Baldur’s Gate 3 races guide

August 3, 2023 You can now read our Baldur’s Gate 3 review.

One of your first steps in BG3 is choosing which of the 11 Baldur’s Gate 3 races you’ll play as. This is a big decision – the specific race and subrace you choose can sway your perfect build or backstory. Plus, you’ll be forced to look at your character’s face for the rest of the game, so choose wisely.

If you need help picking your perfect Baldur’s Gate 3 race, we’ve gathered all the latest info on each for you to consider. We’ve spent a lot of time playing these options as DnD races in the original tabletop RPG, so we’ve got a pretty good handle on what makes a great DnD character build, and which options pair well with the various Baldur’s Gate 3 classes / DnD classes.

Now the Baldur’s Gate 3 release date is here, we have lots to talk about. If you need any tips on choosing Baldur’s Gate 3 companions to accompany your character (or join for some Baldur’s Gate 3 romance), we can help you out there too. But for now, let’s talk races.

The playable Baldur’s Gate 3 races are:

• Baldur’s Gate 3 Dragonborn
• Baldur’s Gate 3 Drow
• Baldur’s Gate 3 Dwarf
• Baldur’s Gate 3 Elf
• Baldur’s Gate 3 Githyanki
• Baldur’s Gate 3 Gnome
• Baldur’s Gate 3 Half-Elf
• Baldur’s Gate 3 Half-Orc
• Baldur’s Gate 3 Halfling
• Baldur’s Gate 3 Human
• Baldur’s Gate 3 Tiefling 

Baldur’s Gate 3 Dragonborn

Shiny scales and fiery breath.

The Baldur’s Gate 3 Dragonborn race was once trapped into servitude to actual DnD dragons. They’re now proudly free of these binds and refuse to kneel to anyone. They’re also one of the most visually striking races, with scales and horns of varying, beautiful hues.

Each subrace of the DnD Dragonborn is a different color, and this dictates their two racial features. Draconic Ancestry gives a Dragonborn resistance to a certain type of damage, and they can fire a Breath Weapon from their mouths that deals 2d6 of the same damage type.

Here are the damage types for each Baldur’s Gate 3 Dragonborn subrace:

• Black – Acid
• Blue – Lightning
• Brass – Fire
• Bronze – Lightning
• Copper – Acid
• Gold – Fire
• Green – Poison
• Red – Fire
• Silver – Frost
• White – Frost

Many of these Dragonborn share damage types, and there’s a reason for that. Traditionally, DnD dragons are split into two camps – the good metallic dragons and the evil chromatic dragons. Your Dragonborn character can have any moral compass they like, but it never hurts to know your origins. 

Baldur’s Gate 3 Drow

Elves found deep in the Underdark.

A Baldur’s Gate 3 Drow is a type of Elf that hails from the Underdark. Like many races from that region, they’ve got a bit of a bad reputation in the lands above – which isn’t helped by all the Drow siding with evil in the game’s main story.

If you choose to play a Drow, you can expect to be met with mistrust wherever you go. But on the bright side, evil creatures are likely to let you waltz into their camps like you own the place. When everyone expects you to be evil, they won’t be guarded against your first heroic sword swing.

The different Drow subraces don’t offer many different mechanics. They’re more for roleplay – do you want to side with the evil goddess Lolth, or do you want to go against the grain and play a Seladrine Drow? And the Drow racial traits are highly practical, but not mind-blowing – you’re excellent at seeing in the dark and you’ve got advantage against being Charmed. 

Baldur’s Gate 3 Dwarf

Hardy, handy, and not blessed with height.

Short and stout, a Baldur’s Gate Dwarf is a classic DnD Dwarf. They’re super sturdy, with advantage on saving throws against poison and resistance to poison damage. And given their handiness with hefty weapons, they’re a top pick for martial classes.

Different subraces make the Dwarf extra hardy. Want a higher max HP? Choose the Gold Dwarf. Meanwhile, the Shield Dwarf gives you more flexibility with types of armor, and the Duegar get advantage on saving throws to end the Charmed and Stunned condition. The one place they draw a short straw is speed, with only 7.5m of movement per turn. 

Baldur’s Gate 3 Elf

A classic fantasy race with Fey gifts.

A DnD Elf is a staple of fantasy gaming, and the Baldur’s Gate 3 Elf is no different. This is an agile and elegant choice, well-suited to a range of Dex-based builds. Elves have advantage on saving throws against being Charmed too, which is always nice.

