What is the best Baldur’s Gate 3 build? There are so many ways that you can shape your character in BG3 that it can be difficult to know where to start. Between races and backgrounds, classes and skills, there are countless combinations – and some are undoubtedly better than others. Thankfully, we’re here to help, with a collection of builds to create characters you love that can still pack a punch.
After extensive testing and research, we bring you our absolute favorite builds for all Baldur’s Gate 3 classes in Larian Studios’ long-awaited RPG game, including their optimal subclass, BG3 race, and background. We also have dedicated guides for each build’s best skills and BG3 weapons so you can get the most out of your Baldur’s Gate 3 character. If you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the choices presented to you in character creation, our guide to the best BG3 builds is guaranteed to help you create the best character possible.
What are the best BG3 builds?
These are currently the best Baldur’s Gate 3 builds:
- Berserker Barbarian: for close-up power and leaving enemies prone
- College of Valour Bard: for resistance to status effects and higher damage output than your typical Bard
- Light Cleric: For regeneration and healing to the max
- Moon Druid: For the most shapeshifting abilities and raw power
- Eldritch Fighter: To add spell-slinging to your brawler
- Way of Shadow Monk: For the time you want to talk your way out of combat
- Oath of the Ancients Paladin: For huge healing and bonuses to intimidation and perception checks
- Beast Master Ranger: For an animal companion and dancing away from danger
- Thief Rogue: For effective stealth, stealing, and trickery
- Draconic Sorcerer: For greater HP and hard-hitting sorcery
- The Great Old One Warlock: For charismatic crowd control
- Evocation Wizard: For the hardest-hitting spells in Faerun
Berserker Barbarian build
Subclass – Berserker
Race – Shield Dwarf
Background – Soldier
Skills – Athletics and Intimidation
Weapon – Everburn Blade
If you’re looking to tap into the raw, frenzied power of a close-range brawler, it doesn’t get any better than our Baldur’s Gate 3 Barbarian build. The Berserker subclass harnesses the inner rage of your character and translates it into additional melee attacks and combat moves that can leave your opponent lying prone. While a Shield Dwarf might have restricted movement, this race more than makes up for it with its array of weapon proficiencies and bonuses to Strength and Constitution. The Soldier BG3 background is the final flourish.
The Everburn Blade will stay by your side for at least the entirety of Act 1, and thankfully, can be found aboard the Nautiloid before you even land in Faerun. You can find the Everburn Blade on Commander Zhalk’s body, should you dispatch him before the time runs out.
College of Valour Bard build
Subclass – College of Valour
Race – Wood Half-Elf
Background – The Entertainer
Skills – Acrobatics and Performance
Spells – Healing Word, Heroism, Dissonant Whispers, Thunderwave
The College of Valour imbues our Baldur’s Gate 3 Bard build with more capacity to dish out damage in combat, rather than be relegated to a support role. The Wood Half-Elf is an exceptional choice for the Bard thanks to a veritable hoard of utility – from additional movement and stealth proficiency, resistance to certain BG3 status effects, and of course, Darkvision. Of course, the ideal Bard comes complete with the Entertainer background; not only is it a perfect thematic choice, but it comes complete with all the Dexterity a budding Bard could ask for.
Light Cleric build
Subclass – Light domain
Race – Human
Background – Acolyte
Skills – Wisdom and Dexterity
Weapon – Longbow
Choosing to become a Cleric doesn’t have to mean a life of staying on the sidelines and throwing out a heal or two, as you’ll soon discover with our Baldur’s Gate 3 Cleric build. The Light subclass allows you to branch out from those regenerative effects to smite your enemies right alongside your allies. A Human Acolyte is a great all-rounder for the Cleric class, bestowing you bonus points in every stat, as well as additional Insight and Religion to assist in social situations.
Moon Druid build
Subclass – Circle of the Moon
Race – Wood Elf
Background – Outlander
Skills – Animal Handling and Nature
Weapon – Any Quarterstaff or Club
Druids are an exceptionally flexible class thanks to their copious shapeshifting abilities, which we’ve prioritized in our Baldur’s Gate 3 Druid build. Unsurprisingly, the Wood Elf is a fantastic race to pair with the Druid class given their increased movement and stealth, as well as a bonus to Wisdom, this build’s most important stat. An Outlander background also boosts a Druid’s overall Athletics and Survival, so that you can traverse the land with ease no matter which animal form you take.
Eldritch Fighter build
Subclass – Eldritch Knight
Race – Githyanki
Background – Outlander
Skills – Strength and Constitution
Weapon – Swords
A bare-knuckle brawler may seem like one of the more straightforward classes, but we’ve given our Baldur’s Gate 3 Fighter build some additional flavor with the Eldritch Knight subclass. Your spell-slinging will never be as proficient as a Wizard or Sorcerer, but you can harness your magical prowess to bolster your defenses. A BG3 Githyanki Outlander gives you more capacity to outmaneuver your foes and survive out in the wilds of the Forgotten Realms.
