D&D (2024) Creative uses of Thaumaturgy, Druidcraft and Elementalism?

[bedir than]

I think one of the biggest fails is that most of them are an action to cast. For such minor and often non-combat abilities, it ruins any really neat effects to waste an action in combat to do them.

Cutting them down to Bonus Action in most campaigns makes sense. Allowing them as a Reaction would help amplify their use in high, persistent magic settings.

 

[bedir than]

Another reason these don't get used as much is the perception that they take up a cantrip slot for a spell with more use.
Having each caster have a specific lifestyle cantrip is a better solution.

A musician or entertainer with Thaumaturgy to amplify their voice makes a ton of sense, but at the cost of 1 of 2 Cantrips? Probably not.

A farmer or herbalist with Druidcraft is again a perfect fit.

I love these cantrips for the story.

 

[Kobold Avenger]

A musician or entertainer with Thaumaturgy to amplify their voice makes a ton of sense, but at the cost of 1 of 2 Cantrips? Probably not.

Might be a reason why a lot of Tieflings become Bards.

 

[CreamCloud0]

I know the old Shape Water cantrip was used for ice cubes during our trek in Chult.

I think one of the biggest fails is that most of them are an action to cast. For such minor and often non-combat abilities, it ruins any really neat effects to waste an action in combat to do them.

For example: Thaumaturgy has several useless-but-cool looking effects like causing candles to flicker, doors to slam shut, or thunderclaps to happen. That would be awesome in combat if you moved across the battlefield to your enemies while spooky stuff was happening. But it costs an action to start the effect, meaning you can do anything useful like attack or cast a real spell while looking cool. If it were a bonus action, it wouldn't feel like such a waste of action economy (assuming you had nothing else going on with your bonus action, look cool is a viable use). but as is it requiring far too much setup for such a minor effect.

elementalism would be especially worthwhile for creating bonus action cover or 'steps' for manoeuvrability with blocks of earth or ice, but as a full action it really just doesn't feel like it's worth spending the action.

 

[lall]

Does the sensory effect of Druidcraft last forever, short of a weird use of Wish? It’s instantaneous, so it can’t be dispelled and the caster can’t dismiss it. The food and water from Create Food and Water sticks around, but at least you can move it. The spectral dancing fairies would persist in the same spot forever?

My character uses Druidcraft to perfume himself with lavendar scent

And with this, would the lavender scent stay in the same 5-foot cube forever, so when the character moves out of that cube, they no longer smell like lavender?

 

[Misanthrope Prime]

Thriwing open a door or window you know someone is on the other side of using thaumaturgy can be funny and maybe even cause damage if your DM is cool. Also helpful if you're like the tactical artificer I played once and you wanna toss in a dog cloud smoke grenade from afar

 

[Azzy]

My character uses Druidcraft to perfume himself with lavendar scent

Miles better than patchouli.

 

[kigmatzomat]

That's a part of the problem, at least with Thaumaturgy. It's not a combat spell, but it has nearly no real usefulness as a utility spell besides adding special effects. So when are you going to cast it? You don't need thunderclaps or ominous ravens when your setting up camp, no need change the color of candles in the local inn room. You want it to seem impressive and intimidating (not in the skill sense) but the times you want that are exactly the times your action is being used for combat or skill use.

For the reasons you give its nearly useless for PC clerics, but it is ideal for evil NPC clerics. I mean, if Fus-Ro-Dah is the verbal component/evil mantra of an evil priest, each use results in a progressively scarier effect. A door slams shur, a peal of thunder, candles change color, the priest's voice becomes impossibly loud, the ground begins to shake, the colors go back to normal but the priest's eyes glow the color the candles were.

In a low-magic setting, this is like distilled cult-leader.

However in settings where magic is more common thaumaturgy is better for bards than priests.

 

[lall]

This old thread: Is there anything stopping you from creating food and water with Prestidigitation? gets into creating food and water with Presty. For 5.5, I think one could make the RAW argument that Druidcraft could let you do something similar except the stuff created with Druidcraft could potentially last forever. Personally, I think each thing created would be limited to one sensory effect. You could arguably make invisible, inaudible, odorless, tasteless apples or water that you could feel and consume. Rather than wearing real clothes and shoes, you could make a visible wardrobe on/around your body that you couldn’t feel, taste, smell or hear, though that might not be advisable for the shoes if you can’t fly as your bare feet would feel the ground. If you need cold weather gear, make an invisible, odorless, tasteless, inaudible set of cold weather gear, the warmth of which you could feel. Arguably the same thing for armor and its bonuses to AC. None of it would detect as magic or be dispellable though I would think you’d have to count the weight of the cold weather gear and armor against your carrying capacity as you could feel those items. Few, if any DMs would allow this apart from maybe the clothes, but RAW it may work?

 

[DavyGreenwind]

Does the sensory effect of Druidcraft last forever, short of a weird use of Wish? It’s instantaneous, so it can’t be dispelled and the caster can’t dismiss it. The food and water from Create Food and Water sticks around, but at least you can move it. The spectral dancing fairies would persist in the same spot forever?

And with this, would the lavender scent stay in the same 5-foot cube forever, so when the character moves out of that cube, they no longer smell like lavender?

I'd say the sensory effect lasts as long as it normally would. Like, a spritz of perfume lasts maybe a few hours, at the most. But a wolf's growl would just happen and then be over. I'd rule that the smell moves with you. But that's just me. The Utility spells play better when they are used a little loosely.