For me a character is defined as much as what they won't do as by what they will do.
If I am going all in on a fire mage for example he won't use any electrical or water magic etc. Maybe Thorn Whip just isn't appropriate for your character. Not using it may open up some interesting avenues for you.
That being said - you could have it has her channelling a black hole (gravity pulling them towards her and doing cold damage). Or the opposite - a small hole to a sun at their back, pushing them forward and doing radiant or fire damage.
Changing the damage type might be seen as an issue - and needs to be discussed with the DM, but personally when I DM, I would have no issue with it - as long as the damage type stays static.
Another option is to look at something like eldrich blast. Again, DM approval, but for particular concepts I wouldn't have an issue. Make them starbeams/whatever. I once took guidance as a divination wizard because it didn't make any sense that they didn't have something like that. Hardly game breaking and builds flavour/immersion.
I love the fresh take on Vampires in the King Henry Price Tapes by Richard Raley.
Spoilers for those that want to read them (though they are self-published and pretty unknown from what I can tell)
The vampires are actually a parasite which replaces the bloodstream and hence wears a body as a shell. As they grow more powerful (older) they can exist outside of the body for longer. Eventually they get so large they cannot wholly fit inside a human body (shell).
Your shadow blade description reminds me of this. Nice job.
My Warlock is using an Eldritch Blast inspired by one of the craziest spell descriptions from 3.5e. Basically their fingers rip themselves free of the hand, and shoot across the room like arrows, before either returning or growing back.
I'm planning to use Grasp of Hadar, and maybe launch the entire hand and grab someone. Idk.
The thing about re-flavoring spells for me is that each class's magic in general can look different. Compare for a moment a wizard's Fireball to a sorcerer's.
Wizards are masters of perfect magic. A wizard's fireball flies exactly the number of feet he wanted, no more and no less. The area of the explosion is a nearly perfect sphere that ripples outward with only a little sound, emitting glowing, yellow-orange light. A moment later, it vanishes, leaving only singed bad guys where it was. Not one bit of magical energy is wasted.
Sorcerers, on the other hand, aren't conservative with their magic. The magic literally can't get out fast enough. Spinning and flashing, a red point of flame zips out of the sorcerer's hand, leaving a comet-tail of flame in its wake. It erupts violently in a series of red and orange explosions, shaking the ground and sending ashes flying in all directions. Smoke fills the air even after the fire vanishes.
I appreciate those who customize their spells based on the character. That one illustration in Tasha's of the farmer shooting magic chickens never gets old. But, you don't need to be a character with a unique aesthetic and to have memorable flavored spells.
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Panda-wat (I hate my username) is somehow convinced that he is objectively right about everything D&D related even though he obviously is not. Considering that, he'd probably make a great D&D youtuber.
"If I die, I can live with that." ~Luke Hart, the DM lair
(it's a lot like vicious mockery in the way it's flavored and roleplayed, right? But maybe more subtle?)
For flavor, how about saying (whispering) things that cause cognitive dissonance in the mind of one of my enemies? Maybe also things that might cause an existential crisis or hopelessness. Maybe some gaslight-y or passive-aggressive , or backhanded stuff? Self serving stuff?
Do I just start a list of fun/fitting things to say?
I think I really like this spell and it comes with my subclass,. Very slight possible problem: I kind of want this character to be really sweet (at least in terms of the things she says, but maybe that just applies to the way she is towards her party or her party and friendly/neutral NPC's)
You could collect threats and monster noises from enemies, basically using whatever personally frightens you, to frighten others. Or, maybe you could frame it as letting some kind of creature speak through you -- opening up communication for some eldritch monster, or giving a voice to ghosts perhaps.
The thing about re-flavoring spells for me is that each class's magic in general can look different. Compare for a moment a wizard's Fireball to a sorcerer's.
. . . . . .
.Sorcerers, on the other hand, aren't conservative with their magic. The magic literally can't get out fast enough. Spinning and flashing, a red point of flame zips out of the sorcerer's hand, leaving a comet-tail of flame in its wake. It erupts violently in a series of red and orange explosions, shaking the ground and sending ashes flying in all directions. Smoke fills the air even after the fire vanishes.
I appreciate those who customize their spells based on the character. That one illustration in Tasha's of the farmer shooting magic chickens never gets old. But, you don't need to be a character with a unique aesthetic and to have memorable flavored spells.
I've been thinking a lot about this post. What about flavoring the manner in which all spells are cast instead of or in addtion to flavoring individual spells?
