Spell Casting in Baldur’s Gate 3 can become difficult due to the quintessential way spellcasting works. You’ll be limited to the amount of charges you have per level of spell to make them work. This is why you may want to have several special bonus spells in your arsenal via items and permanent abilities. In doing so you’re not only making yourself a better spell caster but also more versatile to the party. There is an infinite amount of magical potential in the game so hopefully, some of these bonuses will help you along your way!
For this list, we have narrowed it to the best permanent bonuses you can acquire that affect spellcasting. This may be by adding bonuses to spell-casting skills, adding spells, or just making you a better caster. Some will be summons that can also protect the user from being bogged down by other enemies. Remember that your ability to keep magic rolling on the battlefield is your ticket to bring the most dependable spellcaster available. So keep on casting, and hopefully take some of these permanent bonuses with you!
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Auntie Ethel’s Hair
In terms of spellcasting bonuses, one of the first ones you should try to get your hands on is Auntie Ethel’s hair. Ignoring her deal for the hag-touched eye, beating her presents a far more favorable one. In this case, you can take her hair to gain a bonus in whatever stat your spellcasting is focused on. For instance, for a wizard, you may choose intelligence whereas for a warlock you may choose charisma.
No matter what however this can be one of the better options early on to get yourself ahead of the game. When it comes to playing spell casters, making deals with whatever you can easily ensures you can succeed later on. To this end, you can find Auntie Ethel’s hair as a reward for beating her in a fight down to a low HP. She will give you this bonus as a result of this in exchange for her life. Keeping this in mind, you’ll have to chase her down to the deepest bowels of her lair to their chamber. To do so you’ll need to maintain a level of spell resistance, and ruthlessness. You’ll need to defeat several combatants that
Volo’s Ersatz Eye
Spellcasters have the limitations of needing to see their targets for them to deal damage. Because of this an item like the Ersatz Eye is great for when the enemies are invisible. Being granted to the player if they allow Volo to perform surgery on them, it can be quite effective for any spellcasting. The ability to see innately invisible things means it’s a lot harder to get the drop on the player. Additionally, this can work to make finding hidden traps, levers, and treasures more accessible to those who have invested in them. Of course, to get this item you’ll need to first save Volo from the goblin camp after you reach Emerald Grove.
Auntie Ethel’s Hair offers a stat bonus of your choice.
The eye is a magical artifact that can make you more detectable to those with the proper spell but otherwise, there is no drawback. Volo’s Ersatz Eye can be taken even if you don’t fully save him, however surgery will prove difficult. Instead, make sure to focus on getting the poor man out of danger before there’s a chance he gets caught in the crossfire. You won’t get this bonus automatically either as it takes time for him to research mind flayers after you rescue him. Nonetheless, after he’s done he will part ways from you and the eye will allow you to see magic. Fitting as the only one you won’t find is the bard who disappeared.
Survival Instinct
When you’re trying to be a healer who has to worry about the team, anything will help. Luckily Survival instinct is a potent permanent spell-casting bonus that can come from helping Omenluum. In truth this ability will make you more in line with your mindflayer fate, however, you have better control over things. Granting you the ability to not only heal an ally who is about to fall unconscious but also do so without expending a spell slot. Because of the nature of this bonus, you will become more attuned to your tadpole, making escape from it more difficult.
To get the survival Instinct bonus you’ll need to do the quest for Omeluum located in the dark. This can be found within the mushroom village along with a vendor or two. This bonus can only be used once per long rest however heals the person instead of letting them drop to zero points. All you need to do is let the friendly mind flayer investigate the tadpole, and see what secrets it has to offer. For spell casters, this can mean the difference between being the last person alive and having another meat shield at the end of a fight.
Survival Instinct is one of the better ilithid powers you can unlock.
Necromancy of Thay
Another item of extreme power to spell casters is none other than the Book of Thay. Being capable of endowing the user with powerful necromantic energy, you can have multiple bonuses just from having this. However, the first few pages will grant the player the ability to speak to the dead once per day. Additionally, you can obtain an additional point of wisdom in your character through the forbidden knowledge bonus. More than anything this is only a small taste of the power this book has as more of its dark abilities lie further on in the book. However, acquiring the book itself and activating it are two different activities altogether.
To activate the Book of Thay from its hold under the apothecary’s shop in the blighted village is the gem. This gem is a powerful device located down the well and protected by the spider matriarch. Once activated you’ll have to survive a series of wisdom checks to even maintain the ability to read this book. Finally, once you’ve unlocked these powers you’ll need to acquire another book to finish your new Necronomicon. Overall this is potent for any spell caster but leaves more to be offered further on this list.
Find Familiar Cheeky Quasit
Another potent bonus that spellcasters can take advantage of is the find familiar: Quasit spell. This cheeky creature scroll can be found below the apothecary’s shop as well as next to some coffins and allows you to either copy the spell as a wizard or cast it. Of course, by speaking to the Quasit once it’s been summoned you can make a conditional pact with it to maintain some variance of control over it. While being a permanent summon, this can add another player to the party who can be especially mischievous and deal extra attack damage. Keeping this spell around also makes one of the defining traits of the warlock available far sooner than usually allowed.
Arabella’s Shadow Entanglement is one of several stun abilities you can unlock.
