Lunar Sorcery Sorcerer Preview From Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen

Tags Sorcerer 101 author-damen-cook Dragonlance

The moon is almost synonymous with magic itself. Countless cultures have revered its power over the tides, its influence on our mood, and the safety its light provides. As a Lunar Sorcery sorcerer, you can embody and channel the powers of this mysterious celestial body. Will you manifest the power of the full moon, weaving its moonlight into protective spells for yourself and allies? Do you align with the new moon and its empty night, casting spooky spells from the cover of darkness? Or will you embody the crescent moon instead, using your illusion and transmutation magic to embrace the moon’s history of unexplained and strange powers?

Click below for a guide on building your Lunar Sorcery sorcerer, the sorcerer subclass included in Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen:

Lunar Sorcery Origin Features

A lunar sorcery sorcerer channeling the power of the moons of KrynnWhen you choose this subclass at 1st level, you can channel your magic through the power of the moon and its phases—Full Moon, New Moon, and Crescent Moon—unlocking different abilities and skill sets for each lunar phase.

  • Lunar Embodiment (1st level): When you finish a long rest, you’ll choose what phase you wish to channel for that day’s magic. You’ll also be able to cast that phase’s 1st-level spell once daily without expending a spell slot. (Sorcerers of low level or with low Constitution might particularly appreciate the Full Moon’s shield spell!)
  • Moon Fire (1st level): You can call down moonlight at will, learning the sacred flame cantrip and gaining the ability to cast it at two targets simultaneously if they are within 5 feet of each other. Few sorcerer spells deal radiant damage, so granting it to the sorcerer at 1st level (and as a free Twinned Spell under many circumstances!) expands your repertoire meaningfully.
  • Lunar Boons (6th level): Each lunar phase is associated with two schools of magic. When you use Metamagic on a spell of a school of magic associated with your current lunar phase, you can reduce the sorcery points spent by 1. You can do this a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus. While it’s fun to use Quickened Spell for merely 1 sorcery point or Heightened for 2, it’ll feel extra nice to create “free” uses of the Metamagic features that only cost 1 sorcery point, such as Careful, Subtle, and Transmuted.
  • Waxing and Waning (6th level): No longer must you limit yourself to one Lunar Embodiment phase per day. Now, you can shift your lunar phase by using your bonus action and spending 1 sorcery point. This is an excellent opportunity for players to get creative. Does your character change their lunar phase according to mood, weather, time of day, on a whim, or something else?
  • Lunar Empowerment (14th level): As the power of your lunar phase permeates your being, you gain benefits associated with your current phase. The Full Moon sheds light, aiding yourself and allies within its illumination on Investigation and Perception checks. New Moons make for dark nights, granting advantage on Stealth checks and—if you are within darkness—attacks against you have disadvantage. The Crescent Moon bolsters your defenses with resistance against necrotic and radiant damage.
  • Lunar Phenomenon (18th level): The power you channel from the moon’s energy reaches its peak. As a bonus action, you can unleash the full potential of your lunar phase. The Full Moon will blind your enemies while healing an ally; the New Moon damages enemies and reduces their movement while turning you invisible; and the Crescent Moon allows you to teleport yourself and one willing creature while granting you both resistance to all damage until the start of your next turn. Each phase’s Lunar Phenomenon can be used once per long rest, but you can spend 5 sorcery points to use any of them again.

Lunar Sorcery Compared to Other Sorcerer Subclasses

A lunar sorcerer channeling the power of Krynn's red moon

The Lunar sorcerer is a highly versatile subclass, granting more known spells than even the Aberrant Mind and Clockwork Soul subclasses. However, while the Lunar sorcerer gets 16 learned spells from their subclass, they cannot switch out any spells they don’t like. On the other hand, the Aberrant Mind and Clockwork Soul sorcerers receive 11 and 10 learned spells, respectively, that can be swapped for spells of certain schools of magic from several class’ spell lists. Whether you prefer more spells or limited access to other spell lists is a question of personal preference.

