The Great Old One Warlock Build - Baldur's Gate 3 (BG3)

The Great Old One Warlock build

This build is perfect for those that want a ranged warlock using spells as the main driving force. We will be taking some unique spells the Great Old One gets - Telekinesis, Evard's Black Tentacles, etc. We will also go heavily in spellcasting and taking Eldritch Incantations to boost it. And don't forget, you have the strongest cantrip in the game Eldritch Blast which should be used as a normal attack

The build does not perform well in close combat as it does target medium armor usage (however, you can wear it with Githyanki). Of course, it is recommended to use a shield as this will raise Armor Class without any penalties. Generally at the higher levels, the build starts becoming very powerful

However, the guide does not cover multiclassing a Warlock. It can be beneficial but in this particular case, I concentrated just on one.

Starting the Game

Let's start with the early game. I would go into what are the best Races, Abilities, and Skills for Great Old One. Some of these choices are very impactful as you cannot respec them.

Races

Picking a race is a very important decision in the game. Not only it changes how people react to you but also gives you unique abilities. The Old One Build has a wide array of options which I listed from best to worst in my opinion.

Race	Features	Description
Githyanki	Martial Prodigy - A lifetime of relentless training gave you Armour Proficiency with Light and Medium Armour, as well as Proficiency with the Shortsword, Longsword, and Greatsword	What makes this race special are their ability to instantly wield Medium Armor. This will greatly boost your survivability. moreover, at level 5, you will obtain Mist Step that can be used once per Long Rest. Moreover, they can increase their jumping distance which is useful for exploring.
Drow Half-Elf	Civil Militia - You have weapon proficiency with Spears, Pikes, Halberds, and Glaives, and Armour Proficiency with Light Armour and Shield Darkvision - Grant a creature the ability to see in the dark out to a range of 12m. Fey Ancestry - You have Advantage on Saving Throws against being Charmed, and magic can't put you to sleep.	Half-Elves come with one big advantage over others - Shield proficiency. This gives you +2 AC, which can make avoiding enemy hits much more manageable. Other benefits are Faerie Fire and Darkness as spells in later levels from the Drow part.
Drow	Drow Weapon Training - you have proficiency with the Rapier, Shortsword, and Hand Crossbow. Superior Drakvision - this creature can see in the dark within 24m. Fey Ancestry - The Feywild casts a veil over your mind. You have advantage on saving throws against being Charmed, and magic can't put you to sleep.	Drows get Superior Darkvision which saves you one Eldritch Invocation. Moreover, at level 5 they gain Darkness, saving you a Warlock spell slot.
Mephistopheles Tiefling	Darkvision - grants a creature the ability to see in the dark out to a range of 12m. Hellish Resistance - your blood protects you from flame, abyssal or otherwise. You have resistance to Fire and take only half damage from it.	Mephistopheles Tieflings get good spells at levels 3 and 5 - Hellish Rebuke and Darkness. They can be cast once per long rest and will save some spell slots for Warlock.

Class

Overview
Warlock
Features
Warlock Spell Slots	These spell slots can be used to cast spells and refill each Short Rest.

Cantrips

The Warlock class has one of the most iconic and strongest cantrips in the game - Eldritch Blast. In addition, we can select a few more and use them based on the situation.

Cantrip	Description
Eldritch Blast	Mandatory cantrip. At first, it may not seem super strong, but this will change at higher levels. It can increase its damage with Charisma and knockback enemies. From level 5 you can release two of them
Friends	If you are the main character and do most of the dialogues, this is also a good choice as it gives an advantage during rolls.
Bone Chill	Can be useful in some encounters as you can disable enemy healing and greatly weaken undead enemies.

Subclass

Warlocks can pick their subclass at level 1. This is much earlier compared to some other classes which get it at level 3. Each subclass differs in the features they provide that resulting in unique effects. Moreover, although the spell pool is similar each Subclass have its unique additions.

Overview
The Great Old One
Features
Mortal Reminder	When you land a Critical Hit against a creature, that creature and any nearby enemies are Frightened until the end of their next turn.

Spells

The Warlock Class also comes with spells and some of them are specific to The Great Old One subclass. Unfortunately, at first, we will only have 1 spell slot, which can be used once per short rest. The situation will get a bit better in the later levels.

