Best BG3 Wizard Build – Evocation Spellcaster!

Welcome to the Best BG3 Wizard Build. The Wizard Class is a very skilled spellcaster with access to a very wide range of Spells. They are able to learn spells from Scrolls that they find.

For this BG3 Wizard Build we’ll be using the Evocation School subclass of the Wizard. Evocation School Wizards can create pockets of safety within their Evocation spells, meaning that allies will automatically succeed their Saving Throws from the effects of these Spells and take no damage. At high levels their Evocation Spells become supremely powerful, dealing unmatched damage to enemies.

Please visit our Best BG3 Builds overview page for more builds. We also have an optimized BG3 Gale Build, a BG3 Necromancer Build and all other Wizard Subclass Builds. To get an overview of all classes please visit the BG3 Classes overview page.

This build has now been updated following the full release of Baldur’s Gate 3. The BG3 Wizard Build works for both PC and Console (PS5 and XBOX Series X/S).

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Table of Contents for the BG3 Wizard Build:

1. Introduction to the Wizard Class
   1. BG3 Wizard Class Guide
   2. Subclasses Comparison
   3. Why Choose the Evocation Subclass
2. Wizard Build Leveling Progression
   1. Wizard Character Creation (Level 1)
   2. Early-Game Level 2-4
   3. Mid-Game Level 5-8
   4. Late-Game Level 9-12
3. Wizard Equipment
   1. Early-Game Wizard Gear
   2. Best Wizard Gear (Late-Game)
4. Wizard Build Extras and Tips & Tricks
   1. Wizard Tips & Tricks
   2. Illithid Powers

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BG3 Wizard Class Guide

The Wizard is the master of spellcasting in Baldur’s Gate 3, able to use a far wider variety of magic than any other class. Their mastery over the arcane is unparalleled.

Wizards can restore some of their Spell Slots without needing to camp (out of combat). However, a good Wizard player must be careful with positioning, as the class typically has a low Armour Class and can be quickly downed if left to the mercy of a strong melee fighter. You should always try to be on the lookout for good positions in combat, and this is even more important with squishy classes like the Wizard that excel at range.

The Wizard is unique in its ability to learn scrolls outside of the character creation or level up menus – if you have a Scroll with a spell that you don’t know, your wizard can learn the spell from the scroll, for a gold fee. The potentially huge number of spells your Wizard can learn makes them extremely versatile and flexible, however you are limited by how many spells you can prepare at once. Sometimes you may want to change your Prepared spells depending on a certain situation, but this can only be done outside of combat.

Wizards cannot wear armour and lack Proficiency with the vast majority of weapons in the game. While it is possible to change this situation by choosing a certain Race and various Feats, in this guide we’ll be focusing on the more traditional wizard, wearing robes, wielding a staff and relying on his or her magical prowess and intelligence to get by. Therefore the Mage Armour spell will be important from the beginning of the game, to bring your defensive abilities more in line with lightly armoured characters. Make sure to cast this, along with any other long-lasting defensive buffs you might acquire, after every Long Rest.

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Wizard Subclass Comparison

In this section, we’ll provide a quick comparison of the various Wizard subclasses in Baldur’s Gate 3. If you want to get straight into the build, you can scroll past this part of the guide. The subclasses are fairly similar for the most part, with small differences between them that allow them to be particularly powerful when wielding a certain type of magic. You might notice that most Wizard Subclasses are named after a school of magic, such as the Abjuration and Wizard School. Your Wizard only has to pay half of the gold cost when learning a Spell from a Scroll, if the school of magic is the same as your subclass.

Abjuration School Subclass

You twist and harden the Weave into arcane wards to protect yourself and others.

Casting Abjuration spells forms a magical Ward that protects from damage. Each time they cast an Abjuration spell, the Ward becomes stronger. Taking hits will diminish the strength of the Ward.

At Level 6 and above, their Ward can be extended to protect nearby allies too, by spending a Reaction. At Level 10 and above, performing a Short Rest will increase the Ward’s intensity by an amount equal to your Wizard level.

Evocation School Subclass

You are known as an evoker – striding unharmed through the unfettered chaos you call.

Evocation School Wizards can create pockets of safety in their spells, allowing allies to automatically succeed Saving Throws if they get hit by your spells.

At Level 6, your Cantrips will still deal half of their damage if your target succeeds their Saving Throw against it. At Level 10 and above, your Intelligence Modifier is added as a bonus to the damage of your Evocation Spells.

Necromancy School Subclass

You walk through the valley of the shadow of death, and make lots of friends there.

Once per turn, you can regain some HP by killing a living enemy with one of your spells. The HP is equal to twice the Spell Slot Level used, or three times higher if it was a Necromancy Spell. This means that Cantrips will not trigger this healing.

At Level 6, you’ll automatically unlock the Animate Dead spell, and your Animate Dead will raise an additional minion. Your animated dead are also more powerful than usual.

Finally, at Level 10, you’ll get a 50% Resistance to Necrotic Damage and immunity to all debuffs that reduce your maximum HP.

Conjuration School Subclass

Compelled by shape and motion, your favoured arcane style involves summoning creatures and objects, as well as displacing them in space.

Conjuration School Wizards can use the Create Water spell without using a Spell Slot once per Short Rest. From Level 6 and above, they can teleport to position within 9 metres, or swap their position with an ally in the same range. This feat can be repeated whenever you cast a Conjuration Spell with a Spell Slot (i.e. not a Cantrip), or after your next Long Rest.

At Level 10 and above, taking damage can no longer break your Concentration on Conjuration Spells.

Enchantment School Subclass

Your magic influences, beguiles, and bends the will and conviction of those around you.

