Baldur's Gate 3 Guide: Early Companion Tips Everyone Should Know

[@Fextralife]

Wiki: ​baldursgate3.wiki.fextralife.com/Baldur's+Gate+3+Wiki Map: ​baldursgate3.wiki.fextralife.com/Interactive+Map Builds: baldursgate3.wiki.fextralife.com/Builds Catch next stream: ​twitch.tv/fextralife 💖 Fextra VIP: fextralife.com/be-a-vip/

[@miaou5878]

Can we have the inverse, which team to use for each class

[@mookacoffee5052]

Should I play baldur's gate 2 so I can dive and feel immersive in this game ?

[@jiaan100]

Disagree on Eldritch knight not being good early. Without int you need to be on something like shield, magic missile, find familiar, but those are all amazing spells

[@bradveach2333]

So very close

[@JB-xl2jc]

@@jiaan100 This is true and also a minor gear spoiler, there exists a circlet (headgear) that is accessible extremely early that sets your INT to +4 modifier even if you had -1 mod before, so you can chuck that on Lae'zel after setting her INT to 8 in respec and get a LOT of ASI to spread around. Oh and completely unrelated and fairly minor, it's important to note that Evocation wizard AoE not hurting allies is only true for evocation spells. This is important mostly because a lot of decently heavy hitting AoEs for the first half of the game are Conjuration, and thus don't benefit from the Evocation wizard sculpt feature. This is still a really good feature though, either that or Divination are top tier picks for Wizard IMO. (Although, currently they have it set so that ANYONE with even 1 level in Wizard can scribe scrolls as long as they have the spell slot.... which means that something like 11 Sorc 1 Wiz would let your Sorcerer scribe EVERY scroll they come across because they do have at least one level in Wiz and they have spell slots all the way up to level 6. If this stays the way it is, there's almost no reason to go past Wizard 2, and a very good argument for many main casters to only take 1 level of Wizard and then immediately multiclass into another full caster and get almost all of the benefits of that full caster AND the ability to learn their spells! Although there are some minor problems with that such as the fact that they're probably cast through Int which you wouldn't be pushing up if you're a Sorc, etc. Also they may and probably will change that in a patch because it neuters the reasoning for playing high level wizard almost completely).

[@Tharagar]

In case noone has tried it yet, you can pickpocket Withers and get your respec money back

[@teejaygibson4315]

Pretty easily as well with no consequences

[@SusannaSaunders]

As a complete beginner to the world of D&D this left more questions but thank you for such an excellent starter guide. PLEASE do more of this content for absolute beginners. BG3 will pull in new players to the world of D&D so I hope you will support us as we find our feet here!

[@tassiad.9137]

Same! I have to clue.

[@SusannaSaunders]

@@tassiad.9137 I gave up with BG3 after I discovered that unless you 'know' in-game content you can't find it. There are whole story arcs that unless you happen to know where to find them you can't progress. For example, a letter in the bog exposes the Grove leader as a plant by a rival faction and enables you to depose her. The hiding place shows no visual clues whatsoever! It's only findable by knowing where to look and literally 'mousing over' the hiding place. Many of the games story arc components are hidden this way so unless you watch dozens of videos to find these out where these are located you are very unlikely to find them yourself unless you literally mouse over the entire screen in every location you go (walls, floor, ceiling and everything in every landscape - everything!). A game should be playable without having to watch videos to find out content within the game. This is a Deal Breaker for me personally. I said all of this in my Steam Review (where I down voted this game). I won't waste my time on a game that deliberately obfuscates the story arc just to extend the games playing time. I'm playing Starfield now and enjoying it!

[@blizzrd6578]

Personally, I think the best way to optimize is to just look at support, utility, weapon dps, and then magic dps. That way there are only 4 roles to fill which is exactly how many characters you can bring. I think you should ignore the dialogue role as this should be for your main character regardless on class. If you have lower charisma then thats fine. Possibly failing dialogue checks is part of the fun imo and adds to the RP. I dont like the idea of being shoehorned into one of like 3 or 4 classes or have non main character companions do dialogue.

[@kingelessar4632]

This, and non-combat roles can actually be covered by anyone if you give them some secondary stats and skills. My first playthrough I'll be a Selune cleric with good CHA and I'll use Shadowheart for lockpicking since she has the skill from the background. Even though double cleric is not optimized, it will be interesting to see how the story develops considering the opposite views of the two

[@doodlydodo]

Yeah cuz the list he showed was mostly chasing a bard… who tf wants to be a bard…

[@philipfahy9658]

@@kingelessar4632 Full cleric party can be pretty darn optimal even. Just gotta balance the spells and subclasses they take so they aren't all doing the same thing.

[@TheWoWisok]

I just save scum rolls with quick saves. I am trying to persuade someone but it is a wisdom check for some reason. I swear most of my conversation checks have had nothing to do with charisma so far.

[@iPlayDotaReligiously]

​@@TheWoWisoksad for u

[@MattyPGood]

A note on (and defense of) having one odd ability score: if you make your primary stat 17 at character creation, you can take a half feat (like athlete) at level 4 to bump that to 18. This is the most impactful way to use your level 4 stat increase because you get the initial +1 to your rolls with that stat AND the other benefit of the feat. This is more of a power increase than just taking the standard ASI to increase your main stat.

[@lionfan96]

at the beginning of the game, i actually prefer odd ability scores because you can increase your ability scores every 4th level.. so having an odd ability score, especially early isnt necessarily bad.. in fact in character creation.. i always tend to pick two ability scores that i want at an odd number.. usually one at 19.. so that way i know my 4th and 8th level ability score increase wont be waisted.

[@Deeplight32]

This is good advice if we didn’t have respec like normal 5e. Since we have easy and cheap respec, it’s probably best to just get those even scores until level 4.

[@WhirlwindHeatAndFlash]

not many (good) half feats in the game tbh theres athlete and then theres the charisma one that gives performance proficiency or sth and thats about it iirc

[@Jasta85]

There's also items you can get in game which can give +1 to an ability score, so you don't even need to use a feat to get to 18 if you can find them.

