Magelings' starting spell lists

[Spineles]

After playing through the Baldur's Gate series several times some spells are used more then others. To help out the new mages and priests, here are 2 lists containing the most interesting spells for each level.

Wizard Spells
Level

1. • Chromatic Orb (against targets with low saves, perfect against mages)
   • Find Familiar (only once a game preferably)
   • Magic Missle (damaging and with the travel delay perfect for disrupting mages)
2. • Mirror Image (one of the best protective spells and all other spells have better alternatives in other spell levels)
3. • Dispel Magic (always handy just in case)
   • Fireball (Level based damage is very good, fast to cast, nice area of effect and great to shoot at mobs around a fire immune npc)
   • Lightning Bolt (better damage control then fireball and used against fire immunes)
   • Skull Trap (in short a fireball that stays in place untill someone comes close)
4. • Fireshield Blue/Red (gives caster extra resistance to cold/fire and damages melee attackers)
   • Otiluke's Resilient Sphere (cast on someone to take him/her/it temperary out the game, can also be used to protect party member from mobs and then fireball the mob)
   • Remove Curse (sometimes handy)
   • Stoneskin (great level based protection spell, read the description!)
5. • Animate Dead (after level 15 you get greater skeletons with incredible saves)
   • Breach (Primary spell to remove protective spells from enemies)
   • Cloudkill (one of the best area of effect spells as only magic immunity works against it)
   • Lower Resistance (always use against dragons and such before using damage spells because they will resist)
6. • Chain Lightning (again level based damage and only hits enemies)
   • Pierce Magic (higher version of Breach, see level 5)
   • Tenser's Tranformation (temperary make the caster a equal level fighter, ideal for bards and fighting mages)
7. • Delayed Blast Fireball (combine the fireball and skulltrap spells from level 3)
   • Limited Wish (just for the fun of it)
   • Mantle (powerfull defensive spell but somewhat cheesy)
   • Mordekainen's Sword (excellent summon with great saves and melee damage immunity)
8. • Abi-Dalzim's Horrid Wilting (the ADHW everyone is talking about because it only hits enemy creatures)
   • Incediary Cloud (more damage then ADHW but not party friendly)
   • Simulacrum (summon your little brother with the same but lower abilities)
9. • Time Stop (all the time you need to cast your necessary spells)
   • Higher Level Abilities :
     • Dragon's Breath (party friendly area of effect fire damages which also knocks opponents back)
     • Improved Alacrity (removes waiting or cooldown time between spells)
     • Summon (Dark) Planetar (with (Fallen) Deva probarly the best summons available in ToB)

Priest Spells
Level

1. • Armor of Faith (level based protection spell)
   • Cure Light Wounds (heals 8 hit points)
   • Protection from Evil (very handy with/against summoned demons)
2. • Aid (adds/heals 1-8 hit points and blesses target)
   • Barkskin (magical temperary armor)
   • Draw upon Holy Might (level based increment of strength, dexterity and constitution)
3. • Animate Dead (see the 5th level wizard spell Animate Dead)
   • Cure Medium Wounds (heals 14 hit points)
   • Dispel Magic (see the 3th level wizard spell Dispel Magic)
   • Miscast Magic (ideal to prevent enemy mages to cast spells)
   • Remove Curse (see the 4th level wizard spell Remove Curse)
   • Summon Insects (ideal to prevent enemy mages to cast spells)
4. • Cure Serious Wounds (heals 17 hit points)
   • Lesser Restoration (restore level or energy drained characters)
   • Negative Plane Protection (prevent level or energy draining from vampires)
   • Protection from Evil 10 inch radius (gives protection to all nearby)
5. • Cure Critical Wounds (heals 27 hit points)
   • Flame Strike (single target level based fire damage)
   • Insect Plague (even better then Summon Insects at disabling enemy mages)
   • Iron Skins (level based melee protection spell)
   • Mass Cure (level based healing spell for nearby party members)
   • Raise Dead (restore a deceased character)
6. • Bolt of Glory (single target damage spell, ideal against undead and demons)
   • False Dawn (area of effect damage against undead)
   • Heal (restore a character to full health)
7. • Creeping Doom (best spell available to disable enemy mages)
   • Sunray (best spell available to remove undead forces)
   • Higher Level Abilities :
     • Druid
       • Greater Elemental Summoning (summon the powerfull elemental princes)
     • Druid&Cleric
       • Implosion (10 d10 fire and 10 d10 blunt damage with best save means half the damage)
       • Summon (Fallen) Deva (the priest version of the HLA wizard spell Summon (Dark) Planetar)

