Where to Find a Shovel in Baldurs Gate 3 (BG3)

Figuring out where to find a shovel in Baldurs Gate 3 is actually pretty difficult. Because the map is so massive, and you don’t get tutorials on every tool and item, it’s not difficult to see why so many players struggle to find smaller niche items such as the shovel. If you’re in this predicament, then you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we’ll lay out where to find a shovel step-by-step, so you can finally start digging up buried treasure.

SEE ALSO

Dig For Victory (Buried Treasure)

Where to Find a Shovel in Baldurs Gate 3

To answer the question of where to find a shovel in Baldurs Gate 3, follow these simple steps:

• Once you’ve finished the prologue, you should find yourself awake on a beach. Keep walking down the beach until you find the overgrown ruins. For context, this is very close to where Lae’zel is held captive.
• As you approach, you will be confronted by a group of treasure hunters. You can either convince them to leave or kill them in cold blood, but either choice is fine for our purposes. Once you’ve dealt with this threat, you’ll be able to explore the ruins. 
• Head to the entrance of the interior of the ruins. You should be able to see a shovel just to the right of the door. Head over to it and pick it up to add it to your inventory. 
• With the shovel in your inventory, explore the outskirts of the ruins. You should be able to find a buried treasure chest here. But, if for some reason you don’t see it, use Astarion to help you find it. As a rogue, his skills in perception will allow you to see buried treasure much more easily.

This is the first shovel that you can find in the game. And as long as you use it correctly, it should last you an entire playthrough. However, there are a few different ways to get your hands on another shovel should you lose it along your journey.

Other ways to Find a Shovel

Here are a few other methods to find a shovel in Baldurs Gate 3:

• Head to the Blighted Village. Once there, keep walking North until you see a sleeping Bugbear behind one of the dilapidated houses. Next to him, you should be able to see a small hole in the ground, with two shovels at the bottom. Luckily, this spot will never change, no matter how many playthroughs you do. So it’s always a sure-fire way of getting a couple of shovels quickly and easily.
• Head to the Druid Grove, making sure that you pass through the Nautiloid on your way, as this will allow you to recruit both Lae’zel and Asterion. Once you’ve helped the Druids defeat the Goblins, head north until you find Arron the merchant. He will sell you a shovel for just two gold coins. 
• Travel just southeast of the Druid Grove to find Gimblebock. He has a shovel, but to get it off of him, you will need to kill him. He’s pretty easy to kill, but this is still quite a long-winded process. 

How to Dig Up Buried Treasure With the Shovel

Getting the shovel in your inventory is the hardest part, and from here, digging up buried treasure becomes a near-automated process. As you explore the map, you’ll begin to trigger survival checks. If you pass these, a small mound of dirt will appear, which you can dig for treasure. 

However, actually finding buried treasure is another story entirely. It’s basically randomly generated throughout the map, so you just need to keep your eyes peeled as you explore different areas. For a more detailed guide, click here. 

Other Uses for the Shovel in Baldurs Gate 3

Aside from digging up buried treasure, the shovel is pretty useless in Baldurs Gate 3. Although, there are technically a few weird things that you can use it for.

Firstly, you can use a shovel to trigger any traps that you spot. This can help to keep you out of danger, but it would also be a massive waste of a valuable tool. The shovel is pretty hard to come by, and there are plenty of other ways to set off traps in Baldurs Gate 3, so this is not recommended. 

You can also throw the shovel at your enemies during combat. Again, this isn’t going to do much damage and is overall a very inefficient way to use such a valuable tool. But, if you are in a very tight combat situation, it may come in handy.

Other Useful Tools in Baldurs Gate 3

On the subject of tools, here are a few others that you may not know exist in the game, but are very powerful if used correctly:

• Trap Disarm Toolkit. Unlike the shovel, the trap disarm toolkit is designed to be used on traps. It makes disarming otherwise lethal traps a breeze and is absolutely worth an inventory slot.
• Thieves Tools. These tools allow you to pick locks, to get into otherwise hidden locations. They pair nicely with the shovel if you’re going on treasure supply runs, as you’ll be able to get into hidden vaults and storage rooms.
• Backpack. It might be simple, but the humble backpack is one of the most useful items in Baldurs Gate 3, as it allows you to take more gear, like the shovel, with you as you travel.

Where to Find a Shovel in Baldurs Gate 3 – Final Thoughts

So, that’s everything you need to know about where to find a shovel in Badlurs Gate 3. Ultimately, the process of obtaining a shovel is a very tedious process. But, once you have a shovel in your inventory, you’ll gain the invaluable ability to find new loot randomly on your travels. You will also be able to complete the “Dig for Victory (Buried Treasure)” achievement.