Spell	Description
Dissonant Whispers	Makes the enemy Frightened, which results in their attacks being weakened due to the Disadvantage
Tasha's Hideous Laughter	The spell can be used to disable an enemy if they have intelligence above 5. The one downside is that this is a concentration spell and can be avoided if the enemy succeeds in Saving Throw each turn.
Hellish Rebuke	This spell would deal the most damage from the current arsenal. However, it requires that somebody would attack you and you could react to it.
Hex	Another spell that can be good early on. Use it to weaken an enemy and increase the damage that you do. I recommend using this especially if you are fighting from range.

Abilities

Now let's take a look at the abilities of the Great Old One Warlock build. Correct allocation will allow us to maximize the early gameplay and get good modifier bonuses. It is important to maximize (put 16-17 points) the characters' main ability that is marked by a star. It determines their damage and many other aspects

Ability	Value	Description
Strength	8	Strength is not as important for our build as we neither use it for damage or other aspects.
Dexterity	14	It will help us with Dexterity Saving Throws, increase initiative and provide bonus Armor Class. This is also perfect if you decide to take Githyanki with Medium ARmor proficiency.
Constitution	15 (14 + 1)	Increases the amount of HP we have. however, I also take it to 15 so that with the Ability Improvement feat we would get 16. A high Constitution will decrease the chances of Concentration spells breaking, and we will have many of them.
Intelligence	10	Not important for us, just enough to not get a penalty from Intelligence Saving Throws.
Wisdom	10	Not important for us, just enough to not get a penalty from Wisdom Saving Throws.
Charisma	17 (15 + 2)	The main ability of Warlock. It will determine how much damage we do and will empower Eldritch Blast cantrip at level 2.

Skills and Expertise

Overall, the skills should be impacted by your roleplaying and background decisions. However, you would still probably want those that will give you the best benefits. Overall I would recommend those that fall under these categories - Charisma and Dexterity. So with this in mind, you could pick:

Dexterity based:

• Acrobatics - to resist being shoved

Charisma based:

• Deception - Lie and manipulate the truth
• Intimidation- use of threats in speech, forcing others to break under your will.
• Performance -  the ability to act, play instruments, and otherwise entertain audiences of all sizes.
• Persuasion - the art of convincing others to do your bidding and securing favors.

With Warlock due to high Charisma, you will have no problems talking your way out of various situations or persuading someone to do your bidding. It is a perfect class to see what the game dialogues have to offer

Leveling Progression

Here is the detailed progression for the 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 the feel for the class you can start picking your own options

Level 2

The first level up! This is great as we get a second spell slot. Sadly we will have to live with it till level 11.

Spells

We can also unlock another spell to increase the arsenal. It is the same list of level 1 spells that we had before, so you can pick the one that you did not take. In my case it was Hex

Spell	Description
Hex	Another spell that can be good early on. Use it to weaken an enemy and increase the damage that you do. I recommend using this especially if you are fighting from range.

Eldritch Invocations

And now we get to the sweet stuff of level 2 and generally warlocks. You can choose your first two Eldritch Invocations. Here are my recommendations:

Invocation	Description
Agonizing Blast	Improves Eldritch Blast damage by including your Charisma ability modifier in the damage calculation
Devil's Sight (optional)	Only take this one if your race doesn't have Darksight. Get it as early as you can. Otherwise, skip it
Repelling Blast	Eldritch Blast now knocks back. This is very powerful as you can throw enemies from ledges.

Level 3

Level 3 of Warlock gives a unique boon that can drastically change how you play.

Spells

Now you get level two spells which greatly improves your combat prowess. I recommend choosing on of those. Remember if you will not use them, you can always respec.

Spell	Description
Darkness	With it, you can cover an area and use it as a defensive ground to attack enemies who can barely see you. However, as you only have 2 spell slots for most of the game this is better cast by someone else in your party. If you are a Drow don't take it
Shatter	Deals 3d8 thunder damage and creatures made of stone get additional disadvantage. This is a decent non-concentration spell
Cloud of Daggers	The spell allows you to summon daggers that damage multiple enemies in a medium area. This is perfect to cover a choke point or force enemies to take damage in order to reach you. They take damage two times - when it's cast and when their turn starts.

Pact Boon

A gift from your patron that will give unique actions and effects to The Old One build. Below are the choices which I recommend for this setup. I personally would take Pact of the Tome as it starts shining from level 5

Pact Boon	Description
Pact of the Chain	Gain a familiar that can be summoned every short rest. They have unique effects that can damage and debilitate enemies. Moreover, they can tank a few hits and scout areas.
Pact of the Tome	This option gives additional cantrips, which may not be useful at first. However, once you reach level 5 you gain Deepened Pact feature. It allows casting three additional spells without spell slot usage.

