Difficulty

There are four modes, modelled on Baldur's Gate 3. You pick one on the New game page, after choosing the party.

  • Story is for playing the tale. Foes have less health and spread their blows around, your heroes get +2 to attacks and saves, a Long Rest is never interrupted, and nobody dies for good.
  • Balanced is the 2024 rules as written. Monsters fight from their stat blocks. Saves from before the modes existed load as Balanced.
  • Tactician is for a hard fight. Foes are tougher and get +2 to hit and to their DCs. They gang up on whoever is hurt, go for your healers and casters, drink potions when Bloodied and run when their side breaks.
  • Honour is Tactician without mercy. Bosses keep their full strength even against a low-level party, cruel foes strike heroes who are down, and the whole playthrough has one save.

Changing mode

  • Story, Balanced and Tactician can be swapped at any time in Settings.
  • Honour can only be picked at a new game. Leaving it is for good.
  • An Honour run has one save slot, which the game keeps up to date: autosaves and the start of every fight write over it, and so do Save Game and F5. A fight you quit halfway comes back to its start, never past it.
  • If the whole party falls in an Honour run, the run ends. The game and its save carry on in Tactician from there, for good.

Tips

  • On Tactician and Honour, foes you beat drop the potions and scrolls they didn't get to use, so check the loot after a fight.
  • A boss counts as anything with Legendary Actions or a Challenge Rating of 5 or more. On every mode but Honour, a lighter version of the boss fights a party that's under the fight's level.
  • Long Rests in a risky place have a 1 in 6 chance of being interrupted on every mode but Story (House Rules).

What each mode changes, read from the game's own table:

Story: For the tale

Foes are frailer and spread their blows around, your party gets +2 to attacks and saves, and nobody dies for good.

  • Enemy Hit Points: 25% fewer, within what their Hit Dice could roll.
  • +2 to your attack rolls and saving throws.
  • Enemies spread their attacks around and don't chase the killing blow.
  • Nobody dies for good: a hero who would die is left Unconscious and Stable.
  • A Long Rest is never interrupted, even in a risky place.

Balanced: The book as written

Foes at their stat block, fighting the way the book has them.

  • Enemy Hit Points: their stat block's.
  • Enemies fight as the book has them.

Tactician: For a hard fight

Tougher, sharper foes (+2 to hit and to their DCs) who gang up on the hurt, go for your healers, drink their potions and run when beaten.

  • Enemy Hit Points: 20% more, within what their Hit Dice could roll.
  • +2 to enemies' attack rolls and the DCs of their spells and abilities.
  • Enemies gang up on the hurt and go for your healers and spellcasters first; their spellcasters cast from their whole spell list.
  • Armed foes carry a Potion of Healing and drink it when Bloodied; casters carry a spell scroll. You loot what they don't use.
  • When their side breaks, foes flee the fight, except mindless things and bosses.

Honour: One life, one save

Tactician with no mercy: bosses at full strength, cruel foes finish the fallen, and one save.

  • Enemy Hit Points: 20% more, within what their Hit Dice could roll.
  • +2 to enemies' attack rolls and the DCs of their spells and abilities.
  • Enemies gang up on the hurt and go for your healers and spellcasters first; their spellcasters cast from their whole spell list.
  • Cruel foes strike a hero who has fallen to 0 Hit Points.
  • Armed foes carry a Potion of Healing and drink it when Bloodied; casters carry a spell scroll. You loot what they don't use.
  • When their side breaks, foes flee the fight, except mindless things and bosses.
  • Bosses fight at full strength even against a low-level party.
  • One save for the whole playthrough.
  • Picked only at a new game; leaving it is for good.