EzekielRaiden
Follower of the Way
Realistically? You only need like...five? offense spells.
One decent, scales-okay ST option.
One decent, scales-okay AoE/multi-target option.
One decent zone-effect option.
One solid debuff, preferably AoE, unless it's a real potent single-target option.
One additional pick of preference, simply for variety.
You don't really need anything more than that. And certain spells even get eventually outclassed enough that you can just drop them entirely. Sorcerous burst, for example, is nearly strictly superior to chromatic orb once you hit 11th level; it has a (nearly) 1/3 chance to get at least one bonus die with no additional rolls required, while chromatic orb has a (just over) 1/3 chance to permit a second attack roll, and thus by definition a less than 1/3 chance to deal three bonus dice. Given the cantrip has no cost while the spell does, while it's not true that chromatic orb is totally pointless, it's definitely worth asking whether a spell slot is worth, say, a 1/4-ish chance to hit two targets. (That said, chromatic orb gets more benefit out of critting than sorcerous burst does, since it merely needs any two matching dice, rather than needing specifically one or more 8s.)
So, for example: take magic missile (good for clearing small groups or guaranteed minimum damage) and chromatic orb at 1st level. Take scorching ray at 3rd, and fireball at 4th. Yes, fireball gets outclassed over time, but it's probably the single most solid, reliable AoE spell in the game from level 5 to 8, and you'll get good use out of it (especially as a Sorcerer with Careful Spell). Pick any zone-type spell you like. I'm personally partial to sickening radiance, but there are plenty to choose from. Pick your debuff of choice--I've seen quite a bit of good use from Tasha's hideous laughter, but slow is also a good choice (part of why I like sickening radiance is that it pulls double duty, albeit with a mid-level slot rather than a low-level one.) I've got my set of five, with fireball as the additional pick of preference.
Other options are perfectly doable. Chromatic orb and witch bolt make another good starting pair, cloud of daggers is an acceptable (if small) zone effect, and storm sphere is a pretty solid mix of damage, zone, and control. Lightning bolt is unfortunately pretty weak because getting even three targets on a straight line from you (with no allies along that same line) is not easy, but lightning-element spells at 3rd level are not exactly growing on trees.
But yeah. You really only need like four or five spells for offense. Maybe eight if you're REALLY wanting to be sure that you always have something strong to bring to bear. Beyond that? Bob's your uncle. Do whatever you want. It's one of the reasons why I always find it very dubious when folks claim that spellcasters cannot be simultaneously good with utility effects, and also good at offense. It's quite easy to be good at offense, especially by level 5, without making any meaningful sacrifice at all to your utility potential.
One decent, scales-okay ST option.
One decent, scales-okay AoE/multi-target option.
One decent zone-effect option.
One solid debuff, preferably AoE, unless it's a real potent single-target option.
One additional pick of preference, simply for variety.
You don't really need anything more than that. And certain spells even get eventually outclassed enough that you can just drop them entirely. Sorcerous burst, for example, is nearly strictly superior to chromatic orb once you hit 11th level; it has a (nearly) 1/3 chance to get at least one bonus die with no additional rolls required, while chromatic orb has a (just over) 1/3 chance to permit a second attack roll, and thus by definition a less than 1/3 chance to deal three bonus dice. Given the cantrip has no cost while the spell does, while it's not true that chromatic orb is totally pointless, it's definitely worth asking whether a spell slot is worth, say, a 1/4-ish chance to hit two targets. (That said, chromatic orb gets more benefit out of critting than sorcerous burst does, since it merely needs any two matching dice, rather than needing specifically one or more 8s.)
So, for example: take magic missile (good for clearing small groups or guaranteed minimum damage) and chromatic orb at 1st level. Take scorching ray at 3rd, and fireball at 4th. Yes, fireball gets outclassed over time, but it's probably the single most solid, reliable AoE spell in the game from level 5 to 8, and you'll get good use out of it (especially as a Sorcerer with Careful Spell). Pick any zone-type spell you like. I'm personally partial to sickening radiance, but there are plenty to choose from. Pick your debuff of choice--I've seen quite a bit of good use from Tasha's hideous laughter, but slow is also a good choice (part of why I like sickening radiance is that it pulls double duty, albeit with a mid-level slot rather than a low-level one.) I've got my set of five, with fireball as the additional pick of preference.
Other options are perfectly doable. Chromatic orb and witch bolt make another good starting pair, cloud of daggers is an acceptable (if small) zone effect, and storm sphere is a pretty solid mix of damage, zone, and control. Lightning bolt is unfortunately pretty weak because getting even three targets on a straight line from you (with no allies along that same line) is not easy, but lightning-element spells at 3rd level are not exactly growing on trees.
But yeah. You really only need like four or five spells for offense. Maybe eight if you're REALLY wanting to be sure that you always have something strong to bring to bear. Beyond that? Bob's your uncle. Do whatever you want. It's one of the reasons why I always find it very dubious when folks claim that spellcasters cannot be simultaneously good with utility effects, and also good at offense. It's quite easy to be good at offense, especially by level 5, without making any meaningful sacrifice at all to your utility potential.
