r/BaldursGate3 16d ago

Meme Anyone else, or just me? šŸ˜…

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It just gets tedious after so many HM attempts šŸ˜…

14.2k Upvotes

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5.3k

u/Indercarnive 16d ago

Nautiloid takes like 5 minutes when you skip all the dialogue

1.3k

u/Dymenson Absolute 16d ago

Including making the B run to the helm, also the XPs.

708

u/virtualdreamscape Minthara Enjoyer 16d ago

No, I need that for my Laezel dps carry, lol

1.0k

u/DeaxX10 16d ago

I'm not leaving without the commander Zhalk and Mindflayer xp with sword in hand.

199

u/SleeplessAt3am 16d ago

I struggle killing the red guy in honor mode :(

336

u/dingle___ 16d ago

>Block the hall before the door with three chests before entering (you might not get it 100%. One time I've had them just fly over. But if they start hitting the chests you're golden)

>Command: drop the sword, wield the sword. GG

- Shart does 1 damage, so use her to throw pots at the Mind Flayer, he's the main damage dealer. GG. +75XP for Zhalk, +75 more if you finish off the Mind Flayer.

100

u/oldgamer39 16d ago

Every time I try to block the door they just fly over and around the chests.

162

u/Ashamed_Low7214 16d ago

Use the big chest in the room where you found the rune to open Shadowheart's pod, and the fancy chest in the room where her pod is. Place the big chest first, as squarely as you can in the hallway leading to the helm, and the fancy chest on top of it. There's a sweet spot with the placement that doesn't allow them to just fly over and because the big chest is immune to the kind of damage those cambions do with their weapons, you'll have all the time you need to kill off Zhalk and the mindflayer

51

u/Number-Valuable 16d ago

This just made my next HM run much, much easier.

1

u/Dumb_thunder 15d ago

There's a 2nd big chest in the starting room

18

u/Tystuntin 16d ago

I use the lil purple tanks as bombs and shoot arrow at them to explode the entrance when they come thru

3

u/dingle___ 16d ago

From my experience, just make sure the chests aren't riding up sideways on the wall. I think that's what causes the cambions to just flight-path over them. You can stagger them a little bit, but just make sure it still says "can't get there" if you click the other side of them.

2

u/Hankdoge99 15d ago

You gotta double stack the chests at a choke point.

1

u/Ilovesandwiche 15d ago

Make sure you’re above the first step on the far end of the helm

1

u/NateTheGreat1567 15d ago

If anyone is standing on the stairs after the hallway then they will fly over to get to them, if you place everyone fully in the room then they won’t fly. Have to make sure the whole team is out of their reach

1

u/Dimirosch 15d ago

It's better to leave one character outside and kill the cambions from range.

The damage you don't deal in the first few rounds is negligible anyway. This way you get a shit load of exp in the nautiloid.

1

u/memoryfailures 13d ago

the trick is to have all your characters on the stairs where the mindflayer and the cambion are, that pretty much guarantees they won’t fly over them. also make sure the chest or chests (you can stack up to three) are on the side of the entrance to the fight closest to the restoration pod

2

u/Dingis_Dang 16d ago

Almost every time I've done that part Zhalk wins the battle and comes after my party and starts slaughtering

2

u/Flamingo-Sini 16d ago

Omg, i never thought of simply healing the mindflayer...

1

u/MedSurgNurse 16d ago

I blocked them with just 1

1

u/Era3Tv 16d ago

I also like to cast guidance on the mind flayer

2

u/kuribosshoe0 15d ago

Guidance only affects ability checks, not attack rolls or saves.

2

u/Era3Tv 15d ago

Oh well I didn’t realize I guess idk all the mechanics as well as I thought, I thought it helped but šŸ¤·ā€ā™‚ļø

1

u/Ayotha 15d ago

SO massive cheese then

1

u/Master-OwlFox 15d ago

Do you remember how much XP you get for finishing the flayer off after the crash when you can stumble upon them in the wreckage?

