Last updated: 20 October 2026

Baldur's Gate 3 Best Cantrips What to Pick in Patch 8 (and What to Skip)

The best cantrips in Baldur's Gate 3 (BG3) are Eldritch Blast for damage if your class can get it, Fire Bolt or Toll the Dead for most other casters, Shillelagh for Druids who fight up close, and the utility trio Guidance, Light and Mage Hand for everyone. Cantrips are free to cast and only change at level-up, so each pick matters. Many ranking lists are from 2023 and predate Patch 8, which added new cantrips such as Toll the Dead, so this page lists only numbers that bg3.wiki and at least one other source back up and marks our opinions as opinions. For how cantrip slots interact with your spell list, see how to prepare spells; for feats that grant extra cantrips (Magic Initiate), see our best feats guide.

01Quick Picks by Role

• Best damage cantrip overall: Eldritch Blast. 1d10 force damage, 18 m range, and beams multiply at character level 5 (2 beams) and 10 (3 beams) instead of raising the die.
• Best for Wizards and Sorcerers: Fire Bolt for reliable ranged single-target damage; Toll the Dead as the save-based alternative against enemies that resist fire.
• Best for Druids: Shillelagh if you will stand in melee, otherwise a ranged damage cantrip.
• Best utility cantrip: Guidance, which gives +1d4 to an ability check and can be cast from the skill check screen.
• Best for the whole party: Light, which lasts until a long rest without concentration and lights a 7.5 m radius around whoever carries it.
• Best for reaching things: Mage Hand, for levers, traps and gaps the party cannot reach.

02Best Damage Cantrips

Eldritch Blast (Warlock at level 1; Bards via Magical Secrets; Magic Initiate: Warlock and Spell Sniper). Each beam makes its own attack roll, beams can be split across targets, and force damage is rarely resisted. Invocations such as Agonising Blast and Repelling Blast apply per beam, and Hex adds 1d6 necrotic to each beam against a Hexed target. This is why Warlocks rarely need another damage cantrip.

Fire Bolt (Sorcerer and Wizard at level 1; Arcane Trickster and Eldritch Knight at level 3; High Elf and High Half-Elf at character level 1; Magic Initiate: Sorcerer or Wizard; Spell Sniper). 1d10 fire, 18 m range, scaling to 2d10 at character level 5 and 3d10 at level 10. It also lights torches, campfires and braziers from a distance. Its weakness is that fire is the damage type enemies most often resist.

Toll the Dead (Cleric, Warlock and Wizard at level 1; Eldritch Knight and Arcane Trickster at level 3; High Elf and High Half-Elf; Magic Initiate: Cleric, Warlock or Wizard). Patch 8 content. It forces a Wisdom save and deals necrotic damage: 1d12 against a target that has already taken damage, 1d8 against one at full health. A successful save negates the damage. bg3.wiki notes the game checks for 99% health rather than 100%, so a barely scratched enemy can still take the smaller die. Sources disagree on its scaling breakpoints, so we do not list them.

Booming Blade (Sorcerer, Wizard and Warlock at level 1; Eldritch Knight and Arcane Trickster at level 3; High Elf; Magic Initiate: Sorcerer, Warlock or Wizard). A melee weapon attack that deals extra thunder damage if the target moves. The extra damage rarely triggers against enemies that stay in melee, and sources disagree on its higher-level scaling, so treat it as a niche pick for weapon-using casters, not a default.

03Best Utility Cantrips

Guidance. One action, +1d4 to ability checks for 10 turns, range 1.5 m, concentration. Ranked first among all cantrips by Highground Gaming for how often it improves skill checks outside combat. The practical use is casting it on whoever is about to roll a Persuasion, Stealth or lockpicking check.

Light. Lasts until a long rest without concentration and creates a light aura of about 7.5 m around the character it is cast on, one target at a time. Useful in the Underdark and in other dark areas.

Mage Hand. 18 m range, lasts 10 turns and can interact with and throw objects, which helps reach things the party cannot. It cannot pick locks or loot chests, and bg3.wiki notes it is the only cantrip limited to once per short rest.

Minor Illusion. The illusory cat can distract NPCs, which suits sneaky play, but it has little value in combat. Most players only need one of these across the whole party.

04Shillelagh: The Druid Pick

Shillelagh is a bonus-action cantrip for 10 turns that makes a quarterstaff or club use your highest spellcasting modifier instead of Strength for attack and damage rolls, and deals 1d8 bludgeoning. Druids get it at class level 1, Nature Clerics get it as a domain spell, and anyone can take it through Magic Initiate: Druid. If you multiclass, it uses your highest spellcasting ability, which may not be your main class's. Because it is a bonus action, you can cast it and attack in the same turn.

05Cantrips Most Players Can Skip

This section is our opinion, not an official ranking.

• Sacred Flame (1d8 radiant, Dexterity save, 18 m): a saving throw cantrip with lower damage than Fire Bolt or Toll the Dead. Clerics who want a damage cantrip can take Toll the Dead instead.
• True Strike: needs concentration, so it rarely pays off compared with simply attacking.
• Vicious Mockery (1d4 psychic, Wisdom save): weak damage, but it reduces the target's accuracy. Fine for Bards who have nothing better.
• Shocking Grasp (1d8 lightning, melee range): stops the target's reactions, which helps with escapes, but needs you in melee range.
• Poison Spray (1d12 poison, Constitution save, 3 m range): very short range.

06How Many Cantrips Do You Get?

Cantrips occupy their own slots, are always available, and do not count against your prepared spell limit. You choose them in the level-up screens, and a respec at Withers lets you pick them again. Feats and races can add more: Magic Initiate, Spell Sniper, and High Elf or High Half-Elf all give extra cantrips, which is the easiest way to add Guidance or Light to a martial character.