The Crusher feat is also a viable option to combine with Magic stone. Since Crusher works with any attack that deals bludgeoning damage, the spells utility increases by knocking enemies away to prevent them from getting any opportunity attacks off. The crit option is a sweet bonus, causing all attacks on the target to be at advantage until the start of your next turn. All this from a safe distance mind you.
What it comes down to, is that everything is written with blades and bows in mind from a skewed "medieval" perspective. So the 'luddites' here are kind of getting screwed, if, even just for flavor, we desperately dont want to play with any of the boring traditional main weapons, but actually scale with "sticks & stones". I know this might be some kind of "but casters have spells" balance thing, but in a world with magic that is stupid-- at least let said sticks & stones be buildable to be equivalent with the other simple weapons (particularly ranged). -- eg. Give us magic ammo/actually interesting or effective magical slings. Make this cantrip a signature of sling use... Sorry but it makes absolutely ZERO sense that if you are using magic to simply make stones more effective slightly magical ammo... they wouldn't just act exactly like more effective slightly magical ammo (you could probably get better damage by buying magic crossbow bolts and chucking them randomly at people than with this tailored spell-- slings are devastating IRL and have the potential to be extremely cool--no note remotely even a little like the abomination that was in the HaT movie...slingshots are a 1950s thing). Whatever RAW actually would play out as, if a DM handed out a +3 sling, bc a player wanted to primarily use the sling, then didnt allow Magic Stones to be functionally used as ammo in said sling like any other ammo, with the +3... no. I mean the spell doesnt even allow u to have more than 3 pieces of said magical ammo at a time without continuing to eat your bonus action (and an entire cantrip slot)! Its broken in the wrong direction IMO, in a game without a magical sling alternative. Like, how much do we have to work around and forfeit just to be able to use a prehistoric ranged weapon with RAW?? Bonus Action, Cantrip, and 6 multiclass levels in Rogue just for a sneak attack bonus bc its the only things that works? ...at LEAST add it into the language of the feats.
Any way this is incredibly aggravating and this concept of handing rocks out to bystanders (SUPER circumstantial) misses the mark for the people who ask these questions... bc we wanna be rock goblins-- My point is that this spell should be updated and edited to have things like: some kind of stacking and/or more specific & better clarification of how to pair it with a sling (as a go to, not a random opportunity thing, or 'assume the bystanders only have this'). The range for the sling vs thrown needs to be amended so that using a sling actually is a potential improvement instead of liability for no payoff (without sneak attack). The damage should increase, possibly in a staggered level so it isnt too much, with an increase in the # of stones at one time BUT-- simply add a clause on the leveling that it only applies to stones weilded by the caster-- if they are handed to anyone else they always stay at 1d6 max 3.
This spell could be soooo much cooler than it is with soooo many great super flavorful uses and as is, they've made it almost as boring and moot as possible...
When calculating damage for magic stone used with a sling, do you take the sling's damage and add it to the magic stone's damage, or do you simply take the magic stone's damage?
So, for example, if my hit damage with magic stone is 1d6+2, do I add my sling damage of 1d4+2?
Huh. That's creative. I would say you only add the magic stone damage, but if the sling is magic, things could get way more complicated.
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In truth, it comes down to your DM. I wouldn't say that you get the 1d6+2 *and* 1d4+2, but as written Magic Stone is practically useless after level 5.
As an example (using 2014 rules since original post was from 2019): A sling has a range of 30/120, meaning that anything outside of 30 feet is long range and will be at disadvantage unless you have Sharpshooter. The spell allows for a ranged spell attack up to 60 feet. So for anything 60 feet or less, it is more beneficial to just throw the stone than to use a sling. Having it as a ranged spell attack also negates any extra attacks you might have. So, unless you have minions that can throw rocks, or you are giving them to party members that don't have ranged attacks, the spell becomes practically useless at higher levels.
What I do at my table is play into the unintentionally vague verbiage of the spell description with the "can" make a ranged spell attack. I take the "can" to mean that the player could also just make a normal thrown attack (improvised thrown weapon) or a normal sling attack but the bullet gets the 1d6+dex or spellcasting ability (whichever is higher). This allows a fighter with a sling and Magic Initiate (Druid) to make use of this cantrip throughout most, or all, of the game if they want.
