What are the best feats for a Paladin in Baldur's Gate 3?
When building a Paladin in Baldur's Gate 3, choosing the right feats is crucial to maximizing your character's effectiveness in combat, roleplay, and exploration. Paladins are versatile characters, excelling in both melee combat and support roles, thanks to their divine smites, healing abilities, and auras. Feats can enhance these strengths or cover weaknesses, depending on your playstyle and party composition. Below is a detailed guide on the best feats for a Paladin, including mechanics, strategies, and considerations.
First, let's discuss the mechanics of feats in Baldur's Gate 3. Feats are special abilities or bonuses that you can choose instead of increasing your ability scores when you reach certain levels (4th, 8th, 12th, etc.). Each feat offers unique benefits, such as improving combat effectiveness, granting new abilities, or enhancing survivability. For Paladins, feats can complement their divine smites, improve their tanking capabilities, or provide utility in and out of combat.
One of the best feats for a Paladin is Great Weapon Master. This feat allows you to take a -5 penalty to your attack roll in exchange for a +10 bonus to damage when using a heavy weapon. Given that Paladins often wield two-handed weapons like greatswords or greataxes, this feat can significantly increase their damage output. Additionally, if you score a critical hit or reduce an enemy to 0 hit points, you can make an additional melee attack as a bonus action. This synergizes well with the Paladin's divine smite, allowing you to deal massive burst damage in a single turn. To maximize this feat, ensure you have a high Strength score and consider using spells like Bless to offset the attack roll penalty.
Another excellent feat for Paladins is Sentinel. This feat enhances your ability to control the battlefield and protect your allies. Sentinel allows you to make opportunity attacks even if the enemy disengages, and when you hit a creature with an opportunity attack, its speed drops to 0 for the rest of its turn. Additionally, if a creature within 5 feet of you attacks someone other than you, you can use your reaction to make a melee attack against that creature. This makes Sentinel ideal for tanky Paladins who want to protect their party members and lock down enemies. Pair this with your Paladin's Aura of Protection to further bolster your allies' defenses.
For Paladins who want to improve their survivability, the Tough feat is a strong choice. This feat increases your hit point maximum by an amount equal to twice your level when you take it, and every time you gain a level thereafter, your hit point maximum increases by an additional 2. This makes you significantly more durable, allowing you to stay in the front lines longer and absorb more damage for your party. Combined with your Lay on Hands ability, Tough can make you nearly unkillable in prolonged battles.
If you prefer a more balanced approach, consider the Ability Score Improvement feat. Increasing your Strength or Charisma can have significant benefits. Strength improves your attack rolls and damage, while Charisma enhances your spellcasting, aura effects, and social interactions. A high Charisma score is particularly important for Paladins, as it boosts the saving throw bonuses provided by your Aura of Protection, making your entire party more resilient against spells and effects.
For Paladins who want to focus on spellcasting and support, the War Caster feat is invaluable. This feat allows you to perform somatic components of spells even when your hands are full, which is useful if you're wielding a shield and weapon. Additionally, War Caster gives you advantage on Constitution saving throws to maintain concentration on spells, ensuring that your buffs like Bless or Shield of Faith stay active during combat. Finally, War Caster lets you cast a spell as an opportunity attack, which can be devastating when combined with spells like Hold Person or Command.
When choosing feats, it's important to consider your party composition and playstyle. If your party lacks a dedicated tank, feats like Sentinel and Tough can make you a more effective protector. If your party needs more damage output, Great Weapon Master can turn you into a devastating melee combatant. For a more balanced approach, Ability Score Improvement or War Caster can enhance your versatility.
Common mistakes to avoid include neglecting your Charisma score, as it directly impacts your aura and spellcasting abilities. Additionally, avoid spreading your ability scores too thin; focus on Strength and Charisma, with enough Constitution to stay alive. Another mistake is choosing feats that don't synergize with your playstyle. For example, if you prefer to use a sword and shield, Great Weapon Master may not be the best choice.
Advanced techniques include multiclassing with other classes like Sorcerer or Warlock to gain additional spell slots for divine smites or to enhance your spellcasting capabilities. However, this requires careful planning to ensure you don't lose out on important Paladin features like Aura of Protection or Improved Divine Smite.
In summary, the best feats for a Paladin in Baldur's Gate 3 depend on your desired role in the party. Great Weapon Master is ideal for damage-focused builds, Sentinel enhances battlefield control, Tough improves survivability, and War Caster supports spellcasting. Always consider your party's needs and your playstyle when selecting feats, and avoid common pitfalls like neglecting Charisma or choosing incompatible feats. With the right feats, your Paladin can become a formidable force on the battlefield, capable of both dealing and absorbing massive amounts of damage while supporting your allies.
