Baldur’s Gate 3 is famous for its tough boss battles. However, some players have uncovered tactics to breeze through these challenges.
These tactics make quick work of battles by barricading entrances with mundane items. It may sound cheesy, but it works. Here’s our favorite cheesy strats for BG3 bosses, ranked.
Disclaimer: This article highlights and ranks all player-established methods to cheese all main boss fights in Baldur’s Gate 3. However, note that the following bosses either don’t require cheese methods or can be avoided using persuasion altogether: Orin, Kar’niss, Ketheric Thorm, Malus Thorm, Gerringothe Thorm, and Thisobald Thorm.
Auntie Ethel
- Cheese Tactics: Silence, water, and control spells
Auntie Ethel is a hag who can cast powerful spells, but what if she was silenced? Cheese this fight by casting Silence on her, rendering her spellcasting useless. Additionally, throwing a bottle of water on Mayrina’s cell can create a puddle that can be electrified to damage Auntie Ethel. Control spells like Arrow of Roaring Thunder, Repeling Eldritch Blast, or shoving her away from the Silence sphere can further disrupt her abilities.
True Soul Nere
- Cheese Tactic: Ranged attacks from a hidden position
True Soul Nere is a pain in the butt, honestly. He’s a devilishly annoying character who turns on you right after you save him. Still, he’s a tough nut to crack, and the surrounding lava isn’t helping.
Thankfully, players have found a clever way to cheese this fight by positioning their characters on the southern catwalk above the lava. By igniting the powder, staying hidden, and harassing Nere and his allies with ranged attacks and summons, you can gradually wear down their enemies without taking too much damage yourself.
Keep in mind that you can avoid this entire fight altogether. The easiest way to do this is to simply let Nere die in the cave rather than free him. The poison gas will eventually kill him, doing all of the work for you. You can also simply push Nere into the lava with a spell or the Push command as well.
Yurgir the Orthon
- Cheese Tactic: Throwing heavy objects from a height
Yurgir is way too tough a boss to be part of Act 2. My party is full of unripe fruit; they’re just a bunch of level 6 pups. How could they stand a chance against an invisible Orthon, a Displacer Beast, and about a dozen Merregons?
Yurgir’s boss fight could be cheesed by throwing heavy objects, such as chests or corpses, from a height. This tactic can significantly damage Yurgir and potentially one-shot him. This cheese doesn’t classify that high in this Baldur’s Gate 3 bosses cheesability ranking because even with Yurgir gone, there are still too many enemies left. This fight could easily be avoided by persuading Yurgir altogether, so perhaps we’re better off doing that.
Cazador
- Cheese Tactic: Using the Daylight spell
Taking revenge against Cazador for everything he has done to our sweet cheese, good-time boy Astarion is a must, sure. But that doesn’t mean we need to go all the way and make this a challenging fight for ourselves.
The battle is cut short by using the Daylight spell close enough to Cazador without triggering dialogue. Astarion won’t be taken hostage, meaning the rescue mechanic, which often leads to Astarion’s death, is prevented.
Lorroakan
- Cheese Tactic: Using psychic spells and positioning
I think we can all agree that Lorroakan, as a character, sucks. Still, because he is an all-mighty wizard with thorns and retaliation damage, it makes for a demanding boss battle.
However, you can cheese the Lorroakan boss fight by using psychic spells like Telekinesis on him, as these spells do not incur thorns damage. Positioning yourself correctly can also allow you to throw Lorroakan onto candles, a mundane item that proves helpful once more. Combining these tactics with the correct elemental vulnerabilities and buffs can make the fight more manageable. And maybe, just maybe, the Nightsong will stop dying every turn.
Commander Zhalk
- Cheese Tactic: Block the entrance with sturdy chests
Commander Zhalk is a skippable boss fight in the very early game of Baldur’s Gate 3. After all, you’re a weakling who just walked out of a Nautiloid pod by miracle. It feels right that you should escape this encounter while someone else takes care of it. However, the rewards for defeating Commander Zhalk make giving this boss fight a go quite tempting.
Players have found a way to cheese this boss fight by using the sturdy chests on the nautiloid to block off the entrance. This prevents the other two demons from joining the battle, giving players 15 rounds to deal with Zhalk alone.