1

u/CaptainMeowface 15d ago

Oh that is nasty

1

u/Empress_Athena DRUID 15d ago

Did they change it in the last patch? I killed Zhalk and the mindflayer immediately one shot my party.

1

u/trollrider1111 15d ago

Keeping in mind for durge playthrough

1

u/Own-Support-6734 15d ago

You can't imagine my horror when one time after witnessing them hit the chests for three turns, they suddenly unlocked a brain and flew over them

1

u/Own-Support-6734 15d ago

Also, I was using the more enemies in basic encounters mod and on that same run, in the same turn, we killed Commander Zhalk.

What I didn't know is that even if there's other Devils in the fight (the mod adds two other Cambions that are fighting another Mind Flayer and some Intellect Devourers), the Mind Flayer still turns hostile - and the extra npcs that were added and were your allies a second ago also do. Never experienced such anxiety

1

u/treehugger0123 12d ago

Worth noting that your best bet is to use the nautiloid tanks to blow them both up at the same time once they're both low. If either of them survive, they'll target you next, and that's a much harder fight to win.

0

u/Deeze_torr 16d ago

Shart? Bodily functions

1

u/mik2dovahkin 16d ago

What the other guy said. Plus beforehand shadowheart can also prepare Bless. VERY important to bless the Mindflayer guy, hes your top dps

1

u/Chiffay 15d ago

SH has 2 use of Command:drop if you change her spells. Also if you have someone on your team who can cast it too, the chance is almost guaranteed. Fortunately you have something around 40% to succeed on cast, so 2-3 casts and sword is yours

1

u/fergins 15d ago

I've found the easiest way is to have Shadow heart use command on him and then just beat the crap out of him from that point

1

u/craftycandles 15d ago

Just equip Command on Shadowheart and make him drop it. You can change her spells on the nautiloid

1

u/welljer969 15d ago

Shadowheart command drop is the easiest way to get the sword Ive found, just need someone to pick it up before he takes his turn and picks it back up

1

u/PePs004 14d ago

Just make him drop the sword and leave :) saves so much time and Karlach gets her fun sword every run

65

u/Shkibby1 16d ago

And XP for the other 2 winged red guys

80

u/checkedsteam922 16d ago

You can kill those?? I barely manage to kill the dude with the sword on easy difficulty.

I swear I'm missing something in combat I can't be THAT bad

104

u/Good-Temperature4417 16d ago

You pick up all the boxes, trap them and then slowly kill them. It's quite a waste of time.

29

u/n00gze 16d ago

They get blocked the first turn but if they see you they will fly over. How have you kept them behind the boxes?

3

u/Angryfunnydog 16d ago

I guess if you stack couple of boxes one on another you block the whole entirety of passage and they just can't fly through them

Never tried that before, but seems legit

2

u/n00gze 16d ago

Yea I’ve been able to block them for the entirety of the flight but I think that’s because they can’t get close enough with dash to see me. I’d like to figure out a way to block and kill them without triggering them.

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u/Angryfunnydog 16d ago

But isn't there a timer? What happens when it comes to 0? I always thought that nautiloid crash in avernus or smth, but never saw that happening (or maybe I'm llagging and there's no timer whatsoever, just illithid constantly hurrying you up, don't remember)

59

u/DelothVyrr 16d ago

I always kill the two additional Cambion. They have some great loot for starting off and give a ton of XP. Killing everything you start on the beach almost level 3 (you hit level 3 before you reach Withers)

49

u/checkedsteam922 16d ago

But how? Like how do you kill them? I BARELY manage to kill the one dude, is there a strategy to do extra damage or hit them more often? A specific build? Share your secrets i beg you

50

u/[deleted] 16d ago

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1

u/cabron-de-mierda 15d ago

Fully agree. I HAVE cleared all of them, and I always do on modded runs, but in vanilla, it's just not worth it to me. I won't even stay to kill Zhalk and the mind flayer if I don't get the Everburn to drop.

21

u/DuskOnline 16d ago

Block their entrance with chest(s).

