Baldur's Gate 3: Paladin Class Overview

Talking about what you can expect when playing a Paladin in Baldur's Gate 3 including the class fantasy alongside the mechanics at play!
Timestamps
00:00 Intro & Overview
01:08 Class Fantasy
04:00 General Info
04:38 Subclasses/Sacred Oath
09:04 Class Mechanics
13:12 Playing a Paladin
18:16 Wrap Up
Intro Music By Juan Andrés Matos, www.juanmatosmusic.com/
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#gaming #gamereviews #bg3 #baldursgate3

[@sic6603]

A Dark Urge Vengeance Paladin could be fun ... resisiting the Urge for innocent bystanders and going full psycho on your enemies.

[@spellandshield]

Assuming your oath is not broken for killing goblins like it is with Oath of Ancients...

[@ducky36F]

@@spellandshieldou’d think it shouldn’t be but I guess we’ll find out. Would be a shame if they are strict with it. The goblin camp is up to some pretty evil stuff. If so Oathbreaker as the true avenger it is I guess 😂

[@sic6603]

@@spellandshield Ancients and Devotion let you kill without breaking the oath, you just need to have a reason (they are enemies) and face them head on (initiate combat through dialouge). In the video the Paadin executed a goblin prisoner by walking up to her and just hitting her, the oath was broken because the Paladin attacked a creature that was not a threat (prisoner) and ambushed her (also not allowed). Though I do hope we get explanations in plain language and a warning when you're about to fuck up your oath in full release, as it stands it is not welll explained what you can and cannot do.

[@phantomvulpe791]

Sounds even better if you add warlock in the mix with vengeance paladin

[@yougurttrashcan]

that's exactly what I am planning for my first playthrough 🙌

[@Lynch2507]

I like the idea of an Oath of Vengeance paladin becoming an Oathbreaker because they show mercy. Like, Red Hood deciding not to kill the Joker-style, where the Oathbreaker route isnt really the 'evil' route it is for devotion and ancients.

[@CrimsonTear1996]

I plan on doing this for a dark urge character

[@irvinne7486]

I was thinking of a dark urge vengeance paladin who got addicted to killing as punishment and gives in to the murder urges, breaking the oath by killing indiscriminately

[@OrdigTroll]

​@@blshouseIf you're breaking a Lawful Evil oath, wouldn't that be a Chaotic Good / Neutral action?

[@NoahPlause638]

​@@blshousebut it's not two wrongs. Showing mercy wouldn't be considered an evil action. More like chaotic neutral imo but people are free to perceive it differently :)

[@NoahPlause638]

​@@blshousealthough I guess the oathbreaker is using powers of darkness so maybe I'm wrong lol

[@Hercules1-v9m]

Remember folks, Oathbreaker doesn't mean you are evil. It just means you no longer believe in the ideas you once held.

[@ArcaneSorceror]

*Points to Jamie Lancaster* Like him

[@remortisgaming]

And you can use the the Oathbreaker powers for good or evil.

[@bezyn2291]

@@ArcaneSorceror The famous Jamie Lancaster one of the main characters of A playing of Stools TV show, yes.

[@Theorcman2008]

In D&D that's exactly what that means.

[@ArcaneSorceror]

@@Theorcman2008 And for the people who have watched Game of Thrones, but not played D&D, Jamie is an excellent reference point.

[@kirklandish]

An Oathbreaker Paladin who multiclasses into Warlock would be interesting from a role playing perspective. After breaking your oath you decide to serve another entity.

[@MrShafdaddy]

oh i like taht idea, tanks mayne

[@Matthew-Fair]

My Paladin will be breaking his Oath of Vengeance to serve his Great Old One his Warlock powers come from

[@godsplayingfield]

going devotion with warlock fey multiclass with dark urge. reasoning: took pact from the Fey in hopes of learning what this urge is and hoping the knowledge and magical assistance provided by the entity could assist in ridding the world of whatever evil links through to this urge. and as it's a purely contractual agreement, the Fey just being equally interested in what this is and finds my random acts of murder interesting, it doesnt go against my Oath. the contract persists until i find out what the urge is, it's source, and my choice on what to do with it. ....... yeah kinda skirting the lines of plausability here but fck it, why not.

