Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - Suggestions & Feedback Black hand pathetically weak?

First off, I find the local black hand leader having the strenght of a wet sock hilarious. I appreciate it, I really do.

However, I'm not sure they're supposed to suck /that/ much?

For the record, the progress of the fight:

Stage 1: Player (4 x level 4) vs black hand (4 x level 3)

1. Take out the sniper with your ranged options.
2. Move to the tunnel. The loud mouthed idiot will rush at you, alone, with her grand total of ~20 hp
3. Once in the big room, sneak up the platform and push down sniper #2 (or melee sneak attack).
4. It's you vs the 36 hp merchant. Employ strategy of choice

Spells used: 0. Hp lost: 0-10

This is the stage I have a problem with. It's an easy fight, which isn't bad, but does it ought to be?



Stage 2: 2 rangers, 2 wolves (level 3). One level 5 melee(?)
Ignoring the stealth exploit which allows you to kill them all without entering combat...

1. "Surprise" attack (you do get the drop on them, not sure If they can get surprised as a status effect). One ranger down, one wolf down. One ranger wounded.
2. Turn 2: second ranger down, second wolf down, melee wounded.
3. Turn 3. Melee dead.

Or:
Wolf down pre combat
1. surprise attack + fire arrow to barrel. Melee down (what I did, didn't find out what she can do).
2....

Needless to say, it's a short fight that's not even worth remembering. At any point, you have level and group size advantage. I'm not a murder hobo, but as they have an Item to feed Gale, they're an attractive target to get on the wrong side of. Free gold and barrelmancy stock. Not to mention, the one handed crossbows and early route to the underdark.

Together with being pure evil, annoying slave traders, it's like they have a mark on their forehead which says "please kill us and take our stuff!". That's fine and all, but was that intentional?

I feel stupid fr asking this but "Who are the Black Hand" and where are they? I'm not recognizing this encounter from your description for some reason.

I'm sorry, my game is half german, which makes figuring out names a hassle. I mean the guys in Zhentarim hideout and their iron flask retrieval quest.

Ah, the Zhentarim!

Yes, I agree that as long as you don't find yourself down at the bottom when someone chucks an alchemist's fire flask and sets the whole place ablaze, it's not a hugely difficult fight, and I agree the tactics of the enemies could be improved.

But while I think it could and should be better, I'm not sure that it should be a particularly hard fight, especially if you're level 4 or even 3 when you get there. These are just common criminals, and there's no indication that they're particularly high up in the organisation. I'm sure we'll get to fight harder battles later in the game if we continue to be a thorn in the side of the Zhentarim!

Well, it would be more challenging to face the straight up, i.e. starting in the area where they have all the explosive barrels, which is what is intended. But, then again, they had roughly a turn or two to light that up and they didn't in my last play through. I'd be better, I think, if the other Zhentarim who are guarding the 'hoard' came and helped them out, at least the player would be out-numbered in that case.

I would gladly accept the wet sock reveal for comedy purposes. Though, she probably shouldn't rush at the party all alone. Maybe they've gotten more hesistant at throwing alchemist's fire because Larian wants to allow us to free the guy + painter. Maybe it's an accident. I don't know.

Still, she's such a nasty, annoying, entitled woman. It would be even funnier If approaching the rest of the Zhentarim forces a cutscene. What If they're not even interested in killing you? It's not working out and nobody misses that b*tch. None of these people are the loyal, upright sort... why follow an Idiot to the death...