Sarevok
- Cheese Tactic: Engaging before he enters the Trial room
The name Sarevok Anchov alone can and should make most Baldur’s Gate players shiver. But a boss fight that strategically places him and his followers in an arena sounds like plain suicide.
Still, players can cheese this fight by engaging Sarevok before he enters the Trial room. This way, he’ll be cornered between two walls and a locked door. This cornered position makes it difficult for his followers to reach him. It opens up a chance to focus on defeating Sarevok without being overwhelmed by his followers or intimidated by the pool of blood surrounding the arena.
Viconia DeVir
- Cheese Tactic: Using an imp to attack through a door
Viconia DeVir backstabs Shadowheart in the heart of the House of Grief. I can’t say it’s unexpected since I walked into a building full of potential enemies willingly. Still, I didn’t expect so many Shar worshippers in town.
Luckily, players can cheese this fight by using an imp to attack her through a closed door. By repeatedly biting her through the door, players can defeat Viconia without aggroing her. The reason Viconia DeVir gets such a high place in this Boss Fights Ranked by Cheesability list is that, since she was murdered outside of the battlefield, her death allows for some unique dialogue with their living followers.
Balthazar
- Cheese Tactic: Spirit Guardians and AOE spells
The most common way to cheese Balthazar’s encounter is by pushing him off a cliff. Unfortunately, this is an all too common tactic that sacrifices the loot.
Related: Baldur’s Gate 3: Should You Defeat Balthazar Before Entering the Shadowfell in BG3?
A second way to cheese the Balthazar boss fight without compromising loot is to use a combination of Spirit Guardians and AOE fireball spells. By positioning a character with Spirit Guardians in the middle of a pile of bones and initiating the combat scene, many skeletons will be instantly killed. Afterward, AOE spells can finish off the remaining enemies, leaving Balthazar vulnerable and easier to defeat.
Grym
- Cheese Tactic: Forging one-cycle kill
Grym earns a high spot on the Baldur’s Gate 3 bosses ranked by cheesability because cheesing the fight is the intended way to beat him.
Grym is the forge boss, and he’s challenging due to the need to activate the lava and time your attacks correctly. However, players can simplify the fight by attempting a one-cycle kill. By activating the lava, getting Grym under the hammer, and triggering it all at once, you can take down Grym in a single cycle.
Gortash
- Cheese Tactic: Luring Gortash away and fast-traveling
Lord Enver Gortash is one of the three big baddies of Baldur’s Gate 3. Though he’s admittedly not that hard to beat, the traps in the Throne Room make for a tough encounter.
Still, you could avoid all that by luring him away from his lair, picking him up, and fast-traveling to a different location. Once at the new location, you can easily defeat Gortash without the backup of his lair actions and reinforcements. Taking such a crucial character in the game to a new location and making short work of him out there is just hilarious.
Raphael
- Cheese Tactic: Casting Otto’s Irresistible Dance and Tasha’s Hideous Laughter
Raphael is ready to kill you in the depths of the House of Hope, and he also brings Yurgir, Korilla, and about a dozen Merregons with him. It’s a tough fight that, if done as intended, can be beaten by destroying all four pillars in each of the room’s corners and weakening Raphael considerably.
Related: Baldur’s Gate 3 Redefines Epic Boss Battle Soundtracks
If this doesn’t sound like fun, you can cheese this fight by using spells like Otto’s Irresistible Dance and Tasha’s Hideous Laughter. Turns out Raphael is highly susceptible to these two, and you can keep him incapacitated throughout the entire encounter. I just found the sound of Raphael’s Final Act track, combined with Raphael’s bursts of uncontrollable laughter, to be a complete delight.
Marcus, the Flaming Fist
- Cheese Tactic: Preventing his resurrection by adding him to your inventory.
During your introduction to Isobel, evil Marcus suddenly pops in and triggers a random fight sequence that endangers everyone in the Last Light Inn, including key characters and companions. This fight’s stakes are high, and the fact that Marcus can return to life if defeated in the dark doesn’t make it any easier.
However, players can cheese this fight by picking up his body and keeping it in their inventory until the battle ends. This prevents him from resurrecting with the shadow curse, making the fight against the remaining Merregons more manageable.
BG3 has some of the toughest fights we’ve seen in a game, which thankfully can be whittled away at with the proper strategies. You’re also going to need good legendary armor and weapons to take them down with, and knowing how to get them will help out immensely.
