearance in 3 was a slap in the face.

I love these videos. I first came across your channel by stumbling on the Sheogorath video. Truly something I love making an evening out of them. I will say however, as much as we all love a good villain story. I really hope there are more Heropedia videos coming.

what a great video! I grew up with BG 1 & 2 and always left a massive inpression on me and Sarevok both as villain and companion were some of the best moments though Irenicus also comes close. Still need to fully play through BG3 but even the small spoiler here has only made me more exited to play through it in my vacation.

I always interpreted his appearance in bg3 as the manifestation of the bhaal spawn spirit that died it bg1. It just made the appearance make more sense to me and makes the resurrection and rebirth in bg2 still have meaning.

Baldur's Gate 3 is my only experience with Sarevok, so I don't have much to compare it to. However, hearing the way you described him in this video matched exactly the impression I had of him in BG3. Charismatic and intelligent, beyond simple brawn and bloodlust. Impressive that a man his size is intimidating for reasons entirely not physical.

On occasion, my mind would drift away for a moment, but the mere utterance of “Bhaalspawn” snapped me right back to attention lol

I always wondered why Sarevok was left behind while the other Bhaalspawn were taken in and given to people to raise...

Awesome video once again, I would love to see a Villainpedia on THE END from Sonic Frontiers, that antagonist is a super cool and unique type of villain, kind of reminds me of GlaDos in some ways too!

When I stumbled upon Sarevok in the Murder Tribunal, I was suprised, then horrified. If you find the Letters, Books and other hints Larian left about him and his Connection to Bhaal, Orin and Helena, it does make sense. Sarevok was given a second Chance, but after his Travels and all the things he did, good and bad, he found out one simple Truth: Murder and Pain were his oldest and closest Friends he could always use and rely on. He may not be a Bhaalspawn anymore, but Bhaal IS his father and the life he endured up to this point was not the best. Even after his resurrection, he could not shake Bhaals Shadow and quickly returned to his old ways. Nobody was there to keep an eye on him and again he was all by himself. So he did what he could do best and if murdering people is the best you can do, coming back to Bhaal to get his favor and to be even better at what you do, would also give your life a purpose, instead of wandering around aimlessly. Sarevok was just to far gone at this point and from a Gamedesigner's perspective it would be better to let the Players experience the sheer terror and dread this Character gives Veterans and new Players alike, then to just make him an Background Character or unlikely Ally. When I saw him the first time and heard his Voice, I started to choked and got goosebumps all other my body. Doing an not evil Playthrough I knew, one of us was not leaving this Room alive... I was happy to see him again in all of his Glory in a modern Game and all the other Dungeons and Dragons Characters I read about. Their Models, their Dialogues, their Voices... it's so wonderful and true to DnD. I love it so much. So, thank you for the Video about one of DnD's greatest Villains and I hope to see Videos some Videos about the Dead Three, Jon Irenicus, the Chosen of the Dead Three and our favorite fiendish Savior Raphael. Also, I will subscribe. Because this wasn't the only Video I saw on this Channel that I liked. Good work.👍

Sarevok Anchev respects strength and power, if you are strong and powerful as a good guy, he chooses to follow you into becoming a good guy. If you choose to be a bad guy, he will remain a bad guy and help you achieve your goal. Either way, he detests weakness and looks down on any companion you have he considers weak, regardless of alignment, difference being, if he is chaotic good, he'll instead ignore the weak and detest the strong who prey on the weak, considering them cowards for punching down.

I always thought the Sarevok we met in BG3 was just the part of him that he lost when he was killed in BG1, not the real and full Sarevok. thats my head cannon at least.

What an awesome video. Thanks for bringing something like that up and especially for Sarevok. Your final thoughts really touched me as well. Your passion about the project really speaks for itself. Wish you a good time and a nice christmas. If at all afterwards, you might choose John Irenicus as a follow up. :)

my favourite part about sarevok in bg1 was that that his plan was absolutely understandable, realistic and also cruel as all shit (mirroring a life path of his father bhaal, obviously). he tried to get his divinity in a way that makes sense while also making a great mirror to the murder-hobo that is charname. seeing him lose his agency in baldurs bate 3 was quite understandable (he had it so close once, obviously he'd slip back into bhaalism, since bhaal is back at it again and seemingly successful), but imho they absolutely wasted his "pragmatic but evil as fuck" character trait, which is what makes him such a fascinating villain and potential companion. larian writing him as a creepy cooky murderous fantasy charlie manson sitting on a throne doing pretty much nothing was kinda lame. your video is as great as always, much love from ukraine!

