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Like any respectable Dungeons and Dragons game, Baldur’s Gate 3 is stuffed with cantrips. While more powerful spells like Fireball and Wish may get all the glory, cantrips can still be extremely useful. As the weakest spells in the game, they are available the earliest, even without multi-classing. Unlike other spells, using them does not expend a valuable spell slot, meaning they can be cast over and over again if necessary. The following cantrips rank amongst the best in Baldur’s Gate 3, starting with weaker or more situational ones and ending with the greatest the game has to offer.
10. True Strike
Advantage is one of the most flexible and powerful systems in Baldur’s Gate 3, allowing players to roll two dice and pick the best result instead of relying on the outcome of a single die roll. A Divination Cantrip, True Strike grants a character Advantage on their next Attack Roll. With an 18m range, True Strike can be used to support your frontline DPS characters by making their next blow much more likely to land. Using it every turn is a waste of one’s action economy, but used sparingly it’s a powerful asset. That’s great for new players and veterans alike.
9. Vicious Mockery
Vicious Mockery is an Enchantment Cantrip that forces a creature to succeed at a WIS Save or take Disadvantage on its next attack. It’s the opposite of True Strike, decreasing the enemy’s odds of success rather than improving one’s own. Dishing out added damage is generally preferable to buffing one’s defenses, but it’s not always easy to give enemies Disadvantage, making Vicious Mockery special. When a vulnerable character is hanging on by a thread and needs to survive one more turn, this cantrip can save the day.
8. Ray of Frost
Ray of Frost strikes a single target within 18m, reducing its movement speed by 3m. How far a creature travels in a turn dictates a lot of things, including whether it can strike its enemies and be struck back. Slowing down a beefy melee combatant before it reaches your characters is great. So is preventing a squirrely spellcaster or healer from running away before your own characters can get to it. Spacing, Higher Ground, and other area-based calculations are important to combat in Baldur’s Gate. Spells like Ray of Frost, which let you control these calculations, are always good.
7. Bone Chill
Bone Chill is a Necromancy Cantrip that prevents the target from healing until your next turn. If cast on an undead target, the target also receives Disadvantage on Attack Rolls. The Disadvantage aspect just makes this power a more situational version of Viscious Mockery, but that’s not why Bone Chill is great. There are a number of foes in the game, including some deadly bosses, that will heal themselves if given the opportunity. Watching a foe bring themselves back from the brink of death is disheartening. Bone Chill makes sure they die.
6. Acid Splash
A Conjuration Cantrip, Acid Splash throws a bubble of acid, damaging any creature that fails its DEX Save. With an 18m range and AoE effect, Acid Splash is a cheap way to punish enemies for entering certain spaces. It doesn’t have the damage potential to let it compete with heftier spells, but it’s not supposed to. Acid Splash is all about cheap area control. A side benefit is that some creatures with resistance to other damage types can still be harmed by acid. The studio behind Baldur’s Gate 3 loves tactical fights, so it’s no surprise Acid Splash has a home here.
5. Mage Hand
Mage Hand is a Conjuration Cantrip that creates a ghostly hand that can interact with objects on the player’s behalf. With an 18m range and 10 turns, the Mage Hand can stick around for a good portion of the battle if necessary. Mage Hand’s main usefulness is its versatility. Did a goblin disarm your best sword-wielder? Let Mage Hand fetch their weapon. Are enemy reinforcements about to come through the door of the crypt? Let Mage Hand shut it in their face. A funny, versatile, and genuinely useful cantrip, Mage Hand shouldn’t be forgotten.
4. Guidance
A Divination Cantrip, Guidance grants the target a +1d4 bonus to Ability Checks. It requires Concentration, which isn’t ideal since a single hit to the spellcaster can waste the ability. That said, there aren’t a lot of spells that buff Ability Checks, unlike other kinds of rolls. Anyone familiar with Baldur’s Gate 3 or Dungeons and Dragons knows the pain of missing a check by a point or two. Guidance is a small but meaningful buff that helps prevent those painful situations, especially if you’re trying to start off on the right foot.
3. Resistance
Resistance is an Abjuration Cantrip that grants a target a +1d4 bonus to Saving Throws. Saving Throws act as last-ditch efforts to avoid certain negative effects, including getting poisoned or stepping on traps. A successful Saving Throw can halve the damage from some powerful spells like Fireball, which can mean the difference between singing a character and killing them outright. On the list of defensive cantrips, Resistance has to rank amongst the best because of this.
2. Blade Ward
An Abjuration Cantrip, Blade Ward cuts incoming Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing damage by half. Obviously, this doesn’t help at all if the character is getting shocked by electricity or melted by acid. When a character is facing large amounts of physical damage, however, Blade Ward can be extremely strong. A good tank with Blade Ward can stand in the middle of an enemy encampment, shrugging off crossbow bolts and hammer blows, while the rest of the party tears enemies apart. There’s just no replacing that kind of staying power in a fight. There’s a reason many players grab this cantrip first.
1. Eldritch Blast
Eldritch Blast is an Evocation Cantrip that deals 1-10 damage to a single enemy within 18m. The bread and butter of Warlocks, Eldritch Blast doesn’t sound incredible at first. With time and development, however, it can become one of the best cantrips in Baldur’s Gate 3. The spell adds a second beam at Level 5 and a third at Level 11, greatly improving its damage-dealing potential. More importantly, at Level 2, Warlocks can choose the Agonizing Blast and Repelling Blast Eldritch Invocations. The first adds the Warlock’s Charisma modifier to Eldritch Blast’s damage. The second pushes its target up to 4.5m away. Fry your enemies or blast them off a cliff. You can’t go wrong.
Baldur’s Gate 3 is available now for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.
