Wildheart Barbarian Build - Tiger Aspect - Baldur's Gate 3 (BG3)

Wildheart Barbarian build - Tiger Aspect

This is one of the more interesting Barbarian builds that offers a very powerful role in the party composition. In general, this is a melee combatant that can somewhat act as a frontliner. On the other hand, it is a full-time debuffer, applying stacks of Reverberation, Prone, Maimed, etc.

All of this is possible thanks to the Aspect of the Beast: Wolverine​ and Tiger's Bloodlust,​ which offer an easy way to activate conditions and also hit multiple enemies at the same time. The build gives a truly great satisfaction in how you approach combat and how enemy combat capabilities get destroyed.

As a Barbarian, it stops providing any important features in later levels, so the fighter will take it to the next level. Access to Action Surge​ will give solid Nova round capabilities. Moreover, thanks to the Battle Master, you will also be able to further debilitate enemies via Disarming Attack (Melee)​ or other manoeuvres.

So let's jump into the build!

Class Contribution

Here are what contributions and benefits you get from the class picks:

8 Wildheart Barbarian

• Rage​ + Rage: Tiger Heart​ for physical damage resistance, increased jump distance and ability to hit multiple enemies via Tiger's Bloodlust, which is one of the core aspects of the build.
• Tiger's Bloodlust​ allows for easy application of Bleeding, which does not have a saving throw, and will allow stacking various debuffs.
• Unarmoured Defence:​ extra armour class based on your constitution modifier
• Reckless Attack​ for an easy way to gain an advantage on your attack rolls
• Danger Sense​ - a slight boost on dexterity saving throws, which will help resist various slippery surfaces.
• Extra Attack​ - gives an additional attack with the main action point.
• Animal Aspects, which give further bonuses, the main ones are Aspect of the Beast: Tiger​ or Aspect of the Beast: Wolverine. The latter is my recommended pick.
• Significant initiative boost via Feral Instinct.
• Land's Stride: Difficult Terrain​ - can easily move via various terrains, which would usually slow targets down.

4 Fighter Battle Master

• Second Wind​ for a slight HP restoration, although most of the time it is more economical to use healing potions.
• Fighting style, to give a slight stat boost.
• Action Surge​ for an additional full action point, for a larger number of attacks.
• Access to Battlemaster manoeuvres, my favourite ones - Precision Attack, Disarming Attack (Melee)​ and Pushing Attack. There are many others to choose from, but these are my top 3.

Synergy with other builds

The build is a solid contender for many party compositions.

Cleric Choice

Wildheart Barb will eat into a lot of standard cleric setups, at least once you gain the Callous Glow Ring. This is because you will want to use debuff items like Luminous Armour, Gloves of Belligerent Skies, etc. For this reason, the Life Fortress Life Cleric build works well with this one, giving buffs and occasional heals, without overlapping with items.

Still, if you want to run a standard cleric build together with Wildheart, you have other item options - Gloves of Baneful Striking, Luminous Gloves, etc. This does not impair your ability to debuff and provides various bonuses to your group.

Piercing setups

A powerful melee weapon option for the late game, the piercing damage type, namely, Nyrulna, Shar's Spear of Evening, etc. They can have their damage doubled in Act 3 thanks to the Bhaalist Armour and its special passive effect - Aura Of Murder. With this in mind, you can build your party around to significantly increase the damage output and trivialise many of the game fights

• Melee martials with piercing weapons - Bardadin, Battle Master, Sorcadin, Bladelock, or any other melee option. These can safely wear Bhaalist Armour, meaning that Aura Of Murder​ will always be active, and can be utilised by both other ranged and melee party members.

Controllers

Almost any party can benefit from good controllers that use Hold Person, Glyph of Warding: Sleep,​ or Hold Monster. They guarantee a 100% critical chance and allow you to maximise the whole group's damage.

• Fire Sorcerer - one of the most reliable builds for this type of setup, with Hat of Fire Acuity + Scorching Ray​ to build Arcane Acuity. After that, use the control spell with a 100% success chance.
• Spellsword build - Sorcadin, Bardadin, Swords Bard Archer is the standard option for gish controllers, as they get access to Band of the Mystic Scoundrel + Helmet of Arcane Acuity for a very high spell success chance, and the already mentioned spell options.
• Lorecerer - similar to Fire Sorcerer, can use the same combo and can easily apply total control. Sadly, it is just limited to Hold Person and Glyph of Warding.
• Other caster-related builds - Lore Bard or even Arcane Trickster with access to unlimited scrolls. They get nice features that help them improve their spell success chance.