Note,
these lists are made up by me and me alone. This does not mean other spells are useless nor does this restrict you in selecting your spells. The choice of spells is your alone.

[fable]

Been done many times before, here, since the game came out. You might want to check our strategy guide section, and of course, the database has a discussion of several lists. Still, I'll let this stand, and see if anybody wants to comment.

One quick question: is this list yours? The introductory paragraph doesn't say. If it isn't, you must give credit to the person who wrote it, and if it's not from another forum but from a gaming site or private site, it simply isn't allowed. That's plagiarism, and we recently tangled with another board that was posting material drawn from us.

Note, I've removed your list from our SoA forums. We don't need duplicate or near-duplicate posts in two forums. It's frowned upon.

[Spineles]

I did make these list directly from the thoughts in my head so it's definetly no plagiarism. I made them in seperate posts in the Timestop topic started by joe05, located here.
I don't have need of the strategy guides anymore because I've either readed them or don't need any more help but I can't find any such listsin the guides. Joe05 however proves that there are still new players and some might also not know which spells to pick with this many choices.

Also I wasn't sure wether it belonged more in Shadows of Amn or Throne of Bhaal. Sorry about that.

[fable]

No problem. I've also removed them from the thread you indicated, since this was needless duplication, and our site owner frowns on that. But I'm sure you'll get comment and discussion, here.

[SP101]

Just adding a few nice spells you missed

Wizard 1
- Spook (fear at -6... I mean... -6!!!)
- Identify (It is replaceable by an item.. but god it's useful!)
- Friends (+6 Charisma greatly reduce the prices of items while shopping )

Wizard 2
- Blur (mainly for the improved saves)
- Glitterdust (read it, love it!)

Wizard 3
- Flame Arrow (High single-target spell, when not fightning mobs and out of Magic Missiles)
- Melf Minute Meteor (You can throw some between 2 spellcastings, best for bards / fighter-mages)
- Haste/Slow (Party-friendly speed buff/debuff, increase/decrease regeneration rate)

Wizard 4
- Emotion (crowd-control)
- Greater Malison (save lowering spell)
- Improved Invisibility (makes you untargettable by non-AoE spells)

Wizard 5
- Sunfire (High damages, bypass Magic Resistance! Have your mage cast it (ALONE!) with a Stoneskin on and out of invisibility to get the most out of it. It also makes you temporarily immune to fire damages.)

Wizard 6
- Protection from Magical Weapons
- Improved Haste (support spell, it doubles! the ammount of attacks/round of the recipient. Use it on your best fighter!)

Wizard 7
- Mordaiken's Sword (Great summon, immune to lots of things)
- Hakeashar (Anti-mage summon)

Wizard 8
... nothing really worth it besides ADHW. Maybe symbols, but I personnaly dislike them.

Wizard 9
... as long as you dont memorize "Energy Drain" and "Freedom"...

[es-0]

along with SP101's comments on not Energy Drain and Freedom... no 9th Level Meteor spell

with comet right around the corner... why get it?

EDIT: sorry meant for Sorcerers, as that would be a waste of precious spells

[SP101]

Well, meteor is still very good. Dont buy it, but if you find it and need an AoE spell, go ahead, write it down and memorize it!

[Deadalready]

Imprison and Project Image are spells that haven't been brought up. Spell Trap is also very useful a spell to use.

