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The worst spells of the Baldur's Gate series

HoopleDoopleHoopleDoople Member Posts: 23
A common topic of discussion on the forums is the most powerful spells. Knowing which spells to learn as a sorcerer or purchase for your mage is very helpful. Undervalued spells are another good topic, as it is easy to overlook a niche spell that can really pay off in the right spot.

This thread is not about these kinds of spells. Here I will be covering the most pathetic excuses for spells in the Baldur's Gate series. Please note that spells will be evaluated in the context of a complete run of the unmodded game. A spell like Sleep might be next to useless in BG2 but its enormous value in BG1 keeps it off this list. Spells will also be evaluated in the context of their level (even the worst level 9 arcane spell would be amazing as a level 1 arcane spell) and the other spells/abilities available (a spell with a useful effect is still pretty bad if a lower level spell can do the same thing and more).

If you have any brilliant tactics to make the spells listed here worthwhile, let me know. If there's some truly terrible spells that didn't make the cut feel free to point them out. I'm starting with the Arcane spells today. Tomorrow I will add the Divine spells. EDIT: This section has now been added.

Arcane

Level 1 - Infravision

As far as I know infravision had no real use until Siege of Dragonspear added a few checks for it. Should you be lacking innate infravision, it is very easy to pick up a companion who has it or equip an item that grants it (ring or helm).

Honorable Mention - Color Spray

This spell is overshadowed by Sleep, which has a longer duration, easier aiming, and is party friendly. I'm finding conflicting information on the exact mechanics, but the one clear advantage to Color Spray is that it can apparently target non-hostile creatures while Sleep cannot.

Level 2 - Know Alignment

I just completely fail to see the point of this spell. Any insight you could gain through this spell on a first play through is probably spoiling the fun. On subsequent playthroughs "surprise" evil characters.. aren't. Oh and did I mention that enemies get a saving throw?

Honorable Mention - Detect Invisibility

Another useful effect overshadowed by other spells. At lower levels Glitterdust is far superior with its AoE blindness. At higher levels the lack of save gives Detect Invisibility a niche, but by that point you're probably going to have a more versatile anti-illusion spell memorized anyway (notably True Sight) or maybe even a thief/shaman with detect illusion.

Level 3 - Non-Detection

The mechanics of this spell are just bizarre. If I understand correctly, invisibility via spell isn't really protected by Non-Detection, but invisibility via items or hide in shadows is. The bottom line is that only thieves can reliably get value from Non-Detection and there is a Cloak of Non-Detection in both games (the cloak is barely needed in BG1 and available extremely early in BG2). Only if you are running multiple thieves would this spell ever be worth considering.

Honorable Mention - Hold Undead

Hold is a nice effect, but Hold Undead is a pretty niche version. Magic resistance is common for undead enemies and there are plenty of other strong undead counters. I've heard this can be useful against vampires, but even then a more broadly useful spell like Web should be fine.

Level 4 - Contagion

A single target slow that also reduces the enemy's Strength, Dexterity, and Charisma by 2. The enemy gets a save at no penalty. Considering Slow is a level 3 spell with an area of effect and save penalty, Contagion is basically an inferior version at a higher spell level. Maybe you value your level 3 spell slots too much for Slow, but level 4 also has some real useful spells like Stoneskin, Greater Malison, and Emotion: Hopelessness competing for memorization.

Honorable Mention - Remove Curse

In most cases you simply won't have to deal with a cursed item if you simply take the time to identify items before equipping them. If you goofed a simple reload fixes the problem. There are admittedly a few beneficial cursed items like The Claw of Kazgaroth so there is a tiny niche for the spell. Even then you could visit a temple and just pay some gold for the removal.

Level 5 - Protection from Acid

We've finally reached a high enough level that the worst spell isn't entirely useless or redundant. Protection from Acid is merely too niche to be good, as acid damage is pretty rare. Probably the most use you could get out of this spell is by pairing it with Death Fog, but Death Fog is hard to justify using compared to the lower level Cloudkill or the party friendly Death Spell.

Honorable Mention - Protection from Normal Weapons

By the time this spell is available there just aren't many threatening enemies you'll face that use normal weapons. The lower level Stoneskin is usually plenty of protection against normal weapons anyway, and you should always be using it.

Level 6 - Carrion Summons

Carrion Crawlers are pretty pathetic, even if they can paralyze or inflict disease. Much better options exist at this level in the elementals or Invisible Stalker. Animate Dead is an amazing summon spell at a lower level.

