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Message: <blockquote data-quote="BlivetWidget" data-source="post: 8142864" data-attributes="member: 6912801">Interestingly, it's not only those two spells.  WotC seems to have thrown in the multiple targets column as a red herring.  Let me just toss out a few examples.  These examples necessarily assume a hit / failed save.Level 1: Burning Hands.  DMG 283 says it should be 2d6 damage.  It's 3d6, with an expected value of 10.5 which is practically the same as the expected value (11) of the 2d10 in the single damage column.Level 2: Scorching Ray.  DMG 283 says it should be 4d6 damage.  It's 3 x 2d6, with an expected value of 21 which (after reducing to 75% to account for the attack roll, so 15.75) is practically the same as the expected value (16.5) of the 3d10 in the single damage column.Level 3: Fireball and Lightning Bolt have already been well-discussed.Level 4 Vitriolic Sphere.  DMG 283 says it should be 8d6 damage.  It's 10d4 + 5d4, with an expected value of 37 which is even higher than the expected value (33.0) of the 6d10 in the single damage column, though of course it hits over two rounds so let's handwave it to be roughly in line with the single damage column.I could go on, and there are other examples at even these levels, but my point is that WotC did not follow that table at all in the design of their own spells.  And a good thing too.  Blasting is already weak in 5e, a wizard is usually much better off with control spells.</blockquote>