D&D 5E Booming Blade seems a bit powerful

Quartz · Feb 6, 2016

I've just been reading up on Booming Blade and it seems awfully powerful for a cantrip.

As a base it does the same as Eldrich Blast, which is fair enough, but the damage is doubled if the target moves, so it would seem that after being hit by BB, everyone else gets to attack with Advantage if the target doesn't move (q.v. Held, Paralysed). That's way OTT for me.

Or am I missing something?

Giant2005 · Feb 6, 2016

I'm not even sure what you are trying to say - that last part about advantage is particularly confusing.

Either way, you are not wrong. Both Booming Blade and Green Flame Blade are exceptionally powerful compared to the other Cantrips. Only Eldritch Blast with its associated Invocations and Thunderclap (and the SCAG version of Thunderclap) can compete with them. Obviously the latter is only competitive with a significant number of enemies in range.

Rhogar_Rarr · Feb 6, 2016

At most, Booming blade does a few more points of damage than Eldritch Blast. But that is assuming you are using a two handed melee weapon and the target moves. Considering the trade of danger, being in melee, and the fact that you cannot split up the damage, it seems comparably fine to Eldritch Blast. This is without taking other spells and invocations, other than Agonizing Blast, into play as well (Like Hex or Repelling Blast).

However, I'm not going to deny that both of these cantrips are powerful. Both are some of the more powerful cantrips.

Booming Blade:
2d6+1d8+4=~15-16 damage +2d8 (on a move)=~24-25 damage
Eldritch Blast:
2d10+8=~19 damage

Edit: At level 5-10.

Auramancer · Feb 6, 2016

OP is missing something. The extra damage is triggered by moving (i.e. to a different location), not moving (i.e. wiggling your finger).

Giant2005 · Feb 6, 2016

Rhogar_Rarr said:
This is without taking other spells and invocation into play as well

Your math includes the use of invocations within it (Agonizing Blast in this case). Without invocations to beef it up, Eldritch Blast doesn't have a hope of keeping up with Booming Blade.

Rhogar_Rarr · Feb 6, 2016

Giant2005 said:
Your math includes the use of invocations within it (Agonizing Blast in this case). Without invocations to beef it up, Eldritch Blast doesn't have a hope of keeping up with Booming Blade.

Yeah I should have been more clear and have edited above. But to be fair, I've never seen a warlock without Agonizing Blast. And I've seen enough Warlocks that it almost feels like a given with the class.

Fanaelialae · Feb 6, 2016

It's powerful in the sense that it grants more control than a typical cantrip, but it isn't a damage maximizer per se.

Remember that it states that the target must willingly move from its space in order to trigger the extra damage. In a typical melee situation, the target has no reason to move, since there are probably combatants already engaged with it. Of course, if you can avoid that scenario (an arcane trickster who uses Cunning Action to dart in and then withdraw) and the creature has no ranged options, then you can potentially deal enormous damage to it (for a cantrip). But it's hardly a warlock's Eldritch Blast, which delivers all of the damage up front.

Also, as Auramancer said, the movement part refers to moving from your space (walking 5' from where you're standing). You can still move around inside of your space (to dodge, attack, etc) without triggering the damage.

Giant2005 · Feb 6, 2016

Rhogar_Rarr said:
Yeah I should have been more clear and have edited above. But to be fair, I've never seen a warlock without Agonizing Blast. And I've seen enough Warlocks that it almost feels like a given with the class.

Fair call. Although I have personally played Warlocks without the Invocation (Bladelocks) but even on a Bladelock it isn't a terrible choice to pick up. More importantly though, Eldritch Blast is a popular pick up via the Magic Initiate or Spell Sniper feats - even without Agonizing Blast it was the best cantrip damage option in the game prior to the SCAG.

bid · Feb 6, 2016

Quartz said:
so it would seem that after being hit by BB, everyone else gets to attack with Advantage if the target doesn't move (q.v. Held, Paralysed).

The target has no condition, restrained or other.

Cantrips are weak. Eldritch blast is only strong because agonizing blast adds Cha mod multiple times.
- fighter 20 = 4d12+20 = 46 damage
- EB 17th = 4d10+20 = 42 damage
- BB 17th = 1d12+5+3d8 + 4d8 = 43 damage

BB is weak because you only get a single attack and all the riders might be lost (sneak attack, for instance). It's bad for rogue and shield master at least.

BB is strong because it uses you attack stat (Str/Dex), making it a no-brainer for anyone with low Int/Cha. That's the killer OP point that gives lore bard, cleric and druid a strong melee attack.

tl;dr
BB is OP because you don't need to boost Int/Cha to use it.

Fanaelialae · Feb 6, 2016

bid said:
BB 17th = 1d12+5+3d8 + 4d8 = 43 damage

Your calculation assumes that the target will willingly move. If not:

BB 17th = 1d12+5+3d8 = 25 damage

And that assumes that the lore bard / cleric / druid has a 20 Str and picked up proficiency in a two-handed martial weapon, which is far from a foregone conclusion in my book.