Summary

• Letting Volo perform the surgery in Baldur's Gate 3 results in companion disapproval, but it gives the player a prosthesis called Volo's Ersatz Eye.
• The Ersatz Eye grants the effects of the see invisibility spell, but also comes with a temporary debuff.
• Volo's surgery doesn't affect illithid powers, but may lock the party out of certain side quests. If he's turned down, he'll simply leave without protest.

There are many purported cures for the tadpole parasites that plague the party in Baldur's Gate 3, and one of those is the bard Volo's experimental surgery. Players are liable to first meet Volo in the Emerald Grove, where he's interviewing a druid in Wild Shape about the recent goblin-tiefling conflicts. He twists their words to craft an exaggerated of their recent battle before disappearing from the grove. As it turns out, Volo's been kidnapped by goblins and forced to perform odes to their leader Dror Ragzlin, leaving the blustering bard in dire need of rescue.

Once Volo has been freed from his goblin clutches, he'll start to appear back at camp. If Tav lets him examine them, he'll learn of their mind flayer parasite and offer to do a little research on getting rid of it. After a few long rests, Volo pipes up again: he's found a way to get rid of the parasite, and, armed with a needle, he's ready to perform the requisite surgery right away. All but the strongest-stomached players may have long since balked at the idea, but letting Volo undertake the treatment procedure can result in some interesting consequences.

How To Free Volo In Baldur's Gate 3

Goblin Guards Aren't A Huge Obstacle

Freeing Volo in Baldur's Gate 3 luckily isn't too much of a challenge, even if it could seem like an intimidating task at first. After first speaking to Volo in the Emerald Grove, the bard can be found performing for goblins in their camp in Act 1. A quick conversation with Volo opens up a quest to free him, but there's no rush to do so immediately after being assigned the task.

After the conversation, Volo is taken to a cell in the Shattered Sanctum, which is conveniently nearby in the goblin camp. Heading up the right staircase in the Shattered Sanctum leads the way to Volo's cage. It's possible to convince Volo's guard to set him free through a number of conversational options, so any character with relevant skill proficiencies should stand a decent chance at releasing the bard without any extra work.

If a conversational attempt does fall through, the violent backup plan is simply to kill the guard, which should only be done after closing the door to minimize the chances of the encounter snowballing. Another option is attempting to let him out through stealthy means, which is a lot easier with an invisibility spell or potion on hand.

The most surefire option to set Volo free is the Wisdom check available thanks to Illithid influence, which requires a lower roll than the rest.

What Happens If You Let Volo Take Your Eye In BG3?

A Trade-Off With Interesting Consequences

First, if Tav says yes to Volo's procedure, every single Baldur's Gate 3 companion will disapprove. Talking to Wyll after the procedure does result in a cute little piece of unique dialogue in which he welcomes Tav to the one-eye club, but that doesn't do much to recoup any affinity they've lost with him. But by the time all the disapproval popups fade away from the screen, Volo has already set to work with his needle.

There are a series of dialogue choices that follow; Tav can attempt to stop Volo midway through the surgery, which will allow them to get up from the operating table without any consequences. If Volo is allowed to proceed, however, he'll attempt the process with the needle before moving onto a more "robust" instrument - an ice pick. The scene mercifully cuts away before anything too gory happens, but Tav can curse, shout, or mumble through the procedure until Volo holds his ice pick aloft, triumphant. Except what's on the end of it isn't a parasite at all. It's Tav's right eye.

How Tav chooses to respond doesn't much matter, but most of the choices involve appropriate measures of panic and rage. The would-be surgeon cowers, and by way of apology, gives Tav a lovely little prosthesis called Volo's Ersatz Eye. This is equipped automatically, and has two permanent effects. The first is cosmetic; the false eye will always glow blue, regardless of the player's eye color choices during Baldur's Gate 3 character creation. The second effect is permanent application of the see invisibility spell. This affords the player chances to reveal hidden objects and enemies to the rest of the party.

There's also a debuff associated with Volo's surgery, but it's temporary, and can be dispelled with a long rest or simply by waiting a few moments in camp. The unintentional evisceration leaves Tav with two stacks of the Bleeding Eye effect, which imposes disadvantage on all Perception checks. In guilt (or perhaps fear of retaliation), Volo flees the camp, never to be seen again. Tav is still infected with the parasite, but is free to pursue other methods of treatment. However, letting Volo take their eye precludes them from accepting Auntie Ethel's help later in Baldur's Gate 3.

What Happens If You Turn Volo Down In Baldur's Gate 3?

Maintaining The Status Quo

Just as the entire party disapproves when Tav decides to undergo Volo's surgery, they all approve of their turning him down. Unknowingly, however, they miss out on this version of the see invisibility effect, which can still be applied by casting the spell of the same name, using a scroll, or equipping certain powerful magic items in Baldur's Gate 3. Volo leaves camp after the fact either way, and Tav may still consider Auntie Ethel's alternative eye offer or try different remedies for their parasite.

Never talking to Volo about the eye operation will keep him around in camp for much longer, which doesn't have much general use but does provide an extra target for pickpocketing.

One alternative that Baldur's Gate 3 emphasizes is the possibility that a cure for the parasite can be found at a Githyanki crèche. Lae'zel is insistent upon this idea as the best way forward, and it's worth checking out for how it progresses her story if nothing else. Although it's easy to by the crèche by traveling into Act 2 through the Underdark instead of taking the mountain path, it's easy to go back and check out the path by finding its other end in Act 2.

You Should Let Volo Try His Surgery In Baldur's Gate 3

Risks Can Be Worthwhile

Ultimately, Tav is better off letting Volo take their eye. The disgust and disapproval from all involved companions is pretty negligible, and can easily be recouped later by working on their personal quests. It may seem counterintuitive, but the Ersatz Eye Volo provides in exchange actually does Tav far more good than their organic right eye ever could. The see invisibility effect doesn't work 100% of the time - enemies still need to fail a roll in order to be revealed - but when it does, it's a major boon.

Many of the toughest enemies in the game are the ones who turn invisible to defend themselves. Attacking an invisible enemy is almost impossible without using area of effect spells. Even if the party finds out where they are, targeting them is difficult, and they have disadvantage on the ensuing attack roll. Volo's Ersatz Eye gives them the opportunity to dispel this advantage completely, which can make some of the most difficult challenges, like killing Yurgir in Baldur's Gate 3, far easier.

Moreover, the party isn't missing out on much by locking themselves out of Auntie Ethel's treatment. If they allow her to take an eye instead, they'll receive a permanent debuff, with a -1 penalty to all Perception rolls and disadvantage on attack rolls against hags throughout the entire game. There's really only one hag, and there is a +1 bonus to Intimidation in the mix, but Auntie Ethel's help isn't worth the trouble. In fact, Volo's eye gives the party a significant advantage against Auntie Ethel, who relies heavily on trickery and invisibility to defend herself in pitched battle.

Finally, it's worth noting that none of the protagonist's illithid powers, if they have any, are affected by the decision over whether to let Volo perform surgery. After all, he doesn't even wind up removing the tadpole in the end; Tav's situation remains pretty much the same as it was, except with a shiny new eye. While the decision is ultimately up to the player, there's really no reason to turn down Volo's treatment. Its few negative consequences are only temporary, while its positive effects remain for the rest of the Baldur's Gate 3 campaign.