With so many options for character creation in Baldur’s Gate 3, it’s easy to forget some of them. It’s hard to decide what’s worst or best when you have everything available. It’s all about categorizing what you want from a character at the end of the day. No matter what race you pick, every race has its own strengths and weaknesses; and classes best suited to them.
By picking your race, you’ll add their skills, abilities, and cultures to your class. Thus, you’ll want to customize your classes according to the race itself, creating new and exciting possibilities. There’s a clear ranking of how useful each race is when it comes to magic, combat, and utility, despite the openness of any play style. Sword Coasters weren’t all born equal, but hopefully, you’ll be above the margin!
Think about how easy it will be to move around the world and on the battlefield when ranking these races. Considering magic and skills when starting out is important since the early game and the late game are huge when it comes to your race. There are some races that are extremely strong in the early game but fall off as the game progresses, especially with some starting abilities. There’s one more really important thing to keep in mind: how does each race interact with others?
Low End – Challenging Races
The low end of the spectrum includes the first four races on this list, being both challenging to play and limited in what they offer the player. Keep in mind this doesn’t make them innately terrible at particular play styles but rather limited to those roles unless you want to make it more difficult.
Drow- limiting and Simple
Despite being one of the best races for rogues and monks, the Drow fall off a lot in later games. Considering their dark vision and fey ancestry, their ability to cast spells like dancing lights seems pretty useless. These traits make them a great class for combat, but there isn’t much else to say about their magical abilities.
Unlike the normal elves of Baldur’s Gate 3, there are only two subclasses that a Drow can go down to. These neither affect what abilities or magic you obtain nor grant you any additional skills or proficiencies. Instead, these subclasses dictate how you will interact with other NPCs in your game, being part of the evil tribe, or the more open and peaceful one. To this end, there is one outstanding flaw with the Drow compared to many other races, racism against them is widespread and common.
Drow
Despite this, they make excellent rogues and warlocks due to their naturally stealthy demeanor. They lack any real weapon proficiency that makes them viable outside of any other classes. When mixed with the monk or fighter class they become incredibly potent and use these simple weapon bonuses to the max. Finally, Drow make excellent spellcasters like wizards and clerics due to their natural stealth allowing them to disengage
Half-Elf – The Odd One Out
There’s nothing particularly wrong with the half-elf race as they have access to some of the features of both elves and humans. Unfortunately, due to the nature of them being both sides, they lack the strong characteristics of one or the other. Being a part of two mediocre races to begin with isn’t going to set you on a good path, but the lack of subraces, and race specializations make them hard to get around.
What’s great about half-elves is they are able to get the dark vision, fey ancestry, and cantrip of the elf race along with civil militia bonuses. This means early on the half-elf can be surprisingly decent at defending themselves. However, look at Shadowheart for why this has flaws. On paper, Half-elves are a great class for beginners who want magic, but fall short late game, relying on their class more than a 1d8 firebolt. Like the Elf, they can trade in this firebolt for a more potent spell like Friends or Truestrike, but they lose a fighting spell in the process.
Half-Elf
Half-elves can uniquely fit into any class, taking this from their human parents as a versatile adventurer. They are for the most part free of the racism and social constructs of most races but exist as an outsider. Perhaps because of this, half-elves tend to be one of the more common travelers among NPCs, and can be found everywhere in Baldur’s Gate 3. One of the first companions, Shadowheart, is a half-elf who uses her magic to great effect early on. The problem lies in that half-elves fall short of their prospective parents’ natural race, and instead live with the minor bonuses of both.
Gnome – Social Butterflies
The Gnome race is an interesting pick for the bottom tier due to the fact they are both useful in social situations with their craftiness and general charm. However, they are absolutely awful in any form of dangerous situation, and in most cases are a liability. Their issue lies in the fact that gnomes are small creatures and move slowly. Because of it, they can’t get out of their own way in a conflict or out of range. Instead, they rely on hiding or using nature to their advantage since they get absolutely no combat bonuses.
While everything combative is terrible about the Gnomes, they have great social skills and intelligence. Because of their Gnome Cunning, they can deal with anything intelligence-related easily, and they have three subraces to choose from. As a forest variant, gnomes can speak to animals, which makes them really good at gathering info. Apart from that, they have dark vision and a tendency to hide, which makes them great at staying out of trouble if they prepare.
Gnome
The best class for a gnome is undoubtedly either a rogue or a bard. These classes allow the Gnome to thrive as a social butterfly, and gather as much information from others as possible. Another route for Gnomes is the druid class which can allow them to make up for a lot of their shortcomings in battle via a wild shape. Just remember that no matter what you pick, you have limited mobility making melee combat a problem for gnomes in general.
Halfling – Scouts Galore
Halflings are the top of the bottom tier races in BG3 for a lot of the same reasons as the Gnome. While they are phenomenal scouts and social interaction characters, they fall short in combat. Fortunately, these shortcomings are slightly negated by some of their innate bonuses. However, due to being small they are both terrible at movement speed and at actually reaching an opponent. Halflings are, however, one of the best small races in Baldurs Gate for a number of reasons.
