Wondering what people's thoughts are on defensive options for a Dragon Blood Sorcerer. The bonus to hitpoints are small but useful, and the AC calculation is equal to having Mage Armor, so you can skip it in favor of other spells.
Mirror image is preferable because it is non-concentration, allowing you to still use an offensive or control based concentration spell. Blur, on the otherhand, takes your concentration and is a reduced version of the dodge action: it does not give a benefit to dexterity saving throws like the dodge action does.
If you are in a situation where you still want to impose disadvantage, you have the option of taking the dodge action and using quicken spell to still cast. This does use more resources, but it gives you MORE than the benefit of having both spells up at the same time.
I always take Shield. It's saved my characters more than any other defensive spell.
Mirror Image is better than Blur but I rarely take either. I rely on the dragon's resilience and shield spell, and serves me more than enough, letting me focus on offensive and utility spells. When I start getting around 5th to 6th level I'll take Absorb Elements, and that's pretty much all my defenses for the rest of the campaign - I rarely need anything more. Especially after 14th level when I get flying - letting me stay clear of melee attackers more easily.
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Shield is rad. +5 AC with a creature that already has 16 or more AC? Man, you're untouchable.
Best defensive option for a wizard: Don't get targeted, don't get hit. Don't waste time on a bunch of defensive spells, pick up shield, and then focus on controlling the battlefield and augmenting your mobility so that nothing can touch you. If an enemy archer gets a bead on you, shield up, then get to cover next turn. Mirror image is a 2nd-level slot that requires preparation. Pass.
Between Blur and Mirror Image, I would favor Mirror Image. Not requiring Concentration is a BIG plus over Blur, since there are so many good spells to use in combat that require it(Hold/Dominate, Invisibility, Banishment, Slow, I could go on and on).
Shield is quite useful, though it may look underwhelming since it's only active for a single round.
Mirror Image is a pretty good defensive spell, especially if you have the chance to cast it before combat. Not requiring concentration is big, since there are many other great spells to spend concentration on.
Blur is reasonably powerful, but requires concentration. If your DM is aggressively targeting you or your frontliners aren't doing a good job/are nonexistent, then take this, otherwise there are better ways to spend concentration.
In addition to some of the above points, take a look at your action economy. Are you using your reaction? No? Take Shield. Do you have Quicken metamagic? Probably take Mirror Image. Not using your concentration for anything else? Blur looks good.
The average length of a combat in your campaign is going to be another big factor. Shield is fantastic in an average combat, but burning an extra level 1 slot per round in a 10-round combat in not sustainable. Likewise, wasting a standard action on one of the other spells in a 3-round combat is not ideal.
The only one that's junk is Mage Armor, because Draconic.
Like a couple of other comments, I can't imagine not taking Shield, unless I had an extremely reaction-dependent character and couldn't afford to use a reaction on it. But I'd definitely take either Blur or Mirror on top if I was in a campaign where I was getting hit. Unless your DM is extremely lacking in creativity, they will find a way to punish the backline at some point.
I have both Shield and Mirror Image. I used Shield since creation of the character, only picking up Mirror Image recently. While Mirror Image can be mitigated by Blindsight, it's still a pretty good spell.
Current AC is 17. Quicken Mirror Image (bonus action) + Attack Cantrip (action) for action economy. Assuming what you're fighting can't see through the illusion, you have 3 free Shields for the cost of 1 spell slot. If your Mirror Images are dispelled or destroyed, then default to using Shield to deflect attacks.
I considered taking Blur, but like other's have noted it requires concentration, and a lot of my control spells require concentration. Since AC will already be good because of Draconic Bloodline, I'd rather place concentration on offensive or control spells.
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Wondering what people's thoughts are on defensive options for a Dragon Blood Sorcerer. The bonus to hitpoints are small but useful, and the AC calculation is equal to having Mage Armor, so you can skip it in favor of other spells.
