On the second birthday of Baldur’s Gate 3, Larian released some statistics. Among them: Which companions have been “respecced” the most and which classes are the most popular. By far, the most affected is Shadowheart, and for good reason.
Who exactly is Shadowheart?
- You meet Shadowheart already in the prologue of Baldur’s Gate 3 as one of the first companions in the game, alongside Lae’zel. She is one of the most important characters in the story.
- In an early statistic, Larian revealed that Shadowheart is the most popular romance in the game with over 51% (on X) – which is likely still the case.
- Although Shadowheart is so popular, many players apparently struggle with her class.
Here are the statistics: In an overview, Larian revealed some interesting numbers about Baldur’s Gate 3, including that 4,600 players completed the Honor Mode at level 1 – a crazy achievement.
Also in the post is a statistic about the companions, specifically: who had to see Lazarus the most to change their class. By a large margin, Shadowheart is in first place:
- Shadowheart was forced to respec 4.89 million times
- Wyll only 1.4 million times
- and Gale, in third place, had to change his class 680,000 times
Larian does not disclose how exactly Shadowheart was adjusted. So it is possible that players only needed to make minor adjustments, such as reallocating stats. However, there is another statistic regarding subclasses.
Here, Larian reveals that Shadowheart was made into a Cleric of the Life Domain almost as often as into a Cleric of the Death Domain, which was newly introduced with Patch 8. A striking difference, but fitting, as the devs believe.
The Problem of Clerics: Gameplay Over Story
That Shadowheart has to change the most is not necessarily surprising. Clerics are one of the strongest classes in the game, but also the least popular. Additionally, their specialization is particularly weak.
Compared to all other clerics, Clerics of the Trickery Domain are only in the B tier of the best classes in Baldur’s Gate 3. Most other domains are significantly stronger, and especially in Tactical or Honor mode, you need every strength you can get.
Even though Shadowheart may be at home in the story and through her dark goddess in the Trickery Domain, she has more advantages for the group in other domains when it comes to pure combat power.
In some cases, it is even advisable to completely divert her from her path as a cleric. A popular class for Shadowheart is, for example, the Bard, as is often read on Reddit – she then remains in a support role but is stronger. Especially since experts know that you can do without a healer: Baldur’s Gate 3: If you still have a healer with you, you’re making a big mistake
