Best BG3 Circle of the Spores Druid Build Guide

Welcome to the Circle of the Spores Druid build for Baldur’s Gate 3. The Druid class is highly effective, it can heal and transform into different creatures via the Wild Shape action in BG3. While the other two Druid subclasses focus more on beasts and plants, the Circle of the Spores is themed around decay, and they have access to some darker forms of magic such as necromancy. You can summon poisonous clouds, diseases and zombies at higher levels to attack your foes.

Please visit our Best BG3 Builds overview page for more builds or check out our Best BG3 Druid Build with the Circle of the Moon subclass. Additionally, we also have a unique BG3 Halsin Build and BG3 Jaheira Build if you want good companion setups. If you are interested in more Druid subclass builds, check our BG3 Druid Builds category page. To get an overview of all classes, please visit the BG3 Classes overview page.

The Circle of Spores Druid retains the ability to transform into various animals; however, they can also use their Wild Shape charges to buff themselves and deal extra damage to enemies. The Circle of Spores Build was last updated in November 2025. It works on both PC and Console (PS5 and Xbox Series X/S).

Table of Contents:

Introduction to the Circle of Spores Druid Build
1. BG3 Druid Class Overview
2. Circle of Spores Subclass Overview
Circle of Spores Build Character Creation
Circle of Spores Build Levelling Progression
Circle of Spores Druid Equipment
1. Early-Game Circle of Spores Gear
2. Best Circle of Spores Gear
Circle of Spores Build Extra Info
1. Circle of Spores Build How to Play
2. Illithid Powers (optional)

Circle of Spores Strengths

POWERFUL SPELLCASTER
CAPABLE HEALER
SUMMON UNDEAD
GREAT SUMMONER
CREATE DIFFICULT TERRAIN

Circle of Spores Weaknesses

RELIES ON CONCENTRATION SPELLS
STRUGGLES IN EARLY-GAME
TRICKY FOR BEGINNERS

BG3 Circle of Spores Build Overview

Here is a quick overview of the Druid Class and the Circle of the Spores subclass, which we’ll be using for this build. If you’re already familiar with how they work, you may want to skip this section.

Druid Class Summary

These are the most important aspects of the Druid Class in Baldur’s Gate 3:

Wild Shape (Level 2) – You can use a Wild Shape Charge to transform into a beast. When your beast form reaches 0 HP, you return to human form with the HP you had before you transformed. As you level up, you’ll unlock more Wild Shapes. Some Wild Shapes are unique to specific Druid subclasses.
Wild Shape Improvement (Levels 4, 8 and 12) – Wild Shape Attack Damage is increased.
Wild Strike (Level 5) – You can attack twice per Action while in Wild Shape form.
Improved Wild Strike (Level 10) – You can attack three times per Action in Wild Shape form.

In addition to these class features, the Druid gains access to a fairly wide range of spells, with a high portion of Concentration Spells. They are particularly good at channelling AoE damage, buffs and debuffs. They also possess several healing spells. This combination of features makes the Druid quite versatile. On the other hand, the Druid can be tricky to play because you cannot cast spells while in animal form, and you don’t have many non-Concentration Spells or strong Cantrips.

Circle of the Spores Subclass Summary

Now, let’s look at the most important features of the Circle of the Spores subclass:

Halo of Spores (Level 2) – Spend your Reaction to unleash spores on the target, dealing 1d4 Necrotic Damage. The damage will increase at higher levels.
Symbiotic Entity (Level 2) – Spend a Wild Shape Charge and an Action. Gain Temporary HP and an extra 1d6 Necrotic Damage with weapons or unarmed attacks. Doubles the damage of your Halo of Spores. When the Temporary HP is lost, you will also lose your Symbiotic Entity buff.
Fungal Infestation (Level 6) – You gain four Fungal Infestation Charges, which are replenished on Long Rests. You can spend a Fungal Infestation Charge and a Reaction to raise a Fungal Zombie from a beast or humanoid corpse. The zombie can survive until your next Long Rest.
Spreading Spores (Level 10) – Seed an area with spores that deal 2d8 Necrotic Damage to creatures that inhale them. The Spores don’t affect you or your allies.

