BG3 Race Tier List

My analysis of the race options in Baldur's Gate 3.

Rankings:
S-Tier: Duergar, Deep Gnome, Half-Orc, Lightfoot Halfling, Strongheart Halfling
A-Tier: Drow, Wood Elf, Githyanki, Wood Half-Elf
B-Tier: Hill Dwarf, Shield Dwarf, High Elf, Rock Gnome, High Half-Elf, Drow Half-Elf
C-Tier: Dragonborn, Asmodeus Tiefling, Mephitstopheles Tiefling, Zariel Tiefling
RP-Tier: Forest Gnome, Human.

Timestamps:
00:00:00 - Introduction
00:01:57 - What the tiers mean
00:04:01 - Dwarves
00:14:53 - Dragonborn
00:18:28 - Drow
00:22:52 - Elves
00:26:25 - Githyanki
00:30:02 - Gnomes
00:35:05 - Half-Elves
00:38:33 - Half-Orcs
00:41:41 - Halflings
00:46:40 - Humans
00:48:45 - Tieflings

[songbird]

Dragonborn are so funny in this game. You’re automatically bigger than everyone else in the game and characters complimenting you and flirting instantly becomes a comedy.
“Well, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes…”
*cuts to a massive lizard man who hasn’t had a thought since 1983*

[valerius]

Isn't it kind of ironic that Shield Dwarves don't get proficiency with shields?

[isaacabernathy]

I became a dragonborn so Lae'zel could become a dragon rider, It's about the small sacrifices.

[dunmeroverlord]

Dragonborn are my #1 fav simply due to the unbeatable swag factor

[spicyreyes]

I love playing Drow because the goblins in act 1 are terrified of you and will literally just let you walk into the blighted village without bothering you at all lol

[gregorylipsey]

The thing about dragonborn, if you are running a strength character, is the cutscenes (which are a lot). You tower over everyone. It is very satisfying being that huge as a tavern-brawler monk or something.

[thebabycow]

I'm playing a drow and I have to say it is very useful in any area filled with absolute. You can skip so many persuasion checks and sometimes just completely solve a problem just be being a drow.

[robertheimbach]

One interesting thing i can say about dancing lights for drow is it is considered an otem with mass. This means you can use it to trip weight triggered traps from a distance AND to block off poison vents. It is a spell that is much more useful than originally apparent

[torinsmith]

Wake up babe, competive racism just dropped.

[Helikite]

I feel bad for dragonborns. They don't even get dark vision 😭

[Pakinov]

Half orc savage attacks also adds +1d6 to sneak attack dmg on a crit btw (tested). So if you have 3d6 sneak attack, on a normal crit it's 6d6, but half-orc is 7d6

[rm]

It's a real shame larian didn't crib the fizbans dragonborn for theirs. Having breath weapons be prof bonus/short rest and scale damage and let them trigger extra attack actually makes them occasionally worth using.

[Bayonet]

One thing that was not mentioned in this video are the items that have particular effects only for certain races, there are lots of such items for Githyanki, and some for Drow that I have noticed.

[ApothecaryAlyth]

I'm glad you're so high on Halflings (from a technical perspective -- I'm with you on aesthetics). Way too many people in the buildcrafting scene for BG3 seem to sleep on Lucky. Any build where you can get reliably to 95% chance to succeed/hit, you're effectively getting free Advantage on EVERY attack roll AND skill check.

[Mali]

Quick note about Half-Orc relentless endurance: If an enemy gets you in a debuff like hold person and kills you, the debuff disappears and you can now avoid the next incoming attacks with your AC etc.

It is a really strong race for martial classes especially if you can force advantage like the Barbarian or The combat master.

[chrisstanton]

Zariel Tiefling is S tier for a paladin imo. you get two extra and free smites

[kalebs]

I asume Drow are separated from elves beca of all the race based dialogue options they get so they wanted players to be aware in a way that they were very distinct

[nenad]

For the high elf cantrips, some of them don't care about the casting modifier. Such as Friends, Blade Ward, Light, Minor illusion and Mage hand. So I wouldn't dismiss the free cantrip entirely.

[diablo]

Got to love zariel tieflings for paladins. Those extra smites are really nice to have in your back pocket.

[kotzpenner]

"Stealth is the most important check in the game". Meanwhile me: almost never stealths.