Witch bolt?

[Throne12]

So would changing witch bolts damage from 1d12 to 2d6 for every 1d12. Be better and make it more useable? So it would look like this for each level spell slot.

1st: 2d6
2nd: 4d6
3rd: 6d6
4th: 8d6
5th: 10d6
6th: 12d6
7th: 14d6
8th: 16d6
9th: 18d6

[Lombra]

The average damage rises of .5 for every die, I don't see how this is making it more useful.

Better for elemental adept: lightning for sure, still don't quite see the point.

[Aett_Thorn]

While that would even out the damage a bit, and not make it feel like you are wasting your action when you roll a 1 for damage, I think that it needs a fundamental rework to make it really worth it.

Current:


Casting Time: 1 action

Range: 30 feet

Components: V, S, M (a twig from a tree that has been struck by lightning)

Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute

A beam of crackling, blue energy lances out toward a creature within range, forming a sustained arc of lightning between you and the target. Make a ranged spell attack against that creature. On a hit, the target takes 1d12 lightning damage, and on each of your turns for the duration, you can use your action to deal 1d12 lightning damage to the target automatically. The spell ends if you use your action to do anything else. The spell also ends if the target is ever outside the spell’s range or if it has total cover from you.

At Higher Levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, the initial damage increases by 1d12 for each slot level above 1st.

How I would do it:


Casting Time: 1 action

Range: 60 feet

Components: V, S, M (a twig from a tree that has been struck by lightning)

Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute

A beam of crackling, blue energy lances out toward a creature within range, forming a sustained arc of lightning between you and the target. Make a ranged spell attack against that creature. On a hit, the target takes 2d6 lightning damage, and on each of your turns for the duration, you can use your bonus action to deal 2d6 lightning damage to the target automatically. The spell ends if you use your action to cast a spell of 1st level or higher. The spell also ends if the target is ever outside the spell’s range or if it has total cover from you.

At Higher Levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, the initial damage for both the initial and damage done on each turn increases by 1d6 for each slot level above 1st.

[Lombra]

While that would even out the damage a bit, and not make it feel like you are wasting your action when you roll a 1 for damage, I think that it needs a fundamental rework to make it really worth it.

Current:



How I would do it:

That's pretty damn powerful. Stronger than spiritual weapon by a lot and outshines any other single-target damage spell of the same level, actually, of several levels.

Not being able to cast a leveled spell but just a cantrip does not balance it out. It wouldn't be balanced even if the caster couldn't cast spells at all, it's just too powerful for a first level spell.

At least keep it an action every turn, the damage scales way too hard (why cast storm sphere when with the same slot I can have 8d6 lightning damage instead of 4?).

It's designed to tell the enemies that are close to you to back off, not to be a consistent source of damage.

[Willie the Duck]

That's a cool idea. However, it makes the usefulness of this spell very dependent upon who uses it. Eldritch Knights and Warlocks would love it, sorcerers and wizards would not. I don't know if you intended that.

My celestial warlock makes great use of his Flaming Sphere (at 7th level, he could spend his concentration on Hex to get +2d6 from his two eldritch blasts, or he can cast FS and deal 4D6+cha at the cost of his bonus action). This spell would be like that, except different damage type and delivery.

[Throne12]

Casting Time: 1 action

Range: 60 feet

Components: V, S, M (a twig from a tree that has been struck by lightning)

Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute

A beam of crackling, blue arc of lighting leaps out toward a creature within range. Make a ranged spell attack against a creature. On a hit, the target takes 2d6 lightning damage. For the duration, or untell the creature dies, you can use your bonus action to deal 2d6 lightning damage to the target. The spell ends if you use your action to cast a spell of 1st level or higher.

At Higher Levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, the initial damage for both the initial and damage done on each turn increases by 1d6 for each slot level above 1st.



This change still eats up your Concentration. But you can only cast a cantrip or take any action other then casting a spell of 1st level or higher. Yes at 2nd level it's doing 1d6 more of damage then flaming sphere. But it's single target has to hit and can't be tranfered to other targets. I don't see this spell stepping on any other spells toes.

[Temperjoke]

Honestly, I think that the only thing that needs to be done to "fix" the spell is to remove the line "the spell ends if you use your action to do anything else". That would resolve most of the issues. The enemy still has the option to move out of range or duck behind total cover, it still takes up your concentration, it would just give you the ability to cast a different non-concentration spell at the cost of doing Witch Bolt damage that round.