[@Lutasiren]

@@Jasta85 then u dont pick the stupid feat and get ur stat to 20 smart guy. which means u still need 17

[@jr_cinnamons]

I love how ever since Elden Ring, you guys have become my new GameFaqs with RPGs lol. I tend to play my own way. But it's nice that when I feel like I'm missing something or stuck, you guys got it covered

[@WhirlwindHeatAndFlash]

If you're missing something in life you could always try cocaine.

[@TheEvdiggity]

@@WhirlwindHeatAndFlash very bad advice. Coke these days is sometimes laced with things you definitely want to avoid.

[@whitevii1533]

They're missing a lot from BG3 and a lot of their pages are incredibly misleading and missing crucial information

[@WhirlwindHeatAndFlash]

@@TheEvdiggity so youre saying cocaine by itself would be fine? LMAO

[@iPlayDotaReligiously]

​@@WhirlwindHeatAndFlashlol

[@nathanbarnhart7823]

2:28 wow! What a pretty halfling! The character models look amazing

[@tassey]

Thank you so much for targeting these to new players. I really appreciate the effort to organize the vast amount of data. D&D was made for people who like complexity. And that includes me (last played paper D&D almost 40 years ago). But beyond rusty now and have to have patience. Your advice to keep things simple at first is so right. Take a breather and enjoy your first play through.

[@antoniotruong5647]

This is exactly what I needed. I wanted to play as a ranger and was going to research the optimal party members to bring along. Thank you KZbin.

[@ForsmanTomas]

I'm very happy to have finally found someone who actually gives thoughtful advice. I'm glad you agree on my setup with Lae'zel, Gale, Shadowheart and me running as Bard.

[@Diceux]

Shadowheart as Trickery Domain can fill in as your party Rogue. Her Urchin background gives her proficiency at Slight of Hand. Trickery Domain also makes her harder to kill. In a companion tier list she is probably S tier.

[@geoffreysherman609]

Particularly if Trickery still gets Polymorph at 7th. Honestly, Trickery is so slept on.

[@Omega_Contagion]

Agreed.

[@kalle3940]

It's too bad that Invoke Duplicity is so nerfed in bg3 compared to 5e. It's supposed to be a copy of the caster that can move around and have spells originate from it plus you can cast it away from you. So you are a bit from the enemies: you cast invoke duplicity near your allies to cast cure wounds when needed or near enemies to cast inflict wounds.

[@smurphsFTW]

Tbh ill prolly respec here to be a light cleric, both for the meme and so she can better fill the role of ranged damage dealer. She will still have the sleight of hand prof anyways so its all good.

[@YogKaim]

Shadow is the strongest tank in my games. She can’t be put to sleep. Wearing Minthara’s boots, she can’t be pushed or knocked prone. She has all kinds of buffs. She can pull up two downed party members in one round. Give her hand crossbows for an extra offhand attack. Easily the strongest tank companion in EA. I agree, S-Tier.

[@nikolaipopov7013]

You're a lifesaver. Thank you for setting up some much needed guides throughout the years!

[@kyuzo26]

Nah you mean he spoon-fed you. Cos gamers these days can’t figure it out themselves

[@Awakesdo]

​@@kyuzo26it takes your time to try many variants, everyone choose for himself to follow guides or not

[@kyuzo26]

@@Awakesdo really ??? I never knew that I thought we all had a musket against my head. haha mental

[@attackins1470]

If you play a Wood Elf/Half-Elf Ranger you can be a combat, dialogue, and utility specialist with some minor support casting. This gives you a lot more flexibility in who you can bring with you in your party. Depending on your selections you can walk away with 7 starting skills covering many fields, a great Frontline and Ranged combatant if you go with Dex, some nice buff and utility spells, and if you dump Wis(or set to 10) and get a decent Cha you can also be a face. Just choose spells that don't rely on you having a good Wis and you're fine. Grab that Headband of Intellect asap, and now you're decent on your Int skills as well. Easily my favorite build in the game.

[@hybridkam]

i play half elf ranger, my intelligence when I decipher something is -1 Loll

[@celuiquipeut6527]

The hype is REAL! Thanks Fextralife for being always on point and in top. You guys have grown so much! And the most impressive is that the quality, NEVER went down. It actually had gone UP. Really the best at what you do. Thank you!

[@mada505]

you want a spoon?

[@mckinleygamble]

The face of my party has 8 charisma. I like failing checks on purpose. It's more fun than passing most of the time

[@szemenyeitamas1471]

Agree! My main will be a wizard, if it pass the dialog, good, if not... fireball!

[@MrEvilside]

best thing then your face have 17charisma, but npc stars conversation some one else in your party (mostly closest one). ... spoiler. . . . Frakin aunt ellie fight and that one ability point going to Laezel

[@mckinleygamble]

@szemenyeitamas1471 yeah, it's pretty fun

[@dominika3762]

Nah, if I don't pass checks, I'll have to fight more often.

[@mckinleygamble]

@@dominika3762 that's the fun part

[@TheMike424]

These last 2 weeks, I've never been more excited for the daily Fextralife video. It's literally helping me get thru these last few days. It's almost here!

[@aegis555]

I have used Shadowheart for Stealth and Rogue skills and it works perfectly (at least on the EA). Anyway, it's a very useful guide! The only "problem" I see is if some characters don't fit good with someone (f.e. Shadowheart and Laezel are most of the time arguing, and I don't think they will cooperate well together in a long journey)

[@jamesbates9038]

If you play your cards just right it is possible to romance both of them (maybe eviler playthrough) They will still hate each other but I think as long as your approval is decent with them you can keep them in your party. Until one of them leaves later in the game for story reasons. ( I don't know this I just suspect one will betray me)

[@ventrue7]

This is prob one of the best optimization guides I've seen so far this will be really useful for a lot of people. Usually there are a lot of misinformation out there but everything is pretty much accurate here. The only thing I can say is paladins ,especially ancients can fill out Cleric's role(specifically shadowheart if people don't wanna take her) and the combat role also prob party face . Clerics are actually more on the offensive caster and healing side than Bards and Druids both have more utility and support spells in general.

