Summary

• Spellcasters in Baldur's Gate 3 have versatile spells for both combat and non-combat situations, offering strategic advantages in exploration and dialogue.
• Minor Illusion can cleverly manipulate NPC movement, while spells like Speak with Dead and Disguise Self unlock new dialogue options for players.
• Utility spells like Mage Hand, Detect Thoughts, and Guidance provide unique abilities but come with limitations, making them valuable strategic choices.

Baldur's Gate 3 includes many spells that are useful outside of combat as well, and the utility of these magical abilities deserves praise.

Aside from fights, making progress in Baldur's Gate 3 requires careful exploration, thorough investigation, effective communication, and no shortage of creativity. Spellcasters have many options to choose from to improve their party's chances of success in these fields, and even some spells that unlock content otherwise unavailable in the game. These ten options are among the best to choose from when assembling a caster's spell list.

10 Minor Illusion Offers Clever Players A Way To Move People Around

A Clever Distraction

Minor illusion is a cantrip available to many classes in the game, and while its use cases might be niche, it is incredible at what it does. That is, getting NPCs to move around and group up on the map, vacating certain areas and crowding others. The spell creates a small illusory cat in a space within range, which causes everyone around it to approach and investigate it for a few turns.

For thieves looking to empty out an area before they rob it blind without needing to worry about getting spotted.

The most obvious use for this spell is for thieves looking to empty out an area before they rob it blind without needing to worry about getting spotted. The cantrip doesn't expend any resources and requires no saving throw, meaning it can be used indefinitely for this purpose to consistent effect. However, clever players can also use the spell to do things like clear at-risk civilians from an area before starting a fight, grouping up enemies to hit them with an AOE, and getting allies together to buff them all at once.

9 Speak With Dead Grants Players A Grisly Way To Get Information

Uncover Hidden Lore & Narrative Details

Several spells in the game serve the purpose of unlocking new dialogue options, all of which are useful for learning information in unique ways that can't be accomplished otherwise. Speak with dead is the spookiest one of these spells, reanimating a dead body to answer up to five questions based on what the person knew in life. Doing this can yield some amazing benefits, such as learning about hidden treasures, lost secrets, and monsters waiting in ambush.

Speak with dead is also a ritual spell, meaning that casting it takes no spell slot outside of combat, giving the spell even more utility. Unfortunately, speak with dead does have some drawbacks that keep it from being as good as other ritual spells. It is third-level, meaning it can't be used until a bit later in the game, and it also can't be used on some corpses based on which ones have been provided with dialogue. Plus, some corpses simply refuse to speak with the player if the party is responsible for their death.

8 Disguise Self Unlocks A Slew Of Unique Dialogue Options

Unlock Hidden Dialogue Choices

Baldur's Gate 3 includes many fantasy races to choose from, including Elves, Orcs, Dwarves, and more. Each of these races has its own unique dialogue options that appear occasionally in conversation, but of course, playing as one character, players can only see a few of these options. Disguise self does away with that limitation, allowing players to change their appearance and gain access to additional dialogue choices. Some races, such as the Drow in Act 1, have some especially useful dialogue to forward the plot.

Changing the player's appearance can help them escape jail, since they won't be recognized by guards.

But that's not all disguise self can do. Changing the player's appearance can help them escape jail, since they won't be recognized by guards. It can also make speak with dead more viable, since changing one's appearance allows them to speak to any corpse, even if they killed them. Unfortunately, it can't be used to assume the identities of existing NPCs. But it still has many uses that make it worth picking up.

7 Mage Hand Is A Mixed Bag Of Abilities And Limitations

A Useful Spell With Some Drawbacks

No cantrip is more rife with uses and restrictions than mage hand, making it a topic of much controversy within Baldur's Gate 3. It is extremely useful for any party, able to float around without provoking enemies or triggering traps, push and activate objects, go through small ages, and even throw certain items. Many classes and races gain access to mage hand, and some can even cast it as a bonus action or make it invisible.

Unfortunately, the spell has some big drawbacks. It can only be cast once per short rest, only lasts ten turns, and has a very small health pool, meaning pretty much any attack or damage will instantly destroy it. None of these limitations exist in D&D, where mage hand comes from, so comparing the versions in the video game and TTRPG makes this version look relatively weak. Still, it is one of the most powerful spells for utility in Baldur's Gate 3, especially given that it doesn't cost a spell slot or concentration.

6 Detect Thoughts Provides An Intrusive Way To Avoid Conversation

Obtaining Information Before Dialogue Checks

Detect thoughts is a pretty rude spell to use, but it is certainly effective. The spell can be cast before or during dialogue and provides options to poke into someone's brain and learn what they are hiding. It's a great alternative to insight or persuasion checks for a character with low scores in those abilities since it only relies on a roll with one's spellcasting modifier.

