Baldur's Gate 3: There's a ghaik in my loot! (Now out on Xbox!)

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Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Basic Chunnel posted:

Not looking promising, OP

Welcome to the Baldur�s Gate 3 thread!
WINNER OF THE SA 2023 GAME AWARDS

Baldur�s Gate 3 Community Wiki
_{(Do not use the Fextralife BG3 wiki. It�s poo poo.)}

Current Patch: Patch #6
_{Mac users are currently on Patch #5, Hotfix #17.}

:siren:

MODS ARE CURRENTLY BROKEN DUE TO NEW PATCH, WAIT A FEW DAYS IF YOU'RE PLAYING MODDED :siren:

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Alright, give me the pitch.

Released in Early Access in October 2020 and fully launching for PC in August 2023, Baldur�s Gate 3 is the revival of the widely beloved old-school CRPG franchise of the same name(the last numbered entry having come out more than twenty years prior) developed by Larian Studios, the team behind Divinity: Original Sin.

Based in the Dungeons & Dragons setting of the Forgotten Realms (aka Faer�n), you are an escaped prisoner of the Illithids - tentacle-faced psychics hell-bent on interplanar conquest. Accompanied by both an unwelcome passenger in your skull and a colorful cast of characters, you hope to expunge yourself of your tadpoles before you succumb to the rather gruesomely-described �ceremorphosis�, and in the process uncover a much wider and alarming conspiracy in the making.

As of December 8th, 2023, BG3 has been released for Windows, MacOS, GeForce Now, Playstation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. Please note Mac users tend to lag behind slightly on patches.

So the system is based off the Dungeons and Dragons ruleset, then?

Yes, for the most part. Baldur�s Gate 3 uses the Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition Ruleset. If you�re unfamiliar (or coming from a different system/edition), what you need to know is that just about everything worth doing is done by rolling a 20-sided dice (Commonly referred to as a �d20�), adding one of six Ability Scores (Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, Charisma) and usually adding a static value that increases as you level (�Proficiency�). In some circumstances you�ll roll two d20 and take either the higher value (�Advantage�) or the lower value (�Disadvantage�). You have a pool of rerolls ('Inspiration') that you get for achieving miscellaneous objectives that align with character backgrounds.

You don�t really need to know more than that, the game does a good job generally of keeping the math behind the curtain, and onboarding you to the more complex concepts.

For those familiar with the 5e Ruleset, Larian has made an exhaustive number of changes for the sake of balance, speed, ease of play, or making the game more engaging overall: Jumping and quaffing potions is a bonus action, almost all weapons have a 1/Rest special ability, Short Rests are limited, and various other tweaks. A full list is available here.

So who/what can I play as?

There are 8 Origins you can play as. The default is "Custom Origin", which lets you create a character from scratch (usually referred to in-community as �Tav�, after the default name for the Custom Origin).
You can also play through the game as any one of the six "main" companions you'll find through the base game:

Astarion: A somewhat hedonistic minor noble from Baldur�s Gate, Astarion sees you as an ally of convenience in his schemes for greater strength. He seems more than willing to commit to any path to stay one step ahead, and not just from the Illithids. (High Elf Rogue)
Gale: Originally from the city of Waterdeep and far from home, Gale�s propensity for magic is matched only by his hubris, and he reckons with a mighty price for indulging the latter, while attempting to find a way to resume the ambitions that started him on this path. (Human Wizard)
Karlach: A frontline participant in the Blood War - the eternal struggle between lawful devils and chaotic demons. Karlach is a towering giant of a woman whose capacity for roiling, burning fury in battle is only eclipsed by her tender heart outside it. (Tiefling Barbarian)
Lae�zel: A member of the militant and fanatical Githyanki, trained from birth in the stars above to combat the Illithid menace. Lae�zel knows better than anyone the danger you and your companions are in, and is single-mindedly devoted to prove this is merely a setback on her way to glory for Vlaakith. (Githyanki Fighter)
Shadowheart: A secretive cleric on a mission of great importance, which saw her run afoul of the Illithids. Shadowheart keeps her cards - and a mysterious artifact - close to her chest, trusting few with the finer details of the mission meant to establish her as one of her goddess� inner circle. (High Half-Elf Cleric)
Wyll: The self-styled �Blade of Frontiers�, Wyll presents himself as a swashbuckling hero of the people, kindhearted to a fault. Though as a Warlock, he finds himself playing tug of war with the devil who grants him his powers - a pact which estranged him from his family, and may yet further endanger him still. (Human Warlock)

Finally, there is �The Dark Urge�, which works similarly to the Custom Origin, but instead of a blank slate character, you are an amnesiac, with no memories before your awakening in the Illithids� captivity. The only leads to go on to help you rediscover your past is an near-unquenchable desire for bloodshed and violence. To be extremely clear: The Dark Urge is an opt-in storyline that has significantly more violent and dark content than the base game. You will not get any Dark Urge content if you do not specifically select this origin.

Both Custom Origin and Dark Urge can be completely customized, including Starting Race and Starting Class.

Do people recommend a starting class/race?

Play whatever race speaks to you most, but if you're looking for recommendations for a first time playthrough, the thread inevitably will circle back around to the fact that as a CRPG the game has a lot of dialogue options, and as such classes that have at least some focus on Charisma (Bard, Paladin, Sorcerer, Warlock) tend to have more options for dealing with things in a non-murderous way. All classes will have unique options so if you play a non-Charisma class you aren't entirely out of luck, but if you're looking for a 'first-time' experience it's hard to go wrong with one of those four. Bard in particular comes highly recommended by goons for this.
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What difficulties are available?