Leveling Overview

Here is a concise table with all the main picks during your leveling progression. For more detailed reasoning, I go further in the article. Also, do not forget to check the recommended gear, as it is crucial and can drastically change how the build works.

Level	Class	Selection
1	Barbarian 1	Abilities: Natural Strength setup: STR - 17 (15+2), DEX - 16 (15+1), CON - 14, INT - 8, WIS - 10, CHA - 8 Strength Elixir setup: STR - 8, DEX - 16 (15+1), CON - 14, INT - 8, WIS - 10, CHA - 17 (15+2)
		Skills: Intimidation, any
2	Barbarian 2	-
3	Barbarian 3	Subclass: Wildheart
4	Barbarian 4	Feat: Great Weapon Master: All In​ or Ability Improvement +2 Strength
5	Barbarian 5	-
6	Barbarian 6	Animal Aspect: Aspect of the Beast: Wolverine​
7	Barbarian 7	-
8	Barbarian 8	Feat: Great Weapon Master: All In​ or Ability Improvement +2 Strength
9	Fighter 1	Fighting Style: Defence​
10	Fighter 2	-
11	Fighter 3	Subclass: Battlemaster
		Manoeuvres: Precision Attack, Trip Attack, Disarming Attack​
12	Fighter 4	Feat: Savage Attacker, Sentinel: Vengeance​, etc.

Build Variations

Here are some variations that work similarly and utilise the same classes at their core.

Setup	Description
10 Wildheart Barbarian 2 Fighter	Allows to retain Action Surge​ while also getting additional Animal Aspect to choose from.
5 Thief 7 Wildheart	A more agile build, with two bonus actions and a perfect setup for dual-wielding. It is also extremely tanky thanks to the Evasion​ from rogue.
1 Hexblade 8 Wildheart 3 Fighter	Suggested by a commenter, this is a great variation that concentrates on a single ability - Charisma. This way can activate Bind Hexed Weapon, drop strength, and activate Arcane Synergy. Sadly, spells don't work while using Rage: Tiger Heart, so Shield​ and Booming Blade​ are irrelevant.

Starting the Game - Level 1

This section covers the creation screen and what would go into the best Races, Abilities, and Skills for the Wildheart Tiger Barbarian build. If you have already started playing, feel free to do a respec at Withers and follow along. This will make it easy to follow the build step by step.

Races

Picking a race provides various benefits - abilities, dialogue options, looks, etc.

Race	Features	Description
Wood Half-Elf	Civil Militia Darkvision​ Fey Ancestry Fleet of Foot - your movement speed is increased by 1.5m.	Gives a movement speed increase, which improves your overall positioning capabilities during combat. This isn't as important for ranged builds, but still relevant.
Wood Elf	Elven Weapon Training​ Darkvision​ Fey Ancestry Fleet of Foot - your movement speed is increased by 1.5m.
Half-Orc	Darkvision​ Relentless Endurance​ Savage Attacks​	A perfect fighter race gains additional rolls for critical hits, but most importantly, can stand up instead of being Downed.
Dwarf Duergar	Dwarven Combat Training​ Superior Darkvision​ Dwarven Resilience​ Duergar Resilience​	Out of all small races, this would be my pick with a free damage increase via Enlarge​
Zariel Tiefling	Darkvision​ Hellish Resistance​ Thaumaturgy​	A great race that offers unique looks and a few standout features. I recommend Thaumaturgy​ as it helps immensely with dialogue checks without any negative consequences. The additional smites, like Searing Smite,​ can be helpful for a little more damage in the early and mid game.
Githyanki	Martial Prodigy​	A very versatile race that unlocks some good actions for combat and exploration.

Class

Overview
Barbarian
Features
Rage​	Unique action to Barbarians that boosts damage and gives physical resistance. Make sure to attack each turn to sustain the bonuses.
Unarmoured Defence​	Gives some utility to the Constitution when going with Barbarian. Sadly, the build relies on various armors so this will not be utilized to the full extent.

Background

Backgrounds serve a few purposes:

1. They give a role-playing option of your previous history, if you are into that.
2. It gives skill proficiencies, meaning that you get an additional bonus when you roll that skill check in which you are proficient. This depends on your proficiency bonus, which increases as you level up.

