Because of a Baldur’s Gate 3 weapon’s deceptive description, it took me nearly two years to realize it’s a sleeper beast⁠—and I’m kicking myself because it works the exact same way in Baldur’s Gate 2

While perusing the sickos-only BG3Builds subreddit, I learned something that shocked me thanks to the helpful comment of user Arx_724, a bit of knowledge that’s been out there in the ether, but was never apparent to this obsessive BG3 power gamer.

The Belm scimitar, obtainable in Act Three, isn’t just a fun callback to Baldur’s Gate 2, it’s extremely powerful in the exact same way as the original, despite what its description indicates.

The OG Belm is a power gamer legend in Baldur’s Gate 2, a staple in many builds. The +2 scimitar grants an extra attack per round. What’s unstated is that, if you equip Belm in your offhand while dual wielding, the extra attack applies to your main-hand weapon.

The killer move is to pair offhand Belm with one of BG2’s super strong endgame weapons like the Celestial Fury katana or Flail of Ages, which also reappears in Baldur’s Gate 3.

You can find the BG3 version of Belm in Jaheira’s little druid Batcave under her house in the Lower City, with it implied to be a memento of her past adventures in the original games.

Neo-Belm has the Bonus Action special ability, “Perfectly Balanced Strike,” whose description reads: “Send Belm snaking out with an adder’s speed, the very exemplar of swiftness embodied in steel.”

So you can make another attack as a bonus action, but the phrasing “send Belm” made me assume it only worked with the scimitar itself⁠—it sounds even more exclusive than the original weapon’s description, which already obfuscated its most powerful feature.

There was also precedent for assuming it was just a watered-down suggestion of the original sword: BG3’s Flail of Ages is more a riff on the theme of Flail of Ages, rather than a reprise of that monster weapon.

It never occurred to me to just try offhanding Belm anyway, and I take some comfort that the update log for its page on the authoritative, well-maintained BG3 Wiki shows the information wasn’t added until March of last year, seven months after BG3’s release.

Offhand Belm lets you attack with your main hand weapon as a bonus action, which is extremely powerful for characters who can’t access the Two-Weapon Fighting style, and/or are using a powerful main hand weapon that could outclass any potential offhand.

A prime suspect there is Shadow Blade, a weapon summoned through one of Patch 8’s most powerful new spells, and the centerpiece of one of my favorite new Baldur’s Gate 3 builds. Another strong candidate would be Orin’s shortsword, Crimson Mischief.

I’m also just excited that I can still be surprised by this game after nearly two years, and I love that Belm really was here in all its glory the whole time. Once I make it to the city in my latest playthrough, I’m making a beeline to Jaheira’s house, brushing past her squad of quirky orphans, and stealing her dang sword.