Specifically I'm going to play a new character who through a series of events recently became a sorcere, as an adult. I'm looking to explore what that might look like, when magic that didn't exist in someone before, is suddenly inside of them and starts emanate from them.
How might character first become aware of the magic flowing inside of them?
What would it look like, and how would it "express" or come out of them, before they figured out what it was and how to control it? Like might the magic inside of that character just cast spells without the conscious intention of the character, in order to protect that character and futher its intererest and perhaps also the creature close to them? Could it work like an instinct? How might that change, as the charcter then figures some stuff out and gets a handle on how to weild their own magic intentially? (would exploring this idea lead to anything fun or interesting?)
The thing about re-flavoring spells for me is that each class's magic in general can look different. Compare for a moment a wizard's Fireball to a sorcerer's.
. . . . . .
.Sorcerers, on the other hand, aren't conservative with their magic. The magic literally can't get out fast enough. Spinning and flashing, a red point of flame zips out of the sorcerer's hand, leaving a comet-tail of flame in its wake. It erupts violently in a series of red and orange explosions, shaking the ground and sending ashes flying in all directions. Smoke fills the air even after the fire vanishes.
I appreciate those who customize their spells based on the character. That one illustration in Tasha's of the farmer shooting magic chickens never gets old. But, you don't need to be a character with a unique aesthetic and to have memorable flavored spells.
I've been thinking a lot about this post. What about flavoring the manner in which all spells are cast instead of or in addition to flavoring individual spells?
Specifically, I'm going to play a new character who through a series of events recently became a sorcerer, as an adult. I'm looking to explore what that might look like, when magic that didn't exist in someone before, is suddenly inside of them and starts emanating from them.
How might character first become aware of the magic flowing inside of them?
What would it look like, and how would it "express" or come out of them, before they figured out what it was and how to control it? Like might the magic inside of that character just cast spells without the conscious intention of the character, in order to protect that character and further its interests and perhaps also the creature close to them? Could it work like an instinct? How might that change, as the character then figures some stuff out and gets a handle on how to wield their own magic intentionally? (Would exploring this idea lead to anything fun or interesting?)
Deciding exactly where a sorcerer's magic came from (or, for that matter, making it a mystery that the character wants to discover) would be a great piece of flavor for your backstory. It would be completely okay for a sorcerer to first discover their magic by casting it in an instinctive, unintentional way. However, a sorcerer can't expect to start gaining levels until they get their magic under control. I think gaining levels in the sorcerer class represents getting to better understand your magic and honing it so that you can unleash its full potential. In short, understanding your magic more and more is already baked into the game mechanics.
I've always thought that sorcerers are mechanically not a particularly interesting class to play, but narratively their source of magic essentially provides several character arcs waiting to happen. If your DM likes to focus on each character's individual aspirations and challenges as well as those of the group, I recommend exploring that type of concept!
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Panda-wat (I hate my username) is somehow convinced that he is objectively right about everything D&D related even though he obviously is not. Considering that, he'd probably make a great D&D youtuber.
"If I die, I can live with that." ~Luke Hart, the DM lair
You could collect threats and monster noises from enemies, basically using whatever personally frightens you, to frighten others. Or, maybe you could frame it as letting some kind of creature speak through you -- opening up communication for some eldritch monster, or giving a voice to ghosts perhaps.
Interesting!
Would it be possible to flavor and roleplay Mind Sliver and especially Dissonant Whispers so that what you say in satisfying the verbal component, causes the target psychic damage, but the target is not aware that you/what you are saying is causing them psychic damage (emotional pain) and that you are intentionally harming them? (that they are taking psychic damage, that it's you doing it, and it's on purpose . . . I guess I'm asking about the mechanics of it, is there some way of getting around the target being fully aware of what you are doing to them?)
The animal noises idea and espeically the part about having some kind of creature speak through my character (as if my character was not the one doing it) made me think of it. I think I might prefer my character to say something clever rather than to do animal sounds; I might be more open to having it seem like some other enity is speaking through my character (although that might add an extra layer of complexity that my charater doesn't have at this point . .. and she might be plaged with enough complexity and issues, without possibly being possessed).
I think in real life, sometimes people say things that inflict psychologial damage, but "the target" might not be aware in the moment that that is what happened (and that the person might be internally trying todo them harm, psychologially [maybe]) . It seem like this happens sometimes when things are said that are psychologially damaging but in a covert way. (Passive-Agressive much?). Could it work like that in D&D where the target might not be aware in the moment that your character is attacking them with a spell that deal psychic damage? (and if it is possible, ideas on roleplaying that, please)
I mean, psychic damage can kill you. I don't think you can say something passive-aggressive that causes someone to instantly perish. It's magic -- even Vicious Mockery includes some nonsense about "laced with magic," because the insult itself isn't enough to kill.