Honorable Mention - Stone to Flesh

This spell's primary usage is for quests, but these quests generally have scrolls available during them. There's a few ways you could get yourself petrified in BG2, but the usual solution is a reload or protecting yourself from petrification ahead of time.

Level 7 - Control Undead

Just as with Hold Undead this is probably only going to be of use against Vampires. No need to waste a level 7 spell slot on such a niche application. By the time you get access to level 7 arcane spells any clerics in your party will probably be able to destroy/control undead with Turn Undead.

Honorable Mention - Mantle

Protection from Magical Weapons simply outclasses Mantle, Improved Mantle, and Absolute Immunity. Normal weapons are just so rarely an issue. No point wasting a higher level spell slot for what is basically a worse version of the spell. The Mantle spell line seems more useful for enemies, however, because the player can switch over to normal weapons to bypass PfMW (assuming the enemy isn't naturally immune to normal weapons). I won't bother going over this again for level 8 and level 9.

Level 8 - Symbol, Death

This spell won't effect enemies with more than 60 current hit points, allows a save at no penalty, and isn't party friendly. It is extremely difficult to justify a slot for this when it competes with the likes of Abi-Dalzim's Horrid Wilting, which would be very useful against a large number of low health enemies. If you're looking for a save or else spell there's plenty of lower level options with less restrictions.

Honorable Mention - Protection from Energy

This is by no means a bad spell, but it is only a slightly improved version of the level 7 spell Protection from the Elements (which doesn't protect against magic damage). In most cases you're probably better off fully protecting yourself from a single element or utilizing more general protection from weapons or magic.

Level 9 - Energy Drain

Any enemy that will die to just a couple casts of Energy Drain can easily be dealt with using lower level spells. High level enemies will require a multitude of casts to the point that you'll probably need either multiple mages or to pull off a Wish rest. If you really wanted to drain an enemy to death you'd be better off Shapeshifting to a Mind Flayer.

Honorable Mention - Meteor Swarm

Level 9 arcane spells have a surprising number of bad selections and Meteor Swarm just barely avoided the "top" spot. It is almost completely outclassed by the level 8 spell Incendiary Cloud, but has one key advantage of a longer casting range which allows for minor cheese potential. Couldn't Meteor Swarm at least ignore magic resistance like the divine spell Fire Storm?
Post edited by HoopleDoople on
BlackravenCrevsDaakcloudkillbeatsallGrammarsaladChronicler
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  • HoopleDoopleHoopleDoople Member Posts: 23
    edited December 2016
    Please note that this section was added a day after the initial post. There are a number of comments that were made prior to this.

    Divine

    Level 1 - Detect Evil

    There are maybe two cases in the entire series where there is a legitimate use for this spell according to the comments so far. Otherwise you're merely satisfying curiosity or determining which enemies will be effected by Holy Smite

    Honorable Mention - Shillelagh

    A magical +1 weapon can admittedly be useful in the very early game, but Bless would be more useful as it provides a party wide bonus of +1 to attack and damage rolls. I guess you could stack the 2 spells, but its probably still not worth the slot unless you have multiple divine casters. This spell just barely made the cut over Magical Stone, which is certainly pathetic but can deal some guaranteed damage.

    Level 2 - Goodberry

    This spell may actually be more useful than Know Alignment, but I really despise Goodberry. It is in my opinion the worst designed spell in the game. It is beyond tedious to make use of five berries that heal for 1 hp each. This spell could definitely stand a large buff - something like creating two berries that heal for 5 hp each may actually be worth using.

    Honorable Mention - Know Alignment

    Already been covered under Arcane spells, moving on.

    Level 3 - Remove Curse

    Once again we've already covered this under Arcane spells.

    Honorable Mention - Hold Animal

    I dislike the niche holding spells, and animals are among the least threatening enemy types. A lot of enemies I thought this spell might be good against (Wyverns, Ankhegs) don't count as animals but rather monsters. Bears are a bit of a menace early on, but much less so by the time you get access to this spell. Druids expecting to face animals should instead fill up their level 2 spell slots with Charm Person or Mammal. They certainly don't have much taking at that level anyway.

    Level 4 - Animal Summoning I

    There is no real truly terrible spell at this level, but there's some very good options for both Cleric and Druid so a weak summoning spell is probably never going to be worth memorizing. Druids will much prefer Call Woodland Beings for summoning at this level while Clerics will utilize the superior and lower level Animate Dead to free up their level 4 spell slots.

