Hi, a few months back I made a thread asking for suggestions in regards to what spells to prepare. Now that I have leveled up a few times I thought it could be fun to show which spells I am regularly preparing as well as which spells I have in the hopes of receiving some good suggestions in regards to changing up my list of prepared spells.
I have the following spells. Those in Bold are the ones that I usually prepare.
Cantrips: Fire Bolt, Mending, Mage Hand, Minor Illusion and Prestidigitation.
Level 1: Absorb Elements, Alarm, Comprehend Languages, Detect Magic, Feather Fall, Find Familiar Fog Cloud, Grease, Identify, Mage Armor, Magic Missile, Protection from Good/Evil, Ray of Sickness, Shield, Sleep, Tasha’s Hideous Laughter.
Level 5: Animate Object, Rarys Telepathic Bond, Synaptic Static, Wall of Force
Level 6: Contingency, Sunbeam, Mass Suggestion, Scatter
At the moment I am level 11 and can prepare 16 spells per day. I would also love suggestions to a Contingency spell. I also have a ring of spell storing that I can fill and as of right now only has feather fall stored in it.
I would suggest Shield in your Ring of Spell Storing. It's 5 free Shields in battle without using up your spell slots which you can keep for Absorb Elements when needed.
Your prep list seems fine. Although if you're in battle a lot I think Banishment is better than Arcane Eye - in the last few battles in my campaign Banishment has saved us from a TPK twice. If can get it to work on the Boss or more difficult enemy, it leaves the lesser enemies to deal with. Then, you can ready yourselves (Ready attack) to basically bring the enemy back in a controlled way where you can immediately unleash attacks and damage. I found it far more effective than Polymorph in battle although Polymorph is still good to prepare should you need more time (lay snares) or set things up and, of course, has more utility even outside combat. Banishment is also great if the enemy is not native to the plane as you can potentially erase them from the battle permanently unless they can plane shift back. Arcane Eye is better for out of combat when exploring, and spying of course. If you have a strong martial character who can hit hard with their attacks then Haste may be more useful than Hypnotic Pattern.
As for Contingency, you have many options. Resilient Sphere triggered on a command word means when you're low on health you can use it to save you from harm. It is best as command trigger because if you base it on health and too much damage is caused you could end up dying while inside the sphere preventing anyone helping you and you can use it in more situations - you can say a word when you fall so instantly no need to worry about big fall damage, even if you would have fallen into water or lava. Alternatively you can put in a Dispel Magic so when you are effected by a spell against your will and fail to resist it will automatically attempt a level 5 dispel magic. A more situational use is Banishment: if the enemy sends you into another plane then Banishment sends you back and if you maintain concentration you're back permanently, literally cancelling their attempt to get rid of you - an effective way to save yourself from a pesky plane shift if your counter spell fails.
I like your spell list! Ritual spells galore, defensive low level spells, and a great variety!
The only thing I’d look into is a good buff spell for your party, like Greater Invis or Haste. These two can make your party rogue or fighter absolutely devastating.
For contingency, you could try:
False Life upcasted at level 5 if you fall below 50% health, or
Dispel Magic upcasted at level 5 if you are incapacitated.
You are a Diviner right? Mind Spike and True Seeing are a must. You get a 1st and 5th level spell back when you use them so they have a VERY low marginal cost.
Thank you so much for replying to my post. My group did not play last week and I have totally forgotten to check back here. *cringe*
That is a smart idea in regards to the ring. Though not sure if I would use all 5 slots for that. I actually do not think that I have been hit by anything more than 5 times since we started playing. My character tries to stay hidden in the back as much as possible. I see what you are saying in regards to Banishment. It also has a charisma saving throw while polymorph has a wisdom saving throw. Just because of that I think it could be a better idea to switch them up since I have so many spells with wisdom saving throws from before. Having Arcane eye is mostly for out of combat yeah. We are Dungeon of the Mad Mage and I have been thinking about using it to map out some of the dungeon and to hopefully speed the exploration process up. With me being a diviner and it a 4th level spell it also gives me back a 3rd level slot which is probably the slots I find myself most in need of.
Very good suggestions for the contingency spell. I like the idea of taking a resilient sphere but at the same time, I am unsure of being able to cast other spells while I have it active. Would I be able to cast a fireball or hypnotic pattern on the outside of the sphere for example? I also really like your other suggestions... so hard to try and decide what I might get the most use out of.
You are a Diviner right? Mind Spike and True Seeing are a must. You get a 1st and 5th level spell back when you use them so they have a VERY low marginal cost.
