New Spells: Arcane Evocations
PDF Link | D&D Beyond: Arcane Aegis, Arcane Eruption, Energy Beams
Art Credit: https://www.deviantart.com/eepox/art/Arcane-Explosion-709668862
Our fifth edition homebrew is designed to help you fulfill all the familiar tropes and themes of the conventional fantasy genre. Although Dungeons & Dragons has some spells such as magic missile and eldritch blast that represent generic magical blasting, it isn’t enough to build the same arsenal of magical attacks as you might find a mage using in World of Warcraft or other high-powered fantasy realms. Today’s preview features simple (or even “generic”) evocations of pure magical energy for blasting, zapping, and exploding your enemies.
Energy beams is designed for anyone who wants to shoot magic lasers without having to take the eldritch blast cantrip. Even warlocks can learn this cantrip if they want to shoot more than one beam before 5th level. This cantrip compares to acid splash and fire bolt — it deals less damage than acid splash to each target, but it is much easier to reliably target two foes with energy beams, and it deals similar damage to fire bolt in total, but only if you have at least two targets to attack. This cantrip also goes well with class features that boost spell damage or spells that boost damage such as hex or our own ordainment of crystal.
At the 3rd-level slot, we have a new damaging evocation to compete with fireball, lightning bolt, and toxic breath: a close-ranged explosion called arcane eruption. Because of the effect the spell has on reactions and thus opportunity attacks, it works well as an escape tool for regular wizards and sorcerers who find themselves surrounded by too many enemies. It is also an excellent choice for bladesingers, eldritch knights, and legendary sorcerers who intend to charge into melee combat on a regular basis. As with any spell that deals force damage, it also benefits from there being almost zero enemies that have resistance or immunity to its damage.
Finally, we have the mighty 8th-level evocation, arcane aegis, which acts as an advanced form of both crown of stars and fire shield. Like those two spells, arcane aegis can be cast before combat without requiring the caster’s concentration. It has a limited amount of damage that it can output before the spell ends, preventing it from being abused. Higher AC makes enemies less likely to trigger the spell’s retributive damage, but that also increases the amount of time that the spellcaster can benefit from the defensive aspects of the spell, creating a balance. The only catch is that the caster needs to be within 60 feet of the attacker when they are hit, or else the spell could be depleted without dealing its full damage!
PDF Link | D&D Beyond: Arcane Aegis, Arcane Eruption, Energy Beams