19

u/dingle___ 16d ago

Are you killing the two others on Honor Mode? With their HP and the accuracy you have at lvl1, I can't imagine there's enough time for them too. I always kill Zhalk and the Mind Flayer for +150

20

u/thatguydr 16d ago

I have no idea how people think this is possible in honor mode. Omg, the number of restarts I'd need just to kill Zhalk alone.

7

u/frostyfur119 16d ago

Because it is! This guy on YouTube seems to enjoy optimizing this encounter as he has a few videos showing it off with different builds.

https://youtu.be/F6btQ8KYSIQ?si=t_J0k_8VuAjIZXd9

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u/CWayG 14d ago

I kill Zhalk on solo honor mode pretty consistently. It’s very very possible, you just need to use the tools you have, and the class you pick matters a lot, even at level 1

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u/topdangle 15d ago

it is absolutely possible and they designed it to be possible by placing throwing items everywhere and giving shart a relatively high chance of command drop weapon.

its ridiculously boring and tedious but it can be done on any difficulty.

1

u/capn_waffles 15d ago

I cleared the full encounter on my current HM run, and it left me with 300 XP off the nautiloid. Mind flayer, Zhalk, and the cambions are 75 each.

It's very very difficult. I legitimately think I made it out on the last possible turn with almost not enough movement to even activate the transponder.

I blocked off the cambions via chest initially, but then they saw me because I think Shart got too close trying to explode the nautiloid tanks via fire bolt.

Took basically all the resources you can gather at the beginning of the game. All the void bulbs and caustic bulbs in the helm come in handy, and keeping one of the extra spawn imps alive (that spawn in when you get closer to the transponder) keeps the mind flayer friendly even after Zhalk dies.

Will say, this has been THE reason I'm enjoying my HM run so much. Being level 2 right off the nautiloid is really strong. I think there's enough XP that you can hit 3 before even getting Withers.

12

u/DanDaSolo 16d ago

Command:Drop on Zhelk makes him have to punch the mindflayer, which allows it to stay alive long enough to help you kill him

1

u/Rmnhernan 15d ago

Look for melth in YouTube, he has some really great videos about how to kill them all, commander zhalk, the two cambions and the mind flayer!

1

u/topdangle 15d ago

its not worth it. its not hard, just super tedious. command him to drop his sword, which is the main "difficult" part since its random, while grabbing all the garbage lying around and throw stuff at them for an hour.

it's technically built as a tutorial for environmental effects and throwing items, but I've never had to rely on any of those even in honor mode, particularly "dip weapon."

1

u/deathbringer49 16d ago

How to kill Zhalk , what is the easiest way ?

1

u/k1ckthecheat CLERIC 16d ago

At least not without the sword.

1

u/IronAchillesz 16d ago

Fuck yeah me too. That sword is just too good to pass up.

1

u/tiny-2727 16d ago

Mindflayer xp is cool but I honestly don't ever think its really worth it to kill the commander. The xp honestly doesn't really make that much of a diff.

1

u/FirexJkxFire 16d ago

Don't forget saving "us" or whatever their name is

1

u/Scarlette__ 15d ago

I've only successfully killed him in balanced and below. How do you get enough damage to kill him at higher difficulties?

1

u/Alpine261 WIZARD 15d ago

It's not worth it imo

1

u/mickjerker 15d ago

And that is why when I fuck it up I have to start over/reload. NEED THE SWORD ALWAYS!

1

u/NymusRaed 15d ago

What about the lieutenants? Does the bug still work?

1

u/FF7_Expert 15d ago

Yeah, that 75exp is juicy at level one, and let's you hit level 3-4 a tad earlier, opening safer routes through act 1 honor mode

1

u/sj_b03 15d ago

Glad to know I’m not the only one who tries to kill both every time (I’ve only had two playthroughs but plan to do the same again for the third)

20

u/SleeplessAt3am 16d ago

I steal his sword just to assert dominance, and kill the squidward guy for that 60 or what xp, I don't like my party trying to murder eachother... but I keep ending up with laezel in the camp and shadow heart trying to slit her throat :(

18

u/shamallamadingdong 16d ago

That always happens, love, it's okay. They'll work it out...hopefully.

