Baldur’s Gate 3was figured out remarkably quickly by speedrunners, leaving the game less competitive than you’d expect for its level of popularity.
For those unaware, the current Any% world record is 3 minutes and 31 seconds, currently held byCanadian runner Mae. Through the use of some very useful glitches, a very long and robust RPG has been reduced to just a couple of minutes.
However, Baldur’s Gate 3’s most popular category wasn’t Any% at all, but rather the humorous Sex%. This is a category where the goal was simply to initiate one of the game’s many sex cutscenes.
Lae’zel, You Changed…
The current Sex% world record is 1 minute and 58 seconds,also held by Mae. The target of a speedrunner’s advances is Lae’Zel, whose only requirement for intimacy was high enough approval. This could be accelerated by interacting with the character Zorru in the Emerald Grove. Zorru disrespects Lae’Zel and can be bullied by the player for easy approval gains.
However, everything changed with Larian’s release ofPatch 4at the beginning of November. The criteria for initiating sex with Lae’Zel was expanded; you also now need to have “proven yourself worthy through your actions.”
In light of this, anew leaderboardfor Sex% post-Patch 4 was created. However, no speedrunner has submitted a run in this category since its creation. It’s not known if anyone has theorised a valid route, either.
This isn’t unexpected, everyone speculated that Patch 4 would be the death of Sex%. Considering how short the old category is, and how short Any% is, post-patch 4 Sex% would probably be the longest category in Baldur’s Gate 3 and runners may not have the appetite for spending a large amount of time on what was essentially a joke category.
For those curious about how Any% is so fast — to simplify a very optimised run, runners make use of a glitch that’s triggered when trying to move a container into an invalid area. This creates a node which can be used as a point to launch objects towards in the future.
Then, a technique called ‘Shadowboxing’ is used. This is when the player kills Shadowheart and stuffs her into a crate. The crate is then set ablaze and launched towards the new node, catapulting Shadowheart’s corpse. The burning crate will splinter upon impact, spilling Shadowheart into the new area.
Baldur’s Gate 3’s Rarest Achievement Is Something Most Players Will Never Do
Toss a coin to your Tav.
Provided there’s a cutscene trigger at her arrival point, the game will force a long rest, essentially teleporting the party to Shadowheart’s landing zone. This technique is used to teleport to the Mountain Pass, and then to the last area of Act 2.
Gale has to be the selected origin character because of his unique and… explosive properties. You can trigger Gale’s bomb at the conclusion of Act 2 to achieve an early ending, rolling credits and finishing the run.
It will probably take you longer than five minutes to finish Baldur’s Gate 3, so if you’re currently playing, why not check out ourcomplete guide and walkthrough for a helping hand?
Baldur’s Gate 3
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23 years on from the release of the seminal RPG, Baldur’s Gate 2, the third game in the series has been developed by Larian Studios (of Divinity: Original Sin fame). Set over 120 years after the events of the last game, Baldur’s Gate 3 tasks you and your party of heroes to fight off a mind flayer invasion of Faerun, while seeking a way to remove the tadpole in your brain that’s slowly turning you into the enemy…