    Honorable Mention - Cure Serious Wounds

    Alright, I admit that there are a lot of overly niche level 4 spells that probably belong here over Cure Serious Wounds. But this spell is way worse than one might think so I'd like to cover it. Compared to the lower level Cure Medium Wounds it only heals for 3 extra hit points and it has a slower casting time. Druids can usually get more value out of Call Woodland Beings since the Nymph has access to Mass Cure. For Clerics I would actually recommend Neutralize Poison over Cure Serious Wounds. Neutralize Poison has a casting time of 1 and will remove poison, disease, blindness, and deafness plus heal for 10 hp. In battle a very quick heal and remedy to several afflictions is pretty valuable. The only real strength of Cure Serious Wounds is post battle recovery, but if you're short enough on healing that those 7 hitpoints make a difference it's probably time to rest anyway.

    Level 5 - Cause Critical Wounds

    The cause wounds line of spells is pretty bad until Harm, but Cause Critical Wounds is particularly useless in that there are much better damaging spells at this level. Only in rare cases would this spell be preferable to Flame Strike or Insect Plague.

    Honorable Mention - Champion's Strength

    This spell sets a targets strength to 18/00 and gives a THACO bonus that scales by the Cleric's level. This would be a reasonable option if not for the fact that the Cleric cannot cast spells for the duration. There are probably some clever ways to utilize this, but the only thing that I've come up with is buffing a thief for a key backstab. Even in that case strength boosting gear and and other THACO boosting buffs from the Cleric should probably be sufficient.

    Level 6 - False Dawn

    This is a mostly unnecessary spell for the Cleric. It only has a minor niche for a few levels before Turn Undead starts to destroy/control weaker undead enemies and the Cleric gets access to the superior level 7 spell Sunray. Against single strong undead enemies Sol's Searing Orb is probably better for the higher damage potential and blind.

    Honorable Mention - Animal Summoning III

    I don't find the greater quantity of summons to be enough to compensate for the lower quality compared to the alternatives at this level. Aerial Servant, Conjure Animals, and Conjure Fire Elemental can all get you some really strong summons. Lower level summoning spells can fill out your summon army if desired.

    Level 7 - Unholy Word

    Holy Word isn't an amazing spell, but it will wreck trash enemies and cause problems for spell casters. Unholy Word is basically useless due to the rarity of good enemies. Unholy Blight at least can get a bit of usage for an evil party that is frequently fighting guards and possibly in Siege of Dragonspear (I've been meaning to test this for a while). BG2 is almost entirely devoid of good aligned enemies, though I haven't yet got around to the Dorn or Hexxat quest lines. Even if they exist I'm not sure that Unholy Word would actually be worth using against them.

    Honorable Mention - Confusion

    Confusion is a moderately useful spell... as a level 4 mage spell. It has no business being a level 7 divine spell. Any enemy worth using a level 7 spell on will most likely save. Earthquake or Symbol, Stun/Fear will be more useful for disabling enemies (higher save penalties, stronger effects) if you're willing to risk a spell that isn't party friendly.

    Bonus Honorable Mention - Conjure Earth Elemental

    This is a perfectly good summoning spell, but the HLAs added in Throne of Bhaal have very much overshadowed it. Elemental Summoning (2 elementals with a chance for an elemental prince) or Greater Elemental Summoning (elemental prince) provide a lot more value for key fights. The only advantage Conjure Earth Elemental has going for it is a much longer duration, assuming it can survive. If that is a priority the level 6 spell Conjure Fire Elemental is probably what you should use so as not to waste a level 7 spell slot.
    Post edited by HoopleDoople on
    cloudkillbeatsallGrammarsalad
  • BlackravenBlackraven Member Posts: 3,486
    edited November 2016
    For level 2 my pick would be Detect Evil rather than Detect Invisibility. A cheap no save allowing detection spell is still more useful imo than Detect Evil which, like Know Alignment, has only role-play value.

    For level 6 I'd consider the Conjure Air/Earth/Fire Elemental spells the worst because of the mental battle you have to win in order for them not to turn against you. I prefer Carrion Summons to soak up an enemy Death Spell over being locked in mental combat for a few rounds. And I'd consider Disintegrate as a runner up instead Flesh to Stone. Disintegrate works very much like fellow level 6 spell Stone to Flesh, except that it's irreversible and results in loss of any loot, which is not good. Stone to Flesh can be reversed with Flesh to Stone, leaving a vulnerable target with 1 HP and loot in tact. Killing the target, nets you the XP you already got for turning it to stone. The only advantage of Disintegrate is that it can be used on targets that are nor made of flesh.
    CrevsDaaksemiticgoddessAerakarGrammarsalad
  • ChadChad Member Posts: 90
    IIRC there is one use of detect evil / know alignment in BGII, minor though it might be. It's been a long time, but I think the Paladin stronghold quest line has a quest where you are to protect a child or an important person until a specific other person comes to pick them up. The first person that comes to pick them up may be an imposter and using detect evil/know alignment allows you to call them out for it.

