Summary: Learn how to break the Oath of Vengeance in BG3, and unlock the Oathbreaker Paladin subclass to shift your character’s path.

In Baldur’s Gate 3, breaking your Oath as a Paladin can lead to the powerful Oathbreaker subclass, offering new abilities and a darker, more rebellious character arc.

This guide will walk you through what it means to be an Oathbreaker Paladin, how to break the Oath of  Vengeance in BG3, and how to obtain and restore your oath if you wish to return to your original path.

We’ll also explore the easiest oaths to break for a smooth transition into the Oathbreaker subclass.

Let‘s get started now.

Table of contents:

• What Is An Oathbreaker Paladin？
• How to Break Your Oath？
• The Easiest Oaths to Break in Baldur’s Gate 3
• How to Get the Oathbreaker Subclass？
• How to Restore Your Oath?
• How to Get Baldur’s Gate 3 Trainers by Using Xmod?

What Is an Oathbreaker Paladin?

An Oathbreaker Paladin is exactly what the name suggests—a Paladin who has failed to uphold their sacred vow. All Paladins swear an oath that grants them divine power, but breaking that oath causes them to lose their holy blessings.

In return, they gain access to darker abilities and a new, more sinister path. Instead of radiant holy spells, Oathbreakers wield necrotic magic, blending powerful melee attacks with darker spellcasting. They still retain key abilities like Divine Smite, but their overall style shifts away from virtue and righteousness.

While often chosen for story and flavor, the Oathbreaker path also offers unique mechanical benefits—especially for players looking to explore a morally grey or darker role.

Knowing the definition of an Oathbreaker paladin, let’s see how to break your oath.

How to Break Your Oath?

Breaking your oath in Baldur’s Gate 3 depends on the specific vow you’ve taken. Each Paladin oath has its own values, and violating them—whether intentionally or by accident—can turn you into an Oathbreaker. Sometimes, even failing a dice roll while trying to do the right thing can result in an unintended betrayal of your oath.

Oath of the Ancients

This oath centers around protecting life, nature, and the balance of the world. You break it by:

• Killing innocents or harming natural life without cause.
• Taking violent actions without provocation.
• Going back on promises to help others.

Think of this as a druidic Paladin—violating nature or betraying kindness can sever your sacred bond.

Oath of Devotion

This is a vow of honor, compassion, and justice. You break it by:

• Acting cruelly or showing no mercy.
• Fleeing from battle out of fear.
• Harming innocents or failing to uphold the law.

An easy way to break this early in the game is to attack innocent NPCs—like the tieflings or druids in Act One—which will immediately alert the Oathbreaker Knight.

Oath of Vengeance

Sworn to punish evil without compromise, this oath requires swift action against wrongdoing. You break it by:

• Showing mercy to clear evildoers.
• Negotiating with villains instead of stopping them.
• Letting known threats walk free.

A clear example is during your encounter with Auntie Ethel in Act One. If you let the hag live rather than strike her down, you’ll be seen as betraying your vow.

No matter which oath you choose, breaking it reshapes your journey, offering new powers, darker choices, and a very different kind of roleplay, and shifting focus to the easiest oaths to break in Baldur’s Gate 3.

The Easiest Oaths to Break in Baldur’s Gate 3

In Baldur’s Gate 3, breaking your Paladin’s oath opens the door to becoming an Oathbreaker, offering a darker, more flexible playstyle. The way you break your oath depends on the specific subclass you chose at character creation—Oath of the Ancients, Oath of Devotion, or Oath of Vengeance—each tied to unique values and moral codes.

Fastest Way to Break Any Oath

No matter which oath you choose, there’s one surefire way to break it early in Act 1:

Kill the tieflings who imprisoned Lae’zel in the cage near the crash site. This counts as violating any oath and triggers the Oathbreaker path almost immediately.

Oath of the Ancients

Theme: Protect life, nature, and the beauty of the natural world.

Easy Ways to Break It:

• Kill an innocent, non-hostile NPC
• Free the goblin Sazza in Emerald Grove
• Kill both the Owlbear and its cub in the cave
• Use Auntie Ethel’s wand to reanimate Mayrina’s husband
• Kill Pandima, a tiefling in Emerald Grove

This oath leans toward a neutral good alignment, and actions that disrupt harmony or harm nature will break it.

Oath of Vengeance

Theme: Pursue justice at all costs, destroy evil without compromise.

Easy Ways to Break It:

• Reveal Emerald Grove’s location to Minthara
• Free Sazza, despite her being a known threat
• Spare obvious evildoers like Auntie Ethel

Vengeance Paladins are strict about eliminating threats. Showing mercy to evil characters or betraying justice can shatter this oath.

