I accidentally created the ultimate Baldur’s Gate 3 party.
I accidentally created the ultimate Baldur's Gate 3 party.
Who says you need a power gamer to have a strong team? Not me! My Baldur’s Gate 3 party is rocking it, and I honestly think it might be the best combination of characters ever assembled. Forget about the min-maxing madness, because what I’ve created is pure gold.
Let’s start with my bard. I’ve already raved about why your first Baldur’s Gate 3 playthrough should be a bard, and let me tell you, I stand by it. With their bafflingly high Charisma and the versatile Jack of All Trades skill, they can talk their way out of almost any trouble. But that’s not all! Bardic Inspiration boosts ally dice rolls, and Song of Rest heals the whole team. And to make my silver tongue shine even brighter, I chose the Dark Elf race for an extra deception boost. I’m lying my way straight to Baldur’s Gate!
But the real secret sauce of my team is the cleric. Shadowheart, my cleric companion, has the strongest cantrip in the game: Guidance. It gives an extra 1-4 points to pretty much every major dice roll. So when I need to tell a whopper of a lie, a tap on the shoulder from Shadowheart ensures my bard can do it with confidence. She’s not just a support class though, she packs some potent holy magic and can swing a mean mace in a fight.
Shadowheart also pairs up perfectly with Astarion, my rogue. Guidance boosts his lockpicking and pickpocketing, just like it boosts my deception and persuasion. With Shadowheart’s Pass Without Trace skill, Astarion’s stealth reaches new heights, making it easier for us to slip through the shadows unnoticed.
Now let’s talk party time.
Listen, I’m not sharing these fancy synergies just to show off. Sure, a bard and cleric combo can work with any other character, but it’s more than that. It opens up entirely different ways to approach the game. You can use your speech skills to befriend or manipulate both friends and foes, revealing unique parts of the game that can be easily missed if you rely solely on your blade. Stealth is another game-changer. Picking locks, sliding back into the safety of shadows unnoticed—it’s a whole new way of playing. Having party members who support these different approaches means we’re less likely to accidentally resort to violence.
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My party isn’t complete without the muscle, though. Meet Karlach, the Big Guns—a tiefling barbarian with a demonic motor where her heart should be and a massive zweihander in hand. She’s a frontline warrior who keeps my bard from getting skewered by every goblin we come across. The Sword Coast is a violent place, and sometimes talking our way out of trouble isn’t an option. Karlach is our necessity, and also one of my favorite characters. Despite her traumatic past, she revels in the fact that she’s moved on. That resilient spirit makes her my top pick.
But Karlach is just one thread in the beautifully woven narrative tapestry of this game. Shadowheart’s mysterious connection with her goddess, Astarion’s vampiric past, Lae’zel’s captivating Githyanki side-quest, and Gale’s potential to bind the entire game together—they all contribute to the magic of Baldur’s Gate 3. They may not be long-term companions, but their presence adds a whole lot of fun to our adventures.
I didn’t set out to create the perfect team in Baldur’s Gate 3, but what I’ve stumbled upon is pretty darn strong. It’s not just about combat optimization; it’s about interesting ways to play the entire game, depending on how I want to roleplay in the moment. Sneaky? No problem. Talk my way out of trouble? Absolutely. Ready to rumble? Karlach is always up for some action. And with interconnected stories and characters who feel invested in each other, I wouldn’t change a thing about my non-optimal, but incredibly enjoyable game experience.