    Obviously this is a very specific use that only applies to a class quest that already gets the ability for free (unless a kit that removes detect evil) so it doesn't make the SPELL any less weak, but I wanted to call out that they actually did code a use in to the original game... Also, from an RP perspective, I don't find it meta-gamey at all for Paladins and certain other classes to use detect evil / know alignment in certain circumstances, though it is not necessary it would still be something they would do.

    In regards to non-detection, while there is a cloak, the cloak slot often has a lot of competition, especially if your main is a rogue. While you COULD where the cloak of non-detection, you might want to wear some other cloak, and if you are a fighter/mage/thief, mage/thief, or otherwise it can absolutely make sense to have one of these memorized for key encounters such as against liches. Again, not saying it is super important, but it can be more important to free up the cloak slot than a third level spell slot in BGII for magically inclined rogue types. Heck, even non-mage type thieves can benefit from a party member casting it so they can wear a cloak to gain other benefits. It has a fairly long duration and with a shadow dancer it allows them to spam back stabs even against enemies that see through stealth without non-detection. It's a really good thing to have for a scout / backstabber and getting it from the spell can be much more beneficial than from a cloak when going up against powerful enemies where you need all the protection you can get after you land that first hit (or especially if you DON'T land that first hit!)
    BlackravendunbarGrammarsalad
  • ThacoBellThacoBell Member Posts: 12,235
    I get a ton of use out of contagion and hold undead. Very usefyl.
    CrevsDaakBlackraven
  •  TheArtisan TheArtisan Member Posts: 3,277
    Oh, come now, the Mantle spells are... well, okay, they're pretty bad but there aren't a lot of better options out there for a fighter/mage. Sure you could go the typical mage route and stick extra Mordys or Horrid Wiltings in there but they aren't going to be nearly as powerful as a single-class mage's. Improved Mantle is one I use quite a lot as it protects against basically everything PfMW does so it's handy to have a couple handy whenever.

    7th Level: I'm tempted to say Ruby Ray of Reversal is worthless considering the superior Warding Whip occupies the same spell level but it does remove Spell Trap for what it's worth. I'd say the summoning spells should take a spot here since they barely offer anything more useful than a physical-immune tank does.

    8th Level: Protection from Magic Energy: Oh no. No, no, noooo. This thing is so damn efficient you have no idea. Put Summon Fiend there instead, now that is actually a bad spell.
    ThacoBell
  •  TheArtisan TheArtisan Member Posts: 3,277
    Detect Invisibility = BG1 savior. SCREWWWw YOUuuUUUU amazon party!
    ThacoBellGoturalAerakar
  • HoopleDoopleHoopleDoople Member Posts: 23
    I'm glad to see that even many of these spells I've pointed out as being pretty poor are being used to good effect. Beyond the first couple levels even the bad spells are still decent albeit often mostly redundant. I'm also learning a few things, such the fact that Contagion bypasses magic resistance. That would definitely give it a viable niche against certain strong enemies. Uses with SCS, tactics, or other mods are interesting and useful information but beyond the scope of my analysis.

    I do stand by my choices though. Not insofar as I'm confident they are the top 2 worst choices at each level, but that they are among the least likely to justify memorization. Of course a lot of this also depends very much on personal play style. My approach to dealing with undead makes me consider Hold/Control Undead to be very unnecessary but others clearly value the spells.

    For those who think my choices are too useful, I'd be interested to know what you consider to be particularly useless. It is likely that some spells I value highly are considered fairly niche by other players.

    When we get to the divine spells tomorrow there should be a lot of room for debate. I started reviewing the spell list and there are some real stinkers at low levels.
    ThacoBellBlackraven
  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    I think that Infravision/Energy Drain are probably the worse spells together with Magic Stone, maybe the alignment detecting ones as well, since they have no real use (Disintegrate can be useful vs. certain SoA enemies that don't carry any loot but are dangerous and have low saves/MR, I recall using it some time ago).
    Blackraven
  • DJKajuruDJKajuru Member Posts: 3,300
    CrevsDaak said:

    I think that Infravision/Energy Drain are probably the worse spells together with Magic Stone, maybe the alignment detecting ones as well, since they have no real use (Disintegrate can be useful vs. certain SoA enemies that don't carry any loot but are dangerous and have low saves/MR, I recall using it some time ago).

