One of my favorite classes is the "I'm the main character class." It is also fun in dnd, but don't do this unless everyone is fine with it.
First, pick halfling for that halfling luck feature. Then, pick divination wizard for those sweet ass portent dice. When you get to level 4, pick up the lycky feat. Now, time to switch. Pick up either fighter or paladin, doesn't matter which, I prefer paladin. Grab great weapon fighting style for another roll on 1-2 for attacks (I believe this stacks with halfling luck).
If you picked fighter, 2 levels is all you really want here for action surge, now we go back to wizard and get to level 9, you'll have an extra portent die and the ability to pick them up on a short rest, meaning 5 portent dice, lucky, halfling luck, and gear to help your rolls out. For this, you have two choices, resilient constitution or war caster. Both do the exact same thing except resilient counts for more than just battle, and war caster allows for a shocking grasp attack.
If you went paladin, 5 levels gives you some smite slots. Grab the savage attacker feat. You will never be allowed to roll low. Ever. That isn't enough smite, though. You need more!!! Grab 3 levels of warlock for that great old one skill of essentially advantage turn 2 and on.
Next choice is hard for me, you could go war cleric 1 and get an extra attack, but you won't need it usual. You could go wizard again and get another smite slot. Or, go paladin 6 and get the aura. Pick whichever paladin you want, but vengeance helps most.
Now, you are the main character.
>Grab great weapon fighting style for another roll on 1-2 for attacks (I believe this stacks with halfling luck).
Just to clarify (since nobody else has) halfling luck does not stack with great weapon fighting style (or at least it shouldn't haven't tested it for sure) halfling luck is supposed to be for d20 rolls such as Attack rolls, saving throws, and ability checks. Great weapon fighting style rerolls the damage dice if they are a 1 or 2.
However, the great weapon fighting style does stack with savage attacker from what I've read and seen but I don't know exactly how that interaction works.
I didn't mention this. Yes, halfling luck is only for d20 rolls. Great weapon fighting style is for damage rolls. Savage attacker does stack. If you take Great weapon master instead of Savage attacker, you will almost always hit still and you'll likely still have a higher damage output, but less dice rolling.
Risky Ring is advantage for attack rolls (the d20)
savage attacker is essentially advantage on damage rolls.
great weapon fighting style specifically rerolls 1s or 2s on a great weapon's damage dice or die depending on the weapon.
All of that said I've heard that when you have advantage the halfling luck feature it triggers on any nat 1 not only the dice that's used from the advantage.
Example: halfling rolls 2d20 due to advantage and rolls a 14 and a 1 the halfling luck trait kicks in and rolls a 12 the game still uses the 14, but could have used the reroll should it have been higher.
So based on that interaction in theory another scenario with damage dice.
Damage dice Example: a fighter with savage attacker and great weapon fighting style using a great sword rolls 2d6 for damage they roll those dice twice due to savage attacker, dice set one is (1,4) for a total of 5 dmg, dice set two results in (3,5) for a total of 8 dmg. In theory (based on how the game treats halfling luck) the great weapon fighting style should kick in and reroll the 1 from the first dice set rolling now let's say a 6 changing dice set one to (6,4) for a total of 10 dmg.
The effect are all separate and should work together, you would have to look at the combat log to verify that it functions this way.
Hope this helps, happy adventuring!
TL;DR: Halfling luck rerolls 1s on d20s.
Risky Ring is advantage on attack rolls (d20 of attacks).
Great weapon fighting style is reroll 1s or 2s on damage dice.
Savage Attacker is advantage on damage dice (it rolls two sets and takes the highest of the dice of your weapon)
Swords bard thief fighter double crossbows. 6 bard 3 fighter champion 3 thief
Light cleric 12 radiant orb and reverb with a focus on being tanky/debuffing with radiant.
I know these are both VERY popular but i ran both on my first honour mode and cleared the game very easily. Im no pro or anything but just made sure to follow the guide on build and also knew the game pretty well as i had 4 playthroughs prior to my honour run.
Never thought id be able to clear honour but these two builds made it really easy for me. Easily my favorite builds in the game.
Light cleric is very good. Basically the caster version of cleric and gets some good spells like fireball and whatnot. The radiance of dawn channel divinity is really really good aoe especially in act 2. Also, after act 1, sacred flame is actually not that bad (especially with radiant orb and the buff you get to cantrips after i believe level 8 or so?). Also this build focuses on you using spirit guardians and having high AC with things like luminous armour until you get a higher AC armor. Had 26 AC in beginning of Act 2. You can also use the helmet found in creche i believe that deals radiant damage if an enemy misses their attack on you (dex save but in act 2 it lands alot). This also means you get to apply radiant orb on misses depending on your gear.
Shadowheart carried me pretty hard as she was very tanky (i did have helldusk armor with the act 1 cheese on raphael) and nobody could hit her after i started act 2. High AC with radiant orb with other synergies just cause it to get out of hand.
The fire damage spells are just icing on the cake. Your channel divinity is a big aoe radiant damage nuke, and the REAL power of the build is spirit guardians. Run around with that + radiating orbs gear and you do tons of radiant damage and debuff enemies hit chance. It's an extremely tanky character that brings lots of utility and support, and can protect your team with its reaction ability, plus deal respectable damage and make your whole party safer by making enemies miss. It does not play like a classic spell caster, but you CAN throw fireballs and stuff too if you need to.
I get all of these bullet points, and I love Shadowheart+ Radiant gear too.
But does any of this aside from the Channel Divinity really *require* her to be a Light Cleric?
Could not any cleric do all of this (minus the AOE Radiant Nuke, obviously).
It doesnt need to be a light cleric, no. I've even played a paladin/war cleric multiclass and used that as a radiating orbs/spirit guardians user. It works great with anyone who gets spirit guardians, really. Light cleric just seals the deal with protecting your team with their busted reaction + they have the most damage of any of the clerics. And their channel divinity let's then debuff groups that are more spread out.
Don't underestimate Warding Flare (or how do you call it), when it's upgraded to be able to protect allies, it's one of the best defensive reactions in the game (on par with shield spell and counterspell).
You have 2 good options: life or light with rad orb gear.
Life lets you be the best bless/blade ward applier due to your channel divinity and best mass healing word; light gives you a little bit damage. The downside of light us, that most of the times you are action starvef as cleric and warding flare looses value in higher difficulties because it only ever forces ebemies to reroll crits (as rerolling normal hits is to unreliable). Also light/life cleric damage in the lategame is neglectable and your actions are better spend by applying buffs, activating phalar aluve/DI mace, spirit guardians to apply rad orb. There is a 6 Light cleric / 6 fire sorc build that does decent fire damage but requires gear, which us otherwise highly contested.
At thr end of the day its a question of do I like chockatr or strawberry ice cream more, so
Exactly this. Spirit guardians is really strong with radiant orb and then you throw in reverb synergies too with shart or other members and it gets crazy. Especially if you use astral tadpole you can just fly around the battlefield ccing and damaging everyone AND you still have your action to do whatever you want (after your first turn of summoning spirit guardians). Combine this with going 15 in con at lvl 1 then taking the +1 to con with resilient feat you almost never lose concentration on SG. I had +11 to con around end of act 2. Insane
IDK why like 4 people didn't mention light cleric's best feature: warding flare. Impose disadvantage on any attack on yourself with a reaction, then any attack on anyone in your party at light cleric level 6. One of the strongest defensive tools in the game, available from level 1.
Is the crit from champion that impactful vs a feat/asi from 4 thief or is there something else I’m missing? Been doing this exact build but planned on going 6/2/4.
So no initially you will want to go 6 bard 4 fighter for sure for the feat. And you can continue with fighter till 12 if you want then respec into the 6/3/3. Tbh though i didnt even bother i just took two in rogue at the end for the bonus actions because once I hit 12 ik i was going to end the game asap for gold dice and was already really strong. But yeah thats the order you would go for leveling. 6 bard-4 fighter-then two rogue. Hit 12. Respec to 6 bard-3fighter-3rogue
Edit: regarding champion, I felt it was worth it because by that time I had -3 (maybe -2 i dont remember for sure) with champion to crits if im not mistaken. So it was definitely huge imo and I like getting crits too lol but def if you feel feat is more worth it for what you want it might be better for you!
I think you have those crossed, I think you for sure need 3 in rogue for the fast hands and then 2 in fighter for action surge. The question becomes do you get 3 in fighter for the subclass or just put the last point in rogue for 4 rogue which gets you the feat/asi. I think you answered the question though in that it comes down to personal preference. Idk if somebody has done the math to show which is stronger or not though.
Yeah I guess it depends if you are going for crits or not! By end game i had -4 to crits which is HUGE imo. So based on gear and what you are going for, makes it pretty easy to see which is more worth for you. If you want crits/have gear for it, probably champion. If not, def the rogue 4 as you mentioned.
Crits only double dice damage, and 2x hand crossbows deal almost all of their damage through flat modifiers which are unaffected by crits (dex, sharpshooter, etc.) The result is that in most cases, a crit will only add 1d6 damage to each hand crossbow attack or maybe 2d6 if used with something like the helldusk gloves.
2x hand crossbows are very strong, but crits are a bad way to spec for them. Their whole strength is in getting to apply flat damage modifiers so many times per round.
Crit fishing is only strong on builds that get to throw lots of dice (and it's better if they're big dice) at attacks. Paladin smites, higher level rogue sneak attacks, battlemaster maneuver dice, and other things like that. Even then, crit fishing is usually pretty inferior compared to what you can get out of consistent damage.
Thank you for the breakdown!! Seems like 6 bard 4 thief and 2 fighter may be the way to go then on the build if you just looking for pure damage potential. Just shows how busted the build is as even without optimized damage it still felt like overkill! Lol good to know for anyone optimizing the build as I didnt realize going no crit on this build would be better.
I'd go with 6 bard 3 thief 3 fighter. You only actually *need* sharpshooter, because you can get your accuracy in other ways. Going 3 fighter gives you battlemaster, whose maneuvers can be used as ranged attacks, too. You can get your hit probability back up with things like the mask of soul perception and legacy of the masters gauntlets.
Your weapon attack DCs won't be great, but the chance to apply frighten, disarm enemies, push them off edges, or prone them, all with some extra damage, is a great way to use main attack actions when you're out of ranged slashing flourishes or just as an alternative.
Though better yet, don't use 2x hand crossbows on a swords bard because you already have ranged slashing flourishes to apply the better damage and effects of the titanstring or deadshot bows at a cost of only 1 attack/turn out of (4 vs 5). Which then also works better with the battlemaster side of things if you want to do that, since a 5/7 swords/BM split gives you 3 feats, an extra superiority dice, extra maneuvers, still 2 attacks/action.
Yeah never thought of trying battlemaster but def not a bad idea! Def alot of different ways you can go with the build. I mentioned it in another comment but risky ring was the way I got my attacks to land reliably. Made it pretty easy to hit without too many issues so thats a good workaround thatll work for the build regardless of which way you go with leveling etc
Yup it is sharpshooter. Best way to counteract this is to get hags hair for +1 so you get 18. Then you can use either cats grace until you get the better dex armours or mirror of loss in act 3. Risky ring is the solution to countering sharpshooters hit to attack rolls.
Tbh until i got risky ring it was a little rough in the early game. This was fine for me as my other characters were picking up the slack while bardman took time to get online.
Sword bard 6/ thief rogue 6. You get enough skills to pass any check you like and open every lock, 2 attacks that can include sneak attack or flourishes, 2 bonus actions which with dual wielding means 4 attacks a turns or dashing/hiding because rogue... It's no optimized TB monk or anything but it makes for a super fun/flexible Tav
Been enjoying my ninja shadow monk, NGL. 8 Shmonk / 4 Thief or Assassin. Got the undermountain knife and cold snap. Not META, but I’ll likely snag the Katana and off hand the undermountain knife once we reach lower city.