Once per Long Rest, Enchantment School Wizards can use their Hypnotic Gaze to Charm and Incapacitate an enemy for 2 turns. They can attempt to extend the effect before it ends. If the target takes damage or passes a Wisdom Saving Throw, they’ll resist the effect.

From Level 6, you can spend a Reaction to attempt to Charm a creature who is about to attack you. If you succeed, they must choose a new target or pass their turn without attacking.

From Level 10, your Enchantment Spells that usually target one creature can now target two instead.

Divination School Subclass

You peer through time itself and can sculpt the future, like temporal clay, into a more favourable form.

Divination School Wizards receive two Portent Dice after every Long Rest. These are rolled randomly, and during combat you can use your Reaction to swap any dice rolled within 18 metres of you to one of your Portent Dice, allowing you to manipulate the outcome of various events in your vicinity.

At Level 6 you get another Portent Die, and the ability to restore them after every Short Rest by fulfilling prophecies.

At Level 10 and above, you can use your Third Eye to see in the dark and see invisible targets, once per Long Rest.

Illusion School Subclass

You specialise in unravelling and restitching the fabric of reality to fool the unwary, the gullible, and the monstrous.

Illusion School Wizards can cast Minor Illusion as a Bonus Action, allowing them to deceive nearby enemies. You can also cast this spell while Silenced.

At Level 6, you gain the ability to See Invisibility once per Short Rest, without spending a Spell Slot. From Level 10, you can use a Reaction when you are attacked to forge an illusory copy of yourself, forcing the attack to miss. This can only happen once per Short Rest.

Transmutation School Subclass

Your innate fascination with the structure of things has granted you an incredible power over crude matter and its manipulation.

Whenever Transmutation Wizards attempt to brew an alchemical creation, they can create a second copy of their creation, if they succeed a DC 15 Medicine Skill Check. The trouble with this is that Medicine is a Wisdom Skill, and Wizards are usually built into Intelligence to boost their Spellcasting, so this may not trigger too often.

From Level 6, you can create a Transmuter’s Stone that gives you (or another creature carrying the stone) a special buff. The potential buffs are Proficiency in Constitution Checks, extra Movement Speed, Darkvision or Resistance to a chosen damage type. Only one stone can be active at a time, and after creating one you must cast a Transmutation Spell or complete a Long Rest before you can create another.

At Level 10 you can transform into a Blue Jay, able to fly to otherwise inaccessible locations.

Bladesinging Wizard Subclass

The Bladesinging subclass merges swordplay with wizardry. Expect new spellcasting animations when casting spells with your weapon, a new Bladesong ability to grant you supernatural speed, agility, and focus, plus gives you a bonus to any Constitution saving throw you make.

Not much else is known about the Bladesinging Wizard for now – it is expected to be added to Baldur’s Gate 3 in Patch 8, coming in 2025.

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Why We’re Using the Evocation School Subclass

The Evocation School Wizard is one of the best subclass choices for raw damage output. Their Evocation AOE Spells can be safely cast on allies without damaging or debuffing them, which gives you more flexibility when aiming these spells.

At higher levels, enemies will be unable to completely resist your Cantrips, still taking half of the damage even if they succeed a Saving Throw against them. At Level 10, your Intelligence modifier is added to all Damage Rolls with Evocation Spells, too. By this stage of the game, this will mean at least 5 bonus damage on every Evocation Spell, something which is especially powerful since some of the best damage spells in the game are in the Evocation School.

In short, if you just want your Wizard to be focused on having the highest possible damage output, the Evocation School is a great choice.

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BG3 Wizard Build Character Creation (Level 1)

In this section, we will walk you through the Character Creation for your BG3 Wizard Build, including the best Race, Background, Skills, Abilities, Spells and Cantrips.

 

Race

Below are our top 5 picks for the Wizard Build’s race (and subrace). If you don’t like any of the options on this list, feel free to choose something different. Generally speaking, the difference between the races is fairly small; this choice can be helpful but isn’t a big deal.

1. Wood Elf – We rate the Wood Elf highly on a lot of our builds, primarily because we value their extra base Movement Speed which is useful in many combat encounters. Wood Elves also get immunity to magical Sleep, Advantage against being Charmed, Darkvision, Perception and Stealth Proficiency, and Proficiency with some extra ranged weapons, most notably the Longbow. You can also choose Wood Half-Elf, which has many of the same advantages.
2. Drow – Similar in many ways to the Wood Elf. The Drow gets the same resistances to Charm and magical Sleep, and their darkvision is upgraded to Superior Darkvision. They have Perception Proficiency and get access to the Dancing Lights Cantrip, and the Faerie Fire and Darkness Spells as they level up. Faerie Fire can be especially useful for making multiple enemies more vulnerable to attacks (or keeping track of them in low visibility).
3. Human – Humans are a handy race because they get an extra 25% Carrying Capacity. You also get to choose one extra Skill to be Proficient with, and a bunch of extra weapon and armour Proficiencies (which we won’t be making specific use of in this build, but you could if you wanted to try something more experimental)
4. Githyanki – Githyanki can choose an Ability each after Long Rest, and gain Proficiency in all Skills related to that Ability until the next Long Rest. This can be handy for many ability checks that you’ll encounter throughout your playthrough. The Gith also get access to the Mage Hand Cantrip, and as they level up they’ll also unlock Enhance Leap and Misty Step, increasing their mobility markedly. They also get Proficiency in all types of Swords, as well as Light and Medium Armour, which again we’ll not be using in this guide, but you can give them a try if you want to do something a bit different.
5. Strongheart Halfling – The Halfling is a pretty decent race for a variety of builds thanks to its passive features. When you roll a 1 (Critical Miss/Fail) you’ll automatically get 1 free reroll, so it’s very unlikely that you’ll get critical misses. Halflings also have Advantage on Saving Throws against being Frightened, which is handy because fear can be a particularly troublesome condition in BG3, impairing your ability to move and debuffing your attacks. Strongheart Halflings also have Advantage on Saving Throws against the Poisoned condition, and 50% Resistance to Poison damage.