    I agree - umber hulks, beholders and other nasty creatures with no loot can be put down through instant death spells.
    CrevsDaakBlackraven
  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    DJKajuru said:

    CrevsDaak said:

    I think that Infravision/Energy Drain are probably the worse spells together with Magic Stone, maybe the alignment detecting ones as well, since they have no real use (Disintegrate can be useful vs. certain SoA enemies that don't carry any loot but are dangerous and have low saves/MR, I recall using it some time ago).

    I agree - umber hulks, beholders and other nasty creatures with no loot can be put down through instant death spells.
    Mainly Beholders and other high level nasties you can't kill with a Death Spell but yes with Greater Malison + Disintegrate.
    Blackravensemiticgoddess
  • filcat88filcat88 Member Posts: 115
    Well I must say that Detect Evil or Know Alignment can be useful, al least in 1 non-combat case:

    In BG1, in the area of Xvart camp, there is one Borda which tries to sell you magical items, but they are cursed. I cast Detect evil, discovered that the guy is evil and sent him away.
    DJKajuruAerakarCrevsDaakGrum
  • lunarlunar Member Posts: 3,460
    filcat88 said:

    Well I must say that Detect Evil or Know Alignment can be useful, al least in 1 non-combat case:

    In BG1, in the area of Xvart camp, there is one Borda which tries to sell you magical items, but they are cursed. I cast Detect evil, discovered that the guy is evil and sent him away.
    In my installs he is highly magic resistant (drow lineage?) to boot. Does detect evil bypass mr?
    GoturalAerakarCrevsDaak
  • Abi_DalzimAbi_Dalzim Member Posts: 1,428
    I don't think it does, no.
  • ThacoBellThacoBell Member Posts: 12,235
    Wouldn't someone resisting Detect Evil itself be a red flag?
    GrammarsaladArtona
  • OlvynChuruOlvynChuru Member Posts: 3,075
    Mantle, Improved Mantle and Absolute Immunity are great! Sure, they might not be as good as Protection from Magic Weapons, but you could still use them when you run out of PfMW castings.
  • Abi_DalzimAbi_Dalzim Member Posts: 1,428
    ThacoBell said:

    Wouldn't someone resisting Detect Evil itself be a red flag?

    I'm pretty sure magic resistance happens regardless of whether they're evil or not. The spell doesn't turn up negative so much as it just doesn't work, and you can tell the difference. I don't use it much, though, so I may be misremembering.
  • HoopleDoopleHoopleDoople Member Posts: 23
    I have now added the terrible divine spells section. All responses prior to this comment were made when only the terrible arcane spells section was complete.
    CrevsDaak
  • HoopleDoopleHoopleDoople Member Posts: 23

    There's much less to argue with in the divine spells section. My only note: although Champion's Strength disables spellcasting, you can remove that effect with a simple Dispel Magic, and the duration is long enough that you can cast the spell, dispel the disable spellcasting effect, and then cast all your normal pre-buffs before engaging in a long fight.

    Interesting. Am I correct in assuming you would need to keep the buffed ally out of range of the Dispel Magic? Kind of annoying that it takes an extra level 3 spell to make a level 5 spell somewhat useful. Too bad Champion's Strength still has the annoying property of setting strength rather than boosting it.
    semiticgoddess
  • SirBatinceSirBatince Member Posts: 882
    You're supposed to use symbols and power words as finishers upon enemies you've beaten up decently
  • ThacoBellThacoBell Member Posts: 12,235
    edited December 2016
    It really says something about the game when even the "useless" spells are so good. Except infravision, screw that one.
    *EDIT* I have a friend who SWEARS by sheleighleigh in BG1.
    CrevsDaakFenghoang
  • semiticgoddesssemiticgoddess Member Posts: 14,903

    There's much less to argue with in the divine spells section. My only note: although Champion's Strength disables spellcasting, you can remove that effect with a simple Dispel Magic, and the duration is long enough that you can cast the spell, dispel the disable spellcasting effect, and then cast all your normal pre-buffs before engaging in a long fight.

