D&D 5E Aberrant Mind question

[Guest 6801328]

In Tasha's the Aberrant Mind Sorcerer gets some free spells known. The description includes:

Whenever you gain a sorcerer level, you can replace one spell you gained from this feature with another spell of the same level. The new spell must be a divination or an enchantment spell from the sorcerer, warlock, or wizard spell list.

So, for example, when you reach 2nd level you could replace one of the 1st level spells (Arms of Hadar, Dissonant Whispers) for a new spell you like better.

Question: when you reach 3rd level, could you immediately replace one of the 2nd level spells you get (Calm Emotions, Detect Thoughts), or would you have to wait until 4th level to do that?

How would you rule?

 

[Benjamin Olson]

I'd definitely allow them to switch it at 3rd level. I think it's pretty ambiguous one way or the other, and it seems more thematic for Sorcerer spells to be more static rather than have a lot of them cycling through for only 1 level. There is enough delayed gratification in playing a Sorcerer through the low levels without adding in needing to hold on to a spell you never wanted for a level before you can get rid of it.

 

[DND_Reborn]

I make them wait a level until 4th. It isn't that long to wait and you just learned the spells, so how can you have time to learn something else???

If I played with a DM who ruled otherwise, it wouldn't matter that much.

 

[Swarmkeeper]

I think it is meant to be something the PC decides at 4th level, especially the way rules get parsed in this edition (looking at you Shield Master) That said, if a player made a decent story argument for why their particular PC should swap out calm emotions or detect thoughts for something else, I'd go with that.

It appears there are only 4 possible 2nd level spells that are really on the table here (meaning they are not usually available to sorcerers at all but are available to aberrant minds through this swap mechanic). These are enthrall, gift of gab, Jim's glowing coin, and locate object. Nothing game breaking there, IMO. Or, if the player wanted to swap out for a 1st level spell, the only non-sorcerer spells eligible include: hex, identify, and Tasha's hideous laughter.

I make them wait a level until 4th. It isn't that long to wait and you just learned the spells, so how can you have time to learn something else???

Sorcerers don't really need to spend time to "learn" spells - they just become infused with the ability to know them. So there's that.

 

[DND_Reborn]

Sorcerer's don't really need to spend time to "learn" spells - they just become infused with the ability to know them. So there's that.

LOL, fine, then they just got "infused" with the spells granted them...