Here are my recommendations based on this build

Background	Skills	Description
Outlander	Athletics Survival	Gives a boost to Athletics, which helps you resist Shove. Moreover, Survival will help with revealing hidden treasures, but it mostly utilises the Wisdom ability
Soldier	Athletics Intimidation	Gives a better chance to resist being Shove, and increases the success of Intimidation dialogues.

Abilities

Now, let's take a look at the abilities of the Wildheart Tiger Barb build. Correct allocation will allow you to maximize the early gameplay and get good modifier bonuses.

Abilities	Description
Natural Strength Setup: Strength - 17 (15+2) Dexterity - 16 (15+1) Constitution - 14 Intelligence - 8 Wisdom - 10 Charisma - 8	This option is for those who would like to avoid using Elixir of Hill Giant Strength and increase the strength stat via normal means. This variation also goes for +1 Strength via Auntie Ethel Hair (or Athlete: Standing Up​ feat), which will give you a total higher strength value for slightly more damage. The result is you have a free elixir slot for various other boosts.
Strength Elixir Setup: Strength - 8 Dexterity - 16 (15+1) Constitution - 14 Intelligence - 8 Wisdom - 10 Charisma - 17 (15+2)	This setup is great to maximise your effectiveness, especially in Acts 1 and 2, with various stat increases. It also gives a significant stat boost early on. This does mean that your elixir slot will be used by Elixir of Hill Giant Strength. Although you cannot use Elixir of Bloodlust, you will have high Charisma, which means that you will deal significantly more damage via Arcane Synergy, and your dialogue rolls will not suck!

Skills and Expertise

Overall, the skills should be impacted by your role-playing and background decisions. However, you would still want those who will give you the best benefits. My recommendations are to pick those at which you have a high ability modifier or are useful in general:

• Intimidation - helps with dialogue checks
• Survival - can help find diggable mounds

Leveling Progression - Levels 2-12

Here is the detailed progression for the Wildheart Barbarian build to get you started. You can use it as a guideline because early games can be daunting and overwhelming. Later on, once you get a feel for the class, you can start picking your options.

Level 2

By this time, you should have landed on the Ravaged beach already and started exploring the initial area. You might need 1 additional encounter if you did not obtain enough XP in the Nautiloid.

Features	Description
Danger Sense​	Gives an advantage on Dexterity saving throws, helping with various surface effects and spells.
Reckless Attack​	Pretty good melee attack option, giving an easy advantage and increasing your chances of hitting

Level 3

Subclass

Overview
Wildheart
Features
Speak with Animals​	Allows speaking with animals, without using any resources.

Bestial Heart

This is the core feature of Wildheart Barbarian, unlocking special variations of Rage.

Bestial Heart	Description
Tiger Heart	Unlocks Rage: Tiger Heart​ and its special action - Tiger's Bloodlust. This allows you to easily hit multiple enemies and apply Bleeding​ without the chance of failure.

Level 4

Feat

Feat	Description
Great Weapon Master: All In​	This would be my go-to pick for the feats, especially if you use Elixir of Hill Giant Strength early on. The +10 damage boost is unparalleled if you can counteract the -5 to attack rolls. I suggest following the attack rolls guide to optimise these in the early game. Otherwise, you can pick this feat later on.
Ability Improvement - +2 Strength	This is a safer feat pick that does not give an attack roll penalty, and makes it easier to manage your hit chance early on, especially for newer players to the game.

Level 5

Feature	Description
Extra Attack​	Allows for additional attack time, giving a significant damage per turn boost.
Fast Movement​	Gives 3m movement boost.

Level 6

The highlight of this level is the newly unlocked feature Animal Aspect, which further improves your unique capabilities.

Animal Aspect	Description
Aspect of the Beast: Wolverine​	This is an extremely powerful feature that will allow you to easily apply the Maimed​ condition. Why is this important? Your gear will allow you to apply Reverberation,​ which can make targets Prone. Prone​ + Maimed​ means that the enemy cannot stand up, and they skip their turn. You can see where this goes, and it's a total destroyer of foes.
Aspect of the Beast: Tiger​	This is a less important feature, as it only gives increased attack rolls. Still, the bonus can help to manage Great Weapon Master: All In​ at least until you reach level 8 for the second feat.

Level 7

Feature	Description
Feral Instinct​	Excellent passive that gives a significant initiative boost and helps avoid the Surprised​ condition. It is an inferior alternative to Alert​ feat.

