Baldur’s Gate 3: Guide of Leveling for Vengeance/Devotion Paladin

Game Guide

Baldur’s Gate 3: Leveling Guide for Vengeance/Devotion Paladin

Learn two excellent builds of Oath of Vengeance Paladin and Oath of Devotion in Baldur’s Gate 3, one focus on DPS and another for Tank/Support!

By Rodolfo Nogueira

translated by Rodolfo Nogueira

revised by Romeu

Champions of the Gods

The paladins, enveloped in the aura of nobility and justice, emerge from the epic tales as imposing and virtuous figures. With shimmering armor that reflects the light of hope, they embody courage and devotion in their quest for harmony.

Armed with gleaming swords and indestructible shields, these warriors advance fearlessly against the darkness that threatens to consume the world. Endowed with an unshakable moral code, these selfless heroes represent the balance between good and evil, tirelessly dedicating themselves to protecting the helpless and eradicating injustice.

Their legendary deeds echo like epic songs, inspiring generations to follow the path of virtue. In the hearts of epic tales, paladins shine as beacons of hope, symbolizing the eternal struggle for truth and justice.

Discover two different ways to leveling your character and understand how you can make the most of this class and its subclasses and oaths.

Oath of Vengeance

In the Baldur's Gate universe, the Oath of Vengeance paladins are knights dedicated to a code of ethics that prioritizes the relentless pursuit of justice through revenge. They oath to persecute those who commit evil acts, especially those who have caused personal harm to the innocent or themselves.

Guided by an unwavering sense of duty, these paladins don't hesitate to pursue their targets, even when faced with formidable challenges. With godlike abilities and unparalleled tenacity, they become instruments of reckoning, bringing the light of punishment to those who deserve it. This class is notable for their tireless dedication and ability to become true agents of justice aligned with the ideals of vengeance they swore to follow.

Gameplay - DPS

For those who will play in a group and need a versatile DPS with good mobility for the group, this paladin subclass is ideal. It focuses on excellent spells and abilities to deal high damage to a single target, in addition to exploiting their weaknesses and debuff spells.

Abusing the use of two-handed weapons, heavy armor to compensate for the absence of a shield and the use of Divine Smite allows dealing extreme damage by consuming prepared spells, therefore, keep your spells prepared, as they may be missed when you need a cure, bonuses or control a powerful enemy.

Character Creation and Leveling

Race: Half-Orc is the best option, as it allows extra damage on attack rolls, night vision and its racial ability Relentless Resistance in which case, you remain at 1 life point for a turn, which can make a huge difference in a fight, especially when playing on higher difficulties.

For Background the best suggestions are:

Soldier gives an Athletics and Intimidation bonus, perfect for damage-focused paladins

Noble, as it grants a Persuasion bonus

Guild Artisan gives you two excellent bonuses for paladins: Insight and Persuasion

In Abilities put 16 Strength, 10 Dexterity, 14 Constitution, 8 Intelligence, 10 Wisdom and 16 Charisma

Level 2

You gain two level 1 spell slots.

Unlocks Divine Smite. Using this move against Fiends and Undead causes them to suffer an additional 1~8 damage.

You can select a combat style at this time, for this subclass, we recommend the Great Weapon Fighting. With this, when you roll a 1 or 2 on a damage die for an attack with a two-handed melee weapon, that die is rerolled once.

For your Prepare Spells, we recommend choosing the following:

Shield of Faith - Grants +2 AC. As your focus will be fighting with two-handed weapons to intensify damage, this spell will compensate for the lack of using a shield.

Divine Favour - As a bonus action, grants armed attacks to deal +1~4 radiant damage.

Thunderous Smite - This spell deals 2d6 thunder damage, but the bonus is that it pushes the target 3 meters away and possibly knocks it prone. Excellent for knocking enemies off cliffs and high places.

Wrathful Smite - It can frighten your target by dealing 1d6 psychic damage. Use this spell to immobilize a challenging opponent, granting you more turns to fight them.