Class Selection

Here you want to pick the Wizard Class for our BG3 Wizard Build. You get to pick your subclass later at level 2.

Cantrips

The BG3 Wizard build can choose three Cantrips to start the game with. Cantrips are basic spells that do not consume a spell slot when cast, effectively meaning you can cast them as often as you like without limitations.

We recommend choosing the following Cantrips to start the game with:

• Fire Bolt – Hurl a mote of Fire, dealing 1-10 Fire Damage. Use this as your main damage Cantrip.
• Ray of Frost – Call forth a beam of Frost, reducing the target’s movement speed and dealing 1-8 Cold Damage. Use this when you need to slow down an enemy, or when the target is Resistant to Fire.
• Bone Chill – Deals damage and prevents the target from getting any healing until their next turn. An undead target also receives Disadvantage on Attack Rolls. Useful Cantrip to use if you want to counter enemy healing, against undead or against targets who are Vulnerable to Necrotic Damage or Resistant to Fire and Ice Cold damage.

Note that if you chose High Elf as your race, then you can choose Fire Bolt as your High Elf Cantrip and get an extra Cantrip from the Wizard list. In that case, we recommend also choosing Acid Splash, which deals 1-6 Acid Damage in a fairly small AoE.

Spells

The Wizard Class lets you learn 6 Spells in Character Creation, but only prepare 4 of them. This can cause a bit of confusion for new players – it’s important to note that you’ll only be able to select Prepared Spells from your 6 chosen Learned Spells, and only the Prepared Spells can actually be used.

The Wizard can open their Spells menu and freely prepare and unprepare Spells as long as they are not in combat, so you if you don’t like a spell that you prepared when leveling up, then you don’t need to respec, you can just swap it for something else.

With that in mind, we recommend Learning the following spells:

• Mage Armour – This is absolutely vital for the Wizard Class, since you have no Proficiency with normal Armour and have to settle for wearing Clothing. Mage Armour will improve your Armour Class to a total of (13 + Dexterity Modifier), allowing you to be more or less on par with other classes defensively. When cast, the Spell will last until your next Long Rest, so remember to cast it after every Long Rest before entering combat.
• Magic Missile – Shoot three projectiles at a target, each one dealing 2-5 Force Damage. In total this spell deals 6-15 damage, so it’s guaranteed to hit for at least a somewhat decent amount, and if you get a high Damage Roll then its damage is not too shabby for an early game spell. The missiles will always hit their target, so this is a great way to guarantee some damage to an enemy.
• Thunderwave – Arguably the best First Level damage Spell in the game, Thunderwave deals 2-16 damage to all enemies in front of you and also sends them flying backwards. You can use this to knock enemies off ledges or cliffs for extra fall damage, or potentially even 1 shotting them.
• Witch Bolt – Link yourself to an enemy with an arc of Lightning. The Lightning does 1-12 damage to the enemy, and can be activated again for more damage each turn as long as you maintain your Concentration.
• Sleep – Puts one or more Creatures with a combined total of up to 24HP into a magical slumber. There is no Saving Throw against this spell, and most living creatures cannot resist it. Note that the sleeping target will wake up as soon as they take any damage, so this shouldn’t be used as a hard stun. It is good for temporarily putting multiple weak enemies out of action in the early game, though.
• Grease – An easy to overlook Spell, creates an 8 metre wide AOE of Grease, slowing down enemies and potentially knocking them Prone when they try to move through it.

Of these spells, at Level 1 we recommend Preparing the following:

• Mage Armour
• Magic Missile
• Thunderwave
• Witch Bolt

If you get into the game and find that your party needs more ways to hinder enemies, feel free to swap a couple of these out for Grease and Sleep. From now on, we won’t tell you which spells to prepare after each level-up; we will just tell you the best ones to learn. You should ideally be preparing different spells from your learned list, depending on the situation.

Background

Your most important Abilities for the Wizard are going to be Intelligence and Dexterity. Therefore it’s a good idea to choose a Background that gives your character Proficiency with INT and DEX based Skills. Examples of such Backgrounds are:

• Sage – Best Choice! Gives Arcana and History (both INT)
• Urchin – Sleight of Hand and Stealth (both DEX)
• Acolyte – Insight (WIS) and Religion (INT)

It’s not the end of the world if you choose a Background that doesn’t line up with your Abilities, but doing this will give you the highest level of success with Ability Checks. This mostly applies outside of combat, for example in dialogue events or lockpicking.

Abilities

Intelligence is the most important ability for the Wizard build, as it’s the attribute used for Spellcasting. The higher your intelligence score, the more likely your spells will successfully hit your target. The second most important attribute is Dexterity, used mainly to improve your Armour Class. This is particularly important, since the Wizard has no Armour Proficiency and therefore relies on Dexterity to protect themselves. Thirdly, it’s important to have some points in Constitution, which will increase your Maximum Hitpoints and improve your chances of succeeding at Concentration Checks (continuing to channel the effects of an ongoing Concentration Spell after you take damage).

