BG3 best Wizard subclass, feats, and build guide

In the mystical realms of Baldur’s Gate 3, the Wizard class stands as a beacon of arcane power, offering players a rich tapestry of spells and strategic gameplay. Whether you’re unleashing devastating fireballs as an Evocation specialist or weaving illusions to confound your foes, mastering the intricacies of the Wizard class is essential for any aspiring spellcaster. This guide will delve into the best builds, spell selections, and tactics to elevate your Wizard from mere apprentice to formidable archmage, ensuring you dominate the battlefield while keeping your allies safe from friendly fire. Prepare to unlock the full potential of your arcane abilities and reshape the fate of Faerûn!

Best race for Wizard

When selecting the best race for a Wizard in Baldur’s Gate 3, the Red Dragonborn and Asmodeus Tiefling stand out as optimal choices due to their inherent bonuses to Intelligence and unique racial traits that enhance spellcasting abilities. The Deep Gnome and High Half-Elf are also viable options, offering additional lore-friendly backgrounds and useful abilities. Wizards thrive on maximizing their Intelligence for spellcasting, so races that provide boosts to this ability are highly advantageous. Additionally, consider the racial features that can complement your Wizard’s playstyle, such as increased survivability or utility in combat scenarios. Ultimately, choosing a race that aligns with your preferred Wizard subclass—like Evocation for damage output or Abjuration for defense—will further enhance your gameplay experience.

In the full release of Baldur’s Gate 3, the developers have removed exclusive racial bonuses. From now on, when choosing a race, you can add 2 and 1 bonuses to any stat you’d like. Despite this, some racial abilities come in handy for certain classes.

1. High Elf – This race receives 1 bonus Cantrip, which you can add to your arsenal of known spells.
2. High Half-Elf – Similar to the previous race, it offers a bonus Cantrip.

Ability Points

In Baldur’s Gate 3, Ability Points are crucial for optimizing your Wizard build, particularly in the Evocation subclass, which emphasizes damage output. Wizards primarily rely on Intelligence as their main ability score, as it directly affects spellcasting effectiveness and the potency of spells. Players should aim to allocate their Ability Points to achieve a minimum of 16 in Intelligence to maximize spell success rates, followed by Constitution for increased hit points and Dexterity for better armor class, especially since Wizards typically wear no armor. This strategic distribution of Ability Points enhances both survivability and spellcasting capabilities, allowing Wizards to excel in various combat scenarios while minimizing vulnerabilities.

When distributing skill points for a Wizard, prioritize a high Intelligence coefficient first and foremost. You should also invest into:

1. Dexterity, which will grant some valuable Armor Class to fragile, armorless Wizards.
2. Constitution provides a few extra Hit Points and helps maintain concentration when casting concentrationspells.

Best background for Wizard

The best background for Wizards in Baldur’s Gate 3 is undoubtedly the Sage. This background provides crucial proficiencies in Arcana and History, both of which leverage the Wizard’s primary ability, Intelligence. These skills enhance a Wizard’s effectiveness in both combat and exploration, allowing for better checks when dealing with magical lore and ancient knowledge. Alternatively, players may consider the Guild Artisan background, which offers proficiency in Insight and Persuasion, adding valuable social skills to a Wizard’s repertoire. However, for pure gameplay benefits and thematic alignment, the Sage background remains the top choice for aspiring spellcasters in the game.

Some of the best backgrounds for Wizards include:

1. Acolyte – proficiency in Insight and Intelligence-based Religion both complete the image of a well-read Wizard, proving rather useful during your adventure.
2. Sage – proficiency in two Intelligence-based skills, Arcana and History, fits Wizards rather well.

Arcane Recovery

Arcane Recovery is a crucial feature for Wizards in Baldur’s Gate 3, allowing them to regain expended spell slots during short rests. Once per day, Wizards can recover a number of spell slots equal to half their Wizard level (rounded up). This ability not only enhances their sustainability in prolonged encounters but also encourages strategic play, as players can manage their resources more effectively. By utilizing Arcane Recovery wisely, Wizards can maintain their spellcasting prowess and adapt to the ever-changing dynamics of combat, ensuring they remain a vital asset to any adventuring party.

A class ability, that lets Wizards use an action to regain some of their used spell slots, though their total level cannot exceed half of the Wizard’s. For example:

1. a Level 2 Wizard can only regain a single Level 1 spell slot.
2. a Level 4 Wizard can regain a single Level 2 spell slots or two Level 1 spell slots.

Arcane Recovery can only be used outside of combat.