The three standard difficulties are Explorer, Balanced, and Tactician, which are Easy/Medium/Hard respectively. You can change between these three difficulties at any time during the game.

As of Patch #5, there is now also a 'Custom' difficulty, allowing you to more finely tailor your gameplay experience, and 'Honor Mode', a Very Hard difficulty which locks you to a single save file similar to XCOM's Ironman Mode. Enemies are even more lethal than Tactician, and many base assumptions of the game change drastically.

Note that Custom Difficulty cannot be changed to after the game starts.

Typical recommendation is that those who are more deeply familiar with 5e's rules (or other CRPGs) should start on Tactician, or switch to it shortly after 5th level. Balanced is tuned slightly towards the "easy" side.

I heard there was multiplayer?

Baldur's Gate 3 supports up to 4-player co-op. This co-op is not drop-in drop-out, and the Host can puppet any co-op characters' in players' absence (or store them at camp). Multiplayer is a valid way to experience the game but opinions are split on whether you should commit to it before playing the game solo first.

How long is the game?

The game is astoundingly massive, depending on how much you're willing to do, and as such playtimes run the gamut, but HowLongToBeat has it marked down at somewhere between 100 and 140 hours if you're doing most everything available to you in a single run, which sounds about right.

I'm playing on PC, what mods do people recommend?

There is an absolute glut of official 5e content that didn't make it into the game, so I'm only going to list what I (or others in the previous thread) consider either essential or massive QoL upgrades:

WASD Character Movement: Allows you to move characters with the keyboard (similar to Dragon Age Origins or other more modern CRPGs) instead of clicking.
Native Camera Tweaks: Unlocks many of the camera limits and makes the camera itself easier to wrangle.
Bags Bags Bags: Includes a bunch of new containers that help keep your inventory from turning into a disaster as quickly.
Better Containers: Improves the container UI considerably, which is important because probably a fifth of your playtime is gonna be looking in chests and barrels.
Concentration Failsafe: Keeps you from popping another Concentration spell and thus immediately overwriting your Hex/Bless/Spirit Guardians/Call Lightning/Hunter's Mark with another spell like the tadpoled moron you are.
If you're a hardcore 5e grog who considers the changes Larian has made to 5e to be a breaking of some sacrosanct canon, you might also consider Rules As Written. This one is highly optional, however.
Party Limit Begone: Increase your party size for more interactions. In multiplayer each player character is treated as a separate party so take this into consideration for things like approval.
Sit This One Out: Paired with Party Limit Begone, this allows you to make your extra party members vanish so you don't steamroll the game. Certain story situations will require a party member to not be sitting out.
Dynamic Sidebar: So you don't have to scroll through portraits of all your party members.
Camp Event Notifications: Lets you know if you have a camp event that will fire if you go to take a Long Rest. Not very immersive but given the number of events you can accidentally skip by not Long Resting enough, vital.
SPOILER ALERT, I'M SERIOUS'Instagram Filter': For undoing the appearance changes if you commit to a certain Act 3 story decision.

Do mods break when the game is patched?

Hotfixes break things on a case-by-case basis but usually mod updates for hotfixes are pretty quick since they're usually pretty small. The big numbered patches consistently break everything across the board. If you're playing modded on PC you might want to wait a few days for modders to catch up if a big patch has just hit.

Monathin fucked around with this message at 10:31 on Feb 17, 2024

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 16:11

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# ¿ May 9, 2024 18:50

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

Tips, Tricks, and FAQs

#1 PRO TIP: Save early, save often. Baldur�s Gate 3 is extremely stingy with autosaves and relying on them can mean you lose hours of progress. Quicksave is F5 in the menu (so ESC+F5). If you haven�t cultivated aggressive quicksave habits before, you will here.

I just started and the game seems to imply I�m under some sort of time crunch. Am I?

No. Neither the main objective (getting de-tadpoled) nor the first major quest (Resolving the Druid�s Grove) will fail after a certain amount of time has passed. In general the things that will auto-complete after taking a Long Rest are few and far between, and the time crunch will only start after you discover it (and you�ll typically know ahead of time because the game will autosave when you get close).

If you want to be spoilered for some Act 1 points where Long Resting matters: Waukeem�s Rest, the smugglers in the cave, and the Absolute member trapped in a cave-in in Grymforge are all timed. The first two of those resolve after a single Long Rest.

Hey, using my Illithid stuff makes it sound like I�m being corrupted and that if I use them I�ll get a bad ending.

Nope! Illithid Powers and using Illithid options in dialogue is totally safe. The latter is also required to do twice in order to unlock more Illithid powers. If you want to use those powers, feel free. They certainly make the game easier, and you can get any ending regardless of how many worms you plug into your brain. The only consequence of Illithid Powers is to change the difficulty of some checks later in the game.

People are mentioning XYZ cutscene but I haven�t gotten that, is my game broken!?

No. A lot of cutscene events, especially early on, are linked to Long Resting for the evening. There�s a reason why the previous thread title said to make sure you Long Rest often - the sooner you clear those out, the better.

A popup is telling me the story will progress if I venture into this new area! What do I do!?

In general, heed these warnings. They�re there for a reason. That said, the first one (which pops up when you advance to either Grymforge or the Mountain Pass) is extremely lax - the only thing it will auto-advance is the Druid�s Grove plot. There is one in Act 2 (inside the Gauntlet of Shar) that is much more strict and you should not activate unless you are 100% sure you�re done with Act 2.

The inventory seems uh� unintuitive.