With all of this in mind, we recommend an ability spread something like this:

• 8 Strength
• 16 Dexterity
• 14 Constitution
• 16 Intelligence
• 10 Wisdom
• 10 Charisma

Skill Proficiencies

The Wizard can choose two additional Skills to become Proficient at, in addition to those granted from their Background and any other sources, such as Race. These options are:

• Arcana (INT)
• History (INT)
• Insight (WIS)
• Investigation (INT)
• Medicine (WIS)
• Religion (INT)

We picked the Sage Background, giving us Proficiency with Arcana and History, so we used our two free Skill picks to pick up the remaining two Intelligence Skills, Investigation and Religion. This will give us a +5 bonus in rolls for those Skills from the start of the game for our best Wizard Build BG3.

Arcane Recovery Mechanic

Before continuing, we also need to point out Arcane Recovery, a unique Wizard ability. Arcane Recovery allows you to replenish some of your Spell Slots outside of combat. To begin with, you can only do this once per Long Rest, but this lets you cast more Spells before you need to have a Long Rest than other classes can manage.

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Early-Game Leveling Guide for the BG3 Wizard Build

In this section we will guide you through each level-up for the Evocation Wizard. Feel free to bookmark the page and return when you level up, if you want to gradually create the build with a new character. We will start with the early-game levels, 2-4.

Level 2 – Select your Subclass for the BG3 Wizard Build

At Level 2 you need to choose your Subclass for the Wizard build. The Wizard has a total of 8 different subclasses (Abjuration, Evocation, Necromancy, Conjuration, Enchantment, Divination, Illusion, Transmutation). For this build we’ll be going with the Evocation School, which allows you to learn spells from Evocation Scrolls for half of the gold cost, and prevents your own Evocation Spells from harming your allies. Evocation spells focus elemental energy into powerful attacks and enchantments.

You’ll be able to Learn 2 more Spells from the Wizard Spell List. We already picked up the best first level spells, so we’ll be getting a couple of niche spells that can help you progress in certain areas later on in Act I:

• Protection from Evil and Good – You (or an ally) cannot be Charmed, Frightened or Possessed by Aberrations, Celestials, Elementals, Fey, Fiends and Undead. These creatures must roll with a Disadvantage when attacking you. This spell also protects you from Auntie Ethel’s masks.
• Feather Fall – You and your nearby allies get a Condition that lets you fall weightlessly, becoming immune to falling damage. This is handy for taking some shortcuts and allows you to take a very direct route down into the Underdark without falling to your death.

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Level 3

At Level 3, the Wizard build gains another Arcane Recovery charge, increasing the number of Spell Slots they can replenish without needing a Long Rest.

You also gain two Second Level Spell slots, meaning you can now Learn, Prepare and cast Second Level Spells. Some First Level Spells such as Thunderwave and Magic Missile can also be upcasted to Second Level, making them more powerful, at the cost of a Second Level Spell Slot.

You can Learn two more Spells here – you’re probably going to want to pick up Second Level Spells since they’re now available, so we recommend Learning the following:

• Misty Step – This spell lets you teleport to any visible location. It’s great for getting out of trouble safely if some melee enemies get too close to you (being too close to enemies will incur a Disadvantage on your Spells) and for quickly moving to the High Ground to gain a +2 Advantage on your Attack Rolls.
• Enlarge/Reduce – A handy spell that allows you to Enlarge or Reduce the size of yourself or an ally. Enlarged characters deal more damage in melee and are better at Strength Checks. Smaller characters may be able to access small passageways to access hidden areas.

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Level 4

At Level 4, it’s time to choose a Feat to unlock for your Wizard Build in BG3. Feats are strong passive buffs that can be used to enable a specific type of build, or just to provide a stat boost. In this case we’ll be doing the latter – grab the Ability Improvement Feat, which will give you two extra Ability Points to spend. Put both points into Intellgence, which will take you up to 18 INT. This also has the knock-on effect of increasing your INT Ability Modifier from +3 to +4, which is useful for reasons we’ll explain in just a moment.

At this level, you’ll be able to choose one more Cantrip. You can choose whatever you want here, we already have the important ones unlocked. If you’re struggling with incoming damage from melee enemies, then the Blade Ward Cantrip may be a good choice to mitigate this – it will give you a 50% damage resistance against melee weapons for 2 turns.

You’ll be able to Learn 2 more Spells here too.  We recommend picking up the following Spells:

• Cloud of Daggers – This spell creates a small (4 metre wide) AOE of flying daggers, dealing Slashing Damage to enemies within. This is particularly good in Chokepoints or on top of a cluster of enemies who are unable to move. This is a Concentration Spell, meaning it can remain in place for up to 10 turns as long as your character retains Concentration. But also keep in mind that you can only have one Concentration Spell active at once, so if your Wizard is already channeling Witch Bolt for example, casting Cloud of Daggers will put an end to that spell’s ongoing effects.
• Hold Person – A powerful hard stun that completely paralyses a humanoid target, unless they succeed a Saving Throw. A victim of Hold Person will always take Critical Hits from melee attacks, making them very vulnerable to damage. They will attempt a new Saving Throw at the start of each turn.

Normally when you level up, the Wizard can select 1 additional Prepared Spell. However, the formula for your number of Prepared Spells is actually (Wizard Level + Intelligence Ability Modifier). So because we increased our Intelligence Modifier to +4 via the Ability Improvement Feat, this time we get 2 new Prepared Spells!

With that in mind, you can Prepare any spells you like from the Second Level Spells we previously unlocked.

Note: You have to level up first and then go to the spell selection screen to have the extra slots unlocked. Only after you press level up will you gain the extra slot from your Intelligence Modifier.

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Mid-Game Levelling Guide for the BG3 Wizard Build

We will now go over the mid-game section of the Wizard Build levelling guide. This covers levels 5-8.

