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Games by Larian Studios are known as much for the complexity of their battle mechanics as they are for the depth and beauty of their worlds. Baldur’s Gate 3 isn’t as difficult or intimidating as Divinity: Original Sin 2 or similar games, but there’s still much to remember if you want to succeed. Players should know that distance, environmental interactions, and ability conditions all play important roles. There’s no shame in turning the difficulty down and enjoying this gorgeous RPG without the stress of difficult combat, but many players savor the challenge these battles pose. Whatever the case, these essential tips and tricks will make every playthrough easier.
8. Mind Your Skills
Every character in Baldur’s Gate 3 possesses various skills, describing their basic competencies. These range from knowledge of Nature and Religion to Athletics and Acrobatics. Some skills, like Perception, work passively in the background, automatically checking to see if your character notices a hidden door or can resist being shoved. Others require the player to use them actively. One of the best tips and tricks when creating your character is distributing your points to support your intended gameplay style.
7. Work the Distance
Baldur’s Gate 3 is a direct adaptation of the Dungeons and Dragons ruleset. Like most tabletop RPGS, spacing matters here. Characters can only move so far during their turn, and attacks and abilities only have so much reach. Nothing is quite as frustrating as rushing over to an enemy only to realize you don’t have enough movement left to land an attack. One of the best tips and tricks is always to consider the space between your characters and their foes. Position your melee DPS and tanks at the front while keeping vulnerable spellcasters and healers like Clerics where they’re safe.
6. Take the High Ground
Elevation is essential in how battles play out in Baldur’s Gate 3. Characters higher than their opponent deal more damage and are more difficult for ranged attacks to strike. If you depend on landing a melee attack, make sure you can scale the terrain to reach your target. One helpful trick is to shove enemies off the high ground, damaging them and leaving them in an inopportune position. Be wary, however: enemies can shove your characters similarly, potentially forcing you to revive them.
5. Watch Conditions and Cooldowns
There are a lot of abilities and spells in Baldur’s Gate 3. These range from the Fireballs and Eldritch Blasts of spellcasters to the cleaves and rending strikes of melee weapons. Taking advantage of your ability to cause bleeding, set enemies ablaze, and impose other conditional effects makes a huge difference in success. A Barbarian’s Rage, for example, disappears if they do not strike or are not struck by an enemy during a turn. Players looking for tips and tricks could do worse than starting with a focus on power conditions and cooldowns.
4. Use Your Environment
Divinity: Original Sin 2, the previous RPG masterpiece from Larian Studious, is known for its complex environmental interactions. Many of those systems are present here. Dumping grease on the floor doesn’t just create a slippery surface for enemies. It also lets you set the room on fire. Once the ground is ablaze, characters can dip their weapon in flames to gain temporary fire damage on every attack. Fire is just one example of the possible environmental interactions here, and one of the top tips and tricks is to watch for such opportunities.
3. Check Every Nook and Cranny
If you know where to look, Baldur’s Gate 3 is packed with goodies and secrets. Sometimes it’s as simple as discovering a stray healing potion on a shelf. Every advantage is a meaningful one. Even if you don’t intend to use an item, you can always sell it or gift it to a merchant in exchange for their favor and better sales. On a larger scale, whole areas of the game are optional but reward the player mightily for finding them. New NPCs, monsters, magic items, and valuable XP wait to be found by those willing to scrutinize the world. Slow down. Half the joy of Baldur’s Gate 3 is seeing its world unfold anyway.
2. Study Your Enemy
Like your characters, every enemy in Baldur’s Gate 3 fills a specific role. These roles determine the best way to claim victory in battle. One of the best tips and tricks is to deal with support characters like healers and those that buff their allies first. In most battles, tanky melee enemies rush the player and form a wall between the party and more vulnerable foes. Use spells to slow or bind these enemies, freeing you to deal with the real targets. If that’s not an option, you can always shove them out of the way.
1. Stay Well-Rested
Healing and recovery work differently in Larian’s Studios’ new game than in most RPGs. The party can take two Short Rests before taking a Long Rest. A Short Rest restores 50% of each character’s HP and some exhausted abilities. However, to completely recover and restore the spells of certain casters, the player must take a Long Rest. Whereas Short Rests come for free, taking a Long Rest requires the player to feed and care for their party using food and resources found all the way. Fortunately, these resources are abundant if the player is diligent about scavenging their surroundings.
Baldur’s Gate 3 is available for on PC and will launch for PS5 September 6.
