Larian Studioshas poured a lot of love into theBardclass, trying to make it as fun and engaging as possible in the confines of a video game setting. And Bards inBaldur’s Gate 3get access to a wide range ofspellsas they level up.
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Choosing the right spells for your Bard requires knowing what therole of your characteris going to be. Are you going to be a ranged spellcaster slinging spells from afar, a support helping keep your party alive, or a melee swordsman entering the thick of it? These choices should be the deciding factor in what spells you end up choosing onevery level up.
Updated by Hamza Haq on August 04, 2025:The article has been updated with new formatting guidelines and infused with new links to bring it up to date with the latest in Baldur’s Gate 3.
Baldur’s Gate 3
20Minor Illusion
Great For Distracting Enemies
Minor Illusioncreates a small illusion that distracts enemies that have line of sight. Since this is acantrip, it’s a low-cost way of luring enemies out of position and taking them out with asneak attack.
Minor Illusion sees the most use outside of combat, where enemies are much more likely to be distracted and investigate a disturbance. Bards are great carriers of Minor Illusion since they have spell slots to spare and aren’t as strapped for slots as somethinglike a Warlock is.
Spell Level & Type
Illusion Cantrip
Spell Damage
Concentration
19Speak With Dead
Invaluable Utility Spell
Speak with Deadis one of thebest utility spellsin BG3, allowing players to unlock a completely new branch ofdialogueunique to the dead. Casting it on a corpse allows you totalk to itand ask it five questions of your choice. The corpse will be compelled to answer your questions.
Speak with Dead is aRitual Spell, meaning once it is cast once, it can be recast at will without consuming a spell slot until the next long rest. Having at least one character with this spell in your party is absolutely crucial for a complete playthrough.
Level 3 Necromancy Spell
18Healing Word
Best Ranged Healing Spell At Low Levels
Healing Wordheals an ally for 1d4 healing at the first level. It can beupcastto heal more, but the main purpose of this spell remains to get just a little bit of boost to the health pool of an ally.
This spell is useful for two reasons. One, it can be cast within the range of 18 meters, and two, it can be cast as abonus action. Having a healer who can revive downed allies without having to get into melee rangeanddo it as a bonus action is incredibly useful at any stage of the game.
Level 1 Evocation Spell
1d4+4 Healing
Great For Countering Other Casters
Silencecreates a soundless dome in an area where no sound escapes or enters that area until the spell is in place. It is aconcentration spellwhich means it can be interrupted if your caster is out of position and fails a saving throw.
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But Silence is still a powerful tool as it allows your Bard to nullify the efforts of many a spellcaster by disabling their verbal spells, not to mention the utility of this spell outside of combat.
Level 2 Illusion Spell
16Tasha’s Hideous Laughter
Best Against Low WIS Enemies
Tasha’s Hideous Laughteris a single-target spell that incapacitates an enemy for 10 turns if they fail a WIS saving throw. It doesn’t work on constructs or the undead, but it can completely counter creatures and humanoids if successful.
This is a level 1 spell that does the same thing as the level 5 spell,Hold Monster. Since it works on creatures, too, it’s actually more useful to have thanHold Personand lasts just as long.
Level 1 Enchantment Spell
15Invisibility
Great For Scouting
Turning invisible is quite useful in Baldur’s Gate 3, as enemies rarely have the ability to see invisible units, and even when they do, it requires some dice rolls to work. If an enemy can’t see you, they can’t react to your presence.
Invisibilitymakesinfiltration and stealthmissions a complete joke. It’s the most useful for sneaking outside of combat, and with higher-level spell slots, you may cast this spell on multiplemembers of your party, making this spell useful at every stage of the game.
14Dissonant Whispers
Reliable Damage/Control Spell
Dissonant Whispersdeals 3d6 Psychic damage to enemies hit by it and inflicts them with the Frightened status if they fail a WIS saving throw. Frightened enemies run away from the caster using all their movement speed and don’t use actions or bonus actions.
If the enemy does manage to avoid being Frightened, they still take half damage from the spell. This allows Bards to have a reliable damage source that can be mitigated but never nullified.
3d6 Psychic Damage
13Faerie Fire
Great For Countering Invisible Foes
Faerie Firereveals invisible units in a large area. The dome of the effect is quite large, and if you know the rough location of where a unit is likely to be, you’re easily going to be able to find them with Faerie Fire.
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The second aspect of this level 1 spell is that if characters under this spell fail a DEXsaving throw, attacks against them have an advantage. This works well with melee-focused parties with highACand DEX, as they’re much less likely to suffer the negative effects of this spell compared to their enemies.
12Hypnotic Pattern
Great AoE Disable
Hypnotic Patternis an AoE disable that can render all characters that see it hypnotized if they fail a WIS save. It’s a double-edged sword in most cases, and you might end up disablingyour entire partyinstead of the enemy if your party fails the save and the enemy doesn’t. But it’s a useful tool to have in case of emergencies.
Keep in mind that Hypnotic Pattern only lasts until the character affected by it takes damage or is helped. If you’re unlucky and one of your allies gets hypnotized by this spell, you may help them wake up to reality in the same turn by using the help bonus action.
Level 3 Illusion Spell
11Dimension Door
Two-In-One Escape Spell
A level 4 Conjuration spell,Dimension Doorcreates a rift in space you and one other ally can step through if they’re close enough. This is essentially a get-out-of-jail-free card that you can pull out at any moment to get out of a hairy situation.
But if the enemy has Counterspell and chooses to use it, Dimension Doorcanfail to function. It’s still nice to have, though, and the enemy AI in Baldur’s Gate 3 is rarely smart enough, at least inBalanced Mode.