A little. There�s a lot of QoL baked into it but it�s hard to navigate, never tells you most of these tips, and people learn new things about it all the time, so here�s some helpful ways to wrangle it.

The game tells you this, but you can select multiple items using either shift-click (highlights everything between the first and second thing you clicked) and ctrl-click (adds what you clicked to the selection).
You can send all Camp Supplies to your Camp Chest (Right Click > Send to Camp) and it will allow you to use them when you go to Long Rest. Useful if you find yourself loaded down with too many pork loins.
With very few exceptions, all party members can fish something out of another party member�s pockets if they need it. This includes pretty much all consumables (potions, scrolls, etc), keys (which will happen automatically), but does not include throwable items, which needs to be in the pocket of the person throwing them.
Bespoke bags (Camp Supplies sack, Alchemy Pouch) will automatically vacuum up things that go in their bag if you move them to various party members inventories, making it mildly easier to clean up.
As of Patch #5 you can micromanage everyone�s inventory while at camp without the tedium of having to switch them in and out of the party.

I have no idea what feats are good and what feats are bad, has anyone written a guide?

In fact I wrote a guide in the last thread! Below is an updated version of it so people have easy access to it.

quote:

In -general-, you should use Ability Score Increase to get your primary stat for your class (Strength for most martials, Dex for Rogues/non-Strength Monks/Finesse weapon users, Wis for Clerics/Druids, Int for Wizards, Cha for Sorcs/Warlocks/Bards) to 18 at minimum before you branch out unless a specific feat is build-defining. Some classes may want 20 in their primary stat due to a lack of useful magic items that give bonuses to hit (Monks, most spellcasters), but in general 18 is fine.

Actor: Gives you both Proficiency AND Expertise in Deception and Performance, and a +1 in Charisma. Extremely good for any of the Charisma classes since they usually want to do the talking anyway.

Alert: Initiative in BG3 uses 1d4+DEX, rather than 1d20+DEX in 5e. Which means +5 to Initiative is obscenely good and pretty much guarantees you'll go first. Immunity to Surprised is a good counter to a few nasty encounters, too.

Athlete: Jumping is a massively useful way for martials to maneuver around the battlefield, and being able to stand from Prone for less movement is very useful as Prone is one of the most common statuses.

Charger: Unless your melee weapon is VASTLY better than your ranged weapon, you should probably just be trying to make a ranged weapon attack. Alternatively, get Athlete and jump your way into the fray instead.

Crossbow Expert: Wayyyyy less useful than it is in 5e because it doesn't give the bonus action attack for single-hand Crossbows. Still occasionally useful, but not remotely build-defining. Not having disadvantage on point-blank shots is nice.

Defensive Duelist: If you�re using a Finesse weapon and not dual-wielding, you should probably take this. Getting +Proficiency to your AC on a reaction is really good, especially since you can see the number an enemy rolled before you commit to using it.

Dual Wielder: Lets you dual-wield Rapiers, which is typically endgame Rogue/Ranger pickups, but there's a decent number of good shortsword/dagger weapons in this game, and conditional damage riders are plentiful so the main attraction (bigger damage dice) isn�t as useful. This is mostly used for dual-wielding Quarterstaff cheese on casters which I don't like because it can break the game over its knee. Whether you agree is a matter of taste.

Dungeon Delver: I think I can count on one hand the number of times I missed spotting a hidden object/trap. Get someone Expertise on Perception and skip this.

Durable: Short Rests are limited to 2/Full Rest, and Short Resting for HP rather than to refresh your limited-use abilities is something that happens less and less as you get access to better healing options. Just take a Long Rest unless you have a specific reason you can't.

Elemental Adept: Really good. Won't bypass immunity but ignoring resistance is fantastic. Makes Acid pretty useful. Elemental Adept (Fire) is basically required on Light Domain Clerics.

Great Weapon Master: Build-Defining. Basically unchanged from 5e which means that any martial going hard in two-handed melee weapons wants this at some point.

Heavily Armored: All the feats that grant you a higher-tier armor proficiency are a trap. If you don�t already get Heavy Armor you probably will be better served finding a magical armor in your weight class.

Heavy Armor Master: Often overlooked, but I like it. -3 nonmagical weapon damage isn't going to help with a lot of humans (who will all be wielding +1 weapons after a certain point) but will pull its weight versus monster attacks. Stacks with your armors built-in damage resistance.

Lightly Armored: If you don't get any armor proficiency, you're either a caster or a monk, and thus should skip this because the robes you find will synergize better.

Lucky: Not as busted as it is in tabletop, but still good. But if you get annoyed by reaction pop-ups this is going to get aggravating fast because it triggers on EVERYTHING.

Mage Slayer: It's alright, but not as good as the Sussur Weapon you get. But you could probably make it work really well. Solid maybe for martials that can get to the backline quickly.

Magic Initiate: Absolutely none of the Magic Initiate feats are better than a 1-level multiclass dip in this game. Either way you lose a feat, but multiclassing is basically free and might give you something other than spells.

Martial Adept: Good for Battle Masters to get some extra oomph from their list, situationally useful on other martials who lack access to good crowd control/defender options.

Medium Armor Master: Effectively gives you +1 AC if you have higher than 14 Dex. You can accomplish that in other meaningful ways. Ignoring Disadvantage in Stealth is wasted when the game mostly uses vision lines and the like.

Mobile: Mobile makes Disengaging obsolete so long as you have at least one attack. If you're not optimizing for pure damage it's pretty good on martials. Would probably not take it on Barbarian/Monk since they already get to be disgustingly mobile and Monk already has disengage on tap.