Let's say for example your character is a big ghost fan. College of Spirits maybe. When you cast Dissonant Whispers you might say, "for a brief moment, the target hears the spectral scream of a vengeful ghost as Bob casts Dissonant Whispers." I would not try to bypass the rules for spellcasting. Just give a more specific picture of what's going on, you know?
Re: awareness: I found this "Unless a spell has a perceptible effect, a creature might not know it was targeted by a spell at all. An effect like crackling lightning is obvious, but a more subtle effect, such as an attempt to read a creature's thoughts, typically goes unnoticed, unless a spell says otherwise." source: https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/basic-rules/spellcasting#CastingaSpell
So I think (if the DM at your table agrees) it would be possible to inflict psychic damage without the target being aware or completely aware of what has happened to them and who is responsible and how (and what the intention is).
I mean, psychic damage can kill you. I don't think you can say something passive-aggressive that causes someone to instantly perish. It's magic -- even Vicious Mockery includes some nonsense about "laced with magic," because the insult itself isn't enough to kill.
Let's say for example your character is a big ghost fan. College of Spirits maybe. When you cast Dissonant Whispers you might say, "for a brief moment, the target hears the spectral scream of a vengeful ghost as Bob casts Dissonant Whispers." I would not try to bypass the rules for spellcasting. Just give a more specific picture of what's going on, you know?
Right, it still would be casting a psychic damage causing spell and then just adding flavor on top of that. I think you could just say " I cast Mind Sliver" and that would be sufficient to cast the spell and to cause damage . (I guess the question of whether the target is aware of what is happening to them when you cast the spell might best be handled by a conversation with the DM.) And then what you character says either outload or maybe telepathically, depending on the spell would be the flavor. I'm not sure that there is a requirement for how overtly hurtful what your character says has to be - I think the spell you cast and the roll of the dice would determine that. What you say and how you say it might add to the context and tip the scales on whether the target is aware that you have can a psychic damage spell on them and that would have an affect on social interations and roleplaying and whether it turns into combat.
I play a Circle of Stars Druid of a quasi-Polynesian islander culture. her father was a shipwright and navigator who taught her to navigate by ocean currents and stars. she was shipwrecked as a child and washed up on a mainland beach. a druidic hermit rescued her and raised her to be a druid, but she flavors it with her background, and so gravitated to Circle of Stars and elemental water spells.
- she casts Shillelagh on a canoe paddle she always has slung to her back, the last physical connect to her family. it is carved with pictographs representing her family's story, and these carvings glow and come to life when Shilelagh'd
- when she Shapes Water, she is calling to spirits of the sea itself and asking them favors
- Guidance is of course asking the stars to guide someone's way and their zodiac constellation briefly appears when she casts it
- her Thorn Whip is a long strand of kelp riddled with spiky sea urchins
- her Augury material component is a small bowl of water with a teeny wooden boat floating in it. the boat's course through the "sea" represents the result
- her Goodberries are seafood - mussels or uni
- her Healing Spirit is a large glowing jellyfish spirit that drifts across the battlefield, healing not stinging :)
- Guiding Bolt doesn't need much flavouring, it's shooting stars of course
thank you
You could possibly theme it after a star’s gravity somehow.
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For me a character is defined as much as what they won't do as by what they will do.
If I am going all in on a fire mage for example he won't use any electrical or water magic etc.
Maybe Thorn Whip just isn't appropriate for your character. Not using it may open up some interesting avenues for you.
That being said - you could have it has her channelling a black hole (gravity pulling them towards her and doing cold damage). Or the opposite - a small hole to a sun at their back, pushing them forward and doing radiant or fire damage.
Changing the damage type might be seen as an issue - and needs to be discussed with the DM, but personally when I DM, I would have no issue with it - as long as the damage type stays static.
Another option is to look at something like eldrich blast. Again, DM approval, but for particular concepts I wouldn't have an issue. Make them starbeams/whatever.
I once took guidance as a divination wizard because it didn't make any sense that they didn't have something like that. Hardly game breaking and builds flavour/immersion.
Have fun in your game.
There is another thread about this as well: (https://www.dndbeyond.com/forums/d-d-beyond-general/general-discussion/151419-how-do-you-reflavor-your-characters-spells-spell).
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One of my players is playing a Dhampir. She leans into the blood-magic of being part vampire for a good amount of her spells.
