How To Get Rid Of Noxious Fumes In Baldur’s Gate 3

Getting rid of Noxious Fumes in Baldur’s Gate 3 can be a troubling task if you do not know what you can do, given the freedom the game offers. There are different ways of dealing with such a threat, but considering that the first time players encounter them may be under dire circumstances, it is possible to panic in sight of so many clouds of poison blocking your path forward. These Noxious Fumes present themselves as a major obstacle in one of the first side quests in Act 1 of Baldur’s Gate 3, so new players may struggle a bit with understanding exactly how they can deal with some scenarios.

This article contains minor spoilers for a side quest in Act 1 of Baldur’s Gate 3.

To be more specific, the Noxious Fumes appear during the Auntie Ethel quest in Baldur’s Gate 3 when you are pursuing her in the Hag’s lair. After chasing her and possibly defeating a few enemies along the way, you will likely stumble across a path that is rigged with several clouds of poison, named Noxious Fumes. Unlike regular poison clouds that often give your characters a disadvantage, these actually do damage. Near them are also explosive flowers, which ignite the entirety of the cloud for more damage. The Noxious Fumes are being fed through vents in the ground, so they will continue to pollute the area unless adequately dealt with.

How To Block Noxious Fumes Vents In Baldur’s Gate 3

There are Noxious Fumes clouds spread across the corridor that leads to Auntie Ethel’s arena in Baldur’s Gate 3. The easiest way to deal with them is by blocking the vents, creating a safe passage for the party to go through, without the risk of taking poisonous or explosive damage.

To do this, it is recommended to split up the party and keep the rest in a safe spot, so that the character solving the puzzle can operate without the risk of dragging their allies into dangerous scenarios. The character with the highest Wisdom stat should be used, as they will be most likely to succeed in Perception checks.

You will need to take this character close to the cloud of Noxious Fumes, but not enter it. If possible, keep a safe distance to make sure you are not in the blast radius either. From a safe spot, you should use a ranged weapon like a bow to fire at the explosive flowers. Alternatively, characters that cast Fireball without using spell slots in Baldur’s Gate 3 are also a possibility.

Regardless, this will ignite the entire area. If you are close, without stepping into the flames, you may succeed in a Perception check, allowing you to see the vent. With the vent exposed, you will need to cover it.

Curiously enough, you can do this by throwing an item from your inventory onto the vent. This could be a crate, some stones, or perhaps even a piece of clothing. Doing this will effectively block the vent and stop the influx of Noxious Fumes into that specific area, allowing you and your party in Baldur’s Gate 3 to safely pass through the location. You may permanently lose these items, as keeping them on the vent is necessary to keep the Noxious Fumes at bay as well. This process will need to be repeated a few times, as there are several clouds of Noxious Fumes down the corridor.

How To Disarm Noxious Fumes Vents In Baldur’s Gate 3

An alternative to throwing things onto the vents and blocking the income of Noxious Fumes to the specified area is to disarm the trap altogether. This may be a more time-consuming method but is one that will not see you spending your loot in Baldur’s Gate 3 – other than Trap Disarm tools and a potion. The first step to disarming these traps is exactly the same as blocking the vents: approach the cloud of poison within a reasonably safe distance, explode the flower to make sure you will not be blasted away, and wait for the fires to go out. Once the flames cease, the Noxious Fumes will return.

At this point, you can use an Elixir of Poison Resistance on your active character. This potion will allow them to safely walk into the cloud of Noxious Fumes without taking damage. Inside, they can interact with the vent and disarm it with a Sleight of Hand check in Baldur’s Gate 3. The vent will stop working and allow your party to go through that area. You will need to repeat this process some more times in order to clear a path all the way to the bottom of the corridor. There is no need to disarm all the clouds of Noxious Fumes, only the ones in your desired path.

How To Get Past Noxious Fumes Vents In Baldur’s Gate 3 Without Taking Damage

There is a last method of getting across the poisonous corridor and one that does not involve interacting with the vents in any way. Unlike the previous method, in which you were required to disassemble the party so that one character could clear the path, this one will see the group running together. To be able to do this, you will need to feed your entire party with Poison Resistance potions. If you do not have at least four Elixirs, this may be a risky thing to do. With the group united and properly coated against poison in Baldur’s Gate 3, you will approach the cloud of Noxious Fumes.

The next step is shooting the flower to avoid the explosive damage, waiting for the fires to subside, and running across the Noxious Fumes, only to find a safe spot and repeat the process all the way down to Auntie Ethel’s arena. This may be an unviable method if you lack the required amount of Elixirs, but probably the easiest and safest one to employ if you possess enough. Once you pass the last cloud of Noxious Fumes, you will be at the edge of the arena, ready to start a boss fight against Auntie Ethel in Baldur’s Gate 3 and, possibly, closer to saving Mayrina.