[@Shikao87]

Paladin is my favourite archetype. I was bit hesitant to play it on first play through, because I was afraid to accidentally break an oath and needing to save-scum. However, now I know there is option to restore the oath it might become my number one option again

[@Davincibeats]

Gotta say thank you for making these class overview videos. Very informative and helps me figure out what I'm going to play once the game launches.

[@asentoni]

I'm loving these Class Overviews! Thank you so much for doing these!

[@Cpanpyro]

Another AWESOME JOB with the class! Glad you decided with the Paladin being next on the list; it's what I was waiting on and what I'll be starting with...lol

[@kbar4462]

Congrats on 200k! Im familiar with most of these class discussion vids, but i really enjoy them. Theyre also super helpful for my brother who isnt a big RPG guy but interested in trying BG3

[@DaWashki04]

Man these videos are awesome and are really helping me to narrow down my choice for my main. Thank you!

[@Paulie771]

Very much looking forward to playing a Polearm Master Vengence Pally in my first play through! Thank you for this video!

[@Mournivalofsons]

Wanted to say thank you for going a bit more in-depth on the oathbreaker in this; can't wait to see more BG3 content here; keep up the great work!

[@a.trance6997]

I rolled a paladin in EA just to see how it feels from a warrior. I must say I like it. it's a physical/fighter-y cleric. I also like the paladin roleplay, and i like how they framed the oathbreaker subclass as "not practicing your oath but still possibly being a good guy." I broke my oath busting a goblin out of jail. I reloaded and tried Astarion to do the opening and it didn't count as oathbreaking lol.

[@ducky36F]

Good to know

[@Shadeius]

Oathbreaker should not just be somebody who broke the Oath, as per RAW, but swore themselves to a dark power hence all Negative Energy features. Honestly they should have been called Antipaladins like back in the day as the current name convention makes it more confusing. Paladin who just broke their Oath should be considered a Fallen Paladin which means they just lose all their Paladin features except their proficiencies.

[@blame7121]

​@@Shadeiusdunno, man. Oathbreaker is pretty straightforward; you who broke your oath, Oathbreaker.

[@Shadeius]

@@blame7121 But it isn't just that as a subclass hence my gripes about the naming convention of it. To quote 5e Dungeon Master's Guide: "An Oathbreaker is a paladin who breaks his or her sacred oaths to pursue some dark ambition or serve an evil power. Whatever light burned in the paladin's heart been extinguished. Only darkness remains. A paladin must be evil and at least 3rd level to become an Oathbreaker. The paladin replaces the features specific to his or her Sacred Oath with Oathbreaker features."

[@Dovadweebs]

(Tosses key to the rest of the party) “don’t have too much fun”. Paladin walks out.

[@khal7702]

Congrats on 200k! Can't believe it's been 8 months since I joined. Perfect morning coffee videos :)

[@macdd7257]

I've been playing 5e since 2014 and BG3 since the beginning of early acces and I know all this, but I like your videos and how you explain everything. This is one of my favorite channel!

[@foxkentendo1151]

These class overviews are fantastic! I would love to hear about Bard.

[@Comii_]

A big congrats on getting to 200K! It's a massive goal achieved and you deserve it!

[@KingOfMadCows]

Pillars of Eternity has one of my favorite interpretations of the Paladin. I really like the different Paladin orders and how your abilities become weaker but you don't just lose all your powers when you act in ways opposed to your order's beliefs. I would love it if D&D and other RPG's took inspiration from it. I really like PoE's Monk too.

[@Thesteadfast]

Yes! I don't like that going against the whole point of the class gets rewarded.

[@corranhorn85]

I'm surprised more people don't mention the strengths of multiclassing Paladin with Bard. You get the spell slot progression of a full caster, but you sacrifice fewer hit points. Plus, we're getting both martial versions of the Bard, Valor and Swords. People really shouldn't sleep on this combo.

[@Knort]

but aren´t you forced to be lawful good?

[@corranhorn85]

@@Knort there are no alignments in bg3. Although, you will have to maintain your oath as a paladin to use some features.

