Baldur’s Gate 3 stealth strategy keeps failing due to unfair enemy ability

Baldur’s Gate 3 players are frustrated over the ineffectiveness of magical stealth, with enemies having an uncanny knack for discovering them with the help of one unfair ability.

In D&D, Invisibility is one of the best low-level spells in the game. The ability to vanish from sight is ideal for sneaking around or getting the jump on an enemy, even if it does break when you attack or cast a spell.

The enhanced versions at later levels, like Greater Invisibility, are even more useful, as they don’t easily break.

Unfortunately, Invisibility isn’t quite as useful in Baldur’s Gate 3. This is due to the Detect Presence ability that many enemies possess, which is an action that lets them uncover your location, removing the benefits of being invisible.

Users on Baldur’s Gate 3’s Reddit are complaining about how common Detect Presence is among the foes in the game and how it neuters the Invisibility spell, as it’s far too easy for your characters to be discovered.

“Invisibility is actually one of the few things that p*ss me off in this game. I use invisibility and am detected by every NPC enemy immediately,” one user wrote, “THEY turn invisible and I can never f****** find them until they attack… then turn invisible right away again and I’m left throwing spells in every direction, praying that I hit them.”

“Are you asking why all the creatures with a good sense of smell can detect you even without seeing you?” another user asked, “The actual problem is that being detected by one creature somehow makes you visible to all of them.”

Another unfair trick the game uses was pointed out. “I’m not seeing anyone give this answer, so here: All NPCs can use the Detect Presence bonus action. This is also true for NPCs on your side, so long as you do not directly control them. The moment you take the reins, they lose the ability.”

The inclusion of Detect Presence was likely a balancing choice to prevent people from cheating fights with Invisibility, especially as it can be cast using magic items. If players could keep out of sight using sorcery, then it would give them a huge advantage in combat.

The downside is that stealth strategies can easily be undone with a single roll, forcing players to either load a save, or, if they’re playing Honour Mode, prepare for a fight that they might not be able to win.