Larian wasn’t kidding when it said it’s “not quite finished”: Baldur’s Gate 3 update will add 12 new subclasses, crossovers, photo mode and more “next year”

On November 28, 2024By Littum

Baldur’s Gate 3 developer Larian Studios recently suggested that it “wasn’t quite done” with the acclaimed RPG, and it’s been proven today that it wasn’t kidding.

We’ve known for a while now that Baldur’s Gate 3 Patch 7 wouldn’t be the game’s final update, but aside from crossplay and photo mode, we had no indication of what was in store. Now Larian has released a detailed overview of the big changes coming to Baldur’s Gate 3 when Patch 8 comes out sometime “next year.”

The big new highlight of the patch is the 12 new subclasses, one for each existing class, which will add a new way to play your favorite class. “Expect new abilities, animations, VFX, summons and cantrips, and unique voiced lines of dialogue for Oathbreaker Knight with written reactivity for Oathbreakers, along with a touch of homebrew on certain actions to enhance your roleplaying experience,” said Larian.

College of Glamor will grant Bards the Mantle of Inspiration spell that gives allies five temporary hit points and charms attacking enemies while the spell is active. Meanwhile, Mantle of Majesty will target charmed enemies and let you order them to flee, move closer, freeze, fall to the ground, or drop their weapons.

The new barbarian subclass, Path of Giants, will increase throwing attack damage and carry capacity with the new Giant’s Rage passive. Death Domain is the new Cleric subclass, and it adds new spells that deal necrotic damage and three new necromancy cantrips, including Toll of the Dead, which deals 1-8 damage and scales based on how much the enemy has already been hurt . Death Domain will also have the home-brewed ability to explode nearby corpses with AoE damage.

Meanwhile, Druids can choose the new Circle of Stars subclass, which allows you to take on one of three Starry Forms for your power: the constellations of the Archer, the Chalice, and the Dragon, each tuned to different playstyles and strategies.

Paladins have the new Oath of the Crown subclass to look forward to, which will let you “guide your companions in battle with Righteous Clarity, taunt enemies with strategic interruptions, and keep your party standing strong with Divine Allegiance, absorbing their damage while they restore their health.”

Fighters can now embrace the Arcane Archer lifestyle with “unique skills on top of new shooting animations.” With this subclass, Fighters will be able to directly remove enemies from the battlefield for a turn or deal psychic damage that forces them to make a Wisdom saving throw or be blinded until their next turn starts.

Baldur's Gate 3 companion Shadowheart, a young woman with braided black hair and plated armor, smiling while looking to the side

(Image credit: Larian Studios)

Monks may have the most fun in Patch 8 thanks to the new Drunken Master subclass, which allows them to drink alcohol directly from their inventory and from bottles lying around the Sword Coast to regain Ki. Monks will also be able to to get their enemies drunk and buff their armor class and chance to hit intoxicated targets.

Rangers will be able to select the Swarmkeeper subclass and cast Cloud of Jellyfish for extra lightning damage, The Flurry of Moths for psychic damage, and Legion of Bees for piercing damage.

Rogues will soon be able to embrace the “pirate life” with the new Swashbuckler subclass, which will add the ability to throw sand at enemies and blind them, flick weapons at targets to disarm them, and use the new Fancy Footwork passive in melee. to ensure that enemies cannot make attacks of opportunity for the rest of the player’s turn.

The new Sorcerer subclass Shadow Magic will add Superior Darkvision and the ability to Shadow Walk between dark and dimly lit rooms. Meanwhile, “the perfectly homebrewed Hound of Ill Omen” will let you harass your enemies, and Strength of the Grave will prevent you from being taken down, which Larian pointed out will be “ideal for those attempting Honor Mode runs.”

Warlocks will be able to choose the new Hexblade subclass if they want to “make a pact with an entity from the Shadowfell that manifests in the form of magical weapons.” This will allow the Hexblade Warlocks to curse their enemies and “force their souls to do your bidding.”

They’ll also be able to raise the spirit of any corpse for 10 turns, as long as it wasn’t “an element of nature, construct, giant blob, or already dead.” Summoning will deal necrotic damage and “rip off a portion of your enemy’s soul to grant your Hexblade Warlock healing.”

Finally, the new Wizard subclass, Bladesinging, will add new spellcasting animations and the new Bladesong ability, which grants “supernatural speed, agility, and focus” and gives you a bonus to any Constitution roll you make.

Gale and the protagonist of Baldur's Gate 3 are leaning on each other

(Image credit: Larian)

Patch 8 will also add “full cross-platform progression” and cross-play across PS5, PC, and Xbox Series X/S, so everyone can play and progress together no matter what platform they’re on.

Baldur’s Gate 3 photo mode is another long-awaited feature coming with Patch 8, and now we have the details. You will be able to set up scenes by choosing which characters to focus on and adjusting the camera position. Meanwhile, the lens settings will let you adjust field of view, exposure, depth of field, and focus.

Scene settings allow you to turn off player characters, NPCs and enemies if you don’t make them in your shot, and you’ll be able to choose from preset facial expressions and a range of over 40 static and animated poses, each with several variations. Finally, all sorts of finishing effects, frames and stickers will be available for your picture-perfect, uh, photo.

There’s still no hard release date for Baldur’s Gate 3 Patch 8, but Larian said it will begin stress testing the update on all platforms in “early January.” More information about it will come in Community Update #31.

Now this is how you make one of those best rpgs of all times.