Character Creation (Level 1) for the Circle of Spores Druid

In this section, we will guide you through the best options in Character Creation for the BG3 Circle of Spores Druid Build. While you can deviate somewhat from this if you want, following these steps will result in the most powerful starting point for your Druid.

Top 5 Circle of Spores Races

The race you select has no bearing on your Ability scores, which are the most important factor at play. This gives players more freedom to choose any race and class combination that they wish, without having to worry about being pigeon-holed into a “meta” race for their class.

However, there are still some useful passive features sourced from your race and subrace, which may be of advantage when it comes to the Circle of the Spores Druid. Some interesting options are:

Race	Strengths	Info
Wood Elf	Proficiency in Stealth and Perception Extra Weapon Proficiencies: Shortswords Longswords Shortbows Longbows *Fey Ancestry* Advantage against Charmed Immune to Magical Sleep *Darkvision* *Fleet of Foot* – 1.5 metres of extra Movement Speed	Wood Elves are a great choice for most build types in BG3, thanks to their superior movement speed. Natural Proficiency in Perception is always useful, and immunity to magical Sleep will help you out a lot, especially in the early game, where enemy mages love to spam this spell. You can also use a Half Wood-Elf for most of the same benefits.
Duergar	Can wear Medium Armour Can wield axes and hammers *Dwarven Resilience* Advantage against Poisoned Resistance to Poison Damage *Superior Darkvision* *Duergar Resilience* Advantage on Saving Throws against illusions Advantage against Charmed and Paralysed *Duergar Magic* *Enlarge* (Level 3) *Invisibility* (Level 5)	With their wide choice of armour and weapon proficiencies, and resistances to poison, charm, and paralysis, Duergar are one of the strongest races in BG3. The only downside of Duergar is their small stature – this reduces their base Movement Speed to 7.5 metres per turn (most races get 9 metres).
Gold Dwarf	Can wear Medium Armour Can wield axes and hammers *Dwarven Resilience* Advantage against Poisoned Resistance to Poison Damage *Darkvision* Dwarven Toughness – You gain 1 additional HP per level	The Gold Dwarf is good for beginner players, because it gets some extra HP as you level up.
Forest Gnome	Gnome Cunning Advantage on Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma Saving Throws *Darkvision* Speak with Animals Slow Movement	Gnomes gain Advantage on Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma Saving Throws, a strong bonus which shouldn’t be underestimated. The three Gnome variants are very similar, but the Forest Gnome is a good thematic choice for a Druid. Like Dwarves, Gnomes are small, so they have reduced Movement Speed.
Human	Can wear Light Armour and Shields Extra Weapon Proficiencies: Spears Pikes Halberds Glaives Human Versatility One unrestricted Skill choice Increases Carrying Capacity by 25%	Humans are useful for their unrestricted Skill choice. Used wisely, this allows your character to be proficient with a useful Skill that wouldn’t normally be available for your Class. The extra carrying capacity is a nice boost, too.

Background & Skills

The following Backgrounds are the best choice for your Circle of the Spores Druid:

Acolyte
Folk Hero
Outlander

These backgrounds give us the most proficiency with Wisdom-based skills. You will want to have high Wisdom on your Druid, since this is the ability needed for spellcasting on this class. These backgrounds fit nicely with that.

For your Skills, choose any remaining options that are Wisdom or Dexterity-based.

Abilities

For Druids, Wisdom is the most important ability, followed by Constitution and Dexterity. We want 16 points in Wisdom to improve the efficacy of spellcasting, and 16 in Constitution will improve your HP and your ability to maintain Concentration on your spells. Dexterity helps to improve your Armour Class.

It usually makes sense to keep the ability scores on even numbers as much as possible, since your Ability Modifiers (i.e. Wisdom Modifier) only gets changed for every second point – for example 12 Wisdom = +1 Wisdom Modifier, 14 Wisdom = +2 Wisdom Modifier, etc.