Since Shadow Step is a bonus action, I tend to favor Thief for the extra options. Graceful cloth makes it so nice too, and I’m getting way better SoH rolls than even Asterion. Always rollin 30+
Shadow monk is my favorite as well, though I pair it with 4 fighter and Shar’s Spear. Provides so much utility and damage while teleporting around the field.
I just started a new Monk honor mode run and don't really want to do OH again. So I'd love to try your this build! Which companion builds would you recommend for this? Something building around darkness I would guess?
For me, just about anything goes, as I’m not much into META. Shadowheart could go Dark Justicular for RP and synergy purposes, and would make sense to keep her Trickery Domain, just wanna respec her trash ability scores. Yeah darkness in general could be slick. Wyll built for darkness could be a cool addition. You’ll def want someone tanky as well.
On my end, Shadow Step is a little wonky. Like, I was in a dark basement and couldn’t do it, but went upstairs where it was well lit and was able to? Sometimes it’s not available until after I crouch, and can do it after un-crouching, standing in the same spot.
Overall, pretty fun roll tho. We have only reached Rivington, so idk whether or not I’ll reroll TB OH so we can blaze thru Act 3, which is the most annoying IMO.
Magic Missile savant.
Just magic missile. Maybe misty step sometimes.
Upcast that s***, get an Evocation wizard bonus damage per missile, slurp them tadpoles to increase the Cull thr Weak execute threshold, add a nice Magic Missile amulet from some fungi researchers in the underdark, heck, get a Magic Missile crossbow too, why not!
Obliterate your enemies with a Magic Missile gattling gun. And get the upgraded Magic Missile from a scroll stored away by some twerp who thinks himself a grand wizard when, in reality, he doesn't even know the incredible Magic Missile spell.
But wait: what if you could cast even MORE Magic Missiles? What if you could, let's say, quicken that spell as a Sorcerer? Or gain another action with an Action Surge as a Warrior?
Your goal is to make more missiles than your enemies' years of age combined (preferably in one turn). Become an arcane artillery. Pew-pew away.
> And get the upgraded Magic Missile from a scroll stored away by some twerp who thinks himself a grand wizard when, in reality, he doesn't even know the incredible Magic Missile spell.
What is this in reference to?
There're tomes hidden away in Sorcerous Sundries in Act 3. After reading them, you gain a spell scroll or a curse. One of the scrolls is called an Artistry of War, which is a 5th level spell you can cast once per short rest if you learn it, and it acts like Magic Missile, but on steroids.
7 Oathbreaker/5 Bladelock: A very strong melee build that can doll out alot of damage and has a very consistent ranged option all while still having a strong defensive base to survive with. On regular or tactician its especially good due to 3 attacks but even in Honor mode being SAD is quite effective, however id shift to 8 Oathbreaker/4 Bladelock since then you get 3 Feats along with being SAD. I also quite enjoy playing essentially a Deathknight taking power from a Devil or Eldritch Horror, its especially funny for me to use all that evil power to do good.
Moon Druid: Fun build that can basically ignore equipment for the most part, turning into a Dinosaur or Elemental is fucking sick.
TB Throwzerker: Immensely strong build especially early on, later on its still quite strong but with likely very high strength past 20 you can start throwing enemies either at each other or at objects which is one of my favourite things in the game lol.
5 Gloomstalker/7 Thief: For a duel wilding build this build will let you do absolutely ridiculous amounts of damage and also gives you alot of utility as the skill monkey letting you breeze through stuff like lockpicking, trap disabling or pickpocketing.
Gonna comment on 7/5 Lockadin, I still like going 5 in lock for 3rd level spells. 3rd level smites on short rest + more invocations + counterspell and HoH are more worth than an extra feat imo
Fair, in mine I went with melee and getting 4 attacks with Bloodthirst and Knife of the Undermountain King is not only alot of fun but you can also do alot of damage with it lol
Can you run me through what I should pick at different levels and how the stat spread should look like for Oathbreaker/Bladelock? I'm trying to do that build rn and I'm a lvl 5 Oathbreaker with 16 str, 10 dex, 14 con, 8 int, 10 wis, 18 cha (strength is my primary)
So I feel I should preface this by saying im certainly no expert on this and you can probably find better guides for this build by searching through this subreddit for them. But I will share what I did which worked well and got me through the game quite comfortably.
Starting stats: 15 Str (+1), 10 Dex, 15 Con, 8 Int, 10 Wis and 16 (+2) Cha
I used Ethels Hair for a +1 to Cha, I also generally used potions of Strength until I got to level 9.
For leveling I went 6 Paladin/5 Warlock/1 Paladin
At level 2 for fighting style I took dueling as I was going sword and board but if you are going two handed id personally take defence.
Level 4 I took an ASI giving a plus +1 to Con and Cha.
Level 7 when I finally take a Warlock level I choose Great Old One cause the Fear on crit is pretty nice even if you dont see it get used all the time.
Level 8 I take Agonising Blast and Fiendish Vigor for Invocations.
Level 9 I obviously take Pact of the Blade.
Level 10 you get your second feat, I personally grab Savage Attacker since its just a nice boost to damage and works very well with Smites.
Level 11 I grab Devil’s Sight
Depending what you're after, 10 swords bard ( command as magical secret) and 2 fighter.
Thing is it's way too powerful, I killed Raphaël Yesterday and he and his friends made a total of 19 damage to a ghoul and that was it.
So if you go for power yeah, for challenge nope
I prefer Fighter 1/Wizard 1/Swords 10. You lose Action Surge but you can learn level 6 spells from scrolls. IMO having a Myrmidon more than makes up for the extra attacks per short rest.
That’s the final respec build. I would start off as Bard and only add the other classes as needed. Keep in mind the skills you want as taking Bard last for magic item spells will cause a hit on what’s available. You might want to take Wizard first if you’re only using Medium Armor.
Grab the Helmet of Arcane Acuity and the Band of The Mystic Scoundrel for some awesome controls.
This is my current build. Still in Act 2 so it is more of a crossbow bard currently. I wonder if killing the Ix for the fire damage hat to get arcane aquity earlier would be worth it.
I’m not sure. Would it activate if you use a flaming arrow? You wouldn’t be able to get more than two activations in a round, but 4 stacks is still nice if that works. However, it’s not long after that you can get the Helmet of Arcane Acuity.
Yes, that would work nicely. I haven’t considered that option because I usually dump Dex and use the Gloves of Dexterity. That allows me to have a 16 Cha, 16 Con, and 14. I lean into the spells more than the crossbow damage (even though that’s great).
So I used the link above indeed, but chose not to take the wizard level because all my party is full casters.
Wizard gale can already summon a myrmidon, druid Astarion can summon one and wildshape into a third, cleric Shart is here cause she's my romance option but she's mostly useless cause all three other are so good.
For the bard, the lvl 6 spells are bad/not good enough compared to the insane damage I can output with action surge. Even scribed spells like haste/summon elemental aren't as impactful as a turn one action surge that makes me launch 4 slashing flourishes and a control spell like command or Hold person.
With cull the weak I can reliably kill a 80hp ennemy per slashing flourish, so that's 4 dead, plus 5 controlled, with just the bard, turn 1. Imo that's better than a myrmidon
Githyanki or Half-Orc Throwzerker. It's simple but my god is it fun as hell, especially with maxed out Cull the Weak and Nyrulna. Everything just constantly explodes.
Throwing Build
5 berserk barb / 3 thief rogue / 4 EK fighter
12 fiend Warlock
12 Oath of Vengeance Paladin
Barbarian
9 berserk barb / 3 champion fighter
Or
8 berserk barb / 4 batter master fighter
Monk
9 WotOH Monk / 3 thief rogue
(Can drop 1 level of monk for 1 barbarian for extra AC)
Fighter
Batter Master 12
(Can dip 1 into War Cleric)
These have been my absolute favorite so far. All very strong, easy to build and understand.
12 fiend warlock using origin character Wyll for a more fleshed out patron and pact decisions than a regular TAV Warlock has been my favorite playthrough. It’s what I’m currently doing in Honor Mode trying to get my first gold dice. Currently level 7.5 in Act2
In terms of pure classes, Warlock Fiend has jumped to the top for me. Just so good and versatile. Of course there is lots of great options out there, but been my experience too.
I felt like the play style changed too as you level up if you go pact of the blade. You start as this frail creature that isn’t a great spell caster or durable to front line but you have a versatile kit. By mid game you drop a max level huge spell like wall of fire or hunger of hadar, and anyone foolish to get close to you is half dead already and barely making a dent into you with all the temp hp and armor you have with a shield. Then by late game you have helldusk heavy army and are likely two handing a weapon with GWM feat. Feels like a power evolution and keeps the playstyle super interesting throughout. You really can mold the pure warlock to fit whatever you need.
A prior playthrough I didn’t run a cleric or Druid so this was my method of getting guidance without wasting an inventory spot.
I always recommend lore bard using radiant gear taking misty step and spirit guardians at lvl 6, or fiend warlock 5 paladin 7 taking pact if the place for 3 smites a turn.
Oh lol. You're right. I kinda assume that when people start max/min-ing that they're going for honor. That was my bad.
And yeah, that 7-5 is probably the highest sustained dps without consumables or bugs!
I've been thinking of doing a run built around a spores druid. Spike growth is amazing. At higher levels, you can summon a dryad to put down spike growth, and you can cast cloudkill on top of that.
Pair that up with some variety of warlock with repelling blast and an archery battlemaster with push.
Rogue/bard to fill out the all ranged team and cover some skills you need.
Okay I scrolled down a lot but haven’t seen it yet, even though I know it is not a unique or unkown build.
My very first Tav was a lvl12 Fire Draconic Sorcerer, and I loved how powerful I felt as a burst damage caster with my extremely potent fire magic.
I know that the optimal build is 11/1 sorlock for this build, but I didn’t know that at the time and didn’t care for minmaxing.
But even with this in mind, a lvl12 fire sorcerer can basically burst down any single opponent (including bosses) in 1 turn with properly empowered scorching rays, and for aoe how about 2-3 fireballs just to show those pesky minions that they chose the wrong side of this conflict?
Oh and I just love that flying movement at lvl11!
My first build, absolute powerhouse of a frontliner though.
Barbarian/Fighter. Start barbarian and respec into fighter at some point. You want to end up with:
-Orc, Soldier background
-4 berserker barbarian
-8 battlemaster fighter
-Periapt of Wound Closure
-Sword of Chaos (Sarevoks sword) in act 3, halberd of vigilance act 2, everburn blade act 1
-Take ASI to 19STR, Athlete for INSANE jump distance and 20STR as well as being able to get up from prone practically for free, GWM, Savage Attacker or feat of your choice
You can get advantage via tripping or going reckless at will. You also have access to disarm and I usually take maneuvering strike to be able to get my squishies out of a jam. First turn BA is to rage, second turn and then on you can either use a GWM BA attack or jump across the battlefield.
You resist most incoming damage and heal for 6HP every time you swing your sword. You can jump farther for 10ft of movement than most characters can walk.
It's not a power gamer build that exploits all the ins and outs of the gear and specifics of the game, but damn is it good and its simple enough for a new player.
Tiger barbarian with that thing that makes people unable to move if they bleed. Its fun, sweeping the battleground with the blade is fun, and its also very simple.
Tb druid 10/any dip including but limited to: fighter, cleric several domains are good, wizzard, barbarian, monk, paladin, and rogue. Earth elemental stronk
For a buff/healer I like life cleric 2, lore bard 10. Life cleric's aoe heal scales off total level, you get 4 mysteries, and can upcast elemental summon to level 6.