Moderately Armored: Again, going up the next armor tier is a trap in a significant number of cases. Shield Proficiency is nice, but if you need that you can multiclass.

Performer: Basically worse than Actor in every regard except Musical Instrument proficiency.

Polearm Master: Typically Build-Defining, giving you extra options for Opportunity Attacks and being able to attack people who enter your threat range, rather than leave it. However, this was not fixed until Patch 6, and damage on the off-hand attack is (according to the wiki) still bugged to not add additional damage riders beyond your Ability Modifier. Still, it's now actually (mostly) working!

Resilient: The three most common saves called for are Dexterity, Wisdom, and Constitution (which align to previous editions� Reflex, Will and Fortitude saves). Every caster except Sorcerer needs to pick up Resilient (Constitution) to help with Concentration. Picking up Dexterity or Wisdom are situational but not bad choices. The others are used somewhere between infrequently to never.

Ritual Caster: The abundance of magic items and potions that allow you to cast some of the picks on Ritual Caster means its very rarely worth it as long as you properly hoard your goods. Skip.

Savage Attacker: Way better than the Tabletop version. Rerolls all damage dice, instead of a single die. Very useful if you're making a lot of attacks or throwing a huge pile of dice at someone (or both).

Sentinel: Extremely good, but enemies can still invalidate your feat with Disengage, unlike in tabletop. Whether they will is a gamble on the AI, but it�s a solid Defender feat.

Sharpshooter: Build-Defining. No longer lets you make long-range shots for free compared to the tabletop but is still "Great Weapon Master for bow/crossbow users�. The cornerstone of the Dual Hand Crossbow build. Don't pick this up unless you pick up Archery Fighting Style from somewhere, though.

Shield Master: Pretty solid once area-of-effect damage enters the fray. I'd take this on any serious sword-and-board build because it basically lets you choose to have Evasion for one effect.

Skilled: If you really, really want more skills, this is fine. But you probably don't need it.

Spell Sniper: Spell Sniper doesn�t increase your spell range like in tabletop, and instead increases your crit rate while giving you a cantrip. That�s not enough to justify the feat even if Eldritch Blast is on this list.

Tavern Brawler: Build-Defining. Cornerstone of the Strength Monk, the Berserker Barbarian, and various Thrown Weapon Builds.

Tough: Unglamorous but sometimes you just need more HP. People hate on this a lot but because of how the numbers work it turns a d8 HP class into a d12 HP class. If you're already comfortable with your stats as-is, this is numerically better than adding more CON.

War Caster: Look how they massacred my boy. Everyone gets to spellcast with both hands occupied in BG3, so that part gets nixed, but also they only let you cast Shocking Grasp as a reaction to Opportunity Attacks, instead of any spell. I would still consider this on a frontline cleric who likes to get in the mix because Shocking Grasp will be better than weapon attacks, and on a Sorcerer who already has Con Save proficiency, but 90% of the time Resilient (Con) will be the better pick.

Weapon Master: If you don't get proficiency with a weapon, you probably don't need it. Unique magical weapons you're proficient in will typically have better odds of giving you something that synergizes with your build.

Hey, the thread is talking about multiclassing, how do I multiclass? Should I multiclass?

To be explicit about it, you never ever need to multiclass to beat the game. Explorer difficulty straight up forbids you from multiclassing, and it�s very easy to screw up your build without meaning to if you don�t know how things interact with each other. I had a big guide for it in the previous thread but the BG3 Community Wiki has a decent guide to the ins and outs of multiclassing here. The guide is somewhat out of date but is still good for understanding best practices. Read that before multiclassing, and follow the following tips:

In general, do not multiclass until after Level 5. Level 5 is a huge power spike for every class, whether its martials getting Extra Attack or casters getting 3rd-Level spells. Delaying this power spike for even a 2-level dip is really punishing, since the early game is generally harder than the late game.
Try not to add an additional ability dependency (e.g.: Intelligence on a martial class) unless it�s very, very worth it.
Warlock operates completely differently from any other class when it comes to multiclassing. Pact of the Blade�s Deepened Pact stacks with Extra Attack (except on Honor Mode) and their spell slots don�t add to another spellcaster�s slots.

Okay, is there any other tips I should know?

Tons, but a non-exhaustive list:

Always always ALWAYS Examine your enemies while fighting them. This will allow you to see damage resistances/vulnerabilities and special buffs that may significantly change how you approach a fight. It doesn�t take an action, so Examining an enemy should be literally the first thing you do any time you need to fight something.
DO NOT CARRY EXCESS GOLD AROUND! Gold has weight in this game, and sending gold to your camp chest allows you to use it to buy from merchants!
You can throw healing potions at allies, restoring their health from a distance. Try to throw them at their feet because if you bean them with the glass it�ll still do damage.
You don�t have to be next to fast travel points to use them, you can just use them straight from the map.
The ruined chapel on the beach where you first show up has some decent loot while also giving you an option to respec your characters for a nominal fee, so you should go do that as soon as you feel comfortable - Level 3 is a solid time to do it. Respeccing various companions is useful to optimize their stats a little bit more - people usually recommend respeccing Shadowheart ASAP as her Domain is hard to use for little gain and her stat spread is kind of terrible. You might also consider respeccing Gale but his spread is less dire.
You can find almost every Origin character around the crash site, before you hit the Grove, assuming you don�t Long Rest immediately after the prologue. Filling out your party makes several early combats much, much easier.
Don�t sleep on consumables, they can make or break a fight. If you aren�t hoarding scrolls for your Wizard to add spells to their spellbook you should use them. (You did know Wizards can learn spells from scrolls, right?)
Be cautious about using the Friends cantrip on Tactician and Honor Mode, as doing so can easily aggravate NPCs to attack you and result in unforeseen consequences.
The �Before I Play� page for BG3 has a ton more. It�s slightly outdated but it should cover most of the important things I didn�t cover here.

