Baldur’s Gate 3: How to Prepare Spells in BG3

Baldur’s Gate 3 is the type of game where you’ll constantly find yourself changing equipment, spells and strategies to deal with different foes. After all, what works for one boss or group of enemies may not work for another, so it’s important to improvise and adapt to your situation. However, there are ways to plan ahead, such as figuring out your core abilities. If this sounds fun to you, be sure to continue reading to learn how to prepare spells in Baldur’s Gate 3.

How to Prepare Spells in Baldur’s Gate 3 (BG3)

Preparing spells in BG3 requires being out of combat, selecting a character, and accessing their spellbook through the inventory menu or pressing K on your keyboard. Here, you’ll find your list of spells and swap between them at your leisure. If you want to switch to another character, press their portrait on the left side of your screen.

There are multiple rows and buttons you’ll find in your spellbook that serve different purposes. Your cantrips and class actions do not consume spell slots, while your equipped leveled spells appear directly below. To swap spells here, hover over your abilities and press the red X that appears to remove them from the row, then select a spell from your available options to add it to your lineup.

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Once you do this, your new spells will be available in your hotbar at the bottom of your screen, ready to use during your next battle.

How to Unlock More Spells in Baldur’s Gate 3 (BG3)

As you level up your characters, you’ll naturally gain more abilities. Gaining a subclass enables you to pick from a wider variety of spells, while mastering your original class lets you get more advanced versions of your core abilities. Every time you level, you can head to the level-up screen and unlock more spells that you can later swap in your spellbook.

Alternatively, if you want a specific spell but don’t have it in your options list, you can also learn new ones by pressing the book below. Here, you’ll find a list of spell scrolls you currently have in your party’s inventories, for which you can exchange gold for knowledge of a chosen spell. You can occasionally find these scrolls in the overworld or purchase them from merchants.

Baldur’s Gate 3 is available on PC, Mac, and soon on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. To learn more about the game, check out how to get a shovel in Baldur’s Gate 3 (BG3), or click the game tag below to see our growing content list!