Time and again, the discussion arises about what the most powerful spell in Baldur’s Gate 3 is. Yet hardly anyone thinks of the most explosive one: Barrelmancy. How to become a true barrel wizard, you’ll read here.
What is Barrelmancy? Barrelmancy or barrel magic is a meme from the release time of Baldur’s Gate 3. Players gather as many explosive barrels as they can and place them around the enemies that stand in their way. All it takes then is a spark of fire, and everything goes up in a grand chain reaction.
For each barrel placed, you deal a total of six W6 damage – so between 6 and 36 points of damage. That’s only two W6 less than the popular fireball spell. And the barrel doesn’t cost you a spell slot.
Some players have recorded their adventures with Barrelmancy on video:
Casting explosions without casting – How does that work?
But how does Barrelmancy work? As mentioned above, it’s quite simple to become a barrel wizard:
- Collect all the marked oil barrels you can find
- Distribute the barrels around your opponent
- Shoot a fire arrow or a fire spell at a barrel
- Profit
Theoretically, it’s that simple. Unfortunately, it’s not in practice.
What should you watch out for? The game actually puts some obstacles in your way when it comes to barrel magic. Here are the things to keep in mind.
Your characters have a limited carrying capacity. Each oil barrel requires 18 kilos of carrying capacity. Therefore, to place as many barrels as possible, you need a character like Barbarian Karlach with a high strength value. Still, you should expect to store many of the barrels in your inventory.
Pay attention to the distances between the barrels. If they are too far apart, there will be no chain reaction. Each barrel has an explosion radius of 6 meters. Barrels that are to be ignited by the explosion must be within this radius. This also applies to the enemies you wish to catch with the barrels.
By the way, you should ideally not be standing in the radius mentioned above when triggering the explosion.
Additionally, you should keep in mind how many hit points your enemies have: You can deal between 6 and 36 points of damage per barrel explosion. For simple enemies like goblins, a few barrels are sufficient. However, larger opponents like a Minthara have more hit points and will need a few more explosive charges to be taken down.
Barrel Magic – The Pros and Cons
Should you become a Barrelmancer? The results of barrel magic are fun and absolutely entertaining. However, the necessary preparation is very time-consuming and requires a lot of planning: You need to patiently collect and store barrels until it’s time to distribute them.
The distribution itself can also take anywhere from a few minutes to hours, depending on what and who you want to blow up. Moreover, explosions are uncontrollable. You might unintentionally incinerate important quest NPCs or items.
However, if you are aware of the potential consequences, nothing stands in the way of your foray into barrel magic.
Perhaps this is a good strategy for your next encounter with the best villain in Baldur’s Gate 3. He finally gets the recognition he deserves.
