Favorite Spells?

[Falka]

Now that I'm translating all the spell lists for my tabletop group, I have time to browse through spells carefully and have a few favorites already.

Which are yours?

For 1st tier (levels 1-4), I think that Phantasmal Force is awesome.

[Edge of Dreams]

Revivify - a much cheaper Raise Dead (only 300 gp!) that works on a target who died within the last minute, as a 3rd level spell. Any Cleric or Paladin with squishy allies can easily keep this on hand to deal with those "Oh ***, someone just died" scenarios. At 1 Action cast time, you could even use it mid-combat if you were desperate enough.

[Surrealistik]

Off the top of my head:


Sleep (broken at the levels you first get it)
Fear (Team Monster gets to enjoy not doing anything en masse while having Disadvantage on its saving throws including those to end this effect)
Darkness (Darkness + Devil Sight)
Wish (duh)
Wall of Force (abusively good; automatically negates a preponderance of monsters for the duration of an encounter)
Animate Dead (abusively good + flavourful)
Demiplane/Rope Trick/Mansion
Earthquake (symphony of mass destruction (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkZbvV5Nzw0))
Scry (massive simplifier)
Teleport (massive simplifier)
Counterspell (too good for its level to abusive with the Abjuration specialist Wizard)
Dispel Magic (too good for its level to abusive with the Abjuration specialist Wizard)
Simulacrum (abusively good)
Eldritch Blast (also abusively good, particularly with Warlock riders + Metamagic, and will probably get even more abusive as splash content is released if the Alpha is anything to go by)
Revivify/Raise Dead/etc (obvious)


EDIT: Minor Illusion, Mage Hand (my bad; these cantrips are ridiculously versatile and absolute workhorses)

[akaddk]

Chromatic Orb. People overlook its versatility, I think. The fact that you can choose whatever element to use makes it very worthwhile and its value only goes up as you go up in level and face more creatures that are resistant/vulnerable to various elements. Not only that, but it can be twinned, empowered and scaled up.

Friends is another amazing one. Sure, it makes the target hostile after a minute, but in most circumstances you're going to be gone after that minute and it won't matter. Not only that, but it applies to Intimidate checks which you're going make a target hostile after using anyway.

Minor Illusion which I think everyone knows is totally broken as a cantrip.

[Surrealistik]

Yeah, Minor Illusion for sure; doesn't even require Concentration, and it absolutely should.

[andhaira]

I am pleased with the Paladin smite spells. I just wish Divine Favor was stronger. Right now there is no point to that spell, instead of 1d4 per round it's far better to burn a slot on Divine Smite.

[MeeposFire]

Prestidigitation has always been a favorite of mine. They used to call it minor wish back in the day. I figure it is as useful now as ever. At the very least flavor my food dang it...

[Armadeo]

Sleep for sure. I love playing the role of controller, and sleep is by far the best crowd control spell during the early game.

Fly has always been a favorite of mine. Now that it has a concentration requirement it's not quite as abusable (no more combining with wall of wind to become pretty much immune to physical attacks in the early game), but it's duration is better when you first get it and when cast at higher levels it becomes mass fly. Overall, I'd say that it's a more valuable spell this edition than in 3.5 due to the greater lethality of falling and the lack of magic items that can be used to replicate the spell.

[Eslin]

I am pleased with the Paladin smite spells. I just wish Divine Favor was stronger. Right now there is no point to that spell, instead of 1d4 per round it's far better to burn a slot on Divine Smite.

That's not necessarily true - it takes 4 hits with a weapon for divine favour to do more damage than simply using the slot on divine smite would. If you're low on spells, you can use it to potentially get 30d4 extra damage over the next minute, it's just in most cases the fight will be over before those 4 hits and in any case you'd need to be very low on spells.

For my part, my favourite spells are find steed (take it as a bard for communion, polymorph, magic jar and vampiric touch shenanigans) and contagion (there are very few disease immune monsters, and if you aren't disease immune and you get hit with contagion, you flat out lose.

[pwykersotz]

Guiding Bolt is amazing, especially if the party rogue can capitalize on the advantage. We dropped an ogre in two rounds at low level that way.

[Soras Teva Gee]

Leomund's Tiny Hut- This was always useful... now if you ever have a bit of time to set up a defensive position this and a couple of archers will leave you limited you only by your missile supplies. Until they just dispel it anyways.

(Oh also your new Rope Trick for those that think sleeping in dungeons isn't asking for a DM to kill you)

[Rilak]

Armour of Agathys is very good if you expect to be hit in melee. Even if you do not, it is strictly better than false life. Also, the abjuration specialist ward takes damage before temporary hit points and it is not temporary hit points (so they stack). And you deal the damage from Agathys as long as you keep the temporary hit points. A level 8 slot will deal 40 damage back for each hit you take; given a 15*2+5=35 hp ward, 40 temp. hp, 2 counterspell, you can take 81 damage; that is 360 damage back to a Hydra before it punches through; 120 damage to a Fire Giant. There are better uses for a level 8 slot, but it's a 1st level spell so you can pick for example 5th level slots...

