For fans of melee fighting styles, the Polearm Master feat in Baldur's Gate 3 is a great option if you want to punish enemies for moving too close. It's a great feat to pick if you plan on using halberds and other long melee weapons, and its uses might surprise you.
If you're planning on making a Fighter or even a Monk build in BG3, then Polearm Master might be something that you'll want to consider getting as a Level 4 or Level 8 Feat. For those who are interested in using big, pointy sticks as their main weapon, here's what you can expect from using the Polearm Master Feat.
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What is Polearm Master in Baldur's Gate 3?
Polearm Master is one of the many Feats that players can choose once they reach certain levels (4, 8, and 12 for most classes). Essentially, it gives players the following:
- Polearm Master: Bonus Attack, which acts an extra attack that players can make with a Polearm by spending their Bonus Action. After performing an attack, Polearm Clout will appear on your action bar. This deals Bludgeoning damage.
- Polearm Master: Opportunity Attack, which lets players perform an Opportunity Attack against any enemy that comes within range of their weapon.
Polearm Master applies to halberds, glaives, spears, quarterstaves, and pikes.
Both Polearm Clout and the Polearm Opportunity Attack use either your Strength or Dexterity modifier, depending on which one is higher. This makes Polearm Master useful for all classes, and if you're using something like 
Elixir of Hill Giant Strength, you can easily scale your Ability Score and get even more value out of this Feat.
Is Polearm Master Worth Using?
Absolutely. Polearm Master is decent by itself, especially with Barbarians or Fighters. However, if you combine this with the Sentinel Feat, you'll end up with a powerful defensive character who can attack multiple times outside of their turn.
Sentinel grants characters Advantage on Opportunity Attacks, and this affects the one from Polearm Master. More importantly, it lets players use a Reaction to strike an enemy that attacks a non-Sentinel ally. On top of both these effects, any Opportunity Attack that lands on an enemy will also prevent that target from moving.
With Sentinel and Polearm Master, you'll be preventing melee attackers from getting near your party members, provided your Polearm Opportunity Attack hits. When your turn comes, you can batter your enemies with weapon attacks and Polearm Clout, dealing massive damage.
If you ever plan on using this Feat combo, we recommend getting the 
Halberd of Vigilance from the vendor in Moonrise Towers. This will give Advantage to your Reaction Attack from Sentinel. Alternatively, 
The Skinburster from the Githyanki Creche in Roseymorn Monastery is a great offense-oriented alternative.
Baldur's Gate 3
- Released
- August 3, 2023
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Larian Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Larian Studios
- Engine
- Divinity 4.0
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op, Local Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- Full cross-platform play.
- Cross Save
- Full cross-platform progression.
- Franchise
- Baldur's Gate
- Number of Players
- 1-4
- Split Screen Orientation
- Vertical Only
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Verified
- PC Release Date
- August 3, 2023
- Xbox Series X|S Release Date
- December 7, 2023
- PS5 Release Date
- September 6, 2023
- Genre(s)
- RPG
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PC, macOS
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
- Local Co-Op Support
- 1-2 Players
- How Long To Beat
- 100+ Hours
- X|S Optimized
- yes
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