Monathin fucked around with this message at 23:50 on Feb 16, 2024

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 16:15

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

3rd post reserved for funny bits or other miscellanea.

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 16:16

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

I said come in! posted:

Are we wanting to use this thread for console talk? Cause there is already a Baldur's Gate 3 thread.

Starting a new thread for folks since the old thread is encroaching 1400 pages and the OP is pretty outdated.

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 16:17

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

Black Noise posted:

At the end of Divinity Original Sin 2 Tarquin makes a whole deal about going to another reality with mind flayers considering the portraits of the original cast you can find does this guy ever show up?

Doesn't seem like it but there's apparently a note in the Sorcerous Sundries vault that references him.

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 16:40

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

unattended spaghetti posted:

I asked this last thread but am still wondering. Is say tempest cleric 5 vengeance paladin 7 okay for multi? Not planning to use wisdom. More wanting to supplement paladin melee with cool lightning abilities. But didn't know if lower wisdom would hobble it or not.

If you're only in it for cool lightning abilities that don't scale off Wisdom, 5 seems like a steep overinvestment. You can probably make it work but a significant amount of your spells are going to be less useful due to having subpar Wisdom, unless you specifically pick spells that don't scale off it (so buff/utility spells).

that said, Tempest Cleric + Smite does sound kind of hilarious, so I really wanna see if it works. Maybe Cleric 2 / Paladin 10? Unless there's something you're very specifically shooting for at Level 5.

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 18:41

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

All we really know about in that vein is that Larian did not intend to do Epilogues or DLC and BG3 was going to be a one-and-done release, but they pretty quickly pivoted once the money started rolling in, so I have to assume it widely outpaced even their most pie-in-the-sky expectations.

MacheteZombie posted:

Nice reboot kid

Thanks, MZ, see you in a couple hours.

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 19:07

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

Professor Beetus posted:

e: what are some of the more fun/busted warlock builds? I've been neglecting him this playthrough and I'm about to do the last part of his storyline in act 3, so I'm going to respec him and get him combat ready. I have the charisma robe and I am contemplating just going all in on Eldritch blasting, but I do have some decent dex weapons as well so I'm open to other suggestions. I kind of like the idea of doing the blade warlock multiclass for 3x attacks if that's still a thing.

Bladelock 3x attack still works on everything but Honor Mode, I'm pretty sure. Bard 7/Warlock 5 or Paladin 7/Warlock 5 are both solid for hosed up martial Warlock shenanigans.

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 20:44

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

Professor Beetus posted:

Oh yeah I don't have a bard on this run, that will do nicely.

Remember to give him the ring that lets you cast a Quickened Enchanment/Illusion spell after doing a melee attack so he can follow up Flourish+Smite with a Vicious Mockery!

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 20:48

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

Professor Beetus posted:

I don't think I have that. I think I missed a bunch of rings on this run, it was actually the first playthrough I started and I've gone back to finish it, and I played the first 2/3 of the game extremely sub-optimally.

Have you done the circus on that save yet? You can find it in the Jungle after you piss off the cheating Djinn: https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Band_of_the_Mystic_Scoundrel

e: GOOlock is probably the most set-and-forget of the Warlock subclasses. Definitely recommended.

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 20:53

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

Ah, RIP. So it goes.

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 20:57

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

Sorcerers also can't learn spells from scrolls. If you're a Wizard you can just singlehandedly learn like 65% of the spells in the game and have a spell for every occasion. Sorcerer is way more limited.

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 22:24

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

exquisite tea posted:

Can't I just do that by putting 1 point in Wiz though?

You can but then those spells all use your 1 level of Wizard stats instead of your Sorcerer stats.

# ¿ Dec 9, 2023 22:40

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

Mr. Lobe posted:

Has anyone seen a dialogue choice tagged for a multiclass? I've never played one so I'm curious if there are any dialogues like that

If you have multiple classes you tend to get the options for whatever classes you are. I know I've seen screenshots of someone from the previous thread having a Paladin/Cleric multi and having a Cleric, Paladin, and Paladin of [Cleric Deity]. But I think that's last one is as close as you get to a dedicated multiclass option.

# ¿ Dec 10, 2023 05:22

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
?

Black Noise posted:

Party Limit Begone: Increase your party size for more interactions. In multiplayer each player character is treated as a separate party so take this into consideration for things like approval.

Sit This One Out: Makes your extra party members vanish so you don't steamroll the game. Certain story situations will require a party member to not be sitting out.

Dynamic Sidebar: So you don't have to scroll through portraits of all your party members.

Everyones favorite Act 3 Cheat No visual effects for act 3 story event.

Party Limit Begone completely slipped my mind but yeah, putting these on the list.

# ¿ Dec 10, 2023 15:54

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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The Berzerker posted:

I have a question (late Act 3 spoilers):

I've got two Netherstones and only Gortash remains to be dealt with. My quest log is getting light, I've resolved most things like Cazador, House of Grief, and House of Hope already.

I haven't been to the Steel Watch foundry (but was asked to blow it up by Wulbren and company), that seems to be my only big thing to do besides letting Voss know that I've got the hammer, but I also found a submarine that had been bonking those religious swimmers. When I hopped in the submarine, Gortash told me he's going to blow up the Iron Throne if I don't turn around. I know who is in the Throne (I ignored Gortash because I wanted to see what was there). Should I have done the Foundry before doing this, or will I still be able to do the Foundry after dealing with the Iron Throne?

