Gothic 3 - A non-official ending (Challenge Mode)

[king of thieves]

I don't know how many folks still play this gem of a game these days, but Gothic as a series has always held a special place in my heart (as janky, buggy and unbalanced as the games often are. I still love them to death all the same.) Gothic 3 specifically scratched that particular RPG itch, however I was always a bit disappointed by the endings. So after playing the game for years, I decided to make my own ending that I could be satisfied with, with it's own specific requirements. You won't get a cutscene for doing this, so consider it more of a 'challenge mode.' (Very minor spoilers ahead)

So, if you're a new player, or just looking to tackle the game in a unique way, here's a suggestion on how to maximise your Gothic 3 experience. I call this the 'World Peace Route.' You can build your character however you like for this run.

All you need to do is fulfil the seven objectives below:

(for reference, I'm using the latest patch for the enhanced edition with alternative balancing for this little challenge)

1. Make every faction respect you enough to come to the table without insulting them. That means get as much reputation in the game as humanly possible without picking a side. You can get over 75% reputation with every city (which makes them friendly) pretty easily (Except Ishtar, more on this later), but factions are a bit trickier. For clarification, 'picking a side' means doing liberation or crushing rebels/nomad missions. Anything that would make a faction to attack you on sight the moment you enter their city is forbidden. Fighting Orks in Nordmar is usually okay. In short, make everyone as happy with you as humanly possible. Killing/Mugging minor faction members is fine as long as you get away with it. It's for the greater good. No killing major faction members like important leaders, rebel spies or water mages though. You want everyone to trust you.

2. All of these factions want powerful magic artifacts, and getting them will earn you their attention. Get every Major magical artifact in the game. This includes: All teleport stones, all 12 fire chalices, all 7 druid stones (some are VERY hard to find), all divine artifacts, the scepter and the staff. A caveat to this rule is that, once you have them, you can use these items to complete missions if you need to. Wolf stone I'm looking at you.

3. On a related note, the humans need to be on equal footing for peace-talks. Restore the magic of every paladin in the game. (yes, there are 12 out there) Also, remove the Ork army inside and right outside the magic barrier. These aren't considered Liberation missions for some reason since the Orks never complain and seem to have no idea you did it. Be warned; a certain leader in Geldern won't be happy if the humans get their magic back. It's best to avoid him once you've done it.

4. You need to wear something that commands respect from everyone. Get Paladin Armor. This sounds easy until you realise you can't boost rebel reputation easily due to rule #1. That means no liberation missions. You're going to have to get creative. 60 reputation for rebels without liberating a city is possible, but kinda tricky. Some backstabbing required.

5. Destroy the avatars of Beliar and Adanos so that the gods cannot interfere with your plan. Kill all Demons and Dragons in the world. You'll have to go hiking in the countryside and spelunking to find them all.

6. You'll need money and power to organise a proper peace summit. Have 500,000 gold pieces by the end of the run. Smithing will be your friend here. This will also help bring the Hashishin to the table. Buuuut...

7. Ishtar is a stubborn holdout, it needs to be shown the error of its ways. Usually you can't get into Ishtar without wiping out a bunch of nomads (which would break rule #1). There's a patch that allows you to buy your way into the city, but not every game version has it. I honestly think it's silly to limit Ishtar this way in the first place, especially since there are a good chunk of unrelated quests locked away. So for this run, if you manage to get 500,000 gold pieces, you are allowed to go into MARVIN mode to temporarily increase Hashishin reputation to 75 to enter the city. Then, do all the quests you want to and reduce your reputation back down to what it was before. This way, you can make the last city of the Hashishin your friend. Considering how the Hashishin respect gold, a person with that much money should be allowed inside anyway.

And that's it! That is the 'World Peace Route'. You are well-respected by every faction enough to convince them to come to the table, and you are tough enough to force them to negotiate peace terms. With Adanos and Beliar weakened, they are unable to prevent peace talks, and the world finally heals and enters into a golden age. You, the hero, watch over this new developing nation as the gods bristle at your interference in their games. A bit sappy, I know, but I enjoy the prospect. As I said, this isn't a real route (and I'm sure breaks some lore somewhere), but I honestly prefer it this way rather than the official endings (which you can still do after this.)

Good luck!

[Xarmor.]

Interesting challenge, will try it out when I feel like playing G3 again.