Gremishkas force you to play Baldur's Gate 3 with your hands tied behind your back

Today in Baldur's Gate 3, I encountered Gremishkas. I do not recommend it.

These cat-like creatures are introduced once you reach the Rosymorn Monastery. They are the first monsters in the game that are "allergic" to magic, and winning in the resulting battle felt like activating a Nuzlocke challenge for a single fight.

What the game means by "allergic" is that Gremishkas react to spells cast near them, similar to how Gremlins react to being fed after midnight. With an abundance of Magic Missiles at my disposal, I assumed I could wipe out the whole gang before anything bad could happen. I was very wrong.

Using a single spell causes all the Gremishkas in the vicinity to become "unstable." Their bodies start flickering, and soon they evolve from kittens to pumas. With each evolution, their HP (Hit Points) increases. And if you wait long enough to defeat them, you'll be dealing with a group of apex predators. Before I could even do anything, they had taken out my entire party.

It turned out that the party composition I had - my Githyanki wizard player character, Shadowheart, Gale, and Karlach - did not fare well in this encounter. So, I returned to the camp, benched Gale, and brought Astarion into the game after a few days of lazing around in his tent. He was excited.

On this second attempt, Astarion's cunning stabs and his 100% reliable vampire bites allowed me to easily survive most of the battle. I was so close to finishing it that I thought, "I've got them cornered. Now I can surely start using magic." But to my surprise, as soon as the Magic Missiles left my staff, one of the remaining Gremishkas immediately jumped from the kitten stage to the puma stage. That's not how it was supposed to work!

Annoyed, I loaded my save file right before entering the room and went in again. This time, I was determined not to use any magic at all. That can be a significant challenge when you've been playing as a wizard with another wizard in the group. I had to constantly remind myself not to click on the familiar icons in the quick-access bar. It felt extremely counterproductive.

But as the battle began, I positioned Karlach on a stack of crates above the fray and had her shoot at the horde of Gremishkas each turn. I placed Astarion behind the tower of crates, and for some reason, the Gremishkas mostly ignored him as well. Before I knew it, the fight was over. I hadn't cast a single spell, and none of my feline enemies had progressed beyond the easily manageable kitten stage.

It was just one encounter, but it reminded me of how much fun it can be when a game forces you to change your strategy. Baldur's Gate 3 is a top-tier RPG, among other reasons, because each encounter is unique. It can throw a few Gremishkas at me without the game needing to drastically alter itself to accommodate them. It's just one encounter, but it forced me to reevaluate the game when I was getting comfortable.