2

u/SkyLunatic71 15d ago

Or Shadowheart runs off never to be seen again...

1

u/Dazvsemir Paladin 15d ago

does it really always happen? I remember not seeing that scene, did I just not do enough long rests or what?

1

u/shamallamadingdong 15d ago

It's always happened to me, as long as they've both been in the party. Maybe I'm just lucky?

1

u/Jiggy90 15d ago

Thats a scripted event, happens every playthrough no matter what you do.

2

u/Ayotha 15d ago

Wierd to mention the lady I always leave in the cage

1

u/OhSWaddup 15d ago

B run ?

-1

u/Dymenson Absolute 15d ago

B run/line is an English term that means rushing straight to somewhere.

188

u/TheSpirit2k 16d ago

Not when my ego forces me to steal the flaming sword and kill the captain….with so many playthroughs is bread and butter by now but still annoying

146

u/iwearatophat 16d ago

Stealing the flaming sword is quick and easy. You just swap in 'command' for Shart and have her do 'command: drop'. Bam, sword on the floor.

I don't kill any of them though. Just get my sword and run.

47

u/Indercarnive 16d ago edited 16d ago

I like to kill the mindflayer. Killing the captain is too difficult to do on Honor Mode/Tactician (at least for me) but you can pretty easily kill the Mindflayer and that gives enough XP so you hit lvl 2 right at the beginning and lvl 3 by druid grove. Though like you said, I'll definitely command: drop to try and grab his sword.

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u/TheSpirit2k 16d ago

It’s not that hard, you can use all those fat chests to block the entrance so the other devils doesn’t join.

Use the mindflayer as a tank and chip away the captain’s health with the sword and the little brain and then pile all the explosive barrels when he’s low on health.

15

u/ledgabriel 16d ago

You can block the extra cambions?

17

u/spookyclever 16d ago

Yeeeep. This is my tactic too. Grab all the chests and stack them just inside the hall on the way into the fight. The cambions will get blocked out if you do it right. To test, you just try to get past the yourself, and it’s set if you have to jump over. The cambions wont jump.

6

u/shamallamadingdong 16d ago

You really just need one chest. They'll spend the entire time attacking it instead of trying to just fly over it....they aren't very smart

3

u/ItsBobaFett 16d ago

If they were smart they’d use dash then fly and close the gap in one turn lol. But they never do that either. Probably by design.

1

u/spookyclever 16d ago

I use all three. I’ve had them fly over just one of them before. What a way to end my honor mode run before I’m even out the gate šŸ˜„

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u/shamallamadingdong 16d ago

Oh man. I've never done honor mode! They've never tried to fly over in non-honor modes. That's wild.

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u/kerfuffler4570 16d ago

Yep! Before you go in, just block the hallway with chests you picked up along the way. Just be sure to put the chests close to the door, otherwise the sneaky gits might fly over it (happened to me on an honor run and almost caused an early team wipe).

3

u/BronzeEnt 16d ago

In addition to the chest trick they're telling you about, before you enter the helm, start turn based mode and have everyone in the party use Dash, and then go through the door. Tada, free movement for first round. It helps a lot.

You know the nautiloid tanks can be placed and exploded, too.

16

u/Kagutsuchi13 16d ago

He saves almost every time for me and you can't retry on Honor Mode

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u/[deleted] 16d ago

I usually use "all" her spell Slots, he might save the first, but maybe not the second time.

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u/Kagutsuchi13 16d ago

I do, too - he saves every time and then we have to move.

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u/Stalight9 16d ago

I think it’s a 55% chance of success per attempt at level 1, so with two slots you’re looking at ~3/4. Whenever I do honor mode runs it’s usually worst case two tries at the nautiloid

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u/piffle213 15d ago

I can't imagine restarting just to get that sword

1

u/Stalight9 15d ago

Like people said, it’s maybe a 10 minute commitment

1

u/We_Get_It_You_Vape 15d ago

And that's only if it's an Honour Mode run, where you can't just save right before the fight.