Best spells

Wizards in Baldur’s Gate 3 are renowned for their versatility and powerful spellcasting capabilities, making them a cornerstone of any adventuring party. Among the vast array of spells available, some stand out as particularly effective for maximizing damage and utility. Key spells include Fireball, which deals devastating area damage without harming allies when cast by an Evocation Wizard due to their unique ability; Cloudkill, effective for controlling the battlefield; and Dimension Door, which offers strategic repositioning. Additionally, utility spells like Knock and Enlarge/Reduce provide essential support outside of combat. Choosing the right spells can significantly enhance a Wizard’s effectiveness, allowing them to adapt to various challenges throughout the game.

Wizards are mighty spellcasters able to use tons of different offensive, defensive and utility spells. Like Druids and Clerics, Wizards can preparesome of their known spells every day, keeping this list until their next long rest.

With how wide their spell roster is, it’s difficult to pick out just a few of them. On a separate page of the guide, Best Wizard spells, we’ve listed the best spells of all schools and levels.

Cantrips:

1. Light and Dancing Lights – both spells create sources of bright light. Useful for characters without Darkvision.
2. Ray of Frost – deals 1d8 cold damage to a single target and reduces their speed.
3. Shocking Grasp – a melee spell that deals 1d8 damage. Has advantage against targets wearing metal armor.

Spells:

1. Mage Armour – changes an unarmored target’s Armor Class to 13 plus their Dexterity modifier.
2. Magic Missile – fires three projectiles which deal 1d4 1 damage each, are guaranteed to hit and have 18 meters of range.
3. Sleep – nearby enemies whose total amount of hit points doesn’t exceed 24 fall into a magical slumber. The target wakes up when receiving damage.
4. Ray of Sickness – deals 2d8 poison damage and can inflict the Poisoned status on the target.
5. Find Familiar – the Wizard summons a small creature (cats, frogs, rats, etc.) as a familiar. It can help you during exploration or in combat.
6. Cloud of Daggers – covers an area with sharp blades, which deal 4d4 damage every turn.
7. Web – a Level 2 spell that covers an area with a sticky, flammable substance.
8. Scorching Ray – fires three rays of scorching light, dealing 2d6 damage each.
9. Counterspell – interrupts and dispells a different spell as it’s being cast. The higher the spell’s level, the more difficult it is to counter.
10. Fireball – an iconic Level 3 spell that deals 8d6 area damage.

Best subclass for Wizard

For players exploring the best subclass for Wizards in Baldur’s Gate 3, the Evocation subclass stands out as the top choice. This subclass specializes in damage-dealing spells while providing a unique feature called Sculpt Spells, which allows Wizards to cast area-of-effect spells like Fireball without harming their allies. This capability makes Evocation Wizards highly effective in both offense and team play, ensuring they can unleash devastating attacks without the risk of friendly fire. With access to powerful spells and a focus on maximizing damage output, Evocation Wizards are ideal for players looking to dominate the battlefield while maintaining strategic support for their party.

Wizard subclasses focus on Spell Schools, which represent a certain area of arcane knowledge. The base game is to have eight Schools, but the Early Access version features only two. These are:

1. Evocation School – a subclass focused on evoking powerful, elemental arcane effects. Evocation Savant reduces the cost of learning Evocation spells from scrolls by half. Sculpt Spells lets the Wizard create invlunerability areas for their allies while casting, within which they automatically pass checks and saving throws against Evocation spells cast by them.
2. Abjuration School – Abjuration Wizards are masters of defensive magic. Their wide range of defensive spells makes them invaluable allies in combat. Abjuration Savant works similar to the other schools’ Savant abilities, cutting the cost of learning the school’s spells by half. Arcane Ward is a powerful ability, that lets the Wizard create a special barrier once per day – this barrier absorbssome enemy attacks. The barrier regains hit points with each Abjuration spell its holder casts.
3. Illusion School – a subclass based on creating illusions to deceive foes. The Improved Minor Illusion ability available from level 2 will allow you to cast this Cantrip as a bonus action. Additionally, you can create a distracting image even in hiding, and even when being Silenced.
4. Necromancy School – a school ruling over life and death, letting the caster control undead. The Grim Harvest ability available from level 2, allows you to recover some Health Points when you deliver a mortal blow to a creature when using a spell. The amount of points recovered is equal to twice the level of the spell used to cause death, or even three times if the spell used was from the Necromancy School.
5. Transmutation School – based on manipulating matter, transforming items and creatures. The Experimental Alchemy ability means that from now on, your Wizard will create 2 alchemical products instead of 1 when working with reagents. To do so, however, you must pass a Medicine skill check with level 15 difficulty. The Transmuter’s Stone available at later levels, also allows you to store the selected transmutation ability within a physical object.
6. Conjuration School – Conjurers are adept at creating objects and effects out of nothing. Over time, they also learn how to instantly cover huge distances. Available from level 2 Minor Conjuration: Create Water allows the Wizard to summon rain in the selected area. The action can be performed after a short rest and does not consume a spell slot. At later levels, a Wizard using the Conjuration School can also teleport.
7. Enchantment School – based on affecting the enemies’ minds and bending their will. Hypnotic Gaze allows you to bend your opponent’s will so that they stop performing their actions. The skills available later will also allow you to change the direction of a charging enemy’s attack.
8. Divination School – based on predicting future events and preventing them. The Portent ability gives you access to 2 random dice roll each long rest. The Divination Wizard may replace any attack roll or saving throw on a different one. The ability resets after a long rest.

