With so much choice on offer, it can be difficult to sift through your options and settle on the best spells in Forspoken that complement your playstyle. With the added element of multiple spell trees to choose from, there’s something for all different kinds of players. Are you a blue magic user who sits back, precisely defeats foes from a distance while protecting themselves from harm? A hard and fast red magic user who batters enemies with devastating melee attacks? Or a devotee of Frey’s signature purple magic, which is a handy mix of short and long range? All are equally viable, as is switching between different kinds at a moments notice to take full advantage of every weapon in your ethereal arsenal. Pretty much every spell is great in its own way in Forspoken, and throughout your time with the game you will more than likely collect enough mana to unlock and upgrade them all. So rather than just focusing on what’s good, we’ll also try to draw your attention to things about your spell roster that aren’t immediately obvious.
Why you should take Spellcraft seriously in Forspoken
Spellcraft is a system which unlocks early in Forspoken that allows you to complete challenges with a certain spell to permenantly upgrade it. The easiest place to access a Spellcraft bookshelf is in the Refuges dotted around Athia, but there’s also one in the Cipal archive. As well as boosting your overall magical prowess with each completed challenge, it’s well worth upgrading your most-used spells in Forspoken as soon as possible, since the improved versions are often extremely powerful. For example, the Leach spell - which usually just clears poison - once Spellcrafted also triggers a healing effect, making it a lot less niche. One of the most useful Forspoken tips is that you can also Spellcraft movement spells to make them flow more fluidly and remove their stamina costs. Look to do this as soon as possible too.
Forspoken Best Spells
Disperse
Pros: Can beat bosses almost solo Cons: Static
It’s easy to underrate Disperse, but it’s an easy Spellcraft and once it’s upgraded it can almost solo both story and Locked Labyrinth bosses by itself. Disperse is great for constantly dealing damage to aggressive enemies while you focus on dodging their attacks, making it easily one of the best spells in Forspoken.
Prime
Pros: Massive damage Cons: Can be left undetonated
Another spell that’s easy to underrate and leave locked when you first read its description, Prime lays an explosive charge in the ground which detonates when an enemy comes near. What’s not immediately apparent is just how huge the amount of damage it does is, and how easily you can just lay it at the feet of an enemy, run away, and take any strategy out of the equation. It’s over on the left-hand side of the purple magic spell tree, behind Implant, and is well worth picking up early.
Scatter Shot
Pros: Incredibly long range Cons: Weaker raw damage than Blast Shot
All three of the damage-dealing shots have their own advantages, but most people will likely default to relying on Burst Shot because of its power and versatility. One thing to remember in the early game though, if you’re ever dealing with fast flying enemies, or enemies that are really far away, is that Scatter Shot has an absolutely massive range - much longer than the other two. If you’re struggling with foes that stretch out too much distance, remember the Scatter Shot tool you have in your locker.
Tendril
Pros: Steals a large chunk of health from enemies, can hit multiple targets Cons: Hits horizontally, so can miss if you’re in the air
While you get quite a lot of healing potions in Forspoken, they’re still a limited resource and sometimes you either aren’t damaged enough to use a full potion or want to conserve them. In these situations, remember that Tendril is an effective method of healing (especially once Spellcrafted) as well as good at hitting large groups of enemies.
Vivify, Amplify, and other gear upgrade skills
Pros: Blanket buffs for your equipment Cons: Not as exciting as other spells
Resources buring a hole in your pouch? They might be expensive and not as exciting as the flashy magic spells, but Vivify, Amplify and the other gear upgrade skills give you a great place to dump your excess materials that makes Frey tangibly stronger in battle. They might seem boring, but shouldn’t be neglected.
Drag and Drop
Pros: Sets up melee combos easily, lots of fun Cons: Can’t pull everything, input doesn’t always work
At the bottom of the red magic spell tree is an awesome little ability called Drag and Drop. This allows you to hold L1 and R1 and press Square to go full Scorpion from Mortal Kombat and drag an enemy in close as well as instantly change to your melee spell set. Unlocking this skill allows your combat to seamlessly flow between ranged and melee styles (there is a purple and blue counterpart, but they’re not as easy to pull off) and pull off dazzling combos which really show off the best of Forspoken’s technical combat system.
Conflagration
Pros: Good ranged option in melee spell tree Cons: Static
The red magic tree is a lot of fun, but while it can be tempting to lean all-in to its signature melee abilities, remember that Conflagration, which raises a firepit underneath the feet of enemies, can help to keep the hordes at bay while you engage the baddies in your immediate vacinity.
Aegis
Pros: Simple cleansing of debuffs Cons: Long cooldown if hit again
Especially as the game progresses, quite a lot of enemies debuff Frey with attack drops, defence drops and other weakening skills. Aegis simply gets rid of them, no questions asked, so remember to reach for it if you see purple arrows pointing down next to your health bar.
Chain Shot
Pros: Huge damage for basic shot Cons: Requires accuracy
As you continue through Frey’s story in Forspoken, you gain access to a suite of powerful ranged spells on the blue magic tree. One that’s worth highlighting is the Chain Shot in the top right, which with some practice can quickly become your go-to due to its huge damage potential. Each shot fires two bolts. If both hit the same place on an enemy, not only do you deal incredible damage, but there’s a chance to paralyze the target too. While it’s undeniably powerful, this approach is more skill-intensive than the other spell trees however, since you have to manually aim at the same spot on an enemy to get the boost.
Naedre
Pros: Easily poisons enemies Cons: slow projectile
As we established with Disperse, getting guaranteed damage over time is pretty strong in Forspoken. This means that one of the starting blue magic spells, Naedre, - despite being quite a slow projectile compared to others in the game - is a great tool to incorporate into your rotation. We’re always finding more strategies in Forspoken and will continue to update this list as more emerge. Got a great combo? Let us know in the comments and we’ll add it to the list!
