Wizards possess the most extensive knowledge of magic and magical spells out of all of the classes in 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Dungeons & Dragons. The Wizard's spell list features at least twice as many spells as any other class and is filled with options ranging from spells that deal damage, summon allies, provide protection, and even sculpt the shape of the battlefield.
With so many options, how does an apprentice Wizard ever come to a decision? While Wizards generally want to prepare a handful of spells suited to the task at hand, there are a number of options that prove useful in almost every situation. These are spells that a Wizard will never regret having prepared, but will likely sorely miss if they fail to pack them. Let's dive into the essential spells any self-respecting Wizard would be caught dead without.
Updated on August 5, 2023, by Chris Stomberg: On top of having access to the largest variety of spells in the game, Wizards are also the only class that can cast a number of unique high level spells that can completely warp a game session. While most D&D campaigns end around levels 11-13, we figured it was worth adding these high level spells to the list in case you happen to find yourself in one of those difficult to find high level games. For players who haven't experienced D&D at the highest tier of play (levels 17-20), here's some added inspiration to find a dungeon master willing to run a game at the highest levels.
18 🔴 Simulacru♈m
This seventh level illusion spell isn't accesible to most players by the very merit of being such a high level spell. On top of that, some dungeon masters expressly forbid the use of this spell as it can completely skew the difficulty of encounters. Simulacrum takes 12 hours to cast, requires 1500 gp worth of powdered ruby which is consumed by the spell as well as a large chunk of snow or ice, and necessitates that your target remain next to you for the entire casting time.
However, the result of this spell is a duplicate of a creature you designate that has half of the original's maximum hit points. The duplicate regards you as a friend and follows your commands. Unfortunately, it cannot learn to become more powerful, so it lacks the ability to gain levels, learn new abilities, and restore spent spell slots. You can restore its hit points though by tending to the simulacrum in an alchemical laboratory and spending 100gp per hit point lost.
In other words, this spell creates an additional character that you can add to your party. The added character essentially doubles your actions, spell slots, and turns taken in combat. Sure, it's a costly spell to cast, but high level adventurers often get to the point where gold is no object. Is it starting to make sense why some dungeon masters ban this spell yet?
17 Forcecage
Forcecage is a seventh level evocation spell that's notorious for shutting down boss encounters entirely. The spell creates a magical prison that can't be left by nonmagical means. Creatures subject to this spell don't even get a saving throw to escape it, so legendary resistance means nothing against it.
Even if the♉ prisoner does have access to teleportation magic, they must first succeed on a Charisma saving throw in order for the magic to work. If they fail this save, they become unable to leave the cage by magical means as well.
The prison can be made into a ten-foot on a side box or a cage that's 20 feet on a side. That's large enough to capture even gargantuan sized enemies, which is technically the largest size category of creature in the game. Yes, even ancient dragons can be imprisoned by this spell and reduced to nothing more than pincushions for your ranged attackers. The spell lasts an hour which is more than enough time for your party to kill whatever is trapped inside of it.
Dungeon masters experienced with running games at high level play typically give their boss monsters some kind of answer to this spell. If they didn't, the fight would be rather anticlimactic.
16 ඣ Contingen🐈cy
The sixth level evocation spell Contingency is one of the best arguments for playing the Wizard class as a whole as it's only available to Wizards. As its name suggests, this spell allows you to create a contingency plan that activates on a trigger you choose.
The contingency is a spell from first-fifth level with a casting time of ♒one action that is immediately cast when the chosen circumstance occurs. Common triggers or circumstances include being reduced to a certain number of hit points, being subject to a debilitating condition, or a chosen password that you can speak as a free action.
Good contingent spell choices include Dispel Magic, Haste, Greater Invisibility, Polymorph, Otiluke's Resilient Sphere, Banishment, Mirror Image, and more. Basically, any spell you want to cast as an answer to a certain situation makes for a great contingent spell. However, there's a strong argument for using Contingency in a more aggressive manner by choosing a spell like Polymorph or Haste as well.
