For fans of Baldur’s Gate 3, Patch 5 was like an early Christmas present. Because the already large game received another 30 GB of new content. Among them is the “Honour Mode”, which puts you to the toughest test yet.
What game modes have existed so far? So far, there have been a total of three different difficulty levels in Baldur’s Gate 3.
- Explorer: for a narrative experience with easier battles and discounts at merchants
- Balanced: for a well-rounded adventure
- Tactician: a tough campaign focusing on combat
With Patch 5, two new modes were added. You can find an overview of all the new features here:
No more “Save Scumming”
One of the most important new features of Patch 5 is the “Honour Mode”. With this difficulty level, developer Larian Studios presents players with a new, even tougher challenge.
Which “Baldur’s Gate 3” player doesn’t know it? The character is perfectly leveled for the situation, the necessary dice value is low, nothing can possibly go wrong. But then you roll a 1 and fail. Such unexpected dice results are simply part of the true “Dungeons & Dragons” experience.
But especially with rolls that have far-reaching consequences, the temptation to simply load an old save file to repeat the roll is strong. Whether you want to succeed in a romance or avoid a massacre – there is always a second chance.
Not so in the new “Honour Mode”. Here you only have a single save file! “Save Scumming”, or excessive reloading to always get the perfect result, is not possible.
Here you get tips on how to properly level your character:
What else can the mode do? Basically, the “Honour Mode” is a modified Tactician mode. This means that the following rules have been adopted from there and provided with even tougher values:
- Permadeath: If your group dies, the run is considered failed. However, you can continue playing in “Custom Mode”.
- Stronger enemies: NPCs have more hit points and receive a bonus on all rolls. The enemy AI is generally tougher.
- Economy: Prices at merchants are higher and the selling value drops. A long rest also requires more supplies.
The “Honour Mode” additionally introduces legendary actions for the most powerful bosses to make fighting them even more challenging. These are bonus actions that the enemy can perform after a character’s turn. More turns – more danger!
Unintended exploits in the new mode are also supposed to be fixed.
What reward is there? If you endure all these adversities and manage to finish the game in “Honour Mode”, you will be rewarded with a unique reward. You can unlock a dice skin: the golden D20.
Realistic “Dungeons & Dragons” experience, but easier
If you want to play with only one save slot but don’t want the increased difficulty of the “Honour Mode”? Then you can simply create a game in the new “Custom Mode”.
As the name suggests, you can fully customize the game according to your wishes.
To simulate a more realistic “Dungeons & Dragons” experience, you can, for example, hide the enemy hit points, failed perception checks, or the required dice sum.
If you want to engage in a particular romance without reloading, you have to get it right from the beginning. The Drow Minthara is probably particularly difficult in this regard. Especially if small bugs make life harder.
If you still want to pursue a romance with Minthara, it might be worth playing as a specific character:
The hardest romance in Baldur’s Gate 3 takes an unexpected turn if you play as a specific character
