Baldur’s Gate 3 Wizard and Subclasses (Overview Guide)

Everything You Should Know About the Baldur’s Gate 3 Wizard and its Subclasses

With endless arcane knowledge and a diverse spellbook to match, the Wizard is one of the most versatile and adaptive classes in Baldur’s Gate 3.

Strap up your robes, in this guide we will cover both the pros and cons of the Wizard compared to the other classes, as well as the individual playstyles of each school of magic.

So whether you’re considering playing a Wizard or having Gale, the default Wizard companion in your party, stick around!

Find out where the Wizard ranks in our Baldur’s Gate 3 class tier list.

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Largest spellbook of any other class (can permanently learn from Scrolls!)
• One of the most adaptive and unique play styles with the largest amount of subclasses, suit up for any occasion!
• Being the only class that specializes in INT, you will enjoy some unique dialogue options as well as knowledge checks!

Cons

• Less raw damage potential than the Sorcerer, who benefits from Metamagic
• Cannot recover spell slots during Short Rests like Warlock
• Early game can be rather painful as many enemies will one-shot you due to a slow ramp-up

Years of studying and developing strong Intellect has given Wizards the unique ability to study Spell Scrolls and permanently learn the spell written on it.

This, combined with being able to change out your prepared spells in any non-combative area makes Wizards an effective Swiss Army Knife of utility and power.

Wizards completely focus on their Spells as their main damage output. Unlike Sorcerers, who boast more raw damage output with Metamagic – or Warlocks who can recover spells on a short rest, Wizards take their power from having a massive array of spells at their disposal.

In a roleplaying environment, Wizards are the intellects – reflected in the majority of their magic all boasting INT throws. Wizards are seen as scholars, translators, and well-studied on topics like Arcana, History, Religion and Nature. Wizards always thirst for more knowledge; be it on how to brew a potion or how to travel between planar rifts.

Being a master of Arcana, Wizards possess properties that no other party member can bring to the table – Who else is going to decipher those glyphs? Is that a child’s ball or a dimensional bomb, who knows?

Upon reaching Wizard level 2, players will have the choice between eight Subclasses, which are flavored as different schools of magic. This does not prevent the Wizard from learning spells from other schools of magic, however – feel free to equip yourself with your favorite array of spells, and change it out on the fly if encounters don’t go the way you expect.

Subclasses (Schools of Magic)

There are eight subclasses for Wizards in Baldur’s Gate 3. Each subclass is a different school of magic for the Wizards to discipline themselves in.

In addition to a new array of spells, Wizards also find it easier and therefore cheaper to learn spells from their chosen school of magic.

• Abjuration
• Conjuration
• Divination
• Enchantment
• Evocation
• Illusion
• Necromancy
• Transmutation

Abjuration

Level	Feature	Description
2	Arcane Ward	The residual magic of your spells forms a ward around you that protects you from harm. Your Arcane Ward blocks damage equal to its charges then loses 1 charge. Casting Abjurations Spells increases charges equal to the level of the spell.
6	Projected Ward	When a nearby ally takes damage and you have an active Arcane Ward, you can sacrifice your ward to reduce the damage they take.
10	Improved Abjuration	Each time you take a Short Rest, the intensity of your Arcane Ward increases by an amount equal to your Wizard level.

Abjuration spells summon wards, banish enemies, and nullify magic, suitable for those who wish to defend themselves and others.

Abjuration Wizards focus on the defensive capabilities provided by the Arcane Ward; this can prove to be extremely beneficial in parties that lack a dedicated tank, or squishier parties in general.

Conjuration

Level	Feature	Description
2	Minor Conjuration: Create Water	Calls forth rain. It extinguishes exposed flames and forms a water surface.
6	Benign Transposition: Teleport	Teleport to a nearby, unoccupied space, or swap places with an ally.
10	Focused Conjuration	Damage taken while you are Concentrating on a Conjuration spell will not break your Concentration

Conjuration Wizards are masters of utility, whether you summon a creature out of thin air, conjure up a rain cloud to extinguish a field of fire, or teleport across vast spaces.

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

Divination

Level	Feature	Description
2	Portent	Your dreams grant you a glimpse that let you influence the future. After each Long Rest, you gain two random Portent Dice. During the day, you can use your reaction to change the die of any Attack Roll or Saving Throw rolled near you to one of your Portent Dice. Each Portent Die can only be used once, and you lose your unused Portent Dice at the end of the day.
6	Expert Divination	You have an additional Portent Die. When taking a Short Rest you regain any spent Portent Dice.
10	Third Eye: Darkvision	You gain the ability to see in the dark out to a range of 24m.
10	Third Eye: See Invisibility	Become able to see invisible creatures, and possibly reveal them to others.

With the power to control fate, Divination Wizards provide a unique ability to your party: letting them re-roll a failed Attack Roll or Saving Throw.

