Barkhide, an alternative to Barkskin

[EggKookoo]

A druid player wanted to create a custom spell. In general, we're all kind of unsatisfied with RAW barkskin, so we thought maybe a variant that used temp HP and didn't require concentration might work. I'm way of making it too powerful, though. Anyone feel like rubbing their eyeballs over it?

Chiro's Barkhide

Level: 2nd
Casting Time: 1 Action
Range/Area: Touch
Components: V, S, M (a handful of oak bark)
Duration: Instantaneous
School: Transmutation
Damage/Effect: Buff

You touch a willing creature, causing a magical bark-like layer to form across its body. The target gains temporary hit points equal to 2d4 plus the spellcasting ability modifier used to cast this spell. These temporary hit points are lost when completing a short or long rest, or when they're depleted. When casting this spell, select bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing. The recipient of this spell gains resistance to that damage type for as long as it possesses any of these temporary hit points.

At higher levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, the number of temporary hit points it grants increases by 1d4 for each slot above 2nd.



Chiro's Barkhide (v2)

Level: 2nd
Casting Time: 1 Action
Range/Area: Self
Components: V, S, M (a handful of oak bark)
Duration: Instantaneous
School: Transmutation
Damage/Effect: Buff

You cause a magical bark-like layer to form across your body. You gain temporary hit points equal to 2d4 plus the spellcasting ability modifier used to cast this spell. You have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage as long as you possess any of these temporary hit points, and you lose any resistance to fire damage for the same duration.

At higher levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, the number of temporary hit points it grants increases by 2d4 for each slot above 2nd.

[Chronos]

First thought: It needs a duration. I expect you're planning on it being limited by the temp HP running out, but as-is, you can cast it using the previous day's slots, and that's a big advantage. If you don't want the time to be the main limiting factor, then just give it a nice long duration like 8 hours.

EDIT: Actually, you can't do this. From the rules on temporary HP (pg. 198 in the PHB), "Unless a feature that grants you temporary hit points has a duration, they last until they're depleted or you finish a long rest". Still probably better to have an actual duration, though.

With that said, the most similar spell to this would be Aid. That's also a 2nd-level spell, with no concentration and a nice long duration, and a similar effect. At base level, your spell gives about 10 HP, while Aid only gives 5. But Aid is to three creatures, not just one. And Aid also scales better.

Another point in Aid's favor is that it increases HP max, rather than giving temp HP. That has two advantages. First, you can heal back the Aid HP, but once temp HP are gone, they're just gone. Second, different sources of temp HP (and there are a lot of them) don't stack with each other, but Aid's effect is much less common, and stacks with temp HP.

So far, this all looks like your spell is a bit underpowered, but then if you include the resistance, it might make up for it. And since you only choose one, it provides an incentive to wait to cast it until you have some idea what you'll be facing. Of course, if you guess wrong, you might not gain any benefit from the resistance at all before the THP are depleted.

One other issue: What happens if, say, you picked slashing, and you have 2 left, and someone hits you with a longsword for 8? Do you have resistance to the whole attack (and so lose only 2 real HP), or do you only resist the damage that went to the temp HP, and take full from the "overflow" damage (and so lose 4 real HP)? I'd favor the former, but it could be argued either way.

[EggKookoo]

Actually, for some reason I thought temp HP expired on even a short rest, which is one reason I didn't bother with a max duration. I'll add that in.

I do feel like the number of actual THP granted is pretty low, but then is compensated for by the resistance. And yes, the selection is partly meant to make it more of a tactical casting (as well as a balance thing). My gut is to say you keep the resistance for the entire attack.

Something else -- do you think it needs a limit on the number of people who can simultaneously benefit from it? I feel like the low THP per spell slot kind of balances this.

Thanks for the feedback!

[Blood of Gaea]

I feel like upcasting it should at least scale with a firm +5 like False Life and Armor of Agathys do.

Even then, it's kind of an awkward spell because it only has much usage if you take one big hit before losing your THP.

[PhoenixPhyre]

Honestly, I'd be fine with barkskin as is with one small change. It doesn't cost concentration if cast on yourself while wildshaped. So you can't have multiple concentration spells running until you can cast in wildshape form (because it does cost concentration in humanoid form), but doesn't have the strong chance of going down while it's doing its primary duty--helping the crappy AC of the beast forms.

[EggKookoo]

I feel like upcasting it should at least scale with a firm +5 like False Life and Armor of Agathys do.

Yeah, I was thinking maybe it should provide a set amount rather than a die roll.


Even then, it's kind of an awkward spell because it only has much usage if you take one big hit before losing your THP.

Would that be solved by providing more THP? How high is too high?


Honestly, I'd be fine with barkskin as is with one small change. It doesn't cost concentration if cast on yourself while wildshaped. So you can't have multiple concentration spells running until you can cast in wildshape form (because it does cost concentration in humanoid form), but doesn't have the strong chance of going down while it's doing its primary duty--helping the crappy AC of the beast forms.

We houseruled that barkskin isn't concentration when cast on yourself, Wild Shape notwithstanding. But honestly we just don't like the spell.

[Zhorn]

I can respect the effort in trying to 'fix' a spell you are dissatisfied with, but in this case your method already exists in False Life, only with boosted numbers.
This might just be a case of choosing not to use Barkskin in favour of other spells.

[Kane0]

Chiro's Barkhide

Level: 2nd
Casting Time: 1 Action
Range/Area: Touch
Components: V, S, M (a handful of oak bark)
Duration: Instantaneous
School: Transmutation

You touch a willing creature, causing a magical bark-like layer to form across its body. The target gains temporary hit points equal to 2d4 plus the spellcasting ability modifier used to cast this spell. These temporary hit points are lost when completing a short or long rest, or when they're depleted. The recipient of this spell also gains resistance to bludgeoning, piercing and slashing damage for as long as it possesses these temporary hit points.

At higher levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 3rd level or higher, you gain 5 additional Temporary Hit Points for each slot level above 2nd.

Made a few changes, I think it'll be fine

[EggKookoo]

Made a few changes, I think it'll be fine

Resistance to all three, you say? Not too powerful?

[Kane0]

Well at base level it's about 8-10 THP that disappear after a short rest; Touch range is a nice improvement False Life and Armor of Agathys but I wouldn't call that better by a whole spell level. Effectively double the THP against weapon damage seems fine since it can still be dispelled or shorn off by other damage types. But it scales about as well as Armor of Agathys, trading the damage on hit for slightly better protection vs certain sources and the ability to give to someone other than yourself.

If you're worried about it perhaps add vulnerability to fire damage while you have the THP as a flavorful counterbalance, or simply make it Range: Self again.

[elyktsorb]

Me thinking about how this wouldn't be good for spore druids, but what is good for them.

[EggKookoo]

I added a v2, based on feedback. It's now target = Self, it provides resistance to all three forms and prohibits resistance to fire damage for the same duration, and upcasting provides an additional 2d4 instead of 1d4 temp HP. And I removed the reference to the points running out since that was there to manage casting it on your whole party.

[Kane0]

Yeah looks good to me.