If you’re looking into a spellcasting character, the High Elf gives you a free DnD Wizard cantrip from the get-go. And the Wood Elf buffs your speed and provides a Stealth proficiency – perfect for any scouting class. This is a race for the Skyrim fans who can’t stop playing as sneaky archers. 

Baldur’s Gate 3 Githyanki

Here comes the race from outer space.

Baldur’s Gate 3 Githyanki are one of the lesser-known races of the Forgotten Realms. They’re from the Astral Plane, and they were once enslaved by the DnD Mind Flayers. As you can imagine, there’s a lot of bad blood between those two communities – the Githyanki want to destroy Mind Flayers completely.

Now the Githyanki are skilled warriors who serve Vlaakith, the Lich Queen. She encourages some pretty ruthless practices – and characters like Lae’zel prove you don’t want to get on the bad side of a Githyanki.

While a DnD Fighter makes a lot of sense for a Githyanki character flavor-wise, don’t underestimate the power of a Githyanki spellcaster. Their armor proficiencies can make those characters a lot less squishy in combat. 

Baldur’s Gate 3 Gnome

Little but lithe, with lots of cunning.

While small, the Baldur’s Gate 3 Gnome is zippy. They can most as fast as any medium-sized character, and they can fit in many spaces their fellow party members can’t reach. Gnome Cunning also gives your character advantage on Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma saving throws.

Your Gnome character will have different subrace abilities depending on where they’re from. Deep Gnomes have superior Darkvision and advantage on Stealth checks as they can blend in with stone. Forest Gnomes have regular Darkvision, but they can also cast Speak with Animals. And the Rock Gnome has both Darkvision and the ability to add twice their proficiency bonus to History checks – these stones have some stories to tell. 

Baldur’s Gate 3 Half-Elf

You get the best of both worlds.

A Baldur’s Gate 3 Half-Elf shares part of their lineage with the Elf and part with another race (presumably Human, based on their appearance – that’s usually the case for the DnD Half-Elf too). Because of this, they’re caught between two worlds, not treated exactly like either of their parent races.

The Baldur’s Gate 3 Half-Elf gets many of the benefits of elven lineage, including Darkvision and advantage against being charmed. All subraces have a slightly boosted movement speed, and two provide a free DnD cantrip (while the last offers a Stealth proficiency instead). 

Baldur’s Gate 3 Half-Orc

Also the best of both worlds, but for Orcs.

A Baldur’s Gate 3 Half-Orc has a dual identity, with one part of their lineage coming from the Orcs. They’re best known for being pretty beefy, and their racial features back this up. Relentless Endurance lets you regain a hit point instead of being downed when your HP hits zero, and Savage Attacks triples your damage dice on a Critical Hit.

A Half-Orc is prime DnD Barbarian material, as they can stay on the front lines for a heck of a long time. That being said, a spellcaster who’s harder to down is never a bad thing. 

Baldur’s Gate 3 Halfling

When you’re brave, it helps to be lucky.

The Baldur’s Gate 3 Halfing is definitely not a legally-distinct Hobbit (wink). Small but plucky, these characters may have reduced speed, but they’ve got some super fun racial features. Lucky lets you reroll a one on any attack roll, ability check, or saving throw, and Brave gives you advantage on saving throws against being Frightened.

Lightfoot Halflings are naturally stealthy, and Strongheart Halflings get an extra advantage on saving throws and resistance when it comes to poison. The DnD Halfling is a solid all-rounder in BG3. 

Baldur’s Gate 3 Human

For when you want your character to look like you.

A Baldur’s Gate 3 Human might seem like a boring choice. And it’s true that the decision to axe race-based ability scores took away the strongest part of playing a DnD Human (their flexible stat boosts). But sometimes the best protagonist is one we can all relate to, so we’re still in favor of the humble human when it serves the story we want to tell. 

Baldur’s Gate 3 Tiefling

They’re the ones with the horns.

Perhaps the most iconic DnD race is the Baldur’s Gate 3 Tiefling / DnD Tiefling. Their bloodline originates in the Nine Hells, so they look a lot like devils. It’s no surprise, then, that they’re resistant to fire damage.

Each of the Tiefling subraces offers a free cantrip, meaning spellcasters like the DnD Warlock and DnD Sorcerer are an obvious choice of class. Simply choose whether you prefer Mage Hand, Produce Flame, or Thaumaturgy – or pick the Tiefling whose color you like best.

And that’s it – you’re now well-acquainted with all the Baldur’s Gate 3 races. If you need some more character inspo, check out our guides to DnD backgrounds and 5e spells. Many of these appear in the game, and a strong understanding of them can really help with DnD character creation.