Level 8

Here are the subclass features that you gain:

Feature	Description
Land's Stride: Difficult Terrain​	Does not slow you down when moving through difficult terrain.

Feat

Feat	Description
Ability Improvement - +2 Strength	Take the one which you did not take at level 4
Great Weapon Master: All In​

Level 9 - Fighter Lv 1

Now the build takes its first multiclass into a fighter. This will give some nice features, as a barbarian will not give as many benefits going further. To multiclass, click the button when levelling up and choose the appropriate class:

Class

Overview
Fighter
Features
Second Wind​	You can use this to heal yourself in tight encounters, to get a little bit more of survivability.

Fighting Style

Style	Description
Defence​	Effective stat boost compared to other fighting style options, as a result, improving armour class.

Level 10 - Fighter Lv 2

Feature	Description
Action Surge​	The iconic action of a fighter is extremely popular for its simplicity and effectiveness. You get additional action with full bonuses from Extra Attack.

Level 11 - Fighter Lv 3

The level unlocks a subclass, which will give improved capabilities for single-target damage and conditions

Subclass

Overview
Battle Master
Features
Superiority Dice	These dice give bonus 1d8 damage, can be used 4 times, and are reset each short and long rest. Easy damage increase and improved battlefield control.

Manoeuvre

Choose 3:

Manoeuvre	Description
Precision Attack​	One of the key options to make a fighter very powerful in early games. Once you obtain the Great Weapon Master: All In​ it will be easy to drastically improve hit chance and gain the +10 damage bonus.
Disarming Attack​	Very powerful action, which allows them to disarm foes and force them to drop their weapons.
Pushing Attack​	Excellent option, for when you need to push off an enemy from a ledge, or into a difficult area like Hunger of Hadar​ or Darkness.
Trip Attack​	Only the ranged option is worthwhile, which gives infinite Prone. The build does not go too much into bow attacks, so I would give this low priority.

Level 12 - Fighter Lv 4

The last level gives a few feat options

Feat

The feat selection is amazing, go for what you find the most relevant, I don't think there are wrong picks here:

Feat	Description
Savage Attacker​	A straightforward feat that gives a significant boost to each damage roll that you do, including damage riders.
Athlete: Standing Up​	Excellent choice if you have skipped Auntie Ethel Hair for +1 strength. Moreover, it gives a significant jumping boost, increasing the barbarian's mobility.
Sentinel: Vengeance​	In essence, this can give an additional attack if you position yourself and party members correctly.

That's it, the build is done!

Maximizing Ability Scores

Now, as the build progression is covered, there are a few aspects and important decisions you will have to make throughout the game. These will decide your final score for abilities.

Strength - natural setup

So this ability score is quite important, and as we talked already, there are a few main ways to maximize it:

1. 17 Strength - the base from character creation.
2. Act 1 - Auntie Ethel Hair - you will want to get +1 Strength if you pick this choice.
3. Feat - Ability Improvement - +2 Strength.
4. Act 2 - Potion of Everlasting Vigour - +2 Strength.
5. Feat 2 - if not taken Auntie Ethel Hair, then you can take Athlete: Standing Up​ and get +1 Strength
6. Act 3 - Mirror of Loss - pick +2 Strength.

This results in 24 Strength, with a +7 modifier, which can only be higher with the Elixir of Cloud Giant Strength.

Charisma - if running strength elixirs

If running a strength elixir setup, you can allocate more points into spellcasting modifier, which helps to improve damage via Arcane Synergy. 

1. 17 Charisma - the base for character creation.
2. Act 1 - You can take Auntie Ethel Hair for +1 Charisma. However, there is another option to get Charisma +1 later in Act 3, via Patriar's Memory. I leave this up to you.
3. Feat 1 - Ability Improvement - +2 Charisma.
4. Act 3 - Mirror of Loss - pick +2 Charisma.
5. Act 3 - Mirror of Loss - Patriar's Memory - +1 Charisma if did not take Auntie Ethel Hair.

With all of these bonuses, you will have +6 damage via Arcane Synergy, which is quite significant. If you use a piercing weapon and Bhaalist Armour, this gets doubled.

Potions, Elixirs, and Consumables

Let's take a look at what consumables you can use to further empower the build.

Potions

These have short-term effects for a few turns.

