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Can you use the Primal Savagery cantrip as an off-hand attack? Or can you use it as a main-hand attack, then make an off-hand attack with another weapon?

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    – Someone_Evil
    Jan 19, 2020 at 14:53

2 Answers 2

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Primal Savagery reads

You channel primal magic to cause your teeth or fingernails to sharpen, ready to deliver a corrosive attack. Make a melee spell attack against one creature within 5 feet of you

This attack is neither a main hand or off hand attack, as those are not a thing in 5e, but instead simply a melee attack, which doesn't even have to use your hands, but can use teeth instead. This also can't be used with any other feature that allows extra attacks, because it still takes an entire action to cast the spell, and the 1 attack is simply part of it. It also disallows two-weapon fighting since it isn't a weapon attack.

So, all in all, an attack make with Primal Savagery is a melee attack that you can only use once per turn and that you can't make additional attacks with using two-weapon fighting.

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    \$\begingroup\$ It could probably use some more editing: it's not a regular attack; if you have the Extra Attack feature you still can't use Primal Savagery twice. As a spell with a casting time of one action, it takes your entire action to cast. \$\endgroup\$ Jan 19, 2020 at 16:05
  • \$\begingroup\$ This 'once per turn' thing, of course, assumes you are casting Primal Savagery normally and not, for example, via War Caster or contingency or Glyph of Warding. \$\endgroup\$ Jan 19, 2020 at 17:43
  • \$\begingroup\$ 5e does not have "off hand" or "main hand" \$\endgroup\$ Jan 20, 2020 at 14:58
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You can't; Primal Savagery is a spell.

The rules for engaging on Two-Weapon Fighting say (Player's Handbook, pg. 195):

When you take the Attack action and attack with a light melee weapon that you're holding in one hand, you can use a bonus action to attack with a different light melee weapon that you're holding in the other hand. You don't add your ability modifier to the damage of the bonus attack, unless that modifier is negative.

(emphasis mine)

So, to engage in two-weapon fighting, you have to use your action to Attack (while holding two light melee weapons), and use your bonus action to attack with one of the weapons you're holding.

Primal Savagery is a cantrip (0-level spell). It has a casting time of 1 action, so for your character to be able to cast it, you would need to use your action to Cast a Spell (see "Actions in Combat", Player's Handbook - pg. 192). Another hindrance is that the attack delivered by the spell is melee spell attack, which doesn't include a light melee weapon.

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