The Hex Burst

Character Concept

Planning

Thankfully, Baldur's Gate 3 implemented the ability to move ability score bonuses from Tasha's Cauldron of Everything. That means that we really don't have to worry so much about what race to choose. With BG3 being a specific campaign, race can have a pretty big impact on story and other interactions. I would choose whatever interests you the most. We're not planning on using heavy weapons so even small-sized races are fair game.

Ability scores are an interesting consideration. As mentioned above, BG3 doesn't have requirements for multiclassing so we're pretty free here. We're going to probably want a high DEX and WIS while keeping our CON high enough to stay alive and maintain concentration. Here are my suggestions:

• STR: 8
• DEX: 15 (+2)
• CON: 15 (+1)
• INT: 8
• WIS: 15
• CHA: 8

Level 1 - 3

We're going to start out as a Monk. Monks are actually decently strong to start with because they get an extra bonus action attack each turn. They also do quite well without decent equipment so at the start of the game that works in our favor. They do tend to start to fall off quickly if you don't multiclass out or get things like Bracers of Defense to keep them hard to hit.

There isn't really any choice to be made here until level 3 at which point we will be taking the Way of the Open Hand subclass. This gives us some nice options to use along with our Flurry of Blows. Since we're planning on using Flurry of Blows quite often to burst down targets, this is icing on that cake. Use whichever option seems the most useful in the specific situation. Pushing enemies off cliffs is great and some enemies have powerful reaction abilities. However, here is where we come to a notable difference from the tabletop game. In traditional D&D, you need to make your attacks first with your action before you can use Flurry of Blows. In BG3, you can Flurry first. This makes the Flurry of Blows: Topple option very attractive because if they fail their save, your other attacks will have advantage. Unless one of the other scenarios above occur, I would default to the Topple option and always Flurry before my regular attacks.

Level 4

Here is where things get interesting. Even with an 8 CHA, we can multiclass into Warlock. I would take The Great Old One patron since the first level feature triggers on critical hits and we will be making a lot of attacks so it should happen surprisingly often. Fiend is also a decent choice giving temporary hit points any time you defeat an enemy. They get some nice spells and you could pick up the Eldritch Blast cantrip for those scenarios where you can't quite reach your enemies. Just remember that with a low CHA, the hit chance will be pretty low. But the main reason we're here is for the Hex spell. Hex will add 1d6 to each of our damage rolls. When we're making 3 attacks each turn (when we Flurry) that can add up quickly. Additionally, Hex can be reused throughout the day until the next long rest (another departure from the tabletop which only lasts an hour). And as a Warlock, our spell slots recover on a short rest. So we should have a couple to spare but nothing too special. I'd keep them in case we lose concentration.

We should spend the first round of combat casting Hex and making either melee or ranged attacks. The next round we can start pummeling our Hex target with Flurry of Blows and deal some very nice damage as long as we can maintain concentration.

Levels 5 - 7

Next, we really want to increase our pool of Ki points and get Extra Attack. Two more levels in Monk will do a lot for us. At Monk 4 we should bump up our odd ability scores in DEX and WIS, increasing our attack bonus, AC, and ability DC. All great stuff. At Monk 5 we get Extra Attack and Stunning Strike which can be great but it's a CON save which most creatures are decent at. Use it in a pinch but be wary of blowing all your Ki which you need for other stuff.

Then Monk 6 gives us a few awesome features. First, there's the Ki-Empowered Strikes feature so our punches will rarely be resisted. Second, the Manifestation options give us additional damage on each attack with our unarmed strikes on top of Hex. This is a new feature that was added for BG3 and overall gives the Monk substantially more damage (unfortunately only for the Open Hand subclass). Finally, the Wholeness of Body feature is a nice little heal in the tabletop game but in BG3 has some amazing additions. We also get half of our Ki back instantly and for the next 3 rounds we get a Ki point AND an extra Bonus Action.

This makes us an absolute burst damage machine once per long rest. We probably want to just go without weapons from here on out unless we find a particularly great one. So when Wholeness of Body is active, we'll make two attacks with our action, and use Flurry of Blows twice for a total of 6 attacks which all get bonus damage from Hex and our Manifestation. And even when Wholeness of Body isn't active, we're going to have a lot of Ki available. Expect to be making a lot of attacks.

Levels 8 - 10

Once we have our Manifestation and Wholeness of Body , we are going to take a detour but it will absolutely be worth it. A few levels in Rogue are going to do wonders. Sneak Attack damage on prone enemies (if we find a good enough weapon to replace our fists) and Cunning Action options when we need them are both great. The best part about this, though, is the Thief subclass which, again differing from the tabletop, gives us an additional Bonus Action every turn. As of writing this, there is no limitation on what you can use this Bonus Action for, making it incredibly powerful. This means that when we have Wholeness of Body active, we can use Flurry of Blows three times and also use our two attacks with our action. That's 8 attacks per turn for 3 turns every long rest and 6 the rest of the time.

Importantly, this is reliable damage. We should be able to do this through most fights as long as we get a short rest in between. In cases where we might not be able to get a short or long rest between each fight, reducing it to one use of Flurry of Blows per turn is still going to be making more attacks than just about everyone else (5 total) while conserving resources.

Levels 11 - 12

Unfortunately, BG3 only gets up to level 12 but these last two levels aren't going to be game breaking anyway. I would suggest getting another level in Rogue, picking up another ASI boosting either DEX or WIS. Then you can get another level in any of these classes. Monk will get Evasion and Stillness of Mind (which actually does something in BG3). Rogue will get you Uncanny Dodge and increased Sneak Attack damage. Warlock will get you Eldritch Invocations and another spell slot. They're all great and I don't know which one I would choose, honestly. No wrong answer.

Analysis

I tried to keep this build free of spoilers, but if you've gotten this far, I should note that there comes a point in the game where you are able to change your character class, ability scores, etc. If you don't mind doing that, I would probably follow this build up until level 5. At that point, I would put all 5 levels into Monk, take one more, and grab Warlock 1 at level 7. It won't make a massive difference but level 5 and 6 will probably feel a bit smoother.

That being said, I think this build will probably be one of the better damage dealers and front-line combatants in your party for basically the entire game. Ranged combat might be somewhat problematic, though. Eldritch Blast is an option but against anything with a decent AC, you're probably better off with a bow and using your bonus actions to Hide or Dash around to make sure you're always getting Sneak Attack. It won't be as strong but these situations should be pretty rare.

There is a version of this build that goes with Strength for attacks instead of Dexterity and picks up the Tavern Brawler feat. Personally, I think that feat is WAY too strong in BG3 and I suspect it might be nerfed in an upcoming patch. I also like to keep my Monks DEX-based because it fits the theme of the class better. If you'd prefer going the STR route, there are plenty of guides online that you can follow.