Consumable	Description
Potion of Speed	This is a very powerful potion. It gives an additional action point, which can be used to cast a spell or attack. The activation is generally by drinking using a bonus action. However, you can stack together with party members and make one member Throw​ it on the ground, giving Hastened​ to everyone.
Potion of Invisibility	It can be used in two ways - the first one is to enter combat with a Surprised​ round, causing enemies to skip their turn. Another option is to leave combat if you see that it is not going in your favour.
Potion of Animal Speaking	An easy way to get the Speak with Animals​ effect.
Terazul	Gives Hastened​ and stacks with other sources of it. This is a late-game consumable.

Coatings

These are short-term coatings, used on the weapon. Only one can be activated at a time:

Consumable	Description
Oil of Accuracy	The attack roll bonus is pretty good, which improves your chances of hitting.
Diluted Oil of Sharpness	Helps with attack and damage rolls.
Drow Poison	Can put foes Sleeping​ giving an easy way to hit with critical hits.
Karabasan's Poison	Can apply Paralysed​ on foes, giving an easy source of critical hit guarantees.

Elixirs

Unfortunately, only one Elixir can be active at a time. However, the good thing is that they last for the whole day, before making a long rest. This makes exlixirs very useful and economical.

Be sure to activate them before combat, as otherwise, you will need to use Bonus Action.

Consumable	Description
Elixir of Bloodlust	As you will be able to easily kill at least the weakest foe, this ensures additional attacks per turn. This is the strongest elixir option in most cases.
Elixir of Hill Giant Strength	Sets the strength value to 21 until the Long Rest. This is a perfect option for the early game, while you are limited to 18 Strength. Here is a farming guide for Elixir of Hill Giant Strength.
Elixir of Cloud Giant Strength	Sets the strength to 27. Excellent option to be used in case, Elixir of Bloodlust is unavailable, or you have missed some of the strength boosts.
Elixir of The Colossus	Provides bonus damage of 1d4 and some other good bonuses.
Elixir of Viciousness	Reduces the requirement for critical hit rolls.
Elixir of Vigilance	For some encounters, you will want to go first. This elixir will ensure that it overcomes even surprise mechanics. However, if you have Alert,​ this becomes redundant.

Illithid Powers

This special mechanic in Baldur's Gate 3 allows you to consume tadpoles and unlock special Illithid Powers.

At first, you can only use the base powers. As you move to Act 3, you will be able to unlock the outer ring powers, also called Elite.

Illithid Power	Type	Description
Favourable Beginnings	Base	Beneficial power to take as it does not have any costs, and provides only benefits on the first hits with attack rolls.
Luck of the Far Realms​	Base	It's an easy way to ensure you land critical hits, especially good when you need an instant damage boost.
Cull the Weak​	Base	It can help to kill an enemy faster if it is left with a few HP.
Psionic Overload​	Base	It can help give a slight damage boost. The main issue is that this cannot be activated outside of combat, so you will have to use an action point.
Psionic Backlash​​	Base	Excellent way to deal additional damage with reaction, early and mid game.
Ability Drain​	Base	Decreases enemy ability score, free use, so worth getting.
Shield of Thralls​	Base	Excellent option for bonus temporary HP. It can also apply Stunned on foes after it is destroyed.
Illithid Expertise​	Elite	It can be used to maximize the effectiveness of charisma-based skills, especially those relevant to the main character.
Psionic Dominance​	Elite	It can be used to save yourself from a deadly spell.

Equipment Recommendations

Now I would like to go through some gear recommendations to maximize the Wildheart Barb Build. Items are especially important as they take the build to the next level thanks to their unique effects.

Act 1

Dual Wield options

This can be used to gain a source of radiant damage pretty early via Shining Staver-of-Skulls.

Slot	Item	Description
Melee (One-Handed)	Shining Staver-of-Skulls	A decent weapon that allows for a fairly early radiant damage source to activate Luminous Armour.
	Knife of the Undermountain King	Excellent off-hand weapon that improves damage.
	Shortsword of First Blood	A very powerful weapon, which can deal significant damage to multiple full-health targets.

Two-Handed Options

Slot	Item	Description
Melee (One-Handed)	Cacophony	Enables an easy activation of Gloves of Belligerent Skies when attacking.
	Unseen Menace	Gives a very easy advantage option, greatly increasing hit chance.
	Svartlebee's Woundseeker	One of the best early game weapons with a boost to attack rolls against enemies that have already received damage.
	Larethian's Wrath	Excellent sword, which has a powerful Razor Gale​ action, easily hitting multiple foes in its cone.
	Sword of Justice	A solid greatsword option with special shield action.