"An urge to do dark..." Heh, I see what you did there

This one earned you a sub. Great video, I learned a ton of details about Sarevok I missed after multiple playthroughs

I've been playing DnD since 2014, and played mostly 5e with a little 3.5 at the start. I've been working for a 5e video game, and have only played BG3, I had no idea that the story was so interconnected with the first two.

GoG has the "Original Saga" version of the game. Free of weird changes by Beamdog. Real cutscenes. And, thank god, no handholding. Best way to play the game IMO.

One thing about Sarevok's appearance in BG3 - he has yellow eyes. The only other character that has yellow eyes in BG3 is Isobel when she's mind controlled by Ketheric. It's possible that Sarevok is in some similar way controlled by Orin. It wouldn't surprise me if Orin would be able to exert some kind of power over him.

heh ball spawn

28:21 I knew him originally as Bulkhead from Transformers: Prime. Fantastic show, fantastic character, fantastic voice work.

i wasnt even born when bg2 was released, so its nice to see how older players feel abt a sequel finally coming. i think this game is a masterpiece and its nice to learn abt the previous installments and the deeper lore behind it. im happy on your behalf that bg3 was such a win. it feels more special when you know how long original fans have been dreaming about it. thank you for this video

what a great video watched it in one take, so much went into creating this video and this amazing fandom we all love i didnt know there was a mtg/wotc cross over with dnd i might of become a fan much sooner haha 👏🏿👏🏿

You have to do more characters from these stories! Excellent video! You are a fantastic story teller!

I finally got past the BG3 spoilers, so I could go back and watch the rest of this now! I agree with you, the fight was fun and he gives good loot but I wish they had left him out of it. Also, while the VA is no Kevin Michael Richardson, the new one kind of reminded me of Riddick which makes me want Vin Diesel to play him if Baldur's gate ever gets a movie, though that would probably be a nightmare in and of itself.

This may interest you, but there is a semi-official campaign to D&D 5e, Chains of Asmodeus. It was written by James Ohlen, who wrote Baldur's Gate I and II and features Sarevok as an official patron for evil party. It provides an explanation how Sarevok got from his ending in Throne of Bhaal to where he is in Baldur's Gate 3. As Ohlen and his team made it while also working on another project for WotC, it had to be published through official WotC channels but with their seal of approval, making it semi-canonical.

I think the Sarevok in BG3 is his dark half that Bhaal absorbed or a changeling taking on his from to power the cult.

Holy crap. I got knocked out of my seat with this one. I’m so happy to see this guy get some respect. Love your work!

Sarevok and Viconia were both done dirty, making it seem like the canon Abdel Adrian was an uncompromising “kill or exile all evil” type.

BG2 is still the peak, and Jon Irenicus is one of the greatest antagonists of all time.

The end had me thinking I had a paladin of tyr for a campaign and it would have been so cool if he got immortalized in media the way sarevok is

I honeslty love the hour video more than the 10 minute ones. Would you ever do a video on Pontiff Sulyvahn?

Truly love your presentation and your narration! Looking forward to see your next video!

I think this video has helped me realize that Sarevok is by far one of my favorite villains. the absolute depth of character within his story is insane

Stumbled upon this vid during a long shift of endless dishwashing. It was a really good listen so thank you for the company 😃

It's crazy to see how popular Baldurs Gate has become. I remember it being my only little game that only I liked when I was teen.

Sarevok is a fun/interesting commander in MTG! =) I quit playing MTG years ago but the D&D and BG set got me back in to be able to play as characters like Sarevok, MIsc and Boo! =) His armor and voice cool look he has to him.

Ngl, despite how good bg3 is, I didn't like how they treated returning characters such as Sarevok and Viconia.

For those on the fence of play the old Baldur's Gate games the Enchanced Edition has a Story Mode Story Mode makes you near impossible to kill I've only seen a character die in that mode once and it was a optional Demon boss that can turn companions into ghouls. The secret is to use potion of mirror eyes or any other anti-petrification buff to guard your party before the fight. Also kill the Cultist in the room first they act as 1ups for that boss fight.

