Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - General some questions about spells

I have read the players handbook but some questions are still open:

- Some spells improve with level, especially cantrips get better at lv. 5, 11 and 17.
But what level? Character level, level of the class that gave you this spell or something else?
When multi classing, does it matter if the other class has the same spell too, is a caster class or cannot cast spells at all?

- All spells from different classes share the same spell slots.
So a sorcerer5/cleric5 has the same amount of spell slots like a single class character, but only half the number of different spells per level.
Paladins and rangers count as 1/2, fighters and rogues with spells as 1/3 when you multi class with a full caster.
+ How does it work when you combine those classes (paladin, eldritch knight and so on) when not having a level in a full caster class?
+ How does it work if you combine a caster class with a warlock, who has a completely different spell system (only a few slots, you use always the highest slot level, only slots up to lv5 higher level spells can only be used once per day, spell slots recover at short rest)

- Can you cast all spells with a slot of a higher level, even if the description does not mention an additional effect at higher levels?

- You cannot cast spells with somatic component if you have a shield or a 2h weapon equipped unless you have the war caster feat. Is that correct?

I do not know if I understood your questions correctly, but let me try to help:


As per PHB: "If a cantrip of yours increases in power at higher levels, the increase is based on your character level, not your level in a particular class", that includes cantrips you get from feats, race, class, etc.

"Each spells you know and prepare is associated with one of your Classes, and you use the Spellcasting Ability of that class when you cast the spell. Similarly, a Spellcasting focus, such as a holy symbol, can be used only for the Spells from the class associated with that focus" So if you learnt fire bolt with your wizard class you will use INT, if you learnt it with your sorcerer class you will use CHA and in D&D 5e almost all the spells (not cantrips) only get better if you use them with a higher spell slot.

i.e) if you want to shoot four magic missiles instead of three does not matter if you have 3 levels of wizard or 20 levels, you still have to use a 2nd level spell slot, generally speaking.

If you learn the cantrip from other sources, like feats, they tell you in the description what stat you use for spellcasting, usually. So no, whatever the other classes you multiclass with, they do not pile up. But since the cantrips are heightened with your character level, it does not matter for cantrips.


In short, you just follow the multiclass table of WoTC https://5thsrd.org/rules/multiclassing/

As you said, Pally and rangers count as 1/2 and rogues with 1/3 when you multiclassing to calculate your spell slots, same with each other. With a level 6 character in mind:

• 
  So a ranger (3) pally (3) has [4 level-1 spell slots, 2 level-2 slots].
  A ranger (3) rogue (3) has only [3 Lvl-1 spellslots]
  A ranger (3) cleric (3) has [4 level-1 spell slots and 3 level-2 spell slots]
  A cleric(3) druid (3) has [4 Lvl-1; 3 lvl-2, 3 lvl-3]

If you roll a barbarian-ranger you use the spell progression of the ranger class.


For warlocks:
"Pact Magic: If you have both the Spellcasting class feature and the Pact Magic class feature from the Warlock class, you can use the Spell Slots you gain from the Pact Magic feature to cast Spells you know or have prepared from Classes with the Spellcasting class feature, and you can use the Spell Slots you gain from the Spellcasting class feature to cast Warlock Spells you know"
i.e. The spells slots of the warlock and any other class pile up with each other, so you can use either.
A ranger (3) warlock (3) has 3 level-1 slot spells and 2 level-2 slot spells from the warlock class and so on...



You need a free hand, so you can have a shield in one hand and cast with the other, for example.

Somatic (S)
Spellcasting gestures might include a forceful gesticulation or an intricate set of gestures. If a spell requires a somatic component, the caster must have free use of at least one hand to perform these gestures.


Material (M) [...] A spellcaster must have a hand free to access a spell's material components--or to hold a spellcasting focus--but it can be the same hand that he or she uses to perform somatic components.

Some subclasses or classes or spells have special ways to wield weapons and casting, like sword bards that use the weapon as a spellcasting focus, so they do cast the spell using the weapon in his hand.


SC: Players Handbook, GM guide.

Thanks a lot

So about the warlock multiclass this means:
Lets say I have a lv3 warlock/lv5 sorcerer. (this is character level, below I will use spell level)
I have 2 warlock spell slots of level 2 and I have sorcerer spell slots up to lv3.
This means I could cast any warlock spell and any sorcerer spell of lv1 or 2 as a warlock spell slot and it would always have the effect of a level 2 spell.
I cannot cast a lv3 sorcerer spell using my warlock spell slots.
I can cast any warlock spell and chose if I use a lv1, 2 or 3 sorcerer spell slot, except that I cannot use a lv2 warlock spell with a lv1 sorcerer spell slot.

about
- Can you cast all spells with a slot of a higher level, even if the description does not mention an additional effect at higher levels?
Lets say I have the shield spell (as example for a spell with a description that does not mention higher levels), I have already used all of my lv1 slots but I still have slots of higher level.
If an enemy casts magic missle at me, can I react with shield using a lv2 slot or higher?
Edit: I do not know all spells, but for example stinking cloud has no text about higher levels. If you have a spell that can make an entire group of enemies helpless, its probably useful to cast it with a higher level slot, even if the higher level has no bonus effect, assuming you could do that.

You can cast a spell with a spell slot of the spell's level or higher, regardless. However, if you're not getting an additional effect for casting it with a higher level slot, there's no reason to use a higher level slot instead of a spell slot of that spell's level. Since, in D&D 5e, the spell level used has no effect on Spell DC.

Without war caster...

Pact of the blade has an Eldritch invocation that allows your pact weapon (limited to one handed) to be your arcane focus...I can see a future DLC to include Hexblades (which can use any weapon as their pact weapon).

Staves (which are a focus) have been ruled to be usable in the same way as a quarterstaff.

Clerics can have been ruled to be able to inscribe their shields to make them work as a focus...that might be implemented.

What does a focus do?
Does it replace the somatic component of spells?

I found several focus items in the PHB, but at least in the part about spellcasting it is not mentioned what it does.

about 2h weapons:
You need one free hand to cast a somatic spell.
Can you hold a 2h weapon with one hand, like one end of the weapon rests on the ground, you hold it with one hand and the other hand is free.
You cannot cast and attack at the same time, but you could cast in one round and attack in the next round.

The focus replaces the Material (M) component of a spell, but if a spell states that a material component is consumed by the spell, the caster must provide this component for each casting of the spell.

Thanks that's good info. Wasn't sure of the point of an Arcane Focus + Spell Components. Instead of makes sense. It will help a lot when I play my Evoker/ Artillerist build. Well after the Artificer gets modded in.