Oath of Devotion

Theme: Honor, justice, and protecting the innocent—a classic “knight in shining armor” role.

Easy Ways to Break It:

• Torture Liam in the Goblin Camp
• Convince Minthara to spare the Grove, then betray the Goblins
• Let Arka execute Sazza
• Kill a weak or defenseless NPC without reason

Even inaction in the face of evil—or using dishonorable tactics—can void this oath.

Embracing the Oathbreaker Path

Once broken, your Paladin loses their divine oath powers—but gains a darker, more versatile set of abilities. The Oathbreaker Knight will seek you out, offering a new path with unique spells, necrotic damage, and a morally complex roleplaying experience.

Breaking your oath isn’t just about power—it’s about forging your path, unshackled from rigid ideals. Whether for story depth or gameplay variety, becoming an Oathbreaker is one of Baldur’s Gate 3’s most compelling twists. Next, we delve into how to get the oathbreaker subclass.

How to Get the Oathbreaker Subclass?

If you break your Paladin’s sacred oath—either by choice or accident—you’ll soon be visited at your camp by a mysterious undead figure known as the Oathbreaker Knight. This grim visitor offers you the chance to embrace the Oathbreaker subclass, trading your holy powers for darker, more selfish abilities.

Interestingly, the game doesn’t frame Oathbreakers as purely evil. Even the Oathbreaker Knight argues that these powers, though shadowy, can be wielded for good or ill.

Accept his offer, and you’ll unlock the secret subclass with a host of new, powerful abilities.

Oathbreaker Subclass Features

Despite losing your original Paladin powers, the Oathbreaker path opens up devastating new spells and abilities focused on fear, control, and necrotic damage:

Spell	Effect	Level
Spiteful Suffering	Deals necrotic damage each turn and grants advantage on attacks vs. target	1
Control Undead	Command an undead creature to fight for you	3
Dreadful Aspect	Frightens nearby enemies with your dark presence	3
Hellish Rebuke	Automatically retaliate with fire when hit	3
Inflict Wounds	Deals 3–30 necrotic damage on touch	3
Crown of Madness	Forces a humanoid to attack the nearest creature (not you)	5
Darkness	Creates a heavily obscured, blinding zone	5
Aura of Hate	Boosts melee damage for you and nearby fiends/undead based on Charisma	7
Bestow Curse	Debuffs enemies or boosts your damage	9
Animate Dead	Raises a corpse to fight alongside you	9

This subclass is especially appealing for Dark Urge playthroughs, where betrayal and chaos are part of the narrative. Races like Half-Orc and Zariel Tiefling, combined with backgrounds like Soldier or Noble, make for potent Oathbreaker builds.

To restore your oath, however, requires a different journey of redemption and reconciliation.

How to Restore Your Oath?

If you wish to return to your original Paladin path, whether out of a desire for redemption or a change of heart, you can restore your oath by speaking to the Oathbreaker Knight. The cost for redemption is a steep 1,000 gold—a price that represents the bounty on an Oathbreaker’s head.

Once you pay the fee, you’ll regain your original Paladin powers and no longer be an Oathbreaker. There are no shortcuts or alternative ways to restore your oath; the Oathbreaker Knight makes it clear that the price is purely in gold.

Think of it as a form of atonement—pay the price, and you’ll regain your holy powers, leaving behind the darker path you’ve walked.

Switching gears, if you’re looking to enhance your gameplay experience, here’s how to get Baldur’s Gate 3 trainers by using Xmod.

How to Get Baldur’s Gate 3 Trainers by Using Xmod?

To enhance your single-player experience in Baldur’s Gate 3, Xmod offers an easy way to access cheats and trainers that can customize your gameplay. Here’s how to use it:

1. Download the Xmod app: Install the Xmod app on your device.

   

2. Search for Baldur’s Gate 3: Find Baldur’s Gate 3 in the app’s search feature.

   

3. Launch the game from Xmod: Start Baldur’s Gate 3 directly through the app.
4. Activate your mods: Choose from the available mods to tailor your experience, whether it’s for added convenience, fun cheats, or enhanced abilities.

   

With Xmod, you can adjust your gameplay to fit your preferences, making Baldur’s Gate 3 even more enjoyable.

Conclusion

In Baldur’s Gate 3, an Oathbreaker Paladin arises when a character breaks their sacred vow, gaining dark powers like necrotic spells and control over the undead. Depending on the chosen oath, breaking it reshapes abilities and offers a morally complex playstyle. Players can return to their original Paladin path by paying a gold fee to the Oathbreaker Knight. For further customization, Xmod allows players to use cheats and mods to enhance their experience.