Summary of "Hidden Permanent Buff in Baldur’s Gate 3 That Almost Nobody Found"

Summary of “Hidden Permanent Buff in Baldur’s Gate 3 That Almost Nobody Found”

Storyline and Key Discoveries

Love Protects Buff A newly discovered permanent buff called Love Protects grants +1 AC to you and your romanced companion when within 5 meters.
- Obtained by talking to the dryad Zeathino in the Circus of the Last Days and passing a “love test” (answering three questions about your romance companion correctly).
- Orurin may disguise as the dryad, blocking the buff unless you trigger Orin’s disguises twice beforehand (e.g., via interactions with the gazette journalist and a thug near Worms Crossing).
- The buff is currently broken in patch 8 but can be restored with the mod “Really Shadow Heart.”
Saving Vanra Without Hagsbane
- Normally, Vanra is rescued by throwing Hagsbane at Auntie Ethel.
- Alternatively, toggle on non-lethal attacks and melee Auntie Ethel to trigger a secret cinematic where you cut Vanra out of her stomach.
- If Auntie Ethel is not defeated in Act 1, Vanra cannot be saved in Act 3.
- To identify the real hag in Act 3, inspect hags for the “hag pregnancy” condition.

Gameplay Highlights and Strategies

Age of Wonders 4 (Sponsor Segment)
- Turn-based strategy RPG with empire building, resource management, and moral alignment choices.
- Combat mechanics similar to Baldur’s Gate 3, including zone control and opportunity attacks.
- Features flanking, faction-specific resources (e.g., soul for undead), and visually impressive graphics.
- Free-to-play weekend event mentioned.
Rare Hyena Dialogues
- Patrolling hyena near bloated hyenas can be lured with minor illusion to initiate dialogue, revealing cryptic threats.
- Cave hyenas near Zentim offer unique dialogues based on player race, including special responses for humans, elves, drow, halflings, dwarves, gnomes, tieflings, half-orcs, and dragonborn.
- Deception checks can convince hyenas you are a god, referencing Yanogu.
Arcane Lock Spell Utility
- Prevents enemies from entering or leaving rooms and blocks NPCs from hearing or seeing beyond locked doors.
- Can be combined with minor illusion and area-of-effect spells (e.g., Wall of Fire) to trap and damage enemies.
- Does not require concentration, allowing for versatile combat control.
- Can be used with haste potions to lock/unlock repeatedly.
Hidden Journal Page in Worm Way
- Five journal pages document adventurers’ trials; the fifth page is only found by failing the trials and defeating a reanimated fallen champion.
- The final page reveals the adventurers’ failure and their vow to protect the city in death.
Chamber of Justice Puzzle Shortcut
- Instead of solving the painting puzzle, cast spells like Turn Undead to force the judge away, revealing all paintings at once.
- Makes choosing the correct punishment easier.
Overpowered Items
- Wine Goblet: Causes drunkenness without costing an action (useful for drunken monk builds).
- Cup of Water: Heals 1d4 HP without an action, triggering equipment effects like poison damage or blessings.
- Spoiled Trile Tart and Raspberry: Similar healing items that don’t cost actions, with raspberries being the most common and effective.
Reason’s Grasp Gloves
- Found in a locked chest in the Zentim cave, grants 15 temporary HP when canceling rage (barbarian only).
- Temporary HP disappears after combat ends, limiting usefulness.
Hammergrim Mist Amulet
- Allows casting a non-concentration version of Fog, enabling stacking with other concentration spells.
- Found in a locked chest in the ruined house near the Harper ambush site.
Bernard’s Additional Gift
- By reading the Patched Parchment poem on the Arcane Tower’s fourth floor and talking to Bernard with the right dialogue, you unlock a new option to receive a Potion of Greater Healing.
Trader Stealing Trick
- Using Reliable Talent (minimum roll of 10 on ability checks) combined with bartering to split gold stacks lowers DC for pickpocketing.
- Allows guaranteed stealing of all trader items without critical failures.
- Can gather multiple traders in one location for efficient theft.
Guaranteed Double Potions/Elixirs Crafting
- Build includes:
  - 2 levels of Transmutation Wizard (Experimental Alchemy for brewing two potions).
  - 1 level Rogue (Expertise in Medicine).
  - Remaining levels Cleric (for Enhance Ability - Owl’s Wisdom).
- Combined with halfling luck from hireling Brina, this build almost guarantees double potion crafting every time.

Featured Gamers and Sources

The video creator (unnamed) presenting all discoveries and strategies.
Mention of the mod Really Shadow Heart from the mod manager.
Sponsor mention: Paradox Interactive (Age of Wonders 4).
Hireling Brina (in-game character for crafting strategy).
NPCs: Zeathino (dryad), Orurin/Orin, Auntie Ethel, Vanra, Bernard, and various hyenas.

This video reveals numerous hidden mechanics, rare dialogues, secret buffs, and clever gameplay strategies in Baldur’s Gate 3, many of which are easy to miss or broken in current patches without mods. It also includes a detailed sponsored segment on Age of Wonders 4, drawing parallels in gameplay style.