Would you still recommend this for my character at level 11? I like the idea of Mind Spike since it would be a second-level spell and I find myself rarely using those spell slots... but with fire bolt I am now doing 3d10 damage compared to 3d8 for Mind Spike. Will it actually be worth it and what prepared spell would you switch out for it? The same for True Seeing. Great spell and I like that I will get a 5th level spell slot back. But what to switch out for it?
I know it might sound bad but I have never used haste on anyone in my party. *hides in shame* I will have to try and do that the next chance that I get. I know it is a great spell but I just love being able to use my concentration on other spells. The same kinda goes for greater invisibility... though it is absolutely a spell I have on my list and want to get.
I would say prepping Banishment is a good idea. It can really come in handy for some tougher fight. Shield or Absorb Elements going into your ring would give you some space. I'd recommend putting spells int here that you won't need often, but are really useful when you do. Like Feather Fall! Another good addition could be Misty step if you only use it for escaping. Mirror image could work too.
You got a butt ton of defensive spells prepared, do you end up getting hit a lot? If so, keep them. If not, then maybe just try removing one. Grease, Levitate, Banishment, and Resilient Sphere are spells I like and can be pretty versatile! Up to you of course, but the large amount of defensive spells may not be needed depending on your party and DM.
All in all, I think you got a pretty good list! :D
So do you think of Mindspike as a spell that you basically use in order to open up spell slots when you need them?
I just cannot imagine myself using Mindspike as a level 5 spell unless I am in dire need of a level 4 spell slot.
You nailed it on the head here. It’s still a damage spell after all and while it will always be somewhat weaker than any spell of its level (even upcasted), it literally sets you up for more quantity over quality.
Example:
If you have literally no spells slots left except for a level 5 slot and nothing else (not even Arcane Recovery) - you can still cast Mindspike at level 5, 4, 3, and 2. That’s way more damage than just one level 5 spell.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
Hi, a few months back I made a thread asking for suggestions in regards to what spells to prepare. Now that I have leveled up a few times I thought it could be fun to show which spells I am regularly preparing as well as which spells I have in the hopes of receiving some good suggestions in regards to changing up my list of prepared spells.
I have the following spells. Those in Bold are the ones that I usually prepare.
Cantrips: Fire Bolt, Mending, Mage Hand, Minor Illusion and Prestidigitation.
Level 1: Absorb Elements, Alarm, Comprehend Languages, Detect Magic, Feather Fall, Find Familiar Fog Cloud, Grease, Identify, Mage Armor, Magic Missile, Protection from Good/Evil, Ray of Sickness, Shield, Sleep, Tasha’s Hideous Laughter.
Level 2: Darkvision, Detect Thoughts, Invisibility, Levitate, Magic Weapon, Mirror Image, Misty Step, Spider Climb, Suggestion.
Level 3: Counterspell, Dispell Magic, Fireball, Haste, Hypnotic Pattern, Lemunds Tiny Hut, Major Image, Water Breathing.
Level 4: Arcane Eye, Banishment, Dimension Door, Otilukes Resilient Sphere, Polymorph, Watery Sphere.
Level 5: Animate Object, Rarys Telepathic Bond, Synaptic Static, Wall of Force
Level 6: Contingency, Sunbeam, Mass Suggestion, Scatter
At the moment I am level 11 and can prepare 16 spells per day. I would also love suggestions to a Contingency spell. I also have a ring of spell storing that I can fill and as of right now only has feather fall stored in it.
I would suggest Shield in your Ring of Spell Storing. It's 5 free Shields in battle without using up your spell slots which you can keep for Absorb Elements when needed.
Your prep list seems fine. Although if you're in battle a lot I think Banishment is better than Arcane Eye - in the last few battles in my campaign Banishment has saved us from a TPK twice. If can get it to work on the Boss or more difficult enemy, it leaves the lesser enemies to deal with. Then, you can ready yourselves (Ready attack) to basically bring the enemy back in a controlled way where you can immediately unleash attacks and damage. I found it far more effective than Polymorph in battle although Polymorph is still good to prepare should you need more time (lay snares) or set things up and, of course, has more utility even outside combat. Banishment is also great if the enemy is not native to the plane as you can potentially erase them from the battle permanently unless they can plane shift back. Arcane Eye is better for out of combat when exploring, and spying of course. If you have a strong martial character who can hit hard with their attacks then Haste may be more useful than Hypnotic Pattern.
