Force damage in Baldur’s Gate 3 comes from spells, weapon attacks, conditional gear effects, ammunition, explosives, and NPC or encounter abilities. The BG3 Wiki’s Force-source category is a useful checklist, but its displayed 83 pages include more than player-usable build options. Check each entry’s availability and trigger before treating it as equipment or a spell your character can use.
Player-usable spells and actions
Several spells and actions deal Force damage, with delivery ranging from individual projectiles to attacks or area effects. The category index includes spells and actions such as Magic Missile, Eldritch Blast, Disintegrate, Banishing Smite, and Spiritual Weapon variants. Their damage, access, and conditions differ; consult the relevant spell or action entry for the character requirements and current details.
Magic Missile
At its base level, Magic Missile creates three darts of magical Force, each dealing 1d4 + 1 Force damage. Each dart is treated as a separate damage source, a detail that can matter when effects interact with damage sources or riders. See the BG3 Wiki’s damage mechanics reference.
Weapons whose attacks deal Force damage
Most weapons deal a physical damage type on their ordinary attacks, but the Force overview identifies these player-accessible weapons as having regular attacks that deal Force damage. The listed damage values and item behavior can be patch-sensitive, so check the current item page or in-game tooltip.
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| Weapon | What the reference says | Access and qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Arcane Absorption Dagger | Regular attacks deal Force damage. | Player-accessible weapon; see the BG3 Wiki Force overview and current item tooltip. |
| Breaching Pikestaff | Regular attacks deal Force damage. | Player-accessible weapon; see the BG3 Wiki Force overview and current item tooltip. |
| Halberd of Vigilance | Regular attacks deal Force damage; it also has an item-specific effect. | Player-accessible weapon; the additional effect is conditional. See the Force set reference. |
| Ne’er Misser | Its attacks deal Force as their primary damage type rather than the Piercing damage usual for a hand crossbow. | Player-accessible weapon; see the damage types reference and current item tooltip. |
The category also includes Crossbow of Arcane Force. Because a category listing alone does not establish that every listed entry is a practical player option or explain its conditions, verify its current item entry before planning around it.
Gear that adds Force damage conditionally
Force damage from equipment may be an added bonus rather than the weapon’s primary damage type. The trigger can be item-specific, so an item name in the category does not mean every attack automatically gains Force damage.
- Halberd of Vigilance: listed among the examples of equipment with an item-specific Force effect; check its trigger on the Force set reference.
- Faithbreaker: an equipment example with an effect whose operation depends on its conditions; check the Force set reference.
- Gloves of Soul Catching: listed as Force-adding gear, with a condition tied to the item’s effect; see the Force set reference.
- Garb of the Land and Sky: an example of gear that can add Force damage under its effect’s conditions; see the Force set reference.
The older Force overview also names Craterflesh Gloves, Stalker Gloves, Servitor of the Black Hand Gloves, and Gauntlet of the Tyrant as items associated with Force additions. Because that overview is older than the current category index, confirm their present effects and triggers in current item pages or tooltips before relying on them.
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Consumables, ammunition, and mixed damage
Explosives and ammunition can deal Force damage too. The older BG3 Wiki overview gives the following damage values; treat them as wiki-listed, patch-sensitive figures rather than guaranteed current tooltips. Some entries mix Force with Fire damage.
| Consumable | Wiki-listed damage | Delivery or qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Smokepowder Bomb | 3d4 + 9 Force | Explosive; verify current value and effect in-game. |
| Smokepowder Satchel | 3d4 + 9 plus 2d6 Force | Explosive; verify how the listed components apply in the current tooltip. |
| Runepowder Vial | 5d4 + 18 Force | Explosive; verify current value and effect in-game. |
| Smokepowder Arrow | 4d6 Force plus 4d6 Fire | Area effect with mixed damage types; verify current value and effect in-game. |
| Orthonic Handbomb | 4d8 Force plus 4d8 Fire | Mixed Force and Fire damage; verify current value and effect in-game. |
These values are listed in the older Force overview; the current category also indexes ammunition and explosives. A Force component does not make an item’s entire effect pure Force when another damage type is listed.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.NPC, encounter, and environmental sources
The category index includes named NPC and encounter effects as well as player-facing spells, gear, and consumables. Those entries help identify where Force damage appears in the game, but should not be presented as ordinary character build options unless the relevant ability is actually available to the player. Environmental effects also belong to the broad category.
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How Force sources and damage riders differ
A damage source is an attack or effect that directly deals damage. A rider adds damage to an applicable source. Some riders are themselves treated as damage sources during calculation and can trigger ordinary riders again; therefore, not every Force bonus behaves as an independent hit or applies identically to every attack. The BG3 Wiki damage mechanics page describes this distinction and uses Magic Missile to illustrate separate damage sources.
When Force damage matters against a target
Damage resistance halves damage, vulnerability doubles it, and immunity reduces it to zero, according to the BG3 Wiki’s damage types reference. Do not assume every enemy has the same Force defenses: the relevant result depends on the target’s resistance, vulnerability, or immunity.
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How to use the category as a checklist
- Start with the Force-source category to find spells, actions, equipment, consumables, ammunition, and encounter entries.
- For each candidate, check whether it is player-usable or belongs to an NPC, encounter, or environmental effect.
- Identify whether Force is the attack’s primary damage type, a conditional bonus, a consumable’s direct damage, or one component of mixed damage.
- Check the trigger and resource cost on the current item, spell, or ability page or in-game tooltip before building around it.
- For gear interactions, distinguish direct damage sources from riders; for a specific target, account for its Force defense.
The 83-page figure is the category count displayed by the BG3 Wiki when accessed for this article on October 8, 2026. It is an index count, not a count of distinct player build choices. The listed references are community-maintained, not official Larian documentation; exact values, access, and patch behavior should be confirmed in-game.