You should be able to, since the Foundry points you to the Iron Throne anyway but it could get finnicky because of how all those things link together. Keep the save from before you go to the Throne handy just in case.

# ¿ Dec 10, 2023 16:33

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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alcaras posted:

Where�s a good place to find a Scroll of Haste in Act 1 so Gale can learn Haste? I hit level 5 but am 2 Tempest Cle / 3 Div Wiz so need a scroll.

I�ve been pickpocketing Arron and resting (without resources) and he hasn�t spawned one (got fireball and lightning bolt tho)

pickpocket is so good lol -- darkness + enhance ability: cat's grace + guidance, i just clear out vendors wholesale, even on honor mode

Get the smuggler's gloves from the guys hiding out in the basement and you don't even need Cat's Grace!

# ¿ Dec 10, 2023 22:58

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Most of the spells that don't have scrolls, I assume, are the ones that aren't available on the Wizard list in the first place (e.g. Cure Wounds, Searing/Thundering/etc Smite).

I'm pretty sure all the spells you can learn as a Wizard are available as a scroll. Hell, I'm pretty sure I saw a Disintegrate scroll in Act 3 so it'd seem weird anything was off the table.

# ¿ Dec 10, 2023 23:07

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Pellisworth posted:

Swords bard really is a great PC pick. The one major downside of Swords bards is you're very limited in Bardic Inspiration charges, you get 4 charges at level 5 and 5 at 8, the maximum is five. I know there are the gloves that give you another charge but that's still only 6 charges. At level 5 they recharge on short rest which is great, but you still don't have a very deep pool for Flourishes in any one encounter. Is anyone aware of ways to regain Inspiration charges in combat, any spells or items?

Not in combat, but if you still need more Bardic Inspiration charges there are the Boots of Brilliance, which you can find in the Gauntlet of Shar, after fighting Yurgir

# ¿ Dec 11, 2023 00:08

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Alright, here's a question since I haven't bothered with deeper modding and I want to poke at the mods a bit: is there a way to get NativeModLoader (and by extension WASD Movement/Native Camera Tweaks) to play nice with the other mods? Some of these don't seem to want to play nice with Vortex (in particular Camp Event Notifications and Party Limit Begone) but NativeModLoader doesn't play nice with the BG3 Mod Manager. I assume someone has all those loaded up in a way that makes sense, walk me through it.

Can I just manually install the NativeModLoader mods and then do the rest through BG3 Mod Manager and it won't explode?

Monathin fucked around with this message at 04:33 on Dec 11, 2023

# ¿ Dec 11, 2023 04:23

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Hellbore posted:

Specifically for the NativeMods and the others mentioned above, it been a awhile, but I'm using all of them together I'm pretty sure just they should just work as installed. Just follow the instructions on the mad pages and it should just fit together.

Black Noise posted:

Yes I use BG3MM and just do a manual install for Native Mod Loader. I�d also join the Larian discord they have a #bg3modsupport channel.

Cheers to both of you, spent this morning getting poo poo in order to take my Durge Monk run from the top and it looks like nothing's exploded yet. If I have any questions I'll follow up here or peek my head in the discord server. :cheers:

# ¿ Dec 11, 2023 15:51

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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exquisite tea posted:

You can do the whole of the Underdark and Grymforge without advancing the Grove storyline, it's the Mountain Pass you gotta watch out for.

You can do all the Underdark for sure but going to Grymforge triggers the Grove the same as going to the Mountain Pass does, I'm like 90% sure.

# ¿ Dec 11, 2023 19:04

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Lawman 0 posted:

Wait do fighter and ranger fighting styles stack? Edit: taking one level in fighter and then rest would be ranger

Someone else already answered you but just to be clear since it's the same as in 5e: You can have multiple Fighting Styles but you can only have one of any Particular Fighting Style. So if you're a Paladin/Fighter you can have both Defense and Dueling, if you're a Fighter/Ranger you can have TWF and Archery, etc etc.

A lot of Fighter multiclassing isn't just for Action Surge but also for picking up that extra Fighting Style which can be a nice little boon if it synergizes with what you were already doing.

Pellisworth posted:

Wyll can wear light armor and use a shield because he's a human, but not medium without multiclassing or a feat.

Humans and half-elves are a good bit less squishy as pure arcane casters (wizard, sorceror, warlock) because they get those proficiencies.

edit: if you wanna be slightly powergamey you can respec Wyll as a blade pact warlock + paladin which is a super strong combo and imo fits very well thematically with his character and story arc

You don't even need to respec for this, just have him start taking Paladin levels after 5. Paladin multi gets you medium armor. If you want him in Heavy you'll have to respec, though.

Swords Bard also lets you put him in medium armor, but I'm pretty sure you don't get Medium Armor from bard natively so you'd have to wait until Level 8 for Medium Armor at that point.

# ¿ Dec 12, 2023 23:08

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Yeah Wyll can choose any one of Pact of Blade/Tome/Chain, Blade is definitely the most "Blade of Frontiers"-y. He is however iirc hardlocked to Fiend Patron because like, duh.

# ¿ Dec 12, 2023 23:19

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Larry Cum Free posted:

This + the health boost amulet you get in the same place (I think +50%?) un-squishies anyone pretty drat quick. I had that on my rogue Tav who was utterly indestructible.

The Amulet of Greater Health sets your Constitution to 23, which means your Con mod becomes +6. If you have a lesser Con mod before that (say, 14, or a +2), you gain the difference in how much Constitution applies to your HP retroactively, so e.g.: (+6)-(+2)=+4, +4x12=48 HP gained.

