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Contents hide How to level up in Baldur’s Gate 3 Level progression across acts How to level up fast in Baldur’s Gate 3? Combat to level up Quests to level up Inspiration to level up

Gain enough experience and you’ll be able to access some of Larian Studios’ most powerful spells and skills. A level-up drastically alters how you will approach combat and how you interact with the Forgotten Realms. It unlocks new options for every class and subclass, some much more impactful than others. With that in mind, let’s see how you can level up as fast as possible in Baldur’s Gate 3.

How to level up in Baldur’s Gate 3

Click the white plus on a character portrait or the Level Up button at the bottom of the screen to level up in Baldur’s Gate 3. On a controller, click on the portrait and press R1. This takes you to the level-up screen, where you get to see the new improvements given to your character. You also get to pick new cantrips, spells, and subclass features here. Remember that you get to pick from Baldur’s Gate 3 feats at level 4, level 8, and level 12.

The max level of your characters is level 12. While this might not sound like much, levelling in D&D’s 5th Edition doesn’t work like your typical RPG. Each level is a monumental leap in damage dealing and versatility for your characters, irrespective of class. By level 12, your party will consist of powerful demigods who can contest against near-impossible odds. The character sheet menu lets you see the current level and stats of your character and your companions. Here are the experience (XP) breakpoints you need to level up in Baldur’s Gate 3:

LevelXP requiredTotal XPLevel 2300 experience points300Level 3600 experience points900Level 41800 experience points2700Level 53800 experience points6500Level 66500 experience points13000Level 78000 experience points21000Level 89000 experience points30000Level 912000 experience points42000Level 1014000 experience points56000Level 1120000 experience points76000Level 1224000 experience points100000

Level progression across acts

While those XP numbers can seem daunting, the game’s levelling actually gets easier as you progress to the later parts of the game. You’ll be surprised how quickly you get to level 3 in Act 1 of BG3. This usually happens shortly after the tutorial. Levels 4 and 5 take a while to reach though. Quests like Save Mayrina where you confront Auntie Ethel in the Sunlit Wetlands come in handy here.

Act 2 is more consistent with how it handles experience, taking you from level 6 to 9. While it’s not as open-ended as the first Act, focusing on key story elements lets you quickly level up.

As for the final Act, levels 10-12 come quicker than you expect thanks to the absurd amount of XP that Act 3 enemies give you. Try to tackle every combat encounter that comes your way and you should hit max level without any grinding. While peaceful conclusions grant XP too, combat clearly offers more experience for the same situation.

How to level up fast in Baldur’s Gate 3?

There are many ways to level up fast in BG3: combat, quests, and inspiration. We’ll tackle all these ways and how to make the most of them below.

Combat to level up

Combat is where you’ll get the biggest boosts in XP points. While you can backtrack to earlier areas, you’re better off fighting enemies closer to your level. This is why exploration is important in all of the Baldur’s Gate 3 acts. Exploring new areas also nets you a tiny sliver of experience points.

Here are some of the best places to farm XP in Act 1 of Baldur’s Gate 3:

  • Goblin Camp (Goblins, True Souls)
  • Shattered Sanctum (Goblins, goblin leaders Minthara, Princess Gut, Dror Ragzlin)
  • Underdark – Beach (Duergar, potentially Sovereign Spaw)
  • Underdark – Grymforge (Duergar, boss Grym)
  • Underdark – Selunite Outpost (Drow, the Beholder boss)

You’ll encounter a lot of quests with potential battles. We’ve learned that solving the conflict peacefully and then starting a fight gives you the biggest XP boost. This can be done in places where you’d mostly have picked up a fight anyway. For example, the Goblin Camp is one such location.

Quests to level up

Completing quests will also give you loads of experience points. While the biggest gains will be from main story quests, don’t ignore side content. In addition to XP gain, you also get access to a reward or two. You’ll also pass by the occasional treasures as you explore new areas. 

Side quests tend to blow up into entire quest chains in later acts. Some involve elaborate puzzles like the Arcane Tower. Without spoilers, it’s safe to expect plenty of returning characters in Acts 2 and 3. Again, resolving quests peacefully before drawing your blade in combat is a good way to improve your XP yield. Here are some quests to help you level up quickly:

  • Finding the Necromancy of Thay in the Blighted Village and then the Dark Amethyst in the Whispering Depths. This quest also continues in Act 3 with the Tharciate Codex.
  • Looking for Nightsong takes you across the Underdark and then the Gauntlet of Shar. Expect this quest to be resolved in Act 2.
  • Find the owlbear cub right in the game’s first Act. While the owlbear isn’t a companion, you can find them occasionally in the camp.
  • Lady Esther and her choices make for an interesting Act 2 quest with plenty of combat.
  • Finding and using Adamantine Forge in Grymforge might not seem like a challenge at first. But watch out for the construct Grym.

Inspiration to level up

Characters gain inspiration by performing actions that align with their backgrounds. These points can be used to reroll dice rolls in dialogue. Your party can stack up a maximum of four inspiration points per long rest. But if you’re already at the maximum limit, future inspiration grants 50 experience points instead. This can be a nice bonus to improve your experience early on in the game. This can’t compete with direct combat or quests of course.

That covers how to level up fast in Baldur’s Gate 3. If your ambitions get you in trouble with the authorities, here’s how to get out of jail. And if you’re finding it tough to sustain consecutive combat encounters, here’s how to rest in. Players on PC and PlayStation 5 gamers can use these paths to take your party to the next level.

About the Author

Antony Terence

Antony Terence is a Guides Writer for VideoGamer. While he is particularly fond of city-builders, shooters, and strategy titles, he won’t turn down a good JRPG or a turn-based roguelike.

Baldur’s Gate 3

  • Platform(s): macOS, PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series S/X, Xbox Series X
  • Genre(s): Adventure, RPG, Strategy
  • Read Review
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