Each of Baldur's Gate 3's classes offers different abilities and utilities to the team, from the Rogue's incredible burst damage and trap-removing abilities, to the Fighter's access to every weapon and armor type, or the Druid's ability to shapeshift and speak with any animal they meet.
In Baldur's Gate 3, a Paladin is a warrior empowered by their adherence to a sacred oath. Be it to protect the innocent as a Knight in Shining Armor, upholding the ideals of protecting Life and Nature, or commitment to Justice and Retribution, the Paladin is defined by their Oath in many ways. Each Oath serves both gameplay and narrative purpose, with Paladins who break their Oath during gameplay becoming a different subclass known as the "Oathbreaker."
Oath Of The Ancients
Oath of the Ancients Paladins are defenders of Life and Nature first and foremost, similar in some respects to Druids. They gain Healing Radiance as their first Channel Oath ability, allowing them to perform an AOE Heal centered on themselves which pulses a second time at the start of their next turn. This can be tremendously useful when fighting in melee alongside other party members.
At level 3 these Paladins gain Nature's Wrath and Turn the Faithless. The former lets them spend a Channel Oath charge to restrain an enemy as part of their attack, while the latter lets them instill fear in fey and fiends and cause them to flee. They also gain "Speak with Animals" and "Ensnaring Strike (Ranged)" as additional prepared spells. This makes them incredibly useful for stunning troublesome foes in combat and gleaning additional information from unlikely sources.
At level 5 the Oath of Ancients grants "Misty Step" and "Moonbeam" as additional prepared spells, allowing them to teleport as a bonus action and conjure a damaging beam from above that can be repositioned on later turns.
Oath of the Ancients Paladins will break their Oath if they fail to defend the sanctity of life or deliberately disrupt the balance of nature.
Oath Of Devotion
Oath of Devotion Paladins are the classical Knights in Shining Armor, defenders of the weak and the greater good. They can Channel their Oath using Divine Rebuke, placing a divine ward on an ally that deals radiant damage to anything that attacks them with a melee attack.
At Level 3 they gain additional spells and abilities associated with their Oath, including two new ways to Channel their Oath. Sacred Weapon allows them to turn their weapon into a Sacred Weapon, adding their Charisma Bonus to attack rolls with it. Turn the Unholy allows them to ward off Undead and Fiends by making them afraid of the Paladin. They also gain the spells "Protection from Evil and Good" and "Sanctuary" as additional prepared spells.
At Level 5 Oath of Devotion Paladins gain the spells "Lesser Restoration" and Silence as additional prepared spells, allowing them to remove diseases and conditions and create a sphere that silences everything inside it and renders them immune to thunder damage.
Going back on their word or engaging in cruelty will cause a Paladin who swore the Oath of Devotion to become an Oathbreaker.
Oathbreaker
Oathbreakers are Paladins who, for one reason or another, have broken their Oath. Due to no longer having the support of their Oath, Oathbreakers are instead fueled by Darkness. Players cannot begin the game as an Oathbreaker and must instead begin as another Paladin and break their Oath during gameplay. After breaking their Oath, players will meet with the Oathbreaker Knight at their camp and become an Oathbreaker, though they can have their Oath restored by the Knight in exchange for 2,000 gold at any time.
Oathbreakers initially have the Channel Oath ability: Spiteful Suffering. This allows them to deal necrotic damage to a target within 3m and cause all attacks on that target to gain advantage. This is resisted with a Charisma Saving Throw.
At Level 3 Oathbreakers gain two additional Channel Oath Abilities, Control Undead and Dreadful Aspect. Control Undead allows Oathbreakers to gain control over an undead creature, allowing them to gain a temporary ally if the creature fails a Wisdom Saving Throw. Dreadful Aspect allows them to create a pulse that frightens nearby enemies that fail a Wisdom Saving Throw. They also gain the spells "Hellish Rebuke" and "Inflict Wounds" as additional prepared spells, allowing them to counterattack with fire and deal necrotic damage at a distance.
At Level 5 Oathbreakers gain "Crown of Madness" and "Darkness" as additional prepared spells, allowing them to get enemies to attack their allies and create fields of darkness to conceal their allies.
Oath Of Vengeance
As the Oath of Vengeance is not available in the Playtest version of the game, information on its game incarnation is somewhat sparse, and this article will use information from the Tabletop game until more information is available. Based on the tabletop game, it is safe to assume that Oath of Vengeance Paladins will be sworn to uphold Justice at all costs, even at the expense of virtue. This means they can't show mercy to those who have committed sin and their powers reflect this. It is likely that failing to enact Justice during events in the game's story will cause an Oath of Vengeance Paladin to become an Oathbreaker.
Oath of Vengeance Paladins are able to channel divinity to use two different abilities: Abjure Enemy and Vow of Enmity. Abjure Enemy allows them to terrify their foe to such an extent that their movement speed drops to zero if they fail the Wisdom Saving Throw. Vow of Enmity allows the Paladin to mark a target and gain an advantage on attack rolls against them for ten rounds.
Oath of Vengeance Paladins also gain the ability to move up to half their movement speed after making an attack of opportunity and avoid triggering attacks of opportunity from their foes while doing so.
Baldur's Gate 3 releases on August 3rd 2023 for PC and Mac, and September 6th 2023 for PS5.