I must agree with SP101's list of spells. I'd say my casting revolves around his small list using a limited selection of spells.

Additionally Summon Air Servant is an extremely powerful priest spell, it's great to use against Beholders if I remember correctly.

[Thrifalas]

Most spells are usefull from time to time, but it eludes me as to why nobody has mentioned Spell Immunity and the wonderspell Mislead. There are probably more that I've missed, as well as I would like to agree with SP101's list and Deadalready's additions to the list. Spells like Imp. Haste, Sunfire, Mordenkainen and Imprisonment are nothing I'd like to be without on my sorcerer.

On the priest side I'd like to add Death Ward, Chaotic Commands and Nature's Beauty.

There's probabaly more to each side, though. There always is.

[SP101]

Just a few more priest spells, in no order :

- Slay Living (casting time 1, on hit : 2d6 + 9 damage, save vs spell or death)

- Call Woodland Beings (Summons a very useful Siren wich can cast disabeling spells as well as Mass Cure)

- Silence 15' (Early-game, this is my favourite anti-mage spell. Careful, it's not party-friendly!)

- Hold Person (To use against low-level opponents, like the swarm of slavers or when you're ambushed while travelling)

- Call Lightning (Sadly... most of the game you're INSIDE, disabling this spell , but it does some insane level-based damages)

- Holy Smite (Very good AoE damage spell, using alignement. If you're a good party fightning evil monsters, (ab)use it!)

[boo's daddy]

I know there are loads of these lists, and I've read a few, but one thing that always occurs to me when I read 'em, packed as they are with stuff like "buff with all known protection spells and three chain contingencies with Time Stop and Improved Alacrity", is "Do these people rest before and after EVERY battle or what??" not to mention "How EXACTLY did they get to 24th level in Irenicus' Dungeon?" My spell selection is very much based on what is going to help me last as long as possible before having to rest.

So, it's interesting to read how others do it. Currently playing a sorceror, so spell selection is all-important. From memory (game is on laptop currently missing a power cable ), he's using lots of Magic Missile, Identify, Blur, Remove Fear, Melf's (we like doing both physical and elemental damage), Stoneskin, Imp Invis, Breach, True Sight and Mord's Sword.

I find that lots of higher level opponents have True Sight, which limits the benefits of Mislead.

Another key spell which is missing from your list is Remove Fear: it gives you a fairly long-lasting protection and prevents that annoying item-discarding panic when your dudes see a dragon.. And the Druid's Fire Elemental is IMO the best summons available early in the game.

EDIT: SP101 - agreed on Holy Smite and Call Lightning. Stinking Cloud is also useful against swarms of lower level opponents, though is a bit buggy

[dragon wench]

I agree with SP101 on Melf's Minute Meteors:
Very nice spell, especially if you have multiple mages tossing these little balls of fire at an opponent. They even do damage against clay and iron golems. And, it goes without say, great for trolls!
I never travel without it.

[Nimiety]

I can't believe no one's mentioned these priestly spells:

- Harm - if you hit your opponant, you knock them down to 1 hp. nice.

- Righteous magic - all attacks do full damage for the spell duration.

Take poor weak Aerie, once she levels enough, she can cast all the best buffs, run through strength, duhm, righteous magic and tensor's transformation (by know, she should have something like 25 in str, dex, and con)... fighting machine. Then, cast a timestop with a few memorized harms, and the most difficult fights later in the game become easy. Cast harm, hit someone once (they go down to one 1hp, and all attacks hit during timestop), and kill them with the second blow. Recast harm, wash rinse and repeat.

[SP101]

You need to be *very* high level if you want to cast Time Stop with a Cleric/Mage, as well as a few Harm spells... so that's only valid for late-ToB

[Deadalready]

There's lots of great spells but seriously Melf's Minute Meteors I never go without. The only downside is how it weighs one pound per meteor.

I also love Death Spell, that feeling of power when using it against large groups of weaklings is great.