Baldur’s Gate 3 lets you keep or break a Paladin’s oath in latest update

Oh, Holy Knight

Larian Studios now has a window for the full launch of Baldur’s Gate 3, but ahead of that, the studio is putting live a big update for the holiest and un-holiest of knights. The latest big update to the RPG was revealed today, adding the Paladin class, as well as some other tidbits leading up to the full launch.

With the addition of Patch 9, Paladin is now a class option in Baldur’s Gate 3. The critically over-zealous knights bring a lot of power to the party. Alongside that are two subclass options, adhering to the Paladin’s beliefs: the Oath of Devotion, and the Oath of the Ancients.

But if you just don’t like following the rules, there is always the evil option. Go back on your oath, and you can become an Oathbreaker. Larian’s Swen Vincke demonstrated this in today’s panel, by breaking his player character’s oaths and following in the path of an Oathbreaker Knight that visited his camp.

More features are in today’s Patch 9 update too. There’s a leval cap bump up to Level 5, the Fly spell has been added, the Reactions system has been revamped, and there’s even a ping system. Personally, I’m a big fan of “characters who attempt to play an instrument they’re not Proficient with now fail spectacularly.” Good update.

A critical role

That’s all for Baldur’s Gate 3 now. But for Baldur’s Gate 3 in the future, there is another update: voice actor Matthew Mercer is joining the cast. Mercer will voice Minsc, who popped up during last week’s trailer at The Game Awards 2022. Minsc is a returning Baldur’s Gate companion, who’s been petrified for quite some time.

We've been getting loads of questions about who we've cast in the critical role of Minsc…

… and we took that literally. 😏
Please welcome VO and DM extraordinaire @matthewmercer as the voice of Minsc in Baldur's Gate 3! pic.twitter.com/nkwMfXUUCD

— Larian Studios (@larianstudios) December 14, 2022

Though the big update’s here today, launch is still a ways off. Larian Studios is aiming to fully launch Baldur’s Gate 3 in August 2023 on PC, after spending a few years in Early Access with a slice of its first act.