Replace Spell

Now we can switch one of the spells that we have for level 2 spells. If you wanted to take two spells from the level 2 list now is your chance. For example, I removed Hex and took Cloud of Daggers. My main reasoning is that we already have multiple concentration spells and generally you can only use one.

Level 4 - new Feat, Cantrip, and Spell

Cantrips

You can now get a third cantrip. Take one of the three that you have forgone when starting the build. In my case, I went for Bone Chill

Cantrip	Description
Friends	If you are the main character and do most of the dialogues, this is also a good choice as it gives an advantage during rolls.
Bone Chill	Can be useful in some encounters as you can disable enemy healing and greatly weaken undead enemies.
Mage Hand	Can be used to solve some puzzles and shove enemies from the ledges. However, I only recommend it if it's summoned before combat.

Spells

Even though you have a unique Great Old One spell - Phantasmal Force, it is not worth it. You are better off picking Darkness or Hold Person (one that you have forgone). On rare occasions, you may go with Misty Step, but it may have too much of a cost for 50% of spell slots.

Spell	Description
Misty Step	Allows moving to a location that you can see, without activating opportunity attacks. Although it is a good spell I recommend evaluating if you need it. You can also get this spell from equipment

Replace Spell

I think we already got all the spells we need for Level 2. If you see something that you want to try it is a perfect chance. The next level will bring more to the table by unlocking Level 3 Slots which will drastically improve the build.

Feat

Finally, we reach our first Feat. There are multiple choices that you can take. However, I first recommend getting your ability score pumped up to gain bonus modifiers for higher damage and Saving Throws

Feat	Description
Ability Improvement	Take +1 Charisma and +1 Constitution. This will increase damage, spell success and decrease the chance that your concentration spells are canceled.

Level 5

Level 5 will unlock some good things. First, you get the additional spell. Next, you unlock level 3 spell slots, so all your spells will now be upcast. And last but not least you unlock another Eldritch Invocation. Oh and I almost forgot the biggest thing - Deepened Pact

Feature	Description
Deepened Pact	Pact of the Tome warlocks can cast Animate Dead, Haste, and Call Lightning once per long rest. And this does not use any spell slot

Spells

So the first level 3 spells are here, and they are powerful. You can get better Crowd Control and more damage. There are multiple good spells, but I would recommend first taking Hunger of Hadar

Spell	Description
Hunger of Hadar	The scariest spell you can use at this time. Use it to cover enemies and force them to move out of the fog. This will damage them, and you can wait for them outside to hit with melee weapons or use Eldritch Blast to bash them while they are blind.
Counterspell	Another powerful spell that can counter almost any spell that foe casts. Even if you don't use it often, it is good to have it as it will notify you of what enemies are casting and let you decide the next steps

Eldritch Invocations

We unlock another Eldritch Invocation. Moreover, a few new ones appear. Here are my picks:

Invocation	Description
Repelling Blast	If you did not take this before, it's a good time to take it. it will knock back enemies if Eldritch Blast hits the enemy (no Saving Throw roll)
Fiendish Vigour	Get additional temporary hit points. The spell can be cast without using spell slots.

Replace Spell

I recommend switching out one of the spells that you do not use from your current list and ensure you obtain the one below.

Spell	Description
Hypnotic Pattern	Very deadly against low Wisdom enemies. However, if you are fighting someone who has 14+, I would suggest using Hunger of Haddar instead. The spell is wonderful as it has a huge Area of Effect. The only downside would be that it only works for two turns, but this should be enough to take out a few foes.

Level 6

We get to pick a new spell and our Patron gives a subclass-related feature:

Feature	Description
Entropic Ward	As a reaction, you can impose Disadvantage on an Attack Roll against you. If the attack misses, you gain Advantage on your next attack roll against your attacker for 1 turn.

Spells and Replace Spell

Another spell can be taken. However, we already have most of the aspects covered at this stage. So if you did not take Counterspell now is a good chance.

Level 7 - level 4 spells unlocked

A new spell level is introduced, which hit harder and provides new effects.

Spells

Here are my recommendations for The Great Old One spells. You can pick one, and later you can replace the other at Replace Spell screen if you wish

Spell	Description
Dominate Beast	This ability can prove extremely useful. Check if an enemy has a low Wisdom score. Then they will join your side and can wreck their allies for a few turns and draw attention from you.
Blight	A very strong single-target spell, it has 8d8 rolls and can one-shot most medium enemies. It is also one of the rare Warlock spells that doesn't require concentration

Eldritch Invocations

Because we are concentrating on being a caster I think there is only one and the most obvious/best choice - Book of Ancient Secrets

Invocation	Description
Book of Ancient Secrets	Gives 3 spells to the Warlock arsenal that can be cast once per Long Rest. They do not use any spell slots, so fit the build theme perfectly.