[@gossymer.]

Since clerics have such amazing high level spells, I would actually switch laezel to Paladin of vengeance if I were to respec a class. Combat specialist, smite, some healing and spells and no longer being the absolute worst at dialogue, yes!

[@knumbchuck2706]

Thank you so much for this. Am new to D&D and simply cannot wait to get stuck in to Baldur’s Gate III. I need all the help I can get and love all your content. So incredibly helpful 😊

[@wuwei473]

Did you get stuck?

[@heinrich4208]

You don't always have to start with an even ability score, as an uneven score will let you pick a feat with a +1. A combo I usually enjoy doing is to start with 15 or 13 in constitution, then taking the resilient constitution feat (which will be in the full game), thus raising the ability to an uneven score and granting me proficiency with saving throws. This is really good for concentration saves, and gives you more hp.

[@Shosara]

their argument is that you can respecc at lvl 4 once you get the asi/feat and then pick the uneven ability score to improve to be even via the feat. I personally dont enjoy cheesing that way as well, but their argument is valid if you do want to ultra minmax. I think it is a bit misplaced in this ultra-beginner focused guide, but yeah, they do have a point if you want to always recpacc at an asi, you can do that to minmax to the greatest extend.

[@smbakeresq]

The odd Con with resilient feat is great for a Paladin.

[@j0j0bird]

I think it would be genuinly helpful for new people to dnd if you put more emphasis on importance of control in combat. A wizard can spam fireball, but that's only sometimes the optimal play. They're not really (primarily) damage dealers. Also, with Shadowheart around you can get by without a Rogue. You cannot do everything optimally with 4 people. Great work on these guides and I understand you're making them simple on purpose, but letting people know there are options and that to be creative really is part of the point of dnd.

[@philipfahy9658]

Yeah I do feel like he is taking a very standard RPG approach to this rather than teaching it from a DnD perspective. It's nice for simplicity but I do worry it may lead some players astray. There's a lot of variety to be had in DnD, and for the most part, any class can fill any of these roles if you know what you're doing.

[@scaramouche7759]

Me new to dnd: 7 hours into the game, and just got my fourth party member 😂 this game is crazy. It’s not perfect but the thing that is really impressing me is the freedom and creativity.

[@BurlBullock]

Great video, I know this would help a lot of people out who want to optimize their party. Thanks always for the content!

[@juliendrainville7131]

Shadowheart can absolutely do stealth and sleight of hand with her background selection and the help of guidance, in case some can't stand Astarion...

[@mikewatts1533]

I'm definitely respecting shadow heart to a different domain. And I'm unsure whether lae'zel will stay a great weapons master or change it to dual wield. Thank you for everything you've done up to this point, it has been a great help. See you on the fourth because the third is full.

[@garion046]

Imo GW fighting style is too weak to keep, even if you are actually fighting with a two hander. Better off taking defense.

[@DarkLordZewo]

i really dont care about picking a specific companion or specific class to "handle dialogue" doesn't matter what class i play....i'll do my own talking as far as what my first playthrough will be: i'll play with a friend...i'll probably be the avatar monk + controlling karlach, and he'll be a necro + controlling either shadowheart or halsin :)

[@totalvoid6234]

Once again Utility isn't a role defined by class. You don't need a skill monkey, especially since you probably would need to take the role yourself. Just split the important skills amongst all party members, needing a skill monkey was a 3rd edition issue.

[@Paschendale2]

"Withers, very hard to miss". I managed to miss him on my 1st playthrough lol. I had to leave the dungeon to sell or rest or something and forgot to go back.

[@pingdragonify]

I like how the full list of possible combination section @11:35 is 90% bard and no wizards lol.

[@cameronossing495]

Can’t believe it’s finally here, one more day! Thank you for all the videos it helped make these last few years feel quicker!

[@Phenie]

While this is all very true I do want to point out that if you are playing on Balanced, you really won't *have* to have a fully optimized team. Just play with the characters you want to play with!

[@MayHugger]

Bah, half of the fun is mix and matching classes to work well together.

[@Phenie]

@@MayHugger To each their own! I will be having a load of fun with my suboptimal 16 Charisma Druid together with Shadowheartl

[@simulation3120]

I swapped companions in and out based on who I wanted to hang out with and did fine. Played as a paladin. Tended to always have Astarion though for lockpicking and stealth.

[@dodgek5270]

Where's the fun in that? Play story mode then.

[@ronmexico7256]

You can most definitely complete the game on tactician using whatever companions you want, the game is very forgiving.

[@gzion7]

Thanks for this! I'm not very familiar with D&D nor BG3 but your videos have been incredibly helpful. Your video guides in Divinity Original Sin 2 were just what I needed and it's how I discovered your channel.

[@MeldinX2]

I acually think you don't need to optimize too much. It's fine to have some overlap if you like some companions more than other or want to play a certain class and still bring your favorite companions. Having some utility is probably one thing you do want to bring however. Out of combat you will need to unlock doors and chests and disarm traps ect.

[@jackinthebox1993]

This is been my favorite channel for game information on the whole baldur's Gate III. I appreciate this channel so much

[@Abracadaniels]

I think you forget that even though you might not use let’s say Karlach in your party having her in camp will greatly change the camp tav and npc dialogues only having three companions might make you miss tons of interesting talks. Also switching between characters for certain fights might be a good strategy.

[@Steadymobbin711]

The only thing that would improve your channel is 4k, literally everything else is perfect. Thank you for the quality content!

