Baldur’s Gate 3 is adapting the Dungeons & Dragons 5E rules into a video game, but does it hit the D&D level cap and take players all the way to level 20? Right now, the Early Access version of Baldur’s Gate 3 caps sits at level 5, giving players access to level 3 spells and some of their characters’ better low-level class abilities.
D&D 5E currently has a hard level cap of 20, with no plans for an Epic Level Handbook on the horizon. This is because campaigns rarely ever reached that point, with most players burning out at some point between levels 7-12, assuming the game even lasts more than a few sessions. As such, most D&D players never reach high levels of play, preventing them from using the best spells and class abilities in the game.
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What’s The Level Cap In Baldur’s Gate 3?
According to Larian Studios, the level cap for Baldur’s Gate 3 is 12. This might be disappointing to fans of Baldur’s Gate 2, who were running around as a level 40 Thief, but that story was told across several games & expansions, which led up to the epic level tier of play. Baldur’s Gate 3 is an expansive story locked into a single game, so it’s not surprising that Larian cut things off at level 12, as the game was already delayed many times.
This doesn’t mean Baldur’s Gate 3 will be locked at level 12 forever. Assuming the game sells well, it’s likely that Baldur’s Gate 3 will receive DLC that will add new areas to the game. There may be a Throne of Bhaal-style update that continues the story and lets the players reach 20, giving players access to those sweet level 9 spell slots.
What Every Character Receives At Level 12 In Baldur’s Gate 3
Baldur’s Gate 3 will launch with all the races and classes from the D&D 5E Player’s Handbook, along with some extra options that were made available in later sourcebooks. This means we have an idea of what powers the Baldur’s Gate 3 classes will receive when they hit the level cap, assuming the player doesn’t multiclass them at any point. The level 12 powers of the Baldur’s Gate 3 classes are:
- Bard, Cleric, Druid, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard – Ability Score Improvement or a Feat and level 6 spell slots.
- Barbarian, Fighter, Monk, Paladin, Ranger, Rogue – Ability Score Improvement or a Feat.
The benefits the character classes receive are uniform, with all classes receiving an extra +2 or +1/+1 to their stats or taking a Feat. In contrast, the primary spellcaster classes receive extra level 6 spell slots, as they first receive them at level 11.
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The level 6 spells are especially exciting, as players could access Otto’s Irresistable Dance, Blade Barrier, Heal, Sunbeam, and Chain Lightning. The players will also be cut off from the level 7-9 spells, which is the point where spellcasters become ridiculously overpowered, and D&D slowly descends into Dragon Ball Z.