[Eslin]

Armour of Agathys is very good if you expect to be hit in melee. Even if you do not, it is strictly better than false life. Also, the abjuration specialist ward takes damage before temporary hit points and it is not temporary hit points (so they stack). And you deal the damage from Agathys as long as you keep the temporary hit points. A level 8 slot will deal 40 damage back for each hit you take; given a 15*2+5=35 hp ward, 40 temp. hp, 2 counterspell, you can take 81 damage; that is 360 damage back to a Hydra before it punches through; 120 damage to a Fire Giant. There are better uses for a level 8 slot, but it's a 1st level spell so you can pick for example 5th level slots...

The problem there is you'd have to multiclass warlock, and there's not a lot of synergy between the two.

[linklele]

[I]

(Oh also your new Rope Trick for those that think sleeping in dungeons isn't asking for a DM to kill you)

I was a fan of the rope trick before, but in this edition is usable only for short rests... you know... one hour duration.

I like also demiplane: storage room anywere you want? Yay! (but still you can't sleep there, unless you spend your only 8TH spell slot the morning after, wich is a HUGE price). Things gets improved if you are a sorcerer with extend spell and 3 sorcery points, but i still think 8th level is too much.

[Falka]

But, can your spells summon a beholder at level 3?

Mine can!

Illusionists seem to be heaps of fun in this edition.

[Rilak]

The problem there is you'd have to multiclass warlock, and there's not a lot of synergy between the two.

1 level of Warlock is not a big problem. Level 20 Wizard capstone is not needed; 18 levels gets you everything you need, 19 for stats.
As Abjuration spec Hill Dwarf, you can go for 15 INT 15+2 CON 13 CHA 12+1 WIS. And pick both Cleric 1 and Warlock 1 for heavy armor and agathys. The alternative is only Warlock 1 and hope you get hit more often for more damage from Agathys, using Shield whenever you do not want to get hit ;)

Agathys is powerful on its own regardless. It is easier to pick it up as Bard or Sorcerer than Abjuration specialist though.

[Eslin]

Yeah, but looking at it abjuration specialist does look like a very strong way of doing it. I mostly use it for steed protection - find steed is a lovely way of doubling the power of many self cast spells, but the mount itself stays at 19hp the whole game.

[cobaltstarfire]

Guiding Bolt is amazing, especially if the party rogue can capitalize on the advantage. We dropped an ogre in two rounds at low level that way.

I haven't gotten to use it yet, but yeah I think Guiding Bolt is my favorite spell so far, at least at first glance.

[Yagyujubei]

I've personally always been a fan of dimension door. It's useful in so many ways.

[Totema]

Oddly enough, Friends. You can use it to justify entering combat with just about anyone. Or if you want it to be actually useful, you can combine it with Disguise Self by impersonating someone you want killed or maimed, casting Friends on the local militia captain/powerful wizard/angry drunk/etc and slipping away to lose the disguise before Friends wears off.

[Surrealistik]

Just saw Conjure Animals in action at level 7.

Every bit as blatantly OP as I thought it would be; nerf please. Conjure spells that allow you to summon multiple creatures should have been in my list all along but there's nothing like seeing it in disastrous first hand action and train wreck my DM's encounters to remind me.

[Malifice]

Just saw Conjure Animals in action at level 7.

Every bit as blatantly OP as I thought it would be; nerf please. Conjure spells that allow you to summon multiple creatures should have been in my list all along but there's nothing like seeing it in disastrous first hand action and train wreck my DM's encounters to remind me.

7th level spell, or 7th level?

6 Brown bears looks nasty for a 7th level slot at 13th level.

[Surrealistik]

7th level spell, or 7th level?

6 Brown bears looks nasty for a 7th level slot at 13th level.

At the 7th level.

8 wolves just destroyed encounter after encounter with Stealth + autoadvantage (Pack Tactics), surrounding and tearing through opponents like a pack of land piranhas while the rest of the party focus fired/counterspelled anyone that could possibly AoE them.

That said, I'm sure you could probably do worse than that and select more durable/optimal creatures, like swarms.

[TheOOB]

Oddly enough, Friends. You can use it to justify entering combat with just about anyone. Or if you want it to be actually useful, you can combine it with Disguise Self by impersonating someone you want killed or maimed, casting Friends on the local militia captain/powerful wizard/angry drunk/etc and slipping away to lose the disguise before Friends wears off.

Hostility doesn't mean they'll attack you, it just means they don't like you and wish you ill. Casting it on someone in the militia is a good way to get yourself arrested.

[Logosloki]

Hurl through Hell (fiend warlock class feature, I count is as a spell dang it!) has to be the best spell description ever made. The only problem is is that I can't body surf the person at the same time with a metal instrumental playing as I do it. Then again I would have to find someone way to become a fiend myself if I did otherwise I would be taking damage from my own spell (qq).

[Pandiano]

Hunger of Hadar

Zone of the black and soulles void with devouring tentacles and body heat sucking madness. Mourning and slurping all inclusive.

[edge2054]

Fabricate, Creation, and Rope Trick have always been some of my favorites.

I wonder what happened to Item. That was another one that served me well in previous editions.