Baldur's Gate 3: Best Path Of The Giants Barbarian Build (2025)

The final major patch of Baldur’s Gate 3 is upon us, and with it are 12 new subclasses for players to enjoy. For Barbarians, this means following the Path of the Giants, where players get to grow beyond their size limit and gain the range that such size entails.

No matter if you’re here just to learn what’s new for such Giants, or if you want to master the subclass, we have you covered here. We will break down each aspect of this massive subclass, its long-range potential, and why it is the best way to play Barbarians in Baldur’s Gate 3.

Path Of The Giants Barbarian Overview

Playing as a Path of the Giants Barbarian isn’t only about being large, although that alone comes with certain benefits. Barbarians are already pretty good tanks, but have them grow in size when raging, and they now have improved range, blocking foes all the better. As early as level six, these Barbarians also have reliable access to elemental damage, something the other subclasses can't do as easily. However, you don’t want more than one Giant character in your team, since their size can make moving your units around a bit of an issue.

The Best Starting Stats And Species For A Path Of The Giants Barbarian Character

While you won’t start your journey on the Giant’s Path until level three, there are a few choices at character creation that you can make to create the best possible Barbarian. Keep in mind, however, that at this stage there aren’t really any bad choices, just recommended ones.

Species

Since you can set your stats as you’d like no matter your choice of species, you have plenty of good choices to choose from. However, try not to take species that gain spells, since you won’t be able to cast any of them while raging.

The most straightforward choice here, at least when it comes to the roles Barbarians typically play, is the Gold Dwarf. As a Path of the Giants Barbarian, you don’t need much help to do what you do best, so the extra health gained by that species is what best helps you to stay in the fight longer.

Background

The Athletics skill is used in a few Path of the Giants features, so a background that already improves on that can aid you greatly. The Soldier background ends up being the one that fits the most, since it also trains you in Intimidation, and it will let you get Inspired after certain challenging combat scenarios.

Stats And Skills

The recommended stats are almost perfect, although as a battle-focused class, it could use some slight changes. By lowering Wisdom to 10 and raising Dexterity to 14, the character gains an additional point on their armor class, something that will stack up once we raise Constitution later down the line.

For skills, as we said before, Athletics is crucial, so pay attention to it in case you don’t take the Soldier background. Beyond that, it is up to your playstyle, but you’ll use Stealth more than you’d like to admit, especially at higher difficulties.

Tips To Best Play A Path Of The Giants Barbarian

Path of the Giants Barbarians excel at catching enemies with their range, either thanks to their larger size or to their ability to throw weapons and enemies. Each new ability unlocked changes how you approach combat, so read each of them carefully.

At level five, you gain Boot of the Giants, an improved Shove option that pushes enemies and deals damage to them. You should already know how deadly it is to push enemies around, either to instant death cliffs or into harm's way, so don’t count this ability out.

At level six, you gain Elemental Cleaver, turning all weapons you hold while raging into elemental powerhouses that come back to your hand when thrown. This means that, as a Path of the Giants Barbarian, you don’t have to invest in ranged weapons; all your weapons are ranged.

The final feature of the subclass is Mighty Impel, unlocked at level ten. It might seem oddly similar to the throw action, but the key difference is that there is no Strength requirement to throw creatures around and the distance is fixed; as a bonus action, it is a great way to fling enemies into danger without needing to worry if they pass a check.

The Best Equipment For A Path Of The Giants Barbarian

Best Weapons

Starting out, you’ll want to use the best two-handed weapons you can find, something often dropped by the many bosses you’ll encounter in the game. Later on, to use your size and range, the Polearm Master feat will come in handy, so you’ll want to use that specific type of two-handed weapon in the late game.

Due to the nature of the subclass, you won’t need ranged weapons, but you might want to keep some form of crossbow handy until level six. After that, you can just rage and throw your main weapon around, since it will always come back to your hand.

Best Armor And Accessories

As a Barbarian, you don’t want to be wearing any armor, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t wear anything. In Act Two, Quartermaster Talli sells the Mighty Cloth, a clothing item that gives two points of Strength to the wearer; this does mean that you are better off siding with the Druids in Act One.

For accessories that do things beyond better stats, there are a few items popular among Barbarians for their additional damage when throwing objects or enemies. These are the Ring of Flinging, sold by Arron at the Druid Grove, and the Gloves of Uninhibited Kushigo, a reward for saving Baelen in the Underdark.

Every Level Up Choice For A Path Of The Giants Barbarian

The only real choices you’ll make as a Barbarian are your subclass and feats, so we will only cover here the feats you should pick at each level. We are assuming that you pick the Path of the Giants subclass at level three.