Divination Wizards work wonders with other members who want to land those strong hits, and a second chance may be what they need to turn a battle around.

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

Enchantment

Level	Feature	Description
2	Hypnotic Gaze	Charm and Incapacitate a creature. It cannot attack you. It cannot act. You can Maintain your Hypnotic Gaze each turn to extend its duration.
6	Instinctive Charm	Charm an enemy attacking you. They will attack a new target if possible as a Reaction.
10	Split Enchantment	You know your enchantments inside and out. You can target 2 creatures with Enchantment spells that would normally only target 1 Creature.

Enchantment Wizards focus on more of a supportive role with tons of crowd control. From effects such as charms, confusion, and irresistible dances, your enemies aren’t going anywhere while your party butchers them down!

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

Evocation

Level	Feature	Description
2	Sculpt Spells	Create pockets of safety within your Evocation Spells. Allied creatures automatically succeed their saving throws and take no damage from them.
6	Potent Cantrip	Your Cantrips become hard 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.
10	Empowered Evocation	Your grasp of Evocation magic has tightened, and you can add your Intelligence modifier to damage rolls with any Evocation spells.

Evocation spells focus elemental energy into powerful attacks and enchantments. Those who specialize in this school are known as evokers.

One of the more offensive schools of magic; Evocation Wizards focus on the offensive and ensure that damaging spells and cantrips output as much damage as possible, while ensuring your allies remain safe from the blasts.

Illusion

Level	Feature	Description
2	Improved Minor Illusion	You can cast Minor Illusion as a bonus Action. You can remain hidden while casting this spell. This spell can be cast while you are Silenced.
6	See Invisibility	Become able to see Invisible creatures, and possibly reveal them to others.
10	Illusory Self	Beginning at 10th level, you can create an illusory duplicate of yourself as an instant, almost instinctual reaction to danger. When a creature makes an attack roll against you, you can use your reaction to interpose the illusory duplicate between the attacker and yourself. The attack automatically misses you, then the illusion dissipates. Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a short or long rest.

Illusion Wizards specialize in unraveling and restitching the fabric of reality to fool the unwary, the gullible, and the monstrous.

Whether summoning an illusion or becoming one; the Illusion Wizard is all about trickery and guile.

Furthering study into Illusion magic grants invisibility, disguises, and distractions – creating the stealthiest of the Wizards.

Necromancy

Level	Feature	Description
2	Grim Harvest	Once per turn, if you kill a creature with a spell, you regain hit points equal to twice the spell slot level used – thrice if it’s a Necromancy spell. Undead and Constructs are unaffected.
6	Animate Dead	Create an undead servant from a corpse. The target must be a Medium or Small corpse
10	Undead Thralls: Additional Undead	When you use Animate Dead, you can raise an additional corpse.
10	Undead Thralls: Better Summons	Creatures created with Animate Dead have additional hit points equal to your wizard level, and your Proficiency Bonus is added to their damage.
10	Inured to Undeath	You have steeped yourself so completely in death that you are Resistant to Necrotic damage, and moreover your hit point maximum cannot be reduced.

Necromancy Wizards walk through the valley of the shadow of death, and make lots of friends there. Masters of life and death, reanimate corpses to fight for a better cause (yours).

Become feared with an unlimited army of the undead at your side. Necromancy has been rejected by many societies; seen as a forbidden or taboo art. Tread carefully.

Transmutation

Level	Feature	Description
2	Experimental Alchemy	You can brew two alchemical solutions instead of one when combining extracts, if you succeed a DC 15 Medicine check
6	Transmuter’s Stone	Store some of your transmutation magic in a small stone. A creature carrying the stone gains a benefit of your choice. Once you have created a stone, you need to cast a Transmutation spell of Level 1 or higher or take a Long Rest before you can create another one.
10	Shapechanger	Transform into a blue jay, able to Fly. If the blue jay’s hit points drop to 0, the target reverts to its original form with its original hit points.

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

Shifting and warping the world around them, Transmutation Wizards provide utility such as feather-falling, or faster retreats.

With enough study, Transmutation Wizards can render someone’s flesh into immovable stone, or drop them from 18m in the air.

So which Wizard subclass should you play?

If you want to emphasize protecting your party and nullifying threats, choose Abjuration.

Want to summon creatures, objects, and other effects? Choose Conjuration.

If you want to peer into the future and influence fate, choose Divination

To become a master of crowd control and charms, choose Enchantment.

For raw power boosts to your offensive magic, choose Evocation.

Looking to go stealthy or trick your enemies? Choose Illusion.

If you want to take a darker approach and reanimate the dead for your goals, choose Necromancer.

To get more value out of extracts and buff your party more often, choose Transmutation.

Lastly, remember you can easily respec your character for just 100g so feel free to try out different schools!