This spell grows an inert duplicate of a living creature as a safeguard against death. This clone forms inside the vessel used in the spell’s casting and grows to full size and maturity after 120 days; you can also choose to have the clone be a younger version of the same creature. It remains inert and endures indefinitely, as long as its vessel remains undisturbed.
At any time after the clone matures, if the original creature dies, its soul transfers to the clone, provided that the soul is free and willing to return. The clone is physically identical to the original and has the same personality, memories, and abilities, but none of the original's equipment. The original creature's physical remains, if they still exist, become inert and can't thereafter be restored to life, since the creature's soul is elsewhere.
* - (a diamond worth at least 1,000 gp and at least 1 cubic inch of flesh of the creature that is to be cloned, which the spell consumes, and a vessel worth at least 2,000 gp that has a sealable lid and is large enough to hold the creature being cloned, such as a huge urn, coffin, mud- filled cyst in the ground, or crystal container filled with salt water)
To be fair though, if any DM actually enforced the medium creature thing on a PC, that’s just them being a jerk.
If, as a clone, you used your entire dead body to make another clone, would that decrease the time needed for the clone to fully mature(given you keep the clone at the same age)?
Hello people!!! One doubt, the clone continues to evolve. For if he is created with the character at the 17th level, but the character dies when he is at the 19th level ... at what level would the clone be?
For those mages who scribe spells on their bodies as tattoos, they DO NOT reappear on the new body. They are "equipment", as the ordinary spell book would be. The Mage reanimating in this circumstance would retain the last list of spells prepared, see rules for lost spell book. I would strongly advise that teleport and locate object either be on hand for the new body as scrolls or already prepared in mind, because losing your "book" sucks.
Likewise old scars, injuries and infirmities are gone as well. Especially if the clone is designed to turn back the ravages of time by animating younger.
How many clones can you have?
I have a question. The spell says that it consumes the flesh that it uses to create the clone. But does this also apply to the diamond that also has to be used for the spell? It would seem that the container holding the body can be continually reused, but if the diamond is also reusable, this is essentially a one-time payment for immortality.
This spell wording defeats any premise or setting that includes a Lich. No wizard sane enough to reach the levels and wealth required of Lichdom would ever choose it over Clones, which with this wording affords unlimited immortality. There wouldn't be any Liches to begin with.
Is it possible for a changeling druid to cast this clone spell?
I believe Zee Bashew said it best: "If you thought it was pretty easy when you killed that necromancer...you didn't kill them!"
Had a whole idea for a campaign where a cult of Vecna-worshippers conduct their meetings at various orphanages across the kingdom...while in "Clones" of themselves as children.
A group of crusaders catch wind of this, and they decides to slay these cultists...to everyone else, they are watching children be killed by evil warriors...which is who the players "think" are the bad guys.
Then later, towards the end of the campaign...surprise!
The children were the evil ones, and you just butchered the only heroes who knew about them!
Question, could you create one clone, die and cut up your dead body into material for clone spell?
Only works on medium sized creatures. Why? and why does this sentence read so poorly, "This spell grows an inert duplicate of a living, Medium creature as a safeguard against death"
That's not even how the rule formatting of 5e works, it should say "Medium sized creature" so this sentence doesn't even actually mean anything anyway. What a clumsy errata.
shaco
Now I'm thinking of cool role playing as a soulless clone of a powerful evil mage that somehow got woken before the mage died.
Yeah, lichdom is really only useful if you want to maintain control over an undead army. Earlier editions had it so that clones decayed rapidly so you needed another person to maintain the clones through gentle repose (Although a simulacrum works if you give them a pearl of power), but 5e is much more generous with this.
The way I see it. If you can cast this, you're strong enough to scrounge up a few thousand gold's worth of supplies. So unless you plan on dying before that, you'll probably be fine.
Any potential issuses with storing the clone body in a demi-plane? Add sequester spell into the mix?
now of course you can use this as a safeguard against death if you are boring, but as a villain using this to simply get hold of a copy of your arch-nemesis corpse is even greater, like imagine you are invited to the lair of an powerful ancient red dragon you have been fighting for almost a year expecting a trap and when you arrive in their dinner hall you realise that it is in fact you that they are eating (since ancient red dragons that are innate spellcasters can cast up to 8th level spells without components) or you find that they are doing taxidermy shit with your corpse or storing one using gentle repose so that they can raise "you" as a zombie and put on some embarrasing stage play or any number of creepy and horrible things you can do to somebody if you have a perfect but non-alive version of their body
gaining levels represents you gaining more training and experience, so it is reasonable to assume that since you retain all your training and memories (after all it is your original mind and soul that get transfered back to the new body) that you would keep all your levels, you do not suddenly become dumber as a wizard or less in touch with your god as a cleric or suddenly loose your knack for music as a bard or loose that vital vigor that made you a barbarian since none of those things would happen if your body was destroyed and you are raised back by true Resurrection.
Plus if the clone kept the level you had before it would be both a pain to keep track of and make this spell instantly completely unappealing
The wish spell gets rid of material requirements, just find somewhere secluded and wish yourself up a warehouse of clones. With the genie warlock you can wish yourself up a simulacrum that can make the more dangerous wishes for you then too, but that's a different discussion.