The Lunar sorcerer is highly adaptable. Need to shroud yourself in darkness? Hop into the New Moon phase. Heading into battle with the undead? Good thing you’re in your Crescent Moon phase. While picking a lunar phase once per day will work fine for most low-level characters, you’ll appreciate the ability to shift at the cost of a sorcery point and bonus action starting at 6th level. No other sorcerer subclass can really change its tune quite as quickly and effortlessly as Lunar Sorcery allows unless you count the Wild Magic sorcerer’s distinctly unpredictable method of "switching things up."

You’ll also notice that the Lunar sorcerer’s features are fairly forgiving regarding resource drain and action economy. Waxing and Waning allows you to change phases with a bonus action and 1 sorcery point, Lunar Empowerment stacks bonuses onto each phase without the need to expend resources, and Lunar Phenomenon’s ability can be triggered when you activate Waxing and Waning. (Keep this in mind when selecting your sorcerer’s spells and innate abilities, as you don’t want too much competition for your one bonus action per turn.) This impact on action economy aligns well with other sorcerer subclasses, but where Lunar Sorcery distinguishes itself is with its Lunar Boons feature, which essentially provides a limited-use pool of additional sorcery points. Though many subclasses provide cool features that cost your sorcery points, only the Lunar sorcerer offsets this cost directly. 

Things to Keep in Mind

When running this subclass, you’ll want to become somewhat familiar with the various schools of magic, as well as the Lunar Spells table and how its spells correspond to the moon’s phases. Remember that your sorcerer can only reduce the Metamagic cost when casting spells of the schools of magic that correspond to your current lunar phase. Keeping this info handy is important to optimize your resources.

Lunar Sorcery contains an inherent internal conflict: While your spellcaster may be adaptable on the battlefield, their personality, alignment, and magic probably correspond more to one lunar phase than the others. You’ll likely be inclined to consider one phase “home base” because it matches your character’s disposition and style. Still, if you stay exclusively in this phase, you’re missing out on a significant portion of the subclass’ features. I like this dynamic and think it encourages the player to explore their sorcerer’s relationship with their own power, but it might not be every player’s style.

Lastly, remember to keep a couple sorcery points in reserve! You never know when you’ll need to quickly switch to a different lunar phase to grant an ally advantage on an Investigation check or give yourself resistance to necrotic or radiant damage.

Building a Lunar Sorcery Sorcerer

Three different sorcerers demonstrate their magic

Ability Scores

Most full spellcasters like the sorcerer have it easy: Prioritize their spellcasting ability score first, then the ability scores that keep them alive at a close second. Sorcerers use their Charisma to fuel their magic, which represents their sense of willpower and innate strength of being. Constitution fuels your hit points and helps you maintain concentration on your spells. Dexterity increases your Armor Class and helps ensure you act first in battle.

If your lunar sorcerer strongly prefers one Lunar Embodiment phase over another, I might suggest slightly reprioritizing some of these ability scores:

  • Sorcerers with the Crescent Moon’s affinity for illusions or the Full Moon’s focus on abjuration might increase their Intelligence so that they can more easily see through the illusions of their enemies (using the Investigation skill). 
  • Those who use the Full Moon to layer themselves in death ward and stand ready to cast shield may feel safe avoiding much investment into Constitution or Dexterity. 
  • Conversely, a sorcerer with the New Moon’s penchant for concentration spells may prioritize Constitution, and one with the New Moon’s gloomy nature may prioritize Dexterity to cast from the shadows.

Character Creation

Anybody can be a Lunar sorcerer, but I’ve collected some recommendations below for species and origins that I thought were thematically fitting.

