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After a while, existing purely as a host comprised of distilled cosmic horror and existential dread isn’t good enough in Baldur’s Gate 3. It doesn’t matter that you’ve gained messiah-like dominion over vast swathes of the current population – you need more. More power, more tadpoles, and more funky abilities.
Thankfully, the good stuff is just around the corner – assuming you consider 40 hours of playtime and two Acts to be a single neverending corner. Tackle that, and you’re golden. Infinite power is within your grasp, you only have to reach out your creepy tentacle hand (tentacle hand not required) and take it. This guide will walk you through how, and what rewards await.
If you want information on regular Illithid Powers, you are sadly in the wrong place. Shimmy on over to our Illithid Powers Guide to fill your bonce with enough knowledge to make a Mind Flayer blush.
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How To Unlock High-Tier Illithid Powers
Unlike regular Illithid Powers, high-tier powers are locked away until much later in the game. They don’t come quite so naturally and you are going to have to make a pretty serious decision (multiple times potentially).
You will need to complete Act 2, which of course means you need to get through the General Thorm at Moonrise Towers. Once you’ve done that, you will be instructed to go to Baldur’s Gate. On the way, you will be ambushed by Githyanki from the Astral Plane which eventually leads you to The Emperor, a particularly powerful Mind Flayer.
Defend The Emperor and he will offer you an ancient tadpole that will enhance your latent Illithid powers. Heck, it will transform you into something altogether different – a hybrid. These powers are far more powerful, but you will never be the same again. Are those powers worth it? Absolutely.
Who Can Use High-Tier Illithid Powers
Anyone who has been infected by a Mind Flayer tadpole is capable of transforming into a Half-Illithid. Naturally, characters who were never infected, like Halsin, cannot gain any Illithid powers – high-tier included.
The following characters can transform:
- Asterion
- Lae’Zel
- Shadowheart
- Gale
- Wyl
- Karlach
All High-Tier Illithid Powers
- Displacer Beast – Transform into a Displacer Beast that can Displace itself and enemies dealing 2D8 damage and spawning an illusion of yourself. Your Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma remain the same in addition to gaining 85HP.
- Fracture Psyche – Invade a target’s mind and disrupt their defences. Target’s AC is reduced by 1. If a target dies whilst under the effects of Fracture Psyche, you can cast Shattered Psyche which reduces another target’s AC by 2. This can then combo into more Shattered Psyche casts.
- Illithid Expertise – Gain expertise in Persuasion, Deception, and Intimidation checks.
- Psionic Dominance – When an enemy within 18m of you targets you with a spell of a level that is lower than or equal to your Proficiency Bonus, you can use your reaction to negate that spell.
- Black Hole – Create a point of intense gravity that pulls all nearby enemies towards it, possibly slowing them. You can cast this spell 5 more times to create more Black Holes. All Black Hole charges are regained on Short Rest.
- Fly – Gain the ability to fly to any location within 18m
- Mind Blast – Deal 4D8+2 damage to all enemies in a 14m cone and possibly Stun them.
- Mind Sanctuary – Use Actions and Bonus Actions interchangeably for the next 3 turns.
- Freecast – Your next action or spell has no cost. Refreshes after a Short or Long Rest.
- Absorb Intellect – Reduce targets Intelligence by 1 per turn for 5 turns. Additionally, heal 1D8 per turn for 5 turns.
That’s all we have for Baldur’s Gate 3 for now. Be sure to check out our other guides and lists for more Baldur’s Gate content.
