Wizards are the quintessential magic users of Baldur’s Gate 3. Over half of the class roster has the option to focus on spellcasting, but none place so great a focus on it as the Wizard does. They are masters of the arcane, using their vast knowledge and devotion to learning to bend the world around them.
Because Wizards have so many spell options for learning new spells, both on level-ups and by learning spells from scrolls, it can become a little bit overwhelming to play this class. This guide will walk you through the strongest spell and cantrip options as a Wizard so you’ll know exactly where to expend your precious spell slots.
Best Wizard cantrips in Baldur’s Gate 3
Cantrips, unlike spells, do not consume spell slots, meaning there is no limit to the amount of cantrips that can be cast per day. They do, however, use your primary action on your turn, so you still want to make sure you’re being efficient with cantrip usage. The best cantrips for a Wizard are:
- Blade Ward: Take only half damage from Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing Attacks for two turns.
- This cantrip is fantastic for Wizards, as they are tied with Sorcerers for being the squishiest class in the game. The best part is that the cantrip lasts two turns, meaning if you cycle between this cantrip one turn and an offensive spell or cantrip on the next turn, you can keep this defensive buff through a whole encounter, albeit in lieu of some damage.
- Fire Bolt: Hurl a mote of fire for 1d10 Fire Damage.
- This is the perfect cantrip for fights when you are out of spell slots or simply don’t want to expend a slot for any reason. With decent damage at a range of 18 meters, this is a bread-and-butter cantrip if ever there was one.
- Shocking Grasp: Shock a target in melee range for 1d8 Lightning Damage and prevent them from using a Reaction. Has Advantage against foes wearing metal armor.
- This cantrip is included on this list for one very important reason—melee range. In Baldur’s Gate 3, it feels very common for enemies to rush toward spellcasters, causing ranged spells to have a lower chance of landing.
- Having a melee attack in your arsenal is a necessity for casters, especially when the attack doesn’t consume a spell slot. This cantrip can also be enhanced by the War Caster feat, which will allow you to use Shocking Grasp for Attacks of Opportunity.
- Mage Hand: Create a spectral hand that can manipulate and interact with objects.
- This cantrip won’t do a whole lot for you in combat, but it is absolutely perfect for reaching levers and checking for traps. I can’t even count the number of times I’ve prevented an explosion to the face by checking for traps on chests with Mage Hand.
Best Wizard spells in Baldur’s Gate 3
These will, of course, consume Spell Slots when used, and are typically much more powerful than cantrips—particularly when cast at higher spell levels.
- Magic Missile: Shoot three magical darts, each dealing 2-5 Force Damage. They always hit their target.
- I absolutely love this spell and believe it to be the best offensive spell in Baldur’s Gate 3. The damage is solid, and you can select a different target for each dart or stack them all on one foe. This spell is available at level one but can be cast at any spell level, so it will always be viable.
- The kicker is the fact that Magic Missile cannot miss. There is no worse feeling than burning a high-level spell slot only to roll a one and whiff the attack.
- Mage Armor: Increase a targets AC to 13 + its Dexterity Modifier, so long as they are not wearing armor.
- Another must-have. Wizards are incredibly squishy and can be killed in one or two melee attacks without buffs. Combine Mage Armor with the Blade Ward cantrip, and you can actually handle a bit of a beating without going down.
- This spell can be cast on yourself or an ally.
- Sleep: Put creatures into a magical slumber. Select targets up to a combined 24 hit points. This spell lasts for two turns or until damage is taken.
- This is a phenomenal crowd-control spell. Almost all fights against humanoids have at least one or two pesky archers taking potshots on your frontline. This spell essentially makes them skip two turns.
- Can be cast at higher spell levels, increasing the combined hit point amount that can be put to sleep.
- Crown of Madness: Cause a humanoid enemy to go mad and attack the nearest creature to it, even if it’s allied.
- This is another lifesaver, and fantastic for boss fights. In the same way that Sleep can be used on ranged foes, Crown of Madness will give you three turns of foes tearing themselves apart.
- Hold Person: Hold a humanoid enemy in place, preventing them from attacking, moving, or using reactions. All attacks within three meters are automatic Critical Hits.
- Use Hold Person on a boss and then slap them with an enraged Karlach. Seriously, it’s that simple.
- Effect ends on a successful Wisdom Save, not necessarily upon taking damage. You may end up getting multiple automatic Critical Hits from this spell.
- Fireball: Hurl a ball of fire that explodes for 8D6 Fire Damage to all creatures in a six-meter sphere.
- A Wizard classic that deals devastating damage to however many foes are clumped together. Truly a must-have.
- Be wary, all creatures means all creatures. You can and will kill your Rogue with this spell if you use it irresponsibly.
- Haste: Target yourself or an ally to Hasten them (receive an extra action per turn, +2 AC, and double movement speed) for 10 turns.
- It would be pretty difficult to argue that a better spell exists in Baldur’s Gate 3. Certain classes, most notably Fighters and Barbarians, receive an extra attack after making an attack. That is, upon using the Attack Action, they receive another free attack. A hastened Fighter can attack four times per turn for 10 turns.
- This spell is so strong that some players are actually petitioning Larian Studios to nerf or remove it from the game.
That concludes our list. There is no shortage of the amount of spells a Wizard can learn—if it’s on a scroll, you can add it to your spellbook. Feel free to experiment with different sets of prepared spells and find what works best for you and your party composition.