10 Strength
14 Dexterity
16 Constitution
8 Intelligence
16 Wisdom
10 Charisma

Cantrips

You can choose two Cantrips to start the game with. We recommend the following options:

Thorn Whip – Does a modest amount of piercing damage, but its most useful application is its ability to control the position of enemies on the battlefield. If an enemy is entrenched in a strong position and giving you a hard time, you can use Thorn Whip to pull them towards you. This is especially useful on enemies who have an elevation advantage over you. Thorn Whip can pull them down to your level. Depending on how high they are, they may receive additional falling damage.
Shillelagh – Shillelagh imbues your staff or club with magical energy for the next 10 turns, causing it to deal extra bludgeoning damage. This spell might seem fairly mediocre at first glance, but it’s actually a huge blessing for us in the early game, as it also causes our melee attacks to use our Wisdom instead of our Strength, massively improving your attack rolls if you built the Druid as recommended above. This is also a Bonus Action, meaning you can cast it and then perform an attack on the same turn.
- Please Note: In the equipment section later in the guide, we have recommended dual-wield Scimitars for your melee weapons. The Shillelagh staff is mainly intended for the first few levels when there aren’t many good Scimitars available, but you can use it for longer if you prefer to use a staff.

Spells

You also need to select four Prepared Spells to begin the game with. On the Druid, your spells need to be prepared before you can use them. We recommend choosing the following four spells:

Speak with Animals – You can speak with animals, potentially uncovering additional information and quest paths. This will not consume a Spell Slot when cast outside of combat.
Thunderwave – Thunderwave produces a large directional wave originating from your character, knocking back all characters and objects in its path. It also deals some Thunder damage. Not only is this a decent AOE damage spell, it’s also great for creating space, and you can knock enemies off ledges or cliffs, subjecting them to additional fall damage or even an immediate demise.
Faerie Fire – Faerie Fire is an AOE debuff spell, placing an effect on characters in the area that improves Attack Rolls against them. It requires Concentration to maintain the spell, but you’re generally going to have considerably better results from attack rolls as long as you can maintain this on your targets. Just be careful not to place it on your allies by accident. This also pulls targets out of any effects that make them invisible.
Healing Word – Healing Word is a nice healing spell that can be used at long range. At first glance, you might think that Cure Wounds is better, due to its higher potential healing roll. However, this is a mistake. Cure Wounds can only be cast at Melee Range, which gives it a major disadvantage versus Healing Word, and Healing Word is also a Bonus Action, meaning you can still attack or cast another cantrip or spell on the same turn.

Note that the number of Prepared Spells we can have depends on our Character Level and our Wisdom. Each character Level will give another slot, and increasing our Wisdom skill further will also add to this.

What is Concentration in BG3?

The Concentration mechanic is important to understand for any spellcaster. Many spells that leave a lingering effect on an enemy or an area require Concentration to maintain. You can see if a spell requires Concentration on its tooltip.

What this means is that whenever the caster takes damage, they must go through a Concentration Check. Failing the check will break Concentration and put an end to any ongoing Concentration spells that they were maintaining. Having a higher Constitution score improves your chances of passing Concentration Checks.

You can only have one Concentration spell active at a time (per character). Casting another Concentration Spell will replace the ongoing effects of the previous one.

Circle of the Spores Build Levelling Guide

We will now walk you through the full levelling up process for our BG3 Circle of the Spores Druid Build.

Early-Game Levelling 2-4 for your BG3 Circle of Spores Druid Build

The BG3 Circle of the Spores Build early-game levelling process consists of levels 2-4.

Level 2

When you reach Level 2, you will need to choose which Subclass you want to use for your BG3 Druid Build. You can view more information about the three subclasses here.

For this Druid build, we’ll be using the Circle of the Spores subclass, which unlocks extra spells as you level up and allows you to use fungal spores to damage enemies or invigorate yourself.

From this level onwards, you will be able to use your Wild Shape charges to transform into a Badger, Cat, Spider or Wolf.

