Questions tagged [spellcasting]
For questions relating to the process of casting spells within a game. Including, but not limited to: spellcasting mechanics, improving likelihood of success when casting a spell, interrupting the casting of a spell, and mechanics surrounding spellcasting attributes (when applicable by system).
949
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What unintended side effects may arise from making bards count as both arcane and divine spellcasters?
In the homebrewed campaign setting for my game, it would make more sense for bards to draw their magical powers from a hybrid of arcane and divine sources, rather than just being arcane casters. If I ...
9
votes
1
answer
562
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Can I counter an opponent's attempt to counter my own spell?
In the 2024 update to D&D 5e, the rule limiting the casting of multiple spells per turn has changed:
One Spell with a Spell Slot per Turn
On a turn, you can expend only one spell slot to cast a ...
1
vote
1
answer
125
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Does Spell Breaker allow an Abjurer to attempt to dispel a spell twice in 1 turn?
In the 2024 update to D&D 5e, the rule limiting the casting of multiple spells per turn has changed:
On a turn, you can expend only one spell slot to cast a spell. This rule means you can’t, for ...
1
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2
answers
152
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Does casting Goodberry consume the mistletoe? [duplicate]
I'm playing a ranger in my next game, and I took the Goodberry spell. I was wondering if I have to buy a sprig of mistletoe every time I want to cast this spell, or do I just need one?
6
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1
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Can you cast a non-cantrip spell using your action, and make a bonus action melee spell attack on the same turn?
To clarify: I am using the 5e Binder class presented in the Complete Binder book from MageHandPress.
The class has (what I believe is classified as an ability) "Minor Spirits" which can ...
4
votes
2
answers
177
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Does a Hexblood still need material components for their racial ability casting of Hex?
So Hex itself requires a Petrified Eye of Newt, recommended at 15gp. Now, this is in a campaign where the DM has ruled that every material component for a spell is consumed, regardless of the ...
12
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2
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Are consumable material components consumed if the spell fails?
According to the Player's Handbook, p174, When spells with material components are cast, the material components "are annihilated by the spell energies in the casting process."
If the spell ...
8
votes
1
answer
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Incapacitation on Sleep Arrow?
The Incapacitation tag is missing from the Sleep Arrow, while it inherits all the other properties from the spell. It does however say that the target of the arrow is "subject to the effects of a ...
1
vote
1
answer
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Does a spell with a casting time still require that time if cast from a scroll? [duplicate]
So I have a cleric wanting to use "Prayer of Healing" which takes 10 minutes to cast. The area they are in doesn't allow time passage, and so they can't use spells with casting times longer ...
1
vote
2
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Magical Components - Material or Focus
The 6th level Wizard/Sorceror spell Emblem of Greed has a requirement of using a masterwork or magical weapon as the target to be enchanted by the spell. That is already a limitation, but then it ...
2
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1
answer
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Can you counter a spell through wall of force? [duplicate]
The party wizard has cast a hemispherical wall of force to trap the evil sorcerer and isolate him from the battle. The sorcerer however knows dimension door, and tries to cast it to escape. Can the ...
7
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2
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Is it possible to cast a bonus action spell and then use the Ready action to activate a magic item and cast another spell off-turn with your reaction?
I know the spellcasting rules must be followed when using a Magic Item that allows you to cast a spell. For example, with the Wand of Fireballs, we typically see statements like, emphasis mine:
you ...
3
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4
answers
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Is it possible to avoid ending Time Stop by making attacks from inside an Antimagic Field?
Okay so, the effects of Time Stop:
You briefly stop the flow of time for everyone but yourself. No time passes for other creatures, while you take 1d4 + 1 turns in a row, during which you can use ...
2
votes
1
answer
106
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Spellcasting Contract as an Arcanist
I intend to use:
https://www.aonprd.com/SpellDisplay.aspx?ItemName=Spellcasting%20Contract
...for the sake of improving my action economy as an Arcanist. I intend to cast Spellcasting Contract in one ...
0
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0
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Do innate spells cost spell slots in 5e? [duplicate]
I'm wondering if innate spells like a Yuan-Ti's animal friendship need spell slots.
I've searched through PHB and MoTM and haven't found anything on the subject.
3
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1
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Are spells with "expended" in the description the same as those whose effects are "discharged"?
Are spells with "expended" in the description the same as those whose effects are "discharged"?
lets take "local tremor" for instance, the spell description says [ 1 ...
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3
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Can an Artificer use a Veteran's Cane created with Replicate Magic Item as a Focus after it has changed to a Longsword?
