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Questions tagged [spell-components]

For questions about the components that go into spells, or how they are involved in spellcasting.

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9 answers
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What is the point of a spell component pouch?

While I'd like to think I know the general Dungeons and Dragons / Pathfinder rules pretty well, one thing I've never quite understood is the spell component pouch, especially in relation to the Eschew ...
NT3RP's user avatar
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56 votes
4 answers
90k views

Can spells with a verbal component be cast underwater if the caster can't breathe water?

My party recently tipped over a boat of enemies into what was essentially rapids and trapped the enemies in a cube of force underwater. The warriors inevitably drowned as they had no way out. However, ...
Tophandour's user avatar
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48 votes
4 answers
37k views

How loud/obvious is a wizard casting a spell?

Some spells have somatic and vocal components, that's well known. How loud must a wizard talk? How obvious/wide should his gestures be? Some spells that would be awesome would be fairly limited if ...
Mouhgouda's user avatar
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46 votes
4 answers
59k views

Does a bard have to play a musical instrument when using it as a spellcasting focus?

At my table I have ruled that 'to use as a spellcasting focus' does not imply 'to play'; since the sorcerer can simply point a wand, it seems like an undue burden that the bard should have to use both ...
A. Foster's user avatar
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41 votes
7 answers
134k views

Can you cast spells with a Somatic component if you're holding a two-handed weapon?

I have a halfling cleric of Bahamut who wears his holy symbol as an amulet around his neck as a spellcasting focus (so material components are not an issue). However, as per this question, this does ...
Shalvenay's user avatar
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41 votes
4 answers
12k views

What's the point of requiring specific inexpensive material components?

I understand the necessity of consumable or costly material components, but what is the point—in terms of making the game more interesting—of inexpensive material components, like a leaf of sumac or a ...
enkryptor's user avatar
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38 votes
5 answers
46k views

How do foci and somatic+material components interact when it comes to occupying a hand?

In 5e, the rules state the following regarding spells with somatic and material components: Somatic (S) Spellcasting gestures might include a forceful gesticulation or an intricate set of ...
CTWind's user avatar
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37 votes
6 answers
42k views

PC cleric lost holy symbol - what now?

Yesterday the party cleric lost her holy symbol (a golden sword-cross of a homebrew deity), which was also her spellcasting focus, due to a random adventure mishap. She argued that as a spellcasting ...
adonies's user avatar
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33 votes
5 answers
108k views

Are normal spell components consumed by the spell?

I was reading through the basic rules and noticed that the only time spell components were explicitly stated as being consumed was when they had a gp value attached to them. For example: Arcane ...
briddums's user avatar
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33 votes
5 answers
4k views

What exactly is ignored in the "requirements" of a spell when Wishing for it?

One of the uses of the wish spell is to emulate any spell of 8th level or lower "without meeting any requirements" of that spell. It is already clear from wish's description that costly material ...
Gael L's user avatar
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33 votes
4 answers
64k views

What Conditions prevent a caster from using Somatic spells?

The text from Somatic reads that the caster must have a hand free to gesture with when they cast a spell with a somatic component. None of the conditions such as restrained or grappled seem to ...
wax eagle's user avatar
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32 votes
6 answers
9k views

How big is a 5000 gp diamond? [duplicate]

I play a teleportation and extra dimensional sorcerer in my group and I'm getting close to obtaining the spell Gate which requires "a diamond worth at least 5,000 gp". How big would a ...
Admiral-Nelson's user avatar
32 votes
4 answers
8k views

Cleric player in Adventurer's League may have extorted us for Revivify

In an Adventurer League game, while we were starting a session, a player I didn't know until now plays a cleric. He told everyone at the table that unless they gave him 300 GP at the start of the ...
Maiko Chikyu's user avatar
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31 votes
5 answers
7k views

What makes a spellcasting component worth x gp?

Let's just pick on identify as a concrete example, but this applies to any spell with a material component with a cost. So identify requires a pearl worth 100gp. What makes a pearl worth 100gp? Is it ...
NathanS's user avatar
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30 votes
2 answers
37k views

Can I counterspell a Subtle spell without material components?

Counterspell 1 reaction, which you take when you see a creature within 60 feet of you casting a spell. Can I Counterspell a creature that completely eliminates component requirement? Subtle ...
Vylix's user avatar
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29 votes
3 answers
7k views

Can I use a salad fork to get into the Prime Material Plane?

In several editions of Dungeons and Dragons, the Plane Shift spell requires a forked metal rod, the design and material of which varies depending on the destination plane. Is there any canonical list ...
GMJoe's user avatar
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28 votes
5 answers
9k views

How does one acquire an undead eyeball encased in a gem?

The Shadow of Moil spell (XGtE, p. 164) requires an undead eyeball inside a gem (worth at least 150 gp) as its material component. Who would be selling such an item and if someone was selling it, how ...
Q Paul's user avatar
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28 votes
3 answers
53k views

Can I cast spells that require a material component and still hold my hammer and shield?

