Breaking your Oath as a Paladin is a massive decision with huge ramifications in Baldur’s Gate 3 since it takes away your active subclass and replaces it with the Oathbreaker subclass. But all is not lost; the Oathbreaker class is exceptionally viable.
The Oathbreaker subclass is a fun alternative to the traditional choices you might use for Paladin. You do have to change your perspective quite a bit when playing as an Oathbreaker. Rather than protecting and healing allies, you become more of an aggressive damage dealer who focuses on breaking enemies and rolling a lot of dice. Here’s what you need to know about the best Oathbreaker Paladin build in Baldur’s Gate 3.
How to get the Oathbreaker Paladin in Baldur’s Gate 3
As the name suggests, the Oathbreaker Paladin is a Paladin who breaks their oath, and what this entails depends on which oath you’ve taken in Baldur’s Gate 3. When you break your oath, an Oathbreaker Paladin appears before you, weakening your paladin powers. The way you break your oath comes down to the first Paladin subclass you chose during the character creation screen.
He then summons you to meet him at your camp, where he will bestow the Oathbreaker class on to you. There is a path back to reclaiming your oath if you’d rather return to the traditional path, but it’s not a requirement. You can play as an Oathbreaker Paladin for the rest of the journey.
Best Oathbreaker Paladin build in Baldur’s Gate 3
There are many aspects to creating the best Oathbreaker Paladin build in Baldur’s Gate 3. It primarily comes down to picking the best abilities, feats, stats, your character’s race, and the best spells to use as an Oathbreaker. There are several factors to control, and it can be somewhat overwhelming. This means there are certain things you need to know when creating your Paladin and things to keep in mind as you’re progressing through the campaign, including:
- Best stats: Your primary focus will be on Strength, Charisma, and Constitution
- Strength: 16
- Dexterity: 10
- Constitution: 14
- Wisdom: 10
- Charisma: 16
- Intelligence: Eight
- Best race: Gold Dwarf or Half-Orc
- Best background: Soldier (for Athletics and Intimidation) or Noble (for History and Persuasion).
- Best weapons and gear: Heavy armor (Adamantine Splint Armor) and a Greatsword (Everburn Blade or the Sword of Justice).
- Best consumables: Elixir of Hill Giant Strength (Increases your Strength to 21 until your next Long Rest), and Potion of Speed (You can an extra action, plus two to your Armor Class, an advantage on your Dexterity saving throws, and double the movement speed).
- Best companions: Gale (Wizard: Great for damage, crowd control, and out-of-combat abilities), Shadowheart (Cleric: Great for heals, crowd control, and buffs), Astation (Rogue: Great burst damage and good for Dexterity checks)
All Oathbreaker Paladin actions, oath spells, and features in Baldur’s Gate 3
Once you’ve broken your oath and have become an Oathbreaker Paladin, you unlock the Oathbreaker Paladin-specific actions, spells, and features. While you don’t have too many to choose from, these are the best Oathbreaker Paladin abilities and spells to take at each level:
| Level | Action/Spell | Effects/Description |
|---|---|---|
| Level one | Spiteful Suffering (Action) | – Target takes 1d4 Necrotic damage each turn, and Attack Rolls against it have Advantage. – Lasts for three turns – Three-meter range – Resisted by Charisma save – Costs one Oath Charge. |
| Level three | Control Undead (Action) | – Gain control of an undead creature that follows you around and attacks your enemies. – Lasts until your next Long Rest. – Target must be lower level than you. – Costs one Oath Charge. – Resisted by Wisdom save. |
| Level three | Dreadful Aspect (Action) | – Unleash a pulse that Frightens nearby enemies for two turns. – Costs one Oath Charge. – Resisted by Wisdom save. |
| Level three | Hellish Rebuke (Oath Spells) | – React to your next attacker with flames that deal 2d10 Fire damage. – Costs one level one spell slot. – Resisted by Dexterity save. |