[@zimtot]

I think people are missing the fact that Shadowheart with trickery domain can fulfill many of the rogue roles. With stealth and the sleight of hand she has. Different flavor but definitely not bad. Since I don't like Astarion as much, I won't be respecing Shadowheart (won't respec any companions for the first playthrough actually). But to each their own.

[@ngamashaka4894]

I hate Astarion, I always kill as soon as I see him. As you say I use Shadowheart if I'm not playing a Bard or a thief. Shadowheart and Gall are for me the only interesting NPC

[@johndeighan2495]

They’ve rewritten Wyll, and Karlach is new. So, let’s see. I think they’re all interesting.

[@Mathieu89]

She's not a half-bad tank either once she gains access to Mirror Image at level 3. She's very versatile.

[@O-D-X]

@@ngamashaka4894 Somebody finally gets it. I hate the Emo Evil Boy trope they used with Ass-tarion. Although I like Lae'zel more than Gale, and Karlach just looks scrumptious.

[@miscast8180]

@@Mathieu89 I´m new to dnd5. Mirror Image is a divine spell o.O? Or she get´s it from trickery domain? That´s low key awesome!

[@florentcouturier7465]

You made me decide to go on a bard - was hesitating to play directly as an origin character. Let's be a bard and then mid the game to add more companion in the party (imagine a Karlach - Gale - Shadowheart - Jaheira - Minsc - Wyll party...) Hope to really enjoy more companion at the same time.

[@reilley26]

The benefit of leaving an ability score on an odd number is if you want a feat that gives a +1 to a stat.

[@Fextralife]

Can respec at level 4, so no need to leave it that way for hours of gameplay...

[@AwesomeWookiee]

Respeccing like that ruins my immersion. I would never use it as part of the "game plan". That said, odd numbers are obviously trash usually.

[@Shosara]

@@Fextralife respeccing in wrath of the righteous undid a lot of flags from conversations and such, and i am pretty sure the same was the case ind DoS 1&2, so i would usually try to stick with a character withoutt respeccing. (apart from not wanting to "cheese" the game systems by respeccing atg each ASI, but this falls under "different strokes for different folks") - do you know if this is different in bg3, can you respec "safely" in that respect?

[@Fextralife]

@@Shosara I think they've taken steps to make multiclassing easier, so I would say it's likely not a problem.

[@TheCookieDoeDeer]

​@@Fextralifethat's a very tremendous meta gaming way of thinking for new players. What are you gonna end up doing? Respecing several times 😂

[@roddc7696]

I've been shadowing your channel for years Fextra (I just subscribed because stupid me thought I'd already subscribed) and greatly enjoy your guides, tips and so on. Between you and Wolfheart I know I'll be in good hands. I have extreme Alt-itis so you'll be a great source for builds (both copying and as inspiration) as always.

[@jarrodbright5231]

I do love how many of the "solutions" to party compositions is to play a Bard. If you consider a Lore Bard who takes Fireball as one of his spells at level 6, you could have just about any party...

[@Whattobecalled]

Lore Bard with FireBall is high up on my list. Sure its no evocation FireBall but still fun. And then It seems i can party vibe optimally with most companions orgin and non origin companions.

[@ngamashaka4894]

Saloing Druid is good also, Talking from the guy who always played Bard since the 3th edition

[@gossymer.]

While you could solve these issues with a warlock or druid, it can be more complicated for newbies in figuring out invocations and spells to get that optimization vs bard's expertise which is simple enough. A Warlocks armor of shadows and invisible imp can be clutch in game and druid wildshape and awesome higher level spells can make it rather powerful. However, with 2 Druid companions later and a warlock companion, they're never off the table entirely

[@pul0y]

My lore bard with a cleric dip will not be taking fireball as addtnl secrets but will be in the front wearing heavy armor and cursing people to their faces while having spiritual guardians grind them to dust.

[@benjamincruzj]

Here supposedly working, but actually having breakfast and taking notes of your amazing videos (Yes, I have a physical notebook in which I have been and will take notes through my different gameplays). Awesome work as always, thanks!

[@georgethoughtful]

Love these types of guides. I'm actually stumped here. I'm thinking of creating a party of Rogue with some Charisma (my character) with Laezel, Wyll, and Shadowheart. Loved those characters the most, and definitely see them as my first playthrough. I agree with the idea of having Wyll potentially be the face, but definitely want my rogue to be the face. Not that this specific overlap matters (because I cover all 5 roles with these people)... Just really wanna play rogue and love Wyll in the party, although swapping to Gale as an offensive Spellcaster may be the way to go in terms of optimization

[@rezq9109]

I feel like the bard is the best first main character to play. Not only mechanically, but even from plot point, you would expect bard being a sort of a glue for a party, also someone who pays attention to companions stories and has this spirit of adventures in him.

[@El_Diego86]

Any Bards in Here?

[@gossymer.]

This was such a good vid for helping folks who can't decide or figure it out since they're paralyzed for choice, awesome work here, especially the Revd at the end for how to choose class based on companions or vice versa!

[@Maverick734]

I do think Larian missed a trick with party size. 5 would be better as you wouldn't feel so restricted with party comp.

[@funstuffonthenet]

thank you so much. you're the man at all these helpful tips and videos for new and veteran players. this one was particularly helpful since i'm in constant debate of who i'm gonna be and who's comin with me! lookin forward to no-lifing this game come Thursday along with the other awesome videos you'll be making

[@Tihamatt]

If you want laezel and shadowheart in your party, but want to build favor with shadowheart, you can fully kill laezel on the mindflayer ship, and then rez her when you land, she'll join your party without shadowhearts disapproval

[@gr1mgr1n]

is this true? how can any character rez at lvl 1

[@garion046]

@@gr1mgr1n There are fairly abundant scrolls of revivify in the early game.

[@Tihamatt]

@@gr1mgr1n you start off with 2 rez scrolls and each character you recruit also have them, so you have plenty of revives :)

[@jacobyrassilon]

@@Tihamatt Plus you can buy them from vendors in the Druid's Grove...they are expensive, but if you are super brand new, you might need them, haha.