Meanwhile, your Circle of Spores subclass will initially grant you the following benefits:

Bone Chill – This is a pretty nice feature of this subclass – the Thorn Whip Cantrip is honestly not very good, and Bone Chill offers a better alternative. It can deal more damage and can apply the Bone Chilled Condition to the target, preventing them from regaining HP.
Halo of Spores – Spend your Reaction to unleash spores on the target, dealing 1d4 Necrotic Damage. The damage will increase at higher levels.
Symbiotic Entity – Spend a Wild Shape Charge and an Action. Gain Temporary HP and an extra 1d6 Necrotic Damage with weapons or unarmed attacks. Doubles the damage of your Halo of Spores. When the Temporary HP is lost, you will also lose your Symbiotic Entity buff.

Finally, you can choose one more spell at this level. I recommend the Ice Knife spell, which gives the build some much-needed burst damage, with some modest AOE potential too.

Level 3

At Level 3, you gain access to second-level spells – more powerful forms of magic for your Circle of Spores Druid.

First of all, there are a couple of spells that are granted by your subclass here, and are always Prepared – this means they are always available to use, and you don’t need to worry about slotting them manually:

Blindness – Magically Blind an enemy for 10 turns, unless they succeed a Concentration Saving Throw. Blind enemies cannot directly target anyone further than 3 metres away. All of their Attack Rolls have Disadvantage, and all Attack Rolls against them have Advantage. This is a pretty powerful debuff if you can successfully put it on an enemy, and Circle of Spores is the only way to get this on a Druid.
Detect Thoughts – Allows you to read the thoughts of certain creatures when talking to them. This is a Ritual Spell, which means you can cast it for free outside of combat. It’s also important to notice that it’s a Concentration Spell, so if you have any other long-lasting Concentration spell active, then casting Detect Thoughts will replace it!

You can also select one more spell from the regular Druid spell list. I recommend Spike Growth – a very powerful area of denial spell. The AOE of this spell is large, and anyone crossing over the spikes is slowed down and takes Piercing Damage as they walk. Enemies will often get themselves killed trying to cross the spikes. Having a spell like this at your disposal can make otherwise difficult fights a walk in the park, by stopping melee enemies from reaching your party (or at least heavily hindering and/or damaging them).

Level 4

At Level 4, you can choose a Feat for your character, enhancing your abilities. We recommend choosing Ability Improvement, which unlocks 2 additional Ability Points. Put both points into Wisdom to improve your Spellcasting.

You can choose another Cantrip at this level. If nobody else in your party has the Guidance cantrip, then choose this – it’s great for improving your chances in various dice rolls, such as dialogue checks and Lockpicking. Otherwise, just choose whichever Cantrip you like the most.

Finally, you can select two more spells from the Druid list to prepare. I recommend the following two spells:

Moonbeam – Creates a small AOE that causes Radiant Damage. As long as you maintain Concentration on the spell, you can move the AOE each turn by spending an Action, dealing damage at the new location.
Heat Metal – Targets an enemy with a metal weapon or armour. Deals Fire Damage and forces the enemy to either drop the item or receive Disadvantage on Attack Rolls and Ability Checks. This is a strong dual-purpose spell that can debuff or disarm an opponent while also dealing damage. The spell requires Concentration, and you can trigger the damage again each turn as long as you retain Concentration.

Mid-Game Levelling – Circle of the Spores Druid Build

The BG3 Druid Build mid-game levelling process consists of levels 5-8.

Level 5

At Level 5, you gain the Wild Strike passive, which gives you an extra attack per Action when in a Wild Shape form.. This only applies to your animal Wild Shapes; you will not get an extra attack when under the effects of Symbiotic Entity.

Your damaging Cantrips will gain an extra damage die at this level – they will now deal twice as much damage.

The Circle of Spores subclass will grant you two new spells:

Animate Dead – Reanimate a corpse to create an undead servant
Gaseous Form – Transform yourself or an ally into a cloud of mist to avoid attacks, have Advantage on Saving Throws, fit through tiny gaps and immunity to falling. However, while in mist form, you cannot attack or cast spells.