Currently when she casts Shadow Blade she depicts it as cutting her wrists and forming the blade out of her own blood. I think it's dope AF.
I love the fresh take on Vampires in the King Henry Price Tapes by Richard Raley.
Spoilers for those that want to read them (though they are self-published and pretty unknown from what I can tell)
The vampires are actually a parasite which replaces the bloodstream and hence wears a body as a shell. As they grow more powerful (older) they can exist outside of the body for longer. Eventually they get so large they cannot wholly fit inside a human body (shell).
Your shadow blade description reminds me of this. Nice job.
My Warlock is using an Eldritch Blast inspired by one of the craziest spell descriptions from 3.5e. Basically their fingers rip themselves free of the hand, and shoot across the room like arrows, before either returning or growing back.
I'm planning to use Grasp of Hadar, and maybe launch the entire hand and grab someone. Idk.
This s time of year, all my spells are pumpkin flavored.
The thing about re-flavoring spells for me is that each class's magic in general can look different. Compare for a moment a wizard's Fireball to a sorcerer's.
Wizards are masters of perfect magic. A wizard's fireball flies exactly the number of feet he wanted, no more and no less. The area of the explosion is a nearly perfect sphere that ripples outward with only a little sound, emitting glowing, yellow-orange light. A moment later, it vanishes, leaving only singed bad guys where it was. Not one bit of magical energy is wasted.
Sorcerers, on the other hand, aren't conservative with their magic. The magic literally can't get out fast enough. Spinning and flashing, a red point of flame zips out of the sorcerer's hand, leaving a comet-tail of flame in its wake. It erupts violently in a series of red and orange explosions, shaking the ground and sending ashes flying in all directions. Smoke fills the air even after the fire vanishes.
I appreciate those who customize their spells based on the character. That one illustration in Tasha's of the farmer shooting magic chickens never gets old. But, you don't need to be a character with a unique aesthetic and to have memorable flavored spells.
Panda-wat (I hate my username) is somehow convinced that he is objectively right about everything D&D related even though he obviously is not. Considering that, he'd probably make a great D&D youtuber.
"If I die, I can live with that." ~Luke Hart, the DM lair
I have a death domain cleric that uses the following reskinned Word of Radiance cantrip:
https://www.dndbeyond.com/spells/1016216-whispers-of-the-sepulcher
Cry HAVOC! and let slip the mustelids of war...
Okay, now: Dissonant whispers
(it's a lot like vicious mockery in the way it's flavored and roleplayed, right? But maybe more subtle?)
For flavor, how about saying (whispering) things that cause cognitive dissonance in the mind of one of my enemies? Maybe also things that might cause an existential crisis or hopelessness. Maybe some gaslight-y or passive-aggressive , or backhanded stuff? Self serving stuff?
Do I just start a list of fun/fitting things to say?
I think I really like this spell and it comes with my subclass,. Very slight possible problem: I kind of want this character to be really sweet (at least in terms of the things she says, but maybe that just applies to the way she is towards her party or her party and friendly/neutral NPC's)
You could collect threats and monster noises from enemies, basically using whatever personally frightens you, to frighten others. Or, maybe you could frame it as letting some kind of creature speak through you -- opening up communication for some eldritch monster, or giving a voice to ghosts perhaps.
I've been thinking a lot about this post. What about flavoring the manner in which all spells are cast instead of or in addtion to flavoring individual spells?
Specifically I'm going to play a new character who through a series of events recently became a sorcere, as an adult. I'm looking to explore what that might look like, when magic that didn't exist in someone before, is suddenly inside of them and starts emanate from them.
How might character first become aware of the magic flowing inside of them?
What would it look like, and how would it "express" or come out of them, before they figured out what it was and how to control it?
Like might the magic inside of that character just cast spells without the conscious intention of the character, in order to protect that character and futher its intererest and perhaps also the creature close to them? Could it work like an instinct? How might that change, as the charcter then figures some stuff out and gets a handle on how to weild their own magic intentially? (would exploring this idea lead to anything fun or interesting?)
Deciding exactly where a sorcerer's magic came from (or, for that matter, making it a mystery that the character wants to discover) would be a great piece of flavor for your backstory. It would be completely okay for a sorcerer to first discover their magic by casting it in an instinctive, unintentional way. However, a sorcerer can't expect to start gaining levels until they get their magic under control. I think gaining levels in the sorcerer class represents getting to better understand your magic and honing it so that you can unleash its full potential. In short, understanding your magic more and more is already baked into the game mechanics.