Other Items

Slot	Item	Description
Ranged	Bow of Awareness	The higher initiative bonus will allow you to start your turn earlier. Later, once you get Feral Instinct, the bow can be given to another character.
	Gandrel's Aspiration	Gives easy Advantage against monstrosities for all weapon attacks.
	Hunting Shortbow
Head	Diadem of Arcane Synergy	This would be the best item in terms of damage if you have high Charisma and are going with the Elixir of Hill Giant Strength setup.
	Holy Lance Helm	Solid headwear option, which can help activate various item effects when enemies are trying to hit you
	Cap of Wrath	It can be an easy source of Wrath​ during each combat.
	Haste Helm	Provides increased speed at the start of the combat.
Cloak	The Deathstalker Mantle	The only option in Act 1 that is okay is to provide once-per-turn invisibility.
Armor	Luminous Armour	The recommended armor choice. You may not have much use for it now, but it will synergize extremely well with Callous Glow Ring for additional radiant damage.
	Adamantine Scale Mail	Powerful armour from Grymforge, which is best worn with at least 14 Dexterity, to get Bonus Armour Class, making it equal to Heavy Armour.
	Githyanki Half Plate	This can be equipped when starting the game by taking it from Lae'zel. It's a very solid option with a high Armour Class.
Gloves	Gloves of Belligerent Skies	Gives an easy way to apply Reverberation​ when you are attacking with various damage types, later in the game.
	Gloves of Baneful Striking	Enables weakening enemies, for various spell and condition effects, easily.
	Gloves of the Growling Underdog	Gives an easy advantage on attack rolls, helping to maintain the Great Weapon Master: All In.
	Gloves of Power	Easy to obtain gloves, for debuffing and weakening your targets.
Boots	Boots of Stormy Clamour	You really want to equip these boots and never change them. This will be your main Reverberation​ source from all the conditions you apply. The easiest one is Bleeding​ with Tiger's Bloodlust.
Amulet	Broodmother's Revenge	One of the best amulets in terms of direct damage boost.
	Periapt of Wound Closure	The amulet can help avoid death.
	Amulet of Branding	Gives an easy way to apply vulnerabilities via a bonus action.
	Amulet of Misty Step	Does not require you to use Spell Slot to cast Misty Step, to either get away or reserve a better throwing position.
Rings	Crusher's Ring	Gives a solid movement speed boost.
	Caustic Band	Provides 2 damage increase on each weapon hit, making it a good choice in Act 1. It is very expensive, so be sure to pickpocket some traders.
	Ring of Protection	Gives defensive bonuses to Armour Class and Saving Throws.

Act 2 - mid-game

Although I recommended some dual-wield options, once you get Callous Glow Ring, I would recommend switching to two-handed weapons as they will be a rather more powerful option.

Slot	Item	Description
Melee (Two-Handed)	Shar's Spear of Evening	Shar's Spear of Evening is the better version, but it requires an evil decision, which is not for all playthroughs. Overall, both of these weapons are great choices, as they come with special actions and +3 enchantment.
	Selûne's Spear of Night
	Drakethroat Glaive	Almost mandatory weapon to have. Use its special action Draconic Elemental Weapon​ to buff your weapon, with thunder/lightning damage rider. This will help activate Gloves of Belligerent Skies and inflict more damage.
Ranged	Darkfire Shortbow	Although not mandatory, this bow is useful as it can apply Haste​ without spell slots. Best used before combat, or continue using Act 1 weapons.
Head	-	Same headwear as from the previous act.
Cloak	Cloak of Protection	Improves survivability and Saving Throw success.
	Cloak of Elemental Absorption	Helps to absorb elemental damage, which can then improve your weapon attacks.
	Thunderskin Cloak	As many enemies will get Reverberation​ effect from your attacks, the additional Dazed​ from the cloak is a good addition.
Armor	Luminous Armour	The best armour in terms of applying conditions and debuffs.
	Yuan-ti Scale Mail	Alternative armour option
Gloves	Gloves of Belligerent Skies	Continues to be the best glove option.
	Luminous Gloves	Alternative glove option, in case Gloves of Belligerent Skies are taken by another party member.
Boots	Evasive Shoes	Bonus armour class for higher survivability.
	Disintegrating Night Walkers	Continues to be one of the best boot options.
Amulet	Broodmother's Revenge	Continues to be the best amulet in terms of damage boost.
	Surgeon's Subjugation Amulet	The only amulet that can indirectly help to maximize damage, as you make a humanoid enemyParalysed.
	Amulet of the Harpers	An alternative to the amulet above gives bonus survivability and allows casting Shield​ with a reaction.
Rings	Callous Glow Ring	One of the most important items for the build. The radiant damage rider will activate Radiating Orb​ and Reverberation​ from your items, giving tons of conditions to weaken your target.
	Ring of Spiteful Thunder	Excellent source of Dazed​ for even more conditions
	Eversight Ring	Go to the ring option if the party uses Darkness​ spells. This enables the character to freely attack without disadvantage when inside it.
	Shadow-Cloaked Ring	Gives an easy bonus damage when being at least Lightly Obscured.
	-	Rings from the previous act.

