Can Wish create multiple effects at half value?

Question

The wish spell has these two specific options for the effects in question that I'm interested in:

• You grant up to ten creatures that you can see resistance to a damage type you choose.

• You grant up to ten creatures you can see immunity to a single spell or other magical effect for 8 hours. For instance, you could make yourself and all your companions immune to a lich's life drain attack.

If I'm part of a party of 5 players, could I have both of these effects on each of us after 1 casting, since that's below the maximum amount of creatures described?

For instance:

"I wish for me and my party to be immune to fire damage and resistant to cold damage."

or

"I wish for me and my party to be immune to necrotic damage for the next eight hours and then be resistant to necrotic damage from that point onwards."

or, rewording the book's example (also I can't find "life drain" anywhere in the Monster Manual for 5th edition):

"I wish for me and my party to be immune to a lich's finger of death attack and then be resistant to necrotic damage from then on."

Would any of these wishes come true?

Answer 1

This can't be done with a single Wish without falling under DM purview.

Wish states:

Alternatively, you can create one of the following effects of your choice...

Granting creatures resistance or immunity are two, separate effects and would require two castings of Wish unless the DM rules otherwise since Wish also states:

You might be able to achieve something beyond the scope of the above examples. State your wish to the DM as precisely as possible. The DM has great latitude in ruling what occurs in such an instance...

Answer 2

As worded that is probably 2 wishes

Stringing the sentence together with 'and' doesn't make it a single wish. The spell is capable of giving the effects you asked for on an individual basis, but probably not together regardless of numbers (Most parties are only 4, so it is likely that if what you wanted was an option it would be worded as 'can do x and y for a party of 4, or just x for a group of up to 10').

That said.. Wish is extremely DM dependent, so only your particular DM can actually provide an answer to that question.

Answer 3

Possibly, but it definitely falls into the realm of DM discretion

Wish contains the text:

You might be able to achieve something beyond the scope of the above examples. State your wish to the DM as precisely as possible. The DM has great latitude in ruling what occurs in such an instance; the greater the wish, the greater the likelihood that something goes wrong. This spell might simply fail, the effect you desire might only be partly achieved, or you might suffer some unforeseen consequence as a result of how you worded the wish.

As a DM in that situation I would probably allow chaining of standard effects, while keeping the total creatures affected by each effect under the total for a single effect, like you describe. Ask your DM.

Answer 4

This falls in the realm of wishful thinking

See what I did there?

Just because you are not using a spell to its maximum effect does not change the power or ability of the spell.

Take for instance Teleport:

This spell instantly transports you and up to eight willing creatures of your choice that you can see within range to a destination you select.

If I only teleport myself, that means the spell is 8 times more powerful than it needs. However, doing so:

• does not change the spell level (You can't claim it is now a 1st-level spell slot because you're not transporting nine people)
• does not allow me to go farther (go to a different plane)
• does not make teleport more reliable (I can still mishap, be off target, etc)

Now, all that being said, it is a wish and a DM can decide whatever they want. But I would hate to set this as a precedent that not using a spell to its full potential grants boons.