Expanded Abjurations

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A set of additional abjuration spells.

Spoiler: Eject Air

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2nd-level abjuration

• Casting Time:1 action
• Range: Touch
• Components: S, V, M (a hollow glass orb)
• Duration: Concentration, up to 10 minutes.

You reach out and push the air out of a 10-foot-radius, 20-foot-high cylinder centered on a point on the ground within range. The resulting ward maintains an area of thinness in the spell’s area, making it difficult to breath and preventing objects from staying aloft. Objects and creatures within the spell’s area have resistance to thunder damage and disadvantage on Perception (Wisdom) checks made to hear and smell.

Fog, ashes, bubbles, smoke, and other objects floating within the spell’s area fall to the ground. Objects moving quickly through the ward’s space, such as arrows, are unaffected. Creatures gain advantage on checks and saving throws made to put out or resist fire while inside the spell’s area.

If a flying creature enters the area of the ward, it must make an Acrobatics (Strength) check against your spell save DC. On a failure, the creature falls to the ground unless held aloft by magical means. Creatures have advantage on saving throws against inhaled effects while inside the zone, but have disadvantage on Saving throws made to maintain their Concentration.

(Druid, Sorcerer, Wizard)

Less powerful against thunder than Silence, not as good against fire as Pyrotechnics, but it also counteracts Fog Cloud in its area. Hopefully that's enough utility to warrant taking around 3rd level?

Spoiler: Elemental Ward

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3rd-level abjuration

• Casting Time:1 reaction, which you take when you or a creature within range takes acid, cold, fire, lightning, or thunder damage
• Range:30 feet
• Components:S, V
• Duration:1 round

You create an elemental barrier in a 30-foot cone which protects creature within its area from harm. Until the start of your next turn, each creature and object inside the cone’s area gains resistance to the triggering damage type.

At Higher Levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 8th level or higher, objects and creatures in the spell’s area gain immunity to the triggering damage type.

(Druid, Sorcerer, Wizard)

Higher level absorb elements, with its own 8th level upcasting option. My understanding is that a cone can be started in any corner and then pointed in any direction, which should include back over yourself. If that's the case, you should be able to aim it at allies by casting it from the opposite corner.

Spoiler: Languor

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4th-level abjuration

• Casting Time:1 action
• Range:120 feet
• Components: S, V
• Duration: Concentration, up to 10 minutes.

You reach out, and the area in a 30-foot cube within range turns stagnant, pressing forcibly against each creature within its space. Each creature that enters or starts its turn in the cube must make a Wisdom saving throw, becoming slowed on a failed save.

Additionally, objects through the spell’s space slow drastically, as if traveling through water or a similarly thick fluid. A ranged weapon attack automatically misses a target beyond the weapon’s normal range. Even against a target within normal range, the attack roll has disadvantage unless the weapon is a crossbow, a net, or a weapon that is thrown like a javelin (including a spear, trident, or dart).

If a creature with the spell’s area is partaking in underwater combat, all ranged attacks miss, and a creature making a melee weapon attack has disadvantage on the attack roll unless the weapon is a dagger, javelin, shortsword, spear, or trident.

(Bard, Cleric)

Stronger, higher level slow which has a second effect even if you succeed on the save. If the targeting and the second effect didn't effect allies, I'd bump it up another level.

Spoiler: Lockdown

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7th-level abjuration

• Casting Time:1 action
• Range: Touch
• Components: S, V, M (powdered iron worth 25 gp, which the spell consumes)
• Duration:8 hours

You touch a creature, object or entryway, and it becomes locked in place for the duration. An unwilling target can attempt a Constitution saving throw against your spell DC to negate the spell’s effects. You and the creatures you designate when you cast this spell can open the object normally. You can also set a password that, when spoken within 5 feet of the object, suppresses this spell for 1 minute.

An affected creature, including the target, can use an action to make a Strength check with a DC of your spellcasting save DC + 10, moving the target up to 10 feet on a success. Otherwise, it has a movement speed of 0. Casting knock on an affected object suppresses arcane lockdown for 1 minute. While affected by this spell, the object is more difficult to break or force open; the DC to break it or pick any locks on it increases by 20.

At Higher Levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 8th level, the duration increases to 24 hours. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 9th level or higher, the duration increases to 10 days.

(Cleric, Wizard)

Higher level Arcane Lock which can target creatures. An earlier draft also made a creature target incapacitated, which works awkwardly with the check made to try moving. Duration isn't "until dispelled" to make sure Arcane Lock still has utility when you can access this.

Spoiler: Mass Snare

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3rd-level abjuration

• Casting Time:1 action
• Range:60 feet
• Components: S, V, M (A piece of rope)
• Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute

You create an instant, magical trap beneath up to six large or smaller creatures you can see in a 30-foot cube within range. Each target must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or be magically hoisted into the air, leaving it hanging upside down 3 feet above the ground or the floor. The creature is restrained there until the spell ends.

A restrained creature can make a Dexterity saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. Alternatively, the creature or someone else who can reach it can use an action to make an Intelligence (Arcana) check against your spell save DC. On a success, the restrained effect ends.

At Higher Levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 4th level or higher, you can target two additional creatures for each slot level above 3rd.

(Artificer, Druid, Ranger, Wizard)

Abjuration control option for 3rd level. I was going to make a 1st level Instant Snare as well, but it seemed redundant with this and the next spell.