Relevant Text:
Artificer:
TOOLS REQUIRED "...After you gain the Infuse Item feature at 2nd
level, you can also use any item bearing one of your infusions as a
spellcasting focus."
Magic ...
4
votes
3
answers
234
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Can a 10th Lvl Chronurgy Wizard use its Arcane Abeyance on a spell cast into a Spell Glyph?
(So far as I can tell, this isn't comparable to Wristpocket...)
In this scenario, let's say a 10th Lvl Chronurgy Wizard, casts Magic Circle into a Glyph of Warding spell glyph, & applies Arcane ...
15
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3
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Can Warlocks take feats that require the "Spellcasting Feature"?
In the past we've seen feats that require ("The ability to cast at least one spell"), the War Caster feat (PHB, p.170), is an example of that.
I recently aquired the book "Bigby ...
2
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0
answers
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Do Shadow Monks count as spell casters? [duplicate]
Shadow Arts gives you some spells you can cast with Ki, but not the spellcaster class feature or spell slots. However it does give you Minor Illusion as a cantrip, and I believe that races who get ...
7
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2
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Can Nolzur's Marvelous Pigments be used with the Mage hand cantrip?
I am trying to figure out a way for a 1st level wizard to escape from a cage.
This is the scenario:
he is trapped without any equipment (just a simple robe, and no spell left, except his cantrips: ...
7
votes
2
answers
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Do you have to be holding the agate for Awaken to awaken a beast/plant?
Relevant text:
Awaken. Duration: Instantaneous. ...After spending the casting time tracing magical pathways within a precious gemstone, you touch a huge or smaller beast or plant.
It doesn't say ...
7
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2
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Would a creature finding itself in the AOE of Insect Plague when it is cast receive damage three times if it were to also end its turn there?
During our session, we ended up debating with our DM over the wording of Insect Plague. Insect Plague's damage occurs under three conditions. Once when the spell is cast, and creatures find themselves ...
1
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3
answers
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Is the subject of a commune spell question the target of a divination spell?
In a previous question, I asked how the drow clergy of the Fane would be able to gather information on a cautious party that had infiltrated the city of Erelhei-Cinlu.
One of the answers suggested ...
4
votes
2
answers
141
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Does Dispelling Globe counteract a spell that targets a creature inside the Globe?
While this previously seemed obvious to me, the answer to my previous question makes me doubtful.
Dispelling Globe (previously known as Globe of Invulnerability) has the following effect:
It attempts ...
6
votes
2
answers
415
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Would Thunder Crystal be ok for a Rare rating?
I'll be DMing for a party in an adventure where a lot of enemies will have resistance or immunity to the most common damage types, like Fire, Cold or Poison. In the previous adventure my Sorcerer ...
6
votes
1
answer
134
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Does Dispelling Globe counteract a spell previously cast on a creature that moves into the globe?
Dispelling Globe (previously known as Globe of Invulnerability) has the following effect:
It attempts to counteract any spell from outside the globe whose area or targets enter into it, as if the ...
21
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1
answer
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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 ...
7
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1
answer
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Does Casting Enlarge/Reduce on a College-of-Creation-Bard's Dancing Item Cause that Item to be Inanimate?
Relevant quotes:
Enlarge. The target’s size doubles in all dimensions, and its weight is multiplied by eight. This growth increases its size by one category – from Medium to Large, for example. ...
...
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8
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680
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How can I remove the "Generalist Spellcaster" paradigm from the game?
Pathfinder 2e designer Michael Sayer made a post describing the game's assumptions of how spellcasters are intended to play, which I found completely baffling, and totally at odds with any game I've ...
11
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2
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Is the moons' influence on spellcasting balanced for a Dragonlance campaign?
I am about to DM Shadow of the Dragon Queen and I have almost finished reading the manual, to get the general idea of the adventure. To be honest, I feel that the setting depicted here does not feel ...
9
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2
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Casting a Fireball spell past an illusionary wall from Major Image
Player knew that a illusionary wall (Major Image) was fake. They wanted to centre the Fireball past the illusionary wall to catch a target that had just run thought it.
I said, they couldn't as they ...
17
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1
answer
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What can a ranger 1/paladin 1 do with their spell slots?
Paladins and rangers get their spellcasting at level 2, as they are half-casters. However, a ranger 1/paladin 1 would have the spell slots of a 1st-level full caster. Would this hypothetical character ...