  • Custom Lineage: If your fantasy world has a lunar deity or cultural practices surrounding reverence for the moon, these customs likely spread across communities and species. Perhaps your character represents one of many unions between two bordering nations who share a worship of the moon.
  • Hexblood (Lineage): Hexbloods are mortals touched by eldritch and otherworldly energy, usually that of a hag from fey lore. Hexblood magic has an inherent eeriness, pairing well with the moon’s associations with wild and unexplained mystical energies.
  • Pallid Elf: The pallid elves come from Exandria, the world of Critical Role. These elves lived on a mountain plateau worshiping the Moonweaver before an evil deity sunk their home underground. There they remained for about a thousand years, turning “as pale as the surface of Exandria’s largest moon.” As a pallid elf, you’ll gain advantage on Investigation and Insight checks, and you’ll learn additional spells.
  • Satyr: Hags can’t have all the fun. The moon is associated with hunting and reveling as much as gloom and doom, and satyrs represent a more mirthful side of the fey realm. Mechanically, satyrs share the hexblood’s status as a Fey creature type instead of Humanoid, meaning that spells like hold person won’t work on them—but spells like protection from evil and good will. In addition, satyrs enjoy Magic Resistance, granting a fittingly innate protection against magic.
  • Shifter: If you’re considering a werewolf Lunar sorcerer but are concerned about some of the more obvious drawbacks, you may want to look to the shifter. Shifters are weretouched, descendants of full or partial lycanthropes, and their fully-shifted form is a humanoid bestial hybrid instead of a full beast. Unlike werewolves, they need not fear silver, and they need not fear the moon’s sway over their shapeshifting. How would your shifter character react to being so beholden, once again, to the moon’s phases?

Feats

Feats allow you to further customize your character. You can use them to add breadth and options to your spellcasting, specialize in a particular skill set, or shore up some vulnerabilities. Because Lunar sorcerers can wear a few different hats, I’ll suggest feats with various styles of play and party roles in mind.

  • Eldritch Adept: Players can choose one from a list of the warlock’s Eldritch Invocations, granting a boon such as the ability to read all writing, see through magical darkness, or cast certain 1st-level spells without expending a spell slot. Lunar sorcerers engaged in espionage or intrigue might appreciate several of these options.
  • Fey Touched or Shadow Touched: If your campaign and your character’s interpretation of the moon’s magic is wild or dark, these feats will probably feel like fun, thematically appropriate choices. They’re good opportunities to increase your Charisma and learn a couple of new spells, and sorcerers of any spellcasting style can benefit from them.
  • Metamagic Adept: Once you reach 6th level and begin reducing the sorcery point cost of your Metamagic options, you’ll probably want to learn more. With Metamagic Adept, you can learn two additional Metamagic options and gain two additional sorcery points. So, if you want your sorcerer to do more sorcerer stuff, this feat helps you do precisely that.
  • Telepathic: Lean into lunar magic’s otherworldly nature and listen in on other people’s thoughts. The Telepathic feat increases an ability score, allows you to speak telepathically with any creature within 60 feet of you, and grants you the detect thoughts spell.
  • War Caster: Many sorcerers’ favorite spells, including several on the Lunar Spells table, require concentration. War Caster helps ensure that the spell slot you spent casting confusion won’t go to waste by giving you advantage on all Constitution saving throws made to maintain concentration. It also lets you cast certain spells as an opportunity attack, allowing sacred flame even more of a chance to shine.

Lunar Sorcery Sorcerer Sample Build

I’ve created a 14th-level Lunar sorcerer and linked it below. I decided to try to focus on one phase that would feel like home and make something of a character and campaign concept around that.

This sorcerer is a satyr illusionist and transmutationist, a member of a Faerie court engaged in classically complex and deadly fey politics. With this setting in mind, I selected Telepathic and Eldritch Adept as feats, choosing Eldritch Sight for the Invocation so that I can cast detect magic without expending a spell slot. He primarily embodies the Crescent Moon phase, using the Lunar Boons feature to cast five free Subtle Spells per day: mislead for espionage, skill empowerment before attempting a daring social maneuver, and maybe polymorph here and there just for fun. Now, if someone could get the man a barrier tattoo, he’ll be all set!

Making Your Own Sorcerer

Now that you have a better idea of how Lunar Sorcery works, you’ll have to consider some aspects of your character that aren’t represented by a number on your character sheet. For example, when did your sorcerer get their powers, and how do they feel about them? Are they a prophesied savior or the product of a complex ritual? Has their family worshiped the moon for generations, or does their culture adore the sun and consider this sorcery strange?

Once you’re ready to make your character, hop into D&D Beyond’s character builder and bring your Lunar sorcerer to life!

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Damen Cook (@damen_joseph) is a lifelong fantasy reader, writer, and gamer. If he woke up tomorrow in Faerun, he would bolt through the nearest fey crossing and drink from every stream and eat fruit from every tree in the Feywild until he found that sweet, sweet wild magic.

This article was originally published on October 26, 2022, and was updated on February 14, 2023. 

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