Highlights
- Baldur’s Gate 3 offers a wide range of weapon options for various character builds, including fighting styles, class options, and species options.
- Legendary weapons have attack and damage bonuses that are hard to ignore, making them highly desirable for creating powerful builds.
- Certain weapons, like the Devotee’s Mace and Markoheshkir, have unique abilities and effects that can be used strategically to enhance gameplay.
Baldur’s Gate 3 offers hundreds of weapon options that suit various character builds between fighting styles, class options, species options, and even other magic items. While some weapon effects and abilities serve specific class abilities or are really only useful when combined with other effects, there are some that can be used to create a whole build around.
While a few common and rare weapons contain unique features that only belong to it, most legendary weapons will have attack and damage bonuses that are hard to ignore, and will only make their unique abilities more attractive. Of all the weapons in the game, there are a handful of choices perfect for any playthrough.
Updated on December 1, 2023, by Matthew Cochran: With well over a few months since launch and the newly added Patch #4, Baldur’s Gate 3 has been scoured again and again with new secrets and unique interactions being discovered every day. New weapons as well as old are being discovered for their various properties and interesting dynamics when combined with the thousands of various spells, class actions, and other items. While legendary-tier weapons are a coveted source of damage and protection, others have the potential to outclass their rarities with the perfect combination of creativity and luck.
10 Devotees Mace
The ultimate cleric weapon, this +3 mace adds an additional 1d8 radiant damage every hit, making it one of the few +3 weapons able to be wielded by clerics. It also has a unique ability called Healing Incense Aura, which only costs a bonus action, and heals all nearby allies for 1d4 hit points every turn for ten turns.
What makes the Devotee’s Mace a cleric weapon is that to attain it, you need to use the divine intervention feature only available to clerics at tenth level. Since you can only use this feature once per character, you can use Withers to reset various party member classes and obtain it multiple times.
9 Markoheshkir
Best used as a tool rather than a weapon, Markoheskir is a spellcaster’s strongest ally. Ignoring the +2 to attack and damage, the bonus to spell attack rolls and save DC is necessary to squeak out more damage and stop stronger enemies from resisting your spell effects.
What makes this quarterstaff stronger than the few that already provide the DC buff is the Arcane Battery passive skill, which lets you cast even sixth level spells for free, giving you access to the most powerful spells in the game multiple times per turn. As a bonus, the staff also includes a buffed version of the Protection from Energy spell.
8 Gontr Mael
The strongest longbow in the game, Gontr Mael has some of the highest damage potential of all ranged weapons. Other than being a +3 magic weapon, every hit has a chance for a free casting of Guiding Bolt, which gives martial classes an immediate advantage on their next attack in the same turn and an extra 4d6 damage.
On top of the damage buff, it also allows you to cast a buffed version of the Haste spell once per day that doesn’t punish you after it ends. Two little cherries also provided by the bow is that it shines its own light, which is only sort of useful, but also has a unique weapon attack that possibly frightens targets and makes them even easier to hit.
7 Crimson Mischief
Paired with a legendary dagger dropped by Orin, Crimson Mischief is a +2 shortsword that adds an additional 1d4 necrotic damage and a conditional 1d4 piercing damage on targets under 50 percent health. This weapon is ideal for rogues as it has an ability that deals an additional seven damage on targets you have advantage against.
This ability requires it to be in your offhand, but when you do, it automatically gives you the benefit of the two-weapon fighting style, so it can be used by any character. However, this weapon is only truly powerful when combined with the Bloodthirst dagger.
6 Bloodthirst
Also dropped by Orin, Bloodthirst is a +2 dagger that reduces your critical range by one, which is a stackable effect. Ignoring the free True Strike cantrip, which isn’t as useful as it seems, every time you hit a creature with Bloodthirst, it automatically becomes vulnerable to piercing damage.
If your offhand weapon is Crimson Mischief, this means that the base and conditional damage is doubled. Finally, the dagger adds a free +1 to armor class, which fully makes up for it being a low-damage weapon, but since it has the thrown property, it can be used to make enemies vulnerable from a distance.
5 Duellist’s Prerogative
Duellist’s Prerogative is a +3 rapier that is solid on its own but is the only weapon a character with the dueling fighting style should own. Other than giving you an additional reaction per turn, which has its own world of complicated exploits, it reduces your critical range by one.
While it doesn’t have a flat bonus, you get to spend one of your two reactions after every attack to deal an additional 1d4 necrotic damage. It also comes with a free challenge to duel spell, which is a buffed version of the Compelled Duel spell, and just because it can, it adds a special maneuver that gives you an additional attack as a bonus action, making it up to three per turn for even non-barbarians.
4 Balduran’s Giantslayer
The legendary sword of the founder of Baldur’s Gate, Balduran’s Giantslayer is a +3 greatsword that is especially deadly against larger or larger creatures. First by giving you straight advantage on all attacks against them while doubling your damage bonus. There is also a unique attack that deals additional damage and possibly knocks them prone.
Although, if you aren’t fighting large or huge creatures, the sword comes with an item action that doubles your size, adds 1d6 to all weapon attacks, throws you a truckload of temporary hit points, and gives you advantage on strength checks and saves that can be used after every short rest.
3 Nyrulna
The only legendary trident, Nyrulna has a Christmas list of abilities that makes it hard to replace. Other than being a +3 magic weapon, it also adds 1d6 thunder damage, will return to your hand after being thrown, and any creature you hit while throwing it explodes with another 3d4 thunder damage to creatures around it.
It also increases your movement speed and jump distance while outright removing fall damage for the wielder. Finally, it adds a couple of spell attacks that deal up to 6d8 thunder damage each and targets multiple enemies. This legendary weapon combines the effects of multiple enchanted equipment and has serious potential for exploiting and wacky combos.
2 The Blood Lathander
Despite the difficulty in retrieving this legendary mace and the risk to your party, Creche Y’llek, and the people inside, the abilities attached to this holy weapon are more than worth it. This mace is especially deadly to undead, as its light radius can potentially blind them, giving your attacks advantage.
One of Blood of Lathander’s strongest abilities is the free casting of Sunbeam, which can be recast every turn and does significant damage. But one of the most useful is Lathander’s Blessing, automatically reviving your character from zero and even healing nearby allies, which can instantly turn a losing fight around.
1 Belm
The only non-legendary weapon on this list, Belm makes up for its +2 enchantment with a pair of unique weapon attacks that are as powerful, if not more so, than most higher-level spells. The first being Perfectly Balanced Strike, which basically gives you a free attack every turn, without having to recharge on rests.
The other is Whirlwind Attack, which is normally only available to Hunter Rangers, but allows you to make multiple attacks on a group of enemies in front of you. While it isn’t particularly flashy, each attack is made individually and triggers on-hit effects and attacks made with advantage, which is much stronger than the Cleave attack on other weapons.
Leave a Reply