Best build for Wizard

Wizards in Baldur’s Gate 3 are versatile spellcasters, capable of dealing significant damage while also providing utility to their party. The Evocation subclass stands out as the best build for Wizards, allowing for high damage output without harming allies due to its unique Sculpt Spells feature. This build emphasizes maximizing Intelligence for spellcasting effectiveness and prioritizes spells like Fireball and Scorching Ray for offensive capabilities. Additionally, focusing on spells that control the battlefield, such as Cloud of Daggers, enhances their role as a powerful glass cannon. For optimal performance, players should select races like Red Dragonborn or Asmodeus Tiefling and consider feats that improve initiative or concentration, ensuring they can cast spells effectively while remaining protected in combat.

As a summary, this is an example build for a Level 3 Wizard:

1. Race: Stone Gnome
2. Subclass: Conjuration School
3. Background: Sage
4. Ability Scores: Intelligence around 16/17, Dexterity and Constitution around 16/14, Wisdom around 12, Charisma and Strength around 10/8.

What are the top Wizard subclasses in Baldur’s Gate 3

In Baldur’s Gate 3, Wizards can choose from eight distinct subclasses, each representing a school of magic, and their effectiveness can vary significantly. Here’s a breakdown of the top Wizard subclasses based on their abilities and overall performance:

Top Wizard Subclasses

Summary of Subclass Strengths

• Necromancy stands out for its combination of offensive and defensive features, making it particularly strong in late-game scenarios.
• Evocation excels in raw damage output and is user-friendly, making it a popular choice for players focused on dealing damage without harming allies.
• Abjuration is ideal for players who prefer a tank-like role, providing substantial protection and survivability.
• Divination offers strategic advantages through dice manipulation, enhancing the party’s overall effectiveness in combat.

Choosing the right subclass ultimately depends on your playstyle—whether you prefer dealing damage, controlling the battlefield, or protecting your allies.

Why is the Necromancy School considered the best Wizard subclass

The Necromancy School is often regarded as the best Wizard subclass in Baldur’s Gate 3 for several compelling reasons that combine both offensive and defensive capabilities, making it a versatile choice for players.

Key Features of the Necromancy School

1. Health Regeneration on Kills: At level 2, Necromancers gain the Grim Harvest feature, allowing them to regain hit points when they kill an enemy with a spell. This ability is particularly powerful because it enables Wizards to sustain themselves in prolonged battles, effectively turning their offensive actions into a form of healing.
2. Summoning Undead: The subclass excels at creating and controlling undead minions. By level 6, Necromancers can use the Undead Thralls feature, which allows them to raise additional undead creatures with their spells. This not only bolsters their combat effectiveness but also provides a tactical advantage by overwhelming enemies with numbers.
3. Resistance to Necrotic Damage: At level 10, the Inured to Undeath feature grants resistance to necrotic damage and ensures that the Wizard’s hit point maximum cannot be reduced. This further enhances their survivability, especially against foes that deal necrotic damage.

Strategic Advantages

• Synergy with Equipment: The Necromancy School benefits from specific gear, such as the Cherished Necromancy Staff, which allows for casting necromancy spells without consuming spell slots after defeating enemies. This synergy amplifies their damage potential and resource management, especially in late-game scenarios.
• High Damage Output: The combination of health regeneration and an army of undead can lead to exceptionally high damage output. A well-played Necromancer can amass a significant number of undead minions, resulting in overwhelming force in combat situations.
• Roleplay Opportunities: The thematic elements of necromancy provide rich roleplaying opportunities, allowing players to explore darker narratives and character motivations. This adds depth to the gameplay experience beyond just mechanics.

Conclusion

Overall, the Necromancy School stands out as the best Wizard subclass due to its unique blend of healing, summoning capabilities, and enhanced survivability. These features not only make it powerful in combat but also versatile enough to adapt to various situations throughout the game, particularly in later acts where its strengths truly shine.