D&D 5E True Strike Revision

ro · Nov 21, 2017

Is this too powerful?
[h=4]True Strike[/h] divination cantrip

Casting Time: 1 bonus action
Range: 30 feet
Components: S
Duration: Concentration, up to 2 rounds

You extend your hand and point a finger at a target in range. Your magic grants you a brief insight into the target’s defenses. Once before this spell ends, you may cancel all advantage and disadvantage on one ability check, attack roll, or saving throw made by you or your target in opposition to each other.

clearstream · Nov 21, 2017

ro said:
Is this too powerful?
[h=4]True Strike[/h] divination cantrip

Casting Time: 1 bonus action

Range: 30 feet

Components: S

Duration: Concentration, up to 2 rounds

You extend your hand and point a finger at a target in range. Your magic grants you a brief insight into the target’s defenses. Once before this spell ends, you may cancel all advantage and disadvantage on one ability check, attack roll, or saving throw made by you or your target in opposition to each other.

It is neat, albeit mechanically technical.

Caster and Foe are in Darkness. Can Caster process disadvantage and then process True Strike and then advantage? I think not, i.e. advantage and disadvantage in such cases apply simultaneously: True Strike has no value.
Caster is prone and Foe is attacking from range: True Strike has no value (Caster does not want to negate foe's disadvantage).
Foe is prone and Caster is attacking from range: True Strike has value (negate disadvantage).
Foe is Blurred and Caster uses Shadow Step: True Strike has value (negate disadvantage, then process Shadow Step for advantage)
Caster is adjacent to Foe and using a ranged weapon: True Strike has value (negate disadvantage)

Where it feels overpowered to me is including it on ability checks and saving throws: that wanders away from the design space filled by the original. It complements things like Guidance or Bless (cast by other casters) to be strong in a very broad range of situations. I understand that the "in opposition" text attempts to limit that.

If limited to attack rolls, it doesn't need the "you or your target in opposition" text.

Satyrn · Nov 21, 2017

The name makes no sense to me, as the spell could make it harder to strike true.

ro · Nov 21, 2017

clearstream said:
It is neat, albeit mechanically technical.

Caster and Foe are in Darkness. Can Caster process disadvantage and then process True Strike and then advantage? I think not, i.e. advantage and disadvantage in such cases apply simultaneously: True Strike has no value.
Caster is prone and Foe is attacking from range: True Strike has no value (Caster does not want to negate foe's disadvantage).
Foe is prone and Caster is attacking from range: True Strike has value (negate disadvantage).
Foe is Blurred and Caster uses Shadow Step: True Strike has value (negate disadvantage, then process Shadow Step for advantage)
Caster is adjacent to Foe and using a ranged weapon: True Strike has value (negate disadvantage)

Where it feels overpowered to me is including it on ability checks and saving throws: that wanders away from the design space filled by the original. It complements things like Guidance or Bless (cast by other casters) to be strong in a very broad range of situations. I understand that the "in opposition" text attempts to limit that.

If limited to attack rolls, it doesn't need the "you or your target in opposition" text.

Great breakdown of scenarios!
I did add the ability checks and saving throws to make it more broadly useful. I find that the casters who have access to True Strike are the least likely characters to benefit from it as they focusing on casting rather than weapon attacks. Saving throws opens it up to more options, and ability checks likewise could help other contest-based, non-weapon attack maneuvers.
As you observed, my intent was also to change it away from giving advantage to negating disadvantage, though I'm sure there are some cases where it won't do this perfectly.

One change that could be added to weaken it slightly would be to not apply until after the current turn, requiring successful hold of Concentration.
"Starting at the end of this turn, once before this spell ends you may cancel all advantage and disadvantage on one ability check, attack roll, or saving throw made by you or your target in opposition to each other."

bganon · Nov 21, 2017

Grant arcane casters the ability to negate magic resistance at will, as long as they set it up with a bonus action at the end of their previous turn? Yeah, no thanks.

jaelis · Nov 21, 2017

I changed TS to let you cast it on an ally, basically just a ranged help action. I think that works better but keeps it simple.

bgbarcus · Nov 25, 2017

I added one sentence to the True Strike description. If the attack hits, it is automatically a critical hit.

With that, one of my players had his fighter take the Magic Initiate feat just to get True Strike. It turned out to be a pretty decent balance. The cantrip became useful but not overpowered.

dco · Nov 25, 2017

bgbarcus said:
I added one sentence to the True Strike description. If the attack hits, it is automatically a critical hit.

With that, one of my players had his fighter take the Magic Initiate feat just to get True Strike. It turned out to be a pretty decent balance. The cantrip became useful but not overpowered.

For the arcane trickster it could be overpowered, more if he gets haste.

bgbarcus · Nov 25, 2017

dco said:
For the arcane trickster it could be overpowered, more if he gets haste.

The risk of something blowing up in my face is why I always stress my right to revoke a house rule when I introduce one. Rogues haven't been a popular class among my players. Out of more characters than I can remember, we've only had two rogues, only one of them an arcane trickster so the issue may never arise.

Stalker0 · Nov 26, 2017

bgbarcus said:
I added one sentence to the True Strike description. If the attack hits, it is automatically a critical hit.

With that, one of my players had his fighter take the Magic Initiate feat just to get True Strike. It turned out to be a pretty decent balance. The cantrip became useful but not overpowered.

Probably too strong in the hands of a paladin though

D&D 5E True Strike Revision

ro

First Post

clearstream

(He, Him)

Satyrn

First Post

ro

First Post

bganon

Explorer

jaelis

Oh this is where the title goes?

bgbarcus

Explorer

dco

Guest

bgbarcus

Explorer

Stalker0

Legend

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