Baldur’s Gate 3 has several different Companions that you can add to your party to fill various roles. However, the game also includes functions that enable you to respec and edit the progression of these Companions and their Classes to re-build them as you’d like. If you’re trying to find a valuable build for the fiery Tiefling Barbarian, Karlach, then look no further; we’ve got you covered. Follow along below for everything you’ll need to know about how to make the best Karlach build in BG3.
Baldur’s Gate 3 Best Karlach Build, Explained
In Baldur’s Gate 3, Karlach is the Barbarian Class by default, enabling her to thrive in battle, utilize Strength-based Weapons, and deal consistent damage to enemies. There’s a lot of value to be found in keeping Karlach within this Class due to her significant damage output, which makes her one of the best frontliners in the game.
Because of this, we’ll be focusing on the best Barbarian selections for Karlach specifically rather than a generalized build, keeping in mind her Racial Feats and unique tricks you can use to take advantage of certain situations.
While Berserker offers many benefits through the natural progression of the build, the best way to capitalize on Karlach’s huge offensive potential is by taking your initial eight levels in Barbarian, and then your last four in Fighter. This will give your Barbarian build significantly more value due to the addition of crucial skills such as Action Surge and Second Wind, which can take your combat to the next level.
The most important thing to consider when setting up and progressing Karlach’s build is the primary stats for Barbarian. This is where you’ll want to assign the majority of your points and assign any additional Ability Increases to ensure her best strengths uplift and enhance her value as a member of your party.
The most important stats for Barbarian Karlach are Strength, followed by Constitution and then Dexterity.
- Strength is responsible for determining your Attack Roll and damage output with any Strength-based Weapon, which is the most commonly used and the best choice for a Barbarian to wield. STR will also determine any Athletics checks that you need to make. For this reason, it is your primary stat and should be considered your top priority.
- Constitution determines the maximum amount of HP for a character. Considering the Barbarian plays a tanky role and spends their time within melee range of the enemy, having some extra HP to absorb attacks and enhance your survivability is crucial, making CON an important second priority.
- Dexterity determines Attack Rolls and damage for any Finesse Melee Weapons, as well as your initiative Rolls to begin combat. It likewise enables you to utilize Unarmored Defense to combine your DEX and CON Modifiers to boost your AC. You don’t need to make DEX a huge priority, but you will benefit much more from making this stat as your third priority than if you were to choose INT, WIS, OR CHA.
Recommended Karlach beginning stats: STR 17, DEX 14, CON 16, INT 8, WIS 8, CHA 10
Best Barbarian Subclass For Karlach, Explained
The best Subclass to run on this Karlach build is the Berserker Barbarian. This Subclass emphasizes the use of strong offensive Melee Weapon attacks and physical Strength to perform multiple hits and deal significant chunks of damage to enemies. Most significantly, the Berserker gains the Frenzy Bonus Action, enabling them to gain an additional Attack per turn when Raging which amplifies their offensive output significantly.
Here is a complete breakdown of the Berserker progression to Level 8:
- Level 3 – Frenzy: Your Rage turns into a frenzy! You gain Frenzied Strike and Enraged Throw. You can also make an Improvised Weapon Attack as a bonus action. You have Resistance to physical damage and Advantage on Strength Checks and Saving Throws.
- Level 3 – Frenzied Strike: As a Bonus Action, make a melee attack with your Weapon. Using Frenzied Strike adds a stack of Frenzied Strain. The Barbarian takes a -1 penalty on Attack Rolls for every stack, and stacks are removed when Frenzy ends.
- Level 3 – Enraged Throw: Pick up an item or creature and throw it at a target, dealing Bludgeoning damage and knocking it Prone.
- Level 6 – Mindless Rage: Your Rage becomes all-consuming, repelling outside influence. While Frenzied, you can’t be Charmed or Frightened, and Calm Emotions no longer ends your Rage.
Recommended Level Selections For Berserker Barbarian Karlach
At Level 3, you will need to select a Subclass for your Karlach Barbarian build. As mentioned above, the best choice here is the Berserker, so go ahead and confirm your selection.
At Level 4, you will be able to select your first Feat. Here you’re going to want to select Tavern Brawler and choose +1 to your Strength. This will enable you to add 2x your Strength Modifier to your Unarmed Attack Rolls, Improvised Weapon uses, and thrown objects. This essentially means that you can use Karlach to hurl objects from around the map or inventory toward your enemies and deal significant damage, which is both highly entertaining to play and surprisingly effective.
