Baldur’s Gate 3’s Owlbear has a surprise mechanic fans missed

Baldur’s Gate 3 is filled with surprises that players have still been discovering just under a year after its full release, and some can be much deadlier than others.

One such surprise involves the adorable yet extremely powerful Owlbear located in Act One. While many fall in love with the Owlbear cub as the game goes on, you have to take down its mother to ‘adopt’ the unusual pet.

However, battling the mother can lead to a surprising turn of events, which one player revealed on the Baldur’s Gate 3 subreddit.

Larian Studios

“How did I only just find out that the Owlbear mom can call upon her mate? What. A whole other Owlbear just spawned in” shared the poster, showcasing the dangers of fighting the Owlbear.

Usually, the only enemy you have to fight is the Owlbear mother, which is a tough enough fight to handle at lower levels, let alone adding another to the mix.

Thankfully, players don’t need to worry too much, as the second Owlbear only appears if you’re playing on Honour Mode, as it increases the difficulty.

“That’s her ‘Legendary Action’ which is only active on Honor mode” shared one user, with another adding that “Honor mode gives new mechanics to all the bosses.” Apparently, the Owlbear isn’t the only tougher enemy you’ll come across in the popular game mode.

Many shared how shocked they were to stumble across the same enemy: “Yeah that ended my second honor run. I was having fun and was not prepared for the mate to come plummeting down.”

Another added, “Had no idea she did this. Her mate spawned right behind my Tiefling sorcerer, who I had flown to what I thought was a ‘safe’ height. We ended up having to use the ogre horn a lot earlier than we were planning. The ogres killed the Baby Owlbear…and then later I accidentally ate the egg, which we were planning to sell. So it was a murder fest and we essentially came out empty-handed.”

Interestingly, another player shared a key technique to help players deal with the unexpected challenge: “Try silence with shadow heart! I was able to get a surprise round on her and was able to prevent her from calling her mate.”

If the mother Owlbear can’t make any noise, then she can’t call on her mate, making the battle as simple as it is in the normal game modes. However, if you’re looking for a new challenge, Honour Mode has plenty to offer.