In addition, you can choose one more Druid spell to prepare – you now have access to Third Level spells, too. Call Lightning is a good option – it deals considerable AOE damage, and you can recast it again each turn as long as you maintain Concentration.

Level 6

At Level 6, you gain access to a new Circle of the Spores action. Fungal Infestation allows you to raise a zombie from a corpse. It costs a Reaction and a Fungal Infestation Charge to use. The Fungal Infestation Charges are replenished after every Long Rest.

You can choose one more spell. Hold Person is a very strong stun that leaves an enemy very vulnerable to melee damage in particular. The stun is practically a death sentence if you have a strong melee hitter in your party, such as a Barbarian or Fighter. You can upcast it to attempt to stun multiple enemies with one cast.

You can also use your Wild Shape to transform into an Owlbear or a Panther.

Level 7

At Level 7, your magic becomes quite a bit more powerful, with another batch of Circle of Spores spells and access to Fourth Level spells.

The Circle of Spores subclass grants you access to the following spells:

Blight – A single-target spell that potentially deals high Necrotic Damage to enemies. Targets who save still take half the damage.
Confusion – Causes creatures with an area to become confused, randomly attacking anyone nearby, including their allies. Targets can perform a Wisdom save to resist the effect.

You can also choose one more spell from the Druid list to prepare. Conjure Woodland Being allows you to summon a dryad, who can, in turn, summon a tree spirit. This is essentially two summons in one, and they can last until your next Long Rest, so you might as well pre-summon them before combat. They can deal some extra damage to enemies, create difficult terrain and distract enemies from attacking you directly.

Level 8

At Level 8, you must choose another Feat. Choose Ability Improvement and increase your Wisdom again, this time to 20.

Now that your Wisdom is increased to 20, you can choose two more spells from the Druid spell list:

Freedom of Movement – A situational spell, this can be used to immediately cure any stun and grant immunity to the slowing effects of difficult terrain. It also prevents the target from being magically paralysed or restrained.
Wall of Fire – Create a large wall of flames. Anyone who enters, or starts their turn in the fire, takes 5d8 Fire Damage. Requires Concentration to maintain the wall.

End-Game Levelling – Circle of the Spores Druid Build

The BG3 Build end-game levelling process starts at level 9 and ends with max level 12.

Level 9

At Level 9, you gain access to even more powerful magic for your Circle of the Spores Druid.

Firstly, your subclass grants you the following two spells:

Contagion – Poison the target and potentially afflict them with a disease of your choice. After being targeted with the contagion, the creature performs a Saving Throw each turn. If they accumulate 3 successes, they will cure themselves. If they accumulate 3 failures, the contagion will be replaced with the chosen disease. You must be in melee range to apply the contagion. You can choose from the following contagions:
- Filth Fever – Disadvantage on Checks, Saving Throws and Attack Rolls using Strength
- Flesh Rot – Disadvantage on Charisma checks, and takes 50% more damage from all sources (does not stack with existing damage vulnerabilities)
- Slimy Doom – Disadvantage on Constitution checks and Saving Throws. Is Stunned whenever it takes damage.
- Seizure – Disadvantage on Checks, Saving Throws and Attack Rolls using Dexterity
- Mindfire – Disadvantage on Intelligence Checks, and behaves as if afflicted by the Confused condition when in combat.
- Blinding Sickness – Disadvantage on Wisdom Checks and Saving Throws, and is Blinded.
Cloudkill – Summon a poisonous cloud that deals 5d8 Poison Damage to those within every turn. Required Concentration to maintain. You can reposition the cloud each turn.

In addition, you may choose one more spell from the Druid spell list. I highly recommend the Insect Plague spell. This envelops a large area in a swarm of locusts, dealing Piercing Damage every turn and slowing down enemies trying to move through it. This is especially good in chokepoints, where it can cause serious problems for entire groups of enemies. Requires Concentration to maintain the swarm.

Level 10

At this level, you unlock the Dilophosaurus Wild Shape, allowing you to transform into a dinosaur.