Mirror image is preferable because it is non-concentration, allowing you to still use an offensive or control based concentration spell. Blur, on the otherhand, takes your concentration and is a reduced version of the dodge action: it does not give a benefit to dexterity saving throws like the dodge action does.
If you are in a situation where you still want to impose disadvantage, you have the option of taking the dodge action and using quicken spell to still cast. This does use more resources, but it gives you MORE than the benefit of having both spells up at the same time.
I would say shield, mirror image and absorb elements (which works with your bloodline ability), and blur are all good low level spells
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I would skip Shield. It’s useful, but you can do better.
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I always take Shield. It's saved my characters more than any other defensive spell.
Mirror Image is better than Blur but I rarely take either. I rely on the dragon's resilience and shield spell, and serves me more than enough, letting me focus on offensive and utility spells. When I start getting around 5th to 6th level I'll take Absorb Elements, and that's pretty much all my defenses for the rest of the campaign - I rarely need anything more. Especially after 14th level when I get flying - letting me stay clear of melee attackers more easily.
Click ✨ HERE ✨ For My Youtube Videos featuring Guides, Tips & Tricks for using D&D Beyond.
Need help with Homebrew? Check out ✨ this FAQ/Guide thread ✨ by IamSposta.
Shield is rad. +5 AC with a creature that already has 16 or more AC? Man, you're untouchable.
Best defensive option for a wizard: Don't get targeted, don't get hit. Don't waste time on a bunch of defensive spells, pick up shield, and then focus on controlling the battlefield and augmenting your mobility so that nothing can touch you. If an enemy archer gets a bead on you, shield up, then get to cover next turn. Mirror image is a 2nd-level slot that requires preparation. Pass.
Between Blur and Mirror Image, I would favor Mirror Image. Not requiring Concentration is a BIG plus over Blur, since there are so many good spells to use in combat that require it(Hold/Dominate, Invisibility, Banishment, Slow, I could go on and on).
Shield is FAR better than the other spells unless you a) are short of spell slots or b) have a low AC.
If you have a reasonable AC, Shield is great.
Blur and Mirror Image suffer from blind sight weakness. A distressing number of monsters have it or similar illusion countering devices.
Shield is quite useful, though it may look underwhelming since it's only active for a single round.
Mirror Image is a pretty good defensive spell, especially if you have the chance to cast it before combat. Not requiring concentration is big, since there are many other great spells to spend concentration on.
Blur is reasonably powerful, but requires concentration. If your DM is aggressively targeting you or your frontliners aren't doing a good job/are nonexistent, then take this, otherwise there are better ways to spend concentration.
In addition to some of the above points, take a look at your action economy. Are you using your reaction? No? Take Shield. Do you have Quicken metamagic? Probably take Mirror Image. Not using your concentration for anything else? Blur looks good.
The average length of a combat in your campaign is going to be another big factor. Shield is fantastic in an average combat, but burning an extra level 1 slot per round in a 10-round combat in not sustainable. Likewise, wasting a standard action on one of the other spells in a 3-round combat is not ideal.
The only one that's junk is Mage Armor, because Draconic.
Like a couple of other comments, I can't imagine not taking Shield, unless I had an extremely reaction-dependent character and couldn't afford to use a reaction on it. But I'd definitely take either Blur or Mirror on top if I was in a campaign where I was getting hit. Unless your DM is extremely lacking in creativity, they will find a way to punish the backline at some point.
I have both Shield and Mirror Image. I used Shield since creation of the character, only picking up Mirror Image recently. While Mirror Image can be mitigated by Blindsight, it's still a pretty good spell.
Current AC is 17. Quicken Mirror Image (bonus action) + Attack Cantrip (action) for action economy. Assuming what you're fighting can't see through the illusion, you have 3 free Shields for the cost of 1 spell slot. If your Mirror Images are dispelled or destroyed, then default to using Shield to deflect attacks.
I considered taking Blur, but like other's have noted it requires concentration, and a lot of my control spells require concentration. Since AC will already be good because of Draconic Bloodline, I'd rather place concentration on offensive or control spells.