# ¿ Dec 13, 2023 16:34

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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twistedmentat posted:

That sounds great, and fun. I figure they get lighting attacks.

They get Thunder attacks, mainly. If you want Shadowheart in Heavy Armor, Life Cleric is also an option and can help you stay alive during tougher fights.

Jay Rust posted:

Yeah why do some clerics not get heavy armour

Same reason why only Swords Bard gets Medium Armor - balancing act between the subclasses. Most of the Subclasses that get Heavy Armor also get Divine Strike, which encourages them to be in the frontline being a more martial cleric, so they get Heavy Armor to aid in their survivability. The other Cleric Domains typically focus more on spellcasting or gain other proficiencies to make up for it. That said, Potent Spellcasting (adding WIS to your cantrips) is usually stronger.

# ¿ Dec 13, 2023 20:49

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Brazilianpeanutwar posted:

Got an external hdd,that�s the way to go right?

An external HDD??? :stonk:

That would be your problem, yeah. This game pretty much requires you put it on an internal SSD.

# ¿ Dec 14, 2023 05:03

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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You don't need proficiency for hammers if you're a bladelock, because binding a pact weapon makes you automatically proficient with it, unless Larian changed that.

I'd probably go pure Bardlock instead of splicing War Cleric in there. The Extra Attacks are good but I think Warlock gets much more out of Swords Bard than it does War Cleric in general, plus if you haven't already missed it you can get the ring that let's you cast Vicious Mockery as a Bonus Action, which means you can cap off every double attack with a cantrip cast.

# ¿ Dec 15, 2023 22:57

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Ginette Reno posted:

Only problem with that is the extra attacks don't stack any more so I think if going pure Bardlock you probably want 2/10? 2/10 is what I did on my first playthrough months ago although it was a Lore Bard not a Swords.

I wanted to go heavier Lock than just 2 this run to use some of the Lock spells (Hungar of Hadar especially I love).

I'll probably just go 11/1 tbh. I don't feel like I'm missing a lot by not getting a third feat and the free armor profs and buff spells are nice to have

You don't get the Extra Attack anymore but you still get a lot of poo poo from going a more traditional split. I'd probably go Warlock 7/Bard 5, since that still gets you Font of Inspiration and the usual bag of Sword Bard tricks while letting you get 4th-level Warlock slots (and a third Short Rest, obviously)

# ¿ Dec 15, 2023 23:19

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Grem posted:

I am seriously worried about the state of my game.

I went upstairs and killed Gortash before the coronation started by killing a guard and funneling everything to a balcony. Now the quest for the coronation is still there, I think all the guards are agro to me, and I still have the quest for the coronation. Will this all work out? I know act 3 quests are a mess.

Unless it's been massively patched (which I don't think it has), breaking the coronation fucks up all sorts of poo poo in Act 3, it's like the major load-bearing pillar of the act. Reload and let it play out.

# ¿ Dec 15, 2023 23:51

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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twistedmentat posted:

So with Shadowheart, why does Shar want her so badly? Want her parents? Give her a stigmata? I must of missed some dialog somewhere that explains it all.

The big thing is (Act 2 and forward spoilers) Shadowheart is actually a follower of Selune, as are her parents, and was kidnapped and indoctrinated. If Shar can convert a dyed-in-the-wool follower of Selune completely to Shar faith with her methods, that's a massive win over her lunar sister. Shadowheart is basically a big test on if Shar can directly 'steal' followers of her sister's faith or not.

# ¿ Dec 16, 2023 17:54

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Black Noise posted:

This is NexusMods drama but basically you know you hosed up if someone makes a mod to fix what you did Uninstall Immersive AI. I'd imagine this is like finding yourself on the youtube homepage being covered by a downfall channel.

Alright, I'll bite, what's the story with this one? Scanning the comments it sounds like the Mod maker applied for a job at Larian, didn't get the job, and then started ranting up a storm, but I have no idea if there's anything more than that (or why there's a need for an 'uninstaller' mod)

# ¿ Dec 16, 2023 17:58

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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The point of Warlock/Paladin is twofold: being able to use Short Rest Spell Slots for your smites so that you aren't long resting after every encounter, and Blade Pact (or Hexblade in tabletop) letting you use CHA for your attack stat so you don't have to worry about micromanaging either STR or DEX. Bard/Paladin can put out some silly damage numbers if you're only expecting to do one fight before Long Resting but Warlock/Paladin is incredibly self-sufficient, alleviates a weakness of Paladin (running out of spell slots for Smites) and basically only cares about CHA and CON, which is what makes it such a popular multi.

Like I have no idea where you got "Warlock doesn't compliment Paladin" because that is literally the wrongest thing I've ever heard.

# ¿ Dec 18, 2023 19:31

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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I enjoy optimizing as much as the next guy but there is a definitely a point where optimization goes from "I would like to make the game easier" to "I am in an invisible competition with everyone on the internet where the amount of damage my build can do is directly proportionate to the size my genitalia".

Trying to push a mathematical best build in a game where you can kill one of the toughest enemies in Act 1 by jumping off a cliff and plummeting like 100 feet to elbow slam it as an owlbear is where people feel the build chat gets to be deeply stifling.

e: Like I tried to be nice about it but you literally are claiming that the multiclass of 5th Edition is "less effective and not worth considering" compared to your stupid triclass monstrosity. Maybe you're right but you're not making any friends here lol

# ¿ Dec 19, 2023 05:24

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Toadsmash posted:

gently caress off, game

This is exactly why I put it in the OP!!!

