Baldur’s Gate 3 Finesse Weapons Guide

As long as I can remember, I've always preferred Dexterity-based martial characters over Strength-based ones. Not to be a min-maxer, but increasing my Dex increased my armor class, and meant I could land attacks more reliably and be more nimble. The downside of this is my characters are limited to finesse weapons; if you're new to Dungeons & Dragons or Baldur's Gate 3, you may be wondering what finesse weapons are and what the best one to use is.

What is Finesse in Baldur's Gate 3?

Finesse is a trait applied to certain weapons in Baldur's Gate 3. For those that have it, they will use your Dexterity score when calculating your success and damage if it's higher than your Strength. It is primarily for rogues or martial classes that focus on Dexterity rather than Strength, but you can still use Strength for a finesse weapon. It is important to note rogues use finesse weapons to get their sneak attack ability.

All Finesse Weapons in Baldur's Gate 3

Finesse weapons tend to be smaller or more delicate weapons. Obviously, a two-handed great sword or great axe relies on Strength and therefore doesn't fall into this category, while something like a dagger relies on Dexterity and does. Here are all the finesse weapons in Baldur's Gate 3.

Related: Baldur’s Gate 3 Shadowheart Build Guide – Best Stats and Spells

• Dagger
• Dart
• Short Sword
• Scimitar
• Rapier

Ranged weapons like short bows, longbows, and crossbows are not technically finesse weapons, but they rely on Dexterity as well. Thrown weapons, however (e.g. javelins, hand axes, light hammers, spears, and tridents), will use Strength to determine their success and damage. The exception to throw weapons is the dagger and dart, as these have the Finesse trait.

Best Finesse Weapon in Baldur's Gate 3

Finesse weapons will never keep up with Strength-based weapons by pure damage die, but they can stay close. The best finesse weapon to use in Baldur's Gate 3 is the rapier, as it has an 1d8 damage die, giving it the highest damage potential. This becomes more muddled when you find magic weapons, as the can have different enchantments. But for unenchanted weapons, the rapier is the way to go for finesse characters.

For more information on Baldur's Gate 3, check out Baldur’s Gate 3: Should you let Astarion Drink Your Blood? and How to Find Gale in Baldur’s Gate 3 (Location) on Pro Game Guides.