The ranger's reputation in Baldur's Gate 3, much like the class in Dungeons & Dragons, is that it is one of the weakest choices for players of the game. As such, most players avoid making their custom character a ranger, with it being the least popular class choice other than the cleric, and most players won't get a ranger in their party until a certain Rashemi berserker shows up in Act 3. But the way the ranger works in this game is different from its D&D inspiration, and many players are missing out.

The ranger in Baldur's Gate 3 has more utility and damage dealing potential than many players give it credit for, especially from some of its subclasses. Three specializations are available for ranger characters, each being modified versions from the tabletop game. These subclasses, plus a few new features that Baldur's Gate rangers acquire, make the class a force to be reckoned with. But some may wonder: Which of the subclasses the ranger can choose from is the most powerful?

Ranger Subclasses Determine Much About Their Playstyle

Summoning, Subterfuge, & Damage Stacking In BG3

The three subclass options that rangers have to choose from are the hunter, beastmaster, and gloomstalker. Each specializes in a different area of the ranger's skill set, from animal handling to stealth to survival. All three are central to the way that different rangers operate.

The hunter is more of the stereotypical woodland survivalist, with features to help hunt down big, tough foes and fight hordes of smaller enemies, with features that rely largely on ranged attacks. The gloomstalker plays into the idea of the ranger lying in ambush, with spells and abilities to get extra damage and hits in on surprised creatures. And the beastmaster gets an animal companion to help them in and out of combat with unique actions.

All three have their strengths, though one of these subclasses tends to give a bit more than the others, especially at early levels. When it is used, the ranger is commonly multiclassed with something like a rogue or druid, which is important to consider when ranking the effectiveness of these subclasses. The same option that works best for a full ranger may not be as effective when paired with the skills offered from another class.

The Hunter Subclass In BG3 Is Effective But Bland

A Subclass That Improves The Ranger's Existing Features Without Adding Many More

The hunter subclass starts out with a choice between three abilities. There's colossus slayer, which deals extra damage to injured creatures. Giant killer lets rangers take an opportunity attack against large creatures after large creatures attack them. Lastly, there's horde breaker, which lets rangers attack two enemies with one hit if they are next to each other.

The hunter offers the illusion of choice, with multiple options for an ability, but only one of them is usually worth taking.

It's nice that the hunter affords players some choice right away, but the clear option is almost always the colossus slayer to get the most damage across the game. This will start a trend: the hunter offers the illusion of choice, with multiple options for an ability, but only one of them is usually worth taking. At seventh level, they have a choice between advantage on saving throws to avoid being frightened, a slightly decreased chance of being hit by opportunity attacks, and multiattack defense, which makes it harder for enemies to hit them repeatedly.

Finally, hunters at level eleven gain access to two unique attacks: volley and whirlwind, which both let them turn their normal weapon attacks into AOEs. And this is honestly great, especially since there is no limit on the number of times these can be used. But they get unlocked fairly late in the game, and by that point, spellcasters have access to options like damage bonuses rangers can get, this is not a bad capstone ability.

The Gloomstalker Is Good, But Not As Good As Its D&D Counterpart

BG3 Players Should Set Their Expectations Accordingly

The gloomstalker in D&D is super powerful, with certain features centered around darkvision that might honestly be broken in certain campaigns. The Baldur's Gate 3 gloomstalker subclass is not on that same level, but it is still quite powerful, especially combined with the rogue. The gloomstalker is the only ranger subclass to offer an extended spell list, and it comes with most of its best features right at third level.

Chief among those is dread ambusher, a multi-part feature which lets rangers hide as a bonus action, and take an extra attack on the first turn of combat, which also deals extra damage. This alone is already great and makes rangers excellent at surprising enemies, but they also get 80 feet of darkvision and the ability to turn invisible in shadows at level three. It's an incredibly front-loaded subclass that blows the other two out of the water until later levels, at least.

The later gloomstalker abilities are nothing to scoff at, either. They get proficiency in wisdom and intelligence saving throws (especially helpful in the late game) and the ability to take an extra attack once per turn if they miss. All of this is great and makes the ranger more viable as a single-class build. The gloomstalker has more of a fun and unique aesthetic than the hunter and tends to outperform it at almost every level, making it a clear choice between the two for the stronger subclass.

The Beastmaster Sees The Most Change From Its TTRPG Origins

A Subclass Strengthened By Its Video Game Adaptation

The beastmaster is the likely cause of the ranger's poor reputation among D&D fans, due to the abysmally weak way in which its features worked in the 2014 Player's Handbook. That version of the subclass largely failed because rangers had to use an action to command their animal companion to do anything. That is not the case in Baldur's Gate 3, where the animal companion acts on its own initiative independent of the ranger themselves, and that simple change does much to redeem this option.

The beastmaster's features all revolve around having a beast that fights and works alongside the ranger. There are five beast options: the bear, boar, dire raven, wolf, and wolf spider, each with their own unique abilities and features. The beastmaster can swap out which animal they have with them on a given day, giving this subclass extra versatility, and adding an extra creature to the board always tips the scales in the party's favor.

While it doesn't affect anything mechanically, the animal companions get some aesthetic upgrades at later levels as well, which makes them stand out from other animals and feels like a cool way of showing off their higher strength.

At higher levels, this companion gains extra hit points, attacks, damage, and unique actions that let it grow with the player in strength. The animal companions can get some truly helpful features, creating clouds of darkness, giving advantage to allies, and more. But the problem here is that the ranger character doesn't really get anything. While their companion is active, they have a powerful follower, but the ranger themself is objectively weaker than the hunter or gloomstalker by a large margin.

Final Ranking Of The Ranger Subclasses

A Clear Victor Based On Pure Damage Output

Despite how much better the Baldur's Gate 3 beastmaster is than its D&D predecessor, it's not enough to reach the levels of strength that the gloomstalker possesses at any given point in the game. The gloomstalker subclass gets more abilities at an earlier time to provide greater damage output than the hunter or beastmaster, and it excels in its niche as a surprise attacker. It also works the best with multiclassing, given how little of an investment in ranger it requires.

Still, outside of damage and stealth, the beastmaster ranger probably has the highest utility and versatility due to its animal companions. By switching one's companion up day by day, the beastmaster can do a lot that the others cannot. And no matter which subclass players choose, they will likely be surprised by how strong the ranger in Baldur's Gate 3 can get.