In the making of Baldur's Gate 3, Larian Studios ended up with the unenviable task of explaining every single mechanic of Dungeons & Dragons tabletop in a video game setting to people who are completely new to the concept. And while they've managed to convey the most important concepts, some still slip under the radar.

Related: Baldur's Gate 3: How To Prepare Spells

One of these concepts is Concentration, a spell mechanic that changes the way certain spells work. Concentration spells are a distinct category of spells that need special attention when casting. The game doesn't do a stellar job of telling players what exactly Concentration is and how best to maintain it during combat.

Updated by Hamza Haq on August 26, 2023: New links have been incorporated into the content to reflect the most recent information available for Baldur’s Gate 3.

What Are Concentration Spells

Concentration Spells are long-lasting spell effects that remain on the battlefield for multiple turns or until the caster's "Concentration" breaks. If the caster is not interrupted, these spells remain on the field and don't consume more resources like spell slots to continue their effects.

You can identify Concentration spells by the tag that denotes them as such in the tooltip for a spell. Just hover over any spell, and if it says Concentration on the bottom right, it is a Concentration spell.

How Concentration Works

Concentration spells are typically battlefield effects (Blindness, Fog Cloud, etc.), ally buffs (Bless, Shield of Faith, etc.), or enemy debuffs (Bane, Hold Person, etc.). The biggest caveat to these spells is that only one Concentration spell can be kept active at one time.

A mistake many players unfamiliar with the rules of the game make is to cast a Concentration spell one turn, then cast another one the next turn. The second spell nullifies the effects of the first one because a caster can only keep their focus on one Concentration spell at a time, and you'd be wasting spell slots casting this way.

As an example, if your Cleric casts Bless on her party members and then casts Bane the next turn, the effects of Bless get canceled out as both are Concentration spells. You can either have Bless or Bane on the battlefield, not both.

Or if your Gloomstalker Ranger is using Hunter’s Mark to mark a target for additional damage, casting something like Fog Cloud will nullify the effects of Hunter’s Mark as both are concentration spells.

What Breaks Concentration

A big concern for spellcasters is that their Concentration will break in a fight, resulting in them losing the effects of their Concentration spell. There are four ways Concentration spells stop working:

1. Casting another Concentration spell: Remember! Only one Concentration spell can be active at one time. Casting another one will cancel the first one.
2. Getting Interrupted: If your caster takes damage from any damage source, they need to succeed in a CON (Constitution) saving throw in order to maintain their Concentration spell.
3. Time Out: Concentration spells don't last forever, and they naturally run out if they run their course. Hold Person can freeze a humanoid for 10 turns. If they remain under the effects of the spell for 10 turns, they will naturally become unfrozen on the 11th turn.
4. Being Killed: If your caster is dead, the effects of the spell fade.

How To Keep Concentration Spells Active

Here are some tips to keep your Concentration spells on the field for as long as possible.

1. Don't cast another Concentration spell: It will override the first spell.
2. Get the War Caster feat: Gives you an advantage on saving throws to maintain Concentration.
3. Reposition Behind Walls: If enemies don't have a line of sight, interrupting the casters gets significantly harder for them.

Next: Baldur's Gate 3: Best Wizard Spells, Ranked