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How does Destructive Wrath interact with Chain Lightning? Do you need to expand a Channel Divinity slot on each enemy or is one slot enough for every enemy?

What about Shatter?

I've seen the twinned Witch Bolt post but those spells seem to function differently enough.

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Yes, it will work with multiple targets.

In the Player's Handbook (pg. 196) it states,

If a spell or other affect deals damage to more than one target roll the damage once for all of them. For example, when a wizard casts fireball or a cleric casts flame strike, the spells damage is rolled once for all creatures caught in the blast.

So this means for shatter it would work because you roll damage once in the area of affect. For chain lightning it would also work because you roll damage once for each target. So as long as you are doing one thunder/lightning damage roll, it will work with multiple targets.

And yes, you are right about witch bolt, because there are multiple different damage rolls.

I have the post that proves that you roll damage once for all the targets.

How many times do you roll damage for Chain Lighting?

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    \$\begingroup\$ The question and answer you link say that you roll once for all targets. I think you misread that. \$\endgroup\$
    – Anagkai
    Apr 2 at 15:59
  • \$\begingroup\$ My bad you are right \$\endgroup\$ Apr 2 at 16:18
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One use for Shatter, two for Chain Lightning

The default is to roll damage once for a spell, even if it affects multiple enemies, see Damage Rolls (PHB p. 196):

If a spell or other effect deals damage to more than one target at the same time, roll the damage once for all of them.

This is the case for Shatter, meaning that Shatter needs only one use of Channel Divinity no matter the number of creatures affected.

Chain Lightning however clearly states that (emphasis mine):

Three bolts then leap [...]

Making it clear that this does not happen at the same time so the rule for a single damage roll cited above no longer applies. However, the additional bolts happen at the same time, meaning for the secondary targets there is only one damage roll and you only need one use of Channel Divinity for multiple secondary targets.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Just found this post. What do you think? rpg.stackexchange.com/questions/181391/… \$\endgroup\$
    – Yuval Amir
    Apr 1 at 17:05
  • \$\begingroup\$ @YuvalAmir Interesting. This contradicts my interpretation but I stand by what I said. The "then" in the spell description makes it clear there is a departure from the default one spell one damage roll which relies on the passage of rules I cited which states that this is contingent on the damage being dealt "at the same time". \$\endgroup\$
    – Anagkai
    Apr 1 at 17:10

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