[@fallout3fanboy1]

I mean, Sorcadin is one of the best multis in 5E

[@gunther482]

Yeah Paladin + Swords Bard is tempting to be my first play through.

[@zankheal]

Man, I am new to Baldur's gate, (even though I am die-hard D&D fan), these videos are really helpful and now I am so hyped to play this game. I can't wait for more videos showcasing other classes like Wizard and more. Congrats for your 200K subs! you deserve it!

[@FedeGomez2011]

Great content! Looking forward to the rest of the classes 🎉

[@GoodMorningButch]

I absolutely love how your class overviews all include the class fantasy surrounding them! That's such a core feature.

[@csabaalmasi5297]

Man I can't wait for this to release, soooo many options and possibilities

[@mucho9boy]

Really enjoying this series of videos. Thank you mate

[@javiernovoa8756]

Great video! Paladin doesn't get enough love as a solid build on its own

[@TheNitram8]

Im really liking the discussions on roleplay potential.

[@coconutologist]

Ding! 200k. Congrats. Thanks for the video! Onward to 300k. All glory to the algorithm.

[@Puddinbabe]

Already coming up with multiclass options and Paladin Oath of Ancients and Warlock Patron Archfey sound amazing together.

[@spaceghostohio7989]

Congrats on 200 K brother ! Been enjoying your overview videos.

[@solonp]

Another great piece man - thank you!

[@Blackmeteor]

Congrats on hitting 200k subs! You deserve it.

[@harrowingabyss4518]

Never played any of these games but so interested in Baldur's gate 3. Mainly because seeing the oathbreaker takes me back to final fantasy 2 with the black knight class and loved Arthas as a character in Warcraft 3 turning towards evil. So will definitely being going towards oathbreaker asap as my main character.

[@cardassa]

Looking forward to your fighter breakdown since I am still mulling over if I want to play as a barb or a fighter for my first run as the dark urge or even a hybrid of the two. Ironically, I mainlined the first two BG games as a fighter without ever being aware of the cannon story and am considering to stick with the class as some level of continuity between all three games. Although it's not the same character in BG 3, I like to think that Abdel Adrian eventually becomes Bhaal and this dark urge version is some sort of a reflection of his past self.

[@Zero2891]

My dude. Very insightful videos. Thank you

[@talahar123]

Congrats on the 200k, Mortym! Here's to the next 200k! :D

[@cfnjofa]

I always like the oath of redemption. It adds so much to the role playing options. I wish they could have added it, fingers crossed for it being in DLCs.

[@Bzk--]

Considering they confirmed they'll release official modding tools post launch, imo it's likely we'll see stuff like this covered by mods!

[@darthdarth4338]

This will definitely hit with mods. I wouldnt expect DLC, mods will be your DLC. Unless you play the game on console then well no mods for you.

[@elleeVee]

very likely there won't be DLC, but Larian's modding tools are some of the best on the market and the game is launching with mod support, so if it's anything like DoS2 you'll get every subclass you can dream of and more

[@chillax319]

@@elleeVee I do not expect any DLCs. What I can expect may be actual expansion like Witcher 3 got instead.

[@Taranchule]

My main playthrough of the original Baldurs Gate saga 20 years was with a Paladin. Personally I prefer how 2E did the class, but the prospect of combining it with the Dark Urge does illicit some nostalgia for that old character.

[@ERHershman1]

It's interesting to see this game's take on how to handle the Paladin's strict code of conduct in the context of a video game. It can be frustrating when you take an action and find out you unexpectedly broke your oath because of an angle you didn't consider. But it's certainly better than the implementation of 2e paladins in the original BG games, where it was entirely based on your reputation score--meaning you could do some truly heinous things even as a Lawful Good paladin, as long as your reputation didn't go below 8. Based on my experience in Early Access, my advice to paladin players is that unless you are dead-set against any kind of "save scumming," make lots of saves in case of unexpectedly broken oaths.

[@CrazyxEnigma]

Pillars is my favorite via Faith and Conviction. If you adhere strictly to your disposition you get a buff whereas if you don't by accident you don't lose your powers and can correct it via play.