You can now attack three times per action when in beast form.

Your cantrips gain another damage die, now having three dice each. You can also choose another Cantrip – we already picked out the best ones, so just get whichever one you like the most.

You can use the Spreading Spores Bonus Action, which seeds an area with spores that 2d8 Necrotic Damage per turn to enemies who inhale them. The spores do not affect you or your allies. Note that you need to have Symbiotic Entity active in order to use Spreading Spores.

Finally, you can choose one more Druid spell to prepare. I recommend picking up Mass Cure Wounds, which lets you target several allies (including yourself) with healing at the same time.

Level 11

At Level 11, you gain access to Sixth-level spells, the most powerful tier of magic in Baldur’s Gate 3.

Sunbeam is a very powerful spell that deals high Radiant Damage in a long line-shaped AOE. You can recast it each turn, as long as you maintain Concentration. We recommend choosing this spell at Level 11.

Level 12

At Level 12, you will be able to choose one final Feat for your Druid Build. We recommend using War Caster, which will make it easier for you to maintain Concentration on your spells. Most of the Druid’s good spells are Concentration Spells, so this choice makes a lot of sense.

You can also choose one more spell to Prepare.

If nobody else in your party has Heroes Feast, then it’s a very good idea to grab this. It gives your entire party 12 extra HP, Advantage on Wisdom Saving Throws and immunity to Diseased, Poisoned and Frightened. This is a very good buff that lasts until your next Long Rest, so I highly recommend having someone in your party to cast it immediately after each Long Rest. If you have a Cleric in your party, then they can do it instead of the Druid, for example.

If Heroes’ Feast is already covered, then give Wall of Thorns a try. As the name suggests, this conjures a wall of thorny vines that deal 7d8 Piercing Damage to anyone trying to move through them. Moving through the vines reduces Movement Speed by 75% and can also cause them to become Entangled (immobilised), meaning they will be forced to stay there and take even more damage on their next turn. This is like a juiced-up version of the Spike Growth spell from earlier, and it can cause serious problems for enemies. If you are taking a defensive position in a battle, then this spell is ideal for making sure anyone who wants to reach you has a horrible time. Just try to put in a location that cannot be bypassed – the AI will (usually) try to avoid nasty AOE effects like this and doesn’t mind spending 3 turns running the long way around.

Circle of Spores Druid Build Equipment

In this section, we will take a look at the best equipment for the Circle of Spores Druid build. We have included both an early-game and late-game variation. Early-game items are available in Act I and the earlier parts of Act II, while the late-game items are available in late Act II or Act III.

Don’t worry if you don’t have exactly the same gear, and feel free to experiment with other combos too. The gear here is just a guideline.

Early-Game Circle of Spores Equipment

This is the early-game gear setup that you can use for your Druid. You don’t need to get all the items, but the build will perform better if you find some of them. You can find these items in Act 1 or early Act 2.

Slot	Item	Location	Benefits
Head	Key of the Ancients	Dropped by Findal in the Underground Passage near the Druid Grove, OR by Nettie in the Druid Grove	Grants +1 to Nature skill, enhancing nature-related checks.
Cloak	Cloak of Protection	Purchased from Quartermaster Talli at Last Light Inn (Act 2).	Provides +1 to Armour Class and Saving Throws, boosting overall defense.
Chest	Barkskin Armour	Purchased from Quartermaster Talli at Last Light Inn (Act 2).	Permanently applies the Barkskin effect, ensuring a minimum AC of 16, even in Wild Shape.
Gloves	Hellrider’s Pride	Buy, loot or steal from Zevlor in Act I. Or, complete the Investigate Kagha or Kill Kagha quest to get it as a reward.	Creatures you heal get Resistance to Physical Damage. You get +1 to Strength Saves.
Boots	Disintegrating Night Walkers	Looted from True Soul Nere in the Grymforge	You cannot be Enwebbed, Ensnared or Entangled, and cannot slip on Ice or Grease. You can use Misty Step for free.
Necklace	Anything you find	None	None
Ring	Ring of Protection	Complete the Steal the Sacred Idol quest inside the Druid Cave.	Gives you a +1 bonus to Armour Class and Saving Throws.
Ring	The Whispering Promise	Sold by Volo or Grat the Trader	When you heal an ally, you also Bless them, giving a 1d4 bonus to Attack Rolls and Saving Throws.
Main Hand	Adamantine Scimitar	Crafted at the Adamantine Forge. Requires Mithral Ore and the Scimitar Mold.	Ignores resistance to slashing damage
Off Hand	Scimitar +1	Sold by various traders in Act 1 or looted from a crate near Dammon in the Druid Grove.	Provides a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls.