| Level three | Inflict Wounds (Oath Spells) | – Hit a character at melee range with 3d10 Necrotic damage. – Costs one level one spell slot. |
| Level five | Crown of Madness (Oath Spells) | – Instill madness in a humanoid enemy for three turns, making them attack the creature closest to them. – Costs one level two spell slot. |
| Level five | Darkness (Oath Spells) | – Create a cloud of magical darkness that Heavily Obscures and Blinds creatures. A creature inside this darkness cannot make ranged attacks into or out of it. – Requires an Action ‘- Costs a level two spell slot – Requires concentration |
| Level seven | Aura of Hate (Subclass Feature) | – You and any nearby fiends (and undead) gain an additional two to damage dealt with melee weapons. |
| Level nine | Bestow Curse (Oath Spells) | – Curse a creature at melee range – Costs one level three spell slot. |
| Level nine | Animate Dead (Oath Spells) | – Create an undead servant from a medium or small corpse. – Requires one level three spell slot. |
What to grab for Oathbreaker levels 11 and 12 in Baldur’s Gate 3
As there aren’t too many level three spells worth taking after this point, you will want to multiclass and select Fighter abilities for Levels 11 and 12 as you will gain plus one Armour Class (AC) and Action Surge, which means you can get another action on that turn, by investing the two levels into Fighter in the following ways. However, another favorite for many players is to go into Warlock or Bard, as these are two spellcasting classes that use the Charisma spell modifier.
These are some choices if you go into the Fighter class as an Oathbreaker Paladin for levels 11 and 12.
| Fighter Features | Description |
|---|---|
| Fighting Style (Defensive) | When you wear armor, you gain plus one to your Armor Class |
| Action Surge | You immediately gain an extra action this turn. |
These are the benefits you get for putting your last two levels in Bard as an Oathbreaker Paladin.
| Bard Features | Description |
|---|---|
| Bard Spellcasting & Bardic Inspiration | You gain access to Bard spells, and you can give another player Bardic Inspiration |
| Song of Rest & Jack of all Trades | You can give your party members a short rest without spending for one, and you get Jack of All Trades, which adds half of your Proficiency Bonuses to all ability checks that you are not proficient in |
Here are the benefits you get if you put y our final two levels in Warlock as an Oathbreaker Paladin.
| Warlock Features | Description |
|---|---|
| Pact Magic (choosing your Patron), two cantrips, and two spells | You get to choose what type of Warlock Patron you want to have, and you get access to some starting Warlock spells |
| You unlock two Eldritch Invocations, and another spell slot | You get to choose what type of Eldritch Invocations you want to have, which is the perfect time to improve your Eldritch Blast. |
Multiclassing is a little tricky at first. But for this Oathbreaker Paladin build and playstyle, having that extra action and an extra layer of defense will make you tankier, and it means you can either go for another damaging attack, a CC ability, or even a heal. There have been countless times when I’ve been on the fence about whether to attack or use a CC ability, but with Action Surge, you can get the best of both worlds.
Expanding beyond only Fighter, going with Bard and Warlock gives you additional versatility. You can access more spell slots, and magical talents you only sometimes get as a Paladin. More players for Baldur’s Gate 3 typically lean toward Warlock as an Oathbreaker Paladin, as it adds even more deadly spells to their arsenal.
If multiclassing sounds too daunting, you can keep to the strict Paladin build and take Bestow Curse and Great Weapon Master or get the plus-two bonus to your Strength. Both options are excellent, and the best one for you will depend on your preferences and playstyle. And if you don’t like it, you can always see Withers at your camp and respec.
