The Ranger Knight is a type of Ranger often designed to make the class a more melee focused type of Ranger. The class and playstyle essentially awards the player with the usual ranger target type bonuses, so you can reap the class features of Ranger, and then you multiclass into other classes to then gain a lot of offerings to make a really sturdy frontline character. Here’s a closer look at this Ranger Knight Build in Baldur’s Gate 3, featuring the best Ranger race, feats, and gear to use along the way.

Ranger Knight Build for Baldur’s Gate 3¶

Okay, so, this class is going to abuse a lot of the multiclassing options in BG3. You will want to use the following classes for your journey to 12.

• Fighter 6 - Battle Master
• Ranger 4 - Hunter
• War Cleric 2
• Fighting Style: Two Weapon Fighting or Defense (Two Weapon Fighting if you want to dual wield weapons, or Defense if you want a +1 AC to make you tankier.)
• Hunter’s Prey: Colossal Slayer - Once per turn, your weapon attacks deal an extra 1d8 damage if the target is below its hit point maximum.
• Maneuvers: Evasive Footwork, Rally, Riposte - Rally for clutch heals alongside Cleric healing spells, Evasive Footwork for additional defensiveness, and Riposte for some extra damage when enemies miss you.

This build is ideally looking at your build as if you’re end game. If you are starting from fresh, then, you can start either Ranger or Fighter, depending on your preference. But, once you get to around level 9, you can respec your build and put 4 levels into Ranger, and then five levels into Fighter, as this is the more optimal for the feature spread. You’ll have your extra attack from Fighter, you’ll have two feats, and you’ll still get the subclasses and ranger feats you need for the build.

Once you get your level 6 fighter, you’ll get your third and final feat. You can now move into the Cleric, and grab two levels of War Cleric. The two levels of War Cleric are very good, as you get your devotion rolls offering you an extra bonus action attack, and you can get help with rolling on attack rolls if you miss. This will help to make your attacks all the more accurate, so you can reliably hit very often.

Also, it’s worth noting that the Battle Master Riposte here works wonders. Since you don’t rely on too many Ranger hard cast spells, you will be often finding ways to make enemies disadvantaged, along with your higher defensiveness to make it harder to hit you. Silence, Fog Cloud or Darkness, Hunter’s Mark, Ensnare are your main Ranger Knight spells. It means you’ll be finding ways to make hunting enemies down, keeping your survivability up, and making it harder for them to hit you, or easier to hit them as your focus with Ranger. With that, you’re likely going to Riposte fairly often and make the most out of the Ranger’s Fighting Styles, enemy debuffs, your Cleric buffs, and Fighter Maneuvers.

When it comes to Cleric spells, avoid taking spells that use Concentration in combat. The reason for this is because Hunter’s Mark is your main concentration spell, as that helps you to ramp your damage up against the target. You will be using this as often as possible to add even more damage rolls against your kill target.

Best Ranger Knight Feats¶

The Ranger Knight build operates similarly to a fighter. We highly recommend you spend your three BG3 feats as follows:

• Sentinel - Gain more AC, and can prevent enemies running away when you make opportunity attacks. You can also use your reaction to attack an enemy foe if they attack an ally in melee range of you.
• Great Weapon Master or Dual Wield - If you use Two Handers for the build use GWM. You have enough advantage, and CC to make it easier to land regardless of the hit penalty. Dual Wield if you chose the Two weapon fighting style. This helps open your options away from light weapons, so you can start using weapons like maces, warhammers, or versatile weapons to open up more options you.
• Tough - Helps with your tankyness, granting around 14 health at max level, which is decent if you end up making the Ranger Knight build your tankier role in the party.
• Ability Score Improvement - If you want more Dex or Strength, depending on the weapons you want to use, then you can spend some points to get an extra proficiency bonus on a chosen stat.

Best Gear and Items For Ranger Knight Build in BG3¶

For the most part, you can largely use whatever weapon and armor combination you want. However, there’s a few a weapons and armor pieces worth looking into when you get to around act 3. If there’s no other mentioned item, then feel free to use whatever item you want.

• Balduran’s Giantslayer: Arguably the best legendary weapon for GWM users, especially with its Giant form modifier. Solve the Chamber puzzles in the Wyrmgate prison secret level.
• The Blood of Lathander - Blindness via its 6th level skill can help you a lot in combat, which you can use as part of your dual wield playstyle. - You get this in Act 1 via the Githyanki Creche / Monastery and find the Blood of Lathandar that way.
• Nyrulna - Versatile Spear for either GWM or dual wield, you also get some decent powers via the throw and boomerang effect if needed. You can get this from the Act 3 Genie at the Circus and spin the wheel.
• Helmets: Helldusk Helmet - If you use the Ranger Darkness skill, then this helmet allows you to see in it as you get Magical Darkness. You get this from Act 3’s House of Hope.
  Mask of Soul Perception - Allows better concentration saving throws, meaning you’re less likely to drop your Hunter’s Mark. You can grab this in Act 3 in the Devil’s Fee bedroom.
  Helm of Balduran - AC improvement, can’t be crit or stunned, and 2 healing per turn. You get this alongside the Giantslayer.
• Necklance: Broodmother’s Revenge.
• Chest: Armour of Persistence, Reaper’s Embrace, or Helldusk Armour.
• Ring: Killer’s Sweetheart - Gain executioner, which allows you to land a guaranteed crit on a successful hit attack once per long rest after you killed an enemy. You can grab this from the Self Same Trial in the Gauntlet of Shar.

Best Race and Stats for Ranger Knight Build in BG3¶

When creating your character, you ideally want to have:

• 16 STR
• 16 DEX
• 14 CON
• 8 INT
• 12 WIS
• 8 CHA

This ability score layout will allow you to have solid modifiers for your AC bonus, initiative, and any finesse weapons you use while playing the game. Meanwhile, your strength will assist you with melee weapons you use that are not Finesse, which is good for the non light finesse dual wield options or two-handed GWM weapons. Con helps you with tankyness, while Wisdom is your spell casting modifier for both Clerics and Ranger, so they can help if you do need to cast any spells.

Everything else is a dead stat when it comes to combat, and are only useful for dialogue checks.

As for races, you can select any of the following

• Human - Better carrying capacity, and proficiency with pretty much every martial weapon.
• Halfling - Luck for better re-rolls.
• Half-Orc - Triple dice when you crit, which you can land reliably with enough CC, especially with Hold Person or Monster, depending on ally support.
• Gold Dwarf - Dwarven resilience comes in handy to make you more tankier as it essentially operates like Toughness.

You can use whatever race you want though for aesthetics.

This concludes the Ranger Knight build in Baldur’s Gate 3. Now you have an idea on how to spec this build out, or to level Minsc in his ranger martial style combat.

Read More:

• BG3 Warlock Build
• BG3 Paladin Build
• BG3 Sorcerer Build
• BG3 Rogue Build
• BG3 Ranger Build
• BG3 Fighter Build
• BG3 Druid Build
• BG3 Barbarian Build
• BG3 Bard Build
• BG3 Wizard build
• BG3 Class Tier List