I started playing BG1 because of BG3 and Saverok has definitely stood out, good video choice!

favorite game of all time, one of my favorite villains. i remember running around my house as a kid after i killed him with summoning wands haha

I was just thinking that I hadn't seen a Ghostcharm video in awhile, and then you go and put this banger out! Great vid brotha as always.

The SHOCK AND EXCITEMENT when I saw this. Jon Irenicus has gotta be featured too down the road.

Hell yes! Sarevok is such an underrated villain!

I think darth sidius should be on your villain list next

SAREVOK!!!!! I just started and already know this is gonna top daddy ur as the best villainpedia🙌🙌🙌

Small nitpick During the Times of Trouble Helm was allowed to remain divine as he guarded the gates of the celestial realms incase anyone trying to sneak back in and because he's a good boy Otherwise? Thank you so much for doing him justice. I loved the first 2 BG games growing up and seeing a deep dive on him so well done and clearly from a place of love is amazing

I'm new to the BG series. I've been playing 3 for under a week. I wish I would have known sooner 😂 Absolutely awesome

I knew of the plot of bg1 going into bg3 from watching josh strife hayes' retrospective as my frist exposure to the baldur's gate franchise, and the appearance in bg3 felt still kinda off, it was the one instance of being very clearly fanservicey in a way that I felt wasnt quite right and hearing what happens to him in bg2 definitely puts better context in that, honestly I think if he should've shown up anywhere, it either should've been with the harpers where you see how he's worked to better himself alongside Jaheira, or somewhere in the questline to unlock minsc.

I played KotOR first so hearing Jolee Bindo’s voice come out of the main villain was…odd

This was great, thank you! I never played BG2 and played BG1 way back in 1998 when it's came out, so I'd forgotten a lot of this 😀

Nice, I was looking for more info on Sarovok since meeting him in BG3.

i've already reccomended this (and this will prob be the last time i try reccomending this) but i just love emperor catlon or the tragic and dark world of kenshi that may or may not be good for a -pedia series vid

So someone hasn't forgotten that there are games before Baldur's Gate 3, thank goodness.

Spoilers for Saravok I think when he shows up in BG3 that it’s half of him, the half that was Bhaal’s essence. In my home game I have a human, elderly version going around the sword coast searching for redemption while being built like Grale from Dark Souls 3. I wanna see the two halves fight, maybe over the fate of the Ward’s soul given the events of Murder in Baldur’s Gate

Fun fact! The knucklebone used by the Three to play the game was actually one of the knuckles of the god Jergal, after he removed his finger

It is kind of funny how you picked a song with ricidulously dark basses in it and then darkened it to give good old Mikhail Zlatopolsky *just* a bit more oompf. Nice. ;D

I didn't know Rieltar was also the Mayor of Avabruck. This would explain a lot.

I think in personal head cannon: That’s not REALLY Sarevok, it’s some sort of undead recreation of Sarevok created with a catalyst in the form of a corpse of someone who was similar to the OG enough to be forced into the identity. Sarevok, the real one, probably went by a new name and is still out there, just living his new life to the fullest.

the BG3 Sarevok is like a kick in the balls for old players

Considering how common it is for people to turn to religion in real life when they feel lost, it's not beyond the realm of possiibilty that Sarevok had undergone a similar crisis in the century between games, it's just the religion he chose to devote himself to was his dad's murder cult, which he was already pretty familar with. Perhaps he even sees it as the only means he has to be as close as he can get to the greatness he once aspired to?

I agree with everything except his depiction in Bg3. Sarevok was not just a minor basic villain he was at the top of the murder tribunal. This is perfectly in line with one of the paths that you could have taken with him from Bg2. He doesn't have to turn good in fact it is extremely hard to make him turn good. If the player isn't doing a perfectly good play through he will stay CE. I think it is entirely consistent that he would go right to the top of the murder tribunal and yes we would say he was drinking the koolaid but if we are honest his natural love of murder is already pretty much in line with Baal. It would not surprise me at all to learn that he is playing the long game and he still wants to take Baal's place. His interactions with other characters and how he reacts to the dark urge are fantastic story points not just fan service. In my first playthrough I was playing a pretty good character not an perfectly good character but good enough that I basically had no choice but to tell him that I was going to kill him and I was intimidated. His boss fight is aboslutely epic and I loved every minute of him his appearance in BG3. This is how you bring back a badass villain. If you manage to beat him you are rewarded with an amazing sword.