Look, picking your Baldur’s Gate 3 class is basically a personality test that follows you for 100 hours. People stress way too much about the "meta" or which class has the highest DPS, but honestly? Most of the advice you’ll find online is kinda missing the point. You aren't just picking a way to hit things; you’re picking how the world reacts to you.
Do you want to talk your way out of a boss fight? Or maybe you want to turn into an Owlbear and just squash everything?
The reality is that every single class in this game is viable. Even the ones people call "boring" or "weak." But there are some massive traps you should avoid, and some hidden gems that most players don't realize are actually broken (in a good way).
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The Charisma Trap (And Why Bards are Secretly S-Tier)
One of the biggest mistakes new players make is ignoring the social side of the game. Baldur's Gate 3 is essentially a talking simulator that occasionally breaks out into a fight.
If you pick a class with zero Charisma—like a Fighter or a Druid—you're going to fail a lot of dialogue checks. Now, failing is part of the fun! But if you want to be the one calling the shots, you want a "party face." This is why Bards, Sorcerers, and Warlocks are so popular.
Bards are especially misunderstood. Most people think "Oh, I'll just play some music and buff my friends." Wrong. A College of Swords Bard is a literal blender on the battlefield. By the time you hit level 6, you're attacking multiple times and using "Slashing Flourish" to hit two enemies at once.
Plus, they get "Magical Secrets," which lets them steal the best spells from other classes. Want a Bard that can cast Fireball? You can do that. It's ridiculous.
The Fighter Isn't Boring, You're Just Using It Wrong
I hear this a lot: "Fighters are just for people who don't know how to play D&D."
That's a lie.
A Battle Master Fighter is one of the most tactical classes in the game. You get "Superiority Dice" which allow you to disarm enemies, trip them, or even push them off cliffs. In a game with as much verticality as BG3, pushing a boss off a balcony is often more effective than any 6th-level spell.
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And let's talk about Action Surge. Being able to take an entire extra action in one turn is the single best class feature in the game. Period. When you reach level 11, a Fighter gets three attacks per action. Use Action Surge? That's six attacks. Use a Potion of Speed? That's nine. You can basically delete a dragon in a single turn.
Subclass Quick-Takes:
- Eldritch Knight: Don't play this for the damage spells. Play it for the defensive ones like Shield and Blur. It makes you unkillable.
- Champion: This is the "simple" one. If you just want to see big critical hit numbers, go for it. Otherwise, stay Battle Master.
The Wild Power of the Monk
For the longest time, Monks were considered the "weak link" of the D&D world. In Baldur's Gate 3, Larian Studios gave them a massive glow-up. Specifically the Way of the Open Hand.
If you take the Tavern Brawler feat (which is arguably the most overpowered feat in the game) and start chugging "Elixirs of Hill Giant Strength," your Monk becomes a god. You’ll be punching enemies for 30+ damage per hit, four times a turn, and stunning them so they can’t even fight back.
It feels like playing a superhero in a fantasy world. You don't need weapons. You don't need armor. You just need your hands and a lot of anger.
The "Divine" Conflict: Clerics vs. Paladins
People often lump these two together because they both use "Holy" magic, but they play completely differently.
Clerics are not just "healers." If you play a Life Domain Cleric, sure, you're a healbot. But try a Light Domain or Tempest Domain Cleric. You’ll be calling down literal lightning and scorching entire rooms with Spirit Guardians. Shadowheart (the companion cleric) starts as a Trickery Cleric, which is... okay, but honestly? Respec her to Light or Life immediately. You'll thank me later.
Paladins are the kings of "Nova" damage. Their Divine Smite allows you to dump spell slots into a single melee hit. It's the best feeling in the game to land a critical hit and then choose to Smite, watching a boss's health bar just vanish.
The catch? The Oath. If you do something "un-Paladin-like," you lose your powers and become an Oathbreaker. Fun fact: Oathbreaker is actually a fantastic subclass with some of the best necrotic damage in the game, so breaking your oath isn't always a bad thing.
Why Warlocks are the King of the Early Game
If you're overwhelmed by the number of spells in the game, just pick a Warlock.
Warlocks are unique because they don't have a million spell slots. They have a couple, and they always cast at the highest possible level. And they get them back on a "Short Rest."
But the real reason to play Warlock is Eldritch Blast. It’s a cantrip (a free spell) that scales with your level. By Act 3, you're firing three beams of energy that can knock enemies back 15 feet. It’s the most reliable damage in the game. Pair it with the The Fiend subclass for extra temporary HP every time you kill something, and you're golden.
Multiclassing: Don't Do It (Until You Do)
Larian makes it very easy to multiclass, but if it's your first time, my advice is: don't. You get a "Feat" or an "Ability Score Improvement" every 4 levels (usually). If you take 3 levels in one class and 1 in another, you're missing out on that power spike. You also delay getting "Extra Attack" at level 5, which makes the middle of the game feel like a slog.
However, once you know what you're doing, multiclassing is where the "broken" builds live.
- The Gloomstalker Assassin: 5 levels of Ranger (Gloomstalker) and 3 levels of Rogue (Assassin). You basically end every fight before it even starts.
- The Sorlock: Warlock for Eldritch Blast, Sorcerer for "Metamagic" so you can fire it twice in one turn.
What You Should Actually Do Next
Don't spend four hours in the character creator. Seriously.
The best thing about Baldur’s Gate 3 classes is that you can change them whenever you want. Very early in Act 1, you’ll find an NPC named Withers in a tomb (north of the crashed ship). For 100 gold, he will let you "Respec" your entire character.
Here is your actionable plan:
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- Pick what looks cool. If you like the idea of talking to animals and turning into a wolf, pick Druid.
- Focus on your "Primary Stat." If you're a Wizard, get that Intelligence to 16 or 17. If you're a Barbarian, go Strength. Don't try to be good at everything.
- Check your party balance. If you’re playing a squishy Wizard, make sure you bring Lae'zel (Fighter) or Karlach (Barbarian) to stand in front of you.
- Experiment at Level 3. This is when most classes pick their "Subclass," which is where the real identity of the class comes out. If you don't like it by Level 4, go talk to Withers and try something else.
You can't "ruin" a character in this game. The only mistake is picking something you find boring just because a guide told you it was "High Tier." Go find the weirdest, coolest subclass that fits your vibe and start rolling dice.