I have a human cleric (war domain) with the War Caster feat. She holds a warhammer and a shield. Am I able to cast spells that require a material component and still hold my hammer and shield? If not,...
Brian's user avatar
  • 281
27 votes
3 answers
5k views

Does the spell "Silence" affect the caster?

While I was DMing a D&D 5th Edition game, one of my player's sorcerers cast the spell Silence while they were 5 feet away from an enemy caster. They centered the spell on the space that the enemy ...
Micah's user avatar
  • 377
26 votes
2 answers
6k views

Is the Command spell's "one-word command" the only verbal component of the spell, or is there more?

The command spell states, in part, that: You speak a one-word command to a creature you can see within range. The spell also requires a Verbal component. When I cast the command spell, is the "...
Vylix's user avatar
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25 votes
4 answers
8k views

How much does a corpse cost?

I was looking over the core rules of Pathfinder, and found specifics in Eschew Materials stating that "you can cast any spell with a material cost of 1G or less without needing that component". As ...
Areadbhair's user avatar
  • 3,236
25 votes
5 answers
8k views

Can a Spell Focus or Component Pouch be used with a spell that has costless consumed components?

Spellcasters do not always need to provide the literal materials when casting spells with costless components, that's what pouches and foci are for. A character can use a component pouch or a ...
goodguy5's user avatar
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25 votes
5 answers
13k views

What's the in-universe reasoning behind sorcerers needing material components?

Sorcerers are "spontaneous" spell casters. They don't "learn spells" the way a wizard does; their spells aren't granted by a powerful extraplanar entity the way a cleric's, paladin's, or warlock's ...
Zeiss Ikon's user avatar
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25 votes
3 answers
3k views

To cast Find the Path, can a caster substitute an object from the location they wish to find with a component pouch?

The components of the 6th level spell find the path are the following: V, S, M (a set of divinatory tools - such as bones, ivory sticks, cards, teeth, or carved runes - worth 100 gp and an object ...
user avatar
24 votes
7 answers
49k views

How big is a 50 gp diamond? [duplicate]

The material requirement for the spell chromatic orb is a diamond worth at least 50 gp, but in the Dungeon Master's Guide a diamond is listed under the 500 gp gem list. How small would a diamond be ...
TheBlueGeek's user avatar
24 votes
4 answers
16k views

Is the casting of the Charm Person spell obvious?

Charm Person has verbal and somatic components. Is there anything in the rules as written that defines how obvious those verbal and somatic components are? Would it be obvious the caster was casting ...
Jack's user avatar
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24 votes
5 answers
14k views

The verbal component of 'Suggestion'

In a recent game the verbal component of 'Suggestion' came up. I had assumed that the verbal component was just me saying the words and was added to mechanically stop me from casting it in magical ...
Findec's user avatar
  • 565
24 votes
2 answers
9k views

Are any material components apart from diamonds thematically linked with a specific type of spell?

In D&D 5th edition, there is a continuity among the spells that deal with returning life to the dead. Virtually all of them require an expenditure of diamond or diamond dust. Revivify diamonds ...
keithcurtis's user avatar
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24 votes
2 answers
30k views

Casting a Somatic, non-Material spell while holding a focus

In this question a side issue came up of whether you can cast a spell with Somatic components but no Material components while holding a focus in the hand used for Somatic components. My reading of ...
Chowlett's user avatar
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24 votes
5 answers
5k views

Are the somatic and verbal components of a spell the same for everyone?

My question: is there any official statement that says that a spell has the same words/gestures independent of who's casting it? So, for example, if a halfling wizard casts fireball: would the words ...
Manner's user avatar
  • 5,441
23 votes
5 answers
15k views

Does a wizard need to hold a component pouch or focus in one hand in order for it to work?

One of my PCs is a (weird) wizard who is frequently switching quickly between items—one turn he's wielding a quarterstaff two-handed, the next he's got a component pouch and a dagger, and after that, ...
Robert's user avatar
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23 votes
4 answers
3k views

Is the vial necessary to Summon Greater Demon?

Summon Greater Demon has material component "a vial of blood from a humanoid killed within the past 24 hours". I'm having trouble parsing whether "vial" is an actual vial or just a ...
Gilalar's user avatar
  • 1,502
23 votes
7 answers
72k views

Does the Eldritch Knight need the Warcaster feat to cast spells when using 2h or sword/shield?

Many of the spells that an Eldritch Knight can cast have a somatic component. If I am playing as an Eldritch Knight with a two-handed sword or weapon/shield combo, would I require the Warcaster feat? ...
Extrakun's user avatar
  • 7,057
22 votes
6 answers
15k views

Can you cast spells with verbal components if you have no tongue?

