As you progress through Act 2 and onto Act 3, there are some powerful spells you can grab for your casters. These are game changers, providing reliable damage-per-round, powerful supportive options, or imposing save-or-die effects on enemies. Here are my top 10 best late game spells in Baldur’s Gate 3.
Best Spells in the Baldur’s Gate 3 Late Game You Shouldn’t Overlook
10. Spirit Guardians
This is one of the best Cleric spells to upcast with higher level slots or steal with the Sword or Valor Bard’s Magical Secrets ability. It’s just great damage-per-round that’s also in an AoE and halves enemy movement. That said, you need some good AC and concentration checks since you’ll be entering melee. Combine it with Luminous Armor, Luminous Gloves, and the Coruscating Ring for a powerful and nigh-unkillable debuff Cleric.
9. Counterspell
The later stages of Baldur’s Gate 3 are all about high-level spells that turn the tides of the battlefield. In those cases, Counterspell becomes valuable, as it not only blocks enemy spells but also wastes the enemy caster’s spell slot. My Counterspell guide goes into more detail, but you should take care to block higher-level spells with your own higher-level Counterspell. I found this spell saving the lives of my entire party multiple times in Act 3.
8. Banishment/Polymorph
Ok, I’m cheating here a bit, but these two are classic save-or-die spells that shut down boss enemies if they fail their saving throw. Banishment takes an enemy out of the fight while Polymorph turns them into a sheep. They’re quite powerful with the Sorcerer’s Twin Spell Metamagic option so that you can target multiple enemies. One tip I have for Banishment is to use it on the Steel Watcher starting its Self Detonation. It will die while banished without damaging your allies.
7. Conjure Woodland Beings
Summoning spells are great in Baldur’s Gate 3 due to the action economy. The more turns and bodies you have the higher your party’s chances of success. Conjure Woodland Beings is superb for two reasons. First, the Dryad you can summon has some great spellcasting abilities while the Wood Woad is a tank with Entangle. Second, the spell doesn’t require concentration meaning you can summon allies and then concentrate on a damage/CC spell or even summon more allies.
6. Death Ward/Revivify
These two late game Baldur’s Gate 3 spells go hand in hand in the late game. You should generally always have Revivify on hand to bring back fallen allies, especially in Tactician and Honour mode. Moreover, Death Ward prevents key allies like tanks from dropping to zero potentially granting them an extra turn to heal or act. I would suggest casting Death Ward on those key allies at the beginning of the day since it lasts until you Long Rest.
5. Wall of Fire
This is one of the best concentration-based damage spells in BG3, especially for Evocation Wizards. As the name suggests, it creates an environmental hazard that constantly deals damage in two ways to all who pass through it. The first is the burst damage from the spell which is 5d8, the second is a small amount of fire damage from the surface aspect of the spell.Â
Place it on chokeholds and key points in a fight where enemies cannot approach you without stepping into the flames. Powerful combinations include having a Polearm Master/Sentinel melee combatant standing in front of the wall hitting approaching enemies as a Reaction and stopping them inside of the fire. Furthermore, Evocation Wizards nullify damage from the wall on their allies.
4. Hold Monster
This is another potent save-or-die spell that works on any creature type in the game. Not only are you taking an enemy out of the fight by essentially paralyzing them, but you’re also giving your allies free critical hits on them. It lasts for 10 turns so make sure your caster has great concentration checks or Warcaster for Advantage. This is a boss-killer spell if ever there was one.
3. Chain Lightning/Disintegrate
As for straight-up damage, I contend that you can’t go wrong with Chain Lightning or Disintegrate. I included them in the same spot as they essentially fill the same role, but in two ways. Chain Lightning decimates groups while Disintegrate annihilates key enemies. Combine them with the Staff of Spellpower for free casts and the Sorcerer’s Twin Spell Metamagic for incredible results in the late game.
2. Heal
Where Chain Lightning and Disintegrate are arguably the best damage spells in the game, Heal is arguably the best healing spell in Baldur’s Gate 3. It’s just an instant flat 70 HP heal while removing blindness and any diseases. Just to put it into perspective, that flat 70 HP heal is the optimal above-average result of rolling a whopping 14d8. It’s a must-have on Clerics and Druids in the late game.
1. Planar AllyÂ
Now, this one is a bit of an odd take but Planar Ally can offer incredible value in the BG3 late game and here’s why. First, it provides an extra body in the late game meaning more turns for your party and an extra body to tank. Second, it doesn’t require concentration meaning you can cast other crucial concentration spells.
Third, each summon has special spell-like abilities and I would highly recommend the Deva option as it has Revivify to bring back fallen allies in combat and is quite tanky. In retrospect, Cambion isn’t the best and I would avoid it while the Djinn has decent crowd control and versatility. That said, I almost always opt for the Deva for the previously stated reasons.
And that concludes my list of the top 10 best late game spells in Baldur’s Gate 3. Don’t sleep on these spells, as they can elevate your builds and make some of the later game encounters much easier. For more BG3 tips, check out our top 10 magic items and multiclass builds.