[@choleraphd7702]

Am I the only one who treats my main character as exactly what they are: a main character? I carry every single thing I pick up, and my companions have absolutely nothing in their inventories except what they came with. Only I interact with the world, talk to NPCs and do anything story-related. Unless I need to rob a shopowner blind or pick a lock, I will use my main character to the end. I just can’t be bothered looking around everyone’s inventories to see what they have, or search everyone when I’m looking for a scroll of revival. Sending items to party members costs no action anyway so I don’t see the point.

[@chazgriffin5582]

me too

[@marvinp90]

To me it looks like Lazeal, Astorian, Minthara are the three companions least tied narratively to their class so if you feel you need to change a character's class completely these seem like the best options

[@nicofromtheweb4891]

Wait wait wait .. Minthara .. the badass evil person I killed ? She can be a companion ???😮

[@orion1204]

Started as a Bard and I’m really enjoying the light support, manipulation and dialogue choice options I’ve already had the first few hours of the game.

[@Samlli]

The only companion I will probably multiclass is Wyll. A Pact of the Blade warlock in BG3 borrows the Hexblade feature from 5e letting you use your Charisma for melee class. I think a Swords Bard can thematically and mechanically pair well. More spell slots, a nice bump to his melee attacks and medium armour proficiency will go a long way. You won't need his bardic inspiration provided you already have another support character in your party, enabling Wyll to hoard them for his attacks.

[@retnuHDJ]

Only problem is you will miss out on Magical secrets, level 6 spells and the extra ASI by going Warlock 3/Bard 9. It might be worth it though

[@ImperatorMagus]

I'm doing this now lock 3 into bard 3 and can confirm it pairs really well. Picked dueling and my blasts slap and my fencing slaps. People saying "your missing out" ya no not really especially If you want a swashbuckling gish Also this combo let's you dump wis to 8 and not feel bad with all the Bardic rolls and profiencys you get.

[@TheAurgelmir]

My Party will be: My Character - Sword College Bard. To be a mix of caster and melee fighter. I'll probably go 18 Dex and 18 Charisma, with the last ASI going into warcaster probably. Since I plan on being up close and personal it's good to have advantage on those consentration chacks, if I cast things that require that (of which there are many for Bards) Light armor is probably going to be overall best for me once we start getting +1 gear. (There was a few good ones in Early Access). Rapier and Shield is probably a good defense build, and dual wielding shortswords or scimitars is a good offensive build. Not sure which I'll go for yet. Karlach - Not sure what barbarian. Probably Wild Magic since I've never tried that. Probably go Great Weapon Master for added damage. Medium armor is the best choice here, since Unarmored Defense for Barbarians is a bit of a fools bargain. Shadowheart - War Domain Cleric. Get her nice and protected with Shields and Heavy armor. Probably go wisdom as her primary stat, and focus on buffs. At 6th level Shadowheart makes for a good combination with Karlach's great weapon mastery, negating the -5 to hit, instead giving her a +5 to hit. Sadly Channel Divinity is quite limited in number of uses, but it will help in a pinch. Gael - Evocation. Damage and Crowd Control. He's also not an armor user, so he'll be taking any sweet robes etc we find. I'll be relatively covered on all fronts, and have a decent spread on loot I will be using too.

[@funnyfrogman4599]

Thanks for always putting out the best videos guys!

[@Dahkeus3]

I've been running a Wildheart Barbarian with Karlach (Berserker Barbarian), Lae'zel (Battlemaster Fighter), and Shadowheart (Trickster Cleric), so I've gone against a lot of advice here, but it's actually worked out pretty well. I handle dialogues with my custom character and utilize intimidation or similar stuff to get through dialogue (or just save scum tough rolls). For utility, I got a Cat's Grace clothing chest early on that allows either my main or Karlach to handle lock picking/disarming since it gives advantage on those rolls, so I don't miss having a rogue or anything like that. It may not seem like an ideal party, but it works better than you'd expect. My characters just always look extra messy during cut scenes since they're all up in enemy's faces getting splattered with gore and there's no water spells to clean them off. Trickster Cleric is probably the one spot that feels the weakest as opposed to another cleric spec, but I like sticking with Trickster to keep Shadowheart close to her character's personal preferences for roleplay and all that.

[@Chromedbustop]

Really helpful guide. The biggest thing I wished for with this game was that they had a 5 or 6 party size. 4 is fine I guess, but it feels kind of restrictive.

[@Bzk--]

I see where you're coming from but personally it's refreshing to have a smaller party size; even tho it's restrictive, it's also much less of a hassle to juggle 4 characters instead of 6 and combat is a lot faster. Also, it indirectly makes build choices more impactful as you can't have everything covered like you do in a party of 6. I have 400 hours of played time on Pathfinder WotR and it's one thing I didn't like about that game; once you are like halfway through it, you could have an easy answer to anything the game throws at you if you built your characters properly. I always wished for a reduced party size, not only for that, but also due to the sheer amount of micromanaging required. I couldn't deal with it if it wasn't for a mod that allowed to setup all your buffs and apply them istantly with a single button press. Tho it's also true that in this game they (thankfully) got rid of all the buff stacking shenanigans thanks to the concentration mechanic, but still. In Pathfinder it somewhat worked thanks to real time with pause which I used for pretty much any non-boss encounter.

[@Chromedbustop]

@@Bzk-- It depends on what people are looking for. I don't find that there is really that much micromanaging needed with this game, and you can still face roll most encounters with a party of 4 because the game is designed around a party of 4. So it's really no different than if the game had been designed around a party of 5-6. After a short time you're going to win most encounters regardless. Even on Tactician mode the game doesn't really require and optimal party group so unless someone is playing like a total clutz, they're going to start winning fights pretty easily at around level 5-6. Build choices aren't really that impactful because all you really need is the same staples that have always been around: A tank, someone to heal if/when needed. Get that and you've won the game as soon as you've got your party slots filled. Even the "hard" encounters are pretty easy. And I am NOT a hardcore gamer or experienced CRPG/Tabletop player. I'd like the larger size so I wouldn't have like half the people you can recruit just sitting around camp doing nothing. Why even have that many characters in the game, especially once they introduced the respeccing option. The problem with Pathfinder (both WoTR and KM) was that it had a lot of micromanaging because they had sooo much stuff in the game and a lot of it was redundant. They really didn't need as many classes, feats, or abilities as the game had, which would have economized the pacing in a better way. But the party size wasn't the issue.

