Baldur's Gate 3 is exceptional in a lot of ways, from combat to NPCs and the depth of their stories. However, the game has a surprising letdown early on when using Tav, the default name for a custom character, as the protagonist rather than an Origin character - excluding the Dark Urge. The options for character creation are limited, making customizing Tav fall flat compared to the rest of the game, meaning that the best choice could be looking for mods to supplement existing creation options.
The modding community has, as always, acted quickly to begin pumping out content for Baldur's Gate 3. While modders generally post a way to them with donations, ing and using mods is almost always free. As such, below are some of the best, free mods that can be used to create the perfect Tav, remedying the lackluster character creation options included in BG3. to make save files as back-ups before modding in case conflicts happen in order to avoid losing progress.
15 P4 Bangs Bangs Everywhere
Getting Creative With Hairstyles
Most hair mods for Baldur's Gate 3 focus on adding completely new styles, but Pe4000's P4 Bangs Bangs Everywhere on Nexus Mods is primarily about making the most of what's already in the game. The mod separates out elements like bangs and braided sides from pre-existing hairstyles into their own components, opening up a whole new world of mixing and matching potential.
Baldur’s Gate 3: How to Make Custom Party
Using Baldur’s Gate 3's co-op saves allows a single person to build a fully custom team. But these avatars are treated as main characters.
A lot of combinations that P4 Bangs Bangs Bangs Everywhere makes possible won't necessarily look that great, but some can turn out fantastic, and it's the perfect solution for anyone who loves the bangs on one hairdo but the ponytail on another. It does also add a few new options of its own. Everything can be found under the Dragonborn Jaw section of character creation.
14 Ghouls Customization Compendium
A Mod That Fits Right In
Ghouls Customization Compendium, created by Nexus Mods Ghouls0Rules, is a nice grab bag mod for those who want to knock out a variety of character customization options in one go. The main focus is on new heads, but it also includes a solid variety of horns and a few choices for hair and beards. Unlike some mods that are focused on overhauling the style, Ghouls Customization Compendium delivers content that looks fully in line with official material from the game.
The best part of the mod is that, although it focuses on humans, half-elves, elves, drow, and tieflings, it covers its ground fairly evenly, with plenty for every body type. It's a good choice for those who just want more options without rocking the boat in any major regard.
13 Whispers Of The Divine - Aasimar Definitive Edition
A New Playable Race
Baldur's Gate 3 is based primarily on the rules found in the 2014 version of the Dungeons & Dragons Player's Handbook, and it included all the races that are featured in that book. The lineup has recently changed with the 2024 Player's Handbook, however, and Aasimars and Goliaths both made it out of supplementary material and into the primary rules.
One Missing Baldur's Gate 3 Race Deserves More Love In BG3 DLC
Baldur's Gate 3 gestures at one fantasy race without ever showing it, and exploring this avenue in any future DLC would be to its benefit.
Whispers of the Divine - Aasimar Definitive Edition, created by Nexus Mods Trips, is the best way to add the former species, which are best described as mortals touched by celestial power, to Baldur's Gate 3. There are several strong mod options for the race, but Whispers of the Divine delivers in regard to both cosmetic elements and gameplay, with several subraces and unique wings for each. It's a perfect choice to give characters some dramatic visual flair.
12 Customizer's Compendium - NPC Options Unlocker
Steal The Style Of The Best NPCs
It's possible to run across random NPCs who share the same faces, hairstyles, or other elements as a custom Tav character in Baldur's Gate 3, as minor characters are built on the same options that are available to players. Major characters, however, always have their own distinct looks. Customizer's Compendium takes an axe to that divide, opening up unique features from major NPCs to be used in the character creation process.
Customizer's Compendium is a mod by AlanaSP on Nexus Mods, but compatibility with the most recent version of the game might have problems, which a modified re- by pepperjk addresses. Neither provides much detail about what the mod does, but the sparse descriptions belie a major overhaul suite.
11 Trips' Accessory Collection
Glasses & Piercings Galore
The Whispers of the Divine Aasimar mod isn't the only great creation by Trips, who's also the source and namesake of Trips' Accessory Collection. Although Baldur's Gate 3 has plenty of accessories that can be found throughout the game in the amulet and ring categories, it doesn't provide as much in other departments.
Trips' Accessory Collection covers the options for character faces, adding a selection of piercings along with a monocle and round spectacles. A couple of piercings can be further customized with gems for a truly unique look. Most importantly, the accessories are designed to behave properly during facial animations, so no weird clipping should kill immersion when a Tav with a lip ring is grimacing at something.
10 Tav's Hair Salon
Adds New Hairstyle Options
Of all the character customization options available in BG3, hairstyles might be the most abundant. However, a lot of the default styles are fairly similar, and the long hair options are pretty lackluster without as many choices for hair tied back or hair that's longer than shoulder-length. While Tav's Hair Salon, ed to Nexus Mods by Toarie, adds dozens of new hair options, the downside is it's mostly for elves, human, and tiefling characters using body types 1 and 2.
9 Faces Of Faerûn
Provides More Default Faces
Unlike hairstyles, there are far fewer options for faces in character creation. Each race only has eight default choices for faces, and this is particularly limiting in design, since it's not possible to change individual facial features like eyes or nose, which is commonly seen in character creation systems for other games.
Baldur's Gate 3: Making A Custom Character (Tips, Stats, & Choices)
The hero of Baldur’s Gate 3 can have a full mix of classes and stats. All of these options can build on each other to make a strong character.
Nexus mods Aloija created Faces of Faerûn, which helps to an extent by adding more face options. Although it doesn't add the ability to edit singular facial features, the quality of the designs makes up for it.
8 Horns Of Faerûn
More Horns For Tieflings & Other BG3 Races
Another mod created by Nexus Mods Aloija, Horns of Faerûn adds only a few new horn options, but they're much more elaborate than the default options available in BG3. It also allows characters to have horns without being a tiefling, although this mod isn't compatible with dragonborn. Aside from providing extra options for tieflings, the antlers are particularly great for a druid character.
7 Eyes Of The Beholder
Greatly Increases Eye Customization
BG3 allows a bit of selection for eye color and includes the option to have heterochromia on Tav, but Eyes of the Beholder by Volo's eye removal surgery in Baldur's Gate 3.
6 P4 Custom Tattoo & Makeup Colours
Additional Color Options
Sometimes, simply adding more color options can make a huge difference in character customization. In BG3, color options are rather abundant compared to other customizations, but Pe4000's P4 Custom Tattoo and Makeup Colours (via Nexus Mods) adds even more colors for tattoos, makeup, and lips. This mod specifically adds colors options, such as bright green, gold, red violet, and temptress red. As such, there's certain to be the colors needed to create anybody's perfect Tav as far as colorful additions go.