First, let's discuss the mechanics of feats in Baldur's Gate 3. Feats are special abilities or bonuses that you can choose instead of increasing your ability scores when you reach certain levels (4th, 8th, 12th, etc.). Each feat offers unique benefits, such as improving combat effectiveness, granting new abilities, or enhancing survivability. For Paladins, feats can complement their divine smites, improve their tanking capabilities, or provide utility in and out of combat.
One of the best feats for a Paladin is Great Weapon Master. This feat allows you to take a -5 penalty to your attack roll in exchange for a +10 bonus to damage when using a heavy weapon. Given that Paladins often wield two-handed weapons like greatswords or greataxes, this feat can significantly increase their damage output. Additionally, if you score a critical hit or reduce an enemy to 0 hit points, you can make an additional melee attack as a bonus action. This synergizes well with the Paladin's divine smite, allowing you to deal massive burst damage in a single turn. To maximize this feat, ensure you have a high Strength score and consider using spells like Bless to offset the attack roll penalty.
Another excellent feat for Paladins is Sentinel. This feat enhances your ability to control the battlefield and protect your allies. Sentinel allows you to make opportunity attacks even if the enemy disengages, and when you hit a creature with an opportunity attack, its speed drops to 0 for the rest of its turn. Additionally, if a creature within 5 feet of you attacks someone other than you, you can use your reaction to make a melee attack against that creature. This makes Sentinel ideal for tanky Paladins who want to protect their party members and lock down enemies. Pair this with your Paladin's Aura of Protection to further bolster your allies' defenses.
For Paladins who want to improve their survivability, the Tough feat is a strong choice. This feat increases your hit point maximum by an amount equal to twice your level when you take it, and every time you gain a level thereafter, your hit point maximum increases by an additional 2. This makes you significantly more durable, allowing you to stay in the front lines longer and absorb more damage for your party. Combined with your Lay on Hands ability, Tough can make you nearly unkillable in prolonged battles.
If you prefer a more balanced approach, consider the Ability Score Improvement feat. Increasing your Strength or Charisma can have significant benefits. Strength improves your attack rolls and damage, while Charisma enhances your spellcasting, aura effects, and social interactions. A high Charisma score is particularly important for Paladins, as it boosts the saving throw bonuses provided by your Aura of Protection, making your entire party more resilient against spells and effects.
For Paladins who want to focus on spellcasting and support, the War Caster feat is invaluable. This feat allows you to perform somatic components of spells even when your hands are full, which is useful if you're wielding a shield and weapon. Additionally, War Caster gives you advantage on Constitution saving throws to maintain concentration on spells, ensuring that your buffs like Bless or Shield of Faith stay active during combat. Finally, War Caster lets you cast a spell as an opportunity attack, which can be devastating when combined with spells like Hold Person or Command.
When choosing feats, it's important to consider your party composition and playstyle. If your party lacks a dedicated tank, feats like Sentinel and Tough can make you a more effective protector. If your party needs more damage output, Great Weapon Master can turn you into a devastating melee combatant. For a more balanced approach, Ability Score Improvement or War Caster can enhance your versatility.
Common mistakes to avoid include neglecting your Charisma score, as it directly impacts your aura and spellcasting abilities. Additionally, avoid spreading your ability scores too thin; focus on Strength and Charisma, with enough Constitution to stay alive. Another mistake is choosing feats that don't synergize with your playstyle. For example, if you prefer to use a sword and shield, Great Weapon Master may not be the best choice.
Advanced techniques include multiclassing with other classes like Sorcerer or Warlock to gain additional spell slots for divine smites or to enhance your spellcasting capabilities. However, this requires careful planning to ensure you don't lose out on important Paladin features like Aura of Protection or Improved Divine Smite.
In summary, the best feats for a Paladin in Baldur's Gate 3 depend on your desired role in the party. Great Weapon Master is ideal for damage-focused builds, Sentinel enhances battlefield control, Tough improves survivability, and War Caster supports spellcasting. Always consider your party's needs and your playstyle when selecting feats, and avoid common pitfalls like neglecting Charisma or choosing incompatible feats. With the right feats, your Paladin can become a formidable force on the battlefield, capable of both dealing and absorbing massive amounts of damage while supporting your allies.