The Baldur’s Gate 3 grueling Tactician Mode is the correct way to play

destructoid.com:

My outlook on Tactician Mode in Baldur’s Gate 3 changed when a goblin first pushed Lae’zel into a bottomless chasm. It wasn’t necessarily a moment exclusive to this difficulty setting, but having what should’ve been an easy kill lead to a character’s death made me rethink how I approached battles going forward.

Generally, Baldur’s Gate 3 is a challenge on whatever setting you pick, but Tactician Mode is brutal. The setting forces players into a new mindset: Fully take advantage of all the systems BG3 offers, or die. Honestly, it’s amazing how different the game feels with the difficulty spike, and I love it.

After finishing the campaign twice as custom characters, I figured I’d try something new and play as the bullish githyanki Fighter Lae’zel. To experience the world as she does, I emulated her struggle for survival and cranked the difficulty up to its hardest setting. Thus began an amazing and grueling journey where Scrolls of Revivify are treated like candy, and Withers is suddenly my best friend. So far, I’ve only logged about 15 hours, with me being a decent way into Act II, but my experience is a lesson in how far I can push BG3’s party.

Screenshot via Destructoid

Tactician’s one-liner in-game description notes it’s a “tough campaign” intended for anyone eager to experience “strategic combat.” That doesn’t do the difficulty justice, though. Balanced expects strategy, while Tactician pushes players to their limits. The former has challenging combat; the latter is a ruthless DM taking their frustrations out on players.

Enemies receive substantial buffs in Tactician, with the most evident being harder hits and far larger health pools. They also sport better equipment, namely more elemental arrows, ensuring the entire