Summary
- In Baldur's Gate 3, players can use the corpse of a girl named Victoria to deal area of effect necrotic damage to enemies.
- Victoria's ignorance of initiative allows players to throw her into battle and maintain a steady stream of DPS, potentially ending an encounter in one turn.
- To get Victoria, players must find her in Cazador's Palace and saving throws to avoid taking necrotic damage themselves. They can then use her as a powerful weapon in the game.
An unexpected late-game secret in save scumming in Baldur's Gate 3. Besides its distasteful nature, that can be disruptive to the flow of combat, forcing players to watch a series of unnecessary loading screens.
However, Baldur's Gate 3 is a highly interactive and customizable game that encourages creative solutions. It's possible to spend tons of time min-maxing, tweaking class, Feats, and spells to make an overpowered build. That wouldn't be a complete waste, but what does a party the most good is having a wide range of combat options. Players can find a lot of loot around the world, from endless camp supplies to hidden treasures in Baldur's Gate 3, and much of it can be used to get out of sticky situations. Sometimes, though, it's the unlikeliest (and most unpleasant) items that provide the most help.
A Dead Body Is The Best-Kept Combat Secret In Baldur's Gate 3
Aptly-named Redditor resoundingboom pointed out that players can use one specific corpse to deal area of effect necrotic damage to anyone and everyone that gets near it. The body, belonging to a girl named Victoria, can be found in a closed room during the Cazador's Palace segment of the game, and picked up by anyone with the requisite Strength. It may be morbid, but they can then carry or throw her into battle to deal damage to enemies nearby. Of course, they'll have to a saving throw to avoid taking necrotic damage themselves, but if applied properly, the benefits of this sickening strategy greatly outweigh the risks.
Now, being able to put down a necrotic damage AoE that doesn't require Concentration and that enemy AI is basically guaranteed to ignore is handy enough. But because she's dead, Victoria doesn't roll for initiative. As a result, instead of compounding the damage dealt each time she takes a turn, she has a constant timer, ever ticking down to the next necrotic blast. That means that a party member can throw her out as an action on their turn, then sit still without ending it to maintain a steady stream of DPS. With a well-placed throw, this can end a whole encounter in one turn.
Of course, the party doesn't have to lug Victoria around everywhere they go. Besides the carrying weight and encumbrance concerns, she may deal damage to the person carrying her, too. She can be laid to rest in camp temporarily, then retrieved as needed to avoid unnecessary pain.
Who Is Victoria In Baldur's Gate 3?
Victoria lived and died in Cazador's Palace before the party ever arrived there, and many of its major figures had designs on her fate. She's the daughter of Leon Onufrio, a sorcerer turned vampire thrall who brought her to the Palace with him, so she would be better protected.
Players may find a diary elsewhere in the area written by Dalyria, another of Cazador's thralls. In it, Dalyria, a former doctor, explains that she was searching for a cure to her vampirism. She believed that an infusion of young blood, namely Victoria's, would reverse the course of her condition and allow her to regain her humanity. Meanwhile, Cazador planned to use her as a sacrifice in a vampiric ritual to make him all-powerful.
Learning of his neighbors' insidious intentions for his daughter, Leon stashed Victoria away in a secluded bedroom, applying a necrotic curse to her very blood. This is the cause of the AoE damage that affects anyone who gets near her, and may have worked for a time. However, Dalyria eventually snuck into Victoria's room and fed on her, becoming sick in the process. Cazador saved her, but couldn't do the same for Victoria. And so her body remains in her bedroom by the time the party arrives.
How To Get Victoria In Baldur's Gate 3
Again, Victoria is located in Cazador's Palace, a location most commonly visited as part of the personal quest of Astarion in Baldur's Gate 3. Cazador is a member of the Szarr family of vampires, and once held Astarion under his thrall. He intends to use Astarion in his ascension ritual as well, and by making a pact with Raphael, Astarion can learn that the symbols Cazador carved into his back mean just that. For those who'd rather not deal with the devil, don't worry: the pact is optional, and the quest can still be progressed by trying unsuccessfully to read the symbols in an Act Two scene with Astarion.
From there, the party can simply walk into Cazador's Palace from the Lower City Central Watch Tower in Baldur's Gate. After all, Astarion is a welcome visitor, but he'll have to treat his former companions kindly if he plans to stay that way. The party should proceed through the Palace until they find a Sinister Door. This must be opened to continue the quest, but doing so is no easy matter.
On the door are engraved a variety of symbols similar to the ones on Astarion's back, writing in an ancient language that Cazador forbids his subjects from learning. The party will have to read them in order to open the door, and doing so requires a dictionary of translation. This can be found in a basement room from which an aura of necrotic damage emanates - Victoria's bedroom.
At this point, the player should separate whichever character is most likely to resist necrotic damage and send them inside. Saving throws are done with the Wisdom stat here, so a Baldur's Gate 3 druid like Halsin or a cleric like Shadowheart are good options. Other ways of reducing necrotic damage, like Elixirs of Necrotic Resistance, are also acceptable. The separated character can walk inside, hopefully succeed in saving throws (but if not, be prepared to work quickly), and grab both the dictionary and Victoria. They'll still need the Szarr Ring to get through the Sinister Door, but at least they have the most powerful weapon in the game.
The Victoria trick is probably only as overpowered as it is because none of the developers expected anyone to try and take the body with them. Naturally, it has its risks, but these can be mitigated with careful planning and the right choice of character. Still, those who want to take advantage of this exploit should get to Cazador's Palace sooner rather than later in case it's patched out of Baldur's Gate 3.
Source: resoundingboom/Reddit