[@ERHershman1]

@@CrazyxEnigma yeah, I think that system works great.

[@uther10]

Memories, I played a Paladin during BG1 and BG2 and the expacs, also liked playing them in D&D. I always thought it was interesting being a Pali and being a Bhaalspawn.

[@MrFox64057]

You're awesome and thanks for the great content

[@oldlobster]

Congrats on 200k!

[@arandomcheese]

Congrats on 200k Subscribers!

[@_Conzo_]

Congratulations on 200k!

[@Seba-rr3dx]

As I have played BG1 and 2 quiet a lot I am surprised how different the classes and subclasses have become. Yesterday you introduced Barbarian and Berserker, which in BG2 EE were both Fighter subclasses. Today I learn that the BG2 subclasses for Paladin are gone and you now can multiclass. I admit I have barely knowledge of D&D besides older PC Games.😊

[@CrazyxEnigma]

I miss some of the absurdly powerful stuff you could do in those(Gnome Fighter/ Illusionist comes to mind heh funny to imagine this little Gnome of all people being an absolute blender!) but it's infinitely less restrictive. Why can't Dwarves be wizards or Halflings paladins? You can now so more types of characters being possible can only be a good thing imo.

[@cmleibenguth]

BG1 and 2 are 2nd Edition AD&D BG3 is 5th Edition D&D It seems so different because there has been nearly 20-ish years and 3 entire game editions of evolution on the concept design

[@ThisIsAHandleOrSomething]

Minthara is an evil Vengeance paladin since patch 9. So maybe there might be a way to slightly alter oaths towards neutral/evil in the full release. But if not, possibly modders might add that in at some point.

[@molliethomas2585]

Congratulations on hitting 200k 🎉

[@carrdoug99]

Your video highlighted something I had never really thought about before. I have always just accepted that Paladins were soldiers of the Devine. It would be much more interesting to make them soldiers of any deity, whether demonic or celestial. It would also bring back the Aasimar? (bummed they were left off the list of characters). Race with devine traits serving a devil. Just as a Tiefling serving a Celestial.

[@renatoszfr]

I'm really considering doing my first run as Dark Urge Vengeance Paladin

[@CrazyxEnigma]

Hello Dexter Morgan.

[@renatoszfr]

@@CrazyxEnigma damn, that's a very good point!

[@Fenix31799]

200K! Congratulations! Crazy seeing the way this channel has grown, but 100% deserved

[@ForcePF]

Congrats on 200K! 😀

[@a.trance6997]

Congats on the 200k subs

[@Jmerithew87]

I’m a longtime JRPG and DnD fan who has never really dabbled into CRPGs. Baldur’s Gate 3 when it launches on PS5 will be my first real crack it and your videos have me incredibly excited! I think I’m going with a half-orc ranger, but that could change as I learn more.

[@Z0nd4]

Very helpfull. Thanks!

[@exquisitemeat5845]

YES. The best class is here. Thank you for all these guides, they're very entertaining.

[@MarcoR6]

I've played as a paladin in many other games before, it was always a no brainer for me as I usually tend to be "the good guy". But then I tried playing as a Monk and it's been my go to class ever since. I'll try something different this time, don't know what yet, (I've also played as a Druid and a Bard, the bard was in NWN 2, which doesn't work exactly like I expected a bard to play, so that's an option). I've never played a magic centered character before so maybe that's the way to go for me.

[@exoxultrum4131]

I think I'm going to go for a lawful evil oath of vengeance Dark Urge. Someone akin to Regill from wrath of the righteous. The type that would clear out a kobold nursery of a dangerous tribe. Ends justify the means in the war against evil.

