How To Disable The Steel Watch In Baldur’s Gate 3

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One of the main antagonists of Baldur’s Gate 3 is protected by a legion of powerful automaton guards called the Steel Watch, but this line of defense can be disabled when you destroy the command center of these machines. Once you reach Act 3, you will realize the last Netherstone is being held by Enver Gortash, whose position in the city is protected by the Watch. Reducing this villain’s forces is easier said than done.

A Steel Watch has 206 Hit Points, a 16 Armor Class, and is resistant to most physical attacks, with only a Lightning damage vulnerability to claim as a weakness. Once you reach the city, these machines are everywhere, protecting Gortash and even exploding if you damage them to around 20% health. Only high-level spells like Chain Lightning stand the best chance against these dangerous constructs in Baldur’s Gate 3.

Get The Runepowder Bomb

There are three phases to deactivating the Steel Watch in Baldur’s Gate 3, including talking to NPCs Orin or Wulberg, traveling to the Steel Watch Foundry, and destroying the Foundry base. During Act 3, you can ask around the city for information about the Steel Watch being forced to attend Gortash’s coronation ceremony. Speaking to Orin reveals how she wants to take down Gortash and starts the quest related to disabling the Watch.

Once you have your objective, travel to Rivington to meet with the Ironhand deep gnomes, who have just the right tool for destroying the Steel Watch’s production line. If you encountered faces like Wulbren before on your journey in Act 1 and Act 2 of Baldur’s Gate 3, you’ll have a far easier time asking for favors. A good conversation will earn you a Runepowder Bomb that Wulbren claims is more than explosive enough to obliterate the Foundry.

Rescue the Gondian Gnomes

Next, go down to the southern docks and defeat the Bane cultists, who are forcing Gondian gnomes to construct new additions to the Steel Watch. Make sure to take down these enemies quickly since they drop a device that kills all the Gondians if you don’t win the combat fast in Baldur’s Gate 3. Once you save these people, an individual named Zanner Toobin can tell you about the secret underwater facility holding many family members of the gnomes.

Before Toobin can agree to help you against the Steel Watch, he will ask for your help to infiltrate the base holding his people’s loved ones. Party members will have approval tied to whatever decisions you make about rescuing Toobin or not, so be careful when making choices here. Apparently, Grand Duke Ravengard is also being held in this space, bringing up a character that may have been mentioned earlier in Baldur’s Gate 3.

Save the Hostages At the Underwater Prison

Another quest activates from saving Toobin tied to saving the other enslaved Gondian families in the Steel Watch Foundry, which you can reach by exploring the docks and finding a hidden submarine. This vessel is guarded in a warehouse at the edge of the docks by a group of Wargs, but these enemies are fairly easy to defeat. Go down the hatch into the submarine and threaten its pilot to take your party in Baldur’s Gate 3 to the Foundry.

On the way to the facility, Gortash will call you and threaten to destroy the Foundry in Baldur’s Gate 3 with all the Gondians inside. Simply ignore this threat and continue forward, which causes Gortash to set off explosives that only damage the base. While this doesn’t harm anyone immediately, it puts you on the clock to disable the Steel Watch and rescue the helpless Gondians.

You have only eight rounds of combat to rescue as many gnomes as possible before escaping, fighting off the deadly Sahuagin guards that litter this place. A friendly Mind Flayer named Omeluum can also be found in prison and will aid you in the battle if you free it. This creature has the power to teleport itself and one party member back to the submarine, which can help take away an injured ally for healing.​​​​​​​

Defeat the Steel Watch Titan

If you rescue the Gondians on the surface, they will join your party in an effort to destroy the Steel Watch Foundry. While there are many Steel Watch automatons under Gortash’s command, the main threat is his Magnum Opus – a Steel Watch Titan. You will need to take an elevator to reach the lowest level of the base where this enemy is found in Baldur’s Gate 3.

The Titan has all the same strengths as any other Steel Watch automaton, only with higher health and a shield that only allows it to be injured by attacks with 15 or more damage. Furthermore, this enemy will be flanked by other Steel Watch enemies, making this a challenging fight if you haven’t long rested. Use Lightning attacks and remember the low-health explosion to take down this incredibly tough boss.

When the Titan falls, you can either have Toobin set the Foundry to explode or place the Runepowder Bomb on a timer before escaping. Depending on who you save, you may have a whole host of friendly characters for the missions seen later toward the end of Baldur’s Gate 3. Those who can destroy the factory without using the Bomb can keep this explosive item for later use.

Regardless of what method you use, destroying the underwater location will disable all the Steel Watch warriors in the city, allowing you to finally pursue Gortash for his Netherstone in Baldur’s Gate 3.