# ¿ Dec 19, 2023 05:58

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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WhiteHowler posted:

What's the best way to use this? My wife is playing a pure Tempest Cleric in our co-op game, and while she does okay with it, it doesn't seem particularly special.

Tempest Cleric isn't really that strong on its own merits, despite the hype it gets here or elsewhere. The main weakness is you basically only have like three vectors for your gimmick (Shatter, Call Lightning, eventually Destructive Wave) and beyond it you're still just doing the normal Cleric things (i.e.: casting Spirit Guardians/Bless).

It usually needs specific gear - there's a bunch of stuff that rewards dealing Thunder damage, which is Tempest Cleric's bread and butter. The wiki has a bunch of gear that interacts with Reverberation, which specifically interacts with Thunder damage, you might want to check that and see if she's using any of it because that'll get more juice out of her gimmick. The Gloves of Belligerent Skies are in the Creche in Act 1 and are a Tempest Cleric staple if memory serves.

Alternatively, Tempest Clerics usually multiclass with Storm Sorcerer for extra Lightning/Thunder spells beyond Shatter/Call Lightning/Destructive Wave. Of the two, the Storm Sorc/Tempest Cleric multi is heavier on the Sorc than the Cleric part because the goal is to get Lightning Bolt (or Chain Lightning if you only want 1 level of Cleric) and abuse those with Metamagics + Channel Divinity.

Monathin fucked around with this message at 19:38 on Dec 19, 2023

# ¿ Dec 19, 2023 19:35

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Weird Pumpkin posted:

I got to (Act 3 spoilers) the iron throne and uh.. man that's kinda hard to save everyone. I successfully managed to get everyone untied, but it took me much too long to get Omeluum out and so I lost my second attempt.

I think I might go back and do Gortash's coronation as I don't think that's going to make me try and kill him? I used the big ol bomb to clear Shadowheart's Act 3 encounter, so I have to save the families in order to disable the steel watch. I was mildly spoiled that the Duke can end up there later, so hopefully with prebuffing haste and swiftness potions plus going in prepped for the 6 turns I can get everyone and get out.

Is there any tricks I should be aware of here? My biggest problem was getting Omeluum out, if I was going for only the families I think I'd end up clearing it pretty easily.

In addition to what the above posters said, I usually send someone with Fly (if you send someone who doesn't have Fly, scrolls should be easy to find at Sorcerous Sundries) down that way. I can't remember if that has Difficult Terrain in the area because the way I do it is had Shadowheart fly down that way and summon a Spiritual Weapon to keep the adds spawning in that room busy while I did my thing. Beyond that it's just a matter of making sure everyone has their movement speed juiced - don't be afraid to chug potions of speed, break out the ritual casts of Longstrider, use Dimension Door/Arcane Gate (Arcane Gate isn't amazing in any other circumstances but it rules here), pop off a twinned haste if you have a Sorcerer or get out the Boots of Speed for someone who's slow as molasses (I had them on Gale, f'ex).

Monathin fucked around with this message at 19:59 on Dec 19, 2023

# ¿ Dec 19, 2023 19:56

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Larry Cum Free posted:

So I'm doing a Durge run now, and I want to know if what I'm trying to do works/makes sense. I want to RP a dumb, Dudley Do-right rear end paladin who always makes the moral upstanding choice when it's not Durge related, but always gives in to the dark urge suggestions (except involving recruiting companions, because I missed a ton my first playthrough and want to try them out). Without getting too spoilery about Durge-specific stuff, does this make any sense, or do you have to kind of follow a good character = resist urge model?

Without spoilers, if you always commit to the Dark Urge actions you will basically guaranteed break your Paladin Oath before you hit Level 3. You can Oathbreaker from there if you like but I suspect Oathbreaker Paladin might be going against the theme you're thinking of.

# ¿ Dec 19, 2023 20:01

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Oh yeah, I assumed by Dudley Do-Right you were going Devotion Paladin which is a way harder circle to square.

I don't know of any common pitfalls with Vengeance Pally that Durge would trip but if you're fine with going Oathbreaker then you should be set, that said you might find later on you end up going full Resist Durge anyway because Murder Durge inevitably conflicts with doing the 'right' thing. But that's a fun problem for future you!

# ¿ Dec 19, 2023 20:12

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# ¿ May 9, 2024 18:50

Monathin: Sep 1, 2011; ?????????
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Pellisworth posted:

I'm not tryin' to pick a fight or argument or anything but I think it's worth keeping in mind with build discussion that you'll spend most of the game not at level 12 with blinged out end-game gear setups. So, minmax end-game builds are one thing but you might also think about what you want to do for a build in Acts 1 and 2 etc.

Which is why I recommend stuff like pure battlemaster fighter, swords bard, tempest or light cleric, divination or evocation wizard, open hand monk, throwbarb, paladin, and so on. They're strong throughout the game and straightforward to play. Slightly suboptimal for level 12 endgame play but oh well.

Yeah this is another reason why I think trying to relentlessly min-max optimize for greatest DPR possible is going overboard. The game really doesn't need you to do it to that degree and it requires a fair amount of finagling, whereas monoclassing or simpler multiclasses tend to be easier to plot out.

"You take this and that at points XYZ, use this gear in this specific way, and do things this ABC way so you get all the free stats". There is a level of strength to something just working and not needing additional system mastery for basic operation.

# ¿ Dec 19, 2023 20:50

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Video Games > Baldur's Gate 3: There's a ghaik in my loot! (Now out on Xbox!)

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