[@ragvald8835]

Smites are what makes paladins the ultimate boss slayer. If you crit, both weapon damage and smite damage is doubled (well, amount of damage dies you roll, so only potentially doubled), you can use it several times per turn - since like any normal martial class you get an extra attack on lvl 5, and moreover, smites can also be activated with offhand attacks, too, if you dual wield. (Useful with multiclassing). But i`m not done yet! You can actually cast your spell-smites - there are actual spells that work similar to divine smite, like wrathfull smite or searing smite, which cost a bonus action, and add some debuff along with the damage, so you can activate divine and any spell-smite simultaneously. So after lvl 5 you have 2 regular attacks, 2 divine smites to go with them and 1 spell smite. Add haste to the mix! It`s crazy damage, at the cost of all your spell slots in a single turn. I also want to add i hope Larian includes an actual oath written down somewhere (on a note in your backpack when you start?), so that people could have an actuall idea, what they can or cannot do. For example, vengeance paladins can`t show mercy to sinners, so if you see, say, an urchin stealing, you probably have to kill him, despite circumstances. Devotion paladins can`t lie, so i guess no need for deception? Is lying to your enemies or villains counts? I dunno.

[@raygm6303]

Thank you!

[@joshuarogue9345]

Heyo, love your vids. I humbly recommend druids soon please?

[@gamerid6507]

years ago paladin was my favourite char..but later i found out being lawful was a bit restrictive thus i went for fighter

[@g8trdone]

Congrats on 200k subs! That's GREAT! I remember back in the early AD&D days we had to multiclass a fighter into cleric to do the best we could to make up a Pali. Kids today have the world on a string... LMAO! I can't wait to give the Pali a go. Maybe a Blue dragonborn with storm sorcery dip...

[@Lyrantes]

Definitely starting Oath of Vengeance as a Zariel Tiefling, might multiclass later into Warlock. Bit iffy on the multiclassing though, don't like f'ing that up.

[@finstor3386]

My original group setup will be Pali tank, Barbarian DPS/offtank, Wizzard range dps/utility, durid healing/ range dps/utility. My typical strategy is to put the pali on whatever mob and or as many mobs as i can get to attack him, then use my barb to run around the battlefield with the druid and mage helping him dps enemies down. The pali does so much damage, even 1h with a sheild because of divine smite that its like having another dps character.

[@orarinnsnorrason4614]

I really hope they (Larian) add a thing to conversations that warn the player that said line of dialogue will break their oath. So annoying that after certain conversations and you get into a battle, only to find out you don't have your powers.

[@crd88918]

thank you!

[@assassindelasaucisse.4039]

My first run will be a devotion paladin with the Dark Urge origin... Should be fun RP wise!

[@humorinpolitics56]

I've been playing DnD for 29 years, and in all that time, every one of my characters have been chaotic good.

[@Bzk--]

I think CG and CE are by far the most interesting alignments to roleplay.

[@humorinpolitics56]

@bazuka6294 ya they are. I can't help but play chaotic good because it's my real-life alignment.

[@Flexnasty]

Wow he hit 200k! Gonna be growing fast once BG3 releases 🎉

[@jesot]

Probably going to do either warlock/paladin or warlock/bard for my first playthrough of i don't just play Lae'zel first.

[@malik2978]

Damn I was hoping to be a Redemption Paladin! They are my favorite. Hopefully it will be added later

[@HisShadow]

Eargerly awaiting the Druid class overview.

[@onatgz]

congrats on 200k. gg ez.

[@coderaccoon6061]

Most likely my first Cass to play. Would pick Dragonborn but no dark vision seems like a big hindrance so half orc for me.

[@bionichosh2904]

Can’t believe I have a whole nother day to wait for the next one

[@ddfordummies5099]

So far Battle Master fighters have felt like the most OP build so far because if you can get a disarming attack to work, you can generally pick up and stow an enemy’s weapon in the same round of combat (aka steal their weapon from them).

[@saintsword23]

Polearm Master + Sentinel is going to make Battle Masters absolutely sickening.

[@Makofueled]

I wonder how the oathbreaking works as a vengeance paladin. Being a nice dude and showing some mercy suddenly fills you with the ability to control undead?

[@MortismalGaming]

Presumably not killing an enemy or letting them go at the very least yeah

[@DJ-1Q84]

My human vengeance paladin has the most self-satisfied look during cutscenes it's great 😂

[@silvermknight]

Im wanting to go Archfey Warlock with a Dark Urge origin because some Fey lord thinks its funny to mess up the plans of whatever the Dark Urge is. Might multiclass Oath of the Ancients to make things more interesting.