A situation occurred where a cheeky Bard spoke afoul one too many times in the presence of some seriously bad hombres, and as a result, he got half his tongue cut out. Now I'm not familiar with how ...
Nicbobo's user avatar
  • 6,687
22 votes
2 answers
11k views

Are there any spells that do not have any components?

In my discussion over my method answering this question, I assumed that there aren't any spells that have no components. Without being able to look through the entire set of rules myself (and as a ...
Michael Gorman's user avatar
22 votes
4 answers
3k views

Do you need to provide Somatic Components when casting from a spell scroll?

The general rules provided in the DMG for Magic Item Scrolls states: Most scrolls are spells stored in written form, [...]. [...] [...] Whatever the nature of the magic contained in a scroll, ...
illustro's user avatar
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22 votes
3 answers
25k views

Plane shift material component origins

A forked, metal rod worth at least 250 gp, attuned to a particular plane of existence. PhB 245, emphasis mine. The metal rod must by attuned to a particular plane of existence, does that means that ...
Trolleitor's user avatar
  • 5,380
22 votes
1 answer
22k views

How many times can I use a spell component pouch before having to purchase a new one?

Many of the spells in the Basic Rules indicate that they require material components. For the components that don't have a specific cost (I tend to call these mundane components), the Basic Rules ...
GamerJosh's user avatar
  • 5,388
22 votes
3 answers
6k views

What is the expected way to acquire costly material components?

If a spell's material components include any items with an indicated cost (such as the pearl worth at least 100 gp needed for identify), those items cannot be satisfied via a component pouch or ...
jwodder's user avatar
  • 2,305
21 votes
7 answers
101k views

Does requiring material components for spells make D&D 5e more challenging or cumbersome?

In my campaigns we typically don't rely on material components, allowing casters to use any spells as long as they have the right spell slots available. My impression is that using components would be ...
user avatar
21 votes
8 answers
16k views

Does the Voice of the Chain Master eldritch invocation let me cast a purely verbal spell through my familiar?

In D&D 5e, as a Pact of the Chain Warlock, I can choose an eldritch invocation that lets me speak in my own voice through my familiar called Voice of the Chain Master (PHB 111): You can ...
Jordan's user avatar
  • 1,722
21 votes
6 answers
43k views

Can a druid use a focus to cast beast spells while in wild shape?

As a level 18+ druid I may use a Druidic Focus, may assume a Wild Shape, and may cast Beast Spells. May I do all three at the same time? Can a druid use a focus to cast beast spells? Druidic Focus: A ...
nitsua60's user avatar
  • 102k
21 votes
1 answer
21k views

Do spells cast through magic items require expensive material components?

I have a Staff of the Woodlands, which allows me to cast the spell Awaken. Awaken has an expensive material component of "an agate worth at least 1,000 gp, which the spell consumes". Is that agate ...
inthemanual's user avatar
  • 12.2k
21 votes
1 answer
2k views

What happens if the black onyx used in an Animate Dead spell isn't expensive enough?

Consider the following situation: The group kills a monster, and one PC wants to use Animate Dead to turn it into an skeleton under his control. But the players have no idea what the monster is, much ...
Yopi Lapi's user avatar
  • 3,844
21 votes
1 answer
6k views

Does a countered spell expend its material components?

When a spell which consumes an expensive material component fails due to counterspell, is the material component consumed?
Sebkha's user avatar
  • 12.2k
20 votes
4 answers
4k views

What is a mud-filled cyst?

The 8th-level spell Clone has a mention of a mud-filled cyst in the ground in its spell components: a vessel worth at least 2,000 gp that has a sealable lid and is large enough to hold a Medium ...
svenema's user avatar
  • 2,581
20 votes
3 answers
49k views

Does a component pouch automatically contain components?

Are there any written rules on whether or not component pouches, when purchased, contain components or if users have to find the components and put them in? If it's automatic, does it auto-fill when ...
NotArch's user avatar
  • 126k
20 votes
1 answer
4k views

Can you use Major Creation to create the diamond dust required for Resurrection?

I have a character who is able to cast major creation and resurrection. He has a CL of 15. He starts by taking a really small piece of diamond (not enough to cast Resurrection), and casts major ...
Anne Aunyme's user avatar
  • 21.5k
20 votes
2 answers
6k views

Do you waste a spell slot if you try to cast a spell without the correct components?

A recent question got answers indicating, among other things, "If you spend 100gp on a pearl but the seller ripped you off and the pearl you got is only worth 50gp, then it doesn't count as a 100gp ...
Kamil Drakari's user avatar
20 votes
3 answers
8k views

Does Casting a Spell with Somatic and Material Components Require 2 Hands?

Question Can a spell with both somatic components and material, focus, or divine focus components be cast with only one free hand? To clarify further... What does it mean to prepare material ...
Hey I Can Chan's user avatar

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