User:Chutiste/Level 3 No Areas

Inspired by the new Experience information on discovering locations, I wondered whether it would be possible to get to Level 3 before entering any of the early areas. This guide is to remind me how to do that efficiently, and may be of use to others.

Entering the Grove or the Temple gives 10 XP at Level 2, and 30 XP at Level 3. Those rewards are proportionate to the levelling-up requirement, but surely it must be better to be 1/60 closer to Level 4!

Considering the main character's level before entering a new area seems to be one of the few player-controllable things that could increase experience gained.

The other (very meta) way to game XP is to dismiss companions; on rejoining the party they gain the main character's XP. These XP disparities come from Inspiration events.

tl;dr – yes, it's possible

The principal areas you're trying not to trigger are:

• The Dank Crypt / Overgrown Ruins / Temple (30XP at Level 3)
  • Unclear whether this is all one location for award purposes
• The Grove (30XP at Level 3)
• The Blighted Village (60XP at Level 3)

That's 120XP instead of 40XP if you enter them all as Level 2. More if some of the sub-locations also grant XP.

On a couple of runs, perhaps I got too close to either the gates of the Grove or the Temple grounds. Reloaded an old save and reconfirmed it can be 30XP for the Grove. That party hadn't even discovered the Roadside Cliffs waypoint and may not have closely approached the Ancient Door. Opening the Ancient Door got 10XP, so I guess that's a quest advancement and not location discovery. Stepping onto the temple grounds near Warryn got 30XP.

Prologue

• Free Us (20 XP)
• Kill the first imps (10 each)
• Kill the sacrificed cultists (10 each)
• Free Shadowheart from the pod
• Kill Zhalk and then the ghaik (75 each)

In the Prologue article it notes that unless you've killed the commander before the additional Cambions arrive, the ghaik won't turn hostile so has no XP reward. The purple Nautiloid Tanks can be exploded.

Collecting all the non-Cambion XP in the Prologue, and then recruiting Shadowheart on the beach, you should be Level 2.

There are three Cartilaginous Chests in the prologue (two in the starting chamber and one in the room next to Shadowheart). Arranging all three to block the narrow corridor that leads to the helm sometimes blocks the Cambions' progress, giving you more time to dispatch Zhalk.

You can kill the Cambions by one character hanging back in Shadowheart's chamber and attacking from out of light crossbow range (and out of combat) when they spawn. Use 'Us' to open the helm door if it's your MC hanging back.

Early Act 1

• Recruit companions: Shadowheart, Astarion, Gale (30 each)
• Cartilaginous Chest on the ridge (10)
• Kill the brains (10 each)
• Deal with the dying Illithid (35)
• Recruit Lae'zel (2 x 10 for quest steps) and kill Damays and Nymessa for an additional 30 XP. Unusually, there's no dialogue equivalent.
• Explore the Harper's lookout and the spider's nest (12XP if killed, 5 XP for a successful snatch)
• Fight outside the Grove (but don't go in!) (140 XP)
  • The Grove is a Level 4 Area, judging by 40XP for killing the Bugbear Assassin
  • As a Level 3 party, got 30 XP for crossing the threshold into the Grove, implying that it's 'Small'

Maybe on the run that didn't appear to trigger XP for the Grove I'd got too close to the gate whilst looting corpses.

Act 1 — Ruins

Can kill Gimblebock's crew using ranged attacks (70XP), without entering the temple grounds (Explore the Ruins). It starts with an unprovoked attack on Warryn, so is probably incompatible with some Paladin oaths.

Getting too close to the ruins will trigger the location discovery award at 10XP instead of 30XP. But if you stay well away, then it's triggered as you cross the threshold near Warryn. Other trigger points include the Trapdoor down to the shrine, so presumably also crossing the threshold where Gimblebock is too, but not traversing the garden.

• Entering the Dank Crypt gains 10XP as a quest advancement
  • 15 XP from interacting with the Book of Dead Gods, and 20 Inspiration for Shadowheart

Act 1 — The Forest

The Forest announcement occurs just past the Harper's nest, but doesn't trigger XP. Though I noticed a mysterious and unexpected 10XP reward when finding the Roadside Cliffs waypoint on one run.

• Edowin's family ^{[Needs Verification]}
  • Bypassing combat grants 70XP, implying that The Forest is a Level 3 Area
  • 30XP for major progress from interacting with Edowin's parasite
• Owlbear's nest (20)
• Scratch gets your scent (15)

En route to Scratch, approaching the Blighted Village too closely (X59 Y448) won me 60 XP and a level up. Shadowheart had already been offered a level up, but MC Wyll and the others not. But 60 implies a Medium area discovered at Level 3.

Act 1 — The Risen Road

The Risen Road can be reached by a river crossing just north of Scratch, but the announcement doesn't trigger XP.

• This allows you to recruit Karlach for 30XP^{[Needs Verification]}
• Paladins of Tyr (40 + 40 + 75)

Back along the river path to Waukeen's Rest avoids the Gnolls. Don't forget to enter turn based mode for getting through the fire.