Some of you don't seem to get it, but in these games knowledge is power.
The game is SUPPOSED to go on smoothly if you build your characters well, get good equipment and use their respective capabilities properly.
If you expect a game where even doing all these things properly would translate in having to fight tooth and nail to barely come out on top, you are going to get a game that is either completely frustrant for anyone who doesn't breath D&D all day or heavily reliant on RNG to luck out.
Not sure which one would be worse, either, but neither would be particularly good.
And "I went through this area easily while blowing hundreds of golds in consumable in one sitting" is frankly a laughable flexing.
Even in the tabletop scrolls are supposed to be more valuable than "camping supplies"; something that you try your best to keep aside for direr times (or sell for gold).
That aside, I admit I would be interested in a mode limited to:
- core D&D rules with no "Special Larian cheese on top".
- only mundane items (normal equipment, maybe their +1 and +2 variant unlocked later in second and third act and expensive, debatable if to keep into the game the few special legendaries).
- no (or very limited) consumables.
- no bullshit tadpole powers.
- Maybe fix all the bullshit way the players can manipulate the prices? Currently a Charisma-heavy character with high persuasion is going to play basically a different game from a barbarian with 8 charisma when it comes to shopkeepers... and you get even more ways to affect prices with silly tricks like resetting your level (respec) and gifting crap to the vendors. None of this is particularly entertaining or engaging, but once you learn about how it works, you feel pressured to either leverage the trick or being the sucker who pays everything 3-4 times as much.
... But of course it would need to be stressed to the players that this would not be intended as the ordinary way to play the game, but as a special "challenge" option.
Also, massive thumb down for the suggestion "Let the enemies use special equipment but you can't loot it". That's the worst of both worlds.
Let everyone play by the same rules. Either both the the players and the NPCs can access magic items them OR neither.
I agree, besides if OP wants something harder, Custom Mode might give them a challenge, BG3 isn't supposed to play like a souls like game anyways.
From Software's "Souls-like" games aren't as hard as their (inflated) reputation tries to pain them, either.
Most of them become immensely more manageable once people get familiar with the system.
On top of that, these are action games where rapidity of execution/reflexes/eye-hand coordination plays a role. That doesn't even happen in a turn-based tactical.
In a turn-based game if you know what to do you are going to stomp shit. Almost no way around it.
P.S. For what is worth, I keep reading people in other forums that from time to time start whining that the game is "bullshit hard" and super-unfair. Some of them struggle even going past certain fights on Story mode.
Now, OF COURSE I think that's because they lack the knowledge of the systems and they are doing plenty wrong in terms of planning and execution, but this should put things in perspective.