I've always thought that sorcerers are mechanically not a particularly interesting class to play, but narratively their source of magic essentially provides several character arcs waiting to happen. If your DM likes to focus on each character's individual aspirations and challenges as well as those of the group, I recommend exploring that type of concept!
Panda-wat (I hate my username) is somehow convinced that he is objectively right about everything D&D related even though he obviously is not. Considering that, he'd probably make a great D&D youtuber.
"If I die, I can live with that." ~Luke Hart, the DM lair
Interesting!
Would it be possible to flavor and roleplay Mind Sliver and especially Dissonant Whispers so that what you say in satisfying the verbal component, causes the target psychic damage, but the target is not aware that you/what you are saying is causing them psychic damage (emotional pain) and that you are intentionally harming them? (that they are taking psychic damage, that it's you doing it, and it's on purpose . . . I guess I'm asking about the mechanics of it, is there some way of getting around the target being fully aware of what you are doing to them?)
The animal noises idea and espeically the part about having some kind of creature speak through my character (as if my character was not the one doing it) made me think of it. I think I might prefer my character to say something clever rather than to do animal sounds; I might be more open to having it seem like some other enity is speaking through my character (although that might add an extra layer of complexity that my charater doesn't have at this point . .. and she might be plaged with enough complexity and issues, without possibly being possessed).
I think in real life, sometimes people say things that inflict psychologial damage, but "the target" might not be aware in the moment that that is what happened (and that the person might be internally trying todo them harm, psychologially [maybe]) . It seem like this happens sometimes when things are said that are psychologially damaging but in a covert way. (Passive-Agressive much?). Could it work like that in D&D where the target might not be aware in the moment that your character is attacking them with a spell that deal psychic damage? (and if it is possible, ideas on roleplaying that, please)
I mean, psychic damage can kill you. I don't think you can say something passive-aggressive that causes someone to instantly perish. It's magic -- even Vicious Mockery includes some nonsense about "laced with magic," because the insult itself isn't enough to kill.
Let's say for example your character is a big ghost fan. College of Spirits maybe. When you cast Dissonant Whispers you might say, "for a brief moment, the target hears the spectral scream of a vengeful ghost as Bob casts Dissonant Whispers." I would not try to bypass the rules for spellcasting. Just give a more specific picture of what's going on, you know?
Re: awareness: I found this "Unless a spell has a perceptible effect, a creature might not know it was targeted by a spell at all. An effect like crackling lightning is obvious, but a more subtle effect, such as an attempt to read a creature's thoughts, typically goes unnoticed, unless a spell says otherwise." source: https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/basic-rules/spellcasting#CastingaSpell
So I think (if the DM at your table agrees) it would be possible to inflict psychic damage without the target being aware or completely aware of what has happened to them and who is responsible and how (and what the intention is).
Sure. That's a big "if."
Right, it still would be casting a psychic damage causing spell and then just adding flavor on top of that. I think you could just say " I cast Mind Sliver" and that would be sufficient to cast the spell and to cause damage . (I guess the question of whether the target is aware of what is happening to them when you cast the spell might best be handled by a conversation with the DM.)
And then what you character says either outload or maybe telepathically, depending on the spell would be the flavor. I'm not sure that there is a requirement for how overtly hurtful what your character says has to be - I think the spell you cast and the roll of the dice would determine that. What you say and how you say it might add to the context and tip the scales on whether the target is aware that you have can a psychic damage spell on them and that would have an affect on social interations and roleplaying and whether it turns into combat.
I play a Circle of Stars Druid of a quasi-Polynesian islander culture. her father was a shipwright and navigator who taught her to navigate by ocean currents and stars. she was shipwrecked as a child and washed up on a mainland beach. a druidic hermit rescued her and raised her to be a druid, but she flavors it with her background, and so gravitated to Circle of Stars and elemental water spells.
- she casts Shillelagh on a canoe paddle she always has slung to her back, the last physical connect to her family. it is carved with pictographs representing her family's story, and these carvings glow and come to life when Shilelagh'd
- when she Shapes Water, she is calling to spirits of the sea itself and asking them favors
- Guidance is of course asking the stars to guide someone's way and their zodiac constellation briefly appears when she casts it
- her Thorn Whip is a long strand of kelp riddled with spiky sea urchins
- her Augury material component is a small bowl of water with a teeny wooden boat floating in it. the boat's course through the "sea" represents the result
- her Goodberries are seafood - mussels or uni
- her Healing Spirit is a large glowing jellyfish spirit that drifts across the battlefield, healing not stinging :)
- Guiding Bolt doesn't need much flavouring, it's shooting stars of course