Level 5 Wizard Build for BG3 – PS5/PC

At Level 5, your Proficiency Bonus is improved to +3, meaning you’ll now get a +3 bonus to all Skill rolls that your character has Proficiency for.

Your Arcane Recovery strength is increased to 3 too, again improving the amount of Spell Slots you can replenish with this ability.

You also unlock Third Level Spells at this level, too. Some First and Second Level spells can be upcasted to Third Level to make them more powerful.

As usual, you can choose two spells to Learn. We recommend:

• Fireball – This is a very powerful AOE spell, dealing 8-48 damage to everything in a 12-metre wide area, with a range of up to 18 metres. Targets that perform a Saving Throw will still take half of the damage. This spell works even better for an Evocation School Wizard, since it’s an Evocation Spell. Therefore your allies shouldn’t take any damage from the spell even if you cast it on top of them.
• Haste – A really good buff spell that can be cast on yourself or an ally. Improves the target’s Armour Class, gives them Advantage on Dexterity Saves, doubles their Movement Speed and gives them an extra Action each turn. This is a Concentration Spell that lasts for up to 10 turns. When the effect expires or is broken, the target becomes Lethargic for 1 turn, preventing them from moving or taking Actions. As long as you’re able to keep Haste going for two or more turns, the effects of the Lethargic debuff will be more than paid for by the extra movement and Actions gained by the target. Cast this on your best damage dealer and let them wreak havoc!

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Level 6

At Level 6, your Wizard Build gains the following new features:

• Another Third Level Spell Slot, taking your total up to three.
• Learn another two Spells. We recommend:
  • Counterspell – Uses a Reaction to cause a hostile spell to fail. Doing so will spend a Spell Slot, so I recommend making sure you’ve set up your Wizard’s reactions to ask you whether or not you want to use Counterspell, rather than automatically casting it. This is a great way to save your party from dangerous spellcasters.
  • Stinking Cloud – Create a cloud of gas so nauseating it prevents creatures from taking Actions, if they fail a Constitution Saving Throw. This is a good spell for shutting down multiple weaker enemies. Strong enemies will often succeed saving throws against this, as they have high Constitution. But this is great for reducing the threat posed by minions.
• Potent Cantrips – Your Cantrips become harder to evade entirely. When a creature succeeds its Saving Throw against one of your cantrips, it still takes half the cantrip’s damage, but suffers no additional effects.

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Level 7

At Level 7 you unlock the following:

• Arcane Recovery Slots increased to 4.
• Access to Fourth Level Spells.
• One Fourth Level Spell Slot.
• Learn two more Spells. We recommend choosing:
  • Ice Storm – Impel a storm of hail and ice to crash from the sky, covering the ground and striking all objects and creatures within range, 2-16 Bludgeoning and 4-24 Cold damage. Targets who save still take half damage.
  • Blight – Deals 8-64 Necrotic Damage to a single target. Plants are more vulnerable, rolling a Disadvantage on their Saving Throw. Undead and Constructs are immune to Necrotic Damage.

If you feel your party needs more AOE damage, then Prepare the Ice Storm Spell. This also creates ice surfaces, making it more difficult for characters in the area to move around, and possibly causing them to slip over. If you’d prefer single target damage, then Blight can deal really high amounts of damage when you get a good roll (even moreso with a Crit).

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Level 8

At Level 8 you can choose another Feat. We recommend choosing Ability Improvement again, and increasing your Intellgence to 20.

You can Learn two more Spells, as usual. Good options are:

• Dimension Door – Teleport yourself and one adjacent ally to a location within sight. This is great for getting a couple of characters into an advantageous position or to escape from a dangerous one.
• Confusion – An AoE Spell that causes those within to become confused, randomly attacking, wandering around or passing their turn. They can resist the effects with a Wisdom Saving Throw.

Since you increased your Intelligence to 20, this time around you’ll get two new slots for Prepared Spells, instead of the usual one.

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Late-Game Levelling Guide for the BG3 Wizard Build

We’ll now explain the levelling-up process for the latter parts of the game, at levels 9-12.

Level 9

At Level 9 of your Wizard Build in BG3 gains access to even more powerful magic. You’ll unlock the following features here:

• Arcane Recovery Slots increased to 5.
• Another Fourth Level Spell Slot, giving you three in total.
• One Fifth Level Spell Slot, and the ability to Learn and Prepare Fifth Level Spells.
• Learn two more Spells. We recommend:
  • Hold Monster – Paralyse a creature. It can’t move, act or react. Attacks from within 3 metres are always Critical Hits. Lasts for up to 10 turns, as long as you maintain Concentration. This is an upgraded version of Hold Person that can be used against any target. You can unprepare Hold Person and replace it with this spell.
  • Cloudkill – Craft a large cloud that inflicts 5-40 Poison damage per turn. You can reposition the cloud every turn. The cloud Heavily Obscures everything within it. Requires Concentration.

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Level 10

At Level 10, you unlock the following:

• Choose one more Cantrip. We already picked all the best options, so you can choose whatever you like here.
• Unlock another Fifth Level Spell Slot, giving you two in total.
• Empowered Evocation – Your grasp of Evocation magic has tightened, and you can add your Intelligence Modifier to damage rolls with any Evocation spells.
• Learn two more Spells. We recommend:
  • Cone of Cold – Make a flurry of frost, crisp air, and condensed snow crystals erupt from your hands. Deals 8-64 Cold Damage to targets within 9 metres.
  • Conjure Elemental – Choose a type of elemental to summon as a minion to help you in combat. If you summon them before entering combat, you can avoid spending an Action on it during combat.

