Saving Throws in Baldur's Gate 3 will save you from certain death more times than you'd care to count. Helping you prevent diseases and avoid the nastiest repercussions of powerful spells, Saving Throws are nothing to sneeze at. Although you probably won't be rolling many yourself, you'll want to know what they mean.
After all, spellcasters love the word: Saving Throw. Whether you're struggling to dodge a Fireball or hoping your enemy doesn't dodge yours, nothing is more frustrating than not understanding why things didn't go your way. And the answer to that question lies in the explanation of the good ol' Saving Throw.
What Is A Saving Throw?
Unlike an Ability Check, a Saving Throw is typically a passive roll made in response to preventing or resisting certain actions or effects.
It is not generally something used in dialogue scenes, and it is not used against an attacking roll. Rather, Saving Throws are often used to save oneself from:
- Spell attacks
- Spell effects
- Special physical attacks
- Traps
- Poisons or similar effects
- Special and sudden dramatic instances (like catching yourself from a cinematic fall or dodging the collapsing, fiery doorway)
The definition of Saving Throws, according to the handbook states:
"A saving throw–also called a save–represents an attempt to resist a spell, a trap, a poison, a disease, or a similar threat. You don’t normally decide to make a saving throw; you are forced to make one because your character or monster is at risk of harm."
These Saving Throws must be tied to one of the six Ability Scores:
- Strength
- Dexterity
- Constitution
- Intelligence
- Wisdom
- Charisma
When beginning, your class will give you two set proficiencies in Saving Throws.
If you want any more, you'll have to multiclass to get them or take the Resilient feat during an Ability Score Improvement.
Having a Saving Throw proficiency does not mean that you are exempt from having the chance to use other types of Saving Throws.
If you are a Fighter with Saving Throws in Strength and Constitution, you can still make Saving Throws in Intelligence; you just won't get an added Proficiency Bonus.
How Do I Roll A Saving Throw And What Numbers Do I Use?
You will rarely be in the position to roll your own Saving Throw. This is normally done automatically by the system.
However, if you're curious about how it's calculated, a Saving Throw uses the following calculation:
1d20 + Ability Score Modifier + Proficiency bonus (if had)
If the Saving Throw meets or exceeds the Difficulty Class (DC) of what you're rolling against, you'll succeed.
If you're rolling against a spell, some spells will still deal damage against you. Spells like Fireball will still do half damage unless you have the Uncanny Dodge feat from the Rogue class.