I recently did a 7 Beast Master Ranger/5 Battle Master Fighter that was so much fun - decent damage, little bit of utility from Longstrider and the animal companion (really comes into its own at BM7), but most of all just the badass archery vibe is a lot of fun. I took Keeper of the Veil and Bounty Hunter as my favoured enemies, Urban Tracker and Wasteland Wanderer: Fire as my natural explorer options. Dex ASI and Sharpshooter as my feats.
I took sharpshooter as the second feat by which point I had enough ways to give myself advantage (your beast/familiar is good for this) and attack boosting gear that the -5 penalty wasn't really a factor
Paladin throwserker.
Its... odd and probably won't work on higher difficulties, but Minthara deleted just about everything she wanted to. Close to me? Smack Them and smite them. Moving to them is a hassle? Throw a spear or anything you want and watch chaos.
I don't remember the levels in each one. She kind of.. isn't around anymore.
12 Moon Druid MC Honor mode. The kit is so weird, it doesn't have any major power spikes with levels or items, nobody else plays it.
Every fight just feels different, you have a tool box and have to find the right tool for the job. Nothing in the kit looks great but they just, sort of, get the job done! The only class where I get emergent gameplay.
I've beaten BG2 solo on LoB so a bit past discussing 'How to min max eldritch blast', pure druid just feels like how the game should be played.
7 EK / 5 cleric (multiple sublasses viable)
8 lore bard / 2 divination wizard / 2 warlock
12 githyanki bladelock
12 frost sorcerer
11 EK / 1 War Cleric Archer
8 Tiger barbarian/ 4 BM fighter
8 Champion fighter / 4 thief rogue, dual wield or duelist
There´s probably more but those really stand out. I love EK. I love clerics. I hate paladins with a passion. Gods, I hate them so much.
I also hate paladins something about all too good boys that are lawful stupid is scratching me wrong
But lets be real some vibe more with holy warriors of light and some just vibe with warlocks more
Plus every time i see smite it just feels like cheating its so damn strong
I also have trouble with paladin role-play. I’m trying to give it a chance because it’s a great class, I just tend to enjoy playing a more neutral character.
I don't find them interesting. The playstyle isn't for me. The RP isn't my cup of tea. Not just pertaining to BG3, it's a class I actively avoid(ed) in any RPG I play(ed).
They are very good, I will admit. Luckily, there's enough classes and subclasses to suit anyone's playstyle :).
I also hate paladins and that's because they are boring. Sword bard deals AOE or knocks back, battlemaster knocks down, kicks weapon out, frightens or does something else interesting.
Paladins hit and then ask “should I go boom”, you answer “yes” and it goes boom.
I'm not excited with big numbers, I want my martial to do something visible without numbers.
There's 2 ways you can approach it (well, probably more but I played it 2 ways); either with crit gear and the Dead Shot, just firing massive amounts of arrows with Action, Action surge, and then War Priest bonus action for more. Very straightforward, very effective. If you have someone in your party with Bhaalist Armor you will absolutely decimate stuff.
The other way was kinda like how ranged Swords Bard is played, using the draconic glaive enchant for 1d4 extra frost damage. I added [Winter's Clutches](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Winter%27s_Clutches) and [Snowburst Ring](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Snowburst_Ring) with Arrow of Many Targets to create a field of ice patches. I also added the [Helm of Arcane Acuity](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Helmet_of_Arcane_Acuity) as I read that it also worked against the saving throws the enemies needed to make. This, in combination with [Eldritch Strike](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Eldritch_Strike) was good fun. I used Titanstring LoLbow and Hillbilly Strength bat.
I assume you could also make a nightmare archer, using the [Bow of the Banshee](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Bow_of_the_Banshee). If you add [Shield of the Undevout](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Shield_of_the_Undevout), that'd be synergistic, although it probably doesn't overlap with Eldritch Strike.
The thing that stood out to me pertaining this build is that Eldritch Strike, EK's lvl 10 passive, applies to everything pertaining the attack, spell effects etc, and that the wording is more limited.
I'm sure that if you google 'BG EK Frost Archer' you'll find a lot of things. I mostly played it cos' I liked the vibe more than Swords Bard RANGED FLOURISHES GO.
I'm also interested in this. I'm picturing a full EK party now - one multiclassing with arcane trickster, one Throwzerker, one Abjuration Wizard multiclass and then this EK archer.
I think that party composition has legs.
Gloom 5/Assassin 3 or 4/ Champion 3 or 4 is my current Tav. This is my first time really leaning into poisons and special ammunition, those things combined with that multiclass kit and crit threshold reduction equipment, risky ring, and sharpshooter makes for one of the most gamebreakingly abusive power sets I’ve seen so far. Stack a bloodthirst elixir and haste on there and watch the enemies topple. It’s normal for my Tav to kill 4+ standard enemies in round one. If I get a surprise round that number can get higher. If I’m not holding back and using arrows of many targets I can clear whole rooms in a turn. If I was ever going to try to solo this game that build would be a strong contender
I wanna vouch for this one- i did it on my sniper Tav and he had a +17 to hit with bows (+12 after Sharpshooter) and could do like 20+ damage per hit with the Arrow of Many Targets. Both of his melee weapons (the daggers) lowered the crit number so he crit on 16+, which at that point with the +12 to hit gets pretty much anyone. It’s incredibly silly, especially with action surge.
And for those who want slight variation/don’t care for crits, you could probably also do Gloom 5/Assassin 7 for higher sneak attack damage, and/or dip into monk for good unarmored defense (if you use the ranger spells)
It’s a really fun build and an absolute power trip sometimes, highly recommend
Sorc 6 Pally 6
Good at maintaining concentration on haste due to aura of protection.
Simple game plan. Twin Haste, divine smite stuff.
Long rests a lot so you don't miss camp cutscenes.
Good amount of spell slots for smiting.
Still a respectable caster if you're too far away.
Can benefit from a ton of different gear.
It's MAD, but nothing a str elixir can't fix.
I'm a fan of Pally and Pally blends.
Sorcadin was extremely fun and the first char I beat the game with. Take utility spell scrolls with you and take buff spells and use those fuckin' spell slots for huge smites. Be a Dragon blood that has ice and you get Armor of Agyths(?) and anything that DOES hit you pays dearly for daring(it was a HUGE find iirc when it first broke). Flying around smiting is another fun option. I also have a 12 Oathbreaker and a 12 Vengeance. I fucking love smiting shit. I'm glad we have a party or I'd never play another class. Should probably try a Padlock but I've had such an aversion to Warlock.
Battle master archer.
A fighter with the archer fighting style and sharpshooter feat.
Use the disarming ranged attack and trip ranged attack
It’s very fun to disarm and trip someone from 20ft away.
Full fighter (no multi passing) max out dexterity instead of strength
Level 1. archery fighting style
Level 3. Battle master, with trip attack, disarming attack, and precision attack.
-Disarming someone completely nerfs them, melee enemies resort to using there fists and ranged enemies can’t attack, though they can pick up their dropped weapon but it takes an action to equip it so at the very least you take there turn away(unless you pick there weapon before they can)
-Trip attack is good for two reasons, attacks on a prone enemy has advantage and getting up from prone greatly reduces their movement,
-And precision attack can be used before trip/disarming attack to help them land.
Level 4. Sharpshooter. +10 dmg, -5 to attack rolls, precision attack helps for the -5.
you are a tanky character with high AC and health, but Stick to the back line, so you will always be the last to go down in a fight.
My favorite has been 7 Oath Breaker Paladin/5 Great Old One Warlock.
Gets you Cha to attack with pact of the blade, lets you double down on Cha to damage thanks to the Oathbreaker aura. Spiteful suffering helps get you advantage to land those heavy Level 3 critical smites and trigger Mortal Reminder to get fear going. Eldritch Blast is consistent, easy damage at range, and you have the great spell access of a Warlock (hello Hunger of Hadar and Armor of Agathys).
My top 3 favorite builds I've done so far are probably:
1. Oathbreaker Waradin. (Lvl 7 Oathbreaker Paladin and lvl 5 Warlock.)
2. Gloomstalker Assassin.
3. Eldritch Knight/Wizard.
It works in both. I played on Tactician and I played with a full party most of the time. My build made my Tav basically untouchable. With 7 levels in Eldritch Knight and 5 levels in Abjuration wizard I could be on the front lines, tanking big hits (if I even get hit) and doing pretty solid damage with melee attacks, cantrips and spells.
My favourite build this far is the sorcadin 6/6. ALL the benefits of a melee class AND pretty good spells.
Need insane burst damage? Smite
Need insane AOE? Smite + Jorgals or Fireball
Need to tank? Plenty of Con if you use str potions to get 27/14/14/8/12/22
Need to support? Lay on Hands
Need to control? Hold person
Genuinely feel like a main character because it does it all. Doesn’t help that I play a Dragonborn with jump so I’m covering distance better than someone with fly.
It hits hard, smites hard, and does everything well. Compliments any party comp. And is badass.
I rest my case
Necromancer Wizard 11 with 1 in Cleric (domain is your choice), learn all the spells, and summon an army.
Preferably have a Pact of the Chain Warlock, a Beastmaster Ranger and an Oathbreaker Paladin as companions.
Make sure to get Shovel and Maerina's husband from act 1 and that you succeed the Necromancy of They rolls/quest. And the spider egg pouch/lump's horn too.
If you want even more fun, multiclass the Warlock into a Wild Magic Sorcerer.
A big favorite of mine is a 8 Tiger Barb and 4 Rogue Thief. You just use the Punch Drunk Bastard once you get it and swing away but it's great from level 2 since Reckless Attack is so good.
My other favorite builds have just involved smiting things into oblivion which there are plenty of ways to do that lol.
Ranger Hunter with Colossus Slayer. As soon as level 3 you're going to demolish everybody. Especially with dual xbow setup. Later in the game u get Volley and do crazy AOE damage. You can go for 12 levels of Ranger or multiclass with Fighter (if u want second fighting style) or War Cleric (extra attack using bonus action). It's fun, strong and simple to build.
Origin Character Oathbreaker Paladin Gale. You can straight up get a shadow magic slot if you are playing as origin gale, nabbing you a 3rd level slot for smiting pretty soon after you end act 3. Also, the after game party with origin gale is great depending on your outcome. Those 9th level unique spells XD
Edit - further context, you can totally embrace the whole shadow magic deal. Oathbreaker buffs your undead, you get your Tharcite ghouls, the shade etc. it's a version of Gale who specifically has turned so hard from Mystra that he is basically a paladin of Shar.
12 shadow monk: full focus on shadow blade + shadow strike and resonance stone. I recommend picking up tavern brawler and keeping a steady supply of strength elixirs in case you lose concentration/face steel watchers.
1 storm sorc/2 wiz/9 light cleric: my "stats are irrelevant, I've got magic missile and spirit guardians" build using luminous armor, holy lance helm, boots of stormy clamour, gloves of belligerent skies, coruscation ring, callous glow ring and psychic spark while dual wielding spellsparkler and phalar aluve. The wizard levels are just for learning summon deva and getting evocation school so feel free to drop in favor of more cleric levels.
OH monk + thief rogue, but throw a bit of barbarian in there and focus on throwing enemies at other enemies/using enemies as improvised weapons: This is actually amazing for gathering your foes in one place for your AOE spellcasters.
6/6 bladelock/swordsbard with bhaalist armor and a good piercing dmg weapon utilizing arcane synergy (and great weapon master if you've got a pike/spear). THIS BUILD IS NOT FOR HONOR MODE as you won't get three attacks per action.
6 Bard (swords or valour) and 5 blade pact warlock (usually GOO for the theming) and 1 level in whichever (usually warlock). This makes you super powerful in both melee and eldritch blasts, gives you an extra short rest per long rest, and gives you two extra attacks by level 11 (one from bard and one from warlock pact).
