Being that this new CRPG is looking to faithfully recreate the feel of tabletop RPGs Baldur’s Gate 3 pulls no punches when it comes to combat. The map is also massive and makes excellent use of terrain for tactical means in combat. Players will have to deal with flanking and verticality at all times, making battles much harder than a standard 2D CRPG. The enemies don’t just rush you and engage in a big cuddle pile like some other titles. Short and Long Rests in Baldur’s Gate 3 become vital for dealing with a bunch of the more challenging tasks in the game.
Short and Long Rests in Baldur’s Gate 3 are best broken down into their effects.
The time in between combat will be treated as short rests, for all intents and purposes. It’s akin to taking a 15-minute break in a TTRPG and rolling some hit dice. It will not recharge spell slots or fully heal your party. Each class will also have different features depending on level that will be impacted by Short Rests. For example, a Moon Druid could have their Wild Shapes reset. Not all classes will get their HP back or get all their spell slots back.
To take a short rest, go the top right of your screen and click on the icon underneath the campfire, this will bring up the menu to take a rest. There are some limitations to using this though. You cannot be in combat or have enemies nearby. And you can only take on short rest per long rest. You will want to save the short rest for when you really need it, say before a boss.
Long Rests on the other hand take a much longer time. You will need to spend eight full hours in-game with a Long Rest to get the full effects. This is how you recharge HP and spell slots, as well as shed any negative effects from the combats you’ve suffered through that day. everything that will normally be returned during a modern D&D Long Rest will come back during this time.
