Baldur’s Gate 3’s Most Efficient Strategy Is A Huge Party Foul

Summary

• Party can make immoral choices in
  BG3
  for efficiency, like poisoning to avoid fights or reducing enemy numbers.
• One group can be poisoned easily with help from Stickpit, but it’s rude and a party foul to kill them.
• Efficiency trumps ethics in
  BG3
  , with the best strategy being to reduce the risk of wiping by any means necessary.

Baldur’s Gate 3 often lets the party decide how they want to approach obstacles. However, the options that they’re given to deal with obstacles can include – and usually do include – some rather immoral choices. And like in a classic Dungeons and Dragons game, committing party fouls and unethical actions often ends up being the most efficient approach.

Poisoning the Goblin Party in Baldur’s Gate 3 is a well-known option for dealing with what could otherwise turn into a large, chaotic fight into a manageable encounter. But poisoning a group that’s trying to celebrate and have a good time isn’t great party etiquette. And it turns out that this isn’t the only time that the party can commit a party foul for the sake of efficiency.

Poisoning The Duergar In The Underdark

Wyvern Poison Not Needed

Poisoning the Duergar is not only an option; the party doesn’t need to decide if they want to use the Wyvern Poison here or on the Goblins. An NPC named Stickpit was planning on poisoning the Duergar anyway, so the party could grab the poison from him to use themselves. And doing so requires slipping that poison into the keg near Ward Magmar in Grymforge without getting caught. This then results in the deaths of Magmar and Pistle. However, it’s a bit rude and a party foul to kill people who are just looking to have a good time.

Even The Epilogue Party Can Be Ruined

Using The Dark Urge

One Dark Urge choice in BG3 comes in Act 3 when they have the option to accept Bhaal’s gift and follow his will or deny him and free themselves of their urges. To ruin the epilogue party hosted by Withers, the Dark Urge needs to first accept Bhaal, pledging that they’ll take over control of the Netherbrain and kill people in his name. Afterward, they need to go back on their words and defeat the Netherbrain instead, causing Bhaal to take control of them after the final battle, which, before the epilogue’s addition, made this an uncertain future.

Then, Withers ends up imprisoning the Dark Urge, and the epilogue presents them with the option of breaking out to join the party he’s hosting anyway. However, the Dark Urge isn’t exactly sane or in full control of themselves at this time. As such, they can head to the party with the intention of killing all their former companions, once more ruining a gathering that was meant to be a time of fun and celebration. But at least those companions have a better chance to fight back since the Dark Urge doesn’t have poison or stealth to work with here.

The Power Of Efficiency In Baldur’s Gate 3

Why Ethics Take A Backseat

In a game like BG3, it often pays off to take the most efficient routes to complete objectives in order to save resources, even if that means committing unsavory acts. This is especially true when playing in Honour Mode, where letting an encounter get out of control can mean the end of a run. As such, finding alternative ways to deal with enemies is ideal, especially if that means avoiding a fight entirely or at least lessening the number of combatants beforehand.

As it turns out, poisoning a party’s beverage supply is highly efficient in cutting down the number of enemies the party has to face. Fighting the Goblin Party can be deadly in Normal Mode, and Honour Mode’s threat of permanent death with a total party kill means ruining the enemies’ party is highly beneficial for reducing the level of danger and resources needed to win. When it comes to the Duergar, the poison doesn’t cut down quite as many enemies as it does with the Goblins, but it’s still a more efficient option than fighting all of them.

While it might be a party foul to poison the group’s beverage supply, sacrifices need to be made if the party wants to chase the most efficient route through the game. Especially for Honour Mode, the best strategy is any choice that reduces the risk of wiping, and ruining a party is hardly the worst action that can be committed in BG3 for the sake of efficiency. However, it can be entertaining that, sometimes, the best option for the group to take is ruining the day of their enemies as they try to have a good time in Baldur’s Gate 3.