There are a few downsides to detect thoughts. Not every NPC has the option to be mind-read, and some will become hostile if they realize what is happening. While it is a ritual spell, meaning it won't cost a slot, it is second-level and will take some time to unlock. It is also a concentration spell, meaning it takes up a pretty useful resource for spellcasters. But detect thoughts lasts for a whole day and can be used on multiple NPCs, giving it a longevity that makes up for its cost.

5 Friends Make Charisma-Focused Characters Even Better At What They Do

A Forceful Friendly Gesture

Friends is another dialogue-focused spell that, while it does cost concentration, avoids using a spell slot by virtue of being a cantrip. Outside of combat, it functions the same as charm person, which is a first-level spell, making it pretty much just a better version of a spell that costs more resources. Mechanically, casting friends gives a character advantage on charisma checks against a given NPC, which can be really helpful for characters who don't want to leave those checks up to chance.

Friends is great because it doesn't require a saving throw to take effect, lasts for a whole conversation, and can combo with other buffing spells that improve ability checks. It does have some downsides in that it takes up one's concentration, and in higher-difficulty game modes, it can trigger hostility once it wears off. Luckily, this downside is easy to avoid by leaving the area after ending a conversation, to avoid the blame falling on the player character.

4 Enhance Ability Has A High Cost But A Big Payoff

More Skill Checks

Similar to friends, enhance ability is a spell that requires concentration and gives a player advantage on a given kind of ability check. Unlike friends, enhance ability is second-level and burns a spell slot in order to cast. Luckily, this spell has enough uses to outweigh its resource cost.

Casting enhance ability allows players to pick one ability score (strength, dexterity, etc) and gain advantage on all skill checks regarding it until their next long rest. This gives the spell more versatility than something like friends, allowing thieves to succeed at a consecutive marathon of lockpicking and pickpocketing checks. On top of that, each version of the spell grants a small bonus ability, such as enhanced carrying capacity or extended jump distance. Especially in Act 3, this spell can be a powerhouse.

3 Enhanced Leap Allow For Easy Exploration

Reach Locations In A Single Bound

Of the spells that enhance character movement in the game, enhanced leap is one of the best. It is first-level and a ritual spell, meaning that many characters gain access to it quickly and can use it for no cost. It lasts for only ten turns but doesn't require concentration, unlike spells like grant flight. And the amount that this spell increases a character's jump distance is huge.

Especially on a high-strength character, enhanced leap can essentially allow players to jump any gap or up any cliff, with inhuman levels of athleticism. On a character with 20 strength, this spell means that virtually no corner of the map is untouchable, especially when paired with feather fall, another non-concentration ritual first-level spell. All that maneuverability for no cost is a great deal players shouldn't up.

2 Speak With Animals Unlocks A Ton Of New Characters And Content

Converse With Man's Best Friend

Much like speak with dead and detect thoughts, speak with animals grants players additional dialogue options. Unlike those spells, speak with animals truly feels like it unlocks a whole new portion of the game, allowing beasts to become additional NPCs with their own personalities and even quests on occasion. Speak with animals is worth picking up for the fun factor alone, allowing players to negotiate with a strange ox, partner up with a blue jay to take down some bullying eagles, or learn about history from an ancient rothe.

Bards, Druids, and Rangers are able to learn speak with animals.

Speak with animals is first-level, a ritual spell, doesn't require concentration, and has no potential to backfire. The only things going against it are that it isn't available to a ton of classes, and there is a potion that can grant the same effect. But all in all, this spell allows for a whole new avenue of gameplay and grants the ability to learn information from beasts and help them with their own troubles.

1 Guidance Is Essential For Any Party And Playthrough

Boosting Ability Checks

On the surface, guidance doesn't sound all that great. It's a cantrip only available for a few classes, which requires concentration and adds 1d4 to ability checks. But the thing about guidance that gives it its legendary status is that it helps in virtually every interaction in the game. Having a character that can cast guidance in the party basically means that every ability check players make will have an average of 2 or 3 points added to it.

This is huge, especially considering it can be cast as a reaction to making a check and can be cast an infinite number of times per day. It really cannot be overstated how useful guidance is in Baldur's Gate 3, to the point that any party without the spell is inherently worse off. It combos with options like enhance ability and friends to take one's skill checks through the roof, and earns its spot as the best utility spell in the game, no question.

Sources: The Lost Noob/Youtube , SilverMVP/Youtube , TerakJK/Youtube , Blood Ronin/Youtube