While this spell can just be copied by wizards, any other attempts to learn the spellcasting will cost components. This can be a special pain in the butt when you’re trying to get extra help on the battlefield. However, any good summoner will relish having the additional companion added to their fighting roster. Just keep in mind that while Quasits may be one of the better permanent creatures you can create, they are not the better imp that can fly and poison enemies. Therefore it doesn’t completely negate the need for a good warlock like Wyll.
Arabella’s Shadow Entangle
Being able to stun an opponent, or at the very least keep them in place is a great ability to have when you are a spellcaster. Therefore Arabella’s Shadow Entangle can easily prove to be one of the better methods of handling undead and shadows. Although it may be relatively limited in what it’s used again, it can be perfect in most necromancer-related scenarios. As a result, you can keep yourself free of aggressive undead forces like zombies and golems. Most importantly this ability comes to be extremely useful when dealing with the undead in the cursed forest where you find her.
To get this potent spellcasting ability you’ll need to help her find out what happened to her parents. If you do this, you can set her mind to ease and she’ll give you this impressive ability. Otherwise, she will give you a type of ring that allows you to summon a shadow blade. For spell casters, the ability to simply entangle an aggressive opponent almost proves to be more valuable though. Because of this, make sure to keep it available in your actions in case those pesky flesh golems come barreling in your direction.
This puzzle allows you access to a brain which can be given to the console for the barrier power. The other option does not quite work as of this stage of the game.
Githzerai Mind Barrier
Another really important spellcasting ability to discover when you’re running a spell caster build is the Githzerai Mind Barrier. This unique ability can give you an advantage on all intelligence saves so long as you don’t die. Unlike most permanent abilities, this can be lost if you are resurrected via a scroll or withers. Luckily in the chance you are careful and not running into the front line this can protect you throughout the rest of the game. In short, all you need to do is insert the waking mind into the interface and you can get yourself a shiny new upgrade. Keep in mind that the other option will be bugged out so you have to depend on what you have access to, the mind barrier.
To get this ability you’ll have to do the puzzle in the mind flayer colony. This has the satisfying effect of rewarding you with the ability. In the long run, this ability can help you during the end game when you’re trying to resist certain enemy types. On the far end of the spectrum though, and at the very least the ability will make sure all psychic attacks have a disadvantage against you. Just make sure that you don’t die and you’ll be fine.
Partial Ceremorphosis
If you want to embrace your mindflayer destiny then you might be interested in the partial Ceremorphosis ability. This can be achieved by simply consuming the astral touched tadpole. Once done, this will grant you access to tier three ilithid powers along with all level one and two powers. This can be incredibly potent as a spell caster since it opens up a whole new set of abilities for you to make use of. I’m that regard the changes will make you different cosmetically, making you appear as one of the creatures. Ultimately though some people will do anything for the simple ability to fly for a few turns a day. Partial Ceremorphosis is also a great way to make use of your other abilities as they stack on the intelligence saves.
The Emperor offering the astral touched tadpole.
To get your hands on the astral-touched tadpole you’ll have to work with the emperor himself. As an obscure part of the plot until later in the story, he serves to stand against your main antagonist. For this reason, he has much to gain by assisting you in the later acts of doing this. That being said, the help he is offering will leave you different and never quite the same as you once were. He offers a curse disguised as a blessing for any mortal let alone a spell caster. That being said, his power is a potent one if you’re willing to accept his change.
Monk’s Hideous Laughter
In terms of gaining an extra spell, Tasha’s hideous laughter can be one of the better ones. Effectively incapacitating the enemy but leaving them in an uncontrollable laughter. While this ability can be openly negated by a will save, having it as a bonus can make all of the difference. Monk’s hideous laughter is an ability that you’ll get for breaking the curse of the monk under the one-hand temple. To this end, you have to make quite the journey with the chance to lose your will and constitution along the way. Once this is completed you will gain the hideous laughter spell as a permanent extra spell slot.
This is incredibly potent and allows the spell to keep any aggressor at bay for a limited time. To break the curse of the monk you’ll need to get the serpent amulet from grymforge. After this, you’ll need to take it to the man under the one-hand temple which will break the curse. Along the way, you will deal with constant saves as you wear it. If you do not wear the amulet on your journey you can’t break the spell itself. Once you have the amulet given to the monk it loses all of its previous properties. However as a result you get a powerful spell for your arsenal.
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Danse Macabre
The best ability by far you can get for any spellcaster, however, is that of Danse Macabre. As a permanent bonus for completing the Book of Thay, you will be able to summon four undead minions for you to control. These minions can attack, defend, and otherwise crowd opponents out of your general direction. For both the spell faster and the summoner these abilities are going to stack with everything else the book offers you. That means very easily you can make use of the dead as just another tool in the means of victory. Just remember that traveling around with the dead is often not seen as socially acceptable everywhere you go.
Danse Macabre can be acquired by first reading through the book of Thay up until it closes once more. After this happens, you can easily finish it by reading the book known as The Tharchiate Codex. By doing this, you can now obtain a higher knowledge of the book of Thay, giving you limitless potential as a spell caster. Unfortunately, this will require a true test of your will and intelligence that if failed can harm your character. However, complete the reading and you could become an extremely potent necromancer.
