Subclass Wizard Illusionist

What Is the Illusionist?

The Illusionist is a Wizard subclass that pushes Illusion magic into combat effectiveness. Improved Illusions at Level 3 removes Verbal components from Illusion spells, extends their ranges, and upgrades Minor Illusion to a Bonus Action. Phantasmal Creatures at Level 6 lets you cast Summon Beast or Summon Fey as free Illusion versions once per Long Rest — free conjuration that costs no slot. Illusory Self at Level 10 gives you a Reaction that makes one attack automatically miss, once per Short or Long Rest or by expending a level 2+ spell slot.

Class Features

Progression Overview

LEVEL	FEATURE
3	Savant, Improved Illusions
6	Phantasmal Creatures
10	Illusory Self

Level 3

Savant Choose two Illusion spells from the Wizard spell list, each no higher than Level 2, and add them to your spellbook for free. You add one more Illusion spell whenever a new tier of spell slots opens — at Levels 5, 7, 9, and 11 — and that spell may be of any level you have slots for.

The picker draws from every Illusion spell on the Wizard list, 16 in total. If you have already learned all of them by other means, such as scribing scrolls, a placeholder Dummy Spell appears so the level-up can still be confirmed. It does nothing if cast.

Improved Illusions You can cast Illusion spells without providing Verbal components. In addition, when you cast an Illusion spell with a range of 10 feet or greater, its range increases by 50%.

You can also cast Minor Illusion as a Bonus Action (in addition to its normal casting options).

Level 6

Phantasmal Creatures You always have the Summon Beast and Summon Fey spells prepared. You can cast the Illusion version of each spell without expending a spell slot. Once you cast either spell without a spell slot, you must finish a Long Rest before you can cast the spell in that way again.

Level 10

Illusory Self When a creature hits you with an attack roll, you can take a Reaction to interpose an illusory duplicate of yourself between the attacker and yourself. The attack automatically misses you, then the illusion dissipates.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a Short or Long Rest. You can also restore your use of it by expending a level 2+ spell slot.

Playstyle Notes

The Illusionist is the free summoning + automatic miss defense Wizard subclass. Improved Illusions at Level 3 changes the action economy of illusion casting: Minor Illusion as a Bonus Action means you can combine it with any spell or action without losing efficiency. Silent illusion casting is valuable in BG3's stealth sections — no Verbal component means illusions in no-sound zones.

Phantasmal Creatures at Level 6 gives two free summons per Long Rest — no spell slot. A Summon Fey or Summon Beast from an Illusionist is a free 4th-level equivalent action without touching your slot economy. These phantasmal creatures are slightly weaker than the real versions (they're illusions) but still function as valid combat entities with HP and attacks.

Illusory Self at Level 10 turns one incoming hit into an automatic miss for the cost of a Reaction. The free use comes back on a Short Rest, and once it is spent you can keep reacting by paying a level 2+ spell slot, so in a long fight the limit is your slot economy rather than a once-per-rest cap.