These early-game items are mainly intended to boost your defences and improve your healing. At the start of the game when you haven’t obtained a decent pair of Scimitars yet, use your Quarterstaff with the Shillelagh Cantrip if you need to do melee damage (or use your Wild Shapes).

Endgame Gear

The endgame gear setup is built together with items from late Act 2 and Act 3. While you don’t need all these items, it is recommended to get as many as possible to increase the overall power of the Druid Build.

Slot	Item	Location	Benefits
Head	Hood of the Weave	Sold by Mystic Carrion in Philgrave’s Mansion	• +2 to Spell Save DC
Cloak	Cloak of the Weave	Sold by Helsik at the Devil’s Fee (After Special Stock unlock).	• +1 to Spell Save DC and Spell Attack Rolls
Chest	Armour of Landfall	Sold inside Sorcerous Sundries	• Advantage on Constitution Saving Throws • Can cast Plant Growth for free • +1 to Spell Save DC • Starting your turn on Vines or Plant Growth heals you 1d4
Gloves	Helldusk Gloves	Dropped by Haarlep in the House of Hope.	• +1 to Spell Save DC and Spell Attack Rolls • +1 to Strength Saving Throws. • Access to Rays of Fire, a unique Cantrip • Weapon Attacks gain 1d6 Fire Damage. Unarmed Attacks gain 1d6 Necrotic Damage.
Boots	Helldusk Boots	Looted from a locked gilded chest on the top floor of Wyrm’s Rock Fortress	• You cannot be forcefully moved by enemy spells or actions • Immunity to being slowed by Difficult Terrain • You can use your Reaction to succeed a Saving Throw you were about to fail.
Necklace	Amulet of Greater Health	House of Hope Archive.	• Boosts Constitution to 23.
Ring	Ring of Regeneration	Sold inside Sorcerous Sundries.	• Restores 1-4 HP beginning of every turn.
Ring	Ring of Feywild Sparks	Dropped by Auntie Ethel in Act III (Blushing Mermaid Cellar)	• Hidden +1 buff to Spell Save DC
Main Hand	Justiciar’s Scimitar	Dropped by Lythindor in the Gauntlet of Shar.	• Chance to blind target if you attack with Advantage. • +2 Enchantment. • Shadowsoaked Blow action.
Off Hand	Belm	In an Opulent Chest in the cellar of Elerrathin’s Home	• +2 Enchantment • Use Whirlwind Attack to make an Attack Roll against all nearby foes • Use Perfectly Balanced Strike to make a full-damage attack with a Bonus Action each turn.

In the latter parts of BG3, we have access to much better items that can improve your spellcasting, and we’re aiming to take advantage of that here.

Most of the items in this list improve your Spell Save Difficulty Class, a stat used to determine how high enemies need to roll to succeed on a Saving Throw against your spells. The higher we can stack this number, the harder it will be for enemies to resist your spells’ effects.

We’ve also included the Ring of Regeneration to give your Druid passive HP regen each turn, and the Amulet of Greater Health to improve your HP and your Constitution score, which will help with Concentration Saving Throws. The main idea behind this build is for your spellcasting to be as resilient as possible, being difficult for enemies to resist and making Concentration Saves as easy as possible. You should still be careful not to put yourself in harm’s way when concentrating, though.

We’ve also included two powerful Scimitars for melee attacks when needed. If you want to swap these for another melee weapon setup, then that’s fine – they don’t affect the main aspect of the build, which is spellcasting, and are only there to be used in a pinch when you have no good spellcasting options.