Act 3 - Final Build setup

Slot	Item	Description
Melee (One-Handed)	Nyrulna	I would say this is the best weapon for the build. It comes with an innate thunder damage rider, offers +3 enchantment, gets good weapon actions, and other goodies.
	Balduran's Giantslayer	Solid weapon option, if you want something alternative. It is not as powerful as piercing weapons + Bhaalist Armour, but a noteworthy alternative.
Ranged	Vicious Shortbow	Gives a solid damage boost for critical hits, even when using melee weapon attacks.
	The Dead Shot	Gives -1 requirement for critical hit, giving a slight boost to average damage.
Head	Horns of the Berserker	Simple and solid helm option with a direct damage boost.
	Diadem of Arcane Synergy	Continues to be a powerful option, if you are running strenghth elixirs and high Charisma.
	Helmet of Grit	Allows for obtaining additional bonus action for more attacks. This requires being at 50% HP or lower, so feel free to use something like Transfuse Health​ to maintain this level.
	Helldusk Helmet	Excellent helmet, gives immunity to Blinded​ and critical hits, comes with other goodies, making it one of the best headwear options.
	Helm of Balduran	Gives critical hit immunity, bonuses to armour class and saving throws.
Cloak	Cloak of Displacement	The strongest cloak in the game, with a significant boost to defensive capabilities.
Armor	Bhaalist Armour	These are the best armours to use. Bhaalist Armour is perfect if you want to maximise piercing weapon damage - Nyrulna, Shar's Spear of Evening, etc. It can also be worn by other party members, meaning you get Aura Of Murder​ and still use Luminous Armour. This is the go-to option for maximizing debuffs.
	Luminous Armour
Gloves	Gloves of Belligerent Skies	Continues to be the best glove option.
Boots	Boots of Stormy Clamour	Continues to be the best boot choice for the build.
Amulet	Broodmother's Revenge	Solid damage boost into the late game.
	Amulet of Greater Health	Excellent amulet for boosting health pool and increasing constitution stat. You can respec and set CON to 8 and increase any other ability.
	Fey Semblance Amulet	Great defensive amulet that gives advantage on mental saving throws.
Rings	Callous Glow Ring (BiS)	The core ring makes the build work.
	Ring of Spiteful Thunder	Easy source of Dazed​.
	-	Any of the previous acts rings

Build Mechanics

In this section, I would like to dive deep into how to play the Wildheart Barbarian Build. This will help you utilize it to the fullest and correctly use various actions and spells throughout the game.

Important Mechanics and Combos

Let's go through key mechanics and tips on how to use the build effectively.

Drakethroat Glaive to apply different elements

Drakethroat Glaive is one of those wondrous weapons that you should be using each playthrough. There are no downsides to using it, and it gives a big improvement on what you can do with your builds, besides the damage.

There are a few ways you can apply it:

• The easiest way is to drop your item and cast Draconic Elemental Weapon​ on it while having Drakethroat Glaive equipped.
• You can use Sorcerer to apply Metamagic: Twinned Spell​ and target two weapons.
• If you are using Shadow Blade, the weapon cannot be dropped, so use an ally to cast it on you.

This results not only in easy damage boost, but also you can activate Gloves of Belligerent Skies in case you do not have Callous Glow Ring yet.