[@zig9260]

4 is perfect actually.

[@Chromedbustop]

@@zig9260 Tried out a mod to increase party size and I found 5 to be much, much better. The downside of course is the encounters are balanced for a group of 4, but a difficulty mod can sort that out. But 5 was better in every way.

[@zig9260]

@@Chromedbustop If you are having trouble with 4, doesnt mean 5 is better.

[@starbreeze7249]

I really overlooked Paladin as a striker, though they really enable a main striker and do well as a bit of a secondary one. Especially Ancients Paladin, really tank up your other striker. They're great at keeping Bless up but they also have a ton of concentration spells, so they do add the flexibility to bring a Bard/Cleric and either have them use Bless, or be your Conc spell caster, which is super nice

[@The_Azure_]

Unless you're playing on Tactician difficulty, I doubt you'll need to optimize your party this much. Keep class roles in mind sure, but don't worry if your party is missing two or three roles. Hell you could probably play through most of the game just fine with 4 of the same class. Oh, and keep in mind that if you respec an origin character, certain dialogue options and interactions may not appear.

[@theverymehst3234]

11:36 So looks like my best options are to choose either Bard, Bard, or Bard. Works for me.

[@gossymer.]

For newbies Bard is easier. Warlock invocations and pacts, druid wildshape and familiars, shadowheart with the friends cantrip or/and guidance and Thaumaturgy are options to consider, but he's making it simpler for folks new to bg3/D&d

[@baconation2637]

If you follow the advice in this video (which is good advice for new players, dont get me wrong) there is one potentially large problem depending on if you want to play a specific class. That class is Wizard. None of the combinations here allow for the main character to be a Wizard.

[@alejandromarinetti8622]

Man I just can't wait. I've been working like crazy these last couple of weeks so I have a free day on friday and I will go all in on BG3

[@ransom--]

Super excited for Baldur's Gate 3. I will say I think free or cheap respec was a bad idea though - I think the cost of it should scale significantly. This video is the ideal example of why. "Don't think ahead, just optimize for now."

[@dominika3762]

But I know I'll probably respec once or twice one character, because I'm too lazy

[@nature_laughslast6438]

Even if you are experienced this game is new and it’s obvious people will mess up builds. Making respec easy is especially meant for new players as a quality of life feature. You can’t be having new people get punished for build choices made in ignorance hours before. Even with experienced players their are items in game that can completely change your build direction with their abilities. You can’t think ahead for that without spoiling yourself. First time players are going to respect a lot to try things. At the end of the day I’m for anything that gives players options. Now, if you wanna self impose things to make respec harder.. go for it. I understand where you are coming from.. but at the end of the day it’s not a pvp game so nobody is hurt by optimizing as you go. Finally.. even if they implement what you want people will just save scum.. so theirs no way around it.

[@kodry9235]

My starting party was Me as a sorcerer (damage, face) Shadow heart (support) Astarion (damage and utility) Gale (battlefield control and arcana/investigation)

[@Mitchenzo282]

Absolutely loving this series. I’ve not played DND since Neverwinter Nights 2, and bitten off more than I can chew with my class choices.

[@jsbcody]

I re-spec Astarion as a dex Gloomstalker Ranger with 2 hand crossbows, with first feat taken is Sharpshooter. I also re-spec La’zel as a Vengeance Paladin.

[@wytchking1161]

EXCELLENT advice to people that are new to this type of game! I myself will be running with a monk and whatever random stuff my friends decide to play! UNOPTIMIZED PARTIES ARE THE BEST PARTIES!

[@mareknovotny3005]

Thank you for all our videos!

[@caulfield78]

For so many companions I hear "You really need this one character in certain situations, unless you play a bard." I feel like playing a bard.

[@MrHighRaw]

Can't wait for this game, I've been waiting 20 years! I loved BG 1, 2 and Throne of Bhaal. Sooooo hyped!

[@jiaan100]

"ability scores only improve at even levels" Except for carry capacity from strength, so if you got a bonus point grab that if you can.

[@Hothhorn]

3:51 I respectfully disagree, I think if you have a score just 1 point away from an improvement by the time you reach level 4, you've got the option to either take a half-feat or only put 1 point of your ASI into one stat increase, and prep the next stat you want to improve by your next ASI (6 for fighters, 8 for everyone else). Respec of course trumps both arguments in either direction and we're basically arguing subjective player choice.

[@gossymer.]

This is for newbies and early game, he'd need to explain which+1 feats to take for each companion if he included those and make it more complicated door newbies. Then they would need to decide whether to respec twice once early on and again at level 4...

[@benry007]

I love respecing Shadowheart into a Tempest cleric. Call lightning is awesome. Especially if you have another character throw a bottle of water at the enemies first and then maximise the damage with your channel divinity.

[@Yamikitsune]

In defense of the eldritch knight, it's really easy to nearly catch up to battle master in terms of damage or utility. Focusing on defensive or buff spells for the fighter, with greenflame or booming blade (if in game) for your damage cantrips, the fighter becomes a wrecking ball in melee fights. I've played this in real life, it tore through any fight that did not have major WIS or CHA saves.

[@Shagarot]

In my opinion Shadowheart with trickery domain is a great pick if you don't want to run with Astarion. It basically gives you both support AND utility on a single character slot instead of two. Yes, her bonuses to picklocking and disabling traps may be lower than his but 1d4 bonus from guidance is nothing to scoff at. I was running with her while playing EA and not once I've encountered a situation where she couldn't open lock or disable a trap. In regard to multitude of uses she was the most useful of my companions.