Empowered Evocation is an extremely strong passive effect for the Evocation Wizard. Your Intelligence modifier is +5 now that you’ve increased your Intelligence to 20. This basically means that every Evocation Damage Dice is guaranteed to roll at least a 6, and the maximum possible roll is also increased. Your Evocation spells will now hit extremely hard.

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Level 11

At Level 11 you’ll gain access to the most powerful magic available in Baldur’s Gate 3, making your Wizard Build even stronger.

At this point, you’ll get:

• Another Arcane Recovery Charge, bringing your total number to 6.
• One Sixth Level Spell Slot, and the ability to learn Spells of this tier.
• Learn two more Spells. We recommend choosing:
  • Chain Lightning – Strike an enemy with lightning. Three more bolts will leap from the target, electrifying as many as three other enemies within range. Deals 8-80 Lightning Damage. Damage halved if the target Saves.
  • Sunbeam – A beam of brilliant light sears and Blinds all creatures in its path, dealing 6-48 Radiant Damage. Until the spell ends, you can recast Sunbeam without expending a spell slot. Requires Concentration.

Chain Lightning is another Evocation Spell, so you’ll get a +5 bonus on your Attack Rolls from Empowered Evocation. This basically means that the spell is guaranteed to deal at least 60 Damage per enemy unless they Save.

Sunbeam is also an Evocation Spell, so you’ll get the same buffs here. It’s especially useful in tight areas and chokepoints, and the damage will be doubled against Undead and Unholy enemies, allowing you to easily deal with enemies of these types.

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Level 12 – Max Level Wizard Build for Baldur’s Gate 3

If you’ve made it to this point, then you’ve now reached the maximum level with your Wizard Build in Baldur’s Gate 3. Congratulations!

At Level 12, your Wizard unlocks the following:

• Choose another Feat. We recommend choosing War Caster, which grants Advantage on Saving Throws to maintain Concentration on a spell. By this point you have a lot of powerful Concentration spells, and this feat will make combat more forgiving. You can also use a reaction to cast Shocking Grasp at a target moving out of melee range (1-8 Lightning Damage).
• Learn two more Spells. We recommend:
  • Wall of Ice – Raise a wall of solid ice that deals 10-60 Cold Damage to anyone standing in its way. When the ice is broken, it leaves behind a cloud of frigid air that deals 10-60 Cold damage per turn to creatures within. Requires Concentration to maintain the wall.
  • Otiluke’s Freezing Sphere – Create a ball of churning ice that can be lauched instantly to generete a frosty explosion or store for later use.

On a final note, if you’re really struggling to keep your party alive in the late game, you can instead replace one of these spells with Globe of Invulnerability. This creates a 6 metre area that makes all creatures and objects within immune to damage for three turns. But beware that enemies inside the sphere can also gain the buff.

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BG3 Wizard Build Equipment

In this section, we have powerful equipment recommendations for the Evocation Wizard. We’ve included both an early-game and a late-game variant of the build, so you don’t need to wait until Act III to make use of it. Early-Game equipment is obtainable in Act I and the earlier parts of Act II, while Late-Game equipment is found in Act III and the latter parts of Act II. Sometimes early-game equipment may make it into the late-game section, as a few items obtained early in BG3 are powerful enough to compete with items not found until much later in the game.

Early-Game Equipment

The table below shows the recommended early-game setup for the Evocation Wizard. Check below the table for more information about each item, including where to obtain it. Don’t worry if you don’t have all of the items, and don’t be afraid to try new things not mentioned here, either. This is only a guideline and the build can still work fine if some equipment is different for you.

The Shadespell Circlet

The Shadespell Circlet adds +1 to your Spell Save DC rating whenever your character is standing in a shadowy area. This makes it harder for enemies to resist all of your Spells and Cantrips that impose a Saving Throw (i.e. not Attack Rolls). For example, an enemy trying to roll a save against your Hold Person spell will now need to roll 1 higher to be successful.

The Shadespell Circlet can be purchased from Omeluum in the Underdark Myconid Colony. You must first complete his quest to help him investigate the parasite.

Cloak of Protection

One of the first cloaks available in BG3 and also one of the most useful, the Cloak of Protection gives you a +1 buff to your Armour Class and Saving Throws, making for a solid defensive item. It is sold by Quartermaster Talli in Last Light Inn, Act II.

The Protecty Sparkswall

The Protecty Sparkswall improves your Spell Save Difficulty Class by 1, making all of your spells that impose Saving Throws a little bit harder for enemies to resist. You’ll also gain a +1 bonus to your own Armour Class and Saving Throws as long as you have at least one Lightning Charge, something that you’ll be able to get with the early-game melee weapon of this build. Looted from a gilded chest at the far end of the trapped bridge in Grymforge, Act I.

Bracers of Defence

The Bracers of Defence boost your Armour Class by+2 as long as you are not wearing armour or a shield. This condition applies to us all the time, making this an excellent defensive item. It can be looted from a gilded chest in the secret area of the Apothecary’s Cellar, beneath the Blighted Village in Act I.

Boots of Genial Striding

The Boots of Genial Striding prevent you from being slowed down by Difficult Terrain, providing you with a decent boost to your mobility. Note that other affects associated with terrain types, such as the chance to slip on ice or taking damage from spikes, will still apply even with the boots equipped. These boots are sold by Blurg in the Myconid Colony in the Underdark, Act I.

Pearl of Power Amulet

The Pearl of Power Amulet is a decent early-game item for any spellcaster in BG3. Once per Long Rest, it allows you to restore a Spell Slot of third level or lower. This lets you cast an extra spell before you need to take a Long Rest to replenish your Spell Slots. It is sold by Omeluum in the Myconid Colony, however you must complete his quest to investigate the parasite before you can trade with him.