Stacking Conditions

The Tiger aspect is perfect for stacking conditions - it hits multiple enemies, has innate Bleeding, and can be used freely. Here is a list of things that will help you stack conditions:

• Bleeding​ - comes from Tiger's Bloodlust​
• Reverberation​ - will come from both Gloves of Belligerent Skies and Boots of Stormy Clamour
• Prone​ - comes from multiple stacks of Reverberation​
• Maimed​ - gets applied with Aspect of the Beast: Wolverine​
• Radiating Orb​ - comes from Luminous Armour

So as you can see, this gets crazy pretty fast.

Use Tiger Bloodlust to break items

With the Rage: Tiger Heart,​ you unlock the multihit Tiger's Bloodlust. It is a very powerful feature that allows hitting multiple enemies or objects... The silly thing is that you can drop items like Void Bulb on the ground and destroy them with the same attack. This will pull any other enemies nearby.

As you can guess, everyone will be close by, and you can hit them with your attacks and stack various debuffs.

Force enemies to skip turns

With all the conditions, you can end up with a very powerful disabler for enemies - Maimed​ + Prone. The former reduces movement speed to 0, while the latter requires movement speed to stand up. This means that if both of these are active, enemies skip turns.

It's pretty easy to get the required stacks for Prone​ via Reverberation​ and your normal attacks. Sadly, many strong enemies or bosses are immune to Prone,​ so be mindful of that.

Managing Great Weapon Master

The most important aspect of most two-handed builds is correctly utilizing Great Weapon Master: All In​ and its -5 attack roll penalty. By putting effort into minimising the debuff, from level 4, you can get 10 flat damage boosts, making most of the enemies a cakewalk.

• Bless​ from a Cleric or a Paladin, for a 1d4 bonus.
• Spells like Faerie Fire, and Blindness​ give an advantage to attackers.
• Oil of Accuracy or Diluted Oil of Sharpness, for a 1 and 2 attack roll bonus.
• Gloves of the Growling Underdog - can be obtained in Goblin Camp and give an advantage for attack rolls.
• Phalar Aluve: Sing​ gives 1d4 to attack rolls.

Now, if you want more in-depth information, I have a guide covering how to increase attack rolls, which lists a lot of options and combinations. You can then pick the bonuses based on your party setup.

BOOOAL's Benediction

The BOOOAL's Benediction​ is a very powerful buff that gives an easy advantage on Bleeding​ targets. As you remember, Tiger's Bloodlust​ gives a guaranteed condition. So your next attack will get advantage without needing any other preparation or actions.

This can be obtained inside the Festering Cove. You will need to sacrifice one of the companions to BOOOAL (Lv. 4) to permanently gain this debuff. Sadly, you cannot sacrifice Hirelings, Minthara or Halsin.

Early Game Combat

This part would cover how the build plays up until level 6:

• Rage​ is a very powerful tool, early on, giving physical damage resistance, which many of the enemies will have.
• Use the Reckless Attack​ reaction to land an attack in case it misses.
• Once you reach level 3, try to hit multiple targets with Tiger's Bloodlust​. This will not only inflict significant damage but also apply Bleeding.
• With Great Weapon Master: All In​ (if you go for it), Tiger's Bloodlust​ will still gain its bonus damage. Moreover, you will have a single-target bonus action attack via Great Weapon Master: Bonus Attack​.
• With Aspect of the Beast: Wolverine​ your normal attacks on Bleeding​ will be even deadlier.

Late Game Combat

This covers the combat options for the late game:

• Try to apply Maimed​ on targets with Prone. This can be done via normal attacks on Bleeding​ targets, thanks to the Aspect of the Beast: Wolverine.
• With the fighter unlocked, you can easily guarantee that your first hit lands with Tiger's Bloodlust​ by activating Precision Attack. This will ensure you deal serious damage, while also applying conditions
• Use Reverberation​ stacks to Prone​ targets that have Maimed​ to force them to skip their turn.
• I like Disarming Attack (Melee)​ as it can deal easily with some powerful opponents in Act 3.
• Action Surge​ for whenever you need to fully disable a group of enemies, or just concentrate your damage on a single one.

Conclusion

Thank you for reading the Wildheart Tiger Barbarian build for Baldur's Gate 3. It's a very powerful frontline combatant that takes the role of a debuffer and a tank. With full-fledged physical damage resistance and multiple conditions, enemies will be limited in their combat capabilities, while your allies can safely destroy them.

Cheers!

Credits

• Bluemajere for suggesting the class split of the build and optimal setup.
• Special thanks to Remus71 and his vast knowledge of various mechanics. Check his videos, for advanced mechanics if you want to go all-in on some crazy stuff.