[@t_k_.]

Do these bonuses come from her domain or her Urchin origin?

[@AmbroReality]

@@t_k_. From her background, so you can change her sub class easily, since trickery skills are ... meh at best in BG3, especially on Shadowheart, since there are better concentration spells for her (mainly bless). Since dex is better on her (more initiative, faster debuff enemy, faster buff party), using ranged weapons or pure spell caster is better, since being close to enemy increases risk of loosing concentration. So Light domain is good choice. You still get great utility spells like bless, halt, restrict, healing spells, but now lose those useless blessing of trickster, charm, invoke duplicity and instead of get fairy fire (amazing advantage spell and anti invis), burning hands (amazing dmg aoe spell for medium range) for early game, fireball (no brainer best single dmg spell until lvl 5). Getting rid off useless skills you wont ever use (since you can only concentrate on one at the time) and getting fairy fire and fire ball is already good enough reason to change her to Light domain. It wont break immersion, since she still will be Cleric and there are no subclass specific dialog (as far as i know) and game will still consider her as cleric even if you change her to druid or smth. So RP is not affected (only thing changes is one name in inventory window).

[@t_k_.]

@@AmbroReality Damn, that's sad to read since I was ready to use her as a melee buffer/healer/tank character (of some different domain) with damage dealer Karlach in addition to sorcerer and Gale caster duo. :) But I'm relieved knowing Trickery is not crucial for her utility role. Thanks for your explanation! I would not want to take a lot of your time, but just 1 question - what do you mean by 'faster' buffs/debuffs?

[@AmbroReality]

@@t_k_. Edited comment. Made some gramar mistakes, also there are class dialog but no sub class dialog. Wasnt specific enough even though subclass was in my mind when i wrote it xD

[@AmbroReality]

@@t_k_. You can use her how you wanted, but its just makes her a bit worse then she can be .... though again ... nothing against that. I dont think BG3 will be as hard as Pathfinder games were bad builds just struggled. So it was suggestion in topic on how to make better Shadowheart :) She can be used as you want, but it just increases the chance on loosing concentration. She hae 14 con, which is good enough for frontliner, but it is not a problem for other classes because usually they are not using concentration skills. Also, tanks with no dmg are not really good in 5e in general duo to enemy ai having priority agro on your lowest AC party member, unless someone is their hit range doing good dmg or using concentration spells (a roundabout way to cause an agro, though wastefull). That is why most popular melee frontliners are all dmg dealers. That os why its better to ether put her at backline doing utility stuff and ranged attacked/spells or going full on melee with subclass like war domain and concentrate less on utility, which essentially is Paladin subclass, but with diffirent focus (Paladins also are melee tanky frontliners with some buffs/debuffs and little bit of healing, but the diffirence is they do x10 the dmg of cleric, but on other hand their battle utility is a bit worse). As for faster buff/debuff etc i meant, that with better dex, she has higher initiative, which means she can start the battle sooner (for example first in the order), which means she can open with debuff or buff. Its better to debuff enemy or buff your team before they start their turn, right? :)

[@maycoalvarenga1911]

First time playing a game like BG3 and I started as Paladin and always used in my party Laezel, Shadowheart and Gale, and sometimes I swap Laezel for Karlach. I struggled at first since I never played a game like this, but from act 2 and beyond the game's been smooth in all situations

[@thespianmask]

That one team comp is EXACTLY what I was contemplating! Karlach, Shadowheart, and Wyll for my Halfling Gloomstalker Ranger.

[@TheExard3k]

With resilient feat and others, odd ability scores make sense because feats give +1 to even this out. 15 CON + resilient CON = 16 -> perfect. Actually allows for better builds if you know ahead of time what feats to take. Or CHA 17 + 14 CON -> Increase +1/+1 on lvl 4 and get resilient CON at lvl 8. Thats what I'll do with my bard

[@kingelessar4632]

Isn't it better to go CHA 16 CON 15 point wise? Than +2 CHA and than resilient

[@TheExard3k]

@@kingelessar4632 Depends on Race bonus you choose. If you are ok to run around with 15 CON until lvl 8 (you probably want 18 on spellcasting modifier at lvl 4), then this is a good option. Proficiency bonus isn't really that high on lower levels, but +3 or +4 (at lvl9) makes proficiency really shine.

[@KatalistProductionsKozzySasha]

Great BG3 videos lately Fex, cheers

[@debuyarou7463]

Party Composition that I would like to try: Short answer: 1. Paladin level 6/Champion Fighter level 3/Berserker Barbarian level 3 2. Battle Master Fighter level 6/Gloom Stalker Ranger level 3/Assassin Rogue level 3 3. Storm Sorcery Sorcerer level 10/Tempest Domain Cleric level 2 4. Some support. Didn’t decide yet. Don’t know who will be my main and what companions to pick or respect. Would like to play as evil. Detailed answer: 1. Burst window if target it’s not undead and without crits and with normal Greataxe with Haste + Action Surge: 6d12 from weapon + 24 from Str + 12 from Rage + 60 from GWM Feat + 14d8 from Divine Smite. 188 damage on average. Sure sacrifice 16 damage on average from superiority dice but have crit range 19 and 20 what sounds batter because you roll 12 times d20 for attacks. Maybe pick Lae'zel for this role. 2. Try to start surprise round from distance with Longbow. Burst window if target is surprised with Haste and Action Surge: 16d8 from weapon + 24 from Dex + 60 from Sharpshooter Feat + 2d8 from Dread Ambusher + 8d8 from Superiority Dice + 12d6 from Hunter's Mark. 164 damage on average. I will pick Astarion for this role. 3. War Caster Feat. Twinned Spell - Haste on Paladin and Fighter. Maybe my main. 4. Option a: Shadowheart (don’t know how she will react on evil decisions). Option b: Start game second time and start with 2 characters. Second is Life Domain Cleric. Option c: Start game second time and start with 2 characters. Collage of Swards Bard level 8/Paladin level 2/Fighter level 2. Focus on Dexterity. Option d: Start game second time and start with 2 characters. Collage of Lore Bard level 11/Life Domain Cleric level 1. Option f: Start game second time and start with 2 characters. Second is Paladin level 6/College of Lore Bard level 6. Have level 4 spell slots for Smite and pick Spiritual Guardians and Counterspell. Sentinel feat with some Reach weapon like Glaive. First 2 level in Paladin, then 6 in Bard, then rest in Paladin. Start with 16 in Str and Cha. First pick Sentinel, second increase Str to 18. Bless to increase chance to hit for guys with GWM and Sharpshooter Feat.