Blessing - Bless up to 3 creatures, receiving +1d4 on saving throws and attack rolls. Lasts for 10 turns.

Level 3

At this level, you receive Divine Health, preventing all types of diseases.

You will gain two new Oath of Vengeance actions:

Abjure Enemy - Frighten an enemy. They’ll have a disadvantage on Ability Check and Attack Rolls, and they cannot move. Fiends and undead have disadvantage on this Saving Throw. Lasts three turns.

Vow of Enmity - You make a vow that you will kill your opponent. For 10 turns, you will receive bonus attack rolls against that target. We recommend using against bosses and powerful enemies.

This level unlocks two more spells from your subclass:

Bane - Attempt to place the Curse debuff on all targets in the designated area of effect (maximum three targets). Applies a 1d4 penalty to Attack Rolls and Saving Throws to creatures. They can resist the penalty with a Charisma Saving Throw. It lasts ten turns.

Hunter's Mark - Mark a creature. The marked creature takes an extra 1~6 damage from your attacks. If the target dies before the spell ends, you can reapply it to a new creature without spending another spell slot. This spell requires Concentration, so don't cast another spell that requires Concentration, as it will immediately nullify its effects and make it impossible to cast it for free.

For the extra spell slot, Compelled Duel is recommended, so your target will receive disadvantages against other targets. All Prepared Spells are optional, select the ones that best suit your group. We also point out that it is possible to change prepared spells at any time by accessing the spell area in the inventory menu.

Level 4

Here, you can select an additional Feat or improve an Ability. Two Choices at this level are recommended:

Initially, the best one will be to improve a main Ability, Strength or Charisma. Improving Charisma will increase the damage of your spells and gain an extra slot for them. Selecting Strength will increase your raw physical damage, which, combined with the bonuses from your race and weapon, result in great melee damage.

As a second option and to further implement your damage and combat style, we recommend selecting the “Great Weapon Master” feat. Thanks to this feat, every time you deal a critical hit or kill a target with a melee weapon, you can make another attack as a bonus action. (similar to the D&D Cleave Feat).

Every attack made with weapons you are proficient in and using with both hands can cause +10 damage at the cost of a -5 penalty to the attack roll. There is an option to keep this choice permanently on or off.

The character will receive an extra Lay on Hands Charge.

Level 5

At this level, your Paladin will become a DPS machine, as it receives an extra attack per turn.

Gain one level 1 spell slot and two level 2 spell slots.

Aid - Heals your allies for 5 HP and increases their Maximum Health by 5 until the next Long Rest. Always use it after a Long Rest.

Branding Smite - With your weapon glowing, you will have a chance to mark your targets with light, preventing them from becoming invisible. Perfect against rogues and other cunning opponents.

The Paladin also unlocks two more spells from their subclass at Level 5, these don't need to be prepared:

Misty Step - Allows you to teleport to a visible, unoccupied space within 18 meters. Great for quickly jumping into melee combat or escaping a risky situation.

Hold Person - Completely paralyzes a humanoid enemy and prevents them from doing anything. They will continue to roll Wisdom Saving Throws to try and free themselves from the effect. Melee attacks against the victim will be guaranteed hits, meaning even the toughest enemies can be defeated in a few turns if you can successfully cast this on them.

Level 6

At Level 6, you will unlock the Aura of Protection.

When activated, you and allies within 3 meters away of you will have your Charisma Modifier added to your Saving Throws. This helps protect your team against enemy spells and effects, and will improve the longevity of everyone it applies to. However, the rather small area of effect hinders its use in some situations.

Level 7

Another Level 2 spell Slot.

Relentless Avenger - If you hit an enemy with an Attack of Opportunity, you will gain 4.5 meters of extra Movement Speed on your next turn.

Level 8

At this level, you must choose another Feat or Ability Improvement.

We recommend selecting the Great Weapon Master Talent and finally, at the next opportunity, raising Charisma to 18.

