Forspoken sees players take control of Frey, a magic-wielding, parkour-performing New Yorker that has been transported to the fantastical world of Athia. In her quest to return home, she must utilize magic and embark on a campaign to defeat the tyrannical Tantas and restore peace to Athia.
Along the way, Frey will unlock four styles of elemental magic. Each style possesses a different set of spells that can be unlocked and wielded against her opponents. Some spells focus on dealing damage, whereas others play more of a support role. Here are some of the best defensive spells available to Frey in Forspoken.
12 Aegis (Red Magic)
A useful tool to have, especially in the late game, casting Aegis clears all debuffs that might be weakening or affecting the player. At the same time, it also increases Frey’s attack power, allowing her to turn the fight in her favor.
It isn’t a core spell that players will be casting regularly, especially due to its long cooldown timer. However, its ‘reset’ function can be critical to shrugging off enemy effects, giving Frey an advantage against more challenging opponents across Athia.
11 Prime (Purple Magic)
A spell that is easily underestimated, Prime is essentially a magical trap that is cast on the floor and explodes when an enemy comes within its vicinity. The explosion does a massive amount of damage, and with its area of effect damage, can take out multiple hostiles.
Of course, the drawback is that enemies can simply walk right past it, leaving the trap undetonated. With careful placement, however, players should be able to gain good value from this magical landmine.
10 Naedre (Blue Magic)
Casting Naedre will send a column of water darting between enemies, poisoning them and doing a small amount of damage over time. This one can be situational, best used in battles with numerous enemies, as it gains value by jumping from one to the other, poisoning all who are targeted.
However, the damage itself is rather limited, meaning Naedre functions more as a debuff spell than a top-tier damage dealer. Players should complete the Spellcraft challenge to increase the duration of the poison effect.
9 Projection (Green Magic)
Using this spell will have Frey throw a lightning spear at an enemy, which then does some area of effect damage over a short range. The spear itself can be pretty damaging, and the area of effect lightning is pretty decent as well.
This spell is best used for groups of enemies clumped up together, as the range of the lightning is quite short. Either way, Projection is a powerful weapon to use in a pinch.
8 Displacement (Green Magic)
Displacement essentially projects an illusory copy of Frey onto the battlefield, which enemies will target instead of her. Naturally, its function is to simply distract enemies and draw the heat off Frey.
This is a valuable way to buy time – perhaps the player is in trouble and needs a quick escape, or maybe they simply need to wait until one of their spell cooldowns finishes so that it can be used again. Casting Displacement will help with either of these endeavors.
7 Tendril (Purple Magic)
One of the best ways to heal in the early game, Tendril releases a whip that circles around the player, dealing damage and healing them by the amount of damage inflicted. The area of effect damage is nice, and couple it with the added healing, and Tendril proves to be a handy addition to the player’s roster.
If that wasn’t enough, it has a short cooldown timer, meaning it can be used multiple times in a battle. This will allow players to conserve their health flasks for later on in the game.
6 Firetrap (Red Magic)
Similar to the Prime spell, Firetrap conjures up a burst of lava underneath the enemy, dealing considerable damage and continuing to burn anyone who steps foot in its radius. The key difference is that Firetrap triggers immediately, meaning it can be placed right under an enemy for an instant hit rather than waiting for them to trigger it manually.
As the most damaging red magic spell, it’s best used against large or slow-moving enemies, and can be particularly effective against bosses.
5 Crucible (Red Magic)
A spell that is essential if planning on using red magic, Crucible summons a large circle of fire, inside which Frey’s attack power is increased. The actual area is quite big, allowing the player to dodge and evade all they like while still getting the benefits of the increased damage.
Using Crucible in tandem with spells like Firetrap (and any other red magic spells) can result in devastating damage output that can wipe all enemies off the field, if used correctly.
4 Disperse (Purple Magic)
Casting Disperse will place a small plant-like turret on the ground, which will pick up rocks and hurl them at enemies. While it may sound a little underwhelming, the plant turret outputs a constant and solid stream of damage while Frey is in combat.
Players may need to dodge the attacks of a powerful enemy, or back off to heal and wait for cooldowns to run their course, but the turret will remain a free source of damage for them. It can take down aerial enemies and even do considerable damage to bosses if upgraded well enough.
3 Distortion (Green Magic)
Essentially a better version of Displacement, casting Distortion confuses enemies and makes them attack one another. Not only does this take their focus entirely off Frey, but it also does her job for her, with enemies dealing damage to each other as the player walks by unscathed.
It is the only spell in the game that applies this effect. It can be useful if the player finds themselves suddenly overwhelmed by opponents.
2 Sublimation (Green Magic)
More or less a direct upgrade from Tendril, Sublimation is a spell that automatically drains enemies of their health and uses it to heal the player. This happens slowly over time, meaning Frey is constantly regenerating health, allowing the player to focus on casting other, more offensive spells.
This is the best healing spell in the game. While it doesn’t guarantee survival (health flasks are still important in a crunch), it should be an automatic pick for any late-game sorceress.
1 Oubliette (Blue Magic)
An excellent crowd control tool, casting Oubliette creates a gigantic sphere of water that traps nearby enemies and groups them together. Attacking the orb makes it explode, causing considerable area-of-effect damage.
It is a powerful spell, providing the player with great utility. Perhaps they want to ensnare a powerful boss, or maybe they need a moment to regroup, or perhaps they just want to utilize the spell’s strong damage output and follow up with more area-focused attacks. Oubliette opens up a plethora of possibilities for the player to take advantage of, making it one of the best support spells in the entire game.
Forspoken is available for PS5 and Windows.