The Crusher feat is also a viable option to combine with Magic stone. Since Crusher works with any attack that deals bludgeoning damage, the spells utility increases by knocking enemies away to prevent them from getting any opportunity attacks off. The crit option is a sweet bonus, causing all attacks on the target to be at advantage until the start of your next turn. All this from a safe distance mind you.
What it comes down to, is that everything is written with blades and bows in mind from a skewed "medieval" perspective. So the 'luddites' here are kind of getting screwed, if, even just for flavor, we desperately dont want to play with any of the boring traditional main weapons, but actually scale with "sticks & stones". I know this might be some kind of "but casters have spells" balance thing, but in a world with magic that is stupid-- at least let said sticks & stones be buildable to be equivalent with the other simple weapons (particularly ranged). -- eg. Give us magic ammo/actually interesting or effective magical slings. Make this cantrip a signature of sling use... Sorry but it makes absolutely ZERO sense that if you are using magic to simply make stones more effective slightly magical ammo... they wouldn't just act exactly like more effective slightly magical ammo (you could probably get better damage by buying magic crossbow bolts and chucking them randomly at people than with this tailored spell-- slings are devastating IRL and have the potential to be extremely cool--no note remotely even a little like the abomination that was in the HaT movie...slingshots are a 1950s thing). Whatever RAW actually would play out as, if a DM handed out a +3 sling, bc a player wanted to primarily use the sling, then didnt allow Magic Stones to be functionally used as ammo in said sling like any other ammo, with the +3... no. I mean the spell doesnt even allow u to have more than 3 pieces of said magical ammo at a time without continuing to eat your bonus action (and an entire cantrip slot)! Its broken in the wrong direction IMO, in a game without a magical sling alternative. Like, how much do we have to work around and forfeit just to be able to use a prehistoric ranged weapon with RAW?? Bonus Action, Cantrip, and 6 multiclass levels in Rogue just for a sneak attack bonus bc its the only things that works? ...at LEAST add it into the language of the feats.
Any way this is incredibly aggravating and this concept of handing rocks out to bystanders (SUPER circumstantial) misses the mark for the people who ask these questions... bc we wanna be rock goblins-- My point is that this spell should be updated and edited to have things like: some kind of stacking and/or more specific & better clarification of how to pair it with a sling (as a go to, not a random opportunity thing, or 'assume the bystanders only have this'). The range for the sling vs thrown needs to be amended so that using a sling actually is a potential improvement instead of liability for no payoff (without sneak attack). The damage should increase, possibly in a staggered level so it isnt too much, with an increase in the # of stones at one time BUT-- simply add a clause on the leveling that it only applies to stones weilded by the caster-- if they are handed to anyone else they always stay at 1d6 max 3.
This spell could be soooo much cooler than it is with soooo many great super flavorful uses and as is, they've made it almost as boring and moot as possible...
Huh. That's creative. I would say you only add the magic stone damage, but if the sling is magic, things could get way more complicated.
Hey! I make (what I believe to be, could use some feedback) good homebrew!
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In truth, it comes down to your DM. I wouldn't say that you get the 1d6+2 *and* 1d4+2, but as written Magic Stone is practically useless after level 5.
As an example (using 2014 rules since original post was from 2019): A sling has a range of 30/120, meaning that anything outside of 30 feet is long range and will be at disadvantage unless you have Sharpshooter. The spell allows for a ranged spell attack up to 60 feet. So for anything 60 feet or less, it is more beneficial to just throw the stone than to use a sling. Having it as a ranged spell attack also negates any extra attacks you might have. So, unless you have minions that can throw rocks, or you are giving them to party members that don't have ranged attacks, the spell becomes practically useless at higher levels.
What I do at my table is play into the unintentionally vague verbiage of the spell description with the "can" make a ranged spell attack. I take the "can" to mean that the player could also just make a normal thrown attack (improvised thrown weapon) or a normal sling attack but the bullet gets the 1d6+dex or spellcasting ability (whichever is higher). This allows a fighter with a sling and Magic Initiate (Druid) to make use of this cantrip throughout most, or all, of the game if they want.