Out of all the classes you can pick from in Baldur’s Gate 3, Warlocks are incredibly useful to your party because they can effectively use both magic and physical weapons to attack their enemies. Warlocks are granted their magical abilities by the patron that they’ve made a pact with, but which pact is going to be the most useful to your journey?
What Patron Should You Choose in BG3?
Regardless of what Patron you choose out of the Fiend, the Great Old One or the Archfey, your base stats won’t be drastically different from any of the other options. When you’re making your character, at level 1 you have to choose a subclass, and this subclass represents what patron is giving your warlock their powers. For anything you choose, your primary ability is going to be charisma, your saving throw proficiency will be in charisma and wisdom, and you’ll be proficient in simple weapons and light armor.
Your Patron of choice will dictate the first two spells and features for your subclass that you’ll have at level 1. The list of patrons and their corresponding spells is below.
The Fiend
If you like to play up-close and personal, the Fiend is gonna fit your style the best out of all the patrons. Your spells will be focused on reducing incoming damage and close-range combat, so they’ll go hand in hand with strong or magical melee weapons.
Spells
- Armor of Agathys
- Arms of Hadar
Subclass Feature
- Dark One’s Blessing
The Great Old One
Definitely the most chaotic of the bunch, The Great Old One focuses on distraction and fear to keep your enemies at bay from a distance. You’ll be focused more on messing with people’s heads and letting the rest of your party move in for the kill, so ranged weapons might also come in handy here.
Spells
- Dissonant Whispers
- Tasha’s Hideous Laughter
Subclass Feature
- Mortal Reminder
The Archfey
Coming in as the most supportive build of the bunch, the Archfey focuses more on opening your targets up for taking damage than actually dealing it. If you like to stay back and aid the party from afar, definitely consider building your warlock off the Archfey.
Spells
- Faerie Fire
- Sleep
Action
- Fey Presence
The rest of your spells are up to you to choose from, and can be changed when you level up if you want to switch them out. The spells you get from your pact are as permanent as the pact itself.
What Pact Boon Should I Choose for My Warlock in BG3?
Once you’ve got your patron and have reached Warlock level 3, you get to choose a boon as a reward from the patron you chose. This boon will be an advantage that you get to use for the rest of your playthrough, and they can make a serious difference in the way you build your character and play from that point on.
Pact of the Chain
The Pact of the Chain allows you to summon an animal, imp or quasit of your choosing to aid you in your travels. You can use them in battle as an extra set of hands, and at level 5 they’re able to attack twice in combat. If you don’t like your choice, you can always swap them out later.
Go with the Pact of the Chain if you’re looking for an extra leg up in combat, because having the advantage of an extra attack or two on your team per turn can be the difference between life and death for your party. The Pact of the Chain is gonna be really useful if used with the Archfey patron, because you can cast spells to open your enemies up for attack before sending in your familiar of choice.
Pact of the Blade
If you choose the Pact of the Blade, you’ll either get a shiny, new magical weapon of your choosing, or you can Bind the weapon you’ve already got to make it magical. These weapons will use your Spellcasting Ability Modifier instead of Strength or Dexterity for attacks, and at level 5 you can use them to attack twice.
The Pact of the Blade goes great in conjunction with the Fiend as your patron because they’re both very offensive and physical. You can use your magic armor to protect you before running in to deal massive damage with your bound weapon, allowing you to be a dangerous opponent on the battlefield.
Pact of the Tome
Choosing the Pact of the Tome grants you three new spells as the result of your new grimoire, The Book of Shadows. This grants you Guidance, Vicious Mockery and Thorn Whip, and at level 5 you’ll get Animate Dead, Call Lightning and Haste. You can use these spells for supporting your teammates, inflicting negative status effects and dealing damage, so if you’re looking for a well-balanced warlock build, the Pact of the Tome is gonna be your best bet.
This pact is ideal to use with the Great Old One as your patron, allowing you to focus more heavily on spellcasting rather than melee combat. Being able to knock enemies prone with Tasha’s Hideous Laughter before pulling them closer to your party with a Thorn Whip can give you a sizeable advantage in a fight.
That’s really all there is to the Warlock Pacts and boons in Baldur’s Gate 3. They’re an incredibly powerful class if you know how to use them, and if he aligns with your party, the Blade of Frontiers isn’t a bad warlock to travel with. For more help with your warlock or other characters, keep on checking back here for more guides.
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