For one, the Halfling race receives two unique bonuses, that of Lucky and Brave: giving them an advantage on attack rolls and saving throws. Additionally, they have the advantage of being frightened, making them ideal for hostile enemy types. This can be furthered by their two subraces which grant them either the ability to have stealth bonuses or to resist venom disease and poison. This makes halflings incredibly potent in a number of roles including ranged attackers.
Halfling
Halflings are uniquely good for being rangers, rogues, and bards. They have great proficiency in nature and can be found all across the world for this reason. They are natural survivors who while terrible at combat can scope out a dungeon quite easily. As a ranged combatant or spell caster they can shine by taking a back seat to the fighter or barbarian in the party. Just remember that no matter what, your Halfling is not a tank, and will die quickly if caught by the enemy.
Mid Tier Races
Mid-tier races are those who can easily be in any party; generally having a good mix of skills and magical abilities. They aren’t the best races in the game, however, they are not choices that restrict you in combat or choices. Most of these races excel in combat or social interactions and can be played in any class save for a few shortcomings.
Elf – Innate Spellcasters
The best reason to pick an elf is because of the innate magic that allows them to excel early on. However, they receive no armor proficiency, making them potentially hard to keep alive. They have two subclasses that limit them to a dancing light spell or a firebolt cantrip. Some races are racist to true elves because they’re seen as too good or snooty. Once their magic is countered, an elf becomes just like a human, just without falling asleep.
Elf
Elves gain the unique weapon proficiency of the long sword and longbow making them great in a fighter context. They additionally have dark vision, fet ancestry, and high elf magic such as the firebolt to incinerate enemies early on. Besides this, they have many other useful cantrips like Friends, or Truestrike which can follow you into the late game. Their highest bonus though is by far the movement speed bonus they have as natural elves can move up to 10.5 feet per turn, faster than any other race naturally. This speed bonus makes them ideal for any class, but as fighters, sorcerers, and rogues they excel like few others.
The best classes to play with elves are spellcasters, rangers, and rogues. Both options leave the elf to their natural advantages since they don’t take much damage. With a bow in hand or magic at their beckoning call, a true elf can be scary. You should consider the elf whenever you want a high-damage glass cannon in Baldur’s Gate 3!
Half-Orc – Natural Soldiers
Perhaps it’s no surprise, but half-orcs are phenomenal close-range combatants. That being said, the half-orc has several underlying issues with its build structure. For one it has no subraces making it extremely limited. This limitation forces the half-orc into a melee play style that takes away from anything else you could play. For instance, a half-orc spell caster will always be weaker than a half-orc barbarian or fighter. In this sense, the only real flaw with the character is the many limitations forcing it into a melee role.
Half-Orc
For advantages, the Half-Orc has some of the best melee bonuses of any race. With dark vision and endurance, they can see into the dark places, and survive with an additional five hit points if brought down to zero. Their savage attacks make them ideal for high damage rewards on enemies who have high AC. They are practically designed to take on evasive opponents, making short work of them with equal speed and brutality.
In their martial singularity, the Half-Orc race fits best into a fighter, barbarian, or paladin role. Intensely versatile martial combatants, they can use any weapon to savage effect. Make spell casters stronger in martial combat by buffing them like a cleric or warlock. Regardless, it’s a shame we don’t get to see the half-orc in another role.
Human – The Jack of All Trades
While human adventurers might seem like a generic and boring class to play, they have several benefits that can make them a valid play style. Though there are many downsides to choosing a human, such as no subraces, or magical bonuses innately. They also only gain basic proficiency in items, so they’re good for early games but can be tough to play through mid to late games. Humans have one important weakness: they’re generalized, being whatever their class makes them.
Human
The human race has a number of advantages over some of their magic counterparts, including the civil militia perk which grants proficiency in light armor, shields, and simple weapons. Additionally, humans gain an additional skill proficiency of their choice which makes them highly versatile for any play style. Finally, they get a quarter more carry weight than other races, making them natural traders and scavengers. Humans are also among the easiest of classes to find around Baldurs Gate, having a numerical advantage over other races.
The best class for a human is anything that thrives on skills and talents. They make some of the best fighters, bards, rogues, and wizards of any race because of this. Human characters can fill nearly any role, and thrive in whatever specialization you choose to build them in. Really the only thing that makes this race so generalized to use is that they lack any real magic abilities to support their efforts. In lieu of this, when times are tough, it is the human race more than any other that will find a way out of the hole they’re thrown into.
Dwarf – Miner Supreme
The dwarf race in Baldur’s Gate 3 offers some of the most unique bonuses and disadvantages of any small race. While being able to fight, their small size makes them slow to reach an opponent, and hard to traverse a battlefield. However, with their limited reach comes extreme racism that can be found throughout the Sword Coast. For whatever reason, the land just does not like dwarf culture and actively goes against it. Despite this, the dwarf race can be one of the best playthroughs of any of the smaller-sized creatures when it comes to experiencing both the surface and the under-dark.