[@lazerrhino]

can you do druid next? I really want to know just how much wild shape is capable of in this game

[@remortisgaming]

If alignments were still in the game, I’d say Devotion is LG, ancients is NG or CG and veng is LN or even TN

[@sombrego2260]

I might multi-class Wyll to be a Lockadin I quite enjoy playing Will as a melee fighter so a Paladin multi-class would make a lot of sense for him (plus he's quite aligned with decisions that would keep his oath anyway). Now that I think about it I wonder how oathbreaker will be handled for companions, does your choices affect them too or do you have to lead the conversations/choices as them to break their oath? I guess it can be tested on EA in a group setting.

[@MortismalGaming]

No, you can use other characters to make certain decisions which will avoid breaking your oath

[@johnnas5572]

I'll be buying that game to play on my vacation next month, but I think it looks a bit too complex for me lol. Will I enjoy it if I'm not used to tabletop RPGs?

[@mourka01]

I loved blackguard in bg1 and 2 i might need to play a oathbreaker

[@RazaEdge]

One thing to note, every single class will benefit from 2 levels of fighter as spellcasters don't have restrictions on amount of spells in a turn. So with Sorcerer you can cast 3 fireballs in one turn.

[@societysvillain]

What? They didn't stick with the 1 spell plus 1 cantrip per turn rule of DnD5E? That's a huge balance issue if true.

[@RazaEdge]

@@societysvillain I guess they didn't want to limit the power of Spellcasters. Yea you can just spam any spell if you have the action economy for it.

[@codydixon2957]

Dragonborn Paladin is 100% going to be my first playthrough can't wait! 😄

[@Drellistenstomusic]

Sight and SMITE!

[@hungryb4dinner]

:O i was considering an oath breaker run with Dark Urge

[@GoofBonJovi]

Heck yeah can’t wait to be a Half Orc and Dragonborn Paladin!

[@jadencrawford2772]

"The thing about beacons of light is they inherently cast shadows" Poetic lines like this enhance the video and make it worth watching

[@theclawyaww3740]

Oathbreaker/Warlock multiclass would be so cool both role playing and gamepley wise

[@mr.ggwellplayed7354]

Was thinking oathbreaker/necromancer if possible

[@iankester-haney3315]

I have a question for you. Have they improved the Camera system any with the final release? I keep getting really dumb issues with Camera and combat. In the blighted village, it is really hard to target enemies in the houses while on the roof. They can easily shoot up, but sometimes the cakets just refuses to see through the roof/wall to target them. In exploration, the canera is very bad at hinting at vertical spaces and stairs. In the nautiloid, the ramp up to the top is just cut off. It doesn't move up to show a full set of steps until all characters are out of the belly. I also noticed that the zoom out distance is very limited. In some cases, you can't even zoom out enough to target enemies with height advantage. I'm still loving the game, but there things are just real pain points.

[@Blackwolf-gr6ch]

god the oathbreaker is so damn fun, can't wait to try vengeance

[@VoidEternal]

Remember it's YOUR Oath. Not the Oath of all your party members. Don't feel bad about letting someone with less scruples take the lead from time to time if you don't wanna break your Oath.

[@VoidEternal]

@@Wicker_ I don't think that's how Paladin's work in 5e so it's all good 8)

[@alex-uw4mm]

i wonder if siding with the tiefling child that tries to steal the silvanus statue would break the vengeance oath as she is a lil criminal

[@Dante7Even]

Your character face looks badass , like someone of high rank in the acient Mediterranean

[@blueeyeswhitemoron4488]

Hoping for conquest dlc, still looks pretty good so far.

[@fernandozavaletabustos205]

An interesting class with heavy roleplaying to make it work!

[@Roboytron]

I read somewhere that if you break your oath you keep the spells you’ve already gained in another subclass. Do you know how that plays yet? I mainly just want misty step and some oathbreaker stuff looks really cool.

[@bananana5714]

Paladin seems cool for one of the next playthroughs I wouldn't want to start with him with this rp restrictions

[@aristarko7]

I'm going to create a Dark Urge Vengeance Paladin. He will let its dark urges take control to smite all evil!