The Oathbreaker is a unique build for the Paladin in Baldur’s Gate 3, as it is not available by default. The Paladin class is well-known for being holy warriors and righteous knights who protect the masses from forces of evil. They serve a deity like a Cleric does but have the martial prowess of the Fighter class. At level 3, a Paladin takes an oath for their god and gets powers in return. Those who break their oaths become Oathbreakers.
This is perfect for people who want to play an evil character but do not want to play as a Warlock. You can start your Oathbreaker build in earnest when you get to select your subclass at level 2.
Is Oathbreaker Paladin any good in BG3?
Oathbreaker is a hidden sub-class of Paladins who excels at dealing massive damage. This is the dark side of noble Paladins, and once you break your Oaths, you get the ability to summon and control the army of undead. They are also proficient with heavy armor, making them an absolute unit in the game.
However, the Oathbreaker build lacks good healing spells and needs a support cleric in their team all the time. They are also less proficient when it comes to handling situations outside the combat scenarios. Oathbreaker works like a charm when you multiclass it with Warlock (7/5).
Starting Abilities and Skills for Oathbreaker Paladin in BG3
You can choose any of the three subclasses from the Paladin Subclasses list at character creation. The only thing to remember is the specific oath your subclass takes and then break it somehow. For example, if a warrior with the Oath of Devotion build kills an innocent person without a valid reason, he will break the oath to protect the weak and pursue the greater good.
This will unlock the Oathbreaker class and allow the player to go further in subclass builds. The Oathbreaker Paladin primarily focuses on two abilities.
Strength: This is the main ability of the Paladin Class in general and remains the same for Oathbreaker.
Charisma: Charisma is the primary spellcasting ability for the Paladin. That will also be the same here since you need it to cast your Oathbreaker spells.
| Class | Paladin | – |
| Sub-Class | Oathbreaker | Select from any paladin sub-class and simply break the oath to unlock the Oathbreaker. |
| Race | Half-Orc or Dragonbron | Half-Orc is the best race for the Oathbreaker build in Baldur’s Gate 3. You get the Relentless Endurance trait that helps you regain one hit point after dropping to zero hit points once per long rest. Savage Attacks net you additional damage through critical melee hits. Darkvision is nothing short of a blessing in dark places. Another racial choice to consider is Dragonborn. With this race, you get to choose 12 sub-races, all having Fire Breath action. The Draconic Resistance feature makes you resistant to the corresponding element of the subclass. You also gain the Breath Weapon feature and Extra Resistance as a Dragonborn. |
| Ability Points Distribution | 16 STR, 16 CHA, 14 CON | Keep the rest at default values. |
| Skills | Athletics, Insight | – |
Best Background
The Noble Background will be the best choice for a Paladin’s Oathbreaker build. The Persuasion proficiency you receive from this background goes well with the Charisma ability. As an individual raised among the elites of society, you are respected by the people. This helps in dialogue scenarios.
Another decent choice would be Soldier. Its Intimidation and Athletics checks proficiencies will be phenomenal in fueling the aggressive behavior of Oathbreaker Paladin.
Best Feats for Oathbreaker Paladin Build in Baldur’s Gate 3
Feats are special talents (often passive) or areas of expertise that your character can unlock at certain levels. These levels are 4, 8, and 12 in Baldur’s Gate 3. At the same level that you can choose a feat, you also get the option to take an Ability Improvement instead. The latter allows you to increase any one ability score by two or two ability scores by one each. The only thing to remember is that you can only choose one of these.
| Level | Feat | Description |
| 4 | Ability Improvement | Invest both ability points into Strength to move it up to 18. |
| 8 | Great Weapon Master | This feat is mainly for us Oathbreakers, who will use heavy melee or two-handed weapons in combat. The main benefit of this feat is that when your melee weapon makes a critical attack or kills a creature, you can make another melee attack as a bonus action. |
| 12 | Defensive Duelist | When an enemy melee attacks you, the game will use your reaction to temporarily increase your AC by two. Doing that will also most likely make the melee attack of your enemy miss. The prerequisite is that you must use finesse weapons while also being proficient in them. |
Best Spells for Oathbreaker Paladin Build in Baldur’s Gate 3
Aside from being physically damage-dealing and melee weapon expert class, Paladins also tend to use a handful of spells in their combat and other scenarios. On top of that, they get Divine Smite, which deals 2d16 Radiant damage plus the damage inflicted by their melee weapon.
| Level | Spell | Description |
| 1 | Hellish Rebuke, Inflict Wounds, Shield of Faith | It is an always-prepared reaction spell. If someone attacks you, Hellish flames will surround them, dealing a delayed 2d10 Fire damage. Inflict wounds spell is used to deal 3d10 Necrotic damage to the targets in your melee range. Shield of Faith increases your character’s Armor Class by 2. |
| 2 | – | – |
| 3 | Elemental Weapon | Casting Elemental Weapon will add +1 to your Attack Rolls and deal an extra 1d4 damage of your choice. |
Best Armor and Weapons
The best gear options for our Oathbreaker build are as below.
Weapon: Sword of Justice – You can find this in the ruined house on the Risen Road. Kill Anders to get this weapon. Deals 3-13 slashing damage and provides you Tyr’s protection by increasing your AC by 2.
Boots: Boots of Speed – You can find these during the exploration at Underdark. Provide Click Heels class action that doubles your movement speed, and enemies have a disadvantage on their Opportunity rolls.
Armor: Adamantine Splint (heavy) Armor– You can get this chest piece at Grymforge during The Adamantine Forge quest. Taking the Defense fighting style while wearing this armor will increase your Armor Class to 20.
Helm: Haste Helm– You get momentum for three consecutive turns at the beginning of a combat.
Amulet: Amulet of Restoration– Provides Healing Word and Mass Healing Word spells.
Ring: Ring of Psionic Protection– Found in the Myconid Colony in the Underdark. Stops the Illithid parasite from growing further.
Oathbreaker Paladin Build Level Progression in Baldur’s Gate 3
| Level | Unlocks | Description |
| 1 | Race, Background, and Ability Points Distribution. | Select the ones we recommended above. |
| 2 | Break your Oath, Five prepared spells | Choose Divine Favor and Cure wounds to get some healing capabilities. |
| 3 | Additional Spell slot, Divine Health, Control Undead, and Dreadful Aspect sub-class actions. | The Divine Health feature prevents all diseases from affecting your character’s body. Control Undead feature allows you to control one undead creature per long rest. Dreadful Aspect allows you to frighten enemies for 2 turns. |
| 4 | The first Feat slot unlocks | Ability Improvement to increase your strength to 18. |
| 5 | Darkness and Branding Smite spells | Darkness creates a shroud around you that blinds the enemies in an 18m radius for 10 turns. Branding Smite deals additional 2d6 radiant damage to enemies and stops them from turning invisible. |
| 6 | Aura of Protection class action | You and your party get a bonus for all the saving throws. |
| 7 | Aura of Hate class action | You and your undead minion get bonus damage from melee attacks, which is equal to the Charisma modifier. |
| 8 | The second Feat unlocks | Great Weapon Master to get a bonus melee attack. |
| 9 | Level 3 spell slot | Choose Elemental Weapon and Crusader’s Mantle. |
| 10 | Aura of Courage class action | This feature prevents you and your party from getting frightened. |
| 11 | Improved Divine Smite class feature | Adds 1d8 radiant damage in addition to your melee weapon damage. |
| 12 | The final Feat unlocks | Defensive duelist to increase your armor class. |