[MxKit]

Honestly, I think that the only thing that needs to be done to "fix" the spell is to remove the line "the spell ends if you use your action to do anything else". That would resolve most of the issues. The enemy still has the option to move out of range or duck behind total cover, it still takes up your concentration, it would just give you the ability to cast a different non-concentration spell at the cost of doing Witch Bolt damage that round.

Personally, I'd both remove that line and make it so that you can use your bonus action to keep up the damage on later turns. Leaving it still just 1d12 keeps it in line even if you're able to use even high-level non-concentration spells, I think. If it seems too powerful, though, using Aett_Thorn's suggestion that it ends "if you use your action to cast a spell of 1st level or higher" works too.

Either way, it gives you couple different ways you can choose to use the spell; either use it primarily for the initial damage but then let them back away from you and break the spell, or gish it up and hound them with melee attacks (maybe with SCAG cantrips!) to keep them in your range and keep doing that 1d12 bonus damage to them. It'd be kind of Hex-lite for gishes, but still nowhere near as good as Hex, since it won't last anywhere near as long (and never lasts longer), gives no disadvantage to ability checks, and can't be transferred to another enemy if the initial target dies early.

[Kane0]

The main thing that drags down the spell is the action requirement each turn and the immediate ending of the spell if range/line of sight is broken. If you correct those then the single target and concentration factors will keep the damage in check.

[Lorka]

One of my players are a Wild Magic Sorcerer that mix upcasting empowered Witchbolt with Haste, giving him two actions to deal the damage. Rolling Xd12 re-rolling lows twice each turn, really is a lot of damage.

There are probably better damage combos, but he have chosen a lot of utility spells and with so few spells know this is his best damage combo at lvl 7.

[Flashy]

One of my players are a Wild Magic Sorcerer that mix upcasting empowered Witchbolt with Haste, giving him two actions to deal the damage. Rolling Xd12 re-rolling lows twice each turn, really is a lot of damage.

There are probably better damage combos, but he have chosen a lot of utility spells and with so few spells know this is his best damage combo at lvl 7.

Are you scaling the damage on future turns too? Because as written only the initial damage scales, and then when you repeat the damage it deals the flat 1d12. So the Xd12 can only ever be 2d12 after the first turn. I obviously don't think that letting the future damage scale is particularly broken, I just want to emphasize how poor the spell is as written.

Haste and Witch Bolt are also both concentration spells, so unless someone else is casting Haste on the sorcerer this doesn't work.

[Lorka]

I don't check my players, but it sounds like this combo won't work then since he is concentrating on both spells.

[Aett_Thorn]

I don't check my players, but it sounds like this combo won't work then since he is concentrating on both spells.

Also, Haste has a very specific set of things that you can do with the extra action, and I'm not sure that activating Witch Bolt's damage falls under them. I would probably allow it if it worked with the concentration issue, but I don't think that even if the character was Hasted by someone else that this would work.

[Waffle_Iron]

Here's how we do it:

Witch Bolt
Evocation

Level: 1
Casting time: 1 Action
Range: 30 feet
Components: V, S, M (a twig from a tree that has been struck by lightning)
Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute
A beam of crackling, blue energy lances out toward a creature within range, forming a sustained arc of lightning between you and the target.
Make a ranged spell attack against that creature. On a hit, the target takes 1d12 lightning damage. On each of your turns for the duration, you can use your action to deal 1d12 lightning damage to the target automatically. If the target it out of range, choose a new target. The spell ends if you use your action to do anything else.

At higher level
When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, the initial damage increases by 1d12 for each slot level above 1st.

So, even if you miss, you still have nine rounds of autohitting 1d12 lightning damage. Unless everyone runs away from you, which we believe was the intent of the spell anyway. Worthwhile at low levels, but not very strong after cantrips increase their damage. Good, but not godly.

[Bobbyjackcorn]

Why not add some form of status effect to subsequent turns, to make it more valuable? Perhaps when cast at later levels it reduces movement speed to half, or has a DC chance to stun them? I think that the damage is good enough, so long as there is a compelling reason to keep using your action to maintain it.

[Aett_Thorn]

Why not add some form of status effect to subsequent turns, to make it more valuable? Perhaps when cast at later levels it reduces movement speed to half, or has a DC chance to stun them? I think that the damage is good enough, so long as there is a compelling reason to keep using your action to maintain it.

Stun may be too great of an effect for a 1st level spell. But maybe have it so that if the damage is activated on a following round, the target can't take reactions that round? Make it a ranged, slightly weaker Shocking Grasp?

[Demonslayer666]

Or ramp up the damage each turn, so it makes it worthwhile to maintain.