Crusher’s Ring

Crusher’s Ring gives you 3 metres of extra Movement Speed per turn, which is great for improving your mobility and staying one step ahead of melee enemies who might be chasing you. This is especially important if you chose a race with low mobility, such as a dwarf, halfling or gnome. It is dropped by Crusher in the Goblin Camp, Act I.

Ring of Protection

The Ring of Protection has the same effect as the Cloak of Protection, making it another decent defensive item, important for a class like the Wizard which cannot wear armour. It is granted to you as a reward by Mol in the Druid Grove for completing the quest to steal the sacred idol.

The Spellsparkler

The Spellsparkler is an excellent early-game weapon for any spellcaster. Whenever you deal damage with a Spell or Cantrip, you gain 2 Lightning Charges, a special type of buff only granted by some equipment.

Each Lightning Charge gives you a +1 bonus to Attack Rolls and causes your attacks to do 1 bonus Lightning Damage. When you reach 5 charges, they are consumed to deal 1d8 bonus Lightning Damage on your next attack. This gives you a considerable bonus when attacking enemies, and with this staff all you need to do is keep casting Spells and Cantrips to benefit from this mechanic.

To get the Spellsparkler, you need to rescue Counsellor Florrick from the fire in Waukeen’s Rest during the Rescue the Grand Duke quest in Act I. Meet with the Counsellor outside the burning building and you’ll get a choice of rewards, one of which is the Spellsparkler.

Late-Game Equipment

The table below shows the recommended late/end-game setup for the Evocation Wizard. In the late-game we will be putting a little more emphasis on improving the Spell Save Difficulty Class stat, making it harder for enemies to succeed their Saving Throws against our spells.

Hood of the Weave

The Hood of the Weave improves your Spell Save DC by +2, meaning enemies will have to roll 2 more points in any given Saving Throw to succeed it. This makes many of your spell effects harder to resist. It is sold by Mystic Carrion in Philgrave’s Mansion, Act III.

Cloak of the Weave

The Cloak of the Weave is useful mainly because it adds another +1 bonus to your Spell Save DC and Spell Attack Rolls, making your spells harder to resist. This cloak also lets you absorb elemental damage once per Short Rest, reducing the damage of the incoming attack by 50% and then adding 1d6 of the same element to your next attack. It is sold by Helsik at the Devil’s Fee, once her special stock is unlocked.

Robe of the Weave

The Robe of the Weave is a good late-game clothing item for the Wizard. It Improves your Spell Save DC by +1 (along with your Spell Attack Rolls), gives you a +2 bonus to your Armour Class, and also heals you by 1d6 HP when you succeed a Saving Throw against a Spell. This is nice distribution of defensive and offensive bonuses that make this a well-rounded item.

You can find it inside a Globe of Invulnerability in Ramazith’s Tower, Act III. To access it, you need to use a See Invisibility effect (Spell, Scroll or Elixir) to find the hidden lever and pull it, which will deactivate the Globe. You can then retrieve the Robe.

Helldusk Gloves

The Helldusk Gloves give a +1 bonus to your Strength Saving Throws and infuse your weapon attacks with 1d6 bonus Fire Damage. More importantly, they give a +1 bonus to spell Attack Rolls and Spell Save DC, making all of your spells more likely to have the desired effect against enemy targets.

The gloves are dropped by Haarlep in the House of Hope.

Helldusk Boots

The Helldusk Boots prevent you from being forcefully moved by an enemy’s spells or actions, and give you immunity to the effects of Difficult Terrain. You can also use a Reaction to succeed a Saving Throw that you would have failed, making these extremely good defensive boots. As another added bonus, you get access to the Hellcrawler action, which allows you to teleport and deals fire damage to anyone at the destination.

These boots can be looted from a locked gilded chest on the top floor of Wyrm’s Rock Fortress. Take them before Gortash’s coronation to avoid making NPCs in the area hostile.

Spellcrux Amulet

The Spellcrux Amulet is pretty much a direct upgrade from the Pearl of Power Amulet that we were using in the early-game section. It allows you to replenish one spell slot of any level, once per Long Rest. Unlike the Pearl of Power amulet, you can use the effect in combat, and doing so only costs a Bonus Action, making the amulet easier to use.

It is looted from the Warden in Moonrise Towers Prison, Act II.

Ring of Feywild Sparks

The Ring of Feywild Sparks is a late-game ring – at first glance it looks like it’s much more suited for the Wild Magic Sorcerer rather than the Wizard, and it is true that the ring is designed for that subclass. However, this ring also gives another +1 bonus to your Spell Save DC, making it harder for enemies to succeed Saving Throws against your spells. The Ring of Feywild Sparks is therefore still a good pick, even for a Wizard.

This ring is carried by Auntie Ethel in The Blushing Mermaid – Basement.