[@cmel7841]

Great videos lately, this is going to be a huge game

[@adomingues00]

Thanks for the coverage m8. I am playing a oathbreaker paladin though, and no matter the dificulty, guides or opinions, i'm still gonna play like it :) probably as second playthrough i'll go more optimized. On my first play i'll just go with whatever i like more (main char and party composition).

[@JeanMauriceB1C4RD]

I play as a Bard of valor, and my companions are Shadowheart in war cleric, Karlach in berserker and Lae’Zel in battlemaster. No problem at all in combats. Chef’s kiss!

[@RemigiuszSzczerbak]

Amazing, thank you! I'm playing sorcerer as my main character and having trouble with fights in my current configuration. Definitely have to respec party members I guess.

[@colbyrackler3915]

I have Shadowheart, Astarion, and Wyll, and I'm a Moon Druid who does a lot of wild-shaping and part time support/offensive casting as needed, and it's interesting....would recommend

[@jamesbates9038]

I really like the theif subclass, with certain items, there is no problem getting advantage, and the extra bonus action makes him do a bit more damage and be able to dash 3x a round. Also it gives him 3 chances to land that sneak attack

[@Maniak-e8b]

My party - Lae zel fighter *sword and board) - shadowheart ( cleric) - wyll (warlock) - myself i will go duel wield dark elf ranger (cliche i know lol) OR with a bow i will of course respec the 3 above to optimize their stats thank you for the video

[@Sousless]

Looks like the bard is the best class to play, fits so many compositions easily.

[@mefninja]

I think its worth mentioning you do not need a dialog character at all.

[@Melthazar]

I historically play charismatic Druids and intend to do it during my first playthrough as well. Guild Artisan background should give me Insight & Persuasion, will start with around 16 Wisdom and 14 Charisma. Should be decent for both social interactions and Druid-specific shenanigans. Will most likely take Dex-based Shadowheart for Utility&support, Karlah to tank and Gale as nuker/utility (because as a Wizard he will eventually get to learn every spell available for the class).

[@derekc9234]

How do you make Shadowheart Dex based?

[@Melthazar]

@@derekc9234 Re-spec her stats to give her more Dex than Str. This will help to boost her more Rogue-like skills that she is proficient in.

[@tonydeluna8095]

I appreciate your videos and your tips content on these classes. This will definitely help me once the game launches on the ps5

[@BrotasticBatman]

love your content man!!! well done as always!!! Cant wait to play

[@AfonsoVMSP]

Im really glad I'm watching your videos, before playing on PS5 😬 Great job 🤟🏼

[@BlueDragonAkira]

Love everything that you do. I’m still watching your divinity original sin 2 vids

[@Moffattt]

what i gather from this video is choose bard lmao. i think my early part comp will be myself as monk, astarion, shadowheart and gale. what i do from there is a good question. shadowheart seems to good to pass up from the supportive skills and the fact that she can wear heavy armor and a shield for defence so she can act as a makeshift tank if needed. planning on doing the dark origin story thing because it sounds interesting and when im done with that i think il start another one playing as astarion. being able to play out hes backstory sounds like a treat as hes backstory is what sounds the best from what i have gathered from the other companions.

[@davidl4953]

Great vid. Tons of options especially if you factor in the for hires frens from our undead bud in camp. What a great game!

[@bmecikal]

Going to go tactician and I think survivability will be big and a rogue may be a bit squishy in combat with smarter AI. Shadowheart is already proficient in stealth and slight of hand, making rogue a bit redundant outside of expertise, which honestly doesnt seem to be too big of a deal. PC: Oath of Ancients Paladin: Face (gets speak with animals too!) Karlach (later Minsc?): Striker, assuming this will work very well with ancients healing and auras. after level 7 will end up with weapon resistance (barb) and spell resistance in combo w/ paladin. Shadowheart: Utility; beefier than rogue. Gale: Blaster/Utility depending on what is needed. Really leaning into changing out spells to fit the situation (AOE fights swap out spells for blaster, single target fights more utility. can target specific saving throws depending on fight)

[@CarlosBassBughi2]

Amazing guide, will be following this one and the other, all but the Dialogue character, my first runs will be with charisma characters anyway but after I will do the talk with my main character even if the charisma is low, to be like the main character and let dice decide my future

[@statisticaloutlier2930]

I have a Warlock that I plan to turn into a Sorlock and have had no trouble without Astarion in the party, as I chose the right skills/proficiencies for stealth, movement, dex checks, etc. I'm playing with Shadowheart, Laezel, and Gale, with my Warlock->Sorlock as the face of the party, the trap disarmer, lockpicker, etc. With Guidance from Shadowheart, it's hard to lose a roll

[@vladimirtchuiev2218]

During the entirety of early access Shadowheart is the companion that saw the most screen time for me because she's both a support caster, and she can double as a utility character, her dex is pretty good and she can handle locks and traps just fine. You can get by pretty well without a close-combat specialist, tanks are pretty much irrelevant here because, like in DOS2, the enemies just ignore them for the most part and go for the squishes. Because of that, and because she doesn't have any inherent attack bonuses to use with GWM, Laezel is my least used companion.