You can further amplify these thrown attacks by equipping the Ring of Flinging, which will add an extra 1+d4 to your damage. Information on this Ring and where to source it is included in the Equipment section at the end of this guide.
On top of this, you can also improve Karlach’s STR (currently 18) to 20 by the end of Act 2 by obtaining Araj Oblodra’s special potion with Astarion. This will enable Karlach to have the maximum STR damage output without expending any of her Feats to boost the stat through Ability Increases, which is exceptionally valuable.
At Level 8, you will be able to add a second Feat to your build. For this selection, the best choice is Great Weapon Master. This enables you to make a second Melee Weapon Attack whenever you land a Crit with your Melee Weapon or kill a target. Additionally, your Attacks with Heavy Melee Weapons will have a -5 penalty to Attack Rolls, but deal an additional +10 damage.
Because you’ve buffed Karlach’s STR to 18 — or even 20 if you’ve grabbed the potion from Araj, and even higher if you manage to get your hands on the gloves mentioned in the Equipment section below — you won’t be hugely impacted by this penalty. Instead, you will benefit significantly from the increased damage. You can also freely toggle this part of the Feat on and off, so there are zero drawbacks to this selection.
Now that you’ve taken your eight levels in Barbarian, it’s time to dip into the Fighter Class for the remaining 4 levels of your Build.
At Level 1, you will need to select a Fighting Style. Choose Defence as your selection. This will buff Karlach’s AC by +1, which is very important for maintaining survivability on the frontline of combat.
At Level 3, you will need to choose a Fighter Subclass, and Battle Master is your best choice. This will let you gain 3 different Battle Maneuvers, which enables you to make increasingly powerful Attacks in battle.
Usually, Champion would be the go-to Fighter Subclass for many due to the improved Crit rate, but you don’t benefit from the Barbarian’s Crit abilities until Level 9, so there isn’t a lot of value to be found in this instance. Instead, Battle Master gives you much more versatility in combat, especially when paired with your Great Weapons Master Feat.
At Level 4, you will be able to pick out a third and final Feat for your build. Select Savage Attacker. This will enable you to roll twice for damage during any Melee Weapon Attacks and take the highest result. This enables you to have the best possible damage rates and kill off more enemies with ease, as every little bit of damage can make all the difference in tricky fights.
Best Equipment for Berserker Barbarian Karlach in Baldur’s Gate 3, Listed
- Helmet – None (Unarmored Fighting)
- Armor – None (Unarmored Fighting)
- Gloves – Bracers of Defense: You gain a +2 bonus to Armor Class as long as you are not wearing Armor or holding a shield.
- You can nab them from the Necromancer’s Cellar in Blighted Village.
- Boots – Bonespike Boots: You have a +1 bonus to Armor Class and Saving Throws as long as you are not wearing Armor or holding a shield. Your Jump distance is also increased by 1.5m.
- You can find these Boots in a trapped Wooden Chest in the Secluded Passageway within the Rivington Area.
- Ring – Ring of Flinging: The wearer gains a 1d4 bonus to Throw damage.
- You can grab this Ring from the Merchant Arron at the Emerald Grove.
- Amulet – Amulet of Greater Health: Increases the wearer’s Constitution score to 23.
- You can grab this Amulet from the House of Hope by stealing it from the Archives room.
- Weapon – Nyrulna: This Weapon will return to your hand when thrown, and you cannot be forced to drop this Trident. When thrown, the Weapon creates an explosion that deals 3-12 Thunder Damage in a 6m blast centered on the target. You gain a +3m bonus to movement speed and jump distance, immunity to Fall damage, and the Trident provides a glowing light in a radius of 6m.
- To source this Weapon for your build, you’ll need to win the jackpot from Akabi the Genie at Circus of the Last Days and let him teleport you to the jungle. Lastly, all you need to do is explore until you come across a chest, where Nyrulna can be found inside.
That’s everything you need to know about creating the best Karlach build in Baldur’s Gate 3. Now that you know the best selections for this lovable Tiefling, why not check out some of our other guides, such as the 10 best Illithid Powers in the game? After all, these powers can enable you to take advantage of your kit in combat and add a few extra bonuses that’ll help you topple tough opponents.
