Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - Suggestions & Feedback Food is too OP, balancing suggestions

I do not see the issue, especially since, as of now, there is no way to easily craft healing potions or potions at all, and the general difficulty level is rather high. While I agree that apples do not heal broken bones, a rest does not either. And how potions and spells do that is also pretty shrouded in mystery. What food and water undoubtedly does is give sustenance that can help healing and it is common practic in games that food items heal. So it is all in the realm of authenticity and accepted make-belief.

I recall PoE used food as a resource for resting, which I am fine with. But the amount and availability of healing potions and other options need to be high, if you ever want to break open the classic tank/healer/mage/rogue meta with a party of only 4. Healing needs to be wide and easily available through multiple sources.

If it is bothersome that apples heal, I would say picture them as magically enhanced food items. If spells can heal, food items that are enchanted can, too. For diversity from conventional healing potions I would accept if they would apply a HoT effec rather than a straight heal, which would also give it a tactical aspect.

Ya looking at it that way could be somewhat better but unfortunately this isn't "just" a game that follows game logic, it's DnD. It's already got it set rules and mechanics that the "game" already has to balance it, plus the problem that I have is there is sooooooooooo mean food items. Don't get me wrong I like that it can heal but my friend and I find ourselves not really finding a need to go to camp (yes for spells but the scrolls talk is for another time and topic. lol) so I feel like there could be some so sort of middle ground balancing that is needed to be made. like my last post the half way "could" work but that's just an idea that I'm just throwing out there

Maybe asking a little much, but each piece of food could be assigned a 'nutrition value' and to fully benefit from a Long Rest you need to eat/have available food equal to your constitution in value.

That's probably too much work to create for an already overworked design staff, but it offers solutions to both the 'problem' of magic-healing food and also the problems of Long-Rest-spamming. If you don't have the food for a meal, you only count as having had a short rest instead.

The idea mentioned earlier of having food not heal at all but allow 2-3 short rests per day is a good idea in my opinion. It makes sense when a party is moving through a dangerous area that they might take a short rest after one or more party members are significantly injured. And since short rests are an hour you could concveivable take a couple throughout the day. Perhaps food could add to your short rest heal if they're keen on making it useful. Or make it useless and have the hard mode "tactician" difficulty require your party to eat food each day or risk a progessively worse debuff after a long rest until they eat.

I also find the current mechanic poorly balanced and also weird (who eats a loaf of bread every 6 seconds? xD )
I'm on board with almost all suggestions that were posted here to fix that. I would go with a food buff (1dX temp HP or +1 on next skill check/attack roll or something...) and to be only able to consume food once every short rest or at least simply out of combat.

PS: also +1 on more short rests and some repercussions for long rests. Although I do understand that the D&D resting system is difficult to get right in a PC game.

Yeah I totally get that it is bothersome. In the end the food items are reskinned healing potions, which makes me scratch my head as well. I think the suggestions here are sensible for the EA. If I am looking at it from my gaming perspective though, where I am always in need for some healing, especially with no cleric in the group, I am glad that there are multiple sources of healing. And it could very well be that in the full release something like alchemy is planned so you can craft three healing potions per day, or that you find more potions on enemies and at traders or have even more ways to aquire healing in general. And that the current food is just a placeholder until we get these mechanics in the release version.

Instead of food being used for health, what about healing kits? It would be a use for them, they can be a limited resource like healing potions but only usable outside of combat and more plentiful, and maybe a higher medicine skill helps it?

Apples and other small items only tend to heal 1 or 2 hitpoints at a time. Taking 3 through 5 to heal you 6 health points out of at level 2 lets say 12. There are a few food items that heal you up to 5, those are rarer. Most healing potions heal you between 2 - 8 hit points, and are harder to come by.

Now take into consideration that most people eat 3x a day, which would amount to 2 short rests, and a long... oh wait typically breakfeast and dinner would be in the same camp, and a short rest unless your a hobbit would occur around noon. So eating a few apples, a sausage link, and a few other random items to help top you off isn't that far fetched. Especially when compared to other games where healing in combat is done by eating food, and that only takes a couple food items to fully heal.

I don't see a problem currently with food healing you, especially if you can't do it in battle. Then again it's up to you to chose not to, or to use whats given as an option.

^ The problem is you CAN eat food during battle and a deer leg, or basically any giant meat chunk you carry in your bag heals as much or MORE then a greater heal potion.

I think eating food is something you should be able to do when you short rest, to spend hit dice. High quality foods should have minor effects like +5 temp hp or whatever

could be fixed just by making the eat option out of combat only, which they use for pray of healing.

Please, Out of combat only eating is the minimum that should be done.

Or maybe a CON save to avoid choking on that sandwich your trying to eat in 6 seconds!?!?!?!

nearly choked not going to lie. this the last statement yes please.

Only one Suggestion for Food: Goodberries (Druid 1lvl spell) can heal you with 10 berries - each gain u 1hp and u don't need to eat in a day.

And you need to have at least one breakfast in a day or suffer an exhaustion lvls with debuffs

But there is a rule: no food recovers your HP - it's OP and boring and not 5e

U can heal only by short/long resting (with Hit Dice rolls), Potions, Spells, And special class features.

Healler's kit only with Feat works like Healing per short rest. Help Action replaces it - that's boring too

We are playing DnD 5e here, you know

Wait, that's what food does?! Why not just make food required to get the benefits of a long rest? Maybe fights start among the party if there's not enough food for everyone. Maybe characters can cook meals that initiate new conversations, if they have enough ingredients and have proficiency in chef's tools. I generally like survival mechanics and dislike how easy it is to get around them in 5e, but even just a little should be enough.

(Obviously I haven't played long. I have a very difficult time launching the game)

Thinking about it some more, if you can't eat food in combat, that'll probably be a good enough change. Being able to heal up a bit outside of combat is probably okay.

So far I've not seen stockpiles of food, and those I do find aren't really enough to fill 2 characters with half hp up, let alone all 4 of them. So really don't see where this supposed stock pile of op food is coming from?

food should be required to have on you for long and short rests right now it's another dumb mechanic

I loved the crafting in Divine Divinity; granted it's going to be different in a DND based game, but I think it should still be present.