If you prefer, focus on melee weapons, take two Strength bonuses to bring you to 20 and then Superior Weapon Mastery.

If your group benefits more from damage buffs, focus on 20 Charisma and finally Sentinel, which will make it easier to get attacks of opportunity.

Level 9

Level 3 spell slot is unlocked at this level.

The following spells are great options to choose from:

Revivify - Allows you to resurrect a fallen ally, without the need to use a revival scroll.

Crusader's Mantle - Radiates a holy power that emboldens nearby allies. Your attacks deal an additional 1~4 radiant damage.

Warden of Vitality - While this aura lasts, you can cast Restore Vitality as a bonus action to heal yourself or nearby allies. This is especially useful as it doesn't require Concentration and allows healing your team with a Bonus Action, allowing you to perform attacks while focusing on another spell.

You will also unlock two spells from your subclass.

Haste - Targets an ally or yourself to become Hastened, gaining an action, more speed and +2 to armor class. Use this bonus on the strongest character in your group. Remember: When the effect ends, the hastened creature becomes Lethargic, preventing it from doing anything on its next turn.

Protection from Energy - Grants you or an adjacent creature 50% Resistance to Acid, Cold, Fire, Lightning, or Thunder damage. This is a very situational spell, but it can be useful in fights that feature a predominant elemental damage type.

Level 10

You will receive an Aura of Courage, you and your nearby allies can’t be Frightened. The aura disappears if you fall unconscious.

Level 11

At this level, you gain the Improved Divine Smite upgrade, a nice upgrade to this skill we unlocked at Level 2. Basically, this adds one more damage dice with melee weapon to deal radiant damage.

The character also receives another level 3 spell slot.

Level 12

Finally, max level! Select the latest Feat or Ability Improvement for your character. As we mentioned previously, we recommend at this stage to have 18 Strength, 18 Charisma and Superior Weapon Mastery for the best use of DPS, but always be free to up your character as you choose.

Alternatively, another suggestion for those who prefer to focus entirely on melee damage, it is possible to invest 20 Strength throughout Leveling and as a final Talent select Savage Attacker: When making melee weapon attacks, you roll your damage dice twice and always use the highest result, intensifying your damage even further!

If you are having difficulty keeping your health high, you can select the Tough Feat which will give you +2 life for each level, that is, 24 more life.

Oath of Devotion

The paladins of the Oath of Devotion are knights committed to a code of ethics that prioritizes devotion to the noblest and most virtuous ideals. These paladins swear to protect the innocent, promote order, and defend the principles of light against darkness. Guided by unwavering faith and a commitment to truth, champions of the Oath of Devotion stand out to the sacred values they have sworn to uphold.

These holy knights undertake a tireless quest to eradicate evil and bring hope to oppressed hearts. Unlike the paladins of the Oath of Vengeance, they seek to create a more just and compassionate world through their benevolent actions.

With divine abilities granted by their devotion, these paladins are endowed with a holy aura that inspires courage in allies and dispels the surrounding darkness. Their tenacity is reflected in their promise to protect the weak and oppressed, facing challenges with unwavering determination.

These paladins are true defenders of the light, representing the highest standards of honor and kindness. Through their actions, they become icons of hope in a world filled with danger. Thus, the Oath of Devotion paladins stand out for their selfless dedication, promoting justice and compassion in their quest to make the world a better place.

Gameplay - Tank & Support

For those looking for a gaming experience being the front line of their group and one of the team's main sources of support, the Devotion subclass is an ideal choice.

This type of paladin stands out for improving the group's defensive capacity, being more effective in close combat alongside a more substantial damage dealer. The recommended strategy for the Devotion Paladin is to take the tank position, absorbing enemy damage while providing support to the main damage dealer through spells.

Although they don't stand out for their damage output, their presence is valuable in protecting the team. The use of heavy armor and the lack of a shield are common characteristics, allowing them to resist enemy attacks. Wise use of your support skills, combined with a defensive posture, contributes significantly to the group's resilience during challenges.