Circle of the Spores Build Extra Info

Below you will find some extra information and tips to help you get the most out of this Circle of Spores Druid Build for Baldur’s Gate 3.

How to Play the BG3 Circle of the Spores Druid Build

Early Game

During the first few levels, Druids can be a bit tricky to play because their Cantrips are quite weak, and their spells are mostly Concentration spells centred around buffs or debuffs. This makes it difficult to deal reliable damage.

At the beginning of the game, the best way to deal with this is to equip a Quarterstaff and boost it with the Shillelagh cantrip, increasing its damage and allowing you to roll attacks with Wisdom instead of Strength. Another option is to use your Wild Shapes to attack in animal form.

When Concentrating on spells, keep your Druid as safe as possible from enemy attacks by utilizing distance and obstructions. Concentration is more important for Druids than any other spellcaster in BG3 – you will quickly burn through your Spell Slots for very little benefit if you cannot maintain it.

One of your most useful spells in the early game is Spike Growth, which covers a large area with spikes that damage anyone who tries to walk through them. With good placement, this spell can turn a difficult fight into an easy one.

The Circle of Spores allows you to spend your Reaction to launch spores at an enemy, dealing a small amount of extra Necrotic Damage. This is helpful for chipping away at enemies’ HP, but remember that you won’t be able to use any Reactions until your next turn. You can also use Symbiotic Entity to increase the damage done by these spores and protect yourself with Temporary HP (this costs a Wild Shape charge, though).

Mid Game

When you reach Level 5, you can start using the Call Lightning spell. This is one of the best concentration spells in the game, dealing up to 40 Lightning Damage in an AoE. If you maintain Concentration, you can recast it every turn without spending another Spell Slot. This spell offers great value, as long as you keep Concentration.

You will begin unlocking stronger Wild Shapes as you progress through the game, such as the powerful Owlbear, who comes with a huge HP pool. It can frighten enemies and jump down from a height to deal crushing damage on impact.

At Levels 5 and 6, you unlock a spell and a subclass feature that allow you to raise undead minions. While they’re not great at attacking enemies, this is still a great option because enemies will waste their time attacking your minions, reducing the damage your party takes.

Late Game

The Druid’s playstyle remains largely the same into the late game. By now, you may have replaced your Shillelagh staff with Scimitars or other melee weapons, and your spells and Wild Shapes keep getting stronger.

You can use spells like Insect Plague and Sunbeam to deal devastating AoE damage to foes. Do everything you can to keep your Druid’s Concentration intact, and you can dominate the battlefield with this magic.

Circle of Spores Druid Build Illithid Powers (optional)

Illithid Powers are unlocked later in BG3 when you learn more about Mind Flayers and Tadpoles. By eating Jars of Mind Flayer Parasites you gain one point. This is another optional skill tree that you can get access to if you want. Here are some of the best Illithid Powers for the BG3 Druid Build with the Circle of Spores subclass:

Luck of the Far Realms: This ability allows you to convert a successful attack roll into a critical hit once per long rest. Utilising this power during a Wild Shape attack can result in substantial damage, making it ideal for eliminating high-priority targets.
Cull the Weak: When you reduce a creature’s hit points below a certain threshold, this power instantly kills it and deals 1-4 Psychic Damage to nearby enemies. This is particularly effective when engaging groups of weaker foes, enabling you to thin their numbers rapidly.
Fly: This can be used to reach hard to get to places or change positions in combat.
Black Hole: This power creates an area-based effect that pulls in and slows targets. It’s particularly useful for crowd control, allowing you to cluster enemies together for area-of-effect attacks or to isolate them from vulnerable allies.
Psionic Backlash: This is a top-tier reaction from the Illithid Powers skill tree in BG3. This allows you to deal psychic damage when a nearby enemy casts a spell.

Other Baldur’s Gate 3 Builds

If you want to check out the map of Baldur’s Gate 3, please visit the Baldur’s Gate 3 Interactive Map.