Markoheshkir

A Legendary quarterstaff, Markoheshkir is one of the strongest weapons in the game for “full spellcaster” classes like the Wizard. It gives several bonuses:

• +1 bonus to Spell Save DC and Spell Attack Rolls
• Arcane Battery – Once per Long Rest, remove the Spell Slot cost of your next spell.
• Kereska’s Favour – Gain a special elemental buff of your choice until your next Long Rest, unlocking a special buff and new abilities. This is especially good because it doesn’t require Concentration. You can choose from the following variants:
  • Sizzling Cataclysm – Gain 50% Resistance to Acid Damage. Can cast Melf’s Acid Arrow and Hunger of Hadar once per Short Rest. Acid Spells deal extra Acid Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus. When you deal Spell damage, you inflict 1 turn of Noxious Fumes, causing nearby creatures to take 1d4 Acid Damage per turn.
  • Deadlier than Arsenic – Gain 50% Resistance to Poison Damage. Can cast Cloudkill and Ray of Sickness once per Short Rest. Poison Spells deal extra Poison Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus. When you deal Spell damage, you inflict 1 turn of Poisoned on the target, causing Disadvantage on Attack Rolls and Ability Checks.
  • Bone-Shaking Thunder – Gain 50% Resistance to Thunder Damage. Can cast Shatter and Destructive Wave once per Short Rest. Thunder Spells deal extra Thunder Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus. When you deal Spell damage, you inflict 1 turn of Reverberation on the target, causing a -1 penalty to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution Saving Throws.
  • Bolts of Doom – Gain 50% Resistance to Lightning Damage. Can cast Chain Lightning and Lightning Bolt once per Short Rest. Lightning Spells deal extra Lightning Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus. When you deal Spell damage, you gain 1 Lightning Charge.
  • Frost of Dark Winter – Gain 50% Resistance to Cold Damage. Can cast Cone of Cold and Ice Storm once per Short Rest. Cold Spells deal extra Cold Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus. When you deal Spell damage, you inflict 1 turn of Encrusted with Frost, causing Disadvantage on Dexterity Saving Throws and possibly Freezing the target if they reach 7 stacks.
  • Flame of Wrath – Gain 50% Resistance to Fire Damage. Can cast Fireball and Wall of Fire once per Short Rest. Fire Spells deal extra Fire Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus. When you deal Spell damage, you gain 1 turn of Heat, causing you to take 1d4 Fire Damage per turn but allowing you to use Heat Convergence to convert your Heat stacks to bonus Fire damage on your next attack.

Feel free to experiment with the different versions of Kereska’s Favour to find your favorites.

The staff is found inside a Globe of Invulnerability in Ramazith’s Tower in Act III. Use a See Invisibility Spell, Scroll or Elixir to find the lever which disables the globe.

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Wizard Build Tips & Tricks for Baldur’s Gate 3

Try to stay mindful of positioning when playing your Wizard Build in combat. Remember that having melee enemies in your face will give you a Disadvantage on your Attacks, and having the High Ground will give you an Advantage. It will get a little easier to manage this when you unlock the Misty Step Spell. Make use of Crowd Control Spells like Thunderwave to keep enemies from reaching you.

Don’t be afraid to sometimes use an AOE spell like Shatter or Fireball on a single target, if you just need some extra damage.

If you have no Spell Slots left or don’t want to expend any at the moment, then your best bet is usually to cast a Cantrip like Fire Bolt on the enemy, as these have unlimited uses. Swinging your melee weapon is only advised if a melee enemy has got into close range (thus giving all your spells Disadvantage) and you have no way of retreating safely without provoking an Opportunist Attack.

Let us also talk about the Haste spell. It is recommended to use Haste once you have access to it with your Wizard Build in Baldur’s Gate 3. You can buff yourself or another group member. The Haste spell will allow them to do more actions per turn. There are also items that give Haste. For example the Darkfire Shortbow that you can buy from Dammon at the start of Act 2 that our BG3 Monk Build uses also gives us access to Haste.

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Wizard Build Illithid Powers (optional)

Illithid Powers are unlocked later in BG3 when you learn more about Mind Flayers and Tadpoles. By eating Jars of Mind Flayer Parasites you gain one point. This is another optional skill tree that you can get access to if you want. Here are some of the best Illithid Powers for the BG3 Wizard Build with the Evocation School subclass:

• Concentrated Blast: Allows you to deal extra damage to a target when you are Concentrating on a spell, potentially also healing if the target is Concentrating too. Ideally you will spend a lot of time Concentrating on either Hex or an AoE like Hunger of Hadar, so you should be able to get good use from this.
• Cull the Weak: When you reduce a creature’s hit points below a certain threshold, this power instantly kills it and deals 1-4 psychic damage to nearby enemies. This is particularly effective when engaging groups of weaker foes, enabling you to thin their numbers rapidly.
• Fly: This can be used to reach hard to get to places or change positions in combat. Use this to keep your Warlock safe from enemy attacks, so your Concentration won’t get disrupted as easily.
• Black Hole: This power creates an area-based effect that pulls in and slows targets. It’s particularly useful for crowd control, allowing you to cluster enemies together for area-of-effect attacks or to isolate them from vulnerable allies. Try getting the Haste buff from a Potion of Speed or the Haste spell (lets you perform 2 Actions on one turn), then casting Black Hole and then Hunger of Hadar to cause a world of pain for a group of enemies.
• Psionic Backlash: This is a top tier reaction from the Illithid Powers skill tree in BG3. This allows you to deal psychic damage when a nearby enemy casts a spell. This is especially useful if the target is casting a Concentration Spell. The damage from Psionic Backlash can immediately break their Concentration, ending the spell’s effects.

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More Baldur’s Gate 3 Builds

• Druid Build – Circle of the Moon
• Bard Build – College of Lore
• Ranger Build – Hunter
• Monk Build – Way of Shadow
• Monk Build – Way of the Four Elements
• Monk Build – Way of the Open Hand
• Necromancer Build – Necromancy
• Fighter Build – Battle Master
• Barbarian Build – Berserker
• Warlock Build – Great Old One
• Cleric Build – Light Domain
• Rogue Build – Thief
• Sorcerer Build – Wild Magic
• Paladin – Oath of Ancients
• More Baldur’s Gate Guides & Builds

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