    Interesting. Am I correct in assuming you would need to keep the buffed ally out of range of the Dispel Magic? Kind of annoying that it takes an extra level 3 spell to make a level 5 spell somewhat useful. Too bad Champion's Strength still has the annoying property of setting strength rather than boosting it.
    Yes. But you can also use an Arrow of Dispelling to dispel an effect on a single character, and if you fire the arrow from a clone (say, from Vhailor's Helm), you won't cut into your finite supply of Arrows of Dispelling. I used this method to prepare for a fight with Firkraag, because one of my characters needed a THAC0 boost.

    It's not really the STR bonus that Champion's Strength is good for; it's the THAC0 bonus. An extra +5 THAC0 can make a huge difference against an enemy with a very low AC, like a dragon.
    CrevsDaak
  • JumboWheat01JumboWheat01 Member Posts: 1,028
    ThacoBell said:

    It really says something about the game when even the "useless" spells are so good. Except infravision, screw that one.
    *EDIT* I have a friend who SWEARS by sheleighleigh in BG1.

    Plus it's fun to keep trying to say Shillelagh correctly.

    And yeah, even most "useless" spells can be fun, and useful in a challenge run or some sort of thing.

    Except Infravision. I almost wonder why they bothered transferring that spell from PnP to BG. Darkvision things generally don't translate well to a cRPG unless you find a major way to tweak the lighting.
    ThacoBellCrevsDaakGrammarsalad
  • FrancoisFrancois Member Posts: 452

    Except Infravision. I almost wonder why they bothered transferring that spell from PnP to BG. Darkvision things generally don't translate well to a cRPG unless you find a major way to tweak the lighting.

    That would have been easy. They could have made a monster that can only be targetted with infravision. For attackers with no infravision it would be treated as under improved invisibility. At least in SoD there are a couple of places where infravision has an actual use.
    semiticgoddess
  • Abi_DalzimAbi_Dalzim Member Posts: 1,428
    I'd dispute your comparison of Cure Moderate Wounds and Cure Serious. Honestly, I find level 3 cleric spells more valuable than level 4. You NEED Remove Paralysis memorized at all times, and Animate Dead/Holy Smite/Dispel Magic/Protection From Fire are all also things that a competent Cleric should probably have ready when needed. Level 4, you have Protection from Evil 10', Death Ward, Free Action, Lesser Restoration, Defensive Harmony, all respectable, but I think you only need one of each per day, and possibly less for Free Action and Lesser Restoration later since items can more easily compensate for those. Meanwhile, you're just not doing the Cleric job correctly without two memorizations each of Dispel Magic and Remove Paralysis IMO. With all that in mind, Cure Serious is respectable filler when you've got the other essentials readied. Now, this diagnosis is reversed for Druids, since they've got the superior Call Woodland Beings and its Cure Mass Wounds, and also because their level 3 spells kind of suck, but that's a different question entirely.
    ThacoBellCrevsDaak
  • HoopleDoopleHoopleDoople Member Posts: 23

    I'd dispute your comparison of Cure Moderate Wounds and Cure Serious. Honestly, I find level 3 cleric spells more valuable than level 4. You NEED Remove Paralysis memorized at all times, and Animate Dead/Holy Smite/Dispel Magic/Protection From Fire are all also things that a competent Cleric should probably have ready when needed. Level 4, you have Protection from Evil 10', Death Ward, Free Action, Lesser Restoration, Defensive Harmony, all respectable, but I think you only need one of each per day, and possibly less for Free Action and Lesser Restoration later since items can more easily compensate for those. Meanwhile, you're just not doing the Cleric job correctly without two memorizations each of Dispel Magic and Remove Paralysis IMO. With all that in mind, Cure Serious is respectable filler when you've got the other essentials readied. Now, this diagnosis is reversed for Druids, since they've got the superior Call Woodland Beings and its Cure Mass Wounds, and also because their level 3 spells kind of suck, but that's a different question entirely.

    Taking Cure Serious Wounds is definitely justifiable. Though it is barely improved over Cure Medium Wounds, it can be taken alongside or in place of Cure Medium Wounds depending on your needs. The real question is if it provides enough value to justify using over Neutralize Poison which provide a quicker heal and has some additional utility. If you place a greater emphasis on out of combat healing then Cure Serious Wounds will definitely find a place in your spellbook until you get access to a sufficient number of later, stronger healing spells.
  • Abi_DalzimAbi_Dalzim Member Posts: 1,428
    Heal is something that I almost always reserve for in combat, so honestly, I keep plenty of both Cure Serious and Cure Light well into TOB, although I'll admit that their use drops off due to the embarrassing overabundance of Potions of Extra Healing that show up at that point.
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