Spoiler: Net of Force

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1st-level abjuration

Casting Time:1 Action
Range:30 feet
Components: S, V, M (a net or bit of rope)
Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute
Choose a creature that you can see within range, which must make a Dexterity saving throw. A large or larger target has advantage on this saving throw. On a failed save the target is grappled by chains of magical force, and restrained while grappled in this manner. As an action on each of its turns, the target can make its choice of an Acrobatics (Dexterity) or Athletics (Strength) check against your spell save DC to end the condition.

At Higher Levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, you can target one additional creature for each slot level above 2nd. The targets must be within 30 feet of each other when you target them.

(Artificer, Paladin, Ranger)

Significantly weaker than Hold Person, but much lower level than Hold Monster. I did limit it to half casters, which I might change if I get more input.

Spoiler: Protect Object

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1st-level abjuration

• Casting Time:1 action
• Range: Touch
• Components: S, V, M (a flake of adamantine)
• Duration:10 minutes

You reach out an touch an object this is no more than 5 feet on a side, protecting it from harm. For the duration, the object gains resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage, and all critical hits on the object deal regular damage.

At Higher Levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level, the duration becomes 1 hour. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 3rd level, the duration becomes 8 hours. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 4th level or higher, the duration becomes 24 hours.

(Artificer, Cleric, Paladin, Wizard)

Should i add fire and acid resistance? Anyway, a way to protect fragile items for a limited time. Maybe worth allowing it to be ritual cast?

Spoiler: Repulsion

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3rd-level abjuration

• Casting Time:1 action
• Range: Self
• Components: S, V
• Duration: Instantaneous

A shimmering barrier extends out from you for 30 feet, forcing away creatures other than undead and constructs. Each creature, other than constucts and undead, must make a Strength saving throw or be pushed until it is 30 feet away from you. If this barrier would push multiple creatures into the same space, the target furthest from you is pushed out to 30 feet from and each closer target is pushed into the space closest to the next further creature.

(Bard, Cleric, Wizard)

Effectively a higher radius, instantaneous Antilife Shell.

Spoiler: Reflection

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2nd-level abjuration

Casting Time:1 reaction, which you take when you take piercing, slashing, or bludgeoning damage.
Range: Self
Components: S, V, M (A shard of mithral)
Duration: Instantaneous
A barrier of force surrounds you, deflecting harm from yourself and back onto your attacker. The damage you take from the attack is reduced by 3d6, to a minimum of 0 damage. If you have resistance to damage of the triggering type the reduction in damage is halved.

If the triggering source of damage is making a melee attack against you, it takes damage of the triggering type equal to half the damage prevented by this spell.

At Higher Levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 3rd level or higher, the damage is reduced by an additional 1d6 for each slot level above 2nd.

(Ranger, Warlock, Wizard)

A version of Absorb Elements that's for P/B/S damage. Damage reduction rather than resistance to balance the damage it can deal.

Spoiler: Soul Binding

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7th-level abjuration

• Casting Time:1 minutes
• Range:Touch
• Components:S, V
• Duration:8 hours

You reach out and bind the soul of a creature to its body, preventing the two from becoming separated. The next time the target of the spell would drop dead, they instead become undead, with the statistics of a zombie that retains their racial traits and abilities but loses all of the class features and feats, including spell slots and spells known. The target remains able to move as a zombie, and to understand the languages it knew in life, but not to speak. The target remains in this form for 1 hour. At the end of the duration, the target drops dead as normal.

The spell also effectively extends the time limit on raising the target from the dead, since minutes spent under the influence of this spell don’t count against the time limit of spells such as raise dead.

If the target becomes affected by the Gentle Repose spell while a zombie they become paralyzed until either this spell or the gentle repose ends.

(Cleric, Warlock, Wizard)

Can't resurrect, but lets you reach someone else who can resurrect you. Intended as a higher level Death Ward, which is why it activates after.

Spoiler: Structural Reinforcement

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6th-level abjuration

• Casting Time:10 minutes
• Range: Touch
• Components: S, V, M (a shard of baked clay)
• Duration:24 Hours

You ward an area against having its form modified, protecting it from being moved and modified by magic. The area is a cube that can be as small as 5 feet to as large as 100 feet on each side.

For the duration, objects within the cube cannot be altered by the impact of magical spells or with fabricate, stone shape, passwall, or similar magic. They can still be broken by physical force, the objects gain resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage, and all critical hits on the objects deal regular damage while they remain in the area.

Casting this spell on the same spot every day for a year makes this effect permanent.

(Cleric, Wizard)

Intended as a DM spell to minimize caster supremacy and a higher level version of Protect Object above. Sort of how Continual Flame, Magic Mouth, Illusory Script, and Guards and Wards are provided to players so the players know how they work, despite them serving for plot and dungeon construction more than the PC's benefit.

Spoiler: Watchware

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3rd-level abjuration

• Casting Time:1 hour (ritual)
• Range: Touch
• Components: S, V, M (10 gp of powdered silver, which the spell consumes)
• Duration: Until Dispelled

You set an alarm enveloping an object no more than 10 feet on a side. Until the spell ends, an alarm alerts you whenever the object is moved. When you cast the spell, you can designate creatures or methods of movement that won’t set off the alarm.

When the object is moved except by these creatures or methods, a mental alarm alerts you with a ping in your mind if you are within 10 miles of the warded object. This ping awakens you if you are sleeping.

(Artificer, Cleric, Wizard)

Something for dragon's lairs, and for when the PCs are trying to prevent a theft.