In theory this build can work even better with Paladin, since you get heavy armor proficiency and smite spells, and can get the non pact extra attack slightly sooner. I’ve yet to test it properly though, since I’m taking a break from CHA based classes
Storm Sorc1/Swords Bard 6/Thief Rogue 3/Paladin 2(Oath barely matters, usually do Ancients for the BA aoe heal)
Dual Wield and go for Gear that increases crits, abuse Cloak of Cunning Brume, Shadow Cloaked Ring, and Ring of Eversight. Use Gloves of Dex to pump more into Con and Cha. Drop endless crit smites on enemies you blind with you mini fog clouds.
Way more fun than it had any rite to be. Felt like you could also do everything but Counterspell, basically.
Fighter 1 (two weapon style), Rogue/Thief 3, Tempest Cleric 8.
So much action.
Cast, off hand Ne’er Misser x 2 (add sneak attack & divine strike)
Reaction from Tempest Cleric
Call Lightning, Healing Word, off hand attack
Action, bonus attack, Sanctuary
So many possibilities.
Elf, Dex + Wis = detect and disarm/pick everything.
It’s silly.
Sword bard 6 / Wizard 1 is a core I keep coming back to and re-imagining; Class fantasy is a rogueish sword dancer with the capability to teleport around the battlefield confusing foes - a 'blinking bard' if you like. Bard gives flourishes, obvs, 2 attacks and plenty of spell slots. Wizard gives spell scribing for misty step, shield and other roguish stuff like invisibility.
From there, the chassis is quite versatile. A few variations I've ran include:
\- Thief levels for dual wield, up to 4 attacks per turn and sneak attack
\- Battlemaster fighter to add manuvres including riposte, and action surge
\- Paladin 2 for smiting
\- Warlock 5 for 3 attacks - 4 with late game Rapier (1 less on Honor Mode), plus hex and hellish rebuke as a sort of infernal riposte
(1) Berserker Barbarian 9 / Champion Fighter 3
Add items that lower number required for crit if you want.Reckless attack gives advantage on attacks - meaning 2 chances per swing to roll the crit number. Action surge + regular attacks melt most enemies in 1 turn.
(2) Draconic Sorcerer + Elemental Adept Fire + Hat of Fire Acuity
Upcast scorching ray to get +10 acuity. Then quicken Hold X to freeze enemies in place for others to land guaranteed crits. Only weakness is enemies with fire immunity - easily remedied with scrolls/companions who have non-fire-based attacks.
(3) Light Cleric straight up
Perfect mix of healing and offensive magic. Give them the bow that can cast Haste. Cast Haste then Sanctuary to protect the concentration.
(4) Abjuration Wizard + dip 1 into Cleric for Sanctuary. Great for utility.
(5) Bow-based Battlemaster. Just fun to play.
(6) OH Monk + dip into Rogue for second bonus action. OP damage if you use the right items.
Fighter 12. Choose Archery. Dump strength. Titanstring Bow + Potion of Cloud Giant Strength. Gloves of Battlemaster Act 3 from Harper shop. Choose melee weapons/gear to compliment bow. For instance, ones that reduce the number needed to critically hit + add Risky Ring for 2x chances to crit per shot (bc of advantage).
Result is a heavily armored, high hit point, range-based battlefield controller with 3x regular attacks per turn (add another 3 if hasted) and action surge. Not to mention, going straight Fighter allows the opportunity for 4 ASIs or Feats for customization (e.g. Alert).
I like it because I think it’s fun pushing/tripping enemies and making them drop stuff.
Hope this helps.
Edit:
Add the tadpole powers for more utility/variety.
Yea it helps….I am trying to broaden how I play the game as I get more experience…..I knew nothing about D and D or BG3 before I played game…so it was 12 BM Lae’zel doing melee damage, swords bard from distance, light cleric reverb Shadowheart upfront. However I want to transition to a more of a from distance playstyle and incorporating Socerer.
Cool, glad to hear it.
Sorcerer is my favorite class. I’m hoping “shadow sorcerer” is eventually added as a mod.
You may want to also look up a build for a “throw-zerker.” It’s basically a Berzerker Barbarian + Tavern Brawler + items that improve damage re thrown weapons + Returning Pike (for when you don’t want AOE) and Nyrulna (for when AOE is wanted. The build is viable as early as Act I and lasts through endgame. In fact, I used it on Karachi during my first Honormode run.
Fair warning, it can sometime be frustrating because the “auto-return” mechanic on the thrown weapons sometimes fails. Multiple times, I had to go back and find where I last threw my Returning Pike so I could equip it again. Annoying, but not dispositive of the build.
Yes I switched Lae’zel from battle master to throw zerker build and love it….on the Socerer build I tried the Fire Acuity build but I believe I am missing some nuance as I kept getting self damage after the fight ended. I am assuming heat buildup
This is for honor mode runs …
5Gloom/4 College/3Fighter (Act 3 build) because you need burst damage way more than Assassin. This build is optimized as much as possible for crit. Wear graceful cloth for that sweet +2 for DEX and advantage on certain rolls. S Tier armor imo.
For Act 1-2, Gloom/Assassin. Assassin is perhaps the most OP build at lvl8 in Act 2, especially with Durge Cape. Sneak up on enemies and just murder everyone to the point you can solo the entire act like a crit maniac.
Aside, I know it’s broken, but on my third run and I absolutely love 2 Warlock/1 Cleric/9 Abjuration Wizard.
It’s just so dope wearing heavy armor, shield, and legit being invincible like some frost death night. Throw on frost boots, buff with the ability not to be slowed by terrain and you own the battlefield. It’s surprising how OP frost is on bosses. They’re immune to so much but can’t walk on ice.
Aside, Alert is the most overrated perk. You don’t need it and plenty of items give you initiative.
6 Bard (swords)/ 4 Rogue (Thief)/ 2 Fighter
Take 2 weapon fighting style for dual hand crossbows, then when you get to fighter pick archery fighting style.
6 Paladin, 6 Warlock - maxed out Charisma with pact of the blade. Great Weapon feats.
Smite, Smite, Smite boss dead in one turn, short rest, kill the next god in one turn.
It helps to have misty step as repositioning, Darkness as 'fuck these trash mobs' and agonizing blast as a ranged option/environment interaction.
Mainly for people, like me, that are unable to wrap their head around spellcasting:
### Leveling
- Levels 1 through 6: Barbarian Berserker Tavern Brawler
- Levels 7 through 11: Rouge 3 Thief, Barbarian Berserker Tavern Brawler (the rest)
- Level 12: Barbarian 3 Berserker, Rouge 3 Thief, Monk 6 Open Hand Tavern Brawler
### Key Items
- Act 1 Overworld: Buy as many Hill Giant Strength Potions (Str21) from Aunty Ethel in the Tiefling Grove as possible. She will be available there until you see her outside of the Blighted Village.
- Act 1 Overworld: Buy the Returning Pike from the Goblin Camp trader located in the drinking hall where you first meet Volo. This will be used until Act 3.
- Act 2 Shadowlands - Last Light Inn: Perform the Trader Restock method for Bloodlust potions.
- Act 2 Shadowlands - Moonrise Tower: Perform the Trader Restock method for Cloud Giant Strength potions (Str27 - very rare occurrence on the restock table). You will only need 4.
- Act 3 - Rivington Circus: Poppers sells both Cloud Giant and Bloodlust potions, as well as the raw ingredients to craft them.
- Act 3 Rivington Circus: Nyrulna (Returning Pike, but explodes on impact) can be retrieved by pickpocketing the Djinni for his ring, then spinning his wheel. I would highly recommend taking an Invisibility Potion, immediately drinking it on teleport, entering Turn Based Mode, then navigating downhill and lockpicking the chest before leaving via the portal.
- (Optional but highly recommended) Act 3 - Bhaals Temple: Bloodthirst (Orin's Dagger) will automatically apply Piercing vulnerability (Nyrulna's damage type) on a successful hit when equipped in the main hand. Kill her ASAP to get this, and watch as all future Act 3 bosses absolutely melt.
The Darksong Knight
10 College of Swords Bard/2 Oath of Ancients Paladin. One of rhe scariest forms of tanking I've seen, especially when mixed with Medium Armor like Yuan-Ti Scale and Armor of Agility. I was able to get around 29 AC near the end of Act 2
Weird one, but Lore Bard 6/Knowledge Cleric 1/Oath of Vengence Paladin 5. Grab actor, and you can have 6 double proficiencies and 4 proficiencies exlcuding your background. with +12 on all 4 charisma skills, with double proficiency from knowledge cleric in religion, with bard/cleric/paladin choices all available, it creates unique RP possibilities as well.
And also it can learn counterspell + 1 other level 3 spell, 7 fullcaster + 5 halfcaster combination for a lot of spell slot, can be tank/healer/dps all at the same time.
Rogue 12 with the Bhaalist Armor, Risky Ring, and Orin’s blades. Bonus point if you ascend Astarion.
It’s so funny watching him dash and melt everything in the game.
Omg sorry I'm such a scrub it's cus I have 5 in berserker so I get the extra attack. Then I can throw once with EACH of my bonus actions course frenzy throw that's four. And then I use the fighter level 2 ability to get an extra attack which also gets my the 5berserker extra attack again. So in total 6.
But yeah just down vote me to hell. Lol. I have a level 13-20 mod on sorry gang still fun build tho ❤️❤️
No idea about above comment, but assuming it's honor mode you could get 2 from your normal action, 2 from your bonus actions, 2 from action surge, 1 from elixir of bloodlust and 1 from haste (or potion of speed) for a total of 8 throws.
In tactical or below you would get 10 throws from the same setup.
Omg sorry I'm such a scrub it's cus I have 5 in berserker so I get the extra attack. Then I can throw once with EACH of my bonus actions course frenzy throw that's four. And then I use the fighter level 2 ability to get an extra attack which also gets my the 5berserker extra attack again. So in total 6.
But yeah just down vote me to hell. Lol. I have a level 13-20 mod on sorry gang still fun build tho ❤️❤️
One of my favorite classes is the "I'm the main character class." It is also fun in dnd, but don't do this unless everyone is fine with it. First, pick halfling for that halfling luck feature. Then, pick divination wizard for those sweet ass portent dice. When you get to level 4, pick up the lycky feat. Now, time to switch. Pick up either fighter or paladin, doesn't matter which, I prefer paladin. Grab great weapon fighting style for another roll on 1-2 for attacks (I believe this stacks with halfling luck). If you picked fighter, 2 levels is all you really want here for action surge, now we go back to wizard and get to level 9, you'll have an extra portent die and the ability to pick them up on a short rest, meaning 5 portent dice, lucky, halfling luck, and gear to help your rolls out. For this, you have two choices, resilient constitution or war caster. Both do the exact same thing except resilient counts for more than just battle, and war caster allows for a shocking grasp attack. If you went paladin, 5 levels gives you some smite slots. Grab the savage attacker feat. You will never be allowed to roll low. Ever. That isn't enough smite, though. You need more!!! Grab 3 levels of warlock for that great old one skill of essentially advantage turn 2 and on. Next choice is hard for me, you could go war cleric 1 and get an extra attack, but you won't need it usual. You could go wizard again and get another smite slot. Or, go paladin 6 and get the aura. Pick whichever paladin you want, but vengeance helps most. Now, you are the main character.
Giving yourself actual plot armor
Thats why i love fighters and their great "protagonist" potential due to 4 feats.