As for Contingency, you have many options. Resilient Sphere triggered on a command word means when you're low on health you can use it to save you from harm. It is best as command trigger because if you base it on health and too much damage is caused you could end up dying while inside the sphere preventing anyone helping you and you can use it in more situations - you can say a word when you fall so instantly no need to worry about big fall damage, even if you would have fallen into water or lava. Alternatively you can put in a Dispel Magic so when you are effected by a spell against your will and fail to resist it will automatically attempt a level 5 dispel magic. A more situational use is Banishment: if the enemy sends you into another plane then Banishment sends you back and if you maintain concentration you're back permanently, literally cancelling their attempt to get rid of you - an effective way to save yourself from a pesky plane shift if your counter spell fails.
My Homebrew: Races | Subclasses | Backgrounds | Spells | Magic Items | Feats
Need help with Homebrew? Check out this FAQ/Guide thread by IamSposta
See My Youtube Videos for Tips & Tricks using D&D Beyond
I like your spell list! Ritual spells galore, defensive low level spells, and a great variety!
The only thing I’d look into is a good buff spell for your party, like Greater Invis or Haste. These two can make your party rogue or fighter absolutely devastating.
For contingency, you could try:
False Life upcasted at level 5 if you fall below 50% health, or
Dispel Magic upcasted at level 5 if you are incapacitated.
You are a Diviner right? Mind Spike and True Seeing are a must. You get a 1st and 5th level spell back when you use them so they have a VERY low marginal cost.
Thank you so much for replying to my post. My group did not play last week and I have totally forgotten to check back here. *cringe*
That is a smart idea in regards to the ring. Though not sure if I would use all 5 slots for that. I actually do not think that I have been hit by anything more than 5 times since we started playing. My character tries to stay hidden in the back as much as possible. I see what you are saying in regards to Banishment. It also has a charisma saving throw while polymorph has a wisdom saving throw. Just because of that I think it could be a better idea to switch them up since I have so many spells with wisdom saving throws from before. Having Arcane eye is mostly for out of combat yeah. We are Dungeon of the Mad Mage and I have been thinking about using it to map out some of the dungeon and to hopefully speed the exploration process up. With me being a diviner and it a 4th level spell it also gives me back a 3rd level slot which is probably the slots I find myself most in need of.
Very good suggestions for the contingency spell. I like the idea of taking a resilient sphere but at the same time, I am unsure of being able to cast other spells while I have it active. Would I be able to cast a fireball or hypnotic pattern on the outside of the sphere for example? I also really like your other suggestions... so hard to try and decide what I might get the most use out of.
Would you still recommend this for my character at level 11? I like the idea of Mind Spike since it would be a second-level spell and I find myself rarely using those spell slots... but with fire bolt I am now doing 3d10 damage compared to 3d8 for Mind Spike. Will it actually be worth it and what prepared spell would you switch out for it? The same for True Seeing. Great spell and I like that I will get a 5th level spell slot back. But what to switch out for it?
I know it might sound bad but I have never used haste on anyone in my party. *hides in shame* I will have to try and do that the next chance that I get. I know it is a great spell but I just love being able to use my concentration on other spells. The same kinda goes for greater invisibility... though it is absolutely a spell I have on my list and want to get.
Mind Spike for Diviner -
Begin day casting Mage Armor
Mind Spike Level 2- get back level 1 slot.
Mindspike level 3 - Get back level 2 slot
Mindspike level 4 - Get back level 3 slot
Mindspike level 5 - Get back level 4 slot....
So do you think of Mindspike as a spell that you basically use in order to open up spell slots when you need them?
I just cannot imagine myself using Mindspike as a level 5 spell unless I am in dire need of a level 4 spell slot.
Honestly this seems like a great list!
I would say prepping Banishment is a good idea. It can really come in handy for some tougher fight. Shield or Absorb Elements going into your ring would give you some space. I'd recommend putting spells int here that you won't need often, but are really useful when you do. Like Feather Fall! Another good addition could be Misty step if you only use it for escaping. Mirror image could work too.
You got a butt ton of defensive spells prepared, do you end up getting hit a lot? If so, keep them. If not, then maybe just try removing one. Grease, Levitate, Banishment, and Resilient Sphere are spells I like and can be pretty versatile! Up to you of course, but the large amount of defensive spells may not be needed depending on your party and DM.
All in all, I think you got a pretty good list! :D
You nailed it on the head here. It’s still a damage spell after all and while it will always be somewhat weaker than any spell of its level (even upcasted), it literally sets you up for more quantity over quality.
Example:
If you have literally no spells slots left except for a level 5 slot and nothing else (not even Arcane Recovery) - you can still cast Mindspike at level 5, 4, 3, and 2. That’s way more damage than just one level 5 spell.