Knowing how to lockpick in Gothic 1 Remake is what makes the difference between being a master thief and a bumbling burglar. The lockpicking minigame is probably one of the Gothic Remake's most contentious elements, as it's incredibly fiddly, not very well explained, and it's very easy to break all your lockpicks while experimenting and lose any chance to try again.
That being said, once you do understand the mechanics involved, lockpicking becomes a lot more manageable (especially if you remember to save before each attempt). If you want a full guide on how to lockpick though, I've got everything you need to know laid out accordingly on how it works, including explanations, where to get lockpicks, and where to find a trainer to increase your lockpicking skill.
For more help on the early game, check out what to do first in Gothic 1 Remake!
How to lockpick chests and doors in Gothic 1 Remake
The way to pick locks in the Gothic Remake is a little complex, but I'll explain it below:
- The goal is to move the tumblers left and right so that the pin in each one is sticking through the central hole (it'll go red when active).
- You can switch between tumblers with up and down on the D-Pad. You can move tumblers left and right with… well, left and right on the D-Pad.
- If you try to move a tumbler in a direction it can't go (such as if it's as far left as possible and you try to push it left again) it puts strain on the lockpick. Putting strain on a lockpick too many times breaks it. Your lockpick resilience increases with your lockpicking skill.
- What makes things complicated is that sometimes moving one tumbler moves others. So, for example, moving the fifth tumbler might also carry the second and third one with it. If you try and move the third, maybe it moves the fourth. And if any of those interconnected tumblers is pushed at its limit, as explained above, it strains the lockpick.
- However, if you can work out the connections and move them around so that all the pins are in a line in the middle of each tumbler (as shown below), the lock will open!
It goes without saying that you should always save the game before picking a lock, so that you can reload a save if you break too many picks, especially in the early game.
Lockpick trainer location in Gothic 1 Remake
The best trainer to improve your lockpicking skill in Gothic 1 Remake is Fingers. You can find him in the Old Camp – head left from the entrance to the castle and keep an eye on your right until you see him at the door to a shack on an elevated slope. You'll need to do a quest for him though and crack open the Gothic 1 Remake Scatty's Chest.
Training in lockpicking increases your Lockpick's durability and means it takes more mistakes to break them. It also can ensure that your progress on the puzzle isn't reset when a lockpick breaks, and at later levels it reduces connections between tumblers after each lock breaks, making the puzzle element simpler.
How to get lockpicks in Gothic 1 Remake
To get lockpicks in the Gothic 1 Remake, the easiest way is to buy them from the traders Mordrag and Dexter in the Old Camp market area, which is covered by sheets on the camp's South side. You can also find plenty of lockpicks in chests and containers around the world, but if you need a steady supply then visiting those merchants is an expensive but reliable process. Still, might be better to save your money for something like Gothic 1 Remake armor, weapons or runes for spells.
Need more help in this challenging game? Find out the location of the Gothic 1 Remake Torrez Mage character to learn spellcraft, or everything you need to know about the Gothic 1 Remake Mud character and why you'll regret ever seeing him...
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