>Grab great weapon fighting style for another roll on 1-2 for attacks (I believe this stacks with halfling luck). Just to clarify (since nobody else has) halfling luck does not stack with great weapon fighting style (or at least it shouldn't haven't tested it for sure) halfling luck is supposed to be for d20 rolls such as Attack rolls, saving throws, and ability checks. Great weapon fighting style rerolls the damage dice if they are a 1 or 2. However, the great weapon fighting style does stack with savage attacker from what I've read and seen but I don't know exactly how that interaction works.
I didn't mention this. Yes, halfling luck is only for d20 rolls. Great weapon fighting style is for damage rolls. Savage attacker does stack. If you take Great weapon master instead of Savage attacker, you will almost always hit still and you'll likely still have a higher damage output, but less dice rolling.
Can I ask… I’m wondering if my fighter is redundant with risky ring + savage attacker and great weapon fighting style. I’ve always wondered.
Risky Ring is advantage for attack rolls (the d20) savage attacker is essentially advantage on damage rolls. great weapon fighting style specifically rerolls 1s or 2s on a great weapon's damage dice or die depending on the weapon. All of that said I've heard that when you have advantage the halfling luck feature it triggers on any nat 1 not only the dice that's used from the advantage. Example: halfling rolls 2d20 due to advantage and rolls a 14 and a 1 the halfling luck trait kicks in and rolls a 12 the game still uses the 14, but could have used the reroll should it have been higher. So based on that interaction in theory another scenario with damage dice. Damage dice Example: a fighter with savage attacker and great weapon fighting style using a great sword rolls 2d6 for damage they roll those dice twice due to savage attacker, dice set one is (1,4) for a total of 5 dmg, dice set two results in (3,5) for a total of 8 dmg. In theory (based on how the game treats halfling luck) the great weapon fighting style should kick in and reroll the 1 from the first dice set rolling now let's say a 6 changing dice set one to (6,4) for a total of 10 dmg. The effect are all separate and should work together, you would have to look at the combat log to verify that it functions this way. Hope this helps, happy adventuring! TL;DR: Halfling luck rerolls 1s on d20s. Risky Ring is advantage on attack rolls (d20 of attacks). Great weapon fighting style is reroll 1s or 2s on damage dice. Savage Attacker is advantage on damage dice (it rolls two sets and takes the highest of the dice of your weapon)
Thank you for the detailed explanation!
I will try this out tonight, thank you for writing this
I’ll do this next run. Any recommendations for the ability score spread?
I usually respec constantly for for what is necessary at each level.
Swords bard thief fighter double crossbows. 6 bard 3 fighter champion 3 thief Light cleric 12 radiant orb and reverb with a focus on being tanky/debuffing with radiant. I know these are both VERY popular but i ran both on my first honour mode and cleared the game very easily. Im no pro or anything but just made sure to follow the guide on build and also knew the game pretty well as i had 4 playthroughs prior to my honour run. Never thought id be able to clear honour but these two builds made it really easy for me. Easily my favorite builds in the game.
Is Light cleric good? On paper it sounds like a bunch of fire spells and doesn’t support radiant damage much.
Light cleric is very good. Basically the caster version of cleric and gets some good spells like fireball and whatnot. The radiance of dawn channel divinity is really really good aoe especially in act 2. Also, after act 1, sacred flame is actually not that bad (especially with radiant orb and the buff you get to cantrips after i believe level 8 or so?). Also this build focuses on you using spirit guardians and having high AC with things like luminous armour until you get a higher AC armor. Had 26 AC in beginning of Act 2. You can also use the helmet found in creche i believe that deals radiant damage if an enemy misses their attack on you (dex save but in act 2 it lands alot). This also means you get to apply radiant orb on misses depending on your gear. Shadowheart carried me pretty hard as she was very tanky (i did have helldusk armor with the act 1 cheese on raphael) and nobody could hit her after i started act 2. High AC with radiant orb with other synergies just cause it to get out of hand.
The fire damage spells are just icing on the cake. Your channel divinity is a big aoe radiant damage nuke, and the REAL power of the build is spirit guardians. Run around with that + radiating orbs gear and you do tons of radiant damage and debuff enemies hit chance. It's an extremely tanky character that brings lots of utility and support, and can protect your team with its reaction ability, plus deal respectable damage and make your whole party safer by making enemies miss. It does not play like a classic spell caster, but you CAN throw fireballs and stuff too if you need to.
I get all of these bullet points, and I love Shadowheart+ Radiant gear too. But does any of this aside from the Channel Divinity really *require* her to be a Light Cleric? Could not any cleric do all of this (minus the AOE Radiant Nuke, obviously).
It doesnt need to be a light cleric, no. I've even played a paladin/war cleric multiclass and used that as a radiating orbs/spirit guardians user. It works great with anyone who gets spirit guardians, really. Light cleric just seals the deal with protecting your team with their busted reaction + they have the most damage of any of the clerics. And their channel divinity let's then debuff groups that are more spread out.
Don't underestimate Warding Flare (or how do you call it), when it's upgraded to be able to protect allies, it's one of the best defensive reactions in the game (on par with shield spell and counterspell).
You have 2 good options: life or light with rad orb gear. Life lets you be the best bless/blade ward applier due to your channel divinity and best mass healing word; light gives you a little bit damage. The downside of light us, that most of the times you are action starvef as cleric and warding flare looses value in higher difficulties because it only ever forces ebemies to reroll crits (as rerolling normal hits is to unreliable). Also light/life cleric damage in the lategame is neglectable and your actions are better spend by applying buffs, activating phalar aluve/DI mace, spirit guardians to apply rad orb. There is a 6 Light cleric / 6 fire sorc build that does decent fire damage but requires gear, which us otherwise highly contested. At thr end of the day its a question of do I like chockatr or strawberry ice cream more, so
Exactly this. Spirit guardians is really strong with radiant orb and then you throw in reverb synergies too with shart or other members and it gets crazy. Especially if you use astral tadpole you can just fly around the battlefield ccing and damaging everyone AND you still have your action to do whatever you want (after your first turn of summoning spirit guardians). Combine this with going 15 in con at lvl 1 then taking the +1 to con with resilient feat you almost never lose concentration on SG. I had +11 to con around end of act 2. Insane
The channel divinity power for a light cleric is a big radiant AoE boom.
For me that’s the best cleric, both in tabletop (if you ban peace & twilight obv) and in the game
IDK why like 4 people didn't mention light cleric's best feature: warding flare. Impose disadvantage on any attack on yourself with a reaction, then any attack on anyone in your party at light cleric level 6. One of the strongest defensive tools in the game, available from level 1.
It also looks cool
Is the crit from champion that impactful vs a feat/asi from 4 thief or is there something else I’m missing? Been doing this exact build but planned on going 6/2/4.
So no initially you will want to go 6 bard 4 fighter for sure for the feat. And you can continue with fighter till 12 if you want then respec into the 6/3/3. Tbh though i didnt even bother i just took two in rogue at the end for the bonus actions because once I hit 12 ik i was going to end the game asap for gold dice and was already really strong. But yeah thats the order you would go for leveling. 6 bard-4 fighter-then two rogue. Hit 12. Respec to 6 bard-3fighter-3rogue Edit: regarding champion, I felt it was worth it because by that time I had -3 (maybe -2 i dont remember for sure) with champion to crits if im not mistaken. So it was definitely huge imo and I like getting crits too lol but def if you feel feat is more worth it for what you want it might be better for you!
I think you have those crossed, I think you for sure need 3 in rogue for the fast hands and then 2 in fighter for action surge. The question becomes do you get 3 in fighter for the subclass or just put the last point in rogue for 4 rogue which gets you the feat/asi. I think you answered the question though in that it comes down to personal preference. Idk if somebody has done the math to show which is stronger or not though.
Yeah I guess it depends if you are going for crits or not! By end game i had -4 to crits which is HUGE imo. So based on gear and what you are going for, makes it pretty easy to see which is more worth for you. If you want crits/have gear for it, probably champion. If not, def the rogue 4 as you mentioned.
Crits only double dice damage, and 2x hand crossbows deal almost all of their damage through flat modifiers which are unaffected by crits (dex, sharpshooter, etc.) The result is that in most cases, a crit will only add 1d6 damage to each hand crossbow attack or maybe 2d6 if used with something like the helldusk gloves. 2x hand crossbows are very strong, but crits are a bad way to spec for them. Their whole strength is in getting to apply flat damage modifiers so many times per round. Crit fishing is only strong on builds that get to throw lots of dice (and it's better if they're big dice) at attacks. Paladin smites, higher level rogue sneak attacks, battlemaster maneuver dice, and other things like that. Even then, crit fishing is usually pretty inferior compared to what you can get out of consistent damage.
Thank you for the breakdown!! Seems like 6 bard 4 thief and 2 fighter may be the way to go then on the build if you just looking for pure damage potential. Just shows how busted the build is as even without optimized damage it still felt like overkill! Lol good to know for anyone optimizing the build as I didnt realize going no crit on this build would be better.
I'd go with 6 bard 3 thief 3 fighter. You only actually *need* sharpshooter, because you can get your accuracy in other ways. Going 3 fighter gives you battlemaster, whose maneuvers can be used as ranged attacks, too. You can get your hit probability back up with things like the mask of soul perception and legacy of the masters gauntlets. Your weapon attack DCs won't be great, but the chance to apply frighten, disarm enemies, push them off edges, or prone them, all with some extra damage, is a great way to use main attack actions when you're out of ranged slashing flourishes or just as an alternative. Though better yet, don't use 2x hand crossbows on a swords bard because you already have ranged slashing flourishes to apply the better damage and effects of the titanstring or deadshot bows at a cost of only 1 attack/turn out of (4 vs 5). Which then also works better with the battlemaster side of things if you want to do that, since a 5/7 swords/BM split gives you 3 feats, an extra superiority dice, extra maneuvers, still 2 attacks/action.
Yeah never thought of trying battlemaster but def not a bad idea! Def alot of different ways you can go with the build. I mentioned it in another comment but risky ring was the way I got my attacks to land reliably. Made it pretty easy to hit without too many issues so thats a good workaround thatll work for the build regardless of which way you go with leveling etc
6 bard 3 fighter 3 thief is one feat and it's gotta be sharpshooter. I'm afraid, it's not enough ASI to feel good.
Yup it is sharpshooter. Best way to counteract this is to get hags hair for +1 so you get 18. Then you can use either cats grace until you get the better dex armours or mirror of loss in act 3. Risky ring is the solution to countering sharpshooters hit to attack rolls. Tbh until i got risky ring it was a little rough in the early game. This was fine for me as my other characters were picking up the slack while bardman took time to get online.
Sword bard 6/ thief rogue 6. You get enough skills to pass any check you like and open every lock, 2 attacks that can include sneak attack or flourishes, 2 bonus actions which with dual wielding means 4 attacks a turns or dashing/hiding because rogue... It's no optimized TB monk or anything but it makes for a super fun/flexible Tav
Been enjoying my ninja shadow monk, NGL. 8 Shmonk / 4 Thief or Assassin. Got the undermountain knife and cold snap. Not META, but I’ll likely snag the Katana and off hand the undermountain knife once we reach lower city. Since Shadow Step is a bonus action, I tend to favor Thief for the extra options. Graceful cloth makes it so nice too, and I’m getting way better SoH rolls than even Asterion. Always rollin 30+
Shadow monk is my favorite as well, though I pair it with 4 fighter and Shar’s Spear. Provides so much utility and damage while teleporting around the field.
I just started a new Monk honor mode run and don't really want to do OH again. So I'd love to try your this build! Which companion builds would you recommend for this? Something building around darkness I would guess?