Way of Shadow Monk build
Subclass – Way of Shadows
Race – Wood Elf
Background – Urchin
Skills – Dexterity and Strength
Weapon – Unarmed
While the Monk has the power to explode a man by damaging them with perfectly timed attacks, they’re surprisingly Zen when you utilize our best BG3 Monk build. The Monk certainly has the power to deal close-range damage with their bare hands, but they can talk their way out of combat by calming the situation down. The Way of Shadows subclass allows you to jump from shadow to shadow in an instant – this is extremely useful outside of combat as you can complete difficult quests in a matter of moments with a Monk in your party.
Oath of the Ancients Paladin build
Subclass – Oath of the Ancients
Race – Zariel Tiefling
Background – Soldier
Skills – Athletics and Intimidation
Weapon – Everburn Blade
If you’re seeking to become the ultimate paladin and protect your allies from harm, our Baldur’s Gate 3 Paladin build is the one for you. The Healing Radiance courtesy of the Oath of the Ancients subclass delivers powerful AoE healing to your party both inside and outside of combat, keeping all members hale and hearty. The Zarial Tiefling makes for the perfect Paladin in that regard, offering bonus attribute points to your Strength and Charisma, as well as improved Intimidation and Performance checks via the Thaumaturgy racial trait.
The Everburn Blade can be found on Commander Zhalk’s body, if you’re able to defeat him before the time runs out on the Nautiloid.
Beast Master Ranger build
Subclass – Beast Master
Race – Wood Elf
Background – Outlander
Skills – Dexterity and Wisdom
Weapon – Longbow
Man’s best friend can come in all manner of shapes and sizes with our Baldur’s Gate 3 Ranger build, which pairs your cross-country tracker with a faithful animal companion. This gives you an additional utility to manage a variety of scenarios: you could scout the environment with a raven, or call upon a bear as your portable tank. Wood Elf traits paired with an Outlander background keep you light on your feet, capable of dancing out of harm’s way while you let your companions do all the work.
Thief Rogue build
Subclass – Thief
Race – Drow
Background – Urchin
Skills – Dexterity
Weapon – Dagger
The Rogue is a slippery class by nature, and our Baldur’s Gate 3 Rogue build takes advantage of this with the Thief subclass, allowing you to sneak, dodge, and perform death-defying leaps to your heart’s content. With high dexterity and a lightning-fast dagger at your disposal, your enemies will never see you coming. A BG3 Drow Urchin is the perfect choice for a slippery pickpocket, allowing you even more success with sleight of hand and general penny-pinching.
Draconic Sorcerer build
Subclass – Draconic Bloodline
Race – Wood Half-Elf
Background – Charlatan
Skills – Deception and Stealth
Spells – Magic Missiles, Chromatic Orb, Thunderwave
Imbued with the power of draconic magic, our Baldur’s Gate 3 Sorcerer build grants you bonus resilience thanks to additional Hit Points and an increased Armour Class. We’ve paired this subclass with a Wood Half-Elf Charlatan to boost your Sorcerer’s natural Charisma even further, as well as some additional stealth to keep you alive.
The Great Old One Warlock build
Subclass – The Great Old One
Race – Tiefling
Background – Sage
Skills – Charisma and intelligence
Weapon – Quarterstaff
Sporting high Charisma both inside and outside of combat, our Baldur’s Gate 3 Warlock build gives you plenty of opportunities to manipulate everyone around you to suit your needs. The Great Old One is a master of crowd control, causing enemies in their immediate vicinity to flee whenever they inflict a critical hit. We’ve also opted for the Mephistopheles Tiefling to bolster your Warlock’s Charisma even further, paired with the Sage background for bonus BG3 proficiency in Arcana, History, and other Intelligence-based BG3 skills.
Evocation Wizard build
Subclass – Evocation School
Race – High-Elf
Background – Guild Artisan
Skills – Intelligence and Wisdom
Weapon – Quarterstave
We’ve opted for raw spell power over support in our Baldur’s Gate 3 Wizard build, allowing you to go on the offensive with a barrage of magic. The bulk of this build’s damage output stems from the Evocation School subclass, while a Guild Artisan background offers the Insight and Persuasion vital for navigating conversational battles. A Half-Elf is the perfect race to round this build off, providing resistance to status effects cast by enemy spellcasters.
That wraps up the best Baldur’s Gate 3 builds you can craft in one of the best PC games of this year – if you need to respec, now’s the time. Of course, an adventuring hero needs a strong party to lead to victory, so brush up on all the Baldur’s Gate 3 companions you can recruit on your travels. It’s also worth revising the many BG3 feats that your character can pick up along the way, as well as how the Baldur’s Gate 3 Dark Urge origin can impact the choices you make.