Replace Spell

You can take an additional level 4 slot that you missed from the above spell list. Otherwise, if you do not see using any others, feel free to skip it. I switched Hellish Rebuke for Blight.

Level 8

We get another choice to add a spell to our spellbook and a new Feat choice.

Spells and Replace Spell

We do not get a new tier of spells, so feel free to check what you think is valuable for you. Any spell works, as I think we already have the most important ones. For Replace Spell you can definitely skip it. I picked Banishment as it targets enemy Charisma, and not many spells do that:

Spell	Description
Banishment	Remove the target from the battlefield. This can be perfect for making the encounter easier and even disabling enemy buffs temporarily - like auras. The most important thing is that it does Charisma Saving Throw which is very rare and good to have

Feat

Finally, we obtain the second feat for Warlock. There are a few good choices that you can do, however, I would personally recommend increasing your spell-critical chance and trying to get the Mortal Reminder to activate as often as possible

Feat	Description
Spell Sniper	The Mortal Reminder effect only activates when you make a critical hit. This feat is the only one that increases your spell-critical chance

Level 9

We finally unlock Level 5 spell slots and can take one spell and another one via Replacement. Moreover, another option for Eldritch Invocations is added. Let's go through them

Spells

I think all of these spells are a good option, however, my personal favorite would be Telekinesis:

Spell	Description
Telekinesis	I love this spell. First thing it allows you to play with enemies and throw them around the battlefield. Second, it can be recast without using a spell slot, which is another huge benefit.

Replace Spell

You can take any of the spells from the list above and remove the ones you do not use. I did not take any, because I already have Wisdom Saving Throw spells.

Spell	Description
Dominate Person	This has its uses. You see a warrior enemy that has low Wisdom. This is a perfect target for the spell as they use multiple attacks and can decimate the back row of your foes without you doing much.

Eldritch Invocations

For Eldritch Invocations I don't think there is anything very powerful just some quality-of-life options. I recommend taking those that don't require warlock spell slot usage. So pick one:

Invocation	Description
Otherworldly Leap	You can cast the Enhance Leap spell. Can be useful for exploration, but at this stage in the game you probably have another source for this spell.
Whispers of the Grave	You can cast Speak with Dead without expending a Spell Slot.
Beguiling Influence	You invoke your patron's bewitching charm. You gain proficiency in Deception and Persuasion Skills.
Fiendish Vigour	Get additional temporary hit points. The spell can be cast without using spell slots.

Level 10

Unfortunately, level 10 does not bring much to the table. Mainly we get a new cantrip slot and spell slot, which is still level 5. Moreover, we unlock new subclass features:

Features	Description
Thought Shield: Psychic Resistance	An elder brain shields your brain. You gain Resistance to Psychic damage
Thought Shield: Psychic Reflection	Your patron doesn't appreciate attempts to attack your mind. When you take Psychic damage, your attacker takes the same damage.

Cantrips

We can pick the fourth Cantrip for Warlock. Here are my recommendations which you can pick:

Cantrip	Description
Mage Hand	Can be used to solve some puzzles and shove enemies from the ledges. However, I only recommend it if it's summoned before combat.
Minor Illusion	You can use it to distract enemies and move them to a specific position before the combat even starts. Then cast an AOE spell and deal huge damage.

Spells

We gain another slot for a spell. Pick whatever you want to try out or test. We are still limited to a maximum of level 5 spells.

Level 11

And we reach a huge milestone for Warlock. We finally unlock the third spell slot! Although it's late you will be even more powerful in combat. Another thing, we get Mystic Arcanum. A level 6 spell! You will start to enjoy your warlock even more from now on.

Mystic Arcanum

You get a single level 6 spell that can be cast without expending a spell slot. It can be used once per long rest, so evaluate what you want. I would recommend saving and doing some testing on which spell you would like to go with. Also, if later on you don't like it - just respec. Also, you will already have tons of Concentration spells, so picking Circle of Death is the best choice in my opinion

Spell	Description
Circle of Death	A very powerful AOE spell that deals necrotic damage. The big caveat is that it also hits allies, so its best used early in combat, while no one has mixed in between
Arcane Gate	This spell is useful in some circumstances where there are special mechanics. So if you are content with your damage output, you can get this one and be ready to use it when you see a need (and there will be a need for it in the story)

Spells and Replace Spell

Here you can pick any spell that you want to try, or think will help Great Old One build. For replacing I skipped it, as there was nothing else of interest.

