How to Cheese Balthazar in BG3? Exploiting Weaknesses for Victory
Here’s how to defeat Balthazar in Baldur’s Gate 3 using a combination of strategic positioning and exploiting environmental weaknesses. This guide focuses on alternative strategies to avoid a direct, head-on fight against his forces.
Understanding the Balthazar Encounter
Balthazar, a powerful necromancer serving the Absolute, presents a significant challenge in Baldur’s Gate 3. His encounter typically takes place within the Gauntlet of Shar, surrounded by undead minions and possessing potent spells. A straight fight can be grueling, especially on higher difficulties. However, with careful planning and a bit of ingenuity, players can circumvent a direct confrontation and exploit his weaknesses.
Why Cheese Balthazar? The Benefits
Choosing to “cheese” Balthazar offers several advantages:
- Reduced Difficulty: Avoiding a prolonged battle significantly lowers the risk of character death, especially on Tactician difficulty.
- Resource Conservation: A direct fight consumes valuable spell slots, potions, and other consumables. Cheesing saves these for later, more challenging encounters.
- Speed: Certain methods allow for a quick and efficient victory, saving time and frustration.
- Tactical Experimentation: Exploiting game mechanics encourages creative problem-solving and enhances the overall gameplay experience.
The Primary “Cheese” Method: Falling to Your Doom
This is the most common and effective method for quickly dispatching Balthazar. It involves exploiting his tendency to stand near ledges during the initial encounter.
- Location: The Gauntlet of Shar.
- Preparation: Position a character with high mobility (e.g., a Monk, Rogue with Misty Step, or a character with the Dimension Door spell) near Balthazar before initiating dialogue. Stealth is helpful.
- The Push: After initiating dialogue, have your mobile character use a Push action (Shove), Thunderwave, or similar ability to knock Balthazar off the ledge.
- Instant Victory: If successful, Balthazar will fall to his death, immediately ending the encounter.
Alternative Strategies and Considerations
While the ledge-push is the most popular, here are a few alternative approaches:
- Stealth and Assassination: A high-level Rogue can attempt to assassinate Balthazar before he can react.
- Environmental Damage: Use spells like Create Water followed by Lightning Bolt to inflict significant damage to Balthazar and his undead allies.
- Control Spells: Hold Person or Hypnotic Pattern can incapacitate Balthazar, allowing your party to focus on his minions or deal concentrated damage.
- Pre-Combat Buffing: Applying buffs like Bless, Haste, and Freedom of Movement before engaging Balthazar can significantly improve your party’s survivability and damage output.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Aggroing the Minions First: If you attack any of Balthazar’s minions before initiating dialogue with him, he will become hostile and the ledge strategy may be more difficult to execute.
- Insufficient Mobility: Failing to position a character with adequate mobility near Balthazar makes the push method impossible.
- Forgetting Saving Throws: Balthazar has a decent Constitution saving throw. Guidance and other abilities that improve saving throws can increase your chances of a successful push.
- Triggering the Ritual: Interacting with the Nightsong shrine before dealing with Balthazar can alter the encounter. Deal with Balthazar first.
Comparing Strategies
| Strategy | Difficulty | Resource Cost | Speed | Requirements |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ledge Push | Very Low | Minimal | Very Fast | High Mobility, Push Ability |
| Stealth Assassin | Medium | Minimal | Fast | High Rogue Level, Stealth Skills |
| Environmental DMG | Medium | Moderate | Moderate | Water/Lightning Spells |
| Control Spells | Medium | Moderate | Moderate | Control Spells, Spellcasters |
| Direct Fight | High | High | Slow | Well-Equipped Party, Good Strategy, High Character Level |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What level should I be when fighting Balthazar?
Ideally, your party should be around level 8 or 9 before tackling Balthazar. This ensures you have access to powerful spells and abilities to improve your chances of success, even when cheesing. Lower levels can manage with the ledge push but may struggle with other methods.
Does this strategy work on Tactician difficulty?
Yes, the ledge push strategy works on Tactician difficulty. However, Balthazar has higher stats, so landing the push might require a little more luck or buffs to increase your hit chance and his saving throw difficulty.
What happens if Balthazar doesn’t fall off the ledge?
If Balthazar resists the push or doesn’t fall, you’ll be forced into a traditional fight. Be prepared to retreat and reposition your party, using terrain to your advantage. Focus on controlling the undead minions first.
Can I use this strategy in the Mausoleum or only in the Gauntlet of Shar?
This strategy primarily applies to the initial encounter in the Gauntlet of Shar. He reappears later, and different tactics are needed.
What gear is useful for cheesing Balthazar?
Gear that enhances mobility (boots of speed), boosts saving throw DCs (amulets, staves), or provides push-related bonuses (gloves of thievery) can be incredibly helpful. The Ring of Free Action can prevent Balthazar from being slowed or paralyzed, potentially hindering the push.
What happens if I talk to the Nightsong first?
Talking to the Nightsong before dealing with Balthazar can alter the encounter, making it potentially more challenging. It’s generally recommended to eliminate Balthazar before progressing the Nightsong questline.
Are there any consequences for cheesing Balthazar?
No, there are no negative consequences for cheesing Balthazar. You still receive the same loot and quest progression as you would from a traditional fight.
What if I don’t have anyone who can push?
If no one in your party has a dedicated Shove ability, consider using spells like Thunderwave or abilities that grant the push action. Alternatively, recruiting a hireling with the necessary skills can provide a temporary solution.
Does this work on honor mode?
Yes, the ledge push method does work on Honor Mode but be extremely careful. Honor Mode is a single save difficulty and death is permanent. If Balthazar doesn’t fall, the resulting battle will be extremely difficult with no chance for do-overs.
Can I use summons to help with this strategy?
Summons can be helpful for distracting Balthazar or his minions, giving you a better opportunity to position your pushing character. However, they are unlikely to directly contribute to the ledge push itself.
What if Balthazar summons more skeletons during the fight?
If Balthazar is allowed to summon additional skeletons, focus on eliminating them quickly with area-of-effect spells or abilities. Don’t get bogged down in a prolonged melee. If you fail the ledge push, it can become difficult to manage.
Is there any way to prevent Balthazar from summoning his minions?
There isn’t a reliable method to prevent Balthazar from summoning his minions in a conventional fight. Therefore, your best bet is to focus on damage, crowd control, or the ledge-push method to end the encounter quickly. Silencing him could be a option if you’re planning on fighting.