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When starting a new game, the player is presented with the character creation screen, where they may either select an origin character, or create a custom character.
"Who are you?"
Origins
Origins provide a selection of premade characters, each with their own path that ties into the plot of the game. Each origin character is a unique experience with a unique quest and dialogue.
Origin characters' have a starting class that can be changed at any time past a certain point early in the game.
For a fully customisable character, options include Custom and the special origin The Dark Urge.
- Origin Characters
Backgrounds
Your history and what shapes you as a person. Backgrounds provide proficiencies and opportunities to gain inspiration. They do not impact dialogue or quests.
Race
Your lineage and innate abilities. A character's race provide them with unique racial features. Race cannot be changed after character creation.
Starting class
What you can do and the potential to grow as an adventurer. Class provide a character with most of their features. Past a certain point early in the game, characters can change their starting class at camp, for a small fee.
Ability scores
Abilities represent aspects of creature's physical and mental attributes, represented in numerical ability scores, from which ability scorer modifiers are derived from – these affect most dice rolls.
Baldur's Gate 3 uses a point buy system, with 27 points available to spend on ability scores. The following rules apply during character creation:
- Ability scores cannot be reduced below 8.
- Ability scores cannot be increased above 15.
- Each ability score increase up to 13 costs one point; 14 and 15 each cost two points.
- Two bonuses are applied at the end, one at +2 and another +1. This allows a starting ability score as high as 17.
At certain class levels (4, 8, and 12 for most classes), ability scores can be increased with the Ability Improvement feat. Some items also increase or change a creature's ability scores.
Skills
Proficiency with a skill allows a creature to add their proficiency bonus to any ability checks made using that skill.
Race sometimes gives proficiency in some skills, and background always gives proficiency with two skills.
Characters also choose 2 to 4 skills to be proficient in. The amount and what skills are available to choose from is determined by their starting class.
Proficiencies don't stack – there is no benefit to having proficiency in the same skill from two different sources.
- Skills and their corresponding abilities
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