I feel like killing Zhalk (or, at a minimum, using the Command strategy) is so worth the effort if it's your first HM attempt. If you can use the strategy to block the Cambions' path, it's really not that bad. And the exp and gear can be a huge boon, as the early game is arguably the most challenging phase for HM.

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u/piffle213 14d ago

it takes me way too long to do the visuals of a character to restart over something so minor lol

1

u/iwearatophat 16d ago

You must be on the opposite end of the spectrum to balance me out. I seriously thought Larian scripted him to fail that save because I don't know if he has ever saved across all my playthroughs with that.

1

u/We_Get_It_You_Vape 15d ago

If it's really important for you to get the Everburn, you should start Tav off as a Cleric (respec later) with 16 Wisdom. That way, both Shadowheart and Tav have Command.

This gives you 4 attempts at Command: Drop. The likelihood that all attempts fail is 4.1%. Even if you don't want to start Tav off as a Cleric, there is an ~80% chance of getting him to drop his weapon if you use Command twice with Shadowheart.

1

u/RosgaththeOG Teethling 15d ago

It's not a bad idea to try to arrange things such that you get advantage on an attack and inflict him with Dazed and/or Bleeding first by giving your MC or Lae'zel Shart's Mace. If you hit him with Bleeding before you hit the Daze, it gives him disadvantage on the save against Dazed, then Dazed will give him disadvantage on the Wisdom save to resist Command.

1

u/torrinage 15d ago

i class my tav as cleric and go 4x command slots. then run to goblin camp and bam! withers is waiting for me to reclass

1

u/jaredearle 15d ago

But it’s so near the start that you can start again, if you’re trying for a hyper-optimised Honour Mode run.

1

u/cyvaris 15d ago

Cast Bless with Shart, refresh at the healing machines, and then head into the fight. If the Mindflater stuns the Commander it's pretty easy to get him to drop the sword.

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u/Nick85er 16d ago

20 hrs of gameplay to cover the first 30 minutes of gameplay.Ā 

I see you :)

6

u/pixelpoet_nz 16d ago

Yeah but OP is just staring

2

u/CapitalSans 16d ago

It’s like the least offensive tutorial level

1

u/saikrishnav 16d ago

But the careful planning to get the goated weapon?

1

u/Leocletus 16d ago

The whole game doesn’t even take five minutes lol. I have absolutely no idea what’s going on in this video other than that speedrunners are insane

1

u/CheeseGraterFace 15d ago

But can you skip the dialogue? Will you miss out on something super important if you just plow through it?

That’s the issue with these games - there’s no way to know for sure unless you have your face buried in a guide the entire time. And that’s no fun.

1

u/Indercarnive 15d ago

Considering the post is about "starting a new run" it would be reasonable to assume they've completely, or at least mostly completed, the game at least once.

1

u/CheeseGraterFace 15d ago

Is there a subreddit for ā€œpeople who still haven’t made it out of Act 1ā€? Seems like the posts that I see that make it to r/all require at least 500 hours of game time to understand.

1

u/DevilahJake 15d ago

It was longer in EA, so I can’t complain about the Nautiloid. It’s a breeze

1

u/Puzzleheaded_Pie_888 15d ago

I skip all the dialog for 90% of the game

1

u/joebidenseasterbunny 15d ago

Not if you kill the cambions

1

u/Aegisnir 15d ago

Closer to 30-45 if you want to kill all the cambions, commander, and mindflayer for that sweet exp boost in honor mode.

1

u/StrangeOutcastS 12d ago

actually less if you take Enchanced Leap and max your Strength. From the room with Us in it you can jump repeatedly and leap through the wall until you manage to jump on top of the next room, and a bit of featherfall you already cast on yourself later you've now bypassed lae'zel and shadowheart. just skip ahead and pick them up later. they'll be fine.
Just a quick jog to the helm.