Baldur's Gate 3's Honour mode can be a significant challenge, especially if you aren't well-acquainted with the game and its many encounters. Since you only get one shot at it, stumbling into the wrong area at the wrong time could easily end an Honour mode run. Preparation and a deep understanding of how to build effective characters are the best legitimate ways to get better at Honour mode, but if you're looking for some quick shortcuts, those exist too.
I recently gave some of my tips foravoiding death inBaldur's Gate 3, but I made them under the assumption that you would be approaching Honour in a good-faith attempt to beat it without using any questionable tactics. Although none of these strategies are cheating or involve messing with the game's files, they do somewhat go against the spirit of challenging yourself with Honour mode. However, if you're of the opinion thatany approach that doesn't involve outright breaking the game is a legitimate way to beat Honour mode, then these could help you get there.
5 Running A 3-Person Party Protects Your Game
Honour Mode Only Ends If You Lose All Four Active Party Members
An Honour mode playthrough ends if all four of your active party members are dead, so the best way to prevent that is to make this impossible. By simply keeping one of your active party members in camp during combat encounters,you're free to be as reckless as you want with the remaining three. Since all party members shareXP inBaldur's Gate 3, you don't have to worry about falling behind with the party member that you leave at camp.
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Now there are some things to keep in mind when using this approach. Combat encounters in the game are built with the idea that you'll be running a full party, so some of them could be a bit challenging if you're going short-staffed. However,your goal here isn't to beat every encounter with three party members on the first attempt. Instead, you are simply trying to take out as many enemies as you can the first time, knowing you'll get a second shot at it once you resurrect your fallen party members with Withers.
Now, resurrecting party members with Withers can get expensive, so I recommend you loot everything you can.You may also want to form two cohesive three-person parties. That way, when the first group dies, you can have Withers watch over them, swap in the other three-person party, and go clean up the fight. You can even switch new members in individually as the others die, since combat won't move on if you never end your turn. You may want to consider having two nearly identical parties, so you can easily sub in a replacement member.
It's worth noting that there are times when this strategy won't work. For example, you can't return to camp while in the Mind Flayer Colony before yoursecond fight with Ketheric Thorm. You'll therefore still need to be prepared to tackle these sections of the game in one go.
4 Some Areas Let You Attack Enemies Without Starting Combat
You Can Talk Your Way Out Of Fights Even After Attacking Some Enemies
There are certain places inBaldur's Gate 3whereyou can openly attack enemies without them instantly launching into a combat encounter. The earliest example of this I can think of is the Goblin Camp in Act One. If you attack a goblin here, so long as it isn't the result of a conversation, you will be given a few options on how to handle this. One of your options will be to try and talk yourself out of it, prompting a Persuasion check.
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So long as you don't attack the exact same goblin twice in a row,you can continue to chip away at enemies' health this way until you fail a check. I like torun an Assassin Rogue with high Charisma and Persuasion expertise as my face character. This build allows me to do massive Sneak Attack damage on these enemies, then easily convince them to let me walk away. I then turn right around and do it to their buddy standing next to them.
This can be a little tedious, but after a few successful rolls,you'll be looking at a significantly easier encounter when you decide to start combat. There are even times when you can get enemies low enough that you can take several out with a Magic Missile as a way of starting the fight. I'd also recommend grabbing theFavourable Beginnings Illithid Power to ensure you don't miss your attack, since you'll have to talk your way out of it even if you miss.
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You'll want to make sure you choose your targets carefully when using this method. If you kill an enemy with this attack, there's no talking your way out of it, so target ones with enough health that you know they should survive, but just barely. This also doesn't work on all enemies in all places. Monsters in the wild won't give you the option to talk things out once you attack them, and certain notable NPCs won't tolerate being attacked the same way their minions will.
3 Stealing From Merchants Can Make You A Lot Of Money
Pickpocketing Merchants Gets You Free Items And Gold
Gold is a valuable resource in Honour mode. Not only will you need it for resurrecting party members (especially if you're doing the three-person party method), but it can be helpful for buying camp supplies, or bribing your way out of tight situations. One of the most expedient ways to make money is tosteal from merchants, which can be a little risky under normal circumstances. Luckily,there are a few exploits you can use to avoid getting your character caught.
How To Poison The Goblin Party In Baldur's Gate 3
There are many ways to approach each encounter in Baldur's Gate III, for instance, at the Goblin Camp players can poison them instead of fighting.
Earlier in the game, to avoid having one of your party members caught,you can simply get a hireling from Withers. Brinna Brightsong is a solid choice here, since her Halfling abilities synergize well with pickpocketing. Instead of trying to lift things off merchants yourself, you can simply send your hireling to avoid losing attitude or worse. This can be especially useful when pickpocketing in dangerous places. You can immediately send items from your hireling's inventory back to camp, if you're worried about getting caught on subsequent attempts.
You'll also want to make sure that your thief isn't seen, soyou'll want to cast a spell like Fog Cloud or Darkness to help obscure what they're doing from any onlookers. Additionally, avoid taking too much at once. If a merchant has a big stack of gold, go into their inventory while trading with them and split it into smaller stacks. It's an easier check to steal lighter objects, so this will reduce your chance of getting caught.
Unfortunately,you can no longer use Feign Death on merchants to steal from them, so you'll have to rely on more standard methods of pickpocketing. Still, you should be able to lift a fair amount of gold and valuable items. Even if you get caught, the only one who pays the price is your hireling, so it won't affect your run too much.
2 Traveling Between Regions Heals You
You'll Regain Any Lost HP After Traveling, But Not Other Resources
One Honour mode exploit I stumbled upon recently isthe ability to heal yourself without spending any resources. To do so, all you need to do is travel between different regions on the map. You'll know you're entering a new region when you get a text box confirming you want to go to a different area, and you have to select "Venture Forth." When you do so, any missing health will be instantly replenished.
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It's worth noting that this exploit only works for healing yourself, anddoesn't refresh anything like spell slots or short rests. Still, this can be very handy for martial classes who don't need as many additional resources to be effective in battle. This can also save you from wasting a short rest when all you need is a bit of health back, allowing you to use a short rest more strategically to refill other resources as well.
The main downside to this exploit is simply that it takes a lot of extra time. That said, it's less tedious than having to scrounge up food for a long rest, or worse, having to start your Honour mode run over again. This one does feel a bit more like you're exploiting the game than the first three, though I would still consider it less questionable than the biggest exploit.
1 Shutting Down Lets You Save Scum
If You Shut Down Your Computer Before The Game Saves, You Can Load An Earlier File
Perhaps the least honorable way to beat Honour mode is to save scum your way through it. Although the game won't let you quit without saving,you can get around this by simply shutting off your computer without exiting the game. Once you boot back up, you can return to your game at the last place you saved it, and it will still be considered an Honour mode run.
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If you are intent on using this exploit, you'll need to make sure you shut off before your entire party dies. The game will autosave the moment your last party member dies, and if you try to relaunch the game after that, it will be a Custom difficulty, not an Honour mode playthrough. While this exploit can save you time, beatingBaldur's Gate 3 this way doesn't really feel as rewarding as doing a true Honour mode run, so in the end you're only cheating yourself.
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Baldur's Gate 3
- Top Critic Avg:96/100Critics Rec:98%
- Released
- August 3, 2023
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Larian Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Larian Studios
- Engine
- Divinity 4.0
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op, Local Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- Full cross-platform play.
