Baldur’s Gate 3 is getting an impressive amount of new content with the upcoming Patch 8. This includes: 12 new subclasses. MeinMMO compares the new classes in the ranking.
What are these new classes? The 12 new subclasses from Patch 8 are all existing classes from the standard rule set or official supplementary rules of Dungeons & Dragons – mainly from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything and Xanathar’s Guide to Everything.
These are “specializations” of the already existing classes. Each of the 12 classes receives a new subclass, and depending on the foundation, you’ll choose the new options either during character creation or later while leveling up.
This is how we ranked: The current ranking is primarily based on assessments from the MeinMMO editorial team, which includes many D&D nerds who have been playing for years. We also looked at reports from the current tests.
Patch 8 was accidentally released too early, but may be adjusted before the official release. Therefore, the list reflects the current state.
Rank 12: Bard – College of Glamour
Although Bards are the best class in the game, the College of Glamour has almost no useful applications. In theory, it sounds cool to harness the power of the fey to bring stories to life and play with emotions. In practice, however, you fall behind almost everything.
In terms of charisma, all other bards are just as good. Your distinguishing feature as a Bard of Glamour is control and protection spells – which any other supporter can cast much better. Our tip: It’s better to play a Knowledge Bard and bring a Druid, Cleric, or Paladin into the group.
Rank 11: Fighter – Arcane Archer
Fighters are the absolute all-rounders in Baldur’s Gate 3, like the Swiss Army knife of classes. One of the reasons why Fighters are the best class for beginners in Baldur’s Gate 3.
The Arcane Archer, however, stands out from the standard builds. Instead of focusing on strength and melee, the archer relies on dexterity and ranged combat as well as magical arrows. This makes them somewhat like a Ranger or Rogue, but worse. And Rangers are only strong in absolute niches.
The only application of the Arcane Archer is: You have no other spellcaster in the group and do not want to play a melee fighter. For everything else, the advantages are too limited to specific situations.
Rank 10: Wizard – Bladesinging
The classic case of: “Sounds cool, doesn’t work.” Bladesinging Wizards combine agile fighters and spellcasters in one: they are acrobatic, skilled with melee weapons, and can still cast spells.
However, you end up being neither one nor the other. Wizards have armor from mage armor anyway, and your bladesinging, which allows you to actually achieve something in melee, recharges only after a long rest.
If you really want to play a spellcaster who is also useful in melee, it’s better to play a Bard. They can sing better anyway. The only exception is if you’re otherwise lacking an Intelligence character.