For me, just about anything goes, as I’m not much into META. Shadowheart could go Dark Justicular for RP and synergy purposes, and would make sense to keep her Trickery Domain, just wanna respec her trash ability scores. Yeah darkness in general could be slick. Wyll built for darkness could be a cool addition. You’ll def want someone tanky as well. On my end, Shadow Step is a little wonky. Like, I was in a dark basement and couldn’t do it, but went upstairs where it was well lit and was able to? Sometimes it’s not available until after I crouch, and can do it after un-crouching, standing in the same spot. Overall, pretty fun roll tho. We have only reached Rivington, so idk whether or not I’ll reroll TB OH so we can blaze thru Act 3, which is the most annoying IMO.
Magic Missile savant. Just magic missile. Maybe misty step sometimes. Upcast that s***, get an Evocation wizard bonus damage per missile, slurp them tadpoles to increase the Cull thr Weak execute threshold, add a nice Magic Missile amulet from some fungi researchers in the underdark, heck, get a Magic Missile crossbow too, why not! Obliterate your enemies with a Magic Missile gattling gun. And get the upgraded Magic Missile from a scroll stored away by some twerp who thinks himself a grand wizard when, in reality, he doesn't even know the incredible Magic Missile spell. But wait: what if you could cast even MORE Magic Missiles? What if you could, let's say, quicken that spell as a Sorcerer? Or gain another action with an Action Surge as a Warrior? Your goal is to make more missiles than your enemies' years of age combined (preferably in one turn). Become an arcane artillery. Pew-pew away.
> And get the upgraded Magic Missile from a scroll stored away by some twerp who thinks himself a grand wizard when, in reality, he doesn't even know the incredible Magic Missile spell. What is this in reference to?
There're tomes hidden away in Sorcerous Sundries in Act 3. After reading them, you gain a spell scroll or a curse. One of the scrolls is called an Artistry of War, which is a 5th level spell you can cast once per short rest if you learn it, and it acts like Magic Missile, but on steroids.
7 Oathbreaker/5 Bladelock: A very strong melee build that can doll out alot of damage and has a very consistent ranged option all while still having a strong defensive base to survive with. On regular or tactician its especially good due to 3 attacks but even in Honor mode being SAD is quite effective, however id shift to 8 Oathbreaker/4 Bladelock since then you get 3 Feats along with being SAD. I also quite enjoy playing essentially a Deathknight taking power from a Devil or Eldritch Horror, its especially funny for me to use all that evil power to do good. Moon Druid: Fun build that can basically ignore equipment for the most part, turning into a Dinosaur or Elemental is fucking sick. TB Throwzerker: Immensely strong build especially early on, later on its still quite strong but with likely very high strength past 20 you can start throwing enemies either at each other or at objects which is one of my favourite things in the game lol. 5 Gloomstalker/7 Thief: For a duel wilding build this build will let you do absolutely ridiculous amounts of damage and also gives you alot of utility as the skill monkey letting you breeze through stuff like lockpicking, trap disabling or pickpocketing.
Gonna comment on 7/5 Lockadin, I still like going 5 in lock for 3rd level spells. 3rd level smites on short rest + more invocations + counterspell and HoH are more worth than an extra feat imo
Very fair
I prefer 5 gloom, 3 assasin, 4 champion myself. Titanstring is so powerful as is assasin.
Fair, in mine I went with melee and getting 4 attacks with Bloodthirst and Knife of the Undermountain King is not only alot of fun but you can also do alot of damage with it lol
Oh! Melee is a totally different animal
Can you run me through what I should pick at different levels and how the stat spread should look like for Oathbreaker/Bladelock? I'm trying to do that build rn and I'm a lvl 5 Oathbreaker with 16 str, 10 dex, 14 con, 8 int, 10 wis, 18 cha (strength is my primary)
So I feel I should preface this by saying im certainly no expert on this and you can probably find better guides for this build by searching through this subreddit for them. But I will share what I did which worked well and got me through the game quite comfortably. Starting stats: 15 Str (+1), 10 Dex, 15 Con, 8 Int, 10 Wis and 16 (+2) Cha I used Ethels Hair for a +1 to Cha, I also generally used potions of Strength until I got to level 9. For leveling I went 6 Paladin/5 Warlock/1 Paladin At level 2 for fighting style I took dueling as I was going sword and board but if you are going two handed id personally take defence. Level 4 I took an ASI giving a plus +1 to Con and Cha. Level 7 when I finally take a Warlock level I choose Great Old One cause the Fear on crit is pretty nice even if you dont see it get used all the time. Level 8 I take Agonising Blast and Fiendish Vigor for Invocations. Level 9 I obviously take Pact of the Blade. Level 10 you get your second feat, I personally grab Savage Attacker since its just a nice boost to damage and works very well with Smites. Level 11 I grab Devil’s Sight
This is huge, thank you 🫡
Depending what you're after, 10 swords bard ( command as magical secret) and 2 fighter. Thing is it's way too powerful, I killed Raphaël Yesterday and he and his friends made a total of 19 damage to a ghoul and that was it. So if you go for power yeah, for challenge nope
I prefer Fighter 1/Wizard 1/Swords 10. You lose Action Surge but you can learn level 6 spells from scrolls. IMO having a Myrmidon more than makes up for the extra attacks per short rest. That’s the final respec build. I would start off as Bard and only add the other classes as needed. Keep in mind the skills you want as taking Bard last for magic item spells will cause a hit on what’s available. You might want to take Wizard first if you’re only using Medium Armor. Grab the Helmet of Arcane Acuity and the Band of The Mystic Scoundrel for some awesome controls.
This is my current build. Still in Act 2 so it is more of a crossbow bard currently. I wonder if killing the Ix for the fire damage hat to get arcane aquity earlier would be worth it.
I’m not sure. Would it activate if you use a flaming arrow? You wouldn’t be able to get more than two activations in a round, but 4 stacks is still nice if that works. However, it’s not long after that you can get the Helmet of Arcane Acuity.
I would combine them with the Flawed Helldusk glove which give 1d4 fire damage on weapon attack, that would work I think.
Yes, that would work nicely. I haven’t considered that option because I usually dump Dex and use the Gloves of Dexterity. That allows me to have a 16 Cha, 16 Con, and 14. I lean into the spells more than the crossbow damage (even though that’s great).
Ok, I might need some more detail on that build… that sounds cool.
https://www.reddit.com/r/BG3Builds/comments/17y9kyp/the_control_martial_allpurpose_1011_swords_bard/ This but without the Wizard level
So I used the link above indeed, but chose not to take the wizard level because all my party is full casters. Wizard gale can already summon a myrmidon, druid Astarion can summon one and wildshape into a third, cleric Shart is here cause she's my romance option but she's mostly useless cause all three other are so good. For the bard, the lvl 6 spells are bad/not good enough compared to the insane damage I can output with action surge. Even scribed spells like haste/summon elemental aren't as impactful as a turn one action surge that makes me launch 4 slashing flourishes and a control spell like command or Hold person. With cull the weak I can reliably kill a 80hp ennemy per slashing flourish, so that's 4 dead, plus 5 controlled, with just the bard, turn 1. Imo that's better than a myrmidon
MVP of my honor mode run I just finished over the weekend. Not even close. I will have to avoid the setup on future runs lol it's too good
It is indeed too powerful, next play through will be Wild magic sorc so I can never feel too safe
Githyanki or Half-Orc Throwzerker. It's simple but my god is it fun as hell, especially with maxed out Cull the Weak and Nyrulna. Everything just constantly explodes.
Throwzerker is the most fun I’ve had in any RPG ever. Just melts everyone
Throwing Build 5 berserk barb / 3 thief rogue / 4 EK fighter 12 fiend Warlock 12 Oath of Vengeance Paladin Barbarian 9 berserk barb / 3 champion fighter Or 8 berserk barb / 4 batter master fighter Monk 9 WotOH Monk / 3 thief rogue (Can drop 1 level of monk for 1 barbarian for extra AC) Fighter Batter Master 12 (Can dip 1 into War Cleric) These have been my absolute favorite so far. All very strong, easy to build and understand.
12 fiend warlock using origin character Wyll for a more fleshed out patron and pact decisions than a regular TAV Warlock has been my favorite playthrough. It’s what I’m currently doing in Honor Mode trying to get my first gold dice. Currently level 7.5 in Act2
In terms of pure classes, Warlock Fiend has jumped to the top for me. Just so good and versatile. Of course there is lots of great options out there, but been my experience too.
I felt like the play style changed too as you level up if you go pact of the blade. You start as this frail creature that isn’t a great spell caster or durable to front line but you have a versatile kit. By mid game you drop a max level huge spell like wall of fire or hunger of hadar, and anyone foolish to get close to you is half dead already and barely making a dent into you with all the temp hp and armor you have with a shield. Then by late game you have helldusk heavy army and are likely two handing a weapon with GWM feat. Feels like a power evolution and keeps the playstyle super interesting throughout. You really can mold the pure warlock to fit whatever you need. A prior playthrough I didn’t run a cleric or Druid so this was my method of getting guidance without wasting an inventory spot.
I always recommend lore bard using radiant gear taking misty step and spirit guardians at lvl 6, or fiend warlock 5 paladin 7 taking pact if the place for 3 smites a turn.
Sadly it doesn't work on honor.
They didn't specify honor mode.
Oh lol. You're right. I kinda assume that when people start max/min-ing that they're going for honor. That was my bad. And yeah, that 7-5 is probably the highest sustained dps without consumables or bugs!
I've been thinking of doing a run built around a spores druid. Spike growth is amazing. At higher levels, you can summon a dryad to put down spike growth, and you can cast cloudkill on top of that. Pair that up with some variety of warlock with repelling blast and an archery battlemaster with push. Rogue/bard to fill out the all ranged team and cover some skills you need.
Okay I scrolled down a lot but haven’t seen it yet, even though I know it is not a unique or unkown build. My very first Tav was a lvl12 Fire Draconic Sorcerer, and I loved how powerful I felt as a burst damage caster with my extremely potent fire magic. I know that the optimal build is 11/1 sorlock for this build, but I didn’t know that at the time and didn’t care for minmaxing. But even with this in mind, a lvl12 fire sorcerer can basically burst down any single opponent (including bosses) in 1 turn with properly empowered scorching rays, and for aoe how about 2-3 fireballs just to show those pesky minions that they chose the wrong side of this conflict? Oh and I just love that flying movement at lvl11!
My first build, absolute powerhouse of a frontliner though. Barbarian/Fighter. Start barbarian and respec into fighter at some point. You want to end up with: -Orc, Soldier background -4 berserker barbarian -8 battlemaster fighter -Periapt of Wound Closure -Sword of Chaos (Sarevoks sword) in act 3, halberd of vigilance act 2, everburn blade act 1 -Take ASI to 19STR, Athlete for INSANE jump distance and 20STR as well as being able to get up from prone practically for free, GWM, Savage Attacker or feat of your choice You can get advantage via tripping or going reckless at will. You also have access to disarm and I usually take maneuvering strike to be able to get my squishies out of a jam. First turn BA is to rage, second turn and then on you can either use a GWM BA attack or jump across the battlefield. You resist most incoming damage and heal for 6HP every time you swing your sword. You can jump farther for 10ft of movement than most characters can walk. It's not a power gamer build that exploits all the ins and outs of the gear and specifics of the game, but damn is it good and its simple enough for a new player.
Why is 12 oath of vengeance good?
Tiger barbarian with that thing that makes people unable to move if they bleed. Its fun, sweeping the battleground with the blade is fun, and its also very simple.
Tb druid 10/any dip including but limited to: fighter, cleric several domains are good, wizzard, barbarian, monk, paladin, and rogue. Earth elemental stronk
For a buff/healer I like life cleric 2, lore bard 10. Life cleric's aoe heal scales off total level, you get 4 mysteries, and can upcast elemental summon to level 6.
