Let me tell you about one of my absolute favorite finds from my recent Baldur's Gate 3 playthrough. I stumbled upon these gloves called the Gloves of Dexterity, and let me be clear—they completely changed how I approached character building for the rest of the game. At first glance, you'd think, "Oh, these are for my Rogue or Ranger," right? That's what I thought too. But boy, was I wrong. These very rare gloves, which become available in the late stages of Act 1, offer what I consider one of the most deceptively powerful effects in the entire game. The real magic isn't in making a dexterous character more dexterous; it's in making your clumsy, heavily-armored tank suddenly as nimble as a cat. It feels almost like cheating, but in the best possible way.

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Now, if you're like me and you want to get your hands on these game-changers, you need to head to the Mountain Pass during Act 1. Specifically, you're looking for a Githyanki trader named A'jak'nir Jeera. She's set up shop inside Creche Y'llek. I remember the first time I went looking for her; it was a bit of a trek. You can get into the creche through the main gate of the Rosymorn Monastery (if you can get past the locked door) or, my preferred method, through a hidden passage. This hidden path requires you to climb down a rocky mountain path south of the Monastery gates—it feels more adventurous that way.

Once you're inside, finding her is straightforward. Head to the southeastern part of Creche Y'llek. She's in a tunnel directly south of the Waypoint. If you come in through that hidden passage I mentioned, she'll be one of the first Githyanki you lay eyes on. A word of caution from my own experience: do not kill her. I repeat, do not make her hostile. If A'jak'nir Jeera dies, she does not drop the gloves. You have to buy them from her while she's still willing to trade. I learned this the hard way on an earlier playthrough after a... diplomatic misunderstanding. So, make the purchase your first priority when you meet her. Interestingly, even if things go sideways with Lae'zel's Zaith'isk treatment and the nearby Githyanki turn hostile, A'jak'nir Jeera herself usually remains neutral and open for business, which is a nice safety net.

So, are they worth the effort and gold? In my opinion, absolutely, 100% yes. The Gloves of Dexterity are arguably one of the most useful items you can snag in Act 1, but not for the reason you'd initially expect. Here’s the crucial thing the game doesn't scream at you: These gloves are not for your Dexterity-focused characters. 🤯

It sounds counterintuitive, I know. But hear me out. The gloves have a very specific effect: they set your Dexterity score to 18. That word "set" is doing all the heavy lifting. If your character already has 18 or more Dexterity without the gloves, putting them on does precisely nothing. Zilch. Nada. For a character whose whole schtick is high Dexterity, like a Monk or a dual-wielding Rogue, these gloves are only a temporary boost in the super early game when their natural DEX is still below 18. Once they level up and increase their Dexterity past that point naturally, the gloves become a wasted equipment slot.

But! This is where the genius part kicks in. For characters who don't scale with Dexterity, these gloves are a godsend. They remain one of the best items in BG3 for these non-DEX builds, even deep into the late game. Why? Because Dexterity is a crucial stat for everyone, not just for damage. Your Armor Class (AC)—that all-important number that determines how hard you are to hit—is directly tied to your Dexterity modifier.

Let me break down why this is so powerful for, say, a Paladin or a Fighter:

  • The AC Bonus: An 18 Dexterity gives you a +4 modifier to your AC. That's a free +4 to your survivability, no ability score investment required.

  • The Stat Freedom: Since the gloves set your DEX to 18, your character's starting Dexterity score is irrelevant. It could be 8. It could be 10. It doesn't matter. The gloves will bump it right up to 18.

This leads to the single best piece of advice I can give you for using these gloves: Respec and dump Dexterity. 🧠

When you get the gloves, go visit Withers. For a trivial amount of gold, you can completely re-spec the character who will wear them. Take all those points you had in Dexterity (or were planning to put there) and dump them. Set your Dexterity to 8, the absolute minimum. Then, take those precious, freed-up ability points and pump them into your character's primary stats. Want your Paladin to have monstrous Strength and high Charisma for those devastating Smites and intimidating dialogue checks? Now you can. Want your Fighter to be a Strength-based powerhouse with extra Constitution to become an unkillable wall? Done.

You're essentially getting a +4 to AC for "free," while also supercharging your character's core strengths. It turns your front-line tank from a slow, hulking menace into a surprisingly nimble, hulking menace that enemies just can't seem to hit. The value this adds to your party's durability and versatility is immense. So, don't let the name fool you. The Gloves of Dexterity aren't for the dexterous; they're for everyone else who wants to borrow a little dexterity without paying the stat tax. It's a brilliant bit of gear design that encourages creative, min-maxing builds, and I never leave Act 1 without them on one of my heavy hitters.