Level
9th
Casting Time
1 Action
Range/Area
60 ft
Components
V
Duration
Instantaneous
School
Enchantment
Attack/Save
None
Damage/Effect
Control (...)
You utter a word of power that can compel one creature you can see within range to die instantly. If the creature you choose has 100 hit points or fewer, it dies. Otherwise, the spell has no effect.
Does this mean you can use it on a creature whose hit points have dropped to 100 or below? Or can you only use it on creatures with a max HP of 100 or below?
If the creature has 100 HP, it will die. If it has 101 it will not
Temporary HP won't help you.
avada kedavra
Kill as in 0 HP and save, or kill as in "roll a new PC?"
Tamakins: If the creature has 100 or less HP, not including temporary HP as previously pointed out by Cecilao, the target dies. Nothing to do with max HP, just the HP of the creature at the time the spell is cast. Additionally, Temporary HP doesn't apply to this number as the Players Handbook covers that Temporary Hit Points aren't actually Hit Points but rather a buffer against damage.
PadreMontoya: Roll a new PC or find a way to revive. This spell is designed to remove the chance of a player character coming back into the fight due to successful death saves or successful Wisdom(medicine) checks by party members.
Roll a new PC.
I see it as when a creature currently has 100 hp or less which would mean the total hp does not matter, that's just how I see it though.
My next McGuffin will be a Wand of Power Word Kill.
Note: This is one of the only spells that works against Rage Beyond death and will kill the target instantly, no saving throws.
What about vs. a druid's wild shape? If the speall doesnt drop HP to "0", does it kill the druid who is currently a bear? Or kill the bear shape and allow the druid to be at the same HP they were at when shifted?
Doov, instant death if the poly/wildshape form has 100 hp or less.
I can see that being a rule. Do you have an official source?
Ok so I was playing an NPC allied with my party who I gave access to this spell because, well why the hell not, and when he assisted the party in a fight it occurred to me that this spell is pretty useless overall, especially since it is a 9th level spell? Feels to me like it should be 6 or maybe 7 at most and even then choosing something like Disintegrate or Finger of Death over it feels like a no-brainer in most scenarios, given the low chance of it doing anything.
At the point where you have access to 9th level spells, a creature with less than 100 hit points isn't gonna be much of a threat to the party and apart from some fringe cases I can't imagine anyone wasting a 9th level spell on it. If it is a dangerous opponent who is simply worn down to where they might have less than 100HP it's still a pretty big gamble and not really worth possibly wasting a 9th level spell on, considering that if they have less than 100HP they're probably gonna be dead after 2 turns anyway, also if it is a big bad you're probably not gonna save your 9th level spell until they are already almost defeated.
Dealing less than 100 points of damage to a single and at this point in the game probably not particularly dangerous creature while providing no other benefits seems pretty weak. At that point you have access to Meteor Swarm, Wish, Foresight, Invulnerability, Prismatic Wall etc. so using a 9th level spell slot to do what at best boils down to slightly more damage than most fighter classes with access to magic equipment can do every round and at worst and far more likely do nothing or maybe using it to take out a cannon fodder opponent seems ridiculous.
Am I missing something here?
The only actual use I can come up with is using it as a DM to establish an Opponent as a powerful magic user and being a dick to a low and mid level party.
The point is more the "the target dies" phrasing. It just dies. No special mechanics to save it, no getting back up due to skill X, no regenerating, no divine intervention.
Just death.
lol
:)
my players are going to hate me
Yeah but again that seems to be mainly useful for a DM who wants to be a dick to their players rather than being an actually useful effect, at least for a high level party, who will almost certainly have more than enough equipment/abilities to counter essentially all resistances, regeneration abilities etc. without wasting a 9th level spell. And again best case scenario you'll take out a single weak/weakened opponent, that just seems ridiculous compared to most other 9th level spells.
I definitely think that there are some spells that are designed to be more for foes. The specifically powerful thing about PWK is that it's an instantaneous kill, so if your cleric is less than 100 HP, there is no save or anything, they are just dead. Jeremy Crawford's SA on the spell is that it kills through Polymorph and Wildshape as well. Most NPCs your party will encounter naturally have less than 100 HP, and if you study in the School of Enchantment, Split Enchantment lets your wizard kill 2 for the price of one. Additionally, the spell requires nothing more than a word, so from a RP perspective, it's a pretty scary power. No hand waving or anything, just a simple word. Or in the case of a Bard, hide it in the midst of a song. A sorcerer using metamagic can kill a fleeing enemy from up to a 120 feet away. A Chain Warlock casting it through his familiar can kill someone with an invisible sprite while he's in the next room over.
But yeah ultimately it may get more mileage as something to be used by DMs to create a powerful enemy, though there's lots of ways to get creative with it, if you're so inclined
That's not something a chain warlock can do, though.