15 Wish
As a ninth level spell, Wish is far from the most acc𝐆essible spell available to Wizards. Though it will only be available to Wizards level 17 and above, it’s hard to argue with the countless applications the spell has. Capable of replicating the effects of nearly any other effect in the game, creating resources out of thin air, or even manifesting feats described by its caster, it🦂’s hard to find a problem that can’t be alleviated with a casting of Wish.
While the spell has the most raw potential of any effect in the game, it doesn’t rank higher on this list 🦩due to its lack of acc🐟essibility, meaning many players will go entire campaigns without being able to cast it. If you do get the opportunity to cast this spell, you should be careful what you wish for. Ultimately, the effects of this spell are often up to dungeon master discretion.
14 🐟 M💦isty Step
Straightforward yet effective, Misty Step is one of the earliest teleportation spells available to Wizards. A second level spell that can be cast as ♔a bonus action, Misty Step allows its caster to move up to 30 feet in any direction.
This can allow a Wizard to get out of restraints or another creature’s grapple with ease, or even provide an additional ♕thi𒉰rty feet of movement on your turn in a pinch.
13 Find Familiar ꦏ
Find Familiar is an incredible spell that is normally exclusive to the Wizard class. As a first level spell, Find Familiar is available from the word go and, as the name suggests, allows its caster to 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:conjure a familiar of their choice. Once s🥂ummoned, a Wizard can control their familiar and even see and hear us♉ing its senses as an action.
While a familiar can’t use the attack action, it has access to its own turn in combat and can move items around the battlefield or even use the help action, consistently providing advantage on a party member's attacks.
12 Clone
It’s hard to have a conversation about powerful Wizard spells without discussing the stellar Necromancy spell Clone. Like Wish, this eighth-leveꦗl spell won’t be available to a Wizard for most of their journey but makes its way onto this list by being the closest thing to immortality a Wizard can access with their magic.
Clone creates a duplicate body of the target. When this spell’s target dies, as long as their soul remains intact, it will automatically enter the clone’s body, retaining all of their stats, abilities, and experience. It's like a resurrection spell that you cast prior to dying instead of afterwards.
11 Bigby’s Hand 🌠 ♚
Bigby’s Hand is a fifth level spell that encapsulates the flexibility of a Wizard’s magic. A conc🍸entration spell that summons a large hand for up to one minute, the hand mimics the actions of its caster’s hand.
This means that this hand can be used to punch or 𝕴grapple foes, serve as cover, or even move objects! This allows a single spell to cover several bases of utility, whether it be offensive, defensive, or simply a safety precaution.
10 D🐟etect Magic
One of the most important reasons to keep a Wizard around is so that a party of adventurers can 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:recognize when magic is at play. Besides gratuitous arcana checks handed out by a kind dungeon master, players often won't know that they're dealing with a magical trap, door, or item until it's way too late. This is where detect magic comes in handy. Not only does the spell reveal any magic within 30 feet of the caster for the next ten minutes, but it (more importantly) tells the caster the kind, or school, of magic at play.
In this way, the spell can be used to tip a party off as to whether they might be dealing with a dangerous trap or a harmless illusion. Another little-known fact is that you can spend ten minutes to cast detect magic as a ritual, in which case the spell doesn't expend a spell slot. This further adds to the flexibility of an already stellar spell.
9 Feather Fall 🐲
Feather fall is a first level transmutation spell that can be cast as a reaction. The spell allows you to choose up to five falling creatures within 60 feet. Each creature's rate of descent slows to 60 feet per round, which is slow enough that a falling creature would take no damage and land on its feet.
In Dungeons and Dragons, pit traps and dangerous heights are more common than mosquitoes on a humid summer day. Feather fall is the insect repellent any party will be grateful to have in order to avoid th🐽🌠e persistent danger of perilous falls.