How to defeat the Netherbrain in Baldur’s Gate 3

Congrats! You’ve finally made it to the final big boss fight in Baldur’s Gate 3, you’re so close to the finish line! The only problem now is facing all the hoards of enemies leading to the Netherbrain, and then facing this Netherbrain who is extremely tough to beat. No matter which difficulty level you’re on, this is a difficult boss battle. We’ll explain how to defeat the Netherbrain in Baldur’s Gate 3.

Baldur’s Gate 3 (BG3): Netherbrain boss battle guide

No matter if you let Karlach evolve, gave the Netherstones to the Emperor, or took them for yourself, it’s a long journey ahead to even reach the Netherbrain. Once you actually make it there, you only have so many turns until the nautiloid arrives, and you must make it the Netherbrain’s mind. Let’s dive into how you can defeat the Netherbrain in Baldur’s Gate 3 with some helpful tips and tricks.

How to reach the Netherbrain in BG3

The longest part of this battle comes when you must actually reach the Netherbrain. You’ll face dozens of enemies, from mind flayers, to intellect devourers, and even a beholder. In this case, I hope along your journey you’ve met many allies because they’re extremely helpful during this final fight. Many of your allies actually give you buffs, depending on who you’ve befriended. And you can even call certain people into battle to aid you.

I recommend saving them for the Netherbrain. You should have a team of four characters, and the Emperor at your side. I highly recommend only taking your strongest and most capable team members. Personally, my best team was my druid, Shadowheart, Karlach, and Gale. It’s also smart to bring companions who can create summons, you’ll need as much help as you can get.

Screenshot: PC Invasion

When you come across the hoards of enemies in the Upper City, this is when you use your AoE attacks. Once you get past the first bunch, you’ll now have to face enemies while the nautiloid throws explosions at you. Make sure each turn none of your characters are in the explosion circles. They deal a ton of damage, and can even throw you off into the abyss if you’re not careful. If you can, just run, teleport, and escape as fast as possible. You need to reach the doorway at the top of the High Hall, which leads to the Netherbrain. Before the last big fight, you can heal, so don’t worry too much.

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Use all your Misty Steps, Dimension Doors, or Fly spells to get out of enemy reach. Sure, fight when you need to, but focus mostly on climbing towards the door that leads to the Netherbrain. Now you can heal, and this is where the real fight begins.

How to defeat the Netherbrain

Now that you’ve climbed on top of the large Netherbrain, you need to make it to the far back area where the Crown of Karsus is. This is a large playing field, but it has plenty of strong mind flayers and tentacle creatures. Not only that, but a powerful dragon awaits you. This is when you start to call in your backup. Personally, I found Dame Aylin extremely helpful, as she’s a powerful paladin. It does take an Action to call them, but you’ll need all the help you can get.

I also recommend that if you have Shadowheart (she’s vital for this fight), you use your Divine Intervention. This is an incredible ability that you can only use once, and you can do four different things. Shadowheart calls upon her god to either create a legendary weapon, give helpful supplies, resurrect and heal, or deal insane damage. It’s your choice, but I’d recommend doing either Opulent Revival (resurrects allies with half HP, and restores allies as if they had a Long Rest) or Sunder the Heretical (deals 8d10 Radiant damage within 15m).

Screenshot: PC Invasion

Since you only have a few turns, have the person who has the Netherstones quickly make their way to the Crown of Karsus. Dash, teleport, anything you can do to reach that area, do it. Then, use the stones to open a portal to the Netherbrain’s mind. You should also have your companions make their way over, too. I’ll explain why in a moment.

I now recommend that you try to bring as many people inside the mind as you can. It may be tough, but you need all the help you can get. The mind has platforms that you can jump around on, and every round it will demolish certain platforms. If you’re on there when they detonate, you’re done for. Make sure to hop off any glowing platforms before they explode. This happens every round, so keep that in mind.

Screenshot: PC Invasion

The Netherbrain has a ton of HP and deals some pretty devastating debuffs and attacks. This is the moment where you lay out your strongest attacks. Keep those Level 6 spell slots available for this. Kill it before it can break free since this is another timed combat. And make sure to move your characters anytime they’re standing on a platform about to explode.

Once it’s down, you’ve finally finished the main quest, and you saved Baldur’s Gate! Hurray! Now, you can rest, drink some water, and watch the final moments with your character and their companions before the credits roll.

Baldur’s Gate 3 is available on Steam and the PlayStation 5.