Level 12 - the last hurrah!

And we reach the final level. There are some bad and good things. First you get new Eldritch Invocation, Spell, and Feat slots. This is great. However, there is a problem with the Invocation:

Eldritch Invocation

You gain additional an slot. However, only a new type appears - Lifedrinker. Although it is good, we do not deal any melee damage so it is redundant. Due to this, feel free to pick any choice that you think is useful for your play style.

Feat

And here is our third and final Feat for the Old One build.

Feat	Description
Ability Improvement	Take +2 Charisma. It will increase spell damage, success, and other related Charisma rolls. This will allow you to reach the maximum of 20.

Spells and Replace Spell

Here you can pick any spell that you want to try, or think will help Great Old One build. For replacing I skipped it, as there was nothing else of interest.

General Tips

Now I would like to cover some general tips on how to play The Great Old One Warlock build.

Taking Concentration Spells

The build and particularly Warlock can get tons of Concentration spells. However, I suggest thinking clearly about which ones you take. Try to have different ones against different Saving Throws. For example:

• Hypnotic Pattern - good against low WIsdom enemies
• Hunger of Hadar - perfect for Dexterity-weak enemies
• Evard's Black Tentacles - perfect for strength weak enemies

With these in mind, you will not take any overlapping spells and can deal with any enemy type you encounter.

Eldritch Blast - as normal Warlock attack

Just wanted to emphasize how important Eldritch Blast is. It is one of the most powerful cantrips in the game:

• Via Eldritch Invocations you get a boost to damage based on the Charisma modifier
• Via Eldritch Invocations you can knock back enemies.
• At level 5 you gain two shots

So you should always be using it as normal attack with Warlock, unless you are doing melee build

Area of Effect Concentration spells

You have a few main areas of effect concentration spells. They can prove useful in different types of encounters. For example, the Hunger of Hadar makes enemies blind, deals damage, and slows them down.

Hypnotic Pattern - is perfect when fighting low Wisdom enemies. You can then take them out one by one

Darkness - shroud yourself and make it impossible for ranged attacks to hit you. On the other hand, you will have Dark Vision allowing you to use this to your advantage.

And so on, so be sure to evaluate how you want to affect the battlefield.

Take at least one non-concentration spell from each spell level

The Great Old One subclass has a small problem - it has a ton of concentration spells. And the problem with these is that you can cast only one. To counter this, I would recommend taking a few damage spells like Shatter, Blight, etc. They will deal more damage than Eldritch Blast and also apply status effects.

Wearing a Shield

This is a mandatory thing to equip (if your proficiencies allow). By default, it gives +2 Armor Class, and wearing it has no downsides. More or less it's free 2 AC.

They can also come with unique effects, for example, the above Adamantine Shield can do a reaction and shield bass a melee opponent

Multiclassing for the last levels

The last two levels may not be as impactful as one would expect, especially level 12. For example, the Mystic Arcanum spells may be disappointing as you are already full of Concentration spells. But, the 3 level 5 spell slots are definitely worth it.

Another aspect is that level 12 gives Lifedrinker which we don't really need. So getting another class with level 1 may bring huge benefits.

Here are a few options:

Multiclass	Description
Tempest Domain Cleric Lv 1	You get heavy armor proficiency and additional spells that you can cast using level 5 Warlock spell slots. The result is higher damage and increased Armor Class. Moreover, you deal bonus lightning damage when hit
Light Domain Cleric Lv 1	Gives Medium Armour proficiency and good spells. Moreover, you can use unique reactions to give enemies a Disadvantage when attacking you.
Wizard Level 1	Unlock some cool spells that deal a decent amount of damage like Thunderwave
Sorcerer Wild Magic Level 1	Gain a unique Wild Magic effect. but more importantly, Tides of Chaos which gives an Advantage on the next attack Ability or Saving Throw roll.
Sorcerer Storm Sorcery lv 1	Gives a unique effect that allows you to fly away with bonus action after casting a level 1 or higher spell.

Conclusion

Thank you for reading The Great Old One Warlock build for Baldur's Gate 3. I hope you enjoyed it and found all the information that is needed. You should have no problems picking the correct spells and invocations to maximize what your Warlock can do