Best spells for Oathbreaker Paladin in Baldur’s Gate 3
As an Oathbreaker Paladin, your new abilities will alter your playstyle from a support/tank hybrid to more of an upfront damage dealer and necromancer. That being said, here are some of the best spells to take as an Oathbreaker Paladin:
| Best Oathbreaker Spells | Description |
|---|---|
| Bless | Grants three creatures, including yourself if you choose, a 1d4 bonus to attack rolls and saving throws. |
| Compelled Duel | Use this effectively as a taunt, turning enemies away from the spongier companions and toward you and all your damage dealing. |
| Cure Wounds | With less healing available after your Oath Charges are replaced, a heal secondary to Lay on Hands is good. |
| Heroism | Grant an ally five temporary points of health per turn, up to a possible 10 turns. |
| Protection from Good and Evil | Protect yourself or an ally from aberrations, celestials, elementals, fey, fiends, and undead. |
| Searing Smite and Thunderous Smite | These are great options for more formidable enemies, dealing extra damage and setting them on fire or potentially knocking them Prone. Since you will eventually get Dreadful Aspect, I would not recommend Wrathful Smite since you already have a built-in ability that causes fear. |
Best feats for Oathbreaker Paladin in Baldur’s Gate 3
The best feats for your Oathbreaker Paladin will offer specialized skills or passives that enhance your build, and these are the best ones to take at each level:
- At level four, take the Ability Improvement feat and get your Charisma up to 18. If it’s already at 17, spend the other point from this feat on Strength.
- At level eight, take the Great Weapon Master feat. This allows you to make a bonus attack if you land a critical hit or kill an enemy during that turn. Additionally, you can deal a bonus of 10 damage at the cost of -5 to your attack roll.
- At level 12, choose the Charger feat, allowing you to gain Charger: Weapon Attack and Charger: Shove, which are great tools for starting fights. Alternatively, you can use Ability Improvement again to increase your Charisma to 20 or your Strength.
Best Illithid Powers for Oathbreaker Paladins in BG3
You should embrace your Illithid Powers as an Oathbreaker Paladin in BG3 and take Luck of the Far Realms, Psionic Backlash, Ability Drain, Repulsor, and Cull the Weak.
| Illith Power | Type | Description | Pre-requisite |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luck of the Far Realm | Reaction | When you land a successful Attack Roll against an enemy, you can change that hit into a Critical Hit. Requires a Long Rest | Favorable Beginnings |
| Psionic Backlash | Reaction | If an enemy within nine meters of you casts a spell, you can use this reaction to Psychic damage to the caster, depending on the spell’s level. | Concentrated Blast |
| Ability Drain | Feature | Once every turn, when you make an Attack, it will lower that target’s ability by one, and the reduced ability will be the same one used to make the Attack. So, for melee weapons, this is generally Strength; ranged weapons use Dexterity and your Spellcasting Ability for your spells. | Psionic Overload |
| Repulsor | Action | You can push your enemies back six meters and deal between two and 12 damage. | Force Tunnel |
| Cull the Weak | Feature | If you can bring down an opponent to the point that their hit points are lower than your number of evolved Illithid Powers, it will die, and all nearby enemies will take between one and four Psychic damage. | Concentrated Blast |
Embracing your Illithid Powers is a personal preference choice in Baldur’s Gate 3. However, if you’re already breaking your Paladin oath, you should also consider consuming the tadpoles and obtaining these Illithid Powers. I multiclassed into Fighter for my last two levels, and with Action Surge, having that extra action during a turn can be game-changing.
There were moments when enemies surrounded me, and while I wanted to attack, I also wanted to either heal or get out of melee range. But because they will automatically attack, it’s not worth it. So, by using a healing ability and then Repulsor, I could get more breathing room and survive a little longer.
If you don’t plan on sticking to the Oathbreaker subclass and want to regain your oath, you may not want to embrace the Illithid Powers. However, they work for every class you play, and they’re difficult to turn away from. There are some story-based choices about them as you reach the end of the game, but they don’t force certain decisions for you and your party members.
Being an Oathbreaker Paladin offers many rewards and a unique gameplay style that may not suit everyone. Still, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.
Read the full article here