Dwarf
Dwarf culture sports a love for all things axes, hammers, and mining equipment along with light and medium armor. For this reason, they are natural combatants, using their dark vision and natural resistance to avoid poison during their struggles. They are used to mining and traversing the dark caves of the Sword Coast, making them extremely durable people who thrive in most conditions. Finally, they have three unique subraces with great abilities to personalize your playthrough.
Dwarves are natural fighters and can withstand the rest of any long-term struggle. They’re not great at moving around a battlefield, but they’re great at tanking stuff. Fighters, paladins, clerics, and rangers are the best classes for dwarfs because they’re all combat-oriented. Heavy damage weapons like hammers and axes will keep your dwarf comparable until the end of the game. All and all, making the dwarf the pinnacle of general-purpose races!
High Tier Races (Best)
There are three races that have overcome any of the obstacles of the previous eight. Being great at combat and having unique abilities to serve alongside them. They are more than capable of being not only a combatant but have skills that make them helpful to the party themselves. Keeping this in mind, they are objectively the best three options for any play style!
Dragonborn
Dragonborn – Elemental Fury
As far as starting off your play style goes, Dragonborn sacrifice proficiency and skill bonuses for elemental ones. Therefore, dragonborns seem weaker than other races because they don’t have innate combat or magic abilities. To make up for this, they need to be paired well with the things they’re lacking in their class. Luckily, due to the fact that they are a man-shaped dragon, this doesn’t typically seem to be an issue.
The bonuses Dragonborn gains are twofold, being tied to the color they are born into. The first is an elemental breath weapon that can range in elements according to their color. A red dragon is breathing fire, while a black dragon has acid. The other bonus comes from a natural resistance to these elements within your color, making you naturally able to withstand them. These bonuses are incredibly potent in any class, making you able to survive environments others can’t.
A dragonborn can also be put in any class, such as a fighter with a magical breath weapon, or a spellcaster with magical resistance. Whatever you choose, the Dragonborn will be a front-line elemental shield against whatever the party needs. In addition, you’re a man-sized dragon, which is intimidating to most NPCs. With this in mind, you won’t find much in the way of racism against your dragonborn character.
Tieflings
Tiefling – Hell of a Ride
Perhaps one of the most adored races for most players, the Tiefling is a powerful choice with an aesthetic purpose in mind. Their drawbacks come in the form of having no added proficiencies which makes them similar to the Dragonborn in nature. Additionally, they suffer from extreme racism against them and have subraces that can directly conflict with the story of Baldur’s Gate 3‘s main cast. If one plays as Zariel’s Tiefling type, they lose out on much of Karlack’s storyline dialogue as she refuses to trust you.
Despite this, the Tiefling has many prime advantages including natural fire resistance and dark vision. Additionally, they have 3 subraces that can offer potent magical and skill bonuses depending on what you choose. Finally, their infernal ancestry gives them especially potent knowledge of hell along with demons and devils. Because of this, they are perfect for identifying the plots of such creatures, making them a great choice for paladins or clerics.
Despite their infernal backgrounds, Tieflings are perfect clerics, paladins, and fighters given their natural resistance to fire and infernal creatures. Additionally, they have access to a wide variety of spell-casting options given their infernal ancestry, making them a great choice for characters. Additionally, if you want to romance characters like Karlack, you have natural fire resistance in order to do so.
-source IGN
Githyanki – Astral Warriors
It’s hard to beat the Githyanki in Baldur’s Gate 3 for a variety of reasons, but they do have a few drawbacks. Githyanki is as racist against others as they are of them, coming from a militaristic culture. Among the playable races, they’re the most evil, so they value strong over weak. There’s a cult-like following for their queen in this warrior-like society, so outsiders are distrusted. Since they come from a realm outside the material plane, they distrust other races and see themselves as superior.
Despite all of those flaws, the Githyanki have some of the most potent abilities in Baldur’s Gate III. For instance, the Githyanki have natural proficiency with any sword-like weapon, along with light and medium armor. They can naturally cast mage hand and later in the game will gain the ability to leap further and use misty step. Githyanki are natural telepaths who, with their astral knowledge perk, gain a five on any skill bonus once a day. This skill bonus makes their race one of the most potent in the game and compares to a higher-level version of the third-level enhanced ability spell.
Githyanki plays best as fighters and spellcasters, having rather terrible social abilities. They are outsiders to his plane, however, they have a keen knowledge of the astral planes. Because of this, the Githyanki are one of the best races to pick for a combatant who wants to traverse the battlefield without wasting too many spell slots. Keep in mind however that they are the most hated race in Baldur’s Gate 3, and their military-like culture is a dangerous one.
Githyanki are objectively the best race in the game with their psionics and natural militant culture