6
votes
1
answer
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Manifest Mind: Does Wizard have awakened Spellbook Vision on Reactions
Player wizard was hidden behind pillar and had the Awakened Spellbook out in play. Monster cast Hypnotic Pattern on multiple party members. Player attempted to counterspell from behind the pillar.
...
5
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2
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Can an Artificer's Infusions act as a spellcasting focus for spells from another class?
I'm specifically looking at the case of a character that starts as an Armorer Artificer, then multiclasses into Wizard for the majority of their career. As I read it, as long as the Artificer has ...
5
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2
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If you are invisible, cast Detect Thoughts, and attempt to probe deeper into a target's mind, how would they know it was you?
As part of the description of the Detect Thoughts spell, it states:
As an action, you can either shift your attention to another creature’s thoughts or attempt to probe deeper into the same creature’...
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2
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Does a new source of temporary HP instantly end the effects of motivational speech?
Per the wording of the spell -
Choose up to five creatures within range that can hear you. For the duration, each affected creature gains 5 temporary hit points and has advantage on Wisdom saving ...
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2
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Why does this 7th-level spellcaster NPC only have slots and prepared spells appropriate to a 3rd-level spellcaster?
In Tyranny of Dragons, on page 184, an NPC stat block makes no sense. I’ve checked the errata and have found no correction.
It says the NPC “is a 7th-level spellcaster that uses Intelligence as his ...
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4
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Can you hold Plane Shift on an unwilling creature until they touch you to skip the melee spell attack?
One of my players uses the Plane Shift spell quite regularly in battle to get rid of unwanted opponents.
With the ready action and the holding of a spell being a thing, the question has come up, ...
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3
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Is spell switch on the go homebrew OP?
I recently started playing DnD5E (the starter campaign Lost Mines of Phandelver), and read about the memorization of spells.
And even more recently I started playing Baldur's Gate 3.
In BG3 I noticed ...
17
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How to interrogate a magic user who has misty step?
We're players in a homebrew campaign, and have recently knocked out some sort of wizard that can use spells such as fly, fireball, shield and misty step.
We've tied him up and put something in his ...
5
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3
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989
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How would this extra spellcasting rule affect game balance?
I once heard of a D&D 5th edition group who played using various house rules. One such rule was as follows:
As a bonus action, a spellcaster may cast any cantrip, 1st level spell, or 2nd level ...
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2
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Shouldn't Magic Missile be a Divination Spell instead of Evocation? [closed]
Don't take me wrong, but in all editions I've seen so far, Magic Missile is a spell that launches darts or orbs of pure magical force (thus, it's an Evocation Spell). Inside its descriptions, it says ...
2
votes
1
answer
334
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If a multiclassed Sorcerer/Wizard both knows and prepares Magic Missile, does it count as both a Sorcerer spell and a Wizard spell? [duplicate]
I'm building a new character for our weekly game and a build-around that I think could be fun is to optimize for the number of times I roll on the Wild Magic Surge table while dealing respectable ...
14
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5
answers
3k
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Do handcuffs prevent you from casting spells with somatic components?
Is a handcuffed spellcaster still capable of executing the somatic components of spells? I'm asking about rulings in the official rulebooks, not "This is how I'd do this" responses.
3
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1
answer
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What balance pitfalls result from simplifying the range of all D&D 5e spells to either Touch or Line-of-Sight?
For context, the Everyday Heroes product line is based on, and designed to be largely compatible with, D&D 5e. It is essentially a revival of the 3e d20 Modern line. Unlike the d20 Modern Core ...
1
vote
1
answer
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Using spell with a bonus action when we had 2 actions (Haste or Action Surge as example) [duplicate]
The Players Handbook says:
A spell cast with a bonus action is especially swift. You must use a bonus action on your turn to cast the spell, provided that you haven't already taken a bonus action ...
2
votes
1
answer
141
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Casting spells while out of hearing and sight
There are other questions addressing how casting attack spells while hidden blows your cover, but what if you are out of the range of perception for the target?
Some additional background: based on ...
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3
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Means of pretending to be Dominated, thralled, or Charmed
Is there any means for a character to pretend to be subject to a mind-effecting spell or ability after resisting or being immune, so as not to alert the caster?
6
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2
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Would a Lich/Wizard casting Globe of Invulnerability, Prismatic Wall, and Shield (as needed) be "invincible"?
In Dnd 5e, would casting Globe of Invulnerability at 8th level (concentration) on a surprise round, then Prismatic Wall (action) around the caster at the top of the next round, and Shield (Reaction) ...