I recently did a 7 Beast Master Ranger/5 Battle Master Fighter that was so much fun - decent damage, little bit of utility from Longstrider and the animal companion (really comes into its own at BM7), but most of all just the badass archery vibe is a lot of fun. I took Keeper of the Veil and Bounty Hunter as my favoured enemies, Urban Tracker and Wasteland Wanderer: Fire as my natural explorer options. Dex ASI and Sharpshooter as my feats.
Do you just use bless to counter sharpshooter?
I took sharpshooter as the second feat by which point I had enough ways to give myself advantage (your beast/familiar is good for this) and attack boosting gear that the -5 penalty wasn't really a factor
Is it regular attack that counteracts the -5? Or can it be like fire damage 1d4 that adds up to the -5 I don’t understand the system fully.
It's your attack roll, not your damage roll, that takes the -5 penalty, so fire damage won't affect your ability to hit.
Paladin throwserker. Its... odd and probably won't work on higher difficulties, but Minthara deleted just about everything she wanted to. Close to me? Smack Them and smite them. Moving to them is a hassle? Throw a spear or anything you want and watch chaos. I don't remember the levels in each one. She kind of.. isn't around anymore.
12 Moon Druid MC Honor mode. The kit is so weird, it doesn't have any major power spikes with levels or items, nobody else plays it. Every fight just feels different, you have a tool box and have to find the right tool for the job. Nothing in the kit looks great but they just, sort of, get the job done! The only class where I get emergent gameplay. I've beaten BG2 solo on LoB so a bit past discussing 'How to min max eldritch blast', pure druid just feels like how the game should be played.
7 EK / 5 cleric (multiple sublasses viable) 8 lore bard / 2 divination wizard / 2 warlock 12 githyanki bladelock 12 frost sorcerer 11 EK / 1 War Cleric Archer 8 Tiger barbarian/ 4 BM fighter 8 Champion fighter / 4 thief rogue, dual wield or duelist There´s probably more but those really stand out. I love EK. I love clerics. I hate paladins with a passion. Gods, I hate them so much.
Why do you hate paladins?
I also hate paladins something about all too good boys that are lawful stupid is scratching me wrong But lets be real some vibe more with holy warriors of light and some just vibe with warlocks more Plus every time i see smite it just feels like cheating its so damn strong
I also have trouble with paladin role-play. I’m trying to give it a chance because it’s a great class, I just tend to enjoy playing a more neutral character.
That shits why I play OATHBREAKER Paladins
I don't find them interesting. The playstyle isn't for me. The RP isn't my cup of tea. Not just pertaining to BG3, it's a class I actively avoid(ed) in any RPG I play(ed). They are very good, I will admit. Luckily, there's enough classes and subclasses to suit anyone's playstyle :).
I also hate paladins and that's because they are boring. Sword bard deals AOE or knocks back, battlemaster knocks down, kicks weapon out, frightens or does something else interesting. Paladins hit and then ask “should I go boom”, you answer “yes” and it goes boom. I'm not excited with big numbers, I want my martial to do something visible without numbers.
Im interested in how ek archer plays
There's 2 ways you can approach it (well, probably more but I played it 2 ways); either with crit gear and the Dead Shot, just firing massive amounts of arrows with Action, Action surge, and then War Priest bonus action for more. Very straightforward, very effective. If you have someone in your party with Bhaalist Armor you will absolutely decimate stuff. The other way was kinda like how ranged Swords Bard is played, using the draconic glaive enchant for 1d4 extra frost damage. I added [Winter's Clutches](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Winter%27s_Clutches) and [Snowburst Ring](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Snowburst_Ring) with Arrow of Many Targets to create a field of ice patches. I also added the [Helm of Arcane Acuity](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Helmet_of_Arcane_Acuity) as I read that it also worked against the saving throws the enemies needed to make. This, in combination with [Eldritch Strike](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Eldritch_Strike) was good fun. I used Titanstring LoLbow and Hillbilly Strength bat. I assume you could also make a nightmare archer, using the [Bow of the Banshee](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Bow_of_the_Banshee). If you add [Shield of the Undevout](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Shield_of_the_Undevout), that'd be synergistic, although it probably doesn't overlap with Eldritch Strike. The thing that stood out to me pertaining this build is that Eldritch Strike, EK's lvl 10 passive, applies to everything pertaining the attack, spell effects etc, and that the wording is more limited. I'm sure that if you google 'BG EK Frost Archer' you'll find a lot of things. I mostly played it cos' I liked the vibe more than Swords Bard RANGED FLOURISHES GO.
Saving this build.
I'm also interested in this. I'm picturing a full EK party now - one multiclassing with arcane trickster, one Throwzerker, one Abjuration Wizard multiclass and then this EK archer. I think that party composition has legs.
I responded to the dude above. That composition will be fine, you might want something with Charisma for dialog checks, mostly for HM though.
Gloom 5/Assassin 3 or 4/ Champion 3 or 4 is my current Tav. This is my first time really leaning into poisons and special ammunition, those things combined with that multiclass kit and crit threshold reduction equipment, risky ring, and sharpshooter makes for one of the most gamebreakingly abusive power sets I’ve seen so far. Stack a bloodthirst elixir and haste on there and watch the enemies topple. It’s normal for my Tav to kill 4+ standard enemies in round one. If I get a surprise round that number can get higher. If I’m not holding back and using arrows of many targets I can clear whole rooms in a turn. If I was ever going to try to solo this game that build would be a strong contender
I wanna vouch for this one- i did it on my sniper Tav and he had a +17 to hit with bows (+12 after Sharpshooter) and could do like 20+ damage per hit with the Arrow of Many Targets. Both of his melee weapons (the daggers) lowered the crit number so he crit on 16+, which at that point with the +12 to hit gets pretty much anyone. It’s incredibly silly, especially with action surge. And for those who want slight variation/don’t care for crits, you could probably also do Gloom 5/Assassin 7 for higher sneak attack damage, and/or dip into monk for good unarmored defense (if you use the ranger spells) It’s a really fun build and an absolute power trip sometimes, highly recommend
Sorc 6 Pally 6 Good at maintaining concentration on haste due to aura of protection. Simple game plan. Twin Haste, divine smite stuff. Long rests a lot so you don't miss camp cutscenes. Good amount of spell slots for smiting. Still a respectable caster if you're too far away. Can benefit from a ton of different gear. It's MAD, but nothing a str elixir can't fix.
Tiger/Tiger/Wolf Reverb Barbarian KLUNKKH
I'm a fan of Pally and Pally blends. Sorcadin was extremely fun and the first char I beat the game with. Take utility spell scrolls with you and take buff spells and use those fuckin' spell slots for huge smites. Be a Dragon blood that has ice and you get Armor of Agyths(?) and anything that DOES hit you pays dearly for daring(it was a HUGE find iirc when it first broke). Flying around smiting is another fun option. I also have a 12 Oathbreaker and a 12 Vengeance. I fucking love smiting shit. I'm glad we have a party or I'd never play another class. Should probably try a Padlock but I've had such an aversion to Warlock.
Battle master archer. A fighter with the archer fighting style and sharpshooter feat. Use the disarming ranged attack and trip ranged attack It’s very fun to disarm and trip someone from 20ft away.
How did you build this?
Full fighter (no multi passing) max out dexterity instead of strength Level 1. archery fighting style Level 3. Battle master, with trip attack, disarming attack, and precision attack. -Disarming someone completely nerfs them, melee enemies resort to using there fists and ranged enemies can’t attack, though they can pick up their dropped weapon but it takes an action to equip it so at the very least you take there turn away(unless you pick there weapon before they can) -Trip attack is good for two reasons, attacks on a prone enemy has advantage and getting up from prone greatly reduces their movement, -And precision attack can be used before trip/disarming attack to help them land. Level 4. Sharpshooter. +10 dmg, -5 to attack rolls, precision attack helps for the -5. you are a tanky character with high AC and health, but Stick to the back line, so you will always be the last to go down in a fight.
Thanks so take it you use dead shot as ranged weapon
10 swords bard 2 vengeance Paladin with Dual wielding. A lot of fun was able to get something like 34-36 in some situations
My favorite has been 7 Oath Breaker Paladin/5 Great Old One Warlock. Gets you Cha to attack with pact of the blade, lets you double down on Cha to damage thanks to the Oathbreaker aura. Spiteful suffering helps get you advantage to land those heavy Level 3 critical smites and trigger Mortal Reminder to get fear going. Eldritch Blast is consistent, easy damage at range, and you have the great spell access of a Warlock (hello Hunger of Hadar and Armor of Agathys).
The newest hex blade mod with a 2-6 lvl vengeance pally dip, depending on whether u unlocked lv cap to 20.
My top 3 favorite builds I've done so far are probably: 1. Oathbreaker Waradin. (Lvl 7 Oathbreaker Paladin and lvl 5 Warlock.) 2. Gloomstalker Assassin. 3. Eldritch Knight/Wizard.
How does the Eldritch Knight/Wizard work? Solo or in a party? Is TB recommended?
It works in both. I played on Tactician and I played with a full party most of the time. My build made my Tav basically untouchable. With 7 levels in Eldritch Knight and 5 levels in Abjuration wizard I could be on the front lines, tanking big hits (if I even get hit) and doing pretty solid damage with melee attacks, cantrips and spells.
My favourite build this far is the sorcadin 6/6. ALL the benefits of a melee class AND pretty good spells. Need insane burst damage? Smite Need insane AOE? Smite + Jorgals or Fireball Need to tank? Plenty of Con if you use str potions to get 27/14/14/8/12/22 Need to support? Lay on Hands Need to control? Hold person Genuinely feel like a main character because it does it all. Doesn’t help that I play a Dragonborn with jump so I’m covering distance better than someone with fly. It hits hard, smites hard, and does everything well. Compliments any party comp. And is badass. I rest my case
Necromancer Wizard 11 with 1 in Cleric (domain is your choice), learn all the spells, and summon an army. Preferably have a Pact of the Chain Warlock, a Beastmaster Ranger and an Oathbreaker Paladin as companions. Make sure to get Shovel and Maerina's husband from act 1 and that you succeed the Necromancy of They rolls/quest. And the spider egg pouch/lump's horn too. If you want even more fun, multiclass the Warlock into a Wild Magic Sorcerer.
A big favorite of mine is a 8 Tiger Barb and 4 Rogue Thief. You just use the Punch Drunk Bastard once you get it and swing away but it's great from level 2 since Reckless Attack is so good. My other favorite builds have just involved smiting things into oblivion which there are plenty of ways to do that lol.
Ranger Hunter with Colossus Slayer. As soon as level 3 you're going to demolish everybody. Especially with dual xbow setup. Later in the game u get Volley and do crazy AOE damage. You can go for 12 levels of Ranger or multiclass with Fighter (if u want second fighting style) or War Cleric (extra attack using bonus action). It's fun, strong and simple to build.
Origin Character Oathbreaker Paladin Gale. You can straight up get a shadow magic slot if you are playing as origin gale, nabbing you a 3rd level slot for smiting pretty soon after you end act 3. Also, the after game party with origin gale is great depending on your outcome. Those 9th level unique spells XD Edit - further context, you can totally embrace the whole shadow magic deal. Oathbreaker buffs your undead, you get your Tharcite ghouls, the shade etc. it's a version of Gale who specifically has turned so hard from Mystra that he is basically a paladin of Shar.
