The Mirror of Loss is one of the more confusing parts of Baldur's Gate 3's Gauntlet of Shar. Like me, you probably spent far too long exploring the room, turning candles off and on, before giving up and abandoning the broken mirror. The good news is that there's another Mirror of Loss in Act 3 and you can actually interact with this one properly.
If you've been to the House of Grief in the Lower City to complete Shadowheart's quest, you'll find this mirror in the Chamber of Loss on the lowest level of the cult's headquarters. If you play your cards right, the mirror will bestow you with an ability score buff, so, here's how to use the Mirror of Loss in Baldur's Gate 3.
How to use the Mirror of Loss
Once you interact with the Mirror of Loss in the House of Grief, you'll need to pass one of two possible intelligence-based skill checks to understand its purpose:
- [Arcana] (Difficulty Class 25) Study the mirror. Try to grasp its true nature.
- [Religion] (Difficulty Class 20) An object of faith. Examine it closely. Try to understand its purpose.
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You can bypass this skill check entirely by first reading a "hastily written note" in the Night Orchid Cave located at (X:-377 Y:-1697) behind the Cloister of Sombre Embrace armory beneath the House of Grief.
After passing or skipping that check, you should also pray to the mirror by passing a Religion check (Difficulty Class 25) before you offer up one of your memories to it. After that, sacrificing a memory will allow you to trade -2 in one ability score for +2 in another. You can also get rid of the -2 afterwards, which I'll explain lower down.
If you're playing on Honour Mode, you might want to stack the odds in your favour by using Withers to temporarily respec the desired character's Intelligence as high as it can possibly go, having your party members cast Enhance Ability (Fox's Cunning) on that character, and having both a Bard and a Cleric on standby ready to use Bardic Inspiration and Guidance to help out. You can also make sure to go to the mirror with four Inspiration points to-hand.
It's worth noting that you only have access to the top memory response if you've read the Necromancy of Thay and acquired the Forbidden Knowledge condition. The Deception choice also won't result in any bonus, so don't choose that.
Mirror of Loss memories:
- (Forbidden Knowledge) Part with the Forbidden Knowledge from the Thayan Tomb. (Lose the Forbidden Knowledge buff and access to the Danse Macabre spell).
- Offer up memories of your strength - times when you triumphed, thanks to your raw power (-2 Strength).
- Give up memories of your youth, when your heart was carefree and your limbs were nimble (-2 Dexterity).
- Relinquish memories of fortitude and well-being, when body and mind held fast against all challenges (-2 Constitution).
- Surrender valued knowledge gleaned from books, scrolls, and tablets… words that left a mark on your mind, but no more (-2 Intelligence).
- Let go of some wisdoms that time has bestowed upon you - old wounds, tough lessons, and fond memories alike (-2 Wisdom).
- Give away memories of when your charm stood to you - the applause of the swayed, the smiles of the beguiled, the kisses of the seduced (-2 Charisma).
- (Deception) You will not surrender any part of yourself. Invent a false offering to trick the mirror. (No negative, but won't give the bonuses below even on a success).
Mirror of Loss buffs
After you've received your -2 in a chosen ability score, you can choose a +2:
- Claim memories of strength from a long-dead general, who marched under the banner of a vanished kingdom (+2 Strength)
- Help yourself to the memories of a seasoned thief's most daring exploits (+2 Dexterity)
- Seize the memories of a barbarian, whose mind and body were tempered against hardship (+2 Constitution)
- Glean the secrets of a wizard who once stalked the libraries of Candlekeep (+2 Intelligence)
- Turn to the wisdom of a drow. Once of Lolth, then of Shar (+2 Wisdom)
- Warm to the guile of a bard who could charm even a dragon (+2 Charisma)
How to remove Stolen Vigour
Once you've got both -2 and +2 in your chosen ability scores, you can use the Remove Curse spell from Shadowheart to get rid of the -2, which appears in the form of the Stolen Vigour condition. Alternatively, you can just take a Long Rest. It's worth noting that if you aren't able to pass the Religion check praying to the mirror, it'll only give you -2 in an ability score and no bonus. In this case, you should definitely choose to sacrifice your Forbidden knowledge from reading the Necromancy of Thay, as that will let you choose a +2 even if you failed the Religion check.
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