Baldur's Gate 3: Best Karlach Build

Baldur’s Gate 3 was one of the biggest games of last year, and it earned plaudits for its amazing gameplay and a massive world to explore with little restrictions on what the player can and can’t do.

Shadowheart best build baldur's gate 3 bg3-1

Baldur's Gate 3: Best Shadowheart Build

Shdowheart is a great healer and addition to the player's party in BG3.

This game introduces an array of interesting characters that help the player move the game forward. One of these characters is Karlach, a powerful companion the player will find very useful.

Who Is Karlach And Where To Recruit Her

Karlach is one of Baldur’s Gate 3’s origin characters, meaning the player has the option to play as her if desired. However, the player can also simply recruit her during the playthrough of the game. She can be found during the game’s Act 1.

To find her, the player must head to the Risen Road which is found after the Broken Bridge in the Blighted Village. She’ll specifically be found in the forest at the end of the road.

To recruit her, if the player has Wyll, they will have to talk him out of attacking her as he believes she’s an evil Devil.

Default Karlach

“Karlach has escaped ten years of services in the Hells with nothing but the axe on her back - and the infernal blazing furiously where her heart used to be.”

Karlach Tiefling race, being a Zariel Tiefling, to be specific. Her class is the Barbarian as it fits her fiery nature well and works well with her high strength. Her class also gives her saving throws in Strength as well as Constitution. The Barbarian class gives her access to Unarmored Defense and Rage from the get go which is extremely useful, especially early on in the game.

Karlach also has the Outlander background, which gives her proficiencies in Athletics and Survival. She also possesses proficiencies in Perception and Intimidation, the latter being extremely useful in some dialogues.

When it comes to her starting statistics, here’s what Karlach has to show for herself:

STATISTIC	SCORE
Strength	17
Dexterity	13
Constitution	15
Intelligence	8
Wisdom	12
Charisma	10

Best Karlach Build

When it comes to the best Build for Karlach, the player should definitely keep her as a Barbarian as this class brings Karlach’s power out the most.

Level 1 of the Barbarian class will give her Unarmored Defense and Rage.

Lae'zel best build companion bg3 baldur's gate 3

Baldur's Gate 3: Best Lae'zel Build

Lae'zel is a powerful companion that players would do well to use at her full potential.

At level 2, Karlach will unlock Dark Sense, which will help her pass dexterity saving throws against traps, spells, and surfaces. She also gets Reckless Attack, which gives her and enemies advantage on attack rolls.

Level 3 is where things get really interesting as players will have to pick Karlach’s Barbarian subclass. The player has the option between Wildheart, Berserker, and Wild Magic. Wildheart allows Karlach to choose a Bestial heart, which is an interesting class subfeature and gives the player a lot to experiment with. Berserker, on the other hand, are more limited, but possess some powerful actions and class subfeatures such as Frenzy and Mindless Rage. Finally, Wild Magic would allow Karlach to access Rage: Wild Magic, and later on, Bolstering Magic.

Overall, the best option for Karlach is the Berserker. The other two subclasses are powerful in their own regards, however nothing comes close to the power the Berserker showcases. At this level, she’ll also gain an additional rage charge.

Going to level 4, and also at levels 8 and 12, the player will have to pick Feats for Karlach. Some good options for her when it comes to feats include Athlete, which increases her strength or dexterity, both very useful abilities to her. She will also make great use of Durable as it will increase her constitution, which is essential for a frontliner like her. It also makes her regain all her HP after a short rest. One other feat that can be extremely useful is the Martial Adept, which would allow her to learn 2 maneuvers from the Battle Master subclass. Some of the best to learn include Disarming Attack, Goading Attack, and Sweeping Attack.

At level 5, Karlach will unlock Extra Attack, which is a feature that allows her to deal an additional attack. She will also get Fast Movement, which increases the distance she can walk each turn by 3 meters.

At level 6, she will be able to use Mindless Rage as a subclass feature, making her rage unaffected by charming, frightening, or calm emotions. She also receives an additional rage charge at this level.

At level 8, she picks a Feat once again.

At level 9, Karlach will have the feature Brutal Critical, allowing her to roll a damage dice after landing a critical hit.

At level 10, she will get the action Intimidating presence as a subclass action which will cause her target to become fearful.

Karlach astarion shadowheart age baldur's gate 3 bg3

Baldur's Gate 3: Every Companion’s Age

The player's companions are diverse in their age groups in BG3.

At level 11, she receives Relentless Rage. This will allow her to gain 1 HP instead of downing when her HP reaches 0 while she is enraged.

Finally, at level 12, she will receive her final additional rage charge and pick her last feat.

Best Items For Karlach

To elevate Karlach’s build to the max, the player should definitely equip her well. Some good items include:

The Everburn Blade . This blade can be acquired during the game’s prologue if the player chooses to fight against Commander Zhalk. Killing him won't be easy but the reward is worth it. The uncommon greatsword deals 2d6 slashing damage with an extra 1d4 fire damage. This sword also grants Pommel Strike, Lacerate, and Cleave.
Reason's Grasp . These uncommon gloves will be very useful with Karlach as they grant Ever Vigilant, which rewards the player for ending their Rage earlier with 15 extra temporary HP. They can be found very early on at the Risen Road, which makes them more worth it.
Crusher's Ring . This rare ring will increase Karlach’s movement speed by 3 meters, which will be extremely useful and allow her to cover a larger area. This ring will be found in the Goblin Camp and is worth looking for.
Killer's Sweetheart . Another ring, this very rare item will allow Karlach to land a critical hit on her next attack after killing an enemy. This effect is once a long rest.
Haste Helm . This rare helmet will allow Karlach to start each combat with momentum for the duration of 3 turns. This can also be found early on, not far from the Waypoint next to the Blighted Village.
The Balduran’s Giantslayer. Perhaps the best endgame weapon for Karlach, this legendary greatsword has 2d6 + 3 slashing damage. This weapon allows double the damage using the strength modifier of Karlach. It also grants an advantage against larger creatures when it comes to attack rolls. Karlach will also have Pommel Strike, Lacerate, Cleave, as well as Topple The Big Folk.