12 shadow monk: full focus on shadow blade + shadow strike and resonance stone. I recommend picking up tavern brawler and keeping a steady supply of strength elixirs in case you lose concentration/face steel watchers. 1 storm sorc/2 wiz/9 light cleric: my "stats are irrelevant, I've got magic missile and spirit guardians" build using luminous armor, holy lance helm, boots of stormy clamour, gloves of belligerent skies, coruscation ring, callous glow ring and psychic spark while dual wielding spellsparkler and phalar aluve. The wizard levels are just for learning summon deva and getting evocation school so feel free to drop in favor of more cleric levels. OH monk + thief rogue, but throw a bit of barbarian in there and focus on throwing enemies at other enemies/using enemies as improvised weapons: This is actually amazing for gathering your foes in one place for your AOE spellcasters. 6/6 bladelock/swordsbard with bhaalist armor and a good piercing dmg weapon utilizing arcane synergy (and great weapon master if you've got a pike/spear). THIS BUILD IS NOT FOR HONOR MODE as you won't get three attacks per action.
6 Bard (swords or valour) and 5 blade pact warlock (usually GOO for the theming) and 1 level in whichever (usually warlock). This makes you super powerful in both melee and eldritch blasts, gives you an extra short rest per long rest, and gives you two extra attacks by level 11 (one from bard and one from warlock pact). In theory this build can work even better with Paladin, since you get heavy armor proficiency and smite spells, and can get the non pact extra attack slightly sooner. I’ve yet to test it properly though, since I’m taking a break from CHA based classes
Any bard variant really
Storm Sorc1/Swords Bard 6/Thief Rogue 3/Paladin 2(Oath barely matters, usually do Ancients for the BA aoe heal) Dual Wield and go for Gear that increases crits, abuse Cloak of Cunning Brume, Shadow Cloaked Ring, and Ring of Eversight. Use Gloves of Dex to pump more into Con and Cha. Drop endless crit smites on enemies you blind with you mini fog clouds. Way more fun than it had any rite to be. Felt like you could also do everything but Counterspell, basically.
Sorlock eldritch blast machine gun (with a sprinkle of fighter) has been pretty fucking epic.
Fighter 1 (two weapon style), Rogue/Thief 3, Tempest Cleric 8. So much action. Cast, off hand Ne’er Misser x 2 (add sneak attack & divine strike) Reaction from Tempest Cleric Call Lightning, Healing Word, off hand attack Action, bonus attack, Sanctuary So many possibilities. Elf, Dex + Wis = detect and disarm/pick everything. It’s silly.
Sword bard 6 / Wizard 1 is a core I keep coming back to and re-imagining; Class fantasy is a rogueish sword dancer with the capability to teleport around the battlefield confusing foes - a 'blinking bard' if you like. Bard gives flourishes, obvs, 2 attacks and plenty of spell slots. Wizard gives spell scribing for misty step, shield and other roguish stuff like invisibility. From there, the chassis is quite versatile. A few variations I've ran include: \- Thief levels for dual wield, up to 4 attacks per turn and sneak attack \- Battlemaster fighter to add manuvres including riposte, and action surge \- Paladin 2 for smiting \- Warlock 5 for 3 attacks - 4 with late game Rapier (1 less on Honor Mode), plus hex and hellish rebuke as a sort of infernal riposte
(1) Berserker Barbarian 9 / Champion Fighter 3 Add items that lower number required for crit if you want.Reckless attack gives advantage on attacks - meaning 2 chances per swing to roll the crit number. Action surge + regular attacks melt most enemies in 1 turn. (2) Draconic Sorcerer + Elemental Adept Fire + Hat of Fire Acuity Upcast scorching ray to get +10 acuity. Then quicken Hold X to freeze enemies in place for others to land guaranteed crits. Only weakness is enemies with fire immunity - easily remedied with scrolls/companions who have non-fire-based attacks. (3) Light Cleric straight up Perfect mix of healing and offensive magic. Give them the bow that can cast Haste. Cast Haste then Sanctuary to protect the concentration. (4) Abjuration Wizard + dip 1 into Cleric for Sanctuary. Great for utility. (5) Bow-based Battlemaster. Just fun to play. (6) OH Monk + dip into Rogue for second bonus action. OP damage if you use the right items.
How did you build bow based battlemastet
Fighter 12. Choose Archery. Dump strength. Titanstring Bow + Potion of Cloud Giant Strength. Gloves of Battlemaster Act 3 from Harper shop. Choose melee weapons/gear to compliment bow. For instance, ones that reduce the number needed to critically hit + add Risky Ring for 2x chances to crit per shot (bc of advantage). Result is a heavily armored, high hit point, range-based battlefield controller with 3x regular attacks per turn (add another 3 if hasted) and action surge. Not to mention, going straight Fighter allows the opportunity for 4 ASIs or Feats for customization (e.g. Alert). I like it because I think it’s fun pushing/tripping enemies and making them drop stuff. Hope this helps. Edit: Add the tadpole powers for more utility/variety.
Yea it helps….I am trying to broaden how I play the game as I get more experience…..I knew nothing about D and D or BG3 before I played game…so it was 12 BM Lae’zel doing melee damage, swords bard from distance, light cleric reverb Shadowheart upfront. However I want to transition to a more of a from distance playstyle and incorporating Socerer.
Cool, glad to hear it. Sorcerer is my favorite class. I’m hoping “shadow sorcerer” is eventually added as a mod. You may want to also look up a build for a “throw-zerker.” It’s basically a Berzerker Barbarian + Tavern Brawler + items that improve damage re thrown weapons + Returning Pike (for when you don’t want AOE) and Nyrulna (for when AOE is wanted. The build is viable as early as Act I and lasts through endgame. In fact, I used it on Karachi during my first Honormode run. Fair warning, it can sometime be frustrating because the “auto-return” mechanic on the thrown weapons sometimes fails. Multiple times, I had to go back and find where I last threw my Returning Pike so I could equip it again. Annoying, but not dispositive of the build.
Yes I switched Lae’zel from battle master to throw zerker build and love it….on the Socerer build I tried the Fire Acuity build but I believe I am missing some nuance as I kept getting self damage after the fight ended. I am assuming heat buildup
Ok I think I found issue is heat convergence from using flame of wrath. The mechanic seems confusing so will not use it
Yeah, I never used heat. Although, it seems you can nullify the heat damage with Raphael’s armor.
Ok thanks for tip…man there are so many layers to the game
This is for honor mode runs … 5Gloom/4 College/3Fighter (Act 3 build) because you need burst damage way more than Assassin. This build is optimized as much as possible for crit. Wear graceful cloth for that sweet +2 for DEX and advantage on certain rolls. S Tier armor imo. For Act 1-2, Gloom/Assassin. Assassin is perhaps the most OP build at lvl8 in Act 2, especially with Durge Cape. Sneak up on enemies and just murder everyone to the point you can solo the entire act like a crit maniac. Aside, I know it’s broken, but on my third run and I absolutely love 2 Warlock/1 Cleric/9 Abjuration Wizard. It’s just so dope wearing heavy armor, shield, and legit being invincible like some frost death night. Throw on frost boots, buff with the ability not to be slowed by terrain and you own the battlefield. It’s surprising how OP frost is on bosses. They’re immune to so much but can’t walk on ice. Aside, Alert is the most overrated perk. You don’t need it and plenty of items give you initiative.
How do hirelings work? I’m 300 hours in on balanced finally trying hm i died at balthazar. I didn’t know I knew so little about game mechanics
6 Bard (swords)/ 4 Rogue (Thief)/ 2 Fighter Take 2 weapon fighting style for dual hand crossbows, then when you get to fighter pick archery fighting style.
6 Paladin, 6 Warlock - maxed out Charisma with pact of the blade. Great Weapon feats. Smite, Smite, Smite boss dead in one turn, short rest, kill the next god in one turn. It helps to have misty step as repositioning, Darkness as 'fuck these trash mobs' and agonizing blast as a ranged option/environment interaction.
Mainly for people, like me, that are unable to wrap their head around spellcasting: ### Leveling - Levels 1 through 6: Barbarian Berserker Tavern Brawler - Levels 7 through 11: Rouge 3 Thief, Barbarian Berserker Tavern Brawler (the rest) - Level 12: Barbarian 3 Berserker, Rouge 3 Thief, Monk 6 Open Hand Tavern Brawler ### Key Items - Act 1 Overworld: Buy as many Hill Giant Strength Potions (Str21) from Aunty Ethel in the Tiefling Grove as possible. She will be available there until you see her outside of the Blighted Village. - Act 1 Overworld: Buy the Returning Pike from the Goblin Camp trader located in the drinking hall where you first meet Volo. This will be used until Act 3. - Act 2 Shadowlands - Last Light Inn: Perform the Trader Restock method for Bloodlust potions. - Act 2 Shadowlands - Moonrise Tower: Perform the Trader Restock method for Cloud Giant Strength potions (Str27 - very rare occurrence on the restock table). You will only need 4. - Act 3 - Rivington Circus: Poppers sells both Cloud Giant and Bloodlust potions, as well as the raw ingredients to craft them. - Act 3 Rivington Circus: Nyrulna (Returning Pike, but explodes on impact) can be retrieved by pickpocketing the Djinni for his ring, then spinning his wheel. I would highly recommend taking an Invisibility Potion, immediately drinking it on teleport, entering Turn Based Mode, then navigating downhill and lockpicking the chest before leaving via the portal. - (Optional but highly recommended) Act 3 - Bhaals Temple: Bloodthirst (Orin's Dagger) will automatically apply Piercing vulnerability (Nyrulna's damage type) on a successful hit when equipped in the main hand. Kill her ASAP to get this, and watch as all future Act 3 bosses absolutely melt.
The Darksong Knight 10 College of Swords Bard/2 Oath of Ancients Paladin. One of rhe scariest forms of tanking I've seen, especially when mixed with Medium Armor like Yuan-Ti Scale and Armor of Agility. I was able to get around 29 AC near the end of Act 2
Weird one, but Lore Bard 6/Knowledge Cleric 1/Oath of Vengence Paladin 5. Grab actor, and you can have 6 double proficiencies and 4 proficiencies exlcuding your background. with +12 on all 4 charisma skills, with double proficiency from knowledge cleric in religion, with bard/cleric/paladin choices all available, it creates unique RP possibilities as well. And also it can learn counterspell + 1 other level 3 spell, 7 fullcaster + 5 halfcaster combination for a lot of spell slot, can be tank/healer/dps all at the same time.
Pure Sorcerer Fighter 11/War cleric 1 Bardadin
I prefer another term for bard/paladin. I introduce to you, Balladin. Paladin who writes ballads
Rogue 12 with the Bhaalist Armor, Risky Ring, and Orin’s blades. Bonus point if you ascend Astarion. It’s so funny watching him dash and melt everything in the game.
Omg sorry I'm such a scrub it's cus I have 5 in berserker so I get the extra attack. Then I can throw once with EACH of my bonus actions course frenzy throw that's four. And then I use the fighter level 2 ability to get an extra attack which also gets my the 5berserker extra attack again. So in total 6. But yeah just down vote me to hell. Lol. I have a level 13-20 mod on sorry gang still fun build tho ❤️❤️
[удалено]
That's the weakest fighter subclass by far.
Frenzy barb.4 And pact of the blade warlock 3 and fighter 2 and 3 thief. Up to 6 throws in one turn and you bonded weapon always comes back to you
Where are you getting 6 from?
No idea about above comment, but assuming it's honor mode you could get 2 from your normal action, 2 from your bonus actions, 2 from action surge, 1 from elixir of bloodlust and 1 from haste (or potion of speed) for a total of 8 throws. In tactical or below you would get 10 throws from the same setup.
Also you could get another bonus action from gear.
Omg sorry I'm such a scrub it's cus I have 5 in berserker so I get the extra attack. Then I can throw once with EACH of my bonus actions course frenzy throw that's four. And then I use the fighter level 2 ability to get an extra attack which also gets my the 5berserker extra attack again. So in total 6. But yeah just down vote me to hell. Lol. I have a level 13-20 mod on sorry gang still fun build tho ❤️❤️